many among us who are undoubtedly patriotic, who are willing to express any righteous principle to which this Assembly should give utterance touching the subjection and attachment of an American citizen to the Union and its institutions, who love the flag of our country and rejoice at its successes by sea and by land, and who yet do not esteem this particular act a testimonial of loyalty entirely becoming to a church court, and as many of these brethren by the pressing of this vote would be placed in a false position, as if they did not love the Union, of which that flag is the beloved symbol, your committee deem themselves authorized by the subsequent direction of the Assembly to propose a different action to be adopted by this venerable court.

It is well known, on the one hand, that the General Assembly has ever been reluctant to repeat its testimonies upon important matters of public interest, but, having given utterance to carefully considered words, is content to abide calmly by its recorded deliverances. Nothing that this Assembly can say can more fully express the wickedness of the rebellion that has cost so much blood and treasure, can declare in plainer terms the guilt, before God and man, of those who have inaugurated, or maintained, or countenanced, for so little cause, the fratricidal strife, or can more impressively urge the solemn duty of Government to the lawful exercise of its authority, and of the people, each in his several place, to uphold the civil authorities, to the end that law and order may again reign throughout the entire nation, than these things have already been done by previous Assemblies. Nor need this body declare its solemn rebukes towards those ministers and members of the Church of Christ who have aided in bringing on and sustaining these inmense calamities, or tender our kind sympathies to those who are overtaken by troubles they could not avoid, and who mourn and weep in secret places, not unseen by the Father's eye, or reprove all wilful disturbers of the public peace, or exhort those who are subject to our care to the careful discharge of every duty tending to uphold the free and beneficent Government under which we are, and this specially for conscience' sake and as in the sight of God, more than in regard to all these things the General Assembly has made its solemn deliverances since these troubles began.

But, on the other hand, it may be well for this General Assembly to reaffirm, as it now solemnly does, the great principles to which utterance has already been given. We do this the more readily because our beloved Church may thus be understood to take her deliberate and well-chosen stand, free from all imputations of haste or excitement; because we recognize an entire harmony between the duties of the citizen (especially in a land where the people frame their own laws and choose their own rulers) and the duties of the Christian to the Great Head of the Church; because, indeed, least of all persons should Christian citizens even seem to stand back from their duty when bad men press forward for mischief; and because a true love for our country in her times of peril should forbid us to withhold an expression of our attachment for the insuficient reason that we are not accustomed to repeat our utterances.

And because there are those among us who have scruples touching the propriety of any deliverance of a church court respecting civil matters, this Assembly would add that all strifes of party politics should indeed be banished from our ecclesiastical assemblies and from our pulpits, that Christian people should earnestly guard against promoting partisan divisions, and that the difficulty of accurately deciding, in some cases, what are general and what party principles, should make us careful in our judgments, but that our duty is none the less imperative to uphold the constituted authorities because minor delicate questions may possibly be involved. Rather, the sphere of the Church is wider and more searching, touching matters of great public interest, than the sphere of the civil magistrate, in this important respect, that the civil authorities can take cognizance only of overt acts, while the law of which the Church of God is the interpreter searches the heart, makes every man subject to the civil authority for conscience' sake, and declares that man truly guilty who allows himself to be alienated in sympathy and feeling from any lawful duty, or who does not conscientiously prefer the welfare and especially the preservation of the Government to any party or partisan ends. Officers may not always command a citizen's confidence; measures may by him be deemed unwise; earnest, lawful efforts may be made for changes he may think desirable; but no causes now exist to vindicate the disloyalty of American citizens towards the United States Government.

This General Assembly would not withhold from the Government of the United States that expression of cordial sympathy which a loyal people should offer. We believe that God has afforded us ample resources to suppress this rebellion, and that, with his blessing, it will ere long be accomplished; we would animate those who are discouraged by the continuance and fluctuations of these costly strifes to remember and rejoice in the supreme government of our God, who often leads through perplexity and darkness; we would exhort to penitence for all our national sins, to sobriety and humbleness of mind before the Great Ruler of all, and to constant prayerfulness for the Divine blessing; and we would entreat our people to beware of all schemes implying resistance to the lawfully constituted authorities, by any other means than are recognized as lawful to be openly prosecuted. And as this Assembly is ready to declare our unalterable attachment and adherence to the Union established by our fathers, and our unqualified condemnation of the rebellion, to proclaim to the world the United States, one and undivided, as our country, the lawfully-chosen rulers of the land our rulers, the Government of the United States our civil Government, and its honored flag our flag, and to affirm that we are bound in the truest and strictest fidelity to the duties of Christian citizens under a Government that has strewn its blessings with a profuse hand, your committee recommend that the particular act contemplated in the original resolution be no further urged upon the attention of this body.

The General Assembly of the Presbyterian Church, New-School, May, 1863, passed the following paper, prepared by Rev. Albert Barnes: -

Whereas a rebellion, most unjust and causeless in its origin and unholy in its objects, now exists in this country, against the Government established by the wisdom and sacrifice of our fathers, rendering necessary the employment of the armed forces of the nation to suppress it, And involving the land in the horrors of civil war; and

Whereas the distinctly avowed purpose of the leaders of this rebellion is the dissolution of our national Union, the dismemberment of the country, and the establishment of a new Confederacy within the present territorial limits of the United States, based on the system of human slavery as its chief comer-stone; and

Whereas from the relation of the General Assembly to the churches which they represent, and as citizens of the republic, and in accordance with the uniform action of our Church in times of great national peril, it is eminently proper that this General Assembly should give expression to its views in a matter so vitally affecting the interests of good government, liberty, and religion; and

Whereas on two previous occasions since the war commenced the General Assembly has declared its sentiments in regard to this rebellion, and its determination to sustain the Government in this crisis of our national existence; and

Whereas, unequivocal and decided as has been our testimony on all previous occasions, and true and devoted as has been the loyalty of our ministers, elders, and people, this General Assembly deem it a duty to the Church and the country to utter its deliberate judgment on the same general subject: therefore,

Resolved, That this General Assembly solemnly reaffirms the principles and repeats the declarations of previous General Assemblies of our Church, so far as applicable to this subject and to the present aspect of public affairs.

Resolved, That in explanation of our views, and as a further and solemn expression of the sentiments of the General Assembly of the Presbyterian Church in the United States of America, in regard to the duties of those whom we represent, and of all the American people at the present time, we now declare -

First. That civil government is ordained of God, and that submission to a lawful Government and to its acts in its proper sphere is a duty binding on the conscience, and required by all the principles of our religion as a part of our allegiance to God.

Second. That while there is in certain respects a ground of distinction between a Government considered as referring to the Constitution of a country, and an administration considered as referring to the existing agencies through which the principles and provisions of the Constitution are administered, yet the Government of a country to which direct allegiance and loyalty are due at any time is the administration duly placed in power. Such an administration is the Government of a nation, having a right to execute the laws and demand the entire, unqualified, and prompt obedience of all who are under its authority; and resistance to such a Government is rebellion and treason.

Third. That the present Administration of the United States, duly elected under the Constitution, is the Government in the land to which alone, under God, all the citizens of this nation owe allegiance; who, as such, are to be honored and obeyed; whose efforts to defend the Government against rebellion are to be sustained; and that all attempts to resist or set aside the action of the lawfully constituted authorities of the Government in any way, by speech or action to oppose or embarrass the measures which it may adopt to assert its lawful authority, except in accordance with the forms prescribed by the Constitution, are to be regarded as treason against the nation, as giving aid and comfort to its enemies, and as rebellion against God.

Fourth. That in the execution of the laws it is the religious duty of all good citizens promptly and cheerfully to sustain the Government by every means in their power; to stand by it in its peril, and to afford all needful aid in suppressing insurrection and rebellion and restoring obedience to lawful authority in every part of the land.

Resolved, That much as we lament the evils, the sorrows, the sufferings, the desolations, the sad moral influences of war, and its effect on the religion and character of the land, much as we have suffered in our most tender relations, yet the war, in our view, is to be prosecuted with all the vigor and power of the nation, until peace shall be the result of victory, till rebellion is completely subdued, till the legitimate power and authority of the Government be fully re-established over every part of our temporal domain, and till the flag of the nation shall wave as the emblem of its undisputed sovereignty, and that to the prosecution and attainment of this object all the resources of the nation, in men and wealth, should be solemnly pledged.

Resolved, That the Government of these United States, as provided for by the Constitution, is not only founded upon the great doctrine of human rights as vested by God in the individual man, but is also expressly declared to be the supreme civil authority in the land, forever excluding the modern doctrine of secession as a civil or political right. That since the existing rebellion finds no justification in the facts of the case, in the Constitution of the United States, in any law, human or divine, the Assembly can regard it only as treason against the nation, and a most offensive sin in the sight of God, justly exposing its authors to the retributive vengeance of earth and heaven; that this rebellion, in its origin, history, and measures, has been distinguished by those qualities which most sadly evince the depravity of our nature, especially in seeking to establish a new nationality on this continent, based on the perpetual enslavement and oppression of a weak and long-injured race; that the national forces are, in the view of this Assembly, called out not to wage war against another Government, but to suppress insurrection, preserve the supremacy of law and order, and save the country from anarchy and ruin.

Resolved, In such a contest, with such principles and interests at stake, affecting not only the peace, prosperity, and happiness of our beloved country for all future time, but involving the cause of human liberty throughout the world, loyalty, unreserved and unconditional, to the constitutionally elected Government of the United States, not as the transient passion of the hour, but as the intelligent and permanent state of the public conscience, rising above all questions of party politics, rebating and opposing the foul spirit of treason, whenever and in whatever form exhibited, speaking earnest words of truth and soberness, alike through the pulpit, the press, and in all the walks of domestic and social life, making devout supplications to God, and giving the most cordial support to those who are providentially intrusted with the enactment and execution of the laws, is not only a sacred obligation, but indispensable if we would save the nation and perpetuate the glorious inheritance we possess to future generations.

Resolved, That the system of human bondage, as existing in the slave-holding States, so palpably the root and cause of the whole insurrectionary movement, is not only a violation of the domestic rights of human nature, but essentially hostile to the letter and spirit of the Christian religion; that the evil character and demoralizing tendency of this system, so properly described, so justly condemned, by the General Assembly of our Church, especially, from 1818 to the present time, have been placed in the broad light of day by the history of the existing rebellion. That in the sacrifices and desolations, the cost of treasure and blood, ordained thereby, the Assembly recognize the chastening hand of God applied to the punishment of national sins, especially the sin of slavery; that in the proclamation of emancipation issued by the President as a war-measure, and submitted by him to the considerate judgment of mankind, the Assembly recognize with devout gratitude that wonder-working providence of God by which military necessities become the instruments of justice in breaking the yoke of oppression and causing the oppressed to go free; and, further, that the Assembly beseech Almighty God, in his own time, to remove the last vestige of slavery from the country, and give to the nation, preserved, disciplined, and purified, a peace that shall be based on the principles of eternal righteousness.

Resolved, That this General Assembly commends the President of the United States, and the members of his Cabinet, to the care and guidance of the Great Ruler of nations, praying that they may have that wisdom which is profitable to direct, and also that the patriotism and moral sense of the people may give to them all that support and co-operation which the emergencies of their position and the perils of the nation so urgently demand.

Resolved, That, in the ardor with which so many members of our churches and of the churches of all the religious denominations of our land have gone forth to the defence of our country, placing themselves upon her altar in the struggle for national life, we see an illustration, not only of the principles of our holy religion, but in the readiness with which such vast numbers have, at the call of the country, devoted themselves to its service, we see a demonstration which promises security to our institutions in all times of future danger. That we tender the expression of admiration and hearty thanks to all the officers of our army and navy, that those who have nobly fallen and those who survive have secured an imperishable monument in the hearts of their countrymen, and that this Assembly regard all efforts for the physical comfort or spiritual good of our heroic defenders as among the sweetest charities which gratitude can impose or grateful hands can minister.

Resolved, That this General Assembly expects all the churches and ministers connected with this branch of the Presbyterian Church, and all our countrymen, to stand by their country, to pray for it, to discountenance all forms of complicity with treason, to sustain those who are placed in civil or military authority over them, and to adopt every means, and at any cost, which an enlightened, self-sacrificing patriotism may suggest as appropriate to the wants of its honor, having on this subject one heart and one mind, waiting hopefully on Providence, patient amid delays, and animated by reverses, persistent and untiring in effort, till, by the blessing of God, the glorious motto, "One Country, one Constitution, and one Destiny," shall be enthroned in the sublime fact of the present and more sublime harbinger of the future.

Resolved, That this General Assembly tenders its affectionate condolence and heartfelt sympathy to the bereaved families of all the heroic men who have fallen in this contest for national life, and especially the families and officers of our churches who have poured out their lives on the altar of their country, with the assurance that they will not be forgotten in their bereavement by a grateful people.

Resolved, That a copy of this action, duly authenticated, be transmitted to the President of the United States, and that these resolutions be read in all our pulpits.

This patriotic Christian paper was republished in England, and noticed with distinguished favor by some of the leading journals of that country.

After the adjournment of the Assembly, some sixty-five members, as a committee, proceeded to Washington City and presented the resolutions to the President. They were introduced by Rev. Dr. John C. Smith, the oldest pastor in Washington, in appropriate remarks; and the Chairman, John A. Foote, of Cleveland, Ohio, read the resolutions. The President replied as follows: -

It has been my happiness to receive testimonies of a similar nature from, I believe, all denominations of Christians. They are all loyal, but perhaps not in the same degree, or in the same numbers; but I think they all claim to be loyal. This to me is most gratifying, because from the beginning I saw that the issues of our great struggle depended on the Divine interposition and favor. If we had that, all would bo well. The proportions of this rebellion were not for a long time understood. I saw that it involved the greatest difficulties, and would call forth all the powers of the whole country. The end is not yet.

The point made in your paper is well taken as to "the Government" and "the administration," in whose hands are these interests. I fully appreciate its correctness and justice. In my administration I may have committed some errors. It would be, indeed, remarkable if I had not.

I have acted according to my best judgment in eyery case. The views expressed by the Committee accord with my own; and on this principle "the Government" is to be supported though the administration may not in every case wisely act. As a pilot, I have used my best exertions to keep afloat our ship of state, and shall be glad to resign my trust at the appointed time to another pilot more skilful and successful than I may prove. In every case, and at all hazards, the Government must be perpetuated. Relying, as I do, upon the Almighty Power, and encouraged as I am by these resolutions which you have just read, with the support which I receive from Christian men, I shall not hesitate to use all the means at my control to secure the termination of this rebellion, and will hope for success.

I sincerely thank you for this interview, this pleasant mode of presentation, and the General Assembly for their patriotic support in these resolutions.

The General Synod and Contention of the Reformed Protestant Dutch Church, June, 1863.

Whereas it is the duty of the Church of Christ, and of all those who minister at her altars, agreeably to the teachings of the Scriptures, and the injunctions of our standards and formularies of doctrine and worship, to yield at all times a cordial support, both by precept and example, to the legitimate Government of the land; and

Whereas this duty is especially incumbent at a period when the Government is assailed by armed violence and insubordination, and its very existence and integrity are sought to be subverted by a powerful and persevering rebellion: therefore,

Resolved, 1. That we tender to the Government of the United States, and those who represent it, the renewed expression of our warmest and deepest sympathy in its present protracted struggle to maintain its lawful authority and to preserve unbroken the integrity and union of these States.

2. That we hold it to be our imperative duty as ministers of the gospel and members of the Synod, while abstaining from all unseemly mixing up of ourselves with mere party politics, in our own appropriate sphere and by every possible means to strengthen the hands of the Government at the present imminent crisis, wherein are put at stake the national life and the noblest example and experiment of constitutional government the world has ever seen; and that we will yield a cordial support to all such measures, not incompatible with the great law of righteousness, as may be necessary to suppress the existing rebellion and to assert the complete authority of the Union over all proper territory and domain.

3. That we will hail with satisfaction the earliest practicable period for the introduction and establishment of a salutary peace, - a peace founded on the full ascendency of law and rightful authority, and guaranteed in its permanency by the removal or the sufficient coercion and restraint of whatever causes tend necessarily to imperil the existence of the nation and to endanger the preservation of the Union; and until such a peace can be obtained, we hold it to be a sacred duty to ourselves, our children, our country, the Church of God, and also to humanity at large, to prosecute to the last a war forced upon us by an imperative necessity, and waged on our part not in hatred or revenge, but in the great cause of constitutional liberty and rational self-government.

4. That we recognize devoutly our dependence upon God for a happy issue and termination to our present troubles; that we accept with profound humility and abasement the chastisements of his hand; that we make mention of our deep unworthiness and sin; and that we endeavor, by continual searching, repentance, and careful walking before God, to conciliate the Divine favor, so that ere long his heavy judgments in our national calamities may be removed, and a restoration may be accorded to us of the blessings of peace, fraternal harmony, fraternal union, and established government.

The Episcopal Convention of Pennsylvania, May, 1863.

Resolved, That, in the present crisis of our national existence, we feel called upon, as a Convention of the Church, not only to give to our beloved and bleeding country our earnest prayers, but to sustain the hands of the Government by a distinct expression of our loyal sentiments.

Resolved, therefore, That we pledge to the constituted authorities of the land our cordial sympathy and support in their efforts to suppress the existing rebellion and re-establish our national Union; and that we will continue to offer our constant prayers to Almighty God that he will be pleased to unite "the hearts of his people as the heart of one man in upholding the supremacy of law and the cause of justice and peace."

Resolved, That we do solemnly recognize and reaffirm, as pertaining to the character and requirements of our holy religion, the duty of hearty loyalty to the Constitution and Government under which God, in his good providence, has placed us, the duty of religiously abstaining from and boldly rebuking all sympathy or complicity with the privy conspiracy and rebellion from which we pray to be delivered, and the duty of humbly acknowledging the hand of Almighty God in the chastisements he inflicts, and of imploring his forbearance and forgiveness, and his gracious interposition in speedily restoring to us the blessings of union and peace, through Jesus Christ, our only Mediator and Redeemer.

Memorial of the Quakers to Congress.

The following extract, taken from a memorial to Congress, presented in February, 1863, by "the representatives of the religious Society of Friends, commonly called Quakers, in Pennsylvania, New Jersey, Delaware, &c.," expresses the views of this body of American Christians on the rebellion. The memorial, after stating "that the Friends as a body have ever felt it a religious duty to live a quiet and peaceable life, to obey all laws which do not violate the precepts of our holy Redeemer," and that "we love our country, and thankfully appreciate the many privileges and benefits which, through the blessings of the Most High, have been vouchsafed to us under its mild and liberal government, and desire to do all we conscientiously can to maintain its integrity," and "that Friends have ever felt themselves religiously restrained from any participation in war," and that they cannot conscientiously pay penalties imposed as military fines, &c., concludes as follows: -

We deplore and utterly condemn the wicked rebellion, fomented by misguided and infatuated men, which has involved the nation in strife and bloodshed; and earnestly desire that, while the Lord's judgments are so awfully manifest, the inhabitants of the earth may learn righteousness, and through obedience to the requisitions of the only religion which we all profess we may happily secure the favor of Him who has all power in heaven and on earth, and by whose blessing only the nation can be preserved and prosper, so that peace may once more be restored throughout our whole land, and Christian liberty, harmony, and love universally prevail among the people.

Signed on behalf and by direction of a meeting of the representatives aforesaid, held in Philadelphia, the 24th of the 2d month, 1863.

Joseph Snowdon, Clerk.

A Convention of Methodist laymen met in the city of New York, in May, 1863, on ecclesiastical matters, and closed their deliberations by the passage of the fallowing resolutions: -

Resolved, 1. That we deem the present a fitting occasion, on the assembling together of laymen of the Methodist Episcopal Church from different States of the Union, to give expression to our sentiments as Christian men, pledging our unqualified devotion and adherence to the Union and the enforcement of the laws; and that no effort of ours, becoming those who are devoted to the furtherance of the interests of humanity and religion, shall be spared to sustain the Government in this crisis of its history.

Resolved, 2. We also recognize with great satisfaction the course of our papers, the patriotic services of many of our ministers in the army and navy at home and abroad in the national cause; and we indulge the hope that the day is not far distant when these noble men shall have the proud satisfaction of having contributed in no small degree in bringing about a restoration of our beloved country to the blessings of a glorious and permanent peace.

Resolved, 3. That we extend to our brave brethren on the field and in the army, now exposing their lives in defence of our common interests, our cordial sympathy and support, and we pledge them an interest in our prayers for themselves and our concern for their families at home.

Numerous delegates, many of whom occupied high civil and military positions, were present from Ohio, Maryland, New Jersey, Connecticut, New York, Pennsylvania, Rhode Island, Massachusetts, Delaware, Indiana, Illinois, Michigan, Maine, the District of Columbia, and the cities of New York and Brooklyn. The Convention was presided over by Joseph A. Wright, of Indiana, who had been Governor of the State, a representative in Congress, Minister at the Court of Berlin, in Prussia, and during the first two years of the rebellion a Senator in Congress. He was distinguished for his efforts to extend Christian institutions and influences through the land, and for his devotion to the country in its imperilled condition. His views on the relation of Christianity to civil society are expressed in the following words: -

Too long has the sentiment of Lord Brougham been heralded forth, "The schoolmaster is abroad." The proper sentiment is, The Bible is abroad. Out of the word of God spring the hope, the life, the vitality of the nations of the earth; without note or comment, freely circulated among the people. Its principles underlie all civil institutions and social structure.

Nations and men must fully recognize God's truth and providence in all their doings and actions. Our fathers fully realized it; and therein alone consisted their power and strength.

Governor Wright was connected with a beautiful, patriotic, and Christian incident in Berlin, the metropolis of Prussia. During his residence as minister to that court, he labored in a missionary German Sabbath-school; and, returning to that city in June, 1863, he bore from the capital of the American republic, where he had been a member of the Senate of the United States, a very beautiful Bible, which was sent as a present by the Sabbath-school connected with Wesley Chapel in Washington City. Governor Wright made a thrilling speech. The effect of the presentation and of the speech on the children and teachers was very marked, as was abundantly evidenced by smiling faces and falling tears. The Governor referred to the past history of the school, and his connection with it, and also to his intense anxiety for its future success. He spoke also of our present national troubles, and requested the whole school to kneel down and ask the God of our fathers to deliver us from this horrible rebellion." It was cheering," says the writer, "to hear two or three hundred children and teachers, led by their pastor, offering up their earnest prayers that God would bless America, the home of Washington, the land that these children have learned to prize."

The National Convention of the Young Men's Christian Association of the United States and the British Provinces met in May, 1863, at Chicago, Illinois. Delegates were present from most of the Northern States, the District of Columbia, Canada, and England. The Association was presided over by George H. Stuart, of Philadelphia, and passed the following resolutions: -

Resolved, That we hereby reaffirm our unconditional loyalty to the Government of the United States, and our determination to afford every required and Christian aid for the suppression of the infamous rebellion.

Resolved, That we are gratified at the steps already taken by the administration for the removal of the great sin of slavery, - "the sum of all villanies," - and must express our candid conviction that the war will last so long as its cause morally exists, and that when we as a nation do fully right, God will not delay to give success to our arms.

Resolved, That it is no time to confound liberty with lawlessness. We cherish the dearest boon of freedom with jealous vigilance, but remember that true freedom can only continue under restraints, and exist at all as guarded by law.

Resolved, That neither is this a time for doubtful, timid measures. The counsels of time-serving, self-seeking, inconsistent politicians are not to be heeded; but the loud voice of the loyal people, the heroic demands of our teeming volunteers, and the vigorous measures of unselfish and uncompromising generals are to be respected by those who rule over us.

Resolved, That we remember with honest gratitude the noble and immense work accomplished by the Young Men's Christian Association of our land, and the sanitary and spiritual fields opened up by the providence of God for our willing hearts and hands, and pledge that we will continue to pray for our army and navy, and to meet their wants in the future with greater fidelity, if possible.

Resolved, That we recommend to daily prayer-meetings connected with the Associations here represented to observe the usual hour of Monday following July 4, 1863, as a season of special prayer for the outpouring of the Holy Spirit on all brave defenders of our country.

Other ecclesiastical bodies and Christian associations, during the rebellion, passed resolutions similar in tone and sentiment to ihose recorded in this volume; and all show in a most eminent degree the harmonious action and sentiment of all denominations of Christians in sustaining the Government of the United States and preserving the integrity and nationality of the republic. As a historic fact, unfolding the free genius of the Christian religion and the loyalty of its ministers, members, and Churches to liberty and free government, it is full of instruction, and reflects the highest honor on American Christianity as developed in the Northern States.

As an important fact in the Christian history of the nation, the resolutions of American Churches during the rebellion on the subject of slavery correspond with the sentiments and action of the Churches previous to and during the Revolution. The Congregational Churches, Presbyterian Synods and Assemblies, Baptist Associations, and the Quakers, all passed resolutions against slavery and labored for its abolition. The facts demonstrating this historic harmony are too numerous to be given in this volume.

The action of Christian denominations, as expressed in their resolutions and sentiments, justifies the following statement, made by Rev. Mr. Duryea before the American Tract Society, May, 1863:-

You may talk of patriotism, but the Christian needs no other motive than Christianity. If he is a Christian, he will have patriotism. When patriotism has died out from all other hearts, you will find it warm and true in the hearts of the Christian Church.

During the darkest hour of our trial, some of the Christian gentlemen of this land determined to go to the administration. I was made, unworthily, with Dr. Taylor, and Mr. Stuart, of Philadelphia, the spokesman. I told the President that the foundation of his strength had been in party constancy; when that should be gone, he might come down upon the people; but when the people should be divided, and he should find himself sinking, he need not despair, for in the lower depth he would find a new resting-place: he would strike the Christian Church, and then he would strike a rock. In high places in Washington, the secret tears rolled down the cheeks of our rulers when I told them that Christian men and women, and even little children, with clasped hands, were praying for the President of the United States, his advisers and colaborers; and the President said that that testimonial from the Christian Church had comforted and strengthened him, and he thanked us and God for it.

Proclamation of Emancipation.

The Christian action of most of the Churches during the second and third years of the rebellion, as well as the civil and military policy of the Government, had reference to the following important state paper: -

A Proclamation.

Whereas, on the twenty-second day of September, in the year of our Lord one thousand eight hundred and sixty-two, a proclamation was issued by the President of the United States, containing, among other things, the following, to wit:

"That on the first day of January, in the year of our Lord one thousand eight hundred and sixty-three, all persons held as slaves within any State, or designated part of a State, the people whereof shall then be in rebellion against the United States, shall be thenceforward and FOREVER FREE, and the Executive Government of the United States, including the military and naval authority thereof, will recognize and maintain the freedom of such persons, and will do no act or acts to repress such persons, or any of them, in any efforts they may make for their actual freedom.

"That the Executive will, on the first day of January aforesaid, by proclamation, designate the States and parts of States, if any, in which the people thereof respectively shall then be in rebellion against the United States; and the fact that any State, or the people thereof, shall on that day be in good faith represented in the Congress of the United States, by members chosen thereto at elections wherein a majority of the qualified voters of such State shall have participated, shall, in the absence of strong countervailing testimony, be deemed conclusive evidence that such State and the people thereof are not then in rebellion against the United States."

Now, therefore, I, Abraham Lincoln, President of the United States, by virtue of the power in me vested as Commander-in-Chief of the Army and Navy of the United States in time of actual armed rebellion against the authority and Government of the United States, and as a fit and necessary war-measure for suppressing said rebellion, do, on this first day of January, in the year of our Lord one thousand eight hundred and sixty-three, and in accordance with my purpose so to do, publicly proclaimed for the full period of one hundred days from the day first above mentioned, order and designate as the States and parts of States wherein the people thereof, respectively, are this day in rebellion against the United States, the following, to wit: -

Arkansas, Texas, Louisiana (except parishes of St. Bernard, Plaquemines, Jefferson, St. John, St. Charles, St. James, Ascension, Assumption, Terre Bonne, Lafourche, St. Marie, St. Martin, and Orleans, including the city of New Orleans), Mississippi, Alabama, Florida, Georgia, South Carolina, North Carolina, and Virginia (except the forty-eight counties designated as West Virginia, and also the counties of Berkeley, Acoomac, Northampton, Elizabeth City, York, Princess Anne, and Norfolk, including the cities of Norfolk and Portsmouth, and which excepted parts are, for the present, left precisely as if this proclamation were not issued).

And, by virtue of the power and for the purpose aforesaid, I do order and declare that ALL PERSONS HELD AS SLAVES within said designated States and parts of States ARE, AND HENCEFORWARD SHALL BE, FREE; and that the Executive Government of the United States, including the military and naval authorities thereof, will recognize and maintain the freedom of said persons.

And I hereby enjoin upon the people so declared to be free to abstain from all violence, unless in necessary self-defence; and I recommend to them that in all cases, when allowed, they labor faithfully for reasonable wages.

And I further declare and make known that such persons, of suitable condition, will be received into the armed service of the United States, to garrison forts, positions, stations, and other places, and to man vessels of all sorts in said service.

And upon this act, sincerely believed to be an act of justice, warranted by the Constitution, upon military necessity, I invoke the considerate judgment of mankind and the gracious favor of Almighty God.

In testimony whereof, I have hereunto set my hand and caused the seal of the United States to bo affixed.

Done at the City of Washington, this first day of January, in the year of our Lord one thousand eight hundred and sixty-three, and of the independence of the United States of America the eighty-seventh.

Abraham Lincoln.

By the President:

William H. Seward, Secretary of State.

Christian Organizations

Made special eflForts to cultivate and strengthen the religious element of the nation during the conflict. The American Bible Society distributed to the men in the army and navy more than a million of Bibles and Testaments. The American Tract Society of Boston had its head-quarters at Washington, and through its agent, Mr. Alvord, accomplished a great work. He says, "General Scott and his staff received the books with remarkable favor, and the old general himself bid him God-speed in the work of distribution. Government allowed the packages to go in the mails, and furnished every facility for distribution, by which the entire Army of the Potomac was reached once a week. The books and tracts were eagerly received."

The American Tract Society of New York made systematic and successful efforts to reach the army and navy with its Christian literature, and received every encouragement from the Government. Their work received from the President the following approval: -

Executive Mansion, Washington, D.C., Sept. 6, 1861.

Rev. O. Eastman, Secretary American Tract Society, New York.

Dear Sir: - I take pleasure in acknowledging for the President your kind and patriotic note of the 3d instant. Allow me to express for the President his warm approbation of the work in which your Society is engaged. Religion and good government are sworn allies,

Respectfully,

Jno. G. Nicolay, Private Secretary.

The President said to a member of the Society, "You may have every thing, - transportation, free passes, can go where you please, and command the administration to the whole extent of its ability and means, to help you take care of the religious interests of the army."

The American Temperance Union was an efficient colaborer in the moral and Christian work done for the army. Samuel F. Carey, of Ohio, distinguished for his devotion to the cause of temperance, and for his eloquence in defending the country against the rebellion, said "that during the present civil war volumes of facts can be adduced demonstrating that many of our most serious disasters are directly attributable to intemperance, and that intoxicating liquors do more than all other things to deteriorate the character of the soldier and to unfit him for the defence of his country. In efforts made to promote the temperance reformation, General Scott, the veteran soldier and world-renowned officer, early in the war gave a written order to admit a temperance-lecturer within the lines, and directed that every possible facility be afforded him to exert an influence among the soldiers. President Lincoln, the commander-in-chief of the army, warmly endorsed the movement; and when the advocate was denied an opportunity of perform- ing his mission by liquor-loving officers, the President gave a written and imperative command to receive him and facilitate his object. Backed by this credential, he went from regiment to regiment in the Potomac army; and his influence for good was felt and acknowledged. Commodores Foote and Porter, of the navy, have in the most unqualified manner testified to the necessity of total abstinence for the efficient conduct of the navy.

"In view of the peculiar temptations in the army, and the dangers of our soldiers contracting intemperate habits, tracts have been prepared by Marsh, Delavan, Carey, and others, and millions of pages distributed gratuitously by philanthropic individuals and societies."

The Christian Commission was an extensive and an efficient organization for the diffusion of religious influences during the war. It was organized on a national basis, with a large committee of the most distinguished ministers and laymen in the various Northern States, and had its unpaid agents everywhere in the army and navy, who were received with the most cordial welcome. The following is the official statement of its object: -

Their object is to promote the spiritual and temporal welfare of the brave men who are now in arms to put down a wicked rebellion. They propose to do this by aiding the chaplains and others in their work.

1. By furnishing to them religious tracts, periodicals, and books.

2. By aiding in the formation of religious associations in the several regiments.

3. By putting such associations in correspondence with the Christian public.

4. By cultivating, as far as possible, the religious sympathies and prayers of Christians in their behalf.

5. By obtaining and directing such gratuitous personal labor among the soldiers and sailors as may be practicable.

6. By improving such other opportunities and means as may, in the providence of God, be presented.

7. By furnishing, as far as possible, profitable reading other than religious, and, wherever there is a permanent military post, by establishing a general library of such works.

8. By establishing a medium of speedy and safe intercommunication between the men in the army and navy and their friends and families, by which small packages of clothing, books, and medicines, and mementoes of social affection, can be interchanged.

We propose to encourage in them whatever is good and keep fresh in their remembrance the instructions of earlier years, and to develop, organize, and make effective the religious element in the army and navy. The field is open to us. We can have free access to their immortal souls; the chaplains desire and call for our aid; the Government wish it; and the men ask for and receive religious reading and teaching with an eagerness most touching. Thousands who at home never entered the house of God, and had none to care for their souls, now, in imminent peril, desire to know of Him who can give them the victory over death through our Lord Jesus Christ.

The following testimonials addressed to George H. Stuart, of Philadelphia, Chairman of the Christian Commission, show the value of this benevolent organization: -

Executive Mansion, Wasington, December 12, 1861.

My Dear Sir: - Your Christian and benevolent undertaking for the benefit of the soldiers is too obviously proper and praiseworthy to admit any difference of opinion. I sincerely hope your plan may be as successful in execution as it is just and generous in conception.

A. Lincoln.

War Department, December 13, 1861.

This Department is deeply interested in the "spiritual good of the soldiers in our army" as well as in their "intellectual improvement and social and physical comfort," and will cheerfully give its aid to the benevolent and patriotic of the land who desire to improve the condition of our troops. It confidently looks for beneficial results from so noble an enterprise, and begs you to express to the Commission its sincere wish for the success of this great work in behalf of the soldier.

Simon Cameron, Secretary of War.

Navy Department, December 16, 1861.

This Department will be gratified with any legitimate means to promote the welfare (present and future) of all who are in the service.

Gordon Welles, Secretary of the Navy.

Washington, January 5, 1863.

The Christian Commission have in hand a noble work, and are performing it, I am well assured, as only a labor of love can be performed.

M. Blair, Postmaster-General.

Head-Quarters, Army of the Potomac,
Washington, June 8, 1862.

The objects of the Commission are such as meet my cordial approval, and will, if carried out in the proper spirit, prove of great value.

George B. McClellan.

War Department, Washington, January 24, 1863.

Bishop Janes is authorized to state that he has received assurance from the Secretary of War, E. M. Stanton, that every facility consistent with the exigencies of the service will be afforded to the Christian Commission, for the performance of their religious and benevolent purposes in the armies of the United States, and in the forts, garrisons and camps, and military posts.

Bureau of Equipment and Recruiting,
Washington, D.C, January 28, 1863.

The object and importance of your Commission cannot be overestimated. It will supply a hiatus long wanting in the army and navy, and must enlist the sympathies and prayers of all true Christian patriots. To supply the spiritual wants of the public service on the battle-field and upon the ocean, and to lead our warriors to go forward valiantly to the fight, acknowledging God as our Ruler and looking to him for success, will, I have no doubt, soon cause this wicked rebellion to culminate in the restoration of our Union.

A. H. Foote, Admiral in the Navy.

Lieutenant-General Winfield Scott, at a public meeting of the Christian Commission held in New York, December, 1861, presided, and made the following address; -

Fellow-Citizens: - The honor done me on this occasion, in calling me to occupy this chair upon an occasion of so much importance and worth, gladdens the heart of an old soldier and fills him with gratitude and love. New York has sent out her thousands upon thousands of brave sons to fight the battles of our Constitution and Union, and has not forgotten them in the field or upon their return home. Her care has been incessant. She has given them every aid, has cared for their families, and watched over the wounded, sick, lame, and halt upon their return. The objects of this Association will be explained to you by my colleague in the duties of the chair, more fully than I shall attempt upon this occasion. With such a cause, that God will prosper our efforts and give us triumph no Christian man can doubt.

General Scott, as chief of the army of the United States, and for a half-century distinguished in the military service of his country, and exerting a large influence on society and the Government, in public and in private, bore his testimony to the divinity of the Christian religion, and its vital necessity to the welfare and stability of human society and governments. In 1844, in a public letter, referring to the settlement of international difficulties, he said, "We should especially remember, all things whatsoever ye would that men should do to you, do ye even so to them. This Divine principle is of universal obligation: it is as applicable to rulers in their transactions with other nations as to private individuals in their daily intercourse with each other. Power is intrusted by the Author of peace and lover of concord 'to do good, and avoid evil.' Such is clearly the revealed will of God."

He inculcated the highest moral virtues with the character and conduct of an American officer and soldier, and enjoined, in a general order, in 1842, that "every officer shall give himself up entirely to the cultivation and practice of all the virtues and accomplishments which can elevate an honorable profession. . . . The officers should unite a high degree of moral vigor with the courtesy that springs from the heart."

"To this distinguished man," said Dr. Channing, of Boston, "belongs the rare honor of uniting with military energy and daring the spirit of a philanthropist. ... It would not be easy to find among us a man who has won a purer fame."

On Sabbath evening, February 22, 1863, the Christian Commission held a meeting in the hall of the House of Representatives, Washington City, which was one of the most remarkable meetings ever held in the Capitol of the nation.