Earlier text: THOUGHTS ON BAPTISMNATIONAL REFORM ASSOCIATION.
The National Reform Association assembled for its annual meeting, in the First Presbyterian Church, Pittsburg (Rev. S. F. Scovel, pastor), on Thursday, the seventh inst., at 7:30, o’clock. The Hon. Felix R. Brunot occupied the chair, and called on Dr. David R. Kerr to open the meeting with prayer. In the absence of the secretary, Rev. W. W. Barr, D. D., of Philadelphia, the Rev. Wm. H. Vincent was chosen secretary pro tem. Mr. Brunot said that it seemed fitting to give at this annual meeting, something of a history of the movement. In the year of 1863, on the 3d day of February, a conference of Christians was held in Xenia, Ohio, which had been called with special reference to the then unhappy condition of the country, and at which eleven denominations of Christians were represented. Among the topics set for consideration were, “Religion in the heart,” “Religion in the Church,” and “Religion in the Nation.” When, before the second day of the session, the last-named of this series was under discussion, a paper was presented and read which bore the single indorsement, “From a member of the Convention.” Beginning with these words, “In this day of our national calamity it becomes us to inquire what the Lord would have us do,” it briefly called to mind the nation’s early struggle for independence; its devout reliance upon God during that struggle, and his marvelous interference in our behalf against the enemies of civil and religious liberty; and then spoke of the ingratitude of the nation after its prayer had been answered:— “Instead of going on to promote more and more the glory of God and the rights of man, a terrible and, if God’s mercy prevent not, a fatal, backward step was taken, in adopting that otherwise noble instrument without any direct recognition of God or his authority, and with a toleration of human slavery; thus contradicting two of the noblest principles of the Declaration of Independence; viz., Reliance upon Divine Providence, and acknowledgment of the equal rights of man. These two defects in our otherwise inimitable Constitution, so dishonoring to God and unjust to man, we believe to be the plague spots in the heart of our nation, corrupting its vital fountains and threatening its dissolution. . . . We regard the Emancipation Proclamation of the President, and his recommendation to purge the Constitution of slavery, as among the most hopeful signs of the times; but we regard the neglect of God and his law, by omitting all acknowledgment of them in our Constitution, as the crowning original sin of the nation, and slavery as one of its natural outgrowths. Therefore the most important step remains yet to be taken,—to amend the Constitution so as to acknowledge God and the authority of his law; and the object of this paper is to suggest to this Convention the propriety of considering this subject, and of proposing such an amendment to the Constitution as they may think proper to propose.” The paper also set forth a form of amendment such as seemed to its author suitable, in the preamble of the Constitution, and which is substantially that which is advocated by this Association. Some objection was at first made to the consideration of the paper in the conference, but it was referred to a committee embracing members of each of the eleven denominations in the conference. The committee made a favorable report on the sentiments and suggestions of the paper, and the report was adopted. It seemed to the conference, said one who took part in its proceedings, that the question presented “was the real question of the hour and of the weightiest importance; God was forcing it upon them, and there was danger in delay; they must begin the work, and begin it then.” The action of this conference was the first step that led to the organization of the body which holds its annual meeting to-night, and the composition of the body attests the unsectarian character of the origin of our movement. Before the final ratification of the Constitution, in some of the State Legislatures and Conventions which discussed it, and at every period since its adoption, the religious defect of the Constitution has been lamented by many of the wisest and best men our country has produced. Says one who has collected their recorded utterances on the subject for publication: “The witnesses are of the highest standing. Learned and patriotic men,—lawyers, judges, divines, legislators, editors, professors of political science,—all unite in harmonious and most explicit testimony to the religious defect of our Constitution.” But there seems to have been no definite proposition to set about the work of removing the defect until it was made in the little assemblage of Christian patriots at Xenia. The friends of the measure at first thought that the already organized church bodies presented the machinery through which the work could be carried on, and accordingly they were invited to appoint delegates to a Convention to be held in Allegheny on the 4th day of July following. But few delegates were appointed, and it became evident that more efficient measures should be adopted. The Allegheny meeting issued an able address to the public, and invited all persons who felt interested in the subject to meet in Allegheny on the 27th day of January, 1864. THE NATIONAL ASSOCIATION.
At this meeting, the National Association to secure the religious amendment of the Constitution was organized, and most fittingly chose for its first President, John Alexander, Esq., the author of the paper which had been presented in the conference at Xenia. The Association adopted appropriate resolutions, setting forth its objects, and a form of memorial to Congress, and appointed a committee to prepare and present an address to the President of the United States. A short extract from this address will serve to indicate the mind of the movement at this early stage:— “For we hold it as most certain truth, that nations, as such, and not individuals alone, are the subjects of God’s moral government, are responsible to him, and by him are graciously rewarded for their obedience, or justly punished for their disobedience of his divine laws. “We believe also that our civil and religious liberties, our free institutions, and all our national prosperity, power, and glory, are mercies and blessings derived from God to us, through the channel of the Christian religion. Notwithstanding, either from inadvertency or following some Godless theory of civil government, we have omitted even the mention of his blessed name in the most significant and highest act of the nation. “We believe that in thus leaving God out of our political system, we have grievously sinned against him, and have brought upon ourselves and children his just displeasure. “We believe, therefore, that it is our duty to repent of this, and all our national sins, and to return to our obligations as a Christian people, by acknowledging the true God as our God in our fundamental and organic law, in order that we may consistently implore his merciful interposition in our behalf, to give victory to our national arms and success to the national cause; to establish the unity of the nation and the authority of the Government now assaulted and shattered by rebellion. We ask for no union of Church and State—that is a thing which we utterly repudiate. We ask nothing inconsistent with the largest religious liberty or the rights of conscience in any man. We represent no sectarian or denominational object, but one in which all who bear the Christian name, and all who have any regard for the Christian religion, can cordially agree, and one to secure which we are persuaded that any lawful and wise movement would call forth an overwhelming public sentiment in its support.” THE FIRST ANNUAL MEETING.
The first annual meeting of the Association was held in the Eighth Street Methodist Episcopal Church, Philadelphia, on the 7th and 8th of July following. Rev. J. C. Eddy, of the Tabernacle Baptist Church, was elected President for the ensuing year, and an address issued to the public in furtherance of the cause. This able paper abounded with clear and conclusive argument, and in a few words at its close again expressed the animus of the body from which it emanated: “In this movement, prompted by pure Christian patriotism, participated in by various Christian denominations, all of whom are opposed to any sectarian establishment of religion, we invite the co-operation of every lover of his country and every follower of Jesus Christ.” A Convention was held in the Arch Street Presbyterian Church, Philadelphia, on the 29th of November, 1864, at which ex-Governor James Pollock presided, and a meeting in New York, May 16 and 17, 1866. The next important meeting was held in Philadelphia, March 5, 1867, at which Hon. Wm. Strong presided. Judge Strong was at this meeting elected President of the Association. In September of that year Rev. D. McAllister and T. P. Stevenson began the issue in Philadelphia of the Christian Statesman, a semi-monthly journal, devoted to the cause. The Statesman proved itself to be a most efficient agency in carrying on the work of the Association, and has now become one of the most valuable and useful unsectarian religious weeklies published in this country. ACTION OF REPRESENTATIVE BODIES.
During the war of the rebellion the representative bodies of every religious denomination, in their deliverances relative to the state of the country, in some form indicated the same convictions which lie at the foundation of our movement. Nor was this conviction confined to the religious bodies. In the days of our calamity the rulership of Almighty God, and the dependence of the nation upon his divine mercy and power for its relief, was the dominant thought which found expression upon every hand. The Senate of the United States, on the second day of March, 1863, passed a resolution “Devoutly recognizing the supreme authority and just government of Almighty God in all the affairs of men and nations; . . . deploring the national offenses which have provoked his righteous judgment, yet encouraged in this day of trouble, by the assurances of his word, to seek to him for succor according to his appointed way, through Jesus Christ.” And in his proclamation President Lincoln, “acknowledging the duty of nations as well as of men to own their dependence on the overruling power of God,” recognized also in glowing words “the sublime truth announced in the Holy Scriptures, and proven by all history, that those nations only are blessed whose God is the Lord.” This action of the Government of the United States, it will be observed, was almost coincident in point of time with the beginning of our reform movement. The moral entity of the nation, supposing as such the just punishment for its national crimes and its forgetfulness of God, was an awful fact in those dark days which none ventured to deny, if any dared to doubt it; and as a personality, it sought in God’s appointed way of repentance, humiliation, and prayer to deprecate his wrath. Said President Lincoln, speaking for the nation in the noble document from which I have already quoted: “Intoxicated with unbroken success, we have become too self-sufficient to feel the necessity of redeeming and preserving grace, too proud to pray to the God that made us. It behooves us, then, to humble ourselves before the offended Power, to confess our national sins, and to pray for clemency and forgiveness.” OPPOSITION TO THE MOVEMENT.
It is a noticeable fact that whilst the hand of God pressed heavily upon our country, and so many voices were raised in behalf of the duty of conforming the Constitution to the devout and God-fearing spirit of the nation and the people, none ventured to demand that the national authorities should cease their unconstitutional acts of religion. It is not so now. Hardly had our prayers been answered and God’s messenger of peace returned with her attendant train, when this key-note of ingratitude sounded from the metropolitan city through its then leading newspaper: “We deny that this is a Christian nation,” it said, “though a majority of its inhabitants probably are. ‘Almighty God’ is not ‘the source of all authority and power’ in our Government; the people of the United States are such source. . . . The Federal Constitution is based on the idea that religious faith is purely a personal matter, with which governments have properly nothing to do.” Among the memorable utterances of the ecclesiastical bodies, was the admirable pastoral letter of the House of Bishops of the Protestant Episcopal Church, issued from the General Convention in October, 1862. This document sets forth with consummate ability the scriptural argument, with its examples and warnings, which inevitably shadow forth the duty of a national constitutional acknowledgment of Almighty God, and the peril of the neglect to honor him. The General Conference of the Methodist Episcopal Church, which met in Philadelphia in May, 1864, unanimously adopted a series of resolutions, reported by the committee on the state of the country, of which the third and fourth were as follows:— “That we regard our calamities as resulting from our forgetfulness of God, and from slavery, so long our nation’s reproach, and that it becomes us to humble ourselves and forsake our sins as a people, and hereafter, in all our laws and acts, to honor God.” “That we will use our efforts to secure such a change in the Constitution of our country as shall recognize the being of God, our dependence on him for prosperity, and also his word as the foundation of civil law.” The General Synod of the Reformed Presbyterian Church in May, 1863, adopted a preamble and resolutions, a part of which reads as follows:— “Whereas, The exigencies of the war have brought the authorities of the nation, civil and military, subordinate and supreme, to formal recognition of the being, providence, and grace of God and of Jesus Christ his Son, to an extent and with a distinctness such as the country has never witnessed before; therefore, “Resolved, 1. That in the judgment of this Synod the time is come for the proposal of such amendments to the Federal Constitution, in the way provided by itself, as will supply the omission above referred to, and secure a distinct recognition of the being and supremacy of the God of divine revelation.” FIRST NATIONAL DELEGATE CONVENTION.
The first National Convention, properly so called,—it being the first to which delegates were generally appointed by the local associations and meetings of the friends of the movement,—was held in Pittsburg on the 7th and 8th of February, 1870. It was followed by National Conventions in Philadelphia on the 18th and 19th of November, 1871; in Cincinnati January 31 and February 1, 1872; in New York February 25 and 26, 1873; and in Pittsburg February 4 and 5, 1874, and again in Philadelphia on the 28th and 29th and 30th of June, 1876. The General Secretary presented the following report, which was accepted:— GENERAL SECRETARY’S REPORT.
Two Conventions were held in the interest of the National Reform cause during the past year. One of these was intended for the Northwest, and therefore met in the city of Chicago. The date of this Convention was April 10 and 11. For a number of weeks previous to the assembling of the Convention, meetings were held in prominent towns and cities of Illinois and adjoining States. Five States, in all, were represented in this Convention,—Illinois, Indiana, Michigan, Wisconsin, and Iowa. A large number of prominent citizens, of various denominations, who had never before co-operated in the National Reform movement, were heartily enlisted in the work by means of the Chicago Convention. On December 18 and 19, a Convention for Western New York was held in the city of Rochester. In connection with this Convention meetings were held in Oswego, Syracuse, Auburn, Buffalo, and other cities and towns of that part of the State. The action of the School Board of Rochester in expelling the Bible and devotional exercises from the schools prepared the way for a deeply interesting Convention. And here, as at Chicago, the practical value of the National Reform cause was made clear, and not a few able men were won over to its support and advocacy. The still more recent action of the School Board of New Haven, dispensing at the beginning of this year with the reading of the Bible and prayer in the schools of that city of the Puritan fathers, called for the active aid of this Association. Important work has been done, in connection with the numerous friends of Christian education in New Haven, to secure the reversal of the decision of the Board. But thus far the effort has been unsuccessful. Only a few meetings have been held in Western Pennsylvania in connection with the present Annual Meeting. At all the meetings held, however, there has been a very large attendance and unusually deep interest. And in other parts of the country where the work has been carried forward, particularly in the Northwest, where the Rev. M. A. Gault has conducted a most successful series of meetings, there has been a marked awakening of public sentiment to the importance and necessity of the movement. Beginning with the arrangements for the Rochester Convention, I have spent nine weeks in public labors for the cause this present winter. This necessarily restricted amount of work has been utterly inadequate to the demands of the times. With the leaven of the truth silently operating among the leaders of thought, and even among the masses of the people, and with doors of opportunity open on every hand, there should be many lecturers devoting their whole time to the work. The most effective way of prosecuting the work in future would appear to be by districting the whole country, and having district secretaries in charge of the work within their own territorial limits. It is hoped that this method of operation, at present only entered upon, may be carried forward until the movement is thoroughly organized throughout the land.—Christian Statesman. THE SABBATH.
By Eliza H. Morton
God made, six thousand years ago,
The Sabbath; and that all might know
It was to be a sign,
Placed it with precepts nine. The seventh day, which then was blest,
Was made a time of holy rest,
Binding on all for aye,
As God's own sacred day. In “days of old” the people saw
That Christ observed his Father's law,
Though oft he was accused,
Insulted, and abused. Years rolled along; the church so pure,
The narrow way could not endure;
And lo! Paul's “man of sin”
Obtained an entrance in. This power, with impious, daring hand,
Has sought to change the fourth command,
Bidding the world obey
The pope, and keep his day. Lo! a message from High Heaven,
Must to all the world be given,
Before the King shall come
To take his people home. The Sabbath day must be restored,
No precept of the law ignored,
And saints united be
In perfect harmony. Nations, awake! The end is near;
Christ in the clouds will soon appear.
The warning is to all,
Hear ye the gathering call! The value, to a young lady, of a copious, elegant, and expressive vocabulary, can hardly be overestimated. Were she never to use the pen in epistolary or rhetorical composition, the beauty and charm of cultivated conversation would be a power that would add to her influence more than all the jewels that Tiffany ever handled. Add to this the fact that woman's tongue is her principal weapon—next to her eye, at least. In appeal and menace, in raillery and scorn, in love and guidance, in song and prayer, what is there to equal a woman's speech? While nature does much, reading and writing do more in cultivating fluency and felicity of speech. Read the best English, and avoid the cheap and sensational literature of the day. Avoid vulgarity and slang in conversation. Use the same care in purity of language while talking familiarly in private, that is taken in public speech. But the best training is heart training. Here, as in oratory, it is out of the heart the mouth speaketh. If the law of kindness is within the heart, there will be “milk and honey on the tongue.”—Sel. The Call for Rigid Investigation of Important Questions
The more awfully important any question is, the greater is the call for a rigid investigation of what may be urged on both sides; that the decision may be made on sound, rational, and scriptural grounds, and not according to the dictates of excited feelings and imagination.—Whately. WESTERN TOUR.
By Stephen Nelson Haskell
Tuesday evening, Feb. 12, I met with the friends at Pleasant Grove, Minn., where Elds. Dimmick and Curtis were laboring. They had held a discussion with a Mr. Burns, a Disciple minister, who dealt so largely in abuse that the public became thoroughly disgusted, and demanded that the discussion should stop. Much had been said in reference to sister White, and a strong prejudice had been created. By request I spoke Wednesday evening on her work and the relation she sustains to Seventh-day Adventists. Three meetings were held Thursday. We spoke on the various branches of this work, its rise and progress, etc. The following Sabbath and first-day was the time of the quarterly meeting at Medford. Seven churches were represented. Some very important steps were here taken by the brethren present, and recommended to the Conference; such as reorganizing systematic benevolence according to the plan recommended by the General Conference; viz., paying a tithe of their increase and income, and in addition paying to the tract society a sum equal to one-third their systematic benevolence. It was enough to melt the hardest heart to listen to the calls for labor that came in at this meeting. Fifty active ministers could not fill the openings in the State of Minnesota at the present time. “The harvest is great, but the laborers are few.” This meeting had but one unfavorable feature,—the necessity that our brethren should return to their homes on Monday, so that we were not able to complete all we would have been glad to do. The clubs of Signs already taken were largely increased, and a vigilant committee was appointed. Our meeting at Hutchinson was one of special interest. Seven churches were represented, and many of the leading brethren in Minnesota were present. It was evident from the first that the brethren came to work, and remain until the meeting was over; hence they did not leave till Tuesday morning. A goodly number for the first time took their stand to keep the commandments of God. The testimonies borne in the social meetings were from feeling hearts. Every moment was occupied. The brethren and sisters were prompt at the hour of worship, though there were five meetings a day on Sabbath and first-day, while Monday our meeting continued, with a short intermission, from 9 A. M. until 4 P. M. There was also a meeting at 7 P. M. We proposed to close, but the friends were anxious we should arrange systematic benevolence and organize a vigilant missionary society, that they might learn how it was done. Kingston and Monticello were largely represented; so a vigilant society was organized for Hutchinson, Kingston, and Monticello. Clubs of the SIGNS were largely increased in each church represented. Systematic benevolence was re-organized, all present taking a part. The amount pledged for 1878 amounted to over one thousand dollars, more than five hundred in advance of that for last year. A few years ago a few embraced the truth in Hutchinson under the labors of Eld. Canright. Now, within a radius of thirty miles there are six churches, numbering nearly two hundred Sabbath-keepers, with a systematic benevolence fund of over one thousand dollars. These brethren take about one hundred and fifty copies of the SIGNS; but the clubs of the SIGNS, and also the S. B. figures, will be much increased when the friends return to their homes, by those who were not present at the meeting. There is a general call all through this section to hear on present truth. A Swede who had been out doing missionary work for a few weeks returned with the cheering news that he had obtained forty subscribers for the HAROLD, and sixteen had embraced the Sabbath. A rising vote was taken to see how many indorsed the plan of paying a sum to the tract society equal to one-third their S. B., in addition to their S. B. The vote was prompt and unanimous. Could Eld. Smith hold a Biblical Institute in this State it would be a great help to those who are now laboring in the field, and also to young men and women who are desirous of filling some position in the cause of God. We felt a deep interest in the cause in this State, as we witnessed such a spirit of sacrifice on the part of the brethren and sisters to get the truth before their fellow-men. We regret that circumstances compelled us to leave without visiting other portions of the State, and also other Conferences in the West. Before we separated, two of the Conference Committee who were present were anxious to defray all expenses incurred by my trip to the State, which they accordingly did. They appreciate past favors shown them by the General Conference, and Publishing Association in their time of poverty. If the brethren keep humble, labor on with the same spirit of sacrifice, and the work commenced at these two meetings is carried throughout the State, I see no reason why Minnesota may not, within one year, rank next to Michigan in membership and missionary labor. Already they talk of taking not less than twelve hundred copies of the SIGNS in clubs to distribute, and obtaining not less than two thousand subscribers for the REFORMER for 1878. Twelve hundred copies of the SIGNS taken on the plan which is now being adopted will accomplish more than four times that number used on the plan on which THE VOICE OF TRUTH was sent out several years ago. I should add that they are gathering up their old REVIEWS and REFORMERS and find plenty of interested readers for the same. SUGGESTIONS ABOUT CONDUCTING A COURSE OF LECTURES.
By Dudley Marvin Canright
SELLING BOOKS AND OBTAINING SUBSCRIBERS.
It is just as important to get people to reading our books as it is to get them to hear our preaching. We should use every endeavor to get our reading matter before them in some shape, just as much as we should to get them out to hear the sermon. The lecturer who does not realize this fact is not fit to go out; and we always notice that those who can sell the most books and obtain the most subscribers are the most successful preachers; but it requires just as much wisdom and tact to sell a book or obtain a subscriber as it does to obtain a good audience. I have frequently seen brethren who seemed to think that this was hardly a part of their work; at least, that it was not very important. They take so little interest in it and make so feeble an effort that they dispose of but very few publications. I certainly know that some preachers will dispose of five times as many books as others, with the same interest. Why is this? Simply because they make it a daily study how to do it most successfully. If one way doesn’t succeed they try another. If one book won’t sell, they offer a different one. I have found that I can sell more books the first week of my meeting than during any other. I have found it a good plan to put up a dollar’s worth of our pamphlets and little tracts, and offer them on the second night, or, at the farthest, the third night of our meeting. You will sell a large number that way which you could not dispose of a week later. You do not want to sell books on subjects you have not introduced; but when you have introduced a question, then any book or tract bearing upon that question is in order. When you have introduced the nature of man, anything bearing upon that question can be advertised; so with the Sabbath. I always have a new book ready to advertise every evening, one treating directly upon the subject of my lecture that evening. Tell them what an able man the author is, how carefully the book has been written, how it has all the references in the Bible to that subject, how it clears up this point and that and the other, how very cheap it is, how they may never have another chance to get it, what an excellent investment it is to put a few cents into a good book instead of throwing it away for some useless article. I find that the most successful way to sell our small tracts is to put them up in packages of from ten to twenty-five cents’ worth. These generally go rapidly. One evening put up fifteen cents’ worth on the second advent perhaps. Two evenings later put up that many on the soul question. A little later put up twenty-five cents’ worth covering both subjects. So of the Sabbath and other questions. Then offer a half-dollar package, and throw in the prophetic chart or some small book. In fact, we should study every way to introduce our books among the people. I have seen some of our preachers put out our whole catalogue of books all at once, including books on health, tobacco, tea and coffee, and advertise them all together. As anybody might know, very few books would be sold in that place. When is the proper time to introduce our papers for new subscribers? Answer: The second lecture, or at the farthest the third. Take up the paper, open it full size. Tell all its good points, what subjects it treats upon, how cheap it can be had, how many weeks they will get it for so many cents, and then call for subscribers. You will obtain five the first week where you will get two three weeks later. After you have advertised it, call attention to it again every evening for a week. Keep a clean copy in your pocket constantly; then, whenever you make a call, when you speak with a man, get out your paper and urge him to take it. Do not be afraid to urge him a little; people expect that. By all means introduce your paper early in your course of lectures. I have seen brethren leave it till about the last thing, till men began to embrace the Sabbath. That is a foolish course. Those who embrace the Sabbath will ultimately take it any way. The great work with your subscribers will be done in the first ten days. When you come to the lecture itself, the great, important thing is to make the subject simple, very plain. Often we calculate altogether too much on the scriptural knowledge of our audience; that is, we assume that they know a great deal more about the Scriptures than they really do. Take ten persons promiscuously and question them at home on the simplest facts in the Bible, and you will be astonished to find how little they know about the Bible. Hence do not presume anything on that. Talk just as though they knew nothing about the teaching of the Bible upon your subject. Do not be afraid to repeat night after night any important point in your main argument. We greatly err sometimes in supposing that after we have said a thing once everybody has heard it, everybody remembers it, and knows all about it. If you wish to be undeceived about that, ask half a dozen persons the next day about the different points of your discourse. You will be inclined to preach it right over. And in fact this is just what we should do, only taking care to mix it up differently, and give it another name. We must drill the present truth into the people, just as a teacher would drill a class of pupils. Hence, a few of the strongest scriptures on the Sabbath, Advent, and nature of man, should be repeated this way, that way, and the other way, till the dullest hearer cannot possibly forget them. Talk in a simple, childlike manner. Come right down to use the most common words you can think of. One quarter of every discourse should be devoted to a direct, personal appeal, an earnest exhortation to your audience concerning the truth presented. Success, fruits, are what we are after, and not show. THAT THERMOMETER AGAIN.
By W. H. Littlejohn
Some time since we called attention through the Review to the usefulness of the thermometer in the matter of regulating the heat in churches during the time of service. This subject, however, seems to be one which needs to be alluded to frequently. Sometimes through neglect, and at other times through ignorance of the advantages to be gained by the possession on the part of the church of a thermometer, the condition of the atmosphere in the house of worship is so unfavorable that the advantages which might be gained by religious services under more favorable surroundings are lost altogether. If the room is overheated, the people become lethargic, and so much inclined to sleep that they cannot be aroused, even by the most earnest appeals, to that degree of mental activity which will enable them to comprehend the force and scope of the most lucid argument. On the other hand, if it be permitted to become cool enough to produce chilliness to any great degree, the audience becomes nervous and uneasy to that extent that they cannot be held to the consideration of the subject before them, their minds being wholly occupied with thoughts about their own suffering, and in devising ways and means of relief. It becomes, therefore, as important that the sexton should understand and perform his duty well, as it is that the minister should proclaim the truth with power. The failure to accomplish good in single services, as well as in a series of meetings, is as often chargeable to the man who handles the stoves as it is to him who occupies the desk. Could this fact be impressed upon the minds of trustees and church sextons, it would—provided they have any regard for the cause of God—move them to give their attention to a matter which, though apparently insignificant in itself, is, nevertheless, one of vital importance in the work of bringing men to a saving knowledge of the truth. As a consequence, the former would immediately provide the latter with the needed instrument, and he would avail himself of the same in his effort to preserve a proper and even temperature in the house. Nor would the task be a difficult one if he were properly equipped. All that it would be necessary for him to do, would be to place the thermometer at the end of the house farthest from the stove when he first builds the fire, leaving it there until the mercury ascends to the point indicating 60° or 65°. Then let him remove it to a position near the stove, and watch the mercury, in order to determine how much higher it will ascend there than it did in the back part of the house. If the variations should prove to be, say 10°, let him bear this in mind, and during the day or evening let him so regulate his fires that the mercury near the stove will stand just ten degrees higher than he desires the temperature to be at the back end of the room. If he will carry out these directions,—taking pains to ascertain the variations of the thermometer, as suggested above,—he cannot fail in the accomplishment of his purpose. If, however, he shall rely upon his own feelings, he will be certain to fail; for his sensitiveness to heat or cold will be so far controlled by the condition of his own vitality that his feelings cannot safely be made a standard by which to judge of those of others. Besides this, his clothing may be either lighter or heavier at one time than at another, and as a consequence he will be either colder or warmer, as the case may be. While speaking of the temperature, it might be well also to allude to the ventilation of the church. To begin with: the house should be thoroughly heated at least an hour before the service, and then the doors and windows should be thrown open for a few minutes in order to allow the atmosphere of the room to become fully changed. This done, the windows should be so adjusted as to admit barely enough air to keep that in the room in a fresh and pure condition, always avoiding, as far as possible, the admission of cold air in sufficient quantities to chill individuals in the congregation. This is especially necessary when the house is warmer than it should be; otherwise, persons will be liable to take cold, and perhaps receive serious injury. Having devoted so much space to the matter of warming and ventilating houses of worship, we trust that the subject may receive immediate attention from those upon whom the duty devolves of attending to such matters; since failure to do so would be fraught with consequences unfavorable to the cause of God. The expense which would necessarily be incurred in carrying out these suggestions, would be so small as hardly to be worth mentioning.77 A thermometer which would answer every purpose for the use in question can be obtained at almost any hardware store for the trifling sum of fifty or seventy-five cents. As will be seen by the partial report given in this number, the Conference met according to appointment. There was a more general representation by delegate than we had anticipated. Twelve States were thus represented, and letters were received from two other Conferences, and from most of our missionaries. All evidently came together with the same views and feelings in regard to the work. God is speaking to us by his providence in opening ways before us faster than we can fill them; a great and solemn work is upon our hands; how can we accomplish it most expeditiously and to the best advantage, was the great question to the solution of which the brethren addressed themselves with faith and zeal. The results of the Conference, so far as the business has been transacted, and of the Health Institute meeting, which will be reported next week, were most satisfactory and encouraging. On the Sabbath the house of worship was filled to overflowing. Extra seats were put into every available space, and chairs into every remaining nook and corner. The congregation surged up to the pulpit steps, and upon the gallery stairs, and many stayed away because they knew that the house would not afford even standing room for all who wished to come. The occasion furnished an excellent text for the subject of a new meeting-house in Battle Creek, which was considered by the Conference. A stirring discourse was given by Bro. Canright in the forenoon and by Bro. Haskell in the afternoon. The remainder of the minutes, with other matters of interest connected with the Conference, will appear next week.