The Liverpool Standard and General Commercial Advertiser.
Liverpool, Merseyside, England, 1839-07-23 00:00:00

" Your lordship will forgive my warmth. I stand, as it
were, the advocate of 3,000 inquirers before your table, who
cannot plead for themselves. I represent before you the
teeming population around these inquirers and catechumens,
who are waiting, as it were, for the kingdom of God. Op-
portunity is the golden spot of time. I may to-morrow he
myself silent in the grave. The Society may wait in vain
the recurrence of such a glorious opening as this, if the pre-
sent moment be allowed to slip by Thirty years back,
we had not Delhi : we have now the Indus, and the Punjab,
stretching itself in our view. A century since, we were un-
known in Hi,ndoostan : we are now its masters. To hope to
occupy this vast territory is fruitless, unless as we enter vi-
gorously, and joyfully, and with gratitude to God, the parti-
cular doors of utterance, as they unfold their golden hinges
before us."

It thus appears, from his lordship's letter, that from
50 to 60 villages, with a population of about 3,500
souls, have renounced Heathenism, and . are crying
aloud for the bread and the waters of Life. At the
time of writing about 1,000 had been baptized. We
have no doubt ere this many more have been received
into the Christian Church.

It will be seen that his lordship says "he stands be-
fore the. table of the Church Missionary Committee as
" the advocate for 3,000 inquirers who cannot plead for
themselves." But what is to be done ? During the
past year, amidst many a call from Heathen lands,
" Come over and help us," the funds of the Church
Missionary Society have fallen short of the funds of
the preceding year by the sum of £11,332, while the
necessary expenditure has exceeded even theitstimated
income, making a deficiency in the income below the
expenditure of £20,146.
Surely this should not be the case. In the midst of
the many blessings of Providence and of grace which
abound in our land, we should not forget the cry of
the poor perishing Heathen.
Several of our friends in different parts of the coun-
try have come boldly forward with their money and
with their influence at this critical juncture, " to the
help of the Lord—of the Lord against the mighty."
Some have given special donations--others have
doubled their subscriptions. In some places special
meetings have been held, and cards have been struck
off for special contributions ; but still the want of funds
is great—the demands eager and pressing ; and we ear-
nestly hope that all those who have hitherto subscribed,
and many who have never yet assisted us, will come
forward with earnestness and zeal to help in this blessed
work,—that, as a church and a nation, we may " shine
as lights in the world, holding forth the word of life"
to the utmost limits of the globe, making known the
name of Jesus to those who have hitherto known him
not.

The letter from which extracts have been given above
can he seen more at length in the " Church Missionary
Record" and in the " Missionary Register" for June
this year.
Copies of this appeal, and cards for special contribu-
tions, can be obtained, gratis, at the Church Mission-
ary House, Salisbury-square, London, and from Mr.
Joseph Crisp, agent, 38, Church-street, Liverpool.
Liverpool, July 22,1839.

BRIEF SUMMARY OF THE SOCIETY MISSIONS.
Missions
Stations
Missionaries 92
Male and Female Teachers
Communicants 2721
Schools 468
Scholars 26230

ANSWER No. 1. TO O'CONNELL'S LETTER TO
THE METHODISTS OF MANCHESTER.

TO DANIEL. O'CONNELL ESQ., M.P.
. _ Dublin, July 13, 1839.

" Nov the Spirit speaketh expressly that in the latter times some
shall depart from the faith, giving heed to seducing spirits and doc-
trines to devils—speaking lies in hypocrisy—having their conscience
seared with a hot iron—forbidding to marry, and commanding to
abstain from meats."—lst Tim. iv. 1,2, 3.

SIR,-1 have read your letter to the Wesleyan Methodist.
I greatly mistake if you will not find in that zealous and able
body, opponents who will vindicate themselves and the
character of their founder from the gross and malignant
obloquy which you try to heap on them and him.
I do not wonder to see you enraged against the Wesleyan
Methodists. I differ in some points from that body, yet I
will bear my testimony to them as far as my knowledge ex-
tends, that their humble labors, by their circuit preachers, in
Ireland have opposed a powerful and efficient barrier against
Popery in the south, and west. Your priests have felt their
power, and have naturally instructed you inyour confessional
to hate them. I shall ever hold the memory of old Gideon
Ousley in honor and veneration.
1 leave the Methodists to vindicate themselves, but there
are certain points, in your letter which I feel bound to notice.
You bring this charge against the Methodists, as opponents
of what you call freedom of conscience :
" In the long struggle the Catholics of Ireland made for
the abolition of•the laws that infringed freedom of conscience,
you never gave us any assistance."
Now, do you really dare to pretend that your struggle was
for freedom of conscience ? Suppose we Concede to you the
principle, yet what appears to be the fact ? Why that the
freedom of conscience you require is, trst, liberty to break
your oaths. I grant that this is a conscle. tiou observance
of your religion, and so far may be calleu iieedom of con-
science ; secondly, liberty to invade the right of conscience
of all other men ; for, as soon as you obtained from the
weakness and credulity of Protestants, political power, your
bishops instantly set up their standard of persecution. Break-
ing faith with heretics ; restoration of all the fikrfeited pro-
perty in Ireland; extermination of our rites of worship, of
our liberties and our lives ; these they set up as the rule for
their priests to direct your consciences—this is your liberty
of conscience—and then, to make sure of your obedience,
tney set up their law to excommunicate yourselves, and to
turn the priests out of their parishes, if you or they dare to
resist the commands of the court of Rome. These bishops
set up the very laws, the bloody and seditious canons, which
they had denied, on their oaths, before the committees of
parliament. If you ask me what bishops? .1 answer, your.
own bishops ; I answer Dr. Murray, Dr. Doyle, Dr. Keating,
and Dr. Kinsella, the bishops of your own province ; 1 name
Dr. Murray, the living man, the living archbishop of your.
own diocess. I say you are a Papal slave, bound to obey
these laws ; and if you dare to deny the facts I ,state, I again
challenge you, in the face of England and Ireland, to come
out before the nation on the platform of Exeter Hall. I
challenge you to produce the secret provincial statutes of
these four bishops, enacted in their own secret synod, and
printed for their own province, by Coyne, in the year 1831.
I challenge you to produce the Directories of your priests,
printed for all Ireland, by Coyne, by the order of Doctor
Murray, compiled 'by his priest, Mr. Woods, since January
1830 to 1839.

I challenge you to produce the' book which these statutes
and those directories prove that these iniquitous bishops of
yours have set up for a conference book, to drill their priests
in—to make those priests direct the consciences of the un-
fortunate population of Ireland.
I challenge you to produce the book of Papal laws which
has been added to this conference book, under the especial
direction and patronage of Dr. Murray, in the year 1832,
and which was never printed before in this country.
I challenge you to produce Dr. Murray's letter to Lord
Melbourne in 1835—his letter to the Protestants of Great
Britain in the same year—his pastoral to hisTriests on his
return from Rome in 1836. Here are your own documents ;
your own church's documents—the principles that are to
guide your conscience—the laws that are to govern Ireland.
I challenge you, if you dare, to proouce these documents on
the platform of Exeter Hall, and if you can't produce them,
meet me there and I'll produce them, and I'll propose these
resolutions to a meeting, for which you shall have half the
tickets :

Ist. Resolved—That the pretences of Popery to allow
liberty of conscience to heritics, are lying pretences of that
mystery of iniquity, for that the sacred laws and workings
and manoeuvrings of her bishops and priests prove her to be
as false as perfidious, as cruel and intolerant as ever; and
that this is proved by the conduct of the bishops in Mr.
O'Conneli's own province and diocess.
2d. Resolved—that the pretences of Popery to allow li-
berty of conscience to Roman Catholics are all lying pre-
tences of that mystery of iniquity ; for that such ire the
damnable and dark obscene tyrannies of her priests and
bishops, that they enslave by their infernal confessional the
hearts of the whole female population ; and such are their
anti-Christian pretences or pardoning sins, delivering souls
from purgatory, and granting indulgences, with many such
like superstitions and abominations, that by their spiritual
authority they enslave the hearts of men who are so ignorant
of the salvation of Christ, as to believe the lying pretensions
of the priests of the papacy.
Now, I challenge you, it you dare, to debate these two
resolutions before an assembly composed solely of men, in
Exeter Hall, or in the Rotunda, in the city of Dublin. I
refer you to the Protestant Association to fix time and
arrangements. If you are sincere in your pretences as to
liberty of conscience—if there is a grain of sincerity in your
letter to the Methodists—if you believe your bishops and
priests to be honest men, and if you are not their mere tool
and.slave yourself, then you will accept this challenge.; But
if their villainy and your own slavery—if you are " speak-
ing lies in hypocrisy''—if your letter to the Methodists is a
mere political trick, and that you are enraged at them because
they haN e had the good sense and courage, and value for
Christian truth, to oppose that plan of Papal star-chamber
corruption of the Bible, which your bishops set you on (I
have no doubt) to suggest and put upon Lord John Russell,
and which he is so- fallen from the spirit of a Protestant and
the liberty of an Englishman, and the honour of a man of
public principle, as to dare to palm upon the country ; then
you will skulk from this as you have done from all former
challenges--you will prate and bluster in the House of Com-
mons, where they want, either the knowledge which British
statesment ought to possess, or the moral courage which they
ought to manifest, to expose and put down your falsehood;
but when you know and feel you are detected, and wilrbe
made an example of, then you shrink with the cowardice of
conscious guilt, and the terror of public exposure and execra-
tion.

Roman Catholics, mark now your spiritual tyrants—mark
now your political tyrants. Look at the men that drain
your pockets and impose on your credulity under pretence
of teaching you spiritual truth and procuring for you political
liberty, and see if they dare to meet the exposure of their
system of deceiving and enslaving you both in body and
soul.

Roman Catholics, in unmasking your priests and that tool
and tyrant of theirs, Daniel O'Connell, I only prove that at
least I desire to show, as I cordially subscribe myself to be,
your faithful and sincere friend and servant,

M`GHEE.

P. S.—While you, Mr. O'Connell, are thinking of this.
I'll send you another challenge about the Bibles, and show
more of the ingenuity of your bishops.

A GALLANT DEED.—Last week, Messrs. Tilston, Smith,
and. Co. of the Commercial Wharf, Shrewsbury, brofight in,
in one of their boats on the 28th ult. twenty half and six
quarter barrels of gunpowder, weighing 11 cwt. 2 qrs. for the
Bog Mine Company; and on the following morning, about
8 o'clock, a waggon came for it. After it was loaded, some
burning soot fell upon one of the casks from an adjoining
chimney, and set fire to a wrapper; the "brave waggoner'
got up to look at it, end when be saw what was the matter,
he made the best use of his legs—no one need bid him run ;
and had it not been for Mr. Mason. the warehouseman be-
longing to Messrs. Tilston, Smith, and Co.) a dreadful ex-
plosion must have been the consequence, who on seeing the
"brave waggoner" run away, instantly jumped on the waggon
and took the cask (then in a blaze) from the top of the pile,
and rolled itin a lake of water on the wharf, which had been
caused by the rain that had fallen the previous evening, and
then taking a bucket, threw some more water from a cistern
near at hand over that and the remainder of the powder in
the waggon, for fear there might have been some burning
embers left amongst it. Thus many lives were providentially
preserved, and much property saved from destruction: but
it was some time afterwards, before the " brave waggoner"
dared to approach the velliole.