18 and pray for its success. Pray before you begin, and pray when you have done, and the Lord will bless the attempt. 1 羯 Reader, there is no way in which a young christian can become more useful, than by becoming a Sunday-School Teacher. How easy is it to gather five or six young children togetherto take them into a retired corner of a school-room, apart from the rest-and in the presence of God only, teach them one by one the precious truths of the bible. You there may direct their young minds to the command of the God that made them, to the death and righteousness of the Son who gave himself for them, and to the teaching of the Holy Ghost, who worketh in them to will and to do. of his good pleasure. Reader, you may become more successful with the young than ministers of the Gospel are with the old. Ask them and they will tell you how very difficult it is to make an impression upon their minds-how very hard it is to lead them to God. You, on the other hand, have the tender branch to train, and the pliant twig may be easily bent. Now is the time when they may be taught, and to you is offered the important, the de lightful task. If you refuse, there may be five or six little children whose education may be neglected, from the want of a teacher, and who may grow until the devil has ensnared them in the cares and the vanities of life, and they have become hardened through the deceitfulness of sin. # Reader, if Christ be the captain of your salvation, you are bound in duty and in gratitude to fight under the banner of his Gospel. The world is fighting against Christ-the flesh is at enmity to his cause-and Satan, with all the powers of darkness, is endeavouring to gain the victory over the church. And will you sit still while such important interests are at stake, and when Christ is calling on you to defend the battlenients of his church? And what are its battlements? They are the young. If they be preserved, the church will be triumphant. If they be surrendered to Satan, we shall in vain attempt to drive Satan from its camp. Up, then, and be doing while you have an opportunity, another call may never come. But you will say I am not qualified to be a teacher. We answer, try there is more difficulty prospect than the attempt; and, besides, it is not necessary that you should be already qualified the only question is, are you willing to do what you can? Means are provided for qualifying you if you be willing to learn. The only qualification which is at present necessary, is a willing and humble desire to do any thing for the good of souls, for Christ's sake. A class for teachers is provided, for affording instruction to the teachers who are willing to be taught, and all that is necessary for you to do in teaching, at first, is to use the questions which you shall find in a book which you will receive for that purpose, you will feel no difficulty in commencing your humble labours until the teacher's class willl enable you to prosecute all the plans which are there developed, and thus become an active, intelligent, and an affectionate instructor of the young. Bat you will say, I am not worthy. It is most true, and well it is that you are aware of it; God grant that you may be still more so. We are all unworthy. Never lose sight of that. It will keep you humble, and make you more successful in your labours. Yet let us join in ascribing praise to God, who has not measured our privileges by our worthiness. It is not necessary that the instructors of the young should be worthy of so high an honour-No. We are but the instruments, God is the agent; and he has at all times made use of the most unworthy instruments for the most glorious purposes. And why? let us learn the lesson. It is that the glory may appear and be of God. While, therefore, you must not keep back from this, or from any privilege from a sense of unworthiness; let that sense be ever within you, to keep you in remembrance of the source from whence all your success must flow; and let that remembrance ever bring you a sup plicant to his throne, to pray for the souls of the children which are committed to your care. ; But you will say, I have more need to be taught myself. Yet remember, that children know less than you do, and besides, when you have taught them all that you know yourself, you will have acquired fresh supplies of knowledge and grace in your efforts; for they that water others, shall themselves be watered. But it is the experience of every teacher, and that more has been learned in teaching others than has been acquired by any other means.. If, therefore, you require to be taught, come and teach. But from what we have already said, it must be apparent, that it requires rather great love than great knowledge. All that you are required to do at first is to teach from a book. Let not this, therefore, discourage you. -361 And now are you still undecided are you not yet determined to feed the lambs of Jesus. You are now called. If you still hesitate, lift up your heart to God in prayer, and ask the influences of his Spirit to enable you to come to a right decision. G All a G. 215 NOTICES OF BOOKS. THE PSALMS OF DAVID, in METRE, with the PARAPHRASES, as used in the CHUCH of SCOTLAND. With NOTES on the PSALMS, by the Rev. JOHN BROWN, of Haddington; and on the PARAPHRASES, by the Rev. MATTHEW HENRY, author of the Commentary on the Bible. Belfast: Sold by W. M'COMв, 1, High-Street; and at MAIRS's Printing-Office, Joy's Entry. 1835. 24mo. P. p. 431. We have just seen this cheap and compendious pocket-edition of the Psalms and Paraphrases, and hasten to recommend it to our readers and the religious public. It contains the whole of the excellent Notes of Brown, of Haddington, "whose praise is in the gospel throughout all the churches;" together with select observations by the no less famous and acceptable Matthew Henry, on each of the Paraphrases. These valuable additions to our psalm-books have never before been given to the public in so convenient a form, or at so cheap a rate For the price of our ordinary copy without notes, we are here furnished with the annotations of those celebrated commentators, illustrative of these important portions of the Divine word, in daily use in families and churches. Who, then, that wants a pocket psalm-book, will buy any other than this cheap and commodious edition, which possesses, besides, several additional attractions? There is prefixed a table of the psalms, classed according to their subjects; and also a chronological list of them, arranged according to the times and occasions on which they were severally composed. There is likewise an alphabetical table of first lines, not only of those at the beginning of each psalm and paraphrase, but also of the more striking passages, interspersed throughout the psalms-a very great convenience, and undoubtedly rendering this a very acceptable and popular book. We are glad to see this improvement introduced into our psalm-books, and hope this new and useful table may be yet more enlarged. We therefore very cordially recommend MAIRS'S PSALM-BOOK WITH NOTES to the favourable notice of all our readers. Presbyterian ministers, in particular, will find it a very useful and desirable edition to circulate among their people. THE FRIEND OF YOUTH, or SABBATH-SCHOOL MONTHLY Belfast, Price 1d. We have perused the first number of this little periodical with sincere pleasure; and if the succeeding numbers equal it in neatness and interest, we prophesy, the work will be a welcome visitor among those for whom it is intended. The matter is very judiciously selected; the neat woodcuts with which it is embellished, will possess a great attraction for chil dren; and the whole will form a valuable auxiliary to the Sabbath-School teacher and godly parent. If the "Friend of Youth" have even in any degree the effect of banishing from the nursery and school, the trash which has hitherto polluted the minds of children in the shape of halfpenny or penny books, it will have contributed to the lasting benefit of the rising generation. We can safely, and do warmly recommend to all entrusted with the care of the young, The Friend of Youth." The exceedingly correct likeness of JAMES GALL, Esq. given in this number, is worth more than the annual subscription to the work. We have seldom seen the cover of a periodical turned to better advantage than that of this unpretending little book. It contains the verses for the month, which are committed to memory by the members of the British Verse Association. 1. REASONS FOR LEAVING THE CHURCH OF ROME. By the REV. 1835, THE appearance of this tract in its fourth edition, in a very short period from its publication, is evidence sufficient of the interest which it has excited in the public mind. It is sensible and well written, and deserves to be widely circulated. Particularly, however, it is valuable as the record of conversion from an Antichristian church, in the case of one who appears to be a conscientious, well-informed, and sincere Christian minister. It is stated that there are many others among the Roman Catholic Priests, likely soon to take a similar step. This, indeed, is no more than what is to be expected from the rapid spread of light and truth in the land. "The word of God shall not return to him void." We trust the time is not far distant when it shall be recorded again, "a great company of the Priests were obedient to the faith." It is said, upon evidence deserving of regard, that the late Dr. Doyle was much exercised about the propriety of withdrawing from the Church of Rome. AN ESSAY TOWARDS AN EASY AND USEFUL SYSTEM OF THIS is a plain, practical, and well-written Essay, intended to reduce an extensive and difficult subject to a few simple principles and a narrow compass. The following arrangement is observed. Part I. Preliminary observations-Objects of a system of Logic-Nature of Mathematical evidence, and the evidence of Natural Philosophy-the Mind-Morals -Political Philosophy-Religion-General remarks. Part II. Analysis and Synthesis-Analogy-Probable Evidence-Testimony-LanguageGeneral remarks. Part III. Syllogisms Technical phrases in LogicMiscellaneous hints for the government and improvement of the Under standing. These various topics are treated with discrimination and independance of thought. The volume will be found to deserve an attentive perusal. Ordinations. On Wednesday, the 11th February, the Presbytery of Raphoe ordained the Rev. George Hanson to the pastoral charge of the newly-erected congregation of Ballylennon. The services of the day were conducted by the Rev. Messrs. Thompson, Killen, and Wray. On Tuesday, February 17th, the Rev. William Blackwood was ordained by the Presbytery of Belfast to the pastoral charge of the congregation of Holywood, in connexion with the General Synod of Ulster. The Rev. John Dill, Rev. Dr. Cooke, Rev. Dr. Hanna, and Rev. James Morgan, conducted the usual services. THE ORTHODOX PRESBYTERIAN. No. LXVIII. MAY, 1835. VOL. VI. PRESBYTERIANISM IN ENGLAND.-No. IV. "The Causes of its Decline." MUTATIONS of fortune belong to churches as well as to empires. Our recent researches on this topic have exhibited the Presbyterian Church in England rising from an obscure beginning, and rapidly advancing, amid many formidable obstructions, to a height of great eminence. But scarcely had she reached the pleasing elevation, when adverse events began to impede, and ultimately to destroy her prosperous career. In tracing, however, moral phenomena to their proper source, difficulties of greater magnitude cross the path of the inquirer, than what usually befall the student of science. The causes of the ever-varying aspect of society are.diversified, as are the conditions of men-the elements of discord and misery are diverse, as are the degrees of ignorance, of prejudice, and of pernicious habits in a communitythe difficulty of distinguishing between the primary and proximate cause of debility in the social structure, often lies far removed from the eye of detection; and consequently, in searching out the grounds of a church's decline, the nicest discrimination, and the most patient investigation are essentially requisite. Deeply impressed with the difficulties of the subject, and also with the danger of ascribing the unprosperous fortunes of Presbyterianism in England to principles or practices which did not exist, it shall be our endeavour, looking at the same time for beavenly direction in the attempt, to make an accurate selection of facts, and cautiously deduce from them only the conclusions that they warrant. That the superstructure of Presbyterian polity in England gave way, principally on account of grossly criminal conduct, which went to weaken the foundation, none can deny; yet the fact appears to stand upon equally indisputable authority, that the pressure from without had not a little to do in impairing the once-goodly fabric. In all ages, the political state of the U |