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 BX 9543 .C42 C63 
 Coe, Edward B. 1842-1914. 
 A discourse commemorative oJ 
 the Reverend Talbot Wilson 
 
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Cl^t Bel), Caltiot ratlison Cl^amberis^ 
 

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 BtSCOUrSe ::::::: 
 
 Commemoratibe of 
 t\)t Beberenti Calbot 
 imilson Cljambers. 
 ^,C,B., aE.B.» b|> tfje 9aebmnti 
 Cbtoarb iS. Coe, B.B., Hit.B, , . 
 
 512cto gorfe: ;anno 2Domint eigl)tecn 
 l)untired anD ntnetj> su' 
 
nt follotoing Diflicourse toad preparcD at t^t rr,- 
 
 nue0t of ttie Cou0i0torp of t^c Collegiate Ctjurct), 
 
 anD iDa0 DelibereD in tl)t c\)mc^ts at jfiftb 
 
 auenue anD ifort^^eigtjtlj §>treet anD 
 
 S>econD aDenue anD ^etjentb Street, 
 
 on &unDa^. ^arc!) 29tt), 1896. 
 
 3It 10 notD printfD bp Direr* 
 
 tion of t!je Con0i0tort! 
 
SDtscourse 
 
 (."^/T is with a feeling almost of filial respect and affec- 
 '^1 tion that I undertake this morning", at the request 
 '^^ of Consistory, to speak of the life and character 
 of the late Dr. Chambers. For the past sixteen years I 
 have been most intimately and happily associated with 
 him in the ministry of this church. I shall never forget 
 with what frank cordiality he received me when I came to 
 it, under circumstances which might not have disposed 
 him to show me any unusual kindness. But he admitted 
 me at once to his confidence, and was always ready to 
 give me such counsel and help as I needed. During all of 
 this period no shadow of misunderstanding or of distrust 
 has ever fallen on our friendship. My respect for his 
 ability, his attainments and his character has steadily 
 deepened, and I long since became conscious of a strong 
 and tender affection for him, which sprang at first from 
 his unvarying kindness and was confirmed by the frequent 
 opportunities which I enjoyed of observing his simplicity, 
 earnestness and elevation of spirit. In his modesty and 
 humility he probably never suspected how much he was 
 beloved by those who knew him well. And he was re- 
 served in the expression of his own affectionate feeling. 
 But there are many others beside myself who loved as 
 well as honored him, and whose sense of obligation for 
 
SDifltcourfife 
 
 his influence upon them deepens their sense of loss in his 
 recent and sudden removal to a higher sphere of life and 
 service. 
 
 But it is not a personal tribute that I am now asked to 
 pay to his memory. This was done at the funeral service 
 which was held in this place a few weeks since. But he 
 had been, at the time of his death, for more than forty-six 
 years one of the ministers of the Collegiate Church — a 
 term of service surpassed in length by that of but three 
 of his predecessors in the same office. For the greater 
 part of this time he had been closely identified with the 
 history of the denomination with which this church is con- 
 nected, as well as with various movements affecting the 
 church at large. He was one of the oldest, if not actually 
 the oldest, settled pastor in this city. He was widely 
 known as a scholar and writer. He had risen, by the 
 force of his abilities, his character and his single-hearted 
 devotion to the work of the Master, to a prominent posi- 
 tion, not only in this community, but among the leaders 
 of religious thought in this country. And the tidings of 
 his death were received with genuine sorrow in other and 
 far distant lands as well as in remote parts of our own. 
 
 It is therefore most fitting that there should be some 
 public review of his life, and some permanent record of 
 the services which he rendered not only to this church, 
 but to the Christian activities of his time. And yet not 
 merely the necessary limits of such a discourse as this, but 
 also his own abhorrence of eulogy, and his well-known 
 moderation and precision of statement, forbid anything 
 more than a rapid enumeration of the principal events in 
 his life, and a brief mention of the most salient traits in 
 his character. 
 
 He was descended from one of three brothers who 
 
2r>i0four0e 
 
 came to this country from the county of Antrim in Ireland 
 about 1720, and settled in Pennsylvania. His father, 
 William C. Chambers, was educated in Dickinson Col- 
 lege, at Carlisle, Pa., and afterward established himself 
 there as a physician. After several years he relinquished 
 the practice of his profession and removed to Philadel- 
 phia, where he died in 1857. He was for many years an 
 elder in the First Presbyterian Church of Carlisle, and 
 was a man of genial and affectionate temper and of high 
 Christian character. His wife, Mary Ege, was the daugh- 
 ter of a prosperous iron manufacturer, whose ancestors 
 had come from Germany in 1738, and who was one of the 
 wealthiest residents of Carlisle. Dr. Chambers was the 
 third of their nine children. He was born at Carlisle on 
 the 25th of February, 1819, and grew up in the intelligent 
 and cultivated society of that college town. His health 
 was always frail, and his studious habits and mental pre- 
 cocity were notable in his earliest childhood. He was but 
 eleven years old when he entered Dickinson College, but 
 his religious training had already begun in the home 
 and the Sunday-school. The latter he recalled with great 
 distinctness and with great satisfaction in subsequent 
 years. He had but just passed his twelfth birthday when 
 he was received into the church at the same time with 
 eighty-three others, on the 15th of May, 1831. The re- 
 markable revival of religion which prevailed in that and 
 the previous year all over the country had evidently 
 affected the church of which Dr. George Duffield had for 
 many years been pastor, and to this cause was due such 
 an unusually large accession to its membership. There 
 has been printed an interesting extract from the minutes 
 of that church, relating to several meetings held at this 
 time by its Session, in which the case of six boys between 
 
Di0courflie 
 
 the ages of eleven and thirteen, who were applicants for 
 church-membership, was carefully and repeatedly consid- 
 ered. They were thoroughly examined as to their knowl- 
 edge of gospel truth, their religious experience, and their 
 motives for wishing to join the church. And the elders 
 record their surprise at the distinctness of the views and 
 the definiteness and depth of the experience of most of 
 them. One of these boys was a son of the pastor, and was 
 afterward known as the Rev. Dr. George Duffield, author 
 of the hynm beginning, "Stand up, stand up for Jesus." 
 Another was Talbot W. Chambers. Young as he was, 
 the strength of his religious convictions and the unusual 
 fervor of his piety were marked both in his diary and in 
 his conduct from that day forward, and they were among 
 the most distinguishing characteristics of his whole subse- 
 quent life. 
 
 In the spring of 1832 he was honorably dismissed from 
 Dickinson College, and on the 4th of May admitted to 
 the Sophomore class in Rutgers College, at New Bruns- 
 wick, N. J. The reason for this change was undoubtedly 
 the desire to put himself under the instruction of the noted 
 Dr. Alexander McClelland, who four years previously had 
 removed from Dickinson to Rutgers, and had there be- 
 come Professor of Literature. He was, according to the 
 testimony of many who knew him, not only a preacher of 
 unusual power, but a man of exceptionally strong person- 
 ality and a teacher of extraordinary ability and success. 
 His influence upon Dr. Chambers' mind and character was 
 very deep. He afterward said that he "owed more to 
 him than to any other man living or dead," and the state- 
 ment does not appear to be at all exaggerated. Dr. 
 Chambers himself wrote many years afterward that the 
 pupils of Dr. McClelland became " not mere receptacles 
 
SE>ifl(cours(e 
 
 of knowledge duly provided by other hands, but thinkers, 
 who could assimilate what they took in, incorporate it in 
 their own mental furniture, and reproduce it in other 
 appropriate forms as occasion required." And then he 
 adds a sentence which describes with singular exactness 
 his own mental characteristics : " The young men learned 
 habits of attention, of patient thought, of precision, of in- 
 tellectual honesty and of just independence." There can 
 be little doubt that he himself learned these habits, which 
 were afterward so conspicuous in him, in large measure 
 from Dr. McClelland. His instructor was also his euard- 
 ian and his personal friend. " He always treated me," 
 he says, "with courtesy and kindness, but an excessive 
 dread of being in the way prevented me from going to 
 his tea-table anything like as often as he cordially, and I 
 doubt not sincerely, invited me. But I never went with- 
 out learning something of great value. Whatever the 
 topic, and whether it were persons or things, there was a 
 shrewdness, insight, depth, and flashing brilliancy which 
 entranced and stimulated the lad whom a kind Providence 
 brought into such intercourse." This particular lad does 
 not seem to have been in great need of intellectual stim- 
 ulus, but his later attainments as a scholar, and particularly 
 his simplicity, exactness, and thoroughness, are probably 
 to be traced in no small measure to the inspiring and 
 helpful influence of Dr. McClelland. This broad-minded 
 and high-spirited teacher also sought to cultivate in him a 
 love of literature and a habit of wide and judicious read- 
 ing, even in directions in which his taste did not naturally 
 run ; while his theological views no doubt largely affected 
 those of the young student, who nevertheless showed on 
 more than one occasion his own independence of mind. 
 Dr. Chambers was graduated from Rutgers College in 
 
June, 1834, when he shared the second honor of his class 
 with two others, and received the appointment to deHver 
 the philosophical oration. One of his classmates,* both 
 in college and in the theological seminary, who survives 
 him, vividly recalls his personal appearance at that time. 
 " He was," he says, " the youngest member of a class of 
 twenty earnest students. In presence he was pale, thin, 
 slender, delicate, and not yet fully grown. His manners 
 were gentlemanly, his address courteous, the tones of his 
 voice soft and gentle, his articulation correct, his speech 
 rapid, his words fairly rippling from his mouth." He was 
 popular in his relations with his fellow students, punctual 
 and diligent in his attention to his college duties. Though 
 only fifteen years of age at his graduation, he was fully 
 abreast of his class in all branches of study. Even then 
 he was a prompt and ready debater, and a good writer 
 and speaker. " From the day of his matriculation to that 
 of his graduation," continues the same friend, " he main- 
 tained an open, firm, and consistent stand as a professing 
 Christian in his entire walk, whether public or private. 
 He united with the Society of Inquiry with reference to 
 Missions, took an active part in the students' prayer 
 meetings, and was regularly present at the Bible class, 
 taught every Sunday by President Milledoler." He was 
 evidently as scrupulous in his attention to the duties of 
 religion as he was diligent in the performance of his liter- 
 ary work. 
 
 The year following his graduation he spent in the 
 study of theology at New Brunswick, still under the in- 
 struction of Dr. McClelland, who had now become Pro- 
 fessor of Biblical Literature. But in the autumn of 1836 
 he entered the seminary at Princeton, where he remained 
 
 *Rev. J. F. Mesick,D.D. 
 12 
 
SE>i0cour0e 
 
 for one year. His health at this time appears to have 
 been exceedingly delicate, and his studies were more than 
 once interfered with by illness. He came in contact at 
 Princeton with those noted men, Drs. Archibald and 
 Addison Alexander, Dr. Miller, and Dr. Hodge, and was 
 impressed by the elevated spiritual tone which at that 
 time pervaded the institution. To his other studies he 
 added those of German and Arabic, and must have dis- 
 tinguished himself as a student, since he was offered a 
 scholarship yielding two hundred dollars for three years, 
 which was to be assigned to the student showing greatest 
 zeal and ardor in the study of sacred and oriental litera- 
 ture. His affections were ever afterward divided between 
 the seminaries at New Brunswick and at Princeton. He 
 stood in close relations with the professors in each of 
 them, and rendered to both, in various ways, effective 
 service. 
 
 His plans of study were at this time interrupted by 
 financial embarrassments in his family, which threw upon 
 him the burden of his own support and that of a younger 
 brother to whom he was peculiarly attached. From the 
 autumn of 1837 to the summer of 1839 he was engaged 
 in teaching in private families at the South, and in the 
 midst of this period he speaks in his diary of the prospects 
 of his becoming a minister as dark and gloomy. He 
 prosecuted his literary studies, however, with unabated 
 ardor. It seems to have been his habit to read Hebrew 
 before breakfast and Greek before dinner, while he pur- 
 sued at the same time the study of Latin, Italian, Spanish, 
 French, and the English classics. He read theology also, 
 and wrote sermons, and was finally licensed to preach by 
 the Presbytery of Clinton, Mississippi, on the 21st of 
 October, 1838. 
 
 13 
 
The controversy between the Old and New School 
 parties in the Presbyterian Church was then at its height. 
 Dr. Chambers had been brought up in the New School 
 views which were held by his father and by his pastor, 
 Dr. Duffield, and he sympathized with the latter, as well 
 as with Mr. Barnes of Philadelphia, in the persecution 
 from which they had suffered. This fact caused him some 
 trouble when he was examined for licensure by the Pres- 
 bytery of Clinton. It is significant of the changes which 
 have since taken place, that a man so conservative as he 
 then was, and as he remained to the last, should have been 
 suspected by some members of the Southern Presbytery 
 of being tainted with heresy, because of his connection 
 with Dr. Duffield's church, and his inability to adopt with- 
 out further examination the doctrines of the imputation 
 of Adam's sin and of a limited atonement. It was appar- 
 ently the heat of this controversy, and his displeasure at 
 the course pursued by the Old School wing of the Pres- 
 byterian Church, which led him on his return to the North 
 to abandon the associations in which he had been brought 
 up, and connect himself with another ecclesiastical body. 
 In August, 1839, ^^ spite of the persuasions of Dr. Breck- 
 enridge of Kentucky, he decided to have nothing further 
 to do with the Old School Presbyterians, and wrote to 
 Dr. Knox to procure him a situation in the Dutch Church. 
 At the same time he wrote Dr. Hodge, declining the offer 
 which had been made him of a tutorship and fellowship in 
 Princeton College and Seminary. He was then a little 
 more than twenty years of age. 
 
 He soon received a call from the Second Reformed 
 Church of Raritan at Somerville, N. J., accepted it on the 
 I St of October, 1839, and began preaching on the 13th of 
 the same month. Somerville was then a small village, 
 
 14 
 
2Di0course 
 
 containing only one main street and two shorter streets 
 with a few houses upon them, and receiving one mail 
 daily by stage from New Brunswick. The community was 
 still suffering from the financial distress which had befallen 
 the whole country two years before, and the church was 
 greatly depressed and discouraged. Mr. Chambers was 
 ordained and installed on the 2 2d of January, 1840. In a 
 memorial sermon preached in the same pulpit fifty years 
 afterward he states that at that time he thought it an even 
 chance if he should live a year. " There was," he says, 
 " a form of disease in my father's family which had swept 
 away some and threatened to sweep away others, and I 
 did not know whether I should prove an exception or not." 
 During the first winter he lived in the family of one of 
 the principal supporters of the church, four miles from 
 the village, and congratulated himself upon the opportu- 
 nities for study which he thus gained, free from the dis- 
 tractions which might have interrupted him if he had lived 
 in the village itself. Under his ministry the church pros- 
 pered and grew. It is a noteworthy fact that the second 
 sermon which he preached there, on the afternoon of the 
 Sunday when he first stood in its pulpit, led to the con- 
 version of a young man, then a student of law, who after- 
 ward became a respected and useful minister of the Dutch 
 Church.''' His ministry was not marked by seasons of 
 special religious awakening. He had himself been brought 
 into the church in a powerful revival of religion, and he 
 longed (as he says) to see such an outpouring of the 
 Spirit on his own church. But his wish was not real- 
 ized. And his feeling then and afterward was that " it is 
 better to have a steady movement, holding the old lines 
 while pressing forward constantly, than to have a large 
 
 *Rev. Elbert S. Porter, D.D. 
 15 
 
and sudden increase in the membership." During the ten 
 years of his life at Somerville 164 persons were added to 
 the church on confession of faith, and 126 by certificate, 
 making a total of 290, and at his resignation the number 
 of famiUes was orfeater and the number of communicants 
 two and a half times greater than when he was installed, 
 in spite of the fact that more than thirty families had re- 
 moved to organize another Reformed church. During 
 the same time the financial as well as numerical strength 
 of the church was largely increased, and a commodious 
 and pleasant parsonage erected. 
 
 In this, his first pastorate, he began to inculcate the 
 principles of systematic beneficence on which he ever 
 afterward laid such stress, and caused offerings to be 
 made for the Bible Society, in whose work he was so 
 active in later years, as well as for the several denomi- 
 national boards. He took, from the first, a special in- 
 terest in the Sunday-school, visiting it every Sunday, 
 and making a point of speaking with each teacher, while 
 four times a year he preached a sermon to children, 
 and ever afterward recalled with peculiar satisfaction 
 this feature of his work. The recollection of what he 
 himself owed to this form of instruction made him a 
 warm friend of Sunday-schools throughout his whole life. 
 According to the custom of the day he held regular classes 
 in various parts of his parish for the training of the young 
 in Christian truth, and was conscientious and systematic 
 in pastoral visitation. Meanwhile he continued his studies 
 with unwearied diligence. The pastor of the First Church 
 at that time was the Rev. Dr. Messier, who gave him his 
 charge at his installation. There was one sentence in it 
 which (he says) excited a great deal of attention at the 
 time, but which contained, as he thought, the essence of 
 
 16 
 
2E>ifi(cour0e 
 
 truth, and which at all events states a principle upon 
 which he ever afterward acted. Dr. Messier said : " Re- 
 member, my young brother, that the lights of the church 
 were great students and not great visitors." He was 
 himself the most learned of the ministers of the county, 
 and had by far the largest and best selected library, which 
 was always thrown open to his younger brother in the 
 ministry, and of which the latter made faithful use. His 
 spirit toward other denominations of evangelical Chris- 
 tians is shown by the fact t^at he once went and preached 
 in a Methodist church at a time when, as he says, there 
 was hardly more communication between this and the 
 Dutch Church than there was of old between the Jews 
 and the Samaritans. The act made a great stir, but it 
 contributed, no doubt, to promote that better state of 
 feeling which now obtains both there and elsewhere. 
 
 A little more than a year after his settlement, on the 
 2ist of May, 1841, he married Miss Louisa Mercer, 
 daughter of Gen. John Frelinghuysen, a prominent mem- 
 ber of that family whose name is so honorably identified 
 not only with the history of New Jersey, but with that of 
 the country. It would be impossible to say how much 
 she contributed, by her energy, poise, and beauty of char- 
 acter, to his happiness and his usefulness from that time 
 onward. His love for her endured with all the force of a 
 youthful passion, to the end of her life, and when after 
 more than fifty years she was suddenly and sadly taken 
 from him, the blow was one from whose effects he never 
 fully recovered. 
 
 The years of his ministry at Somerville were marked 
 by great political excitement, and Dr. Chambers always 
 took an intense interest in public affairs. He was an 
 ardent Whig, and when Henry Clay was defeated in the 
 
 17 
 
H)ifl(cour0e 
 
 Presidential campaign of 1844, he felt, as did many others, 
 as if he had "lost every friend he had in the world." It 
 was his habit to visit daily the office of the local news- 
 paper, the " Somerset Whig," whose editor was a member 
 of his church, where he had an opportunity to read a New 
 York paper, for which he could not afford to subscribe. 
 Here he often sat down and wrote editorial articles on 
 current political topics, which were copied by the editor 
 before being sent to the press, so that their authorship 
 was never discovered. At times nearly every original 
 article in the paper had come from his pen. 
 
 Of his ministry in this quiet village he himself speaks 
 in his anniversary sermon with his accustomed modesty : 
 " It was," he says, " uneventful. I tried to be faithful, 
 instructive and tender." But the reminiscences which he 
 gives, as well as the affection in which he was always held 
 by the people, testify to the earnestness, the fidelity and 
 the singleness of purpose with which he served the church 
 and the community. He frankly says that he made mis- 
 takes, and some of those which he acknowledges are both 
 interesting and instructive. But the church expressed its 
 honor and gratitude for him, at his death, in resolutions 
 which recognize his acceptable labors in its infancy — " la- 
 bors which laid broad and deep the foundations of its pres- 
 ent prosperity." 
 
 He had received in 1843 a call to another church, 
 which, at the earnest desire of his- own people, he had 
 declined. In 1849 ^^ "^"^^s called to be one of the minis- 
 ters of the Collegiate Church in this city. This he was 
 also at first disposed to put aside, but he accepted it 
 finally, partly by the urgent advice of Dr. McClelland, 
 who pointed out to him the advantages which it offered in 
 the way of his own intellectual culture, as well as the large 
 
 18 
 
Dificours^e 
 
 and varied opportunities of useful work which it afforded. 
 He was installed in the church on Lafayette Place on the 
 2nd of December, 1849. -^^ came to take the place of 
 Dr. Brownlee, who, though still in unimpaired mental 
 vigor, had been incapacitated by a stroke of paralysis from 
 the further performance of public service. Dr. Knox, Dr. 
 DeWitt, and Dr. Vermilye were then at the height of their 
 ability and usefulness, and their personal character, as well 
 as their relation as colleagues to each other, gave them 
 a peculiar standing and pow^r in the community. The 
 church was not only the leading church of the denomina- 
 tion, but one of great prominence in the city. The con- 
 gregations in Lafayette Place especially were at that time so 
 large that an edifice on Ninth Street, which has since been 
 removed, was then in regular use. Here, as well as in the 
 North and Middle Churches, Dr. Chambers preached in 
 his turn. He continued thus to officiate until November, 
 1 87 1, when he was assigned by the Consistory to special 
 duty in the Middle Church, on Lafayette Place. For 
 about forty-three years he rendered full ministerial service. 
 Meanwhile his colleagues, at the beginning, one by one, 
 passed away — Dr. Knox in 1858, Dr. DeWitt in 1874, and 
 Dr. Vermilye a little more than three years ago. Others 
 came in their places, of whom three resigned and removed 
 to other fields of labor. New church edifices were 
 erected, and the old North Church disappeared. With 
 the constant movement of population in the city, the 
 neighborhood of the Middle Church was greatly changed. 
 The character of the service required there was also 
 changed. The old congregation was gone. There was 
 need of a younger man for a more distinctively missionary 
 work. And one such man after another was employed, 
 while Dr. Chambers still remained In charge of the con- 
 
 19 
 
HDiflfcourste 
 
 gregation, and regularly officiated as its pastor. This 
 continued until the building was finally removed, and the 
 work transferred to its present location, but his interest in 
 and his connection with it never ceased. At the same 
 time the fact that he was for many years the oldest minis- 
 ter of the Collegiate Church in active service, and for 
 three years its oldest minister, gave him a peculiar relation 
 of influence to all the operations carried forward by this 
 organization. He was often present in the other pulpits 
 besides that which was distinctively his own, and many 
 who did not personally know him as their pastor were 
 familiar with him as a preacher, and held him in honor 
 because of his age, his attainments, and his distinguished 
 position in the church and the community. 
 
 So long, however, as the system of rotation continued 
 he was intimately known in all our congregations, and 
 his power as a preacher and his personal influence as a 
 man were felt by all who were in any way connected with 
 this church. His sermons produced a profound effect 
 upon the thought and the character of many who heard 
 them. His style was remarkably clear, logical, scriptural 
 and earnest. For twenty years or more it was his habit 
 to write the sermon which he preached in the morning, 
 and to preach from brief notes at the second service on 
 the Lord's day. He adopted the latter course almost ex- 
 clusively in later years. But his discourses were always 
 carefully prepared, and his early practice and long expe- 
 rience made him, if not a fluent, at least a self-possessed, 
 effective and sometimes impassioned speaker. He was 
 not distinguished for rhetorical grace, but he had unusual 
 power in the analysis and unfolding of his theme, and un- 
 usual terseness and vigor in his use of words. Many of 
 his sermon outlines were marvels of lucid, orderly and 
 
SDi0cour0e 
 
 comprehensive exposition. The doctrinal element was 
 large in his preaching, and the doctrines which he held 
 were those which are contained in the accepted standards 
 of the Dutch Church. He was a theologian by nature 
 and training — familiar with the history of theology, acute 
 and discriminating in theological distinctions. Yet he 
 seldom presented the truth from the pulpit in abstract 
 forms, and he had a strong disapproval of the use of 
 technical or unfamiliar terms. But the system of doctrine 
 in which he had been trained in his boyhood was wrought 
 into the very substance of his thought. His mind craved 
 logical exactness and completeness. It was intolerant of 
 what is vague and impatient of speculations which seemed 
 to him to have little foundation in human reason, and 
 none whatever in the word of God. His faith in the di- 
 vine revelation was absolute. The authority of the Scrip- 
 tures was for him unquestionable and final. Their plain 
 declarations regarding the majesty and holiness of God, 
 the guilt and helplessness of man, the supremacy of the 
 moral law, the doom which inevitably follows sin, the re- 
 deeming grace revealed in Christ, the need and the efficacy 
 of His satisfaction for human guilt, the necessity of re- 
 generation by the power of the Holy Spirit, the certainty 
 of the coming judgment and the unalterable issues of the 
 life everlasting — these he received with a reverent and 
 implicit faith. He held them with the utmost intensity 
 and tenacity of conviction and insisted upon them in all 
 his preaching as truths on whose acceptance the eternal 
 destiny of every man depended. Whatever in them was 
 obscure or difficult of belief he was satisfied to leave with 
 God, of whose wisdom and grace he had the most perfect 
 assurance. His own sensitiveness of conscience led him 
 to take a view of the nature and guilt of sin which is not 
 
2Di£{cour0e 
 
 now as common as it was when he was young. And this 
 colored all his theological thinking, giving him at once an 
 exalted estimate of the demands of divine justice, and a 
 profound appreciation of the wonders of divine grace. 
 Hence his preaching was always grave and solemn, 
 sometimes stern in its tone, but often affectionately and 
 tenderly earnest. He had the natural reverence of a con- 
 servative mind for the past, and a true scholar's veneration 
 for the authority of the leading minds in the history of 
 the Church. He spoke with the utmost respect of the 
 great divines of Geneva, Dort and Westminster, and 
 he could not believe that any wide departure from the 
 system of doctrine which they elaborated or accepted 
 could be in harmony with the truth. His deep personal 
 humility had, no doubt, much to do with the develop- 
 ment and the permanence of his theological judgments. 
 With his wealth of knowledge and his activity of mind 
 he had no sympathy with the ambitious and self-con- 
 fident spirit which characterizes much of our current 
 Christian thought. For novelties in theology he had 
 an equal aversion and contempt, and he was absolutely 
 sure that they were destined to be driven away as chaff 
 before the whirlwind in the irresistible progress of the 
 truth as it had been once for all delivered to the 
 saints. He was fond of quoting the familiar utter- 
 ance of one of the early fathers of the Church: "Nu- 
 becula est, transibit ; " " it is a little cloud and will pass 
 away ;" while he felt the utmost assurance that the word 
 of our God, as it was held and proclaimed in other days 
 by the illustrious confessors and martyrs of the faith, will 
 stand forever. 
 
 He lived lono' enouo;h to see sfreat chanofes in the 
 popular and prevalent style of preaching, but he himself 
 
adhered to that which he adopted in his early life. His 
 sermons were always addressed to the reason and the 
 conscience rather than to the emotions. He souo-ht. like 
 the apostle Paul, to "persuade men," and not simply to 
 move them either to terror or to tears. His view of the 
 preacher's office, often expressed both in public and pri- 
 vate, was that his function is primarily that of a teacher, 
 whose duty it is to explain, defend, and enforce the truth 
 that is contained in the gospel. And this he himself did 
 with extraordinary simplicity, clearness, and cogency. 
 Testimony has been given by some of those who heard 
 him, who were not themselves well educated or accus- 
 tomed to religious thought, as to the help which they had 
 derived from sermons in which divine truth was made so 
 plain. He loved to preach, and was never at a loss for a 
 text or for a theme. Nor was this because of the intel- 
 lectual pleasure which he derived from the exercise, but 
 because of his earnest desire to make others see the truth 
 and yield to the demands and the invitations of the gospel. 
 He was a man of great intensity of feeling, as well as 
 clearness and vigor of thought, and this revealed itself 
 sometimes in the vehemence and sometimes in the tender- 
 ness of his words and tones. The latter was especially 
 evident in the addresses which he delivered at the Lord's 
 table ; and together with the fervor of his faith it gave 
 great effect not only to his public discourses, but to his 
 private counsels with those who sought from him comfort 
 and help in the Christian life. There are those still liv- 
 ing, and there are undoubtedly others in the great com- 
 pany to which he has now been added, who feel profoundly 
 grateful to him for his influence on their thought and their 
 character. 
 
 Always tenacious of his own rights as well as of ancient 
 
 23 
 
EDiflfcourflte 
 
 tradition and usage, '^ Dr. Chambers did not accept with- 
 out protest the arrangement which terminated the practice 
 of rotation in preaching, and assigned him to a church 
 which was already decHning in strength. There were also 
 from time to time other sharp differences of opinion and 
 feeling between him and his colleagues and associates. 
 But he was always thoroughly loyal to this church, with 
 whose history from the outset he made himself so familiar 
 and to whose reputation he himself contributed so much. 
 He took an active and prominent part in the conduct of 
 all its affairs, and always earnestly favored whatever 
 seemed to him fitted to promote its welfare and advance- 
 ment. He enjoyed to the last the undiminished esteem 
 and honor of those who were through their official posi- 
 tion most intimately associated with him. We all recog- 
 nized the wisdom and the authority with which he spoke, 
 and we feel that in his death this church has lost its 
 brightest ornament, while there has been taken from us a 
 counsellor and leader whom we could ill afford to spare. 
 
 He was also most loyal and patriotic as a citizen. His 
 residence at the South made him unsympathetic with the 
 anti-slavery agitation which preceded the civil war, and he 
 openly condemned — what was then not uncommon — the 
 discussion of political questions, from any point of view, 
 in the pulpit. He himself has said that during this period 
 Dr. Vermilye differed from his colleagues. " We were 
 conservative and inclined to compromise ; he, on the con- 
 trary, was outspoken for vigorous action. In the issue it 
 appeared that he was right and we were wrong. But 
 
 ♦Thus he was the last of the Collegiate ministers to continue in the public service on the Lord's 
 Day the ancient usage of the exordium remotutn, a brief intimation, commonly introduced before the 
 '* long prayer," of the subject on which he was about to preach. In this he was often very felicitous. 
 An excellent example of it may be found in his discourse entitled, " Fifty Years of Church Life." 
 He was also the last of them to wear a dress-coat on the street in the daytime. This had been the ac- 
 cepted ministerial dress in the period of his youth, He abandoned it, however, in his later years. 
 
 24 
 
SDifltcourfiie 
 
 when the shock of arms occurred, we were all steadfast 
 and unyielding in support of the Union cause. In that 
 solemn crisis there was no uncertain sound in any of the 
 Collegiate pulpits." This is certainly true of his own 
 preaching if the tone of it can be inferred from the lan- 
 guage of a letter which he wrote to the "Christian Intel- 
 ligencer," in the summer of 1862, in which the following 
 sentences occur : " The administration must go to work 
 in earnest. The war forced upon us by this causeless and 
 wicked rebellion must be made real, terrible, remorseless. 
 It is no time now to regard the scruples of any man or 
 State or set of States. We are at war, and the best way 
 to shorten the conflict is to make it sharp. Let towns be 
 bombarded ; cities stormed ; slaves freed, disciplined, and 
 armed ; whole tracts of country wasted by fire and sword — 
 anything, yes, anything warranted by the rules of war, to 
 end this contest. Right, duty, interest, and humanity, all 
 call upon us to act with fiery energy and the sternest de- 
 cision. A little war is at once nonsense and cruelty. It 
 is a question of life and death with the country, and no 
 interest under heaven should be allowed to stand in the 
 way. I, for one, would be willing to see the entire South, 
 from Norfolk to Matamoras, a literal desert, rather than 
 have our nationality destroyed." In later years, while not 
 a violent partisan, he was no less firm and fearless in the 
 utterance of his opinions upon all questions involving 
 sound principles of government and the purity of national 
 life. 
 
 His position in the Collegiate Church, not more than 
 his natural temperament, made him a leader in the coun- 
 sels of the denomination. Though he came into it from 
 another ecclesiastical body, he was from the outset at 
 home in the Dutch Church. He was in a remarkable 
 
 25 
 
H)i0cour0e 
 
 degree familiar with its history, and proud of it. He 
 thoroughly understood and accepted its doctrines. Its 
 spirit and usages were in harmony with his sense of pro- 
 priety. He was strenuous for the observance of its con- 
 stitutional requirements, and extremely jealous of anything 
 which in his judgment tended to impair its purity or dis- 
 turb its peace. He was one of the most regular and 
 active members of the Classis, and more than any one 
 else, by his promptness, his good judgment, his readiness 
 in discussion, his familiarity with ecclesiastical usage, and 
 the force of his character, he led it in the transaction of 
 the business which from time to time came before it. He 
 was also repeatedly a delegate to the General Synod of 
 the Reformed Church, over which he presided in the year 
 1863. One of our oldest and most respected ministers* 
 writes of him in this relation as follows : " Dr. Chambers 
 seldom if ever appeared to greater advantage than in 
 debate on some great question seriously affecting the wel- 
 fare of the church. Then the keenness and quickness of 
 his perception, his lucidity of statement, his felicity in dic- 
 tion, his grasp and mastery alike of the subject as a whole 
 and of its several details, his cogency in argument, his im- 
 perturbable self-possession, the intensity of his convictions, 
 and his absolute devotion to the truth and the interests 
 of the church as he understood them, came conspicuously 
 into view and made him a recognized leader among men. 
 Taking him all in all, I have never heard anyone whom I 
 regarded as his superior in debate before a deliberative 
 assembly, and I have seldom heard one who seemed to 
 me to be his equal." He was thus led to take part in the 
 discussion of several questions, which aroused much 
 feeling at the moment, and which concerned matters of 
 
 ♦Rev. A. P. Van Gieson, D.D. 
 26 
 
highest importance to the welfare of the church. One of 
 these was the proposed change in the title of the church, 
 when, in the Synod of 1867, Dr. Chambers resisted with 
 all his might the proposition to drop from it the word 
 " Dutch." The debate was conducted for hours with 
 masterly ability on both sides. He was finally beaten, 
 but he always thought that the church suffered serious 
 injury by the removal from its official name of the word 
 which to his mind represented that which was most glori- 
 ous in its history and most distinctive in its doctrinal 
 position. 
 
 A similar and equally characteristic incident in his life 
 was his opposition, maintained through several years and 
 culminating at the meeting of the Synod in 1863, to the 
 policy of co-operation with the Presbyterian Church in 
 foreign missionary work. His interest in that work dated 
 from his youth. It was for a long time his intention to 
 devote himself to it. A formal resolution to this effect 
 appears in his diary under date of September ist, 1835, 
 after his first year of study at the seminary at New Bruns- 
 wick. On the 26th of April following he notes the fact 
 that he then for the first time communicated this inten- 
 tion to his " dear mother." As she made no objection, 
 he considered his future course settled, so far as he him- 
 self was concerned. He was then sixteen and a half years 
 of age. Some months later he carefully scrutinized the 
 motives which led him to choose the foreign missionary 
 field, and recorded his conviction that in this sphere of 
 labor he would be " treading more nearly in the footsteps 
 of his divine Master than he could possibly do in any 
 other." He even went so far as to add the study of med- 
 icine to others which he was then pursuing, and continued 
 this for a time, as likely to increase his usefulness as a 
 
 27 
 
H>i0courde 
 
 missionary in heathen lands. During the year which he 
 spent in the seminary at Princeton he formed with two 
 others a society for mutual help in preparation for this 
 work. When and why he abandoned this purpose does 
 not plainly appear, but it was probably because of his 
 physical weakness and of the necessity laid upon him to 
 aid in his brother's support. It is not at all strange, 
 therefore, that he should have felt throughout his life the 
 deepest interest in this work. The action of the Gen- 
 eral Synod of 1857, by which the Reformed Church 
 assumed the care of its own foreign missions, independ- 
 ently of the American Board with which it had until 
 then co-operated, was largely due to an able report which 
 he prepared and a convincing address by which he sup- 
 ported it. It cannot be questioned that the effect of this 
 was greatly to quicken the zeal and increase the liberality 
 of our church in the foreign missionary cause. It was 
 from the outset Dr. Chambers' conviction that the de- 
 nominational forms and institutions established at home 
 should be reproduced abroad. And when the mission- 
 aries opposed this, and asked leave to co-operate in China 
 with their English Presbyterian brethren, he strenuously 
 resisted this policy. For seven years he held this ground 
 with his wonted tenacity, and even left the President's 
 chair in the Synod of 1863 for the purpose of answering 
 Dr. Talmage and protesting against the more liberal 
 course which he advocated. As the Secretary of our 
 Foreign Board, Dr. Cobb, has recently written : " The 
 day of co-operation in foreign missions had dawned as yet 
 only on the fields and toilers in the East, but when its 
 light streamed westward, and our home churches caught 
 the gleam, no one received it more gladly or more wholly 
 than did Dr. Chambers. It was in consonance with the 
 
 28 
 
rDintouvsit 
 
 utter truthfulness and magnanimity of the man that he 
 should say publicly at the funeral of Dr. Talmage, ' He 
 was right and I was wrong.' He said the same thing also 
 in the Board, and on the floor of the Synod." It was in- 
 deed characteristic of him frankly to admit an error of 
 judgment which the course of subsequent events had 
 made plain. If he had the courage of his convictions, he 
 had the still greater courage, as well as the rare honesty, 
 to confess his occasional mistakes. I may properly add 
 here that the principle of co-operation in foreign missions 
 has in recent years had no more earnest advocate, and as 
 President of the Board (a position which he has filled 
 since 1888) he rendered to this most important cause con- 
 stant and invaluable service to the very close of his life. 
 His repeated efforts in raising funds for its relief, his own 
 almost lavish contributions to it, his intimate acquaint- 
 ance with its details, his kindly interest in individual 
 missionaries, his readiness to consult and to labor for its 
 advancement, and his unfaltering faith in it as a work 
 to which the Church is imperatively summoned by the ex- 
 press command of the Master — for these alone he 
 deserves to be long remembered with gratitude and with 
 honor. 
 
 In such animated discussions as those to which I 
 have just alluded it may have appeared to some of those 
 who were present, as one''' of them writes, " that Dr. 
 Chambers was somewhat cold and hard, lacking in sym- 
 pathy with and consideration for others ; that his very 
 devotion to what appeared to him to be the truth and the 
 riofht made him sometimes unmindful of human sensibil- 
 ities." But as time passed on even those who felt this 
 keenly thirty years ago observed in him a marked change. 
 
 *Rev. A. P. Van Gieson, D.D. 
 29 
 
"While his devotion to the truth was in no wise dimin- 
 ished," says the same friend, " his sympathy with men 
 manifestly increased. He not only spoke the truth, but 
 spoke it in ever-increasing love ; and in his latter years, 
 combined with his unabated intellectual vigor, there were 
 a gentleness, a sweetness, a tenderness and a childlike 
 simplicity of spirit, which more than once made one think 
 of the beloved disciple whose head leaned on his Master's 
 breast." No man in the Dutch Church has done more 
 during the last forty years, not only to expedite the trans- 
 action of business in its principal assembly, but to shape 
 its policy on important questions. In ordinary matters it 
 was felt that it was safe to trust him, and on serious issues 
 it was dangerous to oppose him. 
 
 During all the years of his connection with the Colle- 
 giate Church he prosecuted without interruption his bib- 
 lical and classical studies. It was his habit to rise early, 
 sometimes before five o'clock, never later than six, and to 
 read three or four chapters in the Hebrew or Greek Tes- 
 tament before breakfast. He adopted this habit, as he 
 once told me, because he found it impossible to secure at 
 any other hour in the day the leisure and the quiet that 
 he desired for the study of God's word. But the greater 
 part of all his time was occupied in study. He called 
 himself a "bookish man." He read constantly, widely ; 
 he made a business of reading. Next to the Holy Scrip- 
 tures he would perhaps himself have reckoned the Greek 
 and Latin classics. One of his chief pleasures came from 
 his membership since 1870 in a small circle of gentlemen 
 who regularly met for the purpose of reading together 
 the Greek authors. He seldom allowed anything to in- 
 terfere with his presence at these meetings. It was, of 
 course, upon subjects connected with theology and religion 
 
 30 
 
2Difl(courfi(e 
 
 that he read most diligently and extensively. He was 
 well acquainted with general history, especially familiar 
 with church history, and minutely conversant with the 
 history of the Reformed Church in Europe and in this 
 country. In regard to everything which concerned the 
 doctrines, laws, and usages of the Dutch Church, both 
 here and in Holland, he was an acknowledged authority. 
 Current discussions of religious questions received his 
 prompt and interested attention. He seemed always to 
 have read the newest booko, those with whose sentiments 
 he totally disagreed as well as those which he approved. 
 Such works he read carefully and critically, freely noting 
 in the margin his commendation or his dissent. He did 
 not, however, confine himself to this species of literature, 
 but read whatever came to hand — poetry, fiction, the 
 most recent plays, partly for mental rest and refreshment 
 and partly that he might know what other people were 
 reading. The habit which he continued for many years 
 of writing notices of new books for more than one news- 
 paper and review, not only brought all sorts of publica- 
 tions to his library table, but made him acquainted with 
 many works which otherwise perhaps would not have 
 cauQ-ht his attention. 
 
 He was a constant writer, as well as a keen and eager 
 reader. From year to year he contributed a large number 
 of articles to several religious journals, on a great variety 
 of subjects. These papers, more or less elaborate, were 
 always carefully prepared, clear, concise, vigorous in 
 thought, and of much more than ephemeral value. They 
 sometimes appeared as editorials, and were sometimes 
 signed with his name. They were frequently criticisms 
 upon something which had fallen under his eye in his 
 reading, and frequently they contained the results of 
 
 31 
 
SDiflicoursie 
 
 studies which had occupied him for many days or weeks. 
 He was never weary of pointing out what he regarded as 
 erroneous teaching, and of presenting, in compact and 
 cogent form, the truth which he beheved to be ignored or 
 assailed. He was thus led to take a somewhat prominent 
 position as an opponent of the higher criticism, so far as 
 many of its methods and conclusions are concerned, and 
 as a champion of the conservative view of the origin and 
 authority of the Bible. For such discussions he was 
 specially prepared by his scholarly training, his learning, 
 and his habit of cautious, patient, and thorough research. 
 His opinions were consequently respected even by those 
 who did not agree with them, and he was generally looked 
 upon as one of the ablest, as he was one of the most un- 
 compromising, representatives of the school of thought to 
 which he belonged. He held most firmly to the absolute 
 integrity and inerrancy of the Scriptures, and regarded 
 the theories of their origin which are now widely accepted 
 among German, English, and American scholars as fatal 
 to their divine authority and subversive of the Christian 
 faith. I cannot help thinking that his view of the conse- 
 quences to which, as it seemed to him, such theories 
 necessarily tended, gave to his mind a certain bias which 
 made him sometimes unjust both toward the opinions 
 which he assailed and toward those by whom these were 
 held. Keen as his mental vision was, he lacked the free- 
 dom and fearlessness which characterize the scholarship of 
 the present generation. What he conceived to be doc- 
 trinal error he regarded as treachery to the truth. And he 
 could not believe that those whose modes of thought and 
 statement appeared to him novel and dangerous might be 
 at heart as loyal as himself to the fundamental principles 
 of Christianity. Nor was his mind capable of justly ap- 
 
 32 
 
SDi^courfie 
 
 predating subtle shades of thought, or of putting itself at a 
 point of view very different from that to which he had long 
 been accustomed. He remained, therefore, the vigorous 
 and vehement opponent of those theories concerning the 
 Bible which have come to be so prevalent in our day. 
 He would make no concessions to them. He stood firmly 
 to the last where he stood at the beginning. Not that he 
 was the enemy of all progress in theological thinking ; he 
 frankly acknowledged that its history has hitherto been 
 characterized by steady development. - But he held that 
 "so far as the greater part of dogmatic theology is con- 
 cerned, the limits of progress have been reached, and the 
 historic faith of Christians is finally settled." He admitted 
 that " other parts of the system have never yet been fully 
 developed and still await a more definite determination, 
 such as the doctrine of the Church, of the last things, and 
 of inspiration." But he felt that any attack upon the 
 integrity of the Bible is an assault upon the inner citadel 
 of the faith ; and he was resolved that for himself he 
 would yield no position and ask no quarter. With all 
 this, however, he was the most honest as well as the most 
 positive and fearless of men. He had a great contempt 
 for sciolism, and was never ashamed to confess his own 
 ignorance. And whether or not we agree with him in the 
 opinions which he so earnestly maintained, we cannot but 
 admire his unfaltering loyalty to what he conceived to be 
 the truth, and be grateful to him for the force and the 
 faithfulness with which he defended, in the press as well 
 as in the pulpit, the cardinal principles of Christianity. 
 His brief but thoughtful papers, appearing week after 
 week for many years, have unquestionably done great 
 service in strengthening the faith of those who were in 
 doubt, and in throwing light upon obscure passages of 
 
 33 
 
2E)t0courfl;c 
 
 Scripture, and upon perplexing questions relating to Chris- 
 tian experience and thought. 
 
 These studious habits, this wide and exact learning, 
 and this rare command of his mental resources, enabled 
 him to do what very few pastors, I imagine, would be able 
 to do, namely, to pass from the pulpit for a time to the 
 professor's chair. This he did, however, more than once, 
 taking the place of Dr. Schaff from January to June, 1877, 
 and giving instruction in New Testament exegesis in 
 Union Theological Seminary ; and performing the same 
 service in the Seminary at Hartford in 1877, and at 
 Princeton in the winter of 1892. Besides this he gave at 
 New Brunswick, in 1876, the Vedder Lectures, which were 
 afterward published in the little volume called " The 
 Psalter; a Witness to the Divine Origin of the Bible." 
 In October, 1894, he delivered a course of ten lectures on 
 The Law, before the students of Lane Theological Semin- 
 ary. He published at different times a sketch of the 
 Noon Prayer Meeting in Fulton Street, a Memorial of 
 Theodore Frelinghuysen, an exposition of the Prophesy 
 of Zechariah in Lange's Commentary, and a considerable 
 number of articles in the more important religious re- 
 views. He did still further a great amount of work as an 
 editor of important commentaries and as a contributor to 
 the excellent Dictionary of Religious Knowledge, whose 
 publication he had first suggested and which contains a 
 large number of articles from his pen. Several times he 
 prepared and published a series of notes on the Inter- 
 national Sunday-school lessons, and he was one of the 
 associate editors of the " Presbyterian and Reformed Re- 
 view," as he had been of the earlier " Princeton Review." 
 
 A man of Dr. Chambers' literary culture and scholarly 
 habits might have been expected to feel a deep interest in 
 
 34 
 
the higher education. To this he rendered congenial and 
 valuable service as a Trustee of Rutgers College from 
 June, 1868, and of Columbia College from January, i88r, 
 until his death. The latter of these institutions conferred 
 upon him the honorary degree of S.T.D. in 1853, and 
 the former that of LL.D. in 1888. He also became on 
 the death of Dr. Vermilye a member ex-officto of the 
 Boards of Trustees of the Leake and Watts Orphan House 
 and the Presbyterian Hospital. 
 
 The part of his work, however, outside of his pulpit 
 and pastoral labors, in which he took the deepest interest, 
 was that which he performed as one of the American 
 Company of Bible Revision, and which extended over a 
 period of ten years. He was the only pastor In the Old 
 Testament Company, and was one of its most faithful 
 members. Another of the Committee* writes that " He 
 was always in his place, and had made careful preparation 
 for the task assigned ; and there was no one whose 
 maturely considered and carefully expressed opinions 
 carried more weight than his." He himself said in a ser- 
 mon preached in 1887, in which he reviewed the previous 
 forty years of his ministry, that he esteemed this ap- 
 pointment the highest earthly honor ever conferred upon 
 him. 
 
 At a later date he would perhaps have prized even 
 more highly his connection with the Alliance of Reformed 
 Churches holding the Presbyterian System. He was, 
 together with Dr. Schaff, active in its organization, be- 
 came Chairman of the Western Section in 1884, and was 
 elected President of the Alliance in 1892. It was his 
 expectation, if his life had been spared, to preside at its 
 sixth general council, to be held in Glasgow in the month 
 
 *Prof. Wm. Henry Green, D.D. 
 
 35 
 
of June next, and to deliver the President's address.* One 
 of his greatest pleasures during these later years has been 
 that of attending the meetings of the Alliance, at which 
 he frequently spoke with his accustomed modesty, dignity, 
 and force. Its work in bringing different branches of the 
 Presbyterian Church into closer relations with each other 
 appealed to his catholicity of spirit, and awakened his 
 most earnest interest. It cannot but be a source of satis- 
 faction to us who have so long known and honored him, 
 that his worth as a man, a scholar, and a representative of 
 the American Church had come to be clearly recognized 
 among our brethren beyond the sea. 
 
 Dr. Chambers was very often made a delegate from 
 the Dutch Church to other ecclesiastical bodies, and it 
 was always felt that no more fitting or trustworthy repre- 
 sentative could be chosen. His addresses on such occa- 
 sions were always dignified, appropriate, and sometimes 
 peculiarly felicitous. It was when performing a service 
 of this kind at the meeting of the General Assembly at 
 Portland, Oregon, in 1892, that the greatest sorrow of his 
 life fell upon him in the sudden death of his wife, who 
 had gone out with him in good health, only to breathe 
 her last among strangers on the further shore of the con- 
 tinent. Neither the sympathy which was felt for him 
 during his long and lonely homeward journey, nor the 
 fortitude, meekness, and Christian resignation with which 
 he bore his great trial, can ever be forgotten by any of 
 us. Till then his domestic life, apart from occasional 
 severe bereavements, had been unusually happy. The 
 most entire confidence, the purest affection, marked all 
 
 * He was also to have spoken at the exercises held at Princeton Seminary on the 5th of May, in 
 honor of his friend, Professor William Henry Green, D.D., at the close of fifty years of service in 
 that institution. 
 
 36 
 
I>t0cour0e 
 
 his intercourse with those of his own household. But not 
 even the love and devotion of his children, which abounded 
 towards him to the last, could fill the place thus suddenly 
 made vacant in his heart. And from that time onward 
 his thoughts turned more and more toward the home 
 above, till it pleased God at length to receive him into 
 its glory and its peace. 
 
 In reviewing his life it is impossible not to be sur- 
 prised at the amount of work which he performed, and its 
 numerous points of contact with the life of the day. He 
 was not a man of the world, not a man of affairs. He 
 was most at home among his books, and was often silent 
 and thoughtful amidst the lively talk of others. He was 
 pre-eminently a student and a scholar. And yet few men 
 were more keenly alive to what was going on in the 
 world ; more ready to strike a blow for the truth against 
 falsehood and error ; more eager to do their part in help- 
 ing forward every good and honest cause. The secret of 
 what he accomplished lay chiefly, no doubt, in his patient, 
 persistent, untiring industry. But it lay also in part in 
 his rare power of making every stroke tell. He wasted 
 no time or strength. He did not fight as one who beateth 
 the air. But whether with voice or pen he uttered his 
 carefully formed convictions in such a way that his mean- 
 ing could never be mistaken and his sincerity never be 
 questioned. Yet he never courted publicity or cared for 
 praise. In public and in private his demeanor was always 
 characterized by a beautiful modesty, a quiet and dignified 
 reserve. Absolutely ingenuous and artless in his inter- 
 course with others, he could not always be made to see 
 that others were not as frank and straightforward as him- 
 self. He was utterly without suspicion and without guile. 
 His thorough sincerity commanded the respect even of 
 
 37 
 
Discoursfe 
 
 those who smarted under the severity of his words, or 
 were grieved by the extreme positions which he felt him- 
 self obliged to take. Yet gentle and courteous as his 
 manner habitually was, he sometimes displayed a right- 
 eous wrath against that which appeared to him false or 
 base, which no one who witnessed it could readily forget. 
 He had indeed a fiery nature. His feelings were quickly 
 stirred to vivid and vehement utterance, and this, which 
 made him powerful and sometimes eloquent in public 
 speech, gave to his familiar conversation, which was 
 habitually serious and grave, a charming freshness and 
 zest. His face bore witness to his scholarly pursuits, and 
 equally to his purity of spirit, his force of will and his ten- 
 derness of heart. His eyes were sometimes like a flame 
 of fire and sometimes wonderfully soft and loving. And 
 in all his bearing, force and gentleness were blended. He 
 once said to a friend, in speaking of the death of an 
 eminent theologian who was noted for the severity of his 
 logic and the sternness of his dogmatic system, "It has 
 always surprised me that a man holding such views should 
 have shown such sweetness and gentleness of spirit." 
 Concerning Dr. Chambers himself the same thought has, 
 no doubt, suggested itself to many minds. The great 
 emotions were strong within him ; the love of family, of 
 home, of friends ; the love of country ; the love of God ; 
 and a passionate hatred of falsehood and of sin. He 
 was a deeply religious, a truly spiritual man. He seemed 
 always to be sensible of the nearness of God, the reality 
 and the solemnity of the invisible world. No one, I 
 think, who has ever followed him in prayer can have 
 failed to be impressed by the revelation which he thus 
 unconsciously made of his own interior life. Simple, re- 
 verent, humble, direct, comprehensive and earnest, his 
 
 38 
 
2l>iscour0e 
 
 on w, h God. The sense of his duty to God seemed 
 to be always present with him. He hved " as ever in his 
 great Taskmasters eye." And to God he was ready 
 to leave the results of his work. It was a striking trai' 
 of h,s character that when he felt that he had done hts best 
 the sense of h>s own responsibility seemed to be lifted 
 from h.s mmd, and he committed the fruit of his labors to 
 
 the"}.-l" 7 "^"" '^'^ ^^'^ ^'"' ^"°"ght. His faith in 
 
 the l.fe to come was never, so far as I have learned dark- 
 ened by the faintest shadow of distrust. And int'o that 
 We he passed with the tranquil composure of one who 
 after a long day s work, calmly falls asleep. He knew that 
 
 shVld k""^- ."' ''""'"' "^''^ ^-'- 'h^^' '- children 
 should be near him at the end. But he would have •■ no 
 
 sadness of farewell " as he left them. H is last words ex- 
 
 pressed h,s unwavering trust in the divine wisdom and 
 
 r\ , ^^" ""^ ''"'''"y P='=^«=<1 away. It was such a 
 death as he would himself have chosen. It was in keep! 
 mg with the whole spirit of his life. He had fought the 
 good fight ; he had finished his course ; he had kept the 
 faith. And the words which he wrote, fifteen years ago 
 m regard to h.s former instructor and friend, Dr. Charles 
 Hodge, may with equal propriety be applied to him : 
 His long life bears witness to the wisdom of governing 
 ones course not by the eddying currents of human 
 opinion, but by the polar star of truth and duty '■ 
 
 39 
 
jnR. CHAMBERS died of pneumonia, after a brief 
 "^ illness, at his residence. No. 70 West Thirty-sixth 
 Street, on Monday, February^ 3rd, 1896. 
 
 The funeral services were held at ten o'clock on Friday 
 morning, February 7th, in the church at Forty-eighth 
 Street and Fifth Avenue. The Ministers and Assistant 
 Ministers, together with the Consistory and the Great 
 Consistory, attended as mourners. The exercises were 
 conducted by the Rev. Dr. Roderick Terry, who presided 
 and offered prayer ; the Rev. Dr. Morgan Dix, who read 
 the Scriptures ; and the Rev. Drs. John Hall and David 
 D. Demarest, who delivered brief and sympathetic 
 addresses. The general esteem in which Dr. Chambers 
 was held was shown by the presence of a very large con- 
 gregation, including representatives of the various Boards 
 and Institutions with which he had been associated. The 
 action taken by several of these organizations in view of 
 his death, together with other tributes to his memory, will 
 be found in the following pages. 
 
 The interment was made at Somerville, N. J. 
 
 41 
 
appcntJtV 
 
 Cl^e sfuneral ^crbice 
 
 aDDre00 of tl)e Keb. 31ol)n l^all, D.SD., ilil.SD. 
 
 My Dear Friends: 
 
 3 FEEL that I have need to beware lest the strong affection that I have for 
 my brother whose service has closed here on earth, should lead me to 
 thoughts and expressions of eulogy vi^hich, if it were possible to consult 
 him, he would disapprove. I shall try to speak a few words concerning that 
 which the grace of God wrought in our brother, and for which you and I, in 
 common with him, desire to give the glory to God Almighty. 
 
 It pleased the Creator to give him a sound mind, a clear understanding ; and 
 that sound mind was consecrated to God Almighty, one result of which was 
 that he was a wise counsellor, a prudent adviser, in the various forms of Chris- 
 tian labor and organized effort with which, in God's Providence, he was con- 
 nected. There are many of you who can bear testimony to the truth of this 
 statement, and there are some of us, I am sure, who will miss in the time to 
 come the counsel and the intelligent co-operation that he was able to give. 
 
 As many of you know, he entered the ministry at a very early period — in his 
 twentieth year, having enjoyed the advantages of a good home life, of early re- 
 ligious mstruction, and of adequate training for the work of the ministry. The 
 position of a minister implies devout bearing, consistent living, and unselfish 
 effort for others ; and I need not tell you that these things have been exhibited 
 in the long ministerial life which it pleased God to give him. 
 
 He was the head of a family, a large family, and the atmosphere of the home 
 was sweet and pure ; and I do not need to remind those who are mourning here 
 of the blessings they owe to God, and to him in the happiness of life they en- 
 joyed in the home. I had the pleasure of standing by, some time ago, when the 
 fiftieth anniversary of his marriage was being recalled, and I recollect the pro- 
 found impression made on my own mind that godliness is profitable unto all 
 things, both for this life and for that which is to come. It was not long after 
 this anniversary that the partner of his life was taken home. Is there not com- 
 fort in the thought that there is perfect felicity and no separation in all the 
 time to come ? 
 
 It pleased God in His goodness and mercy to give to our brother very distinct 
 convictions as to what Christian life is, as to what Christian organizations ought 
 
 42 
 
0ppcnDip 
 
 to be, and as to what the developments ought to be of true Christian growth. 
 On these grounds he had definite convictions. But these convictions never 
 stood in the way of his co-operating with Christian brethren who held the 
 essentials of faith. There are many of us who know what services he was able 
 to give in the cause of Christian union. Let us seek, dear friends, to be his 
 imitators in this regard. Let us be able to give a reason for the faith that is in 
 us, but at the same time let us be prepared to stand side by side with those 
 who love the Lord Jesus Christ, and who are laboring to bring our fellow-men 
 to a saving knowledge of our Redeemer. 
 
 In addition to the work of a pastor and the various forms of Christian labor 
 in which he was engaged, our brother prosecuted a careful Bible study, and his 
 researches in that direction were utilized, as you know, in many forms of labor. 
 In consequence of that careful study of God's Holy Word, he was able to have 
 distinct views as various questions of scholarship were presented, and on occa- 
 sion he did not hesitate to give expression to those views. For eight and 
 twenty years I had the privilege of being associated with him, and I am bound 
 to say in all those years I never heard a word from his lips that did not approve 
 itself to my conscience and my understanding. You can comprehend that I, 
 for one, feel that we have suffered a loss. But it is the will of our loving God, 
 and His will be done. 
 
 It is impossible for me to look back upon the past without a certain feeling 
 of sadness as I think of the number of saintly men to whom I was accustomed 
 to look up in the early years of my residence in this city, and who have been 
 taken to the rest above. I cannot but think of such godly men as Drs. Spring, 
 DeWitt, Vermilye, Adams, John Cotton Smith, Washburn, Rogers, and later, 
 my friend and brother. Dr. Crosby, all of whom have gone now unto that gen- 
 eral assembly above ; but their memories remain with us, and they are a stim- 
 ulus to Christian activity, to close walking with God, and, I think, may, in their 
 very existence in our minds, help us to set our affections on things above, where 
 Christ sitteth. 
 
 It pleased our heavenly Father to take our brother out of this life compara- 
 tively suddenly. Is there not a lesson there to you and me ? I am looking 
 upon men whose faces indicate that they have been spared through many years. 
 Dear brethren, let us hear God say to us, " Be ye also ready, for in such an hour 
 as ye think not the Son of man cometh," — cometh by God's messenger, death, 
 to summon us from this lower world into His presence above. Let us seek to 
 be spiritually minded, which is life and peace ; let us seek to do justly, to love 
 mercy and to walk humbly with our God. Let us seek to do what our hands 
 find to do with our might, for the time of working here will soon come to a close, 
 and it may come suddenly and abruptly. Let us so love and trust that gracious 
 Redeemer whose name we are called to bear (for we have professed faith in 
 Him,) that we may rejoice in the hope of the glory above ; rejoice in the pros- 
 pect of restored fellowship with the saints who have been dear to us here ; re- 
 joice especially in the prospect of seeing the King in His beauty and dwelling 
 
 43 
 
with Him forever. Our brother sought continually to dwell in the light that 
 comes from above. And now he is in that light. And who can tell the felicity 
 that is brought to his perfected spirit ? Let us seek to live under the power of 
 the world to come, and so we shall have a benediction in this present world. 
 We shall be, as he was, living epistles of Christ, known and read of all men. 
 May God impress these truths upon the heart of each of us gathered together 
 here in loving memory of our brother, and may God make such truths and such 
 recollections the means of comfort and spiritual strength to those who immedi- 
 ately feel the separation from one who was at once a Christian, a father, and a 
 tender friend. 
 
 0DDres;g of t\)t Uctj. sd,se>, SDemaresft, sd.sDm iiiL.SD, 
 
 Cf^y personal acquaintance with Dr. Chambers began fifty-three years ago, 
 *?^ when he was pastor of the Second Dutch Church of Somerville, 
 and I took charge of the newly organized Second Dutch Church of New 
 Brunswick. During six years we labored together in the Classis of New 
 Brunswick ; we saw much of each other, and have since been closely associated 
 in work for the general interests of our denomination and its institutions. The 
 years have not diminished our mutual confidence, esteem and affection. I 
 gratefully to-day pay my tribute to his worth, though I mourn the occasion that 
 calls for it. 
 
 For the mental characteristics and habits of Dr. Chambers, so well-known 
 to you all, he was greatly indebted to his conscientious attention to the duties of 
 early life. He entered Rutgers College a mere lad, for he was graduated not 
 long after he had completed his fifteenth year. He was sent to New Brunswick 
 chiefly because Prof. Alexander McClelland, who had left Dickinson College at 
 Carlisle, had become Professor of Languages in Rutgers. He was a favorite 
 pupil of this inimitable teacher, obligation to whom he was always ready thank- 
 fully to acknowledge, as I and many others also are. Never was there a teacher 
 superior to this eminent professor in the art of stimulating the minds of his 
 pupils, in securing thoroughness of work and accuracy of expression. 
 
 He was thus trained to insight into subjects, power of discrimination, posi- 
 tiveness of conviction, accuracy and facility of expression, for all of which he 
 was remarkable. He learned to find the right word and to put it in its proper 
 place, to shun involved and complicated sentences, in short to form a style that 
 was perspicuous, direct and forcible, which conveyed his meaning unmistakably, 
 and from which he allowed no one to be diverted by unnecessary adornments or 
 rhetorical trickeries. 
 
 He was a member of the Presbyterian Church, and intended to enter its 
 ministry, but as Dr. McClelland had been made Professor of Biblical Literature 
 in the Theological School in New Brunswick, he spent one year in it for the 
 purpose of learning the elements of Hebrew from his favorite professor. He 
 then spent a year in Princeton Seminary and some time in teaching in the 
 
 44 
 
South, where he was licensed to preach. In 1840, at the age of twenty-one, he 
 was ordained and installed by the Classis of New Brunswick pastor of the 
 Second Dutch Church of Somerville, where he remained until 1849, when he 
 was called to the Collegiate Dutch Church, in connection with which he re- 
 mained to the day of his death. 
 
 Dr. Chambers did not on entering the pastoral office assume, as some young 
 ministers unhappily do, that calls on the pastor for various services are so nu- 
 merous that study can only be very irregularly pursued, or entirely abandoned. 
 He deemed study, especially of the Word of God, essential for the preacher and 
 no hindrance to the pastor. He immediately chose the prophecy of Zechariah 
 for special study, and he enriched his pulpit ministrations by his popular exposi- 
 tions of the book. This sort of study he continued through life, and so his 
 sermons were characterized by the presentation of Biblical truths in Biblical 
 connections. 
 
 He pursued study not for his own pleasure or the benefit of his people only, 
 but he gave liberally to the world. His was the pen of a ready writer. His 
 capacity for work was extraordinary, and so was his diligence. The religious 
 weekHes abounded in papers from him, usually short and pithy, and largely 
 practical ; the reviews contained able contributions from him, and occasionally 
 he sent forth a book which was accepted as a valuable contribution to the litera- 
 ture of the subject of which it treated. He frequently filled vacant professor- 
 ships in theological seminaries temporarily, or came to the aid of a disabled 
 professor. He might at any time have been placed in a professorial chair had 
 he felt free to accept one. 
 
 Dr. Chambers was an intense lover of his own denomination and second to 
 no one in loyalty to her doctrines, polity, customs and usages. His first work 
 as a minister was in a field in which Frelinghuysen, a kindred spirit with Whit- 
 field and the Tennents, had broken up the fallow ground. He became greatly 
 interested in traditions of the work done by the godly Dutch ministers in the 
 valley of the Raritan. Then he came to New York to our oldest church in the 
 land and he loved to dig in the mines of what we call our ancient church his- 
 tory, and the more that he discovered the stronger became his attachment. 
 And so his heart was in all our denominational institutions of the day. The 
 Trustees of Rutgers College, of whom he has been one for twenty-eight years, 
 will greatly miss him who was so constant in attendance, wise in counsel, and 
 ready for service. The Theological Seminary thankfully acknowledges his ser- 
 vices to it, rendered in various forms. The Boards of the Church, especially 
 that of Foreign Missions, of which he was the President, will greatly 
 miss him. 
 
 Much as he loved the Reformed (Dutch) Church, he yielded to no one in his 
 readiness to co-operate with Christians of every name in efforts for the advance- 
 ment of Christ's kingdom in the world. He belonged to many organizations, 
 religious, philanthropic, literary. Time forbids me even to attempt to enumerate 
 them. 
 
 45 
 
He has finished his work in the world, and done it well. The veterans fall 
 and the leaders are removed, but the battle goes on. Our brother fell in the 
 thick of the conflict. Rest came quickly after work, with no protracted interval 
 of pain or distressing failure of body or mind. 
 
 Farewell, dear brother, may we be faithful unto death, as thou hast been 
 and then meet thee in the home above ! 
 
 Prior to the funeral of Dr. Chambers, a memorial meet- 
 ing, attended by upwards of one hundred clergymen, was 
 held in the Chapel of the Forty-eighth Street Church. 
 Representatives of twelve institutions and organizations, 
 of which he was a leading spirit, were recognized. The 
 Classis of New York was present as a body, an official 
 call having been issued to its members. 
 
 Dr. Jacob Chamberlain, of India, was chosen Chairman. 
 Brief remarks, expressive of the respect in which Dr. 
 Chambers was held, and of sorrow at his death, were 
 made by the Chairman ; by the Rev. Dr. David Waters, 
 representing the Alliance of Reformed Churches ; by 
 Professor Cooper, of Rutgers College, and Professor 
 Searle, of the Seminary at New Brunswick ; by Dr. Cole, 
 of Yonkers ; Dr. Todd, of Tarrytown ; Dr. Hunt, of the 
 Bible Society ; Dr. Rand, of the Tract Society ; and Dr. 
 Hutton, of the Board of Foreign Missions. 
 
 The following Minute was offered by the Rev. Joseph 
 R. Duryee, D.D., and adopted by a rising vote : 
 
 Minute 
 
 ?r2tJ^' '^'^ associates in the ministry of the Church of God, desire to record 
 ^^'^^ our appreciation of the long and useful life of the Rev. Talbot 
 Wilson Chambers, S.T.D., since 1849 a pastor of the Collegiate Reformed 
 (Dutch) Church in the city of New York. Strong and consistent in spirit, wise 
 and logical in counsel, loyal and sympathetic in friendship, he has been to the 
 very end of his earthly career a revered and successful leader in the religious and 
 
 46 
 
intellectual life of our time. By inheritance and from choice he was a student, 
 yet ever wore his scholar's crown with humility. He studied in many languages 
 the wisdom of the ages, only to realize more completely that the foundation of 
 truth is the revelation of God in Christ. Honors of the highest distinction were 
 conferred upon him, and these he valued deeply, but his one aim was to adorn 
 the doctrine of God, our Saviour, in all things. While his vast learning made 
 him an authority in the Republic of Letters, his heart was with the people. He 
 mingled with true men in every walk of life, rejoicing with them in their suc- 
 cesses, feeling for them in their sorrows, and ever longing to lead them to know 
 and obey the Master he loved and served. His industry was untiring, and every 
 work he undertook was carried out completely. Faithfulness in all things was 
 the characteristic of his life. Thus have we been privileged to note the career 
 and enjoy the fellowship of Dr. Chambers. His loyalty to the truth, his enthu- 
 siasm in the study and exposition of tBe Divine Word, his inspiring friendship, 
 all interpret to us the kindness of God. 
 
 While we sorrow in the thought that we shall see him here no more, we re- 
 joice that he was permitted to accomplish so much, and then end his days in 
 a home of peace, without long struggle or the impairment of any faculty, and 
 thus enter into eternal rest and his inheritance of " the power of an endless life." 
 
 Ci^e Collcjjiate Cl^urc]^ 
 
 (Ertrart from t^e £0inuttg 
 
 The Minister, Elders and Deacons of the Reformed 
 Protestant Dutch Church of the City of New 
 York, 
 
 In Consistory, February 4, 1896. 
 HE President announced the death of Rev.Talbot W. 
 Chambers, D.D., LL.D., the Senior Minister of this 
 Church, last night, shortly before midnight ; 
 Whereupon it was 
 
 Resolved, that Rev. Drs. Coe and Burrell be, and they are hereby, appointed a 
 Committee to prepare a suitable minute in his memory. 
 
 Resolved, that such minute be read from the pulpits of our Churches and Chapels 
 at the morning service next Sunday, the 9th inst.; that it be placed upon the 
 records of Consistory, and be published in "The Christian Intelligencer;" 
 and that a copy thereof be presented to the family of the deceased by our 
 Ministers. 
 
 Resolved, that a Committee of six, consisting of three Elders and three Deacons, 
 
 47 
 
 c 
 
0ppenDtp 
 
 be appointed to make all proper arrangements for the funeral, and that they 
 
 consult with the family of the deceased and fully carry out their wishes as 
 
 to the details and order of the funeral. 
 Resolved, that this Consistory attend the funeral services as mourners and wear 
 
 the usual badge of mourning. 
 Resolved, that the Great Consistory be requested to meet in the Consistory Room 
 
 in the Church, corner of Fifth Avenue and Forty-eighth Street, on the day 
 
 of the funeral, 7th inst., at 9.30 A. M., and attend the funeral services in a 
 
 body. 
 Resolved, that the Church Masters drape the pulpits of our Churches and 
 
 Chapels in mourning, having due regard to the expressed views of Dr. 
 
 Chambers. 
 Resolved, that the expenses of Dr. Chambers' funeral be borne by Consistory, 
 
 and that the Treasurer pay the same upon the order of the Chairman of the 
 
 Committee of Arrangements. 
 
 ******** 
 
 Resolved, that Rev. Dr. Coe be requested to deliver a memorial discourse at such 
 
 time and place as the above Committee of Arrangements shall determine 
 
 after consultation with our Ministers. 
 Resolved, that a copy of the foregoing resolutions be presented to the family of 
 
 the deceased. 
 
 The President appointed as the Committee Elders : Messrs. Johnston, 
 Bookstaver, Perlee ; Deacons : Messrs. Brower, Runk, Walker. 
 
 In Consistory, February 6, 1896. 
 The Committee appointed to prepare a minute in 
 memory of Dr. Chambers reported the following, 
 which was accepted and adopted and ordered to be 
 entered upon the records of Consistory : 
 
 4tOR the second time within three years the Collegiate Church is called to 
 J' mourn the loss of its Senior Minister. The sudden death, on Monday 
 last, of the Rev. Talbot W. Chambers, S.T.D., LL.D., is a personal be- 
 reavement to each member of this Consistory and to many members of the 
 Church. He had just entered upon his forty-seventh year of active ser\'ice in 
 its ministry. Through this long period he was in the highest degree loyal to it 
 and the value of his labors in its different pulpits and in the conduct of its affairs 
 can hardly be estimated. He was at the same time one of the most prominent 
 and influential members of the Reformed Church, closely identified with its 
 
 48 
 
2ipptvMv 
 
 histor>' during the last half-century, always true to its system of doctrine, earnest 
 in the effort to advance its interests, and worthily representing it on public occa- 
 sions both at home and abroad. Its foreign missionary work especially owes 
 much to his wisdom, zeal, and liberality. He was an honored and active mem- 
 ber of the Boards of Trustees of Columbia and Rutgers Colleges and of the Leake 
 and Watts' Orphan House, and served with great fidelity in the direction of 
 other forms of philanthropic and religious effort. At the time of his death he 
 held the highly honorable position of President of the Executive Commission of 
 the Alliance of Reformed Churches, in whose work he had from the beginning 
 taken a deep interest. His attainments and authority as a biblical and classical 
 scholar were widely recognized, and the clearness and vigor of his thought and 
 style made him a powerful writer on theological subjects. His personal charac- 
 ter was always without reproach, and the sincerity and strength of his Christian 
 faith were evident to all who knew him. 
 
 We feel that such a man could ill be spared, and we are grateful to the 
 kind Providence which continued him in unimpaired vigor of body and mind 
 even to the end, and then transferred him so swiftly and painlessly to a higher 
 sphere. We would express to his bereaved family a sympathy of which we be- 
 lieve they can need no assurance, while we rejoice with them in the finished 
 record of his honorable and useful life, and in the memory of his inspiring 
 example. 
 
 From the Minutes. C. S. Phillips, 
 
 Clerk. 
 
 OF SOMERVILLE, NEW JERSEY 
 
 At a meeting of the Consistory of the Second Reformed 
 Church of Somerville, N. J., held February 5th, the fol- 
 lowing Minute was adopted : 
 
 J^JJJE have learned with sorrow and regret of the death of the Rev. Talbot 
 W. Chambers, D.D., LL.D., the distinguished pastor of the Collegiate 
 Reformed Church, New York City, and formerly the beloved and useful pastor 
 of this church, which he served for a period of ten years, from 1839 to 1849. A 
 few of our congregation still surviving remember his acceptable labors in the 
 infancy of this church— labors which laid broad and deep the foundations of its 
 present prosperity. We all have greatly enjoyed his occasional sermons and 
 addresses that we have been privileged to hear in our church from time to time, 
 and we gratefully remember his presence with us in December, 1894, at the 
 
 49 
 
dedication of our new edifice, and the luminous and impressive address he then 
 delivered. 
 
 We deplore the loss that our denomination not only, but the Christian 
 Church in all its branches, has sustained by the death of this eminent scholar 
 and preacher. 
 
 We tenderly sympathize with his bereaved congregation and his still more 
 deeply bereaved and sorrowing family ; and to the latter we extend our kindest 
 expressions of condolence. 
 
 We direct the Clerk of Consistory to publish this minute in the local news- 
 papers and " The Christian Intelligencer," and to send a copy to the family of 
 the deceased. 
 
 Cl^e €lam^ of 0m gorfe 
 
 ADOPTED AT A SPECIAL MEETING HELD MARCH II, 1 896 
 
 ^'TfYlTH true and tender grief and a profound sense of loss the Classis of 
 ^^"^^ New York bows to the Providence which has taken from us the Rev. 
 Talbot W. Chambers, S.T.D., LL.D. 
 
 Through the impressive period of forty-six continuous years he has been so 
 regularly at its meetings, stated and special, so prominent in their transactions, 
 that these seemed scarcely fully constituted without his presence. When his 
 labors, their number and variety, their absorbing and exacting and fascinating 
 character, are considered, his rare failure to respond to the call of his name in 
 these gatherings is convincing proof of his high estimation of their importance 
 and of his faithfulness to the obligations they imposed. 
 
 His eager interest in every item of the business considered, his patient and 
 thorough weighing of every proposition submitted, his tireless efforts to reach 
 only right conclusions, could not have been greater had the responsibility of 
 every decision reached rested wholly upon himself. Such consecration to the 
 work of Classis, accompanied by the qualifications for service which lay in his 
 familiar knowledge of our fundamental law and established rules of order, in 
 his long and varied ecclesiastical experience, in his logical faculty, his ripe judg- 
 ment, his intense love for his Church, its institutions and enterprises, so that he 
 counted nothing foreign to himself which related to her, inevitably would raise 
 him to the eminence of usefulness, authority and honor which we all know he 
 occupied. 
 
 If in discussion, through quickness of perception and strength of conviction, 
 his manner was somewhat imperious, his spirit was ever considerate, just and 
 essentially winning. No one was more approachable ; no one more apprecia- 
 tive of or readier to acknowledge the merits of an opponent's views. And a 
 prevailing judgment which disappointed and even grieved him revealed such 
 
 50 
 
0ppenDiv 
 
 Christian nobleness of nature that the memory of its manifestations in those 
 who witnessed them will ever make the mention of his name a heart-softening 
 influence. 
 
 As its representative in the higher ecclesiastical bodies and Boards of the 
 Church, Dr. Chambers held the perfect confidence of Classis, All knew that 
 whatever devotion to duty and pre-eminent ability could accomplish for the de- 
 fence or advancement of local or general Church interests would be secured by 
 him. And so his efforts were very influential in effecting, as his name is indis- 
 solubly associated with, the wisest and most important Synodical legislation oc- 
 curring during his wellnigh half-century connection with this Classis. And the 
 glory of the representative was shared by and abides with those he repre- 
 sented. 
 
 Accepting gracefully and seconding, fervently all the glowing eulogies which 
 have issued from so many paramount sources upon his distinguished and com- 
 manding scholarship, authorship, leadership in religious, evangelizing, charitable, 
 educational movements, this tribute contemplates Dr. Chambers in his relation 
 to the Classis of New York, and as the voice of his most intimate ministerial 
 associates declares their feeling that, in devotion to duty and ability for its dis- 
 charge, in dignity of character and weight of influence, in consideration for his 
 brethren in all Christian helpfulness and affection, and as their example in that 
 inspiring excellence of which controlling piety was ever the crown, he will live 
 in our thoughts and hearts as an ideal " man of God," whose superior it were 
 vain to search for in the ranks of the living or the records of the dead. 
 
 The painful consciousness of our loss kindles tenderest sympathy with his 
 sorely bereaved family, to whom, with a copy of this minute, Classis proffers 
 sincerest condolence, and pledges its prayers to the Father of all mercies and 
 the God of all comfort in their behalf. It also orders that this tribute be pub- 
 lished in " The Christian Intelligencer." 
 
 (Signed) Joachim Elmendorf, 
 A. G. Vermilye. 
 Roderick Terry. 
 
 €]^e QBoarn of foreign QpijS)2iionjS of tl)e BeformcD 
 Ci^urcl) in America 
 
 SBinutt 
 
 adopted FEBRUARY 7, 1896 
 
 i|ir HE Board of Foreign Missions, R. C. A., desires to put on record its deep 
 ^*^ sense of loss in being parted from its late President, the Rev. Talbot 
 W. Chambers, S.T.D. For twenty-two successive years he has been a 
 member of this body, and for the last eight years he has been its presiding 
 
 51 
 
0ppent)tp 
 
 officer. During all this unusual length of service no one connected with the 
 Board has excelled him in devotion to the interests which it supervises. Of his 
 conspicuous scholarship, of his contributions to sacred literature, of his wide- 
 spread relations to many important religious and educational organizations, all 
 of which made him an ornament of the Church, others will speak. But this 
 Board most affectionately testifies to his personal liberality to missions, and to 
 the warmth of his prayers on its behalf. His interest was unflagging, and ex- 
 tended personally to every missionary under our care, and to the faithful 
 Secretaries of the Board, for each of whom he was most considerate. As the 
 President of the Board his courtesy was unfailing, and his acute intelligence 
 was always wholly at its service. 
 
 For his own sake we rejoice with him that he has entered on his full reward. 
 But for our own part we shall long look back with tender regret at the days 
 while he was yet with us. Thanking God upon e\-ery remembrance of him, we 
 bow to the decree of our Father in Heaven, and can only say, " God's will be 
 done." 
 
 In further expression of our feelings, it is hereby ordered that this minute 
 be entered on our records, and that copies thereof be sent to Dr. Chambers' 
 family, to the Consistory of the Collegiate Church, and to the papers of the 
 denomination. 
 
 Eutgerjs College 
 
 Minute 
 
 ADOPTED BY THE BOARD OF TRUSTEES, MARCH 3, 1 896 
 
 /flp HE Board of Trustees of Rutgers College would put on record its sense of 
 ^^ loss in the death of the Rev. Talbot W. Chambers, S.T.D., LL.D. 
 For nearly thirty years Dr. Chambers was a member of this Board, hav- 
 ing been elected June 17th, 1868. As in every responsibility he assumed, so in 
 this he was conscientiously faithful, most regular in attendance on the meetings 
 of the Board, eminently wise in counsel and efficient in action. A scholar at 
 once profound and versatile, he sought to have the College an exponent of the 
 best scholarship of the day ; a Christian in the truest sense of the term, he 
 wished the College to be unmistakably and thoroughly a Christian institution ; 
 a loyal minister of the Reformed Church, and pastor in the oldest and strongest 
 organization of that body, he sought to have the College representative of what 
 is best in its history and traditions, and in securing these ends he was wise, 
 zealous and self-sacrificing. Himself a graduate, he had the affection of a son 
 for his alma mater, to which he contributed not a little through his wide repu- 
 tation, his powerful personal and official influence, beside the gifts of time, 
 
 52 
 
money and effort he was ever making in her behalf. Age brought to him no 
 abatement of his powers or activity, and his ceasing from labor was followed 
 closely by his entrance into rest. We, on whom devolve greater burdens 
 because of his going home, gratefully attest how faithfully, conscientiously and 
 efficiently he ever sought the best interests of the College, and enter on our 
 minutes this tribute of affectionate appreciation. 
 
 Resolved, That a copy of this minute be sent to the family of the deceased, and 
 be published in " The Christian Intelligencer." 
 
 (Signed) John B. Drury, 
 
 Paul D. Van Cleef, 
 Henry W, Bookstaver, 
 
 Committee. 
 
 Eutgctji College 
 
 ADOPTED BY THE FACULTY, FEBRUARY ID, 1 896 
 
 ^R. TALBOT W. CHAMBERS, a Graduate and Trustee of this College, 
 having been called to the service of his Master on high, we, the Faculty', 
 desire to express our appreciation of his life-work, and our regard for him' 
 personally. 
 
 Dr. Chambers has occupied the widest sphere in the life of this College that 
 it is possible for any man to hold. He graduated with marked distinction at a 
 very early age, and continued till his death to cherish every interest dear to its 
 intellectual and material prosperity. Occupying the most honored positions in 
 the Church of Christ universal, and in the field of letters, amid the innumerable 
 cares which thereby fell to him, he yet gave of his time and means without stint 
 to the welfare of this College. He was its wise counsellor and devoted friend 
 n every way that was possible for a clear-headed, energetic, and unselfish serv- 
 ant of its interests. Those of us who knew him intimately loved him with 
 unutterable affection, and now feel that a gap has been made in our lives which 
 can never be filled. As his presence departs from us, we desire to take up the 
 words of the Divine Master, greeting his entrance on a higher service : " Well 
 done, thou good and faithful servant." 
 Resolved, That we record this testimony in our minutes, and transmit a copy 
 
 to the Board of Trustees, and to the family of Dr. Chambers. 
 
 (Signed) Jacob Cooper. 
 
 Albert H. Chester, 
 Louis Bevier, Jr., 
 
 Committee, 
 53 
 
mtmtn Cljcologtcal ^cmtnarr 
 
 OF THE REFORMED DUTCH CHURCH IN AMERICA 
 HOLLAND, MICHIGAN 
 
 CHE Professors and Students of the Western Theological Seminary, desir- 
 ing to express their grateful appreciation of the fact that the late Ur. 
 Talbot W. Chambers gave his most valuable I^ibrary to our Institution, would 
 make the following record on our minutes : 
 
 Resolved, That in receiving this large and carefully selected library, coming 
 from one of the most scholarly of our mmisters, one honored not alone by 
 our own church but by all the Christian world, we have reason for pro- 
 found thankfulness to God for raising up for us a friend whose kindly 
 Christian spirit prompted him to supply a need most keenly felt by both 
 professors and students. 
 Resolved, That we extend our thanks to the family of the late Dr. Chambers 
 for their promptness and liberality in forvv'arding the library to us free of 
 all charges and that a copy of this action be forwarded to them and be 
 published in " The Christian Intelligencer " and the Holland City papers. 
 
 J. W. Beardslee, of the Faculty. 
 
 H. HuiziNGA, of the Senior class. 
 
 J. W. Te Selle, of the Middle class. 
 
 Benj, Hoffman, of the Junior class. 
 
 jarinceton Clieologtcal ^cminat^ 
 
 ^f^HE Professors of Princeton Theological Seminary have heard with pro- 
 ^^ found grief and sorrow of the death of the Rev. Dr. Talbot W. Cham- 
 bers, for whom they cherished a warm personal regard, whose exemplary 
 Christian character and eminently useful life they greatly admired, with whom 
 they have long been on terms of intimate and delightful fellowship, and whose 
 loss they sincerely mourn as a public calamity to the Church at large and to the 
 cause of evangelical truth and sound Christian doctrine. He was a student of 
 this Seminary in 1836, and was ever in earnest sympathy with the type of the- 
 ology here taught,which was the basis of his preaching during an influentia 
 ministry of nearly sixty years, and of which he was an able expounder and a 
 zealous defender both by voice and pen to the end of his days. During a tem- 
 porary vacancy in the chair of New Testament Literature and Exegesis in this 
 Seminary he was invited to lecture in that department, which he did with much 
 acceptance. He was always welcomed here to occupy the pulpit, or to deliver 
 special lectures, which he did at sundry times. He was a valued coadjutor in 
 the editorship of " The Presbyterian Review " and of " The Presbyterian and Re- 
 formed Review." And his writings were always prized, whether in newspapers 
 
 54 
 
and periodicals, to which he was a frequent contributor, or in pamphlets and vol- 
 umes. The numerous positions of trust which he occupied in the Church, or in 
 educational and benevolent institutions, or in the work of Bible revision, were 
 filled by him with signal fidelity. His activity in religious and literary labors was 
 maintained to the last ; and his decease has put an end to important work which 
 he had undertaken, but which must now remain unaccomplished. We feel 
 that a great and a good man has fallen in Israel, who will be sadly missed, and 
 whose place it will be difficult to fill. We can only bow submissively to the 
 sovereign will of that gracious Redeemer who has called his servant to his re- 
 ward and to a higher sphere of activity. We tender to his family and friends 
 our sincere sympathy, and share with them the sense of the magnitude of our 
 common loss. 
 
 We have deputed two of our number to attend the funeral of our departed 
 friend, who will go unless providentially- hindered. 
 
 Yours in Christian bonds, 
 
 W. Henry Green, 
 
 On behalf of the Professors. 
 To the Family of Rev. Dr. Chambers. 
 
 9lUtance of Ecformtti O^urcl&ejs 
 
 The Rev. Talbot Wilson Chambers, D.D., LL.D., 
 Chairman of the Western Section, and President of the 
 " Alliance of the Reformed Churches throughout the 
 world, holding the Presbyterian System," having departed 
 this life in New York City on February 3, 1896, the Ex- 
 ecutive Committee of the Western Section adopted the 
 following Minute with reference to his life and services : 
 
 ^tnutc 
 
 ?rrsR. Chambers was born in Carlisle, Pa., February 25, 1819, was a graduate 
 *^ of Rutgers College, and pursued theological studies at the Reformed Dutch 
 Seminary. New Brunswick, and at the Presbyterian Theological Seminary, 
 Princeton, N, J. Ordained in 1840, he ser\'ed until 1849 as pastor of the Re- 
 formed Dutch Church, Somerville, N. J., and from 1849 onward w^as one of the 
 pastors of the Collegiate Reformed Dutch Church, New York City, and at the 
 time of his decease the senior Pastor of the Church. In addition to his long and 
 distinguished pastoral labors. Dr. Chambers rendered efficient service in other 
 lines of Christian work, especially in connection with this Alliance. In 1884 he 
 became Chairman of the Western Section, and in 1892 was made President of 
 the Alliance. The Presbyterian and Reformed Churches upon all the conti- 
 
 55 
 
0ppenDip 
 
 nents looked forward with much pleasure to his presence as presiding officer at 
 their Sixth General Council, to be held at Glasgow, Scotland, in June of this 
 year. At this Council he was to have delivered the address as President of the 
 Alliance, and it is with sincere sorrow that we look forward to the substitution 
 for it of an obituary. His entire career as officer of the Alliance was charac- 
 terized by great dignity, large catholicity of spirit, earnest interest in every 
 movement which gave promise of inuring to the welfare of the Church, and 
 great activity up to the last in the performance of the duties assigned to him. 
 Deeply imbued with the Spirit of Christ, he was a true servant of the Lord, 
 meek, patient, gentle unto all, an example to believers in word, in conversation, 
 m charity, in faith, in purity. His labors ended, he has entered into eternal 
 rest, and has received the crown of righteousness. The deep and widesoread 
 regret at his sudden and unexpected departure from this life is alleviated by 
 thoughts of his high personal character, the valuable service which he rendered 
 to the Kingdom of Christ, and the joy into whose fulness he has now entered. 
 We tender to his bereaved family heartfelt sympathy in their great affliction, 
 with the earnest hope that they may be comforted with the comfort of Him who 
 never forsaketh those that trust in Him. 
 
 To the ministers and members of the Reformed Church in America, with 
 whom the whole ministerial life of Dr. Chambers was passed, we tender sin- 
 cere condolences for the great loss they have suffered by the removal from their 
 midst of a high-minded minister, an accomplished scholar, a faithful pastor and 
 an influential counsellor and leader. 
 
 Attest, 
 
 Wm. Henry Roberts, 
 Philadelphia, Pa., March 23, 1896. Secretary. 
 
 At a meeting of the Executive Commission of the 
 Eastern Section, held at Glasgow, February 25th, the 
 General Secretary, the Rev. Dr. G. D. Matthews, reported 
 the death, after a very brief illness, of the Rev, Dr. 
 Chambers, of New York, President of the Alliance. 
 Members of the Section having expressed their high 
 appreciation of Dr. Chambers, and their sense of the loss 
 occasioned to the Alliance by his death, the following 
 Minute was unanimously adopted : 
 
 ^tnute 
 
 QrtT is with feelings of no ordinary regret that the Eastern Section now place on 
 3/ record a brief memorial of the President of our Alliance, the late Rev. Dr. 
 Talbot Wilson Chambers, of the Reformed (Dutch) Church, New York, who 
 
 56 
 
died there on the 3d of February', 1896. Conspicuous at the successive meetings 
 of the Alliance at Philadelphia, Belfast, London and Toronto, Dr. Chambers 
 gained the esteem of all by his cordial interest in its operations, his able and in- 
 telligent contributions to its proceedings, the tact, wisdom and courtesy which 
 he manifested on all occasions, and the devout and loyal Christian spirit which 
 was so apparent in his whole demeanor. Distiuguished in his own country for 
 long and faithful service, not only to his own Church, but to the cause of Christ 
 in its widest bearings ; combining full and accurate scholarship with readiness 
 of speech and with the pen of the ready writer ; laborious, diligent and 
 methodical in his habits, he did an amount of valuable work in Church Courts, 
 Boards, Committees, and other public positions which has been rarely equalled, 
 while his pen enabled him to spread far and wide in a clear and interesting man- 
 ner the views that commended themselves to him on many topics of the highest 
 importance. For these and other quaiifications Dr. Chambers was cordially 
 and unanimously called by the Toronto Council to fill the office of President of 
 the Alliance, and on both sides of the Atlantic his friends were looking forward 
 with eager expectation to the coming meeting of the Council at Glasgow, over 
 which it would have been his office to preside. The Commission desire rever- 
 ently to bow to the decree of Providence that has deprived them of the pleasure 
 and profit which they were so eagerly expecting ; and, while recordmg their es- 
 teem for himself and their deep regret at his removal, desire to commend his 
 bereaved family and friends to the gracious love and consolation of Him who 
 doth not afflict willingly, nor grieve the children of men. 
 
 A true copy, 
 
 Wm. Henry Roberts, 
 
 American Secretary. 
 
 ^Letter 
 
 FROM THE REV. WILLIAM HENRY ROBERTS, D. D. 
 
 Rev. Edward B. Coe, D.D., 
 
 My Dear Brother : 
 <^T gave me a sorrowful pleasure to forward to you the action taken by the 
 ^ Western and Eastern Sections of the " Alliance of the Reformed Churches 
 throughout the world, holding the Presbyterian System," with reference 
 to the lamented death of the President of the Alliance, Rev. Dr. Talbot W. 
 Chambers. Dr. Chambers first came into relation with the Alliance at Phila- 
 delphia in 1880, through the reading of an admirable paper on the subject of 
 "Bible Revision." At Belfast, Ireland, in 1884, during the sessions of the Third 
 General Council of the Alliance, he was elected Chairman of the Western 
 Section, a position which he continued to hold until the date of his death. Prior 
 to the year 1888, when it was my privilege to be chosen the American Secretary 
 of the Alliance, Dr. Chambers was known to me by virtue of his intellectual 
 attainments as one of the leading Christian ministers on this side of the Atlantic. 
 
 57 
 
Associated with him personally and officially from that year forward, I soon 
 learned to appreciate him for the lovable qualities of his nature as well as to 
 admire him for his mental powers. It was my privilege to be with him at the 
 time of the death of his beloved wife at Portland, Oregon, and the impression 
 which I had previously received of his high Christian character and increasing 
 conformity to the likeness of our Lord, was yet the more deepened. His 
 election as President of the Alliance was an honor in every respect deserved, 
 and brought out with great clearness the Christian virtues which he possessed. 
 I do not feel called upon further to refer to the estimation in which he was held 
 by all the brethren of the Presbyterian and Reformed Churches in his official 
 relations. This is sufficiently attested to by the action of the two Sections of the 
 Alliance. My purpose is simply to place on record our most cordial esteem 
 and regard for one of the most considerate, kindly and lovable of men, who as 
 he grew riper in years grew increasingly into the likeness of the beloved 
 Master whom we in common serve. May God raise up for the Church others 
 like unto our departed friend. 
 
 With sincere esteem, 
 
 Yours Fraternally, 
 
 Wm. Henry Roberts, 
 
 American Secretary. 
 
 ^Imertcan Cract ^ocict^ 
 
 At a special meeting of the Executive Committee of 
 the American Tract Society, called for the occasion Feb- 
 ruary 5th, 1 896, the following Minute was adopted : 
 
 3N the recent death of the Rev. Talbot W. Chambers, S.T.D., LL.D., the 
 Tract Society deeply mourns the loss of another of the great and good men 
 whom it has from time to time been privileged to number among its active co- 
 laborers. 
 
 Dr. Chambers became a member of the Publishing and Executive Com- 
 mittees in the Spring of 1881, and was elected Chairman of the Publishing 
 Committee in 1890, and of the Executive Committee in 1892, holding the offices 
 till death. As a member of both Committees his associates most highly 
 esteemed and loved him — for his supreme devotion to Christ and His cause, 
 his prompt and regular attendance at meetings of committees, his readiness for 
 any service to the Society, his courtesy of manner and the wisdom of his coun- 
 sels, his fidelity to the evangelical principles of the Society, and his scholarship 
 in the selection of its publications. 
 
 In common with the Church of his choice, with many Christian charitable 
 
 58 
 
0ppenDij; 
 
 societies, and with the universal Christian Church, the Committee mourns the 
 loss of a man of God, eminent for his piety, learning and judgment, prominent 
 in the councils and operations of his own denomination and the Church at large, 
 a lover of the word of God, an influential member of the Committee of Revision, 
 a staunch defender of the claims of the Bible against every assault, and con- 
 stant in labors to furnish it unalloyed with works illustrating and enforcing its 
 truths, in many languages, and to promote its circulation throughout the 
 world. 
 
 Resolved, That a copy of this minute be transmitted to the family of Dr. 
 Chambers, with the sincere condolence of the Tract Society ; that the 
 several members of the Executive Committee be requested to attend the 
 funeral services together ; and that a special notice of the time and place 
 of these services be sent to each member. 
 
 Wm. W. Rand, 
 
 Secretary, A.T.S. 
 
 amettcan isible ^octet^ 
 
 At the stated meeting of the Board of Managers of the 
 American Bible Society, held at the Bible House on 
 Thursday, the 6th of March, 1896, the following Minute 
 relating to the Rev. T. W. Chambers, D.D., LL.D., was 
 unanimously approved ; and it was directed that it be 
 printed in the " Bible Society Record," and that a copy of 
 it be sent to the family of Dr. Chambers. 
 
 Minute 
 
 ^ipORASMUCH as it hath pleased Almighty God, in His good Providence, to 
 •J' take out of this world the soul of the Rev. Talbot V/. Chambers. D.D., for 
 twenty-three years a member, and during the past fourteen years the Chairman 
 of the Committee on Versions of the American Bible Society, we, his associ- 
 ates, desire to put on record our testimony to the nobility of his character, his 
 profound scholarship, his services to the Church of our Lord Jesus Christ, as 
 well as to the American Bible Society, and to his wise counsels, and never-fail- 
 ing courtesy as a member and as the Chairman of this Committee. 
 
 He had not only that erudition which qualified him to fill the chair of a pro- 
 fessor of theology, and to co-operate with the English revisers of the Old Tes- 
 tament, but also a stock of information on missionary and ecclesiastical matters 
 which enabled him to adduce illustrations valuable and pertinent to the occasion 
 which called him up. 
 
 In his death we have met a very great loss, but we comfort ourselves with the 
 
 59 
 
thought that he came to his " grave in a full age, like as a shock of corn cometh 
 in in his season," and has entered into the rest that remaineth to the people of 
 
 ^^^- Edward W. Oilman, 
 
 Secretary. 
 
 S0in\xte 
 
 /fir' HE Board of Managers of the Presbyterian Hospital record with sorrow the 
 ^^ death of their late associate, Rev. Talbot W. Chambers, S.T.D.. LL.D., 
 who died at his home in this city after an illness of a few days, on February 
 3rd, 1896. 
 
 Dr. Chambers was born in Carlisle, Pa., on February 25th, 1819. He was 
 graduated at Rutgers College in 1834, and studied Theology at New Brunswick 
 and at Princeton. He was chosen as one of the Pastors of the Collegiate Re- 
 formed Church in 1849. and at the time of his death had been senior minister 
 of that body for the last three years. 
 
 He was a distinguished biblical scholar, Chairman of the Revision Committee 
 of the American Bible Society, a widely read Theologian, and a Preacher of 
 marked ability, eminently evangelical and practical, and the dignity and purity 
 of his Christian life emphasized his teaching. 
 
 His publications were many and scholarly, and always loyal to the truth and 
 to Christ. 
 
 At the time of his death he was a Manager of the Bible Society, a Trustee 
 of Rutgers College, and also of Columbia University, and for the last three years 
 a member of the Clerical Board of Managers of the Hospital. 
 
 He labored up to the very close of life, and exercised a wide influence not 
 only in the venerable body he served so long, but also in the community at 
 large. His memory will long be cherished and his name revered. 
 
 It is ordered that this minute of affection and respect be entered in full on 
 the minutes, and that a copy be sent to his family with expressions of the sin- 
 cerest sympathy of every member of the Board. 
 
 George E. Dodge, 
 New York, February nth, 1896. Corresponding Secretary. 
 
 goung apcu*j2i €\^ti^t\an Qimociation 
 
 OF THE CITY OF NEW YORK 
 
 February 21, 1896. 
 At a meeting of the Board of Directors of the Young 
 Men's Christian Association of the City of New York, 
 
 60 
 
held on the evening of the 17th inst, the following was 
 unanimously adopted : 
 
 fftr'HE Board of Directors of the Association learn with sorrow of the death of 
 ^^ the Rev, Talbot W. Chambers, D.D., after a brief illness, February 3d, 
 in the seventy-seventh year of his age. 
 
 In point of service Dr. Chambers was the senior pastor of the city, and was 
 the last of the circle of city pastors who were familiar with the Association from 
 its organization. He was always ready to render service in behalf of the Asso- 
 ciation. 
 
 The Board of Directors keenly feel the loss of their friend, and hereby ex- 
 tend their sympathy to his bereaved family, and 
 
 Resolved, That this minute be spread on the records of the Board, and a copy 
 be sent to the family of our departed friend. 
 
 In behalf of the Board of Directors, 
 
 R. R. McBuRNEY. 
 
 General Secretary. 
 
 At a meeting of the teachers of the Knox Memorial 
 Sunday-School held at the Chapel, February 9, 1896, the 
 following Minute on the death of Talbot W. Chambers, 
 D.D., LL.D., was adopted: 
 
 ^ir' HE relations between Dr. Chambers and the Knox Memorial Chapel were 
 ^^ especially close. 
 
 He was at our chapel services frequently, both in the morning and evening, 
 and often preached there ; he knew our chapel congregation individually ; he 
 was always with us at our Christmas festivals and at our Industrial School clos- 
 ings ; he took a deep interest in our Sunday-School, and was always present at 
 the Elders' meeting to receive new members of the church. 
 
 One of his last public appearances was at our chapel at the Elders' meeting 
 on January 23d, when he received those who were uniting with the church. 
 
 That occasion will not be forgotten by those who heard him ; he was inter- 
 ested in the numbers before him and in the answers he received ; he gave much 
 counsel and advice, and illustrated his remarks with personal reminiscences and 
 anecdotes, and greatly impressed those who heard him. 
 
 In common with all branches of our church we deeply mourn his loss ; to us 
 his death is a personal and especial bereavement. 
 
 We rejoice, however, in the noble record of his life's work ; pre-eminently a 
 scholar, he was also a genial friend ; a man himself above reproach, he had a 
 
 61 
 
0ppenDtp 
 
 tender sympathy for erring human nature ; and above all he had a stalwart faith 
 in the religion that he professed, which yielded nothing to the insidious teach- 
 ings of the present time. 
 
 We revered him as a man, we respected him as a scholar, we loved him as a 
 friend and we knew him as a true Christian. 
 
 Our sympathies and prayers are with his family in their great sorrow. 
 Resolved, That the foregoing minute be and it hereby is adopted, and that a 
 
 copy be sent to the family of Dr. Chambers. 
 
 Extract from the minutes. 
 
 F. A. Allen, 
 
 Secretary. 
 
 Cl)i ^Ipl^a 
 
 A Minute expressive of the affection of this Association 
 of Ministers for Dr. Chambers and their regret at his 
 death, was presented at their meeting on the 15th of May, 
 by the Rev. Dr. Coe, and unanimously adopted. As the 
 substance of it is found in the foregoing address, it is not 
 here reprinted. 
 
 aipi^a ©elta 
 
 ADOPTED MARCH 9, 1 896 
 
 i|l±Y the death of Dr. Talbot W. Chambers our circle has lost its oldest and 
 ^^ most honored member. In the year 1862 he became a member of Alpha 
 Delta, and from that time to the very day of his death he was most deeply interested 
 in the Society, and was its most constant attendant. To speak of his public life 
 and his varied and important labors for the cause of Christ and His Church is 
 certainly unnecessary here, in view of the many testimonials which have already 
 been uttered, and our personal familiarity with his life and labors. That which 
 appeals most directly to us is undoubtedly our personal sense of loss, as we re- 
 alize that for the last time we have listened to his carefully prepared and sug- 
 gestive papers, to his masterly and clear analyses of sermons, and to his helpful 
 words of criticism or approbation in the ordinary discussions of our circle. It 
 was always an incentive to us who vi^ere younger to do our best work, because 
 we were sure of the presence and the interested attention of this master-mind 
 
 62 
 
among us. Yet undoubtedly the deepest sense of loss finds utterance in the ex- 
 pression of our hearts ; for it was not so much as a mentor and teacher, but as 
 a good, kindly friend and loving father in Christ, that we all regarded him. No 
 one could have been taken from us whom we should so universally and deeply 
 mourn, and whose loss would be felt so much a personal one upon the part of 
 every one of us. His was a nature truly tender and sympathetic, combining 
 the simplicity of a really great intellect with the tenderness of a retiring, gentle 
 heart. To many of us the Alpha Delta will never be the same — so delightful 
 and so useful in our Christian and professional lives — that it was when Dr. 
 Chambers was one of us. 
 
 A true copy. 
 
 Wm. Rankin Duryee, 
 
 Recording Secretary. 
 
 Ci^e (0reefe Club 
 
 48 West 46th Street, 
 
 March 5th, 1896. 
 To THE Family of the Reverend 
 
 Dr. Talbot W. Chambers : 
 •T^CT the last meeting of our Greek Club, at which there was a full attendance 
 '^ of the members, I was requested, as the Senior member, by the unani- 
 mous voice of those present, to convey to the family of the Reverend Dr. 
 Chambers the expression of our common feeling of reverent regard for his 
 noble character, his pure and gentle life, and our appreciation of the sweet 
 fellowship which for so many years bound our little band together harmoniously 
 in kindred and unselfish pursuits. Mingled with this feeling was one of deep 
 sense of personal loss, the regret that we shall see his face and hear his voice 
 no more here on earth. No one could know your father and not honor him for 
 his faithful work as a minister of the gospel, and love him for the purity and 
 grace of his daily life. To us, his associates for many years, the close inter- 
 course into which we were brought with him in the genial unrestrained dis- 
 cussions at our weekly or fortnightly meetings, was a benediction. At these 
 gatherings, as in all he undertook, he was most faithful and regular in his 
 attendance, ever ready to take his part in our self-imposed duties. His wide 
 reading in many departments of human knowledge, and his profound acquaint- 
 ance with Holy Scripture, commanded respect from all for his opinions, which 
 were always modestly expressed. We greatly miss his bodily presence, but the 
 memory of his noble nature and of his beautiful Christian life will find a per- 
 manent abiding place in the hearts of us all. 
 
 Yours sincerely, 
 
 Henry Drisler. 
 In behalf of the members of The Greek Club. 
 
 t>3 
 
from ""Cl^e Ci^rtjsttan gintelUgenccr" 
 
 -^HE death of Dr. Chambers comes to us not only as a personal bereavement, 
 ^ but an almost irreparable loss to the Church of which he was probably 
 the most widely known and honored representative. His force of character, his 
 wide and accurate scholarship, his always clear and vigorous writings, put him 
 in the front rank among the leaders of theological thought. The senior pastor 
 of the leading church of his denomination, heartily loyal to all its interests, par- 
 ticularly devoted to its missionary and educational work, his death makes a 
 breach such as cannot be filled by any single individual. He worthily repre- 
 sented his denomination in many of the union agencies for Christian and philan- 
 thropic effort. His reputation covered both continents, attested among other 
 honors by his unanimous choice, in 1892, to succeed the Rev. Dr. W. G. Blaikie 
 as President of the Executive Commission of the world-wide Alliance of Re- 
 formed Churches, a position he was worthily filling at the time of his death. 
 Though nearly fourscore years of age, his physical and mental vigor and activity 
 seemed unabated, and there was promise of yet longer usefulness. Nowhere 
 possibly will his valued and able services be more missed than in the columns of 
 the " Intelligencer," to which he has for fully fifty years been a constant and always 
 acceptable contributor. We pen this tribute with sincere sorrow over the loss 
 of one whose life was abundant in noble deeds unselfishly rendered, in scholarly 
 productions ever permeated with loyalty to truth and to Christ, and whose 
 length of days only increased the range and worth of his services and honors. 
 The world and the Church are poorer for his going home. 
 
 from ^^Cl^e CbangcUjst" 
 
 CHE obsequies of a learned and good man are always impressive, but the 
 great audience gathered in the Forty-eighth Street Church on Friday 
 morning last must have experienced new sensations of fitness and solemnity 
 while the simple service progressed and the body of the senior Collegiate pastor 
 lay under white rose wreaths beneath the pulpit from which he had often 
 spoken. The simplicity and modesty of a great scholar, the majesty and beauty 
 of a great man, were pleasantly suggested by every detail of the service and the 
 surroundings. If the Church in New York has lost one of her shining lights, the 
 manner of her expression of regret was appropriately modest, yet filled with the 
 truest emotion. And any one who knew Dr. Chambers at all well appreciated 
 the perfect arrangements which made his funeral a model of quiet, exalted and 
 
 inspiring observances. 
 
 « * * * * * 
 
 Of Dr. Chambers himself it is not our purpose to speak here at length. At 
 a later day his memorial is to be written by his now senior colleague, Dr. 
 
 64 
 
Edward B. Coe, when we shall recur to the relations of Dr. Chambers to the 
 Christian world and the Presbyterian Church also. For he was too large a man 
 to limit his activity or sympathy to the Reformed Church alone. Columbia 
 College, by its President and Trustees, was present at his funeral. The Bible 
 and Tract Societies presented memorial tributes at the meeting of the clergy 
 just preceding. The Board of Missions of the Reformed Church and the 
 Presbyterian Alliance, the Chi Alpha, and the Consistory of the Collegiate 
 Church, all took action on the departure of one who had been a foremost and 
 most loved member and associate. Tributes also had been sent from many 
 institutions in this country to which Dr. Chambers had ministered as a scholar 
 and helper, and from over sea, where as a member of the Revision Committee, 
 his mastery of the originals, and his marvelous insight into the deep things of 
 revelation had made a profound impression. Rarely had so many and so varied 
 Christian activities clustered lovingly around one bier, tenderly touched the 
 moveless hands, tearfully looked into the unspeaking face. It was a signal 
 instance of the far reach of one strong life, of one spirit which sought only the 
 highest things. This is achievement, to knit the best men of the world unto 
 oneself, to weave one's own grandeur into the web of all noblest human en- 
 deavor. Whoever is to-day seeking great things for himself in any worthy call- 
 ing, should sit by the bier of Chambers and learn how the man who works for 
 the love of it, who hunts out and illustrates the truth for its own sake, comes at 
 length to a harvest of honors such as no buyer of laurels for his own brow can 
 hope to gather. When the race is on, and men are wild with desire to win, it is 
 well to have the lesson of such a life brought close home to the hearts of the 
 thoughtful among our business men. Especially good for young men in school 
 or seminary is the touch of a man like Chambers, even if it be only by his funeral 
 notice. And if the good die not, if the good which men do lives after them, then 
 the end of such a life is better than the beginning, and the farewell hour with 
 him profitable for all that follow. 
 
 -Jir HE Reformed Church in America and the Christian Church at large sus- 
 tains a great loss by the death of the Rev. Dr. Talbot Wilson Chambers, 
 of this city. 
 
 ****** 
 Dr. Chambers was a pronounced conservative in matters of religious faith. 
 He was an assiduous student from his early years until his death. He was 
 perfectly familiar with all the forms of skepticism, agnosticism, German ration- 
 alism and the so-called higher criticism of our own country and Great Britain. 
 He was a regular contributor to the columns of " The New York Observer," 
 both over his own signature and as an editorial associate. In the columns of 
 
 65 
 
this journal and elsewhere he published keen analyses of some of the most 
 dangerous sophistries of the age, punctured their aerial pretensions, and set forth 
 the truth in precise and lucid terms. He wielded a sharp and ready sword in 
 the defence of evangelical theology, and struck his telling blows with unerring 
 precision. Theological errors never escaped him, and their exposure and 
 practical annihilation were his delight, while his appreciative readers would 
 follow him with a perpetual relish. The beloved wife of Dr. Chambers passed 
 away a few years before him. Her death was a great blow, but he continued 
 his unremitting and useful labors to the last. Not long since he intimated to a 
 friend that an attack of vertigo had impressed him with the necessity of setting 
 his house in order, and affirmed that he had done so. Within two weeks he 
 was in the" Observer " rooms, chatting pleasantly with the workers there. We 
 had not thought to lose him for some time yet, although he was so nearly 
 seventy-seven years of age ; and nowhere outside of his own family circle will 
 his death leave a deeper shadow than upon us. But the doughty champion has 
 laid down the sword, which he wielded so well, and the faithful pastor and able 
 preacher, the true friend, the catholic-spirited Christian worker is of the earth 
 no more. He has entered a larger sphere, whose opportunities are beyond our 
 mortal comprehension. Concerning his earthly career, he has heard the King's 
 " Well done." There remains henceforth for him the rest of them who rest not 
 day nor night in their untiring service of our Lord. 
 
 w 
 
 from ^'Ci^e 3!tttiepenDcnt " 
 
 kR. TALBOT W. CHAMBERS, whose sudden death last week came as a 
 shock to all mterested in Christian work in this city and in the country, 
 was the senior pastor of the Collegiate (Dutch) Reformed Church. He was 
 born in Carlisle, Penn., February 25th, 181 9, graduated from Rutgers College in 
 1834, and studied theology at New Brunswick and Princeton. He was licensed 
 to preach at the age of nineteen, and in 1839 entered the pastorate at Somer- 
 ville, N. J. Ten years later he was installed in the Collegiate Church in this 
 city, and for forty-seven years has been connected with that church. His inter- 
 ests, however, were far wider than his immediate parish. He was active in the 
 work of the American Bible Society, and served for many years as Chairman of 
 its Committee of Versions. The Evangelical Alliance and Presbyterian Alli- 
 ance and other organizations were also objects of great interest with him, and 
 he was the honored President of the Executive Committee of the Western 
 Branch of the Alliance. He was widely known as a scholar, and was a member 
 of the American Bible Revision Committee in charge of the work on the Old 
 Testament. He was also a large contributor to the religious press and a vig- 
 orous writer ; always conservative in doctrine, although his blows at what he 
 considered to be false teaching never left the impression of a harsh antagonist. 
 
 66 
 
0ppcnDi): 
 
 Up till within a very short time of his death he was active in all good work, 
 taking especial interest in the meeting of the officers of the various mission 
 boards, which was held a short time since in the Synod's rooms in this city. 
 More than any other one man he might be called the leader of the Reformed 
 Church in America in every department of its work. 
 
 ifrom "Ci^e Ci^rfjittan at moth" 
 
 3 
 
 |N the death of the Rev. Dr. Talbot W. Chambers, one of the most honored 
 of ministers of the Gospel and one of the foremost of scholars ceases 
 from earth, and the last of that body of stalwart preachers who stood at the 
 head of the Collegiate Church fifty years, ago— the Rev. Drs. John Knox, Wil- 
 liam C. Brownlee, Thomas DeWitt. Thomas E. Vermilye and Talbot W. 
 Chambers— has passed away. The career so suddenly ended was one of cease- 
 less activity and usefulness. Besides carrying on his pastoral work in the 
 Collegiate Church in this city. Dr. Chambers took an active interest in the work 
 of the American Bible Society, and was for many years Chairman of its Commit- 
 tee on Versions. But it was as a member of the Old Testament Company of 
 the American Revision Committee that Dr. Chambers put in his most scholarly 
 work and rendered lasting service to the cause of Bible revision. Rendered, as 
 this service was, in the quiet of the Committee's rooms, but little is known to the 
 outside world of the value of Dr. Chambers' scholarly and conscientious work, 
 but it is well known to his associates and to the world of biblical scholarship. 
 Dr. Chambers was very strenuous in holding his opinions, and his mind was of 
 so conservative and we may say confirmed an order that it was scarcely possible 
 for him to entertain any proposition contravening any of the tenets so long held 
 by him. Yet Dr. Chambers was by no means harsh or unkindly, nor did he 
 question the sincerity, however he might dispute the conclusions, of those differ- 
 ing from him. .Our friend was a frequent contributor to magazines and news- 
 papers ; and our readers will recall his scholarly contributions to " The Christian 
 at Work." Especially do we here recall a brilliant article from his pen on " Per- 
 verted Texts of Scripture," among which he cited, " Woe to him that putteth 
 the bottle to his neighbor's lips," and " Touch not, taste not, handle not," and 
 others. Dr. Chambers remarked in returning the proof of his article with cor- 
 rections, that he believed " only one other religious journal in the city would 
 print that article ! "—not very complimentary to the independence of some relig- 
 ious papers, it must be confessed. 
 
 But now the scholar, the strong mind, the faithful pastor, the genuine Chris- 
 tian gentleman is no more. His work assuredly was " well done." and his 
 memory and example of intense earnestness and conscientiousness remain as a 
 stimulus and encouragement to others, even though their feet do not always 
 press along the way that he trod. 
 
 67 
 
^ppcnoiv 
 
 from ''CI)c €\)xi^tim i^cralti" 
 
 3N the recent death of Rev. Talbot W. Chambers, S.T.D., LL.D., there has 
 passed away one of the most noted theologians of a generation, a man 
 great in scholarship, broad in activities, and strong and loyal in his devotion to 
 the cause of the Christian religion. Dr. Chambers was born in Pennsylvania in 
 1819, and after study at Rutgers College, New Brunswick, and Princeton, be- 
 came pastor of the Second Reformed Church at Somerville, N. J., and later 
 associate pastor of the Collegiate Dutch Reformed Church of New York City. 
 He represented that church and his denomination in many benevolent organiza- 
 tions, local and national. He was President of the General Synod in 1863, and 
 repeatedly filled, at^ interim, chairs of Biblical Literature or Dogmatic Theology 
 in New Brunswick Seminary, and also at Princeton, Union, Hartford, Alle- 
 gheny and Lane. For many years he was Chairman of the Committee on Ver- 
 sions of the American Bible Society and member of the Publishing Committee 
 of the American Tract Society, and was a member of the American Bible Re- 
 vision Committee, Old Testament Company. With the late Dr. SchafT and 
 Principal McCosh he was active in the organization of the Alliance of Reformed 
 Churches holding the Presbyterian System. For several years he was Chairman 
 of the Western Section of the Executive Commission, and in 1892 was chosen 
 to succeed Prof. W. G. Blaikie as President of the Commission. In all that re- 
 lated to the advancement of his own denomination and to the cause of religion 
 at large he was profoundly interested, and spared neither time, means nor ef- 
 fort to make his services effective. For several years he was President of the 
 Board of Foreign Missions. As writer and preacher, as well as in numberless 
 executive capacities, his zeal and energy were displayed. He was a copious 
 contributor to the publications of his own denomination, and was for a time as- 
 sociate editor of " The Presbyterian and Reformed Review." In 1853 Columbia 
 College conferred upon him the degree of S.T.D., and Rutgers, in 1885, be- 
 stowed upon him the degree of LL.D. . . . 
 
 In matters of doctrine Dr. Chambers was strictly conservative, and defended 
 his theological opinions with a vigor and tenacity that usually won its way in 
 controversy. A careful and thorough student, and one of the most learned men 
 in the American pulpit, he was a pillar of strength in support of the orthodox 
 interpretation of Scripture and a stalwart and uncompromising champion of 
 what he believed to be the truth. His ability as a scholar, writer and thinker, 
 his sterling character and his earnestness and vigor in all he undertook have 
 been widely recognized, and his death is a loss that will be keenly felt by the 
 church to which, in his long lifetime, he was so warmly attached. 
 
 68 
 
appeiiDir 
 
 a Cribute 
 
 FROM A LIFE- LONG ATTENDANT AT THE MIDDLE DUTCH CHURCH 
 
 <^N all that has been written concerning the late Dr. Chambers no allusion 
 -J' has been made to the estimation in which he was held by those in humble 
 circumstances with whom he was brought into contact. 
 
 During the last twenty-five years of his pastorate in New York, Dr. Cham- 
 bers, by reason of changes in the resident population in the neighborhood of the 
 church which was his particular charge, has had more or less to do with the 
 poor, and some of these were greatly attached to him. 
 
 At his funeral a goodly proportion of such were present. One of the most 
 affecting incidents of that occasion was the sight of a young working girl in 
 tears who had recently been received into the church, and who had joined the 
 throng which was pressing forward to look for the last time on the features of 
 pastor and friend. 
 
 I have before me a letter of another such— a young woman who is one of 
 his " spiritual children." She is now living in a Hudson River town, whither 
 she was sent some time since on account of illness. Stie writes : 
 
 "While looking over ' The Christian Intelligencer' paper, that a friend loaned me, 
 what should I see but our dear Dr. Chambers' photograph and an interesting account of 
 his work and death. I have not forgotten Dr. Chambers, as when I went to our church on 
 Lafayette Place, I remember often attending church and hearing him preach his interesting 
 sermons, some of which got me to understand the Lord's Word more and more, which got 
 me then to become a Christian and jom my dear church. I remember also when I had 
 that awful diphtheria and scarlet fever, how his words of prayer that I might be restored 
 to good health were answered." 
 
 An occasion which I recall with sacred joy is, on a beautiful Sunday after- 
 noon one spring, when it was my privilege to accompany Dr. Chambers to the 
 top story of a tenement house, where with great tenderness he administered the 
 holy communion to a dying girl. 
 
 At a recent communion service in the Middle Dutch Church there sat in the 
 congregation a German man with somewhat imperfect knowledge of the English 
 language. He was deeply impressed with Dr. Chambers' simplicity and ten- 
 derness, and afterward said that he never realized how much the communion 
 meant, and that it seemed to bring heaven down to earth. This man is now a 
 candidate for admission to the church. 
 
 In " The Christian Intelligencer " of February 12th allusion was made to the 
 fact that Dr. Chambers could not utter the passage, " Like as a father pitieth 
 his children, so the Lord pitieth them that fear him," without a tremor in his 
 
 69 
 
0ppcnDij: 
 
 voice. This recalls an occasion a few years ago when Dr. Chambers began to 
 quote in his sermon Mrs. Luke's well-known hymn, " I think when I read that 
 sweet story of old." He finished the first verse with difficulty, and began the 
 second : 
 
 " I wish that His hands had been placed on my head, 
 That His arm had been thrown around me," 
 
 but here his feelings were overcome, and he was obliged to leave the rest of the 
 hymn unsaid. His hearers were visibly affected. 
 
 Similar instances which recall this side of Dr. Chambers' character are 
 numerous, and he possessed at the same time the faculty of such a clear pres- 
 entation of the truth that uneducated minds were interested, and made able to 
 grasp eternal verities. 
 
 I mention one more case, which is that of a young man who sang for several 
 years in the choir. He was of Roman Catholic antecedents and affiliations. 
 His whole attitude and expression of countenance during Dr. Chambers' ser- 
 mons exhibited the most intense interest. Before he left, to live in a Western 
 city, he was heard to remark : " This is the truth ; it cannot be disputed ; Dr. 
 Chambers has converted me from my errors." 
 
 Testimony to Dr. Chambers' scholarship and intellectual force is abundant, 
 and rightly so. But to me, these tributes of the poor are more precious. Let 
 me, then, lay them tenderly on the grave of our good pastor and friend, whose 
 service here is ended, and may all who knew him keep these memories green. 
 " The poor always ye have with you," and " to the poor the Gospel is 
 preached." " Inasmuch as ye have done it unto one of the least of these my 
 brethren, ye have done it unto me." W. L. B. 
 
 letter of tl^e m\). ^t. jmcClellanD 
 
 The following letter, written by the Rev. Dr. McClel- 
 land to the father of Dr. Chambers, in the summer of 
 1834, has both a biographical and an historical interest : 
 
 New Brunswick, Aug. 15, 1834. 
 Dear Sir: 
 JUAVING started on my summer tour before the Commencement, I was not 
 ^ at home when Talbot left this place, which prevented me from doing 
 what I always do in such cases — I mean from giving a report of his general 
 character and deportment while a member of our institution. I am happy to 
 say that I can make a statement in his favor without a single qualification or 
 drawback. His conduct during the whole College Course has been most ex- 
 emplary, his scholarship not excelled by that of any in his class, and none have 
 left the Institution who will be remembered by those whose opinion is worth 
 
 70 
 
anything with more respect and kindness. He purposes to study Theology. 
 Without offering in the least degree to interfere with your ulterior projects as to 
 the place and manner of completing his education, I may safely recommend our 
 School as a good one for the first year. The Professor of Biblical Literature 
 has many gross deficiencies to my certain knowledge. But he has one great 
 redeeming excellence. He does not make bows to the young men, nor does he 
 use any patent engines. They who come must expect to study, or the place 
 soon becomes very uncomfortable. The consequence is more accuracy than is 
 found in many of our Theological institutions. If you are afraid of his drinking 
 in ultra-Dutch Orthodoxy I can assure you that there is no danger. I could 
 prove this by more arguments than one. But one shall be sufficient, and it is 
 that the Professor of Didactic and Polemic Theology has no concern with the 
 students during the first year. 
 
 Give my best respects to your family and all friends. 
 
 In great haste, 
 
 Yours truly, 
 
 A. McClelland. 
 
 Ci^e ^tantiarti of €>rt]^ot)ojt:^ in 1838 
 
 The following extract from a letter written to Mr. 
 Chambers by a friend in New Jersey and dated April 2, 
 1838, is the authority for the statement made on page 14. 
 
 " ^iO the orthodox Presbytery thought you tainted with heresy from your 
 ''^ connection with Mr. Duffield's old church and your inability to adopt 
 without further examination the imputation of Adam's sin and the doctrine of 
 limited atonement ! We have no scruple amongst us about licensing a candi- 
 date who is unable to adopt Turrettin and Dick's views of imputation, provided 
 he holds to the doctrine of original sin resulting from our connection with Adam 
 as the federal head of the race. Come over to us and you will find some men 
 who will appreciate your attainments in sacred literature more than they would 
 Dr. 's hyper-orthodoxy." 
 
 71 
 
0ppent)tt: 
 
 OF THE REV. DR. CHAMBERS* 
 
 Separate Morb0 
 
 Gunn's Life of Livingston. A new Edition with new Matter. 1856. 
 
 The Noon Prayer-Meeting, Fulton Street, N. Y. Its Origin, Character, Prog- 
 ress and Results. Board of Publication of Reformed Church. Also 
 " Princeton Review," Vol. XXXI., 157 ; 1858. 
 
 A Translation of the Minutes of Coetus and Conferentie (Manuscript). 1859. 
 
 Memoir of Life and Character of the Hon. Theodore Frelinghuysen, LL.D. 
 Board of Publication of Reformed Church. 1863. 
 
 The Psalter a Witness to the Divine Origin of the Scriptures. Vedder Lec- 
 tures for 1876. (Randolph. N. Y.) 1876. 
 
 Descriptive Letter-press of the Dore Bible Gallery. (Cassell, Patter & Galpin, 
 London and New York.) 1880. 
 
 A Companion to the Revised Old Testament. (Funk & Wagnalls, New York.) 
 1885. 
 
 Schmoller's Exposition of Amos. Translated and enlarged. — Exposition of 
 Zechariah. Lange's Minor Prophets. (Charles Scribner's Sons.) 1874. 
 
 Meyer on I. and II. Corinthians. American Edition, edited with Preface and 
 Supplementary Notes. (Funk & Wagnalls.) 1884. 
 
 Homilies of Chrysostom on Land II. Corinthians. In Post-Nicene Fathers, Vol. 
 XII. First Series. Revised with additional Notes. (The Christian Lit- 
 erature Co.) 1889. 
 
 S>ermon3, SHy^u&ntH anD 3^iscellaneou0 0rttclp0 
 
 The Importance of City Missions. Annual Sermon before the City Missionary 
 
 Society of R. P. D. C, of N. Y., May 19. 1850. 
 The Duty Due to Deceased Pastors. Sermon on the Death of Rev. George 
 
 Schenck, Bedminster, N. J., July 9, 1852. 
 The Happiness of the Pious. Sermon published in " The National Preacher,'' 
 
 Aug., 1852. 
 The Gospel, the Only True Reformer. Introduction to Brainerd's Remarks on 
 
 the Work of Grace Among the Indians at Crosswicks, N. J., 1856. 
 
 *Dr. Chambers' writings were so numerous and so widely scattered that it is im- 
 possible to give a complete list of them. The most important ones only are here 
 enumerated. 
 
 72 
 
Report to General Synod on Separation of the Dutch Church from the A. B. C. 
 
 F. M. June, 1857. 
 Memorial of Rev. Dr. Knox. Jan. 17, 1858. 
 Remarks on the Death of Rev. Dr. Knox. 1858. 
 Economy a Christian Duty. Sermon published in " The National Preacher." 
 
 Feb., 1865. 
 A Defence of the Name " Dutch." Published in " The Christian Intelligencer," 
 
 July 18, 1867 (also pamphlet). 
 Objections to Sunday Schools. N. Y. S. S. Institute, 1868. 
 Memorial of the North Dutch Church. A Centennial Discourse. May 25, 1869. 
 George Schenck. Article in " Sprague's Annals," Vol. IX. (1869). 
 True Religious Liberty, or the Church Independent of the State. Sermon 
 preached before Classis of New York, Oct. 19, 1869. "Christian Intelli- 
 gencer," Nov. 4, 1869. 
 Letter on the Madison Avenue Reformed Church. 1870. 
 
 Exercises at the Dedication of the Madison Avenue Reformed Church. (Pam- 
 phlet.) 
 The Writings of Solomon. " The Family Treasury," 1873. 
 John Knox, the Reformer. McClintock and Strong's Encyclopedia, Vol V 
 
 1873. 
 Recalling the Past. Sermon at the Twentieth Anniversary of the Church at 
 
 29th St. and 5th Ave., Oct., 1874. 
 The Guileless Israelite. Sermon in Commemoration of Rev. Dr. T. Dewitt, 
 
 Oct., 1874. 
 A Jeu d'Esprit. X. A. Dec. 25, 1874. 
 Greek Examination Papers. Intercollegiate Association (with W. R. Dimmock 
 
 and Charlton T. Lewis), Dec. i, 1875. 
 The Influence of the Dutch Church in Promoting Soundness of Faith. Centen- 
 nial Discourses of the Reformed Church, Jan., 1876. 
 John Philip Boehm, Translation of the Ordination Papers of. " Reformed Quar- 
 terly," Oct., 1876. 
 John Romeyn Brodhead. " Scribner's Monthly," Feb , 1877. 
 " Is Man Depraved ? " A Discussion with O. B. Frothingham, " North Amer- 
 ican Review," May, 1878. 
 A New Version of the Heidelberg Catechism. With Rev. Drs. Hartranft, Camp- 
 bell and Duryea, 1878. 
 The Bible an English Classic. From " Anglo-American Bible Revision " by 
 
 members of the Revision Committee (for private circulation), 1879. 
 The Review of a Generation. A Discourse on the Thirtieth Anniversary of the 
 
 Settlement in New York of Rev. T. W. Chambers, Dec. 7, 1879. 
 The Truly Good Man. A Memorial of Rev. M. S. Hutton, S.T.D., April 25, 
 
 1880. 
 The Bible for Learners in " Evening Post " Essays. New York, 1880. 
 Theory of Prof. Kuenen. Pres. Rev., April, 1880. 
 
 73 
 
The Unwritten Law of God. Pres. and Ref. Rev. (Editorial Note), Jan., 1895. 
 
 Divorce in the New Testament. Ref. Quart. Rev., Jan., 1895. 
 
 Private Interpretation, Ref. Quart. Rev., April, 1895. 
 
 The Messianic Idea in the Prophets. Pres. and Ref. Rev., April, 1895. 
 
 Biographical Sketches of Ministers of the Collegiate Church from 1699 to 1825. 
 
 Year Book, 1882- 1895. 
 An Introduction to the New Testament for a new Teacher's Bible, 1896. 
 
 ^ome ijiftospapcr Sixtides 
 
 Reminiscences of Dr. McClelland. Fourteen Articles, Christ. Intell. (the last 
 
 dated Dec. 12, 1872.) 
 Expositions of the Sabbath-School Lessons. Christ. Intell., Jan.-Dec, 1873. 
 
 "S. S. Times," July-Dec, 1880; July-Dec, 1881. 
 Palestine and the East. Twenty-eight Articles. Christ. Intell., Feb. 19, 
 
 1874-Nov., 1875. 
 Articles on Revision. Will Revision Succeed ? — "S. S. Times." 
 
 Shall There be Revision? — "Independent," June, 1881. 
 
 A Critical Glance at the Completed Work. — " N. Y. Times," May 21. 1885. 
 
 The Major Prophets in the Revision. — " S. S. Times," May 23, 1885. 
 Sunday-School Reminiscences, Dec, 1882. 
 Clay's Defeat in 1844, " Unionist Gazette," Dec, 1884. 
 Use of the Fathers. Christ. Intell., Feb. 16 ; Apr. 20, 1887. 
 Fifty Years ago. Anniversary of Settlement in Somerville. " Unionist Ga- 
 zette, " Oct. 14 and 21, 1889. 
 Errancies of Scripture. Fourteen Articles. Christ. Intell., July 29-Sept. 19, 
 
 1891. 
 Christ's Single Exception to the Mosaic Law. " Independent," Oct. 29, 1891. 
 
 In addition to the foregoing he edited " Centennial Discourses of the Re- 
 formed Church in America " (N. Y. Board of Publication, R. C. A,, 1877); was 
 associate editor of the " Concise Dictionary of Religious Knowledge " (N. Y. 
 Christian Lit. Co., 1891), and wrote all the biblical and theological articles ; 
 wrote a large number of book reviews for the " Presbyterian and Reformed 
 Review," "The Christian Intelligencer" and "The Observer," and was an 
 anonymous contributor to both these newspapers for more than forty years. 
 
 76 
 
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