Glass r n. ;: Book ■S.A^, HISTORY SECOND CHURGlf, OR OLD NORTH, IN BOSTON. XO WHICH IS ADDED, A HISTORY OF THE NEW BRICK CHURCH. WITH ENGRAVINGS. BY CHANDLER ROBBINS, MINISTKE OF THE SECOND CHURCH. J3u6Ii0f)cli bg a dommittct of tf)c SottEtjj. . ^f ary of Coop.^ JSQ7 BOSTON: PRINTED BY JOHN WILSON & SON, 22, School Stkeet. 1852. F73 Entered, according to Act of Congress, in the year 1851, by CHANDLER ROBBINS, In the Clerk's Office of the District Court of the District of Massachusetts. Freeman Place, Boston, June 18, 1851. Rev. Chandler Robbins. Dear Sir, — At a Special Meeting of the " Standing Committee " of the Second Church, held in the vestry last evening, the following votes were unanimously adopted ; and the undersigned were appointed a Committee to transmit the same to you, and to solicit a compliance with the request. With sentiments of the deepest aifection and respect, We remain truly yours, &c. F. W. Lincoln, jun., David Barnard, Henry Davis, " Voted, That the thanks of the Standing Committee be presented to our Pastor for the able and interesting Historical Discourses preached by him on the last sabbath, in commemoration of the Two Hundredth Anniversary of our Church ; and that he be requested to furnish a copy for the press, together with such other matter as he may deem advisable, connected with the early annals of our ancient Society. " Voted, That a Committee of three be appointed, in connection with our Pastor, to superintend the publication of the Discourses." PREFACE. The substance of this History of the Second or Oed North Church was embodied in two discourses preached at the celebra- tion of its Two Hundred and First Anniversary. The original form in which the material was cast, to adapt it to delivery from the pulpit, has been generally preserved, though not strictly ad- hered to. Wherever it seemed necessary or proper, in making alterations or additions, to recognize the fact that I was preparing a volume for publication, I have done so. A division into three periods has been made, partly for the convenience of the reader, and partly for the sake of typographical neatness. The engravings have been prepared for the work by artists of the highest reputation, at the urgent request of the Society. It would have been more agreeable to me to have introduced por- traits of all the pastors, both of the Second Church and the New Brick, could they have been obtained, and had it not been for the great expense which so many engravings would have involved. A selection was absolutely necessary, and the Committee of Publication made it. Otherwise the last portrait in the book would have been omitted. A brief history of the New Brick Church, to which an explana- tory note is prefixed, follows that of the Old North. Considerable matter has been thrown into an Appendix. The temptation was strong to increase it, and was resisted only by considering that the purpose of this book was not the gratifica- tion of an antiquarian taste. The value of the long catalogue of " Admissions and Baptisms," in connection with the Second Church, will be appreciated by every genealogist. CONTENTS HISTORY OF THE SECOND CHURCH. PAGE Intkoduction to Discoukse ......... 1 First Period, from 1650 to 1723 4 John Mayo ........... 9 Increase Mather 12 Second Period, from 1723 to 1768 67 Cotton Mather 67 Joshua Gee 115 Samuel Mather 120 Samuel Chickley 123 Third Period, from 1768 to 1851 125 John Lathrop 125 Henry Ware, jun 130 Ralph Waldo Emerson 142 Chandler Robbins 143 HISTORY OF THE NEW BRICK CHURCH. Prefatory Note 167 WilUam Waldron 181 William Welsteed 183 Ellis Gray 184 Ebenezer Pemberton 189 APPENDIX. Appendix to History of the Second Church .... 209 Covenant 209 Michael Powell's Letter to the Governor and Magistrates . 210 Will of Increase Mather 212 Table of the Mather and Cotton Lineage 215 VIU CONTENTS. PAOB Increase Mather's Family Record, from his Family Bible . .216 Notice of Cotton Mather's Writings 217 Form of Union between the Second Church and the New Brick 220 Mr. Robbins's Letter of Resignation to the Proprietors of the New Meeting-house .......... 222 Admissions and Baptisms in the Second Church . . . 226 Curious Case of Conscience of John Farnum . . . .291 Interesting and Curious Votes 296 Bill of Fare for Ordination, 1722 298 Deacons of the Second Church 298 Legacies and Donations to the Second Church .... 299 Address to the Congregation to excite them to raise the Minis- ter's Salary 300 Mr. Emerson's Ordination 301 Mr. Robbins's Ordination 301 Restored Covenant of the Second Church 301 Library of the Church 302 Description of the Communion Plate 302 Social Festival at the Two Hundred and First Anniversary . .' 303 Hymn written for the Festival 305 Appendix to History of the New Brick. Church .... 306 Notice of Pamphlets relating to Mr. Thacher's leaving Wey- mouth 306 Speech of the Auctioneer on selling the Old Clock . . . 308 Names of Original Associates who built the New Brick Church . 309 Ordination and Genealogical Notice of William Waldron . . 309 Mr. Welsteed's Ordination 310 Letters of Waldron. — Description of Prof. Wigglesworth. — Meeting of the Overseers of Harvard College, 1723. — Mr. Gee's Ordination. — Christ Church. — Rev. Mr. Rogers, of Portsmouth. — Mr. Wigglesworth's "Sober Remarks." — Sa- lute on Sunday 310 Rev. William Hooper 314 Ordination and Genealogical Notice of Ellis Gray . . .314 Death and Funeral of Ellis Gray 315 Notices of Dr. Pemberton and Sundry Votes . . . .316 Notices of Deacons Tudor and Parkman 317 Memoranda and Votes 319 HISTORY OF THE SECOND CHURCH. HISTOllY THE SECOND CIIUROII Ezra, ix. 8, 9. — And now grace hath been showed from the Lord OUR God; for ouk God hath not forsaken us, but hath extended MERCY TO US, TO GIVE US A REVIVING, TO SET UP THE HOUSE OF OUR GoD, AND TO REPAIR THE DESOLATIONS THEREOF, AND TO GIVE US A WALL IN JuDAH AND Jerusalem. Two hundred and one years ago, this very day, the Second Church in Boston was gathered.* We feel it to be both a sacred duty and a high privilege to set apart this occasion to a review of its history, and a commemo- ration of the dealings of God with our fathers and their children. * The Second Church was gathered on the fifth day of June, 1650. This discourse was preached June 15, 1851. For the sake of those who may not understand this apparent confu- sion of dates, a brief explanation of the differences of stj'le is subjoined. The mode of reckoning time adopted by Julius Caesar was used in Eng- land, and in this country, till 1752. The Julian year consisted of 365^ days, and, consequently, differed from the true solar year (365 days, 5 hours, 48 minutes, 49-62 seconds) by an excess of 11 minutes, 10-35 seconds. This small annual excess, in the course of centuries, produced a difference of several days between the solar and civil years. In 1582, 1 ^ HISTORY OF At the commencement of the third centmy, our harps were hanging upon the willows. Our affairs were not in a condition to authorize the celebration of a jubilee, or to make it certain that a kind Providence intended " to give us a reviving, to set up the house of our God." In silence, therefore, we passed over that anniversary; though not in gloom, for even then beams of promise were breaking upon our future path, and that happy arrangement was already begun, whose consummation a few months ago has given us a secure "wall," as of old, in the city of our delight. But we must pause for one moment, as we turn our thoughts backward. We cannot chain them to separate facts in this long history, till we have first indulged the feeling that comes over us so powerfully, on finding our- selves once more established in safety and joy, after aU our wanderings and trials. It is kindred to that which rose in the hearts of " ransomed Israel," when, coming up from the divided sea, their feet stood once more upon the dry land. It is of mingled adoration and wonder Pope Gregory XIII., finding the diiference to have greatly increased, sought to correct the error by dropping ten days from the calendar. This Gregorian calendar was at once adopted by all the Roman Catholic countries. But the Protestant States of Germany and the kingdom of Den- mark adhered to the old Julian method till 1700 ; and England, with its colo- nies, till 1752. By act of Parliament in that year, the Julian calendar, or Old Style, as it was called, was abolished, and the date used in public documents made to conform to that employed in other European countries, by dropping eleven days, and calling the day following the second of Septem- ber, 1752, the fourteenth of September. To adjust the difference between the Old Style and the New, ten days are to be added to any date from 1600 to 1700, and eleven days to a date from 1700 to Sept. 14, 1752. THE SECOND CHURCH. 3 And it can find no better utterance, — none more grateful to itself, or more pleasing, perhaps, to Him to whom it rises, — than in the consecrated words of the very same psalm to which the ear of God then graciously listened, and whose glad peals echoed from the Red Sea behind to the wilderness of Shur before, when Moses sang, and all the men joined in chorus; while Miriam and all the women, with their timbrels, responded, — " The Lord hath triumphed gloriously. The Lord is my strength and my song; and he is become my salvation. He is my God, and I will prepare him an habitation ; my fathers' God, and I will exalt him. Who is like unto thee, O Lord ! among the gods ? Who is Uke thee, glorious in holiness, fearful in praises, doing wonders ? " The old field from which I have gleaned a few sheaves has been partially reaped before. Thirty years ago, at the completion of a century from the building of the Old Meeting House in Hanover-street, — now removed from our eyes, but never to be displaced from our hearts, — two discourses were preached by Rev. Hemy Ware, jun. ; one on the history of the New Brick Church, and the other on that of the Old North, or Second Church. Like every thing else which he undertook, that commemorative work was well done. But it is obvious, that within the limits of a single sermon it would be impossible to recount every particular worth remembering throughout the long period which he reviewed. Besides, his interesting discourses are not now to be procured ; whilst several sources of informa- tion, not accessible to him, have come to light since he 4 HISTORY OF WTote, and events of no inconsiderable moment to this church have contributed a painful interest to the close of its second century. For these reasons, as well as from respect to the general request of this congregation, it has seemed to me not only proper, but necessary, that I should undertake to lay before you a thorough and minute history of our venerable church. FIRST PERIOD. Fkom the Institution of the Church, 1650, to 1723. JOHN MAYO. — INCREASE MATHER. From the first settlement of Boston, not twenty years had elapsed at the period when our history begins. But, in that short interval, a wonderful change had been effected in the aspect of this little peninsula. Tangled thickets had given place to pleasant streets, dark forests to smiling gar- dens, and barren wastes to fruitful fields. Low cabins and tents of cloth had been exchanged for large dwellings and convenient stores, some even of brick and tile and stone. Wharves stretched into the harbor. Ships of various nations rode at anchor in the bay, and all things gave early promise of a thriving and powerful city. The little cluster of buildings which had hitherto closely nestled for safety between the three hills — which were then crowned with forts and batteries of cannon, " like overtopping THE SECOND CHUKCH. _ O towers" keeping watch and ward over the feeble colony beneath them — was spreading over the plains, and wind- ing out through the valleys, and climbing up the heights. It was only seventeen years since the First Church had been founded. Yet within that time its original house, with thatched roof and walls of mud, — "which had enclosed some of the noblest and choicest spirits that ever bore the Christian name;" in which Winthrop and Dudley had worshipped, the venerable Wilson taught, and the eloquent Cotton preached, — had made room for a more spacious and comfortable edifice. And now that also was insuffi- cient. The town had grown so populous that still another was required. The northern part especially felt the need of such accommodation. Its inhabitants were fast multi- plying; and amongst them were numbered some of the most respectable and wealthy. In those days, to feel such a want was to have it supplied. The object dearest to the hearts of our fathers was the house of God. This was the centre, not only of their affec- tions, but of their settlements. To rear it was their first care, thek united zeal. Ai'ound it their houses were builded. Close to it they fixed their habitations, — guard- ing it whilst it defended them ; encu'cling it whilst it shel- tered them ; providing for it whilst it blessed, and praying for it whilst it hallowed them. It was a holy and beautiful sentiment, it is amongst the most precious tokens of their piety, that they consulted with such reverential care for the sanctuary and worship of God. It marks the grand principle which prompted their enterprise, which guided and governed their movements, which lay at the founda- O HISTORY OF tion of their institutions, and which communicated to their arduous undertaking an unconquerable impulse, an irre- sistible energy. It is an evidence of that spirit of religious devotedness to which we are indebted, more than to all things else, for the highest glories which have adorned our country, and the choicest blessings which have enriched our inheritance. For such reasons, and under the influence of such sen- timents, the foundation of the Second Church-edifice in Boston was laid, in 1649, at the head of North Square. We are told, to the credit of the minister of the First Church, Mr. Cotton, that with laudable liberality and self-denial he favored and encouraged the undertaking, notwithstanding it might draw away parishioners from himself. " His name," says the quaintest of New England's historians, " was John ; and, like the great forerunner of Jesus who bore the same appellation, he reckoned his joy fulfilled in this, that in his own decrease the interests of his Master would increase.'''' It would be pleasant to be able to find some description or picture of this our first temple. But none such has come down to us. The only notice we have of it, and which is altogether incidental, is sufficient to pique our curiosity. Our church-records give us reason to suppose, that some of the pews were accommodated with private doors through the side of the house into the street, — for what purpose, or according to what style of architecture, or in what manner constructed, we are left wholly to conjecture. No account has been discovered of its first occupancy, or its formal consecration. The first sermon preached in it, of which we have information, was THE SECOND CHURCH. .7 at the gathering of the church, on the fifth day of June, 1650. The original members, who were on that day united by covenant, were these seven: Michael Powell, James Ashwood, Christopher Gibson, John Phillips, George Davis, Michael Wills, and John Farnham. It is worthy of remark, that this covenant was not doctrinal, but practical ; not a declaration of belief, but an obligation to Christian duty. — (See Appendix A.) The preacher on that occasion was Samuel Mather,* then but a young man, yet already giving promise of the high abilities which he afterwards displayed. He was born in England ; but, arriving in Boston when nine years old, finished his education in the college at Cambridge, a mem- ber of the second class that graduated at that institution. He was the first who held the office of felloiv^ then the same as tutor, at Harvard; and is said to have been so much beloved by the students that "they put on tokens of mourning in their very garments when he resigned." The sermon alluded to called forth warm encomiums even from the grave lips of Cotton ; and the new society eagerly solicited him to become their minister. He consented to remain with them for only a few months ; at the expiration of which, to their great disappointment, as well as to that of several other congregations that wished his services, he returned to his native country, where he ended his days in usefulness and honor. " Aftei-ward, Mr. Norton, minister of Ipswich, who two years after became minister of the First Church here, and Mr. Davenport, of New Haven, who * Son of Rev. Richard Mather. See note on page 13. 8 HISTORY OF seventeen years after also accepted a call from the First Church, — both of them amongst the distinguished men of that period, — and sundry others who were officers in other churches, but likely to remove from their places, were invited, with no better success, to take charge of this infant church." * In this dilemma, the church were content to have their worship conducted by one of then- own number, the first- named of the original seven, Michael Powell. His services were so satisfactory that the church would have proceeded to ordain him as then- teacher, had not the civil authority interfered. Their objection to him was that he was "illit- erate as to academical education." They would not suffer an unlearned man to be called to the teaching office " in such a place as Boston." " He might have talents and a fine spirit," they argued, "and still not be competent to instruct the educated, explain the Scriptures, and convince the unbelieving. If such men intrude themselves into the sacred function, there is danger of bringing the profession into contempt. If an exception should be made in the case of Mr. PoweU by reason of his peculiar gifts, it might establish a dangerous precedent." f And so jealous were the civil fathers of this country of evil consequences to the churches, that they did not permit even the ministers to control the business of ordination, lest some of them, more pious than judicious, might admit to the pulpit illiterate men by reason of their earnestness and piety. This was not a solitary instance of such interference on the part of * Church Records. t Mass. Hist. Collections. THE SECOND CHURCH. V the General Court in ecclesiastical aflairs. Indeed, it was one of their orders, that no minister should be called into office in any of the churches within their jurisdiction, with- out the allowance and approbation of some of the magis- trates, as well as some of the neighboring churches. If we may judge of Mr. Powell's character by a singu- lar paper addressed by him, by way of explanation and apology, to the " honored Governor and Magistrates," he seems at least not to have been deficient in humility, gen- tleness, and respect for rulers. — (See Appendix B.) After having remained without a pastor for four years, it happened that Mr. John Mayo, "on account of some difficulties and discoviragements," left his chm-ch at Nosset in Plymouth County ; who, being both available and suita- ble, was invited to the pastoral office here, and ordained the ninth of November, 1655. At the same time, Mr. Powell was ordained as ruling elder of the church.* * " The name elders (who arc also in Scripture called bishops) includes those who attend to the ministry of the word, as pastors and teachers, and those who attend especially unto rule, who are therefore called ruling elders. They are not so called, however, as to exclude the former from rule and government ; because these oiRces are common to both, though teach- ing and preaching are peculiar to the former. " The ruling elder's work is to join with the pastor and teacher in those acts of spiritual rule which are distinct from the ministry of the word and sacraments. Of which sort are the following: — 1. To open and shut the doors of God's house, by the admission of members approved by the church. 2. To call the church together when there is occasion, and seasonably to dis- miss them again. 3. To prepare matters in private, that in public they may be carried to an end with less trouble and more speedy despatch. 4. To moderate the carriage of all matters in the church assembled ; as, to propound matters to the church ; to order the season of speech and silence ; and to pronounce sentence, according to the mind of Christ, with the consent of the church. 5. To be guides and leaders to the church in all matters whatsoever pertain- 2 10 HISTORY OF Of our first pastor little is known. It is probable that he was not a distinguished man ; otherwise, from his advantageous and honorable position, some notice of him would have come down to us. He had passed the prime of life when he entered upon his ministry with this church, and was perhaps beginning to lose his vigor, as well of mind as of body. It seems probable that he did not extend his labors or influence beyond the boundaries of his own parish. The only allusion, I believe, ever found to his cha- racter is contained in a single sentence, which I chanced lately to discover in the preface to a sermon by his asso- ciate. Increase Mather, of whom I shall soon speak. He says that " he was a blessing to his people ; and that they two — pastor and teacher — lived together in love and peace for the space of eleven years." In 1672, it is stated in the records of our church, that Mr. Mayo grew so infirm that the congregation were not able to hear and be edified ; when, with his own consent, the brethren voted to release him from the burden of supplying the pulpit. It is also wa-itten, that in 1673 he removed from Boston to Barnsta- ble, to reside with his daughter ; and there, and at Yar- mouth, spent the residue of his life in quiet and retirement. He died at Yarmouth in May, 1676, and was there buried. I have been pleased to discover, amongst some very ancient receipts, several signed by Mr. Mayo's son, on behalf of his ing to church administrations and actions. 6. To see that none in the church live inordinately, out of rank and place, without a calling, or idly in their calling. 7. To prevent and heal such offences in life or in doctrine as might corrupt the church. 8. To feed the flock of God with a word of admonition. 9. As they shall be sent for, to visit and pray over their sick brethren, — 10. And at other times, as opportunity shall serve thereunto." THE SECOND CHURCH. 11 aged father, after he had gone to Barnstable, which prove the fact, creditable to the church, that, though their aged pastor had ceased to serve them, they did not cease to remember his former labors, which had lasted as long as his strength, nor seize an excvise, that has often been found by religious societies, for neglecting to comfort him in his declining years. This provision was continued, as the receipts indicate, up to the time of his death. INIi*. Powell also, the ruling elder, who, soon after his appoint- ment to that office, became disabled by an attack of para- lysis, and through sickness reduced to poverty, was liberally remembered in the charitable distribution of the church. By an account of the treasurer of the church, almost illegible, it appears that he was buried the thirty-first of January, 1672-3.* It is a singular circumstance, illusti-a- tive of the funeral customs of the period, that, though the whole cost of the funeral was ten pounds and four shillings, only six shillings were paid for the grave, and six shil- lings for the coffin; whilst three pounds and seventeen shillings were spent for wine, and five pounds fifteen sliil- lings for gloves.f * As by the " Old Style" the year began in March, there is often a con- fusion of dates before the year 1752, when the <'New Style" was adopted; in some cases a doubt arising whether January, February, and a part of March, closed the old year or began the new. This caused the practice of double-dating, which we often see, — for example, January, 1649-50. After the 25th of March, the Old and New Styles agree as to the year. If the event dated occurred before the twenty-fifth of March in any year, it is best to give the date as if the year began in January. t While the pastor, teacher, and ruling elder, were in active service, they were paid according to the proportion indicated in the subjoined vote : — " 21st day of the 6th mo., 1662. " The Church of the North End of Boston met at Bro. ColKcott's, and 12 HISTORY OF We have now reached a period from which dates a new and bright era in the affairs of this church, — at which I might say its history virtually commences. For before that time it had only a name to live. No records had been kept ; no quickening impulse had been given to it ; no vigorous growth had begun. I refer to the year 1664, in which, on the twenty-seventh of May, Increase Mather was ordained teacher ; a man whose name is not only identified with the early civil and ecclesiastical annals of New England, but with the history of this church for sixty- two years, or nearly one-third of the whole period of our present survey. His character has been several times sketched, and was very justly delineated by Mr. Ware. But it has been more than once misrepresented; and, I grieve to say, by some in our own day, whose accustomed integrity and fairness only render their severe judgment in this instance more remarkable and more injurious. Indeed, such confidence had I been taught to repose in the accu- racy and justice of their historical views and statements, that I had myself prejudged the case against this venerable predecessor, and supposed the judgment to be fully author- ized, before I had occasion to search more carefully, as I there did agree that Mr. Mayo should have, out of what is given to the church annually, sixty-five pounds ; and Mr. Mather fifty pounds, and Mr. Powell twenty-five pounds ; and this annually, provided they that have engaged perform their engagement. And, of the Contribuiioti, Mr. Mayo to have twenty shillings Aveekly, and Mr. Mather twenty, and Mr. Powell fifteen shillings weekly, — provided the contribution hold out ; and, if it abate, each one of the above-said to abate according to proportion ; and if the contribu- tion superabound, then the overplus to be kept in the hands till occasion call for it, and then to be disposed of by the church's order. And to this we are all agreed." THE SECOND CHURCH. 13 have recently done, the authorities in the case for myself. From this research, I have come away profoundly im- pressed with the worth and piety of this " patriarch of New England," and irresistibly moved to do, as well as I may be able, the duty that devolves upon me, in this place and on this occasion, of vindicating his memory from unjust aspersions, and holding up for your respect and love a true image of his virtues. The stock from which he descended was of the best; for his ancestors were righteous and godly. Better than kingly blood flowed in his veins ; for it came through pure hearts and virtuous lives. His father was the Rev. Richard Mather, the faithful and valuable minister of Dorchester, in this State, one of the noble company of those who were ejected from the English Church for nonconformity to cere- monies against which then* consciences revolted. Driven from his sacred charge, which he was faithfully fulfilling in England, and obliged to fly in disguise from his persecu- tors, he had joined the goodly band of confessors and pil- grims who " sought a faith's pure shrine " on these western shores. Surely, my friends, no Christian minister would ask a nobler lineage than that which is emblazoned with the brightest of all ensigns, the memorials of sacrifices and triumphs for conscience and the truth ! * * Richard Mather was born A.D. 1596, in Lowton, Lancaster County. His parents were of ancient families, though poor. In early life, his zeal for learning, for which the family in general were so remarkable, was so great that he used to walk four miles to school. The extreme severity of the master, however, almost quenched the young pupil's enthusiasm. Though he was a bright and diligent boy, the teacher used to " beat him eight times a-day, whether in fault or not ; " so that he begged his father to take him 14 HISTORY OF That such was the feeling of Richard Mather's own children, and that they were early moved to emulate their father's virtues, may be gathered from the fact that four of his sons devoted themselves to the ministry. The young- est of these was our Increase, who was born in Dorchester, the twenty-first of June, 1639. from study, and dispose of him to some other calHng. But his father was inexorable ; and the son afterwards praises him for refusing his request, but adds, with great feeling, "But oh that all schoolmasters would learn wis- dom, moderation, and equity towards their scholars, and seek rather to win the hearts of children, by righteous, loving, and courteous usage, than to alienate their minds by partiality and undue severity, which had been my utter undoing, had not the good providence of God, and the wisdom and authority of my father, prevented. He began to preach in 1618 : married Katharine Hoult, daughter of Edmund Hoult, Esq. of Bury, in Lancashire, — " a godly and prudent maid," — Sept. 29, 1624. By her he had six sons: four born in England, namely, Samuel, Timothy, Nathaniel, Joseph ; and two in New England, Eleazcr and Increase. The reasons which induced him to leave England, as drawn up by himself, show not only the conscientiousness of the man, but are a striking evidence also of the true motives which influenced those who first came over to this country. They arc all of a religious nature. He sailed from Bristol, May 23, 1635. His interesting and curious journal of this voyage has been pub- lished, together with his " Life and Death," by the Dorchester Historical Society. He arrived in Boston, Aug. 17, 1635. The church at Dorchester (" the first church planted there having removed to Warham, Conecticot ") was constituted Aug. 23, 1636 ; and Mr. Mather was chosen teacher, and continued in charge of the church thirty-four years. He was a studious, devout, and faithful minister, of solid judgment and stern integrity. He •was " much improved " in the management of controversies, then warmly agitated, concerning church-government ; author of several important works on this point ; and one of three appointed by the synod at Cambridge, in 1647, to draw up the " Platform of Discipline." There were few councils or ordinations in which he had not a part. With Eliot and Welde, he was selected to make a new metrical translation of the Psalms, — the " New England Version," printed at Cambridge, in 1640, — which continued in general use by the churches for many years, and was by several eminent congregations in England preferred to all others. After the death of his first wife, he married the widow of the Rev. John Cotton, of Boston. He THE SECOND CHURCH. 15 His singular Christian name is said to Iiave been given to him in gratitude to God for the providential increase and prosperity of the colony at that early date.f If so, it might seem to be not only commemorative, but prophetic; for probably no person in any countiy was ever able to look back upon such a wonderful and rapid career of national advancement as excited his thanks, when, in his old age, he reviewed what he had seen of New England's growth ; which, as much perhaps as any other man, he had labored and helped to promote. But the som*ce of his virtuous inclination is not to be traced only on the father's side. Happily for him, the spring was as pure on the mother's. We hear nothing, indeed, of her consent and assistance to the self-sacrifice which brought their family from English comfort to New England hardship. But we never doubt, when we read with reverence the story of the Puritan fathers, that the Puritan mothers also went side by side with then- husbands in every impulse of Christian emotion, and every movement died April 22, 1G69, aged seventy-three years. The following is his epitaph, in Dorchester Burying Ground : — Dom Sacer Richardus Hie Dormit Matherns (Sed ncc Tohis nee Mora Diutuma) Lsetatus Genuisse Pares Incertimi est utrura Doctior an Melior Animum & Gloria non Queunt Humari Diuinely Rich & Learned Richard Mather Sons Ijlte Him Prophets Great Rcioiced this Father Short Time His Sleeping Dust heres couerd down Not His Ascended Spirit or Rinown. U. D. M. In Aug. In Dorc : N A 34 An Obt. Apr. 22 1CC9 Aet suae 73 t " If he might have had an Hebrew instead of an English name, I suppose it must have been Joseph, which is of the like signiticancy." — Cut- toji Mather. 16 HISTORY OF of holy duty ; that, in the privacy of their homes, they helped to nerve them for their sternest struggles of con- science; and when the brave act of faith was done, and the fearful recompence of their integrity dealt to their hus- bands, that they richly rewarded them with their cordial sympathy, and sweetly soothed them with their gentle love. That such praise attaches to the mother of Mather, the characters of her children are a sufficient proof. One or two of her favorite maxims are a striking index to her spirit. By means of them, we can easily picture to ourselves what sort of a woman she was, and construct her character. " My child," she often said to the young Increase, " if God make thee a good scholar and a good Christian, thou wilt have all thy mother ever asked for thee." Her daily pro- verb was, " Seest thou a man diligent in business, he shall stand before kings : he shall not stand before mean men." And her last saying, amid the solemnity of death, was the sublime and kindling promise of the Scriptures : " ' They that be wise,' my son, ' shall shine as the brightness of the firmament ; and they that turn many to righteousness, as the stars for ever and ever.' " Are not these materials enough for her moral porti-aiture ? Diligence, love of sound learning coupled with Christian goodness, and high aspi- ration after heavenly glory, — with these grand features before him, who could not fill up the outlines ? And these very traits, — it is worthy of remembrance as another amongst innumerable proofs of the power and endurance of maternal counsel when impressed by maternal character, — and it ought to be spoken of to her honor, for she who THE SECOND CHURCH, 17 nurtures a faithful man deserves honorable mention when- ever his virtues are recounted, — these very traits are amongst the most prominent characteristics of her son.* It is a sufficient evidence of his diligence, as well as his capacity, that he entered Harvard College at the early age of twelve years. After he had lived a year at the col- lege, his parents, fearing that some things there might not suit his constitution, which they supposed to be feeble, and wishing to have him under a more than ordinary inspection and instruction, sent him to live with the famous Mr. Nor- ton, of Ipswich, with whom he removed to Boston in 1653, and under whose tuition he continued several years. Whilst a pupil with Mr. Norton, his conversion took place. Of this event he has given a " Relation " in his own words. The immediate cause of it was a dangerous illness, which brought him near to death, and caused him to see his sins with great vividness, and feel them with intense grief. On his recovery, he resolved to put away every sin, and seek his peace with God by prayer and fast- ing and an entire dedication of himself to holiness. To this " Relation " he attached the greatest sacredness ; and, seventy years after it was wnritten, caused his grandsons to transcribe it, and made the remembrance and perusal of * The brief notice of this lady, in the '< Life and Death of Eichard Mather," confirms our idea of her worth : " That which of outward afflic- tions did most aggrieve him was the death of his dear wife, who had been for so many years the greatest outward comfort and blessing which he did enjoy ; which affliction was the more grievous, in that she, being a woman of singular prudence for the management of affairs, had taken off from her husband all secular cares, so that he wholly devoted himself to his study and to sacred employments." 3 18 HISTORY OF it a cordial to him in his lingering passage through the valley of the shadow of death. This document well repre- sents the religious earnestness of the early New England Christians. It shows how close and searching was the preaching, how high the standard of piety, with what minuteness and exactness the marks of a true conversion were laid down and scrutinized, and how rigidly the tests of it were applied. After describing the occasion of his " first saving awakenings," and the powerful convictions of sin which oppressed him, he pictures in strong language the struggles and pangs of the new birth, the process of which was long and painful : " I pleaded hard with God that promise which says that he will take away the heart of stone, and give an heart of flesh. But still I thought my heart was as hard as a stone. . . . Sometimes I was afraid I was guilty of the unpardonable sin. Then, that my sins were too great to be pardoned. Then, of God's un- willingness to pardon me. ... I was foolishly ashamed to acquaint anybody with my troubles ; till at last, not being able to hold out any longer, the hand of God pressing me so sore, I acquainted my father with some of my distresses, and begged him to pray for me. " I resolved upon setting apart another day, to be spent in secret prayer with fasting before the Lord ; and the Lord made it an happy day to me, — a day I shall never forget while I have any being. On the day of our Anniversary Election, the greatest anniversary solemnity in the coun- try, the scholars which boarded at Mr. Norton's being all abroad on their diversions, I took this opportunity of a pri- vate chamber, and, shutting the door, spent the whole day THE SECOND CHURCH. 19 in pouring out my complaints unto the Lord. Towards the close of the day, being full of extremity of anguish in my soul because of my sin, it was put into my heart, that I must go and throw myself down at the feet of my Saviom-, and see whether he would accept me or no; — resolving that if he would accept me, then I would be his ; but if not, then I would perish at his feet. So I came before him with those words of Esther, '"If I perish, I perish." Yet, Lord! if it must be so, I am resolved to perish at the feet of thy mercy. I am indeed unworthy of so much as a crumb; I have been a great sinner ; yet I am resolved I will not offend any more, but be thine, and be thine only, and be thine for ever.' And while I was thus praying and pleading, these words of Christ were darted into my mind, ' Him that cometh unto me I will in no wise cast out.' After that, I had some comfortable per- suasion that my sins were pardoned. " But, by and by, Mr. Norton showed that a man might forsake his sins, and have been in some sorrow of heart for them, and yet not be truly converted unto God. This word stuck deep in me ; and I was afraid my conversion might not be sound." Then his father, preaching on true conversion, made the rule cover his case, and answered his scruples ; and, when Mr. Mitchell preached on the " Marks of Sincerity," he found that his heart "went along with the word." " So," he concludes, " I went on cheerfully in the ways of God; and, if in any thing I have been overtaken with a fault, the Lord has given me to see it, and mourn for it, and turn from it." 20 HISTORY OF Having graduated in 1656, he commenced preaching the next year, when not yet nineteen years old. But, being desirous of going abroad, and having two of his brothers * at this time settled ministers in Europe, he sailed from Boston for England in July, 1657. After spending a year at Trinity College, Dublin, where he took his second degree in 1658, and after preaching with much effect to several congregations, he was at length, like his father, compelled to conform, or leave the island. Refusing very liberal offers made to him, if he would but wear the sur- plice and read the Common Prayer, he again turned his face towards New England, to seek a harder but freer field of service in his native land. On a Saturday evening in September, 1661, to the surprise of all at home, he reached his father's house in Dorchester, while the old man was, even then, greeting another son,f who had just arrived from his place of ministry in North Hampton. The next day, both appeared in their father's pulpit, on either side of him ; " and the comforted old patriarch sat shining between them, like the sun in gemini, hearing them entertain the people of God with performances that made all people pro- claim him a happy father.''^ % During the first winter after his return, he preached on alternate Sundays with his father at Dorchester, and to the Second Church. Invitations now flocked to him. No less than twelve parishes desired his services. But the call of this church ultimately prevailed. A manuscript in his handwriting gives a distinct account of the reasons and * Samuel and Nathaniel. f Eleazer. t Cotton Mather. THE SECOND CHURCH. 21 conditions of its acceptance : — " Within a week after my arrival in Boston, I was desired to preach to this congrega- tion ; which accordingly I did, Sept. 8, 1661, when I preached my first sermon in Boston. The day after, the pastor and brethren invited me to labor constantly among them. After I had been with them half a year, they desired I would accept of the teaching office ; which motion I withstood for the space of two years longer, partly out of an awful sense of the dreadfulness of the bond of office- relations, partly out of a desire, which was in my heart, to return to England, had the Lord seen it good. But then the brethren all met together, and spent a day in fasting and prayer ; the main ground of which day was to entreat the Lord to bow my heart to accept of their call ; and, after this day (a passage which I think worthy to be recorded), my heart was strangely overcome to close with the desires of the church touching office-relation. The officers which were then here, and every one of the brethren, did under then- hands signify their continued desires of my being so related to them. Also, the inhabitants in this end of the town did the like. Whereupon, I did return an affirmative answer to their call ; only under my hand I expressed, that, if hereafter the Lord should call me to greater service else- where, or in case of personal persecutions wherein not they but I shall be aimed at, or of want of health, or if I should find that a competent maintenance for me and mine should not be afforded, then (my relation to them notwith- standing) I would be at liberty to return to England, or to remove elsewhere. " These proposals were consented to by the chm-ch ; 22 HISTORY OF whereupon I was ordained teacher of this Second Church in Boston, the 27th day of the 3d mo., 1664 ; my father and Mr. Mayo imposing hands upon me." From the period of Mather's ordination till the removal of Mr. Mayo, some eight or ten years, the two officiated by turns ; one as pastor, and the other as teacher. These two offices, though distinct in name, were hardly different in duties.* The work of the ministry was esteemed in those days more arduous and solemn than it generally is in our own ; and, even though the congregation was not large, two incumbents were frequently employed in it to divide and relieve the labor. So long as Mr. Mayo retained his office of pastor, Mr. Mather seems to have left to him the charge of all but the pulpit-duties. But no sooner is he left alone than we begin to see a remarkable change in both the internal and external affairs of the church. He takes hold of the work with all his characteristic conscien- tiousness and strength. And, under God, this high pur- pose of his, carried into effect with powerful ability, became the lever that lifted this church to its subsequent distinction and prosperity. The expression of this purpose is his first entry on our records. " It must needs be acknowledged," he says, "that there hath been a great defect as to the * In the "Platform of Church Discipline," 1648, the distinction be- tween the offices of pastor and teacher is thus stated : — " The office of pastor and teacher appears to be distinct. The pastor's special work is to attend to exhortation, and therein administer a word of wisdom. The teacher is to attend to doctrine, and therein to administer a word of knoiokdge. Either of them to administer the seals, as also to execute the censures ; being but a kind of application of the word, the preaching of Avhich, together with the application thereof, they are alike charged withal." THE SECOND CHURCH. 23 administration of governnient of this church. The neglect whereof for so long a time hath caused things to be so far out of order, that I find it difficult, yea, impossible, to reduce matters to that state which is desirable. Neverthe- less, Providence having so ordered that the sole inspection of the affairs of the Lord's house here is committed into my weak hands, I account it my duty to do the best I can that things may be set and kept in that due order which will be for the present benefit of the church, and future comfort of him, or those — if any such there be, as I trust there may — whom the Lord hath appointed to succeed me." From henceforth the church continued to grow and pro- sper, notwithstanding the burning of their house, Nov. 27, 1676, during an extensive fire, which consumed forty-five dwelling-houses and several warehouses. Of the coming of this calamity he is said to have had a powerful presenti- ment, leading him on the two previous sabbaths to warn his people from the pulpit, and in his study to cry earnestly to God, and even to urge his family to change their dwell- ing, which was afterwards burned.* Many such prophetic * "In the year 1676, he had a strange impression on his mind, that caused him, on Nov. 19, to preach a sermon on these words, Zeph. iii. 7 : ' I said, Surely thou wilt fear me, thou wilt receive instruction ; so their dwelling should not be cut off.' This sermon he concluded with predicting that a fire was coming which would make a deplorable desolation. After he came home, he walked his study, exceedingly moved and melted, in such a soliloquy, — ' O Lord God ! I have told this people that thou art about to cut oiT their dwellings ; but they will not believe. Nevertheless, O Lord ! I beseech thee to spare them. If it may stand with thy holy pleasure, spare them ! spare them ! ' At the same time, he earnestly urged upon his con- sort a speedy change of habitation. On the next Lord's day, he preached what seemed afterwards a farewell sermon on these words, ' Remember how thou hast received and heard.' The conclusion was, that predictions of 24 HISTORY OF impressions are attributed to him, in which he seems to have put confidence. Concerning these I have no remark to make in any cavilling spirit. That no premonitions are ever given from the spirit of God to the spirit of man, I should be unwilling to take it upon myself to assert. But the proof of the divine origin of the impression, in any parti- cular case, it would be very difficult to find. It is not to be found in the strength of the impression ; because the strong- est have not been always verified. It is not to be found in the fulfilment ; because many that have seemed equally powerful have resulted in disappointment. The remarks of Cotton Mather himself upon such prophetic impressions show a discrimination and sober judgment, such as many would hardly believe him capable of applying to such a theme : — " There might be danger lest some inconsiderate Christians, when they read of these things, might be led into an indiscreet affectation of extraordinaries and singu- larities in the course of their devotions. This is a thing evil ought to be remembered ; and that, when the Lord Jesus is about to bring any heavy judgment upon his people, he is wont to stir up the heart of some servant of his to give warning of it ; which warning should be remem- bered. The last words of this sermon were : ' People won't remember nor mind these things. But as Jehu said unto his captain, "Remember how the Lord laid this burden ; " so, when the evil is come, you will remember what you heard concerning it.' The very night following, a desolating fire broke out in his neighborhood. The house in which he and his flock had praised God was ' burnt with fire.' Whole streets were laid in ashes. His own house took a part in the ruins. But, by the gracious providence of God, he lost little of his beloved library, — not a hundred books from above a thousand ; of those also he had an immediate recruit, by a gener- ous off"er which the Honorable Mrs. Bridget Hoar made him, to take what he pleased from the library of her deceased husband. In less than two years, also, he became owner of a better house." — Cotton Mather's Remarka- bles. THE SECOND CHURCH. 25 that might have perilous consequences. If I may be thought worthy to offer my advice, I would humbly say : Christians, reproach not a particular faith, as if there never were a gracious work of Heaven in it. But yet be cau- tioned against laying too much stress upon it, lest you find yourselves incautiously plunged into a hope that wiU make ashamed. A particular faith 7nay be a ivork of God ; but the counterfeits of this jewel are so very fine that it will require a judgment almost more than human to discern them. It is best not to be too fond of enthusiasms. It is best that you should be content with the ordinary satisfaction of praying, and so waiting for the blessings of God in such pious resignations to his wiU, and annihilations of your own, as an uncertainty about issues would most properly lead you to." The fact seems to be, that Increase Mather, like many religious men of his times, was accustomed to watch nar- rowly the processes of thought and emotion in his own breast. And this habit of introspection, combined with a temperament somewhat gloomy, and made more so by much seclusion and study, influenced, moreover, by theolo- oical views of a depressing tendency to one so sensitively conscientious, might easily lead him to exaggerate the im- portance of his casual impressions, and especially to think much of his dark forebodings. We find him, accordingly, often uttering warnings to his people. It is indeed, I think, one of the faults of his sermons, that they take too dark views of Providence, and address too frequently the fears of men. They may not be more denunciatory than the sins of men deserve ; but they are much more so than is consistent 4 26 HISTORY OF with the highest effect of the denunciations themselves. Men become inured to threats and woes through their repe- tition. And he who is ever painting from the pulpit the sins and dangers of the people has no reason to wonder, if his hearers at length become so accustomed to his dark and terrific pictures that they fail to excite their apprehen- sions, as well as to stimulate their virtues. I would not, however, have it to be inferred from these remarks, that Mr. Mather was so habituated to this style of preaching as to interfere greatly with his popularity or his success, or that strains of a more encouraging and hope- ful and affectionate tone never relieved his sermons. On the contrary, they oome in from time to time, sweetly and powerfully, to vary and enliven his grave admonitions and solemn warnings. Though no man was bolder or sterner to rebuke what he believed to be wrong in individuals or the nation, yet he had essentially a kind heart, and his lips were not strangers to the gentle breathings of a pastor's affection, and the softer accents of a good man's sympathy. His appearance in the pulpit is described as having been peculiarly apostolical. His voice was strong and commanding ; and he sometimes used it with great effect, delivering sentences which he wished to make peculiarly impressive " with such a tonitruous cogency," says his son, " that the hearers were struck with awe like that produced by the fall of thunderbolts." He was universally regarded as one of the leading preachers of his day, and by many as at the head of his profession. He spoke generally with a grave and wise deliberation. It was his endeavor to be always understood ; and, though he made pulpit-oratory a TUE SECOND CHURCH. 27 study, yet he sought to conceal every other rhetorical art, that he might practise that one art of being intelligible. With Luther, he counted him the best preacher "who taught with the highest simplicity ; " and he often used the saying, " A simple diet is the most wholesome diet." It was his custom to " back every thing he said with some strong or agreeable sentence from the Scriptures; judging that, as the word of God is the food of souls, the more of it there is pertinently produced, the better fed is the flock ; and, moreover, that there is in the word of God that ' voice of the Lord that is powerful and full of majesty,' and in the language also of the Sacred Scriptm-es an unequalled beauty." * Though every sermon was written with great care, as if it were to be printed, it was his invariable custom to preach without reference to his notes, in order that his manner might be more free and earnest. In committing his sermons to memory, however, he would write off, on a detached sheet, the texts he wished to quote, and place it in the beginning of his Bible, to be referred to in case he should be at a loss. He had never occasion, however, to have recourse to this paper, save once, in his old age ; and then he was so impressed by the strange circumstance, that he immediately wrote a remark concerning it, as a symp- tom of decay, which told him that his departure was at hand. His discourses were eminently practical and direct, abounding in historical illustrations, sometimes quaint, * " Life of Increase Mather," by his Son. 28 HISTORY OF sometimes highly eloquent. They show much learning and thought; but, more than all, a sincere and ardent piety. One might be tempted occasionally to smile at marks of credulity, and instances of what to om- modern taste seems grotesque in a sermon ; but a feeling deeper than that smile expresses would be the total effect of a careful and candid perusal of any one of his discourses, — a feeling of respect for the profound sincerity that pervades it, and the godly fear under which it was evidently written. A recent perusal of several of his sermons, together with those of other eminent men of his era, has deeply impressed me with respect for the learning and intellectual ability, as well as the piety, of the early preachers of New England. I am persuaded, that, in these respects, justice is not done to them in our day. We are apt to suppose that modern preaching has greatly improved, especially so far as regards talent, thought, and learning. But it is not so. There is more refinement perhaps, but not more originality. There is more polish, but not more power of thought. There is a better display of materials, but not so much solid stuff. The periods may be better rounded ; but they are not so full. There is a vast deal of work in the best of those old sermons. The thoughts in them have long roots, and the pictures a deep historical background. The ornaments are often the richest antiques. The best lore of ages has been made tributary to their pithy sentences. We have few divines, even in this age of intelligence, who study and labor for their sermons as they did, or who have such a serious idea of the duty of their preparation. Increase Mather's method of employing time has come THE SECOND CHURCH. 29 down to us ; and it may well excite the wonder of those who throw off sermons in a night. Every day in the week, except Sunday, and three days both forenoon and after- noon, he spent in studying his sermons. On Friday, they were to be finished ; and Saturday was devoted to commit- ting them to memory.* Such was his fidelity to the pulpit. He would bring only beaten oil into the sanctuary. He would offer to the Lord only his choicest and best for sac- rifice. The smallness of his salary and the largeness of his family caused him, for many years, to suffer from poverty and debt. His services also to the colony were sometimes expensive. Yet, with this grievous burden upon him, he * The method of study alluded to was prefaced with prayer : — " Dear Lord Jesus ! thou that knowest my works ! help ! help ! help a poor crea- ture, I earnestly beseech thee, so to improve his time as shall be most for thy glory, the good of thy people, and the rejoicing of his own soul, in that day when I shall see thee, my Lord, and speak with thee face to face ! Amen ! Amen ! Amen ! "My purpose, by thy help, O Lord ! is to spend my time every day as foUoweth : — " First day of the week. Besides my public labors, attend catechizing and personal instruction in my family. " 2d. Forenoon, read comments ; study sermon. Afternoon, read authors ; study sermon. " M. Forenoon, read comments ; study sermon. Afternoon, endeavor to instruct personally some or other ; read authors. " ith. Forenoon, read comments ; study sermon. Afternoon, read authors; sermon. " bth. Forenoon, read comments ; study sermon. After lecture.t en- deavor to promote among the ministers what shall be of public advantage. " 6