liorate his character by the influence of Christianity.5

It has been asserted, and I fear not without reason, that the ministers of the established church in these colonies have seldom been distinguished, until lately, for their zeal in preaching the gospel to the slave inhabitants of their parishes. The laity scrupled to regard this part of the population as falling within the spiritual care of the parochial minister, and the minister himself paid too great a deference to these worldly and unholy scruples. The fear of man which bringeth a snare, was often stronger with him than the fear of God.

6

These times are happily passed. The assertion is no longer openly made, that the African is degraded below the level of human nature,' and is therefore neither qualified nor designed for the enjoyment of the blessings of the gospel. The advocates for his admission into

7

5 Appendix D. * Prov. xxix. 25. Appendix E.

the church are no longer withstood on the ground that he is not of the same descent with the European; nor are arguments now brought forward to invalidate the declaration of St. Paul, that God hath made of one blood all nations of men for to dwell on all the face of the earth. The most superficial examination of our coloured schools will enable us to repel the insinuation of an inferiority of intellect in the negro. I can assert, with the confidence arising from long and attentive observation, that, with equal advantages, he shows a capacity equal in every respect to that of his white brethren for mental improvement, and for all the moral excellencies which distinguish man from the beasts of the field.

This truth is not new to our parochial clergy, and it has led irresistibly to the conclusion, that the minister dares not, without a glaring and an unpardonable dereliction of his duty, neglect the spiri

8 Acts xvii. 26.

tual instruction of the negro population. The tie which binds him to the faithful performance of the work committed to him cannot be capriciously dissolved. ALL persons who reside within the limits of his parish, are under his ministerial care; and he dares not, without violating the most solemn engagements by which man can be bound, and to which he is pledged in the presence of the great Searcher of hearts, renounce this charge, or evade the duties annexed to it, by any mental reservation of his own, or even by the concurrent and avowed approval of others.

I have said that the ministers of the established church, who resided formerly in these colonies, have been charged with neglecting the spiritual interests of their brethren of a darker complexion. The charge, however, cannot be extended to the clergy of the mother country. Earnest and repeated were the appeals of our bishops and pastors in behalf of the un

instructed negro. The anniversary sermons," preached before the Society for the Propagation of the Gospel in Foreign Parts, abound with exhortations on the duty of teaching the slave the truths of our religion, and admitting him by baptism to the promised mercies of the gospel. I shall select one, which although long for a quotation, is, however, so clearly illustrative of the view entertained by our church on this subject, that I cannot refrain from bringing it before you. It is from a sermon' preached by Bishop Fleetwood, in the year 1710, before the assembled rulers of our church; and if some of the expressions should be considered harsh in an address from this pulpit,

9 See more particularly sermons preached by Archbishops Secker, Moore, and Manners; by Bishops Berkeley, Gibson, Claggett, Butler, Drummond, Green, Tomline, and Porteus, and by Dean Stanhope.

'This sermon was published by the Society, and widely distributed in our colonies.

C

we must remember that those expressions were applied to the state of our colonies more than a hundred years ago, and it is injurious to the character of our inhabitants to suppose that they are calculated to give offence in our own times.

4

After speaking of the neglected condition of the slaves in all that regarded their religious instruction, and the remissness, and in many cases the unwillingness, of their masters to have them baptized, he indignantly asks, "What do these people think of Christ? what of their slaves? what of themselves?-What do they think of Christ? that he who came from heaven to purchase to himself a church with his own precious blood, should sit contented, and behold with unconcern those who profess themselves his servants, excluding from its gates those who would gladly enter if they might. One may ask with indignation, what such people think of Christ? But it is far more proper to say,