Earlier text: General ArticlesTHE SPIRIT LAND.
By C. W. Ward
THERE are many assumptions, vagaries, and curiosities in modern theological literature; and among the rest we wish to call attention to some contained in an article entitled "Christ in Paradise," from The Churchman’s Companion. The writer, speaking of man’s creation, and his being placed in paradise, where he "talked face to face with God," partaking of the luscious fruits of the garden, etc., observes: "But God knew that man would sin, be expelled, and die; and he provided a heavenly paradise, where Satan cannot enter, nor man sin, nor die, while he is educating for Heaven." From this we learn that God made another paradise, distinct from the one in Eden, to which the souls of men go when released from the body. As to the character of paradise No. 2, we learn more in the following remarks: "But it was not until Christ came that the nature of those abodes was revealed: that Hades is the general name for the prison of the righteous and the wicked—one division called Paradise, the other Tartarus; and both knowing what will be their fate when Christ comes to judge them; the righteous growing in righteousness, and the wicked in wickedness and hopeless despair." Such is paradise theologically considered. But further on in the article we obtain more light upon this realm of the departed. Please notice the use of personal pronouns in the following quotations: "Christ told the Jews and his disciples that he should be absent from them for three days after his death; he did not tell them where, but on the cross he said to the penitent, 'To-day thou shalt be with me in paradise.' Friday evening he was buried; Saturday he lay in the tomb; Sunday morning he returned and raised his body." We cannot understand from where he returned (as he was buried on Friday, and lay in the grave on Saturday) unless there were two personalities. And if there were, which was the real Christ? Speaking of the saints confined in this prison, he says: "And the saints know what goes on all over our world better than we do with our steam and telegraphic mediums, because there is a continual influx of departing spirits into those intermediate abodes, from every part of our globe." It is very natural to suppose if the soul—or the real persons themselves—go to this Paradise, that they would frequently hear from the earth; hear from those incoming spirits all about their friends, relatives, neighbors, etc.; who of their friends had accepted Christ as their Saviour, and who had rejected him; how the church was prospering; if the same pastor was there that they used to listen to when upon earth; how much money was realized at the last fair and festival; and who among their enemies had died and gone to the Tartarus division of this Hades. But it is rather singular that Lazarus, the widow’s son, and the maid—whom Christ, according to this theory brought back from Paradise—had no revelation to make of the things they saw, felt, and enjoyed, in this wonderful vestibule of spirits. As to the condition of man in death, we are inclined to take the words of Solomon rather than these vagaries and speculations of the Companion. Says Solomon: "The living know that they shall die; but the dead know not anything, neither have they [the dead, or man in death] any more a reward; for the memory of them is forgotten." Eccl. 9:5. Here we are "working out our salvation": there, they are "praising God." Hezekiah thought differently about his condition, should he die; for when the Lord ordered him to set his house in order and make preparation for death, which was sure to overtake him, he felt quite disappointed, and in great bitterness cried: "The grave (sheol) cannot praise thee; death cannot celebrate thee." Isa. 38:18. In harmony with this, David says: "In death there is no remembrance of thee; in the grave (sheol) who shall give thee thanks?" Ps. 6:5. How the writer in the Companion obtained the following information we know not. Hear it: "He joins in the same chants and doxologies to Christ and the most Holy Trinity, the same prayers and praises which he had learned on earth." At the conclusion of the article we read this interesting nonsense: "The saints in paradise are still a part of Christ’s kingdom; they are the great van of the army of the redeemed of our race, who have finished their course on earth, in faith, and have gone so far on their way to Heaven—because Christ went there before his ascension into Heaven—and are waiting for the rear of the army, yet fighting in the church militant, to come up and join them, before the resurrection, when they will go with Him in his triumphal entry into his kingdom in heaven. . . . Such is the marvelous lesson we have learned from the revelations made by our divine Lord respecting the departed into the interval between death and the resurrection." From what part of revelation he gained such a full account of this spirit world he does not tell us. We have read the Bible through from Genesis to Revelation, and we have never yet found one passage from which to draw such a conclusion, that the dead are still alive, singing, praying, etc. This looks very much like ghostology. It has some resemblance of Mahomet's theory of seven heavens and seven hells; in his spirit-land there were fourteen heavens and hells, but only one of each in this modern theological ghostland.—Bible Banner. HE DIED FOR ME.
By Advocate
In the cemetery at Nashville, Tennessee, a stranger was seen planting a flower over a soldier's grave. When asked, "Was your son buried there?" "No," was the reply. "Your son-in-law?" "No." "A brother?" "No." "A relative?" "No." After a moment the stranger laid down a small board which he held in his hand and said:— "Well, I'll tell you. When the war broke out I was a farmer. I wanted to enlist; but I was poor, and had a wife and seven small children. I was drafted; I had no money to hire a substitute, and so I made up my mind that I must leave my poor, sickly wife and little children, and go and serve in the army. After I was ready to go, a young man with whom I was acquainted came to me and said: 'You have a big family, which your wife cannot take care of; I will go for you.' He did go in my place; and in the battle of Chickamauga he was wounded, and taken to the hospital at Nashville. After a long485 sickness, he died, and was buried here; and ever since, I have wanted to come to see his grave. I saved up all the money I could, and yesterday I came on; and to-day I found my friend's grave." With tears of gratitude running down his cheeks, he took up the small board and pressed it down into the ground, in the place of a tombstone. Under the soldier's name were these words: "He Died for Me." He died for me! Oh, wonder of wonders! Oh, love unspeakable! How a soul can for a moment take home this truth, and remain unmoved, is almost as wonderful. What infinite condescension for the King to die for the subject; the Master for the servant; the sinless and holy for the sinful and vile; and all to raise a rebellious worm to the place of an heir of glory, whose inheritance shall be an eternal home in his presence, "in the city which hath foundations, whose builder and maker is God." He suffered in my stead. And the shafts of divine justice which I deserved to receive, were turned aside, and entered his breast. For me "He who was rich became poor, that I, through his poverty, might become rich." He was reproached and rejected of men, scourged, and nailed to the shameful tree, and his precious blood freely shed, that I might be freed from the dominion of sin; and regenerated and sanctified, walk before him blameless and in love, and with all my ransomed powers to work for him, live for him, for all time and all eternity.—Advocate. OBEDIENCE THE FIRST DUTY.
By S. S. Times
SUPPOSE a Christian man is hired to watch at night in a large factory in a closely built village. He has agreed to be there from sundown until morning. His task is a very simple one. It is only to walk back and forth in the long rooms, and to go up and down the high stairways, keeping his eyes open, ready to put out the first show of fire, or to sound an alarm in danger. It seems to him a very insignificant work. On all sides sinners are impenitent, and souls are perishing. Oughtn't he to be up and doing in the Lord's cause? This is prayer-meeting night. He will go over and say some earnest words to his sluggish Christian brethren, to arouse them to action. He may be the means of a revival in that village. He quits the factory and goes to the prayer-meeting. His exhortation is cut short by the cry of fire. As he walks among the smoking ruins of that village the next morning, it may occur to him that he would have done better had he attempted less; that as watching was his business, he ought not to have allowed even praying or exhorting to interfere with his watching. It was because Saul, in worship, sacrificed sheep and oxen which he had been sent to destroy, that the Lord rejected him from being king of Israel. Saul thought that those sheep were so fat, and the service of worship was so delightful, that surely God would be pleased to have him stop his work of slaughtering and enter on religious exercises. "And Samuel said, Hath the Lord as great delight in burnt-offerings and sacrifices as in obeying the voice of the Lord?" (Is that the question you are asking? you ought to have known the answer.) "Behold, to obey is better than sacrifice, and to hearken than the fat of rams." Saul did a great many evil things in his day. The one thing for which he was deposed from his kingship was for worshiping God when he had no business to worship: when he had another work to do, a work which he had no right to quit in the hope of doing something better—something more distinctively religious. The Lord is no better pleased to-day with the shirking of one's plain duty under the plea of doing religious service, than he was in the days of Saul.—S. S. Times. WHO CHANGED THE LAW OF GOD?
By Roswell F. Cottrell
ABOUT 555 years before Christ, it was revealed to Daniel the prophet, that the great antichristian power, the abomination of desolation, should think to change times and laws. Dan. 7:25. That power was not fully developed till 538 years after Christ, being 1093 years after the prophecy was given. The laws mentioned must be the laws of God; for the changing of them was to be a distinguishing mark of that power; and the changing of human laws would not distinguish that power from any other government under heaven. And it must be the moral law, the ten commandments: for the ceremonial law was nailed to the cross 500 years before this antichristian power was matured. To predict that this apostate, antichristian power should think to change the moral law of God, is as much as to tell us that that law is unchangeable; a fact of which no intelligent reader of the word of the unchangeable God should need to be informed. In fact, the prophecy of this attempted change is a pledge that the law should not be changed before the rise of that power. Now, if the papal power has not meddled with these laws of God to change them, we cannot prove that it is the power alluded to in the prophecy; for if it cannot be proved that it has fulfilled each characteristic specification given, it is not the predicted power; neither can it be shown that the prophecy has been fulfilled at all; for no other power has fulfilled it; and in this case the prophecy has failed, or otherwise the power must yet arise to fulfill it. Again, if that power has attempted to change the law of God, it must have taken place 500 years after Christ had changed it as some teach, and since he has left no record of the change made by him, it is utterly impossible for us at this time to distinguish the work of Christ from that of antichrist. Christ does not work in partnership with antichrist; who, then, made the change? Who changed the Sabbath from the seventh to the first day of the week? Was it He of whom it was foretold that he should "magnify the law and make it honorable?" or he of whom it was said that he should "change times and laws"? Let each answer for himself. "Till heaven and earth pass, one jot or one tittle shall in no wise pass from the law."—Christ. "Q. How prove you that the church hath power to command feasts and holy days?" "A. By the very act of changing the Sabbath into Sunday." "Had she not such power, . . . she could not have substituted the observance of Sunday, the first day of the week, for the observance of Saturday, the seventh day, a change for which there is no scriptural authority." These witnesses agree with each other, and each is in perfect harmony with the prophecy. Who, then, changed the law? Christ, or antichrist? The unprejudiced believer in the Bible as a divine revelation can give but one answer to this question. Having the evidence before him, he cannot charge upon Jesus Christ the work of antichrist. PAUL says one of the degrees of Christian perfection is "rejoice in tribulation." Satan has no power over one who, in the midst of trouble, praises God for the victory that is to come. THE LESSON OF THE TELEPHONE.
By Editor
CALLING upon a business acquaintance the other day, he suddenly interrupted our conversation with these words, "Excuse me a moment," turned toward his desk and said—as if to a third person, though there was no third person in the room—"Well!" The person addressed, though quite invisible and inaudible to us, seemed to communicate intelligibly with our friend, who uttered requests and made promises and expressed gratitude to vacancy, in a way which would have led one a few years since to have deemed him insane. But he wasn't insane by any means. On the contrary, he was extra sensible and clear-headed. Attached to his desk there was a telephone, which communicated with his home. In the midst of his conversation he had heard a call which my ear did not detect. He had been talking with his father—acknowledging with gratitude the fulfillment of requests previously made, venturing upon new petitions, encouraged by that father's love, and in turn making such promises as were prompted by a filial heart. Isn't it a perfect parallel, we said, to prayer? The infidel taunts us with talking to vacancy when we pray. Sometimes the skeptical doubt rushes upon the Christian in the midst of his supplications. Is there an ear that listens and a voice that answers? Why not? If man, by the exercise of a little ingenuity, can communicate with his distant fellow-man; if, when he seems to be talking to vacancy, he is really pouring his requests into the ear of a friend; if his father, invisible and inaudible to the bystanders, still does hear and answer prayer—why is prayer such an absurdity as it is sometimes represented? Why may not divine ingenuity have established a spiritual telephone between earth and heaven so that when the Christian is seemingly talking to vacancy he is really talking to God? There are a good many people who believe that there is a God, but regard it the height of absurdity to think that he hears and answers prayer. We commend to such the lesson of the telephone. Why should God not be able to do on a large scale what man has done on a little scale? There are many who believe that he is—that the heavenly telephone antedates the earthly—that from the place of business, on the pressure of sudden emergency, they can just as surely, just as safely, just as speedily, reach a heavenly as an earthly father. REPORT OF GENERAL S. S. ASSOCIATION.
Ar the late meeting of the General Sabbath-school Association, held at Battle Creek, Mich., seventeen Associations were represented by sixty-eight delegates. Eld. Matteson was received as delegate to represent the Sabbath-school cause in Norway; Bro. H. Nielson, to represent the German people; and Brn. Oyen and Gelotte, to represent the Scandinavian people. The Constitution of the Association was so amended as to call for a Vice-president, in addition to former officers. The following are officers for the coming year: President, G. H. Bell; Vice-president, J. E. White; Recording Secretary, Eva Bell; Executive Committee, W. C. White, D. A. Robinson, H. W. Kellogg; Publishing Committee, W. C. White, G. H. Bell, U. Smith. The Committee on Resolutions submitted the following:— 1. Whereas, The importance of the Sabbath-school cannot be overestimated, as it holds to the church the relation of the nursery to the orchard; therefore,
Resolved, That we recommend all our churches to take a greater and more active interest in sustaining the Sabbath-school work. 2. Resolved, That every member of the church should be a member of the Sabbath-school. Resolved, That we urge all our schools to supply themselves with maps and books necessary to successfully conduct their work. 4. Whereas, The success of any work depends upon its unity of action; and whereas, confusion otherwise results; therefore,
Resolved, That we urgently recommend that all our schools carefully follow the arrangement and course of lessons prescribed by the Executive Committee of this Association. 5. Resolved, That the executive and publishing committees shall form a joint committee on lessons and Sabbath-school supplies, and all questions on these points shall be referred to said joint committee. 6. Resolved, That we recommend the use of the collection box in all our schools. 7. Whereas, Some on account of conscientious scruples, have not felt free to contribute on the Sabbath, and in some cases have allowed a spirit of murmuring to come in; therefore,
Resolved, That we warn all our brethren against indulging in a feeling of alienation and complaining over this matter; and we heartily recommend a spirit of forbearance and liberality toward each other. 8. Whereas, In many parts of the field, Sunday-schools have been organized by our people, which, under wise and judicious management have been productive of great good; therefore,
Resolved, That we recommend our State Associations to adopt measures for organizing Sunday-schools under the advice and direction of the Executive Committee of such Associations. The resolutions were acted upon separately, and all unanimously carried. There were remarks, and some discussion on the several resolutions. Quite a number gave experiences bearing on Resolution 8, and going to show that the spirit of the resolution is to organize S. D. A. Sunday-schools, instead of going in to take part in schools already organized and conducted by Sunday-keepers. Eld. Matteson made remarks in regard to Sabbath and Sunday-school experience in Norway, Denmark, and Sweden. He expressed his interest and union of feeling in the work this side the water. The Committee on Resolutions was empowered to draft an article defining the duties of the Publishing Committee, and meeting adjourned to call of Chair. J. E. WHITE, Chairman.
EVA BELL, Sec. pro tem. Life is, and ever has been, to the candid, thoughtful mind, a mystery. Who fashioned the delicate and intricate organs of the human body, and from whence came the vital spark which animates the same? Why is it that after a little time we must yield up our individual existence and, seemingly, become as if we had never been? Why this little season of life, strength, and activity, and why these hopes, longings, and aspirations? Why this multitude of beings, similar, yet unlike ourselves? These questions have been asked, pondered, and studied carefully by wise men in all ages of the world. Search the annals of the past, study the open book of nature, ponder carefully every philosophical reason, and weigh well every hypothesis which may be formed, and you will obtain no light, no well-grounded theory, no foundation upon which to build your hopes. But is there no information for the human race as to their origin, object, and destiny? Yea, verily, there is a sure guide, a safe pilot, a "thus saith the Lord." The Bible is the only compass which points through the gloom and darkness of the grave, and opens before the mind of man views of heavenly bliss and visions of immortal glory in the future. If we disbelieve the Bible, where are we in this world's darkness, and what have we to rest our hopes upon? The hope of the Christian is a glorious one—big with immortality. It tells us that life is not limited to three-score years and ten, but may be eternal. It tells us that this short, earthly life is given us in which to prepare for that life which has no end, but is one long eternity of joy, peace, happiness, and rest. As we look back into the past, we find that sorrow, pain, anguish, tribulation, and death, have followed in the footsteps of man. What heart-aches, weariness of the flesh, disappointments, and unrest, the human race have endured! As we look forward into the future, our earthly eyes, unaided by the light of revelation, can discern nothing but gloomy shadows and thick darkness; but by the eye of faith we can look down through the dim vista of coming years and see far ahead a tiny star, which grows brighter and brighter until it merges into the light and glory of the eternal world. What views of loveliness and gleams of glory flash before the mind, and what longings for a nobler, truer, better life, are awakened by these foretastes and glimpses of the restful peace of that far-off heavenly land. Let us then endeavor to make this life a success, that when that life shall dawn our lives may run parallel with the life of God through a never-ending eternity. A good woman was noticed as always punctual at meeting, though she had a long way to go. When asked how it was she was never late, she replied: "I make it a part of my religion, never to disturb the religion of others." Too few Christians realize that it is a religious duty to be promptly in their places, and punctual at all appointments. A good place to cultivate this virtue is in the Sabbath-school, and to this end it is of the utmost importance that officers and teachers set a good example to their scholars. The superintendent who is late in his place, late in commencing the services, or tardy in any of his work, must not expect his teachers to be any more prompt in their work. The teacher who is not on hand at the time for school to open cannot expect his scholars to be careful to be there in time. It is well to have the reputation for punctuality of the Elder Adams, of whom it is said that not being in his seat in the Senate one morning at the hour for business, the opening was delayed, supposing, as proved to be true, that the clock was fast rather than Mr. Adams late. Apropos of this the Sunday School Times says:— "One of our contributors recently pressed the importance of a teacher being at his post a half-hour or so before the school session, that he might greet the scholars as they came in, and have pleasant words with them until the opening moment arrived. The suggestion is a good one, and it is timely; for there are few teachers who are sufficiently prompt at school to do their best work. Most teachers lose a royal opportunity of a better hold on their scholars by not coming earlier. But, if a teacher will not be ahead of the school hour, let him never be behind it. Five minutes lost at the opening of the school are lost forever. The venerable Dr. Tyng has said, out of his fifty years' Sunday-school experience, that 'an unpunctual teacher can never be a spiritually-minded teacher.' He asks pertinently, 'What if those teachers are fifteen minutes too late to get into Heaven? There are some teachers who seem to have fallen behind years ago, and never to have caught up. They bid fair to be eternally late.'"—Sabbath Recorder. The Superintendent’s Responsibilities
The superintendent has no idle time. During the lesson he should not be content with seeing that every class has a teacher, but should know, by personal observation, just what kind of a teacher each class has. He should be careful not to interrupt the teachers. But he should see the attention or lack of attention in each class, and if the attendance is falling away in any class, it should be carefully noted. It cannot hurt a teacher to know that the eye of the superintendent is on him. When a teacher has done better than usual, commend it casually in private conversation, and the teacher will ever after work encouraged and stimulated by a consciousness of your notice. Ministers and Sabbath-School Work
By Edward Eggleston
The writer has given years to the ministerial work, and it is not in his heart to underestimate the influence that ministers have exerted, and are exerting, in favor of the advancement of the Sabbath-school work, but he sincerely believes that a thorough awakening of ministers will give us more schools, more scholars, more teachers, more earnestness, a body of trained workers, glorious results,—in fact, almost everything to be desired. With ministers lie the fountain of power. But let us relieve no other class from a sense of their own responsibility.—Edward Eggleston. Stand by Your Superintendent
STAND by your superintendent, friends. He may not suit you. His plans may not be the best in the world. But he is entitled to your hearty support during his term of office. You cannot afford to imperil the work of Christ by division. When his term of office has expired, you may remove him; but while he is in office, support him. Joseph Cook says: “The secret of securing attention is to say the thing that needs to be said.” If that was intended for Sabbath-school superintendents and teachers it could not have been better said. OUR BAPTIST NEIGHBORS.
By James White
WE have before congratulated the Baptists of California in their having so worthy an organ in the Herald of Truth, published in Oakland. In its issue of October 1, we find the following notice of our late camp-meeting:— "One of the largest camp-meetings, as such, ever held in California, was that of the Seventh-day Adventists, recently, in Alameda. It was indeed a 'city of tents.' Its management was excellent, as might be expected from so worthy a people. Its spirit was serious and decided. This body of believers has for its advocacy the conviction that it is called to stand for the restoration of Christianity to the worship of God on the seventh day of the week, and to enforce upon the attention of men an immediate expectation of the return of the Lord. It has the best of the argument on the question of the Sabbath, if the authority for the change from the seventh to the first day of the week is to rest upon a precept, either of Jesus or of his apostles, enjoining this change. It does not have the argument, however, with those to whom the example of Christ and his apostles is as binding as law. We believe in looking for and hastening unto the day of our Lord. His personal return is no small part of the joy of our faith. The certainty of that return has unquestionably been the faith of the ages. Of its uncertainty with respect to time, in view of the stupendous failures of not a few calculations in the present century, we have this remark only to make—that upon this uncertainty, as Alford has well expressed it, 'hope may be stimulated, and watchfulness aroused.' As a matter of fact, after Father Miller's erroneous expectations in 1843, he wrote as follows: 'I have fixed my mind on another time; and here I mean to stand till God gives me more light, and that is, to-day, to-day, to-day, until he comes.' And so he watched and waited till, in 1849, there came an angel, not the angel of the trumpet, but one who spoke to the old man alone, saying that the Lord was not coming to him, but that he should now depart, and be with the Lord. "Thus writes Prof. Norman Fox, in the National Baptist, with whose judgment we are quite in sympathy, that 'on the calendar of eternity it is just as bold to expect the advent in a given century as in a given year.' In stating this as our opinion, we nevertheless deplore the large silence of the universal Christian church upon the sublime and inspiring second advent thought. That thought seems to us to be interwoven with almost every thread of New Testament inspiration." We are glad to find in that paper such an expression on the doctrine of the advent; and we shall strive to always deserve so good a notice as a people, for which we return thanks. It is just what we should expect from that source. We are in no fear of ever having any injustice done to us by Dr. Abbott, the editor, who is every whit a Christian gentleman. His course has been in marked contrast with that of some California editors, who seem to let their prejudices control their judgment. The former has in them, perhaps, the controlling power. We have treated all with courtesy, and if some of them have not seen fit to return it, we bear them no ill will. If they find pleasure in indulging splenetic feelings, they shall enjoy it alone. Now we wish to have a little brotherly talk with the editor of the Herald of Truth. We do not forget the years in which "we took sweet counsel" with our Baptist brethren, in whose fellowship we walked. For many things we highly regard them as a people. Yet we have "somewhat against them," and we request them to listen to a word of admonition. If the Israelites were ever greater sinners than "the nations," it was not because their actions were worse, but because their privileges were greater. "Sin by the commandment becomes exceeding sinful." In this respect their "sin abounded." Applying this principle to the Baptists, the fact that they are jealous of their claim to being consistent with the Bible, makes their inconsistency appear the greater whenever it is manifested. The papists are not at all inconsistent in the following tradition, for that is their profession. The pedo-baptists are not inconsistent in their practice of infant baptism, for their principles and processes of reasoning admit of inference and supposed examples as the basis of institutions. But when the Baptists scout such principles, deny all tradition, and call for an "explicit Scripture warrant" for an action or for an institution, their inconsistency is too evident to be hid when they follow tradition, practice on an inference, and allow supposed examples to take precedence of law. And that is just what they do on the subject of the Sabbath. While we esteem Dr. Abbott truly as a brother battling for the right, and hope that he may succeed in his efforts to raise the name of the Baptists of California from the unenviable position to which designing men have sunk it, we think his position on the Sabbath, as taken in the above article, is not consistent with Baptist principles. 1. If the Doctor esteems the example of Christ as equal, or superior, to law, why does he discard his example, explicitly recorded as such, in the case of feet-washing? And in this case the precept accompanied the example. We promise to keep Sunday with the Baptists, and sprinkle infants with the pedo-baptists, when they will show as good authority for these practices as we show for washing the feet of the disciples. 2. Were we to admit the example of Christ to be equal in all things to legal warrant, we should still be a Seventh-day Adventist, as we are not aware that even an inference exists on which it is claimed that Christ honored the seventh day. 3. We have explicit statement, oft repeated, that the seventh day belongs to the Lord, as a sanctified, hallowed, consecrated day,—"the holy of the Lord," the memorial rest-day of the Creator, of which the Son of man is also Lord. While not even a shadow of an inference from Scripture can be produced for calling the first day of the week "the Lord's day," as the Baptists do. 4. As the Baptists, without any warrant of Scripture, observe the Sunday instead of the Sabbath which Jehovah enjoined in his commandment, we inquire, by what right do they demand a warrant of Scripture for infant baptism? We honestly think that any candid person must admit that the inferences are as strong in favor of infant baptism as in favor of Sunday-keeping. If inferences are admissible as the ground of institutions, why do Baptists show this partiality? 5. As Baptists so confidently refer to the testimony of "the early fathers," and to church history, to prove the early practice of Sunday-keeping, from which they infer its authority, why do they reject the same testimony, and deny the same inference in favor of infant baptism? It is matter of the clearest proof that infant baptism was practiced in the days of Cyprian and of Tertullian, and that it was based on inferences drawn from Scripture. Sunday, as a subject of tradition, can show no better record. Why, then, discriminate in its favor? Our first connection with the Baptists dates nearly forty years back. From our earliest remembrance it was the custom of pedo-baptists to taunt them with their inconsistency,—a charge from which they can never clear themselves while they observe Sunday. They may, indeed, as a last resort, claim that "example is as binding as law." But they cannot produce a clear example; certainly they cannot destroy the force of the apostle's declarations, that "By the law is the knowledge of sin;" and that "Where no law is there is no transgression;" that the man of God is "thoroughly furnished unto all good works," by "the holy Scriptures," and that "God will bring every work into judgment" by "his commandments." These considerations moved us to "keep the commandments of God, and the faith of Jesus." And we hope to be found among those who are so doing, when Jesus our Master shall appear, to redeem his people. Rev. 14:9-14. J. H. W.