WE trust it is not without a just appreciation of our responsibility that we venture to engage in the present undertaking. We sound no trumpet before us; we put forth no arrogant claims to the attention of the public; the position we propose to occupy is an unassuming, but we hope not altogether an unimportant one. If our labors are humble and unpretending we would fain believe that they will not be entirely useless. We are far from expecting or wishing to supplant any one of the excellent existing periodicals which are devoted to the interests of the Society of Friends, whether in Great Britain or America. They are exercising an influence for good which it would be difficult to over-estimate, and we would gladly see them still more generally circulated amongst our members than is at present the case. We send forth the AMERICAN FRIEND not as a supplanter, not as a competitor, but as a co-laborer with them. And we venture to submit that the field is broad enough for all. The harvest is plenteous and there is surely room for one more laborer. So powerful an instrumentality for influencing the masses of mankind is found in the press, that those who are anxious to disseminate the principles of Truth as widely as possible, may not incur the responsibility of neglecting it; and we believe there is opportunity even now for an increased amount of active, earnest work in the department of Journalism. We think that our Society, in common with other branches of the Christian Church, is giving evidence of increasing and expanding life. It is also rapidly occupying new territory, especially in the West. Our members are becoming more and more alive to their responsibilities as Friends and as Christians. Some of them are engaged earnestly in the Home Missionary work, amongst the Freedmen, amongst convicts, amongst the poor, the vicious and the abandoned. A few of them are looking towards preaching the gospel to the heathen, and are becoming prepared to take their lives in their hands in devotion to the work of Foreign Missions. Almost every meeting of Friends in the West has its First Day School. In many of their neighborhoods there are Bible classes. A few successful and prosperous Mission Schools are under their control; and while there may not be perhaps so thorough an organization amongst Friends in the East, yet they also are working faithfully and efficiently for the same objects. In short, our Society is beginning to realize, with increasing force, the idea so beautifully set forth in an "Old Banner Essay" recently published in Friends' Review, viz: that the "constraining influence" of the Holy Spirit, as well as the "restraining" is to be regarded. We Now we are anxious that our paper may, in conjunction with those already established, be instrumental in giving expression to this life. are anxious to make it a true representative of the Society of Friends, as a living, acting, working, religious body. We do not propose to teach anv new theology, nor any exert our humble efforts in making Quakerism; but we are desirous to the principles, already in our possession by inheritance and conviction, as efficient as possible, that they may inherent force, upon the hearts and be brought to bear, with all their lives of those who receive them. new D. C. A CARD FROM THE PUBLISHERS. KNOWING that advertising in a periodical published by Friends, has not been common in this country, although it is in England, the Publishers of the AMERICAN FRIEND in introducing this feature in connection with their paper, think proper to make the following statement and explanation: We consider advertising a legitimate business transaction, calculated to benefit both him who offers to the public and the public to which the offer is made, whenever the object of the advertiser is to bring something valuable into more general notice. We do not, however, undertake to examine critically each thing advertised, and give it our especial recommendation. Of the merits of what is offered, our readers must be their own judges. But no advertisement shall appear in these pages of anything which we have reason to believe is of immoral or injurious tendency, or that we suspect is designed for a public swindle. Thus far, and only thus far, do we hold ourselves responsible for the advertisements that may appear in this paper. We have received subscriptions and encouragement from a number of Friends and others. Amongst these we may mention Joseph Cartland and Nathan Douglas, from New England; Robert B. Howland and Henry Dickinson, from New York; James Whitall and J. L. Bailey, of Philadelphia; Parvin Wright and Achilles Pugh, of Ohio; F. W. Thomas and James Kersey, of Indiana; Willet Dorland and T. C. Hill, of Chicago, and Lawrie Tatum, of Iowa. send a large number of copies to those who have not subscribed, hoping that the paper will be sufficiently interesting to induce them to become subscribers. As we have no regular agents, we trust that all these, and others who favor the success of our paper, will promptly give what aid they can to sustain us in our undertaking. We VISIT TO CHICAGO. On the morning of 10th mo. 15th I set out to visit the Benevolent Institutions of Chicago, in company with S. S. and Wm. H. We first visited the Protestant Orphan Asylum and found 50 children there, whose happy faces indicated that they were the recipients of kindness and love. The anticipation, by the children, of a turkey dinner which was being prepared for them by an excellent Christian lady, on the anniversary of her wedding day, and the gift to each of a pair of shoes, by the same person, brought with force to our minds the text, "Blessed is he who considereth the poor." We spoke to the caretakers and the children, pointing them to that Blessed Savior who, when upon earth, took little children in his arms and blessed them, and then committing them to the care of that same unslumbering Shepherd, we proceeded to the Home for the Friendless, an Institution containing about 70 children and 30 women and girls, such as are homeless, penniless, friendless, and have none to care for them. The Institution is under the care of an excellent Christian matron. She not only received us with great cordiality, but at the close expressed many thanks for our visit. She said there was such a draft upon her feelings that she felt the need of human sympathy and encouragement. We saw the children and all the inmates together. It was a blessed season; prayer was offered, not only for the inmates, but for their excellent caretakers; counsel was given, which apparently met a hearty response in the hearts of those addressed; hymns were interposed by the inmates strikingly appropriate for the occasion, and when at the close thanksgiving was offered, every heart seemed to unite. Tracts were given, and a message afterwards received from the excellent matron conveyed the intelligence that the Lord had blessed our efforts, and that an interest was awakened. The tracts were read, a thing she had never known before, and a request from the women and girls "please do come soon again." Our next visit was to the Old Ladies' Home, containing 14 inmates; an Institution for respectable poor women who have none to care for them. Here they are taken and well provided for; everything being done to make them comfortable and happy. They live, necessarily, a rather secluded life, owing to their infirmities, and a Christian visit is highly prized by them. We had a sweet oppor tunity with them, and upon our parting, having commended them to the widows God, a fervent "thank you" "God bless you" met our ears on every side, and we were permitted to realize that "He that watereth shall himself be watered." We passed then to the Erring Women's Home. This Institution, though comparatively in its infancy, is doing a great work. Much religious interest is manifested, and of the twenty-three inmates nineteen of them had experienced the work of the Lord begun in their hearts. The matron is an excellent woman, devoted to her work. The inmates are excluded from all intercourse with the world, and every effort is made by their devoted friends to win them back to virtue and to God. Their efforts, as I have just stated, have been abundantly blessed. From a recent investigation it has been ascertained that there are 5000 fallen women in the city of Chicago. What can be done to stay this great pestilence. My whole soul burned within me as I looked upon those sweet looking girls (many of them very young) and thought of the terrible whirlpool in which so many of my sex are being engulfed, and so little effort made for their rescue. On the 26th we visited the women's Hospital. This Institution affords a home for women who are poor and in need of medical treatment. We found this entirely destitute of all religious influence, which we could but regret. Thence to Soldier's Home; found 100 inmates; many of them very infirm; some great sufferers. We went from ward to ward and from bed to bed, talking with the other hand stretched towards them. We found four rejoicing in the hope of a glorious immortality, and whilst the remainder treated us with the greatest respect, and thanked us for our visit and our tracts (which were received with great eagerness), the greater part of them manifested a cold hearted indifference to the great subject of their soul's salvation. We could but lament that there was not a greater effort made to bring this Institution under more direct religious influence. One man told me that he had not seen inside of a Bible for 13 years, nor heard a word of its contents. I endeavored to bring before him the great danger he ran in thus turning his back to God. At first he listened with cold and stolid indifference to my remarks, apparently feeling that it was great condescension to listen, but when I brought before him the fullness and freeness of the salvation and the great sacrifice which had been made to open a way whereby he might be saved, and urged upon him to accept of the offer of this salvation, and make Christ his Savior and his friend; the tears coursed their way down his cheeks, and as I knelt, a suppliant for him at the throne of Grace, he knelt by my side, and the responses which were heard from his lips during the prayer showed the depth of his feelings, and when I arose he said, "I thank God for the day He put it in your heart to visit me. I will read my Bible; I will seek my God, and maybe he may yet be gracious. When you have access to the Throne of Grace, pray good lady, remember me." The tracts which we distributed were very eagerly received, many of them who were infirm and disabled will read these when they could not hold a larger book. One venerable looking old German who sat alone, looking lonely and sad during our labors in the ward, when I approached him and presented him with some German Tracts, clasped his hands together with delight and then eagerly seizing the tracts with one hand, placed them to his heart, while with heaven, he engaged for a moment in prayer, in his own language, then clasping my hands, while the large tears rolled down his cheeks, he pointed up to heaven as much as to say "I thank God the Giver." Then to the Reform School; an Institution which has been in operation about ten years; is under excellent Christian management and is performing a great work. It has been exclusively for boys until quite recently they have opened a department for girls; but few of them have as yet been received. There were 219 boys; they are separated into families of about 25 each; they are under good discipline and every effort is made to bring them into habits of good order, obedience, industry, and cleanliness; to store their minds with useful knowledge, and above all, to bring them under the influence of the Gospel. From halfpast five to half past seven, P. M., they are occupied in the school room, there we were privileged to address them, and invite them to come to their blessed Savior and give themselves to him, to submit themselves to his yoke, which was easy, and they would realize his burden to become light. We each one of us addressed them for a few moments and then commended them to God. They listened with rapt attention, evidently not having been accustomed to hear women speak, We returned to our lodgings after some other religious labor, at eleven P. M., weary and worn, but with the consciousness that we had been the humble instrument in the Lord's hands of comforting some, of warning others, and of inviting all to come and partake of good things which the Lord had provided for them. The 27th was a stormy, disagreeable morning, but with hearts warmed with the love of God, and with a burning desire to do something for our fellow men, we set out for the labors of the day; visited the Half Orphan Asylum, containing 80 children, who have lost either father or mother. Here the Cholera was pre TO BE CONCLUDED. METEOROLOGICAL. vailing as an epidemic, and we evidence of the fact, not sufficiently thought it not best to remain longer realized by the followers of Christ, than to speak a few words of comfort that His saying is indeed a truth, and encouragement to the Matron "Where two or three are met togethwho seemed to be well fitted for the er in my name there am I in the position. midst." There were persons in attendance from all the Yearly Meetings of Orthodox Friends on this continent. The consideration of the state of society occupied two sessions, during which the meeting was deeply baptised. Several young men and those in the prime of life, came out willing to "confess their Savior beboldly on the Lord's side, being made fore men." There seemed to be nothing extraordinary in the character of the ministry, but there was a very remarkable owning of the great Head of the Church. To Him be the glory forever. WE have received a Meteorological Report for 9th, 10th, and 11th months from our Friend, John Valentine. We have only space for the following remarks about the 9th month, in this number, but hope to publish a more full account in our next issue: This has been one of the most remarkable months for rain I have ever known or perhaps there is any record of in the West. The average depth of rain in this month for the past 14 years is 4.02 inches, and the wettest I have on record was 9th month, 1864, when the depth of water was 8.62 inches, while this measured 1 foot 6.44 inches, or more than 4% times the average. The two first nights in this month were very similar to those of the 3rd and 4th of 9th month, 1864, all of which were very uncommon for those great rains attended with such a vast amount of thunder and lightning, but the great rain of the 18th made one of the highest and most destructive freshets ever known in this part of the West. The depth of water on that day measuring from sunrise to sunrise was 5.75 inches, and the whole storm 7.30 inches from the 17th to the 20th in clusive. BALTIMORE YEARLY MEETING. THIS is the smallest Yearly Meeting of Orthodox Friends in the world, smaller than many of the Monthly Meetings in the West. Its members live in Maryland, Eastern Virginia, and a few in Pennsylvania. The recent session which closed on the 25th of 10th month last, was one of the most favored meetings ever held there or elsewhere, and was another living It may not be amiss in this connection to mention that the "Baltimore Association for the Moral and Educational Improvement of the Colored People," is accomplishing much good. It is composed of Friends and others co-operating together very harmoniously in the work. Nearly all the officers and managers are native Marylanders. I enclose an extract from their first annual report, made about twelve months ago. They say: "Though but eleven months have passed since the organization, and only ten months since the opening of the first school, your Executive Committee congratulates you on the rapid progress made in the education of the colored citizens of the State. "The millenium of the 1st of November, 1864, dawned upon eightythousand of our fellow-beings in a benighted and degraded condition, who, by the curse of slavery, through the instrumentality of the laws of the State, had been kept for near two centuries in the lowest depths of ignorance. To-day, the first anniver sary of their freedom, finds them eagerly and successfully struggling to unloose the bonds of ignorance. The struggle is marked by an unparalleled patience and perseverance.” "The Baltimore Association for the Relief of Friends, in North Caroli |