e
kingdoms of this world being thankfully surrendered to the righteous
government of the Prince of Peace. But alas! deep and complicated may be
the sufferings yet behind for the church and her children to endure,
whether in being sharers in, or but the witnesses of, what is pronounced
upon the world of the ungodly.

FROM JOHN ROWNTREE.

Scarborough, 8 mo. 29, 1842.

The account of your proceedings at Amiens has been particularly
interesting to me. Whether manufacturing employments are unfavorable or
otherwise to moral and religions character; or whether it is merely the
larger earnings which artizans receive, enabling them more glaringly to
gratify their natural and corrupt inclinations than agricultural laborers,
can do; whether the passive ignorance of the country laborer, or the more
active and intelligent habits, yet combined with moral darkness, of the
manufacturing operative, most retards the diffusion of religious truth,
are serious questions for us in this country. Our manufacturers have been
alarming the whole nation, and threatening us with something like
political revolution; but they have received a severe lesson, and many of
our jails are filled with the victims of unprincipled agitators.
Considering how little of the Christian spirit is generally found in the
operations of government, the treatment of these poor creatures has on the
whole been lenient, and no very severe punishments are anticipated.

Whether the people of this nation have learned more of righteousness from
the judgments of the Lord, which have I think evidently been made known in
this part of his earth, is perhaps known only to Him who knoweth all
things. I often fear;--for surely there is very much of darkness and
wickedness among us--yet I can not unfrequently hope that light is
spreading, and that although the powers of evil are active and strongly
developed, yet the active diffusion of the means of good more than keeps
pace with them. "Greater is He that is in you than he that is in the
world," is still a consoling assurance to many dejected yet hoping
believers. Our dear friend Hannah C. Backhouse is strong in the faith that
light increasing, that the fields are white already for harvest, and that
the Lord of the harvest is preparing and sending forth laborers into his
harvest.

The Protestants whom you found at Amiens, and in some other places, would
probably remain totally unknown to ordinary travellers, and perhaps we do
not