THE readers of the Observer will be glad to know that Miss Packer is now on her way to India. She embarked at Gravesend, Oct. 15th, on board the good ship Eldorado, one of the finest of Messrs. Wilson's fleet. A party of dear friends accompanied her on board. Parting on board ship is always painful; and as the Eldorado carries 120 passengers, it was especially so in this instance. Many countenances were sad, and tearful eyes met you at every turn. After arranging the luggage, we met in Miss Packer's cabin, to commit her and her companion, Miss Thom,* to the care of God. We all felt it to be a very solemn and touching scene, and one that will never be forgotten; it was a Bochim, but it was also a Bethel. Miss Packer will carry with her many kind and prayerful wishes; and she will ever retain grateful recollections of dear friends in England. Her visit to this country has been beneficial to her health, and in some localities has deepened the interest in the Mission. The Ladies' Society have requested her to engage in zenana work, and her future sphere will be Cuttack. It has been thought that her knowledge of the language, and long experience of native character and life, will eminently fit her for this undertaking. On Monday evening a very interesting service was held at the Metropolitan Tabernacle, to take leave of four missionaries. For an account of this service, we must refer the reader to the Christian World of Oct. 15th. Mr. Spurgeon gave us an opportunity to say a little about Miss Packer's past and future work; and at the close we were invited to his study. The kindly greeting and words of good cheer he gave to our dear sister will long be remembered far away. * Miss Thom is going to Delhi, for zenana work. MEETINGS IN TODMORDEN VALE. ANNUAL services on behalf of our Foreign Mission were held in the five chapels Todmorden Vale on Lord's-day, Oct. 10th, and on the Monday and Tuesday evenings following, the latter in Vale and Lydgate. The services of the deputation, brethren Buckley and Hill, were well calculated to sustain and deepen the interest already felt in foreign missionary work. Our hope, as expressed in last year's report, was fully realized, the income having risen from £89 9s. 74d., to £103 7s. 104d. Todmorden, in this effort, under the inspiration of its pastor, brother Cantrell, and it is hoped a higher inspiration, has done nobly, having contributed the sum of £42. The correspondence and arrangements for our meetings have been chiefly in the hands of brother C.; and now that he is about to remove from us, we cannot but express the wish that his successor in the office may be actuated by similar earnestness and wisdom. Of this we are quite sure that the best wishes of the entire district will go with and follow brother Cantrell to his new sphere of labour. The attendance and spirit of the whole of our meetings promise well for the future. W. CHAPMAN. FOREIGN LETTERS RECEIVED. CUTTACK-J. G. Pike, Sept. 4. PIPLEE-T. Bailey, Sept. 9. CONTRIBUTIONS Received on account of the General Baptist Missionary Society from £ s. d. 050 26 19 7 7 13 7 Clayton 12 12 0 10 0 0 12 9 0 18 16 8 41 16 10 13 12 7 110 Subscriptions and Donations in aid of the General Baptist Missionary Society will be thank fully received by T. HILL, Esq., Baker Street, Nottingham, Treasurer; and by the Rev. J. C. PIKE, Secretary, Leicester, from whom also Missionary Boxes, Collecting Books and Cards may be obtained. It will oblige if Post Office Orders for the Secretary be made payable at the "KING RICHARD'S ROAD" Office, Leicester. THE GENERAL BAPTIST MAGAZINE. DECEMBER, 1875. THE LATE REV. THOMAS RYDER. THE early Christians, filled with the true instincts of the spiritual life, and forming their speech under their healthy guidance, used to speak of and commemorate the day of death as " the birthday feast of the dead” -a joyous and triumphant entering into full life, rather than a dying from it. Christ had swept their minds clean of pagan gloom by His resurrection, and so richly inspired them with the hope of eternal life that they felt themselves only set free for the most perfect enjoyment of their new blessedness when death released them from the bonds of this mortal existence. Dying was the soul's advent to its true home with Christ; and like the rapturous spring of the eager slave over the boundary which separates him from the pursuit of the oppressor for ever, so the spirit leapt out of the chariot of death into its own free and sunny clime. The same hope is ours, and it is still victorious over sorrow; and therefore, though bereaved and sorely afflicted wife and kindred, church and friends, of the late Thomas Ryder shed tears of grief at the recollection of Thursday, October 7th, yet will they chase them away as they think of it as his birth into the perfected life of the sons of God. That day was, as we short-sighted mortals judge, the third birth epoch in his history; each of which is dateable, each a starting-point, each marking the entrance of new potencies and new experiences; and yet, probably, to a mind that sees the end from the beginning, are scarcely distinguishable days in the long, delicate, and subtle processes by which a soul is prepared for its eternal destiny, its abiding citizenship in heaven. Sharply defined, separate, and boldly projecting themselves in life, like promontories into the sea, are the birthdays of body, soul, and spirit whilst the real character-making influences of parentage and training, of bright-winged hope and soaring aspiration, of bruising trial and painful defeat, of keen discipline and transporting joy, of whispered word and subtly-flowing streams of power from other lives —all of which have their place in building a man in righteousness and true holiness, as much as, and perhaps more than the word winged with converting energy-these ordinary quiet inworking forces are hidden from us, and we can only with difficulty get on their track. Much as we know of repentance and conversion and soul-growth, the study of other men's lives makes us feel that we have nearly all to learn as yet, as to how God makes " a new man in Christ Jesus," and feeds and nourishes him, so that he may come to such a man's full stature. VOL. LXXVII.-NEW SERIES, No. 72. The birth epochs in Thomas Ryder's life stand thus. Born of godly parents into a godly home at Wem, in Shropshire, on the 11th of June, 1840. Born from above of a godly ministry, persuasive, earnest, tender, and holy, at Birkenhead, August 5th, 1858. Born into heaven, his final resting-place, from the house of Professor C. E. Stowe, Hartford, Connecticut, United States, on the 7th of October, 1875. But between these decisive stages are intermediate ones, as closely graduated as the inches between two milestones. Many of them as yet we see not; but the materials placed in our hands will help us to detect a few. His home was the dwelling-place of godliness and good sense, of piety and principle. Like Trebonius in his avocation, Mr. Ryder's father was also like him in his faith in the possibilities of his pupils, and specially in those of his son. He highly appreciated learning, and would endorse the advice with which the most eminent pupil of Trebonius, Martin Luther, concludes a letter, saying, "I have been a beggar of crumbs, and have taken my bread at the door; yet I have prospered so far forth with the pen that I would not exchange my art for all the wealth of the Turkish empire. . . . Yet I should not have attained thereunto, had I not gone to school, and given myself to the business of writing. Therefore doubt not to put your boy to study; and if he needs must beg his bread, you nevertheless give unto God a noble piece of timber, whereof He will carve a great man." And young Thomas Ryder needed training too. He was no dullard, too inactive for fun, too phlegmatic for mischief. His buoyancy was most inventive, uncontrollable, troublesome. Mimicry was his special delight, and in it he acquired a dangerous proficiency. He had the boisterous explosiveness of a lad rarely at rest, and as rarely letting others rest. Sunday school teachers found managing him a difficulty, and could only do so by the expenditure of sagacity, sympathy, and skill. Nor were his parents without anxiety, as they thought of the temptations of London life (for they had removed to the metropolis in his second year), and of the feverish restlessness of his spirit. in But the training was not lost upon him. He made fair progress languages and mathematics, loved chemistry and drawing, and distinguished himself in music and elocution." He won the "first prize as a reciter in the Fitzroy Band of Hope; became a pupil teacher in his father's school; and gave promise of teaching power of a very high quality. دو Still, the decisive consecration of himself to the service of Christ, for which his parents prayed and yearned, was delayed. Often he was stirred to thoughtfulness, Bible reading, resolution making; but the serious impression seemed like the morning cloud and early dew, which quickly pass away. Seed was sown, and it was not trampled out of life; but it was a long time before the green blade was seen. The ministry of Baptist Noel, a man he loved and venerated; the efforts and prayers of parents and friends, left him at eighteen years only a seeker after religion, a Zaccheus striving to get a glimpse of Christ. And, like Zaccheus, he was in earnest looking for Christ; and Christ knew it, and was waiting to say to him, Come down from your THE LATE REV. THOMAS RYDER. 443 self-righteous ways, and let Me abide in your heart, for to-day is salvation come. During the time he was acting as assistant master in a large school in Liverpool, his eye fell upon a placard announcing that Mr. Noel was to preach at Birkenhead. With a heavy heart-a heart filled with that mourning which is itself the sure pledge that the blessing of Christ's comfort is at hand-he crossed the ferry from Liverpool, to hear the words of one who still had greater sway over his thought and will than any other. The preacher discoursed on the "Parable of the Sower," to one, at least, whose heart was prepared of God to receive good seed. The Spirit of God carried home the gospel message, and he recrossed the ferry "a new creature in Christ Jesus." To him that night was crossing the rubicon of life: entering the kingdom of heaven. His foot had been on the threshold for years; now he had passed in, and taken his place amongst the children and servants of God. Let not ministers of the Word of God despond. God may give us in a moment we know not of, to complete and crown the labour of years! Seed sown in London may come to harvest in Liverpool. Henceforth the current of the young man's life was changed. Old associates were given up, old habits broken, and in right earnest he gave himself to prayer, Sunday school teaching, occasional preaching, and other forms of Christian activity. Leaving Liverpool, he took charge of a school in Dean Forest, and there began to preach on a more extended scale, and was there urged to devote his life to the ministry of the Word of God. Not being a Baptist, he was advised by Mr. Noel to seek admission into Countess of Huntingdon's College at Cheshunt, where he remained for two years, and then once more resumed the duties of his scholastic life. These took him to Manchester, and near to the stirring and powerful preaching of Mr. Maclaren's. He was not slow to avail himself of the privilege of listening to such a helpful voice. Becoming convinced of believer's baptism, he, by Mr. Maclaren's advice, once more turned his attention to the ministry, and accepted the pastorate of the Baptist church at Padiham, East Lancashire, in September, 1866. In his first pastoral charge he worked with self-consuming enthusiasm and ardent devotion. Young and old alike felt the spell of his exuberant activity. Musical culture was a passion with him, and he soon resumed work he commenced at fifteen, and had carried on at different stages with unvarying success, viz., that of teaching the Tonic Sol-fa system of music. A twin birth in his soul with the love of song, was the love of Total Abstinence work, and a Band of Hope soon sprang into power under his fostering care, and became a centre of good in the village; whilst his appeals to the neighbouring Burnley magistrates prevented the renewal of licences to several publicans and beer-sellers who had been guilty of violations of the Licensing Acts. The church at Padiham reported 77 members in his first year; in his last it was raised to 113; and when, in the autumn of 1870, he accepted the pastorate of Stoney Street, Nottingham, he left behind him a warmly attached and devoted people. Once settled in Nottingham, the enthusiasms of his life soon showed themselves. The eager restless activity and buoyant hopefulness of the lad in John Street Sunday school were now yoked to the chariot of progress, and pulling with all their might. The reports of the church to the Association speak of the formation of Mothers' Meetings, Bible Classes, and the like. Our Magazine for 1873, as our readers will remember, bears witness, in a series of six articles, to his continued and deepened interest in the service of song in the house of the Lord. With a theme like "the Music of the Sanctuary" he was particularly well qualified to deal. He had been trained under exceptionally favourable circumstances; first by his father, a teacher of high repute and long standing, and next by Dr. Lowell Mason, of America. Nor had he at any time relaxed his efforts to perfect his musical ability, increase his musical knowledge, and ripen his judgment on musical questions. He was a member of the Council of the Tonic Sol-fa College from the first; and was appointed in 1873 to the Chairmanship of the Grand Lodge Committee of Good Templars on Music; and had published a collection of tunes specially composed for hymns of peculiar metre. His papers are full of historical allusion, sparkle with humour, and are marked by good sense. Though opposed to organs for the purposes of praise, yet he admits their use in sustaining tone and keeping time, and does not violently eject them. He urges that the service of song should be the service of the whole congregation; and states that he agrees with Beecher when he says that "choirs are like bombshells, liable to explode at any time; and fearing that they may, he is careful to keep out of the way of the pieces;" yet he is specially anxious that the congregation should be so trained that it may be, as a large choir, ready and able to follow a good lead. Warm praise was bestowed on these papers by those able to judge: even by those who could not accept all Mr. Ryder's conclusions, as, for example, by our friend Allen, of Burnley, who was passionately devoted to music, but who counted the organ the perfection of human mechanism, and a paragon of power in praise. How both these beloved and glorified brethren exult now in the sweet music of heaven, set to the song of Moses and the Lamb! On few subjects did Mr. Ryder think more frequently, or feel more strongly, than on National Intemperance. The Total Abstinence principle was part of his life. It was put in early, and it was kept there to the end. He was a Band of Hope boy at the "Fitzroy" at ten years of age. At College he belonged to the Total Abstainers' Union, and fought in College debates. At Padiham, Temperance work was a prominent feature of his ministry. He originated the Nottingham and Nottinghamshire Band of Hope Union, and acted as its honorary secretary; and lived to see no less than forty Bands of Hope established, mainly by his personal influence in the town and district. He was pre-eminently the children's friend. He knew the way to their hearts; entered into their sorrows; sympathized with their sufferings; sought with beautiful wisdom, winning speech, charming song, sound counsel, and warm love, to guard them from the perils thickening around their untried feet. In him every form of attack upon that sworn foe of English prosperity and English goodness, intemperance, found an advocate and a champion. His convictions were deep; his soul was in earnest; he was "weary with forbearing, and could not stay;" he must give deeds, quick, brave, determined deeds, or he would attaint the pureness of his loyalty to his |