might help it generally by taking contributions in private only. 8. In some cases, public collections throw an unequal portion of the church's burdens on the poor members. This is not so much the case in the South as in the North. In the North the collections are very frequent, and the poor are expected always to put in their pence, and the rich, in many cases, put in no more. 9. In the South, the collections are less frequent, and much larger, and the burden falls more equally on the members; still there is very little, if any thing, gained by having collections. The members of the church have to give at the collections, generally, almost all that is given, and they would have to do no more if collections were done away with. If any thing is given by meinbers of other sects, it is expected to be returned at another time; so that though kind intercourse is sometimes encouraged by collections, there is nothing gained in reality. inte 10 Public collections give much occasion to the wicked and infidel world to speak reproachfully of professing Christians. It affords them matter for vile insinuations, and gives some countenance, perhaps, to their unconscionable calumnies. "It is all a money-getting concern," they say, and those who do not understand what calls there are for money, and how the collections are employed, may easily be prejudiced by such insinuations and calumnies. 11. Public collections place the preacher who is appointed to make them, in a very uncomfortable light, at times. I have met with some who thought that the money collected was given at once to the preacher. Many have no idea of stewards, treasurers, funds, &c.; they look on us as beggars sometimes, and as I once heard a poor woman say, when she gave her money, "Bless him, let him have it; he deserves it." 12. As the world cannot enter into our views and feelings, nor even understand the arrangements of our church discipline, it would be better, in these matters, for the right hand not to let the left hand know what it doeth. The church would do best to do all its business within itself; it would prevent many a stumbling-block from being laid in the way of the world. 13. Some of those who attend our chapels, and in some cases persons of considerable understanding, have been half inclined to think that Christian churches have been more anxious for their property than for the salvation of their souls. And we need not wonder at this, when we consider how different the views and sympathies of worldly and carnal men are, from the views and feelings of those who are truly religious. 14. But in fact, the system of making collections has had such a bad effect on the minds of some officers of churches, that they really have got into a way of seeming to care more about people's money than their souls. It is quite distressing, on Anniversary occasions, to see how anxious some persons are about the amount of the collection, and how fully their whole souls seem to be taken up in endeavours to make it as large as possible. 15. The plan of having public collections is unfriendly to the exercise and cultivation of true Christian liberality. Persons are accustomed thereby to have fits and starts, to give according to temporary impulses and excitements, according to the character of the preacher or of the sermon; while the object for which money is wanted is comparatively lost sight of, and the daily cultivation and exercise of liberality through the week, and through the year, is often neglected and forgotten. Christians ought to be taught to give on principle; and it should be the aim of ministers to inculcate the dedication of their all to pious and benevolent uses, and the habitual and constant appropriation of their property to such uses as the necessities of the church may require. 16. The plan of having public collections subjects the funds of the church to great danger, and the managers of those funds to great anxiety. Perhaps they cannot get the preacher that they want, or if they succeed in securing the preacher, they are full of doubt and anxiety about the weather. A showery day may lose them twenty pounds, and the thought of such a thing makes them feel almost as vexed as Jonah was, when he quarrelled with God about the gourd. By private arrangements, these anxieties and vexations might be avoided. 17. Public collections are expensive. There are the preacher's expenses, amounting sometimes to a pound, sometimes to ten, and I have heard of a case in which the preacher (from London) charged a school near Manchester fifty pounds. Then among Methodists there are often the expenses of sending a preacher in the place of the one who makes the collections, in addition to bills, circulars, occasional hymns, singers, and musicians. The amount which has to be deducted from the collections for all those expenses, is often very serious. 18. Public collections hinder some from coming to hear the Gospel. There are in sotne places many who would wish to hear the Gospel, who are unable to give money, and unwilling to have the box held out to them in vain; and those are deterred from attending the ministry of the Gospel. There are some that are enemies to the Gospel, who nevertheless might be brought to hear it on some occasions, and so perhaps be converted to God, if public collections were taken out of the way. In some places silver is required at the door, and by this means people are both shut out of the chapel and insulted; and in some cases people are admitted by tickets, purchased at a shilling or eighteen pence each. All these things seem to me to be unchristian and injurious. I have often noticed that there were the poorest congregations when the Monthly or Quarterly collections were to be made. I recollect one case in which a congregation was quite scattered by appointing a public collection, It was in a school-room at Bennington-bush, Liverpool. I and my colleague began preaching there, and we got a tolerable congregation, and in a few months the place got quite filled. At length I was desired to give out that S. A. would make a collection for lighting the room, next time he came. But when S. A. came, there was such a small company present, that he put off the collection, not knowing the reason of the poor attendance, and told the people that it would be made next time, when I should be there. This was worse and worse; for when I went, there were fewer people still, and I believe if I had put off the collection another week, there would not have been a dozen present. I made it, therefore, but we could never get the frightened congregation back again. I know it showed the people were wretched souls, to run away for such a trifle, but it also showed that they wanted mending, and we lost the opportunity of mending them by driving them away. How do we know, but that, if we had gone on without collections, paying the trifling expense out of our own pockets, we might have been most instrumental in bringing persons to God, who would, in time, have given twenty times as much as~ any public collection would raise ? 19. Christ does not appear to have made any public collections, nor do his Apostles. The Apostle Paul advises Christians to lay by something on the first day of the week, according as the Lord had prospered them, that there might not be any collections; and when collec-0 tions were made in the ancient churches, they appear to have been all private, and confined to the churches alone. It would have seemed curious if Christ and his Apostles, who were directly opposed to the world in principle and conduct, had asked the world for contributions. It would have looked like the besiegers asking help from the besieged. It is true, the church and the 1 world are better friends now than they were then, but it ises in consequence of the church's want of fidelity. If the church would do its duty, it would be as true now as forund merly The friendship of the world is enmity with God.”ve 20. The Quakers have always done without public collections, and they have raised more money for purposes of charity and piety, according to their numbers, than almost any other Christian body. And though of late they have not done so much in the missionary way, yét formerly, when they were a poorer people, they almost filled the land with their doctrine, and shook the whole nation. And I have no doubt but other bodies might do the same if they would try. I had some other observations to make, but I must put them off to another time. THE DESIRE FOR WEALTH. WHEN we are labouring for our own profit, we are in danger of not being satisfied soon enough; when we are labouring for the profit of others, we are in danger of being satisfied too soon. Men who labour for this world hardly ever think they have got enough, so long as there is any thing more to be got. The more they get, the more they wish to get, and their gains to-day are made the means of getting greater gains to-morrow. Men sometimes think they will be content when they have reached a certain sum, but they seldom are. The man who thought he should be satisfied when he had got out of debt, has no sooner paid his last bill, than he begins to wish for a little in hand. The man who once thought that a hundred would satisfy him, has no sooner acquired a hundred than he wishes for a hundred more. His second hundred is no sooner got, than he wishes to make it into a hundred for each child. From a hundred his heart runs on to two, and from two to ten; and when he has got possession of his thousands, his wishes grow larger and larger, and a spirit of enterprize takes possession of his soul, that sighs for the wealth of the world. But when men are seeking the good of others, they are in danger of thinking they have done enough almost as soon as they have done any thing. A man is wishful to see a church gathered together, and a place of worship built; but when this is accomplished, he is in danger of sitting down contented. Another is wishful to have schools to instruct the rising generation in reading, but when this is accomplished, his benevolent desire seems to be satisfied. So it seems to be, in a great measure, with all who engage in benevolent schemes: they are ever in danger of being satisfied too soon. Instead of pushing forward, they often check themselves, as if they were afraid of going too far. I have seen persons who were very wishful to gain what they called a "good interest" in a town, but when that was gained, they seemed to long for nothing further. Instead of seeking to spread the Gospel through the world, they give themselves to the support of their single congregation only. This is not right. The soul of a Christian should be as wide as the world, and in all |