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utterance of those among us who would sully the honor of this cause by their malignant wrath, and would excite measures of aggression scarcely less reprehensible than the outrages which have provoked them. Let pity go hand in hand with strength in all this conflict, and the majesty of our power be only equaled by the magnanimity of our gentleness. It would be for our lasting glory, as a nation, if in this strife we might overcome our antagonists even as Christ overcomes his enemies, subduing them utterly unto himself by the might of his arm, but taking them, when once subdued and penitent, into his very heart, restoring them unto the place from which they fell, and giving them the names of sons and daughters.

This conflict should be undertaken in the strength of God, and under his constant benediction. There need be no hesitation in our minds concerning the attitude of God in this field of strife. I speak with reverence, and yet with firm conviction, when I say that every attribute of God, and every movement of his hand in human history, points clearly towards the integrity and justice of our cause. If it were "conquest" that was intended, or "military subjugation," or the withholding of any right from our mistaken countrymen, we might well have our misgivings; but in a struggle for the maintenance of established government-in an attempt to arrest the destructive tendencies of the hour, and to enthrone the majesty of law in every State and in every heart, there can be no doubt. The Lord of hosts is with us, and "if God be for us, who can be against us ?" He is the great bulwark us?" of our defense. In calm confidence in the certainty of his providence, in constant reliance on the power of prayer, and in the faithful discharge of every duty without fear of consequences, we shall be guided by the strength of God, and brought to a wise and happy deliverance from our troubles.

That was

3d. I pass, finally, to an allusion merely to the firm grounds of confidence which stand out visibly before us. "Fear not, for they that be with us are more than they that be with them." a noble scene in Roman history, when, by the order of the Senate, the ground on which the Carthagenian army was encamped, right before the city-gate, was sold at auction, bringing readily the price at which it had always been valued. Never to despair of the Republic was a fundamental principle in that Roman state, and that unshaken confidence was a perpetual source of triumph. Far more may this be our possession.

For in this conflict the honest conscience of mankind is with us-the profoundest judgment of the world favors the maintenance of equal law; the binding obligations of oaths of allegiance; the right of the majority to rule; the preservation of a nation's natural boundaries and essential life; and the inherent and eternal obligation of a government to defend its being against wanton

and unprovoked destruction. The honest conscience of the world is with us on these points.

The progress of the world, the spirit of the age we live in, is with us too. The tendencies of the times are not towards narrow institutions, restricted intercourse, and lofty walls of demarkation. It is the nineteenth century of the acceptable year of the Lord, which the Saviour proclaimed in far Judea, bringing liberty to the oppressed, fraternity unto the warring nations, and the establishment of all human institutions on a broad and sacred basis. The blessed consummation is yet far away, but the world is moving towards it, and its progress will not permit this nation of the vanguard to take up a retreat towards the shades of anarchy or military despotism.

The providence of God is with us also, and it is our privilege and joy to note it. Why this uprising of the wrath of man has been permitted, it is not needful to inquire. God's hand is in. it, and in it for a purpose of mercy we may be sure. But that his providence is working for us mightily, the events of every day bear witness. It is his hand that has drawn the lines in this great struggle, so that the right and wrong are put in boldest conflict. It is his hand that has interposed once and again to thwart the counsels of wicked men. It is his hand that has touched the hearts of these rising millions, dissolving in a moment their former ties and thraldom to the call of parties, and drawing them around one honored standard which floats above the land the emblem of "the Union, the Constitution, and the Laws." Let us discern his providence in this. Let us "thank God and take courage," for he is the Lord of hosts. He may not grant us immediate deliverance. He may try our faith and patience by reverses, but one day is with the Lord as a thousand years, and a thousand years as one day; and it is a joy to feel that his great plan advances surely, that the day is hastening when they shall not hurt nor destroy in all his holy mountain.

It may come to pass that by his adjustment of this nation's strife, by the triumph of the right, and the deliverance of the state, it may appear that he was hastening his work upon the earth, and through our toil and strife, preparing for the consummation of his earthly plan-for he shall work, and none shall hinder; his word shall shake the nations, and his truth shall be proclaimed until all hearts shall love it, and

"The dwellers in the vales and on the rocks
Shout to each other; and the mountain-tops
From distant mountains catch the flying joy;
'Till nation after nation taught the strain,
Earth rolls the rapturous hosanna round."

REV. AND DEAR SIR:

NEW-YORK, May 13, 1861.

We find a general and earnest desire prevailing with the members of your congregation, that the Discourse delivered by you yesterday morning should be published without delay.

Fully participating in this desire, we respectfully request that you will furnish us the manuscript, that we may have it published in pamphlet form for gratuitous distribution, believing that the dissemination of its evangelical and patriotic sentiments will be highly useful in the unhappy crisis in which our country is involved.

With affection and respect, your friends,

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GENTLEMEN: In accordance with your request, a copy of the Sermon is herewith placed at your disposal. It was not prepared for publication, and, I fear, may not be altogether adapted to be put into print. I am glad, however, to be able to contribute, in any manner, to the support of patriotic and loyal feeling in this great crisis.

Very respectfully yours,

ROBERT R. BOOTH.

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BY REV. JOHN TO D D, D.D., PASTOR OF THE CONGREGATIONAL CHURCH, PITTSFIELD, MASS.

THE GOOD NEVER DIE.*

"HE, being dead, yet speaketh."-HEBREWS 11: 4.

BRETHREN AND FRIENDS: We have come together on this occasion, that we may follow to the grave all that remains of HEMAN HUMPHREY. We shall not study to have every expression the most proper and appropriate possible-for we gather around that which was lately the temple of the Holy Ghost, with the awe and reverence which we feel due to preeminent worth, and with the sorrow of children met to bury a father.

The old warrior hath put off his armor-for the conflict of a

As the NATIONAL PREACHER contains quite a number of discourses in its thirty-five volumes, it is peculiarly fitting that this Sermon should find a place in it also.ED. N. P.

long life is over. The victor-who hath so long done battle, overcoming poverty and obscurity in youth, dashing aside the indolence of our nature, grappling with the duties and the burdens of a long public life, mastering the imperfections inseparable from humanity, the weaknesses and the besetting sins never fully overpowered, holding out till he stood almost alone, left by nearly all who commenced life with him-the victor, over even the last enemy, has gone to receive his crown!

My wish and prayer at this time is, that I may meet the responsibilities of this hour by so speaking to you that the passing away of a great and good man, and our last opportunity to honor his worth, may not be without spiritual benefit to us all.

Those who have made and left their mark upon the world, have been, for the most part, the founders of empires, the deliverers of nations enslaved by tyrants or by superstitions, the promulgators of laws wise and comprehensive, the inventors, and hence the benefactors and contributors to the comforts and conveniences of men, and the men who have made their impression directly on the mind of the race. Of these, the influence of the last is the most permanent, the most beneficial, and by far the most desirable. Tables of stone perish, but what was written on them is imperishable. The heroes and the great ones of earth come and go like the tornadoes and thunders near the equator. The world seems to rock and roll under them for an hour, but the influence of him who can write thought on the minds of men, is like that of a spring gushing up with living water, that enlarges its blessings as long as it flows.

It was thought that first created the universe, and it is thought, divine and human, that now sways the world; and he who has passed his probation, having the power to use this influence, has had the mightiest weapon for good or evil in his hand, which the earth knows.

God has so arranged his government that what is evil shall die, and its influence cease. The plague that rides on the wings of the wind shall go past; but the mind shall live to refresh the lungs, and bring healing to thousands. Tamerlane, the scourge, shall sit on his war-horse, and point to his pyramid, made of eighty thousand human skulls, and feel that he is Destiny; but he shall molder into dust, and perhaps have less influence in the world to-day than some poor slave that toiled on the pyramids of Egypt. The dew-drop that hangs on the leaf or the mountain-side, and there seems to dry up and be gone forever, shall reäppear a thousand times to refresh the rose that cheers the heart in the sickroom. A thought which a good man throws out upon the world does not die in the air. It ceases to be heard; but time, like a vast sounding-board, has it in safe keeping, and again and again will it be echoed back upon men, and influence human character.

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