ART. II. THE SUNDAY SCHOOL, ITS PAST AND PRESENT.

By Rev. GEORGE S. MOTT, Flemington, N. J.

THE Sabbath School is growing out of childhood, and is putting on manhood. An increasing look of intelligence, determination, and even self-importance, is deepening upon its countenance. Such a period of change is critical, as well in an institution as in a youth. He shows the crudeness of undeveloped faculties, and is often guilty of foolish things, of which afterwards he repents. And the Sabbath School of to-day is immature. There are unwise things advocated and done. Sometimes a fondness for gaudiness, shows, and even religious theatricals, is manifested. It has ideas born of inexperience. But all these will wear away, and a most noble character be matured. If wisely treated, the Sabbath School will become an invaluable nursery of the Church, and the most efficient lay agency ever employed for the regeneration of the masses. There lies within it capacity for unbounded usefulness and blessing to mankind. But its parent, the Church, must not neglect it. Still it needs guidance and control. Left to itself, like an inexperienced and enthusiastic youth, it will fall into blunders, which will retard its progress, and become sad blemishes in its history.

The past admonishes us that Sabbath School workers of the present must not be too confident, as though the rough part of the voyage were over, and steady trade-winds shall fill all sails. Wise principles now held may remain undeveloped, just as were similar ideas, advocated forty years ago. We are surprised as we learn how many of the judicious measures now entertained, were pressed upon the attention of our Church at that early day. From the years 1830-1836, there appeared in the PRINCETON REVIEW six able Articles on the Sabbath School and its work, which could be reprinted with remarkable application to present needs. But, alas! those valuable and timely utterances were drowned amid the harsh voices of conflict, which swept through the church during those years. The attention of our ecclesiastical meetings was so distracted by contention, as to be diverted from the wants of the Sabbath School. The development which then showed itself was checked. Nothing was practically effec

ted by either branch during the years of separation. The Sabbath School trained itself. But now, we hail as one of the first blessings of our reunion, not alone renewed interest in the Sabbath School, but the inauguration of wise measures for its suc

cess.

Before proceeding further, it may interest our readers and throw some needed light upon present wants, to glance with us over the past; especially as that history in our own country is composed so largely of the labors of members of our communion.

In 1781 the resolution was formed by Robert Raikes, to try and prevent vagrant children from desecrating the Sabbath. He opened a school for them on that day, and they were instructed by paid teachers. Some of the instruction was of a secular character. The children gathered soon after ten A. M. and remained until twelve. They went home and returned at one, and after reading a lesson were to be conducted to church. After that, they were to be employed in repeating the catechism until half past five, and then dismissed for the day. But this idea of collecting children Sabbath after Sabbath, for religious instruction to be given by teachers to classes, is 200 years older; and the origin of it, so far as we know, must be accorded to the devoted Borromeo, Cardinal and Archbishop of Milan. Before his death, which occurred in 1584, he had established Sabbath Schools in all parts of his immense diocese. The vast area of his cathedral was filled with boys and girls, forming two divisions. These were subdivided into classes, according to age and capacity, which were attended by two or more instructors, who directed their questions and explanations to every child without distinction. A clergyman attended each class, accompanied by one or more laymen for the boys, and matrons for the girls. These lay persons were often of the first distinction. A traveler writing in 1823 states that many grown people were mingled with the children. Another more recently writes: "the children were gathered so completely a l'Anglais, that a Christian friend and Sabbath School teacher who accompanied me, observed, he could fancy himself at home, about to enter upon his accustomed toils." From the first planting of the Church, attention in other forms has been given to the Christian training and teaching of children.

Rev. Dr. Ferris, in his Semi-Centennial Discourse before the New York Sunday School Union, February 25th, 1866, calls attention to a Sunday School system, like ours almost in detail, founded at the Reformation, brought to this country and still in existence. "Casper Schwenfeld, of noble birth, contemporaneous and a fellow-laborer with Luther, organized Sunday Schools among his followers, in different parts of Silesia as early as the Reformation. These were tolerated for 200 years, when a severe persecution caused almost the whole body to emigrate to Pennsylvania about 1730, who settled principally in Berks County. Among them was a printed manual intended for Sunday School instruction compiled in 1546. One part of the plan was to furnish the pupils with tickets, on which were printed a passage of Scripture, and a verse of poetry, which were to be committed to memory and recited on the next Sabbath. Another portion of these people fled from Altoona, in Denmark, in 1733, and settled principally in Montgomery County of the same State." About 1760 a Presbyterian minister, Rev. Mr. Blair of Brechin, Scotland, started a Sunday School in his own house, which was attended by 30 or 40 children. This has continued unbroken to the present day. But it was confined to that town. In him Scotland claims the honor of the first Sabbath School. There had been for centuries individuals thus gathering youth to be instructed on the Lord's day. Rev. Jos. Alleine did it in 1688. But none of these, not even Borromeo, take from Raikes the credit which is his due, as the father of modern Sunday Schools. These scattered tentative efforts, he made successful in a system. There is no intimation that he was aware of these predecessors. There were Reformers before Luther, but he was the Reformer. Mr. Raikes, seeing the happy influence on the conduct of the children, published repeated reports of his success, in his paper (The Gloucester Journal). These were widely copied. Immediately a profound interest was created. Similar schools sprang up all over England. God's time for this movement had come. In four years a Society was formed in London, through the exertions of Mr. Fox, a deacon in a Baptist Church, for "the Establishment and Support of Sunday Schools throughout the kingdom of Great Britain." At the first annual meeting, letters, approving the object of the Society, were read from the Bishops of Salisbury and Llandoff. The Bishop of Chester (Dr. Porteus)

recommended the formation of Sunday Schools in his diocese. The poet Cowper in 1784, and Rev. J. Wesley in '85, stated their convictions of the benefit to be expected from these schools. Three years later, Raikes writes: "at Windsor, the ladies of fashion pass their Sundays in teaching the poorest children. The Queen sent for me the other day to give her Majesty an account of the effect observable on the manners of the poor." A great impediment at that time was the expense of hiring teachers. But by degrees gratuitous teaching arose, and by the year 1800 the practice of paying had disappeared. This idea is said to have originated in a meeting of Wesleyan office bearers, one of whom, when the others were lamenting that they had no funds for hiring teachers, said: "Let's do it ourselves." In four years, after the formation of the London Society, 250,000 children were participating in the inestimable advantages of these schools.

By means of Sabbath Schools thousands, who would have remained grossly illiterate, had been enabled to read. But what should they read? Hence arose the question, how to diffuse such publications as were calculated to make the ability to read an unquestionable privilege. Rev. Geo. Burder, then a minister of the congregation at Coventry, was the person honored of God to suggest the formation of a Society having this object. On May 8th, 1799, he mentioned the project to Rowland Hill, just before the preaching of a sermon for the London Missionary Society, at Surrey Chapel. Hill entered heartily into the plan. The attendance of the ministers present was requested after the service, in an adjoining school room. They agreed to meet on the following morning at 7 o'clock, at St. Paul's Coffee House, St. Paul's Churchyard. About 40 persons there breakfasted together, and then formed the Religious Tract Society.

The Sabbath School work in Wales was originated by Rev. Thomas Charles of Bala. His warm heart was grieved as, in his evangelistic labors, he found such woeful ignorance of religion in a professedly Christian country. He was anxious to provide a remedy; and in 1789 established Sabbath Schools, which rapidly multiplied. He was the life of them; everywhere addressing and catechising the children. He made great exertions to secure the attendance of adults, and so far succeeded that they became a peculiar feature of these schools. Some

times they were the majority. Many parents were as anxious to be taught as to have their children instructed. One main cause of this happy result, was "the constant practice of Mr. Charles, urging upon all of every age the duty of being able to read the Word of God. In the pulpit, in examining the children, and in conversations with the poor people he met in his travels, this was the subject."* Great attention was given to memorizing portions of Scripture, and searching it for passages on different points in divinity. He also established associations of schools, which met in a central place to be publicly catechised. A subject also was given to each school, on which it was to be examined. As no building was capacious enough to hold the vast concourse which assembled, the fields and woods were appropriated. A whole day was spent in the examinations, which lasted from three to four hours, and generally concluded by an address to the children and congregation. These services often produced deep impressions, and even moved to tears. As a natural result, a remarkable religious awakening ensued.

The study of the Scriptures, which was made so peculiar a feature of this movement, greatly increased the demand for Bibles. After much correspondence and effort by Mr. Charles and others, the Society for Promoting Christian knowledge printed an edition of 10,000 copies of the Welsh Bible, which was immediately sold; although not a fourth part of the country was supplied. But no influence could induce the Society to issue another. In December 1802, Mr. Charles took a journey to London to propose plans for getting Bibles. While awake in bed, the idea came to him of having a Bible Society in London, on a basis similar to the Religious Tract Society. The next morning he went forth to consult a few friends. The first he met was Mr. Tarn, who was then on the Committee of that society. They discussed the subject for a considerable time. At the next meeting of the Committee after the regular business was finished, Mr. Tarn mentioned his conversation with Charles, who being present then fully unfolded his plans. While he was appealing for the Bible for Wales, it occurred to Mr. Hughs (another of the Committee), "surely a society might be formed for this purpose, and if for Wales, why not also for the Empire

* See History of Life and Labors of Rev. T. Charles.