1786] REV. WILLIAM SMITH, D. D. 17I 



On another review of my plan of proper lessons I am fully satisfied 

 witli it. 



I know of no suitable hymns on the subjects you have named. 



I do not think it will be necessary to print the hymns in a smaller 



type than the rest, and if not necessary, you will agree with me that it 



will not look so well. 



I am, yours respectfully and affectionately, 



Wm. White. 

 Rev. Dr. W. Smith. 



P. S. — I hope to send you per next post the Psalter complete. 



Rev. Dr. Smith to Rev. Dr. White. 



January 30th, 17S6. 



I enclose the remaining hymns. The Psalms of David, unless where 

 tortured by versifiers, have but few evangelical subjects, and stood much 

 in need of a supplement, which our Church has allowed from time to 

 time and we have full power to offer, as neither the psalms which we 

 have selected nor this supplement of hymns are more than an exercise 

 of our best discretion in the work committed to us, and not an essential 

 part of our reformed liturgy. 



You will find the hymns all upon evangelical subjects and practical 

 Christianity, viz. : On the Nativity, on the Passion, Resurrection, As- 

 cension, Gift of the Holy Ghost, The Holy Communion, Time, Life, 

 Death, Hymns at Sea and various Occasions of Life, in Sickness, in 

 Time of Public Calamity, Thanksgivings for Mercies received, On State 

 Days, as July 4th, November ist, Thursday, etc., concluding with 

 Christ's commission to preach the Gospel, two hymns which, when we 

 have ordination of ministers at home, may be properly sung in time of 

 public worship. The subjects you see are numerous, and not more than 

 two or three hymns at most on any subject. The hymns are generally 

 short, too. Should you think that any of them might be left out, I 

 could wish to know which of them. There is the greatest number for 

 the Nativity and for Funerals, but here we ought not to be too sparing. 

 In the enclosed collection. Hymns 36, 39, 40-43 are particularly and 

 beautifully applicable to their subjects. In short, I have taken great 

 pains to collect and adapt them, giving nothing of my own, and I think 

 the number, as they are generally short (although amounting to fifty), 

 is not too great, as the Psalms of David are greatly abridged, and many 

 of them taken out of the places where they stood promiscuously with 

 other psalms, and placed as hymns under the heads to which they 

 belong, so that you will take care not to print these particular passages 

 of the psalms with the singing psalms. Let me hear particularly from 

 you next post on this whole subject. I am more and more pleased with 

 the arrangement of the singing psalms under the different heads to 

 which they will apply, which are but four or five, and finding hymns 



