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January 1, 1879.]

EVANGELICAL CHRISTENDOM.

Home Intelligence.

THE LATE PRINCESS ALICE.

Allusion was made to the death of the Princess Alice in the churches and chapels throughout the metropolis and suburbs, on Sunday, the 15th ult. At Westminster Abbey, Canon Prothero, in the course of his sermon, remarked that, when a child, the sick ever found in the Princess a sympathising friend, and at her father's death-bed her life might be said to have been consecrated to the work of attendance on the suffering. In times of peace and equally amid the distractions of war, the time and thoughts of the Princess Alice were devoted to hospitals and to the improvement of the homes of the poor. There was not a hospital in London which she had not visited for the purpose of carrying home to Germany plans calculated to relieve the suffering of the sick. It was while engaged in the discharge of her duties as a helper of those in distress that the fatal disease entered her own home, and seized upon every member of her beloved family. A vast congregation assembled at the afternoon service at St. Paul's Cathedral. Canon Liddon, in the course of his sermon, said the people would associate themselves with Her Majesty in her bereavement by their sympathies and in their prayers. They would all pray that the evening of a life which had been adorned by qualities which, in the humblest of her subjects, would inspire an involuntary reverence, might be brightened by those consolations which God alone could give.

RESIGNATION OF THE BISHOP OF DURHAM.

Deep regret has been excited by the announcement that Dr. Baring, Bishop of Durham, has decided upon resigning his see. His lordship has issued the following circular letter to the clergy of the diocese :

Auckland Castle, Bishop Auckland,
December 3, 1878.

To the Clergy of the Diocese of Durham. Reverend and Dear Brethren,-The ailment which has prevented me for the last two months from discharging the more active duties of my office having been pronounced by the highest surgical authorities to be permanent and incurable, I have to-day placed in the hands of his Grace the Archbishop of our Northern Province my resignation of the See of Durham, to be presented by him to the Queen for her gracious acceptance.

It is with much regret and pain that I find myself obliged thus to break my official

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connection with a diocese in which I have spent so many happy years, formed so many valuable friendships, and met with so much kindness and support from persons of all classes. But the rapid advance during the last three months of infirmities which sometimes accompany old age presses upon me the conclusion that the interests of the diocese demand that my place should be occupied by a younger and more active successor.

As I am, through God's goodness, possessed of some private means, his income will not be diminished by the payment of any retiring pension to myself; and I feel confident that you will receive whomsoever may be chosen as the next Bishop of this important see with the same kindness which I met from you when I came amongst you as a stranger, more than seventeen years ago. May God abundantly bless both him and you!

For myself, I need hardly add that the welfare of a diocese in which I have spent more than one-third of my ministerial course must ever retain a place in my heart and in my prayers. And I would fain ask of you that, now and then, when you approach the throne of grace, you would remember your former diocesan, and intercede for him, that, during the short remainder of his life, he may be sustained by grace, mercy, and peace from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ.

Believe me ever to remain,

Your affectionate brother in Christ, C. DUNELM. The Record, after expressing its grief and regret at the Bishop's resignation, remarks that his lordship's late charge explained "his clear and tenacious grasp of the simple Gospel of Christ. The spiritual good he has been permitted to accomplish by his personal efforts and by his noble example will not be known till that day when the Lord will bring to light the hidden things of darkness, and will make manifest the counsels of the heart, and when every faithful servant of the Lord Jesus shall be rewarded, through grace, according to his works. We rejoice to know that in influential posts of usefulness, like Newcastle, Stockton, Sunderland, Bishopwearmouth, and other parishes, he has appointed decided and able ministers of Christ, whose crowded churches show how the people at large value the plain setting forth of scriptural truth. The Bishop's liberality in con

tributions towards benevolent and religious objects is well known in general; but the clergy and active laymen of the Durham diocese have often come across cases where the right hand has been ignorant of the left hand's performances. We have heard of parishes where the greater part or the whole of a curate's stipend has been paid by the Bishop, when he feared the incumbent would be pressed to furnish the means. We have heard, too, of the sons of the poorer clergy being sent at his lordship's expense to finish their education, with a view to their afterwards entering the sacred ministry."

DAY OF INTERCESSION FOR MISSIONS.

On St. Andrew's Day there was special service at Westminster Abbey at 10 A.M. (with Holy Communion), and sermon by the Dean. At 4 P.M., at the conclusion of the afternoon service, the usual lecture on missions was delivered in the nave by the Very Rev. Principal Tulloch, D.D., Moderator of the General Assembly of the Church of Scotland. He referred to the intellectual unbelief among the leading thinkers of the present day, and then went on to show how the doctrines of Christianity were spreading themselves more and more widely through the world. The Church Missionary Society observed the Tuesday following St. Andrew's Day as a day of intercession for missions, and there was a special service in the morning at St. Dunstan's, Fleet Street. The sermon was preached by the Bishop of Huron, and the Holy Communion was afterwards administered.

from his co-religionists, but from his contemporaries at large, that man is assuredly Mr. Spurgeon. He has, however, it would appear, no wish to derive pecuniary benefit from the testimonial; and whatever may be the amount-we hope it will be a very large one-accruing from the bazaar or from subscriptions and donations, the whole sum will be appropriated to purposes of charity, having especial reference to some almshouses for aged women with the foundation of which Mr. Spurgeon has been closely associated, and for which some six thousand pounds are required in order to secure a certain weekly allowance for the inmates. Still, these almshouses form only a portion of the good work done by the eloquent minister of the Metropolitan Tabernacle. The Pastors' College, founded by Mr. Spurgeon, and still directed by him, has trained and sent forth upwards of four hundred young men, many of whom are now occupying prominent positions as ministers and missionaries of the Baptist denomination. In addition to a hundred regular students in the College itself, some three hundred young men are receiving instruction at the evening classes, and about two thousand children are sedulously taught in the day and Sunday schools. Then Mr. Spurgeon has organized a Colportage Association, by whose agency eighty travelling chapmen are employed in the dissemination of religious literature in the rural districts; while, besides many other beneficent or educational societies connected with the Metropolitan Tabernacle, there is the The daily press of the British metropolis Stockwell Orphanage, which harbours two is usually slow to recognize the importance hundred and fifty boys under its fostering of Evangelical movements and the merits of care. Of all these undertakings, Mr. Spurgeon, Evangelical men. It is, therefore, with the it must be remembered, has been the mainmore satisfaction that we find an able leading spring and the constant guide and director; article in the Daily Telegraph of the 19th and yet all these, again, form only a part of ult., bearing testimony to the value of the his work. More than twenty years have labours, viewed from a secular stand-point, elapsed since the publication of the first of the minister of the Metropolitan Tabernacle. number of the New Park Street Pulpit,' Among other remarks, there occur the follow- and ever since Mr. Spurgeon has been a coning: "There is a movement on foot for pre-tinuous and prolific contributor to theological senting a testimonial to Mr. C. H. Spurgeon on the completion of the twenty-fifth year of his pastorate in South London; and the multitudinous friends of the most popular Dissenting minister of the day have resolved to make the proposed testimonial worthy of the occasion. Towards this object there will be held at the Metropolitan Tabernacle a bazaar, wich will commence on Tuesday, December 31, and be continued during several days. If there be any man alive who deserves a splendid testimonial, not only

POPULAR PREACHING AND PHILANTHROPY.

literature. His sermons are printed every week, and are not only circulated wherever the English language is spoken or read, but have also been translated into many Continental tongues, and even into Asiatic ones. Nor have the productions of this indefatigable worker been exclusively confined to doctrinal subjects. He has done much in miscellaneous literature, and his admirers speak enthusiastically of a racy little volume of his writing, entitled 'John Ploughman's Talk.' Nor must his claims to distinction as a public

January 1, 1879.]

lecturer, equally humorous and instructive, ferred the degree of Bachelor in Divinity be forgotten. He lectured long ago on the upon the Rev. Thomas Patrick Hughes, of Gorilla, and more recently, taking 'Candles' Peshawur, in consideration of his distinfor his text, he discoursed in the most charm-guished missionary and literary services, espeing manner on bull's-eye lanterns and 'long cially in translating the Scriptures into sixes,' waxen flambeaux and farthing rush- Pushto, the language of the Afghans. lights. So much for the pastor of the Metropolitan Tabernacle as a philanthropist, an educator, an author, and a lecturer. The brighest leaf in his chaplet of laurels remains yet to be mentioned. Without any preten

sions to vast erudition either of a classical or a theological nature, and without any special rhetorical accomplishments, Mr. C. H. Spurgeon is certainly one of the most naturally eloquent, impressive, and sensible preachers of the age. He has kept his hold on his congregation in New Park Street, and at the Metropolitan Tabernacle, for five-and-twenty years, and has throughout that term found such acceptance from his prodigious congregation that to seek a parallel for his prestige and his influence we must go back to the time of Wesley and Whitefield, or, much farther, to the days of good old Hugh Latimer preaching at Paul's Cross."

"Fearless honesty, courage, and singlemindedness" as a preacher, "combined with unaffected philanthropy and kindliness of heart," are specified by the Telegraph as Mr. Spurgeon's special characteristics, and as telling the secret of his brilliant and continued success.

THE LATE MRS. TAIT.

It is our painful duty to record the death of Mrs. Tait, wife of the Archbishop of Canterbury, which took place on the night of the 1st ult., in Edinburgh, where the Archbishop and his family had been staying on a short visit to a relative. Very general sympathy has been expressed with the Archbishop. His only son, the Rev. Crauford Tait, whom he lost this summer, full of promise, at twenty-nine, is followed to the grave by the devoted mother, who nursed him with such tender care through the spring, having, it is believed, never recovered from the shock of that bereavement. During the tragical affliction of the deaths of the five children of the Archbishop and Mrs. Tait, when at Carlisle in 1856, and through the severe illnesses of her husband, she nobly sustained him, and will be long remembered in Carlisle as well as in London. "The name of Catherine Tait," says the Guardian, "is a household word among the charities of the kingdom, and her works do follow her."

The Bishop of Rochester has at length accepted the resignation of the Rev. Arthur Tooth, of the Vicarage of St. James's, Hatcham.

Canon Beadon, Rector of North Stoneham, near Southampton, has just entered his 102nd year.

The Wesleyan Methodist Thanksgiving Fund has been nobly begun. At a meeting held on the 3rd ult., at City Road Chapel, various members of the two London districts promised £31,248 towards the required amount (£200,000).

The Rev. Dr. Alexander Maclaren, the well-known Baptist divine, having completed the twentieth year of his ministry in the Union Chapel, Manchester, was recently presented by his congregation with a testimonial of their admiration of his character and work, consisting of an address, a cheque for 2,000 guineas, a handsome timepiece, a type-writer, and a gold watch.

The Rev. Thomas Graves Law, an esteemed and scholarly father of the Brompton Oratory, author of the "Calendar of English Martyrs," and other critical works, has seceded from the Roman Catholic Church. His father, Prebendary Law, son of the first Lord Ellenborough, was among the earlier recruits from Tractarianism to the Papal communion.

A large number of barristers, solicitors, and law clerks assembled on the evening of the 11th ult., at the Mission Hall, adjoining St. George's Church, Bloomsbury, to welcome the Lord Chancellor, who had been announced to preside at the half-yearly meeting of the Lawyers' Prayer Union; but his lordship having been summoned by Her Majesty to Windsor, the chair was taken by Mr. Bompas, Q.c. He was supported by the Common Serjeant (Mr. W. T. Charley, M.P.), Mr. Robert Holmes White, and other barristers and solicitors. The meeting was addressed by Mr. Robert Baxter, Dr. Robert Anderson, the Common Serjeant, Mr. P. Vernon Smith (of the Chancery Bar), Mr. J. T. Campbell, solicitor, and others.

At the last annual meeting of the Cabmen's Mission, the report, read by Mr. Jesse Dupee, stated that, instead of a Christian cabman being a curiosity, there were a thousand of The Archbishop of Canterbury has con- them in the streets of London, and about the

same number of teetotalers. It appears that there are 13,900 cabmen in London, and among them are men who have been lawyers, clergymen, and doctors, and there is one who has a right to the title of "Lord." Mr. S. Morley presided; and among the speakers was Colonel Sir E. Henderson, who said that the cab fares paid in London amounted to about £4,000,000 yearly.

The death is announced of the Rev. J. H. La Trobe, Hon. Canon of Carlisle, who was Incumbent of St. Thomas's, Kendal, from 1840 till 1865. Deceased was the son of Bishop La Trobe, of the Moravian Church, and inherited his love for psalmody. He was the author of several works, including " The Music of the Church" and "Songs for the Times."

The death is announced of the Rev. Clement Bailhache, one of the Secretaries of the Baptist Missionary Society. The malady from which he suffered was cancer of the liver a disease which was induced by the persistent ardour with which he worked in the interest of missions. He was born in Jersey, in 1830; after his conversion, he

dedicated himself to the work of the min istry, and in 1851 entered Stepney College. He was successively Pastor of South Parade Chapel, Leeds; Beechen Grove Chapel, Watford; and Cross Street, Islington. In 1870 he became one of the Secretaries of the Baptish Missionary Society, the duties of which he so efficiently filled until his decease.

We have to record the decease of the Rev. J. Wilkins, Pastor of Queen Square Baptist Chapel, Brighton. When attending the Conference of the Evangelical Alliance in New York, the year before last, he was offered a pastorate, proving as popular in America as in his own country. At the funeral the remains were followed to the grave by between twenty and thirty ministers, representing all shades of opinion; whilst hundreds of children from the various Sabbathschools sang hymns in the cemetery, which was thronged by the general public. One of the hymns was composed by the deceased himself for his funeral; the music also was his own. It was composed twenty years ago for his burial service.

Monthly Survey of Missions.

TURKEY.

On their recent visit to this country, as we learn from the Church Missionary Society's Intelligencer, the Rev. Dr. N. J. Clark and the Rev. Dr. A. C. Thompson, Secretaries of the American Board of Missions, and Dr. E. Bliss, Missionary from Asia Minor, belonging to the same Board, were introduced to the committee, and interesting information was given by them on the progress of the mission work carried on by the American Board of Missions during the last sixty years in Constantinople and Asia Minor. They acknowledged, with thankfulness, the faithfulness with which the Church Missionary Society adhered to the principle of non-interference with the fields of other societies, and they informed the committee, on behalf of their Board, of their purpose to extend their work to the Moslem population, amongst whom they were labouring, so far as the door was opened for it, and expressed strongly their opinion of its being both unadvisable and unnecessary that the Church Missionary Society should enter upon the same field.

INDIA.

All Protestants in India (writes a correspondent of the Weekly Review) have cause for thankfulness that the English Church had last year some admirable counteractives sent to the Romeward tendencies that were setting in. I refer to Bishop French, of Lahore, and Bishop Titcomb, of Rangoon. Unhappily, however, Bishop Mylne, of Bombay, is an extreme Ritualist, like Bishop Copleston; and though Bishop Johnson, the Metropolitan at Calcutta, has more sense than both, and less imprudence than either, he is strengthening in a cautious way High Church action. In the Punjab, though Bishop French be a thoroughly sound man himself, he is hindered by chaplains not like-minded; and of these his gentle, loving nature is too tolerant, whilst their teaching imperils souls.

A terrible famine prevails in the Valley of Cashmere. In some parts it is believed that from one-fourth to one-half of the population have perished. The Punjab Church Missionary Committee, having received handsome contributions for the relief or the people, have directed two missionaries to buy up grain in the Punjab and hasten with it across the mountains into Cashmere.

The movement among the heathen in those parts of Tinnevelly worked by the Propagation Society, which has led so many thousands to place themselves under Christian instruction, has now, we rejoice to say, spread to the Church Missionary Society districts. Some hundreds have already been received by Bishop Sargent and his native clergy in each of three or four districts. In the Paneivilei district alone, 419 families in 26 villages, comprising some 1,500 persons, have come over.-C. M. Gleaner.

The Bishop of Calcutta, in a recent visitation tour, consecrated a small church which has been built at Khairwarra, among the hills of Rajpootana. Khairwarra is a small military station, and around it dwell the Bheels, one of the aboriginal tribes, who were driven up to the hills, by the Aryans, a thousand years before Christ. They number about three millions; they have no caste, nor priesthood, and no systematic effort has been ever made to evangelise them. They are said to be open-hearted and truth-loving, where they have not been depraved by contact with the Hindus. It is earnestly desired that the beautiful little church now built should form a nucleus of missionary effort among the Bheels; and the Rev. E. H. Bickersteth, Vicar of Christ Church, Hampstead-whose sonin-law (adjutant of the regiment stationed on the spot) and daughter are taking the lead in this good work-asks of the Church of England one of her trained sons, who may minister to the officers at the station and also become the first missionary there. "He would be," writes Mr. Bickersteth, "if called of God and clothed with the Spirit, the apostle of the Bheels." The Bishop writes to Mr. Bickersteth from Khairwarra on September 30 last: "The earnest devotion of your excellent daughter and son-in-law is making itself felt by all who are connected with the station, and the natives manifest quite an interest in the building of the church. I have quite satisfied myself that this place may well be fixed upon as a most suitable centre for missionary operations among the Bheels. I venture to hope that you will not be deterred from making a bold venture in our Master's name even without the support of a society. I am sure that a special mission started in this independent way would call forth much sympathy and support; you would be able yourself to select the man for the work, and if he were a true and faithful man, he would soon secure help out here. I would most gladly contribute towards the maintenance of the mission, and would do all in my power to create an interest in it. I feel that I am taking a liberty in thus asking you to cast your bread upon the waters, but I make a resolve that I will never let the work, once commenced, die for want of nourishment. I find that there are orphan children in the place, and I am arranging with your daughter that an orphanage on a small scale should at once be started; this is always a hopeful department of mission work. I seem to feel that she may become the foundress of the Church of the Bheels, and her personal devotion seems likely to accomplish more than any society could effect. Let me know your feelings on this interesting subject, and be assured of my earnest desire to assist you in giving expression to them."

The Rev. J. E. Payne, a missionary recently returned from India to this country, calls attention to the action of the Government of India with reference to the Lord's-day. He writes: "There is an old English Act of Parliament, called An Act for the Better Observance of the Lord's-day,' which has made Sunday a dies non in England for centuries. Much of this old Act of Parliament is necessarily obsolete. Its value is that it makes Sunday what lawyers call a dies non. As long as this Act of Parliament remains in force, elections, proceedings in courts of law, commercial transactions, and so forth, are illegal on a Sunday in England; and up to October 1, 1877, this Act of Parliament had effect in India also. But in the earlier part of 1877 Lord Lytton's Government, advised by the Hon. Mr. Stokes, the Legal Member of the Supreme Council in India, repealed this Act of Parliament, so far as it had effect in India; consequently from October 1, 1877, Sunday has ceased to be a dies non throughout India. Before I left India in March last, I was present at three meetings of the Calcutta Missionary Conference at which this was considered. That conference is composed of missionaries of all denominations. There was no difference of opinion as to the importance of getting the mischievous work of Lord Lytton's Government in this matter of the Sunday undone. The conference decided to address the authorities; but before the Government will be induced to restore the law in India relating to Sunday to what it was up to October 1, 1877, Christian people in England must take the trouble to understand the exact nature of this mischievous Indian legislation, and get the subject brought to the front in the British Parliament. What would people in England say if the law were to be quietly altered, so that municipal elections might legally take place, as they do in France, on a Sun

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