A SKETCH OF 
 
 By ISABEL HART 
 
 ‘Price, Two Cents 
 
 Woman’s Foreign Missionary Society 
 " Methodist Episcopal Church 
 
 36 Bromfield Street, Boston, Mass. 
 
MARY LYON 
 
 C v 
 
 “Their works do follow them.” 
 
 In studying the history of strong and noble lives, 
 they will frequently be found crystallizing around 
 some central thought or purpose, which if we 
 may discover we will have found the keynote 
 by which those lives were toned and tuned. 
 
 Florence Nightingale, when asked the secret of 
 her heroic achievements, said, “It only shows what 
 God can do with an ordinary woman, who never 
 says no to him in anything.” And Mary Lyon 
 who sent out from the influence of her teaching 
 over three thousand Christian women and workers, 
 many of them to be light-bearers in the dark places 
 and uttermost parts of the earth, said, toward 
 the close of her grandly useful life, “ There is but 
 one thing I fear in all the universe , that I shall not 
 know all my duty or fail in doing it” She sought 
 by all the means open to her to know all of God’s 
 will concerning her. And knowing this, she was 
 true, and brave, and persistent in following its 
 leadings. She was not disobedient to the heavenly 
 vision. This tells the whole story. 
 
 Mary Lyon was born in Buckland, Mass., 
 February 28, 1797, of sterling, sturdy, pious New 
 England stock. From early years she evidenced 
 remarkable mental activity, with ardor in the 
 acquisition of knowledge, and a memory retentive 
 of these acquisitions. As she grew older, working 
 and teaching alternated with her studies, that she 
 
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might have the necessary means for their further 
 prosecution. 
 
 Of the highest type of teachers it is somewhat 
 true as of poets — they are born, not made. Such 
 a teacher was Mary Lyon. She magnified her 
 calling. In it she glorified her Father, and, as 
 always follows, he glorified her. Thoroughness 
 of instruction, firmness with gentleness of discipline, 
 a loving spirit, beauty of life, bore their appro¬ 
 priate fruit in the type of womanhood moulded 
 by her formative hands. 
 
 Six years were spent at Ipswich in delightful 
 association with her loved friend, Miss Grant, 
 and in labors which brought their rich reward in 
 the honor accorded her, in the affection she won, 
 and above all in the young women growing into 
 well-developed Christian characters and going 
 out into positions of usefulness in the Master’s 
 vineyard. 
 
 it was not easy to resign a position so secure, 
 associations so congenial, work so satisfactory: 
 and yet, if anywhere was a post where she was 
 more needed, and of greater difficulty to fill, work 
 whose scope would be larger even if its exactions 
 would be greater — if anywhere in the teaching 
 field there was greater want, and for herself greater 
 usefulness — that, Mary Lyon knew, was her 
 place. 
 
 That place and that work were very clearly re¬ 
 vealed to her. It should be the foundation of a 
 permanent seminary, large in its scope, small in 
 its cost, high in its aims, through which the hun¬ 
 dreds now deprived of the highest educational 
 advantages because of their expense might obtain 
 them. A seminary which should afford the best 
 advantages of intellectual culture at smallest cost, 
 
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and should be most distinctive in the consecra¬ 
 tion of all its teaching and association and influ¬ 
 ence to the advancement of the Redeemer’s king¬ 
 dom. Mental culture of the best was to be fur¬ 
 nished, but mental culture not as an end, but as 
 a means, that thereby those receiving it might be 
 fitted for higher usefulness and better service. 
 
 But how was this conception to be embodied 
 and this purpose materialized? Mary Lyon was 
 no enthusiast, or rather her enthusiasm was of the 
 type that clarifies the brain and energizes the 
 will, that stimulates to earnestness of action, and 
 dedication of self. She had learned the obedience 
 of faith and the patience of hope. Believing 
 the work to be of God, and herself called to do it, 
 looking to him she at once sought the means 
 through which it must be matured. 
 
 Several things were necessary. Funds were 
 to be collected for the erection and furnishing of 
 buildings, that should be placed in the hands of 
 trustees of broad and liberal views, who would 
 take supervision and responsibility in the matter. 
 Teachers of like spirit with herself must be found 
 who would work from the same high plane of 
 motive for the same high ends, and with small 
 consideration for salaries. Pupils who would be 
 willing to live simply, and be economical in all 
 their expenditures, doing all the domestic work, 
 for economy’s sake first, and also because of the 
 practical benefit to themselves, and that inde¬ 
 pendence of servants might be maintained; and 
 all were to live together and work together in the 
 true missionary spirit, in the spirit of self-denial, 
 each looking not on her own things, but also on 
 the things of others. 
 
 Did all this seem Utopian? The world has 
 
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frequently found that the dreams of lofty spirits 
 have become the most substantial and saving 
 facts in its history. 
 
 Miss Lyon had but small funds and few friends 
 of influence and means. But her human capital 
 was the strong confidence of the communities in 
 which she had lived and taught, and the thor¬ 
 ough devotion of the young women who had been 
 under her care, and her reserve force was faith 
 in God. It would be interesting to note how this 
 great enterprise grew; how wisely Miss Lyon 
 planned; how earnestly she toiled; how she trav¬ 
 eled, and wrote, and pled, and prayed; and how 
 one after another of true, staunch friends were en¬ 
 listed; how first believing in her they were led to 
 believe in the work she represented — how godly 
 men, who held themselves stewards of the Lord’s 
 funds came to see in it the Lord’s work, to which 
 their funds and their personal service were cheer¬ 
 fully devoted; how pious women put in it of their 
 hard earnings and savings; how her former pupils 
 rallied around her and her work. 
 
 We may not note all the steps in this process, 
 from September 6, 1834, when a few gentlemen 
 gathered in the private parlor at Ipswich to devise 
 ways and means for founding a permanent female 
 seminary upon principles and for purposes in 
 harmony with her views, to October, 1836, when 
 the cornerstone was laid—to November 8, 1837, 
 when with a glad, grateful hearo, sne opened its 
 doors to receive the students who so eagerly came 
 to share its benefits. 
 
 Probably the distinguishing features of the 
 school — distinguished it above all others of which 
 I have any knowledge — were the frequent, genu¬ 
 ine, general revivals of religion which were longed 
 
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and looked and labored for with an intensity which, 
 rightly studied, would do much to solve the mooted 
 problem how to promote revivals? Secondly, 
 that thorough missionary spirit which was only 
 the complete logical development of the principle 
 on which the school was founded — the greatest 
 service to the greatest number in the greatest 
 need — and as the outcome of which, nearly a 
 hundred graduates of Mt. Holyoke have been 
 found in our various mission fields. 
 
 These revival seasons — it would be blessed 
 to trace their genesis and progress and results. 
 Few could say with the emphasis and fullness of 
 meaning of Mary Lyon—“I believe in the Holy 
 Ghost,” and few have that simple reliance on 
 prayer as the certain means of securing a mani¬ 
 festation for Him. All the schedules of regular 
 school time and work were arranged with reference 
 to this — the silent-hour morning and evening, 
 devoted to meditation and prayer — the recess 
 hour, when pupils voluntarily gathered in the rooms 
 of the various teachers for brief, simple, devotional 
 services — the rich exposition of Scripture that 
 Saturday and Sabbath, and thrice during the week, 
 came from the earnest study and loving heart 
 of the Principal. These were in the regular order, 
 and all hearts thus prepared, how naturally came 
 those remarkable seasons of grace which year after 
 year swept the school. 
 
 Of course, missionary zeal could not fail to be 
 the outcome of such culture, such consecration, 
 such revivals; and so speedily it became the very 
 nursery of missionaries. Missionary meetings 
 were regularly held with the two-fold purpose 
 of giving information concerning the cause and of 
 stimulating to gifts of substance and of self. Mary 
 
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Lyon’s own soul was aflame with missionary zeal. 
 Few appeals have been more fervent than the 
 “Missionary Offering” that came from her pen, 
 of which she said she wrote of it because her heart 
 was so full that she could not but write. 
 
 The young women at Mt. Holyoke were gener¬ 
 ally from families of small means — as it was es¬ 
 tablished for the benefit of such. The salaries 
 of the teachers varied from #125 to $200, Miss 
 Lyon herself absolutely refusing to receive more 
 than the latter amount — even while her ability 
 in planning, managing, financiering, teaching, 
 would have commanded the highest salary. But 
 from those thus conditioned the annual missionary 
 offering was from $600 to $1,100. The luxury 
 of doing good in this way they could not dispense 
 with. But these are the least gifts made by the 
 institution to the missionary cause. Continually 
 there have been going out from its doors its daugh¬ 
 ters, pervaded with its spirit, carrying therefrom 
 that spirit and to a degree reduplicating its work 
 in the remotest parts of the earth. The first 
 year one of the number went to Zulu, Africa. 
 Every senior class for more than fifteen years 
 had one or more representatives in the mission 
 field. To none was accorded higher usefulness 
 and honor than to Fidelia Fiske, who went thence 
 to Oroomiah, Persia, in 1843. Her associate, 
 Miss Rice, came from the same school, with the 
 benediction of the same teacher, in 1847. 
 
 In the records of 1846 we find the simple notice, 
 “Miss Abigail Moore, Miss Lucy Lyon, and Miss 
 Martha Chapin were transferred from their work 
 in the seminary to the more needy field in Asia. 
 They had for some years engaged in aiding others 
 to prepare for the work of the Lord among the 
 
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heathen. They now entered on it themselves. 
 The two latter were aifectionate and beloved 
 nieces of Mary Lyon.” 
 
 One feature of the seminary was the constant 
 communication kept up vith these, its living 
 links, in various lands. A journal was kept of 
 the doings there and copies sent to these far-off 
 daughters, while from them would come back 
 letters from the wilds of America, from the islands 
 of the sea, from Persia, India, China, Africa — an 
 electric chain binding closely together these scat¬ 
 tered forces, and binding all to a common center — 
 Christ. 
 
 March 5, 1849, Mary Lyon closed her earthly 
 career. Those who were with her most intimately 
 noted how she was ripening, not knowing it was 
 for glory. 
 
 The end crowns the work. But the end is not 
 yet. Not until the records of all time, made up 
 from all lands, are written — not until from the 
 East and West and North and South are gathered 
 those saved through her instrumentality and 
 through the instrumentality of those whom she 
 trained, and those trained by them to remotest 
 ages; not until the farthest wave of influence shall 
 have struck on the shores of eternity, can the 
 complete crown of honor and rejoicing be put 
 upon 'that humble, devoted life, whose wisdom 
 was in turning many to righteousness, and whose 
 glory was to so train them that with like wisdom 
 they might engage in like work. Until then her 
 stars remain uncounted. Yet here and now may 
 we read — three thousand women thus taught; 
 scores of missionaries thus sent. Surely the 
 noblest inscription is what her stone records: 
 
 “Give her of the fruits of her hands and let her own 
 works praise her in the gates”