a greater impression upon me in reference to this question. He put the matter upon a most manly ground. He acknowledged that in England different views prevailed on the subject of Sabbath observance from those in Scotland. He acknowledged that his own views were greatly modified by the customs of the country in which he lived; but he said that he had made every effort to make himself acquainted with the feeling and the law of Scotland on the subject, and that he felt that he would be acting in a manner most unworthy of the English character if he did not use all the influence in his power to prevent the feeling of Scotland being interfered with or overborne by the English proprietors. I believe that it was mainly through this instrumentality that we were successful in our contest. I congratulate this House also on this circumstance, that the feelings of the religious people of Scotland have now been, I think, fairly roused. I trust and hope that the recommendation contained in the motion will be attended to,—that our exertions will not be limited to the clergy of this Church, but that they will be cordially gone into by the laity; and that all our elders and deacons, and the members of our congregations, will see that it is their bounden duty to do what they can to promote this great cause, by preventing what I believe will do more to destroy the Scotch character, and will do more to destroy and to keep back the progress of vital Christianity in our land, than any other thing that we can foresee as likely to happen. (Hear, hear.) There is another thing that we ought to be extremely thankful for; and that is, that the true character of the opposition we have to confront has now come forth. I think no man can have witnessed the procedure of the opposition, but must have been struck with the character of falsehood by which it was in the first instance characterized. (Hear, hear.) We saw men with professions of respect for the Sabbath in their mouths, who were using that merely as a mode of carrying their own objects for the absolute desecration of the Sabbath. We have, however, seen, that when that mode of procedure was not successful, they turned round, and they are now betraying themselves in their true colours. I do not know how to characterise the bitter animosity which our opponents have displayed in reference to this subject. It is an omen for good that we have made them to unveil themselves. People now know what they are, and they will not allow themselves to be misled by the Jesuitical pretences and false colours under which they have hitherto argued this question. (Hear.) There is a third consideration which I think is also of very considerable importance; and perhaps it may be thought that in a Church Court I should not dwell upon it, and I certainly shall not dwell upon it; I, however, think that it is a very important feature in the matter. The consideration to which I refer is, that the working classes of this country are beginning to see that the question of Sabbath observance is a question of deep interest to them on secular as well as on religious grounds. (Hear.) I hope that I shall be pardoned when I state, that when this matter is argued before public assemblies in which the great majority of persons addressed do not even pretend to the Christian character, however right and necessary it is that the speakers should testify for the truth, and should put the question on its proper foundation, I think that a great practical benefit would be derived, if laymen especially should enlarge upon the great secular interest which they have in this important question. (Hear.) The public mind is beginning to be roused; and I believe that, especially in the great city of Glasgow, at this moment a very large number of workmen, who are not, I am afraid, under the influence of anything like religious feeling on the subject, but who simply consider that the Sabbath, as a day of rest, is of infinite importance to their secular interests, are now cordially supporting this great movement. I hail this as an omen for good, because I believe that if the feeling among the working classes to which I have referred were properly conducted, under Providence it might form one of the most powerful instruments in bringing about the object we have so much in view.

Mr BLACKADDER said, I do not mean to enter into any discussion on the general question of Sabbath_observance, which has both here and elsewhere already been so fully done. What I wish to do is, to point out the way in which the recommendations in the Report we have just heard may be practically and efficiently carried into effect, and that is, by again urging what I have so frequently done, that all those who wish to prevent railway traffic on the Lord's day should, in so far as their means admit, become proprietors of railway stock, so that we may not only keep the ground we have already gained in the Edinburgh and Glasgow Railway Company, but go

forth into other railway companies, and fight the same battle with equal success. (Hear, hear.) We have gained one battle, but the war is not ended, it is little more than begun. If my advice is taken, many such triumphs as the one at Glasgow await us. When, four years ago, I brought this mode of settling the question before the General Assembly, and called, as I am now doing, on the members of the Church to purchase the stock of the Edinburgh and Glasgow Railway Company, in order to check the Sabbath desecration going on on that line, my proposal was received with laughter, as a joke. What was, however, considered a chimera then, I rejoice to think, in process of time became a reality, the good effects of which, under the blessing of the God of the Sabbath, are now contained in the Report on your table. (Hear, hear.) I feel, therefore, Moderator, emboldened by success, again to urge, not only on office-bearers, but on all the members of the Church,-ladies as well as gentlemen,-forthwith to become shareholders, so that they may be enabled to maintain the law of the Fourth Commandment. Now, Sir, if I were not speaking to an ecclesiastical assembly, but to a mercantile assembly, I would say, now is the time to buy,—the market is low, and the returns great. (A laugh.) But I am not so addressing this venerable House; I am only telling you what argument I would use in other circumstances. (Laughter and applause.) As it is of great consequence to prevent the railways not yet opened running trains on the Sabbath, I would beg leave, Moderator, most respectfully to address myself to you personally, and to call your attention to the Edinburgh and Northern Railway Company, a part of which, between Edinburgh and Cupar Fife, is to be opened in July; I therefore beg to urge on all our friends who, along with yourself, reside in that district, to exert themselves in every possible way to stop Sabbath desecration on that line of railway, the Directors of which tell us that they wish to do as little work as possible on the Lord's day; but that some accommodation is necessary for the public. This plea of necessity and mercy has been completely answered by Mr Begg in the admirable statement he has just made; still I fear there will be no other way of convincing these Directors than by the votes of the proprietors. The Directors of that line have told us, that on a requisition being presented to them, they will call a meeting of the Company to consider the matter. I, however, much fear that unless the kind of interest is taken in the Compauy for which I have been pleading, a meeting of the Company, except for discussion, would end in no good. The Caledonian Railway is much in the same situation as the Edinburgh and Northern. A part of it will soon be opened, and the Directors profess very much the same as do the Directors of the Edinburgh and Northern. I beg, therefore, in like manner, to call on our friends in the south, through which that railway is to pass, to give every kind of assistance to the Sabbath Observance Committee, by not only speaking, but acting, in the way I have advocated. (Hear, hear.) Before concluding, Sir, I would beg leave to call the attention of this venerable Assembly to some other matters, which, in our excitement about the railways, I greatly fear we may have lost sight of,-namely, the way and manner in which we ought personally and in our families to keep the Sabbath-day holy according to the commandment. There are a great many sins of omission and commission in this respect, which, I fear, few can call or think little sins; and we all know how soon a little sin, unless it is checked, becomes a great one. For instance, the way in which domestic servants are treated. Masters and mistresses generally admit, that it is necessary for their servants to see and have intercourse with their relations and friends; and as there is not much labour required on Sabbath, they allow them on that day to pay visits, which are often most injurious. (Hear, hear.) Instead of allowing the servants on the other days of the week a little relaxation, they prefer giving what is not theirs, but the Lord's day, which costs them nothing. (Hear, hear.) There are many other ways in which we ought to pay more strict attention to the keeping holy of the Sabbath, which a little reflection will, I am convinced, bring home to us all, and to which I have thus used the freedon to bring under the consideration of the Assembly. (Hear, hear.) In conclusion, I would beg to repeat what I set out with, that all who have the means should forthwith put themselves in the position of shareholders, all the more especially that the time for purchasing is so very favourable. (Applause.)

Mr SMITH of Greenock said, that he was greatly delighted that the Committee ontrusted with arranging the public business of the Assembly had assigned the place

which they had done to the Report on Sabbath Observance. He pronounced an eulogium on the English shareholders of the Edinburgh and Glasgow Railway, for the manner in which they had acted, and said, that it was no more than what he expected from them, considering the frankness and candour which characterised the English people. (Hear, hear.) It should be recollected, that the religious public of Scotland were indebted to them, not only in connection with the recent decision come to by the Edinburgh and Glasgow Railway Company, but also in connection with the Glasgow and Greenock Railway. The Directors of that railway would not have been successful in the stand which they had made in refusing to carry on traffic on their line on the Lord's day, had it not been for the assistance which they had received from the English shareholders. The success which had already attended their exertions in striving for the observance of the Sabbath, should induce them to redouble their efforts to persevere in the same important cause. The friends of the Sabbath had heard a great deal about necessity and mercy. Now, he could refer to the state of things which existed in the district with which he was connected, to show the groundlessness of the assertions they too often heard in connection with this subject. Although the communication by railway between Glasgow and Greenock had never been opened on the Lord's day, and although there were no steamers running on the Clyde to Rothesay, Dunoon, &c., no clamour had been raised on the ground of cases of necessity and mercy. The reverend gentleman addressed the Assembly at some length on other aspects of the question.

Mr GRIERSON of Errol made a few remarks, showing the unreasonableness of those who complain of the railway being closed on the Sabbath, seeing that, from the increased facilities of locomotion, we could now in one day do the work which formerly required three.

Dr HETHERINGTON called the attention of the Assembly especially to that part of the motion referring to the importance of still further engaging the efforts of the elders, deacons, and other members of the Church in this cause.

Begg was then unanimously agreed to.

The motion of Mr

Committee of Bills appointed to meet on Monday, and the Assembly adjourned at half-past four till Monday.

MONDAY, MAY 24. 1847.

Quoad Sacra Churches-Cases; St George's, Montrose, St John's, Dundee, Megget, MrStevenson, Tullibody-Translation of Rev. Robert Elder-Mr Elder's Speech-Memorial on Sabbath -Report of Committee on Publications-Speeches of Dr Candlish, Mr Begg, Dr Macfarlan -Report of Committee on Foreign Missions-Speeches of Dr Henderson, Mr Miller-Case of Kilbride.

The Assembly met this day at twelve o'clock. After devotional exercises, and the reading of the minutes,

It was agreed, on the motion of Mr BEGG, to memorialize the Directors of the North British Railway against the running of trains upon their line on the Lord's day. A small Committee was appointed to prepare the draft of a memorial on the subject.

QUOAD SACRA CHURCHES.

The Moderator stated that he had received a letter from the Rev. Dr Paul, Moderator of the General Assembly of the Established Church, acknowledging receipt of the communication from the General Assembly of the Free Church on Friday last, on the subject of quoad sacra churches. The letter is as follows:

Edinburgh, 24th May 1847.

"REV. SIR,-I have to acknowledge the receipt of your letter, of date 21st May, along with copy of the Resolutions of the General Assembly of the Free Church, and printed Memorial relative to the subject of the quoad sacra churches, which

papers I laid, as requested, on the table of the General Assembly of the Established Church of Scotland. I have the honour to be, Rev. Sir, your most obedient servant, "JOHN PAUL, Moderator.

(Signed)

"To the Reverend the Moderator of the General Assembly

of the Free Church. (To be communicated.)"

The letter was ordered to be recorded.

The Assembly took up the Report of the Presbytery of Brechin on the

CASE OF ST GEORGE'S CHURCH, MONTROSE.

Dr CANDLISH, after the reading of the papers in this case, said that he believed it would not be necessary for the Assembly to hear parties. He would just take the liberty of referring to a clause in the judgment of the Commission, which would put the house in possession of the case. A Committee was appointed by last Assembly to report to the Commission in August certain proposals for healing the differences which prevailed in that congregation; and among other suggestions, the Committee reported to the Commission that, in the event of a change of circumstances, from a vacancy occurring in the charge of St George's, Montrose, by death or translation, it should not be competent to the Presbytery of Brechin to proceed with the settlement till they should report to the Assembly the state of the congregation, and the effect of the measures which might be adopted for bringing the congregation into a fit state for a harmonious settlement. In terms of this suggestion, the Presbytery reported that the congregation was now in a fit state for having a minister settled amongst them, their former minister having been translated to a charge in Aberdeen; and the vacancy in the congregation of St George's being now of considerable standing, and it being desirable to have it filled up soon, he would move that the Assembly express their thanksgiving that the measures adopted by the Church in this case, have, by God's blessing, been favoured with success, and that so much harmony now prevails in the congregation, authorise the Presbytery of Brechin to proceed to take steps towards the settlement of a minister according to the rules of the Church.

The motion was unanimously agreed to, and the Clerk instructed to make intimation accordingly.

CASE OF ST JOHN'S, DUNDEE.

This was a petition from the congregation of Free St John's, Dundee, craving the Assembly to empower the Commission, at any of its ordinary meetings, to decide finally in regard to appeals that might arise out of any call which the congregation might give, and to ordain that all appeals from sentences of Presbyteries, when an ordinary meeting of Commission is appointed to take place before the meeting of next Synod, after such appeals are taken, be carried immediately to the Commission, to be disposed of there. The petition was founded on the fact, that according to the ordinary form of procedure, the congregation of St John's, or any other congregation in similar circumstances, calling a minister already settled in a charge, might have the question of his translation suspended for nearly twelve months, by appeal to the Assembly of 1848.

The Rev. ANDREW GRAY of Perth said, the question in this case was not one of mere local interest, and the application was such as the Assembly had been accustomed to grant. They had a great deal to do with translations before the Disruption, and he felt that they would have more to do with this class of cases still. Now, there were several things to be considered and regulated in the matter; and he thought it was necessary that the Assembly should now lay down such rules as would regulate all such cases in future, so that congregations might know how to act when such emergencies occurred. He would therefore propose that the Assembly report the case to a Committee to see if any rule could be found, or any regulation framed, whereby the present, and any similar cases that might occur hereafter, might be regulated, with instructions to report in regard to this matter, and generally in regard to the matter of translations. The motion was agreed to.

The Assembly next took up

CASE OF MEGGAT AND YARROW.

This case came by petition from Mr John Parker and others.

In 1844, the inhabitants of Meggat and of part of Yarrow and Ettrick obtained

from Mr Murray of Henderland a site for a Free church, school, manse, &c., upon which a church for two hundred sitters was erected, and opened for public worship in September 1845. This church is eight miles distant from the Free Church lately built in Yarrow, and is nearly in the centre of an area of from 300 to 350 square miles, within which there is no other place of worship except a small preaching station in connection with the Establishment, capable of holding about forty people, but attended, when sermon happens to be preached there, by less than one-third of that number, while the ordinary attendance in St Mary's Free Church is from 70 to 150 persons, the church in seasonable weather being frequently full. On the 2d of June 1845, the General Assembly unanimously sanctioned Yarrow as a ministerial charge, and enacted that the district of Meggat should be annexed to the Yarrow Feus, and under the ecclesiastical superintendence of the Presbytery of Selkirk, none of the ministers of which had ever been able to visit the district of Meggat, or to preach in the church. The missionary probationers appointed to preach in the united parishes had preached only three or four times since the church was opened, chiefly on week days. The great expense of travelling, which the inhabitants were not in circumstances to defray, had put it out of their power to secure the continuance of even these ministrations, except to a very small extent, during the last twelve months. At Whitsunday 1846, the schoolmaster of the school sanctioned at Meggat had also been obliged to resign his charge, in order to prosecute his studies in Edinburgh. In this state of matters the trustees and inhabitants could no longer go on without the countenance and assistance of the Presbytery, to whom application was forthwith made. While this application was pending in the Presbytery, and after the school had been vacant for about six months, one of the petitioners, at the request of the inhabitants, took upon himself to engage another teacher, giving at the same time his own personal obligation to the extent of £20, of a guaranteed salary of £40, including school fees. For want of any other accommodation, the teacher and his wife, both of whom had been of great service in the district, had been obliged to live in the vestry of the church, an apartment of only nine or ten feet square; and the children of the district had been taught in the body of the church. It being impossible, in these circumstances, to continue the school another winter without more comfortable accommoda tion, an appeal was lately made to the Christian public for pecuniary aid to erect a small house and school-room, with accommodation for the minister of the united parishes, or any other clergyman who might come to officiate or visit in Meggat. The fund subscribed for this purpose amounts to £185, including £25 given for the express purpose of providing for a minister or catechist. The estimated expense of the whole buildings is £350. These facts having been stated in a petition to the ManseBuilding and Education Committees, the Manse Committee, in the peculiar circumstances of the case, agreed to guarantee the parties to the extent of £50; but the Education Committee having no building fund except the Macdonald Fund, which could only be applied to assist in the erection of schools connected with sanctioned charges, referred the case to the Presbytery of Selkirk for advice, with a view to dividing £100 between the school at Meggat, and any other school that might be contemplated for another part of that extensive charge. On the 21st of April 1847, the Presbytery of Selkirk, with relative documents, felt called upon to " express their astonishment that, without their sanction, a school had been erected at Meggat, and a schoolmaster appointed, to whom a salary is given by the Education Committee;" and being fully acquainted with all the circumstances of the locality," were "decidedly of opinion that any part of public money, at the disposal either of the Education or Manse Building Committee, for the erection of school, schoolmaster's house, or manse, or for the support of a teacher there, would be altogether unjustifiable." Thus circumstanced, the petitioners, John Parker and James Cowan, felt obliged to come before the Assembly, entreating that such inquiry might be made as might lead to a satisfactory arrangement.

Dr CANDLISH did not object to the Assembly taking up the case, if it saw cause to do so. The petition was from certain parties within the bounds of the Presbytery of Selkirk, whose services had been of material importance in the district, and for whom he entertained the very highest regard. They might have sisted themselves as parties before the Presbytery, and if redress was refused them there, they could have appealed to the Synod, or come direct to the Assembly with their appeal. That

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