Hon. George S. Hale's Lecture.

The Hon. George S. Hale lectured yesterday afternoon on "The Enforcement and Reform of the Law," in Divinity Chapel.

All countries, he said, may be judged by their laws. If the laws of a nation are improving, it follows that the people are, as a whole, becoming more intelligent. As in everything else the minister must help here to turn public opinion into the right channels. A minister can not preach mere sentiment on matters of law, but to talk reasonably and to influence his congregation in the right way, he must understand thoroughly such points as are likely to arise. It is sometimes said that ministers should not concern themselves with the laws of this world but should rather seek to teach the people the laws of the spirit. This is a very wrong point of view. The minister has always stood and will always stand as the head and guiding power of public opinion. Ministers are usually better educated than their congregations and must therefore place certain important questions before the people in the proper light. It is therefore most necessary that ministers should have some knowledge of law.

From the earliest days of Massachusetts the ministers have been recognized as representing the chief element of learning, and their opinions have always been much valued on all matters. Even the legislature of the state has listened regularly once a year, until a few years ago, to a sermon by some eminent clergyman, usually discussing most frankly some important political question. From 1634 to 1884 a sermon was preached every year before the General Court of Massachusetts, and usually this sermon was printed and widely scattered over the state. In 1884 the law providing for this annual sermon was repealed chiefly on account of the virulence of an attack made in a sermon by Rev. Alexander Minot on the opinions held by the party in power. It was a great pity that this practice should have been discontinued, for by it such men as John Eliot, President Hopkins of Williams, Rev. Henry Ware, and Dr. Andrew Peabody have reached the whole people of the state and have done much to shape public opinion.