Vermont watchman and State journal. [volume] (Montpelier, Vt.) 1836-1883, 1870-06-22

y now hoiding lis annual session IN TINS place
This convention is composed Of delegate
from the various associations and county con
icrcnces in the State. There are fifteen assc
Citations with over two hundred minister
connected with them. There are one hun
dred and ninoty.fve churches, with one hun
drcd and 6ny-Gve pastors. There are twolv
conferences that send lay delegation to th
Convention 1t is composed Of about a hun
bred members, clerical and lay, and its OBJ
ject is not the exercise Of ecclesiastical func
ton and powers, but the report Of religion
intelligence the comparison Of religious Wow
and the advancement Of the ministers an,
churches 10 religious knowledge and zeal
The anniversaries Of the Domestic Missionary
and Education and Sunday School Societic.
are held in connection with the Convention
and add largely to the interest Of its session
The Convention has under its charge two
trust funds, one for the relief Of desttut,
ministers who have lost their health in thch
work in this State, and the other for the cdu.
cation Of young men for the ministry TIL,
annual income from these funds is not fan
from eight hundred dollars each, and report,
in full are made Of the expenditure. There
is, perhaps, no fund anywhere whose avails
60 TO objects more mertorious. OF the two
hundred ministers in this State more than
ono-half are obliged to Ice content, simply,
with food aud raiment. They receive not
enough to rcplenish even their Libraries. II
the rainy day comes, the day Of sickness, Or
disability, or old age there is nothing to keep
the gaunt wolves Of penury AMI starvation
from coming in at the door Most of our
ministers receive less wages than a good me.
chanic, and very few Of them have as steady
and quiet work. They are exposed to all tn,
drawbacks Of public criticism and approba
ton, and are obliged to live as pilgrims il
the earth, not knowing what day may bring
forth Attonuated. libraries, hard contest.
with physical evil, the perpetual cndcavor tC
make sixpence do the work of shilling
frequent changes and removals which cat "
the substance which little hrItmay have ac
CURED fnal approximation, and pcrchancC
disability and death, make up the outward
facts Of the history Of most Vermont minis
ters Of all denominations. But the men ar,
usually equal to their work and worthy to dc
it. They have but little aspiration for any
thing but self-sacrifco and little hope of any
other reward here than the privilege Of max.
ing more seli-denial. Amid all sorts Of die
dculties they maintain good profession 1t
was an admirable aud noble provision then
Of one Of the largest-hcartel aud most mod
est Of the laymcn Of this State, to devote ten
thousand dollars to train young men for such
work as this, and ten thousand more to les
sen the evils of their lot after they should be
laid aside from their work. 1t would be an
equally noble thing if some Of our laymen
who have the ability and the desire to dc
something worthy and honorable with their
money should add an equal amount to these
funds They ought to be a hundred thousand
dollars each, and one Of them should be elias
tic enough to cover the necessities Of the wild.
ows and orphans of those ministers who have
died poor, in the service Of their Master in
this State.
The number Of the members connected with
the Congregational churches in the State is
nearly twenty thousand. Two to one are
females, very remarkable and suggestive
difference, which we believe prevails in all
religious bodies. The number connected with
the Sabbath Schools is also about twenty
thousand; the average attendance of the con-
gregation Of the churches is nearly twenty.
five thousand. The amount of benevolent
contributions in the churches averages about
forty thousand dollars annually. This is, of
course, exclusive Of all that is paid to meet
expenses.
On referring to statistics of the Methodist
church in this State, which ranks next in
number to the Congregational, We find con-
nected with the Vermont Conference about
twelve thousand members and eighty-fiye
preachers. The roll of the Sunday School
embraces about thirteen thousand scholars and
the contributions to benevolent objects amount
to little over twelve thousand dollars an.
nually. The average salary paid to the
clergymen Of the Methodist church amounts
to less than two dollars per day. Yet there
is no class Of productive laborers in the land
who equal these men, ministers Of all denomi.
nations, in the value of the results of their
industry. The productive classes of the world
ire those who bless it BY their thought as
veil as by their work. Those who teach men
moral and religious truth are worth as much
o society as inventors and bankers and cash.
ers and conductors and lawy ers. For they
give us dominion over this world and the
world to come. They instruct men to think,
o live together in peace, to love one
mother, to pass good and sanity lives, en-.
ightened by wisdom, charmed by good ness
md glorifed by religion. They max
purer population and render man more man.
y aud woman more womanly and society
itronger and purer, aud so they are the great
'st benelactors of the world. They speak to
-he deepest wants Of the soul, and give the
bread and the water Of heaven to men. Their
influence passes from house to house, from
own to town, and the path Of their feet is
planted with the rose And it is poor econo.
ny, common as i, is, which oyerlooks these
men. 1t is vulgar materialism and mis-.
'rable philosophy which would have continu.
ID Paul tentmaker and Peter fisherman.
And II is financial mistake as well as So
'lal blunder, which hampers the energies
u their successors aud cramps their powers,
BY refusing them fair equivalent for services