CHAPTER LII.

THE SEBASTOPOL OF "OLD NICK."

THE city of San Francisco may, with propriety, be regarded as the very Sebastopol of his Satanic majesty. This city, it is true, can exhibit as many church edifices at a greater cost, than any other city of its age in the world. The people of California are justly proverbial for their liberality in giving for charitable and religious purposes. They also treat a man's religious opinions, professions, and efforts, with more respect, probably, than any other new country; and a minister of the Gospel can preach in the open streets of any city or town in California, day or night, without any fear of serious disturbance. Everybody, to be sure, will not stop and listen, but nobody will stop to interfere with him. But, with all these admissions in favor of California in general, and of San Francisco in particular, I believe, nevertheless, that it is, as yet, the hardest country in this world in which to get sinners converted to God. It was a long time. before even Christians would believe it possible to have anybody converted in California; and to this

day, the Church in this country has not that faith in the omnipotent power of the Gospel, and its perfect adaptation to the wants of the people of California, which is necessary to consistent and successful effort. I now speak of the Church collectively. There are many men here of strong faith, and consistent zeal in the cause of God. In answer to the question, why the successful cultivation of this field is so difficult, I remark, that there are many causes, a few of which I will note. 1. The migratory character of our population. The Christian does not settle down long enough to get acquainted with his neighbors, and by the time he can be sufficiently drilled for efficient service, he is off, and the ranks are left unsupplied, or, at best, supplied with raw recruits.. We bring the truth to bear on a sinner's conscience, and feel that, by the help of the Lord, we are leading him right up the mountain, where flows the blood of the all-atoning sacrifice. We look round to see his flowing tears, and hear him shout as he beholds the crucified, but lo! he is gone. He has taken passage to the mines, or to parts unknown, and we see his face no more. Closely related to this difficulty,

I note, 2. The isolated condition of society. In all old-settled communities, each member, however humble, is as a link in a chain of association, which runs through the whole community. Cut one link, and it affects the whole chain. But here the links

are nearly all separated, and where there is a connection it is generally by open links, which can be slipped at pleasure. We see this illustrated on funeral occasions. It is a very familiar sight here to see an unattended hearse moving toward the city of silence. "Who is dead?" "Colonel B.," says the driver. Had the colonel died at home, he would have been followed by a funeral procession a mile long. (The exceptions to this rule are the funerals of Free-masons, Odd Fellows, and other associations, which give due attention to the burial of their dead.) So in other countries; if you succeed in converting a sinner from the error of his way, you can at once avail yourself of his influence and relationships to society, by which you extend your conquests into the territory of the enemy. Through him you reach his parents, his wife, and children, brothers, sisters, and intimate acquaintances; a score of souls saved instrumentally through that one medium. But in California, though the Gospel "battery" may be as powerful as in any other country, still, for want of "conductors,' it does not produce results corresponding with its power. Social ties and relationships, and ties of blood, are very important "conductors" for Gospel electricity." In these we are deficient. California differs, too, from all other new countries in this respect. Our other Western States were settled up by a gradual emigration of families. Every family was

a nucleus of social life. These readily united with other families, and very soon communities were formed, bound together by strong bonds of social sympathy. But here we have in the space of a very few years, a population of three hundred thousand souls. A state vieing with the great states of our Union, in the development of its physical resources, while even the foundations of its social life have not been permanently laid to this day. The good families interspersed through the state are as deposits of leaven, and their influence is appreciably felt; but there is such a vast disproportion between the leaven and the mass to be leavened, that if the leaven does not "die," it will be a long time before "the whole lump is leavened."

This young giant of the West (the State of California) is very much like the boy, who, at the age of five years, wore his daddy's boots, and whipped his mamma, and then took to the sea, where he has grown up without parental restraint or the refining influence of virtuous female society. He has an extraordinary intellect, is a noble, generous-hearted fellow, but he thinks as he pleases, acts as he thinks, and does not feel that he needs instruction.

He is like Jeremiah's "wild ass, used to the wilderness, that snuffeth up the wind at his pleasure. In his occasion who can turn him away?" Or like Job's unicorn, of which he says, "Will the unicorn

be willing to serve thee, or abide by thy crib? Canst thon bind the unicorn with his band in the furrow? Or will he harrow the valleys after thee?" But if these figures are too unseemly, I should say that he is like Job's war-horse, whose "neck was clothed with thunder. Canst thou make him afraid, as a

grasshopper? The glory of his nostrils is terrible He paweth in the valley, and rejoiceth in his strength: he goeth on to meet the armed men. He mocketh at fear, and is not affrighted; neither turneth he back from the sword. The quiver rattleth against him, the glittering spear, and the shield. He swalloweth the ground with fierceness and rage: neither believeth he that it is the sound of the trumpet. He saith among the trumpets, Ha! ha! and he smelleth the battle afar off, the thunder of the captains, and the shouting." But we do not despair of our young giant. He is becoming domesticated, and is beginning to attend Church regularly, and we expect to see him converted to God yet, and when converted he will be a "Saul among the prophets," head and shoulders above his neighbors. There are other reasons why it is so difficult to cultivate Immanuel's land in California; but when I penned the caption of this article, it was with the design of introducing a single illustration, drawn from a sort of naval engagement I had, before the walls of his Satanic majesty's fortifications, a few years ago, the account