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RELIGION IN AMERICA;

OE, AN ACCOUNT OP

TUE ORIGIN, PROGRESS, RELATION TO THE STATE, AND PRESENT CONDITION OF TEE
EVANGELICAL CHURCHES IN THE UNITED STATES.

WITH NOTICES OF THE UNEVANGELICAL DENOMINATIONS

ROBERT BAIRD,

AUTHOR OF

'L'UNION DE L'EGLISE AVEC L'ETAT DANS LA NOUVELLE ANGLETERRE."

NEW-YORK:

PUBLISHED BY HARPER & BROTHERS,

No. 82 Cliff-Steeet.

18 4 4.

Entered, according to Act of Congress, in the year 1844, by

Harper & Brothkus,
In the Clerk's Office of the Southern District of New-York.

RECOMMENDATORY NOTICE

BY THE

REV. DRS. DAVID WELSH, WILLIAM CUNNINGHAM, AND ROBERT

BUCHANAN.

Having had an opportunity of perusing a considerable portion of the following work
■while it was passing through the press, we have no hesitation in complying with a re-
quest made to us by the publishers, to recommend it to the attention of the British
public. The author is an esteemed minister of the American Presbyterian Church,
and has had full access to the best and most authentic sources of information on the
various subjects which he discusses, while his personal acquaintance with the state of
religion and the condition of the churches, both in Britain and on the Continent, has
afforded him peculiar advantages in selecting the materials with regard to the state of
religion, and the efforts made for its promotion in America, which it might be most in-
teresting and useful for the British churches to possess and to examine. The work
contains a very large amount of interesting and valuable information with regard to the
origin and the history of the different religious bodies in the United States, and their
doctrines, constitution, organization, and agency, their relations with each other, and
the character and results of the efforts they are making to promote religion in their
own country and in other lands. It supplies a larger amount of information upon all
these important topics than any work with which we are acquainted ; and there can
be no reasonable doubt that the information it contains is well fitted to encourage the
efforts of all churches which are similarly situated to those in America, and to afford
some important practical lessons in the prosecution of those great objects which all
Christian churches, in every variety of external circumstances, are bound to aim at.
We do not agree in all the opinions which the esteemed author has expressed, but we
admire the judicious, benevolent, candid, and catholic spirit by which the work is per-
vaded. We regard the publication of this work in our own country as a boon conferred
upon the British churches, not merely because it gives a fuller view than could any-
where else be obtained of " Religion in America," but also because it is well fitted to
promote a spirit of love and kindness among the churches of Christ, and to diffuse more
widely the benefits which may be derived from a judicious use of the experience of the;
American churches, in the peculiar circumstances in which, in providence, they have
been placed, and in connexion with the peculiar way in which the Head of the Church
has been pleased to make them instrumental in accomplishing his gracious purposes.
Whatever diversities of opinion may prevail in this country on some important points
connected with the condition and prospects of religion in America, no candid man will
deny that religion has there been placed in circumstances, and has appeared in aspects,
which are well worthy of serious consideration, and from a judicious investigation of
which, important practical lessons are to be learned. And on this ground we hail with
much satisfaction the publication of a work which contains a very large amount of in-
formation upon this interesting and important subject, and cordially recommend it to

the perusal of British Christians.

David Welsh,
William Cunningham,
Robert Buchanan.

Edinburgh, September, 1843.

PREFACE TO THE AMERICAN EDITION.

The reader will learn from the preface to the English edition of this work,
that it was originally intended to meet the wishes of Christians on the Conti-
nent. Valued friends in Great Britain having, however, expressed the belief
that it might be useful in that country, it was published there in the month of
September last, being introduced to the Christian public by the very kind and
flattering recommendation of the Rev. Drs. Welsh, Buchanan, and Cunning-
ham, of Edinburgh. Upon his return to this country in November, the en-
terprising publishers who present this work to the American public having
expressed their willingness to undertake its publication, the author at once ap-
plied himself to the task of giving it a thorough revision, in order to make it
as useful as possible in this country. In doing so, he has availed himself of
the aid of many excellent men of almost all our evangelical denominations, in
order to give not only the most exact, but also the most recent information
respecting our churches.

And although the well-informed American reader will see many things in
this book with which he is already familiar, yet it is presumed he will find
some things, especially taken in the connexion in which they are presented,
that may both interest and profit him. There is no work among us that goes
over the whole ground which the author has attempted to survey and de-
scribe in this book.

At first he thought of abridging certain portions, especially the first, fourth,
and fifth books ; but he was dissuaded from this by the publishers, who pre-
ferred to give it entire, and to put it at a price which would place it within
the reach of all who might wish to have it.

The reader will perceive that the work throughout, even in its American
dress, bears the stamp of being written, as it really was, for the perusal, and
the author would fain hope the benefit, of Europeans. To have altered this
would have required the remodelling of the whole plan of the work ; nor
was it necessary, inasmuch as the information is just as well conveyed in the
one form as in the other.

In writing this work, the author, if he has not been self-deceived, has simply
aimed at giving a faithful picture of the religious and moral state of his coun-
try. He has endeavoured to write in strict accordance with fact and truth.
He trusts that in doing so he has not violated that Christian charity which
ought to regulate our opinions as well as our actions in relation to others. It
has given him great pleasure to speak of the zeal and the prosperity of all the
evangelical denominations in our land ; and if he has said anything which

vi PREFACE TO THE AMERICAN EDITION.

may not be entirely acceptable to them, he begs that it may be ascribed to
inadvertence or want of correct information. Of those which are, in his
opinion, not evangehcal, he has tried to say what he deems to be the truth,
in no unkindness of spirit. He felt compelled, however, to follow what he
believed to be the clear demands of truth.

It is probable that many readers will not agree with the author in all his
statements and computations, especially those which are contained in the
Conclusion of the work. He only requests such persons to take the pains
w^hich he has done to examine into the facts of the case ; and then, if they
differ from him, he can have no reason to complain. But he is of the opinion
■that but few people have taken the trouble necessary to form a correct judg-
ment respecting either the present state or the past progress of evangelical
religion among us. In what he has written on this subject, he has endeav-
oured to state only what appeared to him to be true. It is due to candour,
however, to say, that it is possible a strong feeling of patriotism — he hopes a
Christian patriotism — may have led him to take a more favourable view of
some things than others may be able to do.

He is aware that on some subjects he has incurred the danger of those
who would walk over hidden fires ; but he trusts to that " charity" which will
believe that he has tried to discuss these matters in an impartial spirit.

The work in its American form is that from which the translation is to be
made into French, and probably into German and one or two other langua-
ges on the Continent. The author has, therefore, made it more full on some
points, and especially in its summary statements in the Conclusion, than it is
in the English edition.

Such as it is, he commends it to the blessing of God, and bespeaks for it a
candid consideration on the part of his countrymen and fellow-Christians.

New-York, January, 1844.

PREFACE.

A FEW words respecting the circumstances which have led to the prep-
aration and publication of the work now submitted to the reader seem to be
required by way of preface.

In the year 1835, at the instance of several distinguished Christian gentle-
men of his native land, the author visited the Continent of Europe for the
prosecution of certain religious and philanthropic objects, and in this pursuit
he has been employed during the eight years that have since elapsed. He
has had occasion, in the course of that period, to visit repeatedly almost every
country on the Continent, and has been led, also, to spend some time, more
than once, in England and in Scotland, from the latter of which two countries
his forefathers were compelled, by persecution, to emigrate two hundred years
ago.

In the course of his Continental journies, his engagements introduced him
to the acquaintance of a goodly number of distinguished individuals, belong-
ing to almost all professions and stations in society. Among these are many
who rank high in their respective countries for enlightened piety, zeal, and
usefulness in their several spheres. From such persons the author has had
innumerable inquiries addressed to him, in all the places he has visited, some-
times by letter, but oftener in conversation, respecting his native country, and
especially respecting its religious institutions. To satisfy such inquiries when
addressed to him by an illustrious individual,* whom God has called from the
scene of her activity in this world to Himself, he wrote a small work on the
Origin and Progress of Unitarianism in the United States.f But that little
work, while it so far satisfied curiosity on one subject, seemed but to augment
it with regard to others ; so that, without neglecting what was by his friends
as well as himself deemed a manifest duty, the author had no alternative
but to accede to the earnest request of some distinguished friends in Ger-
many, Sweden, France, and Switzerland, that he would write a work as
extensive as the subject might require, on the origin, history, economy, ac-
tion, and influence of religion in the United States. This task he has en-
deavoured to accomplish in the course of the summer and autumn that have
just elapsed, and which he has been permitted to spend in this ancient city,
whose institutions, and the influence of whose great Reformer, have, through
their bearings on the history of England and Scotland, so greatly affected

* The late Duchess de Broglie.

t This work was published in Paris in 1837, under the title, " L'Union de I'Eglise et de I'Etat dana U
JJouvelle Angleterre."

Tiii PREFACE.

the colonization, political government, and religious character of the greater
part of North America.

His aim throughout this work has been, neither to construct a theory on
any controverted point in the economy of the Church, or its relations to the
State in any European country, nor to defend the political organizations of
his own, or the conduct of its government, on any measure, properly political,
whether of foreign or domestic policy. His sole and simple object has been
to delineate the religious doctrines and institutions of the United States, and
to trace their influence, from their first appearance in the country down to the
present time, with as little reference as possible to any other.

The author has mingled freely with his Protestant brethren in all the coun-
tries of Europe where Protestants are to be found, whatever might be their
political sentiments, and whatever the religious communions to which they
belonged. He has received nothing but kindness from them all. And while
it would be the merest affectation of impartiality, and most unbecoming in
him as a Christian, to profess having formed no opinion on the various ques-
tions so warmly discussed among them, and especially on the relations which
do, or ought to, subsist between the Church and the State — a question so
much agitated at the present moment in some countries, and which seems
destined, ere long, to be so in many others — yet he can most conscientiously
say that he has not allowed himself to be involved in any of them, nor is he
aware of having written a sentence in the present work with the view either
of supporting or opposing any of them. He has endeavoured to confine him-
self throughout to a faithful exhibition of the religious institutions of his native
country — their nature, their origin, their action, and their effects. His first
desire has been to satisfy the reasonable curiosity of those at whose request
he writes ; his second and most strenuous endeavour has been to promote the
extension of the Messiah's kingdom in the world, by communicating some in-
formation respecting measures which, through God's blessing, have proved
useful in America without having anything to adapt them to that country
more than to any other.

The more that the author has seen of the Christian world, the more has he
been impressed with the conviction that, whatever relations the churches
maintain with the civil powers, whatever their exterior forms or even their
internal discipline, nothing in these respects can compensate for the want of
soundness of doctrine and vital piety. Not that, as some seem to do, he would
treat those things as matters of indiflference ; for he firmly believes the main-
tenance and promotion of true rehgion to be much affected by them ; but it
is not in them that we are to look for that panacea for all evils which many
hope to find in them, or any substitute for the agency which God has ap-
pointed for securing the effectual reception of his glorious salvation. That
agency, he humbly conceives, is the presentation of the Gospel in all its ful-
ness, in all proper ways, and on all suitable occasions, by a spiritually-minded
ministry, ordained and set apart to that work, combined with holy living,,
faithful co-operation in their proper spheres, and earnest prayer on the part
of the members, in general, of the churches. The parts of his work, accord-

PREFACE. ix

ingly, that relate to this agency and its results in the experience of the church-
es in the United States, are those in which he himself feels most interest, and
to which he would specially direct the attention of the reader.

The author has divided his work into eight Books. The First is devoted
to preliminary remarks intended to throw light on various points, so that
readers the least conversant with American history and society may, without
difficulty, understand what follows. Some of these preliminary remarks may^
be thought at first not very pertinent to the subject in hand, but reasons will
probably be found for changing this opinion before the reader comes to the
end of the volume.

The Second Book treats of the early colonization of the country now form-
ing the United States ; the religious character of the first European colonists
— their ecclesiastical institutions — and the state of the churches when the
Revolution took place by which the colonies became independent of the
mother-country.

The Third treats of the changes involved in and consequent upon that
event — the influence of those changes — the character of the civil governments
of the States — and the relations subsisting between those governments and
the churches.

The Fourth exhibits the operations of the voluntary system in the United
States, and the extent of its influence.

The Fifth treats of the discipline of the churches — the character of Ameri-
can preaching — and the subject of revivals.

The Sixth is occupied with brief notices of the evangelical denominations
in the United States — their ecclesiastical polity and discipline — the doctrines
peculiar to each — their history and prospects.

The Seventh treats in like manner of the unevangelical sects.

The Eighth shows what the churches are doing in the way of sending the
Gospel to other lands.

From the very nature of such a work, it was requisite that the author should
consult many authorities. In order to procure the requisite materials, he
visited his native country last year, and so abundantly was he supplied with
what he needed, that, in the actual execution of his task, he found himself in
want of only one or two books and documents, and these of no essential im-
portance.

But he would be guilty of great injustice were he not to acknowledge his
obligations to many distinguished friends in America for their kind co-opera-
tion and aid. Without naming all who have anywise assisted him by furnish-
ing necessary documents, or in communicating important facts, he cannot
forbear to mention the names of the Rev. Drs. Dewitt, Hodge, Goodrich,
Bacon, Anderson, Durbin, Emerson, and Schmucker, and the Rev. Messrs.
Tracy, Berg, and Allen.* To the secretaries of almost all the Religious So-
cieties and Institutions in the country he is also greatly indebted for the Re-

* These gentlemen belong to the Reformed Dutch, Presbyterian, Congregational, Methodist, Lutheran,
German Reformed, and Baptist churches, and are among the most distinguished ministers in the United
States.

I PREFACE.

ports, and in many cases, also, for the valuable hints they have furnished.
Nor can he omit to acknowledge the kindness of Dr. How^e, Principal of the
Institute for the Blind at Boston, the Rev. Mr. Weld, Principal of the Deaf
and Dumb Asylum at Hartford, in Connecticut, and Dr. Woodward, Director
of the Hospital for the Insane at Worcester, Massachusetts.

For the invaluable chapter on Revivals, the reader, as well as the author,
is indebted to the Rev. C. A. Goodrich, D.D., who has long been a distin-
guished professor in Yale College, at New-Haven, in Connecticut, than whom
no man in the United States is more capable of treating that subject in a ju-
dicious and philosophical manner.

Nor should the names of the Honourable Henry Wheaton, the Minister for
the United States of America at the court of Prussia, and of Robert Walsh,
Esq., now residing in Paris, be omitted. Among other obligations, to the
former of these gentlemen, the author is indebted for some views which the
reader will find in the Third Book ; and he has to thank the latter for many
important suggestions which he has found much reason to appreciate in the
course of his work. He makes this acknowledgment with the more pleasure,
because Mr. Walsh is a Roman Catholic, and yet, with a kindness and liber-
ality in every way remarkable, he tendered his assistance with the full knowl-
edge that the author is a decided Protestant, and that his work, however
liberal the spirit in which it is written, was to be of a thoroughly Protestant
character.

One word more to the English reader. The author deems it right to say
that his work was originally designed and primarily written for Germany
and other countries on the Continent of Europe. Accordingly, it is fuller on
some points than was absolutely requisite for British readers, these being,
no doubt, better acquainted with the United States than are the inhabitants
of the Continent.

Deeply sensible that the work is far from perfect, he commends it, never-
theless, to the blessing of Him without whose favour nothing that is good can
be accomplished.

Geneva (Switzerland), September, 1843.

CONTENTS.

BOOK I.

PRELIMINARY REMARKS. ^

Chap. I. — General Notice of North America . 9

Chap. II. — The Aborigines of North America . 11

Chap. III. — Discovery of that Part of North
America which is comprised in the Limits of
the United States. — The early and unsuc-
cessful Attempts to Colonize it . . .15

Chap. IV. — The Colonization of the Territo-
ries now constituting the United States at
length accomplished 17

Chap. V. — Interior Colonization of the Country 20

Chap. VI. — Peculiar Qualifications of the An-
glo-Saxon Race for the Work of Coloniza-
tion 23

Chap. VII. — On the alleged Want of National
Character in America 25

Chap. VIII.— The Royal Charters . . .27

Chap. IX. — How a correct Knowledge of the
American People, the Nature of their Gov-
ernment, and of their National Character may
best be attained 29

Chap. X. — How to obtain a correct View of the
Spirit and Character of the Religious Institu-
tions of the United States . . . .31

Chap. XI. — A brief Notice of the Form of Gov-
ernment in America 33

Chap. XII. — A brief Geographical Notice of the
United States 35

Chap. XIII. — Obstacles which the Voluntary
System in supporting Religion has had to en-
counter in America: 1. From the erroneous
Opinions on the Subject of Religious Econo-
my which the Colonists brought with them . 37

Chap. XIV. — Obstacles which the Voluntary
System has had to encounter in America : 2.
From the Newness of the Country, the Thin-
ness of the Population, and the unsettled state
of Society 39

Chap. XV. — Obstacles which the Voluntary
System has had to encounter in America : 3.
From Slavery 40

Chap. XVI. — Obstacles which the Voluntary
System has had to encounter in America : 4.
From the vast Emigration from Foreign Coun-
tries 42

BOOK II.

THE COLONIAL ERA.

Chap. I. — Religious Character of the early Col-
onists.— Founders of New-England . . 44

Chap. II. — Religious Character of the Founders
of New-England. — Plymouth Colony . . 47

Chap. III. — Religious Character of the early
Colonists. — Founders of New-England. — Col-
ony of Massachusetts Bay . . . .51

Chap. IV. — Religious Character of the early
Colonists. — Founders of New-England. — Col-
onies of Connecticut, Rhode Island, New-
Hampshire, and Maine. — General Itemarks . 56

Chap. V. — Religious Character of the early
Colonists. — Founders of the Southern States 60

Chap. VI. — Religious Character of the early
Colonists. — Colonists of New- York . . 64

Chap. VII. — Religious Character of the early
Colonists. — Founders of New-Jersey . . 66

Chap. VIII. — Religious Character of the early
Colonists. — Founders of Delaware, at first
called New Sweden 68

Chap. IX. — Religious Character of the early
Colonists. — Founders of Pennsylvania . . 69

Chap. X. — Religious Character of the early
Colonists.— Emigrants from Wales . . 71

Page

Chap. XI. — Religious Character of the early
Colonists of America. — Emigrants from Scot-
land and Ireland 71

Chap. XII. — Religious Character of the early
Colonists. — Huguenots from France . . 75

Chap. XIII. — Religious Character of the early
Colonists. — Emigrants from Germany . . 80

Chap. XIV. — Rehgious Character of the early
Colonists. — Emigrants from Poland . . 81

Chap. XV. — Rehgious Character of the early
Colonists. — Emigrants from the Vallies of
Piedmont 82

Chap. XVI.— Summary 82

Chap. XVII. — Relations between the Churches
and the Civil Power in the Colonies of Amer-
ica.— 1. In New-England . . . .84

Chap. XVIII. — Relations between the Church
and the Civil Power in the Colonies. — 2. In
the Southern and Middle Provinces . . 83

Chap. XIX. — The Influences of the Union of
Church and State, as it formerly existed in
America. — 1. In New-England . . .91

Chap. XX. — The Influences of the Union of
Church and State. — 2. In the Southern and
Middle States 96

Chap. XXI. — State of Religion during the Co-
lonial Era 99

BOOK III.

THE NATIONAL ERA.

Chap. I. — Effects of the Revolution upon Reli-
gion.— Changes to which it necessarily gave
rise 102

Chap. II. — The Dissolution of the Union of
Church and State not etfected by the General
Government, nor did it take place immediately 104

Chap. III. — Dissolution of the Union of Church
and State in America, when and how effected 105

Chap. IV. — Effects of the Dissolution of the
Union of Church and State in the several
States in which it once subsisted . . . 112

Chap. V. — Whether the General Government
of the United States has the Power to pro-
mote Religion 116

Chap. VI. — Whether the Government of the
United States may justly be called Infidel or
Atheistical 118

Chap. VII. — The Government of the United
States shown to be Christian by its Acts . 120

Chap. VIII. — The Governments of the Individ-
ual States organized on the basis of Christi-
anity 122

Chap. IX. — The Legislation of the States
shown to be in favour of Christianity . . 124

Chap. X. — The Legislation of the States often
bears favourably, though incidentally, on the
cause of Religion 126

Chap. XI. — In what cases the action of the
Civil Authority may be directed in reference
to Religion 127

Chap. XII. — Review of the ground which we
have gone over 129

BOOK IV.

the VOLUNTARY PRINCIPLE IN AMERICA; ITS
ACTION AND INFLUENCE.

Chap. I. — The Voluntary Principle the great
Alternative. — The Nature and Vastness of its
Mission 129

Chap. II. — Foundation of the Voluntary Princi-
ple to be sought for in the Character and
Habits of the People of the United States . 131

CONTENTS.

Page

Chap. III.— How Church Edifices are built in
the Cities and large Towns .... 132

Chap. IV. — How Church Edifices are built in
the New Settlements 134

Chap. V. — The Voluntary Principle developed.
— How the Salaries of the Pastors are raised 136

Chap. VI. — How Ministers of the Gospel are
brought forward, and how they become set-
lied Pastors 138

Chap. VII. — The Voluntary Principle developed
in Home Missions. — American Home Mission-
ary Society 140

Chap. VIII. — Presbyterian Board of Domestic
Missions, under the Direction of the General
Assembly 142

Chap. IX. — Home Missions of the Episcopal,
Baptist, and Reformed Dutch Churches . 144

Chap. X. — Home Missions of the Methodist
Episcopal Church 145

Chap. XI. — The Voluntary Principle developed.
— Influence of the Voluntary Principle on Ed-
ucation.— Of Prunary Schools . . 146

Chap. XII. — Grammar-schools and Academies 148

Chap. XIII. — Colleges and Universities . . 150

Chap. XIV. — Suiiday-schools. — American Sun-
day-school Union, and other Sunday-school
Societies 152

Chap. XV.— Bible-classes . . . .156

Chap. XVI. — Maternal Societies . . . 156

Chap. XVII. — Education Societies . , . 157

Chap. XVKI. — Theological Seminaries . . 159

Chap. XIX. — Eflbrts to diffuse the Sacred
Scriptures 166

Chap. XX. — Associations for the Circulation
and Publication of Religious Tracts and Books 167

Chap. XXI. — The Religious Literature of the
United States 169

Chap. XXII. — Efforts to promote the Religious
and Temporal Interests of Seamen . . 172

Chap. XXIII.— Of the Influence of the Volunta-
ry Principle in reforming existing Evils. —
Temperance Societies 172

Chap. XXIV. — The American Prison Discipline
Society 174

Chap. XXV. — Sundry other Associations . 176

Chap. XXVI. — Influence of the Voluntary Prin-
ciple on the Beneficent Institutions of the
Country 177

Chap. XXVII. — Influence of the Voluntary
Principle on the Beneficent Institutions of the
Country. — Asylums for the Insane . . . 178

Chap. XXVIII. — Influence of the Voluntary
Principle on the Beneficent Institutions of the
Country. — Asylums for the Deaf and Dumb . 179

Chap. XXIX. — Influence of the Voluntary Prin-
ciple on the Beneficent Institutions of the
Country. — Asylums for the Blind . . . 180

Chap. XXX. — Concluding Remarks on the
Development of the Voluntary Principle . 181

BOOK V.

the church and the pulpit in AMERICA.

Chap. I. — Importance of this Part of the Sub-
ject 183

Chap. II. — The Evangelical Churches in the

United States maintain Discipline . . . 183
Chap. J II. — The Way in which Membership in

our Churches is obtained .... 185
Chap. IV.— 'I'he Relations which unconverted

Men hold to the Church . . . .187
Chap. V. — The Administration of Discipline . 189
Chap. VI. — Character of American Preaching 189
Chap. VII. — Revivals of Religion . . 196
Chap. VIII. — Supplementary Remarks on Re-
vivals of Religion 213

Chap. IX. — Alleged Abuses in Revivals of Re-
ligion 214

Page-
Chap. X. — Concluding Remarks on the Church
and the Pulpit in America .... 218

BOOK VI.

the evangelical churches in AMERICA.

Chap. I. — Preliminary Remarks in reference to

this Subject 219

Chap. II.— The Protestant Episcopal Church . 220
Chap. HI.— The Congregational Churches . 223
Chap. IV.— The Regular Baptist Churches . 229
Chap. V.— The Presbyterian Church . . 233
Chap. VI.— The Methodist Episcopal Church . 245
Chap. VII.— The Moravian Church . . .250
Chap. VIII. — Smaller Baptist Denominations . 251
Chap. IX. — Smaller Presbyterian Churches. —

Cumberland Presbyterians .... 252
Chap. X. — Smaller Presbyterian Churches. —

Reformed Dutch Church .... 253
Chap. XI. — Smaller Presbyterian Churches. —
The Associate Church. — The Associate Re-
formed Church, and the Reformed Presbyte-
rian Church 255

Chap. XII. — Smaller Presbyterian Churches. —

The Lutheran Church 257

Chap. XIII. — Smaller Presbyterian Churches.

— The German Reformed Church . . . 260
Chap. XIV.— Smaller German Sects . . 261
Chap. XV. — Smaller Methodist Denominations 262
Chap. XVI.— The Friends or Quakers . . 263
Chap. XVII.— The Summary . . . .264
Chap. XVIII.— Number of Evangelical Sects . 266
Chap. XIX. — Alleged Want of Harmony among
the Evangelical Christians of the United
States 267

BOOK VII.

UNEVANGELICAL denominations in AMERICA.

Chap. I. — Introductory Remarks . . . 269
Chap. II.— The Roman Catholic Church . . 270

Chap. 111. — Unitarianism 272

Chap. IV.— The Christ-ian Connexion . . 280
Chap. V.— The Universalists . . . .281
Chap. VI. Swedenborgians and Tunkers . . 282

Chap. VII.— The Jews 283

Chap. VIII. — Rappists, Shakers, Mormons, &;c. 283
Chap. IX. — Atheists, Deists, Socialists, Four-

rierists, &c 286

Chap. X. — General Remarks on the State of

Theological Opinion in America . . . 287

BOOK VIII.

EFFORTS OF THE AMERICAN CHURCHES FOR THE
CONVERSION OF THE WORLD.

Chap. I. — Introductory Remarks . . . 292

Chap. II. — Earlier Eflbrts to convert the Abori-
gines 293

Chap. III. — American Board of Commissioners
for Foreign Missions 299

Chap. IV. — Board of Foreign Missions of the
Presbyterian Church 307

Chap. V. — Missions of the Baptist Churches . 309

Chap. VI. — Foreign Missions of the Methodist
Episcopal Church 310

Chap. VII. — Board of Missions of the Protest-
ant Episcopal Church 311

Chap. VIII. — Foreign Missions of other Denom-
inations 312

Chap. IX. — American Society for Ameliorating
the Condition of the Jews . . . .313

Chap. X. — Foreign Evangelical Society of the
United States . 313

Chap. XI. — American Colonization Society . 314

Chap. XII. — Summary 317

Conclusion 3L8

RELIGION IN AMERICA.

BOOK I.

PRELIMINARY REMARKS.

CHAPTER I.

GENERAL NOTICE OF NORTH AMERICA.

The configuration of the Continent of
North America, at first view, presents sev-
eral remarkable features. Spreading out
like a partially open fan, with its apex to-
wards the south, its coasts, in advancing
northward, recede from each other with
considerable regularity of proportion and
correspondence, until, from being separa-
ted by only sixty miles at the Isthmus of
Darien, they diverge to the extent of 4500
miles ; the east coast pursuing a northeast-
ern, and the west a nothwestern direction.

Parallel to these coasts, and at almost
equal distances from them, there are two
ranges of mountains. The eastern range,
called the Alleghany, or Appalachian, runs
fiom southwest to northeast, at an average
distance of 150 miles from the Atlantic.
Its length is usually estimated at 900 miles.*
Its greatest width, which is in Virginia and
Pennsylvania, is about 120 miles. Rather
a system, than a range, of mountains, it
is composed of parallel ridges, generally
maintaining a northeast and southwest di-
rection. But as it advances towards its
northern extremity, and passes through the
New-England States, it loses much of its
continuity, and gradually runs off into a
chain of nearly isolated mountains. The
southern extremity gradually sinks down
into the hills of Georgia, unless, indeed,
we may consider it as disappearing in the
low, central line of the peninsula of Flori-
da. The northeastern end terminates in
the ridges of Nova Scotia. The whole of
this range is within the limits of the Uni-
ted States, excepting that part of it which
stretches into the British Provinces of New
Brunswick and Nova Scotia. We may re-
mark, in passing, that although this mount-
ain range apparently separates the waters
which flow into the Atlantic Ocean from
those which fall into the Mississippi and
the St. Lawrence, such is not really the

* This is the length of the chain considered as a
continuous range, from the northern parts of Geor-
gia and Alabama to the State of New -York. Taken
in the extensive sense in which it is spoken of in the
text, the entire range exceeds 1500 English miles.

case. These mountains simply stand, as it
were, on the plateau or elevated plain on
which those waters have their origin. Ri-
sing in the immediate vicinity of each other,
and often interlocking, these streams are not
in the least affected in their course by the
mountains, the gaps and valleys of which
seem to have been made to accommodate
them, instead of their accommodating
themselves to the shape and position of the
mountains. In a part of its northern ex-
tension, this range of mountains seems to
detach itself entirely from the plain where
those streams have their source, and lies
quite east of it, so that the streams that
fall into the Atlantic, in making their way
to the southeast, as it were, cut through
the mountain range, in its entire width.

When first discovered by Europeans, and
for a century and more afterward, the long
and comparatively narrow strip of country
between the Alleghany range and the At-
lantic Ocean was covered with an unbro-
ken forest. The mountains, likewise, up
to their very summits, and the valleys that
lay between them, were clad with wood.
Nothing deserving the name of a field, or
a prairie, was anywhere to be seen.

On the western side of the continent, as
has been stated, another range of mount-
ains runs parallel to the coast of the Pa-
cific Ocean. This range is a part of the im-
mense system of mountains running from
Cape Horn throughout the entire length
of the continent, and seems as if intended,
like the backbone in large animals, to give
it unity and strength. It is by far the long-
est in the world ;* and bearing different
names in different parts of its extent, it is
the Andes in South America, the Cordille-
ras in Guatimala and Mexico, and the Rocky
Mountains! "^ ^he north.

The long, and, in many parts, wide strip
of land between the Oregon Mountains
and the Pacific Ocean, is claimed, on the

* The entire length of this range is estimated to
be 9000 English miles.

t The proper name of this portion of the range is
Oregon, a word of Indian origin, and which, whatev-
er may be its original signification, is a much better
name than that which it has so long borne, and which
has nothing distinctive about it, for all mountains
are rocky.

RELIGION IN AMERICA.

[Book L

north, by Russia ; on the south, by Mexico ;
and in the middle, by England and the Uni-
ted States.

Between these two ranges of mountains
— the Alleghany on the east and the Ore-
gon on the west — lies the immense Cen-
tral Valley of North America, wider in
the north than towards the south, and
reaching from the Northern Ocean to the
Gulf of Mexico. It is the most extensive
valley in the world, and is composed of two
vast sections, separated by a zigzag line
of table-land. This ridge, which is of no
great elevation, and which commences near
the 42° of north latitude on one side, while
it terminates near the 49° on the other,
stretches across from the Alleghany sys-
tem to the Oregon, and thus separates,
also, the waters that flow southward into
the Gulf of Mexico, from those flowing in
the opposite direction into the northern
seas. Thus the one section of this great
valley inclines to the south, the other gen-
tly, nay, almost imperceptibly, descends to-
wards the north. The former is drained
mainly by one great river and its numerous
branches, called, in the pompous language
of the Aborigines of the country, the Mis-
sissippi, or Father of Waters. The latter
is drained by the St. Lawrence, falling into
the Northern Atlantic ; the Albany and oth-
er streams falling into Hudson's Bay ; and
by M'Kenzie's River, which falls into the
Arctic Ocean.

These great sections of this immense
valley diff'er much in character. The north-
ern possesses a considerable extent of com-
paratively elevated and very fertile land in
its southern part ; while towards the north
it subsides to a low, monotonous, swampy
plain, little elevated above the level of the
ocean, and, by reason of its marshes, bogs,
and inhospitable climate, is almost as unin-
habitable as it is incapable of cultivation.
The southern section — more commonly
called the Valley of the Mississippi — termi-
nates on the low, marshy coast of the Gulf
of Mexico ; but, with the exception of the
part of it which lies on the upper streams
of the Red River and La Platte, it eve-
rywhere abounds in fertile land, covered,
for the most part, even yet, with noble for-
ests, or adorned with beautiful prairies.
The St. Lawrence is the great river of the
northern section or basin, thougli not with-
out a rival in the M'Kenzie's River; wliile
its southern rival, the Mississippi, flows al-
most alone in its vast domain. There are,
however, the Alabama and a few small
rivers on its left, and the Sabine, tlio Bra-
zos, and some others of lesser note on its
right. The St. Lawrence boasts a length
of more than 2000 miles. Tliat of tlie
Mississippi exceeds 2500 ; and if the Mis-
souri be considered the main upper branch,
as it ought to be, then it may fairly claim
the honour of dragging its vast length, with

many a fold, through more than 4000 miles..
But, though exceeded by the Mississippi in
length, the St. Lawrence clearly has the
advantage in depth and noble expansion
towards its mouth, being navigable for the
largest ships of war as high as Quebec, 340
miles ; and for large merchant vessels to
Montreal, 180 miles farther; whereas the
Mississippi does not reach the medium
width of a mile, nor a depth in the shallow
places of the central channel, when the
stream runs low, of more than fifteen feet ;
so that, excepting when in flood, it is not
navigable by ships of 500 tons for more than
300 miles. The St. Lawrence, and all the
other considerable rivers of tlie northern
basin, pass through a succession of lakes,
some of vast extent, by which the floods
caused by melting snows and heavy rains,
which otherwise, by rushing down in the
spring, and accumulating vast masses of
ice in the yet unopened channel of its low-
er and northern course, would spread dev-
astation and ruin over the banks, are col-
lected in huge reservoirs, and permitted
to flow oflT gradually during the summer
months. Wonderful display of wisdom and
beneficence in the arrangements of Divine
creation and providence ! But the Missis-
sippi, as it flows into the warmer regions
of the south, needs no such provision ; and
hence, with the exception of a few small
lakes connected with the head streams of
the Upper Mississippi in the west, and one
or two connected with the Alleghany, a
branch of the Ohio, in the east, no lake
occurs in the whole of the southern basin.
Owing to this diflerence in these rivers, a
sudden rise of three feet in the waters of
the St. Lawrence would be more surpri-
sing than a rise of thirty feet in the Missis-
sippi. But in order that the country which
borders upon the latter may not be too
much exposed to great and destructive in-
undation, the Creator has, in his wisdom,
given to it a peculiar configuration. The
inclined plane which slopes down from
the Oregon Mountains towards the east is
much wider than that sloping from the
mountains on the opposite side. Hence
the rivers from the western side of the val"
ley have a much greater distance to trav-
erse than those that drain the eastern slope,
and the floods which they roll down in the
spring are, of course, proportionally later
in reaching the Lower Mississippi. In fact,
just as the floods of the Tennessee, the
Cumberland, and the Ohio, have subsided,
tliose of the Arkansas, the Missouri, and
Upper Mississippi begin to appear. If
these all came down at once, the Lower
Mississippi, as the common outlet, by
swelling to such an extent as to overflow
its banks, would spread destruction far and
wide over the whole Delta. Such a calam-
ity, or, rather, something approaching to
it, does occasionally occur ; but at long in-

Chap.II.3 general notice of north AMERICA.

tervals, to teach men their dependance on
Divine Providence, as well as to punish
them for their sins.

Of the slope between the Oregon Mount-
ains and the Pacific, the northern part,
occupied by Russia, is cold, and little of
it fit for cultivation ; the middle, claimed
by the United States and Great Britain, is
said to be a fine country in many parts ;
Avhile that occupied by Mexico has very
great natural advantages. The country
bordering on the Gulf of California is
surpassed by none in North America for
pleasantness of climate and fertility of
soil.

On both sides of the Upper Mississippi,
as well as on both sides of the Missouri,
there are extensive prairies,* as the French,
who first explored that country, called
them ; that is, in many places there are
districts, some of them very extensive, in-
cluding hundreds, and even thousands of
acres of land ; others smaller, and resem-
bling a field or meadow, which are covered
in the summer with tall grass and a great
variety of flowers, but on which scarcely
anything in the shape of a tree is to be
found. Many of these prairies possess a
fertile soil ; but others produce only a sort
of stunted grass and short weeds ; and be-
tween the upper streams of the Red River
and the La Platte, towards the Oregon
Mountains, there lies an extensive tract
which has been called the Great American
Desert. The country there is covered
with sand and detached rocks, or boul-
ders, which have evidently come from the
Oregon Mountains, and is thinly clothed
with a species of vegetation called buffalo
grass. The prickly pear may often be
seen spreading its huge leaves over the
ground. Not a tree, and scarcely a bush,
is to be met with in many places for miles.
Herds of buffalo sometimes traverse it. and

* Much has been said and written on the origin
of the prairies of North America ; but, after all, no
perfectly satisfactorj' theory has yet been invented.
The Indians know nothing on the subject. As to
the barren prairies between the upper streams of the
Red River and the Platte, mentioned in the text un-
der the name of the Great American De.xert, the same
cause produced them which produced the Great Sa-
hara in Africa, the utter sterility of the soil. But
as it relates to those fertile prairies which one finds
in the States of Illinois and Missouri, and in the Ter-
ritories of Wisconsin and Iowa, the case is very dif-
ferent. In some respects, the theory that they owe
their existence to the annual burning of the dry, de-
cayed grass, and other vegetable matter, in the au-
tumnal months, seems plausible. It accounts well
enough for the perpetuation of these prairies, but it
fails to account for their origin. How is it that the
same cause did not produce prairies in those parts
of North America where none have ever existed ?
which yet have been, as far as we can learn, occu-
pied by the Aborigines as long as those in which the
prairies are found. It is very likely that fire was one
of the causes of their origin ; but there may have
been others not less efficient, as well as various con-
curring circumstances, with respect to which we
are wholly in the dark.

a few straggling Indians are occasionally
seen upon its outskirts. With these ex-
ceptions, the whole portion of North Amer-
ica which is now either occupied or claim-
ed by the people of the United States, was,
when first visited by Europeans, and for
more than a century afterward, one vast
wilderness. The luxuriant vegetation with
which it had been clothed year after year,
for ages, was destined only to decay and
enrich the soil. Thus did the work of pre-
paring it to be the abode of millions of civ-
ihzed men go silently and steadily on ; the
earth gathering strength, during this long
repose, for the sustentation of nations
which were to be born in the distant fu-
ture. One vast and almost unbroken for-
est covered the whole continent, imbo-
soming in its sombre shadows alike the
meandering streamlet and the mighty riv-
er, the retired bay and the beautiful and
tranquil lake. A profound and solemn si-
lence reigned everywhere, save when in-
terrupted by the songs of the birds which
sported amid the trees, the natural cries of
the beasts which roamed beneath, the ar-
ticulate sounds of the savage tribes around
their wigwams, or their shouts in the chase
or in the battle. The work of God, in all
its simplicity, and freshness, and grandeur,
was seen everywhere ; that of man almost
nowhere ; universal nature rested, and, as
it were, kept Sabbath.

Two hundred years more pass away,
and how widely different is the scene !
Along the coasts, far and wide, tall ships
pass and repass. The white sails of brig
and sloop are seen in every bay, cove,
and estuary. The rivers are covered with
boats of every size, propelled by sail or
oar. And in every water the steamboat,
heedless alike of wind and tide, pursues
its resistless way, vomiting forth steam
and flame. Commerce flourishes along-
every stream. Cities are rising in all di-
rections. The forests are giving way to
cultivated fields or verdant meadows. Sav-
age life, with its wigwams, its blanket-cov-
ering, its poverty, and its misery, yields on
every side to the arts, the comforts, and
even the luxuries of civilization.

CHAPTER n.

THE ABORIGINES OF NORTH AMERICA.

North America, when discovered by
Europeans, was in the occupancy of a
great number of uncivilized tribes ; some
large, but most of them small : and, al-
though differing in some respects from
one another, yet exhibiting indubitable evi-
dence of a common origin. Under the be-
lief that the country was a part of the East
Indies, to reach which, by pursuing a west-
erly course, had been the object of their

RELIGION IN AMERICA.

TBooK I.

voyage, the companions of Columbus gave
the name of Indians to those nations of
the Aborigines which they first saw. Sub-
sequent and more extensive exploration of
the coasts of America convinced them of
their mistake, but the name thus given to
the indigenous tribes has adhered to them
to this day.

A striking similarity of organization per-
vades the tribes of North America.* All
have the same dull vermilion, or cinna-
mon complexion, differing wholly from
the white, the olive, and the black vari-
eties of the human family ; all have the
same dark, glossy hair, coarse, but uni-
formly straight. Their beards are gen-
erally of feeble growth, and instead of be-
ing permitted to become long, are almost
universally eradicated. The eye is elonga-
ted, and has an orbit inclined to a quadran-
gular shape. The cheek-bones are prom-
inent; the nose broad; the jaws project-
ing ; the lips large and thick, though far
less so than those of the Ethiopic race.

Yet there are not wanting considerable
varieties in the organization and complex-
ion of the Aborigines of North America.
Some nations are fairer skinned, some
taller and more slender than others ; and
even in the same tribe there are often
striking contrasts. Their limbs, unre-
strained in childhood and youth by the
appliances which civilization has invented,
are generally better formed than those of
the white men. The persons of the males
are more erect, but this is not so with the
females ; these have become bowed down
with the heavy burdens which, as slaves,
they are habitually compelled to bear.

Their manner of life, when first discov-
ered, was in the highest degree barbarous.
They had nothing that deserved the name
of houses. Rude huts, mostly for tempo-
rary use, of various forms, but generally
circular, were made by erecting a pole to
support others which leaned upon it as a
centre, and which were covered with leaves
and bark, while the interior was lined with
skins of tlie buff"alo, the deer, the bear, &c.
A hole at the top permitted the escape of
the smoke ; a large opening in the side
answered the purpose of a door, a window,
and sometimes of a chimney. The skins
of animals formed almost the whole cov-
ering of the body. Moccasins, and some-
times a sort of boot, made of the skins of
the animals slain in the chase, were the

* This may be said also of all the aboriginal tribes
of America entire, from the shores of the Northern
Ocean to the island of Terra del Fuego. But there
was a vast difference in regard to civilization. The
inhabitants of Mexico and Peru, wlien those conn-
tries were visited and conquered by Cortes and Pi-
zarro, were far more civilized than the tribes of the
portion of North America which we are considering.
No remains of antiquity among the latter can be for
a moment compared with those of the kingdom of
Monfezuma.

only protection to their feet and legs in
the coldest weather. The head was adorn-
ed with feathers and the beaks and claws
of birds, the neck with strings of shells,
and that of the warrior with the scalps of
enemies slain in battle or in ambush.

Nothing like agriculture was known
among them, save the planting of small
patches of a species of corn which takes
its name from them, and which, when
parched, or when pounded and made into
paste and baked, is both palatable and nu-
tritious. Having no herds, the use of milk
was unknown. They depended mainly on
the chase and on fishing for a precarious
subsistence, not having the skill to fur-
nish themselves with suitable instruments
for the prosecution of either with much
success ; and when successful, as they
had no salt, they could preserve an abun-
dant supply of game only by smoking it.
Hence the frequent famines among them,
during the long, cold months of winter.

Poets have sung of the happiness of the
natural, in other words, uncivilized life.
But all who know anything of the abori-
ginal tribes of North America, even in
the present times, when those that border
upon the abodes of civilized men live far
more comfortably than did their ances-
tors three hundred years ago, are well
aware that their existence is a miserable
one. During the excitements of the chase,
there is an appearance of enjoyment ; but
such seasons are not long, and the utter
want of occupation, and the consequent
tedium of other periods, make the men in
many cases wretched. Add to this the
want of resources for domestic happiness ;
the evils resulting from polygamy ; the de-
pression naturally caused by the sickness
of friends and relatives, without the means
of alleviation ; the gloomy apprehensions
of death ; and we cannot wonder that the
" red man" should be miserable, and seek
gratification in games of chance, the revel-
ries of drunkenness, or the excitements of
war. I have seen various tribes of Indians ;
I have travelled among them ; I have slept
in their poor abodes, and never have I
seen them, under any circumstances, with-
out being deeply impressed with the con-
viction of the misery of those especially
who are not yet civilized.

They are not without some notions of a
Supreme Power which governs the world,
and of an Evil Spirit who is the enemy of
mankind. But their theogony and their
theology are alike crude and incoherent.
They have no notion of a future resurrec-
tion of the body. Like children, they can-
not divest themselves of the idea that the
spirit of the deceased still keeps company
with the body in the grave, or that it wan-
ders in the immediate vicinity. Some,
however, seem to have a confused impres-
sion that there is a sort of elysium for the

€hap. I.]

THE ABORIGINES OF NORTH AMERICA.

departed brave, where they will forever
enjoy the pleasures of the chase and of
war. Even of their own origin they have
nothing but a confused tradition, not ex-
tending back beyond three or four genera-
tions. As they have no calendars, and
reckon their years only by the return of
certain seasons, so they have no record of
time past.

Though hospitable and kind to strangers
to a remarkable degree, they are capable
of the most diabolical cruelty to their ene-
mies. The well-authenticated accounts of
the manner in which they sometimes treat
their prisoners would almost make us
doubt whether they can belong to the
human species. And yet we have only to
recall to our minds scenes which have
taken place in highly-civilized countries,
and almost within our own day, when
Christian men have been put to death in its
most horrible forms by those who pro-
fessed to be Christians themselves, to be
convinced that, when not restrained by the
grace and providence of God, there is no-
thing too devilish for man to do.

Some remains of the law, written origi-
nally on the heart of man by his Creator,
are to be found even among the Indian
tribes. Certain actions are considered
criminal and deserving of punishment ;
others are reckoned meritorious. The
catalogue, it is true, of accredited virtues
and vices is not extensive. Among the
men, nothing can atone for the want of
-courage and fortitude. The captive war-
rior can laugh to scorn all the tortures of
his enemies, and sing in the very agonies
of a death inflicted in the most cruel man-
ner, what may be termed a song of triumph,
rather than of death ! The narrations which
the Jesuit (French) missionaries, who knew
the Indian character better, perhaps, than
any other white men that have ever writ-
ten of them, have left of what they them-
selves saw, are such as no civilized man
can read without being perfectly appalled.*
Roman fortitude never surpassed that dis-
played in innumerable instances by cap-
tured Indian warriors. In fact, nothing can
be compared with it except that said to
have been exhibited by the Scandinavians,
in their ea.'-ly wars with one another and
with foreign enemies ; and of which we
have many accounts in their Elder and
Younger Eddas, and in their Sagas.

* The reader is referred to the work entitled " Re-
lation de ce qui s'est passe en la Nouvelle France,"
in 1632, and the years following, down till 1660.
Also to the work of Creuxius, and the Journal of
Marest. Much is to be found on the same horrible
subject in Charlevoix's " Histoire de la Nouvelle
France ;" Lepage Dupratz's " Histoire de la Louisi-
ane;" Jefferson's "Notes on Virginia;" " Transac-
tions of the American Philosophical Society," vol. i. ;
and the volumes of the late excellent Heckewelder,
who was for forty years a missionary among the
Delaware Indians, and whom the author of this
•work had the happiness of knowing intimately.

Very many of the tribes speak dialects,
rather than languages, distinct from thos{»^
of their neighbours. East of the Missis-
sippi River, and within the bounds of what
is now the United States, when the coloni-
zation of the country by Europeans com-
menced, there were eight races, or families
of tribes, each comprehending those most
alike in language and customs, and who
constantly recognised each other as rela-
tives. These were, 1. The Algonquins,
consisting of many tribes, scattered over
the whole of the New-England States, the
southern part of New- York, New-Jersey,
Pennsylvania, Delaware, Maryland, Vir-
ginia,' and what is now Ohio, Indiana, Illi-
nois, and Michigan. Being the most nu-
merous of all the tribes, they occupied
about half the territory east of the Missis-
sippi and south of the St. Lawrence and
the lakes. 2. The Sioux, or Dacotas, liv-
ing between Lake Superior and the Missis-
sippi. These were a small branch of the
great tribe of the same name, to be found
about the higher streams of that river, and
between them and the Oregon Mountains.

3. The Hukon-Iroquois nations, who occu-
pied all the northern and western parts of
what is now the State of New- York, and a
part of Upper Canada. The most impor-
tant of these tribes were the Five Nations,
as they were long called, viz. , the Mohawks,
Oneidas, Onondagas, Cayugas, and Sene-
cas. These were afterward joined by the
Tuscaroras from the Carolinas, a branch
of the same great family, and then they
took the name of the Six Nations, by which
title they are better known to history.

4. The Catawbas, who lived chiefly in
what is now South CaroHna. 5. The
Cherokees, who lived in the mountainous
parts of the two Carolinas, Georgia, and
Alabama. Their country lay in the south-
ern extreme of the Alleghany Mountains,
and abounded in ridges and valleys. 6.
The UcHEEs, who resided in Georgia, in
the vicinity of the site occupied at present
by the city of Augusta. 7. The Natchez,
so famous for their tragical end, who lived
on the banks of the Mississippi, in the
neighbourhood of the present city of Nat-
chez. 8. The MoBiLiAN tribes, or, as Mr.
Gallatin calls them, the Muskhogee-Choc-
TA, who occupied the country which com-
prises now the States of Alabama and
Mississippi, and the Territory of Florida.
The tribes which composed this family, or
nation, are well known by the name of the
Creeks, the Chickasas, the Choctas, and
the Seminoles ; to whom may be added
the Yamasses, who formerly lived on the
Savannah River, but exist no longer as a
separate tribe.

The languages of these eight families of
tribes are very different, and yet they are
marked by strong grammatical affinities.
It is most probable that the people who

KELIGICN in AMERICA,

[Book L

first settled America, come whence they I
might, spoke different, though remotely re-
lated languages. All the languages of the
Aborigines of America are exceedingly
compHcated, regular in the forms of verbs,
irregular in those of nouns, and admitting
of ciianges by modifications of final sylla-
bles, initial syllables, and even, in the case
of verbs, by the insertion of particles, in a
\vay unknown to the languages of Western
Europe. They exhibit demonstrative proof
that they are not the invention of those
who use them, and that they who use them
have never been a highly-civilized people.
Synthesis, or the habit of compounding
words with words, prevails, instead of the
more simple method of analysis, which a
highly cultivated use of language always
displays.* The old English was much
more clumsy than the modern. The same
thing is true of the French and German ;
indeed, of every cultivated language. The
languages of the tribes bordering upon the
frontier settlements of the United States
begin to exhibit visible evidences of the
effect of contact with civilization. The
half-breeds are also introducing modifica-
tions, which show that the civiUzed mind
tends to simplify language ; and the labours
of the missionaries, who have introduced
letters among several tribes, are also pro-
ducing great results, and leading to decided
improvements.

A great deal has been said and written
about the gradual wasting and disappear-
ance of the tribes which once occupied the
territories of the United States.

It is not intended to deny that several
tribes which figure in the history of the
first settlement of the country by Europe-
ans are extinct, and that several more are
nearly so. Nor is it denied that this has
been partly occasioned by wars waged with
them by the white or European popula-
tion; si ill more by the introductioa of
drunkenness and other vices of civilized
men, and by the diseases incident to those
vices. But while this may be all true,
still the correctness of a good deal that
has been said on this subject may well be
questioned. Nothing can be more certain
than that the tribes which once occupied
the country now comprised within the Uni-
ted States, were, at the epoch of the first
settlement of Europeans on its shores,
gradually wasting away, and had long been
so ; from the destructive wars waged with
each other ; from the frequent recurrence
of famine, and sometimes from cold ; and
from diseases and pestilences, against

* The reader who desires, may see much on the
Indian languages in Humboldt's Voyages ; Vater's
Mithradates, vol. iii. ; Baron Will. Humboldt; Pub-
lications of the Berlin Academy, vol. xliv. ; Gallatin's
Analysis ; Duponceau's Notes on Zeisberger ; Amer-
ican Quarterly Review, vol. iii. ; Heckewelder's two
works respecting Indian manners, customs, etc. ;
aiid Mr. Schoolcraft's publications.

which they knew not how to protect them-
selves. If the Europeans introduced some
diseases, it is no less certain that they
found some formidable ones among the
natives. A year or two before the Pilgrim
Fathers reached the coast of New-Eng-
land, the very territory on which they set-
tled was swept of almost its entire pop-
ulation by a pestilence. Several of the
tribes which existed when the colonists
arrived from Europe were but the rem-
nants, as they themselves asserted, of once
powerful tribes, that had been almost an-
nihilated by war or by disease. This, as is
believed, was the case with the Catawbas,.
the Uchees, and the Natchez. Many of
the branches of the Algonquin race, and
some of the Huron-Iroquois, used to speak
of the renowned days of their forefathers,
when they were a powerful people. It is-
not easy, indeed, to estimate what was the
probable number of the Indians who occupi-
ed, at the time of its discovery, the country
east of the Mississippi and south of the St.
Lawrence, comprising very nearly what
may be called the settled portion of the
United States ; and from which the Indian
race has disappeared, in consequence of
emigration or other causes. But I am in-
clined to think, with Mr. Bancroft, an Amer-
ican author who deserves the highest praise
for the diligent research he has displayed
in his admirable work on the United States,
and to whom I am greatly indebted on
this subject, as well as many others which
are treated in this work, that there may
have been in all not far f^rom one hundred
and eighty thousand souls.* That a con-
siderable number were slain in the numer-
ous wars carried on between them and
the French and English during our colo-
nial days, and in our wars with them after
our independence, and that ardent spir-
its, also, have destroyed many thousandsy
cannot be doubted. But the most fruitful
source of destruction to these poor " chil-
dren of the wood" has been the occasional
prevalence of contagious and epidemic dis-
eases, such as the smallpox, which some-
years since cut off, in a few months, al-
most the whole tribe of the Mandans, on
the Missouri.

Of the Algonquin race, whose numbers,
two hundred years ago, were estimated at
ninety thousand souls, only a few small
tribes, and remnants of tribes, remain,
probably not exceeding 20,000 persons.
Of the Huron-Iroquois, not more probably
than two or three thousand remain within
the limits of the United States. The great-
er part who survive are to be found in.
Canada. The Sioux have not diminished.
The Cherokees have increased. The Ca-
tawbas are nearly extinct as a nation. The
remains of the Uchees and Natchez have

^Bancroft^sHist.oryl)f the United States, vol. iii.
p. 253.

Chap. III.]

DISCOVERY OF THE UNITED STATES.

been absorbed among the Creeks and
Choctas ; and, indeed, it is certain, that
not only stragghng individuals, but also
large portions of tribes, have united with
other tribes, and so exist in a commingled
state with them. It has happened that an
entire conquered tribe has been compelled
to submit to absorption among the conquer-
ors. And, finally, the Mobilian or Musk-
hogee-Chocta tribes, taken as a whole,
have decidedly increased, it is believed,
within the last twenty-five years. They,
with the Cherokees, and the remains of
several tribes of the Algonquin race, are
almost all collected together, in the district
of country assigned to them by the Gen-
eral Government, west of the States of Ar-
kansas and Missouri. Respecting this plan,
as well as touching the general policy of
the government of the United States to-
wards the Indians, I shall speak fully in
another place.

It is diflficult to estimate, with anything
like absolute precision, the number of In-
dians that now remain as the descendants
of the tribes which once occupied the coun-
try of which we have spoken. Without
pretending to reckon those who have sought
refuge with tribes far in the West, we may
safely put it down at one hundred and fif-
teen or twenty thousand souls. Of what
is doing to save them from physical and
moral ruin, I shall speak hereafter.

The most plausible opinion respecting
the origin of the Aborigines of America is,
that they are of the Mongolian race ; and
that they came to America from Asia, ei-
ther by way of the Polynesian world,* or
by Behring's Straits, or by the Aleutian
Islands, Mednoi Island, and the Behring
group. Facts well attested prove this to
have been practicable. That the resem-
blance between the Aborigines of America
and the Mongolian race is most striking,
every one will testify who has seen both.
" Universally and substantially," says the
American traveller, Ledyard, respecting
the Mongolians, " they resemble the Abo-
rigines of America."

CHAPTER III.

DISCOVERY OF THAT PART OF NORTH AMER-
ICA WHICH IS COMPRISED IN THE LIMITS

OF THE UNITED STATES. THE EARLY AND

UNSUCCESSFUL ATTEMPTS TO COLONIZE IT.

As the American hemisphere had been
discovered by expeditions sent out by
Spain, that country claimed the erUre con-
tinent, as well as the adjoin '.ig islands ;
and to it a pope, as the vic^^erent of God,
undertook to cede the .vnole. But other

* Lang's View of the Polynesian Nations. Ban-
croft's History of the United States, vol. iii., p. 315-18.

countries having caught the spirit of dis-
tant adventure in quest of gold, these soon
entered into competition with the nation
whose sovereign had won the title of Most
Catholic Majesty; and as all Christendom at
that day bowed its neck to the spiritual do-
minion of the Vicar of Christ, as the Bishop
of Rome claimed to be, they could not be
refused a portion from the "holy father,"'
on showing that they were entitled to it.
On the ground that Spain could not justly
appropriate to herself any part of the Amer-
ican Continent which she had not actually
discovered, by coasting along it, by mark-
ing its boundaries, and by landing upon it,
they created for themselves a chance of
obtaining no inconsiderable share.

England was the first to follow in the
career of discovery. Under her auspices,
the continent itself was first discovered,*
June 24, 1497, by the Cabots, John and Se-
bastian, father and son, the latter of whom
was a native of that country, and the for-
mer a merchant adventurer from Venice,
but at the time residing in England, and
engaged in the service of Henry VII. By
this event, a very large and important part
of the coast of North America was secured
to a country which, within less than half
a century, was to begin to throw off the
shackles of Rome, and to become, in due
time, the most powerful of all Protestant
kingdoms. He who " hath made of one
blood, all nations of men, for to dwell on
all the face of the earth, and hath deter-
mined the times before appointed, and the
bounds of their habitation," had resolved in
this manner to prepare a place to which, in
ages then drawing near, those who should
be persecuted for Christ's sake might
flee and find protection, and thus found
a great Protestant empire. And yet how
near, if we may so speak, was this mighty
plan to being defeated 1 A Spanish discov-
erer, a year or two before, was diverted,
by some apparently trivial circumstance,
from directing his course from Cuba to
the very coast which the Cabots after-
ward sailed along. Had he done so, how
diflferent, in some momentous respects,
might have been the state of the world at
this day ! We have here another illustra-
tion of the littleness of causes with which
the very greatest of human events are
often connected, and of that superintend-
ing Providence which rules in all things.

Spain, however, far from at once relin-
quishing her pretensions to a country thus
discovered by England, insisted on claim-
ing a large part of it, and for a long time
extended the name of the comparatively
insignificant peninsula of Florida, with
which she was compelled to be contented at
last, over the whole tract reaching as far

* Columbus had not at that epoch touched the
continent, but had only discovered the West India
Islands.

RELIGION IN AMERICA.

[Book I.

north as the Chesapeake Bay, if not farther.
France, on the otlier hand, was not likely,
under so intelligent and ambitious a mon-
arch as Francis I., to remain an inactive
spectator of maritime discovei-ies made by
the nations on both sides of her. Under
her auspices, Verrazzani, in 1524, and Car-
tier ten years afterward, made voyages in
search of new lands, so that soon she, too,
had claims in America to prosecute. As
the result of the former of those two en-
terprises, she claimed the coast lying to
the south of North Carolina, and extending,
as was truly asserted, beyond the farthest
point reached by the Cabots. Still more
important were the results of Cartier's
voyage. Having gone up the River St.
Lawrence as far as the island on which
Montreal now stands, he and Roberval
made an ineffectual attempt to found a
colony, composed of thieves, murderers,
debtors, and other inmates of the prisons
in France, on the spot now occupied by
Quebec. Two other unsuccessful attempts
at colonization in America were made by
France, the one in 1598, under the Marquis
de la Roche ; the other in 1600, under Chau-
vin. At length, in 1605, a French colony
■was permanently established, under De
Monts, a Protestant, at the place now call-
ed Annapolis, in Nova Scotia, but not un-
til after having made an abortive attempt
within the boundaries of the present State
of Maine. Quebec was founded in 1608,
imder the conduct of Champlain, who be-
came the father of all the French settle-
ments in North America. From that point
the French colonists penetrated farther and
farther up the St. Lawrence, until at length
parties of their hunters and trappers, ac-
companied by Jesuit missionaries, reached
the great lakes, passed beyond them, and
descending the Valley of the Mississippi,
established themselves at Fort Du Quesne,
Vincennes, Kaskaskia, and various other
places. Thus the greater part of the im-
mense Central Valley of North America
fell, for a time, into the hands of the
French.

Nor was it only in the North that that na-
tion sought to plant colonies. The failure
of the French Protestants in all their efforts
to secure for themselves mere toleration
from their own government, naturally sug-
gested the idea of expatriation, as the sole
means that remained to them of procuring
liberty to worship God according to his own
Word. Even the Prince of Conde, though
of royal blood, nobly proposed to set the ex-
ample of withdrawing from F'ranco, rather
than be the occasion, by remaining in it,
of perpetual civil war with the obstinate
partisans of Rome ; and iu 1562, under the
auspices of the brave and good Coligny, to
whom, also, the idea of expatriation was
familiar, two attempts were made by the
Huguenots to establish themselves on the

southern coast of North America. The first
of these took place on the confines of South
Carolina, and seems at once to have failed.
The second, which was on the River St.
John's in Florida, survived but a few years.
In 1565, it was attacked by the Spaniards,
under Melendez, that nation claiming the
country in right of discovery, in conse-
quence of Ponce de Leon having landed
upon it in 1512; and as religious bigotry
was added to national jealousy in the as-
sailants, they put almost all the Huguenots
to death in the most cruel manner, " not as
Frenchmen," they alleged, "but as Luther-
ans." For this atrocity the Spaniards were
severely punished three years afterward,
when Dominic de Gourgues, a Gascon,
having captured two of their forts, hanged
his prisoners upon trees, not far from the
spot where his countrymen had suffered,
and placed over their bodies this inscrip-
tion : " I do not this as unto Spaniards or
mariners, but as unto traitors, robbers, and
murderers."

With a view to encourage the coloniza-
tion of those parts of North America that
were claimed by England, several patents
were granted by the crown of that country
before the close of the sixteenth century.
The enterprises, however, to which these
led, universally failed. The most famous
was that made in North Carolina, under a
patent to Sir Walter Raleigh and others ; it
was continued from 1584 to 1588 ; but even
the splendid talents and energy of its chief
could not save his colony from final ruin.
Though the details of this unsuccessful
enterprise fill many a page in the history
of the United States, strange to say, we
are in absolute ignorance of the fate .of the
few remaining colonists that were left on
the banks of the Roanoke ; the most prob-
able conjecture being that they were mas-
sacred by the natives, though some affirm
that they were incorporated into one of
the Indian tribes. Two monuments of
that memorable expedition remain to this
day ; first, the name of Virginia, given to
the entire coast by the courtier, in honour
of his royal mistress, though afterward re-
stricted to a single province ; and, next, the
use of tobacco in PJurope, Sir Walter hav-
ing successfully laboured to make it an
article of commerce between the two con-
tinents.

Some of the voyages made from Eng-
land to America in that century for the
mere purpose of traffic were not unprofit-
able to the adventurers, but it was not until
the following that any attempt at coloniza-
tion met with success. In this no one who
loves to mark the hand of God in the af-
fairs of men, and who has studied well the
history of those times, can fail to be struck
with the display it presents of the Divine
wisdom and goodness. For be it observed,
that England was not yet ripe for the work

Chap. IV.]

COLONIZATION OF THE UNITED STATES.

of colonization, and could not then have
planted the noble provinces of which she
was to be the mother-country afterward.
The mass of her population continued, until
far on in the sixteenth century, to be at-
tached to Rome ; her glorious Constitution
was not half formed until the century that
followed. The Reformation, together with
the persecutions, the discussions, and the
conflicts that followed in its train, were all
required, in order that minds and hearts
might be created for the founding of a free
empire, and that the principles and the
forms of the government of England
might in any sense be fit for the imitation
of her colonies.

Though England, when she first discover-
ed America, thought only, as other nations
had done, of enriching herself from mines
of the precious metals and gems ; on being
undeceived by time, she indulged for a
while the passion that followed for traffick-
ing with the natives. But the commercial,
as well as the golden age, if we may so
speak, had to pass away, before men could
be found who should establish themselves
on that great continent with a view to agri-
culture as well as commerce, and who
should look to the promotion of Christiani-
ty no less than to their secular interests.
To this great and benevolent end God was
rapidly shaping events in the Old World.

CHAPTER IV.

COLONIZATION OF THE TERRITORIES NOW CON-
STITUTING THE UNITED STATES AT LENGTH
ACCOMPLISHED.

The first permanent colony planted by
the English in America was Virginia.
Even in that instance, what was projected
was a factory for trading with the natives,
rather than a fixed settlement for persons
expatriating themselves with an eye to the
future advantage of their offspring, and
looking for interests which might recon-
cile them to it as their home. It was
founded in 1607, by a Company of noble-
men, gentlemen, and merchants in London,
by whom it was regarded as an affair of
business, prosecuted with a view to pecu-
niary profit, not from any regard to the
welfare of the colonists. These, consist-
ing of forty-eight gentlemen, twelve labour-
ers, and a few mechanics, reached the
Chesapeake Bay in April, 1607, and having
landed, on the i:nh of May, on a peninsula
in the James River, there they planted their
first settlement, and called it James Town.
There had been bestowed upon the com-
pany by royal charter a zone of land, ex-
tending from the thirty-fourth to the thirty-
eighth degree of north latitude, and from
the Atlantic to the Pacific Ocean, together
with ample powers for administering the
affairs of the colony, but reserving to the
B

king the legislative authority, and a con-
trol over appointments ; a species of doub-
le government, under which few political
privileges were enjoyed by the colonists.

What from the wilderness state of the
country, the unfriendliness of the Abori-
gines, the insalubrity of the climate, the ar-
bitrary conduct of the company, and the un-
fitness of most of the settlers for their task,
the infant colony had to contend with many
difl^culties. Yet not only did it gain a per-
manent footing in the country, but, not-
withstanding the disastrous wars with the
Indians, insurrectionary attempts on the
part of turbulent colonists, misunderstand-
ings with the adjacent colony of Maryland,
changes in its own charter, and other unto-
ward circumstances, it had become a power-
ful province long before the establishment of
American Independence. By a second char-
ter granted in 1609, all the powers that had
been reserved by the first to the king were
surrendered to the company ; but in 1624
that second charter was recalled, the com-
pany dissolved, and the government of the
colony assumed by the crown, which con-
tinued thereafter to administer it in a gen-
eral way, though the internal legislation
of the colony was left, for the most part,
to its own Legislature.

Massachusetts was settled next in the
order of time, and owed its rise to more
than one original colony. The first plant-
ed within the province was that of New-
Plymouth, founded on the west coast of
Massachusetts Bay, in 1620; but although
it spread by degrees into the adjacent dis-
trict, yet it never acquired much extent.
It originated in a grant of land from the
Plymouth Company in England, an incor-
poration of noblemen, gentlemen, and bur-
gesses, on which King James had bestowed
by charter all the territories included with-
in the forty-first and forty-fifth degrees of
north latitude, from the Atlantic to the
Pacific Ocean. That company having
undergone important modifications, much
more numerous settlements were made
under its auspices, in 1628 at Salem, and
in 1630 at Boston, from which two points
colonization spread extensively into the
surrounding country, and the province soon
became populous and powerful. A colony
was planted in New-Hampshire in 1631,
and some settlements had been made in
Maine a year or two earlier ; but for a
long time the progress of all these was
slow. In 1636, the celebrated Roger
Williams, being banished from Massachu-
setts, retired to Narragansett Bay, and by
founding there, in 1638, the city of Prov-
idence, led to the plantation of a new
province, now forming the State of Rhode
Island. In 1635, the Rev. Thomas Hooker
and John Haynes having led a colony into
Connecticut, settled at the spot where the
city of Hartford now stands, and rescued

RELIGION IN AMERICA.

[Book I.

the Valley of Connecticut from the Dutch,
who, having invaded it from their province
of New Netherlands, had erected the fort
called Good Hope on the right bank of the
river. Three years thereafter, the colony
of New-Haven was planted by two Puritan
Nonconformists, the Rev. John Davenport
and Theophilus Eaton, who had first re-
tired to Holland on account of their reli-
gious principles, and then left that country
for Boston, in 1637. Thus, with the ex-
ception of Vermont, which originated in a
settlement of much later date, drawn
chiefly from Massachusetts and New-
Hampshire, we see the foundation of all
the New-England States laid within twenty
years from the arrival of the Pilgrim Fa-
thers at Plymouth.

Meanwhile, Maryland, so called in hon-
our of Henrietta Maria, daughter of Henry
IV. of France, and wife of Charles I., had
been colonized. The territory forming the
present state of that name, though inclu-
ded in the first charter of Virginia, upon
that being cancelled and the company be-
ing dissolved, reverted to the king, and he,
to gratify his feehngs of personal regard,
bestowed the absolute proprietorship of
the whole upon Sir Charles Calvert, the
first Lord Baltimore, and his legal heirs in
succession. Never was there a more lib-
eral charter. The statutes of the colony
were to be made with the concurrence of
the colonists, thus securing to the people
a legislative government of their own.
Sir Charles was a Roman Catholic, but
his colony was foimded on principles of
the fullest toleration ; and though he died
before the charter in his favour had passed
the great seal of the kingdom, yet all the
royal engagements being made good to his
son Cecil, who succeeded to the title and
estates, the latter sent out a colonj^ of
about two hundred persons, most of whom
were Roman Catholics, and many of them
gentlemen, accompanied by his brother
Leonard. Maryland, though subjected to
many vicissitudes, proved prosperous upon,
the whole. Though the Roman Catholics
formed at first the decided majority, the
Protestants became by far the more nu-
merous body in the end, and, with shame
be it said, enacted laws depriving the Ro-
man Catholics of all political influence in
the colony, and tending to prevent their
increase.

The first colony in the State of New-
York was that planted by the Dutch, about
the year 1614, on the southern point, it is
supposed, of the island where the city of
New- York now stands. The illustrious
English navigator Hudson, having been in
the employment of the Dutch at the time
of his discovering the river that bears his
name, Holland chiimed the country bor-
dering upon it, and gradually formed set-
tlements there, the first of which was

situate on an island immediately below the
present city of Albany. Hudson being
supposed to have been the first European
that sailed up the Delaware, the Dutch
claimed the banks of that river also. But
their progress as colonists in America was
slow. Though Holland was nominally a
republic, yet she did not abound in the ma-
terials proper for making good colonists.
The country presenting but a limited scope
for agriculture, the people were mostly en-
gaged in trade or in the arts.

Pursuing in the New World the same
selfish principles which made the Dutch
mercantile aristocracy the worst enemies
of their country in the Old, the New Neth-
erlands colonists were allowed little or
no share in the government, and accord-
ingly, notwithstanding the greatest nat-
ural advantages, the progress of the colony
was very slow. New Amsterdam, which,
in consequence of such advantages, might
have been expected even to outstrip the
mother-city, as she has since done under
the name of New-York, remained but an
inconsiderable village. The vicinity of
New-England provoked comparisons that
could not fail to make the Dutch colonists
discontented with their institutions. At
length, in 1664, the English took posses-
sion of all the Dutch colonies in North
America, which by that time, in addition
to their settlements on the Hudson, ex-
tended to the eastern part of New-Jersey,
Staten Island, and the western extremity
of Long Island, besides a detached settle-
ment on the banks of the Delaware, with
a population not exceeding in all ten thou-
sand souls. New Netherlands was granted
by Charles II. to his brother the Duke o'f
York, from whom the colony and its cap-
ital took the name of New- York. The
voice of the people was now, for the first
time, heard in its Legislature ; it began
thenceforth to advance rapidly in popula-
tion, and, notwithstanding occasional sea-
sons of trial and depression, gave early
promise of what it was one day to become.

New-Jersey was likewise granted to
the Duke of York, who, in 1664, handed it
over to Lord Berkeley and Sir George
Carteret, both proprietors of Carolina.
Difficulties, however, having arisen be-
tween the colonists and the lords superior
with regard to the quit-rents payable by
the former, that province was gladly sur-
rendered by the latter, upon certain con-
ditions, to the crown, and was for some
time attached to New- York, within twenty
years after all the Dutch possessions had
i'allen into the hands of the English. West
Jersey was afterward purchased by a
company of Friends, or Quakers, and a
few years later, in 1G80, William Penn,,
previous to his undertaking to plant a col-
ony on a larger scale in Pennsylvania,
purchased East Jersey, with the view of

Chap. IV.]

COLONIZATION OF THE UNITED STATES.

making it an asylum for his persecuted
co-religionists. Finally, East and West
Jersey being united as one province un-
der the direct control of the crown, ob-
tained a Legislature of its own, and enjoyed
a gradual and steady prosperity down to
the Revolution by which the colonies were
severed from England.

Pennsylvania, as is indicated by its
name, was founded by the distinguished
philanthropist we have just mentioned, but
he was not the first to colonize it. This
was done by a mixture of Swedes, Dutch,
and English, who had for years before oc-
cupied the right bank of the Delaware, both
above the point where Philadelphia now
stands, and many miles below. The char-
ter obtained by William Penn from Charles
II. dates from 1681. On the 27th of Octo-
ber in the following year, the father of the
new colony having landed on his vast do-
main in America, immediately set about
the framing of a constitution, and began to
found a capital, which was destined to be-
come one of the finest cities in the Western
hemisphere. The government, like that
established by the Quakers in New-Jersey,
was altogether popular. *The people were
to have their own Legislature, whose acts,
however, were not to conflict with the just
claims of the proprietor, and were to be
subject to the approval of the crown alone.
The colony soon became prosperous. The
true principles of peace, principles that
form so conspicuous a part of the Quaker
doctrines, distinguished every transaction
in which the Aborigines were concerned.
It is the glory of Pennsylvania that it nev-
er did an act of injustice to the Indians.

The territory belonging to the State of
Delaware was claimed by Penn and his
successors, as included in the domain de-
scribed in their charter, and for a time
formed a part of Pennsylvania, under the
title of the Three Lower Counties. But
the mixed population of Swedes, Dutch,
and English by which it was occupied,
were never reconciled to this arrange-
ment, and having at last obtained a gov-
ernment of its own, Delaware became a
separate province.

The settlement of the two Carolinas be-
gan with straggling emigrants from Vir-
ginia, who sought to better their fortunes
in regions farther south, and were after-
ward joined by others from New-England,
and also from Europe. At length, in 1663,
the entire region lying between the thirty-
sixth degree of north latitude and the Riv-
er St. John's in Florida, was granted to a
proprietary company in England, which
was invested with most extraordinary pow-
ers. The proprietors, eight in number,
were Lord Ashley Cooper, better known
as the Earl of Shaftesbury, Clarendon,
Monk, Lord Craven, Sir John Colleton,
Lord John and Sir William Berkeley, and

Sir George Carteret. Their grand object
was gain, yet the celebrated John Locke,
at once a philosopher and a Christian, was
engaged to make "Constitutions," or a
form of government, for an empire that
was to stretch from the Atlantic to the Pa-
cific. The result of the philosophical law-
giver's labours was such as the world had
never seen the like of before. The pro-
prietors were to form a close corporation ;
the territory was to be partitioned out into
counties of vast extent, each of which was
to have an Earl or Landgrave, and two Bar-
ons or Caciques, who, as lords of manors,
were to have judicial authority within their
respective estates. Tenants of ten acres
were to be attached as serfs to the soil, to
be subject to the jurisdiction of their lords
without appeal, and their children were to
continue in the same degradation forever!
The possession of at least fifty acres of
land was to be required in order to the en-
joyment of the elective franchise ; and of
five hundred acres in order to a man's be-
ing eligible as a member of the colonial
Parliament or Legislature. These " Con-
stitutions," into the farther details of which
we cannot enter, were attempted to be in-
troduced, but were soon rejected in North
(>arolina ; and after a few years' struggle,
were thrown aside also in South Carolina,
which had been separated from the Nor-
thern province. The colonists adopted for
themselves forms of government analo-
gous to those of the other colonies ; the
proprietary company was after a while
dissolved ; the Carolinas fell under the di-
rect control of the crown, but were gov-
erned by their own legislatures. Their
prosperity was slow, having been frequent-
ly interrupted by serious wars with the
native tribes, particularly the Tuscaroras,
which, as it was the most powerful, was
for a long time also the most hostile.

Last of all the original thirteen provin-
ces, in the order of time, came Georgia,
which was settled as late as 1732, by the
brave and humane Oglethorpe. The col-
onists were of mixed origin, but the Eng-
lish race predominated. Although it had
difficulties to encounter almost from the
first, yet, notwithstanding wars with the
Spaniards in Florida, hostile attacks from
the Indians, and internal divisions, Geor-
gia acquired, by degrees, a considerable
amount of strength. ,

Such is a brief notice of the thirteen
original North American provinces, which,
by the Revolution of 1775-1783, were trans-
formed into as many states. They all
touch more or less on the Atlantic, and
stretch to a greater or less distance into
the interior. Virginia, Georgia, Pennsyl-
vania, and North Carolina are the largest ;
Rhode Island and Delaware are the small-
est.

In 1803, the French colony of Louisiana,

RELIGION IN AMERICA.

[Book I.

now the state of that name, together with
the territories since comprised in the
States of Arkansas and Missouri, and an
almost indefinite tract lying westward of
those last two, was purchased by the Uni-
ted States for fifteen millions of dollars.
And in 1821, the Spanish colony of Flori-
da, comprising the peninsula which used
to be called East Florida, and a narrow
strip of land on the Gulf of Mexico, called
West Florida, was purchased by the same
government for five millions of dollars.
Both purchases now form, of course, part
of the great North American Republic.

CHAPTER V.

INTERIOR COLONIZATION OF THE COUNTRY.

After the short account we have given
of the first planting of the thirteen original
provinces, by successive arrivals of colo-
nists from Europe, on the seacoast and
the banks of the larger streams, we pro-
ceed to say something of the progress of
colonization in the interior of the country.
A hundred and twenty-five years, it will
be observed, elapsed between the found-
ation of the first and the last of these
provinces ; also, that, with the exception
of New-York and Delaware, which receiv-
ed their first European inhabitants from
Holland and Sweden, they were all origi-
nally English ; but that, eventually, these
two were likewise included in English pat-
ents, and their Dutch and Swedish inhabi-
tants merged among the English.

All these colonies were of slow growth,
ten, and even twenty years being required,
in several instances, before they could be
regarded as permanently established. That
of Virginia, the earliest, was more than once
on the point of being broken up. Indeed,
we may well be surprised that, when the
colonists that survived the ravages of dis-
ease and attacks from the Indians were
still farther reduced in their number by the
return of a part of them to England, the
remainder did not become disheartened
and abandon the country in despair. The
Plymouth colonists lost, upon the very
spot where they settled, half their number
witiiin six months after their arrival ; and
terrible, indeed, must have been the sor-
rows of the dreary winter of 1G20-21, as
endured by those desolate yet persevering
exiles. Hut they had a firm faith in God's
goodness ; they looked to the future ; tlicy
felt that they had a great and a glorious
task to accomplish, and that, although they
themselves might perish in attempting it,
yet their children would enjoy the prom-
ised land.

Stout hearts were required for such en-
terprises. Few of the colonists were
wealthy persons, and as those were not

the days of fine packets, or of large and
well-appointed merchant vessels, the voy-
ages had to be made in small and crowded
ships. The inconveniences, to say nothing
of the sickness that attended them, were
but ill calculated to nerve the heart for
coming trials ; and as the colonists ap-
proached the coast, the boundless and sol-
emn forests that stretched before them,
the strangeness of every object that filled
the scene, the absence of all tillage and
cultivation, and of a village or house to
give them shelter, and the uncouth and
even frightful aspect of the savage inhabi-
tants, must have damped the boldest spir-
its. In the case of Plymouth and some
others, the settlers arrived during winter,
when all nature wore her gloomiest attire.
The rudest hovels were the only abodes
that could be immediately prepared for
their reception, and for weeks together
there might only be a few days of such
weather as would permit their proceeding
with the operations required for their com-
fort. Not only conveniences and luxuries,
such as the poorest in the mother-country
enjoyed, but even the necessaries of life,
were often wanthig. Years had to be
passed before any considerable part of the
forest could be cleared, comfortable dwell-
ings erected, and pleasant gardens plant-
ed. Meanwhile, disease and death would
enter every family ; dear friends and com-
panions in the toils and cares of the enter-
prise would be borne, one after another, to
the grave. To these causes of depression
there were often added the horrors of sav-
age warfare, by which some of the colo-
nies were repeatedly decimated, and du-
ring which the poor settler, for weeks and
months together, could not know, on reti-
ring to rest, whether he should not be
awakened by the heart-quailing war-whoop
of the savages around his house, or by find-
ing the house itself in flames. Ah, what
pen can describe the horror that fell upon
many a family, in almost all the colonies,
not once, but often, when aroused by false
or real alarms ! Who can depict the scenes
in which a father, before he received the
fatal blow himself, was compelled to see
his wife and children fall by the tomahawk
before his eyes, or be dragged into a cap-
tivity worse than death '■ With such de-
pressing circumstances to try the hearts
of the colonists — circumstances that can
be fully understood by those only who
have passed through them, or who have
heard them related with the minute fideli-
ty of an eyewitness — who can wonder
that the colonists advanced but slowly *?

Still, as I have said, they gradually gain-
ed strength. At the Revolution in England
of 1688, that is, eighty-one years after the
first settlement of Virginia, and sixty-eight
after that of Plymouth, the population of
the colonies, then twelve in number, was

Chap, v.] INTERIOR COLONIZATION OF THE COUNTRY.

estimated at about two hundred thousand,
which might be distributed thus : Massa-
chusetts, including Plymouth and Maine,
may have had forty- four tliousand ; New-
Hampshire and Rhode Island, including
Providence, six thousand each ; Connecti-
cut, from seventeen to twenty thousand ;
making up seventy-five thousand for all
New-England : New- York, not less than
twenty thousand ; New-Jersey, ten thou-
sand ; Pennsylvania and Delaware, twelve
thousand ; Maryland, twenty-five thou-
sand ; Virginia, fifty thousand ; and the
two Carolinas, which then included Geor-
gia, probably not fewer than eight thou-
sand souls.

After having confined their settlements
for many years within a short distance,
comparatively speaking, from the coast,
the colonists began to penetrate the inland
forests, and to settle at diflferent points in
the interior of the country, in proportion
as they considered themselves strong
enough to occupy them safely. Where
hostility on the part of the Aborigines was
dreaded, these settlers kept together as
much as possible, and established them-
selves in villages. This was particularly
the case in New-England, where, from the
soil being less favourable to agriculture,
colonization naturally assumed the com-
pact form required for the pursuits of trade
and the useful arts, as well as for mutual
assistance when exposed to attack. As
the New-England colonists had all along
devoted themselves much to the fisheries
and other branches of commerce, their set-
tlements were for a long time to be found
chiefly on the coast, and at points affording
convenient harbours. But it was much
otherwise in the South. In Virginia, in
particular, the colonists were induced to
settle along the banks of rivers to very
considerable distances, their main occu-
pation being the planting of tobacco and
trading to some extent with the Indians.
In the Carolinas, again, most hands being
employed in the manufacture of tar, tur-
pentine, and rosin, or in the cultivation of
rice, indigo, and, eventually, of cotton, the
colonial settlements took a considerable
range whenever there was peace with the
Indians in their vicinity. Where there
was little or no commerce, and agricultu-
ral pursuits of different kinds were the chief
occupation of the people, there could be
few towns of much importance ; and so
much does this hold at the present day,
that there is not a city of twenty-five
thousand inhabitants in all the five South-
ern Atlantic States, with the exception of
Baltimore, in Maryland, and Charleston, in
South Carolina.

Even at the commencement of the war
of the Revolution, in 1775, the colonies
had scarcely penetrated to they Alleghany
or Appalachian Mountains in any of the

provinces that reach thus far, and their
whole population was confined to the strip
of land interposed between those mount-
ains and the Atlantic Ocean. It is true,
that immediately after the treaty of Parish
in 1763, by which England acquired the
Canadas and theValley of the Mississippi-
excepting Louisiana, which remained with
France, or, rather, was temporarily ceded
to Spain— a few adventurers began to pass
beyond the mountains, and this emigration
westward continued during the war of the
Revolution. But when peace came, in
1783, I much doubt if there were twen-
ty thousand Anglo-Americans in West-
ern Pennsylvania, Western Virginia, Ken-
tucky, and Tennessee. These were but the
advanced posts of the immense host about
to follow, and, for many years after the
peace, the colonization of the interior was
slower than might be supposed. The pop-
ulation of the thirteen provinces at the
commencement of the Revolution is not
positively known, but it certainly did not
exceed three millions and a half, slaves in-
cluded. No doubt the population of the
seaboard increased with considerable ra-
pidity, and Vermont was not long in be-
ing added to the original thirteen states,
making fourteen in all upon the Atlan-
tic slope. They amount now to fifteen,
Maine, which was long a sort of province
to Massachusetts, having become a sep-
arate state in 1820. After the establish-
ment of Independence, danger from the
Aborigines ceased to be apprehended
throughout the whole country situated be-
tween the Alleghany Mountains and the
Atlantic Ocean. The remains of the nu-
merous tribes, its former inhabitants, had,
with some exceptions in New-England,
New- York, and the Carolinas, retired to
the West, and there they either existed
apart, or had become merged in other and
kindred tribes.

But it was far otherwise in the great re-
gion to the west of the Appalachian range.
There, many of the Indian tribes occupied
the country in all their pristine force, and
were the more to be dreaded by settlers
from the Eastern States, inasmuch as
they were supposed to be greatly under
the influence of the British government in
Canada, and as unkindly feelings long sub-
sisted between the Americans and their
English neighbours, each charging the oth-
er, probably not without justice, with exci-
ting the Indians, by means of their respect-
ive agents and hunters, to commit acts of
violence. Excepting in some parts of
Western Pennsylvania and Eastern Ten-
nessee, there was little security for Amer-
ican settlers in the West from 1783 until
1795. The first emigrants to Ohio suffered
greatly from the Indians ; two armies sent
against them, in the western part of that
state, under Generals Harmer and St. Clair,

RELIGION IN AMERICA.

[Book I.

were defeated and shockingly cut to pie-
ces ; and not until they had received a
dreadful defeat from General Wayne, on
the River Miami-of-the-lake,* was there
anything like permanent peace established.
But, as a prelude to the war between the
United States and Great Britain, which
commenced in 1812 and ended in 1815, the
Indian tribes again became troublesome,
particularly in Indiana and in the southeast-
ern part of the Valley of the Mississippi,
forming now the State of Alabama. The
Creeks, a powerful tribe of the Muskho-
gee race, then occupied that country, and
it was not until defeated in many battles
and skirmishes that they were reduced
to peace. In point of fact, perfect secu-
rity from Indian hostilities has prevailed
throughout the West only since 1815;
since that there have been the insignifi-
cant war with Black Hawk, a Sioux chief,
which took place a few years ago, and the
still more recent war with the Seminoles
in Florida — exceptions not worth special
notice, as they in nowise affected the coun-
try at large.

It is now (1844) about sixty years since
the tide of emigration from the Atlantic
States set fairly into the Valley of the
Mississippi, and though no great influx
took place in any one year during the first
thirty-five of that period, it has wonder-
fully increased during the last twenty-five.
When this emigration westward first com-
menced, all the necessaries that the emi-
grants required to take with them from the
East had to be carried on horseback, no
roads for wheeled carriages having been
opened through the mountains. On arri-
ving at the last ridge overlooking the
plains to the west, a boundless forest lay
stretched out before those pioneers of civ-
ilization, like an ocean of living green.
Into the depths of that forest they had to
plunge. Often long years of toil and suf-
fering rolled away before they could es-
tablish themselves in comfortable abodes.
The climate and the diseases peculiar to
the different localities were unknown.
Hence, fevers of a stubborn type cut many
of them off. They were but partially ac-
quainted with the mighty rivers of that
vast region, beyond knowing that their
common outlet was in the possession of
foreigners, who imposed vexatious reg-
ulations upon their infant trade. The
navigation of those rivers could be car-
ried on only in flat-bottomed boats, keels,
and barges. To descend them was not
unattended with danger, but to ascend by
means of sweeps and oars, by poling,
warping, bush-whacking i^ and so forth.

* Or the River Miami which flows into Lake
Erie, and so called to distinguish it from the Miami
that falls into the Ohio.

t The word bush-whackin/r is of Western origin,
and signifies a pecuhar mode of propelling a boat up

was laborious and tedious beyond concep-
tion.

Far different are the circumstances of
those colonists now ! The mountains, at
various points, are traversed by substan-
tial highways ; and, still farther to aug-
ment the facilities for intercourse with the
vast Western Valley, canals and railroads
are in progress. It is accessible, also, from
the south, by vessels from the Gulf of
Mexico, as well as from the north by the
lakes, on v/hose waters from fifty to a hun-
dred steamboats now pursue their foaming
way.* As for the navigable streams of the
Valley itself, besides boats of all kinds of
ordinary construction, nearly, if not quite,
four hundred steamboats ply upon their
waters. And now, instead of being a
boundless forest uninhabited by civilized
men, as it was sixty years ago, the West
contains no fewer than eleven regular-
ly-constituted states, and two territories
which will soon be admitted as states into
the Union, the population having, mean-
while, advanced from ten or twenty thou-
sand Anglo-American inhabitants to above
six millions.!

Generally speaking, the various sections
of the Valley of the Mississippi may be said
to have been colonized from the parts of
the Atlantic coast which correspond with
them as nearly as possible in point of lati-
tude. This is easily accounted for : emi-
grants from the East to the West naturally
wish to keep as much as they can within
the climate which birth and early life have

the Mississippi, Ohio, or any other river in that re-
gion, when the water is very high. It is this: in-
stead of keeping in the middle of the stream, the
boat is made to go along close to one of the banks,
and the men who guide it, by catching hold of the
boughs of the trees which overhang the water, are
enabled to drag the boat along. It is an expedient
resorted to more by way of change than anything
else. Sometimes it is possible, at certain stages of
the rivers, to go along for miles in this way. Even
to this day the greater portion of the banks of the
rivers of the West are covered with almost uninter-
rupted forests.

* There are more than sixty on Lake Erie alone.

+ It may be worth while to give the names of
these states and territories, their extent in English
square miles, and their population according to the
census of 1840. They are as follows :

STATES.

Sq. miles.

Pop. in 1640.

Ohio . . .

. . . 40,260

1,519,467

Indiana . .

. . . 36,500

685,868

Michigan .

. . . 59,700

212,267

Illinois . .

. . . 57,900

476,183

Kentucky .

. . . 40,500

779,828

Tennessee .

. . . 40,200

829,210

Missouri

. . . C3,800

383,702

Arkansas .

. . . 60,700

97,574

Alabama

. . . 52,900

590,756

Mississippi .

. . . 47,680

375,651

Louisiana .

. . . 49,300

TEEKITORIES.

352,411

Wisconsin .

30,945

Iowa . . .

. . . ■ ■

43,112

Total

6,376,972

Chap. VI.] ANGLO-SAXON QUALIFICATIONS FOR COLONIZATION.

rendered familiar and agreeable, though a
regard to their health may compel some of
them to seek a change by passing to the
south or north of their original latitude.
The New-England tide of emigration, in its
westward course, penetrated and settled
the northern and western parts of the State
of New-York, and advancing still farther in
the direction of the setting sun, entered the
northern parts of Ohio, Indiana, and Illi-
nois, extended over the whole of Michigan,
and is now stretching into the Territory
of Wisconsin. That from the southern
counties of New- York, from New-Jersey,
and Eastern Pennsylvania, first occupied
Western Pennsylvania, and then extended
into the central districts of Ohio and Indi-
ana. The Maryland and Virginia column
colonized Western Virginia and Kentucky,
and then dispersed itself over the southern
parts of Ohio, Indiana, and Illinois ; while
that from North Carolina, after having
colonized Tennessee, is reaching into
Missouri and Iowa. The South Carolina
column, mingling with that of Georgia,
after having covered Alabama and a great
part of the State of Mississippi, is now ex-
tending itself into Arkansas.

This account of the progress of coloni-
zation westward, as a general statement, is
remarkably correct, and it furnishes a bet-
ter key to the political, moral, and religious
character of the West, than any other that
could be given. The West, in fact, may
be regarded as the counterpart of the East,
after allowing for the exaggeration, if I may
so speak, which a life in the wilderness
tends to communicate for a time to man-
ners and character, and even to religion,
but which disappears as the population
increases, and the country acquires the
stamp of an older civilization. Strag-
glers may, indeed, be found in all parts
of the West, from almost all parts of the
East ; and many emigrants from Europe,
too, Germans especially, enter by New-
Orleans, and from that city find their way
by steamboats into Indiana, Illinois, Mis-
souri, Wisconsin, and Iowa. But all these
form exceptions that hardly invalidate the
.general statement.

CHAPTER VI.

PECULIAR QUALIFICATIONS OF THE ANGLO-
SAXON RACE FOR THE WORK OF COLONIZA-
TION.

Apart altogether from considerations of
a moral and religious character, and the in-
fluence of external circumstances, we may
remark, that the Anglo-Saxon race possess-
es qualities peculiarly adapted for success-
ful colonization. The characteristic per-
severance, the spirit of personal freedom
and independence, that have ever distin-

guished that race, admirably fit a man for
the labour and isolation necessarily to be
endured before he can be a successful
colonist. Now, New-England, together
with the States of New- York, New-Jersey,
Delaware, and Pennsylvania, with the ex-
ception of Dutch and Swedish elements,
which were too inconsiderable to affect the
general result, were all colonized by peo-
ple of Anglo-Saxon origin. And assuredly
they have displayed qualities fitting them
for their task such as the world has never
witnessed before. No sooner have the
relations between the colonies and the
Aborigines permitted it to be done with
safety (and sometimes even before), than
we find individuals and families ready to
penetrate the wilderness, there to choose,
each for himself or themselves, some fer-
tile spot for a permanent settlement. If
friends could be found to accompany him
and settle near him, so much the better ;
but if not, the bold emigrant would venture
alone far into the trackless forest, and sur-
mount every obstacle single-handed, like a
fisherman committing himself to the deep
and passing the livelong day at a distance
from the shore. Such was the experience
of many of the first colonists of New-Eng-
land ; such that of the earliest settlers in
New- York, New-Jersey, Delaware, and
Pennsylvania; such in our own day has
been the case with many of the living oc-
cupants of Ohio, Indiana, Illinois, Michi-
gan, Wisconsin, and Iowa ; and thus is
colonization advancing in all those states
and territories at the present moment.

Living on the lands which they cultivate,
the agricultural inhabitants of the New-
England and Middle States are very much
dispersed ; the country, far and wide, is
dotted over with the dwellings of the land-
holders and those who assist them in the
cultivation of the soil. For almost every
landowner tills his property himself, as-
sisted by his sons, by young men hired for
that purpose, or by tenants who rent from
him a cottage and a few acres. Field
work in all those states is performed by
men alone ; a woman is never seen hand-
ling the plough, the hoe, the axe, the
sickle, or the scythe, unless in the case
of foreign emigrants who have not yet
adopted American usages in this respect.

Now it is in this isolated and independent
mode of life that our men best fitted to
penetrate and settle in the wilderness are
trained ; and from this what may be em-
phatically called our frontier race has
sprung, and is recruited from time to time.

Take the following case as an illustra-
tion of the process that is continually going
on in the frontier settlements. A man re-
moves to the West, he purchases a piece
of ground, builds a house, and devotes
himself to the clearing and tillage of his
forest acres. Ere long he has rescued a

RELIGION IN AMERICA.

[Book I.

farm from the wilderness, and has reared
a family upon it. He then divides his land
among his sons, if there be enough for a
farm to each of them ; if not, each receives
money enough to buy one as he comes of
age. Some may settle on lands bestowed
on them by their father ; others, preferring
a change, may dispose of their portion and
proceed, most commonly unmarried, to
" the new country," as it is called, that is,
to those parts of the West where the pub-
lic lands are not yet sold. There he
chooses out as much as he can convenient-
ly pay for, receiving a title to it from the
District Land Office, and proceeds to make
for himself a home. This is likely to be in
the spring. Having selected a spot for his
dwelling, generally near some fountain,
or where water may be had by digging a
well, he goes round and makes the acquaint-
ance of his neighbours, residing within
the distance, it may be, of several miles.
A time is fixed for building him a house,
upon which those neighbours come and
render him such efficient help, that in a
single day he will find a log-house con-
structed, and perhaps covered with clap-
boards, and having apertures cut out for
the doors, windows, and chimney. He
makes his floor at once of rough boards
riven from the abundant timber of the sur-
rounding forest, constructs his doors, and
erects a chimney. Occupying himself,
while interrupted in out-door work by
rainy weather, in completing his house, he
finds it in a few weeks tolerably comfort-
able, and during fair weather he clears the
underwood from some ten or fifteen acres,
kills the large trees by notching them
round so as to arrest the rise of the sap,
and plants the ground with Indian corn, or
maize, as it is called in Europe. He can
easily make, buy, or hire a plough, a har-
row, and a hoe or two. If he finds time,
he surrounds his field with a fence. At
length, after prolonging his stay until his
crop is beyond the risk of serious injury
from squirrels and birds, or from the growth
of weeds, he shuts up his house, commits
it to the care of some neighbour, living
perhaps one or two miles distant, and re-
turns to his paternal home, which may be
from one to three hundred miles distant
from his new settlement. There he stays
until the month of September, then mar-
ries, and with his young wife, a wagon
and pair of horses to carry their effects, a
few cattle or sheep, or none, according to
circumstances, sets out to settle for life iu
the wilderness. On arriving at his farm, he
sows wheat or rye among his standing In-
dian corn, then gathers in this last, and
prepares for the winter. His wife shares
all the cares incident to this humble begin-
ning. Accustomed to every kind of house-
hold work, she strives by the diligence of
her fingers to avoid the necessity of going

to the merchant, who has opened his stor&
at some village among the trees, perhaps
some miles off, and there laying out the
little money they may have left. With
economy and health, they gradually be-
come prosperous. The primitive log-house
gives place to a far better mansion, con-
structed of hewn logs, or of boards, or of
brick or stone. Extensive and well- fenced
fields spread around, ample barns stored
with grain, stalls filled with horses and cat-
tle, flocks of sheep, and herds of hogs, all
attest the increasing wealth of the owners.
Their children grow up, perhaps to pursue
the same course, or, as their inclinations
may lead, to choose some other occupa-
tion, or to enter one of the learned profes-
sions.

This sketch will give the reader some
idea of the mode in which colonization
advances among the Anglo-Saxon race of
the Middle and New-England States ot
America. Less Anglo-Saxon in their ori-
gin, and having institutions and customs
modified by slavery, the Southern States
exhibit colonization advancing in a very
different style. When an emigrant from
those states removes to the " Far West,"
he takes with him his wagons, his cattle,
his little ones, and a troop of slaves, so as
to resemble Abraham when he moved from
place to place in Canaan. When he set-
tles in the forest he clears and cultivates
the ground with the labour of his slaves.
Everything goes on heavily. Slaves are
too stupid and improvident to make good
colonists. The country, under these dis-
advantages, never assumes the garden-like
appearance that it already wears in the
New-England and Middle States, and which
is to be seen in the northern parts of the
great Central Valley. Slavery, in fact,
seems to blight whatever it touches.

Next to the Anglo-Saxon race from the
British shores, the Scotch make the best
settlers in the great American forests.
The Irish are not so good ; they know not
how to use the plough, or how to manage
the horse and the ox, having had but little
experience of either in their native land.
None can handle the spade better, nor are
they wanting in industry. But when they
first arrive they are irresolute, dread the
forest, and hang too much about the large
towns, looking around for such work as
their previous mode of life has not disquali-
fied them for. Such of them as have beea
bred to mechanical trades might find suffi-
cient employment if they would let ardent
spirits alone, but good colonists for the for-
ests they will never be. Their children
may do better in that career. The few
Welsh to be found in America are much
better fitted than the Irish for the life and
pursuits of a farmer.

The perseverance and frugality of the
German, joined to other good qualities

Chap. VII.] WANT OF NATIONAL CHARACTER IN AMERICA.

which he has in common with the Anglo-
Saxon race, enable him to succeed tolera-
bly well even in the forest, but he finds it
more to his advantage to settle on a farm
bought at second-hand and partiallj" culti-
vated. The Swiss are much the same with
the Germans. The P'rench and Italians,
on the other hand, are totally unfit for
planting colonies in the woods. Nothing
could possibly be more alien to the usual
habits of a Frenchman. The population
of France is almost universally collected
in cities, towns, villages, and hamlets, and
thus, from early habit as well as constitu-
tional disposition. Frenchmen love socie-
ty, and cannot endure the loneliness and
isolation of the settlements we have de-
scribed. When they attempt to form colo-
nies, it is by grouping together in villages,
as may be seen along the banks of the St.
Lawrence and of the Lower Mississippi.
Hence their settlements are seldom either
extensive or vigorous. They find them-
selves happier in the cities and large towns.
If resolved to establish themselves in the
country, they should go to comparatively
well-settled neighbourhoods, not to the for-
ests of the Far West.

♦

CHAPTER VII.

ON THE ALLEGED WANT OF NATIONAL CHAR-
ACTER IN AMERICA.

Foreigners who have written about the
United States have often asserted that it
is a country without a national character.
Were this the mere statement of an opin-
ion, it might be suffered to pass unnoticed,
like many other things emanating from
authors who undertake to speak about
countries which they have had only very
partial, and hence very imperfect, opportu-
nities of knowing. But as the allegation
has been made with an air of considerable
pretension, it becomes necessary that we
should submit it to the test of truth.

If oneness of origin be essential to the
formation of national character, it is clear
that the people of the United States can
make no pretensions to it. No civilized
nation was ever composed of inhabitants
derived from such a variety of sources ;
for in the United States we find the de-
scendants of Enghsh, W^elsh, Scotch,
Irish, Dutch, Germans, Norwegians, Danes,
Swedes, Poles, French, Italians, and Span-
iards ; and there is even a numerous and
distinguished family in which it is admitted,
with pride, that the blood of an Indian prin-
cess mingles with that of the haughty Nor-
man or Norman-Saxon. Many other na-
tions are of mixed descent, but where shall
we find one derived from so many distinct
races 1

Neither, if national character depends

upon the existence of but one language,
can the citizens of the United States make
any claim to it ; for the colonists from
whom they are descended brought with
them the languages of the different coun-
tries from which they came, and these are
retained in some instances to the present
day. At least eleven of the different lan-
guages of Europe have been spoken by
settlers in the United States.

But let us examine these two points
somewhat more minutely, and we cannot
fail to be struck with the facts which will
be presented to our view.

And in the first, never has there been
witnessed so rapid a blending of people
from different countries, and speaking dif-
ferent languages, as may be seen in the
United States. Within the last two hun-
dred years, people have been arriving from
some eleven or twelve different countries,
and distinguished by as many different
tongues, yet so singular a fusion has ta-
ken place, that in many localities, where
population is at all compact, it would puz-
zle a stranger to determine the national
origin of the people from any peculiarity
of physiognomy or dialect, far less of lan-
guage. Who can distinguish in New-York
the mass of persons of Dutch descent from
those of Anglo-Saxon origin, unless, per-
haps, by their retaining Dutch family
names ■? Where discover, by the indices of
language, features, or manners, the de-
scendants of the Swedes, the Welsh, with
a few exceptions the Poles, the Norwe-
gians, the Danes, or the great body of
French Huguenots'? Almost the only ex-
ceptions to this universal amalgamation
and loss of original languages are to be
found in the Germans and French ; and even
in regard to these, had it not been for com-
paratively recent arrivals of emigrants
caused by the French Revolution, the St.
Domingo massacres, and various events in
Germany, both the French and German
languages would have been extinct ere now
in the United States. The former is spo-
ken only by a few thousands in the large
cities, and some tens of thousands in Loui-
siana. In the cities, English as well as '
French is spoken by most of the French ;
and in Louisiana, the only portion of the
Union which the French language has ever
ventured to claim for itself, it is fast giving
place to English. German, also, spoken
although it be by many thousands of emi-
grants arriving yearly from Europe, is fast
disappearing from the older settlements.
The children of these Germans almost uni-
versally acquire the English tongue in their
infancy, and where located, as generally
happens, in the neighbourhood of settlers
who speak English as their mother tongue,
learn to speak it well. Indeed, over nearly
the whole vast extent of the United States,
English is spoken among the well-educa-

RELIGION IN AMERICA.

[Book I.

ted, with a degree of purity to which there
is no parallel in the British realm. There,
on a space not much larger than a sixth part
of the United States territory, no fewer than
three or four languages are spoken ; and in
England alone, 1 know not how many dia-
lects are to be found which a person unac-
customed to them can hardly at all com-
prehend, however familiar he may be with
pure English. As for France, with its Gas-
con, Breton, and I know not how many
other remains of the languages spoken by
the ancient races which were once scat-
tered over its territory, the case is still
worse.* Nor does either Germany or Ita-
ly present the uniformity of speech that
distinguishes the millions of the United
States, with the exception of the newly-ar-
rived foreigners ; a uniformity which ex-
tends even to pronunciation, and the ab-
sence of provincial accent and phraseology.
A well-educated American who has seen
much of his country may, indeed, distin-
guish the Southern from the Northern
modes of pronouncing certain vowels ; he
may recognise by certain shades of sound,
if 1 may so express myself, the Northern
or Southern origin of his countrymen ; but
these differences are too slight to be read-
ily perceived by a foreigner.

Generally speaking, the pronunciation
of well-educated Americans is precisely
that given in the best orthoepical authori-
ties of England, and our best speakers
adopt the well-established changes in pro-
nunciation that from time to time gain
ground there. A few words, however, are
universally pronounced in a manner differ-
ent from what prevails in England. Either
and neither, for example, are pronounced
eether and neether, not 'tther and nither, nor
will our lawyers probably ever learn to say
lien for leen. There is a very perceptible
difference of accent between the English
and Americans, particularly those of the
Eastern or New-England States. There
is also a difference of tone ; in some of the
states there is more of a nasal inflexion of
the voice than one hears in England.

English literature has an immense cir-
culation in America ; a circumstance which
may be an advantage in one sense, and a
disadvantage in another. We are not want-
ing, however, in authors of unquestion-
able merit in almost every branch of liter-
ature, art, and science. Still, if a litera-
ture of our own creation be indispensable
to the possession of a national character,
we must abandon all claim to it.

It may be added, that we have no fash-
ions of our own. We follow the modes of
Paris. But in this Germans, Russians,
Italians, and English, without any abate-

* I have been informed that there are twelve dis-
tinct lauguages and patois spoken in France, and
that interpreters are needed in courts of justice vvilh-
. in a hundred miles of Paris !

ment of their claims to national character,
do the same.

Amalgamation takes place, also, by in-
termarriages to an extent quite unexam-
pled anywhere else ; for though the Anglo-
Saxon race has an almost undisputed pos-
session of the soil in New-England, peo-
ple are everywhere else to be met with
in whose veins flows the mingled blood
of English, Dutch, Germans, Irish, and
French.

Nor has the assimilation of races and
languages been greater than that of man-
ners, customs, religion, and political prin-
ciples. The manners of the people, in
some places less, in others more refined,
are essentially characterized by simplicity,
sincerity, frankness, and kindness. The
religion of the overwhelming majority, and
which may therefore be called national, is,
in all essential points, what was taught by
the great Protestant Reformers of the six-
teenth century. With respect to politics,
with whatever warmth we may discuss the
measures of the government, but one feel-
ing prevails with regard to our political
institutions themselves. We are no prop-
agandists : we hold it to be our duty to
avoid meddling with the governments of
other countries ; and though we prefer our
own political forms, would by no means
insist on others doing so too. That gov-
ernment we believe to be the best for any
people under which they live most happi-
ly, and are best protected in their rights of
person, property, and conscience ; and we
would have every nation to judge for itself
what form of government is best suited to
secure for it these great ends.

Assuredly no country possesses a press
more free, or where, notwithstanding, pub-
lic opinion is more powerful ; but on these
points we shall have more to say in an-
other part of this work.

The American people, taken as a whole,
are mainly characterized by perseverance,
earnestness, kindness, hospitality, and self-
reliance, that is, by a disposition to depend
upon their own exertions to the utmost,
rather than look to the government for as-
sistance. Hence, there is no country where
the government does less, or the people
more. In a word, our national character
is that of the Anglo-Saxon race, which
still predominates among us in conse-
quence of its original preponderancy in
the colonization of the country, and of the
energy which forms its characteristic dis-
tinction.

Has the reader ever heard Haydn's cel-
ebrated oratorio of the Creation perform-
ed by a full orcliestra 1 If so, he cannot
liave forgotten how chaos is represented
at the commencement, by all the instru-
ments being sounded together without the
least attempt at concord. By-and-by, how-
ever, something like order begins, and

Chap. VIII.]

THE ROYAL CHARTERS.

at length the clear notes of the clarionet
are heard over all the others, controlling
them into harmony. Something like this
has been the influence in America of the
Anglo-Saxon language, laws, institutions,

CHARACTER.

But if, when it is alleged that we have
no national character, it be meant that we
have not originated any for ourselves, it
may be asked, What nation has ! All owe
much to those from whom they have
sprung ; this, too, has been our case, al-
though what we have inherited from our
remote ancestors has unquestionably been
much modified by the operation of politi-
cal institutions which we have been Jed to
adopt by new circumstances, and which,
probably, were never contemplated by the
founders of our country.

CHAPTER VIII.

THE ROYAL CHARTERS.

Few points in the colonial history of the
United States are more interesting to the
curious inquirer than the royal charters,
under which the settlement of the country
first took place.

These charters were granted by James
I., Charles I., Charles II., James II., Will-
iam and Mary, and George I. They were
very diverse, both in form and substance.
Some were granted to companies, some to
single persons, others to the colonists
themselves. Most of them preceded the
foundation of the colonies to which they
referred ; but in the cases of Rhode Island
and Connecticut, the territories were set-
tled first ; while Plymouth colony had no
crown charter at all, and not even a grant
from the Plymouth Company in England,
imtil the year after its foundation.

The ordinary reader can be interested
only in the charters granted by the crown
of England ; those from proprietary com-
panies and individuals, to whom whole
provinces had first been granted by the
crown, can interest those readers only
who would study the innumerable lawsuits
to which they gave occasion. Such in
those days was the utter disregard for the
correct laying down of boundaries, that
the same district of country was often cov-
ered with two or more grants, made by the
same proprietors, to different individuals ;
thus furnishing matter for litigations which
lasted in some colonies more than a cen-
tury, and sometimes giving rise to lawsuits
even at the present day.

The royal charters give us an amusing
idea of the notions with respect to North
American geography entertained in those
days by the sovereigns of England, or by
those who acted for them. The charter
of Virginia not only included those vast
regions now comprised in the States of

Ohio, Indiana, Illinois and Michigan, but
the northern and southern bounding lines,
if extended according to the terms of the
charter, would have terminated, the one in
the Pacific Ocean, and the other in Hud-
son's Bay ; yet by the same charter, they
were both to terminate at the South Sea,
as the Pacific Ocean was then called.

The North Carolina and Georgia char-
ters conveyed to the colonists provinces
that were to extend westward to the South
Sea.

The Massachusetts and Connecticut
charters made these colonies also reach
to the South Sea, it never appearing to
have entered the royal head that they must
thus have interfered with the claims of
Virginia. New-York, which they must also
have traversed, seems not to have been
thought of, though claimed and occupied
at the time by the Dutch. Indeed, con-
sidering the descriptions contained in their
charters, it is marvellous that the colonies
ever ascertained their boundaries. Look-
ing at the charter of Massachusetts, for
example, and comparing it with that state
as laid down on our maps, we are amazed
to think by what possible ingenuity it
should have come to have its existing
boundaries, especially that on the north-
east. Still more confounding does it seem
that Massachusetts should have success-
fully claimed the territory of Maine, and
yet have had to relinquish that of New-
Hampshire.

The charter granted to William Penn
for Pennsylvania was the clearest of all,,
yet it was long matter of dispute whether
or not it included Delaware. On the oth-
er hand, Delaware was claimed by Mary-
land, and with justice, if the charter of the
latter province were to be construed lit-
erally. Still, Maryland did not obtain
Delaware.

Such charters, it will be readily sup-
posed, must have led to serious and pro-
tracted disputes between the colonies
themselves. Many of these disputes were
still undetermined at the commencement
of the war of the Revolution ; several re-
mained unadjustified long after the achieve-
ment of the national independence ; and it
was only a few years ago that the last of
the boundary questions was brought to a
final issue before the Supreme Court of the
United States.

After the Revolution, immense diflEicul-
ties attended the settlement of the various
claims preferred by the Atlantic States to
those parts of the West which they be-
lieved to have been conveyed to them by
their old charters, and into which the tide
of emigration was then beginning to flow.
Had Virginia successfully asserted her
claims, she would have had an empire in
the Valley of the Mississippi sufl[icient, at
some future day, to counterbalance almost

RELIGION IN AMERICA.

[Book I.

all the other states put together. North
Carolina and Georgia also laid claim to
territories of vast extent. The claims of
Connecticut and Massachusetts directly
conflicted with those of Virginia. Hence
it required a great deal of wisdom and pa-
tience to settle all these claims, without
endangering the peace and safety of the
confederacy. All, at length, were adjusted
except that of Georgia, and it, too, was ar-
ranged at a later date. Virginia magnan-
imously relinquished all her claims in the
West ; a spontaneous act, which immedi-
ately led to the establishment of the State
of Kentucky, followed in due time by
the foundation of those of Ohio, Indiana,
Illinois, and Michigan, in what was long
called the Northwestern Territory. The
relinquishment by North Carolina of her
claims west of the Alleghany Mountains
led to the creation of the State of Tennes-
see. But Connecticut refused to abandon
her claim to the northeastern part of Ohio,
often called to this day New Connecticut,
without receiving from the General Gov-
ernment a handsome equivalent in money,
which has been safely invested, and forms
the basis of a large capital, set apart for
the support of the common schools of the
state.* Georgia also ceded her claims in
the West to the General Government, on
the condition that it should obtain for her
from the Indians a title to their territory
lying to the east of the Chattahoochee
River, now the western boundary of that
state. Out of the cession thus made by
Georgia have been formed the States of
Alabama and Mississippi.

The United States have had to struggle
with still more serious difficulties, origina-
ting in the old royal charters. Little re-
gard was paid to the prior claims of the
Indians in the extensive grants made by
those charters, directly or indirectly, to
the colonists. The pope had set the ex-
ample of giving away the Aborigines with
the lands they occupied, or, rather, of giv-
ing away the land from under them ; and
although in all the colonies founded by
our English ancestors in America there
was a kind of feeling that the Indians had
some claims on the ground of prior occu-
pation, yet these, it was thought, ought to
give place to the rights conferred by the
royal charters. The colonists were sub-
ject to the same blinding influence of
selfishness that aff'ects other men, and to
this we are to ascribe the importunity with
which tliey urged the removal of the Indi-
ans from the land conveyed by the royal
charters, and which they had long been
wont to consider and to call their own.
In no case, indeed, did the new-comers
seize upon the lands of the aboriginal oc-
cupants without some kind of purchase ;

* Amounting to 2,040,228 dollars.

yet unjustifiable means were often em-
ployed to induce the latter to cede their
claims to the former, such as excessive
importunity, the bribery of the chiefs, and
sometimes even threats. Thus, although,
with the exception of lands obtained by
right of conquest in war, I do not believe
that any whatever was obtained without
something being given in exchange for it,
yet I fear that the golden rule of " doing
to others as we would that they should do
unto us," was sadly neglected in many of
those transactions. In Pennsylvania and
New-England, unquestionably, greater fair-
nes was shown than in most, if not all the
other colonies ; yet even there, full justice,
according to the above rule, was not always
practised. Indeed, in many cases it was
difficult to say what exact justice implied.
To savages roaming over vast tracts of
land which they did not cultivate, and
which, even for the purposes of the chase,
were often more extensive than necessary ,^
to part with hundreds, or even thousands
of square miles, could not be thought a
matter of much importance, and thus con-
science was quieted. But although our
forefathers may not have done full justice
to the poor Indians, it is by no means cer-
tain that others in the same circumstances
would have done better.

The impatience of the colonists to ob-
tain possession of lands which their char-
ters, or arrangements consequent thereon,
led them to regard as their own, has at
limes thrown the General Government into
much embarrassment and difficulty. Thus,
in the conflict between it and the State of
Georgia, a few short years ago. Congress
had agreed to buy the claims of the Indi-
ans still remaining within that state, and to
provide for their removal beyond its lim-
its, in return for the relinquishment of its
claims in the West. But this removal of
the Indians, it had been expressly stipula-
ted, was to be effected peaceably, and with
their own consent. Time rolled on, the
population of Georgia increased, the set-
tlements of the white men had begun to
touch those of the red men, and the latter
were urged to sell their lands and to retire
farther to the west. But to this they
would not consent. Thereupon the Gen-
eral Government was called on to fulfil its
engagement. It exerted itself to the ut-
most to persuade the Indians to sell their
lands ; but neither would it employ force
itself, nor allow Georgia to do so, though,
much was done by the colonists, and some-
thing, too, by the state indirectly, to worry
the Indians into terms. The chiefs, how-
ever, long held back. But at length the
lands were sold at a great price, and their
occupants received others west of the
Mississippi, and have removed to these.
There, I doubt not, they will do bettei
than in their former abode.

Chap.IX.] a knowledge OF THE AMERICAN PEOPLE, ETC.

To rid itself of such embarrassments
created by the old charters, the General
Government, at the instance of great and
good men, adopted, some years ago, the plan
of collecting all the tribes still to be found
within the confines of any of the states,
upon an extensive district to the wesi of
Arkansas and Missouri, claimed by no
state, and, therefore, considered as part of
the pubUc domain. There it has already
collected the Cherokees, the Choctas, the
Chickasas, the Creeks, and several smaller
tribes. Soon the territories of all the states
will be cleared of them, except in so far as
they may choose to remain and become
citizens. Nor can I avoid cherishing the
hope that the great Indian community novir
forming, as 1 have said, west of Missouri
and Arkansas, will one day become a state
itself, and have its proper representatives
in the great council of the nation. I may
conclude these remarks by observing, that
the late painful dispute between the Uni-
ted States and Great Britain, now^ so hap-
pily terminated, relative to the boundaries
between the State of Maine on the one
hand, and Lower Canada and New-Bruns-
wick on the other, originated in the geo-
graphical obscurity of certain limits, de-
scribed in one of these old charters.

CHAPTER IX.

HOW A CORRECT KNOWLEDGE OF THE AMER-
ICAN PEOPLE, THE NATURE OF THEIR GOV-
ERNMENT, AND OF THEIR NATIONAL CHAR.'VC-
TER, MAY BEST BE ATTAINED.

He who would obtain a thorough knowl-
edge of the people of the United States, their
national character, the nature of their gov-
ernment, and the spirit of their laws, must
go back to the earliest ages of the history
of England, and study the character of the
various races that from early times have
settled there. He must carefully mark
the influences they exerted on each other,
and upon the civil and politi,cal institutions
of that country. He must study the Sax-
on Conquest, followed by the introduction
of Saxon institutions, and Saxon laws and
usages ; the trial of an accused person by
his peers ; the subdivision of the country
into small districts, called townships or
hundreds ; the political influence of that
arrangement ; and the establishment of
seven or eight petty kingdoms, in which
the authority of the king was shared by the
people, without whose consent no laws of
importance could be made, and who often
met for legislation in the open fields, or
beneath the shade of some wrde-spreading
forest, as their Scandinavian kinsmen met,
at a much later period, round the Mora
stone.* He must next study the modifi-

* On the plains of Upsala in Sweden. The mora
stone signifies the stone on the moor.

cations afterward introduced during the
subjugation of the Saxons by the North-
men or Danes, lasting through 261 years,*
and which, though both partial in its ex-
tent, and interrupted in its continuance,
left not a few monuments of its existence,
and gave a name to one of the orders of
the English nobility. f

But, above all, he must study the influence
of the Norman Conquest, which was com-
pleted within twenty years from the battle
of Hastings, fought A.D. 1066. Without
extirpating all the Saxon institutions, that
event reduced the Anglo-Saxons of Eng-
land to the condition of serfs ; gave their
lands to sixty thousand warriors, compo-
sing the conqueror's army ; established an
absolute monarchy, surrounded bj'' a pow-
erful landed aristocracy ; and thus intro-
duced an order of things wholly new to
the country, and foreign to its habits.

He must attentively mark the influence
exercised by the Anglo-Saxon and Nor-
man races upon each other, during the pe-
riod that has since elapsed, of nearly eight
hundred years; and he will there find a
clew to many transactions which appear
wholly unintelligible in the common histo-
ries of England. The reciprocal hatred of
the two races will explain the quarrel of
Becket, the first archbishop of the Saxon
race after the Conquest, and Henry II.,
the fifth of the Norman kings ; that nation-
al> animosity leading Becket to resist the
demands of the king, as calculated to ex-
tend the tyranny of a hated race of con-
querors, and the king to humble the con-
quered by crushing theirhaughty represent-
ative. That this, and not the diminution
of the power of the pope, as is commonly
believed, was Henry's object, may be seen
from the fact of his being no less earnest
in calling -for assistance from Rome, than
Becket was in invoking her protection.

He will perceive this mutual animosity
manifesting itself in innumerable instances
and in apparently contradictory conduct.
At one time the Anglo-Saxons sided with
the nobility against the monarch, as in the
wars between the barons and King John,
and also Henry HI., not because they loved
the barons, who were of the same detest-
ed Norman race, but because they dread-
ed the consequences to themselves of an-
other conquest, by a king who had invited
over the Poitevins, the Aquitains, and the
ProveuQals, to help him against his own
subjects in England. At other times they
sided with the king against the barons,
when they saw that the triumph of the lat-
ter was likely to augment their burdens.

And although, as M. Thierry remarks,^

* From A.D. 787 to A.U. 1048.

t That of Earl, from the Danish and Norwegian
Jarl, who was at once the civil and military govern-
or of a province.

t " ConquSte de I'Angleterre," vol. iv.,p. 366-368,
Brussels edition.

RELIGION IN AMERICA.

[Book I.

the bitter hostility which had lasted for four
centuries seemed to become extinct in the
fifteenth, when the wars between the Hous-
es of York and Lancaster ranged the two
races promiscuously on each side, yet tra-
ces of their distinct existence are to be
found at this day, in the language, in the
customs, and in tlie institutions of England.
Although the monarch no longer employs
the ancient formula, as it occurs in royal
ordinances and proclamations for four hun-
dred years after the Conquest, such as
" Henry V., Henry VIL of that name since
the conquest,''* yet to this day a Norman
phraseology is sometimes employed by the
monarch, as, for instance, le roy Ic veult ; le
roy s'adviserd ; le roy mercie ses loyaux su-
]ets.-\ To this day the nobility of England,
though recruited from time to time from the
rich, the talented, and the ambitious com-
moners of Saxon blood, remains essential-
ly Norman in spirit and in character. The
same may be said of the gentry, or propri-
etors of landed estates ; whereas the great
bulk of the remaining population is of An-
glo-Saxon origin. t In Wales, and in Ire-
land, the races of the conquerors and the
conquered appear still more distinct, and
in the latter mutual antipathy is far from
having ceased. In Scotland, there is com-
paratively little Norman blood, the Nor-
mans never having conquered that coun-
try.*^

To the resistance of the Anglo-Saxon
race in England to the domination of the
Norman aristocracy that kingdom was ul-
timately indebted for the free institutions
it now enjoys. The oppressions of the
nobility and of the crown were checked
by the cities and boroughs, in which the
Anglo-Saxon commons became more and
more concentrated, with the advance of
civilization and population. The nobles
themselves, on occasions when they, too,
had to contend for their rights and privi-
leges against the sovereign, gave a help-
ing hand to the people ; and in later times
especially, after the people had established
the power of their t-ommons, or third es-
tate, on an immovable foundation, aided
the sovereign against alleged encroach-

* Henry Vtll. was tliP last monarch who used this
formula in his proclamations, and styled himself Hen-
ry, Eighth of the name since the CotKiuest.

t "The king wills;" "the king will take coun-
sel ;" " the king thanks his loyal subjects."

X Even in our day, the language of the Chronicle
of Robert of Gloucexirr holds true in no inconsiderable
degree in regard to the population of England:
" The folk of Normandie

Amnns us woucth ytt, and sh.alleth evermore.

Of Normans beth these high men that beth in this land,

And the low men of Saxons."

<^ In fact, there is not a little Norman blood in
Scotland; but what of it is to be found in the aris-
tocracy came by intermarriages, or by Normans who
recommended themselves l)y their talents and cour-
age to the favour of the Scottish inonarchs, not by
conquest.

ments on the part of the people. Thus-
the cause of liberty gained ground both •
among the nobility and the commonalty.

With the progress of the Reformation,
the strife between the two races became
exasperated ; the nobility and gentry de-
siring little more than the abatement or
rejection of the papal usurpation ; the Sax-
on race, led by men whose hearts were
more deeply interested in the subject, de-
siring to see the Church rid of error and
superstition of every form. From the dis-
cussion of the rights of conscience, the'
latter went on to examine the nature and
foundations of civil government, and being
met with violent opposition, they proceed-
ed to lengths they never dreamed of when
they first set out. In the fearful struggle
that followed, both the National Church
and the monarchy were for a time com-
pletely overthrown.

It was just as this grand opposition of
sentiment was drawing on to a direct col-
lision, and when men's minds were en-
grossed with the important questions that
it pressed upon them, that the two colo-
nies destined to exercise a predominant
influence in America left the British shore.
The first of the two in point of date sought
the coasts of Southern, the second sailed
to those of Northern Virginia, as the whole
Atlantic slope was then called. The one
settled on James River, in the present
state of Virginia, and became, in a, sense,
the ruling colony of the South ; the other
established itself in New-England, there
to become the mother of the six Northern
States. Both, however, have long since
made their influence to be felt far beyond
the coasts of the Atlantic, and are contin-
uing to extend it towards the Pacific, iii
parallel and cleary-defined lines ; and both
retain to this day the characteristic fea-
tures that marked their founders when they
left their native land.

If not purely Norman in blood, the South-
ern colony was entirely Norman in spirit ;
whereas llie Northern was Anglo-Saxon
in character and in the institutions which
it took to the New World. Both loved
freedom and free institutions, but they dif-
fered as to the extent to which the people
should enjoy them. The one had sprung
from the ranks of those in England who
pleaded for the prerogatives of the crown
and the privileges of the nobility ; the oth-
er, from the great party that was contend-
ing for popular rights. The one origina-
ted with the friends of the Church as left
by Queen Elizabeth : the other, with those
wlio desired to see it purified from what
they deemed the corruptions of antiquity,
and shorn of the exorbitant pretensions of
its hierarchy. The one, composed of a
company of gentlemen, attended by a few
mechanics or labourers, contemplated an
extensive traffic with the natives ; the oth-

Chap.X] religious INSTITUTIONS AND CHARACTER.

er, composed, with a few exceptions, of
substantial farmers of moderate means and
industrious artisans, contemplated the cul-
tivation of the ground, and the establish-
ment of a state of society in which they
might serve God according to his Word.
The one had no popular government for
some years after its foundation ; the other
was self-organized and self governed be-
fore it disembarked upon the shores that
were to be the scene of its future prosperi-
ty. Finally, the religion of the one, though
doubtless sincere, and, so far as it went,
beneficial in its influence, was a religion
that clung to forms, and to an imposing
ritual ; the religion of the other was at the
farthest possible remove from the Church
of Rome, both in form and spirit, and pro-
fessed to be guided by the Scriptures alone.

Such was American colonization in its
grand origin. But widely different has
been the subsequent histories of those
English colonies from that of England her-
self. The former carried out to their le-
gitimate extent the great principles of civ-
il and religious liberty, which they had
learned in England, in the school of op-
pression and of long and fierce discussion.
The latter, after rushing on for a time in
the same career, carried those principles
to such a length as to subvert the govern-
ment, and plunge the country into all the
horrors of revolution and misrule, ending,
at last, in the despotism of a military chief.
The former went on gradually improving
the forms of popular government which
they had originally adopted, in the face of
all the eftbrts of the crown of England to
destroy them. The latter provoked, by
the wildest excesses, a revulsion, from
which, even after the lapse of two cen-
turies, she is still sufiering. The former,
although never were there subjects more
loyal to a crown, or a people more sin-
cerely attached to their fatherland, were
compelled, as they believed, by the unkind
and almost unnatural course pursued by
that fatherland, to sever the bonds that
bound them to it, and to establish an inde-
pendent government of their own. The
latter has had to fight the battles of liberty
over and over again, and has not even yet
obtained for the people all the rights which
are considered, in America, their proper
inheritance from the hand of their Cre-
ator.

I speak not here of the form of govern-
ment. The founders of the American col-
onies, and their descendants for several
generations, were monarchists, as they
would doubtless have been to this day,
had they not been compelled, while strug-
gling against injustice and oppression, to
dissolve their political connexion with the
mother-country. In all essential points,
colonial freedom differed not from that
which an independent existence has given

them ; and the people of the United States
enjoy little more liberty at present than
what the fathers of the Revolution main-
tained that they ought to have enjoyed
under the British Constitution and crown.

CHAPTER X.

HOW TO OBTAIN A CORRECT VIEW OF THE
SPIRIT AND CHARACTER OF THE RELIGIOUS
INSTITUTIONS OF THE UNITED STATES.

Thus, too, if we would have a thorough
knowledge of the spirit and character of
the Religion of the United States, we must
study the history of religion in England
first, and then in those other countries
whose religious institutions must have con-
siderably influenced those of America, in
consequence of the numerous emigrants
from them that have settled there. In-
deed, it is very certain that the religious
institutions of America have been hardly
less affected than the pohtical, by colonists
from Holland, France, and other parts of
the Continent of Europe, as well as from
Scotland and Ireland.

Men of speculative habits may indulge
many plausible a priori reasonings on the
kind of religion likely to find favour with a
people of Democratic feehngs and institu-
tions, but their conclusions will probably
be found very much at variance with facts.
M. de Tocqueville presents a striking in-
stance of this in the first few chapters of
his second work on Democracy in Ameri-
ca.* A purely abstract argument, or, rath-
er, a mere fanciful conjecture, might, in
this case, interest by its ingenuity, and
even be believed as true, in the absence
of facts. But when he proceeds to estab-
lish an hypothesis by an appeal to facts, it
is hard to say whether he is oftener right
or wrong. Take one or two paragraphs.
" In the United States," says he, " the ma-
jority undertakes to furnish individuals

* Both of M. de Tocqueville's works, entitled " De-
mocracy in America," unqnestionably possess great
merit ; the earlier publication, however, is much su-
perior to the later. But the author's great fault is,
that he puts his theory uniformly before his facts, in-
stead of deducing, according to the principles of the
Baconian philosophy, his theory from his facts. Ths
consequence of this fatal mistake is, that, having ad-
vanced a theory, and shown by argument its plausi-
bility, he immediately goes to work to support it by
facts, and, in doing so, often distorts them sadly.
For the object for which he wrote, that of arresting
the progress of Democracy in Europe, by reading
lectures from American Democracy as from a text-
book, his works certainly correspond to his purpose.
But, however able they may be, it is absurd to say
that his volumes give a just view of American insti-
tutions on all points. On many subjects he has said
some excellent things ; and, indeed, no other foreign-
er has come so near to comprehending the spirit of
our institutions. But no man ever will, no man ever
can, understand them perfectly, unless he lias imbi-
bed their spirit, as it were, with his mother'a miJk.

RELIGION IN AMERICA.

[Book I.

with a multitude of ready-made opinions,
and thus to relieve them of the necessity
of forming their own. There are many
theories in philosophy, morals, and poli-
tics, which every one there adopts with-
out examination, upon the faith of public
opinion ; and, upon a closer inspection, it
"will be found that religion itself reigns
there much less as a doctrine of revelation
than as a commonly-admitted opinion."*

Now, Democratic as America may be, it
would be impossible to find a country in
which the last assertion in the above para-
graph is less true, for nowhere do people
demand reasons for everything more fre-
quently or more universally ; nowhere are
the preachers of the Gospel more called
upon to set forth, in all their variety and
force, the arguments by which the Divine
revelation of Christianity is established.

Again, he says, " In the United States
the Christian sects are infinitely various,
and incessantly undergoing modifications :
but Christianity itself is an established and
irresistible fact, which no one undertakes
either to attack or to defend."

Again : " The Americans, having ad-
mitted without examination the main dog-
mas of the Christian religion, are obliged,
in like manner, to receive a great num-
ber of truths flowing from and having rela-
tion to it."t

Now hardly any assertions concerning
his country could surprise a well-inform-
ed American more than those contained in
these paragraphs, nor could M. de Tocque-
ville have made them, had he not been
carried away by certain theories with re-
spect to the influence of Democratic insti-
tutions upon religion.

M. de Tocqueville does not forget that
religion gave birth to Anglo-American so-
ciety, but he does forget for the moment
what sort of religion it was ; that it was not
a religion that repels investigation, or that
would have men receive anything as Truth,
where such momentous concerns are in-
volved, upon mere trust in public opinion.

* " Aux Etats-Unis, la maiorite se charge de four-
nir aux individus une foule ci'opinions toutes faites,
et les soulage ainsi de I'obligation de s'en former qui
leur soient propres. II y a un grand nombre de the-
ories en malitre de philusophie, de morale, ou de po-
litique que chacun y adopte ainsi sans examen, sur
la foi du public ; et si Ton regardc de trespres on
verra que la religion elle mtnie y ri^gne bien moins
comme doctrine rev6lee que comme opinion com-
mune."— Diinocratie en Amerique, Seconde I'artie,
tome i.. chapitre ii.

+ " Aux Etats-Unis, les sectes chr6tiennes vari-
ent a Tinfini et se modifient sans cesse ; mais le
Christianisine hii-rn6me est un fait ^tabli et irresisti-
ble qu'on n'entreprend point d'attaquer ni de d6fen-
dre."

"Les Amcricains, ayant admis sans examen les
principaux dogmes de la religion chretienne, soiit
obliges de recevoir de la m6me manifere un grand
nombre de v6rites qui en decoulent et qui y tienncnt."
— DemocTotie en Amerique, Seconde Partie, tome i.,
chapitre i.

Such has never been the character of Prot-
estantism, rightly so called, in any age.

Nor is this distinguished author nearer
the truth when, giving way to the same
speculative tendency, he asserts that " the
human mind in Democratic countries must
tend to pantheism."* But enough : all
that I have wished to show in referring to
M. de Tocqueville's work, in many respects
an admirable one, is, that the religious
phenomena of the United States are not to
be explained by reasonings a priori, how-
ever plausible and ingenious.

No : we must go back to the times when,
and the influences under which, the reli-
gious character of the first colonists from
England was formed, and then trace their
eff'ects upon the institutions that were es-
tablished by those colonists in the New
World.

It is interesting to investigate the histo-
ry of Christianity in England from the
earliest ages; its propagation by mission-
aries from Asia Minor ; its reception by
the Celtic races ; the resistance made by
the British Christians, in common with
those of Ireland and France, to the claims
of Rome ; the conquest of England by the
Saxons, and the advantage taken of that
event, by Rome, to subdue the native
Christians, whom it accused of heresy ;
the conversion of the Anglo-Saxons to
Christianity, and their subsequent dissatis-
faction with the Romish hierarchy ; the
Norman Conquest, and the efforts of the
popes to take advantage of that also, in
seeking to establish a complete ascendency
over the British and Irish Christians ; the
witnesses to the Truth raised up by God
from the ancient Anglo-Saxon churches ;
the influence of Wicliff"e and other oppo-
nents of Rome ; and, finally, the dawn of
the Reformation. That event, there can
be no doubt, was connected, in the provi-
dence of God, with the long-continued and
faithful resistance of the ancient churches
of England to Error. Some remains of
Truth had doubtless lain concealed, like
unextinguished embers beneath the ashes,
but the clearing away of the accumulated
rubbish of ages, and the contact of God's
Word, sufficed to revive and make it spread
anew throughout the nation.

But the grand means employed by God
in preparing a people who should lay the
foundation of a Christian empire in the
New World was the Reformation. To
their religion the New-England colonists
owed all their best qualities. Even their
political freedom they owed to the contest
tliey had waged in lOngland for religious
liberty, and in which, long and painlul as
it was, nothing but their Faith could have
sustained them. Religion led them to aban-

* " Democratic en Amerique," Seconde Partie-,
tome i., chapitre vii.

Chap. XI.]

THE FORM OF GOVERNMENT.

don their country, rather than submit to a
tyranny that threatened to enslave their im-
mortal minds, and made them seek in the
New World the freedom of conscience
that was denied to them in the Old.

They have been justly accused, indeed,
of not immediately carrying out their prin-
ciples to their legitimate results, and of be-
ing intolerant to each other. Still, be it
remembered to their honour, that both in
theory and in practice, they were in these
respects far in advance of all their con-
temporaries ; still more, that their descend-
ants have maintained this advanced posi-
tion ; so that the people of the United
States of America now enjoy liberty of
conscience to an extent unknown in any
other country. Persecution led the Puri-
tan colonists to examine the great subject
of human rights, the natui'e and just extent
of civil government, and the boundaries
at which obedience ceases to be a duty.
What Sir James Mackintosh has said of
John Bunyan might be applied to them :
" The severities to which he had been sub-
jected had led him to revolve in his own
mind the principles of religious freedom,
until he had acquired the ability of baf-
fling, in the conlhct of argument, the most
acute and learned among his persecutors."
The clear convictions of their own minds
on this subject they transmitted to their
posterity, nor was the inheritance neglect-
ed or forgotten.

The political institutions of the Puritan
colonies of New-England are to be traced
to their religion, not their religion to their
political institutions, and this remark ap-
plies to other colonies also. Now, if the
reader would know what the religious
character of those Puritans was, let him
peruse the following eloquent eulogy upon
them, from a source which will not be sus-
pected of partiality to their religion, what-
ever opinions may be attributed to it in re-
lation to their political principles.

" The Puritans were men whose minds
had derived a peculiar character from the
daily contemplation of superior beings and
eternal interests. Not content with ac-
knowledging in general terms an overru-
ling Providence, they habitually ascribed
every event to the will of the Great Being
for whose power nothing was too vast, for
whose inspection nothing was too minute.
To know Him, to serve Him, to enjoy Him,
was with them the great end of existence.
They rejected with contempt the ceremo-
nious homage which other sects substitu-
ted for the pure worship of the soul. In-
stead of catching occasional glimpses of
the Deity through an obscuring veil, they
aspired to gaze full on the intolerable
brightness, and to commune with Him face
to face. Hence originated their contempt
of earthly distinctions. The difference
between the greatest and meanest of man-

kind seemed to vanish, when compared
with the boundless interval which separa-
ted the whole race from Him on whom
their own eyes were constantly fixed.
They recognised no title to superiority but
His favour ; and, confident of that, they
despised all the accomplishments and all
the dignities of the world. If their names
were not found in the registers of heralds,
they felt assured that they were recorded
in the Book of Life. If their steps were
not accompanied by a splendid train of
menials, legions of ministering angels had
charge over them. Their palaces were
houses not made with hands ; their dia-
dems, crowns of glory which should never
fade away. On the rich and the eloquent,
on nobles and priests, they looked down
with contempt ; for they esteemed them-
selves rich in a more precious treasure,
and eloquent in a more sublime language ;
nobles by the right of an earlier creation,
and priests by the imposition of a mightier
hand. The very meanest of them was a
being to whose fate a mysterious and
terrible importance belonged ; on whose
slightest action the spirits of light and
darkness looked with anxious interest ;
who had been destined, before the heavens
and the earth were created, to enjoy a fe-
licity which should continue when heaven
and earth should have passed away.
Events, which short-sighted politicians
ascribed to earthly causes, had been or-
dained on his account. For his sake em-
pires had risen, and flourished, and decay-
ed. For his sake the Almighty had pro-
claimed his will, by the pen of the evange-
list, and the harp of the prophet. He had
been rescued by no common Deliverer
from the grasp of no common foe. He
had been ransomed by the sweat of no
vulgar agony, by the blood of no earthly
sacrifice. It was for him that the sun had
been darkened, that the rocks had been
rent, that the dead had arisen, that all na-
ture had shuddered at the sufferings of her
expiring God."*

CHAPTER XI.

A BRIEF NOTICE OF THE FORM OF GOVBRN-
MENT IN AMERICA.

Some knowledge of the civil and politi-
cal structure of the government is almost
indispensable to a correct investigation of
the religious economy of the United States ;
for although there is no longer a union
there between Church and State, still the
interests of religion come into contact, in
many ways, with the pohtical organizations
of the General and State Governments.

The Government of the United States
must appear extremely complicated to a

* Edinburgh Review, vol. xlii., 339.

RELIGION IN AMERICA.

[Book L

foreigner accustomed to the unity that
distinguishes most monarchical polities,
and complicated it is m fact. We will en-
deavour to describe its leading features as
briefly as possible.

The whole country, then, is subject to
Avhat is called the National or General
Government, composed of three branches :
I. The Executive ; II. The Legislative ;
III. The Judicial.

The executive power is lodged in one
man, the President ; who is appointed for
four years, by electors chosen for that
purpose, each state being allowed as many
as it has members of Congress. These
are chosen differently in different states,
but generally by districts, each district
choosing one elector, and that for the sole
purpose of electing the President and Vice-
President. The latter presides over the
Senate, but his office is almost nominal :
should the President die, the Vice-Presi-
dent immediately steps into his place.

The President appoints the secretaries
of state, or ministers of the various depart-
ments of the administration, such as the
treasury, navy, war office, &c., and, direct-
ly or indirectly, he appoints to all offices
in the National or General Government ;
in the case of the more important ones,
however, only with the consent and appro-
bation of the Senate.

The legislation of the National Govern-
ment is committed to the Congress, and
that has two branches, the Senate and the
House of Representatives. The Senate is
composed of two persons from each state
in the Union, chosen by the legislatures
of the states respectively, and for the
period of six years. The House of Rep-
resentatives is chosen by the people of the
states, generally by districts, and for the
period of two years.* Their number is,
from time to time, determined by law. The
House of Representatives represents the
people ; the Senate represents the states.
No act of Congress has the force of law
without the President's signature, unless
when two thirds of each House has voted
in favour of an act which he refuses to
sign. All matters falling within the legis-
lative jurisdiction of the Congress are spe-
cified in the Constitution of the United
States : such as arc not specifically men-
tioned tliere, are reserved for the legisla-
tion of the individual states.

The judicial power is vested in a Su-
preme Court, consisting at present of nine
judges, appointed by the President, with
the consent of the Senate. They can be
removed only by impeachment before the
Senate, and hold a yearly winter session
at Washington, the capital of the United
States. When not thus united there, they

* I5y a recent law, the members of the House of
Representatives are hereafter to be chosen by dis-
tricts.

hold circuit courts in different parts of the
country. The whole country is divided,
also, into districts, each having a judge ap-
pointed by the President, for the decision
of causes that fall within the cognizance
of the United States' courts, and from
whose decisions an appeal lies to the Su-
preme Court. That court decides how
far the laws passed by the National Con-
gress, or by the legislatures of the differ-
ent states, are consistent with the Consti-
tution ; also, all questions between indi-
vidual states, or between the United States
and an individual state, and questions ari-
sing between a foreigner and either the
United States or any one state.

Tiie government of the states individu-
ally, closely resembles that of the Confed-
eration, the jurisdiction of each being con-
fined, of course, to its own territory. Each
has its own governor and its own Legisla-
ture ; the latter, in all cases but one,* con-
sists of a Senate and House of Representa-
tives, besides a supreme law court, with
subordinate district and county courts.
The Legislature of each state embraces a
vast variety of subjects, falling within the
compass of its own internal interests. The
different states vary materially on several
points, such as tlie term during which the
governor holds office, and the extent of his
power ; the terms for which the senators
and representatives are elected, and for
which the judges are appointed; the sala-
ries of those functionaries, and so forth.

With the exception of South Corolina
and Louisiana, in which the territorial di-
visions are called districts, all the states
are subdivided into counties, having courts
of justice attached to each, and officers,
likewise, for a great many local objects,
such as maintaining the roads, providing
for the poor, &c., &c. These counties are
subdivided into what are called townships,
averaging six or eight miles square, in New-
England, New-York, New-Jersey, Pennsyl-
vania, and most of the states in the Valley
of the Mississippi ; in Delaware they are
called Hundreds, and in Louisiana Parish-
es, while in Maryland, Virginia,! the two
Carolinas, Georgia, Kentucky, and Ten-
nessee, the counties form the smallest terri-
torial divisions. In the Territories, the sub-
division into townships has been adopted.

These townships form nnportant politi-
cal and civil districts and corporations ; the
inhabitants meet once a year, or oftener,
for local purposes, and for the appoint-
ment of local officers and committees. At
tliese primary assemblies the people ac-
quire habits of transacting public business,
which are of the greatest importance in fit-

* Vermont has but one House in its Legislature.

t In the eastern part of Virgmia, and a great part
of Maryland, the parochial subdivisions that existed
previous to the Revolution are still retained for many
local purposes, and are even recognised by the law.

chap.xii.] geographical sketch of the united states.

ting them for legislation and government
both in national and local affairs. As for
the larger towns, they are incorporated as
cities and boroughs, and have municipal
governments of a threefold kind : legisla-
tive, executive, and judicial.

The separation of the colonies from Great
Britain, and the reorganization of their re-
spective governments, produced changes
less essential than at first view might be sup-
posed. The King, Parhament, and Justicia-
ry of England were superseded by the Pres-
ident, Congress, and Supreme Court of the
United States, the nature of the government
remaining essentially the same. For a he-
reditary sovereign, we have a President,
chosen once in four years ; for a hereditary
House of Peers, a Senate, the members of
Avhich are chosen for six years ; the powers
of the President and Senate being almost
identical in most things with those of the
corresponding branches of the British Con-
stitution. As for the several colonies,
these the Revolution transformed into
states, and the old royal charters were su-
perseded by constitutions. Beyond this
there was no essential change, and but lit-
tle alteration even in forms. Instead of
being appointed by the British crown, or by
proprietary companies or individuals, the
governors are chosen by the people them-
selves. The legislative and judicial branch-
es underwent very little modification.

There are now in the American Union
twenty-six organized states, three territo-
ries, and one district. The territories are
under the government of the President and
Congress of the United States, but will be-
come states as soon as the amount of
their population entitles them, in the opin-
ion of Congress, to be represented in the
National Legislature. They have a Legis-
lature of their own, but their governors are
appointed by the President. Two, namely,
Wisconsin and Iowa, will soon have a suf-
ficient population to entitle them to a place
among the states. And when these are ad-
mitted, Florida w^ill probably be so too.

Under the impression that the National
Government should be removed from the
immediate influence of any one state, the
District of Columbia, ten miles square, was
taken from Virginia and Maryland, and set
apart as the seat of the National Govern-
ment, and to it, that is, to the President,
Congress, and Supreme Court, it is imme-
diately subject. Experience has hardly
approved of this measure as either wise or
necessary. No part of the country is worse
governed. Congress being too much occu-
pied with other matters to pay much atten-
tion to so insignificant a territory.

The preceding-outline will suffice to give
the reader some idea of the government of
the United States, and prepare him for
understanding many things which might
otherwise be obscure in the farther course
of this work.

CHAPTER Xn.

A BRIEF GEOGRAPHICAL NOTICE OF THE UNITED
STATES.

In like manner, a short account of the
physical character and resources of the
United States will be found useful to the
reader.

The United States lie between the par-
allels of 24° 27' and 54° 40' north latitude,
and 66° 50' and 125° west longitude from
Greenwich, and are bounded as follows :
On the east, by the Atlantic and the Brit-
ish Province of New-Brunswick ; on the
south, by the Gulf of Mexico, Texas, and
the Republic of Mexico ; on the west, by
the Pacific Ocean ; and on the north, by
the British possessions, from which they
are separated partly by the River St. Law-
rence and the great chain of lakes that flow
into, or, rather, that form a series of ex-
pansions of that river, and partly by a con-
ventional line west of the Oregon Mount-
ains, which line has not been determined.
The United States' government claims up
to latitude 54° 40', but this is resisted by
England. The 49° degree of north latitude
will most probably be agreed to, that being
the latitude of the boundary eastward of
those mountains to the Lake of the Woods,
after which it pursues a southeast direction
through some small lakes, and across an in-
tervening portage to Lake Superior, which
is the uppermost of the chain of lakes
through which the St. Lawrence flows.

A glance at the map will show that this
vast territory consists of three grand sec-
tions, the Atlantic slope, the Pacific slope,
and the intermediate Valley of the Missis-
sippi. The whole is computed by Mr. Tan-
ner, a distinguished American geographer,
to contain 2,037,165 square miles.

The outlines of the entire territory may
be given as follows :

Miles.

On the north, from the mouth of the St.

Croix River to the Oregon Mountains . . 3000
From the Oregon Mountains to the Pacific

Ocean 600

Along the Pacific, from lat. 54° 40' to lat. 42° 865
Along the Mexican and Texan territories,

from the Pacific to the mouth of the Sabine

River 2300

Along the Gulf of Mexico to Florida Point . 1100

Along the Atlantic Ocean 1800

Making a total outline of . . 9665

Of the 2,037,165 square miles, constitu-
ting, according to Mr. Tanner, the area
of the United States, about 400,000 are
found on the Atlantic slope, including East
Florida; 1,341,649 in the Valley of the
Mississippi,* and 295,516 on the Pacific
slope. Hence it appears that nearly two
thirds of the whole territory of the United
States lie in the Valley of the Mississippi,
a fact which shows the vast relative impor-
tance of that section of the country.

* According to Mr. Darby's estimate, the Valley of
the Mississippi contains 1,341,649.

RELIGION IN AMERICA.

[Book I.

Upon a survey of the whole of this ter-
ritory, it will be found to possess physical
advantages such as few other countries
enjoy. While, with the exception of Flor-
ida, all parts of it comprise a large pro-
portion of excellent soil, many exhibit the
most astonishing fertility. It abounds in
the most valuable minerals. Iron is found
in several states in great abundance. At
various points, but particularly in the Mid-
dle States, there are vast deposites of coal,
which is easily conveyed by water carriage
to other parts of the country. Even gold
is found in considerable quantities in the
western parts of North Carolina, and the
adjacent parts of South Carolina and Geor-
gia, and some in Virginia and Tennessee.
The almost boundless forests of the inte-
rior furnish timber suited to all purposes.
Navigable rivers everywhere present fa-
cilities for trade. On the Atlantic slope,
beginning from the east and advancing
southwest, we find in succession the Pe-
nobscot, the Kennebec, the Merrlmac, the
Connecticut, the Hudson, the Delaware,
the Susquehanna, the Potomac, the Rap-
pahannock, the James River, the Roanoke,
the Neuse, the Fear, the Pedee, the San-
tee, the Savannah, the Altamaha, and the
St. John's, without reckoning many small-
er but important streams, navigable by
common boats and small steamers. Many
,i0f these rivers, such as the Delaware, the
Potomac, the Rappahannock, the James,
. and the Roanoke, expand into noble estua-
ries before they fall into the ocean; and
the coast is indented, also, with many bays,
unrivalled in point of extent and beauty.
Beginning from the east, we have Portland
or Casco Bay, Portsmouth Bay, Newbury-
port Bay, Massachusetts Bay, Buzzard's
Bay, Narragansett Bay, New- York Bay,
Amboy Bay, Delaware Bay, Chesapeake
Bay, into which twelve wide-mouthed riv-
ers fall, Wilmington Bay, Charleston Bay,
,&c., &c.

With the exception of part of the eastern
coast of Connecticut, a chain of islands,
some inhabited, many not, runs parallel to
the shore, beginning at Passamaquoddy
Bay, and extending to the southern ex-
tremity of Florida, and thence round into
the Gulf of Mexico, and along its coast, to
beyond the western limit of the United
States. Thus are formed some of the finest
channels for an extensive coasting trade,
such as Long Island Sound, Albemarle
Sound, Pamlico Sound, and many others.
To increase these facilities, canals and rail-
roads have been extended along the coast
from Portland in Maine, to Charleston in
South Carolina, and even farther.

Immediately on the seacoast of the west-
ern part of New-Jersey, there commences a
belt of sand, which extends along the whole
margin of the Southern States, covered with
an almost uninterrupted forest of pines,

and enlarging, as it advances southward,
from twenty to nearly a hundred miles
broad, the latter being its width in the state
of North Carolina. Between this sandy
tract and the Alleghany Mountains the land
is generally fertile, and produces various
crops, according to the climate, such as fine
wheat and the other cereal grains in New-
Jersey, Pennsylvania, Maryland, and Vir-
gia ; in which last two states tobacco is
also largely cultivated, cotton in the Caro-
linas and in Georgia ; and on the rich bot-
tom lands along the bays and streams of
the sandy tract, rice and indigo.

As we advance northward along this
fertile tract intervening between the sand
and the mountains, we gradually leave the
region of transition and secondary rocks,
and enter on that of granite, so that before
reaching the State of Maine, primitive
rocks abound everywhere, even on the sur-
face of the ground.

But in point of fertility the Atlantic slope
bears no comparison with the Valley of the
Mississippi, embracing a territory about six
times as large as that of France, and likely,
ere long, to be the abode of many millions
of the human race. Fifty years ago it con-
tained little more than a hundred thousand
inhabitants ; the population of the settled
part of it amounted, as we have seen, in
1840,* to above six millions, and this, it is
calculated from the data supplied in the
last forty years, will have increased, in
thirty-five years hence, to not much under
thirty millions. By the end of the present
century it will probably be not less than
fifty or sixty millions.

The tabular view on page 22 shows the
immense size of the eleven states and two
territories already organized in this vast
valley ; let us now look for a moment to
their natural resources.

Ohio, lying between the beautiful river
of that name and Lake Erie, comprises
40,260 square miles, and a population of
above a million and a half. As England
and Wales have 57,929 square miles, and
15,906,829 inhabitants, Ohio, at the same
ratio, would have 11,055,066. With the
exception of a part of it in the southeast,
on the Hockhocking River, there is little
poor land in the state. Vast forests cover
the greater part of it to this day. Lake
Erie on the north, the River Ohio on the
south, and several navigable streams flow-
ing from the interior, both to the north and
south, give it great natural advantages for
commerce ; in addition to which, two im-
portant artificial lines of communication,
made at great expense, traverse it from

The exact population of the eleven states and
two territories of the Valley of the Mississippi was,
without including Western Virginia, Pennsylvania,
and Flordia, in 1840, 0,376,972; in 1830 it was
3,342,080; in 1820 it was 2,237,454; in 1810 it was
1,099,180; in 1800 it was 385,647; in 1790 it was
only 109,888.

Chap. XIII.J

THE VOLUNTARY SYSTEM.

Lake Erie to the Ohio. Cincinnati, its
commercial capital, has a population of not
less than fifty thousand inhabitants.

Indiana and Illinois are scarcely, if at
all, inferior to Ohio in natural advantages ;
and considering its proportion of first-rate
land, Michigan is, perhaps, the best state
in the Union. Kentucky and Tennessee
abound both in good land and in mineral
resources.

Missouri, one of the largest states in the
Union, possesses a vast extent of excellent
land, besides rich mines of iron and of lead.
The two territories, low^a and Wisconsin,
lying northward of Missouri and Illinois,
the former on the west, and the latter on
the east of the Upper Mississippi, are large
and fertile districts of country, abounding
also in lead mines. Both are evidently
destined to become great states. Arkan-
sas having a great deal of inferior, as well
as of fertile land, is considered one of the
poorest states on the Mississippi. The
large State of Alabama, with the exception
of a small part in the south, about Mobile,
and another part in the north, near the Ten-
nessee River, was, in 1815, in the occupan-
cy of the Creek, Chocta, and Chickasa In-
dians, chiefly the first of those tribes, but
is now rapidly increasing in population.
The State of Mississippi has also much
land of the very best quality, and although
its financial affairs are at present in a de-
plorable condition, from bad legislation, it
maybe expected, in a few years, to emerge
from its embarrassments. Humanly speak-
ing, it must be so, for its natural resources
are great. And as for Louisiana, the rich
alluvial soil of the banks of its rivers, and
its advantages for commerce, derived from
its position in the lowest part of the great
Valley of the Mississippi, must eventually
make it a rich and powerful state. But it
Avould require the perseverance shown in
similar circumstances by the people of
Holland, to defend with dikes the south-
ern portion of the Delta of the Mississippi,
and to make the whole the valuable coun-
try into which it might be converted.

An immense tract of almost unexplored
country lies to the northwest of the State
of Missouri and the Territories of Iowa and
Wisconsin, much of which is believed to
be fertile. What new states may yet be
formed there, time alone will show.

Nearly the whole of this vast valley is
drained by one great river and its branch-
es, of which no fewer than fifty-seven are
navigable for steamboats. Indeed, the
Missouri, the Arkansas, the Red River,
and the White River, flowing from the
west, and the Illinois, the Ohio, the Cum-
berland, and the Tennessee, from the north
and east, are themselves great rivers. On
the north the great lakes, and on the south
the Gulf of Mexico, form openings into
this vast region for the commerce of the

world. But besides these two great inlets
from the north and south, communication
with the Atlantic slope has been opened
up at various points of the Alleghany chain,
by means of substantial roads of the ordi-
nary construction, and also by canals and
railways. Thus a railway, above six hun-
dred miles in length, unites the town of
BuflTalo on Lake Erie with Boston ; a ca-
nal unites it with Albany, and from that
point the Hudson River connects it with
New- York. BuflTalo communicates, again,
with all the northern parts of Ohio, Indi-
ana, Michigan, and Illinois, and with the
eastern side of the Wisconsin Territory,
by fifty steamboats which ply between it
and the ports of those regions. To all
these advantages we must ascribe the rap-
id appeai-ance of so many large cities in
this great Western Valley, such as New-
Orleans, St. Louis, Louisville, Cincinnati,
and Pittsburgh, to say nothing of smaller
towns on spots which, with the exception
of New-Orleans, may be said to have been
covered by the forest only fifty years ago.
I conclude this chapter by remarking
for a moment on the kind and wise Provi-
dence which kept the great Valley of the
Mississippi from the possession, and al-
most from the knowledge of the colonists
of the United States, for more than one
hundred and fifty years. By that time,
they had so far occupied and reduced to
cultivation the less fertile hills of the At-
lantic slope, and there had acquired that
hardy, industrious, and virtuous character,
which better fitted them to carry civiliza-
tion and religion into the vast plains of the
West. So that, at this day, the New-Eng-
land and other Atlantic States, while in-
creasing in population themselves, serve,
at the same time, as nurseries from which
the West derives many of the best plants
that are transferred to its noble soil.

CHAPTER XIII.

OBSTACLES WHICH THE VOLUNTARY SYSTEM
IN SUPPORTING RELIGION HAS HAD TO EN-
COUNTER IN AMERICA: 1. FROM THE ERRO-
NEOUS OPINIONS ON THE SUBJECT OF RE-
LIGIOUS ECONOMY WHICH THE COLONISTS
BROUGHT WITH THEM.

Some persons in Europe entertain the
idea, that if the " American plan" of sup-
porting religion, by relying, under God's
blessing, upon the efforts of the people,
rather than upon the help of the govern-
ment, has succeeded in that country, it has
been owing, in a great measure, to the fact
that the countiy presented an open field
for the experiment ; that everything was
new there ; that no old establishments had
to be pulled down ; no deep-rooted preju-
dices to be eradicated ; no time-honoured

RELIGION IN AMERICA.

[Book I.

institutions to be modified ; but that all was
favourable for attempting something new
under the sun. Now it is hardly possible
to entertain an idea more remote from the
truth than this.

What follows will demonstrate that, so
far from committing religion to the spon-
taneous support of persons cordially inter-
ested in its progress, the opposite course
was pursued from the first almost, in all
the colonies. In the greater number of the
colonies, in fact, men looked to the civil
government for the support of the Chris-
tian ministry and worship. Now what we
have here to consider is not the question
whether they were right or wrong in doing
so, but the simple fact that they actually
did so ; and, accordingly, that, so far from
what has been called the Voluntary Prin-
ciple having had an open field in America,
in those very parts of the country which
now, perhaps, best illustrate its efficiency,
it had long to struggle with establishments
founded on the opposite system, and with
strong prepossessions in their favour.

In all such parts of the country many
obstacles were opposed to the abandon-
ment of the old system. Good and great
men made no secret of their fears that the
cause of religion would thus be ruined ;
that the churches would be forsaken by the
people, whose unaided eflforts would prove
unequal to the expense of maintaining
them, and that they could never be induced
to attempt it. In fact, as they had never
been accustomed to rely upon their own
exertions in that matter, and were not
aware how much they could do, they were
at first timid and discouraged. Another
obstacle lay in the unwillingness of those
who had enjoyed the influence and ascend-
ency conferred by the old system, to sur-
render those advantages. wSuch persons
were prone to believe, and naturally sought
to impress others with the conviction, no
doubt very sincerely, that their resistance
to the proposed change was the legitimate
fruit of their zeal for the cause of God,
and of their dread lest that cause should
suffer.

Other obstacles, and those not inconsid-
erable, had to' be encountered, all resulting
directly or indirectly from the old system.
It will be shown, in due time, that some of
the worst heresies in the United States
were originated and propagated by meas-
ures arising out of the old system. What
I mean to say is, that Truth has there en-
countered powerful obstacles, which we
have every reason to believe would not
have existed but for that union. Other
evils there might have been in the absence
of any such union ; but, be that as it may,
with the obstacles to which I refer, it could
not be said that the field was entirely new,
far less that it was open.

Still more : some of the greatest obsta-

cles which the " American plan" of sup-
porting religion had to overcome arose
from the erroneous views of the colonists
on the subject of religious liberty. The
voluntary system rests on the grand basis
of perfect religious freedom. I mean a
freedom of conscience for all ; for those
who believe Christianity to be true, and
for those who do not ; for those who prefer
one form of worship, and for those who
prefer another. This is all implied, or,
rather, it is fully avowed, at the first step
in supporting religion upon this plan.

Now it so happened — nor ought we to
wonder at it, for it would have been a
miracle had it been otherwise — that very
many of the best colonists who settled in
America had not yet attained to correct
ideas on the subject of religious toleration
and the rights of conscience. It required
persecution, and that thorough discussion
of the subject which persecution brought
in its train, both in the colonies and in
England and other European countries, to
make them understand the subject. And,
in point of fact, those who first understood
it had learned it in the school of persecution.
Such was Roger Williams ; such were Lord
Baltimore and the Roman Catholics who
settled in Maryland; such was William
Penn. Accordingly, the three colonies
that they founded, Rhode Island, Maryland,
and Pennsylvania, including Delaware,
were the first communities, either in the
New or the Old World, that enjoyed reli-
gious liberty in the fullest extent.

I am sure, indeed, that, as I have already
said, the founders of the first American col-
onies, and those of New-England in par-
ticular, did as much for freedom of con-
science as could have been expected, and
were in that respect in advance of the age
in which they lived. If they were intol-
erant, so were others. If they would not
allow Roman Catholics to live among them,
the most dreadful examples, be it remem-
bered, of Roman Catholic intolerance were
forced upon their attention, and that their
policy was merciful in the extreme com-
pared with that of Roman Catholic coun-
tries in those days. They merely refused
to receive them or to allow them to remain
among them, whereas the poor Huguenots
of France were not permitted so much as
to retire from amid their enemies. If, in
some of the colonies, Quakers were treat-
ed with great harshness and shocking in-
justice, what treatment did the members of
that sect receive at the same period in
England ^ If the colonists burned witches,
was not that done also in Scotland, Eng-
land, and other countries 1

I may therefore repeat, that the colonists
were in advance of their contemporaries
in their views of almost all questions rela-
ting to human rights, and that they main-
tained this advance is attested by the insti-

•Chap. XIV.]

THE VOLUNTARY SYSTEM.

tutions that arose among them. But the
intolerance with which these were charge-
able at first, may be traced to their opin-
ions with regard to the relations which the
Church ought to sustain towards the State.
And their erroneous views on that subject
created obstacles which were with difficul-
ty overcome by the principle of leaving re-
ligion, not to the support as well as protec-
tion of the State, but to the hearts and hands
of persons who have truly received, and
are willing to sustain it. These remarks
■will suffice to show that the field was not
so open to that principle in America as
some have thought.

CHAPTER XIV.

OBSTACLES WHICH THE VOLUNTARY SYSTEM
HAS HAD TO ENCOUNTER IN AMERICA : 2.
FROM THE NEWNESS OF THE COUNTRY, THE
THINNESS OF THE POPULATION, AND THE UN-
SETTLED STATE OF SOCIETY.

A SECOND class of obstacles which the
voluntary system, or, I should rather say,
which religion in general has had to en-
counter in Amei'ica, comprehends such as
are inseparable from its condition as a new
country.

From its very nature, the life of a colo-
nist presents manifold temptations to neg-
lect the interests of the soul. There is the
separation of himself and his family, if he
has one, from old associations and influ-
ences ; and the removal, if not from abun-
dant means of grace, at least from the force
of that public opinion which often power-
fully restrains from the commission of
open sin. Now though many of the Amer-
ican colonists fled from persecution and
from abounding iniquity, such was not the
case with all. Then, there is the entering
into new and untried situations ; the forming
of new acquaintances, not always of the
best kind ; and even that engrossment with
the cares and labours attending a man's re-
jnoval into a new country, especially in
the case of the many who have to earn their
bread by their own strenuous exertions.
All these things hinder the growth of pie-
ty in the soul, and form real obstacles to
its promotion in a community.

And if such hinderances had a baneful
effect at the outset, they have never ceased
to operate injuriously down to this day.
To say nothing of the foreigners who
come, year after year, to the American
shores on their way to the Far West, thou-
sands of the natives of the Atlantic slope
annually leave their houses to settle amid
the forests of that vast Western region.
In their case there is pecuhar exposure to
evil ; their removal almost always with-
draws them from the powerful influence
of neighbourhoods where true religion

more or less flourishes. Such of them as
are not decidedly religious in heart and
life, greatly risk losing any good impres-
sions they may have brought with them,
amid the engrossing cares and manifold
temptations of their new circumstances j
circumstances in which even the estab-
lished Christian will find much need of re-
doubled vigilance and prayer.

The comparative thinness, also, of the
population in the United States now is,
and must long continue to be, a great ob-
stacle to the progress of religion in that
country. I have already stated, that the
area of all the territory claimed by its gov-
ernment is somewhat more than 2,000,000
of square miles. Now, leaving out of view
the vast region on the Upper Missouri and
Mississippi rivers, west and north of Iowa
and Wisconsin, and reaching to the Ore-
gon Mountains ; leaving out of view also
the Pacific slope, and looking only to the
twenty-six states, three territories, and
one district, we have a country of some-
what more than 1,000,000 of square miles,
over which the Anglo-American race has
more or less diffused itself. But the whole
population, including the African race
among us, in 1840, was just 17,068,666.
That is, upon an average, about seventeen
souls to the square mile. If this population
were equally diff'used over the entire sur-
face of the organized states and territories,
even then it would be difficult enough to
establish and maintain churches and other
religious institutions among so sparse a
population. Still, perhaps, it could be done.
A parish of thirty-six square miles, which
would be large enough in point of extent,
would contain 612 souls. One twice as
large would contain 1224 souls. But al-
though a country would be considered well
supplied if it had a pastor for every 1224
souls, still the dispersion of these over
seventy-two square miles would necessa-
rily very much curtail the pastor's oppor-
tunity for doing good, and prevent the souls
under his charge from enjoying the full
influence of the Gospel. But the popula-
tion of the United States is far from being
thus equally distributed. Some of the old-
er states are pretty densely settled ; not
more, however, than is necessary for the
easy maintenance of churches, and of a
regular and settled ministry. Massachu-
setts, the most densely settled of them all,
has 102 souls to the square mile ; some
others, such as Connecticut and Rhode Isl-
and, have from seventy to eighty ; oth-
ers, such as New-Jersey, Delaware, Mary-
land, and New- York, vdll average from
forty to fifty. Taking the whole Atlantic
slope, with the exception of Florida, which
is but little inhabited, the average is twen-
ty-eight, while in the eleven states and two
territories in the Valley of the Mississippi,
it is less than ten souls to the square mile.

RELIGION IN AMERICA.

[Book I.

It is manifest, therefore, that while the
population of a large proportion of the At-
lantic States, and of parts of the older ones
in the West, is hardly dense enough to
render the support of Gospel ordinances
easy, the difficulty of effecting this is im-
mensely increased in many quarters, but
especially in the West, by the inhabitants
being much more widely scattered. I shall
show in another place how this difficulty is,
in a good measure, at least, overcome ; here
it is enough that I point to its existence.

Personal experience alone can give any
one a correct idea of the difficulties attend-
ing the planting and supporting of church-
es and pastors in that vast frontier coun-
try in the West, where the population,
treading on the heels of the Indians, is,
year after year, advancing into the forests.
A few scattered families, at wide intervals,
are engaged in cutting down the huge
trees, and clearing what at first are but
little patches of ground. In a year or two
the number is doubled. In five or six
years the country begins to have the ap-
pearance of being inhabited by civilized
men. But years more must roll away be-
fore the population will be dense enough
to support churches at convenient distan-
ces from each other, and to have ministers
of the Gospel to preach in them every Sab-
bath. Yet this work must be done, and it
is doing to an extent which will surprise
many into whose hands this book may fall.

But if the thinness of the population be
an obstacle, how great must be that of its
rapid increase in the aggregate 1 I say in
the aggregate, for it is manifest that its in-
crease in the thinly-settled districts must
so far be an advantage. But with this in-
crease diffusing itself into new settlements,
we have a double difficulty to contend
with — the increase itself demanding a great
augmentation of churches and ministers,
and its continued dispersion rendering it
difficult to build the one and support the
other, even were a sufficiency of pastors
to be found. This difficulty would be quite
appalling, if long contemplated apart from
the vast efforts made to meet and overcome
it. The population of the United States
was, in 1790, 3,929,827 ; in 1800, 5,305,925 ;
in 1810, 7,239,814 ; in 1820, 9,638,131 ; in
1830, 12,866,920 ; and in 1840, 17,068,666.*
The reader may calculate for himself the
average annual increase during each of the
five decades which have elapsed since 1790.
But it is not so easy to ascertain the pre-
cise yearly increase. From 1830 to 1840
it was 4,201,746, being at the average rate
of 420,174 souls per annum. During the
decade from 1840 to 1850, it will unques-

* Including seamen in the government service, not
included in the enumerations commonly published.
Hence the difference between the statements in the
text and those the reader may meet with elsewhere.
But the difference is only 6100.

tionably much exceed an average of
500,000 per annum, unless checked by
some great calamity, of which there is na
prospect.

Now to provide churches and pastors
for such an increase as this is no very easy
matter, yet it must either be done, or,
sooner or later, the great bulk of the na-
tion, as some have predicted, will sink into
heathenism. How far this is likely, judg-
ing from what has been done and is now
doing, we shall see in another place. Here
I simply state the magnitude of the diffi-
culty.

Finally, the constant emigration from the
old states to the new, and even from the
older to the newer settlements in the lat-
ter, is a great obstacle to the progress of
religion in all places from which a part of
the population is thus withdrawn. It occa-
sionally happens in one or other of the At-
lantic States, that a church is almost broken
up by the departure, for the Western
States, of families on whom it mainly de-
pended for support. Most commonly,
however, this emigration is so gradual, that
the church has time to recruit itself from
other families, who arrive and take the
place of those who have gone away. Thus,
unless where a church loses persons of
great influence, the loss is soon repaired.
In the cities of the East, and their suburban
quarters especially, from the population
being of so floating a character, this evil
is felt quite as much as in the country.

But it must not be forgotten, that what
is an evil in the East, by withdrawing val-
uable support from the churches there,
proves a great blessing to the West, by
transferring thither Christian families, to
originate and support new churches in
that quarter.

CHAPTER XV.

OBSTACLES WHICH THE VOLUNTARY SYSTEM-
HAS HAD TO ENCOUNTER IN AMERICA I 3. FROM
SLAVERY.

That the coexistence in one country
of two such different races as the Caucas-
ian and the African, standing to each other
in the relation of masters and slaves,
should retard the progress of true religion
there, it requires but little knowledge of
human nature to believe.

Slavery has been a curse in all past
time, and by no possibility can it be other-
wise. It fosters a proud, arrogant, and un-
feeling spirit in the master, and naturally
leads to servility and meanness, to deceit-
fulness and dishonesty, in the slave. Either
way it is disastrous to true religion.

But I have no intention to speak here
of the nature of slavery, its past history,
present condition, or futm-e prospects in

Chap. XV.]

THE VOLUNTARY SYSTEM.

the United States. My object is simply to
show how it operates as one of the great-
est obstacles to the promotion of religion ;
and, as such, militates against the success
of the voluntary system there. Slavery,
indeed, may easily be shown to be pecu-
liarly an obstacle to that system.

I might mention, that the reluctance of
slaves to worship in the same congregation
with their masters is unfavourable to the
interests of true piety. That there is such
a reluctance, every one knows who has
had much to do with the institution of sla-
very. It often shows itself in the hesita-
tion of slaves to come to the family altar,
even in families which are known to treat
them with kindness.

This fact is easily accounted for. Hu-
man nature, however degraded, and whether
wearing a black or a white skin, has still
some remains of pride, or, rather, some
consciousness of what is due to itself, and it
is not wonderful that it avoids as much as
possible coming into contact with persons,
however worthy and kind they may be,
to whom it feels itself placed in ignoble
subjection. Therefore it is that the negro
of our Southern States prefers going to a
church composed of people of his own
colour, and where no whites appear.
Slaves, also, sometimes prefer places of
■worship where greater latitude is allowed
for noisy excitement, to whatever denom-
ination of Christians they may belong, than
"would be tolerated in the religious assem-
blies of white people.

I am not aware that I have exaggerated,
as some may think, the repugnance of the
slaves to join in religious worship with
their masters. One thing is certain : that,
whether from such repugnance, or some
other cause, the slaves like better to meet
by themselves, wherever allowed to do so.

That the separation of the two classes
thus occasioned is injurious to the spiritual
interests of both, must be evident from a
moment's consideration. So long as sla-
very exists in the world, the Gospel enjoins
their appropriate duties upon both masters
and slaves, and they should be made to hear
of those duties in each other's presence.
This should be done kindly, but also faith-
fully. And no Christian master can excuse
himself from doing the duty which he owes
to his slave, in relation to his spiritual and
immortal interests, by saying that he per-
mits him to go he hardly knows whither,
and to be taught those things which con-
cern his highest happiness by he knows not
whom. Where, indeed, the master him-
self is wholly indifferent to the subject of
religion, as, alas ! is too often the case, it is
Avell that the slave is allowed and disposed
to seek religious instruction anywhere.

But one of the greatest evils of slavery,
as respects the maintenance of Christian
institutions, is, that it creates a state of

society extremely unfavourable to the pro-
viding of a sufficient number of churches
and pastors for the spiritual wants of all
classes — rich and poor, slaves and free.
This holds especially in the case of large
landed estates, with many hundred slaves
in the possession of a small number of rich
proprietors. In such circumstances, a
church capable of containing one or two
hundred . persons might, perhaps, accom-
modate all the masters and their families
within the compass of a very large parish,
whereas an immense edifice would be re-
quired for the accommodation of all their
slaves. Now, where this is the state of
things, there is danger that the landowners,,
being few in number, may grudge the ex-
pense of maintaining a church and pastor
at all, however well able to do so ; or that,,
with horses and carriages at their com-
mand, all the rich within one vast district
will join in having public worship at some
central point, where few, comparatively,,
of the slaves and labouring white popula-
tion will find it possible to attend. Where
even a few of the rich proprietors are re-
ligious men, there is no difficulty in having-
the Gospel brought, not only to their owa
doors, but also to those of their slaves and
other dependants. But where they are in-
different, or opposed to religion, then not
only does the Gospel not reach them, but
if it reaches their slaves, it must be with
great difficulty, and often very irregularly.
For, be it remembered, that a slave popu-
lation is generally too poor to contribute
anything worth mentioning for the support
of the Gospel. Blessed be God, there is a
way, as I shall show hereafter, by which
some of the evils here spoken of may be
mitigated ; and that is by the system of
itinerant preaching employed in the United.
States, so extensively, and so usefully, by
the Methodists.

Contemplating these difficulties, we shall,
come to the conclusion that if, in any part
of the United States, the support of the
Gospel by taxation enforced by law is bet-
ter adapted to the circumstances of the
people than the voluntary plan, it is in the
seaboard counties of Maryland, Virginia,
the Carolinas, and Georgia. Still, it will
be found that even there the voluntary-
system has not been wholly inefficient,
but that, through the ministry either of fixed
or itinerant preachers of righteousness, it
has carried the Gospel to the inhabitants
of all classes, to an extent which, under
such adverse circumstances, might seem
impracticable.

It must be noted, that while such are the
difficulties that oppose the maintenance of
a Christian ministry in the slaveholding
states, there is a special necessity for the
preaching of the Gospel there. It is em-
phatically by the " hearing" of the Word
that the slaves can be expected to come to

RELIGION IN AMERICA.

[Book I.

the knowledge of salvation. A most un-
wise and iniquitous legislation has, in most
of those states, forbidden the teaching of
the slaves to read ! And although, doubt-
less, this law is not universally obeyed, and
here and there a good many slaves do
both read and teach others to do so pri-
vately, yet it is from the voice of the living
teacher that the great bulk of that class in
the United States must receive instruction
in divine things. Thanks be to God! no
Legislature in any state has forbidden the
preaching of the Gospel to those who are
in the bonds of slaverj^ ; and many thou-
sands of them, it is believed, have not
heard it in vain.

I conclude by stating that slavery exists
in thirteen states — those which form the
southern half of the Union — and in one
territory, that of Florida. It does not
exist in the other thirteen, nor in the two
important Territories of Wisconsin and
Iowa. The states in which it exists are
Delaware, Maryland, Virginia, North Car-
olina, South Carolina, Georgia, Kentucky,
Tennessee, Missouri, Arkansas, Louisiana,
Mississippi, and Alabama.

CHAPTER XVI.

OBSTACLES WHICH THE VOLUNTARY SYSTEM
HAS HAD TO ENCOUNTER IN AMERICA: 4.
FROM THE VAST IMMIGRATION FROM FOR-
EIGN COUNTRIES.

It is superfluous to say that the immigra-
tion from Europe of such excellent persons
as many of those were who founded the
American colonies, or who joined them in
the days of their infancy, could not fail to be
a blessing to the country. But the emigra-
tion to the United States at the present day
is of a very different character. Whatever
violent persecution there may have been
in Europe during the last seventy years has
been limited in extent, and of short duration,
so that the emigration from the Old World
to America, during that period, must be re-
ferred to worldly considerations, not to the
force of religious convictions leading men
to seek for the enjoyment of religious lib-
erty. In fact, to improve their worldly
condition, to provide a home for their chil-
dren in a thriving country, to rejoin friends
Avho had gone before them, or to escape
from what they deemed civil oppression in
Europe — such, generally, have been the
motives that have prompted the recent
emigrations to America. 'I o these we must
add a different class — that of men wlio
have left their country, as has been said,
*■ for their country's good ;" nor is the
number of such inconsiderable.

It is difficult to discover to what extent
emigrants have poured into the United
States since the Revolution, and espedially

since the close of the second war with
Great Britain, in 1815. Our custom-house
books do not sufficiently distinguish be-
tween emigrants properly so called, and
American citizens returning from abroad.
Again, many of the emigrants enter the
United States by way of Canada, those es-
pecially who come from the British isl-
ands, and no exact enumeration of these,
it is believed, is kept on the frontier. Sixty
thousand foreigners, it has been supposed,
have annually entered the United States
for several years past with the view of
settling there. According to the report
of the Secretary of State, 70,509 foreigners
arrived in 1S39, of whom 34,213 were from
Great Britain, and 30,014 from the Conti-
nent of Europe ; the remainder were from
South America, Texas, the West Indies,
&c. This is probably too low an estimate.
From tables published in England, it ap-
pears that from 1825 to 1837 inclusive, no
fewer than 300,259 left Great Britain and
Ireland for the United States, and also
that the number had increased every year
until 1836, when it reached 37,774. In
1837 the number was 36,770.

It is quite certain, I think, that the emi-
grants from the Continent of Europe, con-
sisting almost entirely of Germans, from
Germany proper and Alsace, Swiss, and
French, are nearly if not quite as numer-
ous as those from the British islands ; and
if so, the total number of emigrants to the
United States, from all quarters, must be
nearer 70,000 than 60,000.

It must not be supposed, however, that
all tlie foreigners who come to the United
States are emigrants. Many come only
to make a longer or shorter stay, as mer-
chants and traders, and some, after having
arrived with the intention of remaining,
become dissatisfied, and return to their na-
tive country. In short, it is impossible to
discover, with any degree of accuracy, the
real yearly augmentation of the population
of the United States arising from immigra-
tion. I am inclined to believe that it is
sometimes greatly overrated, and that it
does not much exceed 60,000, or, at most,
70,000.

Now, although among these emigrants
there are many respectable people, and
some who bring with them no inconsider-
able amount of property, duty compels me
to say, that very many of tliem are not
only very poor, but ignorant, also, and de-
praved. Of those from Ireland, very many
are intemperate, and ill qualified to succeed
in a new country. Should the Temperance
cause, indeed, continue to prosper in Ire-
land as it has done for some years past
under Father Matthew's efforts, we may
hope for an improvement in the " Irish im-
portation." Of the Germans, likewise, a
great many are poor, and some are of im-
provident and depraved habits ; although,

Ohap. XVI.]

THE VOLUNTARY SYSTEM.

in the mass, tliey are much superior to the
Irish in point of frugality and sobriety.
Many of the Germans have of late years
brought with them considerable sums of
money, and though a good many are Ro-
man Catholics, yet the majority are Prot-
estants. A large proportion of them now
come from the kingdoms of Wurtemberg
and Bavaria, and from the Duchy of Baden ;
•whereas, in former times, they came chief-
ly from the eastern and northern parts of
Germany.

Now, although, no doubt, the mortality
among these emigrants from Europe, caus-
ed by exposure, anxiety, fatigue, and dis-
eases incident to a strange climate, is far
greater than among native Americans, yet
the yearly accession of so many people,
ignorant in a degree of the nature of our
institutions, about half of them unable to
speak English, and nearly half of them, also,
Roman Catholics, must impose a heavy
responsibility, and a great amount of la-
bour upon the churches in order to provide
them with the means of grace. Everything
possible must be done for the adults among
them, but hope can be entertained chiefly
for the young. These grow up speaking
the language and breathing the spirit of
their adopted country, and thus the process
of assimilation goes steadily on. In a
thousand ways the emigrants who are, as
it were, cast upon our shores, are brought
into contact with a better religious influ-
ence than that to which many of them
have been accustomed in the Old World.
Every year some of them are gathered
into our churches, while, as I have said,
their children grow up Americans in their
feelings and habits. All this is especially
true of the emigrants who, meaning to
make the country their home, strive to
identify themselves with it. There are
others, however, and particularly those
who, having come to make their fortunes
as merchants and traders, calculate upon
returning to Europe, that never become
American in feeling and spirit. From such
no aid is to be expected in the benevolent
eff'orts made by Christians to promote good
objects among us.

I have been struck with the fact that,,
genei-ally speaking, our religious societies
receive their most steady support from our
Anglo-American citizens. The emigrants
from the British realm, English, Welsh,
Scotch, and Irish, rank next in the interest
they take in our benevolent enterprises,
and in readiness to contribute to their sup-
port. The Germans rank next, the Swiss
next, and the French last. There is most
infidelity among the French, yet it prevails
also, to a considerable degree, among the
Swiss and Germans, among the better-in-
formed classes of whom it is, alas ! too oft-
en to be found. There is no want of infi-
delity and indifference to religion among

emigrants from the British islands, but they
are chiefly to be found among the lowest
class of them.

Thus, as I remarked before, while the
emigration from Europe to the United
States brings us no inconsiderable number
of worthy people, it introduces also a large
amount of ignorance, poverty, and vice.
Besides this, it is difficult to supply with
religious institutions, and it takes long to
Americanise, if I may use the expression,
in feeling, conduct, and language, those
multitudes from the Continent of Europe
who cannot understand or speak English.
Many of the Germans, in particular, in con-
sequence of the impossibility of finding a
sufficient number of fit men to preach in
German, were at one time sadly destitute of
the means of grace in their dispersion over
the country. But within the last fifteen
years a brighter prospect has opened upon
that part of our population, as I shall have
to show in its place.

I have not charged upon the ordinary
emigration to the shores of America the
great amount of crime in the United States,
which may be traced to the escape thither
of criminals from Europe; for these can-
not, with propriety, be regarded as consti-
tuting a part of that emigration. Never-
theless, it is the case that much of the
crime committed in America, from that of
the honourable merchant who scruples not
to defraud the custom-house, if he can,
down to the outrages of the man who dis-
turbs the streets with his riots, is the work
of foreigners.

It maybe said, I am sure, with the strict-
est truth, that in no country is a foreigner
who deserves well treated with more re-
spect and kindness than in America; in no
country will he find less diff'erence be-
tween the native and the adopted citizen ;
in no country do men become more readily
assimilated in principle and feeling to the
great body of the people, or more fully re-
alize the fact that they form a constituent
part of the nation.

I have now finished the notice which I
intended to take of some of the obstacles
which the voluntary system has had to en-
counter in the United States. I might men-
tion others were it necessary ; but I have
said enough to show that it is a mistake to
suppose that it has had an open field and
an easy course there. I am far from say-
ing that if the experiment were to be made
in an old country, where the population is
established and almost stationary — where
it is homogeneous and indigenous — there
would not be other obstacles to encounter,
greater, perhaps, than those to be found
among us, and in some respects peculiar
to America. I only wish these difficul-
ties not to be lost sight of as we advance
in this work, and that they should be ap-
preciated at their just value when we

RELIGION IN AMERICA.

[Book IT.

come to speak of subjects upon which they
bear.

Such are some of the topics which I
thought it of consequence to treat before-
hand, that the reader might be prepared for

a better comprehension of the grand sub-
ject of this work. Upon the direct consid-
eration of that subject we are now ready
to enter.

BOOK II.

THE COLONIAL ERA.

CHAPTER L

RELIGIOUS CHARACTER OF THE EARLY COLO-
NISTS. FOUNDERS OF NEW-ENGLAND.

I HAVE already remarked, that if we would
understand the civil and political institu-
tions of the United States of America, we
must trace them from their earliest origin
in Anglo-Saxon times, through their vari-
ous developments in succeeding ages, until
they reached their present condition in our
own days.

In like manner, if we would thoroughly
understand the religious condition and
economy of the United States, we must
begin with an attentive survey of the char-
acter of the early colonists, and of the
causes which brought them to America.

Besides, as has been well observed,* a
striking analogy may be traced between
natural bodies and bodies politic. Both re-
tain in manhood and old age more or less
of the characteristic traits of their infancy
and youth. All nations bear some marks
of their origin, the circumstances amid
which they were born, and which favoured
their early development, and left an im-
pression that stamps their whole future
existence.

We begin our inquiry, therefore, into the
religious history and condition of the Uni-
ted States, by portraying, as briefly as
possible, the religious character of the first
colonists, who may be regarded as the
/ounders of that commonwealth. In doing
this, we shall follow neither the chronolo-
gical nor the geographical ordtsr, but shall
first speak of the colonists of New-England ;
next, of those of the South ; and, finally, of
those of the Middle States. This gives us
the advantage at once of grouping and of
contrast.

How wonderful are the events that some-
times flow from causes apparently the most
inadequate, and even insignificant ! The
conquest of Constantinople by the 'J'urks,
in 1453, seemed to be only one of the ordi-
nary events of war, and yet it led to the
revival of letters among llio higher classes
of society throughout Europe. The inven-

* See M. de Tocqueville, " Democratic en Ame-
Tique," Premiere Partie, tomn i., chap. i. Also
Lang's " Religion and Education in America," chap,
1., page 11.

tion of the art of printing by an obscure
German, two years later, gave immense
facilities for the diffusion of knowledge
among all classes of people. The discov-
ery of America by a Genoese adventurer,
towards the close of the same century
(A.D. 1492), produced a revolution in the
commerce of the world. A poor monk in
Germany, preaching (A.D. 1517) against
indulgences, emancipated whole nations
from the domination of Rome. And the
fortuitous arrival of a young French law-
yer who had embraced tlie Faith of the
Reformation at an inconsiderable city in
Switzerland, situated on the banks of the
Rhone, followed by his settling there, and
organizing its ecclesiastical and civil insti-
tutions, was connected, in the mysterious
providence of Him who knows the end
from the beginning, and who employs all
events to advance His mighty purposes,
with the establishment of free institutions
in England, their diff"usion in America, and
their triumph in other lands.

The way had long been preparing for the
Reformation in England by the opinions
avowed by Wicliffe and his followers, and
by the resistance of the government to the
claims and encroachments of the ecclesi-
astical authorities. The light, too, which
had begun to appear in Germany, cast its
rays across the North Sea, and men were
ere long to be found in Britain secretly
cherishing the doctrines maintained by Lu-
ther. At length an energetic, but corrupt
and tyrannical prince, after having been
rewarded for writing against Luther, by
receiving from the pope the title of " De-
fender of the Faith," thought fit to revenge
the refusal of a divorce from his first wife
by abolishing the papal supremacy in his
kingdom, and transferring the headship of
the Church, as well as of the State, to him-
self. But Henry VIII. desired to have no
reformation either in the doctrines or the
worship of the Church ; and in his last
years he revoked the general permission
which he had granted for the reading of the
Scriptures, being all that he had ever done
in favour of the Reformation among the
people, and confined that privilege to the
nobles and merchants. A tyrant at once
in spiritual and temporal matters, he pun-
ished every deviation from the ancient

Chap. I.]

CHARACTER OF THE EARLY COLONISTS.

Bsages of the Church, and every act of
non-compliance with his own arbitrary
ordinances.

The reign of Edward VI. (1547-1553)
forms a most important era in the histo-
ry of England. Partly through the influ-
ence of the writings of Calvin, which had
been circulated to a considerable extent in
that country ; partly through that of his
public instructions, which had been fre-
quented at Geneva by many young English
students of divinity ; but still more by the
lectures of those two eminent Continental
divines, Peter Martyr and Martin Bucer,
who had been invited to England, and made
professors of theology at Oxford and Cam-
bridge, many persons had been prepared
for that refonuation in the Church which
then actually took place under the auspi-
ces of Cranmer, and was carried to the
length, in all essential points, at which it
is now established by law. Hooper, and
many other excellent men, were appointed
to the most influential offices in the Church,
imd much progress was made in resuscita-
ting true piety among both the clergy and
the people.

But the Protestants of England soon be-
came divided into two parties. One, head-
ed by Cranmer, then Archbishop of Can-
terbury, consisted of such as were op-
posed to great changes in the discipline
and government of the Church, and wished
to retain, to a certain degree, the ancient
forms and ceremonies, hoping thereby to
conciliate the people to the Protestant faith.
To all the forms of the Romish Church the
other party bore an implacable hatred, and
insisted upon the rejection of even a cere-
mony or a vestment that was not clearly
enjoined by the Word of God. Wishing to
see the Church purified from every human
invention, they were therefore called Puri-
tans, a name given in reproach, but by
which, in course of time, they were not
averse to being distinguished. With them
the Bible was the sole standard, alike for
doctrines and for ceremonies, and with it
they would allow no decision of the hierar-
chy, or ordinance of the king, or law of Par-
liament, to interfere. On that great found-
ation they planted their feet, and were en-
couraged in so doing by Bucer, Peter Mar-
tyr, and Calvin himself.* The Church-
men, as their opponents were called, de-
sired, on the other hand, to diflTer as little
as possible from the ancient forms, and
readily adopted things indiff"erent ; but the
Puritans could never sever themselves too
widely from every usage of the Romish
Church. For them the surplice and the
square cap were things of importance, for
they were the livery of superstition, and
tokens of the triumph of prescription over

* Strype's Memorials, vol. ii., chap, ixviii. Hal-
lam's Constitutional History of England, vol. i., p.
140. 6 , , K

the Word of God — of human over divine
authority ; and though then but a small mi-
nority, even thus early there was evidently
a growing attachment to their doctrines iu
the popular mind."^

During the bloody reign of Edward VI. 's
successor, Mary, that is, from 1553 to 1558,
both parties of Protestants were exposed
to danger, but especially the Puritans.
Thousands fled to the Continent, and found
refuge chiefly in Frankfort-on-the-Maine,
Emden, Wesel, Basel, Marburg, Strasburg,
and Geneva. At Frankfort the dispute be-
tween the two parties was renewed with
great keenness ; even Calvin in vain at-
tempted to allay it. In the end, most of
the Puritans left that city and retired to
Geneva, where they found the doctrine,
worship, and discipline of the Church to ac-
cord with their sentiments. While resi-
ding there, they adopted for their own use
a liturgy upon the plan suggested by the
great Genevese reformer, and there also
they translated the Bible into English. f
Persecution, meanwhile, prevailed in Eng-
land. Cranmer, to whom the queen in
her early years had owed her life, Hooper,
Rogers, and other distinguished servants
of Christ, suffered death. Many of the
clergy again submitted to the Roman See.

On the death of Queen Mary, many of
the exiled Puritans returned, with their
hatred to the ceremonies and vestments
inflamed by associating them with the cru-
elties freshly committed at home, and by
what they had seen of the simple worship
of the Reformed Churches abroad. But
they struggled in vain to effect any sub-
stantial change. Ehzabeth, who succeed-
ed her sister Mary in 1558, would hear of
no modifications of any importance in doc-
trine, discipline, or worship, so that in all
points the Church was almost identically
the same as it had been under Edward VI.
While Elizabeth desired to conciliate the
Romanists, the Puritans denounced all con-
cessions to them, even in things indifferent.

* The Puritans have been often and severely
blamed for what some have been pleased to call their
obstinacy in regard to things comparatively indiifer-
ent. But it has been well remarked by President
Quincy, in his Centennial Address at Boston, that
" the wisdom of zeal for any object is not to be
measured by the particular nature of that object, but
by the nature of the principle, which the circumstan-
ces of the times, or of society, have identified with
such object."

t This version was first published in 1560. So
highly was it esteemed, particularly on account of
its notes, that it passed through thirty editions. To
both the translation and notes King James had a
special dislike, alleging that the latter were full of
" traitorous conceits." In the conference at Hampton
Court, "he professed that he could never yet see a
Bible well translated in English, but worst of all his
majesty thought the Geneva to be. " This version
was the one chiefly used by the first emigrants to
New-England, for that of King James, published in
1611, had not then passed into general use. —
Strype's Annals. Barlow's Sum and Substance of the
Conference at Hampton Cowt,

RELIGION IN AMERICA.

[Book IP.

Tliough by profession a Protestant, she
was much attached to many of the distin-
guishing doctrines and practices of the pa-
pacy, and slie bore a special hatred to the
Puritans, not only because of their differ-
ing so much from her in their religious
views, but also because of the sentiments
they hesitated not to avow on the subject
of civil liberty. The oppression of the
government was driving them, in fact, to
scrutinize the nature and limits of civil
and ecclesiastical authority, and to ques-
tion the right of carrying it to the extent
to which the queen and the bishops were
determined to push it. The popular voice
vpas becoming decidedly opposed to a rig-
orous exaction of conformity with the roy-
al ordinances respecting the ceremonies.
Parliament itself became imbued with the
same spirit, and showed an evident dis-
position to befriend the Puritans, whose
cause began to be associated with that of
civil and religious liberty. The bishops,
however, and most of the other dignified
clergy, supported the views of the queen.
Whitgift, in particular, who was made
Archbishop of Canterbury in 1583, vigor-
ously enforced conformity. The Court of
High Commission compelled many of the
best ministers of the Established Church
to relinquish their benefices, and to hold
private meetings for worship as they best
could, very inferior and v/orthless men be-
ing generally put into their places.

Still, the suppression of the Puritans was
found a vain attempt. During Elizabeth's
long reign their numbers steadily increas-
ed. The services they rendered to the
country may be estimated by the verdict
of an historian who has been justly char-
ged with lying in wait, through the whole
course of his history, for an opportunity of
throwing discredit upon the cause of both
religion and liberty, and who bore to the
Puritans a special dislike. Mr. Hume says,
" The precious spark of liberty had been
kindled and was preserved by the Puritans
alone."*

As a body, the Puritans studiously avoid-
ed separation from the Established Church.
What they desired was reform, not schism.
But towards the middle of Elizabeth's reign,
a party arose among them tliat went to
an extreme in their oppo.sition to the
" Churchmen,*' and refused to hold com-
munion with a Ciuirch whose ceremonies
and government they condemned. These
were the Independents, or Brownists, as
they were long improperly called, from
the name of one who was a leading person
among them for a time, but wlio afterward
left them and ended his days in the Estab-
lished Church. The congregation which
Brown had gathered, after sharing his ex-
ile, was broken up and utterly dispersed.

♦ Hume's History of England, vol. iii., p. 76.

But the principles which, for a time, he
had boldly advocated, were destined to sur-
vive his abandonment of them in England,
as well as to flourish in a far-distant re-
gion, at that time almost unknown.

From that time forward the Puritans be-
came permanently divided into two bodies
— the Nonconformists, constituting a large
majority of the body, and the Separatists.
The former saw evils in the Established
Church, and refused to comply with them,
but, at the same time, acknowledged its
merits, and desired its reform ; the latter
denounced it as an idolatrous institution,,
false to Truth and to Christianity, and, as
such, fit only to be destroyed. Eventually
the two parties became bitterly opposed
to each other ; the former reproached the
latter with precipitancy ; the latter retorted
the charge of a base want of courage.

The accession of King James gave new
hopes to the Puritans, but these were soon,
completely disappointed. That monarch,,
though brought up in Presbyterian princi-
ples in Scotland, no sooner crossed the
border than he became an admirer of the
prelacy, and, although a professed Calvin-
ist, allowed himself to become the easy
tool of the latitudinarian sycophants who
surrounded him. Having deceived the Pu-
ritans, he soon learned to hate both them
and their doctrines. His pedantry having
sought a conference with their leaders at
Hampton Court, scenes took place there
which were as amusing for their display
of the dialectics of the monarch as they
were unsatisfactory to the Puritans in their
results. " I will have none of that liberty
as to ceremonies ; I will have one doc-
trine, one discipline, one religion in sub-
stance and in ceremony. Never speak,
more on that point, how far you are bound
to obey."* And verily it was a point on
which such a monarch as James I. did not
wish to hear anything said. The confer-
ence lasted three days. The king would
bear no contradiction. He spoke much, .
and was greatly applauded by his flatter-
ers. The aged Whitgift said, " Your maj-
esty speaks by the special assistance of '
God's Spirit." And Bishop Bancroft ex-
claimed, on his knees, that his heart melt-
ed for joy " because God had given Eng-
land such a king as, since Christ's time,
has not been."!

The Parliament was becoming more and
more favourable to the doctrines of the Pu--
ritans ; but the hierarchy maintained its
own views, and was subservient to the

* In the second day's conference his majesty spoke
of the Puritans with little ceremony. "1 will make
them conform, or I will harry them out of the land,
or else worse." " Only burn them, that's all." —
Barlow^s iSuni and Substance of the Conference at
Hampton Court, p. 71, 83.

t Barlow's Sum and Substance of the Conference
at Hampton Court, p. 93, 94. Lingard, ix., p. 32.
Neai's History of the Puritans, iii., p. 45.

Chap. II.]

CHARACTER OF THE EARLY COLONISTS.

wishes of the monarch. Conformity was
rigidly enforced by Whitgift's successor,
Bancroft. In 1604, three hundred Puritan
ministers are said to have been silenced,
imprisoned, or exiled. But nothing could
check the growth of their principles. The
Puritan clergy and the people became ar-
rayed against the Established Church and
the King. The latter triumphed during
that reign, but very different was to be the
issue in the following. So hateful to the
court were the people called Brownists,
Separatists, or Independents, that eff'orts
were made, with great success, to root
them out of the country. Some remains
of them, however, outUved for years the
persecutions by which they were assault-
ed.

In the latter years of Ehzabeth, a scat-
tered flock of these Separatists began to
be formed in some towns and villages of
Nottinghamshire, Lincolnshire, and the ad-
jacent borders of Yorkshire, under the pas-
toral care of John Robinson, a man who
has left behind him a name admitted, even
by his bitterest enemies, to be without re-
proach. This little church was watched
and beset day and night by the agents of
the court, and could with difficulty find op-
portunities of meeting in safety. They
met here or there, as they best could, on
the Sabbath, and thus strove to keep alive
the spirit of piety which united them.
They had become " enlightened in the
Word of God," and were led to see, not
only that " tlie beggarly ceremonies were
monuments of idolatry," but also " that
the lordly power of the prelates ought not
to be submitted to." Such being their sen-
tiniients, no efforts, of course, would be
spared to make their lives miserable, and,
if possible, to extirpate them.

At last, seeing no prospect of peace in
their native land, they resolved to pass
over to Holland, a country which, after
having successfully struggled for its own
independence and for the maintenance of
the Protestant faith, now presented an
asylum for persons of all nations when
persecuted on account of their religion.
After many difficulties and delays, a pain-
fully interesting account of which may be
found in their annals, they reached Am-
sterdam in 1608. There they found many
of their brethren who had left England for
the same cause with themselves. The
oldest part of these exiled Independents
was the church under the pastoral care of
Francis Johnson. It had emigrated from
London about the year 1592. There was
also a fresh accession composed of a Mr.
Smith's people. Risk of collision with
these induced Mr. Robinson and his flock
to retire to Leyden, and there they estab-
lished themselves.

CHAPTER II.

RELIGIOUS CHARACTER OF THE FOUNDERS OF
NEW-ENGLAND. PLYMOUTH COLONV.

The arrival of Mr. Robinson's flock in
Holland was destined to be the beginning
only of their wanderings. " They knew
that they were pilgrims, and looked not
much on those things, but lifted up their
eyes to heaven their dearest country, and
quieted their spirits,"* " They saw many
goodly and fortified cities, strongly walled
and guarded with troops and armed men.
Also, they heard a strange and uncouth
language, and beheld the diff'erent man-
ners and customs of the people, with
strange fashions and attires ; all so far
difl'ering from that of their plain country
villages, wherein they were bred and born,
and had so long lived, as it seemed they
were come into a new world. But those
were not the things they much looked on,
or that long took up their thoughts ; for
they had other work in hand," and " saw
before long poverty coming on them like
an armed man, with whom they must
buckle and encounter, and from whom
they could not fly. But they were armed
with faith and patience against him and all
his encounters ; though they were some-
times foiled, yet by God's assistance they
prevailed and got the victory."

On their removal to Leyden, as they had
no opportunity of pursuing the agricultu-
ral life they had led in England, they were
compelled to learn such trades as they
could best earn a livelihood by for them-
selves and their families. Brewster, a
man of some distinction, who had been
chosen their ruling elder, became a print-
er. Bradford, afterward their governor
in America, and their historian, acquired
the art of dying silk. All had to learn
some handicraft or other. But, notwith-
standing these difficulties, after two or
three years of embarrassment and toil,
they " at length came to raise a compe-
tent and comfortable living, and continued
many years in a comfortable condition, en-
joying much sweet and delightful society,
and spiritual comfort together in the ways
of God, under the able ministry and pru-
dent government of Mr. John Robinson
and Mr. William Brewster, who was an as-
sistant unto him in the place of an elder,
unto which he was now called and chosen
by the church ; so that they grew in knowl-
edge, and other gifts and graces of the Spir-
it of God ; and lived together in peace, and
love, and holiness. And many came unto
them from divers parts of England, so as
they grew a great congregation."! As for

* See Governor Bradford's History of Plymouth
Colony.

t Governor Bradford's History of New-England,
It has been calculated from data to be found in oth-
er histories of that colony, that so much had Mr.

RELIGION IN AMERICA.

[Book II.

Mr. Robinson, we are told that the people
had a great affection for him, and that " his
love was great towards them, and his care
was always bent for their best good, both
for soul and body. For, besides his singu-
lar abilities in divine things, wherein he
excelled, he was able also to give direc-
tion in civil aflfairs, and to foresee dangers
and inconveniences ; by which means he
was every way as a common father unto
them." Not only so : besides writing sev-
eral books and preachiug thrice a week to
his own flock, Mr. Robinson entered warm-
ly into the Arminian controversy, which
was raging during his residence at Leyden,
and disputed often with Episcopius and oth-
er champions of the Arminian side.*

Although they had begun to enjoy some
degree of comfort in Holland, still they
did not feel themselves at home there.
Accordingly, they began to agitate the
question of removing to some part of
America. Their reasons for thinking of
such a step, as stated in the words of
their own historian, gives us new proof
of the extraordinary character of this sim-
ple-hearted and excellent flock.

I. " And, first, they found, and saw by
experience, the hardness of the place and
country to be such, as few in comparison
would come to them, and fewer that would
bide it out and continue with them. For
many that came to them could not endure
the great labour and hard fare, with other
inconveniences which they underwent and
were contented witli. But though they
loved their persons, and approved their
cause, and honoured their sufferings, yet
they left them, as it were, weeping, as Or-
pah did her mother-in-law Naomi ; or as
those Romans did Cato in Utica, who de-
sired to be excused and borne with, though
they could not all be Catos.f For many,
though they desired to enjoy the ordinan-
ces of God in their purity, and the liberty
of the Gospel with them, yet, alas ! they
admitted of bondage witli danger of con-
science, rather than endure those hard-
ships ; yea, some preferred and chose pris-
ons in England rather than Uberty in Hol-
land, with those afflictions. But it was
thought that if a better and easier place of
living could be had, it would draw many,
and take away these discouragements ;
yea, their pastor would often say that
many of those that both writ and preach-
ed against them, if they were in a place

Robinson's church increased, that it had three hun-
dred " communicants" before any of them embarked
for America.

* Besides the testimony of Winslow in his " Brief
Narrative," which might be suspected of being par-
tial, we have tliat of the celebrated Professor Horn-
beck, in his " 8uinma Controversiarum Rehgionis,"
respecting Mr. Robinson, whom he calls " Vir ille
(Johannes Robinsonus), gratus nostris, dum vixit,
fuit, et theologis Leidensibus familiaris et honoratus."

t See Plutarch's Life of Cato the Younger.

where they might have liberty and live
comfortably, they would then practise as
as they did.

II. " They saw that, although the people
generally bore all their difficulties very
cheerfully and with a resolute courage, be-
ing in the best of their strength, yet old
age began to come on some of them ; and
their great and continual labours, with
other crosses and sorrows, hastened it be-
fore the time ; so as it was not only prob-
ably thought, but apparently seen, that
within a few years more they were in dan-
ger to scatter by necessity pressing them,
or sink under their burdens, or both ; and,
therefore, according to the divine proverb,
that ' a wise man seeth the plague when it
cometh, and hideth himself,'* so they, like
skilful and beaten soldiers, were fearful ei-
ther to be entrapped or surrounded by their
enemies, so as they should neither be able
to fight nor fly ; and, therefore, thought it
better to dislodge betimes to some place
of better advantage and less danger, if any
could be found.

III. "As necessity was a taskmaster
over them, so they were forced to be such
not only to their servants, but, in a sort, to
their dearest children ; the which, as it did
a little wound the tender hearts of many a
loving father and mother, so it produced,
also, many sad and sorrowful eflfects. For
many of their children, that were of best
dispositions and gracious inclinations, hav-
ing learned to bear the yoke in their youth,
and willing to bear part of their parents'
burden, were oftentimes so oppressed with
their heavy labours, that although their
minds were free and willing, yet their bod-
ies bowed under the weight of the same,
and became decrepit in their early youth ;
the vigour of nature being consumed in the
very bud, as it were. But that which was
more lamentable, and of all sorrows most
heavy to be borne, was, that many of their
children, by these occasions, and the great
licentiousness of the youth in the country,
and the manifold temptations of the place,
were drawn away by evil examples into ex-
travagant and dangerous courses, getting
tlie reins on their necks, and departing from
their parents. Some became soldiers, oth-
ers took them upon far voyages by sea,
and others some worse courses, tending to
dissoluteness and the danger of their souls,
to the great grief of their parents and dis-
honour of God ; so that they saw their
posterity would be in danger to degenerate
and be corrupted.

IV. "Lastly (and which was not the
least), a great hope and hiward zeal they
had of laying some good foundation, or at
least to make some way thereunto, for the
propagating and advancing the Gospel of
the kingdom of Christ in these remote

* Quoted from the Geneva version.

Chap. II.]

CHARACTER OF THE EARLY COLONISTS.

parts of the world ; yea, though they should
be but as stepping-stones unto others for
performing of so great a work."

Besides these reasons, mentioned by
Governor Bradford in his History of Plym-
outh Colony, the three following are ad-
duced by Edward Winslow, who also was
one of its founders : 1. Their desire to hve
imder the protection of England, and to
retain the language and the name of Eng-
lishmen. 2. Their inability to give their
children such an education as they had
themselves received. And, 3. Their grief
at the profanation of the Sabbath in Hol-
land.

Such were the considerations that indu-
ced the Pilgrims to send over to England
a deputation, with the view of ascertaining
what kind of reception their project might
meet with from the king, and whether the
London Company, or, as it was most com-
monly called, the Virginia Company, would
sanction their settling as a colony on any
part of its possessions in America. With
all his detestation of the Independents, the
king felt rather gratified than otherwise at
the prospect of extending colonization,
that being an object in which he had long
felt an interest. Many years before this
he had encouraged colonization in the
Highlands and Western Islands of Scot-
land, and the North of Ireland has long
been indebted for a prosperity and securi-
ty, such as no other part of that island has
enjoyed, to the English and Scotch planta-
tions which he had been at great pains to
form on lands laid waste during the deso-
lating warfare of his predecessor, Eliza-
beth, with certain Irish chieftains in those
parts.* To extend the dominions of Eng-
land he allowed to be " a good and honest
motion." On his inquiring what trade
they expected to find in the northern part of
Virginia,! being that in which they thought
of settling, they answered, " Fishing ;" to
which the monarch replied, with his usual
asseveration, " So God have my soul, 'tis
an honest trade ; 'twas the apostles' own
calling."! But as the king wished to con-
sult the Archbishop of Canterbury and the
Bishop of London, the delegates were rec-
ommended not to press the matter, but to
trust to his connivance rather than to look
for his formal consent. This they resolv-
ed to do, rightly concluding that, " should
there be a purpose to wrong us, though
we had a seal as broad as the house-floor,
there would be found means enough to
recall it."

The Virginia Company showed the most
favourable dispositions. They said " the
thing was of God," and granted a large
patent, which, however, proved of no use.

* See Robertson's History of Scotland, chap. viii.
■f The reader will remember that the whole Atlan-
tic coast was then called Virginia by the English.
t Edward Winslow's Brief Narrative.
D

One of them, to help the undertaking, lent
the sum of jC300, without interest, for three
years, and this was afterward repaid.
This advance must have been a seasonable
encouragement, for a hard bargain had to
be struck with some London merchants, or
" adventurers," as they are called by the
colonial historians, in order to raise what
farther money was required. At length
two ships, the Speedwell of sixty, and the
Mayflower of a hundred and eighty tons,
were engaged, and everything else arran-
ged for the departure of as many as the
ships could accommodate. Those went
who first offered themselves, and Brewster,
the ruling elder, was chosen their spiritual
guide. The other leading men were John
Carver, William Bradford, Miles Standish,
and Edward Winslow. Mr. Robinson stay-
ed behind, along with the greater part of
the flock, with the intention of joining
those who first went at some future time,
should such be the will of God. A solemn
fast was observed. Their beloved pastor
afterward delivered a farewell charge,
which must be regarded as a remarkable
production for those times.*

* This charge is related in Edward Winslow's
" Brief Narrative." It is here subjoined in the lan-
guage in which it is given by that author, from
whom alone it became known to the world:

" We are now ere long to part asunder, and the
Lord knoweth whether ever he should live to see
our faces again. But whether the Lord had appoint-
ed it or not, he charged us before God and his bless-
ed angels to follow him no farther than he followed
Christ; and if God should reveal anything to us by
any other instrument of His, to be as ready to receive
it as ever we were to receive any truth by his min-
istry ; for he was very confident the Lord had more
truth and light yet to break forth out of his holy Word.
He took occasion, also, miserably to bewail the state
and condition of the Reformed Churches, who were
come to a period in religion, and would no farther go
than the instruments of their reformation. As, for
example, the Lutherans, they could not be drawn to
go beyond what Luther saw ; for whatever part of
God's will He had farther imparted and revealed
unto Calvin, they will rather die than embrace it.
And so also, saith he, you see the Calvinists, they
stick where he left them, a misery much to be la-
mented ; for though they were precious shining lights
in their limes, yet God hath not revealed his whole
will to them ; and were they now living, saith he,
they would be as ready and willing to embrace far-
ther light as that they had received. Here, also, he
put us in mind of our church covenant, at least that
part of it whereby we promise and covenant with
God and one another, to receive whatsoever light
or truth shall be made known to us from his written
Word ; but, withal, exhorted us to take heed what we
received for truth, and well to examine and compare
it, and weigh it with other scriptures of truth before
we received it. For saith he, it is not possible the
Christian world should come so lately out of such
thick antichristian darkness, and that full perfection
of knowledge should break forth at once.

" Another thing he commended to us was, that we
should use all means to avoid and shake off the name
of Brownist, being a mere nickname and brand to
make religion odious, and the professors of it, to the
Christian world. And to that end, said he, I should
be glad if some godly minister would go over with
you before my coming ; for, said he, there will be no
difference between the unconformable [nonconform-

RELIGION IN AMERICA.

[Book IL

All thingsbeingnow ready, the emigrants,
after being " feasted at the pastor's house,
for it was large," by those who were to
remain behind, and having been " refreshed
after their tears by the singing of psalms,"
set out for Delft-haven, where the ships
then lay. There they were again " feast-
ed," and prayer having been made, they
were accompanied on board by their
friends, but " were not able to speak to one
another for the abundance of sorrow to
part." The wind being favourable, they
were soon on their way.

They left Holland on the 22d of July,
1620, followed by the respect of the peo-
ple among whom they had lived. Wins-
low tells us that the Dutch, on learning
that they were about to leave their coun-
try, urged them much to settle in Zealand,
or, if they preferred America, to seek a
home for themselves on the Hudson, with-
in the territory discovered by the naviga-
tor who gave his name to that river while
in their service, and which they therefore
claimed, and had resolved to colonize. But
the liberal inducements then offered to the
emigrants could not alter their purpose of
settling in a country which should be un-
der the government of their native land.

A few days brought them safely to South-
ampton, in England. On learning that the
captain of the smaller of the two vessels
was unwilling to prosecute so long a voy-
age in her, after having put back, first to
Dartmouth and then to Plymouth, they
were compelled to send the Speedwell,
with part of the company, to London, and
it was not until the 6th of September that
the Mayflower finally sailed with a hun-
dred passengers. The voyage proved long
and boisterous. One person died and a
child was born, so that the original num-
ber reached the coast of America. On the
11th of November they entered the har-
bour of Cape Cod, and after having spent
fully a month in looking about for a place
that seemed suitable for a settlement, they

in^. Imt who had not actually separated from the
Churcli] ministers and you, when they come to the
practice of the ordinances out of the kingdom. And
so advised us by all means to endeavour to close with
the godly parly of the kingdom of England, and rath-
er to study union tiian division, viz., how near we
might possibly, without sin, close with them, than in
the least measure to effect division or separation from
them. And be not loulh to take another pastor or
teacher, saith he ; for that flock that lialh two shep-
herds is not endangered, but secured by it. "

Such is the remarkable farewell address, as report-
ed by Winslovv. " Words," says Prince in his " An-
nals," speaking of it, "almost astonishing in that age
of low and universal bigotry which then prevailed in
the English nation; wherein this truly great and
learned man seemed to be the only divine who was
capable of rising into a noble freedom of thinking
and practising in religious matters, and even of ur-
ging such an equal liberty on his own people. He
labours to take them off from their attachment to
him, that they might be more entirely free to search
and follow the Scriptures."

fixed, at last, on the spot now bearing the-
name of the town where they had received
the last hospitalities of England. There-
they landed on the 11th of December, old
style, or the 22d of December, according-
to the new ; and to this day the very rock
on which they first planted their feet at.
landing is shown to the passing stranger
as a cherished memorial of that interesting-
event. On that rock commenced the col-
onization of New-England.

On the day of the arrival of the May-
flower in Cape Cod harbour, the following
document was signed by all the male heads
of famihes, and unmarried tnen not attach-
ed to fainihes represented by their respect-
ive heads.

" In the name of God, Amen. We,
whose names are underwritten, the loyal
subjects of our dread sovereign lord, King
James, by the grace of God, of Great Brit-
ain, France, and Ireland, king, defender of
the faith, &c., having undertaken, for the
glory of God, and advancement of the
Christian faith, and honour of our king-
and country, a voyage to plant the first
colony in the northern parts of Virginia,
do. by these presents, solei-nnly and mutu-
ally, in the presence of God, and one of
another, covenant and combine ourselves
together into a civil body politic, for our
better ordering and preservation, and fur-
therance of the ends aforesaid, and by vir-
tue hereof to enact, constitute, and frame
such just and equal laws, ordinances, acts,
constitutions, and offices, from time to
time, as shall be thought most meet and
convenient for the general good of the col-
ony ; unto which we promise all due sub-
mission and obedience. In witness where-
of, we have hereunder subscribed our
names, at Cape Cod, the 1 1 th of Novem-
ber, in the year of the reign of our sover-
eign loW, King James, of England, France,
and Ireland the eighteenth, and of vScot-
land the fifty-fourth, Anno Domini 1G20."

Here may be said to have been the first
attempt made by an American colony to
frame a constitution or fundamental law —
the seminal principle, as it were, of all
that wonderful series of efforts which have
been put forth in the New World towards
fixing the foundations of independent, vol-
untary self-government. John Carver was
chosen governor of the colony, and to as-
sist him in administering its affairs, a coun-
cil of five, afterward increased to seven
members, was appointed.

After selecting what they considered to
be the best spot for a settlement, as the
ship's boat could not come close to the
water's edge, they suffered much in their
health by having to wade ashore. The
few intervals of good weather they could
catch, between snow and rain, they spent
in erecting houses ; but before the first sum-
mer came round, nearly half their numljer

Chap. III.]

CHARACTER OF THE EARLY COLONISTS.

had fallen victims to consumptions and fe-
vers, the natural effects of the hardships
to which they had been exposed. What
must have been the distress they suffered
during that long winter, passed beneath
unknown skies, with a gloomy, unbroken
forest on the one hand, and the dreary
ocean on the other !

But with the return of spring came
health, and hope, and courage. The colo-
ny took root. The ground it occupied had
been cleared for it by the previous destruc-
tion, by pestilence, of the tribe of Indians
which had occupied it. Of course, tlie col-
onists could not buy land which there was
nobody to sell. They soon made the ac-
quaintance of the neighbouring tribes, ac-
quired their friendship, and entered into
treaty with them. Their numbers were in
course of time increased by successive ar-
rivals of emigrants, until, in 1630. they ex-
ceeded 300. After the second year they
raised grain not only to supply all their own
wants, but with a surplus for exportation.*
They soon had a number of vessels em-
ployed at the fisheries. They even planted
a colony on the Kennebec, in Maine, and
extended their trade to the Connecticut
River, before the close of the first ten years
of their settlement, and before any other
Enghsh colony had been formed on the
coast of Northern Virginia, or New-Eng-
land, the name given it by Captain Smith
in 1614, and by which it was ever after to
be distinguished.

The governor and council were chosen
every year. At first, and for above eigh-
teen years, " the people" met, as in Athens
of old, for the discussion and adoption of
laws. But as the colony extended, and
towns and villages rose along the coasts and
in the interior, the " Democratic" form of
government gave place to the " Republi-
can," by two delegates being chosen from
each township to form "the General Court,"
or Legislature of the commonwealth.

For some time they had no pastor or
preaching elder, but Mr. Brewster led their

* During the first two or three years they suffered
greatly at times for want of food. Sometimes thoy
jsubsisted on half allowance for months. They were
once saved from famishing by the benevolence of
some fishermen off the coast. " I have seen men,"
eays Winslow, "stagger by reason of faintness for
•want of food." " Tradition declares, that at one
time the colonists vvere reduced to a pint of corn,
which, being parched and distributed, gave to each
individual only live kerne's: but tradition falls far
Short of reality ; for three or four months together
they had no corn whatever. When a few of their
old friends arrived to join them, a lobster, or a piece
of fish, without bread or anything else but a cup of
fair spring water, was the best dish which the hos-
pitality of the whole colony could afford. Neat cat-
tle were not introduced till the fourth year of the
settlement. Yet, during all this season of self-deni-
al and suffering, the cheerful confidence of the Pil-
grims in the mercies of Providence remained unsha-
ken."— Bancroft's History of the United States, vol. ].,
p. 315.

public devotions until they came to have a
regular minister. Their affairs as a church
were conducted with the same system and
order that marked their civil economy.

Such is a brief account of the founding
of Plymouth Colony, the earliest of all that
were planted in New-England. Placed on
a sandy and but moderately productive part
of the coast, and commanding a very lim-
ited extent of inland territory from which
to derive the materials of commerce and
wealth, it could not be expected to be-
come a great and important colony, like
others of which I have yet to speak. But
it was excelled by none in the moral
worth of its founders. All professing god-
liness, they almost without exception, as
far as we know, did honour to that profes-
sion. True religion was with them the
first of all possessions. They feared God,
and He walked among them, and dwelt
among them, and His blessing rested upon
them. The anniversary of their disembar-
cation at Plymouth has long been regular-
ly celebrated upon the yearly return of the
2-2d of December, in prose and in verse, in
oration and in poem : a patriotic and reli-
gious duty, to which have been consecrated
the highest efforts of many of the noblest
and purest minds ever produced by the
country to whose colonization they led the
way.

CHAPTER III.

RELIGIOUS CHARACTER OF THE EARLY COLO-
NISTS.— FOUNDERS OF NEW-ENGLAND. — COL-
ONY OF MASSACHUSETTS BAY.

The first English settlements in America
arose, it will be remembered,* from James
I.'s investing two Companies, the one form-
ed at London, the other at Bristol and oth-
er towns in the West of England, each with
a belt of territory extending from the At-
lantic to the Pacific Ocean ; the one lying
between the 34th and 38th, the other be-
tween the 41st and 48th degrees of north
latitude. Both Companies were formed in
a purely commercial spirit ; each was to
have its own council, but the Royal Coun-
cil was to have the superintendence of their
whole colonial system. The London Com-
pany was dissolved, we have seen, after an
existence of eighteen years. The other
accomplished nothing beyond giving en-
couragement to sundry trading voyages to
the coast of the country made over to it by
its charter.

At length, at the repeated instance of
Captain Smith, the Western Company
sought a renewal of their patent, with ad-
ditional powers, similar to those of the
London Company's second charter in 1609,

* Book i., chap. iv.

RELIGION IN AMERICA.

[Book II.

with the view of attempting an extensive
plan of colonization ; and, notwithstanding
opposition from the Parliament and the
country at large, they succeeded in their
request. On November 3d, 1G20, the king
granted a charter to forty of his subjects,
among whom were members of his house-
hold and government, and some of the
wealthiest and most powerful of the Eng-
lish nobility, conveying to them in abso-
lute property, to be disposed of and admin-
istered as they might think proper, the
whole of that part of North America which
stretches from the Atlantic to the Pacific,
between the 40th and 48th degrees of north
latitude, under the title of " The Council
estabhshed at Plymouth, in the County of
Devon, for the planting, ruling, ordering,
and governing New-England, in America."
Under the auspices of a vast trading corpo-
ration, invested with such despotic powers,
the colonization of New-England com-
menced. While this charter was in course
of being granted, the Pilgrims were fast
approaching the American coast. No val-
id title had given them, as yet, any legal
right to set their feet upon it, but this they
obtained a few years after from the newly-
formed Plymouth Company.

From its very commencement the new
company began to lavish away grants of
the immense territory which had been
conveyed to it, so that during the fifteen
years of its existence it covered with
its patents the whole country now com-
prising Massachusetts, New-Hampshire,
Maine, and the vast region westward of
these as far as the Pacific Ocean. Such
was the utter disregard shown in those
grants for anything like clear and precise
boundaries, that we cannot so much won-
der at the number of lawsuits that arose
from them, as that these were ever termi-
nated. To Mason and Gorges were grant-
ed the territories now forming the States
of New-Hampshire and Maine ; to Sir
"William Alexander, the country between
the River St. Croix and the mouth of the
St. Lawrence, notwithstanding that it was
all well known to be claimed by the French,
who had even planted a colony upon it,
called by them Acadie, but ultimately des-
tined to receive the name of Nova Scotia.

But the most important grant made by
the Plymouth Company, often called in
history the Council for New-ICngland, was
one conveying the Massachusetts territory
to a body organized in England in 1628, for
the purpose of at once providing an asy-
lum for persons suffering for conscience'
sake in the Old World, and of extending
the kingdom of Christ in the New, by
founding a colony on a large scale. With
this view, six Dorchester gentlemen bought
from the company a bell of land stretching
from the Atlantic to the Pacific, between
three miles south of Charles River and

Massachusetts Bay, and three miles north
of every part of the River Merrimac. Of
these six, three, namely, Humphrey, Endi-
cot, and Whetcomb, retained their shares ;
while the other three sold theirs to Win-
throp, Dudley, Johnson, Pynchon, Eaton,
Saltonstall, and Bellingham, so famous in
colonial history, besides many others, men
of fortune and friends to colonial enter-
prise. Thus strengthened, this new com-
ip<iny sent out two hundred colonists under
Endicot, a man every way fitted for such
an enterprise — courageous, cheerful, and
having firmness of purpose and warmth of
temper, softened by an austere benevo-
lence. These arrived in Massachusetts
Bay in September, 1628, and settled at Sa-
lem, where several members of the Plym-
outh colony had already established them-
selves.

The news of this event still farther aug-
mented the now growing interest felt in
England on the subject of colonizing Amer-
ica. In the painful circumstances in which
the Puritans were placed, they could not
fail to have their attention drawn to the
continued prosperity of the Plymouth set-
tlement, and naturally rejoiced to hear of a
land towards the setting sun where they
might enjoy a tranquillity to which they
had long been strangers in the land of their
fathers. Such was the interest felt through-
out the kingdom, that not only in London,
Bristol, and Plymouth, but at Boston, and
other inland towns, influential persons were
found ready to risk their fortunes in the
cause. Efforts were made to procure the
royal sanction for the patent granted by
the Plymouth Company to that of Massa-
chusetts, and a royal charter in favour of
the latter, after much trouble and expense,
passed the seals on the 4th of March, 1629.

This charter, bearing the signature of
Charles I., was evidently granted under
the idea that the persons whom it incorpo-
rated were to be rather a trading commu-
nity than a civil government. They were
constituted a body pohtic, by the name of
" The Governor and Company of Massa-
chusetts Bay in New-England." The ad-
ministration of its affairs was committed
to a governor, deputy-governor, and thir-
teen assistants, elected by the sharehold-
ers. The freemen were to meet four
times a year, or nftener if necessary, and
were empowered to pass laws for the reg-
ulation of tlieir afiairs, without any provis-
ion rendering the royal assent indispensa-
ble to the validity of their acts. Strictly
considered, the patent simply conferred
the rights of English subjects, without any
enlargement of religious liberty. It em-
powered, but did not require the governor
to administer the oaths of supremacy and
allegiance. The persons in whose favour
it was granted were still members of the
Church of England— not Independents or

Chap. III.]

CHARACTER OF THE EARLY COLONISTS.

Separatists — and probably neither the gov-
ernment, nor the first patentees, foresaw
how wide a departure from the economy
of that Church would result from the emi-
gration that was about to take place under
its provisions.

It is surprising that a charter which con-
ferred unlimited powers on the corpora-
tion, and secured no rights to the colonists,
should have become the means of estab-
lishing the freest of all the colonies. This
was partly owing to its empowering the
corporation to fix what terms it pleased
for the admission of new members. The
corporation could increase or change its
members with its own consent, and not
being obliged to hold its meetings in Eng-
land, it was possible for it to emigrate,
and thus to identify itself with the colo-
ny which it was its main object to found.
This was actually done. As the corpora-
tion was entirely composed of Puritans, it
was not difficult, by means of resignations
and new elections, to choose the govern-
or, deputy-governor, and assistants, from
among such as were willing to leave Eng-
land as colonists.

The first object of the new company, on
obtaining a royal charter, was to re-enforce
the party which had gone out with Endi-
cot and settled at Salem. The re-enforce-
ment consisted of 200 emigrants, under
the pastoral care of the Rev. Francis Hig-
ginson, an eminent Nonconformist minis-
ter, who was delighted to accept of the in-
vitation to undertake that charge. By
their arrival, which happened in June, the
colony at Salem was increased to 300 per-
sons ; but diseases and the hardships inci-
dent to new settlements cut off, during the
following winter, eighty of that number,
who died only lamenting that they were
not allowed to see the future glories of the
colony. Among these was their beloved
pastor, Mr Higginson, whose death was a
great loss to the little community.

The year following, namely, 1630, was
a glorious one for the colonization of New-
England. Having first taken every pre-
paratory measure required for self-trans-
portation, the corporation itself embark-
ed, accompanied by a body of from 800 to
900 emigrants, among whom were sev-
eral persons of large property and high
standing in society. John Winthrop, one
of the purest characters in England, had
been chosen governor. Taken as a whole,
it is thought that no single colony could
ever be compared with them. One may
form some idea of the elevated piety that
pervaded the higher classes among the Pu-
ritans of that day from the language of tlie
younger Winthrop : " I shall call that my
country," said he to his father, " where I
may most glorify God, and enjoy the pres-
ence of ray dearest friends. Therefore
herein I submit myself to God's will and

yours, and dedicate myself to God and the
company with the whole endeavours both
of body and mind. The ' Conclusions' which
you sent down are unanswerable ; and it
cannot but be a prosperous action which is
so well allowed by the judgments of God's
prophets, undertaken by so religious and
wise worthies in Israel, and indented to
God's glory in so special a service."*

Governor Winthrop had a fine estate
which he sacrificed. Many others sacri-
ficed what were considered good estates
in England in those days. One of the
richest of the colonists was Isaac Johnson,
" the father of Boston." As a proof of his
being a man of wealth, it may be men-
tioned that, by his will, his funeral expen-
ses were limited to £-250. His wife, the
Lady Arabella, was a daughter of the Earl
of Lincoln. In her devotedness to the
cause of Christ, " she came from a para-
dise of plenty into a wilderness of wants. "f
They were almost without exception god-
ly people, and when they embarked for
America were members of the Church of
England, being that in which they had been
born and brought up. Though of the par-
ty that were opposed to what they consid-
ered Romish superstitions and errors, still
cleaving in their conscientious convictions
to the National Church ; and though they
could not in all points conform to it, yet
they had not separated from it, but sought
the welfare of their souls in its ministra-
tions, whenever they possibly could hope
to find it there. They lamented what they
regarded as its defects, but not in a spirit
of bitter hostility. This very plainly ap-
pears from the following letter addressed
to the members of the Church of England,
by Governor Winthrop and others, imme-
diately after their embarcation, and when
they were about to bid a long farewell to
their native shores. It is conceived in a
noble spirit :

" The humble request of his majesty's
loyal subjects, the Governor and the Com-
pany, late gone for New-England, to the
rest of their brethren in the Church of
England.

" Reverend Fathers and Brethren — The
general rumour of this solemn enterprise,
wherein ourselves, with others, through the
providence of the Almighty, are engaged,
as it may spare us the labour of imparting
our occasion unto you, so it gives us the
more encouragement to strengthen our-
selves by the procurement of the prayers
and blessings of the Lord's faithful ser-
vants ; for which end we are bold to have
recourse unto you, as those whom God
hath placed nearest his throne of mercy,
which, as it aff"ords you the more oppor-
tunity, so it imposeth the greater bond upon
you to intercede for his people in all their

♦ Winthrop's Journal, i., p. 359, 360.
t Judge Story's Centeniual Discourse.

RELIGION IN AMERICA.

[Book II.

straits ; we beseech you, therefore, by the
mercies of the Lord Jesus, to consider us
as your brethren, standing in very great
need of your help, and earnestly imploring
it. And howsoever your charity may have
met with some occasion of discourage-
ment, through the misreport of our inten-
tions, or through the disaffection or indis-
cretion of some of us, or, rather, among
us — for we are not of those that dream of
perfection in this world — yet we desire you
would be pleased to take notice of the
principles and body of our company, as
those who esteem it our honour to call the
Church of England, from whence we rise,
our dear mother, and caimot part from our
native country, where she specially resi-
deth, without much sadness of heart, and
many tears in our eyes ; ever acknowl-
edging that such hope and part as we have
obtained in the common salvation, we have
received in her bosom, and sucked it from
her breasts ; we leave it not, therefore, as
loathing that milk wherewith we were
nourished there, but, blessing God for the
parentage and education, as members of
the same body, shall always rejoice in her
good, and unfeignedly grieve for any sor-
row that shall ever betide her ; and while
we have breath, sincerely desire and en-
deavour the continuance and abundance of
her welfare, with the enlargement of her
bounds in the kingdom of Christ Jesus.

" Be pleased, therefore, fathers and
brethren, to help forward this work now in
hand, which, if it prosper, you shall be the
more glorious ; howsoever, your judgment
is with the Lord, and your reward with
your God. It is a usual and laudable ex-
ercise of your charity to commend to the
prayers of your congregations the neces-
sities and straits of your private neigh-
bours : do the like for a church springing
out of your own bowels. We conceive
much hope that this remembrance of us, if
it be frequent and fervent, will be a most
prosperous gale in our sails, and provide
such a passage and welcome for us from
the God of the whole earth, as both we
which shall find it, and yourselves, with
the rest of our friends who shall hear of it,
shall be much enlarged to bring in such
daily returns of thanksgivings as the speci-
alities of His providence and goodness may
justly challenge at all our hands. You
are not ignorant that the Spirit of God
stirred up the Apostle Paul to make con-
tinual mention of the Church of Philippi
(which was a colony from Rome) ; let the
same Spirit, we beseech you, put you in
mind, that are the Lord's remembrancers, to
pray for us without ceasing (who are a
weak colony from yourselves), making
continual request for us to God in all your
prayers.

" What we entreat of you that are the
ministers of God. that we also crave at

the hands of all the rest of our brethren,
that they would at no time forget us in
their private solicitations at the throne of
grace.

" If any there be who, through want of
clear intelligence of our course, or tender-
ness of affection towards us, cannot con-
ceive so well of our way as we could desire,
we would entreat such not to despise us ;
nor to desert us in their prayers and affec-
tions, but to consider rather that they are
so much the more bound to express the
bowels of their compassion towards us, re-
membering always that both nature and
grace doth ever bind us to relieve and res-
cue with our utmost and speediest power
such as are dear to us, when we conceive
them to be running uncomfortable hazards.

" What goodness you shall extend to us
on this or any other Christian kindness, we,
your brethren in Christ Jesus, shall labour
to repay in what duty we are or shall be
able to perform, promising, so far as God
shall enable us, to give Him no rest on your
behalf, wishing our heads and hearts may
be as fountains of tears for your everlasting
welfare, when we shall be in our poor cot-
tages in the wilderness, overshadowed with
the spirit of supplication, through the mani-
fold necessities and tribulations which may
not altogether unexpectedly, nor, we hope,
unprofitably befall us. And so commend-
ing you to the grace of God in Christ, we
shall ever rest."

The ships that bore Winthrop and his
companions across the Atlantic reached
Massachusetts Bay in the following June
and July. After having consoled the dis-
tresses and relieved the wants of the Salem
colonists, the newly-arrived emigrants set
about choosing a suitable place for a settle-
ment ; a task which occupied the less time,
as the bay had been well explored by pre-
ceding visiters. The first landing was made
at the spot where Charlestown now stands.
A party having gone from that place up
the Charles River to Watertown, there
some of them resolved to settle ; others
preferred Dorchester; but the greater num-
ber resolved to occupy the peninsula upon
which Boston now stands, the settlement
receiving that name from part of the colo-
nists having come from Boston in England.
For a while they were lodged in cloth tents
and wretched huts, and had to endure all
kinds of hardship. To complete their tri-
als, disease made its attacks, and carried
off 200 of them at least before December.
About a hundred lost heart, and went back
to England. Many who had been accus-
tomed in their native land to ease and
plenty, and to all the refinements and lux-
uries of cultivated life, were now compelled
to struggle with unforeseen wants and dif-
ficulties. Among those who sank under
such hardships, and died, was the Lady
Arabella Johnson. Her husband, too, "fthe

<3hap. Ill]

CHARACTER OF THE EARLY COLONISTS.

greatest furtherer of the plantation," was
carried off" by disease ; but " he died will-
ingly and in sweet peace," making " a most
-godly end."* These trials and aflSictions
were borne with a calm reliance on the
goodness of God, nor was there a doubt
felt but that in the end all would go well.
They were sustained by a profound belief
-that God was with them, and by bearing in
mind the object of their coming to that
wilderness.

Amid all this gloom, light began to break
in at last. Health returned, and the blanks
caused by death were filled up by partial
arrivals of new emigrants from England
in the course of the two following years.
The colony becoming a little settled, meas-
ures were taken to introduce a more popu-
lar government, by extending the privile-
ges of the charter, which had established a
sort of close corporation. By it all funda-
mental laws were to be enacted by general
meetings of the freemen, or members of
the company. One of the first steps, ac-
cordingly, was to convene a General Court
at Boston, and admit above a hundred of
the older colonists to the privileges of the
corporation ; and from that they gradually
went on, until, instead of an aristocratic
government conducted by a governor, dep-
uty-governor, and assistants, holding office
for an indefinite period, these functionaries
'were elected annually, and the powers of
legislation were transferred from general
courts of all the freemen joined with the
assistants, to a new legislature, or " general
court," consisting of two branches, the as-
eistants constituting the upper, and deputies
from all the " towns" forming the lower
branch. Within five years from the found-
ation of the colony, a Constitution was
drawn up, which was to serve as a sort of
Magna Charta, embracing all the funda-
mental principles of just government ; and
in fourteen years the colonial government
was organized upon the same footing as
that on which it rests at the present day.

But with these colonists the claims of
religion took precedence of all other con-
cerns of pubhc interest. The New- Eng-
land Fathers began with God, sought his
blessing, and desired, first of all, to pro-
mote his worship. Immediately after
landing they appointed a day for solemn
fasting and prayer. The worship of God
was commenced by them not in temples
built with hands, but beneath the wide-
spreading forest. The Rev. Mr. Wilson,
the Rev. Mr. Philips, and other faithful
ministers, had come out with them ; and
for these, as soon as the aff'airs of the col-
ony became a little settled, a suitable pro-
vision was made.

In the third year of the settlement there
came out, among other fresh emigrants.

Governor Winthrop's Journal.

two spiritual teachers, who were after-
ward to exercise a most extensive and
beneficial influence in the colonies. One
of these was the eminently pious and zeal-
ous Cotton, a man profoundly learned in
the Holy Scriptures, as well as in the wri-
tings of the fathers and the schoolmen ; in
the pulpit rather persuasive than eloquent,
and having a wonderful command oyer the
judgments and hearts of his hearers. The
other was Hooker, a man of vast endow-
ments, untiring energy, and singular be-
nevolence ; the equal of the Reformers,
though of less harsh a spirit than that
which marked most of those great men.
These and other devoted servants of God
were highly appreciated, not only for their
works' sake, but also for their great per-
sonal excellences.

Before long the colony began to extend,
in all directions, from Boston as a centre
and capital ; and as new settlements were
made, additional churches were also plant-
ed ; for the New-England fathers felt that
nothing could be really and permanently
prosperous without religion.* Within five
years a considerable population was to be
found scattered over Dorchester, Roxbu-
ry, Watertown, Cambridge, Charlestown,
Lynn, and other settlements. Trade was
spreading wide its sails ; emigrants were
arriving from Europe ; brotherly inter-
course was opened up with the Plymouth
colony, by the visits of Governor Win-
throp and the Rev. Mr. Wilson. Friendly
treaties were made not only with the
neighbouring Indian tribes, the Nipmucks
and Narragansetts, but also with the more
distant Mohigans and the Pequods in Con-
necticut. God was emphatically honoured
by the great bulk of the people, and every-
thing bore the aspect of prosperity and
happiness. Such was the origin of the
colony of Massachusetts Bay — a colony
destined to exercise a controlling influence
over all the other New-England Planta-
tions.

* Several of these new and feeble churches actu-
ally supported two ministers, one called the " Pas-
tor," and the other the " Teacher." The distinction
between these offices is not very easily expressed,
and must have been more difficult to maintain in
practice. Thomas Hooker, in his " Survey of the
Summe of Church Discipline," &c., declares the
scope of the pastor's office to be " to work upon the
will and the affections ;" that of the doctor or teach-
er, " to infonne the judgment, and to help forward
the work of illumination in the minde and under-
standing, and thereby to make way for the truth,
that it may be settled and fastened on the heart."
The former was to " wooe and win the soul to the
love and practice of the doctrine which is according
to godlinesse ;" the latter, to dispense " a word of
knowledge." I need hardly say that this duphcate
of the ministerial office, though much liked by the
early colonists, did not long survive their day.

RELIGION IN AMERICA.

[Book IT,

CHAPTER IV.

RELIGIOUS CHARACTER OF THE EARLY COLO-
NISTS. FOUNDERS OF NEW-ENGLAND. — COL-
ONIES OF CONNECTICUT, RHODE ISLAND,

NEW-HAMPSHIRE, AND MAINE. GENERAL

REMARKS.

Plymouth* colony had been planted only
three. years when it began to have off-
shoots, one of which, in 1623, settled at
Windsor, on the rich alluvial lands of the
Connecticut, led thither, however, more by
the advantages of the spot as a station for
trading in fur, than by the nature of the
soil. The report of its fertility having, at
length, reached England, the Earl of War-
wick bought from the Council for New-
England, as we have seen that the Plym-
outh Company was sometimes called, the
whole Valley of the Connecticut, which
purchase was, the year following, trans-
ferred to Lord Say and Seal, Lord Brooke,
and .Tohn Hampden. Two years later,
the Dutch, who, in right of discovery,
claimed the whole of the Connecticut ter-
ritory, sent an expedition from their set-
tlement at Manhattan up the River Con-
necticut, and attempted to make good their
claim by erecting a blockhouse, called
Good Hope, at Hartford. In 1635, the
younger Winthrop, the future benefactor
of Connecticut, came from England with
a commission from the proprietors to build
a fort at the mouth of the river, and this
he did soon after. Yet, even before his
arrival, settlers from the neighbourhood
of Boston had established themselves at
Hartford, Windsor, and Weathersfield.
Late in the fall of that year, a party of
sixty persons, men, women, and children,
set out for the Connecticut, and suffered
much from the inclement weather of the
winter that followed. In the following
June, another party, amounting to about a
hundred in number, including some of the
best of the Massachusetts Bay settlers, left
Boston for the Valley of the Connecticut.
They were under the superintendence of
Hayes, who had been one year governor
of Boston, and of Hooker, who, as a
preacher, was rivalled in the New World
by none but Cotton, and even Cotton he
excelled in force of character, kindliness
of disposition, and magnanimity. Settling
at the spot where Hartford now stands,
they founded the colony of Connecticut.
They, too, carried the ark of the Lord with
them, and made religion the basis of their
institutions. Three years sufficed for the
framing of their political government.
First, as had been done by the Plymouth

* Plymouth in America is often called New
Plymouth by early writers, in s[ieaking of New-Eng-
land. I prefer the name by which exclusively the
town is now known. The context will always en-
able the reader to distinguish it from Plymouth in
England.

colony, they subscribed a solemn compact,
and then drew up a Constitution on the
most liberal principles. The magistrates
and Legislature were to be chosen every
year by ballot, the "towns" were to return
representatives in proportion to their pop-
ulation, and all members of the " towns,"
on taking the oath of allegiance to the
commonwealth, were to be allowed to vote
at elections. Two centuries have since
passed away, but Connecticut still rejoices
in the same principles of civil polity.

But before this colony had time to com-
plete its organization, the colonists had to
defend themselves and all that was dear to
them against their neighbours, the Pe-
quods. This was the first war that broke
out between the New-England settlers and
the native tribes, and it must be allowed
to have been a just one on the part of the
former, if war can ever be so. The Pe-
quods brought it upon themselves by the
commission of repeated murders. In less
than six weeks, hostilities were brought to
a close by the annihilation of the tribe.
Two hundred only were left alive, and
these were either reduced to servitude by
the colonists, or incorporated among the
Mohigans and Narragansetts.

The colony of New-Haven was founded
in 1638 by a body of Puritans, who, like
all the rest, were of the school of Calvin,
and whose religious teacher was the Rev.
John Davenport. The excellent Theoph-
ilus Eaton was their first governor, and
continued to be annually elected to that
office for twenty years. Their first Sab-
bath, in the yet cool month of April, was
spent under a branching oak, and there
their pastor discoursed to them on the Sa-
viour's " temptation in the wilderness."
After spending a day in fasting and pray-
er, they laid the foundation of their civil
government by simply covenanting that
" all of them would be ordered by the rules
which the Scriptures held forth to them."
A title to their lands was purchased from
the Indians. The following year, these
disciples of " Him who was cradled in a
manger" held their first Constituent As-
sembly in a barn. Having solemnly come
to the conclusion that the Scriptures con-
tain a perfect pattern of a commonwealth,
according to that they aimed at construct-
ing theirs. Purity of religious doctrine and
discipline, freedom of religious worship,
and the service and glory of God, were
proclaimed as the great ends of the enter-
prise. God smiled upon it, so that in a
few years the colony could show flourish-
ing settlements rising along the Sound,
and on the opposite shores of Long Isl-
and .

While the colonization of Connecticut
was in progress, that of Rhode Island com-
menced. Roger Williams, a Puritan min-
ister, had arrived in Boston the year im-

Chap. IV.]

CHARACTER OF THE EARLY COLONISTS.

mediately following its settlement by Win-
throp and his companions ; but he soon
advanced doctrines on the rights of con-
science, and the nature and limits of hu-
man government, which were unaccepta-
ble to the civil and religious authorities of
the colony. For two years he avoided
coming into collision with his opponents
by residing at Plymouth ; but having been
invited to become pastor of a church in
Salem, where he had preached for some
time after his first coming to America,
he was ordered, at last, to return to Eng-
land ; whereupon, instead of complying,
he sought refuge among the Narragansett
Indians, then occupying a large part of the
present State of Rhode Island. Having
ever been the steady friend of the Indians,
~and defender of their rights, he was kind-
ly received by the aged chief, Canonicus,
and there, in 1636, he founded the city and
plantation of Providence. Two years af-
terward, the beautiful island called Rhode
Island, in Narragansett Bay, was bought
from the Indians, by John Clarke, William
Coddington, and their friends, when obli-
ged to leave the Massachusetts colony, in
consequence of the part which they had
taken in the " Antinomian controversy,"
as it was called, and of which we shall have
occasion to speak. These two colonies of
Providence and Rhode Island, both founded
on the principle of absolute religious free-
dom, naturally presented an asylum to all
who disliked the rigid laws and practices
of the Massachusetts colony in religious
matters ; but many, it must be added, fled
thither only out of hatred to the stern mo-
rality of the other colonies. Hence Rhode
Island, to this day, has a more mixed pop-
ulation, as respects religious opinions and
practices, than any other part of New-Eng-
land. There is, however, no inconsidera-
ble amount of sincere piety in the state,
but the forms in which it manifests itself
are numerous.

As early as 1623, small settlements were
made, under the grant to Mason, on the
banks of the Piscataqua, in New-Hamp-
shire; and, in point of date, both Ports-
mouth and Dover take precedence of Bos-
ton. Most of the New-Hampshire settlers
came direct from England ; some from the
Plymouth colony. Exeter owed its found-
ation to the abandonment of Massachusetts
by the Rev. Mr. Wheelwright and his im-
mediate friends, on the occasion of the
"Antinomian controversy."

The first permanent settlements made
on " the Maine," as the continental part of
the country was called, to distinguish it
from the islands — and hence the name of
the state — date as early, it would appear,
as 1626. The settlers were from Plym-
outh, and no doubt carried with them the
religious institutions cherished in that ear-
liest of all the New-England colonies.

Within twenty years from the planting of
the colony at Plymouth, all the other chief
colonies of New-England were founded,
their governments organized, and the coast
of the Atlantic, from the Kennebec River in
Maine almost to the Hudson in New- York,
marked by their various settlements. Off-
shoots from these original stocks gradually
appeared, both at intervening points near
the ocean, and at such spots in the interior
as attracted settlers by superior fertility of
soil or other physical advantages. From
time to time, little bands of adventurers
left the older homesteads, and wandered
forth in search of new abodes. Carrying
their substance with them in wagons, and
driving before them their cattle, sheep,
and hogs, these simple groups wended
through the tangled forest, crossed swamps
and rivers, and traversed hill and dale, un-
til some suitable resting-place appeared;
the silence of the wilderness, meanwhile,
was broken by the lowing of their cattle
and the bleating of their sheep, as well as
by the songs of Zion, with which the pil-
grims beguiled the fatigues of the way.
Everywhere nature had erected bethels
for them, and from beneath the overshad-
owing oak, morning and night, their ori-
sons ascended to the God of their salva-
tion. Hope of future comfort sustained
them amid present toils. They were
cheered by the thought that the extension
of their settlements was promoting also
the extension of the kingdom of Christ.

This rapid advance of the New-England
settlements, during the first twenty years
of their existence, must be ascribed, in a
great measure, to the troubled condition
and lowering prospects of the mother-
country during the same period. The de-
spotic principles of Charles I. as a mon-
arch, still more, perhaps, the religious in-
tolerance of Archbishop Laud and his par-
tisans, so fatally abetted by the king, drove
thousands from England to the colonies,
and hurried on the Revolution that soon fol-
lowed at home. The same oppressive and
bigoted policy, indeed, that was convulsing
Great Britain, threatened the colonies also ;
but in 1639, just as they were on the eve
of an open collision, the government of
that country found itself so beset with dif-
ficulties at home, that New-England, hap-
pily for its own sake, was forgotten.

Nor does the prosperity of the colonial
settlements, during those twenty years,
seem less remarkable than their multipli-
cation and extension over the country.
The huts in which the emigrants first found
shelter gave place to well-built houses.
Commerce made rapid advances. Large
quantities of the country's natural produc-
tions, such as furs and lumber, were ex-
ported ; grain was shipped to the West
Indies, and fishing employed many hands.
Ship-building was carried to such an ex-

RELIGION IN AMERICA.

[Book II.

tent, that, within twenty-five years from
the first settlement of New-England, ves-
sels of 400 tons were constructed there.
Several kinds of manufactures, even, be-
gan to take root in the colonies.

It is calculated that 21,200 emigrants
had arrived in New-England alone before
the Long Parliament met. " One hundred
and ninety-eight ships had borne them
across the Atlantic, and the whole cost
of the plantations had been 1,000,000 of
dollars ; a great expenditure and a great
emigration for that age ; yet, in 1832, more
than 50,000 persons arrived at the single
port of Quebec in one summer, bringing
with them a capital exceeding 3,000,000
of dollars."*

A great change, in this respect, took
place during the next twenty years, em-
bracing the period of the civil war, and
the Protectorate of Oliver Cromwell and
his son. Not only were there few arri-
vals of emigrants during that interval, but
some fiery spirits in the colonies returned
to the mother-country, eager to take part in
the contest waging there. This, indeed,
some of the leading men in New-England
were earnestly pressed to do by letters
from both houses of Parliament, but they
were unwilling to abandon the duties of the
posts they occupied in the New World.
Upon the whole, from 1640 to 1660 the
population of New-England rather dimin-
ised than augmented.

But while such, during the early years
■of their existence, was the temporal pros-
perity of these colonies, not less was their
spiritual. In 1647, New-England had for-
ty-three churches united in one commu-
nion ; in 1650, the number of churches was
fifty-eight, that of communicants 7750 ;
and in 1674, there were more than eighty
English churches of Christ, composed of
known pious and faithful professors only,
dispersed through the wilderness. Of these,
twelve or thirteen were in Plymouth col-
ony, forty-seven in Massachusetts and the
province of New-Hampshire, nineteen in
Connecticut, three in Long Island, and
one in Martha's Vineyard. f Well might
one of her pious historians say, " It con-
cerneth New-England always to remem-
ber that she is a religious plantation, and
not a plantation of trade. The profession
of purity of doctrine, worship, and disci-
pline, is written upon lier forehead. "J

The New-England colonists may have
been " the poorest of the people of God in
the whole world," and they settled in a
jugged couutry, the poorest, in fact, in
natural resources of all the United States'
territories ; nevertheless, their industry

* Bancroft's History of the United States, vol. i.,
p. 415.

t Prince's Christian History. Emerson's History
«f the First Church.

t Prince, in his Christian History, p. 66.

and other virtues made them increase in
wealth, and transformed their hills and
valleys into a delightful land. Their com-
merce soon showed itself in all seas ; their
manufactures gradually gained ground,
notwithstanding the obstacles created by
the jealousy of England, and, with the in-
crease of their population, they overspread
a large extent of the space included in
their charters.

Many, indeed, affect to sneer at the
founders of New-England ; but the sneers
of ignorance and prejudice cannot detract
from their real merits. Not that we would
claim the praise of absolute wisdom for
all that was done by the " New-England
Fathers." Some of their penal laws were
unreasonably and unjustly severe, some
were frivolous ; some were even ridicu-
lous.* Some of their usages were dicta-
ted by false views of propriety. Nor can
it be denied that they were intolerant to
those who diff"ered from them in religion ;
that they persecuted Quakers and Baptists,
and abhorred Roman Catholics. But all
this grew out of the erroneous views which
they, in common with almost all the world
at that time, entertained on the rights of
human conscience and the duties of civil
government, in cases where those rights
are concerned. We shall see, likewise,
that they committed some most serious
mistakes, resulting from the same errone-
ous views, in the civil establishments of
religion adopted in most of tlie colonies.
Notwithstanding all this, they will be found
to have been far in advance of other na-
tions of their day.

With respect to their treatment of the
native tribes, they were led into measures
which appear harsh and unjust by the fact
of their laws being modelled upon those of
the Jews. Such, for example, was their
making slaves of those Indians whom they
made prisoners in war. There were cases,
also, of individual wrong done to the In-
dians. Yet never, I believe, since the
world began, have colonies from civilized
nations been planted among barbarous
tribes with so httle injustice being perpe
trated upon the whole. The land, in al-
most all cases where tribes remained to
dispose of it, was taken only on indemni-
fication being given, as they fully recog-
nised the right of the natives to the soil.
The only exceptions, and these were but

* A great deal of misrepresentation and falsehood
has been published bv ignorant and prejudiced per-
sons at the expense of the New-England Puritans.
For example, pretended specimens of what are call-
ed " the I5lue Laws of Connecticut" have apjieared in
the journals of certain European travellers, and have
been received by credulous transatlantic readers as
perfectly authentic. Yet the greater part of these
so-called " laws" are the sheerest fabrications ever
palmed upon the world, as is shown by Professor
Kingsley in a note appended to his Centennial Dis-
course, delivered at New-Haven a few years ago.

€hap. IV.]

CHARACTER OF THE EARLY COLONISTS.

few, were the cases in which the hazards
of war put them in possession of some
Indian territory. N-or were they indiffer-
ent to the spiritual interests of those poor
people. We shall yet see that for these
they did far more than was done by any
other colonies on the whole American con-
tinent, and I shall explain why they did
not do more.

Let us now, in conclusion, contemplate
for a moment the great features that mark
the religious character of the founders of
New-England, leaving our remarks on their
religious economy to be introduced at an-
other place.

First, then, theirs was a religion that
made much of the Bible ; I should rather
say, that to them the Bible was every-
thing. They not only drew their religious
principles from it, but according to it, in a
great degree, they fashioned their civil
laws. They were disposed to refer every-
thing " to the Law and to the Testimony."
And although they did not always interpret
the Scriptures aright, yet no people ever
revered them more, or studied them more
carefully. With them the famous motto
of Chillingworth had a real meaning and
application : The Bible is the religion ok
Protestants.

Second. The religion of the founders of
New-England was friendly to the diffusion
of knowledge, and set a high value on
learning. Many of their pastors, especial-
ly, were men of great attainments. Not a
few of them had been educated at the Uni-
versities of Oxford and Cambridge, in Eng-
land, and some had brought with them a
European reputation. John Cotton, John
Wilson, Thomas Hooker, Dunster, and
Chauncey, which last two were Presidents
of the University at Cambridge, Thomas
Thatcher, Samuel Whiting, John Sherman,
John Elliot, and several more of the early
ministers, were men of great learning. All
were well instructed in theology, and thor-
oughly versed in Hebrew, as well as in
Greek and Latin. Some, too, such as
Sherman, of Watertown, were fine mathe-
matical scholars. They were the friends
and correspondents of Baxter, and Howe,
and Selden, and Milton, and other lumina-
ries among the Puritans of England. Their
regard for useful learning they amply pro-
ved, by the establishment of schools and
academies for all the youth of the colonies,
as well as for their own children. Only eight
years after the first settlement of Massa-
chusetts colony, they founded, at a great
expense for men in their circumstances,
the University of Harvard, at Cambridge,
near Boston, an institution at which, for a
period of more than sixty years, the most
distinguished men of New-England receiv-
ed their academical education.

Third. Their religion was eminently fit-
ted to enlarge men's views of the duty of

living for God and promoting liis kingdom
in the world. They felt that Christianity
was the greatest boon that mankind can
possess ; a blessing which they were bound
to do their utmost to secure to their pos-
terity. In going to a new continent they
were influenced by a double hope, the en-
largement of Christ's kingdom by the con-
version of heathen tribes, and the found-
ing of an empire for their own children,
in which His rehgion should gloriously
prevail. Their eyes seemed to catch some
glimpses of Messiah's universal reign,
when " all nations shall be blessed in him,
and call him blessed."

Fourth. Their religion prompted to great
examples of self-denial. Filled with the
idea of an empire in which true rehgion
might live and flourish, and satisfied from
what they had seen of the Old World that
the Truth was in bondage there, they sigh-
ed for a land in which they might serve
God according to his blessed Word. To
secure such a privilege to themselves and
their children, they were willing to go into
a wilderness, and to toil and die. This was
something worth making sacrifices for, and
much did they sacrifice to obtain it. Though
poor in comparison with many others, still
they belonged to good families, and might
have lived very comfortably in England ;
but they preferred exile and hardship, in
the hope of securing spiritual advantages
to themselves and their posterity.

Fifth. There was a noble patriotism in
their religion. Some of them had long
been exiled from England ; others had
found their mother-country a very unkind-
ly home, and yet England was still dear to
them. With them it was not " Farewell,
Babylon! farewell, Rome!" but, "Fare-
well, dear England !'"* Though contemp-
tuously treated by James I. and Charles I.,
yet they spoke of being desirous of " en-
larging his majesty's dominions." The
Plymouth settlers did not wish to remain
in Holland, because " their posterity would
in a few generations become Dutch, and
lose their interest in the English nation ;
they being desirous to enlarge his majes-
ty's dominions, and to live under their nat-
ural prince." And much as they had suf-
fered from the prelacy of the Estabhshed
Cliurch, unnatural stepmother as she had
been to them, nothing could extinguish the
love that they felt for her, and for the many
dear children of God whom she retained
in her communion.

Sixth, and last. Their religion was fa-
vourable to liberty of conscience. Not
that they were all sufficiently enlightened
to bring their laws and institutions into
perfect accordance with that principle at
the outset ; but even then they were, in
this respect, in advance of the age in which

* See Mather's Magnalia, b, iii., c. i., s. 12.

RELIGION IN AMERICA.

[Book IL

they lived, and the spirit of that religion
which had made them and their fathers, in
England, the defenders of the rights of the
people, and their tribunes, as it were,
against the domination of the throne and
the altar, caused them, at last, to admit ihe
claims of conscience in their full extent.

The Fathers of New-England were no
mean men, whether we look to themselves
or to those with whom they were associ-
ated in England — the Lightfoots, the Gales,
the Seldens, the Miltons, the Bunyans, the
Baxters, the Bates, the Howes, the Char-
nocks, the Flavels, and others of scarcely
inferior standing among the two thousand
who had laboured in the pulpits of the Es-
tablished Church, but whom the Restora-
tion cast out.

Such were the men who founded the
New-England colonies, and their spirit still
survives, in a good measure, in their de-
scendants after six generations. With the
exception of a few thousands of recently-
arrived Irish and Germans in Boston, and
other towns on the seaboard, and of the
descendants of those of the Huguenots
who settled in New-England, that country
is wholly occupied by the progeny of the
English Puritans who first colonized it.
But these are not the whole of their de-
scendants in America ; for besides the
2,234,202 souls forming the population of
the six New-England States in 1840, it is
supposed that an equal, if not a still greater
number, have emigrated to New- York, the
northern parts of Ohio, Indiana, and Illi-
nois, and into all parts of Michigau and
"Wisconsin, carrying with them, in a large
measure, the spirit and the institutions of
their glorious ancestors. Descendants of
the Puritans are also to be found scattered
over all parts of the United States, and
many of them prove a great blessing to
the neighbourhoods in which they reside.

How wonderful, then, was the mission
of the founders of New-England ! How
gloriously accomplished ! How rich in its
results !

CHAPTER V.

RELIGIOUS CHARACTER OF THE EARLY COL-
ONISTS. FOUNDERS OF THE SOUTHERN

STATES.

Widely different in character, I have al-
ready remarked, were the early colonists
of the Southern from those of the Northern
States. If New-England may be regarded
as colonized by the Anglo-Saxon race,
with its simpler manners, its equal insti-
tutions, and its love of liberty, the South
may be said to have been colonized by
men very much Norman in blood, aristo-
cractic in feeling and spirit, and pretend-
ing to superior dignity of demeanour and

elegance of manners. Nor has time yet
effaced this original diversity. On the con-
trary, it has been increased and confirmed
by the continuance of slavery in the South,
which never prevailed much at any time
in the North, but has immensely influenced
the tone of feeling and the customs of the
Southern States.

If the New-England colonies are charge-
able with having allowed their feelings to
become ahenated from a throne from
which they had often been contemptu-
ously spurned, with equal truth might
those of the South be accused of going to
the opposite extreme, in their attachment
to a line of monarchs alike undeserving of
their love, and incapable of appreciating
their generous loyalty.

We might carry the contrast still farther.
IfNew-Englandwas the favourite asylum of
the Puritan Roundhead, the South became,
in its turn, the retreat of the " Cavalier,"
upon the joint subversion of the altar and
the throne in his native land. And if the re-
ligion of the one was strict, serious, in the
regard of its enemies unfriendly to innocent
amusements, and even morose, the other
was the religion of the court, and of fash-
ionable life, and did not require so uncom-
promising a resistance " to the lust of the
flesh, the lust of the eyes, and the pride of
Ufe."

Not that from this parallelism, which is
necessarily general, the reader is to infer
that the Northern colonies had exclusive
claims to be considered as possessing a
truly religious character. All that is meant
is to give a general idea of the different
aspects which religion bore in the one and
the other.

Virginia was the first in point of date, as
we have already stated, of all the colonies.
Among its neighbours in the South it
was what Massachusetts was in the North
— the mother, in some sense, of the rest,
and the dominant colony. Not that the
others were planted chiefly from it, but be-
cause, from the prominence of its posi-
tion, the amount of its population, and
their intelligence and wealth, it acquired
from the first a preponderating influence
which it retains as a state to this day.

The records of Virginia furnish indubita-
ble evidence that it was meant to be a
Christian colony. The charter enjoined
that the mode of worship should conform
to that of the Established Church of Eng-
land. In 1619, for the first time, Virginia
had a Legislature chosen by the people ;
and by an act of that body, the Episcopal
Church was, properly speaking, establish-
ed. In the following year the number of
boroughs erected into parishes was eleven,
and the number of pastors five, the popula-
tion at the time being considerably under
3000. In 1621-22, it was enacted that the
clergy should receive from their parishioa*

Chap. V.]

CHARACTER OF THE EARLY COLONISTS.

«rs 1500 pounds of tobacco and sixteen
barrels of corn each as their yearly salary,
estimated to be worth, in all, jC-200. Every
male colonist of the age of sixteen or up-
ward was required to pay ten pounds of
tobacco and one bushel of corn.

The Company under whose auspices Vir-
ginia was colonized seems to have been
influenced by a sincere desire to make the
plantation a means of propagating the
knowledge of the Gospel among the Indi-
ans. A. few years after the first settlement
was made, in the body of their instructions
they particularly urged upon the governor
and Assembly "the using of all probable
means of bringing over the natives to a
love of civilization, and to the love of God
and his true religion." They recommend-
ed the colonists to hire the natives as la-
bourers, with the view of familiarizing them
to civilized life, and thus to bring them
gradually to the knowledge of Christianity,
that they might be employed as instru-
ments " in the general conversion of their
countrymen, so much desired." It was
likewise recommended " that each town,
borough, and hundred should procure, by
just means, a certain number of Indian
children, to be brought up in the first ele-
ments of literature ; that the most toward-
ly of these should be fitted for the college,
in building of which they purposed to pro-
ceed as soon as any profit arose from the
estate appropriated to that use ; and they
earnestly required their earnest help and
furtherance in that pious and important
•work, not doubting the particular blessing
of God upon the colony, and being assured
of the love of all good men upon that ac-
count."*

Even the first charter assigns as one of
the reasons for the grant, thai the contem-
plated undertaking was " a work which
may, by the providence of Almighty God,
hereafter tend to the glory of His Divine
Majesty, in the propagating of the Chris-
tian religion to such people as yet live in
darkness and miserable ignorance of the
true knowledge and worship of God."f

The Company seem early to have felt
the importance of promoting education in
the colony. Probably at their solicita-
tion, the king issued letters to the bishops
throughout England, directing collections
to be made for building a college in Vir-
ginia. The object was at first stated to be
" the training up and educating infidel (hea-
then) children in the true knowledge of
God."t Nearly £"1500 had already been
collected, aud Henrico had been selected
as the best situation for the building, when.

* Burk'.s " History of Virginia," p. 225, 226.

t 1 Ciiarter.— 1. Hazzard's State Papers, 51. This
work of the late Mr. H. contains all the charters
granted by the sovereigns of England for promoting
colonization in America.

i Stilh's "History of Virginia," p. 162, 163.

at the instance of their treasurer. Sir Ed-
win Sandys, the Company granted 10,000
acres to be laid off for the new " Univer-
sity of Henrico ;" the original design being
at the same time extended, by its being re-
solved that the institution should be for the
education of the English as well as the
Indians. Much interest was felt through-
out England in the success of this under-
taking. The Bishop of London gave jClOOO
towards its accomplishment, and an anon-
ymous contributor jC500 exclusively for
the education of the Indian youth. It had
warm friends in Virginia also. The min-
ister of Henrico, the Rev. Mr. Bargave,
gave his library, and the inhabitants of the
place subscribed jC1500 to build a hostel-
ry for the entertainment of strangers and
visiters.* Preparatory to the college or
university, it was proposed that a school
should be established at St. Charles's City,
to be called the East India School, from
the first donation towards its endowment
having been contributed by the master and
crew of an East Indiaman on its return to
England.

But the whole project received its death-
blow by the frightful massacre perpetrated
by the Indians on the 22d of March, 1622,
when, in one hour, 347 men, women, and
children were slaughtered, without distinc-
tion of sex or age, and at a time, too, when
the Indians professed perfect friendship.
For four years, nevertheless, they had
been maturing their plan, had enlisted thir-
ty tribes in a plot to extirpate the English,
and might have succeeded in doing so but
for the fidelity of a converted Indian named
Chanco. The minds of the colonists were
still farther estranged from the idea of
providing a college for the Indian youth by
the long and disastrous war that followed.
At a much later date a college for the ed-
ucation of the colonial youth was estab-
lished at Williamsburg, which was for a
long time the capital of the colony.f

* Holmes's Annals, p. 173

t This was the College of William and Mary, es-
tablished in 1693, and, in the order of time, the sec-
ond that was founded in the colonies. It owed its
existence, under God, to the great and long-contin-
ued exertions of the Rev. Dr. Blair. It ought to be
mentioned, that in the former part of the last centu-
ry a number of Indian youths were educated at it.
The celebrated Robert Boyle presented it with a
sum of money to be applied to the education of the
Indian tribes. At first, efforts were made to procure
for this purpose children who had been taken in
war by some victorious tribe; but during the admin-
istration of Sir Alexander Spottswood, which com-
menced in 1710, that plan was relinquished for a far
better. The governor went in person to the tribes
in the interior to engage them to send their children
to the school, and had the gratification of seeing
some arrive from a distance of four hundred miles in
compliance with his request. He also, at his own ,
expense, established and supported a preparatory
school on the frontiers, at which Indian lads might
be prepared for the college without being too far re-
moved from their parents. — See Beverly's " History
of Virginia."

RELIGION IN AMERICA.

[Book IF.

In proportion as the population began
to spread along the large and beautiful
streams that flow from the Alleghany
Mountains into the Chesapeake Bay, more
parishes were legally constituted, so that
in 172-2 there were fifty- four, some very
large, others of moderate extent, in the
twenty-nine counties of the colony. Their
size depended much on the number of
titheable inhabitants within a certain dis-
trict. Each parish had a convenient
church built of stone, brick, or wood, and
many of the larger ones had also chapels
of ease, so that the places of public wor-
ship were not less than seventy in all. To
each parish church there was a parsonage
attached, and likewise, in almost all cases,
a glebe of 250 acres and a small stock of
cattle. But not more than about half,
probably, of these established churches
were provided with ministers ; in the rest
the services were conducted by lay read-
ers, or occasionally by neighbouring cler-
gymen. When the war of the Revolution
commenced there were ninety-five parish-
es, and at least a hundred clergymen of
the Established Church.

We shall yet have occasion to speak of
the Church establishment in Virginia, and
its influence upon the interests of reli-
gion, as well as of the character of the
clergy there during the colonial period. I
cannot, however, forbear saying, that al-
though the greater number of the estab-
lished ministers seem, at that epoch, to
have been very poorly qualified for their
great work, others were an ornament to
their calling. I may mention as belong-
ing to early times the names of the Rev.
Robert Hunt and the Rev. Alexander Whit-
aker. The former of these accompanied
the first settlers, preached the first Eng-
lish sermon ever heard on the American
continent, and by his calm and judicious
counsels, his exemplary conduct, and his
faithful ministrations, rendered most im-
portant services to the infant colony. The
latter was justly styled " the Apostle of
Virginia." At a later period, we find,
among other worthies, the Rev. James
Blair, whose indefatigable exertions in the
cause of religion and education rank him
among the greatest benefactors of Ameri-
ca. Nor were there laymen wanting
among those who had the cause of God at
heart. Morgan Morgan, in particular, was
greatly blessed in his endeavours to sus-
tain the spirit of piety, by founding church-
es and otherwise, more especially in the
nortliern part of tlie Great Valley. In la-
ter times Virginia has produ(;ed many illus-
trious men, nijt only in tlie Episcopal, but
in almost every other denoinjnation of
Christians.

In point of intolerance, the Legislature of
Virginia equalled, if it did not exceed, that
of Massachusetts. Attendance at parish

worship was at one time required under
severe penalties ; nay, even the sacrament-
al services of the Church were rendered
obligatory by law. Dissenters, Quakers,
and Roman Catholics were prohibited
from settling in the province. People of
every name entering the colony, without
having been Christians in the countries
they came from, were condemned to sla-
very. Shocking barbarity ! the reader wilt
justly exclaim ; yet these very laws prove
how deep and strong, though turbid and
dark, ran the tide of religious feeling among
the people. As has been justly remarked,
" If they were not wise Christians, they
were at least strenuous religionists."

I have said enough to show that, in the
colonization of Virginia, religion was far
from being considered as a matter of no
importance ; its influence, on the contrary,
was deemed essential to national as well
as individual prosperity and happiness.

Maryland, we have seen, though origi-
nally a part of Virginia, was planted by
Lord Baltimore, as a refuge for persecu-
ted Roman Catholics. When the first of
its colonists landed in 1634, under the gui-
dance of Leonard Calvert, son of that no-
bleman, on an island in the Potomac, they
took possession of the province "for their.
Saviour," as well as for " their lord the
king." They planted their colony on the
broad basis of toleration for all Christian,
sects, and in this noble spirit the govern-
ment was conducted for fifty years. Think'
what we may of their creed, and very dif-
ferent as was this policy from what Ro-
manism elsewhere might have led us to
expect, we cannot refuse to Lord Balti-
more's colony the praise of having estab-
lished the first government in modern
times, in which eiUire toleration was
granted to all denominations of Chris-
tians ; this too, at a time when the New-
England Puritans could hardly bear with
one another, much less with " papists ;"
when the zealots of Virginia held both
" papists" and " Dissenters" in nearly equal
abhorrence ; and when, in fact, toleration-
was not considered in any part of the Prot-
estant world to be due to Roman Catholics.
After being tluis avowed at the outset, tol-
eration was renewed in 1649, when, by the
death of Charles I., the government in
I'higland was about to pass into the hands
of the extreme opponents of the Roman
(catholics. " And whereas the enforcing
of the conscience in matters of religion,"
such is tlie language of their statute,
" hath frecjuently fallen out to be of dan-
gerous consequence in those common-
wealths where it has been practised, and
for the more quiet and peaceable govern-
ment of this province, and the better to
preserve mutual love and amity among the
inhabitants, no person within this province
professing to believe in Jesus Christ shall

Chap. V.]

CHARACTER OF THE EARLY COLONI STS.

6S>

be any way troubled, molested, or discoun-
tenanced for his or her religion, or in the
free exercise thereof." Meanwhile, Prot-
estant sects increased so much, that the
political power of the state passed, at
length, entirely out of the hands of its
founders, and before the war of the Rev-
olution, many churches had been planted
in it by Episcopalians, Presbyterians, and
Baptists.

North Carolina was first colonized by
stragglers from Virginia settling on the
rivers that flow into Albemarle Sound,
and among these were a good many Qua-
kers, driven out of Virginia by the intoler-
ance of its laws. This was about the mid-
dle of the seventeenth century. Puritans
from New-England, and emigrants from
Barbadoes, followed in succession ; but
the Dissenters from Virginia predomina-
ted. Religion for a long while seems to
have received but little attention. Will-
iam Edmunson and George Fox visited
their Quaker friends among the pine groves
of Albemarle in 1672, and found a " tender
people." A Quarterly Meeting was es-
tablished, and thenceforward that religious
body may be said to have organized a spir-
itual government in the colony. But it
was long before any other made much
progress. No Episcopal minister was
settled in it until 1703, and no church built
until 1705.

The Proprietaries, it is true, who obtain-
ed North as well as South Carolina from
Charles II., professed to be actuated by a
''laudable and pious zeal for the propaga-
tion of the Gospel ;" but they did nothing
to vindicate their claim to such praise. In
their " Constitutions" they maintained, that
religion and the profession of it were in-
dispensable to the well-being of the state
and privileges of citizenship; vain words,
as long as no measures were taken to pro-
mote what they thus lauded. But we shall
yet see that, little as true religion owed in
North Carolina to the first settlers, or to
the Proprietaries, that state eventually ob-
tained a large population of a truly reli-
gious character, partly from the emigra-
tion of Christians from France and Scot-
land, partly from the increase of Puritans
from New-England.

South Carolina began to be colonized in
1670 by settlers shipped to the province by
the Proprietaries, and from that time for-
ward it received a considerable accession
of emigrants almost every year. Its cli-
mate was represented as being the finest
in the world : under its almost tropical
sun flowers were said to blossom every
month of the year : orange groves were
to supplant those of cedar, silk-worins
were to be fed on inulberry-trees intro-
duced from the south of France, and the
choicest wines were to be produced.
Ships arrived with Dutch settlers from

New-York, as well as with emigrants
from England. The Earl of Shaftesbury,
when committed to the Tower in 1681,
begged for leave to exile himself to Car-
olina.

Nor were they Churchmen only who
emigrated thither from England. Many
Dissenters, disgusted with the unfavoura-
ble state of things in that country, went
out also, carrying with them intelligence,
industry, and sobriety. Joseph Blake, in
particular, brother of the gallant admiral
of that name, having inherited his broth-
er's fortune, devoted it to transporting his
persecuted brethren to America, and con-
ducted thither a company of them from
Somersetshire. Thus the booty taken
from New Spain helped to people South
Carolina.* A colony from Ireland, also,
went over, and were soon merged among
the other colonists.

Such was the character of what might
be called the substratum of the popula-
tion in South Carolina. The colonists
were of various origin, but many of them
had carried thither the love of true reli-
gion, and the number of such soon in-
creased.

Georgia, of all the original thirteen col-
onies, ranks latest in point of date. The
good Oglethorpe, one of the finest speci-
mens of a Christian gentleman of the Cav-
alier school, one who loved his king and
his Church, led over a mixed people to
settle on the banks of the Savannah. Poor
debtors, taken from the prisons of England,
formed a strange medley with godly Mo-
ravians from Herrnhut in Germany, and
brave Highlanders from Scotland. To
Georgia, also, were directed the youthful
steps of those two wonderful men, John
and Charles Wesley, and the still more el-
oquent Whitefield, who made the pine for-
ests that stretch from the Savannah to the
Altamaha resound with the tones of their
fervid piety. In Georgia, too, was built
the " Orphan House," for the erection of
which so much eloquence was poured
forth, both in England and in the Atlantic
cities of her American colonies, by the
last-named herald of the Gospel, but which
was not destined to fulfil the expectations
of its good and great founder.

Thus we find that religion was not the
predominating motive that led to the col-
onization of the vSouthern States, as was
the case with New-England; and yet it
cannot be said to have been altogether
wanting. It is remarkable, that in every
charter granted to the Southern colonies,
"the propagation of the Gospel" is men-
tioned as one of the reasons for the plant-
ing of them being undertaken. And we
shall see that that essential element of a
people's prosperity ultimately received a

* Bancroft's "History of the United Jitates," vol.
ii., p. 172, 173.

RELIGION IN AMERICA.

[Book II.

vast accession of stren^h from the emi-
grants whom God was preparing to send
from the Old World to those parts of the
New.

CHAPTER VI.

RELIGIOUS CHARACTER OF THE EARLY COLO-
NISTS. FOUNDERS OF NEW-YORK.

We now proceed to give some account
of the intermediate states between New-
England and those in the South, compri-
sing New- York, New-Jersey, Delaware,
and Pennsylvania. We begin with New-
York, which, as we have seen, was first
colonized by the Dutch.

" The spirit of the age," says an eloquent
author,* to whom we have often referred,
" was present when the foundations of New-
York were laid. Every great European
event affected the fortunes of America. Did
a state prosper, it sought an increase of
wealth by plantations in the West: Was
a sect persecuted, it escaped to the New
World. The Reformation, followed by col-
lisions between English Dissenters and the
Anglican hierarchy, colonized New-Eng-
land. The Reformation, emancipating the
United Provinces, led to European settle-
ments on the Hudson. The Netherlands
<livide with England the glory of having
planted the first colonies in the United
States : they also divide the glory of hav-
ing set the example of public freedom. If
England gave our fathers the idea of a pop-
ular representation, Holland originated for
them the principle of federal union."

It was the Dutch, we remarked, who first
discovered the Rivers Hudson and Connec-
ticut, and probably the Delaware also. In
1614, five years after Henry Hudson had
sailed up the first of those streams, and to
which he gave his name, they erected a
few huts upon Manhattan Island, where
now stands the city of New- York.

The first attempts to establish trading
stations, for they hardly could be called
settlements, were made by the merchants
of Amsterdam. But when the Dutch West
India Company was formed, in I62I, it ob-
tained a monopoly of the trade with all
parts of the Atlantic coast claimed by Hol-
land in North America. Colonization on
the Hudson River does not appear to have
been the main object of that Company.
The territory of New Netherlands was not
even named in the charter, nor did the
States-General guaranty its possession
and protection. Trade with the natives in
skins and furs was, in fact, the primary and
almost exclusive object.

But in a few years, as the families of the
Company's factors increased, what was at

♦ Mr. Bancroft's " History of the United States,"
vol. ii., p. 256.

first a mere station for traders, gradually
bore the appearance of a regular plantation ;
and New Amsterdam, on Manhattan Isl-
and, began to look like some thriving town,
with its little fleet of Dutch ships almost
continually lying at its wharves. Settle-
ments were also made at the west end of
Long Island, on Staten Island, along the
North River up to Albany, and even be-
yond that, as well as at Bergen, at various
points on the Hackensack, and on the Rar-
itan, in what was afterward New-Jersey.

Harmony at this time subsisted between
the Dutch and their Puritan neighbours, not-
withstanding the dispute about their respec-
tive boundaries. In 1627, we find the Gov-
ernor of New Netherlands, or New jBeZ^iiim,
as the country was sometimes called, pay-
ing a visit of courtesy and friendship to the
Plymouth colony, by which he was receiv-
ed with " the noise of trumpets." A treaty
of friendship and commerce was proposed.
" Our children after us," said the Pilgrims,
" shall never forget the good and courte-
ous entreaty which we found in your coun-
try, and shall desire your prosperity for-
ever."

The colony, as it extended, gradually
penetrated into the interior of East Jersey,
and along the shores of the Delaware.
Still, receiving neither protection nor en-
couragement from the fatherland, and aban-
doned to the tender mercies of alow-mind-
ed commercial corporation, its progress
was not what might have been expected.
It had not always wise governors. The
infamous Kieft, neglecting to conciliate the
Indians, allowed the settlers on Staten Isl-
and to be destroyed by the savages of New-
Jersey ; and having, in a most wanton at-
tack upon a tribe of the friendly Algon-
quins, massacred many of them in cold
blood, the colony lay for two whole years
(1643-1645) exposed to attack at all points,
and was threatened with absolute ruin.
From the banks of the Raritan to the bor-
ders of the Connecticut, not a " bowery"
(farm) was safe. "Mine eyes," says an
eyewitness, " saw the flames of their
towns, and the flights and hurries of men,
women, and children, the present removal
of all that could to Holland !" In this war
the celebrated Anne Hutchinson, one of the
most extraordinary women of her age,
was murdered by the Indians, together with
all her family, with but one exception.

Next to this disastrous war, the colony
was most retarded by the want of a popu-
lar form of government, and by the deter-
mination of the West India Company not
to concede one.

The first founders of New Netherlands
were men of a bold and enterprising turn,
whose chief motive in leaving Holland was,
no doubt, the acquisition of wealth. But
educated in the National Dutch Church,
they brought with them a strong attach-

Chap. VI.]

CHARACTER OF THE EARLY COLONISTS.

jnent to its doctrines, worship, and govern-
ment ; and liowever deeply interested in
their secular pursuits, they unquestionably
took early measures to 'have the Gospel
preached purely among them, and to have
the religious institutions of their fatherland
planted and maintained in their adopted
country. A church was organized at New
Amsterdam, now New-York, not later,
probably, than 1619 ; and there was one at
Albany as early, if not earlier. The first
minister of the Gospel settled at New-
York was the Rev. Everardus Bogardus.

The Dutch language was exclusively
.used in the Dutch churches until 1764, be-
ing exactly a century after the colony had
fallen into the hands of the English. As
soon as that event took place, the new gov-
ernor made great efforts to introduce the
language of his own country, by opening
schools in which it was taught. This, to-
gether with the introduction of the English
Episcopal Church, and the encouragement
it received from Governor Fletcher, in 1693,
made the new language come rapidly into
use. The younger colonists began to urge
that, for a part of the day at least, English
should be used in the churches ; or that
new churches should be built for those who
commonly spoke that tongue. At length,
after much opposition from some who
dreaded lest, together with the language of
their fathers, their good old doctrines, lit-
urgy, catechisms, and all should disappear,
the Rev. Dr. Laidlie, a distinguished Scotch
minister who had been settled in an Eng-
lish Presbyterian church at Flushing, in
Holland, connected with the Reformed
Dutch Church, was invited to New- York,
in order to commence Divine service there
in English. Having accepted this call, he
■was, in 1764, transferred to thai city, and
in his new charge his labours were long
and greatly blessed. From that time the
Dutch language gradually disappeared, so
that hardly a vestige of it now remains.

The population of New Netherlands,
when it fell into the hands of the English,
is supposed to have been about ten thou-
sand, or half as many as that of New-
England at the same date. There has been
a sliglit emigration to it from Holland ever
since, too small, however, to be regarded
as of any importance. But all the emi-
grants from Dutch ports to America were
not Hollanders. The Reformation had
made the Dutch an independent nation, and
the long and bitter experience they had had
of oppression led them to offer an asylum
to the persecuted Protestants of England,
Scotland, France, Italy, and Germany.*

* This has often been made an occasion of re-
proach and ridicule by men of more wit than grace
or sense."

Beaumont and Fletcher, in their " Maid of the Inn,"
introduce one of their characters as saying,

" I am a schoolmaster, sir, and would fain

Among others who thus came by way of
Holland to America was Robert Living-
ston, ancestor of the numerous and distin-
guished family of that name to be found in
various parts of America, but particularly
in the State of New-York, and son of that
pious and celebrated minister, the Rev.
John Livingston, of Scotland, who, after
being eminently blessed in his labours in
his native country, was, in 1663, driven by
persecution into Holland, where he spent
the remainder of his life as minister of the
Scotch Church at Rotterdam.

Several causes retarded the progress of
religion among the Dutch colonists in
America. One was the unsettled state of
the country, caused by actual or dreaded
hostilities with the Indians ; another lay in
the churches being long unnecessarily de-
pendant for their pastors on the classis, or
presbytery, of Amsterdam ; a body which,
however well disposed, was at too remote
a distance to exercise a proper judgment
in selecting such ministers as the circum-
stances of the country and the people re-
quired ; a third is to be found in the lateness
of the introduction of the English tongue
into the public services of the churches ; it
ought to have occurred at least fifty years
sooner.

Notwithstanding these hinderances, the
blessed Gospel was widely and success-
fully preached and maintained in the colo-
ny, both when under the government of
Holland and afterward. Its beneficial in-
fluence was seen in the strict and whole-
some morals that characterized the com-
munity, and in the progress of education
among all classes, especially after the
adoption of a more popular form of govern-
ment. Many faithful pastors were either
sent over from Holland, or raised up at
later periods in the colony, and sent over
to Holland for instruction in theology.
Among the former 1 may mention the
Rev. T. J. Frelinghuysen, who came from
Holland in 1720, and settled on the Raritan.
As an able, evangelical, and eminently suc-
cessful preacher, he proved a great bless-
ing to the Reformed Dutch Church in
America. He left five sons, all ministers,
and two daughters, who were married to
ministers.* In confirmation of this state-
ment, we may add the testimony of the

Confer with you about erecting four
New sects of religion at Amsterdam.''

And Andrew Marvell, in his " Character of Hol-
land," writes :

'■ Sure, when religion did itself embark.

And from the East would westward steer its bark.

It struck ; and splitting on this unknown ground,

Each one thence pillaged the first piece he found.

Hence Amsterdam, Turk, Christian, Pagan, Jew,

Staple of sects, and mint of schism, grew ;

That bank of conscience, where not one so strange

Opinion, but finds credit and exchange.

In vain for Catholics ourselves we bear ;

The Universal Church is oiUy there."

* Christian Magazine, quoted in Dr. Gunn's Me-
moirs of Dr. Livingston, p. 87.

«6

RELIGION IN AMERICA.

[Book IT.

Eev. Gilbert Tennent, who, in a letter to
Mr. Prince, of Boston, says, " The labours
of Mr. Frelinghuysen, a Dutch minister,
were much blessed to the people of New-
Brunswick and places adjacent, especially
about the time of his coming among them.
When I came, which was about seven
years after, I had the pleasure of seeing
much of the fruits of his ministry : dive©
of his hearers, with whom I had opportu-
nity of conversing, appeared to be con-
verted persons, by their soundness in prin-
ciple, Christian experience, and pious prac-
tice ; and these persons declared that his
ministrations were the means thereof."*
Among the latter was the late J. H. Liv-
ingston, D.D., who died in 1825, after being
for a long time one of the most distin-
guished ministers in the United States.
On his return from Holland, he was for
many years a pastor in New- York, and
thereafter divinity professor in the Theo-
logical Seminary of the Reformed Dutch
Church at New-Brunswick, in the State of
New-Jersey. He was one of those who,
though born to fill a lai-ge space in the his-
tory of the Church, yet spend their lives in
the calm and unostentatious discharge of
the duties of their calling. The impress of
his labours and character will long be felt
in the Church of which he was so distin-
guished an ornament.

The descendants of the Dutch are nu-
merous, and widely dispersed in America.
They constitute a large proportion of the
inhabitants of the southern part of the State
of New- York and eastern part of New-
Jersey, besides forming a very consider-
able body in the north and west of the
former of these states. But they are to
be found also in larger or smaller numbers
in all parts of the confederacy. Though
often made the butts of ridicule for their
simplicity,! slowness of movement, and

* Prince's Christian History. I may add, that
the Mr. Frelinghuysen spoken of in the le.xt was the
ancestor of three brothers of the same name, who
have adorned the profession of the law in the present
generation, one of whom, the Hon. Theodore Fre-
linghuysen, was for several years a distinguished
member of the Senate of the United States, and is
now Chancellor of the University of New-York.

t Their Yankee neighbours, as the New-England
people are called, tell a thousand stories showing
the simplicity of the Dutch. One of the best whicli
I have heard is that respecting a wealthy Dutch
farmer, in the State of New-York, who had erected
a church in his neighbourhood at his own expense,
and was advised (probably by some very sensible
Yankee) to attach a lightning-rod to it. But he re-
ceived the suggestion with displeasure, as if God
would set lire to his own house ! Another is as fol-
lows : Shortly after the arrival of the Rev. Dr. Laid-
lie, and thecommencemoutof his labours, he was thus
accosted by some excellent old people, at the close
of a prayer-meeting one evening, in which he had
most fervently addressed the throne of grace : " Ah,
Domine ! (the title which the Dutch, in their affec-
tion, give to their pastors) we offered up many an
earnest prayer in Dutch for your coming among us ;
and truly the Lord has heard us in English, and sent
you to us."

dislike to innovation of every kind, yet,
taken as a whole, they have been uniformly
a religious and virtuous people, and consti-
tute a most valuable part of the American
nation. Some of them have found a place
among our most illustrious statesmen.
Emigrants from the country of Grotius and
John DeWitt have furnished one President
and three Vice-presidents to the Republic
which they have done so much to establish
and maintain. They have preserved to
this day the Church planted by their fore-
fathers in America ; but although a very
respectable part of them still adhere to it,
a greater number have joined the Episcopal
Church, and many belong to other denom-
inations.

CHAPTER Vn.

RELIGIOUS CHARACTER OF THE EARLY COLO-
NISTS.— FOUNDERS OF NEW-JERSEY.

Hollanders from New Amsterdam were
the first European inhabitants of New-Jer-
sey, and, during the continuance of the
Dutch dominion in America, it formed part
of New Netherlands. The first settlement
was at Bergen, but the plantations extended
afterward to the Hackensack, the Passaic,
and the Raritan. It is probable that a few
families had settled even on the Delaware,
opposite Newcastle, before the cession of
the country to the English in 1664.

But the Dutch were not the only colonists
of New-Jersey. A company of the same
race of English Puritans that had colonized
New-England left the eastern end of Long
Island in 1664, and established themselves
at Elizabethtown. They must have been
few in number, for four houses only were
found there the following year, on the ar-
rival of Philip Carteret, as governor of the
province. Woodbridge, Middletown, and
Slirewsbury were founded about the same
time by settlers from Long Island and
Connecticut. Newark was founded in 1667
or 1668, by a colony of about thirty fami-
lies, chiefly from Brandon in Connecticut.

Colonists from New- Haven bouglit land
on both sides of the Delaware, and fifty
families were sent to occupy it, but their
trading establishments were broken up, and
the colony dispersed, in consequence of
the Dutch claiming the country. There
are extant memorials, however, in the rec-
ords of Cumberland and Cape May coun-
ties, that colonies from New-England es-
tablished themselves in these, not very long
after the province changed its masters.
The middle parts were gradually occupied
by Dutch and New-England settlers in their
progress westward, and also by a consider-
able number of Scotch and Irish emigrants
—all Protestants, and most of them Pres-
byterians.

Chap. VII.]

CHARACTER OF THE EARLY COLONISTS.

It will be remembered that, by the gift of
his brother, Charles II., the Duke of York
became " Proprietary" of all that part of
America ceded by the Dutch to the English
in 1664. That same year the duke sold
New-Jersey to Sir George Cai-teret and
Lord Berkeley, in honour of the former of
whom it took the name that it bears to this
day. They immediately appointed a gov-
ernor, and gave the colonists a popular form
of government. The Legislature, however,
soon became the organ of popular disaf-
fection : few were willing to purchase a
title to the soil from the Indians, and to
pay quit-rents to the proprietaries besides.
After some years of severe struggles be-
tween the colonists and their governors.
Lord Berkeley became tired of the strife,
and in 1674 sold the moiety of New-Jer-
sey to Quakers for jGIOOO, John Fenwick
acting as agent in the transaction for Ed-
ward Byllinge and his assigns. Fenwick
left England the following year, accompa-
nied by a great many families of that per-
secuted sect, and formed the settlement of
Salem, on the Delaware. Lands in West
Jersey were now offered for sale by the
Quaker company, and hundreds of colonists
soon settled upon them. In 1676 they ob-
tained from Carteret the right, so far as he
was concerned, to institute a government
of their own in West Jersey, and proceeded,
the year following, to lay the groundwork
in the " Concessions," as their fundamental
deed was called. Its main feature was,
that " it put the power in the people."
Forthwith great numbers of English Qua-
kers flocked to West Jersey, with the view
of permanently settling there. A title to
the lands was purchased from the Indians,
at a council held under the shade of the
forest, at the spot where the town of Bur-
lington now stands ; there the tawny chil-
dren of the wood conveyed to the men of
peace the domain which they desired.
" You are our brothers," said the sachems,
" and we will live like brothers with you.
We will make a broad path for you and us
to walk in. If an Englishman falls asleep
in this path, the Indian shall pass him by
and say, He is an Englishman ; he is
asleep ; let him alone. The path shall be
plain ; there shall not be in it a stump to
hurt the feet."* And they kept their word.
In November, 1681, Jennings, who act-
ed as governor for the Proprietaries, con-
vened the first Quaker Legislature ever
known to have met. The year following,
by obtaining the choice of their own chief
ruler, the colonists completed the meas-
ure of their self-government. In the year
following that, again, William Penn and
eleven others bought East New-Jersey
from Carteret's heirs, and from that time
a Quaker emigration set into that division
of the province, but never to such a de-
" Smith's " History of New-Jersey."

gree as to change the general character
of the inhabitants. The population, upon
the whole, remained decidedly Puritan,
though combining the elements of a Scotch,
Dutch, and New-England Presbyterianism.
It was much otherwise with West New-
Jersey. With the exception of a few
churches planted here and there by other
denominations, and standing like islands
in this sea of the religion of George Fox,
Salem, Gloucester, and Burlington coun-
ties were peopled almost entirely with
Quakers, and their religion flourishes there
to this day.

After about twelve years of embarrass-
ment, commencing with the Revolution
of 1688 in England, the Proprietaries of
both East and West New-Jersey surren-
dered " their pretended right of govern-
ment" to the British crown, and in 1702,
both provinces, united into one, were pla-
ced for a time under the Governor of New-
York, retaining, however, their own Legis-
lature. The population, notwithstanding
the difficulties and irritation caused by po-
litical disputes intimately affecting their
interests, steadily increased. Taken as a
whole, few parts of America have been
colonized by a people more decidedly re-
ligious in principle, or more intelligent
and virtuous ; and such, in the main, are
their descendants at the present day. No-
where in the United States have the church-
es been supplied with a more faithful or
an abler ministry. New-Jersey was the
scene of the excellent David Brainerd's
labours among the Indians, during the lat-
ter years of his short but useful life. There,
too, laboured the celebrated William Ten-
nent, and those other faithful servants of
God in whose society Whitefield found so
much enjoyment, and whose ministrations
were so much blessed. There, and par-
ticularly in the eastern section of the prov-
ince, many have been witnesses of those
outpourings of the Holy Spirit, which we
shall have occasion in another place to
speak of. And, lastly, in New-Jersey was
planted the fourth, in point of date, of the
American colleges, commonly called Nas-
sau Hall, but more properly the College
of New-Jersey. That college has had for
its presidents some of the greatest divines
that have ever lived in America, Dickin-
son, Burr, the elder Edwards, Finley, With-
erspoon. Smith, Green, &c., and it is still
as flourishing as ever, although a sister in-
stitution has arisen at New-Brunswick, to
co-operate in diffusing blessings through-
out the state. I may add, that no state in
the American Union has more decidedly
proved the importance of having a good
original population, nor has any state done
more, in proportion to its population and
resources, to sustain the honour and pro-
mote the best interests of the American
nation.

RELIGION IN AMERICA.

[Book II.

CHAPTER VIII.

RELIGIOUS CHARACTER OF THE EARLY COLO-
NISTS. FOUNDERS OF DELAWARE, AT FIRST

CALLED NEW SWEDEN.

Though of all the states Delaware has
the smallest population, and is the least
but one in territorial extent, yet its history
is far from uninteresting. Fairly included
within the limits of Maryland, it never
submitted to- the rule of Lord Baltimore's
colony ; subjected for a time to the domin-
ion of the Quaker province of William
Penn, from that it emancipated itself in
time to be justly ranked among the origi-
nal Thirteen States, which so nobly achiev-
ed their independence.

This small province was claimed by the
Dutch in right of discovery, as well as the
country on the other side of Delaware
River and Bay ; and in 1631, a colony un-
der De Vries actually left the Texel for
the south shore of that bay, and settled
near the present site of Lewestown, on
lands acquired the year before by Godyn
and his associates. Van Rensellaer, Bloe-
mart, and De Lact. That colony, consisting
of above thirty souls, was, in the absence
of De Vries, utterly destroyed by the In-
dians towards the close of the following
year ; yet its priority in point of date saved
it from being included in Lord Baltimore's
charter, and secured for subsequent set-
tlers the benefits of a separate colony and
independent state. Before, however, it
could be rescued from the Indians, and col-
onized a second time by the Dutch, it fell
to the possession of a Scandinavian prince.

Gustavus Adolphus, justly pronounced
the most accomplished prince of modern
times, and the greatest benefactor of hu-
manity in the line of Swedish kings, had
early comprehended the advantages of for-
eign commerce and distant colonization.
Accordingly, in 1626, he instituted a com-
mercial company, with exclusive privile-
ges to trade beyond the Straits of Gibral-
tar, and with the right of planting colonies.
The stock was open to all Europe. The
king himself pledged 400,000 dollars from
the royal treasury ; the chief seat of busi-
ness was Gottenburg, the second city in
the kingdom, and the best situated for com-
merce in the open seas. The government
of the future colonies was committed to
a royal council, and emigrants were to be
invited from all Europe. The New World
was described as a paradise, and the hope
of better fortunes on its distant shores was
strongly excited in the Scandinavian mind.
The colony proposed to be planted there
was to be a place where " the lionour of the
wives and dauglUers" of those whom wars
and bigotry had made fugitives might be
safe ; a blessing to the " common man," as
well as to the " whole Protestant world."*

* Argonautica Gustaviana, p. 11, 16.

As opening an asylum for persecuted Prot-
estants of all nations, the project was well
worthy of the great champion of Protest-
ant rights.

But Gustavus Adolphus did not live to
carry his favourite scheme into effect.
When the Protestant princes of Germany
were compelled to defend their violated
religious privileges by taking up arms
against the emperor, they made the first
offer of the command of their armies to
Christian IV., of Denmark ; but that prince
proving unequal to the task, they turned
their regards to the youthful King of Swe-
den, who hesitated not to accept their
summons. Crossing the Baltic with his
small army of 15,000 faithful Swedes,
Finns, and Scotch, he put himself at the
head of the confederate troops, and with-
in eighteen months gained the series of
splendid victories that have placed him in
the highest rank of warrior-princes. Hav-
ing driven the imperial troops from the
walls of Leipsic to the southern extremity
of Germany, he fell at last on the plains
of Liitzen, on the 16th of October, 1632,
victory even there crowning his efforts,
while his body, covered with wounds, lay
undistinguished among the slain. Yet
even the toils and horrors of that war
could not make the brave young monarch
forget his favourite project. A few days
before that last fatal battle, where it has
been beautifully said that " humanity won
one of her most glorious victories, and lost
one of her ablest defenders," he recom-
mended to the people of Germany the co-
lonial project, which he still continued to
regard as " the jewel of his kingdom."*

The enterprise, however, which his pre-
mature death prevented Gustavus Adol-
phus from carrying into effect, fell into
the hands of his minister Oxenstiern, the
ablest statesman of that age. Emigrants
for Delaware Bay, furnished with provis-
ions for themselves, and with merchandise
for traffic with the Indians, accompanied
also by a religious teacher, left Sweden in
1638, in two ships, the Key of Calmar and
the Griffin. Upon their arrival, they bought
the lands on the Delaware from its mouth
up to the falls where Trenton now stands ;
and near the mouth of Christiana Creek
they built a fort, to which they gave that
name, in honour of their youthful queen.
Tidings of their safe arrival, and encour-
aging accounts of the country, were soon
carried back to Scandinavia, and naturally
inspired many of tlie peasantry of Sweden'
and Finhmd with a wish to exchange their
rocky, uiii)roductive soil for the banks of
the Delaware. More bands of emigrants
-soon went thither, and many who would
fain have gone were prevented only by
the difficulty of finding a passage. The

*l3^ancroft's "History of the United Slates," vol.
11., p. 235.

Chap. IX.]

CHARACTER OF THE EARLY COLONISTS.

plantations gradually extended along the
Delaware, from the site of Wilmington to
that of Philadelphia. A fort constructed
of huge hemlock logs, on an island a few
miles below Philadelphia, defended the
Swedish settlements, and became the head-
quarters of Printz, their governor. The
■whole country, as above described, was
called New Sweden, and the few families
of emigrants from New-England that hap-
pened to be within its boundaries, either
submitted to the Swedish government, or
else withdrew and established themselves
elsewhere.

Meanwhile the Dutch reasserted their
old claims to the country, planted a fort
at Newcastle, and ultimately reduced New
Sweden under their dominion by means of
an expedition of six hundred men, under
the famous Peter Stuyvesant, governor of
New Netherlands. Thus terminated, in
1655, the power of Sweden on the Ameri-
can continent, after it had lasted above
seventeen years. The Swedish colonists,
probably, did not much exceed seven hun-
dred, and as their descendants, in the
course of some generations, became wide-
ly scattered, and blended with emigrants
of a different lineage, they are supposed
to constitute one part in 200 of the pres-
ent population of the United States.*

Interesting as this colony is from its
early history, it becomes still more so be-
cause of its practical worth. The colo-
nists were invariably amiable and peace-
able in their deportment ; they maintained
the best terms with the Indians ; they
were frugal and industrious ; they were
attentive to the education of their children,
notwithstanding the want of schools and
the difficulty of procuring books in their
mother tongue ; and, above all, they were
careful in upholding religious institutions
and ordinances. Lutherans, as their kin-
dred in Sweden are to this day, they long
preserved their national liturgy and disci-
pline, besides keeping up a most affection-
ate intercourse with the churches in their
mother-country ; and from these they often
received aid in Bibles and other religious
books, as well as in money. Having es-
tablished themselves in the southern sub-
urbs of Philadelphia, previously to the colo-
nization of Pennsylvania by William Penn,
they have always had a church there,
known as the " Swedes' Church" to this
day, and which, with two or three more in
Delaware and Pennsylvania, now belongs
to the Protestant Episcopal communion.
The late Dr. Colin was the last of the long
line of Swedish pastors.

Taken possession of by the Dutch in
1655, New Sweden was, nine years after
that, ceded by them to the English. It
was then placed for some time under the

Bancroft's " History of the United States."

administration of the Governor of New-
York ; was afterward attached to Penn-
sylvania, but ultimately became first a
separate colony, and then an independent
state. Meanwhile, its population, composed
of the descendants of Swedes, of Quakers
who accompanied William Penn, of set-
tlers from New-England, and of Scotch,
Irish, and a few emigrants from other
parts of Europe, steadily increased. Re-
ligion has ever. had a happy, ajid not an in-
considerable influence, in this little com-
monwealth. It would, no doubt, have been
greater still had slavery never existed in
it. But though Delaware is a slavehold-
ing state, it scarcely deserves the name,
from the number of slaves being so small.

CHAPTER IX.

RELIGIOUS CHARACTER OF THE EARLY COLO-
NISTS.— FOUNDERS OF PENNSYLVANIA.

The history of William Penn, the Qua-
ker philosopher and lawgiver, is very gen-
erally known. The son of a distinguished
English admiral, heir to a fortune consid-
ered large in those days, accustomed from
his youth to mingle in the highest circles,
educated at the University of Oxford, rich
in the experience and observation of man-
kind acquired by much travel, and versed
in his country's laws, he seemed fitted for
a very different course from that which he
considered to be marked out for him in af-
ter life. He inherited from his parents a
rooted aversion to the despotism of a hie-
rarchy, and having, when a student at Ox-
ford, ventured to attend the preaching of
George Fox, he was for this offence ex-
pelled from the university. After his ex-
pulsion, from a desire to make himself ac-
quainted with the doctrines and spirit of
the French Reformed churches, he spent
some time at Saumur, one of their chief
seats of learning, and there he attended
the prelections of the gifted and benevo-
lent Amyrault. From that time he return-
ed to England, and in 1666 visited Ire-
land, where he heard Thomas Loe preach
on " the faith that overcomes the world,"
whereupon he was immediately filled with
peace, and decided upon following out his
future plans of benevolence. In the au-
tumn of that year he was imprisoned for
conscience' sake. " Religion," said he to
the Irish viceroy, " is my crime and my
innocence ; it makes me a prisoner to mal-
ice, but my own free man." On returning
to England, he became the butt of unmeas-
ured ridicule from the witlings of the court,
which was that of one of the most disso-
lute monarchs that ever lived. Driven
penniless from his father's house, he found
compassion where it takes up its last
abode, if it ever leaves this world, in a

RELIGION IN AMERICA.

[Book II.

mother's heart. Her bounty kept him above
want, while he was preparing, in God's
providence, to become an author, and a
preacher of the doctrines of peace to prin-
ces, priests, and people. Experience of
persecution had prepared him for the great
mission of succouring those who suffer
from the same cause. He could truly say,

" Haud ignarus mali miseris succurrere disco."

He had become a member- of the ever-
" suffering kingdom" of righteousness.

William Penn's personal interests, in the
course of Providence, coincided with his
benevolent views in leading him to think
of founding the colony to which he at
length so assiduously devoted himself. His
father having a large sum due to him from
the crown, this not very hopeful debt he left
as a legacy to his son. But the son pro-
posed to his royal debtor an easy mode of
paying it : the king had only to make him
a grant of waste land in the New World ;
and the suggestion was favourably receiv-
ed, for the profuse and profligate Charles
II. had been his father's friend. On the
6th of March, 1681, he received a title to a
territory which was to extend from the
Delaware River five degrees of longitude
westward, and from the 39° to the 42° N.
latitude. The whole of this, with the ex-
ception of a few previous grants, of no
great extent, made by the Duke of York,
"was to be his ; and thus all that remained
of the territory claimed by the Dutch, but
which they had been compelled to cede to
the English, became not a place of refuge
merely, but the absolute property and sure
abode of a sect which had probably been
loaded with as much contempt and ridicule
as had ever fallen to the lot of any portion
of the human race. Their peculiar dress
and modes of speech, no doubt, so far invi-
ted this treatment, while their principles
secured impunity to such as meanly chose
to attack with such weapons what they
deemed absurdity and fanaticism.

Nor was it only for the persecuted
" Friends" in England that William Penn
founded his colony ; it was to be open also
to members of the same society in Ameri-
ca. Incredible as it may appear, they
were persecuted in New-England by the
very men who themselves had been driven
thither by persecution. Twelve Quakers
were banished from Massachusetts by or-
der of the (Jeneral Court in lfi56, and four
of these, who had returned, were actually
executed in 1669. That same year an act
was passed by the Legislature of Virginia,
to the effect " that any commander of any
shipp, or vessell, bringing into the coUonie
any person or persons called Quakers, is
to be fined JGIOO; and all Quakers appre-
hended in the collonie are to be imprisoned
till they abjure this countrie, or give secu-
ritie to depart from it forthwith. If they

return a third time, they are to be punished
as felons."*

After making all necessary arrange-
ments, Penn left England for his ample
domain in America, and arrived there on
the 27th of October, 1682. Having landed
at Newcastle, he went from that to Ches-
ter, and thence, by boat, up the Delaware,
to the spot, where now stands the city of
Philadelphia. His first care was to ac-
quire, by fair purchase, a title from the In-
dians to as much land, at least, as might
be required for his projected colony, and
this transaction took place at a famous
council, held under a large elm-tree at
Shakamaxon, on the northern edge of
Philadelphia. There the hearts of the
congregated chiefs of the Algonquin race
were captivated by the simplicity and sin-
cerity of Penn's manners, and by the lan-
guage of Christian affection in which he
addressed them. " We will live," said
they, in reply to his proposals, " in love
with William Penn and his children, and
with his children's children, as long as the
moon and sun endure."

The year following was devoted by the
philosopher to the founding of a city, to be
called Philadelphia, between the Delaware
and the Schuylkill Rivers, and to the estab-
lishing of a government for his people.
Hardly could a pleasanter situation have
anywhere been found than that which he
selected for his capital, which was destined
to become one of the largest and finest
cities in America, and to be the birthplace
of national independence, and where union
among the liberated colonies was to be se-
cured by the framing of a Federal Consti-
tution for the whole. Nothing could have
been more popular than the constitution
laid down for his own colony, with the ex-
ception of his veto as Proprietary — which
he could hardly have abandoned — and an
acknowledgment of the supremacy of the
English crown and government. Council,
assembly, judges, and petty magistrates —
all were to be appointed by the colonists
themselves.

The first emigrants to Pennsylvania
were, for the most part, Quakers ; but
the principle of unlimited toleration, upon
which it was established, made it a resort
for people of all creeds and of none.
Swedes, Dutch, and New-Englanders had
previously established themselves within
its limits, and not many years had elapsed
Avhen the Quakers, whom Penn had spe-
cially contemplated as the future citizens
of his colony, were found to be a minority
among the inhabitants. This, however, has
not marred the harmony and tranquillity of
the province. No act of persecution or in-
tolerance has ever disgraced its statute-
book. The rights of the Indians were al-

* Hening's Collection of the Laws of Virginia.

Chap. XL]

CHARACTER OF THE EARLY COLONISTS.

-ways respected ; their friendship was hard-
ly ever interrupted.

Friends' meeting-houses, and churches
of other denominations, soon increased
with the population, which spread by de-
grees into the interior, and reached the
most western limits of the colony within
a century from its commencement.

It were superfluous in me to pronounce
any eulogium on the morality of the Qua-
kers. The foundations of the colony of
William Penn were laid in the religion of
the Bible, and to the blessed influence of
that religion it is unquestionably indebted
for much of the remarkable prosperity
which it has enjoyed. But the Quaker
population now forms only a small minor-
ity in the State of Pennsylvania, especially
in its central and western parts. I shall
yet have occasion to show what was the
religious character of the emigrants who
constituted the early population of those
parts.

Thus have I completed the notice of the
religious character of all the original colo-
nies, which, by setthng on the Atlantic
slope, may be said to have founded the
nation, by founding its civil and religious
institutions; or, rather, I should say, I have
spoken of the colonies that had territorial
limits as such, and wei'c established under
charters from the crown of England. I
have spoken of the bases — the lowest
strata, so to speak — of the colonization of
the United States. I have yet to speak of
the superadded colonies, wTiich dispersed
themselves over the others, without hav-
ing any territorial limits marked out to
them by charters, but which settled here
or there as individuals or groups might
prefer. It will be seen that this secondary,
but still early colonization, exerted an im-
mense influence upon the religious char-
acter of the country, and in many cases,
through the wonderful providence of God,
supplied what was wanting in the religious
condition of the primary or territorial col-
onization.

CHAPTER X.

RELIGIOUS CHARACTER OF THE EARLY COLO-
NISTS. EMIGRANTS FROM WALES.

Presbyterianism is said to have had
many zealous adherents in Wales in the
time of the Commonwealth, or from 1648
to 1660 ; and when the Restoration came,
many Welsh Presbyterians, including both
pastors and people, sought a refuge from
the persecution that ensued by emigrating
to America. On reaching the New World,
many of these wandered over the country,
and were glad to avail themselves of a
resting-place wherever it could be found.
But a natural predilection for their own
people, language, and customs, led others
to keep together and settle on the same

spots : a course almost indispensable in
the case of those who could neither under-
stand nor speak English. Hence we find
that towards the close of the seventeenth
century no fewer than six townships on
the left bank of the Schuylkill were in the
occupation of Welsh colonists.*

The success of those earlier emigra-
tions led to a steady and even copious
transference of the inhabitants of the Prin-
cipality to America, long after open perse-
cution had ceased to drive them from their
native hills and valleys. About the begin-
ning of the present century a colony from
Wales settled in the mountains of Penn-
sylvania, on a large tract of land which
they had bought before they left home, and
gave the name Cambria, the ancient ap-
pellation of Wales, to a whole county.
A pretty large part of their settlement lies
on a kind of table-land, in the centre of the
Alleghany Mountains, and the chief villa-
ges are Armagh and Ebensburg, the lat-
ter of which is the seat of justice for the
county. Two or three faithful pastors ac-
companied them from Wales, and to this
day, I believe, they conduct their religious
services in Welsh. There are several
congregations, likewise, of Welsh Baptists
in the State of New- York, and throughout
the United States not fewer than twenty-
five churches of Calvinistic Welsh Meth-
odists.

I have no means of knowing how ex-
tensive the emigrations from Wales, from
first to last, have been ; doubtless they
have been far from unimportant in point
of numbers. What, however, is of most
consequence is, that they have been good in
point of character, and have already given
to America many distinguished men. The
Rev. Mr. Davies, of whom I shall have
some notice to give hereafter, probably
the most eloquent preacher in America in
his day, and, at his death, president of the
College of New-Jersey, was, if I mistake
not, of Welsh ancestry. The Morris fam-
ily, so numerous, and in many of its mem-
bers so distinguished, is of Welsh origin.
So, also, are the Morgans. Besides these,
we find many persons of the name of
Jones, Owen, Grifliths, Evans, &c., all of
Welsh descent, several of whom have ris-
en to eminence in the Church and State.
I may add that Roger Williams, the found-
er of Rhode Island, whom I have had oc-
casion already to notice, was a native of
Wales.

CHAPTER XI.

RELIGIOUS character OF THE EARLY COLO

NISTS OF AMERICA. EMIGRANTS FROM SCOT

LAND AND IRELAND.

Next to the Puritans of England we
* Proud's " History of Pennsylvania," vol. i., p. 221.

RELIGION IN AMERICA.

[Book IF.

must unquestionably rank the Scotch, as
having largely contributed to form the re-
ligious character of the United States. A
few words, then, as to the causes that
have, at different times, led so many of
the natives of Scotland to pass over to
America, will not be out of place, and will
prepare the reader for the remarks to be
made on the religious character of emi-
grants from that part of the united king-
dom.

James I., before he left Scotland, when
called to the throne of England in 1603, as-
sured his countrymen of his love to their
Church, and of his determination to sup-
port it ; but no sooner had he crossed the
Tweed than he manifested a predilection
for Prelacy, and a decided aversion to
Presbytery, as being of an essentially re-
publican tendency. Flattered and caress-
ed by the aged Whitgift, by Bancroft, and
other bishops, he soon learned to hate the
Presbyterians of Scotland, as well as to
despise the Puritans of England ; nor was
it long before he showed a fixed purpose
to change, if possible, the ecclesiastical
government of his northern kingdom, not-
withstanding that prudence and natural
timidity deterred him from abrupt meas-
ures.

It was otherwise with his unfortunate
son. Charles I. resolved to snatch at re-
sults to which caution and cunning might,
in time, have conducted his arbitrary, but
timid father. He began with ordering the
publication of a Book of Canons, essential-
ly altering the constitution of the Church
of Scotland, and these he tried to enforce
by his own authority. He next caused a
liturgy to be drawn up and published, cop-
ied, in a great measure, from that of the
Church of England, but brought by Laud
into a closer agreement with the Romish
Missal ; and this he commanded all the
Scotch ministers to use on pain of suspen-
sion. These proceedings led, at last, to
open resistance on political as well as re-
ligious grounds ; for they involved an as-
sumption of powers denied to the king by
the Scottish Constitution, and it was seen
and felt that if he could introduce the Eng-
lish Liturgy, he might, at some future time,
force upon them the Romish Mass. The
wrong attempted in Scotland roused the
sympathy of England, and the upshot was,
as Hallam remarks, " the liberties of Eng-
land were preserved, but her monarchy
was overthrown."

But Charles H. behaved a great deal
worse than his father had done. When
that father was beheaded the son was a
friendless fugitive. The Scotch offered to
receive him as their king, and to assist
him in recovering tlie throne of England,
on his pledging himself, by oath, to main-
tain their Presbyterian form of Church
government. Tliis he engaged to do, and.

on his arriving among them, he subscribed
the Covenant. The Scotch, thereupon,
took up arms in his cause, but were de-
feated by Cromwell, so that Charles was
driven a second time to the Continent.
When restored, in 1660, to the crown of
England, he voluntarily renewed his for-
mer promise to the Scotch, to whom he
was greatly indebted for his restoration ;
but no sooner was he seated on the throne
than his oaths and promises were all for-
gotten. Presbyterianism was almost im-
mediately abolished, and Episcopacy es-
tablished in Scotland ; and that, too, in the
most repulsive form. The bishops were
invested by royal mandate with the ut-
most plenitude of prelatical power, and
a new law forbade speaking against the-
king's ecclesiastical supremacy, or the gov-
ernment of the Church by bishops and-
archbishops. A court of High Commis-
sion, partly composed of prelates, and arm-
ed with inquisitorial powers, was set up^
and was followed by scenes of persecu-
tion and oppression, unparalleled except-
by the worst doings of Rome. Numbers
of learned and pious ministers were eject-
ed, and though their places were filled, for
the most part, by ignorant and ungodly
men,* the people were compelled, under

* The author would not be understood, for a mo-
ment, to place in the same category all the prelates,
and all the parish clergy, introduced into the Scot-
tish Established Church by the measures mentioned
in the text. He is well aware that among the for-
mer there was a Robert Leighton, who was forced,
however, by the atrocities of his associates, to relin-
quish an office which his gentle spirit would no
longer suffer him to hold, and a Henry Scougal
among the latter. Such beautiful characters were
enough to redeem, if that were possible, the worth-
lessness of a whole generation, composed of such
men as the gi eater number of the intruded clergy
are known to have been. The author could not
avoid referring to the arbitrary principles and horri-
ble cruelties of the Scottish prelates, and of the
statesmen who patronised them, and he has not done
so with the intention of casting odium on Episco-
pacy in general ; the odium being due to the men
and their principles, not to their office. Should it
be supposed that stronger terms than the truth of
history will warrant have been employed in speak-
ing of those men and their doings, let the reader
consult fiurnet's " History of his own Times;"' Dr.
Cook's " History of the Church of Scotland ;" or Mr.
Hallam's " Constitutional History of England." Let
two short extracts from the last of these authorities
suffice :

" The enormities of this detestable government
are far loo numerous, even in species, to be enu-
merated in this slight sketch, and, of course, most
instances of cruelty have not been recorded. The
privy council was accustomed to extort confessions
by torture ; that grim divan of bishops, lawyers, and
peers, sucking the groans of each undaunted enthu-
siast, in the hope that some imperfect avowal might
lead to the sacrifice of other victims, or at least war-
rant the execution of the present." And again : " It
was very po.^sible that Episcopacy might be of apos-
tolical institution ; but for this institution houses
had been burned and fields laid waste, and the Gos-
pel had been preached in the wilderness, and its
ministers had been shot in their prayers, and hus-
bands had been murdered before their wives, and

Chap. XI]

CHARACTER OF THE EARLY COLONISTS.

73-

severe penalties, to attend their worthless
ministrations. The ejected ministers were
not allowed to preach, even in the fields,
under pain of death. They might pray in
their own houses, but none of their neigh-
bours were allowed to attend. Even the
nearest relations were forbidden to afford
shelter to the denounced, or in any way to
succour them. All land-owners were re-
quired to give bonds that neither they nor
their dependants should attend " conven-
ticles," as the forbidden meetings were
called. The laws were enforced by muti-
lation, torture, fines, imprisonment, ban-
ishment, and death. Soldiers were quar-
tered upon defenceless families, and allow-
ed to harass them as they pleased; men
were hunted down like wild beasts, and
shot or gibbeted upon the highways ; and
this dreadful state of- things lasted nearly
thirty years, for the sole object of forcing
upon the Scotch a form of Church gov-
ernment which they conscientiously dis-
liked. Can we wonder that the Scotch
Presbyterians of that day detested Prel-
acy, as not the occasion only, but the cause
of iheir suff"erings \ In their experience it
was identified with despotism, superstition,
and irreligion, whereas Presbyterianism
was associated with the love of liberty and
Truth. The Scottish Parliament being
then so constituted and regulated as to be
a very imperfect exponent of the will, and
a very feeble advocate of the rights of the
nation, it was the General Assembly of the
Church, therefore, which the people re-
garded as the best guardian of their dear-
est interests and privileges. In the sup-
pression of free Assemblies, the body of
the nation probably felt themselves more
grievously wronged than had Parliament
itself been suppressed ; and such, upon the
whole, was the state of the law, and the
oppressive manner in which it was admin-
istered, that none can reasonably wonder
that the most loyal people to be found any-
where should have attempted to rid them-
selves of their oppressors by rising against
them. The attempts of this kind, how-
ever, whether made in England or Scot-
land, led only to the sacrifice of some val-
uable lives ; nor was it until by the Revo-
lution of 1688, so bloodless, yet so com-
plete, that the Stuarts were again removed
from the throne, and a belter era dawned
upon both kingdoms.

virgins had been defiled, and many had died by the
executioner, and by massacre, and in imprisonment,
and in exile, and slavery ; and women had been tied
to stakes on the seashore till the tide rose to over-
flow them, and some had been tortured and mutila-
ted ; it was a religion of the boots and the thumb-
screw, which a good man must be very cold-blooded
indeed if he did not hate, and reject from the hands
which oflfered it. For, after all, it is much more cer-
tain that the Supreme Being abhors cruelty and
persecution, than that he has set up bishops to have
superiority over presbyters." — Cons/. Hist., vol. iii.,
p. 435, 442.

Such was the severity, however, of the
nation's griefs while they lasted, that it
seems strange that the Scotch Presbyteri-
ans did not abandon their country en masse.
But they were withheld by the hope of
better times — a hope that even sometimes
arrested plans of extensive emigration.
Thus, after a company of thirty-six noble-
men and gentlemen had contracted for a
large tract of land in the Carolinas, as an
asylum for their persecuted countrymen,
the project was relinqui.shed, in hopes of
the success of the abortive attempt for
which Russel and Sidney suff'ered in Eng-
land. Many, nevertheless, went over from
Scotland into Ireland — many emigrated to
America ; and a large proportion of the
former, or of their descendants, subsequent-
ly sought a resting-place in the New World.
This emigration from Scotland and Ireland,
after it had thus commenced in the reigns
of Charles II. and James 11., was contin-
ued, from other causes, down to the Amer-
ican Revolution, and consisted, almost ex-
clusively, of Presbyterians. It was not
until a later epoch that the emigration of
Roman Catholics from Ireland to America
properly commenced ; at least, until then
it was too inconsiderable to merit notice.

Let us now see to what parts of Ameri-
ca this emigration was directed, and which
have enjoyed most of the happy effects of
its moral influence.

New-England did not, on many accounts,
present the most attractions to Scotch em-
igrants. Not only were its best districts
already occupied, but in almost all its col-
onies a Church was established, between
which and the Presbyterian there might not
be all the harmony that was to be desired.
Some, nevertheless, did go to New-Eng-
land, and received a kind welcome there.
According to Cotton Mather, even previous
to 1640, 4000 Presbyterians had arrived in
that province, but what proportion of these
came from Scotland and Ireland we have
no means of ascertaining. At a later pe-
riod, Londonderry, in New-Hampshire, was
founded by a hundred families of Irish Pres-
byterians, who, having brought their pastor
with them, organized a Presbyterian church
there. Another church of that denomina-
tion was formed at Boston in 1729, and
such it remained until 1786, when it became
Congregational. Other Presbyterians set-
tled at Pelham and Palmer.

Neither was New- York, for some time
at least, an inviting quarter to Presbyterian
emigrants ; the estabhshment of the Epis-
copal Church in that colony towards the
close of the seventeenth century, and the
intolerance to which it led, would naturally
deter them from making it their choice;
Some, indeed, had arrived previously to
that epoch, and many Scotch and Irish set-
tled in the province in the following cen-
tury, particularly as the American RqvoIu-

RELIGION IN AMERICA.

[Book IL

tion was drawing on. Between 400 and
500 emigrants from Scotland alone arrived
at New-York in 1737, and, twenty years
later, Scotch and Irish colonists established
themselves in Ulster county, and also at
Orange and Albany.

In 1682, William Penn, and eleven other
Quakers, having bought the claims of Lord
Carteret's heirs, associated with them-
selves twelve other persons, a large pro-
portion of whom were Scotch, with the
view of securing as extensive an emigra-
tion as possible from Scotland, as well as
other places. Nor were they disappoint-
ed ; many were induced to leave that coun-
try and the North of Ireland, and settle in
East New-Jersey, from the favourable ac-
counts they heard of that colony. " It is
judged the interest of the government,"
said George Scot, of Pitlochie, a Scotch-
man of rank and influence, " to suppress
Presbyterian (principles altogether ; the
■whole force of the law of this kingdom is
levelled at the effectual bearing of them
down. The rigorous putting of these laws
in execution has, in a great part, ruined
many of those who, notwithstanding here-
of, find themselves in conscience obliged
to retain their principles. A retreat, where
by law a toleration is allowed, doth at pres-
ent offer itself in America, and is nowhere
else to be found in his majesty's domin-
ions."* " This is the era," says Mr. Ban-
croft, " at which East New-Jersey, till now
chiefly colonized from New-England, be-
came the asylum of Scottish Presbyteri-
ans." " Is it strange," asks that author,
" that many Scottish Presbyterians, of vir-
tue, education, and courage, blending a love
of popular liberty with religious enthusi-
asm, came to East New-Jersey in such
"numbers as to give to the rising common-
wealth a character which a century and a
half has not effaced V'f Many of the more
■wealthy of these emigrants brought with
them a great number of servants, and, in
some instances, transported whole families
of poor labourers, whom they placed on
their lands. J And in speaking of the town
of Freehold, in Monmouth county, one of
the earliest settlements in New-Jersey, the
Rev. William Tennent, long parstor of the
Presbyterian church in that place, ob-
serves, " The settling of that place with a
Gospel ministry was owing, under (Jod, to
the agency of some Scotch people that
came to it ; among whom there were none
so painstaking in this blessed work as one
Walter Ker, who in 1685, for his faithful
and conscientious adherence to God and
His Truth, as professed by the Church of
Scotland, was there apprehended and sent
to this country under a sentence of perpet-
ual banishment. By which it appears that

* Bancroft's " History of the United States," vol.
, ii., p. 411. t Ibid., vol. ii., p. 414.

t Gordon's " History of New-Jersey," p 51.

the devil and his instruments lost their aim
in sending him from home, where it is un-
likely he could ever have been so service-
able to Christ's kingdom as he has been
here. He is yet (1744) alive ; and, blessed
be God, flourishing in his old age, being in
his 88th year."*

But it was to Pennsylvania that the lar-
gest emigrations of Scotch and Irish, par-
ticularly of the latter, though at a later
period, took place. About the commence-
ment of last century they began to arrive
in large numbers. It is said that nearly
6000 Irish arrived in 1729 ; and that up to
the middle of the century as many as 12,000
came over every year. Speaking of that
period. Proud, in his History of Pennsyl-
vania, says, " They have flowed in of late
years from the North of Ireland in verjr
large numbers." They settled in the east-
ern and middle parts of the state, the only
parts then inhabited by white men. Cum-
berland county was filled with them.

From Pennsylvania they emigrated in
great numbers into the western parts of
Maryland, the central portions of Virginia,
and the western counties of North Caroli-
na. A thousand families are said to have
left the northern colonies for the last of
these provinces in the single year of 1764.
There their descendants now constitute a
dense homogeneous population, occupying
the whole western section of the stale, and
distinguished by the strict morality and
unbending principles of their forefathers.
P^ive or six hundred Scotch settled near
Fayetteville, N. C, in 1749, and there was
a second arrival from the same country in
1754, after which a steady yearly immigra-
tion of the same hardy and industrious
people was kept up for a long period. f

But, besides the emigration of Scotch and
Irish colonists from Pennsylvania into Ma-
ryland, the latter province received emi-
grants direct from Scotland and Ireland.
Colonel Ninian Beall, a native of Fifeshire,
who had been implicated in some of the
disturbances in his native country, fled first
to Barbadoes, and removed thence to Mary-
land, where he bought an immense estate,
including much of the ground now occupied
by Wasliington and Georgetown. About
200 of his friends and neighbours joined
him at his request about the year 1690, and
brought along with them the Rev. Nathan-
iel Taylor, their pastor.

In 1684, a small colony of persecuted

* The Rev. William Tennent, quoted by Dr. Hodge
in his "Constit\itional History of the Presbyterian
Church in the United States."

t The Scotch settlers near Fayetteville, in North
Carolina, are said to have been, almost without ex-
ception, from the Highlands. Gaelic is still spokea
by some of the old colonists, and I understand that
It IS used in some of the churches in that ([uarler for
public worship, which, 1 may add, is in every respect
conducted as in Scotland. — See Dr. Hodge's " Con-
stitutional History of the Presbyterian Chvrch," vol. i.,
p. 66.

ClHAP. XIL]

CHARACTER OF THE EARLY COLONISTS.

Scotch settled, under Lord Cardross, in
South Carolina.* In 1737, multitudes of
husbandmen and labourers from Ireland
embarked for that province,! and within
three years before 1773 no fewer than 1600
emigrants from the North of Ireland settled
there. Indeed, of all European countries,
Ireland furnished South Carolina with the
greatest number of inhabitants;! they not
only settled in the interior, but also on
Edisto and the other islands on the coast.

Georgia, too, was partly colonized by
Scotch and Irish, who emigrated south-
westward from Pennsylvania, across Ma-
ryland, Virginia, and North Carolina, be-
sides receiving no small proportion of its
first settlers directly from the Highlands of
Scotland.

Thus it is manifest that Presbyterians
from Scotland and the North of Ireland
have largely contributed to form the reli-
gious character of the United States ; par-
ticularly in the middle and southern parts of
the countiy, and, by consequence, the cor-
responding parts of the Valley of the Mis-
sissippi, which have been colonized from
them. As the early emigrants from Scot-
land and Ireland were not only Protestants,
but decidedly religious people, they did
much to give a religious tone to the dis-
tricts in which they established themselves,
being those precisely that most stood in
need of such an influence. So that in this
we have another instance of the Divine in-
terposition in behalf of a country, whose
whole history is a continued illustration of
the mercy and the goodness of God.

I may add, in concluding this chapter,
that America owes to the early emigrations
from Scotland and Ireland not a few of the
men who have risen to the highest emi-
nence both in Church and State. The
Tennents, the Blairs, the Allisons were of
Scotch-Irish origin ; Dr. Witherspoon, one
of the most valuable men in America of
his day, both as a divine and as a states-
man. Dr. Nisbet, and many othei-s, were
from Scotland.

The son of a poor Irish emigrant, who
had settled in North Carolina, has been
President of the United States.^ The son
of a Scotch-Irish emigrant who had settled
first in Pennsylvania and removed after-
ward to South Carolina, has been Vice-
President. ||

CHAPTER XII.

RELIGIOUS CHARACTER OF THE EARLY COLO-
NISTS. HUGUENOTS FROM FRANCE.

Next to the English Puritans and Scotch
Presbyterians we must rank the exiled Hu-

* Bancroft's " History of the United States," vol.
ii., p. 173. t Holmes's Annals, vol. ii., p. 145.

% Ramsay's " History of South Carolina," vol. i.,
,^. 20 ; vol. li., p. 23, 548.

<} General Andrew Jackson.

ii Hon. John C. Calhoun.

guenots, or French Reformed, as having
done most to form the religious character
of the United States.

The Reformation found its way into
France in the reign of Francis I., but was
hated by that monarch on a double account.
First, it placed man at once before his
Creator and his Judge, without the inter-
vention of human proxies, or the possibil-
ity of standing there on the ground of hu-
man merit. It placed the sinner at once in
presence of the God against whom he had
sinned. Second, because, in Calvin's hands,
the natural development of his principles
threatened the questioning of the rights
of despotic power. Hence, although the
king's love of literature, and his patronage
of learned men, led him for a time to dq^
fend the chiefs of the Reformation in France
on account of the interest they showed in
the revival of letters, and his hatred of
the scholastic and fanatical theologians of
the Sorbonne, Francis distinguished him-
self by being almost the first ruler that put
a Protestant to death. His successors but
too closely followed his example. Perse-
cution, though intermitted at times, owing
to the pressure of circumstances, was re-
sumed when that pressure ceased, until
1598, when Henry IV. granted the Edict
of Nantes — a measure which was far from
according the full measure of Protestant
rights, but which was sacredly observed
during the remainder of that monarch's
reign. But during that of his successor,
Louis XIII., and the early years of Louis
XIV., that famous ordinance was no bet-
ter than an ill-observed truce.

Louis XIV., after having come to the
crown in his minority, was now approach-
ing his fiftieth year, and had begun to
feel the decline of passions which he had
long indulged without regard for the re-
straints of religion and morality, beyond
an habitual compliance with the outward
forms of the Romish Church, and occasion-
al fits of remorse, that were soon forgot-
ten amid the excitement of new pleasures.
In proportion as his relish for a voluptu-
ous life became blunted by increasing age
and satiety, he became more and more
anxious to atone in some way for long
years of sinful indulgence by acts of extra-
ordinary devotion, without altogether sac-
rificing, however, either his love of pleas-
ure or the pursuit of glory. He was thus
in a state of mind admirably calculated to
make him the tool of an order of men who
have acquired the highest celebrity for
their profound knowledge of the human
heart, and their consummate skill in ma-
king alike its strength and its weakness
subser\'^e the advancement of their power,
more especially in the case of persons
placed in stations of authority and influ-
ence. A Jesuit skilled in casuistry, and
a fascinating and ambitious woman, were

RELIGION IN AMERICA.

[Book IL

bent, the one on making the king, who had
been brought up in moderate sentiments to-
wards the Reformed, and had long pro-
voked their enemies by his respect for the
Edict of Nantes, become the instrument of
Rome in utterly suppressing the Reforma-
tion in France, and, if possible, throughout
Europe ; the other, on making herself the
widowed monarch's wife. To attain these
ends, they played into each other's hands,
with an unrivalled mastery of all the arts
usually employed on such occasions. The
confessor used his influence in confirming
the favourite's ascendency in the king's af-
fections— the favourite, though educated a
Protestant, and under early and deep obli-
gations to a Protestant relation, sacrificed
her friends, and perhaps her convictions,
l^ professing an extravagant zeal for the
universal reign of the Roman Catholic re-
ligion, and by suggesting that in no way
could the king better atone for his past ir-
regularities, or promote his own glory, than
by labouring " for the conversion of here-
tics." Both succeeded, but not to the full
measure of their desires. Madame de
Maintenon was privately married to Louis
XIV., but never became the acknowledged
queen of France. The Edict of Nantes
was revoked, but the Reformation survives
in the F'rench dominions to this day.

The king had come under too many
solemn obligations to observe that Edict,
and had a conscience too httle sophistica-
ted by Jesuit morality in early life, to be
brought into a direct revocation of Prot-
estant privileges. The mode by which his
scruples were overcome was exceedinglj'
ingenious. His consent was first obtained
to a multitude of indirect methods of di-
minishing the numbers of the Reformed ;
much violence and fraud unknown to him
were mingled with the execution of those
measures, and he was then persuaded that
the Edict of Nantes was unnecessary, since
those in whose favour it had been granted
had ceased to exist in his dominions. Fa-
vours of every kind were promisd to those
who would recant the alleged errors trans-
mitted to them from their ancestors, or
embraced by themselves ; offices were held
out as the reward of such meritorious recan-
tations, while, on the other hand, all hope of
public employment, and even of public fa-
vour in any form, was denied to such as re-
fused to be converted. Not only were they
excluded from every post of honour or place
of trust, but even the guilds and trades' cor-
porations were closed against them. No
Protestant was to be allowed to marry a Ro-
man Catholic. Bribery was also employed,
and converts were purchased for gold.

Proselytism, nevertheless, went on slow-
ly, and deatli threatened to overtake the
illustrious apostle before he should see
his subjects united again under the crosier
of the successor of Peter the fisherman.

The enterprise must needs be hastened for^
ward. The sacredness of the family sanc-
tuary is next invaded. Children of seven
years of age are invited to abjure the faith
of their parents. Protestant ministers be-
gin to be tormented in every way : Protest-
ant chapels are pulled down, or confisca-
ted to other uses ; Protestant schools are-
shut up ; Protestant funds are seized and
diverted from their legitimate ends ; those
that attempt to fly are forbidden to leave
France, under pain of being sent to the
galleys. Vain attempt ! The conversions
still proceed very slowly.

Next come scenes of violence. Instead
of Jesuit missionaries, or, rather, along
with those missionaries, dragoons are sent
into the Protestant districts, to be quarter-
ed on the inhabitants, and to worry them
into conversion. Ferocity and lust are let
loose under every roof, and escape is hope-
less.

At length the Edict of Nantes was for-
mally revoked. All public worship among
the Protestants was suppressed ; their
places of public worship existed no more
for them at least. The old Chancellor Le
Tellier could exclaim, "Now, Lord, lettest
thou thy servant depart in peace," and the
royal dupe believed that he had united all
dissenters with the Roman Church.

But what pen can describe the results of
this pretended union ■! Property plundered,,
books destroyed, children torn from their
parents, faithful pastors who would not
abandon their flocks broken on the wheel,
the bodies of all who died unreconciled to
the Church thrown to the beasts, estates
given up to relations who conformed to
the Romish Church, and protracted tortures
employed to extort recantations of Protest-
antism ! Men were even roasted at slow
fires, plunged into wells, and wounded with
knives and red-hot pincers. The loss of
life cannot now be computed, but it has
been asserted that ten thousand persons
perished at the stake alone, or on the gib-
bet and the wheel.*

In consequence of these proceedings, it
is believed that no fewer than half a mill-
ion of Protestants left France. It was in
vain that the frontiers were guarded. De-
spair was more ingenious in devising
means of evasion than bigotry was in its
endeavours to prevent it. Another half
million, unable to escape, remained in
France, yet could not be reduced to abso-
lute conformity with the established creed
and worship. Fanaticism grew weary in
hunting down its victims, and found nothing
harder to subdue than the human mind,
when once disenthralled by Truth.

Those Huguenots that escaped sought
refuge in all the Protestant countries of
Europe, at the Cape of Good Hope, and

* De Rulhi^re, (Euvres, v., p. 221.

Chap. XII.]

CHARACTER OF THE EARLY COLONISTS.

in America, carrying with them the useful
arts wherever they went, and founding
many new manufactures in Germany, Hol-
land, and the British islands. An entire
suburb of London came to be inhabited by
French mechanics, and they had six church-
es at one time in that city. The Prince
of Orange took whole regiments of brave
refugees into his service, and retained them
after he became William III. of England.
Most affecting narratives have come down
to our times from the actors in those
scenes, and yet filial piety has not been
■so diligent as it ought to have been in col-
lecting and preserving them.

" In our American colonies," says the
eloquent historian to whom I have been so
often indebted, " they were welcome every-
where. The religious sympathies of New-
England were awakened. Did any arrive
in poverty, having barely escaped with life ?
the towns of Massachusetts contributed
liberally to their support, and provided
them with lands ; others repaired to New-
York ; but a warmer climate was more in-
viting to the exiles of Languedoc, and
South Carolina became the chief resort of
the Huguenots. What though the attempt
to emigrate was, by the law of France, a
felony ? in spite of every precaution of the
police, 500,000 souks escaped from the
country. The unfortunate were more
wakeful to fly than the ministers of tyran-
ny to restrain.

" ' We quitted home by night, leaving the
soldiers in their beds, and abandoning the
house with its furniture,' said Judith, the
young wife of Pierre Manigault ; ' we con-
trived to hide ourselves for ten days at
Romans, in Dauphiny, while a search was
made for us ; but our faithful hostess would
not betray us.' Nor could they escape to
the seaboard except by a circuitous jour-
ney through Germany and Holland, and
thence to England, in the depths of winter.
"■ Having embarked at London, we were
sadly off. The spotted fever appeared on
board, and many died of the disease ; among
these, our aged mother. We touched at
Bermuda, where the vessel was seized.
Our money was all spent ; with great dif-
ficulty we procured a passage in another
vessel. After our arrival in Carolina, we
suffered every kind of evil. In eighteen
months, our eldest brother, unaccustomed
to the hard labour which we were obliged
to undergo, died of a fever. Since our
leaving France we had experienced every
sort of affliction — disease, pestilence, fam-
ine, poverty, hard labour. I have been six
months without tasting bread, working like
a slave ; and I have passed three or four
years without having it when I wanted it.
And yet,' adds the excellent woman, in the
spirit of grateful resignation, ' God has
done great things for us in enabling us to
bear up under so many trials.'

" This family was but one of many that
found a shelter in Carolina, the general
asylum of the Calvinist refugees. Esca-
ping from a land where the profession of
their religion was a felony, where their es-
tates were liable to become confiscated in
favour of the apostate, where the preach-
ing of their faith was a crime to be expiated
on the wheel, where their children might
be torn from them to be subjected to their
nearest Catholic relation — the fugitives
from Languedoc, on the Mediterranean,
from Rochelle, and Saintonge, and Bor-
deaux, the Provinces on the Bay of Biscay,
from St. Quentin, Poictiers, and the beau-
tiful valley of Tours, from St. Lo, and
Dieppe, men who had the virtues of the Eng-
lish Puritans without their bigotry, came
to the land to which the tolerant benevo-
lence of Shaftesbury* had invited the be-
liever of every creed. From a land that
had suffered its king in wanton bigotry to
drive half a million of its best citizens into
exile, they came to the land which was the
hospitable refuge of the oppressed ; where
superstition and fanaticism, infidelity and
faith, cold speculation and animated zeal,
were alike admitted without question, and
where the fires of religious persecution
were never to be kindled. There they ob-
tained an assignment of lands, and soon
had tenements; there they might safely
make the woods the scene of their devo-
tions, and join the simple incense of their
psalms to the melodies of the winds among
the ancient groves. Their church was in
Charleston, and thither on every Lord's
day, gathering from the plantations on the
banks of the Cooper, and taking advantage
of the ebb and flow of the tide, they might
all regularly be seen, the parents with their
children, whom no bigot could wrest from
them, making their way in light skiffs,
through scenes so tranquil that silence was
broken only by the rippling of the oars,
and the hum of the flourishing village at
the confluence of the rivers.

" Other Huguenot emigrants established
themselves on the south bank of the Santee,
in a region which has since been celebrated
for affluence and refined hospitality.

" The United States are full of monu-
ments of the emigrations from France.
Wlien the struggle for independence ar-
rived, the son of Judith Manigault intrusted
the vast fortune he had acquired to the ser-
vice of the country that had adopted his
mother ; the hall in Boston, where the
eloquence of New-England rocked the in-
fant Spirit of Independence, was the gift
of the son of a Huguenot ; when the treaty

* The " Constitutions" which Mr. Locke prepared
for Carolina, and to which Mr. Bancroft alludes,
promised, not equal rights, but " toleration" to " Jews,
heathens, and other dissenters," to " men of any re-
ligion." The Episcopal Church was to be established
by law.

RELIGION IN AMERICA.

[Book II.

of Paris, for the independence of our coun-
try, was framing, the grandson of a Hugue-
not, acquainted from childhood with the
wrongs of his ancestors, would not allow
his jealousies of France to be lulled, and
exerted a powerful influence in stretching
the boundary of the States to the Missis-
sippi. In our northeastern frontier state,
the name of the oldest college bears wit-
ness to the wise liberality of a descendant
of tlie Huguenots. The children of the
Calvinists of France have reason to respect
the memory of their ancestors."*

The emigration of the Huguenots to
America is an exceedingly interesting
event in the history of that country. It
commenced earlier, and was more exten-
sive than is generally supposed. Even
previously to the massacre of St. Bartholo-
mew's day, some of the Protestant leaders,
as we have seen, whether from feeling their
position to be even then intolerable, or from
their anticipations of a still darker futurity,
proposed to establish a colony and a mis-
sion ill Brazil — the mission being the first
ever projected by Protestants. The Ad-
miral of France, the brave Coligny, who
was afterward a victim in the above mas-
sacre, entered warmly into the undertaking,
and Calvin urged it on with all his might,
and selected three excellent ministers, who
had been trained under his own eye at
Geneva, to accompany the emigrants. The
expedition set out in 1556, but proved pe-
culiarly disastrous. The commander re-
lapsed to the Roman Catholic faith, and
having put the three ministers to death,
returned to France, leaving the remains of
the colony to be massacred by the Portu-
guese ! Nor did better success attend two
attempts made by the good admiral to plant
colonies in North A^nerica, the one in
South Carolina, the other in Florida. It
seemed as if the time had not yet come for
the planting of good colonies, and that nei-
ther religion nor persecution had as yet
sufficiently ripened the Protestants for the
enterprise.

From the time of the siege of Rochelle
to that of the revocation of the Edict of
Nantes, there had been a continual emi-
gration of French Protestants to the Eng-
lish colonies in America, which, after the
latter of these two events, was greatly aug-
jnentcd, as is abundantly proved by the
public acts of those colonies. The first
notice of the kind to be found is an act of
the colony of Massachusetts Bay, in 166:l*,
to this eff'ect, " that John Touton, a French
doctor and inhabitant of Rochelle, made
application to the General Court of Massa-
chusetts, in behalf of himself and other
Protestants, expelled from their habitations
on account of their religion, that they might
have liberty to live there, which was read-

* Bancroft's " History of the United States," vol.
ii., p. 180-183.

ily granted to them."* In 1686, a grant
of 11,000 acres was made to another com-
pany of French Protestants who had set-
tled at Oxford, in the same colony. f In
that year, too, a French Protestant Church
was erected at Boston, which, ten years
after, had the Rev. Mr. Daille for its pas-
tor. A century later, when the French
Protestants had ceased to use the French
language, and had become merged in other
churches, their place of worship fell into
the hands of some Roman Cathohc refu-
gees from France.

In 1666, an act for the naturalization
of French Protestants was passed by the
Legislature of Maryland : acts to the like
effect were passed in Virginia in 1671 ; in
the Carolinas in 1696, and in New- York in

nos.j

New- York became an asylum for the
Huguenots at a very early date, for even
before it was surrendered to England,
namely, about 1656, they were so numer-
ous there that the public documents of the
colony had to be published in French as
well as in Dutch ;^ and in 1708, Smith, the
historian of that colony, says, that next to
the Dutch, they were the most numerous
and wealthiest class of the population.
From an early period they had in that city
a church, which exists at the present day.
It has long been attached to the Protest-
ant Episcopal Church, and has a French-
man for its rector.

New- Rochelle, about twenty miles above
the city of New- York, on the East River,
or Sound, as it is more commonly called,
was settled solely by Huguenots from Ro-
chelle, in France, and the French tongue,
both in public worship and common par-
lance, was in use even until after the Amer-
ican Revolution. There are many of the
descendants of French Huguenots in Ul-
ster and Dutchess counties in the State of
New- York.

The Rev. Dr. Miller, professor of Church
History in the Theological Seminary at
Princeton, New-.Iersey, had the following
interesting facts, respecting the early in-
habitants of New-Rochelle, communicated
to him : '" When the Huguenots first set-
tled in that neighbourhood, their only place
of worship was in the city of New-York.
They had taken lands on terms that requi-
red the utmost exertions of men, women,
and children among them to render tillable.
They were, therefore, in the habit of work-
ing hard till Saturday night, spending the

* Holmes's " American Annals" for that year.

t Ibid.

% Huguenots had long been settled in both the
Carolinas and New-York, before they were natural-
ized. This arose solely from internal difficulties,
which rendered their naturalization, lor the moment,
impossible, not from any unwillingness to receive
them.

() Bancroft's " History of the United States," vol,
ii., p. 30;i.

Chap. XII.] CHARACTER OF THE EARLY COLONISTS.

night in trudging down on foot to the city,
attending worship twice the next day, and
walking home the same night to be ready
for work in the morning. Amid all these
hardships, they wrote to France to tell
what great privileges they enjoyed."*

In 1679, Charles II. sent, at his own ex-
pense, in two ships, a company of Hugue-
nots to South Carolina, in order that they
might there cultivate the vine, the olive,
&c., and from that time there was an ex-
tensive emigration of French Protestants
to the colonies. Collections were made
for them in England in the reign of James
II., and the English Parliament at one time
aided them with a grant of £15,000.1 In
1690, William III. sent a large colony of
them to Virginia ; in addition to which,
that colony received 300 families in 1699,
followed successively by 200 and afterward
by 100 families more. In 1752, no fewer
than 1600 foreign Protestants, chiefly
French, settled in South Carolina, and
above 200 more in 1764.

In 1733, 370 Swiss Protestant families
settled in South Carolina, under the con-
duct of Jean Pierre Pury, of Neuchatel ;
the British government granting them
40,000 acres of land, and jC400 sterling for
every hundred adult emigrants landed in
the colony. J

In some of the colonies where an Es-
tabhshed Church was supported by a tax,
special acts were passed for relieving
French Protestants of that burden, and for
granting them liberty of worship. Thus,
in 1700, the colony of Virginia enacted as
follows : " Whereas, a considerable num-
ber of French Protestant refugees have
been lately imported into his majesty's
colony and dominion, and several of which
refugees have seated themselves above the
fall of James's River, at or near the place
commonly called and known by the name
of the Monacan towns, &c., the said settle-
ment be erected into a parish, not liable to
other parochial assessments." This ex-
emptiijn was to last for seven years, and
was afterward renewed for seven more.^

These Huguenots, wherever sufficiently
numerous, at first used their own language
in public worship, and had churches of their
own, until, with one or two exceptions, and
those only for a time, they fell into either
the Presbyterian or Episcopal denomina-
tion. This must be taken as a general
statement, for their descendants may now
be found in almost all communions, as
well as in all parts of the United States.
Many members, too, of the Dutch Reform-
ed churches are descended from Hugue-

■* " History of the Evangelical Churches of New-
York."

t Holmes's "American Annals." % Ibid.

(j Ibid., p. 432, 4~■^, 492. Hening's " Statutes," p.
201. Dr. Hawks's "Episcopal Church in Virginia,"
p. 79.

nots, who had first taken refuge in Holland,
and afterward emigrated to America. Nor
must we forget the descendants of Hugue-
nots who found their first asylum in Eng-
land and Scotland. Among these was the
late excellent Divie Bethune, whose an-
cestors came originally from the town of
Bethune, not far from Calais.

On looking over the roll of the Presby-
terian churches of Charleston, South Car-
olina, there may be found the Huguenot
names of Dupre, Du Bosse, Quillin, Lau-
neau, Legare, Rosamond, Dana, Cousac,
Lequeux, Bores, Hamet, Rechon, Bize, Be-
noist, Berbant, Marchant, Mallard, Belville,
Molyneux, Chevalier, Bayard, Sayre, De
Saint Croix, Boudinot, Le Roy, Ogier, Jan-
vier, Gillet, Purviance, Guiteau, Boyer, Si-
mon, &c., &c.*

As the entire population of the American
colonies amounted only to about 200,000
souls in 1701,t more than forty years after
the commencement of the Huguenot emi-
grations, a large proportion of that number
must have been French Protestants, and
Huguenot blood accordingly must be ex-
tensively diffused among the citizens of
the United States at the present day.J It
is very obvious that so large an accession
of people, whose very presence in Ameri-
ca proved the consistency of their reli-
gious character, and who were generally
distinguished by simple and sincere piety,
must have been a great blessing to thq land
of their adoption, especially to the South-
ern States, where it was most required.
Their coming to America, on the other
hand, has been blest, under God, to them
and their descendants. Many of the first
families in New- York, Maryland, Virginia,
and the Carolinas, as well as other states,
are to be found among them, as may be
seen in many cases from their names, al-
though these have often been lost through
intermarriages, or can with difficulty be
recognised, owing to their being spelt as
they are pronounced by Anglo-Americans.
Some of the most eminent persons that
have ever adorned the United States were
of Huguenot descent. Such were no few-
er than three out of the seven presidents
of Congress, and, in a sense, of the whole
nation, during the war of the Revolution,
namely, John Jay, Henry Laurens, and
Elias Boudinot — all excellent men.

I conclude this chapter in the words of
a distinguished clergyman of the Episco-
pal Church in America.^ " And never,
probably, did any people better repay the
hospitable kindness of the land which af-
forded them a refuge. Many of their de-

* Lang's " Religion and Education in America,"
p. 24. t Holmes's " Annals."

t Lang's " Religion and Education in America,"
p. 22, 23.

^ Rev. Dr. Hawks's " History of the Episcopal
Church in Virginia."

■80

RELIGION IN AMERICA.

[Book II.

ecendants are still left in New- York, Vir-
ginia, the Carolinas, and other parts of our
country ; and among the brightest orna-
ments of the state, in the halls of legisla-
tion and of justice, as well as in the sacred
office, may be found the names of some of
the French refugees. No man in Ameri-
ca need ever blush to own himself one of
their descendants ; for the observation has
more than once been made, and it is believ-
ed to be true, that among their descend-
ants the instances have been rare indeed
of individuals who have been arraigned for
crime before the courts of the country."

CHAPTER XIII.

RELIGIOUS CHARACTER OF THE EARLV COLO-
NISTS.— EMIGRANTS FROM GERMANY.

Germans began to emigrate to America
in the latter part of the seventeenth centu-
ry, and the first comers were probably suf-
ferers in the devastations committed by the
French under Turenne in the Upper Palat-
inate, a country lying on both sides of the
"^ Rhine, having Manheim for its capital, and
including a portion of the territory which
has since been transferred from the Ger-
man Empire to France. In 1674 the
whole of it was rendered almost utterly
desolate by the troops of Louis XIV., who
had no better motive for perpetrating such
atrocities than that the invaded province
was part of the empire with which he
•was then at war, and, next, that its inhabi-
tants were almost all Protestants. So ef-
fectually did these troops do tlieir master's
bidding, that the Elector Palatine could at
one time see, from his palace at Manheim,
two cities and twenty-five villages in
ilames ! In this work of horror Turenne,
no doubt, proved to his royal master's sat-
isfaction the sincerity of his conversion
from Protestantism to Romanism, but he
forever tarnished by it his own great
name.

As persecution continued what war and
rapine had begun, on the Palatinate falling
Tinder the government of a bigot, many
German Protestants emigrated to the Eng-
lish colonies in America ; and it may be
remarked, that previously to the Ameri-
can Revolution, the German emigration,
though not always confined to the Palati-
nate, and though many of the emigrants
came from the northwest of Germany,
continued to be almost purely Protestant.

About 2700 " Palatines," as they were
called, who had souglit refuge in England,
were sent out by the British government un-
der Colonel Hunter in 1710, when that offi-
cer was transferred from the governorship
of Virginia to that of New-York ; and Ger-
man settlements were formed about that
time, and some years following, on the

" German Flats," and in some other parts
of the latter province.

In Pennsylvania this immigration is said
to have commenced in 1682 or 1683, when
Germantown, near Philadelphia, was found-
ed ; and in subsequent years, such was the
influx of those emigrants, that they and
their descendants were estimated, in 1772,
at a third of the whole population of that
province, then amounting to between
200,000 and 300,000.* In a letter dated
October 14th, 1730, Mr. Andrews says :
" There is besides in this province a vast
number of Palatines, and they come in
still every year. Those that have come
of late are mostly Presbyterians, or, as
they call themselves, Reformed ; the Pa-
latinate being about three fifths of that sort
of people." There were, however, many
Lutherans mixed with them, as Mr. A.
afterward remarks, while he adds : " In
other parts of the country they are chiefly
Reformed, so that, I suppose, the Presby-
terian party are as numerous as the Qua-
kers, or near it."f In the year 1749,
12,000 Germans arrived in that colony,
and for several years thereafter nearly
the same number came.|

From Pennsylvania they spread into
Maryland and Virginia. "The year 1713
was rendered memorable by an act of
kindness shown to certain emigrants, sim-
ilar to that which had been manifested
towards the French refugees. It seems
that a small body of Germans had settled
above the falls of the Rappahannock, on
the southern branch of the river, in the
county of Essex. This was at that period
the frontier of civilization ; and, therefore,
it was alike the suggestion of interest and
humanity to aff'ord protection and encour-
agement to these foreigners. According-
ly, they were exempted, as the French had
been, from all ordinary taxes for the term
of seven years, and were formed into the
" Parish of St. George," with power to
employ their own minister and upon their
own terms. "i^

Many Germans emigrated to the Caro-
linas also. In 1709 above 600 arrived, and
from the name of their settlement, New-
bern, they are supposed to have been
Swiss-Germans from the canton of Berne. ||
From 1730 to 1750, South Carolina receiv-
ed large accessions from Switzerland, Hol-
land, and Germany, and a great many " Pal-
atines" arrived every year.^f In 1764, 500

* Proud's " History of Pennsylvania," vol. ii., p. 273.

t Dr. Hodge's " Constitutional History of the
Presbyterian Church," vol. i., p. 50.

X Proud's "History of Pennsylvania," vol. ii., p.
273, 274.

^ Dr. Hawks's "History of the Episcopal Church
in Virginia," p. 81.

II Williamson's " History of North Carolina," vol..
1., p. 184.

^ Ramsay's " History of South Carolina," vol. i.,
p. 11.

Chap. XIV.J CHARACTER OF THE EARLY COLONISTS.

or 600 were sent over from London, and
had a township set apart for them.* Some
years later a considerable number of Ger-
man families, after having settled in Maine,
left that province to join their countrymen
at Londonderry in South Carolina, but most
of these repented having taken that step,
and returned to Maine, where their descend-
ants are to be found at this dayf.

Georgia had Germans among its very
first colonists. A band of these were led
thither by Colonel Oglethorpe, and re-en-
forcements from time to time arrived from
Europe.

The Germans who emigrated to Ameri-
<;a during the colonial era, being almost
all Protestants, organized upon tlieir arri-
val two Communions or Churches, upon
the great doctrinal principles wluch had
divided them into two denominations in
Germany — the Reformed, or the Calvin-
ists, and the Church of the Aug:sburg
Confession, or Lutherans. The history
of these churches down to the present
day will fall under our notice elsewhere.
But although diii^rence of language com-
pelled them in the first instance to have
churches of their own, many of their de-
scendants, partly from having adopted the
English tongue, partly from their wide
dispersion over the country, are now
members of the Presbyterian, Episcopal,
Methodist, and Baptist Churches.

Among the Germans who settled in
America were two small, but interesting
portions of the ancient Sclavonic churches
of Bohemia, as if to show that even the
great Eastern branch of the Christian
Church was to have its representatives
also in the New World, and to contribute to
lay the foundations of a Christian empire
there. These were the United Brethren,
or Moravians, as they are more commonly
called, and some members of the church-
es of Boliemia. The Moravians came di-
rectly from Herrnhut, the mother city of the
whole fraternity that adopt the renovating
system, received by some of the remains
of the ancient race from Count Zinzen-
dorf, in the early part of the last century.
The Bohemians came in a dispersed state
by way of Holland, but not having organ-
ized themselves as a distinct commu-
nion, these children of John Huss and Je-
rome of Prague were soon merged in the
Protestant churches of the land of their
adoption. Not so with the United Breth-

* Holmes's " American Annals," vol. ii , p. 268.

+ There is an intere.sting account of this colony
in the American Quarterly Register for Nov., 1840.
It was commenced, it would seem, in 1739, and
received several accessions from Germany, but never
became very strong, it suffered much in its early
days from the Indians, and also from lawsuits about
the titles to the lands occupied by the emigrants.
The chief place in the colony is called VValdobor-
ough, where there is a church and a pastor, but the
German language is now disused.

ren, who preserve their own organization
and peculiar institutions to this day. Be-
sides a few churches in such large cities
as Philadelphia and New-York, and some
scattered throughout the interior, they are
chietly to be found in the three settlements
of Bethlehem, Nazareth, and Lititz in Penn-
sylvania, and Salem in North Carolina.
But I shall speak of their history and pres-
ent number in another part of this work.

Previous to the Revolution, the German
emigration was not only extensive, but
also, to a considerable degree at least,
pure. The emigrants had left Europe on
account of their religion, and brought with
them into America the simple and tranquil
habits, and the frugal industry that char-
acterize the nation iVom which they came.
Not only was their general standard of
morality high, but there was not wanting
among them a goodly number of sincere
Christians, distinguished for the cultiva-
tion of all the Christian virtues. But ever
since the Revolution, and especially during
the last thirty years, a very numerous em-
igration from Germany to tiie United States
has taken place, consisting both of Protest-
ants and Roman Catholics, influenced in
expatriating themselves chiefly by worldly
considerations, and much inferior in point
of religious character to those godly emi-
grants of the same race who had been
driven to our shores by persecution and
oppression at home.

The descendants of German settlers are
very numerous in Pennsylvania, Maryland,
Virginia, and the other Southern States, as
well as in New- York, Ohio, Indiana, Illi-
nois, Michigan, Missouri, and the Territo-
ries of Wisconsin and Iowa. Indeed, they
are by far the most numerous of all the
emigrants to America that are not of the
British stock. But their influence on the
religious character of the nation has not
been equal to that of the Puritans, the
Scotch, or the Huguenots. The first Bi-
ble printed in America was Luther's ver-
sion.

CHAPTER XIV.

RELIGIOUS CHARACTER OF THE EARLY COLO-
NISTS. EiMIGRANTS FROM POLAND.

Even Poland was called upon to furnish
her contingent towards the colonization
of America, and sent over some excellent
people, whose descendants are now dis-
persed over the country.

I know not whether the fact I am about
to mention stands recorded in any history,
but it may, without hesitation, be received
as true in all material points. I received
it myself from some excellent ministers
of the Dutch Reformed Church, who are
personally acquainted with a considerable
number of the descendants of the colonists

RELIGION IN AMERICA.

[Book II.

to whom it relates. They state that in the
early part of the 18th century, a Count So-
bieski, a lineal descendant of the famous
John Sobieski III., who routed the Turks
at the battle of (>hoczia in 1G7.3, and cha-
sed them from the walls of Vienna in 16S3,
led a colony of about 200 Protestants from
Poland to the shores of America, there to
enjoy a religious freedom which was not
to be found m their native country.

In this tradition there is nothing strange.
The doctrines of the Reformation made a
considerable progress for a time in Poland,
and one or two of the kings of that coun-
try were well disposed towards it. Stipu-
lations somewhat like the Edict of Nantes
were even made, for securing liberty of
conscience and of worship to the Protest-
ants. But these were afterward disregard-
ed, the Protestants persecuted, and their
doctrines so etfectually suppressed, that a
Protestant Pole is hardly to be found now
in the whole kingdom ; for those Protest-
ants whom one meets with there are of
the German, not of the Polish race. Thus
there is nothing incredible in Poland, too,
being represented in a country where the
persecuted of every land have found a
home.

This Polish colony settled in the valleys
of the Passaic and liaritan Rivers in New-
Jersey, where there are some of their de-
scendants at the present day, while others
are dispersed over various parts of the
country. The name of Sobieski, corrupt-
ed into that of Zabriskie, is retained by a
highly respectable family, some members
of which are to be found in one district of
New Jersey, and others in the city of New-
York.

How wonderful are the ways of God !
Poland chose to cleave to Romanism and
rejected the Protestant Reformation, and
how has Romanism served her in her re-
cent dreadful struggle for national inde-
pendence ■? This question is best answered
by the pope's bull,* addressed to the bish-
ops of the kingdom in relation to that war.

CHAPTER XV.

BELIGIOUS CHARACTER OF THE EARLY COLO-
NISTS. EMIGRANTS FROM THE VALLEYS OF

PIEDMONT.

While even Bohemia, Moravia, and Po-
land thus sent forth their little bands of
faithful men to America, it is not sur-
prising that we should find some wit-
nesses to the Truth proceeding from the
valleys of Piedmont, to place themselves
in the ranks of those whom God was thus
calling from .so many nations to take part
in peopling the New World with profes-
sors of the pure Gospel. It was most fit-

* This bull is given at length in the work of the
Abbe de la Mennais entitled " Home."

ting tha^ among those there should be some,
at least, to represent that martyr-people,
veritable living relics of those churches in
the north of Italy and southwest of France,
which had remained faithful to the Truth
during long ages of apostacy, anJ whose
pi eservation was so appropriately symbol-
ized by " the bush unconsumed in the midst
of the flames."

These had heard, in the recesses of their
valleys, of the wonderful movement of
the Reformation in Germany and France.
They sent a deputation to Basel to learn
from CEcolampadius what were the senti-
ments of the Reformers, and what those
doctrines which were turning the world
upside down. They heard with joy that
the faith of the Reformers was the same
as their own, and hastened, accordingly,
to unite themselves to the general body of
faithful men, who, through much tribula-
tion, were casting oft' the yoke of that
spiritual Babylon, drunk with the blood of
saints, which had been endeavouring for
so many ages to crush their forefathers.

But before long the persecution, which
was to fall upon the whole Protestant
body, reached them also, and with fresh
violence. Neither the seclusion of their
valleys, nor the insignificance of their num-
bers, could save them from this stroke.
Then it was that the voice of Cromwell
spoke for them with a power which even
the Emperor of Germany dared not disre-
gard. And then the pen of England's great-
est poet v/as no less ready to teach a per-
secuting prince the duty that he owed to
suffering humanity, than it was " to assert
eternal providence, and justify the ways
of God to man." Those valleys contain
enduring monuments of British benevo-
lence ; the fund contributed at that time
by the Christians of Enghi'id has aided the
preaching of the Gospel to their poor in-
habitants ever since. But those who had
fled from persecution before the voice of
Britain was thus lifted up, had to be pro-
vided with an asylum, and for this they
were indebted to the city of Amsterdam,
which offered them a free passage to
America. There the few hundreds that
embraced the offer found a welcome re-
ception awaiting them.*

CHAPTER XVI.

SUMMARY.

Such, as respects the religious charac-
ter of the colonists, was the early coloniza-
tion of the United States ; and well may it
excite our wonder as altogether without a

* " Albany Records," vol. iv., p. 22.3. Lambrecht-
sten, ]). 65, vvithont quoting his authority, says COO
came over. Mr. 15ancroft, vol. ii., p. .322, thinks this
an overstatement. A second emigration was pro-
posed in 1003, but the project failed.

Chap. XVI.l CHARACTER OF THE EARLY COLONISTS.

parallel in the history of the world. What
were the colonies of Egypt, of Phoenicia,
of Greece, and Rome 1 what the colonies
of Spain and Portugal, when compared
with those we have been considering^
Before leaving the subject, let us take a
general survey of their character.

1. They were not composed of the rich,
the voluptuous, the idle, the efteminate, and
the profligate, neither were they, generally
speaking, composed of poor, spiritless, de-
pendant, and helpless persons. They rath-
er came from that middle class of socie-
ty, which is placed in the happy medium
between sordid poverty and overgrown
wealth. They knew that whatever com-
fort or enjoyment they could look for in
the New World, was only to be attained
by the blessing of God upon their indus-
try, frugality, and temperance.

2. They were not an ignorant rabble,
such as many ancient and some modern
states have been obliged to expel from
their borders. Taken in the mass, they
were well informed — many of them re-
markably so for the age in which they
lived — and which in the case of none of
them was an age of darkness. Letters
had revived ; the art of printing had dif-
fused a great amount of valuable knowl-
edge among the middle ranks of society,
and was fast carrying it down to the low-
est. With few exceptions, they had ac-
quired the elements of a good education.
There were few persons in any of the col-
onies that could not read. They were,
moreover, a thinking people, and very un-
fit to be the slaves of despotic power.

3. They were a virtuous people ; not a
vicious herd, such as used to be sent out
by ancient states, and such as chiefly col-
onized South America and Mexico, men
of unbridled passions and slaves to the ba-
sest lusts. The morality of the earJy col-
onists of the United States was unrivalled
in any community of equal extent, and has
been lauded by almost all who have writ-
ten about them, as well as by those who
governed them.

4. They were religious men. They be-
lieved and felt that Christianity is no vain
fancy— a fact that holds true even as re-
spects those of them with whom religious
motives were not the chief inducement for
expatriating themselves. The overwhelm-
ing majority stood acquitted of the slight-
est approach to infidelity. Neither were
they what are called " philosophers," at-
tempting to propagate certain new theo-
ries respecting human society, and sug-
gesting new methods for rendering it per-
fect. By far the greater number of them
were simple Christians, who knew of no
way by which men can be good or happy
but that pointed out by God in his Word.
There was not a single St. Simon or Owen
to be found among them. Some of them.

indeed, were irreligious men : some were
even openly wioked, and opposed to all
that is good. But these, in most of the
colonies, formed a very small minority.

Nor was their religion inoperative. It
produced the fruits of righteousness. They
have been blamed for their conduct to the
Indians, but not with so much justice as
has been supposed. No doubt there were
instances of individual wrong, but they can-
not be charged with any general want of
justice or kindness to the Aborigines. In
almost every case they bought from those
prior occupants the lands on which they
settled. But on this, and some other
points of a general nature, I shall have
more to say in another place.

5. With few exceptions, the first colo-
nists were Protestants ; indeed. Lord Bal-
timore's was the only Roman Catholic col-
ony, and even in it the Romanists formed
only a small minority long before the Rev-
olution of 1775. The great mass had sacri-
ficed much, some their all, for the Protest-
ant faith. They were Protestants in the
sense of men who took the Bible for their
guide, who believed what it taught, not
what human authority put in its place.
"What saith the LordV this was what
they desired first of all, and above all, to
know. And it was the study of the Bible
that opened their eyes to truths which
bore upon every possible relation of life,
and upon every duty. There they learned
to look upon all men as children of the
same heavenly Father, as redeemed by
the same Saviour, as going to the same bar
of judgment, before which all must stand
stripped of the factitious distinctions of
this world. They saw no reason, there-
fore, why one man should lord it over an-
other, since all " are of one flesh," and if
Christians, brethren in Christ. And they
learned from the Bible that obedience is-
due to rulers, not because they are differ-
ent in blood or rank from other men, but
because government is " an ordinance of
God." Obedience to God secured their
obedience to civil rulers. As God cannot
command what is wrong, no ruler can be
justified in doing so, nor can expect obe-
dience if he does. And while they learned
from the Bible what were their duties, so
they learned there also what were their
rights. This led them at once to do the
former and to demand the latter.

6. The great majority of them had suf-
fered much oppression and persecution,
and in that severe but effectual school had
learned lessons not to be acquired in any
other. It led them to question many
things to which otherwise their thoughts
might never have been directed, and it
gave them irresistible power of argument
in favour of the right of the human mind
to freedom of thought. Indeed, it is re-
markable how large a proportion of the

RELIGION IN AMERICA.

[Book II.

early colonists of the United States were
driven from Europe by oppression. Al-
though Virginia and the Carolinas were
not expressly established as asylums for
the wronged, yet during the Common-
wealth ill England they afforded a refuge
to the " Cavalier" and the " Churchman,"
as they did afterward to the Huguenot and
German Protestant. Georgia was colo-
nized as an asylum for the imprisoned and
" persecuted Protestants ;" Maryland, as
the home of persecuted Roman Catholics ;
and the colony of Gustavus Adolphus was
to be a general blessing to the " whole
Protestant world," by ofl'ering a shelter to
all who stood in need of one. Even New-
York, though founded by Dutch merchants,
with an eye to trade alone, opened its arms
to the persecuted Bohemian, and to the in-
habitant of the Italian valleys. So that,
in fact, all these colonies were originally
peopled more or less, and some of them
exclusively, by the victims of oppression
and persecution ; hence the remark of one
of our historians is no less just than elo-
quent, that " tyranny and injustice peopled
America with men nurtured in suffering
and adversity. The history of our colo-
nization is the history of the crimes of
Europe."*

7. Though incapable as yet of emanci-
pating themselves from all the prejudices
and errors of past ages, with respect to the
rights of conscience, they were at least in
advance of the rest of the world on these
points, and founded an empire in which
religious liberty is at this day more fully
enjoyed than anywhere else — in short, is
in every respect perfect.

8. Lastly, of the greater number of the
early colonists it may be said, that they ex-
patriated themselves from the Old World,
]iot merely to find liberty of conscience in
the forests of the New, but that they might
extend the kingdom of Christ, by founding
states where the Truth should not be im-
peded by the hinderances that opposed its
progress elsewhere. This was remarka-
bly the case with the Puritans of New-
England ; but a like spirit animated the pi-
ous men who settled in other parts of the
coontry. They looked to futurity, and
caught glimpses of the glorious progress
■which the Gospel was to make among their
children and children's children. This
comforted tliem in sorrow, and sustained
them under trials. They lived by faith,
and their hope was not disappointed.

-4^

CHAPTER XVII.

RELATIONS BRTWEEN THE CHURCHES AND THE
CIVIL POWER IN THE COLONIES OK AMERICA.
1. IN NEW-FNGLAND.

In treating of the religious character of

♦ Bancroft's " History of the United fcJtates," vol.
ii., p. 251.

the early Anglo-American colonies, I have
spoken incidentally only respecting their
forms of Church government, and even
now proceed to consider these only in so
far as is required for a right understanding
of the established relations between their
Churches and the civil government. I
shall elsewhere treat of the various reli-
gious communions in the United States,
or, rather, of the diverse forms in which
the Church presents itself to the world,
and the doctrines peculiar to each. We
have here to do only with the relations
which the State bore in the different colo-
nies to the Church ; and where these two
bodies were united, we shall see what
were the nature and extent of that union.

Many persons whom I have met within
Europe seem to have been altogether una-
ware of the existence of any such union in
any part of the United States, and, still
more, have had no correct idea of what the
nature of that union was in the different
parts of the country where it was to be
found. To both these classes I desire to
give all the information they may require.

If we consider for a moment what was
the state of the Christian world when these
colonies were first planted, in the early
part of the seventeenth century, we must
see that the mass of the colonists would be
very little disposed to have the Church
completely separated from the State in
their infant settlements, and the former
deriving no support from the latter. The
Church and the State were at that time in-
timately united in all the countries of Eu-
rope ; and the opinion was almost univer-
sally entertained that the one could not
safely exist without the direct counte-
nance of the other. It is not even certain
that England, or any other country, would
have granted charters for the founding of
permanent colonies, unless upon the con-
dition expressed, or well understood, that
religion was to receive the public sanction
and support. Assuredly, James 1., at least,
was not likely to consent to anything else.

Be that as it may, the first colonists
themselves had no idea of abolishing the
connexion which they saw everywhere
established between the civil powers and
the Church of Christ. To begin with New-
England, nothing can be more certain than
that its Puritan colonists, whether we look
to their declarations or their acts, never
contemplated the founding of communities
in which the Church should have no alli-
ance with the State. Their object, and it
was one tliat was dearer to them than life
itself, was to found such civil communities
as should be most favourable to the cause
of pure religion. They had left England
in order to escape from a government
which, in their view, hindered the progress
of divine truth, oppressed the conscience,
and was inexpressibly injurious to the im-

chap.xvii.] the churches and the civil power.

mortal interests of men's souls. " They
had seen in their native country the entire
subjection of the Church to the supreme
civil power ; reformation beginning and
ending according to the caprices of the
hereditary sovefeign; the Church neither
purified from superstition, ignorance, and
scandal, nor permitted to purify itself;
ambitious, time-serving, tyrannical men,
the minions of the court, appointed to the
high places of prelacy ; and faithful, skil-
ful, and laborious preachers of the Word
of God silenced, imprisoned, and deprived
of all means of subsistence, according to
the interests and aims of him or her who,
by the law of inheritance, happened to be
at the head of the kingdom. All this
seemed to them not only preposterous, but
intolerable ; and, therefore, to escape from
such a state of things, and to be where
they could freely practise ' Church Ref-
ormation,' they emigrated."*

In the formation, likewise, of their civil
institutions in the New World, they deter-
mined that, whatever else might be sacri-
ficed, the purity and liberty of their church-
es should be inviolate. Bearing this in mind,
they founded commonwealths in which the
churches were not to be subordinate to the
state. Not that they were " Fifth mon-
archy men ;" they had no wish that the
Church should engross to itself the powers
of the State, and so rule in civil as well as
in ecclesiastical matters. But they thought
it better that the State should be accom-
modated to the Church, than the Church
to the State. " It is better," said Mr. Cot-
ton, " that the commonwealth be fashioned
to the setting forth of God's house, which
is his Church, than to accommodate the
Church frame to the civil state. "f

With this in view, they sought to avail
themselves of all the lights furnished by
the experience of ancient as well as mod-
ern states, and looking especially to the
Constitution of England as it then stood,
they framed civil governments in which,
as they hoped, not only the temporal, but,
still more, the spiritual interests of mankind
might best be promoted. They considered
that they had a right to do so, and held
opinions on this point directly at variance
with those of the age in which they lived.
The fashion then was to deduce all author-
ity from the divine right of kings, and the
theory of civil power was that of uninter-
rupted hereditary succession. But the Pu-
ritan foundersof New-England thought that
" they were free to cast themselves into
that mould and form of commonwealth
which appeared best for them," in reference

* Bacon's " Historical Discourses on the Comple-
tion of 200 Years from tlie beginning of the first
Church in New-Haven," p. 17, 18.

t Cotton's " Letter to Lord Say and Seal, in
Hutchmson's History of New-England," vol, i., p.
497.

to their grand purpose ; nor did they doubt
that a government thus originating in vol-
untary compact would have equal right to
the exercise of civil authority with that of
any earthly potentate whatever.

Whatever were the details of their poli-
cy, and whatever the results of some parts
of it, it is most certain that they intended
that the Church should in no sense be sub-
ject to the State. They held the great and
glorious doctrine that Christ is the only
Head and Ruler of the Church, and that
no human legislation has a right to inter-
fere with His. It has been said that they
took the Hebrew commonwealth for their
model in civil politics, and this is so far
true. But it holds as to their penal code
more than with respect to the forms of
their civil governments. With the excep-
tion of the first few years of the Massachu-
setts Bay and New-Haven colonies, there
was no such blending of civil and religious
authority as existed in the Jewish Republic.
There was much, however, in the Hebrew
commonwealth and laws that seemed
adapted to the circumstances of men who
had just exchanged what they considered a
worse than Egyptian bondage for a Canaan
inhabited by the " heathen," whom they
were soon to be compelled " to drive out."
The two cases were more alike than at first
strikes a superficial observer.* There were

* " The laws of Moses were given to a communi-
ty emigrating from their native country to a land
which they were to acquire and occupy for the great
purpose of maintaining in simplicity and purity the
worship of the one true God. The founders of this
colony came hither for the self-same purpose. Their
emigration from their native country was a religious
emigration. Every other interest of their communi-
ty was held subordinate to the purity of their reh-
gious faith and practice. So far, then, as this point of
comparison is concerned, the laws which were given
to Israel in the wilderness may have been suited to
the wants of a rehgious colony planting itself in
America.

" The laws of Moses were given to a people who
were to live not only surrounded by heathen tribes
on every frontier save the seaboard, but also with the
heathen inhabitants, worshippers of the devil, inter-
mixed among them, not fellow-citizenb, but men of an-
other and barbarous race ; and the laws were therefore
framed with a special reference to the corrupting in-
fluence of such neighbourhood and intercourse. Sim-
ilar to this was the condition of our fathers. The Ca-
naanite was in the land, with his barbarian vices, with
his heathenish and hideous superstitions ; and their
servants and children were to be guarded against the
contamination of intercourse with beings so degraded.

"The laws of the Hebrews were designed for a
free people. Under those laws, so unlike all the in-
stitutions of Oriental despotism, there was no abso-
lute power, and, with the exception of the hereditary
priesthood, whose privileges, as a class, were well
balanced by their labours and disabilities, no privi-
leged classes. The aim of those laws was ' equal
and e.xact justice ;' and equal and e.xact justice is the
only freedom. Equal and exact justice, in the laws
and in the administration of the laws, infuses free-
dom into the being of a people, secures the widest
and most useful distribution of the means of enjoy-
ment, and affords scope for the activity and health-
ful stimulus to the affections of every individual.
The people whose habits and sentiments are formed

RELIGION IN AMERICA.

[Book II.

parts of the Mosaic law, excluding, of
course, all that was typical, ceremonial,
and local, which the colonists thought they
might do well to adopt, until, in the course
of time, they should find reasons for chan-
ging to something better. Had it been the
laws of Solon, Lycurgus, Numa, or Alfred
that tliey adopted, some who now ridicule
would perhaps have applauded tliem, as if
Moses were inferior to any of those law-
givers. There are men who know more of
the laws of Solon, and even of Minos, than
about Moses, and who, in their ignorance,
talk of the Jews of the days of Moses as if
almost, if not altogether, savages ; not
knowing that they were quite as much civ-
ilized as any of their contemporaries, and
had institutions prescribed to them by the
Supreme Ruler and Lawgiver.

It is remarkable that, with the exception
of the Plymouth settlers, all the first New-
England colonists — all who founded Mas-
sachusetts Bay, New-Hampshire, Maine,
Connecticut, New-Haven, Providence, and
Rhode Island — up to their leaving England,
were members of ihe Established Church.
The Plymouth people alone were Inde-
pendents,* had had their church organized
on that principle for years, and were such
even before they went to Holland. If any
of the other original colonists of New-Eng-
land had been thrust out from the Estab-
lished Church of the mother-country, they
had not organized themselves on any other
principle ; and, however opposed to the
spirit of its rulers and to some of its cere-
monies and usages, that they were attached
to the Church itself, as well as to many of
those wliom they had left within its pale, is
manifest from the letter of Governor Win-
throp and his associates, just after embark-
ing for America.

But on arriving there they immediately
proceeded to the founding of an ecclesias-
tical economy upon the Independent plan,
having for its essential principles, " That,
according to the Scriptures, every church
ought to be confined within the limits of a
single congregation, and that the govern-
ment should be democratical ; that church-
es should be constituted by such as desired
to be members, making a confession of
their faith in the presence of each other,
and signing a covenant ; that the whole
power of admitting and excluding mem-

tinder such an administration of justice will be a
free people." — Bacon^s " Historical Discourses,'" p.
30,31.

* They were not, properly speaking, Scparati.ils,
in the distinctive sense in which that word was used
at that epoch, viz., those who not only refused to
have any sort of comnuinion with the Established
Church, but denounced all who did. The Separa-
tists were exceedingly bitter in their hostility to eve-
rything which bore the name of the Establi.shed
Church of England. The farewell address of John
Robinson, to the Pilgrims who left Leyden to plant
the colony at Plymouth, breathed a very different
spirit.

bers, with the deciding of all controversies,
was in the brotherhood ; that church-offi-
cers, for preaching the Word and taking
care of the poor, were to be chosen by
tiie free suffrages of the brethren ; that in
church censures, there should be an entire
separation of the ecclesiastical from the
civil sword ; that Christ is the Head of the
Church ; that a liturgy is not necessary ;
and that all ceremonies not prescribed by
the Scriptures are to be rejected."

But how are we to account for a change
in their views so sudden and so great I
Even when Winthrop left England in 1630,
neither the Presbyterian nor the Independ-
ent doctrines as to Church government had
made that progress in public opinion which
they had made when the Long Parliament,
and Cromwell and his army, began to play
their parts. It is quite possible, or, rather,
all but certain, that several of the ministers
in the Massachusetts Bay colony were low
Episcopalians, and friends of Archbishop
Usher's scheme ; but if all of the leading
colonists were as much inclined to Presby-
terianism as has been thought by some, it
is hard to imagine why they did not estab-
lish that form of government. It is diffi-
cult to make out, on the other hand, why
they diverged so widely, and at once, from
the Episcopal economy, as to adopt Inde-
pendency, which is almost antipodal.

This, it appears to me, may be referred
to two or three causes. First, it is natural
that, on quitting England, where they had
suffered so much from Prelacy, they should
renounce an ecclesiastical system that con-
ferred upon any men powers so capable of
being abused ; nor can it be thought surpri-
sing that in such circumstances they should
run to the opposite extreme, and prefer an
ecclesiastical government of the most dem-
ocratical sort. Another, and much more
powerful reason, for their rejecting Epis-
copacy would be, that they might escape
the jurisdiction of the bishops, which would
otherwise unquestionably have followed
them. And, lastly, there can be no doubt
that they were much influenced by what
they saw and heard of the Plymouth colo-
ny. It will be remembered tliat the first
division of the Massachusetts Bay settlers,
under Endicott, reached Salem in 1628, and
that the main body, under Winthrop, fol-
lowed in 1630, and founded Boston. It
would seem that the Rev. Mr. Higginson,
the distinguished minister in Endicott's col-
ony, led tlie way in effecting the change,
he having, upon his arrival at Salem, or
soon afterward, introduced the Independ-
ent plan among his people, though not with-
out much difficulty, being opposed by the
two Brownes, John and Samuel, who, in
consequence of this opposition, had to re-
turn to Englaixl. Mr. Higginson was dis-
posed to receive very favourably the ac-
counts transmitted from the Plymouth col-

Chap. XYll.]

THE CHURCHES AND THE CIVIL POWER.

oriy on the other side of the bay. It is true
that Edward Winslow, in his " Brief Nar-
rative," as well as Cotton, in his " Way,"
&c., undertake to prove that Plymouth did
not exert the influence that has been as-
cribed to it, and which has even by Gorton
and his accomplices been charged against
it as a crime. But I think it clear that they
admit the substance of the charge.*

The Church, then, that was established
in all the New-England colonies, with the
exception of Providence and Rhode Isl-
and,! was what is termed in the United
States, Congregational, and in England,
Independent ; though there is some differ-
ence between the Congregational churches
in the former of these countries, and the
Independent in the latter, as I shall show
in another part of this work. I speak here
of the form of government. As for doc-
trines, they were essentially those of the
Thirty-nine Articles of the Church of Eng-
land ; in other words, Calvinistic.

Let us now see what were the relations
between the Church and the State, or
" Commonwealth," in New-England. In
every colony there, except the two above
mentioned, the object of one of the first
acts of civil legislation was to provide for
the support of public worship, and other
laws followed from time to time to the
same effect, as circumstances required.
Without going into unnecessary details,
suffice it to say, that parishes or " towns"
of a convenient size were ordered to be
laid out, and the people were directed to
levy taxes by the proper authorities of
their respective towns, for erecting and
keeping in due repair a suitable " meeting-

* Winslow says, "It is true, I confess, that some
of the chief of them," referring to the colony of Mas-
sachusetts Bay, " advised with us how they should
do to fall upon a right platform of worship, and de-
sired to that end, since God had honoured us to lay
the foundation of a commonwealth, and to settle a
church in it, to show them whereupon our practice
was grounded ; and if they found, upon due search,
it was built upon the Word of God, they would he
willing to take up what was from God." He then
goes on to say, that they of Plymouth showed them
the warrant for their government in the Acts of the
Apostles, the Epistles, and the Gospels ; and that their
friends, the other colonists, were well pleased there-
with, and also agreed to walk in the same way, so far
as God should reveal his will to them, from time to
time, in his Word. As for Cotton, he says, "Thedis-
suader is much mistaken when he saith, ' The con-
gi-egation of Plymouth did incontinently leaven all
the vicinity,' seeing for many years there was no vi-
cinity to be leavened. And Salem itself, that was
gathered into church order seven or eight years after
them, was above forty miles distant from them. And
though it be very likely that some of the first- comers
(meaning Endicott and Higginson) might help their
theory by hearing and discerning their practice at
Plymouth, yet therein is the Scripture fulfilled, "The
kingdom of heaven is like unto leaven, which a wom-
an took and hid in three measures of meal till all was
leavened.' "

t And it too may be called Congregational, for it
was founded by Baptists, whose churches are essen-
tially indepeadent in form of government.

house," for the maintenance of a pastor or
minister, and for all other necessary ex-
penses connected with public worship. I
am not aware of any exemption from this
law being allowed for a long time after the
colonies were founded. Such was the fun-
damental union of Church and State in the
colonies that now form the States of Mas-
sachusetts, Connecticut, New-Hampshire,
and Maine.

The next law adopted in the Massachu-
setts Bay colony dates from 1631, the year
after the arrival of Winthrop and his com-
pany, and, as we shall hereafter see, it
was pregnant at once with evil and with
good. It ran thus : " To the end that the
body of the commons may be preserved of
honest and good men, it is ordered and
agreed, that for the time to come, no man
shall be admitted to the freedom of this
body politic but such as are members of
some of the churches within the limits of
the same."* In other words, no one was
to vote at elections, or could be chosen to
any office in the commonwealth, without
being a member of one of the churches.
This law was long in force in Massachu-
setts and in Maine, which, until 1820, was
a part of that state ; but it never prevailed,
I believe, in New-Hampshire, and was un-
known, of course, in Rhode Island. But a
like law existed from the first in New-
Haven, and when that colony was united,
in 1662, with Connecticut, where this had
not been the case, it became, I believe,
part of the legislation of the united colony.

Thus we find two fundamental laws on
this subject prevailing in New-England —
the one universal, with the exception of
Rhode Island ; the other confined to Massa-
chusetts, Connecticut, and Maine. In re-
stricting the exercise of political power to
men who, as members of the Church, were
presumed to be loyal to the grand princi-
ple of the colony to which they belonged,
namely, the maintenance of purity of doc-
trine and liberty of worship, as the first
consideration, and of free political govern-
ment as necessary to it, the authors of
that law doubtless contemplated rather the
protection of their colonists from appre-
hended dangers than the direct promotion
of piety.

This principle, in fact, down to the found-
ing of these colonies, seems to have been
adopted substantially by all nations. Popish
and Protestant, Mohammedan and Hea-
then ; so much so that Davenport said,
" These very Indians, that worship the
devil," acted on the same principle, so that,
in his judgment, "it seemed to be a prin-
ciple imprinted in the minds and hearts of
all men in the equity of it."t We need

* Bancroft's "History of the United States," vol.
i., p. 3G0.

t " Discourse about Civil Goverment," p. 24, as
quoted in Bacon's " Historical Discourses."

RELIGION IN AMERICA.

[Book II.

hardly remind the reader that this allegi-
ance to the Christian Faith was, until very
lately, indispensable to the holding of any
office under the crown in England, and
that receiving the sacrament in the Es-
tablished Church was the legal test of a
man's possessing it.

In conclusion, I ought to state, that in
the New-England colonies the ministers
of the Gospel had no part, as such, in the
civil government. They were confined to
their proper office and work. Yet no men
had more influence, even in affairs of state.
As a body of enlightened patriots, whose
opinion it was important to obtain, they
were consulted by the political authorities
in every hour of difficulty ; and although
cases might be found in which the leading
men among them, at least, did not advise
their fellow-citizens wisely, it was much
otherwise in the great majority of instan-
ces. Such was the state of things through-
out the whole colonial age ; and to this
day, in no other country is tlie legitimate
influence of the clergy in public affairs —
an influence derived from their intelli-
gence, united with religion, virtue, and
public spirit — more manil^est, or more sal-
utary, than in New-England. If these col-
onies might be compared, in their earlier
periods, to the Hebrew commonwealth, it
is certain that, wherever there was a Mo-
ses, there was also an Aaron ; and the in-
fluence of Winthrop, and Haynes, and
Bradford, and Eaton, was not greater or
happier than that of their compeers and
coadjutors, the Rev. Messrs. Cotton, and
Hooker, and Brewster, and Davenport.

CHAPTER XVIII.

RELATIONS BETWEEN THE CHURCH AND THE

CIVIL POWER IN THE COLONIES. 2. THE

SOUTHERN AND MIDDLE PROVINCES.

Virginia, too, like New-England, was
first colonized by members of the Church
of England ; but there was a vast differ-
ence between the views of the admirers
of the English Prelacy of tliat time and
those of the Puritans. The P^stablished
Church was then composed, in fact, of two
great divisions, which in spirit, at least,
have more or less existed ever since, and
were represented in the colonization of
America by the High Churchmen and Cav-
aliers of the South, on the one hand, and
the Puritans of the North on the other.
While the latter left England in order to
escape from the oppressions inflicted on
them by the Prelacy, abetted by the Crown,
the former had no complaint against either,
but carried with them a cordial attach-
ment to both.

In the original charter of James I. to
Virginia, it was specially enjoined that re-

ligion should be established according to
the doctrines and rites of the Church of
England ; every emigrant was bound to
allegiance to the king, and to conformity
with the royal creed.* Still, it does not
appear that any provision was made for
the clergy until 1619, that is, twelve years
after the commencement of the colony.
A Legislative Assembly, elected by the
colonists, met that year for the first time,
and passed laws for the formation of pai'-
islies and the regular maintenance of the
clergy ; accordingly, the establishment of
the Episcopal Church dates formally, if
not really, from that year.

Previously to this, however, and during
the governorship of Sir Thomas Dale, the
London Company sent over to Virginia a
set of " laws, divine, moral, and martial,"
being, apparently, the first fruits of Sir
Thomas Smith's legislation ; and from
their Draconian character, they give us
some idea of the notions entertained in
those times of the ways whereby religion
might be promoted by the civil power.
They were so bad, it is true, as to be httle,.
if at all enforced. In short, they soon fell
into complete desuetude, and were dis-
claimed, at length, by the company, with-
out whose sanction they seem to have been,
prepared and sent. Yet there is ample ev-
idence to prove that they breathed very
much the spirit of the times that produced
them, and of the party in the Church of
England to which their author belonged —
a spirit which, thank God ! has long since
ceased to exist in that or any other portion
of the Church of Clirist in that country.

The first of those laws that bears upon
religion enjoins on the officers of the col-
ony, of every description, to have a care
that " the Almightie God bee duly and dai-
ly served," that the people " heare ser-
mons," that they themselves set a good
example therein, and that they punish such
as shall be often and wilfully absent, "ac-
cording to martial law in the case provi-
ded."

The second law forbids, upon pain of
death, speaking against the sacred Trinity,-
or any Person of the same, or against the
known articles of the Christian Faith.

The third law forbids blasphemy of God's
holy name, upon pain of death ; and the
use of all uiflawful oaths, upon severe pun-
ishment for the first offence, the boring of
tlie tongue with a bodkin for the second,
and death for the tliird.

The fourth law forbids speaking disre-
spectfully of the Word of God, upon pain
of death, as well as the treating of minis-
ters of the Gospel with disrespect; and en-
joins the " holding of them in all reverent
regard and dutiful entreatie," under penal-
ty of being whipped three times, and of

* Bancroft's " History of the United States," vol.
i., p. 123.

Chap. XVIII.] THE CHURCHES AND THE CIVIL POWER.

" asking forgiveness in the assembly of the
congregation three severall Saboth daies."

The fifth law enjoins upon all to attend
morning and evening, every week-day, in
the church for service, at the tolling of
the bell, upon pain of losing their daily al-
lowance* for the first omission, to be whip-
ped for the second, sent to the galleys for
six months for the third. It also forbids
all violation of the Sabbath by gaming, and
commands the people to prepare them-
selves by private prayer for the proper at-
tendance upon the public worship, fore-
noon and afternoon, upon pain of losing
their week's allowance for the first omis-
sion, the same and a whipping for the sec-
ond, and death for the third.

The sixth enjoins upon every minister
within the colony to preach every Sabbath
morning, and catechise in the afternoon ; to
have a service morning and evening every
day, and preach on Wednesday 4; " to chuse
unto him foure of the most religious and
better disposed" to maintain a sort of spir-
itual police, and to see that the church be
kept in a good and decent state, and that
he keep a register of births, deaths, bap-
tisms, &c., " upon the burthen of a neglect-
full conscience, and upon paine of losing
their entertainment."

The seventh law commands " all who
Avere then in the colony, or who shall
thenceforth arrive, to repair to the minis-
ter, that he may know, by conference had,
their religious knowledge ; and if any be
deficient, they are enjoined to go to him,
at times which he shall appoint, to receive
farther instruction, which, if they refuse to
do, the governor, upon representation of
the fact, shall order the delinquent to be
whipped once for the first omission, twice
for the second, and every day till acknowl-
edgment be made and forgiveness asked
for the third ; and also commands every
man to answer, when catechised respect-
ing his faith and knowledge upon the Sab-
bath, upon pain of the same peril. "f

Such was Sir Thomas Smith's code, and
truly it may be said to promote religion
with a vengeance. To the credit of the
governor and council, it seems never to
have been enforced.

Previously to the dissolution of the com-
pany, iu 1624, the Colonial Legislature
passed a number of laws relating to the
Church ; three of the most important were
as follows :

1. That in every plantation where the

* For some time after the colony of Vir^nia was
planted, a!i provisions were served out from the com-
mon storehouse. It was not long, however, before
this plan of having all things in common gave place
to the " individual prmciple"of each having what he
could gain by his personal exertions.

t These lavvs must be considered far more intol-
erant and abhorrent to the spirit of Christianity than
any of the statutes taken by the New-England Puri-
tans from those of the Hebrew Commonwealth.

people were wont to meet for the worship
of (iod, there should be a house or room
set apart for that purpose, and not convert-
ed to any temporal use whatsoever ; and
that a place should be impaled and seques-
tered only for the burial of the dead.

2. That whosoever should absent him-
self from Divine service any Sunday, with-
out an allowable excuse, should forfeit a
pound of tobacco ; and that he who absent-
ed himself a month, should forfeit fifty
pounds of tobacco.*

3. That there should be a uniformity in,
the Church as near as might be, both in
substance and circumstance, to the canons
of the Church of England ; and that all
persons should yield a ready obedience tO'
them upon pain of censure. f

Upon the company being dissolved, the
colony fell under the immediate govern-
ment of the crown, which thenceforth ap-
pointed the governors, as well as decided,
in the last instance, upon all laws passed
by the Assembly, the Council, and the gov-
ernor. And from about the year 1629, the
laws requiring conformity to the Estab-
lished Church were strictly enforced, and
infractions of them visited with severe pen-
alties.

During the period of the " Grand Rebel-
lion" in England, and while the Common-
wealth lasted, Virginia sympathized strong-
ly with the cause of the tottering, and,
eventually, fallen throne and altar, and
many of the friends of both found refuge
there during Cromwell's Protectorate. It
may be remarked, however, that the colony
did not meet with such a recompense from,
the restored royal house as its loyalty just-
ly merited.

In 1662, in obedience to instructions from
the crown, the Virginia Legislature enact-
ed several laws for the more effectual sup-
port of the Established Church, the promo-
tion of the education of youth generally,
and of candidates for the ministry in partic-
ular. But it was long before the " college"
contemplated by these laws was actually
established.

Early in the eighteenth century, if not
even sooner, the laws of Virginia, requi-
ring strict conformity to the Established
Church, must either have been modified,
or had begun to fall into neglect, there be-
ing positive evidence that Presbyterian
meetings were held for public worship in
1722. From that period until the Revolu-

* Tobacco was the chief article of traffic which
the country produced at that time, and was often
used as a substitute for a monetary circulating me-
dium.

t It will be seen, from these laws, that the actual
legislation of the more liberal " Cavaliers" of the
South was not a whit more tolerant than that of
the bigoted " Roundheads" of New-England. So it
ever is ; the religion of the world, with all its vaunt-
ed liberality, is found to be more intolerant, wherever
it has a chance, than serious, earnest, evangelical
piety.

KELIGION IN AMERICA.

[Book II.

tion, avowed dissenters increased steadily
and rapidly, and previously to 1775 there
were many Baptist, Presbyterian, Luther-
an, and Quaker churches within the colo-
ny. Still, the Episcopal Church predomi-
nated, and it alone was supported by law.

Maryland, founded by Roman Catholics,
had no union of Church and State, no legal
provision for any religious sect, and toler-
ated all until 1692,* when Protestant Epis-
copacy was estabhshed by law, the coun-
try divided into parishes, and the clergy,
as in Virginia, supported by a tax upon the
inhabitants. This was one of the results
of the Revolution of 1688 in England, and
■of the wide-spread abhorrence of popery
which prevailed at that time, and long af-
terward, both in the nioiher-country and
her colonies. Gradually, and not without
encountering many obstacles, the Episco-
pal Church advanced in the number of its
parishes and clergy until the American
Revolution, and though all other sects had
ever been tolerated, was the only one sup-
ported by the State. Of the good and bad
effects of that establishment we shall speak
hereafter.

In South Carolina, all sects were at first
protected by the Proprietaries. In 1704,
■liowever, the friends of the Episcopal
Church having, by the arts of Nathaniel
Moore, obtained a majority of one in the
Representative Assembly of a colony two
thirds of whose inhabitants were not Epis-
copalians, abruptly disfranchised all but
themselves, and gave the Church of Eng-
land a monopoly of political power. But
the dissenters having appealed to the
House of Lords in England, the acts com-
plained of were annulled by the crown, and,
cconsequently, repealed by the Colonial As-
sembly, two years afterward. Neverthe-
less, although the dissenters were tolera-
ted, and admitted to a share in the civil
government, the Church of England re-
mained the Established Church of the prov-
ince until the Revolution.!

In the same year, 1704, influenced by
-zeal or bigotry, the Proprietaries forced a
Church Establishment upon the people of
North Carolina, though presenting at that
time an assemblage of almost all religious
denominations — Quakers, Lutherans, Pres-
byterians, Independents, &c. But, accord-
ing to the royalists, the majority were
" Quakers, Atheists, Deists, and other evil-

"^ Strictly speaking, it might be said that this
statement is not quite exact. For when Cromwell's
cointiussioners came into possession of the colony,
in 1054, the Legislature, which was wholly subservi-
ent to Clayborne, a tool of the; Protector, passed a
law suppressing public worship among Roman Cath-
olics and Episcopalians. And four years afterward,
Fendall, acting as governor, at first in the name of
the Proprietaries, and afterward by his own usurpa-
tion, undertook to persecute the Quakers. But both
these exceptions were of short duration.

t Bancroft's " History of the United States," vol.
iii., p. 18, 19.

disposed persons." From that time glebes
and a clergy began to be spoken of, and
churches were ordered to be erected at the
public cost. But we shall see that the
Established Church made slow progress in
North Carolina.

As long as New- York was under the
Dutch government, the churches of that
colony supported their pastors by volun-
tary contributions, and there was no union
of Church an^- State.* But on its falling
into the hands of the English, as the royal
governors and other officers sent over to
administer public affairs were all admirers
of the Established Church of England, they
very naturally wished to see it supersede
the Dutch Church, while, at the same time,
the English tongue supplanted the Dutch
as the language of the colony. Governor
Fletcher, accordingly, in 1693, prevailed on
the Legislature to pass an act for the estab-
lishment of certain churches and ministers,
reserving the right of presentation to the
vestrymen and church-wardens. This act
was so construed, two years after, that
Episcopal ministers alone received the
benefit of it, although this does not appear
to have been the expectation or the inten-
tion of the Legislature. From that period
till the Revolution, the Episcopal was the
Established Church, although, at the time
of its becoming so, it was reckoned that
nine tenths of the population belonged to
other communions.

East and West New-Jersey, united into
one province, and placed under the admin-
istration of the crown in 1702, had its future
government laid down in the commission
and instructions to Lord Cornbury. Toler-
ation being allowed by these to all but pa-
pists, and special " favour" invoked for the
Church of England, that church was so far
established there, seventy-three years be-
fore the American Revolution. In Penn-
sylvania there never was any union of
Church and State, nor, so far as I know,
any attempt to bring it about. Delaware
was separated from Pennsylvania in 1691,
and from that time had its own governors,
under the immediate control of the crown.
But in Delaware, as well as in New-Jersey
and in Georgia, the colony of the good
cavalier, James Oglethorpe, who loved
" the King and the Church," there can hard-
ly be said to have been an establishment,
as the " favour" shown to the Episcopal
Church secured a maintenance for a very

* It cannot be said, I fear, that the early Dutch
colonists, or, rather, their colonial governors, were
very tolerant. Though there was no union of the
Church and State, they were very jealous of allow-
ing any other than the Reformed Dutch Church to
exist among them. A little band of Lutherans, who
joined the colony almost at its commencement, were
not allowed to hold their worship publicly until the
country passed into the hands of the English.— Pro-
fessor Schmufker's " Retrospect of Lutheranism in the
, United Stales," p. 6.

Chap. XIX.]

UNION OF CHURCH AND STATE.

small number of ministers only, and that
more for the benefit and gratification of the
officers connected with the government,
and their families, than with the view of
reaching the bulk of the people, who pre-
ferred other modes of worship.

In fine, as the colonial period drew to a
close, there were only two colonies in
which the civil power did not employ its
influence in supporting one or other of two
Communions or Churches. In New-Eng-
land it gave its support to Congregational-
ism, or, as it is called in Britain, Inde-
pendency, that being established in all the
colonies of that province, with the single
small exception of Rhode Island. In the
colonies to the south of these, from New-
York to Georgia, with the exception of
Pennsylvania, Episcopacy was the favour-
ed form. Even in these last, however,
there were material differences in the ex-
tent to which the principle of a church es-
tablishment was carried out. In New-
Jersey, Delaware, North Carolina, and
Georgia, that establishment was quite in-
considerable, whereas in Virginia, Mary-
land, New- York, and South Carolina, it
may be regarded as having been widely
and powerfully influential.

Were we to select two colonies from
each of these divisions as examples of the
two favoured types of Church government,
so diverse, yet about equally favoured by
legal enactments and a public provision,
we should take Massachusetts and Connec-
ticut in the North, and Virginia and Mary-
land in the South. In these we may com-
pare and contrast the nature and influence
of Independency, or the most popular form
of church organization, with Episcopacy ;
or Puritanism with High-churchism, among
the descendants of tlie Anglo-Saxons and
the Normans of the New Warld.

CHAPTER XIX.

THE INFLUENCES OF THE UNION OF CHURCH
AND STATE AS IT FORMERLY EXISTEO IN
AMERICA. 1. IN NEW-ENGLAND.

In entering upon this part of my work, I
should like my readers to unders.tand that
I wish simply to state the results, good or
evil, of the union of Church and State in
America, in so far as these were the proper
fruits of the particular sort of union exist-
ing in one or other, respectively, of the
two important sections of the country
above mentioned ; and that I have no in-
tention of discussing the advantages or dis-
advantages of a union of Church and State
in the abstract. We have to do, therefore,
with the actual results in America, not with
what they might have been in other cir-
cumstances. And as the union between
Church and State in the Northern section

differed in some important respects from
that which prevailed in the South, I shall
give a separate consideration to each, and
begin with New-England.

Let us first consider what were the ad-
vantages resulting from this union.

I. It is not to be denied that it proved
beneficial, by securing the ministrations of
the Gospel to the colonial settlements, as
fast as these were formed. The law pro-
vided that the country occupied should be
divided into " towns," or parishes, with well-
defined boundaries, and that as soon as a
certain number of families should be found
residing within these boundaries, a meeting
should be called by the proper local officers,
and steps taken for the establishment of
public worship. The expense of building
such a church as the majority of the inhab-
itants, or legal voters, might choose to
erect, was, like other taxes, to be levied on
the people of the township, according to
their properties and polls, and the pastors
stipend was, in like manner, to be fixed by
the decision of the majority at a like meet-
ing of legal voters, and raised by a general
yearly tax.

Thus it will be seen that the township
was left to decide what sort of building
should be erected, how much should be ex-
pended upon it, and the amount of the pas-
tor's stipend. As the pastor was chosen
by the people, without any interference on
the part of the civil authorities, or any other
person, individual or corporate, the evils of
patronage were unknown. In the choice
of a pastor, however, be it observed, that it
was the invariable rule from the first, that
he should be called by the " church," that
is, by the body of believers or actual mem-
bers of the church — the communicants —
and afterward by the " town," that is, by
the legal voters, the vote of a majority of
them being requisite to the validity of a
call. This plan, so eminently Democratical,
seemed calculated to give all parties their
rights. In case of the " church" and the
" town" disagreeing as to the choice of a
pastor, some means were almost always
found for bringing about unanimity. Such,
in brief, was the plan pursued for above
150 years in Massachusetts, and, if I am
not mistaken, in all the other New-Eng-
land States, where the civil power was in
union v/ith the Church.

Such a law as this, if enforced, it will
be admitted, must have made the estab-
lishment of public worship keep pace with
the increase of the population, wherever
that became numerous enough, in any given
direction, for the building of churches, and
also must have secured to ministers of the
Gospel a steadier, and possibly, too, an am-
pler support than otherwise. But it may
be questioned whether the New-England
Puritans, with the dispositions and the ob-
jects they had in view in coming to the

RELIGION IN AMERICA.

[Book IJ.

New World, would not have accomplished
of their own accord, and on what is called
the voluntary plan, very nearly the same
results, as we see is now done in Maine and
elsewhere, since the union between Church
and State has ceased. I am willing-, how-
ever, to allow that the system I have de-
scribed was in this respect decidedly bene-
ficial. The mere support of public wor-
ship was certainly never provided for in a
more popular or less exceptionable man-
ner. I speak of the law as it stood at the
outset, and for a long while thereafter.
We shall see presently what evils flowed
from it.

2. I have already stated that in Massa-
chusetts, and if not in the Connecticut
colony, at least in that of New-Haven,
political trust and power were confined to
members of the churches. It were absurd
to suppose that this law was adopted as a
means of promoting religion ; its authors
were too well acquainted with human na-
ture to have any such expectation. Their
grand object was to confine the exercise
of political power to persons in whom they
could confide. As they have been severe-
ly censured for their intolerance in this
respect, very much from ignorance, I con-
ceive, of their peculiar position, I may be
allowed to dwell for a moment on the sub-
ject. They had made a long voyage to
establish a colony in the wilderness, where
they and their children might enjoy liberty
of conscience, and worship God in purity.
Being all of one mind on the subject of
religion, as well as other great points, they
thought that they were fully authorized to
establish such a colony, and certainly it
would be hard to prove that they were not.
In these circumstances, what more natu-
ral than their endeavouring to prevent per-
sons from coming in among them to defeat
their object? Desiring, above all things,
that their institutions should continue to
be pervaded in all time coming with the
spirit in which they had been commenced,
they determined, in order to secure this,
that none but the members of their church-
es should enjoy the rights and privileges
of citizens, and by this they hoped to guard
against both internal and external ene-
mies. Dreading interference on the part
of England, alarmed lest the partisans of
the Prelacy, from which they liad just es-
caped, should come among them and over-
throw their institutions, both civil and re-
ligious, their object was to put an impas-
sable gulf between themselves and persons
who had no sympathy with their views
and feelings. And this object they cer-
tainly accomplished. They rescued their
institutions from the clutches of Charles I.
and Archbishop Laud.* But in doing so

♦ It is well known that Witithrop and his com-
pany were scarcely settled three years in Massachu-
setts before King Charles began to repent that he

they exposed themselves to the greatest
of evils — evils whose disastrous influence
on Truth have not ceased to be felt down
to this day.

3. While the above law, no doubt, had
the eff'ect of keeping out of the govern-
ment of the colony all influences which in
those trying times might militate against
its best interests, it is no less certain that
it kept away men of a troublesome char-
acter. Many, in fact, who made the ex-
periment, speedily became weary of a col-
ony where their restless spirits found littl&
or no scope for interference, and accord-
ingly soon left, either for some other col-
ony, or for England.

Such, I consider, were the most impor-
tant advantages resulting from the union of
Church and State in Massachusetts, and
some other of the New-England colonies ;
and I am not disposed to deny that these
advantages were of no small moment in
the circumstances in which the colonists
were placed. I have next to point out
some of the evils resulting from it.

1. It gave rise to internal difiiculties of
the gravest nature with such of the colo-
nists as were not disposed to agree to all
the measures by which it was carried out,
and led to the adoption of the harshest
proceedings against those persons. One
of the first cases of this kind was that of
Roger Williams, in 1633-35, and it shook
the colony to its centre. That remarkable
man had been educated for the English
bar under the patronage of Sir Edward
Coke ; but influenced by the conviction
that he was called to the ministry, he took
orders in the Established Church. Expel-
led from that Church by the bishops, on
account of his Puritanical principles, he
came to Boston in 1631.

had consented to the charter. The success of the
Puritans in .\merica awakened the jealousy of Laud
and all the High Church party among the clergy.
Proof was produced of marriages having been per-
formed in the colony by civil magistrates; and it
was discovered that the whole colonial system of
Church government was at variance with the laws
of England. A most formidable conspiracy was
formed against New-England, and never were colo-
nies in greater danger. Even the letters patent were
ordered, by the royal council, to be produced in Eng-
land ; and nothing but the greatest adroitness on the
part of the colonists postponed a compliance with
the measure, for the primate, Archbishop Laud, and
his associates actually received full power over the
American plantations, to establish the government,
dictate laws, govern the Church, &c., &c. Every-
thing seemed to threaten ruin. In the mean viiiile
the colonists remonstrated, defended themselves in
Iheir letters as well as they could, and raised money
to fortify Boston. They had great need, truly, to
be vigilant in respect to the admission of persons to
authority among them. As it was, nothing saved
them, probably, but the breaking out of the civil war
in Great Britain, which gave Charles 1. enough to do
at home. For the details of these matters the read-
er is referred to the writings of Winthrop, Savage,
Hubbard, Hutchinson, Hazzard, and the excellent
statement in Bancroft's " History of the United
States," vol. i., p. 405-414.

Chaf. XIX.]

UNION OF CHURCH AND STATE.

Taught by persecution to examine how
far human governments are authorized to
legishite for the human mind, and to bind
its facuhies by their decisions, Williams
soon perceived that a course w^as pursued
in America which he could not but con-
demn as repugnant to tjie rights of con-
science. Regarding all intolerance as sin-
ful, he maintained that " the doctrine of
persecution for cause of conscience is
most evidently and lamentably contrary
to the doctrine of Jesus Christ." The law
required the attendance of every man at
public worship ; Williams pronounced this
to be wrong, for to drag the unwilling to
public worship looked like requiring hy-
pocrisy. Not less did he oppose the law
that taxed all men for the support of a
system of religious worship which some
might dislike and conscientiously disap-
prove. " What !" exclaimed his antago-
nists, " is not the labourer worthy of his
hire V " Yes," he repUed, " from them
that hire him." Public functionaries were
to be taken only from among members of
the Church; Williams argued that, with
like propriety, " a doctor of physic, or a
pilot," might be selected according to his
skill in theology and his standing in the
Church.* In the end, Roger Williams was
banished from the fcolony, and having re-
tired to Narragansett Bay, there he be-
came a Baptist, and founded what is now
the state called Rhode Island. Absolute
religious liberty was established there from
the first.

The next case occurred in 1637, and
ended in the expulsion of Wheelwright,
Anne Hutchinson, and Aspinwall, who, al-
though they held some very extravagant
notions on certain points, would have been
harmless persons had the only weapon
employed against them been Truth.

Testimony to the like effect is borne by
the history of the colony in subsequent
years. " Since a particular form of wor-
ship had become a part of the civil estab-
lishment, irrehgion was now to be punish-
ed as a civil offence. The state was a
model of Christ's kingdom on earth ; trea-
son against the civil government was trea-
son against Christ; and reciprocally, as
the Gospel had the right paramount, blas-
phemy, or whatever a jury might call blas-
phemy, was the highest offence in the cat-
alogue of crimes. To deny any book of
the Old or New Testament to be the writ-
ten and infallible Word of God, was pun-
ishable by fine or by stripes, and in case
of obstinacy, by exile or death. Absence
from the ministry of the Word was pun-
ished by fine."t Everything indicated that
this union between Church and State was
operating in such a manner as rapidly to

* Bancroft's '« History of the United States," vol
i. p. 370. t Ibid., p. 450.

undermine the rights and principles of both.
The Anabaptists were treated in some
cases with great harshness, and when, in
1651, the Quakers made an attempt to es-
tablish themselves in tlie colony, they were
expelled, and prohibited from returning
upon pain of death ; a penalty actually
inflicted on four of them who returned in
contravention of this enactment.

These Quakers, it is true, behaved in the
most fanatical and outrageous manner.
They attacked the magistrates with the
grossest insults, and interrupted public
worship with their riotous proceedings.
Even women among them, forgetting the
proprieties and decencies of their sex, and
claiming Divine direction for their absurd
and abominable caprices, smeared their
faces and ran naked through the streets !
It were absurd to compare them with the
peaceable and excellent people who bear
that name in our day. They gave no evi-
dence whatever of knowing what true re-
ligion means. Still, their punishment ought
not to have been so extreme, and should
have been inflicted for violating the deco-
rum of society, not for their supposed he-
retical opinions.* Now, measures so dis-
graceful and injurious to the colony, and
so contrary to what one would expect
from men of such excellence in other re-

* Penalties involving mutilation, such as boring
the tongue with a hot iron, and cutting off the ears,
were enacted against the Quakers in 1657, and thus
found a place in the statute-book of Massachusetts,
but were soon repealed, the colony being ashamed of
them. The fact was, as Mr. Bancroft says, vol. i.,
p. 451, "the creation of a national and uncompro-
sing Church led the Congregationalists of Massachu-
setts to the indulgence of the passions which dis-
graced their English persecutors, and Laud was jus-
tified by the men whom he wronged."

But before the reader pronounces sentence, with-
out mitigation, upon the Puritans of Massachusetts,
he should refresh his remembrance of what was go-
ing on in England about the vear 1633. There was
William Prynne, Esq., barr'ister-atlaw, who was
condemned for writing a constructive libel on the
queen, by attacking the theatre, to be excluded from
his profession, to lose both his ears, stand iti the pil-
lory, pay a fine of .5000/., and to suffer imprisonment
for the rest of his life ! Dr. Bastwick, a physician,
about the same time, was condemned by the High
Commission to be e.Kcluded from his profes.sion, ex-
communicated, fined 1000/., and imprisoned till he
should recant, for having published a book in which
he denied that bishops are superior to presbyters !
And then there was Dr. Alexander Leighton, a
Scotcli divine, the father of the celebrated Arch-
bishop Leighton, who was condemned in 1630, if I
mistake not, to pay a fine of 10,000/., to be whipped
at the pillory at Westminster, to have one of his
ears cut off, and one side of his nose slit ; then to be
taken to the prison for a few days ; then brought
to the pillory at Cheapside to be whipped, have The
other ear cut off, and the other side of his nose slit,
and be shut up in prison the rest of his days ! These
are unquestionable facts. And what shal'i we say of
the wholesale massacres of the Protestants in France,
in Belgium, in Bohemia, and in Moravia .' To say
nothing of scenes in Scotland in the days of the last
two Stuarts? Verily, religious liberty was but ill
understood in those days ! And is it well under-
stood, even now, in most countries of Europe .'

RELIGION IN AMERICA.

[Book II.

spects, would never have been adopted had
it not been for laws unhappily dictated by
the colonial union between Church and
St;ite.

Forty years later, twenty persons were
put to death for witchcraft! Now it is
obvious that so absurd a spectacle would
never have taken place among so enlight-
ened a people as the colonists of Massa-
chusetts, within the bounds of which all
these executions took place, had not the
union of the Church and the State led the
government so often to act on grounds
purely religious, and to take cognizance
of subjects which no political government
is capable of deciding upon.* At all events,
the embarrassment created by Roger Will-
iams, the " Antinomian controversy," as
the contest with Wheelriglit, Anne Hutch-
inson, and Aspinwall was called, and the
persecution of the Anabaptists and Qua-
kers, unquestionably arose from the en-
forcement of the laws passed in favour of
the theocratic institutions of the colony,
and were the legitimate results of the es-
tablislied union between Church and State.
They had a special reference to the law
compelling every man to attend the public
worship of the colony.

a. Much more disastrous were the con-
sequences flowing from another and still
more fundamental law, passed by the Con-
script Fathers of Massachusetts and Con-
necticut— that of making church member-
ship requisite to the enjoyment of the
rights and privileges of citizenship. Nor
was it long before these consequences ap-
peared. Not only did many persons find
admission into the colonies as settlers
who were not members of any church in
the sense almost invariably attached to the
term in America — that is, communicants,
or, as they are sometimes called, " full
members" — but, what the worthy founders
seem not to have anticipated, some of their
own children grew up manifestly " uncon-
verted," and, consequently, did not become
communicants ; the churches planted by the
New-England Fathers having maintained
at first the strictest discipline, and allowed

* The putting of witches to death in Massachu-
setts was a legitimate re.sult of the attempt to build
up a sort of theocracy, having for its basis the civil
institutions of the Jewish conimonwealth. But were
witches nowhere put to death in those days save in
New-England ! Let the reader search and see.

1 ought to add, that the rulers of Massachusetts
put the Quakers to death, and bamshcd the ".\nti-
nomians" and "Anabaptists," not because of their
religious tenets, but because of their violations of
the civil laws. 'I'his is the justification which they
pleaded, and it was the best they could make. Mis-
erable excuse ! I5iit just so it is : wherever there is
such a union of Church and State, heresy and heret-
ical practices are apt to become violations of the
civil code, and are punished no longer as errors in
religion, but infractions of the laws of the land. So
the defendcr.s of the Inquisition have always spo-
ken and written in justification of that awful and
most iniquitous tribunal.

none to become communicants until they
had satisfied the proper church authorities
that they were converted persons, and
had the religious knowledge without which,
they could not fitly come to the Lord's
Supper. Persons who had not these re-
quisites, as might be expected, thought it
very hard to be excluded from the privi-
leges of citizenship, although, as was gen-
erally the case, their lives were perfectly
regular and moral. They therefore com-
plained, and their complaints were felt to
be reasonable, and such as parental love,
even in the breast of a Brutus, could not
long resist.

In tliese circumstances, what was the
course pursued by the colonial legislators,
after taking council of their spiritual
guides? Instead of abolishing the law,
they decided that all baptized persons
might be regarded as members of the
Church, thus directly interfering with mat-
ters wholly beyond the sphere of civil le-
gislation, and contravening, likewise, a for-
mer decision of the Church ; for although
there is a sense in which all persons bap-
tized in infancy are in their youth mem-
bers of the Church, it is only as pupils or
wards, and must not be confounded with
the membership of persons who have made
a profession of their faith after conversion,
and at an age that qualifies them for taking
such a step. Such, at least, is, I apprehend,
the opinion of all churches that maintain a
strict discipline. The New-England Fa-
thers felt tins difficulty, and accordingly it
was not to all baptized persons that they
gave the rights of citizens, but to baptized
persons of good moral deportment, wiio
came publicly forward and owned in the
Church the covenant made for them by
their parents at baptism. I give the sub-
stance, if not the exact words of the law.
This compromise settled the matter for a
time, by providing for the case of their
own young men.

This law was not so hurtful in its con-
sequences to the State as it was to Reli-
gion. The churches were filled with bap-
tized persons who "owned the covenant,"
and with the lapse of time the number of
" full members," or communicants, dimin-
ished. Many now enjoyed civil privileges
in virtue of a less intimate connexion with
the Church ; this was all that they desired,
and with this they were too apt to be con-
tent. But the evil went far beyond this.
To escape from a state of things in which
the churches, though filled with baptized
people, had comparatively few " commu-
nicants," many of the pastors were led
into the dangerous, I may say the fatal
error, of considering the Lord's Supper to
be a means of grace, in tlie same sense
that the preaching of tlic Word is such,
and that all Avell-disposed persons may be
admitted to it as a means of conversion to

Chap. XIX.]

UNION OF CHURCH AND STATE.

the unconverted, as well as of edification
to " believers," or converted persons.

Not that this was enjoined on the church-
es as a law of the state. But it was the
natural and almost inevitable,^ though indi-
rect, consequence of the law adjudging all
baptized persons who " renewed the cov-
enant" to be considered members of the
Church, and entitled to the civil privileges
attached to that relation. It is easy to see
what would follow. The former measure
filled the churches with baptized people
who owned the covenant ; the latter prac-
tice filled the churches with unconverted
communicants. In the course of a few
generations the standard of religious truth
and practice fell lower and lower. This
decline neeessarily bore upon the charac-
ter of the pastors, for upon the occurrence
of a vacancy, the choice, in too many cases,
was sure to fall upon a pastor equally low
in point of religious character with the par-
ties by whom he was chosen. Such a
state of things opened the way effectually
for the admission of false doctrine, and the
more so, inasmuch as there was no eflfect-
ual control beyond and above vvliat was to
be found in each individual church. But
this subject I may dismiss for the present,
as I shall have occasion to recur to it when
we come to consider the rise and progress
of Unitarianism in the United States.

So much for the ill consequences flow-
ing from two of the measures by which
the New-England Fathers endeavoured to
carry into operation their ideas on the
subject of the union that should subsist
between the Church and the State; let us
now look at the mischief produced by
a third measure — that, namely, requiring
each " town" to maintain public worship
by levying a tax on all the inhabitants.

3. As the people were invested by law
with an absolute control over the applica-
tion of the money so raised, no great evil
seemed, at first sight, likely to arise from
such a mode of supporting the Church ; and
it may readily be supposed that at the out-
set, when the colonists formed a homo-
geneous society, and were all either mem-
bers of the established churches, or cor-
dial friends and admirers of their system
of doctrine and church polity, this assess-
ment for their support would be submitted
to without reluctance. But in process of
time, when, whether from the accession of
fresh emigrants, or from the growing up
into manhood of the children of the origi-
nal colonists, there happened to be found
in any particular town a considerable
number of inhabitants who either disliked
the services of the parish church, or were
indifferent to religion altogether, it is clear
that such a law would be considered both
burdensome and unjust. Men can never
be made to feel that they can with equity
be required to pay taxes, in any shape, to

support a church which they dislike, and
to which they may have conscientious ob-
jections. Hence serious difTiculties, ag-
gravated afterward when the Legislature
was compelled, by the progress of true
principles of legislation, to extend the
rights of citizenship, and permission to have
a worship of their own, to persons of all
sects. It seemed unjust that these, while
supporting their own churches, should be
compelled, in addition, to contribute to-
wards the maintenance of the parish, or
town churches, which for a long time they
were called upon to do.

A law, however, was passed at length,
not exempting those who did not attend
the parish church from all taxation, but al-
lowing them to appropriate their propor-
tion to the support of public worship ac-
cording to their own wishes. Fair as this
seemed, it proved most disastrous in its
consequences to the interests of true reli-
gion. The haters of evangelical Christi-
anity could now say, " VVell, since we-
must be taxed in support of religion, we
will have what suits us," and in many
places societies, for it would be improper
to call them churches, of Universalists*
and Unitarians began to be formed, and
false preachers found support where, but
for this law, no such societies or preach-
ers would ever have existed. It is im-
possible to describe the mischiefs that
have flowed from this unfortunate meas-
ure, not only and particularly in Massachu-
setts, but likewise in Connecticut, Maine,
and, I believe, in New-Hampshire also.
With the aid of such a law, thousands,
who are now indiflferent to truth or error,
might easily be driven into Universalism,
or some other dangerous heresy, in any
part of the United States, or, rather, in any
part of the world where religious opinion
is unrestrained.

4. Only one farther measure was re-
quired in order to make this law for the
support of public worship as fatal as possi-
ble to the interests of true religion in Mas-
sachusetts. This was a decision of the
Supreme Court of that state, pronounced
some twenty or twenty-five years ago, by
which the distinction which had previously
existed between the " Church" and the
" town," or " parish," was destroyed in the
view of the law ; and the " town," that is,
the body of the people who were taxed for
the support of the parish church, was al-
lowed to exercise a control in the calling
of a pastor, and in everything else. There
then ensued great distress in not a few
parishes. In every instance in which the
majority of the " town" were opposed to

* By Universalists I mean those professed Chris-
tians in America who, with many shades of ditference
on the subject, agree in holding that eventually all
men will be saved. I shall have to speak of them
more at large in another place.

RELIGION IN AMERICA.

[Book II.

evangelical religion, they had it in their
power, by stopping his salary, to turn away
a faithful pastor, and to choose a Univer-
salist or Unitari;in in his place.* This ac-
tually took place in numerous instances,
and the church, or at least the faithful part
of it, which was often the majority, was
compelled to abandon the edifice in which
their fathers had worshipped, with what-
ever endowments it might have, and to
build for themselves a new place of wor-
ship, call a pastor, and support him on the
voluntary plan. The evil, however, which
might have gone to still greater lengths,
was arrested in Massachusetts in 1833, by
the final dissolution of the union between
Church and State, in a way hereafter to be
described.

Such is a simple, brief, and, I trust, com-
prehensible view of the chief consequen-
ces resulting in New-England from the
union of Church and State, long maintain-
ed in that part of America. The reader
will draw his own conclusions from this ex-
hibition of facts, in all essential points un-
questionably correct. That some of these
consequences were beneficial, none will
deny ; but that these were more than coun-
terbalanced by others of an opposite ten-
dency, is, I think, no less manifest.!

CHAPTER XX.

THE INFLUENCES OF THE UNION OF CHURCH
AND STATE. 2. IN THE SOUTHERN AND MID-
DLE STATES.

Havlvg seen what a Church establish-
ment did for Congregationalism in New-
England, we have now to see what it did
for Episcopacy in other provinces, and
particularly in the South. In the case of
the latter, as in the former, the nature of
the connexion between Church and State,
and the kind of Church establishment, were
very diflerent in different colonies. That
connexion was closest, and the support
given to religion most effective, in Virgin-
ia; next to it in these respects comes Ma-
ryland, and New-York occupies the third
place.

In Virginia, we find that the three main
laws connecting the Church and the State
were substantially the same as those of

* In many cases there was no great ditlicnlty in get-
ting such a majority, by persnacjing the Uiiiversahsts
and others, who might have eea.sed for years to allow
themselves to be considered to belong to the parish,
or congregation, or society, worshipping at the par-
ish church, to return at least for a year or so, since
by so doing, and paying again the assessment for the
parish church, they could vote at its meetings.

t The reader will find in the " Spirit of the Pil-
grims," vol. i. (a work published in Boston in 1820-
1833), the fullest details on this subject that have ap-
peared as yet in any one publication.

Massachusetts at a later date. 1. The
country was divided into parishes, the in-
habitants of which were required to build,
furnish, and uphold churches, and maintain
a pastor, by an assessment proportioned to
their respective means, these being esti-
mated by the quantity of tobacco that they
raised, that being the chief article of their
commerce and of their wealth. 2. The
people were required to attend the estab-
lished churches, which were for a long
time the only ones that existed, or that
were permitted to exist in the colony.
3. The rights of citizenship were confined
to members of the Episcopal Church.

Now, it is beyond dispute that the divis-
ion of the country into parishes, the erec-
tion of churches, and the providing of
glebes for the rectors and ministers, was
useful both in Virginia and Maryland. The
picture presented by Dr. Hawks, in his in-
teresting and valuable sketches of the Epis-
copal Church in those colonies, is delight-
ful as far as relates to these outward and
material matters. Besides, there was a
special necessitj^ for some such legislation
in Episcopalian colonies of the High Church
party, if I may so designate them, as was
the case with Virginia ; for, although it
would be imfair to tax them with a total,
or almost total, want of true living piety,
they certainly had not the fervent zeal, the
devoted enthusiasm in the cause of reli-
gion, which mingled with all the proceed-
ings of the Puritans. If, in fact, in any
part of America, the union of Church and
State was beneficial, or even indispensable
in securing the formation of parishes and
the building of churches, it was in the
Southern colonies, planted as these were
by the friends of Prelacy par exceUence,
men afraid of fanaticism in religion, what-
ever they might think of it in some other
things. These advantages were, in pro-
cess of time, secured at intervals along the
banks of the noble rivers of Virginia, until,
at the commencement of the Revolution,
that colony could boast of ninety-seven
parishes, more than that number of church-
es, if we include chapels of ease, and above
a hundred ministers.

This is the chief, or, rather, the only
benefit conferred on Virginia by the con-
nexion of the (Church with the State ; for
the maintenance of the clergy, as Dr.
Hawks remarks, can hardly be reckoned
one, inasmuch as that was nearly, if not
altogether, voluntary on the part of the
parishioners, and was by no means en-
forced as the law contemplated. During a
large part of the colonial period, too, the
want of ministers greatly diminished the
advantages that might have accrued from
having parishes marked out and churches
built in them. Thus, in 1019, there were
eleven parishes and only five ministers ;
and in 1661, the parishes in Virginia were

Chap. XX.]

UNION OF CHURCH AND STATE.

about fifty, and the ministers only about
a fifth part of that number.*

But granting that the support secured by
law to Episcopacy was ample, which in
Virginia it was hot, let us notice some of
the evils attending on this union of Church
and State, and see whether they did not
counterbalance all the admitted good. The
first of these, and it was no trifling one,
was the antipathy which such compulsory
measures created towards the favoured
Church. Men were displeased, and felt
aggrieved at being taxed for the support of
a church whose services they did not fre-
quent, but to which they might otherwise
have felt no hostility, nay, to which they
might by a different course have been
won. This was particularly the case in
those colonies where the favour shown to
the Episcopal Church did not exclude the
toleration of other religious bodies, that is,
in all in which Episcopacy was established
except Virginia. Episcopacy, in fact, be-
came influential and powerful, in most ca-
ses, long after the colonies were founded,
and owed its pre-eminence purely to the
favour of the state, as we have seen in the
colonies of Maryland, the Carolinas, New-
York, New-Jersey, &c. In all these, tax-
es for the support of a dominant church,
representing in some instances bat a mere
fraction of the population, were extremely
off"ensive to those who were members of
other churches or of none, and proved
hurtful, in the end, to the Episcopal Church
itself. It attached a stigma to it which it
took a long time to efface; the more so as,
when the Revolution was drawing on, it
began to be viewed as the Church favoured
of the mother-country, with which the col-
onists were about to enter into a war for
what they deemed to be their rights.
Thus the cause of that Church became
identified so far with that of the enemies
of the country, as they were called. This
twofold animosity long prevailed in the
very states where the Episcopal Church
was once predominant, and no doubt con-
tributed to retard its progress in later
times, so that any former favours received
from the state may be regarded as having
been very dearly purchased.

2. As respects Virginia at least, the inter-
ests of true religion and of the Episcopal
Church were seriously injured by the com-
pulsory attendance upon the services of the
churehes, &c., noticed in a former chapter.
In th6 justness of the following remarks
every well-informed man must heartily
concur: " T6 coerce men into the outward
exercise of religious acts by penal laws is
indeed possible ; but to make them love*
either the religion which is thus enforced,
or those who enforce it, is beyond the
reach of human power. There is an in-

* Dr. Hawks's "History of the Episcopal Church
in Virginia," p. 64.
G

lierent principle of resistance to oppres-
sion seated in the very constitution of most
men, which disposes them to rebel against
the arbitrary exercise of violence seeking
to give direction to opinions ; and it is
not, therefore, to be wondered at, that one
sanguinary law to compel men to live
piously should beget the necessity for
more."*

3. Another evil resulting from the union
between Church and State in the Southern
colonies, and particularly in Virginia and
Maryland, is to be found in the almost inces-
sant disputes that long prevailed between
the colonial governors and the parish ves-
tries respecting the right of presentation,
which was claimed by both parties. In this
contest the Virginia vestries were, upon the
whole, successful ; still, as the governor
claimed the right of inductivg, there were
often serious collisions. In order to evade
the force of that principle in English law,
which gives a minister, when once install-
ed as pastor, a sort of freehold interest in
the parish, and renders his ejectment al-
most impossible, unless by deposition from
the sacred office altogether, in conse-
quence of his being found guilty of some
flagrant enormity, instead of presenting a
minister, tlie vestries often preferred em-
ploying him from year to year, so as to
have it in their power to dismiss him
when they thought fit ; and this refusal to
present involved, of course, an inability
on the governor's part to induct. In Mary-
land the governors long insisted on exer-
cising the right of presentation, a right
that put it into their power to thrust very
unworthy pastors into the Church. But
the case was not much better when left to
the vestries, these being often composed
of men by no means fit to decide upon the
qualifications of a pastor. In no case does
it appear that the Church itself, that is, the
body of the communicants, possessed the
privilege of choosing a pastor for them-
selves.

4. A fourth evil resulting from the union
of Church and State in the colonies where
the Episcopal Church was established, lay
in this, that the ministers required from
time to time by the churches behooved to
come from England, or, if Americans by
birth, to receive ordination from some bish-
op in England, generally the Bishop of Lon-
don, to whose superintendence and gov-
ernment the Episcopal Church in America
seems to have been intrusted. As there
was no bishop in America during the whole
colonial period, this disadvantage contin-
ued down to the Revolution.

No doubt, many worthy men, endued
with the true spirit of their calling and of-
fice, were sent over by the bishops who
successively occupied the See of London,

* Dr. Hawks's " Histor)' of the Episcopal Church
in Virginia," p. 49.

RELIGION IN AMERICA.

[Book nr

some of whom took a deep interest in
the Colonial Church. Still, it is no less
true that many of a very different stamp
were sent over, or came of their own ac-
cord, and these, after being once inducted
into a parish, it was found almost impos-
sible to remove. At a distance from Eng-
land, and beyond the immediate inspection
of the only bishop that seemed to have
any authority over them, they generally
contrived to secure impunity, not only for
the neglect of their duties, but even for
flagrant crimes. Some cases of the most
shocking delinquency and open sin occur-
red both in Virginia and Alaryland, with-
out the possibility, it would seem, of their
being reached and punished. All that
could be done by persons commissioned by
the Bishop of London to act for him, under
the name of commissaries, was done by
such men as Drs. lihiir and Bray, and their
successors, but the evil was too deep to be
effectually extirpated by anything short of
the exercise of full Episcopal authority on
the spot. Besides tr<idilional evidence of
"the immoralities of some of the established
clergy in Virginia and Mnryland, we learn
their existence and character from indu-
bitable histories written by Episcopalians
themselves, and they were such as even
to call for the interference of the colonial
legislatures. The General Assembly of
Virginia, in 1631. enacted that " Mynisters
shall not give themselves to excess in
drinkinge or riott, spendinge theire tyme
idellye by day or night, etc."* The fact
is, that worthless and incapable men in
every profession were wont to leave the
mother-country for the colonies, where
they thought they might succeed better
than ill England ; and such of them as be-
loiig(!d to the clerical profession very nat-
urally supposed that they might find com-
fortable '• livings"' in those colonies, where
their own church was established, and
where they heard that there was so great
a deficiency of clergymen. f

5. And, lastly, one of the greatest evils
of the Establishment we are speaking of,
is to be found in the shameful acts of in-
tolerance and oppression to which it led.
Although the Quakers were in no instance

* Hening's " Laws of Virginia," 7th Car, i. At a
much later period. Sir William Berkeley, governor
of Virginia, in reply to this iii(i\iiry from the Lords
of Plantations, " What provision is there made for
the paying of your ministers?" stated, "We have
forty-eight parishes, and our ministers are well paid.
But as of ail other commodities, so of this, the worst
are sent to tis." — See " Appendix to Htning's Collec-
tion."

t Even so lato as 175L the Bishop of London,
in a letter to the well-known Dr. Doddridge, says
upon this subject, " Of those that are sent from
hence, a great part are of the Scotch-Irish, who can
get no employment at home, and enter into the ser-
vice more out of necessity than choice. Some oth-
ers are willing to go abroad to retrieve either lost
fortunes or lost character." — See Biblical Repertory
and Princeton Review for April, 1840."

put to death in Virginia, yet they were
subjected to much persecution and annoy-
ance, and were glad in many cases to es-
cape into North Carolina. The Puritans,,
too, were much disliked, and severe laws
were passed " to prevent the infection from
reaching the country."* Archbishop Laud's
authority stood as high in Virginia as in
England. An offender against that author-
ity, of the name of Reek, was, in 1642, pil-
j loried for two hours, with a label on his-
back setting forth liis offence, then fined
jC50, and imprisoned during the pleasure
of the governor.!

It would appear, however, either that
all this vigilance could not keep out the
Puritans, or else that some of the Virgini-
ans themselves had become so disgusted
with their own as to wish for Puritan
preachers. Be that as it may, certain it
is that in 1612 there was transmitted to
Boston from certain persons in Virginia
an application for preachers, and that two
actually went from Massachusetts and one
from Connecticut, but were dismissed by
the governor. Governor W^inthrop, speak-
ing of this affair in his Journal, says that,
though the state did silence the ministers,
because they would not conform to the
order of England, yet the people resorted
to them in private houses to hear them. J

In fact, it was not until the lapse of a
century after those times that toleration
was established in Virginia, through the
persevering efforts of the Presbyterians
and other non-established denominations,
whose friends and partisans had by that
time greatly increased, partly in conse-
quence of this very intolerance on the part
of the government, but chiefly by immi-
gration, so far as to outnumber the Epis-
copalians of the province when the war of
the Revolution commenced.

As for Maryland, although the Quakers
were greatly harassed in that colony for
some time, and Roman Catliolics were
treated with grievous injustice, yet there
never was the same intolerance manifest-
ed towards those who were called Dissent-
ers, as had been shown in Virginia. The
Protestant Episcopal Church was estab-
lished there by law in 161)2, but not in fact
until 1702.

But in no colony in which Episcopacy
became established by law was there more
intolerance displayed than in New- York.
That establishment was effected in 1693
by Governor Fletcher, who soundly rated
the Legislature because not disposed to
comply with all his wishes. But in zeal
for Episcopacy he was outdone by one of
his successors, Lord Cornbury, a descend-
ant of Lord Clarendon, who would fain

* Hening's " Virginia Statutes," 223.
t Ibid., 552.

t Savage's Winthrop, p. 92. Hubbard's " History
of New-England," p. 141.

GhAP. XXI.]

RELIGION DURING THE COLONIAL ERA.

have deprived the Dutch of their privile-
ges, and forced them into the Episcopal
Church. He had orders from the govern-
ment at home " to give all countenance
and encouragement to the exercise of the
ecclesiastical jurisdiction of the Bishop of
London, as far as conveniently might be
in the province ; that no schoolmaster be
henceforward permitted to come from this
kingdom, and keep a school in that our
said province, without the license of our
said Lord Eisliop of London."*

In what has been said of the intolerance
manifested in several of the colonies m
which the Protestant Episcopal Church
was established, I would not be under-
stood as charging such intolerance upon
that Church. No doubt men of an intol-
erant spirit were to be found in it, but, alas!
true religious liberty, and an enlarged spir-
it of toleration, were far from being gen-
eral in those days ; but it had members
also of a most catholic spirit, who neither
could nor did approve of such acts as the
above. The intolerance was rather that of
the colonial governments, and to them
properly belongs the credit or discredit at-
tached to it.

In conclusion, I cannot but think that
the union of the Episcopal Church with the
State in some colonies, and of the Congre-
gational Church with the civil power in oth-
ers, was, upon the whole, far more mis-
chievous than beneficial ; an opinion in
which 1 feel persuaded that the great body
ahke of the Episcopal and Congregational
ministers concur. Had the founders of
the Episcopal Church in Virginia and Ma-
ryland, excellent men as 1 believe they
were, gone to work in reliance on the
blessing of God upon their efforts, and en-
deavoured to raise up a faithful native min-
istry, trusting to the willingness of the
people to provide for their support, I doubt
not that they would have succeeded far
better in building up the Episcopal Church
than they did with all the advantages of
the State alliance which they enjoyed.
They would doubtless have had to encoun-
ter many difficulties, but they would have
laid a surer foundation also for ultimate
success. Dr. Hawks gives a painfully in-
teresting narrative of the struggles which
the established clergy of Virginia and Ma-
ryland had to sustain with their parishion-
ers about their salaries ; the one party stri-
ving to obtain what the law assigned to
them ; the other, aided even at times by
legislative enactments, availing themselves
of every stratagem in order to evade the
legal claims of the clergy. The time and
anxiety, the wearing out of mind and body,
which these disputes cost faithful minis-
ters, not to mention the sacrifice of influ-
ence, would have been laid out better and

*• " History of the Evangelical Churches of New-
York."

more pleasantly in the unembarrassed
work of their calling ; nor were they like-
ly to have been worse off in respect of
this world's blessings than the faithful
among them really were.

Assuredly the Episcopal Church in the
United States at the present day furnish-
es decisive proof that Episcopacy can ex-
ist and flourish without aid from the civil
government. Dr. Hawks thinks that it
has even peculiar advantages for self-sus-
tentation, proved, as he conceives, by the
experience of the Episcopal Church iu
Scotland, and that of the Syrian Churches
in India, as well as the history of that
Church in the United States. Without ex-
pressing an opinion on that point, 1 hesi-
tate not to say that the Episcopal Church,
with all the advantage of having the peo-
ple enlisted on her side in several of the
colonies at the outset, and sustained as she
was by the prestige of the National Church
of the mother-country, would have done
far better had she relied on her own re-
sources under God, in the faithful itiinis-
tration of his Word, and of the ordinances
of His House, than in trusting to the arm
of the State in the colonies in which she
endeavoured to plant herself.

CHAPTER XXI,

STATE OF RELIGION DURING THE COLONIAL ERA.

Before quitting the Colonial Era in the
history of the United States, let us take
a general view of the state of religion
throughout all the colonies during the pe-
riod of 168 years, from 1607 to the com-
mencement of the war of the Revolution
in 1775.

As communities, the Anglo-American
colonies, from their earliest days, were
pervaded by religious influence, not equal-
ly powerful, yet real and salutary in all.
This was especially true of New-England,
whose first settlers openly declared to the
world that they left their native land nOt
so much to promote individual religion a.s
to form Christian societies. They could
have maintained silent, personal, individu-
al communion with their heavenly Father
in Lincolnshire and Yorkshire, or in Hol-
land, as did some recluses in the monastic
institutions of the earlier and Middle Ages.
But they had no such purpose. Their
Christianity was of a diffusive kind; their
hearts yearned for opportunities of extend-
ing it. Religion with them was not only
a concern between man and God, but one
in which society at large had a deep inter-
est. Hence some fruits of this high and
holy principle might be expected in the
communities which they founded, and we
not unreasonably desire to know how far

100

RELIGION IN AMERICA.

[Book 11.

the result corresponded with such excel-
lent iutentioas. It were unfair, however,
to expect much in this way, considering
the circumstances of the colonists, settling
in a remote wilderness, amid fierce and
cruel savages, and exposed to all the fa-
tigues and sicknesses incident to such a
settlement, and to the anxieties and diffi-
culties attending the organization of their
governments, collisions with the mother-
country, and participation in all that coun-
try's wars.

The colonial era may, for the sake of
convenience, be divided into four periods.
The first of these, extending from the ear-
liest settlement of Virginia in 1607 to 1660,
was one in which religion greatly flour-
ished, notwithstanding the trials incident
to settlements amid the forests, and the
troubles attending the establishment of the
colonial governments. Peace with the
Aborigines sufiered few interruptions, the
only wars worth mentioning being that
with the Pequods in (Connecticut, in 1637 ;
that between the Dutch and the Algon-
quins, in 1643 ; and those that broke out in
Virginia in l(i2-2 and 1644, which were at
once tiie first and the last, and by far the
most disastrous of that period. But these
wars were soon over, and a few years suf-
ficed to repair whatever loss they occa-
sioned to the colonists.

This was the period in which those ex-
cellent men who either came over with
the first colonies, or soon afterward joined
them, laboured long, and very successfully,
for the salvation of souls. Among these
were Wilson, and Cotton, and Shepard,
and .Mather (Richard), and Philips, and
Higginson, and Skelton, in the colony of
Massachusetts Bay ; Brewster in Plym-
outh ; Hooker in Connecticut ; Davenport
in New-Haven ; and Hunt and VVhitaker in
Virginia. Several of the contemporary
magistrates, also, were distinguished for
their piety and zeal ; such as the governors
Winthrop of Massachusetts, Bradford and
Winslow of Plymouth, Haynes of Con-
necticut, and Katon of New- Haven. To
these we must add Roger Williams, who
was pastor, and, for a time, governor in
Providence.

This was the golden Age of the colonial
cycle. God poured out his Spirit in many
places. Precious seasons were enjoyed by
the churches in Boston, in Salem, in Plym-
outh, in Hartford, and in New-Haven. Nor
were the labours of faithful men in Virginia
without a rich blessing. Days of fasting
and prayer were frequently and faithfully
observed. God was entreated to dwell
among the people. Religion was felt to be
the most important of blessings, both for
the individual man and for llic State. Re-
vivals were highly prized, and earnestly
sought ; nor were they sought in vain.
The journals of (Jovernor Winthrop, and

other good men of that day, present most
interesting details in pro^f of this. Amer-
ica has seen more extensive, but never
more unequivocal, works of grace, or more
indubitable operations of the Spirit.

Nor were the aboriginal heathen around
the colonies forgotten in those days. El-
liot and others laboured with great suc-
cess among the Indians in the vicinity of
Boston. Several thousand souls were con-
verted. The Bible was translated into
their tongue. Nor was it in Massachu-
setts alone that men cared for the souls of
the " Salvages," as they were called. In
Virginia, an Indian princess, Pocahontas,
received the Gospel, was baptized, and be-
came a consistent member of a Christian
Church. Another convert, Chanco, was
the instrument, under God, of saving the
colony from entire extirpation.

The commencement of the colonization
of America was certainly auspicious for
the cause of true religion.

The second period is one of sixty years,
from 1660 to 1720.

This might be called the brazen age of the
colonies. Almost all of them experienced
times of trouble. Massachusetts suffered
in 1675 from a most disastrous war with
" King Philip," the chief of the Pokanokets,
and with other tribes which afterward
joined in a general endeavour to expel or
exterminate the colonists. Violent dis-
putes arose with the government of Eng-
land respecting the rights of the colony,
and to these were added internal dissen-
sions about witchcraft, and other exciting
subjects, chiefly of a local nature. In Vir-
ginia, in 1675-76, there were a serious In-
dian war and a " Grand Rebellion," which
threatened ruin to the colony. And in the
Carolinas a desolating war with the Tus-
caroras broke out in 1711-12.

Besides these greater causes of trouble
and excitement, there were others which
it is not necessary to indicate. The influ-
ence of growing prosperity may, however,
be mentioned. The colonies had now ta-
ken permanent root. They might be sha-
ken, but could not be eradicated or over-
thrown by the rude blasts of misfortune.
Their wealth was increasing; their com-
merce was already considerable, and at-
tracted many youth to the seas. Every
war which England had with France or
Spain agitated her colonies also.

These causes concurring with the disas-
trous consequences of the union of Church
and State already described, led to a great
decline of vital Christianity, and although
partial revivals took place, the all-perva-
ding piety that characterized the first gen-
eration suffered a great diminution. The
liglit of holiness grew faint and dim. and
morality, in general, degenerated in a like
degree. The Fathers had gone to the
tomb, and were succeeded, upon the whole,

Chap. XXI.]

RELIGION DURING THE COLONIAL ERA.

101

by inferior men. The second Governor
Winthrop, it is tme, showed himself, in the
administration 8f the united colonies of
Connecticut, to be a great and good man,
and a father alike to the Church and the
State. Among the ministers, too, there
was a considerable number of distinguished
men ; but their labours were not equally
blessed with those of the Fathers. Among
the best known were the Mathers, Increase
and Cotton, father and son, the latter more
distinguished for the extent and variety of
his acquirements than for soundness of
judgment ;* Norton and others in Massa-
chusetts ; Pierpont in Connecticut ; Dr.
Blair, who for a long time was the Bishop
of London's commissary in Virginia ; Dr.
Bray, who held the same office in Maryland,
two persons to whom the Episcopal Church
in those colonies was much indebted for
its prosperity.

The faithful pastors in New-England re-
ceived an accession to their number, in the
early part of this period, by the arrival from
England of some of the two thousand min-
isters who were ejected there for non-con-
formity, soon after the accession of Charles
IL

The third period, comprehending the thir-
ty years from 17-20 to 1750, was distinguish-
ed by extensive revivals of religion, and
this, notwithstanding the agitation produced
in the colonies, by the share they had in
the war between France and England to-
wards the close of that period, and other
unfavourable circumstances besides. The
Great Awakening,! as it has been called,
infused a new life into the churches, more
especially in New-England, in certain parts
of New- York, New-Jersey, Pennsylvania,
and some other colonies, and its effects
were visible long afterward in many places.
It is true that fanatical teachers did much
mischief in several quarters by associating
themselves with the work of God, and in-
troducing their own unwarrantable meas-
ures, so as to rob it, in the end, of much of
the glorious character that distinguished it
at first. Yet it cannot be denied that it
was a great blessing to the churches. Some

* Cotton Mather's acquirements were really pro-
digious, considering the age and the circumstances
in which he lived. His publications amounted to no
fewer than 3S2, several of which, such as his " Mag-
iialia.orthe Ecclesiastical History of New-England,"
were large works. He displayed, however, such a
mixture of credulity, pedantry, and bad taste, that he
was not appreciated as he deserved. The part which
he look in the affair of the witches, though greatly
misrepresented by some writers, did him vast injury.
He was singularly given to believe all sorts of mar-
vellous stories.

t For a full and able account of this great work of
grace, as well as of other revivals of religion, of un-
usual power and extent in America, see a work pub-
lished at Boston in 1842, entitled the " Great Awa-
kening," by the Rev. Joseph Tracy. It is by far
the fullest account of the early revivals in America
that has yet appeared, and being derived from au-
thentic sources, is worthy of entire credence.

important, though painful lessons, were
learned, in regard to the economy of the
Spirit, which have not been wholly forgot-
ten to this day.

This was the period in which Edwards
and Prince, Frelinghuysen, Dickinson, Fin-
ley, and the Tennents, laboured in the
Northern and the Middle States ; Davies,
and others of kindred spirit, in Virginia ;
the Wesleys for a while in Georgia ; while
Whitfield, like the angel symbolized in the
Apocalypse as flying through the heavens,
having the everlasting Gospel to preach to
the nations, traversed colony after colony
in his I'epeated visits to the New World,
and was made an instrument of blessing to
multitudes.

The fourth and concluding period of the
Colonial Era comprehends the twenty-five
years from 1750 to 1775, and was one of
great public agitation. In the early part
of it the colonies aided England with all
their might in another war with France,
ending in the conquest of the Canadas,
which were secured to the conquerors by
the treaty of Paris in 1763. In the latter
part of it men's minds became universally
engrossed with the disputes between the
colonies and the mother-country, and when
all prospect of having these brought to
an amicable settlement seemed desperate,
preparation began to be made for that
dreadful alternative — war. Such a state of
things could not fail to have an untoward
influence on religion. Yet most of those
distinguished men whom I have spoken of
as labouring in the latter part of the imme-
diately preceding period, were spared to
continue their work in the beginning of
this. Whitfield renewed from time to time
his angel visits, and the Spirit was not
grieved quite away from the churches by
the commotions of the people. Still, no
such glorious scenes were beheld during
this period as had been witnessed in the
last ; on the contrary, that declension in
spiritual life, and spiritual effort, which war
ever occasions, was now everywhere visi-
ble, even before hostilities had actually
commenced.

Such is the very cursory and imperfect
review which the limits of this work per-
mit us to take of the religious vicissitudes
of the United States during their colonial
days. That period of 168 years was, com-
paratively speaking, one of decline, and
even deadness, in the greater part of Prot-
estant Europe ; indeed, the latter part may
be regarded as having been so universally.
Yet, during the same period, I feel very
certain that a minute examination of the
history of the American Protestant church-
es would show that in no other part of
Christendom, in proportion to the popula-
tion, was there a greater amount of true
knowledge of the Gospel, and of practical
godliness, among both ministers and their

102

RELIGION IN AMERICA.

[Book III.

flocks. No doubt there were long intervals
of coldness, or, rather, of deadness, as to
spiritual things, during which both pastors
and people became too much engrossed
with the " cares of life." But, blessed be
God, he did not abandon us forever. Though
he visited our transgressions with a rod,
and chastised us for our sins, yet he re-
membered the covenant which he made

with our fathers, and the Word of his prom-
ise wherein he had caused them to trust.
And though our unwort^hess and our un-
profitableness had been great, he did not
cast us away from his sight, but deigned
to hear us when we called upon him in the
dark and gloomy hour, and saved us with
a great salvation. And this he did " be-
cause his mercy endureth forever."

BOOK III.

THE NATIONAL ERA.

CHAPTER I.

EFFECTS OF THE REVOLUTION UPON RELIGION.

CHANGES TO WHICH IT NECESSARILY GAVE

RISE.

From the Colonial we now proceed to
the National period in the history of the
United States.

The first twenty-five years of the national
existence of the States were fraught with
evil to the cause of religion. First came
the war of the Revolution, which literally
engrossed all men's minds. The popula-
tion of the country at its commencement
scarcely, if at all, exceeded 3,500,000 ; and
for a people so few and so scattered, divided
into thirteen colonies, quite independent, at
the outset, of each other, having no national
treasury, no central government or power,
nothing, in short, to unite them but one
common feeling of patriotism, it was a gi-
gantic undertaking. The war was followed
by a long period of prostration. Connex-
ion with I'higland having been dissolved, the
colonies had to assume the form of states,
their governments had to be reorganized,
and a general, or federal government, insti-
tuted. The infant nation, now severed
from the mother-country, had to begin an
eJcistence of its own, at the cost of years
of anxiety and agitation. Dangers threat-
ened it on every side, and scarcely had the
General Government been organized, and
the states learned to know their places a
little in the federal ecoiiomy, when the
French Revolution burst forth like a volca-
no, and threatened to sweep the United
States into its fiery stream. In the end it
led them to declare war against France for
their national honour, or, rather, for their
national existence. That war was happily
brought to an end by Napoleon, on his be-
coming First Consul, and tluis was the in-
fant country allow(;d to enjoy a little longer
repose, as far as depended on foreign na-
tions.

Unfavourable to the promotion of religion
as were the whole twenty-five years from

1775 to 1800, the first eight, spent in hos-
tilities with England, were pre-eminently
so. The eff"ects of war on the churches of
all communions were extensively and va-
riously disastrous. To say nothing of the
distraction of the mind from the subject of
salvation, its more palpable influences were
seen and felt everywhere. Young men
were called away from the seclusion and
protection of the parental roof, and from
the vicinity of the oracle of God, to the de-
moralizing atmosphere of a camp ; congre-
gations were sometimes entirely broken
up ; churches were burned, or converted
into barracks or hospitals, by one or other
of the belligerant armies, often by both
successively ; in more than one instance
pastors were murdered ; the usual minis-
terial intercourse was interrupted ; efforts
for the dissemination of the Gospel were,
in a great measure, suspended ; colleges
and other seminaries of learning were
closed for want of students and professors ;
and the public morals in various respects,
and in almost all possible ways, deterio-
rated. Christianity is a religion of peace,
and the tempest of war never fails to blast
and scatter the leaves of the Tree which
was planted for the healing of the nations.

A single passage from a letter, written
by a distinguished and most excellent Ger-
man clergyman,* will give the reader some
idea of the state of things during that war.
It was written not long after its commence-
ment. The perusal of it cannot fail to im-
press the mind of every Christian with the
duty of praying that the peace which now
so happily reigns among the nations may
evermore continue :

" Throughout the whole country great
preparations are making for the war, and
almost every person is under arms. The

* The Rev. Dr. Helmuth, formerly pastor in Phil-
adelphia. The letter from which the extract given
in the text is taken is found in the " Hallische Nach-
nchlen," p. 1.3;>7-H, antl quoted by Professor Schmuck-
er in his " Retrospect of Lutheranism in the United
States."

Chap. I.]

EFFECTS OF THE REVOLUTION.

103

erdour manifested in these melancholy cir-
cumstances is indescribable. If a hundred
men are required^nany more Immediately
offer, and are dissatisfied when they are
not accepted. I know of no similar case
in history. Neighbourhoods, concerning
which it would have been expected that
years would be requisite to induce them
•voluntarily to take up arms, became strong-
ly inclined for war as soon as the battle of
Lexington was known. Quakers and Men-
nonists take part in the military exercises,
and in great numbers renounce their former
religious principles. The hoarse din of
war is hourly heard in our streets. The
present disturbances inflict no small injury
on religion. Everybody is constantly on
the alert, anxious, like the ancient Athe-
Jiians, to hear the news, and, amid the mass
of news, the hearts of men are, alas ! closed
against the good word of God. The Lord
is chastising the people, but they do not
feel it. Those who appear to be distant
from danger are unconcerned ; and those
.whom calamity has overtaken are enraged,
and meditating vengeance. In the Ameri-
can army there are many clergymen, who
serve both as chaplains and as officers. I
jnyself know two, one of whom is a colonel,
and the other a captain. The whole coun-
try is in perfect enthusiasm for liberty.
The whole population, from New-England
■to Georgia, is of one mind, and determined
to risk life and all things in defence of
liberty. The few who think differently
are not permitted to utter their sentiments.
In Philadelphia the English and German
students are formed into military com-
panies, wear uniforms, and are exercised
like regular troops. Would to God that
jnen would become as zealous and unani-
mous in asserting their spiritual liberty as
they are in vindicating their political free-
dom."

It required some time for the churches
to recover from the demoralizing effects
of a war which had drawn the whole na-
tion into its circle, and lasted for eight long
years. But the times immediately follow-
ing the Revolution were, as I have remark-
ed, far from being favourable to the re-
suscitation of true religion, and to the res-
toration of the churches, even to the con-
dition, unsatisfactory as it was, in which
they stood previously to the contest.
Through God's blessing, however, they
not only shared in the returning tranquilli-
ty of the country, but from that time to
this, with some short periods of interrup-
tion, have steadily grown with its growth
and strengthened with its strength.

It is not easy to ascertain what was the
exact number of ministers and churches in
the United States when these became sev-
ered from England, but the following esti-
mate cannot be very wide of the truth.
The Episcopal clergymen may be reckon-

ed at about 250 at most ; the churches at
about 300.* In 1788, the Presbyterians had
exactly 177 ministers, and 417 congrega-
tions.! ^^ the Lutherans had eleven min-
isters in 1748, and forty churches three
years after, the former could hardly have
exceeded twenty-five, and the latter sixty,
at the commencement of the Revolution — •
judging by the statistics of the directo-
ry for worship (Kirchenagende), published
in 1786. 1 The German Reformed church-
es were not more numerous. The Dutch
Reformed churches had thirty ministers
and eighty-two congregations in 1784.^ In
1776, the Associate Church had thirteen
ministers, and perhaps twenty churches.
The Moravians had probably twelve min-
isters and six or eight churches. The New-
England Congregationalists could not, at
the commencement of the Revolution, have
had above 700 churches and 575 pastors.
The Baptists, in 1784, had 424 ministers,
and 471 churches or congregations. || The
Methodists, at the time of the Revolution,
did not exist as a body distinct from the
Established Episcopal Church, and had no
ordained ministers. As for the Roman
Catholics, according to Bishop England's
estimate, their priests did not exceed twen-
ty-six in number when the war of the
Revolution commenced, but their congre-
gations were at least twice as numerous.^

These statements, though far from pre-
cise, are from the best sources, and suffice
to give a tolerably correct view of the num-
bers of the clergy and churches at the com-
mencement of the national existence of
the country, and for the first ten years af-
ter the breaking out of hostilities with Eng-
land.

From the best estimate I can make, it
seems very certain that in 1775 the total
number of ministers of the Gospel in the
United States did not exceed 1441, nor the
congregations 1940. Indeed, I am convin-
ced that this is rather too large an esti-
mate.** The population of the thirteen

* The number of the clergy and churches in the
Episcopal Church, given in the text, has been esti-
mated from various historical sketches and docu-
ments.

t " History of the Presbyterian Church in the
United States," by Dr. Hodge, part ii., p. 504.

t Dr. Schmucker's " Retrospect of Lutheranism
in the United States."

() See the Historical sketch of the Reformed Dutch
Church in another part of this work.

II View of the Baptist churches in America, given
in the " American Quarterly Register," vols. xiii. and
xiv.

IT Letter from Bishop England, of Charleston, to
the Central Council of the Society for the Propaga-
tion of the Faith, at Lyons, published in the " Aunales
de la Propagation de la Foi," for the month of May,
1838, vol. .\-.

** The most exact approximation which I make
is as follows :

Ministers. Churches,

Episcopalians 250 300

Baptists 350 380

104

RELIGION IN AMERICA.

[Book IIL

colonies at that epoch did not exceed
3,500,000, of whom about 500,000 were
slaves.

If we assume the number of ministers to
have been 144 1, and the population 3,500,000
in 1775, then we have one minister of the
Gospel, on an average, for every 2429
souls, which, I apprehend, is not far from
the exact truth.

At that epoch there was no bishop in
either the Protestant Episcopal or Roman
Cathohc Church. There were at that time
nine colleges and two medical schools, but
no schools of law or theology.

The changes that took place in the gen-
eral and local government of the thirteen
original colonies, on their achieving their
independence, have been already noticed.
Religion, as well as every other interest,
shared in the change of relations that en-
sued. Henceforth it was with Congress and
the State Legislatures, or, rather, with the
National and State Governments, that the
churches had to do, so far as they had any
political relations to sustain at all.

It will be my object in this book to point
out the changes that took place in the re-
lations of the churches to the civil power,
and to show their actual position with re-
gard to it at the present moment. This I
will try to do with all the brevity consist-
ent with a lucid treatment of the subject.
We have now to see by what means that
union of Church and State, which con-
nected the Congregational Church in the
North and the Episcopal Church in the
Middle and South, with the civil govern-
ment, was dissolved ; what were the re-
sults of that dissolution ; and what the po-
sition in which the churches now stand to
the civil power, whether as represented
by the General Government or the indi-
vidual States.

CHAPTER II.

THE DISSOLUTION OF THE UNION OF CHURCH
AND STATE NOT EFFECTED BY THE GENERAL
GOVERNMENT, NOR DID IT TAKE PLACE IM-
MEDIATELy.

More than one erroneous idea prevails,

Ministers. Churches.

Congregationalists* . . . 575 700

Presbyterians 140 300

Lutherans 25 60

German Reformed .... 25 60

Reformed Dutch .... 25 CO

Associate 13 20

Moravians 12 8

Roman Catholics .... 26 52

1441 "1940

* The number (jf Coneregtitinnal rniiusters in New-Eng-
land (and there were few or mine in other parts of llie
country) was estiiriated by Ur. Stiles to he, in 1760, 530 ;
in the fifteen years which followed they probahly increased
to 575, as given in the text.

I apprehend, in Europe, with respect to the
dissolution of the union of Church and
State in the United Startes. First, many
seem to think that it was a natural and in-
evitable result of the separation of the col-
onies from the mother-country, and of the
independent position which they had as-
sumed. But that union connected the es-
tablished churches of America, not with
the mother-country, but with the colonial
governments ; so that, when the colonies
became states, the alliance that had sub-
sisted between them and certain church-
es was not necessarily affected. These
churches, in fact, remained, as before, part
and parcel of the states, and upon these
they continued to be as dependant as ever.
They never had any ties with England,
beyond falling incidentally, as did the col-
onies themselves, under the operation of
English laws.

Again, many imagine that the union of
Church and State in America was dissolv-
ed by an act of Congress ; that is, by an
act of the General Government. But this
was not the case. An article of the Con-
stitution, it is true, restrains Congress from
establishing any particular religion : but
this restriction is not in the original draught
of the Constitution; it forms one of certain
amendments adopted soon after, and runs
as follows : " Congress shall make no laws
respecting an establishment of religion, or
prohibiting the free exercise thereof." That
is to say, the General Government shall
not make any law for the support of any
particular church, or of all the churches.
But neither this, nor any other article in
the Constitution of the United-States, pro-
hibits individual states from making such
laws. The Constitution simply declares
what shall be the powers of the General
Government, leaving to the State govern-
ments such powers as it does not give to
the General Government. This, in refer-
ence to the subject in hand, is manifest
from the fact that " the establishment of
religion," as we shall presently see, sur-
vived for many years, in some states, their
adhesion to the Constitution of the United
States.

Lastly, many persons in Europe seem
to be under the impression that the union
of Church and State was annihilated at
the Revolution, or, at all events, ceased
upon the organization of the State govern-
ments being completed. This, however,
was not so in all cases. The connexion
between the civil power in all the states
in which Episcopacy had been established
in the colonial pcu-iod was dissolved, very
soon after the Revolution, by acts of their
respective Legislatures. But the Congre-
gational Church in New-Eiigland contin-
ued to be uiiiied with the State, and to be
supported by it, long after the Revolution.
Indeed, it was not until 1833 that the last

Chap.III] dissolution of UiNION OF CHURCH AND STATE.

105

tie that bound the Church to the State in
Massachusetts was severed.

CHAPTER III.

DISSOLUTION OF THE UNION OF CHURCH AND

STATE IN AMERICA. WHEN AND HOW EF-

FECTED.

The first State that dissolved its connex-
ion with the Church was Virginia, a cir-
cumstance that seems surprising at first
sight, inasmuch as its early colonists were
all sincere friends of its established Epis-
copal Church, and for a long period were
joined by few persons of different senti-
ments. Indeed, for more than a century
dissent was scarcely, if at all, allowed to
exist within the commonwealth, even in
the most secret manner.

Two causes, however, concurred in pro-
duchig an alteration of these feelings to-
wards the Established Church. First, many
whose attachment to it had been owing to
their birth, education, and early preposses-
sions, became disgusted with the irreli-
gious lives of many of the clergy, and the
greediness with which, notwithstanding
that most of their time was spent in fox-
hunting and other sports, in company with
the most dissolute of their parishioners,
they were ready to contend for the last
pound of tobacco allowed them as their le-
gal salary. Such, indeed, was the charac-
ter of those clergymen, that any one who
makes himself minutely acquainted with
their doings, must feel amazed that the
church wliich they dishonoured should
have retained its hold upon the respect of
the Virginian colonists as long as it did.
What attachment to it remained, must be
ascribed to its having at all times had
some faithful and excellent ministers who
mourned over these scandals, and by their
personal worth redeemed in some meas-
ure the body to which they belonged from
the infamy brought upon it by their repro-
bate fellow-clergymen, or " parsons," as
they were oftener called. These excep-
tions, however, did not prevent multitudes
from abandoning the Church of their fa-
thers, around which their earliest and ten-
derest associations still clustered. " Had
the doctrines of the Gospel," says one who
became an honoured instrument of much
good in Virginia, and probably the most
eloquent preacher of his day in America,
" been solemnly and faithfully preached in
the Established Church, I am persuaded
there would have been but few Dissenters
in these parts of Virginia ; for their first
objections were not against the peculiar
rites and ceremonies of that Church, much
less against her excellent articles, but
against the general strain of the doctrines
delivered from the pulpit, in which those

articles were opposed, or (which was more
common) not mentioned at all ; so that,
at first, they were not properly dissenters
from the original constitution of the Church
of England, but the most strict adherents
of it, and only dissented from those who
had forsaken it."*

Prior to 1740, there was only one Pres-
byterian congregation, it is believed, in
Eastern Virginia, though the Scotch and
Irish emigrants from Pennsylvania must
have introduced several into the Valley.f
There were also a few Quaker societies,
some small German congregations, and a
considerable number of Baptist churches,
which, though small and scattered, em-
braced, perhaps, a larger number of per-
sons, upon the whole, than all the other
dissenting bodies put together.

It was about this time that a Mr. Samuel
Morris, a layman, who had been brought to
the knowledge of salvation by the reading
of the Scriptures, and by the perusal of
Flavel's works, and Luther on the Gala-
tians, began to invite his neighbours, who,
like himself, had been living in great igno-
rance of the Gospel, to come to his house
on the Sabbath, and hear him read his fa-
vourite authors. Such were the crowds
that attended, that a house had soon to be
built of size sufficient to contain them. To
Flavel and Luther there was added a vol-
ume of Whitfield's sermons, as furnishing
spiritual food for these hungry souls. They
were visited in 1743 by the Rev. Mr. Robin-
son, a Presbyterian sent from New-Jersey
on a missionary tour to the South. His
preaching was greatly blessed to " the
Readers."! He taught them to conduct
their worship in the Presbyterian way, and
was followed by other ministers of the
same denomination. Though they were
often fined for not attending the services
of the Established Church, these simple-
hearted and excellent people continued
their meetings. In 1747, the Rev. Mr. Da-
vies, mentioned above, was sent to them
by the Presbytery of Newcastle, in Dela-
ware ; and, with the exception of some
months spent on a visit to England, he la-
boured among them until 1759, when he
was chosen President of the College of

* The Rev. Samuel Davies, in his " Narrative on
the State of Religion among Dissenters in Virginia."

t The " Valley of Virginia" is a fine district of
country which hes west of the first ridge of the Al-
leghany Mountains, and between that ridge and
others which lie still farther to the west. It reaches
quite across the state, from northeast to southwest,
and is considered the best part of it for fertility of
soil. It is a part of the same valley which extends
across Maryland into Pennsylvania. In the latter
state it is called Cumberland Valley.

J A counterpart to these worthy inquirers after
divine knowledge is found at the present day in the
northern parts of Sweden and in Norway, where
groups of persons meet on the Sabbath after church
service, which in too many cases furnishes but poor
spiritual nourishment, to read the Bible and other
good books.

^06

RELIGION IN AMERICA.

[Book III.

JNew-Jersey. He succeeded in building up j
seven churches, ;ind from that time Pres- 1
"byterianism made very considerable prog-
ress in Eastern Virginia ; so that, when
the war of the Revolution began, the Pres-
bytery of Hanover in that colony was a
jiuinerous body, and comprehended some
very able and eloquent ministers. The
Scotch and Irish Presbyterians were at the
same time increasing in the western part
of the province. The Baptist congrega-
tions increased even more rapidly. Still,
it was not always easy to avoid suffering
from the interference of the civil authori-
ties. The Act of Toleration, passed in
England on the 28th of June, 1687, extended
unquestionably to the colonies, yet not a
few obstacles continued to be thrown in the
way of dissenters, almost down to the open-
ing scenes of the Revolutionary drama.

When the Revolution came at last, the
Baptists and Presbyterians were, almost to
-a man, in its favour ; and many of these,
but especially of the former, whose preach-
ers had suffered by far the most from the
civil authorities in the earlier part of the
century, at the instigation, as they believed,
■whether justly or unjustly, of the clergy
of the Established Church, were not a little
influenced in the course they then adopted
by the hope of seeing the success of the
Revolution lead to the overthrow of an es-
tablishment which they regarded with feel-
ings of repugnance, and even of hostility.
]n these circumstances, it was to be ex-
pected that before the Revolution had made
much progress, an assault would be made
on the Established Church ; such an as-
sault was made, and not without success.

As the history of this matter is not a lit-
tle interesting, and almost quite unknown
in Europe, I may enter upon it at some
length.

A very general impression prevails in
England, and perhaps elsewhere, that the
entire separation of Church and State in
America was the work of Mr. Jefferson,
the third President of the United States,
who took a distinguished part in the strug-
gle, and who, upon being charged with
drawing up the Declaration of Independ-
ence, executed the task so much to the
satisfaction of his fellow-citizens. Now
none of Mr. Jefferson's admirers will con-
sider it slanderous to assert that he was a
very bitter enemy to Christianity, and we
may even assume that he wished to see
not only the Episcopal Church separated
from the State in Virginia, but the utter
overthrow of everything in the shape of a
church throughout the country. Still, it
was not Jefferson that induced the State
of Virginia to pass the Act of Separation.
That must be ascribed to the petitions and
other efforts, of the Presbyterians and
Baptists.
J\o sooner was war declared than the

Synod of New- York and Philadelphia, the
highest ecclesiastical body among the Pres-
byterians of America at that time, address-
ed to their churches a very judicious and
patriotic letter, which, while it displayed a
firm spirit of loyalty towards the govern-
ment of England, evidently and naturally
sympathized with the contest then begun —
a contest which it was thought could not
be abandoned without the sacrifice of their
dearest rights. Few persons supposed at
that time that the struggle was to end in a
separation from the mother-country. But
when, in the following year, the Congress
issued its Declaration of Independence, the
whole face of matters was changed, and
ministers of the Gospel had to make their
election — whether they would recognise
and obey the act of the Congress, or still
adhere to the sovereignty of England.
Then it was that the first body of clergy of
any denomination in America that openly
recognised that act, and thereby identified
themselves with the cause of freedom and
independence, was the comparatively nu-
merous and very influential Presbytery of
Hanover in Virginia. At its first meeting
after the appearance of the Declaration,
that body addressed the Virginia House of
Assembly in a memorial, recommending
the separation of Church and State, and
the leaving of the support of the Gospel to
the voluntary efforts of its friends. The
memorial runs as follows :

" To the Honourable the General Assem-
bly of Virginia. The memorial of the
Presbytery of Hanover humbly represents :
That your memorialists are governed by
the same sentiments which have inspired
the United States of America, and are de-
termined that nothing in our pov/er and in-
fluence shall be wanting to give success to
their common cause. We would also
represent that dissenters from the Church
of England in this country have ever been
desirous to conduct themselves as peace-
able members of the civil government, for
which reason they have hitherto submitted
to various ecclesiastical burdens and re-
strictions that are inconsistent with equal
liberty. But now, when the many and
grievous oppressions of our mother-coun
try have laid this Continent under the ne-
cessity of casting off the yoke of tyranny,
and of forming independent governments
upon equitable and liberal foundations, we
flatter ourselves that we .shall be freed from
all the encumbrances which a spirit of
domination, prejudice, or bigotry has in-
terwoven with most other political sys-
tems. This we are the more strongly en-
couraged to expect by the Declaration of
Rights, so universally applauded for that
dignity, firmness, and precision with which
it delineates and asserts the privileges of
society, and the prerogatives of human
nature ; and which we embrace as the

Chap.iil] dissolution of union of church and state.

107

Magna Charta of our commonwealth, that
can never be violated without endangering
the grand superstructure it was designed
to sustain. Therefore, we rely upon this
Declaration, as well as the justice of our
honourable Legislature, to secure us the
free exercise of religion according to the

c tates of our consciences ; and we should
fall short in our duty to ourselves, and the
many and numerous congregations under
our care, were we, upon this occasion, to
neglect laying before you a statement of
the religious grievances under which we
have hitherto laboured, that they may no
longer be continued in our present form of
government.

" It is well known that in the frontier
counties, which are justly supposed to con-
tain a fifth part of the inhabitants of Vir-
guiia, the dissenters have borne the heavy
burdens of purchasing glebes, building
churches, and supporting the established
clergy, where there are very few Episco-
palians, either to assist in bearing the ex-
pense, or to reap the advantage ; and that
throughout the other parts of the country
there are also many thousands of zealous
friends and defenders of our State, who,
besides the invidious and disadvantageous
restrictions to which they have been sub-
jected, annually pay large taxes to support
an Establishment from which their con-
sciences and principles oblige them to dis-
sent ; all which are confessedly so many
violations of their natural rights, and, in
their consequences, a restraint upon free-
dom of inquiry and private judgment.

" In this enlightened age, and in a land
where all of every denomination are united
in the most strenuous efforts to be free, we
hope and expect that our representatives
will cheerfully concur in removing every
species of religious as well as civil bond-
age. Certain it is, that every argument for
civil liberty gains additional strength when
applied to liberty in the concerns of reli-
gion ; and there is no argument in favour
of establishing the Christian religion but
may be pleaded, with equal propriety, for
establishing the tenets of Mohammed by
those who believe the Alcoran ; or, if this
be not true, it is at least impossible for the
magistrate to adjudge the right of prefer-
ence among the various sects that profess
the Christian faith, without erecting a
claim to infallibility, which would lead us
back to the Church of Rome.

" We beg leave farther to represent, that
■religious establishments are highly injuri-
ous to the temporal interests of any com-
munity. Without insisting upon the am-
bition and the arbitrary practices of those
who are favoured by government, or the
intriguing, seditious spirit which is com-
-monly excited by this, as well as by every
other kind of oppression, such establish-
ments greatly retard population, and, con-

sequently, the progress of arts, sciences,
and manufactures. Witness the rapid
growth and improvement of the Northern
provinces compared with this. No one
can deny that the more early settlement,
and the many superior advantages of our
country, would have invited multitudes of
artificers, mechanics, and other useful
members of society, to fix their habitation
among us, who have either remained in
their place of nativity, or preferred worse
civil governments, and a more barren soil,
where they might enjoy the rights of con-
science more fully than they had a pros-
pect of doing in this. From which we in-
fer that Virginia might have now been the
capital of America, and a match for the
British arms, without depending on others
for the necessaries of war, had it not been
prevented by her rehgious establishment.

" Neither can it be made to appear that
the Gospel needs any such civil aid. We
rather conceive that, when our blessed
Saviour declares his kingdom is not of this
world, he renounces all dependance upon
state power ; and as his weapons are spir-
itual, and were only designed to have in-
fluence on the judgment and heart of man,
we are persuaded that if mankind were
left in the quiet possession of their inalien-
able religious privileges, Christianity, as
in the days of the Apostles, would con-
tinue to prevail and flourish in the great-
est purity by its own native excellence,
and under the all-disposing providence of
God.

" We would also humbly represent, that
the only proper objects of civil govern-
ment are the happiness and protection of
men in the present state of existence ; the
security of the life, liberty, and property
of the citizens, and to restrain the vicious
and encourage the virtuous by wholesome
laws, equally extending to every individ-
ual ; but that the duty which we owe to
our Creator, and the manner of dischar-
ging it, can only be directed by reason and
conviction, and is nowhere cognizable but
at the tribunal of the universal Judge.

" Therefore, we ask no ecclesiastical es-
tablishments for ourselves ; neither can
we approve of them when granted to oth-
ers. This, indeed, would be giving exclu-
sive or separate emoluments or privileges
to one set of men, without any special
public services, to the common reproach
and injury of every other denomination.
And, for the reasons recited, we are in-
duced earnestly to entreat that all laws
now in force in this commonwealth, which
countenance religious domination, may be
speedily repealed; that all, of every reli-
gious sect, may be protected in the full
exercise of their several modes of wor-
ship ; exempted from all taxes for the sup-
port of any Church whatsoever, farther
than what may be agreeable to their own

108

RELIGION IN AMERICA.

[Book IIL

private choice or voluntary obligation.
This being done, all partial and invidious
distinctions will be abolished, to the great
honour and interest of the State, and every
one be left lo stand or fall according to his
merit, which can never be the case so long
as any one denomijiation is established in
preference to others.

"That the great Sovereign of the uni-
verse may inspire you with unanimity,
wisdom, and resolution, and bring you to
a just determination on all the important
concerns before you, is the fervent prayer
of your memorialists."'

Besides this petition from the Presbytery
of Hanover, there were others from the
Baptists and Quakers. The Baptists had
suffered more than any other class of dis-
senters, and the remembrance of their
wrongs, now that their day of power had
come, stimulated them to an uninterrupted
opposition of seven- and-twenty years to
the Established Church. Indeed, they now
took the lead in opposing its claims. In
1775 they presented to the General As-
sembly an address, composed by members
who had spontaneously convened, in which
they petitioned, " that they might be al-
lowed to worship God in their own way,
without interruption ; to maintain their own
ministers, separate from others ; and to be
married, buried, &c., without paying the
clergy of other denominations."* To this
the Assembly returned a complimentary
answer, and an order was made that the
sectarian clergy should have, the privilege
of performing Divine service to their re-
spective adherents in the army, equally
with the regular chaplains of the Estab-
lished Church. t

The above memorial from the Presby-
terians, and petitions from the Baptists,
Quakers, and others opposed to the Estab-
lished Church, were met by counter-me-
morials from tlie Episcopalians and Meth-
odists, appealing on behalf of the Estab-
lishment to the principles of justice, wis-
dom, and policy. Public faith, it was said,
required that the State should abide by its
engagements ; and that a system of such
old standing, and which involved so many
interests on the part of persons who had
staked their all upon its continued exist-
ence, possessed the nature of a vested
right, and ought to be maintained inviolate.
The wisdom of this course was argued
from the past experience of all Christian
landsjj and from the influence of religious
establishments in giving stability to virtue
and the public happiness. Policy required
it, for it was insisted that, were there to

* Semple's " History of the Baptists in Virginia,"
p. 25-27, G2.

t Hurk's " History of Virginia," p. 59.

t This was not dilRcult, for church establishments
had existed tiiroughout Christendom since the days
of Constanline.

be no establishment, the peace of the com-
munity would be destroyed by the jealou-
sies and contentions of rival sects. And,,
finally, the memorialists prayed that the
matter might be referred, in the last resort,
to the people at large, as they had the best
of reasons for believing that a majority of
the citizens would be in favour of continu-
ing the establishment.

From this it would seem that, in the
conviction of these memorialists, a major-
ity of the population of Virginia were Epis-
copalians ; yet it was confidently main-
tained in other quarters that two thirds of
the people were at that time dissenters.
I am inclined to think that the greater part
professed, or favoured Episcopacy, but that
a decided majority was opposed to its civil
establishment. The memorials led to a
long and earnest discussion. The Church
had for her champions Messrs. Pendleton
and R. C. Nicolas, and for her great oppo-
nent Mr. Jeff"erson, who speaks of the con-
test as the severest in which he was ever
engaged.* After discussing the subject for
nearly two months, the Assembly repealed
all the colonial laws attaching criminality
to the profession of any particular reli-
gious opinions, requiring attendance at the
parish churches, and forbidding attendance
elsewhere, with the penalties attached.
thereto. Dissenters were to be exempted
in future from compulsory contributions
in support of the Episcopal Church. The
clergy, however, were to have their sti-
pends continued until the first day in the
ensuing year, and had all arrears secured
to them. The churches, chapels, glebes,
books, plate, &c., belonging to the Epis-
copal Church, were to remain in its pos-
session.! This law was passed on the 5th
of December, 1776. The question of hav-
ing a general assessment for the support of
religion was at the same time discussed,
but the determination of it was put off to
a future day.

In the course of 1777 and 1778, petitions
and counter-petitions continued to be ad-
dressed to the Legislature on the subject
of religion. Some of the petitions prayed
for the preservation of all that remained
of the Establishment ; others advocated a
general assessment for the support of all
denominations ; others opposed that sug-
gestion. Some, again, called for the sup-
pression by law of the irregularities of the
"sectaries," such as their holding meet-
ings by night, and craved that none but
" licensed preachers" should be allowed to
conduct the public worship of God. Among
the memorials was one from the Pres-
bytery of Hanover, opposing the plan of a
general assessment. After reverting to
the principles laid down in their first peti-
tion, and insisting that the only proper ob-

* Jefferson's Works, vol. i., p. 32.

+ Hening's " Statutes of Virginia," p. 34.

Chap. III.] DISSOLUTION OF UNION OF CHURCH AND STATE.

109

jects of civil governments are the happi-
ness iind protection of men in their present
state of existence ; the security of the hfe,
liberty, and property of the citizens ; the
restraint of the vicious, and the encourage-
ment of tlie virtuous, by wholesome laws,
equally extending to every individual ; and
that the duly which men owe to their Cre-
ator, and the manner of discharging it, can
only be directed by reason and conviction,
and is nowhere cognizable but at the tribu-
nal of the universal Judge, the presbytery
express themselves as follows ;

•' To illustrate and confirm these asser-
tions, we beg leave to observe, that to
judge for ourselves, and to engage in the
exercise of religion agreeably to the dic-
tates of our own consciences, is an inal-
ienable right, which, upon the principles on
which the Gospel was first propagated,
and the Reformation from Popery carried
on, can never be transferred to another.
Neither does the Church of Christ stand
in need of a general assessment for its
support; and most certain we are that it
would be of no advantage, but an injury to
the Society to which we belong ; and as
every good Christian believes that Christ
has oruained a complete system of laws
for the government of His kingdom, so we
are persuaded that by His providence He
will support it to its final consummation.
In the fixed belief of this principle, that
the kingdom of Christ and the concerns
of religion are beyond the limits of civil
control, we should act a dishonest, incon-
sistent part, were we to receive any emol-
uments from human establishments for the
support of the Gospel.

" These things being considered, we hope
that we shall be excused for remonstra-
ting against a general assessment for any
religious purpose. As the maxims have
long been approved, that every servant is
to obey his master, and that the hireling
is accountable for his conduct to him from
whom he receives his wages ; in like man-
ner, if the Legislature has any rightful au-
thority over the ministers of the Gospel
in the exercise of their sacred office, and
if it is their duly to levy a maintenance
for them as such, then it will follow that
they may revive the old Establishment in
its former extent, or ordain a new one for
any sect that they may think proper ; they
are invested with a power not only to de-
termine, but it is incumbent on them to
declare who shall preach, what they shall
preach, to whom, when, and in what places
they shall preach; or to impose any reg-
ulations and restrictions upon religious so-
cieties that they may judge expedient.
These consequences are so plain as not
to be denied, and they are so entirely sub-
versive of religious liberty, that if they
should take place in Virginia, we should
be reduced to the melancholy necessity of

I saying with the apostles in like cases,
' Judge ye whether it is best to obey God
or men,' and also of acting as they acted.

" Therefore, as it is contrary to our prin-
ciples and interest, and, as we think, sub-
versive of religious liberty, we do again
most earnestly entreat that our Legisla-
ture would never extend any assessment
for religious purposes to us, or to the con-
gregations under our care."

This memorial, and probably still more,
the strenuous efforts of the Baptists, led,
in 1779, to the abandonment of the pro-
posed "general assessment," after a bill
to that effect had been ordered a third
reading.

With the return of peace, the Legisla-
ture of Virginia resumed the subject of
legislating in behalf of religion ; and in
the sessions of 1784 two important matters
were much debated. One was to provide
by law for the incorporation of " all soci-
eties of the Christian religion which may
apply for the same ;" the other was the
old project of a general assessment for
the support of religion. The celebrated
Patrick Henry* was the great advocate

* This gentleman, one of the most eloquent men
that America has ever produced, was for many years
a member of the Legislature of Virginia, and govern-
or, also, for several terms. He distinguished him-
self in opposing the taxation of the colonies by Eng-
land without their consent, and in the course of a
very animated speech on that subject in the Legisla-
ture of Virginia, said, in his emphatic manner, " Cae-
sar had a i3rutus, Charles I. had a Cromwell, and
George III."— here he was interrupted by cries of
"Treason ! treason !" — " and George III.," he repeat-
ed, " should profit by their example; if this be trea-
son, gentlemen, you may make the most of it."

It has been said that m his younger days Mr. Hen-
ry was inclined to inlidelity. But this is not true;
he was a firm believer in Christianity, and for many
years before his death a devout Christian. " He ever
had a great abhorrence of infidelity," says a private
letter from a member of Mr. Henry's family, given
in Dr. Hawks's " Ecclesiastical History of the Epis-
copal Church in Virginia," p. 160, 161, "and actu-
ally wrote an answer to ' Paine's Age of Reason,'
but destroyed it before his death. He received the
communion as often as an opportunity offered ; and
on such occasions always fasted until after he had re-
ceived the sacrament, and spent the day in the great-
est retirement. This he did both while he was gov-
ernor and afterward."

The following affecting anecdote is related of him.
VV^hen very old, he was induced to be a candidate
for the House of Delegates, in a time of great politi-
cal excitement. " On the day of the election," says
Mr. Wirt, in his Life of Patrick Henry, p. 408, "as
soon as he appeared on the ground, he was sur-
rounded by the admiring and adoring crowd, and
whithersoever ho moved the concourse followed
him. A preacher of the Baptist Church, whose pie-
ty was wounded by this homage paid to a mortal,
asked the people aloud, why they thus followed
Mr. Henry. 'Mr. Henry,' said he, 'is' not a god.'
'No!' said Mr. Henry, deeply affected, both by the
scene and the remark ; ' no, indeed, my friend ; I am
a poor worm of the dust, as fleeting and as unsub-
stantial as the shadow of the cloud that flies over
your fields, and is remembered no more.' The tone
with which this was uttered, and the look which ac-
companied, affected every heart and silenced every
voice."

RELIGION IN AMERICA.

[Book IlL

of both measures. The Hanover Pres-
bytery soon reappeared upon the field, and
opposed the latter of these proposals, al-
thou<rh it would have proved as favoura-
ble to the Presbyterian Church as any oth-
er. But on this occasion there was an ev-
ident wavering on the part of the presby-
tery, probably owing to an expectation
that the measure would be sure to be adopt-
ed, and from their desire to secure the
least injurious plan of giving it effect. It
has also been alleged as one cause of the
temporary abatement of their zeal, that
Mr. Henry had won over to his opinions
the Rev. Dr. John B. Smith, one of the
ablest members of the presbytery. Cer-
tain it is, that an act to incorporate the
churches passed by a large vote, and a
bill in favour of a general assessment pass-
ed two readings, was ordered to be read a
third time, and was then sent forth to be
submitted to the people for their opinion
before being passed into a law. On the
same day, likewise, on which an act was
passed fur the incorpor;ition of such church-
es as might apply for the same, leave was
granted to introduce a bill for the incorpo-
ration of tlie Protestant Episcopal Church.
Mr. Henry introduced the bill. It had for
its object the securing to that church all
the property that it had ever had, both in
those parishes which had churches in use,
and ill the still greater number which had
no ministers, and not even vestries, and
where the church edifices had become di-
lapidated during the war of the Revolu-
tion. This bill was approved by the Le-
gislature, and promised permanent peace
and protection to the Episcopal Church.
But the prospect was not of long contin-
uance. The incorporation of the Episco-
pal clergy was strongly opposed in a me-
morial from the Presbytery of Hanover,
under the influence of which the Legisla-
ture delayed farther proceedings, in order
that public opinion migiit have time to ex-
press itself. Meanwhile, petitions against
the measure were sent in from all parts
of Virginia, signed by no fewer than 10,000
persons. Still, as the Legislature seemed
disposed to pass the bill in question, the
Presbyterian churches held a convention,
at which anotlier memorial was drawn up,
and the Rev. Dr. John B. Smith, who had
now become more confirmed in his oppo-
sition to the contemplated measure, was
appointed to accompany the presentation
of the memorial with his personal advo-
cacy at the bar of the Assembly, and was
heard there for three successive days.
This decided the matter; the whole scheme
was abandoned.

Thus, it was mainly owing to the exer-
tions of the Presbyterians, Baptists, and
Quakers that the union of (Muirch and
State in Virginia was dissolved, and the
scheme of having a general assessment

for the support of all Protestant denomi-
nations defeated.* Mr. Jefferson, it is true,
when a member of the Assembly in 1776,
rendered all the aid in his power, and
would have been very well pleased to have
had such parties to co-operate with him in
some other schemes, if he could. But they,
not he, began, the movement in this case^
and they persevered in their endeavours
to render the churches altogether independ-
ent of tlie civil power, and to have all placed
precisely on the same footing, as respect-
ed the civil government.

Mr. Jefferson's grand achievement, in.
the line of legislating about religious rights,
was the famous act '' for establishing reli-
gious freedom," drawn up by him, and
adopted by the Legislature of Virginia iiv
1785. t That act in itself, however, con-

* A general assessment bill would have done in-
finite mischief. It never could have been contined)
to the Evangelical Churches, and would have end-
ed in building up Unilarianism, Universalism, &c.,,
in Virginia, just as a similar measure did altervyanii
in New-England.

t As the reader may wish to see this famous or-
dinance, which Mr. Jefferson challenged so much
credit to himself for having written and advocated,
we give it in this note : " Whereas Almighty God
hath created the mind free ; that all attempts to in-
fluence it by temporal punishments or burdens, or
by civil incapacitations, lend only to beget habits of
hypocrisy and meanness, and are a departure from
the plan of the holy Author of our religion, who, be
ing Lord both of body and mind, yet chose not to
]>ropagate it by coercions on either, as was in his al-
mighty power to do; that the impious presumptioa
of legislators and rulers, civil as well as ecclesiasti-
cal, who, being themselves but fallible and unin-
spired men, have assumed dominion over the faith
of others, setting up their own opinions and modes of
thinking as the only true and infallible, and as such
endeavouring to impose them on others, hath estab-
lished or maintained false religions over the greatest
part of the world, and through all time ; that to com-
pel a man to furnish contributions of money for the.
propagation of opinions which he disbelieves, is sin-
ful and tyrannical ; that even the lorcmg him to sup-
port this or that preacher of his own religious per-
suasion, is depriving him of the comfortable liberty
of giving his contributions to the particular pastor
whose morals he would make his pattern, and whose •
powers he feels most persuasive to righteousness,
and is withdrawing from the ministry those tempo-
ral rewards, which, proceeding Irom an approbation ■
of their personal conduct, are an additional incite-
ment to earnest and unremitting labours tor the in-
struction of mankind ; that our civil rights have no
dependance on our religious opinions, any more than
on our opinions in physic and geometry ; that there-
fore the proscribing any citizen as unworthy of the •
]iul)lic conlidcnce, by laying upon him an incapacity
of being called to othces of trust and emolument,
unless he jirofess or renounce this or that religious
opinion, is depriving him injuriously of those privi-
leges and advantages to which, in common with his
tellow-citizens, he has a natural right ; that it tends
only to corrupt the princi|>lrs of that religion it is
meant to encourage, by bribing with a monopoly of
worldly honours and emoluments those who will
(>xtern.dly profess or conform to it ; that though, in-
deed, those are criminal who do not wilhstami such
temptation, yet neither are those innocent who lay
l\w bait in their way ; that to suffer the civil magis-
trate to intrude his powers into the field of opinion,
and to restrain the profession or propagation of prin-
cii>les on suspicion of their ill-tendency, is a danger-

Chap. III.] DISSOLUTION OF UNION OF CHURCH AND STATE. Ill

tains nothing to which a friend of full and
equal liberty of conscience would perhaps
object ; but it gave its author great satis-
faction, not because it imbodied the prin-
ciples of eternal justice, but because, by
putting all religious sects on an equality,
it seemed to degrade Christianity, and " to
comprehend," to use his own words, " with-
in the mantle of protection the Jew and
the Gentile, the Christian and the Moham-
medan, the Hindoo and infidel of every de-
nomination." It was this that made the
arch-infidel chuckle with satisfaction— not,
we repeal, that the great principles im-
bodied in the measure were right.

I have now gone through the history of
the dissolution of the union of Church and
State in Virginia*— a dissolution effected,
in reality, by the act of the 6th of Decem-
ber, 1776, which repealed all former acts
relating to that union. What followed had
no necessary connexion with that act, but
bore only upon certain measures, designed
to guard against what was deemed by tlie
majority to be an injurious legislation for
promoting the interests of religion.

This early discussion of the propriety of

ous fallacy, which at once destroys all religious lib-
erty ; because, he being, of course, judge of that
tendency, will make his opinions the rule of judg-
ment, and approve or condemn the sentiments ot
others only as they shall square with or differ from
his own -. that it is time enough, for the rightful pur-
poses of civil government, for its officers to inter-
fere when principles breakout into overt acts against
peace and good order: and, finally, that Truth is
great, and will prevail if left to herself; that she is
the proper and sufficient antagonist to error, and has
nothing to fear from the conflict, unless by human
interposition disarmed of her natural weapons — free
argument and debate — errors ceasing to be danger-
ous when it is permitted freely to contradict them.

" Be It therefore enacted by the General Assem-
bly, that no man shall be compelled to frequent or
support any religious worship, place, or ministry
whatsoever; nor shall be enlorced, restrained, mo-
lested, or burdened in his body or goods, nor shall
otherwise suffer on account of his religious opinions
or belief; but that all men shall be free to profess,
and by argument to maintain, their opinions in mat-
ters of religion, and that the same shall in nowise
diminish, enlarge, or affect their civil capacities.

" And though we well know that this Assembly,
elected by the people for the ordinary purposes of
legislation only, have no power to restrain the acts
of succeeding Assemblies, constituted with powers
equal to our own, and that therefore to declare this
act irrevocable would be of no effect in law ; yet we
are free to declare, and do declare, that the rights
hereby asserted are of the natural right of man-
kind, and that if any act shall be hereafter passed to
repeal the present, or narrow its operation, such act
will be an infringement of natural right."

* I might have gone into an ampler detail of the
measures pursued by the opponents of the Episcopal
Church in Virginia to annul the law incorporating
the clergy of that church, and of those, also, which
were followed up, in 1802, by the sale of the glebes ;
but such details have no proper conne.xion with the
subject in hand. The law ordaining the sale of the
glebes was, I think, unconstitutional, and would have
been pronounced to be so had it been brought to a fair
and full decision before the proper tribunal. The
opposition to the Episcopal Church towards the end
was marked by a cruelty which admits of no apology.

dissolving the union of Church and State
in Virginia, after the war of the Revolution
had broken out, had some effect, probably,
on other states placed in similar circum-
stances. Such, at least, is the prevailing-
impression in the absence of authentic
documentary proof. After the Declaration
of Independence, measures to the same
effect were very promptly taken in Mary-
land. On the 3d of November, 1776, the
Legislature of that state put forth a Decla-
ration of Rights similar to that made by
Virginia in the early part of the same year,^
and imbodying principles directly subver-
sive of the union of Church and State. The
Episcopal Church, nevertheless, was se-
cured in the possession of the glebes and
all other church property, and it was de-
cided that the stipends of all the incum-
bents who should remain at their posts
should be paid up to the first day of the
month in which said Declaration was made.
Tins righteous decision was not departed
from, and Maryland, accordingly, was spa-
red those tedious and wretched disputes
about the property of the Church that
had once been established ; disputes that
did much harm to religion in Virginia, and'
were little reputable to the authors of them.

In the Maryland "Declaration of Rights,"'
it was declared, " that as it is the duty of
every man to worship God in such a man-
ner as he thinks most acceptable to Him,
all persons professing the Christian reli-
gion are equally entitled to protection in
their religious liberty ; wherefore no per-
son ought by any law to be molested in
his person or estate on account of his re-
ligious persuasion or profession, or for his
religious practice, unless, under colour of
religion, any man shall disturb the good
order, peace, or safety of the state, or shall
infringe the laws of morality, or injure
others in their natural, civil, or religious
rights." It was farther declared that no
one ought to be compelled to frequent or
maintain the religious worship of any de-
nomination ; but, at the same time, it was
affirmed that the Legislature might, in its
discretion, impose a common and equal
tax for the support of the Christian religion
in general; in such case, however, every
individual paying the tax was held to pos-
sess th« right of designating the religious
denomination to the support of which it
was to be applied ; or he might resolve this
legislative support of Christianity in gen-
eral into mere almsgiving, and direct his
tax to be applied to the maintenance of the
poor.*

The union of Church and State was dis-
solved in like manner, by acts of their re-
spective legislatures, in New- York, South
Carolina, and all the other colonies in
which the Protestant Episcopal Church

* See Dr. Hawks's " History of the Episcopal
Church of Maryland," p. 288.

112

RELIGION IN AMERICA.

[Book III.

Avas predominant. But it is unnecessary
to trace the steps by which this dissolution
■was accomplished in all cases. There was
nothing particularly important, in so far as
I am aware, in these details. Enough to
know that the dissolution did take place at
no distant periods after the Revolution.

Let us now return to New-England,
where the principle of religious establish-
ments was most firmly rooted, and most
difficult to be eradicated.

It was not until about forty years subse-
quent to the separation of Church and State
in Virginia that the example was follow-
ed by Connecticut. It will be recollected
that in the latter state the Established
Church was the Congregational. In 1816,
shortly after the close of the last war be-
tween the United States and Great Britain,
all parties that diffbred from it — Episcopa-
lians, Baptists, Methodists, Universalists,
&c. — combined to effect its overthrow.
These various parties having succeeded in
gaining a majority in the Legislature, pro-
ceeded to abolish the legal assessment for
the parish churches, and by a new law left
it optional to the rate-payers to support
either the parish church, or any other, as
each thought fit. The same system was
adopted by New-Hampshire and Maine.
Vermont, I believe, has at all times had
essentially the voluntary scheme ; that is,
the people of each township have support-
ed such churches within their respective
boundaries, and in such a measure, as they
have thought proper.

Of all the states in which there had ever
been any connexion between the Church
and the Civil Power, Massachusetts was
the last to come under the operation of the
Yoluntary principle. The fathers of that
colony, in the indulgence of their theocrat-
ic principles and ideas, had ever prided
themselves on the union made by the vine
of the Lord's planting and the State. They
had with great satisfaction reposed under
the shadow of both, and discoursed of the
happy fruits of such a union. Cotton Ma-
ther, for example, in a style peculiarly his
own, talks not only of the advantage, but
of the honour, likewise, of a religious es-
tablishment. " Ministers of the Gospel,"
says he, " would have a poor time of it, if
they must rely on a free contribution of the
people for their maintenance." And again :
" The laws of the province (of Massachu-
setts) having had the royal approbation to
ratify them, they are the king's laws. By
these laws it is enacted that there shall
be a public worship of God in every plan-
tation ; that the person elected by the ma-
jority of the inhabitants to be so, shall be
looked upon as the minister of the place ;
and that the salary for him, which they
shall agree upon, shall be levied by a rate
upon all the inhabitants. In consequence
of this, the minister thus chosen by the

people is (not only Christ's, but also), in
reality, the hing's minister ; and the salary
raised for him is raised in the kmff\<! name,
and is the king's allowance unto him."*

Before the Revolution took place, the
Episcopalians had been relieved, by a spe-
cial act of the Legislature, from contribu-
ting to the support of the parish churches,
and their congregations had been erected
into incorporated societies, or poll-parish-
es ; that is, parishes comprising only indi-
viduals, and not marked by geographical
limits. But though the Constitution of
1780, which maintained the old assessment
for religious worship, allowed every per-
son to appropriate his taxes to whatever
society he pleased, it was still held by the
courts of that state, until the year 1811,
that a member of a territorial parish (which
is a corporation) could not divert the tax-
es imposed on him for the support of reli-
gious worship to the maintenance of a
teacher of an unincorporated society. f By
the statute of 1811, amended in 1823, a
duly-attested certificate of membership in
any other religious society, whether incor-
porated or not, sufficed to relieve the hold-
er of it from all taxes for the support of
the parish church ; but it was still the law
and practice of Massachusetts to regard all
persons, in any town or parish, who be-
longed to no religious society whatever, as
regular members of the parish or congre-
gational church, and taxable for the sup-
port of its clergy.

I have elsewhere spoken of the accu-
mulated evils which grew out of the con-
nexion between the Church and the State
in Massachusetts. Those evils became so
great, that the friends of evangelical reli-
gion, in other words, of the orthodox faith
of every name, resolved to unite in urging
an amendment of the Constitution of the
state, by which some better results might
be obtained. Their eflforts were crowned
with success. The amendment having
been voted by the Legislature in three
successive sessions, 1831-33, became part
of the organic law of the state, and the
union of Church and State was brought to
a close.

CHAPTER IV.

EFFECTS OF THE niSSOLUTION OF THE UNION
OF CHURCH AND STATE IN THE SEVERAL
STATES IN WHICH IT ONCE EXISTED.

It will readily be believed that the union

* " Ratio Disciplinae ; or, Faithful Account of the
Disciphne professed and practised in the Churches
of New-England," p. 20.

t For a brief and clear view of the laws of Massa-
chusetts on this subject, the reader is referred to a
sermon of the Rev, William Cogswell, D.D., on Re-
ligious Liberty, preached on the day of the annual
Fast in Massachusetts, April 3d, 182a, and published
in Boston.

€hap. IV.] DISSOLUTION OF UNION OF CHURCH AND STATE.

of Church and State, in any country where
it has once existed, cannot be dissolved
■without some attendant inconvenience. If
such has been the nature of the connexion
that the Church has been wholly depend-
ant on the State for its support, for the
keeping of its places of worship in repair,
the maintenance of its pastors, and the in-
cidental expenses of public worship, very
serious embarrassments must inevitably
attend a sudden dissolution of such a union.
Such was unquestionably the case in some
of the States of America. In others, again,
in which the connexion had been one of
110 long duration, had never been .very
-close, and had not been carried out to a
great extent, that result was attended with
little and not very lasting evil.

Nowhere were the ill consequences
of the disestablishment of the Church
felt more seriously than in Virginia, and
this may be ascribed to several causes.
The worthless character of many of the
clergymen sent over from England had
bred in many places, from the very first,
great indifference to the Church and its
services. The people had become tired of
compulsory payments for the support of a
form of worship which they had ceased to
love or respect. Thus many became in-
different to religious worship of every kind,
and others went off to the " dissenters" —
the Presbyterians, Baptists, &c., when
there were churches of these denomina-
tions in their neighbourhoods. However
-deplorable it might be that the venerable
edifices in which their fathers had worship-
ped should be almost deserted from such a
cause, it was nevertheless inevitable. Not
that this representation applies to every
parish ; in many cases, the faithful and
consistent lives of the pastors kept their
ilocks, under God, in a state of prosperity.
In the second place, a large majority,
some say rather more than two thirds of
the Episcopal clergy* in Virginia were op-
posed to the Revolution, and most of these
returned to England. Nor are they to be
blamed without mercy for so doing. Many
of them, it must be remembered, were Eng-
lishmen by birth, and England was the land
of all their early associations. They had
never suffered oppression, but had ever been
of the party in favour with the monarch.
Thus nothing could be more natural than
that even good men among them should be
Tories. Others there were, doubtless, who
saw that the independence of the country
would be likely so to alter the state of
things as to make it impossible for them
to continue their delinquencies with impu-
nity, which they had enjoyed when respon-
sible only to a bishop 3000 miles off. But
this loyalty to the British crown was not
likely to find much forbearance among a

* Dr. Hawks's " History of the Episcopal Church
in Virginia," p. 136.

113

people, so many of whom were republican
in sentiment, and hostile for the time to
the mother-country; and the Episcopal
Church could not fail to suffer from the
sympathy shown by many of its clergy for
those who were considered the country's
enemies. This was, no doubt, counter-
acted so far by there being in the minority
of the clergy such stanch republicans and
avowed partisans of the colonies as the
Rev. Dr. Madison, afterward bishop of the
state, Drs. Griffith and Bracken, Messrs. Bu-
chanan, Jarratt, and others ;* while as re-
gards the laity, no men in all the colonies
entered more warmly into the Revolution
than did the Episcopalians of Virginia.!

In the third place, Virginia was the im-
mediate theatre of no small part of the
war, and was repeatedly overrun by the
armies of both sides. Now, without at-
tributing too much to wantonness, though
much, no doubt, was owing to that, it may
readily be supposed that the Episcopal
Churches, the best in the colony, would
be sure to be used as barracks, store-
houses, hospitals, «fcc., thus losing at once
their sacred character, and suffering much
in their furnishings. Partly, indeed, from
accident, partly, it is believed, from design,
not a few were destroyed by fire and other
causes.

In the fourth place, so engrossed were
all men's minds with the war, that the
time was very unfavourable for doing
good. Many of the ministers who re-
mained in the province found great diffi- '
culty in collecting the people together,
or obtaining for themselves the means of
subsistence. Some betook themselves to
teaching schools, but even to that the
times were unfavourable. Many mere
boys shouldered the musket and went to
the war, returning no more to their homes
until hostilities had ceased, if death did
not prevent them from returning at all.

Bearing these things in mind, the state
of the Episcopal Churches| in Virginia

* In one instance, an Episcopal clergyman of Vir-
ginia, the Rev. Mr. Muhlenburg, relinquished his
charge, accepted a commission as colonel in the
American army, raised a regiment among his own par-
ishioners, served through the whole vsrar, and retired
from the service at its close with the rank of a brig-
adier-general. The last sermon that he ever preach-
ed to his people before he left for the camp, was de-
livered in military dress. — Thatcher's " Military Jour-
nal,'' p. 152. The Rev. Mr. Thurston, of Frederic
County, in the same state, also bore arms as a colo-
nel in the service of the country.

+ Such as General Washington, Patrick Henry
(of whom we have spoken in the last chapter), Rich-
ard Henry Lee, the mover of the Declaration of Inde-
pendence, his brother, Francis Lightfoot Lee, one
of the .signers, George Mason, Edmund Pendleton,
Peter Lyons, Paul Carrington, William Fleming,
William Grayson, with the famiUes of the Nelsons,
Meades, Mercers, Harrisons, Randolphs, and hun-
dreds of other names deservedly dear to Virginia. —
Dr. Hawks's " History of the Episcopal Church in Vir-
ginia" p. 137.

t Not that the damage done by the war to other

114

RELIGION IN AMERICA.

[Book IIL

may be supposed to have been deplorable
enough on the return of peace, and that
they little needed the aggravation of be-
ing thrown for their support entirely upon
their own members, when these were im-
poverished by the length of the war, and
rendered by it incapable of doing much
for the Church, however well disposed to
make sacrifices in her cause. But an ex-
tract from the distinguished author to whom
I have so often had occasion to refer, will
give a clearer idea of the state of things
than I can :

" On the 19th of April, 1783, precisely
eight years after the first effusion of blood
at Lexington, peace was proclaimed to
the American army by order of the com-
mander-in-chief. Time was now afforded
to men to direct their attention to the
permanent establishment of such institu-
tions, civil and religious, as might com-
port with their desires or views of duty.
Much was to be done ; and rejoicing with
thankfulness, as now we may, in the pres-
ent prosperity of the Church in Virginia,
it is well to look back on its condition as
it emerged from the Revolution, and by
a contemplation of the difficulties which
stood in the way of its resuscitation, be
moved to the exercise of gratitude. When
the colonies first resorted to arms, Virgin-
ia in her sixty-one counties, contained nine-
ty-five parishes, 10-1 churches and chapels,
and ninety-one clergymen. When the
contest was over, she came out of the war
with a large number of her churches de-
stroyed or injured irreparably, with twen-
ty-three of her ninety-five parishes extinct
or forsaken, and of the remaining seventy-
two, thirty-four were destitute of ministe-
rial services ; while of her ninety-one cler-
gymen, twenty-eight only remained, who
had lived through the storm, and these,
with eight others who came into the state
soon after the struggle terminated, sup-
plied thirty-six of the parislies. Of these
twenty-eight, fifteen only had been enabled
to continue in the churches which they
supphed prior to the commencement of
hostilities ; and thirteen had been driven
from tlieir cures by violence or want, to
seek safety or comfort in some one of the
many vacant parishes, where they might
hope to find, for a time at least, exemption
from the extremity of sufTering."*

This is a dark enough picture, but it
must be borne in mind that the evils it rep-
resents were almost wholly owing to the
Revolutionary war and its consequences,
and could not have been much alleviated
had the Church Establishment, instead of

denoininutions was inconsideralile. The Presbyte-
rians (irobably siifi'ercd more in their church edifices,
from being far more obnoxious to the resentment of
the enemy, as the English were considered to be at
the time.

* Dr. Hawks's " History of the Episcopal Church
in Virginia," p. lo3, 154.

being arrested in 1776, been continued un-.
til 1783. But in the gloomy years that
followed the Revolution, the Episcopal
Church continued prostrate, and felt the
loss of her establishment most severely.
Then did it seem as if nothing short of
her utter ruin would satisfy the resent-
ment of her enemies. She had, indeed,
in the day of her power, been exclusive,
domineering, and persecuting; her owa
sins had brought upon her this severe vis-
itation. From her case, as well as from
all past experience, persecuting churches
should learn that a Church that oppresses,
will .one day be herself oppressed, and.
most likely by those on whose neck she
had placed her foot.

But let us turn to a brighter page. " The
Lord, after he hath afflicted, delighteth to
heal." So it was with the Episcopal Church
in Virginia. He had some good thing in
reserve for her, and had been preparing
her for it by the discipline of His rod.
She gradually emerged from her difficul-
ties. Her people learned by degrees to
trust in themselves, or, rather, in God, and
began to look to their own exertions rath-
er than to a tobacco-tax for the support of
their churches and pastors. Faithful min-
isters multiplied ; an excellent bishop was
elected and consecrated ; benevolent soci-
eties began to spring up ; a theological
school was planted within her borders,
where many youths of talent and piety have
been trained under excellent professors to
preach the unsearchable riches of Christ.
And although the ministers and parishes
are not now so numerous as we have sta-
ted them to have been at the commence-
ment of the war of the Revolution, yet
their number is considerable, and constant-
ly increasing. There are ninety-five min-
isters, and more than one hundred
churches. But, above all, I do not think it
possible to find a body of ministers of equal
number, in any denomination, who, in point
of theological education, prudent zeal, sim-
ple and eflective eloquence, general use-
fulness, and the esteem in which they
are held by the people, can be regarded as
superior to the Episcopal clergy of the
present day in Virginia.* What a change !
How wonderfully has all been overruled
by God for good ! Instead of perpetual

* This eulogy will not be thought extravagant by
any one that has had opportunities of knowing them.
1 have had the privilege, as well as the happiness, of
making the acquaintance of many of them, and have
known many more by character through sources wor-
thy of entire confidence. The late excellent Bishop
Moore was beloved by all who knew him. The pres-
ent bishop, Dr. Meade, enjoys the confidence and
esteem both of Christians and the world, in a higher
degree than perhaps any other minister of the Gos-
pel in America. The assistant bishop, Dr. Johns,
is a distinguished and excellent man. The profess-
ors m the diocesan Theological Seminary, the Rev.
Drs. Lippitt and Sparrow, are widely known and
highly esteemed by all who know them.

Chap. IV.] DISSOLUTION OF UNION OF CHURCH AND STATE.

115

wrangling with their parishioners and the
law officers about the taxes on tobacco
levied for their support, as was formerly
the case, they are supported in a way
hereafter to be detailed ; I do not say ex-
travagantly or abundantly, but in general
comfortably, by the contributions of their
congregations. And instead of being dis-
liked, to use no harsher term, I have rea-
son to believe that they are universally
respected, and even beloved, by the mem-
bers of other churches.

In Maryland as well as Virginia, though
in a much less degree, the dissolution of
the union of Church and State produced
serious embarrassments and long-contin-
ued difficulty. In none of the colonies
had the established clergy received such
an ample maintenance as in Maryland.
Their stipends were in many cases most
liberal and ample for those days, so that
to throw them at once on the voluntary
support of their parishioners was a haz-
ardous step, and for the time led to many
cases of hardship. When the Revolution
broke out, there were twenty parishes on
the eastern shore of the province, and
twenty-four on the western ; in all, forty-
four. Each of these had an incumbent,
" though not always of the purest charac-
ter,"* and at the close of the war in 1783,
there were about eighteen or twenty re-
maining.f But if this diminution were
owing at all to the dissolution of the union
of Church and State, it was so in but a
small degree. The fact is, that about two
thirds of the established clergy were op-
posed to the war from its commencement,
and refused to take the oath of allegiance
to the new government, so that the great-
er part of them left the country. On the
return of peace, the Episcopal Church grad-
ually recovered from its depression, and
ever since it has made pretty steady prog-
ress, and been decidedly prosperous. The
late Dr. Clagget was apponited its first bish-
op in 1792, Its Convention was organized,
and canons established, by which proper
discipline was secured. The clergy were
for a loiag time less numerous than before
the Revolution ; not so much, however, ibr
want of the means of supporting them, as
for want of suitable men. Some minis-
ters did, indeed, leave their parishes, and
the state itself, just after the war of the
Revolution, and even so late as 1822, for
want of support ; but this was either be-
fore the churches had been sufficiently
trained to the work of raising a mainte-
nance for their ministers, or it arose from
the churches being really too weak for the
burden. Maryland had fifty Episcopal cler-
gymen in 1827 ; this number had risen to
seventy-two in 1838, and a considerable
proportion of the churches were still with-

* Dr. Hawks's "History of the Episcopal Church
in Maryland." t Ibid., p. 301.

out ministers. At no period of its establish-
ment by the State was the Episcopal
Church of Maryland so prosperous as du-
ring some years back. Not that in all
cases the clergy are supported as they
ought to be, or as they were during the
union of Church and State ; but in point of
talents and sound learning, combined with
piety and other ministerial gifts, they are
immeasurably superior to their predeces-
sors before the Revolution.

In North and South Carolina, and in
New-York, though the disestablishment
of the Episcopal Church produced, as ia
other cases, a kind of syncope for a time,
from this it ere long recovered, and its
prosperity is now incomparably greater
than it ever was when it was supported by
the state. In the State of New- York it
may be said to have entered on its present
career of extraordinary prosperity with
the election and consecration of the late
Rev. Dr. John Henry Hobart, as bishop of
the diocese, previous to which its churches
and ministers were few in number com-
pared with the present time. Seldom has
a Church owed more to the energy and
perseverance of one man.

But in no part of the United States was
the proposal to disestablish the Church re-
ceived with more serious apprehension
than in New-England. The language in
which the celebrated Dr. Dwight, president
of Yale College, and author of a very valu-
able system of theology, as well as other
distinguished men of that state, deprecated
the measure, is still extant in pamphlets
and in journals, and these have often been
quoted in England by the friends, in oppo-
sition to the opponents, of the Church Es-
tablishment there. But it ought to be
known that not a single surviver at this
day, of all who once wrote against the
separation of Church and State in Connec-
ticut, has not long since seen that he was
mistaken, and has not now found to be a
blessing what he once regarded as a ca-
lamity. And had not Dr. Dwight died
just as the change came into operation, no
doubt he, too, would have changed his
opinion.* Twenty-seven years have now
elapsed since that time, and although I
have been much in Connecticut during the
last fifteen years, know many of the clergy,
and have conversed much with them on
the subject, out of the 200 or 300 once es-
tablished ministers of that state, I am not

* The author has often conversed on this subject
with the Rev. Lyman Beecher, D.D., who, when the
change took place, was pastor of a church in Con-
necticut, but is now professor in a theological semi-
nary at Cincinnati, Ohio. Dr. Beecher was as much
opposed to the dissolution as Dr. Dwight was, and
both preached and wrote against it. But with char-
actenstic candour, he hesitates not now to confess
that his apprehensions were quite unfounded. Few
men rank higher in the United States than Dr.
Beecher, whether as a preacher or as a writer.

116

RELIGION IN AMERICA.

[Book IIL

aware of there being more than one Con-
gregational minister in the state who would
like to see the^ union of Church and State
restored in it. Indeed, the exception re-
ferred to is probably the only one in the
United States, among the Protestant min-
isters at least. Any others are most likely
foreigners, who have not yet entered large-
ly into the spirit of our institutions and our
people. On no point, I am confident, are
the evangelical clergy of the United States,
of all churches, more fully agreed than in
holding that a union of Church and State
would prove one of the greatest calamities
that could be inflicted on us, whatever it
may prove in other countries. This is the
very language I have heard a thousand
times from our best and ablest men when
speaking on the subject.

In Massachusetts, which was the last of
the states to abolish the union of the Church
and the Civil Power, the change was
adopted from a conviction of the evils, on
the one side, resulting from the union in
that state, and of the advantages, on the
other side, that would accrue from its dis-
solution : a conviction that led all the evan-
gelical denominations to combine for its
overthrow. In fine, after twelve years'
experience of the change, I apprehend not
a single person of influence in all their
I'anks will be found to regret it.

And now, throughout the whole of the
United States, Truth stands on its own im-
mutable vantage ground. So far as the
Civil Power is concerned, there is not the
slightest interference with the rights of
conscience or with the religious worship
of any one. Religious liberty,, fettered by
no state enactment, is as perfect as it can
be. Nor is any sect or denomination of
Christians favoured more than another.
All depend, under God, for their support on
the willing hearts and active hands of their
friends, while the civil government, re-
lieved from the ten thousand difliiculties and
embarrassments which a union of Church
and State would involve, has only to mote
out justice with even scales to all the citi-
zens, whatever may be their religious opin-
ions and preferences.

CHAPTER V.

WHETHER THE GENERAL GOVERNMENT OF THE
UNITED STATES HAS THE POWER TO PRO-
MOTE RELIGION.

It seems to be inferred by some that be-
cause the Constitution declares that " Con-
gress shall make no law respecting an es-
tablishment of religion, or prohibiting the
free exercise thereof,"* the General Gov-
ernment can do Rothing whatever to pro-
mote religion. This is certainly a mistake.

A great variety of opinions has been ex-

♦ First of the Amendments to the Constitution.

pressed by writers on public and political
law on the question, How far any govern-
ment has a right to interfere in religious
matters ; but that such a right exists to a
certain extent, is admitted by all of them.
Nor can it be otherwise so long as religion
shall be thought necessary to the well-being
of society, and to the stability of govern-
ment itself. It is essential to the interests
of men, even in this world, that they should
be neither ignorant of, nor indifferent to,
the existence, attributes, and providence
of one Almighty God, the Ruler of the
universe ; and, above all, a people that be-
lieve in Christianity can never consent that
the government they live under should be
indifferent to its promotion, since public as
well as private virtue is connected indis-
solubly with a proper knowledge of its na-
ture and its claims, and as the everlasting
happiness of men depend upon its cordial
reception.

On this subject it may be interesting to
know the opinions of one of the most dis-
tinguished jurists in the United States, Mr.
Justice Story, one of the judges of the Su-
preme Court :

" The real difficulty lies in ascertaining
the limits to which government may right-
fully go in fostering and encouraging reli-
gion. Three cases may easily be supposed.
One, where a government affords aid to a
particular rehgion, leaving all persons free
to adopt any other ; another, where it cre-
ates an ecclesiastical establishment for the
propagation of the doctrines of a particular
sect of that religion, leaving a like freedom
to all others ; and a third, where it creates
such an establishment, and excludes all
persons not belonging to it, either wholly
or in part, from any participation in the
public honours, trusts, emoluments, privi-
leges, and immunities of the State. For
instance, a government may simply declare
that the Christian religion shall be the re-
ligion of the State, and shall be aided and
encouraged in all the varieties of sects be-
longing to it ; or it may declare that the
Catholic or Protestant religion shall be the
rehgion of the State, leaving every man to
the free enjoyment of his own religious
opinions ; or it may establish the doctrines
of a particular sect, as of Episcopalians, as
the rehgion of the Slate, with a like free-
dom ; or it may establish the doctrines of a
particular sect, as exclusively the religion
of the State, tolerating others to a limited
extent, or excluding all not belonging to it
from all public honours, trusts, emolu-
ments, privileges, and immunities.

" Now there will probably be found few
persons in this, or any other Christian
country, who would deliberately contend
that it was unreasonable or unjust to fos-
ter and encourage the Christian rehgion
generally as a matter of sound policy, as
, wx'U us of revealed truth. In fact, every

Chap. V,]

RELIGIOUS POWER OF THE GOVERNMENT.

117

American colony, from its foundation down
l' to the Revolution, with the exception of
' Rhode Island (if, indeed, that state be an
exception), did openly, by the whole course
of its laws and institutions, support and
sustain, in some form, the Christian reli-
gion, and almost invariably gave a pecu-
liar sanction to some of its fundamental
doctrines. And this has continued to be
the case in some states down to the pres-
ent period, without the slightest suspicion
that it was against the principles of public
law or Republican liberty.* Indeed, in a
republic, there would seem to be a pecu-
liar propriety in viewing the Christian re-
ligion as the great basis on which it must
rest for its support and permanence, if it
be, what it has ever been deemed by its
truest friends to be, the religion of liberty.
Montesquieu has remarked, that the Chris-
tian religion is a stranger to mere despotic
power. The mildness so frequently rec-
ommended in the Gospel is incompatible
with the despotic rage with which a prince
punishes his subjects, and exercises him-
self in cruelty. t He has gone even far-
ther, and affirmed, that the Protestant re-
ligion is far more congenial with the spirit
of political freedom than the Catholic.
' When,' says he, ' the Christian religion,
two centuries ago, became unhappily divi-
ded into Catholic and Protestant, the peo-
ple of the North [of Europe] embraced the
Protestant, and those of the South still ad-
hered to the Catholic. The reason is plain.
The people of the North have, and ever will
have, a spirit of liberty and independence
which the people of the South have not ;
and, therefore, a religion which has no
visible head is more agreeable to the inde-
pendency of climate than that which has
one.'t Without stopping to inquire wheth-
er this remark be well founded, it is cer-
tainly true that the parent country has act-
ed upon it with a severe and vigilant zeal ;
and in most of the colonies the same rigid
jealousy has been maintained almost down
to our own times. Massachusetts, while
she has promulgated, in her Bill of Rights,
the importance and necessity of the public
support of religion, and the worship of
God, has authorized the Legislature to re-
quire it only for Protestantism. The lan-
guage of that Bill of Rights is remarkable
for its pointed affirmation of the duty of
government to support Christianity, and
the reasons for it. ' As,' says the third
article, ' the happiness of a people, and the
good order and preservation of civil gov-
ernment, essentially depend upon piety,
religion, and morality, and as these can-
not be generally diffused through the com-
munity but by the institution of the public

* Kent's " Commentaries," sect, xxxiv., p. 35-37.
Rawle " On the Constitution," chap, x., p. 121, 122.
t Montesquieu, " Spirit of Laws," b. xxiv., c. iii.
j Ibid., chap. v.

worship of God, and of public instructions
in piety, religion, and morality, therefore,
to promote their happiness, and to secure
the good order and preservation of their
government, the people of this common-
wealth have a right to invest their Legisla-
ture with power to authorize and require,
and the Legislature shall from time to
time authorize and require the several
towns, parishes, &c., &c., to make suitable
provision, at their own expense, for the
institution of the public worship of God,
and for the support and maintenance of
public Protestant teachers of piety, religion,
and morality, in all cases where such pro-
vision shall not be made voluntarily.' Af-
terward there follow provisions prohibit-
ing any superiority of one sect over an-
other, and securing to all citizens the free
exercise of religion.

" Probably, at the time of the adoption
of the Constitution, and of the amendment
to it now under consideration, the general,
if not the universal, sentiment in America
was, that Christianity ought to receive en-
couragement from the State, so far as was
not incompatible with the private rights of
conscience and the freedom of religious
worship. An attempt to level all religions,
and to make it a matter of state policy to
hold all in utter indifference, would have
created universal disapprobation, if not
universal indignation.

" It yet remains a problem to be solved
in human affairs, whether any free govern-
ment can be permanent where the public
worship of God, and the support of religion,
constitute no part of the policy or duty of
the State in any assignable shape. The
future experience of Christendom, and
chiefly of the American States, must set-
tle this problem, as yet new in the history
of the world, abundant as it has been in
experiments in the theory of government.

" But the duty of supporting religion,
and especially the Christian religion, is
very different from the right to force the
consciences of other men, or to punish
them for worshipping God in the manner
which they believe their accountability to
Him requires. It has been truly said, that
' religion, or the duty we owe to our Crea-
tor, and the manner of discharging it, can
be dictated only by reason and conviction,
not by force or violence.'* Mr. Locke
himself, who did not doubt the right of
government to interfere in matters of reli-
gion, and especially to encourage Christi-
anity, at the same time has expressed his
opinion of the right of private judgment,
and liberty of conscience, in a manner be-
coming his character as a sincere friend
of civil and religious liberty. ' No man,
or society of men,' says he, ' have any au-
thority to impose their opinions or inter-

* Virginia Bill of Rights. 1 Tucker's Blackstone's
Commentaries, Appendix, p. 29C.

118

RELIGION IN AMERICA.

[Book III.

pretations on any other, the meanest Chris-
tian ; since, in matters of religion, every
man must know, and believe, and give an
account of himself.* The rights of con-
science are, indeed, beyond the just reach
of any human power. They are given by
God, and cannot be encroached upon by
human authority without a criminal dis-
obedience of the precepts of natural as
well as of revealed religion.

" The real object of this amendment was
not to countenance, much less to advance
Mohammedanism, or Judaism, or Infideli-
ty, by prostrating Christianity, but to ex-
clude all rivalry among Christian sects,
and to prevent any national ecclesiastical
establishment which should give to a hie-
rarchy the exclusive patronage of the na-
tional government. It thus cuts off the
means of religious persecution (the vice
and pest of former ages), and of the sub-
version of the rights of conscience in mat-
ters of religion, which had been trampled
upon almost from the days of the apostles
to the present age.f The history of the
parent country had afforded the most sol-
emn warnings and melancholy instructions
on this head ;J and even New-England,
the land of the persecuted Puritans, as well
as other colonies where the Church of
England had maintained its superiority,
would furnish out a chapter as full of the
darkest bigotry and intolerance as any
which could be found to disgrace the pages
of foreign annals. Apostacy, heresy, and
nonconformity had been standard crimes
for public appeals to kindle the flames of
persecution, and apologize for the most
atrocious triumphs over innocence and
virtue. . '"^

" It was under a solemn consciousness
of the dangers from ecclesiastical ambi-
tion, the bigotry of spiritual pride, and the
intolerance of sects, thus exemplified in
our domestic as well as foreign annals,
that it was deemed advisable to exclude
from the national government all power
to act upon the subject. <J The situation,
too, of diflferent states equally proclaimed
the policy, as well as the necessity, of
such an exclusion. In some of the states
Episcopalians constituted the predominant
sect ; in others, Presbyterians ; in others,
Congregationalists ; in others, Quakers ;
and in others, again, there was a close nu-
merical rivalry among contending sects.
It was impossible that there should not
arise perpetual strife and perpetual jeal-
ousy on the subject of ecclesiastical as-
cendency, if tlie National Government
were left free to create a religious estab-

* Lord King's Life of John Locke, p. 373.

t 2 Lloyd's Debates, p. 195.

t 4 Blackstone's Coininontaries, p. 41-59.

<j 2 Lloyd's Debates, p. 195-197. " "^I'he sectarian
spirit," said the late Dr. Corrie, " is uniformly selfish,
proud, and unfeeling." — Edinburgh Review, April,
1832, p. 135.

lishment. The only security was in ex-
tirpating the power. But this alone would
have been an imperfect security, if it had
not been followed up by a declaration of
the right of the free exercise of religion,
and a prohibition (as we have seen) of all
religious tests. Thus the whole power
over the subject of religion is left exclu-
sively to the State governments, to be act-
ed upon according to their own sense of
justice and the State Constitutions ; and
the Catholic and the Protestant, the Cal-
vinist and the Arminian, the Jew and the
Infidel, may sit down at the common table
of the national councils, without any in-
quisition into their faith or mode of wor-
ship."*

The preceding extracts from the learn-
ed commentator on the Constitution of the
United States are sufficient to show that
the General Government is not restrained
from promoting religion, though not allow-
ed to make any religious establishment,
or to do anything for the purpose of ag-
grandizing one denomination of Christians
more than another.

There is also a manifest difference be-
tween legislating directly for religion as
an end of jurisdiction, and keeping it re-
spectfully in view while legislating for
other ends, the legitimacy of which is not
questioned ; so that if we admit that the
States alone could do the former, the Gen-
eral Government might, at least, be com-
petent to the latter, and in this way the
harmony of the whole might be preserved.

But this restricted view of the case is
not necessary. All that the Constitution
does is to restrain Congress from making
any law " respecting an establishment of
religion, or prohibiting the free exercise of
the same." Everything that has no ten-
dency to bring about an establishment of
religion, or to interfere with the free ex-
ercise of religion. Congress may do. And
we shall see, hereafter, that this is the
view of the subject taken by the proper
authorities of the country.

CHAPTER VI.

WHETHER THE GOVERNMENT OF THE UNITED
STATES MAY JUSTLY BE CALLED INFIDEL OR
ATHEISTICAL.

Because no mention of the Supreme Be-
ing, or of the Christian religion, is to be
found in the Constitution of the United
States, some have pronounced it infidel,
others atheistical. But that neither opin-
ion is correct will appear from a moment's
consideration of the case.

Most certainly, the Convention which

* See Kent's Commentaries, Lecture xxiv. Rawle
on the Constitution, chap, x., p. 121, 122. 2 Lloyd's
I Debates, p. 195.

Chap. VI.]

CHARACTER OF THE GOVERNMENT.

119

framed the Constitution in 1787, under the
presidency of the immortal Washington,
ivas neither infidel nor atheistical in its
character. All the leading men in it were
behevers in Christianity, and Washington,
as all the world knows, was a Christian.
Several of the more prominent members
were well known to be members of church-
es, and to live consistently with their pro-
fession. Even Franklin, who never avow-
ed his rehgious sentiments, and cannot be
said with certainty to have been an infidel,
proposed, at a time of great difficulty in
the course of their proceedings, that a
minister of the Gospel should be invited
to open their proceedings with prayer.
Many members of the Convention had
been members also of the Continental Con-
gress, which carried on the national gov-
ernment from the commencement of the
Kevolution until the Constitution went into
effect. Now the religious views of that
Congress we shall presently see from their
■acts.

The framers of that Constitution seem,
in fact, to have felt the necessity of leav-
ing the subject of religion, as they left
many things besides, to the governments
of the several states composing the Union.
It was a subject on which these states had
legislated from the very first. In many of
them the Christian religion had been, and
in some it still continued to be, supported
by law ; in all, it had been the acknowl-
edged basis of their liberty and well-being,
and its institutions had been protected by
legal enactments. Nothing, accordingly,
could be more natural in the Convention
than to deem the introduction of the sub-
ject unnecessary. There is yet another
view of the subject.

" On this head," says an able writer,
" as on others, the Federal Constitution
%vas a compromise. Religion could not
well be introduced into it for any purpose
of positive regulation. There was no
choice but to tolerate all Christian denom-
inations, and to forbear entering into the
particular views of any. Religion was
likely to fare best in this way. Men who
loved it better than Ave do nowadays, felt
bound in prudence to leave it at once un-
aided and unencumbered by constitutional
provisions, save one or two of a negative
character. And they acted thus, not that
it might be trodden under foot, the pearl
among swine, but to the very end of its
greater ultimate prevalence, its more last-
ing sway among the people."*

There is truth, unquestionably, in these
remarks ; still I am of opinion that the
Convention, Avhile sensible that it was un-
wise to make religion a subject of legisla-
tion for the General Government, thought
that this, or even any mention of the thing

* " An Inquiry into the Moral and Religious Char-
acter of the American Government," p. 72.

at all, was unnecessary. The Constitu-
tion was not intended for a people that had
no religion, or that needed any legislation
on the subject from the proposed General
or National Government ; it was to be for
a people already Christian, and whose ex-
isting laws, emanating from the most ap-
propriate, or, to say the least, the most
convenient sources, gave ample evidence
of their being favourable to religion. Their
doing nothing positive on the subject
seems, accordingly, to speak more loudly
than if they had expressed themselves in
the most solemn formulas on the existence
of the Deity and the truth of Christianity.
These were clearly assumed, being, as it
were, so well known and fully acknowl-
edged as to need no specification in an in-
strument of a general nature, and design-
ed for general objects. The Bible does
not begin with an argument to prove the
existence of God, but assumes the fact, as
one the truth of which it needs no attempt
to establish.

This view is confirmed by what is to be
found in the Constitution itself. From the
reference to the Sabbath, in article I., sec-
tion vii., it is manifest that the framers of
it believed that they were drawing up a
Constitution for a Christian people : a peo-
ple who valued and cherished a day asso-
ciated, if I may so speak, with so large a
portion of Christianity. Regarding the sub-
ject in connexion with the circumstances
that belong to it, I do not think that the
government of the United States can just-
ly be called either infidel or atheistical, on
account of its Federal Constitution. The
authors of that Constitution never dream-
ed that they were to be regarded as treat-
ing Christianity with contempt, because
they did not formally mention it as the
law of the land, which it was already, much
less that it should be excluded from the
government. If the latter was intended,
we shall presently see that their acts, from
the very organization of the government,
belied any such intention.

Should any one, after all, regret that the
Constitution does not contain something
more explicit on the subject, I cannot but
say that I participate in that regret. Sure
I am that, had the excellent men who fra-
med the Constitution foreseen the infer-
ences that have been drawn from the omis-
sion, they would have recognised, in a
proper formula, the existence of God, and
the truth and the importance of the Chris-
tian religion.

I conclude this chapter in the language
of one who has ably treated this question.
" Consistent with themselves, the people
of 1787 meant by the federal arrangement
nothing but a new and larger organization
of government on principles already fa-
miliar to the country. The state govern-
ments were not broad enough for national

RELIGION IN AMERICA.

120

purposes, and the old Confederation was
deficient in central power. It was only
to remedy these two defects, not of prin-
ciple, but of distributive adjustment, that
the public mind addressed itself: innova-
tion, to any other end, was never thought
of; least of all in reference to religion, a
thing utterly apart from the whole de-
sign. So that, admitting that the Consti-
tution framed on that occasion does not in
terms proclaim itself a Christian document,
what then ? Does it proclaim itself un-
christian \ For if it is merely silent in the
matter, law and reason both tell us that its
religious character is to be looked for by
interpretation among the people that fash-
ioned it ; a people, Christian by profession
and by genealogy ; what is more, by deeds
of fundamental legislation that cannot de-
ceive."*

CHAPTER VII.

THE GOVERNMENT OF THE UNITED STATES
SHOWN TO BE CHRISTIAN BY ITS ACTS.

Anv doubts that the Constitution of the
United States may suggest as to the Chris-
tianf character of the National Govern-
ment will be dissipated by a statement of
facts.

In the first place, in transacting the af-
fairs of the government, the Sabbath is
recognised, and respect for it enjoined ;
not only so, but it is observed to a degree
rarely witnessed in other countries. All
public business is suspended, unless in
cases of extreme necessity. Congress ad-
journs over the Sabbath ;J the courts do not
sit ; the custom-houses, and all other pub-
lic offices, are shut, not only for a few
hours, or a part of it, but during the whole
day.

In the second place, the Christian char-
acter of the government is seen in the
proclamations that have been made from
time to time, calling on the people to ob-
serve days of fasting and prayer in times
of national distress, and of thanksgiving
for national or general mercies. Not a

* "An Inquiry into the Moral and Religious Char-
acter of the American Government," p. 84, 85.

+ Wlien I s[)eak of the Cliristiau character of the
government of the United States, 1 mean that it is
so far regulated by the Christian religion as to par-
take of its spirit, and that is not infidel or ojiposcd
to Christianity — Christian as those of England and
other parts of Christendom are Christian — not that
every act of the government is truly conformable to
the requirements of Christianity. Alas ! where shall
we find a government whose acts are fully conform-
ed to these ?

} When the day for the adjournment of Congress
falls on Saturday, it sometimes happens that, on ac-
count of the accumulation of business, the session is
protracted through the lught into the early morning
of the Sabbath ; for doing which they fail not to be
severely censured, as they deserve, by the religious,
and even by some of the secular journals.

[Book IIF.

year passed during the war of the Revolu-
tion without the observance of such days.
At the commencement of that war, the
Congress, in one of these proclamations,
expressed its desire '• to have the people
of all ranks and degrees duly impressed
with a solemn sense of God's superintend-
ing providence, and of their duty to rely in.
all their lawful enterprises on his aid and
direction." The objects of a general fast
are set forth : " that they may with united
hearts confess and bewail their manifold
sins and transgressions, and by a sincere
repentance and amendment of life appease
his righteous displeasure, and through the
merits and mediation of Jesus Christ ob-
tain his pardon and forgiveness." A few
months later we find the following lan-
guage : " The Congress do also, in the
most earnest manner, recommend to all
the members of the United States, and par-
ticularly the officers, civil and military,
under them, the exercise of repentance
and reformation; and farther require of
them the strict observance of the articles
which forbid profane swearing and all im-
moralities." And in 1777, Congress called
upon the nation " that with one heart and
voice the good people may express the
grateful feelings of their hearts, and con-
secrate themselves to the service of their
divine Benefactor ; and that, together with
their sincere acknowledgments and offer-
ings, they may join the penitent confession
of their manifold sins, whereby they have
forfeited every favour, and their earnest sup-
plication that it may please God, through
the merits of Jesus Christ, mercifully to
forgive and blot them out of remembrance ;
that it may please him graciously to afford
his blessing on the governments of these
States respectively, and prosper the public
council of the whole ; to inspire our com-
manders both by land and by sea, and all
under them, with that wisdom and forti-
tude which may render them fit instru-
ments, under the government of Almighty
God, to secure to these United States the
greatest of all blessings — independence and
peace ; that it may please Him to prosper
the trade and manufactures of the people,
and the labour of the husbandman, that our
land may yield its increase ; to take schools
and seminaries of education, so necessary
for cultivating the principles of true liber-
ty, virtue, and piety, under His nurturing
hand ; and to prosper the means of religion
for the promotion and enlargement of that
kingdom which consisteth in righteousness,
[)eace, and joy in the Holy Ghost." In
1779, among other objects for which they
call on the people to pray, we find the
following : " That God would grant to his
Cliurch the plentiful effusions of divine
grace, and pour out his Holy Spirit on all
ministers of the Gospel ; that he would,
bless and prosper the means of education,

Chap. VII]

CHARACTER OF THE GOVERNMENT.

121

and spread the light of Christian knowl-
edge through the remotest corners of the
earth."

Similar language is found in the procla-
mations of 1780, 1781, and 1782. Such
-was the spirit which actuated the councils
of the nation in the Revolution. And after
the Constitution had gone into effect, we
find, in the earlier period of its reign, that
days of fasting and prayer for similar bless-
ings were observed upon the invitation of
Congress. In 1812, when the last war
■with England broke out, we find Congress
using the following language : " It being
a duty peculiarly incumbent in a time of
public calamity and war, humbly and de-
voutly to acknowledge our dependance on
Almighty God, and to implore his aid and
protection, therefore resolved, that a joint
committee of both houses wait on the
President, and request him to recommend
a day of public liumiliation and prayer, to
be observed by the people of the United
States with religious solemnity, and the of-
fering of fervent supplications to Almighty
God for the safety of these States, and
the speedy restoration of peace." And
when the peace arrived, the same branch
of the government called, in like manner,
for a day of thanksgiving, which President
Madison did not hesitate to recommend.
And though President Jackson, I regret to
say, had, as Mr. Jefferson had, scruples as to
how far he was empowered by the Consti-
tution to appoint, or, rather, to recommend
such days of fasting and prayer, and refu-
sed, accordingly, to do so at a time when it
was loudly called for by the circumstances
of the nation, the present president, Mr.
Tyler, hesitated not for a moment to call
upon the people to observe such a day upon
the death of the lamented President Harri-
son. And seldom has such a day been so re-
markably observed in any country, the peo-
ple flocking to their respective churches,
and listening with profound attention to dis-
courses suited to the affecting occasion. It
was marked, in short, with the solemnity
of a Sabbath. The nation felt that God,
who had stricken down the man whom
they had elevated so lately, and with such
enthusiasm, to the presidency, was loudly
calling upon them not to trust in " man,
whose breath is in his nostrils." The ap-
pointment of that fast was manifestly ac-
ceptable to the nation at large.

In the third place, the General Govern-
ment has at various times authorized the
employment of chaplains in the army and
navy, and at this moment there are such
in all larger vessels of war, and at twenty
of the chief fortresses and military sta-
tions.* There is also a chaplain at the gov-

* I cannot avoid remarking, however, that the ap-
pointment of some twenty-five chaplains in the
navy very strikingly illustrates the incompetency of
the civil power to manage spiritual matters. Most

ernment military school at West Point, for
the training of young officers. Moreover,
the Congress testifies to its interest in the
Christian religion, and to its sense of its
importance, by employing two chaplains,
one for the Senate and the other for the
House of Representatives, to open the sit-
tings of these bodies every day with prayer,
and who alternately preach every Sabbath
to the two houses, convened in the Hall of
the Representatives, at twelve o'clock.

In the fourth place, the poUcy of the
General Government may be considered as
Christian, inasmuch as it is directed, in a
large measure, by a Christian spirit. As
a people, we have preferred peace to war ;
we have endeavoured to act with simple
integrity and good faith to foreign nations.
With few exceptions, the General Govern-
ment has acted fairly to the Indians on our
borders ; and in the instances in which it
has been blamed, it is not easy to see how
it could have acted otherwise. To avoid a
civil war, it has once or twice, perhaps,
failed to act with sufficient promptitude in
protecting them from their ruthless white
invaders. But, generally speaking, its con-
duct towards the Indians has been mild and
benevolent. From the times of Washing-
ton it has ever willingly lent its aid in pro-
moting the introduction among them of the
arts of civilized life ; it has expended much
money in doing so ; and at this moment it
is co-operating with our missionary socie-
ties, by giving them indirect but effectual
aid in that quarter. But I shall have occa-
sion to speak elsewhere of the conduct of
the General Government with respect to
this subject.

of the chaplains in the United States navy, with the
exception of a few comparatively recent appoint-
ments, have been little qualified for labouring for the
salvation of from 400 to 1200 men on board a ship of
war. A secretary of the navy is seldom fitted to
make the best selection for such a post. It would be
better done if committed to some of the missionary
societies, or to them in conjunction with the secre-
tary. For more than twenty years after the last war
with England we had no chaplains in our little army,
but within four or live years the government, at the
instance of many of the officers, has appointed twen-
ty chaplains for as many of the chief posts. The
chaplains are chosen by the senior officers of each
post — as good an arrangement, probably, as could be
devised. When there were no chaplains employed,
by the government, the ministers in the vicinity of our
forts and garrisons, and the missionary societies, at-
tended to the spiritual interests of the officers and
men. The officers and men of a regiment, in some
cases, raised a sufficient sum among themselves for
the employment of a missionary, for the greater part,
or the whole of his time, to preach the Gospel to
them. Almost all our forts and garrisons are often
visited by ministers who volunteer to preach at cer-
tain stated times to the military stationed in them.
Thus is the Word of Life made known to men who
have devoted themselves to their country's service.
It must be borne in mind that the national army, in
times of peace, has seldom numbered more than
6000 or 8000 men. It is an interesting fact, that a
very considerable proportion of the officers are pious
men, and do much good by holding religious meet-
ings in their respective regiments and companies..

122

RELIGION IN AMERICA.

[Book III.

In the fifth place, the same spirit appears
in what takes place in judicial affairs. As,
first, the rejection of the oath of an atheist ;
second, the requiring of a belief in a future
state of rewards and punishments, in order
to the validity of a man's testimony ; and,
lastly, the administering of oaths on the
Bible.

In the sixth place, this appears from the
readiness shown by Congress in making
large grants of valuable public lands for the
support of seminaries of learning, asylums
for the deaf and dumb, and for hospitals,
although aware that the institutions thus
endowed were under the direction of de-
cided Christians, who would give a promi-
nent place in them to their religious views.
This I could show by many facts, were it
necessary.

But I have said enough, I trust, to prove
that though the promotion of religion does
not directly belong to the General Govern-
inent, but to the States, the former is nei-
ther hostile nor indifferent to the religious
interests of the country. This, indeed, is
not likely to be the case, so long, at least,
as a large proportion of our public men en-
tertain the respect they now show for re-
ligion. Such respect is the more interest-
ing, as it can only flow from the spontane-
ous feelings of the heart. They are not
tempted by any religious establishment to
become the partisans of religion. Religion
stands on its own basis, and seeks, not in-
effectually, to win the respect and affec-
tions of all men by its own simple merits.
Many of the national legislators are either
members of the churches, or their warm
supporters ; while few among them are not
believers in Christianity, or do not attend
some sanctuary of the Most High on the
•Sabbath.

CHAPTER VIII.

THE GOVERNMENTS OF THE INDIVIDUAL STATES
ORGANIZED ON THE BASIS OF CHRISTIANITY.

After considering the claims of the
General Government to be regarded as
Christian in character, let us inquire how
far the individual States, and particularly
the original Thirteen, are entitled to the
same distinction, confining ourselves in
this chapter to the evidence supplied by
their earliest constitutions or fundamental
Jaws, which were mostly made during, or
shortly after, the Revolution.

Virginia was unquestionably a Christian
>state, but her Constitution is silent on the
subject. It was drawn up under the eye of
one of the greatest enemies that Christian-
ity has ever had to contend with in Amer-
ica ; but although he had influence enough
.to prevent the religion which he hated from
being mentioned in the Constitution of

Virginia, he could not obliterate all traces
of it from her laws.

Connecticut and Rhode Island had adopt-
ed no constitutions of their own when
that of the United States was framed. The
latter of these two states has been gov-
erned almost to this day by the charter
granted by Charles II. Both states were
of Puritan origin, and the charters of both
were based on Christian principles.

The first Constitution of New- York dates
from 1777. It strongly guarded the rights
of conscience and religious worship. It
excluded the clergy from public offices of
a secular nature, on the express ground
that " by their profession they were dedica-
ted to the service of God and to the cure
of souls," and " ought not to be diverted
from the great duties of their functions."

The Constitution of New- Jersey, as origi-
nally framed in 1776, besides guarantying
to every one the " inestimable privilege of
worshipping Almighty God in a manner
agreeable to the dictates of his own con-
science," declared that " all persons pro-
fessing a belief in the faith of any Protest-
ant sect, and who should demean them-
selves peaceably under the government,
should be capable of being members of ei-
ther branch of the Legislature, and should
fully and freely enjoy every privilege and
immunity enjoyed by others, their fellow-
citizens." Whatever may be thought of
the style of this instrument, it cannot be
denied that it favoured the professors of
Protestant Christianity.

The Constitution of New-Hampshire, af-
ter laying it down that " every individual
has a natural and inalienable right to wor-
ship God according to the dictates of his
conscience and his reason," says, " that
morality and piety, rightly grounded on
evangelical principles, would give the best
and greatest security to government, and
would lay in the hearts of men the strong-
est obligations to due subjection ;" and
again, " that the knowledge of these was
most likely to be propagated by the insti-
tution of the public worship of the Deity,
and public instruction in morality and re-
ligion;" therefore, to promote these impor-
tant purposes, " the towns" are empowered
to adopt measures for the support and
maintenance of " public Protestant teach-
ers of piety, religion, and morality." Al-
though the towns are still authorized to
take measures for the support of public
worship, that is no longer accomplished
by a general assessment.

The first Constitution of Massachusetts
was framed in 1780. In it we find the
following language : " That as the hap-
piness of a people, and the good order and
preservation of civil government, essen-
tially depend upon piety, religion, and
morality ; and as these cannot be gener-
ally diffused through a community but by

Chap. VIII.] GOVERNMENTS OF THE INDIVIDUAL STATES.

123

the institution of the public worship of God,
and of pubUc instruction in piety, religion,
and morality : therefore, to promote their
happiness, and to secure the good order
and preservation of their government, the
people of this commonwealth have a right
to invest their Legislature with power to
authorize and require, and the Legislature
shall from time to time authorize and re-
quire the several towns, parishes, pre-
cincts, and other bodies politic, or religious
societies, to make suitable provision, at
their own expense, for the institution of
the public worship of God, and for the sup-
port and maintenance of public Protestant
teachers of piety, religion, and morality,
in all cases where such provision shall not
be made voluntarily ; and the people of
this commonwealth have also a right to,
and do, invest their Legislature with au-
thority to enjoin upon all the subjects an
attendance upon the instructions of the
public teachers as aforesaid, at stated
times and seasons, if there be any one
whose instructions they can conscientious-
ly attend." It was also ordained, that
'• because a frequent recurrence to the fun-
damental principles of the Constitution,
and a constant adherence to those of piety,
justice, moderation, temperance, industry,
and frugality, are absolutely necessary to
preserve the advantages of liberty and to
maintain a free government, the people
ought consequently to have a particular re-
gard to all those principles in the choice of
their officers and representatives ; and they
have a right to require of their lawgivers
and magistrates an exact and constant ob-
servance of them in the formation and ex-
ecution of all laws necessary for the good
administration of the commonwealth."
And, lastly, it wg,s prescribed that every
person " chosen governor, lieutenant-gov-
ernor, senator, or representative, and ac-
cepting the trust," shall subscribe a sol-
emn profession " that he believes the Chris-
tian religion, and has a firm persuasion of
its truth."

The Constitution of Maryland, made in
1776, empowers the Legislature " to lay a
general tax for the support of the Chris-
tian religion," and declares " that all per-
sons professing the Christian religion are
equally entitled to protection in their i-e-
ligious liberty." All tests are disallowed,
^excepting these : an oath of office ; an oath
of allegiance ; " and a declaration of a be-
lief in the Christian religion."

The first Constitution of Pennsylvania,
made in the same year, requires that every
member of the Legislature shall make this
solemn declaration : " I do believe in one
God, the Creator and Governor of the uni-
verse, the rewarder of the good and the
punisher of the wicked ; and I do acknowl-
edge the Scriptures of the Old and New Tes-
tament to be given by Divine inspiration."

The Constitution of Delaware, made at
the same period, premises, " That all men
have a natural and inalienable right to
worship God according to the dictates of
their own consciences and understand-
ings ;" and declares, " that all persons pro-
fessing the Christian religion ought for-
ever to enjoy equal rights and privileges."
In relation to the members of the Legisla-
ture, it enjoins, that every citizen who
shall be chosen a member of either house
of the Legislature, or appointed to any
other public office, shall be required to
subscribe the following declaration : " I
do profess faith in God the Father, and in
Jesus Christ his only Son, and the Holy
Ghost, one God, blessed for evermore ; and
I do acknowledge the Holy Scriptures of
the Old and New Testament to be given
by Divine inspiration."

The Constitution of North Carolina,
made about the same period, declares ex-
pressly, " That no person who should deny
the being of God, or the truth of the Prot-
estant religion, or the Divine authority of
either the Old or New Testament, or who
should hold religious principles incompat-
ible with the freedom and safety of the
State, should be capable of holding any
office or place of trust in the civil govern-
ment of the Slate."

But the Constitution of South Carolina,
made in 1778, was the most remarkable of
all. It directs the Legislature, at its regular
meeting, to " choose by ballot from among
themselves, or from the people at large, a
governor and commander-in-chief, a lieu-
tenant-governor and privy council, all of
the Protestant rehgion." It prescribes
that no man shall be eligible to either the
Senate or House of Representatives, " un-
less he be of the Protestant religion."
And in a word, it ordains " that the Chris-
tian religion be deemed, and is hereby
constituted and declared to be, the estab-
lished religion of the land."

Provision was also made for the incor-
poration, maintenance, and government of
such " societies of Christian Protestants"
as choose to avail themselves of laws for
the purpose, and required that every such
society should first agree to, and subscribe
in a book the five following articles :

" First, That there is one eternal God,
and a future state of rewards and punish-
ments.

" Second, That God is publicly to be
worshipped.

"Third, That the Christian religion is
the true religion.

" Fourth, That the Holy Scriptures of
the Old and New Testament are of Divine
inspiration, and are the rule of faith and
practice.

" Fifth, That it is lawful, and the duty of
every man, being thereunto called by those
who govern, to bear witness to the truth."

124

RELIGION IN AMERICA.

[Book IIF.

Even more than this : the Conscript Fa-
thers who made the Constitution of South
Carohna went on to dechire, " That to
give the state sufficient security for the dis-
charge of the pastoral office, no person shall
officiate as a minister of any established
church who shall not have been chosen by
a majority of the society to which he shall
minister, nor until he shall have made and
subscribed the following declaration, over
and above the aforesaid five articles ; viz.,
' That he is determined, by God's grace,
out of the Holy Scriptures to instruct the
people committed to his charge, and to
teach nothing as required of necessity to
eternal salvation but that which he shall
be persuaded maybe concluded and proved
from the Scriptures ; that he will use both
public and private admonitions, as well to
the sick as to the whole, within his cure,
as need shall require and occasion be giv-
en ; that he will be diligent in prayers and
in reading of the Holy Scriptures, and in
such studies as help to the knowledge of
the same ; that he will be diligent to frame
and fashion his own self and liis family ac-
cording to the doctrine of Christ, and to
make both himself and them, as much as
in him lies, wholesome examples and pat-
terns of the flock of Christ ; that he will
maintain and set forward, as much as he
can, quietness, peace, and love, among all
people, and especially among those com-
mitted to his charge."

Who does not recognise in this Consti-
tution the spirit of the old Huguenot Con-
fession of Faith, and of the Synods of
France, which those who had been perse-
cuted in the Gallican kingdom had carried
with them to the New World ?

The Constitution of Georgia, made in
1777, says : " Every officer of the state
shall be liable to be called to account by
the House of Assembly," and that all the
members of that house "shall be of the
Protestant religion."

Such was the character of the State
Constitutions in the opening scenes of our
national existence. Of all the thirteen ori-
ginal states, the organic laws of one alone
did not expressly enjoin the Christian re-
ligion, and almost without exception, the
Protestant form of Christianity. But even
Virginia was, in fact, as much Christian
as any of them.

From all this, the reader will see how
the nation set out on its career. It was,
in every proper sense of the word, a Chris-
tian nation. And though the constitutions
of the old states luive smce been deprived
of what was exclusive in regard to re-
ligion, and the political privileges of the
Protestants are extended to the Rotnan
Catholics, without any exception that I am
aware of, yet the legislative action of those
states, as well as tliat of the new, is still
founded on Christianity, and is as favour-

able as ever to the promotion of the Chris-
tian religion. I am not sure whether the
Jew has equal privileges with the profess-
or of Christianity in every state, but these
he certainly has in most of them, and he
has everywhere the right to worship God
publicly, according to the rites of his re-
ligion. In some states he holds offices of
trust and influence, the law opening to
him as well as others access to such of-
fices. Thus, in the city of New- York, at
this moment, a descendant of Abraham,
who was formerly sheriff of that city, is a
judge of one of the courts, and discharges
its duties faithfully and acceptably. Jews
form but a small body in America, and as
they hold what may be called the basis of
the Christian religion, worship God accord-
ing to the Old Testament, and believe in a
future state of rewards and punishments,
such a modification of the laws as should
place them on the same footing with Chris-
tians, as respects political privileges, was
not deemed too latitudinarian or unsafe.
They surely have as good a claim to be
considered fit to become members of a
government founded on the religion of the
Bible, as Unitarians can pretend to, and
hold safer principles than the Universal-
ists.

I conclude by repeating, in few words,
that the state governments w^ere founded
on Christianity, and almost without excep-
tion, on Protestant Christianitj-. In the
progress of opinion on the subject of re-
ligious liberty, everything that looked like
an interference with the rights of con-
science in any sect was laid aside, and all
men whose religious principles were not
thought subversive of the great moral
principles of Christianity were admitted
to a full participation in civil privileges and
immunities. This is the present position
of the governments of the several states
in the American Union. Their legislation,
while it avoids oppressing the conscience
of any sect of religionists, is still decided-
ly favourable, in general, to the interests
of Christianity ; the unchristian element,
if I may so term it, is too insignificant,
taking the country as a whole, to exert an.
influence of any importance on the nation-
al legislation.

CHAPTER IX.

THE LEGISLATION OF THE STATES SHOWN TO
BE IN FAVOUR OF CHRISTIANITY.

We have said that the organic laws of
the state governments have been so far
modified as to extend political rights to
citizens of all shades of religious opinions ;
that in every state the rights of conscience
are guarantied to all men ; and in these
respects, the whole twenty- six states and
three territories composing the American

•Chap. IX.]

LEGISLATION OF THE INDIVIDUAL STATES.

125

IJnion are as one. But we must not be
understood as meaning thereby, that irre-
ligion and licentiousness are also guaran-
tied by the organic laws, or by any laws
whatever. This would be absurd. Rights
of conscience are religious rights, that is,
rights to entertain and utter religious opin-
ions, and to enjoy public religious worship.
Now this expression, even in its widest ac-
ceptation, cannot uiclude irreligion ; opin-
ions contrary to the nature of religion, sub-
versive of the reverence, love, and service
due to God, of virtue, morality, and good
manners. What rights of conscience can
atheism, irreligion, or licentiousness pre-
tend to 1 It may not be prudent to disturb
them in their private haunts and secret re-
tirements. There let them remain and
hold their peace. But they have no right,
by any law in the United States that I am
aware of, to come to propagate opinions
and proselytize. Such attempts, on the
contrary, are everywhere opposed by the
laws, and if, at times, these laws are eva-
ded, or their enforcement intentionally in-
termitted, this does not proceed from any
question of their being just, but from a
conviction that, in some circumstances, it
is the less of two evils not to enforce them.
It is sometimes the best way to silence a
noisy, brainless lecturer on atheism, to let
him alone, and the immoral conduct of
some preachers of unrighteousness is the
best refutation of their impious doctrines.
At times, however, another course must
be pursued. The publication of licentious
books and pictures, profane swearing, blas-
phemy, obscenity, the interruption of pub-
lic worship, and such like offences, are
punishable by the laws of every state in
the American Union. Now, whence had
these laws their origin, or where do we find
their sanction 1 Take the laws against
profane swearing. Where did men learn
that that is an offence against which the
laws should level its denunciations ? Sure-
ly from the Bible, and nowhere else.

Not more than one state, if even one, is
supposed to have no laws for the due ob-
servance of the Sabbath. But whence
came such regulations^ From the light
of Nature ? From the conclusions of hu-
man wisdom] Has philosophy ever dis-
covered that one day in seven should be
consecrated to God ^ I am aware that expe-
rience, and a right knowledge of the animal
economy, show that the law setting apart
one day in seven is good, favourable to hu-
man happiness, and merciful to the beasts
of burden. But the Sabbath is of God ; and
putting aside some dim traditions and cus-
toms among nations near the spot where
the Divine command respecting it was first
given to Moses, or of the people in whose
code it afterward held a permanent place,
we find it only in the Bible.

But it is not only by the statute law of

the United States that such offences are
forbidden ; they are punishable likewise
under the common law, which has force
in those states as well as in England. Of
this admirable part of the civil economy,
Christianity is not merely an inherent, it
is a constituent part. This, though denied
by Mr. Jefferson, Dr. Cooper, and others,
has been so decided by many of the ablest
judges in the land. For it has been held,
that while the abolition of religious estab-
lishments in the United States necessari-
ly abolishes that part of the common law
which attaches to them in England, it does
nothing more, and thus many offences still
remain obnoxious to it, on the ground of
their being contrary to the Christian re-
ligion.

A person was indicted at New- York, in
1811, for aspersing the character of Jesus
Christ, and denying the legitimacy of his
birth. He was tried, condemned, fined, and
imprisoned. On that trial, Chief-justice
Kent, still living, and believed to be sec-
ond to none in the country in point of legal
knowledge, expressed himself as follows :

" The people of this state, in common
with the people of this country, profess the
general doctrines of Christianity as the
rule of their faith and practice ; and to
scandalize the Author of these doctrines
is not only, in a religious point of view, ex-
tremely impious, but, even in respect to
the obligations due to society, is a gross
violation of decency and good order. No-
thing could be more offensive to the virtu-
ous part of the community, or more inju-
rious to the tender morals of the young,
than to declare sucli profanity lawful. It
would go to confound all distinction be-
tween things sacred and profane." "'No
government," he maintained, " among any
of the polished nations of antiquity, and
none of the institutions of modern Europe
(a single monitory case excepted), ever
hazarded such a bold experiment upon the
solidity of the public morals as to permit
with impunity, and under the sanction of
their tribunals, the general rehgion of the
community to be openly insulted and de-
famed." " True," he adds, " the Constitu-
tion has discarded religious establishments.
It does not forbid judicial cognizance of
those offences against religion and moral-
ity which have no reference to any such
establishment, or to any particular form of
government, but are punishable because
they strike at the root of moral obligation,
and weaken the security of the social ties.
To construe it as breaking down tlie com-
mon law barriers against licentious, wan-
ton, and impious attacks upon Christia,ni-
ty itself, would be an enormous perversion
of its meaning."*

These just opinions were fully sustain-

* Johnson's " Reports," p. 290.

126

RELIGION IN AMERICA.

[Book UT.

ed by the decision pronounced in Penn-
sylvania, at the trial of a man indicted for
blasphemy, not against God directly, but
against the Bible ; the design charged upon
him being that of " contriving and intend-
ing to scandalize and bring into disrepute
and vilify the Christian religion and the
Scriptures of truth." On that occasion,
the late Judge Duncan said, that " even if
Christianity were not a part of the law of
the land, it is the popular religion of the
country ; an insult to which would be in-
dictable, as tending to disturb the public
peace ;" and added, " that no society can
tolerate a wilful and despiteful attempt to
subvert its religion."*

The application of the common law, by
the courts of Pennsylvania, to the protec-
tion of clergymen living in the discharge
of their official duties, confirms all that has
been said respecting the light in which
Christianity is regarded by the state gov-
ernments.

Farther, every state has laws for the
protection of all religious meetings from
disturbance, and these are enforced when
occasion requires. Indeed, 1 am not aware
of any offence that is more promptly pun-
ished by the police than interfering with
religious worship, whether held in a church,
in a private house, or even in the forest.

All the states have laws for the regula-
tion of church property, and of that devo-
ted to religious uses. In some states, ev-
ery religious body, immediately on being
organized, is pronounced de facto incorpo-
rated ; and in none, generally, is there any
difficulty in procuring an act of incorpora-
tion, either for churches or benevolent so-
cieties.

No state allows the oath of an atheist to
be received in a court of justice, and in one
only, in so far as I am aware, is that of a
disbeliever in -d future state of rewards and
punishments received as evidence. That
state is New- York, where the law requires
simply the belief in a state of rewards
and punishments ; in other words, if a man
believes that there is a God who punishes
men for evil actions, and rewards them
for their good ones, whether in this world
or in that which is to come, his oath will be
received in a court of justice. Of course,
the man who believes neither in the exist-
ence of (iod, nor in any sort of divine pun-
ishment, cannot be sworn, nor his testimo-
ny be allowed, in a court in that state.

CHAPTER X.

THE LEGISLATION OF THE STATES OFTEN
BEARS FAVOURABLY, THOUGH INCIDENTAL-
LY, ON THE CAUSE OF RELIGION.

If there be no Established Church in
any of the states at the present time, it is

* II Sergeant and Kawle's Reports, p. 394.

not, as we have shown, from any want of
power in the states to create such an es-
tablishment, but because it has been found
inexpedient to attempt promoting religion
in that way. Experience has shown that
with us all such establishments have been,,
upon the whole, more injurious than bene-
ficial. They have been renounced because,
from the nature of the case, they could
never be made to operate in such a way
as not to do some injustice to one portion
or other of the citizens.

To this general conviction we must as-
cribe what appears at first sight to be an
anomaly ; the power to aid religion by le-
gal enactment expressly conferred in the
Constitutions of some of the states,* and
yet that power suffered to lie dormant, nor
is there tlie least prospect of its ever being
exercised again. But although the states
have thought it best for the interests of re-
ligion itself, as well as most equitable to
all classes of the inhabitants, to relinquish
all attempts to promote religion by what
is called an establishment, yet they have
deemed it neither unwise nor unjust to
pursue the same end indirectly. Several
instances of this kind have been stated al-
ready ; we may notice a few more.

The states do much to promote educa-
tion in all its stages, though in doing so
they often assist the cause of religion, in
what might be considered nearly the most
direct manner possible. For instance, they
aid colleges directed by religious men, and
that, too, without stipulating for the sliglit-
est control over these institutions. On this
we shall yet have occasion to speak more
at large, and we introduce it here merely
to indicate what the states are thus doing
for Christianity in the way of concurrence
with other bodies. Some states have giv-
en considerable sums to endow colleges at
the outset. Others contribute annually to
their support, and this while well aware
that the colleges aided by such grants are
under a decided religious influence. So is
it also with the academies, of which there
are several even in the smallest states, and
many in the largest. Young men are in-
structed in the classics and mathematics
at these, preparatory to being sent to col-
lege, and as many of them are conducted
by ministers of the Gospel and other reli-
gious men, they are nurseries of vast im-
portance both for the Church and the State.

Again, by promoting primary schools,
the states co-operate in promoting reli-
gion ; for mere intellectual knowlege, al-
though not religion, greatly facilitates its
diffusion by means of books. In the six
New-England States, it is long since pro-
vision was first made by law for the good
education of every child wliose parents
choose to avail themselves of it ; and, ac-

* Maryland, New-Hampshire, and South Carolina.

Chap. XI.]

LEGISLATION OF THE INDIVIDUAL STATES.

127

cordingly, hardly is there an adult native
of those states to be found wlio cannot
read. Some uneducated persons there are,
especially in Maine, New-Hampshire, and
Rhode Island, but they are few compared
with what may be found in other lands.
In all the six states, except Connecticut,
each " town" is required to assess itself for
as many schools as it may need. Connec-
ticut has a school fund of above 2,000,000
dollars, yielding an annual revenue of above
112,000 dollars, and this maintains schools,
a part of the year at least, in every school
district of the state. In New- York, Penn-
sylvania, and Ohio, there are efficient pri-
mary school systems in operation, sup-
ported by law, and capable of supplying all
the youth with education. The state sup-
port consists partly of the interest of per-
manent slate funds set apart for the pur-
pose, partly of money raised in each of the
townships by assessment. The systems
pursued in New-Jersey and Delaware,
though less efficient, are highly useful.
■ Efforts are making in several of the West-
ern States to introduce a like provision, and
a good deal is done in the Southern States
to educate the children of the poor, by
means of funds set apart for that purpose.

The instruction given in the primary
schools of the United States depends for
its chivracter upon the teachers. Where
these are pious, they find no difficulty in
giving a great deal of religious instruction ;
where they are not so, but little instruc-
tion is given that can be called religious.
The Bible is read in most of the schools.

Several of the states have liberally con-
tributed to the establishment of asylums
for the deaf and dumb, and for the blind,
almost all of which institutions are under
a decidedly religious influence. The gov-
ernments of several states containing large
cities, have done much in aid of the efforts
of philanthropic individuals and associa-
tions for establishing Retreats or Houses
of Refuge, where young offenders who
have not gone hopelessly astray may be
placed for reformation. These institutions
have been greatly blessed.

Before concluding my remarks on the
indirect bearing of the State legislation in
America upon religion, I have a few words
to say on one or two subjects connected
■with religion, but different from those al-
ready mentioned. One is marriag-e, which,
with us, is in a great degree a civil institu-
tion, regulated by the laws of each state,
prescribing how it should be performed.
In so far as it is a contract between the
parties, under proper circumstances of age,
consent of friends, sufficient number of
witnesses, &c., it has, with us, no neces-
sary connexion with religion. In all of
the states it may take place, if the parties
choose, before a regularly ordained minis-
ter of the Gospel, and be accompanied with

religious services. The civil power de-
cides within what degrees of consanguin-
ity and affinity it may take place. On this
point, and this mainly, can any collision
take place between the ecclesiastical and
civil authorities. For instance, the Gen-
eral Assembly of the Presbyterian Church
has lately decided, or, rather, repeated a de-
cision given indirectly some years ago,
that a man may not marry his deceased
wife's sister, and pronounced all such mar-
riages to be contrary to the Scriptures, and'
incestuous. Such marriages, on the other
hand, are expressly allowed by the laws,
of Connecticut, and are not forbidden by
those of any other state excepting Virgin-
ia. In all cases of this kind, a man must
make his election as to which he will obey
— the Church or the State. As condem-
nation by the former subjects a man to^
no civil penalties, all that he can suffer is
excommunication.

As for divorces, they are wholly regula-
ted by the civil government, and fall
within the jurisdiction of the States. In
some they are allowed for very few cau-
ses ; much more looseness of practice pre-
vails in others. In South Carolina, I un-
derstand that no divorce has been granted
since it became a state. Ip some states
it belongs to the legislatures to grant di-
vorces, and in others to tiie courts of law.

What are called mixed marriages, or
marriages between Protestants and Roman
Catholics, which have given rise to so
much trouble of late in some countries of
Europe, occasion no difficulty with us.
Marriage, by our laws, being a civil con-
tract, is held valid at common law when-
ever the consent of the parties, supposing
there is no legal impediment, is expressed
in a way that admits of proof. The refu-
sal of a priest to grant the nuptial benedic-
tion, or the sacrament of marriage, except
upon conditions to which the parties might
not be willing to agree, would be of little
consequence. They have only to go to
the civil magistrate, and they will be mar-
ried without the slightest difficulty. No
Roman Catholic priest, or Protestant min-
ister in the United States, would dare to
refuse to perform the ceremony of mar-
riage, unless for most justifiable reasons ;
for if he did, he would soon hear of it through
the press, which is with us an instrument
for correcting any little instances of tyr-
anny or injustice with which any man, no
matter who, may think fit to annoy per-
sons placed in any sense under his au-
thority.

CHAPTER XI.

IN WHAT CASES THE ACTION OF THE CIVIL AU-
THORITY MAY BE DIRECTED IN REFERENCE
TO RELIGION.

Besides the incidental bearing which the

128

RELIGION IN AMERICA.

[Book III.

legislation of the individual states has
upon religion, and which sometimes comes
not a little to its help, there are cases in
•which the civil authority intervenes more
directly, not in settUng points of doctrine,
but in determining questions of property ;
and these are by no means of rare occur-
rence where there are conflicting claims
in individual churches. This, indeed, has
happened twice at least, in reference to
property held by large religious denomina-
tions. The first of these cases occurred
in New-Jersey, and on that occasion the
courts decided upon the claims to certain
property, urged by the Orthodox and the
Hiclcsites, two bodies into which the So-
ciety of Friends, or Quakers, has been di-
vided throughout the United States. And
although the trial took place on a local
cause, or, rather, for a local claim, yet the
principle upon which it was decided affect-
ed all the property held by Quaker socie-
ties in the state.

The second case occurred recently in
Pennsylvania, where the Supreme Court
had to decide upon the claims of the Old
and New School, to certain property be-
longing to the General Assembly of the
Presbyterian Church, on its being divided
into two separate bodies, each of which
assumed the name of the Presbyterian
Church. Here the court had of necessity
to decide which of the two ought by law
to be considered the true representative
and successor of the Presbyterian Church
before its division. The decision, how-
ever, did not rest on doctrinal grounds, but
wholly on the acts of the bodies them-
selves, the court refusing to take up the
question of doctrines at all, as not being
■within their province. Not so in the case
of the Quakers just referred to. There
the court considered the question of doc-
trine, in order to determine which body
■was the true Society of Friends.

I apprehend that I have now said enough
to place the nature of the mutual relations
between Church and State in America
fairly before the reader, and will dismiss
the subject by giving some extracts from
a communication which the Hon. Henry
"Wheatoji, ambassador from the United
States to the Court of Berlin, has had the
goodness to address to me, and which pre-
sents, in some respects, a resume, or sum-
mary of what may be said on this subject :

" In answer to your first query, I should
say that the State does not view the Chris-
tian Church as a rival or an enemy, but
rather as an assistant or co-worker in the
religious and moral instruction of the peo-
ple, which is one of the most important
duties of civil government.

" It is not true that the Church is treated
as a stranger by the state.

" There arc ample laws in all the states
of the American Union for the observance

of the Sabbath, the securing of Church
property, and the undisturbed tranquillity
of public worship by every variety of Chris-
tian sects. The law makes no distinction
among these sects, and gives to no one
the predominance over tlie others. It pro-
tects all equally, and gives no political
privileges to the adherent of one over those
of another sect.

" The laws of the several states author-
ize the acquisition and holding of church
property, under certain limitations as to
value, either by making a special corpora-
tion for that purpose, or through the agen-
cy of trustees empowered under general
regulations for that purpose. Without go-
ing into detail on this subject, it is enough
to say that they proceed upon the princi-
ple of allowing the church to hold a suffi-
cient amount of real and personal property
to enable it to perform its appropriate func-
tions, and, at the same time, to guard against
abuse, by allowing too great an amount of
wealth to be perpetually locked up mmort-
mam by grants and testamentary disposi-'
tions ad pios usus. In some of the states
of the Union, the English statute of mort-
main has been introduced, by which reli-
gious corporations are disabled from ac-
quiring real property unless by special
license of the government. In others, the
capacity to acquire it is regulated and lim-
ited by the special acts of legislation in-
corporating religious societies. The ec-
clesiastical corporations existing before
the Revolution, which separated the United
States from the parent country, continue
to enjoy the rights and property which
they had previously held under acts of Par-
liament, or of the provincial Legislatures.

" Blasphemy is punished as a criminal
offence by the laws of the several states.

" Perjury is, in like manner, punished as
a crime ; the form of administering the
oath being accommodated to the conscien-
tious views of different religious sects.
The Quakers are allowed to affirm solemn-
ly ; the Jews swear upon the scriptures of
the Old Testament only ; and certain Chris-
tian sects with the uplifted hand.

" There has been much discussion among
our jurists as to how tlie oaths of infidels
ought to be considered in courts of justice.
But, so far as I recollect, the general re-
sult is to reject the oath of such persons
only as deny the being of God, or a future
state of rewards and punishments, without
absolutely requiring a belief in revealed
religion.

" The laws regulating marriage with us
are founded on the precepts of Christian-
ity ; hence polygamy is absolutely forbid-
den, and punished as a crime under the de-
nomination of bigamy. Marriages between
relations by blood in the ascending or de-
scending lines, and between collaterals in
the first degree, are absolutely forbidden in

Chap. I.]

THE VOLUNTARY PRINCIPLE.

129

all the states ; and in some, all marriages
within the Levitical degrees are also for-
bidden.

" The common law of England, which
requires consent merely, without any par-
ticular form of solemnization, to render a
marriage legally valid, is adopted in those
states of the American Union which have
not enacted special legislative statutes on
the subject. In some of the states mar-
riage is required to be solemnized in the
presence of a clergyman or magistrate.

" All our distinguished men, so far as I
know, are Cliristians of one denomination
or other. A great reaction has taken place
■within the last thirty years against the tor-
rent of infidelity let in by the superficial
philosophy of the eighteenth century.

" I believe the separation of Church and
State is, with us, considered almost, if not
universally, as a blessing."

With these extracts, which give the
views of one of the most distinguished
statesmen and diplomatists of America,
and which confirm the positions we have
advanced on all the points to which they
refer, we close our remarks on the exist-
ing relations between the Church and State
ia that country.

CHAPTER XII.

REVIEW OF THE GROUND WHICH WE HAVE
GONE OVER.

We have now arrived at the close of the
Third Book of this work.

We have traced the religious character
of the early colonists who settled in Amer-
ica ; the religious establishments which
they planted ; the happy and the unhappy
influences of those establishments ; their

overthrow and its consequences ; and, final-
ly, the relations which have subsisted be-
tween the churches and the civil govern-
ments since the Revolution. We are now
about to enter upon the consideration of
the resources which the churches have
developed since they have been compelled
to look, in dependance upon God's bless-
ing, to their own exertions, instead of rely-
ing on tlie arm of the state.

A review of the ground which we have
gone over may be given almost in the very
words of an able author, to whom we have
been repeatedly indebted.

1. " The first settlers of the United States
went to it as Christians, and with strong
intent to occupy the country in that char-
acter.

2. " The lives they lived there, and the
institutions they set up, were signalized
by the spirit and doctrine of the religion
they professed.

3. " The same doctrine and spirit, de-
scending upon the patriots of the federal
era, entered largely into the primary State
Constitutions of the Republic, and, if anal-
ogy can be trusted, into the constructive
meaning of the Federal Charter itself.

4. " Christianity is still the popular reli-
gion of the country.

5. "And, finally, notwithstanding some
untoward acts of individual rulers, it is to
this day, though without establishments,
and with equal liberty to men's conscien-
ces, the religion of the laws and of the
government. If records tell the trutli — if
annals and documents can outweigh the
flippant rhetoric of licentious debate, our
public institutions carry still the stamp of
their origin : the memory of better times
is come down to us in solid remains ; the
monuments of the fathers are yet standing ;
and, blessed be God, the national edifice
continues visibly to rest upon them."*

BOOK IV.

THE VOLUNTARY PRINCIPLE IN AMERICA; ITS ACTION AND

INFLUENCE.

CHAPTER I.

THE VOLUNTARY PRINCIPLE THE GREAT AL-
TERNATIVE. THE NATURE AND VASTNESS

OF ITS MISSION.

The reader has remarked the progress of
Religious Liberty in the United States from
the first colonization of the country until
the present time, and traced the eff'ects of
its successive developments in modifying
the relations between the churches and
the state.

He has seen that when that country be-
gan to be settled by European emigrants,

in the beginning of the seventeenth cen-
tury, freedom of conscience and the rights
of the immortal mind were but little un-
derstood in the Old World. Those even
who fled to the New, to enjoy this greatest
of all earthly blessings, had but an imper-
fect apprehension of the subject and its
bearings. That which they so highly pri-
zed for themselves, and for the attainment
of which they had made such sacrifices,
they were unwilling to accord to others.
Not that men were not allowed, in ev-

* " An Inquiry into the Moral and Religious Chat-
acter of the American Govemment," p. 139, 140.

130

RELIGION IN AMERICA.

[Book IV.

ery colony, to entertain whatever opinions
they chose on the subject of religion, if
they did not endeavour to propagate them
when contrary to those of the Estabhshed
Church, where one existed. In the colo-
nies where the greatest intolerance exist-
ed, men were compelled to attend the Na-
tional Church, but they were not required,
in order to be allowed a residence, to make
a profession of the established faith. This
was the lowest amount possible of reli-
gious liberty. Low as it is, however, it is
not yet enjoyed by the native inhabitants
of Italy, and some other Roman Catholic
countries.

But it was not long before a step in ad-
vance was made by Virginia and Massa-
chusetts, of all the colonies the most rigid
in their views of the requirements of a
Church Establishment. Private meetings
of dissenters for the enjoyment of their own
modes of worship began to be tolerated.

A second step was to grant to such dis-
senters express permission to hold public
meetings for worship, without releasing
them, however, from their share of the
taxes to support the Established Church.

The third step which religious freedom
made consisted in relieving dissenters from
the burden of contributing in any way to
the support of the Established Church.

And, finally, the fourth and great step
was to abolish altogether the support of
any church by the state, and place all, of
every name, on the same footing before the
law, leaving each church to support itself
by its own proper exertions.

Such is the state of things at present,
and such it will remain. In every state,
liberty of conscience and liberty of worship
are complete. The government extends
protection to all. Any set of men who wish
to have a church or place of worship of
their own, can have it, if they choose to
erect or hire a building at their own
charges. Nothing is required but to com-
ply with the terms which the law prescribes
in relation to holding property for public
uses. The proper civil authorities have
nothing to do with the creed of those who
open such a place of worship. They can-
not offer the smallest obstruction to the
opening of a place of worship anywhere,
if those who choose to undertake it comply
with the simple terms of the law in relation
to such property.

Nor can the police authorities interfere
to break up a meeting, unless it can be
proved to be a nuisance to the neighbour-
hood by the disturbance which it occasions,
or on account of the inunoral practices
winch may be committed in it ; not on ac-
count of the particular religious faith which
may be there taught. All improper med-
dling with a religious meeting, no matter
whether it is held in a church or in a pri-
vate house, would not be tolerated.

On the other hand, as we have shown^
neither the General Government nor that
of the States does anything directly for the
maintenance of public worship. Religion
is protected, and indirectly aided, as has
been proved, by both ; but nowhere does
the civil power defray the expenses of the
churches, or pay the salaries of ministers
of the Gospel, excepting in the case of a
few chaplains connected with the public
service.

Upon what, then, must Religion rely T
Only, under God, upon the efforts of its
friends, acting from their own free will, in-
fluenced by that variety of considerations
which is ordinarily comprehended under
the title of a desire to do good. This, in
America, is the grand and only alternative.
To this principle must the country look for
all those eff"orts which must be made for its
religious instruction. To the consideration
of its action, and the development of its
resources, the book upon which we now
enter is devoted.

Let us look for a moment at the work
which, under God's blessing, must be ac-
complished by this instrumentality.

The population of the United States irr'
1840 was, by the census, ascertained to be
17,068,666 souls. At present (January,
1844) it surpasses 18,500,000. Upon the
voluntary principle alone depends the reli-
gious instruction of this entire population,,
embracing the thousands of churches and
ministers of the Gospel, colleges, theologi-
cal seminaries. Sunday-schools, missionary
societies, and all the other instrumentalities
that are employed to promote the knowl-
edge of the Gospel from one end of the
country to the other. Upon the mere un-
constrained good-will of the people, and
especially of those among them who love
the Saviour and profess His name, does
this vast superstructure rest. Those may
tremble for the result who do not know
what the human heart is capable of doing
when left to its own energies, moved and
sustained by the grace and the love of God.

Still more : not only must all the good
that is now doing in that vast country, and
amid more than 18,500,000 of souls, be con-
tinued by the voluntary principle, but the
increasing demands of a population aug-
menting in a ratio to which the history of
the world furnishes no parallel, must bo
met and supplied. And what this will re-
quire may be conceived when we state the
fact that the annual increase of the popu-
lation during the decade from 1840 to 1850
cannot be short of 500,000 upon an aver-
age ! From 1790 to 1800, the average an-
nual increase of the inhabitants of the
country was 137,609 ; from 1800 to 1810 it
was 193,388 ; from 1810 to 1820 it was
239,831 ; from 1820 to 1830 it was 322,878 ;
from 1830 to 1840 it was 420,174. At this
rate the annual increase from 1840 to 1850

Chap. II.]

THE VOLUNTARY PRINCIPLE.

131

will, upon an average of the years, exceed
500,000. And the whole increase of the ten
years will exceed 5,000,000 of souls. To
augment the number of ministers of the
Gospel, churches, &c., so as adequately to
meet this annual demand, will require great
exertion.

At the first sight of this statistical view
of the case, some of my readers will be
ready to exclaim that the prospect is hope-
less. Others will say. Wo to the cause
of religion if the government does not put
its shoulders to the wheel ! But I answer,
not only in my own name, but dare to do
it in that of every well-informed American
Christian, " No ! we want no more aid from
the government than we receive, and what
it so cheerfully gives. The prospect is not
desperate so long as Christians do their
duty in humble and heartfelt reliance upon
God." If we allow that 80,000 of this half
a million of souls which constitutes the
annual increase of the population are under
five years of age, and therefore need not be
taken into account in calculating the re-
quired increase of church accommodation
"which must be annually made, as being too
young to be taken to the sanctuary, we have
420,000 persons to provide for. This would
require annually the building or opening of
420 churches, holding 1000 persons each,
and an increase of 420 ministers of the
Gospel ; or, what would be much more
probable, 840 churches, each holding on an
average 500 persons ; and a sufficient num-
ber of preachers to occupy them. That
that number should be 840 would certainly
be desirable ; and yet a smaller number
could suffice ; for in many cases one minis-
ter must, in order to find his support, preach
to two or more congregations. So, if 840"
churches be not built every year, something
equal to this in point of accommodation
must be either built or found in some way
or other. Sometimes schoolhouses answer
the purpose in the new settlements ; some-
times private houses, or some public build-
ing, can make up for the want of a church.

Now we shall see in the sequel to what
extent facts show that provision is actually
made to meet this vast demand. For the
present, all that I contemplate in giving
this statistical view of the subject is, to en-
able the reader to form some idea of the
work to be accomplished on the voluntary
principle in America, if religion is to keep
progress with the increase of the popula-
tion.

CHAPTER II.

FOUNDATION OF THE VOLUNTARY PRINCIPLE
TO BE SOUGHT FOR IN THE CHARACTER AND
HABITS OF THE PEOPLE OF THE UNITED
STATES.

Some minuteness of detail will be found

I necessary in order to give tlie reader a
I proper idea of the manifestations of what
has been called the voluntary principle iii
the United States, and to trace it through-
out all its many ramifications there. But,
before entering upon this, I would fain
give him a right conception of the charac-
ter of the people, as being that to which
the principle referred to mainly owes its
success.

Enough has been said in former parts
of this work to show, that whether we look
to the earlier or later emigrations to Amer-
ica, no small energy of character must
have been required in the emigrants before
venturing on such a step : and with regard
to the first settlers in particular, that no-
thing but the force of religious principle
could have nerved them to encounter the
difficulties of all kinds that beset them.
But if great energy, self-reliance, and en-
terprise be the natural attributes of the
original emigrant, as he quits all the en-
dearments of home, and the comforts and
luxuries of states far advanced in civiliza-
tion, for a life in the woods, amid wild
beasts, and sometimes wilder men, pesti-
lential marshes, and privations innumera-
ble, the same qualities are very much
called forth by colonial life, after the first
obstacles have been overcome. It accus-
toms men to disregard trifling difficulties,
to surmount by their own eflTorts obstacles
which, in other states of society, would
repel all such attempts, and themselves to
do many things which, in diff"erent circum-
stances, they would expect others to do
for them.

Moreover, the colonies were thrown very
much on their own resources from the first.
England expended very little upon them.
Beyond maintaining a few regiments from
time to time, in scattered companies,
at widely-separated points, and supplying
some cannon and small arms, she did al-
most nothing even for the defence of the
country. In almost every war with the
Indians, the colonial troops alone carried on
the contest. Instead of England helping
them, they actually helped her incompara-
bly more in her wars against the French, in
the Canadas, and in the provinces of New-
Brunswick and Cape Breton, when they
not only furnished men, but bore almost
the whole charge of maintaining them.
Then came the war of the Revolution,
which, in calling forth all the nation's en-
ergies during eight long years, went far to
cherish that vigour and independence of
character which had so remarkably distin-
guished the first colonists.

And aUhough in some of the colonies
tlie Church and State were united from
the first, the law did little more than pre-
scribe how the churches were to be main-
tained. It made some men give grudging-
ly, who would otherwise have given little

132

RELIGION IN AMERICA.

[Book IV.

or nothing ; while, at the same time, it lim-
ited others to a certain fixed amount, who,
if left to themselves, would perhaps have
given more.

With the exception of a few thousand
pounds for building some of the earliest
colleges, and a few more, chiefly from
Scotland, for the support of missionaries,
most of whom laboured among the Indians,
I am not aware of any aid received from
the mother-country, or from any other part
of Europe, for religious purposes in our
colonial days. I do not state this by way
of reproach, but as a simple fact. The
Christians, not only of Great Britain, but
of Holland and Germany also, were ever
willing to aid the cause of religion in the
colonies ; they did what they could, or,
rather, what the case seemed to require,
and the monuments of their piety and lib-
erality remain to this day. Still, the col-
onists, as was their duty, depended mainly
on their own efforts. In several of the
colonies there was from the first no Church
Establishment ; in two of those which pro-
fessed to have one, the state never did
anything worth mention for the support of
the chu relies ; and in all cases the dissent-
ers had to rely on their own exertions.
In process of time, as we have seen, the
union of Church and State came gradually
to an end throughout the whole country,
and all religious bodies were left to their
own resources.

Thus have the Americans been trained
'vO exercise the same energy, self-reliance,
and enterprise in the cause of rehgion
•which they exhibit in other affairs. Thus,
as we shall see, when a new church is
called for, the people first inquire whether
they cannot build it at their own cost, and
ask help from others only after having
done all they think practicable among
themselves ; a course which often leads
them to find that they can accomplish by
their own efforts what, at first, they hard-
ly dared to hope for.

Besides, there has grown up among the
truly American part of the population a
feeling that religion is necessary even to
the temporal well-being of society, so that
many contribute to its promotion, though
not themselves members of any of the
churches. This sentiment may be found
in all parts of the United States, and es-
pecially among the descendants of the first
Puritan colonists of New-England. 1 shall
have occasion hereafter to give an illus-
tration of it.

These remarks point the reader to the
true secret of the success of the voluntary
plan in America. The people feel tliat
they can help theniselves, and that it is at
once a duty and a privilege to do so. Should
a church steeple come to the ground, or
the roof be blown away, or any other such
accident happen, instead of looking to

some government official for the means of
needful repair, a few of them put their
hands into their pockets, and supply these
themselves, without delay or the risk of
vexatious refusals from public functiona-

ries.

CHAPTER m.

HOW CHURCH EDIFICES ARE BUILT IN THE
CITIES AND LARGE TOWNS.

The question has often been proposed to
me during my residence in Europe, " How
do you build your churches in America,
since the government gives no aid ?"

Different measures are pursued in differ-
ent places. I shall speak first of those
commonly adopted in the cities and large
towns. There a new church is built by
what is called " colonizing :" that is, the
pastor and other officers of a large church,
which cannot accommodate all its mem-
bers, after much conference, on being sat-
isfied that a new church is called for, pro-
pose that a commencement be made by
certain families going out as a colony, to
carry the enterprise into effect, and engage
to assist them with their prayers and coun-
sels, and, if need be, also with their purses.
Upon this, such as are willing to engage
in the undertaking go to work. Some-
times individuals or families from two or
more churches of the same denomination
coalesce in the design.

Or a few gentlemen, interested in reli-
gion, whether all or any of them are mem-
bers of a church or not, after conferring on
the importance of having another church in
some part of the city where an increase of
the population seems to require it, resolve
that one shall be built. Each then subscribes
what he thinks he can afford, and subscrip-
tions may afterward be solicited from oth-
er gentlemen of property and liberality in
the place, likely to aid such an undertaking.
Enough may thus be obtained to justify a
commencement ; a committee is appointed
to purchase a site for a building, and to su-
perintend its erection. When finished, it
is opened for public worship, a pastor is
called, and then the pews, which are gen-
erally large enough to accommodate a fam-
ily each, are disposed of at a sort of auc-
tion to the highest bidder. In this way,
the sum which may be required, in addition
to the original subscriptions, is at once
made up. The total cost, indeed, is some-
times met by the sums received for the
pews, but much depends upon the situation
and comfort of the building, and tlie popu-
larity of the preacher.

The pews are always sold under the
condition of punctual payment of the sums
to be levied upon them annually, for the
pastor's support and other expenses ; fail-

Chap. III.]

CHURCHES IN CITIES AND TOWNS.

133

ing which, after allowing a reasonable time,
they are resold to other persons. But if
all the required conditions be fulfilled, they
become absolutely the purchaser's, and
may be bequeathed or sold like any other
property.

Instead of being sold in fee-simple, the
pews are sometimes merely rented from
year to year. This prevails more in large
towns and villages than in cities, and in
such cases the churches must be built sole-
ly by " subscription," as it is called, that
is, by sums contributed for that special ob-
ject. Should these prove, in the first in-
stance, insufficient, a second, and perhaps
a third subscription follows, after a longer
or shorter interval.

The seats in some churches, even of our
largest cities, are free to all. Such is the
case with all the Quaker, and most of the
Methodist meeting-houses ; these are oc-
cupied on what is called the " free-seat"
plan, and have the advantage of being at-
tended with less restraint, especially by
strangers or persons who may not have the
means to pay for seats. But there are
disadvantages also in this plan. Families
who regularly attend, and who may bear
the expense of the church, have no certain
place where all may sit together, and in
case of being delayed a little longer than
usual, may find it difficult to get seats at
all. The Methodist churches, according-
ly, are coming more and more into the
other plan in our large cities. Where they
have not done so, and also in the Quaker
meeting-houses, the males occupy one half
of the house, the females the other ; a rule,
however, observed more constantly in the
latter than in the former body. Church
edifices, or meeting-houses, on the free-
seat plan, must, of course, be built by sub-
scription alone.

A more common practice in forming
new congregations, and erecting church
edifices, is this : The families who engage
in the undertaking first obtain some place
for temporary service — the lecture-room
attached to some other church, a court-
house, a schoolroom, or some other such
building* — and there they commence their

* In Philadelphia there is a building called the
Academy, built for Mr. Whitfield's meetings, the
upper part of which is now divided into two rooms,
each capable of containing 400 or 500 people, and
both constantly used as places of worship, one per-
manently by the Methodists. The other has been
occupied temporarily by colonies, which have grown
into churches, and then gone off to houses which
they have built for themselves. In this way that one
room, as I have often been told, has been the birth-
place, as it were, of more than twenty different
churches. It is rented to those who wish to occupy
it by the corporation, to which it belongs. In the
lower story there are schools held throughout the
week.

The chapel of the University of New-York is used
for the same purpose ; and the Court-houses through-
out all the land, and even some of the State-houses —
that is, those in which the Legislatures of the several

regular Sabbath services at the usual hours.
After announcing their intention by public
advertisement, they proceed to organize a
church, that is, a body of believers, accord-
ing to the rules of the communion to which
they belong. If Presbyterians, the Pres-
bytery appoints a committee to organize
the church according to the Book of Dis-
cipline, by the appointment and consecra-
tion to office of ruling elders, after which
it falls under the care of the Presbytery.
A pastor is next called and regularly in-
ducted. Meanwhile, the congregation may
be supposed to be increasing, until strong
I enough to exchange their temporary for a
permanent place of worship. In this way
new swarms are every year leaving the
old hives, if 1 may so speak, in our large
cities, and new church edifices are rising
in various localities where the population
is extending.

The church edifices in the chief towns
and cities are, generally speaking, large
and substantial buildings, especially in the
more densely-settled districts. Those in
the suburbs are often smaller, and not ex-
pected to be more than temporary, as they
give place to larger and better structures
in a few years. In the cities and larger
towns, whether on the Atlantic slope or
in the Valley of the Mississippi, they are,
in nine cases out of ten, built of brick ; a
few are of stone ; and in the New-England
cities and towns of second and third rate
size, they are often built of wood.

As for the cost of church edifices, it is
difficult to speak precisely where the coun-
try is so extensive. In the suburbs of our
large cities on the seaboard, from Port-
land, in Maine, to New-Orleans, some may
not have cost more than from 5000 to 10,000
dollars ; but in the older and more densely-
peopled parts of those cities, they generally
cost 20,000 dollars and upward. Some have
cost 60,000 or 80,000, and yet are compara-
tively plain, though very chaste and sub-
stantial buildings. A few have cost above
100,000,* without including such as Trinity
Church at New-York, belonging to the Epis-
copalians, or the Roman Catholic Cathedral
at Baltimore, for these very elegant and ex-
pensive buildings have cost at least 300,000,
if not more.f There may have been, in

States assemble— are allowed to be used as places
of worship on the Sabbath in a case of exigency.

* The church in which the late eloquent Dr. Ma-
son was last settled as a minister in New- York, cost,
I believe, rather more than 100,000 dollars. It was
an excellent, large, tasteful, substantial, brick build-
ing. Yet it, and some others in the lower parts of
the city, whence business is driving the people to
the upper part, have been torn down, and their sites
are covered with shops and counting-rooms. The
congregations have mainly emigrated to about a mile
and a half, or two miles northward. So matters go
in oar London.

t Trinity Church is not vet finished. It is a re-
markably fine specimen of Gothic architecture I
have not heard what the cost wUI be, but, including

134

RELIGION IN AMERICA.

[Book IV.

some cases, a useless expenditure of mon-
ey on interior decorations, but in general,
the churches, even in our largest cities,
are neat and rather plain buildings exter-
nally, but exceedingly comfortable within.

The village churches of New-England
are, for the most part, constructed of wood ;
that is, of beams framed together and cov-
ered with boards : and being almost univer-
sally painted white and surmounted with
steeples, they have a beautiful appearance.
The church-going bell every Sabbath sends
forth its notes far and wide amid the hills
and dales of that interesting country. In
other parts of the Atlantic States, though
often of wood, like those of New-England,
they are still oftener of brick or stone, or
of unpainted frames and boards, which is
especially the case in the South.

Any one may be satisfied, by careful in-
quiry, that even our cities and large towns,
as respects churches, may well bear a com-
parison with the best supphed in any part
of Europe. Boston, for instance, in 1840,
had fifty-eight churches, many of which
could accommodate from 1000 to 1500 per-
sons, and that for a population of about
88,000 souls. New-York had that year
159 churches for about 310,000 inhabitants ;
namely, forty-one Presbyterian, of all
shades ; fourteen Reformed Dutch ; twen-
ty-seven Episcopal ; eighteen Methodist ;
eighteen Baptist ; eight Roman Catholic ;
nine African (Methodist, Episcopal, Bap-
tist, and Presbyterian) ; five Friends' meet-
ing-houses ; three Lutheran ; three Mora-
vian ; three synagogues (there are now
five or six) ; two Unitarian ; three Univer-
salist ; four Welsh and smaller denomina-
tions ; and two Mariners' churches. This
is from a published statement which may
be depended upon as rather within the
truth. Tlie church accommodation of the
Protestant population is in much higher
proportion to their numbers than that of
the Roman Catholics to theirs, partly ow-
ing, no doubt, to the liturgical services of
the latter requiring less church accommo-
dation than the " sermon preaching" of
the former.

Philadelphia is better supplied with
churches than New- York. Those of all the
leading denominations there have greatly
increased during the last few years. The
Methodists, I learn from one of their best-
informed ministers, have, in the course of
the last fifteen years, built in the city and
suburbs above twenty churches, most of
which are capacious buildings ; and the
Episcopalians and Presbyterians have in-
creased tlie number of theirs nearly in the
same proportion. But our second and third
rate cities and large towns are far better
supplied than either of these two places.
Salem, in Massachusetts, for a i)()|)ulation

the value of the ground, I should thuik it cannot be
less than 300,000 dollars, and may amount to 500,000.

of 16,000 souls, has fifteen churches ; New-
Haven, for about 14,000 souls, has thirteen,
many of which are of large size ; Pough-
keepsie, on the Hudson, has 9000 inhabi-
tants and twelve churches ; Troy had, in
1840, a population of 25,000 souls, and fif-
teen churches, and several of those very
large. Newark, in New-Jersey, has about
20,000 inhabitants and seventeen churches;
Rochester 22,000 inhabitants and twenty-
two churchers.

On this head the reader is referred to
the works of Drs. Reed and Matheson, and
to that of Dr. Lang, as containing much ac-
curate information with respect to church
accommodation in the United States.

CHAPTER IV.

HOW CHURCHES ARE BUILT IN THE NEW SET-
TLEMENTS.

But it is in the building of places of wor-
ship in the new settlements of the Western
States, and in the villages that are spring-
ing up in the more recently-peopled parts
of those bordering on the Atlantic, that
we see the most remarkable development
of the voluntary principle. Let me illus-
trate by a particular case what is daily
occurring in both these divisions of the
country.

Let us suppose a settlement commen-
ced in the forest, in the northern part of
Lidiana, and that in the course of three or
four years a considerable number of emi-
grants have established themselves within
a mile or two of each other, in the woods.
Each clears away by degrees a part of the
surrounding forest, and fences in his new
fields, in the midst of which the deadened
trees still stand very thickly. By little
and little the country shows signs of occu-
pation by civilized man.

In the centre of the settlement a little
village begins to form around a tavern and
a blacksmith's shop. A carpenter places
himself there as at a convenient centre.
So do the tailor, the shoemaker, the wag- *
on-maker, and the hatter. Nor is the son
of ^sculapius wanting; perhaps he is most
of all needed ; and it will be well if two or
three of his brethren do not soon join him.
The merchant, of course, opens his maga-
zine there. And if there be any prospect
of the rising village, tliough the deadened
trees stand quite in the vicinity of the
streets, becoming the seat of justice for a
new county, there will soon be half a
dozen young ex{)ounders of the law to in-
crease the population, and offer their ser-
vices to those who have suffered or com-
mitted some injustice.

Tilings will hardly have reached this
point before some one amid this hetero-
geneous population, come from different

Chap. IV.]

CHURCHES IN NEW SETTLEMENTS.

135

points of the older states, intermixed with
wanderers from Europe — Irish, Scotch, or
German — proposes that they should think
of having a church, or, at least, some place
of worship. It is ten chances to one if
there be not one or more pious women, or
some pious man with his family, who sigh
for the privileges of the sanctuary, as once
enjoyed by them in the distant East. What
is to be done 1 Some one proposes that
they should build a good large school-
house, which may serve also for holding re-
Jigious meetings, and this is scarcely soon-
er proposed than accomplished. Though
possibly made of mere logs and very plain,
it will answer the purpose for a few years.
Eeing intended for the meetings of all de-
nominations of Christians, and open to all
preachers who may be passing, word is
sent to the nearest in the neighbourhood.
Ere long, some Baptist preacher, in pass-
ing, preaches in the evening, and is follow-
ed by a Presbyterian and a Methodist.
By-and-by the last of these arranges his
circuit labours so as to preach there once
in a fortnight, and the minister of some
Presbyterian congregation, ten or fifteen
miles off, agrees to come and preach once
a month.

Meanwhile, from the increase of the in-
habitants, the congregations, on the Sab-
bath particularly, become too large for the
schoolhouse. A church is then built of
framed beams and boards, forming no mean
ornament to the village, and capable of
accommodating some 200 or 300 people.
Erected for the public good, it is used by
all the sects in the place, and by others
besides. For were a Swedenborgian min-
ister to come and have notice given that
he would preach, he might be sure of find-
ing a congregation, though, as the sect is
small in America, and by many hardly so
much as heard of, he might not have a
single hearer that assents to his views.
But it will not be long before the Presby-
terians, Methodists, or Baptists feel that
they must have a minister on whose ser-
vices they can count with more certainty,
and hence a church, also, for themselves.
And at last the house, which was a joint-
stock affair at first, falls into the hands of
some one of the denominations and is
abandoned by the others, who have mostly
provided each one for itself. Or it may
remain for the occasional service of some
passing Roman Catholic priest, or Uni-
versalist preacher.*

Such is the process continually going
on in the West, and, indeed, something of

* In some places in the Southwestern States, the
primitive and temporary churches built for all de-
iiommations, in the new villages or settlements, are
called " Republican churches ;" that is, churches
for the accommodation of Ihe public rather than for
any one sect. Large schoolhouses, also, erected for
■the double purpose of teaching and preaching, are
called Republican meeting-houses.

a like kind is taking place every year, in
hundreds of instances, throughout all the
states. Settlers of one denomination are
sometimes sufficiently numerous in one
place to build a church for themselves at
the outset, but in most cases they hold their
first meetings for worship in schoolrooms
or private houses.

The rapid increase of the population in
some of the new villages and towns of the
West, when favourably situated for trade,
is astonishing, and strikes one particularly
in its early stages. Thus, when in the
State of Alabama in February, 1831, I vis-
ited the town of Montgomery in company
with a worthy Baptist minister, in the
course of an extensive tour through the
Western States in behalf of one of our
benevolent societies. It was then hardly
more than a large village. On the night
of the second of the two days we spent in
it, we preached in a large schoolhouse,
which, if I remember rightly, was the only
place for holding rehgious meetings exist-
ing there at the time. We had a good
congregation, though a circus was held
hard by. Just three years after, when re-
peating the same tour, I spent a Sabbath
and one or two days more at the same
spot, but under amazingly different circum-
stances. In the morning I preached in a
Presbyterian cliurch built of frames and
covered with boards, and every way com-
fortable, to at least 600 persons. The
church, which reckoned 100 members, had
got a young man as pastor, to whom they
gave a yearly stipend of $1000. At night
1 preached in a Baptist church, built of
brick, but not quite finished, which could
hold 300 persons at least. Besides these,
there were one Methodist Episcopal and
one Protestant Methodist church, each, in
so far as I can recollect, as large as the
Baptist church. Then there was an Epis-
copal church, not less in size, though prob-
ably with a smaller congregation, than the
Baptist church. And, withal, there was a
Roman Catholic church, though not a large
one, I believe. All this after an interval
of only three years ! Eventful years they
had been. A revival of religion, which
took place during one of them, had brought
many souls to the knowledge of salvation.

This was, it is true, an extraordinary
case, yet something very similar in kind,
although not in degree, is going on at a
great many points in the West. I know
not what reverses the town of Montgom-
ery may have since undergone, but what I
have stated occurred, 1 know, between the
years 1831 and 1834.

On the Genesee River,afew nides above
its entrance into Lake Ontario, m the State
of New- York, stands a town, incorporated
as a city, called Rochester. The place is
famous for the vast quantity of flour made
at its mills. Twenty-five years ago, it

136

RELIGION IN AMERICA.

[Book IV.

could show but a few houses scattered here
and there, where now there is a well-buih
and flourishing city, containing, when I
was there about two years ago, 22,000 in-
habitants, and twenty-two churches, many
of which were large and fine buildings,
capable of accommodating congregations
of from 1000 to 1200 persons each. Among
these churches there were two for Ger-
mans, and another, I learned, was soon to
be erected for French and Swiss.

Churches and church property of every
description are held, in the United States,
by trustees chosen by the congregation to
which they belong. The laws of almost
every state provide for this. These trus-
tees, who may be two, three, or more in
number, are authorized to act for the con-
gregation, to whom they report, from time
to time, the state of the common funds.
They are charged, in most cases, with the
collection of the pastor's salary, as well
as with the general collection and outlay
of money for the congregation. Without
their consent the church edifice cannot be
given to any other than the ordinary reli-
gious services of the sanctuary.

In some cases, several, if not all of the
churches in a city, belonging to a particu-
lar communion, are held by a common
board of trustees. All the Methodist Epis-
copal churches of New- York are so held.
One corporation has the proprietorship of
four of the Reformed Dutch churches in
that city, and another holds Trinity Church,
and perhaps some others belonging to tlie
Protestant Episcopal denomination. In all
denominations, according to general prac-
tice, each particular church and congrega-
tion has its own trustees, and manages its
own " temporal" affairs, being such as re-
late to the church edifice, the ground on
which it stands, and any other property or
stocks belonging to it ; and it is only on
questions of riglit to property that the Civil
Courts, or even the State Legislatures, or
Congress itself, can ever meddle with the
affairs of the churches.

CHAPTER V.

THE VOLUNTARY PRINCIPLE DEVELOPED. — HOW
THE SALARIES OF THE PASTORS ARE RAISED.

Under this head we find different meas-
ures adopted by different churches, and in
different parts of the country.

Universally where the seats and pews
are the property of individuals or families,
and generally where they are rented by the
year, the salaries of the pastors, and some-
times all the incidental expenses, are raised
by a certain yearly, half-yearly, or quarterly
rate upon each pew. The proportion for
each pew is fixed by the trustees, or by the
elders, or by a committee appointed for
that special purpose, but in most cases by

the trustees, where there are such. Where
the seats are free, as is the case with very
many churches of all denominations in the
interior of the country, the minister's sal-
ary is raised by yearly subscription. In the
Methodist Episcopal churches, with few
exceptions, the ministers are supported by
collections among the members, quarterly
public collections, &c. Sometimes, also,
recourse is partially had to subscriptions,
especially where there are " stationed" or
non-itinerating ministers.

Among the Protestant denominations,
the amount of the pastor's salary is deter-
mined, in most cases, by the churches
themselves. In the Methodist churches,
the amount is fixed by the General Confer-
ence. In ordinary cases, he receives so
much for himself, a like sum for his wife,
and so much for each of his children, ac-
cording to their ages, with certain perqui-
sites besides, such as a family dwelling-
house, a horse, &c., making up altogether
a comfortable maintenance for himself and
his household. The collections of each
•' circuit" are expected, generally speaking,
to suflice for the salaries of the ministers
who occupy them, any deficiency being
made up from funds which the Conference
may have in hand for meeting such contin-
gencies. The clergy of all evangelical
denominations, with two exceptions, re-
ceive fixed salaries from their people, and
are expected to devote themselves to their
proper vocation, and to " live by the altar."
The exceptions are a part of the ministers
of the Baptist Church, and all the Quaker
preachers. These support themselves by
their labour, or from other sources, and
preach on the Sabbath.

The Baptists agree with the Methodists
in not considering a college education, or
an acquaintance with the Greek, Latin, and
Hebrew tongues, or the natural and moral
sciences, indispensable for a preacher of
the Gospel ; hence by far the greater
number of them have had only an English
education, together with such theological
knowledge, derived from English sources,
as has qualified them, in the opinion of the
authorities in their churches, for underta-
king to preach the Gospel. In both these
denominations, however, there are not a
few truly learned men, who have passed
through the curriculum of some college,
and have diligently added to the acquire-
ments of their preparatory course. The
regular itinerating ministers of the Metho-
dist churches receive salaries, and devote
themselves wliolly to their ministerial call-
ing ; wliereas very many of the Baptist
ministers, as has boon already stated, es-
pecially in the Southern and Western, and
to a certain extent in the Middle States,
receive no salaries at all, or none of any
consequence, so that they must support
themselves in some other way.

Chap. V.]

SALARIES OF THE PASTORS.

137

The preachers among the Friends, who,
as the reader is probably aware, may be
women as well as men, receive no regular
salaries ; but those of them who, under the
belief that they have a call from the Spirit
to give themselves wholly to the work,
travel through the country, visiting the
Friends' " meetings," and preaching in other
places, generally, nay, always, if their own
means are not abundant, receive consider-
able presents.

It is not easy to give any very satisfac-
tory answer to the question, Whether the
ministers of the Gospel are well supported
in the United States 1 Using that phrase
in the sense which many attach to it, I
should say, in giving a general reply to the
question, that they are not. That is to
say, few, if any, of them receive salaries
that would enable them to live in the style
in which the wealthiest of their parishion-
ers live. Their incomes are riot equal to
those of the greater number of lawyers
and physicians, though these are men of no
better education or higher talents than
great numbers of the clergy possess. None
of the ministers of the Gospel in the United
States derive such revenues from their offi-
cial stations as many of the parochial cler-
gy of England have, to say nothing of the
higher dignitaries of the Church in that
country. There are few, if any, of them
who, with economy, can do more than live
upon their salaries ; to grow rich upon
them is out of the question.*

Yet, on the other hand, the greater num-
ber of the salaried ministers in the United
States are able, with economy, to live com-
fortably and respectably. This holds true
especially as respects the pastors of the
Atlantic, and even of the older parts of the
Western States. In New-England, if we
except Boston, the salaries of the Congre-
gational, Episcopal, and Baptist pastors
are, in the largest towns, such as Provi-
dence, Portland, Salem, Hartford, New-
Haven, &c., from 800 to 1200 dollars; in
the villages and country churches they vary
from 300 or 400 to 700 or 800, besides
which the minister sometimes has a " par-
sonage" and "glebe," that is, a house and
a few acres of land, and, in addition to all,

* The statements made by foreigners, in writing
about the United States, are sometmies sufficiently
ludicrous. For instance, M. Beaumont, in his " Ma-
ne, ou Esclavage au.x Etats-Unis," accounts for the
great number of churches there by the great number
of mmisters of the Gospel. He says that the minis-
try is not only very honourable, but very lucrative
also ; that most of the preachers make a fortune in a
few years, and then retire from the ministry, which
is the cause of there bemg so few old men in the pul-
pits of that country. Anything more absurd on such
a subject I cannot imagme. But I will do M. Beau-
mont the justice to say, that I do not blame him so
much as the stupid creatures who gave him such in-
formation. The gay Frenchman probably did not
set his foot in more than half a dozen churches when
in America, and of these not one, it is likely, was
Protestant.

he receives a good many presents. His
marriage fees are of some amount. In
other parts of the country, and especially
in the West, the clergy are not so well
provided for. The practice in New-England
of giving them presents, whether casually
or regularly, and at some set time, does not
prevail elsewhere to the same degree.

The salaries of the clergy in the largest
and wealthiest churches of the principal
cities are handsome, though generally no
more than adequate.* Fifteen hundred
dollars, 1800, 2000, 2500, are the sums com-
monly given, and, in a few cases, 3000,
3500, and even 4000. The Presbyterian
Church in New-Orleans, I believe, gives
its pastor 5000, and the highest of all is that
of one of the bishops in the Episcopal
Church, which, I have been told, is 6000. f

Some churches have permanent funds,
which go far towards the pastor's support.
The corporation of the collegiate churches
of the Reformed Dutch Church in New-
York, four in number at present, has
enough from this source to pay the sala-
ries of the four pastors. The corporation
of Trinity Church (Episcopal) possesses
vast funds, the income from which has en-
abled the trustees to contribute largely
towards the building of churches in the
State of New- York. Three of the Pres-
byterian churches in Newark, New-Jersey,
which is nine miles from New- York, and
contains 20,000 inhabitants, have perma-
nent funds sufficient for the support of their
public services-

But, generally speaking, a permanent
fund is found to be rather injurious than ben-
eficial to the churches in the United States.
If out of debt, that is, if they owe nothing
for their church edifices, lecture-rooms,
vestry-rooms, &c., they need no endow-
ment ; the hearts of the people will do the
rest. I speak of the churches in the old-
er parts of the country. The measures
we take for the support of churches in the
new settlements, and which are weak as
yet, I shall show hereafter.

It often happens that ministers are not

* The clergy are expected to be examples of hos-
pitality and benevolence. They entertain a great
deal of company at their houses. Nothing is more
common than for ministers of the Gospel, when
visiting any place, whether in town or country, to
stay with their brethren ; and no men among us give
so much, in proportion to their means, to ail the re-
ligious and philanthropic enterprises, as our pastors
of every denomination.

t I refer to the Bishop of New-York, who, if he
has to pay for a suffragan to take his place as pastor
of a church, or co-pastor with others in two or three
churches, as well as bear his travclhng expenses
when visiting his diocese — as I doubt not is the
case— will not have more than is necessary to sup-
port a large family in so expensive a city as New-
York.

As for New-Orleans, it is the most expensive city
for supporting a family in the whole Union, and 5000
dollars there would in that respect be not more than
half the sum in Philadelphia.

i38

RELIGION IN AMERICA.

[Book IV.

-so amply or punctually provided for as
they ought to be, through their own fault,
and that of the ecclesiastical body to which
they belong. Were the duty of support-
ing well the ministry, preached as often
and as plainly as it should be, they would
be better provided for. As it is, they are
enabled to live, with great economy, in
comfort, and a faithful pastor will nowhere
Jbe allowed to starve. It is a great matter,
.too, that in no country in the world are
.ministers of the Gospel more respected
by the people. A great many of them are
well-educated men, and, with few excep-
tions, possess agreeable manners. Many
of them belong to families of the first rank
in the country :* and as they can at least
give their children a good education, with
the advantages of which, as well as of a
good character, and the good name of their
lathers, they are almost invariably pros-
perous, and often form aUiances with the
wealthiest and most distinguished families
in the country.

CHAPTER VI.

HOW MINISTERS OF THE GOSPEL ARE BROUGHT
FORWARD, AND HOW THEY BECOME SETTLED
PASTORS.

All denominations of evangelical Chris-
tians in the United States hold it to be of
the highest and most solemn importance,
that no man should enter the holy minis-
try without well-founded scriptural evi-
dence to his own mind and conscience,
that he is " called of the Holy Ghost" to
take that office upon him ; nor is he admit-
ted to it until he has satisfied the proper
authorities of the church to which he be-
longs of the manifestation of that " call,"
and of his possessing, in addition to an un-
blemished character, the talents and ac-
quirements necessary to his being a com-
petent expounder of God's Word.

For a man to take upon him this sacred
and responsible office merely that he may
obtain an honourable place in society, or
gain a decent livelihood, would be held in
the highest degree wrong, dangerous to his
own soul, and ruinous to tlie spiritual inter-
ests of all who might be committed to his
charge. Evangelical Christians may dif-

* I could mention, were it proper, many instances
of this. One or two I may state without violating
the rules of propriety. No man stood higher in Amer-
ican society than the late General Van Rensselaer,
of Albany. One of his sons is labouring as a faithful
.minister in New-Jersey. The late Hon. Samuel L.
Southard, of New-Jersey, was a man of distinguii^hed
talents, who had raised himself to the highest offices
in the government of his native state, as well as in
that of the Union, and died Vice-President of the
same. One of his sons is a most worthy rector of
an K[)iscopal church in New-Jersey. Mr. Southard,
I judge from the name, which is common m France,
was of Huguenot origin.

fer somewhat as to the nature and amount
of the required evidence of conversion, but
all agree as to the necessity of having a
truly regenerated ministry ; it being obvi-
ous, that none should preach the Gospel
who have not tasted its power, and sub-
mitted their hearts and lives to its trans-
forming influence. How shall a man who
does not possess " repentance towards
God and faith towards our Lord Jesus
Christ," explain the nature of these to his
fellow-men? And how can he who has
not been made to exclaim, " Wo unto me
if I preach not the Gospel!" discharge the
office of a preacher with that earnest de-
sire for the glory of God his Saviour, and
for the eternal welfare of men, which alone
can be approved in heaven, or be success-
ful on earth ? A regenerated and devoted
ministry must be the first of all earthly
blessings to a church, and it is the only
instrument that can effectually secure the
morals of a community, and the stability
of a government. In these sentiments I
feel assured all evangelical Christians in
the United States will concur. No great-
er curse could, in their opinion, befall a
church, next to the abandonment of the
true Gospel, than to have an unconverted
ministry thrust upon it ; and, indeed, the
latter evil would soon be followed by the
former.

Pious youths are brought forward to the
ministry in various ways. Such persons
are sometimes found in the situation of
apprentices to mechanical trades, or of
clerks, or shopmen, or following the plough
on their father's farm. The pastor, or
some member of the church to which they
belong, having discovered their talents,
may think these might be employed to ad-
vantage in the ministry, instead of being
buried in such engagements. But their
own desires shoidd first be ascertained,
and should they be found longing to pro-
claim a crucified Saviour to the world,
they ought to be encouraged, while cher-
ishing this feeling, to put themselves into
a position for finding and following the
will of God.

It is probably at the prayer-meeting, the
Subbath-schooljOr the i3ible-class, of which
1 shall have occasion to speak at large here-
after, that the character and abilities of
sucli young persons oftenest show them-
selves ; and from these nurseries of the
Church have come forth great numbers of
men who are now engaged in the minis-
try throughout the linited States. Many
young men, also, who have entered our col-
leges witli other views, become converted
there, and are called to preach the Gospel.
When a pious youth of promising talents,
and with a strong bent to the ministry, is
found without the requisite education, or
the means of obtaining it, he is recom
mended to the Education Societies, which

Chap. VI.]

SETTLEMENT OF PASTORS.

139

have proved a great blessing to our church-
es ; and when approved of, he is carried
through the course of instruction which
the church to which he belongs requires
in all who would enter the ranks of its
ministers.

The process is much shorter in those
churches which, without exacting a course
of classical and scientific education at col-
Jege, or the regular divinity course of a
theological school, require only a well-
grounded knowledge of the Scriptures in
the English tongue, and of the doctrines
which they contain. After a suitable ex-
amination on the part of the proper church
authorities, the candidate is permitted to
exercise his gifts for a season, in order to
ascertain whether he is likely to prove an
acceptable and useful preacher ; and if the
result be favourable, he receives full ordi-
nation from the proper quarter.

Among the Methodists, the preachers
spring from the Classes, as they are called.
At the meetings of these companies of
professed believers and inquirers, the gra-
ces and gifts of pious young men are most
commonly discovered. In due time they
are brought forward to the quarterly meet-
ing of all the classes of the district. They
are there recommended to the notice of
the presiding elder, and by him are au-
thorized to teach and preach for a time,
but not to administer the ordinances of
haptism and the Lord's Supper. After-
ward they receive ordination from the
hands of the bishop, first as deacons, and
subsequently as presbyters or priests, and
are employed to preach the Gospel, either
as travelling or stationed ministers. In the
Congregational Churches, young men are
consecrated to the ministry by a council
of ministers, commonly called an " asso-
ciation ;" among the Presbyterians, by a
presbytery ; among the Episcopalians, by
a bishop.

In all the churches of the United States,
except the Methodists and Roman Catho-
lics, the pastors are chosen by the people
to whom they preach. Among the Metho-
dists they are appointed by the Annual Con-
ference, at which a bishop presides, regard
being had to the wishes which may be ex-
pressed by the people in favour of certain
ministers, as peculiarly fitted, in point of
character and talents, for specific localities.
The appointment of the priests to their re-
spective churches among the Roman Cath-
olics rests wholly with the bishops.

When a church belonging to any of the
other denominations loses its pastor, by
"his death or removal to some other place,
inquiry is first made for some one not yet
settled, or who, if settled, would not ob-
ject to change his charge, and who, it is
thought, would prove acceptable to the
.flock. The person fixed upon is invited to
preach a few times, and should he give

satisfaction, the congregation agree to call
him to be their pastor, in doing which they
must proceed according to the established
rules of the religious body to which they
belong. Thus, in the Presbyterian Church,
no call to become pastor of a vacant church
can be presented to any one without the
consent of the Presbytery within whose
bounds the vacancy has taken place ; nor
can it be accepted without the consent of
the Presbytery to which the minister who
has received it belongs.

In the Congregational churches of New-
England, the practice in calling a pastor
has been for the church or body of the
communicants to make out a call, and for
this to be followed by another from the
whole congregation, or, rather, from the
males who contribute towards the support
of public worship, the amount of the prof-
fered salary being stated in the latter call.
In the Presbyterian, and most other church-
es, each pewholder, or each head of a fam-
ily who subscribes towards the pastor's sal-
ary for himself and household, and others
who subscribe only for themselves, ai-e al-
lowed a voice in the call. Such is the
more common practice, and yet there are
Presbyterian churches in which none but
members that are communicants can vote
in calling a pastor. If the people are to
be allowed a voice in calling their pas-
tors, it will be found difficult to withhold
that right from those who, though not
communicants, contribute as much, and
perhaps more, than those who are. Nor
in a church and congregation in which the
people have been well instructed in the
truth, and where religion prospers, does
any evil of much consequence commonly
result from such an extension of the right
of voting on such occasions. For when
men have been faithfully instructed in the
Gospel, it is found that even the uncon-
verted will readily join in calling an effi-
cient minister, even although he be not
only orthodox, but very zealous and faith-
ful. Such men have sufficient discrimina-
tion to know, and often they will say it,
that if ever they are to become the reli-
gious men they hope one day to be, they
need a faithful pastor to secure that great
blessing. Such men have sense enough
to know that a light-minded, worldly, cold
preacher of the Gospel is not likely to
prove a blessing to them or their families.
But when church and congregation have
long been hearing " another Gospel," have
become hardened in error, and strongly at-
tached to damnable heresies, it were ab-
surd to expect the unconverted to prefer
and seek for a faithful minister. Such a
state of things should not be allowed to
occur. And then, with respect to all de-
nominations that have a government en-
compassing and controlling the churches
connected with them, there is, in the last

140

RELIGION IN AMERICA.

[Book IV,

resort, a power to prevent the settlement
of unworthy ministers in the churches un-
der their care.

CHAPTER VII.

THE VOLUNTARY PRINCIPLE DEVELOPED IN
HOME MISSIONS. AMERICAN HOME MISSION-
ARY SOCIETY.

Thus much has the voluntary principle
done for the longest-settled and most
densely-peopled parts of the country. Let
us now see what it does for new and thin-
ly-peopled regions, where hundreds of new
congregations are rising annually, without
the means of maintaining the institutions
of the Gospel by their own efforts. Such
churches are to be found not only in the
new settlements of the Far West, but also
in the growing villages of the East.

This inability to support the public
preaching of the Gospel often arises from
the number of sects to be found in new
settlements, and even in some districts of
the older states. In this respect diversity
of sects sometimes causes a serious though
temporary evil, not to be compared with
the advantage resulting from it in the long
run. It is an evil, too, which generally
becomes less and less every year in any
given place ; the little churches, however
weak at first, gradually becoming, through
the increase of population, strong and in-
dependent, and what is now an evil disap-
pearing, or, rather, as I hope to prove, be-
ing converted into a blessing.

The most obvious way of aiding such
feeble churches is, to form societies for
this express object among the older and
more flourishing churches in the Atlantic
States. This has been done, and in this
the voluntary principle has beautifully de-
veloped itself, particularly during the last
fifteen years. It began with some denom-
inations not long after the Revolution ; and
early in this century we find missionary
societies formed among the Congregation-
al churches of Massachusetts and Connec-
ticut, for the purpose of sending ministers
to " the West," that is, the western part of
the State of iNew-York.* The " Far West"
to them was the northern part of Ohio,
which was then beginning to be the resort
of emigrants. The faithful men sent by
these societies into the wilderness were
greatly blessed in their labours, and to
them, under God, many of the now flour-
ishing churches of those regions owe their
existence. Missionary societies were sub-
sequently formed in the other New-Eng-
land States, for supplying destitute places

* I have seen the maps which some of these pio-
neer missionaries made of the portions of tlie State
of New-York which He west of Albany, in the years
1796-97. What is now a dcnsely-.setlled country
was then ahno.st a terra incot^nUa. At present, the
West, or frontier country, is al)out a thousand miles
west of Albany, instead of lying just beyond it.

within their own bounds with the preach-
ing of the Gospel, as well as to help in send-
ing it to other parts of the country.

Two societies were formed, likewise, for
the same object, among the Presbyterians
and Reformed Dutch in the city of New-
York, about the year 1819, and these sup-
ported a goodly number of missionaries,,
chiefly in the new and feeble churches in
the state of that name. In 1826 they were
united into one body, and now form the
American Home Missionary Society.*

This society, from its very outset, has
advanced with great vigour, and been di-
rected with singular zeal and energy. At
its first meeting in 1827, it reported that
in the course of the year that had closed
it had employed 169 ministers, who had
laboured in 196 congregations and mission-
ary districts. Its receipts for the same
period amounted to 20,031 dollars. This
auspicious commencement must be as-
cribed to its having assumed all the en-
gagements of the Domestic Missionary So-
ciety, out of which it sprang. The Society
soon drew into affiliation with it all the
State Domestic Missionary Societies of
New-England, some of which, such as
those of Massachusetts and Connecticut,
were of long standing and well estab-
lished.!

It would be interesting to trace the his-
tory of an institution which has been so
much blessed to a vast number of new and
poor churches throughout all the states
and territories of the American Confedera-
cy. But we can only present a summary
of its operations at two epochs, during the
sixteen years that it has been distributing^
blessings with a liberal hand.

In the year ending May 1st, 1835, the

* The epithet American, employed by this society
and others, which do not comprise all the religious
denominations, has been greatly objectied to as sa-
vouring of arrogance, and as if intimating that the
whole of America belonged to them exclusively as a
field of labour. Such an idea probably never enter-
ed the minds of those who use the word in the de-
nomination of their societies. All that they mean in
employing it is, to signify that the field to which
their attention is directed is not a single state, or a
few states, but the whole country. The American
Home Missionary Society embraces the orthodox
Congregational churches in New-England and out
of it, the New School Presbyterians, and, to some
extent, the Reformed Dutch, Lutheran, and German
Reformed Churches.

t These societies, in a great degree, manage their
own affairs, appoint and support the missionaries
who labour within their bounds, and pay over the
surplus of their collections, if they have any, to the
American Home Missionary Society. If they need
help from that society at any tune, they receive it.
In the year 1843 the Maine Missionary Society em-
ployed sixty-eight missionaries (four fifths of all the
Congregational churches in that state were planted
i)y this society) ; that of New-Hampshire, forty-sev-
en-; that of Veruiont, fifty-three ; that of Massachu-
setts, seventy-eight ; that of Connecticut, thirty-nine ;
and that of Rhode Island, three ; making, in all, 289
missionaries sustained in young and feeble churches
in the six New-England States.

Chap. VII.]

HOME MISSIONS.

society employed 719 agents and mission-
aries. Of these, 481 were settled as pas-
tors, or employed as " stated supplies," in
single congregations ; 185 extended their
labours to two or three congregations
each, and fifty were employed on larger
districts. In all, 1030 congregations, mis-
sionary districts, and fields of agency, were
thus supplied in whole or in part. The
persons added to the churches under the
care of the Society's missionaries that
year were estimated at 5000 ; namely, 1700
by letters of recommendation from other
churches, and 3300 by examination on
profession of their faith. Several of the
churches were reported to have been
blessed with seasons of more than ordina-
ry interest in religion ; in the Sunday-
schools attached to them there were about
40,000 scholars, and about 12,000 persons
attended the Bible-classes. The number
of persons who had joined the temperance
associations had reached 70,000. The ex-
penditure amounted to 83,394 dollars ; the
receipts to 88,863.

Let us now turn to what was done by
the Society in the year ending 1st May,
1843. During that year it had 848 mis-
sionaries and agents, of whom 623 had been
in its service the preceding year, and 225
■were employed for the first time. These
men laboured in all the States and Terri-
tories of the Union ; a few, also, in Cana-
da, and one in Texas. The number of Pres-
byterian and Congregational churches in
Iowa and Wisconsin* had been greatly aug-
mented in the course of the year by the
Society's means. The number of congre-
gations and missionary stations occupied
was 1047, and the Sunday-schools and Bi-
ble-classes, under the direction of the mis-
sionaries, were attended by 68,400 persons.
In 308 congregations the sum of 13,000
dollars had been collected for religious and
benevolent societies, and many of the feeble
churches had contributed largely for them,
in aid of missions to the heathen. There
had been revivals in 233 churches, and
6858 conversions were reported as their
fruits. And it was estimated that there
were 146,000 members of temperance so-
cieties in the fields of the Society's opera-
tions. The disbursements of the society
were 107,823 dollars ; the receipts 100,804.

The plan pursued by this society, and
by all the other societies and boards es-
tablished for the promotion of home mis-
sions, is never to support a missionary at
its sole charges, if it can be avoided ; but
to give 100, or 150, or 200 dollars, rarely
more than 100 or 120, to a young and fee-
ble church, or two congregations near to
each other, on condition of their making

* In the autumn of the year which is just termi-
nated (1S43), this society sent thirty-eight young and
well-educated ministers of the Gospel into the Ter-
jilories of Wisconsin and Iowa.

up the deficiency in the missionary's sala-
ry. Thus they are stimulated and encour-
aged to help themselves, and as soon as
they can walk alone, if I may use the ex-
pression, the Society leaves them for oth-
ers which have been just organized, and
which need assistance. In this way hun-
dreds of congregations have been built up,
and hundreds are at this moment emerging
from the weakness of childhood into the
vigour of youth and manhood. In no case,
however, does the Society do anything to-
wards the erection of church edifices. The
people must find these for themselves, and
this they willingly do. The cheapness of
materials in the new settlements, and in
the villages of the interior, renders it easy
to erect such houses as will suffice until
the flock gathers strength, and can do
something more.

The Society engages, in some cases,
men of talent and experience to travel over
a given district, and to ascertain at what
points the people attached to one or other
of the denominations which it represents
might, with proper efforts, be formed into
Congregations. The labours of such agents
are of the utmost importance, and they
necessarily receive their whole salaries
from the Society.

It is a beautiful feature in our institu-
tions for domestic missions, that while en-
couraging and stimulating new and feeble
congregations to do their utmost to secure
for themselves the regular enjoyment of
Gospel ordinances,* they cultivate the kind-
ly feelings of churches in the older parts
of the country, and more favourably situa-
ted. Many of the latter support one mis-
sionary, and some of them several each, in
the new and destitute settlements, through
the agency of the American Home Mission
Society. Nay, there are juvenile societies
in the Sunday-schools that support each
of them one, and some even two or three
missionaries, if not more. Individuals are
to be found in the Atlantic States who
support a missionary each, and thus preach
the Gospel, as they say, " by proxy." Still
more, there are persons in New- York and
other cities, who have each paid the entire
salary and travelling expenses of an agent
labouring in a large district. One of these,
with whom I have long been acquainted, a
hatter, of by no means great fortune, who
works with his hands at the trade, gave
600 dollars for years to support one such
labourer in Ohio. Beautiful as this is, it
is perhaps a finer sight still to see churches
and congregations, which were aided by
the Society in their day, now in their turn
bearing a part, if not the whole expense
of a missionary labouring in a congrega-
tion not yet emerged from the feeble state

* It is believed that the churches aided by the
Society raise, in one way and another, nearly three
times as much as they receive !

142

RELIGION IN AMERICA.

[Book IV.

which they once were in themselves. And
there are now many such throughout the
United States.

In 1805 there was scarcely a Presby-
terian or Congregational church in the dis-
trict now covered by the seventeen most
westerly counties of New-York. A few
missionaries were sent thither at different
times, but tlie increase was small until the
Agency for Home Missions, now in con-
nexion with the American Home Mission-
ary Society, was established there in 1826.
Now there are on this field 380 Presbyte-
rian and Congregational churches, contain-
ing, it is supposed, 30,000 communicants.
During the fifteen years of its operations,
the American Home Missionary Society
has aided 264 of those churches, and nearly
100 of them are now able to sustain the
Gospel without assistance. The churches
have nearly doubled since 1826, and the
communicants have probably trebled. Such
is the wonderful work God has wrought in
this section of the state. Such has been
the triumph of the Gospel. It is indeed
the Lord's doing, and it is marvellous in
our eyes.

Passing by other facts showing the col-
lateral good accomplished by this effort to
plant the Gospel in Western New- York,
we mention, that many of the foreign mis-
sionaries are the sons of those churches. One
of them is now pastor of a church at the
Sandwich Islands of 7000 members, prin-
cipally gathered through the blessing of
God on his labours. Besides repaying the
parent society more than $60,000 expend-
ed on this field, those churches have given
$40,000 to send the Gospel to the more
destitute beyond them. Nor is this all ;
they have been most generous helpers of
every good cause. In 1839, this small part
of a state, where home missions have been
vigorously sustained, paid to the American
Board of Foreign Missions $14,000.

We conclude our notice of this society
by giving the following extract from its
Fourteenth Annual Report:

" The results, indeed, of that mysterious
and wonder-working influence which a God
of grace exerts through the ministry of
reconciliation, and which he connects with
the missionary enterprise, all surpass finite
comprehension. While the missionaries
are preaching Christ and Him crucified to
the living, they are laying broad and deep
the foundations of many generations ; they
are setting in motion trains of moral influ-
ences, which will not cease when they are
dead ; they are kindling up lights in Zion,
which will shine brighter and brighter unto
the perfect day. Churches, that were near
unto death, are quickened, and become able
of themselves to sustain the Gospel, and to
hand down its blessings to those who shall
come after them. New churches are or-
ganized, to tlirow open their portals to the

fathers, and the children, and the children's
children, through many generations, and to
send out their influences to the ends of the
world. The organization, or resuscitation
of a church — Heaven's own institution —
that may stand through all coming time,
and bring its multitudes of redeemed ones
to glory, is a great event. And to plant
such churches, wherever there are souls
to be gathered into them, our country over,
and nurture them till they no longer need
our aid, but become our most efl!icient fel-
low-labourers in hastening forward the uni-
versal reign of the Son of God, is surely a
GREAT WORK ! And yet, this is the work
in which infinite condescension and mercy
permits us, as friends of home missions,
to engage, and some of which it is our-
privilege here to record."

CHAPTER VIII.

PRESBYTERIAN BOARD OF DOMESTIC MISSIONS,.
UNDER THE DIRECTION OF THE GENERAL
ASSEMBLY.

Presbyterianism owes its foundation in
the United States chiefly to persons who
had been exiled from Scotland on account
of their religious principles, and to Presby-
terian emigrants from the north of Ireland.
These were joined in many places by set-
tlers from New-England, who had no ob-
jections to unite with them in forming
congregations on Presbyterian principles.
Presbyterians of Scottish and Irish origin
coalesced in other places with Huguenots
from France, and with colonists originally
of the Dutch or German Reformed Church-
es. Thus did Presbyterian congregations
begin to be formed towards the close of the
seventeenth century. The first preachers
were from Scotland, Ireland, and New-
England. They were few in number at
first, and were often invited to preach in
neighbourhoods where some resident Pres-
byterians might desire to hear the Gospel
preached by men of the same religious
principles with themselves.

The first presbytery was constituted in
1705, and the first synod in 1716. After
that the work of home missions began to
acquire greater consistency. Ministers
were sent out on preaching tours among
the small Presbyterian flocks, or, rather,
scattered groups of Presbyterian families,
particularly in the Middle and Southern
provinces. In 1741, the synod was divided
into two bodies, one retaining the old name
of Synod of Philadelphia, the other calling
itself the Synod of New- York. The for-
mer, soon after being constituted, had its at-
tention dravvn, " not only to the wants of
the people within their immediate bounds,
but to those also of the emigrants who
were rapidly extending themselves through

Chap. VIII.]

HOME MISSIONS.

143

Virginia and North Carolina." They wrote,
accordingly, to the General Assembly of
the Church of Scotland, asking for minis-
ters to preach in these colonies, and for
assistance in establishing a seminary for
the education of suitable young men for
the ministry. A letter was also addressed
to the deputies of the Synods of North and
South Holland, in which they expressed
their willingness to unite with the Calvin-
istic Dutch churches in promoting the
common interests of religion.

At the first meeting of the Synod of New-
York in 1745, the circumstances of the
people of Virginia were brought before
them, and the opinion unanimously ex-
pressed that Mr. Robinson* was the proper
person to visit that colony. He visited it
accordingly, and on that, as well as on a
former visit, was the instrument of doing
much good. He was followed by the
Rev. Samuel Davies, formerly mentioned.

In 1758, the two synods were merged
in the one Synod of New- York and Phila-
delphia, and from that time domestic mis-
sions began to receive considerable atten-
tion, and collections for that object were
ordered to be made in the churches. In
1767, or 1768, the synod had an overture,
or proposal, sent from the Presbytery of
New- York, " that there should be an annu-
al collection in every congregation ; that
every presbytery should appoint a treasu-
rer to receive and transmit the funds thus
obtained ; that the synod should appoint a
general treasurer, to whom all these pres-
byterial collections should be sent ; and
that every year a full account of the re-
ceipts and disbursements should be printed
and sent down to the churches." This
was the germe of the present Board of Mis-
sions. In the same year petitions for
" supplies" were received from twenty-one
places in Virginia, North Carolina, and
Georgia.

Collections were thenceforward made in
the churches. In 1772, it was ordered that
a part of these moneys should be appropri-
ated to the purchase and distribution of use-
ful religious books, and to the promotion
of the Gospel among the Indians. Two
years afterward, it was seriously contem-
plated to send missionaries to Africa ; but
on the war of the Revolution breaking out
in the following year, the project fell to the
ground. Even during the war there was a
considerable demand for ministers from
destitute congregations, and to meet this
many faithful ministers made missionary

* This Mr. Robinson was a remarkable man. His
manners were plain, his eloquence simple, animated,
and attractive. He had but one eye, and was from
that circumstance called " one-eyed Robinson." The
Rev. Dr. Alexander, professor in the Theological
Seminary at Princeton, New-Jersey, saj-s, th^t it was
no uncommon thing for people to go twenty, thirty,
and even forty iiules, to hear him preach a single
sermon.

tours, at no small personal hazard from the
dangers of war. Measures were taken in
1788 for forming the General Assembly,
which was organized in 1789, and at its
very first meeting much attention was paid
to the subject of missions.

" It is believed," says one of the most
distinguished living ministers of the Pres-
byterian Church, "that at this time (1789)
there was not in the United States another
religious denomination, besides the Presby-
terian, that prosecuted any domestic mis-
sionary enterprise, except that then, as
since, the Methodists sent forth their cir-
cuit-preachers in all directions."*

In the year 1800, the Rev. Mr. Chapman
was appointed a missionary in the western
part of the State of New- York, and to his
labours we must so far ascribe the great
diffusion of Presbyterianism in that impor-
tant section of the country. In 180'2, the
General Assembly appointed a " standing
committee," to attend to the greatly-in-
creased interests of the missionary cause — •
a measure which led to a farther extension
of the work. A correspondence was com-
menced with all the known missionary so-
cieties of Europe. The committee gave
much of its attention to the coloured popu-
lation, a class among whom the late Joha
Holt Rice, D.D., one of the most distin-
guished ministers that the Presbyterian
Church in the United States has ever pos-
sessed, laboured as a missionary during
seven years.

In 1816, the General Assembly enlarged
the powers of the standing committee, and
gave it the title of " the Board of Missions,
acting under the authority of the General
Assembly." Many missionaries went forth
under its auspices, to labour among the
destitute Presbyterian congregations that
were continually forming in the Southern
and Western States. Meanwhile, many
local societies, under the direction of syn-
ods, presbyteries, and other bodies, had
sprung up, and were separately prosecuting
the same objects to a considerable extent.

The General Assembly again took up the
subject of missions in 1828, and farther en-
larged the powers of the Board, fully au-
thorizing it to establish missions, not only
in destitute parts of the United States, but
among the heathen abroad. Such, how-
ever, was the demand for labourers at
home, especially in the Western States
and Territories, that nothing of importance
could be done for foreign lands. It was
found, besides, that home and foreign mis-
sions could not well be united under one
board, so that in the course of a few years
the latter were committed to the charge of
another board, appointed for that purpose
by the Assembly. Of its operations we
shall have occasion to speak elsewhere.

* " History of the Missions of the Presbyterian
Church," by the Rev. Ashbel Green, D.D.

144

RELIGION IN AMERICA.

[Book IV.

The cause of domestic missions in the
Presbyterian Church now went on with
fresh vigour, and the synodical and pres-
byterial societies becoming either merged
in the Assembly's board, or affiliated with
it, the whole assumed a more consolidated
form and greater consistency. From 1828
to 1843, the missionaries increased from
31 to 290. The Report for the latter year
presents a summary of 296 missionaries
employed ; 900 Sunday-schools, attended
by at least 30,000 scholars, connected with
the churches under their care ; 4800 mem-
bers added to the churches, of whom 3600
upon examination of their faith, and 1200
upon letters of recommendation from other
churches ; the receipts were about 35,000
dollars, and the expenditures exceeded
31,000. 'J'he average expense of each mis-
sionary is 130 dollars. The Board pursues
the wise course of simply helping congre-
gations that as yet are unable to maintain
pastors, by granting them so much on their
undertaking to make up the deficiency.

Such is a brief notice of the operations
of the Home Missions of the General As-
sembly of that branch of the Presbyterian
Church commonly called the Old School,
to distinguish it from another branch call-
ed the New School. The Board has been
instrumental, under God, in giving a per-
manent existence to some hundreds of
churches. The divine blessing has been
remarkably vouchsafed to its efforts. Its
affairs are managed with great wisdom
and energy, and the Church is much in-
debted to the Rev. Ashbel Green, D.D.,
for the deep interest which, during a long
life, he has felt in this cause, and for the
devotedness with which he has laboured
to promote it. Nor can it fail to be a great
consolation to him, in his declining days,
to see his love and zeal for this enterprise
crowned with abundant success.

CHAPTER IX.

HOME MISSIONS OF THE EPISCOPAL, BAPTIST,
AND REFORMED DUTCH CHURCHES.

A SOCIETY was formed in the Protestant
Episcopal Church of the United States,
for tlu^ promotion of Home and Foreign
Missions, in the year 1822. During the
first thirteen years of its existence, that is,
up to 1835, it liad employed fifty-nine la-
bourers in its home missions, occupying
stations in various parts of the Union, but
chiefly in the West. The society was re-
organized in 1835, and, as now constituted,
is under the dircttioii of a IJoard of thirty
members, apijointcd by the General Con-
vention of the Church. The bishops, to-
gether with such persons as had become
patrons of the society previously to the
meeting of the Convention in 1829, are

members of the Board, and to it is com-
mitted the whole subject of missions. But
the better to expedite the business intrust-
ed to it, the Home and Foreign deparfc-
inents are directed, respectively, by two
committees, each consisting of four cler-
gymen and four laymen, under the presi-
dency of the bishop of the diocess in which
the committee resides, and both commit-
tees are ex officio members of the Board.

It is only since 1835 that the home mis-
sions of the society have been prosecuted
with much vigour, but every year now
bears witness to the increasing interest
felt by the Episcopal churches of the Uni-
ted States in the work of building up
churches in the new settlements, and oth-
er places where none of that communion
had before existed.

During the year ending 21st June, 1843,
the Board had employed ninety-four mis-
sionaries, and that they did not labour
without effecting much good, is apparent
even from the imperfect statements of the
Report. The number of communicants in
84 out of the 180 places to which the mis-
sionaries had extended their labours was
2190 ; and that of the children under cate-
chetical instruction was 2014. The income
for the home missions, collected through-
out the thirty diocesses into which the coun-
try is divided, was $38,835. From 1822 to
1841, 186 stations had been adopted as fields
of special, permanent, and, as far as practi-
cable, regular labour. During the same pe-
riod eighty church edifices had been erect-
ed in those stations, and Uie number of
these once aided, but no longer requiring
assistance, was forty-four.

From this it will be seen that this soci-
ety has not laboured in vain, but that it,
likewise, is an instrument by which church-
es that have long been favoured with the
Gospel, and highly prize it, are enabled to
assist others, until they, too, have grown
up into a vigorous independence of foreign
aid. " Freely ye have received ; freely
give ;" this admonition and command
should never be forgotten. It is the true
basis of the whole Voluntary System.

We shall only add, that the missionaries
employed by the Board of the Episcopal
Church are chiefly confined to the Western
States and Territories.

The American Baptist Home Missionary
Society was instituted in 1832, and has
b(ien eminently useful since in building up
churches of that denomination, both in the
West and in many of the Atlantic States,
where the assistance of such an institu-
tion was required, as well as in establish-
ing Sunday-schools and Bible-classes. Its
great field of labour, however, like that of
all the other Societies and Boards for do-
mestic missions, has been the " Valley of
the Mississippi." It has numerous branch-
es and auxiliaries in all parts of the United

■Chap. X.]

HOME MISSIONS.

14.5

States ; and during the year ending in May,
1843, had ninety-three agents and mis-
sionaries in its own immediate service, and
275 in that of its auxiUaries, making a total
of 368, all of whom were ministers of the
Gospel, and believed to be faithful and ca-
pable labourers. They preached statedly
at 762 stations, and had travelled 175.035
miles 1 They reported 4920 conversions
and baptisms, the organization of fifty
churches, and the ordination of twenty-
three ministers. By their instrumentality
6520 persons had been induced to join the
temperance societies; 11,742 young per-
sons had been gathered into Sunday-schools
and Bible-classes, taught by about 1500
teachers. The receipts of the parent soci-
ety and its auxiliaries, amounted to $40,583.

In addition to what the regular Baptists
are doing for home missions, it ought to
be stated that the Free-Will Baptists have
a Home Missionary Society, which em-
ploys some six or eight men.

The General Synod of the Reformed
Dutch Church has a Board of Domestic
Missions, which is now prosecuting, with
zeal and wisdom, the work of gathering
together new congregations, and fostering
them during their infancy, wherever it can
find openings for so doing. For several
years past it has been extending its oper-
.ations, and during that ending in June,
J 843, it aided forty-seven new or feeble
churches and two stations. Five of these
were in the Western States, and in these
five missionaries were occupied in preach-
ing the Gospel. The receipts for that pe-
riod amounted to $5127.

If the truth is to be carried into every
hamlet and neighbourhood of the United
States, it can only be by all denominations
of evangelical Christians taking part in the
enterprise ; and it is delightful to trace the
proofs of this conviction being widely and
deeply felt. All are actually engaged in
the good work, and send forth and support
missionaries in some portion or other of
' the country.

CHAPTER X.

HOME MISSIONS OF THE METHODIST EPISCOPAL
CHURCH.

It has been said, with truth, that the
Methodist Church is in its very struc-
ture emphatically missionary, and it is an
inexpressible blessing that it is so, as the
United States strikingly prove. The whole
country is embraced by one General Con-
ference ; it is again subdivided into thirty-
two Annual Conferences, each including
a large extent of country, and divided into
districts. Each district comprehends sev-
eral circuits, and within each circuit there
are from five or six to above twenty preach-
ing places

Ordinarily, as often as once in the fort-
night, a circuit-preacher conducts a regu-
lar service at each of these preaching pla-
ces, whether it be a church, schoolroom,
or a dwelling-house. In the largest towns
and villages such services are held on the
Sabbath, and on a week-day or evening
in other places, and thus the Gospel is
carried into thousands of remote spots, in
which it never would be preached upon
the plan of having a permanent clergy,
planted in particular districts and parishes.

It was a remark, I believe, of the cele-
brated Dr. Witherspoon, that " he needed
no other evidence that the Rev. John Wes-
ley was a great man, than what the system
of itinerating preaching presented to his
mind, and of which that wonderful man
was the author." The observation was a
just one. It is a system of vast importance
in every point of view ; but that from which
we are at present to contemplate it is, its
filling up a void which must else remain
empty. Of its other advantages we shall
have to speak in another place.

But, capable as the system is of being
made to send its ramifications into almost
every corner of the country, and to carry
the glad tidings of salvation into the most
remote and secluded settlements, as well
as to the more accessible and populous
towns and neighbourhoods, many places
were found, particularly in the South and
West, so situated as to be beyond the
reach of adequate supply from itinerant la-
bourers ; a fact which led to the formation
of the Missionary vSociety of the Methodist
Episcopal Church in 1819.

This society, like that of the Protestant
Episcopal Church, was formed for the
double object of promoting missions at
home and abroad. Reserving the latter
for future notice, I turn at present to the
former. According to the twenty-fourth
annual report, being that for 1843, I find
that it employed 210 missionaries within
the limits of the United States, exclusive
of those labouring among the Indians,
whether within or immediately beyond
those limits. The churches enjoying the
services of these missionaries comprised
above 30,000 members, and many of them
had flourishing Bible-classes and Sunday-
schools. The report also states, that
among the members of the Society's mis-
sionary churches, there were not fewer
than 13,320 coloured people.

Perhaps of all the fields cultivated by
this society, the two most interesting, and,
in some respects, most important, are
those presented by the slaves in the ex-
treme Southern States, and by the German
emigrants found in great numbers in our
chief cities. The missions among the for-
mer were commenced in 1828,* and origi-

* I speak here of missions technically so called,
for, in Iheir ordinary labours, the Methodists, from

146

RELIGION IN AMERICA.

[Book IV.

nated in a proposal made by the Hon.
Charles C. Piackney, a distinguished Chris-
tian layman of the Episcopal Church in
South CaroHna, and which has been car-
ried into effect with much success, the
slaveholders themselves, in many places,
if not all, being pleased to have the mis-
sionaries preacli the Gospel to their people.

The following paragraph from the report
of 1841 will give the readej^ some idea of
the hazardous nature of this work : " In
the Southern and Southwestern Conferen-
ces, it will be seen, under the head of do-
mestic missions, that, with commendable
zeal and devotion, our missionaries are
still labouring in the service of the slaves
upon the rice-fields, sugar and cotton plant-
ations, multitudes of whom, though des-
tined to toil and bondage during their earth-
ly pilgrimage, have by their instrumental-
ity been brought to enjoy the liberty of the
Gospel, and are happily rejoicing in the
blessings of God's salvation. In no por-
tion of our work are our missionaries call-
ed to endure greater privations, or make
greater sacrifices of health and life, than
in these missions among the slaves, many
of which are located in sections of the
Southern country which are proverbially
sickly, and under the fatal influence of a
climate which few white men are capable
of enduring, even for a single year. And
yet, notwithstanding so many valuable mis-
sionaries have fallen martyrs to their toils
in these missions, year after year there are
found others to take their places, who fall
likewise in their work, ' ceasing at once to
work and to live.' Nor have our superin-
tendents any difficulty in finding missiona-
ries ready to fill up the ranks which death
has thinned in these sections of the work,
for the love of Christ, and the love of the
souls of these poor Africans in bonds, con-
strain our brethren in the itinerant work
of the Southern conferences to exclaim,
'Here are we, send us!' The Lord be
praised for the zeal and success of our
brethren in this self-denying and self-sac-
rificing work."

Not less interesting are the Society's
missions among the (Jermans resident in
the chief towns and cities of the Valley of
the Mississippi, Beginning at Pittsburgh
and Alleghany Town, on the right bank of
the Alleghany, opposite Pittsburgh, it has
missionaries among these foreigners in
many of the chief towns on the Ohio, such
as Wheeling, Marietta, Portsmouth, Mays-
ville, ("inciniiali, Lawrenceburg, New Al-
bany, &c., as well as in towns remote from
the river, such as Dayton and Chiliicothe.

the first, have had mtich to do with the slaves in the
South, as well as with the free negroes of the North.
In fact, no other tjody of Christians, perhaps, has
done so much good to the iinforfiuiatc children of
Africa in the United States as the followers of John
Wesley.

It has a mission, also, at St. Louis, on the
Upper Mississippi. The churches gathered
by the Society's missionaries from among
the Germans in those places had no fewer
than 1366 members in 1843, and of these
more than 200 had been Roman Catholics.
Yet this work had commenced only a few
years before. Twenty missionaries were
engaged in it, and several of these were-
men of considerable talent and learning, as
well as zeal. One of them, the Rev. Mr.
Nast, at Cincinnati, conducts a religious
paper with a circulation of above 1500
copies, and which seems to be doing good.

The Society has a mission, likewise,
among the Germans, reckoiied at 30,000
at least, in the city of New- York. The
income of this excellent and efficient soci-
ety, for the year ending April 20th, 1843,.
amounted to 109,452 dollars, and its ex-
penditure, including both its foreign and
domestic missions, was 145,035.

Here I close these brief notices of the
home missions of the chief evangelical
churches in the United States. They will-
give the reader some idea of the mode in
which new and feeble congregations are
aided by the older and stronger until able
to maintain the institutions of religion
themselves. The societies which we have
passed under review in these four chap-
ters supported, in all, nearly 1900 ministers
of the Gospel, in the year 1843, in new,,
and, as yet, feeble churches and flocks^
Year after year many of these cease to re-
quire assistance, and then others are taken
up in their turn. Be it remembered, that
the work has been systematically prosecu-
ted for no long course of time. Twenty
years ago, in fact, the most powerful and
extensive of these societies did not exist ;
others were but commencing their opera-
tions. It is an enterprise with respect to
which the churches have as yet but par-
tially developed their energies and resour-
ces ; still, they have accomplished enough
to demonstrate how much may be done by
the voluntary principle towards the calling
into existence of churches and congrega-
tions in the settlements rapidly forming,,
whether in the new or the old states.

CHAPTER XI.

THE VOLUNTARY PRINCIPLE DEVELOPED. IN-
FLUENCE OF THE VOLUNTARY PRINCIPLE ON
EDUCATION. OF PRIMARY SCHOOLS.

We have seen how the voluntary prin-
ciple operates in America in relation to
the building of churches, and also the sup-
port of ministers of the Gospel In the new
settlements forming every year, more or
less, in all quarters. W^e now come to
consider its influence on education. Hun-
dreds of ministers, it will be perceived, are

Chap. XI.]

PRIMARY SCHOOLS.

147

required to meet the demands of the rap-
idly-augmentmg population. Where are
these to come from ] Besides, in a coun-
try where the right of suffrage is almost
universal, and where so much of the order,
peace, and happiness, that are the true ob-
jects of all good government, depend on
officers chosen in the directest manner
from among themselves, these must be in-
structed before they can become intelli-
gent, virtuous, and capable citizens. Igno-
rance is incompatible with the acquisition
or preservation of any freedom worth pos-
sessing ; and, above all, such a republic as
that of the United States must depend for
its very existence on the wide diffusion of
sound knowledge and religious principles
among all classes of the people. Let us,
therefore, trace the bearings of the volun-
tary principle upon education, in all its
forms, among the various ranks of society
in the United States. We shall begin with
primary schools.

It may well be imagined that emigrants
to the New World, who fled from the Old
with the hope of enjoying that religious
freedom which they so much desired,
would not be indifferent to the education
of their children. Especially might we
expect to find that the Protestant colo-
nists, who had forsaken all for this boon,
would not fail to make early provision for
the instruction of their children, in order
that they might be able to read that Book
which is the " religion of Protestants."
And such we find to have been the fact.
Scarcely had the Puritans been settled half
a dozen years in the colony of Massachu-
setts before they began to make provision
for public primary schools, to be supported
by a tax assessed upon all the inhabitants.*
And such provision was actually made, not
only in Massachusetts, but in every New-
England colony. And such provision ex-
ists to this day in all the six New-England
States. Schools are maintained in every
school district, during the whole or part of
every j'ear, by law.

With the exception of the State of Con-
necticut, where all the public schools are
maintained upon the interest of a large
school fund, primary instruction is provi-
ded for by an annual assessment — a school

* The small colony of Plymouth, as soon as it was
in some measure settled, se: about providing schools
for the children, and fhis was several years before
the colony of Massachusetts Bay was planted.

But if the New-England Puritans were zealous in
the cause of education and learning, the Virginia
colonists seem not to have had any such spirit, for
one of their governors, Sir William Berkeley, in 1670,
in replying to the inquiries addressed to him by the
Lords of Plantations, says, " I thank God, the7e are no
free schools nor printing, and I hope we shall not have
them these hundred years ; for learning has brought
disobedience, and heresy, and sects into the world, and
printing has divulged them, and libels against the
best government. God keep us from both !" — Hm-
ing's Laws of Virginia, Appendi.t.

being taught, in every school district, by a
master for the older youth during winter,
and by a mistress for the little children
during summer. Wherever we find the
descendants of the Puritans in America,
we find a people who value education as
the first of all earthly blessings ; and when
a colony from New-England plants itself,
whether amid the forests of Ohio, or on
the prairies of Illinois, two things are ever
considered as indispensable alike to their
temporal and to their spiritual and their
eternal welfare — a church and a school-
house.

Nor was this thirst for education con-
fined to the New-England Puritans ; it pre-
vailed to no small degree among the Scotch
and Irish Presbyterians, the Huguenots,
the early German emigrants ; among all,
in fact, who had fled from Europe for the
sake of their religion. It is owing to this
that primary education has been diffused
so widely throughout the United States,
and that no less effective legal provision
has been made at length for the support
of common schools in New- York, Penn-
sylvania, and in Ohio, than in the New-
England States, and to a considerable ex-
tent, also, in New-Jersey and Delaware,
while in all the others it has led to the
adoption of measures for the education of
the children of the poor, and to the crea-
tion of school funds, which, taken together
with other means, promise one day to be
available for the education of all classes.

The white population of the United States
amounted in 1840 to 14,189,218, of which
immber it was ascertained that 549,693 per-
sons, above twenty years of age, could
neither read nor write. A large propor-
tion of these must have been foreigners —
Irish, Germans, Swiss, and French — as is
evident from 13,041 of them being found in
the six New-England States, where educa-
tion is nearly as universal as can well be
imagined. That a native of either sex, in
short, above the age of twenty, may be
found in Connecticut or Massachusetts
who cannot read, is not denied ; but that
there should be 526 such persons in the
former of these states, and 4448 in the lat-
ter, cannot be believed by any one who
knows the condition of the people there.
The greater number were not native Amer-
icans, and of those that remained the ma-
jority were idiots.

By the census of 1840, it appears that
the number of primary or common schools
amounted to 47,209, attended by 1,845,245
scholars ; of whom 468,264 were taught at
the pubhc charge, the remainder at that
of their parents and friends. From this it
will be seen that education in America de-
pends very much on the Voluntary Princi-
ple. But though primary schools were in
all parts of the country originated and sus-
tained at first, as in most of the states it

148

RELIGION IN AMERICA.

[Book IV.

continues to be, by tlie people themselves,
or, rather, by the friends of education, state
after state is beginning to be induced by
the efforts of these to make a legal provis-
ion, to a certain extent at least, for the in-
struction of all who may choose to avail
themselves of it, for in this they do not see
that they violate any rights of conscience.

The right of giving instruction is, in the
United States, universal. Even where
there is an all-pervading system of public
schools, any number of families may join
together, and employ any teacher for their
children whom they may prefer. Nor has
that teacher to procure any license or
"brevet of instruction" before entering on
the duties of his office. His employers
are the sole judges of his capacity, and
should he prove incapable or inefficient,
the remedy is in their own hands. The
teachers employed by the state pass an
examination before a proper committee.
In all the states where there is a legal pro-
vision for primary schools, there is a year-
ly report from each to a committee of the
townsliip, from which, again, there is a re-
port to a county committee, and that, in its
turn, sends a report to the Secretary or
School Commissioner of tlie state.

In most cases, a pious and judicious
teacher, if he w'ill only confine himself to
the great doctrines and precepts of the
Gospel, in wliich all who hold the funda-
mental truths of the Bible are agreed, can
easily give as mucli religious instruction
as he chooses. Where the teacher him-
self is not decidedly religious, much reli-
gious instructicn cannot be expected ; nor
should any but religious teachers attempt
to give anything more than general moral
instruction, and make the scholars read
portions of the Scriptures, and of other
good books.

The Bible is very generally used as a
reading book in our primary schools, though
in some places, as at St. Louis, the Roman
Catholics have succeeded in excluding it,
and they have been striving to do the same
in the city of New- York. In so far as re-
lates to pui)lic school.s, I see no other
course but that of leaving the question to
the people themselves ; the majority deci-
ding, and leaving the minority tbe alterna-
tive of supporting a school of their own.
This will generally be done by Protestants
rather than give up the Bible.

In most parts of the United States, it has
been found extremely difficult to procure
good teachers, few men being willing to
devote their lives to that occupation in a
country so full of openings in more lucra-
tive and inviting professions and employ-
ments. Hence very incompetent teach-
ers— not a few from Ireland and other
parts of the British dominions — are all
that can be found. 'I'his is particularly
the case in the Middle, Southern, and West-

ern States. But it is an evil which dimin-
ishes with the increase of population, and,
besides, much attention has of late been
paid to the training of teachers. A very
laudable effijrt is now making in New-
England, and also in New-York, and some
other states, to attach a library of suitable
books to each school. The plan is excel-
lent, and promises much good.

Primary instruction in the United States
owes almost everything to Religion, as
the most efficient of all the principles that
prompts to its promotion. Not that the
Protestants of that country interest them-
selves in the primary schools for the pur-
pose of proselytizing children to their
views, but rather that at these schools the
youth of the nation may be qualified for
receiving religious instruction eflectually
elsewhere, and for the due discharge of
their future duties as citizens. And, how-
ever much they may wish to see i-eligious
instruction given at the common schools,
they will not for a moment give in to the
opinion that all is lost where this cannot
be accomplished. Primary instruction,
even when not accompanied with any re-
ligious instruction, is better than none ;
and in such cases, they that love the Gos-
pel have other resources — in the pulpit,
the family altar, the Bible-class, and the
Sabbath-school.

CHAPTER XII.

GRAMMAR-SCHOOLS AND ACADEMIES.

But if Primary Schools in the United
States owe much to religion. Grammar-
schools and Academies, which may be call-
ed secondary institutions, owe still more.

In 1647, only twenty-seven years after
the settlement of the Puritans in New-
England, we find the colony of Massachu-
setts Bay making a legal provision, not
only for primary, but for secondary schools
also. " It being one chief project of Sa-
tan," says the statute, " to keep men from
the knowledge of the Scriptures by dis-
suading from the use of tongues ; and to
the end that learning may not be buried
in the graves of our forefathers in Church
and Commonwealth, the Lord assisting our
endeavours ; therefore be it enacted, that
every township, after the Lord hatli in-
creased them to the number of fifty house-
holders, shall appoiiU one to teach all chil-
dren to write and read ; and where any
town shall increase to the number of 100
families, they shall set up a grammar-
school, the masters thereof being able to
instruct youth so far as they may be fitted
for the university." Such was the origin
of the grammar-schools of New-England,
and now they arc so numerous that not
only has almost every county one, but

Chap. XII.]

GRAMMAR-SCHOOLS AND ACADEMIES.

149

many of the more populous and wealthy
possess several.

Not only so ; all the other states have
incorporated academies and grammar-
schools in very considerable numbers.
Some, by a single act, have made an ap-
propriation for the establishment of one
such institution in every county within
their jurisdiction. Thus, in Pennsylvania,
many years ago, 2000 dollars were granted
for the erection of a building for a gram-
mar-school, at the seat of justice for each
county, and a board of trustees, with pow-
er to fill up vacancies as they might occur
in their numbers, was appointed for each.
These buildings are now occupied by mas-
ters who teach the higher branches of an
English education, and, in most cases, also
the Latin and Greek languages, besides
such instruction in the mathematics, and
other studies, as may qualify the pupils
for entering college. Like provisions have
been made by other states, and even the
newest of them in the West are continual-
ly encouraging learning by passing such
acts. In no case, however, does a state
endow such an institution. A grant is
made at the outset for the edifice that may
be required ; in most cases, this is all that
is done by the state, after which the insti-
tution has to depend upon the fees paid by
the scholars for the support of the master
or masters employed. In some instances,
as in the State of New- York, the grammar-
school has a yearly subsidy from the state ;
in which case, there is usually some con-
dition attached to the grant, such as the
giving of gratis instruction to a certain
number of poor lads, or of youths intend-
ing to become teachers of primary schools.
But in most, even of the cases in which
they have been aided by the state, these
institutions have not only been privately
commenced and carried to a certain point
previously to such assistance, but owe
much more afterward to the spontaneous
support of their friends. Indeed, in all
parts of the country, grammar-schools, and
some of these the very best, may be found
which owe their existence purely to indi-
vidual or associated efforts. Such is the
" Burr Seminary," in the town of Man-
chester, in the State of Vermont, which
originated in a legacy of 10,000 dollars, left
by a gentleman of the name of Joseph
Burr,* for the education of poor and pious
young men for the ministry. By the terms

* Mr. Burr had been for many years a resident at
Manchester, in Vermont. By patient industry and
upright dealings, he acquired a fortune estimated at
150,000 dollars at the time of his death. A large
part of this sum he bequeathed to the American Bi-
ble Society, American Board of Commissioners for
Foreign Missions, .A^merican Home Missionary Soci-
ety, and American Education Society, besides en-
dowing a professorship in one college, and contribu-
ting largely to the same object in another. And in
addition to all this, by the above bequest of 10,000
dollars he founded the Seminary that bears his name.

of his will, in case of an equal sum being
raised by the citizens of the place for the
erection of a suitable building, the purchase
of apparatus, library, «fec., then his legacy of
10,000 dollars might be invested as a perma-
nent fund, the interest of which was to be
applied to paying for the education of such
young men as he should designate. This
was done even beyond the extent required
by the testator. A large and commodious
edifice was erected, containing rooms for
the recitation of lessons, lectures, library,
philosophical apparatus, &c. The school
was opened on the 15th of May, 1833, and
the number of scholars for the first term
was 146 ; many of whom were pious youths,
devoting themselves to study with a view
to the ministry. The institution still flour-
ishes under the instructions of excellent
men ; and being situated in a secluded and
moral village in the midst of the Green
Mountains, where living is cheap, it is at-
tended by choice youths, some thirty or
forty of whom are educated gratuitously.
Such, again, is " Philips' Academy," at
Andover, in Massachusetts, about twenty
miles north of Boston. Founded in 1778,
by the joint liberality of two brothers, the
Hon. Samuel Philips, of Andover, and the
Hon. John Philips, of Exeter, New-Hamp-
sliire, it, two years afterward, received a
charter of incorporation from the state.
The fund supplied by these two brothers
was afterward augmented by the bequest
of a third, the Hon. William Philips, of
Boston.

This Academy, which is one of the best
endowed in the United States, has been
truly a blessing to the cause of Religion
and Learning. By the terms prescribed
by its pious founders, it is open to all youth
of good character, but they have placed it
under the control of Protestants, and the
religious instruction given must be ortlio-
dox in the true sense of the word. In-
struction is required to be given in the
English, Latin, and Greek languages ; in
writing, arithmetic, and music ; in the art
of speaking ; also in practical geometry,
logic ; and any other of the liberal arts,
sciences, or languages, as opportunity and
ability may from time to time admit, and
the trustees shall direct. As the educa-
tion of suitable young men for the minis-
try was a leading consideration with the
founders, so has the institution been, in this
respect, abundantly blessed. Many such
youths have here pursued their preparato-
ry studies ; and in 1808, availing them-
selves of a provision contained in the plan
marked out by the founders, the trustees
ingrafted on the institution, or, rather, es-
tablished in the same village, and under the
same direction, a Theological Seminary,
which has become one of the most distin-
guished of the kind in the United States, and
will call for more ample notice hereafter.

150

A large proportion of the grammar-
schools and academies in the United
States, whether incorporated or not, are
under the direction and instruction of min-
isters of the Gospel of different evangeli-
cal denominations. These ministers, in
some cases, devote their whole time to the
work of academical instruction ; in other
cases, they have also the charge of a
church or congregation, and as they have
to perform the double duties of pastor and
head of a grammar-school, they have usu-
ally an assistant teacher in the latter. The
teachers in these academies are often pi-
ous young men, of small pecuniary re-
sources, who, after completing their stud-
ies at college, betake themselves to this
employment for a few years, in order to
find the means of supporting themselves
while attending a theological school. But
whether ministers of the Gospel, or grad-
uates fresh from college, such teachers
generally communicate instruction of a de-
cidedly religious character. The Scrip-
tures are daily read ; the school is usually
opened and closed with prayer ; and in
many cases, a Bible-class, comprising all
the pupils, meets on the Sabbath after-
noon, or morning, for the study of the Sa-
cred V^olume. Thus, by the favour of God
resting on these institutions, and making
them effectual to the converting of many
of the youths that attend them, they prove
blessings to the Church of Christ, as well
as to the State.

I may add, that within the last ten or
twenty years, a great many excellent in-
stitutions for the education of young ladies
have sprung up in different parts of the
United States, through associated or indi-
vidual efforts. The course of instruction
at these is excellent and extensive, embra-
cing all branches of valuable knowledge
proper for the sex. Upon many of these,
also, God has caused his blessing to de-
scend, and has brought not a few of the
young persons attending them to the
knowledge of Himself. They are gener-
ally conducted by ladies ; but the teachers
in some cases are gentlemen, clergymen
especially, assisted by pious ladies. In no
other country, probably, has the higher ed-
ucation of females made greater progress
than in the United States during the last
few years. The Christian community
there begins to feel that mothers have, in
a great measure, the formation of the na-
tional character in their hands.

According to the census of 1840, the
Grammar-schools and Academies for both
sexes in the United States amounted to
3242, attended by 164,159 pupils.

RELIGION IN AMERICA. [Book IV.

CHAPTER Xni.

COLLEGES AND UNIVERSITIES.

In the census of the United States for
1840, the nun)ber of universities and col-
leges is put down at 173, and that of stu-
dents at 16,233. This, however, includes
not only the Theological, Medical, and Law
schools, but several other institutions im-
properly called colleges. A more accu-
rate list makes the colleges amount to
103, and the students to 9607. But even
this estimate includes several institutions,
which, though incorporated as colleges, are
scarcely so far organized as to be entitled
to the name. In some cases, too, the stu-
dents in the preparatory departments are
reckoned along with the under-graduates,
properly so called, that is, the students in
the four regular classes of seniors, juniors,
sophomores, and freshmen, into which the
students of our colleges are divided.

It would be absurd to compare the col-
leges of America with the great universi-
ties of Europe. The course of studies is
widely different. For while sufficiently
comprehensive in almost all the colleges
that deserve that name, it is not to be com-
pared, in general, as respects depth and ex-
tent of investigation in particular branch-
es, with that of the older universities of
Europe. But, upon the whole, the educa-
tion to be had at one of our colleges bet-
ter capacitates a man for the work that is
likely to await him in America than would
that which the universities of Europe could
give him, if one may be allowed to judge
from experience.

In almost all instances, the colleges in
the United States have been founded by
religious men. The common course in es-
tablishing them is as follows : A company
is organized, a subscription list opened,
and certain men of influence in the neigh-
bourhood consent to act as trustees. A.
charter is then asked from the Legislature
of the state within which the projected in-
stitution is to be placed, and a grant in
aid of the funds at the same time solicited.
The charter is obtained, and with it a
few thousand dollars, perhaps, by way ol
assistance. What else is required for the
purcliase of a site, erecting buildings, pro-
viding a library, apparatus, &c., &c., must
be made up by those interested in the proj-
ect. Thus have vast sums been raised,
particularly during the last twenty years,'
for founding colleges in all parts of the
country, especially in the West. A great
portion of these sums have been subscribed
by persons in the neighbourhood, and more
directly interested in the success of the
undertakings subscribed for ; but in many
cases, money to a large amount has been
obtained from the churches along the At-
lantic coast.

Sixty-two of the 103 colleges in the

^HAP. XIIL]

COLLEGES AND UNIVERSITIES.

151

United States have been opened within the
last twenty-five years. Many of these are,
of course, in their infancy, and not very
well organized. Without reckoning grants
made by the states, it would be difficult
to find one that has not cost its founders
above 10,000 dollars, and many have cost
them twice that sum. Several* have cost
even 50,000 dollars, if not more, while, at the
same time, several of the older colleges,
such as Yale, New-Jersey, Rutgers, Will-
iams, Hamilton, &c., have raised large
sums by voluntary effort among their re-
spective friends, for the purpose of aug-
menting the advantages they offer to the
students that attend them. Upon the whole,
I consider that it were not too much to
say, that from 1,500,000 to 2,000,000 dollars
have been raised by voluntary subscrip-
tions and donations for the erection and en-
dowment of colleges, since the year 1816.

I have said that the state gives some
aid to many such enterprises. But, except-
ing the Universities of Virginia, Alabama,
Michigan, and those of Ohio and Miami,
both in the State of Ohio, and Jefferson
College in Mississippi, and Jefferson Col-
lege in Louisiana, I am not aware of any
in the country that can be said to have been
■wholly endowed by the government of any
state. The Universities of North Caroli-
na and Georgia, and Columbia College in
South Carolina, may possibly be so far aid-
ed by the states in which they are respect-
ively situated, as to have something like
an endowment, but the aid so rendered, I
apprehend, is far from sufficient. So, also.
Congress has aided from time to time
" Columbian College," situated near Wash-
ington City, and within the District of Co-
lumbia,! but the aid so received has never
been at all adequate to the purposes for
■which it was required.

There are not above six or seven col-
leges or universities in the United States
-over which the civil or political govern-
ments can exercise any direct control. It
is well that it is so. A State Legislature, or
Congress itself, would be found very unfit
to direct the affairs of a college or univer-
sity. Wherever, in fact, they have re-
served such power to themselves in the
i.harters they have granted, they have
sooner or later nearly, if not altogether,

■* For instance, Pennsylvania College, at Gettys-
burg, Pennsylvania ; Centre College, at Danville,
Kentucky ; Illinois College, at Jacksonville, Illinois ;
Western Reserve College, Ohio ; to say nothing of
some of the Roman Catholic colleges, which have
not cost much less, from first to last, than 50,000
dollars ; Amherst College, in Massachusetts, has cost
more than that sum, probably; while the Universi-
ty of New- York has cost three or four times that
amount.

t This college comes properly within the sphere
of the legislation of Congress, and is the only one
that does so. All the others come under the juris-
diction of the several states within whose territories
cthey stand.

ruined the institutions on which they have
laid their unhallowed hands. A college or
university is no place for party politics,
and so well is this understood, that the
Legislatures of the several states hesitate
not to grant a college charter to a body of
respectable citizens, and to appoint at once
the persons recommended as trustees or
directors, with power to fill up the vacan-
cies that may occur ; after which, these
office-bearers, having sworn to do nothing
in that capacity contrary to the laws and
Constitution of the country, are empow-
ei'ed to manage and govern the proposed
college according to their own best judg-
ment, and the regulations they may lay
down to that effect. While acting within
the limits prescribed by the charter and
their oath, that charter must remain invio-
late. So it has been determined by the
Supreme Court of the United States.

I have said that almost every college ex-
isting in the country may be traced to re-
ligious motives, and how true this is, will
appear from the fact, that of the 103 col-
leges now in operation, twelve are under
the influence of the Protestant Episcopval
Church, eleven under that of the Metho-
dists, twelve under that of the Baptists,
forty-two under that of the Presbyterians
and Congregationalists ; one is Lutheran,
one German Reformed, two Dutch Re-
formed, two Cumberland Presbyterian ;
eleven are Roman Catholic, one Univer-
salist, one Unitarian, and the religious
character of seven of them I do not know. ■
In this calculation I place each institution
under the church to which its president
belongs. This rule is the best that I know,
and although it does not hold in every case,
the exceptions are few ; and, without any
exception, it indicates the general faith by
which the institution is influenced.

Thus we see that of these 103 universi-
ties and colleges, eighty-three are under de-
cided evangelical and orthodox influence.
Their presidents, and, I may add, many of
their professors, are known to be religious
men, and sound in the faith ; all of the for-
mer, with three or four exceptions, are
ministers of the Gospel, and many of them
men of great eminence in the Church.
The seven colleges whose religious char-
acter I do not know, are probably under
evangelical influence ; all of the seven, I
have reason to believe, are Protestant.
I need not say how much cause for grati-
tude to God we have, that so many young
men of the first families, and possessing
fine talents, should be educated in colleges
that are under the influence of evangelical
principles. In many of them the Bible is
studied by the students every Sabbath, un-
der the guidance of their teachers. In all
they receive a great deal of religious in-
struction, and are daily assembled for
prayers. God has often visited sonxe of

152

RELIGION IN AMERICA.

[Book IV.

them with the outpourings of his Spirit.
Not that this religious instruction is intend-
ed to proselytize from one Protestant and
evangelical church to another. In that re-
spect, a Presbyterian father might with all
safety commit his son to an Episcopalian,
Methodist, or Lutheran college. Here I
speak from facts that I myself have known.
Several of the most distinguished dignita-
ries of the Episcopal Cliurch were educa-
ted at Princeton College, New-Jersey, a
Presbyterian institution, and founded by
Presbyterians. Some of them received
their first religious convictions there, and
yet, I believe, they can testify that no office-
bearer of that college ever attempted to
bring them over to the Presbyterian
Church. Any advice of that kind, on the
contrary, would have been that they should
join the church in which they were born,
that is, the Episcopal.*

As none of the universities but that of
Harvard, situated in the town of Cam-
bridge, not far from Boston, have all the
four faculties of literature, law, medicine,
and theology, with that exception they
ought rather to be called colleges. The
theology at Harvard is Unitarian. Several
of the other universities have faculties of
medicine attached to them. On the other
hand. Yale College, at New-Haven, in Con-
necticut, ought rather to be called a uni-
versity, for it has all the four faculties, and
is attended by far more students than go
to Harvard.

I may add, that Harvard University was
the first literary institution established in
the United States. It was founded in 1638,
eight years after Massachusetts Bay, and
eighteen after Plymouth was first colo-
nized ; so that there were not many more
than 5000 settlers at the time in all New-
England. Hardly had the forests been
cleared away for the streets of their settle-
ments, when they began to project a col-
lege or university. And yet these were
the Puritans now so much vilified and slan-
dered ! Great were the efforts made by
those exiles to attain their object. The
General Court granted for tlie erection of
a proper edifice a sum equal to a year's
rate of the whole colony. John Harvard,
who had come to the New World only to
die, bequeathed to the college half his es-
tate, and all Jiis library. Plymouth and Con-
necticut often sent their little offerings, as
did the eastern towns within the bounda-
ries of the i)resent Slate of Maine. The
rent of a ferry was made over to it. All
the famihes in the Puritan settlements each
gave once a donation of at least twelve

♦ The Rev. Dr. M'llvaine, the distinguished Bish-
op of Ohio, and the no less excellent, th(nip;h per-
haps le.ss known assistant Bishop of Virginia, the Rev.
Dr. Johns, were both educated and converted at
Princeton College. The late Bishop Ilobart, ofNew-
York, was educated in that institution, and was for
Bome time a tutor there.

pence, or a peck of corn, while larger gifts-
were made by the magistrates and wealth-
ier citizens. It was for a long time the
only college in New-England, and in its
halls the great men of the country were
educated. For a century and a half it was
a precious fountain of living waters for the
Church of God. But, alas ! for the last
half century, or nearly so, it has been in,
the hands of men who hold " another gos-
pel" than that held by its pious founders.*
The second college founded in the Uni-
ted States was that of William and Mary,
at Williamsburg, in Virginia, in 1693. The
third was Yale College above mentioned,
founded in 1700. The fourth was Prince-
ton College, New-Jersey, founded in 1746.
The University of Pennsylvania dates from
1755 ; Columbia College, in New-York,^.
from 1754 ; Brown University, from 1764 ;
Rutgers and Dartmouth Colleges, from
1770. These were all that were founded
previously to the Revolution.

CHAPTER XIV.

SUNDAY-SCHOOLS. AMERICAN SUNDAY-SCHOOL.

UNION AND OTHER SUNDAY SCHOOL SOCI-
ETIES.

One of the most efficient, as well as the
simplest instruments of doing good, is the
Sunday-school ; an institution, the history
of which is too well known to require any
detail in this work. Mr. Robert Raikes,
of Gloucester, in England, towards the
close of the last century, established the
first that was ever conducted upon any-
thing like the plan now generally pursued,,
and the excellence of which has been pro-
ved by long experience.

The first attempt to introduce Sunday-
schools into the United States was made
by the Methodists in 1790, but from some
cause or other it failed. A society was
soon after formed at Philadelphia, with
the late Bishop White at its head, and a
few schools were established for the ben-
efit of the poor, taught by persons who re-
ceived a certain compensation for their
trouble. Early in the present century,
schools began to be established in vari-
ous places under voluntary and gratuitous
teachers, and gradually becoming better
known and appreciated, the number was
found very considerable in 1816. Associ-
ations for promoting them more extensive-
ly began then to be formed in Philadelphia,
New- York, and other cities, and the publi-
cation of spelling and hymn books, scrip-
tiu-al catechisms, &c., for the children was
commenced. Some persons also did much
to advance tliis good work by their indi-
vidual efforts.!

* A voluminous and interesting history of this
university, by its present president, Josiah Quincy,
LL.D., has lately been published.

t Among w horn may be mentioned the late Divic ■

Chap. XIV]

SUNDAY SCHOOLS.

153

Measures were taken in 1823 for the
forming of a national society which should
extend the benefit of Sunday-schools to all
parts of the country ; and, accordingly, the
American Sunday-school Union was insti-
tuted ; an association composed of excel-
lent men of all evangelical denominations,
but in which no particular denomination is
represented as such. It has now been diffu-
sing its blessings for more than nineteen
years. The board of managers is com-
posed of intelligent and zealous laymen of
the various evangelical denominations, the
greater part residing in Philadelphia and its
vicinity, as that is the centre of the socie-
ty's operations.

Its grand object is twofold : to promote
the establishment of Sunday-schools where
required, and to prepare and publish suita-
ble books, some to be employed as manu-
als in the schools, and others for libraries,
intended to furnish the children with suit-
able reading at home. In both depart-
ments much good has been done. In the
former, Sunday-school missionaries, com-
monly ministers of the Gospel, and some-
times capable laymen, have been employed
in visiting almost all parts of the country.
They hold public meetings in every dis-
trict or neighbourhood where they have
any prospect of success, endeavour to in-
terest the people in the subject, and to es-
tablish a school. Time and care are re-
quired for such a work. The nature of a
Sunday-school must be well explained ;
fit persons must be engaged as teachers ;
these must have their duties pointed out
to them, and the motives that ought to
prompt them to undertake the office pre-
sented and enforced ; and money must be
collected for the purchase of books.

In 1830, the society resolved to estab-
lish a Sunday-school in every neighbour-
hood that was without one, throughout the
Western States or Valley of the Missis-
sippi, wherever practicable. Three years
thereafter it adopted a like resolution with
respect to the Southern States. Both, but
particularly the former of these resolu-
tions, called forth much effort. Large
sums were collected, and a great many
schools were established. Every year
since its commencement the society has
employed a number of agents and mission-
aries ; in some years as many as twenty,
thirty, forty, and even fifty such. These
traverse the country throughout its vast
extent, resuscitate decaying schools, es-
tablish new ones, and encourage all.

In its other department the society has
rendered great services to the cause of re-
ligion, and, I may add, to that of^literature
also. Exclusive of the Scriptures, spelling-
books, primers, catechisms, maps, cards for

Bethune, Esq., who published at his own expense a
number of little books for the instruction of youth in
Sunday-schools.

infant schools, &c., it has published about
450 volumes of books for libraries, a com-
plete set of which, well bound, costs sev-
enty-five dollars. It has published, like-
wise, a selection from these as a library
for common schools. Among its publica-
tions may be mentioned its admirable man-
uals or aids for studying the Bible ; name-
ly, a Geography of the Bible, Natural His-
tory of the Bible, Dictionary of the Bible,
Antiquities of the Bible, Scripthral Biog-
raphies, Maps of the Holy Land, and Books
of Questions, in several volumes, on al-
inost all parts of the Bible, for the use of
children and teachers. While all these
publications are thoroughly Protestant ia
their character, they contain nothing re-
pugnant to the doctrines of any of the
evangelical denominations, so that there
is nothing to forbid their being used in the
Sunday-schools of any of the Protestant
churches. This is a great advantage, and
enables the society to establish hundreds
of schools in places where various reli-
gious bodies intermingle, and where none
of them is strong enough to support a
school by itself. The society publishes
also a very valuable journal, which appears
once in a fortnight. It is replete with in-
teresting and instructive matter, and adapt-
ed alike to scholars, teachers, and parents.
It also publishes small monthly magazines
and gazettes for children.

But besides this great society, which
stands ready to promote the cause any-
where, and on the most catholic principles,
there are other Sunday-school societies,
not less efficient in their respective spheres.
The Episcopalians have theirs, the Bap-
tists theirs, the Episcopal Methodists theirs,
the Lutherans theirs, and so forth. The
Presbyterians, strictly speaking, have no
Sunday-school society of their own, but
by their Publication Board they publish
books for Sunday-school libraries. Indeed,
all the denominational Sunday-school so-
cieties publish books for their own schools,
and in these they set forth and defend the
peculiar views they hold respectivelj^ on
points of doctrine or discipline, to such an
extent as they deem proper. This is not
unnatural, for each scliool is mainly attend-
ed by the children of parents attached to
churches of the same denomination with
that of the society that supports the school.
Not that all the publications of a denomi-
national Sunday-school society are of wliat
may be termed a sectarian chax'acter. This
is by no means the case, and, besides, these
more limited societies buy from the Amer-
ican Sunday-school Union whatever books
upon its list they may think proper to add
to their own.

It is impossible to calculate the extent
to which the Sunday-school libraries, com-
posed as they are of most interesting books
on almost all subjects of a moral and reli^

154

RELIGION IN AMERICA.

[Book IV.

gious character, are fostering a taste for
reading among the rising youth, and the
adult population, also, of the country. The
scholars receive from them one or two
volumes each, according to the size, ev-
ery Sabbath, to read in the course of the
week, and return on the Sabbath follow-
ing, and these volumes thus pass into the
hands of older brothers and sisters, parents,
and other members of the household. The
proceeds of the sales of books by the Amer-
ican Sunday-school Union amounted last
year (1843) to $55,895. If we add to this
the value of those sold by the denomina-
tional Sunday-school societies, we should
find it rise to at least $100,000. And if we
farther add the cost of Sunday-school books
purchased from the booksellers, we shall
have a total far exceeding the last amount
as the value of books bought in one year
for the use of Sunday-schools, and mainly
for the libraries attached to them.

Besides the series of 450 volumes pub-
lished by the American Sunday-school
Union, a far greater number have been
published by the denominational societies.*
Neither pains nor money have been spared
in the preparation, improvement, and pub-
lication of these volumes, and in this re-
spect, I am inclined to think that the Amer-
ican Sunday-school Union has outstripped
every similar institution in other countries.
Much, notwithstanding, remains to be done
in order to render tliese Sunday-school
books all that they ought to be. It is no
easy task to write books for children well.
Much talent has been bestowed upon it of
late years in the United States, and such
has been the demand for children's books,
created by the Sunday-schools, that the
booksellers have found it for their ad-
vantage to publish such books for those
schools. Many of these are good,, but
many, too, are worthless enough, as may
readily be supposed where there is no in-
telligent committee rigorously to examine
them previous to publication, and to de-
termine what should go forth to the public
and what should not.

Sunday-schools are held in various pla-
ces ; sometimes in churches, or in the lec-
ture-rooms attached to many of our large
churches, or in rooms fitted up expressly
for the purpose in the basement story of
many of our city churches ; sometimes in
the schoolhouses, which are very numer-
ous ; and, especially in the new settle-
ments, in private houses. In summer they
sometimes meet in barns ; and I once su-
perintended a Sunday-school myself which
met for many months in a large kitchen

* The series published by the Methodist " Book
<Joncern" exceeds 2.50; that of the American Bap-
tist Pubhcation and Sunday-school Society 170;
while those of the Protestant Episcopal, the Prot-
estant Methodist, the Lutheran, the Free-Will Bap-
tists, and several local societies, are considerable.

attached to a farmhouse in the State of
New-Jersey.

The hours of meeting are very various.
In the cities and large towns they com-
monly meet twice in the day ; at eight or
nine o'clock in the morning, according to
the season, and at two o'clock in the after-
noon, for about an hour and a half each
time. In the villages and country church-
es they usually meet for two hours, once
a day, immediately before, or immediately
after, the public services. In some cases
I have known a pastor, with a parish ex-
tending many miles in all directions from
the church, meet, during an hour before
his public service, with nearly all the adult
part of his flock in a Bible-class, and go
over with them the portion of Scripture
given out to his Sunday-schools for that
day ; and then, instead of having service
in the afternoon, he would in the latter
part of the day visit one or other, in their
order, of the ten or twelve schools held by
his people in as many different neighbour-
hoods. On these occasions he would ad-
dress, not only the children and teachers,
but also the parents and others who crowd-
ed to hear him. And how could a pastor
instruct his people more effectually 1*

A word or two may not be amiss on the
manner of conducting our Sunday-schools.
Each is under a superintendent — a gentle-
man where there are scholars of both sex-
es, but usually a lady where there are only
girls. The scholars are divided into class-
es, according to their age and capacity.
All the reading classes learn the same part
of Scripture, going through a certain book
in"- order. Suppose, for instance, the fif-
teenth chapter of Luke, from the eleventh
verse to the end. It is the parable of the
prodigal son. As soon as the school is
opened the scholars take their places. The
service begins with prayer by the superin-
tendent or some other person. Each class
— composed usually of six or eight per-
sons— has its teacher, to whom the schol-
ars repeat the lesson in the Scriptures for
the day. When that is done the teacher
takes the book of Bible Questions (a copy
of which each scholar should have), and
asks the questions in it relating to the pas-
sage which the class, in common with the
others, have learned. The answers to
these questions the pupils must find out
through their own efforts, or with help
from their parents, during the week. The
teacher asks, also, such other questions as
he may think useful, and calculated to lead
to a more perfect understanding of the sub-
ject. An hour, perhaps, is spent in this
exercise. After that th§ scholars return
the books which they had received from
the librarian on the preceding Sabbath,

* In some of the large cities Sunday-schools are
held at night, especially for the benefit of the colour-
ed people.

Chap. XIV,]

SUNDAY SCHOOLS.

155

and obtain others. Then the superintend-
ent, or pastor, if he be present, addresses
a few words to the whole school on the
passage which they have learned, and en-
deavours to impress upon their minds the
importance of the truths which it teaches.
A hymn is sung, and a prayer offered up,
.and the school closes.

If there be any children that cannot read,
they are arranged in classes by themselves,
and taught that important acquirement.
In many of the schools there is a consid-
able number of such, and persons beyond
the years of childhood, who have had no
opportunities of learning to read before,
sometimes make the attainment in the
course of a few months at a Sunday-school.

In all the free states, and in such of the
slaveholding ones as permit the slaves to
be taught, there are Sunday-schools for the
coloured people.* In these schools thou-
sands and tens of thousands of them have
learned to read the sacred Scriptures, and
have made much progress in divine knowl-
edge.

The superintendents of the Sunday-
schools are sometimes elders and deacons
of the churches; sometimes they are pi-
ous lawyers, and other intelligent gentle-
men ; and in the vicinity of our colleges and
theological seminaries they are often stu-
dents of religious character, who may be
prosecuting their studies with a view to
the ministry. The teachers are, for the
most part, young people of both sexes be-
longing to the churches and congregations.
Wherever truly pious persons can be found
willing to be thus employed, they are pre-
ferred ; but where this is not the case, se-
riously-disposed and moral persons, who
desire to be engaged in this benevolent
work, are taken, and almost invariably it
happens that, in teaching others, they them-
selves become instructed out of the " law
of God." It is to be regretted that most
of the ladies, after they become wives and
mothers, have too many domestic cares
and duties to allow them to continue as
teachers in the Sabbath-school. .Some,
however, there are who persevere in this
blessed employment, their zeal triumphing
over every obstacle.

As to gentlemen, many more of them
may continue in the work after they have
become heads of families. Hence we oft-
en find men of age and experience among
Sunday-school teachers, encouraging and

* There are Sunday-schools held by some pious
slaveholders in Georgia, South Carolina, and per-
haps some other states, in which portions of Scrip-
ture are often repeated to the assembled slaves, and
remarked upon until they have committed much of
them to memory. Prayer and singing are added to
these exercises. Such schools no laws can well
hinder, no more than they can the preaching of the
Gospel to the slaves. These schools have only been
commenced within a few years, and are spreading in
several places.

aiding them in their toils. And it is not
uncommon to find some of those who hold
the very highest offices in the State or
General Government, spending a portion
of their Sabbaths in giving instruction to
a class of young persons in a Sunday-
school. I have known several governors
and their ladies, members of Congress, and
of the Legislatures of the states, judges,
eminent lawyers, mayors of cities, «fec.,
who were, and who are at the present time,
Sabbath-school teachers, and who have
felt it no degradation to be thus employed.
The present distinguished Chancellor of
the University of New-York was the su-
perintendent of a Sunday-school, even
when he held the office of attorney-gen-
eral of his native State, and afterward,
when he was a senator in the Congress of
the United States ; he is a Sabbath-school
teacher still, and delights to associate him-
self with the youngest teachers engaged
in that heavenly employment.

The Hon. Benjamin F. Butler was a
Sabbath-school teacher, even while hold-
ing the distinguished office of attorney-
general to ihe United States. The late
Chief-justice Marshall, and the late Judge
Washington, both of the Supreme Court
of the United States, and the former of
whom, it is admitted, was the most distin-
guished jurist the country has ever pro-
duced, were warm friends and patrons of
Sunday-schools. Both were, in their day,
vice-presidents of the American Sabbath-
school Union. Within five years of his
death, I saw Chief-justice Marshall march
through the city of Richmond, in Virginia,
where he resided, at the head of the Sun-
day-schools on the occasion of a celebra-
tion. And, finally, the late President Har-
rison, who in his youth had been a rough
and far from religious soldier, but towards
the close of his life became interested in
the things that concerned his everlasting
peace, taught for several years a class of
young persons in an humble Sunday-school
on the banks of the Ohio ; and the Sab-
bath before he left his home for Washing-
ton, there to become his country's Chiei
Magistrate — and, alas! within a month
thereafter to die — he met, as usual, his
Bible-class.

I have dwelt the longer on this subject
because of its great importance. A Sab-
bath-school is so simple an affair that it
may be begun wherever two or three per-
sons are found disposed to undertake it. I
have known even a single individual keep
one himself, and spend several hours every
Sabbath in instructing some dozen or twen-
ty poor youth, who came around him to
learn to read and understand the Word of
God. I have known a lady, who, as her
health did not permit her to go to a Sun-
day-school, received a class of young ladies
in her parlour every Sabbath for years.

156

RELIGION IN AMERICA.

[Book IV.

"Why, then, should not Sabbath-schools be
established in every city, town, hamlet, and
neighbourhood, where there are only two
or three persons with hearts to love the
kingdom of God, and hands to promote it 1
Were such a spirit to prevail in all lands
professedly Christian, how soon would
they show a very different aspect from
what they do at present ?

It is impossible to state with accuracy
the present number of Sunday-schools in
the United States. They were reckoned
seven years ago at 16,000; the teachers at
130,000 or 140,000 ; and the scholars, com-
prising, it was supposed, 100,000 adults, at
1,000,000 ! These numbers must be much
greater now. Who can estimate the amount
of good resulting from 1,000,000 of minds
being brought into contact every Sabbath
with the word of Him who hath said that
His " word shall not return unto him void ?"
Thousands and tens of thousands, both
teachers and scholars, are known to have
become enlightened and saved, by means of
the lessons given and received at Sunday-
schools. But a whole volume would not
suffice to unfold all the benefits conferred
by this blessed institution, to which may
be emphatically applied the words of the
celebrated Adam Smith, in speaking of
popular education in general, that it is
" the cheap defence of nations."

HAPTER XV.

BIBLE-CLASSES.

Akin to Sunday-schools are Bible-class-
es. Indeed, the former, conducted as at
present in America, are little more than an
assemblage of the latter.

What are commonly called Bible-classes
are composed of a comparatively large
number of persons, all taught by the pastor
of the church, or some other individual
whom he engages to act for him. To pre-
side over a Bible-class of from twenty to
some hundreds of persons, the greater
number, if not all, of whom are adults, and
some of them, perhaps, remarkably intelli-
gent and well informed, requires far higher
qualifications than simply to teach a small
class in a Sunday-school.

These Bible-classes are generally con-
ducted by the pastors, and so highly are
they valued as a means and occasion of
good, that few settled ministers have not
one or more among their flocks. In some
cases, one for each sex is held once in the
week — that for gentlemen in the evening,
that for ladies during the day. They meet
according to circumstances, in the cinirch,
lecture-room, vestry-room, schoolroom, or
in some private house. The pastor some-
times devotes his Sabbath nights to a Bib-
lical service, for the benefit of all who can

attend ; a practice feasible only where the
population is compact, and the flock within
an easy distance of the place of meeting.
In country churches, these classes often
hold their meetings in church before the
regular service commences, or in the inter-
val between the morning and afternoon
services. This is convenient, but is apt to
produce fatigue.

I have known pastors in country church-
es who had no fewer than 500 persons ia
one Bible-class, if I can call it so, which
met in the afternoon instead of the regular
service ; and others, whose Bible-classes
included the whole adult part of their
flocks, and met previous to the forenoon
service, or in the interval between that and
the afternoon service.

In conducting these classes, the common
method is to go through some particular
book of the sacred volume in course, and
some system of Bible questions is general-
ly pursued. Upon this plan, all who have
time and inclination for the task, prepare
themselves, by reading and study, for an-
swering the questions to be found in the
book of questions that is used.* But it is
not the practice of any well-informed pas-
tor to confine himself to the questions con-
tained in the book. These he employs as
he sees fit ; by the questions he puts he
assists in sustaining the attention of the
people ; and he takes occasion to give a
great amount of scriptural instruction.

To conduct a Bible-class in a manner at
once interesting and profitable requires no
little preparation ; and, when well done,
few methods of instruction are more edify-
ing, either to the people or to the minister
himself. The divine blessing has rested
most remarkably upon it. Nor could we
expect that it should be otherwise. What
more likely to secure the divine benediction
than to bring the mind to the study of that
which God himself hath spoken 1 " The
entrance of thy words giveth light ; it giv-
eth understanding to the simple." " Sanc-
tify them by thy truth ; thy word is truth."'

CHAPTER XVI.

MATERNAL SOCIETIES.

I MUST not omit, among the means which
there is reason to believe that God has
greatly blessed to the advancing of his
kingdom in the United States, the Maternal
Societies — institutions that have not been

* Several excellent clergymen of the United States
have written systems of Bible Questions, among
whom may be mentioned the Rev. Drs. M'Dow-
<>!!, Tyng, Barnes, Professor Hokiich, and the Rev.
Messrs. Covel, J. Longking, and Newcomh. The Bi-
ble Questions published by i\\e American Sunday-
school Union are good, as are, also, several of those
printed by the denominational Sunday-school socie-
ties.

Chap. XVII.]

EDUCATION SOCIETIES.

157

of many years' standing among us, but
■which have existed long enough to produce
much good.

These societies are composed of pious
mothers, who meet in parties, not incon-
veniently numerous, once in the week,
fortnight, or month, for the purpose of
conversing on the subject of bringing up
their children for the Lord, listening to the
reading of valuable remarks and hints on
the best means of discliarging this great
duty, and mingling their prayers before the
throne of grace in behalf of themselves
and their beloved offspring. These little
meetings prove very precious seasons to
many an anxious, perplexed, and disheart-
ened mother, by communicating grace, and
strength, and support, and light, for ena-
bling her to fulfil her fearfully responsible
part. God has greatly blessed them. For
the benefit of mothers, some excellent
periodicals have been published in the
United States during several years past.
Among these let me mention " The Mother's
Magazine," issued in New- York, and re-
published in London. It appears once a
month, is neatly printed, and cests only a
dollar a year. It has a very extensive cir-
culation, and furnishes much admirable mat-
ter for reading at the Maternal Societies'
meetings, as well as in the family circle.
Another valuable periodical is published at
Utica, in the central part of the State of
New- York, and is read in several thousands
of families. It is conducted by a talented
lady of the Baptist Church. A similar
journal has been commenced at Boston ;
while all our religious newspapers contain
many articles on the same subject.

On the other hand, several publications
appear once a month, or once in two
months, for the benefit of fathers and of
entire families. One such is published in
the city of New- York, and is entitled "The
Christian Family Magazine, or Parents'
and Children's Journal." It is said to have
an extensive circulation. Other journals
of like character, and having the same ob-
ject, are published in other parts of the
country. Moreover, almost all the reli-
gious newspapers, now very numerous,
and some one or more of which are read
in almost every Christian family, contain
much that bears upon the religious educa-
tion of children, and the whole economy
of a Christian household.

The subject is one of vast moment.
The world has never yet seen the full re-
sults of the Christian education of children.
Parents have much to learn in this respect,
and need all the helps and appliances possi-
ble, to enable them rightly to discharge their
important duties. Were all fathers and
mothers in a nation such as they ought to
be, how mighty would be the infiuence of
the Gospel upon it ! Were the fathers and
mothers in the Church of Christ such as

they ought to be, how different would it
soon become from what we see it now ! A
praying, devoted, holy mother ! What an
interesting being ! Such was the mother
of Samuel, of Timothy, and of thousands
besides, who have been eminently useful
in the world.

I have known Christian fathers who
met once a week for years to pray togeth-
er for their children, and their meetings
have been eminently useful and happy. I
have seen another kind of meeting which
I wish were more common — a quarterly
prayer-meeting specially for parents and
children. It was affecting to see parents,
the unconverted as well as the converted,
bringing with them their children, dear to
them as life itself, into the sanctuary on
such occasions, that they might share in
the earnestly-sought blessing.

CHAPTER XVII.

EDUCATION SOCIETIES.

One of the most interesting develop-
ments of the voluntary principle in promo-
ting religion in the United States, is seen
in the Education Societies ; institutions of
comparatively recent date, and having for
their object the granting of assistance to
pious youths of promising talents but small
means, in preparing for the ministry.

One of the first of these was the Amer-
ican Education Society, formed at Boston
in 1816. Hence it has been in existence
for twenty-eight years, and rarely has any
society been the instrument of more good.*

In all denominations of evangelical Chris-
tians in the United States, there are to be
found among those classes of society whose
means are too limited to give their sons a
college education, young men of talent, to
whom God has been pleased to impart the
knowledge of his grace, and in whose
hearts he implants a strong desire to preach
the Gospel. Now, before the Education
Societies appeared upon the field, such
youths used to find it very difficult, and
sometimes even impossible, to obtain such
an education as was required by the rules
of the church in whose ministry they wish-
ed to place themselves. Some, indeed,
might succeed by their own exertions ; by
dint of industry and economy they might
lay up enough to enable them to com-

* Tliis society published from the year 1827 to
1843 a valuable periodical, entitled " The American
Quarterly Register." It was originated by the late
Rev. Dr. Cornelius and the Rev. B. B. Edwards, the
secretaries of the society at the first-named epoch,
and continued by the latter gentleman to 1813, aided
for several years by the Rev. Dr. Cogswell, succes-
sor of Dr. Cornelius ; and afterward by the Rev. Mr.
Ridilrl, who has taken the place of Dr. Cogswell.
Mr. Edwards is a professor in the theological semi-
nary at Andover.

158

RELIGION IN AMERICA.

[Book IV..

mence a course of study at college. By
interrupting their college studies occasion-
ally, in order to recruit their finances by
teaching a school, they might, after long
delays, be able to complete the requisite
course at last ; and then, by similar efforts,
carry themselves through the required the-
ological course at a seminary. Others,
more fortunate, might be so far assisted
by a church or some wealthy and benev-
olent patron or friend.* But the greater
number, in despair of success, were likely
to renounce all expectation of being able
to preach the Gospel, and to resign them-
selves to the necessity of spending their
lives in the ordinary pursuits of business,
not in making known the "unsearchable
riches" of Christ to their fellow-men.

These remarks, it will be perceived, ap-
ply to such youths only as conscientious-
ly cleave to those churches which require
a college education, as preliminary to a
theological one, in all aspirants to the sa-
cred ministry. This is the rule, except
in very extraordinary cases, with the whole
of the Pre-sbyterian churches, excepting
the " Cumberland Presbyterians ;" with
the Episcopalians, and with the Congre-
gationalists. The Baptists and the Meth-
odists, as we have seen, are less strict,
and are satisfied with a common English
education, and a competent knowledge of
theology. But even among these, great
and laudable efforts are now put forth in or-
der to give a higher education to as many of
their candidates for the ministry as possi-
ble ; and it is on this account, as well as
for more general objects, that they have
established so many colleges within the
last few years. God is granting his rich
blessing to their efforts in this great cause ;
of this every year furnishes cheering evi-
dence.

To meet the demands of the churches for
a vastly-augmented number of ministers of
the Gospel, and to help those young men
who desire to respond to this demand, the
American Education Society was formed
on the broad basis of rcndcrijig its aid to all
pious young men, of suitable talents, who
appear to be called to preach Christ, and
who belong to any of the evangelical de-
nominations. The only conditions imposed
upon the recipients of its bounty are an en-

* Several of the colleges possess funds bequeathed
to them for the express purpose of educating poor
and pious young men for tlic inuiistry. The Rev.
Dr. Ureen, in his Instoncal notices of the College of
New-Jersey, relates that, more than half a century
since, a pious young man of the name of Leslie wa.s
educated at that institution for the ministry of the
Gospel ; but, fearing to assume the responsibility of
that office, he devoted himself to teaching a school
of a high order, in which einjiloyment he was emi-
nently successful. At his death he l)equealhed to
the college the sum of 15,000 dollars, the interest of
which was to be devoted to the education of poor
young men lor the ministry. This fund has already
educated a large number of excellent ministers.

gagement, 1. To go through a full course
of collegiate and theological education ia
some approved college and seminary; and,
2. To refund the sums advanced to aid
them, should the providence of God, in af-
ter life, give them the means of doing so.
Such are, in few words, its principles.
A rigid supervision is maintained over
those who accept its patronage. And set-
ting out in its admirable career with a few
young men, it has gone on, under the fa-
vour of God, diffusing its blessings far and
wide. It has rendered aid to young men
belonging to eight diffVirent Evangelical
Churches. At one period, some three or
four years ago, the number of persons
whom it was aiding exceeded 1100 ! Du-
ring the year ending May 1st, 1843, the-
number aided was 468. These were pur-
suing their education at institutions in dif-
ferent parts of the country ; some in acad-
emies and grammar-schools, some in col-
leges, and the rest in theological schools.
And the whole number of those who had
been aided, up to that time, was 3483.
The receipts for that year were 33,789 dol-
lars, and the expenditure 29,290. The
amount refunded that year by beneficiaries
who had completed their course of educa-
tion was 2157 dollars. The earnings of
the young men under the patronage of the
society, chiefly from teaching schools du-
ring their vacations, have some years
amounted to no less a sum than 20,000
dollars.*

The sums granted by this society to
those who are admitted to its benefits vary
from forty-eight to seventy-five dollars a
year, the latter sum being rarely exceed-
ed. Its funds have been liberally aug-
mented by bequests from devoted Chris-
tian friends who loved it during life, and
remembered it in death. Its first presi-
dent gave it 1000 dollars during his life-
time, and left it a legacy of 5000. Mr.
Burr, whom we have already had occasion
to speak of, also left it a handsome legacy.
The late Dr. Porter, for many years a dis-
tinguished professor in the Theological
Seminary at Andover, though far from be-
ing a man of mucli wealth, bequeathed to
it 15,000 dollars. Many of its friends have
given proof of large and enlightened views
by the patronage they have given it. It
has assisted a great number of most valu-
able ministers of the Gospel in the course
of their education, and to these we have
to add no fewer than sixty of the mission-
aries supported in foreign lands by the
American Board of Commissioners for
Foreign Missions, one of the largest and
oldest foreign missionary societies in the
United States.

Of late years, however, the number of
young men assisted by this Society has

* This society has permanent funds to the amount
of 73,GOO dollars.

Chap. XVIIL]

THEOLOGICAL SEMINARIES.

159'

greatly diminished ; partly owing to the
very difficult times through which the
country has passed ; partly because of
higher requirements in the department of
preliminary studies ; and partly from most
of the evangelical communions having now
education societies of their own. Thus
the " Old School" Presbyterians have a
Board of Education under the direction of
their General Assembly, which prosecutes
its work most wisely and efficiently. It
had 350 beneficiaries during the year end-
ing 1st May, 1843, and had assisted 1330
young men in all. Its receipts for that
year amounted to 30,000 doUars.*

A number of devoted clergymen and lay-
men of the Protestant Episcopal Church,
having met at Georgetown, in the District
of Columbia, for the purpose of laying the
foundation stone of an Episcopal church,
were providentially led to talk of the im-
portance of having a plan for aiding pious
but indigent youths, of suitable talents, in
preparing for the ministry. The result
was the formation, in 1818, of the Protest-
ant Episcopal Education Society. It has
proved a great blessing to the Church and
to the world. It may be said to have
originated the Episcopal theological school
near Alexandria, in the District of Colum-
bia ; a:nd nearly a tenth part of the clergy
of the church to which it belongs have been
more or less assisted by it. A sixth part
of the present clergy in Ohio, an eighth of
those in Pennsylvania, a fifth of those in
Maryland, and a large proportion of those
in Virginia, have been aided from its funds ;
and it is now assisting a seventh of all the
students in the several theological schools
of that church in the United States. f I do
not know the precise number of its pres-
ent beneficiaries, but believe it exceeds
eighty.

There are also several Education Soci-
eties among the Baptists, which have aid-
ed a large number of young men. J That

* The American churches have long been im-
pressed with the importance of having a competent
and sufficiently numerous ministry. The friends of
the American Education Society observe the last
Thursday of February yearly as a day of special
prayer for colleges, academies, and other institutions
of learning, that God maybe pleased to pour out his
Spirit upon them, bring many of the students to a
saving knowledge of his Gospel, and incline their
hearts to preach it. The General Assembly of the
"Old School" Presbyterian Church recommended
last year, to all the churches under their care, to ob-
serve the first Sabbath of November as a day of spe-
cial prayer to the Lord of the harvest, " that he
would send more labourers into his har^'est." They
recommended the subject also to the daily interces-
sions of Christians, in view of the vast demand for
mmisters of the Gospel.

+ Dr. Hawks's " History of the Episcopal Church
m Virginia," p. 261.

J In particular, " The Northern Baptist Education
Society," and " The Baptist Education Society of
New-York." The former of these was instituted in
1814, and has the seat of its operations in Boston. Du-

of the Reformed Dutch Church supported
twenty-four last year. A Methodist Edu-
cation Society has also been formed at
Boston.

These statements will give the reader
some idea of our Education Societies.
Though of recent origin, they are exerci-
sing an immense influence in training up
a more thoroughly-educated ministry. In
the absence of precise information, the
young men now receiving assistance from
them may be moderately estimated at
1600 in all, and of these at least 250 annu-
ally finish their studies, and enter on the
work of preaching the Gospel.

CHAPTER XVIII.

THEOLOGICAL SEMINARIES.

I HAVE spoken of the various literary
institutions, in their several gradations,
through which our youth may pass in pre-
paring for the professional course with
which they usually close their studies. I
have noticed also the education societies
for assisting poor but pious young men, of
suitable capacity, in their preparations for
the ministry. And I now come to speak
of the theological schools, in which a very
large number of our candidates for the
ministry complete their studies for the sa-
cred office.

Formerly the young men who sought to
enter the ministry among the denomina-
tions which require, in those who occupy
their pulpits, a college and theological ed-
ucation— I use the term in a technical
sense, and mean nothing invidious — were
compelled to study theology, more or less
immediately under some individual pas-
tor, and it was common for six or eight of
them to place themselves under this, and
a few under that other, distinguished divine.
They often resided in the house of their
spiritual teacher ; sometimes they boarded
in families near his house ; they availed
themselves of his library, and were direct-
ed by him in their studies.

But this was obviously a very imperfect
method. Few pastors could afford time to
do their pupils justice ; fewer still possess-
ed such a range of learning as to fit them
for conducting others to the acquisitions,
in various branches of knowledge, required
in order to a competent preparation for the
ministry.

To the late Rev. Dr. John M. Mason, of
New- York, one of the most eminent divines

ring the eight years from 1831 to 1839 it had aided
279 young men in preparing for the ministry, and
supported 134 in 1840. It was mamly owing to its
ctfoits that the Baptist Theological Seminary at
Newton was founded in 1827. The latter society
was founded in 1817, and has maintained many stu-
dents at the Hamilton Literary and Theological In-
stitution, founded in 1820.

160

RELIGION IN AMERICA.

[Book IV.

that America has ever produced, we owe
the first attempt to establish anything that
could be called a theological school. He
collected in Europe an extensive and valu-
able theological library, and commenced a
course of instruction in various branches
of theological study about the beginning of
the present century. For years he carried
it on almost single-handed, and many young
men heard at his feet the masterly instruc-
tions that he was so capable of giving them.

The theological seminary at Andover
was founded in 1808, and being the first, on
a complete plan, founded in the United
States, and the most celebrated, I shall no-
tice it more amply than the rest.

The college buildings are beautifully sit-
uated on elevated ground near the village
of Andover, about twenty miles to the north
of Boston. They consist of two large edi-
fices for the residence of the students, and
a central building, in which are the chapel,
the library, lecture-rooms, &c. At a due
distance behind these stand the refectory
and steward's house. The grounds in front
are tastefully laid out, and their walks and
avenues adorned with various sorts of for-
est trees. Facing the seminary buildings,
and forming one side of a street which bor-
ders the grounds in front, stands a row of
houses where most of the professors re-
side. The grounds are very ample, the
situation salubrious, and the buildings re-
markably convenient.

This seminary forms a branch, as we
have elsewhere stated, of Phillips' Acad-
emy, which stands in the immediate vicin-
ity, though the two institutions are no far-
ther connected than by being both under
the same board of trustees.

The history of tiie Andover Seminary
may be given in a few words. It origina-
ted in a growing conviction of the need
there was for a higher standard of qual-
ification in the clergy, and in the obvious
necessity of having something to take
the place of the University of Harvard on
its defection from the Failh. Farther, the
good providence of God was manifested in
the undertaking, by his giving both the
necessary means and the heart to four or
five enterprising merchants to lay the
foundation.

One of these was the aged Samuel Ab-
bot, of Andover, who had already executed
a will bequeathing funds to a large amount
for the support of professors and indigent
students of theology in Harvard Universi-
ty. But having lived to witness the new
movements there, and to be convinceil of
the danger of trusting a legacy to an insti-
tution which, in his view, hud perverted the
funds left by Mr. Hollis* for the support

» Thomas Hollis, Es<]., a hifrhly-esleemed Chris-
tian merchant, was bom m England in 1650, and died
in 1731. He founded the [)rofessorships of theology
and mathciaalics in Hanard University, and pre-

of an orthodox professorship of divinity, he
was led to unite with Mrs. Phillips, widow
of the late Hon. Samuel Phillips, one of the
founders of Phillips' Academy, and her
son, in a plan for connecting with that
academy the erection of buildings, and the
appropriation of certain funds for the sup-
port of a theological professor, and of indi-
gent students of theology.

Meanwhile, a similar plan for another
seminary was formed by the late Rev. Sam-
uel Spring, D.D., of Nevvburyport, and the
Rev. Leonard Woods, D.D., of West New-
bury, now a professor in the Seminary at
Andover, and funds were pledged for its
endowment by Mr. Bartlett and Mr. Brown,
two parishioners of Dr. Spring, and by Mr.
Norris, of Salem — all at the solicitation of
Dr. Spring, who was the author of this
scheme. Dr. Woods, in whose parish the
institution was to be placed, was to be pro-
fessor, and a colleague was to be appointed
to assist him ill his pastoral duties.

Thus far had the parties proceeded, not
only without concert, but although living
within the compass of twenty miles, and
several of them having friendly intercourse
with each other, without being cognizant
of one another's plans. This seems to
indicate the intervention of a kind omnis-
cient Providence, and may have been a link
in the chain of causes which cordially uni-
ted, in the end, the two parties into which
the orthodox Congregationalists of New-
FiUgland were then divided, and to the
adoption of a better creed for the seminary
than it might have had otherwise.

These parties were, on the one hand, the
so-called moderate Calvinists, moderate
both in action and speculation, and, on the
other hand, the Hopkinsians, the keen-
sighted, active, fervid, pungent, and per-
haps rather ultra men of their time. Now,
to have continued and widened the separa-
tion of these parties by their having con-
tiguous and rival seminaries, would have
been no less disastrous than their union
was desirable, both for the nearer approx-
imation of both to exact truth, and for its
common defence against the advance of
Unitarianism ; and nothing could well have
been imagined more likely to produce
prompt and effectual union, than their being
led to co-operate in establishing a common
seminary. But it seems very doubtful how
far they would ever have thus combined
their efforts, had not certain members of
each been led, in the providence of God, by
ways that they knew not, and for a high
end which they never contemplated, each
to advance thus far in their projects. Tiic
evil sure to result from there being two
such seminaries was obvious ; the benefits
to be derived from their being united in one
were appreciated, at least to a certain ex-

sented to it a philosophical apparatus and many
books.

Chap. XVIII.]

THEOLOGICAL SEMINARIES.

161

tent ; yet this union of the two institutions,
and the adjustment of principles common to
both, cost nearly two years of anxious and
incessant labour, during which the negotia-
tions were more than once wellnigh bro-
ken off, and at one time quite abandoned.
*' No one," says the Rev. Dr. Woods, "who
did not himself act a leading part in these
interesting transactions, can ever have an
adequate conception of the unnumbered dif-
ficulties which the principal agents had to
encounter, or of the amount of solicitude,
and of effort, which fell to their lot, or of
the variety of dangers to which the great
object was from time to time exposed."*

The greatest difficulty in the way of the
union was the adjustment of a common
creed, to be subscribed by the professors of
the seminary. The founders of Phillips'
Academy had already adopted the West-
minster Assembly's Shorter Catechism.
To this Dr. Spring, with the advice and
support of his friend, the Rev. Dr. Emmons,
strenuously objected, because some parts
of it were widely understood to imply what
he did not believe, and, partly, because he
thought that more definite and extended
statements on several points of doctrine
•were desirable. He and his friends, also,
"wished for additional barriers against her-
esy, and particularly for a Board of Vis-
iters, professing the same creed, and with
ample powers for tne correction of errors.
These difficulties were adjusted at last by
the institution of such a board, and by the
adoption of a new creed, drawn up by a
committee from both parties, and couched
■very much in the language of the cate-
chism, but with some omissions and some
additions. And this creed is to be solemn-
ly repeated and subscribed in the presence
of the trustees of the academy, by every
■professor and every visiter, on his induc-
tion into office ; and the same is to be re-
peated, in like manner, by each of them,
once every five years, during his continu-
ance in office.

In this adjustment the Hopkinsians gain-
ed their main object, but, at the same time,
sacrificed some favourite points which they
would gladly have introduced into a semi-
nary of a more sectarian character. Some,
indeed, a few of whom are still to be found,
persisted in their objections to the semina-
ly on this account ; but nearly the whole
orthodox community of New-England have
cordially acquiesced in it, so that the ar-
rangement has most happily, though silent-
ly, become a virtual bond of union among
them. Foreign missions, and other great
benevolent enterprises to which the semi-
nary soon gave birth, hastened and con-
firmed this coalescence by bringing the
two parties more frequently to pray, sym-

* Manuscript History of the Theological Semina-
ry at Andover, from which much of the information
here given was derived.

pathize, and act together. These results
are matters of devout astonishment to many
a beholder of what God has wrought amid
the movements of our times.

The opposition, in various forms, to or-
thodoxy was considerable, but was of little
avail in retarding its progress. Fears were
at one lime entertained lest a majority of
the trustees of Phillips' Academy, under
whose guardianship the seminary is placed,
should ultimately be found men of lax opin-
ions ; but, as most of the suspected parties
died or resigned their seats within a few
years, those fears gradually subsided on
the vacancies being filled up by others who
were unquestionably sound in the faith.*
Anxiety on this head led to a greater so-
licitude about creating a Board of Visiters,
and the quinquennial renewal of subscrip-
tion by the professors and visiters, though
this could not be extended to the trustees,
no provision to that effect having been
made at the institution of that board.

With all these guards, and looking to
the present character of the boards, the
friends of the institution consider that
there is none in the country more com-
pletely guarded against perversion. At
the same time, the most perfect freedom
of inquiry is allowed, and even encouraged
among the students, in order that their
faith may rest on conviction, not on hu-
man authority or constraint. No subscrip-
tion to a creed is required of them, nor
can any one who gives to the professors
satisfactory evidence of Christian charac-
ter be debarred from entering the semina-
ry, or dismissed from it on the ground of
his belief. This condition was required
by the State Legislature on their enlarging
the powers of the trustees, so as to enable
them to hold the additional funds required
for the establishment of the seminary.
And although its expediency has by some
been doubted, it seems as yet to have had
no bad consequences. It has been thought
unreasonable to require a minute profes-
sion of faith from students who go to the
institution for the very purpose of learning
what is truth, as well as how to teach it.

The seminary was opened in the autumn
of 1808. For several years there were
only three professors, but now there are
five, one of whom acts as president of the
institution. Each member of the faculty
has a salary of 1500 dollars per annum, to-
gether Avith the use of a family dwelling-
house, and is debarred from receiving any
compensation for preaching abroad.

The departments of the professors are,
Sacred Literature, including the Greek and

* It must be kept in mmd that Phillips' Academy
was founded in 1778, when Unitarianism had not yet
developed itself in the United States, though the er-
rors which led to it were to be found in Boston and
its neighbourhood. When it did develop itself, it
was not strange that the Board of Phillips' Acade-
my should have been infected with it.

162

RELIGION IN AMERICA.

[Book IV:

Hebrew Scriptures, chiefly during the first
year ; Christian Theology, chiefly during
the second year ; and Sacred Rhetoric, Ec-
clesiastical History, and Pastoral Theolo-
gy during the third year. The instruction
is given partly by written lectures and
partly by the use of text-books, which are
recited in substance by the students, and
accompanied with remarks by the profes-
sors.

The students are not allowed to preach,
nor are they required to write sermons till
their senior or last year. Each may then
be called on to preach in the chapel, and is
also allowed to preach abroad for six Sab-
baths in his last term, within certain limits
as to distance, so as to avoid being absent
from any of the lectures. The remainder
of the preaching in the chapel is chiefly
performed by the professors in rotation.

Most of the students are graduates of
colleges, and all are admitted on examina-
tion in regard to their attainments, evi-
dence of piety, &c. During the first year
ihey attend two lectures a day ; afterward,
usually but one.

Great attention is required of the pro-
fessors in the cultivation of piety among
the students, which has ever been regard-
ed by them, as well as by the founders and
guardians, as a grand object of the institu-
tion. For this purpose, they meet the
students for a devotional exercise every
Wednesday evening. The students also
hold many conferences and prayer-meet-
ings by themselves.

Indigent students, of whom there are
many, receive half the price of their board
in commons gratuitously. No charge is
in any case made for tuition, and but a
small one for the use of the library, and
for rooms and furniture.

As the design of the seminary is to
furnish an able as well as a pious clergy,
and as its privileges are, to a great extent,
gratuitous, each student is required, at his
matriculation, to promise to complete a
regular three years' course of study, " un-
less prevented by some unforeseen and
iniavoidablc necessity," which is to be
judged of by the faculty. This is a much
longer course than had commonly been
pursued under tlic guidance of private pas-
tors, and it has been found very difllcult thus
far to elevate the views of the community,
and fully to reconcile the feelings of the
students to this requisition. Indeed, the
rule itself was not made for a considerable
number of the first years.

As this is the oldest theological semina-
ry in the country, it has had to make its
own way, unaided by previous experience ;
and very many are the changes, mostly
for the better, it is believed, which have
been made from time to time in its ar-
rangements.

There were not many students for some

years at first, but they have gradually in-^
creased from about thirty to about 150,
which has been not far from the number
on the list for many years. Any farther
increase has been prevented by the mul-
tiplication of kindred seminaries since its
reaching that number. The whole that
have been admitted from the first amount
to about 1500, though, partly from deaths,
partly from many having failed to com-
plete their course, or gone to other institu-
tions, not more than 950 of these have
graduated. Nearly 100 have devoted them-
selves to foreign, and many more to do-
mestic missions. The American Board of
Commissioners for Foreign Missions were
indebted to this seminary for all their mis-
sionaries but one for the first ten years ;
and many of its students have lived to be-
come presidents and professors of colleges
and theological schools, and secretaries
and agents of benevolent societies.

It possesses peculiar advantages for the
training of missionaries. The " Society
of Inquiry on Missions," of which almost
all the students are members, is nearly
coeval with it. It has a valuable library
and museum, and exerts a very salutary
influence on the spirit and piety of the in-
stitution. The doctrine is taught at this,
as at most of the other theological semina-
ries in the United States, that every pastor
should be a missionary at heart, and that
every student should be willing to go
whithersoever God may call him. There
are great facilities at Andover for having
early intelligence from the American mis-
sionaries, by constant correspondence, by
visits of returned members, and by inter-
course with the secretaries and other offi-
cers of the American Board.

The " Porter Rhetorical Society," so
named from its founder, the late Rev. Dr.
Porter, the first president of the seminary,
has an excellent library, and exercises
much influence.

The library of the seminary itself is
thought to be one of the best in the coun-
try. It was selected for the purpose,
contains 14,000 volumes, and has a fund
to provide for its constant augmentation.
Some of the large number of German
books contained in it being of a neological
character, it was at one time feared by
many that these might do mischief; but
such apprehensions have now yielded, in
the minds of those who felt them, to the
consideration of the importance of having
such books in an institution where men
are to be trained to face an enemy, not to
flee from him.

The institution is under strict discipline.
Monitors' bills are kept ; all are required
to attend to their studies, and to be pres-
ent at the lectures of the professors, at
the morning and evening chapel prayers,
and at Divine service on the Sabbath.

Chap. XVIII.]

THEOLOGICAL SEMINARIES.

163

There are instances of students being dis-
missed for irregularity of conduct.

The total sums that have been given for
the erection of the seminary buildings, the
endowing of professorships, the support of
indigent students, the library, &c., cannot
be precisely ascertained, but they proba-
bly exceed 400,000 dollars. Mr. Bartlett,
the most munificent of the donors, is sup-
posed to have given 100,000 dollars, be-
sides a legacy of 50,000 dollars. He is
said never to have told any one how much
some of the buildings that were erected at
his instance cost him. Mr. Abbot gave
about 120,000 dollars. Mr. Brown and Mr.
Norris also gave large sums. No general
solicitation has ever been made in behalf
of the institution, though it has received
from individuals many benefactions of from
500 to 5000 dollars.

Connected with the seminary is a print-
ing establishment, known as the Codman
press, from its having a fount of Oriental
types presented to it by the Rev. Dr. Cod-
man, of Dorchester.

Few institutions have ever been more
blessed than the AndoverTheological Sem-
inary. It has been intimately associated
with the origin and progress of foreign
missions, and had much influence in origi-
nating the Bible, Colonization, Tract, and
Temperance Societies, through the exer-
tions of the lamented Mills* and his coad-
jutors, who were students at it. I have
spoken of it more in detail, not only be-
cause of its being the oldest, the most
richly endowed, and the most frequented
of our theological schools, but also be-
cause it has been, in some sense, a model
for the rest.f

The General Assembly of the Presbyte-
rian Church established a theological sem-
inary at Princeton, in New- Jersey, in 1812,
being the second of the kind in the United
States. Although far from being richly
endowed like that of Andover, and has
often been greatly embarrassed for want
of adequate pecuniary support, it has at-

* The Rev. Samuel J. Mills, a very zealous and
able young man, who took a leading part in the form-
ation of several of the great benevolent societies of
America, and died on the coast of Africa when look-
ing for a place where a colony of negroes might be
founded.

+ The Andover Faculty consists of the Rev. Drs.
Woods and Emerson, and the Rev. Messrs. Stuart,
B. B. Edwards, and Park, professors.

Professor Stuart is well known for his Commenta-
ries on the Epistles to the Romans and Hebrews, as
well as for his Hebrew grammar and other writings.
Dr. Woods has published some valuable small works
on baptism, inspiration of the Scriptures, &c. Dr.
Emerson has not yet published much. Mr. B. B.
Edwards has written much and ably for periodical
publications, and is the author, besides, of several
valuable works relating to missions : among these is
a missionary gazetteer. He published the life of Dr.
Cornehus ; and in 1839 took a joint part with Pro-
fessor Park in giving to the world an interesting vol-
ume of translated selections from German authors.

tained a great and well-merited celebrity
by the distinguished talents of its profes-
sors, as well as the excellent course of its
studies. It has for several years had an
annual attendance of from 125 to 140 stu-
dents, and has educated, in all, above 1200.
The missionary spirit has prevailed in it
to a gratifying degree, almost from its
first establishment, and a large number of
its alumni have gone to carry the Gospel to
heathen lands. There is a flourishing" Soci-
ety of Inquiry on Missions," with a valuable
collection of books relating to that subject.

The Princeton course comprises for the
first year, Hebrew, the Exegesis of the
Original Language of the New Testament,
Sacred Geography, Sacred Chronology,
Jewish Antiquities, and the Connexion of
Sacred and Profane History ; for the sec-
ond year. Biblical Criticism, Church His-
tory, and Didactic Theology; for the third
year, Polemic Theology, Church History,
Church Government, Pastoral Theology,
the Composition and Delivery of Sermons.

Instruction is given both by lectures and
text-books, and the entire course requires
the study of many authors. The students
must read essays of their own composition
at least once every four weeks, and are ex-
pected, also, to deliver short addresses be-
fore the professors and their fellow-stu-
dents at least once in the month. One
evening in the week is devoted to the
discussion of important theological ques-
tions. Every Sabbath forenoon a sermon
is delivered in the chapel by one of the
professors. In the afternoon, the students
assemble for a " conference" on some sub-
ject in casuistical divinity, their professors
presiding and closing the discussion with
their remarks, and the services commen-
cing and concluding with singing and pray-
er. Questions such as the following are
discussed : What constitutes a call to the
ministry and the evidences of it? What
is proper preparation for the Lord's Sup-
per 1 What is repentance % What is faith?
What is true preparation for death?

These, and a hundred such subjects, are
seriously and faithfully discussed, and none
of the other exercises, probably, is so in-
structive or so important to the students.
It is there that the deep knowledge in spir-
itual things of their venerated and excel-
lent professors most fully manifests itself.
God has greatly blessed these heart-search-
ing services to the students, and much is it
to be wished that such exercises, and such
fidelity on the part of the professors who
conduct them, were to be found in every
theological seminary and theological de-
partment of a university in the world.

It is matter for devout thanksgiving that
the venerable professors* appointed to the
Princeton Seminary in its earliest years,

* The Rev. Drs. Alexander and Miller, both of
whom have earned an extensive reputation by their

164

RELIGION IN AMERICA.

[Book IV.

are still spared to labour for its good.
Both they and their younger colleagues
rank high among the American divines,
and have great weight in the Church to
which they belong.

The General Convention of the Protest-
ant Episcopal Church opened a theological
institution at New- York in 1817, which,
though removed next year to New-Haven,
was soon after re-established at New- York.
It originated in the efforts of the late John
Henry Hobart, long bishop of the diocess
of New- York, and has five professors, who
are eminent and influential men, both in
their own church and in the community at
large. Its prosperity has been almost unin-
terrupted. The number of students is usu-
ally about seventy-five or eighty. In 1822,
the diocesses of Virginia and Maryland es-
tablished another Episcopal seminary in
Fairfax county, Virginia, a few miles from
the city of Alexandria, in the District of
Columbia. This seminary has four valuable
professors, and from forty to fifty students.
It has been a great blessing to the Episco-
pal Church and to the country.

A Baptist theological seminary, estab-
lished at Newton, a town about six miles
from Boston, in 1825, has been a source
of much good, and has sent forth a consid-
erable number of excellent preachers. It
has three able professors, and usually from
thirty to forty students. The Baptists
also established a Literary and Theologi-
cal Institute at Hamilton, in the State of
New- York, in 1820. It has above 150 stu-
dents in all, and in the theological depart-

ment upward of thirty, under four profes-
sors, who give instructions in the other de-
partment also.

A Lutheran theological seminary was
established in 1826 at Gettysburg, in Penn-
sylvania, very much through the exertions
of the Rev. S. S. Schmucker, D.D.,who is
its professor of theology. It has three
professors, with from thirty to forty stu-
dents in all, and has proved a rich blessing
to the Lutheran Church. Dr. Schmucker
is well known in the churches of the United
States by his tvarious writings, and his
praiseworthy endeavours to bring about a
union of feeling and action among the sev-
eral branches of the Protestant denomina-
tions.

The Reformed Dutch Church has an able
theological faculty in its seminary at New-
Brunswick, in the State of New-Jersey.
The foundation dates from 1784, but it was
for a long time unoccupied. It now has
three professors and about forty students.

Such are the utmost details that the lim-
its of this work will permit. Let me sim-
ply add, that, since the opening of the Rev.
Dr. Mason's theological school, about the
beginning of the century, these institutions
have amazingly increased. Most of them,
like those at Andover and Princeton, are
quite distinct from any college or univer-
sity ; some, under the title of Theological
Departments, are connected with literary
institutions, but have their own professors,
and, in reality, are very distinct. The fol-
lowing table, presenting a summary of the
whole, will probably be found interesting.

DeoomiiutioDs.

Congrega-
tionalists.

Old School
Presbyteri-
ans.

New School 2.

Presbyteri- < 3.

ans. 4.

NiLine and locality of the iutitutioii.

Episcopal!
ans.

■i:

Andover

Bangor

Gilmanton

Theological Department of Yale College
Theological Institute of Connecticut, at East Windsor
Theological Department of the Oberlin Institute .

Theological Seminaiy at Princeton

Western Theological Seminary at Alleghany town, )

near Pittsburgh J

Union Theological Seminary

Southern Theological Seminary at Columbia
Indiana Theological Seminary at New-Albany

New-York Theological Seminary, in New-York city
Theological Seminary at Auburn ....
Theological Department of Western Reserve College
Lane Seminary at Cincinnati ....

Southwestern Theological Seminary at Maryville .
General Theological Seminary of the Protestant )
Episcopal Church, New-York . . . . J
Theological Seminary, Fairfax county .

state in which it is

situated.

t-o a

Massachusetts.

1808

153

Maine.

1820

New-Hampshire
Connecticut.

1835
1822

Connecticut.

1833

Ohio.

New-Jersey.

1812

110

Pennsylvania.

1828

Virginia.
South Carolina.

1821
1832

3
3

20
18

Indiana.

1829

New-York.

1836

New-York.

1821

Ohio.

1832

Tennessee.

New-York.

1817

Virginia.

public lectures as well as by their writings. The
younger professors are the Rev. Dr. Hodge and the
Rev. J. A. Alexander, the former wpII known in Eu-
rope for his excellent work oil the PZjjistle to the Ro-
mans, and the .latter atithor of many articles in the
Biblical Repertory and Princeton Review, an able
quarterly publicatioti which has been conducted for
twenty years by the professors of the seminary, and
of the College of New-Jersey, both situated in the
village of Princeton.

* I give the number of students for 1840, from the
American Quarterly Register for that year. The list
is understated, the number being that at a given
ei)Och in the year, not that of all wlio attended during
the course of it. For instance, were the mnnber of
students in the Princeton Seminary taken in the
winter of 1839-10, it might have been 120, yet by
adding the siudenls who joined in the summer ses-
sion, the number for the academic year might have
been 130.

Chap. X7ni.]

THEOLOGICAL SEMINARIES.

169

SenomiDations.

Episcopali-
ans.

2.
3.

Baptists. < 4.
5.
6.

7.
.8.

Ref. Dutch.

Lutherans. <

German Ref.
Assoc. Chur.
Assoc. Ref. ^
Church. I

Name and locality of the institution.

Theological Seminary of the Diocess of Ohio,

Gambia

Thomaston Theological Institute .
Theological Institution at Newton .
Hamilton Literary and Theological Institute,

Hamilton

Virginia Baptist Seminary at Richmond
Furman Theological Seminary at High Hills
Literary and Theological Seminary at Eaton
Theological Department in Granville College
Alton Theological Seminary ....

Theological Seminary, New-Brunswick

1. Hartwick Seminary

2. Theological Seminary at Gettysburg

3. Theological Seminary at Lexington

4. Theological Seminary at Columbus
Theological Seminary at Mercersberg
Theological Department in Jefferson College

1. Theological Seminary at Newburgh

2. Theological Seminary at Alleghany-town

at )
at )

State in which it is
situated.

Ohio.

Manie.
Massachusetts.

New-York.

Virginia,
South Carolina.
Georgia.
Ohio.
Illinois.

New-Jersey.
New-York.
Pennsylvania.
South Carolina.
Ohio.

Pennsylvania.

New-York.
Pennsylvania.

fiS

•2 a ^,C c 'J s
^ a o c— a-a i*

1828 3 10

1837 2
1825 3

23
33

1820 4 27

1832
1838
1834
1832

1826
1835

1825

2
2

2
3
2
1

67
30
10

15
26
10
10
20

2 22
1836 3 11
1828 1 19

The Reformed Presbyterians (Covenant-
ers) have a theological- school at Allegha-
ny-town, and the Moravians have one at
Nazareth, in Pennsylvania ; the former has
two professors and 14 or 15 students, the
latter one professor and 5 or 6 students.

The reader will remark that the number
of students in the theological seminaries
contained in the preceding table is that for
the year 1840, which is the latest complete
statement I have seen. It must not be
considered as a present census of these
institutions. With the exception of the
Seminary at Andover, and, perhaps, two or
three others, the number of students at
present (the commencement of 1844) is
much greater than it was in 1840. In some
seminaries it is almost twice as great as it
was then. The whole number of students
in these seminaries may fairly be put down
as greater by one fourth part at present
than it was M^hen the above-given list was
made.

The above enumeration comprises the
orthodox evangelical denominations of
Protestants only. The Unitarians have a
theological department at Harvard Univer-
sity, which had two professors and twen-
ty-seven students in 1840.

The Roman Catholic theological semi-
naries, according to the Catholic Almanac,
stood as follows in 1840 :

That at Philadelphia had 22 students.

Baltimore 16

Eminetsburg 20

Frederick 20

Charleston, South Carolina 6

Parish of Assumption in Louisiana. .. 9

Bardstown and St. Rose, in Kentucky

Cincinnati

Vincennes 9

Barrens 12

Missouri

St. Louis

In all, twelve institutions and 114 stu-
dents. But this list was probably incom-
plete, as we learn from the same authority
that in 1842 there were twenty-one eccle-

siastical institutions, and 180 clerical stu-
dents. At present there are 261.

I shall conclude by stating that the en-
tire number of theological schools and fac-
ulties belonging to the orthodox Protestant
Churches is thirty-eight,* with about 105
professors, and nearly, if not quite, 1800
students at the present time. The great-
er number of these institutions are in their
infancy. Where they are connected with
colleges, the theological professor gener-
ally gives lectures in the literary depart-
ment also, on moral philosophy, meta-
physics, logic, &c. Many of the profes-
sors in the new and smaller seminaries
are pastors of churches in the neighbour-
hood, and all that are not preach much in
vacant churches, or on extraordinary oc-
casions, such as before benevolent or lit-
erary societies and bodies, ecclesiastical
assemblies, &c. Many of them, too, are
expected to employ their leisure moments
in giving instruction through the press.
Though the number of professors seems
large when compared with that of the stu-
dents, I can assure the reader that few
men have more to do, or, in point of fact,
do more for the cause of Christ. There
are to be found among them many of the
first ministers of the churches to which
they respectively belong. If not quite
equal in point of science to some of the
great professors in the Old World, they
are all, God be praised, believed to be con-
verted, and are devoted, faithful men.
Their grand object is to train up a pious as
well as a learned ministry. I am not aware
that there is one of them that does not
open every meeting of his class with ear-
nest prayer, in which he is joined by his
pupils — a striking contrast to what one

* At the Wesleyan University at Middletown,
Connecticut, theological lectures are given to a class
m divinity, and possibly this is done also in some of
the other Methodist colleges.

166

RELIGION IN AMERICA.

[Book IV.

sees, alas! at too many of the theological
lectures in the universities of Europe.

CHAPTER XIX.

EFFORTS TO DIFFUSE THE SACRED SCRIPTURES.

Much has been done in the United States
to place the Sacred Scriptures in the
hands of all who can read them, and in
this endeavour there is a delightful co-op-
eration of good men of every name. Even
statesmen, though they may not be deci-
dedly religious, or, by outward profession,
members of any church, lend their aid in
this endeavour ; and it is not uncommon
to hear men of the first rank in the political
circles, some occupying high places in the
council of the nation, advocate at Bible
Society anniversaries the claims of the
"Word of God. The impression prevails
among our statesmen that the Bible is em-
phatically the foundation of our hopes as
a people. Nothing but the Bible can make
men the willing subjects of law ; they must
first acquiesce with submission in the gov-
ernment of God, before they can yield a
willing obedience to the requirements of
human governments, however just these
may be. It is the religion of the Bible only
that can render the population of any coun-
try honest, industrious, peaceable, quiet,
contented, happy.

It is twenty-six years since the Ameri-
can Bible Society was instituted, and it
now has branches in all parts of the coun-
tiy. It has sent out. in all, 3,269,678 cop-
ies of the Bible, or of the New Testament,
from its depository.* Last year alone
216,605 copies went forth to bless the na-
tion. In the years 1829 and 1830, great
and systematic efforts were made to place
a Bible in every family that was without
one throughout the whole land. Much
was accomplished, yet so rapid is the in-
crease of the population, that these efforts
must be repeated from year to year ; and
the work can only be done by dividing the
country into small districts, and engaging
active and zealous persons to visit every
house from time to time, ascertain what
families are destitute of the Scriptures,
and supply them by selling or giving away
copies, according to circumstances. Great
efforts arc also made at New-York, and

* As some Bible societies are not auxiliary to the
American Bible Society — such was until lately the
Philadelphia Bible Society, and such is at present
the American and Foreign Bible Society — we must
not suppose that the number of copies of the Scrip-
lures mentioned as having left the depository of the
American Bible Society includes the whole which
have been circulated by societies in the United States.
Besides, the American Sunday-school Union, and
the Methodist Book Concern, for a tune published
the Bible.

Other seaports, to supply foreign emigrants
as they arrive on our shores.

It is a remarkable fact that what has
been done by Bible societies seems not to
have interfered with the business of the
booksellers ; for these sell more copies of
the Holy Scriptures than they did before the
Bible societies existed. The more the Bi-
ble is known, the more it is appreciated ; in
many a family the entrance of a single copy
begets a desire to possess several ; besides
which, the Bible Society distributions great-
ly augment the demand for Biblical com-
mentaries and expositions, and thus aug-
ment the trade of the booksellers, who pub-
lish and put into circulation immense edi-
tions of such works. There is a great de-
mand for the Scriptures, also, both in week-
day and Sabbath- schools, and great num-
bers of these are furnished by the book-trade.

Nor does the American Bible Society
confine its efforts to the United States. It
has for many years associated itself with
those societies which, by prosecuting the
same work in foreign lands, are labouring
to hasten the coming of that day when
" the knowledge of the Lord shall fill the
earth. " The receipts of the society for
the last year amounted to 126,348 dollars,
of which 15,516 were appropriated to the
work abroad.

The society has published the New Tes-
tament and some parts of the Old in " raised
characters," for the use of the blind, and
is now engaged in printing the remainder
for that unfortunate class of the population.

In the year 1837, a Bible society was
formed among the members of the Bap-
tist churches, entitled the " American and
Foreign Bible Society." It was formed
with special reference to the circulation
of translations in the course of being made
by that body of Christians. Some, at least,
of these translations the American Bible
Society thought it could not, consistently
with its constitution, aid in publishing, be-
cause the original words baptize and bap-
tism have been translated into words
equivalent to immerse and immersion. How-
ever much it may be regretted that these
words, about the meaning of which there
has been so much philological disputation,
are not permitted to remain untranslated,
so that all denominations might be put
upon the same footing, and be enabled to
continue united in the work of Bible circu-
lation, the issue will, it is likely, prove that
in this, as in many similar cases, God is
about to make an apparent obstacle might-
ily subserve the advancement of his king-
dom. The new society has taken up the
work of foreign publication with great
zeal, and doubtless it will serve to devel-
op the energies of tlie large and powerful
body of Christians who sustain it, to an
extent to which they never would have
gone but for its formation. The receipts

Chap. XX.]

RELIGIOUS TRACTS. AND BOOKS.

167

last year, being the sixth of its existence,
were 20,691 dollars ; the expenditure 21,068
dollars. Meanwhile, the resources of the
American Bible Society have increased in-
stead of having diminished.

CHAPTER XX.

ASSOCIATIONS FOR THE PUBLICATION AND CIR-
CULATION OF RELIGIOUS TRACTS AND BOOKS.

No branch of religious enterprise has
been more vigorously prosecuted in the
United States than that of preparing, pub-
lishing, and circulating moral and religious
writings in various forms. The wide dif-
fusion of education, at least among the
white part of the population, makes it ob-
vious that powerful advantage may be ta-
ken of the press in promoting the truth.

Associations of various kinds are enga-
ged in this good work. We have seen that
the Sunday-school societies are doing
much for supplying the youth of the coun-
try with moral and religious reading ; we
have now to speak of other societies which
aim at benefiting adults, not, however, to
the exclusion of the young.

First among these associations may be
ranked the American Tract Society, which,
like most others of a general and national
character, has its seat in the city of New-
York. It was instituted in 1825, and hence
has been eighteen yea.T in existence. It
is founded on the broad principle of uniting
in its support Christians of all evangelical
demjminations of Protestants, so far as
they may be disposed to co-operate in its
objects ; its Committee of Publication is
composed of ministers of the Gospel of the
different orthodox communions ; and its
publications themselves convey those great
truths and doctrines in which all of these
communions can agree.

The operations of no society in Ameri-
ca seem to have been prosecuted with
greater vigour or more wisdom. Its Re-
port for 1843 states that, since its com-
mencement, it has sent forth 1069 different
publications, of which 131 form volumes
of various sizes by themselves, and the
remainder are, with few exceptions, Avhat
are called tracts, each consisting of four
pages and upward, but requiring more
than one to make a volume. It has pub-
lished some broad-sheets and hand bills for
posting up in public places or otherwise.
And besides these 1069 publications issued
at home, it has aided in the publication of
1850 in foreign lands. The copies of its
publications printed last year amounted
to 4,156,500, of which 174,500 were vol-
umes. During the same period 4,155,806,
including 157,478 volumes, actually issued
from its depository. Among the volumes
were several thousand sets of the Evan-

gelical Family Library, of fifteen volumes
each, and of the Christian Library, of for-
ty-five volumes each. Many thousands of
separate volumes, also, of these sets were
sold, and 77,000 copies of the Christian Al-
manac for the United States. From 100,000
to 150,000 of some of the smaller tracts
were distributed ; and the total sent into
circulation during eighteen years has been
1,300,896,847 pages, or about 80,806,460 of
tracts and volumes. The receipts for the
year 1843 amounted to 42,433 dollars from
donations, and 49,904 from sales ; in all,
96,240 dollars. Fifteen thousand dollars
were sent to foreign countries in aid of the
tract cause abroad.

The Society is assisted by auxiliary as-
sociations in all parts of the United States,
both in the collection of funds, and in dis-
seminating its publications. Some of these
local societies, such as those at New- York,
Boston, and Philadelphia, are large and ef-
ficient.

The Society is zealously prosecuting
two grand measures, into which I shall
enter the more fully, inasmuch as they
are of the utmost importance to the reli-
gious well-being of the country, and also
more or less practicable in other lands.
The first of these is the publication of vol-
umes of approved excellence, such as Bun-
yan's Pilgrim's Progress, and Doddridge's
Rise and Progress of Religion in the Soul,
and their distribution throughout the coun-
try. It proposes to place not only one
volume at least, as was resolved some
years ago, but even a whole copy of its
Evangelical Family Library, of fifteen vol-
umes, or its Christian Library, of forty-
five volumes, in as many households as
are willing to buy them ; and in seeking
to accomplish this end, it employs able
men, ministers of the Gospel and laymen,
as agents. These visit towns and cities,
preach in the churches, raise funds to sup-
ply the poor with books, organize commit-
tees who are to visit all the families in
their respective districts, and engage all
who are able to buy one book or more,
and to supply such as are too poor to pur-
chase. Another set of agents consists of
plain, but sensible, pious, and zealous col-
porteurs, or hawkers, generally laymen,
who are sent into the " Far West" to car-
ry books and tracts to the frontier people,
engaged in felling the forests on their ever-
onward course towards the setting sun, as
well as into the mountainous districts, and
the thinly-settled belt of sandy country
which stretches along the ocean in the
Middle and Southern States. The num-
ber of these colporteurs is at present sixty.

Though in operation but a few years,
this enterprise had in 1842 placed 1,800,000
volumes in the hands of families, compri-
sing at least 4,000,000 of souls. Who can
calculate the amount of good which such

163

RELIGION IN AMERICA.

[Book IV.

a work must, with God's blessing, accom-
plish ?

I ought to add, that not only is care taken
that both books and tracts shall be printed
with good type, and on excellent paper,
but that the books are substantially bound,
and the tracts covered, for the most part,
with handsome paper coverings. In these
respects they form a marked contrast with
the publications of some societies of the
same kind on the Continent of Europe. It
is rightly thought to be a false economy
which, for the sake of saving a few hun-
dred dollars, would fail to render attractive
in appearance, as well as readable and du-
rable, publications which are intended to
interest, instruct, and save men, many of
whom are wholly indifferent to religion,
and might be repelled from reading them
were they to appear in a mean and shabby
dress.

Besides its publications in English, the
Society has sent out a considerable num-
ber of tracts in French, German, Spanish,
and other languages, for the various emi-
grants that arrive in the United States.

The other measure referred to is the
systematic periodical distribution of tracts
in cities, towns, villages, and even rural
districts, though this cannot be done di-
rectly by the Society, so much as by the
numerous auxiliaries which it endeavours
heartily to engage in carrying it through.
The object is to place a tract, at least once
in the month, in every family willing to
receive one, and, where practicable, to ac-
company it with religious conversation,
especially where ignorance of the Gospel
or family affliction renders it peculiarly
called for. In pursuing this design, the
city, town, or viihige is divided into small
geographical districts, each containing a
certain number of families, and assigning
to each a sufficiency of zealous, intelligent,
and prudent Christians to make monthly
visits to every family, and leave the tract
selected for the month. Some will require
more than one visit, particularly the sick
and the destitute ; but houses where the
inmates persist in refusing tracts, in spite
of every effort to overcome their reluc-
tance, are passed by.

This plan, wherever justice has been done
to it in practice, has been found eminently
beneficial. Cases of poverty and disease
are discovered and made known to associ-
ations and individuals likely to attend to
them. Many persons, living in the con-
stant neglect of pubHc worship, are in-
duced to attend the preaching of the Gos-
pel. The churches in the neighbourhood
are pointed out to them, and they are ex-
horted to go to such as they may prefer.

Such is th(! procedure in many places
throughout the United Slates, liitliecity
of New- York it has been in operation for
five or six years, and with abundance of

blessed results. According to municipaF
regulations, the city, which now has above
320,000 inhabitants, is divided into wards,
and to each of these, when practicable,
there is appointed what is called a super-
intendent, generally a minister of the Gos-
pel, a young man who devotes himself
wholly to the work. The superintendents
divide their wards into districts, find a dis-
tributer of either ^ex for each, hold fre-
quent meetings with their distributers, pro-
vide them with tracts for distribution, re-
ceive their reports, draw up a general one
for the monthly meeting of the City Tract
Society, under whose auspices the work
proceeds, and read their reports at those
meetings. Withal, they hold prayer meet-
ings in their respective wards almost every
night in the week, and engage competent-
persons to hold others which they cannot
themselves attend. The distributers la-
bour gratuitously. The superintendents
receive usually 600 dollars each as his sal-
ary. A few years ago these sixteen su-
perintendents were supported by the same
number of liberal Christian merchants and
mechanics in that city, who rejoiced to he
instrumental in maintaining this good work.
I shall conclude by giving the summary
of what was accomplished in New-York
during the year ending on the 1st of De-
cember 1843, as presented at the regular
annual public meeting, held in one of the
churches of that city.

1,050 average number of visiters (or distributers).
732,155 tracts distributed, containing 3,425,781 pages.
936 Bibles and 558 Testaments received from the New-
York Bible Society, and supplied to the destitute.
4,496 volumes lent from the ward libraries.
2,200 children gathered into Sabbath-schools.
315 children gathered into public schools.
131 persons gathered into Bible-classes.
904 persons induced to attend church.
705 temperance pledges obtained.
1,433 district prayer- meetings held.

43 backsliders reclaimed. i

396 persons hopefully converted.
342 converts united with evangelical churches.

Such is the tabular view presented by
one year's labour in the field of Tract dis-
tribution in one city.

Besides the American Tract Society,
which may be regarded as a vast reservoir
of common truth — of doctrines about which
all evangelical Protestants are agreed — ■
there are other societies that publish reli-
gious tracts and books ; and among these I
may mention, as distinguished for the ener-
gy of its management and the extent of its
operations, the " Book Concern" of the
Methodist Episcopal CJiurch. This institu-
tion is situated in New-York, under the con-
trol of the General Conference, which, every
four years, appoints a committee to direct
its operations. Two able agents are intrust-
ed with the management, and are required
to make full returns to the Bishops and to
tlie (Jencral ("onference. It must not be
thought tliat all its numerous publications
are stamped with the peculiarities of the

Chap. XXI.]

RELIGIOUS LITERATURE.

169

Methodist doctrines ; not a few of them
are the same in character with those pub-
lished by the American Tract Society —
such, for instance, as the " Saints' Rest."
The sales are not confined to the main de-
pository at New- York, and the branches
established at some other great centres of
trade ; its publications are retailed by all
the travelling ministers of that extensive
body, and thus find their way into the
most remote log-cabins of the West. And
wl)o can calculate the good that may re-
sult from reading the biographical and di-
dactic volumes thus put into circulation 1
Who can tell what triumphs over sin, what
penitential tears, what hopes made to spring
up in despairing hearts, what holy resolu-
tions, owe their existence, under God, to
these books 1 The amount of the sales of
this institution and its branches was, last
year, fully 125,000 dollars.

The Old School Presbyterians have also
a Board of Publication, which has put forth
not only a considerable number of doctri-
nal tracts in which the distinctive views of
that body are ably maintained, but many
books also of solid worth, which are gain-
ing an extensive circulation among its own
members, and the professors of the Calvin-
istic system generally. The receipts of
this Board were, last year, 18,160 dollars,
and its expenditures 18,409 dollars.

The regular Baptists, too, have their
Tract and Book Society earnestly engaged
in the good work of supplying their people
with publications addressed both to the con-
verted and the unconverted. The receipts of
that Board were last year 9906 dollars, and
its expenditures 9869. The Episcopalians,
Free-Will Baptists, the Quakers or Friends,
the Lutherans, and the Protestant Metho-
dists, have all their own Tract Societies ;
the last two have their " Publication Com-
mittees" and their Book Establishments.
Other denominations, also, may possibly
have theirs. The amount of evangelical
tracts and books put into circulation by all
these " societies," " boards," and " com-
mittees," put together, cannot be exactly
ascertained. Their value in money, I mean
for what they are sold, can hardly be less
than 300,000 dollars. They all help to
swell the great stream of Truth, as it rolls
its health-giving waters through the land.
May God grant that these efforts may go
on continually increasing from year to
year, until every family shall be blessed
with a well-stored library of sound reli-
gious books.

CHAPTER XXI.

THE RELIGIOUS LITERATURE OF THE UNITED
STATES.

While it would be very foreign to the
object of this work to enter upon any dis-

cussion as to the value and extent of the
general literature of the United States, it is
not out of place to say something respect-
ing that part of it which falls under the
head of Religion.

And first, let me advert to that which,
without reference to its origin, includes all
the literature of a religious kind now cir-
culating through the country. In this sense,
our religious literature is by far the most
extensive in the world, with the single ex-
ception of that of Great Britain. We have
a population of 18,500,000; and, even inclu-
ding the African race among us, and regard-
ing the country as a whole, we have a lar-
ger proportion of readers than can be found
in most other nations. Indeed, I am not
aware of any whole kingdom or nation that
has more. Deducting the coloured popu-
lation, we have 15,500,000 of people who,
whatever may have been their origin, are
Anglo-American in character, and to a
great extent speak and read the English
language. Not only so, but of these a very
large proportion are religious in their char-
acters and habits, as we shall show in an-
other place ; and, among the rest, there
is a widely prevalent respect for Christi-
anity, and a disposition to make themselves
acquainted with it.

To meet the demand created by so large
a body of religious and serious readers, we
have a vast number of publications in
every department of Christian theology,
and these are derived from various sources.
Some have been translated from German
and French ; some from the Latin of more
or less ancient times ; some from the
Greek ; while many of our learned men,
and particularly of our divines, read some
or all these languages, and would think
their libraries very deficient in the litera-
ture with which they ought to be familiar,
did they not contain a good stock of such
books imported from distant Europe.

Again, we have either republished or im-
ported a great many of the best English
religious works, both of the present times
and of two or three centuries back. Such
as seem adapted for popular use, and as
many of a more learned cast as seem likely
to justify their republication, are reprinted ;
while not a few copies of many more are
ordered from Europe through the book-
sellers.

Some American reprints of English reli-
gious books, particularly of works of a
practical character, have had an immense
circulation. The commentaries of Scott,
Henry, Doddridge, Adam Clarke, and Gill,
have been extensively sold, and some
booksellers owe a large part of their for-
tunes to the success of the American edi-
tions. All the sterling English writers on
religious subjects, of the seventeenth cen-
tury, as well as of later times, are familiar
to our Christian readers ; and the smaller

170

RELIGION IN AMERICA.

[Book IV.

practical treatises of Flavel, Baxter, Bos-
ton, Doddridge, and others, have been very
widely disseminated. Bates, Charnock,
Flavel, Howe, the Henrys, &c., are well
known among us, as are also Jeremy Tay-
lor, Barrow, Bishops Hall and Wilson (of
Sodor and Man), and many more whom I
need not name. As for more modern
limes, the names of Thomas Scott and
Adam Clarke are household words, and
Chalmers is known to hundreds of thou-
sands who will never see his face in this
world. There are many others in Eng-
land and Scotland with whose names we
have been famihar from our youth. In
English systematic theology no names are
more known or esteemed than the late An-
drew Fuller and Thomas Watson. And
although it cannot be said that every good
religious work that appears in Great Brit-
ain is republished in the United States, a
large proportion of the best certainly are,
especially such as are of a catholic nature,
and many of them, I am assured, have a
wider circulation in the United States than
in England itself.

The United States have sometimes been
reproached by foreigners as a country
without any literature of native growth.
M. de Tocqueville, arguing from general
principles, and, as he supposes, philosophi-
cally, seems to think that, from the nature
of things, the country, because a republic,
never can have much literature of its own.
He forgets that even the purest democrat-
ical government that the world has ever
seen, that of Athens, produced in its day
more distinguished poets, orators, histori-
ans, philosophers, as well as painters and
sculptors, than any other city or country
of the same population in the world. He
full well knows, however, that the govern-
ment of the United States is not an unmixed
democracy, and that in everything that
bears upon the higher branches of learning,
our institutions are as much above the con-
trol of a democracy as those of any other
country. The grand disadvantage, accord-
ing to M. de Tocqueville, under which our
literature labours is, that authors are not
encouraged by pensions from the govern-
ment. But are these so absolutely indis-
pensable ■? Have such encouragements
accomplished all that has been expected
from themi Are they not often shame-
fully abused, and merely made to gratify
the personal predilections of ministers of
state ] Besides, it is notorious that in
England at least, where the government
professes, I understand, to patronise liter-
ature, the most distinguished authors, in all
its various departments, owe nothing to
that source. As for the patronage of asso-
ciations and wealthy individuals, it may
exist just as well in the United States as
anywhere else, and, in fact, is not unknown
•Ihere.

But our literature, it is said, is not known
beyond the country itself; and this is to
some extent true. But that few, compara-
tively, even of the distinguished authors of
any country, are known beyond its limits,
might easily be shown in the case of
France, Germany, Holland, Denmark, and
Italy. With the exception of the corps of
literary men, even the well informed among
the English are little acquainted with the
literature of those countries, and but for
what they learn through the medium of the
Reviews, would hardly know so much as
the names of some of their most distin-
guished authors. No doubt the literature
of every civilized nation greatly influences
that of all others ; not, however, by its
having a general circulation in those coun-
tries, but because of the master minds who
first familiarize themselves with it, and
then transfer all of it that is most valuable
into their own, just as Milton appropriated
the beauties of Homer, Virgil, and Tasso.

The United States have unquestionably
produced a considerable number of authors
in every branch of literature, who, to say
the least, are respectable in point of emi-
nence.* Their being unknown to those
who make use of the fact as a reproach to
the country, may possibly be owing to
something else than the want of real merit
on their part ; and if, upon the whole, they
present only what appears to foreigners
nothing beyond a respectable mediocrity,

* It would not be difficult to make out a tolerably
long list of authors who must be pronounced, by
those who know anything of them, to be such as
would be a disgrace to no country ; and many of
them are not unknown in Europe. Among living
writers on law in its various branches, we have Kent,
Story, Webster, Wheaton ; in medicine, Mott, War-
ren, Beck, Ray, Jackson, and many others ; in theol-
ogy and Biblical science, Stuart, Miller, Woods, the
Alexanders, Hodge, Wayland, Robinson, Conant,
Barnes, Stowe, Beecher, Schmucker, Hawks, the Ab-
bots, &c.; in belles-lettres and history, Irving, Pres-
cott, Anthon, Bancroft, Walsh, Cooper, Pauldmg ; ia
science, Silliman, Hitchcock, Henrv, Davies ; and po-
litical economy, Carey, Vethake, Biddle, Raymond.
These are but a few, selected chiefly with reference
to their being known to some extent, at any rate, in
Europe. Among the distinguished dead, we have
Marshall, Livingston, Madison, Jefferson, Jay; Rush,
Dorsey, Wistar, Dewees, Godman ; the Edwardses,
Davies, Dwight, Smith, Mason, Emmons, Channing,
Griffin, Rice; Wirt, Noah Webster, Ramsay; Frank-
lin, Ewing, and Hamilton. In the fine arts, we have
had a West, an Alston, and have now a Greenough, a
Powers, a Crawford ; while in the useful arts, as they
are called, we have not been without men of some
renown, as the names of Fulton, Whitney, and oth-
ers attest.

Nor are American books unknown in Great Brit-
ain, the only country in Europe in which they could
be extensively read. In " Bent's London Catalogue"
we find the names of G8 American works on theolo-
gy, GO in fiction, 5G of juvenile literature, 52 of trav-
els, 41 on education, 2G on biography, 22 on history,
12 on poetry, 11 on metaphysics, 10 on philosophy, 9
on science, ;md 9 on law — in all, 382, which have
been republished in England within the last ten
years. Besides these, a good many books published
in America are imported every year into Great
Britain.

Chap. XXI.]

RELIGIOUS LITERATURE.

171

this may readily be accounted for by other
causes besides any hopeless peculiarity al-
leged to exist in the people or their govern-
ment.

The country is still comparatively new.
Much has yet' to be done in felling the for-
est and clearing it for the habitations of
civilized man. But a small part of our
territory bears evidence of having been
long settled. Our people have passed
through exciting scenes that left but little
leisure for writing. Few families possess
much wealth. The greater number of our
institutions of learning are of recent origin.
None of them have such ancient founda-
tions as are to be found in many European
universities ; our colleges have no fellow-
ships ; our professors have their time much
occupied in giving instruction ; our pastors,
lawyers, and physicians find but little lei-
sure, amid their professional labours, for
the cultivation of hterature. We have no
sinecures — no pensions — for learned men.
There is too much public life and excite-
ment to allow the rich to find pleasure in
Sybaritic enjoyments ; and they have other
sources of happiness than the extensive
possession of paintings and statues, though
even for these the taste is gaining ground.

But to return to our proper subject, the
religious literature of the United States :
the number of our authors in this depart-
ment is by no means small. Many valua-
ble works, the productions of native minds,
issue year after year from the press, a very
large proportion of which are of a practical
kind, and unquestionably exert a most salu-
tary influence. They meet with an exten-
sive sale, for the taste for such reading is
widely diff'used, fostered as it is by the es-
tablishment of Sunday-schools and the li-
braries attached to them.*

To the religious literature of books must
be added that of periodical works — news-
papers, magazines, reviews — and nowhere
else, perhaps, is this literature so extensive
or so efficient. More than sixty evangeli-
cal religious newspapers are published once
a week. The Methodists publish eight, in-
cluding one in the German tongue, and all
under the direction of their Conferences.
The Episcopalians have twelve ; the Bap-
tists twenty ; the Presbyterians of all
classes, including the Congregationalists,
Dutch and German Reformed, Lutherans,
&c., about twenty more. This estimate in-
cludes evangelical Protestant papers only.
In all, they cannot have fewer than 250,000
subscribers. The Christian Advocate (Meth-
cdist), published at New-York, has about
26,000 ; a few years ago it had 30,000, but
the number diminished in consequence of
the establishment of other Methodist pa-

* I need not repeat here what has been said of the
immense circulation of books by the Sunday-school
and the Tract and Book societies, including the
-"Book Concern" of the Methodists.

pers. The New-York Observer has 16,000
subscribers, and several of the rest have a
circulation of from 5000 to 10,000 each.
They comprise a vast amount of religious
intelligence, as well as valuable selections
from pamphlets and books ; and though it
may be the case that religious newspapers
sometimes prevent more substantial read-
ing, yet it must be confessed, I think, that
they are doing great good, and are perused
by many who would otherwise read little
or nothing at all of a religious character.
Besides these newspapers, there is a large
number of religious monthly and semi-
monthly magazines, and several quarterly
reviews, in which valuable essays on sub-
jects of importance may be found from
time to time.*

The political papersf in the United
States, though often extremely violent in
party politics, are in many instances aux-
iliary to the cause of religion. While the
editors of some, happily not many, are op-
posed to everything that savours of reli-
gion, and even allow it to be outraged in
their columns, an overwhelming majority
often give excellent articles, and publish a
large amount of religious intelligence. In
this respect there has evidently been a
remarkable improvement within the last
twenty years. Many of the political jour-
nals have rendered immense service in

* Two of these quarterlies are published under
the auspices of the Presbyterians of the Old and New
Schools ; the " Biblical Repertory and Princeton
Review," at Princeton, New-Jersey, which is the
organ of the former, and the " American Biblical
Repository," at New- York. The " Methodist Maga-
zine and Quarterly Review," and the " Christian Re-
view," conducted by the Baptists, are both valuable
periodicals ; and all four contain able reviews and
essays. The " Christian Register" is published
monthly ; it is the organ of the Unitarians, and is
conducted with much ability.

t In the year 1839, according to the statistics fur-
nished by the Postmaster-general, the number of
" newspapers and other periodical journals in the
United States" was 1555, of which 116 were pub-
lished daily (the Sabbath excepted), fourteen three
times a week, thirty-nine twice a week, and 991 once
a week. The remainder, which were issued twice
a month, monthly, or quarterly, were principally
magazines and reviews. Of the newspapers, thirty-
eight were in the German language, four in French,
one in Spanish, and the rest in English. Several of
the New-Orleans papers are published both in French
and English. The circulation of these newspapers
and other periodicals is immense. Of the newspa-
pers alone the subscriptions are at least 1,000,000.
And though the number is too great by one half or
three fourths, and though many are conducted by
men who are but poorly qualified for the responsible
and difficult task of an editor, yet there is no deny-
ing that even the poorest of them carry a vast amount
of information to readers in the most secluded and
distant settlements, as well as to the inhabitants of
the most populous districts. And if we take the
editors in the mass, it must be acknowledged that
they are very ready to lend their columns to the pub-
lication of religious articles, of a suitable character
and length, when requested by good men. And
did Christians feel as they ought on this subject,
and do what they might, the " press" would be far
more useful to the cause of religion that it is.

172

RELIGION IN AMERICA.

[Book IV.

the Temperance cause, as well as in every
other involving the alleviation of human
suffering.

Some of the literary and political Re-
views of native origin are very respectable
works of the kind ; the North American
Review, in particular, which has now ex-
isted more than a quarter of a century.
There are also several valuable monthly
Reviews. Besides these, the leading Re-
views published in Britain, such as the
Edinburgh, the London Quarterly, West-
minster, Foreign Quarterly, Dublin, &c.,
are all republished among us.

CHAPTER XXII.

EFFORTS TO PROMOTE THE RELIGIOUS AND
TEMPORAL INTERESTS OF SEAMEN.

We have spoken of the endeavours made
to send the Gospel to the destitute settle-
ments of the United States, both in the West
and in the East, but we must not forget
that the population of that country includes
100,000 men whose home is on the deep,
and " who do business in the great wa-
ters," a number which must be almost
doubled if we include those who navigate
the rivers and lakes in steamboats, sailing
vessels, and other craft.

The first systematic efforts made on a
large scale, in the United States, for the
salvation of seamen, commenced in 1812,
at Boston. Since then much interest in
the subject has been awakened at almost
every port along the seaboard ; and within
the last few years a great deal has been
done for boatmen and sailors on the rivers
and lakes.

The American Seaman's Friend Society
was instituted at New- York in 1827, and
is now the chief association engaged in
this benevolent enterprise. It serves, in
some sense, as a central point to local so-
cieties formed in the other leading sea-
ports, as well as those on the Western riv-
ers, though they are not, in general, con-
nected with it nominally.* By a monthly
publication, called the Sailor's Magazine,
it communicates to pious seamen much
interesting information regarding the prog-
ress of truth among that class of men, with
details of its own proceedings, and those
of other associations of the same kind.

Chapels have now been opened for sea-
men, and public worship maintained on
their account in almost all the principal
seaports from the northeast to the south-
west, chaplains being engaged for the pur-
pose, and supported chielly by local socie-
ties. Those in the service of the central

* There are no fewer than fifty of these local as-
sociations for the proinotion of the spiritual and tem-
poral welfare of seamen and rivermen in the United
States.

society are, with few exceptions, stationed
at foreign ports, such as Havre, in France,
Canton, in China, Sydney, in New South
Wales, Honolulu, in the Sandwich Islands,
and Cronstadt, in Russia. It had chaplains
at one time, also, at Rio Janeiro, Marseilles,
and some other places.

Besides promoting the establishment of
public worship under chaplains at sear-
ports, the society has strongly and suc-
cessfully recommended the opening of
good boarding-houses and reading-rooms
for seamen when on shore, and the promo-
tion of their temporal comfort in every
way possible.

The efforts of the different associations
for seamen have been greatly blessed.
Last year, in particular, was marked by
special mercies. In no fewer than ten or
twelve ports there were manifest outpour-
ings of the Holy Spirit on the meetings
for religious instruction. A hundred and
fifty sailors were reported by one of the
chaplains at Philadelphia as having been
converted under his ministry, and among
these was an old man, ninety-nine years
of age, who had been, from time to time,^
a drunkard for more than seventy years.

There are supposed to be 600 pious cap-
tains in the United States' mercantile navy.
There are also several decidedly religious
oflUcers in the national marine, who exer-
cise a happy influence on the service. The
pious seamen belonging to the United
States are now reckoned at about 6000 ; a
most gratifying contrast to the state of
things twenty-five years ago, when a pious
seaman, of any class, was rarely to be met
with.

The income of the society for the last
year was $12,992, without including the
receipts of the local associations, which
must have been considerable. Its expen-
ditures were $13,785.

CHAPTER XXIII.

OF THE INFLUENCE OF THE VOLUNTARY PRIN-
CIPLE IN REFORMING EXISTING EVILS. TEM-
PERANCE SOCIETIES.

We have contemplated the Voluntary
Principle as the main support of religion
and its institutions in the United States.
We have now to consider its powers of
correcting, or rather overcoming, some of
the evils that prevail in society. And first,
let us see how it has contended with In-
temperance, one of the greatest evils that
have ever afflicted the human race.

It is not easy to depict in a few words
the ravages of drunkenness in the United
States. The early wars of the Colonial
age, the long war of the Revolution, and,
finally, that of 1812-15 with Kngland, all
contributed to promote this tremendous.

Chap. XXIII.]

TEMPERANCE SOCIETIES.

173

evil. The very abundance of God's gifts
became, by their perversion, a means of
augmenting it. The country being fertile,
nearly through its whole extent, and pro-
ducing immense quantities of wheat, rye,
and corn,* the last two of which were de-
•voted to the manufacture of whiskey, there
seemed no feasible check, or conceivable
limit to the ever-growing evil, especially
as the government had no such pressure
on its finances as might justify the laying
on of a tax that would prevent or diminish
the manufacture of ardent spirits. More-
over, the idea had become almost univer-
sally prevalent that the use of such stimu-
lants, at least in moderate quantities, was
not only beneficial, but almost indispensa-
ble for health, as well as for enabling men
to bear up under toil and fatigue.

The mischief spread from year to year.
It pervaded all classes of society. The
courts of justice, the administration of gov-
ernment, the very pulpit itself, felt its dire-
ful influence. The intellect of the physi-
cian, and the hand of the surgeon, were
too often paralyzed by it ; and it might be
said, that what some thought to be ordain-
ed unto life, was found to produce death.
Poverty, disease, crime, punishment, mis-
ery, were the natural fruits which it brought
forth abundantly. Society was aflSicted in
almost all its ranks ; nearly every family
throughout the land beheld the plague in
one or more of its members. Yet for a
long time, while all saw and lamented the
evil, none stood up against it. But there
were those that mourned, and wept, and
prayed over the subject, and the God of
our fathers, who had been with them on
the ocean and amid the dreary wilderness,
to watch over them and to protect them,
heard those prayers.

In the year 1812, a considerable effort
was made to arouse the attention of Chris-
tians to the growing evils of intemperance,
and a day of fasting and of prayer was ob-
served by some religious bodies. In the
following year, the Massachusetts Soci-
ety for the Suppression of Intemperance
was formed, and its labours were mani-
festly useful. Still, " the plague was not
stayed." The subject, however, was not
allowed to drop. It was seen that the So-
ciety had not gone far enough, and that it
would not do to admit of ardent spirits be-
ing taken, even in moderation. The evil
of wide-spread drunkenness never could be
exterminated by such half-way measures.

It was proposed, accordingly, in 1826, to
proceed upon the principle of entire absti-
nence from the use of ardent or distilled
spirits as a beverage, and that same year
saw the formation at Boston of the Ameri-
can Temperance Society. The press was

* The word com is almost invariably employed in
America to designate the grain commonly called
tnaize in England, and BU de Turquie in France.

soon set in motion to make its objects
known, and able agents were employed in
advocating its principles. Great was the
success that followed. In the course of a
few years societies were to be found in all
parts of the country, and were joined, not
by thousands only, but by hundreds of
thousands. People of all classes and ages
entered zealously into so noble an under-
taking. Ministers of the Gospel, lawyers,
and judges, legislators, physicians, took a
prominent part in urging it on.

What need is there of words 1 The cause
continues advancing to this day. To reach
the poor, as well as to remove temptation
from the rich, the rules of the Temperance
societies within the last six or seven years
have included " all intoxicating drinks."
Upon this principle, wines of all descrip-
tions have generally been abandoned, both
on account of their being mostly impure
with us — being imported, and all more or
less intoxicating — and because they are
not found necessary to persons in health,
but, on the contrary, injurious ; besides
which, it was of consequence that an ex-
ample of self-denial should be given by
those who could afford to buy wine, for the
sake of the poor, who could not.

But, in the progress of the Temperance
reformation, little was done to reclaim men
who had already become drunkards. And
yet, at the lowest estimate, there were
300,000 such in the United States ; many
even reckoned them at 500,000 at the com-
mencement of the Temperance movement.
No hope seemed to be entertained with re-
spect to these. To prevent such as had
not yet become confirmed drunkards from
acquiring that fatal habit, was the utmost
that any one dared to expect. A few drunk-
ards, indeed, were here and there re-
claimed ; but the mass remained unaffected
by all the cogent arguments and affecting
appeals that were resounding through the
country.

At length God, in his wonderful provi-
dence, revealed the way by which these
miserable persons might be reached. And
how simple ! A few hard drinkers in the
city of Baltimore, who were in the habit
of meeting in a low tavern for the purpose
of revelry, and had been drunkards for
years, met one night as usual. All hap-
pened to be sober. Apparently by acci-
dent, the conversation fell upon the mis-
eries of their life. One after another re-
counted his wretched history. All were
deeply affected with the pictures of their
own degradation thus held up to their
minds. Some one proposed that they
should stop in their career of folly and
wickedness, and form themselves into a
Temperance association. They did so.
Rules were written and signed on the spot.
They met again the next night, related
their histories, wept together over their

174

RELIGION IN AMERICA.

[Book IT.

past delusions, and strengthened each oth-
er's resolutions. They continued to meet
almost every night— not, however, at a
tavern. They invited their companions
in sin to join them. These were affected
and won. The fire was kindled, and soon
it spread. In a few weeks four hundred
such persons joined the society. In a few
months no fewer than 2000 drunkards in
the city of Baltimore were reclaimed.
Then the movement came to light. The
newspapers spread the wonderful news.
The whole country was astonished. Chris-
tians lifted up their hearts in thankfulness
to God, and took courage. Benevolent
men rallied around these reformed persons,
and encouraged them to perseverance.

The society of reclaimed drunkards in
Baltimore was invited to send delegates to
other cities; and soon the "apostles of Tem-
perance," as these men were called, went
forth to every city in the land. Great was
their success. Hundreds and thousands
were reclaimed in New- York, Philadelphia,
Boston, Albany, Pittsburgh, Cincinnati, and
from these cities, as from great centres,
other delegations of reformed drunkards
went forth into almost every village and
district in the land.

This movement commenced on the 6th
of April, 1840 ; and it is now estimated that
100,000 drunkards have already been re-
claimed. But it may be said that they will
relapse. No doubt some will. Hitherto,
however, but few comparatively have done
so. And the secret of this is to be found
in the immense support which the esprit du
corps gives them. There is everywhere a
considerable band of such. They meet often
to encourage each other. Good men are .ev-
erywhere ready to encourage and befriend
them. Never has the world seen anything
like it. What an encouragement to every
good effort ! What confidence does it not
inspire in the influence of well-concert-
ed action in behalf of virtue and religion!
God has smiled wonderfully on this move-
ment. Already many who have been thus
reclaimed from intemperance, and led to
frequent the House of God, have been con-
verted by the Spirit of the Lord, and are
now " sitting at the feet of Jesus, clothed,
and in their right mind."

To go farther into detail would not con-
sist with the nature of this work. A large
proportion of the population of the Uni-
ted States are now under the happy influ-
ence of total abstinence from all intoxi-
cating drinks. In 1826, when the temper-
ance reform commenced, it was estimated
that at least 60,000,000 gallons of whiskey
were manufactured and consumed annual-
ly in the United States, without including
the imported brandies, rum. &c. This es-
timate was unquestionably a very low
one. In 1840, that is, fourteen years after-
ward, the census stated that the number

of gallons distilled during that year was
36,343,336, showing a falling off of more
than 23,000,000 gallons ; and yet, within the
same period, the population had augmented
by more than 5,000,000 souls ! And all this
reformation has been brought about solely
through the operation of voluntary associa-
tions, without the slightest direct aid from
the government, with the exception of its
having abolished the daily ration of whis-
key formerly given to the officers and men
in the army. Could anything in the world
show more conclusively the resources
which right principles possess in them-
selves for overcoming, under God's bless-
ing, the evils which are in the world, and
even those which derive most power from
the depraved appetites of man ?

CHAPTER XXIV.

THE AMERICAN PRISON DISCIPLINE SOCIETY.

The Prison Discipline Society was insti-
tuted in 1824. It had for its object an in-
vestigation into the best methods of treat-
ment for convicts and other prisoners, with
a view to their health, proper degree of
comfort, and, above all, their moral and re-
ligious reformation.

Previous to the establishment of this So-
ciety, the prisons in the United States were-
all conducted according to the old practice
of herding the prisoners together in large
numbers, without any due regard to their
health, and with the inevitable certainty
of their corrupting one another. In most
cases, there was little regular religious in-
struction ; in some, none at all. The pris-
oners were generally left idle, so that their
maintenance, instead of being so far de-
frayed by the proceeds of their work, fell
entirely on the public, and involved a heavy
expense.

But a great reformation has now been
effected. The Society's able, enlightened,
and zealous secretary, the only agent, I
believe, in its service, has devoted nearly
his whole time and energies to the subject
for nearly twenty years. During that pe-
riod he has examined the prisons in all
parts of the country, has studied whatever
was defective or wrong in each, has de-
vised improvements in the construction of
prison buildings, has visited the Legisla-
tures of the several states, and delivered
lectures to them on the subject, besides
giving to the world, in the eighteen Re-
ports that have come from his pen, such
a mass of well-digested information as is
probably nowhere else to be found in any
language. The results have been wonder-
ful. Now penitentiaries, upon the most
improved plans, have been erected in al-
most all states by their respective govern-
ments, and in many cases at a great ex-
pense. These institutions are very geu-

Chap. XXIV.]

PRISON DISCIPLINE SOCIETY.

175

erally under the direction of decidedly re-
ligious men. Judicious and faithful preach-
ers have been appointed as chaplains in
many of them ; and in the others, neigh-
bouring pastors have been invited to
preach the Gospel, and visit the inmates
as often as they can. Bible-classes and
Sunday-schools have been established in
several instances ; and in all, pains are ta-
ken to teach prisoners to read where they
have yet to learn, so that they may be
able to peruse the Word of God.

A great blessing has rested upon these
efforts. In many prisons very hopeful
reformations have taken place ; and in
many cases, it is believed, after long and
careful examination and trial, that con-
victs, who were hardened in their sins,
have submitted their hearts to that adora-
ble Saviour who died to save the very
chief of sinners. Taken as a whole, in
no other country in the world, probably,
are the penitentiaries and prisons brought
under a better moral and religious disci-
pline. This great result has been brought
about, first, by the erection of new and more
convenient buildings, and, secondly, by
committing their direction so generally to
decided and zealous Christians. This has
brought pure Christianity into contact with
the minds of convicts to an extent un-
known in former times in America, and
still too little known in many other lands.*

* It may not be generally known that two difter-
ent systems of disciplme are to be found in the pris-
ons of the I'nited States, each having its ardent ad-
mirers. There is, first, the Philadelphia system, ac-
cording to which the prisoners are entirely separated
day and night, so that they are unknown to each
other, and live in separate chambers or cells. And
next there is the Auburn system, so called because
adopted in the prison for the State of New-York,
at Auburn, a town m the central part of that state.
According to it, the prisoners are separated from
each other at night, but work together in companies
during the day, under the eye of overseers and guards,
but are not allowed to speak to each other. They
are assembled, also, morning and evening, for prayers ;
and on the Sabbath they meet in the chapel for pub-
lic worship, conducted by a chaplain or some other
minister of the Gospel. Each system has its advan-
tages and disadvantages. For health, facility in
communicating religious instruction, and the saving
of expense through the avails of the labour of the
prisoners, the latter, in my opinion, has evidently the
advantage. The former furnishes greater security,
enables the prisoners to remain unknown to their fel-
lows on leaving the prison, and more effectually breaks
down the spirit of the most hardened criminals. But
the ditierence in point of expense is immense : nor
are the moral results of the more e.xpensive plan so
decidedly superior as to compensate for this disad-
vantage. It is a singular fact, that the Auburn sys-
tem has been decidedly preferred by the Prison Disci-
pline Society, and by our citizens generally, for it
has been adopted by all but four of the penitentiaries'^
in the country ; whereas the Philadelphia plan has
been preferred by ihe commissioners sent from France,
England, and Prussia, to examine our prisons. For
myselt, I apprehend that sufficient time has not been
allowed lor a due estimate of their comparative '
merits. After paying considerable attention to the

* And even one of these has abandoned it for the Auburn
system.

Besides effecting this great reformation
in the State penitentiaries and prisons, the
Society has directed much of its attention
to the Asylums for the Insane, and to
county or district prisons for persons com-
mitted for trial, for convicts sentenced to
short terms of imprisonment, and for debt-
ors, in states where the law still allows
imprisonment for debt. In all these various
establishments the American Prison Disci-
pline Society is exerting much influence,
and gradually effecting the most important
ameliorations. It has also discussed in a
very able manner many questions in crim-
inal legislation ; such as those of impris-
onment for debt, capital punishments, &c.,
and its labours in this department have
not been in vain. Yet the Society has but
one agent — its excellent secretary, who
devotes, as I have said, all his time and
energies to the cause — and its whole re-
ceipts scarcely exceed 3000 dollars. With
these limited means, it has accomplished
an immense amount of good.

I know nothing that more fully demon-
strates how favourably disposed our Gov-
ernment is to Religion, and to all good ob-
jects, than the fact that the Legislatures
of so many of our states, as well as Con-
gress itself, have been so ready to second
every feasible plan for ameliorating the
condition of mankind by moral and reli-
gious means, as far as they can do so con-
sistently with their constitutional powers.
Indeed, they are ever ready to adopt meas-
ures suggested by good and judicious men,
as likely to benefit the public interests and
to promote Religion, provided they fall
within their sphere of action.

I may conclude this chapter by refer-
ring to the encouraging fact, stated by the
secretary in his yearly Report, presented
at the public meetmg in May, 1842 : That
crime has been for some years decreasing
in the country, at the rate of from two to
three per cent, per annum. This statement,
from one whose position and means of in-
formation constitute him the highest possi-
ble authority on the subject, is the more
encouraging, when we consider how many
difficulties have to be encountered in anev/
country, and what a mighty stream of em-
igration from foreign lands is continually

subject, as far as I am able to judge, I should say
that, with the right sort of men to manage a prison —
religious men of great judgment and self-control —
the Auburn plan is the better. But if such mea
cannot be had, the Philadelphia system is safer. Tha
former demands extraordinary qualities in the keep-
ers, and especially in the superintendent, whose,
powers, as they must be great, are capable, also, of
being sadly abused. Much, indeed, depends on the
keepers under either system. 1 may add, that for the
ignorant, the rude, the sensual, the Auburn system
is far more salutary than that of Philadelphia; for to
such, entire solitary confinement is sadly destructive
to health and happiness. On the other hand, the
Philadelphia system is more tolerable and useful to
the better educated and the more mtellectual classes.

176

RELIGION IN AMERICA.

[Book IV.

bringing over new settlers who have had
little proper moral culture, and not a few
of whom are almost desperately depraved.
Nor is it less gratifying to think that this
occurs by a process in which brute force
is superseded to such an extent in the re-
pression of vice and crime by means essen-
tially moral.

CHAPTER XXV.

SUNDRY OTHER ASSOCIATIONS.

I SHALL now include in one chapter a
notice of two or three other instances, in
which the variety and energy of action
possessed by the Voluntary Principle are
remarkably illustrated.

Societies for the Promotion of a better Ob-
servance of the Sabbath. Although the Sab-
bath is recognised, and its observance en-
joined by the laws of every state in the
Union, and although that sacred day is
observed in the United States in a manner
that strikingly contrasts with its neglect
in Europe, and particularly on the Conti-
nent, yet in certain quarters, and especial-
ly in places that are in some sense thor-
oughfares, the violation of it is distressing,
nay, alarming to a Christian mind. Hence
the formation of societies for the better
observance of that day.

These are sometimes of a local and lim-
ited nature ; sometimes they embrace a
wider sphere of operation. I3y publishing
and circulating well-written addresses and
tracts — still more by the powerful appeals
of the pulpit, they succeed in greatly di-
minishing the evil, if not in removing it al-
together. By such measures they strength-
en the hands of the officers of justice, and
give a sounder tone and better direction
to public opinion, greatly to the diminu-
tion, if not to the entire remedy, of the evil
sought to be cured. What is best of all,
this result is obtained most commonly by
the moral influence of Truth — by kindly
remonstrance, and argimients drawn from
the Word of God and right reason. I may
state that I liave myself seen the happiest
influence exerted by these associations.

Anti-slavery Societies. And so with re-
spect to slavery, an evil which afflicted all
the thirteen original colonies at the epoch
of their declaration of independence, and
•which still exists in half of the twenty-six
states, as well as in the District of Colum-
bia and the Territory of Florida, though no
longer to be found in the six New-Eng-
land States, or in New- York, New-.Ierscy,
Pennsylvania, Ohio, Indiana, Illinois, Michi-
gan, and the Territories of Wisconsin and
Iowa. With a view to its extirpation in
the states to which it still adheres, many
of the inhabitants of the Northern, or non-
-slaveholding states, have associated them-

selves in what are called anti-slavery so-
cieties, and have been endeavouring, for
several years past, to awaken the public
to a sense of the enormity and danger
of slavery, and to the disgrace which it
entails on the whole country. By means
of the press, by tracts and books, and by
the voice of living agents, they aim at the
destruction of this — the greatest of all the
evils that lie heavy on our institutions. I
say nothing at present of the wisdom of
their plans, or of the spirit in which these
plans have been prosecuted. I only men-
tion these societies as a farther proof of
the wide application of the Voluntary Prin-
ciple, and of the manner in which it leads
to associated efforts for the correction of
existing evils.*

Peace Societies. And so in relation to the
evils of war, and for the purpose of pre-
serving good men especially, and all men,
if possible, from thinking lightly of them,
Peace Societies began to be formed as
early as the year 1816, and a national so-
ciety was organized in 1827. The object
must be admitted to be humane and Chris-
tian. By the diff'usion of well-written
tracts, by off'ering handsome premiums for
essays on the subject, and their subsequent
publication, and, above all, by sliort and
pointed articles in the newspapers, a great
deal has been done to cause the prayer to
ascend with more fervency from the heart
of many a Christian, " Give peace in our
time, O Lord," and to inspire a just dread
of the awful curse of war. To many, such
eff"orts may appear ridiculous, but not so
to the man who can estimate the value of
even one just principle, when once, estab-
lished in the heart of any individual, how-
ever humble. Who can tell how much
such efforts in the United States, and other
countries, may have contributed, in God's
holy providence, which often avails itself
of the humblest means for the accomplish-
ment of the greatest purposes, to prolong
that happy general peace which has held
Europe, and all the civilized world, in its
embrace during more than a quarter of a
century"?

The American Peace Society employed
four agents last year, and issued 5000 cop-
ies of its periodical. Its receipts were
3000 dollars.!

* The receipts of the American Anti-slavery So-
ciety for last year were about 10,000 dollars ; those
of the American and Foreign Anti-slavery Society
were probably greater, but I have not seen the
amount stated. A few years ago, before the division
took place in the American Anti-slavery Society
which led to the formation of the American and For-
eign Anti-slavery Society, its income was 40,000 dol-
lars, and the number of its agents was forlv or fifty.

t The late William Ladd, Esq., of the' State of
Maine, was the founder of the American Peace So-
ciety, and for many years its worthy president. He
was an excellent Christian. His heart was absorbed
in the objects of the society over which he presided.
Through his exertions a prize of 1000 dollars was

chap.xxvi.] beneficent institutions.

CHAPTER XXVI.

177

MNFLUENCE OF THE VOLUNTARY PRINCIPLE ON
THE BENEFICENT INSTITUTIONS OF THE
COUNTRY.

Nor is the voluntary principle less op-
erative in the formation and support of
beneficent institutions than of associations
for attacking and vanquishing existing
evils. But tliese present too wide a field
to be fully gone over in this work ; besides,
they do not come properly within its scope.
I shall therefore glance only at a few points,
showing how the voluntary principle op-
erates in this direction for the furtherance
of the Gospel.

In efforts to relieve the temporal wants
and sufferings of mankind, as well as in
all other good undertakings, Christians,
and those, too, with few exceptions, evan-
gelical in their faith, almost invariably
take the lead. Whenever there is a call
for the vigorous exercise of benevolence,
proceeding from whatever cause. Chris-
tians immediately go to work, and endeav-
our to meet the exigency by their own ex-
ertions, if possible ; but should the nature
and extent of the relief required properly
demand co-operation on the part of muni-
cipal and stale authorities, they bring the
-case before these authorities, and invoke
their aid. It naturally follows that, when
this is given, it should be appUed through
the hands of those who were the first to
stir in the matter ; and this wisely, too,
since who can be supposed so fit to ad-
minister the charities of the civil govern-
ment as those who have first had the heart
to make sacrifices for the same object
themselves ? Such alone are likely to
have the experience that in such affairs is
necessary.

All this I might illustrate by adducing
many instances, were it necessary. In
this chapter, however, I shall notice a few,
and take these collectively.

There is not a city or large town, I may
say, hardly a village, in all the country,
which has not its voluntary associations
of good men and women for the relief of
poverty, especially where its sufferings
are aggravated by disease. These efforts,
in countless instances, may not be exten-

offered for the best essay on the subject of A Con-
gress of Nations, for the termination of national dis-
putes. Four or five excellent dissertations were
presented, and the premium was divided among the
authors by the judges appointed to make the award ;
one of whom was the Hon. John Quincy Adams,
formerly President of the United States. The evils
of war can hardly be exaggerated. " In peace," said
Croesus to Cyrus, " children bury their fathers ; but
in war, fathers bury their children." "War makes
thieves," says Machiavelli, " and peace brings them
to the gallows." " May we never see another war,"
said Franklin, in a letter which he addressed to a
friend, just after signing the treaty of peace at the
close of the American Revolution, " for in my opin-
ion there never was a good ivar or a bad peace."

sive, only because there is no extensive
call for their being made. Created by cir-
cumstances, when these disappear, the as-
sociations also cease to exist. But where
the sufferings to be relieved are perpetu-
ally recurring, as well as too extensive to
be alleviated by individual effort, these
benevolent associations become perma-
nent. Their objects are accomplished, in
most instances, by the unaided exertions
of the benevolent, who voluntarily associ-
ate for the purpose ; but if these prove in-
sufficient, municipal or state assistance is
sought, and never sought in vain. Ac-
cordingly, the stranger who visits the Uni-
ted States will find hospitals for the sick,
almshouses for the poor, and dispensaries
for furnishing the indigent with medicines
gratuitously, in all the large cities where
they are required.* There is a legal pro-
vision in all the states for the poor, not
such, however, as to do away with the ne-
cessity of individual or associated effort
to meet extraordinary cases of want, es-
pecially when it comes on suddenly, and
in the train of disease. The rapid and
wide-spreading attacks of epidemics may
demand, and will assuredly find benevo-
lent individuals ready to associate them-
selves for meeting such exigencies, before
the measures provided by law can be
brought to bear upon them.f

It is with great pleasure that I have to
state that the Gospel finds admittance into
the establishments for the relief of pover-

* The manner of providing for the poor differs
greatly in different states, in the West, where there
is but little extreme poverty, the inhabitants of each
township generally look after their poor in such a
way as best suits them. Money is raised, and by a
" commissioner of the poor," appropriated to the
support of such as need it. Thuse who liave fami-
lies live in houses hired for them; single persons
board with others who are willing to take them for
the stipulated sum. Jn the Atlantic States, where
there are more poor who need assistance, the same
course is pursued in many cases. In others, " poor-
houses" are erected in such counties as choose to
have suchestablishments, and to these the townships
send their quota of paupers, and pay for their board,
clothing, &.C. In the cities on the seaboard, the
municipal authorities make abundant provision for
the poor who need aid, a great proportion of whom
are foreigners.

t There were many illustrations of the expansive
nature of individual and associated charity during
the prevalence of the cholera. In all our large cit-
ies, associations, comprising the very best Christians
in them, were formed with the utmost promptitude,
and zealously sustained as long as needed I saw
myself, and often attended their meetings, an asso-
ciation of Christian ladies formed in Philadelphia,
as soon as the pestilence commenced its ravages in
that city. They hired a house, converted it into a
hospital, gathered into it all the children whom the
plague had orphanized, both white and black, whom
they could find, and day after day, and week after
week, washed, dressed, and took care of those chil-
dren with their own hands, and defrayed all the ex-
penses of the establishment. Two of the children
died of the cholera in their arms ! These ladies be-
longed, many of them, to some of the first families in
that city in point of respectability.

178

RELIGION IN AMERICA,

[Book IV.

ty and disease, which have been created
and maintained by the municipal and state
authorities ; and that i have never heard
of any case in which the directors have
opposed the endeavours of judicious Chris-
tians to maive known to the inmates the
blessings of religion. Prudent and zeal-
ous Christians, both ministers and laymen,
are allowed to visit, and ministers to preach
to the occupants of such establishments ;
and in several of our cities, one or more
excellent ministers of the Gospel are em-
ployed to preach regularly in them as well
as in the prisons. With rare exceptions,
they are in the hands of Protestants, though
Roman Catholic priests are nowhere for-
bidden to enter and teach all who desire
their ministrations.

Of all the beneficent institutions of our
large cities, there are none more interesting
than those intended for the benefit of chil-
dren. Orphan asylums, well established
and properly conducted, are to be found
in every city of any consideration through-
out the Union. Nor are these asylums
for white children only ; they are also for
the coloured. Indeed, it cannot be said
with truth that the poor and the sick of
the African race, in our cities and large
towns, are less cared for than those of the
white race. Nor are those children only
who have lost both parents thus provided
for. In some of our cities, asylums are
in the course of being provided for what
are called half-orphans — that is, who have
still one parent or both, but are not sup-
ported by them. I may state it, however,
as a fact of which I am perfectly certain,
that there is not a single Foundling Hos-
pital in the United States.

In some of our citii-s we have admirable
institutions, called Houses of Refuge, for
neglected children, and such as are en-
couraged by their parents to live a vaga-
bond life, or are disposed of themselves
to lead such a life. In these establish-
ments they not only receive the elements
of a good English education, but are in-
structed also in the mechanical arts ; and
with these religious instruction is faith-
fully and successfully combined. All of
these institutions were commenced, and
are carried on by the voluntary efl'orts of
Christians, though they have been greatly
assisted by appropriations in their favour,
in the shape of endowments or annuities
from some of the state governments.*

* One of the best conducted of these establish-
ments is at Philadelphia. It stands at the distance
of one mile from the; city, occupies a beautiful site,
and has a numl)er of acres of groiuid attached to it.
There are here usually between 100 and 200 youth
of both sexes, who occupy different apartments, and
are under the care of excellent teachers. The ma-
pistrates of the city have the power to send vagrant,
idle, and neglected children to it. Very many youths
have left this institution creatly benclited by their
residence in it. It has fallen to the lot of the writer

Nor are the aged poor neglected. Asy-
lums for widows are to be met with in all
our large towns, where they are, in fact,
most needed ; and old and infirm men are
also provided for.

At the same time, that " charity which
seeketh not her own," but the good of all
others, no matter what inay have been
their character or what their crimes, has
not forgotten those unfortunate females
who have been the victims of the faith-
lessness of men. Magdalen asylums have
been founded in all our chief cities, espe-
cially on the seaboard, where they aro
most needed, and have been the means of
doing much good. It is only to be regret-
ted that this branch of Christian kindness
and eflTort has not been far more extensive-
ly prosecuted. Nevertheless, there are
many hearts that are interested in it, and
in the institutions which they have erected
the glorious Gospel of him who said to the
penitent woman in Simon's house, " Thy
faith hath saved thee ; go in peace," is not
only preached, but also received into hearts
which the Spirit of God has touched and
broken.

CHAPTER XXVII.

INFLUENCE OF THE VOLUNTARY PRINCIPLE OIT
THE BENEFICENT INSTITUTIONS OF THE
COUNTRY. ASYLUJIS FOR THE INSANE.

The utmost attention is now paid in
the United States to a class of the unfor-
tunate which, of all others, presents the
strongest claims on our sympathy— I al-
lude to the insane. For these very much
has been done in the course of the last
twenty years, by the establishment of suit-
able places for their reception, instead of
confining them, as formerly, in the com-
mon prisons of the country. In this the
Prison Discipline Society has exerted a
most extensive and happy influence, never
having ceased, in its Annual Reports, to
urge upon the governments of the states
the duty of providing proper receptacles,
to which persons discovered to be insane
rnight be conveyed as promptly as possi-
ble, with a view to tlieir proper treatment.
The Society showed this to be an impera-
tive duty on the part of the states, and its
voice has not been heard in vain.

There are now twelve asylums support-
ed by the states, and some of these are on
a large scale. That near Utica will con-
to preach often to its inmates, and never has he se?n
a more affecting sight. If a man wishes to learn the
importance of the parental relation, and the bless-
ings which flow from a faithful tultilment of its du-
ties, let him visit such an institution, and inquire into
the history of each youth whom it contains. The
" Farm Schools" for orphans and for neglected chil-
dren, in the neighbourhoods of Boston and New-
\'ork, are cxc-cllent, and have been the means of do-
ing much good.

Chap. XXVIII.] ASYLUMS FOR THE DEAF AND DUMB.

179

sist, when completed, of four buildings,
each 446 feet long by 48 wide, and placed
one on each side of a beautiful quadrilat-
eral area, which assumes an octagonal
form by the intersection of its corners,
with verandahs of open lattice-work. It
is intended for the insane poor of the State
of New-York, which state is at the sole
expense of its erection, and the cost upon
the completion of the whole will amount,
it is supposed, to about $1,000,000. It is
calculated to receive 1000 patients.

Besides the twelve State Asylums, there
are two belonging to cities, namely, those
at Boston and New-York ; six to incorpo-
rated bodies, and one is the property of an
individual,* making in all twenty-one. One
or more state asylums may possibly have
been opened since the publication of the
interesting work to which I am indebted
for my information on the subject. f

Nearly all of these asylums are con-
structed on the most approved plans. Al-
most all are beautifully situated, have a
light and cheerful aspect, and are surround-
ed with ample grounds, tastefully laid out
in fields and meadows, pleasant gardens,
and delightful walks. After visiting many
such institutions in Europe, I can truly
say that I have seen none more pleasant-
ly situated, or better kept, than the Massa-
chusetts State Asylum, at Worcester, the
Retreat at Hartford, in Connecticut, and
the Asylum on Blackwell's Island, near
New-York.

I would particularly call attention to the
fact that religious worship is kept up in
all of these twenty-one institutions but
four. Some have regular chaplains attach-
ed to them ; in others, Divine worship is
conducted for the inmates by clergymen
or laymen in the neighbourhood, who vol-
unteer their services ni performing this im-
portant and interesting duty. In almost
every case it is done by men of evangel-
ical sentiments. Nor is their labour in
vain, ample experience having demonstra-
ted that such services, when performed by
judicious, calm, and truly spiritual men,
e.vert a highly beneficial influence on the
insane. The Gospel, when presented in
the spirit of its blessed Author, is admira-
bly fitted to soothe the mental excitement
of the poor deranged lunatic.

" Regular religious teaching," says Dr.
Woodward, the superintendent of the asy-
lum for the insane at Worcester, Massa-
chusetts, " is as necessary and beneficial
to the insane as to the rational mind; in
a large proportion of the cases it will have
equal influence. They as well know their

*■ Dr. White's, at Hudson, in the State of New-
York.

t " A Visit to thirteen Asylums for the Insane in
Europe, &c., to which is subjoined a brief Notice of
similar Institutions in the United States," by Pliny
Earie, M.D. Published at Philadelphia in 1841.

imperfections, if they will not admit their
delusions ; and they feel the importance
of good conduct to secure the confidence
and esteem of those whose good opinion
tiiey value."

According to Dr. Earle's statements, the
deaths in the European institutions for the
insane vary from thirteen io forty per cent. ;
while in the American asylums none ex-
ceed ten per cent.*

While the State governments have been
doing so much for the establishment of
hospitals and asylums for the insane, much
has also been done by individual munifi-
cence. Even some of the State institutions
have been assisted by donations from pri-
vate citizens. Thus two benevolent gen-
tlemen in the State of Maine have givea
$10,000 each towards founding the asylum,
for that state.

CHAPTER XXVIII. .

INFLUENCE OF, THE VOLUNTARY PRINCIPLE ON
THE BENEFICENT INSTITUTIONS OF THE

COUNTRY. ASYLUMS FOR THE DEAF AND

DUMB.

Our asylums for the deaf and dumb owe
their existence to a series of eflforts on the
part of a few Christian friends.

The late Dr. Cogswell, a pious and ex-
cellent physician in the city of Hartford,.
Connecticut, had a beloved daughter who
was deaf and dumb. For her sake he pro-
posed to a devoted young minister of the
Gospel, the Rev. Mr. Gallaudet, to go to
Europe, and there to learn, at the best in-
stitutions, the most approved methods of
teaching this unfortunate class of people.
The mission was cheerfully undertaken.
Mr. Gallaudet returned in 1816, after hav-
ing spent above a year in Paris, where he
studied the methods of instruction pursued
at the Royal Institution for the Educatioa
of the Deaf and Dumb, under the Abbe-
Sicard, the pupil and friend of the Abbe
I'Epee. Thereupon an effort was imme-
diately made to found an institution at
Hartford. An act of incorporation was
obtained in 1816, a large sum was contrib-
uted by the people of Hartford for the erec-
tion of the requisite buildings, and Con-
gress granted a township from the national
lands, consisting of 23,040 acres, towards
the endowment of the institution. It was
opened, ere long, for the reception of pu-
pils, and from that time to this has been
going on most prosperously. It is the
oldest establishment for the purpose in the

* The number of the insane in the asylums in the
United States is about 2500 ; in 1840, the whole
number of the insane in the country, of all ages and
conditions, was, according to the census, 17,434,
being about one to every 979 inhabitants. Of these
17,434 insane persons, 5162 were maintained at the
public expense, and 12,272 at that of their friends.

180

RELIGION IN AMERICA.

[Book IV.

United States, and is called " The Ameri-
can i^sylum for the Education and Instruc-
tion of the Deaf and Dumb." So far, in-
deed, it is a national institution. It was
endowed to a considerable amount by Con-
gress ; it is open to pupils from all the
states, and it does, in fact, receive them
from the South as well as from the North.
It is peculiarly, however, the deaf and
dumb institution of New-England, five of
the states of which support within its walls,
at the expense of their treasuries, a cer-
tain number of pupils every year. The
number at the asylum is usually between
140 and 150. The course of study lasts
four years. Mechanical arts are taught
to the young men at certain hours daily,
while the young women learn such things
as become their sex and situation in life.

Since 1816 five other institutions for the
deaf and dumb have been established in
the United States, all on the model of that
at Hartford. They are as follows :

1. That at New- York. It has about
150 pupils, and is mainly supported by the
State Legislature.

2. The Pennsylvania Institution, at Phil-
adelphia. It has from 100 to 120 pupils,
most of whom are maintained there at
the expense of that and the neighbouring
states.

3. The Ohio Asylum at Columbus, a
prosperous institution, with about seventy
pupils, and mainly supported by the Legis-
lature of Ohio.

4. The Asylum for Kentucky, at Dan-
ville, whicli is chiefly, if not entirely, sup-
ported by funds arising from the sale of
lands granted to it by the Congress of the
United States. It has, perhaps, twenty-
five or thirty pupils, but has not been very
prosperous.

5. The Virginia Asylum, at Staunton, an
institution of very recent date. It has
about twenty-five pupils, and is mainly de-
pendant upon that state for its support.

These five, as well as that at Hartford,
receive paying pupils from families which
have the means of defraying the expense
of educating their own children. But the
number of such pupils prol)ably does not
exceed one sixth of the whole.

The number of pupils in these six asy-
lums ranges from 510 to 545, and as the
fifteen or sixteen states by wliich tjiey are
supported have both the means and the
disposition to do so, tlioy will doubtless
furnish instruction to the deaf and dumb
of the other states, which have resolved
to send tlicm thither until they can have
asylums of tlieir own. There will, indeed,
be but a partial provision for some time
for the indigent deaf and dumb of the new
states ; yet the known enterprise and be-
nevolence of their inhabitants warrant us
to believe that as soon as their population
shall have become sufficiently numerous,

and they shall have established those more
general and important institutions that lie
at the basis of an enlightened society, the
whole of the confederated states will be
found ready to make provision for con-
ducting their deaf and dumb, by means of
a suitable education, to usefulness and
happiness. For this it is not requisite
that each state should have an asylum for
itself; it would be found enough that two
or more should unite, as at present, in
having one in common.

The number of deaf and dumb persons
throughout the United States in 1840 was
7659, or about one to every 2227 of the
entire population ; but the proportion of
proper age for being placed in an asylum,
to receive the usual instruction there, is
hardly above a fourth of the entire number.

It is delightful to contemplate how much
has been done for this interesting part of
the community within the last few years,
and especially delightful to the Christian,
to know that all the six asylums above
mentioned are under the direction of deci-
dedly religious men, and that the 90urse
of instruction pursued in them is entirely
evangelical. The Bible is made the text-
book of their religious studies. Every
morning and evenmg they are assem-
bled for prayers, and then a portion of
Scripture is written on a large slate, about
ten feet by four. Some pertinent remarks
are addressed to them, followed by prayer,
both the remarks and the prayer being
performed, by the principal or one of the
professors of the institution, by signs. In
the same way, upon the Sabbath, a ser-
mon is preached and other religious ser-
vices held. God has greatly blessed these
instructions. Many of the pupils in these
several asylums have become, from time
to time, as their lives attest, truly pious
persons ; and in some instances these in-
stitutions have richly shared in the revi-
vals that have occurred in the places where
they are established.

CHAPTER XXIX.

INFLUENCE OF THE VOLUNTARY PRINCIPLE ON
THE BENEFICENT INSTITUTIONS OF THE
COUNTRY. ASYLUMS FOR THE BLIND.

In the year 1832 the Perkins Institution
and Massachusetts Asylum for the Blind
was foimded, as follows :

Thomas H. Perkins, Esq., of the city
of Boston, gave his valuable house and
firounds, with out-buildings thereon, esti-
mated to be worth 50,000 dollars, for an
asylum for the blind, provided the sum re-
quired for founding one should be raised
in New-England. Fifty thousand dollars
liaviug been speedily collected, and the
Legislature of Massachusetts having voted

chap.xxx] remarks on the voluntary system.

181

a large annual grant to give permanency
to the projected institution, the corpora-
tion entered vigorously upon the vi^ork,
and opened a school for the blind, which
has now been for ten years in successful
operation. As the property, so munificent-
ly given by Mr. Perkins, was found not in
all respects suitable, it was exchanged in
1839 for Mount Washington House and
grounds, in South Boston, beautifully situ-
ated near the bay which spreads out to the
east of the city, and in every way adapted
for the purpose. The institution is imder
the direction of Dr. Samuel G. Howe, a
man of remarkable qualifications for the
post. The number of pupils is about sev-
enty, and they are reported to be making
excellent progress, and remarkably happy.

There are four other institutions for the
blind in the United States. New- York has
one, which had last year about sixty-five
pupils ; Philadelphia one, which had sixty-
two pupils ; Columbus, in Ohio, one, which
had fifty-eight pupils ; and in the same es-
tablishment with the asylum for the deaf
and dumb at Staunton, in Virginia, there is
a department for the blind, with about five-
and-twenty pupils. All these four have
sprung up since the establishment of that
at Boston in 1832, and they are all flourish-
ing. The number of pupils in the whole
five was, last year, about 270. The whole
number of the blind in the United States
in 1840 was 6916.

A few years ago, a Mr. Will, of Philadel-
phia, bequeathed a sum to be laid out in
establishing a hospital for the Wind, but the
institution that has arisen out of this be-
quest is not a school, but a retreat, where
the aged and infirm blind may pass their
remaining days in comfort.

Although these institutions are aided by
the Legislatures of the states within which
they are established, most of them, never-
theless, may be traced to the benevolence
of Christian citizens, acting individually or
together. Few establishments can be con-
templated by the eye of Christian sympa-
thy with greater interest than these quiet
retreats. There the blind not only learn
the elements of a common education,* and
such an expertness in some of the mechan-
ical arts as enables them, even while un-
der tuition, to contribute towards their own
support, but cultivate music also, by which
many an hour sweetly passes away, and

* Joseph B. Smith, a pupil of the Perkins Insti-
tution and Massachusetts Asylum for the Blind, pur-
sued the study of Latin, Greek, and the other branch-
es of a preparatory course with success, and entered
Harvard University in the autumn of 1839, where
he has made respectable progress. He gets his les-
sons with the help of his companion, who carefully
reads them over to him, and seeks out in the lexicon
the meaning of words he does not understand. In
geometry, when the diagram is too complicated for
him to retain a clear conception of it, he causes it
to be " embossed" upon thick paper, that he may ex-
amine it with his fingers.

for which many of them show remarkable
aptitude.

Nor is our literature for the blind incon-
siderable, when it is borne in mind that it
is not ten years since printing in '' raised"
characters for their use was first intro-
duced among us. Above thirty volumes
have been published at Boston, and about
half that number at Philadelphia, compri-
sing several of the most interesting reli-
gious works in the English language, and
the perusal of which has already proved a
blessing to many of the blind.* It is grat-
ifying to think that these institutions have
all along been, to a great extent, in the
hands of good men, so that this benevolent
enterprise has taken a happy direction
from the first.

The Report of the Boston institution for
1841 gives us the history of a child who
had been four years a pupil there, and
whose case is more interesting, probably,
than any other that has ever been known.
Laura Bridgman, born in 1829, had lost,
when twenty months old, the faculties of
sight, hearing, and speech, and partially that
of smell. At the age of nine she was placed
at the institution. There she learned to
read and write, and has made very consid-
erable progress in knowledge. The details
of the manner in which she acquired these
arts are exceedingly curious, but to give
them does not fall within the scope of this
work.

CHAPTER XXX.

CONCLUDING REMARKS ON THE DEVELOPMENT
OF THE VOLUNTARY SYSTEM.

We here close our notice of the devel-
opment of the voluntary principle in the
United States ; the results will appear more
appropriately in another part of this work.
If it is thought that I have dealt too much
in details, I can only say that these seemed
necessary for obvious reasons. There be-
ing no longer a union of Church and State
in any part of the country, so that religion

* The books published by the institution at Bos-
ton are, the New Testament; Farts of the Old
Testament ; Lardner's Universal History ; Selec-
tions from Old English Authors ; Selections from
Modern English Authors ; Howe's Geography for
the Blind; Howe's General Atlas; Howe's Atlas of
the United Slates ; Blind Child's First Book ; Blind
Child's Second Book; the Dairyman's Daughter;
the Harvey Boys ; Blind Child's Spelling Book ;
Blind Child's English Grammar; the Pilgrim's Prog-
ress ; Baxter's Call ; Sixpenny Glass of Wine ; Life
of Melancthon ; Book of Sacred Hymns ; Viri Romas ;
Pierce's Geometry, with Diagrams, illustrative of
Natural Philosophy ; Political Class Book ; Blind
Child's Manual.

The Pennsylvania Institute, besides printing por-
tions of the Old Testament, has published a Guide
to Spelling; Select Library; Student's Magazine;
French Verbs ; a Grammar ; and two or three books
in the German language.

182

RELIGION IN AMERICA.

[Book IV.

must depend, under God, for its temporal
support wholly upon the voluntary princi-
ple, it seemed of much consequence to
show how vigorously, and how extensive-
ly, that principle has brought the influence
of the Gospel to bear in every direction
upon the objects within its legitimate
sphere. In doing this, I have aimed at
answering a multitude of questions pro-
posed to me during my residence in Eu-
rope.

Thus I have shown how, and by what
means, funds are raised for the erection of
.<5hurch edifices, for the support of pastors,
and for providing destitute places with the
preaching of the Gospel — this last involv-
ing the whole subject of our home mission-
ary efforts. And as ministers must be pro-
vided for the settlements forming apace
in the West, as well as for the constantly
increasing population to be found in the
villages, towns, and cities of the East, I
entered somewhat at length into the sub-
ject of education, from the primary schools
up to the theological seminaries and facul-
ties.

It was next of importance to show how
the press is made subservient to the cause
of the Gospel and the extension of the
kingdom of God ; then, how the voluntary
principle can grapple with existing evils in
society, such as intemperance, Sabbath
breaking, slavery, and war, by means of
diverse associations formed for their re-
pression or removal ; and, finally, I have re-
viewed the beneficent and humane institu-
tions of the country, and shown how much
the voluntary principle has had to do with
their origin and progress.

The reader who has had the patience to
follow me thus far, must have been struck
with the vast versatility, if I may so speak,
of this great principle. Not an exigency
occurs in which its application is called
for, but forthwith those who have the
heart, the hand, and the purse to meet the
case, combine their eflbrts. Thus the prin-
ciple seems to extend itself in every direc-
tion witli an all-powerful influence. Adapt-
ing itself to every variety of circumstan-
ces, it acts w^herever the Gospel is to be
preached, wherever vice is to be attacked,
and wherever suff'ering humanity is to be
relieved.*

* There is one field on which the voluntary prin-
ciple is accomplishing perhaps as great triumphs,
and diffusing as happy an influence as on any other,
but which 1 have not yet noticed. I refer to that
presented by the numerous manufacturing establish-
ments which have been springing up during the last
five-and-twenty years in the Middle and Northern
States. Large factories in the Old World are prover-
bial for ignorance and vice. But if a man would like
to see religion flourishing in manufacturing towns
and among " operatives," let him visit some of those
towns in New-England in which cotton, woollen, or
other factories have grown up, and where hundreds,
in some instances thousands, of men and women are
collected together under circumstances in which

Nor is this principle less beneficial to
those whom it enlists in the various enter-
prises of Christian philanthropy than to
those who are its express objects. The
very activity, energy, and self-reliance
which it calls forth, are great blessings to
the individual who exercises these quali-
ties, as well as to those for whose sake they
are put forth, and to the community at
large. Men are so constituted as to derive
happiness from the cultivation of an inde-
pendent, energetic, and benevolent spirit,
in being co-workers with God in promo-
ting his glory, and the true welfare of their
fellow-men.

they are apt to exercise a most corrupting influence
on one another. Let him there observe the pains ta-
ken by bands of devoted Christians, pastors, and
members of their flocks, to gather these into Bible-
classes and Sunday-schools, to induce them to at-
tend church, to provide libraries of good books for
them, to open public lectures on scientific and gen-
eral as well as religious subjects : above all, let him
mark the earnestness with which faithful ministers
preach the Gospel to them, and the assiduity with
which they watch for their souls ; and he will per-
ceive how much may be done, even under very un-
favourable circumstances, for saving men's souls
from ruin. 1 have never visited more virtuous com-
munities than I have seen in some of those villages,
or any in which the Gospel has triumphed more sig-
nally over all obstacles.

No manufacturing town in the United States has
grown up more rapidly than Lowell, near the Merri-
mac River, about thirty miles northwest of Boston.
It was but a small village not many years ago, and
in 1827 had only 3500 inhabitants. But in 1840
these had increased to 20.000. As it derives great
advantages for cotton, woollen, and other factories,
from the vast water-power it possesses, several com-
panies have built large mills, and employ a great
number of people, mostly young women above fifteen
years of age, who have been led to leave other parts
of New-England by the inducement of higher wages
than they could command at home. This is an ob-
ject with some, in order that they may help their
poor parents ; with others, that they may find means
to prosecute their education ; and with a third and
numerous class, who, being betrothed to young men
in their native districts, come to earn for themselves
a little " outfit" for the married life. Let us see
what opportunities for religious instruction are pre-
sented to these young persons.

In 1840 there were fifteen or sixteen churches in
Lowell, in the Sunday-schools attached to ten of
which there were 4936 scholars and 433 teachers ; in
all, 5369. About three fourths of the scholars are
girls, a large proportion of whom are above fifteen
years of age. More than 500 became hopefully pious
in 1839, yet that year was not more remarkable than
others in regard to religion. Including the Sunday-
schools attached to the other five or six churches,
the whole number of scholars and teachers for 1840
considerably exceeded 6000, and nearly equalled a
third of the population. Nearly 1000 of the factory
girls had funds in the savings banks, amounting, in
all, to 100,000 dollars. A decided taste for reading
prevails among them. When in Lowell in the sum-
mer of 1841, 1 found that two monthly magazines of
handsome appearance were jiublishing there. One
of these was the "Operatives' Magazine," and the
other the " Lowell Offering." Both were of 8vo
form, the one containing sixteen pages, the other
thirty-two. Both displayed very considerable talent,
and the Offering was tilled with original articles,
written solely by the female operatives. A third pe-
riodical has since been established, conducted by the
same class of people.

Chap. II.]

MAINTENANCE OF ©ISCIPLINE.

183

We now take leave of this part of our
work, to enter on that for which all that
has hitherto been said must be considered

as preparatory — I mean the direct work of
bringing men to the knowledge and pos-
session of SALVATION.

BOOK V.

THE CHURCH AND THE PULPIT IN AMERICA.

CHAPTER I.

IMPORTANCE OF THIS PART OF THE SUBJECT.

We now come to that part of our sub-
ject which more immediately bears upon
the salvation of men's souls, and the im-
portance of which will be readily owned,
therefore, by all who rightly appreciate
the nature and value of that salvation.

It is interesting to mark the influence of
Christian institutions on society — the re-
pose of the Sabbath — the civilizing effect
of the people assembling in their churches
— and the great amount of knowledge
communicated in the numerous discourses
of a well-instructed ministry. Apart from
Jaigher considerations, the benefits indi-
rectly conferred upon a community by an
evangelical ministry are well worth all
that it costs. It softens and refines man-
ners, promotes health, by promoting atten-
tion to cleanliness and the frequent change
of apparel ; it diffuses information, and
rouses minds that might otherwise remain
ignorant, inert, and stupid. But what is
this compared with the preparation of the
immortal spirit for its everlasting destiny ■?
This world, after all, is but the place of
our education for a better ; of how much
moment, then, that the period of our pupil-
age should be rightly spent!

The Church, with its institutions, is of
Divine ordination. It was appointed by
its great Author to be the depositary of the
economy of salvation as far as human co-
operation is concerned, and is designed
to combine all the human agencies which
God, in infinite wisdom, has resolved to
employ in the accomplishment of that sal-
vation. How important, then, that the
Church should meet the design of its Di-
vine Founder, not only as regards its prop-
er character, but also in the development
and right employment of the influences
■which it was constituted to put forth for
the salvation of the world !

As the Church on earth is but preparatory
to the Church in heaven, it was obviously
intended to bear some resemblance to the
celestial state. As the depositary to which
God has committed the custody of his re-
vealed truth, and as his chosen instrument
for its diffusion among mankind, it ought
obviously to be kept as pure as is possible
for an institution placed in the hands of
imperfect creatures at the best, from every-

thing which would impede the discharge of
its high functions.

But we must not misapprehend the
Church's ofliice. She has received no power
of original legislation. She is nothing but
an agent. Christ is the Lawgiver and the
Head of the Church. He has given her the
revelation of his will, and clearly defined
her sphere of action. Nor can she justly
expect his blessing if she goes beyond the
boundaries of her duty.

By a holy life on the part of her mem-
bers ; by a conversation such as becometh
saints ; by well-directed efforts to make
known the Gospel to dying men every-
where, whether by the faithful proclama-
tion of it on the part of the ministry whom
God hath appointed, or by more famiUar
instruction in the Sunday-school and the
Bible- class, or around the family altar, or
by the distribution of the Scriptures and
other religious books, united with constant,
fervent, and believing prayer, that the Holy
Spirit may render all these means success-
ful, the Church is required to exert her in-
fluence in saving the world. It is thus that
she becomes " the light of the world ;" it is
thus that she proves herself to be " the salt
of the earth." But, in order to fulfil this
high mission, she ought to be as nearly as
possible what the Saviour of men intended
her to be — a company of saints redeemed
by his blood, renewed by his Spirit, and
devoted to his service — ever bearing the
cross, that she may wear the crown, and
preparing for that day when she shall be
presented to her Lord, " not having spot or
wrinkle, or any such thing," but " holy and
without blemish," for she is " his body."

CHAPTER II.

THE EVANGELICAL CHURCHES IN THE UNITED
STATER MAINTAIN DISCIPLINE.

This is a point of inexpressible impor-
tance to the prosperity of a church ; and I
rejoice to say that such is the light in which
it is viewed by Christians of all the evan-
gehcal denominations in the United States,
almost without exception.

I do not suppose that there is a single
evangelical church in the country that does
not keep a record of its members ; I mean
of those whom it has received according to

184

RELIGION IN AMERICA.

[Book V.

some regular form or other as memhers,
and who, as such, are entitled to come to
the Lord's Supper. As this whole subject
is not only important, but by some readers
may not be easily comprehended, I may
venture upon some detail.

1. There is no evangelical church in the
United States, that is, no organized body
of believers worshipping in one place, that
does not hold a creed comprehending the
following points, at least ; the existence
of one God, in three persons. Father, Son,
and Holy Ghost, of the same substance,
and equal in all the attributes of their na-
ture ; the depravity, guilt, condemnation,
and misery of all mankind ; an all-sufficient
and only atonement by the Son of God,
who assumed human nature, and thus be-
came both God and man in one person, and
by his obedience, suffering, death, and in-
tercession, has procured salvation for men ;
regeneration by the Holy Ghost, by which
repentance and faith are made to spring up
in the soul ; the final judgment of all men ;
and a state of everlasting misery for the
wicked, and of blessedness for the righte-
ous. On these doctrines, in their substan-
tial and real meaning, there is no difference
among the evangelical churches in the
United States.

2. Neither is there any evangelical
church in America that does not hold the
necessity of a moral life — of a life against
which no charge inconsistent with a Chris-
tian profession can be brought — in order
to a man's being a proper member of a
church of Jesus Christ ; or which would
not promptly exclude an immoral person,
on being sufficiently proved to be such, from
its membership. No doubt there are im-
moral persons among the members of the
churches. They are persons whose guilt
cannot always be established by such
proof as the laws of Christ's house require,
but their number, it is believed, is com-
paratively small.

3. There are few, if any, evangelical
churches in which the profession of a mere
general or " historical belief," as it is called,
in the great doctrines above stated, accom-
panied even by an outwardly moral life,
would be considered sufficient to render a
man fit to be admitted to the Lord's Sup-
per. Nineteen twentieths of all the evan-
gelical churches in this country believe
that there is such a thing as being " born
again," " born of the Spirit." And very
few, indeed, admit the doctrine that a man
who is not " converted," that is, "renewed
by the Spirit," may come without sin to
that holy ordinance.

There may be difference of opinion
among truly evangelical Christians re-
specting the amount of evidence of conver-
sion necessary in the case. But I may
unhesitatingly affirm that, with few excep-
tions, all expect some evidence in every

candidate for admission to the Church and
participation in its most precious privileges ;
and such evidence, too, as induces the be-
lief that, as the Scriptures express it, he
has " passed from death unto life." The
belief is almost universal that the sacra-
ment of the Lord's Supper was appointed
for the converted or regenerated, and
should, as far as possible, be administered
only to such. The number of those who
hold a different opinion is small. Accord-
ingly, it would be found, upon inquiry, that
all the pastors of our evangelical churches-
are very careful to explain with what dis-
positions of the heart and will, as well as
with what views of the understanding, one
should come to the Lord's Supper, and that
these are truly such as no unregenerate
person can possess. This holy sacrament
is rarely dispensed in our churches without
being preceded by a discourse on the na-
ture of the preparation required in order to
a right "communicating," or receiving of
this ordinance ; and all irreligious persons
— in fact, all persons, be their lives out-
wardly what they may — who have not the
testimony of their consciences that they
possess, so far as they honestly perceive
the state of their hearts, the qualifications
described, are solemnly warned of the sin,,
and consequent danger to their souls, in-
curred by unworthily partaking of that holy
supper.

It is, indeed, too true that, with all this
care, unworthy persons do come to the
Lord's table. Many, no doubt, gain admis-
sion to the churches who are, after all, not
converted. To say that many do so from
base, hypocritical motives, would imply a
very mistaken view of the case, for withi
us there is no visible inducement to such a
course. No civil privilege hangs on a
man's being a member of the Church and:
receiving the sacrament, as is the case in
some countries in Europe,* nor is it reck-
oned dishonourable for a man not to belong
to some church. None among us presumes
for a moment that a man must have com-
mitted a crime, and on that account been,
excluded, if he be not seen going twice of
thrice a year, at least — on the great festi-
vals, for instance — to the sacrament of the-
Lord's Supper. No such idea is known
in the United States. Our pastors and
other church officers, whose duty it is tO'
govern the churches, do not profess to be
infallible. They cannot know the heart.
They can only judge according to the evi-
dence presented to them. They very nat-
urally lean to the side of charity ; and with
every desire on their part to do their duty,
there are many, doubtless, admitted in
every church without being truly convert-

♦ In Sweden, for instance, a man cannot give his
tcstinnony in a court of justice who has not talien the-
sacrament of the Lord^a-Supper within the year im,-
tnediately preceding !

Chap. III.]

MEMBERSHIP IN CHURCHES.

185

ed, and when once admitted remain mem-
bers, unless they withdraw of their own
choice, or go to some other part of the
country, or are excluded on account of
some open immorality.

But while we cannot hope that even in
the evangelical churches which are most
rigorously strict in their admission to mem-
bership, and to the communion of the
Lord's Supper, all the members are con-
verted persons, yet the number of such as
are of scandalous lives is small. Nor are
such persons suffered long to continue
when their characters become known. On
this subject our churches form a very
striking contrast with some which I have
seen in other parts of the world. Nor have
we many persons who come in crowds to
the Lord's Supper on some great festival,
such as Easter or Christmas, and stay
away from it during the rest of the year.
Still less will there be seen, what I have
been told sometimes occurs in Protestant
churches which I have visited in other
lands, not a few persons waiting outside
the church, on such occasions, until the
communion service commences, who then
make their way in, approach the commu-
nion-table or altar, receive the emblems of
the Saviour's body and blood, and as soon
as possible hasten out and depart ! As if
there were any virtue in such horrible
mockery and profaneness ! I bless God
that we have nothing that even approaches
to this in point of impiety ; and yet we
have to mourn over the fact that many of
the members of our churches do not mani-
fest that spirituality, devotion, and zeal
which they ought to possess. But were
there no discipline in our churches, and
were all the world, whatever might be
their character, permitted to come to the
Lord's Supper, the state of things would
be in every respect infinitely worse. We
do make an effort to separate the Church
from the world, and to make it manifest
that there is a difference, and that not a
small one, between those who belong to
the former, and those who seek their hap-
piness in the latter, and have their desires
bounded by it.

CHAPTER in.

THE WAY IN WHICH MEMBERSHIP IN OUR
CHURCHES IS OBTAINED.

Often has the question been addressed
to me, " How do people become members
of your churches in America?" This has
been said to me particularly on the Conti-
nent, where, in too many countries, disci-
pline seems to be almost unknown, and
where, I have been assured, there are many
churches in which all who choose may
come to the Lord's Supper, and that this

alone is requisite in order to a man's mem-
bership in a church. This, too, it is said,
often takes place without saying a word
to the pastor, or any other officer of the
church. Widely different is the practice
which obtains in the evangelical churches
of the United States. I will describe it in
few words.

Every faithful pastor, who preaches reg-
ularly in any particular place for a year or
two, is supposed to become pretty well ac-
quainted with the people of his charge. In
most cases, he not only comes to know the
families that compose his flock, but also,
more or less, nearly every individual, es-
pecially of the adult population. This is
almost certain to be the case where the
flock is not very numerous. This general
acquaintance gives him some knowledge
of the character of almost every individual.
With most, if not all, he endeavours to have
some conversation, more or less directly,
on the subject of salvation, and the hopes
of eternal life which they may be enter-
taining.

In addition to this, his Bible-classes and
Sunday-schools bring him into frequent
contact with the more juvenile part of the
people over whom the Holy Ghost has
made him overseer. He finds frequent
opportunities of speaking with them about
their souls. Besides, he is not alone. The
elders, deacons, or other officers of his
church, assist him much with their co-op-
eration. Through these, as well as through
zealous, judicious, and faithful private mem-
bers of his church, he learns continually
the state of mind of most, if not of all the
people in his congregation. This knowl-
edge is of the greatest consequence when
persons come to converse with him re-
specting their salvation. In our revivals,
as will appear presently, it is common for
the pastor to appoint a time for meeting at
his house, or at some other convenient
place, those who are awakened to a sense
of the importance of religion. On these
occasions he converses with each individ-
ual if it be possible, gives such directions
as they may need, and prays with the
whole. When they are too many for him
to speak to all of them, he makes use of
the assistance of some of the most experi-
enced of the officers of his church. Some-
times a neighbouring minister will come
and help him. I have seen twenty, fifty,
a hundred, and even as many as three
hundred persons, all, with few exceptions,
adults, come together in deep distress of
soul, on such occasions.

In such little meetings the pastor learns
the progress of religion in the souls of his
people. But when there is no special " se-
riousness," as we say, or uncommon atten-
tion to religion among his people, then it
may be that the number of those who come
from time to time to speak to him respect-

186

RELIGION IN AMERICA.

[Book V.

jng their salvation will be small. And if
he ceases to be faithful in preaching the
Gospel, and his church becomes cold in its
zeal, in its faith, and in its prayers, then
it may happen that for a while he may not
have any.

In many of our churches the sacrament
of the Lord's Supper is administered once
in three months, in many once in two, and
in others once a month. Some time be-
fore, the pastor gives notice that he will
Eieet at a certain time and place all such
as wish to join the church on that occasion,
and receive the communion for the first
time. He meets with them, converses with
them, and learns the state of their minds,
as far as it is possible for man to judge.
In many cases the persons come to him re-
peatedly to lay open their hearts, and re-
ceive his counsels. If he believes that
they have met with the change of heart of
which the Saviour speaks in his interview
with Nicodemus, he encourages them in
the resolution to join the church. If he
thinks that they are not prepared for this
important step, he advises them to defer it
for a season, that they may become so. In
some cases, as in that of the Presbyterians
universally, the pastor reports the matter
to the session of the church, and the can-
didates have generally to appear before
that body, which consists of the pastor and
the elders, who may be from two to twelve
in number. In the Congregational and Bap-
list churches, it is the " church," that is,
the body of the members of the church,
who hear the candidates relate the history
of the work of grace in their hearts, and
give their reasons for believing that they
have become " new creatures in Christ
Jesus." If the person who applies to be
received as a member of the church is a
stranger, or one of whose deep serious-
ness the pastor and the brethren of the
church had been ignorant, then he is ex-
amined more fully upon his " experience,"
or the work of God in his soul. He is
asked to tell when and how he became
concerned for his salvation, the nature and
depth of his repentance, his views of sin,
his faith in Christ, his hopes of eternal life,
&c., &c. These examinations are some-
times long, and in the highest degree in-
teresting. Solemn, and yet, to the faithful
pastor, joyful work, to deal with souls in
these important seasons ! But the faithful
pastor is always engaged in guiding the
scjuls of his people in the way that leads
to life.

The day arrives for administering the
Iiord's Supper ; the preparatory services,
including a sermon, are gone through ;
the moment comes for commencing those
which relate to this sacred ordinance. Be-
fore he commences them, the pastor, in
many churches, calls upon all those who
are now about to join the church to come

forward and take their places before the
pulpit. He reads their names aloud, and
baptizes those of them who have not been
baptized before. He then puts certain
questions to the adults, imbodying the
chief articles of the church's creed, and to
these they answer in the affirmative. This
is sometimes followed by his reading out
the form of a covenant, which they must
give their assent to and engage to keep.*

*■ As the reader may be desirous of seeing one of
these summaries of faith and covenant, I here give the
following one, selected from among the many which I
have seen. The pastor addresses the candidates
standing in the midst of the church in the following
language :

FAITH.

" In the presence of God and this assembly you do
now appear, desiring publicly and solemnly to enter
into covenant willi Him and his Church according to
the Gospel, professing your full assent to the follow-
ing summary of faith.

"Art. I. You solemnly and publicly profess your
belief in one God, the Almighty Maker of heaven and
e:irth, who upholds all things, and orders all events
according to his own pleasure, and for his own glory.

" Art. 2. You believe that this glorious Being ex-
ists in three persons, God the Father, God the Son,
and God the Holy Ghost; and that these three are
one, being the same in substance, equal in power and
glory.

" Art. 3. You believe that the Scriptures of the Old
and New Testaments were given by inspiration of
God, and are our only rule of faith and practice.

" Art. 4. You believe that God at first created man
upright, and in his own image ; that our first pa-
rents fell from their original uprightness, and involved
themselves and their posterity in a state of sin and
misery.

" Art. 5. You believe that all men since the fall
are by nature depraved, having no conformity of i
heart to God, and being destitute of all moral excel-
lence.

" Art. 6. You believe that Jesus Christ is the Sav-
iour of sinners, and the only Mediator between God
and man.

" Art. 7. You believe in the necessity of the renew-
ing and sanctifying operations of the Holy Spirit,
and that to be happy you must be holy.

"Art. 8. You believe that sinners are justified by
faith alone, through the atoning sacrifice of Jesus
Christ.

" Art. 9. You believe that the saints will be kept
by the almighty power of God from the dominion of
sin, and from final condemnation, and that at the last
day they will be raised incorruptible, and be forever
happy.

" Art. 10. You believe that the finally impenitent
will be punished ' with everlasting destruction from
the presence of the Lord, and from the glory of his
power.'

"Thus you believe in your hearts, and thus you
confess before men."

COVENANT.

" You do now, under this belief of the Christian
religion as held in this church, publicly and solemn-
ly avouch the eternal Jehovah, Father, Son, and
Holy Ghost, to be your God and the God of yours,
engaging to devote yourselves to his fear and service,
to walk in his ways, and to keep his commandments.
With an humble reliance on his Spirit, you engage
to live aiiswerably to the profession you now make,
submitting yourselves to the laws of Christ's king-
dom, and to that discipline which he has appointed
to be administered in his Church. That you may ob-
tain the assistance you need, you engage diligently
to attend, and carefully to improve all the ordinances
he has instituted.

Chap. IV.]

UNCONVERTED MEN.

187

The forms in which all this is done vary
in different churches and denominations,
but the substance is the same. It also
takes place sometimes at the public servi-
ces on Saturday, preparatory to the cele-
bration of the communion on the Sabbath
following.

I may add that many, particularly of the
Presbyterian churches in the interior, still
retain the old practice of the communi-
cants taking their seats at a long table in
the principal aisle of the church, the bread
and wine being handed round, accompa-
nied with prayer and a brief exhortation.
In the cities and large towns the commu-
nicants occupy certain pews assigned to
them, either in the middle of the church,
or in the end next to the pulpit. In the
Episcopal Church, the communicants re-
ceive the sacrament kneeling round the
altar. Though the administration of this
sacrament most commonly takes place im-
mediately after the forenoon sermon, it is
now celebrated in many churches in the
afternoon, preceded by a short sermon or
address. In a Presbyterian church in
Washington City, it used, a few years ago,
to be celebrated at night, and may be so
still. The effect was solemn, and not un-
pleasant, and it had the advantage, in the
«yes of those who attach importance to
such matters, of coinciding with the hour
of its first institution. But a more impor-
tant advantage, in my opinion, lay in its ad-
mitting of the communicants being joined
by many from other churches, on an oc-
casion so well calculated to unite the hearts
of all in Christian sympathy and love.

Let me farther add, that in almost all
our churches those who are not members
usually remain and witness the solemn
ceremony : a most proper and profitable
custom, for the very occasion speaks in
most aff"ecting language to the unconverted
heart, and aff'ords an admirable opportunity
for the faithful and skilful messenger of

"Thus you covenant, promise, and engage, in the
fear of God, and by the help of his Spirit.

" In consequence of these professions and promises,
we affectionately recognise you as members of this
church, and in the name of Christ declare you enti-
tled to all its visible privileges. We welcome you to
this fellowship with us m the blessings of the Gos-
pel, and on our part engage to watch over you, and
to seek your edification as long as you shall continue
among us.

" May the Lord support and guide you through a
transitory life, and after this warfare is accomplished,
receive you to His blessed Church above, where our
love shall be forever perfect, and our joy forever full.
Amen."

In some churches the summary of faith used on
these occasions, and the covenant, accompanied by a
short and pertinent address to the members of the
church, is printed in a little book, which also con-
tains a list of all their names, and their residences if
in a city, a copy of which is possessed by each mem-
ber. It is a convenient manual, as well as a solemn
remembrancer, which it is profitable to consult fre-
quently.

God to appeal to such on behalf of Him
whose sorrows are so touchingly set forth
in an ordinance which may truly be called
an epitome of the Gospel.

CHAPTER IV,

THE RELATIONS WHICH UNCO.NVEKTED MEN HOLD
TO THE CHURCH.

I HAVE known many persons in different
parts of Europe who, after listening to
statements such as the above, seemed at
a loss to comprehend the position held,
with respect to the Church, by those who
are not its members, and they have asked
again and again for explanations on the
subject. I have told them, in reply, that
such of those persons as are the children
of pious parents, hold towards the Church
a very interesting relation, which, though
invisible, if I may so speak, is real ; and
that such of them as have been baptized
in infancy, in my opinion, maintain an im-
portant relation to it, which ought to be
made much more of than is usual among
the Paidobaptist branches of the Protestant
Church, We are very faulty on this point
in the United States, but not more so, I
apprehend, than are our Protestant breth-
ren in other lands. Very affecting appeals,
nevertheless, are often made by our faith-
ful ministjsrs to such of their hearers as
are not converted, yet who have knelt by
the side of a devout mother, have felt her
hand resting on their youthful heads, and
who, when in the arms of a pious parent,
received the symbol of that " washing of
regeneration," without which none can
serve God acceptably, either on earth or
in heaven. Nor are such appeals in vain.*

But the question has often been propo-
sed to me, " Are men who are not allow-
ed to come to the Lord's Supper willing
to attend your churches V Most certainly
they are. They are too well instructed in
religion not to be aware that admission to
that ordinance would do them anything
but good as long as they remain unrecon-
ciled to God through Jesus Christ.f Many

* Some very interesting investigations have been
made in the churches in New-England, the portion
of the United States where the Gospel has been
longest, most extensively, and most faithfully preach-
ed, taken as a whole, which have shown in the most
decisive manner that the "children of the Church,"
that is, the children of believers, who have been ded-
icated to God, many of them in baptism, have shared
most largely in the blessing of God's grace ; and that
nothing can be more completely unfounded than the
reproach that "the children of Christians, and es-
pecially those of ministers and deacons, do worse
than those of other people." The very reverse has
been demonstrated by a widely-extended and care-
fully-prosecuted inquiry. Indeed, what other result
could a man who believes God have expected ?

t Foreigners sometimes commit great mistakes
from not being aware of our customs in this respect.
A Spanish gentleman once called on the late Rev.

188

RELIGION IN AMERICA.

[Book V.

of them, indeed, would recoil with horror
were a minister to propose such a thing.
Yet they value the privilege of going to
the sanctuary. They have been taught
from their childhood that the preaching of
the Gospel is the great instrumentality ap-
pointed by God for the salvation of men.
They go in the hope of one day finding
that which they know to be essential to
their happiness even in this life. Others
may be influenced by the force of educa-
tion, or by that of habit, by fashion, by the
desire of seeing others and being seen, by
the charms of the preacher's eloquence,
and so forth. In no other part of the
world, perhaps, do the inhabitants attend
church in a larger proportion than in the
United States ; certainly no part of the
Continent of Europe can compare with
them in that respect. The contrast be-
tween the two must strike any one who,
after having travelled much in the one,
comes to see any of the cities of the other,
with the single exception of New-Orleans,
which is hardly, as yet, an American city,
and even it, in point of church attendance,
is far better than Paris, Rome, Vienna,
Hamburg, or Copenhagen.

Not only do persons who have not yet
become members, by formal admission as
such, attend our churches ; they form a
very large part of our congregations. In
many cases they constitute two thirds,
three fourths, or even more ; this depend-
ing much on the length of the period du-
ring which the congregation has been or-
ganized, and hardly ever less than a half,
even in the most highly-favoured church-
es. Nor do they attend only; they are
cheerful supporters of the public worship,
and are often found as liberal in contribu-
ting of their substance for the promotion
of good objects, as the members of the
church themselves, with whom they are
intimately connected by the ordinary busi-
ness of life, and by family ties. Multitudes
of them are like the young man whom
Jesus loved, but who still " lacked one
thing." They attend from year to year,
as did the impotent man at the Pool of
Bethesda, nor do they attend in vain.* It

Sylvester Lamed, of New-Orleans, one of the most
eloquent pulpit orators of his day, to say that he
wished to join his church, and to receive the sacra-
ment of the Supper, " for," said he, with an oath,
"you are the most eloquent man I have ever heard !"
Mr. Lamed spent an hour with him in explaming
what was required in order to his becoming a mem-
ber of his church ; in other words, what it is to be a
true Christian, and the Spaniard went away with a
heavy heart, to reflect on a subject which iiad never
been presented to his mind in the same light before.
* In the State of Connecticut a series of most in-
teresting inquiries have been prosecuted, dunng the
last few years, under the a\ispices, I believe, of the
General Association of the Conjjiregational Church-
es ; one of which relates to the inlluence which the
faithful preaching of the Gospel in a community — a
parish, for instance — exerts upon the mass who hear

pleases God to make the faithful preaching-
of his Word instrumental to the salvation
now of one, now of another ; and some-
times, by a special outpouring of his Spirit,
He brings many at the same time into his
kingdom.

The non-professing hearers of the Word,
then, are to be considered as simply what
we call them, members of the congrega-
tion, not of the church. We can look, as
I have said, for their assistance in many,,
if not all good undertakings, as well as in
the ordinary support of the Gospel. Man)',
in the character of trustees, are faithful
guardians of the property of the church and
congregation. Many teach in oiu- Sunday-
schools, and find instruction themselves in
their endeavours to instruct others.

One great advantage in this is, that un-
converted men, who know themselves to
be such, occupy their proper place. No
law, no false custom, compels them to be
members of the church. Hence their po-
sition is less dangerous in several respects^
They are less tempted to indulge self-de-
lusion, and are more open to the direct,
unimpeded shafts of the truth. Their po-
sition, too, tends to give them a remark-
able simplicity and frankness of character.
The term " Christian" generally signify-
ing with us, not a mere believer in Chris-
tianity, but one who professes to be a dis-
ciple of Christ, and is known as such, nine
persons out of ten of those who make no
profession of religion would, on being ask-
ed, " Are you a Christian ]" promptly re-
ply, " No, I am sorry to say I am not ;"
meaning thereby that he was sorry to say-
that he is not a truly religious man, or
what the word Christian ought to signify,
and is with us so often employed to ex-
press. This is obviously better for uncon-
verted persons — better for their own con-
sciences— than to be involved in a church
relation, and yet be without religion. It is
every way better, also, for the pastor and
the church ; and the prospect of the Word
of God gaining an entrance into the heart
of the unrenewed is many times more en-
couraging than if they were members of
the church, and had " a name to live" while
in reality "dead in trespasses and sins."

it for a long period of time. The results are most
striking, and clearly demonstrate the blessing of
having the staled and regular use of the means of
grace. It has been found that, of those who habitu-
ally attend churches where the Gospel is faithfully
preached, the number who. sooner or later, are made
to experience its saving power is surprisingly great ;
and, on the contrary, the number of those who die
without giving any evidence of possessing true jiiety
IS small. The investigation has been made in all
parts of the State, and has everywhere conducted to
the same important and delightful conclusion. I
know not whether this inquiry has ever been pros-
ecuted so thoroughly and extensively in any other
part of the world.

Chap. VI.]

CHARACTER OF AMERICAN PREACHING.

189

CHAPTER V.

THE ADMINISTRATION OF DISCIPLINE.

I HAVE been often asked in Europe, What
measures are adopted by our churches in
enforcing discipline — how unworthy per-
sons, for instance, are prevented from com-
ing to the Lord's Table ? The very ques-
tion indicates familiarity with a state of
things very different from what prevails in
the United States — with a state of things
in which the decisions of the ecclesiastical
authority are enforced by the civil.

Church discipline with us, though whol-
ly moral, is thought quite sufficient. The
case must be rare, indeed, of any one, not
a member of some recognised church, com-
ing forward to receive the sacrament in
an evangelical church. He hears the qual-
ifications necessary to a worthy participa-
tion in the ordinance ; he knows that none
but Christians of good repute in other evan-
gelical churches are invited to join the
members of that particular church on the
solemn occasion ; and if he belongs to nei-
ther of these categories, he is not likely to
unite himself to the Lord's people. But if
he should, he does so on his own respon-
sibility before God ; the Church is not to be
blamed for his conduct. Even were a per-
son who had been excommunicated for
open immorality, and universally known
to be so, to take his seat among the mem-
bers of the church, its office-bearers, in
carrying round the symbols of the Sav-
iour's body and blood, would probably pass
him by ; or, if that could not be done, they
would rather allow the matter to take its
course than risk confusion at so solemn a
moment, in the conviction that the Church,
having done her previous duty to the un-
happy man, she is not to blame for his un-
authorized intrusion. I know of one soli-
tary occasion in which one of the office-
bearers whispered in the ear of a person
who ought not to have been among the
communicants, that it would be better for
his own soul, as well as due to the church,
that he should retire, and he did so. But
this was unobserved by most of those im-
mediately around, or, if observed, they did
not know the cause of his retiring. 1 nev-
er knew or heard of another case in which
such a step was necessary.

No difficulty whatever, I repeat, can
arise on this subject. Our discipline is
moral, and the people are too well in-
structed on the subject of their duties not
to know what they should do, and what to
abstain from doing. We have no gens
(Varmes, or other police agents, to enforce
our discipline, and if such functionaries are
ever seen about our churches in any char-
acter but that of worshippers, it is on ex-
traordinary occasions, to keep order at the
door ; and their services are not often
needed even for that purpose.

In regard to church members who sub-
ject themselves to censure for open sin, or
gross neglect of duty, they are dealt with
according to the established discipline of
the body to which they belong ; and that,
in all our evangelical churches, is founded
upon the simple and clear directions given
by our Lord and his Apostles. Unworthy
members, after having been dealt with ac-
cording to Scriptural rule, are excluded
until they give evidence of sincere contri-
tion for their sin. Where the case is fla-
grant, and the sin persisted in, after all at-
tempts to reclaim the offender have failed,
he is openly excommunicated before the
church and congregation. A less open
declaration of the offence and punishment
takes place in other cases. But whatever
be the course pursued, unworthy men are
excluded in all our evangelical churches as
soon as their offence can be properly taken
up by the church. I state this as a general
fact. Once excluded, the world does not
long remain ignorant of what has taken
place, and the church thus avoids the
charge of retaining persons of scandalous
lives in her communion.* Any defect in
our administration of church discipline does
not lie, I conceive, generally speaking, in
its being harsh and impatient ; while, on the
other hand, there is nothing in the institu-
tions of the country, or in the opinions and
habits of the people, to prevent its being as
rigid as the legislation of the great Head
of the Church demands. If there be failure
anywhere, it is chargeable to want of fidel-
ity on the part of those who are intrusted
with the exercise of it.

CHAPTER VI.

CHARACTER OF AMERICAN PREACHING.

In order adequately to describe American
preaching, one should be intimately ac-
quainted with the churches of the country
throughout its vast extent ; but this knowl-
edge it falls to the lot of few to possess.
Foreign writers on the subject have been
either travellers, whose books betray a
very limited acquaintance with the church-
es and their ministers, or untravelled au-
thors, whose judgment has been formed
upon such specimens as they could find in
printed discourses, or hear from the lips of
preachers from the United States during
visits to Europe. In either case, whatever
may have been the impartiality of the
judges, the data for forming a sound opin-

* The deposition of a minister of the Gospel, when
it occurs, which, when we consider how numerous
the ministry is, cannot be thought frequent, is com-
monly announced in the rehgious and other journals,
in order that the churches may be duly guarded
against the admission of the deposed person into
their pulpits, through ignorance of his character and
present position.

190

RELIGION IN AMERICA.

[Book V.

ion upon the subject have been manifestly
insufficient. Few persons in Europe have
read enough of American sermons to form
an accurate judgment respecting the vari-
ous qualities of American preaching, for
few preachers, comparatively, in America
have published volumes of sermons, or
even isolated and occasional discourses.
Some of the most effective preachers have
published very little, and many nothing at
all. And as for those preachers from the
United States who have visited Europe,
not a dozen have been able to preach in
any language but the English ; and any
other language, with all but one or two of
these, has been German. Except in Great
Britain and Ireland, then, and to a very
limited extent in Germany, American
preaching is unknown, except from books
and the reports of persons who have visited
the country. As for the American preach-
ers who have visited Europe, they have
been few in comparison with the whole
body, and have been confined for the most
parf to those of three or four denomina-
tions. Many of them have crossed the
Atlantic as invalids for the recovery of
their health ; others have come with some
object to accomplish, which left little time
for preaching. Under such circumstances
they could hardly be expected to preach as
well as at home ; and yet there have been
some who, while in Europe, reflected no
discredit on themselves or their country as
pulpit orators.*

Preaching in the United States varies
exceedingly both in maimer and in substance,
but most in manner. The clergy in the
Presbyterian, Congregational, Episcopal,
Reformed Dutch, Lutheran, German Re-
formed, Moravian, Reformed Presbyteri-
an, Associate, and As.sociate Reformed
churches, have, with few exceptions, pass-
ed through a regular course of education

* Among the American preachers whose visits are
still remembered with interest in Great Britain (and
some of them on the Continent also), but who are no
longer with us, may be mentioned the Rev. Drs.
Mason, Romeyn, Bruen, Henry, Hobart, Emory,
Fisk, and Clark, who were certainly no mean men.
Of those who have visited Europe within the last few
years, and who are still permitted to prosecnte their
work among us, the Rev. Drs. Spring, Humphrey,
Cox, M'Auley, Codman, Spragiie, I5reckinridge. Pat-
ton, and Rev. Mr. Kirk, of the Presbyterian and Con-
gregational Cliiirches ; the Rev. Drs. Bethnne and
Ferris, of the Reformed Dutch ; the Rev. Drs. Mil-
nor, Milvaine (bishop of Ohio), Meade (bishop of
Virginia), Hawks, and Tyng, of the Episcopal ; the
Rev. Drs. Olin, Cajicrs, President Durbin, anii Bisliop
Soule, of the Methodist ; the Rev. Drs. Wayland,
Stowe, Sears, and .M '.Murray, of the Baptist ; and the
Rev. Dr. Kurtz and the Rev. ?1r. Riley of the Lu-
theran and German Reformed (^lurches, are widely
known in Great Britain, and some of them on the
Continent. The last-named two were kir.dly re-
ceived in Germany, and heard with attention, both
when they spoke of the infant seminaries for which
they pleaded, as well as when they proclaimed "that
Name which is above every name,'' and which is
"like ointment poured forth."

in Latin, Greek, the Natural and Moral
Sciences, and Theology, such as is now
pursued at our colleges and theological
seminaries, or what is tantamount to it.
Many, especially the younger men, have
some knowledge of Hebrew. As for the
Baptist ministers, it is not easy to say how
many have gone through a similar course —
certainly not half, perhaps not a fourth of
them. A still smaller proportion of the
Methodist preachers have had that advan-
tage, though, upon the whole, they are^
probably as well informed as tfie Baptist
ministers are. Ministerial education among
the Cumberland Presbyterians is much in
the same state as among the Methodists.

The clergy of certain denominations,
who have not passed through a collegiate
course, are often spoken of, but very un-
justly, as " uneducated,'' " unlearned," " il-
literate," and so forth. Very many such
have, by great application, made most re-
spectable attainments. Some have aci-
quired a considerable knowledge of the
Latin and Greek classics, and a far greater
number have, by the diligent perusal of
valuable works in English, stored their
minds with a large amount of sound learn-
ing, which they use with much effect in
preaching. Nor is this surprising. A man
may acquire an immense fund of knowledge
through the sole medium of the EngUsk
tongue. Benjamin Franklin knew nothing
of the ancient languages, and not much of
any of the modern, beyond his mother
tongue and French; yet few men of his
day were better informed, or wrote their
mother tongue with equal purity. So, also,
with Washington. And who ever used the
English language with greater propriety
and effect than Bunyan ; or where in that
language shall we find a sounder or abler
theological writer than Andrew Fuller ?
Yet neither Bunyan nor Fuller was ever at
a college.

It is a great, though a conmion mistake,
to suppose that Methodist ministers, when
" on the circuit," read nothing. There beiiig
generally two on each circuit, each has a
good deal of time, especially in the older
portions of the country, for making up his
reports, carrying on his correspondence,
and prosecuting his studies ; and that this
last is done to some good purpose is
clearly shown by the preaching of the great
majority. Those who are labouring on the
" circuits" in the frontier and thinly-set-
tled districts, have much less time for read-
ing and study. Those who are stationed in.
the cities and large towns have as much
time for study as other ministers similarly
situated. Many Baptist ministers, also,
who have never attended college, are close
studeiUs,and carefully prepare for the pul-
pit ; while others, of whom so much can-
not be said, give themselves much to the
reading of certain favourite authors.

Chap. VI.j

CHARACTER OF AMERICAN PREACHING.

191

Nearly all the Episcopal and Congrega-
tional clergy write their sermons, and read
more or less closely when delivering them.
So do many of the Presbyterian and Re-
formed Dutch, and some, also, of the Bap-
tist ministers. A large proportion of the
Presbyterian clergy, the great majority of
the Baptist, and nearly all the ministers of
the Methodist, Cumberland Presbyterian,
and some other evangelical denominations,
neither write their sermons in full, nor read
any considerable part of them. Few, how-
ever, of any church commit their sermons
to memory ; the great majority of such as
do not write out their discourses, carefully
study the subjects of them, and generally
note down the principal heads to be used
in the pulpit, as taste or habit may incline.

The delivery of the ministers among us
who read is not, in general, very animated ;
still, it is sufficiently attractive in most
instances to interest hearers endued with
any capacity for distinguishing between
sound and sense, and who prefer a well-
reasoned, well-expressed, and instructive
discourse to mere animated declamation,
accompanied with much less, commonly,
of these qualities. Good reading, though
in all countries much more rare than at-
tractive and effective speaking, will gen-
erally be preferred, nevertheless, by hear-
ers of high intellectual acquirements.

Ministers of all denominations who do
not read their discourses, possess a much
more animated delivery, and generally dis-
play more of what may be called " orato-
ry" in their manner, than their brethren
who read. But their sermons can hardly
have the same order, clearness, and free-
dom from repetition. Still, they need not
be defective in instructiveness, and they
have greatly the advantage in point of
fervour, and in those direct and powerful
appeals which owe their effect almost
as much to look, tone, and manner, as to
the truths which the speaker expresses.
Not that such appeals can be of much
avail if no truth be conveyed by them, but
truth may become much more effective
when pressed upon the attention in an at-
tractive and impressive manner.

Those of the clergy of the evangelical
churches in the United States who have
passed through a regular classical and the-
ological course of education, and who in
point of numbers may be estimated at
about 7000, taken as a whole, would be
pronounced less animated than the most
celebrated preachers in Great Britain and
Ireland, France and Germany, and, I may
add, Denmark and Sweden. Not a few of
them, however, are not wanting in fervour,
and even^Ve in their delivery. But this is
not the case with those of our ministers
who have had a less complete education,
and have been very differently trained.
Our Methodist ministers have a certain

course of reading prescribed to them for
the four probationary years preceding their
being ordained elders or presbyters. Du'-
ring that time they have their circuit la-
bours to perform ; what they learn is put
to instant use, and incorporated, as it
were, with their very being. Now, this
preparatory course has no tendency to
keep down the eagerness for energetic
preaching, so much felt by men who re-
gard themselves as called by God to preacli
his Gospel, but which is so much restrain-
ed by the precise knowledge and artificial
rules of eloquence taught in colleges. Be-
sides, as they generally preach to moder-
ate assemblages, and these, in many cases,
mainly composed of the plainer classes,
they are far less apt to feel embarrassed
than youths who, having first spent sever-
al years at a college, and then several
more at a theological seminary, have ac-
quired so fastidious a taste, and have be-
come so nervously sensible to the slightest
deviations from the strictest rules of gram-
mar and rhetoric, that they almost dread
to speak at all, lest they should offend
against both. But the grand advantage pos-
sessed by the Methodist itinerant preach-
er, and one which, if he has any talent at
all, he cannot fail to profit by, is, that he
may preach sooner or later in many or all
of the eight, ten, or more places in his cir-
cuit, the discourse with which he sets out,
and which he has been preparing during
the intervals of repose which he enjoys.
This frequent repetition of the same ser-
mon is an inestimable means of improve-
ment. Each repetition admits of some
modification, as the discourse is not writ-
ten out, and enables the preacher to im-
prove what seemed faulty, and to supply
what seemed deficient in the preceding
effort. No men, accordingly, with us be-
come readier or more effective speakers.
Their diction, indeed, may not always be
as pure as that of men who have spent
several years in the schools ; yet it is sur-
prising with what propriety vast numbers
of them express themselves, while in point
of forcible and effective delivery they far
surpass, upon the whole, preachers who
have passed through the colleges.

What has been said of the Methodists
applies to the Cumberland Presbyterians,
a body of Christians which we shall give
some account of hereafter, and which is
to be found exclusively in the West and in
Texas. Like the Methodists, they have
circuit or itinerant preachers, and about an
equal proportion of their ministers have
never pursued a course of study at col-
lege. It may be applied, also, but not to
the same extent, to what is called, neither
with strict propriety, nor always in kind-
liness of feeling, the " uneducated" por-
tion of Baptist preachers. They have not
the advantages of the itineracy, and many

192

RELIGION IN AMERICA.

[Book V.

of them are too much occupied with their
secular pursuits to have much time to
spare for study. Still, among them, also,
there will be found a great deal of ener-
getic eloquence — rather homely at times,
yet often highly effective — and flowing
from a mind more intent upon its concep-
tions than upon the language in which
they are to be clothed, and more desirous
of producing a lasting effect on the under-
standing and hearts of the hearers than of
exciting admiration for the graces of a fine
style and elegant delivery.

Some of the tourists from abroad who
have visited the United States have affect-
ed to despise our " uneducated" and " ig-
norant" ministers, and have thought what
they call the " ranting" of such men a fit
subject of diversion for themselves and
their readers. Such authors know little
of the real worth and valuable labours of
these humble, and, in comparison with such
as have studied at colleges and universi-
ties, unlettered men. Their plain preach-
ing, in fact, is often far more likely to ben-
efit their usual hearers* than would that of
a learned doctor of divinity issuing from
some great university. Their language,
though not always refined, is intelligible to
those to whom it is addressed. Their il-
lustrations may not be classical, but they
will probably be drawn either from the
Bible or from the scenes amid which their
hearers move, and the events with which
they are familiar ; nor would the critical
knowledge of a Porson, or the vast learn-
ing of a Parr, be likely to make them
more successful in their work. I have
often heard most solemn and edifying dis-
courses from such men. I have met with
them in all parts of the United States ;
and though some, doubtless, bring discredit
upon the ministry by their ignorance, their
eccentricities, or tlieir incapacity, and do
more harm than good to the cause of reli-
gion, yet, taken as a whole, they are a
great blessing to the country. A Euro-
pean who should denounce the United
States as uncivilized, and the inhabitants
as wretched, because he does not every-
where find the luxuries and refinements of
London and Paris, would display no more
ignorance of the world, nor a greater want
of common sense, than were he to despise
the plain preaching of a man who enters
the pulpit with a mind replete with Scrip-
tural knowledge, obtained by frequent pe-

* Let me not he misiindprstood. I would not for
a moment convey the idea that the people who at-
tend the preachnig of the noti-classically educated
Methodist and 13aptist ministers consist only of the
poor and uneducated. On the contrary, in many
places, both in the North and in the South, they
nave a fair share of the most lutelli'^ent and respect-
able part of the population amonp; their hearers. At
the same time, it has ever been the peculiar glory of
the former, indeed, of Imth, that through their labours
" the poor have the Gospel preached to them."

rusal of the Bible, and the assistance of
valuable commentaries, besides being gen-
erally well informed, and with a heart full
of love to God and concern for men's souls,
even although he may never have fre-
quented the groves of an academy, or
studied the nicer graces of oratory. To
the labours of such men more than 20,000
neighbourhoods in the United States are
indebted for their general good order, tran-
quillity, and happiness, as well as for the
humble but sincere piety that reigns in
many a heart, and around many a fireside.
To them the country owes much of its
conservative character, for no men have
inculcated more effectively those doctrines
which promote obedience to law, respect
for magistracy, and the maintenance of
civil government ; and never more than
within the last year or two, during which
they have had to resist the anarchical
principles of self-styled reformers, both
religious and political. No men are more
hated and reviled by these demagogues,
whose projects, I rejoice to say, find com-
paratively but a small and decreasing num-
ber of friends and advocates. To the in-
fluence of the pulpit, and that of the reli-
gious and sound part of the political press,
we owe a return of better sentiments in
several states, in relation to capital punish-
ments in the case of murder in its highest
degree, and the more frequent condemna-
tion and execution of those who commit
it. And in a late insurrectionary move-
ment in Rhode Island, the leading journals
of that state attest that the clergy of all
denominations exerted a highly salutary
influence.*

But the subject of preaching ought to be
viewed in its highest and most important
aspect — that of the salvation of souls.

The first characteristic of American
preaching, I should say, is simplicity. It
is simple in the form of discourse or ser-
mon, usually adopted by the better-educa-
ted part of the ministry. The most natu-
ral and obvious view of a subject is pre-
ferred to the far-fetched, the philosophical,
it may be, and the striking. The grand
aitn of our preachers, taken as a body, is
to present the true meaning of a text rath-
er than to produce what is called effect.
Again, preaching in the United States is
simple in point of language, the plain and
familiar being preferred to the ornate and
rhetorical. Such of our preachers as wish
to be perfectly intelligible, prefer words of
Saxon to those of Latin origin, as being
better understood by the people. Vigour,
too, is preferred to beauty, and perspicuity
to embellishment. Not that we have no
preachers whose composition is ornate,

* '• Nothing," says the Providence Journal of .Tiily,
1842, "has tilled the enemies of law and order with
greater rage than the high and noble stand takeu liy
the clergy against their insurrectionary doctrines."

Chap. VI.]

CHARACTER OF AMERICAN PREACHING.

193

and even elegant, but I speak of the mass.
Lastly, our preaching is simple in point of
delivery. The manner of our preachers,
their gestures, and their intonation, must
be allowed to be extremely simple. There
is little of the rhetorician's art in it, little
that is studied and theatrical. There may
be animation, and in some cases even vehe-
mence, accompanied with a loud and pow-
erful utterance, but the manner remains
simple — the hearer's attention is not di-
verted from what is said to him that says
it. Truth, accordingly, has a better chance,
so to speak, of making its way to the hearts
of the audience, than when announced with
all the fascinations of a splendid address
and captivating manner. Not that elo-
quence is unknown or undervalued, but
that simplicity of delivery predominates
over show, and the preacher would rather
carry truth home to his hearers' hearts
than extort their applause. Nor do our
ministers affect a peculiar manner or into

nation of voice,* as is the case in some
countries, but every good preacher endeav-
ours to take with him into the pulpit what
is natural and habitual to him in that re-
spect.

/ The second grand characteristic of
American preaching lies in its bfing seri-
ous and earnest. Thanks be to God, the
preachers of our evangelical churches
seem, in general, to be truly converted
men, and preach as if they felt the infinite
importance of what they say. " We be-
lieve, and therefore speak," seems to be
the mainspring of all their endeavours,
and to give the tone to all their preaching.
They feel it to be a serious office to speak
to dying men of the interests of their im-
mortal souls, and help them to prepare
for death, judgment, and eternity. They
■would recoil from the task under an over-
"whelming sense of its awfulness, were it
not that they believe themselves called to
it by the Holy Ghost. " Wo unto me if I
preach not the Gospel," are words that oft-
en address themselves to their hearts, and
urge them to the faithful discharge of their
vows. Can we wonder that the preaching
of such men is serious and earnest T
I A third characteristic of American preach-
ing is its dwelling much upon immediale rec-
onciliation with God, by sincere repentance
towards Him, and faith towards the Lord
Jesus Christ. Reconciliation with God!
that is the great duly urged by the Gospel,
and the doing of that duty "now," "to-day,"
while it is " the accepted time," and " the

*■ Many of the Methodist and Baptist preachers have
more of what may be called English intonation than
those of other denominations. This may doubtless
be ascribed to the influence of some leadmg English
preachers, such as Bishops Coke and Asbury among
the former, and the late Dr. Staughton and others
among the latter. This I mention not by way of
disparagement, but solely because I wish to state
what appears to me to be a real peculiarity.
N

day of salvation," not its postponement un-
til to-morrow, or a " more convenient sea-
son," is what is mainly urged by our evan-
gelical ministers generally, so as to form
a prominent characteristic of their preach-
ing. This> it is which communicates to
their preaching so much of Richard Bax-
ter's style, as exhibited in his writings.
No excuse, no delay on the part of the
unconverted sinner can be accepted ; the
solemn call to repent and seek now the
salvation of his never-dying soul is made
to sound in his ear, and no peace is given
until he has not only heard, but obeyed it.
A fourth characteristic of American
preaching is found in its being highly doc-
trinal. This is particularly the case with
such of our ministers as have passed
through a regular course of classical and
theological studies ; and of these, those
who write and read their discourses in-
dulge rather more, perhaps, than those who
speak from premeditation merely, in what
may be called a dogmatic style, using the
word in its original signification. And al-
though with those who have not pursued
such a regular course of study, the practi-
cal and hortatory style may prevail over
the doctrinal and exegetical, yet the latter
has unquestionably a very considerable
place in their sermons, as all will admit
who have regularly attended such preach-
ing for a sufficient time to enable them to
judge satisfactorily on the subject. Many
of our pastors expound certain portions of
the Bible in order, but this the most difficult,
and yet, when happily done, most profita-
ble of all methods of presenting truth, is not,
I am sorry to say, so common as it ought
to be. The Bible-classes may, perhaps, be
considered so far as a substitute for it, and
if a substitute can be admitted at all, they
are certainly the best that can be named.

A fifth characteristic of our preaching
lies in its being systematic or consecutive ;
words which make farther explanation ne-
cessary, as neither of them expresses the
idea which I wish to convey. What I mean
is, that the best preaching in our evangeh-
cal churches maintains a proper connexion
among the discourses successively deliv-
ered from the same pulpit, instead of each
presenting a separate or isolated state-
ment of truth, a sermon one Sabbath be-
ing given on one particular subject, on
the Sabbath following another sermon on a
totally distinct subject, and so on through-
out the year. A preacher ought, indeed,
to change his topics according to the cir-
cumstances and characters of his hearers.
But there is such a thing as dwelling on
one subject in all its bearings, in succes-
sive discourses, so as to make it more
thoroughly understood, and convey a deep-
er impression than could otherwise be
done. And there is such a thing, also, as
presenting all the subjects wliich should

194

RELIGION IN AMERICA.

[Book V.

constitute the themes of a preacher's dis-
courses in their proper connexion with,
and relation to, one another. Preaching
on isolated subjects, without any connect-
ing link, and of which no better account
can be given than that the preacher finds
certain topics and texts easy to preach
upon, is not likely to do much good. This
is not what men do when they would
produce a deep and effectual impression
on any other subject. They strive, by all
possible means, to present it in all its as-
pects and bearings, and do not quit one
point until they have well established it.
They make every succeeding statement
and argument bear upon and strengthen
that which preceded, and in this way they
make it manifest that they are steadily
tending to a great final result, from which
nothing, not even want of systematic pro-
cess in argumentation, must be allowed
for a moment to divert them. " It is line
upon line, line upon line ; precept upon
precept, precept upon precept," with them ;
and as the blacksmith can expect to make
an impression upon the heated iron only
by directing his hammer to the same point
and its immediate vicinity in many suc-
cessive blows, so the minister does not
hope for success in opening the eyes of.
blind sinners, or rightly guiding those who
are scarcely more than half awake, but by
oft-repeated and faithful presentation of
the same truths in all their bearings. This
characteristic can hardly be called a pre-
vailing one, for, alas ! with a good deal of
systematic preaching, we have still too
much, even among our settled clergy, of
that sort which, with more propriety of
idea than accuracy of expression, has been
called scattering.

A. sixth characteristic of American
preaching is the extent to which it may
be called philosophical. By philosophical
I mean, founded on a knowledge of the
faculties and powers of the human mind,
and of the principles which govern its oper-
ations. Though not universal, this charac-
teristic distinguishes the evangelical cler-
gy of New-England in particular, and oth-
ers who have devoted much of their time
to theology as a study. Much that is true,
and much, also, that is absurd, has been
said against introducing philosophy into
religion. True philosophy, in its proper
place, is a valuable auxiliary or handmaid,
rather than an enemy to theology ; but
when she ceases to be a servant and as-
sumes the mastery, undertaking that for
which she is incompetent, she fails in do-
ing the good slie might otherwise have
done, and becomes purely mischievous.*

♦ "I think," says M. de Tocqueville, "that in
no country in the civilized world is less attention
paid to philosophy than in the United States. The
Americans have no philosophical school of their own ;
and they care but little for all the schools into which

A seventh characteristic of American
preaching is its directness. This distin-
guishes our preaching so generally, that it
were hard to say which of the evangelical
denominations has most of it. You every-
where find it the preacher's object, first of
all, to be perfectly understood, and then to
preach to the heart and conscience, as
well as to the understanding. In doing
this great plainness of speech is used,
and care taken to avoid everything by
which the barbed dart may be arrested be-
fore it reaches the heart at which it is
aimed.

An eighth characteristic of American
preaching is its faithfulness. I know not
how often I have been asked in Europe
whether our ministers are not intimidated
by the rich and influential in their congre-
gations who may dislike the truth. The
question has not a little surprised me, for
I never dreamed that the courage of evaUr-

Europe is divided, the very names of which are
scarcely known to them. Nevertheless, it is easy
to perceive that almost all the inhabitants of the
United States conduct their understanding in the
same manner, and govern it by the same rules ; that
is to say, that without ever having taken the trouble
to define the rules of a philosophical method, they
are in possession of one, common to the whole peo-
ple." I do not know when I ever read anything
with more unmingled astonishment than I did these
opinions, which are faithfully transferred from the
author's original. Certainly, one rarely finds such
an acknowledgment of a widely-existing effect, for
which the proper and only possible cause is denied.
The fact is, that in few countries in the civilized
world is philosophy, in the sense in which this word
is used on the Continent, viz., metaphysical or psy-
chological science, more pursued, at least to all prac-
tical and valuable ends, than in the United States.
There is scarcely a college — at least a Protestant '
one, and there are upward of eighty such — in which
it is not studied with no little care by the students
in the last year of the course. In addition to read-
ing such authors as Locke, Reid, Dugald Stewart,
Brown, &c., the professor of that department gives
lectures or e.xplanalions of the text-book employed.
Thus do the thousands of young collegians make
considerable proficiency in this science, especially
in its more popular and practical aspects. And thus
do our public men, our professional men, all, in a
word, who have passed through college (and they
are the men, with few exceptions, that most influ-
ence the public mind), become acquainted with the
principles that guide the operations of the human
mind. There is not a country in the world, not even
excepting Scotland itself, where metaphysics have
so much influence upon preaching as in New-Eng-
land, where, indeed, they have sometimes had too
much influence. We have not in the United States
great professors who occupy themselves with no-
thing but philosophy, and who have rivalled Kant,
and Hegel, and Schelling, in the nature of their
speculations ; nor is it likely that we ever shall have
such. The nature of our Anglo-Saxon mind hardly
admits of the thing. Besides, we have too much
public life, and too much to engross our attention,
to allow us to prosecute extensively impractical spec-
ulations, if 1 may use the expression. Nevertheless,
we have a few men, such as Mr. Ralph W. Emer-
son, of Boston, who equal Mr. Carlyle himself in ad-
miration of the German transcendentalists, and have,
probably, come quite as near to understanding them.
— Democracy in America, part ii., chap. i. (Reeves's
translation), p. 1.

Chap. VI] CHARACTER OF AMERICAN PREACHING.

gelical ministers in preaching the Gospel
could be doubted. Certainly no man could
have such a doubt after witnessing what it
has been my lot to witness in all parts of
the United States. The dependence of our
ministers upon their flocks for their sala-
ries seems not to aflfect in the least their
faithfulness in preaching " repentance to-
wards God," and " faith towards our Lord
Jesus Christ." The relation that subsists
between pastor and people is certainly more
intimate and kindly, and calls for more
mutual forbearance, than where the law
makes the former wholly independent of
the latter. But the very kindness, tender-
ness of feeling, and respect which it cre-
ates, are only additional motives to ren-
der a good minister faithful to the souls of
those with whom he maintains such an in- j
teresting relation, and who show him so
many proofs of affection as a faithful pas-
tor is very sure to receive among us. Most
certainly facts do not establish the supe-
rior faithfulness of ministers who are in-
dependent of their flocks, taken as a body.
On the contrary, this very independence
often leads to indolence, neglect, and,
sometimes, even to insolence, qualities
which it ill becomes a minister of Christ
to display, and which are utterly incon-
sistent with the Gospel. And it may safe-
ly be affirmed that, with us, the great ma-
jorit}' of men who have been brought up
under evangelical preaching, but who have
not yet been converted, would rather have
a faithful than an unfaithful pastor. They
know that religion, though they profess it
not, is of vast importance, and they know
well the difference between him that
preaches " smooth things," and him that
faithfully declares the " counsel of the
Lord." Not only does their conscience ap-
prove of the former, and not the latter, but
they feel that there is far more prospect
of their salvation under the ministry of
the one than of the other. Besides, other
things being equal, a man who preaches
faithfully " Christ crucified" is sure to
prove, in the end, a more attractive preach-
er than he who does not. For what theme
can ever be compared with that of the love
of God towards sinners of mankind, and
the gift of his Son to redeem them from
destruction ] Therefore, if a man wishes
to be esteemed and supported by his peo-
ple, let him be faithful ; that is, in the
sense in which Paul was faithful, who was,
also, neither rash nor unfeeling, but, on
the contrary, prudent and mild, and strove
to commend himself, " in love," to all to
whom he preached the " unsearchable rich-
es of the Gospel."

The ninth characteristic of American
preaching is, that it is eminently practical.
Not only are the unconverted urged to
*' acquaint themselves with God, and be at
peace, that thereby good may come to

195

them," and believers exhorted to " grow
in grace, and in the knowledge of the Lord
Jesus Christ," but the latter are also urged,
from the moment of their conversion, to
commence living for God, and for the sal-
vation of men. The doctrine has of late
years been more and more preached, that
every Christian, be his sphere in life what
it may, is under obligation to live for the
salvation of others ; and that by his con-
versation, by his holy example, as well as
by personal sacrifices, he should do all that
he can to promote this salvation far and
near. Blessed be God, this style of preach-
ing is not without effect. It is the cause,
under God's blessing, of the annually in-
creasing eflforts made by Christians of that
land, for the building up of Christ's king-
dom, both at home and abroad.

The tenth and last characteristic of
American preaching is, that it speaks much
of the work of the Spirit. I know of no one
idea that has been so much a dominant one
in the American churches for the last fifty
years, or, rather, for the last 100 years, as
that of the importance of the office and
work of the Holy Spirit. The need in
which the world lies of the operations of
this holy Agent, the indispensableness of
his co-operation with the preaching of the
Gospel, and the use of all other means to
effect the salvation of men, together with
the gracious promise of this great ascension
gift of the crucified and exalted Saviour,
are themes on which the ministry of the
evangelical churches in America often
dwells, and not in vain.

I have now said what I have deemed ne-
cessary respecting the character of Amer-
ican preaching. The limits of this work
have not permitted me to dwell on these
topics, nor is it necessary. All that I have
aimed at has been to give the reader what
I deem some just conceptions on a subject
in which I supposed he might be interested.
We come now to the consideration of the
question of revivals of religion in America,
a subject of the greatest importance, and, at
the same time, attended with no ordinary
difficulties in the minds, perhaps, of some
into whose hands this book may fall. I
would, however, most respectfully call the
attention of such, and, indeed, of all who
may read this volume, to the chapter which
follows. Though long, it will well reward
them for any attention they may bestow
upon it. I know not where the whole sub-
ject has been so well presented in any
language, and cannot but hope that, with
God^s blessing, it will prove eminently use-
ful. It confirms the opinions re.specting
American preaching which I have given in
the preceding pages. The distinguished
friend and professor to whom I am indebt-
ed for it, and of whom I have spoken -in the
introduction, is better qualified by his po-
sition, and by his experience, to write such

196

RELIGION IN AMERICA.

[Book V.

an article than any other man I know of in
the United States. God grant that the day
may speedily arrive when the dispensation
of the Spirit will be better understood and
appreciated in all parts of Christendom
than it is at present ; and when the abun-
dant gift of this blessed Agent will fill the
churches with light, and life, and holiness.
Nowhere, as it seems to me, is the Holy
Spirit honoured as he ought to be, and must
be, before the world will be converted. This
is true of even the best portions of the Prot-
estant churches ; while as to some of the
rest, as well as the Roman Catholics in
mass, it would seem as if they had not yet
" heard whether there be any Holy Spirit."

CHAPTER VH.

REVIVALS OF RELIGION.

Extraordinary seasons of religious inter-
est, denominated Revivals of Religion, have
existed in the American churches from a
very early period of their history. The
cause of this peculiarity in the dispensation
of divine grace may be traced, in part, to
the peculiar character and circumstances
of the first settlers of the country. They
were English Puritans, who had suffered
the severest persecution for their princi-
ples in their native land, and who fled into
the wilderness to enjoy those principles
unmolested, and to carry them out in their
full extent.

The leading point in controversy between
our fathers and the English government
was freedom of worship ; the right to have
the Gospel preached among them, in its
most seiuching application to the con-
science and the heart, " without human
mixtures or impositions." To secure this
privilege, they willingly " endured the loss
of all things," and it was therefore natural
that they should prize it highly. Accord-
ingly, the attachment of the first settlers of
New-England to the ordinances of public
worship, and especially the reliance they
placed on " the preaching of the word" as
the chief instrument, under God, for the
conversion of their children and depend-
ants, were among the most striking traits
in their character. Strict as they were,
even to sternness, in family discipline : lit-
erally as they obeyed the injunction, " Thou
shalt teach these things diligently unto thy
children, and shalt talk of them when thou
sittest in thy house, and when thou walk-
est in the way, and when thou licst down,
and when thou risest up," they still felt
that it is the truth pre-eminently, as dis-
pensed in " the great congregation," under
the combined influence of awakened sym-
pathy and awe of the divine presence,
which is made by the Holy Spirit " the
power of God unto salvation." This feel-

ing modified all their habits and institu-
tions as a people. It made them settle in
villages around their places of worship, and
not, like their Southern neighbours, upon
scattered plantations ; it led them to sup-
port two religious teachers for each of their
infant churches ; it founded colleges for the
preparation of a ministry adequate to these
high duties ; it established week-day lec-
tures, on which those who lived in the out-
er settlements, at the distance of six or
eight miles, felt it a privilege and a duty
regularly to attend ; it pervaded, in short,
all the arrangements of society, and gave a
prominence to preaching, a disposition to
multiply religious meetings, and a reliance
upon this mode of urging truth upon the
conscience, greater, perhaps, than has ever
existed among any other people.

Another trait in the character of the first
settlers of New-England, in common with
their brethren at home, was a strong faith
and expectation of sjiecial answers to pray-
er. The English Puritans never regarded
prayer as a mere means of grace, but (what
it truly is) as a means of moving God, of
inducing him to grant what he could not
otherwise be expected to bestow. Nor did
they stop here. They did not expect mere-
ly the blessing of God in general on the re-
quests they made, but direct and specific
answers, according to their need, in every
pressing emergency. This strong faith in
the efficacy of prayer the first settlers of
New-England carried with them when they
fled into the wilderness. It was their sup-
port and consolation under all the trials of
famine, pestilence, and savage warfare.
They felt that special and extraordinary
answers were often vouchsafed them when
they cried to God ; that there were periods
in their history when his arm was made
bare for their deliverance, in a manner
scarcely less remarkable than if He had in-
terposed by direct miracle ; and the result
was, that the spirit of the early New-Eng-
land Christians was emphatically a spirit
oi prayer ; which led them to the throne of
grace, with the highest confidence of being
heard, on every occasion of especial inter-
est to themselves, their families, and the
Church.

To see the connexion of these two traits
of character with the spirit of revivals, we
have only to consider the influence they
would naturally exert at one of the most
interesting crises which can ever happen to
a minister and his church — I mean the com-
mencement of increased thoughtfulness
among the unconverted part of the con-
gregation. Such season.s exist, at times,
in every place where the Gospel is faithful-
ly preached. Some alarming ])ruvidence,
some general calamity which weakens for
a time the fascination of worldly things,
some impressive sermon, some instances
of sudden conversion, may strike upon the

Chap. VII.]

REVIVALS OF RELIGION.

197

consciences of considerable numbers at
once, and awaken up that latent sense of
guilt and danger, which it is impossible for
the most thoughtless wholly to suppress.
At such a period, how has many a pastor
felt, both in Europe and America, that if he
could then enjoy the hearty co-operation
and fervent prayers of the whole body of his
church ; if he could draw the impenitent
around him in more frequent meetings, and
hold their minds fixed in the steady and
prolonged contemplation of divine truth,
while the world was shut out from view,
and the seriousness of one might spread by
contact till it reached the hearts of many ;
how has he felt, that, by the blessing of
God, this interest in religion might extend
throughout the whole congregation ; might
rise to deep anxiety and pungent convic-
tion ; that the Holy Spirit might be present
to renew the hearts of many ; and that
more might be done for the salvation of his
people in a few weeks or months, than, un-
der ordinary circumstances, in as many
years ! And what would this be, if his de-
sires were realized, but a revival of reUgion,
an outpouring of the Holy Spirit, as a re-
sult of the prayers and elforts of the
people of God I Now I need not say how
entirely the early settlers of New-England
were prepared, by the traits of character
described above, to enter at once on this
very course of action. Prayer and preach-
ing were the living principle of their insti-
tutions ; special prayer upon special emer-
gencies, with the confident expectation of
direct and specific answers ; preaching, the
most plain and pungent, enforcing those
' peculiar doctrines of grace which humble
man and exalt God, and which have in
every age been made powerful to the "pul-
ling down of strongholds." There was
much, also, in the state of their infant settle-
ments to favour the desired result. They
were a world within themselves, cut off by
their distance and poverty from most of the
alluring objects which seize on the hearts
of the unconverted in a more advanced
state of society. They were all of one
faith; there was none among them toques-
lion or deny the necessity of a work of the
Spirit ; and the minds of their children
were prepared, by their early religious
training, to bow submissive under the sa-
cred influence. In these circumstances,
how natural was it to multiply the means
of grace upon any appearance of increased
seriousness ; to press with redoubled zeal
and frequency to the throne of God in pray-
er; to urge their children and dependants,
with all the fervour of Christian affection,
to seize the golden opportunity, and make
their " calling and election sure ;" to re-
move, as far as possible, every obstacle of
business or amusement out of the way;
and to concentrate the entire interest of
their little communities oa the one object

of the soul's salvation ! How natural that
these labours and prayers should be bless-
ed of God ; that the truth preached under
these circumstances should be made, like
" the fire and the hammer, to break in pie-
ces the flinty rock ;" that extraordinary ef-
fusions of the Holy Spirit should be grant-
ed ; that there should be an " awakening,"
as it was then called, or, in modern lan-
guage, a REVIVAL OF RELIGION !

That such was actually the result in nu-
merous instances we have the fullest evi-
dence. The celebrated Jonathan Edwards,
author of the " Treatise on the Will," states
that his grandfather, who preceded him as
pastor of the church in Northampton, Mas-
sachusetts, was favoured during his minis-
try with five seasons of this kind, which he
called his "harvests," occurring at various
intervals during the space of forty years.
His father, he also says, had four or five
similar periods of " refreshing from on
high" among the people of his charge ;
and he adds, that such had been the case
with many other of the early ministers ;
that no one could tell when awakenings
commenced in New-England ; that they
must have been very nearly coeval with its
first settlement.

Some of the States farther South were
settled, to a limited extent, by Presbyteri-
ans from the west of Scotland and the north
of Ireland, who had also suffered persecu-
tion. Many of these had the same general
traits of character, and especially the same
absorbing interest in religion, with their
New- England brethren. In addition to this,
they had brought with them the cherished
tradition of several remarkable outpourings
of the Holy Spirit in their native land, at
Kilsyth, at Stewarton, at Irvine, at the Kirk
of Shotts, and in the county of Antrim,
which led them to pray for and expect sim-
ilar dispensations of the Spirit to their in-
fant churches. These, at a later period,
shared largely in the influences of divine
grace, and handed down the spirit of revi-
vals to their descendants.

The early awakenings, mentioned above,
seem to have been generally of a calm
and silent character ; and it rarely happen-
ed that two congregations in the same
neighbourhood were visited at the same
time. In the year 1735, a remarkable
change took place in this respect. An in-
creased power, and wider extent, were
given to the dispensation of the Spirit : a
large tract of country became in this and
the following year the seat of numerous
awakenings, which about this time took
the name of revivals. As this forms an
important epoch in the history of our revi-
vals, I shall dwell upon it somewhat at
large, and then trace more briefly the prog-
ress of these works of grace down to the
present time.

The revival of 1735 commenced at North-

198

RELIGION IN AMERICA.

[Book V.

ampton, Massachusetts, under the preach-
ing of Jonathan Edwards, mentioned above.
The town, at an earher period, had enjoy-
ed five awakenings ; but at this time reli-
gion had suffered a very great dechne, not
only in Northampton, but in New-England
at large. A pernicious practice had been
gradually introduced of admitting persons
to full communion in the Church on the
ground of a blameless external deportment,
"without strict inquiry into their religious
experience, or decisive evidence of renew-
ing grace. The disastrous consequences
were soon felt. The tone of spiritual feel-
ing was lowered in the churches by the
admission of many who had a " name to
iive, but were dead." Prayer and effort for
the salvation of the impenitent had greatly
decreased ; and, as a natural consequence,
there had been for more than thirty years
a very marked suspension of divine influ-
ence throughout New-England.

The preaching of Mr. Edwards which
gave rise to this revival, like all preaching
which prepares the way for extensive ref-
ormations, was doctrinal in its character.
He dwelt with great force of argument and
closeness of application on the leading
doctrines of grace — which had begun to
lose their power in the prevailing declen-
sion— justification by faith alone, the neces-
sity of the Spirit's influences, and kindred
topics.

Under such preaching, in connexion with
a sudden and alarming providence, in the
beginning of 1735, a solemn, and very soon
an overwhelming interest in religious truth,
pervaded the whole town. For the space
of six months, the revival went on with a
power and extent never before known.
Hardly a family could be found in the place
in which there were not one or more under
conviction of sin, or rejoicing in hope. So
entire was the absorption in the interests
of the soul, that a report went abroad that
the people of Northampton had abandoned
all worldly employments, and given them-
selves wholly up to the pursuit of eternal
life ; and though this was an exaggeration,
it is true that Mr. Edwards found it neces-
sary to remind some of his flock that their
secular duties were not to be neglected.
The enlightened character of the popula-
tion, all of whom were well educated (all,
even the poorest, being taught in the same
schools at the public expense), guarded
them effectually against fanaticism ; while,
at the same time, the strength of emotion
which prevailed, the distress under a sense
of sin, and the joy in giving the heart to
God, were, in most cases, far greater than
in the early awakenings. The work was
confined to no class or age. 'I'cn persons
above ninety, and more than fifty above
forty years of age ; nearly thirty between
ten and fourteen, and one of only four, be-
came, in the view of Mr. Edwards, subjects

of renewing grace. More than 300 were
added to the Church as the fruits of this
revival, making the whole number of com-
municants about 620, being nearly the en-
tire adult population of the town, which
consisted of 200 families. I will only add,
that Mr. Edwards's well-known principles
on the subject led him to guard his peo-
ple, throughout the revival, with the most
watchful care, against hasty and delusive
hopes of having experienced renewing
grace. He conversed with each individual
separately, not only while under conviction
of sin, but in repeated instances after the
supposed change of heart took place ;
pointing out the evidences and nature of
true piety ; warning them against self-de-
ception, and leading them to the strictest
examination into their spiritual state. Such
has been the course pursued in the New-
England churches generally, down to the
present day ; and the consequence has
been, that neither in that revival, nor in
most of our well-conducted revivals, has
there been reason to suppose that more
persons were self-deceived than in the
ordinary accessions to the Church at times
of no prevailing religious concern.

The scenes presented in this work of
grace were so striking and wonderful as to
awaken the liveliest interest in the whole
country round. Many flocked to North-
ampton from the impulse of curiosity, or
even worse motives ; not a few of whom,
struck with the order, solemnity, and
strength of feeling which they everywhere
witnessed, and cut to the heart by the
powerful appeals of Mr. Edwards in the
meetings they attended, were themselves
brought under conviction of sin. Many of
these gave evidence of genuine repentance
after they returned home, and did much to
extend the work into the places where
they belonged. Members of the neighbour-
ing churches, also, and ministers of the
Gospel from parts more remote, resorted
thither to witness the triumphs of redeem-
ing grace ; to catch the spirit of the revival,
and bear it — a spirit of hope, and prayer,
and fervent effort — to the towns where
they resided. The blessing of God, in many
instances, went with them ; the work
spread from place to place, until, in less
than a year, ten of the adjacent towns in
Massachusetts, and seventeen in Connec-
ticut, lying directly south of them, were
favoured with an outpouring of the Holy
Spirit; and some remote places were vis-
ited in other states, where settlements had
been made by emigrants from New-Eng-
land, or by the Scottish Presbyterians spo-
ken of above. Many thousands gave evi-
dence in their subsequent lives of having
experienced a genuine conversion in this
work of grace.

In 1740, revivals commenced anew at
Northampton, Boston, and many other pla-

Chap. VII.]

REVIVALS OF RELIGION.

199

ces, very nearly at the same time, and
spread within eighteen months throughout
all the English colonies. For some time,
this appears to have been, to an unusual
degree, a silent, powerful, and glorious
work of the Spirit of God. An eyewitness
states^ under date of May, 1741, that from
Philadelphia to the remotest settlements
beyond Boston, a distance of nearly 500
miles, there was in most places more or
less concern for the soul. " Whole col-
leges are under conviction, and many sa-
vingly converted. Our minister (Mr. Pem-
berton, of New-York), being sent for to
Yale College on account of the many dis-
tressed persons there, in his going and
coming preached twice a day on the road,
and even children followed him to his
lodgings, weeping and anxiously concerned
about the salvation of their souls." At a
later period, however, some were unhap-
pily betrayed into intemperate zeal, which
called forth opposition, and produced great
excitement and contention. Mr. Edwards
came forward with his usual ability to de-
fend the work, and, at the same time, re-
press undue excesses. One hundred and
sixty of the most respectable ministers of
New-England, New- York, and New-Jer-
sey, joined in a public attestation to its
genuineness and purity in most places,
while they united with Mr. Edwards in
condemning the improprieties which had
occurred in too many instances. But a
spirit of jealousy and strife was engen-
dered, which is always fatal to the progress
of a revival. It therefore terminated in
the year 1743. Notwithstanding these un-
fortunate admixtures of human imperfec-
tion, the work, as a whole, was most evi-
dently shown by its results to have been
of God. Those who had the best means
of judging, estimated the number of true
converts, as proved by their subsequent
lives, at 30,000 in New-England alone, at a
time when the whole population was but
300,000 ; besides many thousands more
among the Presbyterians of New-York,
New-Jersey, Pennsylvania, and the more
southern settlements.

It will interest the reader to know, that
about this time there was an outpouring of
the Spirit upon one of our Indian tribes,
corresponding exactly in its character and
effects to the widely-extended work of
grace among the whites.

In June, 1745, DAvm Brainard, who has
been so extensively known for his piety
and missionary zeal, began to labour among
a small collection of Indians in New-Jer-
sey. For the first six weeks, they mani-
fested such entire indifference and stupid
unconcern, that he was about to leave
them, in despair, when he was somewhat
encouraged by the conversion of his inter-
preter. The interest with which this man
now entered into the subject, and the

warmth and unction with which he trans-
lated Mr. Brainard's discourses, struck the
Indians with surprise, and arrested their
attention. " On the eighth of August,"
says Mr. Brainard in his journal (which I
slightly abridge), " 1 preached to the Indi-
ans, now about sixty-five in number. There
was much visible concern among them
when I discoursed publicly ; but afterward,
when I spoke to one and another particu-
larly, the power of God seemed to descend
upon them like ' a mighty rushing wind.'
Almost all persons, of all ages, were bowed
down with concern together, and were
scarcely able to withstand the shock. Old
men and women, who had been drunken
wretches for many years, and some chil-
dren, appeared in distress for their souls.
One who had been a murderer, a poivow or
conjurer, and a notorious drunkard, was
brought to cry for mercy with many tears.
A young Indian woman, who, I believe,
never before knew that she had a soul,
had come to see what was the matter. She
called on me on her way, and when I told
her that I meant presently to preach to the
Indians, she laughed, and seemed to mock.
I had not proceeded far in my public dis-
course when she felt effectually that she
had a soul ; and before the discourse closed,
was so distressed with concern for her
soul's salvation, that she seemed like one
pierced through with a dart." Such scenes
were repeated in a number of instances
during the following eight weeks. Some
months after, in reviewing the events of
this revival, he says, " This surprising
concern was never excited by any ha-
rangues of terror, but always appeared most
remarkable when 1 insisted on the com-
passion of a dying Saviour, the plentiful
provisions of the Gospel, and the free offer
of divine grace to needy sinners. The ef-
fects have been very remarkable. I doubt
not that many of these people have gained
more doctrinal knowledge of divine truth
since I visited them in June last, than
could have been instilled into their minds
by the most diligent use of proper and in-
structive means for whole years together
without such a divine influence. They
seem generally divorced from their di'unk-
enness, which is ' the sin that easily besets
them.' A principle of honesty and justice
appears among them, and they seem con-
cerned to discharge their old debts, which
they have neglected, and, perhaps, scarcely
thought of for years. Love seems to reign
among them, especially those who have
given evidence of having passed through a
saving change. Their consolations do not
incline them to lightness, but, on the con-
trary, are attended with solemnity, and
often w^ith tears and apparent brokenness
of heart." After some months of proba-
tion, he baptized forty-seven out of less
than 100, who composed the settlement.

200

RELIGION IN AMERICA.

[Book V.

Surely we may unite with him in saying,
" I think there are here all the evidences
of a remarkable work of grace among the
Indians which can reasonably be expect-
ed."

The fifty years that followed were years
of war and civil commotion ; first in a con-
flict of nearly twenty years between the
English and French for ascendency in
North America, and afterward in a strug-
gle of the colonies for independence, and
the formation of a Federal Government.
During this long period the country was
kept in a state of perpetual agitation, under
the influence of passions hostile to the prog-
ress of spiritual religion in any form, and
peculiarly hostile to the prevalence of any
extended work of grace. Revivals, how-
ever, did not wholly cease, as might rea-
sonably have been expected. On the con-
trary, I have been struck with surprise, in
looking over the accounts of that wide-
spread work of grace which soon after
commenced, to see in how many instances
they point back to some preceding season
of spiritual refreshing during those fifty
years of war and civil strife.

The period just referred to, of increased
influence from on high, commenced at the
clo^e of the last century, and has often
been styled the era of modern revivals. Ow-
ing to its importance in this character, I
shall dwell upon it somewhat more fully,
and shall then turn to other topics which
demand our attention. It was preceded
by a spirit of fervent prayer and deep so-
licitude among Christians, on account of
the growing tendency in our country to in-
fidel principles. For this a preparation
had been made by the crimes and vices of
a long-protracted war ; and the breaking
out of the French Revolution had given to
the enemies of religion the most confident
expectations of a speedy triumph. The
minds of multitudes had become unsettled.
Wild and vague expectations were every-
where entertained, especially among the
young, of a new order of things about to
commence, in which Christianity would be
laid aside as an obsolete system, 'i'he
people of God, under these circumstances,
were driven to the throne of grace with
redoubled fervour of supplication, that
while the enemy came in like a flood, the
Spirit of the Lord would lift up a standard
against him. Another subject of solici-
tude was the religious wants of our new
settlements, which began at this time to
spread abroad in the wilderness, to an un-
paralleled extent. There was every reason
to fear that, if left to themselves, in the
rapidity of their progress, they would leave
behind them the inslitutions of the Gospel.
This gave rise to a missionary spirit in the
older states, which has been tiie salvation
of that growing part of our country. Mas-
sachusetts and Connecticut, especially,

from which emigrants by tens of thousands
were going forth every year, entered into
this cause with the liveliest interest. Large
contributions were made from time to time
by the churches ; and as regular mission-
aries could not be procured in sufl5cient
numbers, many of the settled clergy were
induced, by the exigency of the case, to
leave their flocks under the care of the
neighbouring pastors, and perform long^
tours of missionary labour in the new
states.

The spirit thus awakened of more fer-
vent prayer to God, and more active zeal
in his service, was followed by the divine
blessing. A number of churches in the in-
terior of Connecticut and Massachusetts
were favoured, in 1797, with an outpouring
of the Holy Spirit, which gradually spread
into many of the neighbouring towns. The
utmost care was taken to guard, from the
first, against any recurrence of that spirit
of intemperate zeal which had brought re-
proach, to some extent, on the revival of
1740. These eff'orts, most happily, were
attended with complete success. Rarely,
if ever, has there been a series of revivals
in our country more calm, more pure,
more lasting and salutary in their effects.
As one means of extending the work,
ministers who had enjoyed the presence
of God among their own people, were se-
lected by some ecclesiastical body, and
sent forth,' generally two together, on
preaching tours among the neighbouring
churches. The expectation of their com-
ing drew large audiences wherever they
preached. They came with that fervour
of spirit, and that close and direct dealing
with the consciences of men, which a
preacher gains during the progress of a re-
vival, and which he rarely gains to an equal
degree under any other circumstances.
The churches which they visited being, in
most cases, prepared to receive them by a
previous season of fasting and prayer, and
animated by their presence and labours to
redoubled fervour of supplication, were, in
many cases, favoured with an immediate
outpouring of the Holy Spirit. Under
these and similar influences, the work of
God spread into more than one hundred
towns in Massachusetts and Connecticut,
and into a still greater number of places
in the new settlements of Vermont, New-
Hampshire, Maine, and New- York, which
had but recently formed a wide-spread field
of missionary labour.

In the mean time, our Presbyterian breth-
ren, already mentioned, entered into the
work with equal zeal and eflect, and carried
the spirit of revivals west of the Alleghany
Mountains. In Kentucky, lying in the
centre of these new states of the West, a
revival commenced in the year 1801, -which
spniad over the whole state, and within
the two following years extended to ther

Ghap. viir

REVIVALS OF RELIGION.

201

North and South, throughout a tract of
country 600 miles in length. Owing to the
rude state of society in those new settle-
ments, there occurred in these revivals
some irregularities, which threw a sus-
picion upon them for a time in the views of
Christians in the Eastern States. Some,
undoubtedly, of the vast multitudes who
were then awakened were wrought upon
merely by the excitement of the occasion.
But as to the character of the work in
general, we have the following testimony
from one of the most enlightened Presby-
terian clergymen of Virginia, who visited
the scene of those revivals, for the sake
of forming for himself a deliberate judg-
ment on the subject. " Upon the whole,
I think the revival in Kentucky among the
most extraordinary that have ever visited
the Church of Christ ; and, all things con-
sidered, it was peculiarly adapted to the
circumstances of the country into which
it came. Infidelity was triumphant, and
religion on the point of expiring. Some-
thing extraordinary seemed necessary to
arrest the attention of a giddy people, who
were ready to conclude that Christianity
was a fable, and futurity a delusion. This
revival has done it. It has confounded in-
fidelity, and brought numbers beyond cal-
culation under serious impressions."

In the year 1802, in answer to long-
continued and fervent prayer, the Holy
Spirit was poured out in a remarkable
manner on Yale College, then under the
presidency of the Rev. Timothy Dwight,
D.D. As a work of this kind, in a seat of
learning, will naturally be regarded with
peculiar interest, I shall here transcribe
(with some slight abridgment) an account
of this revival, drawn up at the request of
the writer by the Rev. Noah Porter, D.D.,
who was then a member of the institution.
" The grace which some of the students
had witnessed, and of which they were all
informed, in churches abroad, they longed
to see in the college. That God would
pour out his Spirit upon it was an object
of distinct and earnest desire, and of their
fervent and united prayers. For many
months they were accustomed to meet
weekly ' in an upper room,' and ' with
one accord,' for prayer and supplication.
Those meetings are still remembered by
survivers who attended them, as seasons
of unwonted tenderness of heart, freedom
of communication, and wrestling with God.
Early in the spring of 1802, indications of
a gracious answer to their prayers began
to appear. It soon became obvious that
quite a number were especially impressed
with divine truth : that a new state of
things had commenced in the seminary ;
that God had indeed come to it in the plen-
itude and power of his grace. Some who,
not knowing that there were any to sym-
pathize with them, had concealed their con-

victions, were now encouraged to speak
out, and others, anxious to share in the
blessing, joined them ; so that in the last
ten days of the college term, not less than
fifty were numbered as serious inquirers,
and several, daily, and almost hourly, were •
found apparently submitting themselves to-
God. These were truly memorable days.
Such triumphs of grace none, whose priv-
ilege it was to witness them, had ever be-
fore seen. So sudden and so great was
the change in individuals, and in the gen-
eral aspect of the college, that those who
had been waiting for it were filled with
wonder as well as joy, and those who knew
not ' what it meant' were awe-struck and
amazed. Wherever students were found
— in their rooms, in the chapel, in the hall,
in the college yard, in their walks about
the city — the reigning impression was,
' surely God is in this place.' The sal-
vation of the soul was the great subject of
thought, of conversation, of absorbing in-
terest. The convictions of many were
pungent and overwhelming, and the peace
in believing which succeeded was not less
strongly marked. Yet, amid these over-
powering impressions, there was no one,
except a single individual (who, having re-
sisted former convictions, yielded for a
time to dangerous temptations), in whose
conduct anything of a wild or irrational
character appeared. But the vacation
came, and they were to be separated. This
was anticipated with dread. It was to be
feared that their dispersion, and the new
scenes and intercourse attendant on their
going home, would efface the incipient im-
pressions of the serious, and break up the
hopeful purposes of the inquiring and anx-
ious. Such, however, was not the result.
It may even be doubted whether the num-
ber of sound conversions was not greater,
as well as more good done to the cause of
the Redeemer generally, than would other-
wise have been the case. Wherever they
went, they carried the tidings of what God
was doing for this venerated seat of learn-
ing; they engaged simultaneously the
prayers and thanksgiving of the Church
in its behalf; and many of them came di-
rectly under the guidance and counsel of
deeply-affected parents, ministers, or other
Christian acquaintances. By epistolary-
communications and personal visits to each
other, also, as had been agreed on at their
separation, special means were employed
to sustain the feelings which had been ex-
cited, and to conduct them to a happy re-
sult ; and it was so ordered by God that,
when they again assembled, the revival
immediately resumed its former interest,
and proceeded with uninterrupted success.
It was generally understood at the time,
that out of 230 students then in college,
about one third, in the course of this re-
vival, were hopefully converted to God."

202

RELIGION IN AMERICA.

[Book V.

During the forty years which have since
elapsed, there have been fifteen similar
works of grace in the institution, one of
them more extensive, and the others less
so, than the one here described. At a later
period, Princeton College, which belongs
to the Presbyterians, was favoured with
one of the most extraordinary effusions of
the Holy Spirit ever experienced by any
of our seats of learning. The younger col-
leges have also shared richly in these vis-
itations of divine grace. The consequence
has been, that the number of pious students
has been very greatly increased. In Yale
College, not long before the revival of 1802,
there were only four members of the church
among the under-graduates ; for some years
past they have exceeded 200, being more
than half the entire number. In other col-
leges there has been a correspondent in-
crease ; though in all these cases it is to
be ascribed, in no small degree, to the gen-
eral advance of spiritual religion in our
churches.

From the period we have now reached
it is unnecessary, and, indeed, impossible,
to trace distinctly the progress of our re-
vivals. They have become, if I may so
speak, a constituent part of the rehgious
system of our country. Not a year has
passed without numerous instances of their
occurrence, though at some periods they
have been more powerful and prevalent
than at others. They have the entire con-
fidence of the great body of evangelical
Christians throughout our country. There
exists, indeed, a diversity of opinion as
to the proper means of promoting them,
some regarding one set of measures, and
some another, as best adapted to this end.
But, while these differences exist as to
what constitutes a well-conducted revival,
all, or nearly all, agree that such a revival
•is an inestimable blessing : so that he who
should oppose himself to revivals, as such,
•would be regarded by most of our evangel-
ical Christians as, ipso facto, an enemy to
spiritual religion itself.

In the foregoing sketch of the rise and
progress of our revivals, I have confined
myself chiefly to the Congregational and
Presbyterian churches (which are substan-
tially one), and have described these works
of grace, particularly as they exist in New-
England. I have done so because, having
their origin in those churches, it was prop-
er to trace them forward in the line where
they commenced ; and because I was best
acquainted with their history, and the char-
acter they assumed, in the communion to
■which I belong. It is of such revivals that
I shall continue to speak, and, without dis-
paragement to others, I may be permitted
to express my preference for that mode of
conducting revivals which has generally
prevailed in the Congregational churches
of New-England. These churches have

had a longer experience on this subject
than any other ; they have enjoyed more
revivals in proportion to their numbers;
and, what I deem of the highest impor-
tance is, that they have uniformly kept them
under the guidance and control of a learn-
ed ministry, whose habits and principles
led them to repress all undue excitement,
to check everything extravagant, coarse, or
disorderly, and to guard the supposed sub-
jects of the work, by the severest tests,
against self-deception. Nearly all the ob-
jections against revivals, which have any
show of reason, have been occasioned by
a want of caution in these respects. The
things to which they apply are mere ad-
juncts and excrescences, forming no part
of a genuine revival. They are passing
away just in proportion as the ministry
where they exist become more thoroughly
educated, which, I rejoice to say, is con-
tinually more and more the case.

The view of revivals which we have now
taken, limited and imperfect as it is, sug-
gests many interesting topics of inquiry
and remark. I have time, however, to
touch on only two. First, What mode of
presenting truth, in these seasons of reli-
gious interest, has been found most effect-
ual to the conviction and conversion of
sinners ■? Secondly, What is the advantage
of such seasons ] What is there in the fact
that many are awakened at once, and are
pressing together into the kingdom of God,
which is peculiarly adapted (under the di-
vine blessing) to secure the desired result ?

In entering upon the first of these sub-
jects, I would remark, that the ordinary
strain of preaching in the Congregational
churches of New-England, where revivals
have prevailed with great frequency, is,
to an uncommon degree, doctrinal in its
character. A preparation is thus made to
give the Gospel its full effect whenever a
season of religious interest arrives. The
mind is preoccupied with clear and discrim-
inating views of divine truth. The argu-
ment, upon every point, has been gone over
again and again in its full extent. Those
humbling doctrines, especially, which men
so love to misrepresent and abuse, are
dwelt upon much, explained fully, and
argued out at large ; and great pains are
taken so to state them as to sliow their
perfect consistency with the dictates of
right reason and the consciousness of ev-
ery honest mind. In seasons of revival,
the most effective preaching is of the same
general character, though, of course, more
fervid and urgent. It does not consist, to
any great extent, in exhortation, in any
appeals, however forcible or just, to mere
excited sensibility or feeling. Its object
still is to pour truth upon the sinner's mind ;
to make him see, under his new circum-
stances of awakened interest, the evidence
of those doctrines which he has admitted,

Chap. VII.]

REVIVALS OF RELIGION.

203

perhaps, in speculation, all his life, and yet
never once truly believed; to anticipate
all his objections ; to strip him of every
plea and pretence for delay; to fill and oc-
cupy his whole soul with reasons for im-
mediate right action, and thus shut him up
to " the obedience of the truth." Such
preaching, though it be plain, and even
homely, if it flows from a full heart and
large experience, is ordinarily much bless-
ed of God in seasons of revival.

The leading doctrine at such seasons is
that .of " the new birth" — of the sinner's
entire dependance, for a change of heart,
aw the direct interposition of God. And
yet, for this very reason, the other doc-
trine implied above, of duty, of obligation
to immediate right action, is urged with
redoubled force. Without feeling this, the
sinner cannot feel his guilt, for there is no
guilt, except in the violation of duty ; and
where guilt is not felt, the influences of
the Spirit are not given to renew the heart.
And here, at this precise point, is the great
difliculty in dealing with the impenitent.
They do not believe that God requires
them, in their present state, to become in-
stantly holy. It is not possible, they think,
that he should command them to do that
very thing without the influences of his
Spirit, which, if ever done, will be the re-
sult of those influences. They therefore
feel that there must be, somewhere at this
stage of their progress, a kind of neutral
ground — a resting-place, where, having
done their part in "awaking out of sleep,"
they are allowed to " wait God's time" (in
the customary phrase), until He has done
his part, and renewed their souls. Nor
are these views confined to the impeni-
tent. They have been openly avowed by
some theological writers, and have exert-
ed a secret but most powerful influence
upon far greater numbers who never main-
tained them in form. There has been, ex-
tensively, a feeling that all which the un-
converted are bound to do is diligently to
use the means of grace ; that if they do
this, it would be hard in God to withhold
the renewing influence of his Spirit ; and
that He has promised that influence to
their prayers and exertions if sincere —
meaning, of course, a kind of sincerity in
■which there is no true holiness. These j
views prevailed in New-England previous |
to the revival of 1735, and were one cause
of the great decline in religion which pre-
ceded that event. Mr. Edwards was there-
fore called upon, when that work com-
menced, to take his ground on this sub-
ject, and the principles which guided him
in that revival have been the great con-
trolling principles in all our revivals ever
since. They are thus stated by his biog-
rapher : " To urge repentance on every
dinner as his immediate duty ; to insist that
God is under no obligation to any unre-

newed man ; and that a man can challenge
nothing, either in absolute justice or by
free promise, on account of anything he
does before he repents and believes." The
celebrated Whitefield, when he first visited
America, in 1740, was much struck with
the power imparted to our preaching by
these principles. " How can they possi-
bly stand," says he in a letter to an Eng-
lish friend, " who were never brought to
see, and heartily confess, that after they
had done all, God might, notwithstanding,
deny them mercy ! It is for preaching in
this manner that I like Messrs. Tennents.
They wound deeply before they heal. They
know there is no promise made but to him
that believeth, and, therefore, they are
careful not to comfort overmuch those that
are convicted. I fear I have been too in-
cautious in this respect, and often given
comfort too soon. The Lord pardon me
for what is past, and teach me more right-
ly to divide the word of life in future."
Against this disposition to " comfort too
soon" — to allow the impenitent some rest-
ing-place short of instant submission, the
following very pointed cautions were once
given by Dr. Nettleton, who has had great
experience in the conduct of revivals.
"Now, what do you mean by thisi Do
you mean to encourage the sinner in his
sins, and take his part against God? You
are attempting to ease and soothe him while
he is in rebellion against God. When the
sinner is in this distress, there are two
things that press heavily upon him — a
sense of his obligation to repent, and a
fearful apprehension that he never will re-
pent. Now, if you tell him to 'wait God's
time,' and the like, you take oft' this obli-
gation at once. You remove all anxiety,
and most probably cause him to sink down
into a state of stupidity and indifference
on the subject. You take away the ap-
prehension also ; and the danger is that he
will sink down into a state of stupidity, or
mistake the relief he feels for a change of .
heart. Now, instead of quieting him in
his sins by such language, you should en-
deavour to increase his distress as much
as possible. You should press him down,
and tell him he must submit to God, and
generally he will. I know some have been
brought out truly regenerated after all this
flattery, but it was not in consequence, but
in spite of it. Again, you say, ' Look to
the promises.' Now, there is no promise
to the impenitent, and how can you expect
him to look to the promises while he is in
his sins ? I distinguish between promises
and invitations. Men are invited to repent,
but there is no promise to them till they
do repent." Such has been the uniform
mode of exhibiting this subject. The prom-
ises of God are a part of his covenant, and
the indispensable conditions of the cove-
nant are repentance and faith.

204

RELIGION IN AMERICA.

[Book V.

But the impenitent, when thus pressed
Avith the duty of at once giving their hearts
to God, are extremely apt to say (or at
least to feel), " I cannot ; Christ has decla-
red it to be I -jjpnd my power. It cannot,
therefore, be my immediate duty; I am
authorized to wait till power is given me
from on higli." Here, as in the former
case, the New-England clergy are guided
by the principles of Edwards. They ap-
ply that familiar distinction of common
life which he made so clear and palpable
in theological science, the distinction be-
tween natural and moral ability and inabil-
ity. You are not unable in the sense
you claim. You have all the faculties
which constitute a moral being. He who
is capacitated to do wrong, must, from the
nature of the case, be capacitated to do
right. Your cannot, therefore, is only will
not. Christ, who has spoken of the inabil-
ity you plead, lias explained its nature :
" Ye will not come unto me that ye might
have life." "Oh! Jerusalem, how often
would I have gathered thy children to-
gether, as a hen gathereth her chickens
under her wings, and ye would not." These
views have formed the basis of New-Eng-
land preaching for nearly a century. Dr.
Dwight, speaking of this subject, says,
" The nature of this inability to obey the
law of God is, in my view, completely in-
dicated by the word indisposition, or the
word disinclination. A child is equally lui-
able to obey a parent, against whom his
will is as much opposed, as to obey God.
In both cases this inability, I apprehend, is
of exactly the same nature. Indisposition
to come to Christ, therefore, is the true
and the only difficulty which lies in our
way."* Nor are these views confined to
New-England. A distinguished Scottish
divine, Dr. Witherspoon, afterward presi-
dent of Princeton College, speaking of the
alleged impossibility, says, " Now consid-
er, I pray, what sort of impossibility this
is. It is not natural, but moral. It is not
want of power, but want of inclination.''''^
I am far from saying that no preacher is
favoured with revivals of religion who
does not thus explicitly assert man's pow-
er as a moral agent to give his heart to
God. Men see their way with very differ-
ent degrees of clearness and confidence,
through the numerous questions that arise
out of such a statement. I only say, that
the views of Dwight and Witherspoon, giv-
en above, prevail universally among the
New-England clergy, and to a great extent
in the Presbyterian Church ; and that those
who maintain tliem consider these views
as lying at tlie foundation of all their suc-
cessful efl'orts to j)njuiotc revivals. Wlien
they can go to the inipcniteiU sinner and
treat him (after tiie manner of Dr. Dwight)

* Theology, Sermon cxxxiii.
t Works, vol. li., p. 279.

just as they would treat a child in rebellion
against an earthly parent, and can make
\um feel that the whole difficulty in his case
is a mere reluctance to duty, they find the
great impediment removed out of the way.
They feel an unembarrassed freedom in
pressing obligation, and a power of fasten-
ing conviction of sin upon the conscience,
which they never possessed before. A
writer of great experience in revivals has
remarked, " Whatever may be the specu-
lative opinions of ministers with regard to
the nature of depravity, inability, regener-
ation, &c., it is a fact, that where their
ministry is successful, as it is in revivals,
they preach to sinners as if they believed
them to be possessed of all the powers of
moral agency, capable of turning to God,
and on this account, and no other, inexcu-
sable for not doing so. Some have seen
these points more clearly, and have ex-
plained them more philosophically, and
more scripturaliy than others, but there
has always been a substantial agreement
in their mode of preaching among those
who have been blessed in turning sinners
to righteousness."*

But it may be said, granting (as, indeed,
we must on some ground) the duty of the
unconverted to turn instantly to God, still
they will never succeed in doing it with-
out an influence from on high. Why, then,
press them so urgently to the act \ Why
multiply motives, as if you expected to pro-
duce the change by the force of moral sua-
sion T Is it not true, after all, that both
you and they must " wait God's time V
It would be enough to answer, that God
himself has set us the example : " Make
you a new heart and a new spirit, yb?- lohy
ivill ye die V Christ and his apostles urged
to repentance by argument and persuasion,
just as they did to any of the ordinary acts
of life. The whole Bible is filled with
warnings, expostulations, and entreaties,
pressing a lost race, with every motive that
two worlds can offer, to immediate right
action. Nor is it difficult to see, at least,
some of the reasons. First : Let the sin-
ner really put himself to the act of giving
his lieart to God, and he will learn, as he
can never learn in any other way, the depth-
of his depravity, the utter and hopeless des-
titution of all spiritual sensibility within
him. Nothing can so eft'ectually crush his
pride arid self-reliance. This practical dem-
onstration of his entire helplessness, in him-
self considered, may be just the thing that
was necessary to bring him to that point
where alone it would be proper for God to
grant him the renewing influences of his
grace. Secondly : The Spirit, in sanctify-
ing, operates " tlirough the truth ;" and tlie
j)resence of that truUi upon the mind as an
uistrumental cause is, therefore, just as ne-

* Views and Feelings requisite to Success in the
Gospel Ministry. By W. G. Walton.

Chap. VII.]

REVIVALS OF RELIGION.

205

cessary to the result (at least in the case
of adults) as the renewing influence itself.
While it was the uniform doctrine of the
Apostle Paul that the redeemed are "be-
gotten of God," he thought it no arrogance
to say, " / have begotten you through the
Gospel." Without affirming that the influ-
ences of the Spirit are granted in exact
proportion to the wisdom and power with
■which truth is urged upon the conscience,
we may safely say that such, to a very
great and prevailing extent, is the fact. It
is, at least, all that man can do ; and if the
doctrines of the sinner's dependence leads
us to do this with one particle of diminish-
ed force, if we do not ply him with truth
and motive just as earnestly as if we ex-
pected to convert him by our own efforts
alone, it is a serious question whether our
orthodoxy has not lost its true balance.
Is there not reason to fear that very ex-
cellent men sometimes err on this subject
from the best of motives, the desire to ex-
alt the grace of God ! " How often," says
a writer quoted above, (W. G. Walton),
" do we hear the preaching of the word
compared to the blowing of rams' horns
around the walls of Jericho ! The man
who preaches has certainly, in himself con-
sidered, no more power to convert the souls
of his hearers, than was possessed by the
Jewish priests to demolish the bulwarks of
that city. But are the instruments used in
the two cases equally impotent ■? Are the
truths of the Gospel no more adapted to the
conversion of the soul than the blast of a
horn to the destruction of a cityl" No
honour is done to the Holy Spirit by exalt-
ing His influences in conversion, at the ex-
pense of the truth which He has himself
revealed. It is the glory of that blessed
Agent, that in turning the soul to God, He
does it in strict accordance with the laws
of our moral constitution. " Sanctify them
through thy truth," was the prayer of Christ
himself; and 1 believe it will be found that
the most successful preachers are those
who have the most exalted views of the
power of divine truth in turning the soul
to God. Such views give a peculiar so-
lemnity, and earnestness, and authority in
preaching, by which attention is secured,
and conviction wrought in the minds of the
hearers. Thirdly : The result produced
by renewing grace is right action. " God,"
says Edwards, '"produces all, and we act all.
For that is wiiat he produces, viz., our own
acts^ — {Efficacious Grace, sec. 64.) Is it
not, therefore, most reasonable to suppose
that this grace (if bestowed at all) will be
granted to those who are putting tliein-
selves to the act of giving their hearts to
God, who " strive to enter in at the strait
gate ;" and not to those who remain in the
attitude of mere passive recipients ? Ac-
count for it as we Avill, there is no fact
which our revivals have taught us more

fully than this, the great success lohich
attends the urging of sinners to turn immedi-
atehj to God, as though we expected them to
do it at once and upon the spot. Among the
numerous cases in point v'feach occur at
once to my mind, I will briefly mention
one. A young man, soon after joining one
of our colleges, called on a friend one even-
ing, and stated that he had always been
taught to regard religion as the highest in-
terest of life, but had ever shrunk from ma-
king it a personal concern; that his change
of residence, separation from friends, and
sense of loneliness, had made him desirous
to seek salvation, and that he now wished
to learn the way. A long conversation
ensued, in which the object was, not so
much to point out what he should do when
he returned to his room, as to lead him (if
such were the will of God) to embrace the
Saviour at once, even before the conver-
sation closed. With this view, the char-
acter of God and Christ was dwelt upon at
large ; their treatment of him during his
years of past rebellion, and his treatment
of them under the continued invitations of
their mercy ; with examples taken from
the case of those whose absence had pro-
duced this unwonted tenderness, of un-
w^earied assiduity and kindness on their
part, requited with insult, ingratitude, and
rebellion on his. The design was to
show him, in this familiar way, the exact
state of mind into which he was required
to come ; the ingenuous sorrow, heartfelt
confidence, and grateful love, whose nature
and reasonableness he could so perfectly
understand in respect to an earthly parent.
I have thus dwelt for a moment on the in-
structions given, for the sake of remark-
ing how extremely simple and elementary
it has been found necessary to make them.
Such is the case even with those who, like
this young man, have been most religious-
ly educated. As these views of the sub-
ject were seen to open his mind with con-
tinually deepening interest and solemnity,
under the prolonged exhibition of divine
truth, the question was at length proposed,
" Can there ever be a more favourable
moment than the present for attempting
to put forth the feelings now described?
You will not do it, indeed, without an in-
fluence from on high. That influence may
justly be withheld, but it may, also, be
granted : ' Peradventure, God may give
you repentance.' Will you, then, go with
me to the throne of grace, not to gain
more conviction, not to do any preparato-
ry work (for this will defeat the object),
but to put yourself at once, as 1 go before
you in prayer, to the exercise of this in-
genuous sorrow for sin, and grateful trust
in the blood of Christ V They knelt down
together to perform this duty, and closed
with a solemn dedication of the soul to
God. They rose and read over the fifty-

206

RELIGION IN AMERICA.

[Book V.

first Psalm, the fifty-fifth chapter of Isaiah,
and other appropriate passages, and went
again, with increased solemnity, to the
throne of grace. Four hours were thus
spent, and they separated for the night.
They met in the morning, and the young
man said, " I hope I have given my heart
to God ; I think I did it before we parted
last evening." That hope he has never
relinquished, and during a number of years
which have since elapsed, the uniform
tenour of his life, as an active and devoted
member of the Church of Christ, has given
satisfactory evidence that he was not de-
ceived.

This, then, is the point to which all my
observations are directed — the union of
these two doctrines of activity and depend-
ence, which are so commonly felt lo be
subversive of each other ; the bringing of
both to bear with undiminished force on
the minds of the impenitent. Establish
one of these doctrines to the exclusion or
weakening of the other, and just to the
same extent is the Gospel robbed of its
power. Inculcate dependence without
pressing to the act of instantly giving up
the heart to Christ, and the sinner sits
down quietly to " wait God's time." Urge
him to duty on the ground of his possess-
ing all the requisite power, while (with
the Pelagians) you do away his depend-
ence, and his reluctant heart will lead him
to take his own time, and that is never.
Address him on the Arminian scheme of
gracious aid, which is always ready at his
call (except in cases of extreme contu-
macy), and how strongly is he tempted to
put off to a more " convenient season"
what lie feels may at any time be done !
But place him under the pressure of both
these doctrines — the necessity of action
on his part in coming to God, the weighty
obligations which urge him to it, the crush-
ing sense of guilt every moment he de-
lays, the momentous interests which seem
to be crowded into the decision of the
passing hour, the encouragement to " strive
as in an agony" afforded by the gift of the
Spirit's influences to others around him
(an encouragement peculiarly great in sea-
.sons of revival, and giving them so much
of iheir power), the feeling that God may
justly withhold those influences, and that
every moment of delay increases the dan-
ger of this fearful doom — and have we not
here, most perfectly combined, all the ele-
ments of that system of grace which is
emphatically tjie power of God unto sal-
vation ?

I will conclude my remarks on this part
of the subject in the words of the late Rev.
Dr. Griffin, formerly a professor at Ando-
ver, and afterward president of Williams
College, Massachusetts. Being requested
to account for the prevalence of revivals
in this country, he gave the following as

the principal reason : " It is found in the'
distinct apprehensions which prevail in
New-England about the instantaneousness
of regeneration, the sinfulness of every
moral exercise up to that moment, and
the duty of immediate submission. Such
a view of things leads the preacher to di-
vide his audience into two classes, and to
run a strong and' affecting line of demar-
cation between them. When one feels
that the moral, sober, prayerful, unregen-
erate part of his audience are doing pretty
well, and can afford to wait a little longer
before they submit, he will not be so press-
ing, nor fall with such a tremendous weight
upon their conscience. When he feels
that they cannot do much more than they
do, but must wait God's time, he will not
annoy and weary them, and make them
sick of waiting, and compel them to come
in. But when one enters the pulpit under
a solemn sense that every unregenerate
man before him, however awakened, is an
enemy to God, is resisting with all his
heart, and will continue to resist till he
submits ; that he must be ' born again' be-
fore he is any better than an enemy, or has
made any approaches towards holiness ;
when one looks round upon the unregen-
erate part of his audience, and sees that
they are under indispensable obligations
to yield at once, that they have no man-
ner of excuse for delaying ; that they de-
serve eternal reprobation for postponing
an hour ; when one feels from the bottom
of his heart that there is nothing short of '
regeneration that can answer any purpose, ,
and that he cannot leave his dear charge
to be turned from enemies of God to friends-
ten years hence ; delivered from condem-
nation ten years hence ; but must see it
noiv, oh ! how will he pray and preach !
He will give God no rest, and he will give
sinners no rest ; and he will bring down
their immediate, pressing, boundless obli-
gations upoil them with the weight of a
world. Under such preaching sinners must
either turn to God or be miserable. There
is no chance for them to remain at ease
this side of infidelity itself."

We pass now to consider the second
question proposed, viz.. What is there in
the fact that many are awakened at once,
and are pressing together into the kingdom
of God, which is peculiarly adapted (un-
der the divine blessing) to secure the de-
sired result ? This question has been vir-
tually answered in the facts stated or im-
plied in the preceding part of this chap-
ter. I will, however, briefly advert to
them again, and present in a single view
some of those influences which unite to
give extraordinary power to a well-con-
ducted revival of religion.

As far as human instrumentality is con-
f erned, the conversion of sinners depends
on two things — the clear and vivid pres-

Chap. VII.]

REVIVALS OF RELIGION.

267

sentation of divine truth to their minds, and
importunate prayer, on the part of Chris-
tians, for the influences of the Holy Spirit
to give that truth effect. I am, therefore,
to show vifhat there is in these seasons of
concentrated religious interest, which is
peculiarly adapted both to animate the
prayers and efforts of the people of God,
and to give the Gospel readier access to
the hearts of the impenitent, and superior
efficacy in bringing them to " the obedi-
ence of the truth." In doing so, I shall
point to certain original principles of our
mental constitution which have confess-
edly very great power in moving the minds
of men, and shall endeavour to show that
revivals appeal to these principles or
springs of human action, with a force and
effect altogether greater than can ever be
realized under any other circumstances.
I shall thus give what may not improperly
be termed a theory of revivals, and shall
show that they are not seasons of mere
excitement and fanaticism, but might rea-
sonably be expected, from their consisten-
cy with the laws of human action, to pro-
duce those great and lasting reformations
with which they have actually blessed the
American churches. In pursuing the sub-
ject, 1 hope I shall not be suspected of
losing sight for one moment of the fact,
that the Holy Spirit is the author of all
the good produced in this case, both in
the hearts of Christians and impenitent
sinners. But it is the glory of that bless-
ed Agent, that, in dispensing his sanctify-
ing influences, he does not set aside or de-
stroy the established laws of human agen-
cy ; and it is not, therefore, detracting from
these influences, but rather doing them
honour, to point out their perfect consist-
ency with the great principles of our men-
tal constitution.

I. The first of these principles to which
I shall now advert, and which relates par-
ticularly to Christians, is strongly-awaken-
ed desire.

The scenes presented in a revival are
eminently adapted to create those strong
spiritual desires which are only another
name for fervent prayer, and are indispen-
sable to all successful Christian effort. Let
any church, in its ordinary state of feel-
ing, hear that the Holy Spirit is poured out
on a neighbouring town ; let some of its
members visit the spot, and bring back a
report of what is passing there ; that the
people of God are animated with all the
zeal of their first love, fervent in pray-
ers and labours for the salvation of sin-
ners, full of joy and hope ; let them tell
of the crowded assemblies, the deathlike
stillness, the solemnity and awe depicted
on every countenance ; of some who but
a few days before were thoughtless and
even abandoned to sin, now bowed down
under a sense of guilt, and of others re-

joicing in the hope of having found the
Saviour, and reconciliation through his
blood ; let it appear that there is nothing
disorderly or extravagant in this move-
ment, nothing but the natural and appro-
priate effect of divine truth applied to the
conscience by the Spirit of God ; and what
is there that can appeal more strongly to
all the sensibiUties of a Christian heart?
What more natural, under the impulse of
the fervent desires thus awakened, than to
•' put away all their idols," to bow before
God in deep self-abasement for their past
backslidings, to mourn over the multi-
tudes around them who are in danger of
perishing in their sins, and to pour out the
prayer of the prophet from overflowing
hearts, " O Lord, revive thy work in the
midst of the years, in the midst of the
years make known ; in wrath remember
mercy." And if, through the grace of God,
a similar dispensation of the Spirit is grant-
ed in answer to their prayers, how much
more fervent and absorbing do those de-
sires become as the blessing is brought
home to their own doors ! How do we
see parents pleading for their children,
wives for their husbands, friend for friend,
with all the importunity of the patriarch of
old, " I will not let thee go, except thou
bless me."' How is all reserve laid aside
— all the ordinary backwardness of Chris-
tians to speak and act openly on the side
of the Redeemer, and every feeling ab-
sorbed amid these triumphs of divine
grace, in the one great question, "Lord,
what wilt thou have me to do" for the ad-
vancement of thy cause ] Faint and fee-
ble, indeed, when compared with these, are
the spiritual desires which are found to
prevail in any ordinary state of the Church.

2. The second of these principles, now
to be mentioned, is expectation.

If I were asked why revivals are so fre-
quent in America, and so rare in Europe,
my first answer would be, that Christian.?!
on one side of the Atlantic expect them,
and on the other they do not expect them.
These seasons of " refreshing from on
high" are a part of the blessing that rested
on our fathers ; and the events of the last
forty years, especially, have taught us, that
if we seek their continuance in tlie spirit
of those with whom they commenced, wo
shall never seek in vain. Nor is there
anything to confine them within our owrr
borders. They have been carried by our
missionaries to a number of Indian tribes.
Our stations in Ceylon have been repeat-
edly visited with the effusions of the Holy
Spirit, and the Sandwich Islands, within
the last three years, have been favoured
with one of the most glorious dispensa-
tions of divine grace which the world has
ever witnessed. Similar periods of " re-
freshing from on high" existed formerly iu
Scotland ; and there are cheering indica-

■208

RELIGION IN AMERICA,

[Book V.

lions in recent events, that God may even
now be ready to bring down again the
blessing of their fathers upon the churches
in that country. In all the evangelical
churches of Europe, indeed, where the
Gospel is preached with plainness and
power, there are seasons of more than
ordinary religious interest, which, if not
revivals in our sense of the term (and
they sometimes are), would undoubtedly
become revivals if the same expectation
of this result could only pervade those
churches which animates their brethren of
America under similar circumstances.

But, leaving this more general view of
the subject, it is obvious that nothing is
more calculated to fill the hearts of Chris-
tians with courage, and expectation, and
hope, than the feeling that God is in the
midst of them with the peculiar dispensa-
tion of his grace. One must witness the
scene, indeed, to have any just conception
of the power of a revival in this respect
— of the multiplied appeals which it makes
to this most essential element in all the
successful efforts of men. " God is pour-
ing out his Spirit in a neighbouring town I"
In how many hundreds of instances has
this thought, and the encouragement it af-
forded, been the starling-point of those ex-
ertions, which resulted, under the divine
blessing, in the commencement of one re-
vival more ! " God is here with the effu-
sions of his Spirit !" Who does not feel
the thrill of joy, of hope, of confidence,
"which pervades the heart of every spiritu-
ally-minded Christian 1 What can be more
suited to revive the decaying graces of
backsliders, and to bring the whole Church
to harmonious action, to fervent prayer,
and strenuous efforts ? When the confi-
dence thus inspired has been high, and yet
humble, resting on the mighty power of
the Spirit and tlie efficacy of divine truth,
when has God ever failed to bestow a sig-
nal blessing 1 On the contrary, if the
work of grace has not gone forward, as
was hoped, how uniformly do we find that
the people of God either became faint-
hearted in consequence of some difficulty
or delay, and did not expect to succeed ; or
that their confidence was misplaced, that
they rested on some favourite instrument
or system of measures, and not on the arm
of the Most High ! Nor is the influence of
which I speak confined to Christians. It
acts on the minds of the impenitent in va-
rious ways, and with great power. " God
is calling some of my companions into his
kingdom !" This tliought strikes upon the'
hearts of many who have been religiously
educated, who have always intended at
some time to seek eternal life, and who
are induced by what is passing around
them to do it 7i()w, because they are en-
couraged to hope they shall succeed. " God
is renewing the hearts of many others, why

may he not renew mine V This thought
to the awakened sinner, writhing under
conviction of sin, crushed by a sense of
his utterly helpless condition in himself
considered, tempted, under repeated fail-
ures, to give up all in despair — this thought
aflx)rds him an encouragement which is
worth to him more than worlds besides ;
and, as I before remarked, it is an encour-
agement which especially abounds in a
season of revival. " God is causing the
stout-hearted to fall before him!" This
thought often awakens in the impenitent
another kind of expectation, mingled with
dread, as a revival goes forward ; it is,
that they will be compelled to yield ; that they
cannot stand before it. Sometimes it dis-
arms opposition, and sometimes it makes
men flee. An instance occurs to me,
which I will briefly mention. A student
in one of our colleges, during a powerful
work of grace, struggled for a time to ward
off conviction by argument and ridicule,
and finding that he could not succeed,
framed a plausible excuse, and obtained
liberty to return home. As he drove into
his native village, at the close of the day,
rejoicing at the thought of having escaped
from the revival, he saw large numbers of
people returning from the house of God.
" What has happened ? What is going on?"
was his first inquiry when he alighted at
his father's door. " A revival of religion
has just commenced," was the reply ; and
one and another of his most thoughtless
companions were mentioned as under con-
viction of sin. He felt, like one of old,
that it was in vain to flee from the pres-
ence of God. All his former convictions
revived at once, aggravated by a sense of
his guilt in striving to suppress them. He
gave himself to the pursuit of eternal life,
and, through the grace of God (as he
hoped), within a few days found the Sav-
iour from whom he had attempted to flee.
He returned at once to college, called im-
mediately on those whom he had deterred
from seriousness by his influence and ex-
ample, and invited them to his room that
evening, telling them that he had a story
to relate. When they met, he gave tliem
a full account of the efforts lie had made
to resist the strivings of the Spirit, and the
conclusion to which (through the grace of
God) he had come, and ended with tlie ex-
hortation, " Go ye and do likewise." Such
are some of the ways in which revivals
appeal to this powerful principle of our
nature with a force never to be expected
at a period of no general interest in reli-
gion.

3. A third principle intimately connect-
ed with this subject is sympathy. God,
in establishing public worship, has deci-
ded that the social and sympathetic feel-
ings of our nature ought to be enlisted in
the cause of reUgion. It would be strange,

Chap. VII.]

REVIVALS OF RELIGION.

209

indeed, if it were otherwise ; if that pow-
erful principle which binds man to his fel-
low were yielded up to Satan for the de-
struction of unnumbered millions who " fol-
low a multitude to do evil," and were nev-
er employed by the Holy Spirit in bring^ing
those who act in masses on every other
subject, to act, at least, sometimes togeth-
er in coming to -the "obedience of the
truth." That strong tendency of our na-
ture to be moved and excited because we
see others excited around us, is not of ne-
cessity a blind and headlong impulse ; it
may be guided by reason, and made sub-
servient to the best ends of our intellectual
and moral existence. In respect to every
subject but religion, this is conceded by
all ; and he would be thought superlatively
"weak who should refuse the aid of sympa-
thy in any other enterprise for the well-
being of man. But what is there so mys-
terious or unreasonable in the fact, that
"when the Holy Spirit has impressed one
mind with a sense of its responsibilities
and violated obligations, and awakened
"within it correspondent feelings of fear,
shame, and self-condemnation, these views
and feelings should spread by contact into
other minds ; that this blessed Agent should
make use of sympathy as well as attention,
memory, and various other principles of
our nature, in bringing men to a knowl-
edge of God 1 That he does so operate
where revivals are wholly unknown, that
the awakening of one individual is fre-
quently made the occasion of arresting the
attention of a number of his associates,
and fastening conviction on their minds, is
matter of faminar observation in every re-
ligious community. When such cases be-
come numerous, and other influences unite
"with this to deepen the impression of di-
vine truth, that is, when there is a revival,
this principle operates with still greater
power and much wider extent. Hundreds
are drawn to religious meetings at first,
simply because the current sets that way.
"W'hen there, they are led by the awe and
solemnity which pervade the place to lis-
ten, perhaps for the first time in their
lives, with fixed attention and impartial
self-application to the word dispensed.
Their incipient conviction of sin is height-
ened by the emotion which prevails around
them, and by conversation with those who
have felt longer and more deeply than
themselves. They are led to " strive as
in an agony," to " enter in at the strait
gate," and thus " the kingdom of heaven
suffereth violence, and the violent take it
by force." As the strong images 1 have
used, so perfectly descriptive of the state
of things in a revival, are borrowed from
the language employed by our Saviour
himself, with evident approbation, in de-
scribing similar scenes in his own day, it

with perfect soundness of mind, or the
presence of the sanctifying Spirit, in a
season of simultaneous and highly-awa-
kened interest on the subject of the soul's
salvation. That such seasons are liable
to be abused, and have, in some instances,
actually degenerated, under the guidance
of weak and rash men, into scenes of dis-
order or mere animal excitement, is no
more an argument against them, than a
similar abuse of any of the great powers
of nature, or principles of our mental con-
stitution, is an argument against their le-
gitimate and well-directed use. We should
remember, too, that if there is danger on
one side, there is danger also on the other.
Men may die of palsy as well as fever.
And when so many millions are sunk in
the anticipated slumbers of the second
death, we ought not to be too timid or fas-
tidious as to the means employed in awa-
kening them to the extremity of their dan-
ger. Tiie fact, however, is (as more and
more fully shown in our revivals), there
can be in very powerful operation what
may be called moral sympathy, that is, the
action of one mind upon another in sober,
calm, but very deep emotion, under just
views of divine truth, without any of that
animal excitement or nervous agitation
which leads to strong and sometimes dis-
orderly exhibitions of feeling. In this re-
spect a very important change has taken
place in our New-England revivals in the
progress of a century. During the re-
markable work of grace in 1735, persons
were often so agitated under the powerful
preaching of the word, as to groan and
cry out in the midst of religious worship,
under the anguish of their spirit. The
clergy did not encourage these strong ex-
pressions of feeling, but they thought them,
to some extent, perhaps unavoidable, and,
therefore, to be tolerated. In the progress
of the next great revival, in 1740-3, this
practice became still more prevalent, and
was connected, to a certain extent, with
other forms of bodily excitement, such as
trances, &c., which produced great con-
tention, and created a prejudice, in the
minds of many, against the entire work.
'I'his led our Congregational clergy, when
revivals recommenced on a broad scale at
the close of the last century, to unite from
the first to discountenance this practice;
to repress mere animal excitement of
every kind ; to make their religious meet-
ings, especially in the evening, sliort (not
generally exceeding an hour or an hour and
a half), in order to prevent exhaustion and
nervous agitation ; and to impress upon
their people that the presence of the Holy
Spirit ought to be recognised in silence
and awe, not with noise and confusion.
So complete was their success, that, al-
_, , .. though 1 have been much conversant with
is certain there is nothing inconsistent | revivals for more than thirty years, I have
O

210

RELIGION IN AMERICA.

[Book V.

never, but in one instance, and that a very
slight one and for a moment, witnessed
any audible expression of emotion in a re-
ligious assembly. All our experience has
shown that it is wholly unnecessary, and
from what we see in some sects where it
prevails to some extent, we are constrain-
ed to feel that it is injurious, not only as
creating prejudices against revivals, but as
leading many to mistake nervous excite-
ment for the influence of the Holy Spirit.

4. A fourth of these principles is the
spirit of inquiry awakened among the
thoughtless and prejudiced by the striking
scenes of a revival.

When crowds are seen flocking to the
house of God, many persons are drawn
thither by the impulse of mere curiosity,
and when thus brought under the power of
divine truth, are often taught of the Spirit ;
like the Athenians assembled by the same
impulse around Paul on Mars Hill, who,
we are told, " clave unto him and bcheved."
Others, who have always doubted or denied
the doctrines of grace, are led, by what is
going on around them, to enter into the
argument for the first time with candour
and attention ; until, struck by the blaze of
evidence, not only from the word preached,
but from the lives and conversation of
Christians in their revived state, like the
man described in the Epistle to the Corin-
thians, they are " convinced of all, are
judged of all, and so falling down on the
face, shall worship God, and report that
God is in you of a truth." Others still,
who were wholly skeptical as to the ex-
istence of any inward principle of spiritual
life, when they witness the amazing change
produced in the character of many around
them, are compelled to exclaim, " This is
indeed the finger of God." Many, too,
who went to religious meetings purposely
to find occasion to cavil and blaspheme,
have had the scales fall from their eyes in
the midst of their iniquity, and been led to
cry out with the persecutor of old, "Lord,
what wilt thou have me to do V Thus the
notoriety given to religion by the scenes of
a revival is turned with great effect to the
furtherance of the Gospel.

5. As a fifth of these principles, I may
mention the influence of that prolonged and
exclusive attention to divine truth which pre-
vails in a revival.

The power of fixed and continuous at-
tention in deepening the impressions of
any subject is one of the most familiar
principles of mental science. To nothing,
however, does it apply with so much force
as religion, whose objects are at once so
vast, so remote, and so repulsive to the
natural heart. Men must look at their
condition and ponder it deeply, before they
can feel the extremity of their wretched-
ness and guilt. It is the first step in turn-
ing to God ; and one reason, no doubt, why

so many sit from year to year under the
ordinary preaching of the word, moved
and affected, in some degree, almost every
Sabbath, and yet making no progress in
divine things, is, that the impressions pro-
duced are not folloived up and deepened du-
ring the subsequent week. On the con-
trary, even when a person feels but slightly
moved, if his mind can be held to the sub-
ject in steady and prolonged attention,
while every object is excluded that can
divert his thoughts, and the whole field of
vision is filled with clear and vivid exhi-
bitions of divine truth, it is surprising to
see how rapid, in many cases, the progress
of conviction becomes. An instance has
already been mentioned (and many others
might be adduced) of a young man who
appeared to be brought in this way, through
divine grace, into the kingdom of God, in
a conversation of a few hours. The pe-
riod was still shorter in the days of the
Apostles ; and whether it be the will of
God to make it long or short, the best
means certainly that a man can use is, to
hold the mind fixed in the solemn con-
templation of divine truth.

But the impenitent, to a great extent, are
very imperfectly qualified for such a task.
Their minds are so wandering, so unused
to dwell on spiritual objects, so estranged
from the throne of grace, so entirely in the
dark as to the nature of those feelings with
which they must come to God, that most
of the time they give to contemplation is
wasted in chaotic thought ; and they are
often led to relinquish the attempt in de-
spair. It is not, therefore, sufficient, when
their attention is awakened, to send them
to their Bibles and their closets. In addi-
tion to this, they need, at every step, the-
assistance of an experienced mind to hold
them to the subject, to remove obstacles out
of the way, and throw light on the path
before them. Here, then, is the great
principle of revivals. At certain seasons
which seem peculiarly to promise a divine
blessing, an extraordinary effort is made
(such as cannot from its nature last many
months) to bring the impenitent complete-
ly under the power of divine truth. Re-
ligious meetings are made so frequent, as
not, on the one hand, to weary and distract
the mind, nor, on the other, to leave the
impression made at one meeting to be ef-
faced or much weakened before the next
arrives ; but to keep the impenitent con-
stantly, as it were, in an atmosphere of di-
vine truth, brightening continually around
them, and bringing their minds more and
more j)erfect]y under " the power of the
world to come." There is preaching, per-
haps, an hour every evening, but the sub-
ject is not left there. At the close of the
service, all who are willing to be considered
as serious inquirers are invited to remain
for a half hour longer, to receive more fa-

Chap. HI.]

REVIVALS OF RELIGION.

211

miliar and direct instruction suited to their
case ; while the members of the church
withdraw to the vestry, or some other
convenient room, to implore the influences
of the Holy Spirit on the meeting to be
continued under these new and more in-
teresting circumstances. There is much
to awaken deep emotion in the separation
thus made ; as parent and child, husband
and wife, friend and friend, part from each
other, the one to be prayed for and the
other to pray. The great object of the
meeting with inquirers, as thus continued,
is to bring them at once to the point ; to
anticipate and remove objections ; to draw
them off from resting in any mere prepar-
atory work ; to set before them the great
objects in view of which, if at all, they
will (through divine grace) exercise right
affections, and then call them to do it ; lead-
ing them to the throne of grace in the fer-
vent expression of repentance for sin, faith
in Christ, and deliberate consecration to
the service of God. The inquirers are then
invited to assemble again at some conve-
nient hour the next day — or the next even-
ing, if there is preaching only every other
night — at what is called the meeting for
inquiry. Here the pastor converses for a
few moments with each individual sep-
arately as to the peculiar state of his feel-
ings, and then addresses them collectively,
as before, on the one great subject of
coming at once to Christ. An hour is also
appointed at which he will meet those who
are desirous to see him alone. Those
who entertain hopes are strictly examined,
formed into praying associations, encour-
aged to judicious effort for the salvation
of others, and frequently assembled as a
body to receive instruction in the eviden-
ces of genuine piety. The members of
the church, in the mean time, if they do
their duty, are actively engaged, according
to their ability, in similar labours in their
own families and neighbourhoods. Their
efforts, if well directed, present religion in
a new and striking form. It is brought
home to " the business and bosoms of
men," as it can never be by mere preach-
ing. Thus, in a great variety of ways,
divine truth is made to bear on the impeni-
tent during the progress of a revival, with
a directness, force, and continuity of im-
pression, which can never be attained
under any other circumstances ; while the
people of God are pleading before him to
give that truth effect, with a fervour of
supplication corresponding to the interest
of the scene around them.

6. Another principle involved in revivals
is, the removal of many causes which prevent
the access of divine truth to the mind undh-
ordinary circumstances.

I can barely glance at a few of these. In
a season of general religious interest, much
of that reserve is laid aside which ordinarily

prevails in respect to close conversation
on personal religion, and which forms so
effectual a guard for backsliding Christians
and impenitent sinners, against the intru-
sion of this unwelcome subject. Men are
expected, at such times, to speak freely ;
and if they do it with kindness and a little
tact, they can converse with almost any
one on the state of his spiritual concerns
without wounding his pride or awakening
his resentment.

The sense of shame, the reluctance to be
singular — one of the strongest impediments
(especially with the young) to entering on
a religious course — loses, at such times, al-
most all its power. In an extensive revi-
val, the singularity lies on the other side.

Those changes in business or family ar-
rangements, which must often be made as
the result of becoming religious, are re-
garded at such seasons with diminished
dread and repugnance. Is a man engaged
in some dishonourable or sinful employ-
ment, as, for instance, the making or vend-
ing of ardent spirits 1 The sacrifice is less
when he is only one among many who are
called to make it. Has the subject of
family prayer been an impediment to his
entering on a religious Course 1 Sftch are
the habits and feelings of our churches,
that no one can be recognised as a con-
sistent Christian who refuses to lead his
household statedly to the throne of grace.
Has a feelingof diffidence or awkwardness
as to commencing this duty been one rea-
son for shrinking from the service of
Christ ? How entirely does this obstacle
disappear when so many around are erect-
ing the family altar, when, as I once knew
in a single small neighbourhood, twelve
plain and uneducated men in one week are
seen entering on the duty of family wor-
ship !

The ordinary amusements of life, which
interest the feelings and divert the atten-
tion, are at such periods wholly laid aside
among those who are friendly to revivals.

The concerns of business are made to
yield on such occasions to the higher in-
terests of eternity. The people of God
will find or make time for the numerous
seasons of prayer and preaching which
demand their presence ; and will so ar-
range that their children and dependents
shall enjoy every facility that is requisite
to the effectual pursuit of eternal life.

Such, without dwelling farther on the
subject, are some of the ways in which im-
pediments to the progress of the Gospel
are removed out of the way, by extraordi-
nary seasons of attention to religion.

7. The next principle which I shall men-
tion is, the tendency of revivals to bring
men to a decision, and to make them decide
right on the subject of religion.

" Hell," says an old Enghsh writer, " is
paved with good intentions" — intentions

212

RELIGION IN AMERICA.

[Book V.

never carried into effect, because the time
for their execution never quite arrived.
On these dreams of the future a revival
breaks in with startling power, and calls
men to instant decision : " Choose ye this
day whom ye will serve." Those who
believe in religion at all, believe and know
that they can never enjoy a more favour-
able season to secure the salvation of their
souls. Everything, at such a time, presses
upon them with united force to make them
decide at once, and decide right. The
Avell-known shortness of such a season, to
them, perhaps, the end of their day of
grace — the uncommon clearness and pun-
gency with which the truth is preached —
the solicitude of Christian friends — the im-
portunity of young converts who have just
"tasted that the Lord is gracious" — the
impulse of the mass of mind around them,
moving in one direction, with all the mul-
tiplied influences that concentre in a re-
vival, unite to impress the truth with irre-
sistible force, " Now is the accepted time,
now is the day of salvation." In the mean
time, one step prepares the way for an-
other; a decision on one point braces up
the mind for farther and more important
decisions in the (Tiiward progress. " Shall
I yield to the urgency of my friends, and
regularly attend religious meetings'?" The
effort costs perhaps but little. " Shall I
remain after the service closes, and thus
acknowledge myself an inquirer ]" The
struggle is far greater, but if the victory is
gained over his backwardness and pride,
he is still more likely to go on. " Shall I
attend the meeting for inquiry V " Shall I
go to my pastor, lay open my heart, and
tell him of the world of iniquity which I
find within V In addition to the other
happy consequences of taking such a step,
the strength of purpose gained by the effort
is one security against his going back : he
is now committed, and a sense of consist-
ency unites with higher motives to urge
him forward. Thus the multiplied exer-
cises of a revival bring the sinner continu-
ally to the trial ; press him to instantane-
ous decision ; and prepare the way, through
divine grace, for his entering into the king-
dom of God.

8. Another principle involved in revivals
is the tendency of that lively joy tohich pre-
vails amo7)g Chrislians, and especially yonng
converts, to render religion attractive to the
unconverted.

At ordinary seasons, a life of piety too
often appears to the impenitent, and espe-
cially to tlic yomig, under a forbidding as-
pect. Christians lind but little in the state
of things around them to call forth their
affections, before the unconverted, in lively
expressions of si)iritual joy. If tJK^y do not
decline in the warmth of their feelings (as
they too often do), they arc apt at least to
retire within themselves, and to seek their

chief enjoyment in secret communion with
God. But in times of revival everything
is changed. Their hearts naturally flow
forth in warm expressions of thankfulness
and joy, as they witness again the triumphs
of divine grace. They renew the fervours
of their first love. In their intercourse
with the unconverted, they naturally as-
sume an unwonted tenderness of manner,
as they seek to bring them by their faith-
ful admonitions to the cross of Christ.
The effect is often most striking. The im-
penitent look at religion under a new as-
pect, as they see the kindness and solici-
tude of so many around them for their
spiritual good. A lady, during a recent
revival, as she entered the shop of a trades-
man of infidel principles, recollected that,
though she had dealt with him for some
years, she had never spoken to him on the
subject of religion. She alluded at once to
the scenes which were then passing in the
town ; to the surprising changes that had
taken place in some of her acquaintance ;
and inquired whether any of those whom
he employed were interested in the work.
The man was deeply affected as the con-
versation went on, and at last, wiping his
eyes, he said, with much emotion, " I know
not why it is that the ladies who deal with
me are so anxious for my good. A num-
ber have spoken to me on the subject be-
fore, and one or two have conversed with
some of my workmen. Religion must be
something very different from what I had
supposed."

But the effect on the impenitent is still
more striking, when they witness the joy
which is manifested in the countenance
and conversation of the new converts to
religion. Every natural man bears in his
bosom a testimony that he is in the wrong.
He has, too, a sense of want, an insatiable
desire of some good which he has never
yet obtained ; and when he sees multitudes
around him who have found that good,
where he knows it can alone exist, in the
favour of God, how strong is the appeal
to one of the deepest principles of our na-
ture, especially in the case of those who
are already somewhat convinced of sin,
and of the unsatisfying nature of all worldly
enjoyment! It is the very appeal so beau-
tifully set forth in the parable of the prodi-
gal son. It was the reflection that there
was bread enough and to spare in his father's
liouse, while he perished with hunger, that
made him exclaim, " I will arise and go
unto my father!" Some years ago, two
young ladies, under deep conviction of sin,
went, after an evening meeting, to the house
of their pastor for farther instruction. As
the preacher conversed with them much
at large, and was urging them, by motives
drawn from the love of Christ, instantly to
accept the offered salvation, one of them
was observed to rest her head upon her

Chap. VIII.]

REVIVALS OF RELIGION.

213

hand, as in deep abstraction, till her face
sank at last on the table, in solemn and
overpowering emotion. After a few mo-
ments of entire silence, she looked up with
a countenance of serene joy, dropped upon
one knee before her companion, and said,
with the simplicity of a child, " Julia, do
love Christ. He is so beautiful. Do come
with me and love him !" This led Julia to
the reflection, " She has entered in while
I remain out." " One shall be taken and
another left." It was this which seemed
to be the means (under God) of bringing
her also to Christ before she laid her head
that night upon her pillow.

9. The last of these principles to which
I shall advert is, the solemnity and awe in-
spired by a sense of the peculiar presence of
God, the sanctifying Spirit.

The feeling of the supernatural is one
of the strongest and most subduing emo-
tions of the human heart. It has been
used by the adversary of souls to convert
unnumbered millions into bond-slaves of
the most degrading superstition ; and it is
worthy of being employed by the Spirit of
all grace, as an instrument of bringing the
chosen of God to that liberty wherewith
Christ shall make them free. It is the
great distinctive sentiment of a revival of
religion. *' How dreadful is this place : it
is none other than the house of God and
the gate of heaven." Such is the feeling
with which those who believe in the reality
of divine influence move amid the scenes
which are hallowed by the especial pres-
ence of the sanctifying Spirit. In the chil-
dren of God, as they are employed in bear-
ing forward the triumphs of his grace, it
awakens that mingled awe and delight
which we may imagine filled the breasts of
those who bore before the armies of Israel
the ark of the covenant, on which rested
the Shechinah of the Most High. To the en-
emies of God it comes with a solemnity of
appeal second only to that of the bed of
death and the scenes of approaching judg-
ment, as they see around them the striking
manifestations of his presence who " will
have mercy on whom he will have mercy,
and whom he will he hardeneth." " Grieve
not the Spirit," is the admonition continu-
ally impressed upon them by the messen-
gers of the Most High. " Grieve not the
Spirit," is the argument urged especially by
those who have recently tasted the sweet-
ness of his renovating grace. " Grieve
not the Spirit," is the admonition which
comes to them at times from those who
feel that they have wasted their day of
grace. A striking instance of this kind
occurred within my own knowledge. A
lady who had passed unsubdued through
more than one of these seasons of visita-
tion from on high, and who had deliber-
ately stifled her convictions and delayed
repentance, was lying on the bed of death

when another revival commenced. When
entreated to avail herself of this last period
(to her) of the Spirit's influences, she re-
plied that it was utterly in vain ; that she
had deliberately resisted his grace, and
now felt that the curse of abandonment
was upon her. Nothing could change her
views. She went down to the grave with
the admonition continually upon her lips,
to those who stood around her bedside,
" Grieve not the Spirit." These were the
last words she uttered as she entered the
eternal world.

Thus have I given a brief sketch of the
rise and progress of our revivals ; of the
mode of presenting divine truth which has
been found most eff'ectual at such periods ;
and of those principles in our mental con-
stitution which are appealed to with pecu-
liar power by these seasons of concentra-
ted religious interest. As the limits as-
signed me have already been exceeded, I
must here leave the subject, commending
the very imperfect exhibition which has
now been made to the candour and prayers
of the Christian reader."

CHAPTER VIII.

SUPPLEMENTARY REMARKS ON REVIVALS OF
RELIGION.

I WILL add only a few words to the full
and able discussion of the subject of reli-
gious revivals contained in the preceding
chapter.

The reader will have perceived that it
treats particularly of the revivals which
have taken place in New-England, that
being the part of the United States with
which its author is most intimately ac-
quainted. But as it has fallen to my lot
to be conversant with the different evan-
gelical denominations of all parts of the
country, during several years devoted to
religious and philanthropic enterprises be-
fore my going to Europe, it may not be
amiss that I should give the result of that
experience.

I should say, then, that the same blessed
influences of the Spirit, which have been
so signally manifested in the churches and
many of the literary institutions of New-
England, have been experienced, and per-
haps in no less a measure, in the evangel-
ical churches of all denominations through-
out the United States. I have been my-
self a witness to these blessed movements
in almost every one of those States, at one
time or another, and have ever found their
effects to be, in all essential respects, the
same.

It may be fairly remarked, I think, that
under a permanent, well-instructed minis-
ter, revivals are usually less alloyed with
unnecessary, and, on the whole, injurious

214

RELIGION IN AMERICA.

[Book V.

accompaniments, such as great physical
excitement, i:ianifesting itself in sobbing,
or crying, or ineffectual effoi'ts to retain
one's composure. Still, it is not the case
that a preacher has it in his power to re-
press all such agitation. Much depends
on the kind of people he has to do with.
Among the rude and uneducated, who are
accustomed to boisterous expressions of
feeling, there will always be found more
visible and irrepressible excitement than
in other cases, as any one who is acquaint-
ed with such classes, in any country, will
readily acknowledge. Judicious preachers
will certainly endeavour to suppress all
undue excitement and agitation, as inter-
rupting the services, and preventing the
more composed from profiting by them.

It is not very wonderful, however, when
a considerable number of persons who
have been living all their lives in rebellion
against God, and in the neglect of their
souls, become, as it were, suddenly awa-
kened out of a profound sleep, that in the
distress into which they are thrown by a
view of the jeopardy in which they stand,
they should be ready, like Saul of Tarsus,
to exclaim, " Lord ! what wilt thou have
me to do V No man can be more a friend
of order than I am, yet I have seen times
when, under the preaching of the Gospel,
such pungent distress has been produced
by pressing the truth on plain and com-
paratively ignorant minds, that it was im-
possible to maintain the calmness that
might be found in a congregation of better-
educated and more refined persons, among
whom, nevertheless, there might be quite
as much real contrition of heart for sin.

That some excellent men, who have
been eminently useful in the ministry, are
not sufficiently careful in repressing un-
necessary manifestations of feeling is cer-
tain, and they are to be found in all denom-
inations. Some, even, are so much want-
ing in prudence as rather to encourage
such outbursts of feeling. But among so
many ministers, widely different from each
other in education, intellectual acquire-
ments, and modes of thinking on almost
every subject, entire agreement as to the
best ways of conducting a revival, so far
as human agency is concerned, is not to be
expected.

It is delightful to think that revivals of
religion have really occurred, and do ev-
ery year occur, to a greater or less extent,
in all our States, and among all the evan-
gelical denominations. And although they
may not always be so quietly and judi-
ciously conducted as might be desired, in
the newer parts of the country, and where
the population is somewhat rude, yet they
have certainly exerted a happy influence
upon the churches and upon society, wher-
ever they have occurred.

CHAPTER IX.

ALLEGED ABUSES IN REVIVALS OF RELIGION.

It was my first intention not to add any-
thing to what has been said in the chapter
on revivals respecting the abuses alleged
to have been connected with them, but, on
farther reflection, I consider that a few
words more oi^ that point would not be
amiss.

No man, certainly, who is at all acquaint-
ed with human nature, should be surprised
to hear that the greatest blessings bestowed
on mankind are liable to be abused, and
even the purest and noblest qualities to be
counterfeited. Where, then, is there any
matter of astonishment should we find
that abuses mingle with religious revivals,
through man's imprudence and the malig-
nity of the great Adversary, or should we
even discover some revivals which deserve
to be called spurious ?

I ought, however, to premise that, what-
ever abuses may have at any time taken
place in the revivals in America, or what-
ever spurious ones may have occurred, it
cannot be disputed that our truly zealous,
intelligent, and devoted Christians, what-
ever be their denomination, not only be-
lieve in the reality of revivals, but consid-
er that, when wisely promoted, they are
the greatest and most desirable blessings
that can be bestowed upon the churches.
There are, I admit, persons among us who
oppose religious revivals, and it would be
sad evidence against them if there were
not. There are the openly wicked, the
profane, wSabbath-breakers, enemies of pure
religion in every form, and avowed or se-
cret infidels. These form the first catego-
ry, and it is not a very small one. They
may be found in our cities and large towns,
and sometimes in our villages, and are the
very persons whom strangers are most
likely to meet with about our hotels and
taverns. Next, there are Roman Catholics,
Unitarians, Universalists, and others whose
Christianity is greatly marred with errors
and heresies. These, too, almost with-
out exception, hate revivals, nor can we
wonder that they should. A third class
consists of those members of our evangel-
ical churches who conform too much to
the opinions and practices of the world ;
are so much afraid of what they call en-
thusiasm and fanaticism as to do nothing,
or nothing worthy of mention, for the pro-
motion of the Gospel ; and vvould never be
known to be Christians, either by the world
or by their fellow-Chnstians, were they
not occasionally seen to take their places
at the communion-table. Some such there
are in all our evangelical churches, and in
one or two of those whose discipline is lax-
er than it should be, they constitute a con-
siderable party.

Now it is natural that European travel-

Chap. IX.]

REVIVALS OF RELIGION.

215

lers in the United States, when not deci-
dedly religious themselves, should chiefly
associate with one or all of these three
classes ; and that, taking up their notions
from them, they should have their note-
books and journals filled with all sorts of
misrepresentations with respect to our re-
ligious revivals. Hence many, who have
never visited America, owe all their ideas
on that subject to writers whose own in-
formation was partial and incorrect, and
who, as their very books show, know no-
thing of true religion, and would never have
touched upon the subject, but that they
wished to give piquancy to their pages by
working up for the wonder and amusement
of their readers every false and exaggera-
ted statement, and foolish anecdote, which
on that subject had been poured into their
ears.

But serious and worthy people in Europe,
and particularly in Great Britain, have been
prejudiced against revivals in another way.
They have too readily allowed themselves
to be influenced by what has been written
by excellent men among us, who, appre-
hending much danger to the cause of revi-
vals from the measures taken to promote
them by some zealous, but, in their opinion,
imprudent men, and perceiving the mis-
chievous results of such measures, have
faithfully exposed them, and warned the
churches to be upon their guard ; and this
they have done in the columns of our reli-
gious journals, in pamphlets, and in books.
Their endeavours met with much success
against the Enemy, who, on failing to pre-
vent, had been seeking to pervert these
blessed manifestations of divine mercy ;
but, as was natural, the strong language in
which they had been prompted to indulge
by the actual view of some evils, and the
apprehension of worse, impressed foreign-
ers with very exaggerated ideas of those
evils. This result was perhaps unavoida-
ble, yet it is much to be deplored ; for in-
jury has thus been done to the cause abroad
by men who would be the last to intend it.

It is an infelicity to which all endeav-
ours for good are subject in this evil world,
that they are liable to be marred by prof-
fered aid from men who, notwithstanding
the fairest professions, prove, at length, to
have been more actuated by their own mis-
erable ambition than by a true zeal for God's
glory and man's salvation. Such false
friends did no small injury to the great revi-
val of religion in 1740-43, already mention-
ed ; and so, likewise, did the successive
revivals that took place in the West in
1801-3 suff'er much from the imprudence
of some who desired to be leaders in the
work of God. This was the case partic-
ularly in Kentucky. And within the last
few years, after a blessed period marked
by revivals in many parts of the country,
the same Adversary who, when " the sons

of God come to present themselves before
the Lord," seldom fails to obtrude himself
among them, and who can on such occa-
sions assume the garb, as it were, " of an
angel of hght," contrived for a while to do
no little damage to the work. Some good
men, as we still consider the greater num-
ber of them to have been, not content with
the more quiet and prudent character which
had hitherto marked the revivals, attempted
to precipitate matters by measures deem-
ed unwise and mischievous by many wor-
thy and experienced persons, both minis-
ters and laymen. The passions, instead
of the judgment and the conscience, were
too much appealed to ; too much stress
was laid on the sinner's natural ability,
and not enough on the needed influence
of the Holy Spirit ; too superficial a view
was presented of the nature and evidences
of conversion ; in a word, the Gospel was
held forth in such a way as not to lead to
that self-abasement which becomes a sin-
ner saved wholly by grace.

One of the reprehended measures was
the practice of earnestly pressing those
who were somewhat awakened to a sense
of their sin and danger, to come, at the
close of the sermon, to seats immediately
before the pulpit, called "anxious seats,"
or seats for such as were anxious to be
saved, in order that they might be specially
prayed for, and receive some special coun-
sels. This, though comparatively harm-
less, perhaps, when adopted by prudent
men among certain classes of people, was
much the reverse when attempted in large
congregations by men not gifted with ex-
traordinary wisdom. It proved a poor
substitute for the simpler and quieter meth-
od of meeting such as chose to remain af-
ter the public services were over, in order
to receive such advice as their case might
require, or for the good old practice of
having special meetings at the pastor's
house, or in the church vestry or lecture-
room, for such as were " inquiring the way
to Zion."

Another measure, hardly deserving to
be called new, for it has long existed in
substance in the Presbyterian churches of
the interior, and at one time, I understand,
in Scotland also, that of having public ser-
vices during three or four days on sacra-
mental occasions, was found hurtful, when
carried to the extent encouraged by some,
at what are called " protracted meetings."
These, when transferred from the West
to the East, and when they began to be
more frequent with us, were called " four
days' meetings" or " three days' meetings,"
from the length of time during which they
were held. But when prolonged, as they
were in some places — I know not how
long, sometimes, I believe, for a month or
forty days— the practice was regarded as
an abuse, and as such it was resisted.

216

RELIGION IN'AMERICA.

[Book V.

No one, perhaps, would condemn such
meetings when called for by particular cir-
cumstances ; but when people seem in-
clined to rely more on them than on the
ordinary services of the sanctuary, and to
think that without them there can be no
revivals and no conversions, it is time
they were abolished, or at least restored
to their proper use.

But what was thought worst of all Avas
the proposal, for it hardly went farther,
of having an order of " revival preachers,"
who should go through the churches,
spending a few weeks here and a few
there, for the sole object of promoting re-
vivals. This was justly opposed as sub-
versive of the regular ministry, for it is
easy to see that such men, going about
with a few well-prepared discourses on ex-
citing topics, and recommended, perhaps,
by a popular deliver^-, would throw the
pastors in the background, give the peo-
ple " itching ears," and in a lew weeks do
more harm than good. No one would
deny that " evangelists" might be very
useful in the new settlements, where a
regular clergy cannot be at once establish-
ed, and even in building up churches in
the older parts of the country, or preach-
ing to churches without pastors. Few,
likewise, would deny that some zealous,
able, and judicious ministers might render
important services in goiug from church
to church at the special request of the
pastors for their assistance. Such men
should have an eminently humble, kind,
and prudent spirit, and an overruhng de-
sire to seek the interests of their brethren
rather than to promote their own, and some
such we have had who were widely use-
ful. But should it be thought that the
churches require such men, they ought to
be placed under the special control of the
ecclesiastical bodies to which they belong,
and without whose express and continued
approbation they ought not to undertake
or continue such engagements. Nothing
could be more dangerous to the peace of
the churches than that every man, who
may fancy himself a " revivaUst," or " re-
vival preacher," should be allowed to go
wherever people desire to have him, with
or without the consent of their pastors.
Accordingly, the institution of any such
order was opposed, and the preachers who
had been thus employed were urged each
to settle at some one spot, which they
did ; and thus the churches hear no more
of " revival preachers," or " revival ma-
kers," as some deserved to be called.

I have said more on this subject than I
intended, but not more, perhaps, than was
required. Yet, should any of my readers
have been led to suppose that the abuses
I have described affected our churches
generally, he is mistaken. They began
to manifest themselves about the year

1828, and lasted about ten years, without,,
however, having ever prevailed widely ;
and in some extensive districts they have
been altogether unknown. Of the twice
ten thousand churches of all denominations
among us, in which " the truth as it is in
Jesus" is preached, only a few hundreds
are believed to have been affected by them,
and even these have now become pretty
well rid both of the abuses and their con-
sequences. During the last four years
our churches have been more extensively
blessed with revivals than at any time be-
fore, and all well-informed persons, whom
I have consulted, agree that those blessed
seasons have never, probably, been more
free from whatever could offend a judicious
Christian. For these things we are glad ;
they demonstrably prove that, though our
sins be great, the God of our fathers has
not forsaken us.

Before closing the subject of the abuses
attending religious revivals, although there
be no special connexion between them, I
may say something about camp- meetings,,
respecting which I have had many ques-
tions put to me in some parts of Europe.
Most foreigners owe their notions of these
meetings to the same sources from which
they have taken their ideas of revivals —
the pages of tourists, who have raked up
and woven into episodes for their travels,
all the stories they have chanced to meet
with, and some of whom, possibly, have
even gone to the outskirts of one of these
assemblages, and looked on with all the
wonder natural to persons who had never
entered into the spirit of such scenes, so
far as either to comprehend their nature
or ascertain their results.

Camp-meetings, as they are called, ori-
ginated in sheer necessity among the-
Presbyterians of Kentucky in the year
1801, during that great religious revival,
which, after commencing in the west-
ern part of North Carolina, penetrated
into Tennessee, and spread over all the
then settled parts of the West. It so hap-
pened that, on one occasion, in the ear-
ly part of that revival, so many people
had come from a distance to the adminis-
tration of the Lord's Supper at a particu-
lar church, tliat accommodation could no-
where be found in the neighbourhood for
all, during the successive days and nights
which they wished to spend at the place.
This induced as many as could to procure
tents, and form something like a military
encampment, where, as provisions were
easily to be had, they might stay till the
meetings closed. Such was the origin of
camp- meetings. They were afterward
held at various points during that extraor-
dinary season of religious solicitude. The
country was still very thinly settled, and
as a proof of the deep and wide-spread
feelings that prevailed on the subject of

Chap. IX.]

REVIVALS OF RELIGION.

21T

religion, many persons attended from dis-
tances of thirty, forty, and fifty miles ; nay,
on one occasion, some came from a dis-
tance of even one hundred miles. It is not
surprising that the meetings should have
lasted for a period of several days, for
many who attended them had few oppor-
tunities of attending public worship and of
hearing the Gospel in the wilderness in
which they lived.

They were held, when the weather per-
mitted, in the midst of the noble forest.
Seats were made of logs and plank, the
under rubbish having been cleared away ;
a pulpit was erected in front of the rows of
seats ; and there, in the forenoon, after-
noon, and evening, the ministers of the
Gospel made known the "words of eternal
life." Public prayer was also held at the
same spot early in the morning, and at the
close of the services at night. Around, at
proper distances, were placed the tents,
looking to the seated area prepared for the
great congregation. Lamps were sus-
pended at night from the boughs of the
trees, and torches blazed from stakes some
eight or ten feet high, in front of each tent.
In the rear of the tents, in the mornings
and evenings, such simple cooking opera-
tions went on as were necessary. Each
tent was occupied by one or two families,
intimate friends and neighbours sometimes
sharing in one tent, when their families
were not too large. A horn or trumpet
announced the hour for the commencement
of the public services.

Such was a primitive camp-meeting in
the sombre forests of Kentucky forty years
ago. Solemn scenes occurred at them,
such as might well have caused many who
scoffed to tremble. Such, also, both as re-
pects their arrangements, and in many pla-
ces, also, as respects the spirit that has pre-
dominated at them, have been the camp-
meetings held since. They were confined
for years to the frontier settlements, as they
ought, perhaps, always to have been, for
there they were in some measure necessa-
ry. I have attended them in such circum-
stances, have been struck with the order
that prevailed at them, and seen them be-
come the means of doing unquestionable
good. They served to bring together, to
the profit of immortal souls, a population
scattered far and wide, and remaining some-
times for years remote from any regular
place of worship.

The reader must not suppose that all
who come to these meetings encamp at
them. Only families from a great distance
do so. Those within a circuit even of five
miles, generally go home at night and re-
turn in the morning, bringing something to
eat during the interval of public worship.

In the remote settlements of the Far
West, the utility of camp-meetings seems
to be admitted by all who know anything

about them; but in densely- settled neigh-
bourhoods, and especially near cities and
large towns, whether in the West or the-
East, they are apt to give rise to disorder.
The idle rabble are sure to flock to them,
especially on the Sabbath, and there they
drink and create disturbance, not so much
at the camp itself, for the police would
prevent them, but at taverns and temporary
booths for the sale of beer and ardent spir-
its in the neighbourhood. It is true that,,
since Temperance societies have made
such progress, these evils have much dimin-
ished ; and even in more populous places,
good is undoubtedly done at these meet-
ings ; the thoughtless, who go to them from
mere curiosity, being made to hear truths
that they never can forget. Nor are these
meetings blessed only to the lower classes,
as they are called. A young man of the
finest talents, once my class-fellow at col-
lege, and afterward my intimate friend,
having gone to one of them from mere cu-
riosity, was awakened by a faithful sermoa
to a sense of his need of salvation ; his
convictions never left him until he found
peace by " believing in the Son of God."
He lived to become a most popular and el-
oquent minister of the Gospel.*

Camp-meetings are occasionally held in
the Far West by the Presbyterians, espe-
cially by the Cumberland Presbyterians, as
also by some of the Baptists, possibly, but
for a longtime they have been held mainly
by the Methodists ; and I understand that
many among these have the impression
that, except in the frontier and new settle-
ments, they had better give place to "■ Pro-
tracted Meetings," which is the course, I
believe, they are now taking.

Such is the account I have to give of
camp-meetings. Wicked men have some-
times taken advantage of them for their
own bad purposes, and such abuses have
been trumpeted through the world with the
view of bringing discredit on the religion of
the country. Without having ever been a ■
great admirer of such meetings, 1 must say^
after having attended several, and careful-
ly observed the whole proceedings, that I
am satisfied that the mischiefs alleged to
arise from them have been greatly exagger-
ated, while there has been no proper ac-
knowledgment of the good that they have
done.

In some parts of the West there is a
practice, familiar to me in early life, and of
which I still retain very tender and pleas-
ing recollections. It consists in hold-
ing the services of the sanctuary in a for-
est during summer, both to accommodate .
a greater number of people, and also for

♦ The late Rev. Joseph S. Christmas, some time
pastor of a Presbyterian church at Montreal in Cana-
da, and afterward settled in New- York, where he
died a few years ago. An interesting Memoir of him
has been published.

218

RELIGION IN AMERICA.

[Book V.

the sake of the refreshing shade afforded
by the trees. Seats are prepared in rows
before a temporary pulpit made of boards,
and there, from a temple made by God him-
self, prayer and praise ascend unto Him
*' who dwelleth not in temples made with
hands," and who is ever present where
■contrite and believing hearts are engaged
in worshipping Him.

In such scenes, too, it is now common,
in almost all parts of the United States,
for Sabbath-schools to assemble on the
J'ourth of July, if the weather be good; for
the purpose of hearing appropriate address-
es, far more religious than political ; of
uniting in prayer for the blessing of God
upon the country, and the country's hope,
the rising generation ; and of praising Him
from whom all our privileges, civil and re-
ligious, have been received. Temperance
meetings on the same occasion are now
held in our beautiful forests, and some-
thing better is heard than the boastful and
unchristian self-adulation, to say nothing
of the profaneness and ribaldry which too
often characterized such scenes in the
"olden time," when Temperance societies
and Sunday-schools were unknown.

CHAPTER X.

CONCLUDING REMARKS ON THE CHURCH AND THE
PULPIT IN AMERICA.

A STRANGER, upou visiting extensively
our evangelical churches of all denomina-
tions, would be struck, I am sure, with the
order that prevails in them ; and this ap-
plies equally to the smaller prayer-meet-
ings to be found in every parish and con-
gregation that has any life in it, and to the
greater assemblies that meet for public
worship. Foreigners seem impressed with
the idea, if I may judge from what I have
often heard hinted rather than expressed,
that there is a great deal of disorder and
lawlessness in the United States, and they
infer that there must be no less insubordi-
nation in the religious commonwealth than
they ascribe to the civil. But both opin-
ions are totally unfounded. It docs not
follow, because of a few disturbances, ari-
sing from the disgraceful opposition made
in some places to abolitionists, and the
resentment of an exasperated populace
against gangs of gamblers in others, that
the whole country is a scene of continual
commotion. In no part of the world have
there been so few dreadful riots, attended
with loss of life, as in the United States,
during tlicse last sixty years. There arc
bad men among us, and there are crimes,
but, after all, life is quite as safe among us
38 in any country I have ever visited, and
I have been in most of those that are con-
sidered civilized.

As for the Church, a regard for law and

order reigns to a degree not surpassed in
any other country. There is no confusion
of the respective rights of the ministry and
people. The duties of both are well under-
stood everywhere. Most of the churches,
such as the Presbyterian and the Episco-
palian in all their branches, possess and
maintain a strong ecclesiastical govern-
ment, and even the Congregational, how-
ever democratic in theory, have a govern-
ment that exercises a hardly less powerful
control. How seldom do we hear of dis-
order occurring at the little meetings of
Christians held for prayer and the read-
ing of the Word of God — meetings so nu-
merous, and almost always conducted by
pious laymen ! How seldom do private
church members encroach by word or deed,
at meetings of any kind, on the proper
sphere of those who hold office in the
churches! Indeed, on no one point are
our churches more perfectly united in opin-
ion than with respect to the necessity of
maintaining due order and subordination.
The ministry enjoys its full share of influ-
ence. No one ever hears of unauthorized,
unlicensed persons being allowed to speak
in our meetings for public worship. Those
levelling doctrines, now spreading in other
countries — doctrines which would reduce
the ministry to nothing, and encourage lay
brethren to take it upon them to preach or
teach in the churches — I dare affirm, will
not make much progress among us. At-
tempts to introduce something of this sort
have often been made, but in vain. We
have, indeed, our meetings in which debate
is allowed, and there the laity may even
take the lead, but these meetings are about
the temporal affairs of the church, or the
caUing of a pastor, not for the public wor-
ship of God.

Experience has also taught us the ne-
cessity of maintaining order at meetings
held during revivals — occasions on which,
in consequence of the strong excitement
of the most powerful feelings of the human
heart, there is a special call for watchful-
ness in this respect. It is a sad mistake
to multiply meetings unnecessarily during
revivals, or to prolong them to unseason-
able hours at night, to the exhaustion ot
strength, the loss of needed repose, and
the unnatural and dangerous irritation of
the nervous system. Yet these are the
points in which the inexperienced are most
liable to err. They begin a meeting, say
at seven o'clock in the evening. The
preacher feels deeply, and the people are
much interested. Instead of preaching for
an hour, he is tempted, by the manifest at-
tention of his hearers, to go on for an hour
and a half or two hours, and instead of send-
ing them home at half past eight o'clock,
or at nine at the farthest, so that they may
have time for meditation and secret prayer,
in which, after all, the sinner is most like-

Ghap. X.]

EVANGELICAL CHURCHES.

219

ly to give his heart unto God, he dismisses
them at ten or eleven o'clock, fatigued,
yet excited, and altogether unfit for the ex-
ercises of the closet. This is sometimes
done under the idea that the people would
lose their serious impressions vv^ere the
service to be short. But here there is
often a temptation of the Adversary. No
revival ever suffered by evening meetings
being confined to a moderate length. Let
the people be almost compelled to leave
the house rather than unduly protract such
meetings.

One of the most important and difficult
duties of a minister in a revival is rightly
to direct awakened souls. Alas! how often
are even good men found to fail in this.
Many ministers, whom I have known, seem
to me to excel in addressing unawakened
sinners, and yet to fail when called to give
clear, intelligible, and scriptural directions
to those who are awakened. Many, too,
fail in judging of the evidences of conver-
sion, and " heal the hurt of the people
softly."

But on no point, I am convinced, from
what I have seen in America, is there a
greater call for the exercise of a sound pru-
dence than in receiving into the Church
persons who entertain the belief that they
have " passed from death unto life." While
they may possibly be kept back too long,
the great error lies on the other side. The
new convert naturally desires to join him-
self to those whom he now considers to be
the children of God. He thinks that it is
his duty to do so, and he may possibly be
right. But the office-bearers in the Church,
whose duty it is to see to the admission of
none but proper persons into it, are no less

clearly bound to see that the candidate
for membership gives such evidences of
piety as, on scriptural grounds, shall be
deemed satisfactory. The one may be
perfectly right in desiring to enter, and in
coming to them for admission ; the others
may be no less justified in refusing until
they have had satisfactory evidence of the
applicant's piety. No harm can result from
this temporary conflict of duty, if I may
call it so. Both seek to do what is right,
and both will soon find their way clear.

1 consider hasty admissions to our church-
es to be the greatest of all the evils con-
nected with revivals in some parts of the
country, and among some denominations
in particular. But this evil is not peculiar
to revivals. It is quite as likely to occur
when there is no revival as when there is.
With all possible care it is difficult to keep
a church pure, in a reasonable sense of
that word. How absurd, then, to expect
it when the doors are thrown wide open to
admit hastily all that profess to be con-
verted ! Experience shows the necessity
of decided views on this subject, and of
firmness in enforcing them. On this point,
as well as on all others relating to the dis-
cipline and government of the Church, too
much care cannot be taken to avoid latitu-
dinarian practices. The Church must be
kept a living body of believers — a compa-
ny of persons who have come out from
the world, and are determined to adorn the
profession which they have made. In their
organization and action, order, which is
said to be " heaven's first law," must be
maintained. In this opinion, I am sure,
Christians of all denominations in the Uni-
ted States sincerely and entirely concur.

BOOK V I.

THE EVANGELICAL CHURCHES IN AMERICA.

CHAPTER I.

PRELIMINARY REMARKS IN REFERENCE TO THIS
SUBJECT.

This part of our work we propose to de-
vote to a brief notice of the doctrines, or-
ganization, and history of each of the evan-
gelical denominations in the United States,
nothing beyond a sketch of these being
consistent with our limits. We shall en-
deavour, of course, to confine ourselves as
much as possible to what is important,
omitting what is least essential or neces-
sary.

We begin with the five most numerous
evangelical denominations in the United
States. These, in the order of their rise,
are the Episcopalians, the Congregational-
ists, the Baptists, the Presbyterians, and

the Methodists, and in that order we shall
proceed to notice them. We shall then
consider as briefly as possible the smaller
orthodox denominations, such as the Mora-
vians, the Lutherans, the German Reform-
ed, and other German sects, the Reformed
Dutch Church, the Cumberland Presbyte-
rians, the Protestant or Reformed Metho-
dists, the Reformed Presbyterians or Cov-
enanters, the Associate Church, the Asso-
ciate Reformed, the Quakers, &c.

Numerous as are the evangelical denom-
inations in the United States, yet when
grouped in reference to doctrine on the one
hand, or church government on the other,
it is surprising into how small a number
they may be reduced. In doctrine we have
but two great divisions — the Calvinistic
and the Arminian schools ; the former,

220

RELIGION IN AMERICA.

[Book VI.

with its various peculiarities, comprehend-
ing the Presbyterians, usually so called,
the evangelical Baptists, the Kpiscopahans
(though they generally consider them-
selves as intermediate between the two),
the Congregationalists, the German Re-
formed, the Dutch Reformed, the Cove-
nanters, the Associate, and the Associate
Reformed Churches ; the latter, with its
variations, comprehending the Methodists
of all branches, the Lutherans, the Cum-
berland Presbyterians, the United Brethren
or Moravians, and some other small bodies.

Considered in reference to their forms
of church government, they all range them-
selves in three great families. The Epis-
copal, comprehending the Protestant Epis-
copal Church, the Methodist Episcopal,
and the Moravians ; the Presby lerian, in-
cluding the Presbyterians usually so called,
the Dutch Reformed, the German Re-
formed, the Lutherans, the Cumberland
Presbyterians, the Protestant Methodists,
the Covenanters, the Associate, and the
Associate Reformed ; the Congregational
(or Lidependent, as it is more commonly
called in England), embracing the Congre-
gationalists and the Baptists.

But when viewed in relation to the great
doctrines which are universally conceded
by Protestants to be fundamental and ne-
cessary to salvation, then they all form but
one body, recognising Christ as their com-
mon Head. They then resemble the differ-
ent parts of a great temple, all constituting
but one whole ; or the various corps of an
army, which, though ranged in various
divisions, and each division having an or-
ganization perfect in itself, yet form but
one great host, and are under the command
of one chief.

This suggests the observation that on no
one point are all these churches more
completely united, or more firmly estab-
lished, than on the doctrine of the suprem-
acy of Christ in his Church, and the unlaw-
fulness of any interference with its doc-
trine, discipline, and government, on the
part of the civil magistrate. There is not
a single evangelical church in the United
States that does not assert and maintain
the glorious doctrine of the Headship of
Christ in his Church, and that from Him
alone comes all just and lawful authority
in the same. On this point they hold
imanimously the great doctrine which the
Church of Scotland has been so nobly con-
tending for. If the civil power has ever
referred for a moment to the doctrine and
discipline of the Church, it has only been
in courts of justice, and that solely for the
purjjose of determining which of two par-
ties has a legal title to be considered as the
church in question. For example : A
church divides ; the parties into which it
is divided contend for the property tliat be-
longed to it when entire ; and the court

before which they come for a decision of
their claims, is compelled to look to
points of doctrine and discipline in order
to settle this question as to property.
Thus it was in the great Quaker case
formerly referred to.

CHAPTER IL

THE PROTESTANT EPISCOPAL CHURCH.

The Protestant Episcopal Church in the
United States derives its origin from the
Church of England, of which it is not only
an offshoot, but to which it is " indebted,
under God, for a long continuance of nur-
sing care and protection."* It agrees with
that Church in doctrine ; and its ritual and
formularies, with some variations intro-
duced after the Revolution by which the
Colonies became independent States, are
the same. Unlike the mother-church,
however, it is in no way connected with
the State, nor do its bishops, in virtue of
their office, enjoy any civil powers, im-
munities, or emoluments.

The chief particulars in which the Ser-
vice Book differs from that of the Church
of England are as follows : 1. A shorter
form of absolution is allowed to be used
instead of the English, which is, however,
retained, and frequently used in the public
service. 2. The Athanasian creed is omit-
ted. 3. Li the administration of baptism,
the sign of the cross may be dispensed
with, if requested. 4. The marriage ser-
vice has been considerably abridged. 5. la
the funeral service, some expressions, con-
sidered as liable to misconstruction, have
been altered or omitted. 6. There has
been a change, of course, in the prayers
for rulers. 7. It is allowed to omit in
communion service the prayer called the
" Oblation," and the Invocation. 8. It is
permitted to change the words " He de-
scended into hell," which occur in the
Apostles' Creed, into " He descended into
the world of departed spirits," or words
equivalent. The other modifications, being
of less importance and chiefly verbal, need
not be specified.

As in the parent church in England,
there are three ranks or orders in the
ministry, and these are believed, by its
friends, to be of apostolical institution, viz.,
bishops, priests, and deacons. Ordination
is peformed solely by the bishops. The
churches choose their own pastors, but
their installation, or induction, requires the
consent of the bishop of the diocess.f The

* Preface to the American Book of Common
Prayer.

t When the bishop is unable to preside at the in-
stallation or institution of a minister as rector or
pastor of a church, he appoints a committee of neigh-
iiouring presbyters to act as institutors on the occa-
sion. So, also, in diocesses that have no bishops, if

Chap. II.]

PROTESTANT EPISCOPAL CHURCH.

221

regulation of the temporal affairs of each
church is confided to a board of church-
wardens, and vestry, the former of which
are chosen by the communicants, the lat-
ter by the members of the pari.sh general-
ly. The spiritual rule rests mainly with
the pastor, or rector, as he is more com-
monly called.

The increase and wide diffusion of the
Episcopal Church in the United States has
led, I understand, to the determination that
each state shall constitute a diocess, ex-
cept when its extent, and the number of
churches in it, may require its being divi-
ded, like that of New-York, into two dio-
cesses. In some instances, however, as
in Virginia, where the state is extensive,
and the churches not very numerous, and
especially where the principal or senior
bishop does not enjoy robust health, an
assistant bishop has been appointed.

Each diocess has its affairs directed by
an Annual Convention, composed of the
diocesan clergy and one or more lay dele-
gates ft-om each parish, elected by the peo-
ple, or appointed by the wardens and ves-
try ; the clergy and laity forming one body,
but voting separately whenever this is de-
manded, the clergy forming one house and
the laity another. The bishop presides,
should there be one ; if not, a president is
<;hosen in his place. A concurrent vote of
both orders, when voting separately, is
necessary before any measure or law can
pass.

Every three years a General Convention
is held ; the last always appointing the
place of meeting for the next after. This
body is composed of clerical and lay dele-
gates from each state or diocesan conven-
tion, who form the house of delegates, and of
the bishops, who form the house of bishops.
When any proposed act has passed one
house, it is sent to the other for its concur-
rence, the consent of both houses being
requisite to its having the force of law.
The Episcopal Church, throughout the
country, is governed by the canons of the
General Convention. These canons regu-
late the election of bishops, declare the
qualifications necessary for obtaining the
orders of deacon and priest, the studies to
be previously pursued, the examinations to
be undergone, and the age which candidates
must have attained before they can be ad-
mitted to the three grades of the ministry.
The age of twenty-one is required for
deacon's orders, twenty-four for those of
priest, and before a man can be ordained
a bishop he must have completed his thir-
tieth year.

Candidates for ordination do not, as in
the Church of England, subscribe the Thir-
ty-nine Articles, but simply the following

the services of a neighbouring prelate cannot be ob-
tained, a selt'-constiiuted committee of neighbouring
presbyters may give institution.

declaration : " 1 do believe the Holy Scrip-
tures of the Old and New Testaments to
be the word of God, and to contain all
things necessary to salvation ; and I do
solemnly engage to conform to the doc-
trines and worship of the Protestant Epis-
copal Church in these United States."
These doctrines are understood to be con-
tained in the articles of religion printed
with the Book of Common Prayer, and
impHed in the liturgy of the Church. The
fall of man, the Trinity of divine persons
in the Godhead, the proper Deity and hu-
manity of the Saviour, the atonement
through his sufferings and death, the re-
generating and sanctifying influence of the
Holy Spirit, tlie general judgment, the
everlasting reward of the righteous and
punishment of the wicked — or, in other
words, what are called the doctrines of
the Reformation — are fully taught in these
formularies, and are in reality professed
by those who subscribe the above decla-
ration.

The Episcopal was the first Protestant
Church planted on the American Conti-
nent, and the reader has seen how it was
the favoured Church in Virginia from the
earliest settlement of that state until the
Revolution ; also, how it came to be estab-
lished in the colonies of Maryland, New-
York, and the Carolinas. But, notwith-
sianding all the aid which it received from
the civil government, its prosperity was
far from commensurate with its external
advantages. "When the Revolution com-
menced it had not more than eighty min^
isters in the colonies north and east of
Maryland, and even these, with the excep-
tion of such as were settled in Philadel-
phia, New- York, Newport, Boston, and a
few other of the most important cities and
towns, were supported by the Society for
the Propagation of the Gospel in Foreign
Parts ; while in the colonies south of Vir-
ginia, viz., the Carolinas and Georgia, all
the clergy taken together were but few.
The number in Virginia and Maryland,
amounting to about 150, greatly exceeded
that of all the other colonies.

The causes of this ill success during the
colonial era lay, as we have stated, in the
Church being dependant upon England al-
together for Episcopal supervision, and, in
a great degree, for its ministers ; in the
unfitness, for the colonies, of many that
were sent over by the Bishop of London, to
whose diocess the Episcopal churches in
America were then attached ; and the great
difficulties attending the raising up of a na-
tive clergy, and sending them to England
for consecration, though this had been
done to a very great extent in the colony
of Connecticut, and it was in that colony
that the Episcopal Church had made by
far the greatest advance. We have also
seen how disastrous were the Revolution

222

RELIGION IN AMERICA.

[Book VI.

and the changes it effected on the Episco-
pal Church in all the colonies, and particu-
larly in Virginia, and that it was many
years before it could rise from the pros-
tration in which the return of peace in 1783
found it.

One of the first measures attempted after
that event was tlie formation of an eccle-
siastical constitution, by a special conven-
tion of the clergy from several of the
states, held in Philadelphia in 1785, for
the purpose of uniting all the Episcopal
churches in one body. Another important
measure was the ordination of American
bishops. For this purpose, the above con-
vention, which was the first that was held,
opened a correspondence with the Arch-
bishops of Canterbury and York. This
was followed by the British Parliament
passing an act authorizing the English prel-
ates to consecrate bishops for America.
The Rev. Drs. White and Provoost, the
former of Philadelphia, and the latter of
New- York, were thereupon sent over to
England, and received ordination to the
Episcopal office from the hands of the Arch-
bishop of Canterbury and the Archbishop
of York, the Bishops of Bath and Wells
and of Peterborough assisting. Upon their
return to America, Bishops White and Pro-
voost entered upon the discharge of their
Episcopal duties in their respective dio-
cesses.

A short time before the consecration of
Bishops White and Provoost, the Rev.
Samuel Seabury, D.D., had gone over to
England for consecration to the Episcopal
office. But having abandoned all hope of
success from that quarter, he went to Scot-
land, and was consecrated by three of the
non-juring bishops of that kingdom. Upon
his return he became Bishoj) of Connecti-
cut. In the Convention of 1789, it being
proposed to ordain another bishop, that
body requested Bishops White and Pro-
voost to unite with Bishop Seabury in per-
forming that act, the presence of three
bishops being necessary. But Bishop
White having some doubts whether it was
consistent with the faith understood to
have been pledged to the English bishops,
not to proceed to an act of consecration
without having first obtained from them
the number held in their church to be ca-
nonically necessary to such an act, tlie dif-
ficulty was terminated by sending the Rev.
James Madison, D.U., of Virginia, to Eng-
land, and his consecration there. At tlio
next triennial convention, held in the city
of New- York in 179-2, the four bishops,
Drs. White, Provoost, Madison, and Sea-
bury, ordained the Rev. Dr. Tliomas Jolm
Clagget to the lC|)iscopal ollice in the dio-
cess of Maryland.

About that epocli the Cluirch may be
said to have passed its apogee of depres-
sion, occasioned by the Revolution and its

effects. Its subsequent history has been
marked by an ever-increasing prosperity.
I have not the means of knowing what
was the precise number of its clergy in
1792, but I am sure that it could not have
exceeded 200, and its bishops were four.
Just forty years later, in 1832, according-
to the .Journal of the General Convention
held in New- York in October of that year,
the number of the bisliops had increased
to fifteen, and that of the clergy to 583.
Twelve years later still, in 1844, we find
the number of bishops augmented to twen-
ty-three, the clergy to 1176,* while the-
churches probably exceed 1200.

Nor has the spiritual prosperity of this
church been less remarkable than its ex-
ternal. It possesses a degree of life and
energy throughout all its extent, and an
amount of vital piety in its ministers and
members, such as it never had in its colo-
nial days. It is blessed with precious re-
vivals, and flourishes like a tree planted
by the rivers of water. And in no por-
tions of the country does it possess more
spiritual health than in the States of Vir-
ginia and Maryland, where, in the ante-
revolutionary era, it was in a deplorable
state as regards piety, both in its ministry
and its laity. Happier days have dawned,
upon it in those states, and, indeed, every-
where else. Even while writing this chap-
ter, I have received a letter from an excel-
lent young Episcopal minister settled in a
country parish in the centre of Virginia,,
who informs me that the last winter and
spring were seasons of remarkable bless-
ing to the Episcopal Church in that state.
He states that about 100 persons have
been added to the church at Norfolk ; near-
ly as many to that of Petersburg ; while
at Richmond,! so interesting was the state
of things, that the rectors of the churches
there (three or four in number) did not
feel it to be their duty to leave their flocks-
in order to attend the Convention of the
Diocess which had just taken place.

I have already spoken of the societies
which have sprung up in the Episcopal
Church for the promotion of domestic mis-
sions, Sunday-schools, the education of
poor and pious young men for the minis-
try, and the publication of religious tracts
and books.

I have also taken some notice of the
theological schools or seminaries connect-
ed with it, viz., one at New- York, another
in Fairfax county, Virginia, a few miles
from Alexandria, in the District of Colum-
bia, and a third at Gambler, Ohio, in con-
nexion with Kenyon College. These insti-
tutions have already sent forth a large

* Sworils's Pocket Almanac for 1844. The pres-
ent nnmber of bishops in the Protestant Episcopal
Church HI America is twenty-three, including the
bishop elect of New-Hampshire.

t These three are the largest cities in the state.

Chap. III.1

CONGREGATIONAL CHURCHES.

223

number of young men into the ministry,
and some 140 or 150 are at this moment
pm'suing their theological studies at them,
under the instruction of able professors.

The clergy of the Episcopal Church in
America, like those of the Established
Church in England, are divided into two
classes, one called " high church" and the
other " low." Sometimes these parties
are called " evangelical" and " non-evan-
gelical," but not with accuracy, for not a
few of the high-churchmen, that is, men
charged with carrying their preference for
Episcopacy to an extravagant length, are
entirely evangelical in their doctrines and
preaching. But a part of these high-
churchmen are not considered evangelical
— not so much because of what they do
preach, as because of what they do not
preach. Their sermons are of too nega-
tive a character; an efficacy unknown to
the Scriptures is ascribed to ceremonies
and forms ; neither are the sinner's sin
and danger as fully and earnestly set forth
as they should be, nor is the glorious suffi-
ciency of Christ unfolded, and salvation
by faith alone fully and clearly presented.
Their preaching, consequently, does not
reach the hearts of their hearers as does
that of their evangelical brethren, nor does
it lead the members of their churches to
renounce the " world, its pomps and its
vanities," to as great an extent as thej'
should do. Yet they are not to be classed
with the fox-hunting, theatre-going, ball-
frequenting, and card-playing clergy of
some other countries. They are an infi-
nitely better class of men and ministers.

I know not the comparative numbers of
the evangelical and non-evangelical cler-
gy, but infer, from the statements of the
Rev. Dr. Tyng,* in his speech in London
before the Church Missionary Society, in
May, 1842, that they are in the proportion
of about two thirds of the former to one
third of the latter. Of the twenty-three
bishops, fourteen or fifteen are considered,
I believe, entirely evangelical, while seven
or eight cannot properly be placed in that
category. But all are laboriously occu-
pied in their official work ; and I believe it
would be difficult to find an Episcopal body
of equal number, in any other country, sur-
passing them in talents, zeal, and piety.
To be a bishop with us is quite a different
thing from holding that office where bish-
ops live in palaces and have princely rev-
enues. Our bishops are frequently parish
priests also, and can find time to visit their
diocesses only by employing an assistant
preacher, or rector, to fill their places
when they are engaged in their visitations.
Their revenues do not much exceed, in
some instances do not equal, those of
many of their clergy.

* Dr. Tyng is one of the most distinguished of the
Episcopal ministers in the United States.

As for the Puseyite or Tractarian doc-
trines, or whatever they may be called,
three, or perhaps four, of the high-church
bishops are supposed to have embraced
them, or at least to be favourable to them,
as understood in America. But there is
not one who adopts the notions recently put
forth by the " British Critic," the advocate
of this party in England, and but one who
has ever declined the name of Protestant.
Among the .inferior clergy it has been
feared that these sentiments have made
considerable progress ; but those whose sit-
uation enables them to judge with a good
deal of accuracy, say that it is much less
than has been supposed. Among the laity
there is scarcely any sympathy with these
semi-popish doctrines, and \ cannot be-
Ueve that they will make much way in the
country at large.

The prospects of the Episcopal Church
in the United States are certainly very en-
couraging. The friend of a learned and
able ministry, to form which she has found-
ed colleges and theological institutions,*
she sees among her clergy not a few men
of the highest distinction for talents, for
learning, for eloquence, and for piety and
zeal. A large number of the most respect-
able people in all parts of the countr}'- are
among her friends and her members, es-
pecially in the cities and large towns.
Under such circumstances, if she be true
to herself and her proper interests, with
God's blessing she cannot but continue ta
prosper and extend her borders.

CHAPTER III.

THE CONGREGATIONAL CHURCHES.

The faith of the Congregational church-
es of America is common to the evangeli-
cal churches of both hemispheres, but their
organization and discipline are, to a con-
siderable extent, peculiar to themselves.
A large and most respectable body of dis-
senters in Great Britain, formerly known
as Independents, have of late preferred the
name of Congregational, but the diff'erences
between American Congregationalism and
that which bears the same nam* in Eng-
land are, in some respects, highly impor-
tant. Some of these differences, as well
as the points of agreement, will appear in
the statements which follow.

New-England is the principal seat of the
Congregational churches in America. This
is the region which the Puritans planted
in the first half of the seventeentii centu-
ry ; and here they have left upon the struc-

♦ The founding of the Theological Seminary of this
Church, at the city of New-York, was greatly pro-
moted by the princely gift of 60,000 dollars (above
£12,000) by a Mr. Jacob Sherred. Such beneficence
deserves to be most gratefully commemorated.

224

RELIGION IN AMERICA.

[Book VI.

ture and institutions of society, and upon
the opinions and manners of the people,
the deepest impression of their peculiar
character. In all these states, with the
exception of Khode Island, the Congrega-
tionalists are more numerous than any
other sect, and in Massachusetts and Con-
necticut they are probably more numerous
than all others united.

Out of New-England the Congregation-
alists have never been zealous to propa-
gate their own peculiar forms and institu-
tions. Of the vast multitudes of emigrants
from New-England into other states, the
great majority have chosen to unite with
churches of the Presbyterian connexion
rather than to maintain their own peculi-
arities at the expense of increased division
in the household of faith. In so doing,
they have followed the advice and fallen
in with the arrangements of the associated
bodies of Congregational pastors in New-
p]ngland. Yet in the vStates of New- York,
Ohio, Michigan, Illinois, and the Territories
of Wisconsin and Iowa, many congrega-
tions retain the forms of administration
which have descended to them fi'om the
New-England fathers, and refuse to come
into connexion with any of the Presbyte-
rian judicatories Since the recent division
in the Presbyterian Church, the number of
such congregations is increasing.

The whole number of Congregational
churches in the Ihiited States is probably
not far from 1500, of which more than 1000
are in New-England. The number of min-
isters is about 1350, and the members or
communicants may be stated at 180.000.
This estimate does not include those
churches originally or nominally Congre-
gational, which have rejected what are
called the doctrines of the Reformation.
These churches are better known by their
distinctive title. Unitarian. The churches
of this description are nearly all in Massa-
chu.setts ; a few are in Maine, two or three
in New-Hampshire, one or more in Ver-
mont, as many in Khode Island, and one,
in a state of suspended animation, in Con-
necticut. Out of New-England there are
perhaps from six to ten churches of the
same kind, difJering very little in their
principles, or in their forms, from the Uni-
tarians of England.

The " Pilgrims," as they are called — the
little hand of exiles who, having fled from
Enghmd into Holland, afterward, in 1620,
migrated from Holland to America, and
formed at Plymouth the first settlement in
New-I'higlaiid — were separatists from the
Church of Enghuul,* and for the crime of
attempting to set up religious institutions
not established by law, they were com-

♦ In what sense they were Separatists the reader
will have perceived from what was said in chapter
iv. of l)ook ii. He will also perceive in what sense
they were not Separatists.

pelled to flee from their native country,
embarking by stealth and at night as fugi-
tives from justice, as we have related in
detail elsewhere.* But those bodies of
emigrants, far more numerous and far bet-
ter prepared and furnished, which, from
I6i.'8 onward, planted Salem and Boston,
Hartford, and New-Haven — the emigra-
ting Puritans, who were the actual found-
ers of New-England, and whose character
gave direction to its destiny — were men
who considered themselves as belonging
to the Church of England till their emi-
gration into the American wilderness dis-
solved the tie. They were Puritans in
England, it is true, but the Puritans were
a party within the Church contending for
a purer and more thorough renovation, and
not a dissenting body, with institutions of
their own, out of the Church. The minis-
ters who accompanied the Puritan emi-
grants, or, rather, who led them into the
wilderness, and who were the first pastors
of the churches in New-England, were, be-
fore their emigration, almost without ex-
ception, ministers of the Church of Eng-
land, educated at the universities, episco-
pally ordained, regularly inducted into liv-
ings ; Nonconformists, it is true, as refu-
sing to wear the white surplice, to baptize
with the sign of the cross, or to use other
ceremonies which seemed to them super-
stitious, but yet exercising their ministry
as well as they could under many disabili-
ties and annoyances. Cotton and Wilson,
of Boston, Hooker and Stone, of Hartford,
Davenport and Hooke, of New-Haven —
not to extend the catalogue — were all ben-
ficed clergymen before their emigration.
These men having emigrated to what were
then called " the ends of the earth," and
supposing that their expatriation had made
them free from that ecclesiastical bondage
to which they had been " subjected unwill-
ingly," set themselves to study, with their
Bibles in their hands, the Scriptural model
of church order and discipline, and to form
their churches after the pattern thus dis-
covered. The result was Congregational-
ism— a system which diflfered as much
from Brownism on the one hand, as it did
from Presbyterianism on the other, i^fter
the Puritans in America had set up their
church order, the Puritans in England,
having become a majority in Parliament,
attempted to reduce the Established Church
of that nation to the Presbyterian form ;
and it was not till a still later period that
Congregationalism, or, as it was more gen-
erally called there, Independency, began
to make a figure under the favour of
Cromwell.

Thus it appears that Congregationalism
in America, instead of being an offset from
that in England, is the parent stock. No

* See book ii., chap, i

•Chap. Ill]

CONGREGATIONAL CHURCHES.

S25

Congregational church in England, it is
believed, dates its existence so far back as
the Act of Uniformity in 1662 ; but many
of the New- England churches have records
of more than 200 years.

It may also be remarked that American
Congregationalists are not " dissenters,"
and never were. In New-England the
Congregational churches were for a long
time the ecclesiastical establishment of the
country, as much as the Presbyterian
Church is now in Scotland. The whole
economy of the civil state was arranged
with reference to the welfare of these
churches ; for the state existed, and the
country had been redeemed from the wil-
derness, for this very purpose. At first no
dissenting assembly, not even if adopting
the ritual and order of the Church of Eng-
land, was tolerated. Afterward dissenters
of various names were permitted to wor-
ship as they pleased, and were not only
released from the obligation to contribute
towards the support of the established re-
ligion, but so incorporated by law that each
congregation was empowered to tax its
own members for the support of its own
religious ministrations. But still, till the
principle was adopted that the support of
religion is not among the duties of civil
government, the Congregationalists main-
tained this precedence — that every man
who did not prefer to contribute to the sup-
port of public worship in some other form,
was liable to be taxed as a Congregation-
alist. Thus, though some of the members
ofone denomination in New-England some-
times affect to speak of the Congregation-
alists around them as " dissenters," those
who do so only expose themselves to ridi-
cule. Every man sees that if there is such
a thing as " dissent" in New-England, the
Episcopalians, with the Baptists and the
Methodists, and all the other sects who
have at different times separated them-
selves from the ecclesiastical order origi-
nally established on the soil, and still flour-
ishing there, are the dissenters.

The Congregationalists differ from most
other communions, in that they have no
common authoritative standards of Faith
and Order, other than the Holy Scriptures.
Yet their system is well known among
themselves, and from the beginning they
have spared no reasonable pains to make it
known to others. John Cotton, the first
teacher of the first church in Boston, was
the author of a book on " the Keys of tlie
Kingdom of Heaven," published as early
as 1644, which, in its time, was highly es-
teemed, not only as a controversial defence
of Congregationalism, but also as a practi-
cal exposition of its principles. John
Norton, too, teacher of the church in Ips-
wich, and afterward settled in Boston,
gave to the Reformed churches of Europe
-in 1646 a full account of the ecclesiastical

order of New-England, in a Latin epistle
to Apollonius, a Dutch minister, who, in
the name of the divines of Zealand, had
written to America for information on that
subject. In 1648, a synod of pastors and
churches, called together at Cambridge (a
town near Boston) by the invitation of the
civil authorities of Massachusetts, drew
up a scheme of church discipline, which,
from the place at which the synod met,
was called the " Cambridge Platform."
This platform, however, though highly ap-
proved at the time, and still quoted with
great deference, was never an authorita-
tive rule ; and at this day some of its prin-
ciples have become entirely obsolete. In
1708, a synod, or council, representing the
pastors and churches of Connecticut, was
assembled at Saybrook by the invitation of
the Legislature of that colony. By this
Connecticut synod a system was formed,
differing in some respects from the Cam-
bridge Platform, and designed to supply
what was deemed the deficiencies of that
older system. The Saybrook Platform
was adopted by the churches of Connecti-
cut, and was for many years in that colony
a sort of standard recognised by law. Its
application was gradually modified, and its
stringency relaxed or increased by various
local rules and usages, and by successive
acts of the Legislature ; and at the present
time this Platform alone is a very inade-
quate account of the ecclesiastical order
of Connecticut.

The following outline, it is believed, will
give the reader some idea of the system of
New-England Congregationalism as it is at
this day.

1. The Congregational system recog-
nises no church as an organized body poli-
tic, other than a congregation of believers
statedly assembling for worship and reli-
gious communion. It falls back upon the
original meaning of the Gi'eek word kmi'kjjaia,
and of the Latin ccetus.

Popery claims that all Christians consti-
tute one visible, organized body, having its
oflUcers, its centre, and its head on earth.
The first reformers seem to have supposed
that each national church has its own in-
dependent existence, and is to be consid-
ered as otie organic body, which has some-
where within itself, in the clergy, or in the
people, or in the civil government of the
nation, a power to regulate and govern all
the parts. Congregationalism rejects both
tlie universal church of the Papists, and the
national churches which the Reformation
established in England, in Scotland, in cer-
tain States of Germany and Switzerland,
and attempted to establish in France.

Hence the name Congregational. Each
congregation of believers is a church ; and
exists not as a subordinate part, or as
under the sovereignty of a national church,
nor as a part, or under the sovereignty of

226

RELIGION IN AMERICA.

[Book VL

an organized universal church, but sub-
stantively and independently.

Other religious communions in America
are organized under the form of national
churches, and are named accordingly. Thus
we have " the Presbyterian Church in the
United States,'- " the Protestant Episcopal
Church in the United States," " the Metho-
dist Episcopal Church in the United States ;"
but no intelligent person ever speaks of
the Congregational Church in the United
States, or of the American Congregational
Church. Congregationalists always speak
of the churches of America, or of New-Eng-
land, or of Massachusetts, except when, in
courtesy to other denominations, they use
their forms of speech in speaking of them
and of their affairs. In like manner, the
Apostles speak of the churches of Mace-
donia, Galatia, or Judea, but never of
Church national or Church provincial.

2. A church exists by the consent, ex-
pressed or implied, of its members to walk
together in obedience to the principles of
the Gospel, and the institutions of Christ.
In otlier words, a church does not derive
its existence and rights from some char-
ter conceded to it by another church, or
by some higher ecclesiastical judicatory.
When any competent number of believers
meet together in the name of Christ, and
agree, cither expressly or by some impli-
cation, to commune together statedly in
Christian worship, and in the observance
of Christ's ordinances, and to perform to-
wards each other the mutual duties of such
Christian fellowship, Christ himself is pres-
ent with them (Matt., xviii., 20), and they
receive from Him all the powers and priv-
ileges which belong to a church of Christ.

At the orderly formation of a church, the
neighbouring churches are ordinarily invi-
ted to be present by their pastors and del-
egates, as witnesses of the Faith and Order
of those engaged in the transaction, and
that tliey may extend the " right hand of
fellowship," recognising the new church as
one of the sisterhood of churches. The
neglect of this, though it might be deemed
a breacli of courtesy and order, would not,
of itself, so vitiate the proc(!edings as to
prevent the new church from being recog-
nised ultimately by the churches of the
neighbourhood.

3. 'J'lie officers of a church are of two
sorts — elders and deacons. When the Con-
gregational churches of New-England were
first organized, two centuries ago, the plan
was that each church should have two or
more elders — one a pastor — another chnr-
ged with similar duties under the title of a
teacher — the third ordained to his office
like the other two, a ruling elder, who,
with his colleagues, presided over the dis-
cipline and order of the church, but took
no part in the official authoritative preach-
ing of tlie word, or in the administration

of Baptism and the Lord's Supper. Thus
it was intended that eac_h church should
have within itself a presbytery, or clerical
body, perpetuating itself by the ordination
of those who .should be elected to fill suc-
cessive vacancies. This plan, however,
soon fell into disuse ; and now, except in
the rare cases of colleagues in office, all
the powers and duties of the eldership de-
volve upon one whose ordinary official title
is pastor. The office of deacons, of whom
there are from two to six in each church,
is to serve at the Lord's Table, and to re-
ceive, keep, and apply the contributions
which the church makes at each commu-
nion for the expenses of the Table, and for
the poor among its own members. Ori-
ginally, the deacons, as in the primitive
churches, received on each Lord's Day the
contributions of the whole congregation,
which were applied by them for the sup-
port of the ministers, and for all other ec-
clesiastical uses. But at an early period
other arrangements were adopted, as more
convenient.

4. Admission to membership in the
church takes place as follows. The per-
son desiring to unite himself with the
church makes known his wishes to the
pastor. The pastor (or in some churches
the pastor and deacons, or in others, the
pastor and a committee appointed for the
purpose), having conversed with the can-
didate, and having obtained by conversa-
tion and inquiry satisfactory evidence of
his having th;it spiritual renovation — that
inward living piety which is considered
as the condition of membership, he is pub-
licly proposed in the congregation, on the
Lord's Day, as a candidate, so that if there
be any objection in any quarter, it may be
seasonably made known. One, two, three,
or four weeks afterward, according to the
particular rule or usage of the church, a
vote of the " brotherhood" (or male mem-
bers) is taken on thequestion, " Shall this
person be admitted to membership in the
church V After this, the candidate ap-
pears before the congregation, and gives
his assent to a formal profession of the
Christian faith read to him by the pastor,
and to a form of covenant, by which he en-
gages to give himself up to God as a child
and servant, and to Christ as a redeemed
sinner, and binds himself to tlie church
conscientiously to perform all the duties
of Christian communion and brotherhood.

5. The censures of the church are pro-
nounced by the pastor in accordance with a
previous vote or determination of the broth-
erhood. The directions given by Cliristin
regard to the treatment of an offending
brother (Matt., xviii., 15-17) are, in most
churches, literally and directly adhered to
in all cases. First, one brother alone con-
fers with the brother offending or supposed
to offend, and this is tlie first admonition.

Chap. Ill ]

CONGREGATIONAL CHURCHES.

Then, if satisfaction has not been obtained,
the same brother takes with him one or
two others, and the effort is repeated : this
is the second admonition. If tliis effort is
ineffectual, the whole case is reported to
the church, i. e., the brotherhood ; and if
the church do not obtain satisfaction, in
other words, if they find him guilty of the
offence alleged against him, and do not find
him at the same time penitent and ready
to confess his fault, they, as a body, ad-
monish him, and wait for his repentance.
If he refuses to hear the church, that is, if
the admonition, after due forbearance, is
unsuccessful, the brethren by a vote ex-
clude hun from their fellowship, and the
pastor, as Christ's minister, pronounces a
public sentence of excommunication.

In some churches a public and notorious
scandal is sometimes taken up by the church
as a body, without waiting for the first and
second admonition in private. Yet, in such
cases, the church commonly acts by a com-
mittee, who follow the method just descri-
bed ; first one, and next two or more confer
with the offender privately, and then they
report to the church what they have done,
and with what success.

Some churches have a " standing com-
mittee," who, with the pastor, prepare all
business of this nature for the action of the
church. Every complaint or accusation
against a brother is brought first to this
committee, and an attempt is made by them
to adjust the difficulty, and to remove the
offence without bringing the matter to the
church. If that attempt is unsuccessful, the
committee, having investigated the case,
having heard the parties and the witnesses,
report to the church the facts of the case,
with their own opinion as to what ought to
be done. The committee are never invest-
ed with the power of infiicting any church
censures.

6. The arrangements among the Congre-
gationalists of New-England for the sup-
port of public worship are in some points
peculiar. The church, of which we have
thus far spoken exclusively, is entirely a
spiritual association. But it exists in an
amicable connexion with a civil corpora-
tion called the parish, or the ecclesiastical
society, which includes the congregation at
large, or, more accurately, those adult mem-
bers of the congregation who consent to be
a civil society for the support of public wor-
ship. This civil corporation is the propri-
etor of the house of worship, of the par-
sonage,* if there be one, and somelimes of
other endowments, consisting of gifts and
legacies which have from time to time been
made for the uses for which the society ex-
ists. It can raise funds either by volunta-
ry subscription, or by the sale or rent of the
pews in its house of worship, or by assess-

* Or manse, as it is more commonly called in
Scotlaad.

227

ing a tax upon the estates of its members,
in which last case the funds raised can be
applied only to the current expenses of the
society. It enters into a civil contract with
the pastor, and becomes bound in law to
render him for his services such compensa-
tion as is agreed on between him and them.
A stranger may not easily understand
the difference between the church and the
society, and the relations of each to the
other, witliout some farther explanation.
The church, then, is designed to be a pure-
ly spiritual body. The society is a secu-
lar body. The church consists only of
such as profess to have some experience
of spiritual religion. The society consists
of all who are willing to unite in the sup-
port of public worship — it being understood
only, that no person can thrust himself
into its ranks, and obtain a voice in the ad-
ministration of its affairs, without the ex-
press or implied consent of those who are
already members. The church watches
over the deportment of its members, they
being all bound to help each other in the
duties of the Christian life ; and on proper
occasions it censures or absolves from cen-
sure those under its care. The society has
nothing to do with church censures. To
the church belong the ordinances of Bap-
tism and the Lord's Supper. The society
has no concern with the administration of
either ordinance. The church has no prop-
erty except its records, and its sacrament-
al vessels, and the eleemosynary contri-
butions received and dispensed by its dea-
cons. The society is a body incorporated
by law for the purpose of holding- and man-
aging any property necessary for the sup-
port of public worship, or designated by
donors for that use. The church has its
pastor and deacons, and sometimes its com-
mittees, for the management of particular
departments of the church business. The
society has its clerk, its treasurer, and its
prudential committee, elected every year ;
and the pastor of the church is also the
minister and religious teacher of the so-
ciety ; and every family of the congre-
gation is considered as belonging to his
charge.

The great advantage of this part of the
system is, that it gives to every member
of the congregation an interest in its pros-
perity, and a voice in the management of
its affairs, while at the same time it gives
to the church every desirable facility for
keeping itself pure in doctrine and in prac-
tice. There is nothing to secularize the
church ; no temptation to admit irreligious
or unconverted men as members for the
sake of causing them to take an interest
in the support of public worship; and no
temptation inducing such men to seek ad-
mission to the church. The pastor and
the place of worship are as much theirs as
if they were communicants.

228

RELIGION IN AMERICA.

[Book VI.

The pastor, it has been already remark-
ed, is not only the president or bishop of
the church, but also the religious teacher
and minister of the society. Of course he
is elected by a concurrent vote of the two
bodies. In this the church generally takes
the lead. The candidate is to some extent
known to the people, for he has already
preached to them on probation. His fitness
for tlie place has been the subject of col-
loquial discussion in families and among
neighbours. The church meets, under the
presidency of a neighbouring minister, or
perhaps of one of its own deacons, and
decides, sometimes by ballot, and some-
times by the lifting up of hands {x^iporovla),
to call him to the pastoral office, if the so-
ciety shall concur. The society, in like
manner, meet, and by a vote express their
agreement with the church in calling this
candidate to take the pastoral charge of
the church and society. After this the
society determines by vote what salary
shall be offered to the candidate on the
condition of his accepting the call, and to
propose any other stipulations as part of
the contract between the people and their
pastor. Committees are appointed by the
church and by the society to confer with
the pastor elect, and to report his answer ;
and then, if his answer is favourable, to
make arrangements for his public induc-
tion into office. Sometimes the society
leads in the call of a pastor, and the church
concurs. If either of these two bodies
does not concur with the other — which
very rarely happens — the election fails, of
course, and they wait till another candi-
date shall unite them.

7. The pastors of neighbouring churches
form themselves into bodies for mutual
advice and aid in the work of the ministry.
This body is called an association. It has
its stated meetings at the house of each
member in rotation. At every meeting
each member is called upon to report the
state of his own flock, and to propose any
question on which he may desire counsel
from his brethren. In these meetings
every question which relates to the work
of the ministry, or the interest of the
churches, is freely discussed. The asso-
ciations of each state meet annually by
their delegates in a General Association.

But the most important part of the duties
of the association is to examine those who
desire to be introduced to the work of the
ministry. This is on the principle that,
as lawyers are to determine who shall be
admitted to practice at the bar, and as phy-
sicians determine who shall be received
into the ranks of their profession, so min-
isters are the fittest judges of the qualifi-
cations of candiilatcs lor the ministry.
The candidate, therefore, who has passed
through the usual course of studies, liberal*

* By the word " liberal," as applied lo education,

and theological, cannot begin to preach —
will not be recognised by any church as a
candidate — till he has received from some
association a certificate of approbation,
recommending him to the churches, which
is his license to preach the Gospel on trial.
Such a certificate is not granted without
his having passed a close examination,
particularly in respect to his piety, his
soundness in the faith, and his acquaintance
with the system of Christian doctrines.

8. The fathers of the New-England
churches seem to have acknowledged no
minister of the Gospel other than the pas-
tor or teacher of some particular church.
In their zeal against a hierarchy, they found
no place for any minister of Christ not
elected by some organized assembly of
believers to the work of ruling and teach-
ing in that congregation. The evangelist
was thought by them to be, like the apostle,
only for the primitive age of Christianity.
Accordingly, the pastor, when dismissed
from his pastoral charge, was no longer a
minister of Christ, or competent to per-
form anywhere any function of the minis-
try. In connexion with this view, it was
also held that the power of ordination, as
well as of election to office, resides exclu-
sively in the church, and that if the church
has no elders in office, this power of ordina-
tion may be exercised either by a commit-
tee of the brethren, or by some neighbour-
ing elders, appointed to that function by the
church, and acting in its name. But these
views were very early superseded. The
distinction is now recognised between a
minister of the Gospel having a pastoral
charge, and a minister who sustains no
office in any church. The man ordained
to the pastoral office is, of course, ordained
to the work of the ministry ; and if cir-
cumstances occur which make it expedi-
ent for him to lay down his office of pastor,
he does not, of course, lay down the work
of the ministry to which he was set apart
at his ordination. Sometimes a man,
having no call from any church to take the
office of a pastor, is set apart to the work
of the ministry, that he may be a mission-
ary to the heathen, or that he may labour
among the destitute at home, or that he
may perform some other evangelical la-
bour for the churches at large. Such or-
dinations are rare, except in the case of
foreign missionaries, or of missionaries to
some new region of the country where
churches are not yet organized.

Ministers, therefore, whether pastors or
evangelists, are now ordained only by the
laying on of the iiands of those who are
before them in the ministry ; for though it
belongs to the church to make a pastor, it
belongs to ministers to make a minister.

is meant that which is obtained in making the curric-
ulum of a college. It is synonymous with " clas
sical."

Chap. IV.]

REGULAR BAPTIST CHURCHES.

229

9. The reader has already learned that
the American Congregational churches
disavow the name Independent. From the
beginning they have held and practised the
communion of churches. Continually, and
by various acts of affection and intercourse,
they recognise each other as churches of
Christ, as bound to render to each other,
on all proper occasions, an account of their
doings. They receive each other's mem-
bers to occasional communion in ordinan- \
ces. Members of one church, removing '
their residence to another church, take
from the one a letter of dismission and
recommendation, and w^ithout that are not
received to membership in the other. The
principle that, in matters which concern
not one church alone, but all the churches
of the vicinity, no one church ought to act
alone, is continually regarded in practice.
The ordination or installation of a pastor,
and in like manner his dismission from his
office even by the mutual consent of him
and his flock, never takes place without
the intervention of a council of pastors and
delegates from neighbouring churches.
When any act of a church is grevious to a
portion of its members — when any conten-
tion or difficulty has arisen within a church
■whicli cannot otherwise be adjusted —
when a member excommunicated deems
himself unjustly treated, a council of the
neighbouring churches is called to examine
the case, and to give advice ; and the ad-
vice thus given is rarely, if ever, disregard-
ed. If a church is deemed guilty of any
gross dereliction of the faith, or of Chris-
tian discipline, any neighbouring church
may expostulate with it as one brother ex-
postulates with another, and when expos-
tulation proves insufficient, a council of
the neighbouring churches is called to ex-
amine the matter ; and from the church
which obstinately refuses to listen to the
advice given by such a council, the neigh-
bouring churches withdraw their commu-
nion.

In Connecticut the communion of the
churches has been practised for about 130
years in " consociations," or voluntary
confederations of from six to twenty con-
tiguous churches, binding themselves to
call upon each other in all cases of diffi-
culty which require a council. Elsewhere
councils of churches, though ordinarily
selected from the immediate vicinity, are
selected at the discretion of the church by
which the council is convened.

Under this ecclesiastical system the
churches of New-England have, it is be-
lieved by many, enjoyed for more than two
centuries a more continued purity of doc-
trine, and fidelity of discipline, and a more
constant prosperity of spiritual religion,
than has been enjoyed by any equal body
of churches, for so long a time, since the
days of the Apostles. No religious com-

munion in America has done more for re-
ligion and morals among its own people,
more for the advancement of learning and
general education, or more for the diffiisiou
of the Gospel at home and abroad. None
has been more characterized by that large
and manly spirit which values the common
Christianity of all who " hold the Head,"
more than the peculiar forms and institu-
tions of its own sect.

The highest ecclesiastical bodies by
which the Congregational churches in the
United States are, in a sense, united or as-
sociated, are, the General Associations of
Connecticut, Massachusetts, New-Hamp-
shire, and New- York ; the General Con-
vention of Vermont, the General Conso-
ciation of Rhode Island, and the General
Conference of Maine. These bodies meet
annually, and they maintain the " bond of
fellowship" by sending delegates to each
other. It must not be understood that all
the evangelical Congregational churches in
the states just named are " associated,"
that is, connected with the inferior asso-
ciations, and through them with the " gen-
eral association," " general convention,"
" general consociation," or " general con-
ference" of the state in which they are
situated. But the number not thus united
with their sister churches is not great.
The Congregational churches in Ohio,
Michigan, Illinois, and the Territories of
Wisconsin and Iowa are not yet sufficient-
ly numerous to render the organization of
general associations convenient, or else
other causes have prevented this measure
from being adopted.

The Congregationalists in New-England
have eight colleges, five theological semi-
naries and faculties, and about 300 stu-
dents in theology. In the other states
where they exist, they give their aid to the
Presbyterian literary and theological in-
stitutions.

CHAPTER IV.

THE REGULAR BAPTIST CHURCHES.

Next to the Episcopalians and the Con-
gregationalists, the Baptists are the oldest
of the various branches of the Christian
Church in the United States. And if we
were to include under this name all who
hold that immersion is the true and only
Scriptural mode of baptism, without refer-
ence to the orthodoxy of their faith, we
should probably find that they are also the
largest denomination in this country. But
if we separate from them a portion at
least of those minor bodies which, though
agreemg with them on that point, differ
from them on important, and, in some
cases, fundamental doctrines, we shall find
that they are not equal in number to the
Methodists.

230

RELIGION IN AMERICA.

[Book VL

In their church government the Baptists
of all denominations are Independents,
that is, each church is wholly independent,
as respects its interior government, even
of those other churches with which it may-
be associated in ecclesiastical union. Each
separate church possesses and exercises
the right of licensing or granting permis-
sion to preach the Gospel, and of ordaining
elders or presbyters clothed with all the
functions of the ministerial office. This
is the old ground at first maintained by the
Independents. The Congregationalists,
spoken of in the last chapter, seem to be
Independents in theory, but in spirit and
practice they are very nearly Presbyteri-
ans, and have often been called Congrega-
tional Presbyterians.

Delegates from different Baptist church-
es hold public meetings for purposes of
mutual counsel and improvement, but not
for the general government of the whole
body, all right of interference in the con-
cerns of individual churches being dis-
claimed by these ecclesiastical assemblies.
A very large majority of our evangehcal
Baptist churches are associated by their
pastors in District Associations and State
Conventions, which meet every year for
promoting missions, education, and other
benevolent objects. A general convention,
called the Baptist General Convention of
the United States, meets likewise every
three years, the last always appointing the
place of meeting for the next after. The
General Convention is restricted by its
constitution to the promotion of foreign
missions. It held its first meeting in 1814.
But within the last ten years a Home Mis-
sionary Society, a General Tract Society,
a Bible Society, and several societies for
the education of poor and pious youths
having talents adapted for the ministry,
have sprung up in the Baptist body, and
already exert a wide and happy influence.

The Baptists, like the Congregational-
ists, make it a fundamental principle to
adopt the Bible as their only confession of
faitii. Yet most, if not all, of the evan-
gelical churches that bear the name, find
it convenient in practice to have a creed
or summary of doctrine, and these creeds,
although lliey may vary in expression, all
agree in the main, and, with few excep-
tions, among the Regular and Associated
Baptists are decidedly Calvinistic.

A few years ago, the Baptist Convention
of tlie State of New-Hampshire adopted a
Declaraiion of Faith, consisting of sixteen
articles, and a form of church covenant,
which they reconunended to the Baptist
churches of that state, and which are sup-
posed to express, with little variation, the
general sentiments of the whole body of
orthodox Baptists in the United States.
The subjects of these artich^s arc : The
Scriptures ; the true God ; the fall of man ;

the way of salvation ; justification ; the
freeness of salvation ; grace in regenera-
tion ; God's purpose of grace ; perseve-
rance of saints ; harmony of the law and
Gospel ; a Gospel church ; Baptism and
the Lord's Supper ; the Christian Sabbath ;
civil government ; the righteous and the
wicked ; the world to come.

On all these subjects, excepting Baptism,
these articles express the doctrines held
by the Calvinistic churches of all denomi-
nations. The Bible is pronounced to have
been " written by men divinely inspired" —
" has God for its Author, salvation for its
end, and truth, without any mixture of er-
ror, for its matter" — '• is the true centre of
Christian union, and the supreme standard
by which all human conduct, creeds, and
opinions should be tried." The " true God,"
it is aflHrmed, is "revealed under the per-
sonal and relative distinctions of the Father,
the Son, and the Holy Ghost ; equal in
every divine perfection, and executing dis-
tinct and harmonious offices in the great
work of redemption." " The solvation of
sinners" is taught to be " whouy of grace,
through the mediatorial offices of the Son
of God, who took upon Him our nature,
yet without sin ; honoured the law by his
personal obedience, and made atonement
for our sins by his death ; being risen from
the dead, he is now enthroned in heaven ;
and uniting in his wonderful person the
tenderest sympathies with divine perfec-
tions, is every way qualified to be a suit-
able, a compassionate, and an all-sufficient
Saviour." " Justification," it is affirmed,
" consists in the pardon of sin and the
promise of eternal life," and "is bestowed
not in consideration of any works of righ-
teousness which we have done, but solely
of His (Christ's) own redemption and righ-
teousness."

On the FREENESS OF SALVATION it is taught
" that the blessings of salvation are made
free to all by the Gospel ; that it is the im-
mediate duty of all to accept them by a
cordial and obedient faith ; and that nothing
prevents the salvation of the greatest sin-
ner on earth, except his own voluntary re-
fusal to submit to the Lord Jesus Christ ;
which refusal will subject him to an ag-
gravated condemnation." " Regeneration
consists in giving a holy disposition to the
mind, and is effected in a manner above
our comprehension by the Holy Spirit, so
as to secure our voluntary obedience to
the Gospel ; and its proper evidence is
found in the holy fruit which we bring
forth to the glory of (iod."

On the subject of God's purpose of grace
it is stated, " That election is the gracious
purpose of God, according to which He
regenerates, sanctifies, and saves sinners"
— is " consistent with the free agency of
man" — " comprehends all the means in
connexion with the end" — "is a most

Chap. IV.]

REGULAR BAPTIST CHURCHES.

231

gracious display of God's sovereign good-
ness"— " utterly excludes boasting, and pro-
motes humility, prayer, praise, trust in
God" — " encourages the use of means in
the highest degree" — " is ascertained in its
effects in all who believe" — " is the found-
ation of Christian assurance" — and that
" to ascertain it with regard to ourselves,
demands and deserves our utmost dili-
gence."

On the subject of the perseverance of
THE SAINTS, it is affirmed, " That such only
are real believers as endure unto the end ;
that their persevering attrachment to Christ
is the grand mark which distinguishes
them from superficial professors ; that a
special providence watches over their wel-
fare ; and they are kept by the power of
God through faith unto salvation."

According to this Confession of Faith,
^' a visible Church of Christ is a congrega-
tion of baptized believers, associated by
covenant in the faith and fellowship of the
Gospel, observing the ordinances of Christ ;
governed by his laws ; and exercising the
gifts, rights, and privileges invested in
them by His Word ; that its only proper
officers are bishops or pastors, and dea-
cons, whose qualifications, claims, and du-
ties are defined in the Epistles of Timothy
and Titus." And " Christian Baptism is the
immersion of a believer in water, in the
name of the Father, the Son, and the Holy
Ghost ; to show forth a solemn and beau-
tiful emblem of our faith in a crucified,
buried, and risen Saviour, with its purifying
.power," and " is a prerequisite to the
privileges of a church relation."

The " Christian Sabbath is the first day
of the week," and " is to be kept sacred to
religious purposes ;" " civil government is
of divine appointment, for the interests and
good order of society ; and that magis-
trates are to be prayed for, conscientiously
honoured and obeyed, except in things
opposed to the will of our Lord Jesus
Christ, who is the only Lord of the con-
science, and Prince of the kings of the
earth."

And finally, on the subject of the world
TO COME, it is taught, " That the end of this
world is approaching ; that at the last day
Christ will descend from heaven, and raise
the dead from the grave to final retribu-
tion ; that a solemn separation will then
take place ; that the wicked will be ad-
judged to endless punishment, and the
righteous to endless joy ; and that this
judgment will fix forever the final state
of men in heaven or hell on principles of
righteousness."

The covenant which follows this decla-
ration of faith expresses in a few brief
articles the determination of those who
enter it : " to walk -in brotherly love ;" " to
exercise a mutual care, as members one
of another, to promote the growth of the

whole body in Christian knowledge, holi-
ness, and comfort ;" " to uphold the public
worship of God, and the ordinances of his
house ;" " not to omit closet and family
religion," nor the " training up of children
and those under their care ;" to " walk cir-
cumspectly in the world," and be as the
" light of the world, and the salt of the
earth ;" and, finally, to " exhort" and " ad-
monish one another."

Such, in substance, is the " Declaration
of Faith and Covenant," adopted, as I have
said, by the Baptist Convention of New-
Hampshire a few years ago, and no doubt
substantially exhibiting the doctrines held
by the great body of the Regular and As-
sociated Baptists throughout the United
States. It will be perceived that it is mod-
erately Calvinistic, and, indeed, to one or
other shade of Calvinism all the Regular
Baptists in America adhere. Part of their
body, particularly in the Southern and
Southwestern States, are regarded as Cal-
vinists of the highest school. Their doc-
trinal views probably coincide with those
of Dr. Gill more than those of any other
writer. But a far greater number of their
ministers follow in the main the views of
Andrew Fuller ; views which, take them all
in all, form one of the best systems of the-
ology to be found in the English language.

The Baptist churches have increased in
the United States with great rapidity, par-
ticularly within the last fifty or sixty years.
For although they commenced their ex-
istence in the days of Roger Wilhams,*
formerly mentioned,! who, having chan-
ged his sentiments on the subject of Bap-
tism a few years after his arrival in Massa-
chusetts Bay, was the first Baptist preach-
er, and founded the first Baptist church in
America, at Providence, in 1639 ; it was
long before this denomination made much
progress beyond Rhode Island. This arose,
it would appear, from their being violent-
ly opposed in most of the other colonies,
both in the North and in the South. In
Massachusetts they were at first "fined,"
" whipped," and " imprisoned." And though
they afterward obtained liberty of worship
there, they had but eighteen churches at
the commencement of the Revolutionary
war. In Virginia, where they also met
with much opposition and bitter persecu-
tion,J they had scarcely, at that epoch, ob-
tained any footing at all. In fact, with the
exception of Rhode Island, Pennsylvania,

* The reader must not infer, from what is stated
above, that Roger WiUiams is to be considered as the
author or founder of the Baptist Churches in Amer-
ica. His influence was mainly confined to Rhode
Island. The greater part of the Baptist churches
with us owe their origm to the labours of Baptist
ministers who came such directly from England.

t Book, ii., chap. iv.

t It happened often in that colony that their preach-
ers were cast into prison for preaching the Gospel.
And often they were to be seen addressing from the
jail windows the people assembled outside I

232

RELIGION IN AMEKICA.

[Book VL-

and Delaware, they almost no where en-
joyed perfect freedom from molestation
until the country had achieved its inde-
pendence by a struggle in which the Bap-
tists, to say the least, in proportion to their
numbers, took as prominent a part as any
other religious body in the land.

But slow as was their progress before the
Revolution, it has been much otherwise
since. This will be seen from the follow-
ing statement taken from the very com-
plete " View of the Baptist Interest in the
United States," prepared by the Rev. Ru-
fus Babcock, D.D., of Poughkeepsie, New-
York, and published in the American Quar-
terly Register, in the years 1840 and 1841.
The number of Baptist ministers, church-
es, and members, at five different epochs,
are stated there as follows :

Churches.

Ministers.

Members.

In 1784 .

. 471

424

35,101

1790-92

. 891

1150

65,345

1810-12

. 2164

1605

172,972

1832 .

. 5320

3618

384,920

1840 .

. 7766

5204

570,758

Dr. Babcock estimates the superannua-
ted ministers and others who, from vari-
ous causes, are not actively engaged in
the ministry, at about a seventh of the
number in the above table. Deducting
these, and another seventh for the licen-
tiates, who also are included, we shall
have 3717 ordained ministers actually em-
ployed in 1840; which is, upon an aver-
age, less than one minister for two church-
es. Including the licentiates, wlio almost
all preach more or less regularly, and
many of them in vacant churches, the
number of preachers for that year was
4460.

In the " Almanac and Baptist Register"
for 1844, the number of the Regular Bap-
tist churches in 1843 is stated to have been
8482, the ordained and licensed ministers
5650, and the communicants or members
637,477. It is believed, however, that had
the returns been complete, the last-men-
tioned number would have been at least
700,000. According to Dr. Babcock's mode
of estimating them, the ordained and active
ministers were, in that year, 4036.

Dr. Babcock makes a curious estimate
of tlie probable proportion of the inhabi-
tants in each state, supposed to be direct-
ly under the influence of Baptist preach-
ing. Without going unnecessarily into
his details, we find, as the result of his re-
searches, that in 1840 these amounted to
a fifth of the population in Massachusetts,
and to a fourth in Virginia, being the two
provinces in which the Baptists were most
persecuted ; whereas in Hliode Island,
which was their asylum, tlie proportion
rises to two fifths, or nearly a half.

In this cnuineratiou Dr. Babcock in-
cludes some of the smaller Baptist sects,
such as those of the Sic Pnnajdcs, who
hold as their creed the si.\ principles men-

tioned in the Epistle to the Hebrews (chap.
vi.,ver. 1, 2). These, in 1841, had sixteen
churches, ten ministers, and 2017 mem-
bers. But the shades of difference in doc-
trine are not of much consequence, so far
as regards the vital interests of the truth.

Above 3,500,000 of souls, being between
a fifth and a sixth of the entire population
of the United States, and embracing a re-
spectable share of the wealth, talent, learn-
ing, and influence of the country, are sup-
posed to be connected with the Regular
Baptists. A large and important part of
their churches lies in the Southern States,
and includes many slaves and slave-own-
ers. With the exception of the Methodists,
they form by far the most numerous and
influential body of Christians in that sec-
tion of the country.

A strong prejudice against learning in
the ministry unhappily prevailed at one
time in this body, particularly in the South-
ern States, and this we might ascribe to sev-
eral causes. In the religious denomination,
which in Virginia, and the other Southern
colonies, they considered their greatest en-
emy, learning was too often associated
with want of piety, and sometimes with
open irreligion. The effects of this preju-
dice have been very injurious, and are felt
to this day in the Baptist churches through-
out the Southern and Southwestern, and to
a considerable extent even in the Middle
States. But a brighter day has dawned.
Great efforts have been made by zealous
and devoted men among them to establish
colleges and theological seminaries, with
what success we have stated elsewhere.
I know not how many young men are pre-
paring for the ministry in theological and
other institutions, but ten years ago they
were estimated at 300 in New-England,
and about twice that number in other parts
of the United States.

We have already spoken of the efforts
of the Baptists in the Bible, Tract, Sunday-
school, and Home Missionary causes, and
shall have yet to speak of what they are
doing in the department of Foreign Mis-
sions.

We shall conclude by remarking that,
although not a third, perhaps, of the minis-
ters of this denomination of Christians
have been educated at colleges and theo-
logical seminaries, it comprehends, never-
theless, a body of men who, in point of
talent, learning, and eloquence, as well as
devoted piety, have no superiors in the
country. And even among those who can
make no pretensions to profound learning,
not a few are men of respectable general
attainments, and much efficiency in their
Master's work.

Notices will be given of the smaller Bap-
tist denonu'nalions in-their proi)er place,
and they will afterward be grouped to-
gfther, when we come to arrange in fam-

Chap. V.]

PRESBYTERIAN CHURCH.

235

ilies the various religious bodies constitu-
ting the great " household of faith" in the
United States.

CHAPTER V.

THE PRESBYTERIAN CHURCH.

In speaking of the Congregational church-
es, we entered into a full analysis of their
organization, because they comprise most
of the great features of all the churches
founded on what are called Independent
principles, forming the basis of the church-
es of several other denominations, partic-
ularly the Baptists. For a like reason, in
speaking of the Presbyterian Church, we
shall go into considerable detail in speak-
ing of its principles and church organiza-
tion, so as to save repetition when we
come to notice other churches having the
same principles and essentially the same
organization.

The Presbyterian Church is so called
because it is governed by presbyters, and
not by prelates. The name, therefore, ap-
plies to any church organized and govern-
ed on that principle. Usage, however,
has confined it in America to one of sev-
eral churches, who agree in believing that
the government of the Church belongs to
its elders or presbyters. The Dutch Re-
formed Church, the German Reformed,
the Scotch Secession churches, are as truly
Presbyterian as that denomination to which
the name is now, among us, almost exclu-
sively applied.

Presbyterians believe that the Apostles,
in organizing the Church, were accustom-
ed, in every city or place where a congre-
gation was gathered, to appoint a number
of officers for the instruction and spiritual
government of the people, and for the care
of the sick and poor. The former class of
these officers were called presbyters, the
latter deacons. Of these presbyters, some
laboured in word and doctrine, others in
the oversight and discipline of the flock,
according to their gifts, or to their desig-
nation when ordained. As the terms bish-
op and presbyter were indiscriminately
used to designate the spiritual instructers
and governors of the congregation, in eve-
ry church there came to be three classes
of officers, which are denominated the
bishops or pastors, or teaching presbyters,
the ruling presbyters, and the deacons.

The Presbyterian churches with us are
organized on this plan. Each congrega-
tion has its bishop or pastor, its ruling el-
ders, and its deacons, except in cases
where the duties of the last-mentioned
class are assumed by the elders. The
duty of the pastor is to preach the word,
to administer the sacraments, to superin-
tend the religious instruction of the young,

and to have the general oversight of his
flock as to their spiritual concerns. He is
always chosen by the people over whom
he is to exercise his office. It will appear,
however, from the following account of
the method pursued in the selection and
installation of a pastor, that the choice of
the people is subject to several important
limitations. When a congregation is va-
cant, the people assemble, after due no-
tice, to choose a pastor. This meeting
must be presided over by an ordained min-
ister invited for that purpose, who must
endorse the minutes of their proceedings,
and certify their regularity. If a majority
of the qualified members of the congrega-
tion, t. e., of those who contribute to the
support of the minister, agree upon a can-
didate, a call is made out in the following
terms, viz. :

" The congregation of A. B. being, ort
sufficient grounds, well satisfied of the
ministerial qualifications of you, C. D.,and
having hopes, from our past experience of
your labours, that your ministrations in the
Gospel will be profitable to our spiritual
interests, do earnestly call and desire you
to undertake the pastoral office in the said,
congregation ; promising you, in the dis-
cliarge of your duty, all proper supprt, en-
couragement, and obedience in the Lord.
And that you may be free from worldly
cares and avocation^, we hereby promise
and oblige ourselves to pay to you the sum
of in regular quarterly payments, du-
ring the time of your being and continuing
the pastor of this church. In testimony
whereof we have respectively subscribed
our names."

This call is taken to the Presbytery un-
der whose care the congregation is placed,
and the Presbytery decide whether it shall
be presented to the person to whom it is
addressed. If, in their judgment, there
exists any sufficient reason lor withhold-
ing it, it is returned to the people, who
must then proceed to a new election. If
the person called belongs to the same Pres-
bytery to which the congregation is at-
tached, or is a licentiate under their cai'e,
they put the call into his hands and wait
for his answer to it. But if he belongs to
a difterent Presbytery, they give the con-
gregation leave to prosecute it before that
body, who have the right to decide wheth-
er it shall be presented to the candidate or
not.

It thus appears that no man can be-
come the pastor of a congregation under
the care of a Presbytery whom they do
not deem to be a sound and competent
minister of the Gospel. And in order to
enable them to judge intelligently on this
point, before proceeding to his ordmatiou
they examine him " as to his acquaintance
with experimental religion, as to his knowl-
edge of philosophy, theology, ecclesiasti-

£34

RELIGiON IN AMERICA.

[Book VI.

cal history, the Greek and Hebrew lan-
guages, and such other branches of learn-
ing as to the Presbytery may appear requi-
site, and as to his knowledge of the con-
stitution, the rules, and discipline of the
church." Should the candidate be found
deficient in any of these particulars, it is
the right and duty of the Presbytery to re-
ject him. But if they are satisfied with
his ministerial qualifications, they appoint
a time for his ordination in the presence
of the people. When the time appointed
has arrived, and the Presbytery convened, a
member appointed for the purpose preach-
es a sermon suitable for the occasion, and
then proposes to the candidate the follow-
ing questions, viz. :

" Do you believe the Scriptures of the
Old and New Testaments to be the Word
of God, the only infallible rule of faith and
practice ]

" Do you sincerely receive and adopt the
Confession of Faith of this Church as con-
taining the system of doctrine taught in
the Holy Scriptures!

" Do you approve of the government
cmd discipline of the Presbyterian Church
in these United States ]

" Do you promise subjection to your
brethren in the Lord]

" Have you been induced, as far as you
know your own heart, to seek the office of
the holy ministry from love to God, and a
sincere desire to promote his glory in the
Gospel of his Son I

" Do you promise to be zealous and
faithful in maintaining the truths of the
■Gospel, and the purity and peace of the
Church, whatever persecution or opposi-
tion may arise unto you on that account?

" Do you engage to be faithful and dili-
gent in the exercise of all private and per-
sonal duties wliich become you as a Chris-
tian and as a minister of the Gospel, as
■well as in all relative duties, and the pub-
lic duties of your office ; endeavouring to
adorn the profession of the Gospel by your
conversation, and walking with exemplary
piety before the tlock over which God has
jnade you overseer 1

" Are you now willing to take the
•charge of this congregation, agreeably to
your declaration at accepting their call ?
And do you promise to discharge the du-
ties of a pastor to them as God shall give
you strength]"

The presiding minister Chen puts tlie
following questions to the congregation :

" Do you, the people of this congrega-
tion, continue to profess your readiness to

receive , whom you have called to

be your minister !

" Do you promise to receive the word
of truth from his mouth with meekness
and love, and to submit to him in the due
-.xercise of disciphue]

" Do you promise to encourage him in

his arduous labours, and to assist his en-
deavours for your instruction and spiritual
edification]

"And do you engage to continue to
him, while he is your pastor, that compe-
tent worldly maintenance which you have
promised, and whatever else you may see
needful for the honour of religion and his
comfort among you]"

These questions being answered in the
affirmative, the Presbytery proceed to or-
dain the candidate with prayer and the
laying on of hands.

The elders are regarded as the repre-
sentatives of the people, and are chosen
by them for the discipline of the church
in connexion with the pastor. They must
be male members of the church in full
communion, and, when elected, are requi-
red to profess their faith in the Scriptures
as the only infallible rule of faith and
practice, their adoption of the Westmin-
ster Confession as containing the system
of doctrine, and their approbation of the
government and discipline of the Presby-
terian Church ; and the members of the
church are called upon publicly to ac-
knowledge and receive them as ruling
elders, and to promise to yield them all
that honour, encouragement, and obedience
in the Lord, to which their office, accord-
ing to the Word of God and the constitu-
tion of the church, entitles them. The
pastor and elders constitute what is called
the Session, which is the governing body
in each congregation. They are authorized
to inquire into the knowledge and Chris-
tian conduct of the members of the church ;
to admit to the sacraments those whom,
upon examination, they find to possess the
requisite knowledge and piety ; to call be-
fore them offenders, being members of
their own church ; to decide cases of dis-
cipline ; and to suspend or excommunicate
those who are judged deserving of such
censure. It is their duty, also, to keep a
register of marriages, of baptisms, of those
admitted to the Lord's Supper, and of the
death or removal of church members.

All the proceedings of the Session are
subject to the review of the Presbytery,
and may be brought before that body in
several different ways. The Session is
required to keep a record of their official
acts, and this record is laid before the
Presbytery, for examination, twice every
year. Should anything appear on the rec-
ord which, in the judgment of the Presby-
tery, is irregular, inexpedient, or unjust,
they have authority to see the matter rec-
tified. Or if any one feels himself ag-
grieved l)y a decision of the vSession, he
lias the right of appeal to the Presbytery,
where the case may be reviewed. Or if
any member or members of the inferior
court, or any one affected by their decis-
ion, consider their action irregular or un-

Chap. V.]

PRESBYTERIAN CHURCH.

235

just, he or they have the right of com-
plaint, which subjects the whole matter to
a revision in the higher judicatory.

The deacons are not members of the
Session, and, consequently, have no part
in the government of the church. It is
their duty to take charge of the poor, to
receive and appropriate the moneys col-
lected for the support or relief of the sick
or needy.

A Presbyterian church, or congregation,
has thus a complete organization within
itself, but it is not an independent body.
It is part of an extended whole, living un-
der the same ecclesiastical constitution,
and, therefore, subject to the inspection
and control of the Presbytery, whose busi-
ness it is to see that the standards of doc-
trine and rules of discipline are adhered
to by all the separate churches under its
care.

This superior body, the Presbytery, con-
sists of all the pastors, or ordained minis-
ters, and one elder from each Session,
within certain geographical limits. There
must be at least three ministers to consti-
tute a Presbytery, but the maximum is not
fixed. Hence our Presbyteries vary from
three to sixty or eighty members. It is
the bond of union between the ministers
and churches within it limits. Among its
most important duties is the examination
a:nd ordination of candidates for the holy
ministry. Every such candidate is requi-
red to place himself under the care of that
Presbytery within whose bounds he ordi-
narily resides. He must produce ' satis-
factory testimonials of his good moral
character, and of his being in full commu-
nion with the church. It is made the duty
of the Presbytery to examine him as to
liis experimental knowledge of religion,
and as to his motives in seeking the sacred
office. And it is recommended that the
candidate be required to produce a diplo-
ma of the degree of bachelor or master of
arts, from some college or university, or
at least authentic testimonials of his hav-
ing gone through a regular course of aca-
demic instruction. The Presbytery itself,
however, is required to examine him as to
his knowledge of the Latin, Greek, and
Hebrew languages, and on the subjects
embraced in the usual course of study pur-
sued in our colleges. He must also pre-
sent a Latin exercise on some point in the-
ology ; a critical exposition of a passage
of Scripture, as a test of his ability to ex-
pound the original text ; a lecture or homi-
letic exposition of some portion of the
Word of God ; and a popular sermon. If
these exercises and examinations are pass-
ed to the satisfaction of the Presbytery,
the candidate is required to answer affirm-
atively the following questions, viz. :

" Do you believe the Scriptures of the
XDld and New Testaments to be the Word

of God, the only infallible rule of faith and
practice T

" Do you sincerely receive and adopt
the Confession of Faith of this Church, as
containing the system of doctrine taught
in the Holy Scriptures 1

" Do you promise to study the peace,
purity, and unity of the Church 1

" Do you promise to submit yourself, in
the Lord, to the government of this Pres-
bytery, or of any other Presbytery in the
bounds of which you may be called 1"

The Presbytery then proceed to his li-
censure in the following words, viz. : " In
the name of the Lord Jesus Christ, and by
that authority which he has given to his
Church for its edification, we do license
you to preach the Gospel wherever God,
in his providence, may call you, and for
this purpose, may the blessing of God rest
upon you, and the Spirit of Christ fill your
heart. Amen."

This licensure does not confer the min-
isterial office, or give authority either to
administer the sacraments, or to take part
in the government of the Church. It is
merely a declaration that the recipient, in
the judgment of the Presbytery, is qualified
to preach the Gospel and to become a pas-
tor. It is from this class of probationers
that the congregations select and call their
ministers ; and when a licentiate receives
a call to a particular church, he is renew-
edly examined on all the subjects above
specified before he is ordained.

It is by means of these examinations,
and by requiring assent to the Confession
of Faith, that the Presbyterian Church in
America has endeavoured to secure com-
petent learning and orthodoxy in its min-
istry ; and it is a historical fact, which
ought to be gratefully acknowledged, that
since the organization of the Church in
this country, a century and a half ago, the
great body of its ministers have been lib-
erally-educated men ; and it is also a fact
that no man who has avowedly rejected
the Calvinistic system of doctrine, has
been allowed to retain his standing as a
minister of that Church. Its history con-
tains not the record of even one Arminian
or Pelagian, much less Socinian, as an ap-
proved or recognised minister in its con-
nexion. Some few instances have occur-
red of the avowal of such sentiments, but
they have uniformly been followed by the
ejection from the ministry of those who
entertained them. And more recently,
the promulgation by a part of its ministers
of doctrines supposed to be at variance
with its standards, though those doctrines
were not considered by their advocates as
involving a rejection of the Calvinistic
system, was one of the principal causes of
the separation of the body into two dis-
tinct organizations. So also with regard
to learning, when a portion of the Church

236

RELIGION IN AMERICA.

[Book VI.

in the western, and then more recently-set-
tled parts of the country, insisted on intro-
ducing into the ministry men who had not
received a liberal education, they were re-
quired to separate and form a denomina-
tion of their own. From their peculiar
circumstances, such separations involve no
civil penalties or forfeitures. If any set of
men think that the interests of religion
can he better promoted by an imperfectly
educated and more numerous ministry,
than by a smaller body of better-educated
men, nothing prevents them from acting on
their convictions and organizing on their
own principles. By so doing, however,
they of necessity separate from a church
which makes a liberal education a requi-
site for admission into the sacred office.
In like manner, if any man or set of men
renounce the doctrines of the Westminster
Confession, they are at perfect liberty to
preach what they believe to be true, but
they must not expect to remain ministers
of a church in which that Confession is
the standard of doctrine. External union
has, indeed, been sacrificed by acting on
this principle, but spiritual fellowship has
been rather promoted than violated there-
by, as neither party, in such cases, have
excommunicated the other. And there is
no hardship or injustice in the course above
indicated, since the church is in one sense
a voluntary society, whose terms of min-
isterial communion are known to the
world; and those who disapprove of its doc-
trines need not, and in general do not, seek
admission to its ministry. There are other
denominations within whose pale they can
minister without objection or difficulty.

It follows, from what has been said, that
it is the duty of the Presbytery to exercise
a watch and care over its own members.
Every minister, at his" ordination, promises
subjection to his brethren in the Lord ;
that is, he promises to recognise the au-
thority of the Presbytery, and the other
ecclesiastical bodies, as exercised agree-
ably to the constitution of the Church, and
to submit to their decisions. He receives
his office from the hands of the Presbytery,
and it is in the power of that body, on suf-
ficient grounds, and after a fair trial, to
suspend or depose him. It is, however,
provided that no charge shall be received
against a minister of the Gospel, unless on
the responsibility of some competent ac-
cuser, or on the ground of public scandal.
"When a minister is accused, either of er-
ror in doctrine or immorality of conduct,
he is regularly cited to answer the charge ;
he is informed of the witnesses who are to
appear against him, and full time is allow-
ed for the preparation of his defence. In
short, all the formalities which are the
safeguards of justice are scrupulously re-
garded, so as to secure a fair trial to any
accused member.

The Presbytery, then, is the court of re-
view and control over all the Sessions of
the several churches within its bounds. It
is the supervising body, bound to see that
the pastors are faithful in the discharge of
their duty ; having also authority to exam-
ine, license, and ordain candidates for the
ministry; to instal them over the congre-
gations to which they may be called ; to
exercise discipline over its own members ;
and, in general, to order whatever relates
to the spiritual welfare of the congrega-
tions under its care.

With the Presbytery the organization of
a Presbyterian church is complete. So long
as the number of ministers and churches
is so small that they can conveniently meet
at the same time and place, there is no
need of any superior body. The formation
of Synods and a General Assembly be-
comes necessary only when the Church is
too large to be comprised under on« Pres-
bytery. It is desirable that the governing
body should meet at least twice annually.
This cannot be done when the members
of that body are very numerous, and scat-
tered over a great extent of country. To
remedy this inconvenience, instead of one
presbytery embracing all the ministers and
churches, several are formed, each exer-
cising its functions within prescribed lim-
its, and all meeting annually as a Synod.
A Synod is, therefore, nothing but a larger
Presbytery. Agreeably to this system, it
must be composed of at least three Pres-
byteries. All the ministers within its'
bounds, and one elder from each Session,
have a right to act as members, from
1705 to 1716 there was but one Presbytery.
The number of ministers and churches had,,
at the latter date, so increased that three
Presbyteries were formed, which contin-
ued to meet as a Synod until 1787, when
convenience suggested the division of the
body into four Synods, under a represent-
ative assembly, composed of delegates
from all the Presbyteries. Under the pres-
ent system, the Synod is a body that inter-
venes between the Presbytery and Gen-
eral Assembly. It has power to receive
and determine all appeals regularly brought
up from the Presbyteries ; to decide all
references made to them ; to review the
records of Presbyteries, and to approve or
censure tliem ; to redress whatever has
been done by the Presbyteries contrary to
order; to take effectual care that Pres-
byteries observe the constitution of the
Church ; to erect new presbyteries, and
unite or divide those which were before
erected ; and, generally, to take such order
with respect to the Presbyteries, Sessions,
and people under their care, as may be
in conformity with the Word of God and
the established rules, and which tend to
promote the edification of the Church ;
and, finally, to propose to the General As-

Chap. V.]

PRESBYTERIAN CHURCH.

237

^embiy, for its adoption, such measures as
may be of common advantage to the whole
Church.

The General Assembly is the highest ju-
dicatory of the Presbyterian Church, and
the bond of union between its several parts.
It is composed of an equal delegation of
ministers and elders from each presbytery.
Every presbytery sends at least one min-
ister and one elder ; if it consists of more
than twenty-four members, it sends two
ministers and two elders, and so on in like
proportion.

The Assembly has power to determine
all appeals and references regularly brought
before it from inferior judicatories ; to re-
view the records of the several synods ; to
give its advice and instructions in all cases
submitted to it ; and constitutes the bond
of union, peace, correspondezice, and mu-
tual confidence among all the churches un-
der its care. To it also belongs to decide
all controversies respecting doctrines and
discipline ; to reprove, warn, or bear tes-
timony against error in doctrine or immo-
rality in practice ; to erect new synods ;
to superintend the whole church; to cor-
respond with foreign churches ; to sup-
press schismatical contentions and dispu-
tations ; and, in general, to recommend and
attempt reformation of manners, and the
promotion of charity, truth, and holiness
through all the churches under its care.

So long as all the ministers of the church
•were united in one synod, that body had a
right to make rules which had the force of
constitutional regulations obligatory on all
the presbyteries. - This was reasonable and
safe as long as the whole church met in
one body, as its rules were the voluntarily
imposed conditions of membership. But
since the formation of the General Assem-
bly, composed not of all the ministers, but
of a comparatively small delegation from
each presbytery, this power no longer be-
longs to this highest judicatory. The As-
sembly cannot alter the constitution of the
church. Every proposition, involving such
change, nmst first be sent down to the pres-
byteries, and receive the sanction of a ma-
jority of them, before it becomes obligatory
on the churches.

Having given this brief exhibition of the
principles of church government adopted
by Presbyterians in the United States, it
is necessary to advert to their doctrinal
standards. The Confession of Faith and
the Larger and Shorter Catechisms prepa-
red by the Assembly of Divines at West-
minster were, as is well known, adopted
by the Church of Scotland, and the same
symbols have from the beginning constitu-
ted the creed of the Presbyterian Church
in this country. The formal adopting act
was passed by the Synod in 1729. In that
act we find the following language, viz.:
" We do agree that all the ministers of this

synod, or that shall hereafter be admitted
into this synod, shall declare their agree-
ment in, and approbation of, the Confes-
sion of Fatih, with the Larger and Shorter
Catechisms of the Assembly of Divines at
Westminster, as being, in all necessary
articles, good forms of sound words and
systems of Christian doctrine ; and do also
adopt the said Confession and Catechisms
as the confession of our faith." On the
same page of the records is found the fol-
lowing minute, viz.: " All the members of
the Synod now present, except one who
declared himself not prepared (but who
at a subsequent meeting gave in his adhe-
sion), after proposing all the scruples that
any of them had to make against any of
the articles or expressions in the Confes-
sion of Faith, and Larger and Shorter Cat-
echisms of the Assembly of Divines at
Westminster, have unanimously agreed in
the solution of those scruples, and in de-
claring the said Confessions and Cate-
chisms to be the confession of their faith ;
except only some clauses in the twenti-
eth and twenty-third chapters, concerning
which the Synod do unanimously declare
that they do not receive those articles in any
such sense as to suppose the civil magis-
trate hath a controUing power over synods,
with respect to the exercise of their min-
isterial authority, or power to persecute
any for their religion, or in any sense con-
trary to the Protestant succession to the
throne of Great Britain. The Synod, ob-
serving unanimity, peace, and unity in all
their consultations and deliberations in the
affair of the Confession, did unanimously
agree in solemn prayer and praise."

It appears that some doubt arose wheth-
er the expression, " essential and necessa-
ry articles" in the above acts, was to be
understood of articles essential to the sys-
tem of doctrine contained in the Confes-
sion of Faith, or of articles essential to
Christianity. To remove this ambiguity,
the Synod, the following year, unanimously
adopted the following minute, viz. : " Where-
as some persons have been dissatisfied with
the manner of wording our last year's agree-
ment about the Confession, supposing some
expressions not sufficiently obligatory upon
intrants ; overtured that the Synod do now
declare that they understand those clauses
which respect the admission of intrants, in
such a sense as to oblige them to receive
and adopt the Confession and Catechisms,
at their admission, in the same manner
and as fully as the members of the Synod
who were then present ;" that is, they were
to adopt it without exception, save the
clauses relating to the powers of civil
magistrates in matters of religion.

When the General Assembly was formed
in 1787, the Confession of Faith and Cat-
echisms were revised, and those parts
which relate to the power of the magis-

238

RELIGION IN AMERICA.

[Book VI.

trates modified, and ever since it has with-
out alteration been the standard of doctrine
in the Presbyterian Church, and every min-
ister, as already stated, is required at his
ordination to declare that he " sincerely re-
ceives and adopts the Confession of Faith
of this Church as containing the system of
doctrines taught in the Holy Scriptures."

We have elsewhere stated how church
property is held ; how churches are erect-
ed ; how the salaries of ministers are raised ;
and how feeble churches are aided by home
missionary societies, boards of missions,
&c.

We shall now proceed to give a brief
sketch of the history of the Presbyterian
Church in the United Slates. The first
Presbytery, consisting of seven ministers,
and representing about the same number
of churches, was organized in Philadel-
phia in 1705; at present, the number of
ministers exceeds 2600, and that of the
churches more than 3500. This extraor-
dinary increase can only be explained by
a reference to the settlement of the coun-
try. The New-England States were set-
tled by English Puritans, many of whom,
especially those who arrived about the
commencement of the civil war, as well
as those who came after the Restoration,
were Presbyterians ; New- York was set-
tled by the Dutch, who were also Presby-
terians ; but these classes have retained
their own separate ecclesiastical organi-
zation, though both have contributed large-
ly to the increase of the Presbyterian
Church. The Germans, also, who settled
in great numbers in Pennsylvania, and in the
northern portions of Virginia, have in like
manner formed extended churches of their
own ; yet they also have, in many cases,
contributed to swell the number of Amer-
ican Presbyterians. The French emigrants,
who came to this country towards the close
of the seventeenth century, were almost all
Protestants and Presbyterians. These are
the collateral sources whence the Presby-
terian Church in America derived the ma-
terials of its growth. From the beginning
of the last century to the Declaration of
Independence, there was a constant cur-
rent of emigration of Presbyterians from
Scotland, and still more from the north of
Ireland. These emigrants settled princi-
pally in New-Jersey, Pennsylvania, in the
central portions of Virginia, and in North
and South Carolina. Since the commence-
ment of the present century, the same pro-
cess has been going on. The central and
western portions of the State of New-
York, forty years ago, was a wilderness ;
it has now a popuhition of more than
1,000,000 of peoi)le of European descent.
The Western States in the Valley of the
Mississippi, then in the almost exclusive
possession of the Indians, have now a like
population of more than 6,000,000. The

progress of the Presbyterian Church, there-
fore, although rapid, has not been out of
proportion to the progress of the country.
On the contrary, the widely-extended de-
nominations of the Methodists and Baptists
are, to a great extent, composed of per-
sons whose ancestors belonged to Presby-
terian churches.

It will easily be believed that the Pres-
byterian Church, in the midst of a popu-
lation which doubles itself every twenty-
four years, felt that her first and most
urgent duty was to supply this growing
population with the preaching of the Gos-
pel. It has been a missionary church from
the beginning. Its first pastors, though set-
tled over particular congregations, spent
much of their time in travelling and preach-
ing to the destitute ; and as soon as their
numbers began to increase, they adopted a
regular system of missions. The Synod, at
its annual meetings, appointed missionaries*
to go to the destitute portions of the coun-
try, and sustained them by the contribu-
tions of the churches. Soon after the
formation of the General Assembly, that
body appointed a standing committee of
missions, whose duty it was to collect in-
formation as to the wants of the church, ta
appoint missionaries, to designate their
field of labour, to make provisions for their
maintenance, and to report annually to the-
General Assembly. In 1816, this committee
was enlarged, and constituted the Board of
Missions, and has ever since been engaged
in the benevolent work of sending the Gos-
pel to the destitute parts of the church.
For some years past the number of mis-
sionaries sent out by this Board has ranged
from 200 to 300, and its income from 20,000
to 35,000 dollars, as has been shown in
another part of this work.*

As many members of the Presbyterian
Church prefer voluntary societies to ec-
clesiastical boards for conducting mission-
ary and other benevolent operations ; and
as they wished diflferent evangelical de-
nominations to unite in this work ; as,
moreover, there was an evident necessity
of doing more than had yet been done to
meet the constantly increasing demands
for missionary labour, they determined to
form a society to be called the American
Home Missionary Society, already spoken
of elsewhere. f This society has received
the support of full one half of the Presby-
terian Church, of the whole body of the
Congregational Churches (one of the most
efficient bodies in the country), and, to
some extent, of the Dutch Reformed
churches. It has, therefore, been exten-
sively useful. Its income has varied of
late years from 60,000 to 100,000 dollars, .
and its missionaries from 400 to more thair.
800.

! * Book iv., chap, viii, t Iljid., chap. vii.

Chap. V.]

PRESBYTERIAN CHURCH.

239>

It is in this way that the Presbyterian
Church has endeavoured, in some meas-
ure, to keep pace with the demands of the
country for ministerial labour. These ex-
ertions have not, indeed, been adequate to
the necessity, and yet the fact that, fifty
years ago, this church had less than 200
ministers, and now has nearer 3000 than
2000, shows that it has not been entirely
wanting in its duty.

It is obvious that this great demand for
ministerial labour must lead the church to
look anxiously around for the means of
obtaining an adequate supply of educated
men. In the first instance, the attention
of its members was naturally directed to
the mother-country. The necessities of
the numerous settlements were frequently
urged on the Presbyteries of Scotland and
Ireland, and on similar bodies in England.
From these sources a large proportion of
our early ministers were obtained ; indeed,
as far as can be ascertained, all the minis-
ters connected with the Presbyterian
Church, from 1705 to 1716, with two or
three exceptions, were from Great Britain
or Ireland. The older provinces of New-
England subsequently furnished many able
and faithful men, who aided efficiently in
building up the Presbyterian Church. But
the supply from these sources was precari-
ous and inadequate. From an early period,
therefore, measures were adopted to secure
the education of ministers at home. About
the year 1717, the Reverend William Ten-
nent, who had been a presbyter of the
Episcopal Church in Ireland, opened a
classical academy in Pennsylvania, which
was familiarly known as the " Log Col-
lege," where many of the most distin-
guished of the early native ministers re-
ceived their education. Similar institu-
tions were soon after established in various
other places ; and in 1738, the Synod, in
order to secure a properly-educated minis-
try, passed an act to the following effect,
viz : " That all the presbyteries require that
every candidate, before being taken on trial,
should be furnished with a diploma from
some European or New-England college ;
or, in case he had not enjoyed the advan-
tage of a college education, he should be
examined by a committee of the Synod,
who should give him a certificate of com-
petent scholarship when they found him to
merit it."

In 1739, the Synod determined to take
measures to establish a seminary of learn-
ing, under its own care ; but the circum-
stances of the country, and of the church
itself, prevented anything being done until
1744. In that year it was agreed, 1. That
there should be a school kept open, where
all persons who pleased may send their
children, and have them taught gratis, in
the languages^ philosophy, and divinity.
2. In order to carry on this design, that

every congregation under the care of the.
Synod be applied to for yearly contribu-
tions. 3. That whatever sum of money-
could be spared from what was necessary
to support a master and tutor, should be
devoted to the purchase of books. This
was the origin of what is now the college
at Newark, in the State of Delaware.

At this period of our history there were
two synods, the old Synod of Philadelphia,
and the Synod of New-York, which was
formed in 1745. The former, at this time,
directed their efforts to the support of the
Newark academy, and of the academy in
Philadelphia, out of which has sprung the
University of Pennsylvania ; the latter
raised and sustained the College of New-
Jersey, at Princeton; and after the union
of the two synods in 1758, the united body
concentrated their efforts in the support of
the last-mentioned institution. Though
the college at Princeton owes its origin to
the Synod of New- York, and sprang from
the desire of furnishing a supply of edu-
cated men for the ministry of the Presby-
terian Church, it has always been open to
the youth of all denominations. The num-
ber of its alumni is more than 2500, of
whom about 500 became preachers of the
Gospel.

Since the establishment of the college at
Princeton, more than forty similar institu-
tions have been formed in different parts
of the country, which are more or less
intimately connected with the Presbyte-
rian Church ; that is, their trustees, offi-
cers, and patrons, are either exclusively
or principally Presbyterians.*

For a long time, however, after tlie or-
ganization of the Presbyterian Church,,
there was no public provision for the the-
ological education of candidates for the
sacred office. After completing their aca-
demical studies, such candidates were ac-
customed to place themselves under the
direction of some experienced pastor, who
superintended their studies, and assisted
them in preparing for their examinations
before the Presbytery. Sometimes a pas-
tor whose taste or acquirements peculiarly
fitted him for the task, would, have a class
of such pupils constantly under his care.
As early, however, as 1760, a proposition
was introduced into the Synod for the ap-
pointment and support of a regular profes-
sor of theology ; and a few years after-
ward the trustees of the college of New-
Jersey having appointed such a professor,
the Synod took measures to aid in sustain-
ing him.

The General Assembly, however, in 181 1,
determined to establish a separate institu-
tion for the theological education of candi-
dates for the ministry ; and in 1812 the in-

* The whole number under the influence of the
Presbyterians and Congregalionalists is forty-one.

240

RELIGION IN AMERICA.

[Book VL

stitution was located at Princeton, New-
Jersey, and went into immediate operation.
This seminary is under the immediate
supervision of a board of directors, who
meet semi-annually to examine the stu-
dents, and superintend its affairs. This
board is appointed by the General Assem-
bly, and to the latter body also it belongs
to elect the professors, determine their
duties and salaries. Having already spo-
ken of this seminary, as well as all the
others wliich are under the control of the
Presbyterians, when giving an account of
the theological seminaries in the United
States,* we say no more respecting it in
this place.

In a former part of this work, when de-
scribhig the development and influence of
the voluntary principle (Book iv.), we gave
an account of the American Education So-
ciety, and the Board of Education of the
General Assembly of the Presbyterian
Church : institutions which have done so
much to increase the number of the minis-
ters of the Gospel in this denomination.
"We spoke, also, of the Board of Publica-
tion, which the Assembly of one of the
great divisions of tlie Presbyterian Church
has established, and the good which it is
doing. We therefore pass over these
operations, which have so intimate a con-
nexion with the history of this church.
We also say nothing at present respecting
the foreign missions of this church, inas-
much as we shall have occasion to speak
of these hereafter.

It has been our object in this chapter to
give our readers, in the first place, a dis-
tinct idea of the organization of the Pres-
byterian Church ; of the manner in which
its several congregations are formed and
governed ; what provision is made to se-
cure the orthodoxy, learning, and fidelity
of their pastors ; and, in the second place,
briefly to state the means adopted to extend
the church, and, in general, to promote the
cause of religion. There is still one gen-
eral subject which should not be passed
over : it is. What has been the result of
this organization, and of these means 1 or.
What has been the character of the Pres-
byterian Church in the United States ]
Has it been a pure, enlightened, laborious,
<ind harmonious body"! Materials for an
answer to this question may, in a measure,
be found in the preceding pages ; we shall
therefore say but little in reply to it.

Purity in a church may be understood
cither in reference to orthodoxy, or adhe-
rence to the truth of God as revealed in
His Word ; or in reference to the manner
of life of its ministers or members. In
reference to the former of these views,
we tliink it may safely be asserted that the
Presbyterian Church has, by the grace of

* Book iv., chapter xviii.

God, been preserved pure to a very un-
common degree. The correctness of this
statement is to be found, not so much in
the early adoption of the Westminster
Confession of Faith, and the requisition of
an assent to that Confession on the part
of all candidates for ordination, as in the
fact that there has never been any open
avowal of Pelagian or Arminian doctrines
in the bosom of our church. Cases have
occurred of ministers being censured, or
suspended from office, for teaching such
doctrines, but no case has occurred of a
Presbyterian minister who avowedly re-
jected the Calvinistic system, and yet re-
tained his standing in the church as one
of its authorized preachers. Of late years,
indeed, there has been much discussion on
doctrinal subjects, and many sentiments
have been advanced, which many excellent
men considered as virtually, if not formal-
ly implying the rejection of the Calvinistic
doctrines of original sin, election, and effi-
cacious grace. With regard to these con-
troversies, however, there are two re-
marks to be made. The first is, that the
advocates of these sentiments strenuously
denied that they were inconsistent with
the doctrines just mentioned ; and the sec-
ond is, that the opposition made to the ex-
ercise of discipline on account of these
sentiments, was the principal cause of the
division of the Presbyterian Church into
two portions of nearly equal size. It there-
fore remains true, as stated in a preceding
page, that no Presbyterian minister has
avowed himself either a Pelagian or Ar-
minian, and yet been allowed to retain his
standing as one of the accredited teachers
of the church. This, indeed, may be con-
sidered by many as great bigotry. But the
very thing which its friends glory in is
the fact that the Presbyterian Church in
America, having a Calvinistic creed, has
been faithful in adhering to it.

As to the other application of the word
pure, it may also be safely asserted, that
although painful cases of immorality in
ministers have occurred, yet we know of
no case in which it has been overlooked ;
we know no case in which either drunken-
ness, licentiousness, or any similar oftence,
has been proved against any minister, or
been notoriously true with regard to him,
without leading to his suspension or depo-
sition from office. If such instances have
ever occurred, they have been exceedingly
rare. We do not mention this as anything
peculiar to the Presbyterian Church ; the
same remark, as far as we know, might be
made, with equal justice, of any of the
evangelical denominations in the country.
As it regards the private members of the
church, since much depends upon the fidel-
ity of the several Sessions, we can only
say that, according to the rules of disci-
pline, no person chargeable with immoral

•Chap. V.]

PRESBYTERIAN CHURCH.

241

conduct can be properly retained in com-
munion with the church ; and that public
sentiment is in accordance with these
rules. The cases are certainly rare in
which any such offence as falsehood,
drunkenness, fornication, or adultery are
tolerated in any church member. Disci-
pline is so far preserved in our churches,
that it would be a matter of general re-
proach if any congregation allowed the
name of any man of known immoral char-
acter to remain upon its list of communi-
cants.

In asserting the claim of the Presbyteri-
an Church in America to the character of
an enlightened body, all that is meant is,
that she has successfully endeavoured to
maintain as high a standard of literary
qualifications in her ministry as other
Christian denominations in the United
States, or as the circumstances of the
country rendered expedient or possible.
From the beginning she insisted on the
necessity of learning in those who intend-
ed to enter the sacred office, and early en-
deavoured to establish institutions for
their suitable education. Even when the
demand for ministers was so great as to
present a strong temptation to relax her
requisitions, she constantly refused. The
proposition was more than once introduced
into the old Synod, that in view of the
pressing necessity for ministerial labour,
the presbyteries might be permitted to li-
cense men to preach the Gospel who had
not received a liberal education ; but it
was uniformly rejected. It has already
been stated that the constitution of the
church requires that every candidate should
pass repeated examinations before he is
admitted to ordination ; that he must give
satisfactory evidence of possessing a com-
petent knowledge of the Latin, Greek, and
Hebrew languages ; of his acquaintance
with the subjects usually studied in our
colleges ; and he must, after completing
his academical studies, spend at least two
years in the study of theology under some
approved teacher. These requisitions have
been enforced with a good degree of fidel-
ity. For a long time, a knowledge of He-
brew was not generally insisted upon, on
account of the difficulty of obtaining com-
petent teachers ; but since the estabhsli-
ment of theological seminaries, a knowl-
edge of that language has become with
the Presbyterian ministers (and many oth-
ers also) an almost uniform attainment.

In answer to the question. Whether the
Presbyterian Church has been a laborious
and active body of men 1 it may be said
that, if in this respect she has fallen behind
some of her sister churches, she has kept
in advance of others. The rapid increase
of the church since its organization in 1705 ;
the efforts she has made to found acade-
mies, colleges, and theological seminaries ;
Q

the labour and money contributed to the
support of foreign and domestic missions,
show that, although she has come far short
of her duty, she has not been entirely un-
mindful of her liigh vocation.

With regard to the last question pro-
posed, viz., Whether the Presbyterian
Church has been a harmonious body 1 the
answer may not appear so favourable.
The existence of parties seems to be an
unavoidable incident of freedom. In other
words, liberty gives occasion for the man-
ifestation of that diversity of opinion, feel-
ing, and interest, which never fails to ex-
ist in all large communities, whether civil
or religious. The expression of this di-
versity may be prevented by the hand of
power, or concealed from the force of coun-
teracting motives ; but where no power
exists to forbid its manifestation, or where
no interests are endangered by its avowal,
it will not be slow in making its existence
known. In the Romish Church all expres-
sion of difference of opinion, on certain
subjects, is forbidden ; in all others, where
there is liberty, there is conflict. In
richly-endowed and established churches
there is so much to be sacrificed by the
avowal of dissent, that conformity must
ever be expected to be more general than
sincere.

Nothing out of the analogy of history,
therefore, has happened to the Presbyterian
Church in the occasional conflicts through
which she has passed. As this church was
composed of men sincerely attached to
the doctrines of the Reformed Churches,
it was not disturbed by any doctrinal con-
troversy for more than 100 years after its
organization. Before the middle of the
last century, there arose a great religious
excitement both in Great Britain and in
America. In England this excitement
was produced principally by the instru-
mentality of Wesley ; and in this country
by that of Whitefield, Edwards, the Ten-
nents, Blairs, and other distinguished
preachers of that day. In Scotland, it
either increased or occasioned the seces-
sions from the national church which still
exist in that country. In England it led
to the formation of the great and inde-
pendent body of the Methodists. In New-
England it gave rise to great controversy,
and to separations from the established
churches ; and in the Presbyterian Church
it caused a division of the Synod of Phila-
delphia, which was its highest ecclesiasti-
cal body, into two independent bodies,
which continued separate from each other
from 1741 to 1758. To any one who ex-
amines this period of its history, it will
appear that it was not difference of opinion
as to the nature of religion, or as to its
doctrines, nor as to church government,
nor as to the necessity of learning in the
ministry, which led to this separation, but

242

RELIGION IN AMERICA.

[Book VI.

the difference of opinion as to the revival
then in progress, and to the disorders,
mutual criminations, and consequent alien-
ation of feeling which are so apt to attend
seasons of great and general excitement.
The terms of union adopted by the two
synods in 1758 expressly recognise the
harmony of the two bodies on all the points
above specified,* and declare their purpose
to bury all remembrance of theirdifferences
respecting the revival.

From the time of the union just men-
tioned, in 1758, until within a few years,
the Presbyterian Church in America was
as harmonious and united a body of min-
isters and members as could be found in
this or any other country. The causes of
the recent unhappy division are numerous,
many of them of long standing and gradual
operation ; and all of them difficult of ap-
preciation by those who are not familiarly
acquainted with the history of that church.

It has already been stated, that before
the commencement of the present century,
the Presbyterian Church was in a great
measure composed of those European
Presbyterians and their decendants who
were settled in the Middle and Southern
States. Since the year 1800, there has
been going on a constant and very great
emigration from the New-England States
to the central and western parts of New-
York, and to the Northwestern States of
the Union. These emigrants had, in gen-
eral, been accustomed to the Congrega-
tional form of church government preva-
lent in New-England. As they met, how-
ever, in their new locations with many
Presbyterians, and as their ministers gen-
erally preferred the Presbyterian form of
government, they united with them in the
formation of churches and ecclesiastical
judicatories. In 1801, the General As-
sembly and the General Association of
Connecticut agreed upon what was called
" The plan of union between Presbyterians
and Congregationalists in the new settle-
ments." Under this plan, which purports
to be a temporary expedient, a great num-
ber of churches and presbyteries, and even
several synods, were formed, composed
partly of Presbyterians and partly of Con-
gregationalists. Though this plan seems
to have operated beneficially for a number
of years, yet, as it was extended far beyond
its original intention, as it gave Congre-
gationalists, who had never adopted the
standards of doctrine of the Presbyterian
Church, and who were avowedly opposed
to its form of government, as much inllu-
ence and authority in the government of
the church as an equal number of Presby-

"^ There was, indeed, some difference of opinion
on the subject of the nature of the evidence of a
proper call to tlie ministry vvhicli the presbyteries
should require; one party held higher views on this
subject than the other.

terians, it naturally gave rise to dissatis-
faction as soon as the facts of the case
came to be generally known, and as soon
as questions of discipline and policy arose,
in the decision of which the influence of
these Congregationalists was sensibly felt-
In addition to this source of uneasiness,
was that which arose out of diversity of
opinions in points of doctrine. Certain
peculiarities of doctrine had become prev-
alent among the Calvinists of New-Eng-
land, which naturally spread into those
portions of the Presbyterian Church settled
by New-England men. These peculiari-
ties were not regarded, on either side, as
sufficient to justify any interruption of
ministerial communion, or to call for the
exercise of discipline, but they were suffi-
cient to give rise to the formation of two
parties, which received the appellations of
Old and New School. Within the last ten
or twelve years, however, opinions have
been advanced by some of the New-Eng-
land clergy, which all the Old School, and
a large portion of the New School party
in the Presbyterian Church, considered as
involving a virtual denial of the doctrines
of original sin, election, and efficacious
grace, and which were regained as incon-
sistent with ministerial standing in the
body. Several attempts were made to
subject the Presbyterian advocates of these
opinions to ecclesiastical discipline. These
attempts failed, partly on account of de-
ficiency of proof, partly from irregularity
in the mode of proceeding, and partly
from other causes.

To these sources of uneasiness was ad-
ded the diversity of opinion as to the best
mode of conducting certain benevolent
operations. The Old School, as a party,
were in favour of the church, in her eccle-
siastical capacity, by means of Boards of
her appointment and under her own con-
trol, conducting the work of domestic and
foreign missions, and the education of can-
didates for the ministry. The other party,
as generally preferred voluntary societies,
disconnected with church courts, and em-
bracing different religious denominations,
for these purposes. It might seem, at first
view, that this was a subject on which the
members of the church might differ with-
out inconvenience or collision. But it was
soon found that these societies or boards
must indirectly exert a great, if not a con-
trolling influence on the church. The men
who could direct the education of candi-
dates for the sacred office, and the location
of the hundreds of domestic missionaries,
must, sooner or later, give character to the
church. On this account, this question was
regarded as one of great practical impor-
tance.

It was in the midst of the diflerenccs
and alienations arising from these various
sources, that the General Assembly met

Chap. V.]

PRESBYTERIAN CHURCH.

243

in 1837. Both parties had come to the
conclusion that a separation was desirable ;
but though they agreed as to the terms of
the separation, they could not agree as to
the mode in which it should be effected.
The General Assembly, therefore, resolved
to put an end to the existing difficulties in
another way. It first abolished the plan
of union, above mentioned, formed in 1801 ;
and then passed several acts, the purport
and effect of which were to declare that
no Congregational church should hereaf-
ter be represented in any Presbyterian ju-
dicatory ; and that no Presbytery or Syn-
od, composed partly of Presbyterians and
partly of Congregationalists, should here-
after be considered as a constituent por-
tion of the Presbyterian Church. These
acts were defended on the ground that
they were nothing more than the legiti-
mate exercise of the executive authority
of the General Assembly, requiring that
the constitution of the church should be
conformed to by all its constituent parts.

Had the synods and other judicatories
affected by these acts seen fit to separate
from the Congregationalists, with whom
they had been united, and to organize
themselves as purely Presbyterian bodies,
the General Assembly would have been
bound by its own acts to recognise them
as constituent parts of the church. But
those brethren having assembled in con-
vention at Auburn, in the State of New-
York, unanimously resolved that they
would consider the plan of union as still
in force, its abrogation by the General As-
sembly to the contrary notwithstanding ;
and that they would not separate from
their Congregational brethren. Accord-
ingly, in 1838, the delegates from the Pres-
byteries included in these synods attend-
ed the General Assembly, and claimed their
seats as members. As this was not im-
mediately granted (though it was not re-
fused), they rose, nominated a moderator
and clerk, and being joined by those mem-
bers who sympathized with them, they
declared themselves the true General As-
sembly, and withdrew from the house.

A suit was immediately brought by them
before the Supreme Court of Pennsylva-
nia, to decide which Assembly was to be
regarded as the true one, or which had
the right to appoint the professors, and
administer the funds belonging to the the-
ological seminaries under the care of " The
General Assembly of the Presbyterian
Church in the United States of America."
The decision of the judge and jury was in
their favour ; but when the cause was ta-
ken before the court in bank, that is, be-
fore the court with all the judges present,
that decision was reversed, and the way
left open for the New School Assembly to
renew the suit if they should think proper.
There the matter now rests, leaving wiiat

is called the Old School Assembly in pos-
session of the succession, and in the man-
agement of the seminaries. It may be
remarked that this decision has given to
that Assembly very little more than what
was admitted to be their due by the oppo-
site party ; that is, in the terms of separa-
tion, agreed upon by the two parties in
1837, but which were not acted upon, it was
admitted that the seminaries and funds,
having, in fact, been founded and chiefly
sustained by them, should be under the
control of the Old School body ; and these
funds constitute almost the whole sum
held in trust by the General Assembly.

For the preceding account I am indebted
to a very distinguished and excellent minis-
ter in one of the bodies into which the
Presbyterian Church was divided in 1838,

To one who takes no part in the ques-
tion, and looks at it dispassionately, certain
positions, I conceive, must appear mani-
festly just. In the first place, the com-
pact between the General Assembly and
the General Association of Connecticut in
1801, though made with the best inten-
tions, was decidedly contrary to the con-
stitution of the former body. It was a
measure which can only be ascribed to
the desire of its authors to accomplish a
present apparent good, without taking suf-
ficient time or pains to examine all its
probable bearings. Its immediate result
was the building up of a large number of
churches of a mixed character, and with-
out that bench of ruling elders which is
essential to the interior organization of a
Presbyterian church. But granting this,
and I do not see how it can well be de-
nied, the measures consequent upon the
dissolution of this " Plan of Union," by
the Assembly of 1837, seem to have been
abrupt. Time should have been allowed
for the churches affected by it to adopt
the Presbyterian polity in its whole ex-
tent, if they had a mind to do so, before
having recourse to so severe a measure.

It is obvious, in the second place, that
the Presbyterian Church from the first, or
nearly so, was composed of diverse ele-
ments, which could not be easily assim-
ilated. This diversity had been increas-
ing every year, especially within the last
half century. Look at the difTerent races
that from time to time have entered into the
composition of the Presbyterian Church.
A large proportion of its ministers, on the
one hand, are either from Presbyterian
churches in Scotland and Ireland, or are
descended from Scotch and Irish Presbyte-
rians, and these naturally feel much at-
tached to the Westminster Confession of
Faith, and to the catechisms and form of
government with which they have been fa-
miliar from their childhood. Another large
proportion of its ministers are, on the oth-
er liand, from New-England, where they

244

RELIGION IN AMERICA.

[Book VI.

received all their early impressions from
the Congregational churches ; so that, how-
ever much they may have respected the
Presbyterian Church on entering it, and
however that respect may have increased
since, they cannot, from the nature of
things, feel as much attachment to all the
details of its doctrines and government as
others who, if I may so speak, were born
Presbyterians. Hence the latter have been
more readily disposed to be satisfied with
a general conformity with its doctrines and
government. This led to a variation, if not
in doctrines, at least in statements of doc-
trine, perfectly tolerable in Congregation-
al churches, where extended creeds are un-
known, and to less strictness in ecclesias-
tical administration ; both of which were
incompatible with the precision of a church
whose standards are so full on every point,
and with a discipline the rules of which
are laid down with so much minuteness.

In the third place, the doctrinal difler-
ence lay more in philosophy than in any-
thing else. It originated in the attempt,
not at all improper in itself, to reply to
the objections which the enemies of Cal-
vinism have ever made to its distinctive
features, so repugnant to the natural heart.
In these explanations of certain points,
views were expressed which were deemed
to be at variance with the doctrines of
man's depravity, of election, efficacious
grace, &c., as they had usually been held.
Nor do I think it is to be denied that
some of these speculations were pushed
too far, and expressed in a manner calcu-
lated to excite alarm. There was, in
some cases, a needless departure from the
usual theological phraseology, and this ex-
cited concern and suspicion, even when at
bottom there was no real diversity of doc-
trine. On the other hand, a proper dispo-
sition was not always shown to estimate
unessential shades of opinion, and even of
doctrine, at their just value; and conse-
quences, even when denied on one side,
were too strenuously alleged on the other.
Thus were differences in some cases mag-
nified, until what was philosophical in the
explanation of a doctrine, and did not
change the doctrine itself, was thought sub-
versive of it, and fraught, of course, with
imminent danger to the cause of truth.

In the fourth place, as to the mode of
conducting the benevolent undertakings of
the church, whether by boards appointed
by the General Assembly or through vol-
untary societies (and this, after all, was
the question that helped most to produce
the division), it seems clear to me that
the brethren and churches that prefeiTed
the former of these methods ought at
once to have been allowed that preference,
and that it was a mistake to shut them up
to the support of what they did not think
the safest or most scriplur;il modes of pro-

moting the extension of the Messiah's
kingdom ai home and abroad.

Faults, in short, there were on both sides,
and, as happens so often in such cases,
there was not a little of man, in a matter in
which nothing should have been allowed
to influence a single decision but a regard
for the glory of God and the interests of
his Church.

But the division has taken place, and
whatever of strife or agitation attended it
is passing away. A better spirit is un-
questionably prevailing, and these two
powerful bodies are engaged in the only
rivalry worthy of them — that of striving
which shall do most for the cause of Christ
throughout the world. In this each of
them is now free to adopt the method it
may think best.

The Old School, as they are called, have
their own boards of missions, domestic
and foreign, of education and of publica-
tion. The New School combine their ef-
forts with the Congregationalists of New-
England, and some other and smaller de-
nominations, in supporting the American
Home Missionary Society, the American
Board of Commissioners for Foreign Mis-
sions, and the American Education Socie-
ty. Both zealously support the American
Bible, Tract, and Seamen's Societies, and
others of a like general kind.

In fact, the unwieldy bulk to which the
Presbyterian Church had grown, as well
as the coexistence in it of two great ele-
ments, too dissimilar to admit of harmoni-
ous action, had long made it evident to
many that it must be divided ; and the di-
vision that has taken place is about as for-
tunate a one as well could have occurred.
Although it must be referred, in a consid-
erable degree, to sectional, doctrinal, and
economical questions, yet none of these
have in all cases determined the present
position of the parties concerned. Thus,
in the New School Church we find Scotch
and Irish ministers, and the descendants
of emigrants from Scotland and Ireland,
while New-England men may be found in
the Old. In the former there are men
who hold the old views of Calvinistic doc-
trine ; in the latter, there are some who
hold the New-England modifications of
those views. Finally, the New School is
not without adherents who prefer ecclesi-
astical boards for benevolent operations,
while the Old School has some who re-
main attached to voluntary societies. The
division, however, coincides more, if I may
use the expression, with the natural line
of demarcation, in the last-named particu-
lar, than in the others, and for a reason al-
ready mentioned.

The relative proportions of the two bod-
ies will appear from the following state-
ment. Jn May last (1843), the Old School
had under its care,

Chap. VI]

METHODIST EPISCOPAL CHURCH.

245

19 Synods,*
105 Presbyteries,
2,092 Churches,
1,434 Ordained Ministers,
183 Licentiates,
314 Gandidates,+
159,137 Communicants.

At the same date, according to their
minutes, the New School had under their
care,

19 Synods,
101 Presbyteries,
1,496 Churches,
1,263 Ministers,
120,645 Communicants.

The number of licentiates and candi-
dates is not given, but probably bears the
same proportion to that of the churches
and pastors as those of the Old School do
to theirs.

Thus it appears that the two together,
and in almost all respects they may be
considered as one body, have

3,584 Churches,
2,672 Ordained Ministers,
probably 900 Licentiates and Candidates,
and 279,782 Communicants.

Regarding them as one whole, it were
difficult to find in any part of Christendom
a branch of the kingdom of Christ better
educated, or more distinguished for gen-
eral learning, zeal, enterprise, liberality,
and soundness in all essential doctrine.
Their ministers present a body of 2672
men, almost without exception liberally
educated, who, after all their debates, and
final separation into two, are more thor-
oughly sound Calvinists in point of doc-
trine than any equally numerous ministry
to be found in any otlier country.

The question is often asked, Whether
they will ever unite again 1 That is by no
means improbable ; but whether they do
or not seems to me of little consequence.
In their separate state they will accom-
plish more than if united. There will soon
be the most perfect intercourse between
their churches and pastors. The energies
of both find free and ample scope, which
was never the case before with either, but
particularly with the Old School, who nev-
er felt at ease, or assured of the future.
The New School will probably ally them-
selves more closely than ever with the Con-
gregationalists, and maintaining a some-
what less rigid economy than the Old
School, in regard to the organization of
churches in regions abounding with New-
England Congregational emigrants, they
cannot but increase rapidly, the more espe-

* In the above statistical view the foreign mis-
sionaries belonging to this body are included. If we
would give the exact number of Synods, Presbyter-
ies, &c., of this Church in the United States, we
must subtract these. There would then remain 18
Synods, 102 Presbyteries, 2088 churches, and 1409
mmisters.

t That is, students of theology who have not yet
been licensed to preach.

cially as New-England will act on the Mid-
dle, the Southern, and still more, on the
Northwestern States, chiefly through them.
In conclusion, let me add, that the Gen-
eral Assembly of the New School, in its
session in May, 1840, proposed to the pres-
byteries under its care certain important
changes in its constitution, which have
since been adopted. One is, that the Gen-
eral Assembly shall be held triennially in-
stead of annually. Another is, that all ap-
peals from the decisions of a Church Ses-
sion shall hot, in the case of lay-members,
be carried beyond the Presbytery, or in the
case of ministers, beyond the Synod. By
these modifications they have made the
business of their General Assembly much
more simple and easy, and given more
time to that body to deliberate on meas-
ures for the promotion of the best interests
of the Church.

CHAPTER VI.

THE METHODIST EPISCOPAL CHURCH.

This large and influential body holds the
doctrinal opinions of the Wesleyan Meth-
odists of England, and its ecclesiastical
economy is, in all important points, iden-
tical with theirs. It took its rise in 1766,
when a Mr. Philip Embury, who had been
a local preacher in some of Mr. Wesley's
societies in the north of Ireland, and had
come over to America with a few other
pious persons of the same connexion, be-
gan to hold meetings for exhortation and
prayer in his own house at New- York.
A considerable society was gradually form-
ed in that city, which at that time, it would
appear, could reckon on but a small num-
ber, comparatively, of living and zealous
Christians among its inhabitants. In a few
months it was found necessary to fit up a
large hired room as a place of worship,
and the congregation was farther aug-
mented by the preaching of a Captain
Webb of the British army, who, having
been converted under the preaching of Mr.
Wesley in England, and being now sta-
tioned at Albany, paid frequent visits to
the little flock at New- York.

It was not long, however, before similar
meetings began to be held in several pla-
ces on Long Island, in Philadelphia, and
at other points. In 1768 a large place of
worship was erected in New- York, being
the first Methodist church ever built in
the United States. Next year, Mr. Wes-
ley being requested to send over two of
his preachers, Messrs. Richard Boardman
and Joseph Pillmore came to New-York,
and about the same time, Mr. Robert
Strawbridge, another local preacher from
Ireland, came over and settled in Frederick
county, Maryland, where he held meetings
at his own house, and at those of other

246

RELIGION IN AMERICA.

[Book VI.

pious persons in the neighbourhood. This
extension of the Methodists into the South
was farther promoted by a visit from Mr.
Pilhiiore into Virginia and North Caro-
lina.

Pressing representations of the need of
help having been made to Mr. Wesley, Mr.
Francis Asbury and Mr. Richard Wright
were sent over from England in 1771, and
under the labours, particularly of the for-
mer, the work went on increasing, year
after year, until the commencement of the
Revolution. That event greatly retarded
the progress of Methodism in some places,
not only by the ever untowardly influence
of present war on such undertakings, but
also by the suspicions attached by the
revolutionists to Mr. Asbury, and several
of his fellow-preachers, as being native
Englishmen, who had been too short a pe-
riod in the country to have its interests
truly at heart.

At length, with peace came independ-
ence, and thus, greatly to the encourage-
ment of Mr. Asbury and his fellow-labour-
ers, a wide and effectual door for the
preaching of the Gospel was opened to
them. Hitherto this attempt to revive
true godliness had been confined entirely
to laymen of the Episcopal Church, and
with it their efforts are more connected
than with any other, inasmuch as none of
them had at first any intention of separa-
ting from its communion. But worthy
ministers of that church being hard to be
found in some places, while none were to
be had at all in others, both before the
Revolution broke out and during its prog-
ress, Mr. Wesley was urged to send over
ordained ministers, who might administer
the ordinances to his followers. To this
he was greatly opposed at first, but when
the Revolution was over, considering that,
from the change of circumstances, he might
now lawfully do what he had refused do-
ing while the colonies were under the gov-
ernment of England, he sent over, as su-
perintendent of the Methodist churches in
America, the Rev. Dr. Coke, a presbyter
of regular standing in the Established
Church of England. He was accompa-
nied by Mr. Richard Whatcoat and Mr.
Thomas Vasey, whom Mr. Wesley, assist-
ed by Dr. Coke and the Rev. Mr. Creigh-
ton, had ordained presbyters or priests,
just before the sailing of the three from
Uristol in September, 1784. These breth-
ren were the bearers of a letter from Mr.
Wesley to the Methodist preachers and
societies in America, stating his reasons
for considering himself now at liberty to
accede to their requests, and informing
them that he had appointed Dr. Coke and
Mr. Asbury to be joint superintendents of
all the societies in that country founded
upon his rules, and Messrs. Whatcoat and
Vasey to act as elders among them, by

baptizing and administering the Lord's
Supper.

On the arrival of these delegates, a con-
ference of the preachers was immediately
convened at Baltimore. It was opened ou
the 25th of December, 1784, and was at-
tended by sixty out of the eighty preach-
ers then in the country. One of its first
acts was the unanimous election of Dr.
Coke and Mr. Asbury as superintendents,
thereby confirming Mr. Wesley's appoint-
ment. Dr. Coke and the other two pres-
byters then ordained Mr. Asbury, first a
deacon, next a presbyter, and, finally, a su-
perintendent. Thereupon the two super-
intendents, or bishops, as they soon began
to be called, and as their successors are
styled to this day, ordained twelve of the
preachers then present to the office of
presbyters or elders.

Thus was the Methodist Episcopal
Church in the United States organized
sixty years ago. From that epoch they
formed a new and independent religious
denomination, which was soon vastly to
outnumber that from which they had
sprung. At that " their day of small
things," their ministers and lay preach-
ers, including Dr. Coke and his co-dele-
gates from England, amounted to eighty-
six, and the members, in all, to 14,986.
But small as was this beginning, great and
glorious has been their increase since.

The proceedings of that conference were
highly important. Twenty-five articles
were adopted as the Confession of Faith
for the infant church. We will give first
the titles of the whole, and then a few of
them at large. The titles are as follows :
Of faith in the Holy Trinity ; of the Word,
or Son of God, who was made very man ;
of the resurrection of Christ ; of the Holy
Ghost ; of the sufficiency of the Holy Scrip-
tures for salvation ; of the Old Testament ;
of original sin; of free-will; of the justifica-
tion of man ; of good works ; of works of
supererogation ; of sin after justification ;
of the Church ; of purgatory ; of speaking
in the congregation in such a tongue as the
people understand ; of the sacraments ; of
Baptism ; of the Lord's Supper ; of both
kinds ;* of the one oblation of Christ, fin-
ished upon the cross ; of the marriage of
ministers ; of the rites and ceremonies of
the churches ; of the rulers of the United
States of America ; of Christian men's
goods ; of a Christian man's oath.

On almost all these subjects the arti-
cles express doctrines held by every en-
lightened Protestant. In fact, they are
a selection from the Thirty-nine Articles
of the Church of England, with some ver-
bal changes, and the omission of some
words and parts of sentences. The sev-
enteenth article of the Church of Eng-

* Or elements — bread and wine — both to be ad-
ministered to the people.

Chap. VI.J

METHODIST EPISCOPAL CPIURCH.

247

land (on predestination and election) is, of
course, omitted, the doctrine therein taught
not being held by the Methodist Episcopal
Church in America. Nor do we find that
of the certain perseverance of saints, for
neither do they hold this. But on all the
great doctrines essential to salvation, no-
thing can be more clear, or more consist-
ent with the Word of God, than the sense
of these articles. For instance, on origi-
nal sin — what more Scriptural than the
seventh article, which says, " Original sin
standeth not in following of Adam (as the
Pelagians do vainly talk), but it is the cor-
ruption of the nature of every man ; that
is, naturally engendered of the offspring of
Adam, whereby man is very far gone from
original righteousness, and of his own na-
.ture inclined to evil, and that continually."

On the subject of free-will, it is said,
" That the condition of man after the fall
of Adam is such, that he cannot turn and
prepare himself by his own natural strength
and works to faith, and calling upon God ;
■whereupon we have no power to do good
works, pleasant and acceptable to God,
-without the grace of God by Christ pre-
venting us, that we may have a good will,
and working with us when we have that
good will."

So in respect to justification by faith,
'good works, works of supererogation, the
sacraments, and other subjects, the same
doctrines are held as by the Reformers of
blessed memory.

Besides these twenty-five articles, the
General Conference have adopted a sys-
tem of polity* in thirty- five sections, which
treat of the entire economy of their church,
the manner of life becoming its ministers
and private members, the proper style of
preaching, &c. In giving directions as to
the manner of treating the doctrine of per-
fection, the twenty-second section runs as
follows : " Let us strongly and explicitly
exhort all believers to go on to perfection.
That we may all speak the same thing, we
ask, once for all, Shall we defend this per-
fection, or give it up"? We all agree to
defend it, meaning thereby (as we did from
the beginning), salvation from all sin by
the love of God and man filling the heart.
The Papists say, ' This cannot be attained
till we have been refined by the fire of
purgatory.' Some professors say, ' Nay,
it will be attained as soon as the soul and
body part.' Others say, ' It may be at-
tained before we die ; a moment after is
too late.' Is it not so 1 We are all agreed
we may be saved from all sin, properly so
called, before death, i. e., sinful tempers;
but we cannot always speak, or think, or
act aright, as dwelling in houses of clay.
The substance, then, is settled ; but as to
the circumstances, is the change gradual or

* These rules, originally drawn up by Mr. Wes-
^ley, were considerably modified in America.

instantaneous ? It is both the one and the
other. ' But should we, in preaching, in-
sist both on one and the other ]' Certainly
we should insist on the gradual change ;
and that earnestly and continually. And
are there not reasons why we should insist
on the instantaneous change 1 If there be
such a blessed change before death, should
we not encourage all believers to expect
it ? And the rather, because constant ex-
perience shows, the more earnestly they
expect this, the more swiftly and steadily
does the gradual work of God go on in
their souls ; the more careful are they to
grow in grace ; the more zealous of good
works ; and the more punctual in their at-
tendance on all the ordinances of God
(whereas just the contrary effects are ob-
served whenever this expectation ceases).
They are saved by hope — by this hope
of a total change, with a gradually-increas-
ing salvation. Destroy this hope, and that
salvation stands still, or, rather, decreases
daily. Therefore, whoever will advance
the gradual change in believers, should
strongly insist on the instantaneous."

For a more thorough acquaintance with
the doctrines of the Methodist Episcopal
Church, I may refer to Mr. Wesley's four
volumes of Sermons, and his Notes on the
New Testament, where all the peculiar
views of that body are fully exhibited, and
which may be regarded as its real Confes-
sion of Faith. Its Discipline comprehends
the " Articles of Religion," the '* General
Rules" relating to practice, the " System
of Government," and the " Formularies,"
all of which, except the Articles of Reli-
gion, may, under certain circumstances
and restrictions, be modified and enlarged
from time to time by various enactments
of the General Conference. We shall at-
tempt a summary of it from the very
clear and succinct statements of the Rev.
Dr. Bangs, in his " History of the Meth-
odist Episcopal Church in the United
States,"* a work to which, in preparing
this chapter, we have been greatly indebt-
ed on other points. We begin with the
" societies" and " classes," which are the
primary bodies of believers in this exten-
sive, well-adjusted, and most efficient ec-
clesiastical system.

1. In the first place, there is what is
called the society, which includes all the
members of the church residing in any
particular place, or connected with it.

2. Every society comprises one or more
classes, each consisting of from twelve to

* Vol. i., p. 245-250. This work, in 4 vols., by the
Rev. Nathan Bangs, D.D., brings the history of the
Methodist Church down to the close of the General
Conference held in 1840. It is an invaluable work,
written in a truly calm and Christian spirit, and dis-
plays a sincere desire to present every subject which
it treats in an impartial manner. It contains a com-
plete history of the Methodist Church in America
from the first.

248

RELIGION IN AMERICA.

[Book VI.

twenty or more individuals, who meet once
a Aveek for mutual edification. These
classes are the real normal schools, if we
may so speak, of the Methodist Church.

3. The minister, under whose pastoral
care the classes in a society are placed,
appoints a leader to each, whose duty is to
see every member of his class once a
week, to inquire how their souls prosper,
and to receive what they are willing to give
for the support of the church and the poor.

4. Stewards are appointed in each soci-
ety by the Quarterly Conference, on the
nomination of the ruling preacher. These
have charge of all the moneys collected
for the support of the ministry, the poor,
and for sacramental occasions, and dis-
burse it as the Discipline directs.

5. There are trustees, who have charge of
the church property, and hold it in trust for
the use of the Methodist Episcopal Church.
These are elected by the congregation in
those states where the laws so provide ; in
other places they are appointed as the Dis-
cipline directs.

6. There are, in most societies, exhorters,
Avho receive their license from the preach-
er in charge ; but this license cannot be
renewed except by a vote of the Quarterly
Meeting Conference ; they have the privi-
lege of holding meetings for exhortation
and prayer.

7. A preacher is one who holds a license
to preach, but may not administer the sac-
raments. He may be a travelling or a
local preacher. The former devotes his
whole time to the ministry, and is support-
ed by those among whom he labours ; the
latter generally supports himself by some
secular employment, and preaches on the
Sabbath, as well as occasionally at other
times, but without temporal emolument.
Both receive a license, signed by a presi-
ding elder, from a Quarterly Meeting Con-
ference, after being recommended each by
his respective class, or by a leader's meet-
ing. Thus the people, in those nurseries
of the Church — the " classes" aitd " lead-
ers' meetings" — have the initiative in bring-
ing forward those who are to preach the
Gospel. After this license from a Quar-
terly Meeting Conference, they may be
taken into the travelling service by an An-
nual Conference ; after two years spent in
which, and pursuing at the same time a
prescribed course of reading and study,
they may be ordained as deacons. Then,
after two years' circuit travelling as dea-
cons, and pursuing a farther course of
reading and study, they may be ordained
presbyters or elders. Such is the training
for the ministry in the Methodist Episcopal
Church, and it is much more efficient than
persons not well acquainted with it would
suppose.

8. A deacon holds a parchment of ordi-
nation from a bishop, and besides his du-

ties as a preacher, he is authorized to-
solemnize marriages, to administer Bap-
tism, and to assist the elder or presbyter
in the administration of the Lord's Supper.

9. An elder, in addition to these func-
tions, is authorized to administer all the
ordinances of God's house.

10. A presiding elder has the charge of
several circuits, collectively called a dis-
trict. It is his duty to visit each circuit
once a quarter, to preach and administer
the ordinances, to convene the travelling
and local preachers, exhorters, stewards,
and leaders of the circuit for a Quarterly
Conference, and in the absence of a bishop,
to receive, try, suspend, or expel preach-
ers, as the Discipline directs. He is ap-
pointed to his charge by the bishop, who
may, for the time being, have a special
oversight of the Annual Conference in
which he is placed. This office arose
from the necessity of always having some
one to administer the ordinances through-
out the circuits, for it often happens that
the travelling preachers, from their not
having received ordination as elders, can-
not administer the Lord's Supper; nor
even Baptism, if they are not deacons.

n. A bishop is elected by the General
Conference, to which body he is amenable
for his official and moral conduct. It is
his duty to travel through the country, to
superintend the spiritual and temporal af-
fairs of the Church, to preside in the
Annual and the General Conference, to
ordain such as are elected by an Annual
Conference to the office of deacons and
elders, and to appoint the preachers to-
their stations. As there are several bish-
ops, they usually divide the country among
them, each having his own field, and all
meeting at the General Conference. The
episcopacy in this church is, however, an
office, not an order.

12. A leaders'' jneeting is composed of all
the class leaders in any one circuit or sta-
tion, under the presidency of the preacher
placed in charge of that circuit or station.
Here the weekly class collections are paid,
into the hands of the stewards, and inquiry
is made into the state of the classes, delin-
quents reported, and inquiries made as to
the sick and poor.

13. A quarterly meeting conference is com-
posed of all the travelling and local preach-
ers, exhorters, stewards, and leaders be-
longing to any particular station or circuit,
under the presidency of the circuit elder, or,
in his absence, of the preacher who takes
charge in his place. Here local preachers
are licensed, the licenses of exhorters an-
nually renewed, and preachers recommend-
ed to an Annual Conference to be received
into the travelling ministry ; appeals are
likewise lieard from any dissatisfied mem-
ber against the decision of a committee of
the society to which he belongs. This.

Chap. VI.]

METHODIST EPISCOPAL CHURCH.

249

body performs, therefore, a most important
part in the whole system.

14. An annual conference is composed of
all the travelling preachers, deacons, and
elders within a specified district of coun-
try. These are the executive and judicial
bodies, acting under rules prescribed to
them by the General Conference. Here
the characters and conduct of all the trav-
elling preachers within the bounds of the
conference are examined yearly; appli-
cants for admission into the travelling min-
istry, if accounted worthy, are received,
continued on trial, or dropped, as the case
may be ; appeals from local preachers,
which may be presented, are heard and
decided ; and persons fit for ordination, as
deacons or elders, are elected. An annual
conference possesses original jurisdiction
over all its members, and may therefore
try, acquit, suspend, expel, or locate any
of them, as the Discipline in such cases
provides.

15. The General Conference assembles
once in four years, and is composed of a
certain number of delegates, elected by
the annual conferenoes. It has the pow-
er to revise any part of the Discipline not
prohibited by restrictive regulations ; to
elect the book agents and editors, and the
bishops ; to hear and determine appeals of
preachers from the decision of annual con-
ferences ; to review the acts of those con-
ferences generally ; to examine into, the
general administration of the bishops for
the four preceding years : and to try, cen-
sure, acquit, or condemn a bishop if ac-
cused. This is the highest judicatory of
the church.

16. A love-feast is a meeting of the mem-
bers of a society, held occasionally, in
which they partake of a simple repast of
bread and water, during an hour, at which
such as are disposed relate what God has
done for their souls. These meetings
were instituted by Mr. Wesley, as a sort
of resuscitation of the Xyanai. (Agapae) of
the ancient church. Their object is to
make the members better acquainted with
each other, and promote brotherly love and
mutual edification.

17. The salaries of the ministers are
raised by various collections in the socie-
ties, and also in public meetings. Provis-
ion is made for aged and infirm ministers
who have continued to exercise the duties
of the ministry until incapable of farther
service. Omitting unnecessary details, I
need only say that each travelling minister
receives at present 100 dollars a year for
himself, the same sum for his wife, if he
has one, sixteen dollars a year for each
child under seven years of age, and twen-
ty-four for those above that and under four-
teen years. Besides, the stewards of each
circuit and station are directed to provide
a " parsonage," or house of residence, for

the family of each married preacher on
their circuit or station, and also to grant
an allowance for their fuel and table ex-
penses, which is estimated by a commit-
tee appointed by the Quarterly Meeting
Conference. In these respects there is no
difference between the preachers, deacons,
elders, presiding elders, and bishops — all
receive the same salaries ; all have their
travelling expenses. 'I'he widows of all
the ministers receive 100 dollars each.

The above is the provision fixed by the
General Conference ; but we believe that
in many circuits the collections, &c., do
not fully meet it.

Such is an outline of the Methodist Epis-
copal Church in the United States, and it
is as minute as a work like this could ad-
mit. Since its organization in 1784, though
not without its share of difficulties, its ca-
reer, upon the whole, has been remarkably
prosperous, and God has enabled it to over-
come every hinderance with wonderful suc-
cess. We have seen the numerical amount
of its ministers and members sixty years
ago ; in 1843 it was as follows :

6 Bishops, 32 annual conferences.
3,988 Travellijig mmislers, who devote themselves en-
tirely to the ministry.
7,730 Local preachers, assisting the regular travelling
ministers vfith frequent preaching.
1,068,525 Communicants.

And the probable proportion of the com-
munity under the influence of this church's
ministry, that is, who attend its preaching,
as stated by Bishop Soule before the Brit-
ish Conference in August,1842, is 5,000,000.
Surely we may well exclaim, *' What hath
God wrought !" It covers l\\e whole land
with its network system of stations and
circuits, and carries the Gospel into thou-
sands of the most remote as well as the
most secluded and thinly-peopled neigh-
bourhoods.

This denomination has made great exer-
tions to increase the number of its church
edifices within the last few years. But its
itinerating ministers preach in thousands
of places where no such buildings are yet
erected, or at least none belonging to that
denomination. In these cases they hold
their meetings in schoolhouses, courthou-
ses, and private houses.

No American Christian who takes a com-
prehensive view of the progress of religion
in his country, and considers how wonder-
fully the means and instrumentalities em-
ployed are adapted to the extent and the
wants of that country, can hesitate for a
moment to bless God for having, in his
mercy, provided them all. Nor will he fail
to recognise in the Methodist economy, as
well as in the zeal, the devoted piety, and
the efficiency of its ministry, one of the
most powerful elements in the religious
prosperity of the United States, as well as
one of the firmest pillars of their civil and
political institutions.

250

RELIGION IN AMERICA.

[Book VI.

We have already spoken of the Home
Missions, tlie Tract, Book,* and Sunday-
school operations of this church. In an-
other place we shall have occasion to say
Avhat it is doing in the cause of Foreign
Missions.

The Methodist Episcopal Church was
long reproached with neglecting to pro-
mote learning among its ministers, and it
•was charged even with having no wish
that its ministry should he learned. There
was, apparently, some truth in this ; for,
though its influential and enlightened mem-
J^ers were never opposed to learning, they
had a well-founded dread of a learned but
unconverted ministry. Yet they attempted
-even, at an early period of their Church's
history, to found seminaries for education.
Among these there was a college in Mary-
land, which flourished from 1787 to 1795,
•when the building was burned down. A
second was attempted at Baltimore ; but
there, too, the college building was burned,
and a church that adjoined it shared the
.same fate. These calamities, involving a
loss of about 90,000 dollars, had a discour-
aging eff'ect for a time ; but for some years
^ast the Episcopal Methodists have shown
a noble desire to promote the education of
young men for the ministry, and other
walks of life in which they may advance
ihe cause of Christ. In order to this, they
have founded no fewer than twenty-one
academic institutions, besides eleven col-
leges, two of which are called universities,
and these fountains of knowledge God is
blessing by shedding upon them the influ-
ence of his grace.

No fewer than four religious newspapers
are published under the auspices of the
General Conference, and four more under
those of annual conferences, besides oth-
ers that are edited and owned by individu-
als of that body. These journals must
have a vast circulation in the aggregate.

Having concluded our notices of the five
larger evangelical denominations, we shall
now proceed with the smaller in the same
order, and thus associate them with the
respective families of churches to which
they more properly belong.

CHAPTER VII.

THE MORAVIAN CHURCH.

The United Brethren, or, as they are
more familiarly called, the Moravians,
form the only one of the smaller evangel-
ical denominations in the United States

* The " Book Concern" of this church is estab-
lished in New- York, and is carried on by agents and
editors appointed by the General Conference. It is
■conducted with great energy.

that is Episcopal, in the usual acceptation
of that word. They claim descent, as is
well known, from the ancient churches of
Moravia and Bulgaria, founded by Metho-
dus and Cyrillus, two Greek monks. Not-
withstanding repeated persecutions from
the Roman Catholics, some remains of
these churches survived in Bohemia and
Moravia as late as 1722, when a party of
them fled for refuge from continued vexa-
tion in Moravia to the estates of Nicholas
Lewis, Count of Zinzendorf, in Upper Lu-
satia, and there they founded Herrnhut.
Their protector, some years after that, be-
came one of their bishops, and laboured
most zealously for more than twenty years
in the cause of God, by forming societies
of the United Brethren. While on a visit
to America, in 1741, he took part in found-
ing a mission among the Indians, and
greatly contributed to the establishment
of several settlements for those of the
Brethren who might choose to emigrate
thither. Such was the origin of the pleas-
ant villages of Bethlehem, Nazareth, and
Litiz, in Pennsylvania, and Salem in North
Carolina. Moravian- families, meanwhile,
settled, and formed societies in Philadel-
phia, New- York, and several other places.

The peculiar economy of the United
Brethren is too widely known to require
any notice of it here. Their settlements
in America are the same abodes of order,
provident regard for the morals of the
young, and for the comfort of the aged, of
cheerful industry, and pleasant social life,
enhvened by the sweet strains of music,
and, withal, of that deep interest in mis-
sions, which characterize their settlements
in the Old World. It maybe said, perhaps,
that too much worldly prosperity has been
to them, as to many other Christians, a
hinderance to their piety.

They maintain flourishing boarding-
schools for girls at Bethlehem, Litiz, and
Salem, and one for boys at Nazareth,
where, also, their young men preparing for
the ministry commonly pursue their stud-
ies.

The Moravian missions among the Indi-
ans within the boundaries of the United
States are mainly supported, as well as di-
rected, by their congregations in that coun-
try.* Their doctrines coincide, in the
main, with those of the Augsburg Confes-
sion. The number of their churches and
congregations in the United States is twen-
ty-three : of their ministers, twenty-seven ;
of their communicants, about 3000 ; and the
entire population under their instruction is
about 12,000 souls.

* An interesting historical sketch of these missions
will be found in Mr. J. C. Latrobe's " Rambles in
North America."

Chap. VIIL]

SMALLER BAPTIST DENOMINATIONS.

251

CHAPTER VIII.

SMALLER BAPTIST DENOMINATIONS.

There are a few Baptist denominations
in the United States not usually included
with the Regular Baptists noticed in Chap-
ter IV. They are as follows :

1. The Seventh Day Baptists — who
have fifty-nine churches, forty-six ordained
ministers, twenty-three licentiates, and
6077 members. The population under their
instruction and influence is reckoned at
about 35,000. They are quite evangelical
in the doctrines that relate to the way of
salvation, and are in good repute for piety
and zeal. They differ from the Regular
JBaptists as to the day to be observed as the
Christian Sabbath, maintaining, in opposi-
tion to these, that the seventh day was not
only the Sabbath originally appointed by
the Creator, but that that appointment re-
mains unrepealed.

Their churches are widely scattered
throughout the States. There are four in
New-Jersey,* twenty-nine in New-York,
six in Ohio, eight in Rhode Island, and four
in Virginia, and eight in other parts of the
country. They observe Saturday with
great strictness as their Sabbath, have Sun-
day-schools, and one religious newspaper.
They have recently formed a Tract Soci-
ety, a Missionary Society, and a Society
for the Conversion of the Jews. They have
four Associations, and a General Confer-
ence— all meet annually. Altogether they
are a very worthy people.

2. Free-Will Baptists. This body dates
in America from 1780, when its first church
was formed in New-Hamphsire. In doc-
trine they hold a general atonement, and
reject election and the other Calvinistic
points. On the subject of the Trinity, justi-
fication by faith alone, regeneration, and
sanctification, they are, with some excep-
tions, sound.

Starting with the wrong principle that,
dispensing with written creeds, covenants,
rules of discipline, or articles of organiza-
tion, they would make the Bible serve for
all these, they were soon in great danger
from Arians and Socinians creeping in
among them. But of late years they have
separated from the Christ-ians (a heretical
sect we have yet to notice, and likewise
opposed to creeds), and are, consequently,

* In New-Jersey, and I doubt not in other States
also, there are special laws in their favour. This dis-
position on the part of the civil power in the United
States not to coerce the consciences of any religious
community, however small, stnkmgly contrasts with
the legislation of France in a like case. In the win-
ter of 1840-1, when the factory-children's-labour-bill
was before the Chamber of Deputies, it was asked
whether there ought not to be a clause for the pro-
tection of Jewish children in the observance of their
Sabbath. " No," said the committee upon the bill,
■" they are too few to make that necessary." To this
M. Fould. the banker, himself a Jew, assented, say-
ing that the Jews were only 300,000 in the kingdom !

endeavouring to regain a sound orthodox
position. Some of them have come to see
that creeds are unavoidable, and had better
be definitely expressed in writing than mere-
ly understood. They have accordingly in-
troduced creeds, and, in some instances,
even written articles in the form of a con-
stitution. This augurs well.

Their church government, like that of
all the Regular Baptists, is vested prima-
rily in the churches, or assemblages of be-
lievers convened for worship. These send
delegates to quarterly meetings, the quar-
terly meetings to the yearly meetings, and
the.se, again, to the general conference.
The office-bearers in their churches are el-
ders and deacons. The former are ordain-
ed jointly by the church to which they be-
long, and by the quarterly meeting acting
by a council. Each quarterly and yearly
meeting has an elders' conference, which,
with the general conference, regulates the
affairs of the ministry as far as the Pres-
bytery is concerned. Thus they depart
from the principle of a pure Independency.
Within the last ten years they have entered
on the work of sending the Gospel to the
heathen, and there can be no better sign
than this. They have also a Home Mis-
sionary Society, a Tract Society, and an
Education Society. Many of their church-
es have Sunday-schools and various char-
itable institutions. A religious paper, also,
is published under their auspices at Dover,
New-Hampshire.

Until a few years ago, these Arminian
Baptists took but little interest in the edu-
cation of young men for the ministry ; but
they now have six academies.

They have this year (1844) 1165 church-
es and 771 ordained ministers, 250 licen-
tiates and 61,372 communicants.*

3. Disciples of Christ, or Reformers,
as they call themselves, or Campbellites,
as they are most commonly called by oth-
ers. It is with much hesitation that, by
placing these in this Book, I rank them
among evangelical Christians. I do so be-
cause their creed, taken as it stands in writ-
ten terms, is not heterodox. Not only do
they not deny, but in words their creed
affirms the doctrine of the Trinity, of sal-
vation by the merits of Christ, and the ne-
cessity of the regenerating and sanctifying
influences of the Holy Spirit. Yet I un-
derstand that there is much about their
preaching that seems to indicate that all
that they consider necessary to salvation
is little if any thing more than a specula-
tive, philosophical faith, in connexion with
immersion as the only proper mode of bap-
tism ; so that there is little, after all, of that
"repentance towards God," and "faith
towards our Lord Jesus Christ," which
are the indispensable terms of the Gospel.

* The Free-Will Baptist Register for 1844.

252

RELIGION IN AMERICA.

[Book VI.

The founder of this sect is a Mr. Alex-
ander Campbell, a Scotchman, who, togeth-
er with his father, left the Presbyterian
Church in 1812, and became Baptists.
Soon after this change he began to broach
doctrines that can hardly be called new, for
the Christ-ians, now, though not always, a
heretical sect, had advanced them before
his time. His views seem to be substanti-
ally as follows : " All sects and parties of
the Christian world have departed, in great-
er or less degrees, from the simplicity of
faith and manners of the first Christians."
"This defection" Mr. Campbell and his
followers " attribute to the great varieties
of speculation, and metaphysical dogma-
tism of countless creeds, formularies, litur-
gies, and books of discipline, adopted and
inculcated as bonds of union and platforms
of communion in all the parties which
have sprung from the Lutheran Reforma-
tion." All this has led, as they suppose,
to the displacing of the style of the hving
oracles, and the affixing to the sacred dic-
tion ideas wholly unknown to the Apostles.

And what does Mr. Campbell propose to
do "! Simply " to ascertain from the Holy
Scriptures, according to commonly-receiv-
ed and well-established rules of interpreta-
tion, the ideas attached to the leading
terms and sentences found in the Holy
Scriptures, and then use the words of the
Holy Spirit in the apostolic acceptation of
them !" But let us hear him farther : " By
thus expressing the ideas communicated
by the Holy Spirit, in the terms and phrases
learned from the Apostles, and by avoiding
the artificial and technical language of
scholastic theology, they propose to restore
a pure speech to the household of faith."
And in this way they expect to put an end
to all divisions and disputes, and promote
the sanctification of the faithful. And all
this is proposed by those who reject all
creeds for churches ; excepting, indeed,
that which consists in making the Bible
speak theirs ! However plausible it may
be to talk in this way, all church his-
tory has shown that there is no more cer-
tain way of introducing all manner of her-
esy than by dispensing with all written
creeds and formularies of doctrine, and al-
lowing all who profess to believe in the Bi-
ble, though attaching any meaning to it
they please, to become members of the
church. For a while, possibly, this scheme
may seem to work well ; but, before half
a century has passed, all manner of error
will be found to have entered and nestled
in the house of God.

" Every one who believes what the Evan-
gelists and Apostles have testified concern-
ing Jesus of Nazareth, and who is willing
to obey him, is a proper subject for immer-
sion." And this is the sum and substance
of what Mr. Campbell says respecting the
way in which a sinner is to attain salva-

tion. This is all well enough i{ faith be
truly explained, and the sinner really does
come to Christ with that godly sorrow for
sin from which saving faith is never dis-
severed. But if a mere general belief in
what the Evangelists and Apostles have
said, together with immersion, be all that
is required, it is not difficult to see that
churches may soon be gathered in which
there will be but- little true religion.

It is on this account that evangelical
Christians in America, Baptists as well as
Paedobaptists, have many fears about Mr.
Campbell and his followers. It is believed,
however, that, as yet, there are not a few
sincerely pious people among his congre-
gations, who have been led away by his
plausible representations respecting the
evil of creeds. Time can only show the
issue. Two or three religious papers are
published by ministers of this denomina-
tion, and are almost entirely devoted to
the propagation of the peculiar tenets of
the sect. The churches in its connexion
are constituted purely on Independent prin-
ciples. Its statistics are not well ascer-
tained. Mr. Campbell says that it now
embraces from 150,000 to 200,000 persons.
As for the churches and ministers, I have
never seen their number stated.

CHAPTER IX.

SMALLER PRESBYTERIAN CHURCHES. -
CUMBERLAND PRESBYTERIANS.

-THE

The origin of the Cumberland Presbyte-
rians was as follows : In the extensive
and, in some respects, wonderful revival
of religion that took place in Kentucky
during the years 1801-1803, the call for
Presbyterian ministers was far beyond
what could be satisfied, and in this exigen-
cy it was proposed by some of the minis-
ters that pious laymen of promising abili-
ties, and who seemed to have a talent for
public speaking, should be encouraged to
make the best preparations in their power
for the ministry, and thereafter be licensed
to preach.

This suggestion was carried into effect.
Several such persons were licensed by the
Presbytery of Transylvania ; and a new
presbytery, which had been formed in the
southern part of the State in 1803, and was
called the Cumberland Presbytery, admit-
ted and ordained those licentiates, and
took on trial others of similar characters
and attainments.

These proceedings were considered dis-
orderly by the Synod of Kentucky, and a
commission was therefore appointed to
examine them, and to inquire what were
the doctrines held by persons thus admit-
ted into the ministry, in a way so foreign

Chap. X.]

SMALLER PRESBYTERIAN CHURCHES.

253

to the rules and practice of the Presbyte-
rian Church. The upshot was, that the
course pursued by the Cumberland Pres-
bytery was condemned, and this sentence
having been confirmed by the General As-
sembly of the whole Presbyterian Church,
before which it had been brought by ap-
peal, the censured Presbytery withdrew
from that body, and constituted itself an
independent church in 1810, which has
ever since been called the Cumberland
Presbyterian Church.

Its doctrines occupy a sort of middle
ground between Calvinism and Arminian-
ism. It holds that the atonement was
made for all mankind ; it rejects the doc-
trine of eternal reprobation ; holds a mod-
ified view of election ; and maintains the
perseverance of the saints ; but on the
other points is essentially Calvinistic.

In its ecclesiastical polity it is Presby-
terian ; the Session, Presbytery, Synod,
and General Assembly are all constituted
in the manner described at length in our
notice of the Presbyterian Church. It dif-
fers, however, in one point, from all other
Presbyterian churches, by having adopted
the itinerating system of the Methodists.
By that system of circuits and stations,
its ministers have been able to reach al-
most all parts of the Valley of the Missis-
sippi, that being the great scene of their
labours. But their church is not confined
to the Western States and Territories of
the American Union— it reaches into Tex-
as, where it has a number of churches.
The General Assembly has under its su-
perintendence twelve synods, forty-five
presbyteries, about 550 churches, and
the same number of ministers, and about
70,000 communicants. Several religious
newspapers are published under its auspi-
ces. For the education of its youth, it has
one flourishing college at Princeton, in
Kentucky, and has lately opened another
in the State of Ohio. Among its preach-
ers there are several men of highly re-
spectable talents and acquirements.

CHAPTER X.

SMALLER PRESBYTERIAN CHURCHES : REFORM-
ED DUTCH CHURCH.

We have elsewhere stated that the coun-
try embracing what are now the States of
New- York, New-Jersey, Delaware, and
Pennsylvania, was at one time claimed by
the Dutch in right of discovery. A trading
post was established by them in 1614, at
the spot now occupied by the city of New-
York, but it was not until 1624 that any
families from Holland settled there. A
few years after, the Rev. Everardus Bo-
gardus was sent over to preach to the
colonists, and was the first Dutch pastor

that settled in America.* He was suc-
ceeded by John and Samuel Megapolensis,
the latter of whom was one of the com-
missioners appointed by General Stuyve-
sant to settle the terms on which the colony
was surrendered to the English in 1664.

The colony having been planted and
maintained by the Dutch West India Com-
pany, to it the colonists applied from time
to time for ministers, as new churches
were formed or the older ones became
vacant ; and the seat of the company being
at Amsterdam, the directors naturally ap-
plied to the Classis of that city to choose
and ordain the persons that were to be
sent out. Hence that Classis and the
Synod of North Holland, with which it
was connected, came, by the tacit consent
of the other classes and synods of the
Dutch National Church, as well as by the
submission of the churches in the colonies,
to have an influence over the latter, which,
in the course of time, proved a source of
no little trouble to the parties concerned. f
To such an extent was it carried that the
colonial churches were not thought entitled
to take a single step towards the regula-
tion of their own affairs.

How far the West India Company aided
the congregations that were gradually
formed in its American colonies is not
now known, but it is supposed to have
done something for their support. J Some
of its governors were decided friends and
members of the church, and certain it is
that those congregations in New Nether-
lands were considered as branches of the
Established Church of Holland.

The English took possession of the col-
ony in 1664, and guarantied to the inhabi-
tants all their religious rights. Nothing
of any consequence to the churches took
place for about thirty years, for there being
but few English in the colony, they were
attended by nearly the whole population.
But in 1693, on Colonel Samuel Fletcher
becoming governor, he succeeded, as we
have elsewhere noticed, by artifice and
perseverance, in having the Episcopal
Church established in the city of New-
York and four of the principal counties of
the province ; so that from that time all
classes were taxed for the support of

* This excellent man left the colony to return to
Holland in 1647, and is supposed to have been lost
at sea in the same vessel with Governor Kieft.

t The Classis of Amsterdam and the Synod of
North Holland retain to this day the charge of the
churches in the colonies in the East Indies, and other
parts of the world, belonging to the kingdom of the
Netherlands.

t It would seem that it was a considerable time
before any church edifice of respectable appearance
was erected in New Amsterdam, as New- York was
then called ; for De Vries, in the account of his voy-
age to New Netherlands, relates that he remarked to
Governor Kieft in 1641, "that it was a shame that
the English should pass there, and see only a mean
barn in wliich we performed our worslup."

254

Episcopacy, though its partisans formed
but a small minority of the colonists.

But the inconvenience of having no ec-
clesiastical authority in America higher
than a Consistory could not fail to be felt
by the Reformed Dutch Church, and ac-
cordingly, in 1738, some of its ministers
proposed having an association of the
clergy, called a ccetus, but which was to
have no power either to ordain pastors or
to determine ecclesiastical disputes. In-
nocent as well as inadequate as was this
measure, the concurrence of the Classis of
Amsterdam could not be obtained till 1746
or 1747. But it was soon found that no-
thing short of having a regular classis of
their own could meet the wants of the
churches. Not only was there the heavy
expense and delay attending getting minis-
ters from Holland, or sending young men
thither to be educated, but, worse than all,
the churches had no power of choosing
ministers likely to suit them. Urged by
such considerations, the coetus resolved in
1754 to propose a change of its constitution
to that of a regular classis, and a plan to that
effect was transmitted to the congregations
for their approval. But the project was
opposed by a powerful party, mainly form-
ed of those who had been sent over from
Holland, and called the Conferentie. Amid
the distraction and confusion caused by
this opposition of parties, religion made
little progress, and many influential fami-
lies left the Dutch Church, and joined the
Episcopal.

All difficulties were at length adjusted
through the prudent mediation of the late
Rev. John H. Livingston, D.D.,* then a
young man. Having gone to Holland for
the prosecution of his studies, in 1766, the
Synod of Holland and Classis of Amster-
dam were led by his representations to de-
vise a plan, which, after Mr. Livingston's
return to America in 1770, was submitted
to a meeting held in New- York in October,
1771, and attended by nearly all the minis-
ters, and by lay delegates from nearly all
the congregations. After a full discussion,
having been unanimously adopted, it was
carried into effect the following year. The
whole Church Avas divided into five classes,
three in the Province of New-.Tersey, and
two in that of New- York ; and a delega-
tion of two ministers and two elders from
each classis constituted the General Synod,
which was to meet once a year.

* Few men have ever lived in America who have
been more u.seful or respected than Dr. John H. Liv-
ingston. For many years he was a pastor in New-
York city ; but the latter part of his Ufe was spent in
New-Brunswick, ni the State of New-.Iersey, where
he was professor of theology in the seminary of the
Reformed Dutch Church, lie died in the year 1825,
revered by all of every denomination who knew him.
He has left an abiding impression of his character
upon the church of which he was so distinguished
an ornament.

RELIGION IN AMERICA.

[Book VL

The prosperity of the Dutch Church,
particularly in the city of New-York, was
retarded by' another cause, namely, the
long-continued opposition to preaching ia
English. The Dutch tongue having been
gradually disappearing ever since the con-
quest of the colony in 1664, many of the
youth had grown up almost in utter igno-
rance of it, and had gone off to the Epis-
copal and Presbyterian churches, especial-
ly the former, for the latter had as yet but
a merely tolerated and feeble existence.
At length the Rev. Dr. Laidlie, a Scotch
minister, was invited from Holland, and
commenced preaching in English in 1764,
from which time Dutch fell still more rap-
idly into disuse. The last Dutch sermon,
was preached in the collegiate churches in
the city of New- York in 1804, though in
some of the churches in the country it was
used some years longer. But it is now
quite abandoned in the pulpit throughout
the United States.

The Revolutionary war, also, proved dis-
astrous to the Dutch Church, particularly
in the city of New- York. One of the
church-edifices there was used as a hospi-
tal, another as a cavalry riding-school,,
during the occupation of the place by a
British force from 1776 to 1783. But with
the return of peace, prosperity returned to
this as well as other evangelical commu-
nions, and it has been steadily advancing
ever since. In all the States it had only
eighty-two congregations and thirty minis-
ters in 1784 ; but the former have now
risen to 267, and the latter to 259. The
communicants are 29,322.*

A college was founded by the Reformed
Dutch at New-Brunswick, in New-Jersey,
in 1770, which, after various vicissitudes,
has now been open for many years, and is
firmly established and flourishing. It is
called Rutger's College. Connected with
it there is a theological seminary, with
three able professors, and between thirty
and forty students.

The Dutch Church is doing much for
Sunday-schools, home missions, and the
education of young men for the ministry.
It has a society, also, for foreign missions,
auxiliary to the American Board of Com-
missioners for Foreign Missions, and now
maintaining some six or eight missionaries
with their wives at two or three stations
in Borneo.

The church is at present organized in a
general synod, two particular synods, and
nineteen classes. Its standards are those
of the Reformed Church of Holland, viz.,
the Belgic Confession, the Heidelberg Cat-
echism, the Canons of the Synod of Dort,
&c. Its doctrines are in all respects purely
Calvinistic. From the first it has been

* Tlie number of families reported as belonging to
this denomination in 1843 was 21,569 ; and the num-
ber of individuals under its instruction was 96,302.

Chap. XL]

SMALLER PRESBYTERIAN CHURCHES.

255

favoured with an able, learned, and godly
ministry. In its earlier days the labours
of such men as the Rev. Theodorus J.
Frelinghuysen, Drs. Laidlie and Westerlo,
and others of like character, were greatly
blessed. In our own times many of its
ministers stand in the first rank among our
distinguished American divines, and many
of its congregations have enjoyed very
precious religious revivals. P^'or the edifi-
cation of the people, one of the most in-
structive and best-conducted religious pa-
pers, called the Christian Intelligencer, is
published weekly in the city of New- York.

CHAPTER XL

8MALLER PRESBYTERIAN CHURCHES : THE AS-
SOCIATE CHURCH THE ASSOCIATE REFORMED

CHURCH AND THE REFORMED PRESBYTERI-
AN CHURCH.

These are often called the " Scottish
Secession churches." They were origi-
nally established by immigrants from Scot-
land and Ireland, and are mainly composed,
to this day, of Scotch and Irish immigrants
and their descendants. The first and last
of the three were, in their origin, branches
of similar churches in Scotland, and out of
an unsuccessful attempt made in America
to unite them sprang the second.

In the year 1733, as is well known, the
Rev. Messrs. Ebenezer Erskine, Alexan-
der Moncrieff, William Wilson, and James
Fisher, by a protest addressed to the Com-
mission of the General Assembly of the
Church of Scotland, seceded from the pre-
vailing party in the judicatories of that
church. The ground of this separation
was not a disagreement with the doctrines,
order, or discipline of that church, but dis-
satisfaction with what the dissenters con-
sidered to be an inadequate maintenance
of those doctrines, and enforcing of that
order and discipline. These seceders, join-
ed afterward by many others, organized
the Associate* Presbytery, and soon became
a numerous and important branch of the
kingdom of Christ in Scotland.

Seventeen years after this secession a
number of persons, chiefly Scotch immi-
grants, sent a petition from Pennsylvania
to the Associate (Antiburgherf) Synod in
Scotland, praying that ministers might be
sent from that body to break unto them
the bread of life. Two ministers were ac-
cordingly sent over in 1753 or 1754, with
power to form churches, ordain elders,
and constitute a presbytery. The labours

* They took this name from the circumstance of
their congregations not lying near each other, and
therefore forming an association of churches rather
than a territorial presbytery.

t The Secession became divided into Burghers
and Antiburghers, by a controversy on the lawful-
ness of what was called the Burgess oath.

of these brethren were crowned with suc-
cess ; several congregations were soon or-
ganized, and a presbytery formed in the
eastern part of Pennsylvania ; and as oth-
er ministers were sent over from Scotland
from time to time, there were about eight
or ten in all before the breaking out of the
Revolution. But in 1782, the presbytery
was reduced to the original number of two
ministers, in consequence of one or two
being deposed, and others joining several
ministers of the Reformed Presbyterian
Church, or Covenanters, in forming the
Associate Reformed Church.

Notwithstanding these untoward circum-
stances, the two ministers, with the congre-
gations adhering to them, persevered, and
their numbers being speedily recruited from
Scotland, such, at last, was their success
in training young men among themselves,
that in 1801 they had four presbyteries,
which that year, by a delegation from theiy
ranks, formed the Associate Synod of
North America, a body which meets an-
nually. The presbyteries have now been
quadrupled, I believe, and extend over the
Middle, Southern, and Western States. Ac-
cording to the most recent statement which
I have seen, this denomination has more
than one hundred ministers, upward of
two hundred churches, most of which are
small, and about 15,000 communicants. For
a long time the energies of this churchy
like those of many others, were directed to
the building up of churches in the West
and South. Of late years it has turned its
attention to the foreign field, and has sent
two missionaries to the island of Trinidad.

They have a theological school, with two
able professors and some 20 or 25 students,
in connexion with Jefterson College, situa-
ted at Canonsburg, in the western part of
Pennsylvania, eighteen miles from Pitts-
burgh. For their organ they pubhsh a val-
uable monthly journal called the " Reli-
gious Monitor." The doctrines of the As-
sociate Church are thoroughly Calvinistic ;
its poUty completely Presbyterian. It has
enjoyed the labours of many able ministers.

This small denomination, like some oth-
ers, have been at strife among themselves,
which has led to a separation. The lar-
ger party ejected the smaller. The eject-
ed ministers are fifteen in number, and the
members of their churches are estimated
at about two thousand. It is not known
that there exists any difference in their
doctrinal views, and the smaller party have
retained their original organization; so that
there are now two Associate Synods of
North America, as well as two General
Assemblies of the Presbyterian ChiU'ch in
the United States of America.

Associate Reformed Church. — This body,
as we have seen, owes its existence to an
attempt made in 1782 to unite in one body
the few Associate and Reformed Presbyte-

256

RELIGION IN AMERICA.

[Book VI.

rian churches then to be found in the Uni-
ted States. But as the success of the at-
tempt was only partial, the coalition being
refused by certain members of both church-
es, both survive to this day, and thus a proj-
ect for merging two denominations in one,
resulted in the creation of a third.

The Associate Reformed Church has
rapidly increased. Starting with a small
number of ministers and churches in 1782,
it has now no fewer than 20 presbyteries
and 4 synods ; the one in the State of New-
York is the largest. It has a theological
seminary at Newburgh in the same state,
■with three professors, and some fifteen or
twenty students. The Western Synod has
a seminary at AUeghany-town, near Pitts-
burgh, with one professor and about twenty
students.

The doctrines of this church are Cal-
vinistic, and its polity Presbyterian; points
on which it hardly at all differs from the As-
sociate and Reformed Presbyterian synods.
All three maintain a state of strict isola-
tion from other communions, and in their
church psalmody confine themselves ex-
clusively to Rouse's version of the Psalms
of the Bible. They also strenuously con-
tinue the custom of having fast and thanks-
giving days to precede and follow the ad-
ministration of the sacrament of the Lord's
Supper ; and in the administration of that
ordinance, the communicants sit around a
table.

The churches of the Associate Reformed
are more than 300, their ministers 165, and
their communicants 26,000. About twenty
years ago, part of this communion joined
the Presbyterian Church, but the greater
part preferred maintaining their independ-
ent position. They have a considerable
number of able ministers. The late Dr.
John M. Mason was for the greater part of
his life one of their most distinguished
members, but he joined, a few years before
his death, the Presbyterian Church. The
Christian Magazine, a monthly periodical,
is published under the auspices of the As-
sociate Reformed.

Each synod has a Domestic Missionary
Society, the object of which is to aid small
congregations and plant new ones in des-
titute places, especially in the Western
frontier states.

In regard to foreign missions, the Asso-
ciate Reformed Church acts in concert
■with the Presbyterian Board of the Gener-
al Assembly, and contributes to the sup-
port of the missionaries sent out by that
Board. The monthly concert of prayer is
observed in their churches generally, and
collections taken at each meeting to aid
the cause of missions.

Reformed Pkesbvterian Church. — Re-
formed Presbyterians (or, as they are
sometimes called, Covenanters) are the
descendants of the persecuted Presbyteri-

ans in Scotland who refused to accede to
the Erastian settlement of religion at the
Revolution of 1688, and still maintain a
practical dissent from both Church and
State on account of existing evils.

They are distinguished from other Pres-
byterians chiefly by their rigid adherence
to the whole doctrines of the Westminster
Confession of Faith, Catechisms, Larger
and Shorter ; to the Scotch Covenants —
maintaining that the obligations of the " Na-
tional Covenant" and " Solemn League"
extend to all represented in the taking of
them, though removed to this or any other
part of the world, in so far as these cove-
nants bind to duties not peculiar to the
Church in the British Isles, but are of uni-
versal application. They also contend
that nations enjoying the light of Divine
revelation are bound to frame their gov-
ernment according to it ; and where the
Bible is known they refuse to swear alle-
giance to any system of civil government
which does not acknowledge the Lord Je-
sus Christ as King, and recognise the Bi-
ble as the supreme law^ of the land.

As early as 1752 some Reformed Pres-
byterian congregations had been formed in
North America ; but, owing to the defec-
tion of some of the ministers, the distance
of the congregations from each other, and
the troubles connected with the Revolu-
tion, the church did not assume a regular
organization until, in 1798, the Reformed
Presbytery of the United States of North
America was constituted, in the city of
Philadelphia.

It may be supposed that the descendants
of the followers of " Cargill, Renwick, and
Cameron," who had suffered so much in
the cause of civil and religious liberty, and
who had voluntarily resigned the privilege
of citizenship in the land of their nativity,
rather than acknowledge the corrupt sys-
tem established at the Revolution to be
God's ordinance of civil government, would
examine carefully the Constitution of their
adopted country. They did so, and found
(as they believed) evils so great incorpo-
rated in that instrument as rendered it
necessary for them to refuse allegiance to
the whole system. " In this remarkable
instrument," say they, " there is contained
no acknowledgment of the being or au-
thority of God. There is no acknowledg-
ment of the Christian religion, or profess-
ed submission to the kingdom of Messiah.
It gives support to the enemies of the Re-
deemer, and admits to its honours and
emoluments Jews, Mohammedans, Deists,
and Atheists. It establishes that system of
robbery by which men are held in slavery,
despoiled of liberty, property, and pro-
tection. It violates the principles of rep-
resentation, by bestowing upon the domes-
tic tyrant, who holds hundreds of his fel-
low-creatures in bondage, an influence in

Chap. XII.]

LUTHERAN CHURCH.

25"

making laws for freemen proportioned to
the number of his own slaves. This Con-
stitution is, notwithstanding its numerous
•excellences, in many instances inconsist-
ent, oppressive, and impious."* Their op-
position to the Constitution, however, has
been the opposition of reason and piety.
The weapons of their warfare are argu-
ments and prayers. They consider them-
selves bound to live peaceably with men,
to advance the good of society, conform
to its order in everything consistent with
righteousness, and submit to every burden
' which God, in his providence, calls them to
bear. During the late war with Great
Britain, no portion of the citizens were
more forward in defence of the country
than Reformed Presbyterians.

In 1807 they published a doctrinal Tes-
timony, containing a brief statement of the
principles which they hold, and a testimo-
ny against opposing errors, with special
reference to the evils existing in the na-
tional Constitution, and the constitutions
of the churches around them. They con-
tinued united in the maintenance of this
testimony, neither holding communion
•with other churches, nor offices in the
State, nor voting at elections for civil of-
ficers, nor admitting any slaveholder to
their communion till about 1830, when,
their number being considerably increased,
several ministers began to entertain opin-
ions different from those which were for-
merly held by the body on several points
relating to doctrine, order, and discipline.
These men were led to modify their views
on the subject of acknowledging the gov-
ernment of the country, and avowing alle-
giance to it. This introduced what has
'been called the New Light controversy,
which has since agitated all departments
of the Presbyterian family, and resulted
in a division of the Synod, and the organi-
zation of a rival synod in the Reformed
Presbyterian Church, which still maintains
a separate existence. At present, howev-
er, they are endeavouring to form a union
with the Associate Presbyterian Church,
and their efforts promise success, as the
articles of union are nearly concluded.

This controversy greatly distressed the
.church, and so weakened the old Synod
that she has not been able to establish any
foreign mission. The members of the
church generally retained their attach-
ment to the subordinate standards, and, in
■ consequence, many congregations were
left without pastors. The Theological
Seminary for a time suspended its opera-
tions, so that labourers for a foreign field
could not be obtained ; but home missions,
especially in the West, have been prose-
cuted with considerable zeal. A more
prosperous season has returned. The

* Historical Testimony, page 152.
R

Theological Seminary in Alleghany Town,
Pennsylvania, has been revived. It has
two professors. Rev. James R. Willson,
D.D., and Rev. Thomas Sproull ; four-
teen students were in attendance last ses-
sion ; a considerable library for the Semi-
nary has been collected, and the Synod pro-
poses to establish a mission in 1844, in the
VVest Indies, making St. Thomas the cen-
tre of operation. There are thirty-three
ministers, five licentiates, fifty organized
congregations, with numerous small so-
cieties, and nearly 6000 communicants.
With this Synod the Reformed Presbyte-
rian Synods in Scotland and Ireland main-
tain fraternal intercourse.

On the other hand, the New Synod has
now twenty-four ordained ministers, five
licentiates, eight students in theology, for-
ty-four organized churches, and 4500 com-
municants. It has five presbyteries, and
sustains, in connexion with the Board of
Foreign Missions of the Old School Gen-
eral Assembly of the Presbyterian Church,
two missionaries in India. Besides sup-
porting these two missionaries, the Board
of Missions of this Synod sustains a school
containing twenty-eight children, in con-
nexion with their Indian mission. They
have been active, also, in prosecuting the
work of domestic missions, and, thus, of
building up churches in the West and other
parts of the country. The receipts of their
Board of Missions average about $2800
annually.

The entire body of the Reformed Pres-
byterians in the United States embraces,
therefore, fifty-seven ordained ministers,
ten licentiates, about twenty students of
theology, ninety- four organized congrega-
tions, and 10,500 communicants.

This small body has not been deficient
in men distinguished for ministerial gifts
and extensive learning. The late Alex-
ander M'Leod, D.D., ranked in his day with
Mason, Grifl[in, Dwight, and other giants
of the land.

CHAPTER XII.

SMALLER PRESBYTERIAN CHURCHES : THE LU-
THERAN CHURCH.

The first Lutherans that emigrated to
America came from Holland, and settled
at New- York about the year 1626, that is,
two years after the regular settlement of
New Netherlands by the Dutch. But they
were few in number, and as long as the
Dutch held the country, they worshipped
in private houses only. But on the col-
ony being transferred to the English, in
1664, they obtained leave to open a place
of public worship, and had for their first
minister Jacob Fabricius, who arrived in
1669.

258

RELIGION IN AMERICA.

[Book VI,

Next among the Lutherans came the
Swedish colony that settled on the Dela-
ware in 1636. It flourished for a while,
but receiving no new-comers from Swe-
den, the colonists gradually fell into the
use of the English tongue, and as there
were no Lutheran clergymen who could
preach in English, on losing their Swedish
pastors they went to the English Episco-
pal Church for religious teachers, and be-
came ultimately merged in that denomi-
nation. Nevertheless, by their charter
they are still styled Swedish Lutheran
churches.*

The third Lutheran emigration to the
United States was that of the Germans.
The first settlements were in Pennsylva-
nia, soon after the grant of that province
to William Penn, in 1680, whence they
spread, by degrees, not only through Penn-
sylvania, but also into Maryland, Virginia,
the interior of New- York, and, since the
Revolution, over the Western States. Em-
igration from Germany may be said to have
fairly commenced on a large scale in 1710.
Its primary cause lay in the persecution
of the Protestants in the Palatinate. It
has continued from that time to this day,
adding tens of thousands almost every
year to the population of the country. The
western, northern, and southern parts of
Germany, and the German parts of Swit-
zerland, together with Alsace, iu France,
have, from first to last, sent immense mul-
titudes to America in quest of homes.

The first emigrants brought no pastors
with them, but they had pious schoolmas-
ters who held meetings on the Sabbath,
and read the Scriptures, Arndt's True
Christianity, and other religious books.
The Swedish ministers, too, of those early
times visited the small scattered groups of
faithful souls, and administered to them
the ordinances of religion.

Among the first German ministers in
America were the Rev. Messrs. Bolzius
and Gronau, who laboured in a colony
from Saltzburg, in the south of Germany.
These emigrants had been driven from
their native country by persecution, and
had settled in Georgia. Other emigrants
from Germany settled about the same time
in the Carolinas, where a considerable
number of Lutheran churches are to be
found at this day. In 1742, the Rev. Hen-
ry Melchior Muhlenberg, an eminently
learned, zealous, and successful minister,
arrived, and, during a course of fifty years,
was the honoured instrument of greatly
promoting religion among the German pop-
ulation. He was one of the founders, in
fact, of the Lutheran Church in America,
which, by repeated arrivals of other dis-
tinguished men from Germany, had be-
come widely extended before the com-

♦ " Annals of the Swedes on the Delaware," by
the Rev. J. G. Clay, p. 3, 4, 161, &c.

mencement of the Revolutionary war. But .
it, as well as other churches, suffered much
from that war. Many of the German col-
onists took up arms in defence of their''
adopted country. The early wars with
the Indians, also, proved very prejudicial
to the Lutheran churches on the frontiers.
The rapid progress made by this Church
since the Revolution, and particularly since
the constitution of its General Synod in
1820, may be seen from the following suc-
cinct summary, taken from the Lutheran
Almanac for 1843, and fully to be relied on.

The number of Ministers and Licentiates is 423

Congregations 1,371

Communicants 146,303

Besides one General Synod, there are
nineteen District Synods, twelve of which
are united with the General Synod. There
are four theological seminaries, one col-
lege, and four classical schools, one or-
phan house, an education society, a for-
eign missionary society, and a book es-
tabli.shment. During the year 1841, the
Lutheran ministry received an accession
of fifty-eight new members ; 9022 new
members were added to the churches by
confirmation, and 9000 by emigration : —
17,776 children and adults were baptized..
Three new synods were formed in 1841,
seventy-six new churches built, and eigh-
ty-eight new congregations organized.

These results do, indeed, call for heart-
felt thanks to the Giver of all good. I
know not a single circumstance more
promising in regard to true religion ia
America, than its rapid progress among
the vast German population of the United
States, as exhibited in the Lutheran and
German Reformed Churches. Wonderful,
indeed, has been the change during the
last twenty years.

The establishment of Pennsylvania Col-
lege, at Gettysburg, under the auspices of
the General Synod, has been a great bless-
ing. This college, which has been liber-
ally assisted by the Legislature of Penn-
sylvania, and receives $1000 a year from
that state, has a president, five able pro-
fessors, and about 150 students. The Gen-
eral Synod's theological seminary, which,
also, is placed at Gettysburg, has three
distinguished professors, and usually from
twenty-five to thirty students. It began
in 1826, with one professor, the Rev. Sam-
uel S. Schmucker, D.D., to whom, under
God, it mainly owes its existence; since
which time it has educated upward of
150 young men for the ministry. The in-
stitution is most pleasantly situated, and
has a well-selected library, great part of
which, together with a considerable amount
of funds for the founding of the seminary,
was obtained in Germany through the ef-
forts of the Rev. Benjamin Kurtz, D.D.
The Lutherans have three other theological
schools, one at Hartwick, in New-York,

ckx-p: XII.]

LUTHERAN CHURCH.

another at Lexington, in South Carolina,
and a third at Columbus, Ohio. Sixty-one
young men were prosecuting their studies
at these in 1841, and 115 more were en-
gaged in preparatory studies at academies
and colleges. These simple facts exhibit
an extraordinary change in the state of this
church from what it was twenty-five years
ago.

Among its distinguished men we may
mention the Rev. Messrs. Bolzius, Gronau,
H. M. Muhlenburg, Kunze, Schmidt, Kurtz,
another Muhlenburg, Helmuth, Melshei-
mer, Lochman, Schaeffer, Shober, Geissen-
hainer, Schmucker (father of the profes-
sor), all men of great influence in their
day. Several of its living ministers, also,
are men of acknowledged talents, learn-
ing, piety, and usefulness. Many of the
earlier ministers were educated at Franke's
Institute at Halle, which, indeed, may be
regarded as the mother of the Lutheran
Church throughout a large part of the Uni-
ted States.*

The same doctrines are held as in the
evangelical Lutheran churches in the vari-
ous countries of Europe, with some differ-
ences which we shall presently notice.
They comprehend the following points :
" The Trinity of persons in one Godhead ;"
" the proper and eternal divinity of the
Lord Jesus Christ;" "the universal de
pravity of our race ;" " the vicarious na-
ture and unlimited extent of the atone-
ment ;" " that men are justified gratuitous-
ly, for Christ's sake, through faith ;" " the
vv^ord and sacraments means of grace ;"
" a future judgment, and the award of eter-
nal life and happiness to the righteous, and
eternal misery to the wicked." On the sub-
ject of election, predestination, &c., they
are well known to be rather Arminian than
Calvinistic.

The Lutheran Church in America has a
short but excellent liturgy, while her min-
isters are at the same time allowed a dis-
cretionary power with regard to ks use.
It observes a few of the chief festivals,
such as Christmas, Good Friday, Easter
Sunday, Ascension Day, and Whitsunday.
Like the Episcopal and the German Re-
formed churches, it administers the rite of
confirmation to baptized persons after their
arriving at years of discretion, and going
through a course of catechetical and bibli-
cal instruction.

It deserves notice that the Lutheran
Church in the United States, as those
who are intimately acquainted with it will
acknowledge, difi'ers from what it once
was, and from some of its sister churches
in Europe, in regard to a few such points

* Nor have the churches in America ceased to
feel a warm interest in the Alma Mater of so many
of their pastors. When she suffered so much from
the French in 1814, collections were promptly made
l)y them, and forwarded to the amount of $2334.

as the following : First, it entirely rejects the
authority of the fathers in ecclesiastical contro-
versy. The Reformers relied too much
upon them. Secondly, it no longer re-
quires assent to the doctrine of the real or
bodily presence of the Saviour in the Eucha-
rist. In other words, it has renounced the
doctrine of consubstantiation, and holds
that of our Lord's spiritual presence, as
understood by other evangelical Protest-
ants. Again, it has rejected the remnant of
private confession which it at first retained.
Fourth, it has abolished the remains of Pa-
pal superstition in the abjuration of evil
spirits at baptism. Fifth, it has made a
more systematic adjustment of its doc-
trines. Sixth, it has adopted a more reg-
ular and a stricter system of church disci-
pline. This, as respects individual church-
es, is essentially Presbyterian. The Syn-
ods, in their organization and powers, re-
semble Presbyteries, but with fewer for-
malities, and their de<^isions are couched
more in the form of recommendations ;
while the General Synod is altogether ad-
visory, and resembles the General Asso-
ciations of the Congregational churches
of New-England. Conferences of sever-
al neighbouring ministers, and protracted
meetings, are held, with preaching, for the
benefit of their congregations. And, lastly,
its ministers are no longer bound to all the
minute points of an extended human creed.
All that is required of them is a belief in
the Bible, and in the Augsburg Confession
as a substantially correct expression of
Bible doctrines. The American Lutheran
Church thinks that a written creed should
be short, comprehending, like that of the
apostles, which was for a long time the
only creed in the primitive churches, the
doctrines necessary to salvation. So much
for its doctrines, order, and discipline.*

I have only to add, that this church
takes a deep and increasing interest every
year in the religious and benevolent un-
dertakings of our times. Sunday-schools
and Bible-classes are very generally to
be found in her congregations. She has
had an Education Society, with numerous
branches, since 1835, which has assisted
above 100 young men in preparing for the
ministry. We shall speak hereafter of her
Foreign Missionary Society, founded in
1837. Finally, two valuable religious pa-
pers, one in English, and the other in Ger-
man, extensively diffuse among the peo-
ple intelligence relating to the progress of
the Redeemer's kingdom on the earth.

* In making this statement, I have been greatly
indebted to Professor Schmucker's *' Portraiture of
Lutheranism," and his " Retrospect of Lutheranism
in the United States," both published at the request
of the General Synod of the Church.

260

RELIGION IN AMERICA.

[Book VI.

CHAPTER XIII.

SMALLER PRESBYTERIAN CHURCHES : THE GER-
MAN REFORMED CHURCH.

This offshoot from the Church, bearing
the same name in Germany, is, Uke it,
Presbyterian in its government, and Cal-
vinistic in its doctrinal standards.

The " Reformed" being mingled with
the Lutherans in the early German emi-
grations, societies of the former soon ap-
peared, particularly in Pennsylvania, and
spread, ere long, to the south and west of
that province. These, though long exist-
ing apart, were at last united in 1746, by
the Rev. Mr. Schlatter, who, having been
sent from Europe for the purpose, suc-
ceeded in giving a better organization as
well as more union to their churches.
Th6ir increase since has given them an
important place among American Presby-
terians.

It is a singular fact, that the first mission-
aries to the German Reformed in Ameri-
ca were sent out by the Classis of Am-
sterdam and the Synod of North Holland,
through which channel their churches con-
tinued to receive their ministerial supplies,
and to which they were kept, down to the
year 1792, in the same subordination as
the Dutch churches in America used to
be. Mr. Schlatter, the pioneer in this
good cause, was soon followed by other
men sent over by the said classis and
synod.*

The dependance of the Reformed Ger-
man Church in the United States on the
Dutch Church in Europe was brought to
a close in 1792, in consequence of the dif-
ficulty of maintaining the previous rela-
tions of America with Holland after the
conquest of the latter by the French. An
independent constitution was according-
ly adopted, constituting a Synod, consist-
ing of clerical and lay delegates ; but it
was not until 1819 that the synod was di-
vided into classes or presbyteries, and
based upon a representation of the classes
by clerical and lay delegates. The church
being now left to its own resources, the
training of young men for the ministry
was for many years intrusted to such pa.s-
tors as were willing to receive students
of theology into their famihes ; still the
want of proper institutions for that pur-
pose was deeply felt. At length, in 1824,
the synod resolved that they would have
a theological seminary, and this resolution
took effect the following year, by the open-
ing of an institution at Carlisle, a pleasant
town in Central Pennsylvania. Dr. Mayer
was appointed the first professor, and con-
tinued in the discharge of that office until
1839, when his resignation was tendered

* Among these were Weiber, Steiner, Otterbein,
Hendel, Helfenstein, Helfrich, Gebbard, Dallicker,
Bluuier, Faber, Becker, and Herman.

and accepted. During this period the sem-
inary was removed from Carlisle to York,
and from that to Mercersburg in the same
state, about fifty miles from Carlisle, and
there it is now permanently established.
Marshall College was opened in connex-
ion with it in 1837, and the Rev. Dr. Ranch,
who had been president of the preparatory
department of the seminary at York, was
chosen president. Under that distinguish-
ed scholar and excellent minister it soon
enjoyed an enviable reputation ; but in the
spring of 1840 the church was called to
lament his premature decease. The pres-
ent theological professor. Dr. Nevin, is a
man of distinguished abilities and deep pi-
ety. There are about twenty-five students
of theology, and the academical classes
have an attendance of from eighty to 100
youths.

The German Reformed Church seems
to have experienced a crisis in 1841, that
year having been appointed to be celebra-
ted as a centenary jubilee for all its con-
gregations. A century having elapsed
since its first organization in America,
such an acknowledgment of God's mer-
cies was deemed eminently becoming; and
that the occasion might be turned to the
best account, it was resolved that an ef-
fort should be made to raise sufficient funds
for the endowment of the seminary and
college at Mercersburg. The result must
have fully realized the expectations of
the church's most sanguine friends, for at
a late meeting of its synod upward of
80,000 dollars were ascertained to have
been subscribed, and to a large amount
actually collected, while the contributions
of more than half of the congregations had
yet to be reported. Assurances have since
been received that more than 100,000 dol-
lars, the amount originally specified, will
be obtained.

The field which this church has to oc-
cupy is very extensive. Besides the large
German population in the Atlantic States,
the Great West — the Valley of the Mis-
sissippi— over which German immigrants
are now settling in vast numbers, cries
to this and to the Lutheran Church for
help ; and it is hoped that in a few years a
host of labourers from both will be raised
up for the harvest, which is ripe for the
sickle.

The German Reformed Synod has now
in its connexion about 180 ministers, dis-
tributed thus : 112 in Pennsylvania; thir-
ty-seven in Ohio ; three in Indiana and
Illinois ; ten in Maryland ; ten in Virginia
and North Carolina ; and three in New-
York. It is supposed to have about 600
congregations, and from 75,000 to 100,000
communicants. It may be said with truth
that its congregations are rapidly increas-
ing in the knowledge of Jesus Christ, and
from present indications, we hail the period

Chap. XIV.]

SMALLER GERMAN SECTS.

261

as not far distant when, instead of being
reckoned, as they have long been, among
the least of the tribes of Israel, they will
be found occupying a place in the very
van of the sacramental host of the Lord.
In home missionary, educational, and for-
eign missionary efforts, they are taking a
deeper and deeper interest every year,
uniting with the Congregational and New
School Presbyterian churches in support-
ing the American Home Missionary Soci-
ety, the American Education Society, and
the American Board of Commissioners for
Foreign Missions.

CHAPTER XIV.

SMALLER GERMAN SECTS.

There are some smaller bodies of Ger-
man Christians in the United States, which
may be classed, though not, perhaps, in
all cases without qualification, among the
evangelical denominations. The Moravi-
ans might have been placed here, but we
have ^ut them in a separate chapter, part-
ly because they are Episcopal, partly be-
cause they are no longer purely German
either in blood or language.

First, then, there is a body called the
'• United Brethren in Christ." This is a
Methodist sect, which began to rise as
early as 1770, and gradually attained an
organization in the year 1800. The found-
ers of it were the Rev. Messrs. Otterbein,
Boehm, Geeting, and other German min-
isters, who had once belonged to the Ger-
man Reformed, the Mennonists, and the
Lutherans. Their first Annual Conference
was held in the year 1800. From that
epoch this denomination has continued to
increase among the Germans and German
descendants in Pennsylvania, Maryland,
Virginia, Ohio, Indiana, and other portions
of the Union, until they have at present
one General Conference (which meets once
in four years), nine Annual Conferences,
four bishops, six hundred ministers, of
whom 250 are itinerant, and 350 are lo-
cal preachers. The number of places,
churches, schoolhouses, private houses,
etc., where they preach, is supposed to ex-
ceed two thousand. Many of their congre-
gations are small. The number of their
members or communicants is reported to
be more than 50,000.

This body, which is in all essential
points the same, as it regards doctrines
and modes of worship, as the Episcopal
Methodist Church, has been becoming
more thoroughly organized from the first.
Within a few years successful efforts have
been made to introduce discipline and or-
der into their churches, and to require from
the preachers regular and accurate reports
of the number of communicants, etc. This

attained a good degree of organization and
efficiency.

2. The "Evangelical Association." This
denomination, also a sect of German Me-
thodists, was founded in the year 1800.
The founder was the Rev. Jacob Albright.
His associates were the Rev. John Walker,
George Miller, and others. With regard
to doctrine and church government, there
is some similarity with the Methodist Epis-
copal Church. This Association has at
present two bishops and four annual con-
ferences, viz., those of East and West
Pennsylvania, Ohio, and Illinois. It also
has churches and stations in Maryland,
Virginia, New- York, Indiana, Missouri, and
the Territory of Iowa. The annual con-
ferences embrace districts, circuits, sta-
tions, and missions. There is a General
Conference, which meets once in four
years. This body has at present about
112 travelhng, and nearly 200 local minis-
ters. The number of places of public wor-
ship, including churches, schoolhouses,
and private houses, is about 900 ; and the
number of communicants is about 14,000.

3. The Winebrennarians, a sect of Ger-
man Baptists, so called from their founder
being a Mr. Winebrenner, a pious and
zealous German, who lives at Harrisburg,
Pennsylvania, where his followers are
chiefly found. They form several congre-
gations, and are said to be quite evangeli-
cal in their doctrines, and, as a body, irre-
proachable in their lives. Their minis-
ters, though not well informed, have the
reputation of being devoted, laborious, and
useful men. Winebrenner seems to have
commenced his labours among the Ger-
mans very much in the spirit and with the
aim of Hans Houga in Norway.

4. The Mennonists have some churches,
but the most of their little congregations
meet in private houses ; they probably
have about 50 or 60 preachers, and perhaps
some 200 small congregations.* They
are an amiable, and, in the main, evangeh-
cal people, yet rendered somewhat luke-
warm, it is to be feared, by their worldly
prosperity. They are, for the most part, de-
scended from Mennonist immigrants from
Holland and Germany. Their confession
of faith, as stated by one of their minis-
ters, Mr. Gan, of Ryswick, in Holland, ap-
pears to be moderate orthodoxy.f They
reject infant baptism, but though their
founder, Simon Menno, maintained that
baptism should be by immersion, they do
not deem it indispensable. On the contra-

* The Mennonists meet for their worship in pri-
vate houses oftener than in church edifices. Their
congregations are very small, and for a long time
scarcely existed out of Pennsylvania.

t I fear that their orthodoxy is less unequivocal
and general than it was sixty or eighty years ago.
They are opposed to the use of the words Person

i^^u^ . „ii J u ^u ^ .1 ■ ' , ^ , — 3nd TmiiVi/, when speaking of the Father, Son, and

looks well, and shows that this body has ' Holy Ghost. *' e

262

RELIGION IN AMERICA.

[Book VI.

ry, they sprinkle, or, rather, pour water
upon the head of the candidate, after which
follow the imposition of hands and prayer.
They have no order of preachers, but eve-
ry one in their assembly has the liberty to
speak, to expound the Scriptures, to sing,
and to pray.

The Mennonists of Holland, as is well
known, claim to be descended in the main
from those Waldenses who, towards the
close of the twelfth century, emigrated in
great numbers to that country. If this be
so, then the Mennonists in America have
in their veins the blood of those wonder-
ful survivers of long ages of persecution
and oppression.

CHAPTER XV.

SMALLER METHODIST DENOMINATIONS.

Secessions of greater or less magnitude
have detached themselves from time to
time, and glided off like avalanches from
the Mount Zion of the Methodist Episco-
pal Church, not, however, so as to dimin-
ish its grandeur, or change its physiogno-
my ; but most of them sooner or later
melted away to nothing.

The first that occurred was that of the
Rev. William Hammet, of Charleston,
South Carolina, in 1785. His followers
took the name of Primitive Methodists.
The second was that of the Rev. James
O'Kelly, in Virginia, about 1792. His fol-
lowers called themselves Republican Meth-
odists. This was by far the more serious
of the two, but both soon and forever dis-
appeared from the scene.

In the year 1816, about 1000 of the peo-
ple of colour in the Methodist Episcopal
Church at Philadelphia, headed by a Mr.
Richard Allen, seceded from the main
body. Allen was a man of considerable
talent, who, from having been once a slave
in one of the Southern States, besides pro-
curing his freedom, had acquired a hand-
some property, and becoming a preacher
in the Methodist connexion, rose to be or-
dained an elder. After his secession he
was ordained a bishop at the first General
Conference of his followers, by prayer and
the imposition of hands by five local el-
ders, of whom one was a presbyter in the
Protestant Episcopal Church. What the
number of ministers in this small com-
munion may be I know not. Since the
death of Alien, instead of a bishop it has
two superintendents.

Another secession of coloured members
took place at New-York in 1819, and it has
now several congregations of people of
colour in New-Jersey, Connecticut, Rhode
Island, and Massachusetts. Three years
ago they had twenty-one circuits, thirty-
two preachers, and 2608 communicants.
They are beUeved to have adhered to the

doctrines and polity of the body from
which they seceded, their dissatisfaction '
with which arose from their preachers not
being admitted into the itineracy, and,
consequently, having no share in the gov-
ernment of the church, nor a right to re-
ceive salaries, being only local preachers.

There were one or two other secessions
a little later, one of which was headed by
the Rev. Mr. Stillwell, in the city of New-
York, by which the Methodist Episcopal
Church lost a few of its congregations, but
they were not of such consequence as to
call for special notice. But it .sustained
a far more serious loss in 1828, when a
considerable number of preachers, chiefly
local, and of lay members, withdrew from
it at Baltimore, and in other parts of the
country. As this secession has resulted
in the formation of a new communion,
which promises to be permanent, it calls
for farther notice.

In what was said of the Methodist Epis-
copal Church, the reader will have re-
marked that its constitution lodges the su-
preme power, legislative, judicial, and ex-
ecutive, in the itinerating ministers. They
alone compose the Yearly and General
Conferences. But, to two classes of the
members, this has been felt to be oppres-
sive. First, to the local preachers, who,
although they may be ordained ministers,
can have no voice in the government of
the church. Nay, ministers who may have
been for years in the itinerating service,
the moment that, from sickness, duty to
their families, insufficient support, or any
other cause, they leave that service, have
no longer any voice in the aflfairs of that
church. Next, there were laymen who
thought that the laity ought to be repre-
sented in the church courts ; that is,
should be admitted to the Annual and Gen-
eral Conferences.

This dissatisfaction began to assume a
more decided character about the year
1820. A journal having been established
for the purpose of advocating what were
called " equal rights," this led to the send-
ing up of numerous petitions to the Gen-
eral Conference held in 1824. These be-
ing unfavourably received, much excite-
ment and discussion followed. The party
that wanted reform urged their demands
with more eagerness, and, consequently,
some suspensions from church privileges
took place in Baltimore and elsewhere.
Such was tlie state of matters when the
General Conference met in 1828 ; failing
in obtaining redress from which, they who
thought tliemselves aggrieved seceded, and
formed a new body, under the title of the
Protestant Methodist Church in the
United States. In taking this step they
have made no change in their doctrines,
nor any imiovations in church polity, be-
yond what they had unsuccessfully peti-

Chap. XVI]

FRIENDS, OR QUAKERS.

263

tioned for — the admission of lay represent-
atives and of the local preachers to the
government of the church. They have
also ceased to have bishops, all ordination
among them being now confined to the im-
position of hands by presbyters. Their
General Conference meets once in four
years, like that from which they seceded.

This body has one general and twenty-
two yearly conferences, 1200 travelling
and local preachers, 60,000 communicants,
and 500 places of worship. Its General
Conference has instituted a Board of Do-
mestic and Foreign Missions, as also a
Book Concern, which has its headquar-
ters in Baltimore. There are four reli-
gious newspapers, also, published under its
auspices. Its churches are to be found in
all parts of the country, but particularly
in the Middle, Northern, and Western
States.

Calvinistic Methodists — a small Welsh
communion, consisting of twenty churches
and as many pastors. They are an evan-
gelical and zealous body, and as it is only
a few years since the greater part of them
came to America, they still use the Welsh
language in their public worship and in
their families. Though found in several
states, they are most numerous, I believe,
in New-York.*

CHAPTER XVI.

THE FRIENDS, OB QUAKERS.

This religious community first appeared
in England towards the middle of the sev-
enteenth century, and had an early share
in the colonization of the United States.
We have seen that its reputed founder and

* The number of national churches among the
Welsh emigrants and their descendants m the Uni-
ted States is far greater than is commonly supposed.
From a statement which has been kindly furnished
me while this work has been going through the press,
by the Rev. Jonathan J. Jones, pastor of a Welsh
Presbyterian church in the city of New-York, I
learn that there are, besides the Calvinistic Metho-
dist churches mentioned above, no less than 38 Con-
gregational churches, 12 Baptist, 2 Presbyterian, 3
Episcopal, and 3 Wesleyan Methodist. The statis-
tics of twenty of these churches show about 2640
communicants, 8050 members of congregations, and
from 630 to 1030 dollars contributed annually to
spread the knowledge of the Gospel. With the ex-
ception of the Calvinistic Methodists and the Pres-
byterians, the Welsh churches are included in the
estimate which is made of the denominations whose
name they bear. For instance, the Welsh Baptists
come in under the head of the Regular Baptists ; the
Welsh Congregationalists are included in the state-
ment which 1 have made respecting the Congrega-
tional body. Of the names of forty-one of the pas-
tors of the churches mentioned in the statement
furnished by Mr. Jones, seven are Jones, seven are
Williams, three are Powells, three are Evans; and
among the others we find those of Griffiths, Roberts,
Lewis, Morris, Edwards, Richards, Powell, Davis,
Morgan, Owen, Philips, Jenkins, and others which
are purely Welsh.

first preacher, George Fox, visited several
of the Southern provinces, and announced
his message, as he himself relates, to a
" willing people." But the proselytes to
his peaceful doctrines, especially if they
attempted to propagate them, encountered
violent persecution almost everywhere, and
although they were from the first protected
in Rhode Island, and did at length obtain
toleration in the South, they never made
much progress until, through the influence
and exertions of William Penn, they ob-
tained an asylum, first in New-Jersey, and
afterward in Pennsylvania, towards the
close of that century.

They are now supposed to have about
500 congregations in the United States, and
are chiefly settled in the southeastern part
of Pennsylvania, in New-Jersey, New-
York, Rhode Island, Maryland, and Virgin-
ia, though some may be found in all the
States. In Philadelphia alone they have
six or eight large congregations or " meet-
ings."

It is far from easy to make out what
were the doctrines really held by George
Fox, and some of the other early Friends,
or Quakers, as they are more commonly
called. They spoke so much about the
" light within," and the '' Christ in the
heart," and so little about the proper di-
vinity of Jesus Christ, the inspiration and
divine authority of the Scriptures, &c.,
that good men of that day much doubted
how far they held the saving truths of the
Gospel. But the subsequent writings of
Penn, Barclay, and others, to whom may
be added many excellent authors of the
present day, make it certain that a decided
majority of well-informed Friends have
been sound in " the faith that saves."

But within the last fifteen years a deplo-
rable schism has taken place. Doctrines
of the most dangerous character, imbody-
ing, in fact, a kind of fanatical deism, hav-
ing been widely disseminated by the preach-
ing and writings of the late Elias Hicks, of
Long Island, New- York, who was one of
their ministers, they separated into two
quite distinct bodies, each maintaining that
it held the doctrines of the original Qua-
kers.* One party is called the Orthodox,
the other the Hicksites, from the name of
their leader, or, rather, founder. Their rel-
ative numbers are not exactly known, but
the Orthodox are supposed to be fully three

* The highest law court in New-Jersey decided a
few years ago, in a suit respecting property held by
one of the "Quarterly Meetings" in that state, that the
so-called Orthodox Quakers are the true successors
of the founders of the denomination ; in other words,
hold the true doctrines of the people called Friends.
This decision was formed after a long and very
thorough investigation of the subject, conducted by
a master in chancery, who was employed during
several months in taking the testimony of distin-
guished Friends as to what were the doctrines of the
society.

264

RELIGION IN AMERICA.

[Book. VI.

fifths of the whole, or to have 300 congre-
gations.

The peculiarities of the Friends, in re-
spect to plainness of dress, refusing to un-
cover the head as a mark of respect to
their fellow-men, whatever be their station,
rank, or office, the use of the singular thou
and thee instead of the plural you in all ca-
ses where custom has sanctioned the su-
perseding of the former by the latter, their
refusing to take an oath, and to bear arms,
are too well known to require remark.

They have no " hireling ministry," and
think it wrong to educate men for that of-
fice, maintaining that those only should be
suffered to preach who are moved from time
to time by the Spirit to deliver a message
from God. All remain perfectly silent at
their meetings, unless some one feels thus
moved to speak for the edification of those
present, or to pray. In almost every con-
gregation there are members who, from
being often moved to speak, are called
" preachers," and they may be of either
sex. Some, too, think that the Spirit
moves them to travel about for the purpose
of visiting and preaching. But these, be-
fore receiving authority to proceed on such
missions, must first be approved by the
Monthly and Quarterly Meetings to which
they belong. Though they have no sala-
ries, provision is made, when required, for
the support of them and their families by
presents from richer Friends. The super-
vision of the churches is vested in the
monthly meetings, composed of all the
congregations within a convenient distance
from each other ; the Quarterly Meetings,
which comprise all within a larger circle ;
and the Yearly Meetings, including all with-
in one or more of the States, and of which,
we believe, there are eight.

The Friends have a Tract Society, a
Bible Society, and some Sunday-schools.
They have made some attempts, also, but

to no great extent, to bring the Indian tribes
to the knowledge of the Gospel.

The characteristic traits of this peace-
loving people are the same in the United
States as in England and elsewhere — fru-
gality, simplicity of manners, strictness of
morals, care for the poor of their society,
and abhorrence of oppression in every
form. This may be emphatically said of
the Orthodox. Of the Hicksites, who, in
my opinion, have departed fundamentally
from the Gospel, it is to be feared that a far
less favourable account will yet have to be
given. The substantial orthodoxy of Will-
iam Penn, and many others of the same
school, has produced good fruits, whieh
never can be looked for from the delusions
of Elias Hicks.

So far from rapidly increasing in Amer-
ica, I rather think that the Friends are
stationary, if not positively declining, in
point of numbers. The too frequent neg-
lect of the religious education of their
children, together with the rejection of the
outward administration of Baptism and the
Lord's Supper, must ever prevent them, in
my opinion, from enjoying great or con-
tinued prosperity as a church.

CHAPTER XVII.

THE SU.MMARY.

We have now completed our notices of
the various evangelical churches or denom-
inations in the United States ; and to assist
the reader in taking a general view of the
whole, we shall place them before his eye
at once in a tabular form. In doing this,
we shall first arrange them in the order in
which we have already passed them under
our review, that of their successive ap-
pearance in America. We shall then re-
arrange them under various heads, such as
Episcopal, Congregational, &c.

Ministers.

1,176
27

EPISCOP.tL. ■ ChiirchM.

Protestant Episcopalians 1,200

Moravians 23

Total 17223

II. Congregational.

Orthodo.t Churches ...... 1,500

III. Baptist.

Regular Baptists 8,482

Free-Will Baptists 1,165

Seventh Day Baptists 59

Disciples of Christ, or Campbellites
Winebrennarians

Total 9,706

IV. Presbyterian.

Regular Presbyterians— Old and New Schools . 3,584

Cumberland Presbyterians 550

Dutch Reformed Church 267

Associate Synod 200

Associate Reformed 300

Reformed Presbyterians 94

Lutherans 1,371

German Reformed GOO

Total C,9G0 4,406

Communicants.

100,000
3,000

Population.

800,000
12,000

1,203

103,000

812,000

1,350

180,000

1,000,000

4,036*

637,477 ^

4,000,000

771
46

61,372
6,077

704,926

4,853

4,000,000

2,672

279,782 ^

550

75,000

259

29,322

100

15,000

1..

165

26,000

' 4,500,000

10,500

423

146,,303

180

100,000 )

C81 ,897 4,500,000

* See remarks in chapter iv. of this book for the grounds on which the ordained ministers in the Reguhir Baptist com-
munion are estimated at 41)36.

Chap. XVII.]

V. Methodist.

Methodist Episcopal Church

Protestant Methodists
Welsh Calvinistic Methodists
United Brethren in Christ .

Evangelical Association

THE SUMMARY.

Churches or

01 her places
of worship.

265

25,109*

2,000

, 2,000

900

Total 30,029

Preachers.

3,988 T. M.t
7,730 L. M.t
, 500 T. M.
< 700 L. M.
20
250 T. M.
350 L. M.
112 T. M.
200 L. M.

4,870 T. M.
8,980 L. M.

mmanicants.
,0ti8,525

Populalioir,
4,500,000

60,000

300,000

2,500

12,500

50,000

200,000

14,000

40,000

1,195,025 5,052,500

Mennonists
Orthodox Quakers

200
300

By uniting the Congregationalists with
the Presbyterians, which, as they are in all
important respects the same, is perfectly
proper, we reduce the evangelical denomi-
nations in the United States to four great
families, and, thus arranged, they present
the following summary :

Churches. Ministers.

Episcopalians.. 1,223 1,203

Presbyterians . . 8,466 5,756

Baptists 9,706 4,853

Methodists 30.029 4,870*

Total .... 49,424

Commun.
103,000
861,897
704,926
1,195,025

Population.
812,000
5,500,000
4,000,000
5,052,500

16,682 2,864,848 15,364,000

This synopsis suggests a few observa-
tions.

1. We have left out the Campbellites,
both because we have no correct informa-
tion as to their statistics, and because
though some of them are, no doubt, sound
on all essential points, yet, not knowing
how many, we cannot place them with en-
tire confidence among the evangelical de-
nominations. Neither have we included
the Mennonists, the German United Breth-
ren, the Winebvennarians, the Orthodox
Friends, nor some of the smaller seces-
sions from the Methodist Episcopal Church.
Had all these been included, the number
of churches, ministers, and members, to-
gether with the amount of the general
population under the moral influence of
the churches included in this category,
would have been much greater.

3. It is impossible to state the number
of churches or congregations, properly so
called. Those of the Episcopalians, Pres-
byterians, and Baptists, taken together,
amount to 19,395. But those belonging to
the different Methodist communions it is
impossible to ascertain, no return of them
having been made. There can be no doubt
that, of the places of worship which I have
given on President Durbin's authority,
more than 10,000 are churches properly so
called. This, then, would make the entire
number of the churches of the evangelical
denominations, without counting the Camp-
bellites, Mennonists, «fcc., exceed 29,000 ;
and supposing these to contain upon an
average 500 people each, they would ac-
commodate more than 14,500,000 of the
18,500,000 of inhabitants. But if we take
in all the places, whether churches or not,

* Travelling ministers.

at which the Gospel is preached, in most
cases once a week at least, and in others^
once a fortnight, seldom less often, these
will be found to amount to 49,424. And
even to these there ought to be added a
part, at least, of the Campbellite, Mennon-
ist, and Winebrennarian places of wor.ship,
and those of some of the smaller Methodist
sects, before we can arrive at a full enu-
meration of all the churches and other
places in which salvation by a crucified
Saviour is proclaimed to sinners.

3. The summary gives 16,682 as th^;
number of ministers who devote thenir
selves entirely to the work. Adding the
8980 Methodist local preachers, we have
25,662 as the number of actual preachers
of the Gospel. Even this is exclusive of
those of the omitted denominations, and of
the licentiates in the Baptist and Presby-
terian churches, who cannot well be esti-
mated at less than 1300, and who may
fairly be set against the deduction to be
made on account of ordained ministers
employed as professors and missionaries.
But taking the above 16,682 as the number,
all things considered, of ministers that are
evangelical on all the saving doctrines of
the Gospel, and divide the population of
the United States, which, in the beginning
of the year 1844, was about 18,500,000, by
this number, the result will be one such
minister for less than 1110 souls. Now,
although figures cannot express moral in-
fluences, such calculations are neverthe-
less not without their use. A country
which has an evangelical preacher on an
average for every 1110 souls, may be
considered as pretty well supplied, if they
be well distributed and faithful. A perfect
distribution is, indeed, altogether impos-
sible with a population rapidly diffusing it-
self over immense, half-cultivated regions,
yet much is done to obviate the disadvan-
tages of such a state of things. The aid

* I am indebted for the above estimate of the
probable number of places, including churches,
schoolhouses, and private houses, in which the
Methodist itinerant and local ministers preach, to my
friend President Durbin. It has been made with
much care, and, I doubt not, is considerably withia
the truth. President Durbin has a wide and accu-
rate acquaintance with the country, as well as with
the entire economy of the church to which he belongs.

t Travelling ministers. J Local ministers. ,

266

RELIGION IN AMERICA.

[Book VI.

rendered by the Methodist local preachers
must be regarded as an important auxiliary
to the more regular ministry. The gen-
eral faithfulness of this ministry has al-
ready been fully discussed.

4. The members in full communion with
the churches enumerated exceed 2,864,848
in number. Now, although it be very cer-
tain that all these do not live up to their
profession, yet as they belong for the most
part to churches that endeavour to main-
tain discipline, we may fairly presume that
they comprehend at least as large a pro-
portion of consistent Christians as any
equal number of professors in other parts
of Christendom.

5. The last column of the summary as-
sumes 15,364,000 of the whole population
as more or less under the influence of the
evangelical denominations. Accuracy in
such a calculation is hardly to be expect-
ed, but I have taken the best data I could
find, and doubt not that the estimate I have
made is not much wide of the truth. In-
cluding all the denominations that claim to
be evangelical, this estimate would exceed
15,500,000.

CHAPTER XVm.

NUMBER OF EVANGELICAL SECTS.

Much has been said in Europe about the
multiplicity of sects in the United States,
and many seem of opinion that the reli-
gious liberty enjoyed there has led to the al-
most indefinite creation of different reli-
gious conmtiunions. This requires a little
examination.

No doubt absolute religious liberty will
ever be attended with a considerable sub-
division of the religious world into sects.
Men will ever differ in their views respect-
ing doctrine and church order, and it is to
be expected that such differences will re-
sult in the formation of distinct ecclesias-
tical communions. In the absence of re-
ligious liberty matters may be much other-
wise, but how far for the better a little con-
sideration will show. People in that case
may be constrained to acquiesce, ostensi-
bly at least, in one certain ecclesiastical
organization, and in certain modes of faith
and worship sanctioned and established by
law. But such acquiescence, it is well
known, instead of being real and cordial, is
often merely external and constrained ;
and if so, its worthlessness is certain and
palpable.

But as respects the evangelical commu-
nions in the United States, it must have
struck the reader that this multiplicity has
mainly arisen, not so much from the abuse
of religious liberty by the indulgence of a
capricious and sectarian spirit, as from the
various quarters from which the country
.has been colonized. Coming in large num-

I bers, and sometimes in compact bodies,
from different parts of the Old World, no-
I thing was more natural than the desire of
establishing for themselves and their pos-
terity the same religious formularies and
modes of worship, church government, and
discipline which they had cherished in the
lands that had given them birth, and perse-
cution for their adherence to which had led,
in many instances, to their having emigra-
ted. Hence we find, in the United States,
counterparts not only to the Episcopalian,
Congregational, Baptist, and Methodist
churches of England, and to the Presbyte-
rian churches of Scotland, Ireland, and
Wales, but likewise to the Dutch and Ger-
man Reformed churches, the German Lu-
theran Church, the Moravians, Mennonists,
&c. Indeed, there is scarcely an evangeli-
cal commimion in America which is not the
mere extension by immigration of a simi-
lar body in Europe. The exceptions hard-
ly can be reckoned such, for they consist for
the most part of separations from the lar-
ger bodies, not because of differences with
regard to essential doctrines and forms of
church government, but on points of such
inferior consequence that they can scarce-
ly be regarded as new sects at all.

In fact, if we take all the evangelical
communions that have fallen under review,
and contemplate the confessedly funda-
mental doctrines maintained by each, it is
surprising to observe how nearly they are
agreed. It may, we believe, be demon-
strated that among the evangelical com-
munions in the United States, numerous
as they are, there is as much real harmony
of doctrine, if not of church economy, as
could be found in the evangelical churches
of the first three centuries.

Indeed, as we before remarked, by group-
ing the former in families, according to
their great distinctive features, we at once
reduce them to four, or at most five. Thus
the Presbyterians, commonly so called, of
the Old and New Schools, the Congrega-
tionalists, the Dutch and German Reform-
ed, the Scotch Secession churches,* and,
we may add, the Lutherans and Cumber-
land Presbyterians, form but one great
Presbyterian family, composed of elder and
younger members, all of them essentially
Presbyterian in church polity, and very
nearly coinciding, at bottom, in their doc-
trinal views. Between several of these
communions there subsists a most intimate
fraternal intercourse, and the ministers of
one find no difficulty in entering the service
of another without being re-ordained.

Again, between the different evangelical
Baptist sects there is no really essential or

* An effort is now making, which promises to he
.successful, to unite all the Scottish Secession church-
es in one body. This coalescence of churches hold-
ing similar doctrines and maintaining similar orga-
nizations may be expected to occur often.

Chap. XIX.]

ALLEGED WANT OF HARMONY.

267

important difference ; and the same may
be said of the Methodists. Indeed, the
evangelical Christians of the United States
exhibit a most remarkable coincidence of
views on all important points. On all doc-
trines necessary to salvation — the sum of
which is " repentance towards God," and
"faith towards our Lord Jesus Christ" —
there is really no diversity of opinion at all.
Of this I may now give a most decisive
proof.

I have already spoken of the American
Sunday-school Union. Among the lay-
men who compose its Board of Directors,
are to be found members of all the main
branches of the evangelical Protestant
Church — Episcopalians, Congregational-
ists. Baptists, Presbyterians, Lutherans,
Dutch and German Reformed, Methodists,
Quakers, and Moravians. It publishes a
great many books for Sunday-school libra-
ries every year, none, of course, being ad-
mitted the contents of which are likely to
give offence to any member of the Board,
or repugnant to the peculiarities of any of
the religious bodies represented at it. In
the summer of 1841 the Rev. Dr. Hodge, a
professor in the Princeton theological sem-
inary, was requested by its committee of
publications to write a book exhibiting the
great doctrines of the Gospel as held by all
evangelical Christians. This he did to the
entire satisfaction, not only of the Board,
but I believe I may say of all evangelical
Christians throughout the land that have
read his work. It is appropriately entitled
" The Way of Life ;" the subjects are the
Scriptures ; sin ; justification ; faith ; repent-
ance ; profession of religion ; and holy liv-
ing ; under which several heads the funda-
mental doctrines of the Gospel are present-
ed in an able and yet most simple and famil-
iar manner. It is a work, in short, which
none can read without surprise and delight
at observing the vast extent and fulness of
the system of Truth, in which all evangel-
ical communions are agreed.

These communions, as they exist in the
United States, ought to be viewed as
branches of one great body, even the entire
visible Church of Christ in this land.
"Whatever may have been the circumstan-
ces out of which they arose, they are but
constituent parts of one great whole — di-
visions of one vast army — though each
brigade, and even each regiment, may have
its own banner, and its own part of the field
to occupy. And although to the inexperi-
enced eye such an army as it moves on-
ward against the enemy may have a con-
fused appearance, the different divisions of
infantry bemg arranged separately, the ar-
tillery interspersed, and the cavalry some-
times in the front, sometimes in the rear,
and sometimes between the columns, yet
all are in their proper places ; and to the
.mind of him who assigns them their places,

and directs their movements, all is syste-
matic order where the uninitiated sees no-
thing but confusion. Momentary collis-
ions, it is true, may sometimes happen —
there may be jostling and irritation occa-
sionally— yet they all fulfil their appointed
parts and discharge their appropriate du-
ties. So is it with the " sacramental host
of God's elect."

No doubt this multiplication of sects is
attended with serious evils, especially in the
new and thinly-peopled settlements. It oft-
en renders the churches small and feeble.
But this is an evil that diminishes with the
increase of the population. With a zealous
and capable ministry the truth gains ground,
the people are gathered into churches, con-
gregations increase in numbers and consist-
ency, and though weak ones are occasion-
ally dissolved, the persons who composed
them either going into other evangelical
churches, or emigrating to other parts of
the country, such as maintain their ground
become only the stronger ; and it often hap-
pens, particularly in the rural districts, that
the number of sects diminishes while the
population increases.

Great, however, as may be the disadvan-
tages resulting from this multiplicity of
different communions, were they all re-
duced to one or two, we apprehend still
worse evils would follow. Diversity on
non-essential points among the churches
and ministers of a neighbourhood often
gives opportunity to those who reside in it
to attend the services and ministrations
which each finds most edifying, instead of
being reduced to the sad alternative of
either joining in forms of worship which
they conscientiously disapprove, and of
listening to a minister whom they find un-
edifying, or of abstaining from public wor-
ship altogether. Rather than this, it is sure-
ly far better to bear the expense of having
two or three churches in a community, for
which, looking only at the mere amount
of population, one might suffice.

CHAPTER XIX.

ALLEGED WANT OF HARMONY AMONG THE EVAN-
GELICAL CHRISTIANS OF THE UNITED STATES.

It has been often and widely stated in
Europe, on the authority of a certain class
of visitants from the Old World who have
published their Travels, Tours, &c., that
there is much unseemly strife among our
various religious denominations. Here, I
hesitate not to say, there has been much
gross misrepresentation. No doubt our
evangelical churches feel the. influence of
mutual emulation. Placed on the same
great field, coining into contact with each
other at many points, and all deeply and
conscientiously attached to their peculiar

268

RELIGION IN AMERICA.

[Book VI.

doctrines and ecclesiastical economy, they
must naturally exercise, on the one hand,
the utmost watchfulness with respect to
each other, and, on the other, employ all
the legitimate means in their power to aug-
ment their own numbers. The result of
such mutual provocation to good works is
eminently happy. There may, indeed, be
temporary cases of disagreeable collision
and unbrotherly jealousy, but ordinarily
these are of short duration. The best of
men are, after all, but men. Hence even
a devoted Gospel minister, after having
long had some particular neighbourhood all
to himself, may dread the opening of a new
place of worship of a different communion
in the vicinity of his own, lest some of his
hearers should thereby be drawn away;
and such an apprehension may, for a time,
excite some not very kind feelings in his
breast. But universal experience shows
that such feelings are usually groundless,
and soon cease to be indulged by any but
the most narrow-minded persons.

Sometimes, too, a zealous, and in most
cases vain and ignorant preacher, will show
himself in a neighbourhood where the
churches all belong to communions differ-
ent from his, and there, in his self-suffi-
ciency, begin to denounce and attempt to
proselytize. Such men, however, soon
create disgust rather than any other feel-
ing ; for with us most of those who join
this or that church, do so after examination
of its doctrines, government, and discipline,
and when once satisfied on these points,
above all, after finding its services edify-
ing, they are not disposed to allow them-
selves to be disturbed by every bigoted and
noisy brawler that may seek to gain them
over to his creed and church, which, after
all, may not essentially differ from their
own.

Notwithstanding such cases, I hesitate
not to affirm that, taking the evangelical
churches in the mass, their intercourse, in
all parts of the country, manifests a remark-
able degree of mutual respect and frater-
nal affection. While earnest in maintain-
ing, alike from the pulpit and the press,
their own views of Truth and church or-
der, there is rarely anything like denunci-
ation and unchurching other orthodox com-
munions, but every readiness, on the con-
trary, to offer help when needed. Thus,
among all but the Episcopalians, whose
peculiar views of ordination stand in the
way, there is a frequent exchanging of
pulpits. I have known the pulpit of^an ex-
cellent Baptist minister in Philadelphia,
when he was laid aside by ill health, to be
supplied during two years by other minis-
ters, and by those of Paedobaptist churches
for much of that time. During more than
seven years the author of this work was
engaged in benevolent efforts in America,
which led him repeatedly to visit every

State in the American Confederacy, and
while on this mission he preached in the
pulpits of no less than ten evangelical com-
munions, including all the leading ones.

This brotherly feeling widely prevails
among the laity also. In all parts of the
country they scruple not, when there is no
service in their own places of worship, to
attend others, though of another commu-
nion; and, indeed, in our cities and large
towns, not a few Christians regularly at-
tend the lectures of pastors not of their own
communion, when these fall on different
evenings from those of their own pastors.
Not only so, but as there is no bar to in-
tercommunion, except in the case of the
Baptists, whose views respecting baptism
in all but a few instances prevent it, and
in that of the small Scottish Covenanting^
churches, the members of one evangelical
communion often join with those of anoth-
er in receiving the Lord's Supper in the
same church. In this respect, a very cath-
olic spirit happily prevails. The answer of
the Kev. Mr. Johnes, pastor of the Pres-
byterian church in Morristown, New-Jer-
sey, to General Washington, who, on one
occasion during the war of the Revolution,
desired to receive the sacrament of the
Lord's Supper with Mr Johnes's congrega-
tion, but stated that he was an Episco-
palian, is just what a thousand ministers
of the Gospel would make in like circum-
stances : " Sir, it is not a Presbyterian or
an Episcopalian table, but the Lord's table,
and you as well as every other Christian
are welcome to it."

Numerous occasions, moreover, bring all
evangehcal Christians together. The Bi-
ble, Temperance, Colonization, Sunday-
school, and Tract Societies, not to men-
tion such as are formed from time to time
for particular and perhaps local objects.
Sabbath Observance, Education, and the
like, all bring Christians of different de-
nominations into better acquaintance with
each other, and tend to promote mutual
respect and affection.

Within the last few years Professor
Schmucker, already mentioned, has pro-
posed a plan of union for all the evangel-
ical Protestant churches, which has met
with much favour, so that a society has been
formed for promoting it. Dr. Schmucker,
who, I may remark, is much beloved among
Christians of all denominations, as well as
extensively known by his writings, does not
propose any amalgamation or fusion of the
churches, but the adoption merely of cer-
tain fixed principles, upon which all the
evangelical churches shall acknowledge
the ecclesiastical acts of each other, and
maintain a fraternal intercommunion.

Another proposal of like tendency will,
I trust, ere long, be carried into effect. It
is that there should be a yearly meeting of
the friends of foreign missions, held in ono

Chap. I.]

UNEVANGELICAL CHURCHES.

269

or other of the principal cities, for receiv-
ing summary statements from each of the
missionary societies of its operations and
success. Such a meeting, if well conduct-
ed, might do much substantial good, both
by diffusing important information as to
the progress of the kingdom of Christ, and
also by promoting brotherly love among
Christians of different churches.

Taking all the professed Christians,
amounting, it has been seen, to more than
2,500,000, in our evangehcal churches, I
hesitate not to say that far more mutual
respect and brotherly love prevail among
them than would were they all coerced
into one denomination. The world has al-
ready seen what sort of union and brother-
hood can be produced by all being brought
into one immense Church, that admits of
no deviation from the decrees of its coun-
cils and conclaves. There may, indeed, be
external agreement, yet beneath this appa-
rent unanunity there may be internal di-
visions and heartburnings in abundance.
There may be union against all who dare
to impugn her dogmas, but who can tell
the almost infernal haired with which her
Religious Orders have been found to re-
gard each other? Compared with this, all
the temporary attritions, together with all
the controversies and exacerbations of feel-
ing that accompany them, that take place
in our evangelical Protestant denomina-
tions, are as nothing.

Common civility, on the contrary, con-
curs with Christian charity to make the en-
lightened members of one denomination
respect and esteem those of another, and
to appreciate the beautiful sentiment re-
cently attributed by the chancellor of the
exchequer, in the British Parliament, to the
late Mr. Wilberforce ; " I experience," said
that distinguished philanthropist, " a feel-
ing of triumph when I can get the better of
these little distinctions which keep Chris-
tians asunder. I would not that any one
should sacrifice his principles ; but, exerci-
sing the Protestant right of private judg-

ment, leave each to his own conclusions.
It is delightful to see that in this way men
of different sects can unite together for the
prosecution of their projects for the ame-
lioration of human society. When I thus
unite with persons of a different persua-
sion from myself, it affords me an aug-
mented degree of pleasure ; I rise into a
higher nature, into a purer air ; I feel that
fetters which before bound me are dissolv-
ed, and I delight in that blessed liberty of
love which carries all other blessings with
it."

Still, the question remains, Whence have
foreigners, while visiting the United States,
received the impression, which, by being
promulgated in their writings, has led me
to write this chapter. The answer is easy.
While such is the prevailing respect and
regard for each other among the members
of our evangelical churches, they all unite
in opposing, on the one hand, the errors
of Rome, and, on the other, the heresy
that denies the proper divinity and atone-
ment of Christ, together with those other
aberrations from the true Gospel which
that heresy involves. Now, it is this re-
fusal to hold fellowship with errors of vital
moment, it is this earnest contending for
saving truth, that leads tourists in the
United States, whom chance or choice has
thrown into the society of persons opposed
in their religious tenets to the evangeli-
cal churches, to charge us with uncharita-
bleness. Hinc ilia lachryma.

We deny not that in some of the divis-
ions of Churches that have taken place
in the United States, men have at times
permitted themselves to speak and write
with an acrimony unbecoming the Gos-
pel, and, by so doing, may have made an
unfavourable impression on foreigners.
But such cases have been local and ex-
ceptional rather than general and ordina-
ry, and never could justify any sweeping
charge against the evangelical denomina-
tions as a body.

BOOK VI I.
UNEVANGELICAL DENOMINATIONS IN AMERICA.

CHAPTER I.

INTRODUCTORY REMARKS.

Having thus reviewed, as far as the
compass of our work will permit, the Evan-
gelical Churches or Denominations in the
United States of America, we come now
to speak of those that are considered as
unev angelical by Orthodox Protestants ;
and under this head we shall, for conve-
nience' sake, range all those sects that

either renounce, or fail faithfully to exhib-
it, the fundamental and saving truths of
the Gospel. Here, however, let us not
be misunderstood. When we put Roman
Catholics in the same category with Uni-
tarians, we would not for a moment be
supposed as placing them on the same foot-
ing. The former, doubtless, as a Church,
hold those doctrines on which true believ-
ers in all ages have placed their hopes for
eternal life, yet these have been so buried

270

RELIGION IN AMERICA.

[Book VII,

amid the rubbish of multiplied human tra-
ditions and inventions, as to remain hid
from the great mass of the people. Still,
as in their doctrinal formularies they have
not denied " the Lord that bought them,"
however much they may have multiplied
other " saviours," they must not be con-
founded with those who have openly re-
jected that " sure foundation which is laid
in Zion." While, therefore, we must de-
plore " their holding the truth in unrigh-
teousness," and instead of presenting
through their numerous priesthood the
simple and fundamental doctrines of the
Gospel, their supplanting these, in a great
measure, by introducing " another Gos-
pel," we would not say that an enlight-
ened mind may not find in their church
the way of life, obstructed- though it be by
innumerable obstacles.

Neither would we be thought to put the
Unitarians on the same footing with the
Universalists. The moral influence of the
preaching of the former, and their standing
in society, make them far more valuable
than the latter as a component part of the
general population. Nor would we put
the Jews, or even the more serious part
of the Universalists, on the same level
with " Socialists," " Shakers," and " Mor-
mons."

All that we mean by putting these vari-
ous bodies in one category is, that they
can none of tliem be associated with the
evangelical Protestant Churches — with
churches whose religion is the Bible, the
whole Bible, and nothing but the Bible —
nor, indeed, do we suppose that, however
much they may dislike being all reviewed
in one and the same section of this work,
they would any of them choose to be as-
sociated with the evangelical Protestant
communions, or challenge for themselves
that appellation.

The doctrines and economy of the Ro-
man Catholics being well known almost
everywhere, a very general account of
that Church may suffice, though it is by
far the most important of all the bodies
that arc to be noticed in this section of
our work. As the appearance, and the
spread of Unitarianism in " the land of the
Pilgrims," on the other hand, has been mat-
ter of much surprise and curiosity in Eu-
rope, as full an account of its rise, prog-
ress, and present prospects in the United
States will be given as our plan will per-
mit. Of the other bodies that find a place
here, we shall take such a notice, at least,
as will enable the reader to form a correct
idea of their true character and present
condition.

CHAPTER II.

THE ROMAN CATHOLIC CHURCH.

Maryland, Ave have seen, was original-
ly a Roman Catholic colony, founded ou
most liberal principles, under the auspi-
ces and through the exertions of Lord Bal-
timore. And although Protestant Episco-
pacy was established in the colony under
the reign of William and Mary, the laws
of England agahist Roman Catholics be-
ing at the same time rigorously enforced,
they continued, nevertheless, to form the
most numerous and influential body in the
province down to the American Revolu-
tion. Even to this day, though now but
a small minority of the entire population,
not exceeding, in fact, 80,000, and inferior
in point of numbers both to the Protestant
Episcopalians and Methodists, they have
much influence, and are perhaps the wealth-
iest communion in the state.

Except in Pennsylvania and Rhode Isl-
and, I am not aware that the Roman Cath-
olics anywhere enjoyed their fair share of
political rights at the commencement of
the war of the Revolution, but now, I be-
lieve, they are everywhere upon the same
footing with others, and enjoy all the po-
litical privileges that our Constitution af-
fords.*

* I have often heard Roman Catholics in Europe
reproach the Protestants of the United States with
intolerance ; and in proof of this, they have chiefly
urged the burnmg by the populace of a convent at
Charlestown, near Boston, in 1834. That, indeed,,
is the only case, I believe, which even they them-
selves can possibly urge as amounting to persecution ;
and as, in the notoriety that it has obtained, it has
been sadly misrepresented, especially by the late i
Bishop England, in his letters to the Propaganda
Society, I need make no apology for taking some
notice of it.

The convent in question, which was one of Ursu-
line Sisters, and was founded in 1820, was rather a
boarding-school for girls than anything else. The
number of nuns varied from eight to ten, and that of
the pupils from twenty to si.xty. The buildings, fur-
niture, and grounds were ample and valuable. The
occasion of its being destroyed was as follows : One
of the nuns, a Miss Harrison, who taught music,
while suffering from temporary derangement caused
by excitement, left the establishment for a short
tmie. Hence a report that she had been ill treated,
which soon spread through the adjacent borough ot
Charlestown, and then through Boston, which is
within two miles' distance. Strong suspicions having
been entertained for several years, on what founda-
tion I know not, of highly improper conduct on the
part of some of the nuns, Miss Harrison's case in-
flamed the minds of the populace, and led to a riot
on the night of August 11th, 1834, ending in the en-
lire destruction of the convent with all its furniture,
the actors being for the most part young men and
boys from Charlestown and Boston. This outrage
was condemned in the strongest terms by all respect-
able people, and an able report was published a few
days afterward, and subscribed by thirty-seven Bos-
ton Protestants, all of the highest moral respectabil-
ity, in which the reputation of the convent was de-
cidedly, and I dare say justly, vindicated. Some of
the rioters were identified and punished, and a con-
siderable portion of the public demanded that the

Chap. II]

ROMAN CATHOLIC CHURCH.

271

The acquisition of Louisiana, in 1803,
and of Florida in 1821, very considerably
increased the Roman Catholic population
of the country. To this must be added an
immense immigration from Europe, main-
ly from Ireland and Germany, during the
last sixty, still more during the last twen-
ty-five years. At the beginning of 1844
they were estimated, by well-informed
Roman Catholics, at 1,300,000 souls in all.
Their increase has been rapid since the
* Revolution, partly owing to the above-
mentioned territorial acquisitions, partly
to conversions, but most of all to immigra-
tion. According to the Metropohtan Cath-
olic Almanac for 1844, published at Balti-
more, there were at that time in the United
States,

21 Diocesses.
1 Apostolic Vicariate. .

1 Archbishop, 17 bishops in service, and 8 bish-
ops elect.
634 Priests, of whom 520 are employed in the min-
istry, and 114 as professors of colleges, &c.
611 Churches, and 66 building.
461 Other stations for preaching, where churches
had yet to be built. In all, 1072 places for
preaching.
19 Ecclesiastical Seminaries.
261 Clerical students.
16 Literary institutions for young men, whereof

12 or 13 are incorporated colleges.
45 Female religious institutions (convents).
48 Female academies.

The Roman Catholics have seven week-
ly papers^ of which one appears in Ger-
man, and three monthly, and one annual
periodical.

It is clear, from all this, that the Roman
Catholic Church has gained a firm and ex-
tensive footing in the United States. The
building of fifty church edifices in one year
is a large increase for a denomination be-
lieved to influence, more or less directly,
1,300,000 of the country's inhabitants. For
such objects large sums are received from
the Propaganda Society in France, and
the Leopold Society in Austria. It is be-
lieved that nearly $135,000 were received
in 1842 from these two sources.*

State of Massachusetts should indemnify the Roman
Catholics for the loss they had sustained. 1 regret
that, from various causes, no indemnification has to
this day been made, mainly, I believe, because it was
insisted that the state should rebuild the convent —
a demand opposed by many who would grant a full
pecuniary compensation, but have no idea that the
state, as such, should give any apparent sanction to
an establishment of that kind.

It ought to be known, however, that the convent at
Charlestown was not destroyed because it was a
Roman Catholic institution. Indeed, I am satisfied,
from what I heard at Boston a few weeks after its
destruction, that had it been a Protestant one it
would, under the same circumstances, have shared
the same fate. This forms no justification of the
barbarous act, nor even a palliation of it ; but it does
show that it was not owing to hostility to its occu-
pants because they were Roman Catholics.

* If the Roman Catholics in the United States
receive aid from their brethren in Europe, they also

The assertion has often been made by
the opponents of the Roman Catholics in
the United States, that they never can be
safe citizens of a republic, and that the
predominance of their church would in-
volve the overthrow of our political Con-
stitution. Such an opinion must rest, I
should think, on the presumed hatred of
the priests to republican institutions, and
the impossibility of counteracting the in-
fluence they possess over their people.
However this may be, many valuable citi-
zens and stern patriots in this country
have belonged to the Roman Catholic
Church, and it remains to be seen how far
it is possible for the Roman Catholic priests
to obtain or exercise the same influence
over their followers here that they pos-
sess in some European countries. One
thing is certain : the Protestant population,
and the clergy in particular, are not likely
to be indifferent to their movements. The
last few years have witnessed a great deal
of discussion in the United States on the
doctrines and influence of Romanism, and
much distinguished talent and deep re-
search have been exhibited in the course
of it.* Neither has this discussion been
confined to any particular denomination of
evangelical Protestants, but has extended
almost to every pulpit in every branch of
that body. Never was there so general a
determination to give publicity to the opin-
ions they entertain of the character and
tendency of the Roman Catholic religion ;
nor have its friends and abettors been si-
lent under these attacks.

Much curiosity is felt in Europe as to
how far the increase of the Roman Catho-
lics in the United States arises from pros-
elytism. No doubt it may partly be as-
cribed to that, but much more to the im-
migration of Roman Catholics, and of per-
sons of Roman Catholic origin from Eu-
rope. As for proselytism, the Protestants
probably gain as much as the Roman Cath-
olics from that source. f

The Roman Catholics of the United
States have done much for the establish-
ment of schools and other institutions of
learning ; and among their priests and
higher clergy there is a considerable num-

sometimes give aid to their friends in the Old World.
For instance, large sums have lately been raised ia
our chief cities to aid in building a magnificent ca-
thedral at Ardah, in the centre of Ireland.

* Among the ablest writers on this subject may-
be reckoned the Rev. Drs. Brownlee and R. J. Breck-
inridge, and the Rev. Messrs. Boardman and Berg.
To these may be added the late Rev. Drs. John
Breckinridge and Nevins, men of distinguished piety
and learning, and whose memory is precious to many
of the churches in America. Among the Roman
Catholics, the late Bishop England and Bishop
Hughes have been the most able disputants.

t Captain Marryat, in his work on the United
States, asserts that the Roman Catholics are in-
creasing rapidly in Ohio, Indiana, Illinois, and other

272

RELIGION IN AMERICA.

[Book VII.

ber of men of distinguished talents and
extensive erudition.

A considerable proportion of the sums
received from Europe is laid out in build-
ing churches and cathedrals, several of
which are costly and splendid edifices.
That at Baltimore cost $300,000 ; those of
Cincinnati and St. Louis cost much less,
yet are large and showy buildings.

A visiter from Europe would, on enter-
ing the Roman Catholic churches of the
United States, be struck with the few pic-
tures and other such ornaments that they
exhibit. This may arise from time and
money being required for such things. The
priests, too, dress like other citizens when
not engaged in their official duties. Nor
will it escape a stranger from any part of
Roman Catholic Europe, that processions
and religious services in the streets are
hardly ever seen in the United States.

By the rapid multiplication of their
priests in the United States the Roman
Catholics have, no doubt, checked those
conversions from their church to Protest-
antism which were frequent in former
times. Bishop England, in one of his let-
ters to the Propaganda, stated, a few years
ago, that " the Church" had lost no fewer
than 50,000 of her legitimate children in
liis diocess by such conversions, for want
of shepherds to look after them.

But whatever may be the fact in regard
to the increase of the Roman Catholics in
the United States, or whatever may be the
zeal and activity of the Protestants to pre-
vent that increase, there is no well-inform-
ed American who does not rejoice in the
perfect religious liberty which exists for
all ; nor is tliere wanting a good degree of
kindness and social intercourse among
men of all religious opinions ; while as to
the government, it fulfils the declaration of
the Carthaginian queen :

" Tros Tyriusque mihi nvllo discrimine agetur."

CHAPTER III.

CNITARIANISM.

parts of the Valley of the Mississippi, and states it
as his opinion that theirs will, at no distant day,
be the predominant religion in all that region. But
"his mere opinion, unsupported by authentic statistical
documents, is really of very little worth in such mat-
ters. The gallant captain is at home on the seas, but
■when he attempts to describe the moral and religious
state of the American Confederation, he is evidently
in a world of which he knows little or nothing. A
man who could allow himself to be hoaxed as he was
when in this country — an author who could believe,
and gravely relate, that the excessive modesty of
the young ladies there leads them to put pantaloons
on the legs of their pianos — is hardly fit for the task
of carefully collecting and comparing facts, and de-
ducing from them fair conclusions.

To understand the history of Unitarian-
ism in New-England, the reader must have
a clear idea of the leading ecclesiastical
usages of the Puritans, and of the principles
on wliich they were founded.

The Puritans held that all men are by
nature destitute of true piety ; that they
naturally grow up in the practice of sin ;
and that no one becomes religious except
by a change in his habits of thought, feel- "
ing, and conduct, which they ascribed to
the special operation of the Holy Spirit as
its supernatural cause. They believed that
the truly pious are ordinarily conscious of
this change in the action of their own
minds when it takes place, and are able to
describe it, though they may not then know
thtit the change of which they are con-
scious is regeneration. In some cases,
they admitted, the man is not aware of any
change at the time of his conversion ; yet
he will be conscious of exercises after-
ward, such as no unregenerate man ever
has, and he can describe them. Some
may be regenerated in infancy, which it is
lawful for us to hope is the case with all
who die before they are old enough to
profit by the external means of grace. If
any of them live to maturity they will not
be able to remember the time of their
change, but they will be conscious of sen-
sible love to God and holiness, penitence
for sin and other pious exercises, and can
give an account of them. They believed,
therefore, that every converted person
who has arrived at the age of discretion,
has a religious " experience" which he can
tell, and by hearing which other pious per-
sons may judge of his piety. The evi-
dence thus afforded, however, was to be
compared with his conduct in all the rela-
tions of life, and if this also was " such as
becometh saints," he was to be accounted
a pious man.

A church they held to be " a company
of faithful persons," that is, persons who
have saving faith, regenerate persons,
agreeing and consenting " to meet con-
stantly together in one congregation for
the public worship of God and their mutual
edification ; which real agreement and
consent they do express by their constant
practice in coming together for the wor-
ship of God, and by their religious subjec-
tion," that is, by subjecting themselves
voluntarily, from religious motives, " to
the ordinances of God therein."*

To become a member of a church, ac-
cording to these principles, a person must
voluntarily apply for admission. But if the
admission were open to all applicants, bad
men would come in, who neither knew
their duty, nor were willing to perform it.

* Cambridge Platform, 1648, chap, iv., sec. 4.

Chap. III.]

UNITARIANISM.

273

With such members, Congregationalism
•would not be a safe system of church gov-
ernment. The applicant must, therefore,
furnish evidence of his fitness for member-
ship. He must give an account of his re-
ligious experience. This being satisfac-
tory, he must be "propounded;" that is,
his application for membership must be
announced from the pulpit, and his admis-
sion must be deferred for a given time, that
all the members might have opportunity to
acquaint themselves with his life and con-
versation. These being found such as the
Gospel requires, he was allowed to become
a member, by publicly entering into cove-
nant with the Church and with God.

It must be particularly observed, that
the burden of proof rested on the applicant.
Every man, the Puritans held, is born in
sin ; and if no evidence of a change ap-
pears, the presumption is, that he is still
in his sins. They regarded and treated
all in whom no evidence of regeneration
appeared as unregenerated ; as persons
who must yet be converted or finally
perish.

Throughout' Christendom, in that age,
neither Jews, Turks, pagans, infidels, nor
excommunicated persons could enjoy the
full privileges of citizenship. These priv-
leges belonged only to persons who were
in communion with the churches estab-
lished by law. The same rule was adopted
in New-England. None but members of
the churches could hold offices or vote at
elections. Here, however, it operated as
it did nowhere else. As the churches
contained only those who were, in the
judgment of charity, regenerate persons,
a large portion of the people, among whom
■were many persons of intelligence, of good
moral character, and orthodox in their
creed, were excluded from valuable civil
privileges.

The principles on which this system was
founded the Puritans brought with them
from England ; but the system was first
brought to maturity here ; and New-Eng-
land Congregationalists, when on visits to
their fatherland, did much towards giving
its form and character to the Congrega-
tionalism that afterward prevailed there.
The system appears to have been adopted
in 1648, with a good degree of unanimity ;
but as the number of unconverted adults
increased, both by immigration and by the
growing up of children without piety, there
■was an increasing dissatisfaction with it.
By the year 1662, such a change of opin-
ions had been wrought that what was called
the " half-way covenant" was introduced,
by a recommendation of a general Synod.
According to this new system, persons
baptized in infancy were to be considered
members of the church to which their
parents belonged ; though they were not to
be admitted to the Lord's table without
S

evidence of regeneration. Such persons,
on arriving at maturity, " understanding
the doctrine of faith, and publicly profess-
ing their assent thereto, not scandalous in
life, and solemnly owning the covenant
before the church, wherein they give up
themselves and their children to the Lord,
and subject themselves to the government
of Christ in the church," had a right to
Baptism for their children. This was an
important change. It relieved the appli-
cant for church membership from the ne-
cessity of furnishing evidence of his piety,
and obliged the church, if it would exclude
him, to prove that he was heretical in his
opinions or scandalous in his life. This
change was strenuously opposed; and as
the synod had only advisory power, and
many churches disapproved its decisions,
it never became universal.

One step more remained to be taken. In
1704, " the venerable Stoddard," of North-
ampton, avowed his belief that unregener-
ate persons ought to partake of the Lord's
Supper ; and in 1707 he published a ser-
mon in defence of that doctrine. He main-
tained that the Lord's Supper is a means
of regeneration, and that unrenewed men,
regarding themselves, and being regarded
by the church as such, ought to partake of
it as a means of procuring that desirable
change in their own hearts. One of his
arguments was, that it is impossible to dis-
tinguish the regenerate from the unregea-
erate, so as to admit the former and ex-
clude the latter. After some controversy,
this doctrine gained an extensive preva-
lence among the churches which had
adopted the " half-way covenant" system.
Among these churches, the principles and
rules of admission were now completely
reversed. The church was now obliged
to convict the applicant of a scandalous
life, or of heresy, or admit him to full com-
munion : and one reason for it was, the
supposed impossibility of judging whether
he was regenerate or not.

Stoddard was a decided Calvinist ; but
his system fostered the growth of Armini-
anism. It taught the impenitent that they
had something to do before repentance, as
a means of obtaining saving grace. The
unregenerate communicant supposed him-
self to be obediently walking in the way
which God had appointed for such persons
as himself. He couM not, therefure, feel
much to blame for being what he was, or
much afraid that God would remove him
from the world without first preparing him
for heaven. This, combined with the be-
lief that the regenerate could not be distin-
guished from the unregenerate by their
Christian experience, was enough to throw
the conscience into a profound sleep.

The labours of the great Edwards, and
the " revival of 1740," as it is usually
called, form the next turning-point in this

274

RELIGION IN AMERICA.

[Book VII;

history. Edwards was the grandson of
" the venerable Stoddard," and his succes-
sor at Northampton. In consequence of
the manifest increase of Arminianism, and
the consequent habit of relying on works
done in impenitence as a means of prepa-
ring for heaven, Edwards commenced his
course of sermons on justification by faith.
These discourses, and others on kindred
topics, were the means of a very powerful
revival, which became fully developed at
Northampton early in 1735, and spread
into many other towns in Massachusetts
and Connecticut. The converts in this
revival were generally able to give a clear
account of the exercises of their own
minds in their awakening, their conviction
of sin, their submission to God, and ac-
ceptance of Christ as their all-sufficient
Saviour. So many undeniable instances,
in which the regenerate could be distin-
guished from the unregenerate by the his-
tory of their religious exercises, gave a
serious shock to the doctrine that making
such a distinction is impossible. It taught
ministers to hope and labour for conver-
sions of which evidence could be found. It
made those who had no evidence of their
own conversion afraid that they were still
unregenerate. By special request, Ed-
wards prepared a narrative of these " Sur-
prising Conversions," which was printed
in London, with an introduction by the
Rev. Drs. Watts and Guise. It was soon
reprinted in Boston, and was extensively
read, and exerted a powerful influence on
both sides of the Atlantic.

From this time there continued to be
similar revivals, on a smaller scale, in va-
rious parts of New-England. In 1739, and
the beginning of 1740, they were evidently
increasing. The celebrated Whitfield, who
was ordained in 1736, had already exci-
ted much attention in England, and was
preaching with great success in the South-
ern American colonies. To help forward
this good work, he was invited to Boston,
where he arrived in October, 1740. The
exciting point of his doctrine was the ne-
cessity of a sensible change of heart in
order to preparation for heaven. Like the
old Puritans, and like Edwards, he held
that every man is born in sin, and unless
some evidence appears to the contrary,
is to be esteemed an heir of perdition.
The believers of this doctrine had always
been numerous and powerful both among
the clergy and in the churches of New-
England ; and by those who were not its
believers, it was rather neglected than op-
posed. It was now brought home to men's
hearts as they had never known it to be
before. All have heard of the eloquence
of Whitfield ; and that of Edwards, though
in a different style, was at least equally
effective, and more sure to leave perma-
nent results. These men had powerful

allies in several of the pastors in Boston
and other parts of New-England, and
especially in the Tennents, and their fel-
low-labourers in New- Jersey and Penn-
sylvania.

These men assumed as an established
truth, and proclaimed with all possible dis-
tinctness and earnestness, the doctrine that
regeneration is a change accompanied with
evidence by which it may be proved, and.
that all in whom no such evidence is found
are unregenerate, and in the broad road to
perdition. They preached to them, accord-
ingly, not as Christians w'ho needed in-
struction, but as impenitent, enemies of
God and righteousness, who must be con-
verted or perish forever. Multitudes were
awakened, convinced, converted ; and in a
few years, tens of thousands were added
to the churches ; and other multitudes who
were already in the churches, were in like
manner awakened and brought to repent-
ance.

Such an attack on men's hopes of heaven
could not fail to provoke resistance. As
has been shown already, the habit had been
formed of hoping favourably concerning
all who were not proved guilty of heresy
or immorality, and of admitting all such to
the communion of the churches, for this
reason, among others, that perhaps they
were regenerate. The promoters of the
I'evival made unsparing war upon all such
hopes, and pronounced all who had nothing
else to rest upon, heirs of perdition. This
their opponents called " censoriousness ;"
and those who practised it were denounced
as uncharitable, as usurpers of God's pre-
rogative of judging the heart, as fanatics
who delighted to throw orderly, quiet Chris-
tians into needless alarm. Such was the
usual language of that part of the clergy
who leaned strongly towards Arminianism,
of their followers, and of many othei-s.
Some zealous promoters of the revival
were guilty of great errors, and really de-
served these reproaches ; and its adversa-
ries were not slow in seizing the advan-
tage thus brought within their reach. They
convinced many that the revival was made
up of uncharitableness and fanaticism, and
thus succeeded in setting limits to its prog-
ress.

In a few years after the commencement
of this revival, Edwards became so fully
convinced that the prevailing system of ad-
mission to the communion, introduced by
his grandfather and predecessor, was wrong,
that he could no longer practise it. He
pubhshed his "Treatise on the Qualifica-
tions for Full Communion," in which he
maintained that none ought to be admitted
without such a declaration concerning the
exercises of their own minds as, if true,
would imply that they were regenerate per-
sons. Tiiis change of opinion led to his dis-
mission in 1750. His doctrine on this point,

Chap. III.]

UNITARIANI SM.

275

however, even then, had many advocates.
It spread rapidly among the friends of the
revival, and is now held by all the Congre-
gational churches of New-England that
have not become Unitarian. Where the
system of Stoddard and the half-way cov-
enant have not been abolished by a formal
vote, they have fallen into disuse, for none
think it right to practise according to them.
The ancient doctrine of the Puritans has
been restored, and evidence of piety is re-
quired of those who would become mem-
bers of the Church.

The principal faults charged upon the
promoters of the revival by its opponents
were censoriousness and undue excitement.
They laboured to exclude both from their
own parishes, and, as far as they could,
from the country. To a considerable ex-
tent they were successful. They produced
a profound calm on the subject of religion
among all who were governed by their in-
fluence— a calm which amounted to indif-
ference. And as to censoriousness, they
adhered to the practice of admitting men
to the communion of the church without
evidence of their piety. Their doctrine
was, that every man's piety is to be taken
for granted, unless some scandalous eri'or
of doctrine or practice proves him destitute
of it. The most important characteristic —
the fundamental element — of New-England
Unitarianism was now fully developed. A
party was formed, the members of Avhich
condemned and avoided all solicitude con-
cerning their own spiritual condition or
that of others.

When this state of mind had been pro-
duced and confirmed, the remainder of the
process was natural and easy. As in this
party there was to be no strong feeling with
respect to religion, except a strong unwill-
ingness to be disturbed by the " censori-
ousness" of others, there could, of course,
be no vigorous opposition to a change in
doctrines, no vigilance against error. A
system of doctrines, too, was wanted, con-
taining nothing to alarm the fears or dis-
turb tlie repose of the members of the par-
ty. The doctrines of man's apostacy from
God, and dependance on mere grace for
salvation, of the necessity of an atonement
by the blood of the Son of God, and of re-
generation by the special influence of the
Holy Spirit, were felt to be alarming doc-
trines. They were the doctrines by which
Edwards and others had filled their hear-
ers with anxiety, and produced excitement.
They were therefore laid aside ; but silent-
ly and without controversy, for controver-
sy might have produced feeling. Men were
suffered to forget that the Son and the Spir-
it have anything important to do in the
work of man's salvation ; and then it be-
came easy to overlook their existence. In
this way the Unitarian party was formed,
and furnished with all its essential attri-

butes long before Unitarian doctrines were
openly avowed, and probably long before
they were distinctly embraced in theory,
except by a very small number.

Unitarianism being introduced in this
manner, it is evident that no distinct ac-
count of the successive steps of its progress
can be given. The revivalists of 1740 as-
serted that " Socinianism" was even then
in the land. This assertion was then re-
pelled as a slander ; but Unitarians now
admit and assert that several leading op-
ponents of the revival were Unitarians at
that time, or soon after. The prevalence
of Unitarianism, however, was not then
extensive. The greater part of those who
are now claimed as having then belonged
to the " liberal" party were only Armini-
ans, or, at the farthest. Pelagians ; and
some of them were decided Calvinists-

From 1744 to 1762 the colonies were
engaged, almost incessantly, in the wars
that secured them against the arms of
France. In 1765 troubles with England
began, and continued till 1783; Then
came the formation of our system of gov-
ernment, and the anxious period of its
early operations. Thus the attention of
men was drawn off from religion, and fixed
on other subjects for about half a century,
affording a favourable opportunity for hab-
its of indifference to become confirmed,
and for error to make progress unobserved.
Yet it was not wholly unobserved. In
1768, the Rev. Dr. Hopkins preached in
Boston on the divinity of Christ, and pub-
lished the sermon, assigning as a reason
for the choice of this subject, his belief that
it was needed there. From time to time
other testimonies appeared of similar char-
acter.

The first congregation that became
avowedly Unitarian was that at the
" King's Chapel," in Boston. It was Epis-
copalian. Being without a pastor, they
employed Mr. Freeman, afterward Dr.
Freeman, as reader, in 1782. In 1785 he
succeeded in introducing a revised liturgy,
from which the doctrine of the Trinity
was struck out. He applied to several
American bishops for ordination, but none
would ordain him. He was, therefore, or-
dained by the church-wardens, in 1787.
For many years he maintained a constant
correspondence with the leading Unitari-
ans in England, and was a convenient me-
dium of communication between them and
the secret adherents of the same doctrines
in America.

The first Unitarian book by an Ameri-
can author is said to have been " Ballou on
the Atonement," published in 1803. Mr.
Ballou was pastor of a Universahst socie-
ty in Boston. But the term U?iiversaUst
must not be understood here as it often is
in Europe. It designates the belief that
all intelligent beings — men and devils, if

276

RELIGION IN AMERICA.

[Book VII.

there are any devils — will be saved. Some
Universalists hold that all men at death
pass directly into heaven ; others, that a
part of mankind will undergo a limited
punishment in hell, or, rather, in purgato-
ry, in proportion to the number and atroci-
ty of their sins. The doctrine has been
favoured by a few men of considerable
learning and respectable morals ; but its
chief success has been among the igno-
rant, the vulgar, and the vicious, not one
of whom was ever known to be reformed
by it. Mr. Ballou was a man of some ge-
nius, but little learning. His works have
done something to diffuse Unitarian opin-
ions among Universalists. A Mr. Sher-
man, in Connecticut, published in favour
of Unitarianism in 1805. He was dismiss-
ed from his pastoral charge about the same
time, and in a few years left the ministry
and lost his character. In 1810, Thomas
and Noah Worcester began to publish their
modification of Arianism in New-Hamp-
shire. The same year the church in Cov-
entry, Connecticut, became suspicious that
their pastor, the Rev. Abiel Abbot, was a
Unitarian. The subject was brought be-
fore the Consociation to which that church
belonged, and he was dismissed. He then
called together a council, composed chiefly
of men suspected of Unitarianism, who
dismissed him a second time, and gave
him a certificate of regular standing. The
irregularity of this transaction called forth
many expressions of disapprobation.

In and around Boston no Congregational
church had yet avowed itself Unitarian.
Harvard College had an orthodox presi-
dent and professor of theology till after
the commencement of the present century.
After the death of Professor Tappan, in
1804, the Rev. Dr. Ware was elected as
his successor. While the question of his
election was pending, a suspicion of his
Unitarianism was suggested, but it was
repelled by his friends as a calumny.
Even when President Kirkland was elect-
ed, in 1812, it has been said, on high Uni-
tarian authority, that he could not have
been elected if he had been known as a
defender of Unitarianism.

No pastor of a Congregational church
in or near Boston had yet avowed himself
a Unitarian, either from the pulpit or the
press. Yet the style of preaching adopted
by many was such as to excite susj 'nion ;
several periodicals openly advocated Uni-
tarianism, and Unitarian books were im-
ported and published in considerable num-
bers. Orthodox ministers, when att^ending
councils for ordaining pastors, found them-
selves opposed and tlivvarted in their at-
tempts to ascertain the theological views
of the candidates. Many other circum-
stances indicated the presence and secret
diffusion of error ; but the means were
wanting of fastening the cliarge upon indi-

viduals. There was, therefore, an increase
of preaching and publishing against Unita-
rianism. In the Panoplist, a monthly mag-
azine commenced in Boston in 1806, this
subject received special attention ; but all
its warnings were denounced as " calum-
ny." The facts, however, could not be
much longer concealed.

In 1812, the memoir of Lindsay, by Bel-
sham, was publislied in London. Only a
few copies of the work were imported, and
these were carefully kept from the sight
of all but a select few for nearly three
years. At length, the Rev. Dr. Morse, af-
ter months of fruitless effort, succeeded in
obtaining possession of a copy. The ac-
count there given of Unitarianism in Amer-
ica was extracted and published in a pam-
phlet. It contained letters from several
leading Unitarians in Boston, especially
Dr. Freeman, of various dates, from 1796,
or thereabout, to 1812. In these letters
the spread of Unitarianism, and the means
used to promote it, were described without
reserve. Concealment was no longer pos-
sible. Unitarianism was, therefore, open-
ly avowed by those who had been detect-
ed, and by others whose character and in-
terests were closely identified with theirs.

The ecclesiastical results of this disclo-
sure need to be particularly explained.
Among Congregationalists, each church,
that is, each congregation of covenanted
believers, has full power to manage its
own ecclesiastical concerns, without sub-
ordination to any earthly tribunal. There
was no way, therefore, of compelling
churches that had become Unitarian to
part with their Unitarian pastors. On the
same principle, pastors and churches that
continued orthodox were at liberty to with-
hold Christian fellowship from those in
whom they had no confidence. There was
no means of compelling orthodox minis-
ters and churches to perform any act by
which a Unitarian would be virtually ac-
knowledged as a Christian minister, or his
church as a Christian church. Orthodox
ministers, therefore, refused to exchange
pulpit labours on the Sabbath with those
whom they believed to be Unitarians, or to
sit with them in ecclesiastical councils, or
in any other way to recognise them as
ministers of Christ. This practice, how-
ever, was adopted gradu;illy. Many or-
thodox men were slov/ in believing that
one and another of their neighbours was a
Unitarian ; and many undecided men con-
trived to avoid for some time a declara-
tion in favour of either party, and to keep
on good terms with both. At lengtli, how-
ever, successive disclosures made the di-
viding line so visible, throughout its whole
length, that every man knew his own side
of it, and the parties are completely sep-
arated williout any formal excommunica-
tion of one by the other. They meet only

Chap. III.]

UNITARIANISM.

277

once in a year in the " General Conven-
tion of Congregational Ministers," and they
continue to meet together there only on
account of a fund of about 100,000 dollars
for the support of their widows.

On the publication of Mr. Belsham's dis-
closures, it was found that all the Congre-
gational churches in Boston had become
LTnitarian, except the Old South and Park-
street, which last had been established
within a few years by some zealous Trin-
itarians. The whole number of Unitarian
churches in various parts of New-England,
but mostly in the eastern part of Massa-
chusetts, was supposed to be about sev-
enty-five, though subsequent disclosures
showed it to have been considerably lar-
ger. They had then almost entire pos-
session of Harvard College ; and, by a
change in its charter, deliberately planned
some years before, but hurried through the
Legislature at a favourable moment, they
secured the control of it to their party.

A considerable number of churches in
Massachusetts had funds, given by the pi-
ous of former generations, for the support
of the ministry and of Christian ordinan-
ces. The main object of the donors was
to secure to their descendants, in perpetui-
ty, the services of learned, pious, and or-
thodox pastors ; and the funds were com-
mitted to the church, and not to tlie parish,
because the church, being composed of per-
sons of approved piety, would guard them
most effectually against perversion. Such
was the case with the First Church in Ded-
ham. In 1818, a majority of the inhabitants
of the parish with which that church was
connected chose a Unitarian to be their
pastor. The church refused to receive
him as their pastor. A few of its members,
however, seceded from the church, chose
the Unitarian for their pastor, and com-
menced a lawsuit against the church for
the possession of its property. In March,
1821, the Supreme Court of Massachusetts
decided in their favour, and established the
principle that, in all such cases, those who
act with the majority of the parish are the
church, and have a right to the funds. By
this decision many churches have been
deprived of their funds, their houses of
worship, and even the furniture of their
communion-table ; and many Unitarian
churches owe their existence to means
thus obtained.

After this decision the existence of a
church, as distinct from the parish, became
unimportant among Unitarians. Its sec-
ular interests were wholly in the power
of the parish, and might as well be held
by the parish directly. Their churches, as
has been shown, were never intended to be
bodies from which the unregenerate should
be excluded. There was, therefore, no
longer any important end to be answered
by their existence. Generally, it has not

been thought best to disband them ; but in
a considerable number of instances they
have been suffered to become extinct, and
there remains only the parish and the pas-
tor, who administers the ordinances indis-
criminately to all who desire it. Accord-
ing to some of their own writers, the re-
sult is that the ordinances become cheap
in men's esteem, and few care to receive
them. Church discipline, of course, has
fallen into entire disuse. The discipline
of the clergy appears to be also extinct.
If any of their clergy become scandalous-
ly immoral, they are not formally deposed
from the ministry, or visited with any ec-
clesiastical censure, but are allowed to
continue in office till their reputation be-
comes such that none will employ them,
and then to retire silently to private life.

In 1825 the number of Unitarian con-
gregations was estimated at 120. Now,
in 1844, they are said to amount to 230.
There are several causes of this increase.

In 1825 the process of taking sides was
not completed. Of the few which then
remained without character, a part have
doubtless become decidedly Unitarian,

Mr. Ballou's work on the atonement has
already been mentioned as the first Uni-
tarian work by an American author. That
and other works of a similar character
prepared the Universalists, somewhat ex-
tensively, to avow Unitarian opinions.
The Unitarians have, to a great extent,
and it is believed generally, embraced the
doctrine of the final salvation of all men.
There is, therefore, no doctrinal distinc-
tion between the two sects. As Unitari-
anism is esteemed the more genteel reli-
gion of the two, Universalists are under a
strong temptation to change their name,
and call themselves Unitarians. Such
changes very naturally occur when a Uni-
versalist congregation becomes vacant, and
a Unitarian preacher of acceptable address
offers himself as a candidate. Sometimes
congregations change from one of these
sects to the other, and back again, as tem-
porary convenience dictates.

Unitarianism, as has been shown, ori-
ginally grew out of a dislike to the prac- •
tice of requiring evidence of piety in can-
didates for admission to the churches.
There are many, in various parts of the
country, in whom this fundamental feeling
of the sect is very strong, but who are yet
unwilling to live without some form of re-
ligion. They are easily organized into a
society which requires no creed, and sub-
jects them to no discipline. Societies
thus formed, however, often vanish as ea-
sily and suddenly as they are made.

In 1787 a " Society for Propagating the
Gospel among the Indians and others in
North America" was incorporated by the
Legislature of Massachusetts. It acquired
permanent funds to the amount of 9000

278

RELIGION IN AMERICA.

[Book VII.

dollars. It elects its own members ; and
a majority of them having proved to be
Unitarian, the society has passed wholly
into the hands of that sect. It expends
the income of its fund in supporting two
or three preachers among the remnants of
Indian tribes in New-England. One or
two other unimportant societies, not ori-
ginally formed by them, have in like man-
ner passed under their control. They have
no organization for foreign missions. To
the Bible Society they contribute some-
thing, but the amount is not known.

The " American Unitarian Association,"
formed in 1825, is their principal organ-
ization for united action. Its object is de-
clared to be " to diffuse the knowledge
and promote the interests of pure Chris-
tianity throughout our country." Its six-
teenth annual report gives the names of
117 clergymen who have been made life
members by the payment of thirty dol-
lars each, of whom eight are dead. The
whole number of life members are stated
at 374. It expended during the year end-
ing in May, 1841, the sum of 4962 dollars,
which was 81 dollars 89 cents more than
its receipts. The expenses of adminis-
tration were, the salary of the general
agent, 1800; his travelling expenses, 100;
office rent, 200 ; total, 2100 dollars ; being
very nearly three sevenths of the whole.

This association has published 179 dif-
ferent tracts, the prices of which vary
from one cent to six cents. During the
year ending in May, 1841, it aided sixteen
destitute congregations, of which ten were
in New-England, three in the State of New-
York, and three in the Western States.
The lowest appropriation for this purpose
was thirty dollars, and the highest 300.
It also expended 570 dollars for mission-
ary services, of which 530 were expended
to the west of New-England.

The smallness of the amount expended
by Unitarians in the way of associated ac-
tion is not to be ascribed to parsimony,
but to religious indifference. A large part
of the wealth of Boston, and of the east-
ern part of Massachusetts, is in their hands ;
' and their capitalists have made many splen-
did donations to literary, scientific, and hu-
mane institutions.

Their churches probably contain some
truly regenerate persons, who became
members of them before they were avow-
edly Unitarian, and who remain there from
reverence for ancient usages, attachment
to the places where their ancestors wor-
shipped, and other similar causes. Others
of them are men of stern and almost Puri-
tanic morality, who have had from infan-
cy great reverence for religion in the
gross, but have never seriously studied its
apphcation to themselves in the detail of
its doctrines and duties, and wlio would
have remained steadfast members of the

same congregations just as quietly had
those congregations remained orthodox.

In philosophy the Unitarians of New-
England were at first, and for some years,
followers of Locke ; holding that all our
ideas, or, at least, the elements of which
they are formed, are received through the
senses. Very naturally, therefore, they
built their belief of Christianity wholly on
evidence addressed to the senses. They
believed that miracles had been wrought,
because it appeared so extremely improb-
able that the apostles were deceived con-
cerning them, or attempted to deceive oth-
ers ; or that the canonical writings ascri-
bed to them are spurious ; or that the ac-
counts of miracles which they contain are
interpolations. Those miracles they held
to be the testimony of God, addressed to
the senses of men, proving the truth of
Christianity. Yet they did not admit the
infallibility of the apostolic writings as we
have them. Many of them held that the
authors of the several parts of the New
Testament had no inspiration which se-
cured them against mistakes and false
reasoning ; and they very generally held,
that strong texts in favour of the doctrine
of the Trinity, the divinity of Christ, or
the personality of the Holy Spirit, must
be interpolations or corruptions. Their
religious guide, therefore, was so much of
the Bible as they judged to be true ; and
their religion was, in its theory, the con-
formity of their hearts and lives to certain
external rules, which, in all probability,
were originally given by God, and which
have been transmitted to us in a record
which is not free from error. To this, in-
dividuals among them appended more or
less of sentiment and imagination, accord-
ing to the prompting of their own genius.
A system like this can never long continue
to satisfy any community. It fails to meet
certain feelings of spiritual want, which
are sure to spring up in many minds.
Hence there has been among the more se-
rious, ever since the separation, a gradual
going over to orthodoxy, which has retard-
ed the growth of Unitarianism. Now the
orthodox Congregational churches in Bos-
ten are about as numerous as the Unita-
rian, and the worshippers much more nu-
merous ; and the result is similar in the
surrounding country.

A few years since, German Transcen-
dentalism made its appearance among the
Unitarian clergy, and has spread rapidly.
Its adherents, generally, are not very pro-
found thinkers, nor very well acquainted
with the philosophy which they have em-
braced, or witli the evidence on which it
rests. It promises to relieve its disciples
from the necessity of building their reli-
gious faith and hopes on probabilities, how-
ever strong, and to give them an intuitive
and infallible knowledge of all that is es-

Chap. Ill]

UNITARIANISM.

279

f.ential in religion; and it affords an un-
limited range for the play of the imagina-
tion. It has charms, therefore, for the con-
templative and for the enthusiastic.

The controversy on this subject became
public in 1836. It was brought out by an
article in the Christian Examiner, main-
taining that our faith in Christianity does
not rest on the evidence of miracles ; that
a record of miracles, however attested, can
prove nothing in favour of a religion not
previously seen to be true ; and that, there-
fore, we need to see and admit the reason-
ableness and truth of the doctrines of Chris-
tianity, before we can believe that miracles
were wrought to commend it to mankind.
The "Old School" Unitarians, as they
called themselves, pronounced this theory
infidelity, for it struck at the foundation
of the only reasoning by which they proved
the truth of Christianity. The controversy
was protracted, and somewhat bitter ; but
no attempt was made by the " Old School"
to separate themselves from those whom
they denounced as infidels.

The charge of Pantheism is brought
against the Transcendent alists generally,
by their Unitarian opponents ; and, in fact,
some of their publications are evidently
Pantheistic, while others are ambiguous
in that respect. Some of them have bor-
rowed largely from Benjamin Constant,
and maintain that all religions, from Feti-
chism to the most perfect form of Christi-
anity, are essentially of the same nature,
■being only developments, more or less per-
fect, of the religious sentiment Avhich is
common to all men. According to them,
all men who have any religious thoughts
or feelings are so far inspired ; Moses.
Minos, and Numa, and a few others, had
an unusual degree of inspiration ; and Jesus
of Nazareth most of all. They do not
believe, however, that even Jesus was so
inspired as to be in all cases an infallible
teacher ; and they declare themselves by
no means sure that we shall not yet see
his superior. They reject Christ as a me-
diator in every sense of the term, and de-
clare that, in order to be true Christians,
we must hold intercourse with God as
Christ himself did, without a mediator.

These impious doctrines have been pro-
mulgated in periodicals and otherwise,
from time to time, with increasing boldness.
In the spring of the year 1841, they were
put forth without disguise and without re-
serve in a sermon at an ordination at South
Boston. Several of the leading Unitarian
clergy of the " Old School" were present,
and took part in the services. It is said
that some of them, in performing their parts,
uttered sentiments at variance with those
of the preacher, from which attentive hear-
ers might infer that the sermon did not
meet their approbation ; but there was no
explicit condemnation of the sermon either

then or afterward, till public attention was
called to the subject by three evangelical
clergymen who attended the ordination as
hearers, and took notes of the discourse.
These three Avitnesses, some weeks after
the ordination, published extracts from the
sermon in several religious newspapers,
and called on the members of the ordaining
Council to say whether they recognised
the preacher as a Christian minister. Pub-
lic attention was roused. Several intelli-
gent Unitarian laymen united in the de-
mand. Continued silence became imprac-
ticable. A number of articles appeared in
newspapers and magazines, in which indi-
vidual Unitarian ministers denounced the
sermon, and pronounced its doctrines deis-
tical ; but they carefully avoided the ques-
tion, whether its author was recognised by
them as a Christian minister. Others of
them preached and wrote in his defence.
His ecclesiastical relations still remain
undisturbed. Some of his Unitarian neigh-
bours have recognised his ministerial char-
acter by exchanging pulpits with him on
the Sabbath ; and he has, in his turn,
preached the weekly lecture maintained
by the Unitarian clergy of the Boston As-
sociation. It is understood, therefore, that
the public avowal of doctrines like his,
forms no obstacle to a regular standing in
the Unitarian ministry.

Why was not this defection arrested in
its progress by ecclesiastical authority^
The answer is easy.

In Connecticut, where one or two min-
isters became Unitarian while the com-
munity remained orthodox, it was done.
Those Unitarian ministers were removed
from their places, and the progress of error
was arrested. In Massachusetts, the de-
fection was carried on by a different pro-
cess. Men did not fall, one at a time, from
orthodoxy into open Unitarianism, but al-
most the whole community in the eastern
part of the state sunk down gradually and
together. For a long time there was no
proof by which any one could be convicted
of heresy ; and when proof was obtained,
the heretics were found to be the majority
in the ecclesiastical bodies to which they
belonged, and of course, if any process had
been commenced, would have decided all
questions in their own favour.

The friends and abettors of the Congre-
gational independence of individual church-
es maintain that it has been the means
of saving New- England from universal
apostacy. Had the Synod in 1662, they
say, instead of being merely advisory,
possessed jurisdiction over the churches,
it would have imposed the half-way cove-
nant upon them all. As it was only ad-
visory, a considerable number of churches
rejected its advice, and adhered to the
ancient practice of the Pilgrims.* So, half

* Many readers, however, will be of opinion that,

280

RELIGION IN AMERICA.

[Book VII.

a century later, had there been an eccle-
siastical government to which all the
churches owed obedience, Stoddard's doc-
trine of admitting the unregenerate to full
communion would have been enforced
upon all ; for numbers and influence were
in its favour. And when Edwards, after
the great revival of 1740, reproclaimed the
ancient doctrine concerning church mem-
bership, had there been an ecclesiastical
tribunal having authority over all the
churches, he and his Reformation would
)iave been put down at once, and the ad-
mission of the unregenerate to the Lord's
table would have been required of all. And,
finally, consider, they still farther say, the
state of things in 1815, when conclusive
proof was first obtained of the existence
of Unitarianism among the Congregational
clergy in Eastern Massachusetts. The
Unitarians had the majority in the ec-
clesiastical bodies of which they were
members. Had these bodies possessed ju-
risdiction over all churches within their
bounds, they might have established Uni-
tarianism in them all, and might have for-
bidden all efforts for the revival or preser-
vation of orthodoxy. If there had been a
body representing all the churches in the
state, and having authority over all, the
majority would have been orthodox ; but
the Unitarians were numerous and power-
ful enough to have thrown oft" its jurisdic-
tion, and to have subsisted by themselves,
as they now do. If the civil government
had been invested with power to enforce
religious uniformity, it could have prevent-
ed such a result ; but it would not have
done it ; for the most important powers of
the civil government were then, and, with
few exceptions, have been ever since,
wielded by Unitarian hands.

In all these instances, the independence
of the churches, its friends firmly believe,
secured to the most orthodox the privi-
lege of adhering to the whole truth, both
in doctrine and practice, and of exerting
themselves in its defence and for its diflfu-
sion. This privilege there have always
been some to claim and to use. Error,
therefore, has always been held in check
till truth could rally its forces and regain
its ascendency.

CHAPTER IV.

THE CHRIST-IAN CONNEXION.

The body that assumes the title of Chrls-

but for the isolation of ministers and congregations
under the Congregational system, error must have
been much sooner discovered, and checked in its be-
ginnings. The same remark applies to the apostacy
of many nominally Presbyterian ministers and con-
gregations in England. These never were Presby-
terians in fact. Error thus had leave to work its way
unchecked by the oversight either of bishop or pres-
bytery.

tians is of purely American origin. They
are more generally called in the United
States Christ-ians, the i in the first syllable
being pronounced long, though this pro-
nunciation, I need hardly say, is rejected
by themselves.

Dating their rise from about the year
1803, they appeared, it seems, in New-
England, Ohio, and Kentucky, some say
also in the South, nearly about the same
time. They boast of having no founder —
no Luther or Calvin, no Whitefield or Wes-
ley— that can claim any special influence
among them. They are the largest no-
creed sect in America, and had their origin
in the dissatisfaction that existed in some
minds with what they called the " bondage
of creeds," and still more, with the bond-
age of discipline that prevails, as they in-
sist, in all other churches. This may be
easily accounted for. Many of the most
active promoters of the new sect had been
excluded from other communions because
of their denial of some important doctrine,
or their refusal to submit to discipline and
government.

The Christ-ians, according to some of
their leading authorities, had a threefold
origin. The first members of their socie-
ties, or churches, in New-England, were
originally members of the Regular Bap-
tist connexion ; in the West they had been
Presbyterians, and in the South Metho-
dists. Their churches have all along been
constituted on the following principles :
"The Scriptures are taken to be the only
rule of faith and practice, each individual
being at liberty to determine for himself,
in relation to these matters, what they en-
join ; no member is subject to the loss of
church fellowship on account of his sin-
cere and conscientious belief, so long as
he manifestly lives a pious and devout
life ; no member is subject to discipline
and church censure but for disorderly and
immoral conduct ; the name Christian to
be adopted, to be exclusive of all sectarian
names, as the most appropriate designa-
tion of the body and its members ; the only
condition or test of admission, as a mem-
ber of a church, is a personal profession
of the Christian religion, accompanied
with satisfactory evidence of sincerity and
piety, and a determination to live according
to the divine rule or the Gospel of Christ ;
each church is considered an independent
body, possessing exclusive authority to
regulate and govern its own affairs."*

Although their founders continued to
cleave more or less closely to some, at
least, of the peculiarities of the various
bodies in which they had been brought up,
a process of assimilation to each other
has been gradually going on, and has at

* See an " Account of the Christian Connexion,
or Christ-ians," by the Rev. Joshua V. Himes, in the
Encyclopaedia of Religious Knowledge.

Chap. V]

THE UNIVERSALISTS.

281

length brought them to a considerable de-
gree of uniformity on most points of doc-
trine. Trinitarians for the most part at the
outset, they have now almost unanimously
rejected the doctrine of the Trinity as un-
scriptural ; and although they refuse to be
tied down to a creed, the following may be
considered as a fair outline of the doctrines
that prevail among them : " There is one
living and true God, the Father Almighty,
who is unoriginated, independent, and eter-
nal, the Creator and Supporter of all
worlds ; and that this God is one spiritual
intelligence, one infinite mind, ever the
same, never varying : that this God is the
moral Governor of the world, the absolute
source of all the blessings of nature, prov-
idence, and grace, in whose infinite wis-
dom, goodness, mercy, benevolence, and
love, have originated all his moral dispen-
sations to man : that all men sin and come
short of the glory of God, and, consequent-
ly, fall under the curse of the law : that
Christ is the Son of God, the promised Mes-
siah, and Saviour of the world, the Mediator
between God and man, by whom God has
revealed his will to mankind ; by whose
sufferings, death, and resuj-rection, a way
has been provided by which sinners may
obtain salvation — may lay hold on eternal
life ; that he is appointed of God to raise
the dead, and judge the world at the last
day : that the Holy Spirit is the power and
energy of God — that holy influence of God
by whose agency, in the use of means, the
wicked are regenerated, converted, and
recovered to a virtuous and holy life, sanc-
tified and made meet for the inheritance of
the saints in light ; and that, by the same
Spirit, the saints, in the use of means, are
comforted, strengthened, and led in the path
of duty : the free forgiveness of sins, flow-
ing from the rich mercy of God, tln-ough
the labours, sufferings, and blood of our
Lord Jesus Christ : the necessity of re-
pentance towards God, and faith towards
our Lord Jesus Christ : the absolute ne-
cessity of holmess of heart and rectitude
of life to enjoy the favour and approbation
of God : the doctrine of a future state of
immortality : the doctrine of a righteous
retribution, in which God will render to
every man according to the deeds done in
the body : the baptism of believers by im-
mersion : and the open communion at the
Lord's table of Christians of every denom-
ination having a good standing in their re-
spective churches."*

Although each church is wholly inde-
pendent of all others in the management
of its aft'airs, yet, for the promotion of their
mutual prosperity, they have associations
called " State Conferences," composed of
delegates from the clergy and the church-
es, but with only advisory powers. In

* See " Account of the Christian Connexion, or
Christ -ians," by the Rev. Joshua V. Himes, as above.

1841 there were in the United States and
Canada forty-one conferences, embracing,
it was estimated, 593 ministers, 591 church-
es, and about 30,000 members. The pop-
ulation supposed to be under their influ-
ence is estimated at 300,000, which is man-
ifestly too high, for many of their con-
gregations are very small, particularly in
the West.

Generally speaking, their ministers are
men of little education, but a laudable de-
sire for improvement in this respect has
been showing itself. The State of Indiana
granted them a charter some years ago
for a college at New Albany, but whether
it has taken effect I know not. They have
no theological seminaries. For some years
past they have had a religious journal call-
ed " The Christian Palladium," published
in the State of New- York, and two other
journals, one published in New-Hampshire,
the other in Illinois. They have a Book
Association also. Upon the whole, much
inferior as the Christians are to the Unita-
rians in point of wealth, the size of their
churches, the learning and eloquence of
their ministers, and the rank and respect-
ability of their members, yet being far more
numerous, and having doctrines of quite as
elevated a character, their influence upon
the masses, whlie kindred in nature, is per-
haps greater in extent.

CHAPTER V.

THE UNIVERSALISTS.

In our chapter on the Unitarians we ex-
pressed our views of the moral influence
of the doctrines of the Universalists. The
latter were little known as a sect in Amer-
ica until about the middle of the last cen-
tury, when a few persons of reputation
partially or wholly embraced their doc-
trines. These were afterward preached
by the Rev. John Murray, who came from
England in 1770, and were embraced by
the Rev. Elhanan Winchester, a Baptist
minister of considerable talent. Both Mur-
ray and Winchester held the doctrine of
restoration, that is, that after the resurrec-
tion and the judgment, the wicked, after
suffering in hell for a time, and in a meas-
ure proportioned to their guilt, will event-
ually be recovered through the influences
of the Spirit, and saved by the atonement
of Christ. About the year 1790, the Rev.
Hosea Ballon appeared as a Universalist
preacher, and taught that all punishment
is in this life, and, consequently, that the
souls of the righteous and the wicked alike
pass immediately at death into a state of
happiness — a doctrine which, being nmch
more acceptable to the unrenewed heart,
became much more popular than that of
restoration as above described. The res-

282

RELIGION IN AMERICA.

[Book VII.

torationist preachers in the United States
hardly exceed twelve or fifteen in number,
and their churches are even fewer ; where-
as the Universalists, properly so called,
have rapidly increased here within the
last forty years. In 1801 there were but
twenty-two avowed Universalist preach-
ers ; they now state their numbers to be
as follows : a General Convention, twelve
State Conventions, fifty-nine Associations,
540 preachers, 550 meeting-houses, 875
societies, and 600,000 of the population
under their influence. The last item, we
suspect, is much too high. Their congre-
gations are mostly small, and many attend
from mere curiosity.

The doctrines of the American Univer-
salists are well expressed in three articles
adopted as a " Profession of Belief" by the
General Convention of Universalists, held
in 1803. It is said to be " perfectly sat-
isfactory to the denomination," and is as
follows :

1. " We believe that the Holy Scrip-
tures of the Old and New Testaments
contain a revelation of the character of
God, and of tlie duty, interest, and final
destination of mankind.

2. " We believe that there is one God,
whose nature is love ; revealed in one
Lord Jesus Christ, by one Holy Spirit of
grace, who will finally restore the whole
world of mankind to holiness and happi-
ness.

3. " We believe that holiness and true
happiness are inseparably connected ; and
that believers ought to be careful to main-
tain order and practise good works ; for
these things are good and profitable unto
men."

Although their churches are all several-
ly independent of each other, yet for con-
sultation they have local associations.
State Conventions, and a General Con-
vention. They have begun of late years
to pay some attention to education, and
have now what they call a university in
the State of Vermont, and three or four
inferior institutions. Most of their preach-
ers, though men of little learning, by di-
recting all their thoughts to one point, and
mustering every plausible argument in
favour of their doctrines, become wonder-
fully skilful in wielding their sophistry,
so as readily to seduce such as want to
find an easier way to heaven than can be
found in the Scriptures, when these are
not tortured and perverted to serve some
particular end. They say that they have
jio fewer than twenty newspapers, advoca-
ting their doctrines in different parts of
the country.

The only Universalists whose preaching
seems to have any moral influence, are the
handful of Rcstorationists — the rest are
Iieard with delight chiefly by the irreligious,
the profane, Sabbath-breakers, drunkards,

and all haters of evangelical religion.
Their preaching positively exercises no
reforming influence on the wicked, and
what worse can be said of it 1*

CHAPTER VI.

SWEDENBORGIANS AND TUNKERS.

The New Jerusalem Church, or Sweden-
borgians, are not numerous in America.
Their doctrines were first propagated here,
I believe, by some missionaries from Eng-
land. Their churches, which are small, are
about thirty or forty in number, and iso-
lated members of the sect are to be found
in various parts of the country. They
have about thirty-five ministers, with hard-
ly 10,000 souls under their instruction.
Their churches, in point of government,
are, in the main, independent, with consul-
tative conventions of their ministers, held
from time to time. Their doctrines, which,
the reader must be aware, are of Swedish
origin, and have for their author Baron
Emanuel Swedenborg, are a strange " amal-
gamation," as some one has justly re-
marked, " of Sabellianism, the errors of the
Patripassians, many of the anti-scriptural
notions of the Socinians, and some of the
most extravagant vagaries of mysticism.
Their mode of interpreting Scripture is to-
tally at variance with every principle of
sound philology and exegesis, and neces-
sarily tends to unsettle the mind, and leave
it a prey to the wildest whimsies that it is
possible for the human mind to create or
entertain." They practise both Baptism
and the Lord's Supper. f They have two
or three periodicals, in which their doc-
trines are expounded and defended.

Tunkers. — The Tunkers,or Dunkers, are,
on the other hand, a sect of German ori-
gin. They are Seventh-day Baptist Uni-
versalists. They are Restorationists, and
teach that men may do works of superero-
gation ; on this latter point, as well as on

* On the opening of a Universalist place of wor-
ship in any of our cities ami villages, it is flocked to
chiefly by low, idle, and vicious persons. Curiosity
sometimes attracts others of a better description for
a time; but it is a remarkable fact, established by
the testimony of Universalists on becoming con-
verted to the Truth, that few can, however desirous,
ever bring themselves to believe the doctrine of uni-
versal salvation. Most are like the New-England
farmer who, at the close of a Universalist service,
thanked the preacher for his sermon, saying that he
vastly liked his doctrine, and would give him five
dollars if ho would only prove it to be true !

t The Swedenborgians say that they are increas-
ing faster in America than anywhere else at present.
If this be so, their increase throughout the world
must be slow indeed. The late Judge Young, of
(ireensburg, in Pennsylvania, and a few other men
of some influence, have been reckoned among their
converts. In some instances men who have grown
tired of the coldness of Unitarianism, have betaken
themselves to Swedenborgianism.

'Chap. VIII.] JEWS, RAPPISTS, SHAKERS, MORMONS, ETC.

383

some others, they show a strong leaning
towards Romanism. They allow mar-
riage, but make mucli account of celibacy ;
in Baptism they hold that the immersion
should be repeated thrice, and observe the
seventh day as their Sabbath. Their
church order is like that of the Regular
Baptists, except that every brother is al-
lowed to speak, and the most fluent is
generally chosen the regular minister.
Most of the men in this communion wear
their beards long, and dress in long coats,
or tunics, reaching to their heels, and bound
at the waist with a girdle. They are but
a small body, having some churches, but
in many places meet in private houses.
Some of them appear to possess piety.
Their ministers are supposed to be about
equal in number to their churches, and the
aggregate amount of their members may
be about 3000 or 4000.

CHAPTER VII.

THE JEWS.

Whatever may have been the early
legislation of the Anglo-American colonies
in regard to the descendants of Abraham,
it is certain that the Jew now finds an asy-
lum, and the full enjoyment of his civil
rights, in all parts of the United States.
Yet I know not how it has happened, un-
less it be owing to the distance of our
country from Europe, and its presenting
less scope for the petty traffic which forms
their chief employment in the Old World,
that it has been only at a comparatively
recent period that any considerable num-
ber of Jews have found their way to our
shores. So much have they increased,
however, among us during the last ten
years, that it is now computed tliat there
are no fewer than 50,000 in the United
States. They have about fifty synagogues,
and the same number of Rabbles. Five or
six synagogues are now to be found in
New- York, instead of one, as a few years
ago. There is one in which the service
is conducted in English, at Charleston, in
South Carolina, and no doubt in other
cities also. A few instances of conver-
sion to Christianity have taken place, but
only a few, the attention of Christians, we
may truly say, not having been sufficiently
turned to that object. This may have been
from the fewness of the Jews, until of late
years, causing them to be overlooked, or
from the want of suitable persons to devote
themselves to the work. We are pleased
to see that some interest has begun to be
taken in this subject during the last year
or two.

CHAPTER VIII.

RAPPISTS, SHAKERS, MORMONS, ETC.

The Rappists are a small body of German
Protestants, who came to the United States
from Wurtemburg, about the year 1803,
under their pastor, a Mr. George Rapp,
who has recently deceased. They settled
at a place called Economy, on the Ohio,
about fifteen miles below Pittsburgh. From
Economy part of them, headed by Mr.
Rapp, went to the W^abash River, in Indi-
ana, and on its banks formed a new settle-
ment, called Harmony, but this they after-
ward sold to the well-known Robert Owen,
and returned to Economy, in Pennsylvania.
Their distinguishing principle is an entire
" community of goods," upon what they
suppose to have been the example of the
primitive Christians. The whole scheme,
however, of this small community, for it
comprises but a few hundred members,
seems mainly of a worldly and merely
economical character, though they keep
up the form of religious observances and
services.

The Shakers are a fanatical sect of Eng-
lish origin. About 1747, James Wardley,
originally a Quaker, imagining that he had
supernatural dreams and revelations, found-
ed a sect which, from the bodily agitations
practised in some parts of their religious
services, were called Shakers, or Shaking
Quakers ; it is not, however, to be suppo-
sed for a moment that they are connected
with the respectable people called Qua-
kers or Friends. Ann Lee, or, rather, Mrs.
Standley, for she had married a man of
that name, the daughter of a blacksmith in
Manchester, England, adopted Wardley's
views and the bodily exercises of his fol-
lowers. From the accounts we have of her
she must have become a thorough adept
during the nine years which she spent in
convulsions, fastings, «fec. ; for she is said
to have clinched her fists in the course of
her fits so as to make the blood pass through
the pores of her skin, and wasted away so
that at last she had to be fed like an infant.
About 1770 she discovered the wickedness
of marriage, and began " testifying against
it." She called herself " Ann the Word,"
meaning that the Word dwelt in her. And
to this day her followers say that " the man
who was called Jesus, and the woman who
was called Ann, are verily the two first pil-
lars of the Church, the two anointed ones."
In other words, they hold that, as the first
Adam was accompanied by a woman, so
must be the second Adam.

In May, 1774, Ann Lee, otherwise Mrs.
Standley, together with three elders, and
others of the sect, emigrated to America,
and two years after formed a settlement
at Niskayuna, a few miles from Albany, in
the State of New- York. From that, as
from a centre, they put forth shoots, until

284

RELIGION IN AMERICA.

[Book vni.

at length there are now about fifteen Shaker
settlements, or villages, in different parts
of the United States, comprising some 6000
or 8000 souls. Their doctrines are a strange
mixture of the crudest errors with some
few Gospel truths, but it would be a sad
misnomer to call them Christian. They
call themselves the Millennial Church.
They hold that the millennium has begun,
and that they are the only true church, and
have all the apostolic gifts. They insist
that Baptism and the Lord's Supper ceased
with the apostolic age ; that the wicked
will be punished for a definite period only,
except such as apostatize from them, and
these will be punished forever ; that the
judg;ment has already commenced ; that
Christ will not again appear in the world,
except in the persons of his followers, that
is, the Shakers ; that marriage is sinful,
and that " they that have wives should be
as though they had none," even now, and
that thus alone purity and holiness, and
the consequent beatitude of the heaven-
ly state, can be attained ; that sin com-
mitted against God is committed against
them, and can be pardoned only for Christ's
sake through them. Such are some of
their absurd tenets. The discipline of
their churches rests for the most part with
"their elders," who follow the instructions
left by "Mother Ann Lee." In their reh-
gious worship, they range themselves at
intervals in rows, and then spring upward
a few inches ; sometimes, however, they
become so excited in this exercise as to
throw off their upper garments, and jump
as if they would touch the ceiling — all, as
they say, to express their joy in the Lord.
After this they sit down and listen awhile
to their preachers, and then, when tired of
hearing, resume their dancing freaks.

They maintain the doctrine of a commu-
nion of goods. The men and women live
apart. The children of proselytes are in-
stantly separated, by the boys being sent
into the male apartment, and the girls into
the female. Of course it is only from such
recruits that a community of this kind can
keep up its numbers.

The Shakers have the reputation, in gen-
eral, of being honest and industrious, but I
have had no means of ascertaining what
their interior life and conduct may be, be-
yond this, that no small number of their
members have left them in disgust, and are
far from speaking well of them. The read-
er will perceive their insignificance in point
of numbers, yet, to believe some European
travellers, there is cause to fear that the
United States may one day be overrun
with this ignorant and deluded sect. But
the absurd importance which such writers
would fain attach to the Shakers is easily
accounted for ; their eccentricities afford
a topic sufficiently marvellous and amusing
to fill a chapter or two in a " Diary" or

" Notebook," while in the United States no-
body thinks it worth while to bestow much
thought upon them. So long as they re-
spect the persons, rights, and property of
others, the government suffers them to grat-
ify their fancies undisturbed. According-
ly, they remain a small and quite obscure
community, that must in time utterly dis-
appear instead of growing into something
like importance, which would be the prob-
able result if they were persecuted. Were
the Shakers to appear in some European
countries, a very different, and, in my opin-
ion, a far less prudent course would be fol-
lowed. Accustomed to meddle with eve-
rything, even with conscience itself, their
governments would probably interfere, un-
der the plea of saving the children from
being brought up in such delusion. But
we prefer letting them alone, under the
conviction that, all things considered, it is
better to do so, and with the hope that the
light that surrounds them, and with which
they must come into contact in their inter-
course with the world, will, in God's own
time, reach their minds. To interfere with
those parental ties, and that consequent
responsibility which God himself has es-
tablished, must always be a difiicult and
dangerous task even for the best and wi-
sest of governments.*

* A book of a character somewhat remarkable has
lately been published by these deluded people. It is en-
titled, " A Holy, Sacred, and Divine ROLL AND
BOOK, FRO.M THE LORD GOD OF HEAVEN, to
THE Inhabitants of the Earth ; revealed in
THE United Society at New-Lebanon. Coun-
ty of Columbia, State of New-York, United-
States of America. Read and understand all ye
in mortal clay. Published at Canterbury, N. H., 1843."

The history of this strange production is as fol-
lows : A certain Philemon Stewart asserts that a
holy angel from the Lord came to him in the morn-
ing of the 4th of May, 1842, at New-Lebanon, and
commanded him to appear before the Lord on the
Holy Mount, bowing himself seven times as he ap-
proached. He obeyed the heavenly messenger, and
met a mighty angel on the summit of the hill or
mount, who read to him six hours every day from
the Roll which he had in his hand, m order that he,
Philemon Stewart, might write down the sacred
revelation.

The contents of this volume are various. First,
there is a Proclamation of the Almighty to all that
dwell on the earth, announcing that he was going to
make a great revelation through his holy angel, who
is Jesus Christ. Next comes a proclamation from
God to his holy angel. Then follows a proclamation
of the angel himself After this, we have the intro-
duction to the Sacred Roll by the holy angel, giv-
en also at New-Lebanon (after the volume had been
written), on the 2d of February, 184.3, at twelve
o'clock, M. Then comes the " Sacred Volume and
Sealed Roll, opened and read by the mighty angel,"
consisting of 33 chapters, each of which is divided
into verses, after the manner of the Scriptures.

To give anything like an adequate idea of its con-
tents in a short space is impossible. I will only say,
that it proposes to give an account of the character
of God ; the creation of man ; of his fall through the
temptation of the serpent [irrational or animal pro-
pensities] ; of God's dealing with mankind ; of Jesus
Christ; of the departures from the Gospel; of the
second advent, or the Christ in the female (Mother

Chap. VIII.]

RAPPISTS, SHAKERS, MORMONS, ETC.

285

The Mormons, or Latter Day Saints, as
they call themselves. The annals of mod-
ern times furnish few more remarkable
examples of cunning in the leaders, and
delusion in their dupes, than is presented
by what is called Mormonism. An ig-
norant but ambitious person of the name
of Joseph Smith, Jun., then residing in the
western part of the State of New- York,
pretends that an angel appeared to him in
1827, and told him where he should find
a stone box, containing certain golden
plates, with a revelation from heaven in-
scribed on them. Four years after this, the
plates having, of course, been found as de-
scribed, the impostor set about the writing
out of this revelation, and pretended, with
the aid of a pair of stone spectacles, found
also in the box, to read it off to a man
of the name of Harris, and afterward to
one called Cowdery, these acting as his
amanuenses. The " prophet," as he is

Ann Lee) ; of the way by which holiness may be at-
tained, viz., the renunciation of sexual and sensual
desires, and living as brothers and sisters, instead of
husband and wife; of the terrible judgments which
men will encounter if they do not obey this revela-
tion, etc., etc.

As it is important that this book should be known
to all mankind, it is enjoined by the mighty angel
that every minister of the Gospel should have a copy,
as soon as he can procure one, in the sacred pulpit,
that people may see it. All boards of missions are
commanded to have it translated into foreign lan-
guages. One edition has been printed by the " So-
ciety" for gratuitous distribution. Copies have been
sent, in the name of the Lord, to the principal book-
sellers, and a modest request is made that they
would publish and circulate the work, and some di-
rections respecting the manner of doing so are giv-
en.*

We learn, furthermore, from a letter dated the 18th
of December, 1843, addressed to the Messrs. Harper,
that the committee or agents of the Society have re-
solved upon a pretty wide and thorough dissemina-
tion of the 500 copies which they had, agreeably to
the divine command, printed for general distribution.
" We do not feel it our province," say they, " to judge
of the work and designs of the Almighty in this mat-
ter ; but we feel ourselves under the most solemn ob-
ligations to obey his divine command, which has been
revealed to us by the inspiration of his holy angel,
with that degree of evidence which we cannot doubt.
We have, therefore, made arrangements to forward
four copies to each of the governments of Europe and
Asia, part of which are already on the way to Eu-
rope ; four to the chief magistrate of these United
States, and two to the executive of each state, and
also to the different boards of foreign missions.

" We are aware that the manner in which the
hook was revealed and written, in the name of in-
spiration from the Almighty, is not according to the
generally-received opinions and present sense and
ideas of mankind, but we solemnly testify that this
work was not directed nor dictated by any mortal
power or wisdom."

The whole is a strange mixture, in which entire
passages, as well as verses, of the Scriptures are min-
gled up with the speculations, often both impious
and absurd, of the professed author.

* In fact, ou page 161, it is expressly ordained that fhe
book must be " bound in yellow paper, with red backs,
■edges also yellow ; and it is my command, saith the Lord,
that if ajiy person or persons shall add aught to this book,
he or they shall not prosper in time, nor find rest m eter-
nity."

now called, took care, of course, that nei-
ther of them, nor any one else, should
see the plates, the part of the room he
occupied having been partitioned off from
where they sat by a blanket. After three
years spent in concocting this new rev-
elation, the book at last was completed,
and pubhshed as a I'2mo volume of 588
pages, at Palmyra, in the State of New-
York. It is commonly called the Mor-
mon's Bible, but more properly The Book
of Mormon, and is divided into fifteen
books or parts, each purporting to be writ-
ten by the author whose name it bears.
These profess to give the history of about
a thousand years from the time of Zedeki-
ah, king of Judah, to A.D. 420. The whole
work claims to be an abridgment by one
Moroni, the last of the Nephites, of the
seed of Israel, from the records of his
people. Not to trouble the reader with de-
tails respecting this most absurd of all pre-
tended revelations from heaven, we need
only say that it undertakes " to trace the
history of the Aborigines of the American
Continent, in all their apostacies, pilgrim-
ages, trials, adventures, and wars from the
time of their leaving Jerusalem, in the
reign of Zedekiah, under one Lehi, down
to their final disaster, near the Hill of Ca-
morah, in the State of New- York, where
Smith found his golden plates. In that
final contest, according to the Prophet Mo-
roni, about 230,000 were slain in battle,
and he alone escaped to tell the tale."*

But the Book of Mormon, which they do
not consider so nmch in the light of a sub-
stitute for the Holy Scriptures as of a sup-
plement to them, does not contain all Jo-
seph Smith's revelations ; a I2mo volume,
of about 250 pages, called The Book of Cov-
enants and Revelations, and filled with the
silliest things imaginable, of all sorts, has
been added to it by way of another supple-
ment. Thoroughly to comprehend the
whole system, however, one must read Mr.
Parley P. Pratt's " Voice of Warning," for
he is an oracle among the Mormons, and
also the newspaper which they publish
as an organ for the dissemination of their
doctrines. We may add, that, aided by
his wonderful spectacles, Smith is ma-
king a new translation of the Bible, al-
though quite unacquainted with Hebrew"
and Greek !

The publication of his own Bible, in
1830, may be considered as the starting-
point of the sect. For some years he
made but few converts, but having remo-
ved to Kirtland, Ohio, he was there joined
by Sidney Rigdon, formerly a heterodox
Baptist preacher, who had been preparing
the way for Mormonism by propagating
certain doctrines of his own, and being a

♦Turner's "Mormonism in all Ages," published
at New-York, and to be had of Wiley and Putnam,
booksellers, London.

286

RELIGION IN AMERICA.

[Book VH.

much better-informed man than Smith, it
is chiefly under his plastic hand that the
religious economy of the sect has been
formed. From Ohio they began to re-
move, in 1834, to Jackson county, in Mis-
souri, where they were to have their
" Mount Zion," the capital and centre of
their great empire. The people of Mis-
souri, a few years after, compelled them
to leave it ; upon which they went to Illi-
nois, and there they are now building the
city of Nauvoo, on the left bank of the
Mississippi, and thither their disciples have
been flocking ever since, until their num-
bers amount to several thousands. Smith
and Rigdon are still their chief prophets.
For a while, they had many to sympathize
with them on account of the severity with
which they had been supposed to be treat-
ed in Missouri, but so much has lately
come to light in proof of the inordinate am-
bition, and vile character and conduct of
their leaders, who want to found a kind of
empire in the West, that their speedy an-
nihilation as a sect seems now inevitable.
One dupe after another is leaving them,
and exposing the abominations of the fra-
ternity and its chiefs. Smith and some
others seem now marked out as objects on
which the laws of the land must soon in-
flict summary justice. Their leaders are
evidently atrocious impostors, who have
deceived a great many weak-minded per-
sons, by holding out to them promises of
great temporal advantage. " Joe Smith,"
as he is commonly called, will soon find
that America is not another Arabia, nor
he another Mohammed ; and his hope of
founding a vast empire in the Western
hemisphere must soon vanish away.

To conclude, the Mormons are a body
of ignorant creatures, collected from al-
most all parts of the United States, and
also from Great Britain.* A full exposi-
tion of the wickedness of their leaders has
lately been made by John C. Bennet, for-
merly a major-general in the " Legion of
Nauvoo," and an important man among
them.

CHAPTER IX.

ATHEISTS, DEISTS, SOCIA.LISTS, FOURRIERISTS,
ETC.

These sects can hardly be placed with
propriety among religious denominations
of any description, the most they pretend
to being a code of morals, such as it is.
The avowed Atheists are, happily, few in
number, and are chiefly to be found among

* It is a singular fact that so large a proportion of
them are from Great Britain. But it is not difficult
to account for it. Smitli and the other leaders know
well that there is a large population in England of a
low and ignorant character, who may be readily
tempted, by the prospect of bettering their fortunes
to take part in such an enterprise.

the frequenters of our remaining groggeries
and rum-holes.

As for our Deists, including unbelievers
in Christianity of all classes, there is a
considerable number, especially in New-
York, and some of our other large cities
and towns. A very large proportion of
them are foreigners. The infidelity of the
present times, however, in the United
States is remarkably distinguished from
what was to be found there fifty years
ago, when that of France, after having dif-
fused itself in the plausible speculations of
a host of popular writers, wherever the
French language was known, became at
length associated with the great Revolu-
tion of that country, and obtaining credit
for all that was good in a work which it
only corrupted and marred, became fash-
ionable in America as well as Europe,
among the professed admirers of liberty,
in what are called the highest classes of
society. At the head of these, in the Uni-
ted States, stood Mr. Jeff"erson, who was
President from 1801 to 1809, and who in
conversation, and by his writings, did more
than any other man that ever lived among
us to propagate irreligion in the most in-
fluential part of the community. In the
same cause, and about the same period,
laboured Mr. Thomas Paine, and, at a later
date, Mr. Thomas Cooper, who endeavour-
ed to train to infidelity by sophistical rea-
soning, and still more, by contemptible
sarcasms and sneers, the youth whom it
was his duty to teach better things.

Now, however, it is much otherwise.
When men dislike evangelical truth, they
take refuge in something which, under the
name of Christianity, makes a less demand
on their conscience and their conduct. -
Open infidelity, meanwhile, has descended
to the lower ranks. It now burrows in
the narrow streets, and lanes, and purlieus
of our large cities and towns, where it finds
its proper aliment — the ignorant and the
vicious to mislead and to destroy.

Owenisni, Socialism, and Fourrierism,.
are of foreign origin. The first two are
fi-om England, and are but economical or
political schemes, in which infidelity seeks
to imbody and sustain itself. Fourrierism
is also an economical scheme. It is not
necessarily allied to infidelity, but as it
has not long been known in the United
States, I am not informed of its character
there.

Robert Owen, from Scotland, and Miss
Frances Wright, from England, endeavoiu--
ed some years ago to form the first infidel
community upon the social principle adopt-
ed by the Shakers and the Mormons ; fail-
ing in which, they set about endeavouring
to bring over the labouring classes of New-
York, and other great cities, to certain,
agrarian schemes. But after much labour
in travelling, lecturing, and forming socie-

Chap. X.]

GENERAL REMARKS.

287

ties for the circulation of infidel tracts and
books, their efforts have proved almost
fruitless. Their lectures at first attracted
crowds both of Americans and foreigners,
who attended them from curiosity, but be-
fore long their audiences consisted chiefly
of foreigners, and such is the state of
things at present.* That there is a con-
siderable amount of infidehty in America
is not denied, but it cannot be compared
to the vast amount of true religion, much
less with the much vaster amount of re-
spect for religion, and religious belief,
Avhich so largely pervades the moral at-
mosphere of the country. Of the truly
great men of the nation, very few are in-
fidels.

CHAPTER X.

GENERAL REMARKS ON THE STATE OF THEO-
LOGICAL OPINION IN AMERICA.

Having concluded these notices of the
various denominations — evangelical and
non-evangelical — in the United States, I
would now make a few remarks on the
past history and present state of theologi-
cal opinion in that country. Fully and
philosophically treated, this could not fail
to interest sincere inquirers after truth in
all countries, but it would require not a
chapter, but a volume, and would hardly
be consistent with the nature of this work.
We must leave such a discussion to an-
other time, and, probably, to other hands,
and shall now merely touch on a few^ gen-
eral topics.

I. Let us first mark some of the causes
and influences to which this diversity of
religious doctrines may be traced. The
chief of these are,

1. Difference of origin and ancestry.
This we have already noticed, but must
refer to it again.

Had the whole territory of the United
States been originally settled by one class
of men, holding the same system of reli-
gious opinions, more uniformity of doc-
trine might reasonably have been looked
for. But what philosophical inquirer, know-
ing the different origins of New-England,
Pennsylvania, Virginia, and New- York,
would expect that the mere federal union

* At one time it was feared that vast numbers
of the labouring classes in New-York, as well as in
Philadelphia and other cities, would be carried away
by the plausible but vile discourses of Miss Frances
Wright. But facts soon proved that those fears
were groundless. Even in the acme of her popular-
ity, a friend of mine who was present at one of her
lectures told me that she was hissed no less than
two or three times for making the assertion, and re-
peating it, that Washington was an infidel ! There
are few people in the United States who would not
consider it a dishonour done to the name of that
great and good man, whom humanity claims as her
own, to call him an infidel.

of states that differ so much in their ori-
ginal inhabitants, could ever bring them
all to complete rehgious uniformity 1 Let
us but look at the number of different reli-
gious bodies — different, I mean, in their
origin — to be found in these and the other
states of the Union. (L) The New-Eng-
land Congregational churches, formed by
immigrant Puritans, and, down to the epoch
of our Revolution, sympathizing strongly
with all the changes of opinion among the
English dissenters. (2.) The Presbyterian
Church in its larger and smaller branches,
very much of Scotch and Irish origin, and
still aiming at an imitation of the Church
of Scotland as its pattern. (3.) The Epis-
copal Church, an offshoot from the Church
of J]ngland, dreading and almost scorning
to borrow ideas from any quarter save its
mother-church. (4.) The Dutch Reformed
Church, which long received its ministers
from Holland, and still glories in the Hei-
delberg Catechism and the decrees of the
Synod of Dort. (5.) The Lutherans, the
Reformed, and other German churches,
who preserve their old nationality, both
by being still organized as distinct com-
munions, and by the constant emigration
of ministers and people from their original
fatherland. Now, why should we expect
to see all these fused and amalgamated in
the United States more than in Europe ?

2. Mark, too, that none of their ministers
can extend any such di7-ect influence over
other churches than their own, as might
make the exercise of brotherly love pass
into close intimacy and final amalgama-
tion. Each of them has its own colleges
and theological seminaries ; each its own
weekly, monthly, or quarterly periodicals ;
and some of them may almost be said to
have an independent religious literature,
edited and published by their own respon-
sible agents. All this is counterbalanced
only by many ministers of diflferent denom-
inations receiving their classical and sci-
entific education at the same institutions,
preparatory to their more strictly profes-
sional studies.

3. The freedom allowed in the United
States to all sorts of inquiry and discussion
necessarily leads to a diversity of opinion,
which is seen not only in there being differ-
ent denominations, but different opinions
also in the same denomination. Perhaps
there is not a single ecclesiastical conven-
tion in which there are not two parties at
least, whose different views lead some-
times to discussions keenly maintained,
yet turning generally upon points which,
however interesting, are confessedly not
of fundamental importance. On what may
be called vital or essential points there is
little disputation, just because there is much
harmony in all the evangelical commu-
nions. Nor could it be well otherwise, see-
ing that in doctrine and practice they all

288

RELIGION IN AMERICA.

[Book VII.

take the Bible as their inspired and sole
authoritative guide.

4. Nor must we forget that what may
be called provincial peculiarities necessa-
rily lead so far to diversities of religious
sentiment. A true Eastern man from Con-
necticut, and a true Western man. born and
brought up on the banks of the Ohio, can
hardly be expected to speculate alike on
dubious points in theology, any more than
on many other subjects. So, also, are the
inhabitants of the North and South dis-
tinguished from each other by peculiarities
fully as marked as those that distinguish
the northern from the southern inhabitants
of Great Britain.

II. Yet it is not difficult to draw a line
between the various unevangelical sects
on the one hand, and those that may be
classed together as evangelical denomina-
tions on the other. The chief of the for-
mer, as we have said, are the Roman Cath-
olics, Unitarians, Christ-ians, Universalists.
Hicksite Quakers, Swedenborgians, Tun-
kers or Bunkers, Jews, Shakers, and so on
down to the Mormons, beginning with the
sect that has buried the truth amid a heap
of corruptions of heathenish origin, and
ending with the grossest of all the delusions
that Satanic malignity or human ambition
ever sought to propagate. Now it will be
observed that, with the exception of the
first two, these sects have few elements
of stability. Their ministers are almost
all men of little learning, and that little is
almost all concentrated in specious endeav-
ours to maintain their tenets, by perverting
the Scriptures, by appealing to the prejudi-
ces of their hearers, and by. misrepresent-
ing and ridiculing the doctrines of oppo-
nents who meet their subtle arguments
with tiie plain declarations of Scripture, as
well as with unanswerable arguments
drawn from sound reason. The congre-
gations of the Universalists and Christ-ians
— the latter of whom are Unitarian Bap-
tists, and the most numerous of the une-
vangelical sects next to the Roman Catho-
lics— are far from large, except in some of
the largest cities and towns in New-Eng-
land, and they often last but a few years,
disappearing almost entirely before the ex-
tension of the evangelical communions.
At times a religious revival almost anni-
hilates, in the course of a few weeks,
th-.- attea'tpts made by come Universalist i
preacher to form a society of that sect, at
places where the faiLiTul lieruld of the Gos-
pel has lifted up a standard for Truth. And
as none of the unevangelical bodies, not
even the Roman Catholics, can absolutely
debar their members from attending the
preaching of evangelical ministers when
they come into their neighbourhood, they
present no insurmountable barrier to the
advance of truth.
A better and more intimate acquaintance

with the state of society in the United
States than foreigners can well possess,
seems necessary to account for the number,
variety, and numerical magnitude of some
of our unevangelical sects, and thus to
abate the surprise which these may occa-
sion to many of our readers. Neverthe-
less, to a certain extent, this may be
brought within the comprehension even of
those who have never seen the country.
First, then, be it observed that not only
can a far larger proportion of the white in-
habitants of the United States read than is
to be found in almost any other country,
but they actually do read and pursue the
acquisition of knowledge in almost every
possible way. Novelty, accordingly, has
always great attractions for them. Next,
with the exception, perhaps, of Scotland, in
no other country is there so little work done
on the Lord's day ; not only does the law
require, but the disposition of the people
enforces it ; and as they are not at all of a
character that would incline them to spend
the day at home in idleness, they naturally
take advantage of the opportunities within
reach of attending public meetings, and
listening to what may be said there. And
religion being a subject to which they at-
tach more or less importance almost uni-
versally, it is what they most like to hear
discussed on the Sabbath. Thirdly, where
there is no evangelical preaching, vast
numbers, particularly of such as have no
decided religious convictions, will resort
to a Universalist, or even to an infidel
preacher, if one is announced in their
neighbourhood, rather than go nowhere
at all. No doubt curiosity leads them thith-
er first, and perhaps for long afterward.
Fourthly, absolute religious liberty being
the principle of the government, the people
may everywhere have what preaching they
please, if they can find it, and choose to be
at the expense of maintaining it ; and, ac-
cordingly, they who dislike faithful evan-
gelical preaching, often combine to form
a congregation where some heterodox
preacher may hold forth doctrines more
acceptable to them. Congregations so
formed, especially in cities and large towns,
may last for years, or even become m some
sense permanent, but in by far the greater
number of cases they disappear, part of
their members removing to some other
place, and others becoming converts to the
orthodox creed of the surrounding evan-
gehcal churches.

Thus it will be perceived that the une-
vangelical sects in the United States are
mainly composed of persons who, in other
countries, would remain stupidly indiffer-
ent to religion, spending their Sabbaths in
employments or amusements wholly sec-
ular. Even this may be thought better by
some than that they should " give heed to
doctrines of devils," upon the principle that

Chap. X.]

GENERAL REMARKS.

289

no religion is better than a false one. This
may be true in many cases, but hardly in
<ill. Experience proves, I think, very de-
cidedly in America, that persons that oc-
cupy their minds with the subject of reli-
gion, even when they doubt the truth or
embrace positive error, are more accessi-
ble to the faithful preaching of the Gospel,
than others that are sunk in stupid indiffer-
ence and infidelity. The forms of error
in that country have, with one exception,
no element of stability — no vigorous dog-
matism or permanent fascinations to op-
pose to the solid orthodoxy of evangelical
preaching. The one exception is Roman-
ism, which presents a sort of mosaic of
truth and error, so artfully combined as to
exert a charm over the minds of those who
have once received it, which it is almost im-
possible to dissipate.

Next to Romanism, Unitarianism is, of
all forms of error that assume the title of
Christian, the most stable. Its professors
are chiefly to be found in the eastern parts
of Massachusetts ; but as those, as well as
other parts of New-England, are constantly
sending out emigrants to the new settle-
ments, small knots of persons with Uni-
tarian preferences may be found in the
Middle, Southern, and Western States.
Still, this dispersion of Unitarianism, and
its sprouting up at various points, not in
Massachusetts, has rather the appearance
than the reality of increase. It may be
•more than doubted whether it be not posi-
tively declining in Boston and its vicinity.
Except that it by no means prevails in the
same proportion, it is very much in Amer-
ica what Rationalism is in Protestant Eu-
rope— a disease caught by the Church from
the epidemic skepticism of the eighteentli
century — a skepticism which is now in
both hemispheres taking the form of a
mystical pantheism. The career of Uni-
tarianism, which one of its advocates calls
not a " religion, but a fashion,"* as a sect
or party, is manifestly drawing to a close ;
and such, I rather think, is the impression
of its most intelligent and eminent leaders.
It seems to be given up as incapable of dif-
fusion ; and the thirty years' experience it
has had of a separate organization con-
firms to my mind this conclusion, though
others may think differently. At all events,
no one who is well informed with regard
to the present aspect of things in America,
can claim for Unitarianism much vigour
or any greater positive increase than tliat
of the natural increase of the population
within its pale ; and it may be doubted
whether it is increasing even so much as
that.

A certain amount of moral influence for
good may fairly be attributed to some of
the unevangelical sects, but this can hardly

* The Rev, O. A. Brownson.
T

be said of the Universalists — and they
comprise nearly the whole — who deny a
future judgment and all punishment beyond
this life ; while as for the Atheists, Deists,
and Socialists of every hue, it is hardly
slander to say, that their influence upon
society is positively mischievous.

As for the Shakers, Mormons, and other
such agglomerations, they may be ac-
counted for, I apprehend, on two princi-
ples. First, the binding nature of human
depravity, which makes men prefer any-
thing, however absurd, that looks like re-
ligion, and suits their fancies, to retaining,
or, rather, to obtaining, the true knowledge
of God. Next, these bodies always hold
out some temporal good — some economi-
cal advantage — which, far more than any
religious consideration, tempts persons to
enter them. One would suppose, for ex-
ample, that a religion which, like that of
the Shakers, makes the sinfulness of mar-
riage a fundamental principle, and obliges
married proselytes to live single, could
never find followers. Yet, as persons
sometimes grow tired of the man-iage rela-
tion, or, rather, of those with whom it has
bound them as husband and wife, so some
may be found wiUing, even by becoming
Shakers, to rid themselves of a burden
that feels grievous to them. So, also, in
the separation of children from their pa-
rents, and the entire breaking up of the
family relationships, weak people may al-
ways be found ready to snatch at any op-
portunity of ridding themselves of parental
responsibility, by shifting it upon other
shoulders. This despicable and unmanly
selfishness may be regarded as the main
foundation of all the forms of Socialism.

HI. We have yet to consider the extent
of doctrinal agreement and diversity in and
among the communions classed together
as evangelical — a subject already noticed,
but to which it is necessary to return, in
order that the reader may perceive its con-
nexion with certain other interesting and
important topics.

1. They agree generally in holding the
body of doctrines professed by the Reform-
ed churches of P'rance and Switzerland, as
imbodied in the Westminster Assembly's
Catechisms, and in the doctrinal articles
of the Church of England. In particular,
they hold the supremacy of the Scriptures
as a rule of faith, and that whatever doc-
trine can be proved from Holy Scripture
without tradition is to be received unhesi-
tatingly, and that nothing that cannot so be
proved shall be deemed an essential point
of Christian belief They hold the inspi-
ration of the Scriptures — the three persons
in the divine unity — the holiness of the first
Innnan pair as created and placed upon
probation— their fall, and the involved or
consequent apostacy of the whole human
race — the necessity of some atonement

290

RELIGION IN AMERICA.

[Book VII.

(sufficient to vindicate the justice of God's
government) in order to the pardon of
sin — the fact of such an atonement having
been made by the humiUation, sufferings,
and death of Jesus Christ, who is both
God and man — the offer of forgiveness to
all mankind, as provided for them by the
mercy of God in Christ — the free justifi-
cation of the believer, not for his works
past or foreseen, nor for his faith, but for
Christ's sake alone — the necessity of an
inward spiritual renovation in order to sal-
vation— the fact that this spiritual renova-
tion is the result not of human endeavours,
but of the Holy Spirit operating upon the
soul, and thus making the call of God in
His Word, and by all instrumentalities out-
ward to the soul, an effectual call — the
dependance of the believer, for his progress
in holiness, on the continued communion
with God by the indwelling of the Holy
Spirit — the resurrection of the dead — the
universal judgment — the eternal state of
happiness for the saved, and of misery for
the lost.

2. The Methodists and some smaller
bodies reject the Calvinistic or Reformed
doctrine of predestination, especially in its
application to the individuals who, in the
fulfilment of God's counsels, become the
subjects of renewing grace. They also
deny the doctrine that all who are once
renewed to holiness are effectually and
certainly kept by the power of God through
faith unto salvation. But in other com-
munions these doctrines are held as clearly
taught in the Scriptures, and as of great
practical value.

3. A considerable proportion, perhaps a
third, of the clergy and members of the
Episcopal Church, agree with what is
called the Oxford party in the Church of
England ; so far, at least, as to ascribe to
sacraments and other external institutions,
a certain spiritual efficacy not recognised
by other Protestants.

4. The theological discussions and dis-
putes which sometimes agitate these vari-
ous communions are such, for the most
part, as to make it no easy matter to con-
vey a just idea of them to a foreigner. In
many instances, indeed, the disputants
themselves can hardly state the point in
debate to each other's satisfaction. For
instance, I could not expect to state mi-
nutely the differences between the " Old
School" and " New School," in the Pres-
byterian churches, without giving offence
to one party or the other, or perhaps to
both parties.

Let it suffice, then, to say that, generally,
the debates among theologians in America
are debates about the constitution of the
human mind, the analysis of responsibility
and moral agency, and the old question of
" fate and free-will." Some hold that all
mankind, individually, are literally respon-

sible before God for the sin of their first
parents ; others hold only that, in conse-
quence of Adam's sin, all his posterity are
sinners. Some hold that sin consists in a
propensity to sin concreated in the soul,
or, at least, existing in the soul from the
indivisible instant in which its existence
commences, anterior to all choice, all in-
telligence, all desire or emotion ; others
hold that sin consists only in the perver-
sion of the powers of human nature. Some
hold that the " new birth" is not only fig-
uratively and morally, but literally and
physically, a new creation ; that it is a
change in the being itself, from which a
moral renovation inevitably proceeds ; that
anterior to repentance, to faith, to any
right movement of the soul, there is not
merely an influence of the Holy Spirit
upon the soul, but a subjective change
within the soul, which change they call
repentance. Others, on the contrary, hold
that conversion, or the turning of the soul
to God in repentance and faith, is regener-
ation, and is the effect of a divine influence
upon the soul. Some hold that the re-
newed man will persevere in holiness, be-
cause the power of God upon him is such
that he cannot fall away ; others that God's
promise to keep him cannot fail, and that,
therefore, he %vill not fall away. Some
hold that God, in His works of creation,
providence, and redemption, has not con-
stituted the best system possible to Him,
and that He could have done much better
than He has done ; others hold that the
system of the universe, including all
events, is absolutely the best ; the best
which the mind of God could conceive ;
better, with all the sin which exists, than it
could have been if all creatures had re-
tained forever their allegiance to God ; and
others still hold that this system, including
all the evil which exists under it, is, on the
whole, better than any other system of
creation and government could have been,
but not better than if all God's creatures
had remained holy and happy. Some hold
that in every instance in which sin takes
place, God, on the whole, prefers that sin
to holiness in its stead ; others hold that
God never chooses evil rather than good,
or sin rather than holiness, yet that in
every instance in which sin actually takes
place, he, for some wise reason, chooses
to permit rather than to interpose his pow-
er to prevent it. Some hold that all the
acts of voluntary agents are predestined in
such a way that the agent has no power to
act otherwise than he does act ; others
hold that while all the acts of moral agents
are certain beforehand in the counsels of
God, nothing in that certainty is inconsist-
ent with the power of the voluntary agent
to act otherwise.

Such is a specimen of the controversial
theology in the evangelical, and panic u-

Chap. X.]

GENERAL REMARKS.

291

larly in the Congregational and Presbyte-
rian denominations. Were I to indicate
the probable direction of religious opinion
and theological science in the United
States, amid this metaphysical strife, I
should little hesitate to say that it is tend-
ing, on the whole, towards a higher appre-
ciation of the simplest and most Scriptural
Christianity, that is, of the Gospel as
" glad tidings" to all men, tidings of for-
giveness for guilt through the expiation
made by the Son of God, and tidings of
the gift of the Holy Spirit to lead sinners
to repentance, and to carry on a vvork of
sanctification in the hearts of the believing.
The demand is everywhere for a Christian-
ity that can be preached, and that, being
preached, will commend itself to every
man's conscience in the sight of God.
Under such a demand, wire-drawn specu-
lations about Christianity — remote from
any application to the conscience, to the
sinner's fears, and to the hopes and devout
affections of the believer — are felt to be
impertinent. Thus the Gospel is preached
less and less as a matter of traditionary
dogmatism and speculation, and more and
more as Gospel, the message of God's
mercy to needy and guilty man, to be re-
ceived by every hearer as suited to his
wants, and to be hailed with faith and joy
as life from the dead. Against this gen-
eral tendency there is, and there will be,
occasional, local, and party resistance ; the
surface may he ruffled from time to time
by some wind of doctrine, or speculation,
rather, and the current may seem to be
setting in the opposite direction. But I
am fully persuaded that, on the whole, if
not from year to year, at least from one
period of change to another, the progress
of religious opinion will be found to be to-
wards the simplest and most Scriptural
views of the Gospel as God's gracious
message, which every man may embrace,
and should embrace immediately, and away
from those philosophical and traditionary
expositions of Christianity which it only
embarrasses the preacher to deliver, and
the hearer to receive.

The increased attention which the the-
ologians of America are giving to the ac-
curate and learned investigation of the
Holy Scriptures, may be regarded as an
indication of the tendency of theological
seience in this country. That the Scrip-
tures are the only authority in matters of
faith is not only universally acknowledged
in theory, but more and more practically
acted upon. Thus the science and art of
interpretation are more and more appreci-
ated. The best theologian must be he who
bests understands, and who can best ex-
plain the Bible. The questions, What did
Edwards hold ] What did the Puritans
hold ] What did the Reformers hold \
Wliat did Augustine, Jerome, or the earli-

er Fathers hold! though admitted to be
important in their place, are regarded as
of small importance in comparison with
the questions, What saith the Scripture %
What did Christ and the Apostles teach ?
Under this influence, the tendency of the-
ological science, as well as of the popular
exposition of Christianity from the pulpit,
is towards the primitive simplicity of Chris-
tian truth.

The great achievement of American the-
ology is, that it has placed the doctrine of
the atonement for sin in the clearest light,
by illustrations drawn from the nature of
a moral government. Nowhere is the dis-
tinction between the work of Christ as the
propitiation for the sins of men, and that
of the Holy Spirit in renewing and sancti-
fying the sinner, more clearly drawn — no-
where is the necessity of each to the sal-
vation of the soul more constantly and for-
cibly exhibited. The tendency of our the-
ology, under the impulse of the Edwardean
exposition of the doctrine of the atonement,
is to avoid the habit — so common to phi-
losophers and philosophizing theologians —
of contemplating God exclusively as the
First Cause of all beings and all events, and
to fix attention upon him as a moral gov-
ernor of beings made for responsible ac-
tion. Here it is that the God of the Bible
differs from the God of philosophy. The
latter is simply a first cause — a reason why
things are — sometimes, if not always, a
mere hypothesis to account for the exist-
ence of the universe, another name for
nature or for fate. The former is a moral
governor, that is, a lawgiver, a judge, a dis-
penser of rewards and penalties. God's
law is given to the universe of moral be-
ings for the one great end of promoting
the happiness of that vast empire. As a
law, it is a true and earnest expression
of the will of the lawgiver respecting the
actions of his creatures. As a law, it
must be sanctioned by penalties ade-
quate to express God's estimation of the
value of the interests trampled on by dis-
obedience. As the law is not arbitrary,
but the necessary means of accomplishing
the greatest good, it may not be arbitrarily
set aside. Therefore, when man had be-
come apostate, and the whole human race
was under condemnation, God sent his Son
into the world, in human nature, " to be
made a sin-offering for us ;" and thus, by
his voluntary sufferings magnifying the law,
" to declare the righteousness of God, that
God may be just, and the justifier of him
who believeth." Thus it is that God, as a
moral governor, is glorified in the forgive-
ness of sinners ; that He calls upon all
men to repent, with a true and intense de-
sire for their salvation ; that He sends into
a world of rebellion the infinite gift of his
Spirit, to impart life to those who are dead
in sin ; that in a world of sinners, who, if

292

RELIGION IN AMERICA.

[Book VIII.

left to themselves, would all reject the of-
fered pardon, He saves those whom He has
chosen out of the world ; that he uses the
co-operation of redeemed and renewed men
in advancing the work of saving their fel-
low-men. Men are saved from sin and
condemnation, not by mere power, but by
means that harmonize with the nature, and
conduce to the ends of God's moral gov-
ernment. This method of illustrating the
Gospel carries the preacher and the theolo-
gian back from the Platonic dreams and dry
dogmatizing of the schools, to the Bible.
It sets the theologian upon studying, and
the preacher upon imitating, the freedom,
simplicity, and directness, with which the
Apostles addressed the understandings and
sensibilities of men. And thus it may be re-
garded as coinciding with other indications
of the tendency of religious opinion in the
various evangelical bodies of America.

I would remark, in conclusion, that few
things in, the history of the Gospel more
strikingly prove its inherent life and divin-
ity, than the extent to which it has se-
cured and retains a hold upon the Ameri-
fidLii people. Their Christianity is not the
;dead formalism of ecclesiastical institu-
tions— upheld by law, tradition, or the force
^of fashion.* It is not a body of supersti-

tions, lying with oppressive weight upon
the common mind, and giving support to a
domineering priesthood. It is not that Ra-
tionalism which, retaining little of Chris-
tianity but the name, has had a brief as-
cendency in some parts of Protestant Eu-
rope. It is evangelical Christianity — the
Christianity of the New Testament. Wher-
ever the stranger sees a place of worship
in our cities, or in the country, the pre-
sumption is — the probability is, with few
exceptions, ten to one— that there God is
worshipped in the name of the one Medi-
ator, with faith and penitence ; that there
pardon is offered to the guilty, freely through
Christ the Lamb of God ; and that there the
Holy Spirit is looked for, and is given to
renew the heart of the sinner, and to fill
the believing soul with joy and peace. The
worship may, in many instances, be such
as would offend the sensibilities of certain
cultivated minds — most unlike the choral
pomp of old cathedrals — still, rude as it
may be, it is often that only acceptable
worship which is offered in spirit and in
truth. The Gospel may be preached there
ignorantly, and with many imperfections,
still it is the Gospel, and often does it be-
come " the wisdom of God, and the power
of God unto salvation."

B O O K V 1 1 1.

EFFORTS OF THE AMERICAN CHURCHES FOR THE CONVERSION OP

THE WORLD.

CHAPTER I.

INTRODUCTORY REMARKS.

We cannot well close our view of the
religious condition of the United States
without a brief notice of what the church-
es here are doing for the propagation of
the Gospel in other lands. This forms a

* Much has been said in Europe about the tyranny
of public opinion in the United States, but I confess
I never have been able to compreliend what this ex-
pression means. M. de Tocqueville employs it, but
■without givmg any clear idea upon the subject, as
lias been well remarked by the Hon. John C. Spen-
cer, in his Notes to the American edition of M. de
T.'s work. If public opinion be strong and decided
in America, it is because the character of the people
makes it so. When they form an opinion, more es-
pecially on any matter in which the judgment or the
conscience is concerned (and what subject of a prac-
tical kind does not involve one or other of these,) ?
they are not willing to change it but for good reasons.
And in all matters of religion, and morals especially,
the Protestant Faith, which has so much influence
with a large proportion of the population, concurs
with the earnestness and steadiness of the Anglo-
Saxon character, to make public opinion, not only
strong, but right, on all points on which it has been
sufficiently informed. Mr. Laing, in his excellent
work on Sweden, has some judicious remarks on
this subject, proving that he takes a philosophic view
of it.

natural sequel to what has been said of
their endeavours to plant and to sustain its
institutions on their own soil.

Some readers, indeed, may be surprised
to learn that our churches are doing any-
thing at all for the spiritual welfare of oth-
er countries, while they have so much to
do in their own. When they hear that
our population is increasing at the rate of
500,000 of souls in the year, so that no-
thing short of the most gigantic efforts can
effect a proportionate increase of ministers
and congregations ; when they read of no
fewer than 60,000 or 80,000 immigrants
arriving from Europe, the greater number
of whom are ignorant of the true Gospel,
and many of them uneducated, poor, and
vicious, they may be astonished that the
American churches, unaided by the gov-
ernment in any way, receiving no tithes,
taxes, or public pecuniary grants of any
kind, even for the support of religion at
home, do nevertheless raise large sums for
sending the Gospel to the heathen. Such,
however, is not the feeling of enlightened
and zealous Christians in America itself.
They feel that, while called upon to do
their utmost for religion at home, it is at

Chap, n.]

EFFORTS TO CONVERT THE ABORIGINES.

293

once a duty and a privilege to assist in
promoting it abroad. They feel assured
that he that watereth shall himself be re-
freshed, and that, in complying so far as
they can with their Saviour's command
to " preach the Gospel to every creature,"
they are most likely to secure the bless-
ing of that Saviour upon their country.
And facts abundantly prove that they are
right.

Moreover, our churches have a special
reason for the interest they take in for-
eign missions. No churches owe so much
to the spirit of missions as they do. Much
of the country was colonized by men who
came to it not only as a refuge for their
faith when persecuted elsewhere, but as a
field of missionary enterprise ; and their
descendants would be most unfaithful to
the high trust that has been bequeathed to
them, did they not strenuously endeavour
to carry out the principles of their forefa-
thers. Alas, we have to mourn that we
have, after all, done so little to impart the
glorious Gospel, to which our country
owes so much, to nations still ignorant of
it ! Still, we have done something, and
the candid reader will perhaps admit that
we have not been altogether wanting in
our duty, nor greatly behind the church-
es of most other countries in this enter-
prise.

CHAPTER II.

EARLIER EFFORTS TO CONVERT THE ABORI-
GINES.

Notwithstanding the common mistake
at the present day, of those who conceive
that religious liberty, and to some extent,
also, the enjoyment of political rights, were
the sole inducements that led to the ori-
ginal colonization of the United States, we
have seen that the plantations of both -Vir-
ginia and New- England were designed to
conduce to the spread of Christianity by
the conversion of the Aborigines, as is
proved both by the royal charters estab-
lishing those early colonies, and by the ex-
pressed sentiments of the Massachusetts
settlers.

The royal charter granted to the Plym-
outh Company, having referred to the de-
population of the country by pestilence
and war, and its lying unclaimed by any
other Christian power, goes on to say,
"In contemplation and serious considera-
tion whereof, we have thought it fit, ac-
cording to our kingly duty, so much as in
us lieth, to second and follow God's sacred
will, rendering thanks to his divine Majes-
ty for his gracious favour in laying open
and revealing the same unto us before any
other Christian prince or state ; by which
means, without offence, and as we trust to

his glory, we may with boldness go on to
the settling of so hopeful a work, which
tendeth to the reducing and conversion of
such savages as remain wandering in des-
olation and distress, to civil society and
the Christian religion." And in this, the
charter professes to favour the " worthy
disposition" of the petitioners to whom it
was granted. Nothing could be more nat-
ural, therefore, than that John Robinson,
pastor of that part of the church which re-
mained at Leyden, in Holland, should ex-
claim, in his letter to the governor of the
colony at Plymouth, "Oh that you had
converted some before you killed any!"
But, in fact, the Plymouth colonists ap-
plied themselves to the conversion of the
natives from the very first. They en-
deavoured to communicate the knowledge
of the Gospel to the scattered Indians
around them, and took pains to establish
schools for their instruction. The result
was, that several gave satisfactory evi-
dence, living and dying, of real conversion
to God. A poor, small colony, struggling
for its very existence with all manner of
hardships, could not be expected to do
much in this way, yet in 1636 we find that
it made a legal provision for the preach-
ing of the Gospel among the Indians, and
for the establishment of courts to punish
trespasses committed against them.

The Massachusetts charter sets forth
that, " to win and incite the natives of that
country to the knowledge and obedience
of the only true God and Saviour of man-
kind, and the Christian Faith, in our royal
intention and the adventurer's free profes-
sion, is the principal end of the plantation."
The seal of the colony had for its device
the figure of an Indian, with the words of
the Macedonian entreaty, " Come over and
help us." And here, as at Plymouth, some
not altogether abortive attempts were made
to convert the natives from the very first.

Thus, these two colonies might be con-
sidered as self-supporting missions, and
rank among the earliest Protestant mis-
sionary enterprises. The Swedes had in
the preceding century done something for
their benighted countrymen in the north-
ern part of that kingdom. French Hugue-
nots, too, as we have seen, made an at-
tempt so early as 1556, under the auspices
of the brave and good Coligny, to carry
the Gospel to America, by founding a set-
tlement in Brazil. Calvin furnished sev-
eral pastors for it from his school at Ge-
neva. But Villagagnon, who took the lead,
having relapsed to Romanism, put three
of the Genevan pastors to death ; where-
upon some of the colonists returned to
Europe, and the remainder were massa-
cred by the Portuguese. A subsequent
attempt, made under the same auspices,
to plant a Protestant colony in Florida,
also failed. Thus, even assuming, which

294

RELIGION IN AMERICA.

[Book VIII.

is not very evident, that these attempts
were of a missionary character, certain it
is that the New-England colonies may be
regarded as the first successful enterprises
of the kind.

In 1646, the Massachusetts Legislature
passed an act for the encouragement of
Christian missions among the Indians, and
that same year the celebrated John Eliot
began his labours at Nonantum, now form-
ing part of the township of Newton, about
six miles from Boston. Great success at-
tended this good man's preaching, and
other modes of instruction. Nor were his
labours confined to the Indians near Bos-
ton. From Cape Cod to Worcester, over
a tract of country near 100 miles long, he
made repeated journeys, preaching to the
native tribes, whose language he had thor-
oughly mastered, and had translated the
Scriptures and other Christian books into
it. Both editions of his Indian Bible, the
one of 1500 copies in 16G3, the other of
2000 copies in 1685, were printed at Cam-
bridge, near Boston, and were the only
Bibles printed in America until long af-
ter. Eliot, who has ever since been call-
ed the " Apostle of the Indians," died in
1690, at the age of eighty-five. " Wel-
come joy," was one of his last expres-
sions. His labours, and those of others
whom he engaged in the same great work,
were blessed to the conversion of many
souls, and many settlements of " praying
Indians" were formed in the country round
Boston.

But Eliot was not the first who preached
the Gospel with success to the Indians in
New-England. Thomas Mayhew began
his labours among them on the island call-
ed Martha's Vineyard, in 1643. In 1646
he sailed for England to solicit aid ; but the
ship was lost at sea. His father, Thomas
Mayhew, the proprietor of the island,
though seventy years of age, then under-
took the task, and continued it till 1681,
when he died, at the age of ninety-three.
His grandson succeeded ; and for five gen-
erations, till the death of Zachariah May-
hew in 1803, aged eighty-seven years, that
family supplied pastors to the Indians liv-
ing on Martha's Vineyard.

In the Plymouth colony we find honour-
able mention made, among those who la-
boured to evangelize the Indians during
Eliot's lifetime, of Messrs. Treat, Tup-
per, and Cotton ; while in Massachusetts,
besides Eliot, there were Messrs. Goskin,
Thatcher, and Rawson ; and in Connecti-
cut, Messrs. Fitch and Pierson. The re-
sult of their united eff"orts was seen in
1675, in fourteen settlements of " praying
Indians, twenty- four congregations, and
twenty-four Indian preachers." Besides
religious instruction, the Indians were
taught agriculture, and the other most ne-
cessary arts of civilized life.

But that very year (1675), King Philip,
the chief of the Pokanoket tribe, instiga-
ted by his hatred of Christianity, and still
more, probably, by jealousy of the growing
power of the EngUsh settlers, made an un-
provoked war upon the colonies. It ended
in the annihilation of his party, not, how-
ever, without vast injury to the '"praying
settlements." Still, though the Gospel ex-
perienced a check, it soon began again to
make progress, so that in 1696 there were
thirty Indian churches in Massachusetts
colony, and, two years later, 3000 reputed
" converts."

In Rhode Island, Connecticut, and Long
Island, which belonged to the province of
New- York, though its eastern part was col-
onized by emigrants from New-England,
missionary efforts were less successful.
Still, the Gospel was not wholly without
eff'ect, and portions of the Narragansett,
Pequod, Nantick, Mohegan, and Montauk
tribes were converted to Christianity, and
long formed " Christian settlements," some
remnants of which exist to this day.

The news respecting the progress of the
Gospel among the Indians in New-Eng-
land excited so much interest in the moth-
er-country from the first, that " The Socie-
ty for Propagating the Gospel in New-
England" was incorporated in England so
early as 1649, and though its charter was
annulled &t the Restoration in 1660, a new
one was granted the following year, reor-
ganizing the society, under the title of
" The Society for Propagating the Gospel
among the Heathen Nations of New-Eng-
land and the parts adjacent in America."
The celebrated Robert Boyle took a great
interest in it, and was its " governor" or
president for thirty years. The good Bax-
ter was its friend. In 1698, " The Society
for promoting Christian Knowledge" was
founded by members of the Established
Church in England ; and in 1701, " The So-
ciety for Propagating the Gospel in Foreign
Parts" was instituted. This last joined with
the first in aiding the American missions,
as did also, at a later day, " The Society for
Propagating Christian Knowledge," which
was founded in Scotland. A considerable
portion of the funds expended by these so-
cieties, in the missions among the Indians,
was contributed by the churches in Amer-
ica ; for, before the Revolution, they had
no independent missionary organizations
of their own, owing to their dependant con-
dition as colonies. In 1762, the Massachu-
setts Legislature incorporated a society
formed at Boston, "for promoting Christian
knowledge among the Indians in North
America," but the ratification of this act by
the crown being refused, the missions had
still to be conducted on behalf of the soci-
eties in Great Britain, through American
committees formed at Boston and New-
York.

chaf. n.]

EFFORTS TO CONVERT THE ABORIGINES.

295

In 1734, Mr. John Sergeant began to la-
bour among some Mohegans whom he had
gathered round him at Stockbridge, in Mas-
sachusetts, whence the name given them
ever after of " Stockbridge Indians." That
good man, whose labours were greatly-
blessed, died in 1749, whereupon these In-
dians passed under the care of the great
Jonathan Edwards, who had been settled at
Northampton. It was while labouring as
an humble missionary at Stockbridge that
he wrote his celebrated treatises on the
" Freedom of the Will" and " Original
Sin."

Having spent six years at Stockbridge,
he was called to be President of Princeton
College, New-Jersey. After the Revolu-
tion, the Stockbridge Indians, many of
them being Christians, removed to the cen-
tral part of the State of New- York, thence
to Indiana, thence to Green Bay, and at
last to their present settlement on the east
of Lake Winnebago, where they have a
church and a missionary.

Contemporaneously with the commence-
ment of Mr. Sergeant's labours at Stock-
bridge the Moravians began a mission in
<jeorgia, whence they were compelled by
supervening difficulties to remove soon
after to Pennsylvania. In compliance
with applications transmitted by them to
Hernnhut, in Germany, the Society sent
over several missionaries, and these wor-
thy men began in 1740 to labour very suc-
cessfully among the Mohegans on the bor-
ders of the States of Connecticut and New-
York. But the opposition of wicked white
men compelled them at length to remove,
with as many of the Indians as would ac-
company them, to the neighbourhood of
Bethlehem in Pennsylvania, and there they
remained for several years, but suffered
much in consequence of the hostilities
between France and Britain in 1755-63.
From that they went first to the banks of
the Upper Susquehanna, and afterward be-
yond the western borders of Pennsylvania,
where they joined some Indian converts
of the excellent David Zeisberger from the
Alleghany River. These quarters they ex-
changed in 1772 for others on the Muskin-
gum River, in Ohio, where they enjoyed
great spiritual prosperity for a season.
From that they moved afterward to the
Sandusky River, in the same state. After
many calamities and much suffering du-
ring the Revolutionary war, in which the
Indians generally took part against the
Americans, and after several changes of
quarters subsequent to the return of peace,
they finally settled on the River Thames,
in Upper Canada, where they built the town
of Fairfield, at which they now reside.

David Brainerd commenced his short
but useful career in 1743 among the In-
dians between Albany and Stockbridge,
near what is now called New-Lebanon. He

preached afterward to the Indians at the
Forks of the Delaware, in Pennsylvania,
the site of the present town of Easton.
And, finally, he laboured for a sliort time,
but with amazing success, among the
New-Jersey Indians at Crossweeksung.
On the termination of his labours by death,
at the age of thirty, his brother John con-
tinued them, and was much blessed in the
attempt. Upon John's death in 1783, his
Indian flock had the ministrations of the
Word continued chiefly by the pastors in
the neighbourhood until 1802, when it join-
ed the Stockbridge Indians at their settle-
ment in New-York.

A school for Indian youth was opened at
Lebanon, in Connecticut, in 1748, under the
Rev. Eleazer Wheelock, and there the well-
known Indian preacher, Mr. Occum, and
the celebrated Mohawk chief. Brant, were
educated. It was afterward removed to
Hanover, in New-Hampshire, where it is
still to be found, and is nominally connect-
ed, I understand, with Dartmouth College.
Its proper title is " Moor's Charity School."

One of the most useful of the more re-
cent missionaries among the Indians was
the Rev. Samuel Kirkland, who began his
labours with the Oneidas in the State of
New-York in 1764, and died in 1808, hav-
ing preached the Gospel to the Indians,
with some short interruptions, for more
than forty years.

We have elsewhere referred to some-
thing being done in the way of Indian mis-
sions in Virginia, but in none of the South-
ern colonies was there anything of this
kind accomplished deserving of particular
mention. The wars between the Aborigi-
nes and the immigrants, that broke out soon
after the arrival of the latter, and were re-
peatedly renewed afterward, extinguished
any little zeal they may have ever felt in
such a cause.

These notices will, no doubt, surprise
such of our readers as have been under the
impression that the colonists never did
anything for the conversion of the Indians
to the Gospel. Still, who can but regret
that more was not done to bring the origi-
nal occupants of the soil to that knowledge
both of Christianity, and the arts of civil-
ized life, by which alone the gradual ex-
tinction of so many of their tribes could
have been arrested! The efforts of the
colonists, however, encountered many ob-
stacles. The wars between France, when
mistress of the Canadas, and the Brit-
ish Empire, of which the United States
were then a part, invariably drew their re-
spective colonies, together with tlie inter-
vening Indian tribes, into hostilities. These
were protracted, bloody, and cruel, so as
to leave deep traces of exasperation in the
minds of all who did not possess a large
share of the spirit of the Gospel. All war
is dreadful, but Indian warfare is horrible

296

RELIGION IN AMERICA,

[Book VIII.

to a degree altogether beyond the concep-
tion of those who have only heard of it at
a distance, and it ultimately begot such a
spirit of hatred and revenge among the col-
onists as proved exceedingly unfavourable
to missions. I stop not here to inquire
who was in the wrong ia the first instance.
Only let me remark, in passing, that they
are egregiously mistaken who assume that
the colonists were always in the wrong.

Again, the churches in the colonies were
neither numerous nor rich, so that, upon
the whole, those in New-England, and per-
haps those, also, in New- York and New-
Jersey, did as much, probably, in proportion
to their ability, then as they do now.

At length came the long war of the Rev-
olution, and the still longer period that fol-
lowed of distraction, confusion, and spirit-
ual desolation. • Small, indeed, was the
prospect then of sufficient attention being
paid to missions among the Indians, many
of whose tribes were far from being peace-
ably disposed towards the United States
government. And no sooner did the coun-
try and the government begin to recover
from this state of moral syncope, than they
fell into fresh troubles in consequence of
the wars between the British and French,
following upon the French Revolution —
troubles which ultimately brought on the
■war of 1812-1815, between the United
States and Great Britain. Thus, it was
not until tiie peace of 1815, and the general
restoration of good- will between the Indian
tribes and the United States, that a favour-
able opening for missions among the for-
mer was again presented. Blessed be God,
our churches have ever since been becom-
ing more and more interested every year
in this good cause, as will appear from
the operations of our societies for foreign
missions.

It is no easy task, indeed, to Christian-
ize and civilize savages who, from times
unknown, have been devoted to hunting
and to war; and, when not thus occupied,
lounge like their dogs about their miser-
able hovels and tents, clad in skins, and
leaving to their women, or squaws, the
drudgery of cultivating a little patch of
maize, making the fires, and even dressing
the animals that have been slain in the
chase, as well as all other domestic cares.
Their aversion to the methodical labour
required for the arts of civilized life is such
as none can conceive without a personal
knowledge of them. Not a single noble
aspiration seems ever to enter their souls,
but all they care about seems to be that
they may pass away life as their fathers
did, and then die amid the vague and
shadowy visions of the unknown future.
In short, as long as their forests last, and
game can be found, they seem not to have
a thought of adopting the habits of civil-
ized life.

Some persons are forever indulging^
mawkish lamentations over the disappear-
ance >of the aboriginal tribes of North
America, and, if one may interpret their
sentimental distress on this subject, they
would rather see this vast continent oc-
cupied by a few hundred thousand sav-
ages, roaming the forests, and continu-
ally at war with each other, than covered
with a civilized and Christian population;
either forgetting, or else never having
known, that a state of savageism is not
only wretched, but necessarily tends to
annihilation.

But how civilized men are to share the
same continent with uncivilized, without
the latter being supplanted and made to
disappear, is a question by no means of
easy solution. On a continent of great
natural resources, and possessing every-
thing calculated to invite civilized men to
its shores, becoming discovered, it is easy
to see that the time cannot be distant
when civilized men, by natural increase
and immigration, will crowd upon and dis-
place the uncivilized. To save the latter
from extinction, under such circumstances,
one or other of two courses must be pur-
sued : either the two races must be amal-
gamated, which is next to impossible while
one remains uncivilized, and can only be
done by reducing one of them to a species
of slavery, and thus bringing them into the
bosom of civilized society, as was very
much the course pursued by the Spaniards
in Mexico and South America; or the un-
civilized race be allowed to preserve their
natural or tribial existence in some distinct
territory. The plan pursued by the Span-
iards was revolting to the feelings of the
English colonists, and they adopted, ac-
cordingly, that of letting the Indians enjoy
a separate existence.

But even this, easy as it may seem at
first sight, is attended with many difficul-
ties. It would be very practicable if all
men were what they ought to be ; for then,
after the immigrants had purchased the ter-
ritory they required, the Indians would be
left in undisturbed possession of what they
chose to reserve to themselves, and the
two races would live in each other's pres-
ence, respecting each other's rights, and
each contented with its own possessions.
But this, alas ! is not a likely result among
fallen men whom even Christianity has
only partially restored. As the civilized
increased in numbers, they desired more
and more territory, which the Indians did
not hesitate to sell as long as their own
domain seemed almost boundless, and so
the white men went on pushing the red
farther and farther towards the West.
Meanwhile, the latter disappointed the ex-
pectations of those who had looked for-
ward to their adopting the manners and
customs of civilized life. Living in close

Chap. II.]

EFFORTS TO CONVERT THE ABORIGINES.

297

proximity to the white men's settlements,
these they often visited with the skins of
animals or blankets thrown over their
shoulders, and their extremities exposed
in the coldest weather; and then, after
lounging about the houses of the colonists,
and taking such presents as might be of-
fered, they returned to their comfortless
w^igwams without having acquired the
slightest desire to exchange their wretch-
ed mode of living for the conveniences and
comforts they had just witnessed. They
were too fond of the habits in which they
had been nurtured, and too averse to every-
thing like steady industry, to seek any
change.

Nor were the colonists wanting in ef-
forts to induce their savage neighbours to
adopt civilized usages. Provision was
made in almost every treaty that they
should be supplied with articles of com-
fort, and agricultural and other useful im-
plements. But brandy, alas ! was inclu-
ded at times, that being thought, in those
days of ignorance, one of the first requi-
sites of life — equally necessary to the civ-
ilized and uncivilized man. Addresses with-
out number were presented to " chiefs"
and " councils" by the colonial governors
in favour of civilization, but these were all
in vain. The little that was done must be
ascribed to the missionaries sent to them,
chiefly by the churches in the colonies.
These succeeded, in several instances, in
partially civilizing the Indians among whom
they laboured, and to this the still extant
remnants of tribes may be said to owe
their preservation to this day, inasmuch as
those in which Christianity never gained
any footing, and in which agriculture and
the mechanical arts never made any prog-
ress, almost wholly disappeared, either by
becoming extinct, or by being merged in
other uncivilized and heathen tribes.

The result would, doubtless, have been
much more favourable had the missionary
spirit of the earliest colonists continued
to distinguish their followers. But, alas !
mere cupidity tempted many to those
shores for the sole object of enriching
themselves by all practicable means, how-
ever unjustifiable, and often by overreach-
ing the poor ignorant savage. Nay, even
good men suffered themselves to be too
much influenced by the horrid massacres
often committed by the Indians upon the
frontier settlements in their wars with the
colonists. These atrocities could hardly
fail to cool the zeal for promoting the best
interests of their barbarous neighbours,
which such men had previously felt.

Add to other untoward influences that
of the phraseology of the royal charters,
where what were called " rights" to cer-
tain lands were granted, without tlie slight-
est reference being made to the previous
"rights" of the uncivilized occupants of

the soil. This seems to have suggested al-
most all the subsequent efforts made to ob-
tain per fas aut nefas, the territories marked
out by those charters. Thus the poor In-
dians had no certain resting-place. A few
reservations which certain remnants of
partially Christianized and civilized tribes
have retained in some parts of New-Eng-
land and New-York, are now the only In-
dian settlements to be found in all the At-
lantic States. Had the wise though much
vilified plan, pursued for some years past
by the United States government, been
sooner adopted — had the tribes whose
lands were included in the royal charters
been all collected on one territoiy, beyond
the boundaries of any charter, and ample
enough for their support by hunting in the
first instance, and afterward by tillage,
even the limited attempts that were made
to civilize them might have taken effect.
But, alas ! where was there a territory
ample enough to be found over which na
charter extended its claims 1 At last, by
the acquisition of Louisiana, this desidera-
tum was supplied, and men, as benevolent
as America has ever possessed, soon com-
prehended the important use that might be
made of it, and pressed it upon the atten-
tion of the government. Accordingly, the
country lying between the present States
of Arkansas and Missouri and the Great
American Desert, which stretches as far
west as the Oregon Mountains, was set
apart for the purpose, being sufficiently
large, and containing much good land, and
to it the government has succeeded in re-
moving above twenty tribes, or remnants of
tribes, from its own organized States and
Territories. Soon all that remain will fol-
low, so that there will be an Indian popu-
lation of above 100,000 souls on a compact
territory, stretching about 500 or 600 miles
from north to south, and about 200 from
east to west. Thither, also, have the mis-
sionaries, who had been labouring among
those tribes, gone ; and though the remo-
val of the several nations from their an-
cient homes, and from the graves of their
forefathers, has been followed by some
years of that hardship and suffering which
all removals from ancient settlements,
whether more or less civilized, to the dens-
er forests must occasion, yet they are sur-
mounting these, and gradually establishing
themselves in their new homes. In pro-
cess of time they will have their little
farms and lots of ground cleared, comfort-
able houses erected, mills built, and the
more necessary arts of civilized life intro-
duced among them. Great progress is al-
ready making, and the time, I trust, will
come when the inhabitants of this Indiaa
territory will accept the offer made by Con-
gress to the Cherokees, shortly after the
Revolution, to receive a delegation from
them to the National Congress, and thus

298

RELIGION IN AMERICA.

[Book VIII.

admit them as a constituent portion of the
United States, and subject to its laws.

As this removal of the Indian tribes to a
territory west of the Mississippi has sub-
jected the General Government to great
misrepresentation, and, in my opinion, to
. most unjust censure, I may say a few
words farther respecting it. What has
been most censured is the removal of the
Cherokees, a tribe of Indians formerly
situated chiefly in the State of Georgia,
and by far the most advanced in civiliza-
tion of all the aboriginal race.

By the charter granted to Oglethorpe
and his friends, Georgia claimed an exten-
sive territory to the west of her present
limits, out of which the States of Alabama
and Mississippi have since been formed.
This territory she agreed to cede to the
United States, provided the General Gov-
ernment would buy out the claims of the
Indians residing within her present limits,
and remove them elsewhere. The Gen-
eral Government accordingly removed the
Creek Indians, after buying up their claims,
from the southwestern part of the State to
the west of the Mississippi. But the
" Cherokees, whose lands lay in the north-
western corner, refused to sell them, al-
though the General Government for years
tried every method that it deemed prop-
er to induce them to do so. Georgia at
length resolved to survey those lands, and
to extend her jurisdiction over both their
Indian occupants, and all who lived among
them ; upon which the missionaries re-
tired, with the exception of two, who re-
fused to take the oath of allegiance to the
state, on the ground that Georgia had no
right of jurisdiction over the Cherokee
territory. Being arrested and thrown into
prison for this, they appealed to the Su-
preme Court of the Confederation, which
gave judgment in their favour, and ordered
them to be set at liberty. This was de-
manded, accordingly, by the marshal of the
United States residing in the State of
Georgia. The Governor of Georgia re-
fused compliance. This was reported by
the marshal to the Supreme Court. Its
next yearly meeting was now drawing on,
and the Constitution then required that the
chief-justice should call upon the President
of the United States to enforce compliance,
which, by his oath of office, the latter was
obhged to do. At this crisis, the Governor
of Georgia, well aware that the President
would do his duty, first oftered pardon to
the imprisoned missionaries, and as they
refused to accept this, as a last resort he
convened the Legislature, and it, on some
trivial ostensible pretext, abolished the
penitentiary or state prison, and so turned
the missionaries out of doors. So the
affair ended. The cause of the Indians
was, in fact, sustained by the General
Government, and though they received

much trouble from their Georgian neigh-
bours, they remained several years longer
on their lands, and then sold them to the
United States for a great price,* and re-
moved west of the Mississippi, where they
are now settled. Although their removal
was attended with much hardship, and a
good deal of sickness, ihey are represented
as doing well in their new territory, where
they are placed beside the Choctas, Chick-
asas. Creeks, and other tribes.

It is hard to see wherein the General
Government was to blame in all this. It
was in favour of removing the Indians, be-
lieving that it would be best for them to
leave a territory where they could never
live in tranquillity, and place themselves in
another, which, being the absolute property
of the United States, could not, under any
pretext, be claimed by any state. There,
if anywhere, they can, and, I have no
doubt, will be protected.

So, also, the course pursued by the Gen-
eral Government in relation to the Semi-
nole Indians in Florida has been held up as
cruel and unjust in the highest degree, as
designed to uphold slavery, &c., &c. Now,
though far from believing that in this mat-
ter the government has acted wisely, I
think it obvious that the situation of the
long, narrow peninsula in question, al-
though nineteen twentieths of it are quite
unfit for any species of culture, might make
the possession of it desirable. A large
sum, accordingly, was offered for it to the
3000 or 4000 Indians who roamed over it,
and whose depredations on the white in-
habitants of the country adjoining had long
been exceedingly vexatious. A treaty was
made, as the government thought, with
chiefs having full authority to that effect.
But this the Indians refused to keep ;
hence hostilities broke out, which, after
having lasted for years, are now termina-
ted. That the government was deceived
by its agents is very probable, but I do not
believe that its intentions were unjust.

Upon the whole, I think that the National
Government, in its transactions with the
Indians, has sincerely aimed at doing them
justice. Its influence is happily exercised
in promoting peace among the tribes of
the West, the disputes constantly arising
among which its officers and agents do
their best to terminate in a peaceful way,
and by the influence of persuasion alone.
It has often, indeed, to bear the blame due
only to unfaithful agents, by whom it is
sometimes both deceived and committed.
The General Government has been bla-
med because rum and other ardent spirits
are carried by unprincipled men to the In-
dians on the borders, yet no government

* Five millions of dollars, besides the expenses of
their removal, and a year's support in their new
homes. All this was in addition to the lands which
they received in exchange for their former country.

Chap. III.]

BOARDS FOR FOREIGN MISSIONS.

299

•could well do more to prevent this. It has
not only forbidden, but has taken measures
to prevent all such traffic ; and these have
not been wholly in vain. But what govern-
ment on earth could effectually guard such
an immense frontier of almost boundless
forests as that of the United States ! Eng-
land and France find it impossible to guard
effectually a few hundred miles of coast
against smuggling; how much more diffi-
cult the task which the United States are
blamed for not accomplishing 1 But the
formation of Temperance societies among
the Indians, and the passing of severe laws
among themselves against every villain,
•white or red, who may be found engaged
in such commerce, will be a more effectual
remedy.

In conclusion, I would state that the
United States government has done much
incidentally, during the last twenty-five
years, to promote missions among the In-
dian tribes, by a yearly grant of 10,000
dollars for the establishment of schools,
blacksmiths' shops, and other trades. This
sum is generally expended through the
several missionary societies, and of course
by the missionaries, as the persons most
competent for the task ; many, if not all,
of them being well acquainted with the
various handicrafts most necessary to the
partially civilized people among whom
they live. The late Secretary of War, the
Hon. John C. Spencer, has spoken in the
highest terms of the judicious manner in
which this money has been applied, and
of the good which has been accomplished.
A similar testimony has recently been
rendered by a committe of Congress, to
"which the same subject had been referred.
it is pleasant to state s, fact which shows
the favourable disposition of the govern-
ment towards the benevolent enterprise
of Christianizing and civilizing the tribes
on our borders, to whom we are far from
having done all our duty. Many of the
tribes, it may be added, appropriate large
sums from the yearly pensions they re-
ceive from the United States government
to the establishment of schools and the
promotion of the arts.*

* The United States government has done much
to procure a favourable reception for the missionaries
among the hidians, and to induce the latter to set
apart large sums from the price paid for their lands
by the United States, and which is generally done
in the shape of annuities, for the promotion of educa-
tion and religion, as well as the useful arts. These
annuities now exceed 1,000,000 of dollars. To pre-
serve these tribes, or, rather, all the tribes to which
it can find access, from the ravages of the smallpox,
the United States government also sends fit persons
from time to time to vaccinate them.

Within the territory claimed by the United States,
there are now above fifty missionary stations among
the Indians, about fifty missionaries, above forty as-
sistant missionaries, American and native, and not
much under 5000 communicants or members of
churches. There is also a very considerable number
cf schools and scholars.

Several of the aboriginal nations now
assembled on the territory which the gov-
ernment of the United States has assigned
them, and which lies, as we have said,
west of the Stales of Arkansas and Mis-
souri, are making astonishing progress in
civilization. As a proof of this, the fact
may be cited that in some of them, partic-
ularly the Cherokees and Choctas, many
schools are now maintained ; some of them
by the several missionary societies who
employ ministers of the Gospel and teach-
ers among them, and others by the govern-
ments of those tribes. In some cases, in-
dividual natives bear the expense of a
school themselves, for the benefit of their
children. Many of the natives are suffi-
ciently well educated to be good teachers.

The Chocta government has made pro-
vision for the education of their youth,
which may well cause many nations more
advanced in civilization to blush. Their
National Council in November, 1842, re-
solved to establish three academies for
boys and four for girls. For the former
(one of which, I believe, is to be a sort of
college) they made an annual appropria-
tion of 18,500 dollars, and for the latter
7800, making together the sum of 26,300
dollars as a public annual appropriation for
the support of schools ! And yet, a few
years ago, these people were ignorant sav-
ages, of whom not one could read ! And
who have, under God, been the authors of
this change 1 The missionaries ivho are la-
bouring among them, and who are all Prot-
estants.

As to the Cherokees, the progress of
civilization among them is not less won-
derful. Very many of them can now read.
A few years ago, one of their men, who
had been educated by the missionaries, in-
vented a syllabic alphabet, by which the art
of reading has been w^onderfully diffused
among them — a phenomenon which has
had no equal in any community in the
whole world these two thousand years.
There are three printing-presses in this
nation, one of which has lately been intro-
duced by their government for the purpose
of printing a Cherokee newspaper !

We now proceed to give some notice of
the various Missionary Societies in the
United States, and in doing so shall have
occasion to speak of what has been done
since 1815 to introduce Christianity among
the Indians.

CHAPTER III.

.AMERICAN BOARD OF COMMISSIONERS FOR FOR-
EIGN MISSIONS.

With the exception of that of the Uni-
ted Brethren, the American Board of Com-
missioners for Foreign Missions is the old-
est society for foreign missions in the Uni-

300

RELIGION IN AMERICA.

[Book VIII.

ted States. It has also the greatest num-
ber of missions and missionaries, and the
largest amount of receipts. Several reli-
gious denominations, agreeing substantial-
ly in their views of the Gospel, and in their
ecclesiastical organizations, unite in sus-
taining it. These are the Congregational,
numbering about 1500 churches, about the
same number of Presbyterian churches,
and the Reformed Dutch and German
Reformed, numbering together about 700
churches ; though but a small number of
the German Reformed churches yet take
an interest in foreign missions. The great
body of the Congregational churches are
in the New-England States. The others,
so far as this missionary institution is con-
cerned, are almost entirely in what are call-
ed the Middle and Western States. The
number of congregations which are really
connected with it, and operate through it on
the heathen world, is about 3500, in which
there may be 2,000,000 of souls.

Its Origin and Constitution.— The Board
had its origin in the following manner. Sev-
eral young men, graduates of New-England
colleges, and preparing for the Gospel min-
istry at the Theological Seminary at Ando-
ver, in the State of Massachusetts, agreed,
in the year 1809, to unite their efforts in
establishing a mission among the heathen
in some foreign land. In this they were
encouraged by the Faculty of the semina-
rj'. As the General Association of Congre-
gational ministers in Massachusetts were
to hold their annual meeting in June, 1810,
these young men were advised to submit
their case to that body. This was done by
four of their number — Messrs. Mills, Jud-
son, Newell, and Nott — in the following
paper :

" The undersigned, members of the Di-
vinity College, respectfully request the at-
tention of their reverend Fathers, conven-
ed in the General Association at Bradford,
to the following statement and inquiries.

" They beg leave to state, that their minds
have been long impressed with the duty
and importance of personally attempting a
mission to the heathen ; that the impres-
sions on their minds have induced a seri-
ous, and, they trust, a prayerful considera-
tion of the subject in its various attitudes,
particularly in relation to the probable suc-
cess, and the difficulties attending such an
attempt ; and that, after examining all the
information which they can obtain, they
consider themselves as devoted to this
work for life, whenever God, in his provi-
dence, shall open the way.

" They now offer the following inquiries,
on which they solicit the opinion and ad-
vice of this Association. Whether, with
their present views and feelings, they ought
to renounce the object of missions as either
visionary or impracticable ; if not, whether
they ought to direct their attention to the

Eastern or Western world : whether they
may expect patronage and support from a
missionary society in this country, or must
commit themselves to the direction of a
European society ; and what preparatory
measures they ought to take previous to
actual engagement.

" The undersigned, feeling their youth
and inexperience, look up to their Fathers
in the Church, and respectfully solicit their
advice, direction, and prayers."

On the 29th of June, the Association
elected a Board of Commissioners for For-
eign Missions, consisting of nine persons.
The Board, at its first meeting, held in the
following September, adopted the name of
the Ainerican Board of Commissioners for
Foreign Missions, thus recognising its high
calling to act for all in every part of the
nation, who might choose to employ its
agency in the work of missions among
the heathen. The transaction of its ordi-
nary business, however, was delegated to
an executive committee called the Pruden-
tial Committee, the members of which re-
side at or near Boston, where is the seat
of its operations. Subsequently it was
found necessary to obtain an Act of Incor-
poration from the Legislature of Massachu-
setts, in order that the Board might the bet-
ter manage its financial concerns. This
act, being respected by the legal tribunals
of all the other States in the Republic^
has been found of great use, especially in
the recovery of bequests contested wrong-
fully by heirs at law. It requires one third
of the members to be laymen, and one third
clergymen ; the remaining third may be
either clergymen or laymen. Members
are elected by ballot. The object of the
Board is expressly recognised in the act to
be " the propagation of the Gospel in hea-
then lands, by supporting missionaries and
diffusing a knowledge of the Holy Scrip-
tures ;" and full power is granted to hold an
amount of permanently invested funds suffi-
cient for the purpose of credit in the com-
mercial world, and also to receive and ex-
pend annually, in pursuance of its object,
any amount of contributions its patrons
may think proper to place at its disposal.

The number of corporate members is
about 175, residing in nineteen of the
States, religious men, having in general a
high standing in their respective profes-
sions. These form the body corporate,
the Trustees in respect to the financial con-
cerns of the institution. But with these
are associated a large body of honorary
members, amounting, at present, to more
than 3500, who are made such by tlie pay-
ment of 100 dollars if laymen, or fifty dol-
lars if clergymen ; and who share equally
in the deliberations of the annual meetings,
but do not vote, as that would interfere with
the charter. A third class of members are
called corresponding members ; they are

Chap. III.]

BOARDS FOR FOREIGN MISSIONS.

301

foreign members, and are elected by ballot.
In addition to the usual office-bearers for
presiding at the annual meetings, and re-
cording the proceedings at these meetings,
there are three Corresponding Secretaries
and a Treasurer, whose time is fully occu-
pied with the business.

Its History. — The proceedings of the
Board, and the results of its experience and
operations for the thirty years past of its
existence, must necessarily be stated in the
most comprehensive and summary manner.

It is among the remarkable facts in the
history of this institution, and in the eccle-
siastical history of the country, that, at the
outset, neither the Board nor its Prudential
Committee, nor, indeed, any of the leading
minds in the American churches at that
time, could see the way clear for raising
funds enough to support the four young
men who were then waiting to be sent forth
to the heathen world. One of them was
accordingly sent to England by the Pru-
dential Committee, mainly to see whether
an arrangement could not be made with
the London Missionary Society, by which
a part of their support could be received
from that society, and they yet remain
under the direction of the Board. That
society wisely declined such an arrange-
ment, and at the same time encouraged
their American brethren to hope for ample
contributions from their own churches as
soon as the facts should be generally
known. From this time no farther thought
was entertained of looking abroad for pe-
<;uniary aid. Indeed, the largest legacy
the Board has yet received was bequeath-
■ed to it by a benevolent lady in Salem,
Massachusetts, in the early part of the year
1811. The first ordination of American
missionaries to the heathen in foreign
lands was in that place, on the 6th of Feb-
ruary, 1812. These were the Rev. Sam-
uel Newell, Adoniram Judson, Gordon
Hall, Samuel Nott, and Luther Rice, all
from the little missionary band in the The-
ological Seminary at Andover. They pro-
ceeded forthwith to Calcutta, in the East
Indies, but without being designated to any
specific field by the committee. There
was not then the hundredth part of the
knowledge of the heathen world in the
American churches that there is now. The
Prudential Committee seem to have been
unable to point to any one country, and
tell their missionaries decidedly to occupy
tha* in preference to other contiguous coun-
tries. The comparative claims of the dif-
ferent benighted portions of the unevan-
gelical world was a subject then but little
understood. The missionaries were left to
decide what field to occupy after their ar-
rival in India.

Messrs. Judson and Rice had not been
Jong with the Baptist missionaries at Se-
rampore, near Calcutta, before they de-

clared themselves converts to the peculiar
views of those missionaries in relation to
Baptism. Their consequent separation from
the society Avhich sent them forth, gave
rise to the formation of a Baptist Board
for Foreign Missions in the United States.
Messrs. Hall, Newell, and Nott, after much
painful voyaging from place to place, oc-
casioned by the reluctance of the East In-
dia Company to tolerate missionaries, and
especially American missionaries, in India
(the United States and Great Britain being
then, unhappily, at war), at length, in 1813,
found a resting-place and field of labour at
Bombay, in Western India. This was the
commencement of the mission to the Mah-
rattas.

The Mahrattas possess strong traits of
character as a people, compared with oth-
er nations of India, as is evident in their
history for ages past. The American mis-
sionaries were the first to go in among
them, and they entered as the husband-
man would into an unbroken forest. No
preparatory work had been done, except
merely that of conquest by a Christian
power, and it must be confessed that few
tangible results have yet been witnessed
in that mission. But there is no doubt
that the Mahratta people now stand dif-
ferently related to the Christian religion
from what they did in 1813. Much una-
voidable preliminary ground has been gone
over; the truth stands nearer to the na-
tive intellect and heart ; the spiritual con-
quest of the country is far easier than it
was then.

Among the Tamul people, found in the
northern district of Ceylon and in South-
ern India, there was some degree of prep-
aration when the mission to that people
was commenced in 1816 ; in Ceylon, by
means of the Portuguese and the Dutch;
and on the Continent, by means of the cel-
ebrated missionary Schwartz and his asso-
ciates. Hence, through the blessing of God,
the obvious results have been greater there
than among the Mahrattas. The syste-
matic measures which were early adopt-
ed by the Ceylon mission for training a
native agency, and the success attending
them, did much to give an early maturity
to the plans of the Board for raising up a
native ministry in connexion with all its
other missions, of which more will be said
in the sequel. The most efficient semi-
nary for educating heathen youths for help-
ers in the work of the Gospel, is believed
to be the one connected with the mission
in Ceylon. The number of pupils is 160,
all of whom are boarding scholars, and
about 100 of them are regarded as truly
pious. There is also a female seminary,
containing more than 100 boarding schol-
ars, where the educated native helpers of
the mission may obtain pious, educated
wives ; and there are free schools contain-

302

RELIGION IN AMERICA.

[Book VIII.

ing "3000 pupils, which are a nursery for
the seminaries, and among the most ef-
fect've means of securing congregations
to hear the preached Gospel. In 1834, a
branch of this mission was formed at Ma-
dura, on the Continent, and in 1836 anoth-
er at Madras, with the special object of
printing books in the Tamul language on
a large scale.

The first mission sent by the Board to
Eastern Asia was to China in 1830. A
pious merchant in New- York city furnish-
ed many of the facts and arguments which
justified its commencement, and then he
gave two missionaries their passage to
Canton and their support for a year. One
of these missionaries subsequently visited
Siam, and opened the way for a mission
to that country ; as he did also to Singa-
pore, and to Netherlands India. The mis-
sion to Singapore has not answered the
expectations of the Board, and has been
almost discontinued. The operations in
Netherlands India have been much em-
barrassed hitherto by the restrictive poli-
cy of the Dutch Colonial Government.
The mission in Siam has had a prosper-
ous commencement ; but its prospects
have not that cheering certainty which
animates the labour of missionaries under
such a government as now rules in Brit-
ish India.

Turning our attention to Western Asia,
we find a number of interesting missions
under the care of this Board. The Greek
mission, commenced in the year 1829,
grew out of the sympathy which was felt
for the Greek people throughout the Chris-
tian world, in their struggle for independ-
ence from the Turkish yoke. Dr. King,
who commenced it, had previously been
connected with the Palestine mission. It
was to the Holy Land, in fact, that the
first mission in the series was sent, in the
year 1821. Messrs. Fiske and Parsons
were the pioneers in the enterprise. In
1828, after their decease, war, and the hos-
tilities of the Maronites towards the mis-
sion, compelled the surviving missionaries
to retire from Syria for a season ; and it
is to this occurrence, in the developments
of Providence, we trace the establishment
of the mission among the Armenians of
Constantinople and Asia Minor, which has
been so signally useful to that people.
Two missionaries of the Board had, indeed,
gone to Asia Minor as early as 1826, but
their mission was to the Greeks. In the
year 1830, Messrs. Smith and Dwight
were sent on an exploring tour into Arme-
nia, and were instructed to visit the Nes-
torians in the Persian province of Ader-
baijan. This visit brought that remnant
of the most noted missionary church of
ancient times to light, and induced the
Board to send a mission to restore the
blessings of the Go.spcl to that people.

The mission was commenced on the plain
of Ooroomiah, and has recently been ex-
tended to the independent Nestorian tribes
among the Koordish Mountains. The lead-
ing object of the mission is to educate
the clergy, and by reviving among them,
through the blessing of God, the spirit of
the Gospel, to induce them to resume the
preaching of it with more than their an-
cient zeal. The press has been intro-
I duced. More than 400 Nestorians are in
i free schools, supported by the mission, and
I taught by eighteen priests and sixteen dea-
I cons ; and upward of sixty are boarding
' scholars in seminaries. There is also a
class of about a dozen in theology, instruct-
ed by the missionaries. We already begin
to witness the gradual reviving of preach-
ing among the ecclesiastics. The great
thing wanting among this people is spiritu-
al life. They number about 100,000 souls.
The Syrian mission has for some years
past been cultivating an acquaintance with
the Druzes of Mount Lebanon. These
are about as numerous as the Nestorians,.
and resemble them in the mountaineer
traits of courage and enterprise. The Dru-
zes are a sort of heretical Mohammedans.
Recently those inhabiting the mountains
of Lebanon have, as a community, placed
themselves under the religious instruction
of the missionaries. Their motive may
be the improvement of their civil condi-
tion, by becoming Protestant Christians,.
but the fact of their permitting the mission
to open a seminary at the seat of their
government, and to preach the Gospel,
and introduce schools freely among them,
should be acknowledged with gratitude to
God.

The Armenian Church has proved to be
scarcely less interesting as a field for mis-
sionary labours than the Nestorian. It
has even afforded more abundant spiritual
fruit. An evangelical influence is strongly
developed among the Armenian clergy ;
and in many instances, where they have
had no personal communication with mem-
bers of the mission, but only with the Holy
Scriptures, or with some of the books pub-
lished by the mission, there are hundreds
of Armenians, it is thought, whose minds,
rejecting the corruptions and superstitions
of their church, have come imder the salu-
tary influence of a Gospel that looks for
justification only through faith in Christ.
In short, the grand principles by means of
which the Spirit of grace wrought out the
Reformation in Europe, are seen to be op-
erating in Western Asia, and their progress
ought to engage the prayerful interest of
all Christians.

A mission was sent to South Africa in
1836, and high hopes were entertained of
a prosperous issue. But these hopes have
been in great measure blasted by the sin-
gular immigration of the Dutch Boers from

Chap. III.]

BOARDS FOR FOREIGN MISSIONS.

303

the English colony, and their consequent
wars upon the Zulus. The mission to
Western Africa, though commenced in
1834, has not yet advanced beyond Cape
Palmas, where it has a very interesting
seminary for Grebo youth ; but its ultimate
destination, as soon as the way is opened
up the Niger, is to the populous and health-
ful countries of the interior. Along the
coast, however, eastward of Cape Palmas,
there is work for many missionaries.

The results of the mission of the Board
in the Sandwich Islands, a group of islands
in the North Pacific Ocean, constitute one
of the great moral wonders of the age.
The first missionaries landed on those
islands in the year 1820. At that time the
natives were savage and pagan, without
letters, without a ray of Gospel light ;
though they had just before strangely
burned their idols — a fact unknown in the
United States when the missionaries em-
barked on their errand of mercy. In 1840,
after the lapse of only twenty years, this
same people might properly have claimed
the title of a Christian people. Though
necessarily destitute in great measure,
owing to their poverty, of the more impo-
sing insignia of civilization, they then had
the elements and basis of it in Christian
institutions, schools, a written language,
the press, and books, and in the extensive
prevalence of pious dispositions and habits.
Within this space of time their language
had been reduced to writing, and about
100,000,000 of pages had been printed by
the mission in the native language. As
the alphabet contains but twelve letters,
and each letter has but a single sound, it
is easy learning to read. One third of the
population can read. The children of the
chiefs are educated by a member of the
mission in a boarding-school designed for
them alone, which the chiefs support : this
is at Honolulu, in the island of Oahu. At
Lahainaluna, on the island of Maui, there
is a seminary, for which a large stone ed-
ifice has been erected, containing nearly
100 boarding pupils ; and at Wailuku, on
the same island, there is a corresponding
female institution', containing about fifty.
At Waialua, on Oahu, there is a manual
labour or self-supporting school. Two
other boarding-schools are at Hilo, on the
island of Hawaii, which are supported
chiefly by the natives. The free schools
number about 14,000 pupils. Laws have
been passed by the government defining
and securing the rights of property to the
people, and taking the power of imposing
taxes from the individual chiefs, and vest-
ing it exclusively in the National Council,
which is to assemble annually. But the
most remarkable fact of all, is the extra-
ordinary outpouring of the Holy Spirit in
the years 1838 and 1839, in consequence
of which many thousands of the natives

were hopefully converted to God. The
number of church members (who are ad-
mitted to that relation only after a cred-
ible profession of real piety) increased in
that space of time from 5000 to more
than 18,000. The natives have erected
many houses for public worship, and a
still greater number of schoolhouses, and
on the Sabbath-day, which is generally
observed by abstaining from labour and
amusements, the sound of the church-go-
ing bell is heard in not a few of their val-
leys.

The Board has very properly spent a
portion of its funds in missions to the
more important and influential tribes of
the North American Indians. It be-
gan with the Cherokees and Choctas, ia
1816-18, who then inhabited a tract of
country within the chartered limits of
some of the Southwestern States. These
two missions, for more than ten years, had
great success. The poor Indians were
then driven almost to desperation by those
who wished for their lands, and were bent
on inducing them to remove beyond the
Mississippi River. These efforts had a
cruel success. The missionaries have fol-
lowed the two tribes above mentioned in
their exile. Missions were also instituted
at diff'erent times among the Creeks and
Chickasas, eastward of the Mississippi,
and among the Osages westward ; but
they have been discontinued. Subsequent
to the year 1830, missionaries were sent
to the savage, wandering Ojibwas, Sioux,^
and Pawnees, in the vast territory north-
west of the United States ; and in 1835
they were sent across the continent, be-
yond the Rocky Mountains, to the Indians
in the Oregon Territory. There are sev-
eral missions among the feeble remnants
of the once powerful Six Nations, found
on the borders of Lake Erie, in the State
of New- York.

The following is a summary view of
what, through the Divine favour, has been
accomplished by this Board. The amount
received into the treasury of the Board du-
ring the year ending on the 3 1st of July,
1843, was $244,224 43 ; and the amount
of payments was $257,247 25 ; leaving
the treasury indebted to the amount of
$13,022 82.

The number of missions sustained du-
ring the year was 26 ; connected with
which are 86 stations, at which were la-
bouring 131 ordained missionaries, eight
of whom were physicians, eight otlier phy-
sicians, 15 teachers, 10 printers and book-
binders, six other male, and 178 female as-
sistant missionaries — making the whole
number of missionary labourers sent from
this country and sustained by the Board
348, which is eight less than the number
last year. If to these be added 14 native
preachers and 116 other native helpers.

304

RELIGION IN AMERICA.

[Book VIII.

the whole number of missionary labourers
connected with the missions, and sustained
from the treasury of the Board, will be
478, which is 10 less than were reported
last year. Of these missionary labourers,
four ordained missionaries, and two male
and nine female assistant missionaries, in
all 15, were sent forth during the last year,
being the least number of preachers, and
the least number, including all classes of
labourers, that has been sent forth during
any year since 1831.

Organized by these missions, and under
their pastoral care, are 62 churches, to
which have been received during the last
year 2690 converts, and which now em-
brace, in regular standing, 20,797 mem-
bers. This number does not include some
hundreds of hopeful converts among the
Armenians, Nestorians, and other commu-
nities in Western Asia.

The number of printing establishments
connected with the missions is 16, with
four type foundries, 43 founts of type, and
30 presses. Printing has been executed
for the missions in 33 languages, exclusive
of the English, 15 of which were first re-
duced to a written form by the missiona-
ries of this Board. The copies of works
printed at the mission presses during the
past year exceed 600,000, and the number
of pages is about 56,383,000 ; making the
total number of pages printed for the
missions since they commenced about
442,056,185.

In the department of education the mis-
sionaries have under their care seven sem-
inaries for educating preachers and teach-
ers, in which are 524 pupils, besides 22
other boarding-schools, in which are 699
pupils, more than 400 of whom are girls.
Of free schools the number is 610, contain-
ing 30,778 pupils ; making the whole num-
ber of pupils under the care of the mis-
sions 32,000.

Of the 32,000 youth in the mission
schools of this Board, somewhat more
than 1200 are boarding scholars, in schools
where the leading object is to train up a
native ministry. Five hundred and twen-
ty-four are in seminaries designed exclu-
sively for males, where the course of study
is as extensive as it can be, wliile the lan-
guages of the several countries where they
exist are no better furnished with works of
sound literature and science. In general,
the text-books for all the schools havp to
be prepared by the missionaries, and a very
great progress, on the whole, has been
made in this department, especially in ge-
ography, arithmetic, geometry, sacred his-
tory, and the first principles of religion and
morals.

About 442,000,000 of pages have been
printed at the sixteen printing establish-
ments connected with the missions of this
Board. These establishments have printed

books and tracts in thirty-three different
languages, spoken by more than 450,000,000,
exclusive of the English. These langua-
ges are the Zulu, Grebo, Italian, Greek,
Armenian, Turkish (in the Armenian char-
acter), Arabic, Mahratta, Portuguese, Goo-
jurattee, Hindosthanee, Latin, Tamul, Te-
loogoo, Siamese, Chinese, Japanese, Ma-
lay, Bugis, Hawaiian, Cherokee, Choctaw,
Seneca, Abenaquis, Ojibwa, Ottawa, Creek,
Osage, Sioux, Pawnee, and Nez Perces ;
fifteen of which were first reduced to wri-
ting by missionaries of the Board.

The sixty-tWo churches which have been
gathered among the heathen are formed
as nearly on the Congregational or Pres-
byterian model ¥6r such ecclesiastical or-
ganizations as the nature of the case would
permit. None but converts who have been
received as members of the church, after
giving credible evidence of piety, are al-
lowed to partake of the Lord's Supper.
The spiritual fruits of the missions to the
Oriental churches are, of course, not in-
cluded in this number, such not having
been gathered into distinct and separate
churches, the effort there having been to
infuse the spirit of the Gospel into those
religious communities as they now are.

Theory of the Missions of the Board.
— The Board does not regard any of its
missions as being permanent institutions.
Their object is, through the grace of God,
to impart the spirit and plant the institu-
tions of the Gospel where they do not
exist, and then to leave them to the con-
servative influences that shall have been
gathered about them. This is true theo-
retically, and it will come out in fact as
soon as the means are furnished for pros-
ecuting the work with becoming vigour.
The missionary is emphatically, in the es-.
sential principle of his calling, a sojourner,
pilgrim, stranger, having no continuing city.
The leading object of its missions,
therefore, is the training and employment
of a native ministry, as the only way in
which the Gospel can soon become indi-
genous to the soil, and the Gospel institu-
tions acquire a self-supporting, self-propa-
gating energy. And the fact is important
to be noted, that the ciders, or pastors,
whom the apostles ordained over the
churches they gathered among the hea-
then, were generally, if not always, natives
of the counlry. While the apostles had
not the facilities of the present day for
training men for this office by education,
they had not the necessity for so doing.
Among their converts at Ephesus, Berea,
Corinth, Home, and elsewhere, they had
no difficulty in finding men who only re-
quired some instruction in theology, and
scarcely that when endowed with miracu-
lous gifts, to be prepared for the pastoral
oflice. How they did, or would have done,
beyond the Roman Empire and the bounds

€hap. VIII.]

BOARDS FOR FOREIGN MISSIONS.

305

jf civilization, we are not informed ; but
in the use tliey made of a native ministry,
we recognisf! one of the grand principles
•of their missions, and also the true theory
of missions — simple, economical, practical,
Scriptural, mighty through God.

The manner ia which the Board is en-
deavouring to carry out this theory in prac-
tice has perhaps been sufficiently indicated.
But the subject is one of so much impor-
tance, that it will be worth while to quote
part of an article upon it, which was sub-
mitted by the Prudential Committee of the
Board, at the annual meeting in the year
1841.

I. On the manner of ralnng up a native
ministry.

"1. This must be by means of semina-
ries, schools of the prophets, such as, in
some form or other, the Church has al-
ways found necessary. There should be
one such seminary in each considerable
mission. It is an essential feature of the
plan that the pupils be taken young, board
in the mission, be kept separate from hea-
thenism, under Christian superintendence
night and day. In general, the course of
study should embrace a period of from
eight to ten or twelve years, and even a
longer time in special cases. Pupils can
be obtained for such a course of education
in most of the missions ; but, as a nursery
for them, it is expedient to have a certain
number of free schools, which also greatly
aid in getting audiences for the preachers.

" 2. There will be but partial success in
rearing a native ministry, unless the semi-
nary be in the midst of a select and strong
body of missionaries, whose holy lives,
conversation, and preaching shall cause
the light of the Gospel to blaze intensely
and constantly upon and around the insti-
tution. Experience shows that in such
circumstances we are warranted to expect
a considerable proportion of the students
to become pious.

"3. The student, while in the seminary,
should be trained practically to habits of
usefulness. But this requires caution, and
must not be attempted too soon. Those
set apart for the sacred ministry might
remain as a class in theology at the semi-
nary, after completing the regular course
of study ; or, according to the old fashion
in this country, which has some special
advantages, they might pursue their theo-
logical studies with individual missiona-
ries, and, under such superintendence, ex-
ercise their gifts before much responsibil-
ity is thrown upon them.

" 4. The contemporaneous establishment
of female boarding-schools, where the na-
tive ministers and other educated helpers
in the mission may obtain pious and intel-
ligent partners for life, is an essential fea-
ture in this system. A native pastor, with
an ignorant, heathen wife, would be great-
U

ly embarrassed and hindered in his work.
In this manner Christian families are
formed, and at length Christian communi-
ties, and there is a race of children with
Christian ideas and associations, from
among whom we may select our future
pupils and candidates for the ministry."

II. On the employment of this native min-
istry.

" The pupils in the seminaries will have
different gifts, and the same gifts in very-
different degrees. All the pious students
will not do for preachers. Some may be
retained as tutors in the seminary, others
may be employed as school teachers, oth-
ers as printers, bookbinders, etc. Those
set apart for the ministry, while they are
taught the way of the Lord more perfectly,
can be employed as catechists, tract dis-
tributers, readers, or superintendents of
schools, and thus gain experience and try
their characters. In due time they may be
licensed to preach, and, after proper trial,
receive ordination as evangelists or pastors.

" While care should be taken to lay hands
suddenly on no man, there is believed to
be danger of requiring too much of native
converts before we are willing to intrust
them with the ministry of the word. Gen-
erations must pass before a community,
emerging from the depths of heathenism,
can be expected to furnish a body of min-
isters equal to that in our country.

" Could the present native church mem-
bers at the Sandwich Islands be divided into
companies of 180 each, 100 churches would
be constituted. Native pastors should be
in training for these churches, and evan-
gelists for the numerous districts where
churches are not yet formed, and where
the people are consequently exposed to the
inroads of the enemy. In the other mis-
sions the chief employment, at present,
must be that of evangelists. In the Tamul
missions hundreds might find ample em-
ployment ; and in the Oriental churches,
our leading object should be to bring for-
ward an able evangelical native ministry
with the least possible delay."

III. On the power and economy of the plan.

" In most of our missions we are oppo-
sed by these formidable obstacles, namely,
distance, expense, and climate. England was
opposed by the same obstacles in her con-
quest of India. And how did she overcome
them ? By employing native troops ; and
it is chiefly by means of them she now
holds that great populous country in sub-
jection. We, too, must have native troops
in our spiritual warfare. Why not have
an army of them ? Why not have as nu-
merous a body of native evangelists as can
be directed and employed?

" Such a measure would effect a great
saving oUime. Indeed, we can never leave
our fields of labour till this is done. Our
mission churches must have native pastors,

306

RELIGION IN AMERICA.

[Book Vllf.

and pastors of some experience, who can
stand alone, before we can leave them. Be-
sides, we should make far greater progress
than we do had we more of such helpers.

" And what economy of money there
would be in the operation of this plan !
The cost of a ten years' course of educa-
tion for five natives of India would not be
more than the outfit and passage of one
married missionary to that country. And
when a company of missionaries is upon
the ground, it costs at least five times as
much to support them as it would to sup-
port the same number of native preachers.
The former could not live, like the latter,
upon rice alone, with a piece of cotton cloth
wrapped about their bodies for clothing,
and a mud-walled, grass-covered cottage,
without furniture, for a dwelling ; nor could
they travel on foot under a tropical sun.
They could not do this, and at the same
time preserve health and life.

" The cost of educating 1000 youth in
India, from whom preachers might be ob-
tained, and afterward of supporting 200 na-
tive preachers and their families, would be
only about 25,000 dollars, which is but little
more than the average expense in that coun-
try of twenty-five missionaries and fami-
lies. Now, if the preaching of two well-
educated native preachers, labouring under
judicious superintendence, may be expect-
ed to do as much good as that of one mis-
sionary, we have in these 200 native preach-
ers the equivalent, in instrumental preach-
ing power, for 100 missionaries, and at an
expenditure less by nearly 75,000 dollars a
year. And then, too, the native preacher
is at home in the country and climate, not
subject to a premature breaking down of
his constitution, not compelled to resort
for health to the United States, or to send
his children thither for education. Besides,
the native churches and converts might
gradually be brought to assume a part or
the whole of the support of the native min-
istry; while it is very doubtful whether it
will ever be expedient for the missionary
to receive his support from that quarter.

" One hundred thousand dollars a year
would board and educate 4000 native youth.
That sum would support 500 or GOO native
ministers with their families ; and if the
value of this amount of native preaching
talent equalled that of only 200 missiona-
ries, the annual saving of expense would
be at least 125,000 dollars. But it would
in the end be worth much more ; so that
we see, in this view, how our eff"ective force
among the heathen may, in a few years, be
rendered manifold greater than it is at pres-
ent, without even doubling our annual ex-
penditure. Some progress has even now
been made towards this result. We al-
ready have 500 male youth in our seven
seminaries ; and a still greater number,
male and female, in our other twenty-sev-

en boarding-schools. But the scheme, how-
ever promising and indispensable, cannot
be carried into eff"ect without a large addi-
tion of first-rate men to the company of our
missionaries."

It is interesting to observe how the at-
tention of Protestant missionaries from
Europe, as well as the United States, has
been drawn of late to the importance of a
native ministry as a means of carrying on
the work of missions among the heathen.
There can, however, be no doubt that
this Board has taken the lead of all other
missionary societies in giving that subject
the prominence practically which it de-
serves in the great system of missionarj'
operations.

The Annual Meetings of the Board. —
The annual meetings of the Board must
receive a brief notice. They are held in
the month of September, in some one of the
more important cities of the Eastern or
Middle States, and occupy three days.
The session is for deliberation and busi-
ness. The annual meeting for the year 1841
is a fair specimen of the usual attendance
of members. There were 56 corporate,
and 102 honorary members present. Of
the corporate members five were heads of
colleges (there are thrice that number be-
longing to the corporation) ; thirty-one
were pastors of churches, or otherwise
employed in the Christian ministry ; ten
were civilians ; and the remaining ten en-
gaged in mercantile or medical pursuits.

The first day of the session is employed
in bringing forward the business of the
meetings, so far as the Prudential Com-
mittee is concerned, which is done in wri-
ting. This, including the different parts
of the annual report, is usually referred to
some fifteen or more committees, who re-
port during the session. Their reports
often give rise to friendly discussions,,
which are always interesting, and often
eloquent. All the meetings are open to
the public, and are usually held in a
church, that there may be room for those
friends and patrons who Avish to attend.
In the evening of the first day a sermon is
preached before the Board by a member
appointed to the service at the previous
meeting, and the members unite in cele-
brating the Lord's Supper during the ses-
sion. A meeting for popular addresses is
held in the evening of the second or third
day. The last day of the session is gen-
erally the great day of the feast in point
of interest ; and it may truly be said tliat
the annual meeting of this Board, as a.
whole, has for several years past exerted
a great and good influence on the commu-
nity, its proceedings being more exten-
sively and carefully reported in the reli-
gious newspapers than those of any other
religious or charitable institution in tlicv
country.

Chap. IV.]

BOARD FOR PRESBYTERIAN MISSIONS.

307

Publications. — The publications i.ssued
by the Board directly are, 1. The " Mis-
sionary Herald," published monthly in about
24,000 copies ; 2. The " Day Spring," a
monthly publication just commenced in
the form of a small newspaper; 3. The
'• Annual Report," a document of about
200 pages, of which 4000 or 5000 copies
are issued annually ; and, 4. The " Annual
Sermon," and occasional missionary pa-
pers of various descriptions.

Among the numerous works which have
been occasioned more or less directly by
its missions, though not published by it or
at its expense, the following may be men-
tioned :

Memoir of Mrs. Harriet Newell, by
Rev. Leonard Woods, D.D., 1815. Memoir
of the Rev. Levi Parsons, by Rev. Daniel
O. Morton, 1824. Memoir of the Rev.
Pliny Fisk, by Rev. Alvan Bond. 1828.
Memoir of Catharine Brown, a Christian
Indian of the Cherokee nation, by Rev.
Rufus Anderson, 1824. Memoir of Rev.
Gordon Hall, by Rev. Horatio Bardwell,
1834. Memoir of Mrs. Harriet L. Wins-
low, by Rev. Miron Winslow, 1835. Me-
moir of Mrs. Myra W. Allen, by Rev. Cy-
rus Mann, 1834. The Little Osage Cap-
tive, by Rev. Elias Cornelius, 1822. Me-
moir of Mrs. Sarah Lanman Smith, by
Rev. Edward W. Hooker, D.D., 1839, Syr-
ian Mission. Memoir of Mrs. Elizabeth D.
Dwight and Mrs. Judith S. Grant, 1840.
The Christian Brahmin, ot Memoirs of the
Life, Writings, and Character of the Con-
verted Brahmin, Babajee, by Rev. HoUis
Read, 2 vols., 1836. Memoirs of Ameri-
can Missionaries, formerly connected with
the Society of Inquiry respecting Missions
in the Andover Theological Seminary,
1832. Tour around Hawaii (one of the
Sandwich Islands), by Rev. William Ellis,
1826. A Residence in the Sandwich Isl-
ands, by Rev. Charles Samuel Stewart,
1828. History of the Sandwich Islands'
Mission, by Rev. Sheldon Dibble, 1839.
Observations on the Peloponnesus and
Greek Islands, by Rev. Rufus Anderson,
1830. Researches in Armenia, by Rev. E.
Smith and Rev. H. G. O. Dwight, 1833.
Residence at Constantinople, by Rev. Jo-
siah Brewer, 1830. The Nestorians,or the
Lost Tribes, by Asahel Grant, M.D., 1841.
Missionary Sermons and Addresses, by
Rev. Eli Smith, 1833. Journal of a Mis-
sionary Tour in India, by Rev. Wilham
Ramsey, 1836. Journal of a Residence in
China and the Neighbouring Countries, by
Rev. David Abeel, 1834. The Missionary
Convention at Jerusalem, or an Exhibition
of the Claims of the World to the Gospel,
by Rev. David Abeel, 1838. Journal of
an Exploring Tour beyond the Rocky
Mountains, by Rev. Samuel Parker, 1838.
Essays on the Present Crisis in the Con-
dition of the American Indians, first pub-

lished in the National Intelligencer under
the signature of William Penn, 1829, by
Jeremiah Evarts. Speeches on the Pas-
sage of the Bill for the Removal of the In-
dians, delivered in the Congress of the
United States, 1830. History of the Amer-
ican Board of Commissioners for Foreign
Missions, by Rev. Joseph Tracy, 1840.

CHAPTER IV.

BOARD OF FOREIGN MISSIONS OF THE PRESBV-
TERI.iN CHURCH.

We have gone into considerable detail
in the preceding chapter in order to exhibit,
once for all, the grand principles of our
American missions — the establishment of
schools for the Christian instruction of
youth, and especially for raising a native
ministry among the heathen themselves,
and the employment of that most impor-
tant auxiliary, the press. The views of
the American Board of Commissioners for
Foreign Missions on these points are held,
I believe, without exception, by all our
other missionary associations, so that we
may dispense with going into the recon-
sideration of them in the notices that are
to follow.

We turn next to the Presbyterian
Church's Board for Foreign Missions, not
because next in point of date or extent of
operations, but simply because it derives
its support from a member of the same
great Presbyterian family of churches, of
certain other branches of which the Amer-
ican Board of Commissioners for Foreign
Missions is the missionary organ. The
two societies, in fact, comprise nearly all
that is now done for the conversion of hea-
thens, Mohammedans, and Jews, by Pres-
byterians of all shades, in the United States.

The Board of which we have now to
speak was constituted only in 1837, the
congregations which it represents having
before that combined with others in sup-
porting the American Board, and many of
them, indeed, with a truly liberal spirit,
now support both. The latter of the two
Boards arose from a conviction which had
long been gaining ground, that the Presby-
terians as a Church, and by the medium of
their supreme ecclesiastical judicature,
ought, like the Church of Scotland, to
undertake foreign as well as domestic
missions.

As the Old School Presbyterian Church,
which appointed and supports this Board,
numbers 1409 pastors and 2088 churches,
and as nearly all these have it in their
power to aid the cause, there is every
prospect of its becoming in a few years a
very efficient association. Its receipts for
the year ending May 1st, 1843, wore 64,734
dollars, and it had expended about 65 dol-
lars more than this. In this statement are

303

RELIGION IN AMERICA.

[Book VIII.

included the sum of 3000 dollars from the
American Bible Society for tlie printing
and circulation of the Scriptures, and 2200
from the American Tract Society for the
publication of tracts. It has the following
missions :

Iowa, or Sac Indians in tlie Indian ter-
ritory westward of the Missouri. Here it
employs a minister, a teacher, and a farm-
er, and their wives, with an encouraging
prospect of good being done by preaching,
and still more by schools. Intemperance
is found the greatest bar to the progress of
the Gospel among the Indians.

Chippewa and Ottawa tribes. — One
missionary and a teacher, with their wives,
are labouring with considerable and en-
couraging success among these two tribes,
which are still in the western part of Mich-
igan, not having been yet removed to the
west of the Mississippi.

Creek Indians. — These form a powerful
tribe of above 21,000 souls, in the Indian
territory to the west of the States of Ar-
kansas and Missouri. Until of late, they
have been averse to receiving missionaries,
but the Board has now taken measures,
with the consent of their chiefs, for sus-
taining a mission among them, and a min-
ister, with his wife, have entered upon
their work.

Texas. — One missionary and his wife
have been stationed on the western border
of Texas, but as this mission is intended for
the benefit of Mexico, they remain where
they are only until the- door is opened for
their admission into the latter country.

Western Africa. — The Board has four
missionaries, with their wives, and one
coloured female teacher, sent from the
United States, and two male native teach-
ers, at Cape Palmas, the site of a colony
of coloured people from America. The
mission bids fair to be eminently useful.

The Chinese. — This mission was at first
established at Singapore. Two mission-
aries, one of whom is married, and a phy-
sician and his wife, were employed in
preaching and in the education of youth
among the Chinese, who either permanent-
ly reside at that port or occasionally visit it.
But now that the door is open for the en-
trance of the Gospel into that great empire,
the Board has lost no time in turning their
attention to it. Last year they sent two
ordained ministers, one physician, and one
teacher to this important field.

SiAM. — In this kingdom the Board main-
tains one missionary and his wife, who are
preparing themselves for their future work
by acquiring the language of the country,
and making themselves useful, in the mean
time, by an abundant distributionof portions
of the Holy Scriptures and Tracts.

Northern India. — Here it is that the
Board has its most extensive missions,
having at its different stations at Lodiana,

Sabathu, Saharunpur, Allahabad, and Fut-
tegurh, no fewer than fifteen ordained mis-
sionaries, most of whom are married, one
printer, three teachers, one physician, and
one catechist, all Americans, besides two
native catechists, and one native assist-
ant. This mission has been remarkably-
successful, considering how lately it was
commenced. Schools have been estab-
lished at the different stations, and a con-
siderable number of publications, including
parts of the Bible, have been issued in the
Hindustani, Persian, Panjabi or Gurmukhi,
and Hindi languages. To this, preaching
in the native languages at the different
stations is now added, and in English, also,
at one or more of these, for the benefit of
the British officers and other foreign resi-
dents, some of whom, we rejoice to say,
have shown much kindness to the mis-
sionaries, and have liberally contributed
to the support of the schools.

The missionaries in this quarter have
lately formed themselves into three Pres-
byteries, and these have been organized as
the Si/nod of Northern India by the General
Assembly in America, to which it is sub-
ordinate.

The Board takes a deep interest in China,
and looks forward to the day when the
truth may find an effectual entrance into
that populous empire. It has, at a great
expense, had 3326 matrices made in Paris
for the casting of as many different types,
which, by their combinations, can produce
above 14,000 different characters : a num-
ber, according to the report for 1841, amply
sufficient for missionary purposes. Hence
it would seem that the question, how far
the Chinese language may be printed with
movable type, is about to be resolved by
this Board ; and it is a striking fact, that
solely to its liberality the ingenious French
printer, M. Marcellin-Legrand, under the
direction of M. Ponthieu, who discovered
this method of printing Chinese, and of
Walter Lowrie, Esq., Secretary to the
Board, and himself an excellent Chinese
scholar, owes his having been enabled to
make so much progress in preparing a
complete fount of type in that important
but difficult tongue.

The Board is annually appointed by the
General Assembly, and to that body it
makes its report. The business, however,
is mainly conducted by a very efficient
committee subject to its supervision, and
through this committee as its organ it is-
sues a monthly publication, called The
Foreign Missionary Chronicle, presenting
not only full accounts of its own missions,
but summaries also of what is done by
other missionary societies. From 5000 to
6000 copies of this valuable periodical are
circulated through the churches.

The Board has now under its direction,
sent out by the Church that appoints it,

Chap. V.]

BOARD FOR BAPTIST MISSIONS.

309

more than seventy labourers at foreign
stations, of whom twenty-eight are minis-
ters of the Gospel. It has, besides, eight
native assistants, some of whom are learn-
ed persons, and all of them hopefully pi-
ous, and in different stages of trial and
preparation for labouring among their be-
nighted fellow-countrymen. Through the
stations occupied by these missionaries,
the Presbyterian Church is brought into
contact with five different heathen nations,
estimated to comprise two thirds of the
whole human race.

CHAPTER V.

MISSIONARY BOARD OF THE BAPTIST CHURCHES.

The operations of this Board now ex-
tend over thirty years. It was first con-
stituted in 1814, by the Baptist General
Convention for Foreign Missions, which
meets triennially, and is, in fact, a mission-
ary society. To it the Board makes a
regular Report of its proceedings.

This association has from small begin-
nings advanced from year to year in re-
sources and efficiency, until, through God's
blessing, it embraces all the four great con-
tinents within the sphere of its operations.
These have been conducted with singular
wisdom, zeal, and perseverance, and have
been crowned with remarkable success.

Its history shows how wonderfully God,
in his providence, orders and overrules
events while enlisting new agencies for
the accomplishment of his purposes. In
1812, the American Board of Commission-
ers for Foreign Missions, a Paedobaptist
society, sent several missionaries to Ben-
gal. On their voyage thither, two of these,
the Rev. Messrs. Judson and Rice and their
wives, changed their views and became
Baptists ; an event that not only gave
much distress to the other members of the
mission, but produced, perhaps, for a time,
other feelings besides disappointment in
the minds of the members of the Board
that had sent them out. On their arrival,
they found that the British East India
Company would not permit them to labour
within its territories ; so that after a few
weeks' stay they had to leave Calcutta.
Messrs. Judson and Rice, however, with
their wives, were received with great kind-
ness by the excellent Dr. Carey and his
associates. Baptist missionaries from Eng-
land, settled at Serampore, a small Danish
possession not many miles above Calcutta.
There was no Baptist Foreign Missionary
Society at that time in the United States,
but as Messrs. Judson and Rice had be-
come Baptists, were now in India, and
wished to remain and preach the Gospel
there to the heathen, their case drew the
attention of the Baptist churches in Amer-
ica, and a society was organized for their

support. Meanwhile, Mr. Judson withdrew
into the Burmese territory, and there com-
menced a mission which has been signally
blessed. The society, which they were the
means of originating, is now a great insti-
tution, with no fewer than nineteen mis-
sions in various parts of the world. How *
wonderful are the ways of God ! bringing
good from what seems to man, for a time
at least, to be evil. Had not the two mis-
sionaries become Baptists, where would
have been the blessed mission to Burmah,
and how many years might have elapsed
before the American Baptists entered on
the prosecution of foreign missions 1 And
had not the Governor-general of India ex-
cluded American missionaries from Ben-
gal, where would have been the promising
American missions in Ceylon, in the south-
ern part of Hindostan, and on the western
side of the Indian Peninsula]

Such was the origin of the Baptist Board
of Foreign Missions ; let us now glance at
its various enterprises as reported for 1843.
Missions in North America. — These are
eight in number, and embrace the follow-
ing tribes : the Ojibwas, Ottawas,' Oneidas,
and Tuscaroras, Otoes, Shawanoes, and
others, Cherokees, Creeks, and Choctas,
the last three residing on the Indian Ter-
ritory. Among these various tribes the
Board has eighteen stations and out-sta-
tions, thirty-two American missionaries
and assistants, and eight Indian assistants.
In Europe. — In France, the Board has
seven stations and six out-stations, one
missionary and his wife, and ten native
preachers and assistants. In Germany
and Denmark it has nine stations, and thir-
teen native preachers and assistants. In
Greece, two stations, two preachers, three
female assistants, and one native assistant.
In West Africa, the Board has two sta-
tions, three preachers, one printer, one fe-
male assistant, one native assistant, and
fifteen churches among the Bassas, a na-
tive tribe near the colony of Liberia.

In Asia, the Board has missions among
the Karens on the borders of Burmah, in
Siam, in China, in Arracan, in Assam, and
at Madras and Nellore and Briti-sh India.
These, forming eight distinct missions,
comprehended in 1843 thirty-five stations
and out- stations, fifty-six missionaries and
assistant missionaries, and about seventy
native assistants.

The total numbers, including all the mis-
sions, were, according to the Report for
1843, as follows :

19 Missions.

80 Siations and out-stations.
103 Missionaries and assistant missionaries (Amer-

cans), of whom 4i are ordained.
115 Native preachers and assistants.
77 Churches, comprehending more than 2000 mem-
bers.
898 Baptisms in the course of the year reported on.
4000 Members in native churches.

310

RELIGION IN AMERICA.

[Book VIII.

The receipts for that year had amounted
to 47,151 dollars, and the disbursements to
55,138 dollars. In addition to its regular
receipts, the Board had received 6000 dol-
lars from the American and Foreign Bible
Society for the publication of the Scrip-
tures ; 2300 dollars from the American
Tract Society for the publication of Tracts ;
and 4400 dollars from the United States
Government towards the support of schools
among the Indians.*

This brief notice will give the reader
some idea of this excellent society's opera-
tions, and of the good that it is doing. A
detailed account of its missions, particu-
larly of those among the Burmans and the
Karens, would be interesting, but would
far exceed the limits of this work. It is
delightful to see how much interest in the
cause of missions has sprung up in this
numerous and important branch of the
Church in the United States. May God
grant that it and every other may soon
come up to the full measure of their ability
and duty in this great work.

Let me add, in conclusion, that the Mis-
sionary Magazine, an able and interesting
monthly pubhcation, has long been the or-
gan of the Society, and has a wide circula-
tion among the Baptist denomination.

CHAPTER VI.

FOREIGN MISSIONS OF THE METHODIST EPISCO-
PAL CHURCH.

The Missionary Society of the Metho-
dist Episcopal Church was formed in 1819,
under the auspices of the General Confer-
ence, but for many years its efforts were
chiefly directed to domestic missions, in-
cluding those to the slaves in the Southern
States, and to the aboriginal tribes within,
or adjacent to, the western frontier of the
United States. It afterward directed its
attention to the colonies of free coloured
Americans on the Western coast of Afri-
ca, and, at a still later period, it established
missions on the territory to the west of the
Oregon Mountains, and at some important
points in South America. The German im-
migrants found swarming in our principal
cities, at the same time engaged much of
its attention. Its efforts in behalf of these
and of the slaves, as properly falling under
the head of home missions, we have al-
ready noticed, and will now give some ac-
count of what are, properly speaking, its
foreign missions.

North American Indians.— The Society
in 1843 had twenty-five missionaries la-

* After the account for the year was closed, $2000
additional were received from the American and For-
eign Bible Society, and an equal sum from the Amer-
ican Tract Society. To this must be added £500
from the Committee of the English Baptist Mission-
ary Society, as an expression of fraternal interest. i

bouring within or beyond the western
frontier of the United States among the
following tribes, or remnants of tribes : the
Wyandots, Oneidas, Shawnees, Delawares,
Kickapoos, Pottawottamies, Chippewas,
Choctas, Cherokees, &c., &c. The Re-
port for that year states the Indian mem-
bers of the mission churches gathered from
these tribes to have amounted to 3851.

Texas Mission. — The Society had no
fewer than thirty-six missionaries station-
ed in the Republic of Texas in 1843 ; these
had laboured with much success ; and they
now form an Animal Conference, which,
by conducting its own affairs, will probably
do away with the necessity of having any
independent mission in that country. This
conference comprehends three Presiding
Elders' districts, thirty-six travelling min-
isters, forty local preachers, 3698 mem-
bers, of whom 536 are coloured people. A
college, also, has been established under its
auspices.

Liberia Mission, at and in the vicinity
of the American colony on the west coast
of Africa, was commenced in 1833 by the
late Rev. Melville B. Cox, an excellent man,
who fell a victim to the climate a few
months after his arrival. With his dying
breath he exclaimed, " Though a thousand
fall, Africa must not be given up." He
was succeeded by others, and they, too,
sank under a climate so fatal to white
men. At length the Rev. John Seys was
sent out, and he, through God's blessing,
has been preserved to this day. He was
greatly successful in putting the affairs of
the mission in order, and superintending
the labours of coloured preachers from the
United States, the Society having to de-
pend chiefly on these. Last year he was
succeeded "by the Rev. Mr. Chase. The
mission now includes an Annual Confer-
ence, consisting of twenty preachers, all
coloured, with the exception of the super-
intendent and one other.

Of the church members, about 900 in
all, 150 are native Africans, who, within
the last four years, were worshipping gods
of wood, stone, leather, anything, in short,
that their imagination could fashion into a
god!

South American Mission. — In 1841 the
Society had five missionaries at Rio Ja-
neiro, Monte Video, and Buenos Ayres,
labouring, not unsuccessfully, to introduce
the Gospel to those cities, now so ignorant
of the truth. These worthy men, how-
ever, the pressure of the times obliged the
Society to recall. Within a few months
the Society has resumed its labours at
Buenos Ayres, and their faithful mission-
ary is at his post again.

Oregon Mission. — Both in its origin and
its success this has been one of the most
remarkable of all the missions of the Amer-
ican Churches. About the year 1838, the

Chap. VII.] BOARD FOR PROTESTANT EPISCOPAL MISSIONS.

311

tribe of Indians called Flat Heads, living
to the west of the Oregon Mountains,
prompted, probably, by what they had seen
and heard of the Christian religion among
the trappers of the American and Hud-
son's Bay Fur Companies, sent some of
their chiefs into the United States to in-
quire as to the various forms of religious
worship observed here, and to decide upon
which to recommend. After a long and
painful journey they reached St. Louis,
and stated the object of their coming to
the late General Clarke,* then Govern-
ment Agent for Indian Affairs in that dis-
trict, by whom it was communicated to
the ministers of the Gospel in the place.
A great sensation was naturally produced.
The Methodist Missionary Society was the
first that took the matter up, and, desiring
to act with prudence, sent two judicious
-and experienced persons across the Ore-
gon Mountains to visit the Indians, ascer-
tain their present position, and choose a
proper situation for a mission. On their
arrival they found the way wonderfully
prepared by the Lord's providential dis-
pensations, so that after their return, a
mission on a large scale left New- York
for the Oregon country. After a journey
of some months it reached the place of its
destination, and was welcomed by the In-
dians and the Agents of the Hudson's Bay
Company stationed in that region.

This mission, which from the first has
been remarkably blessed, consisted, in
1841, of no fewer than sixty-eight persons,
including teachers, farmers, mechanics of
all kinds, women, and children, all, of
course, connected with the society. It is
designed, in fact, to be in a great measure
a self-supporting mission. Its object part-
ly is, by exhibiting the advantages of civ-
ilization, to induce the Indians to engage
in tillage, and to adopt the other arts and
usages of civilized life, in all which the
mission has succeeded much beyond ex-
pectation. Its spiritual success was still
more remarkable, for the Indian converts
amounted, two years ago, to no fewer
than 1000. The mission, upon the wliole,
is an experiment of the most interesting
kind.

The total number of this society's for-
eign missionaries amounted in 1843 to 115,
of whom probably eighty were oi'dained.
The number of members in the mission
churches was 8936. Its total income for
that year was $109,452 ; its disbursements
$145,035, of which probably 90,000 were
for home, and 55,035 for foreign mis-
sions.!

* The name of this gentleman is well known in
connexion with that of the late Governor Lewis,
from the Exploring Tour they made in company
across the Oregon Mountains to the Pacific Ocean,
during Mr. Jeflerson's presidency.

t It is Drobable that 1 have not apportioned with

CHAPTER VII.

BOARD OF MISSIONS OF THE PROTESTANT EPIS-
COPAL CHURCH.

This Board was constituted in 1835. Its
domestic operations we have noticed in
another place, and have now to speak of
its foreign missions, which extend to vari-
ous parts of the world.

Western Africa. — It has a very flour-
ishing mission at Cape Palmas, and at two
or three stations a few miles distant in the
interior. In 1843 it comprised five ordain-
ed ministers, together with three white
and ten coloured teachers and assistants.
The place has been well chosen, for Cape
Palmas is one of the healthiest spots on
that notoriously unhealthy coast. Several
American ladies have resided there in the
enjoyment of good health for some years.
Attached to the mission there are several
schools, partly for the colonists, partly for
the natives, and attended by above 100
scholars, youths and adults. The preach-
ing of the missionaries is well attended,
and has been blessed to the salvation of
souls.

China. — The Board has commenced a
mission under favourable auspices in Chi-
na. It has one labourer on this field, and
is about to send others.

Greece. — The Board has a mission at
Athens. There the Rev. Mr. Hill, with his
wife (who is a remarkably efficient per-
son), are stationed, and several American
ladies as teachers, besides whom there are
about twelve native teachers. Mr. Hill
has been very successful in raising and
supporting schools for infants, for boys
and for girls, attended by about 800 schol-
ars. He preaches, also, on the Sabbath
and other occasions, in Greek, to a con-
gregation of young and old. Yet, owing
to the perpetual jealousy of the Greek cler-
gy, and their influence with the govern-
ment, the missionaries find themselves ex-
posed to many difficulties.

Crete. — In this island, also, there is a
mission conducted by one ordained mis-
sionary, assisted by his wife and one or
two natives engaged as teachers. This
mission has succeeded as well as its friends
and projectors had hoped.

Mission in the East. — The Board sus-
tained a mission for some years at Con-
stantinople. But it seems probable that it
will be removed to Mardin or Mosul, in
order to reach more effectuallj^ the Syrian
churches, in whose behalf the Society has
taken much interest. The Rev. Mr. South-

perfect exactness the disbursements of the Society.
The Report does not separate the domestic from
the foreign expenditures. The whole number of
missionaries, domestic and foreign, employed by the
Society in 1843, was 325, ordained and unordained,
and the members in the churches gathered weie
39,684.

312

RELIGION IN AMERICA.

[Book VJIL

gate, who has travelled much in Asia Mi-
nor and the adjacent parts of the East,
and has given the results of his observa-
tions in his interesting journals, is the So-
ciety's missionary in this field. Two oth-
ers have been appointed to join him.

Texas. — In this Republic the Board last
year employed three missionaries, who
"were labouring with some success at Hous-
ton, Matagorda, and Galveston.

It hence appears that the whole num-
ber of the Board's ordained missionaries
amounted, in 1843, to eleven, labouring in
seven distinct missions, besides whom
there were several American ladies, chief-
Jy engaged in teaching, and no fewer than
twenty native teachers. The receipts, ex-
clusive of $200 from the American Tract
Society, amounted, last year, to $35,197 ;
the disbursements exceeded the receipts
by $4494. The Board issues an interest-
ing publication entitled " The Spirit of Mis-
sions," for the diffusion of missionary in-
telligence among the churches.

CHAPTER VHI.

foreign missions of other denominations.

Missions of the Free-Will Baptist
Churches. — The Free-Will Baptist Foreign
Missionary Society was organized in 1833,
and originated in the correspondence of
the Rev. Mr. Sutton, of the English Gen-
eral Baptist Mission, with Elder Buzzel, a
Free-Will Baptist minister in the United
States. Mr. Sutton wrote in 1831, repre-
senting the deplorable state of the heathen
in India, and calling on his American breth-
ren to come up to the help of the Lord
against the mighty. Returning to Eng-
land in 1833, Mr. Sutton went from that
to America, there spent several months
preaching to the churches ; then, after an-
other short visit to his native land, he made
an extensive tour in 1834 through the Free-
Will Baptist churches in the United States,
preaching to them on the subject of mis-
sions, and acting as the corresponding sec-
retary of a missionary society which had
been formed the preceding year. Having
succeeded in rousing these churches to a
sense of their duty, he sailed in 1835 for In-
dia with the Rev. Messrs. Noyes and Phil-
lips and their wives, being the first mission-
aries from the new society. On their ar-
rival they went with Mr. Sutton to Orissa,
a province lying on the western shore of
the Bay of Hengal, some hundred miles
southwest from Calcutta. They have been
labouring chiefly at Balasore with much
faithfulness and success. The Rev. Messrs.
Bachelor and Uow have since joined these
brethren, and are zealously prosecuting
their work. The Society owes much, we
understand, to subscriptions and collections

at monthly prayer-meetings. The Rev. Lu-
ther Palmer, of Norwalk, Ohio, a Free-Will
Baptist pastor, some time ago gave himself
and all his property, valued at $5000, to the
Society, wishing the latter to be applied ta
the support of the press in India. Such
liberality reminds us of Pentecostal days.
The receipts of the Society were, in 1843^.
$3502 ; its expenditures were $2679.

Foreign Missionary Society of the Lu-
theran Church in the United States. —
This society, which dates from 1837, origi-
nated in an appeal from the German mis-
sionaries in India, Mr. Rhenius and his as-
sociates, to their brethren in the United
States, for the assistance they required iiji
consequence of their separation from the
Church Missionary Society of England, on
account of certain of its views and meas-
ures which they disapproved, after having-
laboured for several years in its service.
In answer to their appeal, a convention of
Lutheran ministers and lay members was
held at Hagerstown, in Maryland, and the
society was organized. But these mission-
aries having renewed their connexion with
the English Church Missionary Society,
the American Lutherans have resolved to
send out missionaries from their own
churches, and now have two labouring in
India.

Foreign Missions of the Moravians, or
United Brethren. — The Moravian Breth-
ren in the United States formed a society
for propagating the Gospel among the hea-
then in 1787 ; an act for incorporating it
was passed by the State of Pennsylvania ;
and it has been actively employed ever
since in promoting missions. This socie-
ty sustains two missions among the In-
dians (the one among the Delawares, the
other among the Cherokees), and eight
missionaries. Its receipts last year were
8364 dollars. Some years ago it received
a handsome legacy from a gentleman at.
Philadelphia. Its organ is " The United
Brethren's Missionary Intelligencer, and
Religious Miscellany."

Foreign Missions of the Scottisii;
Churches. — The reader has remarked
that in our notices of the Associate, As-
sociate Reformed, and Reformed Presby-
terian Churches, we mentioned that they
have undertaken foreign missions, either
in connexion with the Board of the Old
School Presbyterians or independently,,
within the last few years.

Such are the societies in the United
States which have been expressly formed
for the propagation of the Gospel in pagaui
countries, althougli some of them have
missions in countries nominally Christian.

Let me add, that the American Bible So-
ciety, and the American and Foreign Bible
Society supported by the Baptists, have
been making large yearly donations to-
wards the circulation of the Holy Scrip-

Chap. X.]

FOREIGN EVANGELICAL SOCIETY.

313

tures in foreign, and especially pagan
lands. Some, also, of the State and other
local Bible Societies, such as those of Mas-
sachusetts and Philadelphia, have done
something in this way. The American
Tract Society has likewise made yearly
grants of from 10,000 to 40,000 dollars for
the publication and distribution of religious
tracts in foreign, and chiefly in heathen
lands. The American vSunday-school
Union, too, has granted both books and
money for promoting its objects abroad.
I am unable to state the yearly amount of
all these donations with perfect accuracy,
but believe that, taking the average of the
last ten years, they have exceeded 50,000
dollars.

CHAPTER IX.

AMKRICAN SOCIETY FOR AMELIORATING THE
CONDITION OF THE JEWS.

This society was formed in 1820, for
the purpose of providing an asylum, and
the means of earning a comfortable live-
lihood in America, for Jews whose con-
version to Christianity exposed them to
persecution and the loss of the means of
living. A farm, accordingly, of about 500
acres was purchased, on which it was pro-
posed to have a colony of converted Jews,
who, by tillage and other useful arts, might
support themselves and their families.
Somehow or other this project did not an-
swer the expectations of its projectors,
and so much did the Society lose the con-
fidence of the Christian public, that for a
while it seemed quite lost sight of. A
year or two ago, however, the impulse giv-
en in Scotland and other European coun-
tries to the work of converting the Jews,
led some of the old friends of the Ameri-
can Society to think of reviving it, and di-
recting its efforts to the emploj'ment of mis-
sionaries among the Jews, either in Ameri-
ca or elsewhere. As the Society is incor-
porated, and has property to the amount, I
believe, of from 15,000 to 20,000 dollars,
it may commence its operations immedi-
ately among the Jewish people, of whom
there are said to be about 50,000 in the
United States, whose conversion has nev-
er, it must be confessed, called forth the
interest and the efforts that it ought to
have done.

CHAPTER X.

FOREIGN EVANGELICAL SOCIETY OF THE UNI-
TED STATES.

This, which is the latest in its origin of
all the foreign missionary societies, was
formed in 1839, for promoting evangelical
religion in all nominally Christian coun-

tries, and was suggested by the growing-
conviction of many persons in the United
States, that until pure Christianity be re-
stored in nominal Christendom, the con-
version of the heathen world can hardly
be looked for. There are millions of Prot-
estants, and tens of millions of Romanists,
so manifestly ignorant of the great doc-
trines of the Gospel, as to prove by their
lives that they are little better than bap-
tized heathen. Hundreds of thousands
professing Christianity may be found in
some countries who have actually never
read a page of the book which God intend-
ed should be emphatically the people's
Book, but which those who put themselves
forward as their guides have kept from,
them, either from ignorance of its value,
or from a dread of its influence when read.

Now, while many societies seek to pro-
mote true religion in the United States,.
and many also to send the Gospel to the
heathen, the Foreign Evangelical Society
makes it its peculiar province to cultivate
that great intermediate field, presented by
professedly Christian countries in which,
whatever may be their civilization, the
Gospel is really almost as little known as
it is to the very heathen ; some being
buried in the darkness of Romanism, and
others in the still worse darkness of Ra-
tionalism. In many such countries God,
in his holy Providence, has been evident-
ly opening the way for the admission of
the long-excluded hght. Stupendous rev-
olutions have in the course of the last fif-
ty years shaken, for a time at least, the
spiritual despotism that had reigned so
long over a great part of Christendom,
both in Europe and America; and the bit-
ter fruits of infidelity, in all its forms, have
disposed many, in countries where it had
sapped the foundations of faith, to return
to the simple truths of the Gospel, unper-
verted by human speculation and " philos-
ophy falsely so called." The last revolu-
tions in France and Belgium, in particu-
lar, seemed to lay those countries more
open to evangelical effort ; and it was
hoped that, at no distant day, Spain and
Portugal also would be found accessible
to the Word of God.

After much inquiry, partly conducted by
an agent sent expressly to France and oth-
er countries of Europe, an association was
formed in 1836, which, three years after,
took the form of a regular society ; not,
however, for sending missionaries from
America to Europe, but for assisting the
friends of evangelical religion in France,
Belgium, and other countries similarly cir-
cumstanced. It has accordingly aided the
evangelical societies of France and Gene-
va, and, though not to the same extent',,
some other, and more local associations.
Gradually extending the range of its ef-
forts, it has also promoted the same cause

^14

RELIGION IN AMERICA.

[Book VIII.

by the distribution of tracts in Germany,
and has even aided the friends of the truth
in Sweden in what they are doing to com-
municate the blessings of the Gospel more
effectually to the Laplanders. As the So-
ciety's Executive Committee is not re-
stricted to any particular method of effect-
ing its objects, it has turned its attention
to a variety of ways of procedure.

While making these efforts in Europe,
the Society has found among the Roman
Catholic population of Lower Canada,
which is almost wholly of French ori-
gin, an important and providentially-pre-
pared field, which is now occupied by a
very prosperous mission. As this mission
originated with some friends of the Gos-
pel in Switzerland, it is supported to a cer-
tain extent by an association at Lausanne.
Attached to it there is a large mission-
house, in which above twenty Canadian
converts are preparing for future labours
as teachers, colporteurs, evangelists, preach-
ers, &c. There are no fewer than eight or
nine missionaries, all but one or two of
whom are natives of France or Switzer-
land ; all have been accustomed to tlie
French tongue from childhood, and several
speaking no other. No one can foresee
what may be the results of this auspi-
cious commencement among a people with
whom all previous attempts of a like kind
had failed.

The society contemplates commencing
operations at several points of South
America, as soon as persons fitted for the
work can be found.

The receipts of this society for the year
ending on the 1st 'of May last (1843) were
about 15,000 dollars; and the number of
labourers, in various fields, whom it sup-
ported, was about eighty.

CHAPTER XL

AMERICAN COLONIZATION SOCIETY.

Finally, we propose to say a few words
respecting the American Colonization So-
ciety, because of its connexion with mis-
sions in Western Africa, and its bearings
upon the general interests of humanity,
though not a missionary society itself.

Though originating in a sincere desire
to promote the benefit of the African race,
on the part of some of the best men that
America has ever seen, this society has
for many years past been much decried in
America, and misrepresented to some ex-
tent in Europe. The three persons who
may be regarded as its founders have all
passed from the present scene to their re-
ward above. These were the late Rev.
iJr. Finlay, of Ncw-Jorscy, the Rev. Sam-
uel J. Mills, of Connecticut, and the Hon.
Elias B. Caldwell, of Washington City,

Clerk to the Supreme Court of the United
States. The Society was organized in
1817, and its objects are expressed as fol-
lows, in the second article of its constitu-
tion : " To promote and execute a plan of
colonizing (with their consent) the free
people of colour residing in our country,
in Africa, or such other place as Congress
shall deem most expedient." Theprimaiy
motive of its founders was to place the
coloured man in circumstances in which
he might acquire that real independence
of station and character, and, consequently,
that equality in social life which they sup-
posed that he cannot reach in the midst of
a white population.

Soon after the Society was constituted,
the Rev. Messrs. Mills and Burgess were
sent as commissioners to explore the west
coast of Africa, and select a site for the
proposed colony. The first expedition
was sent over in 1820, under the Rev.
Samuel Bacon, who was appointed gov-
ernor; but he and many of the colonists
were cut off by the fever of the country^
in attempting to form a settlement at Sher-
bro, which consequently failed. Another
attempt followed a year or two afterward,
and thougli the site was not so good as
might have been found, it proved far better
than the former, and is now called Liberia,
lying between the 8th and 11th degrees of
north latitude. No great extent of coun-
try was bought at first, but other parcels
have been added since, and the Society
hopes before long to obtain the entire coast
from Cape Mount on the north to Cape
Palmas on the south, and extending to
about 300 miles in length. Its chief pos-
sessions at present are about Cape Messu-
rado in the north, and Cape Palmas in the
south ; a large part of the intervening
coast is now in the possession of native
chieftains, and on purchasing it, which the
Society hopes soon to be able to do, it pro-
poses to plant colonies at different points,
for the double purpose of extending the
present settlements and of abolishing the
slave-trade, still vigorously prosecuted at
two or three points on this part of the
coast.

Monrovia, the chief town in the northern
cluster of colonies, has a convenient port,
and is of considerable extent. There the
Governor of Liberia resides. There are
eight or ten villages, also, to the north and
south, and in the interior, settlements hav-
ing been made on the Stockton and St.
Paul's Rivers, as well as at other points to
the distance of eight or ten miles from
Monrovia. A colony planted at Cape Pal-
mas by the Maryland Auxiliary Coloniza-
tion Society, consists of about 550 or 600
colonists from America.* Many natives,

* It is an interesting fact, that the governor at
Cape Palmas, Mr. Rushworin, is a gentleman of col-
our, brought up in America as a printer, and who

Chap. XI.]

AMERICAN COLONIZATION SOCIETY.

315

however, live both there and in Liberia on
lands of their own, but within the limits of
the colony, and subject to its laws ; in fact,
they form an integral part of the popula-
tion.

These colonies have been of slow growth,
for the Society, unaided by the General
Government, has been unable to conduct
the enterprise on a large scale. Incxperi-
■ence, too, has led to several blunders in the
first years, to which must be added want
of union and energy on the part of the Na-
tional Society, and the loss of the confi-
dence of part of the public, particularly of
the members of the Anti-slavery and Abo-
lition Societies. Notwithstanding all this,
the Society has been gradually advancing.
Its yearly income has for some time past
been about 50,000 dollars,* and its colonies,
now supposed to number about 4000 emi-
grants, are in a tolerably thriving state.
Fatal as the cUmate of Liberia is to white
men, the coloured find it so much other-
wise, that the mortality among them has
not been greater than was to be expected
— not more than what was experienced by
the first settlers in Virginia and Massachu-
setts. Cape Palmas, from its elevated po-
sition, has been found remarkably healthy,
and not oppressive even to the missiona-
ries, though whites.

It has been well ascertained that, at the
distance of from .afteen to twenty miles
the country rises in the interior, and at no
great distance farther becomes even mount-
ainous. Hence it is inferred that the cli-
mate there is salubrious. A few more
years of success will enable the colonies to
purchase the lands east of the " back set-
tlements,"' and to open a way to the hilly
country. Already, in fact, they are ma-
king a road from Monrovia into the interi-
or, so as to have a highway for trade in
camwood and other productions of the
country. The soil is almost everywhere
fertile, and vegetation luxuriant, so that a
large population miglit be abundantly pro-
vided for. Instead of a single crop in a
year, as in colder climates, two may be had
of many vegetable productions. The sweet
potato, rice, sugar-cane, the coflee plant,
and other tropical produce, can be raised
■with ease. The grand difficulty in agri-
culture lies in the want of good fences, and
the destruction of posts and rails by insects.
This must be overcome by making hedges
of the sour orange, or by employing shep-
herds, herdsmen, and boys.

Many of the colonists have now their

ably conducted for several years the Liberia Herald,
a newspaper of respectable character, esfablished at
Monrovia ten or twelve years ago.

* But this is exclusive of that of some State soci-
eties which manage their own aflfairs, like that of
Maryland, to which the state of that name granted
200,000 dollars, payable in ten yearly instalments.
The colony established by that society, it will be seen,
is at Cape Palmas.

little farms. Others, and perhaps too many,
are more occupied in trading with the na-
tives. They keep a quantity of small craft
for trading along the coast, and carry on a
brisk barter with numerous vessels, Amer-
ican, British, «fcc., &c., touching from time
to time at Monrovia.

It appears from the testimony of impar-
tial men, with good opportunities of infor-
mation, that these colonies have had a ben-
eficial influence on that coast, and have
tended to repress the slave-trade. Such
was that of Captains Bell and Paine of the
United States navy, who were there in
1840, and who both vindicate the colonies
from many charges equally false and ab-
surd: among others, that of conniving at
that infamous trade. That plantations
mainly composed of liberated slaves should
be altogether immaculate, no man of sense
would expect or require. But that they
are, as communities, thriving well, and that
they are also exerting a happy influence
on the natives, is what I for one must be-
lieve, from the abundant testimony of cred-
ible witnesses ; among others, of several
excellent missionaries, with whom I have
been long and intimately acquainted.*

I have remarked that the Society has
been much opposed, especially by the
friends of the anti-slavery societies in the
United States. This opposition has arisen
from the manner in which the Society has
been advocated. Its friends have been apt
to recommend it as presenting the sole
method of ridding the United States of sla-
very. This is absurd. It has diverted the
minds of slaveholders in the South from
the duty of universally emancipating their
slaves, whether they shall remain in the
country or not ; and in this way has done
mischief. Its friends have said too much,
also, about the impossibility of the coloured
population rising to respectability and po-
litical equality in the United States. The
difiiculties are indeed great, but good men
should never lend their aid in fostering the
unreasonable prejudices against the colour-
ed race, entertained by too large a part of
our people.

Notwithstanding these and some other
errors which might be mentioned, I cannot
but feel the deepest interest in the cause
of African colonization ; first, because it
may be advocated even before slavehold-
ers in such a way as to favour emancipa-
tion, a thing which cannot be done at pres-
ent by the agents of our '• Abolition" and
" Anti-slavery Societies ;" secondly, be-
cause it provides slaveholders who wish
to emancipate their slaves, and who, by

* This applies chiefly to Liberia. I regret to say,
that very recent information makes me fear that the
.Maryland colony at Cape Palmas is not acting so fa-
vourably on the mission there as it ought to do. It
is to be hoped that the society at home will see the
necessity of directing it to alter its policy.

316

RELIGION IN AMERICA.

[Book VIIE

certain State laws, are obliged to remove
them out of the state when so emancipa-
ted, with an opportunity of sending them
to a country which docs afford the pros-
pect of their rising to independence and
comfort ; thirdly, because the colonization
of Africa, in one way or other, presents
the sole effectual method of breaking up
the slave-trade : and, lastly, because it is
the surest way of introducing civilization
into Africa, and also furnishes a point (Tap-
pui for the prosecution of Christian mis-
sions. Such is the opinion of the Rev.
Dr. Philip, the distinguished and judicious
superintendent of the London Missionary
Society's missions in South Africa, as ably
maintained in a letter addressed by him,
eight or ten years ago, to the students at
the Theological Seminary at Princeton,
New-Jersey.

The Presbyterians, Baptists, Episcopali-
ans, and Methodists have all, as we have
seen, flourishing missions in Ihese colo-
nies.* The numbers of evangelical preach-
ers, of all denominations, is no less than
forty. God has greatly blessed his Word
in these communities, which, considering
the recent servitude and ignorance of most
of the colonists, are said to exhibit an ex-
traoi'dinary prevalence of morality.

I know not how any person can read
without interest the following statement,
contained in the Report of the Methodist
Missionary Society, read at the annual
meeting in May, 1842 :

" The Liberia mission includes an Annu-
al Conference of seventeen preachers, all
coloured except the superintendent and
the two brethren lately sent out. It has a
membership of nearly one thousand indi-
viduals, of whom 150 are natives, who,
until the last two years, were worshipping
gods of wood, and stone, and clay.

" There are thirteen day-schools within
the bounds of the mission, in which from
550 to 600 children receive daily instruc-
tion ; fourteen churches, some of which
are very neat, and one built of stone, in
size forty by sixty feet. There are also
eiglit mission-houses or parsonages, four
school-houses, one of which (the academy)
is a stone building twenty by forty feet ;
and a large printing-office, also of stone,
with an excellent press. In the schools
there are upward of forty native children
and youth, who are preparing for future
usefulness. Many of them read the Scrip-
tures, and write well, and are burning with
zeal to carry the Gospel to regions yet be-
yond them.

" Tribes at a distance have sent for mis-
sionaries, and the board is anxious to push

♦ The Roman Catholics have also commenced a
mission at Cape Pahnas, and will doubtless do the
same, ere long, at Liberia. The Right Rev. Dr. Bar-
ron and Patrick Kelly, priests, were sent in the year
1842 to Cape Pahnas.

the victories of the cross still farther into-
the interior. If means can be furnished,
the Board expect a vast amount of native
agency will be called into operation. If
the society were able to thrust forth but a
few scores of such young men of Africa as
Simon Peter,* who recently visited this
country, the Liberia mission of the Metho-
dist Episcopal Church would be rendered
a blessing to thousands of the African race
yet unborn. In view of the success which
has attended this mission, the report ex-
horted the church to adhere to the motto of
the dying and lamented Cox : ' Though a
thousand fall, Africa must not be given up.' "^

The chairman introduced the Rev. John
Seys, superintendent of the African mis-
sion, who rose and spoke substantially as
follows :

" Mr. Chairman, I hold in my hand a res-
olution given to me for presentation to
the Society, with a request that I would
make some remarks in sustaining it."

He then read the following resolution r
'• ' Resolved, That the Liberia mission, inclu-
ding as it does a portion of the interior of
Western Africa, constitutes one of the most
promising fields for missionary enterprise ;
and that the touching appeals from the half-
awakened natives of different tribes which
have reached us through our missionaries,
while they proclaim the ripeness of the har-
vest, imperatively call upon the Church for
the requisite supply of efficient labourers.'

" I presume this resolution was assigned
to me on account of my connexion with
the Liberia mission. I can say it affords
me much pleasure to present such a reso-
lution. Years have now elapsed since I
stood among you — since I was sent by you
as an almoner of the Gospel to poor, long-
neglected Africa.

" The resolution speaks of Africa as one
of the most promising fields of missionary
enterprise. Is it so ? Yes, sir, it is so. And
if the missionary sickle be but applied, the
field will yield a rich and noble harvest to
the Church. Out of 1000 church members,
150 are native converts. But two years
ago I found them bowing down to images
of wood, and clay, and stone, and leather,,
and everything which their fancy could
make into a god. These idols they placed
about their persons, put them in their
houses, and carried about with them wher-
ever they went.

" Soon after a number of them had been
converted, they appointed a day for meet-
ing, when they were admitted to the Church.
And what a scene ! Bonfires were kindled
in the town of Heddington, and the praises
of Immanuel ascended with the smoke of
tlie burning idols. At the same time, the
hearts of these young converts were burn-
ing with desire to carry the Gospel to the

tribes beyond them^

*~Since dead.

■Chap. XII.]

THE SUMMARY.

317

" Western Africa is a most promising
field, because her native converts are eager
to carry the Gospel to the country in the
interior. The boys at the love-feasts tell
the tale of their conversion, pray God to
keep them good, to make them grow up
men, and be missionaries to ' the tolher
people.'' The natives will prove themselves
doubly qualified for the missionary work,
as they have less fear of the peculiar dis-
eases of the climate, can be supported with
less means, and understand the language
of the country."

Nor is the interest which the converted
colonists and natives feel in missions un-
fruitful, if we may judge from the fact men-
tioned in the " Africa's Luminary," the val-
uable and well-conducted journal of the
colony, that the sum of 208 dollars has
been collected at a meeting of the mission-
ary society of the Conference.

CHAPTER XII.

THE SUMMARY.

Thus it will be perceived that almost eve-
ry evangelical church in the United States
is doing more or less for the propagation
of the Gospel in foreign, and especially in
heathen lands. I know not, indeed, that
there is a single exception, unless it be
among some of the smaller German de-
nominations, or some branches of the Meth-
odist and Presbyterian churches. Even
these, however, seem almost all to con-
tribute towards this great object through
societies or boards, either belonging to
other denominations, or common to sev-
eral. Thus the Reformed Presbyterians or
Covenanters support a missionary in the
East Indies, in connexion, I believe, with
the Presbyterian Church's Board of Mis-
sions ; the Associate Reformed churches
so far aid the same board ; the Associate
churches have a mission in the island of
Trinidad, and one branch of the Covenant-
ers or Reformed Presbyterians are project-
ing a mission in the same quarter of the
■world ; and some of the German Reform-
ed churches aid the American Board of
Commissioners for Foreign Missions, as
do, also, some of the Cumberland Presby-
terian chui'ches.

This is a gratifying fact, whether we re-
gard it as a sign of life, or an earnest of its
still farther increase in the churches. Not
that these have done all that their glorious
Lord may justly look for at their hands ;
but that what they have hitherto done is
but the promise of much greater things for
the future, we may reasonably infer from
the comparatively recent period that either
domestic or foreign missions began seri-
ously to interest the Christian public of the
United States. Previous to 1812, there

was not a single foreign missionary soci-
ety in the country, with the exception of
that of the Moravian Brethren, and not till
long after did the churches do anything
worth mention in that field. The last
twenty years, or, rather, the last ten years,
have witnessed much improvement in this
respect, and we pray that it may go on in
a far greater ratio until every church shall
have come up to the full demands of its
duty.

It is difllcult to present at one view the
statistics of all these missionary efforts
with perfect accuracy, at least if we would
include all the particulars upon which the
reader may think information desirable.
On the main points we may obtain pretty
accurate results. Including the missions
of the evangelical churches alone, and
those of the others are hardly of sufficient
importance to call for notice, the receipts
from all sources for propagating the Gos-
pel in foreign, and chiefly heathen lands,
for the year ending August 1st, 1843, may
safely be reckoned at $510,424.* This is
exclusive, also, of the income of the coloni-
zation societies, amounting, say, to $60,000,
these not being missionary societies.

The number of distinct missions prose-
cuted by the United States churches is at
least sixty-five ; that of stations and out-
stations exceeds 200. These employed in
1841-42 at least 375 preaching American
missionaries, who, with few exceptions,
were ordained ministers, and above seven-
ty American laymen, chiefly pliysicians,
printers, teachers, and catechists. 'I'he
American females, chiefly wives of mis-
sionaries and teachers, amounted to 420,
making a total of 875 persons from the
United States connected with these mis-
sions, and all labouring, in one way or an-
other, to promote the Gospel among the
heathen. The natives who assist as min-
isters, evangelists, teachers, distributors of
tracts, «fec., &c., amounted at least to 375.

* The following table gives the details on this point :
The American Board of Commissioners for Foreign

Missions ....... $244,224

Board of Foreign Missions of the Presbyterian

Church 59,534

Board of Foreign Missions of tlie Baptist Churches 47,]5l
Foreign Missions of the Metliodist Episcopal Church 39,452
Foreign Missions of the Protestant Episcopal Church 35,197
Foreign Missionary Society of the Free-VVill Bap-
tists (about) 3,502

Foreign Missionary Society of the Lutheran Church

(about) 3,000

Foreign Missionary Society of the United Brethren

(about) 8,364

Foreign Evangelical Society 15,000

Other Societies 5,000

Grants from American Bible Society, the American
and Foreign Bible Society, and the American
Tract Society, estimated to be at least . . 50,000

Total .... $510,424
Nor does this statement include the annual grant
of the general government of 10,000 dollars for the
support of schools among the Indian tribes, which
is laid out through the missionary societies. I have
not been alile to obtain the exact amount raised by-
two or three of the societies ; but the supposed sums
cannot be far from the truth.

316

RELIGION IN AMERICA.

CONCLUSION.

In the foregoing pages I proposed to treat
of the origin, history, economy, action, and
influence of religion in the United States
of America, and in the execution of this
task I have endeavoured to omit nothing
that seemed requisite to a full elucidation
of the subject. The extent of ground ne-
cessarily traversed has rendered it indis-
pensable that I should lay before the read-
er very numerous details ; but these, I
trust, he has found at once pertinent and
interesting. Here the work properly ends ;
but I am desirous of recalling the attention
of the reader to a few of the most impor-
tant facts which it brings to light, and brief-
ly to remark upon them, in order, iC pos-
sible, to render them more useful to those
who may be led to contemplate them. I
wish, also, to make a reply to several
charges against my country, and especial-
ly against its religious institutions, which
I have heard in certain parts of Europe.

I. The progress of Religious Liberty
IN America. — On this subject so much has
been said in the second and third books of
this work, that I need do no more than be-
stow a very brief review upon it. In no
part of the world, I apprehend, can we
find any progress, in this respect, wli.uli
can be compared with what has taken
place in the United States.

In the year 1607, the plantation of the
Southern group of colonies was commen-
ced within the settlement of Jamestown.
In 1620, that of the Northern was begun in
the lauding of the Pilgrims at Plymouth.
Though originating in motives as widely
different, almost, as possible, and having
in view the diffusion of forms of Protest-
antism, so far as ecclesiastical organization
is concerned, as completely antipodal as
can be conceived, both were founded in
that spirit of intolerance which prevailed
at that day throughout the Old World, and
which, alas ! reigns even yet in so large a
portion of it. All that the Puritans who
settled in Massachusetts and Connecticut
expected to accomplish was the planting
of colonies in whicli they and their chil-
dren might profess and practise the reli-
gion which they preferred. The tolera-
tion of other doctrines and other forms of
worship formed no part of their desire or
design. Nor was there a better spirit in
Virginia. In both, the narrow bigotry of
Europe struck deep its roots, soon attained
a vigorous growth, and brought forth its
appropriate fruits.

In the year 1631, the colony of Mary-
land was founded, and two vears later, th.at

of Rhode Island, the one by Roman Cath-
olics, who enjoyed their religious rights at
that epoch in no Protestant country, and
the other by a sect of Protestants, who
could find no toleration either in Massa-
chusetts or Virginia. Nearly fifty j-ears
later, Pennsylvania was planted as an asy-
lum for persecuted Quakers, who, till then,
had no place of assured protection and re-
pose in the whole world. The influence of
these three asylum-colonies, one in the
north, one in the south, and one in the mid-
dle of the entire series of plantations, where
perfect religious liberty was established at
the very outset, and in two of which its
reign was never interrupted, though silent,
was powerful. The complete demonstra-
tion which they furnished — in the internal
tranquillity which prevailed, so far as reli-
gious questions were concerned, in the ab-
sence of all unhappy collisions between
the Church and the State, and of coiToding
jealousies and attritions between the vari-
ous sects — not only of the justice, but also
of the wisdom of giving to all men the
fullest possession of the rights of con-
science and of worship, could not be lost
upon the other colonies.

Its influence concurred with the many
long - protracted and severe discussions
which took place in them, to bring about
ultimately the triumph of better principles.
And what is now the state of things in
the United States, as regards religious
liberty 1 It is that of the universal enjoy-
ment of this liberty. The Christian — be
he Protestant or Catholic — the infidel, the
Mohammedan, the Jew, the Deist, has not
only all his rights as a citizen, but may
have his own form of worship, without the
possibility of any interference from any
policeman or magistrate, provided he do
not interrupt, in so doing, the peace and
tranquillity of the surrounding neighbour-
hood. Even the Atheist may have his
meetings in which to preach his doctrines,
if he can get anybody to hear them.*

It is a remarkable fact, that the United
States and Texas are the only countries

* Even as it regards the holding of jiolitical offi-
ces, while the Constitutions of almost all the states,
•Ts we have shown in the third book, are founded on
Christianity, in a certain sense, and at present make
no distinction between Protestants and Koman Cath-
olics, the Jew is, with one exception, nowhere de-
l)arred from any civil privilege. There is, I am sor-
ry to say it, one state, that of North Carolina, where
the Israelite is still excluded from political privileges ;
and this, too, under her new Constitution. But it is
the only relic of tliis species of barbarism which re-
mains among us.

CONCLUSION.

319'

in all Christendom where perfect religious
liberty exists, and where the government
does nothing, by " favour" or otherwise, to
promote the interests of any one religion,
or of any one sect of religionists, more
than another. And I cannot but think
that the very freedom from a thousand
perplexing and agitating collisions, from
which one sees the governments of other
countries in the Christian world to be con-
tinually suffering, furnishes one of the
most powerful arguments which can be
conceived in favour of leaving religion to
its own resources, under the blessing of
its adorable Author. Whatever diversity
of opinion may exist among Christians in
America on other subjects, there is none
on this subject. They would all acknowl-
edge, without a moment's hesitation, the
views expressed in the following para-
graphs, which were uttered lately by a
gifted and elegant writer.*

" Almost every sect in turn, when tempt-
ed by the power, has resorted to the prac-
tice of religious persecution ; but to the
credit of Rome it must be said that the
baptism of fire is almost exclusively her
sacrament for heretics. Good men of al-
most all persuasions have been confined
in prison for conscience' sake. Bunyan
was the first person in the reign of Charles
II. punislied for the crime of nonconformi-
ty. Southey's own language has the word
punished ; it should have been persecuted
for the virtue ; for such it was in Bunyan ;
and any palliation which could be resorted
to for the purpose of justifying an English
hierarchy for shutting up John Bunyan in
prison, would also justify a Romish hie-
rarchy for burning Latimer and liidley at
the stake. Strange that the lesson of
religious toleration should be one of the
last and hardest, even for liberal minds, to
learn. It cost long time, instruction, and
discipline even for the disciples of Christ
to learn it ; and they never would have
learned it had not the infant Church been
cut loose from the State, and deprived of
all possibility of girding the secular arm
with thunder in its behalf. John had not
learned it when he would have called
down fire from heaven to destroy the Sa-
maritans ; nor John, nor his followers,
when they forbade a faithful saint (some
John Bunyan of those days, belike) from
casting out devils, because he followed
not them. And they never would have
learned it had the union of Church and
State been sanctioned by the Saviour.
Whenever one sect in particular is united
to the State, the lesson of religious tolera-
tion will not be perfectly learned ; nay,
who does not see that toleration itself, ap-
plied to religion, implies the assumption

* Rev. George B. Cheever, of New- York, in a
Lecture on Bunyan's Pilgrirn'.s Progress.

of a power that ought not to exist, that in.
itself is tyranny. It implies that you, an
earthly authority, an earthly power, say
to me, so condescendingly, I permit you
the exercise of your religion. You per-
mit me ■? And what authority have you to
permit me, any more than I to permit you ?
God permits me, God commands me, and
do you dare to say that you tolerate me ?
Who is he that shall come in between me
and God either to say yea or nay 1 Your
toleration itself is tyranny, for you have
no right to meddle with the matter. But
whenever Church and State are united,
then there will be meddling with the mat-
ter ; and even in this country, if one par-
ticular sect were to get the patronage of
the State, there would be an end to our
perfect religious freedom.

" In the reign of Queen Elizabeth, the
poet Southwell, who wrote one of the
most exquisitely beautiful death-hymns in
our language, and who seems to have been
truly a devout man, was put to death vio-
lently and publicly, no other crime being
proved against him but what he honestly
and proudly avowed, that he had come
over into England simply and solely to
preach the Catholic religion. And he
ought to have been left at liberty to preach
it ; for if the Protestant religion cannot
stand against Catholic preaching, it ought
to go down. No religion is worth having,,
or worth supporting, that needs racks, or
Inquisitions, or fires and fagots, to sus-
tain it ; that dare not or cannot meet its ad-
versaries on the open battle-field of Truth ;
no religion is worth supporting that needs
anything but the truth and Spirit of God to
support it ; and no establishment ought to
be permitted to stand that stands by per-
secuting others, nor any church to exist
that exists by simply unchurching others.
So, if the English Church Establishment
dared not consider herself safe without
shutting up John Bunyan and sixty other
dissenters (several of whom were also,
like himself, clergymen) with him in pris-
on, the English Church Establishment was
not worthy to be safe ; the English Church
Establishment was a disgrace and an in-
jury to the Gospel, and a disgrace and an
injury to a free people. No church is
worth saving from destruction, if it has to
be saved by the destruction of other men's
religious liberties ; nay, if that be the case
with it, it ought to go down, and the soon-
er the better. No church is v/orthy to
stand that makes nonconformity to its
rites and usages a penal crime ; it becomes
a persecuting church the moment it does
this ; for. supposing that every man, wom-
an, and child m the kingdom is kept from
nonconformity simply by that threat, and
that, through the power of such terror,
there comes to be never the need to put
such penal laws in execution, and so never

320

RELIGION IN AMERICA.

a single subject really molested or punish-
ed, still that church is a persecuting- church,
and that people a persecuted people, a ter-
rified people, a people cowed down, a peo-
ple in whose souls the sacred fire of liber-
ty is fast extinguishing, a people bound to
>God's service by the fear of men's racks.
Such a people can never be free ; their
cowardice will forge their fetters. A peo-
ple who will sell themselves to a church
through fear of punishment, will sell them-
selves to any tyrant through the same
fear; nay, a people who will serve God
through fear of punishment, when they
would not serve him otherwise, will serve
Satan in the same way.

" If you make nonconformity a crime,
you are therefore a persecuting church,
whether your name be Rome, or England,
or America, even though there be not a
single nonconformist found for you to ex-
ercise your wrath upon, not one against
whom you may draw the sword of your
penalty. But it is drawn, and drawn against
the liberty of conscience, and every man
whom in this way you keep from noncon-
formity, you make him a deceiver to his
God ; you make him barter his conscience
for an exemption from an earthly penalty ;
you make him put his conscience, not into
God's keeping, but into the keeping of
your sword ; you dry up the life-blood of
liberty in his soul ; you make him in his
inmost conscience an imprisoned slave, a
venal victim of your bribery and terror;
and though he may still walk God's earth
as others, it is with the iron in his soul, it
is with your chain about his neck, it is as
the shuffling fugitive from your penalties,
and not as a whole-souled man, who, fear-
ing God religiously, fears nothing else.
There may, indeed, be no chain visible,
but you have wound its invisible links
around the man's spirit ; you have bound
the man within the man ; you have fet-
tered him, and laid \\\n\ down in a cold,
dark dungeon, and until those fetters are
taken off, and he stands erect and looks
out from his prison to God, it is no man,
but a slave that you have in your service ;
it is no disciple, but a yimon Magus that
you have in your church."

But though with us " heresy" is no-
where considered to be " treason," and all
enjoy equal religious liberty, neither the
General Government, nor those of our in-
dividual states, are indifferent to religion.
One of the most striking proofs of this is
to be found in the fact, that every year —
almost without exception in the autumn —
he governors of a large majority of our
States recommend and name a day to be
observed as a Day of Thank.sgiving to Al-
mighty God for his mercies, and of sup-
plication for their continuance. And such
days are generally observed by Christians
of every name. Business is suspended,

the churches are open, at least in the fore-
noon, and sermons are preached through-
out the limits of the Commonwealth.*

II. Thk True Causes of Success. — But
our religious liberty, unbounded and pre-
cious as it is, is not the cause of the suc-
cess which has attended the Gospel in
America. It is only the accasion, if I may
so express myself, not the means, by which
the Church of Christ has made so great ad-
vances in the United States. It has won-
derfully opened the way for this blessed
prosperity ; it has removed hinderances, al-
layed prejudices, and placed the country
in a true position in regard to Christianity.
It has created an open field, in which Truth
may contend with Error, clad in her own
panoply, and relying on her own weapons.

Mucia as I love the perfect liberty of con-
science and of worship which we enjoy in
America, there are other things which, to
my mind, must be regarded as the causes
of the success which has attended the ef-
forts of God's people among us to promote
his kingdom. Let us notice these for a
few moments.

1. There is the grouping of our children,
rich and poor, in the Sunday-schools, ar-
ranging them in small classes, and bring-
ing their young minds and hearts into con-
tact with the Word of God.

2. There is the continuation of this good
work in the Bible- class. What a powerful

* The European reader of this work may be
pleased to see one of the proclamations issued on
such occasions ; we subjoin that of the Governor of
New-York for the year 1843.

" In obedience to that high sense of gratitude
due the Almighty Ruler of the Universe, I do hereby
designate Thursd.^v, thk fourteenth day op
December next, to be observed by the people ot
this state as a day of Prayer, Praise, and Thanks-
giving TO Almighty God for the numerous and
unmerited blessings of the year.

"I feel assured that this act of public duty is in
accordance with the wishes of the people, and will
meet with universal acquiescence.

" As a people, we have great reason to be thank-
ful, and to praise the Almighty Dispenser of all Good
for the continued smiles of His providence on our
state and nation.

" During the past year we have been permitted
to enjoy our religious and political privileges unmo-
lested. We liave been exempt from those ravages
of malignant disease which sometimes afflict a peo-
ple. The season has been highly propitious, and
seldom has the harvest been more abundant. As a
crowning blessing, the Spirit of the Lord has re-
vived the hearts of Christians, and brought to a sa-
ving knowledge many that knew not God.

'• For the distinguished hlessini^s we have enjoyed,
we should raise our hearts in humble adoration to
our Father in heaven, thereby presenting to the
world the imposing spectacle of the entire popula-
tion of a great stale altstaitiing from all secular en-
gagements on the day designated, and devoting them-
selves to the service of the Almighty. We should
always remember that ' righteousness exalteth a na-
tion.'

" Given under my hand, and the privy seal of the
state, at the city of Albany, this tenth day ot
[L. S.] November, in the year of our Lord one thou-
sand eight hundred and forty-three.

" Wm. C. Bouck."

CONCLUSION.

321

means of doing good ! and how well cal-
culated to follow up, or prepare the way
for the uistruction around the family altar !

3. There are our societies for educating
in a thorough manner young men of piety
and talents for the work of preaching the
Gospel. And many hundreds of young
men of promise, whom God's Spirit urges
to preach salvation to their dying fellow-
men, are thus every year brought forward
for the work.

4. Next come the Home Missionary Soci-
eties and Boards, which send forth these
young men, when prepared to preach, to
the new and destitute portions of the coun-
try, and help the people to sustain them.

5. In connexion with these, the Mater-
nal Associations, and other means for im-
pi'essing on parents the duty of bringing
up their children for the Lord, and for aid-
ing them in the attempt, must not be over-
looked ; nor those eiforts which are made
to disseminate the Sacred- Scriptures and
religious tracts and books. These are si-
lent but efficient means of co-operation in
this blessed work.

6. And, lastly and chiefly, there remains
the preaching of the Word, the most effect-
ive of all instrumentalities for the conver-
sion and sanctification of men. There is
nothing which may supplant this. And
here we have abundant occasion for thank-
fulness. We have a great many thousands
of pious and faithful preachers ; very many
of whom are able, skilful, and successful
labourers in the vineyard of the Lord.

Let the reader review what has been
said on all these points in the portions of
this work which treat of them, and he will
discover the true causes, under God, of the
progress which religion has made in Amer-
ica from the first, and especially within the
present century.

III. The True Source ok all Success. —
Still, these must all be considered as only
means ; the success is of God. " It is not
by might, nor by power, but by my Spirit,
saith the Lord." Here is all our hope ;
even Truth itself is impotent to renovate
the heart of man, depraved and debased as
he is, without the influence of the Holy
Spirit. It is the province of this blessed
Agent to take the things of Christ and
show them unto men. It is He alone who
can open the blind eyes, and cause them
to see the beauty and fitness of the glori-
ous plan of salvation through the crucified
Son of God. It is he alone who can ren-
der the preaching of the Gospel " the pow-
er of God and the wisdom of God to the
salvation of men." And He, blessed be
God, can as easily render the same pres-
entation of the glorious Gospel effectual
to the salvation of many as of few — of
hundreds and thousands, as on the day of
Pentecost, as of one.

But, alas ! when shall the Spirit be ap-

preciated, honoured, sought by the Church
as He ought to be 1 Oh, when shall Chris-
tians awake to a proper sense of the desi-
rableness, yea, the absolute necessity of
His glorious eflTusion upon the world, in
order to its conversion, and which is the
subject of so many and so remarkable pre-
dictions] Many who profess the name of
Christ seem almost not to know whether
there be a Holy Ghost !

Now, though the churches in America,
taken as a whole, are very far from a
proper appreciation of this subject; though
even the best of them are far from hav-
ing attained such views, and from having
put forth such action respecting it as they
ought to do, yet there is, in all evan-
gelical and truly converted Christians
among us, some sense of their dependance
upon the Spirit for success in their efforts
to grow in grace, as well as to turn sin-
ners unto righteousness. There is, also,
much earnest prayer for the outpouring of
the Spirit upon their souls, and upon all
those who hear or read the Gospel.

There is no one thing which has more
decidedly characterized the preaching of
our best and most successful divines, or
the feelings of our most devoted Chris-
tians, than the doctrine of the existence,
the personality, the offices, and the saving
operation of the Holy Spirit. It has been
the great dominant idea, if I may so term
it, which has pervaded and influenced the
Church of Christ in America during the
last hundred years. Hence the esteem in
which revivals of religion are held.

To this great subject I cannot but en-
treat the religious reader to direct his most
serious attention. It is one of vital impor-
tance. Surely God has led his people to
expect a great outpouring of his Spirit in
the latter days. And, surely, the world, as
well as the Church, has seen the need of
such an influence, if it is ever to be brought
under the renovating influences of the Gos-
pel to a degree corresponding with its ne-
cessities. And whatever importance the
author may attach to other portions of this
work, beyond all comparison he is desi-
rous that the portion of it which relates to
revivals may be most deeply pondered by
every reader.

IV. Grounds of Hope in relation to
THE Churches in America. — I know of no-
thing which is so well calculated to inspire
hope in relation to our American churches
as the extensive difl'usion of the spirit of
missions among them within tlic last few
years, for it is the spirit of Cln-ist. Let
us look at this fact for a moment.

Twenty-five years ago, with the excep-
tion of what was doing bv a Committee or
Board of the General Assembly of the
Presbyterian Church, and the missionary
societies of some of the New-England
States— and this did not amount to very

322

RELIGION IN AMERICA.

much — there was nothing doing in behalf
of domestic missions. But within that pe-
riod have been formed the American Home
Missionary Society, which unites all the
evangelical Congregational churches in
the land, together with the New School
Presbyterians ; the Board of Domestic
Missions of the Old School Presbyterians,
the Home Missionary Societies of the Bap-
tists, Methodists, and Free-Will Baptists ;
and the Boards for Domestic Missions of
the Reformed Dutch, Lutheran, German
Reformed, Associate, Associate Reformed,
Reformed Presbyterian, Protestant Episco-
pal, Cumberland Presbyterians, and Sev-
enth-day Baptist churches. No denomi-
nation is too insignificant to have its Soci-
ety or its Board of Domestic Missions.
And what do we see 1 Nearly two thou-
sand ordained ministers are labouring in
new and destitute neighbourhoods, in the
East and the West, to gather congrega-
tions and build up churches. What a
change ! And what a ground of hope !

Moreover, tliirty-four years ago there
was not one Missionary Society in the
United States for the promotion of foreign
missions, save the small one of the Mora-
vians. But now the Old and New School
Presbyterians, Congregationalists, Metho-
dists, Baptists, Episcopalians, Reformed
Dutch, Lutherans, Free-Will Baptists, As-
sociate, Associate Reformed, and Reform-
ed Presbyterians, and perhaps some others,
as well as the United Brethren, have their
Foreign Missionary Societies or Boards,
and sustain a greater or less number of
men on the foreign field. It cannot be
said that they have done all that they
might. But it may be said that they have
made a good beginning, and that what they
have done is nothing in comparison with
what they will do, with God's blessing.
That they should have nearly 400 preach-
ers abroad, besides other labourers, and
raise more than half a million of dollars
for the extension of the Gospel in that direc-
tion, is a subject which calls for thanks to
God. It is the wide diffusion of the spirit
of missions through our churches, rather
than its positive and present results, which
I am here holding up as a ground of hope.
And in that light I am sure it may fairly be
regarded. It is the best omen for good
both to the Church and the nation. It is
our great palladium. It is also our best
pledge, and even our most certain means,
of prosperity to all the interests of Truth.
As long as the spirit of missions is exist-
ent and efficient in our churches of every
name, we may venture to hope that, what-
ever may go wrong in our political organ-
ization, or however wickedness may aug-
ment, God will regard us in mercy, and
say of us as a nation, " Spare it, for there
is a blessing in it."

V. Efficiency of the Voluntary Prin-

ciple IN America in raising up an adequate
Ministry. — That the Voluntary Principle
has not been inefficient in America, in this
respect, will readily appear from a simple
statement of facts.

If the reader will recur to chapter i.
of book iii., he will learn that, at the epoch
of the commencement of the Revolution
in 1775, the number of ministers of the
Gospel, of all denominations, including
even the Roman Catholic priests, did not
exceed 1441. Indeed, I am sure this esti-
mate is too high. But let us suppose it to
be correct. Now, if the population of the
country was then three milhons and a half,
there was one minister of the Gospel for
about 2428 souls. But if the population
then was only three millions, which I ap-
prehend to be an estimate nearer the truth,
then there was one minister, on an aver-
age, for nearly 2082 souls. On the other
hand, the population of the country at the
commencemem of 1844 maybe fairly es-
timated at 18,500,000 souls. And if th&
reader will refer to what we have said in
chapter xvii. of book vi., he will see that
the number of ordained evangelical or or-
thodox Protestant ministers alone, exclu-
sive of the local preachers of the Metho-
dist churches (not far, in all, from 8500),.
exclusive, also, of the German United
Brethren, and several other little German
sects, as well as two or three small Meth-
odist secessions, was, in the year 1843,
sixteen thousand three hundred. That is,
on an average, one evangelical Protestant
minister of the Gospel for rather less than
1135 souls.

It is not here asserted that all these
ministers are pastors, or that they alt
have congregations to which they statedly
preach. It is certain that a good many
are teachers and professors, secretaries
and agents of religious and benevolent so-
cieties, who, nevertheless, preach a great
deal ; and many, who are not pastors,
preach to churches which are for a time
destitute of pastors. But what is here
meant is simply to show the increase of
evangelical ministers of the Gospel, and
its decided gain upon the increase of tha
population. The fact is clear and striking ;
there is at present one evangelical Prot-
estant minister in the LInited States for
less than 1100 souls; in 1775 there was
one minister of the Gospel, of every name,
for about 2428 souls, or, at best, for 2082.
On the one supposition, the number of
evangelical ministers is more than twice
as great, in proportion to the population,
as was that of the ministers, both Protest-
ant and Catholic, in 1775, and, on the oth-
er, it is nearly twice as great.*

* If we were to include the Roman Catholic
priests, and the Unitarian, Universalist, and other
heterodox preachers, we should have at this time
one preacher for every 800 souls.

CONCLUSION.

323

1 do not design here to assert the sufR.-
cieucy of the evangehcal ministry in the
United States to meet the wants of the
population ; it will readily be admitted that
it is not sufficient. If the evangelical Pro-
testant ministers were twice as numer-
ous as they are ; if, in other words, there
was on an average one such minister for
every 500 souls, instead of one for 1135, it
would not be too many, when we consider
the sparseness of the population in certain
districts, which renders it impossible for
one minister to look after more than 500
or 600 souls ; the number of denominations,
which renders the number of ministers in
many places greater than the amount of
the population demands ; and the fact that
a goodly number will always be engaged
in our academies, colleges, and theological
seminaries as professors, and in our reli-
gious and benevolent societies as secre-
taries and agents. But if the Voluntary
Principle has been so efficient as to double
the number of evangelical Protestant min-
isters since the year 1775 (and the greater
portion of this success has accrued since
1815, and can in no sense be attributed to
the influence of the ancient establish-
ments),* there is every reason to expect
that it will, in the course of a far shorter
period, again cause the number of the
evangelical Protestant ministers to double
upon the population. If we may judge
from the progress of the last three years,
it will not be more than twenty-five or
thirty years until this desirable result will
have been reached.

VI. Efficiency of the Voluntary Prin-
ciple IN THE United States in supporting
THE Ministry of the Gospel. — In this re-
spect, the Voluntary Principle has not
been destitute of considerable efficiency
in America. It is not pretended that in a
new country, where wealth may indeed
be much more equally distributed than in
the old countries of Europe, but where its
aggregate is not to be compared with that
of England, Scotland, Holland, Germany,
or France, the sum raised upon the vol-
untary plan is likely to be as large as that
which is raised in Great Britain, and some
countries on the Continent, from tithes,
united with the revenues of ancient reli-
gious foundations. We have as yet few
such foundations,! and must, therefore,
depend upon the voluntary off'erings of the

■ With the exception of Connecticut and Massa
chusetts, the union of Church and State, which
once existed in many of the states, came to an end
durin" or shortly after the Revolution ; and in Con-
necticut it terminated in 1816. In Massachusetts it
lasted, as we have elsewhere stated, till 1833.

t By far the most important of all such founda-
tions, with us, is that of Trinity Church (belonging
to the Episcopal denomination) in the city of New-
York, which is said to be as much as fifteen or
twenty millions of dollars, and has furnished the
means of building many Episcopal churches in that
state.

people. I say voluntary oflferings, for,
whatever may be the mode of raising the
salaries of our ministers, they are, in real-
ity, derived from the spontaneous contribu-
tions of the people. No man is compelled
to pay a cent for the maintenance of reli-
gious worship. Whatever he gives is deci-
dedly by his own will. Every one is free to
go to church or stay away ; and if he goes,
he may, in many of our churches, avoid giv-
ing all his life ; this is true especially of
those churches whose sittings are public,
that is, do not belong to particular individ-
uals. Whatever a man engages to pay
towards the support of the institutions of
the Gospel he is expected to pay, and
may be required, according to law, to pay.
Seldom indeed, however, is there a resort
to legal enforcement of the payment of
pew-rents and subscriptions. But let us
see what the voluntary principle does ac-
complish.

The total amount of money raised in the
United States for the support of the minis-
try in the evangelical denominations may
be calculated as follows :
I. Episcopal ministers, as stated in
chap, xvii., book vi. ... 1203
Deduct for missionaries and

professors, say 48

1155
Total salaries of 1155 ministers, say
at an average of $500 each . . . $577,500
II. Ministers of the Presbyterian family
of churches, including Congrega-
tionalists, Lutherans, &c., as in the
summary above referred to . 5756
Deduct foreign missiona-
ries 171

Deduct professors in col-
leges 141— J12

5444
Total salaries of 5444 ministers, say
at an average salary of $400 . . 2,177,600

III. The Baptist ministers, according to

the same summary, amount to 4850

Deduct for missionaries and

professors, say 133

4720

As a considerable number of the Bap-
tist ministers receive small sala-
ries, and some none at all, we can
allow S250 only as the average of
their salaries. This gives . . . 1,100,000

IV. Ministers of the Methodist group, ex-

clusive of local preachers, amount,

according to the summary, to 4870
Deduct for missionaries and

professors 116

4752
Supposing their salaries to be on an

average $300 each,* the result is 1,425,600

* In some parts of the country it is certain that
the Methodist ministers do not receive as great a
salary as that mentioned in the text; but, on the
other hand, the salaries of their ministers in many
parts of the country exceed it. In the Conferences
of the states of New-England and of that of New-
York, they are probably, as a body, better supported
than those of any other denomination. In those
parts of the land their salaries, including perquisites
of all sorts, exceed, on an average, 500 dollars.
The Episcopal ministers, being stationed chiefly in
our cities and large towns, receive, as a body, larger

324

RELIGION IN AMERICA.

This gives us a grand total of 5,280,700
dollars, as the amount paid for the ferson-
nel, as the French would call it, of our pub-
lic worship. It is possible that I have es-
timated the average of the salaries of the
Baptist ministers a little too high. Some
may think that 200 dollars would be nearer
the truth. I do not think so myself, from
what I know of the whole country. As to
the other denominations, I am quite sure
that I have not placed them too high,
especially if, as ought to be done, all the
perquisites which may attach to the minis-
terial and pastoral office among them be
taken into the account. We have, then,
the sum of 5,280,700 dollars as contributed
by the evangelical denominations alone to
support the ministry. And I am of opinion
that if we were to add the amount con-
tributed by the omitted small Methodist
branches, the Orthodox Quakers, and some
little German denominations, we might
■well give the sum of 5,500,000 dollars as
a quite moderate estimate of the support
given to the evangelical ministry of the
United States.

VII. Efficiency of the Voluntary Prin-
ciPLK IN THE United States in the erec-
tion OF Church Edifices. — Tlie church
edifices which are annually erected in the
United States, according to the best infor-
mation which I have been able to obtain,
from much personal observation and in-
quiry, may be stated at about 920, rating
them as follows :

Among the Episcopal Methodists, according' to a good
authority, " from 250 to 300"— say 250

The Baptists fully as many as the Methodists (their
owu reports some years show between 2ti'J and 270),
say 250

The Presbyterians and Congregationalists together
build at "least 200 (the Old School Presbyterians
alone reported more than eighty last year) 200

The Lutheran Almanac mentions 76 new churches
elected in the year 1841. An imperfect report for
1840 mentions 47, say

The German Reformed may be fairly estimated at....

The Protestant Methodists at

The Episcopalians at

The Cumberland Presbyterians at

The Reformed Dutch at

The Scotch Presbyterians, of all kinds, at

Total of new churches annually erected among the
above mentioned denominations 920

It may be that the last mentioned but
one, and possibly that also, may be too
high ; but the new churches of tlie Cum-
berland Presbyterians, Protestant Metho-
dists, and the Episcopalians, if not all the
rest, are, it is probable, understated. I am
of opinion that, if we should include the
churches annually erected by the omitted
small evangelical denominations, a per-
fectly accurate summary of the meeting-
houses or church edifices of every descrip-
tion built by all the ortliodox Protestant
communion in the United States, every
year, would at the present time not fall
short of 950.

salaries thnn those of any other Church. I am per-
suaded that they average considerably more than
the amount named in the test.

It is impossible to calculate with exact-
ness to what extent this yearly increase of
church edifices meets the demands of a
yearly increase of the population, now
amounting to nearly, if not quite, half a
million of souls, of whom 400,000, if not
420,000, are of an age to go more or less
frequently to church, and for whom church
accommodation ought therefore to be pro-
vided. The whole population of the coun-
try that is supposed to be more or less
under the influence of the evangelical de-
nominations, estimated at 15,500,000, being
divided into about 49,424 congregations,
the average number of souls in a congre-
gation must be about 314 ; and as the num-
ber of church edifices already erected can-
not be short of 29,000 in all, the new ones
must consist partly of those required for
existing evangelical congregations not pre-
viously supplied, partly of those required
for accessions to the evangelical churches
from 300,000 of souls not previously attach-
ed to such congregations, and for the grad-
ual increase of those congregations from
births and immigration. If we suppose
the evangelical proportion of the yearly in-
crease of the population of an age to go to
church (say 420,000) to be as 15,500,000 to
3,000,000, or about 338,725 souls, and this
proportion to be divided into congregations
of 310 souls each, the result would be an an-
nual increase of about 1093 congregations,
requiring the same number of churches.

Such a result, however, is by no means
probable ; for many of these would no
doubt join and be merged in existing con-
gregations, and many would be found liv-
ing in remote places, rendering it impossi-
ble for them to be gathered into congrega-
tions requiring church edifices.

Neither is it easy to calculate the cost
of these 920 or 950 church edifices, of
which we have been speaking. A consid-
erable number, perhaps forty or fifty, are
annually built in our large cities, at an ex-
pense of from 10,000 to 60,000 dollars, and
a few of them cost even more. Many are
large buildings which will hold 700, 800,
1000, 1200, 1500, and a few even more ;
while a great many in the country are
small, and cost only a few hundred dollars.
But if we include under this head all the
expenses of our churches for light, fuel,
sexton's wages, choirs, etc., etc. — in a word,
what may be called the materiel, if I may
so term it, of our public worship, I am
quite sure that it will reach two millions
and a half of dollars. I speak now of the
evangelical churches alone.

If we were to include the churches or
meeting-liouses built by the Roman Catho-
lics, Unitarians, Christ-ians, Universalists,
and other non-evangelical sects, we should
increase the number from 950 to 1100 at
least.

VIII. The total cost of Pl'blic Wo:i-

CONCLUSION.

325

SHIP IN THE United States. — It may be
worth while to bring together the various
estimates which we have made respecting
the sums raised by the evangehcal church-
es for the sustentation of religion at home,
and its extension abroad, and add to them
the amounts raised by the non-evangeUcal
denominations :

1. If we include all that certain omitted
local associations do, in addition to the
sums raised by the various religious socie-
ties mentioned in book iv., whose object
is to promote religion at home, we shall
have a total amount of about $1,000,000

2. The amount contributed by

the various religious so-
cieties last year, according
to the summary given in
chap. xii. of book viii., is 510,424

3. The amount annually rais-

ed for the support of the
evangelical ministry, as
we have seen, may be es-
timated at 5,500,000

4. The amount annually rais-

ed for building and keep-
ing in repair the church
edifices, and for other
expenses connected with
the maintenance of public
worship, may be given at 2,500,000

Making a total of . $9,510,424

From this statement, it appears that the
sums raised by the evangelical churches for
the promotion of religion, in one way and
another, at home and abroad, amount to
more thanmVie millions and a half of dollars.

If we add to this the sums given annual-
ly by Christians to build and endow acad-
emies, colleges, and theological semina-
ries, with a view to promote religion, and
also the amount raised among the non-
evangelical denominations for the same
objects, we shall increase this sum to at
least eleven millions of dollars, as the amount
raised annually at present in the United
States, on the voluntary principle,* for the
sustentation and promotion of religion at
home and abroad. f

Nor have I included in the statements
which I have made on this subject all that

* I say on the voluntary principle, for the sums
raised from permanent endowments (which are
themselves the fruit of the voluntary principle, and
not of governmental gift or taxation) are not suffi-
ciently great to deserve to be excepted.

t If we were to add to the above-mentioned sum
of eleven millions of dollars to promote Religion in
America, the amount which education costs in all
its gradations, we must at least double it. The sin-
gle state of Massachusetts bestows little short of a
million of dollars annually upon the education of
her youths in all classes of her literary institutions,
though her population falls short of 800,000 souls.
So that the sum of at least twenty-two millions of
dollars is annually raised in the United States for
the promotion of Religion and Education — a sum
about equal, at this time, to the whole revenue of
the National Government !

the voluntary principle does in reference to
rehgion. For instance, provision is made
in some denominations, by incorporated
associations or otherwise, for the main-
tenance of the widows and children of
ministers, and of superannuated preachers.
The sums thus raised are to be considered
a part of the sustentation which is given
to the institutions of the Gospel among us,
and they all owe their origin directly or
indirectly to the voluntary principle.

It is not pretended that the voluntary
principle raises as much money in Ameri-
ca for the support of religion as do the
legal provisions of some countries, where
Christianity has created those opulent and.
time-honoured establishments which over-
shadow them. In many cases, alas ! these
establishments were founded in the ages
of superstition, iind owe their origin to the
influence of a cunning and overreaching
priesthood, exerted over an ignorant and
debased people. But it is maintained that
it cannot be said with truth that Christian-
ity, left to its own resources in America, is
likely to go down, or that it does not lead
to efforts for its propagation which corre-
spond in a good measure with the wants
of the country. Whatever men may think
on the subject of the best means of sup-
porting the Gospel, it cannot be denied that
the voluntary principle in America has
demonstrated that it is not inefficient : a
fact which was well established in the first
three centuries of the progress of Christi-
anity in the world.

IX. Alleged Church Destitution in
THE United States. — From the year 1837
to that of 1840 inclusive, for an annual in-
crease of the population to the extent of
about 450,000 souls, that of the evangelical
ministry of all denominations was not
much, if at all, short of 700 per annum.
The number of church edifices erected in
1841 was fully 880. The nett annual in-
crease of evangelical ministers of all de-
nominations is about 750 ; while that of
church edifices, of all descriptions, as we
have stated elsewhere, is not less than
950. As the annual increase of the popu-
lation is at present about 500,000, the
increase of evangelical ministers bears
the ratio of 1 to 660 of the whole, or of
I to about 560 of those who are of an
age to go to church ; and the increase
of church edifices is about as 1 to 525
souls. But it must have been seen from
the tables in the summary of evangelical
churches, ministers, communicants, and
population, that partly from the very scat-
tered condition of the inhabitants covering
so vast a territory, partly from the pres-
ence of several denominations at one spot,
often leading to a plurality of churches and
ministers where one might suffice, this in-
crease of ministers and churches is not so
adequate to the wants of the country as

326

RELIGION IN AMERICA.

might at first sight appear ; still, it is so
inconsistent with what many of our read-
ers may have heard of the " moral wastes"
in the United States as to require some
explanation.

First, then, let it be remembered that, at
the Revolution, the number of ministers of
every name was only one for 2440 souls, or,
at most, one for 2000 ; and that the war of
independence itself, and many other cir-
cumstances, concurred to prevent much
from being done to overtake this great
and accumulating arrear in the religious
institutions of the country. This destitu-
tion continued to increase rather than di-
minish, it is believed, from 1775 till 1815;
so that, notwithstanding the more recent
extension of the churches, and of institu-
tions for training of ministers for assisting
feeble congregations, no .wonder that a
great deal has yet to be done in recov-
ering what may be called former moral
wastes.

Second. Churches and ministers not be-
ing provided beforehand for new settle-
ments, and a certain amount of population
within a given district being required be-
fore means can well be taken for forming
a church and obtaining a minister, some
time must elapse during which " moral
wastes" may be found in newly-settled
districts. The same remark apphes to
the mountainous district embracing the
Alleghany range and its skirts. From
the interior of Pennsylvania, down through
Virginia, the eastern parts of Kentucky,
and North Carolina, there is a considera-
ble destitution of the regular ministrations
of the Gospel. The sandy, thinly-settled
zone of country, covered with pines, stretch-
ing along the seacoast, from New-Jersey
to Louisiana, and embracing the whole
peninsula of Florida, may be placed in the
same category. From such regions the
cry of the man of Macedonia, " Come
over and help us," is continually sounded
in the ears of the churches in more fa-
voured districts ; nor is it heard in vain.
Much has been done for them by the
Home Missionary Societies, and Mission-
ary Boards of the different churches, and
much, no doubt, will yet be done.

In the third place, there has been a large
immigration from Germany, Alsace, and
Switzerland, for whose spiritual wants it
has not been easy to provide. The letters
from these people to their friends in the
Old World have in some cases given rise
to the opinion that the moral destitution
of the whole country is almost boundless.
For a long time after the Revolution, the
augmentation of German ministers from
an indigenous source was very slow,
while but few of a proper stamp came
from Europe. Blessed be God, the pros-
pect for our German immigrants is becom-
ing more cheering. There are no less than

two colleges and five theological schools,
in which there is a goodly number of pious
young men who are training up for the
work of preaching Christ, under the in-
structions of right men.

It has been more difficult still for us to
provide for the spiritual wants of the
French who have come to our shores, or
have fallen to us by the purchase of Lou-
isiana. But the increase of evangehcal
religion in France will, I doubt not, give
us the labourers we need to look after
their interests. As to the Spaniards, Poles,
Norwegians, Italians, etc., who come to us,
their number is not great ; but the difficulty
of preaching the Gospel to them has been
almost insurmountable, owing to their not
knowing the English tongue.

In the fourth place, the representations
made on this subject by some of our so-
cieties are often calculated, though unde-
signedly, to mislead a stranger. That
there is much real destitution to warrant
strong appeals is no doubt true ; but one
is apt to forget that there is much that is
hypothetical in what is said of the danger
that threatens, if this destitution be not
supplied. This danger is imminent ; still
it is, as yet, but a contingency. If the re-
quired efforts be not made, error and irre-
ligion will overspread the country ; if the
Protestants be not on the alert, Romanism
will conquer it for itself. But it is to pre-
vent such results that these appeals are
made.

Lastly, it is not to be denied that the
agents and missionaries of our Domestic
Missionary Societies and Boards have un-
intentionally and unwittingly promoted er-
roneous impressions respecting the reli-
gious destitution of the country. When
these societies were formed, some fifteen
or twenty years ago, the first missionaries
and agents sent into the West found many
districts, and even whole counties, deplora-
bly destitute ; and in their published re-
ports and letters they gave most affecting
accounts of the want of shepherds to col-
lect the sheep scattered over these moral
wildernesses. Sometimes they thought
that, like Elijah of old, they were " left
alone ;" not being aware, or if aware, not
rightly estimating the fact, that men of
other denominations were labouring in the
same regions, as itinerating, if not as set-
tled ministers. Such misrepresentations
led the Methodist and Baptist churches to
publish statements, proving that the al-
leged destitution had been greatly exag-
gerated. Hence, of late years, it has
been usual to give the names of places
requiring ministers and churches, of the
denomination to which the writer belongs,
acknowledging, at the same time, the ser-
vices of ministers of other denominations,
where they are to be found. Exaggerated
statements may often be traced, also, to

CONCLUSION.

327

the warm feelings of extempore speakers
at public meetings, leading them to com-
mit themselves to expressions that have
not been duly weighed, and to these find-
ing their way, often with additional exag-
gerations, into newspapers. Within the
last fortnight, I have read in one of the
best religious newspapers in the United
States, the notes of a minister from the
East, as he passed through Pennsylvania
to the "far West." The writer did not
see a single church in any but a few of
the numerous towns and villages through
which he passed from Philadelphia to
Pittsburgh ! Yet I, who have been along
the same route no fewer than twelve
times, and who know every town and vil-
lage upon it, having travelled it, not only
as he did, in stages, but by railroad, in pri-
vate carriages, on horseback, and even on
foot, hesitate not to say that there is no
town, or even village of any considerable
size, that has not at least one church be-
longing to some communion or other.
These, however, are not the prominent
churches, steeple-houses, as our Quaker
friends might call them, to be seen in the
Eastern States. Many are plain, humble
buildings, standing in some retired street,
and if visible at all to the writer as he
whirled along, were hardly to be distin-
guished from a warehouse or respectable
barn. And if such misstatements are hon-
estly made at times by our own country-
men, how much more apt must foreigners
be to form equally hasty and erroneous
conclusions ^

X. Individual Instances of Liberality

IN SUPPORTING and EXTENDING THE INSTITU-
TIONS OF THE Gospel.— It is one of the
happy fruits of the voluntary principle that
it cultivates a spirit of benevolence and
self-reliance among Christians. It teach-
es men the true value and utility of wealth,
in showing them that there are objects infi-
nitely more worthy of living for than mere
self-gratification. Pious men of no coun-
try have an adequate conception of the
amount of good which they can do until
they have made the experiment. We sub-
join a few instances of individual liberali-
ty, not because the authors of them were
rich* men, but because of the systematic
as well as delightful spirit which they dis-
played. In the course of this work many
others have been mentioned, which are
well worthy of imitation.

One of the most remarkable instances
of liberality in the middle walks of life is
recorded in the memoirs of the late Nor-
mand Smith, of Hartford, Connecticut. Mr.

* Had 1 been disposed to speak of what some (1
am sorry to say loo few) of our rich men have done,
I might mention one man— a merchant— who has in
the course of 30 years given to rehgious and benevo-
lent objects eight hundred thousand dollars, and of
one who gives from forty to sixty thousand annually.

Smith was born in 1800, of pious parents,
and seems to have become decided in his
religious character at the age of twelve,
during a revival. He learned the trade of
a saddler, and commenced business him-
self at the age of twenty-two, on a small
capital lent him by his father. He was
remarkably prosperous in business from
the first, so that he was soon able to repay
this debt. But he did not allow his busi-
ness to engross his time and thoughts. He
frequently visited the poor with the view
of inquiring into and relieving their neces-
sities, was a constant Sabbath-school teach-
er, and for a long time was superintendent
of a Sabbath-school for Africans. In short,
he was the foremost to encourage and sup-
port every good undertaking. But we
must let the memoir* speak for itself.

" In the early part of 1829 he had great
doubts whether it was not his duty to re-
linquish his business, in part at least, that
he might have more time to do good. At
that time he called to converse on this
subject with the writer. He said that he
found his business engrossed too much of
his time and attention ; he wished to be in
a situation more favourable for the culti-
vation of personal religion and doing good
to others ; and, as he had acquired proper-
ty enough for himself and family, he felt a
desire to retire, that he might enjoy more
quiet and leisure. In reply, it was said to
him, ' The Lord has plainly indicated how
you are to glorify him in the world. He
has greatly prospered you in your busi-
ness ; the channels of wealth are open, and
their streams are flowing in upon you,
and it would be wrong for you to obstruct
or diminish them. Let them rather flow
wider and deeper. Only resolve that you
will pursue your business from a sense of
duty, and use all that God may give you
for his glory and the good of your fellow-
men, and your business, like reading the
Bible, or worship on the Sabbath, will be
to you a means of grace ; instead of hin-
dering, it will help you in the divine hfe,
and greatly increase your means of use-
fulness.' The eff'ect of the conversation
v/as not known at the time, but from an
entry made in a journal which he began to
keep about that period, it appears that the
purpose was then formed to continue his
business, and to conduct it on the princi-
ple recommended.

" From that time it was observable by
all who knew him that he made rapid
progress in religion. One subject seemed
to engross his mind, that of doing good ;
and much good did God enable him to do.
Besides many large donations m aid ol va-
rious objects previous to his death, he be-
queathed at his decease ne^arlyjO^OOOdol-
* Written by his pastor, the Rev. Dr. Hawes, of
the First Congregational Church, Hartford, Connec-
I ticut.

328

RELIGION IN AMERICA.

lars to the various benevolent societies of
the day. The amount designated for these
societies in his will was 13,200 dollars.
But they were also made residuary lega-
tees of property which he would have dis-
tributed while living, had it been practica-
ble, without loss, to withdraw it from his
business.

" On his deathbed he said to a brother,
' Do good with your substance while liv-
ing, and as you have opportunity ; other-
wise, when you come to die, you will be
at a loss to know what distriljution it is
best to make of it. The trouble and care
of such a distribution in a dying hour,' he
thought, ' should be avoided by every Chris-
tian, by disposing of his property while in
life and health, as the Lord should prosper
him, and present to him opportunities of
doing good.'

" From the period above referred to, it
became his established rule to use for be-
nevolent distribution all the means which
he could take from his business, and still
prosecute it successfully and to the best
advantage. He was usually secret with
regard to donations of a private or person-
al nature. A memorandum which he kept
three or four years before his death, ' lest
he should think that he gave more than he
did,' shows that his gifts were numerous
and large — sufficiently so to prove that he
adhered to his principle of holding all as
consecrated to the Lord. A slip of paper,
taken from his vest pocket after his death,
mentions the amount of his contributions
at the monthly prayer-meeting for mis-
sions among the heathen to have been
thirty dollars, or 360 dollars a year.

" In personal and domestic expenditure
he studied Christian economy. While he
denied himself no reasonable comfort, it
was his habit to consider what things he
might dispense with, that he might have
the more to give for charitable purposes.
Modest and unassuming in his natural
character, he thought it not consistent
with the simplicity of the Gospel for one
professing godliness to follow the customs
and fashions of the world. While oth-
ers were enlarging their expenditures, he
studied retrenchment in all things.

" When he set out in the world, it was
with the purpose to be rich. But grace
opened his heart, and taught him that the
only valuable use of money is to do good
Avith it ; a lesson which he emphatically
exemplified in his practice, and which
made him an instrument of good, the ex-
tent of which can never be known till it is
revealed at the last day."

Another instance is that of a cotempo-
rary of Mr. Smith, Mr. Nathaniel Ripley
Cobb, at Boston, who died only seven
months after him. I\Ir. Cobb was a mer-
chant in that city, and a member of one of
its Baptist churches. At the age of nine-

teen he publicly professed his faith in-
Christ, devoting himself to the service of
God in the sphere in which Providence
had placed him, considering himself under
the same obligation to employ his business
talent for the glory of his Saviour that de-
volved on the minister of the Gospel to
consecrate the talents intrusted to him for
the same great end.

At the age of twenty-three he drew up
and subscribed the following remarkable
document :

" By the grace of God, I will never be
worth more than 50,000 dollars.

" By the grace of God, I will give one
fourth of the nett profit of my business ta
charitable and religious uses.

" If I am ever worth 20,000 dollars, I
will give one half of my nett profits ; and
if I am ever worth 30,000 dollars, I will
give three fourths ; and the whole after
50,000. So help me God, or give to a
more faithful steward and set me aside."

" To this covenant," says his memoir,
" he adhered with conscientious fidelity.
He distributed the profits of his business
with an increasing ratio, from year to
year, till he reached the point which he-
had fixed as a limit to his property, and
then gave to the cause of God all the-
money which he earned. At one time,
finding that his property had increased be-
yond 50,000 dollars, he at once devoted
the surplus, 7500 dollars, as a foundation
for a professorship in the Newton Theo-
logical Institution.

" On his deathbed he said to a friend, in
allusion to the resolutions quoted above,.
' By the grace of God — nothing else — by
the grace of God, I have been enabled, un-
der the influence of these resolutions, to
give away more than 40,000 dollars. How
good the Lord has been to me !' "

Mr. Cobb — such is the testimony of those
who, like myself, knew him well — was
also an active, humble, and devoted Chris-
tian, seeking the prosperity of feeble
churches ; labouring to promote the be-
nevolent institutions of the day ; punctual
in his attendance at prayer-meetings, and
anxious to aid the inquiring sinner ; watcli-
ful for the eternal interests of those under
his charge : mild and amiable in his de-
portment ; and, in the general tcnour of his
life and character, an example of consist-
ent piety.

His last sickness and death were peace-
ful, yea, triumphant. *' It is a glorious
thing," said he, " to die. I have been ac-
tive and busy in the world — I have enjoyed
as much as any one — God has prospered,
me — I have everything to bind me here — I
am happy in my family — I have property
enough — but how small and mean does
this world appear when we are on a sick-
])ed! Nothing can equal my enjoyment
in the near view of heaven. My hope in

CONCLUSION.

329

Christ is worth infinitely more than all
other things. The blood of Christ — the
blood of Christ — none but Christ ! O how
thankful I feel that God has provided a
way that I, sinful as I am, may look for-
ward with joy to another world, through
his dear Son."

But I know no instance of more syste-
matic and long-continued benevolence, nor
one that produced equal fruit from similar
resources, than that of the late Mr. Solo-
mon Goodell, of Vermont, who died when
about seventy. Mr. Goodell was a farmer.
The following notice of him, though long,
will be read with interest. It is from a
source worthy of all confidence.

" About the year 1809, the writer of these
lines observed a donation of 100 dollars to
the Connecticut Missionary Society, pub-
lished in the annual accounts as from Mr.
Goodell. Such donations were, at that
time, very uncommon in this country, and
with regard to that society, nearly or quite
unprecedented. The thought occurred,
that doubtless some gentleman of inde-
pendent fortune had thought proper to take
up his residence in the interior of Vermont,
and that he considered the society just na-
med a good channel for his pious benefi-
cence. This conclusion was strengthened
by seeing a similar donation from the same
source at the return of each successive
year for a considerable period.

" When the American Board of Foreign
Missions began its operations, Mr. Goodell
did not wait for an agent to visit him, but
sent a message (or came himself) more
than fifty miles, to a member, of the Board,
saying that he wished to subscribe 500 dol-
lars for immediate use, and a thousand for
the permanent fund. He sent $50 as ear-
nest-money, and said he would forward the
remaining $450 as soon as he could raise
that sum ; and would pay the interest an-
nually upon the 1000 dollars until the prin-
cipal should be paid. This engagement he
punctually complied with, paying the in-
terest, and just before his death transfer-
ring notes and bonds secured by mortga-
ges, which (including the thousand dollars
above mentioned) amounted to 1708 dol-
lars, 37 cts. ; that is, a new donation was
made of 708 dollars, 37 cts., to which was
afterward added another bond and mort-
gage of 350 dollars.

" Before this last transaction, he had
made repeated intermediate donations. At
one time he brought to the Rev. Dr. Ly-
man, of Hatfield (the member of the Board
above referred to), the sum of 465 dollars.
After the money was counted. Dr. Lyman
said to him, ' I presume, sir, you wish this
sum endorsed upon your note of 1000 dol-
lars.' ' Oh, no,' was his reply ; ' I believe
that note is good yet. This is a separate
matter.' He then expressed his wish that
the money might be remitted towards re-

pairing the loss sustained by the Baptist-
missionaries at Serampore. He regretted
that he had not been able to make the sum
500 dollars ; consoled himself with the
thought that he might do it still, at some
period not very far distant ; and said that, if
any of the bank-notes proved less valuable
than specie, he would make up the deficien-
cy.

" Mr. Goodell had made what he thought
suitable provision for his children as he
passed through life. After consulting his
wife, he left her such portion of his estates
as was satisfactory to iier, gave several
small legacies, and made the Board his
residuary legatee. He supposed that the
property left to the Board by will would
not be less than 1000 dollars ; but, as some
part of it was, and still is unsaleable, the
exact amount cannot be stated.*

" On visiting Mr. Goodell at his house,
you would find no gentleman with an inde-
pendent fortune, but a plain man in mod-
erate circumstances, on one of the rudest
spots in the neighbourhood of the Green
Mountains, every dollar of whose proper-
ty was either gained by severe personal
labour, or saved by strict frugality, or re-
ceived as interest on small sums lent to his
neighbours. His house was comfortable,,
but, with the farm on which it stood, was
worth only between 700 and 1000 dollars.
His income was derived principally from
a dairy.

" Besides the donations above mention-
ed, Mr. Goodell made many smaller ones
to missionary societies formed to send the
Gospel to new settlements. He paid fifty
dollars or more, at one time, to a mission-
ary whom he employed to preach in the
destitute towns near him. He aided in the
education of pious young men for the min-
istry, by furnishing them with money
for their necessary expenses. He discov-
ered no ostentation, so far as we have been
able to learn, in his religious charities.
Certain it is that he always appeared to
consider himself as the obliged party, and
as obtaining a favour from societies which
he made the almoners of his bounty. Far-
thest of all was he from supposing that his
charitable exertions could make any atone-
ment for sin, or authorize any claims upon
the divine mercy. He held to the most
entire self-renunciation, and to depcndance
upon Christ alone."

A very lovely example of benevolence
is to be found in one of our large cities.
It is the case of a comparatively young
man, who was born of parents belonging
to the Episcopal Church, and was taught
the Lord's Prayer and the Apostles' Creed
by his pious mother ; he was instructed in

* In the summary view of -Mr. GoodcH's donations
in aid of missions to the heathen, we find that, from
the 12th of February, 1812, to the lOtli of November,
1816, they amounted to 3885 dollars, 10 cts.

330

RELIGION IN AMERICA.

a Presbyterian Sunday-school, learned his
occupation (that of an apothecary) with a
Baptist, and was brought to a saving knowl-
edge of Christ under the preaching of the
Methodists. After having gained enough
to furnish a comfortable competency to
those of his family who are dependant upon
him, he now gives all his nett profits to the
promotion of the cause of his Lord and
Master. Nor does he confine his charities
to any one channel, or to any one denomi-
nation of Christians. On the contrary, his
dehght is to aid every good work, no mat-
ter by whom it may be prosecuted. It is
astonishing to learn what this devoted and
excellent young man has been able to do
during the period of ten years.

One of the most remarkable instances of
benevolence I have known was that of a
coloured woman, who gave sixty dollars
on one occasion to educate pious but poor
young men for the ministry. She sup-
ported herself by her labour as a servant.
"When she offered the above sum, the agent
refused to receive it all until pressed by
the humble donor, who said that she had
reserved five dollars ; that she had no one
dependant on her, and that she hoped to
earn enough to provide for her wants in
her last sickness, and for her funeral : nor
in this was she disappointed. She often
gave large sums, for one in her circum-
stances, and rejoiced to have it in her power
to do anything for Christ and his cause.

Would that I could say that such benev-
olence is universal among the Christians
of the United States. Alas ! all that is
done by too many of our merchants and
others, who profess to love Him who died
to save the world, is in reality nothing in
comparison with the means which they
have, or have had. Too many have in-
dulged in a luxurious and expensive style
of living, while they knew that men were
dying in their sins, and ignorant of the
Gospel. It is for this sin, with others,
that God has caused so many of our rich
Christians to lose their riches in the com-
mercial and financial distress with which
the country has been visited during the
last few years. Nevertheless, it is cer-
tainly true that the spirit of benevolence
is extending itself more and more among
the Christian portion of the community.
May God hasten the day when Christian
men, in all spheres, will deliberately act
on the principle of glorifying God in their
business, and live for the promotion of His
cause, labouring as diligently to make
money for this high purpose as they now
do for their own gratification. Such a day
must come, or I see not how the world is
ever to be converted to Christ.

XI. Misconception and Misrepresenta-
tions ABROAD. — To notice all the miscon-
ceptions and misrepresentations which are
prevalent in some, if not in all portions

of Europe, respecting the religious and
moral condition of America, is wholly im-
possible in a work like this ; we must,
therefore, confine our attention to but a
few of them.

1. One of the most common objections
against the religious institutions of this
country is, that they have not prevented
the bankniptcies and other species of dis-
honesty which have here occurred, especi-
ally of late years. But is it reasonable to
make the religious institutions of a coun-
try responsible for the occurrence of such
things ] Must the churches in America be
blamed for the unwise legislation of the
country, as well general as local, which
has been the primary cause of the over-
trading and inordinate speculation which
prevailed a few years ago, and which was
so disastrous in its reaction ? Must they
be accountable for the avidity with which
the foreign merchant, manufacturer, and
money-lender encouraged the adventurous
American merchant and trader to purchase
their goods on credit, and invest their
money in American stocks, often with lit-
tle or no effort to make a proper discrimi-
nation between them ? Must they be ex-
pected not only to prevent our own people,
whether in an individual or a corporate
capacity, from committing acts of rascal-
ity, but also to exert a similar influence
upon the foreign adventurers Avho come
among us from all parts of the Old World
(and their number is not small), the real
object of many of whom is to swindle the
American creditor out of all they can, and
then escape to Europe ] Take our mer-
chants who are engaged in foreign com-
merce in the mass, and I hesitate not to
say that, as a body, they have acted with
as much good faith as any men in similar
circumstances have ever done, during the
last seven or eight years of commercial
and financial difficulty through which the
country has passed. Many of them ruined
themselves in endeavouring to meet their
engagements abroad, by paying an exor-
bitant interest on the loans which they
made for that purpose. I speak here of
them as a body ; that there have been in-
stances of dishonesty among them will not
be denied, nor will any one be astonished
at it.

Our General Government has not failed
to meet its engagements, nor is it likely
to do so. And as to our twenty-nine
states and territories, more than one third
of them have no debts whatever ; more
than another third have not failed for
a single day to meet their engagements ;
and of the others who have for a time
failed to do so, only one has avowed and
acted upon the doctrine of " repudiation,"
and that in the case of a loan which the
Legislature of that state believed to have
been fraudulently contracted. But this

CONCLUSION.

331

doctrine of repudiation is itself repudiated
with scorn in all other parts of the Union,
and will be so in the state in which it had
its origin. Some of our states are not at
present able to meet the engagements
which they made a few years ago in the
enormous loans which they contracted at
home and abroad, in order to accomplish
the extensive lines of canals and railroads
which they undertook during the years of
unbounded, and, I must say, unnatural pros-
perity which the country enjoyed. But
they will ultimately, I doubt not, fulfil all
these engagements faithfully. They feel
unable to do so now, but they have not
repudiated. On this subject, the following
extract from a sermon preached in the
city of Philadelphia,* on a public occasion,
expresses the opinions and feelings of
every Christian minister in the land.

" The doctrine of repudiation, upon which
the changes have been rung throughout Eu-
rope to our great discredit, has, 1 am hap-
py to believe, but few advocates in our
Commonwealth. There is a vast differ-
ence in point of honour and morality in ad-
mitting the justice of a claim, but inability
to meet it, and denying that any such claim
exists. Men, whose honesty is above sus-
picion, sometimes become involved and are
utterly unable to meet their engagements.
It maybe so with a community, a state, or
a nation. It is deeply to be lamented that
such an exigency should ever occur. The
effect is eminently disastrous in impairing
public confidence, and weakening the ties
which should bind men together as a great
common brotherhood. But poverty is not
necessarily a crime in a government any
more than it is in an individual. Public en-
gagements may not be met at the time, and
yet the public faith may eventually be pre-
served inviolate. I have nothing to say in
defence of those who advocate the doctrine
of repudiation in any form or under any cir-
cumstances. They deserve all the obloquy
and reproach which is heaped upon them.
It is nothing better than public swindling,
where the means of redress are placed be-
yond the reach of those who are wronged.
It matters not a particle that the money bor-
rowed has been misapplied, or squandered
in projects which yield no profit. This is
our misfortune, or, it may be, our fault.
But it does not make void a solemn com-
pact, in which the public faith has been
pledged. I cannot believe that the mis-
chievous, disgraceful sentiments which
have been promulgated by a few on this
subject, will meet with anything like gen-
eral favour. Our resources, our love of
justice, and our honour abroad and at home,
all forbid such a resort to relieve ourselves
from a pecuniary pressure. It is better to
submit to any personal sacrifices than to

* By the Rev. Mr. Rood.

bear the stigma of making loud professions
and solemn promises to swindle honest and
unsuspecting creditors. Our debts to the
last cent must be paid, whatever struggles
the effort may cost. On this point there
must be no shuffling or evasion, but an hon-
est acknowledgment of our responsibili-
ties, and a steady and honest aim to meet
them. With this disposition prevalent, and
proved by corresponding action, the voice
of vituperation and abuse will be hushed,
and our enemies abroad and at home will
confess that they have been too hasty and
rash in their opinions of our national integ-
rity."

We are willing that religion should be
held accountable for a great deal ; but we
are not willing that the church in America
should be blamed for not preventing what
the churches in no other countries have
been able to prevent. The members prop-
er of all our churches, evangelical and un-
evangelical, do not exceed a fifth part of
our population ; and though the influence
which they exert is unquestionably as sal-
utary as that of any other body of equal
number in the world, yet it is obvious they
cannot control circumstances such as I
have alluded to. Would the churches in
Great Britain, France, Holland, Germany,
or any other country, like to be held re-
sponsible for all the acts of legislation, do-
mestic and foreign, of their respective
countries, and all the villanies which have
been and are annually perpetrated in them ?
I think not ; nor should they apply to their
brethren in America a rule by which they
would not like to be measured them-
selves.*

•2. The Political disturbances which oc-
cur in America are not unfrequently spo-
ken of in Europe in a way that conveys a
reflection upon the churches of this land,
as if they ought to prevent these things.
That these disturbances do take place, no
one will deny. There is not a good man
in the United Stales who has not lament-
ed what are called the " Abolition Riots,"
and other disgraceful scenes which have
occurred within the last few years. These
disturbances, however, have been greatly
exaggerated as to their frequency and
their extent, in the reports which reach
Europe. Our newsmongers, in their ea-

* A good deal has been said in Europe, by men
who have travelled in America, respecting the im-
positions which they have suffered in this country.
There is no Christian man in the United States who
is not distressed when he hears of such things. But
is it just to blame the whole people of the land and
their religious institutions for such occurrences?
The author of this book has travelled much in ahnost
every country in Europe, and he can ailirm, with
truth, that he has suffered impositions, and some of
them very gross, in them all ; but he would deem
himself utterly destitute of common sense, as well
as of that charity svhich his religion requires, if he
were to judge the people of any of those countries by-
such instances.

332

RELIGION IN AMERICA.

gerness to concoct a piquant article of
news for those for whom they cater, often
give the most astounding exaggerations
of what was a dispute or open quarrel be-
tween some firemen, or between the blacks
and whites in the suburbs of our cities,
or the interruption which some lecturer on
slavery has encountered in some of our vil-
lages.* These representations go abroad,
are circulated there, and lead many peo-
ple to think that our whole country is in
a continual state of disorder. But every
American knows how to appreciate these
reports, and is no way concerned about
them, except to regret their occurrence.
Indeed, neither their frequency nor their
nature is such as to give him any seri-
ous apprehensions. For these things are
local, unfrequent, and wholly insignificant
in comparison with the bruit which our
newspapers make about them. And they
no more affect the peace of the country
than the passing cloud ruffles the bosom
of our beautiful lakes.

Within the last seven or eight years
there have been some disgraceful instan-
ces of summary punishment, without the
intervention of a proper trial before the
courts of law, of some gamblers, swindlers,
and negroes (who had committed shock-
ing crimes) in some of our Southwestern
States and Territories. But these instan-
ces have hardly exceeded in number that
of the ten years in which they have oc-
curred. They took place, too, in a part
of the country which is new, and very
thinly settled ; where religious institutions
have scarcely taken root, and where the
forms in which the administration of jus-
tice is carried on have hardly begun to
exist. However much every well-inform-
ed, good man in America must lament
these things, he cannot but be less aston-
ished at their occurrence than at the in-
frequency of them.f No man can look at
the great extent of even the settled por-
tion of the United States, the long line of

* A great deal has been said in Europe about the
prejudice which exists in America against Ifce col-
oured people, and the difficulty of the two races
living together. But it is a singular and indisputa-
ble fact, that almost all the disturbances (which, af-
ter all, do not amount to much) that occur between
the blacks and whites in the suburbs of Philadel-
phia, New- York, and other cities, take place be-
tween the former atid the Germans and Irish wWh
live in those districts.

t When we speak of the instances of disorders
which sometimes occur in ihe Southwestern and
Western districts of the country, it is worth while
to notice the remarkable instances of the triumph of
order which are also sometimes witnessed in them,
amid very peculiar circumstances. A few years ago,
a man committed murder at the lead mines of Du-
buque, in what is now Iowa Territory, before there
was any sort of political government established
there. The people assembled of their own accord, ar-
rested the murderer, chose judges, constituted a
court, and gave him a fair trial before a jury. He was
condemned after such a trial, and peaceably executed !

seacoast which bounds the country on the-
east and south, of wilderness frontier on
the west, the mountain ranges in the cen-
tre, and the forests which abound almost
everywhere, which furnish innumerable
facilities for the commission of crime and
escape from punishment, without being
surprised that we have had so few disturb-
ances of a serious character, especially
when we have had the element of slavery,
with all its concomitant evils, to augment
the difficulty of our position. It would re-
quire the army of the Czar of all the
Russias to keep up a strong armed police,
which some upbraid us for not having, and
which would be necessary, if it were not
that the moral influence which pervades
the country — and which owes it existence
to our religious institutions — furnishes a
substitute which is infinitely better. We
have had three attempts, one in Pennsyl-
vania, one in South Carolina, and one in
Rhode Island, not to overthrow the political
institutions of the country, but to obtain,
redress of grievances, real or imaginary, in
an extra-constitutional way ; and yet ali
three were suppressed without the loss of
one life taken away either in battle or hy
the administration of law. To what was
this owing 1 To the patience, the concili-
ation, and the due use of argument which
the Christianity of the country could alone
inspire and teach.*

A few other facts may be stated to show
the happy influence which Christianity ex-
erts in the United States in securing the
maintenance of order in a nation of eigh-
teen and a half millions.

Notwithstanding the unbounded facilities-
for highway robberies in almost all sec-
tions of the country, who has ever heard
of the existence of hordes of banditti
either in our mountains or our forests !
And how few highway robberies and mur-
ders, comparatively, have ever taken place
in this country ! In many of the Western
States, a solitary man, or even a boy, may
be seen carrying the mail on horseback
through unbroken forests, from town to

* That the political institutions of the United
States rest upon a pretty sure basis, and are deeply
planted in the afl'ections of the people, is most cer-
tain, whatever inferences foreigners may sometimes
make from the language uttered in moments of ir^
ritation and despondency by the organs of our politi-
cal parties in the hour of defeat or disappointment.
In proof of this, the fact might be cited that two
newspapers have been published for several years iu
the city of New-York, one in French and the other
in English, which ably advocate the principles of
monarchy as it e.^ists in France and P^ngland, and
incessantly attack and vilify the political institutions
and the measures of the country which furnishes
them hospitality and protection. And what is the
effect? These, perhaps, are read by the foreigners
among us — for whom they are in fact published —
and by some of our own people. But no American
has the slightest regard for what they say, nor does
the government for a moment trouble itself about
them.

CONCLUSION.

333

town, in perfect security. With such a
[population as is to be found in most coun-
tries in Europe, coul'd such a thing be done
with safety ]

There have been seasons of great excite-
ment, when the nation was agitated to its
centre. For instance, during the recent
miparalleled commercial distress, when so
many banks, and so many of our best mer-
chants and traders, our enterprising me-
clianics and manufacturers — and, indeed,
so many men in all the walks of industry,
and in every station of life — were ruined.
How was all this borne ■? Was there the
slightest attempt to seek redress by revo-
lution 1 No. The government was se-
verely blamed ; all these evils were be-
lieved, by probably a majority of the peo-
ple, to have been occasioned by unwise
legislation, obstinately persevered in ; and
yet not a gun was seized, not a sword was
drawn, and not one human life was lost
during the long and dreadful crisis. The
only resort was to the ballot-box, as our
elections are often termed.

Take another instance. The autumn of
1840 witnessed the greatest political strug-
gle which the coinitry has ever seen. The
question was that of maintaining or of
overthrowing the party in power, in the
election of a President. Nearly two mill-
ions and a half of men resorted to their
respective places of voting, and gave their
votes for one or the other of the two can-
didates. The excitement was almost un-
paralleled. At every poll, or place of
holding the election, crowds of people as-
sembled on the day which was to decide
the question ; and yet not one person was
either killed or injured, so far as I have
heard, in this great political contest. Could
such a thing have occurred in the British
realms, or in France, or any other country
in the world 1 I believe not.*

In the British realm, if we suppose the
population to be 26 millions (we speak of
Great Britain and Ireland, and the islands
adjacent), there is one regular soldier for
about 260 individuals ; in France, the army
of the line is 400,000, by which if we divide
the population of the kingdom, now thirty-
four millions, we have one soldier for 85
inhabitants ; while in the United States,
whose standing army was for the period
of more than 20 years which immediately
succeeded 1815, but 6000 men, and is now
only 8000, there is one soldier to 2312 in-
dividuals in the population. And yet there
has been many a single year in which more
people have been killed in broils and emeutf.i

* Within the last five years there have been more
serious broils and more lives lost in the political strug-
gles in Canada, on our borders, though under the
strong government of England, and in presence of a
standing army of 15 or 20 thousand men, than have
taken place in the United States from the first. And
yet Canada has not more than eleven or twelve hun-
dred thousand inhabitants.

(insurrections) in both France and the
British realm, than have lost their lives in
all the " mobs" and " riots"— political, reli-
gious, anti-abolitional, anti-gambling, etc.
—that have occurred in the United States
since the independence of the country was
estabhshed, sixty years ago. What a refu-
tation does this fact furnish of all the
miserable charges which are heard in Eu-
rope respecting the " riots," " disorders,"
etc., alleged to be continually occurring in
America !

Nothing strikes the observation more of
one who comes from the Old World, where
he cannot turn the corner of a street in the
principal cities and towns, especially on
the Continent, without meeting a soldier,
upon his landing in the United States, than
the almost complete absence of all mili-
tary force. How is it that such force can
be dispensed with 1 Only because of the
widespread and salutary influence of Chris-
tianity. If we have " disturbances" and
" riots" sometimes — which will not be de-
nied— we have fewer of them than any
other country of equal population in the
world.*

3. The American people have been rep-
resented sometimes by foreigners as being
an immoral people. Now, although 1 know
it is not easy to reply to such charges in
a satisfactory manner in the very restrict-
ed space which I must allow to them,
nevertheless, I will say a few words upon
this topic.

That there are vices and crimes in
America, and in no inconsiderable amount,
is without hesitation acknowledged. But
that they exist to such an extent as to jus-
tify the assertion that the American peo-
ple are par excellence an immoral nation, is
denied.

It is certainly not extraordinary, as has
been well remarked by a writer in a late
number of the Westminster Review, that
there should be in the United States swin-
dlers, counterfeiters, thieves, bigamists,
murderers, and other criminals, since, in
addition to those of indigenous growth,
they receive so many from the Old World.
This is a correct view of the subject. For
it is a fact, that while there are cases in
which foreign criminals, especially those
who have committed crimes which most
deeply affect the conscience and heart,

*■ It is sometimes amusing to a well-informed
American to hear in Europe the reports which are
circulated there respecting the riots in our American
cities. Take one for a sample. Two or three years
ago a "dreadful abolition riot" occurred in Philadel-
phia, in which it was said that there was much fight-
ing in the streets, with guns and other deadly weap-
ons ; and yet, wonderful to be told, no person was
killed, or even very seriously wounded, I believe!
And this was said to occur in a country where so
large a portion of ihe people possess lire-aims, and
know how to use them better than the people of any
other land I Verily, it requires strong credulity to be-
lieve that such riots can be very dreadful.

334

RELIGION IN AMERICA.

who have come to our shores and changed
their names, reform and do well in a land
where their past history is unknown (and
certainly the friends of humanity must re-
joice that it is so), there are very many
in which it is otherwise. A man who has
been a thief, a robber, a counterfeiter, a
bigamist, in Europe, is not likely to reform
in America, unless arrested by God's grace.
There is more hope of a man who has
committed manslaughter, or even murder,
than of him.

A few general statements will, however,
best express all- that I have to say on this
subject.

With the exception, perhaps, of Scot-
land, there is no country in Christendom
where the Sabbath is as well observed as
it is in the United States. Of this any one
who has extensively travelled in the Old
World cannot fail to be convinced when
he lands at any of our cities, I care not
which, excepting New-Orleans, which is
more of a foreign city than any other. It
is the capital of a French state, where
American influence, though fast gaining
ground, is still far inferior to that of the
French and the Spanish who remain in it.
But the Protestant religion, when it gains
the ascendancy, will produce there the
same good eflfects in this respect which it
does elsewhere.*

Although thieves and robbers are not
wanting in our large cities and towns,
where all the world over such people most
congregate and find the greatest facilities
for their nefarious vocation, yet, taking the
country at large, it will be difficult to name
another where property is more safe, or
where people live in greater security.

As to murder, the most horrible of all
crimes, the most exact enumeration has
never been able to show that more than one
hundred cases have occurred, and of late
years not much more than one half that
number, in any one year. This number is
sufficient to excite deep distress in the heart
of every good man ; but it is less than that
which takes place in many other countries
between which and ours comparisons on this

* As to travelling on the Sabbath, there is every
prospect that the establishment of railroad and steam-
boat lines, taken in connexion with the just senti-
ments which prevail among the pious and strictly
moral portion of the population, will, in time, almost
wholly put an end to it, especially on the long and
important routes. Railroad and steamboat compa-
nies already know that they gain nothing by running
their cars and their boats on the Sabbaih, owing to
the comparative fewness of the travellers on that
day. By stopping their cars and their boats on that
day, they will save one seventh part of their expen-
ses, give tlieir labourers and agents the rest they
need, and be sure of having on Monday the persons
whom they Vkfould otherwise have carried on Sun-
day. Indeed, if it were not for the carrying of the
mail on the part of the government, there would be
no great difficulty in causing the cars and steam-
boats to cease on the principal routes.

point as well as others are sometimes in-
stituted. For instance, in England and
Wales alone since the year 1812, the num-
ber of convictions for murder has varied
from 60 to 75, while the executions have
been in the proportion of about one to four
of the convictions. Were the comparison
to be made between the United States and
Great Britain and Ireland, it would be most
decidedly in favour of the former. The
murders in France are not only more fre-
quent than those of the United States, but
often more diabolically savage and shock-
ing, as the records of her criminal coui-ts
clearly show.*

And though there is a considerable-
amount of prostitution in some of our large
cities on the seaboard — as, for instance,
New-York,f Philadelphia, Baltimore, and =
New-Orleans — and something of it in the
largest interior cities, yet, take the nation
as a whole, there is far less of this sin than
is to be found in most countries in Europe.
In many of our cities and towns of ten and
twenty thousand inhabitants, public prosti-
tution is almost unknown. Scarcely any-
thing of the kind is seen in Boston, and
other chief places in New-England. In no
nation in the world, I am sure, is there a
greater amount of virtue among ladies, both
married and unmarried, taken as a body.
Foreigners are shocked at the familiarity
which subsists between the youth of both'
sexes with us ; but foreigners, if they knew
well the domestic life of our people, would^
know that this familiarity seldom leads to
evil consequences in neighbourhoods where
the Gospel exerts its powerful influences..
The youth of our religious families are
brought up under a strong moral influence,,
and are taught to have confidence in each,
other, and in themselves ; above all, they
are taught to fear God. From their earli-
est years the children of both sexes frequent

* A very large proportion of the murders which
are committed in the United States are committed
by worthless foreigners. The same thing is true of
the robberies and other great crimes which occur
among us. Almost ail the riots which take place in.
our Atlantic States are made by Irish and Germans ■
congregated in the suburbs of our cities, or working
on our railroads and canals. Indeed, it is this for-
eign element which gives us the greatest difficulty in
almost everything. Not only are very many of our
criminals foreigners, but they form a large proportion!
— in some places a majority — of the persons in our
hospitals. This is not stated as a reproach, but as a
fact.

t I have read, with great astonishment, some re-
marks of Mr. Tait, of Edinburgh, on prostitution in
New-York, to be found m his recent work on Mag-
dalenism (p. 5), and referred to by the Rev. Dr.
Wardlaw in his excellent Lectures on Prostitution.
The sum of Mr. T.'s statement is, that " that city
furnishes a prostitute for every six or seven adults
of its male population." I have lived much in New-
York, and know something of its moral stale; and I
affirm that this statement, founded on an exaggera-
ted report published by the Magdalen Society of
that city, some nine or ten years ago, is quite incor-
rect, and in no way approximates to the truth.

CONCLUSION.

335

the same common schools. Even until
quite grown up, in many districts they go
to school together in the winter season.
And yet, how seldom has any evil resulted.
There ai'e countries in Europe — it would
be invidious to mention them — where such
a thing could not be done with safety to
their morals, and even where it is thought
dangerous to allow large girls to be taught
by a male teaciier.

We have, indeed, enough of the sin of
uncleanness to mourn over ; and yet, in
comparison with the state of many other
countries, we have great reason to bless
God for the hallowed influences which His
Gospel diffuses among us.* If we have
many, too many, alas! among us who have
not submitted their hearts to these influen-
ces, there are, on the other hand, a great
many who have, and who are the " salt of
the earth," and the " hght of the world."

We may be charged, as a people, with
being rude, and wanting in habitual polite-
ness in our manners. Witlings who visit
us to find subjects on which to employ
their pens, and with which to garnish their
worthless pages, may accomplish their
ends, and carry home portfolios laden with
stories respecting the oddities and awk-
wardness which they may have remarked
among certain classes ; but beneath the
rough and unpolished exterior of our peo-
ple there will be found much sincere be-
nevolence, as well as many of those other
enduring virtues which conduce to social
happiness. t We are, comparatively, a new

* I have sometimes been amazed to hear the re-
marks of foreigners who have undertaken to be cen-
sors of American morals. A. certain visitant from
Europe, who has written three or four volumes
about America, and has undertaken to represent the
American cities as remarkable for the prevalence of
prostitution, did, nevertheless, when at the dinner-
table of a gentleman in the city of Philadelphia, boast
of his having visited half of the houses of infamy in the
city of New- York, and declared his intention to visit
all the rest upon his return to that city — as a matter
of curiosity, as he said !

A young gentleman, who resides in a city not one
hundred miles from that in which this work was
written, lately visited America, and spent two years
there. On his return home, he spoke disparagingly
of the religious state of the country, and charged the
merchants of Philadelphia, and especially those of
the respectable body of Friends, with being extreme-
ly loose in their morals, and unfaithful to their con-
jugal relations. And yet this same young man boasts
of his having given, when among a tribe of Indians
on our borders, a rifle to a chief in exchange for his
daughter ; and that, after he had lived with her as
his wife for three months, he abandoned her ! The
wickedness of such persons is not so wonderful as
their intolerable insolence in undertaking to misrep-
resent and slander a whole people. But so it ever
will be : bad men seek to hide their ovi^n infamy in
charging others with the sins of which they are
themselves guilty.

t Among other charges brought against the Amer-
icans is one which I must not omit to remark upon, i
It is, that they have no discipline in their families ; !
that their children grow up in insubordination, pride, i
insolence, and want of respect for old age and pa- 1
rental authority. All this is inferred from the re-

people ; tliis is emphatically true of a large
portion of our population. And notwith-
standing our vices, whether of native or for-
eign origin, there is among us a vast amount
of practical and efficient goodness. We
have much to learn, but I trust we shall not
be slow to imitate whatever is excellent in
the manners or the deeds of other nations,
_ 4. But the last topic which I shall men-
tion, on which we have been the subjects
of more misrepresentation and abuse than
any other, is slavery. On this difficult and
humiliating question I cannot enter into
detail. It would require a volume to say
all that might be said about it, and even
all that ought to be said, in order to make
our position to be fully comprehended by
foreigners. I can say only a few words.
Slavery is an accursed inheritance
which the Old World bequeathed to the
New. England, France, Spain, and Hol-
land, all contributed their respective shares
to its introduction and establishment in
what is now the United States. Several
of the colonies remonstrated against the
bringing in of slaves among them. But it
was all in vain. Slavery was fastened upon
them for the purpose of promoting the
commerce of the mother-country, Eng-
land. And when the struggle came, by
which the colonies were dissevered from
Great Britain, slavery was one of the
causes which led to that event ; and of all
the portions of the Declaration of Inde-
pendence, as it was originally drawn up
by Mr. Jeff"erson, the most severe was that

ports of foreigners (who, generally, have had no very
good opportunities of knowing the interior life of the
families which they may have visited), or from some
poor specimens of American families which have
gone abroad, or from what they suppose must be the
effects of Republican institutions ; just as if Republi-
can institutions will not tolerate, or, rather, do not
require, due subordination and discipline.

Now it is not to be denied that there are weak-mind-
ed and foolish parents in America, as well as in other
countries, who do not govern well their children, but
it is their own fault, and not that of the institutions,
religious or political, of the country. On the other
hand, we have parents, and not a few, who are as
rigid in the government of their children as are the
Scotch themselves ; we have few teachers who can-
not, or who do not, punish their scholars with the
rod, if need he ; there is not a college in the land
that would not, without a moment's hesitation, expel
from its halls the sons of the greatest men in the na-
tion, if they deserved it, as I have myself witnessed.
In our army, it is true that it is no longer allowed to
flog men, save as a commutation for the punishment
of death ; but other and severe modes of punishing,
though less degrading, are permitted. VVhile in our
navy, the discipline, 1 believe, is the most severe in
the world. Recently the commandant of a petty
brig of war hung up three men for alleged mutiny
under the most remarkable circumstances, one of
whom was a son of one of the first officers of the
government. This instance was summary in its na-
ture, quite without a parallel ; and how was it borne
by the nation? The overwhelming majority of the
people, including almost the v^'hole of the religious
portion of them, approved of the act. Would such
things be tolerated in a nation in which there is no
domestic government ? I think not.

336

RELIGION IN AMERICA.

which related to the slave-trade.* As op-
position was made to it by some of the
members, it was stricken out in order to
secure entire unanimity.

The war of independence found slavery
existing in all the thirteen colonies. Du-
ring its progress, or soon after its close, the
original four New-England States, Mas-
sachusetts, New-Hampshire, Connecticut,
and Rhode Island, abolished slavery within
their respective limits. Some years later,
Pennsylvania, New-Jersey, and New- York
followed. In process of time Vermont and
Maine, in New-P]ngland, and Ohio, Indi-
ana, Illinois, and Michigan, in the West,
were formed into states without slavery.
To these we may add the two Territories
of Iowa and Wisconsin. On the other
hand, the six original slaveholding states,
Delaware, Maryland, Virginia, North Caro-
lina, South Carolina, and Georgia, remain
isuch to the present day, and to them have
been added, in the West and Southwest,
the States of Kentucky, Tennessee, Ala-
bama, Mississippi, Louisiana, Missouri, Ar-
kansas, and the Territory of Florida. And
the number of slaves has augmented from
about 600,000, at the close of the Rev-
olution, to nearly three millions. How
and when the abolition of slavery is to be
accomplished in these thirteen states and
one territory, is a question which no one
can answer.

It may not be amiss for me to say, how-
ever, that this mighty task will never be
effected peaceably but through the influ-
ence of Christianity. This has accom-
plished all that has hitherto been done —
the destruction of slavery in seven states,
and the prevention of its entrance into six
or eight more ; the abolition of the slave-
trade before any other nation liad done any-
thing on the subject, and the declaring of
it to be of the nature of piracy, and as mer-
iting the same punishment. And however
desperate the struggle may prove to be,
she will not shrink from it.

The noble example of England in abol-
ishing slavery in her islands will not be

* It was in these words : " He (the King of England)
has waged cruel war against human nature itself,
violating its most sacred rights of life and liberty in
the persons of a distant people, who never offended
him, captivating and carrying them into slavery in
another hemisphere, or to more miserable death in
their transportation thither. This piratical warfare,
the opprobrium of inlidcl powers, is the warfare of
the Clinslian King of Great Britain. Determined
to keep open a market where men should be bought
and sold, he has prostituted his prerogative for sup-
pressing every legislative attempt to prohibit or re-
strain this execrable commerce. And that this as-
semblage of horrors might want no fact of distin-
guished dye, he is now e.xcitmg these very people to
rise in arms among us, and to purchase that liberty
of which he has deprived them, by murdering the
people on whom he also has obtruded them ; thus
paying off former crimes committed against the liber-
ties of one people, with crimes which he urges them
to commit against the lives of another,"

lost upon us. It has given a great impulse
to the moral movement which is steadily
going on in the community. It is true
that, as slavery is by our Constitution left
to the government of each slate in which
it exists, to be managed by it alone, there
can be no such action among us as that of
England, by which the overthrow of sla-
very in her dominions was effected at a
blow. It is in the midst of us ; it is not at
a distance. Its destruction with us can be
accomplished only by those whose pe-
cuniary interests are at stake for its main-
tenance. This point foreigners should
well comprehend. It is the slaveholders
among us, that is, the inhabitants of each
slaveholding state, who alone can over-
throw it. This it is which makes our po-
sition so difficult.

I am of opinion that it will require many
years to efface this dreadful evil and burn-
ing disgrace from the midst of us. It will
require long and persevering efforts on the
part of good men, and a large amount of
that " wisdom which cometh down from
above." But of one thing I feel very sure :
it is, that although some may act rashly,
and sometimes attempt to promote the
cause by unwise measures; and others
may be too supine, and, through fear of
evil consequences, not come up to its help
as they ought ; although both these parties
may charge each other, and perhaps justly,
with so acting as to retard the work, yet
there is a growing dissatisfaction with this
great evil, a conviction that it ought and
must be terminated as speedily as possi-
ble, consistently with the true interests of
all concerned, which will one day lead to
its overthrow. I do not know how it will
be brought about, but Christianity will ef-
fect it. God — our fathers' God — invoked
more and more earnestly, as I am sure he
is, will, by his providence, open the way
for this great achievement.

To this great struggle, which Christians
with us must carry on — let it take what
course it may — in order to be successful,
we are far from wishing our brethren oi
other lands to be indifferent.* We want

* The visits of foreign philanthropists cannot fail
to do good- among us, when made in the spirit of a
great and a good man who lately came to us from
England,* who travelled throughout all our states,
and " reasoned of righteousness, temperance, and
judgment to come;" who, though he neglected no
opportunity to speak of the wrongs done to the slave,
was ever heard with respect and attention by the
slaveholder, for he spoke words of mingled wisdom
and love. And when he had accomplished his mis-
sion and returned to his native land, he addressed a
series of letters to one of our most distinguished
statesmen on the subject of slavery, and especially
on the effects of its abolition in the British West In-
dia Islands, which have been widely and attentively

* Mr. Gurney, a distinguished member and minister of
the Society of Friends, and who, with his excellent brother
and sister (Mrs. Elizabeth Fry), is one of the brightest or-
naments of humanity.

CONCLUSION.

337

their sympathy and their prayers. We
wish them to make a proper allowance
for the difficulties of our position; and
while they reprove our delays and stimu-
late our zeal, we wish them to do it in a
Christian spirit, not only because it best
comports with the religion which we both
profess, but also because of its influence
upon those among us who are slavehold-
ers, the great majority of whom are not
religious men. It is easy to grow indig-
nant on this subject, and indulge in hard
•epithets ; but the " wrath of man worketh
not the righteousness of God." There are
those abroad who see no difficulties in our
position ; to whom the fact that slavery is
■entwined about our very vitals, so far at
least, as one half of the country is con-
cerned, is of no importance ; and who
vainly imagine that it is enough to de-
mand that every slaveholder should let his
slaves go free. This, indeed, is a very
simple way of getting rid of the evil ; and
if it were practicable, it would be well
enough. So if all mankind would at once
of their own accord give up their rebel-
lion against God and yield a heartfelt obe-
dience to Him, this world might be deliv-
ered from sin without the toil of preach-
ing the Gospel, and the employment of so
many other instrumentalities which are
now found to be necessary. And if all
the men in the United States who were
engaged in the manufacture and sale of
intoxicating liquors twenty years ago had,
of their own accord, or upon being simply
requested or commanded, abandoned their
wicked business ; and all who drank such
liquors ceased to do so from the same in-
fluence, there would have been no need of
all the labour and expense which it has
cost to promote the cause of Temperance
among us. But how vain it is to talk in
this way ! To overthrow slavery in the
United States is a great work — the great-
est and most difficult, I hesitate not to say,
that ever man undertook to accomplish.
And there is nothing but Christianity, em-
ploying its blessed influences, light and
LOVE, which can eflTect it. A good deal of
time, and a great deal of patience and pru-
dence will also be required, if we would
see this evil come to an end in a peaceful
way.

We have sometimes been not a little
grieved by the severity — no doubt wholly
inconsiderate — and the want of discrimi-
nation with which some of our Christian
brethren in the Old World have spoken and
written respecting the American churches,

read, and which cannot fail to do good. What a
contrast between his course and that of some ardent,
self-sufficient "friends of humanity," as they consid-
er themselves, who have visited us from Europe with-
in the last seven years, and who accomphshed no
good whatever for the cause which they profess to
ihave so much at heart !

in relation to this subject. Now I have
no disposition to say that the American
churches have done all that they ought to
do, that they feel all the solicitude, and
distress, and sorrow, which they ought for
the continued existence of this great evil.
There is nothing more probable in itself
than that our churches should fail of com-
ing up to their whole duty on this subject,
more than on almost any other, when we
consider how they are situated. I do not
say this by way of apology, but to state
the case truly. But to accuse our church-
es throughout the land with approving of
slavery, because, in some parts of the
country, they think they are compelled to
tolerate it as an evil from which circum-
stances do not at present allow them to
extricate themselves (and this is the most
which can be said against them on this
point), is going beyond the bounds of
Christian charity. Besides, to charge all
the American churches, as well as those
in the fifteen states and territories in which
slavery is unknown, as those in the thir-
teen states, one territory, and one district
in which it does still exist, with the sin of
"robbery,". "man-stealing," etc., is to be
guilty of something more than a mere
want of Christian charity.

Nor are some other denunciations of a
sweeping nature much less unjust or inju-
rious. " Let America," said a distinguish-
ed Christian minister whom we all love,
at a missionary meeting in one of the
great capitals of Europe, a few years ago,
" let America wash the stain of slavery
from her skirts, and then she will be worthy
to come up and join us in the great work of
converting the world." Indeed! and must
our American churches be compelled to ab-
stain from attempting to obey the command
of their risen Saviour— and which may be
one of the means of staying, if not averting
the divine wrath, which would otherwise
overwhelm their guilty country — until their
land be freed from slavery V And if they
are to be condemned for national sins which
they have not been able to overcome, where
are the churches which are to cast the first
stone at them ? Shall it be those of Eng-
land, or France, or Holland ? Blessed be
God, our heavenly Father does not use
such language towards us. He deigns to
bless our humble efforts to make known
his Gospel to the heathen nations, notwith-
standing our many sins ; nor does He for-
bid our co-operating with those who love
his name in other lands to make known this
great salvation to all men. Still more. He
condescends to visit the churches in all parts
of our land with the efll'usions of His Holy
Spirit, without which, indeed, we might
well despair of our country.

But sympathy, love, prayer, and co-oper-
ation better become those who love God
in all lands, than crimination and recrim-

338

RELIGION IN AMERICA.

illation. They form one vast brotherhood,
and their trials, their labours, and their
hopes are common. Neither difference of
language, nor separating oceans, nor diver-
sity of government and of ecclesiastical
organizations, nor variety of modes of wor-
ship, can divide them. They have their
various difficulties to encounter, and their
respective works to perform. And how
they should delight to encourage each oth-
er in every good enterprise, rejoice in each
other's success, stimulate and reprove each
other (when reproof is necessary) with
kindness, and not with bitterness ; and thus
strive to hasten the universal triumph of
the kingdom of their common Lord ! And
how appropriate to them is the prayer of

England's sweetest religious bard,* witb
which we bring this book to a close :

" Come, then, and, added to thy many crowns,
Receive yet one, the crown of all the earth,
Thou who alone art worthy ! It was thine
By ancient covenant, ere Nature's birth ;
And thou hast made it thine by purchase since,
And overpaid its value with thy blood.
Thy saints proclaim Thee king ; and in their hearts-
Thy title is engraven with a pen
Dipped in the fountain of eternal love.
Thy saints proclaim Thee king ; and thy delay
Gives courage to their foes, who, could they see
The dawn of thy last advent, long desired,
Would creep into the bowels of the hills,
And flee for safety to the falling rocks.
The very spirit of the world is tired
Of its own taunting question, asked so long,
' Where is the promise of your Lord's approacn ?"*■

* Cowper — The Task, book vi.

INDEX.

Abolition Riots, how viewed in this country, p. 331.
" " exaggerated report of, in Europe,

333, note.
Aborigines (see North America).
Acadenaies and Grammar-schools, 148.
Allenite Methodists, noticed, 262.
America (see North America).

Americans, best method for obtainmg correct knowl-
edge of, 29.
American Revolution, effects of the, on religion, 102.
" morals, character of two foreign censors
of, 335, note.
American, meaning of, when annexed to religious

societies, 140, note.
American Sunday-school Union and Auxiliaries, 152.
" Education Society, origin of the, 157.
" Bible Society, notice of the, 166.
" Tract Society, operations of the, 167.
" Prison Discipline Society, 174.
" Home Missionary Society, operations of
the, 140.
American preaching, character of, 189, 192.
" " different methods of, 191.

" Unitarian Association, 278.
" Theology, great achievement of, 291.
" Colonization Society, history of the, 314.
American Board of Commissioners for Foreign Mis-
sions, origin and constitution of the, 300.

history of the, 301.

statistics of the, 304.

plan of, for training a native ministry, 305.

— annual meetings of, 306.

publications of the, 307.

Andover Theological Seminary, history of the, 160.
Anecdote of two young ladies under conviction, 212.
Anglo-Saxon Colonists, character of, 23.

" " effect of Norman conquests upon, in
England, 29, 30.
Anti-slavery Societies, 176.
Associate Reformed Church, 255.
Atheists, notice of, 286.

Atonement, doctrine of, illustrated by American
theology, 291.

Ballou, Rev. H.,work of, on the Atonement alluded

to, 275.
Banditti, no organized hordes of, in United States,

332.
Baptists, Regular, account of the, 229.

" Independents in church government, 230.

" Declaration of Faith of, 230.

" statistics of the, 232.

" Roger Williams not the foimder of the,
231, note.
Baptists, Board of Missions of, 309.

" Home Missions of the, 144.

" Seventh-day, notice of the, 251.

" Free- Will, history of the, 251.

" " Missions of the, 312.

" Campbellite, account of the, 251.
Benevolence, interesting examples of, 329.
Bible-classes, 156.
Blake, Mr. Joseph, notice of, 63.
Bhnd, asylums for the, 180.
Boston, early settlement of, 54.
Bouck, Hon. W. C, proclamation of, 320.
"Brainerd, Rev. David, notice of, 199.

" " missionary labours of, 295.

-Burr, Mr. Joseph, and Seminary, notice of, 149.
■" Bush-whacking" defined, 22.

Camp-meetings, origin and nature of, 216.
Carolina, North and South, benefits of dissolution of

Church and State in, 115.
Charters of American Colonies, curious character

of, 27, 28.
Cheever, Rev. G. B., extract from lecture of, 319.
Cherokees, removal of the, 298.
Christ-ians, origin and belief of the, 280, 281.
Christianity, happy influence of, on public order.

332, 333.
Christianity, only remedy for slavery in the United

Slates, 336, 337.
Churches and ministers at the Revolution, 103, 104.
" membership in, how obtained, 185.
" evangelical, order prevalent in the, 218.
" " three divisions of, 220.

" " general statistics of the, 264,

265, 269.
Churches, evangehcal, missionary efforts of the, 317.
Church, relation of unconverted men to the, 187.
" union of, with State gradually dissolved, 104.
" union of, with Slate, when and how dissolv-
ed, and effects, 112, 323, note.
Church edifices, how built in cities and large tovras,

132.
Church edifices, how built in new settlements, 134.

supply of, in the large cities, 134.

number annually built in United States, 324.

• eflSciency of Voluntary Principle in erecting,

324.
Church edifices, average size of congregations in,

324.
Church edifices, estimate of number of, annually

needed, 324.
Church edifices, grounds of alleged destitution of.

325.
Cobb, Mr. Nathl. R., charitable resolutions of, 328.
Colleges and universities, 150.

" " effect of state control upon,

151. ^

Colonial era, state of religion in the, 99.
Colonists, religious character of the early, 51, 52.
Colonization Society, history of the, 314.
" advantages of African, 315.

" plan of Gustavus Adolphus, 68.

Coloured people, our reported quarrels with the, 332.
" " disturbances chiefly between them

and foreigners, 332, note.
Colony, influence of, at Liberia, 315.

" at Plymouth, account of the, 47-51.
" " ecclesiastical regulations of

the, 84.
Colony at Plymouth, causes of aversion of, to prel-
acy, 86.
Congregations, new, how formed, 133.
CongregationaUsts, parent stock of those in Eng-
land. 224.
Congregationalists, not Dissenters, 225.
present religious system of, 225.

mode of church disciphne among, 226.

mode of, for supporting public worship, 227,

nature of the " Associations" of, 228.

pastoral office among early, lost by dismis-

sion, 228.

Congregationalists, ordination among, how perform-
ed, 228.

Congregationahsts not Independents in practice, 229.

'• Consociations" among, nature of, 229.

Congregationalism, opinions of, as to preventing
heresy, 279.

340

INDEX.

Connecticut, early settlement of, 17, 56.

" union of Churcli and State in, dissolved,

112.
Convent at Charlestown, burning of the, 270, note.
Conversion of a young man by a particular mode of

preaching, 205.
Covenant, Half-way, introduction of the, 273.
Covenanters (see Reformed Presbyterians).

Deaf and Dumb, history of asylums for the, 179.

Deists, notice of, 286.

Delaware, early settlement of, 19, 68.

" early relations between Church and Stale

in, 90.
Delaware, character of the Swedish settlements on

the, 68, 69.
De Tocqueville, works of, on America noticed, 31, 32.
•' erroneous opinions of, noticed, 194,

note.
District of Columbia, origin of the, 35.
Dwight, Rev. Dr., opinion of, on union of Church

and State, 115.

Education, attention of Puritans to, 147.

" societies of different sects, 157, 159.

Edwards, Rev. Jonathan, character of preaching of,
198, 274.

Edwards, Rev. Jonathan, labours of, among the In-
dians. 295.

Eliot, Rev. John, missionary labours of, 294.

English language first introduced in Dutch church-
es of New- York, 65. '

Episcopal (see Protestant).

" Evangelical Association," account of the, 261.

Evangelical churches, three divisions of, 220.

statistics of missionary efforts of, 317.

■ General statistics of, 264, 265, 269.

Foreign Evangelical Society, origin of the, 313.
Fourierism, notice of, 286.
Frelinghuysen, Rev. I. J., notice of, 65.
French colonists, character of the, 25.

Georgia, early settlement of, 19, 63.
German colonists, character of the, 24.

" Reformed Presbyterians, account of the, 260.
" Transcendentalism, 278, 279.
Germantovvn, Pennsylvania, when founded, 80.
Germany, early immigration from, 80, 81.
Goodell, Mr. Solomon, systematic benevolence of,

328.
Gurney, Mr., happy influence of visit of, to the Uni-
ted States, 336, note.
Gustavus Adolphus, colonization plan of, 68.
death of, 68.

Half-way Covenant, introduction of the, 273.
Hanover Presbytery, memorial of, to Virginia As-
sembly, and opposition to, 106, 108.
Harrison, General W. H., a Sunday-school teacher,

155.
Harvard College, when founded, 1 53.

" " early opposition to Unitarianism

in, 276.
Henrico, University of, noticed, 61.
Henry, Hon. Patrick, notice of, 109.
Hopkins, Rev. Ur., sermon of, in Boston, 1768, 275.
Huguenots, origin of the, 75.

" immigration of, to America, 77, 78.

" interesting facts respecting the, 78.

" eulogiiun on the, 80.

Hunt, Rev. Robert, notice of, 62.

Immigration, extent of, from foreign countries. 42.
" influence of, on the Voluntary Princi-

ple, 42, 43.

Indians, Society for Propagating the Gospel among,
277, 278.

Indians (see Ahnri^ines ami North America).

Insane, asylums for the, 178.

Irish colonists, character of the, 24.

Italian colonists, character of, 25.

Jefferson, Hon. Thomas, proposal of, for establish-
ing religious freedom, 110.

Jews, notice of the, 283.

•' American Society for benefit of the, 313.

Judicial order, striking instance of, in a new settle-
ment, 332, note.

Kentucky, peculiar character of revivals in, 201.
Kirkland, Rev. Samuel, missionary labours of, 295,.

Laidlie, Rev. Dr., anecdote of, 66, note.
Lamed, Rev. Sylvester, anecdote of, 188.
Liberia, influence of colony at, 315.
" Methodist mission at, 316.
Lindsay, Memoir of, by Belsham, 276.
Livingston, John and Robert, notice of, 65.

Dr. J. H., notice of, 66.
Lowell, Massachusetts, statistics of, 182.
Lutheran Church, history and statistics of the, 257,.

259.
Lutheran Church, Theological Seminary of the, 164.
" " Foreign Missionary Society of

the, 312.
" Lynch-law" very rarely executed, 332.

Maryland, early settlement of, 18.

" effects of early union of Church and State-
in, 90, 96.
Maryland, early religious toleration in, 62.

" effects ofdisunion of Church and State in,
115.
Maryland, Declaration of Rights in. 111.
Marryat, Captain, opinions of, noticed, 271, note.
Mason, Dr. J. M., originator of Theological Semi-
naries, 159.
Massachusetts, early settlement of, 17, 52 54, 55.

" the last to dissolve union of Church,

and State, 116.
Massachusetts Bay Colony, trials and prosperity of,

55.
Massachusetts, dissolution of union of Church and*

State in, 112.
Massacre at St. Charles city, Virginia, notice of,

61.
Maternal Societies, 156.
Mather, Cotton, notice of, 101.
Mayhew, Rev. Thomas, missionary labours of, 294.
Mennonists, account of the, 261.
Methodist ministers, salaries of, 323, note.
Methodist Episcopal Church, history and organiza-
tion of, 245, 246.

religious belief and discipline of, 246.

statistics of the, 249.

Home Missions of, 145.

Foreign Missions of the, 310.

Methodists, Primitive, account of the, 262.

" Allenite, notice of the. 262. *

" Protestant, origin of the, 262.

" Calvinistic, notice of the, 263.

« Stilwell, notice of the, 262.

Ministers, salaries of, how raised, 136.
" extent of support of, 137.
" how trained and settled, 138.
" proportion of evangelical Protestant, to-
the population, 322.
Ministers, evangelical, not sufficient for present

need, 323.
Ministers, total amount raised to support, 323.
Montgomery, rapid growth of the town of, 135.
" Moore's Charity School," notice of, 295.
Moravians, notice of the, 81.

" Church of the, account of, 250.
" Foreign Missions of the, 312.
Mormons, origin and character of the, 285.
Morris, Mr. Samuel, notice of, 105.
Muhlenburg, Rev. .Mr., anecdote of, 113.
Murders, comparative number of, in England and

America, 334.
Murders, large proportion of, in United States com-
mitted by foreigners, 334, note.

Nassau Hall College, when founded, 67.

INDEX.

New-England, indebted to the religion of the colo-
nists for its character, 32, 33.

cause of rapid growth of settlements in, 57.

apology for the Fathers of, 58.

religious character of, 59.

influence of early union of Church and State

in, 91-96.

relations between Church and State in, 87.

proposal to divorce the Church from the

State in, how received, 115.

introduction and history of Unitarianism in,

272, 275.

New-Hampsliire, early settlement of, 17, 57.
New-Jersey, early settlement of, 18, 66.

early eminent ministers of, 67.

• early relations between Church and State in.

90.

College of, established, 67.

New-Orleans, more of a foreign than American city,

334.
Newton Theological Seminary, notice of, 164.
New-York, early settlement of, 18, 64.

" intolerance of early Episcopacy in, 98.
" early Indian war in, 64.
" character of first colonists of, 64.
" early relation between Church and State
in, 90.
North America, geography of, 9-11.

discovery of, noticed, 15.

account of the Aborigines of, 12-15.

colonization of, 16-23.

curious colonial charters of, 27, 28.

forms of government in, 33, 34.

views of first settlers of, on rehgious tolera-
tion, 38.

character of early colonists of, 83.

relations between Church and State in, 84.

churches and ministers in, at the Revolu-

tion, 103, 104.

union of Church and State in, gradually dis-

solved, 104.

early efforts to convert the Aborigines of, 293.

obstacles to conversion of the Aborigines, 295,

296.

sentiments respecting the extinction of the
Aborigines, 296.

causes of the decrease of the Aborigines, 296.

removal of the Indians by Government, 297.

governmental sanction to missions among

the Aborigines, 299.

similarity of original tribes of, 12-15.

• advance of civilization among Indians of, 299.
causes of success of evangelical religion in.

320.

General and State Governments of, not indif-
ferent to religion, 320.

grounds of hope in relation to the churches

in, 321

union of Church and State in, when termi-

nated, 323, note.

foreign objections to rehgious institutions of.

330.

• religious institutions of, not chargeable with
immoralities, 330.

religious institutions of, not chargeable with

political broils, 331.

■impositions in, as reported in Europe, 331,

prejudices against coloured people in, 331,

note.

financial integrity of General and State Gov-
ernments of, 330.

settlement of the interior of, 20-23.

Northampton, Massachusetts, notice of revival at,
198, 274.

North Carolina, first settlement of, 19, 63.
" " early relations between Church and

State in, 90.

Owenism, notice of, 286.

" Panoplist," commencement of, in Boston, 276.

Peace societies, 176.

Penn, William, notice of, 69.

Pennsylvania, early settlement of, 19, 70, 74.

" character of colonists of, 70.

Perkins Institution for the Blmd, 180.
Philips Academy, notice of, 149.
Piedmont, immigration from, 82.
Pl)-mouth Colony, account of the, 47-51.

ecclesiastical regulations of the, 84.

causes of aversion of, to prelacy, 86.

Plymouth Company, notice of, 52.
Poland, early immigration from, 81.

" " tradition respecting the, 82.

Political excitement, recent instances of, and re-
sults, 333.

Political disturbances in United States, how exag-
gerated abroad, 331.
Political institutions, firm attachment to, 332, note.
Poor and afflicted, how provided for, 177.
Presbyterian Church, history of the, 238.

churches, how organized, 233.

quahfications for ministry in, 233.

Board of Domestic Missions of, 142.

mode of communion in the, 187.

Church Session, how constituted, 234.

" " deacons not members of, 235,

Presbytery of the, how constituted, 235.

— Presbytery, powers of the, 236.

ministry in the, how hcensed, 235.

Synod of the, noticed, 230.

General Assembly of the, nature of, 237.

character and influence of the, 240.

origin and progress of Old and New School

parties in, 242.

differences between Old and New School, 244.

the recent separation in the, 243.

statistics of the, 245.

Board of Foreign Missions of the, 307, 308.

Presbyterians, Cumberland, history of the, 252.

" Reformed, distinguishing traits of, 256.

Primary schools, 146.

Princeton Theological Seminary, notice of, 163.
Prostitution, foreign exaggerated account of, 334,

note.
Protestant religion early established in South Caro-
lina, 123.
Protestant Episcopal Church, account of the, 220.

Puseyism, how extensive in the, 223.

Board of Missions of the, 311.

Theological Institution of the, 164.

Providence, Rhode Island, settlement of, 57.
Pubhc worship, total cost of, in United States, 324,.

325.
Public opinion, alleged tyranny of, in United States^

292, note.
Public disturbances and crimes, comparative few-
ness of, 332.
Puritans, origin and character of the, 44-47.
" eulogy on the, 33.
" attention of the, to education, 147.
" religious views of the, 272.
" ecclesiastical usages of the, 272.

Quakers, history and character of the, 263.
" persecution of the, 70, 93.

Rappists, notice of the, 283.

Reformed Dutch Church, history of the, 253.

Home Missions of the, 144.

Theological Seminary of the, 164.

Religious liberahty, noted individual instances cf,

327.
Religious institutions of the United States, best

means of knowing the, 31, 32.
Religious liberty, progress of, in America, 130, 318.
" " present state of, in America, 318.

" toleration, extract on, 319.
Religion, state of, in the colonial era, 99.
" exigencies of, in United States, 131.
" evangehcal, causes of success of, in United
States, 320.
Religion, true source of all success in promoting, 321.

INDEX.

207.

'Religion, institutions of, not chargeable with public
crime, 330.

Religion, institutions of, not chargeable with politi-
cal disturbances, 331.

Repudiation, wrong impressions respecting, abroad,
330.

Repudiation, doctrine of, how viewed in this coun-
try, 3.30.

Revivals of religion, nature of, 196.

character of early, 197.

at Northampton, 198, 274.

extensive in 1740-41, 199, 274.

peculiar character of, in Kentucky, 201.

remarkable, in Yale College, 201.

advantages of and best mode of conducting,

202.

consistency of, with our mental constitution,

instances of opposition to, disarmed, 208.

importance of orderly meetings in, 218.

happy instance of female influence in, 212.

alleged abuses in, 214.

pernicious effects of late meetings in, 218.

who oppose, 214.

causes of prejudices against, 215.

Unitarian objections to, in New-England, 275.

Revival preachers, objections to, 216.

Rhode Island, early settlement of, 17, 56.

Rochester, rapid growth of, 135.

Roman Catholic Church, early establishment of, 270.

conversions from, how checked, 272.

statistics of the, 271.

probable influence of, 271.

Sabbath associations, 176.

" comparatively good observance of, in the
United States, 334.
Sabbath, interest of railroad and steamboat compa-
nies to observe, 334, note.
"St. Charles city, Virginia, massacre at, 61.
. Scotch colonists, character of the, 24.

" persecution of the, 73.
Scotland, early cause of immigration from, 72, 73.

" religious influence of immigrants from, 75.
Scottish Secession churches, account of the, 255.

Foreign Missions of, 312.

Seamen, efforts to promote the interests of, 172.
Sects, advantages of numerous evangelical, 266.
" nature and character of theological discus-
sions among, 290.
Sects, grounds of alleged want of harmony among,

267, 269.
Sects, evangelical, often commingle, 268.
" differences between evangeUcal and unevan-
gelical, 288.
Sects, extent of doctrinal agreement among, 289.
Shakers, account of the, 283.

" recent extraordinary book of the, 284, note.
Slavery, true position of the country respecting, 335.
" how entailed on this country, 335.
" severe clause against, in original Declara-
tion of Independence, 336, note.
Slavery, when abolished by the free states, 336.
" increase of, since the Revolution, 336.
" how to be ultimately abolished, 336.
" an obstacle to promotion of religion, 40.
" Christianity the only remedy for, 336, 337.
" extent of, in the United States, 42.
" difficulties attending the abolition of, 336.
" severity offoreign Christians respecting, 337.
Slavery, proper Christian spirit in relation to, 337, 338.
Smith, Mr. Normand, extract from memoir of, 327.
South Boston, Transcendental sermon at, 279.
South Carolina, early settlement of, 19, 63.

" " early relations between Church and

State in, 90.
Southern States, religious character of the early

colonists of, 60.
State legislation here, friendly to Christianity, 126.
Stoddard, Rev. Mr., peculiar sentiments of, 273.
Story, Chief-justice, opinion of, on State patronage
of religion, 116.

Success, true source of all, in promoting religion, 321.
Sunday-schools, mode of conducting, 154.
Swedenborgians, notice of the, 282.
Swedish settlements on the Delaware, 68.

" " character of the colonists of, 69.

Swiss colonists, character of the, 25.

Temperance societies, 172.

Tennent, Rev. Messrs., opinion of Whitefield re-
specting, 203.
Thanksgivmg-day, publicly appointed, 320.
governor's proclamation for, 320, note.

Theological Seminaries, 159-165.
Tract societies, 168.
Transcendentalism, notice of, 278, 279.
Transcendentalists, charged with Pantheism, 279.
Transcendental sermon at South Boston, 279.
Trinity Church, New-York, funds of, 323, nott.
Tunkers, notice of the, 282.

Union of Church and State, when terminated, 323,
note.

Unitarianism, introduction and history of, in New-
England, 272, 275.

circumstances favourable to the growth of,

275.

different writers on, 276.

early opposition to, in Harvard College and

elsewhere, 276.

early concealment of, 276.

first disclosures of, and results, 276, 277.

first congregation that avowed, 275.

first American writer on, 275.

Unitarians, objections of, to early revivals in New-
England, 275.
Unitarians, early philosophy of, 278.

" " American Association" of, 278.
" religious belief of, 278.
" introduction of Transcendentalism
among, and results, 278, 279.
" United Brethren in Christ," account of the, 261.
United States, geographical notice of the, 35-37.
power of government of, in promoting reli-
gion, 116.

religious character of government of the, 118.

action of government of. Christian, 120.

state governments of. Christian, 120.

when, may be directed to-

wards religion, 127.

church discipline in the, 183.

moral character of ecclesiastical discipline

in, 189.

causes of diversity of religious doctrine in, 287.
■ difference between evangelical and other

sects in, 288.

alleged tyranny of public opinion in, 292, note.

religious literature of the, 169.

misrepresentation of family discipline in, 335,

note.

character of political papers in the, 171.
commencement and progress of religious lib-
erty in, 130.

comparative smallness of standing army iiij

333.

absence of military police in the, 333.

comparative morality of the people of the, 333.

much of the gross crime of, imported, 334.

Universalists, origin of, in the United States, 281.

doctrinal belief of the, 282.

definition of, in the United States, 275. 276.

difference between, and Unitarians, 277.

Virginia, early settlement of, 17.

the first to dissolve union of Church and

State, 105.

religious character of first settlers of, 61.

intolerance of Legislature of, 62.

early relations between Church and State in,

and effects, 88, 89, 96.

legislation in, about religion, 110.

effects of dissolution of Church and State in,

113.

INDEX.

343

Virginia, state of Episcopal Church in, at close of
Revolution, 114.

present state of Episcopal Church in, 114.

act for establishing religious freedom m, 110.

Voluntary Principle in supporting religion, obsta-
cles to, 37-40.

in religion, nature of the, 129.

" " importance of the, 130.

founded in character and habits of the peo-
ple, 131.

developed in Home Missions, 140.

influence of the, on education, 146.

" " on moral reformation, 172.

" " on beneficent institutions, 177.

" " in furnishing a ministry, 322.

efficiency of, in increasing the ministry, 323.

" " m supporting the ministry, 323.

" " in erecting church edifices, 324.

comparative influence of, in raising religious

funds, 325.

Wales, notice of immigrants from, 71.

Welsh colonists, character of the, 24.

Western States, extent of population of 1840, 22.

Wheaton, Hon. Henry, remarks of, on relations be-
tween Church and State, 128.

Wheelock, Rev. Eleazar, school of, for Indian youth,
295.

Whitaker, Rev. Alexander, notice of, 62.

Whitefield, Rev. George, preaching of, at Boston,
274.

Williams, Roger, arrival of, 56.
" " notice of, 92.

Winebrennarians, notice of the, 261.

Winthrop, Hon. John, notice of, 53.

letter of, to members of Church of England

53.

■ arrival of, in this country, 54.

Yale College, remarkable revival in, 201.

THE END.

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Full text of "Religion in America, or, An account of the origin, progress, relation to the state, and present condition of the evangelical churches in the United States : with notices of the unevangelical denominations"

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