of General Weyler as Captain-General of Madrid. This office carries with it the practical command of the military forces in the province of Castile. General Weyler was appointed by General Linares, the War Minister, who took this startling step without consulting, his colleagues. His excuse for the appointment was that he deemed it essential, in coping with political demonstrations, to have a man of energy. He certainly found one, as the remaining reconcentrados in Cuba can testify.

een.

It seems to be the unaniThe Lake Mohonk mous verdict that the InIndian Conference dian Conference which was held last week at Lake Mohonk was one of the best of the long-series of eightThis was undoubtedly owing in part to the dignity and importance added by the combination of carefully prepared papers with offhand discussion, and in part to the fact that the horizon of the Conference has been enlarged so that it now includes other peoples and races. Especially interesting was the paper by General Whittlesey showing the attitude. of the Presidents of the United States toward the Indian question, though to the impatient reformer it was rather trying to be reminded that President Madison's suggestion that land should be given to the Indians in severalty had to wait from 1816 till the passage of the Dawes Bill for its realization. That substantial progress has been made along desirable lines was evident in the announcement that the discussion of the Indian question was to be with reference to the treatment of allotted Indians--a tacit acknowledgment that all the tribes would so soon come into that category that it was no longer necessary to talk about the old blanket Indian of the reservation. The duty of the Government was clearly pointed out by the Hon. William A. Jones, Commissioner of Indian Affairs, in a comprehensive report of the present status of affairs. Others who spoke from personal knowledge of what should be done were Miss Alice C. Fletcher, Miss Emily S. Cook, several missionaries from the field, and many other earnest and intelligent friends of the Indian. The duties of the future include a revision of the lease system, which at present allows absentee landowners to fall

into vice with the proverbial ease of those who have idle hands; a closer regulation of marriage laws, and trustworthy records of marriages, births, and deaths, with reference to the transmission of lands; and the doing away with agents and the relics of the reservations at once where they are no longer necessary. Last year seventeen agencies were named by the Commissioner that might be closed forever and the Indians left to their own devices, but, in spite of his recommendations and the efforts of many disinterested people, none of these were done away with, and the Indians living upon them are still under tutelage. Other practical measures urged related to the thoroughly practical irrigation schemes for arid regions and a better selection of farmers and field matrons. There are many who think that there is greater need than ever for Christianizing influences, and that a new missionary spirit should be awakened in behalf of those just passing from the old superstitions.

New Duties

"New days bring new duties," to quote from the platform unanimously adopted by the Conference in reference to the territory over which the American flag has recently been extended. The people of Porto Rico and the Hawaiian Islands, unconsciously to themselves, have crept into the hearts and are burdening the consciences of the people of Lake Mohonk. And not they alone; those who dwell in the uttermost isles of the sea were not forgotten. Wholly disentangled from politics, due consideration was given to education and justice for the races alien to our civilization who have a claim upon our sympathy and brotherhood. The statements of facts about these various islands were so clear and convincing, coming from experts, the plans to meet the difficulties so wise and sympathetic, that an unprejudiced onlooker from any one of these sea-girt lands could hardly have failed to read as much devotion to their highest interests in the speeches of the many who accept circumstances as they are only that they may strive to improve them, as in the graceful eloquence of Colonel Higginson, who mournfully bewailed the fate of poor "subjugated" Porto Rico. His chief plea was that the peoples who had fallen

under the care of the United States in what he considered an unpardonable way should be treated as intensely human." That this was his first Mohonk Conference must be his excuse for this contribution of coals to Newcastle, for where is there an organization so pledged to work unselfishly for the physical, mental, and moral uplifting of the individual as a man and a brother? It has but one ideal in the new problems forced upon the American conscience-to aid the men and women of all the races that are coming into our great family to become enlightened American citizens.

The National ConThe Disciples of Christ vention of the Disciples of Christ took place last week at Kansas City. The first two days were occupied by the Conference of the Christian Woman's Board of Missions. It was arranged that the Board should assume control of the work of negro education and evangelization, which formerly was conducted by the American Christian Missionary Society. The transference includes all the schools and property of this work, amounting to more than sixty thousand dollars. Contributions to the Woman's Board last year amounted to over a hundred and twenty thousand dollars. Six new missionaries were sent out during the year, a new mountain mission was established in Kentucky, and an orphanage was opened at San Juan, Porto Rico, also. The outlook is very promising for this work. On Sunday almost all the pulpits of Kansas City and vicinity were occupied by the Disciples of Christ at both services. In the afternoon a great union communion service was held, about five thousand persons taking part. Monday and Tuesday were devoted to the fifty-first annual session of the American Missionary Society. Its work includes Ministerial Relief, National Board of Education, Church Extension, National Christian Endeavor, and Evangelization.

This Board employed last year nearly two hundred persons, who added over six thousand persons to the churches, and received over sixty thousand dollars in contributions. The Foreign Mission Board raised last year nearly two hundred thousand dollars. Its army of 257 workers is doing effective service

in the field. The Disciple Convention goes to Minneapolis next year.

The Anglican

The annual meeting of the

Church Congress Congress, held a month since at Newcastle, attracted less than usual public interest because of the Parliamentary elections then in progress. The well-known inclusiveness of the Congress, as the common forum of all parties in the Church, was emphasized by the hearing, rather stormy indeed, which Mr. Kensit, the notorious extremist on the anti-ritualist side, obtained on the same platform with the "Catholic" warden of Keble College, Dr. Lock. The opening sermon by the Archbishop of Yale was a plea for the mutual toleration of opinions, especially of the different views held respecting the mode in which Christ was really present in the Eucharist. That the Prayer-Book connected the idea of sacrifice with the Lord's Supper he affirmed, but only as a memorial, not as a propitiation. Opposing schools of Biblical study had also their hearing, the higher critics being represented by Professor Ryle, and their antagonists by Professor Margoliouth, the former affirming, the latter denying, the spiritual value of modern critical results. The most stirring utterances were those of the Archbishop of Canterbury on the vexed question of Voluntary Schools, and of Archdeacon Diggle, of Westmoreland, on the Ascension. As distinct from the "Board Schools," which, like our public schools, are supported by the public treasury, the "Volunteer Schools," like the parochial schools of Roman Catholics in this country, are in theory supported by the contributions of Churchmen, while in fact they are also subsidized by grants of public money-a grievance to Nonconformists who complain of being taxed to maintain the teaching of doctrines which they repudiate. The Archbishop gave an unpalatable quietus to the claims of a series of speakers who accused the State of injustice in not giving the Voluntary Schools larger support. He said that Churchmen themselves were at fault; they were bound to give more largely and to the extent of their means before demanding larger grants from the State treasury. This tonic advice was seconded by a few

remarks from an American visitor, the Bishop of Central Pennsylvania. But the flood-mark of interest was reached in the paper which exhibited the Ascension of Christ in its practical value as a truth for the uplift of common life toward its divine possibilities. In those early days, said the speaker, there were no crucifixes, but there was the power of a divine enthusiasm. The subject of Christian union, as usual on these occasious, came prominently forward. At the opening of the Congress, the Newcastle Free Church Council, representing that federation of churches which in England is more advanced than here, presented an address of greeting. In this, and the response by the Bishop of Newcastle, stress was laid on the fundamental unity of all the churches, and the need of manifesting it in united effort against serious evils. Later came a Conference of Christians of all denominations, at which Earl Grey presided, and the Dean of Ripon, Dr. Fremantle, moved a resolution "that increased co-operation between Christians is both desirable and practicable."

tical steps will be taken to consolidate into one body the Free Church and the United Presbyterian Church of Scotland. This consummates the movement looking towards union which has been in progress a long time. The name of the new organization will be "The United Free Church of Scotland." The Free Church brings to it nearly twice as many ministers, congregations, and communicants as does the United Presbyterian Church. The Union, however, still leaves three other Presbyterian churches in Scotland. The most important of these is, of course, the Established Church of that country, the official title being "The Church of Scotland." This organization has over six hundred thousand communicants, nearly fourteen hundred parishes, nearly sixteen hundred ministers, and about two hundred and fifty thousand Sunday-school scholars and teachers. Such figures show that the Established Church is, so far as numbers go, much in advance of the Free Church, hitherto its greatest rival. The

Established Church, however, must now take second place. The totals for the new United Free Church are nearly eighteen hundred ministers, over seventeen hundred congregations, about five hundred thousand communicants, and nearly three hundred thousand Sunday-school scholars and teachers. The two Presbyterian churches in Scotland having little affiliation with the Established Church or with the Free Church are "The Synod of the United Original Seceders," having nearly four thousand communicants, and "The Reformed Presbyterian Church of Scotland," with about a thousand communicants. It is to be hoped that these small communions may find it to their advantage to amalgamate with one of the two great Presbyterian Churches of Scotland, and that, in the course of time, the Established and the United Free Church may become one united body, thus bringing together again the discordant elements which manifested themselves so markedly in 1733, when the United Presbyterian Church withdrew from the Church of Scotland, and in 1843, when the Free Church withdrew.

Dean Everett

Dr. Charles C. Everett, Dean of the Harvard Divinity School, who died at his home in Cambridge last week, had long been a familiar figure to the students of Harvard University, and was a man of rare spirit and unusual literary gifts. Born at Brunswick, Maine, in 1829, graduating from Bowdoin College twenty years later, he carried on post-graduate studies at the University of Berlin, returning after considerable absence in Europe to act as librarian and tutor at Bowdoin, and finally to become Professor of Modern Languages. His bent was toward theology, and, after several years of teaching, he entered the Harvard Divinity School, from which he graduated in 1859. For more than ten years he was pastor of the Independent Congregational Church in Bangor, and soon secured a leading position in the Unitarian pulpit. His wide scholarship, his fine quality of mind, and his elevated character gave him great influence. In 1869 he accepted the Bussey Professorship of Theology at Harvard, and since that time he had been intimately associated

with the Harvard Divinity School. He was an assiduous though not voluminous writer. The "Science of Thought," "Religions Before Christianity," and "The Gospel of Paul" are the best known of his books in the religious field; while his delightful volume on "Poetry, Comedy, and Duty" disclosed his fine literary instinct, his sense of form, and his aptitude for literary comment and interpretation.

A Russian Young Men's Christian Association

An interesting event in the religious development of Russia was the dedication at St. Petersburg last week of a building fitted up for the Society for the Moral and Physical Improvement of Young Men," an organization similar to the Young Men's Christian Association. The religious services were conducted by three prominent Greek priests, assisted by one of the male choirs which are such an impressive feature of worship in the Russian Church. The religious service was followed by several speeches from distinguished men present, including one by Mr. James Stokes, the American philanthropist. Mr. Stokes referred to the bond of union between Russia and the United States caused by the former's sending her fleet to America at a critical period of our Civil War-an act which went a long way towards preventing the recognition of the Southern Confederacy by Europe. Mr. Stokes, who is largely responsible for the financial foundation of the undertaking, was received with much applause. It is interesting to note that the curator of the Society for the Moral and Physical Improvement of Young Men is Prince Alexander Oldenberg, the distinguished publicist and benefactor, and that the other officers are the Chamberlain of the Imperial Court, two Assistant Secretaries in the Ministry of the Interior, and three influential priests of the Russian Church. In this undertaking the hand of the young Czar is evident, as was the case last week at the International Conference of the Railway Department of the Young Men's Christian Association at Philadelphia, to which, as we have already chronicled, two delegates were personally accredited by Imperial orders.

Last spring the General Assembly of the Presbyterian Church empowered a committee to ask three questions of the two hundred and thirty-two presbyteries: (1) Do you desire a revision of our Confession of Faith? or, (2) Do you desire a supplemental, explanatory statement? or, (3) Do you desire to supplement our present doctrinal standards with a briefer statement of the doctrines "most surely believed among us"? or, (4) Do you desire the dismissal of the whole subject? Nearly half the Presbyteries have now answered these questions. Thirty have voted in favor of revision only, and thirty for a supplemental statement; fifteen have voted for a substitute creed, or for revision and a supplemental creed. Finally, forty presbyteries oppose any action in the matter. An analysis of the vote shows that the presbyteries voting in favor of revision or of a supplemental statement are those generally centering in the large cities. Those advising against revision are, with a very few exceptions, country presbyteries. The conclusion from such a vote is that those less sensitive to the movement of contemporary thought naturally take a conservative position.

The Westminster Confession

Normal Instruction for Sunday-Schools

Recently The Outlook referred to the admirable educational plan proposed by the Sunday-School Commis sion of the Protestant Episcopal Diocese of New York. The courses proposed are both advanced and elementary. The advanced course has to do with the principles and methods of the art of teaching. It will be conducted by Professor J. F. Reigart. The price of tickets for the course of lessons is five dollars. The elementary courses are three in number-the first on "The Principles of Teaching," by Dr. Hervey; the second on "The Art of StoryTelling," by Professor Baker; and the third on "How to Find the Point," by Miss Sebring. The price of a ticket for an elementary course of five lessons is two dollars and a half. We recommend those of our readers who reside in New York City or vicinity and are interested in Sunday-school work to write to the Secre tary, the Rev. William Walter Smith, M.D., 25 West One Hundred and Fourteenth Street, New York, for a copy of

the Report, which will give to them the topics and places of meeting. This is, so far as we know, the first attempt on any adequate scale to bring normal principles to bear on Sunday-school teaching.

Science, history, The Boston Symphony Hall and philanthropy combined with art to make the opening and dedication of "Symphony Hall" in Symphony Hall" in Boston on Monday evening of last week a notable occasion. The history of Boston's old Music Hall is practically the history of the development of musical taste in the United States. It was opened It was opened in 1852, and for nearly fifty years it has been famous as the center of the musical life which Boston has developed with such characteristic intelligence. Owing to various changes involved in the growth and development of the city, the old Music Hall had to be abandoned, and its successor, appropriately named "Symphony Hall," has been built in a new quarter of the city, largely by the subscription of generous believers in the value to a community of fine music. As every one

relative power of various substances to absorb sound, such as "cushions, draperies, plaster on lath, plaster on tiles and brick, wood, open windows, men and women." All reports agree that his success in the practical application of these formulæ to the construction of the new auditorium is complete. This is a significant illustration of the truth that art is not the product of mere inspiration or intuitive genius, but is based on the most painstaking scientific knowledge. The dedicatory exercises with which "Symphony Hall" was opened to the public consisted of an address by Mr. Higginson, a commemoratory ode by Mr. Owen Wister, and a fine performance of Beethoven's "Missa Solennis," a musical work of noble character, one, however, rarely attempted by choral societies on account of its great difficulties. Mr. Higginson's fine achievement in bringing "Symphony Hall" to a successful completion will give satisfaction everywhere, not only to lovers of music but to lovers of public spirit.

ton, which is one of the first orchestras of the world and in honor of which the new hall doubtless takes its name, has been made a possibility by the active financial and personal support of Mr. Henry L. Higginson, whose public-spirited work may be called not inappropriately a real philanthropy. He has personally leased the new building from the stockholders, thus relieving them from the burden of maintenance and assuring the public that the high musical standards set by him in the past will be maintained in the future. While the building is artistically a beautiful one, it is interesting to note that science has played quite as important a part as art in its construction. Professor Wallace Sabine, of the Department of Physics in Harvard University, has devoted much study to the acoustic problems involved in the plans for the auditorium. As a result of five years' work, says Mr. H. E. Krehbiel, the wellknown critic of the New York "Tribune," which included experiments in the Leipsic Gewandhaus, the old Boston Music Hall, and other concert-rooms, Professor Sabine laid down formula which determine the

erned

From a number of letters received in reply to a recent editorial on "The Basis of Government" we select the two which appear to us to put most effectively the view of our critics. We do not here reply to their criticisms in detail; but we attempt to restate the issue in order to make clear to all our readers the position of The Outlook.

There are two entirely distinct questions which it seems to us our critics confuse. They are: First, What constitutes justice? second, In what way shall a community in any given case determine what is just? The Outlook affirms that justice consists, not in conformity to the will of the majority, but in conformity to the laws of God. A government which conforms to those laws is just although it is opposed to the will of the majority; a government which does not conform to those laws is unjust although it is approved by the will of the majority. There is an old motto that Might makes right. That is now universally repudiated; for it is substituted the motto, Majorities make right.