bath, testifies also to the divine origin of infant baptism. How can you receive their testimony upon one point, and reject it upon another equally important and equally within their knowledge? If you begin to question their veracity or their competency, where will you stop, and by what rule will you ascertain when they may be relied on with safety? If you give up infant baptism on the ground that the uniform testimony of the fathers of the church, for many hundred years after the Apostles, is not sufficient to produce conviction,-how will you answer the infidel who denies the genuineness of the Bible, and pretends that it is the work of designing priests? How will you answer the seventh day baptist, who rejects the Christian, and keeps the Jewish Sabbath? And how will you convince those, for such there are, who pretend that we have no Apostolic authority for public worship on any day? Will you be permitted to reject the testimony of the Fathers on one material point as unworthy of credit, and retain it upon the rest? Beware how you impeach your own witnesses, or assume a principle of reasoning upon the subject under consideration, which will wrest from you the only means of supporting the whole fabric of Christianity. J. A. A. LETTER FROM A MISSIONARY TO THE TABERNACLE SABBATH SCHOOL, SALEM. Although this letter was written to one particular school, we hope the children in all our schools, will not fail to read it. Yes, dear youth, read it and weep over the wretchedness of these poor children, in heathen lands, who are taught from their infancy, to worship gods of clay, wood and stone, and who are taught to lie and cheat. Weep! did we say! Ah your tears, if you have nothing else to give, will never lessen the woes of the heathen; you must give your prayers, and your money, and must inquire if it be not your duty to say, 'Here, Lord, are we, send us to carry them the Bible and teach them a Savior's love? If this letter does not lead some of the children in the Tabernacle school, especially, to make this inquiry, we fear awful guilt will rest upon their souls. He, whose face you once beheld and whose voice you once heard, now speaks to you from amidst 'habitations of cruelty.' Will you not hear him? Will you not let your earnest prayers for him, and for the benighted among whom he dwells, and your liberal contributions for their relief, show that his story of their woes has reached your hearts? Ahmednuggur, Nov. 17, 1834. My Dear Children and Friends,—It is now a little more than 2 years since I visited your school. Oh! how many changes have taken place since that time! Some scholars have died, some have left the school, and many, I hope, very many new ones have been added to it. Ever keep in view the great object of the Sabbath school -to acquire a knowledge of the Scriptures. If you want to know what a great blessing it is to have and to understand the Scriptures, you must look at the condition of those children and people who have no Bible. Such is the state of the people among whom I live. Their parents know nothing of bringing them up in the nurture and admonition of the Lord. They have no Sabbath-no preached gospel, and alas! do not lament their ignorant, and sinful condition. They have a religious festival-a feast or a fast-for nearly or quite very month in the year. The little children, often on these holy-days walk in procession, and join in celebrating the praises of the imaginary god; for sometimes the festival is in honor of one god, and sometimes of another. Perhaps at some future time I shall be able to tell you more respecting their gods and the manner of worshiping them. Sometimes they have images of their gods, which they worship. At other times a stone is set up and daubed over with red paint. To this inanimate object they bow down, and worship. Sometimes an image -somewhat resembling a man, is made of dirt or common clay, and after being covered over with red paint it becomes a god. The only true God these children are not taught to worship. You are no doubt ready to conclude that these must be very silly children. But I answer you this is not the case only in respect to religion. In other respects they are very active and shrewd. Many of them go to school where they are taught to read, write, and cypher. They are very fond of arithmetic, for by it they learn to count money, of which, from their very childhood, they are extremely fond. They sometimes come to me for books, which they like to receive, when they are given to them; for they are too fond of money to buy them. Fearing that they sometimes get the books to sell for pice, (small money) rather than to read, I refused to give them more until they would bring those which they had already received. Many of them denied that they had ever received any. But when I still refused, knowing that I had given them before, they drew out the books, which they had concealed under their clothes. I mention this, that you may see what little regard these children have for truth. They learn to lie and cheat from their infancy. And out of a thousand children from 5 years old and upward, you would not, I suppose, find a single one who would not lie and cheat in this very way and indeed their parents possess the same character, and I do not know that they ever teach their children that it is wrong to lie— especially if they can gain any thing by it. You will see from these things how much need these children and people have of the Scriptures and the holy religion of Jesus Christ -many of them who are very strict in worshiping the gods, and therefore are considered very religious will lie and cheat as fast as others. Now let me remind you, my dear friends, that, were it not for the Holy Scriptures, we should be just like them. Your's sincerely, G. W. BOGGS. CATECHETICAL INSTRUCTION. QUES. 4. What is God? ANS. God is a spirit,* infinite, eternal, and unchangeable, in his being, wisdom, power, holiness, justice, goodness, and truth. What Spirit is infinite, eternal, and unchangeable? unchangeable? What is God in his being? In what is God infinite, eternal, and What is God in his wisdom? &c. &c. *Jolin 4: 24. God is a Spirit, and they that worship him must worship him in spirit and in truth. [A reference is to be given for each of the doctrines contained in the answer. ED.] Spirit, Thinking being, without material substance, or bodily parts.Infinite, Without bounds or limits.-Eternal, Who never had a beginning, and who shall never have an end. Unchangeable, Who never changes, but remains always the same.-In his being, In his very nature, and in the manner in which he exists.-Wisdom, In his knowing all things, and always judging rightly.-Power, In his ability to do any thing, and every thing.-Holiness, In his purity and freedom from sin.-Justice, In his uprightness and equity, in giving to every one what is his due.—Goodness, In his showing kindness, and conferring benefits and favors.-Truth, In his opposition and hatred to what is false and feigned.' men, The foregoing, with the exception of the references, is taken, as a specifrom Exercises on the shorter Catechism; in which the answers are minutely dissected; and by a paraphrase and explanatory notes may be explained aud re-constructed by the learner. Sixth Edinburgh edition.”— The paraphrase is to be formed by the learner by substituting the explanations for the words explained, thus: God is a thinking being, without material substance, or bodily parts, without bounds or limits, &c.' see explanations above. In these EXERCISES two very important objects are secured, viz. The instruction contained in the catechism, is so simplified and explained that it may easily be comprehended by children; and at the same time, it calls into operation their reasoning powers---teaches them to think. A plan that shall secure this latter object, that shall teach our children to think, to THINK, we believe will find a hearty and immediate adoption in most if not all our schools.---Under the influence of this belief, the Committee of Publication have decided to publish this work, with the addition of Scripture references, &c. It will be out in a few weeks. THE EXERCISES will contain a greater amount of matter than a vol. of the Union Questions, and will probably come at the same price. By taking two or three Questions for a lesson, which will be found quite enough, and by occasional reviews, this book will answer for a year. We earnestly recommend to all the schools connected with the Mass. S. S. Society, this as a text book for the present year. We are confident that it will give a new and higher tone and greater efficiency and interest to this institution. As the study of the Catechism is beginning to be revived so extensively, we shall hereafter illustrate any particular portion of it, without reference to the order of the Questions, and only at such times, as circumstances and convenience will allow. The illustration at the present time, must he omitted for want of room. ANNUAL MEETING. The Annnal meeting of the Mass. Sabbath School Society, will be held in this city, on Wednesday the 27th of the present month. The public exercises will probably be on Thursday. ANNUAL REPORT. It is the eleventh hour, and but a small proportion of the schools have yet made their returns. They must be made immediately or they cannot have a place in the Report. The Questions to be answered in the returns may be seen on the cover of the Feb. No. of the Visiter. JUVENILE MUSIC. Furnished for this work by LOWELL MASON, Professor in the Slowly. Sabbath Morning Prayer. b While the Sabbath-light is beaming, And the earth is brightly 3 Soon the Sabbath will be fading, Oh! when wearied life is failing, |