Getting a New Minister.

II." Letters of Commendation."

BY A "LIVE" DEACON.'

ALTHOUGH perfectly satisfied that our theory of the election of the new minister by the church that is to receive his ministrations is right, and is the only right one for a New Testament church; yet I am in no measure content with the common methods of "ministerial introductions," followed by excited and keenly contested "preaching matches," so largely practised by our Free Churches. Such " ways and means" may be inevitable in the present state of affairs, and unavoidable for some time to come; but if so, more's the pity, for assuredly they are bad enough. Worse plans could scarcely be hit upon if we were to fling an indiscriminate collection of suggestions on all sorts of subjects into a bag, shake them up, and then take the first that came out and work on it. They lack common sense, reliable security, facility of operation, and indeed all the marks of an efficient method: and so it comes to pass that just as now and again directors of companies are chosen who never were fit to sit on any board but a tailor's, and wield no instrument other than a "goose;" so some men are voted into pastorates, who prove their incapacity before they get their first quarter's stipend, and add fresh evidence to the melancholy pile every week afterwards.

As a matter of course ministers will commend one another. It is natural they should; but it is not necessary that churches should treat ministerial "letters of commendation" with an exaggerated and wholly unwarrantable confidence. The eulogist studied in the same College, possibly, with the subject of his panegyric: they grew together in those early years when the sympathies are fresh and ardent, and attachments are made to last for ever. It would be unbrotherly not to pen the praiseful word, not to paint the partial picture, not to open the door of future promotion and prosperity with the golden key of loving admiration. And even if that is not the case, still the ministry is closely akin to, if it is not actually, a profession; and a certain law of " good turn deserves another" obtains, which finds expression in such phrases as taking care of the cloth" and "helping a brother along," whereby it comes to pass that A. and B. join in saying all that is good of C. and D. to the church at Z.; and C. and D. cheerfully return the favour for A. and B. at Y.

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I am aware that even a "live" deacon should think twice and even thrice before he protests against an arrangement that seems ministerially so natural, beneficent, and expeditious; but I may say that I have thought not twice or thrice only, but scores of times, on this subject, and am so sure that the plan is incurably vicious, and the parent of incalculable mischief, that I warn all churches against its adoption. Besides being essentially unbusinesslike-for I should never dream of accepting the witness of a fellow-clerk as a sufficient recommendation, if I were in quest of a clerk or manager of a department—it has the vice of making too large a demand on ministerial human nature-a human nature, I may add from lengthened observation, very like other human nature in its defects as well as in its excellencies.

Of course there is no conscious dishonesty, though there may be a little cowardice. For example: I have a "copy" of a "letter of commendation before me in which an old fellow-student says of his friend of fifteen years ago, that "he is very earnest and devoted to his work, is a fluent speaker and a good visitor, and has been very useful"—all which is very likely true enough; but he does not say, what is equally true, that his head is as empty as a big drum, his temper as brittle as glass, and his power of directing others as feeble as a child's. What is NOT said is of vastly more moment than all that is said.

Besides, are we not bound to hope the best for everybody; and why should not a minister think that a brother who has proved incapable at Beersheba only * In reply to the note of "a Constant Subscriber," sent me, let me say, I hope to treat of the Election of Deacons in an early paper.-L. D.

needs to go Dan, in order to achieve the most illustrious success? Square men do not find the square hole all at once. Had not Dobbs himself, who is now at the centre of Jerusalem, to go through the drill of three pastorates before he found his right place in the metropolis? Give the applicant, then, the best word you can. Nobody can tell what good may come out of it. And so the secretary of the vacant church at Queerton receives the written results of this sanguine view of the said applicant's possibilities, and the church arranges to hear him on the first vacant Sunday.

Moreover, men who know much cannot write all they do know. They could frequently express in conversation what they cannot put on paper; for they know how extremely risky a thing a letter is, and that the chances are a hundred to one against its fair and just construction. I heard of a case of this kind only a short while ago. A minister had a letter from a church with a vacant pastorate about a neighbour who was "on the move." He declared that he was anxious "to save them from such a man by all means;" and yet he shrinks from putting these things into writing, even though he might mark them "private" and confidential, because "an improper use might be made of them."

But not to cite other cases, samples of which I have in my possession, I may add that "letters of commendation" may be generally treated according to the following scale of probabilities. Of course there are exceptions;* and wise men will know how to find them out; they will see where there is, and where there is not, any likelihood of bias; will heed the words of men who have proved that they have deeper solicitude for the prosperity of the churches than for any, and all the pastors; will appreciate the courage that says all that is necessary, be it pleasant or otherwise, and so on: but omitting such exceptions, the following scale may be taken as a fair one :

(1.) Letters from fellow-students about one another are worth nothing. Burn them.

(2.) If from a minister in the same town or district, deduct five hundred per cent. for every laudatory word not accompanied with a qualification.

(3.) If from a pastor noted for his readiness to do any body a good turn, and help any lame dog over a style, then take off a thousand per cent.

4. If from a College tutor, accept all that is stated about capacity, working power, and character; but with a good many "grains of salt" if the College is crowded, and the temptation stronger to get men placed than to get them well-drilled, or if the writer is known to have his preferences and antagonisms.

(5.) If from a deacon or elder of the church whose pastor is commended, take care to have special information from reliable quarters as to the relations between the pastor and his officers.

(6.) In all cases remember this is the age of penny postage, quick penmanship, careful and plenteous whitewash; and yet be sure to pay more heed to what is NOT said than to what is actually in the record.

What then? Shall the preacher introduce himself? Well, I see no reason why he should not. The best servant I have is one who came to me in a little trouble, having disagreed with his employers over a trivial matter. I heard the whole case, saw his former master, received a satisfactory statement, and acted upon it with mutual advantage. Indeed the way in which the new minister introduces himself will be a great help to a committee or diaconate in determining his fitness for the vacant post. He is very likely, if vain and selfsufficient, to show it; and if modest and earnest and ready to do his work for the love of it, to reveal that. Indeed I am inclined to think that his letter might be more self-revealing than half-a-dozen "letters of commendation" sent by his friends. And if a "Live" Deacon may quote Scripture "like a parson," I will add, "yet show I unto you a more excellent way."

*We should say there are very many exceptions too; and we will venture to add that the "Live" Deacon does not seem too keenly "alive" to these exceptions. A fuller appreciation of them would perhaps moderate his censure.-ED.

A Chat with the Young Folks.

BY THE REV. W. EVANS.

Do you ask what it is about? Wont you read on and see? or would you rather know at once? Well, I will tell you. It is about a boy who was such a tease to his little brother, and made his home so unhappy, that he had to be sent right away from it.

If I were to try to hide his name I am sure you would guess it before you had read many lines, so I may as well tell you at once. In the home about which I am writing there were two mothers, and each of them had a son. The name of the elder boy was Ishmael, and his mother's name was Hagar. The younger boy's name was Isaac, and his mother's name was Sarah. I do not know in what way Ishmael teased Isaac; but the Bible tells us that Sarah saw him "mocking," that is, making fun, not to amuse, but to annoy. And what made the matter worse, it was on Isaac's birthday that Ishmael was caught "mocking," when of all times he ought to have done his very best to make his brother happy. I expect that this was not the first time that he had made fun of his little brother. I am afraid that he sometimes made wry faces, or pointed his finger at him, or called him cry-baby when he was poorly and fretful, or when he had fallen down and hurt himself. When they went out together for a walk and Ishmael was told to take care of Isaac, I am afraid that he ran away from him to play with bigger boys, and said he did not want to be bothered with such a little chap. I should not wonder if sometimes when he was in an ill humour he went so far as to hit the little fellow, or pinch him, or take his toys from him, and then call him "tell-tale-tit" when he went to tell his mother.

Now, children, was it not cowardly and naughty of Ishmael to act in this way, especially as he must have been ever so many years older than his brother? I hope that my little readers never do anything of the kind. Try and make your little brothers and sisters as happy as you can. This will please father and mother ever so much, and will help to make your home bright and happy. And then trying to make other people happy is sure to bring joy into your own hearts.

When Sarah saw Ishmael mocking, she said what some of our mothers have often said, "I'll tell your father;" and she did tell him. She said, "Father, that tiresome plague Ishmael has been mocking our dear little Isaac again; you will have to send him right away from home, and his mother as well, for there will be no peace while they are here." Abraham was very sorry to hear her talk like this, for he loved Ishmael very much indeed. But he thought over the matter and asked God what he ought to do, and God told him that it would be better for Ishmael and his mother to leave home; so Abraham decided to send them away.

When the morning came on which they were to leave, Abraham packed up some food, something like your mothers do when you are going a long journey, or to spend a day in the country. He gave them also a bottle full of water, and then, after asking God to take care of them and telling Ishmael to be a good boy, he sent them away. They had to journey through a wilderness, and as the weather was hot and the way very sandy and dusty, they would soon get thirsty. Boys especially, when they are out at play or on a journey in warm weather, always want to drink a great deal; and as Hagar and Ishmael could not carry a very large bottle with them, the water with which they started would soon be all gone. Then they hoped that they might soon come to a spring; but they were disappointed, and Ishmael began to complain of being very tired and faint. His mother tried to cheer and help him on as well as she could; but his knees began to tremble under him, and at last his strength altogether gave way. His face was very pale-so pale that his mother thought he was going to die. She looked round for some place where she might put him in the shade; but there were no great trees near, nothing indeed but some coarse shrubs, so she placed him under one of the largest of these, and then went and sat down a distance from him, for she felt that she could not bear to see him die.

As he lay there alone in the wilderness, feeling as if he were about to die, his thoughts would be almost sure to go back to the home he had so lately left, and he would most likely wish that he had so behaved himself that he might have remained there.

Ah, children, there are a great many boys and girls who never think as highly as they ought of their homes till they have left them for ever. I hope my little readers will love their homes so much, and behave themselves so nicely, that the remembrance of their early life may be a source of pleasure to them as long as they live. Now what do you think you would have done if you had been in Ishmael's place? I think I can hear one of my readers say, "I should have cried;" and I fancy I hear another say, "I should have prayed." Well, perhaps you are both right: I think you are. It would be no wonder, surely, that he should weep even though he was a big boy; and as he had heard his father pray to God, and had been taught to pray himself, we may be almost certain that he would pray. When he remembered how naughty he had been at home, and that he had sinned against God, and then thought that he was about to die, he would be sure to pray.

Trouble and pain and the thought of death often make people seek help from God who but for these things would forget Him. I hope that all the children who read this pray very often. I do not mean just saying "Our Father," or "Jesus, tender Shepherd," or "Gentle Jesus," as fast as you can, without thinking what you are saying; but I hope that you really think about God, and thank Him for all His goodness, and ask Him for what you want; and if you do this always, then if trouble comes it will be such a joy and comfort to you to feel that you can just turn to our Father and tell Him all about it, feeling certain that He will either help you to bear it or else help you out of it.

Whether Ishmael had really prayed before or not I do not know; but he did in his trouble, and we read that "God heard the voice of the lad." Yes, the great God who made the world, and the sun, and the stars, and the sea, heard the voice of a lad who was lying under a bush in a wilderness. His voice was perhaps so faint and weak that he could not make his mother hear: but God heard him and sent him just what he wanted. The angel of the Lord called to Hagar, who was sitting crying as if her heart would break, and asked her what was the matter with her, and told her to go and lift her boy up, and not to be cast down, for he would get better, and grow up to be a man, and become the head of a great nation. She was very glad to hear this, and got up at once to go to her boy. She had not gone many steps before she saw-what do you think? Why a spring of water. How glad and thankful she would be. How quickly she would fill her bottle, and then hastening to the place where the poor boy was lying, she would put her arm under his head and raise him up and put the bottle to his mouth; and O how he would drink! I can fancy I see him. He would hardly know when to leave off. Perhaps his mother would have to tell him to take care not to drink too much, just as our mothers have told us when we have gone home very hot from our play, and have felt as if we could drink almost a pail full. Nothing is so refreshing when we are thirsty and faint as a nice draught of clear cold water. I hope all my readers are members of the "cold water army," and belong to some Band of Hope. When Ishmael had had some water, he soon felt well enough to start afresh on their journey; and in time God fulfilled the promise made to Hagar by making him a strong man and the leader of a great number of people.

Do you think he would ever forget lying under that bush in the wilderness? I think he would not. He would be almost certain to tell his children about it as they grew up, and would most likely tell them what I want my little friends to remember, namely, that doing wrong is sure to bring trouble, not only to those who do it, but to others as well. One naughty boy or girl can spoil a whole class in the Sunday school, or disturb the peace and destroy the happiness of a household. Pray, my dear young friends, to be preserved from this. Ask the Good Shepherd, who loves you more than words can express, to take away from your heart and life all that is wrong, and to help you to be obedient to father and mother, gentle and kind to brothers, sisters, and playmates, especially the little ones; ask Him to help you with your lessons and to make you diligent at school and at work; and be quite sure of this, that if you are really in earnest you will not ask in vain.

Our Political Crow's Nest.

I. THE OFFING.-Parliament is once more in session; London is full to repletion; the clubs are eloquent with gossip; and the political world is fairly astir. Not yet, however, have the signs of life discernible from our Crow's Nest assumed in all cases a very definite shape and easily recognisable features. The dawning of the political morning is misty, and the barometer undecided. One thing is notable. Benjamin Disraeli has attained the height of human ambition, the grand ultimatum of a life of unflagging toil. The astute Jew is an English Earl, and the sun has shone upon his coronet in the House of Lords. Another fact is apparent. The Tories are raising the cost of administration higher and higher, and the Civil Service List shows an increase of £400,000. This, with the increase in the Army and Navy expenditure, shows that there is no danger of departing from the grand Conservative traditions. A third and most grateful fact is the recovery of its old tone by the Liberalism of the country. School Board Elections, public meetings, and other tests of the national pulse, show that confidence is returning, and that the people are getting ready for the next step forward in equality, justice, and goodness.

II. OUR POLITICO-RELIGIOUS ESTABLISHMENT AND MR. TOOTH.-What that next step OUGHT to be, is made pretty evident by the attitude of the Ritualistic Party of the State Church towards the Civil Courts of the realm. Church papers say that Mr. Tooth was imprisoned for his religion; you might as

truly say that "the Claimant " is

lodged in Dartmoor for his unskilful treatment of Latin and Euclid during his examination. But it is gravely said the Ritualists never assented to the Pub

lic Worship Regulation Act, and therefore they are not rebels. There is not a single tenant of Newgate who has assented to the laws against theft, burglary, arson, etc. Parliament does not ask our assent: it commands our obedience. See, too, how the country's money, the country's time, is being wasted, and justice in other matters delayed, by the consideration of such questions as the "eastward position," the use of wafers, and other points of Popish practise, by the Judicial Committee of the Privy Council in the Risdale case. The time for disestablishment and disendowment has come, and the Liberal party ought to march forward to it, as one man, in the name of outraged justice and insulted Christianity.

III. THE DRINK TRAFFIC.-Of home questions next in gravity to that above mentioned is the National Trade in Intoxicating Liquors. All parties in the State are becoming more and more sensible of the evils of intemperance, and of their dependence upon the trade that is specially legalised and directly controlled by the Parliament of the land. In various forms the subject is attracting the attention of our legislators. The House of Lords is sufficiently awake to appoint a committee to receive evidence on the effects of the legislation of the last thirty years; and we may expect much valuable information from the labours of that committee. The Sunday Closing Question for Ireland is in a fair way for being carried. The Gothenburg system-which consists in carrying on the public-houses on behalf of the municipality by managers who are practically public officials, and who have no interest in the profits of the sale of spirits, and who conduct their houses more after the fashion of an eating house than a drinking shop-will be introduced to the notice of the House by the junior member for Birmingham. We shall be obliged, in some way or other, to secure a diminution of the incitements to drinking in our large towns, or we shall soon be a demoralised and decaying nation. Would that the Christian community would take this question up with the earnestness, élan, and enthusiasm it deserves!

IV. THE QUESTION OF THE EAST.— The much decried autumnal agitations have not altogether failed: they have saved us from the worst effects of the hectoring policy and fluent menace of Lord Beaconsfield, and secured a strong and firm word at the Council of Nations in Constantinople on behalf of the much suffering Christians of Turkey. Russia, obviously in no haste to take up arms, is yet determined not to let the matter rest in the utterly ignoble position to which it was relegated by the Powers at the Council. She has issued her circular, and now awaits the answer of the Powers. So that the question is, Shall Russia go alone in this just and chivalrous effort to secure the rights of the Christians from their barbarous tyrants, and by going single-handed have to fight; or shall the Powers make war unnecessary by their joint and decisive action? Russia has said in every way she can that she does not wish to act alone. All eyes are directed to England. Whether we have amongst us the statesmanship for such a grave crisis as this will soon be apparent.