But we have acted otherwise. We do not imitate His example, putting no effort forth to roll away the stone of poverty, ignorance, crime, and uncontrollable circumstances lying heavily on the door of this sunken human head and intellect; we call upon the morally dead to come forth. Well is it that we are now attempting to retrace our steps and remedy this evil. Too long have the power and sagacity of the citizen been kept apart from the love and tenderness of the Christian. The unseemly disunion reminded him of Coleridge's picture "They stood aloof, the scars remaining, Like cliffs that had been rent asunder; The power of the Christian had been violently wrenched from the power of the citizen, and they stood opposed, each bearing the scar of its own unnatural disseverance, while a dreary sea of unmeasured responsibility had been allowed to flow too long between, into whose depths hundreds of thousands of our fellow-beings had sunk to perish. (Much applause.) Mr TASKER seconded the approval of the Report. He spoke of the clamant necessity for improved dwellings for the working classes, as one that had enjoyed no ordinary means of observation for nearly sixteen years. Hundreds had removed from residing in the West Port, as soon as they became Christianised, and, consequently, elevated in the social edifice, leaving the degraded dwellings and subterranean dens to be the refuge of new arrivals of pauperism, vice, and misery. Individuals and families were elevated, but without improved dwellings, the elevation of the district he found impossible. Nor were these evils confined to the West Port and the Old Town. He could lead the Moderator or any member of the House to side streets and lanes in the New Town, containing human dwellings, literally so sunken, that the light of day scarcely ever penetrated, where none could read without gas or artificial light from January to December. If members of this venerable Assembly witnessed, as he did, the habitations into which so many of the hard-handed working men are crushed, cabined, and confined, they would cease to wonder at the absence of temperance, and the scarcity of Sabbath-loving and Scripture-reading families in our cities. They would combine with one voice in the wake of Dr Begg to demand of the Legislature at least the three following enactments:-1. That as they did for railways, so, in the suburbs of all our large towns and cities, they would demand an Act enforcing feus for building purposes at a reasonable rate. 2. That no tenement shall be erected containing houses for human habitations beneath the level of the street in which it is situated, or of a height beyond three flats or storeys; and 3. Corresponding to the Edinburgh Police Act for lodging-houses, that not more than one family shall be allowed permanently to inhabit one room. These, he said, must seem very moderate demands, so moderate that it might seem ridiculous to demand them. But he begged to assure them that he had seen, not in the West Port, one room of about sixteen feet square, in which there dwelt and slept sixteen human beings of both sexes and of all ages, night after night. No doubt, in less than three months, two-thirds of them were either in prison or in the poor's-house, or in the Royal Infirmary, or, especially infants, in the grave. And this process is going on within a stone-throw of the spacious hall in which they were now assembled. Meanwhile men and women, comfortably housed, as ignorant of all this as of the dwellings of China's swarming millions, wondered at the wickedness of the masses, and at the increase of poor's-rates, police and prison-rates, and the vain fruitlessness of territorialism. His wonder was that things were not worse. (Applause.) In conclusion, he assured gentlemen that had one or two thousand pounds to spare, that there never was a safer way in which to invest; while it would be pure philanthropy, there never was a surer means of certain and profitable returns. He admired the generosity of building associations; he doubted their wisdom. They did not pay, and a scheme that did not pay, however philanthropic in its aim, he held to be more detrimental to the working-man than to those that sought to help him. It had long been held that "a corporation had no conscience;" if that be true, the other side is true no less,-they that deal with a corporation have no conscience. Parties working for an association will find work and ways to have an account for twenty shillings paid them, whereas if they had been working for Dr Begg, or any similarly shrewd single individual, the account would not be more than ten shillings. (Applause and laughter.) Thus an association may actually have no dividend, and even suffer the loss of their capital, while the single individual may realise an ample return. In this he spoke from experience too. A worthy elder of his had invested a few hundreds on a tenement in the West Port, had paid some attention to the character of the tenants, and in ten years he had realised all the purchase price, while the rents were fully as reasonable as any around. Other new and comfortable lands were being reared, filled by church-going families; the old and frightful dens were deserted by the decent, and swarmed with Irish Roman Catholics or non-church-going families. Let proper dwellings be secured, let working-men be encouraged to deposit in the savings bank, to insure their lives, and otherwise to cultivate habits of prudent foresight and frugality, till at length they purchase and dwell each in his own cottage-property, and then, but not till then, shall we see the whole platform of society elevated, the districts as well as the individuals and families of our city population Christianised, civilised, saved. (Applause.) Dr BEGG then rose and said, that the second Report which he had to present was one from a small Committee appointed at last Assembly, of which Sheriff Monteith was Convener, and who was unfortunately necessarily absent. The Report was in the hands of all the members, and its main suggestion was, that over and above all their investigations as a Church, an attempt should be made to get a Committee, constituted of various parties and individuals in the country, to make a thorough investigation into these social evils. It suggested that the occurrence of the Social Science meeting in September may afford an opportunity for accomplishing that object. What Mr Dunlop had stated as to the doubts and difficulties which still rested on some parts of the question, was an extremely strong argument in favour of the suggestions contained in this Report. He believed that unless the Church made it very plain to the country that she was not responsible for these social evils, men would be ready to lay them down at her door, just as some of the people of England imagined that the drunkenness of Scotland was the direct fruit of the Sabbath observance of Scotland. It was very important to make it clear that it was not in consequence of their Christianity, but for the very opposite reason, that these evils have increased and multiplied in the land. He believed that the Christian people of this country had immense influence towards the remedy of these evils. What was called public opinion, through the immense action of the press and the great power of truth, ought to be used unsparingly in rousing the country to the sense of the importance of this question. One proprietor whom he knew, and who was not aware that the bothy system existed on his estates, had, when that evil was brought under his notice through these discussions, gone and routed out the system entirely. Another landlord, in renewing a lease, made some arrangements as to the erection of new cottages, remarking, that he was now twitted with the present state of his miserable cottages at the club. That shewed the influence of public opinion, and he believed that the more investigation they made into this question the better. He hoped that the Assembly would have no difficulty in unanimously approving of the Report. On the motion of Mr THOMSON of Banchory, the Report was adopted, and the Committee reappointed, "as a Select Committee for the purposes pointed out in the Report. And the Assembly instruct the Committee to take such steps as may in their judgment be calculated to carry out the views set forth in the Report; with power to co-operate with any Committee that may be appointed by other religious bodies, if necessary to memorialise Government, and to take any other steps that may be required, and to report to the August Commission." MR O'FLAHERTY'S LABOURS IN TURKEY. Mr BROWN, Alva, introduced the subject of the labours of Mr O'Flaherty in the Turkish dominions. Mr JOHN MACKENZIE read the Report on the subject.-(See Appendix.) Rev. BEHARI LAL briefly addressed the Assembly, shewing that the present position of Mohammedanism is a very hopeful one for their missionaries. The Mohammedans themselves believed that the days of their system were numbered, and if the Christian people now only exerted themselves the best results might be hoped for. Professor HETHERINGTON moved that "the General Assembly approve of the Report now read; rejoice in the opportunities which Mr O'Flaherty has enjoyed of imparting gospel truth to Mohammedans, and in the measure of success which, under the Divine blessing, has attended his labours; continue the appointment of Dr Candlish, Mr John Mackenzie, lately minister at Ratho, and Mr Brown of Alva, adding to their number Dr John Bonar, Mr Arthur Fraser, and Mr William Dickson, for the purpose of directing the operations of Mr O'Flaherty, and watching over the fulfilment of the obligation under which the Church lies to provide his salary; and commend this matter to the liberality of the congregations and Deacons' Courts of the Church, suggesting that collections on behalf of this object may be made at the ordinary prayermeeting, or any special diet of worship." Dr WYLIE seconded the motion. Mr THOMSON, Paisley, had great doubts about continuing the plan of remunerating Mr O'Flaherty mentioned in the motion. He suggested that a small Committee should be appointed to consider what other way might be proposed. He thought it would be better to place Mr O'Flaherty either in connexion with the Jewish or the Continental Scheme. It was stated that the Committee were of opinion that a more satisfactory arrangement than the present would be to attach Mr O'Flaherty to the Jewish Scheme. Dr BONAR. Surely it would be more natural to attach Mr O'Flaherty, as he is labouring amongst Mohammedans, to the Foreign Missions. (Laughter.) The motion was then agreed to. STANDARDS OF THE CHURCH. The Assembly took up overtures, praying them to take means for getting a copy of the "Confession of Faith," and other authoritative documents, introduced if possible into every family in all their congregations. The Assembly approved of the overtures, and "exhort ministers, elders, and congregations to do what in them lies for having a copy of the 'Confession of Faith,' and other authoritative documents, introduced into every family connected with their communion." DISCIPLINE. The Assembly took up an overture from the Presbytery of Biggar and Peebles, praying them to appoint a Committee for the purpose of ascertaining the general practice of the Church in respect of discipline, and of presenting a Report to the next Assembly regarding it, accompanied by such suggestions as may appear to them to be called for, with a view to the improvement of that practice. On the motion of Mr BARRET, Skirling, this matter was remitted to the Committee on the State of Religion and Morals. POWERS OF CHURCH COURTS. The CLERK read an overture from the Synod of Lothian and Tweeddale, praying the Assembly that a special Committee be appointed for the purpose of considering the present constitution and functions of the various courts of this Church, and more especially of the General Assembly itself, the mode of appointing its members, and of transacting the business committed to it, whether in open Assembly or through the medium of its various Committees; and how far the powers, legislative, judicial, and executive, claimed and exercised by it since the period of the Disruption are in accordance with the fundamental principles of the polity of this Church; and, in general, the steps to be taken for the purpose of securing that the whole business of the courts of this Church, whether in regard to things secular or things sacred, shall be conducted in such a manner as most effectually to promote the glory of God and the wellbeing and peace of our Zion. Mr WILSON hoped the Synod of Lothian and Tweeddale would not press upon the Assembly to appoint a Committee to revise the whole of their Church constitution. Dr CLASON wished it to be understood that he had nothing to do with the overture. Mr THORBURN thought that at this late hour it would be altogether improper to force the overture on the attention of the Assembly. Mr NISBET, Edinburgh, said the Synod of Lothian and Tweeddale was generally very thinly attended-(laughter)-and he was quite sure. that the most of the members of that Synod would as soon have thought of beginning to inquire whether they would have a Congregational, an Episcopal, or a Presbyterian basis as to go into the matter referred to in the overture. The overture was passed from. SPECIAL APPEALS FOR FUNDS. The Assembly took up an overture from the Synod of Argyle, praying that the General Assembly, while approving of the recent successful effort made by the Home Mission Committee for the liquidation of its debt, and gratefully acknowledging the obligation under which the Convener has laid the Church by his labours, make it an injunction to the various Committees to make no public appeal to the Church for funds in future without the authority of the General Assembly. Mr BALFOUR, Rothesay, supported the overture, and said that a Committee might as well send circulars to be put in the pews, and call for a collection without its being appointed by the Assembly, as send down their Convener to raise funds without authority from the Assembly. He moved in terms of the overture. Mr WILSON said that, if it were necessary, he would move the rejection of the overture, which embodied this contradiction, that they lauded the only instance in the history of the Free Church in which the thing they condemned had been done. Dr CLASON seconded Mr Wilson's motion. The overture was then passed from after some conversation. TUESDAY, MAY 29. COLONIAL DEPUTIES. Dr BONAR wished to make a statement with regard to Mr Alexander Salmon, Sydney. Mr Salmon left Australia very anxious to attend this Assembly. Unfortunately, he did not arrive until after the business of the Colonial Committee had been taken up and disposed of; and, therefore, he could not speak when the other deputies and ministers from the colonies spoke, very much to his own regret and the regret of the Committee and' many of his friends. They afterwards gave Mr Salmon a place on another evening, but it was so crowded that again they were disappointed. He (Dr Bonar) hoped that if Mr Salmon stayed here another year-as he feared, from the state of his health, would be necessary-they would have an opportunity of hearing him speak. On that second evening they were also disappointed of hearing Mr G. W. Mellin, of the Royal Chapel, Berlin, and Dr Spittler, of the Basle Pilgrim Mission, which was a great disappointment to many. RECORD OF THE REVIVAL MOVEMENT. Dr HENDERSON, Glasgow, moved :- "That the Committee on the State of Religion and Morals be instructed to adopt such means as they shall |