good may be accomplished, by like humble means, among the unbelieving Jews. And hence we are disposed to attach much importance to the mode of operation so wisely adopted by our German missionaries, in not only addressing themselves directly to the Israelites, but in seeking to excite a kindly sympathy towards them, and an earnest zeal for their conversion, among the surrounding Christians, who have hitherto been accustomed to regard them, not only with indifference, but with prejudice or dislike. In this way there may be gradually raised up a host of auxiliaries, who, without bearing the name, shall very effectively discharge the work of Jewish missionaries. And in countries like Hessia, Baden, and the Palatinate, where the Jews form so very great a proportion of the population, not only in large towns, but in the villages and scattered hamlets, it is impossible to over-estimate the good results that may, by the blessing of God, be secured by interesting not only the small remnant of faithful ministers, but the more numerous body of pious laymen, in the spiritual welfare of those Israelites who dwell among them. SPEYER. We have much pleasure in now announcing the appointment of the Rev. Rudolph Stern, as the church of Scotland's missionary to the Jews, in the city of Speyer, the chief town of the Palatinate or Rhenish Bavaria. Mr. Stern was brought under the notice of the Convener while sojourning in the Duchy of Baden, in the course of a recent visit to the Continent. The most satisfactory testimony was borne to his eminent qualifications as a missionary to the Jews, as well as to the soundness of his views of evangelical truth, his faithfulness and zeal in the exercise of the pastoral office, and the excellence of his personal character and conduct. Mr. Stern is the son of Professor Stern, director of the Normal Seminary at Karlsruhe for the training of Protestant and Jewish schoolmasters. He may be said to belong to a family of missionaries-two brothers and one sister having previously devoted themselves to the work of diffusing the Gospel among the heathen. After having gone through the usual course of classical, philosophical, and theological studies at the university of Erlangen, Tübigen, and Heidelberg, he passed, with much approbation, his theological trials, and was, in 1845, received by ordination into the ministry of the "United Evangelical Church," which is the proper designation of the Church of Baden and several other German States, in which the Calvinists and Lutherans have joined together. From 1845 to 1848 he laboured as curate in two different parishes, under the direction of older ministers. From 1848 till now, he has had a parish of his own,-the parish of Buerthal, near Heidelberg. And at the time when the Committee was so fortunate as to secure his services, he had just received the offer of promotion to a more important charge. He is now about twenty-eight years of age. About a year ago, he was married to an amiable and pious lady, of a respectable family, at Durlach, near Karlsruhe. DARMSTADT. IN my last letter, writes Mr. Lehner, I mentioned to you that it was our intention to have Mr. Rosenstein baptized during the course of this month; and I have now the pleasure to communicate to you, that this event has taken place at Seicheim on the 16th instant. I requested the Rev. Mr. Huth to administer the ordinance for me; to which he gladly consented. The day before, Mr. R. and myself went out together to Mr. Huth, in order to give him an opportunity to examine and judge how far the former was fit to be received within the pale of the Christian Church; and after full examination, he told me that he was perfectly satisfied, and pleased with his Christian character and demeanour,that he saw no cause to doubt that a work of God's Spirit had taken place in him, and that he recognised in him one who was cordially striving to be a true follower of the Lord Jesus. Rosenstein was deeply impressed with the importance of the step he was going to take, and spent much of his time in prayer and communion with the Lord. The ordinance took place in Mr. Huth's church in the afternoon. After he had openly avowed his faith in Christ as his Saviour, and promised to remain faithful to him through all the changes of life, he was baptized by Mr. Huth in the name of the Holy Trinity, upon which I publicly addressed him, and then the congregation at large. At the close of the service, Dr. Geiteles, also a proselyte from Judaism, and myself, who stood as witnesses, partook with him of the Lord's Supper. Throughout the whole solemnities, Mr. Rosenstein was deeply affected; and he told me afterwards, that he never in his life felt so overpowered by his feelings. When all was over, he fell upon my neck weeping and kissing me, and said he could not tell how grateful he was, that I had been made the instrument of leading him to the truth, and to his Redeemer. I try to judge of him without partiality, and I can look on him as one who has passed from darkness to light,-who believes in Christ from the heart,-who acts in conformity to the knowledge he has already attained, and of whom, I hope, that his name will be found in the Book of Life. The change wrought in his whole manner of life, is very visible to every one; and he must, on this account, especially for the open avowal of his Christian conviction, bear already the reproaches of his unbelieving associates. I feel that he wants to be yet more fully established in his heart, to make a firm stand against the many temptations of the prevailing infidelity around him; and I have therefore requested to continue his instruction during the whole of this winter, to which he thankfully consented. It was not made known beforehand that the baptism would take place; yet we found the church crowded by persons who seemed to take much interest in the transaction; and I trust it was not without a salutary effect on many of them. The Jews at Seicheim, however, most of whom I knew, and who had always treated me with marked kindness, became bitterly enraged about it, and were not slow to circulate various calumnious reports, contradictory in themselves, and only shewing what spirit they were of. Mr. R. had one severe trial to bear. A few days ago, he received a most affecting letter from his nearest relations, in which they entreated him, by all that was dear and holy to him, not to take such a ruinous step, and to bring such reproach upon his family, as he would do by forsaking that holy religion to which their fathers had sworn, at Sinai, faithful obedience in the name of all their descendants. His mother's spirit was represented as rising from the grave in judgment against him, his sister, to whom he feels much attachment, as in a state of mind bordering on despair,--and on the part of all his friends, everything was promised that could be conducive to his temporal or spirtual welfare, in the event of his continuing to adhere to Judaism; whereas, in the case of his noncompliance, they threatened that his whole family should entirely, and for ever, disown him. All this however, could not shake his mind with regard to the truth he had embraced, though it evidently was a great trial to his natural affection towards those whom he loved so well. He is now again easy about it; and he intends soon to write them a friendly letter, in the hope of, in some measure, changing their views and feelings. I would only add, that Mr. Rosenstein was born on the 18th March, 1820, at Gronau, in Hanover, where his father, with two brothers and two of his sisters, are still residing. SCOTTISH SOCIETY FOR THE CONVERSION OF ISRAEL. DR. PHILIP is gradually winning his way among the Jews of Algiers, and gives the following account of the effect of the distribution of tracts among that people: "Observed several copies of one of my tracts (the Ten Commandments, with surrounding scripture passages) framed, and suspended on the walls in Jewish houses. Was surrounded by a good number of Jews in the street, all begging me earnestly to give them some tracts. I gave each one a copy, and added a few impressive words concerning Jesus of Nazareth. "Had conversation in a Jewish shop, where I generally have the opportunity of meeting with a good number of Jews. Some of them had marked several passages in the tracts which I had given them. We sat peacefully down together, and discussed the subjects: they were principally upon the divinity and sonship of Christ. There was one among the number who interested me very much, and I felt inclined to think that he was not far from the kingdom of God. "Passed a Jewish house; to one of the families I had given two of my tracts, The Land of Canaan' and 'The Ten Virgins. When passing I saw them all sitting upon the ground around the remains of their dinner, and one little boy reading a tract aloud to them. An old Jewess said, 'Oh! how beautiful! to which an old man replied, 'Yes; but he says the Nazarene is the Messiah. Upon this a boy exclaimed, No, it is Jesus that he says is the Messiah.' Another woman said, 'If he says so, then it must be true; for he is a Chacham Kbeerâ, (a great wise man); he knows more than all our Rabbis.' I entered the court where they were sitting, and my 'Peace be to you' was kindly returned, and the best cushion was brought, to prepare for me a comfortable seat among them upon the ground. We began now to speak about what they had been reading. While I was conversing with them, several Jews from the neighbourhood came in to listen, and begged me to give them tracts also, which I did, and then they ran off rejoicing with their treasures. "When descending the street, I passed a house where I heard Jews speaking loudly about Messiah. I could not resist looking into the window (the door being in another street); and what did I see? One of my tracts was read there in the ears of old and young, men and women, in the language which they could all understand. One of the number said, I believe that Messiah has already come.' To this the others cried out to him in a joking manner, Meshumed, (outcast). I called in through the window, 'Peace be to you, my friends. Allow me to say, that if it be true that that young man there believes what he has said, viz., that Messiah has already come, then verily I say unto you, this man is not far from the kingdom of God; for as you see from the tract in your hands there, Messiah has already come; and if it were not so, Moses and the prophets must needs have been liars: but he is come; and, as you see from the tract before you, Jesus of Nazareth is the true Messiah.' Whilst I was thus speaking, several had come round, and they waited at the corner of the street for me, until I left the window; then they came and begged of me that I might give them also some tracts. I gave them each one a tract, and reminded them of the important subject of its contents. Going a little farther, I saw a group of Jews sitting before a house, one having the tract, The Ten Commandments,' before him, and they argued among themselves about the meaning of some of the passages which are around the Ten Command ments. They invited me to tell them the meaning of the passage, 'Christ is the end of the law.' I had here now a precious opportunity to expound to them all the passages upon the same paper, and to prove to them that Jesus is the Christ. Many such similar opportunities have I had since I commenced distributing my tracts, the language of which all can understand; and even the most ignorant Jewish women take a delight in listening to the reading of them." In the midst of his daily labours among the Jews, Dr. Philip continues to embrace favourable opportunities of preaching to sinners of the gentiles also. To the crews of vessels in the harbour, to not a few of the Mohammedan population, and to nominal Christians in Algiers and the neighbourhood, he has been careful, as occasion presented itself, to make known the doctrine of salvation by Jesus. Thus the seed is being sown, from which we doubt not is yet to spring a harvest of joy. FREE CHURCH OF SCOTLAND MISSION. COCHIN. A LETTER has been just received from the Rev. E. Laseron, of date the 6th January, 1852. We are gratified to learn from it that his intercourse with the White Jews has of late become more friendly than it has been for a long period. There is scarcely now a family which he does not visit. And in spite of the influence exercised by the elders of the syna gogue, his house is frequently resorted to by a number of Jews, to whom he addresses the message of the Gospel. Several children of White Jews are now attending the school at Cochin, including the eldest son of a person who was recently one of the chief opponents of the mission. Mr. Laseron confidently expects that many others will soon follow their example the parents, notwithstanding their hostility to the Gospel, being most anxious that their children should be instructed. The attendance of Black Jews in the school at Jew-town is increasing. And all other schools, whether among the Jews, the Syrians, or the heathens, are, as stated by Mr. Laseron, in a flourishing state. He has for some time had several heathens under instruction, preparatory to their baptism. At the date of his letter, he was in daily expectation of the Rev. Dr. Stevenson, of Bombay, who, at the request of the Acting Committee, has kindly agreed to visit the Cochin station, and to report as to the condition and prospects of the mission there established. GENERAL JEWISH INTELLIGENCE. ROTHSCHILD. MR. Margoliouth speaks thus of the great "lion of his tribe."—"Yet, with all his hoardings, Rothschild was by no means a happy man. Dangers and assassinations seemed to haunt his imagination by day and by night; and not without grounds. Many a time, as he himself said, just before he sat down to dinner, a note would be put into his hand running thus, "If you do not send me immediately the sum of five hundred pounds, I will blow your brains out." He affected to despise such threats; they nevertheless exercised a direful effect upon the millionaire. He loaded his pistols every night before he went to bed, and put them beside him. He did not think himself more secure in his counting-house than he did in his bed. It must be moreover confessed that the members of the synagogue generally did not entertain the same respect for him as the foreign Jews do for the Rothschilds of Frankfort. Some thought he might have done more for his brethren than he did, and that if he had only used the influence which he possessed with Government, and the many friends which he had at Court, all the civil disabilities with which the British Jews continued to be stigmatized would have been abolished, when the proposition was first mooted. But Rothschild,' said an intelligent English Jew to the writer, was too great a slave to his money, and all other slavery was counted liberty in his sight." JEWS OF JERUSALEM. IT is remarkable that the Jews who are born in Jerusalem are of a totally different caste from those we see in Europe. Here they are a fair race, very lightly made, and particularly effeminate in manner. The young men wear a lock of long hair on each side of the face, which, with their flowing silk robes, give them the appearance of women. The Jews of both sexes are exceedingly fond of dress; and, although they assume a dirty and squalid appearance when they walk abroad, in their own houses they are to be seen clothed in costly furs and the richest silks of Damascus. The women are covered with gold, and dressed in brocades stiff with embroidery. Some of them are beautiful; and a girl of about twelve years old, who was betrothed to the son of a rich old rabbi, was the prettiest little creature I ever saw. Her skin was whiter than ivory, and her hair, which was as black as jet, and was plaited with strings of sequins, fell in tresses nearly to the ground. She was of a Spanish family, and the language usually spoken by the Jews amongst themselves is Spanish.-Curzon's Visits to the Monasteries of the Levant. THE JEWS IN BABYLON. BRIGHT flashed the sunset's parting hour, And day's last lingering glance was thrown By Babel's flower-fringed, glancing streams, |