special mention of them may be necessary for their appeal, or some other form, however particular, necessary to be observed, we expressly annul and repeal. Moreover, we decree that if, in any other manner, any other attempt shall be made by any person, or by any authority, knowingly or ignorantly, to set aside these enactments, such attempt shall be null and void. And it is our will and pleasure that copies of these our letters, being printed and subscribed by the hand of a notary public, and sealed with the seal of a person high in eccesiastical dignity, shall have the same authenticity as would belong to the expression of our will by the production of this original copy. Given at Rome, at St. Peter's, under the scal of the fisherman, this 29th day of September, 1850, in the fifth year of our pontificate.-A. Cardinal Lambruschini. RESIGNATIONS. The Rev. D. Pledge, owing to declining health, has resigned the pastorate of the baptist church, Tenterden, and has retired to Margate, the scene of his former labours, with the hope that a season of rest in the midst of old attached friends may tend to the reestablishment of his health. Mr. Pledge, though unequal to the duties of stated labour, is able to preach occasionally for neighbouring churches. The Rev. B. S. Hall, having resigned the pastorate of the church at Shefford, Beds, wishes his friends to be informed that his present address is Bourton-on-the-Water, near Moreton-in-the-Marsh, Gloucestershire. The Rev. W. W. Evans, formerly of Calcutta, having been unanimously elected secretary and superintendent to the Birmingham Town Mission, has relinquished his charge at Honiton, and removed to 96, Great Charles Street, Birmingham. The Rev. John Berg informs us that he has resigned his connexion with the baptist church in Tewksbury, and shall take his final farewell early in the coming year. CORRESPONDENCE. ON MR. ROBINSON'S PROPOSALS. To the Editor of the Baptist Magazine. DEAR SIR,-I have attentively read the excellent letter of Mr. Robinson in your last number, and although I cannot perceive that the proposal has any bearing on the "Constitution of the society," as the writer does not advise the investment of the individuals composing the periodical meetings with authority, the leading suggestion appears to me of great importance. We do want more widely diffused information on the proceedings of the society, not only in its field of labour abroad, but in its councils at home; nor do I imagine the committees have ever been unwilling to supply such information, but, on the contrary, they have incurred considerable expense in the attempt to disseminate it. It would be perfectly in harmony with the existing usages of the society to supply materials such as your correspondent thinks desirable, and I intrude these lines merely to offer a hint as to the manner in which the only difficulty, anticipated by him, may be overcome. opinions to the committee, and to the churches respecting it. But why create a new organization for these purposes? Would not existing auxiliaries be sufficient? Might not special meetings of those bodies be called as often as it might be thought expedient to hear confidential communications from the parent society, and to consult on the best modes of rendering it more efficient help? Since churches, as such, have to a greater extent than they formerly did, undertaken the duty of collecting their own funds, the business of auxiliaries has very much diminished; and while the change has doubtless been in most respects for the better, we are in danger of losing the advantages of a common centre, and of mutual encouragement to good works. The auxiliary, of which I am one of the secretaries, never meets but for the the purpose of preparing for the annual public meetings. Why? Simply because there is nothing else to be done. But if such special correspondence as that alluded to, containing information which did not appear in the public organs, were addressed to these affiliated societies, I believe we should all receive new life, and be awakened to efforts better proportioned to an enterprise. Yours most truly, Difficulty there certainly would be in conrening gentlemen from various parts of a county, merely to read missionary intelligence, converse over it, and, if necessary, offer their Wavertree, Liverpool, Nov. 18, 1850. C. M. BIRRELL. you TITLES OF RELIGIOUS CONGREGATION'S ACT. To the Editor of the Baptist Magazine. DEAR SIR,-Communications relative to this important statute having already appeared in your Magazine, I am induced to offer a further contribution, in order to suggest the propriety of an appointment of new trustees being now delayed until there is some duty for them to perform. The Act having dispensed with the necessity of a transfer of the legal estate, and vested the nomination, where the power of appointment has lapsed, in the congregation or society who have acquired the property, no inconvenience will any longer be experienced should all the old trustees die before the appointment is made. The delay will have the following advantages: First. The opportunity will be afforded of selecting individuals for the duty who are the most able and willing to perform it, which must be preferable to the chance of finding these qualities in persons already appointed. Second. Trustees are so seldom required to act, that they will thus be in a great measure dispensed with, and the deed stamp saved. Third. Sometimes a trusteeship falls into the hands of persons who have gone abroad, or become imbecile, or alienated from the cause they had espoused when appointed, and who possess, under the existing trust deed, the sole power of nominating fresh trustees, which they might not exercise satisfactorily. Your correspondent, Mr. Green, refers to a case of the kind. If the matter is allowed to stand over until there is something for the trustees to do, so many of them will probably have died in the interval, as to transfer the nomination to the congregation or society, by the lapse of the original power of appointment. What will constitute such a lapse seems to be indicated by the clause which enacts that "every such choice and appointment of a new trustee or trustees, shall be made to appear by some deed under the hand and seal of the chairman, for the time being, of the meeting, at which such choice and appointment shall be made." When the number of trustees becomes so reduced as to be insufficient to carry out this provision of the Act, the lapse, I apprehend, follows. Allow me to add, in reply to Mr. Green's query, that I think it clear, the old trustees cannot be, in either case, set aside, the Act expressly providing that the original conveyance of the property shall vest it in the parties named therein, and also "in their successors in office for the time being, and the old continuing trustees, if any, jointly." I remain, Dear sir, Yours truly, S. B. CLIFT. Trowbridge, November 9, 1850. EDITORIAL POSTSCRIPT. There are a few sentences in two otherwise excellent portions of the present number which it may perhaps be thought the editor ought to have suppressed. The manner in which his services are adverted to by Mr. Gurney and Mr. Tritton certainly surprised him; but it appeared to him on reflection, that it would be greater presumption on his part to modify their language than to print it verbatim leaving the reader to make allowance for the partialities of long cherished friendship. He begs that no one will make it an occasion for calling to remembrance the errors and defects with which the editorship of the last thirteen years is chargeable, as he is quite aware that imperfections have been discernible in almost every number, and that he, like most other writers, needs the constant exercise of the reader's candour. It is proper to say, however, that neither of these gentlemen knows what the other has written, or even, we believe, that he has written at all. Irrespective of the one point to which allusion has been made, the friends of the magazine will unanimously thank them both for their benevolent endeavour to increase its efficiency by enlarging its circulation, and we doubt not that their addresses will be made use of by many in a manner accordant with their design. As to the editor, such expressions of approbation cannot fail to cheer him and stimulate him to further exertion, though he confesses that he feels somewhat dismayed at the thought that he will be expected now to evince constantly all the good qualities that have been so liberally imputed to him. No fewer than four editions of Barnes's Notes on the New Testament are in course of publication, and some of them are very large. This is gratifying; for they are generally speaking well adapted to promulgate evangelical doctrine and assist in the interpretation of scripture. It should be remembered, however, that Mr. Barnes is a presbyterian, and a very decided pædobaptist. In many of his notes, he combats our views of the ordinance of baptisin strenuously, being always ready to embrace an opportunity to give us a thrust. For this we do not blame him: it is his duty to maintain what he believes to be truth, and to refute what he supposes to be error. We cannot, however, regard with complacency the fact that his arguments in favour of what we believe to be error-popular and mischievous error-are being circulated by tens of thousands among the sabbath-school teachers and other young people of our congregations. It cannot be expected that the arguments of such a man as Barnes should have no influence. In proportion as the sound part of his writings are valued and useful, will the unsound parts be productive of injury. Something should be done to counteract the evil. We have thought much of it, and we are prepared to announce our purpose. We intend to follow the commentator step by step, examining those portions of his work which relate to baptism; and thus, in successive numbers, to put our readers into possession of an antidote. Will friends who are acquainted with purchasers of this exposition take care to inform them that in the Baptist Magazine for 1851, the baptist side of the question will be presented to them, on the passages which Barnes endeavours to enlist in favour of pælobaptist views, or which he makes the occasion of adverting to the initiatory ordinance? May the blessing of the Spirit of Truth attend our effort; and may the interests of truth which are the real interests of all Christ's churches be promoted! The Rev. W. Brock is preparing a memoir of the late Mr. Newbegin, missionary to Africa, for our next number. The portrait of Dr. Steane which is to embellish it is nearly ready. The writer of the review of the works of Dr. Cumming and Mr. Read, in our last number, has pointed out two errata which titheses " escaped his eye when he read the proofs. In page 677, column 1, line 17, « strange anshould be "strained antitheses;" and in the 29th line of the same column, "Theological" should be "Illogical," making the sentence read thus: "Illogical rhetoric-especially where the rhetoric is of a high order like Dr. Cumming's-is perhaps the worst form which human language can assume." Our Hammersmith friends have surmounted the difficulties which had interposed to retard the commencement of their new chapel. At three o'clock on Friday, December the 6th, the first stone is to be laid by S. M. Peto, Esq., and an address on the occasion delivered by the Rev. John Aldis. Their pastor, Mr. Leechman, was at the time of the last advices in Ceylon, and our readers will unite with us in the hope that after he has performed those services in India which he has undertaken at the request of the Committee of the Mission, he and his flock will have many happy meetings in their enlarged place of concourse. The Rev. C. M. Birrell will be obliged if his correspondents will address his letters to "Wavertree, Liverpool," as, if they are merely directed "Liverpool,” an additional postage is incurred before they reach him. A deacon of the church in Belvoir Street, Leicester, under the care of Mr. Mursell, informs us that on Lord's day, Nov. 10th, after two sermons by their beloved pastor, and at a social meeting on the following evening, the sum of two thousand pounds was contributed in reduction of the debt on their place of worship. Our informant regards this as a confirmation of an opinion which he has long held, that it is a great error when collections are to be made to seek the aid of some popular preacher from a distance, in order to urge to that liberality which to be acceptable to the great Head of the church ought to be spontaneous. Some of our friends anxiously inquire what course ought to be pursued in reference to the papal Bull by those Christians who acknowledge no authority in spiritual concerns but that of Christ. The Bull itself we have given at full length, and we intend to make a few observations bearing on the question in our Preface. We will venture to say here, however, that it appears to us that watchfulness and prayer are more seasonable than any appeal to the secular powers. It may be that quiescence may continue for some time to be our duty, while hostile claimants of authority over the consciences of men are engaged in active strife; but it may be that ere long our interposition may be required to avert injurious legislation. Till we see more clearly than is yet discernible what will be the course of the antagonist armies, it is as a body of reserve that we can do the most effective service. Yet, anxious as we are to repress rash effort, we dare not countenance misapprehension of the degree of danger. It will now be the great aim of the Romanists to persuade the people of this country that the dignitaries recently appointed by the pope are merely Roman catholic bishops to rule over Roman catholic flocks. Say so who may, we are prepared to maintain and prove that according to the standards of the Romish church, every baptist is as much amenable to the Romish bishop of the district in which he lives as the most devout communicant at the altar. Roman catholic advocates, it should be clearly understood, are not bound by their own disclaimers. They will be told by their ecclesiastical superiors-or they who trust in them will be told-that these gentlemen were in the position of minors assigning to other men their father's estates. The decrees of the Council of Trent are as binding upon Pius IX. himself, as the injunctions of Pius IX. are upon the meanest Italian friar. Were he to disclaim any power over baptized heretics which those decrees assume, he could fall back upon them at the first convenient opportunity, most gracefully. It is only want of space that prevents our adducing now conclusive proof of these assertions. It lies before us. Supplement. DECEMBER, 1850. PRINCIPAL BAPTIST SOCIETIES. Baptist Missionary Society. Formed 1792. OBJECT:-"The diffusion of the knowledge of the religion of Jesus Christ throughout the whole world, beyond the British Isles, by the preaching of the Gospel, the translation and publication of the Holy Scriptures, and the establishment of Schools.' Treasurers, WILLIAM BRODIE GURNEY, Esq., SAMUEL MORTON PETO, Esq., M.P. Secretaries, Rev. FREDERICK TRESTRAIL and EDWARD B. UNDERHILL, Esq., Baptist Mission House, 33, Moorgate Street. Committee. Cox, Rev. Francis A, D.D., LL.D., Hackney. Groser, Rev. William, Chelsea. Hinton, Rev. John H., M.A., London. Hoby, Rev. James, D.D., London. Newman, Rev. T. F., Nailsworth. Soule, Rev. Israel May, Battersea. Sprigg, Rev. James, M.A., Westbury Leigh. Stevenson, George, Esq., Blackheath. Stovel, Rev. Charles, London. Tucker, Rev. F., B.A., Manchester. Webb, Rev. James, Ipswich. Leechman, Rev. John, M.A., Hammersmith. Murch, Rev. William H., D.D., Watford. Winter, Rev. Thomas, Bristol. In these numbers Jamaica is not included, the churches there, consisting of about 30,000 persons, being no longer aided by the society. VOL. XII.-FOURTH SERIES. 51 Baptist Home Missionary Society. Formed 1797. OBJECT: "To encourage the formation and growth of Baptist churches, both in the agricultural and manufacturing districts of Great Britain, particularly in large towns." Treasurer, JOHN R. BOUSFIELD, Esq., 126, Houndsditch. OBJECT:-"The diffusion of the gospel of Jesus Christ principally by the employment of Missionaries and Readers in Ireland, the establishment of Schools, and the distribution of Bibles and Tracts." Treasurer, JOSEPH TRITTON, Esq., 54, Lombard Street. Committee. 2,743 16 2 1,606 13 2 626 14 0 820 15 8 Beddome, Mr. William. Bond, W. H., Esq. Lowe, Mr. George, F.R.S Miall, Rev. William." Oliver, Mr. James. Young, Mr. Thomas. |