The bereaved and disconsolate Mother, as soon as Christian reflection begins to dry up her tears a little, finds them wrung from her afresh by the melancholy task that remains to her. She is now, alas! to reduce the once flattering hopes of her tender family, to the standard of their present sad and humbled condition! Hard Task indeed! The son is to be told that he must no more aspire to reach the station which his Father filled; and the daughter is to learn that, in this hard and selfish world, she must no longer expect to become the wife of him, to whom she once might have looked on terms of equality-The son, perhaps, must descend to some Manual employ, while even the poor pittance necessary to settle him in that, is not to be found; and the daughter must serve strangers, or be yoked perhaps in Marriage for mere bread; while the mournful mother (without the slowprocured help of friends) can scarce furnish out the decent Wedding-garment!

What did I say? the decent Wedding-garment, and a Marriage for mere bread? This were an issue of troubles devoutly to be wished for!-But, ah me! The snares of Poverty in a Mind once bred up above it-shall every unguarded unprotected female be able to escape them? Alas! no-Some Villain-Deceiver, with vows and broken oaths, with Love in his mouth and Hell in his heart, taking advantage of innocence in distress, lays his scheme of destruction sure; and with the ruin of the daughter, brings the mother's gray hairs down to the grave with accumulated sor

row!

Just, but indignant Heaven! Is there no chosen vengeance in this world, to heap on the heads of such perfidious monsters, to Save them from that vengeance, which they have merited, though yet we dare not wish them, in the world to come!

This sad part of the Catastrophe of many females, descended from fathers, once venerable and pious in their day, we would willingly have passed over in silence; were not the experience of what has happened in other countries, more than sufficient to awaken our apprehensions in this.

The picture here drawn, is no exaggerated one; and when the children of clergy, in low circumstances, are in an early age deprived of both parents-then are they Orphans indeed! and every distress, every temptation, falls upon them, with aggravated weight!

To be Fathers, then, to such Fatherless children; to take them by the hand, and lead them out, through the snares of the world, into some public usefulness in life, that the name and memorial of our dear brethren and faithful pastors deceased, may not be wholly lost upon earth-I say to do this, and give some gleams of comfort to the afflicted widows and mothers that survive-must surely be one of the most delightful actions of a benevolent mind; and this, my brethren, is the glorious object of the charity for which we are incorporated, and which we have undertaken to solicit and conduct.

Blessed, therefore, be all they in this world and the next (laity and clergy) into whose hearts God hath put it, to associate for so noble and pious a purpose. In like manner, may that venerable Society

in England be blessed, whose annual subscription hath laid so liberal a foundation for the work; and blessed also be those governors of provinces, who have so cheerfully and readily given us their charters for carrying it into execution!

Happy in such beginnings and such countenance, let us set ourselves earnestly to the discharge of our part; leaving the issue to God, and the benevolence of good men.

Some*, perhaps, there may be, long accustomed to view every transaction of our church on this continent with a jealous eye, and who being loudly tenacious of every privilege of their own, though sparing in their allowance to others-may therefore conceive more to be intended by this undertaking than is expressed.

To such, however, if it may have any weight with them, I will declare, that although every thing relative to this design, from the beginning, has passed through my own hands, assisted by a few others, appointed for that purpose, I have never known the least hint or thought of any thing further expected from the execution of it, than what our charters express.

I have reason to think that such persons are far from a majority of any denomination. Many of all persuasions, have expressed their hearty wishes for the success of the design; and I am particularly bound to ac. knowledge the ready assistance received from a worthy friend of mine, (my colleague the Reverend Dr..!lison, vice-provost of the college of Philadelphia) who was a leading member of the corporation for the relief of the widows and children of Presbyterian Ministers; and who communicated to me not only several useful papers, but likewise whatever remarks he thought might enable us to improve our plan, on the experience of any difficulties or deficiencies that had occurred in the execution of theirs.

But should it have all that happy effect to us which some may apprehend from it, namely that of producing a more intimate connexion and union. among our Clergy and Church-members; surely it is what we ought most ardently to desire and pursue, at this time especially.

When we see our Church and Ministry unreasonably opposed,* and borne down in their common and essential rights; when we behold men seemingly leaguing together to perpetuate this opposition from father to son; it can certainly be no harm in us, but our bounden duty, to look to our own concerns also; and particularly to take some thought, that our children be not left wholly destitute in a world where we, and they on our account, are likely to meet with so little favour from many

But my subject is Charity-I would not violate that subject; and I bless God that it hath not been violated, on our part, on this trying occasion; and that our general conduct hath been such, as not to discredit the long-approved moderation of that Church to which we belong.

In the spirit of Meekness and sober argument, firm, but (we hope) decent, submitting our cause to the decision of cool and impartial men, our endeavour

Vehement were the writings at that time against the introduction of a Bishop or Bishops into America, for the full organization of our Church, upon a truly Apostolical plan, seeking to derive nothing from any civil power, but to enjoy only those spiritual powers which come from Christ, as the Spiritual Head of the church, and which every other society of professing Christians, even those who most vehemently opposed us, assumed and enjoyed according to their own modes of doctrine and discipline. But blessed be God! the American Revolution has done all this away; and may it be buried in oblivion.

hath been to shew-That the fears and jealousies mustered up concerning us, could have no pos sible foundation, without a total abolition of the whole system of law and policy in these colonies; that the contingency which could render such an abolition possible, is as unlikely to happen as any thing that can well be imagined in this world; and that, therefore, on the whole, it rests with the consciences of our opponents themselves, to reconcile their own conduct to any principles of Brotherly Love and Charity, or to any other principles whatever, not bordering on intolerancy of spirit, and an undue lust of dominion on their own part.

So far, we may felicitate ourselves. And if to have acted thus can be thought a breach of Charity, we must reply, that there is a charity to Truth and Right, superior to all others. We have now but one step further, my brethren, to secure a conquest equally complete and glorious-Let us, in the continuance of every act of Moderation, Love and Welldoing, be a living answer to gainsayers; and the time may yet come, when every other strife being suspended, we shall all be so molified one to another, so possessed of the spirit of Gospel love, that we shall think it our mutual honour, as it is our mutual duty, to mix our whole endeavours in the propagation of our common Christianity, only striving whose zeal shall be foremost-nay, and even to mix our deeds of Charity to the distressed, they with us, and we with them, as God shall give us abilities, without regard to sect or party.