ing an incessant rain of fifteen hours, the services were well attended. June 28. The Rev. H. M'Kenzie was ordained to the pastoral office over the particular Baptist church at Bury St. Edmonds. Mr. Cowel, of Ipswich, introduced the business; Mr. Fenn, of Otley, offered the ordination - prayer; Mr. Ward, of Diss, gave the charge, from 2 Tim. ii. 19; Mr. Hall, of Ipswich, addressed the church, from Deut. xxxiv. 8, 9; Mr. Thompson and Mr. Caddy engaged in other parts of the service; and Mr. Simpson, of Diss, preached in the evening. -This infant church was raised, and the meeting built, by Mr. Ridley, who died, much regretted, nine months after his ordi. nation. - July 7. The Rev. J. Sloper (late student at Homerton Academy) was ordained over the independent church at Beccles, Suffolk. Mr. Walford, of Yarmouth, delivered the introductory discourse; Mr. Newton, of Norwich, prayed the ordination - prayer; Mr. Ford, of Stepney, gave the charge, from Col. iv. 17; Mr. Ray, of Sudbury, addressed the people, from 1 Cor. xvi. 10; Messrs. Shufflebottom, Ray, Gardiner, and Craig, engaged in other parts of the service; and Mr. Atkinson, of Ipswich, preached in the evening. July 13. The Rev. Mr. Theodosius was publicly set apart to the pastoral office in the Independent church at New Windsor, near Manchester. Mr. White, of Chester, read the Scriptures and prayed; Mr. Bradley, of Manchester, described the character of a Christian church, and asked the usual questions; Mr. Ralph, of Liverpool, engaged in the ordination - prayer. The pastor received his charge, which was founded on 1 Tim. iv. 16, from his tutor, Mr. Lewis, of Wrexham, and the church and congregation were exhorted to prayer for their minister, by Mr. Roby, of Manchester. In the evening, Mr. Sowden, of Bolton, preached from 1. lxxxii. 6, 7. July 17. A new Independent meeting was opened at Holy Cross, near Stourbridge, Worcestershire; when two sermons were delivered on the occasion by the Rev. Mr. Brewer, of Birmingham. I he gospel has been preached in this neighbourhood for some years past, in a private house; but the number of hearers having of late been much upon the increase, it was thought expedient to erect the above mentioned place; which was done chiefly at the expence of a worthy gentleman near London. The Rev. R. Winter, Fate of London, having accepted an invita tion from the Independent church at Newport, in the Isle of Wight, the Ministers of the Hampshire Association, with some other Christian brethren, agreed, at the request of the Society, and its newlyelected Pastor, to spend Wednesday, the 3d of August, in devotional exercises at Newport. Mr. Cox, of Fareham, began the morning service by prayer and reading the Scriptures; the general prayer was offered by Mr. Hamilton, of Brighton; Mr. John Winter, of Newbury, delivered a short but appropriate address on the Duties and Obligations belonging to Pastor and People, and engaged in prayer; Mr. Kingsbury, of Southampton, preached from Phil. iii. 12, 13, 14; and Mr. Potticary, the former pas tor (who now keeps a respectable academy in Newport) concluded with prayer. In the evening, Mr. Stephenson, of Houndsdown, prayed from Psalm lxix. 9; and Mr. G. ed; Mr. Bogue, of Gosport, preachClayton, of Southampton, closed the whole with prayer. LONDO N. WE are happy in being able to inform the religious public, that an order was lately sent from the Admiralty to the different dock-yards, that the shipwrights should not be required to work on the Lord's Day, unless on occasions of the most urgent necessity. It would give more than the joy of harqesi to every good man, to be informed alms, for the defence of cur liber- 2B Society for the Suppreffion. Riotous and disorderly 440 7 IT 26 3 Total 487 The foregoing statement includes an account only of actual offenders brought to punishment, and of ofFences actually suppressed; but the committee reminds the members of the society, that to restrain vice by prevention rather than by punishment, was a primary and essential object of the society. Of this object, the committee has never lost sight; and they have the satisfaction of stating, that their endeavours, in this respect, have been attended with very considerable success; particularly in preventing violations of the Lord's Day, and irregularities in public-houses; and in checking the circulation of obscene books and prints, especially in seminaries of education, into which they had been most artfully introduced." The friends of religion cannot but rejoice in every attempt to lessen the dreadful sum of moral evil in our country; especially at a crisis, when the most awful providences so imperiously demand national repentance and reformation. Similar societies, under the auspices of the clergy and magistrates of our principal cities and towns, might be productive of great national ad be honourable to our general cha-' vantages; even the effort, would racter, and prove that religion and virtue have yet many zealous ad vocates. Extract from the Address of the Methodists. their late Conference held at Man THE (Wesleyan) Methodists, at to the Members of their Societies chester, determined on an Address. throughout Great Britain, in which they point out their duty in respect After acknowledging the goodness to the public affairs of the nation. of God to this country on former, occasions, they express their obligations to government as professors. of religion. We insert the following paffage : "We are also bound, by strong ties of gratitude, to our Sovereign and his Government. Our humble applications, in various distressing cases relating to the prosperity of the work of God among us, have been received by our rulers with kind attention; and have produced the happiest effects. Even very lately our government and legisla ture have given very striking proofs of the liberality of their sentiments. The exemptions and other clauses in the late act of parliament for raising the Army of Reserve, and for arming the nation at large, which respect the public ministers of the gospel, and the mode of training the people to arms, are peculiarly. favourable to the spiritual interests of the people of God. As we are well acquainted, brethren, with your conscientious at-. tachment to the holy Sabbath of the: Lord, it may give you satisfaction, if we insert here the paragraphs in the act of enrolment which refer to that point. "And be it further enacted, That it shall be lawful for his Majefty, by any order communicated by one of his Majesty's Principal Secretaries of State, to order and direct the Lieutenant, er Deputy Lieutenants of any County, to cause the persons comprised in the first, second, and third classes of persons enrolled for military service" under this Act, or any or either of them, in the respective parishes of such county, or any of them, to be trained and exercised in the use of arms, as to his Majesty shall seem expe, dient; and the Lieutenant or Deputy Lieutenants, to whom any such order shall be directed, shall thereupon forthwith order and direct the Deputy Lieutenants of the respective subdivision of such County in which any such Parishes shall be situate, to regulate the times and places of exercise for such Parishes respectively and such Deputy Lieu tenants shall cause such men to be trained and exercised two hours at the least on each and every Sunday, either before or after divine service, or on some other convenient day in the week, in England; or any con. venient day in the week to be appointed, in Scotland, between the 25th of March and the 25th of December in every year, &c.-And it shall also be lawful for the Deputy Lieutenant in their respective subdivisions, in any cases in which they may deem it expedient for the more speedily and effectually carring into execution the provisions of this act, to order and direct that such men shall be exercised on any other additional day or days in the week, having due regard, in the regulation of the times and places appointed for exercise and training on such other day or days, to the general occupations of the persons to be exercised and trained, so as to interfere as little as may be with such occupa tions. "Provided always and be it further enacted, That where in Eng land any person or persons in any parish shall have religious scruples in regard to being trained and exercised on Sundays, and shall make oath thereof before any Deputy Lieute nant or Justice of the Peace (which path such Deputy Lieutenant and Justice of the Peace respectively are hereby empowered to admi. niser) all and every such person and persons shall be excused from being trained and exerci ed on Sun days, and from all fines by this act imposed, for non-attendance at such training and excrcise; provided such persons shall duly at tend to be trained and exercised en such other day in the week as shall be appointed by the Deputy Leutenants of the subdivision wherein such parish shall be situate, in lieu of Sunday for that purpose, under and subject to all such fines and penalties for non-attendance and misbehaviour at such training and exercise, as are by this act imposed in like cases on any other days of training and exercise: provided also, that no such person or persons who shall be so excused from being trained and exercised on a Sunday as aforesaid, shall be entitled to re ceive any sum of money under this act for being trained and exercised `on such other day in the week as shall be appointed in lieu thereof." And now, Brethren, we most earnestly, and from a full convic tion of the necessity of the case, be. seech you to comply with the requisitions of Government with cheerfulness and alacrity; fully using your privilege in this respect to the Sabbath-day. But, at the same time, we charge you, in the name of God, to avoid all public entertainments. Fre, quentot the ale-houses or taverns, - those nurseries of vice and im morality. To strengthen our caution, and to cause it to be remembered, we repeat it, as you love that adorable Saviour, who came to save his people from their sins, have no thing to do with those places and works of darkness. N. B. The Conference directs, That a prayer-meeting shall be held in all our chapels on every Friday evening, in behalf of our nation, during the present danger; and a fast shall be observed on the first Friday in every month. An Address, similar to the above, has been published by the Dissent ing Ministers and others in the neighbourhood of Kingston-upon Hull; who observed Wednesday the 24th ult. as a day of public' humiliation among theinselves. A prayer-meeting ha been also instituted at Spa-felds and Zion Chapels alternately, on Tuesday," evenings. MISSIONARY COLLECTIONS. Christ. Fred. Rhesen, of Embeck, in the Electorate of . . Hanover Messrs. J. R. de P. Merian and Sory, Basle 20. O Legacy by he late Mr. Robert Douglas, Kingsland Place 30 A Legacy by. Henry Poole, Esq. late of Woodford 20 9 10 13 6 8 - DISTRIBUTION OF PROFITS. July 18, 1803. At a Meeting of the Trustees of this Magazine, the following Cases being regularly recommended, were admitted and relieved: We are informed that the he Rev, J. Fowler's Chapel, at Edmonton, which has been considerably enlarged, will be re-opened for divine worship on Wednesday morning, September, the 7th, with a Sermon by Mr. Griffin, of Portsea, |