BX 1 ^^^y:!/^?-^-^.^*?^— y^^^^-T'-T'-z.-^!'-^-^ ~, OUN ^, \ ' IIBRARY ^i DATE DUE UW / V.f] M/\V '' f -!QD_ ,^ NCF Syj '^<^ \ \ ^ ] CAVLORO PRINTEDINU.S.A. Cornell University Library The original of tinis bool< is in the Cornell University Library. There are no known copyright restrictions in the United States on the use of the text. http://www.archive.org/details/cu31924011511197 "I found myself suTTOunded by my fellow youth and ofheTS ' THE GODLY PASTOR. LIFE OF THE REV. JEREMIAH HALLOCK, OF CANTON, CONN. TO WHICH IS ADDED A SKETCH OF THE LIFE OF THE REV. MOSES HAliLOCK, OF PLAINFIELD, MASS. LABORERS IN THE GREAT REVIVAL OF THE WORK OF GOD AT THE BEGINNING OF THE PRESENT CENTURY. 'He gave some . . . pastors and teachers. Eph. 4 : 11. Feed the cliurch of God, which he hath purchased with his own blood. Acts 20 : 28. r. '■'■ BY REV. CYRUS YALE, m '•L. ' , OP NEW HABTSOED, OOIW. ■it --r A NEW EDITION OF THE MEMOIR, REVISED BT THE AUTHOR, AND ENLARGED, UNDER HIS SANCTION, BY THE SKETCH FROM ANOTHER HAND. PUBLISHED BY THE AMERICAN TRACT SOCIETY, NEW YORK: 150 NASSAU-STREET. * BOSTON.: 28 CORNHILL. CONTENTS. Intcgductiou . ' ■ 7 CHAPTER I. .EARLY LIFE— CONVERSION. Birth — Ancestry — Occupation in early life — In the army — Seriousness in childhood — ^Narrow escapes from death — Deep sense of sin and ruin — Conversioii — Efforts for his fellow-youth — Usefulneaa in re- ligions meetings — Enjoyment of a revival .'..... 11 CHAPTER II.:*' PREPARATION AND LICENSE TO PREACH THE GOSPEL. Thinks of preswihing the gospel — Commences study — ^Severe trial at Northampton — ^Return to the farm — Pleasant reflections — Rej Buraes his books — Makes a profession of' religion — Activity and usefulness in the church — Resolutions — Goes to Connecticut — Enjoys a religious revival — Useful labors — Visit from his brother — Earnest desire to preach-jF-Studies -with Rev. Mr. Mills and the late Rev. Dr. West — His opinian of Edwards on Religious Affections, and of Taylor on Original Sin — -Applies for license to preach — Dis- appointments — Labor in the circle of .his relations — Receives license to preach .... 23 \ CHAPTER in. LABORS TILL HIS INSTALLATION AS PASTOR. '^ "^ His sermons — His maimer in preaching — Entire devotion to his new . and delightful work — His pleasant grove — ^Unexpested trials — Supplies the pulpit in West Simsbury, afterwards Canton — General practice at funerals and social meetings — Some seals to his min- istry— "Receives a call to West Simsbury — Preaches in several places — Invitation to settle at Ware and at Goshen — Returns to West Simsbury — Severe trials — Day of fasting and prayer-^ Desire to be an evangelist — Asecond invitation fcom West Sims- bury — Address from the youth-rOrdination 42 4 CONTENTS. CHAPTER IV. FIRST TWELVE YEARS OF HIS MINISTKY. Motto after ordination — 'Entire devotion to his work — Marriage — Ees- olution in view of increasing cares — Private fast — Dedication oi his dwelling-honse. to Sod — General view of his family — Libe- rality — Feelings in a near View of death — Tast — Forgiveness ol enemies — New year resolutions — Parting with a Christian friend — Receives the degree of A. M. — Thoughts on a letter ot reproof — Useful journey — A time of thick moral darkness — Anec- dote — Illustrations of human dependence^— a youth rowing up Niagara — ^floating ice — lost sheep — imskilfnl boatmen — Death x>f a sister — Uefuge in trouble: — Harvest thoughts — Supply of forage — Planting an oiohard-r— Course to reclaim a Christian brother — Re- proof of an infidel — Admonition of thoughtless youth — Anecdotes as to a new house of worship . . 72 CHAPTER V. ■REVIVALS AT- THE BEGINNIN& OF THE PRESENT CENTURY. . Revival among his people in 1798 and 1799 — Letters describing the vifork — its commencement — rapidity and power — ^false hopes re- nounced — critical moment — awful impressiveness of the scene — means of increasing the work — sovereignty of God — ^plain truths of Scripture— conversion of infidels — His texts^- Address to those joining the church — Specimen of an extempore sermon . . 106 CHAPTER VI. FIRST MISSION TO VERMONT— LABORS IN REVIVALS. His motto on leaving home — Trials on the way — Favorable recep- tion — Visits an old friend — ^Universalists — Letter to his wife — General view of his labors — Letter to a Christian friend — Desire for the conversion of his children — Tonrs of preaching — ^New year reflections I49 CHAPTER VII. REVIVALS IN 1805 AND 1806— CORRESPONDENCE. Anecdote, test of genuine conversion — ^Letter to his brother General visit through his society with lay-brethren — Two letters to a Christian friejid — Birthday reflections . .... 169 . CONTENIS. 6 CHAPTER Vin. SECOND MISSION TO VERMONT— CORRESPONDENCE. Second mission to Vermont— Sickness eimong his people — Letter to his brother — To a son — Death of a sister — His elder son grad- uates — Special prayer and fasting — Trial in his son's choice of a profession — Letters — Tonr of preaching — Letters to friends — Joy in the divine government . . . . .... 193 CHAPTER IX. ■revivals in 1812 AND 1813 — DEATH OF HIS ONLY DAUGHTER- CORRESPONDENCE. Uevivals among his people in 1812 and 1813 — Letters to his elder son — His younger son called to New London — Sickness and death of his only daughter^— His younger sun's sickness — His prayer — Mrs. Hallock's sickness— His own sickness — Kindness of his people . 214 CHAPTER X. liABORS IN THE MINISTRY— CORRESPONDENCE— REVIVAL OF 1816. Tour of preaching — Letter to a nephew — Anecdote — Letters to a son — Kevival in 1816 — Illness at Southampton — Letter to a son 236 CHAPTER XI. CORRESPONDENCE- LABORS IN ADVANCING YEARS— REVIVAL OP 1821. A pleEtsant trait of character — Letter to one who had long been a member of his family — Letter to his children and to a nephew — Ordination of missionaries — Birthday reflections — Anecdote, council of physicians — Labors in the revival of 1821 — His vener- able associates in the ministry — Letter to friends at Flainfield — Death of his beloved physician — Letter to a nephew — Missionary field . .' 253 CHAPTER XII. CONVERSION OF HIS SON— CLOSING LABORS— TRAITS OF CHAR- ACTER. Conversion of his elder son — Happy meeting of father and son — His appearance at ministers' meeting- His worth in eoolesiastioal councils — Traits of character . . , 273 6 CONTENTS. CHAPTER XIII. SICKNESS OF ms WIFE— LAST PUBLIC SEEVICES— DEATH. Severe illness of Mrs. Hallock — Letter to a nephew — His increasing inHrmities — ^His lafet labors — RenewaJ of his will — Death- — Fune- ral — ^Address left with his will — Death of Mrs. Hallock . 291* SKETCH OF THE LIFE OF REV. MOSES HALLOCK. Early history — In Yale college — Blessing on his labors in the ihinis- try — Students^ he instructed — Requests a colleague — pleasing in- cidents — Love of the Bible — Confidence in God — Traijiing of his fainily — ^Family worship — ^Death 3H HIS CHAUACTER AS BRAWN FROM HIS CORRESPONDENCE. Interesting revivals — Counsel to a teacher — ^Death of a daughter — Ancestry — Letters to his sons in college — Rev. James Richards, Ceylon — Spiritual counsels io his absent sons — A sou entering on a foreign mission — ^Prosperous state of the churches — Days of fast- ing — Feelings in viewof death — Temperance and the Sabbath.^ Solerrm appeals — Charge to a colleague — Death of his wife — ^His epitaph 333 INTRODUCTION. In the great revival of the work of Grod which began about the close of the last century, the Rev. Jeremiqh Hallook was associated in prayer, counsel, and labors, with some of the worthiest of men. His congregation was contiguous to that of the Rev. Dii Edward D. Griffin, who has said, "In 1799, I could stand at my door in New Hartford, Litchfield county, and number fifty or sixty congregations laid down in one field of divine wonders." Another fellow-laborer in that glorious work of grace, was the youthful pas- tor of the church in Washington, Conn., the late Rev. Dr. Bbenezer Porter, who succeeded Dr. Griffin as Professor of Sacred Rhetoric in the Theological Sem- inary at Aijdover. Another distinguished laborer in that good work, was the Rev. Dr. Nathan Strong of Hartford, who with others reported these mighty works of God in all directions, through the Connecti- cut Evangelical Magazine. And then there were his well-beloved brethren, the Rev. Samuel J. Mills, whose son, of the SEune name, had so much agency in the establishment of foreign missions from this country, and the Rev. Messrs. Alexander GUlett, Ammi R. Robbins, and Peter Starr, with whom Mr. Hallock often met for religious improvement, mutual 8 • INTilODUOTION. counsel, and social prayer. Some of these men of prayer would at times resort to the retired grove, and there, after the great Model,in Gethsemane, would ■ lie on their faces upon the ground, with strong sup- plication and tears for the descent of the Holy Spirit upon their people. The oldest class ,of ministers now alive in the same fieldj love to look back to that memorable revival, and recall the great purity and extent of the work ; the great power of Grod, as on the day of Pentecost, in connection with human feebleness ; the humility and harmony of the favored pastors, in their -abundant and successful labors; the lasting benefits to Zion, in the large increase of her numbers and graces, in the happy exchange of her cold formality and half- way covenant for vital godliness and the only true covenant with God and his people, and in the few apostasies among the many hopefuF converts and new members of the churches. And then 'that glo- rious revival soon yielded the appropriate fruits of,| Christian missions, domestic and foreign, with the long and bright train of other benevolent institutions which characterize and- bless this age. The Eev. Jeremiah Hallock, as appears in his Memoir, was an honored pioneer in this great work. Twice*, at the call of his brethren in the ministry, did he leave his beloved people, aind go forth as a mis- sionary to the then "new state" of Yermont. As a young preacher was leaving the house of Dr. Strong to go on a mission to ^he states of New York, that great and good map ^aid to him, " Go and stay a day INTRODUCTION. 9 with brother Hallock ; he can give you more of the instructicm and assistance you will need on your mis- sion, than any other man." A venerable father, who labored side by side with" Mr. Hallock during the latter half of his ministry, and who is now deprived of his natural sight, as if to give greater clearness and brightness to his spirit- ual vision, lately said of him in his calm, well- weighed words, " He was a most spiritually-minded man. I don't know as Paul or John was more spirit- ual than he. They were inspiredr^—he was not.'' This aged servant of Christ, with others, has ex-, pressed an earnest desire for a new edition of this Memoir. It is thought to present a fair and instruc- tive specimen of the spirit and course of that brother- hood of departed and worthy pastors, with whom Mr. Hallock acted in " the times of refreshing from the presence of the Lord." Soon after his death in 1826, by request of the monthly -meeting of ministers with which he had long been connected, the compiler prepared-a Memoir of the venerated and beloved man. Two editions were issued; he has now revised it, with a view to . a more general circulation. Whatever has seemed to be of only local interest, or unnecessary to illus- trate the grace of God in him as a Christian and a pastor, in his various relations, is omitted, while some new matter has been introduced. The compiler is happy now to add to this volume, &om another hand, a brief, yet invaluable Menioir of Mr. Hallock's only brother; a man of like spirit, to 1* 10 INTRODUCTION. whom he often alludes so affectionately, and with whom he held sweet communion through Ufe. The two narratives may well stand side by side, as they shed on each other a mUd and pure light, and toth beautifully and strongly illustrate the power of divine grace. The design of the volume is not to praise those who were the last to seek honor from men, and whose record is on high ; but to honor the grace of God, which, in connection with means, forms every char- acter of great moral worth, and to present for. imita- tion examples of piety, fidelity, and success in the Christian niinistry. It has been the steady aim to let these men of Grod stand forth before the eye of the Christian pubUc, in their own grave, plain, inim- itable thoughts, words, and actions. And if these mild stars in the- late clerical constellation may still shine on our churches steadily, thoiigh. more dimly, after nearly all the lovely cluster have risen to their fixed position in a brighter sky, the influence will surely be happy upon Zion and Zion?s friends. New Hartfokd, January, 185,4. MEMOIR REV. JEREMIAH HALlOCK. CHAPTER I. EARLY LIFE— CONVERSION. "I WAS born," says Mr. Hallook in a brief sketch of his early life written about the year 1815, " on Monday, March ' 13, 1758. My native place was Brookhaven,* Long Island, in the State of New York. My father, William Hallook, was born on Loiig Island in 1730. My mothfer was Alice Homan. My grand- father, Noah Hallock, lived and died at a place called ' The Old Man's.' nearly opposite New Haven." * After stating his confidence in the piety of more remote ancestors, he says, " I have often heard my dear father date his hope at about eight years old, though he was more than forty when he made a pub- lic profession of religion. He always prayed in, his family, atid I have repeatedly found him at prayer, in sonie retired place. He appeared to regard the holy * He was born at "Tireplaoe," in Brookhaven, on the south side of the Island. His ancestors had resided on Long Island from the early settlement o? our country. ■ See page 341 . 12 JEREl^IAH HALLOCK. Sabbath, to delight in the public worship of the Lord, to respect the Bible and preachers of the gospel, to love Christians, to value awakenings, and cordially to believe in the doctrines of grace. He ever appeared to think very lowly of himself, and to feel that, if a Christian, he was the least of all. He was hospitable, and felt in the distresses of the afflicted. He was gifted in prayer, apt to speak in conferences," or prayer-meet- ings, •" and to converse on religion. I know of none with whom I could talk more freely on religious sub- jects than my dear father. My mother, I believe, made a profession of religion when I was about eight years old,- and I trust from her life and conversation she really js what she professes to be. " My father had nine children, who lived to grow up, two sons and seven daughters, all of whom except the youngest daughter settled in the family state. I was the oldest child. When I was about eight years old, my father removed with his family to a part of Chesterfield now called Goshen, in Hampshire county, Massachusetts. Here I lived with him till 1 was twenty-one, and went through privations and hardships in assisting him to bring under cultivation an entirely new farm." Besides these early toils on the. unsubdued Green mountains, Mr. Hallock was twice called, in the war of the revolution, while yet in his minority, to ex- change the .tranquillity of agriculture for the turnult of arms. By this discipline in his youth, God was preparing him for that "hardness" which he after- wards endured so joyfully as a good soldier of Christ, EARLY LIFE. 13 In 1777, he was in a tody of troops selected for a secret expedition, and closely packed in boats on lake George. A tempest came upon them, and his hoat, was carried down side wise tetween two tremendous waves. At this moment, an old sailor sprang to the helm, and ordered another to the bow. There was now a dead silence, except when the man at the helm, as the boat plunged;- sung out, " Steady, boys," and when the man at the bow, as shprose again, answered, " All 's well." Alluding to this night of terror near the close of life, Mr. Hallock said, " I have often been cheered, in times of commotion and peril, by remem- bering those words : ' Steady, boys' — ' All 's well.' " " I have a fresh remembrance of serious impres- sions when I was about six or seven years of age. Similar feelings, I believe, young children often ex- perience. If I mistake not, this anxiety was in a season of some awakening, in the neighborhood. In my ninth and tenth years, death would sometimes appear real and near, and for a short time my mind would be filled with inexpressible alarm '; I think I- had some sense of my sinfulness. But these impres- sions would soon wear offj and leave me almost totally careless of my soul. From ten to eighteen, I took much delight in reading the JBible, espepially the historical parts of it; and could repeat almost whole chapters. These I sometimes repeated to my father ; and this early reading of the Scriptures has, I trust, been profitable to me, in maiiy respects, to this day. As I lived in a very new country, far from meeting, and' with little advantage from schools; as 14 JEREMIAH HALLOCK. I neither saw nor heard of awakenings ; as the parents seemed to be wholly after the world, and the children and youth thoughtless and attached to carnal mirth, I grew up with little mental improvement, and gener- ally indifferent to spiritual things. Yet, on a certain Sahhath, which 'is still fresh in my mind, a sermon, preached in "Williamsfcurgh hy the Eev. Mr. Hooker, excited, my attention, and I think my . mind was deeply impressed with eternal realities. But I said nothing to any one, neither, so far as I remember, did I once think what it was; for conviction, con- version, and rfevivals, were terms with which I was unacquainted. These impressions, so far as I recol- lect, continued till about the middle of the week, when they left me as unconcerned as I was before. " Once I almost miraculously escaped being in- stantly killed by the fall of a tree, where I was at work with a number of giddy creatures. "When in the army at Tioonderoga, in 1776, I was brought near the grave by the prevailing sickness. And in 1777, as I was in a scouting party with Colonel Brown, after travelling in the dark woods all night, I became very sleepy about daybreak, when getting over a log, f set my gun down on the ground and accidentally snapped it with my foot. It had just been loaded, and the muzzle was at this moment under my chin. These narrow escapes from death would alarm me only for a little while. Thus I lived until the close of my twenty-first year, flattering my- self that there was time enough for repentance yet to come, and hoping that I should somehow escape EARJiY LIFE. ' 15 hell aird be admitted into heaven. I had no con- viction of the necessity of the new hirth, as a moral meetness for a hplj: heaven ; but supposed that, if Grod in his-mercy would only admit me there, I was already fitted for the place. " But on entering my t-xfenty-second year, March 13, 1779, being of age, and vfishing to obtain the wealth of this world, my mind began to be impressed with a sense of my dependence on God for his bless- ing. While at work alone, I used to pray that God would bless and prosper nde. One day, as I closed with these words, 'And wheh^I come to die, fit me for death;' the thought occurred, 'But why put off" this preparation for death till the closing scene Y This appeared inconsistent. I saw that this great work ought to be first, and not delayed to a dying bed. Not far from this time, I had: a sudden sense, like a flash,- of the sinfulness of my heart. • This, I scarcely remember to have thou^t of before, certainly not with an equal degree of feeling. Soon after this, my heart, v?hile I.was ia bed, seemed so black and polluted, that I could hardly avoid crying out ; but this deep sense of guUt soon abated. This was in the latter part of March, and I think my mind was on the whole more and more impressed in April and May, thdugh in a gradual manner. I do not-remember that I had any name for my feelings, or that I made" mention of them to any one, or thought myself awakened. "In the latter part of May,, I met two of my mates, one evening, to arrange for 3, ball at the ap- proaching state election. We were together till past 16 JEREMIAH HALLOCK. nine o'clock, but no arrangements were made, and the tall was hardly mentioned. It was a sober meet- ing ;- no one of us appeared to have any wish for vain mirth, and finally, by the desire of the youth, a ser- mon was preached, on the, day of election, at the meeting-house. As there had been some attention to pinging the -previous winter, it was called a singing- lecture. At the close of the meeting, all the youth went home, and nothing more was said respecting the baU. In June there was to be an ordination in a neighboring town, and some of the youth purposed to go and have a season of mirth, but this also came to nothing. ^' About this time, a, lecture was preached at Groshen by a minister from abroad — for we had then no settled minister — at which the youth appeared still more solemn. Some of them now agreed to meet at a private house, on the next Sabbath evening, for a religious conference. This, I believe, was the first religious meeting of young people ever held in the town. It was the first religious conference I ever attended. "We read the Bible and convfersed together, and as aU refused to pray, I made the attempt. As I had never before led in social prayer, nor even asked & blessing at table, it was not a little trying to pray with my fellow-youth, with whom I had been accus- tomed to associate in things remote from religion. Sobriety and solemnity marked the meeting, yet, on account of the shortness of the evenings, no other meeting was then appointed. My general impressions continued till some time in the month of August, when, as I retired one even- HIS CONVEaSlON. 17 ing, my mind, as I have hoped, was enlightened into a saving knowledge of Gfod and Jesus Christ, and the way of salvation by him. The law of Grod appeared just, I saw myself a sinner, and Christ and the way of salvation hy him looked pleasant. I thought it was a happiness to be in the hands of God, and that I -could trust fiiyself. and my all in his hands, as the place of entire safety from every foe and evil. I saw a spiritual beauty and excellence in these things which I had never seen before, though I have no re- membrance that it once turned in my mind, at the time, what aU this was. But I have a fresh-recol- lection that when I went down in the morning, and looked into the psalm-book, it was a new book ; or there- was a new spiritual, weighty importance and beauty in it. I cast my eyes on the 144th Psalm,' ' Happy the city,' etc. This and the second stanza appeared excellent ; but when I came to the lines, " ' But more divinely blest are those, On whom the all-sufficient G«d Himself, with all his gricfi hestows,' ^ there appeared to be in them a peculiar beauty and excellence. Wheii I went into the field to work, the glory of God appeared in all his visible creatiojji. I well remember we reaped oats,, and how every straw and head of the tiats seemed, as it were, arrayed in a kind of rainbow-glory, or to glow, if I may so express it, in the glory of God. Yet I mentioned my views and feeUngs to no one. There were three of us, I think, at work together, and it was a silent day, but one of sweet mental peace. It still never occurred 18 JEREMIAH. HALIiOCK. to me, that I had experienced any thing like a change of heart. . " " Not many weeks after this, I was called to do military duty. On the release of the company for a little refreshment, without any plan or intention of miiie, I found myself in a barn, near the place of parade, surrounded hy my fellowjyouth.and others, and exhorting them on the things of religion. Some of them- gave deep and affectionate attention. One of my mates was then awakened, who afterwards ohtained hope. "iihotit this tinie the awakening, which had been secretly advancing, began to break forth, and by the- first, of January it was spread considerably over the town. . And though the season was cold and the snow very deep, the meetings were frequent, full, and solemn. As we had' no minister, and I was the first of the apparent converts^ the lead of the meet- ings -often devolved upon me ; and my dear mates looked to me for instruction, showed me great respect, and put confidence in what I^aid. I frequently led in prayer, read, and spoke- a word of exhortation-^ sometimes with freedom. - I lived this winter with Mr. — ^ — . As we were dressing flax, February 9thj in a back roomj the flax took fire, and buriit so quick and furiously, the wind being high, that in a few minutes the flame pervaded the whole house, and it was consumed with all its contents, except what was carried out perhaps in fifteen minutes. The sudden burning of the house, and the shock it -produced, gave me an impressive sense of the great burning-day- at HIS'COWVERSION. ]9 the end of the world, and the inexpressitle conster- Hation of poor thoughtless sinners, who only mind- earthly things, and think as little of that dreadful hour as the old- world thought of the flood, or as we thought of this fire till it came. " Looking over the daily account which I kept at this tinie, I find that during March and April I attended meetings most of the evenings, went some- times as fer as six mUes, and spoke in them as much as a short sermon, generally from some passage of Scripture. I sometimes went beyond my strength, my hodily health was reduced, and ouce I was threat- . ened with sickness. I had no special refreshings— sometimes' was ready to give up my hope — ^yet it was a new and pleasant scene, of which I hefore had no idea. My mind for the most part was clear and oomfortahlg, and .1 trust the Lord was graciously with us, and -hlessed my poor exhortations to his children and to some thoughtless sinners." An eye-witness of Mr. HaUock's activiiy and use- fulness in this revival, Dea. Jamfes Richards, long an oflSoer in the church of Mr., HaUock's only brother at Plainfield, Mass., and father of the foreign missionaries, James and William Richards', says, -, " My first acquaintance with him was in the sum- mer of 1779, in the .place now called Groshen.- The season. was remarkable for the display of the power and mercy of God, in bringing lost men frorti ,th& bondage of sin into the liberty of the gospel. Mr. Hallock, I think, was the first who manifested a Christian hope. From this time, it seemed that his 20 JEREMIAH HALLOCK. whole soul was engaged to promote the glory of God, the advancement of the Redeemer's kingdom, and the salvation of souls. I attended conferences with him constantly, through the awakening, or till near the close of it. It was his general, and perhaps I may say his constant practice to give an exhortation. In these exhortations, he did not want for ideas, nor for words to express thein. They were fervent and affectionate. The spriag following, I returned to the place of my nativity. There I continued till 1788, when I came with my family to this town. In the autumn of 1790, he made his first visit in this place. On renewing our acquaintancie, I found him to be the same humble, pious, devoted Christian, that he was eleven years before. "When we came together, after the usual salutation he addressed me in these words : ' I hope our interview will be spiritual'.' And indeed it seemed that this was his aim in all his visits ; for he was eminently a spiritually -minded man. I do not recollect that he ever visited at my house with- out prayiijg before we parted. I loved, esteemed, and revered the man ; and the recollection of the delight- ful seasons I have passed with him still affords a solenm pleasure." It is not a little gratifying to find so good a begin- ning to that course of unwearied effort in the cause of Christ, -which, by the grace of God, Mr. Hallock was enabled steadily to pursue for almost half a century. Though not without seasons of darkness, yet on the whole the time of his spiritual espousals seems to HIS CONVEilSION. 21 have been emphatically, "the day of the gladness of his heart." In conversation yrith a friend, some years since, he expressed the following-sentiments in nearly the follovring-manner. ',' The most pleasant revival, I think, which I ever witnessed, was that in which 1 obtained my hope. I then knew little of Satan's wiles, and the deceitfuLr ness of the heart. I was free from the care and" anxiety of a settled pastor. The. scene was new, and I gave myself up to the enjoyment of it. But since I receiv- ed the charge of souls, it has been different. I have found revivals to be such critical and important seasons, that my soHcitude and sense of responsibility have greatly checked my joy. Now, on seeing a person altogether careless in a time of God's special mercy, I tremble for fear he wUl be left without a share in the blessing. If I. find one under, slight serious im,- ^pressions, I am in distress because he has not a deeper sense of his sin and ruin. If I discover a case of pungent conviction, my joy is limited by a fear that this; person wLU yet grieve the Holy 'Spirit,' and be given over to a reprobate mind. . "When I meet one in the first transports of hope,. I trust I feel a peculiar satisfaction, yet I cannot but remember the ' stony- ground' hearers, and pray God, in my poor way, to save from fatal delusion. When I find a professor of Christ fast asleep, my heart sinks within me; and on seeing in professors or young converts a forwardness to promote the work, I am sometimes afraid they will do serious injury, through a want of knowledge or of prudence. And Q, how anxiously do I watch any 22 - • JEREMIAH HiTLLOCK. changes in the -work ; how exceedingly trying to see evidence of its decline! How do I treniWe, for. fear our sins as a church, and especially my own defects, should 'provoke Grod to withdraw Jiis gracious influence. Thus, brother, turn what way I wiU, a revival, with, all its animating tlungs, is to;ine a scene of amazing, !|plemnity." • But these feelings of pastoral solicitude rnust not he taken for a distrustful spiiit. No man, in a sea- son of religious revival, seenied to have more entire reliance on the arm of Jehovah. Yet he was trem- blingly alive. in the use of divinely appointed means. It stould also be stated, that Mr. Hallock ever held in high estimation the judicious efforts of laymen, and that he had great 9onfidenGe in the leading members of his own church. Few clergymen have given equal encouragement to meeting^ of youth, in which con- verts^ might take an active part. This we might indeed expect, from a knowledge of his own early practice in such meetings.; "Within a year of his death he spoke with strong emotion of the assistance which he had received in revivals from members of his church; and expressed his conviction that it was even more valuable than the labors of an evangelist would probably have been. He added, " I believe, that when God has a special work of grace to perform in any place, he usually provides some prominent instru- ment—that this is sometinies an obscure individual in the church, who ;receives for this purpose- a fresh anointing, and then is peouliaily active and useful in arousing his more tardy brethren to duty." PREPARATION FOU THE MINISTRY. 23 CHAPTER II. •PREPARATION AND LICENSE TO'PREACH THE .' GOSPEL. ■ ' "I WOULD here notice, that for several months I had had almost a constant impression of my having a call to preach the gospel, and a strong desire to be" thus-ernplciyed, if it were the will of G-od. Several of iny frieads mentioned the subject to me, and' asked me if it was not my duty to devote myself to the ^ gospel ministry, and some,, to encourage me, made me small- presents. - , "Jn April, 1780, I went to -Northampton to see Mr. Dwight, now president of Yale college, to know if I could attend his school the e;nsuing summer. The 20th of May was -the- noted dark morning. While others around me were terrified, I do not know that I felt the least- agitation, hut spoke to them con- cerning, Jesus. In the afternoon we had a meeting, and I addressed them with unusual freedom; the attention of the people was greater than common. May 25th, I began to study with Mr. Joseph Barker, who was preaching in Groshen as a candidate. My-^ board was given me by the neighbors. Abotit this time I had, 1 think, rather a greater sense than com- mon of the wickedness of my heart, the temptations of this world, and my exposure to be overcome by 21 JEREMIAH HALLOCK.. them ; also of my absolute dependence on the Lord, and that if saved it must he all of free grace. " On the 9th of June I wrote thus: ' Things do appear more clear than they did. Blessed be God for it, for ever and ever. my soul, praise the Lord, and call upon his name ; praise him, while you have strength to move.' I was now much in the habit of writing a sort of verse, like the following which I find in my diary, June 21. " 'I am a sinner, and most vile Of all the human race; Lord, wash away my sins, I pray, By thy free sovereign grace.' " On the 7th of August, I went to Northamptoii and joined Mr. Dwight's school. I was one of the oldest scholars, and yet the most deficient in learn- ing. My mind was seriously impressed ; the school in general were light and vain. The dry study of the Latin was also a great trial. to me ; for I wished to spend rny whole time in reading the Bible and religious books, in connection with other spiritual duties.* " My health at the same time failing, it was not long before I sunk into the most distressing melan- choly, and soon became entirely discouraged and went home with a view to be a farmer if Grod should spare my life, despairing of ever being a minister of the gospel. The distresses of these days and. weeks no one can have any idea of, except by experience. *'0n the cover of his Virgil was written, " Alas,Uhe poor heathen could not find Christ." - PREPARATION FOR THE MINISTRY. 25 My soul hath the hitterness of that season still fresh in rememhrance. I was ready, to conclude that all was against me as a Christian, and trembled for fear I should become an apostate. But He who pitieth the afflicted and hear'eth the cries of the distressed and helpless, kept me in this dreadful day from total despair and utter ruin, and praised be his name. To the Lord Jesus I made my sorrows known and looked for relief. I greatly feared theCt having given- up all idea of the ministry^ I should soon get buried in the world, and care nothing about. religion. } ^'My mind became more calm, and contrary to my fear, I found that though I had given up all hope of the ministry, yet, if eve? 1 loved religion, I loved it still. This, mstead of destroying my hope, strength- ened it. On the 7th of September I wrote, , ' Thiiigs appeared to me more clear to-day; my soul SQemed to long after God; his people and his -kingdom still appeared lovely.' After bitter complaint of coldness, worldly-mindedriess aud the like, I find written, No- vember 4, ' Ldst "Wednesday night I experienced a great revival of religious feeling — ^whether true or false Grod knoweth ; 1 felt grieved to see or hear any tiling against the ministers of Jesus, and I thilik iiiey looked beautiful for their- work's sake. I also felt a degixq to be made, though unworthy, an iiistrument of the glory of God and of good in the world.' In the forepart of December, my hope rgspeoting the gospel ministry began to revive, and on the fifteenth of this, month I went to sohool agam to Mr, Barker. I find written, December 9, .'It appears to me that I am 26 JEREMIftH HALLOCK. the most ignorant, and that I never shall he fit for any service in the world ;' and also these lines : Though I am dark, yet Christ is light, Though I am weak, yet Christ is strong, And he can give'me h^eavenly light, . A^id in his service make me strong.' " Mr. Hallook spent the next year in the study of Latin, a part of it at Northampton, in the aokdemic school of the late- Dr. Dwight. He afterwarfls pur- sued his studies, for ahout eighteen months, with the Rev. Mr. Strong of Williamsburgh. " On- the 8th of March, 1781,. I madje a public profession of Christ, and united with his church in Goshen. Among the things I then -wrote are these words : "-O tjie- solemn oath that I have made this day. that God would give me grace to live accord- ing to my promise, that I might so walk as not to bring a reproach upon the religion of his dear Son.' In September, 1782, when I supposed I was fitted for college, I was^'for some time unwell, and threiatened- with serious illness. I then wr^te, ' Dark symptoms ': of sickness seem very different frorn what they once did. They do not appear terrifying or awful, but more like friends than enemies, because they are many times used as instruments to open the, way for saints to their Father's house. Lord, search me and try me, and leave me not to build upon a false foundation.' ^' About this time, I began to make -Qie following resolves, and "from time to time continued to make them, according to my situation and the occurrences PREPARATION FOR THE MINISTRY. 27 of my life. These I resolved to renew once a week, unless unavoidably interrupted ; which I have done, and I trust to my spiritual profit. Endeavoring to lean on the Beloved for strength to perform, " ' 1. I am resolved to avoid all known sins, and to practise all known duties ; to read the word of God and other good hooks, and go according to the lig|it I find in them. . ' ^ ^ " ' 2. Resolved to watch over iny conduct respect- ing my aged parents, never to give them' an unkind word,, tut to love and honor them, as enjoined in the fifth commandment, and to ohey and follow them wherein they follow Christ. "-'3. I am resolved, three times a day, unless my circumstances render it impossible, to retire and read a portion of Scripture and pray ; "to be much in ejac- ulatory prayer, and in timfes of unusual trouble to be more than commonly prayerful. "'4. Resolved to keep a general journal of' the most, remarkable occurrences of -my life; " ' 5, I am resolved to be faithful to my dear consort, to seek to instruct, watch over, and bring up my children in Hie fear of Ood, and to' pray and travail in birth, for them, until Christ is formed in thein the hope of glory. " 6. I am resolved to show my superiors, inferi- ors, and equals, dUe respect at all times, and not to have the faith of our Lord Jesus Christ with respect of persons. " ' 7. I am resolved. to be careful of another's char- acter, and to say nothing against him directly or indi- 28 JEREMIAH HALLO.CK. reotly., unless I think the interest of religion and the honor of (Jod caU me to it. " ' 8. Resolved, never to look upon myself to liav.e attaioed;^ but to press forward. . " ' 9. Resolved, never, to put myself forwa'rd in any thing, especially in matters of religion, but al-^ays to takiB the lowest place. . ' '"10. Resolyed, in all niy troubles to b& carefiil how I complain or speak of them; and to say and- do that which may be most for the glory of God, who is as worthy of praise in my adversity as in my pros- perity. " ' 11. Resolved, the first thing in the morning to give myself up to the Lord; to study what > I can do most for his glory that day, and by prayer to set about it; "and tha:t this shall be the la^t thing at night. " ' 12. Resolved to receive aU unkindnesseg with patience ; to keep counsel, and speak against^ no one, unless I think I am in duty caUed to it. ' " ' 13. Resolved, if in my power, to read at least four portions of Scripture, or hear theml:ead, every day. '"14 Resolved" to try all my sermons by G-od's word, and endeavor to get good from them befcwe I preach them, and to deliver them as if I was about to " give up my last account. , ■? '"15. I am resolved not only to preach what I find agreeable to the word of God to others, but to endeavor to' practise it myself.' " ' 16. Resolved, that nothing be lost, but that what little time and strength I have be spent in the service of ^od. - ' PREPARATION FOR THE MINISTRY. 29 " ' 17. I am reselved to pray for all people, espe- cially for the church, and for my enemies. " ' 18. Eesolved, never to be too much lifted up, nor too much cast down, but to hope in Grod and not to indulge despair. " ' 19. Resolved to watch against the love of this world, as a slq which doth easily "beset me. " ' 20. Resolved to inquire with candor after the truth for the truth's sake, taking the word of Grod as my only guidcj^lookiag up to the Holy Spirit to guide me into a right .understanding of it. " '21. Resolved to watch against a murmuting, fretful spirit. , " ' 22. Resolved, to watch in th6 day of pjdsperity, lest I forsake the Lord. "'23. Resolved to' 'remember the Sabbath-day to keep it holy.' <' ' 24. Resolved to avouch the Lord Jehovah, the Father, the Son, and the Holy Grhost, . as my God and Father, my Redeemer,. SanctLfier, and Comforter, through the everkistiug atonenient of Jesus phrist.' " The preceding resolves I have generally renewed Saturday evening, with- a covenant, in which I have^ endeavored to give my heart, soul, body, name, inter- est, and happiness, for time and eternity, to v God in Christ ; also my wife, children, and friends, my peo- ple, the world, and dearer Zion, that all might be consecrated^ to the fear, service, kingdom, and glory of God; at the. same' time praying 'that God, would be my father, and, put me among his children — ^that the Lord Jesus Christ would be my prophet, priest, and 30 ' JEREMIAH HALLOCK. king, my righteousness, wisdom, sanotification, and redemption, and the Holy Spirit my sanctifier, sup- porter, and comforter. And although, as I have said, I trust the weekly renewal of the preceding resolves and covenant has been profitaUe, and tended to pre- -pare my mind for the Sahbath, yet the practice has taught me this : ^;hat it is one thing, to covenant and resolve, and another to do, or in other words, how much easier it is to covenant than to perform ; and that I am absolutely dependent,' after all, on the gra- cious and quickening influences of the Holy Spirit. "I have considered 1783 an important year to me. I suppose I was fitted for college in the preced- ing September. On the invitation of Mr. Abraham Fowler, who had preached at Goshen as a candidate, and with whom I had formed an agreeable acquaint- ance, I set out the 26th of May for his house in West Simsbury,* Connecticut, with a view to spend the summer with feim in study. The day I left home I wrote thus : ' Left one poor brother and' seven sis- ters, as I have reason to think, in an unconverted state; it is a cuttihg, thought; Lord, pity liiem.' I did not then know what I afterwards found to be a fact, that my youngest sister had a hope. I tarried with Mr. Fowler imtil the 1st of 'October. Mr. Ed- mund MUls preached this summer in West Simsbury,^- and Mr. Fowler at Salmon Brook. Mr. Mills was very spiritual- and had great assistance frorri above. * The place where Mr. Halloolc spent the remainder of his days, the name heing afterwards changed to Canton. PKEPARATION FOE THE MINISTRY. 31 Not long after he came, a revival of religion began, I believe about one hundred manifested hope. Be- fore it commenced, the church and Sabbath were almost lost ; novr the church was gathered, reformed, and increased. About the middle of August, Mercy Humphrey, now Mrs. Hallock, obtained hop6. Be- ' sides meetings on the Sabbath, and lectures, I some- times attended three or four conferences," or prayer- meetings, "in a week: ' And often if there was no minister, I prayed, read a pprtion of Seripture, and made remarks. I wrote, nearly every day, what 1 did, and the exercises ot my own mind — doubts and hopes, trials and comforts. But as they were nothing extraordinary, and quite similar; I shall only tran- scribe the journal of two days. "August 17, 1783. Lord's day, "West Simsbury. Some enlargement in prayer this morning, in' secret and in the family. .My mind last night dwelt on this things of religion. I am continually in trouble, by reason of darkness and sin. Talked considerably last evening concerning the agency of Grpd's Spirit ; 1 trust it has been profitable. Heard Mr. Edmund Mills — dull for the most part — find I have- a dreadfully wicked heart-T-«ome profitable discourse at night — think I have some sense of my dependence on Grod — had a conference this evening— people appeared very attentive. ' , - " August 29. Some life in closet prayer this morn- ing. Many temptatioiis to fight against. Three years ago to-day I was discouraged, and concluded not to study any more ; but God has marvellously sup- 32 ■ JEREMIAH HALL0CK. ported me from time to time, untU now. I trust I can look tack upon all my troubles from that time to this, and repeat "Watts' hundred and nineteenth psalm, last part,' with applicsction to myselt "When one trouble comes another goes ; -in prosperity, the world is "bewitching; hut adversity .brings, a gloom upon it, and I can more easily, forsake it. . ^ ' " ' Rise, my soul, from earthly things Thy better portion taTie.' " One of the surviving subjects of this work states that Mr. Hallock at this time was as interesting and useful as he was active; that he manifested not a little skill 4n his defence of truth against the assails of gainsayers; that no sooner was the regular service of a meeting closM, than he would be surrounde4* often by a group of listeners, who were unwilling to retire while one so able to give. instruction was will- ing to impart it. " One thing which occurred when I lived at Mr. Fowler's, I can never forget. It wds an unexpected visit iirom Moses,, n^ only brother, and about two year? younger th^ myself.. I left him, in May, de- Voted to the -worl(l. My feelings fbr him were some- times unutterable. To my surprise he came to see me, apparently pricked in the -heart. I had heard tWt he was unwell. The news, had given me much anxiety. Now his health was nearly restored, yet he was evidently under serious impressions. He remained with me several days. "We attended many meetings ; two public fasts, one at Simsbury and one at G-ranby, where we parted. To me it was a solemn parting, PREPA^EATION FOR THE- MINISIRT. 33 and", I believe, to him. He viewed himself, as ITia^sre reason to think; was t-be 6ase, unreconciled to Grod and a chUd, of .wrath.* -^By him I sent letters to my friends in ©oshen and "Williamshfl,rgh, . in w^iich I gave some account of the awakebii^ in Coipiecticut These, I'aiterwards found, were much read^by those who_ felt an interest Jn such things. My father vrrote, to me in consequence, that if I wished to da good I must write more about the revival." It was possibly iioia this hint that Mr. Hallqok, through: life, made no small use of letters in his select circle of Christian friends, in the social meeting, and in the- house of Grod. ^ For this purpose^ he was accus- tomed to borrow emd copy religious Jetters of. marked I. interest, especially liiose which ■contained important , facts in respect to revivals. Jle had indeed a rare talent to turn to some good account this' kind gf information. . • ■ . The foUbwing passages show the state of his-mincj touching the great and good Wort of the Christian ministry: , " Pelt my heart gloW to engfige \a the work of the ministry. may Ood fit me for that great work, and use nxe for his glory in that- way, if it may seem gOod to him." 'T had a great desire, I believe to excess,, to turn my study wholly upon divinity." * This very dear and only hratlier soon -after obtained hope in - Christ, and pommenoed prefaraMon for the ministry. He graduated at Yale- college in 1788, and in 1792 was installed pastor of tte * churcti-in Plainfield, near Goshen, Mass., -where he had a prosperous'' ministry of forty-five years, till his death July 17, 1837, at the ripe age of 77. See page 311. 2* 34 JEREMIAH HALLOCK. " Felt impatient. to study so long before beginning to preatjh. tEat I might learn patience, and be quiet as a child." " "What it means I cannot teU, but I have a desire to be an itinerant preacher. If it be the wiU of Grod, Amen; but 0, may I never run of my own miad." " September 30, 1783, 1 left "West Simsbuiy, and ■went to live with the Rev. Mr. MiUs of Torringford, with whom I had formed an endearing acquaintance. It was trying to part with Mr. Fowler, his family, and the Cteistian friends with whom- 1 had been for more than four.pionths, in a day of such iaterest, with no thought of meeting them again, at least to hve to- giether in this world. At Torringford I ^aw. many good ministers, heard them preach and converse,^ and was favored with theij instruction and counsel. They, treated, me with parental kindness and tenderness. I made a point of retiring three times a day for prayer and reading a portion pf Scripture ; sometimes set apart days for private fasting and prayer. Although I saw my heart to be sinful, and was troubled with carnal affections, yet I^oommpnly felt a peace witjiin — not greatly elated, nor yet overwhelmed with dis- tressing doubts and slavish fears. '. On the 20th of October I received a letter from my brother Moses, in which he gave me an account of his conversion. It was like cold: water to a thirsty soul. "November. 24, I left Mr. Mills' for home; wish- ing to go by the way of Stockbridge. Stopped with the Rev. Mr. Knapp of "Winchester. Attended a meet- ing with him in the evening, and at his request made PEBPARATLON FOE-.TJIE MINI§TRy. 35 a prayer and said a few words. It was a time of revival- there. Next morning had some freedom in prayer. Felt, I thought, as strong a desire to lie an itinerant preacher as the thirsty traveller feels for cold water. • After . treakfast parted with the agree- able Mr. Knapp ; called a little whUe' on the Rev. Mr. ]8,obhins of Norfolk, and was deUghted with Icaax as a man and a minister of, Jesus. Lodged at Shef- field." Here I was peculiarly tried with a rude, pro- . fane company, which made me desire that I might be made a^ faithful in the service-of the Lord, as they were in the service of Satan. Next day rode to the Rev. Mr. "West's of Stockbridge, and agreed to study a while with him. "Nov. 28. Have been frorn home .six months. Think the past has been a profitable summer to my poor soul. - Hope to see my friends at Groshen to-day. May I conduct like a Christian,, so long as it shall please God to continue me there. " Dec. 4. Attended a wedding; prayed with and spoke to the young, people. They were civil and attentive. ■ , , " Dec. 10. Came to the Rev. Mr. "West's to study with him. And now, Lord, wilt thou be with me indeed and bless me while here, and I shall be blessed-. Had this evening freedom in mind and some sweetness in meditation and prayer. " Beg. 16. Thi^ day finished the reading of Ed- wards on the Afiections — approved of it O may. I grow in knowledge and in grace; ^' Dec. 17. Resolved to keep this as a day of pri- 36 > JEREMIAH HALLOCK. vate fasting and prayer, Found it in some measure pleasant. ""Dec. 20. Finished reading Mr, Taylor on Orig- inal Sin. I know that his sohen;ie will not answer fcff me ; my wound is too deep. Lord, deliver me from ike horrid belief, that we are not sinners by nature. " I>EC. 31. When I am well and hungry, I delight to be called out to breakfast; ,0 may I delight stiU more to be called out to pi^ayers. May I hunger more after G-od ^haii for my necessary food. I am' now brought, to the close of a year in which I have received great and innumerable mercies ; but my sins have been infinite every day. may! sink in my own view, and may the Lord Grod only be magnified in my heart. " Jan. 1, 1784. I now enter upon a new year ;. may I enter on a new life. Now I ain one year nearer the millennium. Now I am one year nearer the eternal world. . ' So teach me,' -Lord; ^ to number my, days, that I may apply my heart unto wisdom.' Set apart this day for fasting and prayer, -and to renew my covenant and resolutions." . Mr. Hallook having now pursued preparatory study nearly four years; resolved to apply for license to preach the gospel. Atdor of piety prompted him onward, as it has many other Valuable ministers, without the advantages of a public education. While, however, his attainments in science and literature were limited, his knowledge of his great text-book PREPABATIGN FO-RTHE MINISTRY.^ '37 the BiWe, in its various and high practical bearings on a "world lying in sin and -ruin, exceeded that oi most candidates for th& ministry. From tiie time of his conversion he had made this holy volume, as we have seen, his diligent and prayerfal study.' If he could not,- with some theological students, bring to the investigation of Scripture a knowledge of different languages, and the ^outeness of .mere criticism on words and phrases, he had the advantage of most in ■that childlike simplicity with which he took God's plain declarations. He loved to sit at Jesus' feet ; and his faith could there receive with joy what his reason failed to comprehend. The uprightness of his heart,~wliich'gave him a high relish for divine truth, was m fact a sort of moral test, and a far safer test, no doubt, than the widest range of learning and the "best rules of biblical criticism,, with a heart at enmity with God. Seldom has the world seen so fine an illustration of our Sayiour's words, "If aiiy man will do his will^he shall know of the doctrine, whether it bie of Gad, or whether I speak of , myself." Few men could quote, at pleasure, from every part of the Bible, with so much ease and aptness. In subsequent life, he was indeed mighty in the Scriptures. He had, too, an uncommon share of good sense, prudence, and practical wisdom., His excellence of judginent, his moral dighity, his decision of character, command- ed uliiversal respect. The deep feeling also, and the . Eoitcenty which were ever manifest ill his Idoks, his conversation, his prayers, "his preaching,, his whole intercourse with men and with God; went far to give 38 ■ JEEEMIAH HALLOCK. him that weight of influence which he possessed among all classes of society, and especially in the church of Christ. Yet it seems to he a -principle in the government which Grod exercises over- this world of sinners, that humility should go hefor« honor, severe trial hefore marked success. He who prepared Moses for his station hy a forty years' "discipline on the mountains of Midian, and J)avid for his throne by the persecution of Saul, did not allow -Mr. HaUock to enter upon the work, in which .he foresaw his future eminence and usefulness, until he had first put to a severe test his faith, and -patience. "January '5, 1784. Not without some life ia prayer. Expect, to-mortow, if the Lord will, to be examined as to my qualifications for preaching the gospel. Lord, I am very unfit; that thou wouldst sanctify me for so great a work. " Rode to Egrdmont — ^raiay, the road bad-r^no one cametothe association but the Rev. Mr.'Avery. I told them myerrandibut they could notproceed to examine me. They treated me with much -kindness. Trust I felt in some degree willing that Crod Should govern. " Januart 7. Rode- home and dined with Mr. Avery. "We had a few small potatoes boiled,, with a piece of salt pork,- but no bread, and not a word of complaint.- Neither did tiiey appear mortified, but pleasant and agreeable. : I have considered this one of the best dinners of my life. When I shaU be ex- amiaed now, I know not. OLord, may I enjoy tky presence, a,nd it shall be enough. ' PREPARATION FOR THE MINISTRY. 39 " January 8. Set apart this day for prayer and meditation; to humlbla myself before the Lord, and to notice the dealings of his providBnoe. Though a great want of 'spiritual life, yet I trust it has been profitable. " January 44. Set apart this day for fasting and prayer. Lord, be pleased to grant the assistance of thy Holy Spirit. "Some spiritual life. may I improve, under all my advantages. '■'January 19. Have been much concerned, even to sin, for fear something VFould occur to prevent my examination. I have, for some endj an earnest desire _ to enter the work "of the ministry. This is to me a gloomy day, as there is- a terrible storm of snow fronl the north-east, a'nd as Rev. Mr. West has been so kiad as to call a special meeting of the association to-mor- row, with a view to my examination. I find I can see more of my wicked heart in one day of adversity, than in a thousand days when things go according to my mind. Lord, the maker of heaven and earth, may this dispensation of thy providence humble me, and may what I have seen of my wicked heart bring me low- at thy feet for ever. " January 20. The wished-for day is past when I hoped to be - examiaed and licensed as a candidate for the gospel ministry. But Grod saw otherwise, and blessed be his name. ' The storm was so severe that not one minister attended. I see now no pros- 'pect of my examination, if I should five, until April, the usual tinje for the association to meet. Lord, 40. JEREITIAH HALlfOCK. thou canst open a door sooner, if thou seestit best ; but if not till the end of these eleven long weeks, nor then, tixy will be done. I think my studies delight- some, but I long to come forward. I. saw others in trouble to-day^: was at a house where one of the dear children was dead. Discoursed with the afflicted par- ents, and prayed with them— had some freedom. J have great reasoh to bless God for his mercies, that I am well and enjoy uncommon serenity of mind. The Tiundred and nineteenth P^alm, last part, has been pleasant." , . • " February 5. Groshen. I set apart this day for fasting "and prayer — ^will the Lord be wilii me. Q Lord, if it be thy will, may I return to my studies again, and wilt thou lift upon me. the light of thy countenance, which is better than life, " Some freedom in prajFer. I find so. little life, I_ am at times almost discouraged.- I find it more than I once supposed, to have good •evidence of personal piety. Spent the latter part of tiie afternoon with Christian. friends. In the eyening, attended a con- ference. Am top ready to complain gf my troubles — made this resolution : '. " E-esolved, in all my troubles, to be careful how I complain or speak of them, and to say and do that which may.be most for the glory of Grod, who is as worthy of praise in my adversity as in "my prosperity." Mr,. Hallock now spent about seven weeks in Gro- shen, reading works on theology, making religious visits, instructing a few youth, and attending frequent ineetings. His practice, at this time, was to spend PREPARATION FOR THE MINISTRY. 41 every Thursday in private fasting and prayer. In tke course of this period, he had the happiness to witness the conviction and apparent conversion of four heloved sisters, besides the improved state of a fifth sister whose hope of salvation through Christ was of earlier date. Some of his neighbors, also, were at this time aroused from the deep sleep of sin, and many hack- sliddeJi Christians reclaimed. On the twenty-third of March, he left his father's house. to visit his hew circle of friends in Connecticut. From this journey he returned to Stockhridga in season to attend the stated meeting, in April, of the Berkshire Association, by which body he was hcensed to preach "the glo- rious gospel of the blessed God." Up to this date the compiler has had the assist- ance of Mr. HaUock in making selections from his original journal, and incorporating them in the nar- rative of his early life, which- he commeijced in 1815,' and closed in 1821, Here that narrative ends, and ,we lose, the benefit of Mt. Hallock's wisdom in any farther extrapts from his private writings, and of his memory to correct or illustrate theni by unrecorded facts. . i^ 42 JEREMIAH HALLOCK. CHAPTER III. LABORS UNTIL HIS INSTALLAtlON AS PASTOR. Mr. Hallock's sermons were highly evangelical-— void of human philosophy-^a happy mixture of doctri- nal, practical, experimental truth.^ The leading char- acteristic, in their structure, was unaffected simplicity, in thought) arrangement, and expression. The style was very plain and concise.' His meaning a child could scarce misapprehend.' With the Bihle for his model, he rose at times to a hold and vivid imagery. In originahty and felicity of illustration, he had few equals. -Here, like his divine Master, he often avaSed himself of surrounding eirpumstances and "passing- events. He made much use of the arguments and language of the inspired writers. His conclusions, no less than his premises, were supported by Scrip- ture, in thc' application of which he had "uncommon skill. No one suspected him of preaching himself, rather than^ "Jesus Christ and him crucified." - ' ■ ' His manner was unhorrowed — 'aUke above art and ■ description. The man who saw him once ' in the atti- tude of Christ's ambassador, could never forget the deeply solemn countenance, the tenderness' of tone, the slow and distinct articulation. He had little action, and made no effort at animation, yet every word seemed warm from the heart. In his whole ap- CANDIDATE FOE, THE' MINISTRY. 43 pearance, there~was the Reality without the affectation of sanctity. For the tasteful and fastidious hearer he had few ?ittractions ; yet, in the ahsence of many things which constitute what is usually termed elor quenoe, there was often a certain undefinable charm, that riveted every eye and ear — a power that reached and nioved the soul. Perhaps it was a cdmhinatipn of sterling thought, simple language, depth of feeling, and tones of nature. One of the- finest writers in our country, on hearing- Hi^. Hallook preach' in a time of unusual seriousness, declared the perfisrmance the hest specimen of sacred^ eloquence he had ever wit- nessed". In the. popular sense of the term, however, he could not he pronoiinccsd an eloquent preacher. Yet he ever seemed to come frorn his closet to the pulpit prepared to diffuse light and heat throughout the assembly. In prayer he was humble, appropriate, compre- hensive, fervent, solemn, it seemed hke the address of an affectionate child to a kind and beloved, yet revered father. No attentive hearer could avoid the conviction, that heaven and earth were brought near together. "I lave to hear .Mr. Hallock pray;" said one who had often enjoyed the privilege, ^ihecause he speaks to God- as if he was acquainted with him.''' To the spiritual who joined, him in devotional exer* cises, it was indeed a luxury. From these general remarks on Mr. Hallock's appearance in the pulpit, -we turn to his early course, after receiving license to preach, the gospeL He now- gave himself vliolly to his new and delightful 44 JEREMIAH HALLOCK. enapldyment. . ' Fpr several weeks he was in Groshen and the vioinity, preaching in various "towns every Sabtath, often on other days, and visiting &om hpusp to house." Almost every week he kept some time as a private fast. At one of these seasons he writes, " This forenoon I set apart for prayer and fast- ing, to renew, my covenant and resolutio;QS, and to seek Grod's grace and presence for the morrow, if I may he called to speak in his name : may I keep" it aright. The devil -has tried what he could to hin- der me from- keeping fasts, and I have need of pardon for the sins of every moment spent in fasting and ' prayer ; hut, hy the grace of Grod, I think this has been a comfortable forenoon to my soul. ■ I know not that I ever had sweeter meditEttion and prayer. The life of Cotton Mather was exceedingly Sweet j' blessed \e Grod that I have seen that. book. Felt willing, if I was not mistaken, to be used for Grod in that way which he may appoint for me;" may 1 always be submissive to Grod." The next'day he writes, " L think I never had clearer views of the exoellehcy of. Christ; may I ever be ravished with his beauty. Expect soon to go again to preach ; may I aim wholly at G-od's glory. Though! am but a poor dark-lantern, yet may Christ speak through me to his honor, and may his power be seen." Again, ^' To-day, cleared a place in the woods for meditation and prayer ; that I might find. Grod there." This retreat for private devotion was near the house of his father. He called it his '.' pleasant CANDIDATE FOR THE MINJSTRT. . 45 grove." Similar places lie afterwards selected, ia the various towns where he was called to lahor ; and when he had closed his term of service,, he was as careful to take a formal farewell of these sequestered spots, as of the dear friends at his lodgings. But; while he had many hours of spiritual comfort, some of high dehght, on his entrance upon the good work, the following pas- sages from his journal show that his trials did not end with his permission to preach the gospel. " April 21, 1784. Some freedom in prayer. Why it is I know not, I feel myself in a thick cloud. My mind does not take hojd of truth. I feel the disposi- tion of the poor 'man who huried his talent in the earth, and then complained of G-od. I had calculated too much on comfortable times, if I might hegin to preach. I find I can, do nothing without God. may it serve to humble me. " May 4. Troubled and perplexed in mind last evening, so that I could not" sleep. Am at a loss, whence my trouble springs, whether from a disorder of the body or mind. Have,TJi some degree, enjoyed the light of Grod's countenance to-day; but I-haye dark times this evening. Think I know something what that means: ^"Wearisprae nights are appointed unto me.' '< June 11. Visited a friend, but with coldness. lidrd, forgive my sin, and make my heart engaged. ' my bashfulness; when shall I be rid of it ? that I may be delivered from this ' thorn in the- flesh.' " June 21. Find I have a corrupt heart, there is no hope but in sovereign mercy. Feel grieved for poor unregenerate sinners. Alas, what will they d9 in 46 J.EREMIAH HALLOCK. the jend ? Have teen disappointed in respect to some piOney— am in necessity for it : may I always con- sider the ravens and the lilies." In thei eourse of the first month from the date of his license, Mr. Hallook received an invitation'to sup- ply the' pulpit in West Simsbury, now Ganton, and another to remain at Goshen, where he had lived from childhood. In compliance with the former request, he entered the field of his future lahors the latter part of .June. . The feelings with which, he commenced his long and useful work. he has left on record. . ' " Jtoe 27j 1784. "West Simshury, Sahhath. As usual this morning in secret and family prayer. I feel 'si''eak;0 Lord, strengthen me, X pray thee, in body and mind, to the 4uties of this day. Some free* dojp. in meditation, particularly in thinking what #od haSjdpne for me both in spiritual and comnion bless- ings, and my poor improvement of them. Was assist- ed to.,speak with some freedom in the forenoon — ^more . dull this afternoon. Attended a conference this even- ing with some freedom. "June 28. Am sometimes -filiriost discouraged, and ready to return to work on a farm ; but suffer, me not, God, to- look* ba&k, now that I have put my hand to the plough. I can do nothing of myself. thou who tsomfortest those that are cast down, pro- tect and keep me,. that Satan may not sift me as wheat. ' ' June" 30. Scarce ever enjoyed a pleasanter morn- ing — freedom in discourse, and in secret and family" prayer. that the dark clouds may all be, over- blown ; that I may ever ' sit under his shadow with CANDIDATE FOE. THE MINISTRY. 47 great delight,' and enjoy his presence, the loss of which is more to be dreaded fkan death, . "July 1. Attended a full conference' this even- ing. Attempted to pray, and ,to discourse upon the two thieves. The dear people are indefatigahle in attending meetings. It is evident Grbd has been among them. that he would carry oii-_his work here till the day of Christ I " July 2. ' Set, apart this forenoon to renew my covenant with God, and my resolves; to fast, pray, and ask forgiveness- of sin ; to ask God to direct me to a subject and to matter for the Sabbath, and also to take away my cold heart and guide me into all truth. Some freedom and satisfaction, but have great xeason to mourn my deadness. i Yisited a friend just at night. Had some pleasant conversation with friends this evening. As .usual in secret pra|Eer, niorning, noon, and night." The last sentence of the preceding extract, or some- what of like import, occurs very often in the diary which Mr. Hallock kept at this time. It seems to denote a calm, pleasant state of devotional feel- ing, at an equal remove from that marked eleva- tion and depression, of spirit which he sometimes mentions. " July 3, Saturday. Prayed over my sermons before the Lord this afternoon. Yisited Mr. J. B . May he get weU, serve God here, and live with hint beyond the grave. By what I hear, my preaching last Sabbath was to general acceptance. Blessed be the Lord. O Lord, be with me to-morrow, Tpray 48 :;• JEREMIAH HALLOCK. thee. Find I have a dreadfiilly wicked, heart. May I enter upon holy time with a heavenly mind." Throughout Mr. Hallook's life, he was distinguish- ed for his attention to the sick. It was enough for him to hear of the illness of one of his dear people. He did not wait for a pattioular request to visit the sufferer. And his known jtenderness of feeling, and mild, affectionate manner, added to a belief in the value of his prayers and counsel, always made hirij more than welcome at houses of sorrow. In no situ- ation did he more resemhle Him who could he touoh- ed with the feeling of human infirmities, in none did he appear to tetter advantage, than when, bending with a look of mingled love and pity over the couch, of pain ; whether to make, in the soft tones of sympa- thy, some kind inquiries respectiug the state of the body and the soul, to. impart Christian instruction,, or devoutly tp intercede with the Hearer of prayer for the recovery of the patient, and stiU more earnestly for his salvation. In the following selections, we find frequent referr ences to private devotion with his clerical brethren, at their houses and his own ; to the same duty in some retired grove, as they passed from one town to. an- other ; to his ministerial labors out of the place of his residence, and to his preaching at funerals and en- couragement of social meetings. •" ■ " July 9; At West Britain, in the morning, prayed • in secret with the Rev. Mr. Miller. Rode to West Simsbury with the Rev. Mr. Mills and Deacon Case j prayed by the way' in a silent grove. This afternoon CANDIDATE FOR THE MINISTllY. 49 4* Mr. Mills preached two sermons. I tried to make two prayers, read one Psalm, and spoke a little upon the book of, Ruth. Agreed to return to this place again ; if it be thy will, Lord, that I should come, do thou come with me. We have had a conference this even- ing ; trust I had some life. Was delivered, yesterday and to-day, from the fear of man ; may I ever be humble, and esteem others better than myself; but, O Lord, when I am called to speak before my vener- able, faiiiers in the ministry, or elsewhere, >0 may the thought of flesh and bipod go out of mind. " July 10, Saturday. This morning parted with the Rev. Mr. Mills ; engaged to preach for him Wed- nesday^ next. 0,Lord Jesus, wilt thou honor the meet- ing with thy blessed presence, and enable a poor worm to speak for thee. To-morrow expect to be at West Britain. I view myself to lie at sovereign mercy, without any thing at present or in prospect to recom» mend me to G-od ; yet I do not cdnsider this an argu- ment against prayer, but a most Veighty argument in favor of it : hence, by the help of G-od, I would devote the jemairidei: of IMs day to fasting, meditation, and ptayer, to pray over my sermons before the Lord, to ask his assistance fojthe morrow, and tO; jenew my covenant and resolves. may it be a good day to my soul. "July 13. Prepared a short account, of the history of Christ from the four evangelists. that Jhe name of Christ may ever strike my soul into a heavenly frame. Preached a lecture about sunset ; had a short confer- ence afterwards, as usual. Had an agreeable inter- 50 JEREMFAK HALLOCK.' , . view with some friends in the evening. Some -free^ dom. in prayer. TrouHed with remainiag corruptions. happy hour, when I shall 'get a complete victory over all sin, " JnLYil4. Eode to Torringford. After spending some tiihe in prayer and meditation, I tried to preach;, had uncopimon freedom. , 'Tis astonishing, that God should assist such pdot creatuTe% as we are to preach 'l;is word. Feel much exhausted: OLoi^d, may I be weary in thy work; often, and wear out for thee ; hut 0, may I never he weary o/ thy work. r "July 20. "Retired early for prayef, andlfoiiiid uncommon sweetness— r-it is hest to pray early. ' "August 1, Sabhath. Blessed be G-od, I am brought to see a new month; may 1 live a new life. Spent some time, this morning, in prayer and repeat- ing my sermons. Expectefl all the week that I should hardly be able to preach, but scarce evei* preached vsrith greater, freedom. Speiit part of the intefmisi sion in disooursej and part- of it in meditation -and prayer. Had p, coliference this evening. ' the - boundless mercy of God, that should allow and help a poor, worm to preach his word. may I have grace and strength to go on 'until death. may I not live idle.' ' , "August 2. Spent most of the day in visiting. This morning, Mrs. Rachel Case died. She was dbolit eighteen years old, and left a sorrowful consort and one sweet bkbe. Towards sunset, they invited rrie ' to preach a funeral-sermon; - "August 3. Rose about sunrise. Retired about CANDIDATE FOR THE MINISTRY. . 51 an hour, for meditation and prayer. "Was strengthened to study. About two o'clock began the solemn ser- vices, and was enabled to speak with freedom from 1 Corinthians, 7 : 29, 30. Nearly five hundred people were thought to be prese^nt ; -they were solemn ; num- bers wept. 0, it was a grievous mourning. I addressed the mourners: had a sense, at the grave, how Christ has conquered death. Had -a conference, this even- ing, of the young people." Mr. Hallook was always in th6 practice of preach- ing funeral-sermons on the day of the funeral, and decidedly in- favor of this course", where, the congrega- tion is small and the population not dense. He was also much attached to those smaU circles for religious worship, the conference and prayer-meeting. For these he had very peculiar qualifications. To his discernment of this, perhaps,- in connection with his unfeigned humility, may be ascribed the fact, that in the company of his clerical brethren, he uniformly chose rather to take a part in these meetings than to preach in the house of God. Seldom, during his whole Christian life, did, a w.eek pass in which he did not attend one or more of them. Very often, in his journal, he makes mention of his high satisfaction in the con- ference on Sabbath evening, when his feelings through- out the day had suffered no small depression.' He was opposed to any departure from the usual order of exercises in pubUc worship, yet, in these more private meetings, he was withbut form in his mode of con- ducting the service -And to the endless variety which he introduced, may be ascribed in pai"t the lively in-. 52 JEREMIAH 'HALLOCK. terest felt ty those who enjoyed his presence on these oooasions. "Aug. 4. Last night, a young woman in the neighborhood could not sleep for concern of mind. In the other part of the parish, the iiight before, a young man was in like eircumstances. may they be converted. Feel uncommonly well as to body and mind : may I be prepared, for trouble, and always mourn and be humble for the- pride of my heart, which' is so heaTen-daring, that 'tis,^a wonder I am out of hell one moment. Rode to Hartland — ^tried to preach for the Rev. Mr. Graylord-^-some freedom- uncommon attention — discoursed with some under concern for their souls. Believe the Ldrd is at work hereto may it go on. "Au&; 11. Rode with the Rev. Mr. Gillett to "Winsted — ^prayed together by the way — heard him preach. "Aug. 15.. Sabbath. Spent about an hour this morning in meditation and prayer, and in. repeating my sermons before the Lord. Some life in the first prayer, but not much in the sermon. At noon felt as if I could not get up to preach, but was carried through with usual freedom — a crowded assembly.- In the evening attended a conference — a poor young man appeared to be under great concern. what- shall I render to the Lord ? may I wear out in his service. "Aug." 16. Spent the day in visiting, . Found some under concern. Though I felt as if I could not preach yesterday, yet I believe the word was blessed. CANDIDATE FOB, THE MINISTRY. 53 P bless the Lord. Think that if the Lord does come amon^ us, it cannot be on account of my preaching. "Aug. 19. I understand that the dear people of this place have given me a call to stay with them. That Grod who exalted Baasha out of the dust, has opened a great door and given me unmerited respect and good-will fram my fellow-mort^ils. Lord, make me humble and deliver me from the snare of pride." To show the entire bearing of these last expres- sions, it may here be stated, that during Mr. Hallock's short engagement at West Siinsbury, he received one invitation to return to G-oshen, another to preach at Ware, Mass., and a third to labor at IN'ew Cambridge. He was also at this time under engagement to the people of Lee, Mass., wliere he preached his first ser- mon, and where a- word in season resulted in the hopeful conversion of a feeble youth at his lodgings. , As the rest of the family were leaving for' church, Mr. HaHook, with a look and tone of deep sympathy, turned to the young man, and pointing, to a basket, said inipressively, " Joseph, if you only had an in-" terest in Christ, it 'would be* worth more to yoi;i than that basket fuH of gold." God rnade the remark an arrow to his. heart. The youth soon obtained hope, united with the church, and lived to adorn his, pro- fession tin his death at the age of eighty-two. Mr. Hallock now spent a few weeks partly in visiting and .preaching almost daily in places where revivals of religion were enjoyed, and partly in ful- 54 JEREMIAH HALLOCB. filment of previous engagements to supply vacant pulpits. At "Ware, as at Groshen and West Sims- tury, the Lord was pleased to send down the Holy Ghost tb make his lahors ejffeetual ; and here he received a call to settle in the ministry. On the day after his arrival at Wares he writes; "Oct. 15, Friday. . Mor^ freedom flian common torday, in study and prayer. Had some discourse with the young people this evening. "Oct. 16. This afternoon I set apart for, prayer, that God would direct me to a suitahle portion of his ward for to-morrow ;. that there may he an awaken- ing among the people ; and that Pmay b^ enabled to preach in the demonstration of the Spirit ; likewise " to renew my. covenant and resolves. Trust I have had some life in prayer. "Oct. 17, Sabbath. Spent some time in. medita- tion and prayer this morning. The people were very attentive. that I may never forget the mercies of the Lord. Had a very full and. attentive conference this evening. Had freedom. in discourse, and- so had others. Some appearance of an awakening. 0, may it come on — 0, may it come on. , . .. "Nov. 7. A remarkable meetiag this evemng. Some suppose there were three hundred persons pres- ent. Was enabled to preach with, freedom to the . most deeply affected auditory I ever saw. Ldrd, appear and save us for thy great name's sake. "Nov. 13, Saturday. This forenoon I set apart for prayer and examinatiori ; to pray for divine help'to- morrow, and for Ware, where the Lord hath come of CANDIDATE FOR THE MINISTRY. 55 late; Some freedom in praying for. this dear people. If I am not deceived, think I h.a,vi some evidence of personal religion. ■ "Dec. 2. Attempted to preach a lecture this afternoon; a full and remarkable conference.' It was sweet music to hear, the brethren converse freely, when a little while ago you could scarce get a word from them. " Dec 4. Had sevexal people to visit me, to talk about their souls. blessed tinies ! It greatly revives my heart to see those -whom I trust God' has made me the happy instrument in winning to hini- self. "^0 may they finally be presented faultless before the presence of his glory. "Dec. 7. Spent ihe day in visiting. I am weary of company, though they are the excellent of the earth, because it deprives me of retirement. "Feb. 1. Visited my pleasant grove, and took my farewell of Ware. 1 havp been there twelve Sabbaths. "When I came the young people were light and gay, but it has pleased a sovereign God to awaken them ; so that their frolics are turned into religious meetings, and to God's name be all the glory. There are about twelve liopeful converts. Lord, take these lambs into thine arms, and may we all meet in thy better w^orldt above. God hath given me the friendship of this people, and of many in adjacent towns. may I be humble,, and give him all the glory. But, Lord, what is. aU the friendship of this world with- out thine ? I cannot live if thou depart. Take, Lord, all the glory to thyself, and 0, may I be used 66 JEREMIAH HALXOCK. as a happy instrument in briaging home souls to Jesus Christ." Ahout this time Mr. Hallock spent a few Sahhaths in his heloved Groshen, and received an invitation frorn that ehurch to hecome its pastor , yet, on the whole, declined the acceptance of it. On the first of March, he parted with his friends at Goshen, and set his face again towards "West Simsbury. He found tha awakening ia a decline. Many flocked around him to express their joy at his return. But he made them sad by the intimation that probably he should not remain with them. A temporary yet severe trial he now experienced, in a difficulty of utterance. Again and again he besought the Lord to remove it," sometimes in the following terms : '■^0 Lord, show me, I pray thee, why thou art contending with me, and remove my impediment." '.' 0, may this thorn never discourage me, but humble me, and be for the glory of God." " O that He^ whomade man's m'oiith, would, in his own tim'e^ give me a mouth and wis- dom to speak his word." , " May 6. Find myself in tiie following difficulties ; therefore I set apart this day to fast and pray and look to God for help. " 1. I have many changes in my naind concern- ing settlement in the gospel ministry; therefore I would pray God to guide me in the right way. "2. I find great remaining corruptions and sins ready to carry me away lilte a mighty flood ; there- fore I would pray God to subdue them. "3. I find many impediments, partioulaj-ly that OANDIDAIE FOE. THE MINISTRY. 57 in my speech ; therefore I wpuld fast and pray that they may be removed, and that I may have faith and fortitude of mind never to be discouraged. "4. \ would examine myself as to my evidences of piety and of a call to the work of the ministry. ' " 5. I would renew my covenant and resolves. " It is a principle with me, that we have no authority for any rehgious duty unless we have it from God's word. ' In vain do they worship me, teaching for doctrines the commandments of men.' Therefore, , " 1. For authority to fast, I flee to Matthew 6 : 16-18 ; Isa. 58 : 6,7 ; Dan. 10 : 2, 3 ; also to sileh examples as Anna, Cornelius,, etc. .' "2. For authority to pray, I would take sanc- tuary under Matt. 6 : 7-14, and 7 : 7 ; Psa. 50 : 15, and the like passages. Also", under all the examples of prayer^ and of God's hearing it; in the Bible. "3;^ The texts to which I resort in respect to the difficulty first mentioned, are these : ' I will instruct thee, and teach thee in the way which thou shalt go ; I vyill guide thee with mine eye.' Psa. 32 : 8. ' Com- mit thy way unto the Lord ; trust, also in him, and he shall bring it to pass. And ho shall bring forth thy righteousness as the Jight, and thy judgment as the noonday.' Psa., 37 : 5, 6. v' I would seek unto God, and unto God would I commit -my cause.^ Job 5:8. 'If any of you lack wisdom, let him ask of God, that giveth to all men liberally and upbraideth' not ; and it shall be given him.' James 1 : 5. " 4. In respect to the second .particular; I would 58 ' JEREMIAH IIALLOCK. take sanctuary under Mieah 7:8 and 19: 'Rejoice- not against me, mine enemy :. when I fall, I shall arise ; when I sit in darkness, the Lord shall be a light unto me. He wiU turn again, he will have compas- sion upon us ; he will subdue our iniquities ; and thou wilt cast all their siijs into the depths of the sea.' ' "Whom having not seen, ye love ; in whom, though now ye see him not, yet believing, ye rejoice with joy ^nspeakable and fuH of glory.' 1 Peter, 1:8. " 5. In reference to the third trial, I flee to Ex. 4 : 11, 12 : 'And the Lord said "unto hina. Who hath made man's mouth? or who maketh the dumb, or deaf( or the seeing, or th^ blind ? Have not I the Lord ? Now therefore go, and I will be with thy mouth, and teach thee what :thou shalt say.' 'Strengthen ye the weak hands, and confirm the feeble knees. Say to them that are of a fearful heart, Be strong, fear not ; behold^ your God will come with vengeance, even Godjwith a recompense; he wUl come and^save you. Then the eyes of the blind shall be opened, and the ea,rs of the deaf shall be unstopped ; then shalLthe lame man leap as a hart,' and the tongue of the, dumb sing : for in the wilderness shaH waters Tbfeak out, and streams in the desert.' Isa. 35 :3-6. 'And he. said unto me. My grace i^ sufficient for thee ; for my strength is made perfect in weakness. Most gladly, therefore, will I rather glory in my iniitmities, that the power of Christ rnay rest upon me.' 2 Cor. 12 : 9. "6. In respect to trying myself as a Christian, I would compare my life with these passages : ' "We , CANDIDATE FOR THE MINISTRY. 59 know that we have passed from death unto life, be- cause we love the. brethren: he that loveth not his brother, abideth in death.' 1 John, 3 : 14. ' Every branch in me that beareth not fruit, he taketh away ; and every branch that beareth frjiit, he purgeth it, that it^may bring .forth more fruit. Herein is my Father glorified, that ye bear much fruit ; so shall ye be my disciples.' John 15 : 2, 8. 'He that hath my commandments and kefepeth them, he it is that loveth me; and he that loveth me shall be loved of my Father; arid I will love him, and will manifest myself to him;' John 14 : 21. ' Who are kept by the power of G-od through faith unto salvation ready to be revealed in the last time. Wherein ye greatly rejoice, though now for a season, if need be, ye are in heaviness through manifold teniptations : that the trial of your faith, being much more precious than of gold that perisheth, thpugh it be tried with fire, might be found, unto praise and honor and glory at the appearing of Jesus Christ.' 1 Peter, 1 : 5-7. "7. In respect to my call Into the ministry, I would try myself by 2 Tim. 4:5:' But watch thou in all things, endure afflictions, do the work of an evan- gelist, make fiill proof of thy ministry;' ' This is a true saying. If a man desire the oflSce of a bishop, he desireth a good work. A bishop then must bd blame- less,' etc. ITim. 3:1-7. 'And the servant of the liord must not strive,' etc. 2 Tim; 2 : 24, 25. ' And he said. Certainly I will be with thee: and this shall be a token unto thee that I have sent thee: when thou hast brought forth the people out of Egypt, ye .60 JEREMIAH HALLOCK, shall serve God upon this mountain; Ani they shall hearken to thy voice.' Ex. 3 : 12, IS,*- *; '"If these things accompany irie, then I trust- 1 have good evidence tha;t I am sent to preach the " 8. As to the propriety of renewing my (Covenant and resolves, I think I have sufficient authority for so doing in the example of the Israelites, in the times of Josiah and Nehemiah. Also, we are taught always to be mindful of Grod's covenant. 1 Chrcfn. 16 : 15. . "Have had some satisfaction this day- in pror ceeding according to the method here proposed — ^the latter part of the day have spent chiefly^in prayer. Now I Would desire again to give myself away to G-od ; and 1 resdve by the help of the Lord to spend the first "Wednesday in each month, for one yea^, as a day of fasting and prayer, if I should live.. If at any time circumstances are so that I cannot attend to it on Wednesday, then to takeLthe first convenie^ day afterwards. Lord, if t may live to see these, dayfe, may they he profitable to my poor sbul," ;.* . • The next two passages "show tfcat he did not restrict his seasons of special devotion and hurailiaiw tion to this last arrangement.' , "May 19, Thursday. The remainder of the week ' I would devote to prayer and preparation for the Sab-, bath. 0,- may I always eat my sermons before I preach them, "May 21. that fasting and prayer may be as natural to me as water to the thirsty, and may Gfbd's service be sweeter tHan the honeycomb." CANDIDATE FOR. I'HK MINISTRY. 61 After unugaal embarrassment in the house of (3-od, he writes, " Spent^most of the intermission in retire- ment : felt that life in secret is comfortable and a great mercy, and more safe for me than life in plihlio ; btit that J life in 'public might be more serviceable to the church ; therefore had a desire for it in the after- noon, if it was (jod's will. Uncomm'on freedom in the afternoon, apd good attention frorh- a large congre- gation. , may I give Grod all the praise." .;. "May 31, Yesterday received a number of letters from my' friends at G-oshen ;- to-day read thefn in pri- vate and prayed for each of the writers." , ; On receiving a request to settle at West Simsbury in the Christian ministry, Mr. HaUock proposed to give his answer by the 12th of May. - This time had now passed, yet his mind on that momentous subject remained in a" state of indecision and even distressing perplexity. The thought of relinquishing his= favorite employment,, itinerant preaching, was painful in the extreme. This apart, the line of his duty was not perfectly plain. But the state ef his mind will better appear from his own pen. " June 23. Rose early this morning, and joined with Rev. Mr. Gillett in secret piraiyer. Having re- , ceived a call from this dear people to settle with, them in the great work of the gospel ministry, and hieing at a los"^ what .to do, I would set apart this day for festy ing and prayer', to give myself up to Grod, to spread my case before him, and to ask wisdom of him ac- cording to James 1:5." Also, to pray for grace and ministerial gifts, 'to mourn over all my sins, and- to 62 JEllEMIAH HALLOCK^ examine what evidences I have of grace. ._In giving myself away to God, I would first give him my heart ,• secondly, my time and all my natural powers ; thirdly, I would sacrifice by the cross all my natural pas- sions, that so I may hecome crucified to the world and aU sensual pleasures, and they to me. In asking for wisdom, I would ask with engagedness, and a desire to find the truth, with a single eye to Grod's glory, in Christ's name, and for his sake and interest. ~ " In the following respects, I think it will be the same whether I go or stay. , - "1. In respect to doing all for the glory , of God: this I must do in either case^I must endeavor to be holy as God is. "2. In respect to a continual watohfulnesjs against all indwelling sin. "3. In respect to a pilgrim's life. " 4. In respect to fasting and prayer. "5. In respect to death and judgment. "In the following" respects I think my continu- ance with this people will alter my ciicumstances : " 1. In respect to the necessary cares of life — ^new cares will be born. " 2. In respect to living a single Ufe. Though not absolutely necessary, yet in many respects it will be convenient to have a fp,mily. "3. In respect to tijhe for study, and opportuni- ties to get acquainted with the world. " June 26. Have been refreshed to-day in reading Rev. Mr. Brainerd's life. Long to be an itinerant preacher. A number came to see me on the subject cjCndidate for the ministry. 63 of settling with iiiem ; I feel as if I must leave liiem. " JuNR 30. I read them my answer in the nega- tive. Some of the people- it irritated, others it filled with grief, and the dear Christians seemed to hang their harps on the wiUows ; so that the scene I heheld was truly affecting. that the mourners in Zion may be comforted. " JuLY^l. This morning,' spent, some tirne in my pleasant grove. Thought it my duty to thank the Lord — ^though the dear people mourned— for aU his mercies while I have been iu this place ; likewise to pray for the people and commit them to God ; also to pray for myself. Thought that I could almost call .•the trees, and stones in this grove to witness that I would be the Lord's, and give myself to him without reserve. Towards noon I parted with my dear friends; the kind family too in which I have lived, and from which I have received many favors ; and, God, may every mouthful of food, and every comfort I have re- ceived from them, be a witness for them at the great day. I called at a few houses as I rode along, and , not far from two o'clock P. M. passed the bounds of "West Simsbury. And. let me here set up a monu- inent of praise to God, while I bid this dear people a reluctant adieu. " 'Tis now two years and a few days since I first entered the bounds of this society, though I have not been here all the time. As near as I c£ln recollect, I have supplied the pulpit twenty-three Sabbaths. In lectures, and on the Sabbath, I thiijk I have been 64 JEREMIAH HALLOCK.. enabled, through the great goodness of Grod, to preach fifty-five sermons. The first summer I was witii this people the awakening hegan, and last summer there was a revival. We have had many very friendly con- ferences. Aiid now, praise the Lord, my soul, and aU that is within me hless his holy name ; Jearn to trust in him, and forget not all his benefits." • No sooner had he left this people than the Lord began to make impressions on his mind in favor of his return. The day after his departure he wrote, "By turns felt as if I had done wrong in leaving West Simsbury — at least, feared so. Think I would gladly ■ go back, -whenever it shall appear to be duty." Th? next two days he wrote, " Still had those anxious feelings for West Simsbury." "Poor West Simsbury lay fresh in my mind.". His health at this time was not good. " Feel weak, and have a pain in my breast, so that I am unable to study." " I think the eternal world some- times looks pleasant, and if my work is done, I would desire, through God's grace, to be willing to go. welcome death, if I am prepared I fear thee not." " Death seems to be near, yet I am resolved to preach and pray and discourse as long as I can, -even while the breath shall enter my body. that I may have grace thus to do." " Never enjoy myself so well as in retirement." '' JvLY 14, Torringtpn. This day set apart as my monthly fast. "1. I desire to examine myself as to my evidences of grace. CANDl-DATE FQK THE MINlSTilY. 65 ' ""2. I'would apply to Grod for -wisdom to know how to ooaduot in all pubHc and private, affairs ; to win souls to Christ ;^ to know what texts to preach from, and when and where to preach. And I would pray for the quickening influences of the Holy Spirit, that I may be alive in aU duties; that every morning may find me up early in God's work, and every even- ing find me tired in the same. "3. As I am perpetually exposed to sin, I would pray God for sanctifica^ion, and for strength in futjtre against sin and temptation. ,^, ' "4. I am Jxere among a poor people, who to appearance are on the brink of ruin by reason /of divisions in respect t& the, preaching of the gospel among theih; therefore, 1 would pray, to God for them. "5. I would examine myself by faith, by repent- ance, by the aims I have in acting. "Had some freedom early in the morning, but the day has been spent with Httle life — my mind in confusion, and my body in pain, It certainly must be., astonishing to angels, to see such creatures as we are enter upon the noble worship of, God with such, dull hearts ; that his love should be so great to us, and ours so cold to him. "July. 17. Spent about an hour and a half this morning, in retirement in a grove. Felt As usual tUl on the way to meeting ; then was much animated to see the j)eople flock tqgether — ^was too self-sufficient ;. but had not read the fiirst psalm before I was shut up, and. so dragged on heavily through 66 JEREKIAH HALLOCK.. the forenoon. After a dull intermission, was scarcely able to perforrn in^he first prayer ; forgot my sermon, and all the afternoon it seemed lilse telling a dream. The assembly was very large ; I felt hurt for them after irieeting, to think they had been so poorly served. Thus Grod destroys the hope of man, and my heavenly Father frowns upon me ; but I would be dumb before his throne, and not' dare dispute his will. I have great reason to be thankful that I was not entirely confounded before the people ; and to mourn that I am no more concerned for (rod's glory. "Well might our Saviour cry, when his Father's presence was with- drawn; ' Grod lets me see something of my wicked heart; it will be a great wonder, if' ever I should get tb heaven." After a few weeks, the Lord inclined the people he had left to renew their invitation. At first his course Was not plain, but seeking divine guidance, he soon returned to West Simsbury and met a firiendly reception. On repassing the bounds of the congrega- tion, he writes^, " Many gloomy thoughts passed my mind ; I endeavored to pray, as I walked along, that Gtod would take the matter into his own hands in respect' to my continuance with this people.^' A httle onward in his journal, these sentences occur: "Peel many struggles in my mind respecting this people." "Better as to bodily health, for which I would bless the Lord ; feel more as if I should settle here, but may my heavenly King govern whoUy in this affaii." "Having traveUed about and been in awakenings, and found it as I trust my hfcj now to CANDIPATE FOHr THE MINISTRY. 67 think of being deprived of this privilege, and of stay- ing in one place,- almost sinks me to the earth. I seem as much out of my element, when confined to one place, as a fish out of water." During this season of distressing perplexityv to himself, and of no less painful suspense on the part of the people, Mr. HaUook received a respectful yet earnest and touching address firoiji the youth of the congregation, in which they entreated hiiii not to blight their expectations, and leave the defenceless Iambs which Christ had given him, to be scattered and lost upon "the mountains.. The coimsel of the Lord which standeth for ever was also in favor of his continuance; and by degrees, not without much fast- ing and prayer to learn his duty, the gloota and agi- tation of hissoul gave place to a sweet serenity, and he wrote, "I believe I have been much to blame for perplexing my mind about the future, and partic- ularly in respect to. my settlement with this people. that I might ever be mindful of our Saviour?s'kind caution in the latter part of the sixth chapter of Matthew." " Though I have had many discourage- ments^ yet I think it is the mind of Christ "that I should settle here in the work of the ministry." A fear of inadequate support seems to have made no part of the good man's trial. Possibly it was on the principle which he afterwards applied, very happily to another. A youth, having a call to settle in the ministry, came to Mr. HaUoofc in a state of indecision; on the ground that the salary offered was too small. Mr. Hallock said to him with- equal 68 JEHEMIAH ^HALLOCK. solemnity and kindness, "My young brother, it may be as much as Christ can afford to give you." In the i;winkluxg of an eye, doubt vanished; the youth was settled on the salary ; and now, after an expe- rience of forty years,; can affirm that he has "lacked nothing," and also that he has never felt one moment's uneasiness in view of his moderate income. " Sept. 4, 1785, Sabbath. Spent about an hour and a half this morning in retirement. A Httle before meeting felt gloomy, and I think never had saoh darkness and depression of (spirit as I experi- enced throughout the meeting in the forenoon. My trouble was not from, a fear of death, for I longed to die. I would be willing to bear whatever my heav- enly Father lays upon mie. But 0, wliat shaU I render to the' Lord for aU his kindness ! I think I can say this afterfioon., 'It is good for me that I have been afflicted.' I scarce ever enjoyed sweeter freedom. I don't "know that I ever returned to my room with so great cause to be thankful, with a more cheerful heart, with clearer ■ evidence of my good estate, a^d with a deeper sense of this, that I cannot preach without Crod's immediate help. Thus are our Sav- iour's words in some sense fulfilled : -^ Your sorrow shall be turned into joy.' welcome, welcome, blessed hour, when my work shall be completely done, and I shall enjoy Grod's presence perfectly and forever." Arrangements for Mr. Halloek^s ordination were now made.. The manner in. which he met the solemn scene, he thus describes : CANDIDATE FO.Il THE MINISIEt. 69 " Oct. 24. This morning retired for prayer. Had some freed()m in reading Paul's epistles to Timothy. Desired to keep- this day in fasting and prayer that God would go up with us ; to renew my covenant with God ; to examine my evidences of grace, and qualifications for the great work before me. Spent the day in as close application as I could, especially in reading and praying over the first and second epistles to Timothy. Closed the day with the following re- solves in respect to the ordination : " 1. Resolved to meditate on answers to the ques- tions which I suppose wUl he asked, and to spend what time I can get in prayer. " 2. Resolved to endeavor to use my friends well, and to pray for them. " 3. Resolved, ahove all, to trust in God, and ac- cept of him as my only hope, and to suhmit all the affairs of the approaching day into his hands. "Oct. 25. For ever blessed be the Lord, that I have had more freedom of late than formerly in pray- er. This afternoon the council met to assist in my ordination. They forHied about seven o'clock this evening, and finished my examination about, ten o'clock. I have reason to fear, because my soul cries no more to God for his gracious presence. " Oct.- 26; 1785. Now the solemn day is cofiie when I expect to be set apart to the sacred work of the ministry. Spent a little while very early in pri- vate prayer. Prayed in the family where I lodged ; then joined in prayer, and also prayed with my dear brother. Hitchcock in private ; then repaired to the 70 '/ JEREMIAH HALLOCK. , , oouacil, where I met my dear father and kind broths er. Betweehthe hours of eleven and one^ the sol- emn services were performed. The Rev. Mr. G-illett made ttie first prayer. The Bev., Mr. Mills preached from Matthew 5:9: ' Blessed are the peacemakers ; foi: they shall be called the children of Grod.' The Rev. Mr. Marsh made the consecrating prayer'. The charge was given by the Rev. Mr. RtfbbinSj and the right hand bf fellowshi,p by the Rev. Mr. Hawley. The concluding prayer was offered by the ReV. Mr. Knapp. The^minist&rs and coi^regation maixifested great ^solemnity. No opposition appeared.; love and unity seemed to reign. In the time of laying on hands I endeavored to think of the ordination mentioned in Acts 13 : 2, 3 ; but I have reason to mourn my dead? ness. ■-'^". . , " Bless the Lord, my soul, for all his merciesi,**. temporal and spiritual, and be .not uqgrateful to let his mercies die in tmthankfulness. that I may ■ ever make progress, and never rest thi^_ side the skies; but like a field* of precious Wheat, or like a fruitful tree hy the gentle streams th«t never withers^ may I' bear fruit more and more, even a hundred-fold. And -may I fulfil my part, and move in my proper place and- station, and- flourish in the Christian and ministerial life, and be always active, and bring out of the treasures of God's word things new and old ; that my latter end may be like burdened boughs, pressed; down with" yellow fruit, for Christ's' sake. Crlory be to the Father, Son, and Spirit. Amen and Amen." ' ",. - CANDIDAli; iOK 'THE MINISTRY. • 71 The mental conflict now past, Mr. Hallock found the new relation at once giving birth to a new affec- tion for, the people, who were hefbre -^ery dear to his heart. Reluctant as he had' been to form the connec- tion,, it is no sooner formed, than pastoral love swells his soulj and prompts to a cheerfiil entrance upon his r arduous work. This fact the first record of his pen puts- in our possession. " OcTa 27. Had but little time this day for medi- tation arid prayer, yet had' satisfaction in reviewing the transactions of yesterday ; felt my heart knit to the people ; felt willing to spend and be spent for them, and that I had done my duty in staying with them. that G-od would go up with us ,' that we' might lean on him, and not on our own understandtag." In commencing his pastoral labors the Sabbath after ordination, he plreached in the morning from 2 Timothy, 2 : 15 : " Study to show tiiyself approved unto Grod, "a workman that needethjiot to be ashamed,, rightly dividing the word of truth." In the afternoon, his sermon was founded on 1 Thessaloftians, 5 : l2, 13, : " An^ we beseech you, brethren, to know them which labor among you, and are over you in the Lord, and admonish you; and to esteem them very highly in love for their work's sake. And be at peace among yourselves." In the former discourse, his design was to point out " a minister's d^ty to Grod, to himself, and to his people ;" in the latter, to show " the duty of a church and people to God, themselves, and their minister." " 72 JEREMIAH HALLOCK.. CHAPTER IV. FIRST TWELVE YEARS OF HIS MINISTRY. Soon after his ordination, he adopted for his motto, "What can I do for G-od?" And-from his suhse- quent life, we may suppose him to>have repeated this . •question every morning in- his^ closet. Throughotit his'tainistry, he had frequent seasons of bodily indis- position, yet he rarely omitted, for a single week, tiie appointment' of religious conferences and prayer-meet- ings, and very seldom failed to attend them. An im- pression was early made on the minds of his people) which ceased not to deepen till the day of his. death, that he was ready to go the full extent of hisstreugth, and often beyond the limits which a wakeful solici- tude for personal health arid life might have deemed safer, to promote in different ways their own highest' interest and the', dear cause of his Redeemer. Some extracts from his diary,, for several successive days; may_here be introduced as a fair specimen of his ordi- nary parochiE^l labors. "Friday, Dec. 2, 1785. Ro^e early this morn- ing — ^had somesatisfection in study and prayer — spent the day in making, preparation for, the. Sabbath — had a comfortable time in visiting a sick person -in the evening. " Dec. 3. Spent the day in preparing for the Sab- FIRST TWRLVE YEARS PASTOR. > 73 bath. As usual in ptayer, morning, noon^ and even- jng. Find it hatd work ta keep my own tody in subjection. " Dec. 4. Sabbath. Rose about four o'cloek. Some freedom in prayer, in repeating my sermons, and in meditation on the love of God. I would now arrange the duties of the day in the following ofder : 1. Prayer. 2. Repeat my forenoon sermon ; then spend what time I can get before meeting in ejaculation and reading ; then spend as much as possible of the intermission in some profitable thoughts and conversation. ''3. "Watch over my heart after meeting, mortify my inordinate affectibiis, reflect on the duties of the day, and ex- apnine myself for a better world. 4. Labor to be prepared for the conference both by prayer and medi-- tation. And that I may not go to meeting this day in my ovm strength. Felt shut up in the forenoon. It was stormy, and but few people attended. This afternoon, inore freedom. After meeting, was uncom- monly free frora dejection — ^had some freedom in con- versation — caught a few minutes for meditation and prayer before the conference-^some freedom -in con- versation at the conference. Tiow sweet were the hymns they. sung. But 0, how do I seek myself too much, and deny jnyself too little. . " Dec. 5. As usjial, in reading Dr. Doddridge's life. Spent "the afternoon in visiting four families. Was enabled, to discourse some with each of them on spir- itual things. Spent this evening in study and con- versation ; but 0, my barrenness. " Dec. 6, Had little time for prayer to-day. This BlJloclf. 4 74 JER15MTAH HALLOCK. afternoon visited a sick person, and discoursed and prayed with him and his family. This evening at- tended a conference with the young people — very dull — ^resolved to keep the morrow, if the Lord will, in fasting and prayer. " Dec. 7. Rose about dayhreak. Had hut Uttle life in pra,yer this morning. Determined to keep this day according to my resolve on the sixth of last May. Had a friendly conference this evening. " Dec. 8. Can hardly hold up my head because of i my sins. In the evening we had a friendly confer- ence. that I might feel more serious and. engaged in religion. . _ " Dec. 9. Had uncommon sweetness in reading and praying over the thirteenth chapter of John in private. Think God lets me see a little of my unprof- itableness. Had a conference this evening — ^Walked . home, after meeting, in the rain." In the spring of 1786 Mr. Hallook was married to Miss Mercy Humphrey, a daughter of Oliver Hum- phrey, Esq., of "West Simsbury, whose family connec- tions in the place were numerous and respectable. She was sister to the wife of Rev. Mr. Fowler, with whom Mr. HaJlock had read divinity, and the date of her Christian hope, as already stated, was from th^ revival in 1783. Before his marriage, he writes, ."0 thou fountain of wisdom, wilt thou give me grace to act discreetly and wisely in this difficult matter, and provide me a help-meet, one of thy friends that may bear the burden with me ; or, if I can do thee more service by living a single life, ' thy will be done.' " FIRST TWELVE YEARS. PASTOR. ■ 75 " Never let me marry, I pray thee, unless it fit me for thy service, and he for thy glory." " If it wiU not,he for the good of Christ's sheep and lamhs in this place, liiy heavenly Father, forhid it." On entering the famUy state he did nbt make the too common plea, that an increase of secular care must excuse some remission of devotional exercises — . a plea as false in principle as it is often fatal to a life of piety. His more correct reasoning, and his resolu- tion in consequence, are worthy to he set in diamonds. "As I have now entered a scene of new cares, sal would resolve to he more watchful and prayerful. And whereas I have had three stated times for prayer in twenty-four hours, I am resolved to add two more, until I shall think it' my duty to alter; so that' my stated hours of prayer, if the Lord will, shall he six o'clock and ten o'clock a. m. ; one o'clock, six o'clock, and nine o'clock p. m. O that I might he sincere in these duties." His suhsequent journal sheds no light on his actual practice in regard to this resolution. The compiler inquired of Mrs. Hallock irespecting it,,aftei' the death of her hushand. She said in reply, "I never knew his stated times for secret devotion, hut this,! can say, he seemed to he praying nearly all the while." A specimen of the manner in which his private fasts were ohserved, will not he void of interest. " June 28, 1786. The change in my ou:cumst.ances of life, and many cares and concerns have so filled my mind, that I have not attended to fasting and prayer as usual. Alas^ I have oniitted two of my monthly 7G JEREMIAH HALLOCK. fasts. I fear the greatest reason has been the want of a better ''heart, and my soul feels the unhappy elfeot. Therefore I would, by, the will of God, ^et apart this day. to fast and pray, and humble myself for all my sins. The method I propose is as follows : "1. To pray for divine- direction and assistance. ?' 2. To read in my journal, especially the history of my former fasts.' > • " 3. To examine my secular dealings with my - 'fellow-men. '■ "4. To read the Bible and-other good books as I think prdper. ' ".5. To sing at times. . "6. Tolook back onmy past life, and search for my sins. Here I find I am guilty of liikewarmness-^ of carnal aifection and conversation — of inofdinate love to this world and the things of it — of unfaithful- ness in my calling — of backwardness in religious con- versation — of misspending time — of pleasing- myself — of being too superficial in reading and. study — ^.of making resolves and breaking them ; particularly my neglect of the two last fasts. For these,'^and all other, sins too numerous to mention, I would confess and humble myself before the Xord. "7. To pray for the forgiveness of myjiins — ^for sanctificatiDn, that, all the sins just mentioned and all my other sins may be subdued — for grace to do my duty, as the head both of a natural and spiritual family — ^for "the continuance of bodily health, and that Grod would Torder my secular affairs in respept to a house and home of my own — for my relations— for FiRST TWELVE YEAES PASTOU. 77 s this little floek-^or the church at large^^-for all the ministry — for. all in authority — for all my enemies—-^ for all the distressed either in hody or in mind.- These, and all other -petitions which it is my duty to make, would I bring into my prayers this day. And 0, let me never forget to 'pray for the Holy Spirit and the continuance of spiritual privileges, ^I wouldalso pray that I may rigfttly improve all mercies and judgments, and may he prepared for- the Lord^s supper next Sabhath. , "8. To offer thanksgiving to G-od, for common mercies, as food, health, clothes. Mends ; for spiritual mercies, as Grod's holy wofd and Spirit, opportunities for prayer, meditation, reading, conversation, and all seasons for the service of G-od, public or private. " 9^ To contemplate the glories of the upper world. " 10. To examine whether my evidence is clear, as a Christian, or as a minister. As a Christian, have I faith ? is my path like that of the righteous ? have I clean hands? have I Bavid's repentance? As a minister, do I perform the .work of a minister ? does God -own me by his' Spirit in giving me success^? "11: To renew my covenant arid resolves. "I have spent more than twelve hours ih this work to-day — have had but little life. I am resolved. Providence permitting, to k^ep next Wednesday -in like manner. that I inight be better prepareji than . I have been to-day. I cannot but wonder that my bodUy health has held out so well," The solemn dedication of his dwelling-house to G-od may here be worthy of notice. . r 78 JEREMIAH HALLOCK. " To-day I have removed into my new house. - 1 call it Rehoboth, because the Lord hath made room for us. my Grod, it is a gloomy mansion without thee, and I would love thee more than houses or any thing. Lord God, I would give it up to thee," whose it is and every thing else, that it might be for Jesus, and wear out in the service of his church, a;Qd not be converted into food for lust, but may it be sanctified by the word and prayer. ' let me not feel as if it were my home, but only a tabernacle for a few days at most; hence, may I use it only in thy service, and in seeking that kingdom which cannot _be shaken. Hence, my God, I would devote it to thee, to l)e taken from me, or I. be taken from it, at thy pleasure. Of thy grace I have received it ; I would thank thee for it, and for stirring up my dear people to help buUd it. Lord, remember them for good. And praised be thy name, that my people do not appear to envy me, but to rejoice to see me have a comfort- able house. give me the heart of- thy servant David, when he came and sat before thee and said, ' What can David say more ?' and also when he said, ' Both riches and honor come of thee, and thou reign- est over all; and in thy hand is power and might; and in thy hand it is to make great, and to giv^ strength unto all ; now therefore, our God, we thank thee and praise thy glorious name. For. we are strangers before thee and sojourners, as were all our fathers ; our days on the earth are as a shadow, and there is none abiding.' Teach me, my God, to study what I shall .render unto thee for the favor of FiaST iWKLVJi YEARS PASTOR. 79 this temporal house, and for all thy innumerable bfnefits." A family, oommeneed and proceeding on princi- ples so entirely Christian, could scarcely fail to be happy. In the course of a few years, God gave to his servant two sons and one daughter. , His elder son, Jeremiah Humphrey, whom he educated at "Will- iams college, became presiding judge in the Circuit courts of Ohio, and an esteemed officer of the church in Steubenville, where he died, Kov. 29, 1847, in the 57th year of his age. His other son, William Homan, ever lived with his parents, or near them ; took the charge of business at an early age; and for many years, in connection with his mother, allmost entirely relieved his' father from secular care. The youngest child, a daughter by the name of Sarah, died in her fifteenth year, as will hereafter' be noticed. These children very early ascertained the first wish of their parents in respect to them. They saw daily proof of one steady and earnest desire to train them up for heaven. Yet Mr. Hallock was accus- tomed to say less to his children at set time^, by way of formal address, than some godly parents. It was the deep, interest which he himself ever seemed tp feel in religious things, it was his marked Christian deportment, his inimitably solemn and affectionate manner, which gave lessons on the importance of early piety, that; his children could not misunderstand. Often, too, when walking in a retired field with one of them, he would press the subject of personal relig- ion, and then invite his son to kneel with him under so JEREMIAH HALLOCK. a tree, ap.d there or^ to GoA for the salvation of his soul. In his family, he. seldom had recourse to the rqd of correction, and whenever it heoame necessary, it was his uniform custom to pray with the offender hefore he dismissed him. Of his sense of the value of daily prayer with his children, the. following fact is a pleasant' evidence. A clergyman once lodged at his house when Mr. Hallook's sons had occasion to leave, home at a very early hour. As they were pre- , paring to depart, Mr. Hallock rose and prayed with ' them while the rest of the family were in bed, and afterwards attended family prayer at the usual time. To meet the expenses of his family he had hut a small income," yet the needy wcsre not turned away empty from hisdoor^ and he was liberal in coirigribu- tions to objects of charity. His house was always the resort of pious strangers, who were attfacted thither pariiy perhaps by his known ho^itality, but chiefly by the report of his rare piety. He had also" a large circle of- relatives and particular friends, whose visits were as &equent as they, were mutually pleasant and useful. At one time he writes, " For these nine days past I have been rtiostly taken up with company. I think we have had the privilege of giving more than fifty toeals within about a week. Was visited by the dear Rev. Mr. Hopkins of New- port," the late E-ev. Dr. Hopkins ; ," he seems almost like one of the old apostles." Again, <' I have given away considerable for me v^ithin a few r days, and I trust cheerfully ; but it is all the Xiord's — I am only his steward, and let him have all the praise ; and Oj FIRST TWELVE YEAUS PASTOE.. 81 may I, a wretched smher, find eternal life of his boundless mercy in Christ, and may my poor children . live before him." ' The following statement-, by an eye-witness, is equally illustrative of strong faith and a generous heart : "In the early part of Mr. Hallook's min- istry; I was laboring with him in his field. It was a. year of uncommon scarcity. He had , just stated to me his . fear that he should not be able to make his stock of grain meet the coming harvest,, when a colored man, a total stranger, came into the field. As he approached Mr. Hallock, he took off his. hat, made a low bow, and said, "Massa, I have ppor woman and children, and no crumb bread. I try get *em some, but nobody pity negur. Good massa, can't you give little corn, so they no starve ?' Mr. Hallock repHed at once, with cheerfulness, ' Gro with me to the house.' He went to his granary and divid- ed the scant supply of his children's br^d with this stranger." For a short period in the autumn of .1786 his hjgalth seeniied to ba so affected a,s to give indications that his work on earth might be soon closed. At one time we find hirri lamenting his inability to retire longer to his " pleasant grove," and at another making the following- reflection : -^ " L think niy disorder threatening, but, through the_goodness.6f Grod, I am not terrified. For though I never before had such a sense of my ill-desert, yet I. have a sweet and all-supporting hope in Him who 82 JEREMIAH ITALLOCK. came into the world to save sinners. I do' not know that it ever seemed more desiraUe to go and be with the Lord. These are my feelings, if I am not de- " oeiyed ; and-0 may I he thankful for such unspeak- ahle comforts, and know assuredly that I cannot stand a moment hut as -Grod holds me up. And now, Lord, I pray, that whether I shall die or recover, thy - name may he glorified. — ^that I may praise thee in life or in death." " I should he glad to live, that I may serve Uod and his church, and he a comfort to my dear consort, friends, and all mankind. As a general marches behind, whUe the enemy presses on the rear, till his army are all over the dangerous passage, so I should be glad to help my wife, and frierid-s, and all this httle flock down to the grave, and safely over Jordan's cold stream, and then follow them. But t desire to be calm and silent, and not dispute my Maker's will. Heaven's high decree shall stand, and through grace my goul shall say, Amen. "What if I die? Grod ^.nd the church shall live ; therefore all wiU be well. I trust I feel in some measure reconciled to death, by Good's great, grace. I find idle hours £he most irk- some, and am resolved to endeavor to^be in some active service for Grod whUe I hve." - A day of fasting, which he observed at this time, he thus describes : ^ " Sept. 5, 1786. To-morrow is my monthly fast, but as I view myself in a declining state, and as my temporal affairs are such that I can better attend to- day than to-morrow,,! would set apart this day, 1 ■ FlUSI TWELVE YEARS PASTOE.. &3 That I might ' hear the rod,'' and who hath appointed it.' 2. That I might serve Grod better for all this, and be purged. 3. That I might .be spared a little longer to pray and preach. 4. That I might be ready for death, according to the latter part of the twenty- fourth chapter of Matthew, or for whatever affliction a holy Grod hath in store for me. 5. To take a view of the great mercy of Grod which is still continued towards me. 6. To examine myself: Do I love the church ? Have I repentance and- faith ? Aan I patient ? 7. To confess my sins. 8. To pray for my dear rela- tives; that they may give me up to Grod; to pray for my people and all people, but especially for dear Zion and this church in particular ; for the babes, childreUj young people, middle-aged, and aged. . And I would consider that sin is the cause of the rod ; that what- • ever good I haye at any time, is God's gift at will ; th&,t trouble is sent to bring me nearer to Grod, to try and htiihble me ; that I have received- much good at the hand of. God ; that it is God only who scads trouble ; that God never lifts his rod but to execute his own most holy, wise, and good purposes. Have been enabled to attend, as prescribed above, yet with much weakness, and not all the time. I felt as if I could pray for any thilig above mentioned, as well as ' for my recoveiry ; and now I would conclude by de- voting myself "to God, and renewing my covenant and resolves."- On his return from a journey, October 13, he writes, "1 fesolved, and for the most part put it in practice, that no company shcjuld divert me from my 84 _■ JEREMIAH HALLOCK. wonted private duties, and I think I never enjoyed so much continued sweetness on a journey in my life." " Oct. 21. I receive many kindnesses from my jeople for which I would give thanks. "Dec. 14. Received, to-day and this evening, some unseeiijly, treatment, hut hope these persons had an interest in my prayers'. Therefore, Hebrews 12:2, and~ similar passages, were pleasant to me. 't is a pleasant thing to forgive." . "Jan. 1, 1787. lamnowhroughttoseeanewyear: that . Of late, have hot heen so formal as common in prayer, and have had more freedom. For this new year I would make the following resolves': " 1. To rise |)y dayhreak. "2. To read daily qpe day's account from my journal for the year past. "3. To he more fervent and watchful in my usual' times' for prayer. "Sweet peace in 'my soul in the evening sacrifice ; . and rejoiced to see Capt. — r— willing and urgent that his daughter shoul(f make a puhlic confession ; it strengthens the evidence I have long had of "the piety of this sweet man. "Jan. 2. Rose ahout the hreak of,day: Uncom- mon sweetness and sorhe ' fervency in sera-et and family prayer ; also in readingthe Bible, in singing, and reading: in 'my diary, according to my resolves yesterday. This evening had some sweetness in con- versation. "Jan. 26.: it wotild be sweet- Uvihg, if we could live only for Throughout his journal Mr. Hallock mourns often,' and very bitterly, over his imperfectly sanctified heart. The temperament of his mind seems -often to have led him to dwell more on the dark, than on the bright^ "er shades of his own spiritual state. Yet' we are, no doubt, to ascribe these lamentations in great pfirt to his deep knowledge of himself and of God, added to the high standard of spiritual attainment at which he aimed. Hjs sense of entire dependence on God in the Christian course^ he illustrates in the following terms : ' ' The way to heaven is up stream. It is like one ' ascending out of Ontario into Erie and the higher lakes. But how will the inexperienced youth, in his little open boat, meet the tempest and biUows? How with naught but his hands and paddle, will he ascend the falls of Niagara ?" FIRST TWBLVE TEA-RS PASTOR. - 95 Somewhat similar imagery Mr. Hallock employ- ed at times, in reference to the conversion of sinners. He was once i^ a neighboring town, where there was a powerful work of divine grace. In going thither, he ha;d travelled hy the side of a river covered with floating .cakes of ice. Surrounded as he was with proofs of the mighty power of Grod in the repentance of stout-hearted sinners, he said that, the scene hfefore him was not less wonderful than would he the sight, if the cakes of ice which he had just seen home down on /die strong current, should at once stop and float up stream. At another time, pointing to an adjacent moun- tain as he' stood.preaching, he made use .of this simile: " A- sheep is lost on that mountain. . The wild beasts are howling around it. Left to itself, the poor animal, ■wrill never findits way off". But the shepherd is now on the mountain in search of it. Possihly he may find it. Just so in the case of the lost sinner. He is wandering in a . most forlorn condition. Our only hope is, that the good Shepherd may yet find him, and hring him into the fold."' These anecdotes are at once an illustration of Mr.- Hallock's views in respect to the sinner's entire de- pendence on, G-od for saving gr^ce, and an example of his common practice in the application of surround- ing circumstances to somie useful end. Yet with these views of man's dependence, he was careful not to excuse any form of sin. No one' could he farther from Antinomianism. If -he could not fulb/ explain the harmonious connection of divine agency and grace 96 . - JE.UEMIAH HALLOCK. with human freedom and, accotOjtability, he firmly bjheve,d in its existence on the testimony of. Jdioyah. In a circle of aninisters, where the nature of. the sin- ner's inability was the topic of discussion,. he statfed the following fact: "A man in my parish, who is no sailor,, lately rnade an attempt to cross a mill-^ pond in a small boat. The water was high, and to his dismay. he found himself gradually carried down towards the dam. In this extremity, not knowing how, to mS-nage the boat, he called to some persons -on. the shore. .They cried out, 'Row on the other side.' AH agitajion, he replied, 'I can't.' They cried more earnestly, 'Row' on the other side.'' He still said, tremblingly, 'I can't.'' They added, ' TFe/^, then, go over the damU " - " May 30,. 1793. Have had some -refreshment in preaching, but never saw my heart more wicked — never Was pressed with greater temptations — many times, -seemed to be destitute of faith-^oould get no comfort from the Bible, or in prayer, and the world, seemed altogether va,nity. But gloiry be to, the God of all comfort, before I got home. last evening, felt revived. JFpund brother Miller at my house; we open- ed our minds to each other-^went out and prayed together ; and I trust my soul was truly refreshed. may we never forsake the Lord. "May 30. Last Tuesday had a public meeting on account of the drought, though the good Lord ^ent rain before the, day came. Key. Mr. MiUejr preached two sermons, and appeared to have extraordinary assistance. My heart, I trust, was .in' some measiire FIRST TWELVE TEAUS J'ASIOE. . 97 refreshed. Spent. the evening with hrotlxer Miller, atid rode home wilji him on Wednesday. It was my lot to preach at West Britain, though I felt as if I could not ; fbr it has seemed at times, of late, as if I could not pray, and as if my poor attempts were shut put. Indeed, many times it has seemed- almost as if..' the pains of hell had got hold p-pon me ;' .hut in prayer and in preaching yesterday„the clouds seemed to disperse, and I had unusual .fifeedom and satisfac- tion. The audience were very attentive, and after meeting I enjoyed a sweet evening. This morning, felt as if I could spend the day and ^^e night in numherihg over the richest joys. My mind is calm and serene, and it almost seems that I should he glad to leave this World, and he with JesuS; May God haVe all tiie praise of this deliveraaice ; may this ipercy teach ine for ever^ in trouble and at all times, to trust, . and cry unto him. .And, if these lings should eyer he read hy any one, may he or. she he encouraged to pray without ceasing to G'od in trouhle, and not faint ; knowing that Grod wiU appe'ar for the distressed, if they pray to, and trust in him, " March 1^ 1795. To-day heard >of the death of my sister Abigail- Her natural temper was very agreeahle, and sweetened^ I trust,, with true grace. -Shf was the desire and crown of her husband, the delight of hier parents, the glory of her brothers and sisters ; kind to all, beloved by her. neighbors, and es^eeined in Zion. But her work is done. God hath called her away, we trust, to, himself ; and .l)lessed be his name,' May her bereaved consort, parents, H«llock-, 5 , 98 JEREltlAH HALLOCK. . and all of us, find this loss made up in God ; and be prepared to go when our turn sHall come. "May 2, 1795. Last evening had agreeable con- versation with brother Griffin.* Spent this forenoon ■with him in retirement and prayer, I trust profitably. Gonversed until about two, and then parted with him. may we so live as to meet -in a bett6r world. "June 7. Yesterday my dear father came to see me froiQ Goshen ; gave me a more particular account of my beloved sister's death, . and 'hroiight sonie of her private diary, which I thitik, is expressive of true religion. may God have all the praise^ "-June 5, 1796. Had rath«r more freedom, than common in-private duties last evening; -and was favored in preaching, this mdtning, heyond my -ex- pectation. But in a sermon to the youth this after- noon, have been -dreadfully unfruitful, and had 'but little attention. "■ Feel ashamed and confounded. that I might feel like a child under the parent's rod, and that God would have mercy on the youth. ' "Sept. 18, 1796. Lord's day. I am troubled with a dull, inconstant mind.; and a treacherous mem- ory, so that t find it diffioillt to compose, to' speak, 01 pray. "Whence it ariseth, I cannot .tell; whether from disease of body or want of grace. But let it be from what it may, I have no way but, to go to the Lord and wait for his salvation. The meeting to- day has been thin and" dull ; I have had'4)ut very little sense of things,, either in preaching or praying. * The late Rev. Dr. Edward D. Griffin, then a yolillifill pnalor in the adjacent 'town of New Hartford, __ "FIRST T^ELV^ YliARS PASTOR, -99- Yet I must not forget the unusual comfort the Lord Was pleased to grant me this morning, especially in family religion. But my Beloved is withdrawn, ag to his sensible presence, and I am left to mourn. Still, ' though he slay me, yet will.I, trust in him.' " July 2, .1797. Rather more frdedom in prayer and preaching and at ihe Lord's table.. Through the tender mercies of God, I have been more comfortable in mind for nine or ten days. The .peace I have in Jesus unspeakably exceeds all the joys of this world. Lord, make and keep me humble, and- draw, my soul more and more to-thee; - ~ ' "Aug. 1, 1798. I have this day, by the help of G-od-, finished thy little former harvest, and; I would now bless the Lord for the harvest, and for success, in the ingathering of it. I would confess my sins, that I api so carnal, and like those who make provis- iCn only for the flesh. that I might have a part with that happy number who will one'day reap ever- lasting, life.", ' . •In this connection it may be pi-oper to introduce a few more of Mr. Hallock's harvest thoughts: "0 Lord, may we begin the harvest In thy- fear, and have strength and grace to gatherit as thine and for thee ; and may it all be used in thy service— may e-very' swath aad every sheaf be sanctified, by the word and prayer; and 0, let thy spiritual mercies, fill- the earth also in the building of Zion." > ' Again, " We have a comfortable supply. L.ord, .the harvest is thine ; thou madest it to grow — ^the favorable time to gather it, the heailth, the strength, lOO JEREMIAH HALLOCK. - the skill, the feuccess, axe all of thee, who buildest the house and keepest the city. And now,.0' my God, may -yre havp grace and wisdom to use it wholly jbr thee, and may thy blessing, without which all is still in vain, rest perpetually upon us, and wilt thou teach us thy statutes .and. grajit us the spiritual harvest,, the Holy Spirit and its fruits unto eternal life." - ., In conversation with a candidate for the ministry, who had been attracted taliis roof by the report of his piety and worth, Mlr.Hallock once .remarked that •one year, when the Lord gave him an uncommon supply df fcrage, he was led to inquire' what it rrieant, arid iii what way he .should use the whole to the glory of the G-iver. He added, "Before spring the matter ' was quite plain: For there was a grea'fc revival amrag my people, that- winter, and I had occasion to keep 'at different times more than" fifty horses- for Christ's miriisters. I now saw fbr what purpose -God had so . kjndly and providentially filled niy barn." ■ . At an- other time,walljing out with a Christian friend in the fertile fields, Jie said, "How thankful we ought , to-be for this ineadow. I sometimes feel- afraid, to enjoy the good things of Providence Jest I- should abuse thepi."- ' ,' ' -~ '- .- "Wiheri he purchased his place, there was a young and. thrifty orchard upon it, from v/hich the ~ planter himself never received much, if any fruit This or- chard, sittiated on the side of a hill, yielded a supply for "Mr. Hallock's family in seasons when fruit in tjhe valley failed. After sever"al years the thought occurred, FIRSr_TWELVE YEARS PASTOE. 101 tiiat he was under a sort of obligation to set out an- other orchard for the benefit of his successor. He resolved at once to do it. While,.planting the trees with the assistance of his son, a young preacher came into the field who had lately received an invitation, to become the minister of a neighboring congregation. Th€ young man for a short time put his hand to the work) when' Mr. Hallook, turning to his son, said, " Homan, when I am dead, do you give Mr. M'L some of these apples."* '^ SEfT. 3, 1793. Feel that' I haye been inadver- tently imprudent, and am afi:aid that I have injuted the feelings of some. how much do ministers nee4 to be ' wise as serpe^its and harmless as dqves.' Lord, wilt thpu for^ve niy, imprudence, prevent its mischief, and humble me, and make 'me more Watch- fulj.and make me wise and prudent for the sake of Christ and his interest in the world." At another time he writes, " Feel as if 1 had teen imprudent in' saying perhaps exasperating things^against ihe Deist. my Grod, I would wish to be faithful to thee, and always ready not only to suffer but to die for thy Here it may be proper to mention, that Mr. Hal- look, in his habitual intercourse with his people, was a striking pattern of genuine ministerial prudence. In things indifferent he was ever ready to yield to the views of others with much meekness aiid gentle- , • More than thirty -yeats after, when this young olergyrn an's apple crop failed, this direotioh wa/S -in a pleasing way literally fellfilled. ~ . - ■ .102 JEREMIAH HALLOOIC. . ness, as kuowiug that " a soft answer, turnetk away wrath;" hut in cases which involved the ' interest of Zion, or the welfare of souls, he was hold and immov- able, '-' come life' or cpme death.", He knew, nothing of that timidity which deserts its post at the approaeh of d'ajiger, and which too often conceals itself under the specious jiame of prudence. If he manifested more of the hirmlessness of the dove than of the ser- pent's wisdom ,{)r the lion's holdness, yetin neither of these elements of character was he deficient. It was the combined influence of these ' qualities, ever mod- ifying each other in a manner peculiarly happy, which saved him &lik« from. the meanness of cowardice and fi:om' rashileSs. On learning thait aiiy membei", of 'his church had. been guilty of an offence, his practice was to go at once to the delinquent', and with'great plainness and tenderness urge the duty, of -repentance. Often he was successful. In one instaricd he is said to have taken this course. A brother, who had been to talk with an offender in the church, informed Mr. HaUook of his ill-succesS, and asked if he should not make a second eiFort. " Stay," said the afTectionate pastor, "and let me first go and see him." He went, and addressed the offender, in nearly these words: "My dear brother, ■ I have an unusual affection for you. , I .can scarce tell you how much I love yoii. I have been thinking about you of late night and day. My love to you has setemed stronger,, within a short time, than ever before." The man burst into tears ; he'oould let him proceed no, further; his heart FIRST TWELVE YEARS PASTOK. 103 melted ; he confessed his fault, and engaged to make requisite satisfaction to the church. ■ ' ■ In an interview with a parishioner Unhappily poisoned with infidelity, and known to possess Paine's Age of Reason, Mr. Hallock became very earnest; and in a dfetermined soleinn tone exhorted Hm, at parting, to go home and Irarn that pernicious book. Failing of success, he called upon him. to remember, that his minister had been faithful to warn him not to keep in his house a book- -frhioh blasphemed .the Saviour of the world. On one' pcc3,siQn when he was present at a meet- ing of the .school society, an open infidel was appointed a school-visitor. MTr; Hallock knew, this infidel to be a man of learning and influence. He was aware that any interference on his part would certainly give great offence- to the jfiaii. and hi» fi-iends. But the lambs -of his own -dear flock were in peril. The cause of God was concerned. He -dared not be silent. He felt constrained to take a bold stand,,, and risk con- sequences ; though, as in Paul's case, no man should stand with Jiirri. He rose, fearless as Baniel prayed, and, pleaded the cause of Christ and of souls against infidelity, with an eloquence which delighted the . friends of Christ, astonished all, and procured, throi^h divine favor,, a reversal of ^ the improper appoints ment.. . ■• - ;. ' ■ The good man's heart was once grieved, and , broken by the opening of a- dancing-ischool in the principal village of his parish.. It had long been with him a favorite neighborhood for religious conferences. IM JEREMIAH HAli-LOCK. He still contiiiued his meetings there as usual. One evening he perceived several learners of the gay art in the conference-room, and remarked that, though painful to himself, yet he felt Constrained to give a i^olemn adiponitio'n. After a proper introduction he said distinctly, that he feared that 8,11 who attended the dancing-school were in the hfoad way to hell. In stating the matter afterwards to ~one of his aged d^eacons, he said,- "I didn't know but they would kill me for it ; ,but then I tliought, if they did, they could only kill the body." ' When hisi people had erected, a house for public worship, there was a difference of opinion, as to the sittings ; -some were in favor of pews, others of slips.. . To settle th& question, a meeting of .the society was called. On thfe Sabbath preceding this meeting. Me Hallook, ever anxious to avert evil, related, at the close of service, substantially, the foUo-^ing anec- dotes: '" . ' ' • "I was last week at C , and saw a popr sin- ner in 'great distress for his soul. He inforqied me that he received his. first deep impressions under a particular sermon;. After conversing with him as to his spiritual state, I, told him I had a special reason for asking whether, when he heard that sermon, he was sitting in a slip or, in a pew'. '-0 sir,^ said he, ' I cannot tell. My mind was so overwhelmed with what the preacher said, I paid no attention to other . objects.' • . . "I found another person in transports of jby . His tongue was loosed in the praises of God. . He spoke- FIRST TWELV'E YEARS Pastor. i05 in rapture of the love of Christ. After other conver- sation, J made the same inquiry of him. He rephed, with some impatience, ' I neither know nor care ahout that matter.- ,It is enough for me, 1;hat 'God was pleased in his great mercy to Appear there for, ray sinking soul.' " The people met in a spirit of conciliation, and reaeheda harmonious result. 106 - JEREMIAH HALLOCK, C H A F T E R ,V . . ' REVIVALS AT THE BEGINNING . OF THE TRESENr - CENTURY. Neak tlie cbse of the last century, comnjenced in New England what has been a,ppropriately termed the era. of- revivals. Not that revivals of religion were till then unknown, -for they had distiiiguiahed -the ministry of Whitefield and Wesley, Edwards and Tennant,' and may he traced hack to the memorahle day of Pentecost, an/i to the earlier times of Ezra and Josiah ; hut- that they have sirice been more "extensive; continuous, and powerful than before. At this period, so auspicious to Zion at large, very many churches in Connecticut awoke- from the deep sleep of years. The influence, of the Holy Grhost was now, vo a broad extent, marked witli uncommon power; Mr. Hallock's people were hot left, without a large share in the glorious work. , After a trial of his /aith — he having labored and looked for refreshing rain, and received but a few scattermg drops, until ready to ^ink in despondency — to his unspeakable joy, at the end of twelve dark, long yetfrs, the win- dows qf heaven were opened, not to desolate, but to make verdant the hills' and valleys under his pastoral care, aUd to mature abundant fruit. An eye-witness states, that when, on entering a crowded and solenm evening meeting, the good, mamperceived the Lord to NARRATIVE OF REVIVAL. 107 have come, in very deed, to -dispel the gloom which had been so long thickening over- his people, he could not suppress the swellings of his soul, hut wept aloud. To this interesting point in his life and ministry we have now arrived, and -vire rejoice toTjeahle to give a distinot view of this work as it existed in the mind of, Mr. Hallock at the time, and was puhlished by him in the. Connecticut Evangelical Magazine. NARRATIVE , OF A W.OEK OF GOP IN CANTON, CONNECTICTJ-T, LN 1798 AND 1799. "Gentlemen — Through the- course of twelve te- dious years before this rneraorahle period, the religion of Jesus gradually declined among us. The doctrines of Christ grew more and more unpopular; family prayer, and all the duties of the gospel were less regarded ; ungodliness prevailed, - and particularly, modern infidelity had made, and was making alarm-, ing progress among us. Indeed it seemed to the eye of sense, that the Sahhath would he lost, and "every appearance of religion vanish; yea, that, our Zion must die without a helper, and that infidels would laugh at -her dying- groans. But the God of Zion, who can do every thir^, was pleased to appear, and lift up the standard of the omnip'otent Spirit agaiiigt the enemy ; and to him be all ,the glory. ■ " ihe first appearance of the work was sudden and unexpected, some particulars of which are as follows.': The second Sabbath in October, ,17.98, I exchanged with a brother in the ministry. On my 108 JEHEMIAH, HALLOCK. q-eturn the next evening, I found & young person under deep religious impressions.^ She told me she was a poor, sinner going down ib hell ;-and that her impres- sions b^gan on the Sahbalii in the forenoon, but in- creased in the afternoon. In the evening her concern was such that she could no longer keep it secret, though it had been her intention iliat no one should • know it. The next evening, at a conference, there was an' unusual solemnity, and many were in tears. The morning following, I found two other youth with the one first awakened, "whose minds' were likewise impressed. On the evening of this jiay, a sermon was preached by a neighboring minister. The meet- ing was uncoinnjonly full, and the arrows of convic- tion reached some hearts. : "A young rnan told me he had, tbe day before, drawn a number 'of books, at the library meeting, on jMofane history, and was determined to spend the fol- lowing winter in-> reading them and the like books ; but hearing of this meeting, he came thoughtlessly to it, and soon found he had a greater work to do than to read profane histories. , He saw he was an undone sinner, and must beconie reconciled to God, ^r perish. His distress arose to, that degree, that he^^eem6d almost ip despair; he was at, length brought into Grod's niarvellous light.' "After this meeting, about fourteen' children and youth were found, whos6 minds appeared to be ini- * The preacher was the Rev. Timothy M. Cooley of Gran- ville, Mass. ' The young woman was a daughter of a man who had no confidence in revivals. NARRATIVE OF R.EVIVAX. 109 pressed. . One -of ihem said, ' I have been over a precipice all my days, and never, sa-w* it untU now.' The next day it was affecting to see, by the rising of the sun, awakened youth coming to my house to know what they should .do to be saved. In the latter part oC the, day, J visited a- number of females in another neighborhood, where these things .'had- been hardly known, and found a remarkable attention. ^ The tear often. flowed on the first mentioning of eternal things. In the evening t^iere were found in the neighborhood where the work begau, at a house where a meeting had been appointed, about thirty children and youth, who appeared serious, and some under deep concern. It w£ts indeed an affecting scene, and one particular fact will not soon be •forgotten. . > . " A young woman deeply imprei^ed, said to. an- other in the same situation, ' Do not weep so ; w^hat good can it- do? Grod does not regard such selfish tears as you an,d I shed.' Jlpon this, the one spoken to took the other by the hand, and said, ' 0, you are trying to quiet rne, but y6u. tremble yourself ;'• which was truly tte pase. - . ' i '"On the ensuing Sabbath, the work was visible in the house of God; and the conference iii. the even- ing was fall arid- very serious. One week before, matters never appeared darker ; but now the marvel- lous goings of the victorious Lamb were seen and felt. .0 how little we -know what is in the secret counsels of Immanuel! The following Monday, when a ser-" mon was preached by a Iieighboriijg minister i^ almost the whole parish came to meeting, and the work ap- lie JEREMIAH HALLOCK. p$ar6d to,be going on. And it was a day of tremUing, even among professors as well aa others. It often brought these Words' to mind, ' But who may abide the day of his coming ?' _ " Being called one evening to visit a neighbor jjn distress of mind, I received from her the following inforinatioh: 'I was sober and ,tho"Ughtfui whep a child, used to attend secret prayer, thought I loved ^ood people, and finally concluded that I wias a Ohris-" tiaji. But hearing that the work of Grod had begun among us, I thought it "became tae to examine on what foundation I stopd ; when I found I was build- ing on, the sand. On Monday night ray hope perish- ,ed.' I do not know that I fiver saw any one in bodily distress -manifest greater anguish. ■ But before morn- ing she found relief) by having, as ■she hoped, her will bowed and swallowed up in- the will of Grod. She told me the next morning, ' I thiak I can now take care of my family, and do all for the glory of Grod.' " Before the week was put, another came in an- guish" of spirit,' who also had been resting on a hope of his good estate, "but how saw himself to be" in the gall of bitterness. He expressed himself, after this sort : ' I see rpy heart sd opposed to Grod, that I could not be happy were I admitted to heaven ; and I should choose rather to be in hell than to- dwell wifh Grod.' Indeed this was an hour when all seemed to be sha- ken. But while_^some found no rest short of entirely ' new hopes, otheis were confirmed. - ""The next week on Wednesday, November 1, another serinon' was preAehed by a neighboring broth- NAIlfi.ATJVE OF REVIVAL. - m er, when there were but about half sis many present as the week before ; and we were greatly afraid that all was about to decline and die. This, was indeed a trying hour. No fond parent ever watched the fever of his child at the hour of iis crisis, when the period of life or death had arrived, vdth more anxious", inter- esjted feelings, than rmmbers of God's praying ffieiids watched the work of the Spirit at this critical "mo- rh§nt. Every symptom of its being fixed and increas- ing was as life frftra ihe dead, but the thoughts of its going off were more dreadful 1§ian th6 grave. It Was not-loag, however, before it appeared. that God had ih'very deed come to carry on his work among us ; and the hearts oj Zion's, friends were elated with fresh, hopes. Those whose minds were arrestedy were, for the most part, increasingly impressed ; there were also instances of hew awakenings. The solemnity pf this season cannot be communicated. It is- known ■only by experience. " A brother iii the ministry," among whose people the same work had begun, told me that he had seen twenty in, a room, the most of them mortally sick arid" attho'point of death; but ih.a,t the scene waisnot so impressive, ^s to see a house filled with souls in dis- tress, sensible of impendipg and eternal wrath, and tiieir,feet sinking in thit horrible pit whence there is no redemption. Nature does not afford an adequate comparison to set forth these scenes.- They exceed the things of time, as the soul exceeds the body, or eteniity exceeds time. ' A; wounded spirit who cstix bear?' The appearance WES' like an exeoution-day. 112 JEREMIAH HAL.LOCK. , An awfal silenqe reigned, unless when it was broken ■ by the cry, ' "What shall I do to be saved?" But it was not long before, as we hope, one and another were brought to repentance and faith, and into the enjoymeilt of the pardon and comfort of the gospel. And to behold poor sinners who were but yesterday on the brink of destruction and wholly unreconciled to God, now brought to submit to hiin, and to hear them sing the new song, entirely . surpassed all the victories of the rriost famous kings and gerieralfe of our- world, " Here I would also mention, that the things which took hold, of the mind were plain gospel truths, ■^ith which .the people had long beisn aequamted, and. which they had heard with indifference. 1 heard one' say, 'I usisd.to think I believed there was a G-od, but I find I nevfer did till of late' The work was by no means noisy, .but rktionsil, deep, and stilL The rational faculties, of the soul were touched, and poor sinners began to see that eyery thing in the Bible is true ; that God is ifl earnest in his precepts and threaten- ings ; that they were .wholly sinful, and in the hand of a sovereign God. In these things, they seenied to . themselves and others like, those awaked out of sleep.' The heart, would oppose, but reason and consciepoe were convicted, find the mouth was shut. The first J that you would knpw of persons under awakenings was, ibat they, would be at all the religioite meetings, -and manifest a silent and eager -attention. What are called the hard thipgs, such as the doctrines of total deptavity, divine purposes, and the like, were popular. NA'RRAIIVE OF. REVIVAL. 113 Those who were- once angry whenever these things Wefepyeaohed, would cease to object when thoroughly convicted:, and rather Smite on their hreasts; ' " There was a man in the place fifty years of age, who had ^neglected public worship, and had always been opposed, to the things of the gospel, and who for, some time was at all the meetings. On a certain wening, the first part of January, I ma,de him a visit with a view to converse with him on the; state of his mind; when- he gave me, for substance, the following account: '. _, , '"My fnind began to-be impressed as far back as September, ^ut I kept it to myself. • Several things seemed to conspire to- increase my attention, . Some- time in the faU, I> thought in my sleep that my daugh- ter,, who is dead, came into. the room.' I knew that' she was dead, and said to her, what have you come for ? She replied, ' Father, I am- come to tell you hot to be dajmoed.' Though this was but a dream, it t-ended tp, increase my. concern. A little after this, thes^ particular words, 'Prepare to meet thy Grod, Israel,' 'Sounded daily in my ears. Bilt last night my inind wias soampressed that I could not sleep. I arose about midnight, and ca,lled .up my family. "V^e prayedi After wh^ch I returned to my bed again, but was equally distressed as before. . . When the day ap- proached I arose, and taking ijiy garments to put on, it appeared to me that .they were Grod's, and I trem- bled, to think how I had used God's property. AH, that I turned my eyes on looked like God's things. "W^hen I opened the door and beheld the world and 114 JEREMIAH HALLjOCK. the rising morning, tjxe appearance was the' same. And the view of -the' terrible majesty of that God,- whose were the heavens "and the earth and' all things. - so overwhelmed my mind that it took away my bodily strength. I turned about and fell on my knees, for I had not strength. to stand. I thought of poor infifiels, that though they made ligh% of these things, yet, if the strongest of them were to see the dreadful majesty of G"od which was now discovered to my mind, t£.ey would not bei able to stand. After. I. returned into, the house, I directly had a view of the preciousnes's of Jesus. And I could pour out my soul for Christ's dear ministers. Then my mind turned on $he cause of Zion, I longed to have it. built up, and the present work goon. I tliought of the~poor, heathen, and saidj that the angel with the everlasting gospel raight fly tiirough the earth. I could love rny enemies, and pray, for their .conversion ; and confess to every one whom I had injured.' "This is for .substance whsCt he told me.at. tpy entering the house,- without being aSked a question. -After a shojH; pause he added, ' I wish you -would pray for me, that I may be converted, if Grod can convert me consistently with his pleasure and glory ; if not, 1 do jiot desire it. I wish also you would pray for my poor children, that Grod would convert them ; not that they' are any better', or their souls worth any more than my neighbors'.' The daylight' was now gone, and we went to a;meetirig. The 102d Psalm was sung : ' Let Zioil and her sons rejoice,' etc. ' "After singing, he expressed himself nearly in these NA-fiRAIIVE OF REVIVAL.. 116 ■words, ' what sweet singing ! I never heard sueh singing before. This is the first happy meeting I ever sa%^. I never knew what love,w-as "bfefoie. I psedtp think I had love, but I find I never had.' This was Friday evening. The iollo^ving Sabbath the Lord's supper was admiaistered. "He tarried as a spectator, and appeajred to be filled with comfort and joy. In the intermission he observed, ' This is the first sermon I ever heard.* And he remarked, how glori- ously it looked to seie Zion sitting at the table of Je- sus, and praying unto and praising her King. M he spoke much of his pre'ciojis Jesus, I inquired, ' Why do you thus adinire him ?' He answered, 'Because he loved his Father's law.' The question was then put, '.Do you think that Jesus is a friend to the divine law and government?': .His answer w^as, 'Yes, I be- lieve that Jesus has such regatd for the la,w, that rather than see it made void, he would send teii worlds to hell.'-- The question. then was, 'Do you loye him for this ?' - He rephed, ' I doJ' But. all this while, he did not speak 'of himself as though, he tJiought he was converted.' . ^■ '.'The work was now evidently on the inereasel. "We had lectures' eVe?y week, mostly preached by neighboring ministers. 'And here I would mention,' that the awakenings in other places, the proclamation fi?om the state Greneid,! Assembly respecting the Sab- bath and the regulations in schools, all seemed to be attended with good efiects. C/pnferences were setup' in every part of the parish. AH religious meetings became fiill and solemn;. aiid every week, and some- U6 jtlREMIAH HALLOCK. times every day, would bring the animating news of some one hopefully converted. Indeed, it seemed as if it would be impossible for any thing to stand before the power of God, and that every one must bow. However, dreadful experience proves that natural men are indeed, morally dead. They are harder than rocks, deafer than adders, and more stubborn than the sturdiest oaks. That which will break down th$ rooksj and tear up the obstinate oats, will have no effect on the carnal mind. As means -did not begin, this work of theniselyes, so neither did they support, or carry it on. But as this was the work of the om- nipotent Spiritj so the effects produced proclaimed its sovereign, divine Author. One was taken here, and .another there ; and often those^ vFhom we should the least expect. I have seen some whowere at this time under the most awakening judgments, as thought- less as ever; and others in fall health and prosperity, pfjujked in the heart. ) " A neighbor, in the course of the winter, had a dan- gerous epidemical disease — ^which was now, in some instances, very mortal among us— come suddenly into his family ia a threatening manner. Yet neither tiiis terrible sidiness, nor the awakening of others, could arouse his attention. But after the family were all recovered, this neighbor,- a,s he told me, arose one morning as secure as ever ; but on going to his barn as usual, the thought struck, his mind that he could not do the least thing' without G-od. He had lived a, careless, vain Hfe, and made light ,of the awakening. He told me he thought it' was too' sUlya thing for NA:RRitTIVE OF REVIVAL. 117 rational creatures to attend to. , He used to say, if a man latored hard, he ought to live well. Hence he felt no ohligation, nor saw any cause even for asking a hlessiog, or returning thanks. But now, when the thought struck his niiind that he had no independent - power to do the least thing without &od, it pricked him to the heart. This infinite G-od appeared the" great and first cause of every thing, and all centered iii Hini.> He was at first determined to suppress and cqnoeal his coriVictions, hut soon found it impossihie. And aftM: ahout two weeks, he was hopefiilly brought savingly to' svibmit to G-odo . ' ,-• • ' "Another person told me thus : _' I was returning, op such an evening, from a conference, where I had seen numbers under concern, ajid heard others speak of the love of God, atid of their hope in Christ. But nothing took, hold of my mind until, as I was- on- my way home, these ' Words sounded in my ears : ' Is it noting to you, all ye that pass" by ?* ' These words were fixed in hismirid, and he appheid fhem thus: 'Is it -nothing to"ine, ihat my nei^hbors^'and those of my age, are troubled about their sins, and some hopefully converted to G-od ? Have I not sins to- be troubled about, as well asthey ? And-do not I also need con- vei'sioh?' I saw this person about a fortnight after "his mind was thus taken hold, of, and his convictions were much increased ; when he obser-v^d thus : 'I find that all I do is selfish. If T pray or read, itis all selfish. And I feel myself like one hung upon tenterr hooks : his situation is very distressing-, but the more he struggles, the deeper the painful hooks penetrate.' 118 JEREMIAH HALLOXIK.. This was on Saturday, and it was indeed a serious, iarylng hour. But the next' day this man hof)es that herec^ved'a new heart from the ascended Saviour. I have heard him say, that a new heart, or deliver- ance from sin, appeared, he thought, more, precious than deliverance from hell. /. ; ,- ■- "I, have ohserved that this spiritual shower was sovereign in- its operation. There was a man, between forty and fifty, living in a remote part of the parish, who was a Gallib as to religion, and entirely abgorhed in- the things of- the world. He h^d attended no con- ferences, and was seldom at meetings on the SahhaHi. But one evening having gone io hed as thoughtless as ever, he awoke aBout midnight, when these wprds- came forcibly to his. mind: '0 that they were wise, that they understood this, that they would consider their latter end.' Here was the beginning ^of his conviction,- which lasted three or four, weeks. Ihave heard him say, that he found himself naked, a sinner, and without excuse. - And before he found Jesus, he was brought .to see that -God was just, if he sent hini toheU. ' " I said in the beginning of this letter, 4;hat before the awakening, rnpdern Infidelity had made, and was making alarming progress among us. Some whohad been infidels for years, are among the hopeful converts, and are laboring to build up the faith they once sought to desb-oy. But I leave further particulars for an- other opportunity. . -^ : ' "From your sincere friend, " JEREMlABt HALLOCK. "West SiiHSBUBT, July 16, 1800.'' ' ;- ' NARRATI'VE OF RETI'^AL.. 119 • ■ THE NARRATIVE CONTINUED. " Gentlemen — I meniSphed at the close of itiy first , letter, that some ^ho were Infidel^ are now g,mong the hopeful converts. I heard one of them say, with tremhling lips, •' I am the wretch who have murdered Christ : I have talked^ a great deal against "the gospel; but there was always something in my breg,st which said it Vras true, even while I was talking against it.' This poor man was almost in despair. But after a long season of distress,' he found comfort: "From another who had hfeen opposing the divia- ity. of the Scriptures,' I received th& following letter : " ' Rev. Sir — I frequently hear you mention from your jpulpit,, that there, are numbers in this place who - are opposers to Christianity. Doubtless you allude to me for one. If this be, the case,- you have good reason to m&ke the allusion ; for I frankly confess, not with- out some sorrow, I have given great reason- for such suspicion. It is nearly ten years since 'I have enter- tained doubts respecting the truth, of revelation, not. without a mixture of necessary belief in it, as the only scheme to bring glory to God and happiness to man. Could- 1 convince you of my sincerity, I doubt not you would be glad when I tell you I renounce my doubts'; , and I pray God I m^y never more give the world rea- son to call me an oppefsef to religion. I" have often «ome to a partial resoljltion to make you such a con- fession of my eSrrors. The first time I seriously en- gaged with rriyself to do it, was on hearing you read some letters which you brought from Goshen, and your remarks upon ^em. I then reflected whether ; 120 JEREMIAH HALLOOK. it teloHged to me to "animadvert on the ways of God's providence, and the . authenticity of that which in itself looked like truth. But afterwards doptts, and tusine'ss, and reluotaiuse to part with my favprite schemes, intervened, or you -would ha,ve'had this letter "before" this -time. " ^ The cause of my writing this letter now is not the fact that religion is heooming fashionable in- this place, or any extraordin£^ry conviction. <5h my mind rnore than I have had for- some time at short ipter- vals betwixt my doubts ; which conviction,, I think, is nothing more than that it. is my duty to serve God in his q,ppQinted ways. I ptay God he would- guard me against d«ubts hereafter. I beg you to be- assured of my esteem.', "Here was Hie beginning of conAdction on this person's, mind. It- on the whole appeared gradually to increase about eight: months, until it- became pow- erful, and he saw himself wholly depj-ayed, and in the hands of a sovereign God ; when, as he hopes, he was made to partake of the joys of the penitent prodigal. I have said the .work was not tioisy, but j'ation^.l ; and one end I have in transcribiE^ this letter is to give, a specimen of it. ' " There is another' instance among us, of one who says he had had no trouble for seven years past abobt , -ifuturity, concluding that death was the total end of man, as much as of the beasts. At first he made an open scoff and ridicule of the awakening'. But at length 'the arrows of truth -reached his cpnsoience. Sis Conviction continued and increased for some NARRATIVE OF KEYlrTAL.. .J21 weeks until, a§ we trust, he became reconciled to Grod V through Christ. He now appears to, love the doctrines of the cross. Formerly he had e taste for hooks, and read much in novels, profane history, and the like.; hut now he calls them trash, and makes the Bihle his study, and seems to want words to set forth hpw much it exceeds all other hooks. " But to proceed to an instance or two more. I was at a conference in which the conversation turned, on "the doctrines of the divine purposes ; which sublime doctrines were not attended to now for disputation, but with fear and solemnity. . They did not appear to be dry; uniriteresting, dispn|able points, hut divine realities, calculated to convict the sinner and refresh the saint. - . , " At the close of the meeting, a Certain man asked a question to this import : 'Does a person who is truly seeking after God, feel, afraid that any, of the^^divine purposes will cut himoff from salvation V This ques- tion was answered ■ in the negative ; that tlie divine purposes were jic» more against prayer than an atten- tion to common mattei;s, and that the only reason -why men brought tiiem against prayer, was their havr ing no heart to pray. The persOn who, put the qu,es- tidh answered, ' I am satisfied.' But knowing hiin to have long been an opposer .of these things, many marvelled at his answer. " On the jiext Sabbath, this man made a public declaration in; writing to the .congregation, which ac- counts for his appearing to. be satisfied with those very doctrines -which used to give him so much offejioe, Ilallock. -6 122 "JEREMIAH HALLOCK, In this .public confession he acknowledges Jus past infidelity, his opposition to G-od and his religion, to the work of the Spirit, to the ministers of the gospel, and all who 'profess to belong to Christ ; and that G-od had showed him his sinful, wretched, helpless state, and given him to hunger for the brfead of life, and to beheve, as he trusted, in Jesus.* The writing which he publicly exhibited is in these words : " ' It haying pleased the kiud Sovereign of the universe to open riiy eyes, in some measure, to see the depravity and poison of my own heart— to see my desperate situation whUe opposed to God, and to the - way of salvation by a kind Saviour — ^to see my total inability to rectify my own heart, .or recover myself from the fatal disease of sin and death — ^to s.ee, that if I am ever relieved from the plague of a proud and vitiated heart, and made to rejoice in the salvation of Christ, it must be wholly owing to the forfeited mer- cy and unmerited grape of a compassionate Redeem- * This •w^s an accomplished gentleman, of fine talentSrfo]> raerly an officer in the army, whose known hostility to religion and commanding presence, says an eye-'witness, almost awart-" ened alarm Jest he had come to interrupt the meeting. Return- ing from the meeting; he reached home after his ftlraily had retired, and immediately took his pen to write. His. wtfe fear- ing something injurious, said to him that he" seemed excited, and suggested that he should defer writing till morning. He ' i;eplied, that perhaps he should never write better than at that moment, and, proceeded to draft the suhfoined letter, which he handed to Mr. Hallock the next morning to he read to the con- gregation on the ensuing day, should he think it suitable. He became a devoted servant of Christ, and is the Deacon Taylor to whom Mr. Hallook's letters of May, 1802, and May and No- vember, 1826, were addicsscd. NARRATIVE OF REVIVAL. _ ia;i er :— ^With these, things fastened on my mind, and to abide, I hopej as loi^.as I live, I would wish to mak« some communications to this religious assembly, which I hope may be kindly ieceived by them. - " ' For several years past niy mind and affections have been much alienated from the new and livihg way of salvation by Jesus Christ. I have fallen into the most uncomfortable doubts of hig divinity, have- doubted the authenticity of his blessed word, have embraced irreligious and hateful errors, have turned my back, on the blegsed Redeemer, while his frifendly hand has reached out a pardon to me, and urged me to take it, even while his head was filled with the dew, and his looks with the drops of the night. I have run away fronr the'blessed Grod, while his ten- der mercies weje all around me, and with a sweet voice saying Unto me^^Turn ye, turn ye, for why will ye die ?' I have lived iir dreadful security, and stop- ped my ears to the most melting invitations of the Saviour of the world. I have spent much time in reading books which were- calculated to shake my faith in that holy word, which, had I sincerely believ- ed it, would have given me great comfort in God, and ' served in a great measure to -smooth the rugged path of life. I have been guilty of many errors in senti- ment and in .practice. I have slighteli the blessed religion of Jesii^ Christ, the ministers of the gospel, and professors of religion. /I have spoken lightly of the religious attention in this place, and have neg- lected to attend religious conferences, which by Girl's Holy Spirit are undoubtedly instrumental of true con- 12-1 JER12MlAH-HAIiL0CK. viotipn. I have teen given to many open immorali- ties, and have ho£ been circumspect in my behavior, to set a good example before those who took . know- ledge of me. " ' And now in every instance wherein I have offended my heavenly Father, and mankind, I would freely. acknowledge my great sin and numerous trans- gressions, imploring the forgiveness of that almighty Being, against' whom I have unreasonably, and with- out the least provocation, so often transgressed, and who only can bes.tow pardon and eternal life on the chief of dinners. It appears one of the most distin- guished mercies, that when people have run into error, and marred themselves by sin, there is, a Being to whom they rnay apply Vfith broken hearts, and who will blot out their sin with his own .blood, and give them to eat- of the bread of^ life. 'He that covereth his sins shall not prosper, but he. that oonfesseth and forsaketh, them shall find mercy.' Certainly there can be no exchange so happy as this, to part with, a proud and w'icked heart for a humble- and sanctified one — tP resign our enmity for^love; and selfishness for benevolence, our filthy self-righteousness for the spot- less A-obes of a glorious Mediator, and our love of sin and death "for holiness and .eternal life. ' " ' "With the foregoing considerations on my mind, I will implore a prayer-'hearing G-od to lend a listen- ing ear to my requests, whicKI pray G-od to help me make with sincerity. My first desirfe is for a rectified heart, to have sin slain,, and a principle of true holi- ness and Iqve to God implanted in its stead, and a NARRATIVE" OP REVIVAL. 125 heart of constant repentance and unfeigned sorrow for sin. I pray Qod to grant me, all my life, a deep sense of my own unworthiness arid 01 desert; I pray to realize it as long as I live, -to lie in the very dust, at the feet of the great Sovereign of the^ universe; to extol, magnify, and glorify the ricl^es of his moral rec- titude, liis glorious attrihutes, his infinite perfections ; to entreat of him for Christ's sake to give me his bless- ed Spiiit, to lead and guide me into all truth, to make me steadfast in a life of religion, to save me from a life of unhelief, from backsliding, and apostasy, and' finally to engage me to resolve, in the strength of the great Redeemer, to take his yoke on me which is easy, and his burden which, is light, and learn of hirn who is meek and lowly, that I may find rest to my soulT " ' I hope that G-od, by his great mercy and rich grace, has given me to hunger for the bread of life, and -thirst for liviiig water — ^that he has given me tp see that Christ is the way, the truth, and the life, aiid that there is salvation in no other way. And now, be- fofe God and this solemn assembly, and I Jiope with a broken and sincere heart, I renounce the heart-tor- menting and heaven-provoking principles of Infidelity, . so dishonoriagto G-od, and pernicious to mankind. "-' But before I clbse this writing, I must drop a few hints to those with whorrj I have associated in Infidelit)^' for some -years pa,st. ' " ' You will not view me as reflecting on you, for I sincerely pity you. I tremble for the fatal mistake you are making. Is deism a good scheme to embrace 126 JEREMIAH HALLOCK. in^death? Is there comfort in it, in view of a happy immortality ? Will it make a dying hour serene and joyful ? Can you expect to find a smiling God out of Christ ? Can you he satisfied that infidel principles are calculated to hurnhle the proud and rehellious hearts of mankind, and to exalt the Most High ? WUl you not he persuaded to abandon a scheme which excludes prayer, and shuts out a,ll heavenly contem- plation ? Can you hring up your dear children and never pray to God for them, nor mention a vFor-d con- cerning religion and the greats God, for fear their minds may he prepossessed in favor of a scheme, of whiBhj^if they had come to riper years, they would discover, the fraud, and dishelieve it for themselves? When your offspring come before you with wishful countenances, asking for bread, do you never think about the bread of life ? that th^ir souls are famish- ing while their bodies are nourished' ? ■ ,. ?' 'I will mention but one more consideration! ^.iid. that a dreadful and awful one. You must meet your beloved children before God's bar, and there answer for your conduct towards tiiem. Should they, in con- sequence of your total neglect to instruct them in religion, be doomed to a dreadful hell, wiU they not shriek out these heart-rending words with horrid em- phasis, ' Father, you never told me of this dreadful place ; you never told me of a glorious escape, a, glo- rious relief by Jesus Christ; and must I lie in this dismal, burning lake? 0, unhappy, that you was ever made the instrument of my existence !'" , Now, will you come to the loving Saviour, and bring youj NARRATIVE OF. RliVlVAL. 127 whole families- with you ? There is bread enough in our Father's house. I pray God that he wUl, in great mercy, be pleased tp open your eyes, to discern won- drous things in that law which you havb rejected, and to see ineffable beauty in that Saviour whom you have disowned,' " The above communication was read, Lord's day, April 14, 1799, to a numerous audience. Many of them were much aifected^ and most of the infidels alluded to were present. " The author of the above communication says, that being at meeting on the Lord's day, a number o^f months after the revival had begun, on hearing the names of ten persons called, who were propounded to join the church, his mind was struck with the c'utti^ thought, that an eternal separation was about to take place between people of the same congregation, neigh- borhood, and family. And as there was room enough, he could see nothing to hinder him from coming to Christ too but his own unwillingness.^ These were about the first of his impressions. In the evening, he thought he would go to the conference ; but as he had never been to any of the conferences, and had even spoken against them, he felt many objections. Yet he concluded to go at all events. I have heard him say, the first thing that struck his raind as he entered the house, was the decorum and order of the meeting. His convictions continued and increased for a number of weeks, until he was brought, as he confesses, to see his desperate situation, while opposed to God and 128 -JEREMIAH KALiOCK. the way of salvation ty a kind Saviour ; and to me that Christ is the way, the truth, and the life, and cordially, as he hopes, to accept of hinr. " Thus I have given some account of the work of Ofld among us, and mentioned some particular in- stances in. which the nature of the work appears. As to the extent of it, there were but few in the -parish who were not, in a measure, solemn. Almost the whole conversation, when people were together in in- termissions on the Sahhath, and on week-days, was on religion. Even companies on training-days were solemn. Balls were suppressed, and religion was the theme at weddings and at all times. The number hopefully horn into Uie kingdom of&od is between sixty and seventy. The number who have made a public profession is fifty-nine, and it is expected that others wiU come forward and subscribe with their hands unto the Lord. - "I would here notice,, that though many have been taken who were to human view the farthest from the kingdom of God, yet 1 think that God in the midst of his sovereign, holy ways, must appear, even in this work, to every attentive soul, to be a prayer- hearing God. In the middle of the place there was, during all the past days of inattention, a praying con- ference kppt up once a wbek by -a few Serious people. And it was here in this conference that the work be- gun, and here it has been the greatest. Surely he is a God who hears the prayers of the destitute. "I shall close by giving a brief account of one who left the world in the height of the attention SAREATIYE OF' REVIVAL. 129 among us. She died May 15, 1799, in the sixteenth year of her age. She was a promising youth, of Uright natural abilities, and of a respectable religious family. Her mind began to be impressed the latter part of the year before she died. As she had been taught the ways of &e Lord in the family, from her childhood, she appeared early in the awakening to have a good doctrinal knowledge of the way of salvation. But she complained of a hard heart, and a stubborn will. She was at all meetings and conferences which she could, conveniently attend, but found no relief. In the latter part of February she began to he unwell, and was soon confined. Her disease quickly became very threatening ; and within a few months she was given over by her physician. But though her bodily disease was distressing, "yet it was in a great measure overbalanced by her spiritual troubles. Her complaint was chiefly of her selfish heart, which she felt to be at enmity with Gpd ; and the prospect of going out of the world with arms in her hands against the Most High, , was horrible beyond conception. She Would ofteri. in. great anguish oiry out, ' I must die, and I cannot die so.' ' , " Such a scene, especially in a day of awakening, . was- very affecting, and it excited the pity and pray- ers of many. A number of young people who had been under concern, and had obtained relief, went one evening to see her, about a fortnight before she died, and conversed and prayed with her. As they were going away at a late hour, she begged their, prayers'. And her request and situation were so affecting to (■)• 130 JEREMIAH HALLOCK.- them, lihat they, as I am told, after leaving her,, re- tiredi and "Spent an hour of the silent midnight in carrying the case of their distressed friend to God. And we have reason to hope, that on this very night she received from the ascended Saviour the gift of a new heart. There appeared to be a great alteration in her mind from this time ; though she had many douhts and fears untU the morning hefore her death, when every cloud seemed to he dispelled. And I can say, I never saw so much triumph and victory in the arms of death hefore. She expired not far from twelve on Saturday. Her joys had not the appearance of a vain confidence, hut of a real submission to God, in view of his glory in the face of Jesus Christ, She pos- sessed her reason perfectly. There was a holy fpar mixed with her joy ; and though she said many things ■while ^e lay dying, yet it was with as much appa- rent care as a considerate witness would speak in a case of life and d^eath. " I shall here mention a few of her dying words, which were written at the time of her death. I heard most of them myself, and wrote as she spoke them. Not -far from sunrise she. expressed herself thus : ' I have lived through a tedious night, and am brought to see the light of a glorious morning.' Not long after, she expressed herself in these words : ' Now I am going to Jesus to be disposed of just as he pleases. I am not afraid to be dead — I am not afraid to diej' The house was soon filled with the neighbors, and her young friends. But though death had evidently seiz- ed on her mortal 'body, immortal glory seemed 'to NAKRATIV:^ OF REVIVAL. 131 (tloom in her soul ; and sheknew and kindly received all who came to see her, and spoke discreetly and suit- ably to them. She looked on one of! her mates and said, 'N'owyousee my heartstrings break.' On one's asking her if she might not be deceived, it engaged her serious attention, when she replied, ' Why, I know Jesus will taKe me : if he does not, he wiU do me no injustice.' As shedrew nigh her exit, she rattled ia her throat. Being asked if she wished for driok, her reply was, ■ No, it is nothing but the pangs of death.' On seeing her strug- gles, one of the spectators said, it is hard to die. She answered, ' It is hard, you may depend.' She calmly looked on her dying fingers, spoke of her grave and fu- neral, and bade me in her name tell her young friends and others at her funeral, to learn to die, and that she bade them farewell. In speaking of these things, she was as rational, calm, and deliberate as a kind parent on going a journey would be ia giving directions to his family. About three minutesbefore she died, with a distinct and audible voice, she cUUed two young people, who then came in, by name, saying, ' Fare you well ; I'have almost got through this troublesome world.' She' seemed to die with a lustre in her eyes, and a glow in her countenance. It was a wonderful scene of deaih and triumph. I sat before her, and looking her in the face, my heart naturally cried, ' Hosanna to the Prince of life, Who clothed himself in clay, Entered the iron gates x>f death, And tore the bars away.' I blessed that work which issued in such a. Victory over the king of terrors, and in such a lively hope of 132 JEREMIAH HALLOCE. immortality, and could not but bless those converted to Christ, and congratulate ijiem in their happy pros- pects in death. ' "These things were confounding even to infidels, and numbers who had thought lightly of the work, were now ready to smite their breasts and say, truly it is of God. I rnight enlarge, but the time would fail. I have endeavored to state simple facts accord- ing to the best judgment of a fallible creature, with a mixture of joy and fear. " When I find Peter, an apostle, deceived in Simon Magus, and hear him when speaking of the faith of Sil- vanus. using the cautious language, ' A faithful broth- er as I spppose,^ it makes me tremble for fear how we shall hold out. "We carmot tell what will be on the morrow, and man is ignorant of the heart. Hence my desire is, that all whom I have alluded to in the above narration, will remember that this is not an hour of boasting, but of putting on the harness, and that it stiE remains to be proved by their fruits, whether they have true religion or not. On the other hand, there is-joy and hope in God, and I desire to be thankful to Jiim, that he hath allowed me to stand and behold his glorious work ; though I must confess that I never felt so useless since I entered the ministry. God hath v^rought, and to his name be all the glory. And may he strengthen hi^ own work, and more abundantly increaseit, until all that is shall, as it were, be absorbed in greater glory. " From your real friend, "JEREMIAH HALLOCK. " WfiST SlMSBURY, Aug. 18. 1800," NAUriATIVE OF REVIVALS. 133 The expectation of Mr.-HaHook that more would unite Mth God's visible people, thaii had come for- ward at the date of this narrative, was not disap- pointed. In a printed sermon which he preached at the dedication of Ms' new meeting-house, he says, " Between seventy and eighty made a puhlio profession, who were considered as the fruits of this awakening." Of the extent of his lahors in this memorable season, as well in' neighboring congregations as his own, the following extracts from his journal are fair specimens : "■•Feb. 19, 1799, Lord's day^ The assembly seri- ous arid attentive— the conference this evening unu- sually full, and a number under deep impressions. Had several meetings the past week : Monday, at the widow R 's; Tuesday evening, at Mr. A. C 's ; Wednesday, at the ineeting-house ,■- in the evening, at the schobl^house ; Thursday, at Mr. Z. B 's ; Friday evening, at Mr. E. B 's ; and I tilost the attention, is on the increase here and in. other places. Blessed be the Lord for ever and ever. ■ " March 25, Mondaiy. Preached for brother Haw- ley, Northington, and attended a conference with him in the evening. The Lord is evidently here. " Tuesday. Preached for brother Griffin, New Hartford. God is doing wonders here. " "Wednesday. A very rainy day.' Rev. Mr. GU- lett and Rev. Mr. Griffin came home with me. Brother Gillett preached in the afternoon, brother Griffin in the evening. The meetings were solemn, and I trust profitable. 131 XEREMIA'H HALLOCK. " July 1, Monday. To-day returned home from my tour witli bftJther Gillett. Last week on Monday, rode to North Canaan and preached at two o'clock, when we rode to South Canaan and preaohed two sermons at four. .Tuesday we rode to Salisbury. Here Mr. W , a candidate, preaohed. - Then-, brother Grillett preaiched concerning the taking of Jericho? thjsn I preached from" Acts 14 5 27, ' And when they were come, and had gathered the church together they rehearsed 'all that Grod had done with them.' Wednesday, rode again to South Canaan, and I preached at ten frbm the history .of the four Ifepers. The people were waiting for. us and we had a solemn meeting — many wept— H)ne was thought to be con- verted last Monday evening,, and the work appears to be flourishing here. B-ode in the afternoon and preuched at Cornwall at four o'clock. Here the peo- ple were also waiting for us, and we had a fuU and serious meeting. Rev. Mr. H^ — — was preaching when we arrived. Then' I preached, and Mr. G-illett followed with a pathetic exhortation, Talked with freedoiji tyi about elfeven o'clock. Surely (Jod is at work in this place. On Thursday we rode to Kent ; I preached the first sermon from Jer. 40 : 16, last . dause. A cloud came over me, and I had but little freedom in prayer or preaching ; but brother Grillett , preached the second sermon with freedom. Had a conference in the evening— was enabled to speak wiibh freedom., Friday, visited several families ; had help in conversation and prayer, and the conferences, I trust, were edifying. About noon set out for War- NARUAIJVE OF REVIVALS. 136 len- — we stopped on tHe mountain and prayed. I preached the first sermon at Warren frcMn Acts 2- : 37, 38. Had unusual assistance. Mr. G-illet preached from' Why stand ye here all the day idle V He spoke ■with'fireedoiH, and numbers were in tears. Saturday w6 rode to Milton, Rev. Mr. Starr and Rev. Mr; Knkpp being with \ls. Here I preached at ten o'clock. Lord's day, June 30, 1 was at Warren. Feeble and trem- bling in the morning-^preached in the forenpon from Luke 12 : 56, ' Buthow is it that ye do not discern this ' time ?' in the afternoon flrom Ezek. 33 : 11, ' Turn ye, turn ye, from your evil ways ; for why will ye die,. house of Israel V Had conversation in the intermission, and till ten in the evening. I qannot but think there- is some real thoughtfujness here. Monday we rode early to Goshen — ^had two nielting visits — ^then oa:me on. — ^parted with brother (xillett at Torrington— *«topped at Rev. Mr. Mills' and had a sweet interview — then rode home and went and preached at Mr. 's." Tours of this kind Mr. Hallock oft«n performed, sometimes" by the appointment of the ministerial asso- ciation, »more frequently by mutual agreement. Al- ways ready for the service of God and his generation, in seasons of revival the ^aaxtenl; of his labors was truly surprising. . At the close of one of these favored, times he writes, " Though attended with the catarrh and many infirmities, and many times ready to faint, yet by the mercifal Help' of the Lord I have been ^enabled to attend the meetings — ^ot less than five or six in a week — and J trust my bodily health, is better 136 JEREMIAH HALLOCK. than it was eight months ago. I helieve it is in an- swer to the prayers of the Lord's dear people for me, of which I am so unworthy. Q Lord, still hold me up, and he my strength ; let me not wander from thy path, in~ doctrine or practice." " 'August 14, 1799:. Yesterday met with the con- vention at Mr. G-illett's. Heard Rev. -Mr. Porter of "Washington and Rev^Mr. G-riffin* preach." " Dl5c. 11. Went to Camhridge with my dear brother GrrifEn. He preached to a solenm and atten- tive audience. I preached in the evening. "DEC.-27. Tuesday last, brethren Mills, GiUett, and GritSn met for the private concert at my house." The foUowiiig, in their order, were the texts from which he preached to his own people on several suc- cessive- sabbaths, immediately after the commence- ment of the revival in 1798. " ' Now, when they heard this, they were pricked in their heart, and said unto Peter and the 'rest of the apostles, Men and brethren, what shall we do? Then Peter said unto them. Repent, and be baptized every one of you in the name of Jesus Christ for the remis- sion of sins, and ye shall receive the gift of the Holy Ghost.' Acts 2 : 37, 38. , ' If any man love not the Lord Jesus Christ, let him be Anathema, Maran- atha.' 1 Cor. 16:22. 'And I gave her space to repent of her fornication; and she repented not. Be- hold, I will cast her into a bed, and them that com- mit adultery with her into great tribulation, except they repent of their deeds.' Rev. 2 : 21,- 22. 'Re- * The Rev. Drs. Ebenezer Povter and Edward D. Griffin. NARRATIVE- OF REVIVALS. 137 jcioe, ye nations, with his people'; for he will avenge the hlood of- his servants, and will render ven- geance to his adversariesj and will be merciful unto his land, atnd to his people.' Deut. 32 : 43. ^ The heart is deceitful above all things, and desperately wicked.'- Jer. 17 : 9. ' Thon hast ascended on high, thou hast led captivity captive : thou hast received gifts for men; _yea, for the rebellious also, that the Lord God might dwell among them.' Esa. 68 : 18. ' But the Lord shall arise upon thee, and his glory shall be seen upon thee.' Isaiah 40 : 2. ' And I saw another angel fly in the midst of heaven, having the everlasting gospel to preach unto^ them, that dwell on the earth, and to every nation and kindred, and tongue and people, saying with a loud voice. Fear G-od, and give glory to him ; ihr the hour of his judgment is come : and worship him that made heaven and ekrth, and the sea, and the fountains of waters.' Rev. 14 : 6, 7. '^If thy presence go not with me, carry us not up hence.' Exodus 33 : 15. ' Sir, we would see Jesus.' John 12:21. 'He that believeth on~ the Son of God, hath the witness in himself: he that be- lieveth not God hath made him a liar; because he believeth not the record that God gave of his Son-.' Jer. 2 : 27 ; 1 John, 5 : 10. ' Holiness becometh thy house^ -Lord, for ever.' Psalm 93 : 5. 'Then he, said, I pray thee therefore, father, that. thou wouldr est send him to my fatheris Jfciouse : for I have five brethren ; that he may testify unto them, lest they also come into this place of torment.' " Luke 16:27,28. 138 JKREllIAH HALLOCIC. The various states of Mr. Hallock's mind in con- nection with, the rise and .the progress of this work of grace, are indicated in the following passages. One week hefore its commencement, he writes, "0 will the Lord think of the dry earth, and not re- member the spiritual drought of Zion. thou, who art good and doest good, wilt thou rain down right- eousness lapon'us." Again, "Could not attend a lecture at — • — jior a conference this evening as I purposed, by reason of the great rain. may I learn submission like a weaned child., Alas, how poorly and miserably do I spend my time. my God, wilt thou quicken me." , " This has been asad day to me, as well as yes- terday and the day before. my cold murmuring heart — ^no life in prayer, in study, or in prealching — unthankful for the awakening, and fear €hat it is abating : am astonished that any mortal .should feel so dull as I am, under such circumstances. It seems as if I was in the way ; came home this eveni^ mor- tified and ashamed : Grod, my life, my hope^ my rook." " This day has been the most refreshing to me that I have seen, for a great while. Surely, I must here Set up an Eben-ezer, for ' hitherto. the Lord hath helped me.' Jesus^ thou Lord Grod of Jiosts, take ally all the glory to thyself, and make me happy in beholding thee glorified." " Tried to preach all day from Grenesis 45 : 4; but it has. been all day like a cold, frozen, dreadful win- ter. thou infinite God, I would with all. confidence NAE.RATIVE OF REVIVALS. 139 justify thee, and, be humtled under thy wise> good, and mighty hand._ And. 0,- for Jesus' sake, may thy grace be sufficient for me, and thy power be made perfect in my weakness. Felt in some measure relieved' at the confer'ence." "Had a sweet conference at the school-house." "Had an hour of sweet conversation after the conference." " My mind is cold, weak, and wandering — ^have had scarce oncsweet moment to-day, either in prayer or preaching. Felt a little revived in the intermis- sion. Q Lord, why dost thou tkus hold me off ? I know it cannot be from any defect in thy power or grace, nor in the foundation which thou hast . laid in Zion, but it must be because of my sins. But,-© Lord,. canst thou not have mercy on sinners ? I know thou canst ; and 0, show favor and pity to a poor sin- ner, almost ready to give up his evidencess of grace, and of a call into the ministry." " There are evident tokens of the departure of the Bridegroom. Lord, how painful is thy absence." " A very gloomy day, in a moral sense— cold and faithless myself — straitened in every view ; and Zion dull and sleepy, and sinners-dead. Lord, may we be humbled under thy holy, mighty hand." The following is one of his addresses to persons on receiving them into the church. "I now declare each of you a member of this church. You are members of Christ's visible body, and are. raised up to sit together in heavenly places in Christ Jesus. But you will remember that you 140 JEREMIAH HALLOCK. < have not come to the rest of Grod ahove. The great. ■wilderness of lahor and patience, of enemies and com- bats, of hunger and of thirst, yea, and the river Jor- dan, -which is death, lie between you and the world of glory. Many who passed through the sea, who ate .of- the m'anna and drank of the rockr died by unbe- lief, and never saw the^ rest of the Lord. And it be- oometh you to fear the least appearance of coming short. I may say to you,- as Joshma; said to Israel, ' Ye are witnesses against yourselves, that ye have chosen you the Lord to serve him.' If you should ; turn away, and in works deily him, all this will come up against you. 'Now we live, if ye stand fast in the Lord.' If you endure against heU, earth, and sin, Grod wiH be glorified, 'ZionwUl, and great' will be your peace. But in order for this yoji must make a business of leligioii, of reading, of meditation, of the religion of the closet, the family, and the house m{ Grod. The covenant you have made is perpetual and never to be forgotten, no, not for an hour. As David put off Saul's sword and coat of mail, so-put off-all your own wisdom and strength, and with that lovely youth, meet your spiritual- foes only by faith in the name of the Lord Jesus. Barnabas exhorted the young profes- sors at Antioch with purpose of heart to cleave unto the Lord. If you do this, your enemies will be de- feated, and be constrained to confess, that Jesus is of God, -and his Teligion divine. And now, dearly be- loved, ' I commend you to Grod, and to the. word of his grace, which is stble to build you up and to give you an inheritance among all them which are sanctified.' " NARRATIVE OF REVIVALS 141 The record o£ the work of G-od jn this chapter may be appropriately closed by the outline op oiVe op Mr. Hallock's sermons, preached in a school-house at S , a neighboring congregation, where ^ the Spirit was evidently descending. "We are indebted for it to the retentive m'erfiory^strengthened perhaps by loss of sight — of the Rev. Mr. McL the pastor, who heard' it with deep anxiety that it might be bless- ed to precious souls of his spiritual charge. " It was pleached," he says, " at a time of special attention to religion arnong my people. It was evening. Many were assembled. The old. and the young were anxious about the 'soul. The mind of Mr. Hallook was by prayer prepared for the occasion, and he announced the text and proceeded .to apply it with- almost an unearrthly solemnity." " ' "WhoscSever he be of you that forsaketh not . 0,11 that he hath, he cannot be' my disciple.' Luke 14:33. " It will bp my intention, this-evening, to bring, you to the test. There is an important sense in which it is VERY COSTLY to become a disciple of Christ. Yoii must couM thin' cost, if you- would be sure of Tieaven. K any of you were thinking of building, some expen- sive edifice, you would first sit down and count th« cost. • If a king were to go to war with another king, he would first of all count the cost. This is the safest way to escape ultimate shame and -disappointment. Thus poor sinners who would become disciples of Christ, must first sit down and count the c6st,\ and Christ says, it will cost them all that they have. 142 . JEREMlAHjIsSlrLOOK. * ' Whossever he be of you, that forsaketh not all that he hath, he cannot he my disciple.' <' I shall first-consider what God owns. I do this in' order to ascertain what is left, for all that is. left belongs to the sinner, and constitutes what he must give up in oiider to he a disciple of Christ. God owns 'the silver and the gold,' 'the cattle upon a thousand hills' ' The earth is the Lord's, and the fulness tiiere- of.' The sun, moon, and stars are his. The kingdoms of this world, and the church of Christ are his. : The great and wide universe belongs to him. He made all things' for himself. And now, what is there left? AU that is left is the sinner's.; " 1: Here is jouTself-rigkfeousnesSfthis is a gar- ment which the sinner has made himself. "With this he has endeavofed to cover over his deceitful wicked heart, to hide it from (rod, But G-od sees through it. He looks 4own into the very depths of the sin- - ner's depravity, and says to him, ' I will reprove thee, and set thy sins in order before thine eyes.' Consider the poor scribes and Pharisees. • They trusted in their self-righteousness, and perished in, their sins. Your self-righteousness is absolutely worthless. It is no better than filthy rags. Cast it from you as oflfensive to God, and be willing to be clothed in the white rdbe of Christ's righteousness. With this, you will be made welcome at the supper of the Lamb. " 2. False doctrine. This belongs to the sinner. To xjbtain eternal salvation, you must believe the gospel, you must be 'Tooted arid grounded' in the truth. In the work of saving immortal souls," God NARRATIVE OT REVIVALS. US makes use of truth, of inspired truth. Beware of blind. -guides, of false docti-ine, and the command- ments of men. If you depart from 'the faith once delivered to the saints,' you grieve the Holy Spirit, and he "will depart from you. If you give heed to seducing fahlesj and doctriaes of devils, I feajr you will seal your damnation. " 3. Vain amusements and carnal pleasures belong to the sinner. Such sources of happiness are as transi- tory "as 'the crackling of thorns under. a pot.' They always leave an aching void. Your jovial music and dancing, your house of mirth and feasting, your wine and your card-taMej must aU he forsaken ; ' your laughter must be turned to mourrdngj and your joy to heaviness.' Kehgion is a serious business with thosewho are on their 5vay tp'heaven. " 4. 'Sinful associates belong to the sinner. . Such associates are not the companions of those who are ' strangers and pilgrims on the earth.' They belong to sinners. If you -would be Christ's disciples, you must come out from flie world and be. separate. 'The oompanioh of ^ools shall be destroyed.' " S. The hypocrite's hope belongs to the sinner. We fear there are rilany who lay hold on such a hope. It is no better than the spider's web. Dismiss it in this time of solemiiity with you. , If you hold it fast, 'what will you do when God riseth up; and when he .visiteth you, what will you answer him ?' Oh, the fajse hope will be like the giAdng up of the ghost when God shall take away the soul. ■ "6. Promises of future repentance are left, and 14-1 JEREMIAH HALLOCK. ^ .If belong to the pinner. To quiet the mind for the pres- ent, many such promises are made, .hut they are fearfully dangerous to the soul. Delaying sinners, the voice of God is crying in your ears, ' Behold,, now is the accepted time ; behold, now is the day of salva- tion ;' but you reply, ' To-morrow shall be as this day, and much more abundant.' ' When I shall have a convenient seaspn,' then I will repent and come to Chrifet. I am afraid that season will never come. Death may this moment, be at the door. Your safety consists in your immediate acceptance of Christ. *' Thus we have considered what belongs to the sinner. Self-righteousness, false doctrines, vain amuse- ments and carnal pleasures, sinful associates, the hypo- crite's hope, and promises of future repentance belong to sinners, and must, be forsaken in order to become the followers of Christ. • " Ahd.now, if you Vill forsake all these, let me. tell you AVHAT Christ will give you.- "1. Here is pardon. Sinners in. their natural state are under condemnation. The sentenpe of death is passed upon them. < The soul that sinneth it shall die.' .Tlie language of the gospel isj 'He that-behev- eth not is condemned already.' For the present the sentence is- not executed, because G-od. waits upon sinners to be gracious, and to give them space for re- pentance. "While God thus waits, the gospel is preach- ed to> sinners. The Spirit strives with them, and par- doning mercy is. offered them, if they will forsake all and come to Christ. Come then, poor sinners, leave all that you have, and enjoy eternally the blessedness ^ NARRATIVE OF REVIVALS. 145 of forgiveness-. Gome, and all your sins shall be removed from you as far as the east is from the west. They shall never o-eturn to condemn you and torment you. 'He that believeth en the Son of God, shall hot come into condemnation.' "2. Here is peace — peace with Grod, peace of conscience, and joy in the Holy Ghost. Siimers while out of Christ and in a state of impenitence are un- happy. They are 'wretched and miserable and poor and blind and naked.' ' The wicked are like the troubled sea when it cannot rest, whose waters cast up mire and dirt.' ' There is no peace, saith my God, to the wicked.' The past is, to them, all lost in sin. At this very moment their hearts are contending with a holy God : they would flee out of his hands. In the future there is 'a fearful looking for of judgment and fiery indignation.' Unhappy sinners, " ' Your way is dark and leads to hell; Why will you persevere ?' Now peace is offered to you; it is urged" upon you : a peace that ''passeth^ all understanding,' peace with God and heaven, peace in your own souls, joy which is ' unspeakable and full of glbry.' If you reinain in 3nour sins you will, never know what it is to be happy. Would you know the blessedness of that reUgion which is from heaven, forsake all, and come to Christ, the R)untain of living wate^rs. " 3, Here is hope. The gospel speaks of a 'good hope through grace,' a hope which is like ' an anchor, sure and steadfast.' It is supported in the soul by evidence that the heart is changed by the Spirit -of 146- JEREMIAH HALLOCK. God, that the affections are purified and placed upon heavenly ohjeots, and that the soul delights in the doctrines of- grace, and in the advancement of that Kingdom -which is not of this world. Poor guilty condemned sumers have no such hope. They are ' without hope .and without Grodin the world.' They are like the unhappy helpless mariner who is out on ' a sea of storms and- tempests without an anchor to hold and steady his vesset The winds are ho\vling, and the billows are dashing, aiid all expectation of entering the desired haven is cut off, Y6u may have a ' good hope ;' you must have it, or he.lost in reme- diless despair. Forsake all that you hjive, and this great anchor is yours. -Then let the storms beat, and the winds blow ; let the heavens lower and gather blackness^ you are safe, and you may sing the rich grace tha;t conducts you to the haven of everlasting peace. "4! Here is "triumph in death. All must die. There is a time to die. A dying time will be a ndost distressing time to poor sinners who have made no preparation for death. Wh^t will their self-righteous- ness, their vain pleasures and gratifications, and thejr false hopes, avail them then ? The widied are driven away in their wiokedpess. How keen their mental anguish, how gainful their'sufferingsj Vhen flesh and Jieart shall fail ! How they wUl tremble and wail as they see their probation closing, and Jknow that .the Spirit of Grod has departed froni them ; and that in a moment they must rush into a ^orld of iost souls. I have seensuoh poor sinners 'm. their last moments. . NA.RRATIVE OF REVIVALS, 147 How my heart did ache, when I was driven to the painful conclusion that their case ■yras hopeless. But, sinners, it is not necessary that you should die thus wretched. The solemnities of this evening are evi- dence that God is yet waiting upon you. His Spirit is present. Make him welbome to your heart. Grieve him not. 5'orsake.all that you haVe,,and come to Christ, and that holy, -memorahle song of triumph shall he yours: '0 death, where is thy sting? graved ■#here is thy victory ? Thanks he to God, who giveth us the viptory through our Lord Jesus Christ.' "Finally, here is eternal glory.' The impenitent unhelieving sinner must he lost. There is no place, no portion for him in heaven. For him there is no - society, no ernployment, no enjoyment inheav©n. The wicked must he turned into hell. Hear the last sol- emn sentence front the mouth of the offended Judge, the sentence that will decide for ^ver the allotment of the finally impenitent: ' Pepart from moj ye cursed; into everlasting fire, prepared for the devU and his, angels.' You have an opportunity, this evening, to escape this- dreadful doom. , In tjie name of my Lord %nd Master, I come and offer heaven to you. Let tis rise above this little earth, and take a view of that hearvenly kingdom". And-.what is it? , It is deliver- aUce from;aU sin. ' There shall in no -wise eiiter into it any thing that defileth.' It is deliverance from all sorrow ; all tears shall he wiped from their eyfis ; ' there shall be no more death, neither sorrow nor cry- ing,' It is ' an exceeding and an eternal weight of glory.' AH will be of one heart and of one mind, and 148 JEREMIAH HALLOCK. all the redeemed will sweetly sing the new song, the song of grace; Now, sinners, are you willing to lose this heaven ? Can you endure th$ loss ? "Will you throw away your immortal souls for mere trifles? Leave all that you have, and heaven is yours. Do you hesitate ? "Will you die ? Do you want a longer time to decide ? It does seem to me that I have made up my mind. Let me now plead with you iat one moment". I must bring you to the test. Count the cost. Look at. what you have to forsake. . It is aU as worthless as dung and dross. The longer you, retain it, the- more unhappy you are. If yo:u keep it in your possession till death, ^ou will perish with everlasting destruction. It is all lighter than vanity. By for- saking it, you lose nothing ; on the contrary, your gain will be infinite. Here you will have pardon,' and peace, and hope, and triumph in death, and eternal. glory be- yond the grave. Can you hesitate for a single moment ? If you will not yield, and leave all.and come to Christ, then we must weep over you, and bid you adieu for ever." . "I am pained," adds Eev.,Mr. McL — — , "with . tlie conviction that I have come far short of the origi- nal. It is difficult, for me to give, an adequate de- scription of the preaching of that man of God. We must see him and hearhira, and personally witness his solemnity and importunity, in order to have a full understanding of the nature and power of his public performances.**' MISSION IN VERMONT. 149 CHAPTER VI. • FIRST MISSION TO VERM^ONT— l/ABORS IN REVIVALS, The early and strong desire of Mr. Hallock to te a missionary is akeady before tte reader. In the summer of 1801 the Lord called him for a time to this service. The Missionary Society of Connecticut, at that time in its infancy, applied to him to spend a few months in the- state of "Vermont. On receiving the application, he writes, " June., 3, 1801. Am requested to make a tour in the north-east part of' Vermont. The suhject looks very weighty indeed. Many are the motives,' for going,, and many are the ohjeotions. Lord, divest me of self, and order this matter in mercy, and guide me hyihy counsel in the way I should go. I give myself tp thee. " July 12, "Week before last I engaged to go, God wilUng, en a mission of four months into the new state. Lord, strengthen me and guide me in this thy wo;-k. Things as yet have appeared to work favor- aljly to my mission. Jesus, I thank thee. Suffer no trials to come, upon me, I pray, thee, in this or any thing, ahove the strength which thou shalt give. "July 26, Lord's day. Text in the forenoon, ' Seek- first the kingdom of G-od ;' i,n the afternoon., ' Put on the whole armor of God.' But little freedom, 150 JEREMIAH «ALLOCK. yet the scene appeared, solemn, as this was the part- ing Sahbath. Expect to set out to-morrow on my tour to Vermont. " July 27, 1801. Having an appointment from the Trustees, of the Missionary Society of Connecti- cut,' the- consent of the church, and, I trust, the call of Jesus, and aU things, heing prepared, I this day, ahoiit eleven o'clock, bade my lovely consort and dear children and friends farewell, taking for my motto, ' Jesus OF Nazareth, Captain of the Lord's host, MY best friend.' " , Some of his feelings on the way to the field of labor, he thus records : First day. "Some of the time was exceedingly depressed, and so discouraged I was almost ready to turn about ; at other times feK enooUragied. In the evening, a sweet visit with my dear brother — — ." Second day. " Some part of the way exceedingly confused and^ depressed. Tried to pray, but my mind was weak and unfixed. It seemed as if I had but little evidence of faith or love ; distressing doubts pre- vailed, and the consolations of the word seemed to be gone, and I was constrained to ery, with sinking Petet, 'Lord, save me.' Dined at Rev. Mr. Judd's. Was refreshed in conversation. About three o'clock rode to my dear father's in Goshen. Found ^ray , parents well, and prospering both in body and soul, but felt more depressed and discouraged than ever; no appetite for food ; my heart was hard and wander- ing ; I feared I was never renewed, I had so little sense of ^;he hatefiilness of sin, and of the beauty of MI-SSION IN .yERMOHT. 351 holiness. The weight of the journey overwhehned me. It seemed as if I could neither go back nor for- ward ; I was ready to wish J had never thought of the mission ; had something of a fever, but tried to compose my tumultuous mind in Ood, and by his , mercy, after a while went to sleep." Fourth day. " Arose and retired with some Chris- tian friends into the w'oods, for prayer. Felt weak in body and- mind, but not so discouraged as at, some times; for ever blessed be the Lord, was in a great measure reUeved this afternoon.'.' . Fifth day. " -A. pleasant morning; some freedom, I trust, in secret prayer.". Seventh day. " Sabbath ; Sunderland, Vermont. A distressing gloom has been on me almost ever since 1 came from home ; was confused in famUy-and secret prayer last night and this morning. But 0, what shall I render unto the Lord, for his free mercies? I began to feel released in the forenoon, especially in preaching; and. this afternoon^ . both in prayer and preaching, -the attention was unusual — some tears ; thus far tlie Lord hath helped me. Preached a third sermon an hour and a half befere sunset ; talked in the evening with some professors ; advised them to organ- ize anew. The Sabbath and the church are almost lost in this town." , " Aug. 5. Joined with the Rev. Mr. H in se'-* cret prayer this morning, and rode to Chittenden. " Aug. 6. Preached at four o'clock ; had but little jBreedom : the people stopped, and I talked with them after sermon ; some appeared attentive. 152 JEREMIAH HALLOCK. " Aug-. 7. Visited all day from house to house, my dear friend H-- heihg with me. Numbers weie tender and wept, and I cannot but think the Spirit of G-od is secretly at work in Ijiis place. At (evening the neighbors met for prayer, snd I made some re- marks on G-pd's reviving his vrork. , " AjUB. 8. Visited as yesterday, in -anothe;r neigh- borhood, but did not fihd so much feeling. " Aug. 9, Lord's day. Rested poorly. The morn- ing was rainy,;" had but little opportunity for retire-- ment, or freedom in any duty ; preached from- 1 Cor. 16 : 22 and John 3 : 14, 15 ; had much more freedom and attention th&n I expected. The house was crowd- ed-; it was very hot ; I felt as if I should faint both ia. prayer and preaching, but was carried ^rough : had a full and serious conference in the evening; Chris- tians seemed to be revived, and tatake courage that Grbd was about to come among them. A fevy youth appear to be under some impressions. They have no church formed in this town, but there seem- to be a few understanding, lively Christiaps, They have meetings on the Sabbath, and I c^mnoj btit think that- God has mercy in store for this place. . - "Aug. 10. Had an affectionate parting with Christian friends in Chittenden ; left some pobr sin- ners in tears ; the Lord have mercy on them. " Aug. 12. Sudbury. Mpre freedom in family prayer and in retirement ;' talked with the children; they gave good attention, especially one little boy about twelve ; he steadily watohec^ me while I was talkingj with watery eyes." ,*• MISSION IN VERMONT. 153 Oji his way to this plabe, Mr. Hallook writes, " As a strg,nger I knew not ths way ; hence ,three things were necessary. First, that some one should inform rhe ; secondly, that he should inforiji' me right ; thii^dly, that I should follow the direction : so it is in spiritual things." " Aug. 13. Rode to Cornwall ; preached the fu- neral-sermon of a youth, from Luke 13:24, to an afflicted family, and a crowded attentive audience. This town is all settled and large. The church con- tains about-one hundred memhers. They have lately, had some revival,, and' ahout thirty added ; feel much more at home than in the forepart of my journey. After agreeable' conversation and prayer with brother "W— — and' visiting some sick families, rode to New Haven, and stopped with my good old friend deacon Andrew Mills ;^ had a precious evening, with freedom in J)rayer and conversation. . " Aug. 16. Lord'& day, Confrrsed in mind, this morning, but had -unusual freedom in preaching in the forenoon to a little, attentive audience ; also in conversation in the intermission. " Aug. 17. Rode with deacoti Mills to Waltham, about ten miles; had sweet conversation with some friends from New Hartford ; in the evening had a meeting ; but little freedom, yet thie_ people were at- tentive. There is no meeting-house nor church formed in this toWn, neither have they of late had any meet- ing on the Sabbath, except a few who met together last Lord's day. Yet in this place there are a few niourning souls, 7* 154 JEREU'lAH HALLOCK. "Aug. 18. Rfetumed to New Haven— visited a sick person on the way — attended a diurch-meeting at two o'clock. Miss S was examined. Never could a copy more agree with its original, than her experience agreed with that of hopeful converts in Connecticut. This appeared to he the most heavenly meeting I have seen on my journey. At four o'clock preached on Christians being -the light of the world, vrith more freedom than I expected. Had refresh- ing conversation with a number of dear Christians after meeting, then rode about four miles. ' ' Aug. 19. Preached at four o'clock from Isa. 40 : 1. The meeting was fuU and attentive. Some scofiing Universalists were present, supposed- to come for a- dis- pute, but they seemed rather to smite their breasts and go home in silence. Thanks be to God, who hath given us a peaceful, serious mseting. Spent the evening with Christian friends in conversation and prayer." A clerical brother of like sentiments with Mr. Hal- Icick, who had just lost a dear son. without the conso- lation of a good hope in his case, once put this ques- tion with rather peculiar emphasis: " I)o you not sometimes doubt, Mr. HaUook, whether a holy and benevolent God will inflict eternal punishment" upon any jJart of mankind ?" He promptly replied, "No, sir. If a man should-tell me that he had just seen Canton meeting-llouse in flames, and I should hasten to the spot and find it not so, would he be able afterwards to look me in the^face? So,, if there is to be no everlasting punishment for any. of our race, how could Christ, after his many positive deolara- MISSION IN VEB.MONT. l56 tions to the contrary, hold up his head hefore his people in the futuire world ?" " 4-UG. 26. Eode to Essex, twelve miles. Tired and faint, called at a house hy the way, where they never -so much as asked us to drink a Mttle water. " Aug. 31. Rode to the' lake— saw the Grand isle ; in the afternoon visited a school-^the' instructor and the children were affected. " Sept. 12. My cough trouhlesome — ^ome freedom of spirit in retirement — rode with my friend I)— r^ to the lake, four miles, to see Mr. S , hopefully con- verted of late. In the time of the war, he- was a British soldier. He is about sixty, and unahle to read ; a man of good natural sense, but before his late awakening he was very. profane andpassionate. His daughter-in-law is also an apparent convert. This house J a little while past^ place of profane oaths, is now, I trust, a Bethel." , . Letter to ^is -wife, " Kingston,, Vt, Oct. 3, 1801. " Dearest earthly Friend — Though I am by the- help of Grod as well as common,- and find kind-&iends everywhere, yet the trial of so long a separation from you is indeed great. I have not heard a word from you, since I left home. These questions interest" my . heart : Are you well, or sick ? living, or dead ? suj)t ported, or overborne with trials 1 I also long to know if it is well with the church and parish. But when these and the like weighty cares overload my soul,. I try to cast them all upon the Lord. About three weeks ago, I had a tedious cqld and a most trouble- 356 • TEREMIAH HALLOCK. some cough, but was enabled to preach. Sahhath before last, I preached at "Westford, administered the Lord's suppler, and attended a meeting in tha. even- ing. It seemed just like '98 and the forepart of '99. A more blessed attention than what appears now in the south part of Westford, I never saw. I have beeii to Essex, to Swanton, to Georgia and Waterbury, where the goings of the victorious Lamb are also visi- ■ ble, some under concern and numbers apparently born of'Grod. The little clqud is seen in Fairfield and ill , almost every place. About noon, September 1, 1 met brother Bushnell in Milton, and I can hardly think Aaron was more glad to see Moses. " A missionary wants health, a strong constitution, abilities, great gracej and much prudence. How much then must a poor invalid and one of little faith need your- prayers, and constant support from the Lord Jesus. I hope dear Christians will not let their easy circumstances at home make them forget fainting missionaries and the cause in the wilderness. ' '-' Tell Deacon Bidwell, Deacon Mills, Deacon Humphrey, and Dr. Everest, they twine about my- heart, and I should be glad to give each of them a letter ; but I am so taken up, I can hardly get time to read my usual chapters in the Bible. ,If the Lord will, I hope, to see you the latter part of next. month. I shall make an effort to get home on the Friday pre- ceding the fourth Sabbath in November ; and wish the concert,* if convenient, to meet on that evening, ,.* This .concert was held weekly, for more than twenty years, in Mr. Hallock's study ; commonly on Thursday even- MigSION IN VEfeMONT. 157 that wei may pray together once more. G-ive my love to Jeremiah, Homan, and Sarah; I helieve I think of you all twice, where you do of me once. Think of Grod. Choose Mary's good part. Farewell. Mr. BushneU sends his love to you and to the ,c|iurch. " From your affectionate- friend, - "JEREMIAH HALLOCK."- "Oct. 21. Rode to G ; preached on Moses' lifting up the serpent. Was v6ry coldly received here. The Lord for^ve them.' " Oct. 23. In a little more than eight days, have rode a hundred miles, much of tlie w^y extremely had ; have preached eight sermons, and- attended one con- ference ; our lives, hones, and health have been spar- ed, and to G-od be all the glory. Lord, wilt thoji come aiid revive thy work in these regions of moral death. Lord, wilt thou have mercy on the kind youth who' hath rode with me, and grant him the riches of Jesus. "Oct. 24. Spent this evening in prayer with a few Christians. Three tcild their experience. It seemed as if God was there. It seemed like the stiU small Voice when BUja^ worshipped. " Nbv. 2. In Montpelief found Mr. T. R ■.. It seemed to refresh me in body and mind." Brother R exhorted in the family — ^we sang — had' two prayers, and a fefjreshing' evening." .^v. ■ ' ' lag. In compliance with the reijuest in this letter, the breth- ren Convened at the time proposed, and in the course of .thet mfeeting, tg the great joy of all, Mr. Hallock arrived from his loiig journey. 158 JEREMIAH HALLOCK. The account of this tour Mr. Hallock closes as follows: "-Nov. 81. Arrived at home atout seven in the evening, after -an absence of sixteen weeks, and found my consort and femily well. Health' has generally prevailed in the paijish, and the church appears still united, no schism haviag taken place. .Had an agree- ahle meeting with a goodly number convened at our house on my return. , "In my Jate journey have travelled abojit one thousand mUes ; visited, many of the towns in the new settlements from Middlebury to Canada line, and preached ninety-six sermons — on an average six in a week. I have assisted in the fornpiatiqn of two ehuiches, one ia Richmond and' the other in .Cabotj • and have admitted thiirty-two persons into the church. "As my motto, when I set out was, 'Jesus of Nazareth, Captain of the Lord's host, my . best FRIEND,' I would close with this :. ' Be all the glory - TiUNi;, whose it is, and to whom it belongs.' " He adds the following as to the call for- mission- aries in the new settlements of Vermont : " The inhabitants in the new settleme^its in Ver- mont Are numerous far beyond what I had supposed : in many of the towns one hundred, and in some ris- ing of' two hundred families. The land in general is rich and fertile. But as the first settlers gave their attention to farms ind aqueducts rather than tp meet- ing-houses and the gospel, in a large tract, of coimtry not a meeting-house is to be found, in njany places no visible church exists, and in some no sort of relig* MTISSION IN TEEllONT. 159 ious meeting, and the Lord's day is spent by iiie mass of the people in exploring land, visiting,' fishing, etc. But in every place Christ has his spiritual salt, and grieving souls are to he found ; yet as they have no ecclesiastical centre, \rhat spiritual steength there is, is far firpm being concentrated, and Christians are like jsca'ttered sheep. E nthusiasm and many errors are prop- agated. Still, matters in general appear on the reform, the truth seems to be taking root, Christians to be refreshed, and divers' places to erijoy special revivals. "If we take the south part of Canada, adjacent to Vermont, vvrhich is .settled by our people, the mis* sionary ground in that quarter is equal in extent to the territory of Connecticut, The call for missionary labor is extensive a,nd loud. The prospect is, in many places, that if the Christians can be gathered and have a little help, they will soon be able to settle and support ministers, and willing to become, generous contributors for sending the. gospel to others. The custom of giving up the Sabbath and its ordinances for ten or fourteen years is to be met and counter- acted. Where matters begin to put on a more favor- able appearance, Christians, almost hopeless^. revive,- take courage, and Uke' the Macedonians say. Come and help us. Having been often deceived by strangers, the serious people grow cautious; they wish for'preachers with good credentials, and receive a missionary from the Coijnecticut Soci6ty with confidence and respect. "But when we contemplate the experience, the abiKties, the faith, labors, and self-denial requisite for a profitable mi^:ionary, the heart cries, 'Who is 16.0 JEREMIAH HALLOeK. suifioient ?' As all increase is of G-od, let none for- get to mitiglet their contributions with persevering prayers to the Lord of the harvest. Amen." LABORS IJT HIS 0"WN VIGIETITY. Letter to Deacon Taylor. ' ,. "WEstSiMSBUKY, May 27, 1802. "Very dear Brother'^ — I send you a few lines hy your daughter, whom I am glad to see.. Sabbath before last I was at Middle Grranyille., . There was a tremendous storm— but few at meeting: — yet . the special influences , of the divine Spirit were evident; •The conference was full and very solemn; brother A , who is awake, and myself, concluded we never saw it more so. The special attention is con- vfined to one neigiiborhood ; pray that it may leaVeii the whole parish. I tarried until Monday noon, fivery house was serious, and Some under deep' impressions: 0, how real is'eternity, when the tnmd is a little enlightened. • ■ " C. P appears well. He gave me the follow^ ing account of himself. About two months past l^e was at a conference ; somfe observations were rnade- on consideration. They took a little liold of his inind, but he went home and retired to rest; as usual, with- out prayer. He then put the question, 'Do I love the Lord Jesus ?' The answer was. No, I have nbt the least love to Mm,' though I have been- in the visirble church. He saw his heart, perfectly, black, and remained in' this terrible situation about three weeks.., These lines of "Watts occurred : < , MISSION IN VERlCOIfT. ' 161 " ' As pilgrims on the scorching sand, Beneath a iurning sky, JLohg for a cooling stream at hand, And they must drink, or die.' "He felt that he taust drink^or die — retired — and before he arose from his knees, the, glory of (rod appef.red^ — yet no hope respecting himself; his dis- tress was gone, and he feared that stupidity, which he had so much dreaded, had come upon him. Ahout a week after, he had new light; attended with a hope. He appears humble like a little, child — is afraid of his deceitfiil heart — but says, 'If I am not deceived, I do love God, I do love Jesus, t do love Zion.'' He stands amazed at the wonderful love of God, that instead of sending him to hell,, he should show him these things. His only child, a daughter, and a Chris- tian, married in B .. He has been to see her, and says, 'You cannot tell, Mr. Hallock, how my poor child rejoiced ; she Was in Christ before her father.' " Nothing special among us ; our conference full last Sabbath evening. Deacon H' is confined; so many absent, it seems lonesome ; but Christ lives. Farewell, my brother, the Lord bless you and your house. Write whein you can. "I am, etc. 'OEREMIAH HALLOCZ." " Aug. 2, 1802. My soul travails in birth, either on holy or selfish grounds, for the conversion of my poor children. Lord, I would commit all to thy infinite mercy in Christ." Again: "I find amazing stupidity in my family. God of mercy, my only hope for 162 JEREMIAH HALLOOK. my rained self and poor undone family, wilt thou cotne^of thy mere mercy and power, and show us our sins in a true light, and softeja and quioke'n our hearts for Jesus' sake. "Aug: 22. lam so barren in study, so lifeless and embarrassed in preaching, and see, so much opposition and wickedness of heart, I am almost ready to sink. L6rd, wilt thou save and help 'me, for thy name's sake. > "Aug. 23. Sensible of my- unfaithfulness, as" I trdst in some measure, of the solemn charge com- mitted to me as a minister, and of the value of immor- tal souls ; considering the worth of Christ's kingdom, and how much Jeaus has done ; I would iidw resolve to revisit each family in this parish, to inquire after their eternal concern^ — ^to speiid one day at least every week in this work, unles^ sickness or special providences forbid, untU 1 shall have accomplished it. I, Would keep a particular account of my visits. And having had long experience of^my weakness, and knowing that this undertaking will be attended with many trials, I would rely only on the Lord, for .wis- dom and strength and for success, pleading his great name and holy kingdom. "Fribay, Aug. 27. Devoted to visiting, according to the above resolve. I think spiritual visits useful,, and trust I " feel; in some measure, quickened. - Lord, wilt thou give me strength to proceed, and give success. ' "Moi^DAY, August 30, 1802. Devoted this day to visiting. I have, for the ipost part, felt barren and LABOR IN REVIVALS. .163 gloomy myself, and find tut little religion among tjie people. Yet •while I lanient before the- Lord, I would not he discouraged, hut seek to sow, morning and evening, in season, out of season, hoping that if I should not live to see the harvest others may. Lord, make me faithful and give ine'rease, and thine be the glory.- " Sept. 12. Trust I had-, some refreshing and strength in reading the word, and in prayer at noon. This afternoon spent in the field.. may I do aU for the gospel's sake, -and nothing out of love to the world.- " Oct.. 3, 1803. I have been from home seven-. days — ^been enabled to journey not far from eighty miles to attend the association and council, to preach , six times, and converse and pray repeatedly with Christian friends, I trust with some freedom and to some acceptance. Yet what reason I have to lament my hard, unthankful, and barren heart, "Oct. 17, Lord's day. Norfolk. Last Monday evening preached at Cambridge on the superior glory of the gospel. Tuesday, went with brother Cowles to Plyinouth — ^we both preached — I preached agkin in the evening, on Zion as the mother of converts. 'Wednesday we both preached at Litchfield, and both spoke again in the evening. Thursday we preached at Groshen and spoke in the evening. Friday we preached at Harwinton, and spoke in the evening. Yesterday rode to this place. To-day preached, first on Christians so walking, in Christ as they have received him ; then on Zion as the mother of cout 164 JEREMIAH HALLOCK. verts : in the evening,", from ' The shout of a king is among them.' Have had unusual health, ajid some freedom in prg/jer and preaching. " Oct. 18. To-day returned home ; found all well except Jeremiah, who is still complaining. Lord Jesu|, I would tell thee. O Lord, wilt thou make the seed of the word we have heen instrumental in sowing prosperous, and may I he humble and thank- ful, glorying only in thee. " Jan, 1, 1804. We are now brought to see the beginning of a new year. We of this family are yet alive, and all except Jeremiah have been favored with usual health, and his case is not desperate. I heve not been once prevented by sickness from attending meeting. Have been allowed the past year to go and see the work of God in Chester and Middle Granville ; and have heard of it in^many placed. I am not pressed' with debt, but have wherewith to pay my creditors^ and we are clothed and fed to the full. The mercies of God, both to soul and body, are innumerable.. But my unfaithfulness and spiritual barrenness, in prayer, in study, in every religious duty, private and public. My heart is most vicious, whence proceeds oj^osition to the cross of Jesus, and all corruption. Lord my God, how do I need thy grace, thy strength, ■ thy righteousness, and all the riches of Christ Jesus. There have been about twelve deaths- among us the past year : what times will pass over us this year ; who will be bereaved, or who will die ; what public or private changes, axiverse or prosper- ous, is with Him who worketh all things according to LABOR. IN REVIVALS. 165 the counsel of his own will. But this we know, it will he well with them that fear God, and that the ' ready ' are hlesged. - Lord, revive thy work, make us wholly thine^ and he our portion. -"Last Friday evening the dear youth Mr. W ■ came to see us from his mission; last evening, the precious Mr. C , late missionary to New Connect- icut," Northern Ohio; "Brother C ^ preached in the forenoon and adrninistered the Lord's supper. Brother W-^^ — preached in the afternoon. Their preaching and prayers were excellent, and in the spirit and -truths of the gospel. Both of them preached- again, at different places, in the evening, to unusual acceptance. In the tinie of drought there is some- thing hopeful in seeing the clouds rise and come over us. that these spiritual clouds might he attended with much rain. " Jan. 2. Aftef-praying and Singing together, part- ed with dearW . How sweet are hrethrepheloved for JesUs' sake. "June 16, 1804. My dear father and sister Mercy are with, us on a visit. Have spent. two days this week in visiting schools. - 1 get hut little time for study. My mind is weak, wandering, and barren, I feel as if I was -one- of the most unfruitful, useless ministers. Lord, to thee I fly, and thee alone, for help. Last week attended the ordination of Rev. Mr. Perry over the church in Sharon. Attempted to make the concluding prayer, hut was emh'arrassed and fruitless — greatly tried with the fear of man. I remain- fearfully cold and comfortless under, mercies 166 • JE-REMIAH HALLOCK. and trials. . Lord^ what ^hall I do ? I. fly only to " Ju;vE 23. Rev. Mr. T. W , a missionary, tar- rie'd with us last night. We prayed together repeat- edly. may, I he thankful for such company, and may the Lord go with him." • < This missionary ohserves, in a letter to .the com- piler, "As I was leaving the house of Dr. Strong of Hartford, to go on a mission to the state of New York, that great and gdod man said, ' Cro and stay a day with hrother Hallook. He can give you more of the. instruction and assistance you will need on your mission than any other man.' Among other things that , .flowed from Mr. HaUock's heart, like rivers of living water, he said, ' I have lately been thiiiking on- these words of the first Christian ministers^ ^Bui we will ■ give ourselves continually toprayer and to the min- . istry of the word^ and I have almost wondered that every ordination sermon has not been preached from that text.' So well did his spirit agree with this passage, that th^e was no appearanog. of affectation in his proposal to unite in prayer both morning and. evening , in his study. Nor was it surprisyig that such a man, when he went ihto the barn in the course of the forenoon, must there kneel and pray to G-od in the name of Him who was born in a stable. In view of my mission, the sum of what he said may be 'given in these words : ' In every place and in every house kno^ as far as you can what interests the people, and take their concerns, and cares into your own heart .. with a spirit of Christian sympathy. This spirit will LABOR .IN REVIVALS, 167 be as ar Iqadsjione to draw their hearts to Christ. The Saviour cared for the hodies as, well as the souls of men.' " ' ' " August. 30. .Returned home last evMiiug affer an ahseneg of four days. On the Sabbath was. at Middle GrranvUle. In this place more than fifty have been added to the church. Monday rode to Tyr-ing- ham ; found Rev. Mr. Avery and his family spiritual On Tuesday rode toLoudon," now Otis, " visited friends there, and preached in the evening. - God hath a number of precious people in this place. I am often tried with the rnost foolish', wicked thoughts, but by the help of God I continue to this time. " Sept. 24. Yisited brother Griffin, at Colonel- Austin's. Spent the evening at Dr. B 's, with Rev. Messrs. ICills, Griffin, and Jerome, in prayer for Mrs. Jerome, Who lay at %he point of death. " Oct. 28. Lord's day. Litchfield.- Preached in the forenoon, on the necessity of holiness ; in the afternoon, on coming to the great supper. Was favor- ed with some ^eedom- and attention. I trust the feax of God is in this place. " Oct. -29. Rode witib Rev. Mr. Mills to "Wash- ington.^ Heard him preach; I exhorted the church to awake and pray to God, it being a time of attention in this place. • " Oct. 30. Went with Rev. Mr. Porter to Rqxbury. I preached on the depravity of m^n, Mr. Mills exhort- ed ; there were evident signs of unusual atteiitioni .^Eeturned in the evening to Washington. ' "Oct, 31. The dear Rev. Mr. Swift of Roxbury. 168 JEREHIAH HALLOCK, came to see us. At one o'clock, eleven wereexamio-:. ed as candidates for the churcli. It was a spiritual, solemn interview. At three, I preached on preparing the way of the Lord^ In the. evening Mr. Mills and myself exhorted. The meetings were serious, the Lord is doing great things for this people. " I)bc. 2, 1804. Spent Monday and Tuesday, the past week, in visiting with Mrs. Hallook from -house, to house. "March IO, 1805. This morning was almq^tready to give up aU hope of any grace- in my heart.. The extremity of .this almost despair did not last long. CoTild not hut think I di,d love divine things. Must say, it has been as usual with me torday, all things consideyed^ yet, have had but little sensible comfort' and' much exhausted, in the outward man. Tell me, ye ministers of Jesus-, is it ever so with you ? "March 13, 1805. This day, I am forty-seven yeate old. On meditating upon Grod's past .helps and mercies, the trials of my life, my sins and barrenness, and the reason of a hope, it appears that I have much reason for confession, and humility before Grod, much matter of praise', much cause to hope in Grod, and to abound in -his work. And I cahriot . but have a t^em- . Ming hope, ijha,t my heart has by divine grace' been turned to the Lord. I would give myself and family entirely to the Lord ; and may I begin and spend this, year in his service, and be prepared for aU its. events prosperous or adverse, for Jesus' sake." r-' REVIVALS IN 1805. 169 CHAPTER VII. REVIVALS OF 1805 AND 1806— CORRESPONDENCE. " July 14, 1805. There have been of late five or six among us under convictionj and one has lately obtained hope. At a meeting last "Wednesday, the audience was unusually solemn. It is marvellous to see among us these evident tokens of the Lord's re- turn once taore by his grace. Lord, we are most unworthy siimers, and^ wilt thou for Jesus' sake carry on thy work of salvation among us, to the honor of thy great name. To-day had some freedom and affection in prayers and conversation in the morning. " July 23. I trust the attention among us does not decrease ; three awakened youth have been to see me this afternoon. Lord, make them thy willing servants. To-day finished getting in my hay , and grain. It is ail the Lord's, and I would surrender it up, every spear and every kernel, to bim to be used wholly in his service. Read the hundred and third Psalm, my soul, I caU on thee for ever to praise, to bless, to extol the Lord. " Aug. 11. Five have obtaifled hope, and numbers are under concern, I think twenty or thirty. It is marvellous, and may God have the entire glory, for to him alone the whole is due. God of salvation, . wilt thou carry on thine, own work, and cause that it may end in the sanctification amJ eternal life of many 170 .lEREMlAH HALLOCK. lost sinners, to the glory of thy great name, through Jesus Christ. On -the thirty-first of last month, this and a number of neighboring chi:^rches met for prayer on account of the drought, and ere the meeting clos- ed the rain began — thou prayer-hearing Grod. " Aug. 15.' Visited from house to house with brother Grillett, and in the evening brother Mills came and preached. The meetmg this evening was full and impressive, and I cannot but think; the good Lord is carrying on his gracious work among us, though some things have taken place the present week among certain vain youth, which look discour- agix^. may the servants of the Lamb be as bold and faithful as the servants of the devil. " Aug. 18. Lord's day. Preached in the forenoon on resisting the Holy Ghost, and trembled myself for fear I had done it. Preached in the evening at Mr. 's. Four youth are, of late, somewhat awaken- ed in this neighborhood " — three or four mUes from Mr. Hallock's house. " Shall talrry here to-night — ;talked with the awakened youth. " Monday. Prayed and conversed tiiis morning with three of the youth. Trust the awakening is not decreasing. For ever praised, and for ever blessed be the Lord God of Zion. Amen and Amen." He once addressed a person under deep serious im- pressions, much in this manner. " Suppose a debtor in a large amount desirous to make payment. Not doubting his ability, he waits on the creditor, and asks him if he will accept g-o/e?. , ' yes,' he replied, * if genuine,' He at once empties his bags on the REVIVAL ]N 1805. 171 table. The creditor, glancing his eye up6n it, says, ' This is not gold — -you must be under a mistake — exanxine it yourself.' On a closer inspection, the owner acknowledges it is not gold, and says, ' I believe it to be silver; will you, sir, accept silver?' at the same time beginning to fear he shall not have enough to meet the. demand. The creditor expresses a will- ingness to take silver in payment, and the debtor be- gins to count it out. ' Stop,' says the receiver, ' are you not mistaken again ? "Look closely, and I thinlt you will see it is not silver.' The latter finds it even so,- and adds tremblingly, 'It must then be copper; will you take this f ' Most readily,' is the reply, *if it is real copper, I wUl receive it at its proper value.' The poor debtor now become suspicious, looks at it again mote narrowly, and exclaims in agony, ' it is not even copper ; it is mere dross, of no value at all. Alas, I am undone ! here is my all ; I can never, never pay the debt ! I he wholly at your mercy.' " The poor trembUng sinner perceived the bearing of this simile, and at once seemed to see the entire worthlessness of his own best works, and to despair of ever paying his immense debt to divine justice. In a short time he found relief, if not deceiv- ed, by a cordial reliance on the mere mercy of God in Jesus Christ. *'OcT. 3. Have been favored with the help of many dear brethren. We have had stated lectures on Wednesday, and repeated conferences and other meetings, so that I have had no time to write : about twenty have obtained hope. It is affecting to see 178 JEREMIAH HALLOCK how the Holy Spirit teacheth blind, ignorant sinners acoording to the Bible, as to their depravity and help- lessness, and the sovereign grace of God. "Nov. 3, Lord's day. Lord's supper. This day eighteen, v?ere added to the church ; fifteen of them date their hopes in this revival. Fiist sermon from Isa. . 44 : 5 :' ' One shall say, I am the Lord's,' etc. I trust it was an unusual day for the sweet , breathings and comforting influences of Grod's Holy Spirit ; a day never to be forgotten to the. praise of his glorious grace." Of this revival of religion among his people, Mr. Hallook in a printed sermon says, "This spiritual refreshing began to appear in June, and increased gradually for five months, until ihiere were droppings more or less in ahnost every part of the society; towards thirty joined the church wJio were considered as the fruits of this little harvest." But we are favored with a more full description of the work from his own pen, as inserted in the- Connecticut Evangeli- cal Magazine. NARRATIVE OF A REVIVAL OF RELIGION, IN CANTON, CONNEOT- I CUT, IN" 1805. ■ "It pleased the Lord gloriously to visit this place by the special influences of' his Holy Spirit, in the latter part of 1798; and in the fore part of 1799. In this time the drooping church was not~a little quick- ened and comforted, and between seventy and eighty were added to it, an account of which was published in the first volume' of the Magazine. REVIVAL IN 1805. 173 "That day can never be forgotten by the church in this place ; and to the praise of. God be it spoken, the lapse of seven years has riot weakened the faith of the candid beholder in the work of that day. " But by reason of deaths and removals, the church became considerably reduced, and inattention to di- vine things .prevailed, and was increasLag, especially among the youth, so that the things of religion began to wear a very gloomy appearance. "But in the early part of last June, one of the youth was visibly under serious impressions. This was soon attended with a solemn effect on the young- people. It was not long before several others were- awakened in the same neighborhood where the above- mentioned youth lived. And from this time the attention increased. "It seenied to operate like leaven hid in three measures of meal. New instances of awakening often occurred. " The neighboring ministers, as welb as some more remote, -^ere very kind to visit us and to preach to us. Indeed it seemed as if the Lord sent them; and almost every meeting was attended with some visible eflfect, ulntU there were some instances of attention in almost every part of the parish. Lec- tures and conferences were frequent, and public relig- ious meetings were full and serious. And this spir- itual work appeared gradually to rise, for more than three months. The attention has been mostly among young people. It seemed as if God had Axed his eyes on the youth, though numbers of children have 174 JEREMIAH HALLOCK. , been seriously impressed ; and there have also heen some instances from the ages of thirty to sixty. "Of the subjects of this work, the largest propor- tion are females. Towards thirty have obtained hope. Fifteen have joined the church, and others are ex- pected to come forward and subscribe with their hands unto the Lord. As when the cry was made, 'Behold, the bridegroom com,eth,' the virgins arose and trimmed their lamps, this has been a day of alarm to the church. They appeared to be aroused in some meas- ure from their formal state, into -which even the wise are so apt to fall while the Bridegroom tarries. Some were ready to cry, ' Our lamps are gone out.' "Having noticed these things concerning the beginning and progress of this revival, I shall add, as a specimen of the work, the relation of two youth as written by themselves to a friend. The first writes thus: " ' Dear Sir — The following lliies are ashort sketch of what I hope the great Sovereign of the universe has been pleased to do for me, a poor unworthy sin- ner. Time has wafted me through the days of child- hood, perhaps as thoughtless of God and iifeensible of eternity as any one can be. Whenever I was aroused to. think on death and judgment, I would silence the voice of conscience, and say I could not cherish such gloomy thoughts when I was in health and prosperity ; little thinking that my soul was out of health. There- fore I abandoned these thoughts, which ought to have been most dear to me. But, blessed be Grod, he has REVIVAL IN 18U5. 175 spared my life until now, and, as I hope, made me a living monument to adore his glorious name. " 'My mind began to be seriously impressed last July, at the funeral of Mrs. D. C. I. followed the breathless body to the silerit mansions of the dead, little thinking it was a lesson for me to read. I con- sidered myself an uninterested beholder. But when I saw the corpse laid in the grave, the thought struck my mind, Will this suffice ? Will the grave now shut its mouth, and say, Enough ? The answer was ready : No, it will not, but it will soon claim me in spite of all my efforts. But whepi looked beyond the grave, eternity appeared still more awful. These words seemed to be directed to me : 'What meanest thou, sleeper ? Arise, and call upon thy G-od.' '"This led me to look into my polluted heart, where I found nothing but sin and guilt, which were pressing me down into the pit of woe and misery ; and my days that were past wore irrecoverably gone for ever. But a thousand hurrying thoughts of the world seemed to bear me away from these feelings; and many times did I put on the veil of cheerfulness when I had: an aching heart within, for fear of the ridicule of the thoughtless part of man- kind, who must stand at the ti'ibunal of Gf-od, as well as myself. "'Thus my days were spent until about the middle of September, when 1;he horrors of hell ap- peared before me uiia voidable. I felt myself to be a sinner, and exposed to the wrath of G-od, who was continually saying, ' Vengeance is mine, I will repay.' 176 JEREMIAH HALLOCK. In vain I sought relief from the Bible. Every line seemed to condemn me. I thought I was doing all I could to purchase happiness, and my reading, pray- ing, sighs, and moans were in such earnest, I thought I should move heaven io pity- me. But all was in vain, it was in such a selfish manner. And I thought I was unjustly hound with, the cords of disquietude, and doomed to eat the hread of sorrow, while many of my young companions could triumph over death and the grave, and sing, 'Thy love, Jesus, is the theme ;' hut I was unheard and unanswered, and left to wear out my hpurs in grief alone. This, T thought, was unjust, and my heart rose in dreadful opposition against God. Oh, how hard is the human heart. If it had the power, it wovild dethrone the Almighty. But blessed be God, the power is in his own hands. '"I remained in this sorrowful situation several days, seeking relief, but refusing the precious balin of Gilead. One Monday in this moMh was a most trying day to me. It seemed as if the whole universe gazed with an eye of contempt on its sinful, wretched inhabitant?. But 0, the following "Wednesday ! May that precious day never be erased from my memory — ' the day, as I hope, in which God met my poor perishing soul. Having taken up the Hartford selec tion of hymnSf I began to read the 274th : 'Cheer up, my soul, there is a meroy-seat^ Sprinkled with blood, where Jpsus an.swers prayer • There humbly cast thyself beneath his feet, For never needy sinner perished there.' . ICEVIVAL IN 1805. 177 And truly, I then said to myself, who can wish for a higher -seat, than at the feet of sovereign mercy ? And my heart was now ready to thank Gfod that I was in his hands. And 0, how astonishing it was that his mercy was extended even to me, who had heen contending with him all my days ; refusing all his blessed calls and invitations, trampling under foot his dear Son, who had spUt his precious hlood upon the cross for me, and yet not one moment had I spent in his service.. Now my heart could join with the psalmist in saying, ' come, let us worship and bow down, let us kneel before the Lord our Maker.' Also, ' Who can utter the mighty acts of the 'Lord, who can show forth all his praise ?' His perfections were visible in the whole creation. A-sermon was preached that afternoon from Solomon's Song, chap. 4 : 5,. 8, ' Come with me from Lebanon, my spouse,' etc. These appeared to be in reality Christ's words, and the ser- mon was sweet to my soul through the whole exercise. I felt as if my soul feasted on the food of eternal life, which Grod had prepared for all who serve him in spirit and in truth. And if I do not labor under a great mistake; it, is my desire to serve God, and I can trust my all with him and rely upon his word. I hope I have enjoyed the presence of Grod most of the time ; but someJtimes, through my own negligence, and falling so far short of t^e duty which I owe him, I am left to lament the withdrawing of; his smiles, and to trying doubts.- But I must conclude by ask- ing your prayers, sir, and the prayers of all God's children, that I may be kept from the snares with S* 178 JEREMIAH HALLOCK. which I am surrounded in this evil world, and that I may be preserved through the faith of Jesus unto death. Then, when r • - - ■ . I ■ ' " ' Filled with delight, my rapturedsoul Can here no longer stay, Though Jordan's waves around me roll, Fearless I 'd launch away,' " ■ " The second writes in the following words : "'Dear Sir — I shall now, as enabled, state to you some of the recent, dealings of Grod with my soul. My mind began to be impressed with a sense of my sins, and consequent danger, in the beginning of last April. But the great and- general stupidity with which I was then surrounded, together with the fear of becoming an object of derision, caused me to con- ceal > my distress until the beginning of June, when it rose to such a height that I found concealment impossible. For a certain period, during two or three weeks, the black catalogue of the sins of my whole life a^eared to be set in order before my eyes, accompanied with a deep sense of my being in the hands of a holy, sin-hating God, and entirely at his disposal. " ' It seemed as though nature would sometimes sink under the pressure; but He who thus laid his hand on me, was still my support. In July, when the attention to religion had become considerable, I began to find that I had not dnly a wicked heart, but that it was entirely selfish, and filled with the most dreadful and daring opposition to Grod ; and that self- REVIVAL IN 1805. 179 ishnesg had teen, and still was, the great moving principle of aU my aotions. This put me to a great stand. My inquiry now was with more anxiety than everj ' What ftiust I do. to be saved ?'. I now saw that the prayers of the wicked are an ahom^nation unto the Lord. Yet I was told that prayer -was a duty incumbent upon rne, notwithstanding my own .sinful- ness, and that I ought to pray with a penitent heart. This was what I could not bea,r,. and I found myself actually at war with G-od Almighty. It appeared to me that annihilation would be far preferable to the situation in which I then was. I would gladly have changed condition with the very stones in the street, and frequently looked with envy on the meanest rep- tiles of the earth. •. • " 'Whenever I opened my Bible, I found it filled with threatenings against me. I found also that it demanded true and unfeigned submission to Grod, as the only condition oa which salvation would be granted. I attended many meetings, but they only, served to augment my distress, and if possible to increase rny opposition. ' For several weeks I almost entirely relinquished business, and spent my time principally w^l^ing in my chamber. Whenever I heard" of any person's obtaining a hope, it was like adding fuel to the fire. My heart rose against it and accused Grod of exercising partiality with his creatures, not consideSring that he has a right to do what he will with his Qwn. . ^ , "' These exercises continued .until August, when the terrors of hell seemed to compass rrie about. From 180 .JEREMIAH HALL0CK. Tuesday, the 6thj to Wednesday the 14th, it appeared to Me that I stood on the very confines of destruc- tion, and was permitted to look into, the eternal world; Death and jud^ent were now most solemn realities, and they so overwhelmed me that I was many times ready to sink into despair,, and give np all hope of ever ohtainirig mercy. " ' Then O, how vain appeared All things beneath tfae sky, Like visions past, like flowers that blow > When wintry storms are nigh.' But it pleased the great and merciful Grod not to keep me long in tjiis painful situation. On "Wednesday, the 14th of August, I attended a lecture, when a sermon was preached from John 4 : 49, ' The nohle^ man saith unto him, sir, conae down, ere my child die.' Upon hearing these words and their explana- tion, I found my heart glowing with the most ardent love towards the Saviour. He appeared ta he 'the chiefest among ten thousand, and altogether lovely.;' every way suited to my necessities. Tears flowed without control. The language of my heart was, 0, my dear Saviour, come, and take an everlasting pos- session of my soul. I hid thee a hearty welcome to my heart, and would lie low at thy feet for eVer. My emotions were so great that I found it difficult to keep from immediately kneeling upon the floor, and extending my arras where I then was, in the meet- ing-house. 1 1 had no idea that- this was conversion. I returned home, and without mentioning any thino to the family, retired to rest as usual. And here REVIVAL IN 1805, 18t again I found my soul drawn forth in the most affec- tionate desires after the Saviour. I found those beau- tiful lines in Dr. Watts' versification applicable to what I then felt : '■ ' My fleah lay resting on nyy bed — My soul arose on high.' With my mind composed to the most perfect peace, I now went to sleep. On awaking in the morning, I concluded that I had become entirely stupid, and accordingly made several attempts to bring on my former distress ; but this I found was impossible. I then resolved to walk out and reflect on the exercises of the day and evening preceding. But .instead of this, the character of God himself now came into view, and filled my soul with joy, love, and gratitude, wonder and admiration, to that degree that bodily strength failed ; and for sorrie minutes I became almost insensible to surrounding objects. Upon recovering myself, I found that every thing around me wore a new aspect. The glory of G-od appeared to be visible in every part of creation. I saw the hills, mountains, and fields, all lying beneath the orrlnisoient eye of God, and answering the great end for which they were created, the glory of God. And now the thought occurred, Shall man, who, is the noblest part of crea- tion, be silent ? This was an amazing thought. I stood like one astonished at myself. Why had I never thought of this before ? I now saw that I had indeed been wilfully blind, and thad; it -would have been just in God, had he left me to my own chosen way. I now began to imagine that this might be conver- 182 JEREMIAH HALLOCK. sion. But I had many doubts about it, because that during all these exercises I had strangely forgotten myself. These doubts were, however, soon removed, when I found that I was entirely willing that God should dispose of me, for time and eternity, as he saw best and most for his glgry. And 0, what heart- felt joy did it give me to reflect that I was in the hands of God. It was like an anchor to my soul. '"The Bible, religious meetings, and the duties of the closet became the food of my soul. The latter becomes every da,y more and more precious to me. How does rny heart frequently expand with rapture while I. am praying for th« advancement of the Redeemer's iiagdom. When gloom'and darkness fill my-mindi as is sometimes the case, in consequence of the remaining sinfulness of my heart, I find that the thought that God's kingdom is ejbernal, and stands secure, generally removes ihe cloud. This, sir, is, according to my best recollection, a short sketch of what I have, through the goodness of God, been made to experience. I would now conclude by ask- ing your prayeirs for me, that I may not be left to dishonor God in the profession which I have made.' "Having given the foregoing account of the sovereign and most merciful dealings of the Lord towards us his sinful and unworthy creatures, I shall close by only observing, that days of attention are not trifling days, but most solemn and serious to all. It beopmeth those that are left,' to tremble ; and such as hope, not to be high-minded, but to fear lest REV.IVAIi IN 1805. 183 after all, they should come out withered branches, only fit for the fire, to the dishonor of Christ, the grief of Zion, and their own shame. "JEREMIAH HALLOCK." " Feb. 3, 1806. Last week was at Colebrook and "Winsted. The Lord is carrying on his work "in each of these places, dear Christians are comforted, and sinners born. again. Praised be the God of salvation. My mind was unusually calm and refreshed, Thurs- day evening, at Winsted." As Mr. italldbk was laboring abroad. in a time of revival, he found a man who to much ignorance of spiritual subjects joined an equal degree of confidence and joy in his own state. The man was very flupnt in the relation of his new views and feeUngs ; at length he. paused as if to hear a confirmation of his hope from the mouth of so experienced a Christian as Mr. Hallock. Understanding the case fuU well, Mr. Hallbck merely said to him, " Sir, if I should come this way six years hence, and then find that you pray regularly in your family, morning and evening-, I shall think favorably, of your case." Mr. Hallock sometimes said with a suppressed smile, " I love to see young converts have ears :" a remark not less an evidence of his discernment than of his want of con- fidence in religious loquacity. Yet it would be wrong to suppose him not to make much allowance, or not to expect much diversity in the case of young Chris- tians. Severely as he scrutinized his own spiritual state,' Ms charitable feelings inclined him to form a favorable opinion in the case of others. 184 JEREMIAH HALIOCK, T6 the Kev. Mosei Hallock, Plainfield, JStaBS, "'West SiMSBURY.Feb. 1806;, "Dearly beloved Brothee — I think that the moral foundation of all real union and solid happiness is holy love. Where this love reigns in. the heart; if we are poor — a cottage for our house,, and herhs for our dinner — if we are low, if we are sick, yea, if dying, still we are happy, and united in the sweetest, most perfect hond. , But if this godlike love he ahsent, all is like, a rope of sand, and there is no real happi- ness, although we are ever so rich, the house adomedj and -the dinner a stalled ox, or though flourishing in health, or raised to a throne. Let us then seek this love, not the world ; and let us esteem those who have it — not the rich,, the carnal, the honorahle of this earth. " "We had a short but agreeahle visit from brother Hosford and sister. Our honored mother lias been with us^ she is now at brother Case's ; I expect she will return in a few days to our house. She is com- fortable for her, but, at best, is very feeble in body, though calm and agreeable in mind. Our dear father has been with us a numbeT of days, and his company is truly better than gold, "We are poor, sinful, dependent creatures^ — Grod is aU in all ; let us look to him, and cast all our cares upon him. Grive my love to sister, to William, to Martha, to all the children. Tell them, that in order to be happy, they must fear the Lord. " From your affectionate brother, « JEREMIAH HALLOCK." HIS CORHESPONDENCE. 185 At atout this time the consociation to which the church of Canton belonged, recommended that each minister in their connection should, in company with a lay-hrother^ visit every family of his congregation, fcjT the purpose of prayer and tehgio\is eonversation. A few specimens of these visits follow. " March 27, 1806. It is proposed that the minis- ter, and one or more of the church with him, visit all the families in the society, to converse with them on th© concerns. of the soul— to tegin this day, and 'to visit one or two days in a week, until the whole parish is gone over. Lord, all will he in vain without thy guidance, help, and blessing. be our stfength, our guide, and give the increase. My dear brother. Deacon Theophilus Humphrey, ^went with me to-day. We prayed and conversed, with eleven families. In this number, we found three famihes where prayer is attended, five professors of religion, three others who acknowledged a hope. I think it is a profitable, instructive way of spending time. Lord, wilt thou give us strength and grace to go on. "April 2. Visited all day with Deacon MiUs, Called on thirteen families. Prayed and discoursed on spiritual things in each house. . Found.tliree feimi- lies in which prayer is al^ended, nine professors, and four others who trust they are born again. I trust the Lord was with us, and. that the day was not spent in vain. Lord, I would thank thee for thy dear -^servant, Deacon Mills, and his instructive, impressive prayers and observations. " April 9. Went this day in visiting with Deacon 186 JEREMIAH HALLOCK. Everest. We visited twelve families. Found fsinily prayer a.ttended in seven of them, eighteen profes- sors, and two whose minds are tender and with a iremhling hope. Find such visiting days very lato- rious. I have great reason to lament my want of life this day, hoth in prayer and conversation, and the dreadful moral death which appears among us. Lord, wilt thou have mercy on thy mourning, wither- ing ZioH, for Christ's sake. • " April 16. I ara ready to think, many times, was there ever a Christian who had so muoli unbelief, so much hardness, bondage, and opposition of heart as I have?" Letter to Deacon Tayior. " West Simsbcrt, May 23, 'l806. " I thank you,' my dear brother, for your instruc- tive, impressive letter. "When B arnabas saw the awak- ening, the,;grace.of God in Antiooh, his heart rejoiced, and he exhorted them all to. continue in the faith, and with their hearts to cleave unto the Lord. It is called the grace of God; what divine, unspeakable grace. Wonderful is the love of G-od in sending his dear Son — ^in .making the great supper. , But both Scripture and facts testify that all make light jjf it. Alt are by nature under the dominion of this abomi- nable, God-provoking unbelief ; and hehoe will inev- itably and most justly perish, unless renewed by the grace of God unto repentance arid faith. And how wonderful it' is, that God, instead of saying, none ctf these gospel-despising sinners shaU taste of my sup- per, should say, I will compel them to come to my HIS CORRESPONDENCE. 187 Seta ; I will effectually call and draw them Tjy my Holy Spirit, and they shall he mine, and I will he their God.. what mercy, what gra,ce divine. "And has the great Eternal thus come in very deed to B ? If any douBt it, let them answer this old question, ' What meaneth this ?' And if Grod has come, what" a pity it is that ail should not know it, attend with their whole soul, and prepare the Lord his W9,y. It appears that the old Jews, perished he- cause they did not discern the signs of the Jlmes, nor know that the Saviour was among them. If the hlind man, when he asked what the noise of the passing multitude meant, had heen told that it was Caesar's legions, or had received some other false answer, or if, when told it was Jesus, he had. not helieved nor applied,- the poor man would never have received his. sight ; yea, twenty minutes ' delay in his case would have heen for ever fatal, for the passing Saviour would have gone hy. So it is with poor sinners in days of awakening ; delays and inattention are inost dangerous. Let the love of the vjrorld, an inordinate concern for a piece of ground, for a few yoke of oxen, the things of marriage, and carnal mirth, he laid-^side. How terrihle to lose the soul for the huhhles.of time! " This is a searching day to professors. Surely His hride should dress in gold of Ophir. The church must he ready, clothed with the humhle, prayerful spirit of Christ. Let Zion travail now, and join in the song of, grace, and not he found with the wrangling elder hrother. It becomes prayerless sinners to awake. Dear immortals, how can they sleep. And let not 188 JEUEMIAH HALLOCK. the 'awakened emlfface a false hope, instead of Chrilst. There is great danger of resting on the faith of the stony ground, as the religion of the good ground. 'Tis of great importance that the great truths" of the gos- pel, concerning God, Ourselves, and Jesus Christ, fill every meeting and heart. I was in the old parish at meeting yesterday. Things look encouraging there. The work of the Lord goes on marvellously at Northampton; the seed of the prayers of the saints is coming up there. Let G-od have all, all, all the glory, and us sinners lie in the dust hefore him. The Lord Jesus he with you, my brother. " I am, etc. "JEREMIAH HAL'LOCE. " P. S. My appointments are stich, it appears im- possible to make you a visit next week ; hut I shall come, if the Lord will, a week from next Wednesday. Give my love to brothers Eells and Cooley. Let us not trust in men nor means, but only in the liying^ God." . . I To the SEinie. "November 1, 1806. "Very deae Brother — How thankful ought we to be for solemn Sabbaths, and for the divine in- crease of the graces, and nrunbers of Zion'. The Lord JesUs has displayed his distinguishing grace towards his people in B . Eternity will not be too long to praise him for it. The Lord said to Pharoah,- 'Let my people go, that they may serpe me.' God rede&m- eth his people out of spiritual Egypt, that they may serve himself, not idols, nor themselves. God said. HIS CORRESPONDENCE. 189 ' Let my people go, that they may serve me in the wilderness.^ And he finally brought them to Canaan, to serve him in his ,temple there. So he will finally bring all his converts to. heaven, to- serve him in the perfect service of that perfect, eternal world, in all the agility of the winged ssraphim.^ 0, of what im- portance is it that the ^five,'' that the 'twelve,^ yea, that air the church, and all who may yet join, -should continue to walk with Grod, and faithfully serve him through all the wilderness unto death. Some^ after all, when they had got into the wilderness, turned to idolatry ; but to forsake the Lord after he hath re- deemed us, must be the sin of sins, the guilt of guilt, the folly of folly, and the way to the woe of woes. But how pleasant and profitable are the fruits of obe- dience. ' Let my -Beloved come into his garden, and eat his pleasant fruits.' The depravity of the human heart is beyond utterance ; and the holy God is not seen by it, -anywhere, in any^thing, nor in any way, but to be opposed by it. How necessary is the new birth! : "Rev. R. A is here, and expects to preach for us to-morrow. ' He says the awajtening has continued more or less for five years in Pleasant Valley. He spent a -Sabbath there not long since ; thinks he never saw Christians more awake in prayer. May we not hope that awakenings will continue, so long as the church are awake and fervent in prayer ? "As to your first question, my brother, it is a matter of ddubt w:hether a church ought to insist on a confession for open sins, committed before conver- 190 - JEREMIAH HALLOOK. sion. I would not forbid,, nor insist upon it. The whole hfe of the impehitenf man is nothing but sin. And his confession of Christ implies- his sorrow for all his past hfe of sin. But as to the second question, it appears to me that all confessions made by bapksUd- iiig professors 'for open..sins, s|ionld by all means be made in public before the world. In -the year 1803, I wrote my own mind fully on this subject ; and to me the arguments have lost no weight by time or reflec- tion. I send you the sermon which contains the argu- ments. May you, may we, and all the churches be guided xight, for Jesus' sake. "I am, dear sir, your true friend, "JEREMIAH HALLOCK:" " March 13, 1807. I am this day entering iny fiftieth year : solemn thought. The past mercies of another year are many; but 0-how little thoughtful, have I been, and how fruitless "to G-od. . I think t never saw so much "unbelief, and such depths of de- pravity in my heart, and such need of constant sup- port from Christ, as I have the past year. thou prayer-hearing God, to thee would I look; and on thee would I cast all my cares, through Jesus Christ. And do not let me live to di&iionor thee and thy dear cause. If thou shalt continue me in this world an- other year, wilt thou 1(6 my strength, and make -me fruitful to' thee in the gospel ministry in Zion ; may" my shoe be iron and brass, and ' as my days, may my strength be.' If I am to die this year, may it be in honor of Jesus and his cause. To this end "wilt thou grant m« the hght of thy countenance. cast HIS JOtJUNAL. ,191 me not off, now my stre,ij.gth is failing ; but be the strength of my heart and my eternal portion. And as my salvation ig nearer, if I am thineVthan when I believed,. may I live more like a pilgrim^ jamd be more spiritually-minded ; that wh^n thou comest I may love thy appearing, open to thee immediately, and hasten to meet thee with joy, to the praise of God the Father, God the §on, and God the Holy Ghost. Amen." " January 7, 1807. This day, Homan, my second son, is twelve years 0I4. Lord, I would thank thee, arid give him up to thee. wilt thou have mercy on him, and make him thine, that he may grow up before and for thee. ' " Jan. 18. My soul hath been in much deadness and darkness to-day— how tedious and distressing. If I am not deceived, it is not this world that I Wan^, nor any '-thing in it. -But I long for a gospel view of Jesus, and of the glory of God in him ; for humUity and spiritual freedom in prayer, in meditation, and in aU the things of the word. Lord, wilt thou, who sufferest the swallow and the sparrow to build their nest in thine altars, let my poor soul rest under the light of thy glorious gospel. " Feb. 1. Received a precious letter from my gr'edtly favored and dear brother WiUiams. Lord, I am not worthy that thou shouldst allow one of thy ministers or people to write to me." It was the uniform meinifestation of such humility as .breathes in the last sentence, which led the late Dr. Azel Backus to remark, " Brother Hallock is one 192 JEREMIAH HALLOCK. of those men to whom the Lord Jesus Christ will say, ' Friend, go up higher.' " "Feb. 8. Last Friday, my dear son Jeremiah set out for college. Lord, I would give him up to thee — may he have a prosperous term, and wilt thou take and put him into thy service." This son entered Williams college in the autumn of 1806. Mr. Hallock's days of fasting and prayer were at this time very frequent. In closing the account of one of them, he writes, " I seemed to have the most liberty in /?rajse. I sometimes think whether we are not apt to dwell too much on the dark side." SECOND MISSION TO VEHMONTy 198 CHAPTER VIII. SECOND MISSION TO V'EEMONIN-COEIIESPONDENCE. "July 29, 1807. "Wednesday. About ten this morning I left hdnie, after prayel;, in which -We en- .deayored to commit each- other to thoiLord. It was hard to part with -nay family and people. Lord, wilfthoii he mystaength, guide, comfort, and defence' from my,sins and all my enemifes. 0- take care of ray dear wife and children and aged mother ; and he the shepherd of my dear flqck. Make my journey plros- peTousV.and useful to- thy dear children. ' Do all for lis, and be all in all untb lis, for Jesus' sake. Amen. " Aug. 7. Rode to Rochester. Found some ChrisT tian friends here,, with whom I became acquainted six years ago. I now begin to enter on missionary ground.-' Ji'o^d of the harvest, to thee alone Would. I look for direction. Strength, and success. "Aug. 12^. Tried to Compose my mirid in Grod, and to pray, as I rod^, for my family and people, and all the' ministers and churches of the Lamb. Lodged at "Waitsfield J witb Rev. , Mr. Salistary. Brother " Salis- _buiry and his wife counted tbirfy-two ministers, mostly dafididates, who have been settled, in this state with- in six. years, and -mostly in places .which never had a .minister before. G Lord, wilt thou hold them up, make them faithful unto .the end; and give the in- crease. H«ll4ck. ■ 9 1.94 . JEREMIAH JTAiLOCK. " Aug. 25. This morning left Bhrke and rode to St. Johrisbury, seventeemniles. I have been at Brprke * six days, have attended six public meetings, visited one school and divers faniilies, and adininistered the Lord's supper. St. Johnsbury has been settled per- haps twelve years, and contains^ Inhabitants enough to fill a large nieeting-hoUse ; but they have no visible church of Christ in the, town, nor stated public wor- ship. IJniyersalism and many errors prevail. But One man came to the meeting^ althou^ notice was publicly given on the Sabbath. There was a consider- £^ble number of females. I was enabled to speak with sonw freedom and plainness. The most of them gave ■ attention. How true it is, that unless the. Lord leave a seed, we become as Sodom. This people Have how- ever, for some reason, almost finished a,n elegant meet- ing-house. that it might prove a token for gobd, and that here the Lord would appear in his glory, and establish -and build up Zion. <- : " S^PT. 6. Derby, Lord's day. But little freedom in tetir^ent; as usual in the family. Preached with some freedom,, from John 8:39. The. people were attentive, and some 'affected. -^ After the close of the fprenpqn meeting. Doctor Newoome, a late convert from open infidelity and univerSalism, was examined and taken into the church. Then we attended to the Lord's, supper.. When Dr. Newcome gave in his rela- 'tion, it had an uni^suai eflfect on the audience'. , The church and spectators were solemn 'in the time of the supper, and many, I trust, were truly refreshed. But . I have to lanient the dreadful leanness of my own SECOND MISSION TIO VERMONT. IDs"' souU O Lord Jesus, when wilt thou shine upon me, and- fili my poor j^mishing soul with thy love,' and- pr'aisel The confession of. faith which I had to. read to' the doctor, heing long, it was toi^ards two o'clock when the. supper was endM; and having- an evening rneBting to attend before five o'clock. at the distaince of four miles, the iaternHssion.was hut half an hour. In this'tinje, I neither ate npr drank. • By the time I had finished the first head- of the sermon in the 9>fter- noon,'I found riij^ eyes dim, my hpdily strength, power of recollection, and utterance gone, or so. gone that I was obliged to .^top, and after a little pause to close with ai. very few words, and desire one of the brethren . to mak« the dosing: prayer. The scene was very alarmiiig and trying.. .0 that I might be, Suitably humT)le, learrirriy dependence, and be thankful it. was no worse. O' Lord, lefrme. not be 'a .cause of shame to them that fear thee, nor of triumph to thy enemies. Spent the. evening in conversation, -not being able to attend the. meeting appointed." ■ . Letter to his. wife. " ' , , ' " GREENSBOnitrGH, Vt., Sept. 21, 18Q7. "Dear Jriend — 1 have had no letter from yi&u, though I ha,ve spnt to Montpelier in hope- of finding one. ,1 Could; write of-many things, biit must confine' myself, to a few. - Ten days ago I began to be- unwell ; washowefef enabled to preach three times , the jiext Sabbath, and to visit from house to house on Monday • followin'g. But Monday night was as sick a night as I remember ever to have had^ Tuesday, was confined to my bed and called a physician. He also visited 196 JEREMIAH HALLOCK.; me on Wed-nfesday. By the -blessing of God, felt some better Thursday— rode ten miles And attended a nj.eeting with difficulty in tiie evening. Preached on Friday, iand attended a church-meeting on Satur- day. Yesterday preached aU day at Wheelook, ad- inihistered the Lord's supper, aild .preached in the evening td a oro-Wded, attentive meetings This morn- ing, felt very feeble and fearful of a settled fever. About ten o'clock- set out -with Deacon Fellows for G-rfeensborough; After riding more than,- ten- miles, most of the way the worst road I ever travelled, ar- riypd here about sunset. By the help of God, I feeL much better this evening, and hope, to preaph on the morrow at Glovet, to spend this week and next Sab- bath it these- parts, and then go tiiirty miles to the " west, where I expect to spend 1h« next month. I .hope to be at Middlebiiry -about the first, of November, and to find a letter there from you. • -" ~ "I find it wiU not do for me to be anxious abeuf" home, or to calculate too .much on seeing you agauu I find no way but to submit aU to the Lord, and oast every care upon him. . God h^-fe his dear people in every place, but the church, in these parts is in her low state — ^heij wall demolished, and her gates broken down. that Connectiout knew her blessings, and that ihpse who wish to exchange the truth fof fabled, and to haive every thing in a state of disorder, saw thfe folly of their, ways.' - . ^ "I have seen no special awakenlqg qn missionary ground, except week before last ill B . , It was a rainy -day, when I was there. Out of thirteen families SECONl) MISSION TO tERMOlTt. ]97 ' '' ' . in the- settlement, sixty persons met at the tecture — some undfer deep impressions; and some with fresh anointings. It seemed njarvellous to see tlie gracious goings of the Grod of heaven in the wilderness. I thought the angels were uMouht^dly present, gazing With holy wonder. "I have heen.to Stanstead' in Canada!, where I lodged one night and preached a sermon. • "I hope Jeremiah is .at home and is steady and helpful. I want 'to know whether Homain minds his niother, is. at home evenings, and how far he has pro- ceeded with Prbyerhs. Remeniher my love ;bo Sarah— ^ it is time she began to put away childish' things,, and to seek the Lord. Grive my love to jnother-T-sbe must ' go in the strength of the\Loxd G-od. Rornember me to the deacons, to the church, and alL . " Prom your feehiej-needy, anxious, fearing, hop- ing iriendj ' -'iJEEEMIAH HALLOCK." "Oct. 5. ;6rother W— — prayed in the- family, and we mutually prayed together, in a neighboring wood, and oovenantea to. remember each other Satur- day evening and, Sabbaith , morning. Went and saw the grave of ,Dt. Sob Swift, who died on a mission, kt this town (Enosburg) two years ago. He was taken unwell at fiiee1;ing, ■.. The sight of his grave was impressive with warning, fear, and hope. He speaks, though deafd." He was found in -his. Master's field, and lived and died. an. honor to the religion of the goiSpeJ. ' may J be a follower of them who, throiigh feith and patience,, inherit the promises, ' , 198 JEREMIAH HAlLOCKr "Nov. 18. Arrived at home, having been absent sixteen week^. 1 have been often feeble in body and mind, but have been enabled to ride nine hundred and twelve miles, and to preach ninety times. Have visited and seen many of the, Lord's people. The meetings, for the most part, have -been attentive.' Find my dear wife and family well, and tiiat their lives, and health have been precious ^in the sight of the Lord. . Secular matters as well as could bti racpectp • ed. The pulpit has been supplied, and I am not in- formed of any special divisions, or root of bitterness appearing in the church or society. Two have died. This people rnanifest many tokelis of affection. O Lord, that I might be truly sensible of my sins afid unworthiness, anjd that thou wouldest teach- me thy statutes, ani fill my heart with thy love and praise.- Hold me up — draw mfei— make me fiiithful as a pro- fessor and as a minister, a husband and parent ; and 0, pour out thy Spirit on this people aiid on my dear fmnily, that we may live more to thy glory, for Jesus'' sake. Amen. ~ - •- - " The laat text from which I preached, the -Sab- bath before I4efthome, was, ' I wUl^ in the strength of the Lord G-od.' , - This text I often thought of when ready to faint. Whitefield's motto, ' Faint, yet pursu- iitg-,^ was applioaljle, and often in my mind," "While on a^isit to his friends in Massachusetts, Mr. Hallock writes, " Jan. 15, 1808, G-oshen. Being kept in by the snow, -wirid; and cold, the -day and evening -were spent in giving ^ reason, each one, of his hope. It -was instructive and impressive. 0- Lord, HIS CORRESPONDENCE. 199 wilt thou search us and lead us into all thy truth." A nohle example this, for pious relatives in their seasons of friendly- intercourse. To his brother a,t Flainfield, -'' ~> , " C+'NTOH, Jirne It), 1808. "Very dear Brother ani) Sister — I received your letter by Jeremiah, and thauk you. for' it: The things you wrote of the reformation in Pi?dnfield, etc., are indeed instructive and impressive. may the ■ word of Grod stiM appear pleasant, his name gloriousj and Jesus precious -to the young converts. Bui they must expect much conflict) for heaven is oT)taiaed hy fighting. MayGod make us faithful to our children ; and 0, may. it please him to cause them to hear the still small voice, which fills 'the souj vVith hurahle" adoration and worship. ' " " Our family are as yet, through mercy; in usual health ; but it is the most "sickly tim§ here we ever witnessed. There are perhaps one hundred in the town confined to their beds. In two parts of the town, secular business is almost wholly interrupted. One of Mrs. Hallock's feisters, Mrs. Mf6rd, was bur- ied last Monday. The physicians call it the spot- ted-fever. It "would take .sheets to give the par- ticulars. The patients are generally taken almost instantly with a violent pain in the -head — their stren^h is gone, they lose their reason, and Uien fall into a lethargy.' Where it is mortal, iJi'ey gen- erally die in about forty-eight hours. Through mercy, ^ but eleven have died;' though we caimot tell what' will become' of the many sick, or of . ' " A-uG. 5, J.810, Lord's day. Had more freedolii than I expected, in the forenoon; and much more this ifternoon. So it is ; if at any time my poor- soul , cdn get .any views of Jesus as Immanufel, it instantly lives. ' Last evening, my son Jeremiah retu^yied from college, having iclosed his residence there, He has now returned, to be a member of my family. Lord, make me a father indeed- to him. help me to give him up to thee, and wilt tho^ direct him" and respeot-.. ing= him, and make him .thine, that he" may serve •Hla JbUENAL. 205 thee. O may he 'become pf Christ's hody; and if it is thy will, make him a minister of Christ ; yet, not my will, hut.thinfe ha done, for; Jesus' sake. "Sept. 5. Attended Commencement at Williams eoUege, -a.nd my son took his degree. • He has heeii more than five years in getting his education. The cost has hepn not far from six hundred dollars. . Lotd, wilt thou make us thankful for thy innumera, hie mercies, and help, us to live to . iiiee. ' O may- Clirist he formed. in the heart -of Jeremiah, that he may serve the Lord,. and that the time and cost of his education may not be consumed in the service of Satan. And O, .direct in mercy iu respect to his profession; and if consistent with thy wiU, may h? bei. called of G-od.into the gospel ministry, and may alt his, classr.mates.l^e blessed. How my soul longs to see Jiim among his praying fellow-youth. • - - " Got! 26. Last Saturday rode to Notfolk. First Sermon, on the spiritual table -set befoi'e. ,us.- Psalm 13:5. Second sermon, on Christ's buUding his church. .ZQchariah 6 : 12. In the evening, preached on : the question, why a^rioe is put into the hand of the heartless impenitent sinner, ftoverbs 17 : 16. Found the dear Rev. Mr. Rohhins in a low state of health— nJoubtful whether he will ever, preacb.again. But he appeared strong in the Lcard; and -through grace to set a gospel example of patience and faith. Have great' cause to be .thankful that I live -to see this aged servant of the.- Lord, whose coAveisation and oondjict are so ilistruotive and impressive. - • "■Jan. 5)- 1811,^ Saturday. .Having written my 1^06 JERESLJAB HALLO&K. sermons for the Sabbath, I would, through' divine grace^ devote this day to meditation, devotional read- ing, arid prayer. I would be sparing .of food at breakfast, and not eat afterwards till the sun be set. I piurpose to examine myself in respect to my past life^ 'espeoially the last year; to lament before the Lord the absence of his HoJy Spirit and the low state of religion among Us, arid to pray for his gracious re- jtui^; to seek the aid and comfort of the Holy Spirit ori the approaching Sabbath,, especially in the worship and at the table of the Lord ; to pray over my ser- mons ; to renew my covenant and' resolves ; to pray for all iHie ministers, churches, and interests of JesQs ;. to pray for my family, parents, and relatives,. " Jan. 6., I tarust yesterday was net spent wholly in vain. Have had more freedom and affection*-^ , whether liiey be spiritual and savingj Lord, thou knpwest — ^in family prayer, in public worship, and: at the table, than is' usual for me. - "*' Jan. 20, 1811. Last Friday, Jere'miah'went to Hebron, to study law with Judge Grilbert. I have longed and" prayed that he might study divinity, and be a minister of the gospel ; I have felt exceedingly unwilling to have him go into the. profession of the law. I consider it a scene of great temptation, and tremble for fear he will be led away and lost. But if it is not the mind of Christ to put him. into the ministry, and if lie ma;y serve Christ with Moses and believing civilians, ox in aijy other profession, though the lowest, hpw infinite will be the mercy, and may my soul say. Amen, and praise the Lord. Lord, HIS CORIlESPO^!IDENCE, 207 ■wilt thou allow and enaWe me to commit himjtrhoUy to thee for protection, for sanotifioation,' for direction, and all- things." . > To h'is sou-at Hebro'n. "■ ■ ' "Febbujuiy 4, 1811. "The oiily -way for us sinners to prepare for death; is hy ^repentance toward God, and.faifi towardour Lord Jesus Christ,' in-whom all fulness dwells for the weak and' guilty siimer. "Hbman and Sarah are gone to singing-school. How dreadful is thi? thought that any, after singing these pleasant notes on earth, should. go to. everlast- ing, wailings. But unless bora of the Spirit into true light and holy lovey hpw shall we make spiritual melody to Grod here, and heconie pieet to join the everlasting song ahove ? Yet let none, in view Of their dependence on quickening" grace, remain sloth- ful. " Who ever heard of Grdd's shining with saving light into the heart of a stupid siimer ? '.*-"We have receiyed" no letter frorii you, but wait for one with anxiety. We wish to know hpw you like your new situation — what is the state of your health^ — what your temptations, -are,' and how it is • with your inind — ^whether you have^ tender serious thoughts, oir are left to uncomfortable and alarming stupidity. , ' '• "I know, not which to esteem most, Moses or Aaron, Nehemiah or Ezra.. Let our calling be what it may, if it is pursued ia the faith of Jesus it ihall he yrell.. I wish you, in aU your letters, to use a filial freedom to ■ your- father — 'let me kndw your trials, 208 JEREMIAH HALLOCK. doubts, hopes, and fears. Pfeservfe the letters I write ; they m9.y be of uSe to you.when I am in the grave." To his parents. ' "Canton, Feb. 11^, 1811. " Honored and dear Parents — It is ^a day of gteai dalrkness over ihe lan,d and world, but Grod will .fulfil all his good promises concerning his. church, and they who watch and "keep their garments are blessed. The" apostle speaks much about being cmei- fied to the world. And as that which is crucified is- dead, so, to have the world crucified to us'4s to h^Ve it and its things dead to us, or like a putrid corpsej when considered as a portion, or fts a motive to lead us from Christ. Had the world been' thus crucified to those Mdden to the great supper, it would not have hindered therri.frbm cpming to it. And how blessed must it be to have the world thus dead to us' in la dying hour. ' .. - . . ~ "How much we need the" patience of the gospel hope iii old 'age. , I trust that through- grace, rfjy-deat aged paraits.do, in some good measure, have it} and that, my infirm mother will be strong in weakness, and have heavenly, support^ according to her trials. <3rive my love to brother and sister Hosford, and his /aged mother. "We cannot forget little Alicie^ and I would go' six rniles to see her. As I have not time to write to brother MoSes, I hope you will remember my love to him and his — ^to brother Patse also and his. Let brother Moses, after you hare read this — ^if you have -patience- to read it — see it. I have lately received' the folldwing- as a well authentioated faoi. HIS CORKESPOlfDENCE. 200 "In a -certain place, last winter, t&ey engaged a professed , infidel to. instruct, a reading"' scHool. Tli« school) when they oaine together. oQe day in the after- noon, were pot able, to read. -The teacher, after sev- ' eral vain attempts to have them proceed .as usual, sent one of hf& scholars to^he neighb'oriiig hsouseof a, Chris- tian professor, to request him to come irito the school. It so was that the Minister was at this Christian's house, and wejit vvith him.to the school.- '.As an awakening had- begim in the town, the minister had little douht. what was the occasion of this state of tilings.. When he-cairie in and saw the solelnn ap- pearance, he first said to the teachei:, ' Sir^ 'what is the rnatter with yoiir school ?' ' He replied, ' I do not , kn(jw.| Said the minister, ' Have yo.u not been cor- recting thep V ' The master ansvvered, ' N't), we haye had no disturbance.' ' Well,' said the minister, 'jvhat then can be the matter ?' ' I cannot ,tell,' replied the master. ' But youitiiist havc^some opinion about it; tefljine what you think it is.' Not able to endu;re any longer, the poor Deist burst out iiir' tears and said, 'I beliave. it -is "the .-Spirit of Grod ;' and in a short time the teacher and fifteen of the scholars had hope id Christ. I hVd this the other evening from the mputh. of a, w^orthy 'Christian brother, who was knowing to the fkct. O vifhen, shall these saving waters, of the sanctuary bjBcome an impassable river ? " I send' mother a little tea, to let Jier.knowl have not forgotten her. ." Ji'rom your affectionate son, / • "JEREIVLIAH HALLOGK," 2J0 JEREMIAH HALLOCK. •To his son at Hebl-on. '••. ' ■ "M:aeeh4, 18U. " My dear jEREMiAfi — It affects me when I thiiik L of you, atsent from home' and among strangers, per- haps sick, and Vfith little pecuniary-' aid. But when I think of that state" of sin and alienation from Grod, in which all the children of Adam are by nature, it looks more a.ffecting. If we have a saving acquaint- ance with God in Christ, thougK among strangers; if "We have tribulation in the world, but peace in Jesus; if outwardly poorj tet rich in faithj we are happy, and have cause 'for constant and strong cbnso-! "lation. But if moral strangers to God, spiritually absent from him, under condemnation, and» always liable to be cut off and sent to eternal shanje and. perdition, how fearful and gloomy. Let us then first, seelt that wisdom which consisteth in the fear of God, and with all oUr getting, labor for a true understand- ing of the^lpry of God in the face of Jesus. "From your affectionate ,■ FATHER." > "]VUy 17. Tb-day, Mr. Samuel John Mills, Jun.,. candidate, preached for. us. His first sermon was on depravity; his second, on giving aU to Christ. His preaching wa« Spiritual and edifying. O Lord, make me thankful for thy- mercyto thy" servant Mills^ in givihg him such a son. MaJT-he bo made a faithful missionary and minister of Jesus, a great blessing to Zion ;. arid rtiay my heart rejoice in the good of others ; jmd 0, wilt thou remember my poor Jeremiah and each of my children." HIS CORRESPONDENCE. 211 To his younger BoaVt.'a boarjdLng-sehool inShaion. "Canton, Jan. 21, 1812. " M.Y DEAR Son— I think of you g.very day, and ■you caiipot tell how much I feel your ahsence. One • of the "calamities of the present world is,-that we d» -rtbt sufEciently value our. mercies until they are taken from us. ~- "I find, I am becoming old and feehle;, and though, the Lord makes Augustus a comfort to me, and tljiough the pec^le are kind in ftirnishiag plenty of wiood, yet>the care of the fires and cattle, with' my other labors, is almost top much for me." .. . -^ In the. latter part- of thiis letter,' Mr. ilaUock as- sociates with his' son several youth from Canton, who were at the- same school j arid. addresses them: ■ "My dear young friends, a gloomy vacancy is made in oUrfamiUes by your a.bseiice. " But were yoii removed to the land of silence, never to return, it would be far increased. If you should all live to return, and then find aU^our friends alive, the mercy woiild be. great. We ought always to live ^S those who wait for -their Lord, not lEnowing-when-hewill" come. Without an interest in Christ, none can go- to heaven, learning • and every thing else; will be' in vain, yea, far worse than in Vain. In a, letter lately received from a missionary ia -Vermont, are tiiese words : '.'. Tellypur dear precious. youth that God hath mercy in store for those, who remember him while young.' Unspeakably the best time to , sefve -flie Lord is in yduth^and health. To delay until sick- ness or old age, is like delaying to buUd a house until 212 ;jei!.em:iah halloc-k. the coldest day jjiiwinter. Do and get as liitioh good as you can — ^watch against all evil to.wMch we are ever, exposed. Farewell. Your real friend, • - ; . ".JEREMIAH HALI,OCi-."' ' : "July 2. I this day retiimed from a tour of preaching, with that dear servant of .Christ, brothSr Giliett. Tuesday, June 23, we jireaohed at Groshen, and in the: tour we visited both societies in Cornwall, Warren, Kent, hoth societies, in Sharon, - Salisbury, and hoth gboieties in Canaan, having heen. Jroih home, ten days. Though feeble in' body aiifil miad, have been oayried throttgli. In. almost every place, there are y spiritual droppings, and in some^ particiilarly Kent and South Ca'uaail, the beginning of a spiritual shower.. Though one youth, since I haVe'beeh gone, has, been drowned, yet my dear vyife and tshildfen have been preserved, and my family and friends are in usual health. Lord, ' so teach us ito number otir days, that we may aj^ly our hearts imto wisdcaiii' " The day before I set' out, heard that war was declajred agaiast England. It much afiected me. -It appears to me sin and folly to enter into this war. Lord, may thy people humble themselves, return and trust in th«e, and wilt thou be kilo\vn in Zion for a re&ge, and in wrath remember mercy." •" ' This tour of preaphing was, by a:ppointment -of the association, for the benefit df churches under its care which -enjoyed tlie labors of settled pastors. "IS'ovEMBER 5, 1812. This day went vrith rny son Jeremiah to Hartford, and left him therfr tp take the PARTS WITH HIS SON. • 213 stage, to-morrow, for Pittsburgh, l^^heiice, lie expects to go into the state of OhiOj to enter on the- p^rofession of law. My mind turned on the divine government, which, I think, looked .glorious and -afforded sweet peace to toy soul. I trust,. I was enabled in some degree to give- up' my d«ar child to -Odd, and leave him at the feet of JeSus. Made such observations to him on the way as I thought might be usefuL About two o'clock parted with hira and returned home. 0" Lord of all mercy, wUt thou lead his heart to tlie,e, apd be his guide and protection; make him useful in ^ion and tiie world, and happy in Jesus; prepare his parents for thy' whole wilt respecting him." The trial of the- pious father on this occasipn, seems to have been not altogether tinlike that of Abraham, as be' went forth to offer up his beloved; Isaac ; and in neither case did the Lord forsake his servant. , Speaking of- this journey afterwards to a number of friends, Mr. Hallock rendarked, that when he took, his seat in'the wagon he expected it would be the gloomiest day- of his Mfe', but that he found it one of the.happiest: — ^th^-t his mind was sweetly revolv- ing the words of that precious Psalm : "The Lord, how absolute he reigns," etc. It was probably now, 'that he addressed his son with "tender emphasis and tears: "Jeremiah, tliavfe been long praying and hopiag .that you might be a minister of the gospel— my expectation is at length cut off — I see it is not the w;ill of Christ to employ you in> this way. And now; my son, I' want to ask you one que'stion, Will yon be the minister's friend?" 2U JEREMIAH HALLOC.K. CHAPTER IX. REVIVALS IN 1812"aND 1813— DEATH, QF HIS ONIt.y DAUGHTER— CORRESPONDENCE. The Lord now gladdened Mr. Hallook's heart by a third special' work Ijf grace f.mong his dear' people. - ■ ' "Dec. 6,-1813. Lord?s djay. Texts: * Come, my people, enter thou into thy'chamhers,' etc. Isa. 26 : 20, 21. ' What wUt thou say, when I shall punish thee ?' Jeremiah 13 : 21. More freedom than usual for me. Last Thursday evening, ■t|ie prayer-meeting was better attended than common, and to me it was more solemn. Three young men are under conviction, and there is the appearance of a little cloud. that it niight, through infinite m#rcy, he increased, and the church be quicliened. " Dec. 27. Last Thiirsday was kept as a day (Jf fasting and prayer by this church and a numb^ of the society. Had a prayer-meeting at ourhoiise in the forenoon. At one, went to the meeting-house — had two sermons, three -prayers, and three songs of t\e Lord. The sermons were spiritual, instructive, and impressive. Met again in the evening ; Rev. Mi. Jerome preached. Rev. Mr.. GriUett exhorted. All, the meetings were fiiU,' and more serious than- usual for us. The contention about sijiging- appears to be sub- siding, and things 4ook like pea;ce. An awakened youth has, the past week, obt^ed a gleam of hope. One was exs!,mined this- intermission, and propounded -REVIVALS. ^15 this afternoon^ to join the churchy Saw a young man a^ noon in tears lor his soul. ' Not unto. us, Lord, not unto us, but unto thy name give glory.' ' 'fiie Hope of Israel.' Have had more freedom in all the puhliOj exercises than I expected, alid more attention. ' Praise the Lord, my sotd.' '•'''* " Jan. 1, t§l3, Friday. ~ Spent the forenoon in meditation, and vsrriting on Isa. ,44 : 3-5 : '1 mil pour water on him- that is thirsty,' etc. Preached in the afternoon,-before the Lord's supper. Two youth were present, apparent converts, who at the time of. our last like meeting were, in a state of stupidity. Some were present who, to appearance, are subjects of con-- viction. . the Hope of Isirael, carry >on .thy glorious work, .and fill thy people withthy love and praise." - . To his 5 on in, "Ohio . " Januae,Y 25,,1813. • - ,. " It has been my wish and resolve to bring up my children for Christ. My great desire' is, that you might be his^ and I trust I do not cease to pray for- you, and especially that he migb.t be formed in your heart the hope of glory, ihy dear Jeremiah, linow that you are a sinner,, a child of wrath by nature ; and do not rest short of winning Christ and. his ful- nefe as your portion. And know, that" we have, no time to lose in ^s. great matter." May the G-od of Abrahafti direct yout way and bless yon, and give you prosperity in your profession ; but above all, make- you rich -towards &od. Ypur dear mother wants I gtould caution you against all evil company and temp- tations to sin, and advise you to choose those who fear 216 JEREMIAH HALLOCK. the Lord for your companions, and to feel your entire J dependence on him. " Proni your affectionate FATHER." . " March 7. Lecture heforei the Lord's supper, To-day there were three to one at meeting compared with our common number, though I was still barren in prayei: and preaching, Lord, make' me humble in thy sight for my hardness, and quicken my dead soH.1./ 0, most merciful Redeemer, are there not signs that thy Spirit is niovipg among us, and wilt thou not take' the work- into thine own hands, ana make un- toward hearts willing in' this day of ihj power? quicken, pardon, and strengthen "me." . Feeling not unlike these Mr. HalloSk onoe ex- pressed to a Christian fri^ds" After I have been all day among my people, witnessed the yeli&f and comfo;"t of young converts, and the humble thankfulness of old- er Christians for the good Spirit of Ood among us, I come homlB to try to review my own donduct and look inta my own heart. . Though all the people seem to b6 moved, Lfind myself so. blind and dead, that I am" ready to conclude I am nothing but lotjtenness afld hypocrisy. Sometimes, after I go to" bed, I have rest- lessi anxious nights,, and am so agitated in view of my sin and deadness, that my bed shakes under me." Yet he was often raised above these depressing vie^Sj and then his comfort and gratitude were expressed with a simpljoity^aiid humility peculiar to himself.- In -a printed sermon already noticed he says, "This awakening began among the youth, and ap- REVIVALS. 217 peared gradually to increase through the foUowing winter and spring. In this season of grace, twenty- eight joined the church." To his son in Ohio. ,■'^^' "March 6, 1813. " My DEAR CHif,D— We yesterday received your letter, dated February 4, which gave us the affecting accoujit of your late journeys and hardships. The Lord has strengthened, and preserved! you, and to him be all the paise.* The mranths of your absence are tedious, to your parents. Your dear aunt Chloe Humphrey has -fallen by the putrid pleurisy. It deeply affects your uncle, and he has set up prayers in his family. Five have lately obtained hope — sev- eral are under concern— we have frequent meetings^ which are seriously attended. Your dear mother wants to have you -write with whom you live — -the moral and religious state of the people — ^whether the Lord's day is -observed, and you have preaching or religious meetii^s. Jeremiah, iny chief concern is for your precious soul, that you may serve Christ and share in his salvation. This world, at best, is so vain and uncertain ; did we own the whole of it, we sbould be undone wretches, out of Christ. But in him, the most poor in other respects are rich indeed, yea, interested in the fulness of Grod. Do not neglect to read, daily, the word of life, to pray, to meditate ; andmay the Holy Spirit show you the things of Jesus. I wish you would write once a month. Have you a Bible ? Write a few words about the state of your HsUook. ' 10 218 JEREMFAH HALLOCK. mind. Eternity is at the door. Be strictly honest. Strive to do good. GrrandmothCT sends her love. The rest of us sign our names in testimony of affection. . "JEREMIAH HALLOCK, "MERCY HALLOCK, ■ "WM. H. HALLOCK, , "SARAH HALLOCK." -"■•*♦." Tothesame. ., - "Julys, 1813. • " My dear Child— Having you daily in my .mind, and hearing your afieotionate mother often speak of you, I have set apart this day for meditation, and to write to you. Through divine mercy, our family are yet in usual health, except Sarah, who has, this, morning, some Sjrmptrans of the spotted-fever. Our' outward circumstances are comfortable. The summer is warm-r-^e have refreshing showers, and a favor- able prospect as to the fruits of the earth. The fever has been distressing in Barkhamsted. The dear Eev. Mr. Eells is among the fallen — sick about three daysl Hq was a precious servant of Jesus Christ, and though diead yet' speaketh. " No troops have as yet been called for from us, to guard our coast; though some |rom the eastern part of the state are called to New liondon. "We fear Hqman will be called for< " In respect to spiritual matters, eleven stand propounded and expect to join the church to-morrow. I hope as many more will soon come forward, though I fear the attention is declining. The work is power- fill at New Hartford. when shall I be able to REVIVALS. 219 write th^se things to you respecting* Homan and Sarah, and the rest of pur family, and to hear of them from you-and D ? The. converts naturally ad- dress their mates in the' language of Moses to his brother-in-law, ' Come thou with us, anji we will do thee good, for the Lord hath spoken good concerning Israel/ I fear ray great unfaithfulness is the reason that my poor family is so passed hy." I think both Homan and Sarah have been more attentive. " O Jeremiah, outward comforts are desirable, but the great thing is a portion in Jesus 'Christ, and that rest which remaineth for his people. The Lord make darkness light before you. ': "From your parents, who feel daily and much, for yoru." * *■ " Aug. 2. This morning, my son Homan set out as a soldier for New London. Lord, in mercy save him from sin, from the pestilence, and from the sword,^ and return hiih in safety, if thou wilt, " Sept. 19.' Last Friday evening, my son returned from his military toiir of forty-five days, ia health.. Make ihe thankful, Lord, and help us aU to live to thee^^Banotify the child. I perceive Sarah, my deSr daughter, is thoughtful ; may. she become an unfeigned believer in Jesus." The J-e9.der iias already seen that Mr. Hallock was not left of his|ieavehly Father " without chastise- ment." "We come now to a scene of severe and pro- tracted dorrestic afflictions. « Thursday, Oct. 14, 1813. .Last week on Thurs-, 220 JEREMIAH HALLQCK. day, my dear daughter Sarah was taken with a dhiil, which was followed by a slight fever. On Friday, she, "took an emetic, which operated well, but did not relieve her. The next two days, her disorder in- creased — it was more threatening on Monday, when my dear friend Dr; Everest came to see her in the morning ; before this, Dr. Everett had visited -her. ." On Tuesday the fever, which was of the ty^jhus spotted kind, stUl raged, and the child appeared to be sinking under it. Wednesday, about four o'clock in the morning, it was feared by the "watchers that she was dying ; we were all called up. solemn, trying scene ! I did not think she would breathe many minutes^ |jut on the application of spirits she a little revived. The physician came early, and tarried all .day. Ill the afternoon we took a little courage, but about nine in the everting- she was more unwell ; our hc^es very much subsided, and our fears prevailed. She has had. a tossing, deranged, distressing night, and this morning appears to be wasting away, and sinking into the arms of death. "And now, Lord, what shall I say, and where- shall I go but to thee ?' I know my sins and guilt are great ; I have riot been faitliful as I ought to have been as a parent, especially in spiritual things. She was shapen in iniquity, and her sins are great. But 0, our heavenly Father, thou hast of thy great love given thy Son Jesus Christ to die for us sinners. He hath died for us, and his blood eleanseth from all sin ; but such is the sinful hardness of the human heart, thait unless born of thy Holy Spirit, noneVill believe, HIS DAUGHTER'S SICKNESS. 221 and share in, the salvation of the Redeemer. But 0, thou exalted Saviour, exalted af thy Father's right -hand to give repentancej. fdrm her heart anew hy thy hlessed Spirit. our Father in heaven— for the . Father and Son' are one^ — wilt thou effectually teach and draw her to the Son ; shine with thy divine rays in the face of Jesus, into her dark mind; that . she may be a sharer in the light of hfe. She is thine hy creation and preservation, .pity the wtsrk of thine own hands. She is bought by the blood of Christ, has been given to him by prayer — whether in true faith thou, Lord, knowest — and I would now, her mother joining with me, still give her up to thee, soul and body, to be disposed of, in time and in eternity, in life and in death, according tc thy holy pleasure ; hoping in thy great mercy in Jesus Christ ; imploring .through him her sanctificatioil and pardon and eter- nal life. K she may live, Lord Jesus, may she be thy handrnaid, and an obedient child for thy sake. 'If it is thy will to take her now out of the world, help us to say from the heart,-.' Thy will be done ;' and may she be thine in death, and go and serve thee in heaven. "We are unworthy of the least common mercy ; how much more so of ,thy dear , children's bread — of thy Spirit and its perfect gifts ? But we would plead thy great mercy to sinners, the tlood and righteousness of Ay dear Son, and -our almi^ty Saviour-— the glory of the Father, Son, and Holy Grhost, one glorious Jehovah, and the increase and joy of thy kingdom. . ' "JEREMIAH HALLOCK." 2i!2 • JEREMIAH HALLOCK. " Oct. 15, ien o'clock in the mornitig. At four we were called up, it teiag supposed that Sarah was dying ; she a little revived, but now appears to be sinking very fast. Lord Jesus, thou almighty, most merciful Saviour, help us to. submit, and to resign her up to thee and to our heavenly Father, in and through thee. It is all that we can do — ^it is all that thou now requircst of us respecting her, and may it be all we would wish to do — ^to leave her^n thy almighty,, merciful hands. sanctify her heart, forgive her sins, and clothe her naked soul in the white raiment of Jesus. , Lord' Jesus, wilt thou receive her departing spirit in mercy. heavenly Father, wilt thou accept of her, in and through thy dear Soti. -Amen. " Oct. 16, Saturday morning. This morning, at half-past twelve, o'clock, Sarah ceased to breathe, her age being fourteen years and six months. She had been unusually agreeable,- filial, and endearing, for a number of months before her sickness. She has evidently been a, subject of conviction since last March, and has had an impressive sense of her de- pravity., guilt, and danger, and of the nearness of deaiii and eternity. Many prayers were made on her be- half in her sickness, and especially for her soul. There was a general, sympathy in her case.- 0. Lord,' help jne and- her mother to be thankful for these things and the blessed gospel hope, to be stiU and know that thou art God, and to make a spiritual improvement of this thy holy rod | and wilt thou be our suj^ort and consolation, and make her death spiritually HIS DAUGHTER'S DEATH. 223 •profitable to her surviving brothers, the grand- parents, and all the relatives — to her mates, and every one. "Oct. 17, Lord's day. To-day attended Sarah's funeral. The dear Mr. Mills of Torringford preached on ' The heart of the wise is in the house of mourn- ing.' Her precious remains vp^ere carried into the meeting-house ; Hie assembly was large : she was beloved in life and lamented in death. may we bless the Lord, in taking as \vell as in giving-; and truly say. His will be done. "Oct.. 24. The pastJias been, a sorrowful week. I did not know how dear she wasj until J fotind myself bereaved of her." • The compiler well remembers his first interview with Mr. Hallock, It was nearly a year after this bereavement, and in company with a friend who, like himself, was a stranger to the man of God„ The soft appliances of Christianity had now soothed, but not closed the deep wound in his heart. - After a, little conversation on general topics, he stated the touching, oircTjmstances of his daughter's death, and read one or two letters which, a little before her .sick- ness, she had sent to some' youthful companiofis^ and which were the, more valuable as containing some evidence of her preparation for an early grave. On his leaving the room, Iturned to my frifend, tears fell frorn his eyes, his frame shook, he remained silent for some moments. It was indeed an overwhelming exhibitioii of the trium^jhof grace in the midst of parental sorrow. For a rtumber. of years the name of 224 JEREMIAH H.AiLOCK. Sarah was often on Mr. Hallock's lips, eithej/to ishow his undying affection in the circle of particular friends, or to »give tender and solemn interest' to truth in the religious conference. The foUoVing letter to his son in Ohio was written immediately after her death. - To hlB Son in Ohio, " My dear Child — I wrote to you last month. In that and in former letters I could write that all otir family were alive, and commoidy that they were in health. But now it is otherwise. For I must tell you that your dear and promising sister Sarah is in her grave. Solemn thought ! almost too overwhelm- ing for m« to write, or you to hear. But let us be still and know that the Lord hath done it, and that his ways are most just, good, and wise, and that his rod v^ill he most profitahle to the humhle. He 'is very pitiful, and of tender mercy.' "Sarah, for ten months past, has been peculiarly filial and agreeable, so that we have noticed her steady, womanly actions. As I wrote, she has been the subject of serious impressions the past spring and summer. In a letter to one of her mates, dated last March, she writes, after mentioning the attehtion of numbers, 'And now, Polly, does not this look as if the Lord is beginning his work among u;s ? It does, indeed, to me. And why cannot you and I pray to Him who is able to pluck us out of the fire as fire- brands ? I do hope that these tilings will not wear off our minds.' In another letter, dated in May, she writes, ' My thoughts are these to-day : Q, how vain and trifling is this world. It ^s a Wonder that I am KIS BAUGHTEa'S UtAIK. 225 not out off. Nothing can soften our hard hearts liiit the Almighty's hand. If h6 is willing, he can save at the last moment. He is allowing us to come to him ; every day he gives us a free offer. what unwor- ttiy creatures we are, not worthy to live. If I had my deserts, I had gone down to hell long ago.' The follow- ing lines are extracted from another of her papers, dat- ed July 23, 1813, written in health, not thiee months before her death : ' I think myself, how uncertain life is. We do not know at what time He may come and call us to his tar. But if we are only prepared, it will be no matter how soon. I ^hink that I have not a great while to live^ I am on the brink of eternity.' "Her anxiety, the past summer, has been great, and her feelings exceedingly tender respecting her brothers. As she went to the grammar-school, she often visited the ppst-ofiioe, to see if there was hot a letter from you or Homan. , > "Thursday morning, the seventh Instant, she sat at breakfast with ua for the last time. Soon after she 'said, -'Ma, ma, how cold I am !' , She kept about, thougfi. drooping — had a restless night. Saturday, the physician was isalled. Lord's day, no better : I exchanged with Mr. Mills ; returned about ten o'clock in the evening ; found' her exceedingly sick. She expressed an apprehension, as she. had done from the first, that she cguld not recover. • She told me she hoped sbe" could trust in Christ. Froni this time she was unable to' converse. She grew worse, Monday,- Tuesday, Wednesday, Thursday, and Friday. Fri- day evening her piercing groans penetrated ^.every 10* 226 JEREMIAH HALLOCK. room in the house. About eleven her groajis ceased arid she appeared to lie easy, but rattled in her throat. This rather increased until half past twelve, when she expired without a struggle. Her fever was typhus. my sonj you have lost an amiable, . afTectionate sister, who bade fair to be a comfort and an honor to you and to her parents, to the ohurch and to the world. The sympathy was general ; Dr. Everest remained by her night-arid day. Every human means was used, and the prayers of Zion were made with- out ceasing on her behalf ; but her appointed time was come, and she must go. Mr., Mills preached her funeral-sermon on -the Lord's day. Her body was cajried to the meeting-house ; her furieral procession, though it was rainy, was perhaps as great as we ever had : aU Canton mourned over fallen Sarah. " The wound is deep^ and lasting. It cuts like a- knife-; it pierces like a sword. But in the midst of the lightning and thunder there is a rainbow about His* throne. AJid now let us bless the Lord, see the emptiness of the world, realize the value of the glo- rious gospel of Jesus, tlie certainty of his coming, and his near approach; p»ze this ohasteriing of -the. Lord, and make a penitent, believirig,. prayerful use of it. "From your affectionate mourning parents, "JEREMIAH AND MERCY HALIiOCK." . * It was common with Mr. Hallook in this manner to speak of God. He often .commenced prayer, jn a small circle, with- out uttering any of the divine names. In a person of less depth of piety this inight have been exceptionable ; but in one who appeared habitually to hold communion with his God, it seemed like the language of nature, and was often very impressive. HIS-DAUGHTER'S DEATH. 227 In describing to friends the scene of his daughter's departuie-, Mr. Hallook said, " Before the child wa? quite gone, if I had seen a man coming in the street — ^it would have ihade no difference whether he was a beggar, or in his coach and six — I should, wish to say to him, 'Friend, do you love the Lord Jesus Christ? If you do, you are the man we want to gee. Come in and kneel down with us. and pray for our dear dying daughter.' " At the moment her spirit, left her body, these four truths pressed upon my mind with amazing in- terest: "1. the worth, of the immortal soul ! "2. the value of an interest in Christ I " 3. the emptiness of this world ! * ," 4. the solemnity of the close of probation ! " When I saw she had breathed her Jast breach I almost involuntarily spread out my hands, and kneel- ed down and said^ ' Come, let us pray.' But there was ^n awful vacancy.. She who had so filled our suppUcations Was no longer a subject of prayer. I seemed for a short time not toJknow what to pra^ for. The solemnity of the mqpient was past utter- ance." V A new and prptracted scene of domestic affliction soon opened.- ' It. has been a healthy time in this town. There were eleven deaths the last year, be- sides Sarah's. This yeas, four. One is that precious man G. C , who was instantly killed in falling a tree, aged thir]by-five — he. has hardly left his equal, of his age,, in the , place. Through a most kind provi- ^dence, not one has tak«n the fever from us, though so much with us,, and forgetting as it were their own lives. ' Your dear sister has left a number of letters, altogether on spiritual matters, which,- if -we live, I . intend to copy and send you. "We caflnotexpress the comfort your last sympathizing letter was to us, though they dared not show it to me, until some time after it was received. Do write when you can. Grandmother, Holnan, and all of us send love to you, and the family where you live. " From your affectionate pareiits, " JEREMIAH AND MERCY HALLOCK." 236 ^JKREMIAH HALIiOCS. CHAPTEE X. LAffOBS IN IHE MINISTRY— CORRESPONDENCE- REVIVAL OF 1816. In 1814, as in 1812, the Litchfield North Associa- tion, of which Mr. Hallock was a distinguished mem- her, appointed several of its memhers to go, two and two, throughout the churches within its limits, to promote their spiritual interests. Mr. Hallock was one of the hrethren designated for this service. The tour so much resemhled some already noticed, that particulars may be omitted. "Jan. 22, 1815. Have heen feehle and discour- aged the past week, and looked forward to this day with trembling; but have been helped in every part of public worship beyond my expectation, especially in the latter sermon, so that I came home refreshed in body and mind- Lord, help me to thank and praise thy glorious name, now and for ever. ■ " March 12. Though full of tossiags the past night, worried and discouraged this morning, yet have had more freedom, and mental comfort, and at- tention^all day than usual. Bless the Lord, my soul. God's spiritual law has been a pleasant theme ; let me never rest short of perfect conformity to it. HIS CORRESPaNDENCE. 237 To his nephew, William A..Hallock, soon after a reTival' of ■religion in Flainfield, -where he was then . fitting . for col- lege -with hie father. "Canton, Match 18, 1815. "■ ■ '" My very dear Cousin William — I thank, you for your rich letter of Fehruary 4, so full of interesting intelligence. We have also received your father's letter of Fehruary 16, hy Doctor p: . This, too, was like cold water to one athirst. I do sincerely wish that the few Of our name might not he stran- gers to each oliher. What you write respecting our decayed,, decaying aged parents, is affecting, and full of awakening instruction. As you live' near them, I hope your father will see that they have what is for their coiilfort. I hope that we may aU so honor them as to he sharers in 'the first commandment with prom-- ise,' instead^ of heing tortured, after their decease, with the harrowing accusations of a guUty conscience. The situation of my afflicted sister, your dear aunt. P , none can know hut hy experience. How comforting to hear of her apparent &ith, patience, and submission. may she have the peace of Jesus, And though we meet no more on- earth, yet may her hope he' realize'd. How sweet that eternal rest vrill, he to the Lord's weary, almost fainting pilgrims ! " The prosperity of my beloved brother's family is surely joy to me. But we must never depend on any earthlyenjoyments, which are all fleeting as the wind, and withering as the grass and its flowers. Where is your late blopming, afieotionate cousin Sarah? Her pleasant form lies vdthered in death. Yet all Grod's outward blessings, viewed in their true 238 JKREMIAH HALLOCK. light, are precious, and to be thankfully received, and piously used for Jesus ajid his cause. I am glad ^ hear that you and your brother are studying, and thafyou make proficiency. I have long, been of the opinion, liiat industry is not only essential to useful- ness, bftt also to happiness. If those in heaven had nothing to do, or were they to become idle and in- •active, j believe their "happiness vFould cease. , ^ "Grive the love of my .heart to your dear sister Martha and.Miss D ," two young convertsj " with whom I conversed. How glorious indeed, my dear William, is their situation who are walking in the paths of peace, and prepariiig for a happy eternity 5 and how do Utey excel tho^ who are grovelling in the dust, even though they should gain the whole World) and the Christian Mve and die in the most un- ctomfdrtahlBj destitute condition. "In respect to your observations concerning your- self, I haidly know how to reply. You think yoil have had little or no real sense of the divine perfec- tions, of sin, of the hardness of your heart and its opposition ; and that your late serious impressions in the awakening are abated, so that yon shTjdderitp reflect on your dread situation — the harvesi pagt, and you not gathered. But how came you to be sensible of all this ? It must be the awakening, of his &irit, and because it is still striving within you. "It is much better to be even many years under distressing conviction,' ;than to rest in the joys of a false hope. But there is hope in the free, akti^hty, sovereign grace of God in Christ. We know not what God in HIS JOURNAL. 239 his, gteat mercy itiayyet do for yott. I hope the prayers and good instructions of your anxious parents will not he lost. May Grod prosper you in your studies, and. shine into your heart with the rays of his glory in the face of Jesus. I thanfc you for your affectionate notice of our dear Jeremiah, for; whom inj feeliugs have often heen unutterahle. ■ I am feehle, yet through mercy able to supply my pulpit. " From your laving uncle, "JEREMIAH HALLOCK." In Mr. Hallock's familiar circle of ministers, two persons were referred to who gave equal evidence of piety, while one professed a hope in Christ arii the other did not. The question was, how far the ahsence of hope was evidence against the latter. One and another -gave their views, when Mr. Hallock said; "Suppose I send down my two hoys to cleai out my well, and it caves in upon them. The -neighbors help me dig down to them, when it occurs to 'me that possibly they might hear my voice. I cry out» ' Jere- miah, are you dead ?' ^ No, sir.'' 'Homan, are-2^0M dead?' -' Yes, sir.'' -They report themselves differ- ently, but I have equal evidence that both are aUve." " Saturday, April 1, 1815. Having written iicnr the Sabbath, and hoping brother will come and be with us to-morrow, I wotdd ^devote this day to prayer and a review of my journal. I would pray- first for the Lord's presence' with us on the morrow, and that we might be. once more blessed.,with a spir- ituar revival J secondly, that I might be enabled to' review my jpumar with gospel candor in the fear of 240 JEREMIAH HALLOCK. G-od. Thirdly, I would look to the Lord respecting my health, which has heen and is poor, and that I might be directed aright respecting medicine, and that his blessing might attend it. Fourthly, as the times are difficult I do pot receive my salary, hence am rather straitened for the necessafries of life, therefore would make this also a subject of prayer. In review- ing my past life I see many things amiss, and am sometimes almost ready to feel as if I had no reason to think I am a Christian ; but on the whole cannot but hope I have had some spiritual views and feelings, though, my faith is certainly small.' Lord, search", try, and quicken me. " April 3. Felt quite unwell, but comforted with the thought that pbrfeot love casteth out fear. "April 4. Felt, I trust, instructed, comforted, " and a little encouraged on reading what the. apostle saith of the gospel treasure -being in earthen vessels. " April 9. Have been of late feeble Hi body and faint in mind, but have found my journey to and" from Farmington pleasant beyond my expectation. Was enabled to perform on the Sabbath with more strength than I expected, and the evening meeting was attentive apd precioug. It seems as if I never had greater cause tp say, 'hitherto hath the Lord helped me,' and ever to trust Immanuel and live to his praise." 'To his son in Ohio. "April 29, 1815i ' "There has been of late a powerful awakening in Yale college. A.bout seventy of the students have HIS CQHEESPONDENCE. 241 oMained hope. There are revivals in other places; and events pertaimng to Zion's interest in' the world are truly wonderfiil and encouraging. My dear child, r feel anxious respecting your precious soul, and long to have Jesus formed in you the hope of glory. Qur painful separation here will be ^hort, and shpuld we meet in heaven, never to part,- our present trials will he forgotten. But how dreadful to he, lost for ever — r separated from all good. At my .period of life I have some sense of the disinftl state of those who in old age are unprepared for death and have no portion hut in this husky w*orld. ' All the kihgdo'iiis of this world are mere hubhles when compared with an interest in C3hrist and a preparation to meet our Judge. Aiid now is th©^ time for this great wort;. Your "dear mother came into the study the ptherday, and "with, an expressive countenance and emphatic accents ex^ pressed herself in about 'these words: 'I feel as if I^ could not' be recoficiled to-have Jeremiah live so far froni us. ~ Bowrrite to him, and a^ him if he keeps and reads his Biblej and how he spends the holy Sab- ' bath. I fear many waste it ia family visits.' "Your aged graindparents at Goshen are very feeble and near tb death, if .aUve. How thankful we ought to be for the hope we have that they are in Christ, and by grace -meetphed for the rest above. Your aUnt Perkins fell asleep the 8th of last Jfareh, comfortable in - ixxiidd. Your uncle. Moses and his family are in usual health and prosperity. "My sermon at the dedication of thd meeting- house is published- I cannot write the tenth part I. iHaUTOk. n 242 JEREMIAH -HALLOGK. wish t&: must therefore close, committing. you,tothe mercy of G-ofl in Christ. " Frcwn yoiir aifectionate PARENTS.' V .•* To the same . "Mat^T; 1815,- " I think the following things never appeared more tone and real. Pirst, that this world as a portion is vanity of vanities and vexation of spirit, not only in its poorest hut in its hest state. ^Seocaidly, the im- portance of religion, or an interest in Christ, especially- in ttie decline of life. And thirdly, that it is a great thing to be a real Christianj a partaker of the Spirit of Christ, and meetened for 'the inheritance, of the saints in light.' I feel as if I had hut « little while to stay in ihis world. May you he blessed in out- ward things, but above all be a true friend to Grod, have the peace of Jesus here, and his. heavenly rest hereafter. Your calling is attended with tempta- tions, but abide by your old lesolutirai to be always strictly honest. " From your affectionate FATHER." To the same . "OcTOBKE 22, 1815. "You are remembered in all our prayers. "We pray for your outward prosperity, but especially that yoii may have an interest in the dear and only Sav- iour, and be saved from all tiie ^nares and tempta- tions of this evil world. About twelve of our children and youth have becon^e serioris this year, and ±he most of them hope in Christ. It is a day of unusual HI'S CORRESPONDENCE, 243 awakening in these parts, and many youth are brought into Crod's everlastii^ kingdom. We long to see you before we die." To tae same. "December 25, 1815. "My Dear Child — ^It is now more than three years sinee we saw you. The time seems long, and you little know how much your parents want to see you before they did. You will not suppose that we impute your delay to come home to a neglect or for- getfulness of us ; but if our lives are contiauedi do not fail to pome next summer if possible. " Yoiir grandfather Hallook has fallen asleep. I made our friends in Groshen and Plainfield a visit as usual in September. Parted with my dear father on the twelfth, and have since received, a letter from your uncle Moses, in w;hich he writes, ' On Satixrday evening last, October 21, 1815^ our beloved father deceased. Ivisitpd him on Friday, and Saturday I ■ held his venerable head in my hands, and leaning on my breast he expired without a struggle or the least apparent anxiety. It hardly seemed like death. His fimeral Was attended on Monday. All was calm and solemn, the day pleasant, and the attendants numer- ous ; and all seemed to feel afe if they were burying a friend.' ' ' " He was eighty-fiAre. Last summer he raised a plenty of provisions for his little family with his own hands. According to the time from which, he used to date his hope, he has, been a spiritual pilgrim en the earth seventy-seven; years. He did not outlive 244 JEREMIAH .HALLdCK. . his active iisefalness. The scene to rrie is very sol- emn and impressive, hlit th^re i^ no terror or sinking grief. You,, as well as I, 'have lost a dear -praying" friend, and we- ou^t to h.e for ever thankful for such a parent. - ' "•I am still fthle, through grace, to ,continue- in the hlessed work of the gospel ministry. My catarrh is somewhat trouMesome, but I think no worse. Your ' dear, mother is afflicted with something like a pal? -pitation of the heart, tut through mercy is ahle to attend to her. family eoncerris, in which she .is greatly needed. Grandmothef Humphrey has . been very - 'sick; I think she appears mpre and more like a shook of corn f ast ripeniiig for eternal rest. She is a teight example of patience. .She wishes to be fememberfed' to Jeremiah. '- ' - " Some cjf the cihjirch appear to have' a Uttle-life,, arid here and there one is awakened and apparently converted,' And now my -heart cries, When sliall it be. thus with my beloved far-absent child? Jere, • rniah, we.cantiot hope because we may think our sins are small, we cannot trust in our supposed good works, we cannot hope in view of our hearts, for they are bad. And shall we hope in'1;hie present life and its things ,? God forbid. . The Lord Jesus is the only hope -for us sinners. And now let us make &, wise improve'-! ^neht of all this, and flee to Jesus as our all in all, " From your affectionate father, . • -,- . ■ ■ . "JEEEMIAH H-ALLOCK." "•March 3, 1816.; Lord's day. On Saturday attended a morning prayer-meeting. -If Was full EEVIVALS. ^ ■■'■ ^45 and solemn, and iMngs look SnooToragmg. But this lias been ,one of the most trying, days as -it respects my own leanness. Have ieeii greatly straitened in all the prayers, in the sermons, and, alas, at the Lord's table. 'It seems as if my Saviour was de- parted. Some were indecently playful, and one, I fear, who has been thoughtful. why am I so for- saken, and why these dreadful frowns? Lord, search me and 'try me. Show me. why it is t^-ou dost con- tend with- me. Help me to search and find out the accursed thing and to repent. ■ May we all lie in the- dust- under thy rebukes, and .0-, have, mercy,, blot out our sins, • and still' carirjr on thy work, for Jesus' sake.'* ■ ■ • ' Possibly it was in- reference to this Sabbath that Mr. HaUook, quite in his own marmej*,' onoe gave- this vivid illustration of' the passage, ^^ And we hid asit were &u/r fates from him." " It looks to me' like this : the Lord Jesus comes into the assembly in all his love and gloiy, , stands in the broad aisle,', and calls on poor. sinners to look at hirh and live; but the men raise their hats before their faces, and the women put up .their fe.ns,"^o as hot to be seen." , "-April 7.- We have had, many xeUgious meet- ings, silch as leottires, conferences, and conceits, in the course of the last week, which have been full and serious. One or^two have "manifested a hope, and soihe are the siibjeots of serious impressions. , It is hoped that the work of divine grace is still going on amol^ us. Grod of mercy, wilt thou abide with us, and support and extend .thy. work. :. 246 ' JEEEMIAH HALLOpK. " May 9. Election-day. At the desire of the youth it was piop'osed to have a religious meeting instead of the former usual -vanities. Rev. Messrs. G-illett, Baker, aiid Yale, were with us. The cojigregation was large, serious, and attentive. "May 1(X We met at New Hartford hy request of iiie youth. The ybiith gave brother Yale and my- self- the money which they had^heen .accustomed to spend at the ball. " May 22. Lodged last night with brother Beaohj at my dear brother Dr. Everest's. He gave me this morning five dcdlars, of which I was in special want,-, and farther tpld me that he had crossed all his charges for attendanee on my family for twenty-fiv^ years. Lord, hiay I ^ee and know that all these needeli mercies are from thee, and may myself and family make a right use of them.. And O, bless thy dear servant and his for ever, and, may J be thankful to him as the instrument." " - ^0 his elder son. * '. "JuHE 27, isie'.' ■■ "My dear CmLD-^Though, I have not written for, some ^;ime, it is not because yiju are out' of my thoughts, but on account of my -bodily infirmities and pressing calls in my work as a minister, at horne and abroad. I feel as if I should not be able to . endure much longer.. O for gospel faith, patien'ce,- and resignalidn. The rest of our femUy ate in Usual health, and it beoonies us to praise the Father jof lights for all his great,, many, and "long-continued favors. , - . . I- , REVIVALS. 247 "Your gfandiriotlxer Hallook died, or rather fell asleep- in Jesus, as -we trust, the 8th of last April. The attention which began i^ this place eafly in March oontinuea. Fourteen were added to the church on the first Sabbath in May. Day before yesterday w^ had an examining meeting at our house, when eleven were examined and cordially approved.. More than five hundred have made a profession of religion within the limits of this association since la,st June, and as many ^s five hundred mbre have, manifested hope. There have been spiritual showers, some of them very great, in"other associations. " From your affectionate father, -"JEREMIAH HALLOCK." . ' ■ , T To.tne 5p.me , .soon after a Tisit'to his parents, Ind his ■ marriage .' , . "NovEMBEH. 5, ,1-81,6. ■ t' It is truly a iiay of wonders in respect to the conversion of poor sinners, and the building up of Zion. We rejoice to hear that you have obtained a: , house. I pray for you every day, that your little young family may be a Bethel. Your mother ferfs anxious for your immortal souls, and says, ' Do vrrite to Jeremiah and Sarah that a solemn eternity is be- fore them.' Will you not, beloved children, think on these things ? do not neglect the great work of a gospel preparation." ,. ^ "^ " Jan. -5, 1817. Fifteen were received to-day into the church, making sixty-four who have been admit- ted on profession since the 'first Sabbath in last May. Se(yen, the past year, have been Teoeived by letter; 248 JEREMIAH HALLOCK;. in all, seventy-one. There are not less thjtn twenty more who hope since Mardb, and some are suhjects of serious impressions. "V^'e are yet favored with very solemn, precious meetings. - When we' coijipaje the •fruits of the "Resent revival with those of the awaken- ing in 1799, they exceed those of that glorious day. This is a very impressiyej solenm, and awakening ooh- sideration, and calls for deep humility, gratitude, and praise. Though attended with the catarrh a>ndTnany infiriniti&s, and many times ready, to faiat, yet, hy the merciful help of the Lord, I havp heen eiiahlediio attend the meetings, not less thanfive or six in a week, ' and I trust my bodily health is better tiban it was "eight months ago.' And I believe it- is in answer to the prayers of the Lord's dear people for ra«, of which, I am so unworthy. OLOTd,. still hpld me up, and be my strength. Let me not wander from thy paths, ia- doctrine or practice. , If I shall live this year, may it be to serve and please tliee, in doing and submitting to thy wiU. If I must die, niay it be in Jesus.. when wUt thou come unto me as thou didst to the houseofZaocheus and She jailer? ' .^ "Parted with my brother and, sister Hogford for ■ Southafjiptori, SeptembieE 23, but soon grew very un- well with symptoms of fever. Did Jtut just arrive at . brother Grould's at Southampton. "Was kindly receiv- ed. Took an emetic administered by Dr. Woodbridgiei which operated powerfully,^' Had a disti:essing night, but through mercy felt some relieved in i3ie mctrning. 'Tarried all- day, September 24, at brother Gould's— next day, went home. Neither Dr. Woo.dbridge nor the AI SOUTHAMPTON. 249 others wKo ■watolied.'withme and took such care of me, would a.6oept any recompense. May the blessing of the Lord rest upon them." ' The following description of this scene is fi:om a member of the: family .of E,ev.-Mr. Croiild, with whom he lodged, and for whom he usually preached, in his anflual visit to his friends in G-oshen and' Plainfield. '^.I saw Mr. Hallook come up to the house much fatigued ; , I sprang' to his tissistance,,aad said to him, 'Are you unwell, Mr. -Hallook.?' Pale and trembling," he replied, ''I've come to die J with you; God has heard my prayer : 'I was afraid I should' die on the road,. and that my dear family would never know how I died; I knew you would tell them : I want they should know how deaf Christ appears to me ; I think he never appeared so precious ; .1 want you should tell them this.' These'seritenCes he uttered with difficulty, leaning on my arm, and staggering into the. hbu^e. As soon as he was upon the bed panting for breath, h§. said, 'I do. wonder how brother W — — can givd up such a Saviour ; how he will need him in such an hour as this.'' A physician was immediately called, bjit could hardly get at the case, because Mr. Hal- look's conversation was so full of 'the love of Christ. He sunk down,' at length," and seemed to be at the -point. of death for, a time, but in- a day or two he was so far relieved as to return to his family." i . About the last meeting he attended- in South- ampton, where for years he was. a great favorite with , the- crowd that flocked together dn his arrival, he re- marked at the close of his sermon, that probably he 11* 250 JEREMIAH ITALLOCK.. should never see theim again. He then sat down, but in a little time rose andsaid, "My dear friends, there is a diflferenoe 'Ijetween prohabiUty and possibility.- It is not probable I shall meet you here again. lam gld and gray-headed. I live daily very near to death." - ."'Sept. 28.- Lord's day. "Was enabled to write yesterday and the day before, though with much weakness and infirmity. Attended the concert in the-interftiission, and the conference' at five o*olook. Have had unusual strength, and freedom, and I trust tha Lorfl. was with us. Have eriioyed of late un- usual serenity and peace . of mind, I trust, in Jesus the consolation of Zion; and may he have all the , praise, to the glory of the Father. " Nov. 26. Homan was evidently mofe.ill, and we feared his disorder was becoming putrid,-and about one o'clock, P. M., he appeared to fail very fast. We feared he- had but a few hours tolive. He said he did not know that he. had any reason to think he had an interest In Christ. Now, the languish of my soul became unutterabl^' But npt far ifrom sunset toy dear brother E. A having heard of our trial came to see us, and we kneeled in prayer, he -being the speaker. His prayer and conversation-seemed to b^ so blessed to, me, that an unusual peace and calmness, and trust in Christ, pervaded my mind, so that I could converse with Christian friends who came in, with freedom and delight. Sometime in the. evening a suppuration took place in his throat, and. he was relievisd. It was therefore a night of unusual com- fort arid praise. - ■ }HS CORRESPONDENCE. ?51 " Nov: 27, X817. Tp see such companies of youth and children cdleoting for play and vanity, and the cruel practice of sh(X)tuig. at living fowls, is distress- ing^ because indications of the Lord's. departurte, of our awful stupidity, and the everlasting perdition of all who are out of Christ. These things try and vex my soul, and cause sorrow and. heaviness." - To liis elde'r^son. ' "^JuLY 11, 1818. "My dear Childeen — ^Wereyour mother and my- self to. go to Steuhenville corporeally as often as we do mentally, there would be a hard-beaten path be- tween us. "Although there is do special awakiening amdng us hera, but it, is a day of alarming stupidity, yet the churcb are united and steadfast, and ■Qie late appar- ent converts seem to endure; conferences on the Sab- bath, tlie meeting for yomig people, and the Thurs- day concert, arc attended. But the church dimin- ishes, both by death and by removal to other places. We have buried seventeenf since the beginning of the year. The tweiity-fifth of last month our old neighbor and friend Ephraim Mills left this world, after a short sickness. This is a sore loss, to me, but tbe thought that Jesus the Saviour and owner,of all things still lives the same for evermore, strangely" supports my sinking jnind. " Your mother is favored with health and vigor, a great blessing to us for which we ought to be thank- ful. She Would set out any day to go, and see her Jeremiah. My general health is better: on the. last 262 JEREMIAHHALIiOCK. tw6 SaMathsj with the intervening week,- I was enabled to preach nine sermons, praised he the-great Physician of soul and body. My study is pleasant to me. ■ It would be agreeable in itself to have Jiealth while we stay;, and to be oaUed by the Lord of the harvest right put of his field ajid with sickle in hand. I am now in my Sixty-first year, and your mother but about three years younger, I feel of late, espe- cially by turns, great anxiety for the soiils of my' children, lament my unfaithfillness, and desire to be more faithful in affectionately warning, instrueting, and persuading them to come to Christ, that so they might please Grod, be blessings, ajid be for ever blessed. ■ How these lines will-find you, my dear son and daughter, whether stupid or thoughtful about eternal things, I know not ; but I beseech you, if out of the spiritual ark, not to rest nor let any thing hinder your pressing into jt, and without delay. " From your affectionate father, ' •"JEHEMLiH, HALLOCK.'! "Dec. 21,. 1818, Returned from Barkhamsted very feeble in body and mind. Could not ride, nor hstrdly walk ; wanted sometimes to lie down in the road. But my mind was calm and comfortable, and the hope of being able to move with all the activity of an angel was refi:eshing ; also, the thought that in that blessed world they will not have to. take a third of the time or more. to. recruit a feebje, clogging, bur. densome body. CAftE FOR HISH:$USEH0LD. 253- CHAPTER XI; LA30RS IN AfiTANCiNG YEARS— COREfESl'dNDENCB ■ • — RETIYAL X)F 1821. '.: One pleasant trait of character, in, Mr. Ha,116ck was. the deep, interest which he manifested in. the . welfare of all the merhheis of hi^ household. In the course of his life, with the concurrence of his worthy partner,- he took seyertil children and trained them up to manhood,, whom he treated with so nluch parental affection and ca,re that a stranger could not distinguish them from his own phildren; And even after they went out from his roof, the strength of his affection and solicitude for their souls did not suhside. Sometimes, OQ the: day of theif. departure, he noted .in hia journal his sense , of unfaith&ilness and his deep regret. .Often did he, i^peak of them afterwards with the tones of a father, and it was his uniform practice . to address to them now and then, an affectionate arid parental letter. One of these letters was written to _Mr. J. M- — '— of the city of New York, who had lived, in Mr. Hallook's family from th& age of foujc to that of twenty-t^o .years. ^\.'-.'* ' ■■ ■ ■ "JutTC-19,1819. *' Our dear Children — ^We thank you for your kind letter by Mr. H -. We are always glad to hear from yoii' and of your welfare, and to learn that 254 JEREJIIAHHALLOCi. you do not forget us, as we cannot forget you. It gave Tis no little joy to hear that you were blessed^ with an infant son. The lives of infants, especially of those so small, are a brittle thread. - But thatGrod who gives them can preserve and raise thein. We pray jn respect to' yours, that it may live, that you may be prepared fox such a ^me^cy, be enabled to giv6 yourselves and babe to the Lord, and do your duty towards him according to the word ; that he may be an obedient child, a comfort to you, useful in the world, a blessing in Zibn,and that both the child and his parents ijiay be blessed of the Lord. But if you should be called to part with it by death in its infancy, childhood, or youth, as many have- been, may you be prepared and enabled froiii the heart to bless the Lord in taking as. well as in giving. ."Should thd Lord of his great mercy restore &e mother to health, and spare all your lives, do try to come and see us as soon as you can, and bring the Uttle one with you. But should you be preserved to come, who of us would be aUve to see you we know not, for we are truly sojoiuners, and our days on earth are like the passiiig shadow. There were twenty-six deaths in Canton the past year, some of all ages. It was ftequently the case that some ope at a funeral in health was the next carried to the grave. Truly the Son of man came among us ihe last year in a way and at an hour we knew not. The text for the new year was, ' that they were wise, that they understood this, tiiat they would consider their lat- HIS CORRESPONDENCE. 255 ter.end!' Indeed we are pilgrims, and the life of man m this world is cedled w way. Oui latter end is the close of life, to which the way we now go will lead. "We read of two ways :. the darrow path whose end is life and the eternal salvation of the soul ; and the hroad road of sin -which endeth in eternal death. Now if one on a joarney should, though instruciied and. Varned, heedlessly take a road in the morning which, however easy, pleasant, and inviting at liie beginning, would yet end at sunset, in reproach,, complete poverty, and wretchedness, all would con- sider s;ich a traveller as void of wisdorfl, and would exclaim against his folly. But if the traveller should consider, and take that road in the morning which, though at first more rough, stony, hilly, and impleasT ant, would yet end at sunset in -hoUor, safety, fulnessj and happiness, who would not esteem such a man wise, and speak of his great wisdom ? And now^, my dear children, for yhbrii I daily try to pray, let us he as wise ia spiritual things. We know that Jesus aiid his blessed gospel are the way to l^e, whatever reproach, crosses, and difficulties may, now attend it"; but the way df this selfish, prayerless," impenitenii, unbelieving,. andT disobedient world endeth in eternal woesj however pleasing it may now appear to an eye of sense. Consider these lines,, and the Lord give you understanding in all tjiings. Farewell. "Erom your, affectionate parents, ■. " JEREMIAH AND MffiRCY HALLOCK." 256 JEREMIAH HAJiLOCK. *" ' .To his .ean in Ohio. ^ •" "January, 19, 1819. ' " Though feeble and many times reaSy to faint, I am enabled to study, and to preach on the Sabbath and at othCT times ; and fdr aught I know, to usual acceptance. "No place is so agreeable to me as my study, and it is often delightsome to read, write,^ etc. The world has truly almost slidden from under me, and is fast sliding away ; and I think my only hope and support is the precious Jesus and his blessed gos- pel. You, my Jeremiah, are now in your twenty- ninth year, and should you live, you will not only soon T)e in the decline of life, but where I am, advanced, and the world all sUdden, or fast sUding from under you. And I often think, what will my children do when this approaching period shall arrive, or if they should find theniselves by sickness -or other means on their. dying bed,and all the solemnities of the judgmeniatthedodf? Nothing can tfiea, as I know by experience, aSbrd Ihe least support, but the consolations of Jesus." To his taephew Wm. A. Hallook*, at Williams College. ,"The account you ^ve of the awakening in Wil- liamstbwn, as well as in other places, is wonderful and interesting. X am more and more convinced by the word, and I think by experience, that we a;re by nature destitute of holiness, carnal, sold "under sin. Hence in need, perishmg need of the new birth,' or trf Christ as oUr sanetification and Saviour from wrath, yea, ^.s our Ufe and all in all. How it is with you, I know not. The day is approaching when you.expept to leave college and turn your thoughts on some pro- HIS CORRESPONDKNCE. 257 fession. . It is tliereforei. a most, interesting period to you, as well as to your "parents^ and also to me. How soon have .your- four years at Cbllege passed away; and how short is our period of probation on ^ajth, even at the longest: I. trust I. pray that you 'may, first of all, give your heart and your whole self unto the Lord Jesus, whose we of "right &t6^ whose yoke is easy and' his burde^ light.- Tt is my desire to have you study divinity, and wear yourself out in the, good work of the gospeL Such I know is the wish of your parents. But we must lov'e and serve Christj let our profession he what it may, in order tto he accepted^ of hiin, jhoth now and when'lie' oometh. Farewell. ' "Your^affe'ctipnate UNCIE." To Lis son in Ohio. "July 8, ,1819. "Our dear children, often thought of and longed, fcH", We were not a little affected to, learn i^^ poor state of your health, and havfr endeavored daily to remember you in 6ur 'prayers. You think your dis- order is of the nervous Mnd. Soon after I was settled, I had nervous com,plaints to a very high degree^ I know what they^are. Alfliough they are commonly not so mortal, yet they are deepj far out- of the reach of medicine,, and hard to cure. "They are attended with , the symptoms of almost every disorder, are apt to prevent sleep, and to make ^every thing look gloomy" aM discouraging. .They, debilitate the mind and unfit one for the service pi G-od or man. I do sincerely pity you. But let our disorders and trial's" be what they Hiay, evei so, long and severe, they are^ like 268 JEREMIAH HALLOOK.. every mercy, from the God of Jacob, wkp is the great Physician of soul and body, and our help is nowhere but in. him. President D wight says that people under affliction are always attended with one.of these three thiligs, murmurings, brutal stupidity, or sub- mission to Grod. Let us watch against insensibiUty and murmurings, learn submission under the inighty hand of the Lord in all our afflictions, and resign our souls and bodies and all our concerns in tibe way of well-doing into his hand for time and eternity. " I have just read Dwight's sermons on the duty of parents to their childreni and of children to their parents. Aniwlule I find them very instruotiVB and entertainingj I feel greatly reproved for my nnfaitiir fulness as a parent ; but all the. past is sealed up for the judgment. Yet, blessed be the Lord, while in this world we are ptlspners of hope. Hence, if we tsonfess and forsake our sins, and return unto the Lord, he will- abundantly pardon all our offences and purge away our guilt in the all-cleansing blood of Jesus. that I may, if continued in this world, have grace to be more faithful,, as a minister and parent, and in all respecte.- " 'It is good,' saith the preset, 'for a man,"'that he bear thfc yoke in his youtibi,' Thus may your afflictions be made beneficial, even in the highest and best sense to yon both. And if you are experiencing his restoring mercies and other favors, may his great goodness lead you to repentance, and to lift up your hearts in his fear. The longer I, live, the veord of Grod appears more and. more real, true, divine, and HIS CORRESPONDENCE. 259 precious, and our only light^and hope. ■ And as David said to his dear son Solomon, I will now, my children, say to you. Forsake it not, but bind it continually upon your hearts, and tie it about your hecks ; then, ' when thou goest,' it shall lead thee ; when; thou sleepest, it shall keep thee ; and when thou awakest, it shall tp,lkwith thee ;' yes, about the most wise and excellent things. " From' your affectionate FATHER-" "Oct. 3, 1819. Last "Wednesday, attended • the ordination of Messrs. Bingham arid Thurston, as mis- sionaries to the Sandwich islands. Little did I ex- pect to be appointed to make the consecrating prayer. But the Lofd Jesus supported and helped ihe, so thaj I trust reUgionand the dear cause did not suffer. All the other parts, were performed to edification. The assembly was the greatest that I ever saw at an ordi-- natiori, and the most universally solemn and interest- ing^ P Lord, how unworthy ani" I, even of the least of all thesS thy metoi^s. May ^hey all humble and lead my soul unto thee in hope and aU spiritual obedience." To a- nephe'a;f in Uie The o^ogusal seminary ,' Andover, iinm e -. diately after his making a pulilic profession of Veligiori. " March 18, 1826. "Dear William — A brother was received into tha church l&.st. Sabbath. The communion was full, and I thought the day and the holy ordinance were more refreshing than usual for us, who are so lean at best. Last year none were received, hy profession, into the Chujrch. ' "Two others wish to' come folward. 260 JEREMIAH HALLOCK. who appear well.. that these things might be as ail fearnest hefore a glorious harvest. Th$se Ipng spiritual' winters of harrfennesg are pai^ul and trying to dear Chii^ians, who pray and pleadj',' O Lord> how long?' I know of no special revivals in this region. Our religious meefings are attended as usual, and the • concerts for prayer are tetter attended than ihey were SLK monlJis ago, and appear more fervent. But the children and ;youth are unusually thoughtless and vain. It is inexpressibly distressing to see them wast- ing, away their forming age in forgetftilness of Grod, - which they ought to spend in his fear; that if they, live to come on the stage of action^ they may Be pre- pared to he useful, and if the;^ must die, may meet their Jijdge in peace. ■ " Although the Son of Grod was made flesh— which was so necessary in order to his laying down his life for our sins, and doing many other things as the Mediatpr — ^yet divine honors are equally and unre- servedly ascribed to him in the "Scriptures of truth as to the Father ; and there is not a chapter, Uor scarce a paragraph where Cmist is spoken of, in which "his absolute divinity does not shine ; and there i^ no fair explanation of them but by giving equal divine honors ^to the Saviour. - "No subjects are of more importance than the candid examination of ourselves and. daily self-denial, to which the selfish heart is so "opposed ; for there is nothing in the native heart of rnan but. sin, sin, sin. "We therefore stand in eq^ual need of the new birth as of the atonement. I am glad you went to Andover-^ ADTA.HCI-NG YEARS. 261 rejoice to hear the" things you wrote respecjtibg your- self. If we have not received Christj it is high time to do it, and to live unto hini. Some of .the last words of President Edwards to hiS/anxious friends were, 'Trust in G-od, and you need "not fear.' How much better it is to trust inlmmanuel, than in an. arm of flesh. May it ever be your delight to rely only^ con- tiniiaUy, and altogether on him. -Be a fruitful branch in the true' vine ; glorify God, and have the joy of Christ fulfilled inr your own happy hreast. Let us pray fot one another, for, each of our families, for cmr colleges, the seminary, and Zion. Adieu. *- " Your affectionate uncle, '■' , ' "JEEEMIASHiiLOCK.'" .. In a former part of this work, we'sawr Mr. Hal- lock, with no common ardor, devoting the pj)right» liness of his youth to the service, of Christ. rWehave , inarked also how, in one steady, inhdeviatkig- course, he exhausted in the same glorious cause the strength of manhood. We now find him,. under the pressure, of more advanced years, still in' the harness, laborious as ever for the -honor of Christ and the s'alvatioii ' of souls, praying more earnestly for divine aid, ^rid rnakipg iaereased effort to fulfil Hie responsibilities of his station. ■ . . > ^ . " March 13, 1820. This day I am sixty-two years old; I have been, continued almost thirty-five years in the iflinlsliy. It is about fi>rty,-one years since I trust my attefation was turned tcx religioli.j so that I have been- professedly as long on the spiritual journey, as Israel, was on the way from Egypt to Canaan. 262 JEREMIAH HALLOCK.. Smely ray race must be drawing ta a close. My mind has been interested in reading G-od's holy word, especially the ninth and .tenth chapters of. the Acts-; and the late Religious Inteilligencer, in pstrticular the account of revivals. If I niay live a little' longer, may Christ be niy only, all-suffioient hope ; and may I live in, the faith and reUgion of the holy apostles, and of the present revivals of the Holy Spirit. If I must die, •may it be. in this faith and with the siipports of the •gospel. My own, and the deadness of my people, is truly distressing,, and especially the stupidity and vanity of our poor children and youth; ' .Bxd I think it is a consolation, that Grod will be glorified and his gospel kingdom eternally flourish, whatever becomes of us. Lord, Jiave mercy on us, and pluck us as brands from the burning, for Jesus' sake. This, for sorne reason, has b6en to me the most solemn birth- day I ever knew."- * In.liie autumn of this year, the monthly^ meeting of ministers tO'whieh'Mi'. Hallock belonged, divided itself into classes of four and five, with a view to some endeavors to fouse the slumbering churches; It w&s the custom of Mr. Ha'llook's class to visit two churches every week, and attend- three meetings at each place.. After making the circuit of the ^hole a few .times, one of the brethren proposed that it should no longer be the duty of 9,11 the five to attend every meeting, but that two brethren should be present besides the minister of the place. <' No," said Mr. Hallock, who had himself rarely if ever been absent, "we must all be on the ground. If I had a child REVIVALS. 263 sick, and could not make him believe that he was -in a dangerous state, I know of, no better way to unde- ceive-him, than to calla council of physicians. No, ■ brethren,' we must all endeavor to be at every meet- ing, that poor, sick, dyingsinners, who are so hard, to take alarm, may begin .to think something, ia the matter, and that they must attend to tbeir souls." It need scarcely be added, that the arrangement remained without alteration. These efforts the Lord was pleased to bless. Some tokens of his special grace were immediately visible, and the following year was marked with uncommon mercy, not only in tibis vipinity, but in very many towns' throughout Connecticut. • ■ -. ' This was tlie last general revival of religion in which Mr.. Hallock took a part. Though his iage and infirmities might seem to have pleaded eloquently for some remission of service, and especially in the- most inclenjent seasons of the year; yet w;e shall find him at his post by -night and by day, and somethtles at the distance of ''twenty miles and -more from home. And should he, to persons who can patiently see a waste of life in any .thing but religion, seem to have been impelled forward by a principle little less opera-r tive than that whichr for thirty years glniijaated Pautj and for a less . period . elevated Henry Mattyn tq a - height of holy indifference in respect to personal com- fort, health, and even life itself, the Vn'iter. is not anxious to offer an apology. His -course furnished at least a practioar comment on a sentiment which he- often expressed, in the evening of his days, in sub- 264, JEREMIAH HALIOCK stance this : " I view myself, like a man stationed in a toat, with oars put iiitohis hands, and directions given, him to row with all his might so Iprig as life lasts." He sometimes used a kindred figure to illus-> trate the need of severe and continued study in the clerical office,' comparing the ministers of Christ tb toatmen rowing up a strong current, who must ply every nerve to advance, at all, and will certainly .go backward if I3iey relax for a moment. " Nov." 30. 'Thanksgiving. Met at ten for prayer, ■ iU the conference-house. : It is affecting to think how many of my age are gone, aftd to- find myself and such of.thehi as are hving, weakened, -beinumbed with age, and just going, and the poor children iind jTDuth vain and tihflngbtlesS. Hope, my soul, in tiie unchanging Ood of Zion. ■ " Dec. 3,- Lord's day; Attended the intdrmis- sion-prayer, and the conference in the central school- house. My mind -Was peculiarly solemn,' arid "I trust . refreshed, on Friday in my~ study,' in writing on, 'Seen- " of 'singels.' O if my poor youth kiiew these tkingsf, how soon would they leave their vanities for Christ, and how much more- -honorable and happy ■vroUld they be. ' ; . "■ Jan". 14, 1821. Hear of revivals, Wrhile our fleece seems to be left dry. Help us, Grod of our sal- vation. . " Feb. 11, Lord's day.- Had tinusval freedom in.., all tiie performance^more attentiw than usual — a solemn intermission at my house — several appeared serious, and some old professbl^ a little quickened. -REVITALS. 265 the Hope of Israel, wilt thou not revive us again, and let thy mouinitig saints rejoice in thee ? ■ " Feb. 15. Last Friday -went with brother T— — to 'Goshen, Ooiih. ; attended a meetingin the evening at deacon T 's, who lately hopesfor four, of his child- ren. Had some freedom in speaking from Acts 13 : 43. Rev. Mr. Mills and other ministers present made oh- servations- It was a fuU, serious meeting.' Yesterday we went to Litchfield— ^had freedom in speaking in the' prayer-meetmg. Rode in! the- evening to Mr. Mills'. To-day attended a fast at^orringford; - Heard brother. Beach in the forenoon. I preached in the afternoon from Jonah 1 : 6,~' ' What meanest thou, sleeper ?' Recent accounts of the wonderful awakenings' were , related. . Lord, bless this day to this thy dear peo- ple. "We rode home in the evening and found all welC praised be the Lord. > '' ■ ^ "March 4., It appears to me that the awakening^ though small, is begun both in the church and society. Lor^, pause thy saiut-s to pray, a,nd may the incense of the > Angel of thes.coyenant ascend with their pray- ers before the throne of .grace and. prevail, that all may.not wither, but a rain of righteousness descend, for Jesus' sake. Amen. "March- 12. Last Tuesday went to Bristol, and tarried lintil' Friday noon. Preaohedl four^germons, and heard brother ^ice preach two. Made several family visits, etc. , The impressiou is generail — a goodly number have obtained hope in Christ, -and others are under conviction. Friday we rode to Farmingtoii" and heard brother Nettleton preach in HaHack. ' 12 266 JEKEMIAH-HALLOCK. the ^evening. It was thou^t he had one thousand hearers; The work, appears to-be on theJncreEise. Saturday I rode to Simshury, and preadtied there yesterday. Had an infermissicai-meeting. A glori- ous work, it appears, has hegun there. Hear that the. work of. the Lord has greatly reV-iyed in Bark- hamsted; and more encouraging things appear of late in Canton.- Lord, the work is thine, wilt thou hot carry it on, that thy glory may appear in the conversion of manyito praise and serve thee, s. ^ " March 25, Lord's day. Text in the afternoon, John 4 : 35, 36 : ' Say not ye. There are yet four months,' etc. Have attended meetings every- evening the past week except last evening, and some in the daytime. Some of the meetings have iheen unusually solemn. Several appear to' have come to "the .birth, ~ and to linger. Lord; do not let them go back ; do not let them stay where they are, but make them willing in this day of thy power. i > "April^ 15. The fii'st Sabbath in. this ^onth I was at Jforthington, the second at Bristol. I have attended' meetings almost every evening, afld some in the daytime, but find rays'elf Tery feeble, and jeady sometimes to give up my hope respecting my being in Christ. itiy leanness, rtLy leanness in prayer, in preaching, and every performance. why am I thus ? Lord, if it is because I am not thine, show it to me in mercy, and pluck my soul as a brand.' from the burning. If it is on account of some right-hand sin, show it to me and help me to cut it off; If it is ohe of the trials ofjbhy children, support me under it . REVIVALS. a67 and bring me out of it. Make me truly humble under thy mighty hand, and revive me in thy own good time and -way. Although I fear and tremble to say ity yet -I -fear the awakening is declining, that Israel are turning their backs. Lord, have mercy ; humble us, and return again as thou didst of old, in the days of Joshua, fdr Jesus' sake." The preceding selections from his journal have been made with particular reference to Mr. Hallock's labors abroad in a season of religious revival. They furnish a |air specimen of his common practice ■ at such a time. It was an opinipn. which he often ex- jMressed, and which received very happy illustrations in his own course, that a minister should not only be ■vv>i]ling to go from a cold to a warm moral region for personal, warmth, but equally ready to go frpm a warm to a cold region with the -benevolent intent to diffuse, any warmth of heart which God may have given hxrn for the benefit of other churches.- Henpe, while he often visited places at considerable distance, which were favored with a work of grace,, we find him also, in all the revivals of religion at' Canton, encouraging an interchange of labor with his brethren in the ministry. And unless this had been his course, the excellent spirit that was in him must have been, to human view, much circumscribed in its -benign' influence. Nor was he alone in this practice. The excellent ministers with whom he acted, such men as the venerable Robbing, Gillett, Starr, and Mills, were accustomed to. make a revival of religion anywhere in their circle a sort of common cause, and tc foster 268 ■ JEREMIAH" HALLOC'K. it 'W:itli -wakefiil solicitude.: And this practice, under God, may go far to aecount for the fact, that when- ever a work xjf grace was enjoyed 'hy any one ,of the. churches under the pastoral care of these servants of Christ, it was to some extent common to them all. But the example set by these, fathers cannot be safely followed without a large portioil of the same spirit. They might always go and labor in a revival, however powerful^ without first waiting in silence at a -single meeting ; because, by a constant and clo^e walk with Grod, they were always so much in the spirit of a revival. , No one, it is presumed^ who, was "^e^ acquainted with Mr. Hallacfc, ever trembled to see him rise in the desk or in the poiiference-room, at a time of great divine influence, lest .his feelings should not be sufficiently elevated. But, " These Buns are Set — ^O rise some other such.'' To his rieph.ewat Andover. ~ ■ "May'27, 1821. ■ "."You have heard of the- showers >of divine ^ace in our region. For a wbile it appeared as if poor CBnton would be the marshy place, where the fertil- izin'g, reviving waters- of aalvatioh never come. But. it pleased the God of all grace, who heareth prayer, to begin his gracious work among vs. It began in the month of March in the middle of the town, and in the south part about the same time. Youth who had been full of levity, became at once the subjects of deep conviction. "We never' saw meetings- more visibly impressed. ' Poor children, they could not hold lip their heads. "W"e hope the awakening is on the HIS COE.E.ESFONDENCE. 269 whole increasing. - I cannot say exactly,.but perhaps forty have ohtained hope. Many are still serious. The. praise is all djie to G-qd, and 0, may he glorify his' power, love, and mercy in still carrying on his work, until it shall. extend to every district and family. The work has been much greater in some neighbor- ing places. Perhaps they hope for two hundred in i'armington, anH one hundred and fifty in New Hart- ford., You do noifc know how much I wish to have you corhe and see us, and attend our ineetings, and help your aged, feeble, uncle." •To friends at Pla.infi«.ld. , " Canton, June 14, 1822. " It is -pften the case that people wish each othei; a happy new year. "We have reason to th^nk that 1821 - was a happy new year to a goodly number in Canton J and to. hundreds and even thousands in our region — ^the year to wMch they will look back in a blessed eternity as that in which they passed, through free grace, from the love of sin to the love of holiness,- and from condemnation to pardon and eternal life. What a happy new year "was the past to all stigh, in our region, nation, and wojrld.; But hovir many 'are left of whoip it must be mournfully said, as the. last year found, so it left them, dead in sin and children of Wrath. ^ 'What Christian would not pity them and' 'pray, '0 that 1823 might be the happy new year of their repentance and pardon.' And- may it be the happy, new. y '^ ^ ' ^' . To his nephew a,t AndoVer. J ' ^ . ., "May 2, 1822. 'Mother Jliimphjey fell asleep,, as we trust in Jesus, last auttjimii, in her ninety-ninthTyear. Indeed, my sun is far'in the yy^est, having just closed my sixty- fourth year, and it give^ me feelings unutterahle. The world all slides from under me, and I see nothing here hut vanity. But the divinity and truth of the word of Grod appear more and more real and of amaz- ing importance. The testimony of the word con- ceming. the sinfulness, wretchedness, and weakness of man;, concerning the Lord Jesus Christ as God with usj his atoneiuentj righteousness, intercession, and infinit,e, unchangeahle, g,rid eternal fulness ; and respecting the Holy Spirit, to change and sanctify the heart, to show us the things of Jdsus, and fill the ibroken heart with peace and consolation in.hiin: these and the like things increase in my view ; all aside from the gospel is ahsolute darkness and des- peration. - But 0, how needed and inestimahly pre- cious is the gospel of Christ, ^s the' true,and- only light of hfe. I- think I can say, my study was never so delightful ; I wduld write, my sermons if it were only for the pleasure of -writing them, and my desire is to go out- of this world testifying of Jesus to all I leave -hdhind ; and that that good prbmise might he fulfilled 272 JEREMIAH^MALLOCK. alsQ in poor me, 'They shall.be fruitful .in dd age.' Go oh, my dear poiisin ; the work you have chosen is truly good, the test of all callings ; and may a double portion of dear brother's piefy, love, and faith rest upon- you, . - " From your afFeetiohate- uncle, who loves you." " MaV 12, .1823. Last week I ^et apart a portion, of -my, garden to the Lord, for missionary" purposes, and planted it With corn and potatoes. , Should my life and health be continued, and any part of it fail through iny carelessness or sloth, then I aih to ifiafce it up. "Whatever it produces I consider solemnly consecrated to. the treasury of tKe Lord, or the full worth/of it in money. ■ Lord, what are we, that we should be in a situation to give' thee thine own! 0, give me' grace to.db it fr^m the heart, and may I know hovv' spjemn and blessed it is to be tJie Lord's, , and live and do all.to Him -who hath done and suf- fered so much for poor sinful pie and -thi^ world of sinners." ' Speaking of the smallness of his contributions to ■ send the gospel to others, the good man once saidj "If, "through amazing grace, I at last arrive in heaven, possibly some redeemed ^oiil may there come to me, and say'with liveliest gratitude, ' Ohf I ani indebted to your charity for my salvation.' And how should I, feel, if this happy spirit should then ask,; ^How much did you. give ?'" • CONVERSION OF, HIS SON. 273 CHAPTER Xri. CONVERSION OF HIS §0N— CLOSING- LABORS— ' TEAiVs OF CHARACTER. The parent who has long prayed and wept and' waited for the conversion- of a beloyed ohild, will take no common interest in the fact now to, be recorded-^ a fa"ot equally suited to make him a partaker: of an- other's joy, and to inspire him with confidence in the Hear6r of prayer, slow as the ^acious answer may seem to come. ^ . - "May 19, 1822. Yesterday I 'received a letter from my-sweet brother, ReV.. Mr. Jennings of Steu'- benville, Ohio, containing^ in many respects the mpst reviving intelligence I ever hpard, namely, the news of the hopeful conversion of my dear son Jeremiah; and' of his public profession of "^he Lord Jesus, the last Sabbath in Ajiril. If ever, I now had something T)f Pavid's feeling when he,weht and sat before 'Grod and said, ' What can David say more unto thee ? for ttou. Lord dod,' knowest thy s.eirvant.' He has been a child of my daily prayers ;' I have often thought of those words,- where the psalmist speaks .of vpraying until 14s throat Was dried, and of looking until his eyes failed. I could hardly believe- for joy. And how rcAdving was the news to his dear rhother. Whe;ther I think of ray unworthiness, or of the Lord's- being a prayer-hearing Gr'od; of the love and precioiisnessof 12* 274 JEREM-IAH HALLdOK. Christ, of .the emptiness of. this world, the need "we stand in of Jesus, arid the hlessedness of iaithjnJikn, or of the free grace of G-od in bestowing it ; all I can say is, turn which way I wiH, tlie scene is rather overwhelming, and the thought arises. What shall I render unto the, Lord? It is all the travail of Jesus' soul, and let him have all the praise, to the glory of God the Father. I think I have rejoiced with many parents,, in' seeing or hearing of the apparent conver- sion, -of their children ; and now I want to call on them to rejoice with me ^nd help me praise the Lord. And L would wish to_ do it with trembling a,nd holy fear.^ ; - . '•Ki; ' "Dear Saviour, I give, him. afresh to thee; Do not let him be deceived. take the full possession of-his heart, aUd make him wholly and for ever thine. be his guide and support in this evil world, and make' him iiseful to thy "church on the earth, in the way in which it shall seem good .to thee. O, not only come into' my poor nnwortiiy family, but g& through. take Saraih his wife, Homan and .Glarissaj J— — - and L , the graiidehildren Jeremiah, Oliver, Le- rdy, and the. youth .and children 'with me,.A^ — and. B , S and J. A . Are not thy atm and grace sufficient, and the atonement and fulness of Jesus infinite? Cause my soul to be humble deep- within me; to thank thee, to take "fresh courage,, to believe; more_and serve thee better as a minister of the gospel, as a parent, eveiywhere and in aH things, unto thy coming and glorious kingdom, with, which this world and all its good things are not worthy to CONVEasiON 0F HIS SON. 276 be so much as named. ' Blessed be the Lord God, the God of Israel, wTio anly doeth wondrous, things. And blessed be his glorious name for ever-: and let the whole eariii be filled With his glory. Amen and Amen.' " Ji^REMtiH HALLOCK." "July 9, 1823. I had a sick day — some of th& time partiaUy deranged. ' When the hour of the con- cert camft it affected me to see the dear friends of Jesus meet and I ooujki not go with them. And thinking this might be my last sickness,^ it excited thoughts like these* < Farewell, pleasant conferences and sw^et concerts of prayer ; may you ever be hon- ored and blessed with the presence of the God of Jacob.' And if I must die, may the ever-living and> mo^t exalted' Jesus come down and fiU all his meetings with his refreshed, joyful saints, and quick- ened sinners.' For some reason I felt rather calm in mind, and "not. anxious whether I went now or came back to life. That which my poor family and the dear .church need is not me, a feeble, ereatijre, but the all-refreshing presence of our exalted Lord and, Saviour Jesus. " July 10,. Thi-ough mercy, rested latst night bet- ter than I feared, and things respecting my recovery look more encouraging. Lord, fit me and my dear family and people for thy most holy and blessed \|\rill. Giily grant this one blessing, that we might live altogether in and. unto our everJiving and exalted Redeemer, as c look down from their blessed abdde on their late. fields of action, "he saw it and was glad " in a few months after his arrival in heaven, when more than one hundred, under the early ministry of .his successor, were added to this highly favored church. "Feb. 6, -1825. Last Monday set out to. attend thfe installation of Rev. Mr.' Lathrop over the church in Salisbury. Arrived at Norfolk and lodged with brother Emerson. Tuesday, went on to Salisbury ;- it was pleasant to meet the consociation. Wednes- day, Mr. Lathrop was solemnly installed. , There was a tedious snow-storm. Thursday we rode, the wheels wading, through the snow, to Gantoni Bless the Lord, aiy soul." The last extra;ot is a fair speoiinen of Mr. Hal- lock's course through life", in respect 'to attending ecqlesiastical iheetings. In settling the! point of duty, hfe seemed scarcely to take into consideration either the distance or the state of the weather. In this, instanoei he left home on wheels in the heart of 284 JEREMIAH KALLOCK. wmter, to perform a journey. cff more than thirty miles, and to he ahsent seyerat days,^ when mdst of Jiis brethren in the conspciation were younger and less infirm, aU of. them nearer the place of meetfiig than , hirhself. Andt I well recollect how he went twenty . miles, the following winter, on a similar occasion, when the cold was .so intense that several members of the consociation were on iheir arrival much firozen. ,' But this was the lasj? time he ever met that body ; and such was the effect upon him, that he- expressed some doubt of his ability to return to his family., His influence in the larger clerical meetings, was great, yet he said But little. He always seemed to prefer silence, unless, in his view, Sopie point under discussion was Mkely to receive a wrong deciaon. Jn such case his words, were few, very deliberate^ mark- ed with much -candbi:,> and commonly decisive. He was peculiarly- happy in jiourjhg upon almost any subject whateyer light the Scriptures obviously fur- rnsh. On questions of great intricacy, egfeciaUy if their solution depended ipmewhat upon nice meta- physical disquisition,, or an extensive acquaintance -with history, either civU or ecclesia^ical, he seldom spoke ;at all. The high respect in,whioh hb wisdom and his conoiliatairy turn were held by the churches in Connecticut, is sufficiently manifest from the fact that he was often a member of seleot'councils for the settlement of ecclesiastical difficulties.. That his ap- pearance to entire strangers wag impressive and some- what peculiar, the following fact is evidence. ■ ' Some' years ago, a del^ate from the general as- TRAITS OF CHARACTER. 285 sembly of the Presbyterian church attended the gen- eral association of Conneotiqut. On his return to the south,- he called on a clerical friend whose residence, fca- some years had been in the neighhorhood of Can- ton. ' After some expressions of high satisfaction in the appearance of the Connecticut clergy, he said in a tone of marked interest, "There was one man who attracted my attention in partiotilar ; but his name I have forgotten." He then described in vivid colors the^ person, tone,, and manner of Mr. Hallpck. \' 0, that 's the apostle John," said the once northern cler- gyman, with a significant sniile; "True, true," re- joined 4;he other, and then had the, happiness to learn Ms jiame and his. uncommon worth. The most prominent feature, do.ubtless,- of Jlr- Hallock's character, was that first and indispensable requisite- in a good' minister pf Christ, ardent "piety. This spread over his other estiniable. properties a sort of divine lustre, and gave, them sterling value. His was not that periodical religion whiph returns only one day in seven, or at tiie hours of family devotion, morning, and • evening ; its presence .and powerful in- fluelice were daily apparent in the relaxation of the fireside, i^ the social circle-,' in the common affairs, of life, as_ well as in the house of God, or even in the act of spreading forth his hands and- uttering tdnes of deepest devotjon, at the communion-table. "W-ith him every day was a sort of Sabbath, every hour' ap- parently an hour of holy intercourse with G-od, He seemed, -to fasten his hand on heaven and bid the earth roll beneath him. - ' 286 JEREMIAH HALL-OCK. We should wrong not only him, hut the, graces of God which made him what he was in piety, "were we "to oiriit the chastened smUe which hletidpd so happily with the deep gravity of his aspect and saved him from the charge of austerity, a charge some- times brought against high spiritual attainment. Bew men if any did hotter, than he recommend ardor of piety to all sorts of people hy personal amiaoleness. To an uncommon extent he secured the love and con- fidence of youth and ohUdrenv His piety Shone-with such steady lustre and. in such fine propoi;tions, and with so little admixture of any thing foreign or incon.- gruous, that it was prohahly far more attractive,, cer- tainly far less repulsive even to the careless a,nd the vicious, than a much lower degree of piety often is in a character of inconsistent features, , , To all his intimate acquaintance, the -.uniforin and' marked agreement hetween his looks', language, and actions, denoted an Israelite, indeed^ Nor did he more- resemhle guileless Nathanael than-^he did godly Enoch, or Barnabas a son of consolation, ai.that disciple whom Jesus loved. Such was, the jextent of his spiritual attainments, I mean of course in human view, that • it would seem impossible to characterke him by some, one or few Christian graces, as is often done in characters of less symmetry. It would be nearer the truth to say, that by the gr.ace of Grod, re- oeivM in UoxoiUmon measure, he .had so successfully folldwed the direction of Peter in adding to hds, faith virtue,, and to virtue knowledge, temperance, patience, and all the other graces of Christianity, that his char- TRAITS OF CHARACTER,, 287 aoter did in fact seem to combine, in, very happy pro- portions, and in high excellence, those various ti-aits which constitute a well-formed and full-grown man in Christ Jesus.^ And- through the mercy of Grod, he endiUred to the end of his course without any hlot on his -character; hiaj^'sun even increased in brilliancy until it setj or rather irose above human sight to. illu- minate- and adorn a Isrighter sky. ' Not even lene- mies — for we cannot suppose so good a man in- so evil a world without them, especially as his immacu- late Master was ,here crucified— -not even enemies have whispered a' suspicion of his integrity.' Those wlio attack Christianity through the persons of its- pr^fessors, select other eharacteis than the one be- fore us. Have we then' found a character without ai^y defects ? ■ Was Mr. Hallock free from moral stains ? No; W.6 have seen the bitteri;iess of his own soul in view' of his Sinful heart ; we .have heard him , ©fteij groan over '.his pollutions ; and doubtless he more fre- quently poured dut repentant sorrows before God, than he either spoke of. them to men or recorded them in his. journal. .But without giving him a sinless char- acter, those who knew him b,est do not hesitate to place him, jn poijit of consistent and mature practical piety, in the very first class of Christians' who in^any age or country have blessed our ,world. Throughout the circle of his acquaintance, he was commonly spoken of as "the good Mr. Hallock." Some, and these always among, his "most intimate acquaintance, would add the epithet "great." That his moral out- 288 JEREMIAH HALLOCK. shone his intelleotual qualities,- none will deny. His intefleot, however, though, at once aided and sur- passed by something of higher excellence, was of no inferior order. His aS'sooiations of thought; as we, have seen in the course of this work, were often orig- inal and striking. He had a power of graphic delink eation which could entrance those around him. If the images of his imagination were not the most pic- turesque, they were always well-defined' and Vivid; for they were seldom secondhand, hut genuihe, bright coin, ^esh from his own mint. His memory, especially in regard to facts; was tenacious and exact. But the ^ most prominent of 'his intellectual powers was a sterling judgjnent. All his faculties of rmind seemed to owe not a little of their strength,, and their facility of operation, to the sublimity of" his moral and religious feelings. ProbaHy it would not be wide of the truth to' sayj he'was a, great because -a good- man. ~ He ever seemed, to feel and act as under the .eye of his divine Master, as one that loved his Lord and the service assigned him, as one who sought ■ the advancement of Christ's kingdom under a constant sense of the final account to be given of his steward- ship. His sense also of the worth of souls, and his strong and unquenchable ' love for Ms own people, appeared in his unwearied. eiForts for their salyatioil. He is believed to have spent more time than most of his clerical brethren in preparation for the pulpit,' He seemed to be shocked with the idea of bringing to the house nf God that which had cost him nothing. TRAITS OF UHARACJ-ER. 289 His study was emptatioally Ms tome. Yet his char- acter was preeminently pEtstoraL He found much time to be ahroad among his people, with the, sick and' dying, visiting fronr i.ouse to house, and attend- ing funerals, conferences, and prayej-meetiiigs. Very- few have had an equal talent, hy familiar intercourse, to fix attention, awaken interest, and lodge valuable truth in the minds of all classes. vA stUl smaller iitimber have been alike faithful in' that part of a clisrgyman's duty termed parochial. If he did not adopt the resolution of one devoted servant of Christ, "to let no person go away from his presence without an .effort to'do^him good," it is believed that few ever went &cta him without- having received some salutary influence. ., A philanthropist of the true Chi^istian -stamp, " He watehed, te wapt, he felt,^ he prayed for all." In the various relations of private M6, he was what w© might expect in a man of such high aim and gMieral consistency of character. He never . seemed to forget, in moments (d relaxation, that he was an ambass'ador of Jesus Christ. ' His general deportment among his fellow-men, while it corar manded a -respect bordering .on veneration, secured a high degree of confidence and love. His life, as the reader has seen, was -not: distinguished by remark- able incJ.deQts.. Lite the gentle and uniforrii stream, it passed along year after year with little variation, tin at length he found himself rapidly sinking under the pressure of age and infirmities. - He now cast his Hallook. 13 290 . JEREMIAB HAIiLOGK. eye. forward iwo or three years, to the age of seventy, as the termidation of his active labor in the' ministry, should Grod continue his. life to that period." His de- sign was then to ask for a colleague in, the work he loved. But G-od released him from his charge a little before the close of. the natural day of hurnan life, .' A worthy*,pastoT, at whose ordination Mr. Hallock pffered the ooijseerating prayer, says, "I still sefsttito feel at times thepressure of his liand fresb. and warm as wben be laid it on my head at that solemn hour; nor shaU I ever forget the words be spoke to me not long before bis death,' 'My young brotberi iTrant to say one thing to yoii for your encouragement: I have been a minister almost forty yeats, and T find thip work sweeter and sweeter.' '^ Another, wlio had spent a night' witb him, in coinpajiy with a feUow-student; writes, ^' After edify- ing conversation dur^g tbe' evening, as b^ Conducted us to our chamber, he ^aid, 'There is the bed I keep for- pilgriiilS. - A "great deal of farith has slept there, and I hope some loye.' His few words were ah em- phatic and impressirve seimon, Suggestive of many an instructive, pleasing,- profitable thought. The impres- sion on my own mind, was that of his strong, eiidur- ing love for all the servants^ of Christ. Mr. Hallqci •was not a mere Sabbath preacher. / He was an every day, and therefore an effective, eloquent, siicqes^fal preacher. A divine unction attended his words. The Heart and conscience felt their power." SICKNi;SS OF HIS WIFB. 29-J CHAPTER XIII. SICTCNKSS OF HIS "WIFE — LAST PUBLIC, SERVICES- DEATH. In the spring of lS25,-a scene of deep affliction commenced ip. Mr. Hallook's family, which was pr&b- ably a- means of hastening his dissolution. The wife of his youth, who had shared with him the joys ' and sorrows of life," to whom his affection had for . many years been increasing in strength and tender- ness, and on whom, next to his Saviour, he had leaned as the staflF of his age, was smitten with dis- tressing and alaimiilg illness. "When he found that her disease was dropsy, and probably inourabW> his agony-of soul became intense. As she sunk gradually before his e.yes. He felt tiiat she must soon, leave' Him ;. - and by anticipation' already stood over , hex dying bed, pressed her cold hand, committed her soul to God, and ter body to the dust, and felt '-all the loneliness df her absence — a tr^ial, in his own apprehension, far greater than if its occurrence had been earlier in life. But the severity of ihis affliction caii be best leatned from his-, own account of it, taken partly froni his journal and partly frdrn letters to friends. ' «' March 6,, 1835. My dear Mrs. Hallock is un- well, and not able to go with me to meeting ..either Friday, oi: to-day. Her disorder appear^ to be the dropsy. Her physician and friends think it d9,nger. 292 JEREMIAH HALLOCK. pus. She grows weaker every day. Perhaps it is -the oomiiig-of the Son of man. O LotcI Jesus, grant her thy sensible presence, and prepare ^oor me, with ^her anxious childxen and Mends,-&r ail thy will. Sometimes the thought of parting with her.isover- whehningi at other times I feel- more quiet and rec- onciled. She, for the ttiost part, appears calm in mind- and ready. Q Lord, let her not be deeeive'd, but may she build only on Christ, and be accepted in him. preserve her to us a little longer, if^it be thy blessed will. may all be sanctified, and work to "th^e furtherance of thy blessed kingdoin in us and ainong.us, for Jestis' sake. Amenl " : , " March 13. Lord Grod of aged Pavid, make me thinej and be my helper and refuge unto deathi My wife has had a sick and ; trying Week, I never heard her groan as she did Thursday night from. aboiit nine to three o'clock. She then grew easier through niercy.. We begin to Jippe she may be. spar- ed to u& a little longer. Prepare her, and all of us, Lord, for this mercy ; but if — ^ — receive her spirit,, and be with us, our light, life, shield, andportion. " I am this day sixty-seven years old. I feel the increasing infirmities of age, and know that the end of ail probationary iiiings is, to me, Ut hand. Lord, quicken and strengtheu me, both to live unto Jesus, and testify of him and his so great and needful sal- vation, to the children, the youth, and aU. And when thou shalt call, may I submissively resign my minis- try, life, soul, and body to thee, and go supported by . the blessed gospel hope. Let me not be deceived ; SK3KNESS OF HIS WIFE. 293 teach my heart ; make it right, and lead me in lie way whiph is- everlasting. " ' O reeeiva my soul at last.' ' " May 8, Lord's day. ' Northington. Mrs. Hallook was so unwell that I did not go until morning, and returned home after meeting. I greatly fear het de- parture is at hand. may she he r6a.dy. And 0, Lord Jesus,' strengthen and prepare me for all thy will, for Jesus' sake, Am£n." To his brother 3.t, Flainfield. "CANToijj'May 17, 1825. • " Very dear and respected -Brother'and Sister— The p'rohabilityis, that the wife of my youth hag not long^to stay in this world. ' For ten years she has been blessed with unusual health, to the great com- fort of her family. But sometime in January last, she was taken With that dlarming disease the dropsy. I have often feare'd that she would not live twelve hours. You know she. hsls been the builder of her house, under Providence. To me, .she is ' as the iovihg Mad and pleasant roQ.' This is the greatest' outward affliction. I ever' experienced^ ■ Sometimes it looks overwhelming, and I feel .as if I shopld sink under it. At other times I feel a strange support, and as"if t could do and bear all things-, by the help of oiir blessed Jesus. 'Do pray for us— you knowrfor what. Mrs. .HaU6ck is for th& most pkrt'calm in' mind, leaning, as we trust, on the Beloved;" " June 5, 18R5.- Last Friday rode vdth'.Mrs. Hal- lock to see Doctor — .- of Colebrook, fiefqrewegot 294 JEREMIAH' HALLOCK.; home she was taken very ill, so that she could not endure to ride. To-day she. appears to me more like soon leaving us. must I "be hereaved -of the dear wife of my youth ?" I trust I received her in answer to prayer^ and! would give her up at the call of Him who gave herj and who hath nlade her such a bless- ing to me. Loijd Je^us, do, I beseech thee, shine upon her. . be Tier support ; fit her for thy heavenly mansions, and receive her there. And prepare poor me to follow, fot Jesus' sake; ^^ Amen.," In November, Mrs. Haliock's health was "So far improved that they performed a journey to Plainfield, at- the close of which Mr. HaUock writes, " I think, for forty years I n6ver had a more pleasant visit to, my friends in Massachusetts, although I set out undiear gloomy apprehensions. Intrust the journey has been beneficial to Mrs. Haliock's health. niSiy Grod in Christ have all the praise j and may we be wholly his, devoted to his fear' and service. , Amen." . This was his last journey to his belevecl friends! The last Sabbath in- November, he writes as follows : " More freedom and attention than I expected ; came home encouraged aoid comfortable in mind. . Had .a more pleasant conference than, usual in the eveniog: The meeting was smaJl in number, but remarkably stiU, and sweeti Why art thou so disquieted and cast down, 0. my s6ul, of late? Thank the Lord, and take courage. He hais, he doth, and will deliver, and I shall yet praise him, with his saints, for the health and help of his countenance." '\ ^: HIS CORI!.ESPONDENCE, 295 To his ne-pkew, Mr. Gerard Hallock. . . "Deoembek. 19^, 1825. " Dear and Hives respected ' CqpsiN— I lately g^ve you an account of our remarkably pleasant, visit at Pls^infield, which I trusty you have resoeived. After thi^ I received your precious, letter, now on the tahle before me. The Holy Due of Israel, and great Physician of soiil and body, has raised the -wife df my youth from the borders of the grave, so that she is able to oversee the affairs of her family, and go with me again" to the house of the Lord; 'and! trust, in answer to the many prayers put up for her precious life. Although she appears to me like one raised out of the buryihg-ground, whai. the fj.nal issue will be, God only knows. I thinl it sounds like the coming of the Son of man, and that this terrible dropsy Vill fia9,lly wear the deai* woman put, who has "been the builder- of her family, a jwife "indeed to me, about forty years. Her mind appears calm. She says it is no mat- ter," if we are prepared ; and requests. us to pray that she may be able to sa^, '^Thou knowest that 1 love thee.' If we should live till March, I shall be sixty- eight, an4 she sixty-five; People of our age must be near to death. may we live and 72 : 6 : ' He shall come down as rain upon the mown grass, etc.' Second 'sermon from Rev. 2 l4: 'Never- theless I have somewhat against 'thee, because thou Hast left thy first love.' Friday and Saturday felt very unwell, hardly able to sit up, and my dear wife still more ill; but have been carried through another day pf my public labot far better than my fears. what shall I render' unto the Lord for-all his great and innumerable mercies:? may iny- whole heart be Christ's, and he my blessed All in all." .- went into the; kitchen and called on the family to attend prayers. His son's wife noticed something singular in. his 'appearance, and giving him a chair, . requested him to sit. He sat down, and immediately sunk into a state of insensibih^. A physiofan came ■ wi&in half an.hour, and prohouhteed it a fit of apo- plexy. H-e lay appaientjly in a dying state tiU one o'clock at night, wheii to the surprise of all he so far revived as to speak, yet he was detaiig^d, and thus continued untU about ten o'clock. He then rose up in bed-, clasped bis hands and made a short,^^but able and conneoted'prayet, oommendiflg himself and fajnily • ta-the care of God.; , He now lay down^ but observing his little- grand- child about eighteen months old coniing Up to his bedj hje said, "Oh, you little dear,' you and your Jittle brothel's have been tbte objects of my^dailypray-^ el's from 'the tim« of your conception. May you'long li-ve and^e a burning and shining light in the church of Christ; may ycal -serve, God and your generation LAST SICKNESS. • 303 well. I hope to meet my dear grandchildren in heaven." At this time his son's wife offered him some medicine. He said, " I thank you, G , for all your kind and abundant care of me." Then turning to his son,. "I thank you, my son, for your kind and filial attentions." His son remarked that if his father had a sentence for his ahsent brother Jeremiah,- he w;ould prize it. Mr. Hallocfc, after a little hesitancy and apparent confasion, said, ' ' Tell him, I have always , felt .that the dying hour is the trying hour; and we , then want all the graces of the covenant blessings." An orphan youth who had been a member of Mr. Hallook's family from a child, now came into the room. He rose up in bed, -and leaning upon one elbow, extended his deathlike hand to the young man, , and said with a heavfenjy smile, " 0, Augustus, attend to the great things that boncern your everlasting ' peace." His grandchildren Jeremiah and' Oliver "were oaHed. He'rose, put his hands upoh their heads in a truly patriarchal form, and in a most eloquent and pathetic manner commended them to -the Grod of their fathers ; told them^they were descended from a lolig line of pious ancestors, and that feUgion was the, great concern;, charged them to give their hearts to God, and added; ^'0 may G-od enlighten your hearts,', arid may ■ you be active and useful servants- of Christ when your grandfather- is sleeping in the dust." •Mrs. Hallock at tliis time came uitb\the room. He gave her'his hand and said, " Poor Mrs. ^Hallock, I am glad to see you ; may Christ be sanctified in you : we must part, but if, as I trust, it is in Christ,, 304 JEREMIAH HALLOCK. it is well. My hope holds out strong." , His whole appearance, in look, tone, and manner, during this touching scene, was peculiarly pleasg,nt. He had heen, throughout bis sickness, as always before, very patient, but never so jemarkably pleasant, in the judg- ment of his neatest friends, asm this lucid interval of about two hours. He now lay back upon the bed, and appeared to be in the agonips of death, but soon said, "Oh, can this be death? - .Trust in the Lord., may I have peace and support. " ' Tell me, my soul, can this be death?' " Those around his bed supposed he would- say no more ; but he revived and added, " save from evil and errof — yes, from error. Oh sin, it will eat like ja. canker. Oh, my dear Hoiiian, may he -not fail of salvation." 'At this time, several of the neighbors came in.- He addressed them" separately, and gave- them his parting blessing: and farewell, He lay awhile in extreme distress, gasping for breath; then said^ with difficulty, " Lord, have mercy, make us partakers of that blessed hopis. "We can never be tpo soUoitous about a good hope in Christ. Oh, how we alllieed the supports of Jesus in this trying hour. . meeten me for, and take, me: to thyself. thou, who hast said, ' I am with you alway.' grant me tly pres- ence even unto death. .0 may I go penitent ; go-in fa,ith,; go in love to JesuS." He now cast, his eyes upon hi3 son and said, " Oh, Homan, what is not Christ worth in such an hour T Lord, come and take me." " He lay some time apparently in a dying state :. as little WiUiam came again into the room, he ..turne J HIS DEATH. 305 his head and said, "0, you little hoy, may it be said pf yon, as of Enoch, that you ' walked with Grod.' I trust I have the happiness of Christ's presence." Here his reason left him, and never returned. He lay for some hours in extreme pain, catching for breath ; then became more easy, was able to swallow, , yet in a degree of stupor. In this quiet state he' re- mained tilL about five o'clock iti the morning, ^vhen he uttered a loud groan, arid expired, June 23, 1826, aged,68, in the forty-first year of Ms ministry. The .day- following, his funeral waS attended by several of the clergy and a large concourse of people from Canton and the adjacent towns, when a sermon "jvas preached by the cofmpiler, founded on Gen. .5 : 24, " And Enoch witlked with Grod ; and he was not ; for Grod took him." The general burst of grief on the occasion was no uncertain evidence that the church of Christ had lost one of its ablest supporters,., the Christian ministry one of its purest, brightest orna- ments, the communi^- a. firm pUlar, and each indi- vidual a personal friend. In his person, Mr. Hallock was above the middle stature, and of good proportion. His face was' rather long and spare— his features prominent — his skin dark^— his eyes of a bluish gray, and deep-set under thick black eyebrows. A chastened smile commonly softened the -fixed and" deep solemnity of his coun- tenanoej while an expression of devout contemplation, kindness, humility, and grave cheerfulness, saved hirft from any thiiig like repulsive austerity. He walked with his head inclined forward, and his eyes toward 306 JEREJIUH HALLOCK.. , the earth. - All his motions, .\^hether of the hody and limhs, the head^.thoveyes, or-the organs of speech, were slow, and with unconscious dignity. His utterajioe was ijaturally imld and somewhat monotonous, often ^ energetic, always distinct, and inimitably grave and sincere. His presence was suited, in no CMnmon de- gree, to impress with a sort of religious awe, as well the young and gay, as others., . He Was a' rare speci- men of clerical politeness. His .v^y peculiar look and manner went farther than in almost any other, case to give emphasis to Words and interest to action^. It might he said of him, as •£ Fenelon, "A noble siogtr- larijty pervaded his whole person; and a certain un- d&finable and sublime sim^hcity gaye- to his appear- ance the air of a prophet." I^r. Hallocll's Farewell Address to his bereaved wife and . cMldren, found, after his decease ^ith his la^t will and testament. - . - . r "My dear {"riends — ^As it is. my desire and ex- pectation fliat ydu,"my beloved wife and son Homauj will live together IzntU separated, as you and I have been, by the stroke of death, may you live in love, United in heart, daily performing those important mutual dutie's which are incumbent dn adear parent and child. ■, - " As the Saviour, when dying,. said to the beloved' disciple, ' Behold thy mothef !' I woilld say,:my_,dear. Homan, to you,- EemembeT how much she hath borne and dose, for you, and feel your great obliga- tions to her. Sympathize with her in her lonesome, trying situation-; seek, esteem, and hearken to her HIS FAREWELL ADDRESS. 307 advice and cburiser in all things. Bear with her in- firmities, and despise her not, if slie ^wuld live, to he old. Always honor herj not in wOrd only hut in deed, according: to the fifth commandment, and you will do right, and please God J and it wiH he well with you. " And to you, my dear wife, I would say, ' Behold thy son !' ?ray for, be tender of him, esteem and treat him with respect, cover his failings, feel in his trials, provdke him n9t, hut seek and rejoice in his welfare, and encourage'.him in every right way. • Know, niy dear wife aiid child, that the most wise and judicious arrangement of things hy will, and -ever so mijch. of this world's things, cannot make us happy, or mutual hlessjngs and com^fbrts, if love he -panting, a,nd hatred and 6ovetousness fill the breast, , After all that is or can be done, the whole must turn on the great hinge of love, with whieh a dinner of herbs so much ex- ceedeth the richest feast," where', love is -wanting. ' '■' I would now add a few words to you all,,includ- ing eadi of the children.* I have endeavored to pray for you all dajly, and give you up to the Lord, wish- ing aboye all things, that Jesus Christ might be form- ed in you the hope of glory— that your whole selves and whatever you have might be the Lord's and con- secrated to his service — ^that you might set your hearts * '-'By all my children, I-tnean my ■'beloved J%remiah and Homan, Vith ray, dailghtera their wives ; jiat eiclliding dear Jonathan," brought np hy Mr. Hallock years ago, "or his wife, Augustus, Else, or little Julia Ann." The last three wele, at the date of this address, memhers of his family. 308 JEREMIAH HALLOOK. pad hopes on Grod in Christ, seek his kingdom and glory, and lay up a treasure in heaven ; that so you might be interested in the last will and testament of the once crucified, hut now ever living and reigning Redeemer. Then you will he rich indeed. " Your times are in the hand of the Lord. It is he that huildefli up families and individuals, and that puUeth them down. Fear, therefore, and acknow- ledge him in all your ways, and he will perfect ttat which ooncerneth you. Whether we have little or much of this world, it is equally, in itself, ashes, vain- and perishing, as a portion : hence the wise vrill not- set their hope and heart on this world and its things. Take, therefore, my dear children, the whole word of- the hope of enabling her to attend his funeral. The strongest cord now severed which had 310 JEREMIAH HALLOCS. boanjd her to earth, she gradually declined until early in November, "when her released spiriif joined that of-" her hushand. 'They were lovely and pleasant in their lives, and in their death not divided SKETCH OF THE LIPE OF • REV. MOSES HILLOCK, OF PLAITSTFIIiLI*, 'MA^S.,' ONIiY BEOTiaEB OF EEV. JEEEMIAH HALLOCK, OP CANTON, CONN. ". The meek will he guide in judgment; and the meek ■will he teach his. wa/." ■ ' ^' Jeremiah and Moses Hallock were -so identified^ in history and in characterj that a hiography of the one can hairdly he considered complete without at least an outline of the other. They were, within two years of the same age, the' only sons of the family, with seven younger' isisters. The history of their early days up to manhood, is almost one and the same ; and from the point wh6re they separated for puhlio life, there, is a ^trjking resemblance. They were bom on Long Island in 1758 and 1760, and when the eldest was about eight, the losg of their father's property at sea caused him to take. them, with three little sisters, to Groshen, then a part of Chesterfield, ' iSamp^hire^ounty, in the moui^taiiipus wilds of West- em Massachusetts, to subdue the forest and obtain the mean^ of suhsistenoe. When they were at the age. 312 -MOSES HALLOCK. of eighteen and sixteen tib.e struggle of the Revolution commenced, and both were ■several mdnths in the army, in 1776-7, including the period' of the capture of Burgoyne; though fev? men were less inchned to war than their father or themselves. They were dutiful sons, moral and inoffensive in their lives, but without relish for vital godliness, aiid on one ocoa-" sion, Jeremiah had become so interested in a bsdl, that he sharjdy rebuked his brother ioi declining to attend. In 1779, at the age of twenty-one, Jeremiah was brought to the saving knowledge of Christ; and soon commenced study for the minisify. ' Four years after, divine grace reached the heart of Moses, and when he, graduating at Yale, in 1788, received flie degree' of A. B., Jeremiah, who had already entered the rnihistry, received that of A. M. Jeremiah , labored almost forty years as pastor in "West Simsbury, now Canton, Goimeotiout, till his death in 1826 ; Moses nearly- fprty-five yea*s as pastor in Flainfield, Massa- chusetts, till his death in 1837. The one object of both was the glory of G-od in plucking sinners as brands from the burning, and r?iisuig them, to heaven. The heart of Jeremiah^ was more fixed on labors as an evangelist, in which he was richly blessed ; while " Moses did more in training others for the ministry and missionary work; and the labors of both 'were - owned -by the presence and gift of the Holy Spirit in , conversions whi6h produced rich perrrtanent ftuits in a devoted and godly life. Both recognized the hand of G-od in the early dis- SKETCH OF HIS LIFE. 313 asters of their father, by which their lot wa& cast in a part of the ooimtry preeminently blessed by "the great awakening of 1740." Their residence in Go- shen was tv?^elve miles from Northampton, where President Edwards so succiessfiiUy labored and wrote his immortal work on revivals ; Plainfield was near. G-oshen; and Canton 'not far from Windsor, thel)irth- place of Edwards. That' portion of the country was "as a field which the Lord hath blessed," not only in the outpouring of the Spirit in President Edwards' daysi but in the, perhaps more glorious and extensive revivals commencing about the year 1800, " when," in the language of Dr. Griffin, "thalt, moral change began which swept from so large a part vf New Eng. land its looseness of doctrine and laxity of discipline, and awakened an evangelical pulsp in every Vein of the American church." To the furtherance of this great, work of- God, the two brothers devoted their noblest energies till- death.^ Out of it they saw the great and belpyed missionary enterprises of the age evidently spring, and in it hosts of devoted men raised up, who are pillars in the church of God far and wide in our Own land, and at mission stations abroad. The two pastors were located. each about twenty miles west of Connecticut river — Plainfield being upon, and Canton within the Green Mountain range. They were sixty, miles apart, ,bnt the chain of brotherly love, and Christian sympathy and encouragement, was^ kept bright till they, were gathered into "the general assembly and church of the first-bofn, whoSe llallock. 1-4 314 MOSES HALLOCK. names are written in heaven;" If either of them had sat for G-oldsmith's picture, it could scarcely have been more minutely accurate. <" '^Near yonder copse, where onoe the garden smiled, And stiH where many a garden flower grows wild ; .There, where a few -torn shruhs the place disclose, - The vii,LAa£ fjieachsr's modest mansion rose. A man he was-to'all the country dear, / And passing rich '*ith forty pounds ayear; Remote from towns lie ra^ Jiis godly race, ' Nor e'er had chattged, Bo'r Wished- to cfaauge his place; tJnskilful he to fawn, or seek foi? jowei By doctrines fashioned to the .varying bo^r; Far otli^r aims his heart had learned to prize,' - More'hent to raise the wretched, than to rise. ,. . - ' . ■ . . ' " M church, with meek and unaffected ^face, His looks adorned the venerable place ; Truthirotn hii lips prevailed with douhle sWay, And fools who .earae to seoffi remained to pray. . The service past,, around Rev. Jonas King, D. D., in Grreece ; Rev, William M. Ferry, among the -North American Indians, and Mr.. Homan Hallockj his youngest son, missionary printer in Sm)rma. Otfiers have entered various professions,-among whom are the late, early fallen, Rev. Professor Sylvester Hovey, and Rev. Dr. Bela B. Edwards, Professor of Bibhcal Lit- erature at Andover ;* Hon. WiUiam H. Majmard, lat^ • Amongthe clergymen who pursued classical stuffies with him, exclusive of those aboveriiamed and his eldest son,'^were the following : Rey. Messr?. Clifford S. Arms, Eli Adams, Joseph M. Brewster, William M. Carraiohael, D. D., Abner Clark, Benjamin F. Clark, Tertius Clark; Erastus, Ealph,,and Sumner Clapj), Charles C. Danforth, Erastus Dickinson, Adol- ^ phus Ferry, Horatio Flagg, Pindar Field, Mr. Hurlb\it, Caleb .Rniglit, Nathanael Lathain, John C. Morgan^ Ansel Nash, Daniel Nash, Mason Noble, Isaac Oake^, Theophilus Pack- ard, jun., Elijah Paine, Dudley Phel^)?, Augustus fomeroy, Thaddeus Pomeroy,-' Jephthah 'Pool, Austin Richards, Henry Ejch(u-dson, iolm H. Russ, John W., Salter, Aldea Scovel, Syl- SKETCH OF liiS LIFE. 319 of the New York Senate, and Hon. Jeremiah H. Hal- lock, late Presiding Judge in Ohio. Many of these received their preparatory education at an expense but little exceeding, oiie dollar a week, and thdse es- pecially who -were indigent and lobkiag.to the min- istry, received a. father's sympathy and counsel, and not a small measure of gratuitous assistance. Some were hopefully coftvertied while under his roof; sev- eral were, active helpers in promoting the spiritual in- terests of his congregation; and the, 'frequent inteUi- genee of the godly lives and , usefulness in the church of many, especially those amdng the heathen, " em- halrged? their memory in his heart, and was the rich- est reward of his endeavors. Only one of these three .hundred and four students died while Ajrith him, and this was the only death that occurred under his roof for forty ,y«ars. , ' ' ^ In 1806, he lay. in a lingering typhus, for* many days almost beyond hope of recovery, which wasfoU lowed by a fistula in his side, that for some, nlonths ' gradup,lly exhausted his strength and threatened life ; but after seeking inedical advice in vain, a vagrant physician by the nime of Rogers forced his services upon., him, and at length' burned out the rfistiila with a hot iron, and he was restored, and his life prolonged thirty-one, years. . In 1815, he buried his venerated and cherished , fether, at the age of eighty-five, who for sixty years vester SCQvill, D. D., Hervey Smith, John Starkweather, John Stb^rs, Elijah Thayer, Noah. Thotaas, Wales Tilestori, Benjamin B. Westfall, Joseph H. Ware, and Ebenezer B. Wright. 320 MOSES HALlOCK. lived a life of liumbte godliness— leaving "one -wofd," received from Ms father, which he wished, to be transmitted to thff latest generation : " Kemember, THERE IS A Long ete^rnity!" Ih 1826, his belovied and only brother, the Eev. Jeremiah Halldck, having adorned the ministry almost forty years, also rested from his labors, aged sixty-eight/ On reaching his seventieth year, he communicated to his pefople the result pt a decision some years pre- viously formed, on his arriving at that age to request them to' unite with him in calling a colleague ; and as they did not abound in wealth, to. prevent embar- rassment from pecuniary considerations, he proposed, on the settlement of a colleelgue, wholly to relinquish his own support. His people delayed about two years, when a colleague was installed-; the aged pastor assisting in the supply of a small destitute congrega- tian in an adjoining town. He was,.howev€r, again to beecHne sole pastcw; emd continued the patriarch of the congregjition and their bond ofainion-till again they tarmoniouaiy called a coUeague, who "was sup- plying the pulpit at the time of his death. In DeoemlbiBi', 1835^ Mrs. Hallock — formerly Miss Margaret Allen, Of Ghilmaffc,. Martha^ Vineyard—^ who for forti/-tkree years "liad been a tme helpirteet > in his toils and responsibilities, was removed by death, aged seveHtyifive ; having l?een permitted, a few weeks previous, once more to greet her long-absent son, who . was -called to this country to procure founts of type, ' and make other arrangements for the mission press. The period when the ravages of years -must close .h,er SKETCH OF HIS LIFE. 321 usefulness was fast appraaohiiig, when, as she was knitting in the family circle, her hands ceased to ipoye, and a paralysis m ahout two weeks gently removed her to the "bfetter country,'^ which, from the age of about sixteen, in a life of. daily communion with" Grbd, she had been anticipating with uniform confidence in her Redeemerj and even wilii humble bdldnes? and Exultation. Not a tear bede'wed the cheek, of her bereaved- husband. He was, calm and steadfast, recognizing the hand of God, and praising'- him for all hejiad done for and by-her. Of this scene, and of his own last sickness^ his son residing with him " has emphatically said, "'Whoever saw him once, saw him always." Of the. aid his companion afforded him in the Christian course, Jie said to a son before her death, that he never- -was desirous of spiritual converse when her heart seemed unpj:epared„ or she diverted thQ theme ; and few came under their roof without. hearing sornething from both, having a direct and immediate bearing on the great salvation. The iate Rev. Seth Williston relates, that early in their married life, he called with a young, clergyman, and as the. wife was' preparing refreshmeptsv Mr. Hallock said to them, " Brethren, I wish you would walk into the- other room;" adding, as they entered, "Mrs. Hal- lock, loves to hiear religious conversation. She- must be here, and I want y'ou should sit here." It 'is a striking fact, that not only his brother and seven sis- • ters, but his wife's three brothers and six sisters, were till consistent, evangelical Christians ; seventeen of them labored to rear their o*7ri households for God ; 14* 322 MOSES HA-LLOCK. and several of them were, active andjUSefill to ad- vanced yeaTs. ^The transfer of his "wife to the world .ahove rendered the passage more direct and less dreary to him who, like so many ciphers oftEe aged in sim- ilar oircTimstahces, was soon to follow. A-hout three weeks before his death, jthe Rey. WiUiam Richards arrived with his family from the , Sandwich- Islands, at the house -of his father, a ven- erable deacon of the church of fourscore . years,^ and then entirely blind. As the paslor and his colleague dect sat conversing with them, the missionary called to him a native of the islands who had accompanied Bm, and presenting him to the aged pastor, said, "This is my teacher/' The boy's eyes sparkled as he "gazed on his patriarchal and furrowed counte- nance; and he soon said in Hawaiian, "Day most gone — sun most down-r— most supper-time." As they were aboutto separate, the pastor was desired to close the interview- by prayer. He proposed to eaidi of the others to- pray ; and then, after a paijse and a few inquiries as to the particular circumstances calling for thanksgiving and silpplication,. offered, says the missionary, "one of the most. heavenly" prayers in which, it was ever my privilege to join, contrasting the scene, with inimita'ble scriptural simplicity, , with that of Joseph presenting his sons to the aged Jacob." -■ ' , ' On Tuesday, July 11, six- days before his.death, he preached the funeral-sermon of a meitiber of bis churdh of about his own age, from those emphatic words pf the apostle, " I am in a strait betwixt two, SKETCH 0? HIS LIFE. ^ 323 having a desire to depart and to be with Christ, which is far Jbetter." ^ . '^ 0n, Wediiesday he walked three miles, making pEtstoral visits ", and on Thursday morning worked for some hours in the gardeii. About noon he seemed to have tak^ri cold, and having some fevferwas per- suaded to take his hed, to which he had always !great reluctanee dliring the day,- but which he kept mainly till Saturday niorning, when, expressing his unwill- ingness to waste His hours, he rose and spent a large pa:rt of iKe day in his favorite study of the .Bible. On Sabbath he was again more feeble, perhaps in part from over-exertion the preceding dayj but on Monday riiorning secured the setting apart of a piece of groTxnd as a gift from himself for a parsonage, which, the ocongregation'were proposing to 6reot. . Towards evening his colleague elect had a delightful and spii- itual conversation with him, which was elosfed with grayer. To the inquiry if he ever regretted having entered, the ministry, he^ replied, "I have been an nn- failhfdl, unprofitable servant, yet I am thankful that I was led to enter the Christian ministry '/^ "and when the colleagiie spoke .of his long-continued usefydness, he said, ."From ali I have done, and all my sins and short-cpmii)g's, I wish to fly to Christ. I am nothing; Christ is all." These were his last words. At a quarter before ninOj while he seemed to be sleeping, it was found that, he had ceased to ireath^. Such only was the "dying' strife" of one who, like his "lamented brother, always looked upon death with -a solemnity, not to say dread, which indeed well bor 324 . -MOSES HA-LLOCK'. came their vieWs of the deoeitfulness of sin and the importance of tlie change, hut others have anticipated theiif own rremoval from time with greater confidence and triumph. His work here was done ; and in snch gentle* accents did the Saviour say, *' Come up hith- er — ^be with me, where I am." The usefuhiess of this servant of Christ was not from aiiy hrilliant performances, hut from a uniform godly influence, ahoays'ncculnulating, and character- ized hy kindness, sincerity, frankness, meekness^ and a deep and heartfelt interest in the welfare of all. If there is one trait in which, more than in others, the young preacher might covet his' falling mantle, it is his. intimate acquaintance with the word of God, The proportion erf time" and thought which he gave to the inspired Volume, oompared^with all- of especial interest at the 330 ■ MOSES HAHOCK. time of-the annual viait of his beloved only brotlier, the Rev. Jeremiab Halloclj, on the first Sabbath of September, in reference to which he once Said, that August was to him the most happy, and October the most gloomy month of the year. In these visits his brother was for many years acoompanifed by their godly father, Their spiritual cdnversatibn, their com- ments on the «vents of Providence as bearing on the interests of Zion, interwoven with illustrations aad anecdotes, and their deep and^ tender concern, for the eternal welfare of all, gave unceasing interest even to the ohild, and left the inevitable impression that they lived and moved "quite on the verge t)f heaven;" while their prayers s^med a barrier between an of- fended Grod and the rising race. Judge what must have been the feelings of an unconverted son; when, care- lessly breaking into a chamber upon the men of God, he found them -bowed upon their knees before Him, and the floor wet with their tears, probably poured out with their wrestling cries for his own salvation. It 'may be said of the subject 6f this brief sketch, that his influence, with very small abatement, was 'all good; it was ever noiselessly exerted to prevent alienation and strife ; he waxed stronger and stronger ', and tUl his death, witnessed a large cbhgre^ga1;ion &if old and young filling the sanctuary from Sabbath to Sabb2.th. Who can but hope that rich, blessings are still in store for them ! - - On the second day after his death, a funeral-ser- mon was preached by the. Rev., Dr. Theophilus Pack- ard, of Shelburne'; and on -the Sabbath following, SKETCH OF HIS LIFE. 331 another, by Jiis colleague elect, Rev. Mr. Goodsell, to crowded audiences. Of the hereaved church, one only who was a mem- ber at the time of his installation, survived him, the venerable Deacon James Richards. As the face of the aged, pastor was uncovered, that the afflicted people might in turn approach and take their final leave until ihe resurrection, the aged deacon, now entirely blind, was led to the coffin, placed his hand gently on the "forehead of him with whom he had for forty^ve years shared ihe burden and heat of the gos- pel day, and stood, pouring out a flood Of tears — ^tUl, jfeonstrained to retire, h6:turped~away, saying," Fare- 'wellfnr time.;" and the congregation moved slowly, to deposit in the lonely grave the body of him who had assisted in laying liiere the parents or other kindred of aimbst aU^-of more than, an entire generation — and whose heart had bled witb. theirs jn aU, their sorrows. " It will not be questioned," said-Rev. Mr. Groodsell in, his sermon, "that this town is principally indebted, under Gfcod, to his labors for its present harmony and prosperity. He.was what Paul told Timothy a bishop ought to,be:he was sober; of good behavior; given to hospitaility; apt to teaich. He was of good report, at home ^.nd abroad. He was an Example of believ- ers, in word, in conversation, in charity, in spirit, in faith, in plirity. He gave attendance to reading, to exhortation,- to^ doctrine. He mediiafed on these things. He was nliglity in . the Scripture^. His faniiUarity-with the Bible, it would seem, was almost without a parallel. This "often rendered^ meditation 332 MOSES HALLOCK. , ' a feast to his own soul-; and it was this, in aohneotion with his piety, that so eminently qualified him for administering" consolation to others. " His theology was that of the B0le. l!his was the hook he studied, and, over which her prayed to the end of life. He ardently loved what are comijionly termed the doctrines of grace. These were the theme of his meditations day after day. It was in preach- ing these that Grod hlessed him— =-that sinners were converted, saints edified, and the ehurch received its additions from year to year, "The harmony .existing between, him and his people was never hroken. Ifearafter year there has hpen friendship and" qobperation. " To the Church at large he has been of eminent service, especially in the number of young men whose education he aided, and. who are now employed in useful spheres in this and foreigii lands. " But why dwell on .the fruits of his faithfulftess t It was not on his services in the churph of Christ thathis hope of heayei^ was founded. He said, in- deed, on his dying bed, that he did not f egret haying devoted his life to the ministry;, that he had 'fought not as one that beateth the air;' but he^"S3,id also,. 'I want the righteousness of Christ.'' When I said to him,"' You have no fear,' he replied, ,'No; all is Icfve.' His departure was peaceful, 'as a shock of corn Cometh in in his season.' Grently ceasing to. breathe, he fel^ asleep in Jesus, forty-five years and six days from iihe time qf his installation^ and in the seventy-eighth, yeftr of his age.'! > CORRESPONDENCE. 333 HI'S. MFE AND CHARACTER AS 'DRAWN FROM HIS PRIVATE CORRESPONDENCE. It will' be. perceived that the date of the following letter is four months previous to "the second Sahbath in October, 1798," recorded, in the memoir of the Rev.- Jeremiah HaUock, as the beginning, in Canfon, of the great revivals about the commencement of th6 present century/ ^0 hK brother, Ref. Jeremiah Hallocb, of Wesfefiimsbury, now Canton, Coim. "Plainfield, Sabbath. Evening, June"3, 1798. «.' My very dear Brother — ^Although somewhat fatigued with the labors of the day, -I am unwilling to miss the present opportunity to write to you; es- pecially as the tidings' I am aljout to convey are so glorious. • rt has been my favored lotto see several awakenings before, but the present displays of divine , power and grace in Plainfield far exceed, in my opin- _. ion, what I ever before saw. In this little place there are at least fifty persons hopefully born of Grod within a .few months. And besides -these, several persons appear tq hav6 obtained clear and comfortable evi- dence of their good estate, who, till these happy days, \f ere in gireat doubt. The churfehr seems to be greatly quickened, and there" is a prospect of a good addition being made to it soon. There are so many demon- strative proofe that the- work is the work of God, that next to none pretend to gainsay it. I believe . there is not a man in the town that "openly opposes. • - " The instances of renewing grace are to appear- ance mostly among the young, though not- whofly confined to them. None have joined the church yet, 334 MOSES HALLOCK. but twenty-four sta.h(l propounded. .Several of these . appeared to be Christians before tiie awakenijagj^but dared not make a public profession till now. , [Twen- ty-two have told their experience in the nifeeting- house-r-seventeen last Friday,' and five to-day — ^before a-icrowded and sdemn assembly. They will probably ■ be received on the first Sabbath of July, and sit down with the church at the Lord's table ; and I expect tiiat'.a number more wHl offet themselves before that time. " There are two young men whose conviction has been unusually long and clear, who have received comfort within these few weeks. At some times they almost appjQared-in despair. I heard one of them Say, with- trembling "limbs, '. Oh, the eternity of misery that is before me!'* For a considerable tirne before they hopefuUy submitted to the' divine and sovereign vt'ill, they saw and confessed the enmity of their bearts to God, and how just b.e would- be in sending them to everlasting punishment. They told me that they felt most obstinately opposed to the way! of H& by Jesus Christ, and vvfere it not that they believed ip election they should be in despair. These two are men of bright natural parts, and considerable reading, and bid fair to be pillars in the church some future day. T^eir countenances are expressive of that peace of G-od which passeth all understanding. These, with most of the -others who have told their experience, * The young mau -who uttered these -words -was douhtless Jephthah Pool,' who became a hea-srenly-tninded, fa,ithful, and '' Bdocessful minister of Christ: ■ CORRESPONDENCE. 335 spoke of terrible opposition of heart to God, and clear' views of his -justice, before regeneration, and hpw captivated and- charmed they afterwards were both with the divine jastioe and mercy. Let G-od have aH the glory. ^'- Do come and see us^ as soon ag is convenient. May we eyer be. engaged in the service of God, who hath done such great things for us. " From your brother ^ \ ■' " MOSES HALLOCK." To Eben'ezer Suell, Esq^., of Chmmington, who had piesented him sixty young ' appte-trees. ' ' ' "PlajnfjelC, July 4, 1799.' " Dear Sir — The apple-trees arrived safely. I received, them with gratitude; and set them out with soine more care than if they had been purchased with my money. I can think of nothing of the same value which would have been so acceptable to me. The groupd was ready to receive them ; but I should not have bought any, for it seemed" to me imprudent to iicrease my debts. Mayl ever, ■«dth deep humility, ascribe the supply of my wants to' the divine care. " In one of your Irind letters, dated May 8, 1797, you inquire thusy^ ' Watchman, what of the night ? Is it not the latter part? How long, -think, ere the day wiU break, and the shadows flee away?' " Though I stand in the place of a watchman on Jerusalem's walls, yet I am unworthy of the name. I am too much like an unfaithful sentinel^who gets asleep upon, his post;, and how can I tell the time of night ? But if a sentry ih this -predicament should 336 MOS.ES HALLOQ-K. . be surprised by the cry, ' What of th& ni^ht:?' though through his dulness he has not kep* ^he time, yet if hs see the day-star, a^dhear the birds sing,, he can answer that the mornings is near. * * * " I hope, sir, tliat the limbs of these trees wiQ hereafter bend to meet the innocent hand of some millennial people: Did I know this, it would put a tenfold value on them. I am willing to plant for them to eat. When I think of the happiness of the mUiennium, rny soul as it were runs forward 'to an- ticipate the joy. But though it tarry, rny dear brother," let lis wait for it, for it will surely come; " Mrs, Hallock unites with me in our affectionate regards to you, your companion, and son Ebenezer, who brought, the trees. Your kind .and generous presents have contributed to our comfort ; we Consider them not only as expressions of friendship to us, but what is infinitely more, to the ministry. May^ a gracious Grod accept your offerings, and verify in .you his word, ' The liberal soul deviseth liberal thiijgs, ■and by liberal things shall he stand.' "I am, dear sir, your much obliged, though very unworthy friend, . " MOSES HALLOCK." To his brother, Rev. Jeremiah Hallock. " P-LiiNpiELD, January 1, 1808. " My very dhae Brother: — ^I'have the happiness to inform" you that an awake^ng has begun in the eastern p^rt of this place. He that appeared to Joshua as Captaip of the Lord's host has come. Do read the two last verses of the fifth chapter of Joshua. CORRESPONDENCE. 337 Some seem to feel as that solemnized man did when hfe fell on his face, and loosed his shoes. Christians have wonderfully waked up, and I hope some few persons are lately horn again. that We could praise the Lord of victory. Pray for us, and 'come over and Jielp us ' as soon as you can." Uuder another date, he says, "I attempted, -to preach yesterday from Psalm 68 ^3: 'But let the righteous be glad, let them rejoice before God ;" yea, let theni exceedingly rejoice.' My object was to show why. 1-. Because of the excellency of his nature ; 2. His making. them righteous ; 2. His care of them; 4. The beauty he puis upon them, ' wings of a dove ;' 4. His distinguishing them from the wicked in many respects ; 6. Becaiis'e he seeks his own glory -in aU he does; 7. His. saving them at last." .^ r To.hu«lde5t Son, who was aboat to commence teaming a school^. " PtAiNFiELD, Novembet 30, 1810. " For the jegulation of ydur school, let your rules be few, plain, arid reasonable. Seldom, if ever, threaten. Chide but little. Magnify no crimed Gall no conduct a crime" which is done through ignoraifce. Punish not for every crime; punish rarely; and in . punishing be merciful^ for you need merCy. Never ' get angry in your school.' Let the good behavior of the scholars, their progress in learning, and their real benefit,! and nbt your wagesj be your care. Their parents expect you vdll be faithful. Look to"the foot of a class as well as the head. Animate the despond- ing, and skilfully keep down the self-conceited. Be Strictly impartial. Be cheerful, but not vain. Make H Hop . 1 5 ■338 M-OSES HAiLOCK. the . scholars' studies pleSisant to^hem. " Let si^bjee^ tion be their. pleasure. Keep seasonable hours; Re- member that the secret of-goveruihg well is to govern "without pains. Diligently and prayerfully look to the morals and religious interests of the scholars, and your own. Treat your employers well. Backbite not. Intermeddle with no disputes among the people. Realize the ^eatness of your undertaking, and your accountability to Gfod -and .man ; and may the Lord, in his wonderful condescension and merpy, guide you to discretion and teach you," ^ ,^ To his btother, KeT.^eTeiniah^allock. ,- ► ^^ " Plaimfielb, April :25, 1814. * "Very, DEAE. Brother and Sister — An awakenr ing appears to have begun here. One of my^scholars," (the late Rev. Professor Hovey',J " a step-son of Elisha Billings, Esq.,,of Conway, was hopefully born again three weeks ago. He is an unusually promising youth. . Since his hopeful conversion, a number of my,, family, diildren and scholars, have become; thoughtful, especially Willie ■SI and Martha. A coh- siderable number of- the neighbors, mpstly youth, g,re deeply, impressed. Our meetings ate frequent, crowd- ed, and solemn. There has been no Confusion, but every mark of the true work' of Grod. 3Po him be all .the glory. . The sense I have of my own insuffioieAcy is inexpressible. JPray for me, that I may be humble a,nd know what to do. ' I also entreat your prayers fpr my family and people, that we may all be pre- pared for the spiritual blessings we need. We ex- ceedingly long to see you, especially at this time."- CORKJiSPONLENGE. . 339 The, fruits of this work of the Spirit seem to haVe been chiefly gathered' in his own fainily and neighhor- hood. Bis eldest son, William A., of -whom he speaks, then at the age of twenty,- helieving that he had no preparation of heart for the ministry, had declined study, and was working on the farm ; and though for some Weeks, distressed for his sins and distance from God, he fasted and prayed, searched the Scriptures, and sought reUgitfus -counsel, he gained no satisfac- tory evidence that he had Been born Eigain ; yet the impressions then made on his mind were the evident means of leading - him to resume study, with the trembling hope that the mercy of Grod might ^yet reach him, and render his advantages the me&,ns, not of injury, but of good to himself and others. His second child, and only daughter, Martha, •then eightieen, of whom he also speaks, was led io - see the alienation and even , bitter opposition of her heart to Grod, and weiit to the bedside of her father and mother at night to -tell them what peace and joy she had found in her. Saviour and Redeemer.' That peace and joy brightened the family citcle-, and charaoter- ' ized her life ■fill its close. May 22, 1852. Ser voice and her pen she me'ekly employed in doing good. She was active in the Sabbath-school and Bible-class, aiding benevolent objects, circulating the Bible and religious- hooks and.- periodicals, seeking- opportunkies and means of usefiilness, sympathizing with her par- ents in their prayfers and efibrts, especially for tljie salvation of her absent brothers ; and when, called to struggle vdth disease and pain^ which showed that -340 Mosi:s halIock. ' her loved woA on earth was closed, she suffered "withr out a murmur, and waited the bidding of her Saviour to his immediate presence.. She conversed and wrote of her departure with joyful trusfin Him ; and wheli all earthly arrangements were completed, even to giving" over her spectacles . to a friend, she said, "Nothing hut the soul now;" and of her suffering, "It is all right — none too- much pain>" "When her consciousness was almost gone, her brother visited her, and attempting to get from Tier one more recog^ nition, found that one "only name" remained dear. " Sister Martha, how do you do?'' No reply. "Aie you ill pain ?" No reply. " Can I do ;ariy thing for you?" No reply. " Do you love the Saviour?" .^'0, yes!" "^ Is the Saviour precious to you ?" Calmly and sweetly, "Yes, very precious." This daughter and the second son, Leavitf, who. some years after united with, the church, resided with their parents till the , parents' death, -and hence no letters fronv their father to either of them appear in these pages. The 'two other children of the family were G-erard, who, at the da.te of- the above letter, was fourteen, and Homan, who was twelve^ ' ■ ' Tq his sons, William' A. and Gerard, in Williams College. • " Plajnfieldj Oct. 24, 1815. , " Dear Sons — Your grandfather Hallocfc is. dead. He was seized with the distressing strangury, and died on the fifth day, Saturday, October ^1, a,ged 8p. I held his, to me, venerable head in my hands, and a^Bfinst'my breast when he died.* May you, my dear CORRESPONDENOE. 341 children, become followers of them who have 'lived and died in Jesus^' " . v ^ About a year previous he had proposed to his aged and godly father and mother to spend the remaindci pf their days , under his own roof, where he and his family- might ;piinister to their necessities. His father's -self-distrusting reply was in the following words: "&osHEtf, Noveinbeivl7i 1814. " M.Y DEAR SoN' AND Daughter — I l^ank you for your kind offer concerning our going to your house ; but, my son, when I consider the trouble it wiU make you and yours, I shall feel better at heme isrith a crust of rye bread and lean beef, than I can at your table with all the rarities you can! set on it, I am an pliman ; and if I caimot get. region, I must bid an eternal farewell to all happiness here and hereaf= ter: If I had as much religion "as. Jonah had iii the whale's belly, I would, not give it away for all the kingdoms of ttiis world. -'* Our love to yon aU. From " WILLIAM HALLOCK."* • * William Hallock, father of- Jeremiah and Moses, prepared • a wxrtten statement. of his ancestry, from -which -the following - is partly drawn. He' believed that his ancestors were pions - and evangelipal; that his great-grandfather,, from England or Wules, Was one Of the -earliest inhabitants df Long Island, and settled -at '' Halloisk's Neck;" and he knew none of the name •yf ho were not connections of this family. Hi-s grandfather Peter had three sons : Peter, who brought up a large family at Southold; Willianr, who was lost at sea; and Noah, (the ancestor of Jeremiah and Moses,) who was born ini696j married Bethiah_Youngs,.arid settled at Blue Point, in 342 .MOSES HALLOCK. ' ' ^ ^ Tojiis Sons in College. "Plainfiei-I", MarolilS, 1^16. '"My d&ar So^is- — My heart glo^v's-with desire .for your good ; and I have, much' to eacourage me to give you advice. A price is put into yoUr hands to: get wisdonif human and ditine, and much will he ex- Brgokhaven. , " He seemed to have great understanding'of th'e Scriptures, and talked, mueh. of the latter-day glory. ' He and his wife wei-e strict observers of the Sab hath ;" and in the desti- tution of J)reaohing> he often on that day condueted social wor- ship in his' own house. " A -young man of the name, eontempd-i rary with thom 1730, father of Jeremiah and Moses ^ (3) Josiah, born 1732] father of Josiah; Jonathan,, and Sally ;. all of whom lived on Long Island. ^ William Hallock, borii 1730, lived at " Fire-Place," iiivBrook- haveuj about half a.mile south of." Car4iian's," on the 'western' bank of the river, near its entrance into the .jgr^St South Bay of the island. Here investing most of his property in a coast- ing vessel; he went out in her, 'vrheii she was, run into by the British ship " SnoW-," and instantly sunk ; .his life, and that of his cabin-boy being saved by springing aboard the ship, 'with- out even his hat. He ■was landed at Baltimore, dfetained by . siekness, and for some weeks supposed to be lost. This ^disas- ter Occasioned his removal to Goshen, Mass. Of- his nine children, Jereijiiah and Moses, Polly, who married- Alpheus Patse, Alice, who married Dan Case, and Betljiah, •yvho-niar- ried Stephen Hosford, were born in Brookhaven ; Abigail, who married Rev. Joel -Chapin, Martha, who married Daniel Per- kins, Esther, who married Rev. Josiah Hayden,. and Mercy, who died at about the age of twenty-six, were born in Goshen. CORRESrONDENCE. 343 pected from you. Be thankftil, diligent, ^nd humble. The knowledge, not of books, but of the true God, through Jesus Chi-ist, saves the soul. Your mother and I remember you both in bur prayerg. "We fi^el interested in your sdholarship and- in your character ; but we forget these,' to thipk of your immortal part. Read the fcst seven verses of 1 Corinthians l3. The ' Lord work that charity in each of you."' To his elde^ Sou in College " PlaiSfield, April 29, 181,6. "Your oon4ition : in- respect to spiritual concisrns, excites in me the tenderest sympathy. The interest you feel and express in religion cknnot fail -to awaken in me desires that you may possess it. God. sees your heart, and he can make you see it; and he can make you -feci that you must have a new heart, or you cannot live. He can make you feel that your salvation depends, not on seeing others under concern, not on_ seeing young converts, nor on any external means, but op the m,ere self-moving mercy of God. Bewilhngthat the infinitely'kind Spirit should show you the worst of your case. If. you had a deadly sore, you would let a kind physician probe it to the bot- tom, though it might cause you much -pain. Your interested mother has informed you of things here. This is. the work of the invisible and wonder-working God^ To him be all the glory." Again he says, "Death will soon dispossess you- of all the things of time, and you 'dare not look be- yond its bound.' The question, 'What -shall 1 do?' 344 M-.OSES HALLOCJC.- is aU-importan±. The answer is, Go liumbly tcr Jt- sus. He is mighty to save. Neglect him no longer/ for he is the help. your soul needs. He' is read^^fej make you eternally rich, if you \srill receive his gifts. May you and your beloved brother seek_^rs.t the king- dom of Grod and his righteoiisness." To th^ 'same. ^ « "Pi-AiMF-iEi,D,JFeb. 22, 1819. Having acknovirledged the receipt of a letter, oi v?hich he says, " 1 am glad I have a child vrho pre- fers little somethings to great nothings ;" and having spoken of existing revivals of religion, with a prayer that the college niight ."share largely in these divine felessing%" he adds, '- " I am affected with your condition. It is now an awful crisis with you. Your colle^ate course is .drawing towards a close. And if yptt hve, you.wHL soon be involved in the pressing carps of .Ufe., Thesie Wiii have a direct teildenoy ta cause you to forget the concerns, of your spiritual state. Now is the accepted time. Another day's delay may 'decide your state for ever. Spiritual showfers are falling on one city and another. ' Christians in some, .places are awake. And I doubt not, that not only three "^ — ^himsel^ wife, and daughter — "but^a considerable number, have a par- ticular desire for yoiir salvatioh in their daily prayers. I feel more than usual freedgm ta address you on this momentous subject. 0, W- , let nothing divert. your mind from it., Qr I equally love^^ and for his salvation T equally long and pray. Christ commands' .COUBESPONDENCE. 345 liini and y=oti to come liato hinj,.aiid he will give you rest; How reasonable !" To his-Sons in tJollege. . "PLAiNtiELD, April 13, J819. • " My dear Sons — I have had no direct- informa-, tioh from Wiiliamstown for some time. I long,- and Qf the Spirit,' it is riot essential that' you should «be able to.teH the time when you were born again: these prove the second birth as really as your existence proves the first. I think of you every morning and every day, arid pray the Lord to teach you his holy will. " Your affectionate father, "MOSES HALLOCK." ' The mother adds her concurring testimony on the momentous subject : " If you can by faith commit your soul to God, he will accept it, and you are his for ever. IS you do from the heart -accept of ehiist «,s your all-sufficient Saviour, he is your friend and portion. If you go to the liirone .of grace as an humble, penitent beggar, sensible of your entire dependence on God, your utter unworthiness of the least of all his mercies, and the infinite ribl^titttis you are under to love him and to live to him for ever, you need not be afraid to venture your eternal all in his hands, or to trust in him as your all-sufficient good. Do youieel that it is suit- able that God should govern the universe acsoording to his sovereign pleasure ; that he cannot do the least injustice to any of his oreatu/es ; liiat he is infinitely 352 MOSES-HALLDO.K. righteous in all t\ia,i he does ? then go on your way rejoicing, bless tke Lord for all his mereies, strive to get near the throne of grace, and- to render to Gkid that filial otedienoe which Jiis most precious com- . mand's require; In all your, ways acknowledge him, and he. will direct your, steps.. . "TOUR AFFECTIONATE ttOTHEE." To the same, irqjn his f'-ather. \ s"My dear Soi^— You have publicly devoted your-'- self to Christ and his service. In this act you. liave implicitly .renounced all sinful pleasure for -ever. This, to the carnal heart, is a great saorifiiie ; but in the view of the new man, or rather the new naturcj. it is' like resolving for ever to , keep away fi-om ser- pents, and adders. ' . " I fear -I shall never sufficiently acknowledge the goodness and merjoy of Grod, .manifested m exciting your attention to the concerns of religion. ' I rejeic© that you have put your hand io' the plough, and, hope you will never look back. " The. sense you express of the sin and pollutiou of your heart, and your depend- ence on the atoning blood of .Christ, is. very satisfap- tory to me. If . you truly, lament that the forenoon of your life has-been spent in. doing "nothing for Christ, you wUl frorn this time take heed that the afternoon is not wasted too," ) About this' date he writes,. " Through the T^^on- derfii^ forbearance of God, I have just entered upon piy seventh ten years ; and I earnestly advise you. to be ever watchful and prayerful, humble and conde- scending, circumspect and exemplary." CORRESPONDENCE, 353 *Io the same on a Tisit at Martha's Vineya/d i "You are hq-w on the little isUndthat gave birth to your mother. Martha's Vineyard has seen days of prosperity. It has been adorned with devout and discerning ministers, and flourishing cliurches. There a long successioEL of pious- Mayhe\7s wore the sandy road from ChabacLuidiok to &ayhead, and from north to i§outh, to preach Christ to the' rndians. "Peace- to their memory. - ,If any ,of iny children die on the Vineyard, let thern be laid in the same ground whidi . contains the remains of those followers of Jesus," ■, To his son G , Preceptor in Anlhefst Academy. " PLAiitFiEL-D, Jan. 25,-1820. . " My dear Son-*— I view your situation as tare- mcHdpusly critical ; and what excites my apprehen- sions-is a fear that you do not know the Lord. If you die without an interest in Jesus, from what hopes and heights and prospects must you fall. All in which you now rejoice will be the occasiori of ag- gravating your woe." .0, be hilmble and holy, and ail will turn "to your eternal advantage.' Come to the inviting find lovely Saviour, and he will love and bless you ; and if by some misstep you should sHp from- your present eminence, and sink in the world's esteem — a thing not very improbable in this. state of ohangeU-you will have a merciful . Saviour to hear your mournings, to forgive your foUies, and heal your broken heart. that you, arid. W. and M-^— and L and H — -, and youi' imperfect parents, 3^4 ' MOSES 'HALLOCk.- "were all in Christ, walking in the pleasant path to eternal IJfe. , ' "Youi^ affectionate. fiatherj "'-■■" MOSES HALLOCK," ** ' To the same. ~ ' '' Plainfield, Jaai-i'l, Itel. "My much-beloved -Son — The' Lord has distin- guished you with "his favor. It would take yo'ii all the new ye9,f to recount the mercies of the past year. Your employrjient has been pleasant stad honorahle. Your opportunities for improverfient in science and religibuS^ knowledge have heen great. -How can yoij rendet sufficient praise to .your God and Saviour, If I should he uskedj How can G- spend this new year 'better than the last ? I would answer, By turn- ing, his attention iliore constantly and earnestly to the concerns .of his soul; hy inquiring- -prayejftilly. and' _ impartially whether he is minding, not his own things, hut ,the, things of J^esus Christ, Thoiigh this work may he painful to him, let him. not -recoil from it. ' The man whoisd-eterred from examining his accounts by fear of di^agreeaUe feelings, must expect to be a bankrupt." . ' - • Tg'the same, at AndoTQjr. " Plainpibld, Marolj. 7, 1822. " My attachment, to you, iny dear son, is stronger than I can:express. Many pr.ayers.are daily offered for yoil. If you are destitute of true religion, you haye yet acquired nothing but what, you must part with: in all- your studies and atjquisitions, you have' laid up nothing that will be permanent. 'Whether OOERESPONDENCE. 355 there be prophecies, they shall fail ; whether there he tongi^es, they shsfll cease; whether there be. know- ledge, it. shall v^ish afway.' There is a good part ^hioh can never be taken away — ^this is .holy lov6. "'Charity never faHeth ;' even dea;th increases its ex- . cellenoe and, vigor. • - ' J ".I seem to hear yon say, < O that I possessed it !' "With the.tenderness and affection of a father, I would press-upon you" the importance of refleotiug on your •-Spiritual state.. Jlealize the criminality and daiiger of 'being an unbelieving sjnner. If you turn to "the Lord, he wfll have mejrcy on you** - You prize the privilege of having mercy offered you through Christ : you woBld view yoursialf in an awfol^-conditipn, if no mercy were offered you ; but this must be your everlasting condition if' you die in sin. This thought makes death terrible, to the dying sinner ! To human view, you will never see another time so peculiarly favorable to the commencement of a refigious life as the present. Come to Christ as he invites you, and ^n will be. huihble and happy." To.his eldest Son, at -Andover. - . " Plainfie'ld, March 14, 1822. " My dear .Son— ^The account you give respecting^ Gr ^ is in'describably interesting. 'We all thank yoii '^for it. This makes us pray. ,1 first read it alone ; then to yoTir mother and M— — and h^ — - ; and then retired -to my little chamber. "When a beloved member of a family -is sick, and they are afraid he will die, they watch- every. 356 MOSES HALLOO.K. sympioiii, and the Least favorable _appiearance affords encouragement. _So we are looking on our dear G- .; and we suffer ourselves to take a little en- oouiagement from what you have written. The God of 'all grace give him repentance and humility and holy faith, that the result of what nqw appears may not be a revival" before irrecorerable. death. Tell him and Mr, B , if you think. -proper, 'that, not only their -.Christian friejids on earth, but all heavenj are locking on them, and are ready to rejoice and give, new praises to God, if Jheyor either of ttem should- yield themselVes^'Eo- Christ. Let thejn come to their Saviour, and so not disappoint, but gladden all holy beiigs.^ Write about them sooti. " Your affectionate- father^. • "MOSES, HALLOCK." A few weeks later he says,v " C— — and P — '■, — ," {two students with him,) "liave, within a few^weeks, obtained a'hope." Both these youths became faithful ministers^ — one in the '.Protestant Episcopal church, the other in the Presbyterian church at the West. , Again he records the temporal mercies G-od had graciously bestowed : ■" " You aoknowlfedgfr- yoiir ebUgations of grartitude , to- God for giving your mother and me" to. you. We acknowledge our obligations to the sarnie, unfailing source of all our enjoyments, ^for giving you and our other children to us. We rejoice that you have bean carried through seven ye&.rs in. college and the semi- nary, and that all the .expenses have been borne, and CORa£SPONDENCE. 357 both you and we are free from debt. When you and Gr. -^ entered^ college, I spoke to a man to lend me six hundred . doUars from tim^ to time as I should need it But,through the care of a bountiful Provi- dence^ Ihq,veiad nd- need, to borrow a dollar. This is far, far beyond what I could have rationally hoped. Let gratitude arid humihty, and pity to the poor, ever be prominait traits in our character. - "I tell you this, that you may join me in grate- fally acknowledging a kind Providence, who hath, enabled us, notwithstanding the smallness of our. re- sources, and the large amounts that have been needed, to ansvror without the least difficulty every call. The hand of Grod has been sp visible, that it woiild be very sinful not to notice It. " One circumstance that has seemed solemn and interesting to me is, that often when I have with ease obtained what money Was neededj^ I have not seen how leould then have ob- tained a single dollar more. The Lord knoweth the circumstaaices of- every careature ;' and if we trust in him he will make our strength as our day. is. Yea, he will nof only provide bountifully for us in this life, • but thfough Jesus Christ he will comrnit to us the true riches. .When we -think of God, and when we pray to hini, we should ever regard him as a God of boundless- goodness, and as a God who Relights to make his. creatures happy;" , : To his'son H , in Amherst 'College. ' , - . - ~ . ■ - " Plainf-ield, March 28, 1823. ' ' ' • - . . " My dear SoN^-Youf situation is awfully criti- cal. Go(^inhiS amazing condescension ,~ is once more 358 , MOSES HALLQCK. exciting your„attention to .the concerns of your pre- cious soul. ' Your anxiety for your own state is proof- of this. Yoji ought immediately to submit to the diviiie requirements^ Your righteousness is filthy rags. The loi%er. you remain in sin, the harder you ' become;' and the multitude pf your sins increases. Alas', you owe already ten thousand talents^ and have nothing to pay. As a poor beggar, fall at the feet of the Saviour and plead for mercy. , No longer harden -your heart. -The sinnWs cause is infiiiitely unrea- sonable, and he.4ias no power to support.- it. How solemn the divinei expostulation with siimers, ' Turn ye, for why will ye die ?' Can -you disobey .this call ? WiU my H— ' — - die father than -turji? " The great question, -whether you will be saved or lost, Will probably be soon decided. ' To-day if' you wUl hear his voice, harden hat yotti: heart.! Ex- cuses for rei6aining impenitent have no weight. They arfr the offspring of a wielded heart: I cheerfully leave you to the nferey of Grod. He can do you no injustice. But he and all heaven would jejoioe to see you become a humble peniteiit. The Saviour. IS ready to, receive you; :'Ther« is salvation in none other. " .Show your gratitude for his "infinite atone- ment by receiving 'it. " J greatly rejoice to hear of the revival in Am- herst institution. It is a very pleasing circumstance that you are ttiere. If you and your beloved room- mate sl^ould come to Christ, you would ' be happy indeed.. If you -desire the 'fervent prayers and exer- tibns of others^or you, you must feel deeply interested OOREESPONTjENCE. 359 yourselves. How insupportable the thought, that you two may yet be mutual tormentors of each other in hell. "Remember me afifeotionately to P and, C . May -their prayers, and the prayers of many others for you, be heard< Tell Austin Rich- ards" (who became a' faithful minister) "and D. P , that' their Plaiofield friends, especially their parents,' and. your motiier and I, shall wait with-much tender anxiety to hear of their conversion to Christ.-, "Your letter is,, of aU you ever sent, the most interesting. Your mother and I will not cease to pray for you. How could we but pray for one we love so dearly, especially when you request our pray- ers for a ' son who is on ihe borders of hell.' ',' Our love to all, that have been members of this family. I hope they will all improve their present prebious opportunity to seek the Lord while he may be found, and call upon him while he is nSar. The most profound.human science is of no Worth, when compared with what the smallest Christian knows of Christ. ' " Youi affectionate father, 'SMOSES .HALLbCK." -^ ^ To a Son then instructing'a select Bohool in Salem; Massafihasetts. " Plainfield, May 3, 1823. " My very' dear Son — It gives me much pleasure to learn that you, choose and have .valuable friends. GuaR-KSPOABENCE. 367 Again he says, a few months later, "I recently had the pleasure of an interview with Rev. Mr. Baldwin of New York, wl;io thinks you are lahorious and,useM. I could only reply, ' He raiseth up the poor &oni the dust.' Frorii^the disasters of your venerable grandfather, sixty years ago, seems to have arisen whatever his sons and his grandsons attained to. But for this kind providence I see not why we should not have remained on the south side of Long Island, depending on what we could get from the water and from the sand of the heach for a liveli- hood. Let us most cordially eind gratefully adore the kind, unerring hand of Providence, who always hrings good" out of evil. " In my morning walks I now miss the company of little W. H . His pleasant noises charmed me more than the singing of the birds. May he, too, know the Lord." To his Son, it Malta. "■PLAINPIELD, June 25, 1827. "Dear and much-bei,oved Son — Your deliverance from the perils of the voyage calls for more gratitude and praise than our poor = Jonah ' hearts are willing to render. " The present year is, in many places, remark- able for revivals of religion. The hopeful converts within a few months in the county of Berkshire are at least fifteen hundred. A good work is going on in Cummington and Worthington, and it is begun among us. Several have lately obtained a hope, and 368 MOSES HALLOCK. perHaps twenty are under serious impressions. The kingdom of the Redeemer is advancing. Help jt on- ward, my dear son. It is destined to fill the earth. This kingdom is to break down all opposition, and overthrow all errors, and possess the world alone. Dan. 2 : 34,-35. Malta will yet be covered with the redeemed; ; and all the shores of the Mediterranean ; and all the habitable parts of the earth. Rev. 7 : '9. Keep the press going. " Your very affectionate father, "MOSES HALLOOK.." Four months later he writes, " The revival extends over much the greatest part of the town. It is a still and precious work. Twenty or more will probably be admitted to the church the first Sabbath in November. We have abundant cause to speak of the mercies of God towards us. His paths drop fatness. No year since I lived in Plainfield seems to me to have been so distinguished with temporal and spiritual mercies." In this work of grace in 1827 and 1828, in which he secured the assistance for some weeks of a pas- tor then without a charge, he had the happiness of receiving sixty-six persons, who gave evidence of saving conversion. To his son G , in New Tork^ "Plainpiei,b, March 30, 1828. " My very dear Son — ^Your paper, (the Observer,) it seems to me, becomes more and more interesting and useful. When I think that all my absent sons CORRESPONDENCE. 369 are called in providence to such employments as tend to advance the Redeemer's kingdom, my obligation to give thanks to God, and t.o praise his condescend- ing mercy, rises before me. I consider the Observer and the tracts as orthodox publications. They are vehicles which carry the truth far and wide. May the Lord inspire your hearts with a holy love of the pre- cious truths you publish. I pray that you and E , and your Uttle son, may all find special mercy. "I feel cordially thankful to the brethren in New Jersey, who proposed the day of fasting and prayer for the conversion, of the world. How momentous the object ! Where is there a saint or sinner on earth not interested in it ? As our annual 'fast was to com© the next week, I proposed to the people to meet in the afternoon only ; but all I spoke to chose to meet both parts of the day. Both meetings were solemn and interesting, and , we felt that we needed more time. Some women walked nearly two miles to attend, though the travelling was very bad. " Our state proclamations are cold things. A minister might as weU, for matter of edifying and warming the hearts of his people, hold before them a ball of snow, as a men-pleasing. Unitarian proclama- tion; but the one from New Jersey was from the heart, and to the heart. "Why should we not prayfor the conversion of the world, when probably tens of thousands of our poor race fall into everlasting de- struction each passing day? It is to pray for no more than what Grod has revealed shall sooner or later be. Psalm 22 : 27." 16* 370 MOSES HALLOCK. To his Son in the Mediteiranean. ' It seems that his son, who was engaged in the missionary work abroad, wrote both to his father and mother, begging them to answer the inquiry, "What are the feehngs with which you are passing toward the country from which none return ?" To this question the father, April 22, 1828, at the close of a letter pertaining chiefly to the circumstances and responsibilities of the son, gives a characteristic reply only in the following words : . "Your care for our eternal ' condition, and ours for yours, are mutual. I wish I could give a better account of myself. I hope, with, some sense of my unworthiness, I can make the prayer of the publican, ' God be merciful to me a sinner..'' " To the same question the mother, who seemed to have more of the joi/& of pardoned sin, to whom death had lost its terrors, and who had a word on her tongue to speak to the careless sinner, or the anxious inquirer, or iihe ripened Christian, whenever the occasion and propriety admitted it, gives alsO- a reply not less characteristic : " The time of my probation appears to me draw- ing to a close ; yet I have no gloomy apprehensions as tc'the time or the manner of my dep9,rture, but would choose that it should be as a God of infinite perfection sees fit to order it. My hope and confi- dence in my precious Redeemer are unshaken. I daily go to him as my almighty Father and Friend, and trilst that' his grace will be sufficient for me at all times. ' I wiU say of the Lord, He is my refuge CO.RRKSPONDENCE. 371 and my fortress, my G-od ; in him will I trust.' With regard to my ' letting go of my hold on the con- cerns of this world,' although I contiuue to lahor dili- gently with my hands, yet I think my affections mainly centre in Grod. His word and worship are far more precious to me than any of the perishing things of earth. I seldom wake ia the morning with- out having my thoughts on Grod, and they are fre- quently rising to him when on my ted, while- rising, and entering on the business of the day. Precious lines of Scripture, of pious authors, and hymns" — of which she had, large stores in her memory, 9,nd from which she drew liberally for the early bejiefit of her children— "frequently flccur to my mind through the day. I find it good to go up to the house of the Lord, to serve him there with reverence and godly fear. I trust it is in my heart to say, ' come, let us worship and bow down; let us kneel before the Lord our Maker ; for He is our G-od, and we are the people of his pasture, and the sheep of his hand.' The precious little prayers which are scattered through the Bible, and other portions of the sacred word; I hope are daily food for my soul. But yet, my son, sins and follies run through my -wjiole life ; and I need that pardomng mercy should be extended to me every day that, I live, through the infinite atone- inent of the blessed Redeemer : and should I ever reach those blessed mansions which Christ has pre- pared for all that love him, to free, rich grace alone must be all the praise. My heart responds and says. Amen, * praise the Lord for his goodness, and for his 372 MOSES HALLOCK. wonderful wo^ks to the children of men.' You daily- have an interest in my afFectionate reihemtiance. May you always enjoy the sensible presence of God, he greatly useful in his vineyard, guided in the path of duty, and prepared for all iiiat is before you in time and eternity, through the precious Immanuel." It was pleasjant to another absent son, returning to visit hi? parents and lodging in an apartment adjoin- ing theirs, as he awoke at early dawn, to hear them speaking to each other of theii: own unworthiness, of the abundant mercies received, of the riches of the grace of God, and their renewed obligations to live to his glory, as familiarly as if such had been the themes of their daily Christian communion for forty years. ' F .To tlie same, from his father. "Plaimfield, October, 1828. " There is reason to hope that less ardent spirits are drunk in the land. Respectable people do not provide it for company. Mihtary officers- are leaving off the pernicious practice of ' treating.' It is hoped also, that more regard is paid to the Sabbath than in past years. Sabbath-schools likewise prosper. These things are encouraging, and tend to inspire the hope that the latter-day glory is near ; especially when we consider how many benevolent societies are operating successfully to extend the knowledge and kingdom of the Redeemer." At the same date he writes to his son G— — in New York : COEHESPONDENCE. 373 " It delights me to hear of the check upon intem- perance. Hqw can you serve the Lord and promote the good of man better, than to employ a part of your paper in communicating such information relatiye to this subject as shall tend to fix in the public mind the ruin occasioned by this sin? Why should the fair character of these states be lowered and lost by the vices charged on abandoned Ephraim, Isa. 28 : 7, 8, ' They also have erred through wine, and through strong drink are out of the way. The priest and the prophet have erred through strong drink ; they are swaUowed up of wine, they are out of the way through strong drink ; they err in vision, they stumble in judg- ment. For all tables are full of vomit and filthiness, so that there is no place clean.' The present refor- mation seems to me not so much the result of human effort, as the effects of the Holy Spirit kindly suggest- iiig to people- all around, that they must not destroy themselves by this shameful practice. The move- ment seems to be simultaneous. " I thanli you for the honor you have done me in my somewhat advanced years, in your donation of two hundred doUars to aid the important work of the American Bible Society, and that you did not forget dear Homan in a land of strangers. The Rev. Mr. Temple of Malta has visited us, and brings favorable intelligence. The interview was very pleasant." To his son G , in New York. " Pi^AiNFiELD, May 4, 1829. " My very dear Son — I walk my study about an hour each -morning ; and that hour never passes with- 374 ..MOSES HALLOCX. out thinking of you and my other beloved absent sons. You are the only one of the five children who do not profess to be in Christ. In this respect you are alone. If yoti have no part nor lot in the Saviour, and should die afar from him, the precious truths you have so often, and uniformly and nobly defended, and which have edified and delighted thousands, will finally be no comfort to you. You will see the doctrines of the cross finally prevail, you will see Satan chained a thousand years, and the meek inheriting the earth during that long and happy period ; you will see the bodies of the saints raised in glory ; -you will see that Jesus is the Lord ; you will be present at the judg- ment, and have enlarged views of eternity; but none of these things will a.iford you the least consolation. The very things which will cause behevers to rejoice will, on this gloomy supposition, be tp you a source of unhappiness and- terror. The thought that this may be the lot of him I so ardently love, excites in me sensations of sadness which I cannot describe. " When the millennium is in its full glory, you and I shall be in eternity. If then, on my speaking to you of the change which shall have taken place on the gkbe of our nativity — how that, fi"om being a world lying in wickedness^ it is -covered with the > redeemed, all honoring their God and SaAdour, and dehghting themselves in the abundance of peace; Popery and Mahometanism and Rationalism, and all the religions of human device abandoned for ever — you should answer that the change only heightened your anguish and despair, it seems now that my heart COERKSPONDENCE. 375 would ache. My G saddened at the sight of Jerusalem's peace — saddened to see the proud tongue of ,the errorist silenced for ever, and the earth filled with the glory of Grod T I run forward in my own imagination, and hope to be so changed as to he in- capable of grief ; but with my present feelings, if I might make the choice, and the wUl of God were so, I would choose my own annihilation rather than that G — '• — should be lost. The God of infinite mercy prqyent it. God, wilt thou make him and his companion holy. Dispose them to use their endow- ments, and aU their influence, to advance thy cause. Bless them and their labors, and make them all bless- ings in time and eternity. Amen." To the sa-me. " Plainfield, November 9, 1829. " My very dear Son — Your ' Boston Telegraph,' and since that, the Observer, have afforded me much instruction and pleasure, and I am truly thankful for them. I have more periodical works than- 1 can read. The Holy. Bible is my book. "W , in a late letter, expresses some solici- tude as to the comfort of his parents in their declining years ; but we are well provided for. " The first year after your parents were married, I supposed we were. seeing our happiest days.' But this was a cherished error. The children bhe Lord gave us were, one after another, a source of much additional enjoymeut, especially when we began to see tokens of some genius and future enterprise. This animated the parents to make every reasonable 376 MOSES HALLGOK., sacrifice to prepare them for fature usefulness. The living buds stimulated and nerved the arm to culti- vate the little trees, hoping on some future day to see welcome fruit, as the expectation of Manoah and his wife was raised concerning Samsoil, when the Spirit of the Lord hegan to move him at times in the camp of Dan. May all our grandchildren be as great a source of comfort to their parents as our children have been to us." To his son at Malta he. writes, "The thoughts you suggest, as to the Lord's kindness to us as a family, ought to excite the warmest gratitude. To all he has done, may he add humble, grateful, and, obedient hearts." In the same letter he says, " In respect to your visiting us, I had much rather not see you 'till the heavens be no more,' than that you should leave Malta, if duty call you to remain there. This would be too much like Jonah, who fled from the presence of the Lord, and .was, in your sea, swallowed by a whale." For many years, as above intimated, he had had the settled purpose that, when he should enter his seventieth year, however able, he might feel to fulfil the duties of the ministry, he would, lest he should retain the office in advanced life at the sacrifice of the best interests of his people, request them to unite with him in the settlement of a colleague. This proposition he publicly made to his congregation in March, 1829 ; and as he feared that paying the sala- ry of two pastors might be felt to be a burden, he COERESPONDEKCE. 377 fully relinquished his own salary from and after the time the colleague should be installed. His devoted and united people, of whom he had heen for thirty- S3ven years the first ^nd only pastor, were not in haste for a change, and delayed accepting his proposal for two years, wTien, in March, 1831, the Rev. David Kimball was installed his cdleague. In his charge to the pastor elect, he says, " Almost forty years I have been the minister of this people ; but it has been in weakness and in fear, and in much trembling. I leave to you principally the weighty, solemn "trust. The church, from a very small beginning, has become considerably numerous : these you -will be careful to feed ; they are Christ's sheep and lambs. I also leave to your trembling care them that are dead in sin. I have often thought of them, and prayed for them, and addressed them ; but cannot persuade them to be reconciled to G-od. You will never pray nor preach without remembering them. Let it be your heart's desire and prayer to Grod that they may be saved. One reason why I was willing to retire from preaching to impenitent men in this congregation was, that truths from other lips might have more impression than from mine. I hope J shall .see, through the instrumentality of your labors, as I have seen by other means, scores of sinners converted to God. ' " ' Preach the word,'' and not the religion of proud reason, or man's device.. Tell your poor fellow-sin- ners what (rofi? saith of the human heart, of Christ, of his atonement, of death, of the resurrection, and 378 MOSES HALLOCKri of the judgment-day. Tell them what God says of eternity, and of the different states of the righteous and the wicked in that awfiil world," To his son G , in New York. "Plainfield, April 15, 1831. "The information, ' Some hundreds will be added to the churches in New York city the next Sahtath,' is warming to the heart. Truly the Lord is huilding up Zion. We will ' pray for the peace of Jerusalem.' ' They shall prosper that love her.' I wait to hear of the convef sion of one ahsent friend and another ; hut if such expectation should not he realized, I hope to he resigned. Though every one ought to repent and believe, God is not bound to give these holy aflFeotions to any sinner." , Again he says, Sept. 16, " The awakening among us advances slowly. A very general solemnity ap- pears in our meetings, and there have been some more than twenty instances -of hopeful conversion. " If you, my beloved children, should live and die neglecting the great salvation, you will miss of a great reward, and receive greater punishment than sinners in general. that I could hear of the con- version of you both. • My mind would be relieved from a daily concern, a heavy burden. Let each make the interesting inquiry, 'What are my feelings towards , (rod ? Is he lovely in my sight ? Do I see himiio be just in his disposal of his creatures? Is bis word my delightj and does this world, with all its riohjes, honors, and pleasures, appear to me as nothingj com- COKRESrONDEKCE. 379 pared with a heait to serve Christ, and an interest in his love ? Do I show, ty. forsaking sin, that I am a true penitent? Does Christ appear to me ' the chief- est among ten thousand, and altogether lovely?' "God seems to he more accessible to mankind than ever before. I believe there is not a town around- us but is visited by the special influence of his Spirit , in a greater or less degree. Seek the Lord while. he may be found. Let each take the whole blame of sin, and justify God. Then the awful controversy ceases." To his Children in New York. " PlaJnfiejcd, April 5, 1832. " My much-beloved Sons and Daughters — You have much to do ; and 1 hope you are as useful as you are industrious. Be willing to wear out for Christ. Let not your toils and cares cause you to forget him, and your obligations to be his for ever, I hope you are all favored with orthodox preaching. I think the religious scheme of is founded in error. All the silver and gold in the world would not make me willing that you . should have been brought up under such preaching." ■ . Again, August 8, referring to the illness of two of them, he says, " I bless God for G 's recovery. His death would ha^re been a heavier grief to us than, any we were ever called to mourn. "We want to hear the result of E 's sickness. , If she should die, New York and Plainfield would to me be spread with gloom. It would be so especially, if she should not leave, good evidence of having a part or lot in Christ. 380 MOSES HALLOCK. Eliza lost ! the thought would he insupportahle. Neither of you professes a hope in Christ ; yet you respect religion, and in youi judgment are convinced you must have it or he ruined. The state of such persoiis of all others most excites the sympathy of Christians." •His dear EUza, soon after his death, hecame a happy, consistent memher of the church of Christ. Two months later he writes to his sons, " I highly approve of your remaining ia the city, and attending each to his respective .business during the prevalence of cholera. ' I trust you were hoth very useful in that gloomy season." In Septemher, 1833, he speaks of his labors in a destitute par,t of Windsor, adjoining. Plainfield, where he did much to strengthen a weak congregaition : " I continue to spend the Sahhath with them," he says. " Their little meeting-house goes on well. It will, I'^trust, he fit for use in a montii or two." To bis Children on the Mediterranean, the nussion being about to be removed' from Malta to Smyrna. " Plainfield, Deo. 20, 1833. " My dear Son and Daughter — It gives me ihuch pleasure to think of the place you "fill in the vineyard of Christ. I would give thanks to God daily, that your lot is to spread the knowledge of salvation. You win probably he each instrumental of saving many souls. The books you publish may be blessed to thousands who were perishing for lack of vision. I hope you wiU yet hear in heaven, from the lips of such redeemed ones, ascriptions of praise to Him who CORRESPONDENCE. 381 is Head over all things tathe church, for sending you to Malta and Smyrna. How encouraging to think of being allowed to do something for the advancement of that cause for which Christ died. "Remember me very affectionately to the Rev. Mr. Temple. We shall never forget his kind visit at Plainfield. If He who hath appointed the bounds of our habitation, call you far beyond Malta, I submit. If I am never to see you in this world, I submit; and this is not hard, so loi^ as I hope you are useful, though I think to spend even one hour with you would be a greater luxury than I ever experienced from an interview with friends." A few days later he writes, " Your mother and I are very comfortable and content. We lack nothing but religion ; and but one of us lacks that." To a Son in New York. " Plainfield, Aug. 28, 1834. " My very dear G After a night of anx- iety, king Darius said to Daniel, ' Is thy God whom thou servest able to deliver thee from the lions?' You live in the midst of temptations, dangers, and death. When I think of the bad examples before you in your city, and the thousand temptations to do wrong, and how many have been dying around you," (by cholera,) "I am ready to exclaim in the language of gratitude, ' Is thy God able to deliver thee' from the lions?' Your life and health and un- blemished character, and numberless other blessings, aro still continued ; may you, like Daniel, ssrve Gcd 382 MOSES HALLOCX. continually; and as your refinement would nevei allow you to treat the kindness of an earthly bene- factor with ingratitude, see that you are not ungrate- ful to God." To another eon, he says, April 20, 1835, " Let- ters and tracts received of late from New York have been very interesting. G 's prosperity almost ter- rifies me. He has made some noble donations. If these have been offered in faith, as AbeJ offered his sacrifices, the Lord will have respectto them." To- his Son in Smyrna, on the death of an infant Daughter. " PLAiHFIELif, March 16, 1835. " My much-beloved Son and Daughter — Your full letter we have read several times with the deepest interest, and your brother W has put .the most of it into the New York Observer, and has signed it Particeps. He writes, after the birth of a daughter in January, that the wounds which the death of his little daughter and son made in the hearts of their father and mother still bleed. " "What shall I say of your httle Martha ? From your description, I believe she was a very lovely child. My attachment to her is such that, if I were in Smyrna, I should go to the little cypress-tree and the "grave it shades. The scene you -passed must have been peculiarly tender ; but the cup is mingled with great mercy. I think there is much reason to believe that your little daughter is with her Saviour, experiencing the amazing blessings of his atoning blood, removed far away from this polluted and pol- OORUESPONDENCE. 383 luting world. I trast also that God has been near to you in your affliction, and enlarged your minds hy spiritual discoveries, so that you caii say, ' It is good for us that we have teen afflicted.' To his Children in New York. "Plainfield, Sept. 17, 1835. " My dearly beloved Sons and Daughters — Within a few months your mother and I have seen all our sons and daughters, except your brother Ho- man's wife in Smyrna. This marks the year. It is a. kind of new epoch,, which we shall remembef so long as we yet live. As Jacob revived when he saw the wagons, and as Paul thanked God and took courage when he saw the brethren at Appii Forum, so we rejoiced, especially to see Homan, whom we never much expected to see. Those around us were moved like the people of Bethlehem at the coming of jjf aomi. These things I hope we all consider as bless- ings which call aloud for very thankful acknowledg- ment to G-od. "A kind Providence has placed you in stations of responsibility; and in respect to abiMty and success in your various employments, it may be said of you as of the tribes of Israel, when the Lord brought them out of Egypt, there is not one feeble person among you." To his three absent Sons. " Plainfield, Dec. 30, 183.5. " My dear Sons and Daughters — Yesterday about half-past eleven your mother died. But it seemed 384 MOSES HALIiOCK. more like quiet sleep than death. A fortnight ago to-day she suddenly became speechless and helpless. Martha and I laid her on the bed. Dr. Shaw came very soon, and said it was a shock of paralysis. He visited her daily, and Mrs. Arnold Streeter and Mrs. Salem Streeter Idndly assisted day and night in the care of her till she died. She had her reason almost or quite tUl the last. " She appeared to descend the valley of the shadow of death vidthout fear. / never heard her express^ any fear of death. When about fifteen years of age, she Was among a large circle of sisters, brothers, and cousins, gay and sprightly.' At this age she became thoughtful, and after about a year found peace. It was her lot to sit, for a considerable part of her youth, under preaching which excluded the distinguishing doctrines of the 'gospel; but the Spirit of the Lord taught her to trust in mere sover- eign grace. I think, from her subsequent life, that this divine work upon her mind was very powerful. She was generally serious, sometimes cheerful, never vain. " There were many things in her life highly wor- thy of imitation. She followed the counsel of Paul to Titus: ' In all things showing thyself a pattern of good' works; in doctrine showing uncorruptness, grav- ity, sincerity.' She was blessed with skill to speak * a word in season ' to every one with whom she was conversant. Very many were favored with her. pious counsel, especially her sons and daughter. She was neat, and all her things were so in their place that CORRESPONDENCE. 385 she had to spend no time to find what she wished to use. " She was kind to the poor.. Solomon, in describ- ing ' a virtuous woman,' Proverhs 31, desorihes her. That good old religion remains the same. It is ever new. 'She stretched out her hand to the needy.' Her table, spread forty thousand^ times, while it bore every mark of economy, always supplied the wants of those around it. ' She looked well to the ways of - her household, and ate not the bread of idleness. Her children,' who, in great measure through her pious care as an instrument in Christ's hand, are what they are, ' arise up and call her blessed ; her husband also, and he praiseth her.' " Her body was conveyed to the meeting-house the day after her death, and the Eev. Mr. Jennings preached an appropriate discourse from Job 7 : 9, 10. I hope her sympathizing daughters wiU avoid her defects and imitate her amiable virtues. " My sons and daughters, as you loved' your mother, and esteemed her company, will you not, by obedient faith in Christ, seek a part and lot with her in heaven ? " Your affectionate father, '-MOSES HALLOCK." A few days later he writes to his daughter in Smyrna, " The death of my companion calls aloud on me to be also ready. We were nearly of the same age, almost seventy-six. I believe no day passed, espec- ially in later years, in which she did not make to me some serious observations concerning Christian duties." BaUock. 17 386 MOSES HALLOCK. Her mind seemed inclined to holy devotion; If I do not repent and believe and serve the Lord, I shall he more guilty, and consequently miserahle, than if I had never seen her." He wrote for her tomhstone the simple testimony, " She sat at Jesus' feet and heard his word."* To his Cllildreii in New York. " PliAiNFiELD, January 22, 1836. "My very dear Sons and Daughters — In writ- ing -to your brother Roman's wife in Smyrna, I called her my pilgrim daughter, a term which com- ports well with my present feelings. May we all, by a holy walk with God, profess ourselves to be ' stran- gers and pilgrims on the earth.' "I concluded, when your mother was sick, that if she should live it would be for the best, and if she should die it would be for the best. "We ought always to put such confidence in God as to knew, ;when an evfent takes place, that it is best it should be so; I do not feel very lonesome. The loss of rny valuable, companionable companion is not haK the trouble to me that my vwn state is. I need the power'of relig- ion more than company, or any earthly good. " With love and gratitude, your father, "MOSES HALLOCK." * Margaret Allen was torn at Chilmark, Martha's Vine- yard, March 22, 1760. Her father was Rohert Allen, her mother Desire Norton. Sh^ was a descendant of the worthy and pious Rev. Willjam Homes, and a niece of Rev. Zechariah Mayhew, the last of the five veherahle missionaries of that name to the Indians, who married her father's sister. CORRESPONDENCE. 387 To a Son in New York, " Plaimfield, April 22, 1836. " What can we spend a few thoughts upon more profitably, than on Christ as the head of the true chii/rch . He is the centre of their views, affections, and hopes. This is true of each individual of this holy king"- dom. Each memher of this spiritual family looks to Christ. Enoch and Seth and Noah, vnth all their be- lieving cotemporaries ; all the patriarchs, prophets, and apostles, with their pious cotemporaries ; and all true Christians who have hved since the days of Christ, or who shall hve — all true Christians collected from the fallen race — aU are looking, or will look to Jesus. All the members of this kingdom have some saving acquaintance with their King ; and it is the joy of their hearts that he will reign for ever. They wUl look to Christ as the desire of their souls, and most cordially rejoice in his government, saying, ' To Him bp glory and dominion for ever and ever.' "What could we wish to the sinner better than that he should become a member of this kingdom ? What could you and her mother wish for httle H - J more than that she should become a subject of this happy, everlasting kingdom ? that myself, my children, and grandchildren may become subjects of this holy King of peace." To his Son G , in New York. " Plainfield, July 2, 1836. " My very dear Son — Your letter has afforded me peculiar satisfaction. I rejoice that your mind is 388 MOSES HALLOCK. not ' corrupted from the simplicity that is in- Cftirist.' It is pleasant to hear you say, ' I have ho hope hut in him.' May you and E and. myself, all hound to an eternal; state, ever .clearly see that Christ has most just iclaims to the supreme affections of our hearts,, purely to withhold them from him 'wrongs boli ourselves and him. If you are not in the way of nfe, you know in what the difficulty lies : not in ignorance of the truth, hut in want of love to it. "You speak of your case and E 's as singu- larly alike, and say, ' The prospect now is, that, gazing as it were upon heaven's brightness, and charmed with its glory, purity,- and hlespedness, we shall yet fail of that transformation of spirit which will fit us to he partakers of it — ^that hoUness with- out which no man shall see the Lord.' If I now knew that you and E ' would fail of the grace of hfe, it seems to me I should almost die. It would he more grievous a thousand-fold than the death of your mother. But if you are indeed charmed with heaven's glory, purity, and hlessedness, is not this love of hohness ? is not this the result of the trans- formation of the Spirit? But it is hetter to he a Christian and think you are not, though this is had, than to think you are and be deceived. How won- derful would he the display of grace, if your parents, and their children and grandoMldren, should all be saved. " "What you say of your children is perfectly con- sonant to my feelings — 'We have no ambition for th^m equal io that of seeing them take some humble CORRESEONDENCE. 389 part in aiding forward the triumphs of Christ's king- dom.' Surely this is what true benevolence would wish, rather than that thiey should reign as princes in the earth." INSCRIPTION ON HIS TOMBSTONE IN PLAINEIELD. "The Rev. Moses Hallook: horn in Brookhaven, Long Island, Feb. 16, 1760 ; reared by godly parents ia Goshen,, Mass.; graduated at Yale College 1788 ; ordained and installed first pastor of the church in Plainfield, July 11, 1792 ; ministered to a confid- ing and united people forty -five years; died July -17, 1837, aged 77. At seventy, he requested a col- league, having received to the church three hundred and fifty-eight members. He had instructed three hundred and fotir pupils, of whom fifty became min- isters, seven missionaries. 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