Earlier text: THE PRESENT TRUTHPaul a Sabbath-Keeper.
By I. D. Van Horn
The great apostle Paul was a Jew—a Pharisee. No one will doubt that he kept the Sabbath according to the fourth commandment before he was converted. Query: Did he change to the observance of the first day of the week after his conversion? Most of professors think he did, and refer as proof to Acts 20: 7: “Now upon the first day of the week, when the disciples came together to break bread, Paul preached unto them, ready to depart on the morrow; and continued his speech until midnight.” Any one who will carefully examine the first fifteen verses of this chapter cannot fail to see the following facts:— 1. There were nine persons in the company, including Luke and Paul, all prominent Christian men, on their way from Macedonia to Jerusalem. Verse 4. 2. They reached Troas in five days, and abode there seven days. 3. The day, according to Bible time, commences in the evening at sunset; hence, Paul’s meeting at this place was held on what we now call Saturday night. Verse 7. 4. The breaking of bread was after midnight; after the young man that fell down was healed. Verses 10, 11. 5. Paul departed from Troas at break of day on Sunday morning to journey on foot nineteen miles across the peninsula to Assos. 6. While Paul was holding his meeting the brethren who were with him took the ship and went around the point of the peninsula, more than forty miles to Assos. Verse 13. 7. Paul met them there according to appointment, and they took him in and went on to Mitylene the same day. All this was done on the first day of the week. Too much labor for a Sabbath day. 8. The three following days are mentioned in verse 15, so that we are sure the above all transpired on Sunday. That Paul kept the Sabbath is clearly proved by the following scriptures: Acts 13: 14, 15, 27, 42-44. These, if carefully studied and interpreted, will show clearly the following facts:— 1. That the inspired writer of the Acts of the Apostles, in the use of the word Sabbath, means the seventh day of the week. No writer of any portion of the New Testament ever uses the word Sabbath when he has occasion to refer to the first day of the week. 2. That Paul and Barnabas went into the synagogue on the Sabbath day, to worship, and after the reading of the law and the prophets Paul was requested to speak. 3. Paul improved the opportunity, and in his discourse had occasion to allude to the Sabbath day in a way that shows its succession from Moses down to his time. Verse 27. 4. The congregation was not composed wholly of Jews, for many Gentiles were present, who, at the close of the meeting, besought Paul to preach these same words to them the next Sabbath. Verse 42. 5. Accordingly Paul made an appointment, and almost the whole city came together to hear the word of God. It must be understood that Paul was a chosen apostle to the Gentiles, and if they were to keep a different day for the Sabbath, here certainly was an excellent opportunity to inform them. The eighteenth chapter of Acts affords another clear proof that Paul kept the Sabbath. Verses 1-3, show his engagement with Aquilla as a partner in making tents. In verse 4, we see how he employed his time on the Sabbath. Both Jews and Gentiles assemble every Sabbath to hear this great apostle declare the gospel. When he testifies of Christ the Jews rise up in opposition and close their synagogue against him. But this does not stop his meetings. The way is opened in the private dwelling of Justus who lives hard by the synagogue for Paul to continue his work. Verses 5-7. No doubt he was somewhat discouraged; but his courage is greatly revived when the Lord speaks to him in vision. “Be not afraid, but speak, and hold not thy peace; for I am with thee, and no man shall set on thee to hurt thee; for I have much people in this city.” Verses 9, 10. After hearing this he takes hold of the work with new energy. He continues there a year and six months, teaching the word of God among them. Verse 11. During this time the large church at Corinth was raised up, and, without doubt, a church that kept the Sabbath of the Lord. In a year and six months there are seventy-eight Sabbaths. The working days of each week were employed by Paul and Aquilla making tents, while “every Sabbath,” meetings were held, which shows the custom not only of Paul, but of all the people, both Jews and Gentiles. Near the close of Paul’s life, when a prisoner at Rome, he calls the chief of the Jews together, and makes a statement to them bearing on this question worthy of notice. Thus he says: “Men and brethren, though I have committed nothing against the people, or customs of our fathers, yet was I delivered prisoner from Jerusalem into the hands of the Romans.” Now, if Paul had done so grave a matter as to abandon the observance of the Sabbath of the Lord, contrary to the custom of his fathers, who strictly kept the seventh day, the Jews would have had a very serious charge to make against him. This is sufficient to show that Paul observed the seventh day as the Sabbath of the Lord our God. I. D. VAN HORN. (Condensed from Review and Herald.) Buck's Bridge.—The meeting held in this place, Jan. 27 and 28, was attended by Elds. D. M. Canright and S. B. Whitney; Brn. Hall, Wilbur, and Wilcox were also present. The weather being fine, and the sleighing good, there was a general turnout from the surrounding churches. Eld. C. says: “Sabbath day there was deep feeling in the meeting. Sometimes nearly all were in tears. There are more than a dozen young persons here, from fifteen to twenty years of age, the children of our people. They had been brought up to keep the Sabbath, and respect the truth; but they were not Christians. Before the meeting closed, all but one took a stand for Christ.” Lock Haven.—Eld. R. F. Cottrell has just closed a series of meetings in this place. Four have commenced to observe the Sabbath and many others are convinced that the seventh day of the week is the true Sabbath. From here Eld. C. will go to Baltimore, Md., where a hall is already engaged for a course of lectures. Richland.—Bro. Smith Sharp has been laboring in Osage and Shawnee counties for the past six weeks, meeting each Sabbath during the time with the church in this place. Sabbath, Jan. 28, seventeen came forward for prayers, the majority of them for the first time. On Sunday, seven of these were baptized and united with the church. Bro. Miller was chosen and ordained deacon of the church. Osage City.—Bro. Geo. Kennedy reports great interest here. He says: “The people are very much stirred. I called for an expression Sunday night, Jan. 28, and about fifty testified in favor of the Sabbath and not one for Sunday.” Butler.—The interest here is also good. Bro. Wm. Cottrell says: “After giving the reasons for our faith and hope, I called for an expression from all who believed that we had Bible reasons for the observance of the seventh-day Sabbath, when about twenty arose to their feet.” Locust Point.—Brn. O. F. and H. S. Guilford, having given forty-seven discourses, closed their meetings in this place, Jan. 28. They leave “twelve who promised to keep the Sabbath, and a number who are still investigating, having supplied themselves with books. Among the first who commenced to keep the Sabbath was the post-master and the class-leader's wife. There are also several school-teachers who are studying their Bibles to know the truth.” The Sands of Self-Righteousness
Many who have escaped the rocks of gross sins, have been cast away on the sands of self-righteousness. SUPPOSE some cold morning you should go into a neighbor's house and find him busy at work on his windows, scratching away, and should ask him what he was up to, and he should reply: “Why, I am trying to remove the frost; but as fast as I get it off one square it comes on another,” would you not say, “Why, man, let your windows alone and kindle your fire, and the frost will soon come off.” And have you not seen people who try to break off their bad habits, one after another, without avail? Well, they are like the man who tried to scratch the frost from his windows. Let the fire of love to God and man, kindled at the altar of prayer, burn in their hearts, and bad habits will soon melt away. Old minds are like old horses, you must exercise them if you wish to keep them in working order.—John Adams. Peter Crisp's Spectacles.
Peter Crisp had something the matter with his eyes; he needed spectacles to help him to see. But this was no uncommon misfortune; hundreds of people, who do ten good hours' work every day of their lives, use glasses and cannot get along without them. No; the chief trouble in Peter's case was not in wanting glasses; it was in the particular sort of glasses that he used. He had several pairs, which he always kept on hand, nobody knew exactly where; they seemed to be hidden somewhere about the head of his bed, for he often got them on before he was up in the morning. One pair was what I should call smoked glasses, such as persons use in looking at the sun; they do very well for that purpose, preventing the bright rays from hurting the eyes. But Peter did not put them on to look at the sun with; he looked at everything through them. And as this made everything look dark and ugly, he was made to feel accordingly. “I could iron these collars better myself!” he exclaimed one morning as he was dressing, after getting up with those glasses on. And a few minutes later, “Not a pin in the cushion as usual!” and presently again, “Who has taken my comb and brush?” Had any of the children chanced to come into the room about that time, it would have been worse for them. When he sat down to breakfast there was a deep wrinkle between his eyes, caused by the weight of his glasses upon his brow. “That Polly Ann never did make a good cup of coffee in her life,” he remarked. “My dear,” turning to his wife, “I do wish you would take the trouble to go down once—just once, only once—and show her how.” Mrs. Crisp ventured to say in a low voice that she went down every morning. Peter had no reply to make to this, but he puckered his lips as if he had been taking quinine, frowned yet more severely and pushed the cup away from him. After his cheerful breakfast he put on his hat to go to the store, but turned back from the front door and came to the foot of the stairs, when he stood calling out in a loud voice that he really felt ashamed of the black around the door-knob and bell handle. In the street a few moments afterward, a gentleman joined him, to whom he was as pleasant as possible. But when he got into the counting-room, it was plain he had the smoked glasses on still. Not one person about the concern worked as he should, he said—none of them were worth a cent. It used to be different when he was a boy. Then he went out with a look of general disgust. As soon as he was gone the bookkeeper was cross to the clerk, and the clerk scolded the boy, and the boy went out and abused the porter. A few mornings after that, Peter had on what might be called his blue glasses. He was in milder frame, but low in spirits. He was sorry to see the chamber carpet wearing out, for he did not know where another one would come from. At breakfast he watched all the children taking butter and took scarcely any himself. He begged Mrs. Crisp to put less sugar in his coffee. The frown was gone from his face, but a more dejected look had come in its place. Spying a hole in the toe of his boy's shoe, he took a long breath; and hearing that the dressmaker was engaged a day next week for his daughters, he sighed aloud. Walking down the street, he looked as if he had lost a near relative, and at the store all day he felt like one on the eve of breaking. He had one more pair of glasses, the color of which could never be distinctly made out; they seemed more of a mud-color than anything else. He did not wear them so often as either of the others, but when he did they had a very singular effect. It was thought by many that they befogged him, rather than helped him to see; for after putting them on of a morning he would get up and dress hardly speaking a word. At breakfast he would say nothing, and not seem to want any body else to; consequently the whole family would sit and munch in silence; then he would rise from the table and walk out of the front door as if he was dumb; and although it was a relief when he had gone and made matters something better, still a chilling influence remained behind him the whole morning. Peter had been wearing these glasses a good many years, when it occurred to him one day that things never looked very cheerful in his eyes, that he was never very happy, and that perhaps his spectacles had something to do with it. “I wish I could get another and a better pair,” said he. Then he remembered that his neighbor, Samuel Seabright, had to wear glasses also, but he always appeared to see well and to have a pleasant face. Meeting him the next morning, he said— “Neighbor, if it is not making too free, may I ask where you get your spectacles?” “Certainly,” replied Samuel. “I am glad to tell you. They are good ones, and I wish every man with poor eyes had a pair like them.” “I would be willing to pay a good price for a pair,” said Peter. “That is not needful,” replied Samuel; “they are the cheapest glasses you can get.” “Pray tell me where I can find them,” said Peter. “I get mine,” said Samuel, “by the help of a certain physician whose house you pass every day; and if you are truly anxious to get them, I know he will tell you how you can get a pair for the asking.” “I don't want them in charity,” replied Peter. “Then you cannot have them,” said Samuel. “Well,” replied Peter, in a humbler voice, “I'll take them for nothing, or I'll pay a big price for them, for I want them above all things.” “Ah,” said Samuel, “that sounds more like getting them. You go to him and tell him how you feel, and he will tend to your case.” Then Peter did as he was told. The doctor looked at his eyes, and said that the disease in them was one which kept him from seeing the good things about him; all he could see was the evil. “And those glasses you have been wearing,” he continued, “have only made them worse, till there is danger of your getting beyond cure.” “And is there no hope for me?” asked Peter. “Oh yes,” replied the doctor, “if you will follow the directions.” “I will do so,” said Peter. “In the first, then,” he continued, “you must wear those glasses no more. Throw them away or put them in the fire, so that you will never see them again.” “I promise to do so,” replied Peter. “In the next place, when you are given a new pair,” continued the doctor, “you must always walk in the way which they show you to be right.” “I will try not to depart from it,” said Peter. At this there came an invisible hand that took off his old smoked glasses and put on new ones, made of pure crystal, which let the light through just as it came down from the sky. But oh, what a change they made to Peter! He went home, and as soon as he entered the door his house seemed like another place to him; it seemed filled with blessings. “Is it possible,” he exclaimed, “that those glasses have kept me from seeing all these before?” The next morning when he got up he told his wife what had befallen him and how he felt in consequence. “But,” said she, with a loving smile, “how about those badly-ironed collars, and the pins, and the weak coffee?” “Oh,” he cried, “how could I ever let such trifles trouble me?” “And then,” she continued, “here is the carpet wearing out, and the boys' shoes and the girls' dresses.” “As for them,” he said, “we will hope to get more when they are gone. But even if we should not have half of our present comforts and indulgence, with you, my dearest, and our precious children about me, I trust I may feel too rich ever again to utter one complaining word.” So the sunshine came into Peter Crisp's house, and he and all his family led a happier life because of his new glasses, which were, a thankful heart. The ship St. Thomas, Captain, Robert Williams, was bound from New York to Liverpool, in the month of June. Favored by a fresh westerly wind, she soon cleared the land, and on the first Sunday out was going along finely with all drawing sail set. The chief mate, Mr. Wm. Briggs, after the crew had breakfasted, and the watch had been set, asked the captain if he had any objections to calling the men aft to prayers. “No objection whatever, Mr. Briggs, provided you do the preaching and praying yourself; for you know well enough that I have but little faith in such exercises.” Capt. Williams was between forty and fifty years of age, a plain, blunt seaman, who was more ambitious of being considered an enterprising ship-master than a Christian. His mate was not quite thirty, and was indebted to him for his promotion from before the mast to second mate, and then to that of chief mate; they had sailed together many years, and each had boundless confidence in the other. Appreciating the motives of his mate, he always permitted him to have prayers on board when the state of the weather was favorable, although he took no interest in religious matters himself. Mr. Briggs ordered the watch to arrange some seats on the quarter-deck, while he went forward himself and invited the watch below to come aft, and listen to the reading of the Scriptures, and such other religious exercises as the occasion might suggest, remarking at the same time, that it was not his desire to force any man against his will. Without a murmur the watch below, as well as that on deck, repaired to the quarter-deck, and were soon seated around the capstan. The captain took charge of the deck himself, that is, looked out for the proper steerage of the ship, and relieved the second mate, whose watch it was, to join the men at prayers. These arrangements completed, the chief mate placed a Bible on the capstan, read a chapter from the New Testament, made some remarks upon it, and then prayed; after which he read a sermon, and closed with prayer. The whole exercise occupied about an hour, and seemed to produce a good effect upon the men, who, during the rest of the day in their intercourse with one another, talked about religion. That afternoon, when it was the mate’s watch on deck, Captain Williams entered into conversation with him as follows:—“I say, Briggs, what does all your preaching and praying amount to in the long run? I have managed to get along very well thus far without either, and if I were to die today, I could safely say that I never injured any man knowingly, and have always endeavored to do my duty to my family and to all. What more can a man do, even if he had all the religion in the world?” “Captain Williams,” replied the mate, “this world, sir, is not our home; we are only here for a few short years, and then we go to the place for which we have prepared ourselves.” “Place!” interrupted the captain, “place—what do you or I or any one else know about any other place than this world? Place, indeed! you do not suppose that I am silly enough to believe the Bible, with its strange fish stories, and unaccountable yarns about miracles, etc.?” “Yet,” replied the mate, “you believe Bowditch’s Navigator, and rely upon its statements.” “Of course I do, because I have tested their correctness by actual experience.” “And for the same reason I believe the Bible, and so will you, sir, when you come to Christ and learn of him the truth.” “I have heard that statement before, Briggs. But how would you propose for me to come to Christ?” “By retiring to your state-room alone, sir, and throwing yourself upon your knees, and imploring him with your whole soul to enlighten you. Continue this process every moment you can spare from the ship’s duty, and I will be answerable that you will not pray long in vain, if you pray sincerely.” “But you must first convince me, Briggs, that the Bible is true before I make a fool of myself in my state-room.” “My dear captain,” replied the mate, “I cannot convince you, that is the work of the Holy Spirit; but I can, and often do pray for you. Yet let us recur to Bowditch’s Navigator again, and see if we cannot make out a case from it in favor of the Bible. Both of us believe the Navigator, yet neither of us know thoroughly the principles by which all its numerous tables have been calculated, many of which we use every day without question. If we make a bad landfall, or, at the end of a day discover that we have made a different course from that which we projected, we do not attribute the errors to Bowditch, but to our own miscalculation. It is just so with the humble inquirer after truth; the Bible is his Navigator; he believes it the fountain of living truth, endeavors to shape the course of his life by it; and when he errs, he looks for the error in himself, not in the Bible.” “Still Briggs,” said the captain, “I don’t believe the Bible. The fact is, I have never looked into it since I was a boy.” “The greater your loss, captain; but I have no doubt your mother believed it, and has often spoken to you about God, and Christ, and taught you to pray when you were a child. If you will take the trouble to visit Jim Wood’s gin-palace, in Play-House Square, when we reach Liverpool, and enter into conversation with the people there about the Bible, they will laugh at you, and sneeringly tell you it is a humbug; in short, repeat your own arguments; but if you will leave there and obtain admission into the best society, you will find that every person present will speak with reverence of the Bible. Now I know you love good company63 here, and that you dislike the low, vulgar conversation of the profane; therefore, I should like to see you make some effort to prepare yourself for the society of the redeemed in Heaven.” “What you have said about my mother, Briggs, is true as the needle to the pole, God bless her; I can’t help saying so, for she was good to me; and if there is a Heaven she is sure of it.” “And, of course, captain, you would like to join her there, when you have run down your reckoning here. You have either to join her, or such fellows as those who frequent places like Jim Wood’s. Which like you the best—gamblers, drunkards, and thieves, or your mother? This is the simple question which you must decide for yourself.” Here the ship’s duty interrupted the conversation, but that night Capt. Williams thought much of the teachings of his mother, her earnest prayers to God in his behalf, and the flimsy arguments with which he had so long deceived himself about the Bible; and the more he thought the more uneasy he became. He felt that he was a sinner in the sight of God, unworthy of the many favors he enjoyed, and during the whole of that passage whenever an opportunity offered, he engaged in earnest conversation with his mate. He was alarmed at the prospect of being forever separated from his mother, for he loved her dearly; and this feeling soon gave birth to others of a more spiritual nature, and finally he was led to exclaim, “What shall I do to be saved?” You may get through the world but ’twill be very slow,
If you listen to all that is said as you go;
You’ll be worried, and fretted, and kept in a stew:
For meddlesome tongues will have something to do,
For people will talk. If quiet and modest, you’ll have it presumed
That your humble position is only assumed;
You’re a wolf in sheep’s clothing, or else you’re a fool,
But don’t get excited, keep perfectly cool,
For people will talk. If generous and noble, they’ll vent out their spleen,
You’ll hear some loud hints that you’re selfish and mean;
If upright, honest, and fair as the day,
They’ll call you a rogue, in a sly, sneering way,
For people will talk. And then, if you show the least boldness of heart,
Or a slight inclination to take your own part,
They will call you an upstart, conceited, and vain;
But keep straight ahead, don’t stop to explain,
For people will talk. If threadbare your dress, or old-fashioned your hat,
Some one will surely take notice of that,
And hint rather strong that you can’t pay your way;
But don’t get excited, whatever they say,
For people will talk. If you dress in the fashion, don’t think to escape,
For they criticise them in a different shape;
You’re ahead of your means, or your tailor’s unpaid;
But mind your own business, there’s naught to be made,
For people will talk. Now, the best way to do is to do as you please,
For your mind, if you have one, will then be at ease;
Of course you will meet with all sorts of abuse;
But don’t think to stop them, it ain’t any use,
For people will talk. We see a wonderful adaptability in all the works of God to the accomplishment of the ends of their creation and to the perpetuity of their existence. This is especially noticeable in all living beings. How beautifully has the Creator designed all the different parts of the frame-work of each to fulfill its particular office and serve the especial purpose of its being. Indeed, we see in these things a mighty argument to prove the existence of an intelligent, creative mind of infinite wisdom, with corresponding power to carry out its conceptions of what was fitting and necessary. His creatures would want to see different objects, behold the light of heaven, and gaze upon the beauties of nature; so eyes of wonderful construction and ingenuity are furnished. But in such places as the Mammoth Cave in Kentucky, where no ray of light penetrates, the fishes have no eyes. His creatures need to listen to nature's sounds; so ears of wonderful workmanship are given them. So also of the senses of smell and touch, the proper organs are provided. And as the wonderful machinery of life wears and wastes with use, and consequently would need replenishing, and as many of the substances with which they would come in contact would be unfit for the system, nature's Creator implanted taste with which proper substances could be discerned. The gratification of this taste lies at the foundation of the appetite, and it seems evident that this sense was to exercise a most important influence in deciding what should enter the stomach and be incorporated into the system. When man was pronounced "very good" at his creation, no doubt all his senses and tastes were in harmony with what would be for his well-being. He would naturally love those things that would be for his benefit; and yet, in man's case, reason was also to have a voice in deciding what should be eaten. Man was led astray through the appetite. The forbidden fruit seemed "good for food" and would not have been rejected merely by the taste. Reason had an important part to act in deciding whether to take it. In fact, the whole moral nature was deeply interested; and had the appetite been obedient to these, far happier had it been for our first parents and the race. No, it never has been the exclusive province of the taste to determine what should be eaten. And especially is this true since it has suffered such terrible abuse. No reasonable person will deny that the appetite is a creature of education. As a general rule, it will crave those things to which it has been accustomed in early life. It seems a wise provision of nature that we can learn to love what we have provided for our food. Were it otherwise, man, in many circumstances under which he is placed, would find it difficult to accommodate himself to them. But now, while there are national peculiarities of diet as well as individual, by means of this power he can place himself in almost any position and put up with it. The Creator evidently foresaw the contingencies under which man would be placed and gave him this accommodating power. But oh! how terribly it has been abused. When we see the abominable perversions to which the appetite has been subjected we can but wonder at its capacity in this direction. It seems strange to a person whose appetite has never been perverted that man can ever learn to love the taste of tobacco or alcohol. And yet it seems that those things most distasteful, naturally, get the strongest control in the end, until the most powerful effort is required to abandon them. Nature at first turns aside with loathing and abhorrence, then submits and becomes fully enslaved. Can any sane man say that appetite thus abused and enslaved should be the sole judge, and we submit reason and judgment to its dictation? But how reasonable that this power of accommodation should be used for good purposes, to overcome bad habits and establish good ones instead of the contrary. Thus the moral and intellectual element in our nature can work in harmony with the appetite and the whole man receive benefit. Man must be happier thus to have all the elements of his nature in harmony with each other. Let us then use our reason, look around us, and break up our bad habits, bring the appetite into proper subjection to the higher nature, and thus find true enjoyment in life, and answer the end of our creation.—Sel. RELIGIOUS NEWS AND NOTES.
—An American pilgrimage will reach Rome about June. —Mr. Moody says a Scotchman has counted 31,000 promises in the Bible. —The faculty of Harvard College have finally decided to admit woman to the full privileges of the University. —Rev. E. P. Hammond, with whose labors as an evangelist our California readers are quite well acquainted, is about to begin meetings in Terre Haute, Indiana. —The Romish Cathedral in New York wished to connect their sewerage, without charge, with the street sewers, and thus save $700. The Common Council granted it, and the mayor vetoed the grant, but the council passed the ordinance over the veto. So much for having a Catholic majority in the council. —A Roman Catholic association has been established in Belgium for the purpose of “buying up and destroying copies of the Scriptures and other bad books circulated by Protestants.” “A place has also been established,” coolly remarks a contemporary, “in which to gather and appropriately reward the members of this association after they have filled up the measure of their iniquity.” —“One of the most remarkable temperance revivals in all history” is being held in Pittsburg, by Mr. Francis Murphy, a reformed and converted drunkard. “He was unheralded, and had no support from the churches,” says an exchange, and yet “tens of thousands have signed the pledge, large numbers have been converted, and saloon-keepers are giving up their traffic, and writing ‘To Let,’ on their closed doors.” —An important clause of the Italian Clerical Abuses bill makes it a penal offense to publish writings proceeding from any clerical authority censuring the laws of the State. This evident aim at the speeches of the Pope has infuriated the clerical journals. The Pope ordered the College of Cardinals to examine the bill, which was done, and the College declared that it violates the liberty of the clergy. The Pope will protest—and anathematize. —A whole village of Switzerland has gone over in mass from the Catholic to the Protestant church, because they suspected the Catholic curate of removing a favorite teacher from their school. They could get no help from the Bishop, and the mayor and the whole community have called a Protestant pastor. —Seven hundred and fifty Chinese attend the Mission schools of San Francisco. About one thousand go every Sunday to the Sunday-schools. Three hundred Chinese have been received as members of the Protestant churches of California, and in addition to these church members there are seven hundred Chinese in Christian associations for learning Christian doctrine. —According to Saddler’s Catholic Directory for 1877, there are now 5,292 Roman Catholic churches in the United States, 5,297 priests, exclusive of higher ecclesiastical dignitaries, and an estimated Catholic population of 6,209,000. To serve these more than 1,200 young men are preparing for the priesthood in the theological seminaries, besides the numbers who trained in the discipline of religious orders, will in time receive holy orders. —The German Baptists, or Dunkards, have issued their first weekly paper in Lanark, Ill., entitled The Brethren at Work. The name by which they are commonly known is a nick-name; the acknowledged title of the sect is “Brethren.” They originated in Germany in 1708, and in 1819 came to Pennsylvania, under the leadership of Alexander Mack, and settled at Germantown, now a part of Philadelphia. They are uncompromising peace men, and will not, under any circumstances, take part in war. Litigation among their members is absolutely forbidden, differences being settled by church councils. In dress they resemble the Quakers. Ministers among them receive no salaries, but follow secular callings. —The shop girls of Boston number nearly a tenth of her population. —There have been 800,000 gallons of wine made at St. Helena the past season. —New York has sixty-eight corset factories, which shows how our industries are running to waist. —The Rothschilds are said to be worth—all of them together—the agreeable sum of $3,400,000,000. —The export of Swiss watches to the United States has decreased sixty-two per cent in the last two years. —An English steamboat is now running on Lake Nyassa, South Africa, where Livingstone explored, and two railroads are being built in the district of Natal. —Artificial pearls are manufactured in Paris from the white scales of fish. Twenty thousand pounds of fish will yield one pound of the pearly substance. —The California Geological Society, in San Francisco, has been incorporated under the laws of the State, and now intends to make a complete collection of the mineral products of the Pacific Coast. —The San Francisco Mint coined no gold in January, owing to the pressing demand for trade dollars; $1,082,000 in the latter description of coin was turned out, besides $468,000 in halves and quarters. —The British iron steamer Lotus, which left New Haven, Conn., the 23d ult., had on board a cargo of arms and ammunition for the Turkish government, valued at nearly $2,000,000. —The Chinese have suspended commercial intercourse with Russia. They have grown suspicious of the Russian movements and explorations along the Chinese frontier, thinking they may cover some hostile design. —Mr. Frank Leslie has announced that he will visit California and the neighboring States in March next, accompanied by artists and editorial assistants. It is his intention to publish in his illustrated journals correct views of California scenery, drawn upon the spot. —“Within one hundred yards of the Sailors' Home at Liverpool,” said Rev. J. F. Gardiner at a recent medical conference in England, “there were forty-seven public houses, and the owners actually strewed saw- dust on the pavement in front of them, and sprinkled rum over it, so that the smell of the spirits might decoy sailors within their doors.” —The rice crop of South Carolina and Georgia last year was about five per cent larger than in any previous year since the war. —The new census of Paris shows that the city has a population of 1,900,000. This was the population in 1870, just previous to the Franco-German war, so that the city has simply regained lost ground. —A Chinese nobleman, in full dress, was present at Mrs. Grant's New Year's reception. Over a long yellow satin tunic he wore an invisible purple silk sack, very long and loose, and a blue collar around his neck. A close silk cap of black and red was on his head. He also wore a cue. —The scientific world is greatly interested in the statement that the United States Steamship Gettysburg, in a voyage from Fayal to Gibraltar, discovered an immense coral reef, located in latitude 36 deg. 30 min. N. and longitude 11 deg. 28 min. W. Until the discovery by the Gettysburg, the existence of the reef had never been suspected. —It being discovered by secret correspondence that Midhat Pasha, Grand Vizier of Turkey, was plotting the overthrow of the Sultan, and his own nomination as Dictator, he was immediately summoned to the palace and arrested. His letters were then laid before him, and as there was no gainsaying the evidence against him, he asked for mercy. A Council of Ministers was called and Midhat was offered his choice, to leave the country or be arraigned before a tribunal on a charge of high treason. He chose to leave the country, and sailed immediately for Syria. Letters found disclosed the fact that 3,000 Ulemas were to have gone Monday night to the palace to demand the abdication of the Sultan. —The city of Salem, Oregon, is said to have adopted this original method of dealing with drunkenness. When any person becomes intemperately given to strong drink, a certain number of citizens may petition to have him declared a drunkard. The petition is directed to the City Recorder, who gives notice by publication in some daily paper, that the person named in the petition has been declared a “common drunkard.” After such notice, it is unlawful for any one “to give or sell to such person, or assist him in getting any wine, spirituous or malt liquor.” This is only a step in the right direction. They should also make it unlawful for any one to give or sell spirituous or malt liquor to any person who has not yet become a “common drunkard.” —We heartily concur in the remarks of the Christian at Work upon the Eastern Question: “Peace or war—who can tell which? One day Russia is moving her armies and supplies southward, preparatory to gobbling the Turkey gobbler. The next day Russia is in no condition to move her troops, and peace is assured. Then we have news that all Turkey is aroused, and war is inevitable; and this is followed by intelligence that Turkey is ready for the fray, and that England will support her. Then we have the assurance that peace is inevitable; again, that war is sure. Our readers may as well possess their souls in patience; and, as to war, follow the example of the Irishman who was promised a visit from his friend, but, after repeated disappointment, declared he should not expect him till he arrived!” —The Electoral Commission now in session at Washington is composed of five members from the House, three Democrats and two Republicans, and five from the Senate, three Republicans and two Democrats, and four Associate Justices of the Supreme Court who elected Judge Bradley as the fifth member. This Commission have decided in the case of Florida, that they have no authority to go back of the certificate of the Returning Board, regularly presented by the President of the Senate, to examine preceding evidence in regard to the electoral returns from that State; that is, the duly certified returns of the State are to be accepted by the Commission. While this looks encouraging to the Republican party, it by no means materially affects the issue in regard to Louisiana and other contested States. Prominent party leaders on both sides profess confidence in the integrity and justice of the Commission, and a disposition to make no delay of the final result. Perhaps no man ever stood in so peculiar a position as Judge Bradley, who is the fifth Judge and therefore holds the balance of power, his vote deciding the vexed questions that rise before this national tribunal. In fact, he virtually holds the power of deciding who shall be our next President.