Services held by the Maryland Union Commission in Charles Street M.E. Church, on the evening of June 1st, 1865 : being the day of humiliation and prayer appointed by the President of the United States of America

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SERVICES

HELD BY THE

'' IN

CHARLES STREET M. E. CHURCH,
On the Evening of June Ist^ 1865,

BEING

([ 2"?ie (I)ay of Humiliation and (Prayer appointed

(by the (President of the United
States of jfimeri'3a.

Sherwood k Co., Printers, Baltiinore

®4^

AMEEICAN UNION COMMISSION,

Nos. 89 AND 91 W. Baltimore Street, Baltimore.

TO THE AMERICAN CRUBGR AND PEOPLE— AN APPEAL.

The desolation that reigns in the South at the present time almost baflfles de-
scription. It challenges our deepest commiseration and magnanimity. Many
of the people are scattered and homeless; their agriculture is broken up ; many
of their homes, churches and school-houses are in ashes ; 'heir towns and cities
are without trade ; their mills and founderies, their canals and railroads, are
destroyed; the people are without employment or the means of support; their
children are without the appliances of intellectual or moral education; their
widows and orphans are weeping beside the graves of their dead, and thousands
of their families are in exile.

To meet this condition of things, and to assist the people to start again upon
the high road of social and national prosperity, The American Union Commis-
sion has heeu orga,nized. It is organized upon a national basis. Its object is
to promote Industry, Education, Freedom, and Christian civilization.

Now that the question of one nation, one Constitution and one destiny has
reached a finality , let us rise in the majesty of a national charity, and help re-
organize the broken fragments of society, and re»bind them around the national
heart. This movement received the endorsement of our late lamented President,
and also receives the cordial endorsement of President Johnson, and must re-
ceive the approval and co-operation of all minds of liberal and comprehensive
views.

An exploration of the field reveals an appalling state of things. The necessity
of immediate and general action is imperious. Thousands of families, that had
no agency in bringing upon this section of our country this state of things, are
in abject poverty and distress. Many of them were in affluent circumstances be-
fore the war. ^

Let it not be said that, when Ireland and other foreign nations were in dis-
tress, we came to their rescue, and that now we hide ourselves from • ur own
flesh. Charity and the common dictates of humanity forbid it. But rather, in
the spirit of a national charity and brotherhood, let us come to the rescue of this
people from starvation and distress. "Blessed is he that c-nisidereth the poor,
the Lord will deliver him in time of tr-ouble." " It is more blessed to give than
to receive." " The liberal deviseth liberal things, and by liberal things shall he
stand." This is as true of nations as individuals. In the name of God, and of
our common humanity, let us act, and act at once. It is but justice to help our
friends, and it is the command of Christ, " that, if thine enemy hunger, feed him;
if he thirst, give him drink, and thus overcome evil with good."

Send moneys to J. jST. Brown, Treasurer, and stores to Gr. S. Griffith, Presi-
dent.

Officers. — G. S. GriflBth, President; Pvcv. C. Dickson, D. D., Vice-President;
J. (J. Bridges 2d Vice-President ; J. M. Frazier, 3d Vice-President; J. N. Brown,
Treasurer, Banker, corner Calvert and Baltimore streets; Rev. F. Israel, Cor-
responding Secretary; Rev- E. R. Eschbach, Recording Secretary; Rev. 0. M.
McDowell, Financial Agent.

Executive Committee.— G. S. Griflath, Chairman ; Wm. Bridges, Jesse Ty-
son, Wm. B. Canfield, Sa.muel M. Shoemaker, J. Henry Giese, J. jN". Brown, J.
C. Bridges, Dr. J. C. Thomas.

Board of Managers of the Maryland Union Commission. — Rev. Cyrus
Dickson, D. D., Dr J. C Thomas, G. F. Hopkins, Rev. H. Dunning, Hon. J. M.
Frazier, John Hurst, G. S. Griffith, J. C. Bridges, Wm. B. Canfield, W. F. Carey,
Rev. John KuUing, J. Henry Giese, J. Russell Kelso, Rev. Fielder Israel, Rev. I.
P. Cook, Dr. J. F. Winslow, John Coates, Thos. G. Makenzie, Wm. Bridges,
Jesse Tyson, R. M. Janny, Wm. Crane, Samuel M. Shoemaker, Henry Kelsey,
John N. Brown, Rev. E. R. Eschbach, W. A. Wisong, Rev. George P. Hays,
John L. Reid, R. H. Williams, Frederick, Md.

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Services held in Charles Street Church, June 1, 1865.

The meeting was called to order by the President of the
Maryland Union Commission, and ably addressed by Rev.
Cyrus Dickson, D. D., and Rev. Lyman Abbott, Secretary
of the American Union Commission, and Rev. Isaac P.
Cook. The meeting was deeply interesting, and a collec-
tion of over ^1,200 was taken to aid this noble charity.

The following programme will indicate the order of ex-
ercises. After the meeting was called to order by the
President, G. S. Griffith, the congregation joined in sing-
ing:

From all that dwell below the skies,
Let the Creator's praise arise ;
Let the Redeemer's name be sung,
1'hrough every land, by every tongue.

Eternal are thy mercies, Lord —
Eternal truth attends thy word ;
Thy praise shall sound from shore to shore,
Till suns shall rise and set no more.

Your lofty themes, ye mortals, bring.
In songs of praise divinely sing ;
The great salvation loud proclaim,
And shout for joy the Saviour's name.

In every land begin the song —
To every land the strains prolong ;
In cheerful sounds all voices raise,
And fill the world with loudest praise.

The Scriptures were read by Rev. A. E Gibson, of the
Broadway Methodist Episcopal Church, followed by a
prayer by Rev. H. Dunning, of the Presbyterian Church.
The congregation then joined in singing the following
verses :

Father of mercies, send thy grace,

All powerful from above,
To form in our obedient souls

The image of thy love.

0 ! may our sympathizing breasts

That generous pleasure know,
Kindly to share in others' joy,

And weep for others' woe.

When poor and helpless sons of grief

In deep distress are laid,
Soft be our hearts their pains to feel.

And swift our hands to aid.

On wings of love the Saviour flew.

To bless a ruined race ;
We would, 0 Lord, thy steps pursue,

Thy bright examples trace.

The meeting was now addressed in a few prefatory re-
marks by Rev. George P. Hays, Treasurer of M. B.
Christian Commission, which were pertinent to the occa-
sion. The Rev. Mr. Hays arose and said that the necessity
of organizing a Union Commission in Baltimore appeared
from the number of refugees that daily flocked to the Chris-
tian Commission rooms for help to return to their homes,
from which they had been driven by a merciless conscrip-
tion. Twenty-five and thirty are coming daily. And then
the utter destitution of many portions of country where the
armies had passed and repassed, devouring and destroying

everything, forced upon the community the necessity of
some organization to meet this condition of things. The
money and stores contributed for the relief of the sick and
wounded soldiers and sailors could not be diverted from its
original design.

He said that many confounded the U. S. Christian Com-
mission and the American Union Commission, by suppos-
ing they were one and the same thing. That the U. S.
Christian Commission had been organized with reference to
the army and navy, and had accomplished a glorious work,
and had nearly finished its legitimate purpose ; but the
Union Commission had been organized with reference to
citizens that had been reduced to poverty and distress by
the war.

He further remarked that G. S. Griffith had received
several letters from Rev. Jos. P. Thompson, D. D., of
New York, President of the Parent Society, urging the
importance of organizing a branch Union Commission in
Baltimore. Mr. Griffith desired such an organization, and
was willing to contribute to its funds ; and beyond this, he
desired nothing for himself. A Board of Manao^ers was
elected, and while Mr. Griffith was on a tour to the South
to inspect the condition of the people, he was elected to the
Presidency of the Maryland Union Commission ; and from
the satisfactory manner in which he had discharged the ar-
duous duties as Chairman of the Maryland Branch of the
U. S. Christian Commission, they have no doubt fixed upon
the right man He also stated that the American Union
Commission had the sanction of the authorities of the U. S.
Government.

Then came the addresses of Revs. Dickson, Abbott and
Cook, which were able, appropriate, and secured the closest

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attention of a large audience to a late hoar. A liberal col-
lection followed.

The following was the closing of the programme for the
evening :

The Watchman's Report.

Watchman, tell us of the night,

What its signs of promise are.
Trav'ler, o'er jon mountain's heigkt,

See the glory-beaming star.
Watchman, does its beauteous ray

Aught of hope or joy foretell ?
Trav'ler, yes, it brings the day —

Promised day of Israel.

Watchman, tell us of the night,

For the morning seems to dawn.
Trav'ler, darkness takes its flight,

Doubt and terror are withdrawn.
Watchman, let thy wand' ring cease,

Hie thee to thy quiet home.
Trav'ler, lo ! the Prince of Peace —

Lo ! the Son of God is come.

Prayer by Rev. Dr. Cole. Doxology. Benediction by
Rev. E. R. Eschbach.

ADDRESS OP REV. DR. DICKSON.

Rev. Dr. Dickson was now introduced to the audience,
and spoke as follows :

My Christian Friends : — I am profoundly impressed
with the fitness of this service ti terminate the solemnities
of this day. The nation has been called to mourn the loss
of her Chief Magistrate, and to humble itself before God, in

view of His dispensations, with prayer and fastings. Je-
hovah, by the Prophet Isaiah, three thousand years ago,
pointed out clearly the manner in which such services must
be observed, in order to secure the divine approbation.
** Is not this the Fast which I have chosen? Is it not to
deal thy bread to the hungry, and that thou bring into thy
house those that are cast out ? When thou seest the naked
that thou cover him, and that thou hide not thyself from
thine own flesh " — Isa., Iviii : 7.

To-night we are met to " deal our bread to the hungry,"
as Jehovah commanded his Israel of old. This is the very
object of ''The American Union Commission."

A few hours after the evacuation of Richmond, on the
morning of the 3d of April, its office was opened in that
city, and began at once to distribute ; at first to all appli-
cants— afterwards, to those commended by ministers of the.
gospel. Now the city is divided into districts, under the
care of trustworthy men, by whom each application is ex-
amined personally and reported.

Stores of all kinds, suitable for the sick, or hungry, or
destitute, as tea, coffee, sugar, flour, farina, crackers, &c.,
&c., are distributed on the recommendation of this commit-
tee of citizens. Besides, the Commission has a large soup-
house, used by the ladies of Richmond during the war, at
which is made, and gratuitously distributed, daily, three
hundred gallons of excellent soup. This soup-house ought
to be called Bethesda — a house of mercy.

As to the extent and duration of the work of the Com-
mission, it must be wide as the immense sections of country
• desolated by the war, and will last as long as its sufierings
and necessities continue.

The urgency is immediate and pressing. Food, clothing,
seed-corn, and implements of agriculture, must be furnished
at once. They are in need of all things. More than a
thousand barns and mills have been destroyed in the Valley
of Virginia and along the eastern slope of the Blue Ridge !
I was told by a farmer in Petersburg that corn, if planted
before the 15th of June, would ripen in the counties about
Lynchburg. The glorious Valleys of the Shenandoah and
James must wave this autumn with fields of yellow corn,
or the woes of famine will oppress the poor people during
the sad days and nights of next winter. The mills must be
rebuilt, and the now broken water-wheel must turn again,
to prepare the flour and meal for the hungry in these un-
happy sections. We must help them to bring back the
lowing cattle, the sheep, the swine, the domestic fowls — the
many things which, before the^desolation of war, made these
sections the garden of the land.

Will the rich States of Maryland, Pennsylvania and New
York, who, a few years ago, sent bread to the millions of
famine-stricken Ireland, refuse now to feed and clothe their
countrymen — their "own flesh and blood?" No, my
brethren ! No, it cannot, it must not, be ! Shall they
who, in 1824, gave a listening ear to the cry of sufl*ering
from far away beyond the blue Atlantic and Mediterranean
and sent to Greece the relief she needed, be insensible to
the wants and woes of their own countrymen? No, my
brethren ! they must be supplied.

As for motives to stimulate us to the work, there is :
First. Our sympathy for sufferings so great, so vast, so
pressing, and so painful — a sympathy that rises irrepressibly .
in every heart.

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Second. Our duty as Christians. The words of the Lord
Jesus are conclusive ; "If thine enemy hunger, feed him ;
if he thirst, give him drink." They need no exposition or
enforcement. They are the words of the Lord Jesus Christ.

If such be the duty to enemies, how much more towards
countrymen and fellow-christians ? Many of these sufferers
are our kindred, " bone and blood," and no more the cause
of these calamities than we ourselves; many of them loyal,
through all trials and exposures, to the flag and graves and
country of our common fathers. If I should feed my ene-
my, much more my friend.

Patriotism demands it. Whatever else these four event-
ful years have shown, this one thing has been plainly de-
monstrated : that the people of this land are to live together.
From the gulf to the lakes, and from ocean to ocean, we
shall be but one country. It is then our highest interest to
cultivate peace and brotherly kindness among ourselves.
There are enough elements in this land to cause continual
strife and division. These "roots of bitterness" will be
eradicated and destroyed, by God's blessing, on such kind
offices and ministrations as we are met to-night to promote.
These will make us *' lepairers of the breach, and restorers
of the paths to dwell in."

In additon to this — if the predictions of God's word be
rightly read — the world is near that final struggle, styled
in Revelations, *' The Battle of the Great Day of God Al-
mighty !" In those tremendous conflicts, it is of the very
last moment to ourselves, our religion, and our race, that
this land should be one in fact, as well as form — one in
heart, as well as one in home.

What, then, so divinely designed to accomplish this true
and happy unity, in view of these near and terrific strug-
1*

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gles, as this feeding diud clothing our destitute and distressed
countrymen ? If we meet the responsibilities now upon us,
we shall illustrate to our* land and to our times, and to all
lands and to all times, ixne philanthropy , religion 2iTi^ patri-
otism ; shall secure the good of our country, the commen-
dations of mankind, and the approbation of God. In after
years, history will record in brighter characters, and the
coming generations read with pro founder pleasure, of our
gifts for the needy, than the struggles and heroism of our
camps and our battle-fields.

ADDEESS OP REV. LYMAN ABBOTT.

Ladies and Gentlemen : — I propose to answer to-night
some questions which are frequently asked me. I wish
indeed you could ask the questions yourselves which you
would wish me to answer. But since this is not admissible,
I must imagine them ; assuming that you will wish sub-
stantially the same information which others have sought.

'What is the Union Commission?

It is a national organization. It consists of Commissions
already established in the cities of Baltimore, New York,
Boston, Chicago, Cincinnati, Nashville, Richmond, Charles-
ton, and other places. These are all united in one National
organization. The officers of the various district Commis-
sions, together with a Central Committee in New York,
constitute the American Union Commission. In its general
features, it thus greatly resembles the Christian Commission,
the practical wisdom of whose organization has been de-
monstrated by its past efficiency.

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What is the object of the Union Commission ?

The first article of its Constitution answers that question.
''It is constituted for the purpose of aiding and co-operating
with the people of those portions of the United Stages which
have been impoverished and desolated by the war, in the
restoration of their civil and social condition upon the basis
of industry, education , freedom and christian morality ^ I
pray you note those last four words. We recognize no civili-
zation that is not bailt upon a universal industry, general
education, the freedom of all men, and the christian religion.
Some think that because the war is over, and peace declared,
and the trumpet and drum know no music but that of
triumph, that therefore our work is ended. No ! It is but
just begun. Where we have destroyed, we must rebuild.

But what specific things has this Commission done, what is
it doing, what does it propose to do ?

I. It has already provided for the immediate and pressing
wants of thousands of refugees. As the waves of war have
surged to and fro over the Southern States, these have
flocked in great crowds to our Nothern borders. Many
haTje been loyal. Most have been helpless women and
children. Multitudes have died from exposure and want.
By scores and hundreds they have been brought by govern-
ment, and laid upon the wharves of St. Louis, Cairo,
Louisville, Cincinnati, in the West, or left in the streets of
Baltimore, Philadelphia and New York in the East. The
State has said, they are not our poor, we cannot provide
for them. The county has said they do not belong to us,
we cannot shelter them. The Sanitary and Christian Com-
missions have properly said we have no right to use our
funds in their behalf. Yet it was impossible for a Christian

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people to suffer tliem to die of want in the midst of plenty.
The first duty of the Union Commission has been to render
these unfortunate sufferers temporary aid. We have been
provided by government with every facility for that purpose ;
transportation, rations, and often buildings have been fur-
nished. Acting under the authority and with the co-
operation of government, the Commission has received these
unfortunates, has provided temporary homes at different
points, has furnished them with food, clothing, shelter,
medicine, has cared for the sick and the infirm, and has
provided the able-bodied with permanent means of employ-
ment throughout the country. It has thus made provision
for many thousands of refugees, and prevented a pauperism
which threatened at one time to be the greatest and most
terrible the world has ever seen.

II. But the war has ceased. The exigencies which have
compelled these people to abandon their homes are over.
Henceforth our work lies chiefly in the Southern States
themselves. The destitution which exists in many localities
there is appalling, Thousanas of people, living in the
midst of a once rich and fertile country, are left without
any adequate means of support. Rich and poor, loyal
and disloyal, guilty and innocent, are overwhelmed in a
common ruin. That ruin, it is true, they have brought
upon themselves. It was the inevitable necessity of war.
Nothing less would suffice to break the spirit and power of
a causeless rebellion. I do not condemn the punishment
as too severe. I defend it as just and necessary. But the
rebellion is ended. The foe prostrate and bleeding lies at the
feet of a victorious nation. There is no need of further pun-
ishment. Magnanimity will scorn to strike a fallen foe ; nay,
will nake haste to give it both the quarter and succor that

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it asks. From the wilds of Arkansas to the Atlantic coafet,
from the valley of the Shenandoah to the Gulf, there comes
to our ears the wail of hunger, the cry for bread. In the
city of Richmond alone some three thousand people were
thrown out of employment by the fires set by rebel hands.
Their little ones cry for food. The impoverished city can
do nothing for them. The richest are poor. Ladies of the
highest position carry their jewels and their family plate to
the commanding General, and beg him to raise a little money
on them to support their destitute and desolate familes.
Shall they be refused? Shall plenty leave poverty to starve ?

I hear the voice of a surly objecter — " Good enough for
them. Starving are they ; and in rags, and dying? Our
prisoners starved and went in rags, and died in Richmond.
Let them eat the bread they set for us,"

Friend ! listen to a story. A year ago last winter, when
our prisoners were sufi'ering the untold horrors of that
terrible imprisonment on Belle Isle, had you been there, you
might have seen every alternate day a poor woman, crossing
in a boat to the p'ace of their confinement. Her husband
had gone North before the war, enlisted in the Union ranks,
never been heard of since, and doubtless lies to-day (-ne of
the great host of unknown dead. Always loyal, this wo-
man's heart was now doubly consecrated to the Union by
the baptism of her husband's blood. In every patriot soldier
she saw a brother. Perhaps she hoped some day to learn
of him, of whose safety she did not yet utterly despair.

Twice or thrice a week, and sometimes oftener, she filled
her basket with provisions, begged in the name of her des-
titute family, or given by a wealthier but equally loyal
neighbor under cover of charity, and carried them to our
imprisoned boys. Often her children begged with tears for

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some addition to their scanty meal from the well filled
basket; but always in vain. Never was shew bread in the
ancient Temple more religiously dedicated to the service of
the Lord, than the contents of that basket, to the service of
christian patriotism. All winter long, at personal hazard
to herself, that poor woman, poor in money, in knowledge,
in position, but rich in great-hearted patriotism, a com-
moner, but of God's nobiUty, all winter long was the Sani-
tary and Christian Commission to our suffering soldiers on
Belle Isle. Last week I saw her in Richmond. She was
without means, money or employment. Her landlady
threatened to turn her out of doors unless she continued to
pay in Uaited States currency the exorbitant rent she had
paid in worthless Confederate paper. And when our agen*-
brought me to her, and I learned the story of her want from
her own lips, while the story of her services I learned chiefly
from the lips of others, tell me, my friend, ought I to have
answered as the message of the patriotic North, " Good
enough for you." In securing for her an employment, and
means of livelihood, did I more than you would have me
do?

III. But there is another work no less important thaa
this of providing temporary relief. Industry is dead. The
mean.^ of industry are destroyed. These must be refur-
nished, that labor may be reviv^ed, and communities saved
from that danger of pauperism which is now really immi-
nent. The people, sick of the rebellion, weary of war,
desire to go to work. Even those who have never labored
are willing to begin. But they are without implements —
they are without the means to buy. They sit in enforced
idleness. If we do not wish one-half our country to be
blasted with the mildew of a permanent poverty, we must

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encourage and assist in the establishment of free and
universal labor. Last week, in company with two others
of our Commission, I took a ride of twenty miles about
Richmond. We calculated that in that ride we saw two
miles of fencing, a hundred acres of corn, and half «s much
of wheat. We saw one sheep, two pigs, and twenty to
twenty-five head of cattle — hors'^s, mules, cows, oxen,
calves, all told. I saw in Richmond one farmer who told
me he had three hundred and twenty acres of land, that his
whole stock in trade consisted of two chickens and one pig,
that he traveled forty miles to buy an axe, and paid four
dollars and seventy-five cents for it, that he spent three
days and a half in hunting for a rake, and finally came
away and left his boy to continue the search. Those that
would work cannot — worse than the ancient Israelites, they
are required to make their bricks without straw, clay, trowel
or kiln. The loyal few of Richmond said : Gen. Ord himself
said, by all means send us seed and implements. I met a poor
woman who had a farm ten miles south of the city. Her
husband was blind — her servants, as in multitudes of cases,
desired to continue with her. "I have no fault to find
with the Yankees," she said. (We are all Yankees now,
you know ) "They were very kind to me. They pre-
served my property until a battle was imminent ; then they
took me away — they pulled down my house to give better
range to their guns — and as the armies swept along, we
were carried with them — and I and my poor husband are
without a home. If I can only get back, and get up a little
shelter, and some seed, and a spade, my servants will come
back, and we can raise enough this summer to get through
the winter." Now one of three things is certain ; either,
in our overflowing abundance wc must sit still with folded

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arms and blinded eyes and deafened ears, and let thafc
woman starve, or we must feed her and her dependent
husband all winter long, or we must send them iiow, the
^pade, and hoe, and rake, and seed, that they may support
themselves. This is true benevolence, to help the indus-
trious and the willing to help themselves. And this is
the work we are doing. We are sending food, clothing,
seed and implements into the States of Arkansas, Tennes-
see, Virginia, North and South Carolina and Georgia, and
mean to extend our work into every desolated State. Nobly,
generously, heartily, have the people of the North supported
us thus far. In about six months, we have expended in
money and supplies, nearly, if not quite, ^100,000 in this
work )f relief and restoration. But what is this among so
many? If every dollar were a hundred the supply would
not be great, nor the work overdone.

IV. The temporary relief of these people is the most
immediate, but it is not the most important work we have
to do. I need not remind you that in many of these States
there have never been any efficient systems of education.
The great mass of the people have grown up in ignorance,
an ignorance which rendered them the prey of the politi-
cians ; which alone rendered this rebellion possible. The
few schools which once existed have been closed during the
war. In one of our schools at Richmond I asked a class of
twenty, the highest class it was, how many had been to
school during the past year. Four raised their hands. One
had been a fortnight, one two months. In Nashville there
has been no school since the occupation of the city. For
four years the boys of the South have been running wild ;
the devil has been their only teacher. A few shools have
been preserved amid the general wreck. The work of

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education we are entering upon. We can obtain scholars,
teachers, buildings. We only need the money to open at
once hundreds of schools, where the lessons of Union,
liberty and the christian religion, shall be wisely taught,
and you may be sure, gladly learned.

V. Such is our present work, while other labors loom up
in the future, indefinite but grand. A free press must be
established, and will require aid from Northern capital.
Emigration must be stimulated, guided, directed. Statis-
tical information must be obtained and made accessible. In
short, all things must be done necessary to bind together
these States in a Union of love, as well as of law.

A great work is this, you say ; and impracticable. Great
it is — but the American people are a great people. Im-
practicable it is not. Daniel Webster, standing upon
Bunker Hill, where he was to speak upon the dedication of
the monument, was so pressed upon by the swaying crowd,
that there was danger that platform and speaker would be
overwhelmed and crushed, "Stand back a little, gentlemen,"
said he. "It is impossible, Mr. Webster," replied some
one in the crowd. "Impossible," echoed the great states"
man, "nothing is impossible on Bunker Hill." Great is
the work I have endeavored to depict to you — but not
impossible. Nothing is impossible to those who by the last
four years have demonstrated their ability to accomplish
impossibilities. A great work it is; and as glorious
as great. I do not wonder that President Lincoln, who
with his own hand revised our Constitution, and endorsed it
as it stands, said, when the purpose of this Commission was
explained to him, "Gentlemen, it is a work that must be
done, and receives my hearty sanction." I do not wonder
that President Johnson, who had known something of its

18

operations in Tennessee, said last week to a delegation
which visited him, "Grentleraen, anything I can do, per-
sonally or officially, to aid you in this work, I will gladly do."
It is not strange that every department of the government
affords us needed facilities ; nor surprising that those gen-
tlemen of the South whose loyalty, tried in the hot furnace,
has come forth as gold seven times purified, should every-
where receive us with a cordial greeting of warmest welcome.
This is not a work of charity I set before you, it is one of
patriotism. We have but one country. The boundaries of
the States do not separate us ; they only bind us in a closer
union. The desolations of Tennessee, Virginia, the Caro-
linas, are the desolations of my own dear land. In the
erection in every State of genuine republicanism, universal
freedom, revived industry, popular education, you, I, every
American possesses the strongest interest. Every American
should make haste to participate in the work of establishing
a Christian civilization. But of all States in the Union,
Maryland should be first in this sublime labor ; Maryland
that has stood like a rock in the midst of a stormy sea,
about which the waves of secession have roared and rolled
in vain ; Maryland, first to abolish slavery from her own
borders, and only second to adopt the Constitutional amend-
ment abolishing it from all the land ; Maryland, on whose
statute books there stands to-day a system of education
esteemed by competent judges the best which now exists in
all the Union ; Maryland, whose banners are all aglow with
the ruddy light of that latter day glory, toward which now,
thank Grod, the face of the whole nation expectant turns ;
Maryland, not only by her sublime example, but also by
her kindly words and generous deeds, should assist as well
as summon her prostrate companions to rise, that they may

19

stand with her in the same rank, march under the same
banner, and share the same blessings of peace and prosperity,
under the national emblem of liberty and union.

ADDRESS OF REV. ISAAC P. COOK.

Rev. Isaac P. Cook, of the Methodist Episcopal Church,
remarked in substance as follows :

Mr. President: — The "American Union Commission,*'
the interests of which we have met to promote, is a new
candidate for public favor and support.

The introduction of a stranger, is not sufficient to secure
your confidence and co-operation ; it is necessary to know
the object of his visit, and the work in which he proposes
to engage, before you will be prepared to extend to him
your influence, and solicit the aid of others in the promotion
of his enterprise.

Among the most remarkable events of the age in which
we live, was the organization of the "Christian Commis-
sion " The history of its work of patriotic and christian
love, will be read by future generations with wonder and
admiration.

The signal overthrow of the rebellion, and the triumph
of the national arms, will soon render any farther service
by the "Christian Commission," unnecessary. Its noble
spirited leaders will retire from the fields which they have
occupied, with the thanks of the nation and with the ap-
proval of God.

Meanwhile, as the dark cloud of war is being lifted up
from the States in rebellion, new scenes are developing,
and wide-spread avenues are opening before us, for the ex-
ercise of humanity and kindness.

20

Refugees, embraciDg men, women and children, from
Southern States, are seeking shelter among the loyal people
of the country. These sujfferers are destitute of nearly every
earthly comfort, and have no prospect of relief from their de-
plorable condition, except from the people of the loyal States.

The impoverished families of the South are also appealing
for aid. With a worthless currency, destitute of food,
clothing, grain for their fields, agricultural implements to
cultivate their land, and the means of education for their
children ; should not their cry for relief be heard and re-
sponded to, before the cold and storms of the coming winter
set in ?

The loyal among these people, without regard to sex or
color, should be relieved.

Nor should such acts of kindness be withheld from those
who, under the pressure of circumstances surrounding them,
could scarcely resist the tide which swept them into the
Confederate army. No help should be extended to a rebel
in arms ; but when he is conquered and subdued, we may
relieve him, as a suffering, and we hope, a repentant brother.

We have no words of extenuation for the crimes of the
leaders of the rebellion ; but for the masses of the South,
the widows and orphans of those who have fallen in battle,
we have commiseration, and would encourage acts of
christian kindness and philanthropy. 'Tis christian to be
magnanimous, to a discomfited and suffering community.

The •• American Union Commission" proposes to enter
this vast field, and to the extent of the means placed
at its disposal, to relieve the classes of persons we
have enumerated. It is due to the public, that it should
be distinctly understood, that the ''American Union Com-
mission" has no sympathy with treason ! If it were other-

•21

wise, your speaker and those with whom he is associated in
this work, would separate themselves from it. Words of
earnest caution have been addressed to members of this new
* 'Commission," by loyal and patriotic citizens, prompted
on their part, by an apprehension, that inconsiderate aid
and relief granted to the people of the South, may encourage
the spirit of rebellion among them, and weaken the power
of the national government.

Your speaker solicitftd contributions this morning m a
neighboring church for this cause. In one of the collection
plates a note was found, carefully written, nearly in the
following language : ^'Do you think it appropriate to make
collections for the relief of the people who sustained the rebel-
lion, which led to the assassination of President Lincoln^
and that, too, on the day when we have met to commemorate
his virtues?"

This same question has occupied the minds of others. It
should be answered satisfactorily. If this proposed action
is against our nation, if it could in any manner betray a
want of proper regard for the martyr President, then no
loyal man should touch it, or give it his countenance.

This question had to be solved by your speaker, before
this public meeting commenced.

God's Holy Word furnished an answer, ''if thine enemy
hunger, feed him; if he thirst, give him drink." This is
the highest authority.

Not professing to hold converse with departed spirits, no
appeal was made to the spirit of Abraham Lincoln for an
answer to the question proposed by his devoted friend. No
doubt, however, was entertained, if the spirit of that kind-
hearted man could have been invoked for such a purpose,

22
his reply to his fellow-countrymen would have been, "Feed,

CLOTHE, RELIEVE, EDUCATE, YOUR VANQUISHED ENEMIES AND
MINE."

Who doubts it ?

No kinder man breathed than President Lincoln : if he
erred, it was in executive clemency; he was devising meas-
ures of conciliation and kindnsss, when the wickedness of
the rebellion culminated in his assassination.

We have a final reply to the above question, in the ap-
proval of the President of the United States, of the object
and work of the ' 'American Union Commission." The facil-
ities of the government will be afi'orded to its authorized
agents and delegates.

Let us, therefore, give to the " American Union Com-
mission," our countenance and generous support. Let
the distributions made by its agents, be just and equal
among the citizens. Let no loyal family be neglected on
account of their color or position in society. Extend gen-
erous aid to the widows and orphan children, of those who
fell in the so-called Southern cause. They erred, grie-
vously erred ; but do not visit the sins of the father upon
his helpless and homeless little ones.

The future character and success of the "American
Union Commission," will depend upon the wisdom and
prudence of its management. As none but known loyal
citizens have the control of its operations, we may confi-
dently rely, that it will always and everywhere, promote
loyalty to the government, the principles of freedom, educa-
tion and morality.

A BRIEF SKBTCH

MARYLANi:) BRANCH

AT a meeliog in bthalf of the Cbrlatiau
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h al Oambcrbad, Md,, od llic evcDing

by the Rev. Wm. H. Gilbert, Army
Agent of tbe Americoo Bible Society :

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