a common school, nor does it promise much attend the school, or be absent, as they advantage, for the parents exercise no con- please. trol over the children, but permit them to We have considered the influence which great spiritual destitution, where multitudes our country is exerting on the world, the are unhappy, lawless, and perishing for grand experiment in sacred and secular go-"lack of knowledge." It has been esti. vernment which it is making, and the issue of this experiment on the future destinies of the globe. For our own sakes, and for the sake of the general diffusion of truth, it should be our ardent desire and determin. ed effort, to supply our population with able and faithful ministers, and through them with valuable religious instruction. So it Our Such zeal and concentrated action are now peculiarly necessary, because we are in a state of national childhood. The period in which we are living, is evidently the moulding period of this great nation, in which, if ever, our character must be formed for God, and the Redeemer. Parents know that if the religious character of their chil. || dren be not formed early in life, it is impos. sible to mould it in riper years, when they have attained the age of manhood. is with our nation, now in its infancy. population is increasing with so much rapidity, (at the rate of a thousand a day) new settlements are growing up in so much ignorance, that if the work of moral culture be neglected now, it will not, cannot be performed by the succeeding generation. How great then, is the responsibility resting upon us who are living at the crisis of our country's history, and at the very time when its character is forming; and how much, in ages yet to come, will depend upon our fidelity! Very much remains to be done before such knowledge and virtue as we need, be predominant in our land. Highly favoured as is our country, compared with every other, still, in many parts of it, there is mated that about one-third of our population hear not the gospel regularly preached from Sabbath to Sabbath-an alarming view of our condition-enough to distress the benevolent heart, and lead to warmer prayer and greater effort. In estimating the value of Domestic Missions, we should particularly direct our attention to the "vast west," the "great val ley of the Mississippi," with a population, though yet in its infancy, of nearly six mil. lions. The strength of the nation will soon be there; the centre of dominion is fast moving in that direction; that which is soon to govern our whole country is rapidly growing up in that fertile and extensive region. If the population continue to increase as it has done, and as it is now doing, in less than a century, a hundred millions of inhabitants will be in that western valley. It is impossible, whether we contemplate our country or the world, to overrate the importance of forming their character upon the principles of the gospel. Nothing but the most vigorous efforts of the Christian community can stem the tide of irreligion and vice, which threatens to overwhelm those new and rising states. Now is the time to impart the aid so much needed and solicited; now, while they are in the childhood of society; now, while their charac. ter is forming, and open to every influence; now, while they are capable of being fully moulded into that which is good. What we do, we must do quickly. The tide of population will not wait for us while we hesitate, the mighty swell is rising higher and higher upon the sides of the mountains. | shall diffuse a moral miasm Upon the direction and impulse now given may depend the future character of the hundreds of millions that shall inhabit that land-now is the time to effect the work. Popery has directed a longing eye to that immense tract of country; she has survey. ed every part of it by her emissaries; she has sent to it many of her priests; she has erected in it many churches and cathedrals, and begins to exult in the hope of one day possessing it. Shall the votaries of this false religion outstrip in zeal the friends of pure Christianity, and anticipate them in providing for the religious instruction of such a vast population? If the multitudes that are flowing into that part of our territory are brought under the influence of the Romish Church, no part of our land will be safe; a pestilential exhalation will arise that over the whole country; it will be a dark blot upon the page of our history, descending to our dishonour, and proving that instead of a blessing, we have been an opprobrium, and a curse to the nations of the earth. Every thing teaches us that Domestie Missions is a work on whose success depends, in a great measure, the future char. acter of this vast country, the continuance of our liberty, the fate of our children and our children's children, and the nature of that influence which is to be exerted by us on the world. Let the work fully succeed; let the pure gospel be universally diffused; let every part of our population be supplied with faithful pastors; and then our repub. lic will be safe, and we shall be a rich blessing to the world. K. BOARD OF MISSIONS: COMMUNICATIONS FROM MISSIONARIES. WE venture to ask the special atten-|| preparatory, has already been accomplishtion of our readers to the following sim-ed; serious impressions have been made, ple and touching report from a missionary good resolutions formed, and some are in Pennsylvania: it is longer than we usually publish, but on examination we feared to make any change, lest we should lessen its interest; and we think none who read it with care, will deem it seriously inquiring after the truth. My field includes portions of three counties. I have four regular sabbath preaching stations, at three of which, churches exist; the largest of these con, tains about eighty members; eight miles north is a second church, with between forty and fifty members; a third lately tedious. Is our beloved church at all aware of the melancholy extent of our moral wastes? we fear it is not and we seriously fear Christians will continue to close their eyes and steel their hearts against the crying wants of our own country, until evils the most appalling formed, about 20 miles east, contains will be the result of their dreadful apathy. five members; at my fourth sabbath staThe specimen of moral desolation here tion, there is no church. Beside these, given, is but one of many, very many to|| I have five or six other stations in differbe found in almost every state in our ent directions, where I preach as often to the importance of home missions?-ED. | as possible through the week, so that my Union. When will the churches awake A MISSIONARY FIELD IN THE INTERIOR I CANNOT expect to see much fruit from whole field is about fifty miles in extent. It is principally situated on, and around the Alleghany mountains. It is decidedly the roughest, wildest-looking country I have ever seen; often the eye of the traveller, for many miles, meets with nothing but wild, barren mountains, or a dense wilderness of towering pine and oak forests. The roads are narrow lanes over these dreary mountains, or cut fit to be seen in from home. I could not through these dense forests, with sloughs, gain admittance inside the cabin, but had rocks, and great pine stumps, thickly in- to converse, read and pray with the famterspersed, and the stately pines closing ily in the open air. I have visited large overhead, often two hundred feet high. and interesting families, scarcely one of Sometimes neither house, nor human be- whom could either read or write. Not ing is to be seen for nine or ten miles; long since I met our constable on his way but wild beasts, and beasts of prey, and to serve some law paper, and having forvenomous reptiles, are not uncommon. gotten the name, not being able to read, These last, particularly rattlesnakes, are or write himself, he had called at a house both numerous and dangerous; and only on the way, to inquire for some one who yesterday, on my way home from preach- could read it for him. Some of these ing, I had two dangerous encounters and poor people, however, are much more ina most providential escape from these telligent, and more moral, than might venomous beasts. * * have been expected under such unfavourable circumstances. In some districts, they have no school at all; in others, they have school only two or three months in year, or in two years. I have not been able to find a single regular religious newspa a The poverty, ignorance, and moral destitutions of this county are very, very great. I could hardly have believed that such destitutions were to be found in the United States: much less in the heart of the old, wealthy, and enlightened State of Penn-per, among my whole charge. The peosylvania. The statement of a few facts, ple live, partly by farming, and partly by illustrative of the state of things here, making shingles, and by cutting down may give you some idea of the poverty timber, and rafting it to the Baltimore and destitution of this region. One of and Philadelphia markets. The populaour most substantial farmers, perhaps the tion is a heterogeneous collection of most substantial pillar of both the tempo- Americans, English, Scotch, Irish, Dutch, ral and spiritual interests of our largest &c. with conflicting sentiments and feelchurch, lives in his log cabin, the great ings, on almost every important subject; rough logs bare both on the outside and in one thing, however, they are almost within, while both wind and rain have unanimous, and that is, in a desire to have free access through numerous open-have the gospel preached among them; ings between the logs; not a stove in the and also, in sincere kindness to their minhouse, even in these bleak mountains, ister. Many of them subscribe more libwhere from three to five months' sleigh-erally, according to their means, for the ing, or severe winter weather, is general- support of the gospel, than any people I ly expected. know. Some are willing to give wheat, A few weeks since, I visited a member some oats, and some shingles; while of our session, who is also a justice of some offer to do my washing, others my the peace; I found him, with his four or mending, &c. &c.-Their subscription five children, living, or rather staying in list presents a strange anomaly. Presbya wretched hut, with an open space in terians, Episcopalians, Baptists, Methothe side, where an apology for a window dists, Lutherans, Friends, Papists, Unihad once been, to admit the light, with versalists, Infidels, &c. all on the same another hole in the wall to give vent to list, pledged to the support of the gospel the smoke; the interesting family of as preached by a Presbyterian minister. children were growing up to maturity Your former missionary in this field, almost half wild-looking, being denied the Rev. Mr. B ***, has been an incalthe privilege of church, school, or even culable blessing to this poor people, visiting a neighbour, for want of clothing although he was permitted to serve them only a short time; he stole their hearts, || himself, will plunge to the rescue; a and then easily reached their consciences. regard to his own health or life, is swalHis praise is on every tongue; he has lowed up in the stronger, soul-absorbing left a hallowed influence behind him; desire to honour his Master, and save but he has broken down, has literally perishing souls: your missionary may be sunk in the morning of life, under the charged with imprudence, but it is exload of overwhelming labours which ne- ceedingly hard to close the ear, and steel cessarily devolved upon him, as he stood the heart against such numerous and alone, and unaided, in the midst of all heartrending entreaties as constantly this wide-spread desolation. Oh! when assail him, from almost every part of his will our beloved church wake up to the extended field. One pleads, “a missionduty of adopting a sounder and more ary has never visited my family;" another, liberal policy? why will she hoard up some one fifteen miles is on a sick and dyher strength, and withhold her resources, ing bed, and deeply anxious to see the and allow her choice soldiers to fall un- missionary; a third, "we have not had a aided, in such an unequal and glorious sermon in our settlement for a whole contest? To all human appearance, this year;" another, "our church has had but esteemed and devoted brother might one sermon, but one day's preaching in long have been spared, a blessing to the six months; another, "our children Church, and to these grateful people, had will go out on the sabbath, and they are he but received timely aid. Your coun-running wild, and will be ruined." Oh! sel to your missionaries doubtless is, you should exercise more prudence, and have more regard to your health, and not thus sacrifice useful lives; such counsel unquestionably is good, and should receive due attention. But what will it avail to talk to your poor, but generous-hearted neighbour about prudence, or the wants of his own family, when he sees at his door a human being, a fellow-creature, ready to die for a morsel of bread? Or what avails it to philosophize, and reason with the fearless and noble-hearted sailor, about prudence and self-preservation, when he sees a fellow-creature struggling in the waves, and about to sink into a watery grave? All reason is unheard or unheeded, and he plunges to the rescue. Your counsels, however, are heard and duly weighed by your missionary; he himself also reasons, and week after week resolves, and resolves again; but when he goes forth to his work, and looks on the desolation around him, souls perishing at his very door for a morsel of bread, in his very sight, tossed on the billows, and ready to sink to endless perdition, if he has the heart of a Christian, he too, regardless of consequences to talk not of prudence under such circumstances! The church must furnish the means for sending more labourers among destitute people, or she must lie under the double guilt of sacrificing the few she has, and leaving thousands to perish in ignorance and sin. And when the missionary yields to these entreaties, and makes appointments, how can he dismiss these hungry souls, with less than a full meal? We cannot satisfy with a short discourse those who hear but one in four, eight, or sixteen weeks, or perhaps in a year, or those who have travelled ten or fifteen miles to hear it. Some weeks since, I went to one of my largest churches, on a cold, rainy sabbath, and found a large congregation assembled; after the exercises had commenced, on account of the wind and rain pouring in on me from an open place left for a door, I was compelled to leave the pulpit, (or the fixing of old rough boards for a pulpit,) and take my stand on one of the seats, in a sheltered corner of the church; and there, without pulpit, bible, or anything of the kind, give out my text, and proceed with the exercises. I wished to shorten the exercises, but no, it would not do; they |