1758.

1758Age 55

WHITEFIELD spent about seven months of the year 1758 in London, and the rest in two lengthened journeys, one to Scotland, and the other to the west of England. His health was feeble, on which account, he says, “I have been reduced, for some time, to the short allowance of preaching only once a day, except Sundays, when I generally preach thrice.”[323]He adds: “Though Mr. Wesley and I differ a little in some principles, yet brotherly love continues. I generally, when itinerating, preach among his people, as freely as among those who are called our own.”

On the 13th of January, Wesley returned from Bristol to London, full of joy that, under Sarah Ryan’s management, Kingswood school was, at length, what he had so long wished it to be,—a blessing to all its inmates, and an honour to the Methodists. Four days later he wrote as follows:—

“January 17.—I preached at Wandsworth. A gentleman, come from America, has again opened a door in this desolate place. In the morning, I preached in Mr. Gilbert’s house. Two negro servants of his and a mulatto appear to be much awakened. Shall not His saving health be made known to all nations?”

On the 29th of November following, Wesley says: “I rode to Wandsworth, and baptized two negroes belonging to Mr. Gilbert, a gentleman lately come from Antigua. One of these is deeply convinced of sin; the other rejoices in God her Saviour, and is the first African Christian I have known. But shall not our Lord, in due time, have these heathens also ‘for His inheritance’?”

These seem simple entries; but, as the acorn contains the oak, so they contain the germ of the marvellous Methodist work and successes among the sable sons of benighted and degraded Africa from that day to this. We think not only ofthousands of converted Africans in Namaqualand, Kaffraria, Bechuana, Natal, Sierra Leone, on the Gambia and the Gold Coast, in Dahomey and Guinea, but we also think of tens of thousands in the West Indies, and literally of hundreds of thousands in the southern states of America. This wonderful work of God began in the house of Nathaniel Gilbert, a temporary sojourner in the town of Wandsworth.

Who was Mr. Gilbert? A brief notice of himself and his family will not be out of place.

Nathaniel Gilbert was the inheritor of an estate in Antigua, which had been in the possession of his ancestors for several generations. The Gilbert family were among the earliest settlers in the island, and considered themselves descendants of Sir Humphrey Gilbert, the enterprising English navigator, and half brother of Sir Walter Raleigh.[324]Mr. Nathaniel Gilbert was a man of sound understanding, sharpened by a collegiate education, and the admirable training of an English court of law. He was confessedly an able man; and for some years, he had been the speaker of the House of Assembly in Antigua.[325]What brought him to England?

His brother, Francis Gilbert, gay and thoughtless, had been engaged in mercantile pursuits; but was often found in the ballroom when he ought to have been in his place of business, and dancing when he ought to have been balancing accounts. By the fraudulent conduct of his clerk, and his own gay life, he had been reduced to beggary. He sought concealment, first in Jamaica, and then in England. Adversity brought him to repentance. He was introduced to Vincent Perronet, and then to Wesley, of whose society he became a member. He sent to his brother Nathaniel a number of Wesley’s publications, including Wesley’s “Appeal to Men of Reason and Religion.” Nathaniel had always believed Wesley to be an enthusiast, and, for some time, refused to read his books; but, at length, his sister read to him the “Appeal.” This so altered his opinion, that he wished to visit England for the purpose of making Wesley’s personalacquaintance. His wish was realised. He remained two years, and then returned in the autumn of 1759.[326]

Anxious for the conversion of the poor Africans in Antigua, Nathaniel Gilbert proposed to John Fletcher, recently ordained, to return with him; but Fletcher declined the proposal, on the ground that, in his own estimation, he had neither “sufficient zeal, grace, nor talents” for a missionary’s life in the West Indies; and, moreover, he wished “to be certain that he was converted himself before he left his converted brethren, to convert heathens.”[327]Failing in this, Mr. Gilbert turned evangelist himself. He fitted up a room, placed a pulpit in it, and was soon branded as a madman for preaching to his slaves. Meantime, his brother Francis returned, and assisted him in his labours; a society, at St. John’s, was formed; and Methodism, in the West Indian islands, was fairly started. Nathaniel Gilbert died in 1774, eleven years before the appointment of the first Methodist missionaries to Antigua, leaving behind him a Methodist society of about sixty members. “On what do you trust?” asked a friend. “On Christ crucified,” was the quick response. “Have you peace with God?” He answered, “Unspeakable.” “Have you no fear, no doubt?” “None,” replied the dying saint. “Can you part with your wife and children?” “Yes. God will be their strength and portion.” Thus died the first West Indian Methodist. His wife soon followed him. His daughters, Alice and Mary, had victoriously preceded him. His third daughter, Mrs. Yates, died an equally blessed death. His son Nicholas, for years, was a faithful minister of Christ, and, in his last moments, was a happy witness of the power, and blessedness of gospel truth. And, finally, his brother Francis, his faithful fellow labourer, returned to England, and became a member of the Methodist class led by the immortal vicar of Madeley; the first class-paper containing four names, and four only,—John Fletcher, Mary Fletcher, Francis Gilbert, and George Perks; while, as late as the year 1864, Fletcher’s clerical successor, in the Madeley vicarage, was, the great grandson of Nathaniel Gilbert, and testified that he hadreason to believe that no child or grandchild of the first West Indian Methodist had passed away without being prepared for the better world; and that almost all of them had been even distinguished among Christians for their earnest devotion to the Divine Redeemer. “Instead of thy fathers shall be thy children, whom thou mayest make princes in all the earth” (Psalm xlv. 16).

On February 20, Wesley preached, to a crowded congregation, in the new meeting-house at Maldon, where, amid much opposition, Methodism had been introduced by Mrs. Denny, who died a few months after the place was opened.[328]

Returning to London, he retired to Lewisham, to write his sermon for the Bedford assizes. This was preached, in St. Paul’s church, on Friday, the 10th of March, from the text, “We shall all stand before the judgment seat of Christ,” and was published at the request of William Cole, Esq., high sheriff of the county, and others. The sermon is a remarkable production, full of bold thoughts, and fiery eloquence. The judge, Sir Edward Clive, immediately after the service was concluded, forwarded an invitation to Wesley to dine with him; but, having to be at Epworth, a distance of a hundred and twenty miles, the night following, he was obliged to send an excuse; and, at once, set out, amid a piercing storm of wind, snow, sleet, and hail; and, by almost continuous travelling, sometimes on a lame horse, and sometimes in a post chaise, reached Epworth on Saturday night at ten, having, on that day only, travelled ninety miles of execrable roads, in seventeen hours; and yet, he tells us, that he, a man fifty-five years old, was nearly as fresh at the end of his journey as he was at the beginning. The next day, he attended the morning and afternoon services in his father’s church; after which he took his stand in the market-place, and, in the midst of wintry winds and wintry rain, preached to an unflinching multitude, collected together from all the country round about. The day following, March 13, he “preached in the shell of the new meeting-house,” and then set out for York.

Wesley was now on one of the longest journeys that he ever took, extending from the 6th of March to the 21st of Octoberfollowing. Let us hastily endeavour to track his wide wanderings.

After, visiting York, Leeds, Manchester, and Bolton, he preached, on Easter Sunday, at Liverpool, and never “saw the house so crowded, especially with rich and genteel people, whom he did not spare.”

From Manchester to Liverpool, he was accompanied by Francis Okeley. Okeley writes: “during our stay in Liverpool, which was ten days, Mr. Wesley preached morning and evening, to crowded auditories, consisting of all sorts. There is here a large, commodious room, built for the use of the Methodists, but not quite finished.” He proceeds to tell how they dined at the house “of one Mr. Newton,” little thinking, that the same Mr. Newton would develop into the renowned John Newton, curate of Olney.[329]One of the Liverpool Methodists, at this period, was an old woman, who lived upon Wavertree Green, and was known by the name of “Dame Cross.” To obtain a livelihood, she kept a school, but was extremely poor. She was a staunch churchwoman; and had a high veneration for gowns and cassocks, and for those who wore them; but was withal a happy and devoted Christian. One day, John Newton called upon her, and finding her surrounded by a flock of fowls, he asked, “Dame Cross, are these fowls yours?” “Not one of them,” the octogenarian answered, “they are all my neighbours’; but I save all my crumbs and scraps for them; for I love to feed them, for the sake of Him who made them.”[330]

On March 28, Wesley set sail for Dublin. When about eight miles from Liverpool, a boat overtook them, bringing him letters from London. Some of these earnestly pressed him to return to the metropolis, but, while consulting his travelling companions, the wind changed, and the boat left, and he had no choice but to proceed to Ireland. He arrived in Dublin on March 31.

Here he spent nearly a month. He found, to his great annoyance, that the five o’clock morning preaching had been discontinued; and that self denial, among the Dublin Methodists,had been a thing almost utterly unknown since Thomas Walsh had left the island. Rigorous discipline was indispensable, for the Irish “people in general were so soft and delicate, that the least slackness” was ruinous. He preached to an unstable people on the character of Reuben. He held a covenant service; and set apart a day for fasting and for prayer. He “met all the married men and women of the society, and brought strange things to their ears respecting the duties of husbands, and wives, and parents.”

Francis Okeley, Wesley’s present travelling companion, was fifteen years his junior, and, like himself, had been educated in the Charterhouse school, London. In 1739, he became B.A. of St. John’s college, Cambridge; and was the intimate friend of the two Wesleys and their associates. His intention had been to become a minister of the Church of England; but, because the Moravians had ordained him deacon, the bishop refused to ordain him priest; and, to the end of life, he officiated in the Brethren’s congregations. He was now Moravian minister at Bedford; but kept Wesley company during the whole of his Irish tour, and even went with him to his conference, at Bristol, in the month of August following.[331]To some extent, he was infected with the Moravian lusciousness then so common; but he was also a man of much learning, of great piety, and of a catholic and Christian spirit. He was well versed in the old German divinity,—was an immense admirer of William Law,—the translator of the life of Jacob Behmen, and the visions of Hiel and Englebretet,—and a strong advocate of the doctrine of universal restoration. He was a frequent and valued correspondent of theGentleman’s Magazine, and the author of other works besides the above mentioned. He died, at Bedford, in 1794.[332]

On April 24, Wesley and Okeley left Dublin, on an excursion through the Irish provinces. At Edinderry, Wesley preached, under the castle wall, to a large congregation, which some of the quakers had used their utmost influence to prevent assembling. At Portarlington, he “was much concernedfor his rich, gay hearers.” At Mountmellick, most of the protestants of the town were present, and many papists also skirted the congregation. Bitter contentions, however, had well-nigh torn the society in pieces. At Tullamore, a large number of protestants, many papists, and almost all the troopers in the town attended. At Drumcree, he opened a new chapel, “built in the taste of the country; the roof thatch, and the walls mud.” At Terryhugan, he found a room built purposely for him and his itinerants, “three yards long, two and a quarter broad, and six feet high; the walls, floor, and ceiling mud; and the furniture a clean chaff bed;” but even in this mud-built hut, he found it true,—

“Licet sub paupere tectoReges et regum vitâ præcurrere amicos.”

“Licet sub paupere tecto

Reges et regum vitâ præcurrere amicos.”

All the inhabitants of the village, with many others, were present at the morning five o’clock preaching, including a poor woman, brought to bed ten days before, and who walked seven miles, with her child in her arms, to have it baptized by Wesley. At Newtown, he addressed the largest congregation he had seen since he came to Ireland. At Belfast, he preached in the market-house; and at Carrickfergus in the courthouse. At Larn, his pulpit was a table, and his congregation nearly all the inhabitants of the town, both rich and poor. At Lurgan, he was taken to see the house which an eminent scholar had recently erected for himself,—“part mud, part brick, part stone, and part bones and wood; with four windows, but without glass in any; of two storeys, but without a staircase; on the floor three rooms,—one three square, the second with five sides, and the third with more.” “I give,” says Wesley, “a particular description of this wonderful edifice, to illustrate the truth—There is no folly too great even for a man of sense, if he resolves to follow his own imagination.”

At Coot Hill, he had “a tolerably serious congregation in the open street.” At Granard, he preached in the barrack yard. At Edgeworthtown, his congregation was genteel; but at Longford, where he preached in the yard of the great inn, “the rudest, surliest, wildest people” he had seen in Ireland. At Newport, all the protestants of the town attended. At Hollymount, the churchyard served him as a preaching place.At Minulla, he found the papists unchanged,—retaining the same bitterness and thirst for blood as ever, and as ready to cut the throats of protestants as they were in the former century. He left the place at four o’clock in the morning, riding a horse without either bridle or saddle. At Ahaskra, four fifths of his congregation were papists. At Athlone, a few eggs and stones were thrown. At Coolylough, he held the quarterly meeting. At Limerick, he met Thomas Walsh, “alive, and but just alive,” three of the best physicians attending him, and all agreeing that, “by violent straining of his voice, added to frequent colds, he had contracted a pulmonary consumption, which was now in the last stage, and consequently beyond the reach of any human help.” Here Wesley held his Irish conference, fourteen preachers being present.

At Clare, his congregation in the street consisted of “many poor papists and rich protestants.” At Ennis, “nine in ten” of those who came to hear him were papists. In an island near Limerick, he preached to thousands seated on the grass, row above row. Here he overstrained himself, and next morning began spitting blood, and, for a week, was laid aside. Rest, however, and “a brimstone plaster, and a linctus of roasted lemon and honey,” so far restored him, that, in a week, he resumed his ministry at Cork, and interred James Massiot.

Here, and in the neighbourhood, he remained a month, making a short excursion to Kinsale, where he had a large congregation of soldiers; and to Bandon, where he preached in the shell of a new meeting-house, the foundation of which had been laid only a fortnight previous. On August 8, he set sail, and three days afterwards arrived in Bristol.

A couple of letters, written during this Irish tour, and addressed to Mr. Blackwell, may be interesting.

“Castlebar,June 5, 1758.“Dear Sir,—I have learned, by the grace of God, in every state to be content. What a peace do we find in all circumstances, when we can say, ‘Not as I will, but as Thou wilt!’“I have now gone through the greatest part of this kingdom: Leinster, Ulster, and the greater half of Connaught. Time only is wanting. If my brother could take care of England, and give me but one year in Ireland, I think every corner of this nation would receive the truth as it is in Jesus.They want only to hear it; and they will hear me, high and low, rich and poor. What a mystery of Providence is this! In England, they may hear, but will not. In Ireland, they fain would hear, but cannot. So in both, thousands perish for lack of knowledge.“I hope you find public affairs changing for the better. In this corner of the world, we know little about them; only we are told, that the great, little king in Moravia is not swallowed up yet.“Till near the middle of next month, I expect to be at Mr. Beauchamp’s in Limerick. My best wishes attend you all.“I am, dear sir, your affectionate servant,“John Wesley.”“Bandon,July 12, 1758.“In a week or two, I shall be looking out for a ship. You people in England are bad correspondents. Both Mr. Downing, Mr. Venn, and Mr. Madan are a letter in my debt; and yet, I think they have not more business than I have. How unequally are things distributed here! Some want time, and some want work. But all will be set right hereafter. There is no disorder on that shore. I remain, dear sir, yours most affectionately,“John Wesley.”[333]

“Castlebar,June 5, 1758.

“Dear Sir,—I have learned, by the grace of God, in every state to be content. What a peace do we find in all circumstances, when we can say, ‘Not as I will, but as Thou wilt!’

“I have now gone through the greatest part of this kingdom: Leinster, Ulster, and the greater half of Connaught. Time only is wanting. If my brother could take care of England, and give me but one year in Ireland, I think every corner of this nation would receive the truth as it is in Jesus.They want only to hear it; and they will hear me, high and low, rich and poor. What a mystery of Providence is this! In England, they may hear, but will not. In Ireland, they fain would hear, but cannot. So in both, thousands perish for lack of knowledge.

“I hope you find public affairs changing for the better. In this corner of the world, we know little about them; only we are told, that the great, little king in Moravia is not swallowed up yet.

“Till near the middle of next month, I expect to be at Mr. Beauchamp’s in Limerick. My best wishes attend you all.

“I am, dear sir, your affectionate servant,

“John Wesley.”

“Bandon,July 12, 1758.

“In a week or two, I shall be looking out for a ship. You people in England are bad correspondents. Both Mr. Downing, Mr. Venn, and Mr. Madan are a letter in my debt; and yet, I think they have not more business than I have. How unequally are things distributed here! Some want time, and some want work. But all will be set right hereafter. There is no disorder on that shore. I remain, dear sir, yours most affectionately,

“John Wesley.”[333]

The assembling of Wesley’s conference of preachers made his return to England a necessity.

The conference was opened, at Bristol, on August 12, and continued its sittings until August 16. Besides the two Wesleys, and Mr. Okeley, there were thirty-four preachers present. Fourteen were proposed as candidates for the itinerant work. Samuel Meggot was declined, until he had had further trial; and also William Darney, until he ceased “to rail, to print, and to sell wares without a licence.” Thomas Briscoe, or Joseph Jones, was to be Wesley’s travelling companion during the ensuing year; and Michael Fenwick was recommended to return to business. It was agreed, that many of the preachers were wanting in seriousness; and that, in future, they must be watchful in not conforming to the world in their manner of conversation; and also, that they must fast, as far as health permitted, every Friday. “You must,” said Wesley, “do one of three things; either spend time in chit-chat, or learn Latin or Hebrew, or spend all your time and strength in saving souls. Which will you do?” The response was, “The last, by the grace of God.” Kingswood schoolwas again in difficulty, and the question was discussed, “Shall we drop it?” Answer, “By no means, if a fit master can be procured.” It was found that Wesley’s publications had not been diligently recommended; and, to promote the sale of them, it was agreed to allow one person in every circuit (if he desired it) ten per cent commission upon all he sold. It was asked, if Nicholas Manners had said, “I want no more grace for a year and a day.” The reply was, “Ask himself. If he has, and will not be convinced of his fault, let him be publicly disowned.” Another question of some importance was, “Ought any tickets to be given to children?” Answer, “Not to the unawakened; it makes them too cheap.” To preach most profitably in the morning, it was recommended frequently to read and explain half a chapter in the Bible; and sometimes to read and enlarge upon one of the tracts in the “Christian Library.” Except once a year, none but members of the bands were to be admitted into lovefeasts; and, in order to purge the bands, and leave none in them but those living in the enjoyment of conscious pardon, it was resolved, that each assistant, at the next quarterly visitation, should take two or three sensible men with him (either preachers, stewards, or leaders), and should closely examine every person in the band societies, and expel all, even if it should be two thirds of the entire number, who were not exercising the faith by which a man is justified and finds peace with God. Such persons might be fit for penitential classes, but were not for the private bands.

Besides discipline, the conference also discussed doctrine. When in Dublin, four months before, Wesley had been drawn into a controversy by Miss H——, on the doctrine of perfection. The lady complained, that some of his preachers placed the doctrine “in a dreadful light; one of them affirming, that a believer, till perfect, is under the curse of God, and in a state of damnation”; and another saying, “If you die before you have attained it, you will surely perish.” Wesley replied to this in a long letter, dated Dublin, April 5, 1758, in which he repudiates such sentiments.[334]He admits, that “young men” may have said these things, but their doctrineswere not his. To settle the matter, he brought it before the Bristol conference as follows:—

Question.—“Do you affirm, that perfection excludes all infirmities, ignorance, and mistake?Answer.—“We continually affirm just the contrary.Q.—“Do you say, ‘Every one who is not saved from all sin is in a state of damnation?’A.—“So far from it, that we will not say any one is in a state of damnation, that fears God and really strives to please Him.Q.—“In what manner would you advise those who think they have attained, to speak of their own experience?A.—“With great wariness, and with the deepest humility and self abasement before God.Q.—“How should young preachers, especially, speak of perfection in public?A.—“Not too minutely or circumstantially, but rather in general and scriptural terms.Q.—“What does Christian perfection imply?A.—“The loving God with all the heart, so that every evil temper is destroyed, and every thought, and word, and work springs from, and is conducted to the end by the pure love of God and our neighbour.”

Question.—“Do you affirm, that perfection excludes all infirmities, ignorance, and mistake?

Answer.—“We continually affirm just the contrary.

Q.—“Do you say, ‘Every one who is not saved from all sin is in a state of damnation?’

A.—“So far from it, that we will not say any one is in a state of damnation, that fears God and really strives to please Him.

Q.—“In what manner would you advise those who think they have attained, to speak of their own experience?

A.—“With great wariness, and with the deepest humility and self abasement before God.

Q.—“How should young preachers, especially, speak of perfection in public?

A.—“Not too minutely or circumstantially, but rather in general and scriptural terms.

Q.—“What does Christian perfection imply?

A.—“The loving God with all the heart, so that every evil temper is destroyed, and every thought, and word, and work springs from, and is conducted to the end by the pure love of God and our neighbour.”

It is a curious fact, that, while Wesley and eight other preachers were appointed to the London circuit, Charles Wesley had Bristol wholly to himself; three preachers, however, having charge of the adjoining country, under the technical denomination of the “Wiltshire” circuit. This shows, that Charles had now substantially relinquished the itinerant ministry, and had made Bristol his principal place of residence. The circuits into which the United Kingdom was divided, were, including London and Bristol, thirteen in number; one of these, however, being “Wales,” with two itinerants, and another “Ireland,” with ten. “Cornwall” had seven; “Staffordshire” two; “Cheshire” three; “Leeds,” “Haworth,” and “York,” had eight; “Lincolnshire” three; and “Newcastle” four.[335]

From the above condensed account of the proceedings of the conference of 1758, it will be seen, that Wesley was exceedingly anxious, and, in fact, resolved, at all hazards, to maintain the purity of his preachers and societies. “Are our societies,” he asked, “in general as godly, and as serious, asthe old Puritans? Why should they not? What means can we use to effect it?” Then follows the answer, to “enforce family discipline,” and to “closely examine the state of every soul, not only at stated times, but in every conversation.”[336]In accordance with this was a laconic letter, which, at the beginning of the year, Wesley wrote to Mr. Merryweather, of Yarm.

“London,January 16, 1758.“My dear Brother,—No person must be allowed to preach or exhort among our people, whose life is not holy and unblamable; nor any who asserts anything contrary to the gospel which we have received. And, if he does not own his fault and amend it, he cannot be a leader any longer.“I am your affectionate brother,“John Wesley.”[337]

“London,January 16, 1758.

“My dear Brother,—No person must be allowed to preach or exhort among our people, whose life is not holy and unblamable; nor any who asserts anything contrary to the gospel which we have received. And, if he does not own his fault and amend it, he cannot be a leader any longer.

“I am your affectionate brother,

“John Wesley.”[337]

The day after the Bristol conference closed its sittings, Wesley attended a performance of Handel’s “Messiah” in Bristol cathedral; and, on August 21, set out on a tour in Wales, from which he returned to Bristol on September 2. Here he spent a considerable time, with the Rev. John Fletcher and other preachers, in discussing the doctrine of Christian perfection, and wrote down the general propositions in which they were all agreed.

On October 2, he started for London. At Bradford he met the stewards of the Wiltshire and Somersetshire societies. At Warminster, he preached in a good man’s yard, his congregation being numerous, and consisting of “saints and sinners, rich and poor, churchmen, quakers, and presbyterians.” “Some disturbance,” says he, “was expected, but there was none. The whole assembly behaved well; and, instead of curses or stones, we had many blessings as we rode through the town for Salisbury.” Strangely enough, this was Wesley’s first and last visit to the town of Warminster. Some time afterwards, however, a class was formed; and, amid the bitterest persecutions, held on its way. Men would often enter the preaching house, and remain, during the whole service, covered with their slouching hats, cursing the preacher and his friends, and even smoking vile tobacco. Sometimesthey would challenge the Methodists to fight; and, at others, sing profane songs while the Methodists sang sacred ones. In one instance, they smashed the seats, and windows, and pulpit of the meeting-house in Back Street; threw John Spicer into a deep ditch; and so injured Caleb Daniel that he died soon after.[338]

From Warminster, Wesley proceeded to Portsmouth, where he preached in Whitefield’s Tabernacle. At Newport, in the Isle of Wight, he found the town filled with soldiers, “the most abandoned wretches he ever saw,” and used the corn-market as his preaching place. At Gosport, he occupied the Tabernacle; at Fareham, “a wild multitude” was his congregation; at Rye, he had “a crowded audience”; at Rolvenden, a “serious congregation,” skirted with “a few drunkards”; at Northjam, “the house was stowed as full as possible,” and many stood in the rain outside; at Canterbury, he had a dangerous fall from his horse, but found “the little society free from all divisions and offences.” On October 21, after an absence of near eight months, he again reached London.

Four days later, he set out for Norwich. At Colchester, he preached on St. John’s Green, and found that, in three months, a society of one hundred and twenty persons had been gathered. At Norwich, James Wheatley called upon him, and offered him his Tabernacle. Here he spent a week among “a settled and well united society.” In returning, he visited, by request, the famous vicar of Everton.

John Berridge is too notable a man to be passed in silence. He was the son of a wealthy farmer, and was now forty-two years of age. Having taken degrees at the Cambridge university, he, in 1749, accepted the curacy of Stapleford, which he served for the next six years. In 1755, he removed to the vicarage of Everton, where he continued to reside until his death. The epitaph on his tomb, excepting the date of his death, was written by himself, and is as follows:—

“Here lie the earthly remains of John Berridge, late vicar of Everton, and an itinerant servant of Jesus Christ: who loved his Master and His work; and, after running His errands many years, was called up to wait on Him above. Reader, art thou born again? No salvationwithout the new birth! I was born in sin, February, 1716. Remained ignorant of my fallen state till 1730. Lived proudly on faith and works for salvation till 1754. Admitted to Everton vicarage, 1755. Fled to Jesus alone for refuge, 1756. Fell asleep in Christ, January 22, 1793.”

This is a truthful outline of the history of this remarkable man. To fill it up would require a volume. His preaching, up to the time of his conversion, had been useless; since then, it had been full of power. Three months before Wesley’s visit, his ministry had been blessed to the Rev. Mr. Hicks, a clergyman at Wrestlingworth, about four miles from Everton, who became his companion in his itinerant tours, and was greatly useful. In learning, Berridge, it is said, was inferior to very few of the most celebrated sons of science and literature in the Cambridge university. From his entrance at Clare Hall to his acceptance of the vicarage of Everton, a period of twenty-one years, he regularly studied fifteen hours a day. His understanding was strong; his wit almost without parallel. In stature, he was tall, but not awkward; lusty, but not corpulent. His voice was deep, but not hoarse; strong, but not noisy; his pronunciation distinct, but not broad. In his countenance there was gravity, without grimace: his address was solemn, but not sour; easy, but not careless; deliberate, but not drawling; pointed, but not personal; affectionate, but not fawning. He would often weep, but never whine. His sentences were short, but not ambiguous; his ideas collected, but not crowded. His itinerant circuit embraced the counties of Bedford, Cambridge, Essex, Hertford, and Huntingdon. In this circuit, for more than twenty years, he preached, upon an average, from ten to twelve sermons every week, and frequently rode a hundred miles. In some places, from ten to fifteen thousand persons composed his congregations. People came to hear him from a distance of twenty miles, and were at Everton by seven o’clock in the morning, at which early hour he preached. Four sermons on a Sunday were his regular work. His usefulness was great. During the first year after his conversion, he was visited by a thousand persons, under serious impressions; and it was computed, that, during the same space of time, about four thousand were awakened to a concern for the welfare of their souls, under his own and the joint ministryof Mr. Hicks. Magistrates, country squires, and others, furiously opposed him. Theold devilwas the only name by which he was distinguished among them for above twenty years; but, in the midst of all, the brave hearted, eccentric vicar steadily pursued his work. Houses and barns were rented for preaching; lay preachers were employed and maintained; his church income and the fortune inherited from his father were appropriated to the support and extension of his work; and even his family plate was converted into clothing for his itinerant preachers. For nearly thirty years, he spent about three months annually in London, preaching in Whitefield’s Tabernacle, in Tottenham Court chapel, and in other places. At his funeral, six neighbouring clergymen attended to bear his pall, while an immense concourse, from all parts of the country, by their undissembled grief and falling tears, paid a just eulogium to his character and worth. As he was never married, he left no widow to deplore his death, nor children to perpetuate his memory; but he long lived in the grateful remembrance of thousands, who had been benefited by his ministry; and, by his “Christian World Unmasked” and his “Sion’s Songs” (the only books he ever published), he is known to myriads who never saw him.[339]He was a high Calvinist, but a devoted Christian.Requiescat in pace!Hundreds of racy anecdotes might be told concerning him, and well-nigh thousands of his pungent and witty sayings might be quoted; but it is time to return to Wesley.

Berridge had told the mayor of Bedford, that he wished an interview with Wesley, as soon as possible; and accordingly, on November 9, Wesley went to Everton. The two clerical itinerants started off to Wrestlingworth, to visit Hicks, a third. The same night Wesley preached in Mr. Hicks’s well filled church; lodged in the vicarage; and preached in the church again next morning, of course having both Hicks and Berridge as his hearers. In the midst of his sermon, a woman dropped down as dead, “deeply sensible of her want of Christ.” The clerical trio then rode to Everton, where Wesley preached in Berridge’s church at six in the evening, and atfive next morning; and where some were struck just as the woman at Wrestlingworth. One was brought into the vicarage, with whom the three clergymen spent a considerable time in prayer.

This was Wesley’s first interview with Berridge. “For many years,” he writes, “Mr. Berridge was seeking to be justified by his works; but, a few months ago, he was throughly convinced, that ‘by grace’ we ‘are saved through faith.’ Immediately, he began to proclaim aloud the redemption that is in Jesus; and God confirmed His word exactly as He did at Bristol, at the beginning, by working repentance and faith in the hearers, and with the same violent outward symptoms.”

This is a remarkable fact. At the commencement of Wesley’s itinerant ministry,stricken caseswere frequent and numerous; but, for the last fifteen years, they had been of rare occurrence. In Wesley’s experience, they had principally happened, not in churches, but in barns, fields, and private meeting-rooms. Though the same puzzling phenomena had been witnessed in the great revivals in America and in Scotland, they had not been general in England, but had been chiefly confined to Kingswood, Bristol, and Newcastle upon Tyne. At the time, they created great commotion, but, for years, they had disappeared. Now, however, in 1758, under the ministry of Berridge and of Hicks, and even in parish churches, they again occurred. On one occasion, while Berridge was preaching, several persons fainted, and many in agony cried out. A little girl was thrown into violent contortions, and wept aloud incessantly. The church was crowded, the windows filled within and without, and also the pulpit steps up to the pulpit door. Three fourths of the congregation were men. Thirty of them had come thirteen miles, and, in order to be in time, had started at two o’clock in the morning. Some shrieked, others roared, but the most general sound was a loud breathing, like that of people half strangled. Numbers fell down as dead; some sinking in silence, and some in the utmost agitation.

On another occasion, when Mr. Hicks was preaching at Wrestlingworth, fifteen persons fell prostrate on the ground, a few, for hours, crying out with the greatest violence, and the rest more silently struggling, as in the pangs of death.

These were novel scenes to be witnessed in a church; but besides these, occurring in sacred buildings, there were others in public roads, in the vicar’s garden, in fields, and in private houses, where men, women, and children were found prostrate on the ground; and great numbers were filled with peace and joy, by believing in Christ Jesus. Faces, which had been almost black with terror, now beamed with happiness. “Jesus,” cried one, “has forgiven all my sins! I am in heaven! I am in heaven! O how He loves me! And how I love Him!” Another, bathed in perspiration, and with every muscle quivering, clapped his hands, and with a smile exclaimed, “Jesus is mine! He is my Saviour!” Some burst into strange, involuntary laughter; others roared, as if possessed by demons; most were, at length, made happy. In one instance, two hundred persons, chiefly men, were, at the same time, in Everton church, crying aloud for mercy. The groans, lamentations, prayers, and roars, were indescribable; as, also, were the shouts and the songs of praise after the penitents found peace with God.

Wesley’s first visit to Mr. Berridge was on November 9. Within six weeks, on December 18, he went again; and, while preaching in the church at Everton, witnessed another scene like those that have been described; for “many,” says he, “not able to contain themselves, cried aloud for mercy.”

Wesley was now on his way to Norwich, where he spent the next six days, and where, besides preaching, he completed the purchase of the chapel, which had been built by the notorious James Wheatley.

On his return to London, he called at Colchester, and makes the following important entry in his Journal: “1758, December 29—I found the society had decreased since Laurence Coughlan went away; and, yet, they had had full as good preachers. But that is not sufficient; by repeated experiments, we learn that, though a man preach like an angel, he will neither collect, nor preserve a society which is collected, without visiting them from house to house.“

We have reached the end of the year 1758; but some other matters, belonging to this period, must have attention.

It was in 1758, that Wesley formed an acquaintance, notonly with Berridge, but with another distinguished man. John Newton was the son of a shipmaster, and was born in 1725. The chief part of his boyhood and youth was spent at sea. His life, up to the age of five and twenty, was a painfully chequered scene. Soon after the year 1750, he obtained the post of tidewaiter at Liverpool; where, by dint of severe application, he rapidly acquired a considerable knowledge of Greek and Hebrew. He now made some unsuccessful attempts to become the pastor of a Dissenting congregation. He then applied to the Archbishop of York for episcopal ordination; but was refused, on the ground that he had been preaching, without authority, among Dissenters. On his way to Ireland, in the spring of the present year, Wesley paid him a visit, during his ten days’ stay in Liverpool. Mr. Newton was now thirty-eight years old; and, a few months later, wrote to Wesley as follows.

“Liverpool,August 29, 1758.“Dear and reverend Sir,—I am informed of your arrival at Bristol, which I much rejoice in, and desire to praise the Lord for. I hope He has yet much service for you to do; and, till your work is done, I know your life is secured. When it is fully accomplished, I think, I can give my consent, that you should be released from hence, and removed to that kingdom of love, and joy, and peace, where none of the evils of mortality can find admittance.“I wait your directions where to send you the paper you left with me, and hope it will not be long, for it will give me double satisfaction to hear of your welfare,propria manu. Mrs. Newton concurs with me in tendering our sincerest respects, and requesting a remembrance in your prayers, and a share in your correspondence. I am, with respect and affection, reverend sir, your obliged friend and servant,“John Newton.”[340]

“Liverpool,August 29, 1758.

“Dear and reverend Sir,—I am informed of your arrival at Bristol, which I much rejoice in, and desire to praise the Lord for. I hope He has yet much service for you to do; and, till your work is done, I know your life is secured. When it is fully accomplished, I think, I can give my consent, that you should be released from hence, and removed to that kingdom of love, and joy, and peace, where none of the evils of mortality can find admittance.

“I wait your directions where to send you the paper you left with me, and hope it will not be long, for it will give me double satisfaction to hear of your welfare,propria manu. Mrs. Newton concurs with me in tendering our sincerest respects, and requesting a remembrance in your prayers, and a share in your correspondence. I am, with respect and affection, reverend sir, your obliged friend and servant,

“John Newton.”[340]

Six years after this, Mr. Newton, through the interest of Lord Dartmouth, obtained ordination, and the curacy at Olney, where, from 1764 to 1779, lived in the closest friendship with the poet Cowper and the Olney circle. He then removed to the rectory of St. Mary Woolnoth, Lombard Street, London, where he continued until his death in 1807. Like Berridge, he wrote his own epitaph, which was as follows:—

“John Newton, clerk: once an infidel and a libertine, a servant of slaves in Africa, was, by the rich mercy of our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ, preserved, restored, pardoned, and appointed to preach the faith he had long laboured to destroy, near sixteen years at Olney, in Bucks, and twenty-eight years in this church.”[341]

In the same year, 1758, Wesley entered into correspondence with another man of distinguished talent, who afterwards became the bitterest opponent he ever had.

Augustus Montague Toplady was the son of a major in the army, and was born at Farnham, in Surrey, in the year 1740. He received the rudiments of his education at Westminster school; and thence went, with his widowed mother, to Ireland, to pursue claims to an estate which belonged to her in that island. Here, a little before he was sixteen years of age, he heard James Morris, one of Wesley’s itinerants, preach in a barn at Codymain, and was converted. Soon after, he entered Trinity college, Dublin; and wrote to Wesley as follows.

“Dublin,September 13, 1758.“Reverend Sir,—I thank you for your satisfactory letter; particularly for your kind caution against trifling company. I do not visit three persons in the college, except one or two of the fellows. It is indeed Sodom epitomized; for I do not believe there is one that fears God in it.“Your remarks on Mr. Hervey’s style are too just; and I think a writer would be much to blame for imitating it; or indeed the style of any other; for if he has abilities of his own, he ought to use them; if he has not, he would be inexcusable for writing at all. I believe Mr. Hervey’s mentioning the active, exclusive from the passive, obedience of Christ, is rather a casual than intentional omission; but an author cannot be too careful how he expresses himself on a point of so much importance. I have long been convinced, that self righteousness and antinomianism are equally pernicious; and that to insist on the imputation of Christ’s righteousness, as alone requisite to salvation, is only strewing the way to hell with flowers. I have myself known some make shipwreck of faith, and love, and a good conscience, on this specious quicksand.“My heart’s desire, and prayer is, that Christ would grant to keep me close to Him, with meek, simple, steady love. I think, of late, the studies I am unavoidably engaged in have done me some harm; I mean have abated that fervency with which I used to approach the throne of grace; and this, by insensible degrees. My chariot wheels have drove heavily for a month past; but I have reason to hope I am recovering my usual joy. I can attribute its declension to nothing else but assiduous application tomy college business; which prevents my attending the preaching so often as I would. I depend on your candour to excuse this trouble given you, by, reverend sir, your most dutiful, humble servant,“Augustus Toplady.”[342]

“Dublin,September 13, 1758.

“Reverend Sir,—I thank you for your satisfactory letter; particularly for your kind caution against trifling company. I do not visit three persons in the college, except one or two of the fellows. It is indeed Sodom epitomized; for I do not believe there is one that fears God in it.

“Your remarks on Mr. Hervey’s style are too just; and I think a writer would be much to blame for imitating it; or indeed the style of any other; for if he has abilities of his own, he ought to use them; if he has not, he would be inexcusable for writing at all. I believe Mr. Hervey’s mentioning the active, exclusive from the passive, obedience of Christ, is rather a casual than intentional omission; but an author cannot be too careful how he expresses himself on a point of so much importance. I have long been convinced, that self righteousness and antinomianism are equally pernicious; and that to insist on the imputation of Christ’s righteousness, as alone requisite to salvation, is only strewing the way to hell with flowers. I have myself known some make shipwreck of faith, and love, and a good conscience, on this specious quicksand.

“My heart’s desire, and prayer is, that Christ would grant to keep me close to Him, with meek, simple, steady love. I think, of late, the studies I am unavoidably engaged in have done me some harm; I mean have abated that fervency with which I used to approach the throne of grace; and this, by insensible degrees. My chariot wheels have drove heavily for a month past; but I have reason to hope I am recovering my usual joy. I can attribute its declension to nothing else but assiduous application tomy college business; which prevents my attending the preaching so often as I would. I depend on your candour to excuse this trouble given you, by, reverend sir, your most dutiful, humble servant,

“Augustus Toplady.”[342]

This was an admirable letter, to be written by a youth not yet eighteen years of age. A year later, Toplady published a 12mo book of his poetic pieces; and, in 1762, was ordained, and inducted into the living of Blagdon in Somersetshire. In 1768, he obtained the vicarage of Broadhembury, which he held until his decease in 1778. Three years before he died, he removed to London, and became the preacher of the French church, in Orange Street, Leicester Fields. His death was very beautiful. “The sky,” said he, “is clear; there is no cloud: come, Lord Jesus, come quickly!” Thus died Augustus Toplady, on the 11th of August, aged thirty-seven. He was buried in a grave, which, by his own request, was thirteen feet deep, beneath the gallery in Tottenham Court chapel.

It is extremely difficult to form an estimate of Toplady’s life and character. He was unquestionably a man of great talent, of extensive knowledge, and of burning zeal. His discourses were extemporary; his language eloquent; his voice melodious; his delivery and action engaging, elegant, and easy.[343]His private diary breathes with the richest piety; and yet, in theGospel Magazine, of which he was the chief editor, and in his controversial works, his abuse of Wesley is rancorous to a degree which is almost without parallel, and is expressed in terms far more nearly allied to the slang of Billingsgate than to the language of a Christian and a gentleman.

Wesley, in 1758, was not without his troubles. Among other matters, the leaders of the Leeds society began to exercise prerogatives to which he had the strongest objection. Hence the following characteristic letter.

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