In addition to facts heretofore stated, it must be borne in mind that tlie Sunday-school unions (q, v,") of the United States have to a large extent provided the Sunday-school tracts and books used by the different churches, and thus covered an important department
TRACY
of publication embraced within the operations of the Keligious Tract Society of London. Besides these, sev- eral denominational religious publishing houses have grown up, in which vast numbers of tracts, books, and periodicals are printed.
The oldest and largest of these is the Book Concern of the ^lethodist ICpiscopal Church, which was a direct outgrowth of Mr. Wesley's publication enterprise in England, mentioned above. It was begun in Phila- delphia by official action of the Church in 1789, and in 1804 was removed to New York, where its principal es- taldishmeiit has since remained. It has branch pub- lishing-houses in Cincinnati, Chicago, and St. Louis, to- gether with depositories in most of the large cities.
Corres])ondiiig in character to the above are the American Baptist Publication Society and the Presby- terian Board of Publication, both located in Philadel- phia. All the institutions thus far named ]inblish more or less books and tracts on the subject of temperance. But in 18G6 the National Temperance Society was or- ganized in New York, for the express purpose of pro- viding a cheap and sound literature on all subjects re- lating to theoretical and practical temperance. The National Temperance Publication House may therefore be numbered among the tract and book publishing in- stitutions of the United States. Its publications, al- ready six hundred in number, are circulated to some extent through Sunday-schools, but more extensively througli auxiliary temperance organizations in all parts of the land. It may thus be seen that from small begin- nings less than a century ago, a vast system of tract and book publication in the interest of Christianity has sprung up and spread abroad its influence in most of the countries and languages of the world.
V. The literature of the subject is as yet chiefly to be founa in the annual reports of the various societies and institutions above enumerated. The Jubilee Jife- moridl. Volume of the Eelii/ious Tract Society (Lond. 18.50, 700 pp. 8vo") is a specimen of many similar vol- umes that will hereafter be fortlicoming from that and other societies. (D. P. K.)
Tracts for thk Tijies. See Puseyism.
Tractits. See Thact,
Tracy, Bernard Destult de, a French ascetic writer, was born Aug, 25. 1720. at Paray-le-Fraisil, near IMoulins, At the age of sixteen he joined the Thea- tines. and passed his whole life in retirement and piety. He died ill Paris, Aug. 14, 1878. He is the author of several works on practical religion and the biographies of saints, for which see Hoefer, Nouv, Bioij. Genevale, s. V.
Tracy, "William, D.D., a Presbyterian minister, was born at Norwich, Conn,, June 2, 1807. He went to Philadelphia and united with the Church in February, 1827. Being induced, by the advice of Rev. John L. Grant, to study for the ministry, he accordingly en- tered Williamstown Academy, and from thence Williams College, where he remained three years, l.iit left he- fore graduati<pn. After this he taught school a year in Lexiiiirton. Ky, Then he spent a year in Andover Theological Seminary, and thence went to Princeton Seminary, where he remaineil two years. He was licensed to preach in 1835. and was ordained by the Philadelphia Presbyter>- as an evangelist. Having de- voted himself to the work of foreitrn missions, he sailed for India, and, having reached ISIadras, he went to the IMadura district, liis field of labor, in 1837. He estab- lished a boarding-school at Tirumangalum. which grew to a high-grade seminary, having fifty pujiils. Here he spent twenty-two years of Ids life, and he educated more than 250 young men. He prepared many text-books in theology and science, and gave important aid in revis- ing the Tamil Bible. In Novemlier, 1.S77, his youngest son and wife joined him and his mother in India as missionaries, to share their labors and their home,
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517
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but Ills work was done. After the Sabbath which he spent in the sanctuary, he was attacked with rheumat- ic cramps and diarrhrea, which brou^'ht him rapidly to the end, and he died at Tinupuvanam, Nov. 28, 1877. (W. P. S.)
Trade. See Mechanic; Mkrchant.
Traditio (kt Kfc;i>i>rrio) Symboli {delivery of the creed). Tliese words are used by ecclesiastical writers in reference to the practice generally adopted of re- quiring baptized persons to repeat the Creeil and the Lord's Praver, in which they had previously been in- structed. In the case of infants the sponsors at first re- ]ieated these formularies on behalf of the child for whom they answered; but afterwards, in the Middle Ages, the Romish Ciuirch began to dispense witli this usage, and to satisfy itself with the priest's repeating them. There is still a remnant of this practice in some coun- tries: sponsors are subjected to a catechetical examina- tion by the minister previously to their admission. — Farrar, Kcdes. Diet. s. v.
Tradition {Tzapa^omo), Jewish. The Jews pre- tend that, besides their written law contained in the Pentateuch, God delivered to Moses an oral law, which was handed down from generation to generatioi^. The various decisions of the Jewish doctors or priests on points which the law had eitiier left doubtful or passed over in silence were the true sources of their traditions. They did not commit their inimerous traditions (which appear to have been a long time in accumulating) to writing before their wars against the Pomans under Hadrian and Severus. The Mishna, the Gemara, and lierhaps the Masorah were collected by the rabbins of Tiberias and later schools. See Rahhinism. Many of their false traditions were in ilirect opposition to the law of God; hence our Saviour oltcii reproached the Pharisees with preferring them to the law itself. He also gives several instances of their superstitious adhe- rence to vain observances, while they neglected essen- tial things (Matt. XV, 2, .S ; Mark vii,3-13). The only way in which we can know satisfactorily that any tra- dition is of divine authority is by its having a ))lace in those writings which are generally acknowledged to be the genuine productions of inspired men. All tradi- tions which have not such authority are without value, and tend greatly to detract and mislead the minds of men (2 Thess. ii, 15; iii,6).