Extract of a letter to the resident Editor, dated Lexington District, (S. Carolina,) February 28, 1829. On the second of this month, the Committee appointed by our Synod, to engage Missionaries, met at Lexington Court-House, and it was unanimously resolved, that the Chairman of the Committee, should write to his friends at the north, requesting them to send us two or three Missionaries, as quick as possible; and if they come well recommended, by some of our Ministers, I am authorized to say, that the Committee will pay all reasonable expenses, in coming here, and give them what is customary for travelling as Missionaries. As Chairman of the Committee, I would request the favor of you, if you cannot send us Missionaries at present, that you would insert in the Magazine as much of the above, as you think necessary, to induce some of our young friends at the north to come and visit us. At our last Synod in Charlestown, we took up a collection of upwards of five hundred dollars, which will enable ns, in addition to our former fund, to engage two or three Missionaries for two or three years, and much good could be done, provided we had men possessed of piety, talents, and zeal. When we take into consideration the extensive opening, and the repeated calls for Ministers from the west, in addition to what is necessary to be done within the bounds of our Synods. It ought to stir us up to exert ourselves, seeing that much is to be done, and but few at present to do it. May the Lord of the harvest hear and answer our prayers in sending us many talented and pious men to the work of the ministry. One of our Licentiates from this state arrived at Gettysburgh, on the 3d of last month, for the purpose of completing his Theological studies. My Dear Brother-Although you commenced the Magazine with a trembling hand, I hope, that from the repeated tokens of your Divine Master's goodness, and the encouragement you have met with from your friends, your hands have been strengthened, so that you are enabled to proceed in the good work, with a steady hand, knowing that your labor is not in vain. May the Lord abundantly own and bless your labors in promoting his cause, in the salvation of the children of men. I hope I shall have the pleasure of receiving a letter from you in a short time. I remain as ever, your sincere friend and brother in the gospel of peace. G. DREHER. Report of the Missionary Committee of the Evan. Luth. Synod of NewYork, St. Matthew's Church, New-York City, September 15, 1828. YOUR Committee acknowledge with gratitude to Almighty God, that he has continued to bless their labors also in the year that is past. The following brief statement of the course of their operations is respectfully submitted. 1. The most important occurrence within the bounds of our Missionary field, has been the establishment of the Home Missionary Society, an official account of which has been sent in to the Rev. President of the Synod. 2. At the last meeting of the Synod a petition was presented to your Committee from the Congregation at Westcamp and Woodstock, to have another small appropriation granted them. This request was complied with, and the Rev. Mr. Eyer, was engaged to attend said Congregation On the authority of a letter received from that gentleman, your Chairman is enabled to state to you, that the condition of these congregations is improving, the attention to the preached word continues, and hopes are entertained of a considerable increase to the Congregations. 3. Your Committee is likewise able to state that favorable results have ensued from the aid afforded to the people in the town of Orleans, Jefferson county. The Rev. Mr. Wieting who has visited that people writes: "I have lately returned from a visit to Orleans, and am therefore able to give you a correct statement of the affairs of that place and vicinity. The people, there are still very anxious to have preaching. They have again pleaded with me to write to the chairman of the Missionary Committee to intercede for aid, as they were still unable to support preaching alone; but hope that they may be by another year. For the year now past they made up for me a sum which, with the $25 I received of the Missionary Committee, I accepted and engaged to preach for them once in four weeks, but finding their desire for the word of God very great, I have preached this present year 21 times for them. If the Missionary Committee continue their favors forthe present year, I certainly think they will throw mite a in the treasury of the Lord. Your Committee think the station occupied by the Rev. Rev. Mr. Wieting is an important one for our Church, and would therefore recommend to the Synod to make such arrangements that said station may be preserved. 4 From the Congregations in Canada, under the care of the Rev. Mr. Guenther your Committee have received very favorable accounts. By the exertions of that gentleman a new Congregation has been formed at Mohawk-Bay, where a Church is now building. In other places within the circle of his activity prejudices that existed against our Church have been dispelled, and the people now express friendly feelings towards us. Mr. Guenther has entered into correspondence with Rev. Mr. Peterson, of Markham, near York, and invited him to join our Synod agreeable to a resolution passed last year; but Mr. Peterson excuses himself on account of his advanced age. 5. From the Rev. Mr. Hayunga, your committee has received information from time to time, from which it appears that the Congregations under his care are on the increase. With respect to the Parsonage and glebe that formerly belonged to the Congregation at Williamsburg, there is but little prospect of their ever recovering the Mr. Hayunga in the course of last winter preached in several destitute parts in the interior of the province. same. He has also made known to your committee, that he is credibly in formed that in the county of Cornwall, a respectable number of families reside, who still belong to the Lutheran Church, and he hopes that in time the town of Osnaburgh and these people in Cornwall, will engage the labors of one minister for themselves. 6. The Congregation at Danville, Livingston County, has made application to the Chairman of your Committee to visit them. This congregation has been for some years under the care of the Rev. Jacob Martin from Pennsylvania, who however has left them in the course of the present summer. Danville is a village of 600 inhabitants. No other church but our own exists in the village. The neighborhood likewise, is inhabited in a great measure by Germans or the descendants of Germany. The station is a very important one, and they are able to give a tolerable support to a clergyman, who can preach both in the German and English. 7. The Rev. Doct. Wackerhagen, Pres't. of the Synod, has informed your committee that a number of families from his congregation have removed to Wayne Co. in this State, and has recommended them to the attention of the Mis. Com. This recommendation will be attended to as early as possible. 8. The Congregation at Osquack have been visited since Rev. Mr. Thummel left it, by the chairman of the committe, as well as students of divinity from Hartwick Seminary. And it is intended that they shall be supplied as often as convenient. 9. Canajoharie having been given up by the Rev. Mr. Lawyer, it was thought too important a station to be neglected. Accordingly an arrangement was entered into, by means of which they have had preaching from a member of our community pretty regularly once a fortnight, though attended with considerable inconvenience to the gentlemen who have visited that place. Before closing this report, your committee would state, that every year the importance of our Missionary operations become more apparent, and its earnestly hoped that before another year passes away every congregation in connexion with this Synod, will have formed an Auxiliary Society to aid in the good work. All which is respectfully submitted. ERNEST L. HAZELIUS, Chairman. A few weeks ago, Mr. Editor, while passing thro' the country, I chanced to tarry for a few days with a respectable member of our Church, who also holds in it the office of warden. Whilst freely conversing together, a young man of very ordinary appearance entered, and addressing himself to my host, Mr. E. asked for the subscription list of the minister, and adding, "If I am not mistaken I subscribed the small sum of two dollars to his support, and suppose it nearly due; or if not due still it ought to be paid rather before than after the time, which I now wish to do and have my subscription renewed;" when the following conversation was commenced; and as my friend the warden, whom I soon discovered to be truly a changed and devout man, informed me was protracted by himself, in order to test the piety and earnestness of Mr. P. who had now for more than two years been a worthy member of the church. The whole as well as my memory served me, I entered upon my journal, and hoping it will be read with profit, extract it for your paper. ་ Warden. Why, Mr. P. are you so anxious, at so early a date, to pay your subscription-it is not yet due? Mr. P.—Being no longer engaged by my former employer, and living in a different part of the country, it is seldom that I return to this neighborhood; and as I am now here on a visit to my friends I would like to pay it. It is uncertain whether I shall be here again before the year is up, when it will be due; and consequently our minister be disappointed. Ward.-I am pleased, Mr. P. to see you so punctual in your engagements, but it is not common to pay such subscriptions till the end of the year; and should you be somewhat later it could not matter much. Mr. P.-I know that it is not the practice to pay the minister till his year is up; but certainly the practice is both an unreasonable and unjust one. Ward. Why do you call it an unreasonable and unjust practice? your language is too severe. Mr. P.-My language is not too severe. The practice is both unreasonable and unjust, when it keeps back from the minister his pay at the timd it is due him, and ought to be received. At the close of each day I feel myself entitled to my pay for that day's labor; and no employer refuses to give it. But by our ministers the whole twelve month's service must be rendered before any compensation is received for the first month; which by the time payment is made, has already been due eleven months; and consequently is kept back this length of time. But what is most distressing, often a very large family (for ministers in common with all poor men are not commonly without this blessing,) during this time must be supported; and we all know they have but little before hand for this purpose. In worldly matters such imposition would soon be exposed; but here where it is most out of place, it is most practiced. Ward.-But how would your not paying up immediately greatly disappoint him? Mr. P.-It is true, my small sum might not, but should all his subscribers, or only a considerable part of them do so, he surely would be greatly disappointed; and all are as much at liberty to do so as myself. Besides, as our pastor must wait till the end of the year for his salary, and yet in the mean time live, he must either have beforehand a sufficiency to support his family during a whole year, which is not probable, or depend upon the credit given him till this period. These debts then will be due, and if he be disappointee in getting his expected salary, how greatly must it interfere with his arrangements; embarrass his circumstances; and, by distress of mind, destroy his usefulness as a minister. Ward. As you intend no longer to reside in this neighborhood; and cannot enjoy the services of our minister and church, why are you still anxious to continue your subscription? Mr. P.-This, I confess, may seem strange in a young man, particularly in poor circumstances like myself; but I have a good reason for it. Having as I hope been made, from a daring sinner, a child of grace through the instrumentality of our minister; and by him received into the communion of the church, such has become my attachment both to him and the congregation, that I most cheerfully give my little mite for his support, which is by far too small, and for the general benefit of the Congregation, that thro' the smallness of the salary, he may not be compelled to desert it. Ward. But why do you say that the salary is too small? our minister you must recollect has four or five congregations in charge, so that his support must be well provided for. Mr. P.-As far as I can judge, it must be by far too small; and cannot afford a decent living for any man, and especially when a family must be supported. His having four or five congregations is no matter, for if none of them pay him more liberally than ours, his whole income I repeat is but a bare trifle; so little, that for one, poor as I am, I should be ashamed to offer it to him. We, as Christians, surely are guilty of the greatest ingratitude. It is true, ministers must preach the gospel, being solemnly ordained thereto; nor can they withdraw from it, for the Scriptures denounce a woe upon such as are appointed and yet preach not the gospel. But certainly, they are not bound to preach and labor for such as can repay their services liberally, and do not. "They that preach the gospel, must live by the gospel." The sin therefore, lies at our own door, and I fear will be much greater than any of us expect. For my part, I feel I ought to do much more; and pray my situation will soon allow me to increase the little mite I give to our pastor, and for the support and spread of the Bible, to what it should be. Ward. But you should feel satisfied at the amount of your subscription; you are only a laboring man, and already your subscription is nearly half as much as the richest man's in our settlement belonging to the Church. Others are much more wealthy, let them do their part, and the church will be supported. Mr. P.-It is true, I am only a poor laboring man, dependent upon my daily work for my support. But tho' poor, my little subscription of two dollars is only a trifle, and much less than I should do. When I am regularly at my work in the shop, I can earn easily one dollar per day; this then is at best only the labor of two days out of 365 given to the Lord; and if the Lord required the tenth of Israel of old, surely, what we give now-a-days is but a trifle. But we owe him much. God grants us daily health, the use of all our faculties and powers so that we can labor profitable; enables us by industry to provide a comfortable living; and as to myself has preserved me from a course of sin and wickedness, which already has been the ruin of thousands, and was near ruining me; but what places me under the greatest obligation to him, is that, by the preaching of his gospel, I was brought to see my lost and sinful state, and reform; so that now, I am a member, though a very unworthy one, of Christ's family, and have a good hope of everlasting life. When, therefore, I consider of all these things, I feel thankful that, although poor, I can do so much; but as I said, it is only like the poor widow's mite, which the Bible tells us, the Lord owned and blessed. As you remark, I know there are many rich members of the church who contribute but little more than myself, and yet they have valuable farms and lay up their thousands at the end of the year; but then their sinning in this respect-their cold ingratitude-their unjustly withholding from the Lord his own, is no excuse for me to act in the same way. What they do will never clear my skirts; and as we must stand upon our own accounts at the great day of reckoning, I wish mine to be as straight as possible, that it may soon be added up and balanced. And, indeed! I should be very sorry to exchange it for many perplexing ones which I fear must be given in |