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when they shared attention with a multitude of dissimilar concerns?

"And let us turn into another street, and enter another upper-chamber' of christian business; and there see another little knot of zealous men, distracting themselves by an almost fruitless attention to the very same extended circle of multifarious objects. Again we may visit another, and yet another committee-not each concentrating its forces upon a single specific object-not each constituted of individuals personally qualified for the tasks they severally undertake; but each promiscuously gathered from the narrow circle of a particular party, and each burdened, and over-burdened by the wellmeant ambition of effecting something at all points, and something of all kinds. And does this Missionary system approve itself to reason? or is it not rather a most ruinous chaos, in which, though pure motives may be very conspicuous, manly wisdom is not at all seen?" Pp. 38-40.

The case is here powerfully put, and the state of matters thus described demands the most serious consideration of our Missionary Societies and Committees. The chaos, however, is not so ruinous as is alleged; nor is the case beyond cure, without entirely new modeling our institutions. There are two obvious departments in every Missionary Society: the

raising of funds, and the foreign application of them. They do not so necessarily involve each other, as that all the parties engaged in the one, ought to be equally engaged in the other. On the contrary, they require different kinds of talent and of information; and the less they are mixed up with each other, the more effectually is the common end of both likely to be attained. Were this the case, there would be a vast saving both of time and of labour. It is perfectly absurd to find thirty or forty persons as gravely engaged in discussing the payment of a twenty pound bill, or the appointment of a porter, as in the direction and arrangement of a score of missionaries, on the other side of the globe. It is desirable that missionary

directors should be men of information, talents, and influence; but it is not necessary that they should be all equally capable of doing all things. The present constitution of these societies does not necessarily involve this absurdity of management; I do not see, therefore, that it ought to be persevered in.

I

very much like the idea which is suggested in this pamphlet, that the management of every mission should be confined to a small number of individuals, known to be thoroughly qualified for conducting the undertaking —persons deeply

read in the history and circumstances of the people to whom the mission is sent; and capable of giving such a direction to all the means in their power, as by the Divine blessing may be productive of the greatest effect. I would not confine the following observations to Mahometan missions; I would extend the principle to all missions. The parties who conduct them ought fully to understand every thing which relates to the field of labour which is occupied, and ought to be able to give a large portion of undistracted attention to it.

"In conducting a mission to Mahometan nations, is it enough that men should be zealous, prayerful, kind-hearted? Is it enough that they should be expert in managing those details of business which are common to a Missionary Society with every other charitable institution? Or is it enough that they should be competent to read sound theological lectures to candidates for the work, or that, in sending out their missionaries, they should be able to address to them powerful and pathetic harangues? Is it, in a word, enough, that they should be just qualified to do that which should be done if we had only to send out a company of preachers to officiate in the chapels of an English colony? All this is not enough. The projectors and managers of such an attack upon Mahometanism as the present moment

invites, should be the four or five individuals who might be picked out from the fourteen millions of our population. And these four or five gifted men should be solemnly called forth by the voice of the christian public, and should be placed in a condition in which they might freely devote the undistracted attention of their remaining years to the great work. And let the agency of these individuals be as much blended as you please with influence of a more popular kind; and let public opinion bear with its whole force upon whatever they do. We want no snug or sleeping secrecy; but we absolutely need qualified and permanent agents for the achievement of difficult tasks." Pp. 31, 32.

While I agree in a great measure with the author of this paragraph in the sentiment of the above passage, I frankly own that there is not only much difficulty likely to be experienced in finding these four or five gifted individuals; but in the present state of the religious world, if they were found, they would not probably feel disposed to take upon them so solemn and irksome a responsibility unless in conjunction with others. A very small number of persons would be regarded with great jealousy by the mass; while on their own part the consciousness of being the object of this jealousy, and apprehension of public dissatisfaction, would embarrass

and enfeeble their measures. As things are, though these richly qualified men are rare, it is quite practicable to make an appropriate selection of individuals for the several kinds of work which must be performed; and perhaps more is done in this way already than the author of the "New Model" is aware of.

On the general division of missionary fields, were the work to be commenced de novo, I think the suggestions of the author would well deserve consideration. But perhaps the substance of his views may be reduced to practice without any violent change in our existing societies. The Jews' Society is already sufficiently distinct; the Continental Society has only to direct its energies and resources more powerfully to the Catholic, and to the scarcely less ignorant and irreligious Protestant states of Europe. Had the Scottish Missionary Society not abandoned its operations in the Crimea, and in Russian Tartary, it might have employed all its funds and agents among the Mahometan nations. What hinders that it should give this direction yet to its missionaries in the East; or if it cannot, why, if we have the means, not form a society with an exclusive view to the benefit of the followers of the false prophet?

All the rest of the world, unless we would

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