and the monitory strain of the close of it, to repeat that I disclaim the idea of setting up as an instructer or monitor to those of whom it would better become me to learn. But the communications of sentiment, although it consist of nothing very new or striking, may elicit new trains of thought in other minds, which but for such communications might have lain for ever dormant. "Whosoever hath his mind fraught with many thoughts, his wits and understandings do clarify and break up in the communicating and discoursing with another; he tosseth his thoughts more easily; he marshalleth them more orderly; he seeth how they look when they are turned into words; finally, he waxeth wiser than himself; and that more by an hour's discourse than by a day's meditation."* What is true of discourse is in a great degree true of writing; and I have not been altogether without a view to my own improvement, in "turning these thoughts into words," and if they serve the purpose of "a whetstone of your wits," as the same author expresses himself, “ although they do nothing more, I shall not regret having communicated, nor will they be altogether useless." Allow me to borrow another illustration to the same purpose. "Two men in a frosty season come where they find a company of people ready to starve. The one wraps himself up lest he should perish with them. The other in pity falls to rub them, that he may recover heat in them, and while he laboreth hard to keep them, getteth far better heat to himself than his selfish and unprofitable companion doth."+

66

Thus much in reference to the subjects of this

* Bacon.

+ Baxter.

letter, but you may extend the apology if you please to all the others I have sent you. I am yours, &c.

P. S. A former page of this letter would have been the proper place for inserting what follows. The mode of argumentation which I have supposed to be necessary in the case of cavilling and prejudiced heathen, is not to be viewed as an attempt to remove their objection to the Gospel itself; but rather as suited to convince a heathen that it has come from God, and is therefore "worthy of all acceptation," and if his favorable ear is so far gained, that he listens under this impression, a great point is secured. If he admits that there is ground to believe the message the missionary delivers is from God, there is no disputing about the terms of the message itself.

But as before intimated, the doctrine itself carries in it strong internal marks of its divine original, and while the unbeliever hears, "he is convinced of all, he is judged of all; and thus the secrets of his heart are made manifest, and so, falling down on his face, he will worship God, and repeat that God is in you of a truth."

It is of importance to bear in mind that it is in the form of a testimony the Gospel is to be published to the heathen. Now the design of publishing it is to produce a belief of its truth in the minds of the hearers. When this is distinctly kept sight of, there will scarcely be room for any material error in the manner of presenting the truth to the attention of the heathen. But it may be remarked in passing, that this gives a striking view of the necessity of the missionary himself being a man who clearly understands the import of the

message he is to deliver. If he mistakes or mutilates his message, he not only leads his hearer astray, but obscures and wrongs the Gospel itself; and in so far as he departs from the genuine spirit of it, in so far he lessens the evidence of its truth, and increases the difficulty of believing it.

But this is not all. If he errs in regard to the real terms of the message he delivers, although his hearers should believe what he says, their faith would not be the faith of the Gospel. It may be one of the many compounds of truth and error current in the world, that go under the name of the Gospel, but which, in various degrees are perver

sions and counterfeits of it.

I merely hint at this in passing, as suggesting matter of caution as to the employment of men of unsound views; and to missionaries themselves, that they study constantly the genuine records of truth. The Scriptures contain the doctrine they are to publish; let them learn it with humility and prayer from that source, and they will not err.

LETTER XIV.

ON THE

REASONS WHICH

MAY JUSTIFY QUALI

FIED INDIVIDUALS IN DECLINING THE MISSIONARY SERVICE.

My dear Friend,

WHAT reasons are sufficient to justify an individual qualified for missionary service, declining that service, and spending his days at home? This is a question you will say easier to propose than to

solve. I am persuaded, however, that the difficulty attached to the question is not so great as may at first sight appear; and provided you admit the assumption upon which I proceed in attempting the solution of it, I trust you will be satisfied that I have drawn a fair and reasonable conclusion.

It would argue great ignorance of human nature, however, to expect that any solution of such a question could prove equally satisfactory to all. who might consider it; and especially to those who might feel themselves more immediately interested in it. Quot homines tot sententiæ. The decision of practical questions should be an act purely intellectual-the undisturbed, unbiassed work of the judgment. The passions can be safely admitted to a share of the deliberation only when they are on the right side of the question, but as this is supposed to be yet undetermined, it is generally best to exclude them as much as possible till the affair is decided. The arguments for and against are wonderfully affected by the view the mind takes of one result of the deliberation as desirable, and another as undesirable; and when the question deeply involves our own interests, or is supposed to do so, it is almost beyond human nature not to lean to the side to which all the affections would push the conclusion.

I think it has been generally allowed by all who are rightly affected to the cause of missions, that when a pious individual, every way qualified, so far as may be known, determines it to be his duty to devote himself to the service of God among the heathen, and follows up his determination, he does well; in other words, that it is HIS DUTY to go. But if he had so chosen it, would it have been his duty to remain at home? Is it his mere willing, that makes it his

duty to go or stay? This, I suspect, is a pretty general opinion, but I think an erroneous one: for upon this principle every one's duty is determined by his own impressions. What he conceives to be duty in certain circumstances, is duty; but if, in the same circumstances, he had determined upon an altogether different course, that would have been duty also! Thus one man determines to become a missionary because he concludes from a consideration of his advantages, and all the circumstances of obligation resting upon him, that he is called to go. But if he or another individual in similar circumstances determine to engage in the ministry at home, or to follow a secular profession, he is still in the way of duty.-This seems difficult to be admitted.

Were these different paths of supposed duty equally inviting or equally forbidding, there would be no room to suspect the operation of improper bias in the choice of any one of them. But if one of these paths is fenced up with thorns, and can be trodden only at the expense of relinquishing much that is dear to flesh and blood, we may, without being uncharitable, conclude that many decline from this path of duty, and choose another path, which of course to them is not the path of duty. This is sufficiently plain, and I endeavor to express myself upon it as plainly as possible.

Nevertheless, with all this acknowledged and lamented weakness, there may be in many instances that honesty of intention and sternness of principle which will carry the question against the combined force of every bias and prepossession and interest leagued to bribe the judgment, and procure the wished-for decision.

16*