1851.] History of the First Presbyterian Church in Albany. 129 themselves in lively, fervent preaching; and the latter heard with a peculiar attention. Through the blessing of God, many were converted, and religion took such hold on their hearts, that it could never afterwards be effaced." HISTORY OF THE FIRST PRESBYTERIAN CHURCH IN ALBANY. IN May 1760, the Presbyterians of Albany sent a very pressing supplication to the Synod of Philadelphia for ministerial supplies; and Hector Alison of Drawyers, Kettletas of Elizabethtown, and Tennent of Freehold, were sent to minister to them in holy things. The congregation was almost wholly of Scottish descent, some probably being from Freehold, some from other parts of New Jersey, and a few from Old England. The church was organized at the close of the French war in 1763. A building was soon commenced, and their first pastor was the Rev. William Hannah, a graduate of King's College in New York city, and a licentiate of Litchfield Association. When and by whom ordained, is not known; but he was "received into Dutchess County Presbytery"* on October 18th, 1763, when he was pastor of the church at Albany. Mr. Hannah remained pastor about two years; and it may be added, that he was afterwards suspended from the ministry in 1767, for having abandoned its work and accepted a commission from the Governor to practise as an attorney.† The Rev. Andrew Bay was the second pastor. He was ordained by the Presbytery of Newcastle in 1748, and belonged to that part of it which adhered to the Synod of New York. He became pastor of the Albany Church about 1769, and remained there till 1774, when he settled at Newtown, L. I. He subsequently experienced some difficulty with his congregation, and retired from the jurisdiction of the Synod in 1776. In 1775, the church at Albany had permission from the Synod to place itself under the care of the Presbytery of New York; but it had to struggle with many trials incident to the times, and remained without a pastor until after the close of the Revolution. In 1785, the congregation was incorporated; and on the 8th of November of that year, the Rev. John McDonald was ordained and installed pastor of the church by the Presbytery of New York. He continued in that office till the year 1795. Subsequently to his removal, the pulpit was supplied for two years by the Rev. David S. Bogart, a licentiate of the Dutch Reformed Church. In the year 1798, the Rev. Eliphalet Nott, D. D., became pastor of the church, and remained till 1804. His succes Records, p. 352. VOL. I.-No. 3. + Ibid. p. 378. Ibid. p. 476. 130 History of the first Presbyterian Church in Albany. [March, sors were the Rev. John B. Romeyn, D. D., called in 1804, and remaining till the close of 1808. The Rev. William Neill, D. D., called in 1809, and remaining till the middle of 1816. The Rev. Arthur J. Stansbury, called in 1817, and remaining till the spring of 1821. The Rev. Henry R. Weed, D. D., called in 1822, and remaining till the autumn of 1829. The Rev. John N. Campbell, D. D., called in 1830, and still the pastor of the church. There is no record of communicants in the church previously to the year 1785. From that time to the present date, the whole number admitted to the communion of the church, appears from the records to be seventeen hundred and eighty-three. How many of these were admitted on examination, and how many on certificate, is not known. There are no dates accessible to the writer from which can be ascertained what seasons of revival may have occurred previously to the ministry of the present pastor. From the number received on examination into the church in two years, 1826 and 1827, under the ministry of Dr. Weed, viz. seventy-two, it is evident, however, that there must have been a season of unusual interest at that time. During Dr. Campbell's ministry of twenty years, there have been added to the church five hundred and eighty-two persons; on examination three hundred and fifty-four, on certificate two hundred and twenty-eight. Two revivals of religion have occurred during that period, the former in 1831. In that and the following year, one hundred and six persons united with the church on examination. The latter occurred in 1840, during which year eighty-three persons were received on examination. There was also a season of more than usual interest in 1843. In the last fifteen years, during which time alone any reliable account of charitable contributions has been kept, the church has given to objects of religious benevolence about $100,000. The original trustees in 1763 were John Macomb, David Edgar, Samuel Holladay, Robert Henry, Abraham Lyle, and John Monro. The elders were Robert Henry, David Edgar, and Matthew Watson. There have been ordained, to the present date, thirty-one elders and fourteen deacons. The first house of worship was on a high hill facing Hudson street, on a lot bounded on the east by William street, on the north by Beaver street, on the south by Hudson street, and on the west by Grand street. It was a building of convenient size, fronting to the east, with a tall steeple, and cost £2813 York currency. The second house of worship was erected in 1798, and was a fine, large building; it was remodelled and fitted up with great taste in 1831. The location, however, had become a noisy one; and the great prosperity of the church under Dr. Campbell, seemed to demand the erection of a more convenient, spacious, and suitable edifice. The present structure, which is a noble specimen of Gothic architecture, was commenced in the autumn of 1847, and was opened and dedicated to the worship of Almighty God on Sabbath, March 10th, 1850. The lot on which this edifice is erected is on Hudson street, one hundred and fifty feet in length, and on Philip street, on which it fronts, about one hundred and forty-eight feet in breadth, enclosed by an iron fence of Gothic pattern. The following is a brief description of the building: The entire building occupies an area of about one hundred and twenty by seventy-five feet. The tower is twenty-six feet square, and one hundred and fifty-six high. The body of the building is ninety-seven by seventy-five feet, and forty-four feet to the top of the parapets; and relieved externally with eighteen buttresses, four turrets, and perforated for twelve windows. The projection at the west end is about thirty by seven feet, and contains two angle buttresses, cornice and parapet. The principal entrance is into the east side of the tower. The tower contains the porch, the screen doors, and the organ and bell lofts; also the apartment designed for the clock. The area of the body of the church, about seventy-seven by sixty-four feet, is divided by two ranges of columns into nave and side aisles: the columns form the support of the two ranges of galleries, and of the spandrels of the groined ceiling. The main floor contains one hundred and fifty-four pews, and the gallery forty-four. The choir is of sufficient size to accommodate thirty persons. The pews and wood work in general are painted in imitation of black walnut. The pulpit is square, of black walnut, richly ornamented. The desk-board rests on projecting open carved work, under which stands the baptismal font, in a niche. The church has an organ of the first class, seventeen feet wide, twenty feet deep, and twenty-six feet high in the three banks of keys. The congregation has already greatly increased; and the new enterprise promises, under the Divine blessing, to be the occasion of renewed prosperity to this venerable church. MINISTERIAL STATISTICS. THE alphabetical list of ministers, prepared for this Magazine, has been a work of great labour; first in arranging it, then in correcting the post-office addresses to January 1st., and finally, in printing and revising it. We have, however, thus made a beginning towards the more full elucidation and preservation of the statistics of the Presbyterian Church. This list shows, in an accessible manner, where each of our ministers was located at the commencement of this half-century. Ought not such a list to be printed in the Annual Minutes of the Assembly? It might be done without taking up much, if any, additional space, provided the type in which the Minutes proper of the Assembly are printed, was reduced to its former size, which was quite large enough for the purposes of such records. One of the objects in establishing the Presbyterian Magazine, was to gather up the fragments of our ecclesiastical history. In addition to the present table of our ministers, the editor has been preparing one ab urbe condita, from the days of Francis Makemie. A portion of it is nearly completed, in three divisions; viz. from the formation of the Presbytery of Philadelphia to the schism in 1745. 2d. From the schism in 1745 to the reunion in 1758, the names of ministers in the two Synods being kept distinct. 3d. From 1758 to the formation of the General Assembly in 1789. We have also nearly completed the list down to the year 1804, which is as far as the records, published by the Board of Publication, supply the means for such a work. No one has any idea of the immense labour involved in such an undertaking, who has not himself been engaged in a similar pursuit. The only way to find the new ministers from 1789, is to go over the entire roll from year to year. An easy way of remedying this difficulty hereafter, would be to publish in our Minutes an annual list of the new ministers ordained. Dr. Green, a great man even in littles, was, we believe, the last clerk who published the annual deaths until after a period of nearly forty years the list was resumed by Dr. Engles. It is of great importance to the historian. The mode in which our statistics are kept, needs, in our judgment, some revision; and we shall take another opportunity to revert to this subject. Christ's Second Coming: Will it be pre-millennial? By the Rev. DAVID BROWN, St. James' Free Church, Glasgow, Scotland. R. Carter & Brothers, New York. In our February number, we presented an outline of Mr. Brown's scriptural argument against modern pre-millennialism. We were obliged to omit, on account of the length of the notice, an examination of the principal passage of Scripture on which the pre-millennialists rely. The passage, which is the "seat" of the doctrine, is found in the book of Revelation, and is as follows: And I saw thrones, and they sat upon them, and judgment was given unto them: and I saw the souls of them that were beheaded for the witness of Jesus, and for the word of God, and which had not worshipped the beast, neither his image, neither had received his mark upon their foreheads, or in their hands; and they lived and reigned with Christ a thousand years. But the rest of the dead lived not again until the thousand years were finished. This is the first resurrection. Blessed and holy is he that hath part in the first resurrection: on such the second death hath no power, but they shall be priests of God and of Christ, and shall reign with him a thousand years.-Rev. xx. 4—6. The question is between a literal or figurative interpretation. The premillennialists affirm, and Mr. Brown denies, that this celebrated passage was designed to announce a literal and general resurrection of the saints. Mr. Brown brings the following presumptions against the literal interpretation. 1. It is very strange that the resurrection of the righteous a thousand years before the wicked, if it be a revealed truth, should be announced in one passage only, especially when there are so many passages which point in the opposite direction. 2. If this was to be the chosen place to announce such prior resurrection, it is reasonable to expect a clear and unambiguous revelation of it. Joseph Meade, Bengel, and Professor Stuart limit the interpretation to martyrs only; Bishop Newton and others apply it to martyrs and confessors; whilst most pre-millennialists refer it to all the saints. 3. If the resurrection of the righteous in general be the true sense of the prophecy, the description is very unlike the thing to be described. Every other description of the resurrection is general, as "the righteous unto life eternal;" "they that have done good unto the resurrection of life;" they "that are Christ's at his coming," &c. Whereas this passage confines the description to "them that were beheaded," and which "had not worshipped the beast," &c. 4. The Apocalypse is universally considered a highly symbolical and prophetical book, whose interpretation is exceedingly difficult. Now it is an old maxim in divinity that doctrines are not to be built upon prophetic or symbolical scripture. "Theologia prophetica non est argumentativa." Before proceeding further, we deem it best to give to our readers the figurative meaning of the passage, and then produce the arguments against the literal meaning. Those of our readers, who have not patience and will not carefully study the interpretation we are about to give, cannot profit by it. Mr. Brown's interpretation is as follows: "It is exclusively a martyr scene; the prophet beholding simply a resurrec tion of THE SLAIN." The vision is described first generally, and then in detail. Two companies also are seen in the vision, and in two successive and opposite conditions-first as dead and dishonoured, next as risen and reigning. Thus: GENERAL DESCRIPTION OF THE VISION. "And I saw thrones, and they sat upon them, and judgment was given unto them." DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE VISION. First Company seen Dead. "And [I saw] the souls of them that were beheaded for the testimony of Jesus, and for the word of God; Second Company seen Dead. "And [I saw] such as had not worshipped the beast, neither his image, neither had received his mark upon the forehead, and on the hand: Both Companies seen Risen and Reigning. "And they lived and reigned with Christ a thousand years." "I saw thrones, and they sat upon them." Who sat upon them? Not any mentioned as yet, for the vision begins here. Clearly, therefore, it is the two companies immediately after specified. Accordingly, as soon as the prophet has described these, he comes back to his first statement-"And they [those now specified] lived and reigned a thousand years." If this be the construction of the passage, as it clearly is-if the words "they sat upon them," mean "they to be presently mentioned"-then we must put no other saints into the vision besides those afterwards specified; and the concluding words, And they (those just specified) lived and reigned," tie us peremptorily down to those two companies alone. Who, then, are they? The next two clauses furnish the reply: 66 And [I saw] the souls of them that were beheaded for the testimony of Jesus and for the word of God." Beheading, a well-known Roman mode of putting to an ignominious death, is mentioned here, merely to denote the Roman authority by which they were slain, in the Pagan and unbroken period of the empire. All the martyrs of Jesus, then, under the Pagan persecutions are here embraced. The next clause describes another class of martyrs, after |