empire of darkness, shall it be abandoned by its friends? Mark the order of Providence in bringing it to this point, at a time when we can offer no excuse for neglecting to give it all necessary support, to extend its operations. I shall prove to you that we have the means. Neither war, nor famine, nor sweeping pestilence, nor excessive taxes, nor tithes, nor any other oppressive evils prevail, to distress us and our happy country. Each and all of these, God, in great mercy, has held back, as if he intended, by an extraordinary interposition, to keep us and ours in special reserve for this enterprise of benevolence and mercy. He is showering down the blessings of his grace upon the church, and bringing our sons and daughters to the knowledge of himself, thereby saving them from prodigality and crime, and impressing our hearts with a sense of the debt of gratitude we owe for the blessings of the Gospel brought to us and our families. He renders our fields fruitful, and gives success to our commerce, and prospers our trade, and the labour of our hands, so that we abound in the comforts and conveniences of life, and many in even its luxuries. Was there ever a people so admirably fitted and prepared, by the special interpositions of Providence, for an enterprise of such interest and importance? And was there ever a coincidence of events more remarkable than the concurrence of the high and commanding claims of the missionary cause with the circumstances of the people to meet those claims?

If I have succeeded in maintaining the two propositions, that the missionary cause is a worthy object of our benevolence and liberality, and that it is brought before us at this time in the events of Providence as having a particular claim upon our attention, it will follow, that all the arguments which go to make it the duty of Christians to be liberal and active in promoting worthy objects, are to be regarded as enjoining upon us the duty of especially exerting ourselves, at this interesting period, to promote our missionary institutions.

I come now, in the third place, to inquire, Are we, as a denomination, doing as much to promote the cause of missions, as we ought to do, considering the amplitude of our means, and the importance and magnitude of the object? This inquiry I would press home to the bosom and the conscience of every lover of the Gospel, and especially every member of the Methodist Episcopal Church. After duly weighing the following facts, I will leave the decision with yourselves. The members of the parent society pay two dollars annually, or twenty dollars for life, besides what they contribute at public collections, and occasionally give to encourage auxiliaries, and for minors in their families. These latter items amount, with many, and perhaps most of them, to a very considerable sum in the course of a year, over and above their regular subscriptions. You will not believe that they are the most wealthy of our people, when you are informed that nearly one half of them are preachers, and pay the amount out of their scanty means of support.

In as

much as they are not individually benefited by the funds raised for missionary purposes, any more than the private members are, they are entitled to the credit of acting purely from the understanding they have of the importance of the object, and from a sense of religious obligation. This fact shows us how much those, who have made themselves acquainted with the claims of the missionary cause, think it their duty to give in support of its interests. But have they not taxed themselves too largely for this specific object of their charities? Not if they correctly understand its claims, which they certainly do much better than those who have paid no attention to them; for when the question was put to them at the last anniversary of the society, whether they were of opinion that they had done too much, they decided, even by acclamation, that they had not. Now what has the church generally done in this cause, compared with this amount annually contributed by the members of the parent society? If you have not made the calculation, you may be surprised when I tell you, that the entire sum collected for the Missionary Society of the Methodist Episcopal Church during the past year, including special donations in clothing and otherwise, did not amount to three cents for each member of the church! Is this doing as much as they ought to do? If the object claim any notice whatever, ought they not to do fifty times as much as this? What member of the church is so poor, as not to be able to give three cents a year to an object in which, one would think, all good people would desire to have a part, though it should be, for want of means, a very small one? But should we lay out of the estimate all those whose real poverty may be pleaded in excuse for their not giving to any benevolent object, the wealth of many others would more than balance the account, and leave us still to make the calculation on our numbers as above, estimating them all as in middling circumstances. Now what man, in middling circumstances in life, would be willing to have it said of him, that three cents a year is the full amount he can afford toward a benevolent object of paramount importance? Who, in such circumstances, does not give more than this amount, every week of his life, to please a child, or gratify himself in some little matter not worth remembering an hour? If even these little perversions of our substance were directed into the channel of the missionary cause, the funds would be increased fifty-fold, and an impulse given to the work, which would afford more gratification to the truly pious, than all this poor world can afford. Besides, we have numerous friends, not members of the church, who would cheerfully enter into this work, and contribute liberally toward carrying it on, did they see the members themselves duly engaged in promoting it. Are we not vastly deficient, then, in our support of this charity, considering the amplitude of our means, and the importance and magnitude of the object?

You no doubt begin to feel an interest to know how it is that an

institution of such high and commanding claims has met with no better support. I will not believe that it has been owing to any want of disposition in the members and friends of the Methodist Episcopal Church to do their duty; and therefore do not say these things to censure them. But the plain truth is, the attention of very few of them has yet been arrested by this subject, while the multitude are slumbering on, as though nothing existed to excite their attention or concern. This is the case, not only throughout the limits of the church generally, but even in those populous places where the subject has been most frequently brought before the people, and explained to them. A high compliment was paid to the people of New-York and Brooklyn, by one of the speakers at the last anniversary, in ascribing to their liberality the one eighth of all that had been raised for the Society, throughout the limits of the American Methodist churches. This was a just tribute to those who merited it. But I apprehend they constitute a very small proportion of the members of the church, even in those places. This will be readily perceived by looking over the lists of subscribers and donors to the Missionary Society. There are benevolent individuals in those places, and perhaps a greater proportion than in some others, who have listened to the calls of benevolence, and come forward to act a prompt and liberal part in reference to them. These you may find, not only giving their names as members of the parent society, but promoting the Dorcas institutions, the auxiliaries and branches, and contributing liberally in public collections. And thus it will appear, unless I am much misled by those who know, that the amount which has been credited to those places, has, in fact, been raised by very few, and those too who are equally forward in supporting other benevolent institutions. But many of our members in those places, surrounded as they are with the pri vileges arising from the location of our principal institutions among them, have done very little, if any thing at all, for this or any other of our benevolent institutions. Let all these be brought to take the same interest in the cause, which the benevolent and enterprising few have, and the contributions from even those places will be vastly increased. But how many large classes, and even societies, are there throughout the country, from which not one cent has ever been received for this noble purpose? They remain to receive yet the first quickening impulse, before they will wake up into life and activity on this subject. Here is the true cause of our vast deficiencies in the support of the missionary enterprise. It is not yet understood, nor its importance felt, by a vast majority of our brethren and friends. Our British brethren, who are far inferior to us in numbers, besides supporting their preachers at home, raised during the year ending December, 1829, more than fifty-six thousand pounds sterling, (nearly $250,000,) for missionary purposes. And it is worthy of remark, that their donors and contributors number about ten to our one. This difference between them and

us cannot be owing to their being more liberal, or more strongly attached to the interests of the Gospel and the institutions of Methodism than we are; but they have entered more largely into the subject, and succeeded in calling up the attention of the people more generally to its claims. American Methodists will not surely be behind them, when they shall have been brought to understand, to an equal extent, the nature and importance of this subject.

What then is to be done? A general interest must be excited in favor of this cause. No great public object, requiring the coöperation of the people, was ever effected, without first enlisting their feelings in it; nor can this be. To this end, our members must be rationally convinced of its utility and importance, and of their duty with respect to it. When this is done, the results will follow of course. What more can be needed to enlist Methodists in the missionary cause, than to gain their sober attention to it, and bring them fully to understand its nature and importance? For this purpose, let every one who has entered into its claims, begin now; and in every way in his power bring them before his brethren. Let him direct all his energies to engage others to embark in it. Each one who may be influenced in this way, may be induced to enlist that circle of which he is the centre, until a self-extending system of intense and reverberated action, shall embody into one invincible phalanx,' the whole community of the church. Let our periodicals be widely circulated, and all suitable means to diffuse information on the subject of our missions, be employed. Let their object, their claims, and the success which attends them, be introduced by the friends of the cause, into the social circles of relatives and acquaintances. And let the preachers use all their influence, in private and public, to awaken in the minds of the people a lively attention to the subject. I am aware that numerous and pressing calls have been made upon the public, under the name of benevolence, which have been prejudicial to the cause; and many of our own people are prepared to close their ears against every appeal, without taking the trouble to examine its merits, in consequence of the disgust they have imbibed against so much 'begging,' as they call it. These feelings must be overcome, by calmly showing them, that it is not for us to vindicate every claim made upon the public for money, nor for them to reject every one. The primary question for both to settle is, whether such claims be reasonable ones, and come within the range of our duty as Christians. If this be the case, in urging them upon their notice and attention, we are not to be regarded as 'begging,' but only enforcing upon them a religious duty. And why should this be deemed more offensive, than to enforce upon them the duty to keep the Sabbath, or to be just? I ask no more of Methodists, in behalf of the missionary cause, than that they should examine it in all its bearings, and patronize it just in proportion as it shall appear evidently their duty to do so. This then must be effected; our people must be brought to enter into the work of VOL. II.-April, 1831. 13

missionary enterprise, as a matter of duty, and then they will support it on the ground of moral obligation, and not barely as a gratuity. In order to unite all our members and friends in this work, a system of operations ought to be adopted, suited as nearly as practicable to our church economy. Have there not been more show and parade in conducting benevolent institutions than have always been necessary? Has not this had a tendency to produce an impression, that nothing could be done in this cause, without the institution of a society, respectable for its numbers, its list of officers and managers, and its public exhibits of efforts made, and funds collected? And has not this been a reason why many small classes and societies have done nothing at all to promote the cause? Let the impression be distinctly fixed on the minds of our members, that a sense of duty to raise the necessary means for furnishing the Gospel to the destitute, should be the leading motive; and when this impression prevails, whatever may be deemed proper in regard to the institution and management of societies in populous places, the small and scattered classes throughout the connection will find it practicable to concentrate their means, and send them forward to the general treasury, through the medium of district auxiliaries or circuit branches, as the case may be. As has been heretofore recommended, each class may form itself into a society, for the purpose of aiding all our benevolent institutions, which unitedly aim at the object of spreading the knowledge of salvation through the earth; and the leader, or, if in any case it shall be preferred, a member especially selected for that purpose, may act as treasurer, which is the only officer essentially necessary to carry the object into effect. By such a simple process, were the people brought to enter spiritedly and systematically into it, the resources of the church might be concentrated, and rendered available. It is obvious, that in order to effect this, the preachers must unite generally and efficiently in it. I feel the difficulty that presses at this point. It is natural for them to suppose, that the raising of money out of the classes for missionary purposes will have a tendency to affect their own support. This may be the case, so long as there is a want of proper information. But let the people be duly instructed, and brought to engage in the work as a matter of duty, and it is believed that it will have a tendency to expand their views and feelings, and prepare them the more promptly to discharge their duty toward their own preachers. This conclusion is drawn from the fact, that those who have been the most liberal in supporting the missionary cause, have shown themselves most interested in providing for the claims of their own circuits and stations.

Among others to be enlisted in this work, our children ought not to be overlooked or neglected. I know there are some parents who frown indignantly upon any attempts to influence children to give, for benevolent purposes, the little means furnished by their friends, or rewards of merit, as otherwise, and which they are wont