CHAPTER IV.REV. DANIEL JAMES DRAPER.
Daniel James Draper, a name that will henceforth be as honourably and widely known in England as it was previously in Australia, was born at Wickham, near Fareham in Hampshire, on August 28th, 1810. He was of respectable parentage, his father being the chief carpenter and builder in the village. Although unacquainted with the saving knowledge of the gospel, his parents were strictly moral in their lives, and regular attendants upon the services of the parish church; consequently the influences which surrounded the child’s opening years were favourable to the formation and growth of virtuous habits.
He was brought, however, to religious decision by coming in contact with some devoted Wesleyans in the neighbouring village of Fareham. They had a chapel in the village, and in it the gospel was fervently and faithfully preached; and we doubt not the building—for it still exists—will henceforth be memorable on account of its being the place in which Daniel James Draper first saw the necessity of repentance towards God and faith towards the Lord Jesus Christ.
By the door of this chapel young Daniel was occasionally found listening, and taking in stray words of warning and of wisdom, as John Bunyan did before him from the lips of the pious women of Elstow, who talked of holy things as they spun and knitted in the sunlight before their cottage doors. Daniel would not enter, but again and again the lad was seen listening at the chapel-doors, and marvelling perhaps, like thetinker of Bedford, at what he heard. On one occasion he received a sharp rebuke for neither coming in nor going away, but only standing without, and the reproof so wounded him that he resolved never to go near the place again.
But to this resolution he did not keep; and ere long, in this chapel, the truth of God was applied to his youthful heart, and he felt very deeply the need of salvation. Outwardly in his life, hitherto, there had been nothing worthy of blame; his conduct had been strictly upright and moral; but now his conscience revealed to him depths of depravity and guilt, of whose very existence he had been unconscious, and he saw the urgent necessity of receiving pardon, and of becoming a partaker of the new birth. By repentance and faith he immediately sought reconciliation with God, and it was not long before he became a rejoicing believer in the Divine love and favour.
Very naturally, he now openly connected himself with those from whom he had received so much spiritual benefit, and he became an enrolled member of the Wesleyan Society. He had not reached twenty years of age, when, although still beneath the roof of his kind, church-going father, he took this decisive step. His resolution to connect himself with the Methodists was not favourably received by his father, or by the members of his family generally, but young Daniel held on his way; yet, as he did this with all the good nature that was so marked a characteristic of his maturer years, there is reason to believe that his youthful profession did not expose him to any opposition that pressed heavily upon the buoyancy of his spirits. He even in these early days became well known for the zeal and interest he displayed in the salvation of the lost and perishing.
D. J. Draper
D. J. Draper
Ere long the Methodists determined to erect a chapel in thevillage of Wickham, where he lived, and it is interesting to remember now, that it was built by Daniel and his father, and that, in the course of a short time, the son had the opportunity, in that very chapel, of proclaiming to his father the unsearchable riches of Christ’s gospel. He was about twenty years of age when he enjoyed this privilege, his gifts and character having placed him amongst the Wesleyan local preachers. Although it was still distasteful to some members of his family, he eventually decided upon devoting himself to the work of the ministry, and never was a decision, we believe, more in harmony with the Divine will and more signally honoured by blessed results.
When about twenty-two years of age the young preacher removed to Brecon, with its towering beacons, pleasant streams, and still pleasanter societies of Christian people. Mr. Draper is still remembered there with affection, and many can call to mind his devotedness to Christ’s service, his love for the house of God, his familiarity with the Scriptures, and his attachment to the prayer-meeting. A favourite hymn with him in those days was the one in which this verse occurs:
“Happy, if with my latest breathI may but gasp his name,Preach Him to all, and cry in death,Behold, behold the Lamb!”
“Happy, if with my latest breathI may but gasp his name,Preach Him to all, and cry in death,Behold, behold the Lamb!”
“Happy, if with my latest breathI may but gasp his name,Preach Him to all, and cry in death,Behold, behold the Lamb!”
“Happy, if with my latest breath
I may but gasp his name,
Preach Him to all, and cry in death,
Behold, behold the Lamb!”
At Brecon he worked hard, both in the culture of his own mind as well as in the service of his Divine Master. He read good and solid books, and through his life long the substantial was always more attractive to him than the glittering and merely artistic; he had no relish for a literature that did not help him in his work, and all he acquired in study he gave out in effort for the good of those amongst whom he lived.
One can readily imagine his happy earnest life during those Brecon days, of dangerous mountain journeys to the stations where he preached; of open-air preaching by the river-side; of the welcome which the warm-hearted Welsh people gave everywhere to the young preacher, we can have no doubt. It was during this time that his sister, still living at Brecon, received the truth in Christ, through her brother’s instrumentality. He was destined, however, for a larger sphere of usefulness than any which his own land could furnish, wide and urgent as its claims were and are.
While he was at Brecon, his character and gifts had so generally impressed several ministers and friends of his fitness for the regular ministry, that he was recommended to the Wesleyan Conference as a minister; and in 1834 he was appointed to the Chatteris Circuit, in Cambridgeshire, and here the same energy and zeal characterized his efforts.
At this time, the attention of various Missionary Societies was being directed to the spiritual wants of those who were settling in the colonies. Emigration was becoming more and more popular, and every week multitudes were leaving our shores in search of the fabulous fortunes which the colonies held up temptingly to their view. Gold, it was hinted, would one day be found in any quantities by men who would only have to dig for it; riches incalculable might be obtained in an incredibly short space of time. The directors of Missionary Societies were keenly alive to the danger that would accrue to the thousands who were going away from the religious altars of their own land to find themselves in a strange country, where the means of religious instruction were of the most meagre description, and where there would be the most terrible scope for the unbridled exercise of unholy lusts and passions. They were thereforediligently on the look-out for men of strong nerve and character, who could speak the right word to their fellows, amid the fierce excitement which burned within them;—men who could remind them of the hallowed association of their old homes, consecrated as they had been by Sabbath and Bible, and, by the remembrance of these, woo them to an interest in those things which would be found important and lasting when all the gold of Australia should have lost its value. The directors found many such men;—men brave enough to remain poor, while thousands around them were becoming rich; men who, in their strong might of godliness, stood like so many breakwaters against the surging flood of sensuality, avarice, and full-blown pride, which, in the course of time, threatened to submerge the land.
Among the men to whom the attention of the Wesleyan Missionary Committee was directed was Daniel James Draper, whom they were told was well adapted for Missionary service.
Physically, he was a strong man; a man about the middle height in stature, vigorous build, honest open face illumined by softly shining eyes, and voice of full trumpet tone; a man capable of fatigue, one who could endure hardness; decided, resolute, cheerful, and withal gentle in every thing he did; liberal and catholic in his tendencies, ready to learn and apt to teach; and above all, a man of strong faith and devotion. When it was proposed to him to go abroad, he gave the matter a brief but very earnest consideration, and at length he intimated his willingness to obey the wish of the Committee, and at the same time to be obedient to what he believed to be the call of duty and the will of God. By this time he was a married man, his wife being the daughter of Mr. Webb, of Fareham; and the young couple prepared to set out for Australia. The young Missionary looked forward to hisfuture field of labour with the calmest confidence, as he thought of the Divine presence accompanying him, and that he was neither going away from his Saviour nor his work, because going to a distant land. He took an affectionate farewell of his family and many friends, some of whom accompanied him to the ship.
There are many yet living who can remember well the period of his leaving England, and all the circumstances attending it. He went away on the 13th October 1835, with the farewells of many devoted and noble men ringing in his ears, whom, in the providence of God, he was never destined to meet again. Jabez Bunting, among others, had given him every encouragement, and had said to him, “Years of labour may be before you, but success is certain: it must come, it must come!”—He left his native shores with those words animating his heart:—“Success is certain;it must come, it must come!” Never were words more prophetic of the success which awaited the young Missionary’s efforts in the far-off land to which he was going. The voyage out was a dangerous one; the ship was overtaken by a violent storm, and at one time the Captain had said, that in six hours they would all be at the bottom; and thus shipwreck marked the beginning and close of his Missionary life.
Mr. Draper arrived at Sydney early in the year 1836, and applied himself to his work with all the enthusiasm and energy which were among his main characteristics. He could indeed speak conscientiously of “doing a week’s work,” for labour with him meant something, and was far remote from pretence. On Sunday morning he preached in the city, in the afternoon at a place fourteen miles off, and in the evening again at Sydney. Every day and every evening of the week had their engagements, which he perseveringly discharged; and while thusearnest in his own sphere, he was on the most brotherly terms of communion with the various branches of the church of Christ at Sydney and surrounding towns. He could truly say,
“Be they many or few, my days are His due,And they all are devoted to Him.”
“Be they many or few, my days are His due,And they all are devoted to Him.”
“Be they many or few, my days are His due,And they all are devoted to Him.”
“Be they many or few, my days are His due,
And they all are devoted to Him.”
A large amount of success attended labours thus constant and conscientious; many, very many, will have reason to bless God for his ministry at Sydney. It was not without drinking of sorrow’s bitter cup, however, that he had to commence his work amid new scenes and circumstances. He was early called upon to resign his young wife and child into the arms of death, and to feel the grief of a widower among strange people.
Subsequently his life for many years became subject to the changes incident to Missionary life amongst members of the Wesleyan community, and he was removed from station to station. It is gratifying to note, however, that he left no station without also leaving behind him the impress of a man whose one object it was to bring souls to God. In 1837 we see him pursuing his work at Paramatta; and from 1838 until 1841 at Bathurst. He is at Sydney again from the last date until 1845. He goes to Melbourne in 1846, and he was there for twelve months, during all the excitement produced by the discovery of gold.
The following year, he removed to Adelaide, and continued there until the year 1854. In 1855 he once more returned to Melbourne, and travelled successively in the East circuit, the North and the South. He was not without honour from his brethren in the ministry, who, in 1857, chose him to be Secretary of the Australian Conference,and, in the year 1859, elected him to fulfil the post of President. In addition to his pastoral and other duties, we may also remark that he had deeply interested himself, being a man of some means himself, in getting a provision made for poor ministers and for the widows of such, and his benevolent wishes were partly accomplished.
Such, then, is a brief outline of Daniel James Draper’s life, during a period of about thirty years in Australia. The details of those years of honourable service in the church of Christ will, if published, reveal a life of no ordinary labour and no common success. But, if never published to be read by the eye of man, we rejoice in thinking that they are already known to Him who called him home, bade him rest from his labours, and left them to follow him.
In the year 1865 Mr. Draper determined upon once more visiting his native land, and the scenes of his childhood. It is said that the love of Home was very strong in him, and that like a magnet it would every now and then draw his heart towards his country and towards old Fareham scenes and associations. His parents were now dead, and many of the friends of his youth were gone, but still it would be good to see the old place once more. He had married again, his wife being the daughter of Mr. Shelley, one of the first Missionaries to Tahiti, who sailed by the shipDuffat the end of the last century. She was an amiable and accomplished lady, worthy of her parentage and worthy of her husband: we cannot accord her higher praise, or it should be freely given. Having resolved to revisit the land of his birth, he was not long in making all necessary arrangements, and accompanied by the best wishes of friends at Melbourne, Mr. and Mrs. Draper sailed in theGreat Britain, and, after a voyage of sixty-four days, landed at Liverpool May 20th of lastyear. He had come to this country not only that his heart might be charmed by old and familiar scenes, and by intercourse with friends, some of whose faces he had never seen, but also in an official capacity. The Methodist Conference of Australia had desired him to be their representative at the British Conference, and his brethren in Australia had expressed themselves thus concerning him:—“The Rev. Daniel J. Draper has our ready consent to visit the land of our fathers. By our unanimous wish he is commended to you as our representative in your next Conference. You need not be informed of his valuable services to us; his intimate knowledge of our Connexion; or the high esteem and confidence in which he is held. We believe that from you he will receive a most affectionate welcome. He will be followed by our prayers, that he may return to us in health, and in the fulness of the blessing of Christ.”
The welcome which his brethren thus bespoke for him he everywhere most cordially received. He preached in London, in Great Queen Street Chapel; he was at the laying of the stone of the Wesleyan chapel now being erected in the Caledonian Road; he preached in St. James’s Hall, taking one afternoon the place of a minister who was unable to conduct the special service there; and he preached, last of all, it is believed, at Dalston, and afterwards administered the Lord’s Supper with much solemnity.
As the representative of the Australian Conference, he attended the British Conference at Birmingham, and, with the same object in view, he visited Scotland and Ireland. At the sitting of the Conference in Birmingham, his modesty, his manly sense, his quiet earnestness, and his unaffected devotion called forth the general respect and admiration of the ministerial fathers and brethren present. He also visitedsome of the principal towns in England, and showed himself everywhere the courteous, kindly, and cheerful man, with a sound judgment and well-informed mind. As might have been expected, Fareham, the scene of his childhood and of his first efforts to preach Christ, was among the places he visited. He preached there, and had the grave of his parents attended to and beautified.
We have met with those whose happiness it was to come in contact with him during his stay in this country, and on all hands the testimony is, that he was a man as much beloved for the rich human qualities of his heart, as he was respected for his extensive practical knowledge of life and the world. One remembers his hearty cheerful laugh, another his telling anecdotes of Australian life, and another the simplicity and fervour of his prayers. One tells of the trouble he took to find out a young man in London, for whom he had been entrusted with a message of kindness; all can tell of the deep tender devotion of the man, untarnished by so much as a touch of fanaticism. One who was brought into close communion with him for several hours, about two or three weeks before he sailed in theLondon, hassaid:—
“I was much impressed by Mr. Draper’s conversation and bearing. He had seen the world, and he talked like a man to whom men and things were familiar. The experiences of life had evidently accomplished their purpose in him. He was in command of himself; his judgment was strong and well-balanced; his tone and manner altogether showed the completeness, the symmetry, and the tender and genial perfection of one who had laboured and suffered, and, in all, had grown wiser and better, and more serviceable for his generation and mankind. His centre could not be doubted. Christ and Christ’s work, these were conspicuously the objects aboutwhich his whole thought and being revolved. Cheerful, pleasant, courteous, alive to all that was going on around him, utterly free from all sourness and affectation, he exhibited, with wonderful attractiveness, the simplicity, purity, dignity, and high and holy aims of the minister of Christ. His prayer at family worship I shall never forget. As he offered it, I could not but remark how the little child and ripe saint met in those natural, lowly, reverent, and calmly mighty supplications. It was the prayer of a man, between whose spirit and God there was no haze, and who was as sure of answer as if voices from heaven told him he was heard.”
In November last he engaged a berth in theLondon. There were many who would have prolonged his stay in this country if possible, but Mr. Draper’s wish was, now that he had accomplished the end for which he had come to England, to return to the land of his adoption. He was advised to go through Egypt, and indulge himself with a few weeks journey through the Sinaitic peninsula and Palestine, but he seemed even anxious now to return to his work at Melbourne. In one of his last conversations with the Hon. W. A. McArthur, who had expressed some regret at the shortness of his stay in England, Mr. Draper said, “Well, I could spend another year in England very pleasantly, and should like to do so if my conscience would allow me, but I feel I must get back to my work.”
“Little,” says Mr. McArthur, “did he then imagine that his work on earth was so nearly finished, and that he was so soon to enter into the joy of his Lord; but if ‘that life be long which answers life’s great end,’ then Mr. Draper has lived a long life; and having had the pleasure of his acquaintance upwards of twenty years, I can testify that his was a joyous, happy life, and that much of his happiness consistedin seeing others happy, and endeavouring to make them so.”
And now we are in the track of the devoted Missionary, as he prepares to go on board the vessel which was soon to meet with a disaster terrible beyond many of the most grievous in the annals of shipwreck. Now that the agony is over, and the faithful one at rest, we are disposed to see a meaning in that dream—the story comes to us on good authority—which, thrice repeated, bade him resist all the importunities of friends, and go by theLondon,and no other way, and we would not have had him disobedient to the voice.
To a friend in Dublin he wrote, a few days before he sailed—“The steamer (theLondon) is a fine new vessel, having gone out but twice. Last time she did the voyage in sixty days. We join her (D. V.) at Plymouth on the 2nd January, and she will leave that port at sixP.M.on that day. We trust in God our Heavenly Father for protection on our way, and delight in the thought that we shall be remembered by kind friends when they bow at the throne of grace.”
And so the good, genial, loving man went away from the land he loved, notwithstanding the associations of thirty years life in another country; from his Hampshire home which was as dear to him now, though approaching sixty years of age, as when he played there as a little child; and from the newly done-up grave, where the dust of his parents was sleeping. At the bidding of his Master, into whose hands he had committed his entire life, he had moved from station to station in Australia. He had never doubted the will of God in the successive changes which had marked his colonial life. He believed that there was a work for him to do in every place to which he was called, though he went to station after station, not knowing the things which were to befall him there. Shall wedoubt now that a voice in richest mercy towards others, summoned him to a station in which he was to do his last here for the Master who loved him, and who had need of him indeed for an awful service, but on which hung a reward and a blessing more glorious than heart can ever dream of?
We believe that he had only been a few days out when he felt this, and summoned all his energies rightly to discharge the duty his Master had called him to, to make his last, his best. Serenely committing himself to the keeping of a merciful and faithful Creator, Daniel Draper perhaps never thought of his own wants, until he awoke up in glory, and found with sweet surprise that he had none, that he was in the likeness of his God, that he had exchanged corruption for incorruption, that mortality had been swallowed up in the deep, deep sea, and that around him were not shipwrecked mariners in their dripping garments and looks of agony, but faces bright with joy, and forms radiant with the glory of immortality.