■^%. J^^ w. ^>, IMAGE EVALUATION TEST TARGET (MT-3) / O 4. i^S^ Mr, ^ 4< ^ l6 1.0 I.I ■^ 112.2 m 2.0 1.8 1.25 1.4 11= .« 6" - ► m e n ^/,. °m > >:> /A » '■^ "-?* Photographic Sciences Corporation j^& W V 4^ \\ N^ <^ \ '^q\ '^.>. 23 WEST MAIN STREET WEBSTER, NY. 14SB0 (716) 872-4503 ■^\^4. ^ C/j k CIHM/ICMH Microfiche Series. CIHIVI/ICMH Collection de microfiches. Canadian Institute for Historical Microreproductions / Institut Canadian de microreproductions historiques Technical and Bibliographic Notes/Notes techniques et bibliographiques The Institute has atismpted to obtain the best original copy avai! (meaning "CON- TINUED"), or the symbol y (meaning "END "), whichever applies. Un des symboles suivants apparaitra sur la dernidre image de chaque microfiche, selon le cas: le symbole — ^> signifie "A SUIV RE", le symbole V signifie "FIN". ire Maps, plates, charts, etc., may be filmed at different reduction ratios. Those too large to be entirely included in one exposure are filmed beginning in the upper left hand corner, left to right and top to bottom, as many frames as required. The following diagrams illustrate the method: Les cartes, planches, tableaux, etc., peuvent dtre film6s d des taux de reduction diffdrents. Lorsque le document est trop grand pour dtre reproduit en un seul clich6, il est filmd d partir de Tangle sup6riour gauche, de gauche d droite, et de haut en bas, en prenant le nombre d'images ndcessaire. Les diagrammes suivants illustrent la mdthode. >y errata ed to mt ine pelure, agon d 1 2 3 32X t 2 3 4 5 6 CANADA NATIONAL LIBRARY BIBLIOTHEQUE NATIONALE r Sv^-^-'CJ^ &^ # A PLEA FOR THE '^Ji^ SWISS MISSION IN CANADA: A DISCOURSE, DELIVEUED IN THE FIRST PRESBYTERIAN CHURCH, TROY, October 15, 1843. By NATHAN S. S. BEiAIAN. ..,.jc,-itr^ ^(^ TROY, N. Y.: rUBLISIlED CY YOUNG & IIARTT. FROM THE PRESS OF X. TUTTLK, CCXXV RIVER-STREET. 1843. -^- TROY SWISS MISSION SOCIETY r » The Troy Swiss IMissiox Soriii: tv is romposed of Ladies of clinbrent Protest- ant (Ifiioininatioiis. It was foriiK.-d at tliu Sessioa-Room of the First Presbyterian Churc-ii of Troy, August 11th, IS 12. The following- are the Oliicers : Mrs. EMMA WILLARD, First Direct res.^ ,- Mu^ MARY CHURCH, Second Directress ; Mrs. E. M. NORTON, Secretary; Miss ABBY .1. CHAMPION, Treasurer. Managers. Mrs. T. B. BICtELOW, Mrs. WM. NOVES, Mrs. a. BARNES. CoUictors. Mrs. a. season, Mrs. LE ROY MOWRY, Miss WILSON, Miss EAT0>J, Miss CLEAVER, Mrs. HAWLEY, Miss MARY FRENCH, Miss MARTHA E. NORTON, Miss CHARLOTTE MALLARY, Miss MARY HALL. At the Annual Meeting of the Society, liolden at the Troy Female Seminary, August 11th, IS 13, it was unanimously Resoh-ed, That the Rev. Dr. Beman be requested to deliver a Sermon, in order to call public attention to the importance of sustaining the Swiss Mission in Ca- nada. Dr. Bomaw consented ; and accordingly, on the 15th instant, preached to a very large and attentive audience. On the Kith, at a meeting of the Society, a com- mittee was appointed to communicate to Dr. Beman the following resolutions : Resoh-ed, That the Ladies of the Troy Swiss Mission Society, present their heartfelt acknowledgement of gratitude to Dr. Beman, for his most eloquent and interesting Discourse. Resnlred. That it is our desire to see the Sermon preached by D.-. Beman, in a printed form, for our own pleasure and instruction— that we may have an opportu- nity of sending it to our friends— and, also, that the cause it so ably advocates, may thus be made better known to the public. The committee reported, that in compliance with the wishes of the Society, Dr. Beman would furnish a copy of the sermon for publication. DISCOURSE. ' riiiLTrriA\s iv. .1. And I entrcnt tlieo also, true yoke-fellow, help those women which labored with me ia the g.ispol, with Clement also, ami with other my fel- low-laborers, whose names are in the liook of lile. From the c' cnmstances in wliicli I am jjlaced, this evening, I am called upon to present to this au- dience a new subject of Christian beneficence; — and because it is new, and in ortler that it may be the better understood, I will commence my address with a few explanations which 1 might odierwise jiostpone till its close. I am about to spread before you the claims of the Swiss Mission in Canada. JMy plea, however, will be made more directly in behalf of " The Troy Swiss Mission Society," established a little more than a year since, by the Ladies of this city, for the purpose of aiding in missionary labors in that country. On this point, a few historical items will suffice. The mission at Grande Ligne was commenced in 1835 — eight years since— by M. Louis Iloussy, under a " commission from the Churches of Switzerland." This place is situated near the river Richelieu, the 6 outlet of lake Champlain, twenty miles from the line of this State, and ten from the town of St. Johns. Here he obtained the post of a schoolmaster. After two months, the Catholic priest, who dreaded the ef- fects of his labors, procured his removal from the of- fice of a teacher. He had found by visiting from house to house, that not more than 07ie m fifteen could read. In the autunm of 183G, Madame Feller, a devoted Christian, who had left Switzerland, at the same time and for the same purpose, and who had spent the winter in Montreal, in private religious instruction, removed to Grande Lignc, and opened a school, while M. lloussy devoted himself exclusively to visiting the people and communicating religious instruction. Both of them were exposed to severe treatment from the exasperated Catholics — savage threats were uttered — their place of worship was disturbed by noisy and infuriated mobs — and M. Roussy was himself severe- ly beaten. But God was with them, and quite a number of people, in spite of the priests, became obe- dient to his word. The only place that Madame Feller could procure for a school-room, was a small garret, where she taught the children by day, and where she lodged at night. The heat of the summer was so intense, that she was obliged to remove her school to a barn. But in the midst of all these labors and discouragements, her courage never flagged. She opened an evening school for adults, in which she had twelve pupils, — while a considerable num- ber attended the concluding exercises which consist- 1 cJ In reading the scriptures, conversntlon on the pas- sages read, and prayer. In addition to these severe and exhausting lahors, s ^"^ployed all her time not occu])led in her schools, in visiting such families as were willing to hear the scrii)tures rvnd. The result of these labors, and of other kindred spirits associated with this excellent woman, hns been such, by the blessing of God, as we might auticii)ate. The people have been Instructed, and aroused, and many converted to Christ. They have now a large and commodious building for the missionary family, chapel and Normal school. The influence begins to be felt, not only upon the neighboring population, ])ut upon many other, and even far distant, parts of Cana- da. I shall have occasion to refer to this topic again. The character and labors of this woman will ap- pear still more extraordinary, if we advert for a mo- ment to her previous history. She was a native of Lausanne, in Switzerland, and brought up in culti- vated society. Her husband was " chef de police," and was frequently called upon to punish the evan- gelical christians. Early one Sunday morning, he received an order, from the tribunal of justice, to go to a certain place to disperse or imprison a number who had met to worshiji God. In speaking of this she says, " He left the house, and immediately, like the wife of Pilate, I was seized with the most fearful misgivings. I felt that my husband was sinnino- against God by obeying this order. JNIy ai.guish was bitterly increased by the sudden illness of my sweet infant, who to that hour had been in perfect health. 8 It was tlic only (•liild -wliicli (lod liiid oivcii us." — When licr liusbimd rcliinicd, slic lold hiii» of Ikm* dis- tn^ss, niid iin[)l()r(M! liiiii lo uivc" iij) his ollicc, rnllicr than 1() incur ihe ii(H'(>;xii y of sinning ai^aiiisl (jud. SIk; Avas not, at tlmt lini(% a cJirislijin. Tliishttlo child, ;ilv!wl ihiw^ y'>:ii-.s old, soon iiHcr di(>d a, ino.st rcniarlvahic diMlh. Sho s])()kc of ;i<)ino; home lo (lod, hkc ;in old aiid cxjxm i(Micc(l chnstian. Just hel'oi-c licr (h^ath, slic s:i:d, "Do not weep !"oi- inc, denr mother, (iod will 1;ikc c;ii'c of yon, — yon A\ill Jove (lod, — ;nid ho a\ ill hltvss yon." These words, sluisjiid, j)roved j)r()[)lielic. She l)( ciime ii,c<|n!iin1ed, nt l1iis [xM'iod, with ;in cvaiiL(elic;d l'roles1;inl minisli r, w ho a\ ;is of L!,re;it sei- vice to lier iind lu'r hnshand, in spirUnnl llniius. 'I'liey bolli became inlcresled in ihe blood of .h-sns Chi'ist; and in about one year allin- tli(> dealli of lli(>ii' lilth^ child, Jier linsl)and died in the 1 riinnphs of faith. Soon after this, the |)aslor of the chin-ch in Lausanne, M. Olivier, and his wile, had made nj) tlaar minds to leave SNvit/.cn'land, and devote themscKcs to the in- struction of the Catholics in l^'rance, oi- some other countrv. JNIadame .l'\'ll(n" dii-ected tlieir alleiilion to Canada, and they iinally concluded to adopt Ikm- sug- gestion. Soine tim(> alter, when hi r hc'^baial's thrcH:^ daULihtei's bv a. foi'mci- mari-ia' :<\ '»V(, re settled in life she Avrote to Madame Olivier, informing her that she \\":;.. jiow pi'cpared to consecrate her."ll to the lile ol a nfissionaiT, in Canada, if an o[)eiiniL;- presented il- vjclf lin- lli;it pni'poM'. I 'nil before that letter had Inne to arri\e, she received one i'rom iier excellent friend, [•> J '•• invltino- her to coinc nnd join thorn in llio work of in- struct ino- nnhe remaincMl uitli a lull di^terminiition to hilxu- till slu^. dies, on missi(;nary fifroiind, and especially lor ihe conversicm of Rouian Catholics. 77//.V j)ui-pose, on hei" })art, would seem to be of heaven, and her voted and sijlf-denying la- bors have already produced an unusual amount of good. The words T have sclcM'ted, as my text^ are appro- priate, and directly suitc^d to my ])resent ]>ur])osc. "And I. entreat thee, tru(» yokcvlellow, hel[) those women which labored with me in the gospel, with Clement also, and with other my fellow-la borers, whos(^ naiiics are in the I ()ok of life." The " true; Voki'-fellow" here addressed, was some well known and eminent christian at riiilip[)i, [)erliaps the pastor of the church. The pious women who are com- mended to his notic^e and kind assistanci^ arc^ men- tioned ill the ])revious vei*s«': " I bi'seech Enodias, and I b(\sei'(h Syntyelie, that, they be of the same mind in the Lord." They liad been of s[)ecial ser- vit;e to the a[)oslle in planting and promo* ing the eause of C/hrist. lie characterizes them, as "those 10 .o«eu who labored -■^:;^;^J_l^^^'^' Jr^l literal translation wo"d ^^^ J „,, „,, who, for the gospel, hav co ^^_^^^ ^,,,,„„e. They stood l.y him and ^™\<= ?;^; ^; ^„a decis- „o doubt, both by ^^'^'^^f'^^lZo God. From - '-^-^^^ 1wCiltt:taUer.ated, either some cause, they ^''«" ^ ^^,,-,j,,„ enterprise, personally, or on some bu no o ^^ ^^^^ ^^^^^^ l-aud the apostie exhorts d^m to ^^^_^^,^^^„ W purpose. -^""toLeheen *e husbajul who --n^-'"! ''^iX" them to compose their drf- of one of them, to help ,,^„v,,e to induce them ferences,-or, what is more pr<^ ah e t ■, tl.nii- efforts, and to co-opeiate i"i to umte then cttoit ^^^.^^ ^^ ,^^^„. 1 the cause of ^^''-Y . eech Syntyche, that ihcy beseech Euod.as, and I «.sc.cl ) y ^ ^^^^^^ ^^^^^^ be of tae same mind in die 1.0 . ^^^^ ^^^.^ ^^^ ^^- ^''^ "":;:; d *:e:rb^^^^^^^^^ more especially deuce ^^^^ sublime „oble part in — -;;;t -pires, they had taken eournoe winch the §<^ f^Jj ,,,t tbe moral combat, a-u magnaninious ^W a^^^^^^^^ .. with Clemeut, ^^^^.^^.^ was die agen- kind and useful Irdiors. occasion. I shah attempt to show o to ^^^ ^^ ^^^^ ,l,at woman may do much foi tl.e ^ ' 11 pel ; and that the field occupied by this Society is one of deep and special interest. I. Woman may do much for the spread of the gos- pel. It is not necessary here to discuss the comparative talents of the sexes, or their respective influence on the destinies of our world; nor need I assert the identity of their spheres of action. There are some things, that woman cannot do. There are some things which God never designed her to do, and which, if she should perform, she would be disrobed of more than half of her intellectual and moral beaU' ty. She may not ascend the pulpit, and publicly proclaim the will of heaven. She may not become the accredited ambassador of Jesus Christ to fallen men. Her sphere is not marked out, by the finger of God, amid the busy and bustling scenes of public life. Buo she may be, and she has often been, a bright angel of mercy to a disheartened church and a sinful world. Even the strong^ hand and oiant mind of Paul were rendered still mightier by the aid of wo- men; and his pious and gentle heart was not asliam- ed to record the fact on the inspired page. "Help those women who labored together with me in tlu^ gospel." Nor is this a solitary instance in the book of God ! It is an old remark, aid it hns lost notbing by repetition, that "women were lust at the cross, and first at the sepulchre." Their native talents, and their peculiarly strong susceptibilities, when un- der the influence of piety, quality them to do many I ! j. I 12 things more efficiently than they are generally clone by men. If the stream of their influence is comparatively retirc;d and silent ^i its onward flow, yet it is pervading and powerful, and is capable of fertilizing, or desolating a world ! Nor is there any good reason why it should be so retired, and so silent, that no one will ever see it, or hear of it, or find it out. It was certainly not so in the days of Paul ; and, it is well known, that, in that age, woman, by the long establlslied customs of society, had been put in the back ground, and was ko[)t there, — at least, in relation to mnny things in which it is now reputable for her to stand fc)rtli in a blaze of light, and act a conspicuous and prominent part. But let me state a few distinct ^particulars. Devoted women may do much to furnish the means for sustaining missions. The gospel cannot be sent to the destitute portions of our globe, whether they are pagan or nominally christian, without money. Missionaries are genC' rally poor, and unable to sustain themselves. They must be conveyed to their destined field of labor, and they must be fed and clothed while engaged in their work. They cannot "leave the word of God to serve tables." Nor can it be expected, that the hea- then, or others, who cherish no sympathy for them or their mission, will furnish them with the means of support. Nor will God rob his people of " the luxu- ry of doing good," by suppl^dng their wants by a special miracle. They are, then, necessarily thrown back \x\)oi\ the benevolence of a christian communi-' -Mp 13 ty; and that community, in every ordinary state of feolini?, needs both information and excitement in or- der to insure the discharge of duty. The great in- terest must be spread before the public, not merely in formal discourses, but it must be talked about from house to house. The great body of the people want lieM, as well as light, in order to act up to the high mark of the divine requirement. And who can make appeals so thrilling, and so effectual, and so irresista- ble, as that sex whose hearts are strung with the more vivid and active sensibihties of our nature, and whose very tones are eloquence, and spontaneously body forth the deep feelings of the inmost spirit! If I wished to ask back my forfeited life, even from a tyrant's bloody hand, I would have a woman to beg for me ! Her logic is brief, while her entreaties are not easily shaken off. Let this sex, warmed by the love of heaven, and deeply commisserating the pre- sent degradation and the fearful prospects of the be- nighted heathen, or the hardly less benighted papist, turn tax- gatherers, and the missionary box is soon fill- ed by a kind of voluntary compulsion. Not only their own sex, but men will give; — some because they love the enterprise, and some because they love ardor and energy in woman, and others because they are ashamed to deny the request of a lady. The history of the last twenty-five years, if it were writ- ten in all the minuteness of detail, would show the amazing moral power of the female sex in furnishing the means for prosecuting the cause of christian mis' sions. Some have done it by their appeals to others, 14 i^ A some by their own liberality, and not a few by their deep personal self-denials. Pious females can do much to promote a mission- ary spirit. They always have done this. If woman acted a con- spicuous part in the ruin of our world, so she has in its redemption. I love to read the story of those good wo- men who followed Jesus Christ from place to place, and ministered to the wants of this heavenly mission- ary ; — and of those "honorable women," "not a few," who believed the gospel, and stood by the first mis- sionaries of the cross, even v^hen the storms of per- secution gathered around them, and beat upon their holy heads ! To say nothing here of the peculiar power of woman to plead with eloquence and effect, the cause of moral refinement and heavenly truth, to which I have already adverted, who can be impelled to this work by stronger motives, than those which are addressed to her \ It is only under the form of a pure, evangelical Christianity, that woman is per- mitted to take her own proper rcmk in society, and to enjoy those rights which God has secured to her by the constitution of nature, and in his o^vn written laws. The Pagan female is a slave, and the Catholic is but little better. If you will look the world over witli an impartial eye, I challenge you to deny the truth of this remark. Paganism and Romanism have always had the heart intensely fixed on a common object — the exaltation of the priesthood in connexion with the political power, and the depression of the people. And wherever the people, as such, have J/». \ 16 been crushed by the combined powers of church and state, there individual tyrants have trodden upon the rights, and spurned the virtues of woman. Look over the benicrhted rcahns of Paganism, and let the heart bleed for the female sex. Here is a dark picture of tyranny and sulfering. Look over those populous lands where an impure and false Christianity has blighted every thing fair and promising in society, and where will you find females 1 What rank do they sustain; and what is their moral character? I speak not of individuals, but of the ??iass! You will find them in the field holding in the hand the imple- ments of husbandry, or, upon the liigh-way, occupy- ing the place of beasts of burden. And what is wo- man in the hands of a corrupt priesthood ? I would not own a sister, or a mother, or a daughter, who would go to "THE CONFESSIONAL," and answer the questions which must be projooundcd at that stall of Belial ! Pious and devoted females have ever chine much for the gospel, by their fervent and effectual prayers. The comparatively retired and secluded condition of woman, is favorable to this duty. And so is the very character of the female heart, when effectually imbued with the grace of God. It was a prayinor Hannah who gave a Samuel to the church. The mother of Samuel J. Mills was emphatically a woman of prayer; and to her heavenly spirit, — that spirit which sympathized with dying men, the world over, and flew to God for strength and succor, — the cause of modern missions owes one of its slronuest and i\ \ f I 10 . Let those who love God, and l,ri!ihtest ehainpons. Let I ^„,,,,nn^^tc the fee! a thriU of deep '^^-^'^^^IJ, ..U-ation, put a heaven-born ontevpnse ol . ^^^^ ^^ ^,^,,i„g,, special honor upon pr-J - , ^^^^^.^^^ ,„a bathe 4Godoa»g;vothe>n Ba'^ > ^^^^^^^^ ^„ ^.„„ , dybg world ur *'/;;,,,„ give, and >f you oan- knecs. Ifyou have but l.te , ^ ^^^^ ^^^ ^^y,„„ „„, fly to the rescue >e_bc^^" ^^, ^,„ ^ear yonrselves-you cm J''«-/; ;^;^„ ^voman and llead the ^'-7 ° ^ rf the ompassionate Sav>our „ever cease to plead ^"f^^'^^J^ ,„a .Ul hgU and peace, as aui>o the earth. .nJsalonaries. Women nrake good »^ ^;,, ^^^^ inissrona- 1 was about to say, ^-^yjf ^^ ,,„. They are ,i,,_arrd u. tlren- »- nj 'tlL 'pubUc heralds of „ot, as 1 have ^f^^^' ^^Js iu prosecuUng the cross, but ^^l^ ^,, indeed, j.st as nr- „issions, are just =^> """^ ^^.^^tcrprise, connected aispensaUe, as ur any home e 1^^^^^^^^ ^^^ ^^_ ,,ith the same deep and hea^^ J^ ^,., ,„„. forts for the ff^^^'\ \^^^^ dro combh.ed pow- eerned. prove -f-^f;; ^Usted on the oppo.to ers of the ^^^'^^''^ ^'-^^ state of every com- side. The moral -^^^ ,„,„, degree of pre- „umty may be -^'^^^^,, character of wo- cision, from the moral ad c ^^^^ ,^_ ^^^^ ^^^.^^. „en. This is true ^^'^1^^^ especially on e„t train of l^--g^;\^;;' :, ^/lelations which they font 'nid inteie»i'i"s the imp^^^'^ r 17 sustain to christian missions. I moan their personal relations, as teachers of the gospel. I speak not now of ])ublic preachiijo'. There are many other lessons to be inculcated than those which are proclaimed from the pulpit. It is so in all communities, but es- pecially so among the unevangelized and ignorant. Woman is a teacher from the very position which God has assigned her. The mother moulds the in- fant mind. She watches the opening bud of child- hood, and, under God, gives the sunshine and the showers, and the gentle distilling dews, which ex- pand its infantile beauties into full bh om. Nor is she an incompetent teacher in maturer years. But those qualities which prepare her to be the very best teacher of the young, and especially in the great principles of piety and virtue, are the very ones which fit her for the missionary enterprise. She is "apt to teach," — fond of detail, — minute and copious and patient in explanation, — and, withal, when the heart has fully fastened on its object, and all its im- mortal and glowing energies have fully resolved upon success, she is persevering and indefatigable to the very death ! These are the characteristics needed in a missionary among the uninstructed every where. In relip"ion, the unevargelized world are all children, and they need a mother's tongue to teach them. They need her smiles, and tears, and counsels. They need her gentle hand to lead them along throuo-h the first jirinciples of the oracles of God, and her kind wing to shelter them, when impending dangers threaten, and when sweeping storms pass 3 i^ A ) 18 tuvo of woman's -.-^^-h n ^^^^^ ._^ of heaven; au^l cvuy = .^^. ^„j ^very ;««,,., .hen uK-ltecl by th - ^^^^^^ ^^ ^^ tlung that can be cW-uUy ^, ^^^^ ^^.^ ^^^ whoso body, when he v Madagascar, ero- with kindred dust, n. the -Und o __^^^^^ ^^^, hosomed in the great lud^^ .^^^ ^ ^^^i ,„a „.iss>onary - Madame Fehe vh ^^^_^^^^^^ ^^^. faith inspired of H-™"^^f J'Lot.ng berself to paralleled in modern W-^^' Catholics in Can- Ihe instruction and - — ^'the .i«/«#. of either ^da. In writing the V>-«f ^ ° ^^ extravagant to of these women :t -'o" fj f^^^, our Saviour on eopy the er^^^^V^:^ ,Lo you, whereso- oneoftheMary ,- W ^^^^^^^^^ ;„ tl.e w^iole :::>d;tr£-HfV^-™"^^"""'^ be told for a memorial oHiei. Permit me '"f "^'•'l,^,,. j ty tins society, is one II That the field occupicu ny of d;ep and -V-"-]-^^'^^^,, ,especting the Swiss 1 have gwen yon a le ^^ ^ _^^^ .^^ .^^ ^„g^„, Mission in Canada. ^ ^^^ .^^ .^. ;^ ;, j^pera- that we can see the han ^^„ tWely called fo^" .^f ^^^^ wbose instruction and vvhom it is «^'''"\*"^;"la d>e enterprise has been salvation it is Wf^^^^ '\ am ^uite sure, that already most signally bles.e it > •y ell, led ?m- ;h a and un- If to Can- either Eint to ar on ereso- wbole done, is one ic Swiss origin, impera- aniong fction and bus been fcure, tbat 19 no roal christian — that no lovor of Cod or man — can look at this enterprise, in all its litihts and bearings, without wishing to sustain an hunihle part in its pres- ent conilicts, and its future and prospective glory. It may appear small in itself — a mere speck on the globe — but it has relations almost infinite ; it stands connected with subjects of deepest interest and of largest magnitude, and the discussion of which is ex- citing, and even agitating and shaking the world. There is no interest of time or eternity — no comfort of earth, or hope of heaven, or song of future triumph, at least, so far as some of our fellow beings are con- cerned, but may depend on the existence and prose- cution of this mission. Let me give you a mere out- line of a train of thought which you can pursue, to a greater extent for yourselves, and which can hardly fail of enlisting your holy sensibilities, and of secur- ing your active co-operation in this "labor of love." 1. The Swiss Mission in Canada involves the great question now before the church and the world. It is, at this day, and ever has been a complex question, — a question of religion, and a question of politics. The line that separates a pure Protestant Christianity from Romanism, is the most distinct and the deepest moral line ever drawn upon the surface of human society. Upon the one side of this line, as a general fact, we find the love of liberty, and to a greater or less extent, its actual enjoyment, — men- tal cultivation, — a regard for the rights of man, — freedom of thought and freedom of discussion, — and submission to the Bible, as the only source, and the 20 ^ ) I I .ft P only standard, infalliljlc, invariable and eternal, of religious truth; — on the other side, at least, so far as to be eharacteristic, we have popular ignorance and an overwhelming torrent of po[)ular vice and crime, — a total disre}>ard for freedom and the rights of man, in the upper stratum of society, and a blind and cringing submission to authority in the lower, — tyran- ny in every hideous and every hateful form, — the sur- render of the right of })rivate judgment in matters of religion, — an arrogant i)rieslhood, intermeddling with every thing but their own ai)propriate business, — obtruding themselves into courts and cabinets, — touching the hidden springs, and pulling the subtle wires of legislation, — themselves voluntarily exscinded from all the charities of domestic life, yet worming themselves into the secrets of families, by a commis- sion stolen from heaven, — meting out the awards of bliss and woe, of heaven and hell, by the o of the money-scjJes, — and shoulderi u aside the word of God, and foisting into its place, Lj the rule of faith and life, a crude mass of silly and endless traditions! This is not a picture, but a mere sketch, — honest in- deed, and true, as far as it goes, but meagre to very poverty ! If this sketch were filled up, and the ap- propriate colorings super-added, no eye could gaze upon it, without carrying home to the heart the thrill- ing interest of its moral power. We should see the evils which are to be removed on the one hand, and the blessings ^vhicll are to be secured on the other, as the benign and magnificent results of Protestant missions. But what I have said, is not "the begin- 4 ■*»- 21 of as ml an, Liid au- iur- s of vith s, — :s, — ibtle ided ming imis- •ds of f the )rd of faith tions I est in- D very he ap- d gaze I thrill- see the nd, and other, )testant 3 begin^ ning of the end" of what should be said, on this sub- ject, if there was time to tell the whole story. Satan never gained a more signal triumph in our world, than when he contrived Romanism, and baptized it with a christian name, and then palmed it ofl^ u])on its deluded votaries, as the religion of the Son of God. The intellectual and pious Cecil used to call Popery, "the devil t* master-piece," — and it may be so called without a figure of s})eech. As the gos- pel is an advance upon Judaism, and the revelations of the New Testament exceed in radiance and glory the revelations of the Old, so Popery is a refinement upon Paganism, in order to meet the exigency of the case, and forestall the conversion of men, and the progress of holiness on the earth. The deep shades of heathenism were quite sufficient to obscure, with regard to a large portion of our world, the pale star- \iu\\t o{ tho old revelation; but the still denser and darker shades of Romanism were demanded, in order to shut out lIio brilliant sun-light of the new. This latter system, if profoundly studied and fully under- stood, will be found to contain in itself the concentra- tion of all the abominations of Paganisim and Infidel- ity, mysteriously and intimately combined. Those who have looked at this subject only as superficial thinkers, may consider these remarks too intense, and tinctured wi severity; but those who have atten- tively studied the page of ecclesiastical history, and have gone down in their researches, into the pro- found depths of "the mystery of iniquity," know, that they contain "the words of truth and sober- ■# ness. n i) s ) !|' jMirojtr )>J till ;ill\t' In ll. TIh' Minlcil IvIIIjmIoIU nl' (irnil hriliiiii will \i'l Up sjia' ni to iN rciilrr l«\ il. All I'ilpul l'',Urtl|M» (yi (til ill)' lllt'lt. Mini MlMulllllJ tint lIuMi" .IrsuilM Mild itllitT . uii'^Min H'M lo llic cihU nl llio C'MllJ!. Mini r\|>«'i|(|i'.;j lIuMT '.miM'V. With M liluMtilily unpMirMllcliMl. ;ii nnlcr In Iniiij? llio wnrltl iiiulor tlio t.nwiM' nl tlin iiiilin mii^ llnhi ICMM. .IimII I m c'omn. Ill civil. jtnhlit';il Mild rt'liKiniiM Irnndcni. — in rd- ;; 'Mtinii. Niiliin mimI |M«Mv.hl\n llu^ I'mln »l;inl |{n|tul(- lir — tmivl hn dnt id.t'd I Tlin t|iinMlinii nhii/ hs' dnridtMl Hona. H vnii would liMNf ll Molllnd Mrcnrdiliy ulali«'ii. md'HrrluMl. pinUM tliMl nap I'V " Mm.Ii MO .Hlllll '■nv ni>\ «v. oiiili im li'ii\ I'n ai.>.'|in ,l,.\v II t,i 0,1.," thou rniiin and aid a iiii^Mnii which liaM ilinsc and h'^irt liNcd oil thrsc haiiNCviidciil and ( ind like icsuU-i'. • 1 a intrrost In iIum iMit.M pn^o, I ii'lri' c^jM'DiilU 111 tlir ( '.illii'ltr pt»pul;iluiti. llu' «lrM(MM(ili»ul>* ttl llic «Mi>'iiiiil I'hmhIi ^oHUmm n| H\;\\ runiilrv. Thni' inm> purl nl llir ;ilt>lM' w Iumc rhns" llMU nUMMinUM WH' p.hm»' tu-nlrtl. ;umI wIliMi' r\»Mi \\\r tiMnpoiul ro^^uIlM wtmld ln^ ut.uo ptMrrplililo iiiMi lunrp MiihUiU'V. Tlio r.ipil -v^liMu liiri liiitl t\\\ np- pntliimlN lor M lilir r\pri hhmiI in ('itHMil.i, Tlld rouiiliN iNrll m;i\ compare \«m'\ wrll wiili miitiv p;irlM ol New I'',ii'.'1;iihI.~-1iiiI inntlv llir (Oiitnist \\\ r\rrv llmiv; lli;il ImIimij^-m !n timii u* a Nonal iuul nUMtll licil)!'. (intltrr \\ MM MtMllt'il twrlvi' \i"!U>^Im'* Ittic lliP pil^'niii'4 (»| llir M;l\ I'lowcr pl:inli'i| ihrii' Ici'l. tl^^ (llO « lunnpUMl'J ol ;i lict' .'lu'lsl IM li l( \ . t>M |l|o inrls t>l lM\ni.inlli; .iinl \('t !ni\v tllll(M(Mil ill*' lil'^ltMU'M of (litvMc M<1\ ^^<; Mini llifir picyiMiv li;i\«' lilli'tl ilu' l.iiiil. miuI \\V{' Mr;ilit»'.' \\\o IJitt Ivv MtMiul.'miH. nnil mio (liiv t'luij,' (liiwn iIm' slope low ;inl llic ^;|rMl I'Mrilir, Alul \\\c\ li;i\r srallorod Mrliool •. iiiitl < nllfucM. \\\u\ rlimtlirs, !ill jllniij:', lln'ir p!illi\\a\. i'lic hind im hllctl willi tni iii- tolirt tiial. !i lire, a n"li. liie '.late ol ( 'aiiada ? 'The luliaJMlants aro just \\l»al llie\ were, m l(i(i'^. w lien llie eoniihv was ImnI Nellled. I'drmoie (lian I \\ o eenluneM lliev have not made an meli ol pvojjre'.M in an\ lliiii" eillier lionoral'lt', i»r prolllal'li' (o man. \nd \\li\( No! jiet an^i" //'< iti'i ^ieal o r mlelleetnal li ame'4. than I'n h'nMU'li. Uul llir\ arc Ktpl i.i lonoranre l»v tin \ % V 24 Jeuce, aua the o-— t ;i"le Ae ™any-Ae few, and these are ^ ^,„„g, „„aer peasantry, are good Catho , ^^^^,^ ^^^ ler their ghostly dnvers, »^ *e , .^^ ^„y rt,,„g, „.,. iash, ^vWrout one mp ^ ^^^^^^^.^_ from the begimnng to the e. ^^.^ ^^^ ^t But the spell is ''"^'^";^^/^\,i and lux«rions-a vest Theybegintodistinstala/y ^^^^^ Se-hatinl and ^^1!:^^ ended wUH are symptoms that the ^ce ^^^^^^^ ^,^„„„ „ many, and that a vestnrcctu, ^^^^^ ^ to great moral S™-" ;;';,i„„;.ed, when chorts ti„e sinee that count y. ^,^^ ^^^^^^,;^^_ ,,,,e so for instructmg and <=°^'^^^^,,,, ^ the present, likely to be crowned ^ as ^^^^ ^^^^^^^^_„ .The Helds are already wl ntc ^^^ ^ ^^,.y 3. This >---°"7'TV "of cm- country, powerful appeal to the ^^^^^ ;, „ade to all ' Indeed, I might -y- ^^^'^le worth, as well as to who appreciate and ''^ « *^ . ,f d.e mission and females thernsolves. 1 - , ^_^^ ^^^ ^^^^ „,o,t extra- school at " Grande L>gnc ^ ^^ ^^ ^^^ ^^^^ ^^^,,(i,a ordino.y woman of ..>e ^= ■ ,^^^^ ^^^,,„ ,v>e saw ,,it,,the rehg.onof me.e .^„„a pardon and her own character as a m .^^ ^^^^^^^ ^^^^,^, ,,,, fl peace in a Savjou. » boo • ^^^^ i„,,,„,uon and H^: '>5 slon from which she hnd l)cen, hy the grace of God, deUvered. "The love of Christ constrained her." Under this impulse, she left her friends and home, and the sweet romantic scenes of her native land, and soiioht, on this side of the Atlantic wave, a missionary field wdiere she might honor Christ, and save sinners, and gratify the expansive charity of her warm and devoted heart. The Catholic population of C'anadn, attracted her eye, and controlled her decisions, prohably from such considerations as these : — The French lanuuaue was her native tonouc, — this field might be more promising than some others, in as much as it lay remote from the strong inlluences of Pa})al Europe, — and " last, not least," the condition of the Canadians, social, moral and religious, was such as to reach the sensibihties, and move the com- miseration of any heart warmed by the love of heav- en. This condition she understood, for she had studied it: and she entered upon the work with a consecration, a f lith, and an ardor, so truly apostolic, as to excite the admiration of nil who knov/ any thing of lici" former and present history. She once moved in elevated circles, — lived in competency, — and enjoyed the blessings of home and friends. The spoiler came, as I have before related, and the scene was changed. Tlie storm swept over her lit- tle sacred inclosure, and desolation i"ollowe(h But grace sanctified these alllictions, and she consecrated herself wholly to the one sole obiectof inii)nrtini>liulit and life to die Catholics. She seems never to have turn- ed hor eye or heart from this object since it first occu- 4 26 \ I ^' IS pied and filled her thoughts. She has planted a mis- sion and a school at Grande Ligne — where, in con- junction with others, she is performing a greater amount of ki[)or, physical, intellectual and sj)iritual, probahly, than any woman living. In connection with this mission, other schools and stations are established, in different parts of the country. Of the hai)py ef- fects which have already followed these truly christian efforts, I shall speak more jiarticularly hereafter. My object now is to j^resent before you the venera- able and devoted founder of this mission, for the sole purpose of asking you to settle, in your (wn minds, and by your own acts, the question — whether a wo- man of this sublime moral heroism, — of these active and living energies, — of these transccndant and self- sacrificing deeds — shall be sustained \ I fear, that I shall not be considered as paying even an ordinary tribute to the female sex, by propounding a ques- tion which may seem to imply a doubt, on this point. Vi 8he has foisaken home and kindred and country, and encountered the hardships and the dangers of the ocean, and buried herself among the uncultivated and ignorant, where her exertions tax every power, and her accommodations are mean and scanty, — shall it be considered a great thing, that we expect the ladies of this country to feel for their own neigh- bors, and sympathize with a christian adventurer of their own sex, from a far distant land, whose evcry power and every pur])ose is rendered subservient to the noble object cjf elevating their intellectual and social condition, and cf saving their souls? I am \ 27 V i sure you will discliarge your duty, In this matter, — nor would I seem to detr.nct from the value of your doings, by interposing a formal plea in order to incite you to action. Nor will men refuse, hy their benefi- cence, to cheer the heavenly s})irit of such a wo- man, — one who is making greater exertions, and se- curing more blessed results, than one man in a thousand has ever done, even among those who have filled the sacred office. It is hardly necessary for me to say, that the mis- sion is deeply in want. I am fully persuaded, that no funds for the enlargement of the kinijdom of Christ, can be more profitably expended, than by sustaining this enterprise. Nor can the work alrea- dy so successfully begun, be carried on and consum- mated, without an increase of means. The school is thronoed with children from the families of convert- ed Catholics, and the place is too strait for them. They wish to enlarge their accommodations, that they may do good upon a more extended scale, and impart spiritual light to those who are perishing " for lack of knowledge." The female sex should come up to the help of this devoted and heavenly-spirited woman. Some, and, indeed not a few, are doing it. I have been much gratified to learn, that the Young Ladies of the Female Seminary of this city, have pre- pared, with their own hands, a large and valuable box of clothing for this school and mission. It will prove, I trust, an ollering " acceptable to God, and ai)proved of men." In what we do, in this truly christian en- terprise, we must not forget, that the undertaking is 4€ \ > t 1 i 28 a great one. The whole country needs an entire re- volution ; and the agencies demanded for its accom- plislnncnt are not to be found there. They mast come from abroad, — from Protestant Europe and Protestant America. 4. This mission has been already greatly blessed. The impress of heaven's broad and beauteous seal is on it. The Son of God has fultilled his promise, and been with his faithful and devoted servants, in this important harvest lield. For the first time, after a lono- and dark nioht of more than two centuries, the day-star has arisen, and the morning begins to dawn on Canada! A spii-it of religious intpiiry, be- fore unknown, has been awakened, among that peo- ple, which all the cunning, and all the malice of the priests, will not be able to allay. The people begin to feel, that they need the bread of life, and God is sendino it to them. The mission at Grande Lione, is a centre of spiritual light and heat, from which ra- diations of heavenly influence are going out, in every direction, over " the length and breadth of the land." On this spot they are educating teachers and colpor- teurs who shall hereafter go forth, and scatter the good seed — letters and Bible truth — over all Canada. And the work has already begun. The priests are alarmed; and persecution, the old argument of "the man of sin," has blown its trumpet, and kindled its fires. Schools and preaching stations are establish- ed, not only in populous places, but among the cabins in the woods, — and, at all these, the gospel is achiev- ing wonders. I wish I had time to go into detail, but MitiiMi ^ 29 I can only give you a few prominent facts, as speci- mcMLs of many move of a like character. At Grande Ligne, according to tlie report for tlie present year, they number sixty converts, and the con- grcgatio]is vary from fifty to one hundred and lift}'. The primary school contains from thirty to forty pupils, and the Normal school fourteen. The mis- sionary corps is now composed of Madame Feller Monsieur and Madame Normandeau, Mademoiselle Jointe, (who is assisted in her school by Ilortense Brissette, one of the pupils,) the Rev. Louis lloussy, and one colporteur, who travels in the vicinity within a radius of ten leagues. At Cliazy, established about two years since, the church numbers twenty members: the average num- ber of the hearers of the word, is thirty. The act- ing missionary is Dr. Cote, who bore a prominent part in the rebellion, — once a Catholic, but when he became educated and saw their abominations and fooleries, an infidel ; and now a truly converted man, and a zealous preacher of the pure gospel of the Son of God. He has, in different capacities, three assist- ants. The station at St. Pie, established at an earlier pe- riod than the above named, numbers twenty-eight members, and the school has thirty scholars. The station at Bcrea, established more than a year since, numbers thirty-two members, and has thirty''- five scholars in the school. But these missionary stations are not all. The de- voted friends of Christ of whom I am speaking, and r • rl; ft ^ ih- ? ••■ i 1 ' i 30 whom you are endeavoring to assist, and others en- gaged in the same work, are scattering the beams of heavenly day over these broad reahns of night. Preachers and colporteurs are traversing the land in every direction, diffusing mercy in their progress, in- tent on the single object of giving the pure word of God to this blind and benighted people. And they are fast accomj)lishing their object. Already in the remote and rude cabin, embosomed in the wilder- ness, may be heard the voice of these Bible-readers; and the old primitive forest almost daily resounds with the joyous accents of a preached gospel. Nor shall we duly appreciate these truly christian labors, unless we hx our eye on the real condition of the people. We must see them as they are. Re- collect that they are called christians, and this is the nineteenth century — and they were planted as a co- lony, from one of the oldest nominally christian king- doms of Europe. And what is their present state ? Not more than one m fifteen can read, while scarce- ly any can write. Madame Feller, on a certain occasion, read the Bible to a man and his wife, and when she had concluded, they acknowledged, that now, for the first time in their lives, they had heard the gospel read. The husband was over sixty years old. The Rev. Mr. Tannef, who has traveled as an agent in the country, says — " The greatest part are blindly submissive to their pjriests, and believe, that they themselves can, and ought to atone for their sins, by penances, and by giving money to say mass- 31 cs. The most part of the j'.enanccs wl. ich the priests impose, consi-^t in reciting in Latin, paters and ave Marias. They beHeve, that there are men changed into howhns: vvolves and loni) -tailed beasts; that on All Saints' day, the dead leave purgatory and walk on the earth, and that blood would spring up, if a Roman Catholic should dig in it. " As Lent is for them a time of penance, they dare not then play for money, but some of them j)lay for prayers, that is, that he that loses shall recite a cer- tain number of prayers, which God will j^lace to the credit of the winner. Many of them wear medals and other things to preserve them from evil." One missionary laborer says, — " Several persons forbade me to read the Bible to them, believing, that as soon as it was opened, serpents would dart out of It. Another writes, — " As I was leaving a house where I had been conversing with a number of persons, they all followed me to the door to look up to a cross which the Bishop of Nancy had erected on a moun- tain in sight, saying to me, that he had told them, that each time they cast their eyes towards it, and repeated a certain number of prayers, they would gain an indulgence of three Imndred days." These facts need no comment. And a priesthood who can thus impose upon the ignorant and credu- lous, and corrupt the very fountain of truth, and al- most extinnuish the human intellect, ou.cihtto be, and w41], sooner or later, become the loathing and abhor- rence of the friends of God and the friends of man. ■* * 1 i^ \ih i\ 32 The people who welcome and caress them, receive a viper to their bosom, whose sting istleath! Under their influence, intelligence, liberty, virtue, religion and happiness have always expired, and gone down to an early sepulchre ! Who does not rejoice, that God is giving such sig- nal success to the Swiss m ssion, among such a peo- ple? Who docs not bless God for the honor which he has conferred upon his devoted servants? Let me advert to one instance of his gracious protection of the mission, by the christian influence of Madame Feller. " During the year 1838, the labors of the mission had proceeded with increased success: — M. Roussy being e:igagcd in preaching at various sta- tions, and INIadamc Feller, in the school, and in pri- vate visitations. But in the month of November civil war again broke out around them, and their neigh- borhood became the scene of revolutionary opera- tions. A prominent leader of the insurgents, who had always cherished deep hostility to the mission, sent a band of armed horsemen to make JNI. Roussy prisoner, and bring him to lu camp. Through the appeals of Madame Feller, the angry troop, who came to the house full of rage, were softened and conciliated. They left M. Roussy in his own house, and pledged themselves that neither they nor their property should be molested during the war. The pledge given was literally redeemed. While all around them were pilkigcd, and all who refused to join the insurgents voluntarily were cruelly taken prisoner's, the miss'oii family were untouched." Tru- * 33 ly God is with them. Such honor have those who love and serve him. And here I leave this cause. May this audience meet their high responsibilities ; and may God him- self put his own seal of approbation on your doings, for Christ's sake. .:^ I (•I i: • :.iaBr-3tift»i»*2™*' as .-^. APPEAL Of the Board of Managers of the Troy Swiss Mission Society, to those benevolent and influential Ladies TO whom this pamphlet is sent by them. f Sisters : The earth is the Lord's. V/e arc his — made by him to sojourn here as in a school, where if we are obedient and docile, he will translate us to the joys of an everlasting home. What we call our own, constitutes a part of our tri- al and probation. Shall we cling to a few of these perish- ing possessions, none of which we can carry with us, to the loss of that sentient immortal soul, which is of more worth than an inanimate planet, with all its gold and dia- monds; — or shall we, when we see before us the prospect of a great good to be done — especially, a good to precious souls — shall we part with a little of this hoarded treasure, and send it to heaven, to be laid up, that we may find it there ? At this time let us think of what our devoted sister, the apostolic Madame Feller, has done. She has given her all of fortune, on which she might have lived in case and pleasure, in her home, situated in one of the most paradi- siacal spots on the earth. She has given more — she has given herself. When she met Avith us, we questioned her as to her first movements in Canada ; and from her own saintly lips Ave learned, that she began by going into the miserable abodes of squalid poverty, Avhere parents had no more than one cotton garment Avith Avhich to guard a child ■I't 4 36 against the vigors of the climate ; no food to give, better tliaii potatoes ; no medicines for sickness — and, if they had, no skill to use them. She sought out the sick among them, and spent her money to buy them medicines, and herself to watch beside the midnight pallet of straw; and thus, almost like the blessed Saviour, she proved to the people that her mission was divine, by healing their sick. She clothed the children, and began to teach both them 'and the parents. And they ivould, then, despite the prohibi- tions of their priests, receive her instructions. When we think of these thmgs. Sisters of the Protestant Faith, let us do a little, where she has done so much. We would then affectionately request you, to call toge- ther your circle of friends and read with them this sermon. Perhaps their hearts will move them to organize, that ef- fort may become concentrated and efficient. If your lo- cality makes it mo. e convenient to transmit any funds you may collect to us, than to send them direct to Madame Feller, at Grande Ligne, L. Canada, or to send them to the city of New- York, to the care of William Chester, Esq., we olfer to receive your contributions, and pledge ourselves to transmit them safely, and render you an account thereof. In this case you can direct to our Treasurer, Miss Abby J. CiiAMPiox, 35 First-street, Troy. Any contribu- tions, however small, will doubtless be acceptable. EMMA WILLARD, MARY CHURCH, E. M. NORTON, J ABBY J. CHAMPION, P. D. BIGELOW, ** HANNAH T. NOYES, % ALMIRA BARNES. ^H <% '. "-J. ^. - -^ ,¥