these matters I have ranged under the practical aims of fraternal associations. And now, brethren, if your patience is not utterly exhausted, the time allotted to me for this paper is more than exhausted. Let me then in conclusion, urge upon ourselves, so to cultivate the inner life, and so to live as that we may be ever under the consciousness of the powers of the world

to come.

Habitually may we realize the mighty influence of the Great Unseen. Daily may we enjoy sweet fellowship with Christ our Head. May the ambition of each one of us be this, to be "a good man, and full of the Holy Ghost." Constantly may this monition be plying near our hearts. "Walk then before me and be thou upright," and downright. Let us be careful, lovingly, humbly, and confidingly to walk with God, being an example to the flock; and not only pointing out to them the way to holiness and heaven, but going before them therein, remembering that it is a higher exercise of sanctified eloquence to say, 66 Come, come," than to say, "Go, go." Thus

living, praying, and labouring, we shall assuredly glorify our Saviour God, and be made the honoured instruments of building up his church both in holiness and in numbers. And if the result be not so with us, as to its palpable issues, we know that even failure in a good purpose cannot change the character of that purpose. "For neither is he that planteth anything, neither he that watereth, but God that giveth the increase. He that planteth and he that watereth are one, and every man shall receive his own reward, according to his own labour." The inspired word does not here say success, but however much success may enter into that reward, every man shall receive his own reward according to his own labour." May all our labours be owned of our God, redounding to his glory, the prosperity of his church, and our own eternal joy! And may this labour of love, brethren, prove seasonable and acceptable to us all. Amen and Amen.

Northallerton.

66

T. Y.

CHRISTIAN BRETHREN,-Each age has its distinctive features, and corresponding religious duties.

Our times are evidently distinguished, among other things, by an increasing respect for evangelical truth; a growing conviction of the excellence and efficiency of the voluntary support of religious Institutions; the steady progress of enlightened catholicity; a general approximation to religious equality; a tendency in the population to concentrate in the districts of manufacturing and mercantile enterprise; the acquisition of great wealth; an improvement in the material condition of the people; and a general advancement in matters of taste.

As these aspects of the times are singularly favourable to the diffusion and growth of Congregational principles, so do they specially favour that particular mode of operation which is understood by the words chapel extension;" that is, the erection of

commodious and suitable chapels, in eligible positions, either in the place of old, inconvenient, and hidden ones, or for the gathering of additional congregations. The adaptation of this particular work to the times, is sufficiently indicated by the almost invariable success which attends it; nor have we any doubt that the present ranks of our ministry, our colleges, and our churches, will furnish a number of able preachers of the gospel, equal to any amount of chapel extension which we have the means of effecting. In this case, as in all others, the demand is likely to create the supply.

may

And who can calculate all the good fruits of this great work, if carried on in the spirit of our times? Each new Congregational chapel itself furnishes visible evidence of the efficiency of the voluntary principle; becomes another witness for evangelical truth, genuine catholicity, and religious liberty; is a further contribution towards uni

versal education; secures wider scope, and better support for the ministry opens up a new vein of wealth in aid of our great religious institutions; induces many to become attendants at public worship; proves an important auxiliary in the conversion of immortal souls; and is a guarantee for the maintenance of religious ordinances, with all their continuous and multiplying benefits, as long, at least, as the buildings shall stand.

The principles which we hold are of God. They were exemplified in the Apostolic age; identify their advocates with the Church of Christ; are capable of universal application; and, when systems which owe their origin to special circumstances and State patronage shall have passed away, will constitute "the faith and order" of the Christian Church to the close of the latter-day glory. It becomes us, who believe we are honoured of God with this high stewardship, to be faithful to its obligations; and for this end, among other means, to avail ourselves to the utmost of the peculiarly seasonable and very effective auxiliary of suitable Congregational chapel extension.

Then in what way can we best carry on this pre-eminently appropriate and useful work?

The principles that we aim to propagate shut us up, as heretofore, to the exclusive employment of voluntary means; but the urgency and importance of the work itself, clearly indicate the necessity of making our free-will service productive of much greater results.

It is very evident that the present demand for chapel-building cannot be met by the old method of undirected local effort, to be inevitably followed by the grievous penalty of perambulating the country with each separate chapel

case.

This mode furnishes no security for the legitimacy of the undertaking, the suitableness of the building, the full employment of local resources, or the increase of the number of chapels according to the wants of the population; while the old begging system is in itself fitted to retard, rather than expedite the whole work.

Events have happily forced upon us a very different mode of action, the leading features of which we beg respectfully to submit to your friendly investigation. We are now applying

to this important work well-adjusted, systematic aid, and have, for this purpose, at least two leading organizations

-one for the metropolis, and one for the provinces. The latter, bearing the name of the ENGLISH CONGREGATIONAL CHAPEL-BUILDING SOCIETY, comes more legitimately within the scope of this address.

It

Its function is to aid the work of chapel extension by practical guidance, and by conditional grants and loans. The society is called in before the local effort assumes a definite and final form. It acts before the plans are adopted, the contract signed, and the mistakes of inexperience committed. In willing response to all applications, it endeavours to bring to bear upon each new case, when it can be done with effect, all the advantages of everwidening knowledge. It either furnishes well-considered plans, or carefully examines those prepared under the direction of local committees. thus aims at the prevention of all mistakes, and the saving of all unnecessary outlay, at the outset of the undertaking -an assistance, which, in itself, is more than equal to a large pecuniary contribution, and is, in all respects, so valuable, that if the society did nothing else, it would be, on this one ground, entitled to generous support. But, in addition to this negative help, the society renders positive pecuniary assistance in the form of grants and loans. These are invariably regulated by the facts in each case, as well as by the previous liabilities and known resources of the society. The pecuniary aid of the society gives weight to its counsel, and is always pledged in the form of a challenge; so that it becomes effective in instigating to the utmost local contributions. The money saved, the money contributed by the society, and the money elicited in the locality aided, generally meet the requirements of each case; and if they do not, in all instances, prevent debt, supersede the necessity of the old expensive mode of itinerant indiscriminate begging. The new method is at once very effective, and eminently economical. It is the means of getting up better buildings, in larger numbers, and at less cost, than was ever accomplished by the old plan.

That this is the working and increasing tendency of the society is apparent from the following results. The insti

tution has now been in operation four years and a half; and during that time it has promoted the erection of 72 chapels, the average first accommodation in each of which is nearly 550 sittings, which is double the average accommodation

of Nonconformist

chapels throughout the country; the average cost of each is £1600, or less than £3 per sitting; and the average assistance afforded by the society, in the form of grants and loans, in each case, is £200. The aggregate accommodation of these chapels is estimated at 40,000 sittings; the aggregate cost, inclusive of sites, £130,000; and the aggregate aid of the society, £19,000, including £5000 which the committee has obtained, in the form of special contributions, in aid of a certain number of the above 72 chapels.

The working of the society has then helped to elicit the important fact, that it is possible to combine great improvement in the accommodation and architectural correctness, with great economy. A very suitable and effective building, capable of seating 550, in the first instance, with ample space and arrangement for enlarged accommodation, as it becomes necessary, can be raised for £1,600, or even less; and the conditional aid of £200, on an average, from the central fund, can prove vitally instrumental in producing the whole or the greater part of that sum.

To render assistance on the scale indicated, according to the wants of the population and the call of the times, the society needs, at least, an annual income of £5,500. With that amount it could give very effective aid in the erection of twenty-five chapels per annum, or one hundred in four years.

This annual income considerably exceeds that which the society has hitherto received, and which has been contributed chiefly by comparatively few. To render the society permanent, and to raise its annual income to the amount specified, it is indispensable to add to the number of the larger contributors, and to enlist in its behalf the steady and smaller assistance of the many.

To the wealthy members of our churches who have not yet contributed in aid of this eminently useful institution, we make a very respectful [and earnest appeal. We ask them to aid the work for the ensuing five years, on the scale in which some have agreed to

assist it for the five years which terminate next May.

And to those of our brethren who cannot aid on so large a scale we respectfully recommend the application of the admirable instrument of 66 the weekly offering." A comparatively small weekly contribution, from only ten members in each of our churches in England and Wales, would of itself produce the income above specified.

Where neither of these methods can be conveniently adoped, we venture to ask for an annual, or biennial, or even triennial collection. And as a very economical and effective mode of aiding by public collections, we beg to call special attention to the proposal of a simultaneous effort of this kind on the last Sabbath in February. How encouraging to those on whom the care and toil of this great work has principally rested would be a general response of this kind before next May, when the society will have completed its fifth year; and when the question of making this one of our permanent and growing institutions will have to be determined.

But whether in these modes, or in any other, we venture to entreat the aid of our churches generally to this eminently useful institution, which by wise, economical, and energetic management has entitled itself to the confidence of our Denomination; and which, by its success during the infancy of its operations, has sufficiently proved the large amount of good which it may, in the course of years, accomplish, in proportion as it is generally aided by the earnest advocates of our principles throughout the country.

In conclusion, we beg to add that this appeal is not official, though intended to strengthen the hands of those who have in that capacity efficiently served the object. We have been induced to give our spontaneous and earnest testimony, impelled by a deep conviction of the seasonableness and utility of the society, and by the hope that an appeal of this kind would meet with more attention than is sometimes the lot of an ordinary circular. We remain,

Christian Brethren,
Yours very truly,

in the bond of a common faith,
JOHN ALEXANDER, Norwich.
THOMAS AVELING, London.
EDWARD BAINES, Leeds.

A. MORTON BROWN, Cheltenham.

WE have before us a Paper read before the Section of Economic Science and Statistics of the British Association, at Dublin, on Saturday, August 29, 1857, by James Moncrief Wilson, Esq., of a very interesting character. It is founded on tables which exhibit the state of crime in Ireland, in each year, during the period from 1842 to 1856. The paper sets forth the ratio of crime to population, and its relation to the supply of food, to education, to the means of domestic comfort, and to the comparative number, in the different provinces, of licensed places for the sale of intoxicating drinks. During the period embraced in the tables, the ratio of crime to population varied from 601 criminals to the 100,000 inhabitants, the maximum reached in 1849, to 117 criminals in each 100,000-the minimum to which it had sunk in 1856. From 1842 to 1845 crime gradually decreased in Ireland; but it experienced a sudden and violent increase during the famine period, till it culminated in 1849,-the largest proportional augmentation being in the class of crimes against property, and particularly in that division of this class which is marked by the absence of 66 violence" or "malice." The maximum here was as high as 332 to the 100,000 inhabitants; and the tendency to this class of crimes in 1849 was nearly three times the sum of the tendency to all crimes in 1856. The results attained, as respects the other elements indicated above, will be found in the following conclusions drawn by Mr. Wilson from the facts adduced, embracing too some other points of interest :

That, although during the years of distress the tendency to every class of crime was greatly increased, it was chiefly offences against property committed without violence which swelled the criminal calendar of Ireland.

That in the year 1856, the tendency to

crime in Ireland was certainly not greater, and perhaps less, than the tendency to crime in England and Wales.

That among both sexes the tendency to each separate class of crime is at its minimum at the period of life twelve and under.

That popular education singly, but especially when combined with occupation, tends powerfully towards the diminution of crime.

That the good effects of education and occupation upon crime are very seriously marred by the abuse of intoxicating drinks.

That low-class house accommodation tends towards the increase of crime.

That popular education, as a means of diminishing the tendency to crime, although most useful in so far as both sexes are concerned, has yet much greater effect among females than among males; and that this is emphatically the case in regard to four classes of crime,-" offences against the person," offences against property committed without violence," "malicious offences against property," and general offences.

In illustration of the tendency of a large number of public-houses to neutralize the improving influence of education, we have the following most important facts :

Connaught is by far the worst educated province in Ireland, with the largest unoccupied population, and the largest per-centage of low-class house accommodation; and yet in Connaught the tendency to crime is less than in any other province except Ulster. This can only be accounted for by the considerations, that in Connaught there are 42 houses fewer for the sale of intoxicating drinks to every 100,000 of population than in any other province; and that the per-centage of committals for drunkenness does not amount in Connaught to one-half the like per-centage for the average of Ireland. Again, as has already been stated, the tendency to crime in Ulster is very much less than in Leinster, although those provinces are on a par in respect to education, and also in respect to the per-centage of houses in them for the sale of intoxicating drinks; but then, in addition to the occupation element already advanced to account for the much greater tendency to crime in Leinster than in Ulster, this most important element must not be lost sight of, that in the former pro

vince there are five times the number of committals for drunkenness that there are in the latter, in both cases, of course, in proportion to population.

These hasty excerpts will, we doubt not, satisfy our readers that Mr. Wilson's paper is a statistical document of very great social importance, and that he deserves well of the public, and particularly of every social reformer, for having undertaken the labour of preparing and of issuing it.

The foregoing facts are, doubtless, of great moment to the magistrate, the economist, and the statesman. It will be observed, that the Gospel has no place amid the calculations of Mr. Wilson. It comes clearly out, however, that ignorance, idleness, and the publichouse are the prime source of crime, and as such, grand obstacles to the pro

THIS is at once the most handsome and the most handy publication of the kind that has yet appeared. It is not to be confounded with the large and costly quartos by which it has been preceded, such as those by the late Dr. J. Harris, by Dr. John Morison, and Dr. Alexander Fletcher. It is framed on an altogether different principle, as the following extract from the Introduction will show :The basis of the work is a chronological arrangement of the Old and New Testament. The chronological lessons are generally those named for private reading: the Old and New Testament chronology being pursued separately every day, either morning or evening, or both. Sometimes the order is pursued in the chapters for family prayer, thereby keeping up a connexion between private and family worship.

The notes usually relate to the chronological lessons. The date of the events recorded is first given, B.C. meaning years before Christ, and A.D. the year after his birth. Next to the date the site of the events is named, as in the notes for the 1st of February, on Matt. vii., Capernaum; and Gen. xix., Sodom.

To promote a devotional reading of the Scriptures, and to illustrate one Scripture by another, appropriate chapters from other parts of the Bible are assigned for family worship, and, occasionally, for private reading also. Where preferred, the chapter

named for family reading may be substituted for that named for private reading.

The daily texts, with reflections, usually embody some one of the most devotional, doctrinal, or practical lessons suggested by the Scriptures for the day, and may be read at family prayer or in private, as may be found most convenient.

A psalm or hymn is also given for every morning and evening, from "The One Book of Psalms and Hymns," appropriate to the chapters or the texts.

The original and comprehensive character of the work is clearly set forth in these paragraphs. By the non-insertion of the Scripture at length, together with the hymns, a very large amount of space is saved, which is devoted to the purpose of observation, reflection, explanation, and devotion. The author has been particularly successful in the matter of multum in parvo, both as to his section of remarks and his notes. The latter, in a manner the most unostentatious, supplies the sum and substance of all our commentaries. The book may be most advantageously used for either private or family purposes, or it may be read straight on with the open Bible before the reader, as a most valuable exercise of Biblical study and personal devotion. It is quite an original in its