idolatry and corruption. All history attests that "man had corrupted his way," and a dark and dreadful night had settled down upon the entire world, only relieved by the fires of revelation kindled here and there in the camps of Israel.

Moral philosophers may make labored harangues and eloquent eulogies on the rare virtues of the godlike Socrates, and the divine Plato, and the virtuous Seneca; but the slightest examination will show them but few removes from heathenism, while a similar examination will discover, that for all they ever taught of virtue, or the true religion, they were indebted to divine revelation.

If we follow this dark stream of corruption and death down to the present time, we shall find that it has only grown broader, and darker, and deeper, as the population of the world has increased. The ancient Gauls and Britons of Europe, and the Indians of North and South America, were the same degenerate stock of their forefathers; and as all nations are of one blood, so have all a common inherent and incurable depravity, save only by the Gospel. None have ever been found-no, not one in all the lands of heathenism-who, previous to the instructions of divine revelation, were living in the fear and worship of the true God.

The question then being settled, that no heathen has been, or can be saved without the Gospel, the Church occupies ground of fearful responsibility in regard to their salvation.

As a branch of that Church, Methodism has a work, and a great work to do. She is the only Church claiming to be missionary in its entire character; and, according to her own professions, she assumes a responsibility equivalent to her strength, and the world has a right to expect from her, in proportion to that ability, more than of all other branches. It was once remarked by a gentleman, who contributed annually a large amount to the Methodist Missionary Society, on being asked why he did not give it to his own Church,

"The Methodists can accomplish vastly more with the same means than any other Church."

A century has passed away since her organization, when her founder announced "the world as his parish;" and much has been done for home and foreign evangelization ; yet, what she has accomplished is scarcely a tithe of what she should have done. The Wesleyans have established missions in several countries bordering upon the Levant, in Africa, China, India, Australia, Ceylon, New South Wales, New Zealand, Van Dieman's Land; in the Mauritius, in the West Indies, Friendly Isles, Sweden, France, Germany, Ireland, the Norman Isles, Wales, and Scotland. These missions have been prosecuted with vigor and success, and the Church is enlarging her boundaries on every side.

The missions of the Methodist Episcopal Church have mostly been confined to the destitute in the United States and territories, embracing various Indian tribes. It has, however, not been altogether inactive in regard to the foreign field, having, as we have already shown, established missions in Africa, China, South America, and Germany.

This branch of the Church of Christ has not, by any means, filled the measure of her ability. Instead of a few missionaries abroad, she should have them widely diffused among all nations; and, with a zeal and earnestness characteristic of her ministry, she should be in the van of the missionary army, proclaiming the glad tidings of salvation to a perishing world.

It will not do to urge the plea of poverty, while God has poured upon her such unexampled prosperity. What she gives annually, for the support of missions, is so small, that, when apportioned among her membership, the sum is so diminutive it does not deserve a name; and, until she wakes up to the responsibility of contributing according to her ability, we need not expect that extensive and powerful

reviving influence which characterized her efforts when all was consecrated to the work of the world's salvation.

The field was never so white unto harvest as now. Every heathen country is now open to the Bible and the missionary, while one after another of the Catholic countries is yielding to the ingress of free inquiry, and religious and civil liberty. It is the duty of the Church to enter every door Providence has opened, and, carefully noting the signs of the times, be ready to follow up all indications, as faithful heralds of a free salvation.

APPENDIX.

MISSIONARY PAPERS.

Ir is very much to be regretted that the various addresses, delivered at the anniversary meetings of the Parent Society, are not to be found in the annual reports. Occasional brief abstracts were reported, but these are always more or less unsatisfactory. We have selected from various sources interesting papers on the subject of missions, which we shall here insert.

THE DUTY OF THE CHURCH TO EVANGELIZE THE WORLD, BY REV. S. OLIN, D. D.

Resolved, That it is the duty of the Church to evangelize the world.

This, Mr. President, is a topic of my own selecting. It was not prepared for me, in the usual way, by your committee. They, I dare say, being practical men, and familiar with the entire history, as well as the present condition of this Society, would have chosen for me a theme more precise in its import and aims, and better adapted to the current exigences of your great enterprise. I know, at least, there is a prevalent sentiment-I think it very general— that there is no longer any need of recurring to first principles in the discussion of missionary interests: the Church knows its duty well enough already; and now there is no need of any thing more but earnest and urgent exhortations to the performance of it. I perhaps concur, in the main, with this opinion. I certainly think that the Church knows its duty, and that what we now want is right action: but I may differ with many in the degree of respect which I am constrained to pay to fundamental truths. These, in questions of moral and religious obligation, are always very near the surface at once obvious and cogent, and not, as they are sometimes suspected to be, obscure and remote from common apprehension. It is because, from their massiveness and vast breadth, they not only quite fill up the field of vision, but extend far beyond it, that we often imagine we are looking on something

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