Library of
Emory University
17
METHODISM IN EARNEST:
THE HISTORY OP A
REVIVAL IN GREAT BRITAIN,
IN WHICH
TWENTY THOUSAND SOULS PROFESSED FAITH
IN CHRIST,
AND
ten thousand professed sanctification
IN CONNECTION WITH THE LABORS OP THE
KEV. JAMES CAUGHEY.
Wify m Mrnfartintt
By THOS. 0. SUMMERS, D.D.
richmond, va.:
PUBLISHED BY JOHN EARLY,
FOR THE METHODIST EPISCOPAL CHURCH; SOUTH-
1851.
Entered according to Act of Congress,
in the year 1850,
in the Clerk's Office of the District Court of the District of
Massachusetts.
INTRODUCTION.
The first edition of this work was issued shout a year since,
and the ninth edition is now in pressing demand. This is suffi¬
cient evidence that, whatever rank may be assigned it in respect
to its literary character, it must possess elements which entitle
it to more than a matter-of-course approval or a flippant and sum¬
mary denunciation. As the copyright of the work has been
purchased by the Rev. Dr. Early, Book Agent of the Methodist
Episcopal Church, South, and th6 present edition is issued with
the imprimatur of the Church, thereby securing it an extended
circulation, it may not be improper to call attention to the sub-
jept-matter of the volume, the animus by which it is pervaded,
and the peculiarities of its style.
Few subjects are of greater interest—to the Methodist com¬
munity, at least—than revivals of religion. We allude to those
special visitations of mercy, and seasons " of refreshing from
the presence of the Lord/' in which Christians are stirred up to
greater diligence and zeal, and sinners are awakened and con¬
verted to God. These outpourings of the Spirit are usually pre¬
ceded by fervent and importunate prayer, together with pulpit
and pastoral efforts of a more than ordinarily specific, discriminat¬
ing, and earnest character. Their necessity is seen in the fhct,
that without them, formality and earthly-mindedness will over¬
spread the Church, and it will be consequently powerless as an
agent for the conversion of the world. Their necessity argues
their utility, which, moreover, is demonstrated by the " signs
followingfor if we make a liberal deduction from the ostensible
iii
iv
INTRODUCTION.
results of a revival, on the score of self-deception and hypocrisy,
beyond all controversy, a vast amount of good is effected by
every such visitation of mercy. Fountains of religious feeling
are opened up in many an arid heart, the indubitable seal of
grace is affixed to many a doubting -soul, and the season of re¬
freshing proves the punctum saliens of spiritual life in the case
of many a sinner, who, so far as we can discover, would otherwise
still remain dead in trespasses and sips. And it is by no means
certain, as some affirm, that those who are brought into the
"church by those flood-tides of gracious influence are, on the
whole, less stable than others. There are more of such that prove
inconsistent in their profession and practice, because the number
of those who are brought into the church by other methods bear
a small proportion to the former. But we are not prepared to
say, that the per centage of the one in this respect, is greater
than that of the other. From a somewhat extended induction
of .facts, we are disposed to assume a contrary position. By far
the greatest number of influential Christians, with whom it is our
privilege to be acquainted, date the commencement of their reli¬
gious course from some occasion of extraordinary awakening and
revival.
These views are strikingly illustrated and corroborated in the
present volume; and on this account especially, we commend
it to a careful and candid perusal. We can determine the cha¬
racter and claims of a system much more readily and satisfactorily
by observing its actual working and developement, than by dis¬
cussing its abstract principles. And we feel very confident that,
whatever doubts may be entertained in regard to many of Mr.
Caughey's positions and movements, no one 6an fail to discover
that the course he pursued was philosophically adapted to pro¬
duce the results he proposed. He determined, by -God's help,
to make full proof of his ministry; and to this end he devoted
all his time and talents, and on this, with an earnestness amount¬
ing to an all-absorbing passion, he concentrated all his efforts
and attainments. His principles and plans of procedure, as set
INTRODUCTION.
V
forth in the first four chapters of this volume, challenge the
strictest scrutiny, and cannot he noted, by those who labor in
the word and doctrine, without advantage.
Serious exceptions were taken to the spirit of this work, in cer¬
tain quarters, when the first edition was published. The author
was charged with egotism amounting to self-glorification, and
enthusiasm involving dangerous delusion. If this charge could
be substantiated, it were well to suppress the publication; and
we might be glad to have it in our power to restrict its pernicious
influence. But it is not so easy to prove this charge as it is to
make it. That Mr. Caughey is egotistic, we admit. As a re¬
vivalist, he had less to do with the objective in religion than with
the subjective—less with the abstract than with the concrete.
He was perpetually making religion a personal affair; and to set
it forth effectually to others, he found it expedient to recur to its
operations in his own experience. This is the way to move upon
men, especially upon the masses of society, who are less affected
with systematic dogma and close argumentation than they are
with the living embodiment of the great principles recommended
and enforced upon their attention. This, in most instances, is
the secret of the success of those who are called revivalists. It
was so with Mr. Wesley: he did not consider it in bad taste to
make frequent allusions to himself, both in the pulpit and press.
Indeed, in conducting the Arminian Magazine, he challenged
the right to decline the editorial style—which may be used with
a feeling of regality, as well as one of modesty—and invariably
used the first person singular. Our most devotional hymns are
of this subjective character—and a late writer of the High Church
school has objected to them on this very ground. But the
Psalms of David and the Epistles of St. Paul are in the same
condemnation; and it is a less misfortune to be condemned with
them than approved with their impugners. It has been well
said : "Egotism is a word which has obtained a bad sense; but
it must not be forgotten, that it has a good sense; and that, in
this sense, every truly great man is an egotist. For it is by in-
V
vi
INTRODUCTION.
timate moral and critical acquaintance with himself that he
becomes powerful oyer the thoughts and feelings of our kind in
general."
Speaking of Milton, Coleridge nervously says: "In the Para¬
dise Lost—indeed, in every one of his poems—it is Milton him¬
self whom you see—his Satan, his Adam, his Raphael, almost
his Eve, are all John Milton; and it is a sense of this intense
egotism that gives me the greatest pleasure in reading his works.
The egotism of such a man is a revelation of spirit/' That a
man may carry his egotism beyond the bounds of good taste and
sound judgment, will not be disputed; and that Mr. Caughey
may have done so in some instances may be admitted; but that
he has done so with any motive of self-glorification, seems un¬
charitable to assert and hard to credit, in view of the simplicity
and godly sincerity which mark all his movements.
In regard to the charge of enthusiasm—the term being used
in a bad sense—we confess the artless and unstudied. manner in
which he speaks of his mental exercises and reasons of action, is
well enough adapted to elicit the imputation. He, himself,
admits the ambiguity of the word "revelation," which occurred
in the account of his call to visit the British Islands, and sug¬
gested the substitution of "impression or persuasion," in future
editions, which has accordingly taken place. To many minds,
revelation is associated with supernatural voices, oracular dreams,
angelic appearances, and sortes of various kinds—miraculous in¬
terventions which we have no scriptural authority to expect, and
on which it were a delusion to rely. It must be confessed that
a captious reader of Mr. Caughey's Letters might discover some
ground to suspect that his imagination transported him at times
beyond the bounds of strict sobriety. But we must allow his
own explanation of the fervid language which he occasionally
employs; and as he solemnly disclaims all pretension to miracu¬
lous endowments and visitations, it is uncandid to fasten upon
him the charge of enthusiasm.
He admits that he received impressions which he doubts not
INTRODUCTION. vii
were of divine origination. And who will affirm they were not?
Instead of being a miracle, this is the law of the spiritual
life. It is the established, and, we will add, the necessary order
of God, in the economy of providence and grace. It is implied
in the doctrine of divine influence, which is fundamental in the
Christian system. How is a sinner awakened and convinced of
sin, but by the inward working of the Holy Ghost upon his
mind, conscience, and heart ? How is a believer assured of his
acceptance in the Beloved, but "by the inspiration," as the best
divines, including many of the Reformers, express it,—the testi¬
mony of the Spirit of God, witnessing with his spirit that he is
now a child of God? And what is this testimony of the Holy
Ghost, but an inward impressioii on the soul, whereby the Spirit
of God immediately and directly bears witness to the fact in
question? It is so defined by Mr. Wesley, in perfect accordance
with Scripture, reason, experience, and the soundest theologians
of the reformed churches. And we may add, that an inspira¬
tion, impression, or influence, not altogether unlike this, is ex¬
perienced by every Christian minister who sincerely responds to
the interrogatory of the ordinal: " Do you trust that you are
inwardly moved by the Holy Ghost to take upon you the office
of the ministry ?" If this means something less than miraculous
intervention, which we admit is the case, it must be acknow¬
ledged it means something more than a bias of the mind induced
by the ordinary process of ratiocination—something more than
what a man's own reason is competent to originate independently
of divine influence. And the clergyman who ridicules as enthu¬
siasm all pretension to such influence, would do well to inquire
if he might not have committed sacrilege in assuming an office
to which he was not inwardly moved by the Holy Ghost,—not to
say, perjury, in solemnly professing to be the subject of an in¬
fluence which he considers temerity to claim.
It may be a nice point to determine when an impression is of
divine origination. It may require much prayer, close scrutiny
of motives, careful consultation of the inspired records, and
viii INTKODUCTION..
unreserved conference with judicious Christian friends—all these
tests may be had in requisition; but then the interests involved
justify the most rigid investigation, and no one incapable of
subjecting himself to it is ever the subject of the Spirit's in¬
fluence.
We may be satisfied of the supernatural origin of our impres¬
sions, if they are strong, permanent, increasing in intenseness,
when thoroughly scrutinized' and made the subject of fervent
prayer—when they are not contrary to the Scriptures—when,
they are accompanied with outward providences of a correspond¬
ing complexion—and when they tend to the good of man and
the glory of God. And we may be permitted to remark, in this
connection, that such celestial guidance and control is of immense
importance—it is postulated by the precepts and exhortations to
prayer and trust in God, and secured to the obedient Christian
by the promises and stipulations of the covenant of grace. Thus,
among a thousand passages of a kindred character, we read:
"Trust in the Lord with all thy heart; and lean not unto thine
own understanding. In all thy ways acknowledge him, and he
shall direct thy paths." "Be careful for nothing; but in every
thing by prayer and supplication, with thanksgiving, let your
requests be made known unto God." And there can be no
question, that were this more fully acted upon by us, we should
more distinctly recognize the divine interposition in our behalf,
and we should be saved from a thousand anxieties and misgivings
with regard to our plans and pursuits—the pillar of cloud would
go before us by day, and the pillar of fire by night, to guide and
guard us in all our goings.
"By thine unerring Spirit led,
We shall not in the desert stray!
We shall not full direction need,
Nor miss our providential way!
As far from danger as from fear,
While love, almighty love is near."
Mr. Caughey seems to have reduced these principles tt) prac-
INTRODUCTION.
ix
tice; and in this respect, only, differed from the generality of
professing Christians. Few will dispute their Scriptural char
racter; hut, alas! few are disposed to carry them out in all their
practical details; and the reason for this delinquency, as com¬
monly given, is the fear of enthusiasm. This fear is well-nigh
superseded by the tendency of the age, which is in the opposite
direction, so that we are less in danger of enthusiasm than of
almost any other evil. If there be' one time more opportune
than another for the publication of such a volume as " Methodism
in Earnest," it is the present time; and we accordingly welcome
its appearance, and hope that the transfer of the copyright to
the Southern Methodist Church may greatly extend its circulation
and influence.
In regard to the style of this work, it is only necessary to say,
it is somewhat of the composite order. The subject-matter was
selected and arranged from the Letters of Mr. Caughey, by the
Rev. R. W. Allen, and edited by the Rev. D. Wise." As there
are five volumes of those Letters, embracing a great variety of
subjects besides those which refer to Mr. Caughey's experience
and labors, the latter had to be eliminated and blended together,
before a consecutive history could be presented. This must have
been a work of no small difficulty, and the Preface to the first
edition contains a candid acknowledgment that it could not be
done so as to secure as smooth and even a narrative as might be
desired. In addition to this, Mr. Caughey's Letters do not ex¬
hibit a homogeneous style. The liberal use which he made of
his common-place book, by introducing brilliant sentences from
other authors, particularly snatches of poetry—sometimes appa¬
rently turning aside to introduce a favorite passage, instead of
letting it fall into its place, as it were, of its own accord, or dis¬
pensing with its services—as also the diversified circumstances
under which his Letters were written—give the work more
uniqueness than uniformity. But this is a matter scarcely worth
noting. Indeed, we are not sure that this very peculiarity,
which some might be disposed to consider a flaw in the perform ■
X INTRODUCTION.
ance, miglit Tbe viewed in a totally different light by others; and
no one can doubt that the interest of the reader, which would
flag amid faultless and regular periods, containing nothing but
eloquent platitudes and beautiful generalities, may be sustained
and increased by the frequent recurrence of novel statement,
abrupt transition, startling apostrophe, and exciting epigram.
Whatever objections may be made to " Methodism in Earnest,"
we hazard little in saying that no one will pronounce it a dull
book. In regard to this matter, we have no misgivings concern¬
ing the verdict of the reader—whom we have, perhaps, detained
too long from its perusal. We will therefore conclude, by pray¬
ing most sincerely that its extended circulation may result in
lasting good to the church, and redound to the glory of its
exalted Head.
Charleston, S. C., Jan. 22, 1851.
CONTENTS.
CHAPTER I.
THE INTBODUCTOR Y.
Human experiences — Their uses — Sin of slighting- them — A great religious
fact — Sympathy of a pious mind necessary — The instrument — Mr.
Caughey's early history—Description of Mr. Caughey, — The work of the
Holy Spirit in forming his revival character, 9
CHAPTER II.
THE ANOINTING.
Christ and his apostles— Paul — Luther— Wesley — Their spiritual baptisms
— Mr. Caughey's anointing — Remarks of Dr. Adam Clarke — Their influ¬
ence on Mr. Caughev's mind — The solemn resolutions — The duration of a
deep conviction — The source of instrumental sufficiency — Reflection on
the effect of Dr. Clarke's thought — Praise to God — The beginning of the
Spirit's work in preparing the instrument, 13
CHAPTER III.
THE PREPARATION AND THE CONFLICT.
Necessity of sympathy between God and his instruments — The dead church
— The preacher's concern—A series of meetings — A defeat — Analysis of
its causes — Influence of a minister on his brethren — The great lesson —
The resolution—Revival sermons prepared — The common-plac.e book —
Good advice — Consecration of the sermon — Ordinary services— The new
station — Preparations for a spiritual battle — Cromwell's advice to his sol¬
diers— Sources of confidence — Difficulties foreseen but not feared — The
battle begun — A nine weeks' conflict—A glorious victory — Uses of vic¬
tory— Treatment of converts — Mr. Caughey's reflections on the failure of
revival operations — Every preacher ought to be a revivalist— The mental
conflicts of preachers, . . .. . ^ 18
CHAPTER IV.
THE TEST QF REVIVAL PRINCIPLES.
God's word has been long tested — The basis of Mr. Caughey's movements —
The letter to a friend — The protracted meeting— The spirit of the laborers
xi
xii
CONTENTS.
— Character of the people — Example of dead ministers avoided Meetings
night and day — The resistance — The stir — Inquiry — Increasing congre¬
gations — Truth and its majesty — Pure motives — Expectations Fait u
preaching — Calm reliance on the truth — Fulness of Christ declared No
time-servers in the way of success—A touching anecdote Great resist¬
ance among sinners — Increased boldness in the church Confidence in the
truth displayed — The extremity—Pompey's saying—The minister and
the blacksmith— A nail in a sure place— The triumph "Uncommon ef¬
forts necessary — The motto of the church, 29
CHAPTER V.
THE CALL OF THE SPIRIT.
An affecting fact — Opinion of the reader — Good men have had faith in di¬
vine impressions — Scriptural authority — Fruits are the tests of impres¬
sions — Objections met— Feeble instrumentalities — Intention to marry —
Mental distress — A struggle — Light from heaven — The summons to a
special work — Great peace — The request — Its success — Serious consid
eration — Permanency of Mr. Caughey's impressions— Providence Path —
Careful analysis of mental operations — Faith in God, ... 42
CHAPTER VI.
FIRST FRUITS.
Leaving home — Passage to St. John's — The deserted village — Sore trials
— Counsels of a Scotch divine —An old tannery— Victory— A chapel
built — Hospitality — Montreal — Reminiscences — Signs of revival — A
discordant church — Passage to Quebec — Reflections on a poor pilot and
a detention —1 Extract — Reflections on a deceitful light-ship — Reception
at Quebec — Old friends — A spiritual battle — Satan overthrown — Glo¬
rious revival — The trifler saved — A military officer afraid of God's sol¬
diers — A man of business saved — Results — The song of a holy woman, 53
CHAPTER VII".
REVIVAL SCENES IN LOWER CANADA.
Departure from Quebec — Attachment of the people — Review of labors in
Quebec—Inquest on a disinterred woman — A drunkard's death—Facts
— The Vermont legislator's argument — An incident at a temperance lecture
— St. Ann's A scene of beauty — An accident — A drunken companion —
Another accident — Three Rivers —An aged minister — Anecdote of Wes¬
ley—A hazardous ride — Arrival at Montreal —The power of God —A
house of mourning— A backslider's reformation — The fire — Person burned
to death —An awful event —The backslider's end—St. John's—Review
of labors in Montreal— A liberal offer declined — Restitution preached —
Effects —The conscientious barber—The bank note —The clerk and the
false entry — Mr. Caughey in New York - Summary of results — Five hun¬
dred evidences of the reality of his impressions, 68
CONTENTS.
xiii
CHAPTER VIII.
HALIFAX, AND THE VOYAGE THITHER.
Editorial remarks — Mr. Caughey at Halifax^-His visit to Providence Path
— Strength of the impression — The trip from Whitehall to Burlington —
Arrival at Quebec—Conscientious scruples — The profitable detention —
The falls of Montmorency — The Natural steps — The plains of Abraham —
Quebec defences — Anecdote of a boy — Visit to the Indians — A Canadian
thunder storm — Reflections — Arrival at Halifax — Detention — The voyage
from Quebec to Halifax described — The gift of Christian affection — The
river St. Lawrence — The gulf — A wreck — The drunken soldiery — Pas¬
sengers — Anecdote — The mirage — Prince Edward's Island — Pictou— A
ride — Kind attentions — A home — The lady's apology — The Theatre
Royal temperance meeting described—Prince William's lodge —Ruins
— The people of God in Halifax — Temperance meeting — Anecdote, 85
CHAPTER IX.
THE ATLANTIC VOYAGE.
Introductory remarks — Review of labors in Halifax — A bleak morning — A
storm — Its uses — Amusing description of life on shipboard in a storm —
Conversation with a sceptic—The sceptic confounded — An incident — A
Sabbath at sea— The sermon — The restless sea — Land — Arrival at Liv¬
erpool, . 109
CHAPTER X.
THE DENOUEMENT.
Editorial remarks — Mr. Caughey's sense of loneliness — Trials — Transparen¬
cy of his character — Visits Mancnester — Dr. Bunting's sermon — Mr. Mc¬
Lean — Reflections — Robert Newton — Introduction to the conference —
The voyage to Dublin—Depression — New acquaintances — Invitation to
preach — The first sermon in Dublin — Surprise — Presence of the Spirit —
Four weeks in Dublin— Converts — Temptations — Comforts — Abasements
— Rev. T. Waugh — More temptation — Their narration valuable — Resist¬
ance to Satan — Death of a class-leader — A weeping congregation — A sea¬
son of power — ThevIast public labors of a good man — Hopes of heaven —
The room where Summerfield was converted — An awful time — A remark¬
able conversion in answer to prayer — A visit to Dublin Castle— O'Connell
— A crowd — Methpdist chapels in Dublin— A watch-night — Farewell ser
mon — Intense excitement — Results of his labors in Dublin — Letter of R
Craig, Esq., on the Dublin revival, 121
CHAPTER XI.
TEN WEEKS IN LIMERICK.
Editorial remarks — Journey to *Limerick — First success-
Dublin containing a beautiful illustration of divine mercy -
banks of the Shannon — A hurricane — A fearful explosion
— A letter from
— A walk on the
— Reflections —
xiv
CONTENTS.
A refreshing season — A hymn—The flag — Work of God in Limerick
A powerful conversion — The circular — Historical sketch of Limerick —
Euins of the old wall — A spiritual siege — An ancient cathedral A curi
ous inscription —An old Methodist chapel — Extract from Wesley —Places,
of worship in Limerick — Reflections on high church notions Aspect of
the city — The people of Limerick — Visiting from house to house Reviva
fruits — Leaves Limerick for Cork — The work in Limerick — Public break¬
fast in Limerick — A testimonial of affection — The watch Mr. Mathews s
address — Acquaintances in Limerick, 148
CHAPTER XII.
VISIT TO CORK.
Editorial remarks — Prayer for the city — Opening sermons — The praying
man tempted — The chapel in. Cork described—A touching scene — The
discharged soldier — His arrival home — The . vow of self-dedication — Its
glorious consequences — The leaders' meeting — The small class — The se
cret of a class-leader's success — The local preacher rebuked— How to keep
penitent sinners from falling hack— Six reasons for giving them no rest —
A private watch-night—The" revival in Cork — Extract — Description of
Cork — Irish hospitality at Hayfleld—Communion with God—Revival —
Public buildings in Cork —Population — The tomb of Boardman — Board
man's American labors — His death — His epitaph — A remarkable incident
in his life — A visit to Blarney Castle — Blarney Stone, and its legend —
The revival in Cork, 171
CHAPTER XIII.
EXPERIENCES AND INCIDENTS IN CORK AND BANDON.
State of the work in Cork— Young converts — A mistake — Intended visit to
Bandon — Temperance labors in Cork — Necessity of action on temperance
— Must not be made a hobby — Mr. Caughey is visited by Father Mathew
— Remarks on Sir. M. — Commencement of revival labors in Bandon —
Discouragements—Remarkable instance of restitution — A still more strik¬
ing case — Temptation — The work in Bandon — Free communings with a
friend — Mental struggles — The rage of devils follows faithful ministers —
Luther to Melancthon — Calumny and detraction — Deceptive friendships
— Misanthropy— Professional friendship — A lesson in an incident—Rela¬
tion of living near to God and cheerfulness — Trouble needful — Tempera¬
ment "lhe clock — Waiting for God — The conflict in Bandon — Accident
and detention — Anxiety — Close of his labors in Ireland, . . 194
CHAPTER XIV.
ME. CAUGHEY IN ENGLAND.
Editorial remarks — Departure from Cork View of the coast of Ireland —
The Ocean Storm, a poem — The captive bird — The incident spiritualized
— Lands at Liverpool — Providential openings — Mental struggles — His
CONTENTS.
XV
commission opened—Powerful prayer meeting—Special meetings begun
— Young converts — Temptation and prayer— A stranger and his dream —
Friends and foes — The deputation — Four sinners crying for mercy —
Hoarseness — The watch-night—Renewal of the covenant — Twelve sinners
converted—Success and tribulation -»■ Humility, .... 216
CHAPTER XV.
ARGUMENTS WITH THE ENEMIES OF REVIVALS.
Objections to revival efforts stated and answered — Valuable idea of. a de
ceased minister— Sinners need feeling, not light — Further objections con¬
sidered— The state of Christian congregations described—How to reach
them—Objection to earnest preaching answered — The archer — How to
aid the minister— Objection to sharp and pointed language in the pulpit
considered— Terror objected to — The earthquake nights—Judgment and
passions must be both reached — The minister is the best judge of the peo¬
ple's state — The wicked physician — How he was saved — The aged minis¬
ter and the young sinner — Stern and soft preaching — Poetical extract —
Feeling must be appealed to—The irregular apple-tree — Controversy de-r
-clined—The work in Liverpool — Prejudice — Opposition to revivals uni¬
versal— The unconverted lawyer.— A classical story — The old saint's
prayer and the sinner's protest — Blasphemy charged on revival preaching
— Theology studied in hell — The duke of Saxony and the praying bishop
— The trooper and the minister — Feelings of a lady, . . . 232
CHAPTER XVI.
INQUIRIES, ANECDOTES, AND CLOSING LABORS IN LIVERPOOL.
On describing character — Anecdoto — Personalities — Anecdote — Vulgarity
— Anecdotes — A sinner's mistake — The merchant's portrait — A lady's
anger—A ludicrous fact—The offended sinner urged to yield to God — A
searching preacher — An objection — Saying of Eupolis — God warns before
he strikes — Powerful appeals — Various inquiries answered — The secret
of success — An old divine quoted — Progress of the work in Liverpool —
The poor man and his prayer — The Welsh Methodists — Display of divine
power — The Welsh minister's prayer—Meetings in Brunswick chapel —
Opinions of the revival—Faithful minister — Results — Temperance lec
tures in Liverpool — Case of a nervous person — Lord Nelson and the world
— Confessions of a worldling — Mr. Wesley on nervousness — Amusements
— Exercise — Sin of idleness — Closing scenes in Liverpool — Missionary
meetings — Wesleyan chapels in Liverpool — An accomplished organist —
Results in Liverpool — The tea-meeting -r- Closing addresses — Pleasant
homes, . 253
CHAPTER XVII.
GREAT REVIVAL IN LEEDS.
Arrival at Leeds — Greetings — Meetings in Oxford Street chapel— Results -
plans Sti Peter's chapel — Great success — The Old chapel — Anecdote
XVI
CONTENTS.
by Charles Wesley—Reminiscences of the old Leeds chapel Boardman
.and Pilmoor—Mr. Asbury's labors — His journal — The band-meeting —
Sanctifying power — Relation of pulpit to sanctification Wesley chapel
Rev. J. Everett—Souls saved — Opinion of a person who denounced the
church — Beauty of holiness — Hope — The work in Leeds Its subjects —
Brunswick chapel — Success — Classification of the subjects of the work —
Results in Brunswick chapel — Hospitality — Oxford Place chapel Con¬
versions,
CHAPTER XVIII.
THE OFFENDED HEABEK.
The offended hearer — The artist and the portrait — Various insinuations an¬
swered — Painted fire — The review — Describing character —• Skill needful
— A threat — Anecdote — The gospel mirror — Anecdote — The western
blacksmith — The Irish laborer.— A difference — Cautions — Extract — The
wilful philosopher — Hell enough in this life— Hell the centre of gravity to
a sinner—The wrath of man—Good wishes — Chinese painters — Invita
tions — Sign of an awakened mind — Chance — Apelles — Turning to God
— A mistake corrected— Saying of Origen — Skill of an ancient general—
Too late — Anecdote, 295
CHAPTER XIX.
RAMBLES. ABOUND LEEDS.
Visit to Cross Hall — Reminiscences — Mrs. Fletcher's trials of faith — Batley
church — John Nelson's tomb — His study—■ Sammy Hicks's home — Sam¬
my's daughter— The old clock — Sammy's anvil and shop — Further labors
in Leeds — Large audiences — Vocal power — The people of Leeds and their
ministers — Great results — St. Peter's chapel— Large fruit — The poor —
Noisy meetings — Woodhouse Moor — Farewell sermons — Converts — Their
classification — Unconverted persons in the church — A contrast — English
travellers in America — Injustice — Why unconverted persons are in a
church — Influence of revivals — Ministerial neglect—Perpetual revival
possible — Methodism is revivalism — An anti-revival Methodist a phenom¬
enon — Like people like priest — Official members — A church reminiscence
— Astonishing revival — Extract — Entire sanctification in Leeds—Con¬
cluding remarks, - 3U
CHAPTER XX,
GLORIOUS WORK OF GOD IN" HULL.
Opening efforts in Hull—A sore trial—Humbllngs of soul —Rev. William
Ulingworth — Encouragement — Gehazi and his master's staff—The Holy
Spirit — Prayer succeeded by power — An army of saved souls — Kingston
chapel—Fears —A watchword — A victory — Co-laborers-r Hull west
circuit — Offended hearers — An effectual sermon — Literary labors — Re¬
vivals his great object — The revival spreads — Large congregations An
awful season A pentecost — Sinners flying before God's power Such
CONTENTS.
xvii
manifestations rare — Cases of conversion in Hull—The aged backslider
and his dream — An affecting letter describing the remarkable conversion
of an infidel— A deeply affecting death — Another letter describing a hap¬
py death — Converts' meeting in Hull — Sanctification — Cases of restitution
— Hostility to Mr. C.'s labors—Letter from Bishop Hedding—Great1
Thornton Street chapel — The tempted old man — English homes — English
hoarfrost, . ' T , 332
CHAPTER XXI.
SCENES AND INCIDENTS OB" THE HULL REVIVAL.
Work of God increases in Hull — Hull newspapers oppose the work — Impu
dent letters — Saying of a judge — The terror of sinners — Silent prayer—
A spiritual tempest in Great Thornton Street chapel—An affecting letter—
A painful but triumphant death—Sanctification —r The secret joy—Birth
month — Private watch-night— Advance of the revival— Four hundred new
converts- — Temperance lecture — The conscience-stricken Quaker— Great
excitement—Use of wine needless — Moral power of tee-totalism — King¬
ston chapel — A majestic scene — Closing scenes in Hull — Crowded houses
—Extent' of therevival — Twenty-three hundred converts — Hull ministers
—Hospitality— A flying visit to Leeds.— Triumphant death of an old friend
— Eemarkable dream — False reports contradicted — A delightful Sabbath
—Return to Hull— A spiritual child — Visit to Welton Vale — Letter from
Hull, 357
CHAPTER XXII.
DISPLAYS OF DIVINE GLORY IN SHEFFIELD.
Brief visit to Huddersfield — Sheffield labors begun — A godly noise — Cour¬
ageous leaders — Reaction — Return of energy—An Ebenezer indeed —
Report of the revival — Approving letter from Hull — Dr. Adler — Grandeur
of the Sheffield revival — Great results in Carver Street chapel — Brunswick
chapel—A backslider's agony—A young man awakened through a dream
— Restitution — Confessions — Roman Catholic frightened — Crowded tem¬
perance lecture — Marvellous excitement — Extraordinary effusion of the
Spirit — The poet Montgomery dines with Mr. Caughey — Rain in answer
to prayer— Change of residence — Trip to Norton— Shirley House — Suc¬
cess, 383
CHAPTER XXIII.
CONCLUDING INCIDENTS IN SHEFFIELD.
Converts' meeting at Brunswick chapel —Wonderful character of the revival
— Norfolk Street chapel — Great work of sanctification — Revival in a Sun¬
day school — Closing labors in (Sheffield — Meeting with the leaders — Per¬
manency of the Sheffield revival 406
xviii
CONTENTS.
CHAPTER XXIV..
CLOSE OF JIE. CAUGHEY'S LABORS IN ENGLAND.
Mr. Caughey's second tour on the continent — Returnto England—Hudders-
field — The converted dummy — Repose — York revival—Various revivals
noticed — Birmingham — Nottingham — Lincoln— Sunderland — Gateshead
— Scarborough — Various places visited—Intention to return to America
—Review of his labors in England, 418
CHAPTER XXV.
, THE VOYAGE HOME.
Arrival in New York—Visit to Bishop Hedding —
429
Incidents of the voyage —
Subsequent labors,
APPENDIX,
CHAPTER I.
THE INTRODUCTORY.
The Experiences of human life, are God's teachers. He
employs them to instruct the ignorant, to warn the unwary,
to guide the inquiring, to give a visible and practical en¬
forcement to. the precepts of revelation. Hence the miseries
of the vicious, teach the fearful nature of sin. The serenity
and comfort of a true Christian, exhibit the reality and power
of faith in Christ. The achievements of individual minds,
also, teach us what vast powers lie hid in the human soul:
they urge the observer to action. Well and beautifully is
this thought expressed in Longfellow's admirable "Psalm of
Life:"—
" Lives of great men, all remind us,
We can make our lives sublime;
And, departing, leave behind us,
Foot prints on the sands of time.
Foot-prints, that perhaps another,
Sailing o'er life's solemn main,
A forlorn and shipwrecked brother,
Seeing, shall take heart again."
If these remarks are truths, then he who" turns away his
mind from the study of a great fact, is a sinner. Lessons
may be written upon it, influences may be deposited within
it, which, if studied and felt, would change the whole current
of his being. A wilful blindness to its teachings, may prove
9
10
the introductory.
the sealing of his eyes in perpetual darkness. Every great
fact, therefore, and especially every great religious fact,
should he studied well and thoroughly by every man who
wishes to do his duty.
It will be admitted, that the conversion of twenty
thousand souls in about Six years, chiefly under the la¬
bors of one man, is a great religious fact! It is more than
great! It is marvellous, startling, sublime ! It is eminently
suggestive, too. It prompts the questions: How was it done ?
What were its processes ? May other men be equally
successful ?
Who can turn aside from such a fact as this ? It is a
sublimer object than the burning bush, whose mystic, uncon-
suming fire held the outlawed shepherd in such wrapt atten¬
tion. That was God in an unconscious tree; this exhibits
Him working " miracles of love " through a conscious, willing
agent! Where is the Christian heart that can refuse to be¬
hold, to admire, to examine it ? Where is the minister of
Jesus who can hear it mentioned, and be unmoved ?- Impos¬
sible ! If the spirit of Christ be in us, we must desire to trace
the workings of God's hand in this majestic fact. How' did
God prepare the instrument ? How did Providence
prepare the way, and open so effectual a door for the ap¬
pointed laborer ? And what encouragement does the won¬
derful success of the instrument in producing this fact, afford
to other ministers ? May they hope for like victories through
their own labors ? The following pages will solve these vital
and interesting questions.
The man who has been the successful laborer in the con¬
version of this vast multitude of souls, is the Rev. James
Caughey, a native of Ireland. He came to this country in
his youth, and was converted to God some nineteen year3
since. Two years after his conversion, he joined the Troy
,thb! introductory.
11
Annual Conference of the Methodist Episcopal Church, and
was -ordained a Deacon in 1834. At first he was not distin¬
guished for usefulness above jnany of his brethren; hut sub¬
sequently he became the subject of some very extraordinary
spiritual exercises; which, being submitted to in the sim¬
plicity and docility of a child-like spirit, resulted in a visit of
some six years to the-British Islands. It was while on, this
visit that the magnificent array of twenty thousand con¬
verts rose up around him to hail him as their spiritual father;
and to attest the genuineness and divinity of his previous
spiritual exercises.
Mr. Caughey is a self-educated man. He has been an
extensive reader, and his mind is richly stored with the
best thoughts of the best English writers. He possesses
a remarkably vivid imagination, which, in its ardent flights,
sometimes, though not often, soars into the suburbs of fanci¬
ful regions. His perceptive faculties are superior, his rea¬
soning powers good, though not-logical in the highest sense.
His memory is both retentive and ready; hence he has a
large treasury of ideas at-command. His mind possesses
great force ; his manner is earnest and persuasive ; his ges¬
ticulation natural. His voice possesses remarkable compass;
if not richly musical, it is very pleasant, and the more it is
heard the more it charms. His discourses bear the mark of
originality. It is true they often flash with the intellectual
jewels of great writers, but these are faithfully acknowl¬
edged ; and his sermons, both in thought and structure, are
manifestly the offsprings of his own mind..
Such is the man whose marvellous movements form the
topic of these pages. Nature had raised him above medi¬
ocrity, but she had not endowed him with the highest gifts of
genius. The church has many ministers of larger powers,
more highly cultivated, better read and of higher intellectual
12
the introductory.
rank, but whose successes in God's work will not bear com¬
parison with those of Mr. Caughey. Whence, then, has his
superior power proceeded ? Why has he won such victories in
the church of God ? We must leave this question unsolved,
or attribute his surprising victories to the Holy - Spirit, who
finds his instruments among the herdmen of Tekoa, or at the
feet of Gamaliel, as his sovereign wisdom may decide. To
this source Mr. Caughey himself ascribes the glory of his
fruitfulness. We do the same, and invite the reader to the
pleasant work of tracing the influence of the Holy Spirit
in fitting Mr. Caughey for the work, and assisting him in its
performance. Surely God will bless this book to every read¬
er's soul; for its aim is to exhibit the glory of Ggd shining
through the instrumentality of man—to show the church of
God, in her ministry and membership, how she may indeed
shine as the light of the world—the spiritual Pharos
of mankind!
CHAPTER II.
the anointing.
Christ received a baptism of the Spirit on the banks of
the Jordan, before entering on his mission. The apostles had
their Pentecost. Paul had his spiritual refreshing in the
house of Ananias. Luther's Pentecost was received in his
monastic cell. Mr. Wesley received his in the Moravian
prayer meeting; and in some place or other, all eminently
useful men have their Pentecosts. A marked spiritual exercise
precedes their successes; an exercise which forms an epoch
in their history.
Mr. Caughey had such a baptism in the earlier years of
his ministry. It was marked by this feature: his theory con¬
cerning the necessity of the help, of the Holy Spirit in
preaching, became a conviction — a stern, living conviction.
His account of this epoch is characteristically described in
one of his letters. He says:
Prom the hour I read the following striking remarks of
Dr. Adam Clarke, a few months previous to my ordination, I
have never varied a hair-breadth from the great truth they
advocate. I can only quote from memory, as the page
which first presented them to my eye is many thousands of
miles from me, and I cannot turn to the place in his Works
where they stand recorded; but they differ little from the
following: " But all this spiritual and rational preaching will
2 13
14
THE ANOINTING.
be of no avail, unless another means of God's own choosing
be superadded to give it an effect — the light and influence of
the Holy Spirit. That Spirit of life and fire penetrates, hi
a moment, the sinner's heart, and drags out to the view of
his conscience those innumerable crimes which lie concealed
there under successive layers of deep and thick darkness,
when, under that luminous burning agency, he is compelled
to -cry, ' God have mercy upon me a sinner !' ' Save, Lord,
or I perish /' ' Heal my soul, for it hath sinned against
thee.''"
I shall have eternal cause of thankfulness that the above
sentiments ever came under my notice. If my ministry has
been rendered a blessing to many, that blessing has been
vouchsafed through the merits of Christ, to a steady recog¬
nition of the necessity of the influence of the Holy Spirit.
On the evening of that never-to-be-forgotten day in which I
read the above, I took up my pen, in secret, before God, and
gave vent to the emotions of my deeply-impressed heart, in
language something like the following: I see, I feel now as
I have never done before upon this particular subject. From
the convictions of this hour, I hope, by the grace of God, nev¬
er to vary. I see, I feel,—
1st. The absolute necessity of the immediate influence of
the Holy Ghost to impart point, poiver, efficacy, and success
to a preached gospel.
2d. The absolute necessity of praying more frequently,
more fervently, more perseveringly, and more believingly, for
the aid of the Holy Spirit in my ministry.
3d. That my labors must be powerless,, and comfortless,
and valueless, without this aid; a cloud without water, a
tree without fruit, dead and rootless; a sound uncertain,
unctionless, and meaningless; such will be the character of my
ministry. It is the Spirit of God alone which imparts
THE ANOINTING.
15
significancy and power to tlie word preached, without which,
as one has expressed it, " all the threatenings of the Bible
will be no more than thunder to the deaf, or lightning to the
blind:" A seal requires weight, a hand upon it, in order to
an impression. The soul- of the penitent sinner is the wax ;
gospel truth is the seal; but, without the Almighty hand of
the Holy Ghost, that seal is powerless. A bullet demands
its powder, without which it is as harmless as any other body.
The careless sinner is the mark; truth is the ball that must
■ pierce him; but it cannot reach, much less penetrate him,
separate from this influence from heaven. In apostolic times,
they preached the gospel with the Holy Ghost sent dovm
from heaven. 1 Peter, i. 12. In our day we need an energy
from no lower source, to overturn the -wickedness of the. vile
and profane, and to counteract the formality and worldliness
which are every where visible.
4th. I am now fully persuaded, that in proportion as the
Spirit of God shall condescend to second my efforts in the
gospel message, I shall be successful; nor need I expect
ajiy success beyond. No man has ever been signally useful
in winning souls to Christ, without the help of the Spirit.
With it, the humblest talent may astonish earth and hell,
by gathering into the path of life thousands for the skies;
while without it, the finest, the most splendid talents remain
comparatively useless.
5th. The entire glory of all my success shall henceforth
be given to the Holy Spirit. By this I shall conscientiously
abide, as by any other principle of our holy religion. It is
written: " They that honor me, I will honor." To this
may be added, that righteous, inalienable, and unchanging
determination of Jehovah: " My glory I will not give to
another."
' These truly scriptural purposes were graven on Mr.
16
THE ANOINTING.
Caughey's heart as with the finger of God. The conviction of
dependence became henceforth interwoven with his thoughts
and feelings. Several years after, when he was sailing on
the full tide of glorious success, he exclaimed, speaking of
himself as an instrument:
Amazing goodness, that it should be so owned of God!
I know the reason! It is because there is a distinct under¬
standing between my poor soul and Heaven, that no portion
of the glory of such a workis to be appropriated by me, either
to myself or others; that I am to feel as deeply humbled
before God when thousands are converted under my ministry,
as. when only one sinner has been converted. He knows I
would rather die than vary, for a moment, from first prind
pies; I mean those views of the necessity of the Holy
Spirit, which I noted down as the convictions of my heart,
after reading that sentiment of Dr. Clarke. That eminent
servant of God little thought, that this passage, of all the
multitudinous writings which emanated from his pen, should
be rendered such a blessing. So true is that stirring saying
of holy writ: "In the 5norning sow thy seed, and in the
evening withhold not thine hand; for thou know est not
whether shall prosper, either this or that, or whether they
loth shall be alike good.,, He little imagined, when pen¬
ning those words, that they should be wafted across the At¬
lantic ocean, and fall like heaven's oivn fire upon the under¬
standing and heart of a young and ardent spirit at the foot
of the Green Mountains, in North America; that, at an
important and perilous period of a youthful ministry, these
words of light, life, and fire, should arrive, should interweave
themselves with the whole texture of his " thinkings," be¬
come one with his very being, and the secret spring of his
motions; motions which, though somewhat eccentric in the
estimation of some, have resulted in the conversion of many
THE ANOINTING.
17
thousands of sinners to, God. And then, that this youth,
having sprung into manhood, should cross the " raging seas,"
in the noon of his usefulness,- and pay hack, to Ireland first,
and then to England, a sort of. interest for the use of that
invaluable capital transferred to the American shores; and
all to the glory of God the Father, through Jesus Christ, by
the power of the Holy Ghost. Hallelujah! " Great and
marvellous are thy works, Lord God Almighty: just and true
are thy ways, thou king of saints. Who shall not fear
thee, 0 Lord, and glorify thy name? for thou only art
holy: for all nations shall come and worship before thee,
for thy judgments are made manifest." Rev. xv. 3, 4.
The experience described in this chapter, may be consid
ered as the beginning of the Spirit's work in preparing Mr.
Caughey to be a 'special instrument of salvation to thou
sands. He might have resisted that anointing. He might
have rested satisfied with a sound theory, instead of steepmg
his soul in the truth, until it so filled him that he learned
as by instinct to lay all the glory of his labors at; the foot¬
stool of the eternal God. The next chapter will show the
further work of the Spirit on his heart,
2*
CHAPTER III.
THE PREPARATION AND THE CONFLICT.
The heart in which God works, must sympathise with the
divine mind with all its emotions, energies and powers. It
must do for itself all that human strength may do; for God
never does that even for his most favored instruments, which
they can do for themselves. The following letter to one of
his friends, contains a simple and touching account of the
manner in which Mr. Caughey labored to make himself a
" Workman that needeth not to be ashamed," and will forci¬
bly illustrate these remarks.
My dear Brother:—I was once in the very position
you describe. The church over which God had placed me,
had long been unvisited by an extensive revival. My soul
became more deeply concerned than usual for the conversion
of sinners; and I was led to pray most earnestly for a re¬
vival. I began a series of meetings, in the month of De¬
cember, first in one private house, and then in another. I
preached every night, and held a prayer-meeting afterwards;
but we never got the matter fairly before the public ; only a
few attended, and the special effort was a complete failure.
The meetings dwindled down to nothing, and we gave them
up with as good a grace as we could, and returned to the ordi¬
nary means.- But, you will inquire, " Why such a defeat ? "
Weakness of faith, and distrust in God, were perhaps the
18
THE PREPARATION AND THE CONFLICT. 19
chief causes. We missed our way, by not lighting up the
chapel at'once. We endeavoured to-take hold of the popu¬
lation by means of these little meetings in various parts of
the town, and failed to make a sufficient impression upon the
public mind. Sinners cared nothing for us and our paltry
movements; there was no -expectation raised, no curiosity
excited; we were down, nor could we recover ourselves; and
so the effort was abandoned. " But why did you take such
a course ? Why then did you not open the chapel ? "
There were several reasons: 1st. We could not obtain the proper
preachers to assist in such an arduous undertaking. They
were all engaged in vigorous efforts for souls, in " protracted
meetings" on their own circuits. 2d. I had at that time a
very small stock of sermons that were any way suitable for
a revival. Unhappily, I had spent much of my time upon
speculative divinity; in composing sermons, fifteen thousand
of which would not, it is probable, have brought one sinner to
God. The truths embodied in them, were not at all calcu¬
lated to bring about an instantaneous revival. The few ser¬
mons likely to make an impression, had been exhausted in
the ordinary services. Bd. I concluded that, in these pri¬
vate meetings, some good might be done by taking up new
texts of a revival tendency, and preaching as I best could.
But not having at command the proper materials for the
illustration of truth, nor those arguments which are best adap¬
ted to awaken sinners, and excite public attention, I could
only dwell upon the dry materials of theology, and so I was
as one beating the air. 4th. Aware of my deficiencies,
pride or prudence suggested the impropriety of my attempt¬
ing to preach every night in the chapel, where a failure
might be attended by a serious reaction.
But the same difficulties accompanied me, of course, to
;,he meetings in the private dwellings. I knew my want of
20
THE PREPARATION AND THE CONFLICT.
preparation for so many sermons, and, though it should not
have effected me, (for my trust ought to have been in God,}
yet it weakened my faith, and I had no courage. The pray¬
ing men caught my spirit also; thus, instead of being able
to fight a battle manfully for God, during several weeks I
could only stand a few skirmishes, and the devil and sin'
were victorious.
Here I received a lesson never to be forgotten. I now
saw the necessity of turning my attention to that style
of preaching which would be likely, by the aid of the Holy
Ghost, to awaken sinners, and bring penitents to God. Re¬
vival artillery, I resolved to have. I fasted and prayed, and
searched the Scriptures. My reading, thinking, conversation,
and all my observations, were laid under contribution to one
end; —preparation for soul-saving, which I now perceived to
be the main end of the gospel ministry. My little stock of
sermons suitable for a revival, increased rapidly. When a
text presented itself as suitable for a revival, my cry was,
" Lord God, open the eyes of my understanding; give me
a clear perception of thy meaning in this passage." A fore¬
noon was generally spent upon my knees, pleading for divis¬
ions and sub-divisions, sometimes a simple proposition was pre¬
sented. Having completed my "skeleton," I returned to
my knees, and pleaded for an introduction, and that flesh and
sinews might come upon these dry bones. And tbe pleading
was not in vain; thoughts of a moving character came into
my mind in troops. Having finished the rough outline, it was
folded up till next day. On the morrow, I returned to
my knees, read the subject over, expunged such extraneous
and superfluous matter as only tended to load the memory
and encumber the subject, but retained all that had point,
and was likely to do execution among sinners. The holy
Scriptures were then called in, to prove or illustrate the
. "THE PREPARATION AND THE CONFLICT. 21
sentiments; commentators were referred to ; and lastly,
my private Journal and Common-Place Book. It is proper
to remark, that I had long attended to that advice given
by an aged American minister, to a young preacher:
" This I would advise you, wherever you, in any reading, meet
vith a curious illustration, prize it, seize it, enter it in papers
where you may design a lodging for such inestimable jewels.
Like Hezekiah, have your treasures for precious stones ; and
let these be such unto you. Get such an amassment of them,
that among them you may be like the king of Tyrus, and
walk up and down in the midst of the stones of fire,' when
you are upon the holy mountain of God. ' One of these may
be like an ingot of gold, and a whole discourse may be ren¬
dered acceptable by having such a jewel studded in it:"
After walking thus in the mount with God, among my jewels
and stones of fire, some original, others by right of conquest,
and collecting such as were calculated to move an assembly,
— supposing I could do nothing more with them at
present, the written outline was brought to the footstool of
God, thus: " 0 Lord God of hosts, God of the armies of
Israel, and Head of the Church, I ask thy acceptance of
my body, soul,-and spirit, and of this my humble offering,—
this outline of a sermon, which I now present to Thee. Foi
give all that may be wrong in it, or which savors of human
infirmity; and grant that, wherever and whenever it shall be
preached, the power of the Holy Ghost may attend it to the
hearts of sinners and believers. Grant that I may obtain,
by its instrumentality, thousands of souls to my ministry,
from the ranks of wickedness, through Jesus Christ my Lord!
For this, and the pardon of all my sins, and the purification
of my nature, I offer the atonement of the Saviour. I trust
in the blood of Jesus Christ thy Son; I cast myself upon it
by faith, and upon the veracity of Christ Jesus in that prom
22 the preparation and the conflict.
ise : 'What things soever you desire when ye pray, believe
that ye receive them, and ye shall have them.' I have de¬
sired these things, I have prayed for them, and 1 do receive
what I have asked, agreeably to thy will."
The sermon was then placed among kindred subjects, and
carefully put away, under the label —revival ; and I held
myself in readiness to take up another text, in a similar
manner.
But you will inquire: " Did you not preach them imme¬
diately to your people ?'' Sometimes I did so, but not always;
nor could I, the ordinary services being so few. I consid¬
ered myself only in preparation for a campaign; that I was
just getting my ammunition and engines of war in readiness
for a great battle. The following Conference recalled me
from the town alluded to,- and sent me to another field of
labour. After my arrival, I endeavoured to get the church
into a prepared state for a revival; and proceeded with in¬
creased activity in the accumulation of " munitions of war."
As the time approached, when we were about to enter upon
an extraordinary conflict with the powers of darkness, I en¬
deavoured to secure ministerial help, but, in case of a failure
in that quarter, had my own artillery ready. I had faith in
God and good courage, because faith had been exercising
itself for several months in active preparation for the holy
war. Cromwell said to his soldiers, on the battle-field,
" Trust in the Lord, and rely upon your pikes!" and, od
another occasion, " Trust in the Lord, and keep your powder
dry !" But had they had neither pikes nor powder, their trust
in God. would not have been very firm. In my last skir¬
mishes with the devil and his children, I had a feeble trust in
God, but had neither pikes nor powder; you know what I
mean, and I have told you the results. On the eve of this
battle, glory be to God ! I had both pikes and powder. I
TliE PREPARATION AND THE CONFLICT. 23
trusted in God, however, knowing that both were useless, if
not attended by an influence from heaven; and when fully
in the engagement, the weapons were wielded with such an
energy as if every thing had depended upon human might.
The people of God were fully aware of the difficulties in
the way of a revival; but they were all of one heart and
soul, and joined together as an impenetrable phalanx. The
respective officers put on the heavenly armour of faith, and
hope, and love. The intended conflict was talked of in every
direction, and all was expectation in the town.
The time arrived; the house of God was thrown open, and
hostilities commenced. Many people thronged there to wit¬
ness the conflict. The weapons of our warfare were not
carnal, but mighty through God to the pulling down strong
holds, and casting down imaginations, and every high thing
that exalted itself against the knowledge of Christ. The
pulpit was the "grand battery," but there were several
others along the ramparts; (if you will allow me to continue
the 'use of military phraseology, which I employ without
scruple, as did St. Paul, because it was a real battle between
mind and mind, light and darkness, truth and error, powers
divine and diabolical;) and there were no "blank motions,"
no "powder and flash without ball." The execution was
tremendous. It appeared to some as if the devil had fled,
and left the field to Zion's sons. If so, he left his troops
under a "galling fire," and the surrender of some of his
regiments was exceedingly grand. The battle lasted nhie
weeks ; and the results were glorious. If victory had not
been ours at the end of that time, we must have had to
retreat, as my "ammunition" was nearly exhausted; but
this only imparted a fresh impulse to my mind, to.lay up
" military stores " on a larger scale. In addition to this, my
late experience had enabled me to detect the artillery that
24 THE PREPARATION AND THE CONFLICT.
was weak or unwieldy, and therefore unfit for the service.
There we're weapons, some of whose points were too soft, others
of a harder temperament than they should have been; and
though they did some executionmpon mind, they might have
accomplished much more, had they been of better metal,
kindlier temper, and keener edge. To remedy these defects,
and get ready for another campaign, was my happy employ¬
ment during the intervals of my pastoral duties.
In the meantime, the new converts received.close attention;
were appointed to classes; new classes were formed, and
every possible means used, by visiting them daily at their
own houses, and by affectionate pulpit discourses, to confirm
and establish them in the practice of true piety. Books
were placed in' their hands for the improvement of their
minds; and the absence of any one of them from class, was
a subject of immediate inquiry. Thus the reaction talked
of by some was avoided; we had, in fact, nothing of the
kind. A few went back to the world, I admit, and shortly
after, a number of the new converts died happy in God, and
went home to glory; but a large majority' remain to the
present day, pillars in the church of God, and happy witnesses
that " Jesus .Christ hath power upon earth to forgive sins."
I have now, my dear brother, given you a detailed account
of my experience in these things. I could enlarge, but it
is not necessary. If I have been, in some measure, succes-
ful among my hrethen, in winning souls to Christ, the Holy
Spirit of God has been the original and efficient cause ; and
to him be all the glory. That he works by means, you will
readily admit, and, in the above hasty sketch, you have
seen the progress of my mind in laying hold of that class
of truths which is calculated, by divine aid, to awaken and
convert sinners. I could give you an account of many re¬
vivals, in which I have been engaged during past years, and
THE PREPARATION AND THE CONFLICT. 25,
farther observations upon the effects of particular and pointed
truth upon different characters, but time will not permit.
My mind is quite as much alive as ever to seize upon illus¬
trations in nature, science,.and common every-day life, of
which the world is full,- were we only intent upon perceiving
them. My common-place books and little pocket note-books,
are always at hand, in which are noted down whatever may
occur to my thought, in conversation, observation, and reading.
I am fully persuaded, the reason why some preachers are
averse to what are called "revival movements," is not
because they have no desire for the conversion of sinners,
nor from a conviction that God has not called them to bring
sinners to repentance, for they frequently attempt it; nor
because they have no talents for such an effort; but, chiefly,
for the want of proper pulpit preparations, to begin and
carry forward a revival. Although they may have a respect¬
able stock of sermons, which procure them a rank, deservedly,
•among the accomplished theologians of the day; yet, the
engaging a very few times in preaching would exhaust their
capital; and then, to come forward with " long common-place
sermons," -as unfit for producing immediate and beneficial
effect in a revival, as snow upon a harvest field, would disap¬
point even the expectation of sinners, discourage penitents,
and weary and unfit believers to enter the prayer meeting
with life and zeal. A few such dull sermons Would soon
thin the congregation, and leave the preacher to address an
array of empty seats. Such men have, therefore, no heart
for such a continued and laborious struggle.' What confi¬
dence could a general have in laying siege to a city, or in
attempting to take it by storm, knowing that he has neither
ammunition nor artillery sufficient for such an undertaking ?
But these, in a spiritual sense, every minister of Jesus must
have, if he would undertake with proper energy to lay siege
3
26 THE PREPARATION AND THE CONFLICT.
to and storm a population of sinners. Hence, the preachers
on whom I have ventured to animadvert, are shy of making
full proof of their call to the work of the ministry, in. this
wayand when the matter is. pressed home upon the con¬
science of one of these, he usually resorts to the pitiable
apology, " I have no talent for these revivals. Every man
has his particular gift. All cannot be revivalists. I must,
therefore, proceed in my own way."
• Let the inquiry be put tu his conscience and understand¬
ing, by a proper person, " But, my brother, what is your
way ? What are you aiming at in preaching ? Upon what
principles did you begin to preach at first ? Excuse the in¬
quiry ; what were the secret feelings which prompted you in
the beginning of your career in the ministry ? If the im¬
mediate conversion of sinners, was not .your object, what was
it ? Why ? for what purpose do you yet enter the pulpit ?
Is it not to bring sinners to repentance ? But, if you are
incapable of "conducting a prayer meeting, and of kneeling
down to pray for a penitent sinner, to whom must the church
of God look ? If you are incapacitated to point a trembling
sinner to the Lamb of God, and to tell him how to believe, to
whom must the unhappy soul resort ? Do you say, ' I make
such things known in the pulpit, and that is the place for the
performance of my duty ?' But St. Paul preached Jesus 'from
house to house,' and ' with many tears;' is it, therefore,
improper to do the same thing in a prayer meeting, under
circumstances so interesting ?"
Language more pointed than this might be used, but it is
well even with this, if he keeps his temper.
You may depend upon it, you will find in the above hints,
most of the prominent reasons for the aversion of some men
to revivals; and why they discountenance extraordinary
endeavours for the salvation of sinners. It is upon the same
THE 'PREPARATION AND THE CONFLICT. 27
principles that we may frequently account for- those mortify¬
ing failures, when special efforts have been made to bring
about a revival.
I cannot close without an allusion to your mental conflicts.
Have you not read Augustine's advice to a young minister,
Prepara te ad pressuras ? To which a good man added,
" When a man enters upon the work of preaching the gospel,
he finds himself speedily, as it were, inthe wine-press." It
is seldom the following sentiments of one now with God,
have failed to be realized in one way or other in my experi¬
ence: "You will hardly ever be engaged in any special
service for the kingdom of God, but you will either just
before it, or after it, meet with some special trouble ; either
from some failure of your health, or in some storm of
groundless obloquies among the people; or, which is worst of
all, some horrid colaphiwtions from wicked spirits on your
mind, strongly filling you with consternations and confusions,
which, be they ever so unreasonable, yet will be intolerable."
It is in the latter way, I have hitherto chiefly suffered,
although I have had my trials from most of the above sources;
but the onsets of those cruel and invisible spirits upon my
mind have often been terrible. The devil has generally
taken his revenge in this way, when I have been favored with
any remarkable success in the work of the ministry. These
conflicts have often been very severe just before some re¬
markable conquest; and after the revival,, he has come
against me as a roaring lion; but the Lord hath hitherto
delivered me, and by such -commotions, prepared me for
greater usefulness, and endued me with a larger measure of
watchfulness and humility.
I have often shortened these days of trial, by plunging
into another revival; then all has become light, and peace,
and joy. I have therefore, of late years, arranged matters,
28 THE PREPARATION AND THE CONFLICT.
so as to step into another effort for a revival, when my «ork
has- concluded in any given place. The devil has been
baffled for the time, by these rapid movements 7 but he has
still threatened my trembling soul in a manner I cannot
describe; suggesting, that, for every instance in which
he has been foiled in this" way, he shall yet have his ven¬
geance, in one concentrated and tremendous storm, which is
brooding and preparing in the gloomy distance. " But none
of these things move me, neither count I my life dear unto
myself; if I may finish my course with joy, and the ministry
I have received of the Lord Jesus." "He that will'
wage war with hell, must suffer hell's rage," has long been
my motto; but, if -the devil and I must fight, I am deter¬
mined to be the aggressor. I think there is an advantage
here worth taking; and we may take it most fairly, as the
apostle tells us he is wide awake to " get an advantage of
us!"
These trials, I admit with you, are "worse than preaching
and, a succession of them, make a man look older by many
years than he really is. The people who surrounded our
Lord, mistook him for being nearly fifty years of age, when
he was only a little more than thirty. " Thou art not yet
fifty years old,"—this was their nearest guess,—" and hast
thou seen Abraham ?" John viii. 57. J. c.
CHAPTER IV,
the test of revival principles.
%»
Such "were the experiences of God's church nearly three
thousand years ago, that its saints could say, with triumphant
confidence, " The word of the Lord is tried"—ri. e. it has
been put to the test—it has stood the trial of experi¬
ment. It may, therefore, be relied upon with unshrinking
certainty. It is this certainty—this unwavering, un¬
yielding, invincible confidence in the faithfulness of God,
that has sustained Mr. Caughey, that has lain at the base of
his movements — and inspired his heroic heart, in its conflicts
with the kingdom of dafkness. The following letter, which
is fired with the energy of its author, is strikingly illustrative
of him. It' reveals him in the battle-field, testing the weapons
he had furnished and sharpened in the closet. It was written
to a friend in England, who desired his counsel on the best
methods of bringing a church into a revival state. After
stating that the scene of the work was a town in North
America, Mr. Caughey proceeds to say r
Protracted religious services were determined upon, by a
few choice spirits, who had for some time mourned over the
desolations of Zion in that town. The time fixed for the
commencement of hostilities arrived. The conflict began
with a determination I have seldom seen surpassed. We
preached the gospel during a succession of evenings, with but
one' single object in view, to bring hardened sinners to
' S* 29
30
THE TEST OF REVIVAL PRINCIPLES.
repentance. There were many such in that town; ungodly1
men, who had long set the God that made them at defiance ;
men who violated his law, neglected his worship, despised his
servants, denied the truths of his Bible, and entertained
opinions the most degrading and anti-scriptural. Drunken¬
ness, Sabbath-breaking, whoredom, profane swearing, and ail
manner of wickedness, were practised without feeling, fear,
or remorse. But a few there were who "sighed and cried"
for all the abominations of the place. "Bivers of water,"
said some, "run down mine eyes, because men keep not thy
law."' " It is time, Lord, for thee to work, for they have
made void thy law," was the mournful and interceding
language of others. The example of some ministers in the.
town was no rule for us. Our duty was plain;—not
to glance over this moral _ desolation an eye of careless
indifference ; nor to be governed in our movements by that
Cainite sentiment, the principle of which is so prevalent in
the present day: "Am I my brother's keeper?" We did
not feel ourselves called to deplore merely the general wick¬
edness around, nor the horrors of that dreadful hell towards
which that wickedness was carrying this population of sinners,
but to make vigorous efforts for their rescue.
Believing the gospel to be Heaven's revealed instrumen¬
tality to bring about an event so' desirable, we endeavoured
to wield its divine truth with all the energy with which
it had pleased God to endue us. Our efforts were not con¬
fined to the Sabbath, or to one or two evenings in the week,
but "night and day," throughout the week, not in the
sanctuary alone, but from house to house; afternoon and
night we laboured for. God in the chapel; the forenoons and
intervals between meetings, we exhorted the people at their'
homes to turn to God. Sinners, however, remained hard
and obstinate. They seemed, in fact, as if leagued together
THE TEST OF REVIVAL PRINCIPLES. 31
to defeat our object; i*ot indeed by open and avowed
hostility, but by keeping themselves away from the house of
God. The few who ventured into our assemblies, were as
unmoved as the seats. The "why and wherefore" of all
this " religious stir and din," seemed to be the predominant
inquiry upon the features of the visitors. This was just what
we wanted to see; and we were determined to have this
expression become general. " Truth," said one, • " fears
nothing more than inattention. It is too important to be
treated with indifference. Opposition calls forth and sharp¬
ens the powers of the human mind in its defence. . The
cause of the gospel has ever gained by investigation. Cre¬
dulity is the bane of it."
Our congregations increased, but the hardness and im-
penitency of sinners continued. Of one thing I .can assure
you,— the whole counsel of God was delivered. * Nothing
was kept back which we considered profitable to our hearers,
or essential to the faithful declaration of our message. With
the sentiment of an elegant writer we heartily concurred i
" The defensive armour of a shrinking and timid policy, does
not suit Christianity. Hers is the naked majesty of truth.
With all the grandeur of age, but with none of its infirmities,
has she come down to us, and gathered new strength from
the battles she has won in the . many controversies of many
generations. With such a religion as this, there is nothing
to hide ; all should be above-board; and the broadest light
of day should be made fully and freely to. circulate through
all her services. But secret things she has none. To her
belong the frankness and the simplicity of conscious great
ness. And whether she grapple with the pride of philosophy,
or stand in pointed opposition to the prejudices of the multi¬
tude, she does it upon her own strength, and spurns all the
props, and all the auxiliaries away from her."
32
THE. TEST OP REVIVAL PRINCIPLES.
We were not seeking after gain or popularity. We asked
not the money of our hearers, nor their goods, nor any por¬
tion of them. " It is not for you to be fishing for gudgeons,
but for towns, forts, and castles," said Cleojpatra to Mark
Antony. Glory be to God! we were not fishing for
gudgeons,—filthy lucre, or the praise of men—but we had
laid close siege to the town, its forts and its castles; every
strong-hold of Satan. We wielded the same weapons as did
the apostles. (2 Cor. x. 4. 5.) And as the forts, towers,
and castles, all the strong-holds of the kingdom of hell, came
tumbling down, under the mighty and supernatural blows of
their weapons, we did expect to see the same- effects pro¬
duced, ere" the -battle was ended in winch we were now
engaged. Human applause was as valueless as the dust of
their streets.- .Their wrath we dreaded not. Neither men
nor devils were we afraid of. We expected persecution, but
we were yet too insignificant. Dogs do not bark at a solitary
star or two ; but, as old Alciat observes, in his " Emblems,"
they bark most when the moon is at the full; perhaps not so
much at the moon herself, as at the " strange and dubious
things," which multiply upon their animal vision. We an¬
ticipated that when the little church began to shine forth,
44 bright as the sun, fair as the moon, and terrible as an
army with banners," in a glorious revival, that it would set
all the dogs in town barking.-
Again and again, as our congregations increased, the
gospel of our God .and Saviour was proclaimed in all its
fulness, while the steel of eternal truth was pointed directly
at the heart of every sinner. The sins of the people were
clearly and faithfully portrayed in all their horrible deformity.
There was no daubing with untempered mortar; no com
promising of truth; no beating the air with idle words; no
temporizing; no trimming to suit the prejudices of the peo
THE TEST OF REVIVAL PRINCIPLES'.
33
pie; no mincing.of truth, a little now and a little again, as the
people could bear it;- no equivocal, or ambiguous sentences
or .expressions, phrases of "doubtful signification," in order
to avoid offending delicate ears. Things were called by
their proper names; whoredom was named whoredom; adul¬
tery, fornication, &c., were called such; hell, sin, sinners,
and the devil, were subjects set before the people in all the
terror of the one, and the native ugliness of the other. The
law of God, and the hell of eternity, were set forth with all
the sanctions of the former, and with all the torments, weep¬
ing, wailing, and gnashing of teeth, of the latter.
While dealing with these sinners, we were perplexed with
no misgivings respecting the extent of the redeeming plan.
We knew, to borrow the language of' another, that, " as the
gospel had no limitation as it regarded time, it. had nothing
of the kind when applied to human character." "Jesus
Christ," we insisted, " by the grace of God tasted death for
every man "he is the propitiation for our sins, and not
for ours only, but also for the sins-of the. whole world ;" and
"by him all that believe are justified from all things, from
which they could not be justified by the law of Moses;"
that so long as a sinner had„repentance and faith in his heart,
we knew not a single crime, or collection of crimes, in the
whole catalogue of human depravity, that the atoning blood of
Christ could not wash away ; or that-there was any des¬
perado of vice and folly, within the compass of our voice,
however sunk in the depths of his dark and unnatural
depravity, who was not welcome to come to Christ, if he
would. Nor would such a sinner find, that the crimson
inveteracy - of his manifold • offences was beyond the'
reach of the peace-speaking and purifying blood of the Son
of God. We were persuaded that as the justice.of God"
suffered no encroachment by the offers of mercy- to the
34
THE TEST OF REVIVAL PRINCIPLES.
believing penitent, and as. mercy itself is restrained by no
limitation, there can be no arrest laid upon its offers, arising
from the shades, and degrees, and varieties, of human sin¬
fulness ; that, allowing the existence of repentance and faith
within the soul of the-sinner, there is no point in the de¬
scending scale of human depravity beyond which -it cannot
go, even " to hell's trembling verge." They were told, that,
as "for guilt, in its full impenitency, Jesus Christ dyed
his garments, and waded through an arena of blood, so might
the most abandoned of the children of iniquity begin a contrite
movement toward him; that Jesus Christ would be the last
person in heaven to spurn them away from purchased mercy,
purchased by his own most precious blood; nor would he ever
close the door of mercy, which had cost him so much to open;
that he would never quench the spark of the sinner's desire for
salvation, nor- break the bruised reed, nor overturn the prop
of hope in Christ, upon which he was invited to rest." But,
strange as it may appear, a sullen front of resistance was
still maintained upon the part of sinners. With us the mat¬
ter was settled,—"Victory or death" Again the lightnings
of truth and terror flashed over the congregations. The
thunders of Sinai reverberated long, loud, and dreadful.
-The place trembled, and the heart and soul of man quaked
before the presence of the Lord -God of hosts.
We were not trammeled in our efforts by rich and time¬
serving professors ; nor by any who were anxious we should
obtain or retain the approbation of the. wealthy. There was
no sensation created on the appearance of influential persons
in the congregation, lest they might take offence, and leave
the church, possibly to return no more. We were troubled
with no officials cautioning us against" giving offence, with a
"peradventure, such and such persons will withdraw from
the church, and withhold hereafter their support." The
THE TEST OF REVIVAL PRINCIPLES,
35
people of God were poor and feeble, and, from various
causes, Fad dwindled down- to a solitary disheartened few.
They knew very well if God did not interfere, and vouchsafe
a revival, their church,, in that place, must become extinct.
The dear "people felt their feebleness, but they were loyal at
heart, and stood by us. Some could do but little, as
it regarded vocal prayer, but they could weep and
pray secretly; not unlike a little girl, of whom I heard
the Rev. Dr. Beaumont relate the following anecdote,
in Liverpool: Four children, three*"brothers and a little
sister, were, enjoying a ramble along the banks of a
river, when one of the boys accidentally fell into the
water; just as he was sinking, another little brother
plunged in for his rescue, and when they were both strug-r
gling in the stream, the other brother reached out his hand,
and caught the second brother, who was about to sink also;
and, by the good providence of God, both found bottom, and
crawled ashore. When they arrived at home, the glad
father, who had learned the jeopardy of his children, called
them around him, and inquired of one, "Well, what did
you do to save your drowning brother ? " "I plunged into
the water after him, Sir," was the reply. "And what did
you do?" he inquired of the next. "J carried him home
upon my back, Sir." Turning to his little daughter, he
said, " Well, my dear, and what did you do to save your
drowning brother?" She replied, "I fell a crying, papa,
as hard as I was able, all the time." . Aye, and perhaps her
tears and cries prompted her little brothers to these desperate
and successful efforts for the rescue of their sinking brother.
Be this as it may, we felt ourselves stimulated to "deeds of
noble daring," by the tears and cries of this precious little-
flock.
During eight or nine days, sinners were thus battered by
36
THE TEST OP REVIVAL PRINCIPLES.
the artillery of the law, and assailed on every side by the
.offers of the gospel. Every appeal-made to their fears was
followed by another to their hopes. Hell and its horrors,
sin and its penalties, glared around; while Calvary and its
scenes were held forth as pledges of hope and salvation. If
they wept not, we did, as. Christ was set forth, evidently
crucified before their eyes:—
" Jesus drinks the bitter cup,
The wine-press treads alone;
Tears the graves and mountains up,
By his expiring groan.
* * * -
"Well may heaven be cloth'd in black,
And solemn safekcloth wear;
. Jesus' agonies partake,
The hour of darkness share:
Mourn th' astonish'd hosts above;
Silence saddens all the skies;
Kindler of seraphic love,
The God of angels dies.
0, my God, he dies for me,
I feel the mortal smart!
See him hanging on the tree,—
A sight that breaks my heart:
0 that all to thee might turn;
Sinners, ye may love him too;
Look on him ye pierced, and mourn
For one who bled for you.
* * * *
Weep o'er your desire and hope,
With tears of humblest love—
* * * *
"' Behold,'" we cried, as sin still occupied tbe ground,
and -sinners still remained hard and unsubdued, " 'Behold
the Lamb of Cod which taketh away the sins of the world!'
— see an expiring Saviour! .God is now in Christ recon
oiling you to himself, not imputing your trespasses unto you.
THE TEST OP REVIVAL PRINCIPLES. 87
' 0 believe .the record true,
God to you his Son bath given!
Ye may now be happy too;
Find on earth the life of heaven:
Live the life Qf heaven abpve,
All the life of glorious love!'
Plead the-merits of* his .death, 0 sinners!- Behold your
•pardoning God! He is ready to blot out your transgressions
-as a thick cloud; your sins and your-iniquities will he
remember no more. Believe, only believe, and yours is the
right and title to the kingdom of heaven." Think "me not
tedious, my dear brother, nor oyer particular in descending
to such a minute detail as to the manner of our address to
these sinners. It was, indeed, a regular siege, and an
important one. We now were making full proof of our minis¬
try, and pushing our tremendous principles. to those results
intended by the Author of them. Hell and heaven were
perpetually before our eyes. The danger of that .eternal
damnation to which these sinners were every moment exposed,
absorbed our every thought. "We knew no other method by
which to save them from the perdition that awaited them but
this; nor did we want any other. Our.- triumphant boast
was, "■ I am not ashamed of the gospel of Christ, for it is
the power of God unto salvation unto every one that believeth;
to the Jew first, and also-to the Greek;" and we were
determined not to stir from the place till the power of that
gospel was realized, and acknowledged by angels, devils, and
men.
Never, I assure you, did a besieging army bombard a city
with greater confidence of beholding a surrender, than we
felt when beleaguering these sinners. Speculations were
never more rife, outside the walls of a besieged city, as to
what part of the walls would be likely to give way and cause
a breach; than were the speculations among some', as to what
4
38 THE TEST OE REVIVAL -PRINCIPLES.
sinner, or what class of shiners, Would first break down
under the truth, and cause a gap in the ranks of sin. As
the crisis approached, our .congregations increased; r our all-
absorbing feelings seemed to pervade the- people, but none
had sufficient courage to brave the gaze of the multitude,
and separate himself as a stricken sinner.
Night had succeded to night, and day to day, without any
conversions. The sword of the Lord appeared to us as if
blunted against the hardened mass; the arrows of truth
rebounded from flinty hearts as if they had been shot against
a stone wall.
The time-of extremity was God's opportunity. Is there
anything too hard for Jehovah? "Nothing but quite im¬
possible, is hard." " God is terrible out of his holy places,",
says the psalmist. He speaks, and it is done; he commands,
and it stands fast. " Pompey boasted," said one, " that with
one stamp of his foot he could raise all Italy in arms; but
God, with one word of his mouth, could raise, not all Italy
only, but all heaven." He is wonderful in working. , He
humbles human pride, aud secures his own glory, by render¬
ing our plans and efforts useless for a time, and bringing
about his purposes by the humblest and weakest instrumen¬
tality. One of our company, a minister, in the course of
his visitations from house to house, thought proper to extend
his visits of mercy to a blacksmith's shop, in which, were
several men at work, most of whom were very wicked; the
voice of profane swearing often sounded out from it horribly.
One of the young men was shoeing a Jiorse when our friend
entered, and did not observe his approach. He suddenly
advanced, and whispered sharply in the ear of the busy
•sinner, "You must have your feet shod with the preparation
of the gospel of peace." The man was taken by surprise,
as much, perhaps, as if the horse had struck him. He
THE TEST OP REVIVAL PRINCIPLES.
39
hastily raised his head, discovered the author of this strange
salute, dropped it again, muttered something, and fell a
hammering a nail into the shoe violently. The word was a
nail fastened in a sure place. The Spirit of God was there,
and drove it into the sinner's heart. The minister left the
shop without saying any more. That night the man mingled
with the crowd who entered the church, and, at the close of
the sermon presented himself as a distressed and condemned
sinner, soliciting " prayer and help." A number of others,
quite as unhappy as himself, were soon by his side, when
they all raised their cry together, "Lord have mercy!"
This was the hour of . our triumph. Now we witnessed a
scene winch repaid us for all our toil. The young smith,
with many more, obtained salvation the same evening.
From that night the work of God went on in majesty and
power.
_ It was now, and from this time, that we saw those great
truths, which other ministers were contented to preach from
Sabbath to Sabbath, and from year to year, without behold¬
ing any visible effects, invested with a potency which was,
indeed, glorious, mighty, and almost irresistible: The
moment, a sinner- came within range of its influence, he was
affected. Many a stout and stubborn adversary was felled
to the ground, and roared for mercy, as^if he was going
quick into hell. We had evidence before our eyes, the most
convincing, that if the people of God set their, hearts upon
a revival, and use the proper means, they cannot fail to obtain
their desire. Their feebleness, in every worldly sense in
which the term maybe used, will be no obstacle. If they
depend upon the aid of the Holy Ghost, fast and pray, and
employ every other method authorized in the word of God,
earth and hell combined cannot hinder a revival. The prayer
must prevail
40
THE" TEST OF REVIVAL PRINCIPLES.
"Like mighty winds.and torrents fierce,
Let it opposers all o'errun,
And every law of 'sin reverse."—
Let the ministers of any particular church trample under
foot that silly objection,' that extraordinary means will throw
discredit upon the ordinary. Rather' let them decide, that
the former, if successful, must, in the nature of the case,
confer honour upon the ordinary services. Uncommon efforts,
justify, to the fullest extent, those endeavours which are
put forth in the common'services of the sanctuary ; hut that
they, do impart a sigmficancy- and a power to the regular
services of the future, is now a fact well attested. Let
them, then, break boldly through, and no more confine them¬
selves to the limits of Sabbath preaching, but take a firm,
stand before tljie congregation in reference to a revival. The
doors of the house of God must be thrown open for daily
and nightly preaching- Let them be simple of heart, and
aim at one thing, the conversion of sinners. Ordinary ser¬
mons, however, they must know, will not be suitable for sucfy
services, unless they desire to preach to empty pews. Ex¬
traordinary plans and movements will demand an extra1
ordinary kind of preaching. We do not expect to see snow
in harvest; nor the sea, smooth as glass, and calm as a fish¬
pond, when a storm is out upon its surface. I need not mul¬
tiply words or figures. You know what I mean. I would
recommend,the same style of preaching, and means, whichl
have hinted at in this letter when describing our efforts for
the great revival in question. If the people of God unite
with their ministers, and encourage them by their presence
and prayers, while they are preaching fearfessly, vigorously,
and pointedly, those great truths likely to awaken and convert
men, the arm of God will soon be made bare in a great
revival. I would urge the continuation of the meeting for
THE TEST OP REVIVAL PRINCIPLES. 41
weeks, with or without success.' Whether the congregations
are large or small, I would continue the meetings. Though
sinners were as wicked as devils, and as hard and senseless,
or stupid, as the seats of the chapel, I would continue the
meetings, and preach on, every night, with an undying trdst
in the promises of God. Magna, est Veritas et prcevalebit,
—Great is truth, and it shall prevail. Let them thus go
on repeating the blow, " Victory or death," and they shall
see a revival; such a turning to God, such an in-gathering of
souls to the fold of Christ, as will gladden the hearts of all
who believe; while the scene will spread a tide of holy'joy
over all the inhabitants of heaven. Luke xv. 10.
4*
CHAPTER V.
the call of the spirit.
We are now approaching a fact in Mr. Caughey's expe¬
rience, of deep and affecting interest. We are about to
witness him listening to a solemn call from Godrwhich is to
utterly change the sphere of his action, to cast him as a
pilgrim on the shores of another" land, and to affect the
destiny of thousands. The opinion of the reader concerning
the exercises about to be described, will depend on the
character of his pre-existing views of divine operations on
the human heart. If he possesses exalted faith, if his mind is
spiritualized by devotion, if he has a soul tutored by the Spirit
to that child-like simplicity, so earnestly required by Jesus
Christ, he will readily give credence to Mr. Caughey's
statements, and admire that sublime obedience which led
him., in the spirit of Abraham, to leave his home, to abandon
the sphere of his present usefulness, simply because God
required it!
Rut if his heart is more alive to the voices that come from
without, tjian to the " still, small voice " within; if he has
more faith in the visible than in the invisible; if he is a
disbeliever in the subjective operations of the Spirit of God
on the human soul; he will probably read with a cold,
questioning incredulity. But let him remember, that many
great and pious men have had a firm belief in the subjective
42
THE GALL OF THE SPIRIT.
48
influences of the Spirit. Wesley, Fletcher, Edwards,
Luther, Doddridge, Bunyan, and many other greatly good
•men, would readily have sympathized with such impressions
as those of Mr. C.; where, as . in his case, they were
preceded by the steady enjoyment of holiness, by a life of
prayer, and attended by outward Providences corresponding
with and confirming the inward impressions. As long as it
stands recorded in the Bible, that the Spirit directed Philip
and Peter and Paul, that Christ pledged .that Spirit for the
guidance of his disciples, and especially of his ministers,
there can be no room to doubt the possibility of such
impressions. The proofs of their genuineness in individuals,
must be sought in their fruits. To this test we shall see
those of Mr. Caughey submitted; and by their fruits, the
reader will, we think, be compelled to admit their supernat¬
ural origin. But we will let Mr. Caughey speak for himself,
in the following striking portions of his correspondence ; he
says, to an inquiring friend:
I cannot say I have any serious objections against relating
to/you the circumstances which led me to this singular
decision. I would have done so in my last; but I felt a
hesitancy to tell you, in the simplicity of my heart, those
severe exercises of mind connected with it. I knew your
cool and metaphysical turn of mind so well, that I feared to
open a new field for your speculative genius. It is likely
my simple story will excite your incredulity more than ever.
" Strange," you wili say, " that a man of sense, and a
minister of God, should suffer himself, for such a small affair,
to be tossed like a ball into a far country; or, that he should
suppose such great effects would be connected with such
insignificant causes; that the infinite God should stoop to
bring about such important events from means so small and
paltry I"
44
THE CALL OF THE SPIRIT.
To this I answer, Man always proportions his means to
his ends. He. seeks to accomplish great designs by great
means. With him, the cause must always be commensurate
with the intended effects. On the contrary, God has ever
delighted to humble the pride of man, by bringing about the
greatest events by the smallest instrumentality. When dis¬
posed to smile at the trivial matter which arrested my mind,
and which prepared it to take such an unusual course, I wish
you would reflect on that verse you have heard me repeat,
and which you so much admire: —
*' A pebble in the streamlet scant,
Has turned the course of many a river;
A dew-drop on the baby plant,
Has warped the giant oak forever "
You will remember our Conference of 1839, was held in the
city of Schenectady, N. Y. That year I was appointed to
Whitehall, N. Y. Shortly after, I had my library and study
furniture forwarded to my station.
It was then I began seriously to reflect upon the propriety
of choosing a wife, believing that " marriage is honourable in
all men." I had travelled a number of years, studied hard,
and expended all my time and strength in winning souls to
Christ. My brethren approved of my intention. But while
indulging in this purpose, for some reasons I could not ex¬
plain, my heart became very hard. The Lord seemed 'to
depart from me; and that countenance, which so often
beamed upon me "from above, and had daily, for many years,
brightened my soul into rapturous joy, appeared now to be
mantled in the thickest gloom.
The more I reflected thus, " I can see no good reason
why I should be singular among my brethren, nor continue
to lead this solitary life," my heart became harder, and my
darkness increased. I was soon involved in a variety of evil
reasonings. My will seemed to be in a conflict with some-
THE CALL 0E. THE SPIRIT.
45,
thing invisible. God, who had- honoured me with such inti¬
mate communion with himself since my conversion, appar¬
ently left me to battle it out alone.. So it appeared to me
then ; but now I see God himself wag contending with me.
I was about to step out of the order of his providence; and
he was resolved to prevent it, unless I should refuse to under¬
stand why he thus resisted me. Had I continued the conflict,
I believe he would have let me take my own course; nor
would he have cast me off; yet I.solemnly feel, he would
have severely chastised my disobedience.
My distress and gloom were so great, I could not unpack
my library, nor arrange my study. I began to reflect most
solemnly upon my, unhappy state of mind, and became more
concerned to regain-my former peace and joy in God, than
to obtain any temporal blessing whatever. The world was
a-blank, a bleak .and howling wilderness, to my soul, without
the.smiles of my Saviour. In fact, that I could, not live,
but must wither away from the face of the" earth; without
his comforting and satisfying presence. Like a well-chas¬
tised son, I came back to the feet of my heavenly Father,
and with many tears I besought him to reveal Kis face to my
soul; that if my purposes were crossing his, to show me ;
and whatever was his will, I would at oncerf by his help,
yield my soul unto it. "Lord God," I said, "if my will
crosses thy will, then my will must be wrong; for thine
cannot but be right." Now I cared not what he com¬
manded me to do, or to leave undone; I stood ready to
obey. I felt assured, clear light from God on some points
would soon reach my soul; and I was fully prepared for it;
but I no more expected such an order as came soon after,
than I expected he would command me to fly upward and
preach the gospel in another planet. During three days I
cried to God, without any answer. On the third day, in the
46
THE' CALL OP THE SPIRIT,
afternoon, I obtained an audience with the Lord. The place
was almost as lonely as Sinai, where Moses saw the burning
bush. It was under open sky, a considerable distance from
the habitations of men; steep rocks and mountains, deep
forests, and venomous reptiles surrounded me. Here, and
in a moment, the following passage was given me to plead:
" And the Lord descended in the cloud, and stood with him
there,. and proclaimed the name of the Lord. And the
Lord passed by before him, and proclaimed, The Lord,
■The Lord God, merciful and gracious, long-suffering, and
abundant in goodness and truth, keeping mercy for thousands,
forgiving iniquity and transgression and sin, and that will
by no means clear the guilty." Exod. xxxiv. 5—7. I took
hold of this; many of the words were as fire, and as a
hammer to break the rocks in pieces before the Lordl The
fountains of tears were opened, and the great deep of my
heart was broken up. I left the place, however, without
receiving any light; but my heart was fully softened and
subdued, and I felt assured I had prevailed in some wajr
with God. I was confident light and direction were coming;
but of what nature I could not tell.
This was on the 9th of July, 1839. The same evening,
about twilight, eternal glory be to God 1 when reading in a
small room adjoining my study, a light, as I conceited from
heaven, reached me. My soul was singularly calmed and
warned by a strange visitation. In the moment I recognised
the change ; the following, in substance, was spoken to my
heart; but in a manner, and with a rapidity ^ I cannot pos¬
sibly describe. Every ray of divine glory seemed to be a
word that the eye of my soul could read, a sentence which
my judgment could perceive and understand: " These
matters which trouble thee, must be let entirely alone. The
will of God is, that thou shouldst visit Europe. He shall be
THE CALL OF THE SPIRIT.
4n
with thee.there, and give thee many seals te thy ministry.
He has provided thee with funds. Make thy arrangements
accordingly; and next Conference, -ask liberty from the
proper authorities, and it shall be granted* thee. Visit
Canada first; when this is done, sail for England. God
shall be with thee there,, and thou shalt have no want in all
thy journeyings; and thou shalt be brought back in safety
again to America."
The above is far beneath the dignity and grandeur of the
impression. It came in a way which ■ left no room, for a
doubt. A heavenly calm, a powerful persuasion, and an
intense glow of divine love, accompanied the whole. It
was like the breaking forth of the noon-day sun at midnight.
I fell upon my knees before the Lord, my whole mind
consenting to the orders, which I believed had come from
heaven. Oh! the sweetness of that communion I then
enjoyed with God! My sky was cloudless. My rest of
soul unutterable. The meaning of many past providences
was now explained. The possession of a few hundreds of
dollars, had often made me very uneasy. I doubted the
propriety of laying up treasure on earth. The cause of .
missions stood in need of what I possessed, but still I was
restrained. Now I clearly saw that God had provided me
with these funds, in order .to make me willing to obey the
call,, and to save me from embarrassment in my travels. I
could perceive a special reason, why I had pressed forward
in my studies for so many years, and why revival texts and
sermons had occupied so much of my time; — that God had
been thus preparing, me for a few campaigns in Europe.
I arose-from my knees under a strong conviction that God
1 had called me to take this tour. " Letters were written im¬
mediately to Canada, etc. The next day my soul was
calm and happy. My books were unpacked, and everything
48
THE CALL OP THE SPIRIT.
in my study arranged "with a glad heart and - free. Eleven
- months were before me, to criticise the impressions on my spul.
With, delight I commenced my pastoral work, visited. from
house to house, and had the pleasure of seeing a most
powerful revival of religion, iw my circuit. During this
period, not the least wish entered my heart to form
any connection or engagement whatever, that would
entangle or hinder me from fulfilling, what I "conceived
to be, the high and solemn commission I had received from
the Lord. I continued to resign the whole matter to God,
entreating him to overrule all to his glory, and to hedge
up my way, if it were not his will I should leave America.
The time for the sitting of Conference arrived. With
solemn feelings I took my seat with my brethren. -They
were never dearer to my heart than now. At a proper
time, I presented my request to the Bishop. He made no
objections, but immediately proposed it to the Conference.
After a few moments deliberation, they seemed-to have
but one mind on the subjectthat I should have liberty to
visit Europe. A resolution to that effect was passed, and
that my name should continue to appear as usual on the
printed minutes. One of the chief men of the Conference
then arose, and said, " Having permitted Brother Caughey
to visit Europe, it is our duty to make his visit to those countries
as pleasant to himself as it is in our power. I therefore propose,
that he have a recommendation from this body to the Wes-
leyan Connection in Great Britain and Ireland, signed by the
Bishop and Secretary of Conference." Adding, "He will
then appear among our brethren on the other side of the
Atlantic, as an accredited Minister of the Methodist Epis¬
copal Church in America."
This proposal was immediately acceded to, and submitted
to the Bishop. He replied, that he had no objections, and
the call of the . spirit.
49
requested me to wait upon him at his lodgings. I did sor
He entered into conversation with the freedom and tender¬
ness of a father. Never before did I see such majesty,
connected with extreme age. His hair, white as snow, fell
in graceful locks upon his shoulders; and his masculine
mind, unimpaired by years, shone forth in company with a
deep and glowing piety. I. thought of St. Paul, of John,
of one of the old patriarchs. I loved, admired, and rever¬
enced him. After an interview of half an hour, in which
the . Bishop appeared to be greatly interested, he presented
me with the following document: —
"TROY CONFERENCE.
" Middlebury, Vt., June 24, 1840.
" Brother James Caughey having asked permission of the
Conference, to visit his friends residing in Europe,—
"On motion, it was resolved, That Brother Caughey's
request be granted, and that he be so returned on the
minutes.
"And it is hereby certified, that the said J. Caughey is in
good standing in the Troy Conference of the Methodist
Episcopal Church, in the jjnited States of America; and,
as such, is cordially commended to the Christian fellowship
of the Wesley an Methodist Connection in Great Britain and
Ireland.
"R. R. Roberts, President.
"J. B. Houghtaling, Secretary.
Troy Conference."
I have thus, in the simplicity of my heart, related to you
my singular experience, and the circumstances which led
me to take the course I have taken. * * *
5
50
THE CALL OP THE SPlftlT.
These great changes in Mr. Caughey's history, caused
by such supernatural experiences, were not- rushed upon
without a clear perception and due consideration of the diffi¬
culties they involved, as the following extract of a letter ,to a
friend, who had written him on this point, will show :
I thinV I feel the full weight of every question you have
proposed.- I have set them down carefully, one by one, that
you may see they have all arrested my attention; and that,
writing them off, and having them before my eyes, I might
be affected by them, and answer them most sincerely. I am
not aware, however, that they have Created the least un¬
easiness, or in any degree shaken the purpose of my heart.
My call to visit Europe seems quite as clear as to preach tho
gospel. It does seem—-
" A part of my being beyond my control."
I candidly admit that there is a thick mist spread over
my usefulness on the other side ; but sometimes, through the
haze, I can see great multitudes of sinners coming home to
God through my instrumentality. I have also a solemn im¬
pression, that the salvation, or damnation of thousands, may
depend upon whether I obey or reject the call. I may also
add, my impression is constant, that if I refuse to go, God
will permit many troubles to come upon me in America, and
that I shall, through future life, be ever after sorry I did not
obey.
Mr. Caughey's convictions of the reality of his divine call
seem never to have faded, nor did his confidence in their
genuineness fail him, as will appear by the following passage
in another of his letters. He says:
THE CALL . OF .THE SPIRIT.
51
I remember walking one afternoon in a retired spot, some
months before I sailed for Europe. It had been named
Providence-path, because there I had prevailed with God in
a time of great distress connected with my present tour.
All the past providences of the Lord, and manifestations to
my soul, came up before my mind in a manner similar to
that part of Ezekiel's. vision: " The appearance of wheels—
and their work was. as it were a wheel in the iriiddle of a
wheel." I saw how one wheel had worked into another, and
started a third, and fourth, and so on till the great wheel for
Europe was set in slow motion. Beyond this wheel I could
not see. Then there were small wheels within wheels, but
all working, Rom. viii. 28, and contributing to the great
events of my-life. I could name,every wheel, and the re¬
sults it produced upon the one it set in motion. I wondered,
admired, and adored. Before leaving the favourite walk, I
traced the %hole gently upon the bark of a tree; but in my
absence some rogue came, cut it down, and carried it off, I
knew not whither. My diagrams I hoped might re¬
main till I returned from Europe, when, perhaps, a few
more wheels might be added. They are, however, too deeply
traced upon my memory ever to be obliterated in time or
eternity.
The following extract from another letter will show how
carefully Mr. Caughey analyzed his mental operations. He
did not grasp his impressions blindly, hastily," or carelessly,
but with solemn and serious care, sought to discern what was
human and what was divine in his feelings. On this point he
writes:
To your inquiry, " Did you feel condemnation on account
of sin during your trials in July, 1839 ?" I answer, No. I
felt no condemnation, though perhaps,I deserved it. But a
52 THE CALL OF THE SPIRIT.
restraint was upon me, winch' greatly distressed my soul;
and • when I began to suspect, that the step might he con¬
trary to the will of God, I felt worse and worse. The con¬
flicting arguments for "and against, drew me out of my rest
in God. I had arisen to .transact- my own concerns in my
own way, and being unhinged from my centre, I was dis¬
contented and unhappy.
There is, however, a mystery about those deep exercises,
which I fear to explain, lest it would seem to contradict the
reproach I have cast upon myself. I have seriously,doubted,
whether I "should have entertained the call to visit Europe,
for a single moment, had I not been previously prepared by
those mental troubles. As it was, I gladly accepted any
proposition which would relieve me from my sore conflicts,
and bring again to my heart the comforting presence of-God.
But then God could have ordered another kind of discipline
to prepare me for obedience, though my foolish heart had
wandered from him. " As it was, if God did design to
send me on this errand of mercy, it became necessary, I
think, in "this juncture of my history, that I should know it;
and when it could be no longer concealed from me, without
endangering the whole, the Lord then revealed his will. Here
I must leave it for the present. The present / ; the
'past also; but the future is a dark unknown,
" If light attends the course I run,
'T is he provides these rays ;
And't is his hand that veils my r.iu
If darkness clouds my days.'
Chapter yi.
first fruits.
Having made his arrangements to obey the heavenly call,
Mr. Caughey started for Canada to test, by actual conflict,
the genuineness- of the impressions, so touchingly described
in.the last chapter- W,e are sure the reader will follow him
with growing and eager interest, in his descriptions of the
scenes enacted during this tour in Canada. The following
letter was written on board a steamer descending the river
St. Lawrence; —
Dear Friend :—You will-feel interested to hear, where
I have been, and what I have been doing, since I last saw
you. I obtained liberty from Conference to visit Europe,
(June 24th, 1840,) but having some of my temporal affairs
to arrange, I did not leave the United States till the 17th
of September.' On that evening I sailed from Burlington,
Yt., in the steamer Burlington, Capt. Sherman; — walked
the deck till midnight, -agitated with a great variety of emo¬
tions, and distressed with many conflicts. My way seemed
dark and mysterious. Rough weather setting in, drove me
to my berth, sick. The next morning I landed at St. John's.
I had been invited to visit that town,'and an offer of accom¬
modation had been made to me. Yet I thought it most
prudent, all things considered, to go direct to the hotel.
' The next day was rainy, and the weather continued,wet
5* 53
54
FIRST FRUITS.
for three days in succession. I found the place had
been - deserted by the Methodist preachers as hopeless.
There was no chapel, and the little class had been broken up
and scattered. A strong desire, to remain a few days, and
by God's help to do some good, induced me to make arrange¬
ments accordingly. Preaching was appointed in a private
house) but very few attended; and for several nights little
or no effect swas produced, and no increase of congregation.
I kept up good heart till Sabbath; when the enemy came in
like a flood. My soul was sorely buffeted, and my prospects
covered with gloom. Two ideas were continually before my
mind. First. That I had done wrong in asking permission
to take this tour. Second. It is going to be a total failure,
as it respects the conversion of sinners.
The devil roared against me, and my heart sank within
me. Providentially, I had in my possessioR a volume writ¬
ten by an old Scotch divine. I took it up and opened on his
comment upon the second verse of the one hundredth Psalm,
" Serve "the Lord with gladness." " Your serving him doth
not glorify him, unless it be with gladness. A Christian's
cheerful looks glorify God. We glorify God by walking
cheerfully. It is a glory to God, when the world, sees a
Christian hath that within him that can make him cheerful
in the worst times. He can, with the nightingale, sing with
a thorn at his breast. The people of God have ground of
cheerfulness. They are justified, and instated into adoption,
and this creates inward peace; it makes music within,
whatever storms are without. If we Consider what Ghrisfc
hath wrought for us by his blood, and wrought in us by his
Spirit, it is a ground of cheerfulness ; and this cheerfulness
glorifies God. It reflects upon a master, when the servant
is always drooping and sad; sure he is kept at hard com¬
mons ; his master does not give him what is fitting: so
FIRST FRUITS.-
55
when God's people hang their harps on willows, sure they
do not serve a good master, and repent of their choice;
this reflects dishonour upon God. As the gross sins of the,
wicked bring scandal upon the. gospel, so do the uncheerful
lives of the godly. Religion doth not take away our joy, but'
refines and clarifies it. It doth not break our viol, but it
tunes and makes our music sweeter." I need scarcely tell
you that I felt ashamed of myself. My heart was much
comforted. The dark cloud floated away, and sunshine
spread its brightness over all the prospects of my tour,- both
in Canada and Europe.
Finding I could make no impression upon the population
in a private house I looked around for another place,, In a
few hours an old deserted tannery building presented itself.
It was almost filled with lumber and tan bark. Two good
womeh, who washed for the steamboats, offered to help me
to clean it out. They brought along with them two
Canadian girls, their servants. I threw off my coat and
went to work, hired a Canadian to cart some benches, and
before night we had the place ready for preaching.
The report circulated, the population got interested, and
the next night I had a good congregation. A few pointed
appeals brought some of them to tears. I cannot give you
all the particulars, but sinners were awakened daily and
converted to God. A class was formed of fifty-three members.
Myself and another brother went from house to house in
order to raise a subscription to build a chapel, and succeeded
to the amount of nearly seven hundred dollars. So, after
spending three weeks, and preaching twenty-six sermons, I
bade the little flock farewell on the 8th of October, leaving
them in the care of two class-leaders. I had been only a
few days in St. John's, when I was invited to another hotel,
kept by Mrs. Watson, Upon offering to pay my bill, she
56
FIRST FRUITS.
would not accept a penny. May the Lord reward her in
the resurrection! She also cheerfully and generously sub¬
scribed to the chapel. . j
On the night of the 8th of October, I preached at La
Prairie, a village on the hanks of the St. Lawrence, opposite
Montreal. There was a very gracious influence during
the service, and I trust good was done. Next morning I
crossed the river to Montreal. Here I received a hearty
welcome from many of my old friends..
My first acquaintance with this people was formed in-
1835, when about four hundred sinners were converted to
God. I also revisited them in 1837, during another revival,
and spent a month. , I was kindly entertained during my
stay this time, first at the house of John Mathewson, Esq.,
and then at the house of James Earner, Esq. Precious
families! I shall long remember with gratitude their kind¬
ness. Spent eighteen days, preached eighteen sermons, and
about twenty souls were converted to God. There were for
some -time, strong and convincing signs of an extensive
revival, as though God intended to shake the whole city,
but the devil created discord. The people of God
were not united. Some wished me to stay, while others
greatly desired I should " depart out of their coasts." About
this' time the Lord stirred up the brethren at Quebec to cry
to God for a revival.' My kind friend, the Rev. William M.
Harvard, being Superintendent, informed them that I was in
Montreal; and, at his suggestion, they unanimously invited
me to pay them a visit. My way being hedged up most
singularly at Montreal, I quietly bade them farewell, and
went aboard a steamer about nine o'clock on the night of
the 27th October. My heart was deeply affected with the
kindness of many of my friends; I could mention their
names, but, as they are strangers to you, it is perhaps
FIRST FRUITS.
57
unnecessary. They are,.however, very, very dear to my
heart.
" Ah! there are spirits in this fretful world,
Which grow not old, and change not with the seasons."
When morning light came, I found I had mistaken the
vessel, and had got aboard a freight steamer, which had
three vessels in tow; a ship, a brig, and a barge. Every¬
thing indicated we were going to have a tedious passage>
To help the matter, when we were near the centre of lake
St. Peter's, the pilot got deceived by the lighthouse-ship,
which had drifted from her moorings, by a heavy gale, a few
hours before. So he steered by the false guide, as. some
Christians do by backslidden or unconverted ministers ; and
so get on the shallows, as we did. The ship we had in tow
struck, and stuck fast. Finding her unmovable, we were
compelled to remain in; the lake all night, and lighten tho
ship.
The captain reproached the pilot, that in the blaze of day
he should run so blindly out of the channel. The poor pilot
laid the blame on the light-ship, as Adam did on Eve.
Then I reflected thus:—
Ministers and'old professors, may be compared to that
lightship. Two passages will confirm the application. Phil,
iii. 17. "Brethren, be followers together of me, and mark
them which walk so as ye have us for an ensample." Phil,
ii. 15, 16. " That ye may be blameless and harmless, the
sons of -God, without rebuke,' in the midst of a crooked
and perverse nation, among whom ye shine as lights in the
world; holding forth the word of life; that I may rejoice
in the day of Christ, that I have not run in vain, neither la¬
boured in vain." An able writer comments upon " holding
forth the word of life,'' thus: " An allusion, some think, to
those towers which were built at the entrance of harbours, on
58
FIRST FRUITS.
which fire3 were kept during the night, to direct ships-into port.
Genuine Christians, by their holy lives and conversation, are
the means of directing others, not only how to escape those
dangers to which they are exposed on the tempestuous-ocean
of human life, but also of leading them into the haven of
eternal safety and rest. ' That I have not run in vain.'
This appears to be a part of the same metaphor; and alludes
to the case of a weather-beaten mariner, who has been
long tossed on a tempestuous sea, in hazy weather and dark
nights ; who has been obliged to run on different tacks, and
labour intensely to keep his ship from foundering; but is,
at last, by the assistance of a luminous"" fire on the top of
the tower, directed safely into the port."
The meaning of these passages is evident. The word
towers, in the above extract, is very expressive. I wish all
the lovers of Christ were as, permanent. I have often
admired the lines,
" Strong in thy strength I'll stand a tower,
Impregnable "to earth or hell."
Alas! they mostly resemble these floating lights; and,
much as the event may jeopardize others, they are too often
driven from their mooring.
Now, I thought, so long as they keep in the right channel
of life, in the position designed them by God; their anchor¬
age ground, the Bible and the atonementtheir anchor, the
hope of eternal life; faith their cable, reaching unto that
which entereth within the vail; Heb. vi. 19 ^ in the meantime
holding up the light of profession, supported by a holy life
and godly conversation; then, indeed, they are lights and
guides which may be depended upon.
But should they be set adrift by the storms of temptation,
break their cable, or drag their anchor into the regions of
FIRST FRUITS.
59
error, keeping up at the same time the old lamp of profession \
then, if we depend upon and steer our course by them, we
shall most assuredly get aground upon the shallows of luke-
warmness and spiritual death, or upon the rocks of open
sin, and make shipwreck of faith and of a good conscience.
.Now, I continued to reflect, what these landmarks should
have been to our pilot, the Bible is designed to be to all
sincere Christians. • " Thy word," sayS the Psalmist, " is a
lamp to my feet, and a light unto my path." And, says St.
Peter, "We have also a more sure word of prophecy; where-
unto ye do well that ye take heed as unto a light that shineth
in a dark place, until the day dawn, and the day-star arise
in your hearts." Our pilot should have tried the position
of that light-ship, by the adjacent landmarks, before he had
ventured to follow it; and we should endeavour to ascertain
the scriptural character of the doctrines, lives, and, experience,
of all ministers and Christians, who offer to guide us, before
we intrust our souls to their care. God will no more excuse
us for having been led astray by any of them, than our
. captain would the unhappy pilot. " If the blind lead the
blind," says Jesus, " they shall both fall into the ditch,"
that is, into hell! That vessel with her light was once, and
only a few hours ago, in the best position she could occupy; but
what shall we say of those professed ministers of Christ, and
those nominal Christians, who, by their own confession, allow
they have never been born again, and who positively deny
that any man can know his sins forgiven; hut who, at the
same time, attempt to direct others in the way to heaven ?
This deceitful light-ship occasioned the running two
vessels aground; and the rest had to tarry beside them
during along and dark night, while we served as beacons
to other vessels, which passed us in the darkness. Such
clergymen and professors ruin thousands of immortal souls.
60
FIRST FRUITS.
The night becoming cold and dark, I left the deck, and.
spent a few hours in the main cabin, reading and writing
very comfortably.
Yesterday morning we again got-under weigh, and con¬
tinued our course down the river. Night brought on bad
weather, with rain and deep darkness, so we crept towards
the shore, and lay in a place of shelter till morning.
We arer now moving forward, and hope to arrive at Quebec
this afternoon. I have an elegant and spacious cabin almost
to myself, for the passengers are few. My time is employed
iii writing, reading, and praying. This season of rest is
most refreshing to my body, and God is deepening his work
in my soul.
. The narrative is continued in the following letter written
from the city of Quebec, Lower Canada.
My last was dated aboard the steamer on my way to this
city. I landed on the same day about three o'clock in the
afternoon. The society had received imformation that I
had left Montreal for Quebec, and were waiting for me in
the large school-room adjoining the chapel. Brother Selley,
the junior preacher, met me on the quay; we walked straight
to the chapel, where I preached from,- 1 John ii. 1 — 3. I
received a most hearty welcome from my old friends, and
from none more than from my warm.friend Mr. Harvard.
Many changes have taken- place since I was here last.
You have heard me speak of my Quebec home at Mr.
M'Leod's. He and his dear wife gave me a most cordial
welcome. I felt at home the moment I entered their-house.
On retiring to my room, I found that the God of Jacob had
not forsaken their dwelling. In a moment I was filled with
love and joy. I came down stairs praising God. Mrs.
M'L. looked at me, but" said nothing. The Spirit of God
FIRST FRUITS.
61
was working most powerfully upon her soul. 'She had" lost
the blessing of entire sanctification; but a few" days after
this she obtained it again. She then told me, " When you
came into our house, I was anxious to see whether you still
retained the holiness and "simplicity you had when here last.
I was not quite sure about it; but when you came down
stairs, praising God, I was then convinced that years had
made no change in your religious character. I was greatly
troubled at my own conscious loss. My spirit had no rest
till I told ypu my unhappy state of mind.- The Lord
assisted you in spreading my case before him, and now I
have regained all I had lost." I rejoice to tell you that
there are many such heavenly-minded spirits in this city.
We have a precious society here. I say we, because the
Methodist people are one the world over. The Quebec
Methodists, however, are the most loving people I have ever
met, and the most devoted to God.
We have had a severe conflict since my arrival-. During
the first few weeks the devil threatened to drive us from the
field.' Sinners were as hard as marble. It seemed as if we
could make no impression whatever upon them. As this was
no new scene do me, I felt confident, if the people of God
would only stand by me in mighty prayer, the arm of God
would be made bare in the conversion of sinners.
They did stand by me, nor did they flinch a moment till
we had the victory. The weapons of our warfare were " not
carnal', but mighty through God, to the pulling down of
strongholds; casting down imaginations, and every high
thing that would exalt itself against the knowledge of
Christ." Ten sermons a week, with many exhortations,
were discharged against the dark works of the devil. Many
sinners, who were awakened when I was here in 1835, re¬
membered their old terrors, and avoided our meetings, and
6
62
FIRST FRUITS.
did what thej could to hinder others. Wretched souls! I
believe that some of them were kept out of hell all these
years that they might have an opportunity to see and feel
the power of a revival in 1840. The Lord, however, drove
sinners under the word. The burning truths of God were
thrown into their intrenchments incessantly. Day and night
they were cannonaded. -Many of the wicked were wounded,
and fled in terror, crying out, " They are mad! they are
mad!" but their places were filled up by others. Hard
things were spoken against us; but they did not move us.
The people of God carried victory in their very faces. It
was a scene of awful grandeur. When their faith was at
a climax, oh! how they sang, —
" We are soldiers, fighting for our God,
Let trembling cowards fly;
We '11 stand unshaken, firm and fixed,
For Christ to live and die.
" Let devils rage, and hell assail,
We '11 fight our passage through;
Let foes unite, let friends desert,
We '11 seize the crown, our due.**
At last there arose a general cry among the wicked. Sin¬
ners were cut to pieces on every hand; and since then the
revival has spread among the people with astonishing power.
High and low, rich and poor, learned and unlearned, old
and young, are seen at the altar of God pleading for mercy.
About the time of our hardest conflict, as I was standing
within the communion rail, looking upwards to the gallery,
I noticed two young men trifling. I learned afterwards that
the cause was this: As I was looking up, one of the young
men said to the other, " I should not be surprised if that
chap," meaning me, "will come up here."
This caused the other sinner to burst into a laugh. In-
- stantly it was suggested to my mind, " Go up, go up." I
FIRST FRUITS.
did so, and the one who had made the remark, looking over
his shoulder, as I appeared on the gallery, exclaimed, " I
say, if he is not, coming!" •
I advanced rapidly, and they could not get away. I put
my hands upon them, and urged them to flee from the wrath
to come. The one who had been the chief speaker was
greatly agitated, and the next night was at the altar in great
distress. He obtained mercy from God, and has joined
the society. What the result will be with the. other I know
not.
I was informed the other day, that an officer, of the gar¬
rison came to one of our meetings, to see what truth there
was in the strange reports he had heard. There was a
powerful influence from God upon the people that night.
Poor fellow! he felt it also, but got frightened and fled from'
the chapel. He told a friend afterwards, " Why, Sir, I was
sitting in the congregation, and I saw that man," meaning -
me, " coming. He put his two hands upon a man's head,
and prayed over him, and then took him to the altar. Well,
Sir, he came again and did the same to another; and then
to another; and he was coming straight to do the same to
me; but, Sir, I started from my -seat, and ran out of the
chapel, and along the street as hard as I could; a thing I
have never yet done before an enemy." So true is that
saying, " The wicked flee when no man pursueth."
The devil is losing his servants daily. A few nights ago
a man of extensive business was present at the chapel. His
wife, a few days before, had been converted to God. She
had long been a member of the Church of England, but had
never been "born again." He was very uneasy about his
soul; but the devil would not let him come forward to be
prayed for. When .the meeting was over, and we were al¬
most worn out, he came forward to the altar to tell mo how
64
FIRST FRUITS.
hard his heart was. Now, thought I, the devil has kept
this poor sinner in his seat all this time, because he knew
that if he should come forward to he prayed for, he would
never get out of our hands till he was converted to God;
and now the devil has permitted him to come, because he
thinks we are too tired to begin a second prayer meeting. • I
called to the brethren ; they were on the spot immediately;
the sinner was.surrounded with praying men: "Now, down
upon your knees, man, and cry for mercy." The second
prayer meeting continued till late ; the devil lost him. Next
day he had some doubts, and he sent a message to me, say¬
ing, that he wanted to converse on the witness of the Spirit.
I requested him to be present at' the afternoon sermon, and,
after which, I would converse with him. He attended ; but
when the sermon was over I found him happy. God had
explained the doctrine to.him during the discourse, by send¬
ing his Spirit into his heart, crying,.Abba, Father.
I think about one hundred and fifty persons have passed
from death unto life. I understand that about, twenty-five
believers have experienced the blessedness of those who are
pure in heart.
A few evenings ago, I* heard a holy woman sing the fol¬
lowing lines, with heaven beaming on her countenance. I
know not whether you have ever seen them, but they were
quite new to me.
" There rema/ineth therefore a rest to the people of God."—Heb. iv. 9.
Tune—"Hosts, sweet home."
My rest is in heaven, my rest is not here,
Then why should I murmur when trials are near;
Be hushed my dark spirit, the worst that can come
But shortens thy journey, and hastens thee home.
It is riot for me to be seeking my bliss,
And building my hopes in a region like this;
I look for a city which hands have not .piled;
I pant for a country by sin undefiled.
FIRST FRUITS.
65
The thorn and the thistle around me may grow;
I would not lie down upon roses below:
I ask not a portion, I seek not my rest,
Till I find them for ever in Jesus's breast.
Afflictions may damp me, hut cannot destroy;
One glimpse-of his love turns them all into joy;
And the bitterest tears, if he smile but on them,
Like dew in the-sunshine, turn diamond or gem.
Let doubt then and danger my progress oppose,
They only make heaven more sweet at the close;
Come joy, or come sorrow, whate'er may befall,
. One hour with my God, will make up for it alL
A scrip on my back, and a staff in my hand;
I march on in haste through an enemy's land; -
1 The road may be rough, but it cannot be long;
And I '11 smooth it with hope, and I'll cheer it with song.
The above is my experience. My soul is happy
6*
CHAPTER. VII.
revival scenes in lower canada.
In this chapter, we shall still see Mr. Caughey nobly ful
filling the objects of his spiritual mission in Lower Canada,
with a success so peculiar and unbroken as to give full proof
of the heavenly calling he had received. The letters now
to be inserted were written from the City of Montreal.
• At five o'clock on the morning of the 17th of January,
1841,1 left Quebec for this city. Three sleighs, filled with
our friends, accompanied me twelve miles out of the city,
where we all took breakfast together. In February, 1885,
when the Rev. Matthew Lang and I visited Quebec, for the
first time, the brethren, hearing of our coming, in imitation
of those at Rome, who met St. Paul at " the three taverns,"
came out twelve miles to meet us, and escorted us into their
noble and beautiful city. You will not, therefore, wonder
that my heart is warmly attached to the Quebec people. I
only spent twenty-one days with them on my first visit, but
twelve weeks with them this time; preached nearly one
hundred sermons, besides exhorting, times innumerable. I
also gave them a sermon on Temperance ; and, in the hall
of the Parliament House, I delivered an address on the
expediency of total abstinence from intoxicating liquors.
The Governor General very politely granted us the hall for
66
REVIVAL SCENES IN LOWER CANADA. 67
the occasion. Many at this time became members- of the
"Quebec Young Men's Total Abstinence Society," which
is in a very" flourishing condition; and thus it ever shall be
with any Society, founded on right principles, if the mem¬
bers act consistently, and carry out those principles with
vigor, to their legitimate results.
"Facts are stubborn things;" and many of the anti-
temperance men found them so that night. I told them,
first: A coroner's jury has lately been held in your city upon
the body of a female, who has been disinterred for the
purpose of, an inquest, under a suspicion of murder; but
death by intoxication was the final verdict. The matter,
however, did' not rest here; an inquest'has been held in
another quarter, namely, in the conscience of a liquor seller,
a professor of religion, and what was the verdict there ?
That the woman came to her untimely death by liquor which
she habitually got at his shop. The man came to me a few
mornings since and inquired what he must do.
Secondly: A few weeks since a company of men were work¬
ing on a building in the Lower Town. A dram dealer, close
by, regardless of the danger to which the men were exposed,
supplied them with drink. Toward night one of them, about
half intoxicated, stumbled, and fell from the roof, and was a
corpse in a few moments, leaving a widow and seven small
children.
Thirdly : Several authorized reports have been placed in
my hands within a few hours. One of them states that you
have six hundred places in your city where intoxicating
liquors are sold. Another (your coroner's report) informs
us, that during four months of 1840, verdicts were given of
thirty-nine deaths occasioned by intoxication.
Fourthly : An extract from the books of your jail, signed
by the jailor, states, that from January to September (nine
68. REVIVAL SCENES IN LOWER CANADA.
months) there were committed fourteen hundred criminals;
and that eleven hundred and forty-eight of them had been
committed for crimes which were clearly traceable to intem¬
perance. It seems the other two hundred and fifty-two were
put down upon the list of " unknown;" that is, the cause of
their commitment could not be assigned to intoxication ; but it
was added, there oould be little doubt, were their history as
well known as the Others, it would be found that their crimes
originated from the same source.
The Lord enabled me to be very bold and faithful, as there
were many of the liquor trade present. I cried, " He that
hath an ear to hear, let him hear." Behold the doings pf
your six hundred dram shops and taverns. They have gent
more than eleven hundred persons to' prison in nine months
and have killed thirty-nine. I then made a supposition, that
a few individuals, for' the sake of making money, should
open a number of places for amusement, of a very fascinating
kind; and that such establishments, while they .were the
means of sending eleven hundred and forty-eight men and
women to prison in nine months, killed thirty-nine in the
half of that time, how long would an outraged community
suffer such horrible places to be open ? Would not the
strong arm of the law close them for ever ? But what have I
seen in your city papers lately ? Oh, only this, that these
wretched men are notified to attend upon a certain day to
have their licenses renewed! I then related an amusing
circumstance that happened in the legislature of "Vermont,
some time since, which showed that the minds of statesmen
are beginning to awake to the horrible evils and inconsisten
cies of the license law. A bill had been brought into the
house, and was taken up for the third reading. One section
thereof enacted a penalty for drunkenness. A member
arose, and moved a commitment of the bill for an amend-
REVIVAL SCENES IN LOWER CANADA.
69-
ment, by erasing the section against drunkards. He said,
he objected to the punishing of drunkards by statute, and at
the same time protecting the traffickers in ardent spirits by
legislative enactments; that it seemed to bim like holding
out one arm of the law to present the cup, and the other
to punish the acceptance of it. As much as to'say, "Hold
out the cup, and if it is accepted, it will, by a sure
process, lead to drunkenness, and then punish the drunk-,
ards." The Vermont Legislators saw the dilemma, and it was
thrown back into the hands of the original mover for an
amendment.
There was an amusing, perhaps I should say, a melan¬
choly circumstance occurred at the close of this meeting.. If
it was mournful, it was, however, to me an evidence that the
man's conscience vibrated, in some degree, under the in¬
fluence of that mighty principle which swayed the minds of
the apostles and primitive Christians: " It is good neither to
eat flesh, nor to drink wine, nor anything whereby thy
brother stumbleth, or is offended, or is made weak." Rom.
xiv. 21. A man, evidently under powerful convictions re¬
specting the soul and body destroying evils of intoxicating
drinks, arose from his seat, seemingly with a determination
to join the teetotal ranks. He walked toward the table
where the sheet was laid for signatures, but several persons
were waiting to sign, and he had to pause a little. He was
greatly agitated, and, I believe, felt himself on the very
brink of a Rubicon that would decide his habits through life.
A friend of mine stood near him, and heard the Allowing
soliloquy: " Well, I shall not join to-night. I have a bottle
at home, and a little in it; I shall drink that before I sign
the-pledge; but I declare, had I drank it before I came to
this meeting, I 1 should have signed the pledge this
night." So he darted out of the house", under the influence
70
REVIVAL SCENES IN LOWER CANADA.
of quite a different principle from that which St. Paul felt;
perhaps not unlike the Cainite one, " Am I my brother's'
keeper ?"
. Small as the thing may appear, and simple as was that
test of principle, yet it may be found hereafter, that the lit¬
tle that remained in that " bottle at home," stood connected
with loss of character, a ruined constitution, a drunkard's
grave, or his future wretchedness in hell. "Behold how
great a matter, a little fire kinelleth."
The last night I preached in Quebec was an affecting time.
It was with much difficulty I could get out of the chapel, and
away from the young converts. " How strong the affection
of a new-born soul!" After breakfast I commended the
little party, to which I have already alluded, to God, and
rode on- to St. Ann's, fifty miles. Here I was met by
Mr. H., of Quebec, who carried *me in his sleigh to his
father's house. A singular ride it was. Part of the way
ran over, and along, tremendous snow-drifts, till we de¬
scended upon the Batascou river, and scudded along on its
ice-bound surface twelve miles. Here night overtook us,
and we got bewildered. After wandering up and down,
looking' for a path to the shore and uplands, we espied some
persons in the distance, and by hallooing we attracted their
attention/ By their assistance we ascended the bank, and
through a wild country
" Of hill and dale, heaped into one expanse
Of marbled snow, as far as eye can sweep,
With a blue crust of ice-unbounded glazed,"
We arrived at his father's house about nine o'clock at night.
The motion of the sleigh at night, with nothing before my
eyes but ice and snow, brought on something like sea-sick¬
ness. I was extremely ill when I alighted. The Lord gave
REVIVAL SCENES IN LOWER CANADA.
71
me a good night's rest, and I awoke in the morning quite
well'and happy,
A messenger went out through the settlement announcing
that a Methodist clergyman, from the United States, had
arrived, and would preach within an hour. The poor peo¬
ple, who were hungry for the bread of life, were^ soon as¬
sembled, to whom I expounded the tenth chapter of the Acts
of the Apostles. . Ih was affecting to see with what eager¬
ness they devoured every word. Within a few minutes of
the conclusion of the discourse, an astonishing influence came
down upon all present. Nothing was to be seen but weeping
on every side. We fell upon our knees and poured out our
souls to God. There was, very little noise, but the sobbing
and weeping were wonderful. I paced the floor on my
knees, encouraging each trembling sinner to rely ..upon the
atonement for the forgiveness of sins. Lord Jesus remem¬
ber these sheep in the wilderness ! We had hard parting ;
but farewells were interchanged, probably never to be re¬
peated. We-then rode on to Three Rivers, without any
accident, other than a thorough summerset in a snowdrift.
I threw out my left arm to break the fall, buried it for my
pains deep- in, the snow, and we lay sprawling for a time in
the shapeless drift. Our fine horse stood perfectly still till
we got through our undulating motions; and after getting
all " to rights," we started forward in good spirits, though in
continual danger of another capsize. A previous upset of
this kind was more disastrous; As J was riding along in my
sleigh, wrapped in Buffalo skins, I came opposite a respectable
looking man, standing by a fence. He asked liberty to ride
with me a short distance, which I readily granted, hoping I
might have an opportunity of talking to him about his soul.
No sooner was he seated than I found I had a drunken
man for a companion. On challenging his jug, he said,
72
REVIVAL SCENES IN LOWER CANADA.
"My wife sent me to tlie store for molasses, but I have
got more falls since I left the store than' the molasses are
worth." I could well believe him, poor fellow; but the fault
was more in his head than in Ins treacherous feet.
I no sooner began to talk to him about his soul, and the
day of judgment, than my mare undertook to show she
could play a drunken trick without either rum or molasses.
Away she went down the hill, tumbling head-foremost, till
she lay stretched on the snow. In the meantime, the
drunkard and myself had a comfortable summerset together;
buffalo skins, portmanteaus, molasses and jug,, whirled into
the ditch along with us, the drunkard's voice grumbling out
as we performed our evolutions, "The day of judgment,
indeed!" The beast lay very quietly till we got out of
the ditch. The sleigh was broken, and we were some dis¬
tance from any house, so I. had to harness myself to it,
and endeavoured to drag it along slowly ; the drunkard doing
his best behind, pushing forward or pulling back, in strict
accordance with the known laws of gravitation; but he was
perfectly sincere in his endeavours to help me forward. At
last we arrived at a house on a hill, which turned out to be
his own, and a very respectable place it was. I found he
was a farmer, in good circumstances. His wife was sorely
ashamed of him. I tinkered up my sleigh, and got ready
for a start. He ran into the house for my whip, but on
coming back, the alcohol drove him along with such velocity
that he lost his balance, and came down'with a terrible crash
on the ground, which was frozen as hard as metal. "Ah!"
said I, "the way of the transgressor is hard." I gave
him a few words of advice, which he seemed to feel, and
departed. Who can tell but this event may be the means of
his conversion to God ?
We arrived at Three Rivers, where I preached from the
REVIVAL SCENES IN LOWER CANADA..
73
second verse of the hundredth Psalm. After service, I was
conducted to see a very aged minister of the Church o'f
England, — a most venerable and patriarchal looking man.
If I .recollect aright, he is ninety years of age, but seems in
full possession of all his faculties. -He was sent out as. a
clergyman to New York, by one of the English bishops, when
the United States were British Colonies. We had a very
interesting conversation. "I spent," said he, " an evening
with Mr. Wesley, before I sailed for America. On taking
my leave that night, he presented me with his Notes on the
New Testament, in two volumes." He showed me the
books, which he had preserved with great care. When rising
to depart, Tasked his blessing. He arose, and with great dig¬
nity, placing his hands upon my head, with a faltering voice,
prayed, " May the blessing of the Father, and of the Son,
and of the Holy Ghost, be with thee, henceforth, and
forever!"
An old Scotch divine has said, " It is one of the best sights
to. see an old disciple; to see silver hairs adorned with gol¬
den virtues."' How much more, to see an aged minister of
the Lord Jesus; one fairly worn out in his Master's cause!
Next morning I lost my passage in the stage, through the
carelessness of the agent. After considerable trouble and
loss of time, he was compelled to " rig up " a sleigh and
send me off alone. I bade farewell to Mr. H., who seemed
determined not to rest, without " the knowledge of salvation,
by the remission of sins." We started, and the driver was
resolved to overtake tfye stage; but common sense should
have forbidden the thought. Sometimes we had three horses
running Indian file, one before the other, and they went at a
tremendous rate, — now along huge snow-drifts, then down
on the ice of the St. Lawrence, and again on the high lands,
7
74 REVIVAL SCENES IN LOWER CANADA.
guided only in our course by small evergreens stuck down in
the snow at regular distances. I expected every moment
a complete upset; but no, we were often very near it, but
the expert Canadian always contrived to throw his body
so ■ far on the opposite side as to maintain the balance of
power; and I breathed freely again, muttering, " Oh! we
were nearly gone that time; now for another hairbreadth
escape." -
At last I had so much confidence in the driver as to be
perfectly- easy; no matter how hazardous the enterprise in
which he was involved, he always came off victorious. The
Canadian cariole has two horns in front; and as the driver
seldom sits, he is ready for any emergency. He is never
mvolved in a dilemma between the two horns ; he knows one
must be right; that one is grasped in a moment, as if by in¬
stinct, and upon this he hangs with desperation. He eyes
the danger from afar, and at the- crisis, quick as lightning,
he dexterously swings to windward, and, in spite of the most
desperate circumstances, keeps the sleigh on its runners.'
About eight o'clock in the evening, we arrived at Mon¬
treal, ninety miles from Three Rivers, and one hundred and
eighty from Quebec. The dear brethren at Montreal, re¬
gretting some of the movements of last October, were now
fully ready for a revival. The leaders' meeting' had given
me a unanimous, invitation to revisit their city, which I ac¬
cepted before leaving Quebec; promising, however, to
remain only twelve days, and then proceed to Kingston,
Upper Canada.
They had already commenced a protracted meeting, in
the large school-room, underneath the chapel, and were in
a fine state of feeling. I advised them to light up their
chapel every night, and convince the public, they were not
ashamed of a protracted meeting, nor of a real revival of
REVIVAL SCENES IN, LOWER CANADA.
75
the work of God. They did so, and our congregations in¬
creased every night. SoOn the arm of God was revealed in
the awakening of sinners ; but the converting power was
strangely withheld. We humbled ourselves before God, by
fasting and prayeT; and, at the same time, by preaching and
exhortation, we endeavoured to storm the devil's camp. Ojir
meetings grew better and better; at jthe close of each we
could say,—
" The little cloud increaseth still,
The' heavens are big with rain;
We haste to catch the teeming shower,
And all its moisture drain."
When we were fully convicted of our own utter helpless¬
ness, unless God should help us, then the Holy Ghost de¬
scended in' copious effusions; and in a short time we were
surrounded with scores of precious souls newly " born of
God." Great unity prevails throughout the society; the
preachers are exceedingly kind, and we labour together in
great harmony.
Yesterday forenoon I was called upon, with a brother, to
visit the house of mourning. When I entered, I was sur¬
prised to discern in the distressed widow, a mourning penitent
whom I had seen come forward to be prayed for only a few
nights before. She then told me that her husband was a
wicked man, and had opposed her going among the Meth¬
odists, and that she dreaded his displeasure when she re¬
turned. It seems, however, the Lord took the matter into
•his own hands, as he was taken suddenly sick the night pre¬
vious, and expired before morning.
You wish to know the names of the preachers who . are
stationed in this city. They are as follows: Rev. William
Squire, Superintendent; Rev. John P. Hetherington, and
Rev. Robert L. Lusher, editor of "The Wesleyan;" a
76 REVIVAL SCENES IN -LOWER CANADA.
paper calculated to do mueli good in "Canada, aiid I do -tope
the Methodists will support it liberally.
I fear I shall not be able to visit Kingston, and it will be
a great disappointment. The ice is already very dangerous,
and the roads are in a wretched state between here and
Kingston. My time, you are aware, is far spent. I must
visit New York before I sail. Within a few weeks past, I
have changed my intended route,' and shall sail, if God per¬
mit, from Quebec to Halifax, N. S., thence to Liverpool.
"There were more than two hundred sinners converted in
Quebec, and since my arrival, about one hundred and seventy
in this city; but we are looking for greater things than
these, as many are praying, —
" A rill, a stream, a torrent flows,
But send the mighty flood;
0 shake the nations, sweep the earth,
Till all proclaim thee God."
I have lately received a most affecting letter from Quebec,
giving an account of a dreadful fire, and the loss of four
lives. As I knew one of the sufferers, I feel the more deep¬
ly affected. One night, during the revival in Quebec, as I
was walking up the aisle, one of the brethren said to me, with
great earnestness, " Do you see that old gentleman with the
bald head ? "
"Yes."
" Well, Sir, he was once a member of our society, but has
long since left us, and what is worse, he is a miserable back¬
slider ; go and speak to him."
His words came with power to my mind, and with some
difficulty I got to him. He seemed very attentive to what
was going on, but without any apparent concern about his
soul. I was struck with his respectable and venerable ap-
REVIVAL SCENES IN- LOWER CANADA.
77
pearance. After a few words were spoken to him, a re¬
markable influence came upon mj soul. Words were given
me such as I cannot repeat. For a time he remained firm;
at last the word came as fire, and as a hammer to break
the rock in pieces. He became greatly agitated. My in¬
most soul yearned over him. I felt such a burning love to.
his soul, that I could have taken him in my arms, and have
carried him to the altar. But he would not move, although
he trembled in every limb. I told him I could not leave ;
go to be prayed for he must. I urged, entreated, conjured.
Had some polite and fashionable Christians been there, 1
am sure .they would have charged me with overstepping the
bounds of propriety, in attempting to drive the man to be
saved. ,A.h! -there .is much in that advice of Jude : " And
of some have compassion, making a difference : And others
save with fear, pulling them out of the fire 1" At last God
helped me to prevail. With a faltering step, and almost
overpowing emotion, he walked to the altar. It was full of
penitents, but he fell down near it, and in about one hour
God had mercy upon him, and healed all his backslidings.
At the close of the meeting, there were' great rejoicings over
him, and many others; among whom was one of his own
apprentices, who obtained salvation the same evening.
A letter brought me the sad intelligence, that one night,
about ten days after I had left Quebec, he, his wife, servant
girl, and two apprentices, having retired to rest, towards
morning a fire broke out in one of the lower apartments of
the house ; and, although an alarm was given, such was the
fury"of the flames, that before an attempt could be made to
rescue the inmates, all had perished except the elder appren¬
tice. " The fumes of their burning bodies made a part of
the awful column of smoke which spread itself, like the pall
of death, over our deeply-excited city," The youth who
V
78
REVIVAL SCENES IN LOWER CANADA.
was saved, is -a member of "our ehurcb. His escape was
truly miraculous. * He was awakened out of a deep sleep by
the smoke, and some indistinct cries of fire; be tried to
awaken bis companion, but tbe beat increasing, be rusbed to
tbe window, almost suffocated. Just tbentbe fire blazed all
around tbe room, and be sprang from tbe fourth story, and
alighted on tbe frozen street; yet not a bone was broken,
and be sustained but very little injury. He says, that a
little before be leaped from tbe window, be beard tbe voices
of tbe old couple in another part of tbe bouse. Alas! they
must then have been surrounded with smoke and flame.
I was informed that on Christmas morning, very early,
tbe old lady attended tbe Methodist chapel, in deep anxiety
about her soul. She said afterwards,"" I went to the chapel
with tbe intention of going forward to be prayed for, but
there was no invitation." Ob ! how necessary to be " in
season, out of season," in our efforts to save assembled sin¬
ners. She did not come again to the chapel while I re¬
mained in Quebec. Perhaps God, who had begun a good
work in her soul, completed it before that dreadful night.
Here I leave it; but, with a grateful heart, I adore that God
who enabled me, on the night referred to, faithfully and per-
severingly to attempt to save the soul of her husband from
tbe fires of tbe second death. Had be left tbe chapel that
night without decision, or converting grace, he might have
been eternally lost. Now, I believe, he is among the re¬
deemed in heaven. None of the millions who know him
there, will refuse to say, " Is not this a brand plucked out
of the fire ?" The eternal salvation, even of these two
souls, (for the young apprentice who lost his life, had been
converted also during the revival,) is worth the labour and
expense of my whole tour, although it should not result in
the salvation of any others.
REVIVAL SCENES IN LOWER CANADA.
,7?
An awful event, which lately transpired in this city, has
also made a deep impression upon my mind. I have just re¬
ceived the facts from one of our leaders. ■ A young man who
landed in this country from England, last summer, was
spending part of Sabbath, the 14th inst., in a house in .* * *
street, in company with a person who came out with him in-
the same ship. While there he took* offence at something,
and, in his passion, wished that God might strike him blind,
and dumb, and dead, if he ever entered into that house,
again. He and another companion then proceeded to a dram
shop, and had something to drink. Under the influence of
.liquor and the devil, he -returned'to the house, where only
one hour before he had uttered the dreadful imprecation.
On Tuesday, the 23d inst., while employed in front of a
house in St. Paul's street, a heavy body of snow came down
from the roof, fell upon him, and knocked him down with
such violence, that before they could get him from under it,
he was dead. " Thus," says the leader, "his impious wish
was granted; he was struck blind and dumb, so that he could
neither see nor call for assistance, and he was dead before
he could be released." The Psalmist might well say of him
who ruleth in the heavens, " Yerily, he is a God that judg-
eth in the earth." St. Peter also tells us of "a certain
class of sinners, who " bring upon themselves swift destruc¬
tion."
About the time of my arrival here from Quebec, there was
another death,- in which I was deeply interested. The fol¬
lowing is the history of the case : When I was here in 1837,
there was a powerful revival. One Sabbath night I was led
to take that text, Rev. xx. 11—13. During the reading
of the text a man began to tremble in a manner he could
not well control. He attracted the attention of two or three
praying men, and they kept their eyes upon him, hoping to
80- REVIVAL SCENES IN LOWER CANADA.
to have him forward for prayer; but as soon as the sermon
was over, he made an effort to get out, and succeeded. He
gathered strength in the fresh air, and ran for his life. These
swift-footed servants of Christ started in pursuit of the
wounded sinner. At length he reached his house, and dart¬
ed in, not without having been observed by his pursuers. In
a few moments they knocked at his door, and were admitted;
but he had disappeared. They inquired of the wife for her
husband. "He is in that room," was her reply. "We
must see him." She conducted them into the room, where
he had thrown himself upon a bed. When he saw them he'
burst into tears. They pressed the truth of Jehovah upon
his conscience,, at the same time urging him to arise and call
upon God. He did so, and they wrestled in prayer till mid¬
night, when he professed to have found salvation. Alas! he
did not long walk in the way to heaven. His old besetment,
intoxicating drink, got the better of him, and he fell from
God.
When I was here, last autumn he avoided the chapel with
great precaution, but, before I returned, a fatal disease had
seized upon him. His distress of mind and body was very great.
Some hopes, I believe, were entertained of his salvation,
before he breathed his last. The previous New'Year's Day
was a " high day" with him and his wicked companions, but
before it was over he laid the foundation of his speedy death,
We find a still further account of his labors during this
tour in Lower Canada in a letter to a friend, written from St.
John's, with which we close the present chapter.
I did not think of writing to you again before I had sailed
for Europe; but having a few moments to spare, I snatch
them to address to you a few lines.. I have abandoned the
REVIVAL SCENES IN LOWER CANADA.
81
idea of visiting Kingston at this time. Having still a deep
interest in the welfare of the little society in this place, I
gathered, from my feelings, that the Lord might have some
thing for me to do, either in strengthening the young con¬
verts of last autumn, or laying hold of some of the devil's
children, who were then wounded by the arrows of the
gospel.
I found the little society standing fast, and doing well;
but the wicked are afraid of me. They remember the Ar¬
rows of the last battle, and are better prepared to avoid
them. So true is that saying of an elegant writer, " If the
sinner is not recalled-by the invitations of the gospel, he will
be riveted by that gospel into more helpless condemnation."
I fear I made a mistake in leaving St. John's so early; and
have some suspicions that was the reason why my way was
so hedged up in Montreal last autumn.
I preached eighty-six sermons in Montreal, one temperance
sermon, and delivered five lectures on total-abstinence from
fill intoxicating drinks. More than two hundred sinners were
converted to God, and one thousand persons united with the
Montreal " Young Men's Total Abstinence Society." A
deputation from the above society visited me before I left the
city, with a request that I would give them a few months of
my time, previous to my sailing for Europe, in order to visit
a few of the towns of Upper Canada, for the purpose of
promoting the cause of temperance. A liberal sum had
been raised for the purpose, with an offer of more, if neces¬
sary, should I undertake the mission. Although I felt
myself honoured by the flattering offer, I durst not accept it.
I reflected, If my commission to visit Canada and Europe is
from God, then I am not at liberty to be an agent of this
kind ; because, in no. part of it, is a temperance agency (in
the proper sense of the term) written. On the same prin
82 REVIVAL SCENES IN LOWER CANADA.
ciple, I rejected the proposition of some of my friends, to
procure an agency for the promotion of the objects of the
"American Bible Society." True, this would lessen my per¬
sonal expenses ; but, at the same time, greatly entangle me
in my revival designs.
But, you will ask, " How could you then consistently de¬
liver so many temperance lectures in Quebec and Montreal ?"
I answer, on the same principles that I could give an ad¬
dress at a Missionary or Bible Society meeting; when I
could make such addresses subservient to the revival; when
X could mingle with my remarks those eternal truths of the
gospel which awaken and convert men; thus affording my¬
self an opportunity of'proclaiming the verities, and pressing
the claims, of Christianity upon minds which otherwise I
could not have reached; and the very next night preach the
gospel to these awakened sinners, and thus lead them not only
to be temperance men and philanthropists but real Christians,
and all this without infringing upon the rights of any par¬
ticular society, or without entanglements from claims con¬
nected with any special agency.
Under these circumstances I cheerfully embraced such op¬
portunities, and thus enjoyed the double gratification of
helping forward the interests of associations, good in them¬
selves, while I carried forward, at the same time, conscien¬
tiously, the grand design intended by God in thrusting me out
from my ordinary sphere of labour. I intend to spend only
a few days here, and then return to Montreal; and from
thence shall proceed into the United States.
Finding myself quite unsuccessful here, it was impressed
apon my mind to preach restitution. . This has created quite
a stir. I plead for the rights of government, as for those of
an individual; and insist that it is just as sinful to defraud
the customs, as to cheat in trade. The smugglers are in
REVIVAL SCENES IN LOWER CANADA.
83
great trouble. One was so powerfully wrought upon, that
he was on the point of presenting his watch to a custom¬
house officer during the sermon. So he confessed afterwards,
but congratulated himself that he had had strength of mind
enough to conquer his superstitious weakness. I think
the devil will have his difficulties in keeping some of them
quiet.
In Montreal the effects were more evident and general.
Numerous cases of restitution came to my knowledge; from
th6 small sum of one dollar, ranging upwards to two hundred
dollars. The 'history of some of the cases, though melan¬
choly, was really amusing. The conscience of a barber
■ flew in his face, accusing him of repeatedly charging two¬
pence more for a certain article than its real value; and
keener than the razor's edge was that conscience in its
operations upon his soul.
Another had acted the rogue, a few years ago, in denying
possession of a bank note to a certain amount, which he had
picked up on the street, although challenged by the owner
a few minutes after; now it was burning his soul like a coal
of a fire.
Another was the case of a young man in a mercantile
house, who had charge of the cash book. In 1839, his em¬
ployer one day made a wrong entry, by mistake, which was
to the young man's advantage. On balancing his cash
account at night, a sum ot money remained in. his hands, for
which he could not account, nor was he anxious to do so.
Some time "after, however, he discovered the error of his
master, but said nothing, having expended the sum in a cer¬
tain article. The doctrine of restitution fell upon his ears
like peals of thunder; he became deeply concerned about
his soul; but this stood between him and salvation like a
gate of iron. At last these words came to his soul with
84 revival scenes in lower canada.
awful power, <f Will you sell your soul to hell for the sum of
? " Hi a conscience recoiled and staggered under the
influence, and he cried out, " No, I will restore it!"
Another had defrauded a widow, and he sent the amount
to Mr. Squire, that it might be restored. But I cannot go
over all the cases. Excuse this very hastily written letter,
and believe me, your most affectionate friend, and brother in
Jesus Christ.
After closing these labors in Lower Canada, Mr. Caughey
visited New York for the purpose of making a final settle-
ment of his pecuniary affairs, preparatory to his European
voyage. In reviewing his tour, he wrote to a friend, " The
result has been the conversion of between four and
five hundred sinners to God. I cannot help receiving
this as a convincing proof that I have not mistaken the will
of God." Truly this was proof amounting to a"demonstra¬
tion. Nearly five hundred souls saved in a few months!
Thousands of ministers would be inexpressibly happy could
they have as many useals " in a life time. An " impression "
so fruitful as this can hardly be deemed fanciful.
CHAPTER VIII.
halifax and the voyage thither,
' In the folio-wing chapter, we sjiall enjoy the pleasure of a'
sea voyage with our indefatigable revivalist. We shall he
charmed with the innocent cheerfulness of his spirit, when
out of the din of' spiritual battle, and with the readiness of
his ardent mind to improve every opportunity for doing good,
whether in the walks of social life, or before the great con¬
gregation. Viewed merely as a Christian traveller, Mr.
Caughey is an object of interest; but there is a high moral
sublimity in his movements when seen in their relation to his
divine call. His voyage was a Voyage of faith. Like ancient
Abraham, he'" went out not knowing whither he went," and,
for the same reason, because "he was called." It is this
fact that gives his conduct its peculiar colorings, and fills the
Christian observer with admiration and even wonder at the
man whose simplicity of heart and action is equalled only by
his astonishing labors.
But notwithstanding his call from above, Mr. Caughey
omitted no personal attention to his temporal affairs, that was
necessary to enable bim to stand before the world in the as¬
pect of an honest man. Before starting for Halifax, we are
pleased to hear him saying to a correspondent, " My tem¬
poral affairs are now nearly all settled, so that I do not owe
a single shilling on the continent of America. Help me to
$ 85
86 HALIFAX AND THE VOYAGE THITHER.
praise God, for this mercy also." Praiseworthy considerar
tion! How judicious was this care for shillings! It was wise
in this devoted laborer, when engaging in Ins lofty and en¬
nobling mission, to keep himself unspotted, even from-a shil¬
ling debt, before a world whose delight it is to gainsay and
to injure the children of God.
The letters, from which this chapter is compiled, were writ¬
ten from Halifax during the month of July, 1841. He says:
I have travelled many hundreds of miles since I last
wrote to you from St. John's, the 21st of last April. I have
visited the cities of New York, Albany, and Troy. The
Lord gave me an opportunity of preaching in several town3
on my route, so that I hope some good was done. I spent
Sabbath, the 23d of May, in Whitehall, N. Y., (where I
received the call to visit Europe,) and preached three times
on that day. I had a most refreshing time among the
dear souls who were converted to God when I was stationed
here. They had lost none of their affection.
On Monday, the 24th, I visited the retired spot where
God allowed me to plead, Exodus xxxiv. 5 — T, on the 11th
of July, 1839. After that memorable period, I always
named it Providence Path; and so noted it in my private
journal. Here I had a gracious season alone, and dedicated
body, soul, and spirit to God, who enabled me to plead, with
great sweetness and power, that the blessing of .the Holy
Ghost might attend my labors in - distant lands. • Although
Dearly two years had fled into eternity since I prevailed
with God to unfold his designs, the impression to cross the
Atlantic remained as strong as -ever. I left the hallowed
ground rejoicing in God. It is possible I may see it no more;
yet it was impressed upon my mind that I should be brought
back again to praise him in that place for his abounding
mercies.
HALIFAX AND THE VOYAGE THITHER.
87
About one o'clock I left Whitehall, in the steamer White¬
hall, Captain Lyon, for Burlington, Vt.; where I arrived in
the evening. My soul was deeply engaged in prayer all the
day, many times repeating, as I walked the deck: —
44 Till glad I lay this body down,
Thy servant, Lord, attend;
And 0-, my life of mercies crown
With a triumphant -end!"
On the evening of the 28th of May I bade farewell to
my Burlington friends. Several of them accompanied me
on board the steamer. We had a very solemn time in part¬
ing. Some thought they should see my face no more:
others had confidence that L should be spared to return,,
whether they should live to see me or not. As to my own
feelings, they were too deep and various for utterance. The
friends went .ashore, and our steamer, like an arrow, darted
forward on that fine expanse of water. I walked the deck
till midnight engaged in prayer; and, after taking a last
look at the United States, retired to my berth. Next morn¬
ing I landed at St. John's. I was rejoiced to find they
had raised the chapel subscription to seventeen hundred
dollars.
I spent a few days in Montreal, and then sailed for Que¬
bec, where I arrived on the 5th- of June; I-spent about
twenty-four days in that city. It was not my intention to
stay so long, but conscientious scruples detained me. The
The Unicorn steamer was announced to sail on Sabbath, the
13th June. This involved my conscience. I could not see
it to be right for me to sail on the Sabbath ; and yet I could
not feel resigned to postpone my departure till the return of
the vessel in two weeks. I was greatly'perplexed. The
eyes of thousands were upon me; and if my own conscience
had been satisfied, I durst not give that Sabbath-breaking
88 HALIFAX AND THE VOYAGE THITHER.
city a bad example. On conversing "with the captain, and
finding him immovable, I concluded to wait two weeks ; when
he would sail positively on a week-day. ^ My mind had been
much cast down for a few days, with many sore exercises and
buffetings from the devil; but shortly after I gave my de¬
cision, the gloom was totally dispensed, and peace and joy
overspread my soul. Since then my peace has been like a
river. Isaiah xlviii.' 18.
The Quebec friends were greatly rejoiced when they
learned I would spend a couple of weeks, with them. The
chapel was opened for preaching every night, and the power
of God was displayed among his people. • Sinners were con¬
verted to God daily, and the young converts of last winter
were greatly strengthened. Never shall I forget the kind¬
ness of that dear people ; every thing was done that human
beings could do to render my stay pleasant to myself. I had
several delightful excursions, sometimes with the most agree¬
able company; often on horseback alone.
As you intend to visit Quebec, you must not fail to see
the Falls of Montmorency; they are only a few miles from
the city. The ride is charming, and the Falls will afford you
some sublime sensations. You will not be overwhelmed with
those indescribable emotions, which you felt when gazing
upon the terrific majesty and overpowering grandeur of
Niagara; but you will be conscious of feelings quite as
gracious and pleasurable. Here you will see a river of con¬
siderable magnitude, gathered into a comparatively narrow
channel, moving on under a< placid surface towards a cataract
of two hundred and forty-six feet perpendicular! Be
cautious !
" Swift shrinking hack,
I check my steps and view the broken scene.
Smooth to the shelving banks a copious flood
Rolls fair and placid; where collected all,
HATJFAX AND THE VOYAGE THITHER. 89
In one impetuous torrent, down the steep
It thundering shoots, and shakes the country round.
At first an azure sheet, it rushes broad;
Then whitening by degrees, as prone it falls;
And from the loud resounding rocks below,
Dashed in a cloud of foam, it sends aloft
A hoary mist; and forms a ceaseless shower.
Nor can the tortured waves here find repose ;
But raging still, amid the shaggy rocks,
Now flashing o'er the scattered fragments, now
Aslant the hollowed channel rapid darts;
And falling fast from gradual slope to slope,
With wild infracted course, and lessened roar,
It gains a safer bed, ",
and steals away into the bosom of the majestic St. Lawrence.
I know yon love the grand and beautiful in nature, and I am
sure you will retire from it, saying with your friend,—
" My full heart expanded, grew warm, and adored."
It is not likely you will visit Quebec in the winter; but if
you should, Montmorency is even then more grand than at
this season of the year. You- cam then walk on the ice be¬
low the falls, very close to the descending mass of waters.
Then it is you may see it with an accompaniment, which it
never has in the summer, an immense ice-cone, formed by
the spray, one or two hundred feet in circumference, stand¬
ing in the centre of the basin, and ascending as if to over¬
look the surface of the river above the falls. I thought it a
grand sight when I was here in the winter of 18B5.
If you ascend the river a short distance you will light upon
a place well worth seeing, the Natural Steps. These are
formed on a large scale by successive layers of shelving
rocks, and modified into, a great variety of figures by the
action of the waters in times of heavy freshets. Here, in
company with a gentleman from the city, I spent an hour
very agreeably; and, kneeling upon one of the steps, we had
a most delightful time in prayer.
8*
90
HALIFAX AND THE VOYAGE THITHER.
The celebrated plains of Abraham must not escape your
attention. These lie south and westof the city. Here the
famous battle was fought between the English, under Gen¬
eral Wolfe, and the French, commanded by General Mont¬
calm, September 13th, 1759. A broken column'of black
marble marks the place where the English commander died.
It bears this inscription:—
" Here died Wolfe, victorious."'
Quebec was then surrendered to the English, who have held
peaceable possession of it since, with the exception of an
ineffectual effort during the first war between England and
the United States. Here your General Montgomery was
killed, in a desperate struggle to scale the walls. The place
where he fell was pointed out to me below Prescott Gate.
Any intelligent person can show- you the place where the
English army ascended from the Jbrink of. the St. Lawrence,
on the night previous to the battle. All visiters stand
amazed when they look at this - precipice, not less .than two
hundred feet high from the river, and reflect that the cannon
and munitions of war, necessary for a great battle, were
dragged up these steeps in one short night, almost in the very
teeth of an enemy; and that these wearied soldiers should
have gained a complete' victory the next day over a vigorous
and powerful army.
Quebec is built upon a lofty promontory, formed by the
St. Lawrence and river St. Charles. The city looks best
from the river St. Lawrence. You are-aware this is the
only regularly fortified city on the continent of America.
The walls are Dearly three miles in circuit, of great thick¬
ness, from twenty to thirty feet high, surrounded by deep
ditches of great width, and surmounted by batteries at regu¬
lar distances. Every where, outside the walls, the cannon,
HALIFAX AND THE VOYAGE THITHER.
91
like large black dogs, are peeping from their threatening
ramparts. The city is entered by four or five massive gates
of plain architecture. The citadel crowns'the whole. It is
built upon the highest part' of the promontory, called Cape
Diamond, and is considered impregnable. The walls are
forty feet thick, with a ditch fifty feet wide. The whole
includes between five and six acres. There it stands in dark
magnificence; its lofty ramparts frowning down ,upon the
river and lower town, from the dizzy height of four hundred
feet. It has been well called the Gibraltar of America.
Time will not allow' me to describe the buildings, some
of which are elegant in design, and generally built of stone.
A few days before I left, I visited the Marine Hospital, an
excellent institution, and well ordered. The situation, how¬
ever, is too low. I found therein one hundred and fifty
patients, belonging to different nations; one dear sailor boy,
fourteen years of age, deeply affected me ; in the dead hour
of the night, in the Gulf of St. Lawrence, he had been
ordered aloft, and, missing his hold, he fell from the rigging
of a large ship, struck on the deck, and fractured his thigh
in three places ; poor boy, how I did feel for him! Lock¬
jaw Had commenced, but he was able to. speak a little ; he
was quite sensible, and very intelligent. His little heart was
drawn out in prayer for mercy) while I was pouring out my
soul to God for him. He told me he was born in England,
that his parents lived there, and that he had had a religious
education. His lips the next day were closed forever; and
he obtained a lonely grave on a foreign shore, without a
relation to drop a tear over his little coffin, or to raise a stone
to his memory.
I am sorry I did not learn his name, as I may possibly
visit the place where his parents reside.- It would be a great
comfort for them to know that their lovely child died pray-
92 HALIFAX AND THE VOYAGE THITHER.
ing to the God of his fathers, and that strangers were kind
to him; that his tears were not unnoticed, nor his dying-
groans unheeded; that the sympathies of heaven and earth
encircled him; that, while angel bands were conveying his
wondering' soul to heaven, stranger hands were decently
attiring his unconscious body for the grave in which- they
laid him.
A few days before I sailed from Quebec, I crossed the
river to Point Levy, and spent a few hours very pleasantly
with Mr. Johnson. We had a charming ride in his carriage.
The scenery is very beautiful; and the harbor^ shipping,
city, citadel, and adjoining country are seen to great advan¬
tage from that side of the river. We visited a party of
Indians who were encamped on the sand by the side of the
St. Lawrence, some of whom we found busily employed in
making very nice baskets of the bark of trees. One old
squaw was asleep by the side of her husband, while he was
engaged in preparing materials; another aged Indian was
slumbering by the door of his wigwam. They received us
kindly, and were quite willing to talk about the Great Spirit.
A child lay stretched on the burning sand, panting under
the intense heat of a scorching sun. We inquired why they
permitted the child to sleep there. They replied, ((It is
sick." Perhaps their Indian medicine required such an
exposure. Their wigwams were made of the bark of trees;
and altogether there was the appearance of much poverty
and degradation.
, As the heavens became suddenly darkened with clouds we
hurried back, but had to quicken our pace, as the big drops
of the coming deluge began to thicken around us: No
sooner had we got into the house than the storm came down
in fury.' I had now an opportunity of seeing^ for the first
rime, a Canadian thunder storm. Nature, from a perfect
HALIFAX AND THE VOYAGE THITHER. 93
calm, was thrown into a tremendous uproar. Tempest rolled
on tempest. The clouds in black sheets seemed flying to
either pole. The bursts of thunder were appalling. Waves
of fire rolled across the sky. The peals succeeded each
other with fearful rapidity. The earth trembled. The
heavens resembled the ocean in a storm;, billow rolling on
billow, broken here and there into fragments of fire. Al¬
though we could say,—
" This awful God is ours,
Our father and our love,"—
yet it required a full conviction of God as reconciled in
Christ, to keep our minds calm amidst these contending
elements. We were in a state of mind fully to appreciate
the sentiments of one who said, " What speaks the thunder
in its cry through heaven's clouded palaces ? There is one
God. And. when the fierce tempest has lifted the billows to
mingle with the tumult of the heavens, what voice is it that
rises higher than their loudest outcry ? There is one God.
What is the voice of those' tall pine trees and time-defying
oaks, royally waving their hands on high as they battle with
the tempest, till the hurricane bends them to sweep the
ground they have so long shadowed ? There is one God.
Is not heaven's artillery ringing it through the air, while the
red lightnings are writing it on the .troubled sky in letters of
flame, There is-one God." We all said in our hearts,
" There is one God." We did indeed stand in awe of him,
as a God of majesty and power; but we thought of Jesus
Christ, and saw there the majesty of love. This- we could
not doubt. Jesus was precious, very precious. But had
pot the character of. God been unfolded in Christ Jesus oui
Lord, who took upon him our nature, and by his miracles,
invitations and tears, his life, his sufferings, and his death,
94 HALIFAX AND THE VOYAGE THITHER.
proclaimed what otherwise we never could have known, the
love o£ God to us men and for us sinners, we might indeed
have believed in his existence, but we should have trembled
before his dreadful presence, and have been terrified by the
manifested power of the invisible God. At the end of an
hour the storm came to a Crisis, the raging winds subsided,
and the electric fires were extinguished with torrents of rain.
Soon after the rain ceased, and we had a calm and beauti¬
ful evening. A few friends put me across the harbor in a
sail-boat. As we glided over slowly, the citadel and city,
with the immense forest of shipping, appeared to great
advantage. I went straight -to the chapel, and entered into
a gracious prayer meeting. The Lord was present, and
several poor sinners were converted to God. Returning
home my soul was very happy, musing most feelingly on the
language of one of our poets: —
" How sweet at such a time as this to moralize,
And think how soon the storm of life
Shall pass, and leave this frail and earth-born
Part to seek a shelter in the grave's sweet
Solitude; and this imprisoned spirit,
Thus set free, to plume her wings, and
Soar aloft, to gaze upon the universe; and
When her circuit's done, to fold her weary
Wings fast by the foot of Gdd's eternal throne."
You will be pleased to know, that in my voyage to this
city, I had the agreeable company of two Wesleyan clergy¬
men from Quebec, the Rev. Matthew Richey, A. M., and
the Rev. Ephraim Evans, missionaries from Upper Canada,
on their way to England. The particulars of this voyage I
must defer till another time ; but, before I conclude, I ought
to state the reason why X am not now on the broad Atlantic,
as silence on tins point might -cause you some uneasiness.
When I arrived in this^city the Columbia steamship was
HALIFAX AND THE "VOYAGE THITHER.. 95
alongside the quay, with her full compliment of passengers.
We went aboard and found the crew clearing out the fore¬
castle for,the convenience.of additional passengers. The
agent offered us our passage for one hundred dollars each,
instead of one hundred and twenty-five. I considered, the
matter over, and knowing that I should suffer enough by sear-
sickness in the best part of -the ship, I recoiled from the
prospect of an augmentation of it in such accommodations ;
so I refused to proceed, saying, I would wait two weeks for
the next steamer.- My clerical friends, said they .could not
do so, as they had business of importance at the English,
Conference. It was quite easy to see from our looks, that
we had learned a lesson now, which ought to have been
known weeks before, that we should have either sailed from
Boston^ or have had our berths engaged there, if we intended
to go aboard at Halifax. Although several hundreds of
miles nearer England than at Boston, they demanded the
same fare for passage.
The .vessel is .gone, and here I am in a strange city. My
soul is very happy in God. Sweet peace and a. glow of
divine love reign throughout my soul. Glory be to God in
the highest!
^ Within his circling power I stand;
On every side I find his hand ;
Awake, asleep, at home, abroad,
I am surrounded still with God."
On the 29th of June, about noon, I bade adieu to Quebec.
During my stay there, I preached nineteen sermons, and
delivered two temperance lectures. About twenty persons
were converted to God. A large number of kind friends
accompanied me to the steamer, each vieing with the other
in manifestations of Christian love. My heart was deeply
affected. Many were the tokens of their friendship. I
thought of Acts xxviii. 10. It was so in this case. Not
96
halifax anh the voyage thither.
that I needed any thing; their kindness last winter, together
with that of the-Montreal friends, had anticipated my wants
for some time to come. It seems, however, they were not
yet satisfied. A few moments before the Unicorn started
from the dock, a person came aboard and put a letter ipto
my hand, and went ashore. My tearful eyes were fixed
upon my precious friends on the wharves as long as I could
see them. Jt is impossible to express my feelings. I re¬
strained them as long as I could, but when Quebec and those
I loved had disappeared, * * * *
After my emotions were subsided,-1 opened the letter, and,
lo ! a check on a bank in London for more than sufficient to
pay my entire expenses from Quebec to England. The ac¬
companying letter informed me that the gift had originated
with a few ladies, followers of our Lord Jesus Christ. I
cannot withhold from yOu a copy of a note which I found
folded in the check. It is from a precious servant of Christ,
one who is an honor to her sex, and an ornament to the
church of God in that city. Her kind husband and herself
have ever shown toward me" the affection of parents, and in
all my visits to Quebec their hospitable house has been my
happy home. May the Holy Ghost ever bless them and
their interesting family!
" Dear Brother Caughey : This is but a small mark of
our regard for yourself, and love for our adorable- Jesus.
May God add his richest blessing! Perhaps in some leisure
moment you may find time to look at this list, and here you
will see the names of those whose hearts the love of Jesus
has moulded to beat in unison with your own and who feel
a sweet confidence, that if we meet no more on earth, we
shall meet around the eternal- throne.
" Your obliged, and attached sister in Christ,
"Mary M'Leod."
HALIFAX AND THE VOYAGE THITHER.
97
Our beautiful steamer dashed down the St. Lawrence in
noble style. The ministers I mentioned in my last were
most agreeable companions. We had, indeed,
" The feast of reason 'and the flow of soul."
As our vessel flew along the waters, her white canvas wings
filled with the propitious "breeze, that delightful verse rolled
many times over my mind with the greatest sweetness —
" Press forward, prels forward,
The prize is in view ;
A crown of bright glpry,
Is waiting for you."
Thirty-four hours brought us to Gaspe, four hundred miles
from Quebec. On the evening of the 30th of Jftne, Mr.
Richey preached us an excellent sermon. We had about
thirty passengers aboard, and they were very attentive to
the word.
The St. Lawrence is a beautiful river. From the east
end of Lake Ontario, to the Gulf of <St. Lawrence in the,
Atlantic, is seven hundred miles, which is considered, I
believe, the length of this riyer; but the whole extent ot
water communication, by the great lakes and this river, can¬
not be less than two thousand miles. Besides, it is not only
the outlet to that great chain of western lakes I have refer
red to, it also receives the waters of Lake Champlain, the
Ottawa, or Grand River, and a great variety of tributary
streams. The scenery from Quebec to Gaspe is as diversi
fied - and picturesque as you could well imagine. From
Quebec, one hundred miles, we had almost a continuous chain
of little Canadian houses, with here and there a small village,
and the spire of a church " pointing like a silent finger into
heaven." When these are past, all is one vast scene of
desolation. Forests, rocks, precipices, and mountains, arise-
9
98^ HALIFAX AND THE VOYAGE THITHER.
in. awful and singular profusion. On approaching the Gulf,
.the grandeur and exceeding boldness of the widely separated
shores are quite befitting the mouth of such a mighty river.
The scene must he appalling in the depth of winter. We
found ourselves in the Gulf on the morning of July the 1st,
and were out of sight of land during several hours. The
weather was very fine, and scarcely a ripple ruffled that vast
expanse of waters. What a contrast between its then placid
and silvery bosom, and the terrific uproar observable here
late in the autumn or early in the spring!
Many a fine vessel has been ingulfed here ; and the bones
of vast multitudes line the shores of this- dangerous region.
Only a few weeks since, the brig Minstrel, Captain Outer-
bridge, struck a dangerous reef in a heavy sea, went down,
and nearly all on board perished. The vessel sailed from
Limerick, Ireland, last April, with one hundred and forty-one
passengers, emigrants intending to settle in Canada. It
seems they had a tolerable passage ; but when full of joy at
hailing the land of«their destination-, and supposing all their
hazards and hardships were over, in a moment the full cup
of misery was placed in their hands,, nor was it long ere they
drank it to the very dregs. At four o'clock in the morning the
vessel struck on the reef. The boats were launched and
made fast to the fore chains ; upwards of one hundred pas¬
sengers embarked in them, but their doom was quickly
sealed; the brig "heeled off" into deep water, and went
down stern foremost, and so suddenly that the' ropes of the
boats could not be cast off, and all followed the ship to the
bottom. Out of upwards of one hundred and fifty souls
only eight remained to tell the sad tale. These eight had
got into the gig, which was towing astern; providentially,
the rope which attached it to the vessel broke when she went
down, and they escaped from the yawning whirlpool.
Halifax, and the voyage thither. 99
But, all! their souls. What became oftheir souls. How
sudden the transition from time to eternity ! So many ac¬
countable beings forced, prepared or not, into the presence
of the Judge of all. The captain, poor fellow! behaved
most gallantly during the awful scene, declaring that he
would net leave the vessel till all his passengers were saved,
and he perished with the rest.
There was another event happened farther up the river
last November, which I used to great advantage at Quebec,
at a temperance meeting. Two of Her Britannic Majesty's
soldiers went on board a vessel on business; one of them
took with him a bottle of liquor; they got drunk, quarrelled,
and, seizing each other in mortal conflict, carried their ven¬
geance even unto the death. A gentleman came on deck
just as they went overboard. They continued their murder¬
ous grapple in the water till they went down to rise no more
alive. But the matter did not end here; the man who let
that soldier have the liquor had a little harbor near his
house, where he kept a small boat. One morning, a few
weeks after the event, on going down to his boat, lo! the
victim of his rum, the corpse of that unfortunate soldier lay
beside his boat. It had floated seven miles from where the
catastrophe happened. A physician told me the effects upon
the man were awful. But to return to our voyage in the
Gulf.
I felt grateful to God for the calm, not on account of our
safety merely, but I did not want to have a foretaste of my
sea-sickness before I had it in good earnest on the Atlantic
The passengers were in fine spirits ; but, at the dinner table,
some appeared to think that such spirits could not last long
unless recruited by the spirits beneath the cork. Your friend,
being of ^ quite a different opinion, was drawn into a tempe¬
rance debate. The bottles, of course anti-temperance char-
100 HALIFAX AUTD THE VOYAGE THITHEE.
acters, were powerful advocates on the other side. After
we had been contending some time, a gentleman from St.
John's, New Brunswick, observing a bloated son of the cups
deliberately depriving the corks of all authority, and liberating
most freely, for a moment, the spirits imprisoned there, then
incarcerating them in as hopeless and objectionable a prison
as ever poor alcohol had the misfortune to fall into, whispered
in my ear, A How horrible a thing it is to see a man make
such a steam engine of his stomach ! " This brought him
out, and a few strokes like the following put an end to the
debate: "I have been to Montreal, and also to Quebec. My
business to these cities has called me frequently to the cab
depots. When looking among them for a suitable convey¬
ance, I saw poor horses whose hides presented a very wide
contrast when compared with others. In a short time I
could always tell what horse belonged to a temperance man,
and what to an opposite character. When I saw- a good
looking horse, and in excellent order, I concluded, that be¬
longs to a teetotaller; and when I saw a poor animal that
the crows might be ready to fall upon, I exclaimed, The
owner of this takes the oats himselfand nothing that oc¬
curred afterwards convinced me I had come to an erroneous
conclusion;"
We had only been a few hours out of sight of land when
we hailed Prince Edward's Island, and the Island of Cape
Breton. The latter island is separated from Nova Scotia, by
an arm of the sea, called the Gut of Canso. Both islands
belong to Great Britain.
As we neared land, Prince Edward's Island looked exceed¬
ingly beautiful. And now I saw what I had long desired to
see, that strange optical illusion, " The Mirage." It is
formed by a state of the atmosphere so highly transparent
that objects beneath are reflected as in a mirror. Prince
HALIFAX AND THE yOYAQE THITHER. 101
Edward's Island seemed like a scene of enchantment, or
some fairy land. The shores arose in bold and lofty gran¬
deur twice their natural height; and every object more than
doubled its size. The little white houses along the shores
were transformed into high towers, and some of. them looked
like splendid waterfalls, equal to Montmorency or Niagara.
The whole was a complete illusion. About ten miles east¬
ward, there,was another on a parallel with the sun. It was
formed by the action of the .sun's rays upon the water, the
atmosphere being at the same time in a state of peculiar
transparency. This was entirely a water illusion. The
little waves appeared like a swamp of tall reeds, and again
like an immense sheet of water falling over the side of a
dam.
Prince Edward's Island, I understand,, contains a popu¬
lation of eighty thousand souls. Cape Breton was first
discovered by the French, and called by them L'Isle Royale.
It contains a population of thirty thousand, and sends two
members to the provincial Assembly of Nova Scotia. The
island, as I said before, belongs to England; and her naval
power in possession of it, easily commands the whole St.
Lawrence.
We east anchor in the harbor of Pictou, about dark. It
is a spacious basin formed by an arm of the Gulf of St.
Lawrence, three miles from its mouth. The small boats were
launched, and, after some- difficulty with our baggage, we
were safely put on shore., We made the voyage from Que¬
bec to Pictou, six hundred and fifty miles, in fifty-seven hours.
I was up next morning in good time in order to' get a good
view of the town. It, has . several churches, a court-house,
and an academy. Population, eighteen thousand souls.
Timber, coal, oil, and fish, form the principal articles of
trade, The town is pleasantly situated. I understand
102 HALIFAX AND THE VOYAGE THITHER.
there is a high probability that it will yet be the great em
porium of the Gulf. The harbor is often frozen in the winter.
"The coaches were ready by- noon, and, after bargaining as
we could with men who seemed determined to make the most
of us, we started for ^Halifax. The sky had a very threat¬
ening aspect, and the inside being quite full I was compelled
to take my seat with the coachman, winch, however, afforded
me the advantage of seeing the . country. Shortly the clouds
dispersed and we had a lovely day. As our route lay many
miles through an almost uninhabited desert I expected miser¬
able roads; but, to my surprise, they were excellent, equal
to any of your Macadamized roads in the United States.
Some parts of the country were very thinly settled;
others a wilderness of trees and brushwood. There was
nothing, throughout our whole journey across Nova Scotia,
looked so dreary to me as the desolate and abandoned hovels
of the new settlers. These mournful objects meet the eye
in different directions, and fill the mind with a variety of
melancholy sensations. Ah! there is a spot that pleased
the inexperienced eye of a poor exile. There he built his
hut of rough logs, and thither he conducted the partner of
his joys and sorrows with the little ones. Yonder, with his
brawny arm, he felled -the lofty trees, and opened a path for
the sunshine to the long neglected bosom of the earth. Here
was his first cleared field, still full of black stumps; the
marks of the spade and the plough, with the appearance of
a scanty harvest, are still visible. But the winter came
upon him, and the produce of his two small fields, which he
had stored so carefully in a corner of his log house, was ex¬
hausted before the long and severe winter was over. He
had no money to buy provisions, nor could he and his family
by any means subsist till a coming harvest. A council was
held, and he and his wife, with weeping eyes, bade
HALIFAX' AND THE ..VOYAGE THITHER. 103
fare-well to their home in the wilderness, and they never had
courage to make a second trial of the unkind soil.
We travelled all night, and, as morning opened upon us,
the country greatly improved, and continued to do so to
Halifax, where we arrived on the 3d instant, in the afternoon.
As I related the cause of my detention in my last, I need
not repeat it here. The Columbia sailed the evening I ar¬
rived. As soon as the Wesleyan ministers knew I was in town
they showed me every mark of kindness and respect. Here
I met my old acquaintance, the Rev. William Crosscombe,
who is Superintendent of the Halifax Circuit. He and his
excellent wife were glad to see me. I found them both as
ardent in the cause of Christ, and as deeply devoted to God
as when I parted with them in 1835 at Montreal. Mr. C.
introduced me to his colleague, the Rev. Charles de Wolfe.
We had not been long together before I found in him a
kindred spirit. We have" had some delightful rides over the
peninsula, and have taken the sweetest counsel on the things
of God. He is a most intelligent person, and possesses
talent which will, I have no doubt, enable him, if Spared,
to take the first rank among the able ministers of the New
Testament.
A home was provided for me at the house of Mr. Billings,
a merchant of the city. He, with his two daughters, h|d
just sailed for England; but Mrs. B., notwithstanding all
her cares in the absence of her husband, seemed delighted
to show me every kindness that hospitality could devise;
dear woman, she was greatly troubled at a little incident
which I know will amuse ypu. Mis. B. was inquired, of
whether she could accommodate a stranger for a few days at
her house ; her mind being troubled about the departure oft
her husband and daughters for England, and worn down with
the fatigue of getting them in readiness, she shrank from
104 HALIFAX AND THE VOYAGE THITHER.
any additional trouble i so, casting a glance at tbe stranger,
■who by tbe way was far from presenting a tidy appearance,
being in bis travelling dress, unsbaven, and covered witb tbe
dust of a long journey, she gave a positive refusal; and,
indeed, I could not blame ber. This was Saturday, and I
obtained lodgings elsewhere.
Next day she was in ber place in tbe bouse of God, and,
bearing your friend in one of bis happiest hours unfolding
the wonders of redemption, she became sorely troubled,
exclaiming to herself, " Ob! what is this that I have done ?
I have turned away from my bouse a servant of God, I have
turned away from my door a minister of Jesus Christ."
Tbe following morning she applied to Mr. Crosscombe, and
insisted I should make ber bouse my home. I did so, and
in ber I found a mother indeed.
I am now preaching every, night to good congregations. A
few have been converted to God. Will you. believe me if I
tell you that I visited tbe theatre while in Quebec,," Tbe
Theatre Royal," and that I was on tbe stage and took part
in what was going on; that I bad authority to order tbe
"necessary scenery ; that tbe theatre filled well, and that I
received great applause for my performances ? Well, so it
was! But it was a temperance meeting. I chose a dark
prison scene for tbe drapery behind tbe stage, and brought
forward two prisoners to be tried before a judge and jury.
The names of the prisoners were tbe Devil and Alcohol
Tbe chairman was the judge, and all who had not signed
tbe total abstinence pledge were tbe jury, and tbe verdict
against Alcohol was to be given by the act of signing tbe
pledge. On. commencing my address, I told them it was
proper, before I preferred my charges against tbe prisoners,
or called forth my witnesses, to apprize them that I never bad
had tbe honor of being a lawyer, nor had I ever had a law-
HALIFAX AND THE VOYAGE THITHEB. 105
suit with man, woman, or child, all the days of my,life; and,
therefore, that they must not expect me to adorn my speech
with legal phrases, nor cramp myself with the technicalities
of that profession. We had a stirring time, and a noble
verdict against Alcohol.
At the close of the meeting, Mr. Booth, of whom I think
you have heard me speak when in * * * *, and who is the
father of the temperance society in Quebec, came forward on'
the stage, and taking from his breast his own splendid medal
presented it to me, with a very neat speech, in the midst of
tremendous applause.
I arose and returned thanks to Mr. B., and acknowledged
the kindness of the audience, as well as I was capable; but,
really, I had no command of my feelings; the thing was
so unexpected and so unmerited that it almost unmanned
me.
A few days ago, in company with .Mr. Be Wolfe, I visited
the ruins of Prince William's Lodge. (Afterwards William
IV. of England.) It is situated about two and a half miles
from the isthmus, on the western banks of Bedford Basin.
Here, about thirty-five years ago, the young prince careered
in all the dissipation which wealth and luxury could afford.
The building has been rather elegant in its day, but, unlike
the ancient castles of Europe, it is not likely long to perpet¬
uate the memory of him whose name it bears. It is of wood,
but neglect and the extreme rigor of the climate have con¬
spired to render it a complete wreck, so much so that it is
dangerous to enter it. The front is much torn away; this,
and the hanging ceilings, tottering floors and empty chambers,
exposed to the gaze of the visitor, render it an object of
mournful desolation.
We wandered over the grounds, once laid out in hand¬
some walks, but now totally neglected, and overgrown with
106
TTAT/n?AY AND THE VOYAGE THITHER.
grass and weeds. Here and there we espied little summer-
houses painted white, and surrounded with
" The leafy labyrinth of embowering trees."
But the fingers of desolation are busy upon these also,
while human fingers have been writing epitaphs in a great
variety of poetic fancies.' Several of the verses penciled
upon the walls are not without merit, principally on the
vanity of earthly things; all tending to confirm that impor
tant sentiment,
"He builds too low, who builds beneath the skies."
We had not time to copy any of them ; hut, after glanc¬
ing at the circular wine-house, standing lonely and decaying
upon a jutting promontory on the brink of the basin, we
came away mournfully reflecting, Here is the place Where
the prince revelled in all the luxuriance of English living ;
but he has gone to the grave, and a singular frown of
desolation seems to hang over the scenes of his former
pleasures.
God has a good, a lovely people in Halifax. Our meet¬
ings are delightful.' There is a move among sinners, and'
one now and again converted to God. Here, as in most
places, I met with a little prejudice against the adoption
of extraordinary means for the revival of the work of God;
hut, I doubt not, could I remain here two or three months
longer, all feeling of this kind would vanish, and we should
have a warm and general co-operation from all who love
Christ and the souls of men. But I cannot stay. To-mor¬
row, if God permit, I shall sail for England. If his provi¬
dence conduct me safely over the great deep, you may
expect to hear of me from some part of that country.
The other night I gave a lecture on temperance. The
HALIFAX AND THE VOYAGE THITHER. 107
audience was very large, and for a time appeared passionless;
but when I got fairly into my subject, the cool-tempered
Nova Scotians gave ample proof that they were capable of
the highest excitement. Every man, woman, and child,
seemed resolved they would never drink another drop of
intoxicating liquor. Two dogs, which had followed their
masters to the Ineeting, got full as much excited as any of
the rationals, and gave their full-mouthed applause in-their
own way. So we had what Thomas describes so nervously,
• ^
M The clamor roars of men and boys and dogs."
Success to the Nova Scotians. If they are not as hearty as
they should be in religion, I am glad to see them at least
whole-souled on the temperance subject. Perhaps the
following anecdote may not be unacceptable : —
• Previous to the above meeting, a committee of- the city
temperance society waited upon, me, and brought with them
an old gentleman, who is a member of our church and a
warm advocate of temperance, to introduce them. In the
course of the conversation he said, " This morning I was sit¬
ting in the barber's shop, and my large dog was waiting for
me near the door. A man came in who is an habitual
drunkard. He has made efforts several times at reformation,
but has again and again fallen into, his intemperate habits.
This morning he was sober and thoughtful^ I said to him,
44 'Do you see that dog ?'
"4 Yes, I do,' said he,4 and a fine one he is too.'
441 then ordered the barber's boy to hand me an empty
glass, and I held -it toward the dog's mouth ; but the poor
animal sneaked away with his tail between his legs, as if he
were ashamed, or was about to receive a severe chastisement.
The poor fellow expressing some surprise, I asked him if he
108 HALIFAX AND THE .VOYAGE THITHER.
knew the reason why that dog sneaked away so. ' No, Sir;
why does he that ?'
" 'Well,friend, that, dog was once made drunk, and ever
■since, if a glass is held out to him thus, he acts just so. This
is a Newfoundland dog, Several years ago some fishermen
of that country made him drunk; >and such is his hatred,
on that account, toward any of the craft, that if a fisherman
or fisherman's hoy should hold out the glass to him he would
capsize him in a moment. He would bite him.'
" My hearer felt the reproof, and made his exit, not without
receiving a lesson which I trust may be made a lasting
blessing."
CHAPTER IX.
T H E ATLANTIC VOYAGE.
As the reflective reader peruses this chapter, he will not
fail to notice the inflexible adhesion of our traveller to the
grand object of his mission. In the friendly outpouring of
his soul in this characteristic correspondence, he has, with
manifest unconsciousness, revealed its devotion to its chosen
work of soul-saving. Amidst the mixed society of the
steamship he maintains the character of the Christian laborer,
and is ready to grapple in argument with the sceptic, to utter
an adroit and cutting rebuke to the gambler, to preach the
gospel alike the purse-proud voyager in the cabin, and to
the poor sailor in the forecastle. This is as it should be.
The Christian, and more especially the Christian minister,
should see his field of labor every where; and seize upon
every opportunity to work for his master. Not only should
he be heroic,
" In the world's broad field of battle,"
but also
" In the bivouac of life."
In house, shop, street, ship, every where he should keep
diligently at his master's wurk.
It is in this, devoted spirit we find our revivalist traversing
the "boundless sea." But why is he found there at all?
10 109
110
THE ATLANTIC VOYAGE.
Why is he not moving in the quiet sphere of a village or city
pastor ? Why does he encounter the dreary storm ?—The
dangers and unpleasantness of the ocean waste ? Why goes
he to another land ? Does he expect to be greeted by the
open hands and burning hearts of affectionate friends ? Nay!
His friends are behind him. None but strangers will he
meet on the shores to which be hastes. Why then does he
go at all ?
Reader! Our traveller believes God has a work for him
to do in the British Islands. He travels as a special ambas¬
sador for Christ! Faith in his call to this high mission is his
only support. Inspired by this faith alone, he approaches a
land already filled with ministers, many of whom rank far
above him in position, influence, talent, learning, and skill!
How Quixotic and fanatical if self-inspired! How sublime
in his faith! — how simple in his obedience if called of God !
But let us join him on this ocean voyage.
On the 19th of July, 1841,1 went aboard the steamer
Britannia, Captain Clellan, and sailed about seven, P. M.
I spent fifteen days in Halifax, preached eighteen sermons;
several sinners were converted to God, and one class-leader
professed to have received the blessing of entire sanctifica-
tion. I formed an acquaintance with some of the excellent
of the earth in that city, several of whom accompanied me
to the ship. No sooner had we cleared the harbor, than I
began to be sick. The Lord favored us with fine weather
till Saturday morning. That was a bleak morning to me.
Nothing was to be seen but sky and water. Our ship was
tossed about upon the angry waves like a feather. We
could well believe the sentiment of a poet: .
" The wave behind impels the wave before;
The waves that rise would drown the highest hill."
THE ATLANTIC VOYAGE.
Ill
Now the vessel was lying across the deep trough of two
foaming billows, and again hanging on the dreadful steeps of
a mountain wave. Sometimes both wheels were cut of the
water; at others, one wheel would be buried deep in the
troubled sea, while the other was several feet from the sur¬
face.. It was astonishing to see under what perfect com¬
mand our engineer had the steam and machinery. The
surgeon told me the greatest caution and vigilance were
required to regulate the power in proportion to the dip' of the
wheels; as error or neglect would, in a few moments, be
attended with the most fatal consequences to the machinery.
To lie in my berth I could not, to sit still when out of it
was impossible ; ,so, with a few other determined spirits,v I
clambered to the hurricane deck. Here we walked, or ran,
or staggered, or sprawled, according to the force of circum¬
stances ; and if some of these poor sinners had never read
Psalm cvii. 23—28, they did at this time receive a most
striking comment upon the passage. While some of us were
battling with the tremendous motion, resolving to keep on
our legs in spite of all the laws of gravitation, we amused
ourselves with the reflection, if the sea does not succeed in
finding us pleasure, we are quite sure it affords us employ¬
ment.
I thought of the man who, when asked what were the first
principles and principal parts of eloquence, replied, "Action !
action! action!" If so, the deck of a ship in a storm is the
place to learn action. There is not a gesture peculiar to the
eloquent orator that he will not be forced to imitate, unless
he cling to the bulwarks with his head over the side; like
some timid preachers 1 have seen, who seemed determined
not to lose the pulpit although they might their argument.
Head and arms, and legs and feet, are all in motion; some¬
times, indeed, not the most graceful, as, in " the storm and
112
THE ATLANTIC VOYAGE.
passion of the soul," it is diffiulf to avoid " overstepping the
modesty of nature but some are the most graceful imagin¬
able. Nor should we forget the expression of the counte¬
nance at particular seasons, nor the eye in " fine frenzy
rolling," all indicative of the strongest emotions in the region
of the heart. If a man have acquired an awkward method
of walking, this is the place to get clear of it, for here he is
put through all the varieties of gait poor human nature is
capable of. If he choose to indulge in soliloquies, and he
will he much inclined to do so, he can relieve himself most
pathetically without disturbing any body, as the most of those
around him are as prone to the same indulgence as himself;
and the nimble winds will carry away his voice with the roar
of the waves and rigging he knows not whither. Here he is
" alone 'midst busy multitudes."
And this is the spot to exercise the lungs, and give com¬
pass to the voice. Only let our soi-disant orator have an
audience of two or three, and resolve to be heard; if he sue
ceed, he need never have any misgivings about making the
most distant persons of thousands hear. I wondered that
Demosthenes should have stood by the sea shore to exercise
himself in oratory, amidst the roar of the waves ; had he
only put out from the land when the storm was abroad upon
the deep, he might have studied at one and the same time
gesture, and elocution. The promenade, or what some call
the hurricane deck, is the place to exercise one's judgment,
I mean during a gale. Eor instance, two or three dozen
waves are coming on with the swiftness of race horses. Now,
the question is, what part of the vessel will they strike first ?
On the starboard or larboard ? The head or stern ? In
what direction is it likely the groaning ship will lurch ?
What degree of inclination in the opposite direction will be
safest and most necessary to neutralize these " eccentric
THE ATLANTIC VOYAGE.
113
laws of gravitation ?" Shall I incline to,the north or south,,
east or west ? At an angle of how many degrees ? Quick!
alas! I am flat on the deck, or clinging to the bulwarks,
holding on in desperation, while I am greatly at a loss
whether to show my displeasure at the outrageous laughter of
my more fortunate companions, or at the fickle ship and
unsteady elements, or retreat at once from the scene of my
humiliation. The wisest way, however, is to do neither.
Every mishap of this kind must he taken .in good part; and
it is generally thought no. small mark of talent and good
breeding, when a man can gather himself up without embar¬
rassment, and rejoin-the company in a manner the most
graceful and easy. I assure you many have found it very
difficult to avoid the indulgence of a secret wish, that the
good ship would try an experiment upon some of the rest,
especially the merry ones. Then here a man may learn
how to treat the world, and it is a fine opportunity. If many
are walking to and fro we must always be willing to go out
of the straight line of an intended course, in order to avoid
concussions with our fellow-travellers. We must bear and
forbear, live and let live, and join hands sometimes to keep a
poor fellow on his feet.. If a lurch of the vessel has sent a
fellow-passenger adrift, so that he has lost all authority over
his limbs, do as you would be done by, catch him if you can,
but if not without a violent collision, let him go,
" Jo run, or walk, or swing, or tumble;
As matter and as motion jumble."
This is the place to learn forbearance. If a friend crosses
my path, and treats me to an upset, I must not get out of
humor; the enemies outside are to blame, and they don't
care a farthing for our wrath. It is hard to feel quite right
sometimes. Eor instance, a stupid fellow is gawTcing around,
10*
114
THE-ATLANTIC VOYAGE.
and not minding what he is about; a sudden jerk, and away
he comes like an avalanehe, and " at one fell swoop " you
are level with the deck ; and, if you keep your temper, you
may reason with philosophic Locke, " If a greater force than
mine holds me fast, or tumbles me down, I am no longer
free." And if you have the good fortune to get clear of
the grappling limbs of your vulgar companion, and have the
privilege of shifting for yourself as you roll along, whether
you will or not, you may experiment upon another plain
principle of philosophy, laid down by a thinking man ; and
if you are too busy in other matters I am sure the spectators
will think for you: " When a man tumbles a roller down a
hill, the man is the violent enforcer of the first motion; bat
when it is once tumbling, the property of the thing itself con¬
tinues the motion."
Well, the day passed away slowly. I am sure it was the
most bleak and tedious day of my existence; a day never to
be forgotten. But the motion outside was nothing when
compared with the " dread commotion of my interior self."
Milton somewhere talks about
" Prodigious motion felt, and rueful throes."
I wonder if the poet was ever sea-sick. No one who has
ever felt this " prodigious . motion," and these " rueful
throes," will ever wonder at the strong expressions of ano¬
ther poet:—
" Cease, cease, thou foaming ocean,
For what's thy troubled motion,
To that within my breast ?"
As night approached the wind lulled considerably, but strong
necessity kept me on my feet till eleven o'clock.
As I was pacing the deck with tolerable steadiness, a little
man stepped up to me, and entered into conversation upon
THE ATLANTIC VOYAGE.
115
religious subjects. Perceiving that he loved to talk, and
quite preferred to be the principal speaker, and not being
much in the talking mood myself, his "ruling passion" had
free scope. , Finding me so teachable, he began to open his
mind upon all subjects which he thought a man of my age
should have long since understood. The character of his
mind assumed a mongrel complexion, part Quaker and part
Deist. War he abhorred, and all kinds of priestcraft; and
all priests were brimful of war and priestcraft, priests of
every denomination. All denominations of Christians were
wrong; the Quakers were the nearest right, but somewhat
astray also. I toldffiim I entertained a very high respect
for pious clergymen of all denominations. This aroused him,
and he recapitulated his arguments, as he thought, in a most
convincing manner. I then began to put the little man on
the defensive, by proposing questions and starting objections,
but carefully avoided affirming any thing. For a time, as I
still retained the character of a learner, he retained his good
humor; but finding, what I before suspected, that it was
much easier to ask questions than to answer them, he be¬
came very boisterous. His voice, not by any means pleas¬
ing, arose in shrillness to a squeak; so if one storm had
subsided, here was the beginning of another. It was very
gratifying to him that I should be the humble pupil, but it
became rather hazardous for the pupil to confound the tutor.
The dilemma was sometimes most humiliating. After labor¬
ing hard upon some plain question, and that too with the
generous prolixity of one who said on another occasion, " I
know your mind, and I will satisfy it; neither will I do it
like a niggardly answerer, going no. further than the bounds
of the question." Poor fellow, going beyond " the bounds
of the question" involved him again in other questions,
' until he found himself in such a labyrinth that he lost all
116
THE ATLANTIC VOYAGE.
patience, and called me a "blockhead," " a most ignorant
man," " exceedingly weak-minded," " incapable of under¬
standing or appreciating an argument," etc.
I told him all that might be very true; but, as I had
placed myself in the capacity of a learner, he,must not get
out of humor with me, but have patience. Then, in great
pity, he would again condescend to my weakness of intellect,
and would try to make the thing appear as plain as A B G;
but this gave rise to other objections, and he was driven to
his wit's end to explain and defend some palpable contradic¬
tions. At last he exclaimed, " You are either a knave or
a fool." ,
I replied, in the height of good humor, " I do not feel
greatly desirous of setting you right as to what I am, but I
do assure you your, self-conceit, to say the least, has involved
you in the fog ; so that I will venture to say, you don't know
to which point of the compass to steer for the rest of your
argument."
But I was quite mistaken. After calling me some hard
names he steered for the stairway of the promenade deck
and disappeared, to the no small amusement of oije or two
passengers who had kept close to our heels during "the con¬
versation. I happened to be wrapped in my cloak that night,
and concluded he would not know me in the day-time ; but
he did,-and was exceedingly shy for several days; but,
before our voyage was over, he became very sociable, and
never once recurred to our first acquaintance on the prom¬
enade deck.
Another incident occurred one night, either before or
after, I.am not sure which. I was sitting in the saloon read¬
ing. A number of gentlemen had commenced on my right
hand playing cards. I concluded not to retire, and continued
reading. The author suggested a few thoughts, and as I
THE ATLANTIC VOYAGE.
117
was in the act of noting them down in my pocket-book, one
of the party turned round from his cards and said, " You
are making extracts, eh ? "
I answered, Yes, and turned his attention to -the lxxiii.
Psalm. I told him there "was great beauty and -majesty in
the whole Psalm;, but the 16th, 17th, 18th, and 1,9th verses
were very significant: u When I thought to know this; it
was too painful for me; until I went into the sanctuary of
God; then understood I their end. Surely thou didst set
them in slippery places : thou castedst them down into de¬
struction. How are they brought into desolation, as in a
moment 1 they are utterly consumed with terrors."
It appears, Sir, the Psalmist was pained, if not bewildered,
on beholding the prosperity, apparent happiness and security,
of ungodly men. He had been viewing them from various
points of observation, but never could find his mind other
than in a state of confusion respecting them, till he took his
position in the sanctuary -of God. You know, Sir, I con¬
tinued, that landscape painters have to change their position
often before they are satisfied as to the best and most com¬
manding view of the scenery. One of these will wander up
and down, from rock to rock, and from one jutting promon¬
tory to another, until he lights upon a spot which, above all
others', affords the most superior view. So it was with the
Psalmist, when his post of observation was " the sanctuary
of God," where he had a, commanding view of eternity;
•heaven and hell were now spread before the eye of his faith;
then it was he saw the dreadful precipice, upon the slippery
steeps of which the sinners of his day were sporting; and
he exclaimed, in a way he never ,could before, " Surely thou
didst set them in slippery places ; thou castedst them down
into destruction. How are they brought into desolation, as
in a moment! they are utterly consumed with terrors."
118
THE ATLANTIC VOYAGE.
The cara player was very uneasy, and, as soon as I had
closed my remarks, his head turned the other way, and he
took good care not to ask me any more questions. He
neither liked the position I occupied, nor was he satisfied
with his own. Who knows but even this seed sown upon, the
waters of the broad Atlantic may yet spring up and' bring
forth fruit unto eternal life ?
But to return. That stormy Saturday and its night passed
away, as other days and nights have done, and a pleasant
Sabbath succeeded. The captain requested me to preach
to the passengers, which I did about eleven o'clock, to as
many as the large saloon would hold. Text, Hebrews vii. 25.
All were very attentive, God was there, and a very gracious
influence seemed to rest upon every mind. I described
Christ as the only acceptable medium of access to God:
" Come unto God by him." Two ways of approach unto
God were then pointed out. First. To come unto God for
pardon and salvation. Second. To wait till we are driven
to be judged and damned. I insisted that God and the sin¬
ner must meet in this world or the next. That the man
who will not come unto God to be pardoned must at last
suffer the driving process. He must be driven to God for
judgment, and from thence into hell. Again:' That it was
just as possible to be damned in coming to God in a forbid¬
den manner, as in not coming at all; and commented upon
the sixteenth chapter of Numbers.
My second proposition was the encouragement we have to
come unto God by Christ. First. His ability to save,
"He is able," etc. Second; His, willingness, "He ever
liveth to make intercession for us." An interceding Jesus
proves he is a willing Saviour. Third. The extent to which
his ability and willingness can go to save us, " To the utter¬
most." Concluded with an exhortation.
THE ATLANTIC VOYAGE.
119
I did not intend it, but 1 have scribbled away till, Io! you
have the outline of my first sermon on the Atlantic. At the
close of the service the captain invited me to preach to the
crew, which I did after dinner. It was very sweet and.
solemil to hear the tolling of the ship's bell. Many of the
passengers mingled with the sailors. The vessel rolled about,
but I contrived to stand pretty firmly, while discussing
Hebrews xi. 7. Thus ended the feeble labors of another
blessed Sabbath of my existence.
On Monday the waves ran very high, but I had become
quite a sailor; had sonie pleasant conversations with several
of the passengers, and spent part of the day in assisting
a German to the right pronunciation of some English words
with which he had great difficulty.
The weather continued rough, and the restless sea, oh!
what shall I say ?
" Wave rolling after wave in torrent rapture !"
But day and night our fine steamer never paused. Onward she
pressed to her port amidst a thousand insults. The prophet
Habakkuk speaks of the " deep" uttering his voice, and lift¬
ing up his hands on high." Many-fisted waves were lifted
up, and thousands of them would come rushing on in rapid
succession, like so many giants, each more eager than the
other to strike and overwhelm her; some would fetch her a
blow right in the face, and half a dozen on the side of the
head; while others threw themselves entire upon her; but
rolling and staggering, she mounted upon their backs and
" ran through a troop," while thousands of her enemies fell
beneath
" Those fleshless arms, whose pulses beat
With floods of living fire!"
120
THE ATLANTIC VOYAGE.
In the midnight hour or at the morning dawn we could hear
" The beatiDg of her restless heart,
Still sounding through the storm! '*
As we were flying along the face of the waters, reflect¬
ing that seven days had nearly passed away since we lost
sight of the American continent, we were cheered with the
exclamation, "Land! land!" and "land! land!" was
re-echoed from every part of the ship. *• In a short time- we
were close upon the northern coast of Ireland; and about
dark we ran down between Torry Island and Ireland, in the
midst of an angry sea. The moment we lost our hold .upon
any part of the vessel we were- dashed about like footballs.
Next morning we were still close upon the shores of Ireland;
and in the course of a few hours we found ourselves running
O
along the coast of Wales. The pleasant hills of old England
rapidly opened to our view, with Liverpool in the distance.
After a pause of a few minutes, in order to receive a pilot,
we entered the river Mersey, and landed about seven o'clock
on the evening of the 29th of July. We made the passage
from Halifax to Liverpool in not quite ten days J the quick¬
est, I have been informed, on record.
CHAPTER X.
the denouement.
There is something exquisitely touching in the simple and
natural narration, which Mr. Caughey has given below, of
his mental exercises on arriving at Liverpool. - Guided by
an impression, which worldly men and formal professors
would treat with positive contempt, and which even truly
spiritual minds would regard with a-degree of suspicion, he
had left his quiet pastorate in "Vermont, buffeted the violence
of the ocean's storms, and arrived in the land which was
divinely designated as the theatre of his future successes.
But, who would believe in his mission ? Who would put faith
in an impression, which, however potent and authoritative to
his own mindcould have little weight with others, especially
with strangers. Indeed, to confess the cause of his coming
would certainly render him obnoxious to the charge of enthu¬
siasm. Knowing all this, is it wonderful that a spirit of sad¬
ness took possession of his heart ? Can we feel surprised
to read that a sense of loneliness, a feeling of perplexity, an
apprehension of evil disturbed his spirit ? Nay! All this
was perfectly in accordance with human nature ; while, the
degree of serenity he did retain, the patience with which he
waited for God to open an effectual door, and, above all, the
tenacity with which his heart clung to the reality of his call,
and the certainty of his final success, exhibit him in an
aspect of true moral sublimity ; of holy heroism ; of a man
11 121
122
THE DENOUEMENT.
whose convictions of duty are intelligent, sincere, enduiinj
and any thing hut the offspring of fanaticism. But we mus,
let him relate his own interesting story of his emotions, as he
walked the streets of Liverpool and followed the guiding hand
of God. He says:—
All are strangers, and every thing is strange. I have
walked from street to street, and from place to place, un¬
knowing and unknown. Although I have prayed without
ceasing, ijb is no easy matter to keep my heart from sinking
into despondency; hut, as I have experienced this state of
mind so frequently before some remarkable '-success in my
ministry, it does not much discourage me, although it is pain¬
ful. I have not, as yet, formed a single acquaintance in
-Liverpool, if I except my good landlord of the Saracen's
Head Hotel; who, by the way, is an excellent man, and
keeps a very good house, as good as any Christian traveller
could require. I have found his family prayer very profit¬
able to my soul. I enjoyed sweet communion with God
during the voyage, with a very deep sense of my entire
nothingness. Often -did I think when walking the deck, If
God did not intend to make the weak things of the world
confound the things which are mighty; and base things, and
things which are despised, and things which are not, to bring
to nought things that are ; he never would have chosen and
called me, nor have sent me forth on this solemn and impor¬
tant tour.
What is before me I know not, but I deeply feel there are
sore trials approaching. My mind is very unsettled as to
what course I ought to take, or where I should open my
commission; but my soul is calmly awaiting . orders from
above. Several times to-day I have had thoughts of going
immediately into France and Italy, as this is the best season
THE DENOUEMENT.
12,3
of the year to see those countries; but a voice in my solitary
heart seems to say, "No, if you go there now, you must
go alone, for God will not go with you." My heart con¬
stantly replies, Then if God will not go with me there, God
forbid I should attempt it. As it is written, " The steps of
a good man are ordered by the Lord." I have some confi¬
dence that God is by this method- controlling and ordering
my steps; but he commands me no where, and I am doing
nothing for God here. There is nothing to be seen that
would afford me any comfort so long as I do not see lost sin¬
ners coming home to God.
The English Conference is now sitting in Manchester; I
am undecided whether to visit it or not. The preachers, no
doubt, will be all engaged; and, as I have no particular
business there, I should be as much alone as here. I must
close this letter in a state of entire uncertainty respecting
my providential path. My soul is sitting at God's footstool,
having no will, but referring all to him, saying, " Lord,
God, if thou hast sent me forth, direct my goings."
These statements open his heart to our inspection at a
most interesting period of his movements. And this is one
of Mr. C.'s peculiarities. Not only in his writings, but also
in social life and in the pulpit, he is remarkable for the
transparency of his character. He seems to have nothing
to conceal, and is willing you should look into the secret
workings of his soul. How delightful, too, is the place and
position of his soul at this trying period, " Sitting at (rod's
footstool, having no will." He did not have to sit thus a
great while. A faint light guided him to Manchester. He
describes his visit thither in the following language : —
On the afternoon, after much prayer, I started for Man-
124
'THE DENOUEMENT.
Chester by railroad, arrived there about dark, and put up at
the Star Hotel. Next day, Sabbath, I heard the Rev. Dr.
Bunting. High as were my expectations, I was not disap-,
pointed. His sermon was a clear and beautiful exposition
of that striking text, Hebrews ii. 10. It was just such a
discourse as only a master in Israel could preach. The
Doctor appeared in excellent health, and was listened to
with breathless attention. In the evening, at another chapel,
I heard the Rev. John M'Lean, on Romans x. 4, and was
highly delighted. I was exceedingly pleased with the man,
his manner, and his language. There was a gracious Unc¬
tion in every part of the sermon. I am sure much good was
done, and could he have stayed at the prayer-meeting which
followed the sermon, and assisted the brethren by his pres¬
ence and influence " to draw the net ashore," I am per¬
suaded a multitude would have been entangled within its
ample sweep. As it was, a few came forward to be prayed
for, but none appeared to have the influence of Mr. M'Lean.
The people gradually left the house, and, I think, none were
converted to God. I mourned about it, still I believe it did
not return unto the Lord void; but the frequent failures of
such powerful discourses, as it regards the immediate gather¬
ing in of awakened sinners, have made mo suspicious.
I formerly cast out the net in this way and retired, with¬
out taking the trouble to see whether any soul had got
entangled therein ; and for months together I was not aware
of a single seal to my ministry. The brethren would often
say, " We are on the eve of a powerful revival," but when
next Sabbath came, sinners were as far from God as ever,
and were once more ready to play around and inside my
harmless net. At last I came to the determination that I
would stand by my net with tears and many prayers, and
that I would not leave the fishing-place till I had seen what
THE DENOUEMENT.
125
success. Then it was I began, to see, more abundantly, the
positive fruit of my labors. Sometimes, indeed, we have
" toiled all night," and have caught nothingbut then
Ve had this satisfaction, The net has been drawn ashore, and
we have done the best we could; the fish, have escaped this
time, but next Sabbath, by the help of the Holy Ghost, I
will endeavor to have my net ready to let down " on the
right side of the ship," so constructed, and of such materials,
that sinners will find it difficult to run through it or get dis¬
entangled from it. There is much meaning in that invitation
and promise which Jesus gave to Simon, and Andrew his
brother, as they were casting their net . into the sea of Gal¬
ilee, " Come ye after me,'and I will make you to be fishers
of men."
Is there not also an important lesson in that singular illus¬
tration used by our Lord, in the thirteenth of Matthew:
" The kingdom of heaven is like unto a net that was cast
into the sea, and gathered of every .kind, which, when it was
full, th6y drew to shore, and sat down and gathered the
good into vessels, but cast the bad away ?" When a minis¬
ter's health will allow him, and suitable' persons are willing
to assist, a lively prayer meeting after the evening sermon
greatly promotes the design of the Christian ministry.
On Monday I heard the Rev. Robert Newton preach what
is-called the " Conference sermon," text, 1 Cor. i. 23. The.
chappl was literally crammed. He carried us along on the
majestic stream of his eloquence during an hour, and closed
amidst hearty expressions of satisfaction and joy, especially
from his admiring brethren in the ministry. Mr. Newton
looked quite as well as when I saw him in New York, in
1839. In the evening, the candidates for ordination related
their conversion and call to the work -of the ministry, before
a yery crowded audience.
11*
126
THE" DENOUEMENT.
Next day; I sent my ordination parchments into Confer¬
ence, with the recommendatory letter of my Conference,
when a ticket of admittance was sent me, signed by the Presi¬
dent, the Rev James Dixon. Here I became acquainted
with several of the preachers. The Rev. William Lord, of
Hull, showed me great .kindness, and gave me a pressing
invitation to visit that town. I was introduced to the Rev.
Thomas Waugh, and the Rev. William Stewart, representa¬
tives from the Irish! Conference. Mr. Waugh received me
with all that full-toned ardor which is so peculiarly Irish.
His heart was open to me in a moment; and learning that I
intended to visit Ireland, he took his pen, and wrote me a
letter of introduction to all the Wesley an Methodist ministers
in Ireland. Mr. Stewart is the most agreeable and enter¬
taining companion I have ever met. , It would be impossible
for you to be in his company five minutes without thinking
of Proverbs iii. 17. -
After the pleasure of dining with several members of Con
ference, among whom was Dr. Hannah, once, you will
remember, the representative to the American general Con¬
ference, I stepped .into a railway carriage, and arrived once
more in Liverpool. It was then strongly impressed upon my
mind to sail for Dublin, although I did not know a humaD
being there. After much prayer I felt fully persuaded that
this was the path of Providence. When walking towards
the docks, I noticed that two steamers were to sail that
evening; and as the charge for a cabin passage in one was
only half as much as the other, I chose the cheapest, and for
once in my life I paid dearly for my economy. We encoun¬
tered a very heavy gale during the night; some of the pas¬
sengers were much alarmed, but I slept most profoundly till
morning. . A gentleman came down into the cabin before I
arose, and said, " We have a heavy gale, and it is right in
THE DENOUEMENT.
127
our. teeth. The wind says to our steamer, No, and the en¬
gine says, Yes, faintly. We are making about two miles an
hour." On going upon deck, to' my surprise, we were
only creeping along the "coast of Wales ; our progress had
been very slow during the night, as we were, only a few
miles from Liverpool. Now I found out my mistake; instead
of taking the mail steamerj had gone aboard a heavy freight-
boat. During the gale I resorted to my old method of deck
walking, but a few steps convinced me this must be aban¬
doned.
Well, if I could not use my feet, I held on with my hands,
and gave employment to my eyes, in scanning the mountain¬
ous scenery of Wales. We had terrible t'ossings along the
coast of the Isle of Anglesea.
-After gaining Holyhead we steered with a straight course
for Dublin, at which place we landed about midnight. I put
up at the hotel of the Northumberland Buildings. Next
morning I arose in good health, but with great mournfulness
of spirit. Throughout the day-my mind was sorely de¬
pressed. I thought of what the Lord said to the -Israelites:
"Ye know the heart of a stranger, seeing ye were strangers
in the land of Egypt." The day was wet, the streets ex¬
tremely dirty, and wherever I went I was surrounded with
swarms of the most importunate beggars. Their pleadings
for help against hunger and distress were the most doleful
you could imagine. After some difficulty, I found the
preacher's house in Whitefriar's street. On presenting Mr.
Waugh's letter of introduction, I was received with great
kindness by the Rev. Robinson Scott. A few moments in
his company convinced- me, this man is entirely devoted to
God; and an acquaintance of several weeks has confirmed
and deepened the impression. After a short conversation,
which greatly cheered my mind, he . conducted me to Lower
128
THE DENOUEMENT.
Abbey street, and introduced me to the junior preacher, the
Rev. George Vance. With him my heart was united in a
few moments. Thus, in the same day, I formed an acquaint¬
ance with two servants of God, which every day's intercourse
endears, and for which, I believe, I shall praise God through¬
out eternity. _ A few days after, I had the pleasure of being
introduced to their excellent colleague, the Rev. Henry
Price. On Saturday night, after I had retired to rest, Mr.
Vance called at the hotel, and requested me to preach the
next day at the Henderick street chapel, to which I agreed.
Next morning my souL-was sorely buffeted by Satan.
" Your adversary the devil," says. St. Peter, " as a roaring
lion, walketh about, seeking whom he may devour." He
roared against my soul. The forty-second Psalm, and the
following lines, express what I then felt: —
As pants the wearied hart for cooling springs,.
That sinks exhausted in the summer's chase,
So pants my soul for thee, great "King of kings,
So thirsts to reach thy secret resting place.
On briny tears my famished soul hath fed,
While taunting foes deride my deep despair;
Say, where is now thy Great Deliverer,
Thy mighty God, deserted wanderer, where ?
•Why throb, my heart ? Why sink, my saddened soul ?
Why droop to earth, with various woes oppressed ?
My years shall yet in blissful circles roll,
And joy be yet an inmate of my breast.
I know this experience will not surprise you, for our
blessed Lord said to bis. disciples, " My soul is exceeding
sorrowful, even unto death." I had no doubt of the favor
of God, nor that the blood of Christ had cleansed me from
all sin, but my soul was like the grapes in the wine-press.
Have you ever read those beautiful lines of Rev. Charles
THE DENOUEMENT.
129
Wesley, descriptive "of the mental conflicts of Thomas Walsh,
who died in this city many years ago ?
Impatient to be truly great,
Ambitious of a crown above;
He coveted the highest seat,
He asked the gift of perfect love.
He asked, alas ! but knew not then,
The purport of his own desire,
How deep that cup of sacred pain,
How searching that baptismal fire.
The Lord allowed his bold request,
The servant is called forth to share
That anguish of a wounded breast,
Those pangs, which only God could^bear.
Who drank in his sad days of flesh,
The potion by his Father given,
And bids his members feel afresh,
The fierceness of the wrath of Heaven.
A taste of that mysterious cup,
His faithful follower now received,
And filled his Lord's afflictions up,
While grief beyond description grieved.
The above is perhaps too strong for my experience at this
time, but my soul was amazed and sorely tried.
After taking breakfast with a few pious persons, at Mr.
Vance's lodgings in Abbey street, a young brother conducted
me to Henderick street. The congregation was small. To
them, for the first time in Europe, I opened my commission,"
from John xvii. 1: " Father! the hour is come." The Lord
touched the hearts of several, and a gracious influence rested
on the whole congregation. At the conclusion of the ser-.
vice I quietly retired through a door under the pulpit, and
regained the street, little imagining the stir which had been
excited among the dear people in the chapel. Some were
180
THE DENOUEMENT.
saying, " Who is he ?" others, " What is his name ?" One
little party were inquiring, " Who sent him here ?" and
another, were fully of opinion that " this stranger should be
invited to preach again at night."
In the mean time I and my guide were hastening back
again to Abbey street chapel, to receive the sacrament.
Two brethren, William Fielding and Richard Craig, who
have since been very valuable friends to me, were dispatched
after us, and when they overtook us they presented the wish
of the people. I consented on condition it should be agree¬
able to the preachers. They soon obtained permission, and
that night I preached to a large congregation with a good
degree of liberty. An influence from heaven rested "upon
the leaders; and, after a. consultation with their ministers, it
was resolved to hold " special services " during the week,
" to promote a revival of the work of God." I agreed to
preach four nights, but with the secret determination to leave
the following' week. I left the hotel on receiving a pressing
invitation from Mr. Fielding to make his house my home.
Towards the latter part of the week we found ourselves sur¬
rounded with weeping penitents. The glory of the Lord
filled the house, and sinners were daily converted to God.
We continued these services in this chapel during four weeks.
A select meeting was then appointed for the young converts,
and one hundred and thirty persons came forward to testify
that God, for Christ's sake, had pardoned all their sins.
All the young converts were very clear as to the distinct
manner in which they had been awakened, as well as in the
time and place of their conversion. This will be of no small
assistance to them in their future conflicts, if they prove faith
ful. A Christian has great advantage over the enemy of
his soul, when he can confidently, refer to the precise place
( and exact time of his adoption into the family of God. My
THE DENOUEMENT;
133
soul was much comforted in beholding such an affecting scene.
The language of my heart was,—
" Who, I ask, in amaze,
Hath begotten me these ?
And inquire from what quarter they came :
My full heart it replies,
They are bom from the skies,
And gives glory to God and the Lamb."
It would be impossible,- my dear friend, to tell you how
severe were my mental trials during the four weeks I spent
in this chapel. Sometimes it did appear as though the devil
would have torn me to pieces. Fiery darts were cast at me
us thick as hail. My soul was almost continually pressed
down by a weight that was scarcely supportable; and yet
the adversary could not touch either my justification or
sanctification. His evident design was to drive me out of
the city. He constantly insisted, " You shall not be per¬
mitted to enjoy any comfort in Dublin, so you had better be
off." The Lord, I believe, on the other hand, showed me,
if I would leave before he gave me liberty, I should be no
better off in any other place. I therefore determined to
fight it out, and bear patiently the grievous curses of this
infernal Shimei, 2 Samuel xvi. ; and" curse me he did, by
day and night, from street to street, in the pulpit and out of
it; but I continued, with all my might, to win sinners to
Christ. He never insinuated^bat he would have me in hell,
nor that I was a hypocrite, nor any thing of the,kind; but,
that if I would injure his kingdom, he would injure me ; that,
if I should keep up hostilities, he would do the same; and,
at least, deprive me of all comfort. Allow me, however, my
dear friend, to say, that I was often compelled to acknowl¬
edge : —
" Calm amidst tremendous motion,
Knowing that my Lord is nigh;
Waves obey him-,
And the storms before him fly."
132
the denouement.
At a particular time, I opened * on Ezekiel xlvii. 3—5,
which gave me great encouragement. The first real check
the devil received from God was when I was walking in the
Phoenix Park, near-the city. God then came down upon
my soul in mighty power. The enemy was silenced, and
I rejoiced " with joy unspeakable and full of glory." Satan
returned again with more caution and less confidence. God
then put a hook in his jaws, and said, " Thus far thou shalt
go, but no farther." There were other particular seasons of
divine visitations to my soul, in which God " half revealed
his face." The consciousness" of the immediate presence of
God to my soul was deep and unutterable.
You will remember that I related" to you some gracious
revealings of a spiritual nature, before I left America, in
which I thought God condescended to "converse with my
spirit, and gave me many special directions for the guidance
both of my present. and future movements. It was in the
same manner, though far clearer, and with greater power
and unction, an invisible agent seemed to hold conversation
with my soul; in which promises, directions, and encourage¬
ments, were given in quick succession. My spirit was often
as still as the midnight hour, and the communings of an
active agent were as perceptible as any conversation I ever
had with a visible friend. More I cannot venture to say at
present. Of this I am persuaded, I shall see some striking
displays of the power of God in the conversion of sinners;
The following came with uncommon force : "I will be with
thee whithersoever thou shalt go, to deliver thee." Also
the passage, John xiv. 21—23.
The state' of my soul during these divine visitations was
that of deep self-abasement. A solemn and an oppressive
awe rested upon my whole nature; yet, strange as it may
appear, my soul was weaker than a bruised reed. The more
THE DENOUEMENT.
133
firmly I believed and rested upon the divine promises and
counsels, the more I gained strength; and when such man¬
ifestations in a great,measure ceased, I received in their
place a larger measure of the perfect love of God. But
you are ready to inquire, " Had you no doubts whether such
communications came from God ? " No, I cannot say I had,
they came in such a way, and with such an holy unction, as
to leave no room for doubts. I may also add there was'
nothing in them to excite my suspicion, nothing contrary to
the written word of God ; if so, I should have rejected them
with horror; nothing that did not lead to purity and entire'
devotednesS to God.
When the Rev. Thomas Waugh, the Superintendent of
this Circuit, returned from England, he was made acquainted
with the amazing work of God going on.1 He immediately
sahctioned my movements, placed the fullest confidence in
me, and told me to go on in my own way. From then till
now he has been ever ready.to open any door of usefulness
to me within his power; I thank God for such a friend.
This long communication, which I know will rejoice your
heart, as well as many of my other dear friends in America,
I must now close. The revival is going on in another chapel
with great power. Between two and three hundred sinners
have been converted to God. Glory, eternal' glory, be to
that God, who
* " * * " Moves in a mysterious way,
His wonders to perform;"
and who, adored he his name! can,—
" Though hell weaves snares a thousand ways,
Place mercy central in the maze ! "
My friends may make themselves perfectly easy respect¬
ing my temporal circumstances; I have all and abound.
12
134
THE DENOUEMENT.
The Dublin people are proverbial for tbeir hospitality to
strangers; but I can say of them, as the queen of Sheba
said of the wisdom of Solomon, "Behold, the half was not
told me."
* * #«-#* *##
Yesterday was a gracious day to my soul in the Abbey
street chapel. The interior is spacious and elegant, has a
fine organ, and the congregation is second to none I have
ever seen, either in respectability or intelligence. My morn¬
ing text was Deut. viii. 2. Many acknowledged, with stream¬
ing eyes, the mercies of God, and the designs of his provi¬
dence. In'the afternoon fifty persons, who had been con¬
verted lately in this chapel, came forward to give public
thanks to God for his pardoning love. - At night, to a congre¬
gation of not less than two thousand, I cried, " How long
halt ye between two opinions ? " &c. 1 Kings xviii. 21. It
was an awful time ; seventy persons came forward as peni¬
tents, and many found mercy.
In the" midst of these successful labors Mr. Caughey's
mind was subjected to an unusually severe temptation from
Satan. He viewed this assault as a part of the tactics .of
the Great Enemy.of all good to hinder the revival in Dublin.
He therefore met the adversary with boldness; he. endured
hardness like a good soldier until he won a victory. To the
editor, these spiritual traits are among the most interesting
portions of his letters. They illustrate - so encouragingly
the sameness of ministerial experience, and furnish a fine
example- of fidelity and endurance. Who can behold Mr.
Caughey, amidst these Satanic floods, rising as they did in
furious waves, standing firmly on the " Rock of ages,"
steadily keeping his great work in view, and laboring with a
zeal-which increased with the magnitude of the storm, with¬
out being stimulated to a corresponding boldness ? But let
THE DENOUEMENT.
135
us listen, to his own descriptions of his mental state under
this trial. He says of it: —
God has in a great measure silenced the enemy. Satan
found it of no use; out of Dublin I would not go while God
was converting souls. He pressed me Very sore, but this
goaded me to greater ardor in the cause of God. The more
he harassed me with temptations, the more I was enabled
to prevail against his kingdom. His -file was very rough,
but by it my soul became the brighter, and obtained
a keener edge and livelier sensibilities. His fire was
very intense, trying and searching the inmost of the soul.
What one said of the old blacksmith, my poor soul could say
of the adversary, " Every morning he rises fresh to his
hammer and his anvilbut this only nerved me for "my
turn," and made me more resolute in attempting to over¬
throw his strongholds. Gh, help the to praise the Lord!
for he could say to angels, and men, and devils, when point¬
ing to Dublin, "Is not my word like as a fire, and like a
hammer that breaketh the rock in pieces ? " Jer. xxiii. 29.
I am far mistaken if the dOvil has not considered Dublin
the pass to the three kingdoms; and, perhaps, of as much
importance to his kingdom, as Thermopylae was to the Gre¬
cians. How then could I expect him to
" Give quiet pass
Through his dominions for this enterprize ?"
Glory be to God !~ we have got possession of the pass. God
has foughf for us, and the slain of the Lord are many. The
revival is going on with power, but I cannot tell you the ex¬
act number converted to God since the date of my last letter to
you; but I think not less than one hundred and fifty. I am
sorry to inform you that the work of entire sanctification ad¬
vances very slowly. Many seem to be earnestly seeking pu-
136
'the denouement.
rity of heart, but I do not remember that any person has, as
yet, distinctly professed its attainment during the revival. • I
greatly fear there must be something grievously deficient in
my method of preaching it, else God would surely raise up
his witnesses for this doctrine as Well as for that of justi¬
fication. The one is as much a New Testament privilege as
the other.
Yesterday, (Sabbath,) after taking breakfast with the
" Strangers' Friend Society," I walked over to the Hend-
rick street chapel to preach. On my arrival, every counte¬
nance wore the hues of sorrow. One of their old leaders,
Mr. William Haughton, had just departed for heaven, and
their hearts were oppressed with grief. I could not well
chide them, as his gain was indeed a loss to them, which, in
the first shock of the news, they knew not how to sustain.
All seemed to feel that his place could never be supplied.
During thirty years he had been a father to that society.
The excitement was increased by the presence of the mem¬
bers of his six classes, mingling their tears and sighs together,
as children for the death of a most beloved parents
Instead of taking the subject I had intended, I chose Rev.
vi. 13—17 ; and never, never have I seen such a weeping
congregation. Their tears and sobs would have softened a
heart of stone. Suddenly, like a burst of sunshine on a
summer's afternoon, when the rains have ceased, an influ¬
ence, evidently from God, came down upon the people. The
Lord seemed to open heaven to the view of his saints; at
least, the veil became so transparent that hundreds felt,
during thirty or forty minutes, as if they were surrounded
with the glories of the celestial world. The church militant
and the church triumphant appeared to unite in a manner it
is not possible to describe. I cannot, I dare not attempt it,
not even the language given me in that hour. Oh, what
THE DENOUEMENT.
137
views of God and heaven filled my amazed soul! It was
what one has elsewhere called, " A vision of glory;" such
as, perhaps, none of us ever had before, nor may ever have
again, till " mortality is swallowed up of life."
The service was closed, and every countenance wore a
calm, heavenly expression, as if each was saying in his or her
heart,—
" There is a world where winter comes not,
Where a farewell enters never,
Where no clouds the atmosphere blot,.
And, no changes our friendship sever.
That world is the home of the soul,
And Oh! how swiftly it flies to the goal.
There sorrow's note is never heard,
No storm a rose-leaf ever stirred,
But strains on harps of heavenly sound,
. And songs ecstatic breathe around."
The last Sabbath night this holy man spent upon earth
was in Abbey street chapel. The crowd was great, and he
stood with his eyes fixed upon me during the whole sermon.
At the close of the prayer meeting he stood upon a bench,
and gave the people his last exhortation, and sung that verse,
which I believe was his favorite,—
" When Jesus makes my heart his home,
My sin shall all depart;
And, lo! he saith, I quickly come,
To fill and rule thy heart."
Next Sabbath night, about that time,"he was in the " house
not made with hands, eternal in the heavens." I visited
him a day or two before he died. On approaching his bed,
such an influence came upon me as melted me into tears in a
moment. I felt God was there, and that a warrior of our
Israel had entered upon his last battle with the enemy. He
reached out his hand and said, " Tell the congregation the
following is my experience: —
12*
138
THE DENOUEMENT.
"' He breaks the power of cancelled sin,
He sets the prisoner free ;
His blood can make the foulest clean,
His blood availed for me.' "
One day, when sitting together in his little parlor, a few
weeks before .he was taken with his last sickness, he said to
me, " I have, often stood upon yonder bridge, and looked at the
figure of Hope, on the dome of the Custom House, leaning upon
her anchor, with her face turned towards,the troubled sea, as
if in anxious but confident expectation of the lingering ship;
soon .after, I have seen the weather-beaten vessel entering the
harbor, badly shattered by the , storm, rigging disordered, and
sails riven into shreds ; and it is thus, I. have thought, that
hope cheers the soul on the stormy ocean of life, and calmly
encourages the billow-tossed Christian to hasten into the.
harbor of glory; when, lo ! the weather-beaten servant of
God, shattered by time and storms, dashes into the port,
where hope had so long had her anchor cast within the vail.'*
He little thought he was just then sailing so near the coast of
heaven, nor that he should so suddenly dart into the harboi
of eternal rest. Mr. Haughton also informed me, that ir
the little parlor alluded to, Mr. Wesley had often taken
breakfast with the Dublin preachers; and that, when a boy,
in the same place, he had often swung upon the knees of that
venerable saint.
It will be interesting to my American friends to know that
this is the famous little room where the Rev. "John Summer-
field was converted to God. The spot where he obtained
remission of sins, and the hearth-stone upon which he stood,
when giving his first exhortation, were pointed out to me by
Mrs. Haughton, who was one of the praying company to
whom the address was delivered. Ah! I thought, in this
humble room arose that " burning and shining light," who
THE DENOUEMENT
139
became the wonder of America, . the. glory of Christ, and
one of. the brightest ornaments of the Methodist Episcopal
Church. Hundreds of thousands were enraptured by his
eloquence ; and many, very many, were the seals of his
ministry.
I had an awful time the other night in one of the chapels,
on this text, Rev. xiv. 9—»11, and, just as we were singing
that verse,—
"Ye virgin souls arise,
.* * * •
Oil in your vessels take,"—
all the lights went out except two candles on the side of
the pulpit. This unexpected extinguishment of twelve bril¬
liant. gas lights was a very curious coincidence, and the
effect was really awful, as the- minds of sinners were predis¬
posed to strong sensations by the text, sermon, and hymn.
Many trembled, but there was no confusion. Afterwards
nine or ten sinners were converted to God in the prayer
meeting. ' ' •
A very remarkable conversion, in ^answer to prayer, has
lately taken place, which I know will interest you. A
young lady, a few weeks since, arrived in this city from Eng¬
land, on a visit to her friends. Shortly after she was in¬
duced to attend the services ; the word reached her heart,
and, after a severe and deep repentance, God spoke peace to
her soul. In the simplicity of her heart she wrote an ac¬
count of her conversion t© her- mother, in Liverpool, and
desired liberty to unite herself with the Methodist church,
little suspecting the natural enmity of the unrenewed heart.
Her mother, a high-spirited, unconverted woman, felt an
instant indignation against her daughter; wrote to her im¬
mediately, ridiculed the. revival, forbade her joining the
Methodists, reproached her for .her weakness of mind, and
140
THE DENOUEMENT.
ordered her home. The young lady, alarmed at the tone of
the letter, sent a note to the pulpit, stating the case in a deli¬
cate "way, and requesting my prayers, and those of the con¬
gregation, for the conversion of her mother. We fell down
before God ; faithful and united prayer was offered, in which,
I believe, every pious soul joined.
A few days after, a letter arrived from Liverpool, giving
an account of the mother's conversion. On the night " the
prayer of faith" was offered to God, she was a^-akened to
see herself a sinner on the brink of hell. " During the
night," said she, " I felt as if I was in a furnace of fire."
The next morning God converted her soul. In that letter
she humbly asked forgiveness of her daughter, and the same
from me, although she had never seen me; but it was on ac¬
count of what she had said against the revival; and concluded
by giving her liberty to join the Methodists as soon as she
pleased, as she intended to do the same herself.
On the 17th of last month,. (November, 1841,) I visited,
with a few friends, the castle of Dublin. It happened to
be the day of the Lord Lieutenant of Ireland's levee. It
was held at the Castle. We had to make our way through
two companies of sentinels ; and, after much difficulty, were
permitted to stand in the hall of the grand entrance, where
we had a fine view of the visiters. About thirteen hundred
of the aristocracy of Ireland paid their respects to his lord¬
ship. They were all arrayed in rich court dresses, distinc¬
tive of their rank and station; whether officers of state,
bishops, archbishops, or inferior clergy-; private gentlemen,
officers of the army, members of the city university, or of
other institutions of the country. The scene was very ani¬
mated and imposing. The band of the Royal Hussars was
stationed in the Upper Castle Yard, and
" Discoursed sweet music."
THE DENOUEMENT.
141
A party of tlie 45th regiment lined the hall, and a variety of
inferior officers were stationed at the different entrances.
We waited, with some interest, to see the newly-elected Lord
Mayor of Dublin, the celebrated Daniel O'Connell. His
carriage drove up, tastefully ornamented with green and
yellow. He ascended the grand stairway, followed by the
new members of the Corporation, dressed in scarlet cloaks.
We had a good view of O'Connell, as he stood upon one of
the landings, waiting his turn to be presented. He was
dressed in his civic robe, in his hand the wand of office, and
on his left stood the bearer of the mace. Health, happiness,
good humor, and independence, appeared as if holding a
levee upon what a poet call? " the temper of his face." He
seemed well pleased with himself, and perfectly so with every
body and every thing around him.
After leaving the hall we got entangled in a net, which
cost us much trouble before we were liberated. No sooner
had we passed the castle gate than we were inclosed in the
midst of thousands; many of them the lowest of human
society. Nothing was heard but the cheering and shouting
of the multitude, cracking of whips, prancing of horses,
bawling of coachmen, and jambing and crashing of carriages ;
some of them two or three deep, struggling which should
first enter the gate. The scene was frightful. It was often
doubtful whether we should be crushed by a coach and
horses, or trampled down by the mob. To retreat, was im¬
possible ; to go forward, equally so. At last a providential
way opened and wC escaped. When walking home we found
the line of coaches yet to enter, a. mile in length.
# * # * *
Th& Wesleyan Methodists, have three, very respectable
chapels in Dublin, and several smaller ones in the vicinity;
but, as there is nothing particularly interesting in their archi-
142
THE DENOUEMENT.
tecture, I shall forbear description. The Methodists in this
country seem more anxious to provide accommodations for
the greatest possible number of hearers, than to expend their
money on costly decorations, which sometimes leave the mul¬
titude unprovided for. The chapel in Whitefriar street
should not,, however, pass unnoticed. It was erected by
Mr. Wesley, ten or twelve years after the 'first Methodist
society was formed, and a venerable building it is ; quite in
the old style, very plain, and without any communion place,
The lobby overhead is furnished on either side with a suite
of convenient rooms, in one of which died that eminent min¬
ister of Jesus Christ, Thomas Walsh. After a long and
severe conflict with the powers of darkness, while a few of
his brethren were praying for him in an adjoining room, he
burst into a transport of joy, exclaiming, " He is come !
He is come ! My Beloved is mine, and I am his, his for
ever!" and sweetly fell asleep in Jesus.
Last night I assisted Mr. Waugh in holding what I think
he called the ninetieth watch-night meeting held in this
chapel. My sensations were peculiarly humbling, when re¬
flecting, " I am now standing in a pulpit, once so effectually
occupied by the Wesleys, and the seraphic Fletcher." The
Lord has lately honored this consecrated place by the con-
conversion of many- sinners. * * * * *
On the night of Thursday, the 6th of January, 1842, I
preached my last sermon in Abbey street chapel. That
large house was crowded in every part. I had taken my
farewell at two of -the other chapels, and affecting seasons
they were, but the scene at Abbey street surpassed any thing
of the kind I had ever beheld. After sermon, about thirteen
hundred persons remained to bid me farewell, and they in¬
timated most significantly, that out of the house they would
not go until they had shaken hands with me. I bore up un-
THE DENOUEMENT.
148
der the excitement till I thus parted with two hundred of
them, chiefly young converts; but their tears and cries so
affected me, that I "could not bear it, and excused myself
from proceeding, saying, I would imitate the converted Indian
chief, " Shake hands with them in my heart," by singing,
" Amen, Amen, my soul replies,
I'm bound to meet you in the skies,
And claim my mansion there;
Now, here's my heart, andiere my hand,
To meet you in that heavenly land,
Where we shall part no more."
When this was over, matters became worse and worse; I was
hemmed in on every side. At last two or three brethren,
in mercy, undertook to set me free, and they had a task.
With much trouble they opened a small path, and through a
forest of hands, I gained the street; when, lo! it was lined
to my home, at Mr. M'Comas's. The door was surrounded
with people, but some friends succeeded in pulling me into
the house; but, even here, there was little relief, as many
were inside. The sorrowful hearts of the people at my de¬
parture, and a deep sense of my own unworthiness and utter
insignificancy, crushed my spirit to the very dust. Never,
in all my travels, have I met with a people equal to those
of Dublin. Their affection knew no bounds: I cannot ted
you all, my dear sister ; but their many acts of kindness and
generous friendship are too deeply engraven upon the heart
of your unworthy brother ever to be obliterated.
I preached one hundred and twenty-nine sermons in Dub¬
lin, and about seven hundred persons professed to have re¬
ceived pardoning mercy. Many of these were members of
society who had never before obtained salvation. Some were
backsliders. Several from.other churches, but a large pro¬
portion were from the world.
144
the denouement.
To give the reader a just conception of the genuineness of
these numerous conversions, we insert a letter written by
Richard Craig, Esq., of Dublin, in March, 1847. This letter
will show how sacred and how lasting was the influence com¬
municated from God through Mr. Caughey's labors in that
city: it also presents his labors there in a deeply interesting
point of view:—
" Dublin, March 9th, 1847.
" Dear Sir,—After the Conference of 1841, the Society
connected with Henderick street Chapel was looking forward,
with no small degree of anxiety to the expected ministrations
of the Rev. Robinson Scott, who had been appointed to this
city, and whose reported love for revivals had made his ap¬
pointment an exceedingly popular one. On Sunday, 8th
August, the day on which Mr. Scott was expected to preach
for the first time in that chapel, Mr. Caughey delivered his
first message on this side of the Atlantic. His method of
reading the Psalms and Lesson^ for the day, and his passing
remarks, seemed to make a most favorable impression on the
congregation : and he preached a sermon, in his own pecu¬
liarly tender, heart-searching, and affecting manner which
will not soon be forgotton. Its effect was astonishing. The
people were delighted with their new preacher; but behold!
on inquiry, it was discovered not to be Mr. Scott, but " a
stranger from America." In less time than I have been
writing, it was decided that another brother (Fielding) and
myself, should hasten after, and endeavor to prevail on him
to preach again. *****
" So much for his first sermon. His last in Dublin was
preached in Abby street Chapel on a week evening. • I had
frequently gone there to hear «ther great men preach oc¬
casional sermons on the Sabbath, but never before did I see
THE DENOUEMENT.
145
that large chapel, the most spacious we had in the citj, so
densely crowded: such a mass of human beings in such a
space I had never before seen. Although many of his hear¬
ers, from the immense pressure, must have been exceedingly
uncomfortable, his sermon was heard with the deepest
attention. Sorrow " that they should see his face no more,"
seemed to be depicted on almost every countenance. At
the conclusion, he earnestly requested all present, but es¬
pecially the young converts, to be attentive to the means of
grace, more especially those for Christian communion; and
urged upon them the necessity of exercising liberality in the
the cause of God. He then spoke of the kindly bearing of
the preachers towards him, and of their brotherly love; and
with a delicacy of feeling which did him honor, he expressed
his fears that, from the way he had been laboring amongst
them, they might expect too much from their ministers. To
guard against this he informed them, that if he was stationed
among them, as his brethren around him were, it would be
utterly impossible for him to fulfil the duties of the circuit,
and at the same time carry on the meetings, evening after
evening, as he had done. He then bade those near him fare¬
well, and with great difficulty got home.
" I think that the number brought to God during his min¬
istry in Dublin was about 700, nearly half of whom were
from the world. During the five years prior to his visit, the
average number of members in the Dublin Society was 1267 ;
and the average annual number of emigrations, during the
same period, was 89. During the five years which have
elapsed since Mr. Caughey's visit, the average number of
members has been 1592, and of emigrations, 52 annually for
four years, no return of emigrations having been made for
the year 1846. This shows a clear average increase of 325,
besides making up the deficiencies caused by emigration.
13
146
THE DENOUEMENT.
Formerly tlie society was only able to pay three preachers ;
within a few years of Mr. Caughey's visit, by much exertion,
the expense of four was met; hut in consequence of thq
blessing of the Most High on his labors, we are now able,
from having such an increase of members, to support six.
Thus, even in a financial point of view, his services in Dub¬
lin were invaluable, and, as it appears, produced lasting good.
The amount of money subscribed to some of the most im¬
portant funds of the Society has also increased considerably,
as the following statement shows :—
Average of five years Average of five years .
prior to Mr. subsequent to Mr.
Caughey's visit. Caughey's visit.
Yearly Collection . . .£156 1 11 £174 11 11
Education Fund . ... 48 16 0 55 11 0
Chapel Fund 58 0 2 64 13 10
Missions 585 0 0 615 15 2
846 18 1 910 11 11
So that to these four funds there has been a gross average
annual increase of about £63.
" Here, then, we have from the Minutes of Conference, a
demonstrative proof, whether reference be made to the eter¬
nal or temporal interests of the society, that the work which
was wrought through Mr. Caughey's instrumentality, was
indeed of God, and not the effect of mere animal excitement
or fanaticism; and the results have been such as I. am able
to prove are unequalled in the entire history of Methodism
in Dublin.
" The secret of Mr. Caughey's success in Dublin was,
that he always acknowledged the necessity of the Spirit's
influence to make his ministrations profitable to the people.
the denouement.
147
Hence he spent many hours of each day on his knees, with
his Bible spread open before him, asking wisdom from on
high, and beseeching a blessing from God on the preaching
of his word. This, while at Mr. Fielding's, (and I believe
Mr. McComas's,) was his almost constant employment be¬
tween breakfast and dinner. Whenever he suffered himself
to be prevailed upon to spend an evening out, he usually
retired an hour before the commencement of the evening's
service, in order again to cry to God for a blessing on the
people. I have, on more than one occasion, accompained him
from my own or from a friend's house to the house of God,
and during the whole of our walk he scarcely ever exhanged
a word with me, — seemingly lost in contemplation of the
importance of the work in which he was about to be engaged.
What a contrast to the bearing of some ministers in simi¬
lar circumstances. He showed that he felt it to be his
one business to be made instrumental in the salvation of
sinners.
■'At a tea-meeting in Henderickstreet Chapel, which
took place a few days before he left Dublin, Mr, Waugh,
the Superintendent, in "the presence of the preachers and
leaders, and on behalf of the Society, returned him thanks for
his labors amongst us ; and promised that, as far as in him lay,
every facility should be afforded Mr. Caughey for his visits to
the different Societies in this land. Such a statement, from
such an order-loving man as Mr. Waugh, speaks trumpet-
tongued as to the high opinion he then entertained of his
piety, usefulness, and obedience. I have no reason to think
that his opinion has undergone the slightest change.
" I am, dear Sir, affectionately yours,
" R. Craig."
CHAPTER XI.
ten "weeks in limerick.
Among the many evidences, which Mr. Caughey's move
ments furnish to demonstrate the reality and divinity of his
mission to Europe, is the facility with which the Providence
of God opened doors of access for him to the people. Con¬
sidering the extraordinary method of holding protracted pub¬
lic services which he was led to adopt, it is surprising that
his way was opened without any direct effort of his own.
Indeed, nothing is more apparent than that Mr. Caughey
had no plan, preconceived, and subsequently carried out by
persevering labor. He acted in simple, believing obedience
to the call of God, leaving his heavenly director to prepare a
way for his willing feet. How he should move, after his
arrival in Liverpool, he did not know; where he should com¬
mence his labors, he could not conceive. But he stood ready
for the conflict at any point. This was precisely the attitude
proper to his views and situation. And how naturally he
moved. The Conference is in session at Manchester. There,
the heart of the great Methodist body is to be seen, and
there he modestly appears. An invitation to Ireland decides
his mind to visit Dublin. In that place, an invitation to
preach brings him before the people. God owns his first
sermon, by causing it to produce a deep impression on the
leading men present, that the stranger is sent to them fron
148
ten weeks in limerick.
149
God. They invite him to preach again. He does so, and
with mighty effect, for a great revival commences at once.
They insist on his stay. He remains, until an army of souls
is raised up.1 His fame in Dublin procures him an invitation
to .Limerick, and thus he proceeds from place to place bless¬
ing and being blessed. "What stronger demonstration, than
these facts, can be demanded in proof of the genuineness of
his astonishing impression ? We know of none. But let us
hear Ms somewhat versatile statements concerning the ten
weeks he spent in Limerick. He says: —
I had a very pleasant ride, though rather cold, from Dub¬
lin to Limerick. Our route lay through several towns and
villages, among which were Maryborough and Boscrea. I
had a glance at a round tower, the first of the kind I had
ever seen. I am agreeably entertained at the house of Mr.
Keys., He and Ms sister are very intelligent persons, ex¬
ceedingly kind, and deeply devoted to God. Several pre¬
cious souls have been converted since my arrival.
On the 13th inst., (January, 1842,) I received the fol¬
lowing letter from an intelligent and excellent brother in
Dublin: —
"My very dear Sir,—
" On last Sabbath I was informed of an awful circum¬
stance, which occurred on the Sabbath evemng you preached
in Whitefriar street, from this text, i This year thou shalt
die.' You may probably recollect that, in your prayer, you
earnestly besought God to spare that man for three weeks,
whom he had decided on calling soon into eternity, in order
that, be_fore death, he might seek the salvation of Ms soul.
On that night, a man who lived in the neighborhood had
wandered into the chapel, was deeply affected under the
13*
150
TEN WEEKS IN'LIMERICK.
prayer, and went home convinced of sin. For years lie had
had a swelling upon the side of his neck, which, however,
gave him little if any annoyance. On the next day, Mon¬
day, it became sore and inflamed, and continued so bad that
'at last he was under the necessity of giving up work, and
taking to his bed. A physician was called in, and, on ex¬
amining the sore,, pronounced it a cancer. The poor man
sank speedily under it, and in a short time the entire inside
of his throat was exposed. He continued, during all his
sufferings,, to cry for mercy, and at length God spoke peace
to his soul; and exactly in three weeks from that Sabbath
evening, and at the same hour in which you had been en¬
gaged in prayer, he. exchanged time for eternity, with a
hope blooming with immortality."
I had a delightful walk this afternoon, along the bank of a
branch of the river Shannon, "east of the city. My promen¬
ade was a wide embankment, a mile and a half in length, with
water on both sides. My soul was engaged in earnest plead¬
ing with God for an outpouring of his Holy Spirit on Lime¬
rick. I told the Lord, with deep emotion and reverential
awe, that if he had called me from America to preach the
gospel in these kingdoms, and if I was still permitted to re¬
tain my commission, he would condescend to own and attend
me in all my ministrations of his truth. I then drew nearer
to God, and represented the smallness of my congregations,
and the comparative want of success which had, as yet,
attended my ministry in Limerick. 0, my dear sister, God
came near to my soul; I felt great sweetness, and a strong
assurance that God would bring out the people, and awaken
and convert many sinners, before he would call me out of
this city. The day before yesterday we were visited with a
most terrific hurricane. Several vessels in the harbor were
TEN WEEKS IN LIMERICK.
151
much injured. The roofs of' many houses were seriously
damaged ; one house, was demolished, and two or three lives
lost.f The beautiful stone bridge across the Shannon was
greatly injured, by vessels which had broken loose from their
moorings, and drifted against it. Two ships were upset
below the bridge. The scene was awful. We are expecting
sad tidings from the coast. Last night I improved the dread¬
ful visitation from that passage, 1 Kings xix. 11—IB.
Limerick has more than once been smitten by the rod of
God's providence. A short time since, I was- taking tea
with one of our most influential friends here. In the course
of our conversation, he related an awful event which hap¬
pened a few years ago, by a terrible explosion of gunpowder.
A number of houses were blown to atoms, and eighteen or
twenty persons killed. ' His house stood next to one that was
thrown down, and was badly shattered. He pointed to the
wall of the room in which we were sitting, and said the shock
dashed it in nearly a foot, but it sprang back to its place
immediately. He and his family had a most miraculous
escape. The house was filled with the smoke of gunpowder,
and when the neighbors gathered around his door, supposing
they were all killed, they made their appearance as monu¬
ments of mercy, uninjured, but covered with the dust of
bricks and mortar. I was amused with the account of the
old family clock, which stood at the head of the stairs at the
time of the explosion ; notwithstanding the wall was torn to
pieces close by, and the stairs demolished, the old time-piece
kept its footing, having just enough left to stand upon; and a
few minutes after the catastrophe, struck the proper hour,
eleven o'clock, and continued its motions with the same regu¬
larity as if nothing had happened. And thus, I thought,
it is with time; whatever disasters may occur beneath the
sun, time still goes on.
152
TEN WEEKS- .IN LIMERICK.
" Who shall contend with
Time ? Unvanquished time ?
The Conqueror of Conquerors, and Lord
Of desolation."
Since the sun first
" Burst into birth,
And dashed^from off his altitude sublime,
The first dread ray that marked commencing time,"
it has never paused. Although our globe was once nearly
depopulated, and often since has it been rent and torn by
earthquakes, and devastated by fire and storm; while revo¬
lutions have convulsed the nations dwelling upon its surface,
and myriads of immortal beings have been incarcerated in
hell, or blessed with the liberty and joys of an eternal heaven;
through all the vicissitudes to which our planet has been sub¬
ject, Time, dread Time, has never for a moment rested his
pinion to sigh over the wreck and the desolations both of the
works and the hopes of man. How truly sublime is the
poet's description: —
Remorseless time;
Fierce spirit of the glass arid scythe, what power .
Can stay him in his silent course, or melt
His iron heart to pity !
On, still on he presses, and for ever.
The proud bird,
The Condor of the Andes, that can soar
Through heaven's unfathomable depth, or brave
The fury of the northern hurricane,
And bathe his plumage in the thunder's home,
Furls his broad wing at night-Tall, and sinks down
To rest upon his mountain crag;
But Time
Knows not the weight of sleep, or weariness;
And night's deep darkness has no chains to bind
His rushing pinion !
On, still on he presses, and for ever.
TEN WEE&S IN LIMERICK.
153
I had a refreshing season the other night, while preaching
on that encouraging text, Luke xv. 10, " Likewise, I say
unto you, there is joy in the presence of the angels of God,
over one sinner that repenteth." What a broad and glori¬
ous charter is this for revival efforts. Is it not sufficient to
kindle an inextinguishable flame of zeal in the breast of a
minister of Christ ? How clearly does it reveal the intimate*
connection existing between the world of mind in heaven, and
the world of mind upon earth. Does it not show that God
has linked his great family, above and below, by the strong
and powerful ties of brotherhood ? * * #
The Wesleyan Methodists in this country have a beautiful
hymn in their collection, which I do not recollect to have
seen in our American hymn-book. It was quite new to me,
and has become a favorite; perhaps it may gratify you and
some other friends.
Who can describe the joys that rise,
Through all the courts of Paradise,
To see a prodigal return,
To see an heir of glory bom ?
With joy the Father doth approve
The fruit of his eternal love;
The Son with joy looks down, and sees
The purchase of his agonies.
The Spirit takes delight to view
The contrite soul he forms anew;
And saints and angels join to sing
The growing empire of their King.
A few hours ago, a beautiful flag was seen waving from a
neighboring flag-staff; and, upon inquiry, it was found that
the wife and servant of a pious captain, whose ship is in port,
had been converted to God. ■ The noble-hearted son of the
oceaLL was so full of, joy, that he commemorated the glorious
154
TEN WEEKS IN LIMERICtf.
event before heaven, and' earth, and- hell, by thus hoisting
his ship's colors, " That it might announce victory," to use
his own language, " through the blood of the Lamb," as
it waved in the morning breezes.
The Lord is reviving his work in Limerick by converting
souls daily. The meetings are characterized with much*
solemnity, sometimes the stillness is oppressive. 1 often feel
^afraid it is the result of lukewarmness or stupidity; but, on
going from seat to seat, and finding the people universally on
their knees, pleading with God for mercy, or for a larger
outpouring of the Holy Spirit, I return, very often, ashamed
of my suspicions.
The following case is an exception; but the results were
so glorious we could not regret the circumstance: A woman,
whose husband is a Roman Catholic, was induced to attend
the services. God powerfully awakened her to a sense of
her wretched condition as a sinner; she' came again and
again; at last her distress became- so great that she began
to agonize for salvation, when a strange scene ensued. She
sprang upon her feet, began to jump upr and down, howling
in a most horrible manner ;-her head at the same time flying
from side to side, as if it would leave-her body. - Some fled
in horror; others fainted; many stood in Solemn awe before
God. It was a terrible conflict. I had seen such things
before, but the dear people were appalled. It seemed as if
two contending powers were rending her in pieces. I be¬
lieve the devil was then making his last effort to keep pos¬
session of her soul,; nor -can I doubt that the Holy Ghost
was then in the act of casting him out. The devil " rent
her sore" and departed. Mark ix. 26. I saw her in the
congregation a few nights afterwards, " Clothed, and in her
right mind," as peaceful as a lamb, and happy in God.
We are now distributing the following circular: —
ten weeks in limerick.
155
TO THAT MAN'WHO FEARS GOD IN THE CITY
OF LIMERICK.
My dear Friend and Brother,
•You believe the Bible to be the word of God, a revelation
of the'will of the Most High to man. When you look , into
that holy book, when ynu read its sacred pages, when your
heart is deeply impressed with its solemn truths ; and when
you compare the general conduct and acknowledged experi¬
ence of multitudes around you with that book, and with the
gospel you hear preached from Sabbath to Sabbath, can you
for a moment doubt the jeopardy to which their poor souls
are every hour exposed ? With this book in your hand, you
have a right to make an estimate, not only of your own pros¬
pects for eternity, but also of the eternal prospects of those
around you.
You must do this in order to feel for your own soul, and
for tile souls of your fellow-men., How can your heart bleed
Tor poor impenitent sinners ? How can you weep and cry to
God for their salvation until you thus realize their dreadful
condition ?
This language is not new to- you; your Christian heart has
often sighed over the abominations, practiced around you ;
you have often- trembled for the eternal ruin you have seen
a little ahead of the giddy throng and as one and another
of them have been cut down, by the justice of God, your soul
has been troubled within you, and your cry has been, " 0
Lord, revive thy work ;" and you have long expected that
"God would defend his own cause in Limerick, and that he
would raise up many witnesses-to that great truth, "Jesus
Christ hath power upon earth to forgive .sins."
Long have you waited for an outpouring of his Holy
Spirit. I address you as a friend of God ; as olie who fears
his holy name. Will you recognize that revival of the work
156
TEN WEEKS IN LIMERICK.
of God for which you have so long sighed and prayed, and
for which you have been so long in expectation ? But will
you recognize it among a people with whom you are not in
the habit of worshipping -God; perhaps a people against"
whom you have been prejudiced, in past years ? If so, we
can assure you, brother, the revival of God's work has begun.
A few souls have lately experienced the great truth referred
to above, and are .now rejoicing in the salvation of God,
experimentally felt.
In the Wesley chapel, George street, a few of God's
people have resolved to follow the directions given in Isaiah
lxii. 6, 7 : "I have,set watchmen upon thy walls, 0 Jerusa¬
lem, which shall never hold their peace day nor night: ye
that make mention of the Lord keep not silence ; and give
him no rest till he establish, and till he make .Jerusalem a
praise in the earth and among them are a few whose lan¬
guage is, " A dispensation of the gospel is committed "unto
me, and woe is unto me if I preach not the .gospeland
the cry of their heart is, as recorded in the first verse of that
same chapter of Isaiah,." For Zion's sake will I not hold my
peace*, and for Jerusalem's sake I will not rest, until the
righteousness thereof go forth as brightness, and the salva¬
tion thereof as a lamp that burneth; and they are resolved
to make full proof of their ministry by wielding, to the very
utmost of their strength, those great and tremendous truths
of God which are believed by Christians of different denomi¬
nations. Among those who are thus resolved to do all they
can to bring sinners home to God, is the writer of this
paper.
When in North America, surrounded by the happy people
of his own charge, as a minister of the Methodist Episcopal
Church of that country, he received an impression which he
believed then, and does yet believe, came frond God, that it
TEN WEEKS IN LIMERICK.
157
was his duty to take a tour through these kingdoms' and call
sinners to repentance ; and, after fulfilling his mission, return
to America and re-enter upon his regular work. After hav¬
ing obtained leave of absence from the authorities of that
church, and being duly recommended to the confidence' of
his brethren on this side of the Atlantic, by his Bishop and
Conference, he has come as far as Limerick, preaching the
gospel of the Son of God. Will you, my dear friend, help
us in this work by your prayers, presence, and influence ?
May be God'will at this time give a general revival of true
religion in this city. Perhaps your own sjuI is far from
being happy in the love of God. That with all your good¬
will to the religion of the Saviour, you yourself have never
been converted. That you can neither tell-the time, nor
place, nor circumstances of your having passed from death
unto life; so that our Lord's discourse to Nicodemus, John
iii., on the subject of the " new birth," is as great a mystery
to your unhappy soul as it was to the Jewish ruler. Although
you do know what " the spirit of bondage again to fear"
meaneth, yet Romans viii. 16, is yet to your heart an unex¬
plained mystery.
Look up to God, O thou who art waiting for the " conso¬
lation of Israel." " The time to favor Zion is come and
the time to favor thy poor soul is come also. " The Lord,
whom thou seekest, shall suddenly come to his temple."
Perhaps there may stand by' your side, a poor, wicked,
wretched sinner, over whose head the sword of eternal jus¬
tice has long been suspended.^ Let me speak a word to him.
Ah! poor sinner! thou unhappy wanderer from God, and
from the path to heaven, what a mercy thou art not m hell!
God has spared thee for a number of years, though
" Thou hast long withstood his grace,
Long provoked him to his face."
14
158
ten weeks. in limerick.
Thou hast long been a transgressor against God, and an
enemy to thine own soul. D, sin no more ! Turn, man,
woman, turn ! .0, turn to God before he involve thy poor
soul among the wretched and hopeless outcasts of a miser¬
able eternity! May the Holy Spirit help, you, through
Jesus Christ! Amen.
1 James Cau.ghey.
Wesley Chapel, Limerick,
Jan. 14 th, 1842.
Hundreds of the above are already in circulation. I trust
the effects will be good.
The next paragraphs, which treat of the history of Lime¬
rick," although a digression from the main, topic of the work,
are inserted both on account of their intrinsic excellence, and
as a specimen 'of Mr. Caughey's descriptive powers. They
will be both novel and interesting to the intelligent reader:
Limerick is seated on the noble river-Shannon, about sixty
miles from the ocean and ninety-four from Dublin. The
river is navigable for ships of a large size to the city wharves.
Situated in the heart of a rich and fertile country, it is a
place of considerable commerce. The city annals are full of
stirring incident. ,Some have-supposed its foundations were
laid before the* birth of Christ. Ptolemy gave it the name
of Regia ; and in other ancient documents it is called Rosse
de Naileagh. Its earliest name is- allowed to have been
Lum-neach, an Irish word, signifying a place made bare by
the grazing of horses. It seems, that at a very early period,
the island upon which part of the city stands, was the resort
of a set of outlaws and vagabonds, who subsisted by plunder¬
ing the neighboring counties, on both sides of the river:
TEN WEEKS IN LIMERICK.
159
(think of aneient Rome.) Here they drove their stolen
horses. Hence the name. The island was at that time
accessible'only hy a ford ; now, two majestic stone bridges
span the river, uniting the county Clare with the town, Its
present modification of name was by the English.
The place was taken and plundered by the Danes, in the
year of our Lord, 812, and soon after they constituted it one
of their principal maritime stations. They encompassed it
with walls and towers ; and for more than a century main¬
tained it as a place of great importance to their interests in
Ireland. At the time, denominated in history, " The
English Invasion," A. D. 1169, it fell into the hands of the
English ; and soon after the Danes were banished from the
kingdom. Previous to this time, much blood had been shed
within and outside its walls; There is an account of a suc¬
cessful siege against it, by Brien Boroimhe, (can you get
your American tongue around this ?) King of Munster. It
became the residence of the King of Thomond, or North
Munster, and arrived at such dignity as to be called in his¬
tory, "The Kingdom^of Limerick." I find that during a
few centuries it suffered no. less than eight bloody sieges.
The last two were the. most important, as, they resulted in its
complete subjugation to the Protestant British throne. These
sieges took place, A. D. 1690—1.
On the.accession of James II., the inhabitants proclaimed
the event with great rejoicings. .The same vear, King Wil-
liata, the antagonist of James, laid siege to the city. It was
then a walled town, three miles in circumference, with a
castle, citadel, various towers, and seventeen gates, the
whole strongly fortified. William approached the walls with
twenty, thousand veteran troops, and commenced the siege.
The place was well garrisoned with Irish and Danish troops,
largely supplied with munitions of war, with the advantage
J 60 ten weeks in limerick.
of a free access to the ocean. Notwithstanding these disad¬
vantages, together with the/lateness of the season, this,
monarch pressed the siege with great vigor. A breach was
made, and through it did his valiant soldiers several times
penetrate into the city, but' as often were they driven back.
Th.is desperate contest lasted four hours, when William was
forced to retreat, leaving behind him sixteen hundred men,
principally slain. A few months afterwards, King William
sent General Ginkell against the place with a large army.
The siege was'bloody and desperate. I stood near the place
yesterday, at the Thomond Bridge, where six hundred Irish
troops were cut to pieces, and one hundred and fifty drowned,
It seems the Irish had made a sally, but meeting with a hot
-reception, and being severely pressed by the English, they
retreated in great disorder. The officer in charge of the
gate, fearing the English might gain an.entrance with the
fugitives, ordered the bridge to be drawn and the gate shut;
thus the poor fellows were left to be butchered like so many
cattle. On .the first of October the city surrendered, under
certain articles of capitulation. The treaty was signed on a
large stone, on the Clare side of the Shannon, close to the
bridge. This stone is an object of interest to the inhabitants,
as well as a curiosity to visiters. About this time the city
was declared to be. no longer a fortress, and the dismantling
of its walls immediately took, place.
The other day I walked upon fifty yards of the old wall.
It is about twenty-ffive feet high. The effects of the cannon¬
ading are* still visible in the shattered and broken stones of
the front. A gentleman who accompanied me, pointed but
the place where King William made the first breach, and
the spot where the Irish and Danes played off a small battery
which did terrible execution among, those who were pressing
in. Here was the place, too, where the good ladies of Lime-
TEN WEEKS IN LIMERICK.
161
rick came up to the help of their valiant husbands.' Strong
affection for those they loved drew them to the scene of con¬
flict, weaponless of course; but seeing the dreadful crisis
they resolved to go into actionso, pulling off their stock¬
ings and' -putting a few stones thereip, they rushed into the
ranks and ^assisted in turning the tide of battle. 'The heavy-
footed stockings^ were -seen swinging in all directions; with
these they hammered the heads of the wounded, or those
who had fallen in the pell-mell of retreat. ~ Oh, the horrors
of war; into what demons does it transform our race!
Pardon the digression- But Limerick, wall-less as it is,
is once more besieged by a small army under the' command
of Jesus Christ. Several - skirmishes have, already taken
place, and more than "thirty sinners have been wounded by
the.sword of the Spirit; but the Captain of our salvation
has healed them again, as he did poor Malchus, who had
been deprived of his ear by the keen sword of Peter. We
are expecting a general engagement one of these days ; but
it is not necessary to contrast the consequences ; I mean
with those bloody "conflicts' I have been just describing.
Should we have the victory, it will be a bloodless one; and
the effects so much more glorious that they cannot be brought
into comparison; but if we are unsuccessful, the results to
many hundreds of the enemies of the Lord may be as awfully
terrific as the horrors of hell' surpass those of the bloodiest
battle that has ever stained our globe.
The ancient Cathedral of St. Mary is a venerable and
noble structure, in plain Gothic. The walls are surmounted
by a line of graduated battlements, and the whole finished
off with a square tower one hundred and twenty feet high,
singularly castellated at the top, besides four, turrets, twe.nty
feet high, which adorn the angles. The interior is orna¬
mented with a variety of monuments and inscriptions. ' The
14*
162
TEN WEEKS IN LIMERICK.-
sculpture, however, possesses but little interest beyond being
very ancient. The figures, with one or two exceptions, are
very coarse. I was amused and surprised bo find the follow¬
ing inscription upon a plain slab in this church; especially
as it dates the latter part of the seventeenth century: —
MEMENTO MORY .
HERE LIETH LITTEL
SAMVELL BARINGTON THAT
GREAT VNDERTAKER OP
FAMOVS CITTIS CLOCK AND
CHIME MAKER HE MADE
HIS OWN TIME GOE EAR¬
LY AND LATTER BYT '
NOW HE IS RETVRNED TO
GOD HIS CREATOR
THE 19 NOVEMBER THEN
HE SEEST AND FOR HIS
MEMORY THIS HERE IS
PLEAST BY SIS SON BEN
1693.
"Was not Ben a genius ?
Will your taste be shocked, if I tell you, that encompassed
as I was with many remnants of antiquity, my eyes rested on
no spot with such interest as upon the ruins of an old Meth¬
odist chapel ? A few moments after leaving the" cathedral,
we found ourselves standing before its venerable walls. It is
nearly unroofed. The front is supported by four pillars of
the Tuscan order, resting upon neat pedestals, and finished
with plain capitals. The recess is well flagged, protected by
a" substantial balustrade. To the left are the stairs to- the
lobby, entirely above the chapel. These we ascended, but
durst not proceed, as the floors were bad. We could see the
long range of class-rooms, and chambers for the preachers,
according to the custom of early Methodism. . The interior
of the. chapel is a mournful desolation; the pulpit is gone,
TEN WEEKS IN LIMERICK.
163
and the whole seatless and floorless. The frame-work of the
galleries and the-stairs remain. Ah! I thought,-this place
has often heen vocal with the praises of God.. Multitudes^
now in heaven, were " born of the Spirit" within these walls.
Here Mr. Wesley.often preached the gospel " with the Holy
Ghost sent down from heaven." . In this place he often met
the society," and instructed them in the deep things of God;
but they are all long since gone to the eternal world.
■The following remarks on this chapel are given by Mr.
Wesley, in his journal, 1765: " Friday, 8th June, I rocjp to
Limerick, and found the preaching-house just, finished. I
liked it the best of any in the kingdom ; being - neat, yea,
elegant, yet not gaudy,"
The Wesleyan Methodists have, at .present, a large and
handsome, chapel in another part of the city. Limerick has
the usual number of benevolent institutions which honor
other cities ; the same variety also of Christian denomina¬
tions and places of worship that we have generally in America.
You are aware, that all who do not belong to the Established
Church in this country, are called Dissenters or Roman Cath¬
olics. The dissenting churches in Limerick are very respec¬
table rand flourishing, although, they are living amidst the
frowns of Papists on the one hand, and, very generally, the
contempt of .the Establishment on ihe other.
That popery should frown upon protestant churches,-and
persecute them, is not to.be wondered-at; but. that the min¬
isters of one protestant church should endeavor to unchurch
all others, and anathematize their ministers, as intruders into
the pastoral office, is mournful indeed. It is not unlikely
that a church establishment is best for thesec kingdoms;
inasmuch as it has been, for centuries, interwoven with their
civil and religious constitution. The fact, however, is noto¬
rious, that in whatsoever nation under heaven, one branch of
164.
TEN WEEKS IN LIMERICK.
the church is elevated by law above the others, in honors,
privileges, and emoluments,, that that section becomes, and
continues overbearing, dogmatical, and exclusive; and thus
it has been from time immemorial. You will ask, "But
have they meddled with' the validity of your ministry'?"
Gei tainly; am I not found among the Dissenters ? It is
therefore thought impossible your friend can be in the suc¬
cession. I usually answer the attack with a smile, or a
pointed reply, thus: I have no sympathy whatever with your
exclusive claims. Your high church notions may do well'
enough for this country, but as we have no state church in
America,, you cannot imagine I should have any respect for
such claims. Christian churches are there on an equal foot¬
ing in all respects ; and the'consequence is, they escape that
humiliating persecution to which your sister churches are
subjected, inmost places in Ireland. As to the constitution
and government of the church of which Dam a member, it is
an Episcopacy. We have our bishops, elders, and deacons;
and allow me to say, however you may be dissatisfied with
- us, we are perfectly contented, as a churchy with our ec¬
clesiastical position in America. But I would have you un¬
derstand, we lay no claim to .any such superiority over other
churches, as would go to invalidate the ordination of their
pastors. "I am become a fool "in glorying; ye have com¬
pelled me." " 2 Cor. xii. 11. " Yet as a fool receive me,
that I majrboast myself a little." 2 Cor. xi. 16. Although
the hands of two bishops have been upon my ;head; first, in
my ordination as deacon; and, lastly, as an elder in the
church of God; yet, neither do I on this account disesteem
or undervalue the ordination of the Wesley an Methodist min¬
isters, nor that of other Dissenting clergymen of these' king¬
doms; nor will I allow you to go on with your unwarrantable
denunciations against my ministry and ordination, without
TEN WEEKS IN MMERICK.
165
administering the rebuke -your pride and arrogance have so
justly merited.
As to the aspect of Limerick generally, you would notjbe'
pleased with it,. accustomed as you have been to the clean
streets, tastefully-painted houses, and lively, brilliant appear¬
ance of American cities and villages. The streets are. nar¬
row and dirty; buildings, principally of brick,'old, and very
dark and sooty, owing probably to the moisture of the cli¬
mate, and the abundance of coal consumed. " These remarks
will only apply to those parts of the city named English and
Irish Towns. " The new city is quite of a different character.
The streets are wide and clean ; the houses handsome ; and,-
taken altogether, the city of New York would be-honored by
a transfer of this part of the city of Limerick.
I have not been here a sufficient length of time to. form
an opinion respecting the inhabitants. , My acquaintance is,
as yet, limited to the Methodists ;- and a most loving, hospit¬
able people they are; intelligent, influential, tinited, and
deeply devoted to God. . I think if Mr. Wesley were alive,
he would have the same opinion of them now, that he had
when he penned the character of the Limerick society in
1771: " Feh. 25th, I spoke severally to the members of the
society in Limerick. I have found. no society in Ireland,
number for number, so rooted and grounded in love." They
have two excellent men of God stationed among them this
year, the Rev. John F. Mathews, and the Rev. William'F.
Applebe, with whom I feel my soul strongly united in love.
They are everything I could desire,-and enter most heartily
into the revival-.
As to the congregation, although we have had divine ser¬
vice every night since my arrival, there, is, as yet, no falling
off. This looks like an improvement since Mr. Wesley's dayv
It seems they had given him trouble on this head, and drove
166
- TEN _ WEEKS IN LIMERICK.
him to certain measures which proved successful. The fol¬
lowing entry itx his journal- for the year 1771, is rather
amusing ;• '".Tuesday,-14th, I rode on. to Limerick, and told
them plainly,.'If, as is your manner, you attend three days,
and then fall off, I can bestow my time better elsewhere.
But if you-continue to come, I will stay with you longer.'
They took me at my word, and continued, to increase, both
morning ^nd evening', as long as I stayed in the city.*"
•Mr. Mathews and I have -been engaged lately in visiting,
from house to house, praying with the families and exhorting
sinners to turn to God.. I preach every night in the -week,
except, Monday. and Saturday. There is a gracious move
among the people. Sixty persons came foward, night before
last, tQ testify, that," during the last.few weeks, they had found
"redemption through His blood, even the forgiveness of sins
and afterwards eighty awakened sinners came forward for the
prayers of God's people five or six of -whom were convert¬
ed before they departed. Glory be to God in the highest]
The following passages are taken from a letter written
from Cork, and contain several matters of interest concern
ing the results of his labors in Limerick:—_
Yesterday morning, March 18, 1842, I' left Limerick by
stage coach, and arrived in this city (Cork) a little past five,
P. M. Thirty miles of our .route lay through ah'interesting
country, but the remainder of the way was exceedingly dull,
and the weather bleak.
We had a very gracious work of God in Limerick. One
hundred and thirty persons professed the salvation of the
gospel, and about ninety united with the Methodist church.
I was informed that other churches had received some
benefit from the revival; to what extent I-am not able to
say.
ten weeks in limerick.
167
A few days before I departed, I was- invited to take break¬
fast with a number of the friends, in the vestry. There were,
about forty present., • When the cloth was removed, the.Rev;
J. F. Mathews, Superintendent' of the Circuit,. rose, and
after a short speech, a copy of which was given to me after-.
wards, he piresfented me with a valuable patent lever watch,
together with an address; signed by the chairman and secre¬
tary of th£ meeting. I rose, and returned Mr. M. and the
friends my hearty thanks, stating, that I should be. most
-happy to receive the beautiful- timepiece, did I not possess a
good one already; that owe watch was quite enough for a'
Methodist preacher; that if they would' consent to ' receive,
mine, and do what" they'pleased with it, I would gratefully
accept their elegant present; but only on these terms. . It
was thenTesolved that the Rev. John F. Mathews should be
presented with my watch.- I accompanied it with-a short
address-; -but I felt so unworthy, and was so overcome with
the unexpected kindness shown me, that I could scarcely
proceed. Mr. M. received it with such expressions of
brotherly love, as have left an indelible impression upon my
heart. The following are the copies1 of the addresses on the
occasion-: —
Reverend and very dear Sir, .
" At the request of a few of our brethren of the Wes
leyan society,-some of whom, through you, have been led to
the Saviour, and united to' his people, we address you a few
lines, now on the eve of your departure from us,- to" another
field,of labor and usefulness.
" We feel inadequate to give expression to our feelings of
respect and regard to you, for - your great and .unwearied
exertipns during your visit to this city. The results have
greatly exceeded our highest anticipations. When we com
168
ten weeks in limerick.
sider the large attendance .of "deeply attentive congregations,
that from night .to night sat under your ministry, the number?
"who have been awakened-and. brought to b.elieve in the Lord
Jesus, and the .encouraging circumstances .in which the soci-
•ety has been placed by this revival-of the work of God, we
are led, with adoring gratitude to JBirn, the source of every
blessing, to acknowledge what, through your instrumentality,
has. been- effected.
•" We' trust,' dear, Sir, that your valuable life will long be
preserved, to. the world and the church; that you may live
to publish the gospel "of the grace of God, which, we earn¬
estly pray, may to many thousands be his power to' their
salvation, who - shall be your 4 joy and crown of rejoicing'in
the day of the Lord Jesus.' We'do cherish the delightful
expectation of meeting you in that day, in our" Father's
kingdom, where -there is ' fulness of joy,' and 1 pleasures for
evermore.' Now that you are about to leave us, we cannot
let you depart without a small .testimony of Our fraternal re¬
gard for you, and trust you. will be pleased to' accept the
accompanying token as. an expression of gratitude to God,
for the blessings he has been, pleased to confer on us through
your instrumentality.
"We remain, dear Sir, yours most truly, and affectionate¬
ly; by order,
." Robtv Keats.
"Michl. Switzer."
" March 15tJi, 1842."
The secretary put into my hands the following, as the sum
mary of the Rev. Mr. Mathew's address: —
- " He congratulated" the. meeting upon the very 'cheering
circumstances in -which the society was -placed. A few
months ago it was greatly depressed,- but now the scene was
considerably altered. Many, during the revival, had Been
TEN. WEEKS IN LIMERICK.
169
converted to God, had given themselves to him and to his
people according to his will.-
" He spoke of Methodism in terms of high admiration
with regard to its doctrines, privileges, and discipline, and
of its adaptation to the great designs of God in the salvation
of the world. The Lord had signally owned the labors of
his servant. His word had been ' in demonstration of the
Spirit and of power.' The gospel, by his ministry, had in¬
deed come 'in the Holy Ghost, and in much assurance.' It
was their earnest prayer that the Lord would still be with
him; and, in every place, crown his labors with abundant
success.
"In conclusion, he observed, this token of affection and
gratitude is a watch. The friends presenting it are fully
aware, dear Sir, that you deeply feel the value of time ; else
you would not have preached with that yearning compassion
for the souls of sinners, which has characterized your labors
since you came to this city ; that its unspeakable importance,
as the period allotted to prepare ' for eternity, is a subject
which fills your mind in all your ministrations.
" The vibrations of this watch, wherever the providence
of God may lead you, in Ireland, England, the continent of
Europe, the mighty deep, or far away beyond the great
Atlantic, will be a fit memento of the constant affectionate
vibrations of the hearts of your Limerick friends ; and we are
led, in joyful anticipation, to look beyond the periodical revo¬
lutions of hours and days, months and years, terms belong¬
ing to limited duration ; to that glorious period when there
shall be duration without measure, without limit, and without
end ; and we expect, dear Sir, to meet you in that kingdom,
where our friendship shall be perpetuated forever."
I received many other tokens of the strong affection of
this lovely people, and left their city with feelings of strong
15
170
TEN WEEKS IN LIMERICK.
attachment and gratitude not easily expressed. An ac¬
quaintance has been formed there with some of the excellent
of the earth which, I believe, shall be renewed in heaven. I
do praise God also, that I ever became acquainted with the
Rev. J. F. Mathews, and his colleague, Mr. Applebe, and
with their amiable wives and families.
CHAPTER XII.
visit to cork.
Having finished his work in Limerick, Mr. Caughey found
" an open door " in the city of Cork. With the incidents of
his visit there, the reader will be greatly pleased. Perhaps
he will wish that Mr. Caughey had given a more regular
and detailed account of his revival movements. But it must
be recollected that, in a former.chapter, he has entered fully
into his mode of assaulting the kingdom of Satan. To de-.
scribe minutely his labors in ea6h place, would be only a
repetition of that chapter, since his mode of procedure was
substantially the same every where. He has, therefore, very
wisely, as we think, left the reader to apply the descriptions
of that thrilling chapter* to Limerick, Cork, &c., and has
given us the incidents only which were extraordinary and
peculiar.
The succeeding chapter derives its chief interest and value
from its description of the veteran soldier, a truly unique
character. There is a singular beauty in the picture it pre¬
sents of the wearied warrior, laying down his sword before
the door of the Wesleyan Chapel, and offering his services to
the Captain of his salvation: and in the subsequent history
of this bold old soldier we have the character and duty of
a model class-leader distinctly drawn. "W e hope this
character will be profoundly studied by every class-leader in
* Vide Chapter IV.
171
172
VISIT TO CORK.
the connection. But we must let Mr. Caughey speak for
himself. In his usual and somewhat abrupt manner he thus
begins his account of his visit to Cork:—
TO-morrow morning, March 20,1842, please God, I open
my commission in Cork. This morning I walked out of the
city, and ascended one of the neighboring hills, and had a
fine view of the place. It blew a gale at the time, with oc¬
casional bursts of sunshine through careering clouds. I
spent some time here in fervent prayer for the town, which
lay beneath; near access to God was vouchsafed me ; and,
after pleading deeply in the Spirit for the inhabitants, I
arose from my knees with the fullest conviction that God was
just as willing to visit Cork with an outpouring bf the Spirit,
as he was to send the purifying breeze, and the warming and
cheering beams of the sun, through the streets and lanes
of the city.
On the Sabbath morning following I addressed a large
congregation from Isaiah xl. 31 ;• many received the word in
faith and gladness, but some were prejudiced, and resisted.
I had many conflicting emotions during the sermon; such as
light, gloom, joy, sadness, freedom, restraint, softness, hard¬
ness. Do you understand such a paradoxical experience ?
I felt deeply humbled, and resolved to cleave to God. At
night I opened my commission more fully, from Jeremiah
xxiii. 19, 20. God enabled me to bear down on sinners with
the following proposition : There are a few great principles
which every sinner should consider perfectly before he enters
the eternal world.
It was a very solemn time, especially at the close of the
sermon. I insisted that a period must arrive in the history
of all men who die in sin, when God Almighty will compel
them, by all the arguments of hell-fire, to consider perfectly
VISIT TO CORK.
173
those subjects -which during life they had neglected; that
perfect consideration now would be attended with the most
delightful consequences, but that the same exercise of mind
in hell will only sink them deeper in its tormenting flames.
I then threw down the gauntlet of defiance against the devil
and all his works, and rallied my officers around the banners
of the cross. There was a shaking, but the devil raised his
signal of determined opposition. The night was spent in
hard fighting, without any great advantage on either side.
Hostilities ceased about ten o'clock at night. We called off
our troops and so did Satan. He had some wounded, but
he-carried them off the battle-ground. Since then we have
had a hard tug of war; several of our praying men have
been so exhausted that they could not engage in active
service.
A few nights ago one of the worthiest officers in Jesus
Christ's army was beaten from his post; I found him in the
congregation with his head down in great dejection, and sur¬
rounded with many in a similar state of soul. I went to
him and said, " Wh,at doest thou here, Elijah ?" He had
just strength enough to reply, " There is too much noise; I
can do nothing in the midst of it."
" My brother, I am astonished at you! It is a temptation
of the devil. I have just been mourning over the death-like
stillness which is prevailing, suspecting it to arise from luke-
warmness and spiritual death,'and I have been urging the
brethren to get into a state of soul in which they could shout
for battle and for victory."
He saw it was a device of Satan, and escaped out of the
hand of the enemy. The leaders complain of great hardness
of heart, but they are good men and true—
"Valiant hearted men,
Who will not their colors fly."
15*
174
VISIT TO COEK.
The preachers, Rev. Fossey Tackaberry, (brother to the
Rev. Mr. Tackaberry, of the New York Conference,) and
Rev. John Greer, -are possessed of an excellent spirit, fine
talents, and active zeal for the salvation of shiners, and are
highly esteemed by their people They manifest a lively
interest in the present conflict, and seem "delighted to open
every door of usefulness which would be likely to promote
the great end of my visit.
The principal chapel is -a large and substantial building.
Its exterior is quite pretentionless; the interior, however, is
spacious and exceedingly neat. There is 'an elegant and
dignified simplicity in the fitting up which I admire. • In few
places of worship has my mind enjoyed such a soothing sense
of religious quiet and seclusion from 'the world as in this.
The' regular congregation is large and highly respectable;
equal to that in Abbey street, Dublin, in every respect.
The preachers insist I shall occupy the pulpit twice on the
Sabbath while I stay. My mind has been uneasy about this,
knowing the superior talents of these servants of God; but
they say, " Let God send by whom he will send ; we have
been preaching to our people for several months, and we shall
have many opportunities after you are gone; we wish you
to do all the good you can while you remain with us."
A touching scene once took place in front of the abo^e
chapel, which will please you. It was related to me by an
old and successful class-leader of the Wesleyan Methodist
Society in this city, as a part of his" religious experience
He is one of- the holiest and most devoted men of God I
have ever met. Although between seventy and eighty years
of age, his mind seems to have all the freshness and vigor of
youth. He has been the instrument of the conversion*of a
great number of sinners ; not so much, I believe, by public
exhortations as by his private efforts for their salvation ; by
VISIT TO CORK.
175
this I mean his close, pungent, and untiring application of
divine truth to individual sinners, in private conversation.
The whole of his time is now taken up in watching over and
visiting the members of several large classes committed by
the church to his care% Indeed he is a father to the entire
society. The prime of his life was spent in the British army.
He endured the hardships and hazards of several bloody-
campaigns in the Peninsular War. It was on his return from
fighting the battles of his country that the circumstance
alluded to occurred. I will give it you in nearly his own
words:—
" On the 21st September, 1809, I arrived in Cork by the
mail, about three o'clock in the morning. - I had been dis¬
charged from the Royal Artillery, my health having suffered
much in Spain. The morning was fine, the streets still and
solitary .; I knew my wife and children were asleep, and con¬
cluded not to disturb them so early. I went to the front of
the ""Wesley chapel, laid down my pack, and placed my
sword across the iron gate, kneeled on the flags, and praised
my gracious God with all my heart and soul for his provi¬
dential care, in not suffering a bone to be broken nor a drop
of my blood to be shed, in all the sieges and battles in which
I had' been'engaged under the "Duke of York and Sir J.
Moore; saving me by sea and land, and for bringing me to
my family in peace.
" And now, my God and King, I praise thee for all thy
mercies; and as thou hast enabled me,by thy grace, to serve
faithfully my earthly sovereign, and hast provided for me an
honorable discharge from this bloody service, I drop, I lay
down my carnal sword at the gate of thy house, determined
by divine grace, to put on more heartily the whole armor of
God ; the breast-plate of righteousness, the girdle of truth,
the gospel shoes, the helmet of salvation, and the shield of
176
VISIT TO CORK.
faith. 0 Lord Jesus Christ, enable me now to take the
sword of the Spirit; for I am fully resolved, by thy assist¬
ance, to serve thee as faithfully as I have served King
George. 0 God, teach me to be expert in the use of these
my spiritual weapons; teach my hands to war and my
fingers to fight, that I may crucify the flesh, overcome the
spirit of the world, and vanquish all the powers of darkness;
serve my generation, glorify thy name, and be made meet,
through rich and abounding mercy, to enjoy thee in glory,
through Jesus Christ my-Lord. Amen."
" I have no', doubt," continued the old Christian warrior,
" after thirty-two years' experience, this prayer was heard
and answered. Glory, eternal glory be ascribed to God!
Within a few minutes of six o'clock I went home .to my joy¬
ful, weeping wife and children. As I now had enlisted more
immediately in the service of Jesus Christ, I plainly saw it
was my duty to win as many souls for my Lord as I possibly
could. I made an effort, rough as it was, to grapple with
the servants of the devil, and God blessed my humble en¬
deavors. My class soon became too large, and had to be
divided; then multiplying in numbers, it was again divided
and subdivided. In a few years I had six large classes."
Is there not something morally grand thrown around the
above simple story ? It is not every hero, returning from
the field of battle, who thus lays his honors at the feet of
Christ and enlists for life under the CQmmand of th$ Captain
of our salvation. I have another circumstance to relate,
connected with this excellent man, told me by a friend the
other day. It may be a blessing to yourself and other lead¬
ers in America, many of whom need to be stirred up as well
as those in Cork'. At a meeting, several years ago,' the
leaders were presenting their class-books for the inspection
of the minister. One good brother had but a very small
VISIT TO CORK.
177
class, and it had continued stationary for years. Our friend
whispered in his ear, " Brother, for a long time you have
had but a few names at the head of that paper; why don't
you get some of Satan's servants brought down to the foot
of the cross ? He has too many of them; get some of them
converted, ami fill your paper with their names."
The good' man thought it reflected on his efficiency as a
leader, and exclaimed aloud-, "All persons are not such good
recruiting sergeants as you are."
This drew, the attention of the meeting; and some, who
had been troubled upon the subject in their own ease, were
aroused; and, lest he should come down upon them once
more, several eloquent speeches were- made, with convincing
arguments, showing why he was more successful than them¬
selves. One very strong reason was suggested, " That he
had a talent peculiar to himself; and that neither God nor
reasonable men would require them to do what he did."
For some time he endeavored to prove that they were
wrong, but to no purpose ; at length he could keep his seat
no longer, and claimed the floor for a few minutes.
" Brethren," he said, " let us look at and inspect this man
of ' peculiar talent,'" and see how or wherein he differs from,
or has advantages over, the leaders of this meeting.-
" First: Is it in his riches ? No ; he is as poor a man as
any among you. Then it is not in his wealth.
" Second : Is it in his influence, flowing from high connec¬
tions, or having been born and bred in your city ? No; he
has no natural relations here ; and, moreover,.he is a stran¬
ger from the north of Ireland ; who, after being worn out in
the army, came to your city with a shattered constitution.
Therefore it is not in his connections nor in his health.
" Third: Is it in his beauty ? No; he is as course a look¬
ing man as any of you.
178
VISIT TO CORK.
" Fourth: Is it in his learning ? No ; for he has never
been at school to learn to read or write; but he has good
reason to suppose many of you have been favored with
expensive educations- Here you have the advantage of
him.
" Fifth: Is it in being master-of his time that enables him
to do what you suppose yourselves incapable oLdoing ? No;
he must attend to his business from six in the morning till
seven or eight in the evening, and he has no time to visit
till late at night. Here he stands on no vantage ground.
" Sixth : Does his success arise from his eloquence ? No ;•
for want of learning he has barely words to express his ideas.
Here he is inferior to his brethren.
"• Seventh: Is it his talents that do the work ? No; he
has just one talent; and as I hope you are all converted men,
you have, at least, one also; for as God commands every
soul he converts-.to 'go work in my vineyard,' and always
gives them a talent to occupy till their Lord calls them to ad
account, blessed be God, he has given me one also. Neither
in this has he any. advantage.
" Eighth : "Well, is it in his holiness ? No; it would be
pride to suppose he has as much grace as most of you.
"But,notwithstanding, there is a great difference between
him and you ; will you allow me to tell you wherein it lies ?
" Well, when you are toasting yourselves at your parlor
fires on winter nights, or indolently lounging at home
on summer evenings, he is scampering from Blackpool to
Evergreen, from the Custom House to Dyke Gate, from
north to south, from east to west of the city; in the dark¬
ness of the night, in all weathers,—hail, rain, wind, or
snow; from cellar to garret, to rich and to poor, to see who
he can get to lend an ear to his counsels. He patiently
listens to their complaints, he has a shoulder for all then
VISIT TO CORK.
170
crossed, lie lets them feel he loves , them by taking a kind
interest in what concerns them, and gives the best advice he
can for both worlds ; in this way he convinces them of his
disinterested love, he gains influence, he prevails upon them
to attend the preaching of God's word, to read it at home,
and pray for the Holy Spirit. By these means they are
brought under a concern for their souls; he gets, them into
his classes, and-they are soon converted to God. This is
the way, my brethren, he fills his ranks, and his classes over¬
flow. Has he made a seeret of his plans ? Has he not over
and over again urged you to adopt the same measures, in¬
sisting that equal causes will produce equal effects -the world
over ? and he now, in the name of God, humbly presses the
same upon your consciences. If you will go and do likewise,
the same results will surely follow. ■ It is not in the man,
hut in the manner in which his talent is occupied."
All the leaders dropped their heads and were silent, with
the exception of one very clever local preacher, whose feel¬
ings were not unlike young Elihu's, when he saw that Job
had confounded his three counsellors, Eliphaz, Bildad, and
Zophar, and said, " Behold, there was none of you that con¬
vinced Job, or that answered his woyds. Now he hath 'not
directed his words against me; neither will' I answer him
with your speeches. They were amazed, they answered no
more; they left off speaking. When I had waited, (for
they spake not, but stood still, and answered no more;) I
said, I will answer also my part, I will also shew mine opinion.
For I am full of matter, the spirit within me constraineth me.
Behold, my belly is as wine which hath no vent; it is ready
to burst like new bottles. I will speak,'that I may be
refreshed: I will open my lips and answer." Job xxxii.
12 — 20.
Thus it was, probably, with this good brother. He threw
180
VISIT TO COKK'.
his soul into it, and reasoned powerfully. Men will make
speeches, lay down rules, and discuss principles; yea, do
any thing and every thing but the " real matter-of-fact work
hard, patient, steady, humiliating, and painful drudgery of
saving souls from hell; in the shop, as in the parlor; in the
.cellar, garret, street, or field, as in the house of God. When
he had refreshed himself the venerable man rose and asked
the brother, " Don't you keep a shop ?"
" I do," was the reply.
" Well, suppose I could tell you of an article, by dealing
in which, on fair and honest principles, you could clear five
hundred pounds per annum, would you not come to me to
learn the "Secret?"
""I would."
" I believe you; and what does this prove in your case,
but that you love money better than the souls bought with
Jesus Christ's most precious blood, else you would have come
to me to learn this wonderful charm, you conceive I possess
for converting souls."
The person who related the above, concluded by remark¬
ing : " That local preacher entered eternity soon after, and he
now knows whether he won as many souls for Christ as was
.possible in his state of probation."
Conversing with this "good soldier of Jesus Christ," the
other day, he remarked, "Once, only, these thirty-two years
have I been obliged to part with one from my class, whom I
thought a true penitent, without obtaining pardonadding,
" I let not a penitent rest till he-has obtained this blessing,
for the following reasons: —.
" First: It would grieve the Holy Spirit.
" Second: It would prove my want of love' to souls, and
faith in the truth and power of God. The Samaritan not
only touched the man who had been robbed and wounded
VISIT TO CORK.
181
by the thieves, and left half dead, but, after binding up his
wounds, he lifted him on his beast, and brought him to
*afe lodgings.
• «Third: It would give Satan many advantages in per¬
plexing and distracting the mind.
" Fourth: It would set a bad example to all who may be
present, as well as to those who should hear of the circum¬
stance.
" Fifth: It would tend to weaken my own faith y but I
want it strengthened both in myself and others.
" Sixth : As unbelief is the awful, damning sin under the
gospel, he who can be the means of accelerating its destruc¬
tion in the heart of another, and does not; neither- loves his
neighbor as he ought, nor is he a. loyal subject of his. heaven¬
ly. King; nor ought he to be very confident of his own adop¬
tion into the family of God."
I know you will excuse me for writing so much about this
.dear man; I love him, and have derived much benefit to my
own soul from his conversation.
The 9th instant was my birth-day. As usual, I observed
the 8th as a private watch-night, and had a most solemn time
in dedicating myself anew to God. A review of the past
year was attended with deep humiliation and gratitude.
Since then I have enjoy§d more abiding peace, and sweeter
communion with my heavenly Father, than at any time .since
my arrival in Ireland. About thirty sinners have been con¬
verted. I wish I could have stated a larger number. My
soul is much humbled. We are resolved, by the help of God,
to push our principles to the utmost for an extensive revival.
Hammer on a rock long enough, and it must break in pieces.
This is true, to some extent, with mind. God's word is as a
hammer to break the rocky hearts in pieces before the Lord.
16
182
VISIT TO COI*K.
I met with, the following sentiments of an old writer, the
other day: " Men will wrangle for religion; write for it;
fight for it; die for it; any thing but live for it." I can
say, in behalf of the preachers and leaders in Cork, that they
seem not only willing to fight with spiritual weapons for a
revival, to die, if it he God's will, in* the tremendous conflict,
but to live for a revival in the most spiritual sense of that
term. I do believe, with my whole soul, God will not dis¬
appoint them.
In a letter dated May 9,1842, we find a continuance of
'his descriptions of the work of God and of his personal move¬
ments while he remained in Cork. He there says: —
I have been in this city nearly two months, engaged in
my beloved work of' calling sinners to repentance. As I
take exercise every day, for an hour or two, either in riding
or walking, an opportunity has been afforded me for making
a few observations which may perhaps gratify and amuse
you. Cork is seated on the river Lee, about fifteen miles
from the ocean; is the capital of the county bearing the
same name, and the second city in the kingdom. It has
long been considered " the metropolis, and "the grand em¬
porium " of the south of Ireland. The ancient city origin¬
ally covered an island, formed by two branches of the Lee,
which divided above and joined again below the island.
Spenser, in his " Faerie Queene," describes it thus,—
" The spreading Lee, th^t like an island fair
Encloseth Cork with his divided flood."
The united Lee and the salt water mix below the city and
form a commodious harbor. Ancient Cork partook of the
shape of the island, which resembled an egg. It was walled
and fortified by the Danes, about the middle of the ninth
VISIT TO CORK.
183
century, but in consequence of the lowness of its position,
could never have been a place of much strength.
Modern Cork has spread herself over a cluster of little
marshy islands, separated by small branches of the river.
The channels, however, are now arched over, and wide
streets occupy their places. The two main branches which
encompass the city are still open, and are called the north
and south channels, and afford a fine harbor for the shipping.
I understand there is a resemblance, in, this respect, between
Cork and most of the cities in Holland. Although its posi¬
tion seems to be unfavorable to health, I am not aware that
it is any more unhealthy than other cities in Ireland. Many
years ago it was visited by severe epidemics, but in conse¬
quence of valuable improvements, such as arching the vari¬
ous canals, and raising, though at an immense expense, vast
portions of the marshy ground, such visitations have been
rare for many years. Besides, the tides' of the ocean have
free access, daily, through all these covered channels. Their
ebbs and flows, together with the current of a swift river,
give such a brisk circulation of pure water through these
concealed arteries and veins as keep them perfectly clean,.
Were it not for the cleanliness of Cork, (I speak of its
covered channels and sewers of different kinds, for some of
the streets are very narrow and' dirty, especially in the
ancient part of the city,) I should judge it could not escape
epidemics. The marshy ground upon which it is built, the
heavy fogs which settle upon it, and the immense quantities
of rain which descend in the course of' a year, not less, I am
informed, than an average of thirty-eight inches, would lead
a stranger to this conclusion. Since my arrival I have had
excellent health; but, could you see the elevated and lovely
spot where I reside, and which I am requested, by the most
convincing and substantial forms of Irish hospitality, to call
184
VISIT TO CORK.
my home, and the beautiful prospects spread .around me on
every side, with elegant grounds, and walks shaded with lofty
trees,—
" Where meditation
Might think" down hours to minutes, where the
■ Hea,rt might give a useful lesson to the head,
And learning, wiser grow, without her books,"—
you would not wonder that I enjoy the " full tide of health,"
and of what the world calls " good spirits." So much for
" Hayfield ;" but' it is in the pleasant society of Mr. Perrot's
excellent and intelligent family I enjoy that which, " Whilst
by numbers sought, is realized by few,"—real happiness.
There is just one drawback, and it belongs to all things of
an earthly nature, I must soon bid these pleasant scenes
farewell; and once more " a stranger stand, unknowing and
unknownso that the sentiment can only be realized in
heaven, " A perpetuity of bliss, is bliss." I know these
items of my personal comforts will not be uninteresting to
you; and I would add another, which an excellent author
says is " a main article of human happiness,—the exercise
of our faculties, whether of body or mind, in the pursuit of
some engaging end." What that "engaging end" is,
which absorbs my whole being, you very well know,— the
conversion of sinners to God.
As I have digressed so far, allow me to tell you something
better than all. My soul enjoys deep and almost uninter¬
rupted communion with God. This throws a brightening
charm upon every thing around me, and imparts a relish for
all that is beautiful and grand in the works of nature and
art, or whatever is engaging and pleasant in human society.
For, as Bishop Home says, " He who hath his thoughts
about him, can enjoy no bodily pleasure while he thinks his
soul is in danger of hell fire ; but the reflection, that all is
VISIT TO CORK. 185
right with "respect to another world, doubles every joy that
he can taste in this."
" The mind that feels no smart,
Enlivens all it sees."
But I have more glorious news to tell you; the revival is
still going forward with power. Yesterday, (Sabbath,) a
glorious day! ten converted and two backsliders restored;
one of the latter had wandered from God sixteen years, the
other seven.
I think it scarcely necessary to occupy your time with a
description of the public buildings, and other interesting
objects of this kind, as they are so similar to those which are
peculiar to all large and commercial cities. The Cathedral
is respectable, but not ancient. There are also several
handsome parish churches. I think the St. Ann's, Shandon,
has a more imposing aspect than the Cathedral. It has a
tower one hundred and seventy feet high, two sides of which
are limestone, and two of brown stone, which give it a sin¬
gular appearance; and a good chime of bells, as you may
learn from an old Cork poet, in exile:
With deep affection,
And' recollection,
I often think on
. Those Shandon bells;
Whose sound so wild, would
In days of childhood,
Fling round my Cradle
Their magic spells.
On this I ponder,
Where'er I wander,
And thus grow fonder
Sweet Cork, of thee;
With thy bells of Shandon,
That sound so grand on
The pleasant waters
Of the river Lee.
16*
188
VISIT TO" CORK.
There are also the usual number of churches belonging to
the existing denominations of Christendom. The Roman
Catholics are the most numerous. The Wesley an Metho¬
dists have another handsome chapel, besides the one I have
already described, but much smaller.
I have not ascertained the exact population of Cork, but I
should judge it nearly twice as large as that of the city of
Albany, N. Y.; and the population of Limerick double that
of Troy, N. Y. Are you aware that a tomb in this city con¬
tains the dust of our beloved Boardman ? I say our Board-
man, because his name shall be for ever identified with
American Methodism. Upon an early and prominent page
of the history of the Methodist Episcopal Church is enshrined,
among a few others, the name of Richard Boardman. It is
also recognized by hundreds of thousands in our book of dis¬
cipline. He died in Cork, A. I). 1783. On referring to
the minutes of the English Conference for 1769, which was
that year held in Leeds, Yorkshire, I find the following
record. - Mr. Wesley proposed the question: —
" We have a pressing call from our brethren in New York,
(who have built a preaching-house,) to come over and help
them. Who is willing to go ?
" Answer: Richard Boardman and Joseph Pilmoor."
These were the first regular Methodist preachers in Amer¬
ica. Mr. Boardman remained long enough in the western
world to have his ministry blessed to many thousands; but
the revolutionary war breaking out, circumstances obliged
1dm to sail for .England, and he never returned. Mr. Wes
ley appointed him to this city in 1782. The following
account of his death I extract from the Methodist Magazine
for 1783 : —
" On the 29th September, 1782, Mr. Richard Boardman,
having been about eleven days in Cork, when walking, was
VISIT TO CORK.
187
suddenly struck blind, so that lie could not find bis 'way, till
one of our friends met bim and took him by the band. Soon
after, be recovered himself, and sat down- to dinner. Upon
doing so be was immediately deprived both of speech and
understanding, one of his sides being at the same time
strongly contracted. After a few hours he became nearly
well: in a few days perfectly so. His mind was calm and
serene ; no anxiety about life or death. A few days before,
on leaving Limerick, he told Mrs. .B./that he should die in
Cork; but he spoke it without the least concern, as knowing
in whom he had believed. • He preached twice after receiv¬
ing the shock. The "Sabbath previous t© his, first intimation
of his call, he preached from, ' Though he slay me, yet will
I trust in himand it was a solemn meeting. On Friday
morning he appeared easy, and met the people at the hour
of intercession, when it was observed that he had an uncom¬
mon degree of freedom and power with God.- He prayed
fervently for the people, and begged that if this was the last
meeting in this world, they might have a happy meeting in1
the realms of light.
" About three o'clock in the afternoon, he went to dine
with a friend in Blarney lane. As he was walking, his wife
observed him to falter in his speech, and desired him to
return, but he would not comply. As soon as he came into
the house he sunk down insensible. He was brought home
in a carriage, and two physicians were sent for. They both
declared him beyond help. He continued thus till nine in
the evening. He then expired in the arms of two of his
brethren, and in the presence of. many who commended him
to God, with sorrowful hearts and weeping eyes. His funeral
sermon was preached by Mr. Yewdall, from Revelation xiv.
13, to a? large' a congregation as had ever been seen in the
Cork chapel."
188 VISIT TO CORK.
A few days ago a young brother conducted -me to hie
grave, which is near to the Cathedral. I cannot well ex¬
press to you my sensations on beholding it. We knelt down
upon the stone, and worshipped God. With deep emotion I
exclaimed, "What hath God wrought" in America since
precious Boardman visited those shores ! Then, there were
not more than two hundred members in our societies, on the
entire continent; now, in the United States alone, we have
nearly one million of members! After prayer, I copied the
following from the plain slab which covers his dust:—
RICHARD BOARDMAN,
Departed this life October 4th, 1782,
JEtalis 44.
Beneath this stone, the dust of Boardman lies,
His precious soul has soared above the skies ;
With eloquence divine, he preached the word
To multitudes, and turned them to the Lord.
His bright example strengthened what he taught,
And devils trembled when for Christ he fought.
With truly Christian zeal he nations fired,
And all who knew him mourned when he expired.
Perhaps tbe following remarkable interposition of Divine
Providence, in behalf of this man of God, might be interest¬
ing to you. It was related by himself, a short time before
his death:—
" I preached," said Mr. B., " one evening, at Mould, in
Flintshire, and next morning set out for Parkgate. After
riding some miles I asked a man if I was on the road to that
place. He answered, ' Yes, but you will have some sands to
go over, and unless you ride fast, you will be in danger of
being inclosed by the tide.'
" It then began to snow to such a degree that I could
scarcely see a step of my way, and my mare being with foal
VISIT TO -CORK.
189
prevented me from riding so fast as I otherwise should have
done. I got to the sands, and pursued my journey over
them for some timehut the tide then came, in, and sur¬
rounded me on every side, so that I could neither proceed
nor turn back ; and to ascend the perpendicular rocks was
impossible. In this situation I commended my soul to God,
net having the least expectation of escaping death. In a
little time I perceived two men running down a hill on the
other side of the water, and by some means they got a boat,
and came to my relief just as the sea had reached my knees,
as I sat on my saddle. They took me into the boat, the
mare swimming by our side, till we reached the land. While
we were in the boat, one of the men said, ' Surely, Sir, God
is with you.'
" I answered, ' I trust he-is.'
" The man replied, ' I know he is ;' and then related the
following circumstance : ' Last night I dreamed that I must
go to the top of such a hill. When I awoke the dream made
such an impression on my mind that I could not rest. I
therefore went and called upon this man to accompany me.
When we came to the place, we saw nothing more than usual.
However, I begged him to go with me to another hill at a
small distance, and there we saw your distressed situation.'
When we got ashore, I went with my two friends to a public
house, not far distant from where we landed; and, as we
were relating the wonderful providence, the landlady said,
1 This day month we saw a gentleman just in your situation;
but before we could hasten to his relief he plunged, into the
sea, supposing, as we concluded, that his horse would swim to
the shore; but they both sank, and were drowned together.'
" I gave my deliverers all the money I had, which I think
was about eighteenpence, and tarried all night at the hotel.
Next morning I was not a little embarrassed how to pay my
190
VISIT TO COKK.
reckoning, for the want of cash, and begged that the land¬
lord would keep a pair of silver spurs till I should redeem
them; but he answered, ' The Lord bless jou, Sir ! I would
not take a farthing from you for the world.' After some
serious conversation with the friendly people, I bade them
farewell, and re-commenced my journey, rejoicing in the
Lord, and praising him for his great salvation."
On the 20th ult. a party of us visited the famous Blarney
Castle. It stands in a pleasant vale, on the banks of a little
river of the same name, five miles from Cork. A square
tower, one hundred feet in front, fifty in breadth, and one
hundred and thirty feet high, is all that remains of this once
flourishing castle, with the exception of a small castellated
battery close by. A singular awe crept over my mind on
first beholding it from a neighboring eminence. It stands
alone, surrounded -with ancient trees, but rising far above
them, frowning upon their aspiring branches, as if haughtily
demanding the respectful homage of other days, when favored
with the radiant smiles of fortune. The storms of four cen¬
turies have made little impression upon its aspect, other than
those hoary hues which the Scriptures say are a crown of
glory to an aged man, when found in the ways of righteous¬
ness. One feels willing, when approaching its peaceful ram¬
parts, to award such a tribute of respectful veneration to
Blarney Castle. The sound of the bugle and clash of arms
are heard here no more. Royalty and grandeur have long
since fled away. The stir and din of multitudes have sub
sided into the stillness of death. No sentinel challenge^
your approaching footsteps. All is deep, dread, unbroken
solitude:—
" Not a sound, save nature's own,
Could o'er the silence swell,
To jar the chords of quiet thought,
Or break seclusion's spell."
VISIT TO CORK.
191
It is built, like most of the castles in this country, upon a rock.
The cliffs facing the river rise about fifty feet. The opposite
side of the castle is on a level, in its lower story, with an exten¬
sive lawn or meadow sprinkled with fine trees. We ascended
to the top by a spiral stone staircase, of the same workman¬
ship as those near Limerick. It is roofless and floorless ; but
there is a substantial promenade ,on the top, inside the para¬
pet, which widens towards the south and east, by means of
machicolated parapets. These rest upon projecting corbells,
having openings or crenells at proper distances, through
which, I have been told, in former days of hazard and blood,
they poured down melted lead, and other destructive mate¬
rials, upon the unfortunate heads of the besiegers. The
prospect from the top is very-good; but, considering the
length of my letter, you will excuse the omission of a descrip¬
tion. I was interested with the various windings of three
small streams, neighboring the castle ; Blarney, Cormane,
and Scorthenac. The celebrated "Blarney stone" was
pointed out to us. You have often heard of the suspicious
phrase, " A little blarney." This phrase originated from
some legend belonging to this Blarney stone. It is currently
reported here, and the reputed facts of the case have circu¬
lated from father to son, through many generations, that
who ever kisses it will always have a flattering, cajoling
tongue ; from that moment he is enabled to tell the smooth¬
est and most insinuating lies without a blush! How " don't
be after putting on " that look of incredulity, so peculiar to
American unbelievers, and which has frightened many a poor
Irishman among you out of half his story. But you. must
hear an Irish poet, by some called the " Mellifluent Millikin,"
describe its wonder-working properties: —
" There is a stone there, who ever kisses,
Oh ! he never misses to grow eloquent;
192 VISIT TO COKK.
'Tis he may clamber *****
Or become a member of Parliament.
A clever spouter, he'll sure turn out, or
An out and outer, to be let alone ;
Don't hope to hinder him, or bewilder him;
Sure he's a pilgrim to the Blarney stone."
Another writer tells us, in plain unvarnished prose, that the
touch of this stone " makes a liar of the first magnitude ; at
the same time, a smooth graceful liar that " its eminent
perfection is a sweet persuasive language, than can whisper
the softest words into the ears of those who are to he de¬
ceived ; full of guile and blandishment, and potential flattery,
and uncontrollable suasion over the credulity of ."
This stone I saw, if our guide were correct; but I assure
you my lips were not within a yard of it. It is recorded
that Sir Walter Scott made a pilgrimage to it, in August,
1825, in company with some others, and that he passed
through the ceremony of kissing it. * * *
I write by the present packet to my Conference. My
desire is to continue my tour. Nearly two years have
expired since its commencement. It is doubtful whether I
shall return before 1844. My letter contains a request for
a " location," according to the discipline of the Methodist
Episcopal Church. I have asked for such a relation, con¬
scientiously, that I may not infringe upon any of the rights
of the Members of Conference. By their approbation I have
continued my tour till now. Last year I sent them the cer¬
tificate of my ministerial character from Ihe quarterly meet¬
ing of the Wesleyan Methodist Society, Montreal; and this
year I send another from a similar meeting of the same body
in Cork. Should they grant me a location, it separates me
from any future claims upon the funds of the church; that
is, should my health fail, or any unforeseen difficulty arise in
ray temporal affairs, before I rejoin the itinerant ranks ; but
VISIT TO CORK.
193
it secures me till then, or through life, the office of an
ordained minister of the Methodist ^Episcopal Church in
America; I mean so long as my character is becoming a
minister of the gospel. I shall then have the privilege of
continuing my tour without embarrassment.*
"VYe find that upwards of a hundred sinners have been
converted to God since the revival began. The " signs of
the times " are glorious in Cork. I am quite uncertain as
to the period of my departure ; we want several hundred
sinners to be converted first.
* Mr. Caughey's request for a location was cheerfully granted, and a certi
flcate from Bishop Hedding, bearing the date of July 9,1842, duly forwarded
to him.
IT
CHAPTER XIII.
experiences and incidents in cork and bandon.
This chapter is a medley. It treats of a great variety
of topics. - The two cases of restitution it records are re¬
markable illustrations-of Mr. Caughey's power of moving the
conscience. Perhaps in no one feature is his power so
marked as in this. No unpardoned sinner can avoid a sense of
guilt under his appeals: hence the many examples of resti¬
tution and of complaints from sinners, that some one had told
him their histories.
Bandon yielded less fruit to Mr. Caughey's labors" than
any other place he visited while in Europe. It was indeed
a stronghold of the Enemy, which would not yield very much
to his "revival artillery." Yet even there, some were " slain
of the Lord." Possibly a restraint on his success was' as
needful to Mr. Caughey as the thorn in the flesh was to
Paul — it confirmed him in his well cultured principle of
the necessity of divine aid to ministerial success.
The opening paragraphs are extracted from a letter to his
sister in America, and contain an account of his closing
labors in Cork, and of the incident which determined him to
visit Bandon.
My work is nearly finished in Cork. It gives me great
satisfaction to find God's dear people so generally convinced
194
COKK AND JJANDON.
195
that this is a real revival of religion. I should have left two
or three weeks since, but their entreaties to remain a little
longer have been overpowering. Awakened sinners, too,
have taken the alarm, and the general cry has been, " Surely
he will not leave us when he finds himself encompassed by
such a crowd of penitent souls." I cannot express the sen¬
sations which have swept over my soul in beholding the large
communion filled every night with seekers. of salvation.
Their tears and sobs, and subdued cries for mercy, have
been sometimes profoundly awful. You will, no doubt, be
anxious to know the number of these trophies of Divine
Love. I cannot state precisely the number of persons con¬
verted to God. We had a meeting for this purpose three
weeks ago, and nearly two hundred of them present; there
were many others, but they were unable .to attend that par¬
ticular meeting, and we have not had a similar one since.
The work is still advancing with increasing power. A short
account of the above select meeting may be interesting to you.
We had those who have been lately born of the Spirit
seated by themselves in the centre seats of the chapel.
After a solemn and pointed address, in which their duties,
responsibilities, and dangers, were faithfully urged upon their
attention, they were called forward to the communion rails.
Several important questions were then proposed to them;
their names, places of residence, and the leader of their
choice, were carefully taken. They then knelt down, and-
were commended in prayer to the guidance and protection
of the Almighty. The congregation, admitted by ticket,
then arose, while the young converts remained kneeling,
and we sang,—
" O happy day that fixed my choice
On thee, my Saviour and my God !
Well may this glowing heart rejoice,
And tell its raptures all abroad."
196
EXPERIENCES AND INCIDENTS
While the last two lines were being sung they retired to
their seats, and another company came forward, and were
prayed for, and dismissed in the same way, until all had
thus presented themselves at -the altar of God.
The service was most impressive. Many tears were shed
by the members of the society, who were seated in the gallery,
but especially by the young converts. Such a scene of en¬
tire consecration of body, soul, and spirit, to the service of
God, with such an influence from heaven, many of the oldest
saints say they never had witnessed before. Assist me, my
dear sister, in praising God for liis abounding goodness,
"Which always causeth me the triumph in Christ, and maketh
manifest the savor of his love," by your unworthy brother,
" in every place."
I have been contemplating a visit to England for several
weeks, and have had many very pressing invitations from
the Rev. William Lord, formerly a Wesleyan Missionary in
Canada; and were it not for the following circumstance I
would sail immediately for that country; —
Some weeks since I wrote to Mr. Lord, in Hull, stating
that I was nearly ready to leave Ireland, requesting the
route to Hull, and where I should find a home on my arrival.
When my letter > reached Hull, Mr. Lord had gone to the
Conference in London. Mrs. Lord forwarded my letter to
him, and he wrote to a brother in Hull, respecting my in¬
tentions, requesting him to write to me in Cork.' He then
folded my letter inside the one he had written to the friend,
and directed the entire to me at Cork. It arrived, and to
my surprise J found my own letter returned. I saw. at once
it was a mistake, and concluded that Providence desired to
retain me in Ireland for a longer time.
Since then I have engaged to visit Bandon, a pleasant
IN CORK AND BANDON.
197
town a few miles from this city. I shall leave for that place
on Saturday, the 30th instant, if God permit.
We continue this chapter with extracts from another letter
addressed to an American friend, from Bandon. It refers
to his Temperance labors while yet in Cork, and to his open¬
ing revival movements in Bandon. He says: —
On Saturday, 30th July, I left Cork for Bandon. Before
I bade adieu to Cork, I felt it my duty to. deliver a few lec¬
tures on • Temperance. Some battled hard for the wine
bottle, but nobly surrendered to the convincing arguments,
of tee-totalism. A society was formed, denominated} " The
Cork Young Men's Total Abstinence Society," that is, " total
abstinence" from all intoxiqating drinks. The meetings were
animated, and several of the brethren advocated tho cause
most eloquently. The young society was in a very flourish*
ing condition when I left, and those who had joined it well
satisfied with the step they had taken.
This cause, like every other benevolent institution of the
day, requires to be kept in motion by a stirring and vigorous
advocacy. What would become of Missionary} Bible, Tract,
and other kindred Societies, without public meetings, and
the powerful and arousing speeches delivered on such oc¬
casions ? What would become of the church and the Christ¬
ian world, notwithstanding the hold which the gospel and the
Bible have upon the consciences of the population, if gospel
sermons were as " few and far between" as aire addresses on
total abstinence ? If sin and its servants would, in such a
case, blight or root out the cause of truth and true religion
from the church and from the world, the same results, under
like circumstances, will unquestionably attend the cause of
temperance on total abstinence principles; alcohol, with its
grogshops and votaries, would soon undo all that has been
17*
198
EXPERIENCES AND INCIDENTS
done to cleanse our globe 'from the sin of drunkenness. The
Temperance Society will prosper in Cork, if its friends will
not allow it to sleep ; but, if they do, it will soon come to
an end, and they will have none to blame for it but them
selves."
I *have written to them since I caine to -Bandon, offering
them this motto, Action ! Action ! ! Action ! ! ! Not that I
would advise any of them to make it a hobby in preaching,
in prayer meetings, in class meetings, or in love-feasts, as
this would only tend to prejudice and disgust those who are
not yet convinced; but to plan their public meetings so as
not to give drunkards and temperate drinkers, time to check
their uneasiness or fortify themselves before another discharge
of temperance truth is poured into their entrenchments.
Let the friends not be afraid of a little money; let them
call, forward the best speakers of the day: whatever talent
God has enlisted against alcoholic drinks, let them wield
against the hydfa-headed monster, and punch and wine,
and ale and porter drinking will become quite as unfashion¬
able in respectable families in Cork, as in America. You
know the battle we had to .fight in America, and the results;
that upon the tables and side-boards of thousands of families,
those drinks were not to be seen; the effects upon the rising
generation, as well as upon the morals and religious move¬
ments of the adult population, eternity alone will reveal
We can never know-the final results in time, great as they
are acknowledged to be.
A few days before I left Cork, Father Mathew" honored
me with a visit. We had a very agreeable conversation for
three quarters of an hour on temperance. He seems an ex¬
cellent man, full of benevolence and good will to all classes
of his fellow-men ; and determined, while he lives, to prose¬
cute with his characteristic ardor, the cause of temperance,
IN CORK AND BANDON.
199
for the promotion of which, it would appear, God has raised
him up.
If Mr. Mathew can only succeed in steering his tempe¬
rance ship clear of the rocks of political intrigue, which
seems to be the fixed purpose of his heart, the elevating and
glorious results in the future history of Ireland, can no"more
he doubted, than the beneficial influence upon the millions of
tee-totallers already enrolled beneath his temperance banners.
There is not, I presume, a Protestant in Ireland, that has not
been forced into the acknowledgment of a change, not, of
course, in the Roman Catholic religion, but in the moral
habits of the people in reference to intoxicating drinks and
drunkenness. The fruits of the reformation, sobriety and
elevation of moral character, are such as cannot be denied,
their enemies themselves being witnesses.
I opened my commission here on Sabbath, 31st of July,
in the use of that text, Heb. vii. 25 ; since, then, have been
preaching four nights in the week, and twice on the Sabbath.
A few have been converted to God. The influence upon
the Wesleyan church, is very gracious indeed, but the in¬
habitants generally seem as yet unmoved." The good citizens,
as far as we have become acquainted, treat me with great
civility, but on the subject of religion, the general state of the
public mind appears to be, " I pray thee have me excused !"
The congregations are tolerable, but our doings or sayings,
excite but very little interest beyond the families of Method¬
ism ; why, I cannot tell. Popularity or influence over a
community, is, especially when a good man is concerned, the
gift of God ; but the Lord does not seem to deliver them
into my hand, and, I greatly fear, I stepped out of the order
of God in coming here at all* Yesterday, I was much cast
down and sorely buffeted by the enemy. I have experienced
nothing like it since I left Dublin.
200
EXPERIENCES AND INCIDENTS
A few days ago I, received the following letter: —
"MY VERY DEAR AND WORTHY FRIEND,
I have sent to London, lately, <£400., in half notes, the
first halves directed to the Chancellor of the Exchequer, and
the corresponding ones to the Duke of Wellington, (conceal¬
ing my name,) with the request that the receipt might be
acknowledged in the London Times newspaper, and a copy
of the said paper to be forwarded to the Rev. James
Caughey, Methodist minister, Bandon; as I mentioned, that
it was through the instrumentallity of your preaching, that
the money was restored. I would be glad to know, when
you receive the paper, and will be thankful that you will keep
it for me. I constantly remember you when on my knees,
and the prayer I offer up is, that the Almighty may keep
you in the same humble state that you were in while in ,
and that many more souls .may be given for your hire. Oh!
pray for me. I remain, dear Sir, your most affectionate
brother in Jesus Christ,
______ "
The paper referred to now lies before me, with the ac¬
knowledgment therein, the Chancellor's name on the wrapper.
I am about to write to the individual.' When in Cork, a
person was convinced of the necessity of restitution, of a sum
much less than the above, in consequence of having cheated
the revenue, fifteen years ago ; I assisted the poor fellow by
obtaining the advice of a revenue officer, and penned for him
a letter to the Chancellor, signed " conscience money," which
he sent by post.
While upon this subject, you will be gratified to learn
another case of restitution, and it may, perhaps, serve to ex¬
plain the secret why * * * and * * * act in such a singular
manner. While in * * * , and during the revival, a person
IN CORK AND BANDON.
201
who resided in * * * street experienced a clear sense of the
pardoning love -of God, and joined the Methodist church.
Her husband no sooner knew of it than he began to persecute
her; he vowed vengeance against her, and in one or two
instances knocked her down to the floor with his fist. She
bore it with the patience of a real Christian. Few knew her
troubles, but she stood fast, and clung to God and his people.
A short sime after I arrived at * * *, I was surprised in meet¬
ing the man in a shop. He drew me aside hastily, and begged
I would not call him by the name he had at * * *, but by
* * *, as the latter was his real name. We walked out together,
and he expressed himself as having become " quite a new
man." " But," I inquired, " why did you conduct yourself
so to your wife in * * * ? you acted as if the devil were in
you !" The substance of his reply was, " I was very un-
happy. But I should remark, .first, I have abandoned the
use of liquor ; and, secondly, God has compelled me to be¬
come an honest man. The secret of my opposition to
my wife was, I had no hopes of salvation myself. To be
short, Sir, I formerly resided at * * * in * * *; I ran away
from my creditors, and kept several thousands in my posses¬
sion. I changed my name! at * * * to avoid detection; but,
Sir, I have made restitution, and I have obtained great peace
of mind. My soul was tormented; God began also to afflict
my body, and convinced me, that it was on account of my
dishonesty. My disease has disappeared with my mental
distress, and I am now a happy man."
I have been doubting in my mind, whether you will be
satisfied with me, for filling up my letter with these restitu¬
tion cases; still, as they serve to illustrate the power of the
gospel, in casting out bad principles, by the expulsive force
of those peculiarly its own ; I hope the relation, on that ac¬
count, may not be uninteresting.
202
EXPERIENCES AND INCIDENTS
My soul is frequently assailed by the grand adversary;
but often, when the enemy comes in as a flood, the Spirit of
God raises up a standard against him. In general, my
peace and rest in God are soul satisfying: He is my object
and aim. If I have any happiness, it is in Him. I have
much to humble me, but " covered is my unrighteousness."
The blood of Jesus Christ has washed away my guilt and
stains. I rest upon the,merits of the atonement, and have
the victory; and the blood of Jesus Christ cleanseth me from
all sin. 0 what a happiness is this! The revival is going
on very slowly here, which gives the enemy much advantage
in harassing my soul.
'Th6 following paragraphs form a sort of episode in tne
narrative ; yet as they show the workings of his mind, while
in Bandon, their insertion is not deemed inappropriate. It
seems some ministerial friend in America had written to Mr.
Caughey in terms of admiration at his successes, and almost
in a spirit of discontent at the comparative want of similar
fruitfulness in his own ministry. This reply is worthy of Mr.
Caughey's head and heart, and will assuredly profit many a
minister who is discouraged from kindred causes : it com¬
mences with certain references to his friend's letter: —
Permit me, in the outset, to oppose the following verse to
yours:—
" Thick waters show no images of things ;
Friends are each other's mirrors, and should he
Clearer than crystal or the mountain springs,
And free from cloud, design, or flattery."
I allow all you say on "contraries illustrating contraries
the two fields of grain, one thin, shrunk, and shrivelled;
the other, rich and luxuriantthe " two clouds, presenting
their contraries of darkness and brightness, gloom and
IN COKK AND BANDON.
203
glory,;" tlie one throwing the other into bolder and more
striking relief, and mutually serving to illustrate each other;
these are happy illustrations, hut you must not forget the
sentiment of a poet: —
"'Tis distance lends enchantment to the view,
And clothes the mountain in its azure hue."
The ruggedness of the landscape is greatly lessened by being
only seen at a distance. Great allowance should be made,
when the position occupied by the person who is scanning
those fields is considered. If too near, one may be seen to
great disadvantage ; but distance may make the only differ¬
ence with respect to the other. It is here that the" principle
of deception often works, and where I have frequently
detected it, in my estimate respecting both myself and
others. In reference to those clouds, much may depend
upon the point of observation ; the bright one may have dark
shades, and the dark a bright side, when seen from a differ¬
ent direction. Will you allow the' application ? You stand
too near your own fieldyour eye -is fixed upon the dark
side of your own cloud ; you see me and the circumstances
in which I am placed, in the far away and shadowy distance.
The disadvantages of your situation, with all its vexations,
are, indeed, dull and sombre certainties, while the broad out¬
lines of mine are only seen; distance lends its graces as to
the landscape, and fancy, ignorant of the soft illusions, fills
it up with a thousand romantic charms. Could you only
approach a little nearer, -and acquaint yourself by actual
experience with the ground over which vision has been expa¬
tiating, " the fairy enchantment" which deludes your
imagination would soon disappear before stern and rugged
reality. Do not, my dear Sir, entertain the thought for a
moment that my path is a smooth one. Your " trials " and
204
EXPERIENCES AND INCIDENTS
mine differ, but I have them as well as you; nor do I expect
it to be otherwise, till my soul is lodged in Abraham's bosom.
The tears I have shed, and the agonies and sore conflicts I
have passed through, in fighting with the opposing powers of
hell, are known only to my heavenly Father. Under open
sky, upon the cold and damp ground, or upon the floor of my
bedroom, I have lain in exquisite anguish, with prayers and
supplications, strong cryings and tears,—
" And what I felt, I oft shall feel again."
He that wages war with hell, must expect to suffer hell's
rage ; but the opposition from infernal powers is varied
according to our temperament and circumstances. When
perusing an old volume the other day, I fell in with one of
Luther's letters to his friend Melancthon. It was written in
1522, and at a time when all hell was moved against these
devoted men ; when the rage of the papists, and threats of
those high in power, knew no bounds; and when their fury
menaced every moment, and seemed about to come down
upon them like a tornado. Melancthon gave himSelf up to
grief, sighs, and tears. At this crisis, Luther wrote him the
following letter: —
In private conflicts, I am weak and you are strong; but
in public conflicts, you are found weak, and I am stronger,
because I am assured that our cause is just. If we fall,
Christ, the Lord and Ruler of the world, fallethwith us ; and
suppose he fall: Mallem ruere cum Christo, quam regnare
cum Ccesare! ' I had rather fall with Christ, than reign
with Caesar.' I extremely dislike your excessive cares, with
which you say you are almost consumed. That these reign
so much in your heart, is not so much from the greatness of
the danger, as from the. greatness of your incredulity. If
IN CORK AND BANDON.
205
the cause be bad, let us give it up,- jmd flee .back ; if.it be
good, why do we make God a liar, who bath given us so
great promises? saying, 'Cast thyeare upon the Lord;
be of good comfort, I have overcome the world.' A man
would fetch such sentences as I have quoted, upon bis knees,
from Rome to Jerusalem. If Christ be the conqueror of the.
world, why should we fear it, as if it could overcome us ?
Be courageous and cheerful, solicitous for nothing; the Lord
is at hand' to help us."
Can you make the application, and obey the injunction of
the apostle : " Whom resist, steadfast in the faith, knowing'
that- the same af&ictions," either inward or outward, " are
accomplished in your brethren that are in the world." That
was a choice saying of one now with God. " A'Christian is
never without an enemy to persecute, him," inwardly or out¬
wardly; even this is a temptation of the devil, to think that
we are at any time free from temptation;" The things you
speak of are annoying; you should rather wonder that you
have not a heavier tax to pay. Patience, prudence, and
perseverance., are the graces, you are now called to exercise;
and I am persuaded, that an increase of the love of God in
your heart, wij.1 materially assist you in your exercises.
I have read somewhere, the saying of a.good man, that
calumny and detraction are like sparks ; if you do not blow
them, they will .go out of themselves. A poet has well
said: —
" There is a lust in man, np charm can tame,
Of loudly publishing his neighbor's shame
On eagles' wings immortal scandals fly,-
While virtuous actions are but born to die !"
-Some years ago, I -Was amused with'the sentiment.of.a
witty fellow: " A Lie will travel' from Maine to Georgia,
while Truth is putting on his boots; in that case," he added,
18
206
EXPERIENCES AND INCIDENTS
" truth should not stop-to put- on his boots ; the difficulty lies
in allowing the lie to run so Jar ahead ; let them start abreast,
and truth against fhe field. It may be distanced at the first-
heat, but in the long run, it is sure to secure the prize."
The above is clever, but I am inclined to think Truth
sometimes draws on his boots too soon, and in his haste and
splutter,- exposes himself, to suspicion. I like the saying of
another stfong minded man better: " Falsehood flies as swift
as the wind, and truth creeps behind at a snail's pace; but
falsehood makes so many twistings and turnings, that truth,
keeping-steadily on, and looking neither to the right nor to
the-left, overtakes it before long!" May your experience
be that of .the old proverb : Hie murus aheneus, etc.: " Let
this be thy brazen wall of defence, to be conscious of no
crime, and to turd pale at no accusation."' Say also, with
the philosopher, " I will live so that nobody will believe
them."
The other cases, however, that you mention, constitute the
severest,—" deceptive friendshipadd the danger is, lest
your late trials should lead you to. indulge in coldness and
suspicion tpwards your real friends.
" But here agspn, the danger lies,
Lest, having misapplied our eyes,
And. taken trash for treasure,
We should unwarily conlude,
Friendship, a false ideal good,
A mere Utopian'pleasure."
Beware of-this extreme!" Beware of misanthropy t It is a
most unhappy feeling ; the smallest degree of it sours the
mind, and unfits it for the pleasures of social life, and pre¬
disposes us to take offence at the most trifling occurrences.
. I Would rather be deceived a thousand times id my friend¬
ships, than have the sensations of a misanthrope. This is
in cork ,and bandon.
207
the only part of your severe troubles, with'which I - cannot
sympathize by experience, as I do not' .recollect that I have
ever yet been deceived, where I have reposed confidence in
the bosom of friendship. For this I feel truly-thankful to
God. Allow me, however, to remind you, that there- are yet
many real friends upon your list, and I have no doubt you
will yet find many more. As one has said, on a similar
occasion, " One piece of gold will often repay us for turning
up much rubbish;" so I hope, if doomed to turn over many
more heaps of rubbish, you will go on doing • so, in full ex¬
pectation of meeting with " good men and true " to fill up
the spaces in your broken ranks.
Your complaint only proves, that words are cheap things,
and "professional friendship "'does not cost much. Wo
may say of this, as did the Italian-poet, who lived in a very
small house, and who, on being asked, why he who had so
eloquently, described magnificent palaces, should himself live
in a house so small and shabby. He replied, " Words are
put together cheaper than Stones." Although your case is
somewhat dissimilar, it reminds me of the severity of a Latin
poet against one Candidus, the fruit of whose friendship, it
would appear, only grew upon his tongue. The translation
of one of his verses runs thus: "Thou sayest,.my friend
Candidus, that all things are-common among friends; but it
seems these words of thine are the all things; for, of all
thy wealth and goods, thoii makest no friend thou hast a doit
the better'; thou givest nothing at all, and yet art most
prodigal of thy ' language, and wearest out that proverb
threadbare, Urnnot xowa <pdwv, " All things are common
among friends."
-St. John touches this forcibly: "My little children, let
us not love in word, neither in tongue, but in deed, and in
truth/'
208
EXPERIENCES AND INCIDENTS
Permit me, my dear friend, to direct your sorrowful mind
to those passages of Scripture, with.which you are familiar:
" God is a sun and a shield" God "is light, and in him is
no darkness at all;" and again, "With him there is no
-variableness^ neither shadow of turning." I do not bring
these beautiful declarations before you, merely to put you in
remembrance of God's unchangeable friendship to those who
love and obey; hut to. urge the necessity of living in close
and intimate "union with Him, who "is'light/' so that neithei
devils nor men may cast your soul into the shade.
Once I received a- very important "lesson, from a very
simple incident, which I trust will be a blessing to me so
long as I live. One evening, several, years ago, I went
aboard a steamer, at the city of Albany, and sailed for Nevt
York. After admiring the beautiful scenery of the Hudson,
till night obscured every object on the shores from my view.,
I retired to the. gentlemen's cabin and sat down to read,
taking a seat some distance from the lamp. It was not long
•before dark shadows, to my great annoyance, flitted agab
and again over my book, in consequence of careless servants
and unthinking passengers passing and repassing between me
and the light. I bore it fpr some- time with great patience,
closing my eyes till dhe shadows flitted over the page, phi¬
losophizing on- the benefit of tranquility in all the changing
scenes of life. Each person being intent upon his own
business, and pleasure, the studious stranger never entered
their thoughts. . At last the inconvenience became too great
for even philosophy to 'bear patiently, and it suggested a
remedy. _ Observing that the thoroughfare lay between me
and, the lamp, I concluded to occupy it, and draw so close
to the source of light, as to prevent any one' from coming
between me and it; I did so, and here my troubles ended;
the stir was as great as dver, but -the-voyagers found a pas-
IN CORK AND BANDON.
209
sage behind me, and " left me alone in my glory." I was
only a few moments in this 'advantageous position, before I
was disturbed by another class of agents, not. less stirring
than those I had contrived to avoid, and which equally pro¬
hibited me from reading. A poet has described them thus•
" Lulled in the countless chambers of the brain,
Our thoughts are linked by many a hidden chain,
Awake but one, and lo! what myriads rise,
Each stamps its image as the other flies."
I recollected how often since God converted my soul, my
peace had been broken or destroyed, by a great variety of
agents, many of them as unthinking and undesigning as
these passengers and why ? In nine instances out of ten,
my soul stood at such a distance from God, as to leave a
thoroughfare between me and him, which was perpetually
occupied by these intruders; my soul being thus excluded
from the beams of the great Source of light, happiness, and
comfort, I have been dark, cold, and unhappy.
"Ah!" I thought, "now I know the cause of all my
troubles; and the method of redress for all my grievances
is revealed. From henceforth, by the grace of God, I shall
endeavor to live so pear the Lord, that no creature under
heaven shall be -able to come between us. Then I shall
walk in cheerful light under the sunshine of his countenance,
and shall read, uninterruptedly,1 my title clear' to his favor,
and to his heaven. Then I shall cheerfully bear whatever
may come, — losses, and crosses,- sickness or health, pros¬
perity or adversity. Friends -in such' case may divert or
prove true, may be spared to my embraces, or wither and
die; and though tenderly- alive to the whole, yet the presence
or absence of these, which one has somewhere compared, to
' candle light in the presence of sunbeams,' can make no
material, difference to the soul upon which the Sun of Right-
18*
210 EXPERIENCES AND INCIDENTS
eousness hath arisen, with healing in his wings. Mai. iv. 2.
My experienee will be continually —
' The eternal sunshine of the spotless mind,
Each prayer accepted, and each wish resigned.'"
With respect to the other points in your letter, I really
find it difficult, at so great a distance, to determine. All
ships without cargo need ballast, some more, some less; and
it matters not to the captain what it is, so that it be not too
bulky,; and the vessel is kept steady. The coarsest, and
most worthless material, is generally thrown in for ballast;
but a cargo, if there be a sufficiency of it, renders this pre¬
caution unnecessary. * Most Christians need a, little ballast,
— troubles and afflictions of. various kinds, to keep them
steady, otherwise they would capsize, or be hard to manage;
some require mdre, others less; but the more love and faith,
the more holiness we' have, the less ballast we shall need to
keep us steady in our passage to. heaven, which is frequently
boisterous: —
" Through tribulations deep,
The way to glory lies,
That stormy course I keep,
'Neath these tempestuous skies,
By winds and waves
I am tossed and driven,
Freighted with grace,
And bound for heaven!"
I have often thought the religious experience, or, if you
please, " temperament" of some people, is not unlike a clock;
one or two dead weights are necessary to keep the machinery
going with regularity. A quaint old poet I was reading the
other day, when describing the state of his soul in prayer,
under the figure of a rusty clock, makes known his requests,
but never mentions the weights at all. But hear him: —
IN CORK AND BANDON. 211
" My soul is a clock, whose wheels (for want of use
And winding up, being subject to the abuse
Of eating rust) wants vigor to fulfil
Her twelve hours task, and show her Maker's skill, -
-But idlely sleeps unmoved, and standeth still.
^
Great God, it is thy work, and therefore good;
If thou be pleased to cleanse it with thy blood,
And wind it up with thy soul-moving keys,
Her busy wheels shall serve thee all her days;
Her hand shall point thy "power, her hammer strike thy praise."
But, to change the figure, I can very well conceive how a
threadbare coat may have a happy heart beneath it; or how
a man may have a burden upon his back, and sunshine in
his soul. Remember my lesson on board the steamer. The
great point to be settled, is, " Can I see God in this ? Is
this providential? Can it be avoided or reriiove.d? The
question is not, what ought I to have done ? but, what is my
duty now ? - If I, can do nothing but suffer, let me do this.
If God alone can help me, then I must be still." Are these
your feelings ? Then let me call to your aid the sentiments
of a suffering servant of the living God: " He will do the
work, and his hand will be seen in the doing of it. We are
obliged to wait for the tide. When that flows, and the wind
sets in fair, let us hoist sail. When the tide has left a ship
on the beach, an army may attempt to move it in vain; but
when she is afloat in the water, a small force moves her.
We must wait the openings of Providence." In the mean¬
time, you may realize the truth of the Chinese maxim:
" Whatever tempests may arise, tranquility, is a- port always
open to the innobent heart." The following is better: " Cast
thy burden upon the Lord, arid he will sustain thee; he will
never suffer the righteous"to be moved."
Perhaps another lesson, which I received several years ago,
may be useful to you in the present juncture of your affairs.
212
EXPERIENCES AND INCIDENTS
My mind had been sorely exercised for some time, respect¬
ing temporal affairs, out of which I could see no way of
deliverance, feeling unwilling at the same time to rest the
matter in uncertainty. That scriptural direction was forgot¬
ten : u He that believeth, shall not make haste." One day,
as I was standing in an hotel, in the city of Troy ^waiting
the arrival of the coach, I took up a common newspaper,
when my eye rested upon the following paragraph, denomi¬
nated, " The just principles of wisdom," which seemed to
have; been written expressly for me: " Distresses that are
removable, remove ; those that cannot be removed, bear with
as little disquietude as possible. In every situation in life
there , are some comforts; find them out and enjoy them."
" May you not also, my dear Sir, receive some benefit fron,
the above ? Endeavor to do so, and God will help you.
Trust in the Lord with all your heart, and wait patiently for
him, and he shall bring it' to pass. And while you are doing
so, you may adopt the language of a very old poet: —
" Fear not the rocks, or world's imperious waves,
Thou climb'st a Rock, my soul, a Rock that saves !"
We have had, hitherto, a very hard conflict in Bandon;
the hardest in which I have ever been engaged. Last Sab¬
bath, however, was a glorious day to many. We had a select
meeting for the young converts in the afternoon, and forty-
four persons came forward and testified, that, during the last
four weeks, God, for Christ's sake, had forgiven their sins.
It was indeed' a powerful and melting time. I have ■wit¬
nessed nothing like it since the commencement of the special
services. Many of the old members were bathed in tears,
and toward the close of the service, a large number of awak¬
ened sinners approached the communion rail, and knelt to be
prayed for. Their cries for mercy were piercing. This
IN CORK AND BANDON.
213
happy hour amply repaid me for - all my tears, and groans,
and labors, during these last nine weeks. The Lord saw
that I needed such a manifestation of his power/for my soul
was greatly discouraged.
The remainder of this chapter is from a letter dated Cork,
Oct. 28, 1842, and is addressed to his sister in America.
It briefly reviews his Bandon labors, and describes his final
labors in Cork while detained there a few days prior to his
departure for England:—
This morning I had my baggage taken aboard a steamer,
but just as we were about to sail for Liverpool,,an accident
occurred to the.machinery, and the passengers were requested
to disembark. .
Before leaving the vessel, a person informed me, who had
the means of knowing, that the boilers were in a most
wretched and dangerous condition, and that this was the
last trip previous to a refit in England.
Had the accident taken place when out at sea, even if an
explosion had been avoided, a crippled machinery might have
let us drift upon a lee shore, attended with the most fatal
consequences to all on board. With a thankful heart, I put
my signatura to that beautiful verse: —
" Keeps with most distinguished care,
The man ,who on thy love depends;
Watches every numbered hair,
And all his steps attends."
A party of the Cork friends had accompanied me to the
boat, having previously exercised all their, powers of per¬
suasion to induce me to- spend the Sabbath with them; but
being fully conscious, that my work, for the present, was
finished in Ireland, I could not consent; but when they saw
me and my baggage put ashore, they accosted me with'a
214
EXPERIENCES ANL INCIDENTS
glowing satisfaction of countenance: " Oh! indeed, then,
. God will not let you leave us! -It is plain, your work is not
done in Cork, and he has sent you back to complete it."
My- mind is involved in great anxiety, as to the path of
duty.. A steamer sails to-morrow for Liverpool, and another
about the middle of next week for Bristol, but there is no
impression upon my mind that I ought to visit B.; Liver¬
pool is constantly before me, although I have no official
invitation from thence; to-morrow also, is Saturday, and
should I sail, that would leave me at. sea on the Sabbath;
and if I put off another week, it is more than probable I
must sail on Saturday also. Well! I have committed "the
matter to God, and will now spend a few minutes in giving
you a sketch of my proceedings since the date of my last
letter to * * *, which no doubt you have seen.
The revival adyaneed with a slowness that distressed me
during the remainder of my stay in Bandon. I felt as if
there were something wrong and deeply grievous to the
Holy Spirit somewhere ; perhaps the day of judgment shall
alone reveal it. On Sabbath, the 16th inst., twenty addi¬
tional persons came forward as witnesses to the blessing of
justification through faith in the merits of Christ.
I have just been examining my notes of a few excursions
made while in Bandon, but they are so lean, it is - doubtful
whether they will be interesting to you. A few weeks since,
in company with, a small party of our friends, I rode over to
Kinsale, to see my kind friends, the Bev. Bobinson Scott
and wife, whom we found well and happy in God.
On the 17th inst., we set off in a different direction, to a
.place called Court Mac Sherry; on our way, we paid a visit
to,the ruins of the old abbey of Timaleague. It is ap¬
proached from Bandon, along the.banks: of a busy little
serpentine river, named " the Arigideen j" that is, the little
IN CORK AND RANDON.
215
silver stream, which, before it reaches the abbey, glides near
the base of an ancient castle, built by an Irish sept, called
O'Shagnassy, and soon after washes the walls of Timaleague.
The abbey is built upon an arm of the sea, about three
miles from the ocean. The foundations have been laved by
the tides during four centuries, and yet the venerable pile
has sustained but trifling injury from that cause. The con¬
vent church is large, and, like the rest of the buildings,
roofless. The choir has been a noble wing with side aisles,
formed by arcades. A venerable gothic tower stands in the
centre, seventy feet high, but so damaged by time and
storms, we could not ascend to the top. The convent is
filled with graves and tombstones, and upon one side of the
main entrance we observed an immense heap of human
bones, laid together like one of your American wood piles,
exposed to the weather. The Boman Catholics in this
country seem to have a strange taste for such humiliating
spectacles.
A peasant told us very gravely on leaving the ruins, that
" when the abbey was in its glory, large ships came up close
to its walls; and, upon a certain time, the sailors mocked the
monks, and one of them prayed that God would put a stop
to their coming up entirely; and so it was, for the channel
was immediately filled with sand, and never a ship came up
here any more at all."
As we proceeded down the shores of the bay, we came to
Abbey Mahon, a ruin nearly enveloped in ivy. I left the
carriage and spent a few minutes in walking through its
desolate chambers. Court Mac Sherry is a neat village,
built upon a natural terrace, with a pleasant prospect of the
bay and opposite, shores. - We entered the fields at the oppo¬
site side of the village, and after traversing some distance a
pleasing and romantic path? overshadowed with trees, sud-
216
EXPERIENCES AND INCIDENTS
denly the " Old Head of Kinsale " and the Atlantic burst
upon our view.
I preached my farewell sermon at Bandon, to a large con¬
gregation, on the night of the 16th inst.1, and next evening,
spent a few hours most agreeably with a number "of the
friends, in the house of Mr. Edwards.
Saturday, 22d, (Oct. 1842,) I left Bandon for Cork,
and had for a fellow passenger the Dean of Cork, a very
sensible and pious man, quite the- gentleman and the Chris¬
tian ; we had a most profitable conversation on the things of
God. He had heard of my movements in Ireland, and when
We parted, he heartily wished me success in my Master's
work. And now once more in Cork, and retracing the
scenes of the last few months, sore as my conflicts were in
Bandon, I do not regret my visit. A new circle of acquaint¬
ances has been formed, which shall, doubtless, heighten my
joys in heaven. God has a precious people in Bandon with
whom I felt great union of spirit, and who showed me much
kindness. In the families of Messrs. Edwards, Scott, and
Belcher, I was most hospitably entertained during my stay.
Rev. George "Vance, whom I mentioned in one of my Dublin
letters, is now stationed in that circuit. He is the same
devoted soul, and treated me with his accustomed kindness.
Sabbath, the 23d, I spent in Cork, preached twice, and
also the following Tuesday, Wednesday, Thursday, and Fri¬
day evenings, and sinners were converted to God in every
service.
I am now entertained in the mansion of Edward Robinson,
Esq., where I spent a few weeks last July, previous to my
leaving for Bandon. With him and his excellent wife and
family, I have formed an acquaintance that shall last for
ever. My health, I have reason to praise God, is very
good; .and the light of his countenance is cheering to my
IN CORK AND BANDON.
217
soul. How dreary would be my path but for this! What¬
ever happiness I enjoy, it is in God. He is mine, and I am
fctis. What is before me in England, I know not; but it Is
sweetly and powerfully impressed, "He can open and no
man can shut, and he can shut and no man can openand
with this, which I believe to be-from the Holy Spirit, I rest
secure and satisfied.
19
CHAPTER XIV.
mr. CAT]grey in england.
- In this chapter we shall see our friend walking once more
in the way of naked faith. His communings with the Holy
Spirit have led him to believe that his work- lies next in
England.. Though fully successful in Ireland-: though sur¬
rounded by friends whose affections he has won by his won¬
derful labors; yet, in obedience to his convictions of duty,
^he tears himself away from these friends, and throws himself
once more into the midst of strangers, confident that God
will give him abundant access to the people. The facts re¬
corded will show that he did not trust God in vain.
The Poem contained in this chapter is inserted here both
because we find it. in his letters, and because it gives a fair
specimen of Mr. Caughey's powers as a writer of verse. It
is appropriate as a feature in his mental picture.
On the 29th of October, (1842,) in company with Edward
Robinson, Esq., and Thomas Eannin,' Esq., of Liverpool, and
his daughter, I sailed from Cork for this port, (Liverpool.)
_ -^e capfaiu very politely allowed a large party of the
friends to come aboard, and accompany me down the river.
My heart was greatly affected with their kindness, and after
an exchange of farewells, they landed at Passage. As our
fine steamer,.the Prince of Wales, darted acroZ the harbor
218
MR. CAUGHEY IN ENGLAND.
219
of .the Cove, we- had another opportunity of admiring .the
beautiful scenery; but there was a singular mournfulness
over my spirit, that seemed to tinge every object with its
hues. A few minutes more, and we were dashing through
the'outlet, the fortifications of which were frowning down
upon us from either hand.. The uneasy motions of" our ves¬
sel told us that, however calm and lovely the day, it' pos¬
sessed no charms to .hush into quietness the Untamed and
restless sea.
During the afternoon,-we ran along the wild and rocky
coast of Ireland, and as we were close in shore, we were
most agreeably entertained with a great variety of objects.
There .was little indeed of the soft and beautiful to be seen,
nor were the rocks sufficiently stupendous, to impress the
mind with images of grandeur; but the amazing masses of
gray and gradually ascending rocks, broken into rents and
chasms,J by the action of the waves ; the blqak and shrubless
highlands shelving back, and laid Bare in their various points
of elevation, or disfigured by the beetling operations of the
storms "of many centuries; these,-with the bolder promon¬
tory, shooting far into the deep, and the little bays, with their
rugged beach and crested'waves;, seeming to say, "Land if
you dare," were highly calculated to excite emotions of plea¬
sure, mingled with absorbing curiosity, in the bosom of those
who were fond of.sea-coast scenery. Seldom have I seen a
bleaker coast, though here and there, we espied an oasis, just
sufficient to suggest the idea of " beauty resting in the lap
of horror." Deck-walking is a very sociable exercise in
pleasant weather; but I fear my taciturnity disappointed my
excellent friends. Though alive to any imagery belonging
to sea or land, which might hereafter assist me in the illustra¬
tion of truth, my mind was constantly embarrassed with
one general and uncongenial idea, anticipated sea sickness.
220
MR. 13AUGHEY IN ENGLAND.
I have read somewhere of a Roman general, whose army
had teen overthrown by a powerful foe, and although'he
himself escaped from the. hazards'and desperations of the
battle-field, was ever after in & constant, state of terror and
alarm, as if he heard the , clangor of trumpets and the noise
of a pursuing foe j and, like many an awakened sinner of
the nineteenth century, he had no cessation of his disqui¬
etudes, unless whep under the influence of wine or sleep.
Leaving wine and sleep out of the question, it was ,thus
with your friend. . The waves are Ins enemies, and he has
often been in the pell-mell of their congregated regiments,
and, ,with the exception of a few slight skirmishes on some
of the North American lakes, he has always been defeated;
in spite of all the-hosts of philosophical tmd energetical
thoughts he could muster for the conflict, he has ever been
compelled to surrender or retreat in disgrace. His mind is
therefore always in a state of consternation, when within the
territories of his determined foes.
- Only read the following lines, which I scribbled a few years
ago, when my feet were once more placed firmly on terra
firma, and I could sing defiance to my raging enemies: —
It was sunrise,
And the tenth morning's dawn had brightened
The dark vapors, which crept along the
Far extended swell on Ocean's bosom.
Along the sky, ffom south to west, the clouds
Portentously were spread in -massive tiers;
The winds lay hushed amid their many folds,
And, like a- mighty host entrenched, armed,
Ready for the battle.
The sun arose, as if from out the deep,
Encompassed by a mob of waves—angry waves,
Whose altitude and violence, a man of wit •
Declared treason and outright rebellion
Agajnst the King of Day; while he, in giant power,
Ascended still, and down on crested foes,
MR. CAUGHEY IN ENGLAND.
And noisy tumult, scowled defiance.
The half-formed bow of Omnipotence glowed
On the floating fountains of the lowering heavens.
Thunders uttered their threat'ning murmurs,
Artillery-like, their distant roar, without
The flashing of their forked fires. Rushing winds
Arranged the clouds as armies, front to front,
In dread array, charging, then retiring,
■ Or joining still in mighty phalanx.
The sea itself was troubled,
And mirrored in its long continuous heave,
The dismal drapery 'of the scowling sky;
Our gallant ship looked awfully timid, her
Snow-white wings suspiciously contracted
Within the circle of her trembling womb.
Deep thought was seated on the helmsman's face,
As ever and anon he eyed the angel
Fingers of the inspired guide of him
Who ploughs the surface of the briny deep,
And to the windward heavens turned a
Pitiful, foreboding look, and thought of home.
It was a solemn hour,
And solemn seemed the jovial sons of Neptune,
Each at his post in mute attention,
Prompt to obey each stern command; though
On the bending top-mast, or swinging on
The yard's arm—reeling to and fro amidst
The gath'ring storm, — or on the wave-washed deck,
Ready ever, — always willing, — though in
Performance of his arduous duty;
The headlong plunge is made resistless —
Deep into the yawning gulfs beneath.
Awful was the moment,
When the Father of the skies his grasp unloosed
Of the mighty winds, and let them use their power:
Heaven's sounding squadrons through the concaved
Dome, pealed their dreadful notes; and down
On rifted deep and reeling vessel came
With one tremendous roar; and in tumultuous
Confusion tossed the troubled atmosphere,
And hurried forth the wheeling clouds, to seize
Upon the tops of congregated billows, —
Upward whirling them 'mid vapors, foam and storaq.
J9*
MR. CAUGHEY IN ENGLAND.
The liquid mountains and the cleaving valleys
Seemed, in their fury, willing to let us touch .the
Coral rocks, or pick the gems from ocean's bottom;
But rapid as the rushing terrors of the storm,
Drove our straining vessel up the steeps again,
In wild amaze to mingle with the skies;
A moment there— of peril and dismay,
And suddenly, away from off that foaming peak,
She came, like avalanche from Alpine mountain brow.
In one terrific sweep into the black abyss.
A fearful crisis this !
The war of winds and waves is ever awful,
But dreadful was this elemental climax —
The shrill cry of distress mingled horribly
With the loud bellowings of the maddened deep.
The creakings' of the frictioned timbers kept
Awful time to tattered sails, cracking like whips
Around the naked masts.
It was an hour of terror.
Infidelity turned pale, and vice became unmasked,
And every man was honest with himself and God.
Too late, how many found opinions valueless.
Such vain conceits and lying vanities
Might do on land—on sea, when all was calm,
And death far off^but now in dread extremity,
To still the conscience, or to soothe the mind,
Utterly incapable. In time pf greatest need,
Defective most': 'midst aggravated roar of
Conflicting winds and all-involving billows,
The wretched soul was left a helpless prey,
Close upon life's verge, naked, cold, and trembling;
Poised upon eternity's dread brink; refuge none,
By first and second death at once invaded:
Till willing, by the promptings of a black despair,
To take into eternal night, the awful leap,
Shrieking in horror, forsaken and alone !
And it was a time,
When Christianity shone with splendor.
While I could read the troubled souls, even in
The very countenances of the sons of Mammon;
And hear the sinner pray, who never prayed before
I heard the Christian claim, with confidence,
Help from Him who rode upon the stormy sky,
MR. CAUGHEY IN ENGLAND. 223
The raging of the mighty seas, whose power could calm,
Or elevate the soul above the tempest's wail,
To hope in God, and clap her wings of joy;
And I could see Religion, daughter of the skies,
Bending o'er the mountain Burges, holding
Sweet converse with breast's monitor, conscience,
Whispering a peace, which stood unshaken amidst
The strife of elements and peals of death !
At a certain point toward evening, we gradually retired
from the land, and as we were losing sight of old Ireland, a
little bird came off on fall wing, reached us, and fluttered
around the rigging, as if desirous to rest its weary pinions ;
hut seeing such a formidable assemblage on the deck, it
poised wing, and was borne along on the increasing breeze out
to sea. For a time it appeared a black spot, and as it be¬
came scarcely discernible, and we were sympathizing with its
dreary prospects should it continue in that direction, it began
to increase in bulk, and after a serious struggle with the gale,
arrived within the rigging again, and dropped down into a
recess in the lee side of the windward bulwarks, a few feet
from the deck, and concealed itself behind some ropes. After
a while, it arranged its plumage, and prepared itself in the
most contented manner for a quiet night's rest; but a cabin
boy came and seized the little stranger; we immediately took
its part, and insisted he should put it back again into the
berth of its choice ; but on his promising to set it at liberty
when near the coast of Wales, we permitted him to bear it off.
I remarked to a friend that this incident brought forcibly
to my mind the conduct of an awakened sinner; that I had
seen many an unhappy penitent borne away from the devil's
territories by the powerful gales of the Spirit, John iii. 8,
and when about to find rest to his soul, doubt and despair have
come upon him, and he has fled away from the sight and
sound of salvation; and when the saints of God have been
mourning on account of the dreadful destiny that awaited
224 MR. CAUGHEY IN ENGLAND.
him, if he continued to fly away from the gospel hope, they
have seen him returning, faint, weary, and heavy laden,
glad to come aboard of "Zion's ship," saying with the poet:
"(Loosed from God, and far removed,
Long have I wandered to and fro;
O'er earth in endless circles roved,
Nor found whereon to rest below;
Back to my God at last I fly,
For 0, the waters still are high!
•' Selfish pursuits, and nature's maze,
The things of earth, for thee I leave:
Put forth thy hand, thy hand of grace;
Into the ark of love receive!
Take this poor fluttering soul to rest,
And lodge it, Saviour, in thy breast!"
Next day, Oct. 80th, (1842,) we landed at Liverpool;
and that evening attended divine service in the Wesleyan
chapel, (Brunswick,) and heard a most powerful sermon
from the Rev. Dr. Beaumont. My friend, Mr. Fannin, whom
I mentioned in the beginning of this letter, introduced me
to the Doctor before sermon. He gave me a very cordial
welcome to England, and invited me to preach for him ; this
I refused, but afterwards assisted him in the prayer meeting.
On Monday, Mr. Fannin insisted I should leave my hotel,
and make his house in Brougham terrace my home; which I
accepted, and am now comfortably situated in a pleasant
part of the town, and with a very agreeable and interesting
family,
With regard to my prospects of doing good in this town,
they are very dark at present. Having had no official invita¬
tion to visit Liverpool, nor any acquaintance with the Wes¬
leyan Ministers stationed here, excepting the Rev. A. E.
Farrar, superintendent of the north circuit, to whom I had an
introduction, when on his missionary deputation in Ireland, a
few months since, renders the case rather perplexing. My
MR. CAUGIIEY'lN ENGLAND-
225
mind is strongly impressed to remain; — that God has a work
for me to do here; but, I fear, if the door does not soon
open, the devil will take the advantage, and attack me as in'
Dublin. I have had an interview with the Re.v. A. E. Far-
rar, who expresses an ardent desire for a revival, but we
have not, as yet, been able to,fix upon any plan of special
effort for the salvation of sinners. My health, thank God, is
excellent. My mind seems to be under a singular prohibi¬
tion, respecting leaving this town; so that I.am unable' to
give you the least information .as to my future movements.
This uncertainty is painful; but the Lord knows what kind of
discipline is best for his weak servant, I need your prayers.
The foregoing part of this chapter is from a letter to an
American friend; what now follows is' from a letter to his
sister, and describes his mental struggles very touchingly,
before his way was fully opened in England. These strug¬
gles, however, led him to a continued walk of faith. God
was true to his promise, and again furnished him with open¬
ings and opportunities. " Faith was victorious over sight.
But we must allow him to tell his own story • —
■ I landed in this port from Cork On the 30th of October,
and once more walked the streets of Liverpool, a solitary
stranger, but in-a. much happier state of mind than when last
here. Soon after my arrival, the Lord provided me a home
in an excellent family, where I have since remained. Many
sore exercises of mind have been my lot, since my second
visit to England. It would appear as if the devil were deter¬
mined to contest this ground with me in a fiercer manner
than in Dublin. I have groaned, and prayed, and wept
much. You know- the hastiness of my disposition, how apt
to decide quickly, and act promptly. This peculiarity of my
temperament would have driven me out of Liverpool, had it
.226
MR.-CAUGHEY IN ENGLAND.
Dot been for a deep conviction tbat God has a work for me
to do here. Even Dp till now", I would gladly retreat, but
dare not.
On Sabbath night, November ~6th, I crossed the river
Mersey, to the." Cheshire side, walked to the Wesleyan
chapel, Wood^ide, and opened my commission in England,
with that text, 2 Peter ii. 9. The above passage has often
been a comfort do me in days of temptation, years, gone by,
and I chose it on this occasion on my own behalf, and was
'much comforted. An influence frdm God evidently rested
upon the people, and could the blow have been repeated,
many sinners, I doubt not, would have been saved,
Monday night, preached in Great Homer street chapel,
Liverpool. The Rev. Mr. Farrar was present, and many of
the leaders and local preachers, and a good congregation j
text, 1 Cor. x. 15. In this sermon, I endeavored to lay
down a few great principles, and the Lord applied the whole
by his Spirit; afterwards we had a powerful prayer meeting,
but none converted.
Mr. Farrar and his official board were unanimously of
opinion, that a special .effort should now be made for a
revival, and that the meetings should be continued in this
chapel.
iDuring the first week we had small congregations; my.
soul was much assisted from on high; glad of an opportunity
of using those weapons which are not carnal, " but mighty
through God to the pulling down of strong holds." "The
week ended, and we had only one sinner converted. Sab¬
bath, 13th, I preached in the afternoon to the sailors, aboard
of the Bethel ship, having been invited to do so by Captain
Hudson, chaplain for the port. We had a very gracious
season. The services,_ during the ensuing week, were inter¬
fered, with by tea meetings for important purposes; and no
MR. CAUGHEY IN ENGLAND. 527
sinners, I believe, were converted. The following Sabbath
evening, the Lord opened ray way to Great Homer street
chapel pulpit, and there was a shaking among the dry bones;
text, 1 Kings xviii. 21; and from that night the work of
God has advanced with majesty and power.
Last Sabbath afternoon, I met those who had found mercy
since the 7th of November. The meeting for. the young
converts was conducted in a similar manner to that I
described in Cork. One hundred and thirteen persons came
forward, and in the most distinct manner, and with many
tears, declared, that God for Christ's sake had pardoned
their sins. Many who had found salvation, but who did not
understand the nature of the/meeting, were not present; but
thirty additional persons gate their names in the evening, as
trophies of redeeming love. All glory be to God!
It would be impossible, my dear sister, to tell yoil'how
.severely, and on how many points, the adversary has harass¬
ed me, during these few weeks I have been in England, but
all his attempts to discourage me have driven me nearer to,
God. £art of each forenoon was spent upon my knees,
crying to God for Liverpool, and a' fuller baptism of the
Holy Ghost upon my own soul.
The Lord, during these .seasons of conflict, gave several
helps to my faith. Perhaps the following may be interesting
to you. One day a stranger came into my room, and said;
" Sir, a few weeks before you arrived in this toivn, I had a
singular dream. I thought I was passing up a certain street,
when I saw two immense flames arising from each side; one
was of a bluish color, and filled me with horror ; the appear-:
ance of the other flame was quite different. These flames
met in terrible contention, and filled the street, so that to-
pass seemed impossible. - It was suggested to my mind by
some one near, ' You must not attempt to pass, or you will
228
MR. CAUGHEY IN ENGLAND.
be burned.'; I replied, that pass I would, and pass I, did,
while the flames played around my shoulders ; but when I
got through there was not a singe, nor smell of fire upon my
garments, and I distinctly heard a voice, saying, ' Glory be
to God!' And, Sir, the first night you preached in Great
Homer street chapel, I heard you, and the' moment your
voice reached my ear, I recognized it as the voice I heard
in my dream, saying, ' Glory be to. God!' and now, Sir,
thank God, through your instrumentality, I have obtained a
clear sense of the remission of my sins, with the pardoning
love of God."
The great Dr. Johnson used to say, " Do not wholly be¬
lieve dreams, for they may be false; but do not entirely
reject them, because they may be true."
The remainder of this chapter is from a letter to a friend,
and describes his movements in Liverpool up to January 3,
1843.
The Lord has opened a great and effectual door for me in
Liverpool. The enemy opposed me most seriously, and en*
deavored in various ways to shut the door of usefulness, and
insinuated that he would completely block up my way in
England; but the promise I received in Ireland stood fast,
and was the " sheet anchor " of my soul. Isaiah xxii. 22,
and Rev. iii. 7, 8.' On the 13th of last December, Isaiah
liv. 17, was given to me, " No weapon that is formed against
thee shall prosper," and has rested sweetly upon my mind
since. In the time of extremity, God came down in power'
and arrested scores of sinners, and surrounded us with the
tears and cries of imploring penitents. This was such a
demonstration of the presence and approbation of God that
few could withstand, except those who were entrenched at
home, and amused themselves with the strange and garbled
MH. CAUGHEY IN ENGLAND.
229
reports which were put in circulation. The Rev. A. E.
Farrar, the Superintendent, pronounced it at once a special
work of God, and among friends and foes stood up for the
revival most nobly, as did also his excellent colleagues, the
Rev. Dr. Beaumont, and the Rev. John H. James.
After spending about five weeks upon what is called here
the " North Circuit," and many sinners, were converted to
God, a deputation of Leaders from the " South Circuit
waited upon me, with a request to spend a few weeks with
them; saying, " Come, Sir, and let the revival flame be
kindled at different points, and God may set the town in a
blaze." As Mr. Farrar had advised me, by all means, to
visit the South Circuit,, should an invitation come from the
proper authority, I agreed, provided the Superintendent
was willing. We therefore walked down to see the Rev.
William Atherton, who received us politely, and though evi¬
dently not at all enthusiastic upon the subject, yielded to the
request of the Leaders, and your friend received an official
permission to preach the gospel of the kingdom on that side
of the town. His colleagues, the Rev. Joseph Hargreaves,
and the Rev. Henry H. Chettle, were not present during the
interview, but I had the pleasure of an introduction to them
afterwards.
That very night, in Pitt street chapel, a few hot shot from
the walls of Zion were thrown into the entrenchments of the
devil's children, and four of them cried out for mercy —
" Wounded by1 the Spirit's sword,
And then by Gilead's balm restored "—
One of them an old woman of seventy-two. Shortly after
we began in the above chapel, I was taken with a severe
hoarseness, in consequence of having to walk some distance
after preaching, and being a little careless withal. It con
20
230
MR. • CAUGHEY IN ENGLAND.
lined me two nights to my room, but in answer to the prayer
of faith, and the use of means, (inhaling the vapor, caused-
by a red hot poker in a mug of tar, and, at certain intervals,
sipping a little flax-seed tea, made to the consistence of
honey,) I regained my voice, and we continued the battle
with vigor. During the first week, we had twenty con¬
verted ; the next week seventy; and the week after, more
than forty.
On the night of the 31st of December, I assisted one of
the preachers in holding a watch night in Pitt street-chapel.-
Altogether, it was one of the most singular of the kind I had
ever attended. Several exhortations were given, but the
" direct aim " was wanting, and I fear your friend was quite
as deficient as his brethren. We seemed afraid of each
other, and did nothing. When the new year was ushered
in, and part of the immense crowd had retired, God enabled
pie to break through the infernal oppression which rested
upon us, and in a few minutes, We had the altar filled with
weeping penitents, and several obtained salvation. I retired
to rest, about three o'clock in the morning, much cast down
by reflecting upon the comparative failure upon such an
important night.
On the following day, I assisted one of the preachers in
the administration of the Lord's Supper, at Wesley chapel,
Stanhope street, and enjoyed a very solemn season in " the
renewal of the covenant." The latter is a most impressive
service, and why it has not been incorpbrated into the usages
of American Methodism, I cannot tell; of the gracious
effects, there can be no question. I shall bring with me on
my return a copy of the Covenant.
New Year's Day night, I preached in the Mount Pleasant
chapel to a crowded congregation. Twelve sinners were
converted to God.
MR. CATJGHEY IN ENGLAND.
231
Up to tins time, not less than two hundred and seventy
sinners have been converted ; but only one hundred and
thirty of these are from the world; the remainder were mem¬
bers of the Wesleyan church. I am amazed at-this; but so
it was in the cities I visited in Ireland. Certainly this was
a large number to be meeting in class without conversion. I
have had some tribulation to endure, since my arrival here.
Much from my great adversary, and some from poor human
nature, warped by various prejudices. My position is a sin¬
gular one, though I trust in the order of God, else I would
very soon return to America; but it is not understood in
Liverpool; nor would it be becoming, I fear, to appear
anxious to set matters in a clearer light, unless it were
requested. The voice of the Lord in my conscience seems
ito be, " Mind the one work, for the accomplishment of which
you have been sent; you have nothing to do either with the
opening or shutting of the door, so long as you are faithful
in saving souls." The opinions about me are various, and
some things to me are inexplicable; and if any thing, in
some sort, throws a ray-of light upon them, it isj that I am
sure there is nothing personal designed ; only what is con¬
sidered by some " good policy." This reflection relieves my
mind, and enables me to exercise that charity which "bear-
eth all things, believeth all things "—the best of every man,
So as to put a good construction even upon the greatest para¬
doxes —" hopeth all, things, endureth all things." I know
my eye is single. The salvation of lost sinners is my steady,
constant aim; but as all cannot see my heart, it would be
wrong in me to fret with those who cannot appreciate my
motives, nor, for the present, sympathize with my move¬
ments. My soul is greatly humbled before the Lord ; but I
am his, and he is mine. This is settled, therefore I will
rejoice, and be glad in the Rock of my salvation.
CHAPTER XY.
arguments with the enemies op revivals.
The succeeding chapter presents a new phase in the
character of our Revivalist. He is in the arena of contro¬
versy, contending nobly with the adversaries whom Satan
raised up in Liverpool to buffet him. It would appear that
these enemies assaulted him with a variety of objections to
his manner, his mode of procedure, his style of preaching,
and even to the astonishing- results of his labors. To these
missives he replied in a masterly manner, as the reader
will see. I do not remember any work which deals so
tersely, and so effectually with revival objections, as Mr.
Caughey has done in these letters. He wastes no words;
he resorts to none of the intricacies of logic; hut simply
grasps his, opponent's objection with a hand, conscious of
Superior strength, and forthwith it shrinks and cowers in
abject submission before him. I think this chapter will
bceome an armory of choice, defensive weapons for the friends
of revivals.
The reader must bear in mind, that the objections here met
were sent to Mr. Caughey by different persons, to whom he
wrote these replies. Hence he does not always state them
in due form, but they may be easily gathered from the
replies, by a reflective mind. The abruptness with which he
presents them is, as the reader has already learned, his
peculiarity. If not consistent with elegance, it at least
232
ARGUMENTS WITH THE ENEMIES OF REVIVALS. 233
favors brevity. As usual, I Have blended the letters into
one continuous chapter. They were all dated from Liverpool
during the winter and spring of 1843.
Your objections are not worthy of attention; but are you
not on some points rather too severe ? at least, over positive ?
Read again the following: " I am convinced many persons
are merely frightened into a religious life, by the singular
services." This is the'mere echo of your friend, Mr. * * *,
who says, " when the terrors are off them, they will be as
bad as ever." Perhaps not; they may linger around their
hearts till they change worlds. But many of them, are
entirely delivered from " the terrors," and are rejoicing
with joy unspeakable and fail of glory. I have heard scores
of them bless God they ever heard the voice that terrified
them. This shows they are neither displeased noi tired of
the fright.
" When you leave Liverpool, the results will be woeful
enough." It is well if1 you do not desire your prophecies to
be fulfilled, that you may have it to say, " I knew it would
be so."
" What man of reading and intelligence, who attends
these meetings, can leave them without a conviction that
there is a constant aim to excite the passions ?" There are
very many intelligent people who frequent these services,
think quite differently.
" How little respect is paid to the understanding. Proofs
of the existence of a God, immortality of the soul, divine
authenticity of the scriptures, etc., are banished from the
pulpit, where once they shone in all their glory." These
are by no means neglected, but they are not discussed as
they should be to ignorant pagans. Ninety-nine out of a
hundred of those who attend these services regularly, believe
20*
234 ARGUMENTS WITH THE ENEMIES OE REVIVALS.
these articles of our creed. We know this to he a fact.
There are, however, thousands who can hear witness that the
judgments of the hearers, and the doctrines of which you
speak, have not been disregarded; yet I freely admit, my
object has been to drive down into the heart the knowledge
of the head; that is, to make them feel what they already
know. If this is what you mean by exciting the passions, I
must plead guilty.
The sentiments of a minister, now with God, are worth
hearing; they once stumbled me, but I can well understand
them now. " You may prove this, confirm or confute that,
but who hates his sins ? Who cries for mercy ? Who turns
to God ? Sinners may as well be hearkening to a mathema¬
tician demonstrating Euclid's Elements, as to a preacher
only proving a point of Christianity. When I was a young
man I endeavored to drive religion into the heads of my
hearers, but I have given that up, and having learned a little
more wisdom, I attack the heart only, and labor with all my
might to melt them down in the tender.est manner, till they
cry out, 'I have need of every thing God has done for me.'"
Why detain a man to hear you prove that to which he
readily assents ? What better way to drive a man to his
feet, or knees, than to make him feel that it is his duty and
interest to allow his belief to exert an entire influence over
his affections and life ?
" And o'er the sinner's naked heart,
Scatter the living coals of truth."
" Such crushing and crowding, — our chapels will be ruined."
They were built for -this purpose, and it is not unlikely they
will be standing when you and I are in our graves.
"We were going on quietly, and could worship God com¬
fortably before this stir." This may be correct, but it is ho
less true that sinners were going to hell by thousands.
ARGUMENTS WITH THE ENEMIES OE REVIVALS. 235
" Now, all is confusion; families and servants are dis¬
tracted and uncontrollable, and the town is likely to be in an
uproar." Perhaps you have not seen a late German writer
on this subject. He can help you to a few ideas. Hear
him: " Faithful ministers are often storm-birds, or messen¬
gers of misfortune. The preaching of the gospel by them
is like the sinking of a burning mountain- in the sea; sleep¬
ers awake, and the dry bones are stirred. On such occa¬
sions the thoughts of many hearts are revealed. 0 what
divisions of heart niay we then witness ! but the awakening
preachers are regarded as the offending parties. 4 The men
who have turned the world upside down have come hither
also.'"
. " These frenzied and' mystical declamations respecting
hell," — Hold I do you believe there is such a place as hell
in eternity ? The same as is represented in the Scriptures ?
That sinners are in as great danger of falling into it now as
1800 years ago ? If you deny this, I have nothing more to
say to'you in self-defence. We .must occupy different posi¬
tions incegard to truth and duty, and the question in debate
musk be changed. But I shall take it for granted that you
believe the above propositions. How then are men to be
warned of such a dreadful reality ?'
Allowing that thousands of these Liverpool sinners, who
eagerly crowd to hear the truth, are every moment in jeop¬
ardy of falling into hell, how are they to be aroused to a
sense of their danger ? By any other mode of voice and feel¬
ing than what a firm belief in such an awful hell would natu¬
rally excite ? Should a watchman, at midnight, discover a
house in flames over .a sleeping family, how would you have
him alarm the unconscious inmates ? "I would have him
cry, Fire ! fire ! fire !" " Cry!" would you have him cry ?
. But not like a man asleep, or drunk, or in jest, or afraid of
236 ARGUMENTS WITH THE ENEMIES 01 REVIVALS.-
hurting their feelings, but in good earnest, and at the top of
his voice, " Fire! fire!! fire!!I" " But the danger is not
so great." Are you sure of that ? Is there no family, or
sinner in jeopardy of eternal burning among the multitudes
who hear me from night to night ? The thread of life is a
brittle affair: —
" And death, that flings at all,
Stands armed to strike them down, and flames
Attend their fall."
I may not be long away from Liverpool, before the sudden
death Of some of these sinners, shall prove the dreadful truth
of the sentiment. Ay, and the triumphant exit of several of
these young converts may prove the time of their conver¬
sion to have been a momentous crisis in their history. But
to return. I once discovered a building on fire, with a
number of wooden houses close by, and a heavy south wind
to drive the flames onward. I awoke the neighborhood with
a cry of fire, and saved the place. But no one blamed me
for treating the matter as a reality. The same people, how¬
ever, complained loudly when I warned them of the danger
of falling into hell with similar earnestness. Query, did
they believe in a hell of fire, and that their souls were more
valuable than their endangered property ? Did they not
rather consider the loss of eternal life of less, consequence
than that' of temporal life ? "A man may tell you," says
a writer, " your house is on fire in such a way as to make
quite an opposite impression, and you will take it for granted
that your house is not on fire." May we not warn sinners
in the same way, and make an impression exactly similar ?
I have heard of two young men who were carting gravel
from a pit. One of them met his companion returning with
a load, whom he saluted as they passed: " Your cart will
break down." A short distance from the spot it came to
ARGUMENTS WITH THE ENEMIES OF REVIVALS. 237
the ground with a crash. When they again met, the unfor¬
tunate person was accosted, " I told you your cart would
break down." " Yes, you told me," was replied, " but you
said it in such a manner that I did not know whether you
were in jest or in earnest. Why did you not tell me in such
a way that I could not.but believe you?"
It appears that you think the Liverpool sinners do not
misunderstand me. Thank God! nor shall they while I
remain in town. None of them shall tell God Almighty in
the day of judgment, "James Caughey warned me of this
day, and of a coming hell, but it was in such a manner that
I could not tell whether or not he was in earnest." Why
should I be called a fanatic for this ? An eminent minister,
now in heaven, once defended himself from the charge of
enthusiasm,.in the following language: "Because I am in
earnest, men call, me an enthusiast. When I came into this
part of the country I was walking on yonder hill. I saw a
gravel-pit fall and bury three men. I lifted up my voice so
loud that I was heard in the town below, at the distance
of a mile. Help came, and rescued two of the poor suf¬
ferers. No one' called me an enthusiast then. And when
I §ee. eternal destruction awaiting my fellow-men, some
already engulfed in that hell, and . others under a mass of sin
and wrath which shall speedily sink them there, and call
aloud for warning and help, shall I be called an enthusiast
now?"
.Perhaps you may be inclined to make the application in
my favor.
You reason well; no rational man could object. But
what has all this to do with the enlightened congregation at
* * * * chapel? Have they not been sitting under the
sound of the gospel for years ? Enter into conversation with
scores and hundreds of them;—how clear their views upon
238 ARGUMENTS WITH. THE ENEMIES OF REVIVALS.
all the essential doctrines of Christianity! A large propor¬
tion of the young people have been trained in the Sabbath
school, and are familiar with the holy Scriptures. Many of
them are moral and upright in their conduct, but without
any internal religion. Converse with them closely, and they
will candidly admit they have never been born again. Not
.a few members of the society confess their state unsafe.
Some, indeed, of that congregation, may doubt whether a
knowledge of salvation by the remission of sins can be ob¬
tained ; but a vast majority allow even this. But they are not
alarmed on the subject. Their hearts are still cold and in¬
different. What is to "be done ? Could you, or any sensible
man, believing the word of God, forbid a minister to cry unto
the Lord, for an influence from heaven to come down upon
these sinners ? On returning to the pulpit, should he not
bring his God with, him, and by the power of the Holy Ghost,
attempt to break them down into compunction for their sins ?
How can he do this more readily, than by seizing upon the
knowledge already in the head, as the element of alarming
appeals to the conscience ? They have been reasoned with
till their heads are as clear as those of devils; but their
hearts are like flint, and cold as ice. They,believe as cor¬
rectly as devils do, but, unlike devils, there is no trembling.
James ii. 19. They must be made to tremble, and be broken-
down before the Lord God of hosts, or they can never be
saved.
" You certainly impress the audience with a want of re¬
spect for their understanding, and so prejudice them against
you and your message." It may be so; I must run the risk
of that. If they understood the matter properly, they should
consider that I honor their intelligence. In some of my ser¬
mons', it is taken for granted, that they believe in all the doc¬
trines of the Bible. The point then at issue is, whether it is
ARGUMENTS WITH THE ENEMIES OF REVIVALS. 239
not high time they should test their principles, by a conscious
and happy experience. In other words, that the enjoyments
of the heart should harmonize with the " knowledge in the
head.". - Upon this I labor with all my might. My plan, then,
is to lay close siege to the heart and conscience, and storm
them, if I can. . If this cannot be done in one night, I return
to the charge the next. And so, without any " flourish or
prolusion," fall to blows, and that so rapidly as to give them
no time to recover themselves. When they " cry for quar¬
ters," mercy is freely and generously offered through the
blood of the Lamb.
But forget not, that in every appeal made to the heart,
there is a dignified recognition of principles already lodged
in the understanding.
I consider the intelligence of that congregation insulted,
when a preacher, month after month, and year after year,
engages their attention in proving and defining points of be¬
lief, and theological terms. I doubt whether they would
bear with him three Sabbaths, but for the charity that hopes
somebody needs enlightening upon such subjects. That, min¬
ister does credit to the intellects of his audience, who drives
home to the conscience, with a giant arm, truths which they
profess to believe. He is only pushing received and ac-i
knowledged principles to their proper result in the conver¬
sion of the soul.
You go on, " Why not a little system, and some attention
to accent and cadence ? nor should you be above a nice
definition of words. You are capable of all these, but you"
suffer your feelings to run away with your reason. I can see
no good in all this furious bluster; and as for such outcries
among hitherto sober and sensible people —I am amazed."
And thus it will be with you, till you understand my aim in
preaching,—the conversion of sinners to God. It is in*
240 ARGU^EN^S WITH THE ENEMIES OF REVIVALS.
hearing this kind of preaching, as one looking at an archer
shooting at a mark. Unless the by-stander notice the object
aimed at, and observe the arrow the moment it leaves the
string, there is nothing more seen of , it, till it strike- the
ground, or stick fast in the mark. But let the design of the
marksman be observed, and the flight-shaft is seen the
moment it is delivered; the eye following it through the air,
till it strike the point to which it was directed. All confu¬
sion is then avoided, and the effect upon the mind most
agreeable.
Consider the intention of the minister; notice the mark;
appreciate his motives ; recognize the adaptation of the truths
delivered. Sympathize with the feelings of the man of God;
follow the shaft by the eye of faith, to the invisible heart of
the'sinner; nor will you be surprised if he cry aloud, as in
an agony from an arrow Sticking fast. Having traced the
cause to the effect, and the effect back to the cause, the sure
results of gospel truth shall gladden your heart. The bitter
complaints of one of old, mingling in the outcries, shall then
be no confusion to you. . " For the arrows of the Almighty
are within me, the poison whereof drinketh up my spirit;
the terrors of God do set themselves in array against me."
Job vi. 4.
I am aware you have not received that answer which some
of your remarks have richly merited. But, if you have
thrown away from you common politeness and good humor, I
choose to retain both. Beware, lest while you bear the,
character of a despiser, you wonder and perish. Acts xiii.
41. Remember it is written, " His arrows are made ready
upon the strings," Ps. xxi. 12, and that he holds the arrow
of death, as well as those suitable for conviction of sin.
" God shall shoot at them with an arrow," says the Psalmist,
suddenly shall they be wounded " unto death.
ARGUMENTS WITH THE ENEMIES OF REVIVALS. 241
" Several intelligent persons- have vacated their pews, in
consequence of your fiery style of preaching." That I am
aware of; hut they are few in number. Were they to speak
of their secret hearts, as freely as they do of me, I may
venture to say, they would confess themselves attached to
sins .sufficient to damn them, were they to die in them.
They know it, and are disturbed. This is no discredit to me
among the angels of God, the spectators of this conflict, who
are filling heaven with acclamations of joy over repenting
sinners.-
I have seen many such cases; but startling facts after¬
wards explained the matter, and have cleared the preacher
of all blame.
"Why so pointed? why so severe? You will succeed
just as. well with softer words." To this I reply, words are
the instruments by which the Spirit of God affects the mind.
Sharp they must be, and powerful; if like a two-edged
sword, they pierce even to the dividing asunder the soul and
spirit, the joints and marrow; and severely searching, too,
if their discernment penetrate even to the thoughts and the
intents of the heart. Heb. iv. 12. An old divine? quoting
the saying of a physician, " Soft words cure no wounds,"
added, " we may more truly say, Soft words give no wounds,
and are not fit for the service."
Two of your concluding sentiments are -worth a line or
two. " I never come, but there is a storm of hell and dam¬
nation." But you do not attend every night; frequently,
there is nothing of the kind. Such powerless seasons,
however, cause me great sorrow of heart; I would weep
my .life away on this account, were it not for the con¬
sideration, that quiet sermons may be necessary for certain
minds, of mild temperament and kindly disposition. The
jailor was surprised by terror, and sprang into the cell of
21
242 ARGUMENTS WITfl THE ENEMIES OF REVIVALS.
Paul and Silas, trembling, and fell down, saying, " Sirs,
what must I do to be saved ?" But it is recorded in the
same chapter, that, " The Lord opened the heart of Lydia,"
when hearing the truth of God by the river, of Philippi.
" He opened Lydia's heart with an oiled key," said a good
man, " but an earthquake was necessary to open the-heart
of the jailor."
Who dare say, that these two styles are not necessary for
respective characters ; or even that the same kind of preach¬
ing is always suitable to the same individual ? If you are
sent on the earthquake nights, to breathe amidst a "storm of
hell and damnation," are you quite sure you do not need such
arousing elements ?
" You have a good deal of brass in your face, if, after the
repeated hints you have received from certain quarterSj you
do not disappear from the town." I have a good deal of love
in my heart, or I could not breast my difficulties ; and one
of the old " Scotch worthies," (the persecuted Rutherford,)
used to say, "Faith is the better for free air, and for the
sharp winter storm in its face ? " .
Hot at all. I meant no such thing. The judgment should
be addressed as well as the passions. What I intend^l, and
thought plainly stated, was, a minister of Christ should ad- *
dress the whole man. Appeals to the passions should not be
made, to the neglect of the understanding, nor should the
intellect be engaged while the passions are disregarded.
Doubtless, those preachers are most successful who aim at
both. Whether I fail in either, others must judge. Come and
hear for yourself regularly, and without prejudice. Mark
those parts of the sermon which speak to the judgment, and
those designed for the passions,, and you may possibly find
as much intended for the former as for the latter. But ex¬
pect not equal proportions in all the sermons, nor run tiway
ARGUMENTS WITH THE ENEMIES OP REVIVALS. 243
disgusted after a moving discourse. Come back tbe next
night, and the following; perhaps you may observe both
matter and manner in the opposite extreme. If so, look out
for another " storm," for these are only preparatory.
Let us not disagree where we are really agreed. That
" the judgment should be informed before the passions are
moved," I allow.* This is a good general rule, but the min¬
ister who is laboring for souls, is often the best judge. If
he have the- work at heart, he will converse with hun¬
dreds of his hearers, in a week or two, and be able to form a
pretty correct estimate of their intelligence, and suit his
preaching accordingly. Hence, a hearer, especially one
who is only present once or twice a week, is far from being
qualified to say, how such a man should preach to the crowds
who surround him. • In very many cases, the feelings must
be moved before we can have access to the judgment. I
cannot enter into a labored argument upon this point, for the
want of time. I have visited many towns in the course of
my travels, where a revival has broken out suddenly. Vast
numbers have crowded into the house of God, out of mere
curiosity. Some of them, " Wild as the untaught Indian's
brood." Before such minds could be enlightened, I had to
gain their attention; but this was impossible, without an at¬
tempt to " rouse their passions," as you term it; by these
objectionable appeals. The fear of that great and dreadful
God whom they had offended, and the conscious danger of
dropping into hell, have so " wrought upon their feelings,"
as to impel them to attend to the things which were spoken.
Dark minds, forced by an aroused conscience to listen to the
truth, became enlightened, and soon yielded themselves to
God, through Jesus Christ.
I recollect an instance of this kind, which took place at a
camp meeting in the state of New York. A very wicked
244 ARGUMENTS WITS THE'ENEMIES OP REVIVALS.
physician, driven on by the devil, come upon the ground.
Day after day, regardless of the sanctity of the place and
services, he despised the sons of God, and ridiculed the
"whole as a religious farce. His mind was as dark as that pf
an Indian of our forests, on the whole subject of religion.
I was present the night he was struck to the ground, as by
a flash of lightning. The point to be gairfed was to arrest
his attention during a sufficient length of time t6 make an
impression. A plain young man one night chose a text,
Rom. vii. 11, 12; and instead of laboring to convince the
judgment, he thrust directly at the conscience. Every sen¬
tence had a dagger point. His appeals to the conscience
were absolutely terrific. The woods re-echoed; the audience
stood aghast, and Christians trembled before the Lord God
of hosts. The man's attention was rivetted, the smile of
contempt disappeared, and he fell to the ground as if a bul¬
let had passed through his body. Morning had not dawned
upon that grove, before the results astonished all who were
acquainted with the case.
Several years ago, a few religious people and others were
worshipping God. An old man arose, not so much to tell
people what they did not know, as to make them feel all
they knew. A hardened young sinner was there, while the
exhorter, at the top of his voice, cried, " Sin and repent, sin
and repent, till you repent in the bottomless pit." He
afterwards said, that the word entered his " heart like a dag¬
ger." His "passions were excited," but an arrest was laid
upon his attention. During five weeks God poured light upon
his mind, by the instructions of his servants, which he was
glad to receive, while suffering the agonies of a wounded
spirit. At the end of that time, he received remission of
gins, by faith ; enjoyed it several years, and then died happy
in God. ,
ARGUMENTS WITH- THE ENEMIES OF REVIVALS. 245
- " The zeal of some men is of a haughty, unbending,
ferocious character," you say. " They have the letter of
truth, but they mount the pulpit like prize-fighters. It is
with them a perpetual scold. It is not the spirit of
Jesus Christ. He seems to have labored to win men." I
never scold; it is- against my principles. But when the
love of Christ constrains, I persuade men with power and
divine authority. Call this " ferocious," if you please.
But I happen to know where you got the above criticism.
Why did you not add the passage immediately in connection ?
I shall do it for you. " But there is an opposite extreme.
The love of some men is all milk and mildness. There is so
much delicacy, and so much fastidiousness. They touch
with, such tenderness, and, if the patient shrinks, they will
touch no more. The times are too flagrant for such a dispo¬
sition. The gospel is sometimes preached in this way, till all
the people agree with the preacher. He gives no offence,
and he does no good." This is what another calls, " A
general, soft, and toothless ministry;" and adds, " I con
fess I look upon nothing more dangerous and deadly."
May the Holy Spirit teach me wherein I err!
This very morning I fell in with the following lines, which
I consider the best answer I can give. It would seem as if
they had been written expressly for yourself s —
" Parrots themselves speak properly by rote,
And in six months, my dog shall howl by note;
I laugh at those, who, when the stage they tread,
Neglect the heart, to compliment the head;
With strict propriety, their cares confined
To weigh out words, while passion halts behind:
To syllable dissectors they appeal,
Allow the accent, cadence —fools may feel;
But spite of all the criticising elves,
Those, who would make us feel, must feel themselves.''''
You have stated many good things, but I have neither time
2V
246 ARGUMENTS WITH THE ENEMIES OF REVIVALS.
nor inclination, to take them up, one by one, or continue the
correspondence. Compare your philosophy with what follows.
Each sentiment might be a proposition. Carry them out,
.and they would tear your arguments to ribbons. " Truth
and sympathy are the soul of an efficacious ministry. We
may say, ' this or that is the aspect which ought to have
most effect: we must illuminate the mind; we must enlist
the reason; we must attack the conscience.' " " We may
do all this, and yet our want of success in begetting and
educating the sons of glory, may demonstrate to. us, that
there is some more effective way. Man is a creature of feel¬
ing as well as intellect. We must interest them as we can.
It is unphilosophical to depend on the mere statement of
truth. The armor of Saul is armor for the camp of the
Israelites, or in the camp of the Philistines, but we want the
sling and the stone. I honor metaphysicians, logicians,
critics, and historians, in their places. Look at facts. Men
who lay out all their strength in statements, preach churches
empty. They fail in their effects on their hearers, by not
entering as philosophers into the state of human nature.
They do not consider how low the patient is reduced. They
set themselves to plant principles and prove points, when
they should labor to interest the heart. Few men have 'wis¬
dom so large as to see, that the way they have not hitherto
attained, may yet be the best way. I dare not tell most
academical, logical, frigid men, how little I account of their
opinion, concerning the true method of preaching to the pop¬
ular ear. I hear them talk as utterly incompetent judges."
On the other matters, I have to thank you for your candoi,
But have you never read the little story of the " irregular "
apple tree ? A gentleman one day, when passing by an
orchard, the trees of which were standing in regular rows,
noticed trne quite " out of order," He hailed the owner,
ARGUMENTS WITH THE ENEMIES OF REVIVALS. 247
saying, "What a pity, Sir, that yon should let that tree
stand there; were it mine, I would root it up, and thereby
reduce my orchard to an exact uniformity." " I regard the
fruit rather than the form," was the reply. " It more than
compensates for the inconvenience arising from its situation.
This tree which you would root up, hath yielded me more
than many of those trees, which have little else to commend
them,, than their regular position."
Are you quite sure, that Jesus Christ would not give you a
similar reply, were you hold enough to carry the " objection"
to him ?
Here this controversy must close. I have other, and
better work on my hands. Hundreds of sinners are turning
to the Lord. Were it not for difficulties over which I have
no control, both circuits would be wrapt in the flames of sal¬
vation, and many more sinners converted at this time. The
devil fought with me in Dublin, as the starting point of my
labors in Ireland; but my trials were nearly all mental.
Liverpool is " the pass " into England. To me it is a Ther¬
mopylae ; but Satan has changed his mode of attack. His
entrenchments, artillery, and agents are of a different kind.
My eye is single. There is prudence.connected with that,
far beyond any thing worldly, and much more effectual. The
singleness of the mental eye is a noble safeguard against the
warpings of those selfish interests, which ruin a man's use¬
fulness, and blight the work of God. My one object is the
salvation of lost sinners. This saves me from many snares
and hurtful temptations. When souls are given me, I am
happy" Then, let or earth or hell assail."
In bidding you adieu, I indulge the charity which " hopeth
-all things." Although you have used some hard words, not
at all in keeping with the politeness current in the well-
bred world, to say nothing of the apostolic injunction, " Be
248 ARGUMENTS WITH THE ENEMIES OE" REVIVALS.
courteous;" yet I would hope, you have not " set aught down
in malice." Rather, that the sentiments of a good man now
in glory, are more justly applicable. " If a man look at
most of his prejudices, he will find that they arise from his
field of view being necessarily narrow, like the eye of a fly.
He can have but little better notions of the whole scheme
of things, as has been well said, than a fly on the pavement
of St. Paul's cathedral can have x>f the whole structure.
He is offended, therefore, by inequalities, which are lost in
the grand design." Think of the following sentence, it may
assist you to more prudence, and render you less positive.
" This persuasion will fortify him against many injurious and
troublesome prejudices." My charity, however, need not
hinder you from
" Turning the leaves of sacred conscience o'er,
Nor be afraid to search her hidden store."
* * # # * *
I understand perfectly the nature of these petty annoy¬
ances. Never have I yet been in any great revival, without
having had numbers of these squibs of the devil, and other
fire-works let off about my ears. Seldom have they ceased
making a noise, and spitting fire, till the poor creatures
employed by the author of evil, (as the monkey employed
the paws of the cat, in dragging the eatables out of the fire,)
get converted to God; or till the revival either stop or
become extremely popular. Sometimes I have felt it my
duty to silence Satan's batteries, by the superior artillery
of the gospel. But where the effect has been no other, than
to keep my officers awake, and to stir them up to deeds of
noble daring, I have let them fire away. My reply in such
cases has been, " I am doing a great work, so that I cannot
come down; why should the work cease whilst I leave it,
and come down to you ?" Neh. vi. 3.
ARGUMENTS WITH THE ENEMIES OE REVIVALS. 249
Having a few moments on my. hands, it is not improper,
ail things considered, to send you a short answer.
You seem to be a sensible man, and, I am surprised that
you,meddle with what it ia evident you are totally ignorant
of. Wei;e I to enter your shop, and interfere with your
men, and attempt to give orders about a trade, of which I
know just nothing, what would you think or say of me ?
What but"" he is a foolish, impudent, meddling, self-conceited
coxcomb ?"
Once, during a glorious revival, an unconverted lawyer,
who was. a member of the congregation, set himself to oppose
me and the Leaders. A judicious friend brought him to his
senses. " Suppose, Sir," he said, " an individual, who had
never studied law, should come into your office, and begin to
find fault with your legal proceedings ; and insist that, here
after, you should govern yourself by his directions, how
would you treat his impudence ? And how does it look, Sir,
for you to be dictating to an experienced minister of God,
and converted and intelligent Leaders, as to how they shall
conduct this revival ?"
This prompt defence of my friend, reminded me of a
classical story. When Antony carped at the study of the
civil law, acknowledging, at the same time, the small knowl¬
edge he himself had therein; Scsevola, a great lawyer, smil
ing said, that "he had made a hind of amends for his
invective against the law, by professing his ignorance there¬
in." A good man once replied to a sceptic: "It is no
disparagement to any science or profession, to be slighted by
such as understand it not."
A few months ago, when in the south of Ireland, a zealous
old Christian came into my room, saying, " Sir, I was
exhorting sinners to turn to Christ, and believers to cry to
God for an influence from above. My soul was very happy,
250 ARGUMENTS WITH THE ENEMIES OP REVIVALS.
and I called upon God to send down fire from heaven. A
poor man cried out with great emotion, 1 God forbid!'"
They understood each other differently. The old saint wanted
the fire of divine love to descend upon the hearts of the
people; the sinner thought he was calling for the fire' of
vengeance, and ventured to put a negative upon Such a
request; — entering his protest against such a shower, with
a " God forbid!"
It is the same misunderstanding of spiritual things, which
leads you to exclaim, "Blasphemy," in a lively meeting.
•You seem as ignorant of the phraseology necessary to a
revival, as an Indian would be of the shouts for brick, and
stone, and mortar, from the walls of a building in the course
of' erection. Nor will it ever be otherwise with you, till the
publican's cry, " God be merciful to me a sinner!" be wrung
from your agonized soul; or till the first five verses of the
one hundred and third psalm, become the language of your
newly converted heart. In hell you may possibly under¬
stand the matter. Theology is studied there, were it for
no other purpose, than to burn into the lost soul, lessons on
the justice of its punishment. I care not a straw for your
threatening. Neither you, nor any sinner in Liverpool, can
do me any injury, unless it be given you from above. The
will of God be done. When my work is finished in England,
-I shall cheerfully return to America. He can open, and
no man can shut, and he can shut, and no man can open.
I think it is Luther, who tells us of a certain Duke of Sax¬
ony, who determined upon war against a bishop of Germany.
The prelate, instead of raising a military force to defend his
town and territory, gave himself to prayer, and to the care
of the church of God. The duke sent a spy into the com¬
pany of the bishop, for the purpose of learning his plan of
attack, or defence. The spy returned, and the duke, with
ARGUMENTS WITH THE ENEMIES OF REVIVALS. 251
much eagerness, put forth his inquiries. " 0 ! Sir, was the
reply, "you may surprise ^ him without fear; he is doing
nothing, and making no preparation." "How is that?"
inquired the duke, " what does he say ?" " He says he
will feed his flock, preach the .word, visit the sick, and that
as for this war, he should commit the weight of it to God
himself." " Is it so ?" said the duke, " then let the devil
wage war against him, I will not;" and added, if I remem¬
ber aright, "It is a hazardous affair to attack him, who has
engaged God in his quarrel."
There is a lesson here for me and thee, and for all parties
concerned. I have nothing to do but mind God's work, nor
shall I do any thing else; and that with simplicity and
singleness of heart. While God surrounds me with a crowd
of young converts, and penitents, and unawakened but atten¬
tive sinners, my duty is plain. Some are to be built up on
their most lioly faith, others are to be converted, and vast
masses broken down into sorrow for sin. Here is my work,
and I shall do it with all my might, by the grace of God.
When these things are accomplished, I shall disappear from
Liverpool, and they may see my face no more. The weight
of what you speak, I shall commit to God himself.
In the dark days of Protestantism, in this country, a
trooper rushed into a church, and ordered a faithful minister
to stop preaching. The man of God went on with a steady
voice, and firm countenance. The soldier raised a pistol to
his head, and threatened him with instant death, if he did
not desist. " Soldier,"- said the undaunted minister calmly,
" I am doing my duty, you may do yours;" and, with a still
more exalted voice, proceeded with his sermon.
God is mine, and I am Ms. This is settled; and, 0!
what a paradise is this! My feelings are not unlike those
of a Christian lady in America, who. said to me, " Brother,
252 ARGUMENTS! WITH THE ENEMIES OP" REVIVALS.
i feel like one sitting upon the summit of a high rock,
who can scarcely hear the breakers at its base." The man
who stands on the top of a lofty tower, 2 Sam. xxii. 2, 3,
is regardless of the croaking of frogs and hissing of serpents
below. What cares the full moon for the barking of dogs ?
She is fixed in the heavens, and moves on, surrounded by
her attendant stars.
CHAPTER XYI.
inquiries, anecdotes, and closing labors in liverpool.
The following chapter is full of interest. It abounds in
fine, pointed anecdotes. It exhibits the opinions formed of
Mr. Caughey by lukewarm professors and worldly men. It
furnishes an example to those -ministers whose aims, efforts,
and principles, being above the comprehension of a carnal
world, call forth its anger. Mr. Caughey stood firm as a
" Druid rock " amidst the beating waves of hostile opinions.
He vanquished his foes by a meek perseverance in the work
of God; by being himself unmoved, while his foes were
excited against him.
His replies to those- who questioned him concerning the
secret philosophy of his revivals, are worthy of careful
study; since his successful, simple philosophy, is within reach
of every other minister. It is so compendious as to be
easily comprehended and as easily remembered. That it is
the true philosophy, wiH appear from its practical workings.
In five months at Liverpool, it produced the glorious fruit of
a thousand converts. 0, that every reader, and especially
every minister, may learn well and truly that philosophy so
aptly comprehended by Mr. Caughey in the single phrase,
knee work !
Yes! in such cases it may do very well. We may man¬
age those infirmities, as did the painter, when taking the
22 253
254
CLOSING LABORS IN LIVERPOOL.
portrait of his friend. A blemish happened to be in one of
his eyes, but he concealed the defect by painting the other
side of the face. This was a delicate stroke, and not repre¬
hensible. The presence of the deformity was not absolutely
necessary to a correct likeness, in-a certain position. And
thus it may be sometimes in preaching. Innocent and una¬
voidable imperfections are not needful to be described. We
can do more good by throwing over them the mantle of con¬
cealment. No principle is sacrificed, by taking the most per¬
fect side of the character for our contemplation. But " cir¬
cumstances alter cases." Suppose the " frailties" are sinful,
and known to the public, a minister is not at liberty to con¬
ceal or excuse. Principle, the good of others, and the concerns
of a deathless soul, are concerned. " But would you announce
his name ? " By no means; there is no occasion for that;
nor have I in your case. I would draw the portrait with those
sinful blemishes in it, and it should be to the life too; so that
if the individual be known to the congregation, every one
may discern the likeness, and avoid the example. If the
failings are secret, then the sinner himself may behold his
deformed features, and repent, as in dust and ashes. A
certain minister was in the act of sketching such a character
once. A poor fellow in the audience looked unutterable
things, gazing all the time with intense interest. A few
more touches by the faithful preacher, and the likeness was
complete. He could restrain himself no longer, and cried
out, " Name me! " with a look as if he would sink through
the floor. Did you feel any thing like this on the night in
question ? 0 man! secure such a character upon you, by
the grace of God, that you shall not be ashamed of your
picture any where.
You say, " It is disgusting and horrible for any minister
to descend to such personalities. It is mean; you knew
CLOSING LABORS IN LIVERPOOL.
255
■well enough that what you said could apply to none hut my¬
self." I knew nothing of the kind, nor any thing about
you. I did indeed " paint" a face and form, with a peculiar
drapery, and so like yourself, it would seem, that you knew
your visage and garb; and now you must wear them till you
provide yourself with something better. I am as innocent
in the whole affair, most surely, as was an old Local Preacher
of my acquaintance in America, similarly circumstanced.
He was a man full of faith and of the Holy Ghost, and
much people were added to the Lord by his instrumentality.
Preaching once in a private house, which was full, a certain
character came up suddenly before his mind. This he
sketched admirably, in " full length." A man at the door
became greatly agitated, and forgetting the peculiarity of
his situation, called out to the preacher, " Why don't you
talk to some of the rest, and not to me all the time?" "I
did not know you were there," replied the good man, " but
if the coat suit you, put it on and wear it, and be thankful,
and I shall try to fit some of the rest." Ah! Sir, if there
was more of such preaching, men could not frequent our
congregations, nor applaud the minister, and live at the
same time in gross vice. No, no! They would either
absent themselves from the hearing of the searching truth,
or get converted to God. The above1 fact is so applicable to
yourself, there is no need for comments.
u There were other offensive remarks, which I know applied
to others, even Wesleyans; but such vulgar descriptions
should never be brought into the pulpit." I cannot agree
with you there. If people are " vulgar " enough to commit
such things, the minister of God, rather than have the blood
of souls found in his skirts, must reprove boldly, even at the
risk of being charged with vulgarity. " Reproofs of this
kind should always be given in private." You amuse me.
256
GLOSING LABORS IN LiyERPOOL.
Take the following incident as my reply: An eminent man,
since gone into eternity, once publicly reproved a certain
class of men with whom he was associated. Stung by his
pointed remarks, they complained of his imprudence and
severity, adding, " You should have done tjiis privately, and
in Latin." He replied, " When you transgress privately
and in Latin, I will rebuke you privately and in Latin; but
when publicly and in English, I shall rebuke you publicly
and in English." While upon this part of your letter, I
must remind you of the saying of a zealous minister of
Christ, some years ago, which it is not unlikely you have
read. He preached one day, very pointedly, against those
sins which prevail among the wealthy. A nobleman being
present, left the house of God much out of humor, and -sent
his servant to the minister, with this message : " Sir, you
have offended my lord to-day." The noble reply was, " I
should not have offended your lord, except he had been con¬
scious to himself he had first offended my Lord; and if your
lord will offend my Lord, let him be offended." Do you not
think the following to be applicable to your case ? A cer¬
tain knight, in the days of Cromwell, entered a charge against
a faithful preacher, to this effect, that he was " preached at
in church." What was Cromwell's advice ? "Go home,
Sir John, and hereafter live in good, friendship with your
minister. The word of the Lord is a searching vword, and I
am afraid it has found you out."
You are certainly mistaken. JVi Vun ni Vautre, " Neith-.
er the one nor the other." No human being has told me a
single word about you. I have no doubt it was the Spirit of
God, which led my mind to those points, which turn out to
be facts. Beware how you blame any one. God is in it;
your sins have found you out. It is a mere trick of the
devil, to charge * * * with it, or anyone else. Satan knows
CLOSING LABORS IN LIVERPOOL.
257
there is no readier way to irritate your mind, and destroy the
impression, than to impute the affair to Some " tattling busy¬
body," instead of the Holy Ghost, who Knows all about you.
I would not take pains to send you the following, in the min¬
ister's own words, but for a desire to counterwork the de¬
signs of the. enemy of your soul: —
" I was once applied to by a stranger, in a place where I
was laboring fop a few Sabbaths only, for a sight of a letter
which I had received calumniating his character. I looked at
the man and pitied him, and coolly replied, 4 It would be a
breach of the common principles of society, to show confi¬
dential letters written to us for the purpose of our doing peo¬
ple good.' He retorted in an angry tone, 41 demand a sight
of it, Sir, as an act of justice due to an injured man.' I re¬
plied, 4 How did you know that I have received a letter con¬
cerning you ?' 4 Know !' said he,4 it was impossible not to
know it; your language and manner were so pointed, that it
was impossible I should be deceived.' I rejoined, 4 Do not
be too positive ; you have been deceived before now, I sup¬
pose ; you may be so again.' 4 It is not possible,' said he ;
4 you described the sin "of which I am accused in the clearest
language;' and, looking me in the face, and pointing to¬
wards me, you said, 4 Sinner, be sure ypur sins will find you
out; I therefore expect from you, Sir, as a gentleman and a
Christian minister, that you will give me a sight of the let¬
ter, that I may know its contents and repel its charges.' I
observed, 41 do not know your name; to my knowledge I
never saw you before ; and as you have not told me in what
part of the sermon it was I was so pointed, if I show you
any letter I may show you the wrong one; I shall therefore
certainly not exhibit any of my letters to you, nor satisfy you
whether I have received any one about you, till you describe
the case alluded to.' He hesitated, but afterwards described
258
CLOSING LABORS IN LIVERPOOL.
the sin of which he was accused. When he had finished,
looking him full in his eyes, assuming a solemn attitude, and
using a grave and serious tone of voice, I said, ' Can you
look me full in the face, as you must your Judge at the great
day jof God, and declare that you are innocent of the sin
laid to your charge ?' He trembled, turned pale, and his
voice faltered; guilt and anger struggling in his breast, like
the fire in the bowels of Mount iEtna, and summoning up
his remaining courage, — ' I am not bound to make any man
my confessor; and if I were guilty, no man has a right to
hold me up to public observation, as you have done.' I as¬
sumed a benignity of countenance, and softened my tones,
saying, ' Do you believe the passage I cited—be sure your
sins will find you out—is the word of God ?' He answered,
'It may be.' ' Surely it is,' said I; 'he that made the ear,
shall he not hear; he that made the eye, shall he not see;
can he have any difficulty in bringing your sin to light ?
Now I will tell you honestly, I never received any letter or
information about you whatever; but I am persuaded your
sin has found you out; the preaching of the word is one
method by which God makes men's sins find them out. Let
me entreat you seriously to consider your state and
character ; who can tell, God may have intended this sermon
for your good ; he may mean to have mercy upon you; this
may be the means of saving your body from the gallows, and
your soul from hell; but let me remind you, you are not
there yet; there still is hope.' He held down,his head,
clenched his hands one into the other, and bursting into tears,
said, ' I never, never met with any thing like this; I am cer¬
tainly obliged to you for your friendship; I am guilty, and
hope this conversation will be of essential advantage to
me.' "
A little more than two years ago, I was preaching in an
CLOSING LABORS IN LIVERPOOL.
259
American town. A merchant was there, and during the ser¬
mon his portrait was so correctly drawn, that he left the
house in a rage. Next day, he was going to wreak his ven¬
geance upon a shoemaker, whom he suspected to be the in¬
former. The poor man protested that he had never men¬
tioned his name to me, nor had he related a single circumstance
to any person, connected with his history.
It is rather amusing, that this very morning,- a good lady
called upon me, lamenting in bitter terms the treachery of
her enemies ; weeping, as if her heart would break; re¬
proaching me, at the same time, with the meanness of my
conduct, in exposing her before the whole congregation. I en¬
treated her to explain; and when she had attained sufficient
composure, reminded me of a sermon I had preached on a cer¬
tain night, in which I had described her character. Poor wo¬
man, her likeness had been so " striking" that it had nearly
thrown her into a state of frenzy. The malice of her neighbors,
and my ungentlemanly behavior in the pulpit, descending
to such personalities, and daring to drag her before such mul¬
titudes, were unbearable. In order to relieve the distressed
woman, I had to call God to witness, that no person had ever
said a word about her to me, in any way whatever; and that
I had no recollection of having ever seen her before. What
her after reflections were, I know not, but it is to be hoped,
she has this day learned a lesson, which may be an eternal
blessing to her.
Take care, then, my dear Sir, of what you are about, lest
you may find yourself fighting against God. He always
warns before he strikes, and gives repeated-blows ere the
final one is inflicted. Repent, man; the last stroke is coming,
and the longer the swing, the more' tremendous it will be
when it comes. There is little of man in this business. The
warning is from Heaven ; it has been delivered faithfully,
260
CLOSING LABORS IN LIVERPOOL.
and has found a lodgment in your conscience. Attend to
it; but, 0, do not quarrel with me!
" When God supports, who then can cast us down ?
His smiles are life, hut death attends his frown."
Ludicrous as Hie following may appear, your conduct bears
to it an exact resemblance. I remember nothing better as
an illustration. A few years ago, in the vicinity of an
American town, (the scene, by the- way, of a part of my
labors in the ministry,) the circumstance which follows oc¬
curred. It was related to me as a fact, by a man of veraci¬
ty. Near the town was a canal, along the bank of which,
a fellow was one day walking, when a thunder cloud came
rolling up. A sudden flash of lightning, attended by a peal
of thunder, startled him; and about the same moment he
received a stunning blow. It appears the lightning had
struck very near him, and a powerful electric shock was the
result. He was probably within a hair's breadth of losing
his life. But instead of considering the concussion as arising
from the violence of the lightning, he- suspected some one
had struck him with a stone. Determining upon vengeance,
he scrambled around for a weapon, and seizing a large clod
of hard earth, he fixed his body in a certain attitude, and his
arm in a proper position, and waited for his supposed enemy to
peep from behind the abutment of the bridge over the canal,
that he might repay him for his treachery. Nobody appear¬
ing, he became thoughtful, mistrusted the cause, and threw
down the clod ; the nimble "lightning had disappeared, and
the source of its power was too high for. his revenge. Job.
xxviii. 26.
But, can you see no resemblance of yourself here ? Why
this menacing attitude against your humble servant ? If the
truth of God has reached your heart; if facts, of which I
CLOSING LABORS IN LIVERPOOL.
261
am not the author, have struck you into remorse, am I to be
blamed ? Yours is the fault, for having prepared yourself^
by a course of sin, to be thus astounded by the truth of God.
Those convictions, which have blazed across your mind, have
had a higher origin than man. You have received a shock
from Heaven—the Holy Spirit's lightning-stroke; you should
thank God you were not struck into hell. And. yet, like the
man stunned by the lightning, you impute it .to a fellow
creature. If you dare not retaliate with blows, you have re¬
sorted to very hard words. Pardon my again alluding to the
above incident; but there is a moral in it. Missing a stone,
he grappled a clod, and though bones would not have been
broken, yet he might have insulted an innocent person,
for which a humiliating apology would have been demanded.
When in Ireland, last June, one of the preachers related
the following, in which I was much interested. A certain
preacher was holding forth, in a certain place, and he de
scribed the character of a sinner present, so strikingly, that
he concluded the minister was pointing him out, knowing him
to be there. The next night he concealed himself in a cor¬
ner, where he was sure the preacher could not see him. The
preaching, however, was as personal as ever, and his feelings
so correctly delineated, that there could be no mistake,—he
had been detected. The succeeding night, he secreted his
person where there could be no possibility of being seen. It
was of no use; during the sermon, the voice of the servant
of God fell upon his ear like thunder : " Sinner ! come out
of your lurking-place ; thou art the man! " " Ah ! well," he
thought, " what avails it ? Somebody has been telling the
stranger all about me ; but I shall not leave till I know who
the vagabond is." After preaching, he stepped forward, and
boldly inquired of the minister who it was that had been
"after telling such things" about him. "I Jiave nothing
262
CLOSING LABORS IN LIVERPOOL.
against" your honor," and, doubling his fist, he declared what
he would do to " the rascally informer." " My friend," said
the other, " no human being has told me any thing about
you ; but the Spirit of God has." Conviction at that mo¬
ment fastened upon his heart, and he rested not till he found
salvation. I believe he is yet alive, and on his way to
heaven.
You say," Your preaching would sting and terrify a devil."
Well, you know, it is written, " The devils also believe and
tremble." Is it any wonder then, that the truth has af¬
fected you, as it is to be hoped you are of a softer material ?
It reminds me of what Eupolis said of Pericles — " After his
orations to the people of Athens, it was found he had left
certain needles and stings in their minds." I should be
ashamed of the doctrines of Christianity, if they could not
accomplish more than the politics and philosophy of Pericles.
You are a witness, that the gospel is the same now as in the
days of St. Peter, " when thousands were pricked in their
heart, and inquired, Men and brethren, what shall we
do ? " Acts ii. 37. But on that very day their wounds were
healed by faith in that blood which they had shed on Calvary,
and about three thousand souls were added to the infant
church. You are quite out of humor with a sentiment in my
last, but I shall repeat it. God never strikes before he warns.
It is remarkable in the dealings of God with sinners, how
close he keeps to that direction given through Moses to the
armies of Israel — " When thou comest nigh unto a city to
fight against it, first offer conditions of peace." " It was on
this great principle Noah was sent to the old world," says an
old divine; " Moses and Aaron to Egypt, Lot to Sodom,
Jonah to Ninevah, and the prophets, and even Christ, to
Jerusalem." God has established this order in nature.
Winter is always preceded by the chilling breath of autumn,
CLOSING LABORS IN LIVERPOOL.
263
and seared leaves, and withered flowers. Evening shades, or
twilight, before dark night. Thunder never bursts over our
heads in a clear sky. u Clouds are his chariots, and light¬
nings his steeds." The volcano grumbles long and loud¬
ly, with many fitful gleams, and much smoke, ere it
bursts forth to overwhelm vineyards and towns at its base-
The hurricane is often heralded by startling changes in na¬
ture, and those who are observing, prepare for its fury.
There is a bitter storm approaching you ; a wing of it
sweeps you already. Strike sail, man, before its entire
weight bursts upon your unhappy soul. A smooth sea and
fair appearances do not always deceive the experienced eye
of the sailor. The ocean may look like a standing pool, with
scarcely a ripple upon its surface ; yet there is trouble in the
.offing, and the top and top-gallants are lowered; in fact
there is little left but naked spars, to struggle with the first
sudden rush of the tornado.
God, my dear Sir, has given you a warning; prepare for
the blow. It is surely coming. Is it not written, " Woe
unto him that striveth with his Maker ? " Who can deny
those striking sentiments of a good man ? " There is no
contending with sovereignty; no resisting omnipotency ; no
striving with our Maker. The fish that is caught with the
hook, the more he jerks and flings, the faster hold the hook
takes of him. The harder a man kicks against the pricks,
the deeper they enter into his heels. An earthen pitcher,
the more forcibly it is. dashed against an iron pot, the sooner
it flies in pieces. In like manner, the more we contend with
God and his judgments, the more we hurt, wound, and, in
the end, destroy ourselves. Be not like the dog that bites
the stone, never looking upon him that flings it. Mark him
who aims at you, and has hit you; and say with David, i I
was dumb, and opened not my mouth, because thou didst it.'
264
CLOSING LABORS IN LIVERPOOL.
Or cover your mouth with Job : 1 Behold I am vile, what
shall I answer thee ? I will lay my hand upon my mouth.
Once have I spoken, but I will not answer ; yea twice, but
I will proceed no farther.' Job xl. 4. Have you read of
the philosopher, who was censured for'not holding out his ar¬
gument with Adrian, the emperor ? His apology was, ' Is
it not reason to yield to him, who hath thirty legions at his
command ?' God is terrible out of his holy places. Legions
innumerable are ready to avenge his quarrel. He could
look you into the grave, or into hell, in a moment. ' Be¬
cause there is wrath, beware lest he take thee away with his
stroke.' Job xxxvi. 18. Yield, man! Discontinue the
controversy. He would have doomed you to destruction
long ago, but for a strong desire to save. You have an Ad¬
vocate above. He died for you, and lives to intercede. His
blood speaketh better things than the blood of Abel. Fly!
fly to the cross! and plead for pardon through the merits of
that atoning blood. There is mercy implied in all these warn¬
ings. Appeal from the bar of justice, to the throne of God's
grace. There is a disposition there to favor your cause.
God looks graciously from thence ; a Mediator is there, and
your Judge is disposed to be kind through him. What
would a criminal do, suppose ye, if he should notice an in¬
clination to mercy in his judge ? Would he remain listless
■ with such an advantage before him, or fail to urge his friends
to entreat for his life ? Why not say with penitent Austin,
' Why do I still procrastinate my coming "unto thee, 0 Lord ?
Why not now ? Why not this day ? Why should there not
be this hour an end of my sinful course of life ?'"
*##*#»
Your first inquiry amuses me. " Will you let me Into the
secret philosbphy of these revivals ? " Yes, with all my
heart!
CLOSING LABORS IN LIVERPOOL.
265
" Are you aware that, in some circles, your continued suc¬
cess is the subject of various speculations ? " I do not ques¬
tion, it; this is-a tax which persons in-my situation must
pay.
"I have.been present when your powers of mind have
been discussed." Better they had been employed upon
something more profitable.
" Much was said of your peculiar tact for - conducting re¬
vivals ; one called it a hind of a witchery over the feelings
of the people ; another questioned your motives," etc.. I
have become hardened to such animadversions. A sinner,
when I was at Bandon, in Ireland, fled from the chapel, say¬
ing,. " He is enough to frighten a fellow out of his senses ; he
must have been the very devil himself before he-took to this
way, or he could not tell a man all he has been guilty of."
A few nights since, a good lady left ——chapel, exclaim¬
ing, " The man is a wizard; there is nothing in one's heart
that he does not blab out." • I hope she will have no .rest
till converted to God.
"Your sermons have.been canvassed, taken to pieces,
analyzed, compared with those of other ministers, and pro¬
nounced far inferior; but the results seemed to stumble
them." So, if I have much to humble me, there is, after
all, something to encourage. My humble success is owing
to an influence above and beyond their criticisms. A minis¬
ter once came to hear the late Mr. William Dawson preach.
After sermon, in a neighboring house, he spoke of the won¬
derful effects produced by Mr. D.'s preaching, and wished
that he could accomplish the same by his pulpit efforts.
"Ah, Sir !" said the lady of the house, "you must move
the band of Him that" moves the world, before you-can wit¬
ness these effects." - The "power of the Holy Ghost" ac¬
companying hard, patient, steady, Constant labor, with many"
23
266
CLOSING LABORS IN LIVERPOOL.
tears, and much' crying to God in private, have produced the
" results " which are so mysterious to those of whom you
speak. Knee work! knee work 11 knee work!!! This is
the secret.
" My powerful groans thou canst not bear,
Nor stand the violence of prayer,
My prayer omnipotent!"
" Give me a revival, convert sinners, or I pine away and
die," is a cry that is much thought of in heaven; nor will
He who pities the groanings of the distressed soul, treat it
with indifference. He will come down out of the holy place,
and make bare his arm in the sight of all the people; wound
the dragon and cut Rahab in pieces. Then shall the feeblest
servant of God often thresh the mountains, and beat the hills
to chaff; one shall chase a thousand, and two put ten thou¬
sand to flight, and the slain of the Lord shall be many. Let
any minister (who has not mistaken his call) thus plead with
God, while, week after week, every night, from a full and
bleeding heart, he pours the burning,, pointed truths of
the gospel, into the ranks of sinners; and, whatever may
be his talents, he shall be a joyful witness of a glorious re¬
vival.
As to the " getting up" of my sermons, you will find the
history of the affair in a lesson I once received from an old
'divine. "I desire my sermons to be like Monica's son;
children of many prayers and tears, and thereby the more
unlikely to perish. Let all your sermons, as dew, be heaven-
born, that they may drop down like rain upon the mown
grass. Let prayer be the key to open the mysteries of
Christ to you ; and let prayer be the turning of the key, to
lock them up safe within you. Let prayer open and shut all
your books ; form and write, and begin and continue every
sermon. Ah! how should he pray both before and after
CLOSING LABORS IN LIVERPOOL. 267
his preaching, who "by every sermon preaches his beloved
neighbors into eternal burnings or eternal pleasures ? "
The " serious objections " of are, indeed, of weight.
They remind me of what Pliny the Younger, reported of
Egypt; that she boasted of owing nothing to the clouds, or
any foreign streams, for her fertility, being abundantly
watered by the sole .inundations of her own river, the Nile.
It becomes me, as a stranger, to say the same of England.
•God has, indeed, greatly enriched her with the. streams of
salvation. It may seem presumption for a wandering cloud
like me to think of adding any thing to the mighty river of
religious knowledge which meanders through this country in
all directions. May I not, however, comfort myself with the
reflection, that many a thirsty spot has been refreshed by a
sprinkling from a cloud, wafted from afar ? I trust that
many in Liverpool do know that the stranger does not
resemble that which is mentioned by St. Jude, " A cloud
without water."
In conclusion, the opinions of the other parties weigh quite
as light with me, as any thing enumerated by the ancient
poet: — ""
" My soul, What's lighter than a feather ? Wind.
Than wind ? The fire. And what than fire ? Moonshine.
What's lighter than moonshine ? A thought. Than thought ?
This bubble" world. What than this bubble V Nought."
Mr. Caughey now resumes his brief notices of the revival
in Liverpool.
We have had " protracted meetings " in two other chapels
on the South Circuit: Mount Pleasant, and Wesley chapel,
Stanhope street. The former is a small building, in which
we had a good work, though I did not enjoy such freedom in
preaching there as elsewhere. At the Stanhope street
chapel, the word of the Lord had free course, and was glo-
268
©LOSING LABORS IN LIVERPOOL.
rified. Here my soul enjoyed great liberty, and many
sinners, were converted to God. Although I had some trib¬
ulation to endure, yet so long as no man had power to shut
the door of usefulness, I labored on with joy and success.
This is the chapel, in which my kind host and hostess, Mr.
and Mrs. Banning, worship; and I, found a large portion of
the congregation possessed of the same elevated and enlight¬
ened views of the work of God, with which their souls are
animated. During my stay in this chapel, more than three
hundred sinners obtained remission of sins, through faith in
the blood of the Lamb. The last night we spent there, we
had a select meeting for the new converts, and it was a most
-affecting time. Scores of sinners came forward at the close
to be prayed for, and a few were saved. My mind was
greatly oppressed at leaving this chapel for another part of
the town; but the aspect of circumstances clearly pointed
out my path.
Ah! I can carry myself with " ease and indifference"
towards a thousand things that are trying, when they have
no connection with the salvation or damnation of precious
souls. However, what sorely pained me, was overruled for
the " furtherance of the gospel." A poor man was once
heard to say, that he was once rich, and had learned some¬
thing of God; that he prayed continually for "a closer walk
with God." " But at first," said he, " when God began to
answer my prayers, I thought he was going to destroy me ;
he deprived me of every thing I had; but he gave me what
was of infinitely more value, even to know more of himself
and Jesus." And thus my narrow mind mourned over
surrounding difficulties, when the Lord was, by these means,
leading me to see some of the richest displays of the power
of God, in another part of the same vineyard.
The Rev. A. E. Earrar, Superintendent of the North
CLOSING LABORS IN LIVERPOOL. 269
Circuit, kindly invited me to return and spend a few weeks
among the people of his charge. But at this time, the
Welsh Methodists also insisted upon having a claim upon
part of my services, and gave me a hearty invitation to visit
their chapels. I' questioned the propriety of the step, but
the following" arguments of a few friends removed my objec¬
tions: " First, these Welsh chapels are under the control of
our Wesleyan Conference, and from that body the congregar-
tions receive their preachers, who minister to the people in
the Welsh language. Secondly, the chapels are in the
neighborhood of those you have already visited on tlffe South
Circuit. Thirdly, although they are accustomed to hear
preaching in Welsh, they understand enough of English to
make it a medium for a blessing through your ministry.
Fourthly, many of the wounded sinners you are leaving at
Wesley chapel, will follow you, and get healed among the
Welsh Methodists." Events soon proved, that they were
not wrong in their calculations on this point.
Many of the English leaders and local preachers accom¬
panied me, and after sermon, united vigorously in prayer,
for an outpouring of the Holy Spirit. As the services pro¬
gressed, we discovered that the Welsh brethren, though full
of love and zeal, had the disadvantage of not being able to
.pray fluently in English. It was proposed that the Welsh-
ministers, with their leaders, should. pray in Welsh, alter¬
nately with the English brethren. The plan answered admi¬
rably. , Very fcoon the power of God was displayed in the
conversion of sinners." When the English leaders prayed,
the responses were1 mostly confined to the English Metho¬
dists ; but the moment a Welsh brother began, the scene and
sounds among the people were entirely changed. With
uplifted hands, and voices indicating the deepest emotion,
they responded to the ardent supplications of their leader;
270.
CLOSING LABORS IN LIVERPOOL.
the English Christians, in the mean time, remaining in solemn
silence, but breaking out at intervals with an " amen," or
" glory," as the inflections of the leading voice, or the amens
of the Welsh, resembling, "Hear, hear, hear" indicated,
until the feeling became so overpowering, that restraint
seemed impossible, and a general burst of " Glory be to
God!" from the English, mingled with the loud hallelujahs
of the Welsh.
This was especially the case when their minister, the
Rev. * * * * * prayed. He is considered one of the most
eloquent and powerful speakers among the Welsh preachers.
He is a man of fine natural powers, richly cultivated, and is
deeply devoted to God. His voice has considerable compass
and sweetness, and capable of the most moving intonations.
I speak now of his exercises in his native tongue. He
appeared quite indisposed to engage in English, although in
private he converses in it rather fluently. Whenever he
began to pray, I felt my whole being arrested. His voice
arose into what appeared to be a succession of climaxes, and
as one sentence climbed. above another, the congregation
ascended with him, until the effects were really overpower¬
ing ; and when he came to the loftiest point, — when every
thing of the highest importance to man's eternal interests
seemed as if tottering upon the rugged pinnacle of some
tremendous precipice, — the tears which streamed down his
manly face, and the long, loud, and heart-rending cries of
Welsh sinners, mingling with the subdued tones of imploring
believers, told those of us who could not understand his lan¬
guage, where he had landed them, and how profoundly awful
were the effects upon their minds. Several of the English
brethren told me, that though strangers to the import of his
words, they felt their hearts agitated with the most singular
and powerful emotions. Many were the saved of the Lord ;
CLOSING LABORS IN LIVERPOOL*
271
but to what extent we shall never know, till that great day
when Immanuel comes to gather home his jewels.
The Rev. Mr. Farrar, and his colleagues in the ministry,
together with the leaders and local preachers of the Bruns¬
wick chapel, becoming pressing in their solicitations, that I
should return to the circuit, and hold a few meetings in the
above place of worship, we reluctantly concluded the services
among the Welsh. The Brunswick chapel is an elegant
building, with an imposing front, adorned with columns, and
stands on a fine and elevated situation. The interior is
handsomely fitted up in the form of an amphitheatre, one tier
of seats rising above another to a considerable height, with¬
out any gallery, with the exception of two small wings behind
the pulpit, to the right and left of the orchestra and organ.
It seats about seventeen hundred, but twenty-three hundred
can be crowded into it.
Various opinions were circulated in town, respecting the
results of revival efforts in this chapel. Many wealthy fam¬
ilies worship here, and the general character of the congre¬
gation is serious and intelligent. " We shall see," said the
speculators, " how revivals will go on among the aristocracy
of Methodism.'* The prevailing opinion was, that as they
had long been considered the opponents of noise and excite¬
ment, a failure would be the unquestionable result. Blessed
be God, such speculations and prophecies have come to
nothing. Never have I labored with more freedom and
delight in any congregation, or with greater success, than in
the Brunswick chapel. There was little, if any, of that
mean and secret opposition I have met with elsewhere.
When there was a burst of noise, attended with a good deal
of what is considered revival confusion, they bore it with a
noble generosity, and a forbearance that did them honor.
Men and women of mind, education, and influence, retained
272 CLOSING LABORS IN LIVERPOOL.
their seats in solemn awe. They saw the distress of sinners,
and sympathized with them, and how peculiarly the mini-*
ters and leaders were situated; often taking our part, saying
"We do not see how the meetings could be managed better,
if the revival is to go on at all. The congregation is increas:
ing, the society enlarging, classes are being filled -with con¬
verted sinners from the world. That we needed such a
visitation as this is quite plain, whatever the results may be;
and we shall neither run away from this astonishing move¬
ment, nor shall we oppose it."
It is right, however, that credit should be given where it
is due. I am convinced, that the noble conduct of many
influential individuals and families, has imbibed a most gra¬
cious influence from the position taken by their excellent
Superintendent and his worthy colleagues. These, servants
of God, in public and private, acknowledge and defend the
revival; and great as is their popularity, cheerfully and
generously offer me their pulpits, and every co-operation
within their power.
During the first week, forty professed conversion; and
during the next, forty-four. The revival is still progressing
gloriously in Brunswick chapel. Many have been saved
within a few days past. I have been preaching to. the
young the last two nights, and the word of the Lord has
had free course, and is glorified.
The Temperance cause in Liverpool is progressing. I
have delivered several lectures in the Music Hall, on the
propriety of total abstinence from all intoxicating liquors; a
large number, each night, joined the Tee-total Society. A
tea meeting has been given by the tee-totallers, " to cele¬
brate the arrival'' of your friend in England. The affair
was got up in a' most tasteful and spirited manner; and I
had the pleasure of taking tea with about seven hundred
CLOSING LABORS IN LIVERPOOL. 273
persons in.the Music Hall. The company was highly respect¬
able. After tea, several excellent addresses were delivered.
One, especially, by a. Wesleyan minister, the Rev. George
B. Macdonald, of Leeds, was most eloquent and convincing.
In the present age, a minister deprives himself of a great
moral power, when, for the sake of a little wine now and
again, he excludes himself from such fine opportunities of
scattering the eternal truths of God, among a mass of mind
which, otherwise he could never reach. Mr. Macdonald told
some thrilling anecdotes, which had a direct tendency to
awaken sinners to. the concerns of eternity. I have no
doubt great good was done.
Here follow some opinions concerning a nervous person,
of whom Mr. Caughey's correspondent had written. These
sudden digressions grow naturally out of an epistolary style,
although they embarrass an attempt at consecutive narrative
with such materials.
I had almost forgotten the case of ****** . There is
a close connection between the body and the mind, and they
always, more or less, exert a mutual influence upon each
other. " The web of life," says one, " the soul and body, are
strangely and intimately interwoven with each other, and a
reciprocal influence is constantly exerted. The system acts
upon the mind, and the mind upon the system." I apprehend,
however, that Mr. ***** 'g trouble has originated from a
source that he is not willing to allow; that is, the separation
of his soul from close and intimate communion with God.
I was much struck, when reading Lord Nelson's Life, with
the account he gives in one of his private letters, of the
secret unhappiness of his heart when almost at the height
of his glory. "-There is no true happiness in this life; and
in my present state, I could quit it with a smile. Believe
274 CLOSING LABORS IN LIVERPOOL.
me, my only wish is to sink with honor to the grave. Not
that I am insensible to the honors and- riches my king and
.country have heaped upon me, so much more than any officer
could deserve ; yet I am ready to quit this world "of trouble,
and envy none but those of the estate, six feet by two."
How true is the language of the poet, and it is applicable
to every unconverted sinner; nor shall it ever be otherwise,
till the soul finds rest in God: —
" In all our plenty, something still,
To thee, to me, to him is wanting;
That cruel something unpossessed, -
Corrodes and cankers all the rest.
And even while fashion's brightest arts decoy,
The heart, distrusting, asks if this be joy."
The record of the experience of one now lies upon my
table, who represents himself as the gayest of the gay, when
mingling in the night scenes of revelry, fashion, and song;
but in the midnight hour, when lighter hearts are lost in
sleep, his depression is so great, that " this sweet oblivious
antidote" flies from his couch. " Morning eomes, and the
smile is assumed,-and, like the expiring eagle, he covers his
wounds by the wings of a fancied gayety. " There is not a
blessing springs upon my path, but mildew covers it; nor
a flower that blooms there, that does not wither and die.
Although gray hairs have not silvered my head, yet my
hopes are dead, and now in my prime, I must, it is most
likely, sink to my grave, with an icy chilliness rife at my
heart. 'My life is steered by misery's chart.' "
" Thus, though the smiles of cheerfulness
May hide from .sight an aching heart,
They cannot make its misery less,
Nor bid the frown of fate depart.
And though no tears bedew the eye,
Nor outward signs of grief appear,
The brain may burn without a sigh,
"The heart may break without a tear."
CLOSING LABORS IN LIVERPOOL.
275
As to the opinions of the physician, respecting Mr. * * *,
it would be perhaps bold in me to contradict, but I shall take
the liberty to transcribe a few thoughts of Mr. Wesley upon
the subject, which you may let him see when convenient.
u When physicians meet with disorders which they do not _
understand, they commonly term them nervous; a word that
conveys to us no determinate idea, but is a good cover for
learned ignorance. But these are often no natural disorders
of the body, but the hand of Grod upon the soul, being a
dull consciousness of the want of God, and the unsatisfac-
toriness of every thing here below. At other times, it is a
conviction for sin, either in a higher or lower degree. It is
no wonder that those who are strangers to religion should
not know what to make of this; and that consequently all
their prescriptions should be useless,,seeing they quite mistake
the cause."
As to amusements) I require to know to what kind you
refer, in order to give an opinion. We should never indulge
in any which would unfit us for taking pleasure in God, or
from which We could not retire for private prayer, with a
good conscience. An old divine says, " Like skilful mari¬
ners, we may make use of the side-wind of recreation, to,
help us toward the haven of rest." When a boy, and about
to make a clever jump, I have often retired backward a few
steps, in order to accelerate my velocity; and frequently,
the farther back I went, the more " way" I had upon me,
as a sailor would express it, and strength and agility for the
intended leap. I have many times returned to study with
greater vigor, and to the bosom of my God with increased
delight, after a short relaxation amidst the flowers of poetry,
or those of the garden; in music., in cheerful conversation
with a few friends, a ramble through the fields and woods,
a tug at the oar, or an hour in fellowship with the spade,
276 CLOSING LABORS IN LIVERPOOL.
the axe, or the hammer. A friend of mine has often said
in my hearing, " Better wear out shoes than sheets. Exer¬
cise is a part of my religion; I take it from principle, be¬
cause I am hound to take care of my hody as well as my
Soul; and I remember what Cicero says : ' For man is not
chiselled out of the rock, nor hewn out of the oakj he has a
body," and he has a soul; the one is actuated by the intellect,
the other by the senses.'.
' Better gather health, in fields, nnbought,
Than fee the doctor for a nauseous draught.
The ■wise for cure on exercise depend ;
God never made his-work for man to mend/-"
" A life of inaction," says a writer, " is a disuse of talents,
and a perversion of intellect; and our leisure days are the
enemy's busy ones." I remember two proverbs, one used
by the Turks, and the other by the Spaniards. " A busy
man is troubled with but one devil, but the idle man with a
thousand." " Men are usually tempted by the devil, but
the idle man positively tempts the devil."
"The idle man,"-says one, "soon becomes torpid, and
resembles the Indian in his feelings, insensibly adopting his
maxim: ' It is better to walk than to run, and better to
stand still than to walk, and better to sit than to stand, and
better to lie than to sit.' There are said to be pleasures to
madmen, known only to madmen ; there are certainly mis¬
eries to the idle, which only the idle can conceive."
" A want of occupation is not rest;
A mind quite vacant is a mind distressed." >
His account of his labors is now again resumed.
My labors are now nearly finished in this town. On the
nights of the 5th, 6th, and 7th of April, 1843,1 preached
farewell sermons in Great Homer street, Brunswick, and Pitt
CLOSING- LABORS IN LIVERPOOL.
277
street chapels. Two of those nights, the rain came down in
torrents, but this. did not prevent the chapels from being
crowded.
This week has been a season of rest, with the exception
of addresses delivered at two Missionary meetings. On both
occasions, I had the honor of presenting several sums in gold,
handed to me by the friends of'Missions.
The Wesleyan Methodists, English and Welsh, have seven
principal chapels in town ; the Brunswick, Wesley, and Great
Homer street, are the most elegant. Four of them are fur
nished with handsome and fine-toned organs. That in Great
Homer street I consider the sweetest and most powerful ;
and full justice is done to the instrument, by the accom¬
plished organist. His ear seems to be acute forpoetry as for
music. It is sufficient for the officiating minister to emphasize -
a word, or line, in the verse, and I have seldom observed an
absence of a corresponding expression in the music.
The congregation appear to have more confidence in unit¬
ing with the organ than I have ever witnessed in any place
of worship. The life and soul he throws into the instrument
allure or compel the people to sing. Such a state of things
tends admirably to the liveliness and devotion of the audience:
and it is desirable that every organist should endeavor to
bear with a little inaccuracy or discord, now and then, for
the sake of encouraging the congregation to unite heartily in
this very important part of the worship of God. In this
chapel, for the first time in my life, I have had liberty granted
me to select any hymn in the book, for the service ; and 1
assure you, I have luxuriated amidst some of the most sub¬
lime and beautiful poetry in the collection; which, though
often admired, I never before dared to offer in the sanctuary.
Years ago, I copied the following lines from one of the poets,
and sometimes in the course of my travels, have had them
24
278
CLOSING- LABORS USf LIVERPOOL.
delightfully realized; but never as in the Great Homer street
Wesleyan chapel, and throughout such a succession of
services: —
" The silenced preacher yields to potent strain,
And feels that grace his prayer besought in vain;
The blessing thrills through all the laboring throng,
And heaven is won by violence of song."
Of the final results of his labors in Liverpool, Mr.
Caughey thus writes: —
I spent five months in Liverpool, preached one hundred
and twenty times, delivered five Temperance lectures^ and a
few Missionary speeches. From hooks kept by different sec¬
retaries, we learned that more than thirteen hundred persons
found peace with God. I see, however, by a sermon on the
revival, lately published by the Rev. John H. James, that
he estimates the number at one thousand; but in a private
letter to me, he says the number is much understated, for pru¬
dential reasons. It is an eloquent and excellent production,
and a masterly defence of the revival. About six. hundred
of the above were members of the Wesleyan church when
they were converted. What the increase to the church is
likely to be, I have not yet learned.
The night previous to my leaving Liverpool, I had the
pleasure of -taking tea with about five hundred persons, in
the school-room of Great Homer street chapel; after which
we adjourned to the chapel, where we had an excellent
meeting.
Twelve speakers, local preachers and leaders, had been
appointed for the occasion, limited to ten minutes each. The
Rev. Mr. Farrar occupied the chair. Several appropriate
resolutions were placed in the hands of the persons referred
to, for the adoption of the meeting.
I was charmed with the intelligence, good sense, and. di-
CLOSING LABORS IN LIVERPOOL. 279
vine miction, by which the speeches were distinguished;
some of them, too, were really eloquent. The effects must
have been salutary, especially upon the minds of the young
converts, many of whom were present.
Your friend made the closing speech, but his 'emotions
were too deep and powerful for him to find words readily to
express himself. The kind address of Mr. Farrar, full of
love, and the delicate and touching allusions of the brethren,
were almost too much for his sensitive nature to sustain. The
service closed by prayer, and singing that beautiful hymn in
your hymn-book — surprised not to find it in the Wesleyan
collection: —-
" O thou God of my salvation."
They had, however, a great many copies of it printed, and
set to a piece of music, called " Caughey." Mr. Ashton
did it great justice with the powerful organ; and the congre¬
gation united as if they had been accustomed to it for years.
The Lord has a precious people in Liverpool. Although
I had many sore exercises of mind, while there, and was with
them "in weakness and in fear, and in much trembling,"
(1 Cor. ii. 3,) they bore with me, and upheld me in the arms
of faith and prayer. He also, who knew my weaknesses,
provided me with pleasant homes at the houses of Mr. Fannin
and Mr. Banning, of whom mention was made in a former
letter. In the bosom of these amiable families, my drooping
mind was often cheered. The day I parted with them shall
never be forgotten.
" Friendship ! mysterious cement of the soul,
Sweetener of life, and solder of society,
I owe thee much :
Thou hast deserved from me far, far beyond
What I can e'er repay.
Oft have I proved the labor of thy love,
And the warm efforts of the gentle heart
To please."
CHAPTER XVII.
GREAT REVIVAL IN LEEDS.
No introduction seems necessary to this chapter unless we
call on the spiritual reader to rejoice in God for the wonder¬
ful work it describes, or stimulate the minister who ipay
peruse it to emulate Mr. Caughey's success. Let every min
ister inquire, as he reads, why all of us who are called of
God do not count our seals by thousands instead of by units ?
Who? Who,is in fault? Or is it not the will of God to
grant the like measure of his Spirit to all ? Who can solve
the interesting question ?
On the 21st of April, 1843,1 left Liverpool for Leeds, by
railway, ninety miles, where. I arrived at half past seven
in the evening, and put up at the house of a kind friend, the
Rev. William Lord, and received a cordial welcome.
The evening after my arrival in Leeds, through the kind¬
ness of the Rev. William Lord, Superintendent of the Leeds
First Circuit, I had the pleasure of taking tea with a few of
the principal friends. All appeared to be deeply anxious for
a revival of the work of God. My soul was much encour¬
aged by the congeniality of spirit I felt with these excellent
persons. It was agreed that we should commence efforts for
a revival in the Oxford Place chapel, which we did on the
evening of the 23d of April, and concluded on the 5th of
280
GREAT REVIVAL IN LEEDS.
-281
May. During that time' the congregations were small, and
only about thirty persons professed to have found peace. A
meeting of the preachers was then called, and the Superin¬
tendents of the four circuits, the Rev. Messrs. William
Lord, William Kelk, Thomas Harris, Alexander Strachan,
with their colleagues, met, and after much conversation upon
the work of God, it was agreed that I should visit the circuits
in succession, and spend two weeks in each. Although my
judgment was averse to such hasty movements, having al¬
ways succeeded best in staying five or six weeks in a chapel,
yet I gave up my will to surrounding counsellors, and our
future proceedings were settled on the two weeks plan; at
least, Until each of the circuits should have had a visitation.
On the 7th of May, I opened my commission in St., Peter's
chapel, (Third Circuit,) and in the evening of the same day,
we foiind that twenty-nine sinners had been converted to God,
one half of whom were backsliders. The following evening
the Rev. William Cattle preached a powerful sermon, and
thirty-five found peace, through the blood of the Lamb;
many of these were members, who had long been groaning
under condemnation for sin. We continued the meetings in
this chapel with similar success till the 20th inst., when the to¬
tal number converted was two hundred and fifty; of these, one
hundred and twenty-eight were members, fifty-one backslid¬
ers, and the remaining seventy-three were from the world;
of these, many were from adjacent towns, so that the actual
increase will be very small, but the amount of good to the
church of God cannot be estimated. On Saturday night,
the 21st inst., we held the usual band-meeting, in the Old
St. Peter's chapel. "You may not understand this distinction.
There are two chapels now standing upon the same premises.
The old one is a ^plain substantial brick building, with a gal¬
lery, on three sides, erected in Mr. Wesley's time : the "new
24*
282
GREAT REVIVAL IN XEEDS.
one, a few yards distant, is a commodious edifice of tlie same
material, accommodates perhaps two thousand four "hundred
persons, but more than three thousand are sometimes within
its walls. The old chapel has been unoccupied for several
years, and many of the pews have been removed. Here the
Wesleys and Fletcher often preached.
This was the first Methodist chapel in Leeds; and from
the following account given by the Rev. Charles Wesley, of
a fearful accident, in which he was involved with many others,
such a place of worship was greatly needed at that time : " I
met the brethren at Leeds, and many others, in an old upper
room ; after singing, I shifted my place to draw them to the
upper end. One desired me to come nearer the door,' that
they might hear without. I removed again, and drew the
weight of the people after me. In that instant the fioor
sunk. I lost my senses, hut recovered them in a moment,
and was filled with power from above, I lifted up my head
first, and saw the people under me, heaps upon heaps. I
cried out,' Fear not! The Lord is with us. Our lives are
all safe ; and then,
' Praise God from whom all blessings flow,'
I lifted up the fallen as fast as I could, and perceived by
their countenances which were our children; several of
whom were hurt, but none killed. We found, when the
dust and tumult were a little settled, that the rafters had
broken off short, close by the main beam. A woman lay
dangerously ill in a room below, on the opposite side, and a
child in the cradle, just under the ruins. But the sick wo¬
man, calling the nurse a minute before, she carried the child
with her to the standing side, and all three were preserved.
Another of the society was moved, she knew not why, to go
out with her child just before the room fell. Above one
GREAT REVIVAL IN LEEDS.
288
hundred lay with me among the wounded; though I did not
properly fall, but slid down softly, and lighted on my feet.
My hand was bruised, and part of the skin rubbed off my
head. One sister had her arm' broken, and set immediately,
rejoicing with joy unspeakable. Another, strong in faith,
w§s so crushed that she expected instant death. I asked
her, when she got to bed, whether she was not afraid to die.
She answered that she was without fear, even when she
thought her soul was departing; and only said, in calm faith,
4 Jesus, receive my spirit!' Her body continues full of pain,
and her soul of love. A boy of eighteen was taken up, roar¬
ing, ' I will be good ! I will be good !' They got his leg
set, which was broken in two places. He had come as usual to
make disturbance, and struck several of the women going in,
till one took him up stairs, for Providence to teach him better.
" The news was soon spread through the town, and drew
many to the place, who expressed their compassion by wish¬
ing all our necks had been broken. I preached out of the
town.in weariness and painfulness. The Lord was our strong
consolation however ; and I more clearly see that a hair can¬
not fall to the ground without our heavenly Father."
In the old sanctuary alluded to, Mr. Wesley held his twen¬
ty-fifth Annual Conference, in 1769 ; during which it was
determined to send .out preachers to America. The printed
Minutes of that Conference now lie before me : —
"Leeds, August 1, 1769.
" Question 18.—We have a pressing call from our brethren
in New York (who have built, a preaching-house) to come
over and help them. Who is willing to go ?
" Answer. —Richard Boardman and Joseph Pilmoor.
" Question 14. —What can we do further in token of our
brotherly love ?
284
GREAT REVIVAL IN LEEDS.
" Answer. —Let us make a collection -among ourselves.
This was immediately dune, and out of it <£50 were allotted
towards the payment of their debt, and about <£20 given to
our brethren for their passage."
Mr. Wesley says in his Journal: " Sunday, July 30,1769,
Mr. Crook being out of order, I read prayers and preached
in Hunslet church,* both morning and afternoon. At five, I
preached at Leeds, and on Monday, 31st, prepared all things
for the ensuing Conference. Tuesday, 1st, it began, and a
more loving, one we never had. On Tuesday, I mentioned
the case of our brethren in New York, who had built the first
Methodist preaching-house in America, who were in great
want of money, but much more of preachers."
The part of the chapel where Board'man and Pilmoor
stood, when they offered themselves for the service in Amer¬
ica, was pointed out to me to the right of the pulpit under the
gallery. What interest do past events afford us when the
results are fulty unfolded! At the time of the above Con¬
ference, the number of Methodists throughout Great Britain
and Ireland did not much exceed 28,00'0. The infant "society
in America was too small to be worthy of notice. This was
the entire of Methodism in the world. Now, America
alone numbers one million of members—ministered unto by
four thousand travelling preachers, besides four hundred su-
peranuated or worn out preachers, and eight thousand local
preachers.f Thus, Sir, you will perceive that the preachers
alone of the Methodist Episcopal Church, are-equal to the
standing army of the United States I — an event this that
Mr. Wesley and the members of that Conference little antici¬
pated. The number of members in Great Britain and
* A short walk from where I ana now writing-— Larehfield House, Hunslet
ane, near Leeds.
+ Their riurfther since 1843 has considerably increase4.
GREAT REVIVAL IH LEEDS.
285
Ireland, and in foreign stations, under the care of the British
and Irish Wesleyan Conferences, is nearly half a million;
and about fifteen hundred and fifty efficient ministers, besides
supernumerary and superannuated preachers. There are,
besides, in Europe and America, not far short of half a
million of Methodists under different titles; such as Primi¬
tive Association, Independent, New Connexion, Canadian,
and Protestant Methodists, etc. All these have their respect¬
ive ministers ; and though they differ in the mode of church
government, they preach the same doctrines which Wesley
taught, and are, I trust, aiming at the glory of God, the
conversion of sinners, and the salvation of a lost world.
It appears from the Minutes alluded to, that the name of
Francis Asbury,* did not stand in the list of preachers in
full connection, till the Conference of 1T69, as also Richard
Whatcoat. Their names are placed next each other. As¬
bury, it seems, was-admitted on trial as a preacher in 1T6T,
and was received into full connection in 1768.
When Boardman and Pilmoor offered themselves for the
American work, Asbury little thought what hard labors
and exalted honors awaited him in that country. Pilmoor
was admitted into full connection in 1766, in Leeds;
three years after, in the same, place, he volunteered for
America.
It was not till the Bristol Conference, 1771, that Francis
Asbury was appointed to the Western world. The twenty-
sixth question on the Minutes of that Conference reads thus:
" Our brethren in America call aloud for help. Who are
willing to go over and help them ?, Answer: Five are will¬
ing to go." The two appointed were Francis Asbury and
Richard Wright. In the appointment of these servants of
God, especially Asbury, how evident does it appear to us
# Afterwards Bishop Asbury.
286
GREAT REVIVAL IN LEEDS.
now, that Mr. Wesley and the preachers were influenced by
the same spirit that directed the minds of the apostles, when
Paul and Barnabas were separated from others, for the
special work to which they were called by the Holy Ghost.
Acts xiii. 2. Perhaps these remarks may lead you to pro¬
cure Asbury's Journal; if ypu have not seen it, I can
recommend it with great pleasure. About ten years ago, I
read it, and made the following entry in my Journal: " Au¬
gust 14th.' Week before last I finished reading the second
and third volumes of Asbury's Journal. My mind frequently
paused in amaze while, I trust, it received lessons never to
be forgotten. What a man of God ! He did the work of
an evangelist indeed, and made full proof of his ministry.
The continent was his circuit, and he travelled round it with
the regularity of a Methodist preacher. After taking one
of his tours, in which he had endured great hardships and
suffered much pain, he learned that an old woman had been
awakened and converted through his instrumentality; he
exclaimed,' Glory be to God! I will take courage from this,
and go round the continent again.' I have read Mr. Wes¬
ley's Journal with equal attention, and my conviction is, that
what the latter was to Methodism in Great Britain and
Ireland, such was the former to Methodism in America.
Although Mr. Asbury suffered less from riotous mobs, and
other persecutions, than did Mr. Wesley, yet he endured
more from bad health, bad roads, bad beds, indifferent food,
climbing mountains, fording rivers, together with the extremes
of a rigorous climate, in traversing the wilderness of Amer¬
ica, till he was old and grayheaded, than the venerable
founder of Methodism, when in his travels, itinerating through
the more highly-cultivated countries of England, Ireland, and
Scotland. Add to these, the heavy responsibility of an epis¬
copacy,— the stationing of the preachers over such a wide
GREAT REVIVAL IN LEEDS.
2,87
extent of territory,1—presiding at, all the annual confer¬
ences, — bearing the reproaches of some, and the murmur¬
ing of others, in the itinerancy ; and all this united for many
years, "with almost uninterrupted bad health, — I closed the
last volume, saying, I doubt whether, since the days of the
Apostles, a man could be singled out who has labored so
long and so hard, and endured so much without suffering
martyrdom, as the Rev. Bishop Asbury."
Pardon this long digression; but to return to the old
chapel; the Rev. Thomas Harris, Superintendent, partly to
gratify me, and also to accommodate the unusual number
expected to attend the Saturday night band-meeting, had
the sacred spot prepared for our reception. I can scarcely
describe my sensations, on taking my seat with the other
ministers, and glancing round the venerable edifice. Mr.
Wesley was fond of large pulpits; this one is capable of
holding seven or eight persons very comfortably. We had
a noble assembly, many of them the choicest saints of God;
and this "holy house," the birthplace of thousands now in
glory, and where multitudes, low in the dust, worshipped in
years gon,e by, was, once more, vocal with the praises of God
and the loud hallelujahs of his people.
Never before have I seen or heard so many witnesses for
entire sanctification. The deep and rich experience of the
fathers and mothers in Israel, who had long enjoyed this
blessing, mingled with the ardent and decided testimonies
of those who had been lately purified, more than eighty of
whom, during the last two weeks, had experienced the bless¬
edness of those who are pure in heart. Towards the close
of the meeting, Mr. Harris, observing the intense feelings of
those who were seeking purity, requested such t6 retire into
an adjoining class-room, and that a few leaders, would assist
them in prayer. Many did so; and between twenty add'
288 GREAT REVIVAL IN LEEDS.
thirty obtained the blessing of a clean heart, while we con¬
tinued the service in the chapel.
This is truly a great and glorious revival of holiness. If
proper care be taken of these precious believers, and the
blessing kept fully before the people from the pulpit, the
entire church may soon be a leavened and holy people unto
the Lord. Were the preachers, after these special services
shall have ceased in the town, to appropriate one night in the
week to preach expressly upon entire sanctification, it would
greatly tend to this desirable result; and those who have
been made clean would then, it is most likely, be preserved.
God sanctifies the people by belief of the truth, John xvii. 17,
— truth clearly, pointedly, and frequently preached. Wher*
the pulpit is silent^ or indistinct, or has long intervals upon
the doctrine of entire holiness, it is seldom you will fincj
many' clear on these " deep things of God," and few pro¬
fessing their reception. My soul has often paused, in hoi}'
awe and adoring wonder, in marking how closely the Hoi}
Ghost attends with his blessing the frequent exhibition, from
the pulpit, of this glorious privilege of all believers. I have
observed, during this revival, that when justification has been
the subject of discourse, few have professed sanctification;
but invariably, when holiness has been the theme, many have
been the witnesses of purity of heart. Whatever class c f
truth, it would appear, is brought to bear upon a congregation,
the Holy Spirit condescends to make that the medium of an
according blessing. Perhaps it is on the same principle we
can account for the fact, that in those congregations where
justification, by faith and the witness of the Spirit are not
preached, few, if any, are raised up to testify that Jesus
Christ hath power upon earth to forgive sins; whereas, just
the contrary takes plac£ where these are clearly and fully
preached.
GREAT REVIVAL IN LEEDS.
289
On Sabbath, 22d instant, we commenced a series of reli¬
gious services in the Wesley Chapel, (Fourth Leeds Circuit,)
text, 1 Thess. v. 16—18. After service, I dined with the
celebrated author of " The Village Blacksmith," the Rev.
James Everett. He is a most agreeable man, full of good
humor; a fine illustration of Prov. iii. 17. Pleased I am of
having had an opportunity of forming an acquaintance with
him. He resides in the city of York, and is here to preach
special sermons in behalf of an institution belonging to a neigh¬
boring Wesleyan chapel. Has his Life of Dawson made its
appearance in America ? It would be made a great blessing,
I am sure, to the local preachers of the Methodist Episco¬
pal Church, and, indeed, to the regular ministry. If it has
not yet been republished in the United States, you might
make the suggestion to the Book Committee in New York.
In the evening, to a large congregation, I cried, " How
long halt ye between two opinions ? " Twenty-five persons
decided for heaven, laid down their arms at the feet of Jesus,
and obtained redemption through his blood, the forgiveness
of sins.
I spent the last two weeks, most agreeably, at the house
of Mr. Rinder,. of the St. Peter's Circuit, where I was hos¬
pitably entertained. At the mansion of Mr. Holdsworth,
where I am at present, I enjoy every comfort that a Chris¬
tian could desire. The ministers of this circuit, the Rev.
Alexander Strachan, Superintendent, and the Rev. Wilson
Brailsford and Thomas Lewellyn, are exceedingly kind, and
take a rejoicing interest in the revival.
You,, desire my opinion in the case of * * *,- and * * * .
I consider them both in the extreme of that species of wrong
which-should be rectified if they desire to save their souls
from perdition. To the first, I would say, let him see to it
that his own soul is in a safe state, before he allow himself to
25
290
GREAT REVIVAL IK LEEDS.
indulge in such uncharitable and wholesale accusations. It
frequently happens, that those who are constant in the cry,
" Woe, woe, woe to the church and her ministers, because
they have fallen from God," are really in that state them¬
selves, and shall eventually share, unless they repent, in the
same woes they have denounced against others. Josephus
tells us of a man, afflicted in mind, near the time of the
downfall of Jerusalem, who ran about the city, crying, "Woe
to the city, woe to the temple, woe to the'priests, woe to the
people ; and, last of all, woe to myself! " at which words he
was slain on the walls, by a stone out of a sling. I think it
is Plutarch who says, " They who delight to gad abroad, for
the most part have smoky, nasty, or dankish houses, or at
least, ill rule and no content at home ; so when men range
abroad, and play the spies and scouts, and pry into other
men's actions, it is a sign that they have a foul house at
home, and ill rule in their own conscience." I shall borrow
the language of another, in speaking to the case of the
second. "Emulation has been termed a spur to virtue, and
assumes to be a spur of g<5ld. But it is a spur composed of
baser materials, and if tried in the furnace, will be found to
want that fixedness which is the characteristic of gold. He
that pursues virtue only to surpass others, is not far from
wishing others less forward than himself; and he that rejoices
too much at his own perfections, will be too little grieved
over the defects of other men. We might also insist upon
this, that true virtue, although the most humble of all things,
is the most progressive ; it must persevere to the end. But,
as Alexander scorned the Olympic games because there
were no kings to contend with, so he that starts only to out¬
strip others will suspend his exertions when that is attained;
and self-love will, in many cases, incline him to stoop for the
prize even before he has obtained the victory. But the
GREAT REVIVAL IN LEEDS.
291
views of the Christian are more extensive, and more endur¬
ing ; his ambition is not to conquer others, hut himself, and
he unbuckles his armor only for his shroud.
What you mention toward the close of your letter, I con¬
sider to be one of the most, touching beauties of holiness; to
be enabled to aim at pleasing God in every thing, and to
seek and find our first happiness in him. We may say of '
such a principle, as an old, philosopher said of the soul, " It
is in the whole body, and in every part of it." This is what
our Lord meant by the single eye ; and when we have this
singleness of intention, of pleasing him in all things, and
purity of affection at all times, and in all places and circum¬
stances ; then our whole body shall be full of light. An old
divine tells us, that holiness in our hearts should, be as the
lungs in our bodies, in continual motion ; and that holiness
in our lives must run through all our words and conduct, as
the woof through the whole web.
Your ideas on hope, are plausible, perhaps sound ; but we
must die to know. If such sentiments lead you to " a closer
walk with God," and to be more entirely devoted to him, I
can see no harm in indulging them; but a poet, when speak¬
ing of heaven, says, —
" Where hope, the sweet singer that gladdened the earth,
. Lies asleep on, the bosom of bliss."
To this I know you will say, " Pretty, but not sound."
Well, have your own way.
The revival is still progressing with considerable power.
In my last, mention was made of the commencement of
special services in Wesley chapel. I continued my efforts
there two weeks, but was disabled - part of the time from
doing much by an obstinate hoarseness. The results were
good, but more than the half of those converted at Wesley
were members of society. There is evidently a great move
292
GREAT REVIVAL IN LEEDS.
in this town, but it is singularly confined to professors of
religion under our observation. The report is brought
weekly. The revival does not grapple with the people of
the world to the extent that one would expect, and .this
discourages me. About fifty persons were converted, who
were not members of society, (at Wesley chapel,) but, on
looking over the list, I perceive twenty of these were from
the country, several from other churches in town, and a few
from the other Leeds circuits, so that the poor society at
Wesley has been, I fear, but little improved as to numbers,
but greatly so in piety, when we consider the conversion of
so many of her backslidden and unconverted members.
On Sabbath morning, 4th. of June, I opened my commis¬
sion in the Brunswick chapel, Leeds First Circuit. The
Bev. William Kelk, Superintendent; his colleagues are the
Rev. Francis A.- West and George T. Perks. Twenty
souls were converted the first night. This is an elegant
chapel, an,d a very intelligent and influential congregation.
My labors among them have been hitherto with great satis¬
faction and comfort to my own mind. We have not wit¬
nessed a single pause in the revival. Sinners are converted,
and believers sanctified daily; but, on glancing at the secre¬
tary's book a short time since, I was amazed at the largeness
of the list of members professing conversion; and my troubled
heart has exclaimed again and again, Why is this ? I should
have told you, that to prevent exaggerated reports as well
as to afford a clue to the residence of those who obtain salva¬
tion, we have a person appointed to converse immediately
with those who profess conversion or sanetification. He has
a book lined off into columns, and headed thus : Bate, Name,
Residence, Justification, Sanetification, In society, From the
world, From other circuits, From other churches, Leader,
Observations. By this sheet we know at the end of each
«REAT REVIVAL IN LEEDS.
293
week the exact state of the work, so far at least as the sub¬
jects of it have come before the leaders' meeting, and ar¬
rangements made to visit those persons at their houses who
have promised to meet in class, or who may have requested a
few days for consideration. The plan is excellent, but I am
not able to inform you, as yet, how far it has been carried
out. It is certainly no small task; for instance, on Sabbath,
18th inst., one hundred persons professed justification, and
forty-two sanctification; now, allowing the half of those jus¬
tified to have been from the world, here is considerable labor
immediately spread before the pastors and official members,
as the result of one day. How great the responsibility!
"When men cry to God for a revival, they little think, if grant¬
ed, the amount of care and labor it must bring in its train.
On Saturday night last, we concluded the " protracted
meeting " in the Brunswick chapel. A few evenings previous,
we had a meeting for the new converts, similar to those I
have described in other letters. We had a most gracious
season.
-On Saturday night, in the band-meeting, the Rev. Mr.
Kelk gave an account of the advancement of the work of
God, during the last month of special services in Brunswick
chapel. Documents were produced, from -which it was as¬
certained, that during the above time, the total number pro¬
fessing to have obtained justification and sanctification were
about six hundred. Two hundred and forty-four of these
were cases of sanctification. One hundred and fifty-six
members of society justified, * and the remaining two hun¬
dred were sinners converted from the world. Upwards of
fifty of the latter were from the country, and the rest distribu¬
ted among the four circuits in town, and other churches ; so
that, comparatively, Brunswick will have but a small increase.
* Romans v. .1,
25*
294
GREAT REVIVAL IN LEEDS.
My heart is greatly attached to the society and congregation
of B. They are a lovely people, and showed me much re¬
spect and kindness, as did their excellent ministers. My
homes, at the hospitable mansions of Mr. Heigham, Mr.
Smith, and Mr. Shann, where I am at present, have been
every thing I could desire. You will see, therefore, that my
stay on the circuit has been most agreeable. " 0, to grace,
how great a debtor! " I believe no chapel within the claim
of Methodism could produce a greater number of talented
and devoted leaders than those which belong to the Bruns¬
wick chapel, Leeds. My drooping soul was often enlivened
and warmed by their life and glowing zeal during the con¬
flict. I am sorry that they have received such a small in¬
crease 'r but the real good diffused throughout the entire
society cannot be estimated by numbers. This revival was
needed, and if they take the proper advantage of their pres¬
ent position, they shall see far greater things than these;
-at least, were the revival efforts to be begun now at Bruns¬
wick, I should expect a mighty and glorious work.
The ministers and leaders of the Oxford place chapel have
given me a pressing invitation to spend a few weeks
with them, which has been accepted. Yesterday morning,
(Sabbath, July 2,) we commenced "special services" there.
I enjoyed a good degree of liberty on Col. i. 19. In the af¬
ternoon, I assisted the Rev. Mr. West in the administration
of the Lord's Supper, at Brunswick chapel. It was a gra¬
cious season, and the number of communicants unusually
large. Returned to Oxford Place in the evening, and
preached to (§.ome say) four thousand people. Twenty-five
sinners were converted to God.
CHAPTER XYIII.
the offended hearer.
At Leeds, as elsewhere, Mr. Caughey found those who
could not endure his apostolic simplicity and faithfulness;
They were wounded sorely. Some of them vented their
anger in letters addressed to the offending preacher. To
some of these letters Mr. C. replied. I have inserted enough
of his answers to make a chapter. The reader will agree with
me that it furnishes a model of faithful dealing with offended
hearers. Any minister having such hearers may benefit
them by calling their attention to these pointed appeals and
reasonings.
It is not the first time I have been called a " fool," and
designated by other kindred epithets; but it seems the fool
has drawn your portrait " to the life." I am not at all sur¬
prised that you are displeased. Had it been otherwise, I
should have suspected myself a flatterer. A few months
previous to my leaving America, I was requested to sit for
my portrait; and deprecating that which you prefer, I charged
the artist to delineate my coarse features on the canvass as
they were, without one hue or lineament of flattery. When
busily engaged in his art, I inquired whether people were
not sometimes vexed with him about their pictures. He un¬
derstood me. " 0 yes! but I endeavor to avoid that."
" By what means ? " "0 Sir, I can readily discern from
295
296
TIIE OEEENDED HEARER.
the individual who sits, whether he would prefer the portrait
more handsome than himself; then, Sir, I flatter a little ; hut
when I discover that my subject desires a fac-simile of him¬
self, I am at it in truth and honesty. Such are never of¬
fended." Ah ! I thought, this may do for a portrait-paint¬
er, hut not for a minister of Christ. The portrait may not
affect the eternal interests of the painter or his friend ; but it
is quite a different thing, when the features of a hearer's heart
and morals are portrayed. " You paint well." Thank you
for the compliment. " What master did you study under ?"
Ask your conscience ; hut ere you lifted the pen, it gave the
answer.
" Your flourishes and figures, your flowers and hell-fire
images of terror, and noisy uproar, are a strange and harm¬
less compound." Ay, if they are only painted they will burn
nobody. Who was ever burned by painted fire ? I have
seen the thing exquisitely managed, so as to deceive the eye,
but never the touch; hut this "highly-colored" fire haa
scorched you. How is this ? There must have been some¬
thing more than paint. I have looked upon Hons, (these
are " images of terror,") sculptured in marble, stamped on
paper, and carved in wood, well-proportioned, and skilfully
colored; but they neither roared nor devoured. So far from
exciting terror, I have amused myself watching the little
birds hopping into their open mouths; and playing among
their teeth., Have not my " images of terror " had quite a
different effect upon you ? Why this ill humor ? Why de¬
clare you will never hear me again? Why, unless the
imagery represented realities of a terrible nature, in which
you believed, and for which, you felt yourself totally unpre¬
pared ? " The lion hath roared, who will not fear ? The
Lord hath spoken, who can but prophesy ? " Amos iii. 8.
A glow-worm resembles fire ; but it is light without heat.
THE OFFENDED HEARER.
297
God. asks, " Is not my word like fire ? and like a hammer,
to break the rock in pieces ? " Jer. xxiii. 29. And now,
respecting the " noisy uproar" which has thrown you into
this consternation: — the other day, while walking on Wood-
house Moor, during the drilling of a regiment, the quick dis¬
charge of musketry suggested " images of terror;" but
not quite so awful as those you had of hell and its flames the.
other night. These were but the imagery of the battle-field,
wet with life's red current, covered with the dead and the
dying,—" hail of iron, and the rain of blood," driven on by
men nerved for deeds of death. Nonsense ! The whole was
as harmless as a parcel of boys cracking whips. None were
"wounded, none frightened ; all were highly delighted. " We
go through blank motions here/' said an old soldier to me,
"for we only use powder; this will do no execution, you
know." Had the guns been loaded with ball or shot, and
discharged among the spectators, how many hundreds would
have scampered from off the common, as did multitudes from
Oxford Place chapel, on Sabbath night, after sermon! How
many would have been left on the ground, to weep over their
wounds ! Lives there a man in Leeds, with a heart so hard,
as to rail against their cries for surgical aid ? What an ex¬
citement too would have taken place in the town! Remon¬
strances from all quarters, quite as violent as those in your
letter. Showing what? That there was something more
penetrating than " noise " on the Woodhouse Moor.
There were no "blank motions" on the night in question, nor
any harmless artillery. There was more than flashing, noisy
powder." The sermon was charged with the truth of God,
and levelled, and fired among thousands. You stayed long
enough to see the slain of the Lord, for they were many, and
to hear their cries. ' Why did you fly, when you yourself
were wounded ? We had a Physician there, who healed
298
THE OFFENDED HEARER.
scores, nor would he have rejected you, had you thrown away
your weapons and sought his healing power.
You have helped me to a good idea. A painter begins with
the head. The drapery is a mere circumstance, with which
any daub may succeed. The head shows the master. Let
him hit the countenance well,, or as some have it, " the ex¬
pression," and there is little difficulty with the rest. Some
sermons are like drapery in painting, they will suit any body;
often there is neither head nor face, so that all feel he means
nobody. Frequently the countenances are so numerous,
that every one ,may he meant, which, as any effect upon a
congregation may be equivalent to nothing; and exnihilo
nihil fit, " of nothing comes nothing." In a crowd there is
obscurity, and none get their " feelings hurt" by a mortify¬
ing view ©f their own likeness. When this occurs by design
to avoid giving offence, there is guilt. When it arises from
incapacity for this kind of distinct and sinner-awakening
preaching, then should the preacher inquire, whether that
awful, passage be not applicable to his case. Jer. xxiii.
30 — 32.
Tt requires, a skilful mind to portray the true features of
an. individual character, so as to compel him to cry out,
"Name me." But I carry the idea farther than the visible
appearance of his morals. The " inner man " lies beyond
the art of the limner, though within the vision of the Chris¬
tian minister. He must delineate the lineaments of the
mind, and the aspects and moral coloring of the heart. If
he have studied under the Great Master, he can sketch, by
a spiritual.discernment", "the thoughts and intents of the
heart." How far the " madman" has succeeded with your
picture, you yourself have determined.
" I have made up my mind to hear you no more.. You
shall never have a chance to insult me again." You re-
THE OEEENDED HEARER.
299
mind me of a gentleman who came into, the Wesleyan
Methodist chapel, in Quebec, during the sermon. He was
just walking down the aisle, seeking a seat, when I was ut¬
tering the following sentence, with strong emphasis, and with¬
out the least reference to him, (in fact, I had never seen the
man before,) " Sinner! what brought you here, sinner ? "
He turned on his heel in great indignation, saying, " I did
not come here to be insulted ; " and made his exit.
" You may call this preaching, and the fools who are with
you ; I do not; it is mere burlesque." Be it so, I cannot
help it. Allow me however, to say, you do not seem to re¬
semble the sinner described by St. James i. 23, 24. The
gospel was the glass into which he had looked. It reflected
his deformed features, and he knew the likeness to be his own;
but, upon withdrawing from the unflattering mirror, he im¬
mediately lost the impression, and forgot his ugliness. Bath¬
er;1 you may-be compared to a certain lady in high life, who
was mortified with the conviction that she possessed a set of
uncomely features. Being asked on a certain day, why she
never turned when passing the mirror, 'as every body else did ;
she gave to the rude question the candid reply: " I have too
much self-love to bear the sight of my own ugliness." Why
not thus speak out the sentiments of your heart at once, and
have done with it ? Several years ago, I conversed with an
old man, in the State of Vermont, who had been a fine look¬
ing person in his day, but time had dotted his face very un¬
handsomely. He told me he could not bear to look into a
mirror, and that he had not done so during twenty-five years.
The application to yourself is plain, although it appears you
do not neglect the house of God. Why despise the gospel-
glass, or your humble servant who held it before you ?
N either is to blame that you have not had a more comely
reflection of your visage. Is there a deformed person in
300
THE OFFENDED HEARER.
the nation, unless " out of his head,'' who would fall into a
fit of anger with the honesty of his mirror ? We generally
esteem these useful articles in proportion as they are true to
nature. But I forgot the decision of the poet: —
" You vent your spleen as monkeys, when they pass,
Scratch at the mimic monkey in the glass,
While both are one.:"
Notwithstanding your ill humor, I shall attempt to neutral¬
ize it by the following striking illustration: I heard, the
account stated as a reality in a country through which I was
travelling, and under circumstances, too, which would forbid
the relation of a fable as a fact, although it seems scarcely
credible. In the. depths of an American forest there lived
a man brought up in ignorance, poverty, and hard labor.
His neighbors were similarly circumstanced. All were entire
strangers to the comforts of civilized life. He was a black¬
smith by trade, and black as the coal necessary to his
business, and as rough too as the neighboring wolf. His
wife made a pilgrimage on a certain day to a distant town,
and ventured to purchase that wonderful thing, a looking-
glass. She brought it home, suspended it upon the wall
without informing her husband of the curiosity. Coming in
from the shop a little after, he saw a strange looking being,
resembling- the very devil himself, peering at him, through
what he considered a new hole in his log house — his own
likeness in the glass. Not a word did he speak, but ran to
the shop, seized a sledge-hammer, .and glided softly back.
Peeping cautiously in at the door, the horrible figure saluted
him on the opposite wall of the room.' It was no time to
give way, his house was invaded, and the. man who would
not shrink from contending with a bear in the forest, was not
now to stand aghast at the ugly creature before him, be he
man or devil; so he raised the hammer, it did the same; he
THE OFFENDED HEARER.
301
sprang, and it sprang; 'and the looking-glass was shivered to
atoms in a moment. He saw his mistake too late to save liis
wife's feelings or the mirror; the latter lying scattered
around him in fragments.
Take another case.. Three or four weeks ago, I saw in a
London paper the following, headed, " An egregious fool."
It was a late police report, and a fact; the court of justice
and London magistrate were mentioned, with a full account
of the trial. The defendant, an Irish laborer, had been sent
that morning to make some necessary repairs- in a certain
mansion. The plaintiff, a Mr. Jennings, stated that while
watching the man, (as he otherwise could not have believed
any man could have been such a fool,) he glanced around,
and seeing in the room in which he was working, his reflec¬
tion in a large looking-glass door, exclaimed, " Arrah! by
St. Patrick, my masther told me he only sent oHe man, and
there's another; and he's got my hammer ; I'll have a shy
at him." And suiting the action to the word, he smashed
the imaginary personage and the glass at the same time.
The defendant's plea was, that he had just been put on the
job, as he expected, by himself; but seeing the other fellow
looking at him, he struck against the glass; and that he
could assure his majesty, (the magistrate,) that he thought
it was another workman, who had " taken the job over his
head," and that he was so enraged at him, thinking at the
same time that he had stolen his hammer, that he struck at
him, and ruined the glass. The article was valued at <£10 ;
but, in mercy to the poor fellow, it was only laid at £5.
After having been locked up. a few hours, he was -liberated
on the complainant's accepting the wife's promise to pay the
amount, at five shillings per week.
You have some sense left, and I shall not insult it by
assisting you to make the very evident application. " As 3
• 26
802
THE OFFENDED HEARER.
said before, I-will hear you no more." To this I reply:
Some people get into hell wounded in the back, flying from
the truth; and others go into hell with - a crash, fighting
against the truth, and carrying their wounds in front. Which
go the deepest into perdition, eternity must show. It seems
you intend to be wounded behind; perhaps you think there
are scars sufficient before. Remember you cannot escape
from yourself, nor from principles which have made a lodg¬
ment within you; nor from a "judgment" that shall dog
your steps through life, and overtake you in your last hours:
" "While conscience, unrelenting, still maintains-
Her right to raise new fears, and cause new pains."
Make no rash vows. Leave yourself free. Many take
much pains to attain a position, only to prepare themselves
for a plunge into worse troubles; as an Italian would say,
Cadar dalla padella nella brace, — equivalent to falling from
Scylla into Charybdis." Beware lest that come upon you
predicted by an old divine: " For if thou shuttest the win¬
dows of thine eyes from reading, and the doors of thine ears
from hearing, God may clap such a' padlock of a judicial
curse upon them both, that thou shalt never open thine eyes
or ears, till thou comest, as the rich glutton, to see Abraham
afar off, and Lazarus in his bosom; and bear a part in those
dreadful screechings and howlings which are in hell!" You
say, " I prefer my former views and ease of mind; it is
impossible for me to see as you see," etc. Ho! nor are
you ignorant of the reason! The name of that great philos¬
opher, Galileo, is familiar to you. If he was not the inventor
of the telescope, you are aware~he improved it; and ren¬
dered essential service to the cause of science when he
made the instrument subservient to astronomical observa¬
tions. But do you remember the story of a Florentine phi¬
losopher, who could not be persuaded to look through one of
THE OFFENDED HEARER.
303
Galileo's telescopes, lest he should see something in the
heavens that would disturb his belief in Aristotle's philoso¬
phy ? The scriptural telescope of faith is a great disturber
of the • peace when put before the vision of a man living
in sin!
" I have hell enough in this life." I shall not dispute
with -you about that; but should not this satisfy you ? " Pant
ye after the second death ? " What is hell upon earth ? Is it
any thing else than a foretaste of the torments of the damned ?
What is the "bottomless pit" mentioned in Revelation?
What, but the eternal sinking of the soul from God ? Hell,
then, most assuredly begins in this world; and the mouth
of the pit opens wide iii time. Every unconverted sinner is
within the circumference of the pit. " A wicked man,"
-says one, " is a candidate for nothing but- hell;" and, says
another, " Hell is the centre of every sinner's gravity."
These are facts; and there is no standing still. The motions
of a sinner downward are as steady as the weights in a
clock. Such things go down slowly, but surely, by the
ordinary revolutions of the time-piece; or the cord may
break-, and they fall at once. Time is connected with what'
the Holy Ghost calls the "-silver cord" —human life ; and
a brittle affair it iSi There is no law in nature more' steady
than the progress of a sinner to his horrible centre ; but the
cord may be severed by an accident, or by the friction of its
own workings; or by the stroke of God,'Job xxxvi. 18;
and thus you may drop into an eternal hell at once. Many
sinners, on their death-bed, have confessed themselves on'
the brink of hell; but you admit yourself already in hell.
And does not this illustrate my sentiment ? If the sinner
be within the circumference of the pit, he must be troubled
with its smoke; and this is hell upon earth. Smoke is some¬
times hot, but never so intense as the flames from which it
304
THE OFFENDED HEARER.
proceeds; but there is just such a difference between the
hell upon earth and that in eternity.'
I can only reply to the other epithets you have lavished
upon me, the old Latin proverb, the translation of which
runs thus: " Growing mad against the remedy of our
ma4ness !"
These frequent appeals appear to have brought his offended
hearer to a more reasonable state of mind. Hence the
milder tone of the next paragraphs.
" The wrath of man worketh not the righteousness of
God." I am glad you are better pleased with me; but I
have no wish you should be any less displeased with yourself,
until you become a better man. " I thought it so monstrously
ridiculous." But it seems you were led to suppose that the
ridiculous monster was yourself. "It was so unnatural —
so out of all character." And yet you said in your heart,
" He means me." How could you think so, unless there
were some lineaments in the monster strikingly like yourself?
" It is easy," said a man, who understood the matter well,
" to know a picture well drawn, if we are acquainted with
the person whotn it represents." This is a very good crite¬
rion to apply to the present subject. If nature had been
wholly avoided, or misrepresented, you could no more have
thought the distorted - figure was your own, than if I had
been describing the devil himself. 'A witty writer has some
where remarked, that he who studies life, yet bungles, may
draw some faint imitations of it; but he who purposely
avoids nature, must fall into the grotesque, and make no
likeness. In this case, I have you for a witness, that, how¬
ever bunglingly nature was imitated, the likeness has. been,
recognised by one of the most competent of judges.
I have read a remark to this effect, that the. picture i3
THE OFFENDED HEARER.
"305
well drawn which, looks at all who look at it. It seems the
picture looked on you, at any rate and you were simple
enough to imagine that it not only looked at you, but looked
like you.
. " You are not so morose a being as I thought you were,
nor so stiff. I wish you success among the Leedites; I shall
come to hear you as often as I can while I remain in town."
I care little for your opinion about me, unless it lead to your
conversion. It is pleasing, however, to learn you have
altered your mind. II sabio muda eonscio, il nescio no, said
the Spaniard: " A wise man changes his mind, a fool never."
If the truth be heard in the love of it, your heart may be
softened into penitence, which is the forerunner of salvation.
Till sin is hated and abandoned, I fear you will hear to little
advantage; but as faith cometh by hearing, — come ! " Now
that you know my views and state of mind, I expect a kinder
method, and less severity." I am afraid you will be greatly
disappointed, unless a change take place in your morals.
Even then, without regeneration, you will still be disgusted
with- your own likeness, and dissatisfied with the preacher.
Allow me to illustrate what I mean. In a work entitled The
last year in China, we have some excellent remarks on
' Chinese portrait-painters; showing that they have not learned
the art of flattery, although they make excellent likenesses.
The author relates the following anecdote, in proof: A lady
of Macao, was having her portrait drawn by a Chinese artist.
As the work proceeded, she expressed her strong dissatisfac¬
tion at the performance. " 'Spose," said the pointer, " you
smile a little, he look better." But it was in vain; for
when the picture was done, the indignation of the fair one
was so great, and so disagreeably expressed, that the irri¬
tated artist exclaimed, "If handsome face no got, how hand¬
some face can make?" The writer remarked, that he
26*
306 the offended ' hearer.
thought an English artist could have shown the honest Chi¬
nese out-of his difficulty — that a golden application would
have removed his scruples. Perhaps not. Respect for his
profession, or homage to the stern demands of principle,
might have rendered his mind as obstinate toward Mammon,
as to the displeasure of the good lady.
I shall be glad to see you again in the house of God.
Remember, however-,, that painters only make a rude draught
of the face at first; succeeding touches bring out the fea¬
tures more perfectly. If the minister be " a workman that
needeth not to be ashamed," like a clever artist, he will not
throw down his spiritual pencil till the picture is in such a
state as to render it impossible to mistake the person repre¬
sented. Nor will he stop here; what no painter would do
.with a finished picture, he will — hew it in pieces, as Samuel
did Agag before the Lord. Take heed; some of the slashes
of " the sword of the Spirit" may reach beyond your por¬
trait, u piercing, even to the dividing asunder of soul and
spirit; and of the joints and marrow-" Heb. iv. 12. The
following verse has long been my motto:
' Brandish in full faith, till then,
The Spirit's two-edged sword,
Hew all the snares of fiends and men
In pieces with the word;
"Tis written,' thus applied,
Baffies all strength and art;
Spirit and soul, with this divide,
And joints and marrow parti"
Another letter commences with the next paragraph, and
indicates that the offended hearer was yielding still more tc
the faithful application of truth.
You are certainly an awakened sinner, whatever you may
say to the contrary. In 'this state of mind, " the smallest
things can give your sins a twitch." Had you lived in the
THE OFFENDED HEARER.
307
days of Aaron- the high priest, and with such a conscience
as you have now, it would have interpreted the tinkling of
the bells on the borders of his garment, into an " unmannerly
personality."
You say, " This could never have happened by
chance ; somebody has put you up to it." But have you
never'read of one. Appelles, who failed, as often as he tried,
to paint the foaming of a horse ? At last, in a rage, he
flung his brush at the painting, and "chance" expressed
that which art could not. In your case, I deny that any
person has given me the information in question, as firmly
as I reject the power of " chance." The eye of a heavenly
witness rests upon you and your sins. God, who has called
me to preach his gospel, -suggested to me suitable matter by
his Holy Spirit. I lay claim, however, to no higher inspira¬
tion than what any minister of Christ inay have, who walks
closely with God, and who has one desire and one aim.
" And if -I turn to God,, will that mend the affair ? You
said, ' Sinner, God will" cut you down.'" I did say so, but
added immediately, " Your speedy repentance will be a
lengthening, of your tranquillity." Did not Jonah, at last,
obey the Lord, in delivering the warning to the people of
Nineveh ? But one day's journey on the walls was sufficient.
As he walked, crying, " Yet forty days, and Nineveh shall
be overthrown;" they heard the voice, as if it-had come
from heaven, and turned every one of them from their iniqui¬
ties. Forty days passed away, and the city continued in its
grandeur. There was a condition in the sentence. Their
unfeigned repentance rendered the prediction void. " 0 new,
and admirable thing! " says a good man; " the denunciation
of death brought forth life ; the prophesy of the. overthrow
overthrew the prophecy; the sentence of destruction made
a nullity in the sentence."
308
THE OFFENDED HEADER.
I cannot conclude .without referring to one or two of your
closing sentiments. It'is wrong in yon to suppose, that what
"you feel, is a sample of a religious life"; and yet many mis¬
take here. A very excellent man told me, in Dublin, that,
-when an awakened sinner, he was greatly buffeted by the
devil on this point. It was represented to his mind, " This
is religion; and are you prepared to exchange a life of
gayety and pleasure for these moping, miserable feelings ?
This is a religious life." He met the temptation thus: "I
am conscious of real misery, and if I set out for heaven, I
may have seventy years of, it;, but then, after death, I shall
be eternally happy. On the other hand, if I neglect religion,
I may possibly enjoy seventy years? happiness; but this
must be succeeded by an eternity of torment. Which, then,
will be the most profitable to me, in the long run? Un¬
questionably, seventy years' wretchedness, followed by an
eternity'of pleasure and delight." From that moment, he
bade farewell to sin and the-devil forever, without a single
idea of the comforts of experimental religion; as if Chris¬
tianity were designed to strip him of every source-of gratifi¬
cation, and render his desolate soul void of any enjoyment,
other than the anticipations of the rewards of heaven.
But a happier man than this same individual I have not met
throughout my travels.
The saying of Origen. is worthy of notice : " It is the
manner-of Scripture to begin with those things which are
sad and dreadful; and do end with those things which are"
"cheerful and comfortable. ' I will kill and make alive ; not,
' I will make alive and kill.' " I am much mistaken, if you
are not now drinking the " wormwood and the gall;" but
there is a great difference between that and the " cup of
salvation." The paths of repentance are sad and thorny;
but the ways of religion " are ways of pleasantness, and all
THE OFFENDED HEARER.
309
her paths-are peace." I cannot agree with'you, that an es¬
cape from sin, and from pursuing temptation, is impossible.
Think of your soul, its value, its cost. Think of the agonies
aiid blood of Jesus Christ; aye, and the horrors of hell.
Cast these reflections between you and your sins.'
I was reading the other day of an ancient general, who
showed great Skill in conducting the retreat of his army.
"The enemy pressed him sore; and, at a time when all was in
jeopardy,' he marched rapidly through a narrow pass, between
mountains, and then filling it with the branches of trees, set
fire to them. The flames ascended like, a wall of fire be¬
tween him and his foes, and thus he secured his retreat.
Throw hell-fire between you and your sins : " Escape for thy
life," sinner " tarry not in all the plain."
" Pursue, on knowledge bent, the pathless road,
And pierce, through infinite, in quest of Gpd."
Remember; every other avenue to God is closed, but one,
" The new and living way," opened by the .death of Jesus
Christ. There is no access but by this way. The law of God,
" like a two-edged sword," turning every way, will smite
you into hell, if you dare to ■ force an approach. " Come
unto God by him," and " enter into the holiest by the blood
of Jesus;" receiving, upon your entrance, "remission of
sins, through faith in his blood."
Attend to it in time-; perhaps.when you would, it may be
too late. Only a few days ago I was reading of A man who
had long neglected the house of God, his worship and his
word. Sitting by his own fire, one Sabbath, with his family,
he said, " I shall read a chapter in the Bible, as I have not
done so for a long time." It was too late; while in the act
of reaching for the Bible, he sunk down, and immediately-
expired. When in the south of Ireland, about nine months
310
THE OFFENDED HEARER.
ago, a zealous servant of God related to. me-the following
affecting circumstance: —
He had been on a visit to a certain town, -for benevolent
purposes, and intended to hold a meeting on, the Sabbath for
the conversion of sinners.. On the Saturday previous, Prov¬
idence cast in his way an Ungodly sinner. He talked with
him respecting his soul,- but the man -treated every thing
with great levity. - When my friend was about to take leave,
he said, with much mirth, "I am likely to live as long
as you. I could match you in a walk of ten miles any
day." " Well," replied the other, on a sudden" impression,
but without the least degree of resentment, " this is your
day of mercy, to-morrow may be God's day of judgment."
He then asked him, whether he would come to the chapel
next day, and hear such truth as might be made a blessing
to him ? In a somewhat merry,-mood, he replied, " I shall
•come." Accordingly, on the Sabbath, he followed the man
of God to the meeting, and when within a few yards of the
place, he dropped down, and was dead in' a few moments.
That night, in the same room where his corpse lay, my friend
held a meeting for the benefit of the living. How often is
the sentiment of German poet verified! —
With noiseless tread, death steals on man,
No plea, no prayer, delivers him ;
From the midst of busy life's unfinished plan,
With sudden hand it severs him.
Ready, or not ready —no delay,
Forth to his Judge's bar, he must away."
Adieu.
CHAPTER XIX.
rambles around tleds.
In the seventeenth chapter, we left Mr., Caughey at the
close of, his first round of visits to the various chapels in
Leeds. Having taken a glance at him in his dealings with
the offended hearer, we now follow him. once more into the
scenes of his more active labors. It appears that, after
going round the Leeds circuit,and spending about two weeks
in each chapel, he returned, first to the Oxford street chapel,
and then to St. Peter's, preaching several weeks in each,
with " signs following."
Before describing, these latter labors, he favors us with
some account of his rambles around Leeds. His visit to
Cross Hall, and to the tomb of the heroic John Nelson, will
afford the pious reader great pleasure ; since every remin¬
iscence of the holy dead is a pearl of price to a spiritual
mind. The letters which compose this chapter were ad¬
dressed to an American friend.
A few weeks since, in company with the family of Thomas
Shann, Esq., I rode out to Cross Hall, a few-miles from
Leeds, formerly the residence of Mrs. Fletcher. Five years
ago, when we derived so much benefit to our souls from a
perusal of her Memoirs, we little thought that I should ever
811
312
RAMBLES, AROUND LEEDS.
pay a: visit to the very spot" where these events transpired,
which then afforded us so much interest and pleasure.
The house is a square, substantial, two-story "building, of
cream-colored stones, situated a short distance from the road,
shaded with trees,-and a fine garden behind. Mrs.-P. built
this immediately after she came to Yorkshire. The old hall
is attached to it; a low, venerable edifice, over the door of
which we" read, 1712. The family who. -now occupy the
mansion, on learning who we were, and our errand, kindly
'gave us permission to walk through the house. I nan scarcely
express to you the emotion which filled my heart when pass¬
ing from room to room, each one hallowed by the presence
of this holy woman, of God. Ah! 1 thought, here, daring
fourteen years, she spent many1 happy as well as many sor¬
rowful liours. Here the deepest night brooded over all her
temporal prospects. In this place she trusted in God, and
was delivered •; for here it was that day dawned upon her
dark, dark night.. Through these rooms, or along those gar*
den walks, did she often meditate upon and conflict with an
impression, which bears the tinge of romance, but which was
evidently of God.
" Hide it my heart, within, that close disguise,
Where mixed with God's, his lovedidea lies."
This is the spot where she endeavored to break or strengthen
that mysterious link which strangely , bound her spirit to that
eminent servant of Christ, the seraphic Fletcher. Resolving
to await the dawning of that day in her earthly history, which
for many years she had foreseen, as' by prophetic vision;
here she often mournfully exclaimed, in faith's darkest hour,
" Darkly safe with God, my soul
His arm still onward bears,
Till through each tempest on the whole,
A peace divine appears."
RAMBLES AROUND LEEDS.
313
Or, in the more triumphant language of another poet: —
" The Lord my pasture shall prepare,
And feed me with a shepherd's care;
His presence shall my wants supply,
And guard me with a watchful eye ;
My noonday walks he shall attend,
And all my midnight hours defend."
That promise also was her stay, which she received from
God at Laytonstone: " Thou shalt lay up gold as dust, and the
gold of Ophir as the stones of the brooks; yea, the Almighty
shall he thy defence, and thou shalt have plenty of silver,"
Job xxii. 24, 25 ; and commented upon them thus: " What
I understand by these words is, that a time shall come when
I shall owe no man any thing, and have plenty to carry on
such designs as the Lord shall lay on my heart, for his
glory; that he will bring me out of this place, and provide
some way for every member to be removed, so that I shall
say, 4 Now is fulfilled that word,' 4 Thou shalt decree a
thing, and it shall be established unto thee, and light shall
shine on thy path.' "
Here her faith seemed to receive a death blow in the sad
intelligence, that the object of her hope was dying. at"Made-
ley; and again, that he was about to leave England, perhaps
for ever, the Iblood draining from his lungs day by day;
still faith flourished again, and failed not, but prompted her
to ask and believe for the following signs, which were fulfilled
to the letter, four years afterwards: First, That Mr. Fletcher
might be raised up again. Second, And brought back to
England. Third, That he would write to her upon the sub¬
ject, though they had been so many years asunder, and not
so much as a message passing between them upon any sub¬
ject. Fourth, That in that letter, he would state the matter,
as having rested upon his mind for several years. This
27
814
RAMBLES AROUND LEEDS.
prayer of faith was instantly attended with the assurance
that all this would occur in the year 1781.
With the singular coincidences you are familiar. On the
8th of June, 1781, as .she expresses it, "the cloud arose,
little as a human hand," in the form of a letter, from the
object of her affections, which was soon after followed by Mr.
Fletcher himself. Here they talked over all the providences
through which they had been led; tried to penetrate the
gloom which still hung over her temporal affairs; but that
God, who had so strangely brought them together, com¬
manded the darkness into light, and in the neighboring
church of Batley, " We covenanted," says Mrs. F., " in
the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy
Ghost, to bear each other's burdens, and to become one
for ever."
With the history of her orphan establishment, her zeal for
God, and activity in his cause, her holy life and godly con¬
versation, her Memoirs have made you already familiar;
and I doubt not, J;hat on my return to America, we shall
read them over again, with renewed pleasure, and I shall
then tell you more than I can crowd into a letter. After
visiting the apartment she had fitted up as a chapel for her
orphans, we returned to Leeds.
In company with a friend, I rode over to Batley church
the other day, and stood before the same altar where they
were married. The vicar was very kind, conducting us
through various parts of the old sanctuary, in which were
some very ancient monuments, and afterwards into the ves
try. After a tedious search, he found the entry of their
•marriage, in one of the church records, signed first by the
curate, and then by the parties, thus: " John William
Fletcher, or De la Fletchere," and underneath, in her own
peculiar hand, "Mary Bosanquet;" the witnesses were a
RAMBLES AROUND LEEDS.
815
" Miss Tripp," and some other persons whose names I did
not copy.
A few days ago, with a small party, I visited the village
of Birstal, about seven miles from Leeds. Our principal
object was to see the tomb of the famous John Nelson, Mr.
Wesley's faithful coadjutor. The spot where his earthly re¬
mains have rested nearly seventy years, is a little south of
the old parish church. The tomb is a neat freestone Square,
covered with a slab of the. same material, and bears the fol¬
lowing inscription: —
JOHN NELSON,
Departed this life, July 18th, 1774,
Aged 67 years.
MARTHA, HIS WIFE,
Departed this life, September 11th, 1774,
Aged 69.
While we on earth had our abode,
We both agreed to serve the Lord,
And he was pleased as you may-see,
By death not long us parted be;
Then he required the breath he gave,
And now we both rest in one grave,
Until again he us restore,
A life to live and die no more.
An old building was pointed out to us, a few yards from
the tomb, as the remains of the vicarage, where John's per
secutor lived.
Near the Wesley an chapel we were shown into a verj
small brick building, where John used to read and pray.
and over the little fireplace is engraved upon a stone, " John
Nelson's study." Here he prepared some of those "heavy
thoughts, which came down with the execution of his stone-
hammer, upon the rocky hearts of his hearers.
818
RAMBLES AROUND LEEDS.
Yesterday, accompanied by part of the kind family of
John Howard, Esq., at whose house I am at present enter¬
tained, I rode to Micklefield, eight miles from Leeds, formerly
the residence of the famous Sammy Hick, the village black¬
smith.
His Memoir is now published by our Book Concern in
New York, and doubtless it has had a wide circulation in
America.
We put up at the village inn, and Sammy's daughter was
pointed out to us, standing at the door of her own .house,
looking towards us with great earnestness. On approaching,
she gave us a cheerful welcome, as if aware of the purport
of our visit to Micklefield. " Walk in," said she ; " this is
the house my father and mother occupied during fifty years,
and there is the flagstone upon which my father was kneeling
when he was converted to God, and where he was aftewards
sanctified; and it was, while sitting on a chair Avith his feet
on that flag, he died and went home to glory. And on that
other flagstone, my mother (Martha) died. There is the old
shelf just as they had it, and that is the same old clock."
We felt ourselves quite at home, and entered into an
agreeable conversation respecting the " departed." Her
good husband came in, and a few neighbors, and we sang,—
" He breaks the power of cancelled sin,
He sets the prisoner free ;
His blood can make the foulest clean,
His blood availed for me."
Kneeling doAvn upon the famous flagstone, I prayed that the
blessing of God might descend upon the descendants of
Sammy Hick, and upon these his old neighbors and as¬
sociates.
We then visited the blacksmith's shop, the scene of Sam¬
my's labor at the anvil, and where he spent many a happy
RAMBLES. AROUND LEEDS.
317
day. The identical bellows, used by Sammy, are yet there,
and in active employment; and the old anvil block, etc.
Mr. Caughey now resumes his account of the progress of
the revival. He had begun a second series of meetings in
Oxford Place chapel, and concerning which he says :
The congregations were greatly increased, when compared
with my first visit. This is the largest chapel I have ever-
preached in; indeed, I have been informed, it is the largest
Methodist chapel in the world. It seats two thousand
five hundred persons ; but from the spaciousness of the aisles,
etc., when crowded, admits one thousand more ; and on Sab¬
bath nights it was always full, and many had to go away who
could not get in. Such a mass of people was a most sublime
and imposing scene. The Lord graciously assisted my voice,
so that I was distinctly heard in all parts of the congregation.
What a contrast when compared with years gone by ! Eight
or nine years ago, my voice was so feeble, it was often with
the greatest difficulty I could make three or four hundred
persons hear; now God has' so enlarged its compass, as to
reach the ears of three or four thousands. Perhaps this
may tend to illustrate that important sentiment, that the
Lord Jesus never calls a person to any great effort, or ex¬
traordinary duty, without the gracious intention of impart¬
ing a corresponding supply of strength for its accomplish¬
ment.
I know not which to admire most, this or the society at
Brunswick. They are truly a loving, gracious people. In
the families of Mr. Holt, Mr. Dove, Mr. HowTard, and • Al¬
derman Musgrave, every thing was done to render my visit to
their circuit most agreeable and delightful. Their hospitality,
and many acts of kindness, have left an indelible impression
upon my heart. Did I not tell you, before I left America,
318
RAMBLES AROUND LEEDS.
that the Lord would give me fathers and mothers, and broth¬
ers and sisters ? Nothing of all that God promised me has
yet failed. With their ministers, the Rev. William Lord, the
Rev. George B. Macdonald, and the Rev. Alfred Barrett, I
have formed a friendship that will last for ever.
The results of the four weeks in the above place of wor¬
ship, were very gratifying. Three hundred persons were
enabled to "declare that the blood of Jesus had cleansed them
from all sin; and an equal number professed justification.
A considerable portion of the latter were members of the
Wesleyan church, and several from other churches and cir¬
cuits; so that the increase'to the church at Oxford place,
cannot be more than about one hundred persons. On the
last Sabbath in July, I returned to St. Peter's chapel, which
is almost equal in size to Oxford place, and continued there
two weeks". During that time, two hundred persons oV
tained the blessing of sanctification,- ninety-five of whom
were from country circuits. One hundred and ninety indi¬
viduals professed justification; fifty of this number were al¬
ready members in the St. Peter's circuit, and the remainder
were from other churches and the world. • Those who were
converted from the world, and resided in the neighboring
circuits, had notes given them, as an introduction to the lead¬
ers of classes in the • "VYesleyan society; that they might
have the benefit of weekly instruction, and become candi¬
dates for church membership. I have not been able to as¬
certain the increase, during the two weeks, to the church in
St. Peter's ;, but I doubt whether it amounts to more than
fifty. •
With the " Superintendent of the St. Peter's circuit, and
his worthy colleagues, the Rev. Charles Cheetham and the
Rev. William Cattle, I labored in great harmony. They are
self-denying and zealous servants of God, well acquainted
RAMBLES AROUND LEEDS.
319
with revivals of religion; and they have entered -most heart¬
ily into the present movement.
In the above chapel, they have more than their share of
the poor ; but they are rich in faith: many of them have
been acquainted, for a long time, with the deep things of God.
They were more noisy during the services here than in any
other circuit in town; but Mr. Harris had them generally un¬
der perfect control. There were seasons, however, when his
voice of authority was lost amidst their hallelujahs. It glad¬
dened my heart to see men and women, clothed in the coarsest
garb, feasting upon the richest blessings of the gospel of
peace, and rejoicing with joy unspeakable and full of glory.
Were I a resident of Leeds, and desired a close walk with
Christ, and lessons dh the deep things of God, though worth
thousands, I would choose for my place of worship, the St.
Peter's Wesleyan chapel. I would sit at the feet of these
poor saints, and learn from them how to watch and pray,
live by faith, despise, the world, conquer hell, and take the
kingdom of heaven by violence. * * * *
My work is now nearly finished in Leeds,.and indeed in
England, for the present; as I sail from Hull, on the 13th
Sept., 1848, by the will of God, for Rotterdam, Holland.
Since my last to you, I have preached a few times in Wesley
chapel, and in the Wesleyan chapel, village of Woodhouse,
near Leeds. In both places the power of God was revealed
in the conversion of sinners.
On Sabbath evening, 3dinst., I preached out of doors, to
an immense multitude, on the verge of Woodhouse Moor.
Text: Rev. xx. 11—13. Some triflers made an effort for
a little sport, but a few appeals spoiled the movement, and
the parties listened with attention to the end.
On the following week I preached farewell sermons in St.
Peter's, Brunswick, and Oxford place chapesls, with much
320
RAMBLES AROUND LEEDS.
comfort to my own mind, and, I trust, profit to others. We
have taken some pains to obtain statistics of the revival, with
regard to conversions, and as correct as possible. We find that
upwards of sixteen hundred persons have professed justifica¬
tion. This embraces the work carried forward in the chapels
of the Leeds four circuits. In my letters to-you and * * *, I
have classed the new converts, so that you could see what pro¬
portion were Wesleyan, and from other churches and circuits
in the country, and from the world.
After deducting those converted from other churches in
town, and those from the country circuits, many of whom
were Wesleyans, and a goodly number from the world, it has
been ascertained, that one thousand of the converts belong
to Leeds. About six .hundred and fifty of the latter were
members of the Wesleyan church in Leeds. These may be
divided into three classes. Those who had backslidden from
God ; those who had never been converted, by far the great¬
est number; and a few who had been living, to say the least,
in a low state of grace, but, under the searching truth of
God, had been involved in distressing doubts, and cast away
the little confidence they had, but had sought a clearer man¬
ifestation of the favor of God, and found it. Such were
questioned closely respecting past experience, find they gen.
erally said, " I have had secret misgivings for years, about
my conversion; there has been a standing doubt, which has
ever annoyed me since I began to meet in class; so that I
have done little good, and received little, other than re¬
straint from going back into the world. My uneasiness has in¬
creased under,this pointed preaching, and also in beholding
this wonderful work, of God. I felt, if I could not bear the
test of this, how could I expect to bear the trials of my
deathbed, or the light of eternity. I have made much
resistance against coming forward to be prayed for, have and
RAMBLES AROUND LEEDS.
321
held out for several weeks. At last I took up my cross,
came forward among the penitents, as a sinner, and God, for
Christ's sake, has pardoned all my sins." " Do you then
consider this hour as the time of your conversion ? " " I
prefer to do so, Sir, and shall consider this as my starting
point for heaven."
You will therefore perceive, that the increase to the four
circuits is not more than three hundred and fifty souls.
This is a much greater disproportion than any thing of the
kind I have observed since my arrival on this side the
Atlantic. Indeed, such classifications as I have sent you
from Liverpool and Leeds, in regard to the subjects of justi¬
fication, have been new. to me; as I do not remember any
necessity for such distinctions in any of the revivals in which
I "have been engaged in the United States. You are aware
how seldom it is, that persons continue to meet in class for a
length of time in the Methodist Episcopal Church, who. have
never been " born again.". They are generally pushed to
such extremities, under the preaching or in class, as to com¬
pel them either to retire into the ranks of the world or get
converted to God. The frequency of revivals in each soci¬
ety of our church, also greatly contributes to lessen the
number of such unhappy persons. Were I to take the sta¬
tistics of the revivals in Dublin, Limerick, Cork, Liverpool,
and Leeds, as criteria of the state of Methodism in this
country, I should certainly conclude, that a vast number
meet regularly in class for years, and in good standing too
as it respects moral character, who have never obtained a
satisfactory evidence of their adoption into the family of God.
I am not sufficiently acquainted with the religious state of
the Wesleyan body in this country, to say, whether it is thus
with the societies generally, or that similar developments
would be exhibited in case of a revival in other towns of the
322
RAMBLES AROUND LEEDS.
kingdom. My mind has been greatly exercised about it;
but in my communications to America I have refrained from
speculations, and entertained my correspondents with plain
matters of fact, which fell under my own observation.
You know how easy it is for a stranger, passing rapidly
through a country, to form opinions the most erroneous and
absurd, of the real state of society.
America has suffered severely in this way by travellers.
Full of prejudice, and determined to pander to the vitiated
taste of their countrymen at home; having neither time,
disposition, nor perhaps capabilities to examine into the true
state of American society; but driven on, by the force of
circumstances, to write a book and travel too; " wide awake "
to all the peculiarities of that society with which they have
the honor to mingle, namely, bar-room heroes, stage-coach
characters, and the promiscuous crowd of men of all nations
under heaven, on the crowded street of the city, or deck
of the steamer, (to say nothing -of the fictitious,) they are
" enabled to draw to the fife the national character of the
Yankees." Their productions are published to the world,
and read with avidity, and credited; while it is plain to
those who have spent many years in that country, that their
readers are still in total ignorance about American manners
and the real condition of the population.
Nothing can be more unjust; and American institutions,
moral, religious, political, and scientific, have been caricatured
from such sourees of information.
" Where others toil with philosophic force,
Their nimble nonsense takes a shorter course;
Flings at your head convictions in a lump,
And gains remote conclusions at a jump."
But to return to the subject; wherever such revival dis¬
closures occur, whether in Europe or America, the matter
is worthy of the most serious consideration. If the new
RAMBLES AROUND LEEDS.
323
birth is the hinge upon which the salvation or damnation of
the soul must turn, so many persons, living destitute of such
a change, and within the bosom of a church, so clear, doc-
trinally and experimentally, upon this point, is a most serious
and awful affair. Were I to venture any thing like an opin¬
ion, I would say, the cause might be traced to the entire
absence of, or long intervals between, powerful revivals of
religion. Where this is the case, there would be as much
likelihood to find in such societies a healthy and vigorous
membership, as a population enjoying excellent health though
unvisited for years by the purifying breezes of heaven. We
need a gale every now and then to sweep through the streets
and lanes of our great towns to carry off the smoke and
unhealthy exhalations.. And thus it is in a spiritual sense
with the church of God; she needs a revival breeze. Our
Lord compared the operations of the Spirit to the wind,
which bloweth where it listeth; and we still want the out¬
pouring of the Holy Spirit, and in some places nothing but
a tornado can clarify the spiritual atmosphere, so as to ren¬
der it fit to breathe in, or to see heaven through by faith —
such as that which came in a sound from heaven, as of a
rushing mighty wind, filling all our places of worship, and
the heart of every worshipper; shaking the' place, and set¬
ting the town in an uproar, as Jerusalem in days of old.
Acts ii. and iv. 31. And blessed be God, this is in full
accordance with that verse which they sing vigorously in
this country, as well as in America: —
" Like mighty winds, or torrents fierce,
Let it opposers all o'errun;
And every law of sin reverse,
That faith and love may make all. one."
A neglect upon the part of ministers and leading members
to carry out fully a revival where it has commenced, or an
324
RAMBLES AROUND LEEDS.
indisposition to live for and perpetuate a succession of those
gracious visitations, -weakens the church of God, and grieves
the Holy Spirit.
A certain town, for instance, is favored with a remarkable
outpouring of the Spirit, with or without extraordinary instru¬
mentality, and a large increase of converted souls is realized
by that church. Now, if instead of a vigorous co-operation
with God for a continuation of the revival, (and I can see
no reason why it should stop, while a backslider remains to
be reclaimed, or an unconverted sinner in the town; though
the flame may not for a time catch upon sinners, it need
never lose its intensity in the hearts of believers,) they
grow weary in well doing, and desire something else more
than the salvation of sinners; the Spirit of God is then
grieved, a blight comes on the church, and a general dead-
ness will be the consequence, and most probably the melan¬
choly relapse of the new converts.
But supposing the revival to have ceased, let the church
be alive for its recommencement; and whether their faith be
fixed on God for a revival now, in the regular means of
gr&pe, or -in the " special services " intended for next month,
the effects must ever be the most salutary. The church of
God is by that means kept in action, — brought into the
field, — and activity is the spring-tide of religious feeling.
Methodism, from the beginning^ has been a system of aggres¬
sion against the devil and all his works; let her keep to this,
and she will multiply her numbers and increase both in powei
and influence. Whenever and wherever she loses this dis¬
tinguishing feature in her economy, she must dwindle awa_y
into insignificance. I have never yet seen it fail; and the
catastrophe has always been in proportion to the length of
time since she ceased to. be the aggressor. Itjs not enough
that Methodism is enabled to stand on the defensive, and
RAMBLES AROUND LE^DS.
325
hold her own ; if'this be all,a very stfiall part of the designs,
of God are answered ; and she has little more than half her
glory. Acquisition should never be effaced from her banners..
The devil's territory must be invaded till.e&rth and hell are
aroused against her aggressive movements. Then, and not
till then, shall Methodism be. in the meridian glory , of her
usefulness.
I have ever considered an anti-revival Methodist preacher
as a phenomenon in Methodism. It would be almost as dif¬
ficult for a man of that character, unless a consummate hyp¬
ocrite, to get into the ranks off American Methodism, as for
a Jesuit; and I believe the remark Will equally apply to
Wesleyan Methodism in these kingdoms.. I can, however,
easily conceive how a minister may lose the life of God out
of his soul, and fearfully backslide from first .principles. A
criminal indifference to zealous efforts for the salvation of
sinners may characterize his movements. , Is it not possible
for him to impart the same .feeling to the officers of the
church during the years of his stay upon the circuit ? Sup¬
pose, that at the end of his term the church is cursed with
another of a similar spirit, the results upon the cause of God
are too evident to need enlargement here. There have been
mournful cases of that kind, as you very well , know, in
America, till the conference has been under the necessity to
request them to " sit down;" that is,, to cease the itinerancy;
and why ? Because of an almost universal protest .against
receiving them from the circuits within the bounds of the
conference.
It has been ruled by some, and in high places too, that
the flock are just what the pastors choose, to make them.
This precept, though -extensive, is not of universal applica¬
tion. " Like people, like priest," Says the prophet Hosea;
—:as you find the people, so you shall the priest. This
28
3^6
EAMJBLE3 AEOTJND LEEDS.
looks like tracing "effects to their cause. But another holy
prophet, Isaiah, after all his faithful labor, found his people
what he would not, and mournfully complained, " I have
labored in vain, I have spent my strength for nought, and in
vain;,f End inquired, " Who hath believed our report ? and
to whom is the arm of the Lord revealed ? "
There have been places where ministers have worked
themselves into the grave in ineffectual efforts for a revival.
.1 have known branches of our church settle down and
cease to look for another outpouring of the Holy Spirit, con¬
tented to glide along from year to year, without any revival,
till their feeble and sickly state, and the wickedness of
sinners around them, became notorious.
Where there is no anxiety about a revival, in the hearts
of the leading members of the church, it is not to be expected
they will make that sacrifice of-time and strength, required
by the Holy dhost, to bring about such an important triumph
of the gospel. The inconsistency is" greater where such an
event is prayed for in sincerity, while a reluctancy is indulged
to employ the necessary means.
Whether any of these 'propositions apply to £he past his¬
tory of the Methodist church' in Leeds, and in the other
towns I have visited, I cannot determine. '
You remember the great revival in * * Long and
anxiously did they desire a revival; but entertained at the
same time an aversion to extraordinary means. And why ?
Lest the ordinary services, which they admitted were inef¬
ficient, should be brought into discredit by the extraordinary;
as if another gospel was to be preached in the latter, while
in fact,- the proposal was, only to preach the gospel a little
ofteher, — say every night in the week in the same chapel,
instead of one or two nights. (*od, again and again, both
by his providence and the example and successes of other
RAMBLES AROUND LEEDS. .327
churches, invited them, to co-operate with. him, in a direct
and continued attack upon the devil's kingdom. But, " No,
the preaching on the Sabbath is -excellent; and if sinners
are not aroused and converted by such preaching as we have
now, they ought to be damned." They did, not see that it
is with mind as it is with matter —hammer long enough upon
a rock, and you will break it in pieces; repeat your' strokes
upon mind, and it must also break down.. Every body knows,
that one day in the week, however heavy the hammer and
rapid the blows, cannot accomplish so much, as if the same
were wielded every day of the week.
No man in that town could have prevailed upon the lead¬
ing members of that church, to carry into their-business
operations the same principles they had adopted for a revival
of religion—work one day and rest* six. Thus they con¬
tinued several years. A few were converted in that time,
and many were impressed with the truth, and joined the
church, and met in class: —
" But the place designed for growth in grace,
Became their spiritual landing-place."
They never grew at all, because they had not been bom of
the Spirit. With the exception of numbers, some of the
classes resembled a Popish confessional; the " experience"
was scarcely a whisper, and none heard it but the leader;
and some wgre dumbies who could say nothing. -What is
recorded in 2 Kings xix. 3, might, truly be said of that
church; she had various troubles and rebukes from God,
and blasphemies from a world of wickedness; for the* chil¬
dren were brought to the birth, ,and there was no power.to
bring forth.
After years had passed away, and some of these unhappy
persons had died, and probably slipped away into hell, the
Lord heard the sighing of the prisoners, who yet continued
328
RAMBLES AROUND LEEDS.
in his. church, and the secret supplications of some of the
excellent* of the earth. Preachers and people, with another
man of God. who had come by special invitation, humbled
themselves 'before the Lord of Hosts. The house of God
was thrown open day and night. Battle was given against
the works of darkness. The population ran together, and
cried, " What meaneth this ? Are you mad or drunk ?"
"We are neither.; but come out every night, this week and
next, and learn the secret." The burning truths of God were
showered upon sinners during eight or nine days. At length
God shook the heavens and the earth, the Spirit of God was
poured out upon the people, hundreds of the sinners in Zion
were ;born again, while God added daily to his victorious
church scores of converted Souls from the world. But this
was succeeded by a humiliating difficulty. They might as
well have tried to keep the thunder a secret as this revival.
The report of it spread far and wide; many came from a
great distance to witness the conquering power of the gospel
of Christ. All who had seen or heard of it, expected
an amazing increase of members. Although it was large,
yet when matters came to be sifted, it was not at all in
proportion to the numbers reported to have been saved,
and the reaction' was injurious for a time. An astonishing
monument of the .revival had been raised, and the church
was a living flame, but this did not satisfy tho^e inclined to
find fault. The insinuations of carnal professors were even
more-annoying -than those from the world. They had been
reproved in conscience for their inactivity during the revival;
and now, it seemed as if they enjoyed a secret satisfaction
at what they called " the failure of the movement." But
the ministers, leaders, and those who were devoted to God,
knew the benefit derived too well to be weakened. They
were all along aware, .that the majority of those converted,
RAMBLES AROUND LEEDS.
329
were unconverted or backslidden members; these, with the
large increase, more than they had had for many years, and
the high tone of religious feeling in the church, enabled
them to reply to the cavillers, "We are well repaid for a
few weeks' hard and glorious labor. We shall certainly-use
the very same means for another revival, within a few.months
from now. In the mean time we shall endeavor to train
these new converts for nobler doings in the church of God.
We shall get all things in readiness for another battle. We
see plainly, that it is only preaching the gospel a little
oftener, and with the Holy Ghost sent down from ^heaven.,
If the Lord has done so much for us under, such disadvan-'
tages, what may we not expect during another campaign,
seeing that we have so many hundreds more of converted
souls to bring into the field ? "
Again and again, you are aware, has that church been
visited with such outpourings of the Holy Spirit, till not a
dog dare move his tongue against a revival. Exod. xi. ,7.
You may possibly recollect my reading you an extract from
the Annual Address of the British Conference to the Wes-
leyan Methodists, in 1839 or 1840. It was a source of great
encouragement to me, as it showed that the ministers of the
Wesleyan church had not varied a hair-breadth from first
principles. " Some churches regard revivals of religion,as
gracious singularities in their history; we regard them as
essential to our existence. If a regular series of divine
visitations, issuing in the conversion of sinners, be not vouch
safed to us, we must either change the spiritual constitution
of our discipline or we. shall pine away from among the
tribes of God's Israel."
In no town that I have hitherto visited, has the work o{
entire sanctification advanced with such swiftness, power,
and distinctness, as in this town. Hundreds were raised up
330
RAMBLES AROUND LEEDS.
to testify, in the clearest manner, that the blood of Jesus
Christ had cleansed them from all sin. More than once,
however, it has been hinted in certain companies, that the
majority of these had Only experienced a larger degree of
justifying grace; in a few days or weeks from now, they
would come down from such flights, and be content with the
level of the justified ones. Were I called upon for a reply,
I would say, it may be so, and most likely will be so, if their
'testimony be treated with unwarrantable suspicion by their
fellow members. Let this holy flame be fanned by frequent
and clear sermons on this doctrine, and let all those who
have, professed this great blessing be exhorted to hold it fast;
and should any such suffer loss, let the whole church cry to
God for their recovery. Moreover, let the purified souls be
encouraged to bear a distinct and weekly testimony to what
God has done for them, without any annoying insinuations,
unless their conduct contradict their profession; let them be
treated in a loving but searching manner; and if they have
been mistaken, they may not be discouraged, but obtain the
Very thing after which their eager souls have been so sin¬
cerely aspiring. At the same time let all the Lord's people
be exhorted to press into this glorious liberty of the sons of
God, how, by simple faith; and tins revival of entire sancti-
fication need never stop, till the entire Wesleyan church in
Leeds is saved, to sin no more.
After Mr. Caiighey left Leeds, those enemies to revivals,
who could not in the face of facts deny that a mighty worl
was wrought, reported that a decline in religion had sue
ceeded his labors, owing to the great instability of the con
verts. But this malignant falsehood found its contradiction
in the minutes of the Annual Conferences, for they showed
that while the numbers in society had been gradually
RAMBLES AROUND LEEDS.
331
declining in Leeds from 1840 to 1843, the period of Mr.
Caughey's labors, there was an increase of jive hundred
members reported at the following Conference, and the circuit
continued to prosper from the impulse it then received.
After leaving Leeds, Mr. Caughey made a short tour on
the continent, in which he passed rapidly through portions of
France, Holland, Prussia, Germany, and Switzerland, making
observations on men and manners, and gathering information
adapted to freshen his mind and prepare- him for further
labors in his Master's vineyard.
His account of this tour is contained in his ' Letters,^ but
for want of space we are compelled to pass over them alto¬
gether. On his return from the continent we find him
resuming his pleasant toils in the town of Hull; for an
account of which the reader must peruse the next chapter.
CHAPTER XX.
glorious work of god in hull.
The following chapter is rich in incident. It exhibits the
grace of God in one of its most wonderful manifestations.
God is seen riding gloriously in the Revival Chariot, and the
Cross triumphs over the Serpent, to the confusion of sinners
and the joy of saints. Such displays of heavenly power, as
were made in the Waltham street chapel, show that the
modern church may have its days of Pentecost as well as
.the ancient. 0, for that fidelity to God! that praying faith,
which,' with holy violence, takes the kingdom of God by
force!
The reader will remember that the visit of Mr. Caughey
to Hull took place in the autumn of 1843, directly after his
return from his first continental tour. He had been in Hull
some weeks when he wrote the following account of the work
to a friend in America: —
During the first two weeks I had very straitened times in
preaching; frequently, indeed, my mouth was almost closed.
Do you understand this ? I had difficulty in getting ideas,
and quite as much in expressing them ; as if they would die
away on my lips. I could only account for these humiliating
times on the supposition that they, (the Methodists,) were
depending upon an " arm of flesh," instead of trusting in the
882
GLORIOUS WORK OF GOD IN HULL.
333
living God. They had heard, it seems, much about your
friend; expectation was "on tiptoe;" nothing was looked
for but some mighty and sweeping arguments, with bursts of
commanding eloquence, which would carry every thing be¬
fore them, mowing down sinners by hundreds. Had their
faith been fixed in God for this, it is not unlikely he would
have honored it, by an immediate putting forth of his power,
in an extraordinary manner. This was a sore trial to jne ;
and my divine Master continued to let me down lower and
lower.
One night, during this humiliation, an intelligent member
said to her husband, as they were returning home, " That
good man should not take a text at all." My soul was pros¬
trated and humbled before God and man, and mourned in
the dust. The Rev. William Illingworth, one of the min¬
isters stationed in this town, one evening after preaching,
explained to me, in a pleasant but serious manner, the great
hinderance in the way of a revival. It is not necessary to
repeat the conversation, as the substance is incorporated in
the above, but his concluding advice went deep into my
heart: " Hold on; preach as you can ; by-and-by the peo¬
ple will lay hold of the throne of grace for themselves, by
faith and prayer. They will not do this, however, till they
have learned the useful lesson — man can do nothing. Then
we shall have a breaking down, such as you have not seen.
This you may depend upon."
This encouraged me ; and we cheerfully, both in preach
ing and in various exhortations, labored to show the people
that without an influence from above, the gospel, with all
our efforts, must continue a dead letter. Gehazi was sent
by his master (2 Kings iv.) to lay the staff of Elisha upon
the face of the dead child of the Shunammite. Gehazi ran,
expecting to do wonders ; just as some think of accomplish
334
GLORIOUS WQRK OF GOD IN HULL.
ing great things by their sermons, without a proper depend¬
ence upon the Holy Ghost, and are doomed to a signal
disappointment. Gehazi laid the staff upon the " head " of
the child; like ministers of the gospel, who endeavor to drive
the life of religion into the hearts of sinners, by attacking
the head, the intellect only. He stood by the corpse, anx¬
iously watching the process, and hoping, no doubt, to have
the miracle wrought before his master arrived! But the
child remained as dead as the staff. " There was neither
voice nor hearing." Satisfied, at length, that the means had
totally failed — I doubt whether the man spent five minutes
in agonizing prayer for the recovery of the child—discour¬
aged, Gehazi went out to meet Elisha, exclaiming as they
met, " The child is not awaked !" I wish all pious people,
and .atf unsuccessful ministers, .would thus return to their
Lord and Master, saying, " The staff—the sermon has been
applied to the sinner's head and heart—but he is not awak¬
ened ! " Let them see to it, however, that they fall down
and agonize with God, in, the presence of the sinner, and
leave no means untried, before they sink into despondency,
and return forlornly to their God, as Gehazi to his master.
Elisha said nothing, but went into the house, entered the
chamber of death, and remained there alone with the corpse,
praying to God. After which, he "lay upon" the dead
boy, " and put his mouth upon his mouth, and his eyes upon
his eyes, and his hands upon his hands ; and he stretched
himself upon the child, and the flesh of the child waxed
warm." The minister of Christ must address himself to the
whole man, if he will have the dead sinner raised to life ;
the passions must be warmed and excited, as well as the
eyes of the understanding opened. Elisha then arose " and
walked in the house to and fro," no doubt greatly moved in
himself, and crying earnestly to God. Again he repeated
glorious work of' god in hull.
835
the experiment upon the child, using, the means, and trusting
in the power of a miracle-working God. At length there
were signs of life, and a noise ; the child sneezed seven
times, opened his eyes, and was restored by Elisha, alive, to
his joyful mother.
" Not by might, nor by power, but by my Spirit, saith the
Lord of hosts." Zech. iv. 6. " Christ had the' key to open
Lydia's heart," says an old divine, "but St. Paul might
have preached his heart out, before Lydia's heart would have
opened to let the word in, had not the Lord undertaken the
work." Acts xvi. 14. Christ has the key to the human
heart, but he must turn it, or it will remain obstinately and
for ever shut against all the preaching that may be thundered
at the door! The word of God is a seal, (Rom. vi. 17, and
Eph iv. 30,) but it requires the hand of the Holy Ghost upon
the word, in order to an impression. As powder to a bullet,
so are faith and love in the heart of a minister, to make truth
effective.
The people of God were exhorted and entreated to be¬
seech the Lord of hosts to fill the hearts of his ministers with
the Holy Ghost sent down from heaven; they were told
again and again that the weightiest truth could accomplish
nothing without the direct agency of the Spirit; that with¬
out this influence, the words of the preacher would fall like
feathers or flakes of snow upon the congregation, and with a
similar effect. The Lord applied such truths as the above
to the hearts of many. The spirit of prayer descended upon
the people, many of whom were now in an agony for the
conversion of sinners. Hundreds' of prayers ascended to
heaven every day, and during every sermon, for " the out¬
pouring of the Holy Spirit." The superintendent, the Rev.
Robert Thompson, managed the prayer meetings admirably';
and his colleagues, the Rev. William Ulingworth, and the
336
GLORIOUS WORK OF GOD IN HULL.
Hey. John Vine, came up to the help of the Lord, in a noble
and energetic manner. The people of God, observing how
cordially and confidently their ministers co-operated in the
work, were cheered and encouraged to give all the aid within
their power ; their numbers increased in the meetings daily,
and good men from every part of the town rallied around
our standard, and prayer became general. " The effectual,
fervent prayer of a righteous man availeth much," says St.
James; and says a good old minister, "If one trumpet
sounds so loud in the ears of God, how much more a concert
of all the silver trumpets of Zion sounding together. If
one sigh of a praying man wafts the bark to the desired
haven, or stirreth Zion's ship, how much more a gale of sighs
breathed by a thousand real Christians. Where so many
hands are lifted up, how many blessings may they not pull
down from heaven ! " The valley of dry bones was stirred,
(Ezek. xxxvii.,) " There was a noise, and behold a shaking."
The Spirit of God now moved in power, and breathed upon
the slain, and they lived, and " stood upon their feet," a little
army of three hundred and fifty souls, who had passed from
death unto life. More than one half of this number were
already members of the Wesley an church ; some of whom
had backslidden from God, and others had never been convert¬
ed ; the remainder were - from the world. We found also
about two hundred persons, who had within a few weeks ex¬
perienced the blessing of entire sanctification. Thess. v. 23,
24. All glory be to God! From George Yard chapel,
(Methodist places of worship are all called chapels in this
country; some members of the Establishment call them
" meeting-houses," others " preaching-houses," to degrade
them as far as possible from their churches ; this, of course,
you would not bear in America,) we adjourned to the King
ston chapel; a new, large, and elegant edifice.
glorious work of god in hull.
337
Considerable fear was entertained by many, as to the re¬
sult of a special effort in this chapel, as it was a new interest,
and very many of the pew-holders were unconverted, and
not a few of them comparative strangers to Methodism. But
the people of God were too well acquainted with"the source
from whence we obtained our victory at George Yard, to
place a revival in this chapel upon the ground of probability.
Indeed the last Saturday evening we spent at George Yard,
previous to commencing at Kingston, the Rev. Mr. Thomp
son told them, We must not go to that chapel under any
other feeling than an unconquerable and unwavering deter¬
mination to obtain a glorious victory for the Lord God of
hosts. He then offered all the lovers of Jesus in that band-
meeting a " motto, and a watchword," to circulate through
all their ranks; and advised it should be the language of
their hearts as they passed along the streets to the chapel,
and at every meeting there, Victory! Victory!! Victo¬
ry !! ! You know my sensitive nature ; how easily weak-'
ened, how ready to be encouraged in conflicts such as these
My soul was happy ; I felt as if I could run through a troop,'
and leap over a wall!
The following morning (Sabbath) we commenced the
" special services " at Kingston; enjoyed, a good day, and a
number of sinners were converted to God. A few days had
only passed away, when the revival was advancing with all
the rapidity and power it had at George Yard. We con¬
tinued to fight the battles of the Lord in this chapel, till the
30th ult., when it was ascertained that more than two hun¬
dred sinners had been converted from -the world, besides
seventy or eighty members; there were also two hundred
and fifty members who obtained the blessing of entire sanc-
tification. The select meeting for the young converts was
similar to those I have described in other letters. Unite
29
338 . GLORIOUS WORK OF GOD IN HULL.
with me, my dear friend, in giving all the glory to God for
such wonderful displays of his power! The Lord is very
good to-me, his unworthy servant; and I am sure you will
assist me* in giving him thanks for his great mercy in multi¬
plying the evidences, that my mission to Europe was of God.
It affords me great pleasure also, to say, that, under God,
much, of this success has been owing to the " brotherly kind¬
ness " manifested by the superintendent and his worthy col¬
leagues, during my stay among them. Every thing was done
by them to smooth my path, and to open to me a wide door
of usefulness in this town; and with such genuine good
will as none could misunderstand. It was seldom that there
was not one of them present to take the management of the
prayer meeting. Some of their exhortations, especially
those of the Rev. Mr. Illingworth, were among the most
soul-stirring and sinner-awakening appeals I have ever heard.
* The' local preachers and leaders, among whom was my host,
Mr. William Field, entered into the work with an ardor and
success I have never seen excelled. Bless the Lord, 0 my
soul, and- all that is within me praise him, that he has per¬
mitted me to form such an acquaintance with so many de
-voted servants of the living God ! The presence of the
stationed ministers relieved my mind from a weight of re¬
sponsibility ; and having perfect confidence in their judgment
I was saved from all anxiety from that quarter. The help also
of so many men of deep experience, rendered unnecessary
those exhausting personal efforts with penitents after preaching
which you are aware have worn me down in other revivals.
We retained the same secretary who officiated at George
Yard, (Mr. M. * *,) by which means, persons who had relapsed
into doubt, (which frequently happens during a revival,) and
had re-obtained a clear sense of the pardoning love of God,
were prevented from having their names recorded a second
GLORIOUS WORK OF GOD IN HULL.
389
time; which* should always be avoided, if possible, a3 it only
swells the number to an unreal amount.
Having received an invitation to the Hull West Circuit,
from the superintendent, the Rev. Thomas Martin, I preached
in Waltham Street chapel, last Sabbath morning; but in
such a ""rough and unpalatable manner," that many were
offended. At night, I came forward with a text which had
for some time rested upon my mind, with solemn weight:
" This year thou shalt die." The warning was attended
with an unusual influence from God, and about forty sinners
were converted. This display of the power of truth, togeth¬
er with the solemn and impressive services of " the watch-
night," have given an impulse to the revival, which I trust
it will retain during the entire special services on this
circuit.
I am at present busily engaged in preparing a volume of
my Letters for the press, and under' various apprehensions
as to how they may be received by the public ; but this I
must leave with the Lord. The principle upon which I pro¬
ceed is this: If the work of God be neglected, in bringing out
this volume, the Lord may frown upon it, and it will not
succeed, but beeome a total loss to me. But if I continue to
give my energies fully to the revival, leaving nothing undone
likely to promote its interests, and then do what else I can
in relation to the book, the Lord "may smile upon the produc¬
tion, give it a circulation, and make it a blessing. The pre¬
paring of this volume is a secondary thing; and this is as it
should be. The fruit, of my preaching, I thank God, is noi
so problematical as that of my pen. My mind is quite free '
from Sialoytcrftoi, "evil reasonings," - when preaching to a
chapel full of sinners, repentance toward God and faith in
our Lord Jesus Christ. " Here, is solid footing! " The re¬
sults are sure, so long, at least, as I live entirely to God,
MO GLORIOUS WORK OF GOD IN HULL.
and while my Lord graciously permits me to retain the com¬
mission he vouchsafed to me in America.
In a letter hearing date of Feb. 28, (1844,) Mr. Caughey
resumes his notices of the Hull revival as follows:
You will be rejoiced to hear that the revival is advancing
with rapidity and power. The great end which every con¬
scientious preacher of the gospel should have in view, is being
accomplished daily in this town — the Conversion of sinners
to God. The effects of truth upon scores and hundreds of
the sons and daughters of wickedness, are distinct and
undeniable.
Since the last day of the last year, my labors have been
confined to the Hull West Circuit. We continued the ser¬
vices in Waltham Street chapel, from the 31st of December
till the 17th instant.-
During that time, the congregations were large, beyond
any thing I had yet seen in a revival. The chapel, on the
week nights, was often " filled to overflowing," long before
the hour had arrived for preaching. Every service, during
the above period, was marked by a gracious and constraining
influence from above. There were seasons, too, when the
power of God was revealed in a manner most astonishing.
An extraordinary manifestation of this kind occurred in the
above chapel, on Friday night, 2d instant, which I shall
never forget, nor will the multitudes who were present.
During the first forty minutes of the sermon, there was an
awful solemnity, " a general calm; " not unlike a prelude to
one of your American storms of thunder and lightning and
rain—" a silent awe: that dares not move," pervaded the vast
assembly. So profound was the silence, that one would have
supposed the falling of a pin could have been heard in any
part of the chapel. From, say, the fortieth to the forty-
GLORIOUS WORK OF. GOD IN HULL.
841
eighth minute of the discourse", there were occasional flashes
of divine power, succeeded by suppressed sounds from dif¬
ferent parts of the congregation, indicating emotions of no
ordinary character. The preaching was very far from being
of a boisterous kind; but when the preacher arrived at that
point where it was strongly, but not with violence, urged
that full salvation should be expected every moment, by faith,
there was a divine feeling. "If we are sanctified by faith,"
said the preacher, " why not now ? this very moment, this
instant, now ? " my brother. If
" Your soul breaks out in strong desire,
This perfect, bliss to prove;
Your longing heart is all on fire,
To be dissolved in love."
More rapid than thought shall be your transition into a
state of perfect purity and perfect love. If you dare to be¬
lieve, he cleanses now ; in answer to your powerful prayer it
shall be done. Believe that he does save you from sin now,
and just now, the blood of Jesus Christ his" Son does cleanse
you from all sin, by the power of the Holy-Ghost, and you
shall be able to testify, " Let men exclaim, and fiends re¬
pine,"—
" 'T is done, thou dost this moment save,
With full salvation bless ;
Redemption through thy blood I have,
And spotless love and peace ! "
At this moment, an influence, evidently from Heaven,
came upon the people suddenly;* it seemed like some
mighty rushing =— like the bursting of a storm of wind upon
some extensive forest. The ■ entire congregation was in mo¬
tion ; some preparing to fly from the place, and others in the
act of prostrating themselves before the Lord God of hosts.
Cries for mercy, and piercing supplications for purity of
* Acts ii. 2.
342
GLORIOUS WORK OR GOD IN HULL.
heart, were heard from all parts of the agitated mass — on
the galleries, as well as throughout the body of the chapel;
while purified souls were exulting in the loftiest strains of
adoration.
■ The scene was, beyond description, grand and sublimely
awful. It was " God's own house, and heaven's gate." Poor
sinners were amazed, and fled ; but some of them fell down,
some distance from the chapel, in terror and agony. Many,
however, remained, venturing the publican's plea, " God be
merciful to me a sinner!" My soul, full of holy awe,
trembled before the majesty of God. like Elijah, who cov¬
ered his face in his mantle when the Lord passed by, I
was glad of a place of concealment in the bottom of
the pulpit. The superintendent minister, the Rev. Thomas
Martin, who was with me in the pulpit at the time, was so
overpowered, that he could do nothing but weep and adore.
Thus it continued for about twenty-five minutes, when the
Lord stayed his hand, and there was a sudden and heavenly
calm, full of sunshine and glory. The number converted
and sanctified on that night was great. It appears the in¬
fluence was almost as powerful outside the chapel as within.
An unconverted man, who was standing without at the time,
waiting to accompany his wife home, said, when she came
out, " I don't know what has been going on in the chapel, or
how you have' felt, but there was a very strange feeling came
over me while I was standing at the door."
A few such shocks of almighty power would turn the
kingdom of the devil in any place or city upside down, and
go far to convert the entire population.
I have seen but few such manifestations of divine power
during the course of my ministry; that which occurred at
the Port Jackson camp-meeting, on the western banks of Lake
Champlain, very much resembled it. •
GLORIOUS "WORK OF GOD IN HULL.
343
I have become acquainted with several remarkable cases
of conversion, in connection with this revival, some of which
will be interesting to you.
A few mornings since, a backslider, aged about fifty,
called to see me, in great distress of mind. He trembled
from head to foot, and so great was his anguish, he could
not, for some time, utter a word. At length, he cried,
" Lord, help me! 0, Sir, a few hours ago, I had a dream.
I thought I was in a strange town, some distance from Hull,
where the devil appeared to me, and attempted to carry me
off to hell, body and soul. My soul was greatly troubled in
my dream, and I begged for a certain number 'of hours, tha,t
I might return to Hull, and bid my wife and family farewell..
I asked for twenty-four hours, in which to go and come back;
allowing twelve hours to remain with my family. The devil
replied, i Very well, you shall have that time ;' and now,"
continued the unhappy man, weeping as if his heart would
break, " I believe I shall be taken sick to-morrow, at a cer¬
tain time, and die." It is a warning from God, my friend,
I replied, and receive it as such. " But I shall die to-morrow,
about this time." No ; I believe you will live much beyond
that period, if you seek for mercy, and get your backslidings
healed; you may be spared yet a number of years, to glori¬
fy your pardoning God. " Do you think so ? " I certainly
do, but it will be at your peril to procrastinate your salva- .
tion. Come forward to be prayed for to-night, at the close
of the sermon, in Waltham Street chapel, should you not
obtain salvation before. After prayer, he departed in great
anguish and agitation of spirit. That night he camo for¬
ward, among many other penitents, with his deeply-awakened
wife by his side ; nor did he leave the place of prayer till
God had restored to his soul the joys of salvation, A few
days after, on a Sabbath morning, at the Kingston chapel, I
344
glorious work of god in hull.
mentioned the case ; and he arose and testified to a large
eongregation that he was the sinner whom God had so won¬
derfully rescued from hell. -
The following letter from one of the leaders of the Hull
East Circuit to me, unfolds an.interposition of the presence
and power of God, which ought not to be concealed: —
" Hull, February 27,1844.
"Dear Sir,
" Feeling assured that it will he mteresting to you to re¬
ceive any information concerning those persons who, during
this great revival, have been brought to ' the knowledge of
the truth,' especially, as so many infidels, moralists, and car¬
nal professors Seem determined to brand that work as the
effect of a. mere mental, temporary excitement, it is with
unfeigned pleasure I communicate the following incident, as
additional evidence that the work in which you are engaged,
is indeed the work of God.
" You will remember, dear Sir, during the services at
Kingston chapel, One night, at the close of your sermon, you
were involved in a deep and intense agony respecting some
individual in the congregation, who, as it appeared to you,
was violently resisting the influences of the Holy Spirit, and
upon the very brink of destruction ; and, so solemn and aw-
vful was the impression, at that moment, throughout the vast
congregation, that many persons have repeatedly declared,
they never recollected any thing comparable to it during their
previous history.
" The following incident may serve, perhaps, in some
measure, to elucidate the occasion of that most extraordi¬
nary and overwhelming scene : —
"J. A., now a member of my class, and apparently,
about forty years of age, was, until within the last two or
GLORIOUS WORK OK GOD IN HULL.
345
three months, a bitter enemy of religion, and a violent per¬
secutor of the people of God. In his sentiments he appears
to have been an infidel; for, notwithstanding his awful blas¬
phemies uttered against every thing sacred,' he has been
frequently heard to say, that 4 if there were a God and a
heaven, he had no doubt of going there.' I ought to state
that his wife had been for some time a member of our so¬
ciety, but through his violent persecutions, she was induced,
after considerable endurance, to withdraw- herself, and lost
her religion. No matter into what company J. A. entered,
whenever religion was named, he never hesitated to denounce
it as a system of ' fraud and deception,' and its ministers as
4 rogues, vagabonds, devils,' &c. And he has often said, that
4 if ever he entered Kingston chapel, he hoped he should be
smothered, or that it would fall down-upon him and crush
him.' Soon after you came to Hull, he visited a member of
my class, Mrs. J., and during the conversation said, ' Why
you have another rascal come to town.' 4 Rascal,' said the
person, 4 who do_you mean ?'
«< Why,' said he, 4 that man from America.' And again
he commenced his old course. of blasphemous language
against the ministers of religion, &c., when she remind¬
ed him of the impropriety of such language in the pres¬
ence of her children, and commanded him to leave the
house, at the same time telling him, that she should .call *
upon, his wife to go and hear this Mr. Caughey.
44 She did so. His wife went to the chapel, and through the
mercy of God, was awakened and converted. She was solicit¬
ed to become a member of society, and a leader waited upon
her two or three times ere he could meet with her at home.
Her husband, by some means, received some intimation of it,
and became greatly enraged ; prohibited her from'attending
class meetings, threatening her, if she did, with the most
4J46 GLORIOUS WORK OF GOD IN HULL.
awful denunciations, and hoping that ' if ever she entered
that chapel (Kingston) again, she would fall down and "break
her neck.' But she was determined, if possible, to attend;
and as the duties of her husband required his attention at
that period of the evening, she thought she could do so with¬
out his knowledge. That day came, and to use his own "ex¬
pression, he £ felt like a devil;' came to the dreadful de¬
termination, as sincerely and- resolutely as he ever determined
upon any thing in his-life, as he himself has since declared,
to take away the lives of his wife and child, in fact to' cut
•their throats,' and afterwards to destroy himself. In order
to effect this horrid deed, he hired a man to occupy his place,
and proceeded to his house. . His wife, being unacquainted
with these, circumstances, was, of course, not a little sur¬
prised to see him. "Very suddenly and unexpectedly, how¬
ever, he changed his purpose, and announced his intention
to go with her to chapel. They went; but on their way, he
reiterated his strange wish that they might be 1 smothered;'
and indeed he was ' smothered,' whether from external or
internal - causes, or both, but most probably from extreme
mental conflict; for he was observed to be in a state of deep
agitation during the whole service; huge drops of perspira¬
tion, large as peas, were seen to drop almost incessantly from
his brow. Indeed, if ever the powers of heaven and the
demons of hell were in conflict for a man's soul, it seems as
if they were for his. So great was the agony of his mind
that he was quite incapable of paying attention to the ser¬
mon.
" But he was within the precints of the Lord's sanctuary
and the range of divine influence. ' As you were proceeding
in your discourse, he made a move to leave the chapel, and
requested his wife to follow him; but she pressed him to re¬
main a little longer; and this was repeated two or three times,
GLORIOUS WORK OP GOD IN HULL.
347
until at last he said, with as much vehemence as he dared,
' What the devil in hell will you stay here for ? ' She then
thought it necessary to move, and they went out. You will
remember, dear Sir, when in that tremendous agony, you
heard some person moving, as if to leave the chapel, and you
besought them, with the utmost jervor and energy, not to
leave the place ; as though you thought the individual con¬
cerning whom you were so burdened was then retiring from
the chapel. He and his wife were then going out.
" The 'hand of the Lord,' however, was upon him, and
he had not proceeded far, when his heart began to yield, and
his convictions became deeper and more intense, almost at
every step, until at last his alarm and terror became so great
that he could proceed no further; and the house of a sister,
which he had long avoided on account of her religious prin¬
ciples, being near, he now entered to groan out the agonies
of his soul, and plead for Salvation. All united in fervent
and earnest prayer with him, but he did not obtain the deliv
erance he so anxiously sought. He kept his burden untii
the following Saturday evening, when he attended the band-
meeting, but he.was not relieved even there. He then pro
ceeded towards the town, for the purpose of purchasing
some groceries ; but his burden was so intolerable he could
not reach the shop, he generally frequented, and procured
them at the nearest. On his return, he again called at his
sister's, and prayer was again made for him, but apparently
in vain. He went home, and after a tremendous "agony, he
obtained, about one or two o'clock, in the morning, the for¬
giveness of his sins. He could then say, ' Being justified
by faith, I have peace with God.' He and his' wife have at¬
tended my class ever since. His peace and joy, for several
weeks, were unutterable; to use" his own expression, his
4 heart was so full, he could not fell us;' all he could say
348 glorious work of god in hull.
was he was happy, very happy; and he continues to evidence,
to the present time, the reality and genuineness of the
change wrought by the Holy Spirit within him. He attributes
his conversion to your prayers, and the prayers of the con¬
gregation, offered, as they seemed to him to have been,
especially for himself.
" Such, dear Sir, are the triumphs of the grace of God;
and no doubt there are many instances equally remarkable,
if they were only brought to light. The prayers and best
wishes of hundreds, aye, and thousands, are upon you and
will follow you wherever you may go. May the Lord bless
and prosper you more and more! May your health and
strength be long preserved to labor in this great work; and
that you may yet be permitted to see many thousands and ten3
of thousands brought out of darkness into light, and from the
power of Satan unto God, is the sincere and fervent prayer
of, dear Sir, yours most affectionately,
"Thomas Lester,
" To the Rev. Mr. Caughey.
" P. S. You will perhaps remember, whilst pleading in
agony that evening you uttered the words, 1 Yisit not in
judgment, Lord, but in mercy;' and at last you rose cry¬
ing, ' Christ shall have the victory !' Mr. J., the husband
of Mrs. J., before mentioned, who also meets in my class, and
who knew J. A. well, told me, the other evening, that it was
his decided impression, that night he was at chapel, that un
less he was awakened that very evening, ' the Lord would
visit him in judgment, and make an example of him.' He also
stated that, as nearly as he could calculate, the time when
you exclaimed, ' Christ would gain the victory!' was just at
the moment J. A. began to relent.''
Another letter lies before me', bearing date the 4th instant,
GLORIOUS WORK OP GOD IN HULL.
349
in which there is a deeply affecting account of the death of
a young man, of which the following is the substance: —
He was present, it seems,, at the watch-night service, at
Waltham Street chapel, when I preached from that text,
" This year thou shalt die ;" but he resisted the influence
which attended that sermon, and turned away his ear from
the call. When the letter was written, they had laid him
in his coffin, ready for interment the next day. .
It appears, that about twenty-seven days after he heard
the warning, he was taken with a bad headache in the, night.
Next day he lost the use of both legs; the work of death
proceeded most rapidly. He endured great pain, and was
in extreme anguish. This continued five days. During his
affliction, he would answer no question about his eternal
state, until he was very much pressed to it; and then the
reply was, he hoped to get better, and that if God would
spare him he would lead a new life. Toward the closing
scene, he desired prayer to be offered for him, and died.
" He was a child of praying parents," says the letter,
" and his mother is now in glory. When he heard you, he
was full of life and vigor, and as likely to live, ten days ago,
as any man you could look upon. I believe that, at least,
he died a true penitent. These statements come from evi¬
dence which is most unquestionable. He now lies about two
hundred yards from —:— chapeland as some of his friends
may hear- you to-night, you will use your discretion in
bringing it forward, as they feel deeply on the subject.
" Your humble brother in Christ,
H. G."
I am sure you will be gratified to read the following letter
from another class-leader: —
30
350
glorious work of god in hull.
" Dear and Rev. Sir :
" The purport of this letter serves to inform you of. a
circumstance which must he both pleasing and profitable to
you. Yesterday- I was waited -upon by the bearer, and
requested to attend the. ' dying bed' of a young woman,
Hannah Jackson, aged eighteen, for the purpose of writing
a few words from her lips to you; which I did, and found
her perfectly happy in the love of God, and triumphant in
her last conflict.
" She desired me to tell you how happy she was; — that
on the 14th of last January she was awakened under one
of your sermons, to a sense of her lost condition; and that,
after -enduring much misery on- account of her sins, she
found peace with God, through faith in the blood of the
Lamb, on the 20th of the same month; that shortly after, it
pleased the Lord to afflict her unto death, but having obtained
mercy, she could now, on the verge of the eternal world, read
her title clear to a heavenly mansion. I then promised her
that you should have this communication; and in about an
hour she died, triumphing in her Redeemer's love.
' 0, may we triumph' so,
When all.our conflict's past!'
" And now, my dear Sir, having given you a brief account
of the above, and thus fulfilled my promise, I will not occupy
more of your precious time, but conclude by wishing you
may be made the happy instrument-, in God's hands, of
plucking many more-brands from the burning, and that they
may be as stars in the crown of your rejoicing.
" I remain, in great haste, your sincere friend and brother
In Christ,
Henry Cox."
"Rev. J. Caughey."
GLORIOUS WO'RK OF GOD IN. HULL.
351
On Thursday night, the 17th instant, we held a meeting
for the benefit of the new converts, in, Waltham Street
chapel. In consequence of many being in the employment
of others, some also unavoidably detained by their own
business, and several belonging to "country circuits, who
could not attend, there were not so- many present as some
expected. Three hundred and fifty persons came forward
to the altar, and in the clearest manner declared they had
obtained a conscious knowledge of the forgiveness of sins,
through the precious blood of Christ, during the progress
of the revival in Waltham Street chapel. The Rev. Thomas
Martin, and one of-his colleagues, the Rev. William Hurt,
spoke to each person separately, and expressed themselves
fully satisfied with their experience, and exhorted them, in
the most effectual and pathetic manner, to hold fast the
beginning of their confidence steadfast unto the end. It
was, indeed, a gracious season. Such' weeping, praying,
and rejoicing, I have seldom seen. More than two hundred
persons came forward to be prayed for, after the new1 converts
had retired to their seats.
The following night, I preached on the influence of a long
enjoyment of holiness in this life upon our heavenly state.
A large number obtained an inheritance among those that
are sanctified by faith. Acts xxvi. 18.
Numerous cases of restitution- have lately occurred, from
the small sum of a few shillings, ranging upwards to fifty
pounds sterling; but I fear a relation of the circumstances
connected with each case would be tedious and uninterest¬
ing. I am sure, however, you will rejoice with me, and
these precious English Christians, who take a hearty interest
in this wonderful revival, as well as with the angelic host, in
" the growing empire of our King." My soul is very happy
in God. A revival is the element in which I delight to
352
-GLORIOUS WORK OF GOD IS HULL..
breathe ; but all hell, as a matter of course, is set in arms
against my innovations. The devil is performing, in these
•days, several extraordinary evolutions to counteract aggres¬
sive movements. The design seems to be, a vigorous effort
to hedge up my way by prejudicing the minds of some good
men. Many reports are afloat that I have effected a sepa¬
ration between the American church and myself. Letters
reach me from various quarters, that some intend to make
my way rough in England. * My answer to those who
trouble me is, they cannot do it and prosper, unless God
permit; and even then their eye must be single.
My soul is sweetly assured, that no weapon that is formed
against me shall prosper; but, if wielded through envy, or
jealousy, or any unreasonable dislike, and contrary to the
single eye, which regards the glory of God only, the Lord
will bring it, and the hand that wields it, into confusion.
* As if God designed it for a providential defence of Mr. Caughey against
these malevolent opposers of revivals, the following letter from the venerable
Bishop Hedding, reached him a few months after, and greatly strengthened
him against his foes. — Ed.
" Trenton, New Jersey, U. S., April 23, 1844.
" Rev. James Caughey :
" My dear Brother, — Your letter to the Rev. E. Chichester now lies
before me. I am thankful for the great work God has wrought through your
labors in Ireland and England.
" You were regularly located, at your own request, as a minister in good
standing in the Methodist Episcopal Church, by act of the Troy Annual Con¬
ference, of which you were a member. And if you return to this country,
with proper testimonials of your good conduct, you would be joyfully received
as a member of the Conference and a regular travelling-preacher, as such
location and return to the travelling connection is perfectly consistent with
our rules and usages.
" Thousands would rejoice to see you return, and unite with us again in the
work of God in this country.-
" The work of God prospers in this land. May God bless and prosper you
wherever you labor!
" Your affectionate brother in Christ,
"Elijah Hedding."
GLORIOUS WORK OF GOD IN HULL. 353
This is my heritage of the Lord. This he has promised me,
and in him t trust. The' cause is his, and I shall keep to
the one thing for which he sent me out — the conversion of
sinners to himself; and shall leave the weight ,of such mat¬
ters to him. I am ready to leave England, and to return
to America, upon the least clear intimation from Heaven.
Here I rest my cause. It has been suggested to my mind,
perhaps the Lord is now about to thrust me back from
whence I came, seeing that the work is accomplished he hath
sent me over to perform. <, Let my gracious Lord determine,
and I stand ready gladly to Obey. Cheerfully would I haste
away across the mighty deep, could I but clearly see the
will of my divine Master; but -my conscience stands in
dread of the consequences of retreating from these kingdoms
before the Lord has signed and sealed- my passport.
We commenced a series of services in another chapel on
the Hull West Circuit, — Great Thornton Street chapel,—
on Sabbath, 18th instant^ and since then, about one hun¬
dred sinners have been converted to God," and about fifty
sanctified throughout — soul, body, and spirit.
On Monday, the 25th instant, an old man, nearly seventy
years of age, called upon, me for advice. He stated that,
during several months past, he had been tempted, in the
'most -uncontrollable manner, to commit murder, by way
of vengeance. An individual, it seems, in this 'town, had
wronged him in some lawsuit, by which he. lost his character,
and it had driven him to desperation. "When I pass him
upon the street," said the old man, " I turn round, and pray
that all the curses contained in the one hundred and ninth
Psalm may fall upon him and his family. A few days ago,"
he added, " when walking on the Pier Head, I prepared
myself to attempt his and my own destruction; and had he
not at the moment linked arms with another gentleman, I
30*
854
GLORIOUS WORK OF GOD IN HULL.
should have clasped him in my arms, and leaped with him
into the Humber. A short time since, I loaded a pistol,
and waylaid Jiim, and would have blown his brains out, had
he not escaped me by taking another way."
Poor man! I endeavored to draw aside the veil; and
God enabled me to show his amazed conscience how a
malignant devil had been operating in the dark, and with a
settled and infernal purpose Of bringing him to an ignomini¬
ous end, and his soul into a terrible helL " My aged
man ! you are a sinner, and-you know it. Your own tres-
-passes against God have been great and many; and, be
assured, if you cannot forgive a fellow creature his offences
against you, neither will God forgive yours against him.
With the Lord's Prayer, I presume, you are familiar; —
forget not that part of it, ' Forgive us our trespasses, as we
forgive them that trespass against us.' Remember, also, my
dear Sir, that this is the only passage in that beautiful
prayer upon which our Saviour thought proper to make any
comment; and what he says is most emphatic: ' for, if ye
forgive not men their trespasses, neither will your Father
forgive your trespasses.' Leave the matter with God. Pray
for your enemy, but avenge not yourself, or you will bring
your gray hairs with sorrow and dishonor to the grave;
neither give place unto wrath; because it is written, 'Ven¬
geance belongeth unto me, and I will recompense, saith the
Lord.' ' Resist the devil, and he will flee'from you.' "
After prayer, he departed, solemnly affected, and I trust,
either delivered .from his purpose, or at least firmly resolved
to struggle against the horrible impulse. Who can tell but
this conversation may save two souls from perdition ? — and
this is worth my visit to Hull.
You will be gratified to learn, that the Lord continues his
great goodness to me, with regard to providing me comfort-
GLORIOUS WORK OR GOD IN HULL.
.355
able homes in a strange land. At the house of Mr. William
Field, Market Place, Mr. West, Holderness Road, Mr.
James Crow, Beverly Road., and at the mansion of Mr.
Thomas Holmes, where I am at present, I have been enter¬
tained in a most hospitable manner.. In the lovely families
of these kind and generous friends, I. have enjoyed every
comfort I could desire. May the God of grace and provi¬
dence reward them for their great kindness to me,, his
unworthy servant!
I have, also, since, the beginning of the year, spent a few
weeks in the house .of the Rev. William Illingworth, one
of the ministers on the East Circuit. With him and his
devoted wife I enjoyed much of the presence of God,
" the communion of saints, the fellowship of kindred minds,"
in a very high degree.
" 0, to grace how great a debtor,
Daily I'm constrained to be ! "
I cannot express my circumstances, and state of mind better,
than in the words of Bishop Ilall: " There is a holy
carelessness, free from idleness^ free from distrust."
You have heard of the peculiar beauty of the English
hoarfrost. A few mornings since, when- enjoying a walk
into the country, I was favored with a rare opportunity of
observing this transitory, yet wonderful production of nature,
" frost-work fair, where transient hues, and fancied figures
' rise.", Every branch, and, slender twig of tree, thorn, and
shrub; each herb, leaf, and blade of grass, was adorned
with those light and feathery,- all-pervading, " myriads of
little salts, or hooked, or shaped, the various labors of the
silent night;" as if in imitation of all that "vernal sun"
awakes on "" forest bough or bladed field," when moist "with
the "light-footed dews" of summer's earliest morn. The
356
GLORIOUS WORK OF GOD IN HULL.
atmosphere was'still and pure, and the soft and filmy veil
which obscured the sky, protected the fairy scene from
being dissipated or destroyed too soon by the rays of the
ascending sun.
My soul was very happy in beholding this lovely scene.
Every object contributed to fill my soul with gratitude and
joy; and God had all my heart. Sometimes my joy in God
was ecstatic; but it was not that kind of joy which, as a
fine'writer says, " Often usurps the name of joy; .a trivial,
vanishing, superficial thing, that only gilds the apprehension,
and plays upon the surface of the soul; not the mere crack¬
ling of thorns under a pot; a sudden blaze of the spirits, the
exultation of a tickled fancy or a pleased appetite;" it
penetrated my nature, and diffused itself throughout my
soul. Apart from the splendor of nature around me, " it
was the result of a real good suitably applied; it was a joy
that feasted upon the solidities of truth, and the substance
of fruition; it filled the soul as God does the universe ;" I
cannot say " silently and without noise," fcir there was a
shout now and again, " refreshing and composing as the
mirth of a festival with the silence of contemplation."
We shall resume the subject of the Hull revival in the
next chapter.
. CHAPTER' XXI.
SCENES AND INCIDENTS OP THE HULL REVIVAL.
" Before honor is humility," saith the Eternal Word.
Mr. Caughey's experience in Hull affords a fine illustration
of this truth. His opening efforts there were despised and
almost rejected. His humbled heart sunk. to its lowliest
attitude ; feeling anew its long-abiding conviction, that man
alone is nothing — God every thing ! His prayers, exhor¬
tations, and sermons inspired the praying men of the church
with the same powerful idea. They called upon God like
men who meant what they expressed, and who felt all they
acknowledged. This was meeting God on his own terms,
and never did Jehovah honor the faith of the creature in a
more' marked manner than he did in some of the wonderful
scenes of the Hull revival. Let the minister or layman, who
reads this chapter, keep these views before him, and he may
learn a precious lesson which may yield fruit to the honor
and glory of God. But we will again suffer Mr. Caughey
to relate his own story : —
You will glorify God when I inform you that the revival
is still going on in Hull with increasing- power. Hundreds
of sinners have been converted to God since the date of my
last to you. The devil has been showing his teeth, also, and
roaring ; but he has neither liberty to bite nor devour
" The withered, dark, defeated mind,
1 That cumes Heaven and scorns-mankind."
357
358 scenes and incidents oe the hull revival.
One of the Hull newspapers has lent its columns to attack
me, and calls upon the authorities of the town to interfere,
and put me down. The gentlemen, however, have better
sense, and too much of the fear of God, to meddle with the
work in which I am engaged. Some of the wicked have
threatened to " drum me out of the town ; " but their pru¬
dence, it would seem, has questioned the propriety of obeying
this mandate of the devil to the letter; so the matter has
been deferred in the councils of the ungodly. Chagrined
that he cannot command physical force, by raising a mob, as
in former times, the evil one vents his spleen through the
medium of anonymous letters, most of which are impudent
and insulting, beyotid any thing you can imagine. But none
of these things move me. A good fire in the grate soon re¬
duces these harmless missiles to ashes; and, wheablazing there,
my prayer ascends to heaven, that these silly dupes of the
devil may never burn in hell. Now, I consider this excellent
revenge on Satan ; because God is able to overrule such cow¬
ardly and malignant scrawls, for the awakening and conversion
of the scribblers. I have known the wicked become fright¬
ened with the daringness of their folly, and return quickly to
their offended God, " lest they should get into hell before the
time."
Now and then there is a letter displaying - considerable
talent, as if Apollyon had a little vanity in showing that he
has minds under his control far superior to the other scur¬
rilous dogs, whom he usually employs to do his dirtiest work.
Some occasionally throw down the gauntlet, and invite me
into the arena of controversy; but my reply irritates both
the sinners and their masters: " I am doing a great work, so
that I cannot-come down: why should the work cease,
whilst I leave it, and come down to you?." Neh. vi. 3.
We majr say of this revival, as a certain learned judge
scenes and incidents. of the hull revival, 359
said of justice; that though opposed, and in some measure,
retarded by interested parties, yet it is like a river, which,.
though its surface is broken and ruffled into waves by
contrary and boisterous winds, yet holds on its way with
resistless force. All the opposition of men or devils seems
incapable of interposing any effectual barrier against its
triumphant progress. Hallelujah! "I am not ashamed of
the gospel of Christ,T in Hull, " for-it is the power of God
unto salvation to every one that believeth."
The truth of the living God in its burning power, is being
thrown among sinners daily.' Some of the hottest shot
from the magazines of Immanuel have been cast into their
intrenchments; and the execution has been tremendous.
The roaring of the artillery has no sooner ceased, than the
cries of the wounded, supplicating for mercy, are heard on
every side, until my soul has trembled before the Lord God
of hosts. Ah ! the human mind is a fearful thing. And I
have thought, in the midst of the uproar of terrified sinners,
that if the living coals of eternal truth, scattered over the
naked consciences of the ungodly, produce such effects,
even though there is hope throughout their agonies, and
their ears are filled with the cheering, accents of the gospel,
from the lips of so many servants of God, how terrible,
then, must the effect of hell fire be, when long resisted
Truth shall call upon eternity to vindicate its rights!
On the night of the 6th instant, in Great Thornton Street
chapel, an exhortation was given, before the text, on the
absolute necessity of an increase of the spirit of prayer
among the people of God, in order to the continuance of the
revival. My soul was burdened and pressed down before
the Lord, and I could only find relief, by telling them all
that was in my heart — all that I considered as standing in
the way ©f a larger outpouring of the Holy Spirit. The
360 SCENES AND INCIDENTS OF THL HULL REVIVAL.
Lord helped me to speak words of fire, and that declaration
of the Holy Spirit was accompanied with uncommon power,
" for as soon as Zion travailed, she brought forth her child¬
ren." Isaiah lxvi. 8. The congregation was then requested
to kneel down, and spend a few minutes in silent prayer.
Nearly all bowed, and the spirit of agonizing prayer came
down upon the people in a wonderful manner. Ten minutes
had scarcely elapsed, when the cries of penitent sinners
began to mingle with the earnest pleadings of God's servants.
The hand of the Lord rested upon the entire audience.
None moved from the place, though some looked unutterable
things. Earnest prayer ascended from almost every part'
of the chapel, even from the galleries, to a perfect tempest
of human voices. Zion was now travailing for the salvation
of sinners, and we were afraid to interfere. We left the
people safe with God; although he seemed to say, " Let me
go, for the day breaketh." " They cannot let thee go, my
Lord! Hear, 0 hear their cries, my gracious Master!1 Hast
thou not said, '.Agonize to enter in at the strait gate: for
many, I say unto you, will seek to enter in, and shall not be
able ?' And hast thou not declared, ' The kingdom of
heaven suffereth violence,'—that is, permits it, invites to it,
' and the violent take it by force ? ' So far from spurning
away the eager multitude, or resisting their vehemence as
irreverent, and derogatory to the glory of thy divine Majes¬
ty, thou must, thou wilt let them ' take the blessing from
above,' that they may ' wonder at thy boundless love,' —
that they may adore thy matchless benevolence and love, in
Jesus Christ our Lord.
' Their powerful groans thou canst not bear,
Nor stand the violence of their prayer,—
Their prayer omnipotent.'"
The visitation lasted about three quarters of an hour. I
SCENES AND INCIDENTS, OF THE HULL REVIVAL. 361
watched the . amazing scene with holj awe and indescribable
emotion, till the many hundreds of voices seemed to have
arrived at that point peculiar to prevailing prayer — Avhen
it appeared as if God was speaking to each stormy soul,
Peace, be still! — what is thy name ? — what wilt thou
that I should do for thee ?" And from the gradual descent
and mellowing tones of many voices, — softening down like
" the noise of many waters," — there could be no doubt, their
subdued answers received his approbation, and that he was
jsaying to every wrestling Jacob, "Be it unto thee even as
thou wilt; thy name shall be no more Jacob, but Israel:
for, as a prince, hast thou power with God and,with men,
and hast prevailed." Gen. xxxii. 28.
At this moment, the powerful organ, accompanied by the
votxs of a triumphant multitude, pealed forth,—
" See how great a flame aspires,
Kindled by a spark of grace !
Jesu's love the nation fires,
Sets the kingdoms in. a blaze:
To bring fire on earth he came;
Kindled in some hearts it is:
O that all might catch the-flame,
All partake the glorious bliss S"
The chapel was filled with' the glory of God, and every
face wore the heayenly expression, " Lo, God is here ! But
how dreadful is this place ! This is none other than the
house of God, and this is the gate of heaven." Gen.
xxviii- IT. ' , '
Some there were, it is ' true., who yet groaned, " 0
wretched man that I am, who shall deliver me from the
•body ol' this death ? God have mercy upon me, a sinner !"
But, before the meeting closed, they also were enabled to
rejoice in a pardoning God. -
31
362 scenes and incidents oe the hull revival.
A few days ago I received the following affecting letter
from an inhabitant of this town: —
" Hull, March 11,1844.
^ Rev. Sir, — Having received information that you
desired to have some account of the death of our beloved
son, George Young, we proceed to give it; but first allow us
to state what, I am sure, will be deeply interesting to you.
" On the 12th December last, while sitting under your
sermon, from this text,' This-year thou shalt die,' it pleased
God to give him to see his awful condition as a sinner. From
that moment, he Could not rest; and, after the sermon, he
went into the vestry, and, blessed be God, peace was spoken
to his-soul, through faith in the blood of the Lamb; and, up
to his death, I believe he has been growing in grace and
in the knowledge of our Lord Jesus Christ.
" On the morning of the, day in which he lost his life,
(March 9th, 1844,) he left home for the factory, singing, —
' This, this is the God we adore,
Our faithful, unchangeable Friend j
Whose love is as great as his power,
And neither knows measure nor end.
'Tis Jesus, the First and the Last,
Whose Spirit shall guide us safe home;
We'll praise him for all that is past,
And trust him for all that's to come.'
He entered into eternity about ten minutes past nine that
same morning.-
The manner of his death was as follows : We have been
informed by the overseer of the mill5 that there is a shaft
which runs from one end of the room to the other, about
three feet from the ceiling, with a drum attached to it.
While our dear son was in the act of putting the strap upon
this drum, his hand got entangled in 4he strap, and he was
SCENES AND INCIDENTS UF- THE HULL REVIVAL. 868
taken round , the shaft, which is a horizontal one, going at
the rate-of one hundred and thirty-eight revolutions per
minute, as near as could be calculated. He was on the
shaft about one minute and a half; so that he could not-have
gone round less than two hundred times, before the ma¬
chinery was stopped; after which, he was carried to the
Hull General Infirmary, pouring out his soul in prayer to
God — not to be relieved from his bodily sufferings, but to
be taken home to heaven. Medical aid was immediately
procured, when it was found his shoulder blade was foreed
out of its place, his arm broken in two places, also his thigh,
foot, and ankle — all broken, and his body most dreadfully
crushed, so that the surgeon gave up MI hopes of his
recovery.
" We, his parents, followed him to the Infirmary, and
when he saw us, he cried, 'Father! — mother! pray ,for
me ;' which we did. We inquired with deep anxiety, as to
the state of his soul; he was happy in the love of God.
'.Are you afraid to die, my dear son ? ' He replied, ' No :
but I want to sleep;' then added, ' I shall sleep in the arms
of Jesus.' After which, he prayed repeatedly, ' Lord, take
me to thyself!' and, turning his eyes towards heaven, he
exclaimed, ' Glory! Glory!' and expired.
" He was in -his sixteenth year, and was ever a most
obedient child. In the year 1842, he became a Sabbath
school scholar in the Drypool Wesleyan ehapel—was much
respected by the superintendents and teachers, and received
a copy of the New Testament, as-a premium for' memor zing
the greater part of the Gospel according to St. John. He
used to repeat between twenty and thirty verses each Sab¬
bath afternoon, which he had committed to memory through
the week, though employed from six in the morning till seven
at night. He accomplished it by tarrying the New Testa-
364 scenes and incidents oe the hull revival.
ment always in his pocket, so that it was always at hand
for a spare moment. He was a member of the Wesleyan
church at the time of his. death.
" We remain, dear Sir, your obedient servants,
"Richard and Mary Young."
How unsearchable are the judgments of God, and his
ways''are past .finding out! What a frightful death to come
upon one but newly adopted into his family ! But the Judge
of all the earth has done right. " Though clouds and dark¬
ness are round about him, justice and judgment are the
habitation - of his. throne."
Last night I' enjoyed a most powerful time, on the sub¬
ject of entire sanetification. About fifty professed to obtain
salvation.
"The Lord is very good to my soul. Although I have
various temptations and threatenings from the great adver¬
sary of God and man, he enables me often to rejoice with
joy unspeakable and full of glory.
" i have a secret joy that flows
Against the tide of common overthrows-;
i have a sealed, sacred peace,
Beyond the power of hell, sin, and disease ! "
I am glad to learn, that Mrs. * * * has found a situation
so much to her mind. I am quite of the opinion of that
wise Athenian, who, having a farm to sell, directed .the crier
to proclaim, as its best recommendation, that it had a good
neighborhood. I cannot think the smallness of the house
any great disadvantage, that is, if there be sufficient room
for herself and family, and some to spare for the accommo¬
dation of a few friends. You recollect the sentiment of
Socrates, who, when asked why he had built for himself
such a small house, replied, " Small as it is, I wish I could
SpENES AND INCIDENTS OF THE HULL REVIVAL. 3G5
fill it with friends."' "These," sajs a judicious writer,
" are all that a wise man can desire to assemble; for a
crowd is .not company, ;and faces are but a gallery of pic¬
tures, and talk but -a tinkling cymbal, where there is -no
love." " I confess," says Cowley, "I love littleness almost
in all things; a little convenient estate; a little cheerful
home, a little company, and a very little feast/'
* # * # # *
What follows is from a letter to his sister, and carries the
history of his movements down towards the close of April,
1844.
The date of my letter shows my birth month, (April.) I
have just been thinking of the sentiment of a poet in refer¬
ence to the changeableness of April; and although it is
quite inapplicable to the present weather, as-it is the most
delightful that ever cheered the heart of man, and has been
since the month began, yet, from the varied feelings of my
unsteady nature, I have been sometimes, superstitious enough
to think that it may have received a tinge from my native
April. This is only imaginary. But hear the poet: —
" Checkered your native month appears,
With sunny gleams, and cloudy tears;
*Tis thus the world our trust beguiles,
' Its frowns as transient as its smiles ;
Nor pain nor pleasure long will stay,
For life is but an April day."
On the night of the 8th instant, I held, as usual,r private
"watch-night" in my room. I anticipated much'good to
my soul from a retrospect of the past, and renewing my
resolutions to be more faithful during the coming year. My
mind, however, became greatly oppressed, and I had very
little of the spirit of prayer. The cause of this I could not
tell, unless it arose from the exhaustion of -the previous
81*
366 SCENES AND INCIDENTS OF THE HULL REVIVAL.'
Sabbath; as my Mondays are sometimes characterized by
this feeling. My birthday was ushered in with deep humil¬
iation of soul, and some gratitude to God for the mercies of
the past year ; but neither were in that degree which my
past unfaithfulness, and the goodness of my gracious and
long-suffering Lord, demanded. With earnest resolves to be
more faithful and more- entirely devoted to him the coming
year of my life, I was enabled to mate an unreserved dedi¬
cation of body, soul, and spirit, to the service of that God,
whose favor is better than life. I then opened on the fifth
chapter of Daniel, "and read it upon my knees, with very
solemn feelings.
The revival is advancing with "great power in this town.
We are now holding special services in' Great Thornton
Street chapel, which is the fifth chapel I have visited since
my arrival in Hull. I have preached in the above chapel
every night, with the exception of Mondays and Saturdays,
during the last eight or nine weeks. On the 3d instant we
held a meeting for the new converts, similar to that which I
described to you in my letter from Cork. There were pres¬
ent about four hundred persons, every one of whom was
happy in the pardoning love of God. This may give you
some idea of the rapidity and extent of the work, as all
these were converted to God during the previous eight or
nine weeks; but there were many others, who had found
peace during the same time, who could not be present at
this meeting. Some were detained by the business of their
employers, some with their own business. There were,
also, several sailors saved, who had gone to sea; four in one
ship, besides nearly one hundred from the country circuits.
Letters from some of these were read in the meeting, which
produced an excellent effect.
- Gn Friday, the 12th instant, I delivered a temperance
SCENES AND INCIDENTS OE THE HULL REVIVAL. 367
lecture, in behalf of the Hull Total Abstinence Society, in
the Town Hall; the mayor having kindly granted it for the
occasion. The place was densely crowded,. and J have
seldom seen so much enthusiasm manifested in a good cause,
as during the address. The Lord blessed me exceedingly,
and gave me great liberty of speech;
At the close of the lecture, a very respectable member
of the Society of Friends arose, and, in the midst of the
most profound silence, stated that he was a dealer in British
wines, in the town of Hull; that he had had scruples
respecting the trade for some time; that some had asserted
these wines were not intoxicating in their qualities, but he
kn'ew to the contrary. " And now," he said, " although I
shall sustain a loss in the abandonment of the traffic, yet I
shall do so from the present night. I have a quantity of
wine in my cellar, how much, or what the value I. am not
able to state; but I cannot sell it, and be consistent;" ^and
turning to the gentleman, in the chair, he said, " Friend,
thee may send thy horse and cart for it to-morrow, and take
it away, and do what thee pleases with it."
The effect upon the assembled multitudes was tremendous.
A few minutes after this, the majority of the meeting were
lifting up their hands to heaven, as a pledge, that from that
hour they renounced the use of all intoxicating drinks. J
have no doubt that, could we have held a few more meetings
of a similar kind, the liquor trade and intemperance would
have received a blow from which they would not have
recovered for a long time to come. And yet, I have found
Some good people lately, who, notwithstanding that the hor¬
rors of the trade and of the habit referred to are staring
them in the face daily, would have seriously deprecated a
series of such temperance meetings, let the results be as
they might. Poor inconsistent human nature ! We must
868 - SCENES AND INCIDENTS OF THE HULL REVIVAL.
have charity; hut, really, it requires a stretch of it on
behalf of those, who, forfashion?s sake,-and for the privilege
of sipping a little wine, and treating their visitors to that
which may prove their ruin, as it has done to hundreds of
thousands, would not only shut themselves out from taking
any part in this great and glorious temperance reformation,
but weaken the hands of those who are engaged in its pro
motion. But this is not all. Such persons not only cripph
themselves from doing any thing to help it forward, but,t fc
consistency's sake, they are absolutely forced into oppositior
to what, in their secret consciences, they cannot but allou
to be the safest and speediest method to dry up this principal
source of all the poverty and crime, and of the physical,
mental, and-moral degradation, which scourges our unhappy
world, in the nineteenth century.
Many undertake to lecture me upon the injury they ap¬
prehend my health is sustaining, from not helping myself to
a little wine, in time of exhaustion. My reply is, I seldom
feel any thing of the kind since I renounced the use of
alcoholic stimulants; but when I do feel any thing like feeble¬
ness, a little rest, with some nourishing food, and some simple
drink, such as milk, water, or a cup of tea or coffee, very
soon elevate." tired nature " into the proper tone, without
goading itrwith alcohol. It is with these intoxicating drinks,
as with physic ; accustom nature to them, and she will grad¬
ually cease to depend upon her own resources, and will rely
upon what is unnatural and artificial. " But you will yet be
forced to come down from those elevated sentiments," say
some, "and use a little wine for your stomach's sake, and
your often infirmities." Be it so ; and were it ordered me
by a physician, I might be induced to take it as a medicine
for a time, if nothing else would do. Nor, in such a case,
would it be fair for any one to say I had abandoned the prin-
SCENES' AND INCIDENTS OF THE HULL REVIVAL. 869
ciple. But I certainly would cease -from the medicine as
soon as possible, or set myself down -as a "confirmed in¬
valid." Let my future course he as it may, I intend
to take the stand occupied by the devoted Thjaothy, who
would not taste a single drop of wine, except, at r the sac¬
rament, till ordered by the highest authority in the church
— St. Paul—not as a beverage, but as a medicine. Now,
perhaps, if the apostle were upon the earth, and acquainted
with my constitution, and with the nature of the wines and
other intoxicating drinks sold in these kingdoms, he would
lay just as'.positive an injunction upon James Caughey, that,
for his " stomach's sake " he must refrain from their-use en¬
tirely. But, as I do not expect to enjoy a correspondence
with St. Paul till I meet him in heaven, I am nob to be
blamed if I stand as firm by my tee-total principles as did
heavenly-minded Timothy, till convinced by an authority, if
not so high, yet such as my reason must respect.
If any man in Europe has given tee-totalism a fair trial, I
have done so, during those - extraordinary labors in which
I have been so long engaged. My health, thank God, was
never better, nor my spirits in a livelier state, than at present.
Nor shall I, without the most convincing reasons, lay'down a'
great moral,power which God has given me in the ranks of
my temperance brethren. Instead of croaking and whining
over the real or supposed errors or inconsistencies of some of
the tee-totallers, in substituting the principle for religion, and
using harsh language and measures, where milder "would be
more effective, I will plunge in among them, as thorough¬
going a tee-totaller as any of them — convince, if possible,
my beloved friends, where they may be wrong, and neu¬
tralize their errors by the eternal truths of Christianity.
But this they never' would allow, were they suspicious of
my being in the habit of taking these intoxicating drinks.
370 SCENES AND INCIDENTS OE THE HULL REVIVAL.
Now, I do consider this • a very valuable 'vantage ground;
nor Shall I abandon it without the strongest reasons.
On Sabbath, the 14th instant, I returned to the Kingston
Ghapel, and spent the day there, preaching twice. The
crowd of people was amazing. Many could not get in, and
went away. In the afternoon, we had a prayer meeting.
The lower part of the chapel was full, and there were many
in the gallery.
In a certain part of the meeting, while > the congregation
was standing, and the altar-rail was encompassed by penitents,
the people were addressed upon the necessity of an immediate
and universal cry to God for. a more copious outpouring of
the Holy Spirit. The exhortation was short—only labout
three minutes — but to the point, and full of divine unction.
" And now," said the exhorter, "down upon your knees,
every man, woman, and child of you." Here ensued one
of the most majestic scenes I ever witnessed — a simultane¬
ous motion of more than one thousand people, struggling to
get to their knees — some half bent, others rapidly moving
in that position, to find a place to kneel. They seemed, in
fact, like an army rushing to battle. The Rev. Mr. Thomp¬
son remarked to me, as-we were standing together in the
reading desk at the -moment, that it was one of the finest and
sublimest sights that he ever beheld. In a few moments the
glory of God seemed to fill the chapel; but eternity alone-
must unfold the wonderful effects of that afternoon's ser¬
vice.
Yesterday forenoon, I. preached again in the Kingston
chapel, in behalf of the Chapel, Trust Fund. Although a
week-day service, the congregation was very large, and com¬
posed of most of the denominations in town. The Lord gave
me great liberty on Romans yiii. 15,16.- The collection
was noble.
scenes, and incidents oe the hull revival. 371
The following letter and resolution show the estimate set
on Mr. Caughey's labors by the official members of the Wes-
leyan churches in Hull.
"Hull, March.26, 1844.
" To the Rev. James Caughey.
"Dear Sir,
" We have great pleasure in handing over to you a copy
of a resolution, passed unanimously, at the Quarterly Meet¬
ing of the Hull West Circuit, held yesterday in the vestry
of Waltham Street chapel; and in doing so, we beg to offer
our sincere and.best wishes for your health and happiness, as
well as for the blessing of the great Head of the church on
all your future endeavors to promote his. glory, in the salvar-
tion of immortal souls.
" We remain dear Sir, yours in the bonds of Christian
love and affection,
"Jno. S. Richardson, ) Circuit
Thomas Henwood, J Stewards.'-'
" Hull West Circuit Quarterly-Meeting, held in the vestry
of Waltham Street chapel, on Monday, the 25th of
March, 1844.
" The Rev. Thomas Martin in the chair.
" Resolved, That this meeting acknowledges, with devout
gratitude to Almighty God, the success which it has pleased
him to vouchsafe to the special religious services instituted of
late, and still continued in this Circuit; and, in connection
therewith, feels called upon to offer its best thanks to the
Rev. Thomas Martin, the esteemed superintendent of this
Circuit, and to his colleagues, the Rev. William Hurt and
the • Rev. Daniel West. This meeting further presents its
most grateful acknowledgments to the Rev. James Caughey,
of the Methodist Episcopal Church of America, for his very
valuable services in this Circuit during the last three months ;
372 scenes „and incidents of the hull revival.
which,- in connection with the special .meetings already re
ferred to, 'having been greatly owned of God to the awaken
ing and conversion.of many sinners.
. Signed on behalf of the meeting,
" Jno. S. Richardson, ) Circuit
Thomas Henwood, }, Stewards."
.Towards the last of April, 18^4, Mr. Caughey brought his
labors in Hull to a termination. We insert the following
- account of the closing scenes.
My labors in Hull were brought to a conclusion during the
last week in April, by preaching farewell sermons in three of
..the chapels. • The crowds were tremendous, and the affection
of the people unbounded; especially that of the new con¬
verts., It was with the greatest difficulty the brethren could
extricate me from the multitudes which surrounded the-car¬
riage on my departure from Great Thornton Street chapel.
I can scarcely convey to you any idea of the scene. Had I
staid to shake hands with but one half of those who
desired it, I should not have got off before midnight. The
excitement of mind was nearly too much for me. Were J to
let my pen have freedom to express all the love that burns
in my bosom toward the people of Hull, and the reasons for
'this warmth of affection, this -letter would extend- to an
unreasonable length. Noble, generous, royal, enthusiastic
Hull! We sometimes talk of the ardor and enthusiasm of
the Irish people ; but in these respects^ Hull and her chil¬
dren might be set down, side by side, with any city or town
in the Emerald Isle.
As to the extent of the revival, as near as could, be ascer¬
tained from records carefully kept during its progress, two
"thousand three hundred persons obtained justification, of
whom, seventeen hundred were from the world; more than
SCENES AND INCIDENTS OE THE HULL REVIVAL. 873
one thousand of these united with the Wesley an Church in
Hull. The remainder of the converts from, the world were
from several country Circuits in Lincolnshire and parts of
Yorkshire ; most of whom, it is hoped, have united with the
church in their respective neighborhoods, and many united
with other churches in Hull. Six hundred persons belong¬
ing to the Wesleyan and other churches, were also converted
during the revival. What the final results may be,, or how
these new converts will stand, time or perhaps eternity alone
can unfold; but, certainly, the work bears every feature of;
its having been wrought of God. It is admitted, that some
may have been deceived as to their conversion; others may
hereafter bear too strict a resemblance to those by no means
singular cases, connected with that great revival so strikingly
illustrated by our Lord, in Matthew xiii. 1; yet, very much,
under God, will depend upon the pastoral faithfulness of the
ministers, as well as the individual exertions of the leaders
of classes on the two Hull Circuits.
To the ministers I could say little on leaving. I felt I
could rather take my place at their feet. My sou], as it
always is in a. revival, and in proportion to my success, was
deeply humbled before God and man. Several opportuni¬
ties, however, were afforded me, before I left the town, of
exhorting the leaders to take special care of the new converts.
Mr. and Mrs. Morley very kindly invited a large company
to meet me at tea in their house; and the following evening
my excellent host and hostess, Mr. and Mrs. Thomas
Holmes, afforded me the same delightful privilege at their
mansion. These happy interviews shall never be forgotten.
Through the kindness of the Rev. Robert Thompson, Super¬
intendent of the East Circuit, I enjoyed a similar interview
with the leaders and local preachers in the band-room at
George Yard chapeL But the " crowning meeting of all"
32
874 scenes and incidents of the hull revival.
was afforded by the generosity of my late host and hostess,
Mr. and Mrs. James Crow. The tea was given in a, large
upper room of one of his buildings. The company was large
and highly respectable ; composed of local preachers, class-
leaders, and friends — one of the happiest seasons of the
kind I have ever enjoyed. I poured out my heart before
them, begging and entreating them, with the deepest emotion,
to spare no pains, that those lately brought to God
might be preserved from going back into the world. Four
evenings were spent in this way most agreeably with the
leaders. The manner in which they individually responded
to my requests and anxious feelings, is too deeply engraven
upon my heart ever to be erased. Here I-must leave the
matter for the present.' "If I be bereaved of my children,
I am bereaved." Satan often tells me there will be many
who will backslide in Hull, and that, in consequence thereof,
my God will yet humble me among them. But I can only
turn my weeping eyes to God and say, —
" Thou seest their wants, thou knowest their names,
Be mindful of thy youngest care;
Be tender of the new-born lambs,
And gently in thy bosom bear.
The lion roaring for his prey,
With ravening wolves on every side,
Watch over them to tear and slay,
If found one moment from their guide.
Satan his thousand arts essays,
His agents all their powers employ
To blast the blooming work of grace,
The heavenly offspring to destroy.
Baffle the crooked serpent's skill,
And turn his sharpest darts aside;
Hide from their eyes the devilish ill;
0, save them from the demon Pride.
In safety lead thy little flock
From hell, the world, and sin secure |
And set their feet uptfn the rock,'
And make in thee their goings sure!M
SCENES AND INCIDENTS OF THE HULL REVIVAL. 375
Having left Hull, Mr. Caughey revisited his old friends in
Leeds. It was only a flying visit, but the account is interest¬
ing, as it illustrates the permanency of the Leeds revival.
He says:
I spent the last Sabbath of April in Leeds, and preached
in St. Peter's chapel, morning and evening. During the
forenoon discourse, most of the* congregation were bathed in
tears. The house was filled with the glory of God. I have
never revisited a place where greater affection was manifest¬
ed towards me, nor more confidence in the • sincerity of my
efforts to save souls. This was contrary rather to what I
expected. From the reports which had reached me of the
grievous " falling away " of the new converts, I apprehend¬
ed my influence in Leeds must have been greatly impaired.
This, however, was far. from being the case. The friends
from all parts of the town were present, and so were very
many of my spiritual children ; and great was our joy and
rejoicing in the Lord.
I was much affected at seeing Mrs. Shann in the congre¬
gation, with part of her family. You will remember the
name, as from my letters you learned that I stopped at her
house during part of my stay in Leeds. The death of Mr.
Shann, which occurred about four months ago, Was sudden.
Having been called to London on. business, he was taken with
a sickness which terminated in death. His family arrived
in London a few days before he died. His end was not only-
peaceful but triumphant. I well remember the night, dur¬
ing the revival in Brunswick chapel, when he came forward
to the altar, with many others, to seek salvation-. The text
was, " How long halt ye between two opinions ? " While
kneeling there with several others of his family, he obtained
an evidence, clear and satisfactory, that God, for Christ's
376 SCENES AND INCIDENTS OE THE HULL REVIVAL.
sake, had forgiven his sins, and'had adopted him into his
family. The fear of the Lord had been before his eyes for
many years; but till that memorable night, he had not en¬
joyed, J believe, a conscious sense of the pardoning love of
God. A part of his family, with himself, united with the
Methodist church immediately ; and, -with alH the simplicity
of one-but newly found in Christ, he declared, from week to
week, what great things God-had done for his soul. A few
months passed away, and he was called tt> unite with the
church triumphant. Mr. Shann stood high in the commer¬
cial world, as a gentleman of lofty principle and unsullied
integrity. He showed me great kindness during my resi¬
dence in his hospitable house, for which I" hope he will be
- rewarded in the resurrection of the just. Amen!
On the same night in which- he died, being in Hull, I had
a dream. I thought I was walking along a strange and
lonely road. After passing a spot where four roads struck
off in different directions, I turned and looked to- my left,
and saw Mr. Shann riding down one of the roads. He
drove two fine horses of dappled gray, which were attached to
a large piece'of timber elevated on wheels. He was seated
on the timber, driving rapidly; and after waving several
adieus with his hand, he dashed onward, and was. soon out
of sight: As he was disappearing from-my eyes, these
words reached my ear: " He is in great haste to pay a debt."
J awoke with the -deep impression resting upon my mind,
" Mr. Shann is dead." In the morning, I told Mr. Field, at
whose house 1Was then, staying, that I believed one of my
Leeds friends had passed into eternity. To his surprise, a
few hours after-, I presented him with a letter, which gave
the account of the sudden death of Mr. Shann.
While in Leeds I took occasion to inquire carefully into
the truth of those reports which had been put into circulation
SCENES AND INCIDENTS OF THE HULL REVIVAL. 377
respecting the late revival; and with a few slight exceptions,
I am-happy to say they appeared to have no foundation in
truth. I had several conversations with intelligent, individuals
on the subject. Their replies to my inquiries may be summed .
up by quoting the substance of the remarks of one individual :
" In order, my dear Sir, to understand correctly the blessed-
effects of that revival, to the fullest extent, the state of the
Wesley an "society in Leeds, previous to that remarkable out¬
pouring of the Spirit, should be considered. During' two
years which preceded that revival, in consequence of com;'
mercial distress and the consequent poverty of the people,
together with removals, deaths, backslidings, and expulsions,
we were going down at the rate of one hundred per quarter.
You are aware the revival had begun in some parts of the
Circuit and extended into the country before you came
among us. The work advanced with greater power after
your arrival; and, after the quarterly visitation, we found,
the' retrograde movement had. been put a stop to, and we had
a small increase, and many on trial. From that time, we
have been gradually on the advance. It is admitted that a
few of the new converts did go back to the world, and some
whose names were on the list we never found; but, that
the revival has been a .failure, and that the society is just
where it was before, is a positive falsehood. We can present
to friends and. foes the convincing proof of our contradiction,
by showing an increase on the year of five hundred mem¬
bers."
Another said: " We are not after all to estimate the
value of that revival so much by the mere numerical in¬
crease, as by the high tone of piety it has diffused through
our church." '
I account for these reports thus:. 1st. The conversion of
fourteen or fifteen hundreds of people in the course of a few
32*
378 SCENES AND INCIDENTS " OF THE HULL REVIVAL.
months, could-iiot but be noised abroad. 2d. It was not
generally known, that hundreds of these were members of
the Wesley an and of other churches in town and country.
3d. It was expected," by those who-did not understand the
real character of the statistics, that a very large increase
would be realized. 4th. As quarter succeeded quarter, such
persons looked in vain for this great augmentation of numbers.
5th. Unguarded and unqualified expressions were uttered in
certain quarters, that the greater-part of the converts could
not be fohnd, or had gone back to the world', because two
out of a dozen, or three out of thirty, had refused to attend
class, while the owners of several'names could not be found:
te Therefore the revival1, has resulted in a failure." Other
causes might be given—but I forbear.- ■
I spenth most delightful Sabbath in Leeds. My old offi¬
cers, local preachers, and leaders, from all the circuits in
town, rallied around me. God was with us in "power, and
many sinners were "converted. A few of my /children, who
had been tempted by the devil into the road to hell, were re¬
claimed and brought back again, with many tears, into the
path'of heaven.
Next" day I returned to Hull by railway. When within
about forty miles of Hull, the engineer, when pausing at a
station, introduced himself to me as one of my children in
the Lord. ~ He requested me to ride a few miles with him on
the platform of the locomotive, in order to see the machinery
in motion. As we were flying along, he related his awaken¬
ing and conversion.. When' we' came to a certain place, he
said: " There ! that is the place where, God set my soul at
liberty. My agony of mind was.very great. So much so,
that when we stopped at a certain station, I ran from the
engine into a retired place, and cried to God. When we
started, I scarcely knew what I did, I was so wretched.
SCENES AND - INCIDENTS OF THE- HULL REVIVAL. 879
But my cry for mercy went up to heaven. When running,
Sir, at the rate of thirty miles an hour, God met me. The
rapidity of our motions was no hinderance. He spoke peace
to my soul, and in a moment my hell was turned into heaven,
and I rejoiced with joy unspeakable and full of glory." The
above is but the substance of his experience. All glory be
to God! -
On the first of this month, in company with the Rev. Wil¬
liam Illingworth and wife, the Rev. John Vine and wife, afid
a number of other friends, I enjoyed an excursion to Welton
Yale.
The occasion of our visit arose from the kind invitation of
Mr. and Mrs. William Field, at whose house I was first .en¬
tertained on my arrival in Hull, and where I spent the last
week of my stay in that town. They contrived the excur¬
sion in order to celebrate the anniversary of their marriage,
and also as a token of respect for your correspondent. , ,We
were favored with as lovely a day as our heavenly Father
could have given us. - " It was," as a poet has expressed it,
" one of those heavenly days that cannot die," -The scenery'
was beautified all the way with hill and dale, fine gardens,
fruitful fields sprinkleduvith trees and fringed with woods, in
which are nestled sweet cottages and elegant mansions ; the
whole enlivened by extensive views of the Humber, visible
from various points of elevation.
Arriving at the Yale, we obtained-permission from the pro¬
prietor to enter. After enjoying a few walks, traced out in
many directions, and - through a variety of romantic scenes,
the cloth was spread upon the grass, beneath a refreshing
shade, where~we partook of an excellent dinner. The party
then retired to a summer-house, commanding an extensive
prospect. Beneath flowed the Humber ; the opposite shores
displayed the hills and dales of Lincolnshire, with the " con-
380 SCENES AND INCIDENTS? OP THE HULL HEYIYAL.
fluence point" of the -rivers Trent (if I recollect right)
and Ouse with- the Humber.
The happy couple were then addressed by several speak¬
ers, with numerous congratulations and hearty wishes for
many happy returns of the season, all of which, I have no
doubt, were felt'; and to which Mr. Field replied with very
good grace. Our proceedings were, however,, disturbed by
the- arrival of a messenger, stating that " the village had
come into the vale," and that " they expected a sermon from
Mr. Caughey," ' We found nearly two hundred people con¬
gregated beneath some shady trees on the brow of the hill.
We walked into the midst of them and sang: —
" My God, the spring of all my joys,
The life of my delights,
The glory of my brightest days,
And comfort of my nights !"
After which, .several of the brethren prayed, and I gave
an. exhortation. ^ The dear people seemed much affected.
When I, requested-, those who were determined to meet us in
heaven, to signify the same by raising the right hand heaven¬
ward, the sudden and universal. show of hands gave
evidence that the feeling and purpose - were general. One
person, I have since been informed, founds peace during, the
service. We ba4 a pleasant ride back to Hull, and had the
privilege, at night, of hearing the Rev. Dr. Beaumont preach
an excellent sermon in Kingston chapel.
We cannot close this chapter better than by inserting the
following letter from a ,-pious gentleman of Hull, concerning
the subsequent influence of Mr, C.'s labors in that town. It
carries us a little beyond the time of our narrative, but is
nevertheless an appropriate conclusion to the foregoing revival
incidents.
scenes and incidents of the hull revival. 381
" Hull, Jujste 25, 1844.'
" My dear Brother,
" We had our Quarterly Meeting yesterday. I wish you
could have been present; it would have greatly encouraged
you. We have now on the Hull East- near eight hundred
more meeting in class than we had before your visit. Mr.
T. has the numbers, seven hundred and ninety-four or
six ; but I should say, we have a few above eight ^hundred".
Our finances are equally encouraging; — we have an in¬
crease of £60 per quarter. We passed a resolution, which
"will be handed to you by our Circuit stewards. It will, I
trust, gratify you', and encourage you to go on in the name
of Him who sent you on this glorious mission. I believe.fhe
Spirit of God will not mislead you, if you continue to be
faithful. God will stand by you and his own truth. You
remember the second Sunday evening you preached in Walt-
ham Street chapel, when you said some strong things. ' A'
very wicked persecutor was induced to go into Waltham
Street chapel, as he was .passing; the word reached his
heart; he ' never rested unjiil lie was saved ; — and a
more sound and clear conversion we had not in Hull.
His name is Thomas McC. I am sorry to say he per¬
ished last week in the Manchester steamer, witffall on board;
they left this for Hamburg last Friday week. 'He has left a
wife and two children. Is not this very startling, that so
many should be swept away that have lately been converted,
and others, who rejected the offers of mercy, also cut down ?
May the mighty power of' God" .still attend your ministry I
We had a very glorious day last- Sabbath — Kingston chap¬
el full at the love-feast, and great power; many saved
in George Yard at night; — we had "a great victory.
You must remember, I shall expect you to" come by way
382 SCENES'. AND INCIDENTS OF THE HULL REVIVAL.
of Hull to London, I cannot excuse you; -Hoping soon
to hear from you, I am, my dear brother, yours very af¬
fectionately,
" "VyiLLiAM FIELD."
CHAPTER XXII.
Displays of divine glory in Sheffield.
It was Mr. Caughey's intention to'proceed directly from
Hull to Huddersfield. But 'the Sheffield brethren, having
by some misunderstanding been led to expect him in their
circuits, had made such public announcements as could not
with, propriety be disappointed. Hence Mr: C./having but
just begun his labors in Huddersfield,, felt himself under a
sort of 'moral compulsion to leave, and to make ah attempt
on the. kingdom- of darkness in Sheffield first. , His success
there showed the wisdom of his' decision — it, was really
marvellous. With 'this- brief introduction, we leave- the
reader to pursue the narrative with the assuran.ee that this
chapter will be to'him a "feast of fat things." ■;
On Saturday,' the 4th.of May, 1844,1 left Hull by rail¬
way for' Huddersfield, where I arrived in a few hours, and
was conducted to1 New-House, the mansion, of -Mr. Thomas
Mallinson, where. I was hospitably entertained during my
stay. Next day I preached twice in the Queen Street
chapel — a large and handsome edifice. Sinners were
converted' in the afternoon and at night. I preached also
on' Tuesday, Wednesday, Thursday, and Friday evenings.
Each'service was crowned with the conversion of sinners
and sanctification of believers; indeed there was every
38a
384 -DISPLAYS OP DIVINE GLORY IN SUEEFIELD.
appearance that.we were oii the eve of a very great revival
of religion. v The friends in Sheffield, however, had so con¬
strued a sentence in one of my letters, as to imply a
positive .promise to visit that-town at a certain timehad
handbills printed and placards posted on- the-strength of it,
and insisted upon the fulfilment, the. following Sabbath.' It
was a, grievous thing to the Huddersfield friends; and they
. protested against it. But on my giving, them a promise,
that on my return from my intended Italian tour, I would
-revisit Huddersfield, they consented-to let me go. I left
them_jwith. regret.- \ The Wesleyans ha-ve a lovely people in
Huddersfield. - A few influential men of the right, stamp,
appear to have given a holy, elevated, and generous tone to
the entire church. .Bong may they continue so; " rooted
and fixed in God."
The Wesleyan ministers, now stationed in Huddersfield
are, the Rev.. John. Greeves, the Rev. Jonathan J. Bates,
'and the -Rev.- Edward Brice. . I was- received by these
ministers with great oordiality; had "the privilege of dining
in their, company .several times- .during my. stay j and each
interview only rendered the acquaintance the more interesting
and agreeable. God bless them! Amen.
On Saturday, the 11th instant, ! arrived in Sheffield, and
was conducted by my kind friend Mr.. John Unwin, to the
house of Mr. William Beet,. where I- received a cheering
welcome, and where I have since remained. About sixty
persons have -been converted here already.
My sudden departure from Huddersfield was sorely against
my will. I thought God had .sent me There.. Perhaps the
future may explain it. . WhOn I was in Hull, Mr. JoSeph
Webb and Mr. Thomas Mallinson came with a- special and
pressing invitation to visit Huddersfield. > My mind was not
to go; the more I thought of it, the more averse I felt. I
DISPLAYS OP DIVINE GLORY IN SHEFFIELD. 385
went up to my room, and fell down before God, and inquired,
" Shall I go, my Lord ? " The following was spoken to my
heart: " Go, nothing doubting." I said, " I shall go,
then;" and so the matter was arranged. I afterwards
found, that many of the good people at Huddersfield had
engaged to plead with God for the success of these gentle¬
men's mission. The meetings we did hold were crowned
with rich blessings from on high; but our purposes were
broken off.
Of his first labors in Sheffield we find the following
account:
We arrived in Sheffield in time to enjoy an excellent
prayer meeting in Carver Street chapel.
I rejoice to inform you, that the special services in the
Ebenezer Wesleyan chapel of this town — Sheffield — have
been remarkably owned of God, in the conversion of sinners
and the sanctification of believers.
At first, my congregations were small, but they increased
more and more, and so did the number of the saved.
Unlike most places I have visited, where I have been
compelled to lay close siege to sinners, long and continued,
before they yielded, the sinners of Sheffield began almost
immediately to surrender; for, although the first prayer
meeting on Sabbath afternoon, May 12th, resulted intthe
conversion of one only, twenty-nine were converted at night
after sermon. Considering the neighborhood and circum¬
stances of the society at Ebenezer, I felt at first a little
surprised that the Superintendent, the Rev. J. P. Haswell,
his colleagues, the Rev. J.' Stinson, T. Dickin, and B. B
Waddy, with the leading men on the Circuit, should have
fixed upon this as the most suitable place to commence
special efforts for a' great revival — a decision, in which, I
33
886 DISPLAYS OF DIVINE GLORY IN SHEFFIELD.
believe they were unanimous. I would have chosen the
heart—Carver Street chapel—as the most likely place to
find that warmth of temperament, and energy of talent, so
necessary " to- make a beginning." The results, however,
proved the propriety of their choice. The official brethren
at Ebenezer entered into the work with their whole souls.
The members, though generally poor in this world, but rich
in faith, assisted us in mighty prayer. The noise was some¬
times tremendous, but God was in it. No attempts were
made abruptly to put it down; but by prudent management
on the part of Mr. Haswell, when present, and others who
had charge of the services in his absence, it was kept within
bounds, and under a scriptural and judicious control, and
was rendered subservient to arouse the careless and prayer-
less to perceive and feel that religion was a subject worthy
of the attention and energies of their fellow-townsmen. The
influential and talented leaders of Carver Street, instead of
standing aloof to see first how the battle would go, came
up nobly to the help of the Lord. Reports' spread like fire
through all parts of the town; sinners of every grade of
character crowded to the place. Some fled in terror, looking
unutterable things—illustrating vividly that passage in the
book' of Samuel: " And the Philistines were afraid, for they
said, God is come 'into the camp. And they said, "Woe unto
us! for there hath not been such a thing heretofore." Every
meeting brought more and more together. The noise was
heard afar: " And when the Philistines heard the noise of
the shout, they said, What meaneth the noise of this great
shout ? for, when the ark of the covenant of the Lord came
into the camp, all Israel shouted with a great shout, so-that
the earth rang again." 1 Sam. iv.
Some people were "offepded" at the tremendous "amens"
and shouts of victory which prevailed on every side. But
DISPLAYS OF.DIVINE GLORY IN SHEFFIELD. 387
such were exhorted to patience, and to beware of temptation
— to remember also, that it was impossible, unless the lungs
of the zealous people were as substantial as leather, or as
as Cicero expressed it, their bodies were " chiselled out of
the rock, or hewn out of the oak;" or their voices were
endowed with the unchangeability of the trumpet, that they
could stand, for any considerable length of time, efforts so
violent. The prediction proved too true. Toward the latter
part of the second week, they began to flag; and there
were evident marks of a humiliating and rapid tendency to
the opposite extreme. Some had quite exhausted their
strength, others had broken their voices; the " amens"
were " few and far between.'1 This was the reaction some
of us anticipated. Any one, not acquainted with the secret
power to which we owed our success, during the tempest of
human feeling — the constraining and overpowering influ¬
ences of the Holy Ghost — would have said, "The revival
is at an end — the sparks of their own kindling are quite
gone out — it is likely they will close the doors now and
recruit ere they can muster another such exhibition." But
the work of God, which is not dependent upon much noise
or little, but upon an influence from heaven, advanced with¬
out a pause. The 'hearts of the people were right with God.
Wickedness was not in our camp, nor division of feeling or
opinion. Many seemed, in their looks, to say: " Our hearts
are with you, but we are weak; our strength is gone ; we
can do nothing but exercise faith, and pray in silence; go on,
the Lord of hosts is with you, the God of Jacob is our refuge!"
In the course of a week' or so, they regained their energy,
and wore as ardent and zealous as ever; but, learning
wisdom from the things they had suffered, they now pru¬
dently "husbanded their strength," appropriating their
" amens," " hallelujahs," &c., to those points of " onset or
388 displays of divine glory in sheffield.
victory," -where they could be used to the greatest advantage
and effect. Their zeal being now according to knowledge,
and guided by it, burned with a bright, steady, and ever-
during flame — not a blaze one night and extinguished the
next, fitful and uncertain as the lightning in the evening
cloud; but it kindled and ascended like the morning sun,
advancing upward till it attained its meridian glory: as the
sun, in the days of Joshua, it tarried over our Gibeon, " in
the midst of heaven, and hasted not to go down;" I shall
not say, " for the space of a whole day," or even during
the remainder of the services in Ebenezer chapel, but it also
extends, thus far, in Carver Street, until the Lord has
avenged himself on'his enemies and ours, gloriously. Many
were the slain and healed of- the Lord at Ebenezer. The
meeting for the vnew converts, for the wounded also, and
the slain, was a season never to be forgotten. The Ebenezer
chapel was a symbolical Ebenezer to the vast assemblage
of people on the night in question. By many tears and
various expressions of joy, they seemed to say, almost
universally, " This is our Ebenezer, for hitherto hath God
helped us."
Perhaps the following report, or table, of the progress of
the revival, which was handed to me,, at the close of the
services in the above chapel, by the secretary, Mr. John
Jepson, will afford you as good a view of the steady progress
of this great work of God, as any other medium I could
adopt:—
" Dear Sir — The following is a faithful report of the
numbers saved in Ebenezer chapel, from the 12th of May
to the 3d of June, twenty-one days inclusive. In Jesus,
affectionately yours,
"John Jepson."
DISPLAYS- OF DIVINE GLORY IN SHEFFIELD. 389
Sheffield, Ebenezer Chapel, Mat 12, to June 3, 1844.
Justified
Justified
Blessing
out of the
in
of Sancti-
Totals.
World.
Society.
fication.
Sunday,
May 12.
31
12
43
Monday,
" 13.
21
6
13s
40
Tuesday,
" 14.
17
8
9
34
Wednesday,
" 15.
9
11
6
26
Thursday,
" 16.
8
9
4
21
Friday,
" 17.
8
6
28
42
Saturday,
" 18. . .
Society Bands.
94
52
60
206
Sunday,
May 19.
42
16
19
77
Monday,
" 20.
22
7
14
43
Tuesday,
" 21.
15
9
9
33
Wednesday,
" 22.
7
5
3
15
Thursday,
" 23.
5
1
4
10
Friday, -
" 24. - .
3
0
25
28
94
38
74
206
Sunday,
May 26.
24
26
12
62
Monday,
" 27.
6
3
17
26.
Tuesday,
" 28.
13
10
11
34
Wednesday,
" 29.
8
6
22
36
Thursday,
" 30.
10
8
3
21
Friday,
" 31.
1
4
17
22
62
57
82
201
Sunday,
June 2.
62
12
33
107
Monday,
" 3.
11
4 .
18
28
73
16
46
135
Grand Totals,
. 323
163~
262
748
The scene of my labors at present is Carver Street chapel
The work of God is advancing with increased rapidity and
power. The first Sabbath we spent in this place of worship,
one hundred and sixty-seven persons professed salvation.
Since then hundreds have been saved. The work is indeed
glorious, beyond any thing I have ever seen before in the
same space of time. All seriously disposed persons, so far as
I have learned, are led to regard it as an extraordinary work
of God, I am happy to inform you I received a letter from
83*
390 displays of divine glory in sheffield.
Bishop Hedding. It is most affectionate : all, in fact, and
more than I could have expected. * * * So far from urging
my return," he expresses" a cordial approbation of my labors
and success* in winning souls to Christ, and prays that Giod
may continue to bless me wherever I may labor. He says
the Conference will gladly receive me on my return, with
this proviso, that I bring good testimonials back with me
of my good conduct during my sojourn in Europe; closing
with the assurance, that thousands are ready, with joy, to
welcome my return to the American shores, to recommence
my ministerial labors in that country.
" 0, to grace how great a debtor,
Daily I'm constrained to be ! "
Here follows a communication sent to Mr. Caughey at
Sheffield, from one of the scenes _of his previous efforts in
Hull. We insert it to show the reader how high an estimate
the official members at Hull placed on his precious labors
for souls.
"4, Parliament Street, Hull, June 26,1844.
" Rev. and dear Sir,
"We have much pleasure in transmitting to you the
following extract from the Minutes of the Quarterly Meeting
of the Hull East Circuit, held on the 24th instant.
"We remain, reverend and dear Sir, your faithful and
obedient servants,
" W. Cowley, ) Circuit
Edward Riggall, j Stewards.
" On the motion of Mr. Riggall, seconded by Mr. Field,
it was resolved unanimously, —
"That this meeting, from the numerical and financial
statements laid before it by the Stewards, feels called upon
to record its devout gratitude to Almighty God, for his
DISPLAYS OF DIVINE .GLORY IN SHEFFIELD. 391
abundant blessing upon the special services lately held; and
also, its high sense of the consistent and exemplary Christian
conduct of the Rev. James Caughey, of the Methodist
Episcopal Church in America, during his residence in this
Circuit; as well as of his untiring ministerial labors, and the
efficient assistance rendered by him to the ministers of the
Circuit during those services."
I had the pleasure, a few days ago, of taking dinner here
with Dr. Alder, now one of the general Wesleyan Missionary
Secretaries. He manifested a lively and cordial interest in
the revival; and, in prayer, around the family altar, he
proved how sincere and ardent was his interest, by praying
most fervently and affectionately for your correspondent.
Mrs. Alder, an American lady by birth, you will remember.,
and Miss Alder, are here at present, and rejoice in this
wonderful triumph of the gospel of God. The doctor is out
upon a tour of missionary visitation to the churches, and
intends to return By the way of Sheffield.
In a letter bearing date of July 30, 1844, he thus
continues his sketches of the work in Sheffield.
Since the date of my last, the revival has advanced with
amazing majesty and power. The scenes have been such as
cannot be easily described. I spent from June 4th, till the
5th -instant, in Carver Street chapel. The following extract
from a table, sent me by one of the secretaries, may give
you some idea of the grand and extensive character of the
work; so far, at least, .as numbers are concerned. But, to
have a just view, or a proper conception of the wonderful
effects of truth upon the mass'of mind therein recorded, and
" the differences of manifestation," in the hour of sorrow
and distress; the prayers, tears, and long and bitter cries
for mercy, and the joyful and triumphant exclamations of
S92 DISPLAYS OP DIVINE GLORY IN SHEPPIELD.
new-born souls, or purified believers, in the glad hour of
salvation, would require that you should have been " in the
midst of us." Never have I beheld any thing equal to it.
0, it was " sublimely grand!" — grand in its cause, grand
in the effects, grand in results, and grand beyond all human
imaginings when taken in connection with the grandeur of a
coming eternity ! But here is the extract:
" The services were continued in Carver Street chapel
from-June 4£h to Jtdy'5tb; twenty-eight days inclusive.
From the world, 650; appointed to meet in class, thus:
West Circuit, 395; East Circuity 145; not appointed to
classes, 56; the remainder were from distant and other
churches. Members justified, — West Circuit, 83 ; East
Circuit, 63; other Circuits and churches, 29. Members
sanctified,—West Circuit, 181; East Circuit, 98; other
churches, 56. Total justified, 825; sanctified, 335. Total,
eleven hundred and sixty."
I commenced my labors on the East Circuit, on the
following 'Sabbath, in Brunswick c.hapel. The- ministers on
this Circuit are, the. Rev. Alexander Bell, Superintendent;
the Rev. John. Burton, the Rev. William B. Stephenson,
and the Rev. James Carr. On the morning of the 11th
insfc., one of the persons recorded in the above table, a
female, who was a backslider, called upon me, in company
with another. So great had been her distress, she could
neither eat nor sleep. She had not, it seems, fallen from
God at once, by any heinous sin, but declined gradually, till
she lost the life of God totally from her soul; and now,
awakened to a sense of her sad condition, she was inconso¬
lable. We joined in prayer, but the Lord suffered her to
leave the house without any thing more than a cheering ray
of hope that he would not permit her to die an alien to God.
A few minutes after, when walking homeward along the
DISPLAYS OF DIVINE GLOKY IN SHEFFIELD. 393
street, with a feeble and faltering step, the Lord met her,
and said to her heart, " Thou art mine!" Sorrow was
exchanged for joy in a moment. The Saviour conferred
" beauty for ashes;" and she pursued her way with a glad
heart and free, rejoicing with joy unspeakable and full of
glory. I saw her in the chapel a few .nights afterwards.
How marked the change in the woman's countenance ! The
grief and despair which, at the time I first saw her, rendered
her face the picture of agony and desolation, were all gone,
and now, calm, serene joy beamed out upon every lineament
of it. May she ever stand fast in that liberty wherewith
Christ has made her free ! Amen!
A respectable looking young man called upon me a few
days ago. " I walked down to Ebenezer," said 'he, " one
evening, and heard you preach, but I got no good — I was
perfectly disgusted — I wanted smooth things, and was dis¬
appointed. I went again to hear you, and was delighted;
but still remained undecided upon the great question of my
salvation. One night I had a dream. I was in a certain
place. An enormous serpent moved towards me.. Its object
seemed to be, first to coil itself around me and then to sting
me to death. My struggles against its motions were despe¬
rate. Finally it succeeded to entangle me in its folds, and
then it stung me, after which I escaped. I thought in my
dream, I would return and destroy the serpent; but when I
entered the place, a powerful man stood there. He seized
the serpent, held it up in his hand, and dashed its head upon
the ground with such force that it died, and then trampled
it in triumph. I awoke in a great state- of excitement. It
was then impressed upon my mind, ' The serpent is the
devil; he has been endeavoring to destroy your soul, but
you shall yet conquer; nevertheless, not in your own strength,
but by another.' The following evening I went down -to
894 displays of divine glory in Sheffield.
Ebenezer. -Your text was, 'Awake, thou that, sleepest, and
arise from the dead, and Christ shall give thee light.' During
the sermon, you said, God sometimes spoke to sinners in
dreams. You read a striking passage in the Book of Job,
and said, There is a man among you who had a remarkable
dream last night. That dream was a warning from God —
beware how you take it — reject it not; the design of it is
to keep your soul back from the pit, and your life from
perishing by the sword of the Lord. My feelings, during
this appeal, were in a sort of indescribable amaze. I knew
the whole was for me — from God himself." The person in
question obtained salvation shortly after. Hallelujah! The
word of God is quick and powerful, searching the inmost of
the soul, and Reveals secret things.
There have been several cases of restitution lately. Among
the many who have had money restored them, is an infidel.
Upon pocketing the cash, 'he said with a sort of a " compla¬
cent smile," such as he had not accorded to religion for a
great while, " Well, if Christianity can make a thief deliver
up my money, there must, after all, be something good in it.
I will go and hear for myself." Another person, a few days
since, made restitution to an innkeeper. The letter in which
the money was enclosed, concluded with these expressive
words: "A Christian now, but once a thief."
The confessions of some of these awakened sinners, while
pleading for mercy at the communion-rail, are sometimes
most affecting. The other night, an old sinner with his
wife, were kneeling among the 'penitents. His agony was
very great. One of the leaders overheard ■ him pray thus:
" 0 Lord, I never offered up one prayer for thirty year3
About six months ago my son was converted ; since then 1
have been trying to alter my course of life. But I have
been a wicked sinner; I have committed all sorts of wicked-
DISPLAYS OF DIVINE GLORY IN SHEFFIELD. 395
ness. 0 Lord, canst thou have mercy upon such a sinner
as me ? . Thou knowest what a rascal I have been! What
an oud Sabbath-breaker! 0 Lord, have-mercy on-me!"
On being informed that his wife had obtained mercy from
Heaven, he exclaimed: " 0 Lord! must I go to hell be me
sen!" * The agony into which he immediately entered,
proved that he was determined to accompany his old woman
to a better region. At length, with Heaven beaming in his
face, he cried out, " 0! I feel something come into my
heart. I feel that the Lord has sent a great light into my
poor dark soul. The Lord has removed my load; he has
pardoned all my sins for Christ's sake. What a mercy
that the Lord should have mercy upon such an oud feller
as me!"
The Lord has enabled me, of late, to describe particular
characters, during the course of my sermons, with wonderful,
and, in some cases, Vith what appeared miraculous accuracy.
Many have been strangely wrought upon, while I have been
relating some of the most secret parts of their character and
doings. Although some of the congregation are frequently
subjected to various charges from the convicted parties, who
insist that "such and such a one" has been telling the
preacher all abput them, yet the results are often astonish¬
ing. The other night, while preaching, a certain character
came up before me with this written upon him: A Roman
Catholic in the gallery! The Lord helped me. Poor
fellow; while scrambling for his hat, in order to make an
escape from the searching truth of God, he heard words
whereby he might be saved. Some who knew him were
astonished; but he blamed them, and complained bitterly
that they had been in communication with me; which, of
* Yorkshire dialect for " by myself."
396 DISPLAYS OF DIVINE GLOKY IN SHEFFIELD.
course, they positively denied. The results I have not yet
learned.
On the 3d of July I delivered a temperance lecture in the
Primitive Methodist chapel. There were many intelligent
and good people present, but a larger number of " the lowest
of the low." The crowd was oppressive, owing in part to
the smallness of the chapel. Some of the children of the
devil seemed to have no patience with each other. Each
man, aye and woman too, seemed as if determined " to main¬
tain a footing." Elbows and tongues were called into action,
with tremendous energy — I speak now of the crowds on
the gallery stairs, and the masses by the doors—the rest
of the audience were perfectly well-behaved. Some en¬
deavored to reconcile the conflicting parties, but in vain;
some poor women were pressed almost out of life ? and others,
with their gruff voices, and powerful elbows, were endeavor¬
ing to defend them; while others were determined to get in,
if they should climb over the "heads and shoulders" of the
mass. Opposition to the cause" of temperance did not pre¬
vail, I believe, in a single breast. But all were resolved upon
hearing the lecture, — and all could not be admitted, — and
it was every man for himself. I could not but love the ex¬
cited throng, although they' gave me considerable uneasiness.
Finding the voice of authority as inefficient as the chains
of Xerxes to bind the waves of the Hellespont, I tried chains
of another kind. The ancient painters, you may remember,
were ambitious to describe the eloquence of Hercules Celti-
cus, but, unfortunately, most of them found that the elo¬
quence of attitude, gesture, and expression of conntenance,
were much more easily described upon canvass than eloquence
in language. One of them, however, " determining not to
be outdone," represented it by an immense number of golden
chains coming out of the mouth of the orator, and reaching
displays of divine glory in sheffield. 397
to the ears of great multitudes. A capital idea ! Although
it spoiled his picture, it originated an aphorism, — Attention
enchained hj eloquence ; which " holds good " to the present
day. If eloquence happened to be absent on the evening in
question, argument and earnestness, her representatives,
presided with considerable effect. Silence signalized, atten¬
tion chained; but the mighty work was to keep it thus. The
devil, in the case of Job, either would-not, or could not, afflict
or bind his tongue. Some think the arch fiend left that mem¬
ber at liberty, that he might employ it in bitter complaints
against providence, or to curse God.
The moment I paused, the chains were snapped from at¬
tention, and the " unruly member," in many a head, was set
in motion, uttering a series of ejaculations,-interlocutions,
ejulations, remonstrances, and interjections! So, to keep
their tongues quiet, mine had to attempt something like per¬
petual motion; .and it is due to say, after the first ten or
fifteen minutes of the lecture, with the exception of a few
grumbles now and again, we enjoyed a calm that was credit¬
able to the speaker, as well as to tee-totalism. I thought of
Lord Bacon, who represents -the influence of science over
the minds of men, as bearing some resemblance to the power
of the harp of Orpheus over beasts and birds •—they all
forgot their several appetites, some for prey, some for game,
others for- quarrel, and stood sociably together, listening to
the airs and sweet accords of the wonderful harp. No
sooner, however, had the sounds ceased, or were drowned by
some louder noise, than every beast returned to his- own na¬
ture. This noble writer considers the fable a fine illustration
of the power of truth over mind. Naturally, our race is
full of savage and unreclaimed desires, of profit, of lust, of
revenge; and, so long as men are brought together by pre¬
cepts, laws, and religion, sweetly touched by eloquence and
34
898 DISPLAYS OF DIVINE GLORY IN SHEFFIELD.
persuasion of books, sermons, and harangues, so long is the
peace of society maintained; hut if these instruments of
human suasion become silent, or if sedition and tumult render
their voice inaudible, all things dissolve into anarehy and
confusion. Certainly, leaving eloquence out of the question,
my harangue had this influence upon the agitated mass ; and,
when they were elbowing each other, and exchanging glances
their tongues could not speak, they frequently accorded a
truce to hostilities, and united in giving the-lecturer their ap¬
proval, in the usual method of clapping and stamping.
At the close of the meeting, about three hundred persons
came forward, and testified in the most convincing way that
circumstances would admit, that they understood and appre¬
ciated the arguments of the stranger, by uniting themselves
with the Sheffield Total Abstinence Society; that is, totally
renouncing the use of every beverage employed by the devil
and selfish and wicked men to make drunkards. " Is there
a dealer in intoxicating drinks," said one, " that would be
willing to read the history of his sales ? Such a history
w.ould pierce his soul, and terrify his imagination with images
the most dark and horrible. The moral infection that has
been engendered by his sales alone, would darken the air
around him." I would add, could those Christian gentle¬
men, who indulge in wine, ale, and porter, to speak of noth
ing stronger, read the history of their example, during the
last ten or fifteen years u of their practice," perhaps " an
imagery " might arise that would go far to pain their souls
also, and terrify their imagination. It is difficult, under cer¬
tain circumstances, to avoid reflections of this kind. At the
table of hospitality sits the minister of Christ, — the pat¬
ron, in word and deed, of the' wine-bottle and ale-jug.
Around that man are seated the youthful branches of an in¬
teresting family, who accord to his indulgence a ready and
DISPLAYS OF DIVINE GLORY IN SHEFFIELD. 399
willing imitation. The father and mother of that family are
little .aware, how, by such a clerical example, they are haz¬
arding the well-being of their children for this world and the
next. No man that has seen much of the world, and the
miseries arising from these fascinating and dangerous drinks,
can look upon such a scene without a secret alarm. Alas! I
have thought, when contemplating such a scene, could this
good man read the future history of all these young people, not
to speak of the older guests, how deeply would he be affected
by his example ! Were the fingers of a man's hand to come
out upon the walls of this dining-room, and write in legible
characters the future history of some one of these young
persons who may yet be ruined, soul and body, by these
drinks, and by his example too, we might behold him as Bel-
shazzer of old, (Bah. v.,) his countenance changed, his
thoughts troubling him, the joints of his loins loosed, and his -
knees smiting one against another. Perhaps it was in reference
to the copsequences of our example, that the apostle advises,
that it is good neither to drink wine, nor any thing where¬
by thy brother stumbleth, is offended, or made weak, (Rom.,
xiv.,)-^a good New Testament tee-total pledge this surely,
when the church of God thinks it proper to take it up, and
act upon it as a sacred rule of Christian conduct. I could
write much upon the direful evils arising from ministerial ex¬
ample in drinking and smoking — but I forbear. How such
men can consistently expect God to bless their ministry in the
awakening and conversion of many sinners, I cannot well,
conceive, unless they suppose that the Holy Ghost is desirous
of setting the seal of his approbation upon their habits,
and thus imparting a greater weight and influence to their
pernicious example.
On the night of Thursday, 18th inst., we were favored
with a most extraordinary eflusion of the Holy Spirit, in
400 DISPLAYS OF DIVINE ULORY IN SHEFFIELD.
Brunswick chapel. The sermon was .designed- only as pre¬
paratory to the discourse I had set apart for the following
night, which was to be, The nature of that faith which
purifies the heart. On the night in question, I had that fine
passage for my text: " But the God of all grace, who hath
called us unto his eternal glory by Christ Jesus, after that
ye have suffered a while, make you perfect, stablish, strength¬
en, settle you."' 1 Peter v. 10. I was led to lay down the
following proposition: That many are called to pass through
a series of mental,-physical, and providential sufferings, before
they are sanctified entirely, throughout soul, body, and
spirit.
At the close of the discourse, the Lord was pleased to
show there was neither merit in such a process of suffering,
nor any necessity for it, if his servants were only willing he
should cut the work short in righteousness, and save them by
faith; The cry of many hearts was, " Lay down the rod of
chastisement, 0 Lord, and save us by faith." Beholding the
people much affected, I concluded to leave them with God.
Hundreds fell down upon their knees at once. I requested
them to talk with God, for he had come down among them
in " very deed." " Now, Lord," I said, " the people are at
thy feet; hear them! For Christ's sake, hear them 1 At¬
tend to their confessions; hear their cries, and save them!
Save them by faith! If they only believe that they do re¬
ceive, they shall, on that instant, receive nil — all that is in
thee. Thy mouth, 0 Lord God, hath spoken the -word."
Prayer became general over the entire chapel — galleries
and all — two thousand people were bowed as the heart of
one man. What could stand before this ? Neither hell, sin,
unbelief, devils, nor sinners. The power of God came down.
The supplications of believers for purity, and the piercing
cries of penitent sinners for mercy filled my soul with amaze.
displays op divine glory in sheffield. 401
I have witnessed a few scenes of the kind in the course of my
ministry, but never any thing so universal and so tremendous,
and, at the same time, accompanied with so little of any thing
that could be imputed to human extravagance ; — it was the
prayer of faith in every heart — mighty, omnipotent, pre¬
vailing prayer! Twenty-four weeping but triumphant con¬
verts, who had within the last twenty or thirty minutes ob¬
tained the forgiveness of sins, and fifty individuals who had
received purity of heart, passed successively out of the
chapel into one of the vestries, to declare there what great
things God had wrought within them. ' How many more
received remission of sins, and purity, during that wonderful
visitation, perhaps we shall never know till the judgment day.
I should have informed you, that Brunswick chapel be¬
longs to Sheffield East Circuit. My visit to that chapel was
in accordance with the earnest and affectionate request of the
Superintendent, the Rev. Alexander Bell. I finished my
labors in Carver Street on the 5th instant.
The views of- the official men, at Sheffield, of Mr. C. and
his revival labors, may be seen in the following :
" 253, Glossop Road, Sheffield, >
June 27, 1844. 5
" Rev. James Caughey,
"My dear Sir,
" I have the honor of forwarding to you a copy of a reso¬
lution, passed by our Quarterly Meeting, not only unani¬
mously, but in connection with addresses from several of our
preachers and leading friends, to which every member
seemed to respond ; and which indicated intense interest m
your operations, and a high degree of respect and affection
for yourself.
34*
402 displays of divine glory in sheffield.
It affords me great pleasure to make a communication so
couch in accordance with my own views and feelings ; and I
trust we ' shall -see greater things than these.' I amj reverend
and dear Sir, yours faithfully,
"Samuel Hill Smith."
" Copy of a Resolution of the Quarterly Meeting of the
Sheffield West Circuit, held June the 24th, 1844. Passed
unanimously, on the motion of the senior Circuit steward,
seconded by his colleague.
" Resolved, That this meeting would gratefully acknowl¬
edge the goodness-of God in rendering the course of special
services, now in progress, so effectual in promoting a revival
of his work; and, whilst it would acknowledge the spirit of
love and zeal, evinced by its own ministers and members, it
would especially express its sense of the influence which the
continuance, during the last six weeks, of the affectionate,
enlightened, and powerful ministrations of the Rev. James
Caughey, -has excited in bringing about a religious awakening,
which has already resulted in the conversion of many sinners,
and the deepening of the work of grace in the hearts of
many believers. And the meeting further resolves," that its
warmest thanks are due to Mr. Caughey for his kind accept¬
ance of an invitation to visit this Circuit, and his subsequent
efficient labors in it.
" Signed on behalf of the meeting,
"J. P. Has well, Chairman,
Samuel Hill Smith, ) , „
t. lofthouse, i steward3'
A few days ago, I had the pleasure of -taking dinner in
company with James Montgomery, Esquire, the Sheffield
poet. The honor was done me by the kindness and hospital¬
ity of Mr. Smith, the writer of the above letter. We spent
DISPLAYS.OF DIVINE GLORY IN SHEFFIELD. 403
an hour or two most agreeably iu conversation. I little
thought, when reading the two volumes of his poems, which
grace your library, that I should, in England — in Sheffield,
see and converse with the poet himself.
This month, up till within the last few days, has been
marked with a long and alarming drought. Sabbath morn¬
ing week, I felt it on my heart, while" in the pulpit in 'Carver
Street chapel, to offer up publicly, "the prayer of faith"
for rain. The effect upon many present was remarkable.
Some thought it must rain immediately. Others were lifting
up their eyes to the windows, expecting the usual tokens every
moment. Many were concerned about their light shoes and
clothing; others were thinking seriously of sending off for
their umbrellas. Alas! they were disappointed. When
leaving the chapel, they smiled at their simplicity on observ¬
ing the heavens to be as " clear and cloudless" as ever.
Eut, as Sammy Hicks said, it had to " come from the sea;"
faith said, Wait and- expect it. On the night of the same
day, that God, who causeth the vapors to ascend from the
ends of the earth, who uttering his voice and there is a
multitude of waters in the heavens, who maketh lightnings
with rain, and bringeth forth the wind out £>f his treasuries,
(Psalm cxxxv. 7 ; Jer. x. 13,) favored the thirsty earth with
a refreshing shower of rain. Hallelujah! the Lord God
omnipotent reigneth; a -prayer-answering as well as a sin-
pardoning God.
Since the date of my last, I changed my residence to the
mansion of Jonathan Beet, Esq.,* father of my late host, Mr.
William Beet. He is, I 'believe, the oldest member of the
Wesleyan church in Sheffield.; an intelligent, agreeable, and
venerable servant of the living God. In both families I have
been treated with great kindness and hospitality. That they
# Since gone to his reward in heaven.
404 DISPLAYS OF DIVINE GLORY IN SHEFFIELD
may have their reward, not only ,in the present life, but in
the resurrection of the just, is the prayer of their grateful
guest.
I enjoyed a pleasant ride the other day, in company with
Mr. John Unwin,to Norton; a pretty neighborhood, a few
miles from Sheffield; and dined at Norton House, the resi¬
dence of one of our Wesleyan friends, Thomas B. Holy,
Esq. It is an ancient, baronial-like mansion, partly covered
with ivy, venerable in aspect, and " beautiful for situation."
We spent several hours most agreeably with Mr. Holy and
"his excellent and pious lady. Before dinner, we walked
through the old church. Norton is the birthplace of the
celebrated sculptor, Francis Chantrey; one of the greatest
artists whom England has produced. There is a monument to
his memory in the church, of plain white marble, enriched
with a medallion likeness of the artist — an exquisite piece
of sculpture. His remains repose a few yards from the
church, encompassed by an iron palisading. A short time
before his death he came down from London to choose his
plaee of sepulture. In doing so, he remarked to the aged
clergyman of the parish, " But I do not intend you to bury
me;" but he di^ so, very shortly after.
My home at present is Shirley House, near Sheffield, the
residence of Nathaniel Greaves, Esq. It is a lovely spot,
quite retired. The grounds are not extensive, but "the
touch of taste is every where around;" "well-assorted
hues," and "graceful mixtures" with "level walks and foliaged
bowers," " the fair results of thought, the creature of a
polished mind." In Mr. and Mrs. Greaves I have found
two excellent friends, for- whom I trust to praise God in
heaven. May our friendship be perpetuated for ever! I am
thankful to my kind and gracious Lord for the mercies which
enclose me around. I may well blush, when I think of my
DISPLAYS OF DIVINE GLORY IN SHEFFIELD. 405
divine Master, " who led a suffering life, inured to poverty
and pain," while I have all, and abound. " The servant
is above his Lord ! "
" Had I the choice of sublunary good,
What could I wish, that I possess not here ?
Health, leisure, means t' improve it, friendship, peace,
And constant occupation, without care ! "
I am preaching, however, .at the usual rate — six times a
week, prayer meeting on Monday night, reserving only
Saturday night for' myself. The revival shows no pause.
Multitudes of sinners are turning to God on every hand. A
Sabbath or two ago, more than one hundred and sixty per¬
sons were saved in one day. Glory and praise be unto God!
A few days since, I planted, in the presence of a company
of friends, two small trees, a cedar and a yew, in the lawn
of Shirley House. They are named after" me, and seem
to be doing well. This month, thus far, and the last, have
been the happiest in my life. The holy joy and rest in God
I have felt in my soul, have been inexpressibly sweet and
delightful.
CHAPTER XXIII.
concluding incidents in sheffield.
This may be termed the Sunday School Teacher's chap¬
ter, because of the beautiful letter of Mr. Chaloner to Mr.
Caughey, describing a great work of God among the children
of Red Hill Sabbath School in Sheffield. That letter ought
to be read in every American Sabbath school. It demon¬
strates the possibility of sound conversion and of extensive
revivals among children.
This chapter carries the narrative of Mr. Caughey's
labors down to the 8th of September, 1844, the date on
which he closed his wondrously successful efforts in Shef¬
field.
On the evening of August 1, 1844, we held a meeting
for the benefit of the new converts, in Brunswick chapel,
similar to those I have described in former letters. About
three hundred and seventy-five new converts were present;
it was a most gracious season, a confirming and strengthen
ing time, to those who had but just commenced the heavenly
race.
Shortly after the above meeting, I received the following
note from the secretary. It will show you the wonderful
character of the revival in Brunswick chapel: —
406
concluding incidents in sheffield. 407
" Sheffield Moor, August 8,1844,
"Vi^r dear Sir,
" I have taken the liberty of forwarding to you a copy
from our book, (as on other side,) ef the numbers up to the
present time. Truly we may say;' What hath God wrought!'
" That you may be strengthened in body and blessed in
soul, and rendered instrumental of still greater good, is the
sincere and earnest prayer of
" Yours very respectfully,
" Abraham Sharman.
" Special services, held in Brunswick chapel, Sheffield, —
results,—from July 7th to August 2d, 1844.
Sanctified. Per Week. Total.
61 290 .. *
152 364
96 362
76 244 1260."
It is proper to ismark that many of the above, who were
from the world, resided in country Circuits, and within the
range of other churches. On their return, they joined their
respective churches in their own localities. Still the Wesley-
ans claim by far the largest proportion. I shall endeavor to
find out what the real increase is likely to be, as realized by
the Wesleyan church in Sheffield, and what proportion of
the above numbers were members in the two Circuits in
town, and shall state the same, if possible, in my next
communication.
On the 4th instant, (August,) we commenced a series of
special services in Norfolk Street chapel, which continued
through eighteen days. I had little of that comfort and
satisfaction in this chapel that I had at Ebenezer, Carver
Street, and Brumswick chapels. There was something there,
in my apprehension, that grieved the Holy Spirit; still the
Week ending
July 12.
" 19. .
" 26.
Aug. 2.
From the In
World. Society.
. 200 39
. 180 32
. 222 44
. 140 28
408
CONCLUDING INCIDENTS IN SHEFFIELD*
results were very great. From the world, more than four
hundred souls; about two hundred of whom, I understand,
joined the circuit to which Norfolk Street chapel belongs,
and above one hundred united with the other Circuit. I was
surprised to find, that of so many hundreds saved, so few
belonged to the Norfolk Street congregation. Why, I can¬
not tell. The Lord knoweth; for all things are naked and
open to Him, with whom we have to do. Perhaps they may
yield themselves to God suddenly, even before I leave the
town; for in this revival, nothing but what is quite impossible
seems difficult.
" Like mighty winds or torrents fierce, •
It doth opposers all o'erturn."
I forgot to add that nearly three hundred believers pro¬
fessed to obtain purity of heart during the services in Norfolk
Street. All glory be to God ! He doeth the works. His
arm is mighty. What can withstand his power ? Sin, the
devil, hell and ■ its powers, sinners and their errors in doc¬
trines and practice, must fly or fall before the influences of
the Spirit, as chaff before the wind. Hallelujah! The
Lord God omnipotent reigneth. Amen and amen!
I am sure the following letter, written to me by a superin¬
tendent of one of the Sabbath schools of this town, will be
interesting to you. You may depend upon the statements
it contains. If you think proper, you may read it to the
children of your Sabbath school. It will show them how
English children are affected by the truths of the gospel.
Perhaps the teachers may also profit- by it. By this docu¬
ment they may learn how deeply some of the teachers and
superintendents of Sunday schools in England are concerned
for the conversion of the children committed to their care.
The great design of their labors is not merely to teach the
pupils to read, (this and other branches of learning may be
concluding incidents in sheffield. 409
acquired in the week-day schools,) but to bring them to an
early and to an experimental acquaintance with God. This
should be the end, the distinct aim of all who labor in the
Sabbath school. The object of such institutions is scarcely
half accomplished, if the instruction does not result in the
conversion of the scholar before his final dismission from the
school.
" Sheffield, Church Street, July 9., 1844.
" Rev. and dear Sir,- -
" I have thought several times you might not deem it
impertinent in me if I were to inform you what God has
been doing for us at Red Hill school.
" Sunday, July 7th, was the most glorious day ever
witnessed in connection with the services of that institution.
Many special seasons have occurred in its history, (one in
particular,' I remember, during which seventy children pro¬
fessed to obtain the forgiveness of their sins,) but the oldest
laborer in the institution declares, that this gracious visitation
from on high surpasses them all. A few friends met acci¬
dentally last week, and in the course of conversation, it was
suggested that, now the Special services were removed from
the neighborhood of the school, something should be done
to insure the stability of the work of God, so far as it had
extended among the children. It was agreed, therefore,
that all the- teachers should be specially invited to attend on
Sunday morning, that such plans might be adopted as would
best conduce to that object. When they met, it was agreed
that those children and teachers who had received blessings
during the revival, should be called out of the school-room
into the vestry, while a verse was being sung; that, while
two of the friends made minute inquiries into the spiritual
state of each child, and whether she had met in the class to
which she had been appointed at the chapel, one of the
35
410 CONCLUDING INCIDENTS IN SHEFFIELD.
superintendents should deliver a short address in the school,
and commence a prayer meeting, inviting all who felt a
desire to save their souls to come forward to be prayed for.
The vestry was shortly filled with children who had been
saved at the chapels, and it was a glorious sight; and soon
after brother James Wilkinson had spoken a few solemn
words, the power of the Holy Ghost descended and melted
us all into tears. It was with some difficulty that we could
get to our work of inquiry; but, when entered upon, it was
most satisfactory. Out of more than eighty present, only
nine had not been to class; and some of the nine had only
been saved on the Thursday evening previously, and had not
had the opportunity. Before, however, we had got through
this part of our blessed Igjbor, the room was again half filled
with girls, who, with streaming eyes and joyful countenances,
came to tell us what God had done for their souls in the
prayer meeting that was being carried on in the school-room.
From this time (soon after eleven o'clock) the children
continued to throng into the vestry until nearly twelve,
when eighty-two precious souls were rejoicing in a sin-
pardoning God, and were appointed (to suitable classes.
During all this time my hands were so full I had not an
opportunity to mingle with our friends in the school-room;
and-though we felt the presence of God with us in the
vestry, in a remarkable manner, yet I am told that the
scene in the school-room, and the glory felt, surpassed
description. At one period it seemed as if the whole con¬
gregation of teachers and children were bowed down with
the weight of the overshadowing glory. Hundreds were in
distress; and it seemed a small matter for the whole school
to be saved. In the afternoon, the prayer meeting was
commenced again, and sixty-three more souls entered into
the glorious liberty of the gospel. The whole number for
concluding incidents in sheffield. 411
the day being one hundred and forty-five. All glory be to
God ! We little expected such a result when God first put
it in our hearts to care for the stability of the work among
the children; and our cry is now, ' Lord, what shall we do
next ?' And I think there seems to be no answer but
' Walk by the same rule, mind the same thing.' The Lord
help us!
" I should say that these details refer only to the girls'
school, in which there are above five hundred scholars,
nearly half of whom are now professing to believe on Jesus
Christ to the salvation of their souls. There were also at
least two clear instances of entire sanctification.
" I have written much more than I thought would be
necessary. Please to pardon my prolixity, and believe me
to remain, ever yours, most affectionately,
"•G. Chaloner."
After finishing his labors in Norfolk Street chapel, Mr.
Caughey revisited the other chapels, spending a day or two
in each. He also spent one Sabbath in Bridgehouse's chapel.
He closes his account of the Sheffield revival in the following
words:
As the time of my departure from Sheffield approached,
public excitement, and anxiety to hear the gospel, became
deeper and more widely extended. The congregations were
overwhelming, and my labors excessive. In consequence
of which, I regret to find I have made but very few notes
of our proceedings. Borne onward from one wave of feeling
to another, I find myself in London; and the events of the
last few weeks appear more " like a stormy and troubled
dream" than realities, leaving me but few materials by
which to enrich a letter to my friend. This may suffice, that
hundreds more were saved, and multitudes of sinners besides
412 CONCLUDING INCIDENTS IN SHEFFIELD.
were awakened to a concern for their souls, which it is to he
hoped they may never lose.
I spent two evenings, before leaving Sheffield, with the
ministers and leaders. The first evening with the officials
of the West Circuit, in Carver Street band-room. The Rev.
J. P. Haswell, Superintendent, presided. There are about
fifty local- preachers, and more than twice that number of
class leaders on the Circuit, the greater part of whom were
present. After tea, Mr. Haswell introduced the business
of the meeting, desiring the leaders to give some account
of the state of their classes, and the number and character
of the neio converts which had been committed to their care.
Those who had obtained the largest accessions spoke first.
Their testimonies were most cheering and satisfactory. 0, it
was a gracious and melting season! The brethren were all
greatly favored of the Lord. Their lips seemed touched
with celestial fire. They spoke with uncommon liberty,
power, unction, and propriety. Some related cases of con¬
version of a very remarkable character. Others told some
thrilling incidents in the history and experience of those
lately brought in. My heart was greatly comforted. The
reaction, about which some had prophesied, I felt sure would
not come. I told the leaders all my heart, all I hoped, all
I had feared. I pleaded the necessity of taking care of
those who had been rescued from the devil and the world ;
urged on their attention, that much depended upon their
faithfulness as leaders, in care, prayer, zeal, watchfulness,
and perseverance, whether the multitudes saved should be
preserved from going back into the world. The manner in
which these dear brethren responded, left an impression upon
my heart of gratitude, confidence, and joy, which I shall
remember for ever. Mr. Haswell closed with prayer. And
such a prayer 1 We had " showers of blessings." It seemed
CONCLUDING INCIDENTS IN SHEFFIELD. 413
as if the heavens were opened, as if God and angels came
down among men. The powers of the world to come over¬
shadowed, and sweetly possessed, and filled every soul. He
prayed for the uninterrupted progress of the work of God;
for the stability of the new converts; but especially for me:
and in such strains of heavenly eloquence as must have
surprised himself, and with such a glowing fervency of soul
as utterly amazed and overpowered me. May my most
gracious God answer that wonderful prayer, (for if ever a
prayer opened heaven, and entered into the ears of the
Almighty, and moved him to do yet greater and more won¬
drous things, that prayer surely did,) and bless his precious
servant, and reward him for his kindness to me, a stranger
in a strange land! Amen and amen!
I had the privilege of a similar meeting, the following
night, with the brethren in the East Circuit, in Norfolk
Street band or school-room. This also was a gracious
season; but hardly equal to the previous night. The leaders
indeed, spoke equally well, and-pledged themselves quite as
heartily and sincerely to take all possible care of the recent
subjects of mercy. But the Rev. Alexander Bell, and his
excellent colleagues, who had seen this great work, and who
took a rejoicing interest in its advancement, were not there ;
they had gone to their new Circuits. The Rev. Mr. Pilter,
the new Superintendent, was exceedingly kind, and mani¬
fested a strong desire to have the meeting every way agree¬
able to myself. One or two of the new preachers were
present, who of course could not be expected to. have such
deep sympathies with the work a3 those who had been so
ardently engaged in it during the last four eventful months.
I find it difficult at present to give you those accurate sta¬
tistics which you desire, as to the extent of the revival.
But the number- saved must be very great; of this I shall
35*
414 CONCLUDING INCIDENTS IN SHEFFIELD.
be better able to inform you on my return from tbe 3onti-
nent. The brethren, the leaders and secretaries, will then
have had time to compare notes; by which they will ascer¬
tain, with considerable accuracy, the actual accessions to
the Wesleyan church on the two Circuits; and the exact
numbers who belonged to other churches in town and
country.
Thus delightfully terminated Mr. Caughey's remarkable
career in Sheffield. To the curious reader, the following
statement from a pamphlet published in Sheffield some
eighteen months after he left, will be deeply interesting. It
shows how fruitful of permanent good were his wonderful
efforts.
The author says: " The annexed Statistical Account of
the Special Services held in Sheffield, during 1844, by the
Rev. James Caughey, carefully compiled from the register
books kept on those occasions, will be viewed with deep
interest, and may tend to throw light upon some of the
anomalies hitherto regarded" as inseparable from revival
movements. Perhaps so complete' a summary of a revival
has never before been made public."
On this extract, Mr. Caughey makes the following
comments:
In looking over the table to which the author refers, I
perceive that more than three thousand sinners were con¬
verted to God; and upwards of fourteen hundred believers
professed to have obtained purity of heart, or entire sancti-
fication. Matt. v. 8 ; 1 Thess. v. 28 ; 1 John iv. 17,18.
About eleven hundred of the latter class belonged to the
two Circuits in the town; the remainder were members of
other churches in and around Sheffield. Of those justified,
CONCLUDING INCIDENTS IN SHEFFIELD. 415
upwards of five hundred were already members; persons
who either never had been regenerated, though meeting
regularly in class, or who had been living in a backsliding
state. Hundreds of the abovementioned three thousand
persons, were from distant towns, " people of the world,"
living chiefly within the .bounds of the Sheffield District,
and who, doubtless, united with churches in their respective
neighborhoods. Speaking of those which belonged to Shef¬
field, the author remarks: " With regard to these it may be
stated, that many either could not be found by the address
they gave, or never attended class; some were forbidden to
join the society by their parents; some left the neighbor¬
hood ; some proved to be impostors; while many, surrounded
by the most wicked and abandoned of our race, and com¬
pelled to hold intercourse with them, amidst circumstances
and influences of the most debasing and demoralizing char¬
acter, were soon jeered or provoked out of their religion,
and ' endured but for a time.' "
In again referring to the table, I find that one hundred
and forty-nine were found to belong to churches in town, and
at a distance. There were, besides, five or six score who
were not appointed to classes, — who. did not, when they
gave their names to the secretary, decide to meet in class,
or what church they would join. I cannot but admire the
business-like manner in which the secretaries of the revival,*
on both Circuits, performed their duties; nor the industry,
patience, and care they have evidently taken in preparing
materials for this remarkable, important, and well-authenti¬
cated table. For, I have no doubt, the author of the pam¬
phlet received valuable aid from them in presenting the
English public with such an interesting series of statistics.
* West Circuit, Mr. John Unwin and Mr. John Jepson. East Circuit,
Messrs. Abraham Sharman, John Jones, Jun., and Henry Alcard, Jun.
416 CONCLUDING INCIDENTS IN SHEEFIELD.
Of those converted from the world, " about one hundred
and thirty-eight were generally under the age of sixteen."
These were appointed to meet in classes for catechumens;
and in due time, if faithful to the grace of - God, will be
received into the church as members. The actual increase
which has been realized from this great revival, by the
"Wesleyan church in Sheffield, is best ascertained from the
book of " Minutes of Conference." That for 1845 now
lies before me, showing an increase on the previous year, up
to the March quarter, in the Sheffield two 'Circuits, of
between eight and nine hundred members! To God be all
' the glory! Amen and amen! The Sheffield District shows
an increase on the past year of one thousand four hundred
and twenty-five members, and one thousand one hundred
and twenty-eight on trial. So that there is a good prospect
that the increase in the District, this present year, will be
large; so, should any reaction occur in Sheffield itself, the
District will come* up to the help of the good old town, and
rescue the honor of the revival.*
Many who were converted during the above revival, arO
scattered over Methodism in the District, and in other
churches, and indeed into various parts of the kingdom.
I meet with some of them in my journeyings, who know me,
although I am unable, frequently, to recognize them. How
many times do they hail me with joy, and with heaven
beaming upon their faces, and tell me what great things God
* Well, time, that brings about many important events, and tests many
" works and ways," presents us with the " Minutes " for 1846. The increase
this year in Sheffield is but smalls— only fifty. But it is a matter of comfort
to me that two years will soon have expired, and yet, according to the best
authenticated documents in Methodism, the " woful reaction," so confidently
prophesied of by some, has not yet occurred! May it never! The District,
as I expected, announces an increase of upwards of eight hundred members.
Hallelujah"! the Lord God omnipotent reigneth! J. C.
December, 1846.
CONCLUDING INCIDENTS IN SHEFFIELD. 417
"wrought for their souls, under my humble ministry in Shef¬
field ! My soul rejoices in the Lord, and triumphs in the
Rock of my salvation. I feel sweetly happy. -The revival
in Sheffield surpassed any thing I had ever before witnessed:
only think of such multitudes of immortal souls, -saved in
the short space of four months ! I. have sometimes feared I
shall never again see such another work. Blessed be God,
a revival has commenced in Birmingham, also; it is going
on in great power, and there is a prospect of having
thousands saved. Hallelujah!
CHAPTER XXIV.
close of mr. caughey's labors in england.
With the preceding chapter we exhausted Mr. Caughey's
published " Letters " of their revival notices. He intends at
some future time to issue another volume, containing notes
of his continental tour, and of his subsequent movements in
England. But as that is not yet out, we must be content to
give the reader a hasty sketch of his further movements, up
to the time of his return to America, from a pamphlet pub¬
lished in London, in 1847, and written by a Wesleyan Meth¬
odist. We begin with this writer's narrative where the last
chapter concluded, viz.: at the close of the Sheffield revival.
Mr. Caughey -concluded his labors in Sheffield on the 8th
of September, (1844,) and in a few days started on a tour
upon the Continent, an account of which will form a consid¬
erable portion of the volumes he is understood to be prepar¬
ing for the press. He visited many of the celebrated cities
and scenes of France and Italy, gathered information and
illustrations for his work of " soul saving " as he proceeded-,
and, by the blessing of God, recruited his health. It is said
that when at the top of St. Peter's, at Rome, he lingered
behind the company with which he ascended, and, in the pri¬
vacy thus obtained, for a short season, poured out his soul in
fervent prayer for the destruction of popery and the conver-
418
CLOSE OF MR. CAUGHEY'S LABORS IN ENGLAND. 419
sion of its benighted votaries and victims. He returned to
England on the 15th of November, and after spending a few
days in London, — where he preached once in the Spitalfields
Wesleyan chapel, when about twenty souls were saved,—
proceeded to Sheffield, enjoyed some opportunities of happy
intercourse with his old friends there, and then went to Hud-
dersfield, to fulfil the engagement he made at the time the
friends of that town relinquished their claim in favor of
Sheffield.
The Huddersfield special services commenced on Sunday,
December the 1st, and were continued until the beginning of
April, 1845. After a tremendous conflict with the powers
of darkness, the work of salvation proceeded with signal suc¬
cess, and mightily prevailed against all opposing influences.
In one of the services, a young man, deaf and dumb, came
under the divine influence. God first converted a companion
of his, who could converse with him by signs, and who then
preached Jesus to the " dummy " with his fingers. The in¬
cident was deeply affecting, and interesting, and in the end
the youth was saved gloriously.
At the close of the Huddersfield "campaign," Mr. Caughey's
health was seriously affected ; and he was glad to seek pri
vacy for a short season, with a select company of Christian
friends, at Thorp Arch, and also at the hospitable mansion ofi
B. "Wilson, Esq., of Mirfield, near Dewsbury. During the
succeeding two months, he made excursions to Wakefield,
Huddersfield, Liverpool, Sheffield, and Hull, at each of which
places many souls were saved; and on the 14th of June,
arrived in York, to commence special services there on.the
morning of Sunday? the 15th.
York having been favored with a very extensive revival of
religion three or four years previously, Mr. Caughey, on en¬
tering upon his labors in this ancient city, felt a fear lest he
420 CLOSE OP MR. CAUGHEY'S LABORS IN ENGLAND.
might be stepping out of his right path, and lest his successes
should be inferior to those he had experienced in some other
places. Either this apprehension, or some other undefined
cause, operated for a time with a depressing influence on his
spirit. By the middle of July, the number saved was about
six hundred; but, up to that time, he could seldom occupy
more than half an hour with his sermon. " Some think," he
says in a letter to a friend, " I can preach, and others think
the contrary ; and I leave them to settle it among them, and
so the work goes on." It is certain, however, that he soon
rose above his fears. He had reason to feel that he was in
his right place.. Here was a people prepared at once to
enter into his plans. He ihet with an almost unexampled
unanimity of co-operation on the part of all the preachers on
the circuit, together with the officers and principal members
of the society. On'e sentiment seemed to pervade all classes
as to the greatness of the work which God was working
among them.
After spending a few weeks in the smaller places of wor¬
ship in the city, and when he had fully commenced his labors
in that spacious and elegant structure, the Centenary Chapel,
the effects of his ministry began to be strikingly manifest. It
may also be doubted whether he ever rose to loftier heights
of eloquenee, or uttered more impressive appeals, than dur¬
ing some of the services in this chapel. The following re¬
marks occur in the manuscript journal of one who observed
him narrowly: "On July 21st, 1845, heard the Itev.
James Caughey preach in the Centenary Chapel at York.
The text was, ' It pleased the Eather that in him should
all fulness dwell.' Of all the numerous slanders that have
been propagated concerning this extraordinary man, surely
one of the most senseless is that which lays to his charge that
Christ, in his preaching, is not exalted, and sometimes not
CLOSE OF MR. CAUGHEY'S LABORS IN ENGLAND. 421
even named. I have heard most of the celebrated ministers
of the present day, but I cannot, at this moment, call to
mind any instance in which I have heard the glories of the
Redeemer so magnified as in this morning's discourse. There
were passages where the preacher inferred the divinity of
the Saviour's person from the peculiar manner in which some
of his miracles were wrought, Which gave me the best idea I
have ever.obtained of the manner and effect of Whitefield's
preaching, so far as they are recorded. The whole congrer
gation seemed, in reality, to be at once 4 moved, as the trees
of the wood are moved with the wind.'"
In about three months, two thousand persons professed to
have received good under Mr. Caughey's ministry. These
included, of course, many from the surrounding district, and
not a few from other bodies of Christians.*
While in York, the second volume of his " Letters " was
published, and had an extensive sale.; about 3,000 copies
being ordered before it was issued.
From York Mr. Caughey retired to Scarborough; to obtain
a little rest; but the good people there prevailed upon him
to preach several times, with the hearty sanction of the Rev.
John Walsh, the Superintendent, and nearly two hundred
were saved. After a week's stay, he left Scarborough on
the 8th of October, and visited in succession Hudd'ersfield,
Sheffield, Chesterfield, (a fortnight, seven hundred and thirty
saved,) Doncaster, (a week, five hundred and twenty-six
saved,) York, (to take leave,) Huddersfield, Howley,-Sheep-
* Justified from the world, 942; in society, 372 ; total justified, 1314. Sanc¬
tified, 727. Total 2041. Of those justified from the world, 245 were back¬
sliders, many of them of eight, ten, twelve, and some even twenty years
standing. These were questioned as to the cause of their fall. Of the males
three fourths referred their downfall to intoxicating drink; the females, in a
majority of instances, referred theirs to " marrying an ungodly partner," or
" engaging as servant in an irreligious family."
36
422 close of mr. caughey's labors in england.
bridge, and Macclesfield, (a week, four hundred saved;) and
arrived at the mansion of John Wright, Esq., Spark Brook
House, Birmingham, on the 6th of December, at the earnest
solicitation of the Rev. Alexander Bell, Chairman of the
District, and the Rev. George Turner, Superintendent of the
Birmingham West Circuit.
Five months' special services in Birmingham (occasionally
interrupted by ill health, Missionary meetings, and a short
visit "to Huddersfield and Sheffield) resulted in the salvation
of between two and three thousand sinners. It was a mighty
work, and tasked the energies of Mr. Caughey to the utmost.
Still he came out of the battle invigorated both in body and
mind.i The following hasty note, written at the close of the
" campaign," will he interesting for two reasons, —it gives a
rapid, lightning-like glance into the intense heart of the
writer, and is a fair specimen of the off-hand sort of corre¬
spondence he carries on with his bosom friends during the
progress of a revival.
"Birmingham, May 7, 1846.
"My dear Brother ,
" I preached my farewell last night. Tea-meeting for
leaders to-night, and to-morrow night. About four thou¬
sand two hundred saved, in both blessings.* To God
be all the praise and glory! My health is better than
when I came. This is of God also. My soul is happy, and
deeply humble before God. Nottingham on Sabbath the 10th,
if all be well. When shall I see you? I preached out of
town and out of doors last Sabbath to a multitude of colliers
— <£80 collections for a chapel, but not quite fifty saved. I
do little in scattering shot here and there. As ever, in Jesus,
"James Caughey.
" P. S. I write this at Dr. Melson's. Farewell. J. C."
* Pardon and Purity.
CLOSE OE MR. CAUGHEY'S LABORS IN ENGLAND. 42.3
The revival in Nottingham was more glorious than all.
Mr. Caughey opened his commission there on the 10th of
May, 1846, and in the short space of one month upwards of
fourteen hundred were converted to God. Sunday, the 31st
of May, and two days following, Mr. Caughey spent at
Castle Donnington, and one hundred and eighty persons were
converted to God. He then returned to Nottingham, and
completed his engagement on the 12th of June.
Lincoln then enjoyed the benefit of his labors for a fort¬
night, during which three hundred and sixty-eight were
brought over from the ranks of Satan, and two hundred and
eighty-three professed to experience sanctifying grace. From
thence he went to Boston, where he wrote, u The devil has
met me on the low grounds of Lincolnshire as Napoleon met
Wellington on the plains of Belgium. Never have I had
such a flailing from the public papers."- The enemy, how¬
ever, suffered a signal overthrow, and about four hundred
were saved.
Passing through Sheffield, on the 23d of July, Mr.
Caughey proceeded to Borrowash, near Derby, and to Not¬
tingham, to preach occasional sermons ; and returning to the
north, arrived in Sunderland in time to commence special
services on Sunday, August 2d, at the invitation of the Rev.
W. Horton, the Superintendent.
There was a great work in Sunderland. At first it moved
slowly; but gathering momentum as it proceeded, it resulted
in the salvation of nine hundred and thirty-eight persons in
somewhat less than five weeks. Of these, seven hundred and
eleven were cases of justification, that is, three hundred and
sixty who had previously been members of society, and three
hundred and fifty-one sinners and backsliders. At South
Shields also, which Mr. -Caughey visited one Sabbath during
his stay in Sunderland, about seventy were saved,'many of
them backsliders. When, on the 4th of September, he was
424 CLOSE OF MR. CAUGHEY'S LABORS IN ENGLAND.
preparing to leave Sunderland, the members of society pre¬
sented a petition to their Superintendent urgently requesting
him to invite Mr. Caughey to visit the circuit again.
From Sunderland, Mr. Caughey went to Gateshead, being
invited to that circuit by the Kev. S. Dixon, the Superintend¬
ent. Before the close of the first week, one hundred and
twenty-rsix were saved. On the 12th of September, he re¬
tired to Scarborough, partly for seclusion, and partly to
recruit his health, which was failing.
After reposing a while in Scarborough, Mr. Caughey visited
Asburn, Eutoxeter, Birstall, Todmorden Yale, and Bourne,
with his usual success. These labors, with flying visits to
various other places, employed the winter and spring of 1846
and 1847. In July, 1847, believing it was the will of Prov¬
idence he should return to America, he made preparations
for an Atlantic voyage.
Before we introduce the reader to the scenes of that voy¬
age we call his attention to the following undeniable evidences
of the genuineness of the impression which induced him to go
to Europe. The voice of God whispered thus to his heart:
" The will of God is that thou shouldst visit Europe. He
shall be with thee there, and give thee many seals to
thy ministry. He has provided thee with funds. Make thy
arrangements accordingly; and next Conference, ask liberty
from the proper authorities, and it shall be granted thee.
Visit Canada first; when this is done, sail for England.
God shall be with thee there — thou shalt have no want in
all thy journeyings, and thou shalt be brought back in safety
to America."
Such was the " call." Behold the verification of its partic
tilars up to the time of his departure from England, in the fol
lowing statements, taken from the before-mentioned pamphlet
CLOSE OP MR. CAUGHEY'S LABORS IN ENGLAND. 425
The terms of Mr. Caughey's " call," as previously quoted,
are directive and predictive.
1st. Directive. —" These matters ■which trouble thee
must be let entirely alone. The will of God is that thou
shouldst visit Europe. He has provided thee with funds*
Make thy arrangements" accordingly ; and, next Conference,
ask liberty from the proper authorities. Visit Canada first;
when this is done, sail for England." These directions
scarcely call for remark, except on the subject of funds.
Mr. Caughey informs us that he had " funds sufficient for a
two years' tour;" and that he intended " to spend at least
two years in Europe." It is now nearly six years since he
landed in Liverpool, having spent the previous ten months in
Canada.
2d. Predictive. —" He shall give thee many seals to thy
ministry. Liberty from the proper authorities shall be grant¬
ed thee. God shall be with thee in England—thou shalt
have no want in all thy journeyings, and thou shalt be brought
back in safety to America." It has been seen that Mr.
Caughey had no difficulty in obtaining leave of absence from
his Conference. The remaining points must now be noticed.
" He shall give thee many seals to thy ministry."—Mr.
Caughey's ministry in Canada was eminently successful;
but as I have no authorized report, besides his own statement
of the results, I will lay no stress upon them. What they
have been in England we know, and have the highest com
nexional authority to assist us in proving. _ According to
the Minutes of Conference, the increase to the principal so¬
cieties which have been favored with Mr. Caughey's labors
was, in Liverpool, 404; in Leeds, 529 ; in Hull, 935; in
Sheffield, 864; in Huddersfield, 749 ; in York, 210; and in
Chesterfield, 230. The Birmingham Society had an increase
of 663 at the Michaelmas Quarter-day, 1846, as compared
36*
426 CLOSE OE MR. CAUGHEY'S LABORS IN ENGLAND.
■with the Minutes of 1845 ; and in every other town he has
visited there has been a corresponding increase. But this
statement only shows the local effect of Mr. Caughey's labors.
Numbers of persons have travelled ten, twenty, thirty, and
even fifty miles, to obtain the benefits of the revivals which
his ministry originated, and returned home rejoicing in the
salvation of the gospel. In fact, the return to Conference
does not represent one half the actual good effected in the
conversion of sinners, as the following statement, drawn up
from authentic sources, will show: —
Justified.
Sanctified.
Total.
* Dublin
* Limerick •
# Cork
50 ... .
* Bandon
70 . . .
20 ... .
* Liverpool
1300 . . .
, . . 400 ... .
* Leeds
. . 1000 . . . .
* Hull
Sheffield
. . . 1448 . . . .
Huddersfield
. . 755 ... .
York
. . 727 ... .
# Birmingham
. . 1400 . . . .
Nottingham
Lincoln
* Boston
. . . 400
Sunderland
* Gateshead
* Scarborough
Chesterfield. ...
. . . 786
Doncaster
.... 356 .. .
* Macclesfield
. . . . 260 .. .
* Wakefield
. . . . 200 .. .
* Various visits, London, Leeds, Hall,
Sheffield, Huddersfield, Manchester,
Belper, and places in Derbyshire,
Nottinghamshire, Yorkshire, Lanca¬
shire, &c., at a moderate'computa¬
tion 1500 500 2000
21,625 9,222 J>),84T
* The numbers stated for these places are approximations—rather nndei
than over the truth. I have not succeeded in obtaining particular acf wunU.
CLOSE OP ME. CAUGHEY'S LABOKS IN ENGLAND. 427
Thus there is every reason to believe that in England alone
Mr. Caughey's ministry has been the means of turning more
than twenty thousand persons from darkness to light, from
sin unto holiness. I have nothing here to do with the allege-
ment that many of these may have become backsliders: the
Church has had to mourn over such ever since the days of
the Apostles. I stand upon the great fact-, that unusual
numbers of sinners have been converted to God in conse¬
quence of Mr. Caughey's special call to visit England ; that
many, very many of these remain steadfast and blameless
to the present day; and that this is in striet accordance
with, and a literal fulfilment of, the terms, predictive and
otherwise, of that call, which was committed to writing be¬
fore Mr. Caughey left the United States, and published in
this country almost at the commencement of the period of
his greatest success.
" Thou shalt have no want in all thy journeyings"— " The
possession of a few hundreds of dollars," said Mr. Caughey,
in August, 1840$ referring to a period anterior to his call to
visit Europe, " had often made me very uneasy. I doubted
the propriety of laying up treasure on earth. The cause of
missions stood in need of what I possessed, but still I was
restrained. Now I clearly saw that God had provided me
with these funds in order to make me willing to obey the call,
and to save me from embarrassment in my travels." Like a
man of sense and prudence, he appears to have calculated
how long his own funds would support him, and determined
accordingly the period of his tour. He intended to spend
" at least two years " in Europe ; yet, Providence has so
ordered it that, though he has been nearly six years in these
kingdoms, and^ since his arrival lost nearly all the money he
brought with him by the bankruptcy of the party with whom
it was deposited, he has had " no want; " his revival oper-
428 CLOSE OF MR. CAUGHEY'S LABORS IN ENGLAND.
ations have never been impeded for lack of funds; and thus
the prediction has been fulfilled to the letter.
" Thou shalt he brought hack in safety to America."—
This, it will be seen by the next chapter, was fulfilled also.
Who ever had a false impression so significantly sustained by
the providence of God as was this call of Mr. C. ? Not one.
What then is the irresistible conclusion ? Why, clearly, that
Mr. Caughey's commission was of God.
CHAPTER XXY.
■ the voyage home.
The following "letter to some of Mr. Caughey's Hudders-
field friends, written on diis arrival in. New York, gives a
very unique account of his homeward voyage. It will be
read with deep interest.
To Messrs. Joseph Webb and Thomas Mallinson. of
Huddersjield.
New York, Nov. 8,1847.
My dear Brethren,
On the 20th day of July, 1847, after taking a most
tender farewell of a large number of precious friends, who
had accompanied me on board the steamer Hibernia, that
noble vessel weighed anchor, and " stood down " the Mersey.
"With a deeply affected heart I watched the motions of the
small steamer which bore my friends to the shore — friends
dear to my soul — who, to the last hour of my footsteps on
British soil, to the last moment of our parting, lavished upon
me the tokens of their boundless affection.
" There are moments in life that are never forgot,
Which brighten, and brighten, as time steals away; —
0 ! these hallowed remembrances cannot decay;
But they come on the soul with a magical thrill;
And in days that are darkest they kindly will slay,
And the heart in its last throb will beat with them still."
429
430
THE VOYAGE HOME.
But, alas! that was a sad, sad day; and had it not been
for the hope of meeting these beloved ones again, upon
earth, I should have been heart-broken. My straining
eyes followed the little steamer, till it was lost to recognition
among other boats; and when I no longer knew the one
around which my affections should entwine, wandering vision
found repose upon Liverpool, where I knew that not a few
of my spiritual children resided, and in whose streets many
of my friends had arrived, with whom X had parted an hour
or two before. Liverpool at length disappeared, and lastly,
the happy shores of England itself —" that little world,
that precious stone, set like an unfading emerald in the
silver sea," as one of her own poets has expressed it; and
I was left alone to my own reflections. My mind was
greatly confused and agitated; seemed as if awaking from
a troubled dream. " I have finished the work, 0 Lord, thou
hast given me to do. If thou, Lord, shouldst say, ' Nay,'
the responsibility must rest somewhere else than upon thy
poor servant. Longer I could not have stayed in England,
without rendering myself like thee, my Master, —' a stone
of stumbling, and rock of offence;'—not to the wicked
world, but to some good men, whose prejudices, and attach¬
ment to church order, would not allow them to appreciate
my works and motives. By remaining longer on those
shores, now lost, perhaps forever, to my eyes, more evil than
good, all things considered, would most likely have resulted.
Farewell, England! ' sunshine gilds no coast where God
is served more purely than in thee!' Farewell, Ireland!
where I have seen many hundreds of sinners converted;
— afflicted, distracted Ireland; 'the place where first we
breathed, who can forget ?' Farewell, Zion ! Farewell,
friends of my heart! —' hearts in union mutually disclosed.'
' Hearts that the world in vain has tried,
And sorrow hut more closely tied;' —
THE VOYAGE HOME.
431
To you, a tearful agonizing farewell! And farewell, poqr
perishing sinners, whom I would fain have brought into the
path to heaven, by thousands, and hundreds of thousands.
Farewell, ye men of God! ye ministers of his, ye local
preachers and leaders, officers of Emmanuel's hosts, who
helped me often to push the battle to the gates, and to shout
the victory close by the trembling gates of hell. Farewell
farewell! my children in the Lord; the seal of my apostle-
ship are ye in the Lord; whom I found in the hand of the
enemy, led captive by him at his will, and whom I left
in thy care, 0 blessed Jesus! chief Shepherd, and Bishop
of souls. Keep them, 0 Saviour, from the evils which are
in the world! may none of them backslide from thee, or
dishonor thy cause. Amen! " More I cannot describe
upon paper. The lights on the Isle of Man appeared about
twilight, and shortly after the quarter moon went down
behind a bank of cloud. The evening was pleasant, with a
placid sea, which suited the state of my weak body and
mind.
" Soft hour! which makes the wish, and melts the heart
Of those who sail the seas, on the first day
When they,from their sweet friends are torn apart."
I walked the deck till a late hour, lost in thought; —
"thoughts of the heart, how soft ye flow! mournful and
sweet, as music's dying fall;"—fraught with many a
treasured hope, and tender memory, darting to regions
afar; now with lately-parted friends, and the next moment
with expectant friends in North America. Both hemi¬
spheres were visited, quicker than the scintillations of the
Aurora Borealis. My whole being had, as it were, resolved
itself into memory*— " an ocean of memories." Some one
has termed the memory, the image chamber of the soul.
Mine was that, truly; and many images were there, and
432 the voyage home.
i^ngled pictures, "like broken scenery mirrored on tbo
surface of a troubled stream." Some were delightfully
pleasing, because associated with the expectation of soon
mingling my tears of joy with those of long-tried friends in
America; while others were Oppressively sad, on account
of friends I might possibly meet no more upon earth; and
these crossed each other and intermingled, "as rich sun¬
beams and dark bursts of rain meet in the sky." But
enough of this.
" The dangers I had 'scaped, the broken snare,
The disappointed foe, deliverance found
Unlooked for, life preserved, aijd peace restored,
Fruits of omnipotent eternal love,"
called for loudest songs of praise. " Bless the Lord, 0 my
soul!»
• The following morning we were running along the northern
coast of Ireland, " its weather-beaten and bleached rocks
from the green waves emerging." At the close of day land
had almost disappeared.
" Away! away we steer,
Upon the ocean's breast,
And dim the distant heights appear
Like clouds along the west:
While our ship, — lonely as the bird,
Whose home is on the wing," —
hurried onward, fearlessly, into the bosom of night. Morn
ing came, and nothing but sky and water appeared around;
our ship, "poised in the centre of a sphere," wrestling
hard with a rolling treacherous sea, " a working sea remain¬
ing from a storm," and nearly all the passengers sick, among
whom I also was " a complainant." And old voyagers there
were who grumbled heavily at the loss of both breakfast and
dinner, a thing they did not appear to have been accustomed
to; relish such usage they neither could nor would, and so