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AUTHOR: 
 
 BRAITHWAITE, ROBERT 
 
 TITLE: 
 
 LIFE AND LETT 
 REV. WILLIAM . 
 
 PLACE: 
 
 LONDON 
 
 DATE: 
 
 1878?] 
 
 OF 
 
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 PRESERVATION DEPARTMENT 
 
 BIBLIOGRAPHIC MTCROFORM TARHFT 
 
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 Original Material as Filmed - Existing Bibliographic Record 
 
 937.09 
 P38 
 
 Braithwaite, Robert. 
 
 The life and letters of Rev. V/illiara Penne- 
 father, ed. by Rev. Robert Braithwaite. 3d ed, 
 London, Shaw c 18783 
 
 XV, 536 p. front, (port.) 
 
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LIFE AND LETTEilS 
 
 REV. WILLIAM PENNEFATHEK, B.A. 
 
 EDITED BY 
 
 REV. ROBERT BRAITHWAITE, 
 
 VICAR OF CHIPPING CAMPDEN. 
 
 ** io i\t praise of i^t ^lorg of His ^rBte/ 
 
 THIRD EDITION, 
 
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 CONTENTS. 
 
 Introduction 
 
 IX 
 
 CHAPTER I. 
 1816-1833. 
 
 Early Childhood— Schooldays at Westbury-on-Trym— Extracts from Letters 
 written at School— Recollections of a Schoolfellow (Rev. F. Le Hunte) 
 — Memorandum by an Aged Clergyman — Removal to Levens Parsonage — 
 Letter from Mr. Stephens— Introduction to Mr. and Mrs. Crewdson— 
 Letters written from Levens ..... 1-20 
 
 CHAPTER IL 
 1 834- 1 836. 
 
 Entering College— Protracted Illness and Disappointed Hopes— Letters from 
 Dublin— Visit to Westmoreland— Journey to London— Visits to Cromore 
 and Monellan— Letters from thence— Ministry among the Poor Cottagers 
 at Portstewart— Recollections of an Aged Fisherman— Marriage of his 
 Sister— Sojourn at Sizergh— Medical Treatment at Milnthorpe— Letters 
 from thence— Return to Dublin ..... 21-4S 
 
 CHAPTER III. 
 1837-1839. 
 Return to College— Death of his Sister, Mrs. Jessop— Letters from Dublin- 
 Visit to Knockeevan— Letters from Stuart Hall and Monellan— College 
 Examinations— Various Letters— Marriage of his Youngest Sister— Irish 
 Society— Brethrenism— Father Matthew— Letters and Extracts . 49-76 
 
 CHAPTER IV. 
 1 839- 1 840. 
 
 Spiritual Destitution in Connemara— Visit to Roundstone— Preparations for 
 building a Church there— Return to College— Difficulties at Roundstone— 
 Second Visit to Connemara and to the Islands of Arran— Various Letters 
 —Illness of his Sister— Letters from Edinburgh— Return to Dublin- 
 Poem written by one of the Roundstone Flock . . . 77-99 
 
 CHAPTER V. 
 1 840-1 841. 
 
 Takes his Degree— Divinity Course— Proposed Curacy at Ballymacngh— 
 Letters— Increased Delicacy of Health— Journey to Cromore— Family 
 
iv 
 
 CONTENTS, 
 
 Trials— Re-opening of Bethesda Chapel, Dublin— Spiritual Conflicts- 
 Leaves Knockeevan— Various Letters — Tour of the Irish Islands- 
 Death of a Cousin— Ordination at Durham— First Sermon at Levens— 
 Preaches at Bethesda— Enters on his Curacy— Letters . 100-125 
 
 CHAPTER VL 
 1841-1842. 
 
 Interest in the Irish Society— First Acquaintance with Miss Monck Mason and 
 Kev. R. Winning— Meeting at Cavan— Illness of his Mother— Journey 
 to England— Ordained Priest at Durham— Return to Ireland— School 
 Examinations and Various Letters— Death of his Mother— Visit to Kings- 
 court — Journey to Paris . . . • • 126- 147 
 
 CHAPTER VIL 
 1843. 
 
 Detention in Paris— Letters to Miss Mason— Visits to Leamington and 
 Westmoreland— Return to Ireland— Meeting of the Irish Society at 
 Ballymacugh— Visit to Roundstone and Consecration of the Church 
 there — Return to Parochial Work— Various Letters . 148-166 
 
 CHAPTER VIIL 
 1844-1845. 
 
 Contemplated Change of Residence— Proposed Removal to Swanlinbar— 
 Presentation to the Living of Mellifont— Recollections of a Parishioner 
 at Ballymacugh, and a Friend living in the Neighbourhood — Various 
 Letters— Enters on his Ministry at Mellifont— Visit to Portstewart — 
 Preaches at Liverpool for the Irish Society— Letters . 167-184 
 
 CHAPTER IX. 
 1846-1847. 
 
 Mission- Rooms and Cottage-Lectures— Early History of the Rev. R. Ryder 
 —Failing Healtii— Enforced Absence from Home — W^ork for the Irish 
 Society— Recollections of an Irish Friend — Visit to Germany — Irish 
 Famine — Recollections of Visits to Kingscourt — Mission-School at Cloagh- 
 Pai rick— Visits to England — Marriage— Days spent in Westmoreland- 
 Letters . . ... 185-207 
 
 CHAPTER X. 
 
 1 847-1 848. 
 
 Return to Mellifont — Prevalence ot Famine-Fever — Relief given at the 
 Mission- School — Visit to Dublin — Illness — Death of Admiral King — 
 OlTer of a Church at Aylesbury— Removal to England— History of the 
 
 CONTENTS. 
 
 II 
 
 Building of Trinity Church, Walton— Great Need of Schools— EfTorts of 
 Romanism— Temporary School and Site Purchased for a Nev»r Building- 
 Preaching to the Bargemen— Crowded Church— Letters to Miss Mason 
 — Prayer- Meetings ,,•••• 208-227 
 
 CHAPTER XL 
 
 1849-1850. 
 
 Letters- Consecration of Bishops at Canterbury— Clerical Meetings— Inter- 
 course with the Rev. S. Thornton— Letters— Death of his Eldest Brother 
 Hurried Journey to Ireland — Church enlarged and New Schools com- 
 pleted—Visitation of Cholera in England— Prayer-Meetings and Special 
 Services— Death of Mr. Thornton— Recollections of Walton by Mrs. 
 Thornton— Sale of W^ork— Floating Chapel— Visit to EUeray- Letters- 
 Message from the Bishop of Tuam . • • • 228-253 
 
 CHAPTER XH, 
 1851-1852. 
 
 Study of Prophecy— Parochial Work— Encouragement in Schools— Visit to 
 Ireland— Letters— Death of Rev. W. Krause— Recollections of an Irish 
 Friend— Proposed Removal to Barnet— Long Waiting and Prayer- 
 Farewell Letter to the Congregation of Trinity Church— Remark- 
 able Instances both of Blessing and Opposition— Recollections of 
 Friends • 253-273 
 
 CHAPTER Xin. 
 
 1852-1855. 
 
 Delay in Entering on his Ministry at Barnet— Italian Christians— Letter 
 from Rosa Madiai— Commences Work at Christ Church, Barnet-- Release 
 of the Madiai— Enlarged Schoolroom— Visit to Aylesbury— Rev. C. 
 Skrine— Advice to Young Ministers— Visits to Ireland and Dover- 
 Parochial Work— The Crimean War- Death of his Brother— Visits to 
 Rev. D. F. Jarman— Care of Orphans— Ministry among Children- 
 Enlarged Church— Visit to Edinburgh . . . 274-296 
 
 CHAPTER XIV. 
 
 1856-1858. 
 
 Conference Proposed— Letters on Various Subjects— First Barnet Conference 
 —Letters— Illness of his Wife— Stay in Wiltshire and Visit to Wonston— 
 Services for the Militia— Coffee-house for Working-Men— Extra Services 
 —Second Conference— Recollections of the Conference of 1858 from 
 several Friends ,.•••• 297-320 
 
I 
 
 VI 
 
 CONTENTS. 
 
 CHAPTER XV. 
 1859-1861. 
 
 Prophetical Alliance— The Church of England Home Mission— Letters in 
 connection with the Mission— Visits to Ireland— Death of Baron Penne- 
 father— Third Conference— Trying Visit to Ireland— Parochial Trials- 
 Letters to Orphan Children— Illness— Conference of i860— Letter from 
 Mrs. Bayly — Missionary Training Home — Sickness in his Parish— Building 
 of an Iron Room— Death of Rev. W. Cleaver— Invitation from Loodiana 
 — Week of Prayer — Work of Revival in Barnet and its Neighbourhood — 
 Death of a Swedish Lady— Conference of 1861— Great Power of the 
 PLnemy- Mission Circuit— Death of his Sister— Death of the Prince 
 Consort ..... • • 321-353 
 
 CHAPTER XVL 
 1 862- 1 863. 
 
 Extracts of Letters from Friends— Visits to Wellington and Liverpool— Death 
 of his Mother-in-law — Letterri — Visit to North Wales — Conference of 1862 
 — Recollections of Annie Macpherson — Association of Female Workers 
 — Barnet Fair — Cotton Famine — Visits to Sheffield, Liverpool, &c. — 
 Letters from Blackburn — Home for Missionaries' Children — Spanish 
 Children — Death of his Nephew — Marriage of the Prince of Wales — 
 Difficulties attending its Celebration — Conference of 1863 — After-trials — 
 Perth Conference— Letters from Blackburn, &c — Proposed Removal from 
 Barnet— Recollections of Friends .... 354-3^2 
 
 CHAPTER XVH. 
 1 864- 1 866. 
 
 Enters on his Ministry at St. Jude's, Mildmay Park— First Conference in 
 London — Visits to Harrogate and Ilkley — Loss of a very dear Friend- 
 Building of New Schools — Parochial Agencies — Visit to the Blackdown 
 Hills — Letters — Visit to Pendeen — Recollections of the Rev. W. H. M. 
 Aitken— Visit to Switzerland— Glaciers— Conference— Parochial Activi- 
 ties — Extracts from Letters — Sickness in his House and Parish — Second 
 Visit to the Blackdown Hills — Remembrances of a Friend— Visitation of 
 Cholera in London — Deaconess Work — Recollections of the Rev. C. H. 
 Waller 383-412 
 
 CHAPTER XVIIL 
 
 1 867- 1 868. 
 
 Parochial Organisation — Visit to Switzerland — Foreign Institutions — Letters 
 — House at Ridge — Fellow- Workers — Conference of 1867 — Letter written 
 and distributed at its Close — Original Hymns— Death of his Sister-in-law 
 — Visit to Guildford — Death of an Old Friend — Letters and Recollections 
 —Visit to the West of England — Projected Conference Hall — Visit to 
 
 CONTENTS. 
 
 vii 
 
 Westmoreland — Railway Accident — Death of Lord and Lady Famhara 
 — Perth Conference — Ground for Conference Hall — Recollections of a 
 Friend — Conversion of a Young Man, now a Clergyman — Children's 
 Special Service Mission — Letters . • • • 413-441 
 
 CHAPTER XIX. 
 1 869- 1 870. 
 
 Extracts from Public Journals — Services at St. Jude's Church — Death of the 
 Rev. C. Hargrove — Subscriptions for Conference Hall — Cottage at 
 Richmond— Memorial Stone of the Hall laid — Conference — Recollections 
 of one then present — Letters — Death of an Aunt — ^Journey to the Continent 
 — Commemoration Meeting— Illness — Visit to Buxton — First Conference 
 in the Hall — Cheering Circumstance — Accident and Deliverance — Attend- 
 ance on the Dying Bed of Rev. W. B. Mackenzie — Visitation of the Sick 
 —Recollections of the Rev. T. Phillips . • . 442-464 
 
 CHAPTER XX. 
 
 1871-1872. 
 
 Interest in Working-Men — Enlargement of St. Jude's Church— Letters — 
 Cottage at Muswell Hill — Opening of the Deaconess House — Letters to 
 Deaconesses — Conference — Purchase of Garden — ^Journey to Homburg — 
 Letters— Consecration and Re-opening of the Church — Prosperity of the 
 Work — Training'of Workers — Testimony of the Rev. Dr. Baillie — Death 
 of a Lady in the Deaconess House — Notes on Praise — Death of another 
 Friend — Agreement in Prayer — Conference — Mr. Moody and Major Malan 
 — Visits Schwalbach and Rippoldsau — Letters — Return to Mildmay — 
 Visit to Westmoreland — Social Intercourse — Letters • 465-498 
 
 CHAPTER XXL 
 
 EARLY MONTHS OF 1873. 
 
 Parochial Work — Illness — Recollections of a Friend — W^eek of Prayer — New 
 Year's Text — Last Sermons — Removal to Muswell Hill — Letters — Im- 
 proved Health — Visit to Mildmay — Closing Scene — Funeral — Recollec- 
 tions of Friends — Extracts from Funeral Sermons • • 499-522 
 
 
 
 
 APPENDICES. 
 
 
 =:ndix A 
 
 
 
 
 . 525 
 
 B 
 
 
 
 
 . 526 
 
 c 
 
 
 
 
 . 528 
 
 D 
 
 
 
 
 . 529 
 
 E 
 
 
 
 
 . 530 
 
 » F 
 
 
 
 
 . 534 
 
INTRODUCTION. 
 
 THE beloved friend who is the subject of this memoir 
 once wrote concerning the death of a believer — 
 ** What is death to one whom God has pardoned and 
 sanctified ? It is passing from a prison with its fetters, 
 to a Father's house where joy and liberty abound. It is 
 exchanging ignorance for knowledge, warfare for victory, 
 trembling and sorrow for perfect peace and endless glory. 
 And yet though we know the Lord's chariots convey our 
 loved ones into regions of light, we do, we must, mourn ; 
 we follow them, but it is with tears, as we try to catch a 
 glimpse of the brightness in which they shall abide for 
 evermore. We have but to wait until we too shall hear 
 the voice which has summoned them, saying, ' The Master 
 is come, and calleth for thee.* " 
 
 More than five years have elapsed since he who penned 
 these words has realised the fulness of the glory, even now 
 the portion of those whose spirits are with Jesus ; and he 
 has left us mourning — trying, as it were, amid our tears to 
 catch a glimpse of the brightness in which he shall abide 
 for ever. But whilst thus stretching forth into the bright- 
 ness, we have longed to trace his course on earth, to view 
 him under the Master's training, to understand in measure 
 the Master's dealings, and learn how "his will became 
 broken " and conformed in all things to the Lord's. 
 
 One of the many who have greatly desired some such 
 record writes — " It would be an unspeakable blessing to 
 the Church, and especially to ministers. The thoughts and 
 opinions and daily habits in the life of such an honoured 
 
 ,) 
 
INTRODUCTION. 
 
 and widely-blessed instrument of God are much needed 
 in the present state of the Church. Meekness and lowli- 
 ness of heart such as the Lord gave to Mr. Pennefather is 
 a rare gift, especially when brightened by wisdom and a 
 deep acquaintance with the Word of God." 
 
 "I have wondered," writes another clergyman, "whether 
 a life so remarkable in its effects on the Church at large 
 would die with the memory of living friends." 
 
 But there were many difficulties in the way. The 
 extreme reluctance of the one without whose consent and 
 assistance no memoir could be attempted, and the 
 scanty materials likely to be forthcoming, were amono- 
 the most formidable, but in the good providence of God 
 these and many others have been overcome; and this 
 volume is now presented to the Church of Christ, in 
 humble trust that He who is the Head of that ChuVch 
 will use it for His glory and for the furtherance of His 
 kingdom. 
 
 The subject of it was one of His brightest jewels. 
 Early drawn to yield himself to His easy yoke, that yoke 
 borne so joyously, in combination with a disposition natu- 
 rally all but perfect, an intellect of no common order, and 
 an imagination ever bright and playful, made his character 
 one of peculiar attractiveness. 
 
 The memoir seeks to show him mainly by his own 
 pen ; he speaks in almost every page. For the invalu- 
 able treasures here preserved (in the shape of letters) we 
 are wholly indebted to the kindness of those who have 
 contributed them, and our thanks are here gratefully 
 tendered for the same. 
 
 There has been no attempt made to alter or repress 
 the language he employed, which, it will at once be seen, 
 is of the most free and friendly character, and will enable 
 the reader to enter in some measure into his inner mind. 
 And whilst endeavouring to open up the activities which 
 occupied him unceasingly, the aim has been ever kept in 
 
 INTRODUCTION. 
 
 XI 
 
 view that the life which told so marvellously upon the 
 world around him shall still exercise its power, so that 
 he being dead may yet speak — speak, as it were, to the 
 praise of his God and Saviour. 
 
 In these pages the boy at school is seen in all the 
 joyousness of youth, with his heart consecrated to the 
 Lord. Here, too, we are permitted to trace him in early 
 manhood, as a student in Trinity College, Dublin, chequered 
 as that period was with severe and protracted suffering. 
 
 The extreme delicacy of constitution which marked his 
 whole life was often a heavy trial, impeding, as it seemed 
 to him, the longing desires of his heart to spend and be 
 spent for Christ; but he was led to see how a loving 
 Saviour overruled it all, to his growth in the knowledge 
 of the Divine Word, and a blessed experience in the faith- 
 fulness and love of his Heavenly Father. 
 
 The days of his earthly ministry as an ordained clergy- 
 man of the Church of England will be traced in this 
 memoir with peculiar profit and delight. Here the ser- 
 vant of Christ may learn much of the mighty power of the 
 Divine Word. 
 
 If Mr. Pennefather in his early days came across, as we 
 shall find, difficulties trying to an inquiring and sensitive 
 mind, if he saw many to whom he had been accustomed to 
 look up waver and turn from the Church of their fathers, 
 he was not exempt from the same perplexing circumstances 
 in his later years. But whilst he greatly marvelled and 
 was much distressed, he never wavered. 
 
 He ever felt "the extreme danger of slighting Holy 
 Scripture and making its narratives unreal — reducing them 
 to mythical stories, or setting up human reason in con- 
 tradistinction to the revealed will of God." " Nothing," 
 he writes, "but abiding in the living Vine will save us in 
 the overwhelming darkness and trial that is coming upon 
 the Church." Again, " There is no peace for a sensitive 
 nature until the soul is anchored in God." 
 
Ml 
 
 INTRODUCTION. 
 
 This memoir in some measure lifts the veil and opens 
 out to us his inner being, the secret of his ministerial suc- 
 cess, the reality of his ministerial life. " To win souls for 
 Christ by all means and by any means;" this was his 
 paramount object. " Work, Lord, by whatsoever and 
 whomsoever Thou wilt, only work for Thine own glory," 
 was his ever- recurring prayer. 
 
 The roll of communicants wherever he laboured aston- 
 ished all who were acquainted with his congregations. 
 These were drawn out by earnest, prayerful effo'^rt, and 
 were the result of the Spirit's work. At all times he dis- 
 couraged a mere formal attendance at the table of the 
 Lord. 
 
 How Mr. Pennefather, after years of prayer and earnest 
 thought upon the subject, was led by the Spirit of God 
 to urge upon his fellow-Christians the duty and privilege 
 of communion one with another, of united prayer and 
 praise to the Triune Jehovah, and conference in the fear 
 of God touching the things revealed in the Word of God 
 for the life and guidance of the universal Church— how 
 those Conferences grew and prospered which have edified 
 so many — how as a sequence the instrumentalities so 
 potent for good to perishing thousands grew up in con- 
 nection with them— all this the memoir details with thrill- 
 ing interest. It seemed in great measure reserved for 
 this humble, prayerful servant of Christ to show to the 
 world at large, in its blessed reality, that unity among the 
 disciples of Christ for which the Lord Jesus prayed on the 
 night of His betrayal. « Neither pray I for these alone, 
 but for them also which shall believe on Me through their 
 word ; that they all may be one, as Thou, Fathe^ art in 
 Me and I in Thee, that they also may be one in us : that 
 the world may believe that Thou hast sent Me. And the 
 glory which Thou gavest Me I have given them; that 
 they may be one even as we are one ; I in them and 
 Thou in Me, that they may be made perfect in one ; and 
 
 INTRODUCTION. 
 
 Xlll 
 
 that the world may know that Thou hast sent Me, and 
 hast loved them as Thou hast loved Me " (John xvii. 
 20-23. 
 
 The organisations in existence among Protestant Evan- 
 gelical Christians were not attempted to be disturbed ; — 
 rather in all Mr. Pennefather's movements his constant 
 aim was to maintain them in their integrity, for the 
 strengthening of the Church of Christ ; at the same time 
 to lead Christians to see how this was compatible with a 
 union one with another based on the Word of God — a 
 union through the Holy Ghost with the Father and His 
 Son Jesus Christ. He has expressed this beautifully in 
 the following stanzas from the hymn beginning "Ten 
 thousand times ten thousand," — 
 
 ** One life divine pervadeth 
 
 The souls that cling to Thee, 
 And love unites the members 
 Of Thy great family. 
 
 • • • • • 
 
 "While clustering round Thee, Jesus, 
 
 What have Thy saints to fear ? 
 We shall be close together 
 
 If all to Thee draw near." 
 
 My part in this work has been one of peculiar privilege. 
 In God's good providence circumstances gave me in early 
 life frequent opportunities of meeting this distinguished 
 servant of God. Often, with him, the guest of my beloved 
 relatives,* whose house in Westmoreland he emphatically 
 called his ** English home," I had the gratification of 
 
 * To these relatives t)iC memoir owes much, not only from the correspond- 
 ence so lovingly preserved, but from ** Recollections of William Pennefalhcr," 
 a small work printed by Mrs. Crewdson for private circulation soon after his 
 lamented decease. Whilst this work was preparing for the press, Mrs. Crewdson 
 wrote to me as follows : — **I so long that my thanksgivings to our gracious 
 God may be recorded, in that I was led to preserve these precious letters, 
 extending over a period of about forty years. I do not remember to have 
 burned one that came from his hand." 
 
x\v 
 
 INTRODUCTION. 
 
 
 \ 
 
 seeing him without restraint. It was at that period of hTe, 
 too, when the heart is especially susceptible; and there 
 was an attraction about him which made a deep impres- 
 sion. Even then, to see him and to know him was to 
 feel that it was his uniformly hallowed, consecrated life 
 which told so powerfully upon those with whom he was 
 brought in contact. 
 
 For many years I was privileged to share with my dear 
 relatives much of his valued correspondence ; and I have 
 with ever-increasing interest watched his career to the 
 
 time when he was summoned into "the presence of the 
 Kin"-." 
 
 The Mildmay Conference will as long as memory lasts 
 be linked with his loving, living presence. 
 
 It has been difficult to avoid in these pages, to which 
 many writers have contributed, the use of language which 
 may appear almost extravagant— difficult to'' de^'pict the 
 character of one whose life has moulded so many lives, 
 without admitting strong expressions of admiration from 
 those who owed him so much. But the remembrance 
 of his own aversion to anything which might appear 
 eulogistic, and, above all, the dread of defeating the one 
 object for publishing the records of his life? namely, 
 to magnify the Lord he so ardently loved, has, I trust,' 
 preserved the memoir from anything but the mos't simple^ 
 unvarnished truth. The loving friends who have furnished 
 us with interesting recollections will understand that of 
 this simple truth much has been necessarily omitted and 
 much more curtailed. 
 
 We are well aware that Christian friends must be 
 sensible of defect, for no pen can set forth that pecu- 
 liarity of character which knit him heart to heart with 
 his fellow-believers : this was the effect of a hidden walk 
 with God, which no narrative can reproduce. 
 
 This volume is now sent forth with the humble, earnest 
 prayer that God may graciously use it for His own glory. 
 
 INTRODUCTION. 
 
 XV 
 
 If its perusal shall establish any soul upon the Everlasting 
 Rock, if it shall animate any labourer in the blessed ser- 
 vice of his Lord and Master, quicken any to gird up his 
 loins afresh for the conflict, confirm any in the feith of the 
 everlasting Gospel, encourage any to lay hold upon the 
 hope of His coming, who is the glory of His Church, it 
 will have fulfilled its purpose, in doing that which biography 
 is intended to effect — namely, not only to preserve the 
 memory, but to prolong the usefulness of the life it has 
 attempted to delineate. 
 
 R. B. 
 
 Chipping Campden Vicarage, 
 Septejnber, 1S78. 
 
I i 
 
 ♦ 
 
 THE 
 
 LIFE AND LETTERS 
 
 oy 
 
 REV. WILLIAM PENNEFATHER, BA 
 
 CHAPTER I. 
 
 i8 1 6-1 833. * 
 
 Early Childhood — School-days at Westbury-on-Trym — Extracts 
 from Letters written at School — Recollections of a School-fellow 
 (Rev. F. Le Hunte) — Memorandum by an Aged Clergyman — 
 Removal to Levens Parsonage — Letter from Mr. Stephens- 
 Introduction to Mr. and Mrs. Crewdson — Letters written from 
 Levens. 
 
 'T"^HERE are some pictures in which strong 
 outline and accurate detail seem to meet 
 all the requirements of a truthful representation. 
 There are others which must needs owe so much 
 of their effect to light and atmosphere, so much of 
 their beauty to the impalpable and the undefined, 
 that the skill of the artist is altogether baffled, and 
 any attempt at delineation seems to be of neces- 
 sity failure. 
 
 And thus it is with the different human lives 
 that leave their " footprints on the sands of time.'* 
 
FAMILY ANTECEDENTS, 
 
 [chap l 
 
 1816-29.] 
 
 EARLY CHILDHOOD. 
 
 While, in many cases, the force of a graphic pen 
 may suffice to give the portraiture, there are others 
 in which all words must fail ; those who did know 
 will be utterly dissatisfied, those who did not know 
 will be unable to realise a fragrance and a charm 
 that can belong only to a living presence. Of one 
 whose name is a household word in many a home 
 and embalmed in many a heart, this is emphatically 
 true. Thousands remember him not so much for 
 what he did, as for what he was, and the unceasing 
 activity of his self-denying labours told less upon 
 the world around him than the uniformly holy in- 
 fluence of his consecrated life. But some record is 
 urgently asked for, and an attempt must be made. 
 
 William Pennefather was born in Merrion Square 
 Dublin, on the 5th of February 18 16. 
 
 His father, whose name was well known on the 
 Irish Bench for thirty-six years, was the son of 
 William Pennefather, M.P. for Cashel in 1771, 
 who married Ellinor, eldest daughter of the Vener- 
 able Edward Moore, D.D., Archdeacon of Emly. 
 They had two sons, and both were educated for 
 the Irish Bar. Richard, the elder of these two, 
 was made Baron of the Court of Exchequer in 
 182 1, and Edward became Lord Chief-Justice of 
 Ireland in 1841. Richard, Baron Pennefather, 
 married Jane, daughter of Judge Bennett, and had 
 eight children, of whom William was the youngest.* 
 
 • His eldest son Richard held appointments in the Chief Secretary's Office 
 in Dublin during the Lord Lieutenancy of Earl de Grey, and the Viceroyalty 
 
 William's early childhood was remarkable chiefly 
 for an amount of energy and vivacity of mind, 
 which contrasted somewhat strangely with a very 
 languid and delicate constitution, — the buoyancy of 
 his spirit surmounting all hindrance to his active 
 amusements. A cousin used to tell, that once, 
 when a very little boy, sadly ill and suffering, he 
 betrayed some impatience and unwillingness to 
 take his medicine. His mother remarking, " I can- 
 not call you my angel now" (his common desig- 
 nation), the child, with his usual sprightliness, 
 replied, " Oh ! yes, I am ; but Tm your fallen 
 angel." Repeated attacks of illness prevented his 
 leaving home ; and with the exception of daily 
 attendance at a preparatory school in Dublin, he 
 was not sent to school till 1829, when he was 
 thirteen years of age. It was then decided that he 
 should be educated in England, though not 
 strong enough to follow in the steps of his elder 
 brothers, who had been sent to public schools with 
 the prospect of entering Balliol College, Oxford. 
 It was one of the sorrows of his early life that his 
 educational advantages were thus necessarily cur- 
 tailed, and he would often refer, in later years, to 
 the seemingly dark, yet loving dispensation which 
 had again and again disappointed his youthful 
 
 of Lord Heytesbury. He married Lady Emily Butler, daughter of the Earl of 
 Glengall. His second son, John, was called to the Irish Bar in 1839. He 
 married a daughter of the Hon. E, De Moleyns, brother of Lord Ventry. 
 She died in 1849. ^^ afterwards married Rose, daughter of the Rev. D, 
 Mahony. 
 
Vl 
 
 SCHOOL DA YS, 
 
 [chap I. 
 
 1830.] 
 
 LETTERS FROM SCHOOL. 
 
 ambition, and blighted, as it might seem, his 
 cherished earthly hopes. 
 
 The school selected by his parents on his first 
 leaving home was at Westbury, near Bristol, where 
 his name was long remembered, and many a one 
 who knew him there would speak of him in after 
 years as " the saintly boy." 
 
 It seems difficult to ascertain when his heart 
 was first given to God, and his naturally beautiful 
 character brought under the sanctifying power of 
 the Holy Ghost. He used himself to speak of a 
 day when, as a very little boy, he was lifted upon 
 the bed of his eldest sister, Mrs. Cromie, who was 
 then dying, to receive her parting blessing, and 
 her words, **Will Willy be a good boy?" seem 
 never to have left his mind. The lovine entreaties 
 of another sister, some years after, were evidently 
 used to deepen the impression, and he went to 
 school as one who had already taken the Lord for 
 his God. The Rev. Samuel Field, cousin to the 
 Bishop of Newfoundland, was then head-master 
 of Westbury College, and Mrs. Field retained such 
 a loving recollection of William Pennefather, that 
 his likeness hung at the foot of her bed until her 
 death in 1858. 
 
 A few extracts from letters written to his sisters 
 in those school-boy days may be interesting, indi- 
 cating as they do, amid their simplicity- and natural- 
 ness, traits of character which were to be more 
 fully developed in riper years : — 
 
 "Westbury College, 
 
 April 6th f 1830. 
 
 "My Dear S., 
 
 '' I received darling G.'s letter to-day, for which 
 you must thank her. By what she says of the weather, 
 I think it was just the same as we had. On Tuesday and 
 Wednesday the heat was intense, and we played cricket ; 
 on Thursday, snow; on Friday, a good deal of snow ; and 
 every day since there has been frost and very great cold. 
 I forgot to tell you that when I had been ill Miss F. very 
 kindly lent me the Memoir of Oberlin. I liked it so much 
 that I was sure dear G. would like it too. I was going 
 to buy it for her, thinking she might not be able to get it 
 in Dublin, and it made me laugh when I found that you 
 were reading it at the same time, and when I was saying, 
 * I am sure dear G. would like it,' you were thinking that 
 I would like it too. Have you come to Oberlin's mar- 
 riage } It is very extraordinary how little he trusted his 
 own judgment, but every event of his life was trusted to 
 Providence. What pleasures he denied himself to be of 
 more use I What a lovely character, so totally devoted to 
 his Lord and Saviour I " 
 
 ••Westbury, 1830. 
 
 *' Darling S., 
 
 *' I am sure you will be wanting to hear, and I 
 
 will not longer delay writing. Your trip to C must 
 
 have been very delightful; I almost envy you, but we 
 cannot have all we wish now. How delightful, when in 
 the blessed kingdom, we shall never want, never be sinful, 
 never be envious ! Let us * so run that we may obtain, 
 ever remembering * if any man draw back My soul shall 
 have no pleasure in him.' That text is often in my mind. 
 "I thought as I left Dublin that about ten minutes after 
 seven you would be singing the missionary hymn, ' From 
 Greenland's icy mountains.' . . . 
 
LETTERS FROM SCHOOL. 
 
 [chap. I, 
 
 **Mrs. F. is better; I think she is astonishingly kind to 
 me. Surely the lot has fallen unto me in pleasant places ; 
 but the long journey does not please me as to my money. 
 Tell Johnny he shall hear all about the games in the next 
 letter, 
 
 ** Your loving brother, 
 
 nv. p." 
 
 "Westbury, 1831 
 
 * Darling S., 
 
 " I received G'^ letter on Friday, and, as you may 
 well suppose, I was delighted to get it. Will you thank 
 her very much for her kind advice. ... I believe I did not 
 tell you that Mr. Gurney has been to Bristol.* I mean the 
 one who was with Mrs. Fry; and a lady who came with him, 
 and seemed rather nice, asked Mr. Field to let me go and 
 hear him. Howeyer, Mr. Gurney came here, and into our 
 school-room when we were at lessons, and spoke to the 
 boys. He gave them five rules for life, which were 
 extremely good, and his manner is very pleasing. The 
 rules were these, as well as I remember : — 
 
 "1st, To be a whole man to one thing at a time — that is, 
 whatever we are engaged in, to give our whole mind to it. 
 2d, Never to begin or end the day without private prayer. 
 3d, To be always extremely attentive while at church. 
 4th, To read a portion of the Scripture every day. And 
 5th, Never to offend our conscience. 
 
 ** Do you not think these are very good ? I had the 
 honour of shaking hands with him, and he said I was 
 very like my father. I hope, God permitting, to sail for 
 Dublin on Wednesday the 15th, this day four weeks. 
 Oh ! that is very soon, and the time is passing very fast 
 I suppose I shall spend almost all my holidays in Dublin, 
 but if I am with my dear ones, it does not matter much ; 
 
 • The well-known Joseph John Gurney of Earlham, Norwich, brother to 
 Mrs. Fry. 
 
 1831.] RECOLLECTIONS OF A SCHOOL-FELLOW. 7 
 
 I should be happy in a wilderness with them. I ought to 
 be filled with gratitude to God for His unbounded mercies 
 to me. How much, much I ought to be thankful I Write, 
 darling, very soon, for it is such a delight to hear. 
 '•Your devoted and loving brother, 
 
 **W. P." 
 
 Even in these early days he had begun to exer- 
 cise that strong personal influence for which he was 
 so remarkable, and a little band of boys regularly 
 assembled for Bible-reading and prayer under his 
 leadership. One of the very few of his school com- 
 panions who still lives, the Rev. Francis Le Hunte, 
 Rector of New Ross, thus writes : — 
 
 " My first acquaintance with William Pennefather was 
 in the autumn of 1830, after going with my second 
 brother to school at Westbury-on-Trym, under the Rev. 
 Samuel Field. Pennefather had been at school there for 
 some years previously, and was shortly to leave. He and 
 my eldest brother had been school-fellows there, and there 
 had been an intimacy for many years between our respec- 
 tive families, so that we did not meet altogether as strangers ; 
 and I have a very happy recollection of the kind interest 
 which he at once took in me and my brother. He was 
 then just what he was to the end of his life, the pious, 
 consistent, cheerful Christian. It is impossible to over- 
 estimate the value of such a one in a school, especially 
 to very young boys coming from the care of a godly 
 mother, whose last charge was never to neglect reading 
 the Word of God and private prayer, a thing not easy for 
 little fellows to do without the happy example of one who 
 was a senior. He formed a Bible-class, to which all who 
 were disposed were invited. We used to meet in one of 
 the smaller dormitories, when he would read and explain 
 
8 RECOLLECTIONS OF A SCHOOL-FELLOW, [chap. L 
 
 1831.] 
 
 RECOLLECTIONS OF A CLERGYMAN. 
 
 W 
 
 I 
 
 some passage of Scripture, inviting remarks from those 
 present. I should mention that in all this he was fully 
 supported by another boy of the same age as himself, 
 Dawson Mayne, between whom and Pennefather there 
 was the closest friendship * There is one thing that it 
 may not be without its use to mention. There was per- 
 haps too great strictness in relation to the attendance at 
 these little meetings. It was a rule that if it was neglected 
 twice, the one who neglected it could not attend in future; 
 which was not, I think, a wise step. In the case of one I 
 knew it had a bad effect. Through complete forgetfulness 
 he was twice absent, and so thenceforth excluded, which 
 had evidently a discouraging effect upon him. Young 
 Christians are prone to be too rigid from want of experi- 
 ence of their own weakness ; they do not make sufficient 
 allowance for the shortcomings of others. This class was, 
 however, much blessed to many, and left its traces long 
 after Pennefather and Mayne had departed from the 
 school. He showed, too, at that time his great anxiety 
 for spiritual instruction, walking every Sunday more than 
 three miles to attend a church where he found true teach- 
 ing. We were not more than one * half at school toge- 
 ther, but his happy influence was never lost. When next 
 we met, it was in Trinity College, Dublin, which he was 
 just leaving as I entered. He was still just the same ; all 
 his influence was for good, seeking in every way to lead us 
 in the right path, both by precept and example. I well 
 remember one of his first acts when we met thus was to 
 take me off to hear a preacher whom he thought likely to 
 make an impression on me. We afterwards seldom met, 
 but when we did, he was always the same affectionate, 
 cheerful friend to whom one felt irresistibly drawn, and 
 that it was good to meet him even in a passing way." 
 
 The questionable rule here mentioned is very 
 
 * This friendship continued as long as Mr. Mayne lived. 
 
 characteristic, and will remind many of the dis- 
 cipline and order which marked the work of after 
 years We may add a short sketch of his early 
 days, written by an aged clergyman, a relative of his 
 own, on hearing the sad tidings of bereavement in 
 
 1873:- 
 
 <• Havin- been earnestly requested to prepare a memo- 
 randum of circumstances connected with the early years 
 of my beloved relative, with a view to elucidate the com- 
 mencement and growth of his spiritual life, I must express 
 the sense of my utter inability to perform the task m a 
 suitable manner. The suddenness of his death, and deep 
 sorrow caused by the loss of such a friend and brother 
 have left my mind in so bewildered a state, that I am ill 
 able to recall facts, still less to describe them w.th clear- 
 ness and truth. . 
 " I cannot trust myself to dwell upon the charms of his 
 natural character, which, even in childhood, developed 
 themselves in such a manner as to draw forth the love and 
 admiration of all who came into contact with him, nor 
 upon the sensitiveness and tenderness of his disposition 
 which flowed spontaneously in love towards all around 
 him. His sympathies were not bounded by the hmits ol 
 kindred, nor of the large circle of friends attracted in his 
 sweet youth by the beauty of his countenance and the 
 sino-ular elegance and refinement of his manners, but their 
 kindliness and desire to be a source of happiness extended 
 even to the lowest of God's creatures, and he could as 
 little bear to set foot upon a worm as to wound the feel- 
 ines of his fellow-man. I remember a great and good 
 man remarking of him as a child, ' He exhibits less trace 
 of the fall than any being I have ever seen. All this, 
 however, belonged to the natural man, and the transition 
 to his state as a child of God must have appeared to the 
 
it 
 
 ii 
 
 lo RECOLLECTIONS OF A CLERGYMAN, [chap. i. 
 
 world hardly distinguishable, but it was not so to himself. 
 Once, when leaving home, a near relative, to whom he was 
 very dear, in saying farewell, added, * When next we meet, 
 we shall be nearer to heaven or to hell* These words 
 entered into his soul, and were never forgotten. A new 
 object rose before his mind— salvation and deliverance 
 from the power of Satan and the punishment of sin. 
 
 " My intercourse with him was interrupted. He passed 
 the time of his education in England, and I was tied by 
 my clerical duties in the North of Ireland ; but the deep 
 attachment which existed between us did not cease. I 
 often received letters from him, in which the progress of 
 Divine life exhibited itself, but I know few of the incf- 
 dents of his school-boy days. I remember meeting him 
 when grown up to manhood, and in the room was a young 
 friend of his, v/ho had brought him some beautiful flowers. 
 On inquiring into the cause of the great affection which 
 subsisted between the two young men, I learnt that the 
 stranger was an old school-fellow, and one who had joined 
 with the boys in the cruelty which he had to endure 
 when, as a boy, he boldly avowed himself on the Lord's 
 side. 
 
 **This young man was one of four who came to see him, 
 and who confessed that the testimony to the truth they 
 had seen in him had been the means, in after-life, of 
 bringing them to own as their Master that Saviour whom 
 they had persecuted in the person of the boy who loved 
 and served Him. One young man fell down on his 
 knees to ask his pardon, and with bitter tears of sorrow 
 lamented the wickedness and madness of his enmity 
 against a child of God. I need add no more ; indeed, I 
 cannot dwell any more on the happy days which are gone 
 for ever ; referring to which, my dear relative expressed 
 himself not long ago in a letter full of affection, and wrote 
 these words, *It was you who warmed my youthful 
 heart with the love of Jesus,**' 
 
 1832.] LETTER FROM REV. IV. STEPHENS, 
 
 tt 
 
 I s 
 
 The exact date of William Pennefather s removal 
 from Westbury does not appear, but early in 1832 
 he was placed under the care of the Rev. William 
 Stephens at Levens Parsonage, six miles from 
 the town of Kendal. A letter, written by Mr. 
 Stephens to Baron Pennefather in February 1832, 
 soon after his sons arrival, implies some anxiety 
 as to the state of his health, "to which," he says, 
 ** we shall pay the more attention, because it is 
 evidently the last thing he considers himself. His 
 attainments are more considerable than I expected. 
 In the elementary parts of Greek and Latin, he 
 is better instructed than most boys whom I have 
 met of his standing ; and when he stirs up his 
 mind, he exhibits more than ordinary acuteness, 
 uniting with the simplicity and playfulness of a 
 child the thoughtfulness of age. If he is per- 
 mitted to pursue his studies, I have no doubt of 
 his being well prepared to enter the University 
 at October 1833, judging by his present acquire- 
 ments, and calculating upon ordinary application." 
 
 Some of his own letters to his sisters at this time 
 give amusing descriptions of his new surroundings. 
 His vivid imagination was always filled with anti- 
 cipations of t/ie beautiful wherever he went, and 
 was doomed to severe disappointments in this 
 respect all through life. He says on- the present 
 occasion, " My ideas are not at all realised, but 
 I have taken many a delightful walk, and really 
 I suppose the country must be fine in summer. I 
 
13 
 
 LEVENS PARSONAGE. 
 
 [chap, l 
 
 LAKE DISTRICT. 
 
 n 
 
 have read Mr. E.'s little book, and like it very 
 much. One chapter is on backsliding. Oh I 
 darling S., pray for me that I may continue stead- 
 fast. Often, often, when supplicating at the throne 
 of grace, think of your little Willy, and pray for 
 him as you love him. Do you know a book 
 called *The Natural History of Enthusiasm'? I 
 should like to have your opinion of it, as I may 
 have an opportunity of reading it." 
 
 It was in the summer of 1833 that William 
 Pennefather was first introduced to the friends 
 whose warm love and unwearied kindness led him 
 to call their house his " English home," and made 
 Westmoreland from that day forward one of the 
 brightest spots in the map of his earthly life. In 
 all after changes of time and place he could truly 
 say, " My heart untravelled, fondly turns to thee." 
 Mr. and Mrs. Crewdson were at that time living 
 at Kendal, but soon after removed to Sizergh Hall, 
 only a few miles from Levens, and their young 
 friend was at once surrounded by associations very 
 congenial both to his natural and spiritual tastes. 
 Poetry, painting, and music had powerful attractions 
 for him, and the love of scenery was nothing less 
 than a passion to the end of his days. But high 
 above all other influences, and keeping all else in 
 subordination, as those who knew him will testify, 
 rose the one absorbing, unswerving purpose of his 
 life, '' I, Thy servant, fear the Lord from my youth." 
 
 The Lake District of Westmoreland was at this 
 
 1833] 
 
 time the land of poets ; Southey, Coleridge, and 
 Mrs Hemans were familiar names, while Words- 
 worth, now at the zenith of his fame, was the centre 
 of a lar-e circle of admiring friends. Some years 
 after. Fox How, the home of the Arnolds, added 
 its literary attractions to a neighbourhood already 
 rich in more than one kind of beauty. Surely it 
 was -loving-kindness and tender mercy" which 
 thus provided for one, accustomed to no common 
 love and refinement in his own home, so much 
 happy intercourse and congenial friendship among 
 those who had but lately been strangers. In a 
 litde memorial written by Mrs. Crewdson for per- 
 sonal friends in 1873 she says, speaking of their 
 first introduction : — 
 
 "How little could we have supposed that in 
 the gentle youth, then in his eighteenth year, God 
 was preparing for us one of the richest of the 
 blessings which has marked a lengthened pilgrim- 
 age; Tor on that day commenced a friendship 
 w'hlch has been cemented by every succeeding 
 year, so that we may truly say, as St. Paul did 
 to his beloved Philippians, * I thank my God upon 
 every remembrance of you, for your fellowship in 
 the gospel from the first day until now.' And we 
 count it a signal joy to have known him from his 
 early days, and to have seen the development of the 
 Christian graces from year to year of this gifted and 
 blessed servant of the Captain of our salvation. 
 " It was on the evening of a Bible Society meet- 
 
14 RECOLLECTIONS OF MRS. CREWDSON. [c 
 
 HAP. I. 
 
 1833, 1834.] LETTERS FROM LEVENS, 
 
 15 
 
 ing that he first came among us ; he was then read- 
 ing with our dear friend the Rev. William Stephens, 
 of Levens, preparatory to his entering Trinity 
 College, Dublin. Levens Parsonage being six miles 
 from us, our meetings were not very frequent, 
 but, whenever they did occur, we found him to be 
 one whose eariy life was devoted to Him whom 
 he hoped afterwards to serve in the highest calling ; 
 and about him there was such a glow of heartfelt 
 love, that it was a refreshment and joy to listen to 
 him; his lips were as if touched 'with a live 
 coal from the altar,' and, 'I believed, therefore 
 have I spoken,* was the testimony of his life and 
 actions. In one of his eariiest visits to us, I recall 
 the way in which he went over a sermon by the 
 Rev. William Cleaver, the beloved pastor of 
 Delgany, which his memory seemed to retain word 
 for word. The sermon was on Christ as our 
 example ; and the way in which he repeated it rises 
 vividly before me now, as expressed in the deep 
 earnestness of his manner, which so impressed the 
 minds and memories of those who heard him when 
 he spoke of heavenly things : " 
 
 The following letter was written to two favourite 
 cousins, after spending part of his vacation at their 
 father's place in the county of Donegal, and is 
 inserted as a specimen (remarkable from the pen 
 of a lad of eighteen years of age) of the corre- 
 spondence of those early days :— 
 
 *' Levens, (probably 1834). 
 
 **My Dearest J. and M., 
 
 "You must think me very unkind for not 
 answering your dear packet, that gave me such pleasure, 
 and transported me to dear Monellan. It gave me a 
 few minutes' chat with you, and it really rejoiced my 
 heart. I well remember that poor old man that you took 
 me to see ; his pale face we shall never see again, save on 
 the tablets of memory. Oh ! did we look at all human 
 beings as tottering on the brink of the grave, did we see 
 them just hastening from the shores of time into the 
 boundless ocean of eternity, and as creatures to be warned 
 while here to flee from the wrath to come,— were all these 
 things impressed on our minds, our tongues could never 
 cease to speak entreaties, warnings, and prayers. How 
 must the angels look down upon us, who have been just 
 awakened from death, but who are contented in careless 
 sloth to let thousands perish ! You would like me to tell 
 you what I have thought since I saw you on the last verse 
 of John i., as we talked of it when we walked down the 
 lane from your back gate. I have been reading to my 
 dear old woman regularly, beginning the Gospel of St. 
 John. I thought both she and I would profit more by 
 going regularly through a certain portion of the Scrptures 
 than reading here and there, and I do trust the Lord may 
 bless it to us both. The old woman is ninety-seven, with 
 most uncommon strength and quickness of mind, and she 
 understands the meaning of a passage in a most aston- 
 ishing way. Before I have finished explaining my ideas, 
 she will take up my train of thought and finish it for me, 
 and if I endeavour to spiritualise a passage, before I com- 
 plete what I have to say she catches the meaning, and 
 seems so pleased. I think there is much to be learned in 
 the history of Nathanael, just given in the short and 
 impressive language of the Evangelists. When Philip 
 findeth Nathanael, he tells him, * We have found Him of 
 
i6 
 
 LETTERS FROM LEVENS. 
 
 [CHAP. r. 
 
 1834] 
 
 LETTERS FROM LEVENS, 
 
 17 
 
 ■ w 
 
 I 
 
 whom Moses in the law and the prophets did write, Jesus 
 of Nazareth, the son of Joseph/ Nathanael, like those to 
 whom Christ is first presented, said, ' Can there any good 
 thing come out of Nazareth?' Like the unconverted 
 now, he thought Christ was not 'lovely; ' he saw Him not 
 then * the chiefest among ten thousand ;' yet he acted far 
 differently from many people in the world; for when 
 Philip said, * Come and see,' he came ; he cast away (at 
 least his great) prejudice, and he came with Philip. 
 Would that every unbeliever, though he sees not the love- 
 liness of Christ, would cast away his prejudice, and only 
 just come and taste that the Lord is gracious I How quickly 
 would he, with the upright, gentle Nathanael, exclaim 
 in rapture, * Thou art the Son of God, Thou art the Kine 
 of Israel I ' Oh ! when the soul, hitherto a stranger to 
 Jesus, sees Him, though but through *the lattice,' how it 
 is transported with the sight! How do some of the glories 
 of Christ shine into the mind ! Nathanael, though struck 
 by a sense of the omnipotence of Christ and of His Divine 
 attributes, perhaps had as yet no idea why He came into 
 this world. He saw Him not as a Saviour ; indeed, we see 
 that none of His disciples, until after His resurrection, had 
 any perfect notion of Christ's Divine mission on earth. 
 Thus we see Peter rebuking Him when He spoke of His 
 sufferings, and we see also (Luke xviii. 34) that when He 
 detailed fully His coming trials, &c., they * understood 
 none of these things/ Christ proceeds to tell Nathanael, 
 that though he was astonished at the idea of His having 
 seen him under the fig-tree, he should hereafter see greater 
 things. * Thou shalt see greater things than these ; thou 
 shalt see heaven opened, and the angels of God ascending 
 and descending upon the Son of man.' As time rolls on, as 
 the Spirit opens your mind, you will see Christ exalted 
 infinitely above what you now think He is; you will see 
 that He has throwfi open the gates of heaven; you will see 
 hereafter that since Christ has died an entrance is offered to 
 
 1 
 
 you and every child of Adam into heaven, hereafter you 
 will take a clearer view, you will see it is those who walk in 
 white that are in heaven, and you will know that it is 
 the blood of the Lamb which hath made them pure and 
 white; hereafter you will see that I am the ladder between 
 earth and heaven, upon which the ministering spirits 
 descend, to minister unto those who shall be heirs of sal- 
 vation. If I had not died, there must have been a gult 
 between earth and heaven, which would never have been 
 crossed ; but now *I am the Way' — the blessings of heaven 
 may be showered down, the gates of heaven are opened, 
 and those ministering spirits can descend by Me to fallen 
 man, laden with the gems of heaven. Man, who would 
 have been bound to earth and hell, can now ascend by Me 
 into heaven. I am a ladder fixed on earth, with the top 
 reaching to the dwelling-place of God. Certainly my 
 views of Christ, as I meditated on that passage, were fuller 
 than anything I ever had seen before, yet how infinitely 
 short they fall of the reality ! I sweetly saw the beauty 
 and wisdom of the scheme of redemption. I could enter 
 into the feelings of the Bride in the Canticles, when in a 
 rapture she breaks forth like the little lark, which, 
 awakened by the glory of the rising sun, breaks from 
 its slumbers, rises from earth, and the higher it ascends 
 warbles the more strongly and more sweetly 1 Would to 
 God that every Christian was thus awakened ! would that 
 the glorious rays of the Sun of Righteousness might 
 awaken each one from his slumbers, and cause him to rise 
 from this misty world into a clearer and fresher atmo- 
 sphere, nearer and nearer and nearer to his God ! How 
 often would he then sing the praises of his Redeemer ! 
 Warmed with the quickening influences of the Spirit, hi.« 
 weak voice would scarce be able to bear the flowings of 
 the heart towards his God ! 
 
 ** It was a trial for you that your friends differed so much 
 in opinion from you, and yet happy that, notwithstanding 
 
 i 
 B 
 
u 
 
 f^ 
 
 '111 
 
 i8 
 
 LETTERS FROM LEVENS, 
 
 ^j;CHAP. I. 
 
 all little things, you could feel that they were children of 
 the same Father. There are not, I believe, many holding 
 the same opinions in England. Mr. W. was an Irishman, 
 Fellow of Dublin College, and he gave up his fellowship 
 because he could not agree with the Church of England, 
 but I believe he did not succeed in drawing many followers 
 in this country. Mr. W. Wilson * came here to preach 
 an annual missionary sermon for Mr. S., and his wife 
 accompanied him. His text was Isa. xli. 17-20: he 
 described the miserable condition of the heathen as * poor 
 and needy,' and then, turning to those present, he asked if 
 they felt their condition as * poor and needy.* He went on, 
 after beautifully and practically applying the passage to 
 those present, to say that the heathen were seeking water: 
 he told of the many openings there were for the Gospel, 
 and the encouragement to Christians to go on sending it, 
 for them that cry unto Him, He will hear, &c., &c. 
 
 " Mr. Wilson had to go home in the evening, and Mrs. W. 
 asked if I might accompany them, and return on Monday, 
 which I was delighted to do. Their house stands by the 
 sea, on a bay which is like a very broad river, for the 
 shore on each side slopes into the water. The house 
 looks to the opposite coast, which is pretty and wild, 
 bounded by low headlands, prettily shaped, and varied 
 by little woods and cottages. In the back are bold hills, 
 which look grand against the sky. The tide goes out 
 very far, and you can cross on horseback to the other 
 side. One evening the scene was extremely pretty; the 
 tide was far out, the sun was setting gloriously behind 
 the dark hills, the sand sparkled, and figures on horse- 
 back, crossing from the opposite side with lengthened 
 shadows, looked extremely picturesque. The crimson 
 clouds were most brilliant and beautifully shaped. After 
 descending a hill you get a glimpse of a little nook of the 
 
 • Mr. Carus Wilson of Casterton, who had, at this time, a house at More- 
 carabe Bay. 
 
 1834.] 
 
 LETTERS FROM LEVENS. 
 
 19 
 
 sea. . . . But I must end. I often think of the dear little 
 children at your school. Do you know, if all is well next 
 July, I purpose entering college, but I hope to visit you 
 and Mrs. S. before then. 
 
 «W. P." 
 
 To a friend who had promised help for his beloved Ireland. 
 
 "My Dear 
 
 Levens, 
 
 ''April i/^ihy 1834. 
 
 ** I felt very much obliged for your great kind- 
 ness in writing me so long a letter, and for mentioning 
 that you had spoken to your dear friend on the subject 
 of 'Jacob's ladder,' and letting me know his answer, 
 because I had been very anxious to hear some one con- 
 firm my opinion, to whom I could look up with respect, 
 as I do not think it is right for the young and inex- 
 perienced to hazard netu interpretations of Scripture ; but 
 that thought having given me once the greatest comfort 
 and joy, and having broken upon me while pondering on 
 the last verse of John i., I felt very anxious to know 
 whether it had ever struck any one in the same light. 
 Dear Madam, you spoke of being indebted to me for my 
 kindness to you : surely I can little vt^d.y your kindness 
 to me ; and not to me only, but to my poor neglected 
 country. Oh dear Madam, when I see or hear of those 
 who are interested for that land, round which my heart is 
 entwined, I feel as if they were bestowing on me some 
 personal benefit. I feel a longing to hail them as my dear 
 benefactors, and to afford them some proof that I am 
 grateful, but this I cannot always do. May the Almighty 
 Father, the Giver of every perfect gift, shower down upon 
 them the dew of His Holy Spirit ; may He enrich them 
 with imperishable riches, guide them through this narrow, 
 barren wilderness, and receive them into never-fading 
 glory hereafter. I am sure you will be very glad to hear 
 
P i 
 
 f 
 
 20 
 
 LETTERS FROM LEVENS. 
 
 [CHAP. I. 
 
 ( 21 ) 
 
 that Mr. Daly, who had gone to England chiefly to for- 
 ward his own particular Society, was welcomed with the 
 o-reatest kindness and liberality at Brighton, and received, 
 besides contributions on an extensive scale to his * dear 
 Society' (the Irish Society), promises of money to support 
 five Scripture-readers. I know you will join with me in 
 thanking Him who has thus turned the hearts of our dear 
 brethren in England to come over (with their money) and 
 help us. Pray excuse my freedom, but my heart has been 
 drawn towards you in a manner I cannot express. 
 
 ♦' VV. P." 
 
 Those who knew Mr. Pennefather in after years, 
 will discover in these young days the characteristics 
 of a mind which, though mellowed by God's grace 
 and chastened by life's experiences, remained sin- 
 gularly true to its original type. 
 
 CHAPTER II. 
 
 1834- 1836. 
 
 Entering College — Protracted illness and disappointed hopes — Letters 
 from Dublin — Visit to Westmoreland — Journey to London — Visits 
 to Cromore and Monellan — Letters from thence — Ministry among 
 the Poor Cottagers at Portstewart — Recollections of an Aged 
 Fisherman — Marriage of his sister — Sojourn at Sizergh — Medical 
 treatment at Milnthorpe — Letters from thence — Return to 
 Dublin. 
 
 nPHE hopes expressed by Mr. Stephens in 
 February 1832, and echoed by his pupil in 
 his own letter already quoted, were not to be 
 realised. In the summer of 1834, William Penne- 
 father returned to his father s house in Dublin, and 
 entered at Trinity College as a Fellow-Commoner. 
 But it soon became apparent that the state of his 
 health was such as to make further study impos- 
 sible, and to set aside all present prospect of continu- 
 ing his college course. He was placed under medical 
 care, and tenderly nursed for many months by his 
 sister Susan, who remained with him in Dublin when 
 the rest of the family went as usual to Knockeevan, 
 their country place in the county of Tipperary. 
 At one time there was considerable apprehension 
 of consumption, as the great prostration of strength 
 was accompanied by a distressing cough, but after 
 
FAILURE OF HEALTH, 
 
 [CHAP. II. 
 
 1835] 
 
 LETTERS FROM DUBLIN. 
 
 n 
 
 \ 
 
 I 
 
 » 
 
 m 
 
 I 
 
 a protracted season of weakness and suffering, 
 durincr which he submitted to most painful 
 remedies, it became evident that there was no 
 organic disease. 
 
 From earliest childhood it had been the longing 
 of his heart to enter the ministry of the Church, 
 and his Heavenly Father was preparing in His 
 own best way, though it might seem a dark way, to 
 fulfil this cherished desire ; but the memoranda and 
 correspondence of the next few years tell of such 
 an amount of suffering and debility, from spinal 
 irritation and other physical causes, that the un- 
 tiring energy and calmness of spirit with which 
 he went through the strain of his after life seem 
 little less than miraculous. A letter written at this 
 time by his younger sister, while it speaks of his 
 health, may have a further interest for the few who 
 still cherish the remembrance of a bright circle of 
 Christian friends, most of whom have been called to 
 their heavenly rest The one that follows it, was 
 written by himself when under the impression that 
 he had quitted the North of England for ever. 
 
 D. P. to Mrs. C. 
 
 " Merrion Square, 
 
 '' March i^hj iZzS* 
 
 " My Dear Mrs. C, 
 
 "I have too long delayed to thank you for 
 your kind packet of letters. It is always a great delight 
 to all of us to hear from you. My sister desires me to 
 thank you very much for the interesting account of the 
 twin brothers which you sent her, I felt it quite a 
 
 humbling lesson, yet how deh*ghtful to hear of the power 
 of reh'gion ! There has been very little change in our 
 dear William since my sister wrote last to you : we can- 
 not perceive that he is better, nor does he appear worse : 
 he has still a cough, his side and back continue to giv€ 
 him pain, and his strength and appetite are both bad. 
 He does not grow thinner, and he is better able to 
 stand than he was, which is the only improvement I see. 
 Every fine day he drives in an open carriage for two 
 hours, which revives him at the time, but afterwards he 
 seems fatigued ; he is as patient as ever, and never 
 murmurs, but I do not think he is quite so cheerful as he 
 was, perhaps because he is more nervous. He is not able 
 to interest himself long in any way, except in Scripture, 
 on which he meditates day and night with delight. You 
 will forgive this long detail, as you are so interested in 
 our dear invalid. Our doctor still persists that he is 
 recovering, which Papa believes, and therefore has not 
 consented to our moving him to . England for further 
 advice. He was much gratified by your kind invitation. 
 I wish that we could pay you a visit, but at present I see 
 no prospect of it. Papa is on circuit, and we are leading 
 
 a very quiet life here. Mr. is in Dublin, and we 
 
 have the enjoyment of seeing him sometimes. He calls 
 here occasionally, and seems to communicate the joy in 
 heavenly things which he feels. He presses rejoicing on 
 believers very much, because he says, * Christ not only 
 died, but is risen, and has purchased everything for us, 
 and believers are children and heirs.' This joy in believ- 
 ing, he thinks, is the surest way of bringing about dead- 
 ness to the world. I believe that you know his views 
 about the Church of England : he wishes to draw believers 
 out of it, although he admits there is salvation in it. On 
 this subject he has not spoken to any of us. Surely we 
 may be living as risen with Christ, whether connected 
 with the Church of England or not. Many real Christians 
 
h 
 
 24 
 
 LETTERS FROM DUBLIN, 
 
 [chap. ii. 
 
 1835-] 
 
 LETTERS FROM DUBLIN. 
 
 25 
 
 k 
 
 on this ground do not like to associate with Mr. ; but 
 
 this I cannot enter into, when there are so many delightful 
 spots of common meeting. He appears to be engaged 
 from morning till night preaching, expounding, visiting, &c.: 
 he now seems ready to go anywhere, either to dine or call, 
 always premising, ' If you will allow me to preach ; ' and he 
 never goes anywhere unless about his Master's business. 
 He says he feels his office principally lies in urging 
 believers to walk worthy of their high and holy calling. 
 
 " Lady Powerscourt is living at present in Dublin ; 
 through a mutual friend, S. and I were invited to attend 
 a meeting for reading the Scriptures, which she has estab- 
 lished once a week : we were there at one reading, and are 
 f^oino- attain to-day. I found it very profitable, and so 
 did Susan ; every one is allowed to give an opinion, or to 
 
 ask questions. Mr. and two or three clergymen 
 
 were present. The former read I John i., and spoke 
 beautifully on the Christian's hopes and present comforts. 
 Others said but Httle; the ladies were silent, with the excep- 
 tion of two or three questions. Lady P. only asked one, 
 which I could not hear. She is a lovely-looking creature, 
 pale, elegant, dignified, and retiring ; her face looks as it 
 she were much in prayer and communion with God. We 
 were introduced to her, and her address is very pleasing. 
 
 ^l^ and Lady Harberton kept up an interesting 
 
 conversation, he urging rejoicing, she seeming to fear 
 presumption. 
 
 *' Lady P. had not been living at Powerscourt for two or 
 three years, and I have not heard whether she is to have 
 a prophecy-meeting this year. Last year, I hear, many 
 wild and unsatisfactory opinions were started — so much so, 
 that sober-minded people would not attend. Some of our 
 friends here are, however, dwelling much on the coming 
 of the Lord, which they believe to be near. We continue 
 to attend Mr. Irwin's church, which is always peaceful and 
 pleasant. Our friend Mr. Woodward and his daughter 
 
 are to be in town in a few days, and will remain a month, 
 which will be great enjoyment to us ; he is already 
 engaged to preach six times. I wish you could meet 
 him ; he is a holy man, gifted with the most brilliant mind 
 I ever met with, full of imagination and originality. I 
 was tantalised by being in the room with Dr. O'Brien one 
 evening at the Provost's, and did not hear the sound of 
 his voice : he kept apart, and no one drew him out. There 
 were many learned people there, but too many for any 
 profitable conversation. I wish I had room to say how 
 sincerely I love you. 
 
 « D. ir 
 
 IK. 
 
 W, p. to Mrs. C 
 
 •'Saturday, 
 
 *^ March 14M, 1835. 
 
 "Your kind letter, with its enclosure, did indeea 
 make me very happy. Need I say that scarcely anything 
 would give me more enjoyment than to accept your 
 and Mr. C.'s kind invitation.? Tell him I sincerely 
 thank him, but for the present I fear I must forego the 
 pleasure. 
 
 *' The hymn you sent me has been a great comfort to 
 me. I had seen it before, but sent to me by so kind a 
 friend, I read it with double interest. My sister has told 
 
 you that Mr. is now in Dublin : he has kindly called 
 
 on me several times, and his visits I have greatly enjoyed. 
 He, happily, has never touched on those points on which I 
 cannot agree with him, and which would only disturb us 
 both. I know of no one more calculated to deal with 
 sincere but desponding Christians. The privileges of be- 
 lievers and the enjoyments of heaven are placed by him 
 before the mind with all the vividness of reality. He was 
 speaking a good deal one evening on seeing Christ as the 
 speaker in the Psalms, and what he said was very beauti- 
 
 -k ^ 
 
1 
 
 {6 
 
 LETTERS FROM DUBLIN. 
 
 [CHAP. II. 
 
 1835] 
 
 LETTERS FROM DUBLIN. 
 
 27 
 
 ill 
 
 [; 't? f 
 
 I 
 
 ful : if we view Christ as the speaker in the Psalms, we 
 shall find an additional reason for enjoying the reading of 
 them. The believer, as one with Christ, should walk as 
 He walked. In the Gospels we have the acts of Christ's 
 life, in the Psalms we have His experience (if I may use the 
 expression), His converse with God. The more the be- 
 liever approaches the likeness of Christ, the more will he 
 find the Psalms suit him. 
 
 " Now one reason I had not hitherto liked the idea of 
 viewing Christ as the speaker (or David speaking pro- 
 phetically in the Psalms) was, that I thought then I was 
 not privileged to use them as the breathing of my heart, 
 and I had often found them most sweetly soothing. He 
 brought forth some examples :— *The 4th verse of Ps. 38,' 
 he said, ' brings the type of the scape-goat strikingly before 
 my mind. The Father laid the iniquities of the Church 
 on the head of Christ.' * But how ' (I asked) ' could Christ 
 say, My sins are as a heavy burden, too heavy for me to 
 bear.?' *Too heavy for His mortal frame to bear, they 
 weighed Him down even unto death. In the 22nd Psalm 
 it is beautiful to remark Christ's experience. He begins by 
 saying, "My God, my God," &c., but *'Thou continuest 
 holy, "b Thou that inhabitest the praises of Israel." He 
 felt that, weighed down as He was in mortal agony, 
 " sorrowful even unto death," the Father was doing all in 
 perfect accordance with His own blessed character. He 
 was acting a holy and just and beautiful part, a part 
 which the angels of heaven applauded wonderingly, and 
 which the redeemed Israel of God throughout eternity 
 will praise without ceasing. Now the more we approach 
 to the spirit of the Saviour, the more we shall feel the force 
 of this expression, " But Thou art holy," &c. Are we in 
 trouble and bearing affliction like the Son of God } then 
 we can see the Father acting a merciful, yet a just part. 
 We can see Him continuing holy, and inhabiting the 
 praises of Israel. We would not wish God's decrees 
 
 altered one jot; His way is best, and likewise hap- 
 piest.'* 
 
 " I know not whether I have made myself intelligible. 
 What are your views on the Psalms } I know Mr. I. holds 
 
 the same opinion as Mr. . I have long found the Psalms 
 
 most comforting. When unable to use much exertion of 
 mind, I turn to them with delight; they are the plain yet 
 beautiful breathings of a devout soul. I have been able 
 to read very little lately, but I am now much pleased with 
 Robert Hall's Life by Dr. Gregory. I have had Words- 
 worth's Poems lent to me, some of which I Hke much. I 
 ref^ret now that when I was near him I never saw him,+ 
 but I always felt that I was too young to intrude on him 
 by myself, and I had no opportunity of going with literary 
 men. 
 
 ** Do you find your sojourn at H L pleasant } 
 
 I passed the gate once ; it was the last time I left West- 
 moreland. I then thought I should shortly return, but my 
 dwelling there is over, and it now seems like a dream. I 
 can scarcely realise that I lived there for nearly three 
 years, the time seems so short. Oh! how brief will all 
 our life appear when we review it from the shores of 
 Canaan! 
 
 ** I look forward to meeting such dear friends, as you and 
 
 Mr. C are to me, in glory. I sometimes grieve when I 
 
 think our converse is perhaps over, and then I am cheered 
 by the thought that we have met in Christy and He is from 
 everlasting to everlasting. May we all go from strength 
 to strength, and at length appear before God in Zion. 
 
 " W. P." 
 
 * "Christ in the Psalms " was a subject on which Mr. P. delighted to 
 dwell in after years. He did not agree with those who make the speaker to 
 be in every Psalm the Lord Jesus, — but he believed that they revealed more 
 of the ** inner life of the Son of Man " than any other book in the Bible, and 
 that their extraordinary adaptation to the experience of all believers is 
 accounted for by the fact that many of them arc primarily the language of the 
 Kead of the Church. 
 
 t He afterwards enjoyed that privilege. 
 
 ft 
 
28 
 
 VISIT TO SIZERGH. 
 
 [CHAP. II. 
 
 1835.] VISITS TO LONDON AND PORTSTEWART. 29 
 
 if 
 
 P 
 
 After many months of suffering, Mr. Penne- 
 father was permitted to visit his dear friends in 
 Westmoreland, accompanied by his loving and 
 
 watchful sister. 
 
 Mrs. Crewdson says in the narrative already 
 
 quoted — 
 
 «^They came to us early in the year 1835, and 
 surely seldom did any guests so gladden the spirits 
 of those they visited as did that brother and sister. 
 She had great strength of character, blended with 
 much perception and sympathy, and over all played 
 a li^rht of sparkling humour, enhanced by the truest 
 and" highest of all gifts, that of childlike faith in 
 Him who had early called her. 
 
 " A sister and brother so gifted were most closely 
 bound together, and a rare delight it was to look 
 upon such a bond, and intimately to share the 
 friendship of both. Those who knew him best, 
 will remember his natural gaiety of spirit, and the 
 playfulness that mingled with the deep and holy 
 thoughts which formed the element in which he 
 seemed to breathe. 
 
 *'They were both very fond of poetry and music, 
 
 and often has the verse, 
 
 *Who but a Christian through all life 
 That blessing may prolong ? 
 Who through the world's sad day of strife 
 Still chant his morning song ? ' 
 
 occurred to me as expressive of the life-long cheer- 
 fulness of our beloved friend ; and how he did 
 
 adopt as his own, in his long-continued weakness, 
 the words known to some of us, 
 
 * Wish not, dear friends, my pain awny, 
 Wish me a wise and thankful heart, 
 With God in all my griefs to stay, 
 
 Nor from His loved correction start.' " 
 
 When leaving Westmoreland, it was arranged 
 that he should visit London, as further medical 
 advice was considered necessary. Several of his 
 family accompanied him, and his sister writes: 
 " Dear Willy ! I think his strength has in some 
 measure improved, and the London physicians 
 gave hopes that his health might be restored ; but 
 London disagreed with him, and the cough and 
 pain in his side increased. He would see all that 
 we saw, and overfatigued himself. We heard Mr. 
 Melville preach at Camberwell; his eloquence is 
 astonishing, and his reasoning power great." 
 
 On returning to Ireland, William Pennefather 
 and his sister paid a visit to Mr. Cromie's place, 
 near Portstewart, a little fishing town on the 
 north coast of Ireland, described by Susan, In a 
 letter written at this time, as "a very delightful 
 spot, a nice village on the sea-shore, the view 
 bounded by distant headlands, the shore rocky — 
 black rocks, on which the white waves are now 
 dashing themselves.'* 
 
 It was here that the eldest sister of the family had 
 passed the one short year of her married life, and 
 was then in her 20th year called up higher, leaving 
 
 III 
 
30 
 
 LETTERS FROM PORTSTEWART. [CHAP. IT. 
 
 1835-] 
 
 LETTERS FROM PORTSTEWART 
 
 31 
 
 1:1 
 
 
 a lovely little girl, who was at this time about 
 eleven years old. Many members of the family 
 seem to have met at Cromore, and Susan writes 
 from thence to their kind friends in England, 
 - You will be glad to hear that Willy is better than 
 when you saw him : he has less pain, and we have 
 not lately had to resort to severe remedies ; but he 
 suffers much from languor, and his cough, which is 
 often distressing, reminds us that he is a frail 
 flower, and one that a blast might easily waft to 
 
 other climes." 
 
 After reading these words, we are not surprised to 
 find from the following letter, written by himself after 
 a short visit to Monellan, that long suffering had 
 told in some measure on this buoyant spirit :— 
 
 " Portstewart, 
 
 ^' August 22d, 1835. 
 
 "My very Dear Friend, 
 
 *' I cannot but feel sorry that you have not 
 heard before from us, as then we might have enjoyed 
 the pleasure of receiving tidings from you during your 
 distant travels, and have had you connected more m our 
 minds with present enjoyments. The morning you left 
 Encrland our thoughts went with you, and your first 
 Sabbath abroad was linked with ours at our highly- 
 favoured little church in the mountains. We had a most 
 • interesting visit to Monellan, and met with many of God's 
 dear cofinccted though scattered children. I was made to 
 drive about a great deal, and visited some nice people 
 with my cousin. We took one fine drive to a mountain 
 pass called the Gap of Dunlow. From a steep winding 
 road the cliffs rise in craggy eminences to a considerable 
 height: no human dwelling seems near; the eagles hold 
 
 undisputed sway along rocky steeps; and I thought of 
 the splendid passes through which you, in the wilderness 
 of eternal snows, would shortly be alone. Yet why do I 
 say alone ? only because I think, in a wild uninhabited 
 mountain pass, I feel my noiJmigness so solemnly, that 
 had I not the presence of Him in whose presence there 
 is fulness of joy, I should be miserable. ... I trust you 
 have not been disappointed, and that the joy with which 
 you contemplated the journey has not been abated. 
 May you both daily more and more experience that joy 
 which is strength : yea, may He be your glory and crown 
 of rejoicing ! 
 
 *' There was a time when every thrill which rushed across 
 my heart was joy ; when every glow of imagination was 
 of the warmest kind ; when all in the future was lit up 
 with sunshine ; but now it is far otherwise : perhaps such 
 a change takes place in the mind as years roll over our 
 heads, yet I sometimes fear my hopes are not as bright 
 as formerly, and that my God is not the same source of 
 joy as He once was to me. Oh may I go from strength 
 to strength, and daily be more and more conformed to 
 the image of my Saviour ! 
 
 " I am afraid my short letter is most stupid. I do hope, 
 if my spirits have been subdued, my heart and affections 
 have not grown cold ; but I certainly am not the same 
 elastic being I once was, when I first went to Levens. 
 You remember my description of that meeting? It 
 fatigues me much to write, and I am afraid my writing 
 is quite illegible. W. P." 
 
 Two other letters are added belono[-inor to this 
 period, the first written on his arrival at Cromore, 
 the other telling of a little work begun with his 
 first hours of recruited strength among the fisher- 
 men and their families. 
 
3^ 
 
 LETTERS FROM PORTSTEWART. [CHAr. ii. 
 
 1835I 
 
 LETTERS FROM PORTSTEWART 
 
 tS 
 
 11 
 
 til 
 
 ** Portstewart, 
 
 «7«// 14^/^, 1835- 
 
 « It will grieve you to hear of the cause of our silence 
 We have been in deep sorrow all the time we have been 
 here • our beloved Mr. Smyly can no more be seen until 
 that day when he shall rise in his Saviour's likeness, and 
 shall be satisfied. It was on the Sabbath before last that 
 his bright and glorious spirit broke from its earthly tene- 
 ment, to spend an everlasting day of rest before the throne 
 of God and the Lamb. A friend who was with him 
 to the last said, * The name of the Lord is a strong 
 tower the righteous runneth into it, and is safe.' He 
 replied immediately, ' There is therefore now no condem- 
 nation to them that are in Christ Jesus: ' these were the 
 last words he spoke. He came over from his parish very 
 ill on Tuesday; the 2d of this month he grew much worse; 
 on Saturday there was a delusive amendment, and Sunday 
 morning he slept in Jesus. 
 
 « His dear wife and six sweet children are left solitary, 
 alone in this wicked world. Solitary and alone, did I say ? 
 No they are not : she has leant on the arm of her Lord and 
 SaCiour in the wilderness, and has found Him a refuge 
 in the day of adversity ; and will He not be a Father to 
 the fatherless children ? 
 
 "All the time of our dear friend's illness he was xvi peace, 
 but for about twelve hours before his death he was 
 in great joy. He seemed to catch the light of the 
 glorious kingdom ; he seemed to hear the Song of Moses 
 and the Lamb, and to behold Him who long had been 
 • the joy and rejoicing of his heart. He asked Is it 
 selfish to long to depart .>' and to his dear wife he said, 
 * I had one fear in dying, that you could never bear it ; 
 but God has supported you, and I have now no ^care. 
 Kitty, it is a miracle of mercy you are so supported ! 
 
 « On a friend repeating to him the 23d Psalm, he said : 
 ' Blessed be God for all the comforts of His Holy Word. . 
 
 " I have lost a friend, a guide, a rejoicer of my heart, 
 May God enable me to look more entirely to Him ; He 
 can be more than all to me. The power of divine 
 strength is marvellous as exhibited in his dear wife, who 
 almost idolised him. She, who has perhaps the warmest 
 feelings I ever witnessed, is calm, resigned, yea joyful. 
 She does not think of her loss, in comparison of the joy 
 of which he is made partaker. But I must stop, for on 
 this theme my pen could run on for ever. 
 
 *' We arrived here on Wednesday, 24th; the day we left 
 Dublin was cold and turned out wet ; we had two unin- 
 teresting companions inside the coach. I had taken a 
 look at the company outside, and saw a nice-looking lady 
 and a gentleman, who, as I concluded, was her husband. 
 The poor lady after some time excited my compassion; 
 for the day became extremely cold. I begged of her to 
 change places with me, which she refused, but accepted 
 a warm cloak, which I was not using. This little event 
 proved, as Newton expresses it, a * pivot on which greater 
 things turned.' 
 
 " The lady and gentleman and a friend of theirs all slept 
 at the inn we did, and the next day we found they were 
 also coming on to Coleraine, from thence they were going 
 to Derry. They were our fellow-passengers inside the 
 coach on the second day, and we found they were three 
 Americans, Mr. and Mrs. M. and a Col. G. Mr. M. was 
 in delicate health, coming to Europe for the first time, 
 and going on with his wife to winter in Italy. Col. 
 G. was travelling for amusement. Mrs. M. turned 
 out to be a most delightful Christian ; she had left home 
 greatly against her wish, had travelled over England, but 
 as yet had found nothing to soothe her troubled heart. 
 We prevailed on them to come to this village and to see 
 the Giant's Causeway, eight miles distant; they consented, 
 and drank tea with us that evening. We parted really 
 friends, and they invited us to their house in Philadelphia 
 
 c 
 

 111 
 
 ; { 
 
 m 
 
 I 
 
 34 
 
 LETTERS FROM PORTSTEWART. [chap. ii. 
 
 if we should cross the Atlantic ; I believe they went from 
 Derry to Glasgow * 
 
 ** We have met some devoted Christians since we came 
 here ; they had little meetings at their house for Scripture 
 and prayer, and have been a great source of comfort to 
 us. They are the Earl and Countess of Castlestuart, 
 with two sons and one only daughter. The father and 
 mother and two sons are most devoted; the daughter 
 seems the same, but is very young and retiring, and less 
 easily known. W. P. 
 
 In a letter written by his sister we find the 
 following allusion to the same season of bereave- 
 ment. — 
 
 "We have been afflicted, but I can say it has been 
 good for us. God has removed dear Mr. Smyly, perhaps 
 because all who knew him almost idolised him. 
 
 " We came here full of hope of the pleasure of meeting 
 him. I saw him so changed that I could not trace a 
 feature in his face, once so beautiful. He died of fever 
 and erysipelas extending to the brain. 
 
 " Dear Willy is much better : I think the sea-air here 
 has agreed with him : he was wonderfully supported, and 
 so continually calm and peaceful himself as to be of much 
 use in soothing poor Mrs. Smyly." 
 
 On October ist Mr. Pennefather writes from the 
 same place— 
 
 "I am very glad that you have in your travels- realised 
 your expectation. It was pleasant to be at Geneva 
 during that remarkable period, and it must have been 
 
 1835-] 
 
 LETTERS FROM PORTSTEWART, 
 
 35. 
 
 ♦ An abiding friendship was formed with Mrs. M., and we often find her 
 referred to in after correspondence. 
 
 most refreshing to have seen the work of the Lord pros- 
 pering, though secretly, in that dark city. The ancient 
 Jewish Temple rose silently, no sound of hammer, &c., was 
 heard therein ; and does not that Temple, which is * fitly 
 framed together,' silently rise to its God ? Oh, what a 
 day that will be, when the Church, built and perfected as 
 one glorious habitation for the living God, shall 'look 
 forth as the morning, fair as the moon, clear as the sun, 
 and terrible as an army with banners ! * 
 
 " Your picture of Chamounix was glorious and exciting. 
 .... I am alone here, remaining for the bracing of the 
 sea-air. All our party are gone to the county of Tip- 
 perary, having spent some days of great enjoyment at 
 Rathsalla (my uncle Pennefather's place), which were 
 sadly broken up by the sudden and alarming illness of my 
 aunt. But, thank God, she is better. S. returned from 
 Knockeevan to help in the nursing. She writes to me : 
 — 'Darling aunt's patience, and sweetness, and cheerful- 
 ness, make it a pleasure and privilege to attend her. 
 Her delight with some flowers to-day was very touching. 
 Dear uncle's calmness and meek submission I shall never 
 forget.* 
 
 " I have had some pleasant times here ; the poor are 
 nearly all Protestants, and we sometimes meet to read the 
 Scriptures and pray together. I have been reading with 
 them St. John in the New Testament, and Isaiah in the 
 Old, and briefly commenting as we go on. 
 
 " I suffer much from my back, and, indeed, am not 
 allowed to write, but have stolen the pleasure to-day. 
 
 "Thank God, I have just heard that my dear aunt is 
 much better. 
 
 *' W. P." 
 
 His memory was cherished among these poor 
 people long after he had entered on his wider 
 sphere of usefulness, and one old man still lives to 
 
 III 
 
It ill 
 
 .^ 
 
 LETTER FROM A FISHERMAN. [chap. tt. 
 
 1836.] 
 
 MARRIAGE OF HIS SISTER. 
 
 37 
 
 tell of those youthful labours. We give some of his 
 ov/n words — 
 
 ** Portstewnrt, 
 
 ''August, 1877. 
 
 "I first knew the dear young gentleman in 1835 ; he was 
 staying in the house of his brother-in-law, John Cromie, 
 Esq. Both were devoted Christians, both now in the 
 * home over there.' At the date I mention, Mr. Penne- 
 father was a young man, or indeed a boy, but though it 
 was not for many years afterwards that he took holy 
 orders, he was as much devoted then to the service of the 
 Lord as in after years. There was something wonderful 
 in his gentle manner, and then he was so humble, he was 
 always wanting to be taught. He would just sit down in 
 the schools like a little child and listen, and never look 
 tired as long as the Blessed Jesus was being talked of. 
 Some of us will never forget his humility, and how he 
 never seemed to see it was a condescension to sit down 
 just as a brother with the poor fishermen. I can recall 
 him now, coming to my bed-side when I was ill, just 
 sitting on the edge of the bed and talking to me, even 
 settling my pillow comfortably with his own hands. And 
 the secret of the power he wielded over others (I would 
 say) is this, he lived what he preached. 
 
 " I could give the names of many (long since dead) who 
 in earlier years lived in vice and drunkenness, but who 
 were brought into the fold through the instrumentality of 
 the dear young gentleman. He loved his Church, yet 
 save the right hand of fellowship to Christians of all 
 denominations." 
 
 Mr. Pennefather often spoke of this as the 
 beginning of his ministry, though he was now only 
 nineteen years of age. 
 . In the month of May 1836, Susan Pennefather 
 
 was married to the Rev. Robert Jessop, and her 
 brother lost his constant companion and tender 
 
 nurse. 
 
 Our space does not allow the insertion of 
 many interesting letters, written by him at this 
 time, full of deep heart-anguish and unselfish rejoic- 
 ing, mingled with the unfailing recognition of Gods 
 will, and always true to the key-note of his life, 
 " the Lord's name be praised." 
 
 The trying preparation-scenes and the marriage- 
 day were all gone through with that calmness 
 and self-possession which ever made him such a 
 strength to others in times of excitement, though 
 often concealing an amount of inward conflict 
 little suspected by those around. 
 
 But the strain told painfully on his very delicate 
 frame, and the physician who had been for some 
 time attending him ordered him immediately to 
 leave Dublin. 
 
 His thoughts at once turned to his " English 
 home;" and we again refer to the miemoranda of 
 his kind friend : — 
 
 "After his sister's marriage, he spent a good deal of 
 time with us at Sizergh,* to which we had lately removed, 
 and truly sweet was the privilege of ministering to the 
 dear young servant of his Lord, in the long season of his 
 
 * Sizergh Hall is one of those old fortified buildings, a few examples of which 
 still exist amongst us, linking us so unmistakeably with the past. The records 
 concerning it date from the reign of King John ; and though it has evidently 
 seen many changes, its spacious apartments, fine oak panelling, Gobelin 
 tapesiry, and curious antique relics, render it a residence of peculiar interest. 
 
 •^■vm'^^tlifiltifi gfmm i^ ^gmmm 
 
f*^!!Scfe--Si^.-fe'^t^iWiSf-^'«S0^^S^j^ 
 
 t 
 
 Hi 
 
 |4 ; 
 
 41 
 
 li 
 
 » 4 
 , * 1 
 
 •i < 
 
 38 
 
 VISIT TO SIZERGH. 
 
 [chap. II. 
 
 bodily weakness. It was in that old and quiet home, and 
 when he had none of his own beloved relations with him, 
 that we learnt more fully to understand his mind and cha- 
 racter, so amiable, yet so perceptive ; so deeply spiritual, 
 yet so lively ; sympathising as one who might have been 
 very long taught in a school of sorrow, yet ever ready to 
 rejoice with the rejoicing; and whilst prepared to enter 
 into the enjoyments of art and literature, yet always find- 
 ing his dearest pleasure in the Word of God and prayer, 
 and many were the hours spent in those hallowed exercises. 
 Well do I remember one occasion, with which the 50th 
 chapter of Isaiah has ever since been linked in my mind ; 
 he looked the very picture of a weary one to whom He, 
 who was weary for our sakes, could alone bring effectual 
 comfort; and truly did the beloved invalid receive that 
 cup of consolation, and open to others what that wonder- 
 ful chapter offers. 
 
 ** He, the Lord, who 'clothed the heavens* by His word 
 'with blackness;' He, the Lord of all power and might; 
 He, the very same, speaks of Himself as taking the 
 place of a servant, and why ? * that He may know how to 
 speak a word in season to him that is weary;* He, the 
 mighty God, taking the place of the suffering man ; He 
 ' giving His back to the smiters ; ' He, * wakened up morn- 
 ing by morning, that He might know how to speak with 
 the given * tongue of the learned,' the very word for the 
 very hour. I think I never since have dwelt on the 50th 
 chapter of Isaiah without thinking of the living illustration 
 of the power of that precious word, which on that day was 
 thus brought before me." 
 
 But there were still further lessons to be learnt. 
 A course of treatment which had proved success- 
 ful in many instances of prolonged physical weak- 
 ness, was strongly recommended to his family as 
 
 1 
 
 1836.] 
 
 SOJOURN AT MILNTHORPE. 
 
 39 
 
 possibly suited to his case ; and after some hesita- 
 tion it was decided that he should submit to the 
 experiment. The house where this medical system 
 was carried out (the use of friction and other 
 remedies) was situated in the village of Milnthorpe ; 
 and the adoption of the plan involved a residence 
 of some months* duration in a little country lodging, 
 separated from his family. 
 
 He was too weak to ramble on the hills and 
 enjoy the beauties of nature, which were always 
 to him companionship ; the short dark days were 
 coming on, and it was more than likely that his 
 Christmas must be spent in this lodging. 
 
 There was a great struggle of feeling, but no 
 murmur ; and looking out, as was his habit, for 
 mercies, he thanked God continually that Milnthorpe 
 was within reach of Levens and Sizergh. His 
 thoughtful friends added many comforts to his 
 humble room, and kind Mrs. Stephens arranged 
 that the sister who generally lived with her should 
 take care of him in his new abode. We find him 
 spending some days in the old haunts at Levens 
 Parsonage, and then entering on his invalid life at 
 Milnthorpe. 
 
 Mrs. C. says of his temporary home — 
 
 "In the little town of Milnthorpe lodgings did not 
 abound, and the place which was obtained for a residence 
 of many weeks, in its bare outlines looked most unfit for 
 him ; but it soon became a proof of what skilful manage- 
 ment and the hand of careful affection could do. It was 
 
40 
 
 LETTERS FROM MILNTHORPE. [chap. ii. 
 
 beautified by the life that was lived in it, and drew into its 
 focus full many * a gem of purest ray serene/ emanating 
 from Him who is the sun and centre of the souls of His 
 
 people. 
 
 ** It is pleasant to recall the names of some, now citizens 
 of the heavenly world, whose spirits mingled with that of 
 the temporary occupant of those little rooms." 
 
 A few letters of his own will best tell his history, 
 and record God's dealings with His still chastened 
 child. They may carry cheering thoughts to some 
 of the Lord's sick ones. 
 
 On arriving at Milnthorpe, September ii, 1836, 
 he writes — 
 
 ** Thank you many times, my very dear friend, for the 
 cheerful appearance my snug little dwelling wore when I 
 entered it last evening with a heart rather full. I trust I 
 had some grateful feelings towards the Giver of all good 
 for having brought me so far in peace, for having pro- 
 vided such dear friends for my comfort as I find in you 
 and the dear Levens people. The flowers that you 
 brought still look very pretty, and they have been a 
 pleasure and refreshment to me for their own fair sakes, 
 and for hers who so lovingly provided them. 
 
 " Tell dear Mr. C. I like my piano very much, far 
 better than I expected ; indeed, my comforts are many. 
 
 ** Dear Miss D. watches over me with great care. I 
 trust the Lord may bless us, and grant that we may spend 
 the time profitably. We had a little evening worship, and 
 intend to read regularly through St. Matthew's Gospel. 
 
 " My prayers follow you both : may you feel the blessings 
 of a Covenant God descending on you to-day through the 
 opened heaven I I have just been to Mr. Jones's church ; it 
 was pleasant to be in the gathering together of God's 
 children for worship. 
 
 X836.] 
 
 LETTERS FROM MILNTHORPE. 
 
 41 
 
 *' His sermon was good, but I was languid and tired. 
 " The Lord send down abundantly on you both the 
 secret treasures of His love. W. P." 
 
 Written in pencil at Milnthorpe when very suffering. 
 
 " September^ 1836. 
 
 " My very dear Friend, 
 
 •* Many, many thanks for your little note : it 
 was a great cheer to me, for I felt particularly solitary 
 yesterday. Indeed, I was very miserable all the morning — 
 so wretchedly low that I fain would have had a good cry. 
 I could not rouse myself. I knew that * Rejoice in the 
 Lord alway * was a sweet command, but I could not, or 
 would not, obey it ; and why, I thought, cannot I rejoice ? 
 I have been brought hitherto by that Heavenly Father 
 who * carrieth the lambs in His bosom;' He hath ordered 
 all things with tenderness, wisdom, and love for me. I 
 am still spared, still * embraced on every side' with mercies, 
 and yet I will not rejoice 1 Oh, that a new song may be 
 put into my mouth, even praise unto our God ! that I 
 may show forth His loving-kindness in the morning (of 
 my life), and His faithfulness at its close ! 
 
 " Pray for me, I need all kinds of help to stay my un- 
 believing soul ; but thanks be to God, * He remaineth true 
 and faithful, He cannot deny Himself;' and notwithstand- 
 ing all our unworthiness, He watches over us with un- 
 changing love. * Oh the depths of the riches both of the 
 wisdom and knowledge of God ! ' One of the first things 
 that roused me a little yesterday was considering a very 
 beautiful verse, Isaiah xxvii. 3, ' The Lord keeps His vine- 
 yard: 1st, His people are kept in the way of salvation, 
 * who are kept by the power of God,' &c. ; and * I give 
 unto them eternal life, and they shall never perish, neither 
 shall any man pluck them out of My hand,' &c. John x, 
 28, 29, see also John xvii. 1 2-1 5. Our prayer then should 
 
42 
 
 LETTERS FROM MILNTHORPE. [chap. ir. 
 
 1836.] 
 
 LETTERS FROM MILNTHORPE. 
 
 43 
 
 be* Keep me as the apple of Thine eye, hide me under the 
 shadow of Thy wing.' — 2nd, They are kept lest anything 
 hurt them, * He shall give His angels charge over thee, 
 to keep thee in all thy ways ; ' see also Genesis xxviii. 15, 
 and Exodus xxiii. 20 — * He will keep us from evil/ He 
 will be our confidence, and keep our feet from being taken. 
 Proverbs iii. 26 ; see also i Samuel ii. 9, and Isaiah xlii. 6. 
 They shall be kept in peace, *Thou wilt keep him in perfect 
 peace,' &c. We shall be kept in tenderness, see Jer. 
 xxxi. 10, we shall be watered every moment ; this implies, 
 1st, spiritual growth, 'I will be as the dew unto Israel,' 
 * He shall grow as a lily ; 2nd, Refreshment in abund- 
 ance, and sufficient supply for every moment: * whoso 
 drinketh of the water that I shall give him shall never 
 thirst,' &c. Not for an instant does the water fail us ; we 
 may not always (like Hagar) see the well, but it is there. 
 We may not always let down our pitchers, but there is a 
 stream sufficient to make glad even the whole city of the 
 New Jerusalem, the city of God ; and surely, therefore, 
 enough for one thirsty soul. Oh that, like the Saviour, we 
 may drink of that brook by the way, then shall ^we lift up 
 our head, and rejoice with joy unspeakable and full of 
 glor}^ 
 
 " But we are kept by night and by day, as well when all 
 is cloudy and dangerous and dark as when all is bright. 
 
 "These, dear friend, are a few of the heads of thought 
 which a little cheered me yesterday. I have not time to 
 enlarge. W. P.'* 
 
 " To Mrs. C- 
 
 "Milnthorpe, October 9th, 1836. 
 " Sunday Evenin/^. 
 
 "Your dear note, with the beautiful flowers, 
 came yesterday to cheer me when I was quite alone. 
 Dear Mr. , I did indeed enjoy our little meeting to- 
 gether, and I felt my heart drawn out toward him. I 
 
 thouo-ht I would take him on common ground, and ask him 
 
 to read and pray. He was very kind and sweet, and his 
 
 prayer for me was truly touching. I love the society of 
 
 God's children, and I love to take Christians of different 
 
 denominations on the ground of brotherhood I Has not 
 
 the one Father created us, watched over us, carried us 
 
 in His bosom ? Has not the one Son redeemed us, bought 
 
 us with His blood, called us His friends? Has not the one 
 
 Spirit sanctified us, and comforted and sealed us to the 
 
 day of redemption ? Do we not journey on the same 
 
 road, to the same home ? (' See that ye fall not out by the 
 
 way ' ). Have we not the same trials, the same victory ; 
 
 are we not limbs of the same body, branches of the same 
 
 vine, stones of the same building? Why then, when 
 
 our Heavenly Father has brought us together, * to talk 
 
 together of the things that have happened,' and to journey 
 
 a little while in one another's company, why waste (if it 
 
 is not worse) the precious moments in fighting with one 
 
 another, because not clothed in the same colour, on this 
 
 our one path and journey ? 
 
 "Did you like Mr. 's exposition ? I did very much, 
 
 and the hymns were beautiful. I am so glad he sang for 
 Miss C , and that you enjoyed the evening. . . . 
 
 "Last evening to me was rather fatiguing, and your 
 dear letter was a rest. I read to old Mr. W. till six, and 
 then had to hurry with a letter to my sister, and left out 
 many things I wanted to say. The flowers were lovely, 
 the geraniums so beautiful, and the leaf so sweet. To-day 
 I am languid in body and mind, but not unhappy. Mr. 
 — did me good. I read Venn, which I like, the Psalms 
 and second lesson for the day, and visited Miss B. in 
 the afternoon. She was very poorly. I read to her the 
 evening Psalms and Revelation xxii., and prayed. I felt 
 happy in the contemplation of the New Jerusalem, particu- 
 larly at the thought of * seeing ZT^'^ face.' *His servants 
 shall serve Him, and shall reign for ever and ever.' * The 
 
 ^^^=^^a»^*«i?^*^f^ 
 
44 
 
 LETTERS FROM MILNTHORPE [chap. ir. 
 
 river/ too, was refreshing. Then I went to Mr. W- 
 
 poor man ! he is suffering much, and has slept very little 
 for many nights. I read him a sketch of Felix NefTs life. 
 I came in tired, and have not long done tea. Miss 
 W. has been sitting with me; she is very good, and very 
 humble. I feel ashamed of holding forth before her and 
 Miss B. ; would that I had their submissive spirit ! 
 
 " Susan was horrffied when, by way of comforting her, 
 M. A. D. wrote to tell her I should be three months here. 
 I had carefully concealed it from them all. It does seem 
 sometimes very, very long, and again I think * yet a little 
 while.' One month has passed. I took Miss B. some 
 of the flowers, they were so lovely. I thought the poor 
 soul would enjoy them, as she never gets out, and she did 
 enjoy them. Oh! the pleasure of a flower in a sick 
 room! W. P." 
 
 "Milnthorpe, 
 
 ^''Noveviber 17M, 1836, 
 
 ** My very dear Friend, 
 
 *' My conscience must be unburdened, and as I 
 think you will not dislike to be ' P^ather Confessor,* I un- 
 burden myself to you. Do you say, * What is coming } * 
 Well (to commence k la Westmoreland), when you were 
 here yesterday, my head was so bad that I really (I speak 
 EnglisJi) did not know what I was saying or doing. I was 
 in the state of a person who has been knocked on the head, 
 and though I thought of it, I never thanked you or Miss 
 D. for copying * Head of the Church triumphant/ which 
 has soothed and delighted me every time I have played 
 it, to try and calm my irritable and irritated nerves. 
 When you were all gone, I felt so disappointed at myself. 
 I fain would have been bright, I fain would have had some 
 pleasant intercourse with such dear children of God as 
 you and your valued friends, but I could not; so my 
 strength was certainly *to sit still.' Had Miss D. 
 
 1836.] 
 
 LETTERS FROM MILNTHORPE, 
 
 45 
 
 played for me, I should perhaps have been better ; but it 
 would have been rude to Mr. L. to ask her to do so 
 for my amusement. 
 
 ** Your dear friends both struck me as very sweet Chris- 
 tians, and I think Mrs. L. has a very interesting face, 
 and the dear child also, buoyant as the gayest breeze on 
 an opening summer morning. When I see so bright a 
 spirit in its infant play, my mind runs onward through the 
 coming life, and the thoughts of so much sorrow and temp- 
 tation rush into my mind as almost to check the joy 
 that would be uppermost. What then must be the aching 
 of a mother's anxious heart > I could not but lift my 
 heart for that dear child, that it might be kept by the 
 power of God through faith unto salvation. 
 
 " Though I was so disagreeable, the pleasure to me of 
 having seen dear Mr. and Mrs. L. is great : a sight of the 
 Lord's children should always be a joy to our hearts. 
 
 " I hope you and Miss D. will come to an early tea 
 very soon, though it sometimes strikes me I am very 
 selfish in wishing you to take the long drive to this ugly 
 little spot. 
 
 " This beautiful day has been a pleasure to me ; I could 
 not but feel thankful for it. 
 
 " 1 had scarcely concluded dinner when there was a tap 
 at the door, and a young gentleman entered ; my mind 
 supplied the introduction, and I asked him in. 
 
 ** We shook hands, and presently he said he was Mr. 
 Monsell,* which I had already guessed. He is very inter- 
 esting in his appearance. I sat conning his face, having 
 heard so much of him, and felt glad I had not missed him 
 a second time. He spoke a little on Ps. Ixxxix., clearly and 
 sweetly, but my head was bad, and again I was humbled, 
 but it is good for me. W. P/' 
 
 A few fraements are added taken from other 
 letters. 
 
 Dr. Monsell, well known in after years. 
 
^POA 'Bi^&Bf^v *" 4*^ ^ ^ 
 
 "«"® '^teV'-J 
 
 ,,^^»^WSRP" 
 
 46 LETTERS FROM MILNTHORPE. [cn:.p. ii 
 
 " Milnthorpe, 
 
 ''October, 1836. 
 
 "Yesterday I went to read a little with old Mr. W. 
 
 and got a scolding from Miss D. because it took me 
 
 out in the damp. To-day I am a good deal tired after a 
 
 visit to Miss T., but have been resting, though I believe I 
 
 shall never know what that word rest means till I enter 
 
 into *the rest that remaineth.' I hope I am resigned to 
 
 wait the Lord's time. His is best, * Yet a little while/ 
 
 Dear friend, I have not thanked you for wishing to have 
 
 me on Saturday and Sunday. It was so kind to propose 
 
 it, but I do not feel I could do it, I am so little equal to 
 
 exertion, and the pleasure of seeing you and talking to 
 
 you is too much for my wretchedly weak nerves. I often 
 
 say, O Lord, have mercy upon me, for I am weak ! Weak 
 
 in how many ways ! " 
 
 " November, 
 ** I was grieved to let the day pass without writing a 
 few lines, but I had been in my bed all day, and when I 
 had dressed in the evening and was going to tea, I nearly 
 fainted. 
 
 *' Miss D. was alarmed, but I told her I was subject to 
 such attacks, and in about an hour I recovered. However, 
 this stopped my plan of writing that evening to my dear 
 anxious friends, to whom I often fear to express what I 
 really feel (as to health). I am just in a safe place, be- 
 tween hope and fear, and thus cast more entirely on that 
 God who will do all things well concerning me. He 
 makes His rebellious child to feel that, whichever way my 
 sojourn here turns out, it will be well. The only thing I 
 desire is that my health may not be restored if I shall not 
 spend it in His service, if it will not be for His glory. 
 Dear friends, let this be your prayer for me. Oh, that 
 I may be purified I I am fearfully corrupt, yea, abomin- 
 able ! " 
 
 1837.] 
 
 LETTERS FROM MILNTHORPE. 
 
 47 
 
 " December 20th. 
 
 " I fear I must stay more than the fifteen weeks, but I 
 have many mercies and mitigations. I have a nice letter 
 from John ; he is, I believe, now on his way home for Christ- 
 mas, having just taken his degree at Oxford, and come 
 off with flying colours. 
 
 " I had some pleasant time with the invalids on Sunday 
 evening. Heb. x. was our chapter, and the evening Psalms 
 gave me some happy thoughts. 
 
 " A dear robin cheered me yesterday ; it perched itself on 
 a tall spray of a young tree, and sang so sweetly. // kept 
 a joyful Sabbath — a day of praise and rest." 
 
 ^ December 2%thi 1836. 
 
 ** A letter from William S. tells me of the death of 
 Lady Powerscourt. I have not seen her for many years, 
 yet I felt as if I knew and loved her. She was one whose 
 soul has been panting after the fulness of Him who filleth 
 all in all, and therefore surely felt that this v;as not her 
 rest. 
 
 ** Christmas passed better than could have been ex- 
 pected. 'My cup runneth over;' He daily loadeth me 
 with benefits. Pray that I may be thankful. May He 
 put a new song in my mouth ! 
 
 " And now that I am breaking up my little home at Miln- 
 thorpe, I want to sing of mercy. All God's dealings have 
 had love visibly stamped upon them. I hardly know what 
 to say to you, for my heart is full. Pray that I may spend 
 myself in the service of God. It is very pleasant to me, 
 when my mind is so tossed, to think of the centre of rest, 
 where we shall often meet in spirit." 
 
 Early in January 1837 he left Milnthorpe, and 
 after spending a short time with his friends at 
 
 ms^Sf^m--^^'^ 
 
s^a* 'ip ^^'f"-'v^'L''w 
 
 ***«WB* 
 
 I 
 
 48 
 
 RETURN TO DUBLIN. 
 
 [chap. it. 
 
 Sizergh, returned to Dublin. The only mention 
 we have of his arrival is in a short note dated 
 January 27th — 
 
 •* Thank God, I reached home after a prosper- 
 ous journey, and passage of thirteen hours." 
 
 " Dear S. and R. still here. The damp to my 
 joy is his illness." 
 
 To this his sister Dora adds : " I do not see 
 any great improvement in William— just a little, 
 but perhaps I was too sanguine. It is a great 
 blessing getting him back; it has quite revived 
 me. 
 
 ( 49 ) 
 
 CHAPTER III. 
 1837-1839. 
 
 Return to College — Death of his Sister, Mrs. Jessop — Letters from 
 Dublin — Visit to Knockeevan — Letters from Stuart Hall and 
 Monellan — College Examinations — Various Letters — Marriage 
 of his youngest Sister — Irish Society — Brethrenism — Father 
 Matthew — Letters and Extracts. 
 
 /^N the 27th of January 1837 Mr. Pennefather 
 ^^^ was permitted to return to his home, with 
 some measure of renewed strength, and evidently 
 with revived hopes, proposing at once to go into 
 residence at Trinity College, from which he had so 
 unwillingly absented himself. 
 
 It was, however, decided, in consideration of his 
 still delicate health, that he should continue to live 
 at his father's house, attending classes, lectures, &c., 
 daily. Though this arrangement was in some 
 respects advantageous, it laid him open to much 
 interruption, which he often lamented. In writing 
 to a friend he says — 
 
 *^ Marchf 1837. 
 "I am now regularly attending college; everyday is ot 
 importance to me, but I am sometimes kept at home by 
 R.'s illness, who wants much of my attendance." 
 
 D 
 
$0 
 
 DEA TH OF HIS SISTER. 
 
 [chap. Ill, 
 
 *• 
 
 !l \ 
 
 M 
 
 He goes on to speak of the annual religious 
 meetings taking place at the Rotunda, adding — 
 
 " I was not able to attend any of them, but heard Mr. 
 Stowell of Manchester preach on Sunday, and was much 
 interested ; his sermon was well arranged and useful, on 
 the text, * Go ye into all the world, and preach the 
 
 Gospel to every creature/ I also heard Mr. preach, 
 
 but his sermon was to me very disagreeable ; an affected 
 piece of empty talkativeness, by way of eloquence. He 
 is very much run after, and the crowd was very great." 
 
 The spring seems to have opened brightly, but a 
 terrible blow was impending. On the 12th of April 
 he writes to his friends at Sizergh — 
 
 " Our dear Susan has given me cause for writing to- 
 day, and I lose no time in telling you that a dear little 
 boy made his appearance between 2 and 3 o'clock this 
 afternoon. She is now doing pretty well, but was in 
 great danger.' 
 
 II 
 
 During the next few days a succession of bulletins 
 from the pen of the fond brother tell of alternate 
 hopes and fears, the last one, " She lies at the point 
 of death," being soon followed by the sorrowful tid- 
 ings, that the young mother had passed away. 
 
 Loved and admired by all who knew her, few 
 perhaps have lived so truly in " heavenly places " 
 amid much that made earth attractive. There was 
 a blank in many hearts, and a dark shadow in more 
 than one home, when she was called thus suddenly 
 to see the King in His beauty. 
 
 To her brother William it was a life-long sorrow, 
 
 !tt^ f^^'^S^-^'^t '^' 
 
 JT^JP^ 
 
 1837.] 
 
 LETTERS FROM DUBLIN. 
 
 51 
 
 but one that raised him yet nearer to the home of 
 all his joys. We insert one of the letters written at 
 this time. 
 
 " 5 Merrion Square South, Dublin, 
 
 ''^ May II th J 1837. 
 
 " My dear Friend, 
 
 " The busy time of my examinations has 
 passed favourably, as I daresay you have heard from 
 Mr. S., but I am soon to begin again to prepare for a 
 second, though still far off. The work is more difficult, 
 and vacation soon comes on, when the opportunity of 
 getting help from tutors will be ended. 
 
 "I felt comfort even in the midst of the bustle of 
 the Examination Hall when I thought of your love ; and 
 the love of God does indeed shed a calm over this stormy 
 
 life. 
 
 ** How humbling it is that human affection sometimes 
 does for us what love to our Heavenly Father fails to do 
 It shows the heart capable of warmth, and yet rejoicing 
 in the scanty heat of its own kindling, and saying, * Aha ! 
 I am warm, I have seen the fire.' May we comprehend 
 more and more of that love 'which passeth knowledge,* 
 and be filled * with all the fulness of God.' 
 
 " I have been rather weak and poorly, which must plead 
 my excuse for silence. * The Lord's hand is not shortened 
 that it cannot save, nor His ear heavy that He cannot 
 hear ; ' and I can testify how He delights to show, that 
 »vhen every other means is ineffectual, He can draw us 
 out of many waters. We may combat and struggle with 
 overwhelming waves, but He can lift us out of all. 
 And what floods more terrible than the floods of temp- 
 tation } ' The Lord on high is mightier than the noise of 
 many waters (not one wave, but many); yea, than the 
 mighty waves of the sea.* 
 
 " I have not much to tell you of ourselves ; the baby is 
 
 «**»*»: 
 
 
KaWS»^«^BWa^' 
 
 52 
 
 LETTERS FROM DUBLIN. 
 
 [chap. Ill, 
 
 ^^yi^ 
 
 LETTERS FROM DUBLIN, 
 
 53 
 
 ! 
 
 I 
 
 thrivlnor. My mother still continues to shine in the midst 
 of us; she is calm and holy, just what we could wish her 
 to be. I try never to look forward : may we just * day by 
 day magnify Thee, O Lord/ keeping^ our eyes fixed on 
 eternal things, looking for the glorious appearing of our 
 Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ. He will come quickly, 
 yet a little while.^' We have waited for thy salvation O 
 Lord.' 
 
 " The dear D.'s are still with us. This is one of the 
 many tender mercies which every morning are renewed 
 to us. Oh, that we could see how the heavens throng 
 with messengers of love to our unworthy (yet worthy") 
 souls! Mercies embrace us on every side. Another dear 
 friend, of whom perhaps you have heard me speak, has 
 joined the choir above. I mean Lady L. She was' one 
 who through a long life of trouble and deep affliction had 
 sought her Lord, but always trembled at the thought of 
 entering ' the Valley of the Shadow of Death ; ' and yet, 
 when it pleased the Lord to bring her into it, she ' feared 
 no evil,' for He was with her. Her simple, firm, calm 
 reliance on her Saviour was touching. She said to her 
 physicians, 'You know I dreaded to die, but now I have 
 not a single fear. Christ is all to me ; He is all-sufficient 
 for a poor sinner.* 
 
 " She was ill about three weeks, the last week one of 
 great bodily suffering, but her faith burned brighter and 
 brighter. 
 
 ** D. was very fond of her, and she liked me to visit 
 her. The last conversation we had was on the sufficiency 
 of Christ even for the vilest of sinners. We spoke of 
 the latter end of the ist chapter of St. John, that favourite 
 passage of mine. How little did I then think she would 
 soon see the meaning in its most extended sense— 'the 
 heavens opened, and the angels of God ascending and 
 descending on the Son of Man,' come to take her into 
 the joy of her Lord. An aunt of mine likewise entered 
 
 recently into the same joy. There was bright evidence 
 that she had been long waiting with her lamp burning 
 for the coming of her Lord. Thus many amongst us have 
 entered the everlasting gates. . . . We have great cause to 
 sing of the mercies of the Lord. He has placed the 
 happiness of our darling S. beyond the reach of anything, 
 or any one, that could mar it. When I see around me 
 many things which once pained and vexed her righteous 
 soul, I cannot but feel peace at the thought that she 
 is landed on that shore of 'pure delight, where saints 
 immortal reign.' — May the Lord quicken us to run with 
 patience the race set before us. W. P." 
 
 Again he writes, May 24th, 1837 — 
 
 "This has been a day of peculiar trial, but the Lord 
 has supported us. When, indeed, is it not now to us a time 
 of trial, and wheny I may add, does not the Lord support } 
 My dear mother is very poorly, and suffering much. I 
 cannot comfort, but I can commit her to Jesus, and He 
 will pity even as a Father pitieth His children. You 
 know something of what my love to her was ; you know I 
 always thought her unlike and superior to every one. 
 But I do not allow myself to dwell on these things. 
 
 " ' I will sing of the mercies of the Lord for ever ; * this 
 should be my frame of mind, for truly mercies embrace 
 me on every side. I go to college daily except when pre- 
 vented by more than usual debility, but, thank God, I am 
 wonderfully well.' 
 
 a 
 
 His sister Dora writes at this time : " Willy is 
 better, able to do some reading, sonie preaching, and 
 much comforting." 
 
 Again he writes a little later- 
 
 " Speak to me of my darling S., who lies treasured in my 
 heart ; but she has a better treasure-house, even that one 
 
>-.*»i9wti*«acJ*«> .vjy.«i*j#>tg^^ 
 
 '^<^^-^^^>$^^ii,^0mi&^^T^^s^^nsi'^^'y^'^' f 
 
 54 
 
 VARIOUS JOURNEYS, 
 
 [chap. Ill 
 
 1837.] 
 
 LETTER FROM MONELLAN. 
 
 55 
 
 i 
 
 which is eternal in the heavens. What she was to me I 
 never can describe, and the Lord has removed her from 
 my sight, that I may love Him supremely. When that is 
 attained, He will restore us to one another in joy and 
 gladness. What a glorious reunion will that be ! The Lord 
 sanctify me for it, and make me thankful for the choice 
 blessings He has left me." 
 
 The summer vacation seems to have been divided 
 between his father's place in Tipperary and friends 
 in the north of Ireland. From Knockeevan he paid 
 a flying visit to London, where his brother John 
 was laid up from the effects of an accident. Speak- 
 ing of this hurried journey, his sister Dora says : 
 " It was a trying time to him in many ways, but 
 his spirit was refreshed by hearing Mr. Wilkinson 
 preach at St. Bartholomew's Church, behind the 
 Bank. He preaches the gospel clearly and energetic- 
 ally, and has done so for the last fifty years. He is 
 now past ninety ! " 
 
 She adds : ** William is becrinninof a little service 
 on Sunday evening for the few Protestants here, who 
 are quite out of reach of any place of worship." 
 
 The account of a visit paid to Stuart Hall about 
 this time may be interesting. The circumstances 
 under which he was again called to the house of 
 mourning were peculiar, Lady Castlestuart having 
 just lost her only daughter (mentioned in a former 
 letter from Portstewart), who had been accidentally 
 burnt to death. 
 
 The early part of the letter speaks of his arrival 
 
 late at night, after a long and fatiguing journey, 
 glad to be spared the pain of meeting with Lady C. 
 that night. He then goes on — 
 
 " Monellan, 
 
 "7///J/ 27/^,1837. 
 
 " Breakfast came the next morning, and the dear lady 
 was not present. I felt nervous till I should see her: 
 she had purposely gone to her Infant School, and her 
 class with the mothers of the children, not wishing to 
 meet me in the house. At about 12 o'clock I went to 
 meet her, and found her worn and dejected, just rising 
 from teaching the women. She had been seated in a 
 little field beside a poor cottage, on the brow of a high 
 hill commanding a fine view of Stuart Hall, and Loch 
 Neaeh in the distance. She was a good deal moved at 
 seeing me, but I felt thankful that the Lord supported 
 and brought us through without any break-down, which I 
 feared on her part. She soon began to talk of Lady Julia, 
 and from what I heard from her, and also from a friend 
 of Lady Julia who attended her during her brief agonising 
 sufferings, her faith, fortitude, and patience were a wonder- 
 ful lesson to all around, and ever since * she being dead 
 vet speaketh.' 
 
 " I have seldom heard of a more instructive end. Rich 
 indeed she must have been in faith, for during her hours 
 of agony she exhorted all who came near her, asked her 
 brother to give thanks, that though she had long wished 
 to speak a word for God, and had been hindered by fear, 
 He had now given her courage to declare His name, 
 adding, * Oh, what a mercy to one so unworthy of the 
 least of His favours !* She was frightfully burnt, for she 
 did not scream, or cry for help, until her own efforts to 
 extinguish the flames had been ineffectual. Yet her face 
 was uninjured — a mercy to her brother W., who arrived 
 
 
-=■ ^ *n*ai(«^->Ji 
 
 f 
 
 56 
 
 LETTER FROM MONELLAN, [chap. hi. 
 
 1837.] 
 
 LETTERS FROM DUBLIN. 
 
 S7 
 
 la 
 
 from Dublin only to see her wing her flight to the bright 
 land we love. 
 
 " I could fill my paper with what I heard about her: an 
 awful but a most touching history of the Lord's dealings 
 towards His people would be the sum of all I could say. 
 Miss G., the lady who told me about her, said she must 
 have had a mind long and deeply impressed with the 
 things of God, and a courage for the Lord's glory which 
 was not supposed. I cannot but remember our little talk 
 about her. What events a day may bring forth, truly we 
 know not. 
 
 "Dear Lady Castlestuart finds her only comfort in having 
 her Bible classes amongst the poor, and the preaching at 
 Stuart Hall. Every Sunday and Friday there is a con- 
 gregation and a sermon there ; any minister of any denom- 
 ination, whom they have reason to think really good, 
 officiates, and the numbers that attend on Sundays are 
 large — from 300 to 350. 
 
 " Every day in the week finds her reading with the poor 
 women, who assemble in each other's cottages, throughout 
 the neighbourhood of Stuart Hall. To several of "these 
 little meetings I went, and we enjoyed the reading of God's 
 Word together. How deeply did I feel for her, without any 
 one now to accompany her; but her loved companion has 
 entered with her Saviour into the holy place, there to behold 
 the beauty of the Lord, and to inquire in His temple ! 
 I felt thankful that I was able to be a comfort to her, 
 and that she enjoyed having me to accompany her, for 
 truly it is a privilege to be able to minister to the Lord's 
 people. I stayed a week at Stuart Hall, and then came 
 across the country here. Last Tuesday evening, in a 
 distant part of the parish, I lectured for R. D. quite unex- 
 pectedly, as he was suddenly called away, and some one 
 had to speak to a tolerable number who had assembled. 
 They are simple, kind people, and I felt thankful, notwith- 
 standing my nervousness and incapacity, to be able io 
 
 speak on Revelation xxii. 17. I thought you would like to 
 hear of my little labours. I have been very busy with 
 the schools, &c. W. P." 
 
 The following belong to the same sad year — 
 
 " Blackrock, Dublin, 
 
 ^' October 26ih, 1837. 
 
 '* My very dear Friend, 
 
 " Soon after receiving your letter I left Knockeevan 
 with R. and the dear baby, to come to college to prepare 
 for my examinations, which take place next Monday, 
 Tuesday, and Wednesday. I have been living here, but 
 going into town generally every day. The darling child 
 is well : sometimes I am tempted to be careful for the 
 future concerning him. My mind glances over the rough 
 and foaming ocean he may have to cross, but *be still, 
 and know that I am God ; ' He will ' gather the lambs in 
 His bosom.' Yes, and perhaps it may be His gracious 
 pleasure to take that little treasure to Himself ere it 
 has passed over many of the billows of life's stormy sea. 
 Whatever happens, my Father has done well. I can say 
 this now, even when my heart is full ; for, oh I the sweetness 
 of that sister's tender love ! My Father, I thank Thee 
 for the blessing of having had such a sister ; then why not 
 praise Thee for Thy mercies, instead of murmuring at Thy 
 dealings ? If we read them aright, we should find that 
 each had engraven on it these words, * God is love.' Yes, 
 He is love. It is not that He /las shown Himself full of 
 love in former times ; it is not that He has given His Son 
 for us, that He has smiled upon us in love, but that He ts 
 love ; that He is at this present moment beholding us in 
 love ; dealing with us in love ; in fact, we can only repeat, 
 * God is love ' I 
 
 ** This is the lesson that we are to be taught here, and this 
 is the lesson which heaven in all its glory and sweetness 
 
 , -.p^ ^f^Jl ■*'"'-' "fS^'S^^- 
 
 :,-«»«. «»^^,*S^rf&*S;*&5*'i 
 
58 
 
 LETTERS FROM DUBLIN. 
 
 [chap. hi. 
 
 will teach us still. Then it will be no faith to say, He 
 is love ; let us therefore, while we have the opportunity, 
 trust His character when circumstances seem to deny it. 
 I am a little nervous about the examinations of next 
 week: from the many interruptions I have met with, I 
 have not been able to read as steadily as I could have 
 wished. My father's illness, my trip to London, &c. 
 
 " Did I tell you that my father had a bad inflammation 
 in one of his eyes, which, considering their tendency to 
 dimness,* alarmed us much } He was laid up for a lonc'- 
 time and suffered greatly, but, thank God, he is nearly as 
 well as ever. 
 
 " May the Lord be with you both I may the Comforter 
 take more and more of the things of Christ, and show them 
 unto you, until you reach that heavenly kingdom, where 
 you shall behold His face in righteousness, and awake up 
 in His likeness for ever satisfied I W. P." 
 
 On November 6th, 1837, he writes from Dublin— 
 " My very dear Mr. C , 
 
 " It would not be easy to tell you how refreshed 
 I was by your and Mrs. C.'s joint letter. It was a token of 
 that affection which the Lord has, in His great mercy, so 
 often afforded me in times of trial : a time of trial this 
 last month has been to me, and yet I feel that my mouth 
 should be always declaring with thankfulness the loving- 
 kindness of the Lord. 
 
 *' I passed through my three days' examinations with as 
 much credit as I could reasonably expect, not having been 
 able to read for the month previous to my examination,! 
 and my little stock of strength having been expended in 
 
 * Baron Pennefather became totally blind, but his wonderfully retentive 
 memory enabled him to act as judge long after he had lost his sight. 
 
 t It was always a marvel to his friends that he battled so successfully with 
 the physical suffering which constantly impeded his studies at college, and not- 
 withstanding which he was carried with credit through every examination. 
 
 1837] 
 
 LETTERS FROM DUBLIN 
 
 59 
 
 nursing J., who was very ill. The Lord, in His mercy 
 and great love, has long since seen fit to keep down my 
 too worldly spirit by weakness of body, and I often think 
 how much my little trials were needed to curb my thought- 
 less enthusiasm. I was suffering under a heavy cold and 
 headache during most of the time I was in the Hall; but 
 I was not the worse, though I still feel weak and languid. 
 
 *' How often do I repose on that one truth, ' God is love,* 
 when all else seems incapable of affording me any stay. 
 
 " Is it not wonderful, that with such love every moment 
 vouchsafed to us, present things should weigh us down } 
 It shames me to think that the bow of the covenant is not 
 enough to support me during the passing clouds of time. 
 * Teach me Thy love 1 ' * This is life eternal, to know 
 Thee, the only true God, and Jesus Christ, whom Thou 
 hast sent* 
 
 " It is remarkable that the reason given why all the 
 awful curses mentioned in Deut. xxviii. should come upon 
 the children of Israel, is * because' (verse 47) ' thou servedst 
 not the Lord thy God with joyfulness and with gladness 
 of heart, for the abundance of all things.* Thankfulness 
 and rejoicing should be the language of our hearts. Well 
 may / cry, 
 
 Oh for a heart to praise my God, 
 A heart from sin set free.' 
 
 How delightful will it be, when, burning with holy love, 
 we shall utter our praises before the throne of God and 
 the Lamb, with all the fervour of redeemed and eman- 
 cipated spirits. Soon shall we see Him face to face, and 
 be like Him, for we shall see Him as He is I 
 
 ** Your account of the B.'s cottage and Rydal was very 
 touching : perhaps I may yet see it, but I dare not look 
 forward ; and sometimes I begin to think my love for the 
 beauties of nature is almost gone; why, I cannot tell, 
 except that I feel incapable of pleasurable excitement now. 
 
 J^^SJ^JSSb't^'b'*'*^ -<r§S-i-^^lM«w»«M>«s«ii>'5W»*. .■» 
 
^■^^■■■,^-^j 7." \-^ *«*rf=iVsp,SES«SSr-o^'y*" 
 
 60 
 
 LETTERS FROM DUBLIN. 
 
 [chap. I it. 
 
 1838.] 
 
 LETTER FROM PORTSTEWART, 
 
 61 
 
 **The spring of life seems sometimes almost broken, but 
 J know I should strive against this morbid feeling, as it 
 warps and saps true piety, and keeps the soul in a sluggish 
 and unhealthy state— ' awake, lute and harp; I myself 
 will awake right early/ Tell dear Mrs. C. that though I 
 have not read the work to which she refers, I may almost 
 say with certainty that I should consider Mr. H.'s views 
 of the sacrament (judging from what I know of his 
 writings), very much wanting in the simplicity of Scrip- 
 ture, and a great deal too High-Church to please me. 
 Dr. S. thinks so, and he is one whose opinion may be 
 trusted. 
 
 "R. is to preach for Lady Harberton's Infant Schools 
 next Sunday at St. Thomas' Church. Dear Lady H. is 
 one who has given up all for Christ,— such a devoted spirit, 
 a talented, singular, holy character, one who will shine 
 gloriously in the kingdom of her Father. 
 
 " W. P." 
 
 The letters written duringr the next few years 
 are so numerous that it is difficult to make a selec- 
 tion. They all breathe the same intense love to 
 God and man, the same aspirations after holiness, 
 mingling with the incidents and interests of family 
 life. 
 
 We can only give a few of the shorter ones, and 
 extracts from others. Many of the religious ques- 
 tions of the day are touched upon, and there is 
 frequent reference to labours of love carried out 
 incidentally, as his college duties would allow. It 
 was his custom to send letters of sympathy to those 
 he knew or heard of as peculiarly tried in mind or 
 circumstances; sometimes with, sometimes without 
 
 the name of the writer. His mother, when visitinor 
 a lady in deep mental depression, was once told of a 
 very precious letter which had brought her great 
 help and comfort, though to the name of the writer 
 she had not the faintest clue. Mrs. Pennefather 
 asked to see the letter, and at once recognised the 
 handwriting of her youngest son. 
 
 Early in 1S38 he paid a visit to the north of 
 Ireland, and writes from 
 
 " Portstewart, 
 
 " February 22d. 
 
 "My dear Frie-nd, 
 
 ** You were right when you supposed Monellan 
 a place just suited to me. I do not think there is any 
 place where I feel so removed from the world, or enjoy 
 so much of the calm refreshment of the Lord's pre- 
 sence. ... 
 
 " I went with dear M. over heath and bog to meet 
 her poor women, who assemble in one another's houses 
 to repeat verses of Scripture and be questioned on them. 
 I wish you could have been with us. I know no greater 
 spiritual enjoyment than is to be found in these classes. 
 To poor and ignorant people I am sure it is a better 
 mode of instruction than lectures. You get at the real 
 state of their minds by questioning, and the necessity of 
 learning the passage of Scripture by heart must make 
 them in some measure acquainted with the Word of Truth. 
 Certainly at these classes there is a great desire for in- 
 struction, to which the mere fact of old women takino- the 
 trouble to learn nine or ten verses by heart abundantly 
 testifies. ... As you ask particularly about my health, 
 I must confess that I have been very poorly; constant 
 weakness, with pain, not acute, but wearing. It is a great 
 drag upon me. Perhaps if I were more devoted, I should 
 
; '^^^ff^igis (■■v-^'w'^™'®**^"^^ 
 
 -»^*»J«»l«»«SSSSJ:aWi 
 
 62 
 
 LETTER FROM PORTSTEWART. [chap. hi. 
 
 1838.] 
 
 LETTER FROM PORTSTEWART. 
 
 63 
 
 feel it less deadening to my spirit. Sometimes I fear I 
 am sinfully anxious to be delivered from the body of this 
 death ; sometimes I long to flee away and be at rest ! 
 But is not Jesus my rest } * They that believe do enter 
 into rest,' And is not this sufficient to make one sing 
 under the pressure of suffering, and rejoice in tribu-' 
 lation } 
 
 ** It will be easy for us to be joyful in heaven, but we 
 cannot there rejoice while partaking of the sufferings of 
 Christ. We cannot there smile in grief, and see with the 
 eyes of faith the form of the Son of Man treading the 
 dark waves of trouble, and lighting up the foam with the 
 radiance of His glory ! No ! there will be a sea there 
 sufficiently resembling water to bring back the recollection 
 of the waves of sorrow which our gracious Leader brought 
 us safely through : but there will not even be a ripple ; it 
 is one even, calm, molten surface, like glass — a mirror, as 
 it were, reflecting the full radiance of the sun when he 
 sinks in crimson glory. — * I saw as it were a sea of glass 
 mingled with fire.' 
 
 " I brought De Burgh's tracts * with me here, and have 
 read them all. I like the spirit in which they are written 
 very much (what he says of the Church better than what 
 he says of the dispensations), but I am not prepared to 
 follow him in all that he propounds. In fact, I do not 
 see how things are to go on at all if he is correct. Is no 
 Christian to follow what is called a secular employment } 
 I have not studied the subject very deeply, but I think 
 that if we endeavour to spiritualise our duties (I mean 
 those wrongly called secular)^ and live in the world as 
 those whose treasure is in heaven, we shall come nearer 
 to the mind of Him who left us an example that we 
 should tread in His steps. When Mr. B. touches on 
 the prospects of the Church, I do feel inclined to join and 
 
 • These tracts have been long out of print. The author's work on the 
 Took of Revelation is better known. 
 
 proclaim with him : * Lift up your hearts, ye drooping 
 disciples, for His redemption draweth nigh. Behold He 
 Cometh, go ye out to meet Him ! ' 
 
 " Yes ! truly, I am aware that * Christ is not preached 
 in His fulness,' far from it. In the first place, few fully 
 preach His atonement (though Mr. B. rather implies this 
 is done). Few exhibit the love, the Father's love, as 
 manifested in the Son. * Behold, what manner of love 
 the Father hath bestowed,' &c. We hear of Jesus dying ; 
 do we hear much of the Father bestowing ? Who can 
 make us see these things, comprehend this Love, this 
 Atonement } ' When He, the Spirit of Truth, is come, He 
 will guide you into all truth.' Is this preached } Oh ! 
 beloved friend, can we say Atonement is fully preached > 
 * Lo, these are parts of His ways, but how little a portion is 
 known of Him ! ' 
 
 "And then the life of Jesus is rarely taught — the out- 
 shining of Divinity through the tabernacle of mortality ! 
 the motive of all His actions, the daily path of trial which 
 He walked ; His manhood, and yet His Godhead : then 
 His death. His living again. His intercession, His re- 
 appearing, His endless glory! But I cannot unfold what 
 we do know, and still less point out what we do not know. 
 *We know in part;' we get a glimpse of that glorious 
 will by which God draws man to Himself, governs the 
 worlds, rules principalities and powers ! But oh ! we shall 
 behold His glory ! * Father, I will that they whom Thou 
 hast given Me be with Me where I am.' 
 
 "And then, is the Holy Spirit preached as the Guide 
 of the Church — the Spirit, whose habitation we are, the 
 present Intercessor in the Church, the Comforter, takino- 
 of the things of Christ and showing them to us ? Our 
 Saviour says, ' Herein is My Father glorified,' &c. What 
 fruit can we bear } The fruit of the Spirit, is this fully 
 declared > Dear friend, when I reflect that I know next to 
 nothing of what ought to be preached, and when again I 
 
^frjofc,., - •«,-,'^ >., a^-'f'tf-ifi-.io-.. "** --. 
 
 64 
 
 LETTER FROM DUBLIN, 
 
 [chap. iit. 
 
 1839-] 
 
 MARRIAGE OF HIS SISTER. 
 
 65 
 
 feel that I am not equal to exhibit even this comparative 
 nothing, my heart faints, and I cry out, * Who is sufficient 
 for these things ? ' 
 
 "And then again, when I think how, by partial exhibi- 
 tions of truth, we may do more harm than good, and by 
 injudiciously and ignorantly setting forth God's dealings 
 with man, we may only obscure the minds of our hearers 
 instead of enlightening them, I am ready to tremble at 
 what lies before me. 
 
 " But thanks be to God, I have One beside me, who will 
 uphold, and guide, and teach, and enlighten, and enable 
 even me to do all things by His * strength made perfect 
 in my weakness.' " 
 
 The next is from Dublin — 
 
 ^^ November 2%, 1838. 
 
 " I have to tell you of the death of a dear, dear Christian 
 in a wretched garret, in a back street behind the north 
 side of this square. On this day week her happy spirit 
 fled. Her history was briefly this : she and her husband 
 were Roman Catholics, but, by what instrumentality I 
 know not, were converted. They had two children. The 
 husband about ten months ago died of consumption, and 
 on a wretched bed on the floor he glorified his God in 
 death. 
 
 " His poor wife had been taken ill of the same com- 
 plaint shortly before his death, and could not leave her 
 bed, when he lay cold. She never left it : the disease made 
 rapid progress. D. and J. visited her repeatedly. The 
 Lord wonderfully supported her in great sufferings. R. was 
 also constantly with her, and proved the means of sustain- 
 ing and brightening her hope ; he was with her when she 
 died. I went to see her about twelve o'clock each Sunday 
 on my way from the college chapel (which begins so nice 
 and early that it is generally over by that time), and I 
 
 greatly enjoyed reading and talking to her. She seemed 
 already to have commenced the eternal Sabbath, and when 
 I spoke of the New Jerusalem and the glories which are 
 above, she said, "Oh, is not that nice, to see Him face 
 to face, to be with Him for ever and ever, that is the 
 thing ! " She was a remarkable woman, with very dark 
 eyes which shone with uncommon brightness. Her sensi- 
 bilities were peculiarly acute. When unable to speak, she 
 would point to a chair for me to rest, and seemed pained 
 if she thought I was uncomfortable. When near her end 
 I spoke of Jesus' love, she raised her emaciated hand, and 
 looking up, smiled so sweetly, I could fancy that she even 
 saw His beauty then. 
 
 "I could say much more about her, but do not like 
 colouring a death-bed scene, and were I to relate facts, in 
 this case, they might seem like it. Death is in any case 
 a solemn thing, and when we look on one dying, even 
 when passing into the glory of God, we see the penalty 
 of sin, though iniquity is pardoned and transgression 
 purged away. Surely this makes the thought of our Lord's 
 coming exceedingly sweet. Then will death indeed be 
 'swallowed up in victory ; ' ' we shall not all sleep, but we 
 shall all be changed, in a moment, in the twinkling of an 
 eye.' 
 
 " D. sends much love, and desires me to say she is not 
 as High-Church as you suppose, though more so than she 
 was last year. I am in stafu qiw^ loving our Church much, 
 but wishing God speed to all who join with me in loving 
 her Lord and Master. W. P." 
 
 In the spring of 1839 Dora Pennefather was 
 married to the Hon. Somerset Maxwell. Her 
 brother remarks in announcing the event — 
 
 "She leaves me alone, *the one red leaf, the last of its 
 clan,' but I do not look forward, * the Lord will provide." ' 
 
66 
 
 LETTER FROAf DUB UN. 
 
 [CHAP. III. 
 
 1839.] 
 
 IRISH SOCIETY. 
 
 67 
 
 The following letter was written about the same 
 time : — 
 
 « 5 Merrion Square South, Dublin, 
 
 ^'May zrd, 1839. 
 
 "My time has been greatly occupied. I have been 
 attending on my father, reading to him, &c., and finishing 
 my examinations, which terminated this day week very 
 favourably. I came off well, though without honours ; I 
 had not read for them, and did not expect to succeed, 
 after my many hindrances, as well as I did. ... I also 
 completed a short fragment of a hundred lines on the 
 * Mutiny of the ** Bounty,'" which was the subject for the 
 prize. The poem was limited to a hundred lines, which 
 gave no scope to a subject teeming with interest, though 
 not of a very poetic character. The prize will not be 
 decided for two or three weeks ; I scarcely can expect it, 
 as there are many candidates, and I wrote in great haste. 
 I have to recount many mercies, the Lord wonderfully 
 supporting me at the prospect of losing my dariing D. 
 I can rejoice, and feel thankful at the happiness opening 
 before her, which she receives in calm, thankful joy. 
 
 ** Did it ever strike you that the forty days during which 
 
 our Lord remained on earth after His resurrection, may 
 
 represent to the believer what a life of Christian prosperity 
 
 is to be ! I will not say, imagine the feelings of our Holy 
 
 Lord, for they cannot be imagined, but how changed must 
 
 have been the feelings of One, Who, having vanquished 
 
 every temptation and every trial to which this world was 
 
 subject, afterwards lived in it I As no tongue can tell the 
 
 depth of His woe, so no tongue can tell the holiness of His 
 
 joy, when He beheld life and immortality brought to light, 
 
 where death and darkness had held undisputed sway; and 
 
 yet there was a calmness in that joy which harmonised 
 
 with the character of Him who was the Prince of Peace. 
 
 " Rejoice then, believer, but rejoice with your Lord. Are 
 you in sorrow ? Behold the Son of God, and see sorrow 
 
 turned into joy. Are you in pain } Behold Jesus, once in 
 the same body of pain, now saying, * Handle Me, and see 
 that it is I Myself.' He knew no suffering then. Chris- 
 tian ! believe that since thy Saviour s sorrows were turned 
 into joy. His pains into pleasure, and thou art united to 
 Him, so tky weeping may endure for a night, but joy shall 
 
 i> 
 
 come in the morning. 
 
 The spiritual welfare of his country lay very near 
 Mr. Pennefather's heart, and the Society which 
 brought God's truth to the people in their native 
 tongue had his special sympathy. He writes — 
 
 ** Arley Cottage, Co. of Cavan, 
 
 ^^ January 26ihf 1839. 
 
 ** I had the pleasure of hearing Mr. Daly, some Sabbaths 
 ago, preach at St. Peter's Church for the Irish Society. 
 His sermon was exceedingly interesting ; and gloomy as 
 are the prospects of this wretched country in most respects, 
 the thought that, in the County of Kerry, there have been 
 a few who have hazarded their lives for the truth's sake, 
 have left Popery and joined themselves to the true Church, 
 is like a gleam of sunshine in the midst of storm. 
 
 " Thank God, such a gleam does exist ! Through the 
 instrumentality of Irish preaching many individuals have 
 been brought into marvellous light; they have formed them- 
 selves into a body, and have petitioned the Irish Society 
 that their minister may be permanently established 
 amongst them. The Irish Society has consented ; funds 
 have been, and are being, collected ; an Irish church 
 is rising, and those poor, superstitious, ignorant crea- 
 tures hear in their own tongue the wonderful works of 
 God! 
 
 " New members have been added to the Church, schools 
 are being built, and there at least the Word of God seems 
 to have free course and is glorified. Is it not interesting } 
 
68 
 
 LETTERS FROM ARLEY COTTAGE. [chap. hi. 
 
 I will try to get an accurate report of numbers and send 
 it to you. 
 
 ** Poor Ireland I when will her children own the Lord our 
 Righteousness } Would that all Christians, feeling the 
 awful responsibility of the thousands lying under the yoke 
 of superstition and ignorance, would unite in prayer and 
 in the diligent use of means which God has blessed, and 
 in His strength strive to bring Gospel light into the 
 regions of darkness and death. It is grievous that while 
 the enemy is ravaging the fold, the flock is fighting for 
 some particular portion of the green pastures in which 
 God's people feed ! 
 
 ** Satan is wise ; would that we were wise too, not forget- 
 ting our Lord's command, * Be ye wise (not venomous) as 
 serpents, and harmless as doves ' . . . . Perhaps you smile 
 and think W. is getting ' High-Church,' but you know me 
 too well ; I love the freedom of the Church of England, I 
 love its Catholicity, I can think and feel, and talk and act 
 without referring my standard and opinions to the dictates 
 of an individual, but I dread, and trust I ever shall dread, 
 every effort that is made to change the freedom of Church 
 of England piety into the iron formality of mere cere- 
 monial. 
 
 ** Beloved friends, I trust my feelings will never expe- 
 rience any change, save that which shall conform them 
 more and more to the mind of the Spirit, and what a mind 
 is His ! The imperfection of all systems makes one long 
 indeed for that system which Christ shall establish ; a reign 
 of righteousness, peace, and joy in the Holy Ghost." 
 
 To one who had been giving way to much 
 anxiety, he writes, Sep. i6th, 1839 — 
 
 " Do, beloved friend, in such a case commit your cause 
 to our Heavenly Father, and confide more in His unerring 
 wisdom, His unfailing tenderness. 
 
 f s;sSZ"»-"I Iffflw sp» i,i«./ir.<-vi!««';»s^.f'4«iSiK-»"~- * -*► f' *••%'*<*#«* 
 
 1839] 
 
 LETTERS FROM ARLEY COTTAGE, 
 
 69 
 
 " Believe that nothing can happen, even to one of the 
 inferior works of creation, without His cognizance, and 
 surely, therefore, nothing to one whom He has purchased 
 with the blood of His Son, and made a joint-heir with 
 Him of never-ending glory ! I know what it is to be 
 anxious, but, thank God, He has taught me, too, to hear 
 Him say, * Peace be still ! * With the tender reproof of 
 a friend I would say, * May the Lord of Peace Himself 
 give you peace always, by all means/ You know some- 
 thing of my thoughts about peace of mind. Oh, dear 
 friend, this is what we should strive after. Be assured we 
 are not legitimately working for the Lord, when we are 
 working (even as it may seem in His service) in a restless 
 spirit and with panting anxiety. 
 
 " I do not hesitate to say we should sooner give up what 
 we consider might be beneficial to the cause we have at 
 heart, than execute it, with the loss of resting on our God. 
 The longer I live, the more destructive do I feel * hyst * * 
 to be, to the calm progress of the Divine life within us. 
 We have not such command over our physical organisa- 
 tion as to permit us with impunity, wilfully, to expose our 
 poor minds to all the perturbations that may surround us. 
 What then ? Are we to enter a convent or monastery 
 to avoid the harassing effects of contact with society } 
 No, surely ; but we must learn to balance mind and 
 matter, social intercourse and retirement, active service, 
 and calm meditation, public worship and private prayer, 
 keeping such an equilibrium as to sustain our peace in all. 
 True, we cannot entirely effect this in our present imper- 
 fect state, but we should aim at it. May the God of 
 Peace be with you ! 
 
 " The Brethren (I call them such to please you, though 
 I think it hardly fair to imply that other Christians are 
 not brethren) are rather on the increase in C , and I 
 
 * A family word, which he was constantly in the habit of using to express 
 "undue worry," 
 
70 
 
 FA THER MA THE W, 
 
 [chap. iir. 
 
 regret to say are agitating questions little conducive to 
 edification. I honestly confess I see no safeguard against 
 error in the system (for system it undoubtedly is) of 
 Brethrenism. . . . But I will turn from the subject. I 
 would rather talk about it when we can meet, and have a 
 chat tite-h-tite. Blessed be God, you own me as a 
 brother, though not belonging to that peculiar sect ; and 
 though I often feel unworthy of the appellation, yet I 
 may be thankful that you receive me as such." 
 
 The following refers to the remarkable Temper- 
 ance movement which took place in Ireland at this 
 time, and so changed the habits of the people as 
 to attract much attention in England as well as in 
 Ireland — 
 
 " Has the name of * Father Mathew,* a Cork priest, 
 reached you ? He has produced no common sensation 
 here. I believe it was about a year ago that he took 
 up the cause of Temperance, and at first among his own 
 congregation formed a Total Abstinence Society. I be- 
 lieve his motives were good. He made the people * promfse, 
 with the assistance of God, to keep from all spirituous 
 liquors, &c., except ordered by a physician.' This they 
 pronounced kneeling before him. He then made the 
 figure of the cross over them, and they departed, cured, 
 as they imagined, even of the desire for drink. For some 
 time he has been an itinerant temperance advocate. The 
 superstitious multitudes believe he can not only eradicate 
 all love of whisky, but can cure diseases ; and they have 
 flocked to him in thousands, and certainly many great 
 drunkards have been 'cured.' 
 
 '* He was at Clonmel lately for three days, during which 
 time he enrolled, I believe, about 40,000 names. He stood 
 upon a platform in the court-house from early dawn till 
 midnight. From 300 to 400 were admitted at a time, and 
 
 m^-^"'^^ • 
 
 1839] 
 
 FATHER MAT HEW, 
 
 71 
 
 prostrating themselves before him, he pronounced the 
 words, and they departed. 
 
 " So extraordinary is the sensation produced, that it is 
 confidently reported the distilleries will be closed, and 
 that the only persons claiming admittance into the new 
 poorhouse will be the publicans ! Barley has fallen con- 
 siderably in price. Mathew makes them pay for a medal, 
 which they receive from the parish priest according to his 
 direction, so that the sum he has raised is calculated to 
 be something prodigious. The medal has the figure of 
 the Cross on one side, on the other the head of Father 
 Mathew and the words * Total Abstinence Society.' 
 During his stay in Clonmel, I heard from the common 
 people that night and day the roads were thronged with 
 people coming from a distance to him. 
 
 " Some politicians are alarmed at it, as O'Connell has now 
 declared himself in favour of the movement, and they 
 march, with staves and green ribbons, in thousands. Just 
 before the rebellion of '98 the people were all sober, and 
 used to meet in organised bodies. However, my opinion 
 is, that Father Mathew, besides really wishing the cause 
 of temperance to prosper, is desirous of raising money for 
 monasteries and chapels, which they are intent on locating 
 in every place of any consequence in Ireland. 
 
 " I am writing on St. Patrick's Day — a day peculiarly 
 linked with you and my beloved S. in my mind, for 
 she wrote an account of your going to the Irish Society 
 Meeting (which is always held on this day) when you were 
 in Ireland. 5he always used to wear a shamrock on St. 
 Patrick's Day (as almost all the poor people do), in honour 
 of her country, and the last shamrock she ever wore I 
 gave her. You may imagine it brings a melancholy tide 
 of thought upon my mind, yet I can also say, a blessed 
 sense of her unspeakable peace. 
 
 "As Irishmen say that a shamrock never grows on 
 English ground, I send you a bit. From early dawn 
 
 
■?%»»* 
 
 RS •*» -T~s 
 
 ,A-.,J-A.*„jfcsa.j»g 
 
 It 11- 
 
 72 
 
 LETTERS FROM DUBLIN, 
 
 [chap. III. 
 
 1839-] 
 
 LETTERS FROM PORTSTEWART 
 
 73 
 
 women with baskets go about the towns crying, * Sham- 
 rocks, green shamrocks I ' How melancholy anniversaries 
 are, don't you think so ? . . . . 
 
 "I must not end this letter without saying that St. 
 Patrick's Day — generally a day of drunkenness — has this 
 year been celebrated by numerous processions of teeto- 
 talers with flags, banners, scarfs, and bands of music. 
 They are called now Mathewites. The day was very 
 favourable for anything of the kind. Certainly the 
 movement is very extraordinary; sonie fear the most 
 awful results, as it is another proof that the priests, by a 
 single veto, can make the people do anything. 
 
 " w. p;' 
 
 The following is evidently in reply to some ex- 
 pression of opinion which he considered narrow : — 
 
 " I know how difficult it is to rise from the hazy atmo- 
 sphere of preconceived opinions, and to breathe the free 
 air of the religion of the gospel. Alas ! I know too well 
 what it is to narrow my view to some speck of truth, 
 or some single error, instead of standing on the Mount 
 of Pisgah, and viewing the whole of the journey through 
 the wilderness at once ; and then, as it were, seeing the 
 valleys, the mountains, and the rivers of the heavenly 
 Canaan laid out before the eye. 
 
 " Thus must God's attributes be viewed. We must take 
 no attribute alone — * Mercy and truth have met together, 
 righteousness and peace have kissed each other.' Thus 
 must God's dealings be viewed. We must mark their 
 bearing, not decide on them too hastily; they will look 
 deformed if only inspected from one side. 
 
 " So with God's providettce. The formation of the uni- 
 verse and the forces which govern it. in fact, everything 
 connected with Deity, must be viewed with eyes that can 
 see each part as belonging to a whole. 
 
 " And so with Christ's religion ; it, too, must be looked 
 at from high ground, you must take a wide range. It is 
 no narrowing of the mind into some confined spot, but 
 it is the transforming us into the image of God, it is 
 making us like Him; and the more unbiassed and extended 
 our views become, the more we shall be conformed to 
 His image. W. P." 
 
 Aeain he writes from Portstewart — 
 
 ** I was talking to-day to a dear friend, one of God's holy 
 children, Mr. C.'s late butler, a man who has lived with 
 him ever since we knew him ; he has now by numerous 
 providential circumstances become keeper of the Inn at 
 Portstewart; so refined, so devoted a man I never saw 
 in his rank of life. He will not open his house on Sundays, 
 or take out a spirit-licence. Portstewart is beautifully 
 situated on a rocky shore, very healthy, eight miles from 
 the Giant's Causeway and in the neighbourhood of Dunluce; 
 and now it contains a most comfortable and rising Inn, 
 kept by this most devoted saint. Often have I felt when 
 I saw that man attending at dinner, that I ought to have 
 been ministering to hivi^ rather than see him waiting upon 
 me. His very countenance beams calm and spiritual piety. 
 Such a character in such a situation is not often met with. 
 He has regular family prayer. I hope he may succeed. 
 His wife is a good woman, too, and his only aim is to 
 glorify his God, and meet his expenses ; already he has 
 experienced severe trial for refusing gentlemen calling on 
 Sundays for wine, &c., but he is gentle and firm, and 
 thinks when his principles are known that he will not 
 meet the reproach he now does. 
 
 " I believe I have mentioned to you the church which 
 is in process of building at Ventry, and the desire of the 
 poor people to have Mr. Moriarty, who can preach in 
 Irish, resident among them. The church wants funds ; if 
 you can collect money for it send it to A. Kerry is 
 
 *.1l^,SS*B.*-^-*"'' 
 
 ^ -■^ft«i«^6CS**^8t*2& 
 

 ^ -^&^^^W^0^sf^M- 
 
 74 
 
 LETTERS FROM PORTSTEWART. [chap. iir. 
 
 1839] 
 
 LETTERS TO HIS COUSINS. 
 
 75 
 
 indeed thirsting after God. Mr. Moriarty has preached in 
 many places with great success, and at the funeral of his 
 father, who had in his later years renounced the errors of 
 popery, he addressed a great crowd of people for the first 
 time, in Irish, in a churchyard at the foot of the lofty 
 mountain of Brandon, which precipitously frowns above 
 the roaring waves cf the Atlantic; here hundreds heard 
 the glad tidings of a Saviour's love in their own tongue. 
 
 " The village of Ventry is on the sea-coast. A remark- 
 able circumstance occurred there lately, which has pro- 
 videntially favoured the spread of truth. A number of 
 poor fishermen in that place entirely support themselves 
 and their families by their nets. The Roman Catholics 
 got permission from their priest to go fishing on a 
 Sabbath-day; they toiled that day, and on till the 
 afternoon of Monday without success. A Protestant 
 boat's crew went out on Monday, and caught a multi- 
 tude of fish, which were brought to land with great 
 rejoicing. A Roman Catholic fisherwoman was waiting 
 for her own boat, and on seeing it return empty and 
 the Protestant fishermen coming in laden, her wrath 
 burst out in words to the following effect, — *I gave 
 the priest ten shillings for leave to fish, and as much for 
 blessing the boat, but never a halfpenny of mine shall 
 he get again.' This circumstance has made a wonderful 
 impression in the village." 
 
 We may add a few more extracts from letters to 
 his cousins, belonging to this year — 
 
 *' I have just come in from Miss J.'s, and brought such 
 exquisite flowers, — they look as if they might have 
 flourished in some heavenly clime. I have left them 
 with darling J. and now hasten to send you a few words 
 of love. . . . 
 
 "Miss J. gave me quite a scolding because I do not 
 
 read Sir Walter Scott's works, and also because I do not 
 intend to go abroad before I settle down as a minister. 
 I told her I would not leave my mother until I should be 
 able to go forth and tell dying sinners of Christ and Kis 
 salvation. This seemed to surprise her greatly — and as 
 to books, — I know I do not manage my time as well as 
 I might, but I cannot get through nearly all the books I 
 desire to read, so, even putting religious feeling out of 
 the question, I am not likely to read novels. How 
 delightful will it be when our minds shall be so strength- 
 ened and purified, that we shall receive with perfect ease 
 all the knowledge which we are now vainly endeavouring 
 to acquire with such toil and restless anxiety. The 
 power of grasping much that is now unattainable, the 
 insight into character, the full enjoyment of intercourse 
 with one another, are among my bright imaginations of 
 the future state. . . . But oh! that we may now seek 
 to *know Him and the power of His resurrection and 
 the fellowship of His sufferings 1 * '* 
 
 ^'July2ird, 1839. 
 
 "I have had some enjoyable reading, and was rather 
 glad of the wet weather. ... I like W. much. There is 
 no great talent or originality of thought in what he says^ 
 but in his prayers there is such genuine simplicity and 
 such true breathing of the soul to God, as is surely in the 
 sight of Him who seeth not as man seeth * of great 
 price.* 
 
 " Mr. C. is very fond of music, and we often have 
 hymns. He is delighted with G.'s tunes, but I can 
 scarcely play them without tears, when I think of the 
 history of the composer. . . . We are fearfully and 
 wonderfully made, and how keen the suffering where the 
 workmanship is exquisite! The Lord does lead His 
 children through deep waters ; and I think tmexpressed 
 feelings and conflicts, that cannot be told in words, are 
 often the deepest through which a soul can pass. Our 
 
 ^^^^^T^^^ 
 
76 
 
 LETTER TO HIS COUSINS. 
 
 [chap. III. 
 
 sensibilities are so manifold, and the channels through 
 which these sensibilities are acted upon by the external 
 world are so numerous, that we are constantly touched 
 and wounded and made to shrink. There is no peace 
 for a sensitive nature until the soul is anchored on God, 
 and finds peace in Hifn who gave up His own peace, 
 that He might restore it to those who had not thought 
 it worth the keeping. These remarks are for yourself. 
 Some might call them mere sentiment. . . . 
 
 " The longer I live the more I feel the importance of main- 
 taining din even temperament of soul, not drooping and not 
 elated — activity without hurry, enjoyment without tumul- 
 tuous excitement, love of solitude without morbid feeling, 
 &c., but, alas ! I am far from having attained to it. I heard 
 Mr. G. preach an interesting sermon on Sunday morning. 
 There was not much of the Gospel message, but a true 
 view of the blessings of holiness, and an earnest panting 
 after them. ... I heard him again in the evening. The 
 tone was simple and holy, but he seemed to take it too 
 much for granted that all baptized persons are really 
 justified. His manner is deeply serious, and his mind 
 very interesting. I have just received your precious 
 letters. Truly * I thank my God upon every remembrance 
 of you.* ' 
 
 m 
 
 ( 77 ) 
 
 CHAPTER IV. 
 
 1839- 1840. 
 
 Spiritual Destitution in Connemara — Visit to Roundstone— Prepara- 
 tions for building a church there — Return to College— Diffi- 
 culties at Roundstone — Second visit to Connemara and to the 
 Islands of Arran — Various letters — Illness of his Sister — Letters 
 from Edinburgh — Return to Dublin — Poem written by one of the 
 Roundstone flock. 
 
 TT was in the summer of 1839 that Mr. Penne- 
 father's mind was directed to an object of in- 
 terest, which for several years after occupied much 
 of his time and energy; and which, while it cost 
 him many anxieties and disappointments, was to 
 cause eventually **many thanksgivings unto God." 
 
 His brother John had gone on a fishing expedi- 
 tion to the West of Ireland, and had spent some 
 time in the wilds of Connemara. On his return 
 home, when relating his various adventures and 
 experiences, he was eagerly questioned by his 
 brother William as to the religious state of the 
 people in the tract of country through which he had 
 passed. 
 
 In answer to these inquiries, he expressed his 
 belief that along a great stretch of that wild 
 western coast no Protestant place of worship could 
 
 II 
 
 '^0^irif»mmsssf.i 
 
78 
 
 VISIT TO CONNEMARA, 
 
 [chap. IV. 
 
 rnvKm 
 
 Ei h 
 
 Mt 
 
 I lb 
 
 I* ! < 
 
 be found. He spoke particularly of one spot called 
 Roundstone, where a little flock of Protestants 
 existed, but in great ignorance, without church or 
 pastor, adding that he had heard they would be 
 delighted to welcome a minister. 
 
 Such tidings could not be a matter of indifference 
 to one whose soul was burning with desire for the 
 salvation of sinners. The long vacation had be- 
 gun ; William had some time at his disposal, and 
 he set himself, with characteristic determination, to 
 collect all needful information respecting the neigh- 
 bourhood of Roundstone. Having ascertained the 
 names of the landowners and principal resident 
 farmers, and discovered also that the Protestant 
 families, who were partly Presbyterians and partly 
 members of the Church of England, were willing to 
 unite themselves under a minister of either denomin- 
 ation, he determined to pay them a visit, and see 
 for himself. Though his health was still very frail, 
 no difficulties or distance could be allowed to stand 
 in the way, and the following letter describes, in 
 his own words, his first journey to Connemara : — 
 
 " Knockeevan, 
 
 ^*' September T th^ iZy^, 
 
 " I have much of interest and of the Lord's goodness to 
 relate, which will cause you to thank Him for all His 
 dealings with me. I left Dublin on Friday night, the 30th, 
 upon the top of the Mail, which was full inside, and I had 
 a trying journey owing to the incessant rain. We changed 
 guards about half-way from Dublin, and when daylight 
 came, I was struck by the interesting appearance of the 
 
 1 
 
 1839I 
 
 VISIT TO CONNEMARA. 
 
 79 
 
 man we had taken up. He was tall and handsome, and 
 on entering into conversation with him, I found him 
 a very earnest Christian ; he sat on the luggage to converse 
 with me, and I knelt on the seat, to change my position 
 and be nearer to him. He refreshed me greatly with an 
 account of God's dealings with him, and the peace which 
 he enjoyed in his own soul. He has three children, and 
 a wife who helps him forward in his heavenly race. I felt 
 quite as if I had met a friend, and when we parted at 
 Galway, it was with grateful feelings at having met by the 
 
 way. 
 
 " There were a few gleams of sunshine as the Mail 
 skirted the shores of the bay and entered the old town, 
 which Inglis describes as bearing a Spanish appearance. 
 From Galway to Roundstone is a distance of forty Irish 
 miles. The peasantry along the way interested me ; the 
 women all wear scarlet woollen petticoats, and talk Irish 
 with all the vivacity and rapidity for which that language 
 is famous. The road lies rather near the shore of Lough 
 Corrib, which stretches without apparent boundary to 
 the right, while on all sides the wild rocks and scanty 
 patches of wood, and the hills rising in the distance, make 
 a remarkable though bleak picture. The stage car pro- 
 ceeded slowly, and I indulged my silent propensities for 
 some time, and committed my cares and anxieties into 
 the hands of Him who has never forsaken me. I found 
 my only companion on the car also going to Roundstone, 
 and he was exceedingly interesting, from the intelligence 
 of his conversation and the information he was able to 
 give me of the people and country. The evening light 
 was fading in the sky when we left the high road and 
 wound round the head of Ballinahinch Lake, whose dark 
 wooded islands and old castle and craggy heights were 
 just discernible. This lake was the most picturesque of 
 the many which I passed during the day. 
 
 *' Connemara abounds both in * bays of the sea,' as its 
 
 I 
 
 *! 
 
 .■\ 
 
- "■^mu'^a.M^- 
 
 'I 
 
 i 
 
 So 
 
 VISIT TO CONNEMARA. 
 
 [chap IV. 
 
 name denotes, and also in lakes inland. Its wild, unculti- 
 vated moors are broken in their stretching barrenness by 
 the sudden rising of some pinnacled hill, or rocky crag, or 
 towering mountain, at whose feet the dark lakes and tarns 
 lie nestling. I felt as if nothing reigned here but the wild 
 eagle, shooting from its castle-like crag, and the waterfall 
 which leaped down the black sides of the precipitous 
 mountains. 
 
 ** I found Mr. R. a very intelligent, well-informed 
 Scotchman, but I had been travelling twenty-four hours 
 and was glad of rest. The next morning was Sunday. 
 It was stormy and rainy, and Mr. R. was not sure of 
 my coming, so had not announced it, and the congrega- 
 tion was small, partly hindered also by the severity of the 
 day ; but the order, the attention, the love which seemed 
 to exist between the members of the little flock, and their 
 apparent interest in the service, made it deeply interesting 
 to me. It is a singular fact that when Mr. R. was urged 
 by the Presbyterian minister of Galway to apply to Scot- 
 land for a minister, he answered, 'We are such a small 
 band, it would be a pity to divide us, and perhaps the 
 Churchmen would not attend.* He will subscribe largely 
 to our little church, and will superintend the building, 
 and, in the meantime, will himself conduct a service. 
 
 " I commenced with the Confession, and, while reading 
 the Psalms, Lessons, and Litany, longed for some loved 
 Christian friend to share my happy thoughts ; but I 
 blessed God that, though a stranger in this wild spot, 
 * the barbarous people showed me no little kindness.' 
 The singing was really good. I then prayed that the 
 Lord would look down and behold our condition and 
 visit us with His favour, raising up a pastor to guide, and 
 giving us a temple where the voice of prayer and praise 
 might be heard. I felt refreshed and as if the Lord had 
 heard our prayer. We then sang again, and I spoke for 
 about half an hour on Nehemiah vi. 3. 
 
 r 
 
 1839-] 
 
 VISIT TO CONNEMARA. 
 
 81 
 
 "We met again in the evening, when I spoke on 
 Nehemiah ix. 16, 17. After the service I gave them the 
 books I had brought ; I told them they were to be a 
 little memorial of my coming among them. 
 
 "The next day I visited some of the people, among 
 whom were an old gentleman and his daughter ; he put 
 an envelope into my hand containing a few stanzas,* as 
 a * memorial * to me of my visit, and took me to see a 
 very interesting young woman who has been confined 
 to her bed for four years. Brought up a Roman Catholic, 
 she was hired by an English lady who invited her in to 
 family prayer, where her mind was awakened ; she 
 became anxious for instruction, and determined to go 
 to church. She did so, and the next day, as she was 
 going to fetch water from the well, she was waylaid 
 and beaten so violently that she has never since been 
 able to leave her bed; yet she blesses God for her 
 heavy chastisement, prays for her enemies, and says her 
 happiest hours have been spent on that sick-bed. 
 
 " I left Roundstone in the afternoon, and went to 
 Mr. M.'s at Ballinahinch, to meet the mail car in the 
 morning, which passes near his house. He lives in imi- 
 tation of the old princes of Connemara, his house without 
 an avenue in the midst of heath and rocks. He was 
 kind, and said he would lend his assistance and encour- 
 agement to the work at Roundstone. I left next morn- 
 ing in a gig of Mr. M.*s to meet the Mail, and as we were 
 passing over a dark river on a bridge, the parapet of 
 which was broken down, I said to the servant, * This is a 
 dangerous spot.* At that moment the horse reared, the 
 shafts were smashed, the gig upset, and we were nearly 
 precipitated into the river below, but the Lord saved us — 
 indeed, we were not hurt. After all I was in time for the 
 mail car, and had a prosperous but rather uninteresting 
 journey to Dublin. 
 
 These verses are givpn at the end of this chapter. 
 
 F 
 
 !i; 
 
 
 \ 
 
 I 
 
:,| '* 
 
 u 
 
 COLLECTING MONEY, 
 
 [chap. IV. 
 
 II 
 
 I I 
 
 " On arriving in town I had an interview with the 
 secretary of the Additional Curates' Fund Society, Mr. 
 A. J. He was interested in my plan, but said that 
 they were not in the habit of granting money to rectors 
 for paying additional curates, where the rector did not 
 reside, and Mr. T. lives in Dublin. He advised me 
 to raise money for an endowment, and then have the 
 nomination in my own power. I think the Ecclesiastical 
 Commissioners may perhaps assist me ; if not, I must 
 raise the sum of £ 1600. ^- ^• 
 
 The work of collecting money, from which he 
 had naturally a most sensitive shrinking, now 
 began, and seemed to belong to him all his life 
 as an allotted service. It was one which brought 
 him into much communion with God, and much 
 experience of His faithfulness to His trusting 
 people. While diligent in the use of all reason- 
 able means for collecting funds, he strongly ob- 
 jected to a style of appeal which seemed, as he 
 said, " to make God's cause a beggar at the world's 
 footstool ! " ** My Father owns the wealth of the 
 universe," was his answer to the apprehensions of 
 unbelief; and that Father manifestly honoured the 
 faith of His child, though often testing it by a 
 
 variety of trials. 
 
 On the present occasion we find many allusions 
 to discouragements and *' wet blankets," very painful 
 to a young beginner, but much thankfulness also, 
 both to God and man, for cheering kindness and 
 
 liberality. 
 
 One feature which always characterised his col- 
 
 zn'x'T^ .mttJdF* 
 
 1839-] 
 
 DIVINITY LECTURES, 
 
 «3 
 
 lections, an exceeding value for the contributions of 
 the poor, was not wanting in the early days of 
 Roundstone. He writes — 
 
 " Knockeevan, 
 
 ^' October loth, 1839. 
 
 " Your account of dear Maria Rigg * melted my heart. 
 Thank her many, many times, and her dear aunt for their 
 precious pennies, and remind them of ' the cup of cold 
 water given to a disciple,' which our Saviour looks upon 
 as given to Himself. Your mention of Maria having, for 
 twenty years, sought the Lord's teaching from His sacred 
 Word five times a day, humbles me indeed. I feel it truly 
 a blessing to be acquainted with such a dear child of God. 
 
 " How beautifully ripe she seems for glory. Your account 
 of the little child made me melancholy, yet why should it, 
 when I remember the Good Shepherd carrieth the lambs 
 in His bosom ; may she feel that He cherishes and watches 
 over her with tender care." 
 
 For some months things looked hopeful, and 
 Roundstone was the subject of unceasing prayer, 
 while many a plan was devised for its future benefit. 
 Towards the close of 1839 he writes — 
 
 " I am now attending Dr. O'Brien's interesting Divinity 
 Lectures. They are highly useful and profitable. Our 
 class is large, a hundred and thirteen attend. I have com- 
 menced Hebrew, and shall attend the Lectures on that 
 language, also Dr. Singer's Lectures, which are very in- 
 structive : not dry criticisms on Scripture, but a devout 
 searching into its meaning. He is Assistant Divinity 
 Lecturer. These studies, you may imagine, keep me very 
 busy. 
 
 " Thank you many times for all your exertions about 
 
 * A poor old woman in KendaL 
 
I 
 
 84 
 
 DIFFICUL TIES AT RO UNDSTONE. [chap. IV. 
 
 Roundstone. I have had an interesting letter from the 
 Bishop, which most likely will relieve my friends and my- 
 self from begging, at least for the endowment of the church. 
 He has liberally offered, not only to pay a curate at 
 Roundstone (and I hear from Dr. O'Brien that the person 
 named is a good man), but also another in some other part 
 of the Union. He adds that he thinks the Ecclesiastical 
 Commissioners will help considerably with the church. 
 If all this is effected, the efforts of my kind friends will not 
 be much longer needed. However, I intend to go on 
 raising money, that, in case he is not able to carry out 
 what he proposes, I may still have sufficient to endow the 
 church. Miss D. has just sent me such a large sum ! 
 ^33, 3s. Miss L., too, has been most kind. I am very 
 anxious about the little library I am trying to establish 
 at Roundstone. . . . Mr. B. is an excellent man, but his 
 preaching seemed to me too declamatory and verbose, 
 wanting in arrangement and calm handling of the subject.'* 
 
 But the work was not to be so easy, or the way 
 so smooth, as at first appeared. In the early 
 months of 1840 we find that letters sent to Round- 
 stone were not answered, and no direct information 
 could be obtained. We extract from a letter 
 written at this time— 
 
 ** I was greatly distressed, especially as I heard by report 
 that the Synod of Ulster had sent a Presbyterian minister 
 to the place, and were about to build a chapel ; and that 
 this minister and the curate appointed by the Bishop did 
 not agree, and were not working in harmony ! At length, 
 wearied with hearing nothing but casual reports, I wrote 
 to Ballinahinch, begging Mrs. M. to send me a few lines. 
 She did so, saying that they did not now expect any 
 help from the Bishop for the furtherance of my object, 
 
 »#^r!i«H Jull4J » '*il 
 
 -JKyz-rXT. 3P3?F-^ 
 
 1840.] 
 
 DIFFICULTIES AT ROUNDSTONE, 
 
 85 
 
 and that the foundation of the new Presbyterian chapel 
 was to be laid on the 3rd of April. I was greatly per- 
 plexed, and as Dr. O'Brien was ill, I could not consult 
 him, so I determined to write to Mr. S. and enclose the 
 letter, which spoke for itself. Mr. S. quite agrees with 
 me that it will be better to give iimn place. Surely the 
 land is large enough to hold us, and so many localities are 
 thirsting for the glad tidings of the Gospel of Peace. I 
 shall be greatly obliged for your help, when I am ready 
 to acquaint those friends who have contributed with my 
 plans, but I shall do nothing until I have visited the 
 place." 
 
 In the next letter we find further arrangements 
 for carrying out this thought of going as soon as 
 possible to Roundstone. 
 
 '' April it^ih.iZifi, 
 "D. seems to have been greatly refreshed and com- 
 forted in London by Mr. G.'s sermons. She thinks he is 
 the best preacher she ever heard, and says he is a little in 
 Mr. Cleaver's style ; but I say no one could come up to 
 him ; he moves in a region above this lower world, I saw 
 his heavenly countenance the other day, and it did me 
 good. He invited me to Delgany, but I cannot go. The 
 little flock in the west prevents my going, where I should 
 otherwise be strongly tempted to run for a fortnight, even 
 to dear Westmoreland. 
 
 **I am distressed about Roundstone, but not *cast 
 down ; ' I agree with you, in what you say about opposi- 
 tion ; I only go, because I think it is right to visit the place; 
 my subscribers, too, might think me otherwise wanting 
 in zeal. Now, for my plans. My examination days are, 
 Thursday, April 30th, and Friday, May ist. I propose to 
 leave town that same Friday night, as I wish to spend a 
 Sunday at Roundstone, and I am greatly hurried. I desire 
 if possible to go from Roundstone to Sligo, and from thence 
 
I(l 
 
 If; 11 
 
 86 
 
 JOURNEY TO ROUNDSTONE, [chap. iv. 
 
 to Strabane. I must be in town on the 17th, when my 
 Divinity Lectures begin, and the journey to Sligo may 
 not be practicable, in which case, I should remain with 
 Mr. M. at Ballinahinch Castle a few days longer." 
 
 Then follows a detailed account of the journey 
 to Roundstone — 
 
 ** Ballinahinch Castle, 
 
 ''May Sth, 1840. 
 
 "According to my promise, I sit down to give you 
 some details about the last few days. 
 
 " I left Dublin on Friday night ; the dewy mists, which 
 we have had lately, made it cold, and I was delighted to 
 find myself drawing near to Galvvay after more than 
 eleven hours outside the coach. The good guard I wrote 
 of before got on the coach at Moat, so I had the pleasure 
 of renewing my acquaintance with him, and having some 
 pleasant conversation. I left Galway at 12.30, and have 
 seldom, if ever, felt the heat of the sun more intense than 
 when, without any shelter, we traversed the wild region 
 of country from Galway to this place. I arrived about 
 8 o'clock. When I left Galway a gentleman got up on 
 the mail car, who appeared to be a clergyman. I found 
 he knew accurately all about Roundstone and all my 
 perplexities. It was a great cheer to me to talk to him. 
 By a curious coincidence, before he got on the car I had 
 been thinking what I should do regarding Roundstone, 
 and had chalked out a plan which I thought might 
 answer ; and in the course of conversation he suggested 
 the very same idea, namely, that I should pitch my little 
 tabernacle on one of the islands of Arran. There is an 
 Irish reader there who has been a great blessing to the 
 place, and both Roman Catholics and Protestants are 
 anxious about religion. 
 
 "There are about eighty Protestants, and the Irish 
 Island Society are proposing to pay a minister there. 
 
 1840.] 
 
 VISIT TO ROUNDSTONE. 
 
 87- 
 
 k 
 
 Great Arran contains a good harbour and excellent pas- 
 turage. It is about twenty-four miles from Roundstone, 
 situated amid the wild waves of the Atlantic. 
 
 " I still see difficulty in the way, but I think this is the 
 'square stone!* on which I will plant my little church. 
 Mr. West, the curate of Roundstone, promises to use all 
 his influence with the Bishop. 
 
 "And now I must turn to a painful subject — 
 
 " I rode to Roundstone on Sunday on Miss M.*s pony ; 
 and went to the house where I had preached, but, alas ! 
 the flock was scattered ; there were only fourteen present. 
 The Presbyterians were carrying on their service in another 
 room, and a bitter spirit had rent the body. 
 
 " However, I got leave to meet all together, and after 
 a little difficulty and hesitation in some quarters, we 
 assembled at 6 o'clock in the Presbyterian room. Some 
 were present who had not met for a long time, and 
 between whom unpleasant feelings existed. I preached 
 
 on Ephesians iv. 4-6, and to my joy Mrs.- and Mr. 
 
 shook hands when the service was over. I trust the Lord's 
 presence was among us. To me it was a great pleasure, 
 though the occasion which led to it was a painful one. 
 Discordant feeling had risen to a melancholy pitch. Both 
 parties were in the wrong ; both were injudicious. Mr. 
 
 , though anxious for the welfare of the people, and 
 
 desirous to honour his Master, is very weak, low-spirited, 
 and ready to take offence." 
 
 The satisfactory and permanent effect of this 
 peace-making visit reminds us of the memorial 
 sketch already quoted. His friend says — 
 
 "It would hardly be giving a fair portrait of him in 
 these early years not to mention the power he even then 
 exercised over others — a kind of gentle force, by which he 
 seemed able to lead them to do as he wished, in a way 
 
ISLAND OF ARRAN. 
 
 [chap. IV, 
 
 1840.] 
 
 ISLAND OF ARRAN. 
 
 89 
 
 III 
 
 •ti 
 
 II 
 
 which I never remember to have observed in any one else. 
 We used to smile at and enjoy what we called his 'gift 
 of rule! Was it not the foreshadowing of that force and 
 power which came forth in after years, to the admiration 
 of so many, ever connected as it was with such kindness 
 and consideration for all." 
 
 Another letter gives some particulars of the same 
 visit to Connemara — 
 
 " I visited the poor girl who was so injured for becom- 
 ing a Protestant, and found her in a happy state, but 
 very suffering. A lady had given me a pound for her, 
 and I found that she had been three days without any- 
 thing to eat or drink, but a piece of bread and cold water. 
 Poor creature, she seemed overpowered with gratitude. 
 
 " The scenery here is very uncommon and very inter- 
 esting, at some parts beautiful, and I have taken several 
 
 sketches. 
 
 ** I was up early on Monday morning, hoping to be 
 soon off; but our large and unpunctual party did not 
 assemble till nearly nine o'clock, and it was almost ten 
 when we set sail, with a fair, fresh wind. I was very ill 
 (of course), but we had a quick passage of three hours and 
 ten minutes, and landed at Port Murray, the nearest port 
 on the Galway side. As I crawled up the sandy bank I 
 descried a pleasant-looking school-house, which was a 
 great cheer to my heart, and on reaching it found it was 
 built by the Island Society. There was a nice school- 
 master teaching a few children and some adults. His 
 name is Hogan ; he seems a real Christian, and a very 
 interesting man, a convert from Romanism, — the means 
 of his conversion the Irish Scriptures. But he speaks 
 English remarkably well, as indeed do most of the inhabi- 
 tants of Arran and Connemara, though Irish is their ver- 
 jaacular tongue, and the language of their hearts. 
 
 " We saw a great deal of Hogan during our two days* 
 
 visiting on the Island, and everything we saw raised him 
 in our estimation. He is clever, unassuming, and most 
 zealous, with a very holy mind. He has suffered bitter 
 persecution for the truth's sake." 
 
 The letter goes on to give an interesting descrip- 
 tion of the island itself, with its geographical and 
 geological peculiarities, and many touching details 
 of visits among its inhabitants, but too long for 
 insertion. The party slept at a small farmhouse 
 •'where there were two tolerably clean beds," and 
 returned to Galway on the evening of the second 
 day. 
 
 Mr. Pennefather proceeded at once to lay his 
 difficulties and proposed plan before the Bishop, 
 and writing from Tuam says — 
 
 "I have just spent an hour with the Bishop. He was very 
 civil, wanted me to stay the night, and invited me at any 
 time I came to Connemara, to make Tuam my way. He 
 told me he had not the least objection to my building a 
 church at Arran, and would wish it erected immediately, 
 adding that he would consecrate it in the summer. 
 
 " With reference to the minister he said he thought it 
 could easily be managed by the Irish Island Society and 
 the Curates' Fund ; so I think I will, if I can arrange 
 matters with Mr. D., the proprietor of Arran, com- 
 mence immediately, and leave the appointment of a 
 minister to the Lord's guidance. I ought to be thankful 
 that things have progressed even so far, and I must only 
 pray and hope for the remainder, but sometimes I am 
 faithless and desponding." 
 
 It may be well to mention here, though we are 
 somewhat anticipating, that these plans for the 
 
90 
 
 NEW PLANS FOR ROUNDSTONE. [chap. IV. 
 
 I i! 
 
 Ill 
 
 Island of Arran were not accomplished. There 
 was much correspondence, and many hopes and 
 fears. Difficulties arose with regard to the pur- 
 chase of land, and it seemed possible that the 
 existing school-rooms might be made available for 
 such services as would be carried on, the Protestant 
 population being as yet small. Mr. Pennefather, 
 not to be baffled in a scheme deliberately and 
 prayerfully undertaken, again turned his thoughts 
 to Roundstone. We should rather say his hopes, 
 for that wild spot had never lost its place in his 
 
 heart. 
 
 We find continual reference to it in writing to 
 different friends. " Got up early and thought and 
 prayed about my little flock at Roundstone.*' 
 " How my heart goes after those few sheep in the 
 wilderness ! " " Do you remember to pray for 
 Roundstone ? " and many similar allusions. 
 
 His visit and efforts had not been in vain, and 
 the aspect of things had become more peaceable 
 and encouraeinof. In a letter which we introduce 
 here, though of somewhat later date, we find the 
 following : — 
 
 " You will be glad to hear that Roundstone has lately 
 got a minister who, from what I can hear, is likely to be 
 a real blessing to the place ; and as there are difficulties 
 about placing a church in Arran, the people having a 
 school-house and seeming hardly ripe for more, I am 
 thinking now of commencing the church at Roundstone. 
 Will you pray for me and for it ? 
 
 ** It has been an anxious business, but I hope will prove 
 
 \h 
 
 1840.] 
 
 IRISH ISLANDS. 
 
 91 
 
 h 
 
 a rich blessing. Do you ever think of the Irish Islands ? 
 There are afflicted, persecuted, yet noble followers of the 
 Lamb there. A few days since I had one of the natives 
 of Arran with me, one who has been persecuted nearly 
 to death for the religion of Jesus. He has been in Dublin 
 for some time preparing to teach the glad tidings of 
 salvation in the Island of Innismurray, where the people 
 have neither priest nor Protestant pastor. He is a man 
 of a holy, humble spirit. I saw him the day he left; 
 we knelt together in prayer that God would prosper his 
 work, keep him in His faith and fear, and bless him 
 abundantly. 
 
 " He is one who was himself bound in the chains of sin 
 and superstition. How we need to pray for such humble 
 
 labourers ! . . . Tell Mr. I hope he prays, too, for a 
 
 weak brother, who is soon to stand up as an ambassador 
 for Christ, a dispenser of the truth ! Surely the place is 
 holy ground. Oh I that I may ever go forth in the 
 strength of the Lord, making mention of His righteous- 
 ness, and of His only ! " 
 
 We return to the intervening months, and give a 
 few short extracts on various subjects. 
 
 " My beloved Friend, 
 
 " As I have lately been considering the work 
 and offices of the Eternal Spirit, I have prayed that you 
 might fully partake of and enjoy the glorious results of 
 that blessed work. I think we often lose sight of the 
 peculiarity of the present dispensation. We do not suffi- 
 ciently consider the exalted position of believers, and are 
 too apt to look upon the happiness of those who walked 
 and lived with our Lord, when on earth, in contrast with 
 our dispensation, to the disparagement of the latter; yet, 
 if we reflect, we shall have to acknowledge the glorious 
 truth that our position is more favourable to spirituality. 
 
 ii 
 
92 
 
 LETTERS FROM DUBLIN, 
 
 [chap, ir 
 
 I™' f 
 
 and therefore more blessed. Was Christ a Comforter to 
 His disciples when on earth? We have * another Com- 
 forter.' Did He speak of the things which belonged to 
 their peace ? We have One who will bring all things to 
 our remembrance, whatsoever He hath said. Did He pray 
 for them ? We have Him, not interceding as an afflicted 
 man on earth, but as a glorified High Priest above, and we 
 have the Eternal Spirit to *walk in us, and dwell in us,' and 
 to intercede for us here b^low. 
 
 "We have a glorious communication thrown open for 
 us between earth and heaven, we have the Spirit of wisdom, 
 joy, and love, willing to abide with us for ever ; we have 
 Him to unfold the glories of a Saviour's love, and to exalt 
 us to the place where Christ is gone before. Oh blessed 
 thoughts ! May we ever, as we live in the Spirit, walk in 
 the Spirit." 
 
 « Trinity College, 184a 
 " My Missionary Lecture has not yet been delivered, but 
 it will take place on Wednesday. Some divinity examina- 
 tions interfered with the previous arrangements. 
 
 "Yesterday D. and I went to hear Robert M'Ghee, 
 at Harold's Cross church. He is preaching upon the 
 Creed, and yesterday his text was i John i. 3, in con- 
 nection with the 'Holy Catholic Church and the Com- 
 munion of Saints,' which he made explanatory of each 
 other. The subject was splendid. He showed that the 
 Communion of Saints is the sense of union with believers 
 in virtue of union with Jesus, that it is feeling consciously 
 united to that glorious company who have passed into the 
 heavens, to the worshipping thousands who are still on 
 earth, and to those who yet shall enter into the family of 
 the redeemed. Not mere church fellowship nor union of 
 creeds, but unity of soul. With reference to this deeply- 
 interesting subject, I heard dear Mr. Irwin preach beauti- 
 fully upon Hebrews xii. 18-24, drawing attention strikingly 
 
 1840.] 
 
 LETTERS FROM KNOCKEEVAN, 
 
 93 
 
 to the actual possession into which the reception of the 
 Gospel introduces the sinner. All things become his, 
 things present and things to come, and therefore it can be 
 said with truth, * ye are come,' &c. 
 
 '* I wish I could show you St. Peter's school ; I teach 
 there every Wednesday for about an hour. It is an ad- 
 mirable school, the information of the children is quite 
 extraordinary. It sometimes puzzles me to find suitable 
 questions for them. There is a danger in teaching such 
 children, lest one should be so occupied with their heads 
 as to exclude their hearts. But I must end. 
 
 '' W. P." 
 
 ** Knockeevan, 
 " October 22nd, 
 
 "Dr. O'Brien is a great invalid, and I fear he will not 
 be able to lecture next term, which will be a great loss 
 to us divinity students. I have been reading Mrs. S.'s 
 Psalter, and like the interpretation of the Hebrew titles 
 extremely. 
 
 ** The Psalms have ever been to me an unfailing spring 
 of living water ; — when wearied they have refreshed me ; 
 in sickness they have almost restored me ; in joy they 
 have given me words to express my thankfulness; in 
 sorrow they have been a channel in which my grief 
 flowed, leading me away from myself to * behold and see 
 if there was ever sorrow like unto His sorrow.* 
 
 " Like Jerusalem, situated in the centre of the world and 
 the joy of the whole earth, that heavenly city which shall 
 yet be established in the beauty of holiness, they lie, as it 
 were, in the very heart of the Word of God, and seem to 
 me as the fairest spot in that land which floweth with 
 milk and honey ; they are at once the soul of the Old 
 Testament and the sun of the New, the index of the mind 
 of Him who is the glory of the Invisible God, and the 
 sympathising Friend and Companion of His people." 
 
 U 
 
I' i 
 
 li - » 
 
 94 
 
 LETTER FROM DUBLIN. 
 
 [CHAP. nr. 
 
 ii 
 
 " Dublin (the exact date does not appear). 
 
 " I did not tell you that I went to meet Mr. ; the dear 
 
 man was to drink tea with Miss P., and she asked me 
 to join them. Some of * the Brethren * were there and four 
 or five members of the Church of England. We read 
 I Thess. V. and had some general conversation; then 
 Mr. spoke, unfolding the love of God and the conse- 
 quent privileges and duties of believers. It was animating 
 and practical. We had the hymn, * Head of the Church 
 triumphant,' and prayer. Then he spoke on his own 
 particular views, more strongly than I had heard him do 
 before. 
 
 ** I love him dearly, but must think these views, in many 
 respects, very erroneous. Mr. B. and I had some nice 
 conversation in a quiet corner ; we spoke on the neglect 
 both among individuals and churches of the due exalta- 
 tion of the Holy Ghost. The personality of the Blessed 
 Spirit is not sufficiently considered. I think, too, there is 
 a danger with some oi forcing growth too much in young 
 believers. Should we not remember our dear Lord's 
 words which may be applied to such forcings when He 
 spoke of the seed which * sprang up immediately,* and 
 * immediately withered away.' Well, the Lord is accom- 
 plishing His purposes in the midst of all the confusion 
 that is around. May we be kept daily by His power, 
 continually advancing in holiness, made meet for that 
 inheritance which has been purchased for us by the blood 
 of Jesus ! 
 
 ** You ask me what I think of the Oxford Tracts. As 
 far as I know their peculiarities, they seem to me at 
 variance with the Word of God, and contrary to the true 
 teaching of the Church of England ; so think more learned 
 men than I, Dr. O'Brien, Dr. Singer, &c. But they are 
 not spreading in Ireland. We see too much of what real 
 Popery is to countenance anything which seems to tread 
 in its steps. I cannot understand how those who hold 
 
 1840.] 
 
 ILLNESS OF HIS SISTER. 
 
 95 
 
 such views can remain in the position of Dissenters (for 
 such they surely are) from the Romish Church.'* 
 
 Again, about the same time — 
 
 " I have been thinking of Arnside, and our happy walk 
 there, but truly do I rejoice that you say I am brought to 
 your mind, not only by hill and dale, poetry and music, 
 classic learning and mere earthly associations. . . . 
 
 " You well knew my mind, beloved friend, when you said 
 I would value much more being linked with scenes where 
 Christ is named, where His kingdom is spoken of, where 
 His children talk of His glory ! I am thankful that then 
 and there you remember me. God grant that I may 
 ever share your holiest thoughts, and come into your mind 
 when heaven is the subject of your contemplation. . . . 
 
 "Yes! I remember the person you mention, who was 
 at Maria Rigg's, and seemed refreshed by our meeting. 
 Such seasons are indeed eternal, * like circles widening 
 round upon a clear blue river,' their effects know no 
 termination. Should not such a thought make us diligent 
 to lay up treasure * where neither moth nor rust doth 
 corrupt.' 
 
 » >» 
 
 But amid all these varied interests and labours 
 a weight of sorrow was resting on his heart. His 
 only remaining sister, Mrs. Maxwell, had fallen into 
 very delicate health shortly after her marriage, and 
 during the months that had followed, her own suf- 
 ferings and the anxiety of those who loved her 
 were continually on the increase. The effects of 
 illness telling on the nervous system took the form 
 of intense mental depression, and she, who had 
 been the messenger of peace and sunshine to others, 
 lost all joy in life and all hope of salvation. 
 
 fl 
 

 
 VISIT TO EDINBURGH. 
 
 [chap. IV. 
 
 It would be impossible to give a faithful record 
 of her brothers life without alluding to this, the 
 abiding grief of so many years, the unceasing sub- 
 ject of so many prayers. His affectionate anxiety 
 for her, and deep sympathy with her beloved 
 husband, ever seemed to weave a thread of sadness 
 into the happiest moments of his life. Though light 
 occasionally broke in, the gleams were transient; 
 and none but those who knew the sorrow could 
 realise the joyful thanksgiving of many hearts when 
 the cloud was eventually lifted, and the bright spirit 
 completely emancipated before the call came, "to 
 enter into the joy of her Lord." 
 
 It was in the spring of 1840, on his return from 
 the visit to Connemara and Arran already described, 
 that Mr. Pennefather was unexpectedly called upon 
 to accompany his mother to England to meet her 
 invalid daughter. The friends, whose faithful love 
 always abounded in acts of kindness to himself and 
 his family, had received her into their house, and 
 from thence the whole party went to Scotland for 
 further medical advice. This will account for the 
 date of the following letter — 
 
 ** Edinburgh, 
 
 ^^yune iithj 1840. 
 
 " Here we are, in this city which I dreamt of in child- 
 hood, and in riper years panted to behold ! . , . . But, 
 oh ! what changes have passed over us, and with what a 
 sad heart have I entered it now ! 
 
 ** My darling mother is wonderfully well after the long 
 journey. I took an inside place in the coach, that she 
 
 1840] 
 
 JOURNEY TO EDINBURGH, 
 
 97 
 
 might sleep on my shoulder, which she did. We had a 
 splendid night, and though we could not see much, the 
 valley of the Esk was most beautiful. As we wound up 
 the high ground above Kendal, how smilingly did the 
 valley lie beneath us, a valley now so dear to my heart ! 
 I looked at Kentmere, at the Ambleside mountains, Whit- 
 barrow, Morecambe Bay, and the beautiful vale of the 
 Kent, and felt as though Westmoreland were the place 
 of my birth. We were delighted with Penrith. The 
 mountains around the head of Ullswater were blue as 
 the heavens to which they towered, and Helvellyn and 
 Saddleback brought crowds of recollections to my mind. 
 At Carlisle we found a letter to say that the dear tra- 
 vellers had pressed on; and when we arrived here I found 
 that D. had borne the journey better than I expected. 
 After a little rest and breakfast, I went out to see the 
 city in the early morning. It was about five o'clock when 
 I reached the summit of Arthur's Seat. The view was 
 splendid. The city had not yet awakened from its still- 
 ness. In solitary grandeur, like a presiding spirit, the 
 old and gallant Castle towered on high, and Holyrood 
 Palace, lying wrapped in the mantle of the past, slum- 
 bered at my feet. I think Edinburgh very grand, but 
 the Hill, which is to imitate the Areopagus and the 
 ancient structures of Greece, seems to me a melancholy 
 specimen of human folly, and tends considerably to mar 
 the effect which Edinburgh undoubtedly produces. I 
 read and prayed at the top of Salisbury Crag: all was 
 still, only a few white sails flitted over the Firth, and I was 
 'delightfully alone.' 
 
 ' »> 
 
 And again, in a later letter — 
 
 " Yesterday evening I was again on the Calton Hill ; 
 most of the city towards the east was wrapped in gloom. 
 The colossal rock, with the old Castle surmounting it, 
 looked as though presiding in silence over the city, and 
 
 G 
 
 W 
 
98 
 
 RETURN TO DUBLIN, 
 
 [chap. IV. 
 
 1840.] MEMORIAL LINES FROM ROUNDSTONE. 
 
 99 
 
 'W 
 
 twilight shed its sombre influence over the whole scene ; 
 when the sun, as though just taking a farewell glance at us, 
 looked forth from a wreath of dark clouds. In a moment 
 a kind of golden light shot across the Firth, the old but- 
 tresses of the Castle caught the glow, and the gloomy 
 vapour, which hovered over the city, was changed into a 
 mantle of glory." 
 
 After a week spent in Edinburgh, he returned 
 alone to Dublin for college lectures, leaving his 
 sister somewhat improved. 
 
 " 5 Merrion Square, Dublin, 
 
 " jfuTU iZtkj 1840. 
 
 " Here I am, thank God, after a very severe passage of 
 thirty-three hours. I was very ill and suffered greatly, 
 but I feel wonderfully well this morning. I have, of 
 course, missed my lecture of yesterday, but I trust I 
 shall not lose my term, — indeed, I am almost sure I shall 
 not. The country from Edinburgh to Glasgow is unin- 
 teresting. We remained at Greenock nearly an hour, but 
 of course I could not judge of the beauty of the Clyde, 
 as it blew hard, and at times rained in torrents. In 
 13ubHn Bay, though still blowing fresh, the sun shone 
 forth, and the Wicklow mountains looked beautiful." 
 
 This power of enjoying external beauty, even 
 under the most unlikely circumstances, went with 
 him to the end of his days. 
 
 " September 2ndy 1839. 
 On the Proposed Building of the Church at Roundstone. 
 (Written by a Member of the little Congregation,) 
 "Amidst the wilds of Erin's Isle, 
 A feeble flock were left to stray ; 
 No pastor cheered them with his smile, 
 Within no temple's sacred aisle 
 Could these poor wanderers pray ! 
 
 ** There, mountains form a barrier rude 
 
 O'er which few care to roam; 
 And seldom travellers dare intrude 
 Where wretchedness and famine brood, 
 
 Midst rocks and billows' foam. 
 
 "At length a pitying stranger came, 
 Inspired with holy love. 
 Blest be that gentle Christian's name ! 
 Blest He who gave the sacred flame — 
 Our heavenly Friend above ! 
 
 **No longer feeble, faint, and i^yr^ 
 Without^a home or guide ; 
 God's courts shall soon our strength renew, 
 A kind and faithful pastor too 
 His mercy shall provide. 
 
 " But he, through whom these gifts are sent, 
 Oh ! may his path be bright ; 
 In Jesu's name still eloquent, 
 Willing to spend and still be spent, 
 Be his * a shining light ! ' 
 
 " Memorials * of his visit here 
 
 Our grateful hearts shall prize ; 
 And when our temple's walls appear, 
 Within its courts, deep and sincere, 
 
 Shall prayer for him arise ! " 
 
 
 • Books distributed by Mr. Pennefather on his first visit to Roundstone. 
 
 Wl 
 
 m 
 
 t 
 
 5 
 
% 
 
 / 
 
 5* 1 1 i 
 
 
 ' i 
 
 ( 100 ) 
 
 CHAPTER V 
 
 1840-1841. 
 
 Takes his degree— Divinity course— Proposed curacy at Ballymacush 
 —Letters— Increased delicacy of health— Journey to Cromore— 
 Family trials— Reopening of Bethesda Chapel, Dublin— Spiritual 
 conflicts— Leaves Knockeevan — Various letters — Tour for the 
 Irish Islands — Death of a cousin— Ordination at Durham— First 
 sermon at Levens— Preaches at Bethesda— Enters on his curacy 
 — Letters. 
 
 TN 1840 Mr. Pennefather took his Bachelors 
 •*• Degree,* and entered on the last year of his 
 divinity course. He says, in writing to a friend — 
 
 "I have much to study this last year— Church History, 
 Church Government, Biblical History, Biblical Interpreta- 
 tion and manuscripts, Internal Evidence, &c. I know you 
 will pray for me." 
 
 In the course of the summer a proposal was 
 very unexpectedly made to him respecting a future 
 sphere of ministerial labour. Arley Cottage, where 
 he had often visited his brother-in-law, on the banks 
 of Loch Sheelan, in the County of Cavan, was 
 situated in the parish of Ballymacugh, and the rector 
 of that parish suggested to Mr. Maxwell that Mr. 
 
 • He sometimes regretted that in his busy life he had never "found time" 
 to take his Master's Degree. 
 
 1840.] 
 
 PROSPECT OF A CURACY, 
 
 lOI 
 
 Pennefather, when ordained, should act as his 
 curate, though without stipend (which he was 
 unable to provide), and reside at Arley Cottage. 
 
 Writing from the Cottage he thus speaks of the 
 proposal — 
 
 "Such a plan never once crossed my mind, I never 
 sought or desired it. I see some advantages, and I also 
 see that, as I am to receive no stipend, no other person 
 is likely to accept the curacy, and the population of 900 
 Protestants, schools, &c., would remain neglected. There 
 are, however, objections which I clearly sec : — 
 
 1st. That as I shall be obliged to live in this house, 
 there being no other (or if there were, I could not live in 
 it as I am to receive no pay), I shall not be at the same 
 liberty to pursue my course of mental discipline, and 
 my daily routine of parish duties, as if I were totally 
 alone. 
 
 2nd. That the comforts here may be adverse to my 
 growth in grace. If ever I formed for a moment any 
 dream of ministerial labour, it was in such a place as 
 Arran, a complete missionary field. It has, however, been 
 the prevailing feeling of my mind that while my prospect 
 of working as a minister was distant, I should be careful 
 neither as to the place where I should be located, nor the 
 duties which might devolve upon me. Now, however, 
 since my lot has been in some measure defined, I seem to 
 see something of the vastness of the work. Oh, what is it 
 to watch for souls as one that must give account ! To warn 
 the unruly, comfort the feeble-minded, support the weak, 
 give to every man spiritually as he needeth I I am some- 
 times greatly oppressed with the sense of responsibility, 
 and pray that if the present plan be not for the glory of 
 God, the good of souls, and my own advancement in 
 grace, something may occur to prevent it. I have said 
 
 3 '• 
 
 i 
 
 1*1 
 

 n 
 
 III 
 
 loa 
 
 fl 
 
 LETTER FROM ARLEY COTTAGE, [chap. v. 
 
 1840.] 
 
 UNION FOR PR A YER. 
 
 loj 
 
 
 P - 
 II ^ 
 
 P- ' 
 
 
 « 
 
 « 
 
 to the Lord, * Here am I, send me/ and I have always 
 felt that He would open a way for me, I did not much 
 care where" 
 
 To his English friends, who congratulated him 
 on this prospect, he writes — 
 
 Arley Cottage, 
 
 " A iigust 2 1 j/, 1 840. 
 
 I smiled, in reading your letter, when I came to the 
 part which spoke of my residence here. You think that 
 my future parishioners are refined and cultivated people ! 
 There are but two or three families in the parish in the 
 rank of gentlemen, almost all the rest are poor and indi- 
 gent. Were you to see the misery and filth and pigs 
 which I have to visit, you would indeed be surprised. 
 
 "When visiting Maria Rigg, I have been amused at 
 your apologies about the room not being * tidied up ; ' here 
 I have gone to visit a poor woman, and found pigs feed- 
 ing on the floor ! — I don't say this to make you pity me, 
 but only to show you that in point of dirt and wildness 
 of people, one part of Ireland is to an English eye pretty 
 much the same as another. There are exceptions to the 
 ordinary state of things, but an Irish clergyman will always 
 meet among some of his parishioners dirt and wretched- 
 ness, such as Englishmen never witness. 
 
 " The church here is nearly deserted ; the children, 
 though intelligent, are very ignorant, and the people for 
 the most part asleep. . . . Have you ever seen a very 
 nice tract, called * General Union for private prayer.' * 
 It is simply giving eight heads for prayer, to be made 
 use of by individuals, separately, in all parts of the world, 
 on every Saturday between seven and eight o'clock in the 
 morning, if convenient. It is by Mr. Dallas, an English 
 clergyman, a most delightful person. I have used it for 
 some time with pleasure and profit ; I will send you one, 
 
 * This was one of the first associations for united prayer, now so common. 
 
 and ask you to join. The subjects for prayer are a^ 
 follows : — 
 
 ** 1st. For an abundant gift of the Holy Spirit and of His 
 gracious influences. 
 
 " 2nd. For the purity and unity of the Church of Christ. 
 
 " 3rd. For the Queen and all in authority under her, and 
 for a blessing on our country. 
 
 "4th. That God would raise up in great numbers fit 
 persons to serve in the sacred ministry. 
 
 " 5th. That a blessing may accompany the ministration^ 
 of the Word of God, in order that it may have free course 
 and be glorified. 
 
 "6th. For the propagation of the gospel among the- 
 heathen. 
 
 " 7th. For the fulfilment of God's promises to His 
 ancient people. 
 
 " 8th. For a special blessing upon all the members of 
 the Union. 
 
 " I feel it oftentimes peculiarly delightful to think that 
 there is a glorious band of worshippers pleading before 
 the Lord, week after week, for these heavenly blessings, 
 and I cannot but feel it as one of those many preparations 
 which seem to mark the approach of His advent. 
 
 ** I hear Mr. Dallas's parish is most beautiful — he is one 
 who looks forward with great animation to Christ's 
 appearing. The Lord has wonderfully answered his 
 prayers for his people. 
 
 " More and more I feel prayer to be our only resource. 
 Prospects are so dark, sin so abounding, the love of many 
 >vaxing cold ; but I know He is Almighty. The Eternal 
 Spirit is interceding with groanings which cannot be 
 uttered. The eternal world opens brightly to our view, 
 and, no longer shackled with the trammels of time and 
 sense, we breathe the air of eternity, and rejoice in the 
 resources of the great * I Am.' Pray for me, that I may 
 labour, not as in the sight of man but God, that I may 
 
 .1 
 
 if 
 
ro4 
 
 DELICACY OF HEALTH, 
 
 [chap. v. 
 
 1840.] 
 
 LETTER FROM DUBLm, 
 
 105 
 
 III 
 
 ft! 
 
 H 
 
 Is ! 
 
 e'-'s -t 
 
 li 
 
 '•ik 
 
 be supported under ministerial discouragements and dis- 
 appointments, and be kept humble under encouraging 
 evidence of success. I feel sometimes well-nigh over- 
 whelmed with the prospect which opens before me ; and 
 again I feel that help is laid upon One who is mighty, 
 and therefore I should not be cast down. 
 
 " I have a great deal to do at present, and am trying 
 to learn Irish, which I hope to prosecute during the 
 summer, as I don't intend to go in for Dr. O'Brien's 
 Divinity Premium in November. W. P." 
 
 Before the close of the summer returning symp- 
 toms of illness caused anxiety to his friends, and 
 he was persuaded to consult an eminent physician, 
 who recommended a sojourn on the Continent, 
 which, however, he felt to be impracticable. The 
 following letter refers to this proposal : — ^' 
 
 "Merrion Square, 
 
 ^''August ijih (probably), 184a 
 
 " I must say that your most thoughtful and kind pro- 
 posal about a tour was very like you. I think it not 
 tinlikely I may go next year for a short time, but I do not 
 look forward. The Pyrenees or the Alps would answer 
 the purpose ; and oh I what joy to me, if I were to go, to 
 have you both for my travelling companions ! Should my 
 health be restored previous to that time, I would relinquish 
 the idea,* or, at any rate, many things might occur to pre- 
 vent it. 
 
 " Dr. S. advised me to travel with friends ; he did not 
 think me able to travel abroad alone, and he said that in 
 Ir.y present state of health I should be certainly quite un- 
 ft for clerical duty, even if I were ready to be ordained. 
 
 " This is just the way things stand. I am, thank God, 
 
 * His health improved, and he was ordaiaed without further delay. 
 
 better than I was some time ago, my cough is less trouble- 
 some, and the weakness and pain in my back not so 
 'distressing; often, indeed, I say to myself how much better 
 
 am I than I deserve to be I Mr. is still in London, his 
 
 movements are always very uncertain. I long to see him, 
 he is very dear to my heart. I like him much the best of 
 any of his little community that I have met, he bas so 
 much of that spirit which should really fill the heart of a 
 Christian * brother.' Oh I for more of it, that we may 
 open wide the arms of love, and embrace, as our beloved 
 Lord was wont to do, all who are willing to come within 
 them to be pressed to our bosom. 
 
 "Are we not one.^ We speak the same language, we 
 bear the same image, we have the same 'name,' are clothed 
 in the same garments, adopted by the same Parent, ani- 
 mated by the same Spirit, united to the same Father's 
 throne, because united to the same Redeemer ; shall we 
 then refuse to own one another because we are not in the 
 same regimental uniform, though we are soldiers of the 
 same Captain, engaged in the same warfare, and shall 
 partake of the same victory ? 
 
 " Oh no ! let not Satan be able to say that among his 
 troops he finds unity, while the soldiers of the Cross are 
 hewing each other down I Yet I quite agree with you, 
 that we should never have fellowship with the unfruitful 
 works of darkness under pretext of being * all things to all 
 men.* 
 
 " I heard to-day from Mr. G. that he was going to 
 Levens, and I shall trouble him with this and a copy of 
 my verses,* which I should have sent sooner, but really 
 they are paltry things, and I know you will be disap- 
 pointed, if you will only have the boldness to say so ! 
 There are more prize poems than one, so I was not the 
 only successful one. I do not believe they are ever 
 printed, except, perhaps, in very particular cases. They 
 
 * A Poem which had just gained the prize. 
 
!• 
 
 io6 
 
 TIMES OF TRIAL, 
 
 [chap. v. 
 
 must be shorty that is a necessary qualification, if not the 
 principal one. There are one or two allusions which I 
 daresay your classical mind can supply. The bearer ot 
 this letter is a very humble, holy Christian, whose acquaint- 
 ance I greatly value. You ask about my ministerial work. 
 I have had but little lately ; at Knockeevan I shall have 
 Sunday evening services at the steward's house as usual. 
 I enjoy it much ; it is all extempore — Lecture and prayer. 
 Bear me in mind before God, I am very weak and need 
 every prop. W. P." 
 
 But this year was not to close without still 
 heavier clouds. Family trials appear to have 
 accumulated during the autumn months, and the 
 sympathies of one who lived but to minister, and to 
 sacrifice himself in the service of others, were drawn 
 upon to a painful extent. Very weak in health, and 
 pressed almost ** above measure," his own unceasing 
 prayer to be " altogether purified " was receiving the 
 Father's answer, though the frail vessel seemed, 
 as he said himself, "ready to perish" under the 
 Refiner's hand. We make a few brief extracts from 
 letters written at this time — 
 
 " How little do we know what is before us ; instead oi 
 being in Dublin to-morrow, as I supposed, I expect to be 
 setting out with D. on a tedious journey to Cromore. We 
 are passing through bitter trial, but, thank God, I feel 
 Him to be * a present help in time of trouble.' Were I not 
 sensible of His Presence, I could not for a moment go on. 
 All is so dark, but by His light I walk through darkness 
 And yet sometimes I feel past feeling, as if nothing would 
 move me. Do you know what that is } I should think 
 not. A cold, frozen, paralyzed state, in which you move 
 through scenes of bitterness like an automaton ! To Him 
 
 1840.] RE-OPENING OF BETHESDA CHURCH, 
 
 107 
 
 who 'turneth the shadow of death into the morning* I 
 commend you." 
 
 And again — 
 
 " I have been bitterly tried in the trials of others ; but 
 perhaps the Lord has more completely taught me my 
 foolishness and nothingness." 
 
 And after various matters of detail, the letter 
 ends with these words — 
 " But enough. We shall be holy ! " 
 
 Late in the autumn we find him for a short time 
 in Dublin ; and an account of the re-opening of 
 Bethesda Church, so dear to many hearts, may be 
 interesting — 
 
 ** Knockeevan, 
 
 ^^ December 2ydf 1840. 
 
 "Last Sunday week dear M. A. D. and I went to 
 Bethesda in the evening. It was the opening of the new 
 chapel ; the former one was burned down upon the awful 
 night of the great storm in January 1839. It is now 
 rebuilt upon a larger and more commodious scale. 
 Bethesda is the * St. John's Chapel, Bedford Row,' * of 
 Dublin — a 'house of mercy,' where the glad tidings of 
 the Gospel were proclaimed with power when much dark- 
 ness lay around. Here the faithful Mr. Mathias, for many 
 years, amid much persecution and contumely, raised the 
 banner of the cross, and sheltered within the fold many a 
 trembling disciple of the lowly Jesus. 
 
 " Mr. John Gregg, of Trinity Church, preached in the 
 morning the opening sermon, and Mr. Krause, the 
 appointed chaplain, in the evening. He was lately 
 curate of Cavan, and a great friend of 'the good Lady 
 Farnham.* 
 
 * The well-known church where Richard Cecil, Daniel Wilson, the Hon. 
 and Rev. B. W. Noel, and others, laboured so successfully. 
 
f 
 
 io8 
 
 LETTER FROM KNOCKEEVAN, [chap. V. 
 
 1841] 
 
 PROSPECT OF ORDINATION, 
 
 T09 
 
 !^ 
 
 \ 
 
 ■f i 
 
 I 
 
 If * 
 
 " He was once an officer, and echoed the shout of victory 
 on the plains of Waterloo ; he became afterwards Private 
 Secretary to the late Lord Farnham, and comparatively 
 late in life entered the ministry of the Church. 
 
 " His sermon was deeply interesting (2 Cor. iv. i), upon 
 the dignity and fulness of the Christian ministry, ordained 
 by God, fragrant with blessings to man, deeply fraught 
 with responsibilities both to pastor and flock. The 
 sermon was /o me peculiarly interesting; I could not help 
 realising what my feelings would be in a similar situa- 
 tion ; and oh ! how fearfully near my entrance into the 
 ministry sometimes seems. I think my sense of its 
 awful responsibility daily increases. I almost shrink at 
 the sanctity of the office, and at the thought of the neces- 
 sary qualification * rightly to fulfil the same.' Yet cannot 
 Jehovah make the weak things of this world to confound 
 the mighty ? Cannot He clothe me in armour suited to 
 the battle } If I am not arrayed in the burnished steel 
 that secures man's admiration, yet, relying on the God of 
 Israel, I can go forth without many (if any) human 
 weapons, and slay the enemy who opposes my way 
 continually. W. P.' 
 
 u 
 
 We close the year 1840 with one more extract 
 from a letter, written from Knockeevan. 
 
 "Knockeevan, 
 
 ^^ December 2<:)th^ iZ^o 
 
 " I ought to have written sooner, but when my mind is 
 battling with a flood of unholiness and * torrents of temp- 
 tation,' I cannot bear to commune with absent friends. 
 Such hours are best spent alone. I wish only to be a 
 reflector of the rays from the Celestial City to your soul. 
 Oh! that the Sun of Righteousness might cause me 
 continually to shine with a borrowed light. The year is 
 fast closing upon me, a year of darkness, yet with some 
 
 gleams of light, a year of mercies, yet of unnumbered 
 
 transgressions. 
 
 " I advance to the threshold of the opening year with 
 trembling footsteps. * O God, uphold my goings in Thy 
 paths that my footsteps slip not 1 ' The way before me is 
 strewed with responsibihties; my weakness, my sinfulness, 
 need no comment. Yet can I look up and say, * O God, my 
 Lord, Thou hast covered my head in the day of battle.* 
 
 ** May this coming year unfold to you and your beloved 
 husband more and more of the treasures of God's Word, of 
 the sweetness of the throne of grace, of the glory of 
 fellowship with the Father and with His Son Jesus Christ ! 
 When I seem to be forgetful, remember my infirmities. 
 God, He knows my foolishness, and my sins are not hid 
 from Him, may He subdue my iniquities and cast my sins 
 into the depths of the sea. W. P." 
 
 The year 1841 opened upon Mr. Pennefather as 
 the one in which he hoped and expected to be set 
 apart for the ministry of the Gospel of Christ. To 
 one so nervously and spiritually sensitive, the 
 consciousness both of privilege and responsibility 
 was intense, and his whole correspondence at this 
 time indicates the struggle through which he was 
 passing. Early in January we find him leaving his 
 country home, as he said, for the last time — 
 
 ** 5 Merrion Square, South, 
 
 " January iiM, 1841. 
 
 ** I was obliged to come to town on business, and a sore 
 trial it was to leave my darling mother ; she could not but 
 remember that I was parting from Knockeevan as my 
 home for ever, and it wrung her soul. It was indeed 
 bitter to see her thus cast down, but thanks be to God, 
 He helped us ; and when we were brought low. He 
 
no 
 
 LETTERS FROM DUBLIN, 
 
 [chap. v. 
 
 1841.] 
 
 LETTERS FROM DUBLIN. 
 
 Ill 
 
 1- 
 
 shone upon our souls, and she was comforted by 
 mutual prayer. I often thought of dear Henry Martyn, 
 who left all for Christ. What a bitter pang it was to 
 him and what is it to him now } We have been reading 
 Chalmers (3rd Volume) on the Romans. Like all his 
 other writings, it is grand panoramic painting, with most 
 minute delineation. One is almost exhausted with 
 endeavouring to see with his eyes and understand with 
 his mind. 
 
 ** I went to Fethard Church last Sunday-week by 
 myself. It was Sacrament Sunday, my last. In the 
 evening I had my last sermon in the steward's house, I 
 had the servants and my dear mother. It was a very 
 solemn time. How many opportunities had I neglected ! 
 My subject was chiefly in connection with the New Year. 
 I did not like to review my little ministry, lest my dear 
 mother should have found it too painful. I spoke of 
 eternity approaching, and those subjects which ordinarily 
 suggest themselves at such seasons. 
 
 " I could not but feel, as each day brought me nearer to 
 my journey, the importance of that ministerial work 
 which will, in all probability, devolve upon me ere this 
 year closes. I had to put up all my possessions, and 
 this too was very painful to my mother. I had a most 
 intensely cold journey, and have been laid up in conse- 
 quence, but, thank God, am quite convalescent to-day. 
 M. A. D., who is ever a friend in need, has been most kind 
 during my little illness. She has been attending Mr. 
 Krause's ministry with the greatest delight. I go on 
 Thursday to Newtownbarry. D. is, I think, better. I am 
 delighted that Mr. Dallas* Union for Prayer is spread- 
 ing. Prayer is the golden pipe through which the oil of 
 the Spirit flows into the Church." 
 
 In another letter soon after he says — 
 ** I must tell you of my journey to Woodfield. As we 
 
 approached Ferns on Friday, we met and passed many 
 gentlemen on horseback. There was a look of anxiety 
 and distress on every countenance. Alas ! they were 
 about to attend the inquest on the body of Mr. B., 
 who on the previous afternoon, close to his own house 
 and within a short distance of the spot where his 
 labourers were working, was murdered by * some person 
 or persons unknown.' He was on horseback, and the 
 report was so loud that many of the men thought it was 
 a blast. The intended murder was well known by the 
 inhabitants of the place, some of whom, on seeing Mr. 
 B. enter the field where it was to take place, moved 
 away to a distance, that they might prove they were not 
 present. He was a Protestant, but a Liberal in politics ; 
 he employed a great number of workmen, about 180 
 daily. 
 
 ** The supposed cause is that he proposed to eject some 
 tenants for non-payment of rent; but it is merely the 
 working of that awful fire kindled by the Jesuits in this 
 unhappy country. We live in fearful times ! We met S. 
 and R. just at the town of Ferns looking painfully 
 shocked and anxious. But I need say no more on so 
 terrible a subject. The everlasting arms are around us.* 
 
 n 
 
 A little later he writes from Dublin — 
 
 " It is singular that I had been thinking a great deal 
 lately upon the Christian conflict, and also on the subject 
 of fasting, so that your sketch of Mr. M*Neile's able sermon 
 quite fitted in with my meditations. I had even written 
 last week a sermon on that wonderful text, * We wrestle 
 not against flesh and blood, but against principalities 
 and powers,' &c. The subject is one which has long 
 occupied my mind, but I had never written upon it until 
 now. I perfectly agree with Mr. M'Neile's view of fast- 
 ing. It is a means of grace which God blesses ; it should 
 be done in secret ; it should be accompanied with much 
 
m 
 
 I-! 
 
 |! 
 
 tl 
 
 
 I 
 
 l« 
 
 t. 1 
 
 } : 
 
 I'M 
 
 112 
 
 LETTERS FROM DUBLIN, 
 
 [chap. v. 
 
 prayer ; it should be pressed only upon those who are 
 living members of Christ's Body. ... It is often singu- 
 larly blessed as a means *to the pulling down of strong- 
 holds/ to the subduing of lusts, to the ' mortifying of our 
 members which are upon the earth.' And I cannot but 
 think that the power of the evil one is just now more 
 than ever manifest. Oh ! how he afflicts my soul ! May 
 God deliver me from the grasp of Satan, and bring me 
 into the glorious liberty of His children. 
 
 " But, as I have often said, I do not wish to speak of 
 the conflicts which I have with the great enemy of my 
 soul, for after all they would perhaps be more severe if 
 I were more faithful. * I am poor, and miserable, and 
 blind, and naked;' but rather let me sound forth His 
 praises, who can make *the worm Jacob to thresh the 
 mountains/ who can enable the sinner to be more than 
 conqueror, who can present us 'faultless before the 
 presence of His Father with exceeding joy.* 
 
 "I have been greatly interested in attending the two 
 first lectures of our Irish professor. At last our college 
 has fulfilled one of the chief purposes for which Her 
 Gracious Majesty, Queen Elizabeth, founded it, and 
 for which King James patronised it; the cultivation 
 of the Iris/t language, to enable the people of Ireland 
 to hear in their own tongue the wonderful works of God. 
 Centuries have been looking forward to this event. A 
 gentleman of fortune and great learning bequeathed a 
 property of £(iO0O per annum for the endowment of a 
 Professorship of Irish, and for the collection of Irish 
 manuscripts; but that intention was frustrated; some legal 
 informalities were proved in the will, and the property 
 passed away. The celebrated mathematician Leibnitz 
 left it on record, that he considered an accurate knowledge 
 of the European languages could not be acquired without 
 a knowledge of the Celtic, and that Irish was the purest 
 Celtic extant. Sir R. Bacon added his distinguished name 
 
 1840.] 
 
 LOVE OF MUSIC. 
 
 "3 
 
 to the encouragement of our beautiful language. And 
 Luyd, the eminent Welsh philologist, declared that an 
 accurate knowledge of Welsh could not be acquired with- 
 out understanding the Irish tongue. But the acquirement 
 of Irish is chiefly urged upon divinity students as the great 
 lever, whereby to raise the mind of the Irish people to the 
 things of God. So deeply impressed was Bishop Bedell 
 with the importance of causing all the people of Ireland 
 to hear the gospel in their own tongue, that he commenced 
 the study, at the advanced age of fifty-nine, and acquired 
 such an accurate knowledge of it, that he translated the 
 Scriptures into Irish ; and though he lived in the troublous 
 times of the great rebellion, so respected was he even by 
 his bitterest foes that Roman Catholics followed him to 
 his grave, and the rebels, when his body was committed 
 to the dust, fired a salute." 
 
 Again he writes to a friend — 
 
 ** I am delighted to hear you speak so enthusiastically 
 on the subject of Handel ; you praised ' Comfort ye,' even 
 enough for me ! I remember once in particular hearing 
 that sung in the College chapel, and it seemed as though 
 I could almost realise the heaven and earth passing 
 away, and that amidst the wreck of elements, the Arch- 
 angel, standing in the sun, cried aloud to the long-afflicted 
 Church, * Comfort ye, comfort ye my people ; cry unto her 
 that her warfare is accomplished, that her iniquity is 
 pardoned ; ' and then it almost seemed as if I beheld the 
 rude fragments of the universe moulded into the new 
 creation, every valley exalted, and every mountain and 
 hill made low." * 
 
 * His passionate love of music could be little indulged in after days, but it 
 was always ready to be called forth. It was told of him that once when 
 preaching in a church where the music was very faulty, he fixed his eyes on 
 the choir with such a reproachful gaze that the singing ceased at once, to the 
 great consternation of the congregation, 
 
 H 
 
 \ 
 
 \l A 
 
114 
 
 MISSIONS TO THE HE A THEN, [chap. v. 
 
 1 841.] 
 
 IRISH ISLAND SOCIETY, 
 
 "5 
 
 % 
 
 
 m 
 
 During the course of Mr. Pennefather's college 
 life, we meet with frequent allusions to a topic 
 which always held a prominent place in his mind — 
 the subject of missions to the heathen. We find 
 him speaking more than once at a little meeting, 
 "where six of us divinity students meet at eight 
 o'clock in the morning, to consider the most pro- 
 bable means of exciting a missionary spirit among 
 ourselves and our fellow-students." And again, 
 "We have had a deeply interesting time. Two 
 of the six are, I believe, going forth to labour 
 among the heathen." In another place he speaks 
 of an address published by order of the committee 
 of the Church Missionary Society, drawn up by 
 himself and two other students. Again he says, 
 " Two of our little company spoke powerfully of 
 our Lord's coming as the earnest desire of the 
 Church, and ere that blessed season arrive, the 
 Gospel must be preached as a witness in all 
 
 nations." 
 
 He had evidendy considered very seriously, as 
 has perhaps been the case at some time or other 
 with most ardent Christians, whether he was called 
 to offer himself for the foreign field ; and we find 
 him saying, in answer to a friend, " You need not 
 at present fear my going out as a missionary ; what 
 may occur in the future I cannot say, but now I feel 
 Ireland is the land where my lot is cast." 
 
 Having come to the decision that Ireland was to 
 be his present sphere of labour, we find him in the 
 
 short vacation before his ordination offering himself 
 to the Irish Island Society, to make a tour of inspec- 
 tion among their missions on the western coast. 
 Writing after this journey, he says — 
 
 " It was on Monday evening I returned from my short 
 tour of inspection of the Island Society's schools, off the 
 coast. I have been in wild and remote regions, which, 
 with respect to their inhabitants, in language, appearance, 
 costume, religion, &c., are as different from the midland 
 counties of Ireland as a foreign country. How little do 
 even Irish people know of many districts, both in the 
 north, west, and south, shut out by chains of mountains 
 from intercourse and contact with the rest of the world. 
 I often thought how surprised you would have been had 
 you seen me, sometimes wandering alone through bleak, 
 desolate defiles, sometimes along the broken shores of the 
 Atlantic, and sometimes seated in the huts of the poor, 
 wild inhabitants. 
 
 " The waves were rolling in upon the shore splendidly, 
 but I felt sad, thinking of the President* Alas ! I fear 
 she has perished amid the waters, never to be heard of 
 till * the sea shall give up her dead.* 
 
 " I trust the tour was of use to myself, for how ignorant 
 I am of the wants of my poor country! I am glad, too, to 
 be employed in active work just at this time. It was 
 curious that you should have been admiring the cliffs of 
 Cheddar just when I was standing on the promontory of 
 Horn Head, and glancing down at the awful abyss below. 
 I have often stood on the cliffs of the Giant's Causeway, 
 and wondered at the splendour of the scene, but the cliffs 
 at the Horn are much more wonderful. As I lay on the 
 top, gazing upon the waters sweeping in with one unbroken 
 tide from the continent of America, a splendid eagle, shoot- 
 ing from beneath, soared over my head, and waving its 
 * Written just at the time when that noble vessel was missing. 
 
f 
 
 h . 
 
 ii6 
 
 PLANS FOR ORDTNA TION. 
 
 [chap. v. 
 
 mJghty pinions in the air, at length ah'ghted in one of the 
 ravines at my side, so near that I watched it pluming its 
 feathers and preparing to mount again. But my letter 
 must close; I had not intended to describe Horn Head." 
 
 It was Mr. Pennefather's earnest desire to be 
 ordained in England. He had been confirmed by 
 the Bishop of Chester (Dr. Sumner, afterwards 
 Archbishop of Canterbury), and he determined 
 that, if possible, the same devoted servant of God 
 should admit him to the work of the ministry. His 
 divinity course would be closed at the end of June, 
 and an ordination to be held by the Bishop of 
 Chester at Durham was announced for the month 
 of July. 
 
 He made up his mind to take advantaee of it, 
 and for that purpose applied for letters dimissory 
 from the Bishop of Kilmore, in whose diocese the 
 parish of Ballymacugh was situated. Various diffi- 
 culties arose, but were eventually surmounted. The 
 following letter was written at the time : — 
 
 ^^May2tist^ 1841. 
 *' My mind has been in a very anxious state for some 
 time, as my purposed ordination at Durham, and my 
 settlement at Arley Cottage, were nearly all overturned. 
 It was only this that kept me silent, as I could scarcely 
 write without mentioning the difficulties and anxieties 
 which beset my path. However, thank God, they are all 
 smooth now. The Bishop justly objected to ordain me 
 to a curacy where I should not be paid. But he is now 
 satisfied, and will not, I think, make any more difficulties. 
 Indeed, nothing could be kinder than he was, and now, if 
 I pass my college divinity examinations (June 25 and 26), 
 
 1841.] 
 
 DEATH OF A COUSIN. 
 
 117 
 
 there will be nothing further in my way, except a slighter 
 ordination-examination at Kilmore. (Then after detail- 
 ing plans, &c.) And now, in the thought of spending some 
 little time beneath your roof, my earnest desire and prayer 
 is, that I may come in the ' fulness of the blessing of the 
 Gospel of Christ* 
 
 " Pray, beloved friends, that our intercourse may be Jtofy, 
 our conversation in heaven, and that our mutual enjoy- 
 ment of one another's society may be for the Lord's glory, 
 and for the advancement of His cause in the world. 
 Believers in Christ are often selfish ; they think they are 
 walking holily and profitably with one another, when they 
 are only pleasing themselves. Do they not often wish to 
 meet more for the pleasure to be enjoyed than for the 
 impulses that may be given to God's cause in the world ? 
 Is Christ's glory or their own gratification uppermost? 
 Remember that He ' pleased not Himself! "* 
 
 The plan here alluded to was set aside by 
 another call to the house of mourning. Mr. Penne- 
 father passed his examinations, and took his divinity 
 testimonium at the close of June, proposing then 
 to spend a little time with his old tutor at Levens 
 and his friends at Sizergh, but such was not his 
 Father's will. A few months before, he had 
 attended the dying bed of one young cousin, and 
 now he was detained in Dublin by the fatal illness 
 of another. 
 
 After speaking of the sad scene of sorrow (his 
 cousin was stricken down by malignant fever, and 
 died in his arms), he says—" How much have I 
 had to teach me not to form plans.'* 
 
 He left Dublin only in time to go direct to 
 
 'iiiliiiMiiiiviiiii'iiii 
 
Ii8 
 
 ORDINA TION A T DURHAM. 
 
 [chap. v. 
 
 I84I.] 
 
 ORDINATION AT DURHAM, 
 
 119 
 
 M 
 
 Durham, from whence he wrote to the sister of 
 him who had just been taken to glory — 
 
 " My darling M , 
 
 " I cannot leave Durham without letting you 
 know that amidst thoughts and feelings of no common 
 kind, you and your dear afflicted charge* were not for- 
 gotten by me. Yesterday, when at the ordination at 
 eight o'clock in the morning, I received from the good 
 Bishop the * authority to execute the office of a deacon/ 
 the prayers of many, many kind friends were ascending 
 for me, and He that answereth prayer heard them. The 
 peace of God reigned in my heart, and oh ! how thankful 
 should I be that God vouchsafed in that hour to 'restore 
 unto me the joy of His salvation, and to uphold me 
 with His free Spirit.* . Nothing can exceed the kindness, 
 the marked kindness, of the dear Bishop to me. He 
 has all that I can return to him, my fervent prayers. The 
 ordination services were over a little after nine o'clock. 
 We then had breakfast in the University (fifty-two of us). 
 The University is a most interesting building, and har- 
 monises with the magnificent cathedral, which is quite 
 contiguous. The students were absent, as this is vacation 
 time, and we took their place. Meals were served daily 
 in the hall for the candidates for Orders, and some of 
 them had rooms there during the examination. At ten 
 o'clock we went to morning service ; the singing is very 
 good, the voices exquisite, but there is a want of tenors. 
 I hear their best tenor is absent, they have a beautiful 
 counter-tenor; we had the last chorus in the Messiah for 
 anthem. 
 
 " The Bishop asked me to dinner : he is a most pleasing 
 man, gentle yet dignified. At four o'clock we had after- 
 noon service, and then coffee with the Bishop ; then 
 evening service in the beautiful chapel in the cathedral, 
 
 * The widow of his departed cousin, herself laid down in fever. 
 
 which the good Bishop has fitted up for evening service, 
 without chanting. The choir sang the evening hymn 
 and a Psalm ; it was beautiful ; and the Bishop preached 
 on I Thess. iii. 6-Z, 
 
 "The only drawback I have had is that the organ is 
 being tuned, and there is no afternoon service in the 
 cathedral except on Sunday. I do love cathedral worship, 
 but I could muse in solitude around the walls, and feel 
 that my God ' dwelleth not in temples made with hands.' 
 May my heart be His dwelling-place, my body His 
 
 temple ! 
 
 "The situation of the cathedral cannot be surpassed. 
 It stands over a winding and thickly-wooded river, from 
 the opposite side of which the massive yet beautiful towers 
 of the cathedral rise above majestic trees, ash, oak, and 
 elm. The cathedral is of Norman architecture, the roof 
 supported by pillars of surprising magnitude, but it is so 
 lofty that they do not appear heavy. It is more grand 
 than beautiful, more colossal than elegant. I prefer 
 Gothic architecture, but none grow more upon you than 
 Norman and Saxon. I could live within its walls, and 
 now it is wound round my heart with most peculiar 
 sympathies. 
 
 " Do I make you smile at my enthusiasm > I believe 
 I have never passed through a season of deeper feeling. 
 I can scarcely believe I am ordained, so long have I been 
 looking forward to it, yet so suddenly has it come. I 
 feel, however, that God has blessed me, and I am thankful. 
 May He keep me and preserve me unto His heavenly 
 kingdom. But, darling, don't think that while surrounded 
 by such new scenes and circumstances, I am dead to the 
 trials which you are passing through. Ah! no, but 
 why should I tell you my feelings > Jesus feels for you, 
 pleads for you, loves you ; let us think of Ilim, talk of 
 Him, and our poor selves will not occupy much of our 
 thoughts. May the God of all comfort bless and keep you. 
 
120 
 
 FIRST SERMON AT LE VENS. [chap. y. 
 
 1841.] 
 
 VARIOUS SERMONS. 
 
 121 
 
 V- .' 
 
 " The memory of dear John (her brother) is precious 
 to me. I had no idea I loved him so much, but he had 
 got m a surprising manner greatly attached to me, and 
 I should have been worse than I am had not my heart 
 been drawn out to him. He took a wonderful interest 
 in my exammations, &c. I am thankful we had that little 
 time of sympathy together, we shall meet with joy as 
 brothers beloved in the Lord. Sometimes we are -iven 
 to feel that blessed Home unspeakably near; the river 
 which separates us from the celestial Canaan seems but 
 a narrow line, and the hills and valleys of Paradise stand 
 forth m all the distinctness of reality. Then we seem to 
 see the throne of God and the Lamb, surrounded by the 
 great multitudes whom no man can number, and girt about 
 with the glorious rainbow, in sight like unto an emerald." 
 
 Mr. Pennefather preached his first sermon at 
 Levens, where loving hearers listened with special 
 interest ; and after spending a few days with West- 
 moreland friends, joined his mother at Newtown- 
 barry, where we find him preaching again. 
 
 " Merrion Square, 
 „ "August 26lh, 1841. 
 
 My plans have been unexpectedly changed. Dear 
 Lady Carnck is gone, ^one to a soil congenial to her active 
 and benevolent and ^^«//0,/ spirit ; all are young there — 
 They reckon not by months and years where she is gone 
 to dwell. I httle thought that her animated voice would 
 never sound in my ears again. 
 
 "Never did I meet so unselfish an old person. I was 
 afraid my beloved aunt was going too, to join the bright 
 choir above, but. thank God, she is now wonderfully 
 recovered, and is only suffering from the weakness con- 
 sequent upon so severe an attack of illness. There are 
 few I should have regretted more; and yet there are few 
 
 to whom heaven would be a more blessed change ; her 
 wonderful intellect, and matured education, and deeply 
 spiritual mind, make her a well-spring of enjoyment to 
 those around her. . . . 
 
 " I have at length left my darling mother, and my heart 
 never clung to her as now. God was gracious indeed to 
 leave me another Wednesday and Sunday with her. My 
 text on Sunday was * preaching the Lord Jesus' (Acts xi., 
 latter part of verse 20). Preaching the Lord Jesus — 
 
 " 1st. In His eternal Godhead. 
 
 " 2nd. Preaching Him as a Saviour (which included His 
 life, death, resurrection, and ascension). 
 
 " 3rd. Preaching Him as an Example. 
 
 "4th. Preaching Him in His future glory as King and 
 as Judge. 
 
 ** I am to preach next Sunday at Bethesda, as Mr. Krause 
 goes to England for a fortnight. I am rather nervous at 
 the thought of preaching there, and begged he would not 
 ask me, if he could get any one else to supply his place, 
 but it is fixed, and I cannot now draw back. I shall leave 
 this next Tuesday (31st), and commence my ministry at 
 Arley Cottage on the 1st Sunday in September, which, 
 being Sacrament Sunday, will be very pleasant. I am 
 tried by feeling I have been a long time absent from my 
 curacy, but it was quite unavoidable, and as it gave my 
 mother great pleasure and enabled me to declare once 
 more at Newtownbarry God's love to sinners, I do feel 
 thankful for it. W. P." 
 
 Bethesda was at that time the rallying point of 
 many of the most enlightened Christians in Dublin 
 belonging to the Church of England, and it was no 
 little ordeal for a young man, just ordained, to stand 
 up in its pulpit ; but it was one of his rules through 
 life simply to go where he was asked (if no legiti- 
 
123 
 
 PREACHING AT BETHESDA, 
 
 [chap. v. 
 
 1841.] 
 
 SETTLED AT BALLY MACUGH, 
 
 123 
 
 mate hindrance stood in the way), and trust God 
 both for the needed strength and the results. Of 
 the day at Bethesda he writes — 
 
 "I must tell you of my sermons at Bethesda. I was, 
 thank God, much less nervous than I expected. We had 
 a large congregation in the morning, many friends were 
 there, Dr. O'Brien, and others kindly interested in me. I 
 was a good deal exhausted, but was graciously supported. 
 The Sacrament of the Lord's Supper was administered. 
 After the close of the whole service, while I was lying back 
 in a chair in the vestry in a state of great fatigue, a tall 
 dignitary of the Church entered, and suddenly taking my 
 hand, complimented me extravagantly on my sermon, then 
 vanished, before I was collected enough to utter a syllable, 
 I had never seen him before, but found it was Archdeacon 
 K. Some thought the sermon heavy and stupid, but any 
 arrow from the Gospel quiver can, by the Spirit's influence, 
 prove sharper than a two-edged sword, while without that 
 power, the most polished shaft falls blunted and harmless 
 at the feet of those at whom it is aimed. 
 
 "I preached again in the evening, for the clergyman 
 who was to have done so had a (nervous ! ) cold. I took 
 * the witnesses ' for my subject. I have since heard that 
 an elderly clergyman, present both morning and evening, 
 was much interested, and spoke of the sermons, particu- 
 larly the second, very much to his family. He was then in 
 perfect health ; went on the following Wednesday to take 
 a bath,— and was in eternity ere the sun had set. What 
 a solemn lesson ! ** 
 
 After one more Sunday in Dublin, he entered 
 upon his ministry at Ballymacugh, preaching his 
 first sermon on September 6th. In the week fol- 
 lowing he says to a cousin — 
 
 " Here I am, regularly settled and pursuing my routine 
 of work, thank God, wonderfully little flurried, though I 
 have a great deal to do." 
 
 And at another time— 
 
 <* The people receive me readily, but I sometimes fear 
 from interested motives. (Is this the charity which 
 thinketh no evil !) They are grossly ignorant and care- 
 less, many of them sunk in poverty and wretchedness, 
 but' I have found some bright jewels among the multi- 
 tude. I have a few promising young men and women, 
 and two or three heads of families, who really desire to 
 serve the Lord." 
 
 Space will not allow us to follow him through 
 the laborious details of a parochial minister's life. 
 Here and there we find bright gleams of promise ; 
 but the sphere was a difficult one, and diligence, 
 rather than any marked success, seems to character- 
 ise the records of his ministry at this early period. 
 We close the chapter with two extracts belonging 
 
 to the same year. 
 
 The following was written to one very dear to 
 him, and is an example of that faithfulness which 
 was never sacrificed, either in private or public, to 
 his natural tenderness of feeling : — 
 
 ** Dublin, 
 
 ^^ August 26th, 1841.. 
 
 '*And now let me turn to the part of your letters in 
 which, like a good daughter of the Church, you confess your 
 naughtiness. The more I consider the * sin which doth so 
 easily beset us,' the more confirmed I am in my former 
 view of the passage. The sin which you complain of does 
 peculiarly encompass your path, but what is it that gives 
 
124 
 
 LETTER FROM DUBLIN. 
 
 [chap. v. 
 
 to it or any temptation or sin its power over us ? It is 
 unbelief. For instance, you are too dependent on the 
 sympathy of others. Why ? because you walk 7iot as see- 
 ing Him who is invisible. Ah ! beloved friend, how little 
 would things temporal move us if we looked at unseen, 
 even eternal things. Are we too much distressed when 
 those in whom we have confided seem to disappoint us ? 
 We are losing sight of the union between ourselves and 
 Christ, which if seen and felt would carry us on rejoicing 
 through a host of trials. I do pray for you, and I do 
 sometimes feel unhappy that you allow your present repose 
 in God to be marred by things which, when viewed in the 
 light of eternity (and this is faith) are as nothing. I also 
 feel you are too dependent on human friendship and 
 human love. Consider the High Priest * of our profession,' 
 Jesus Christ ; dwell on His perfections, the sweets of His 
 friendship, the exceeding riches of His grace; remember 
 that He is your nearest and dearest friend, that His arm 
 is the one on which you must lean, and which can alone 
 support when the foundations of our earthly pleasures are 
 overthrown. Enoch walked with God, and *he was not, 
 for God took him.' In that short summary of Enoch's 
 pilgrimage here, and of his glorious translation to the 
 eternal world, there is more instruction than many folios 
 contain. Walking with God includes endeared friend- 
 ship, reposing love, progress in religion, elevated objects, 
 holy cheerfulness, in fine, what idea is there of blessed- 
 ness, of peace, of holiness, of calmness which it does not 
 convey to the mind > And this walking of Enoch was 
 walking by faith, the Apostle tells us ; it was so laying 
 aside the sin of unbelief, which doth so easily beset us, 
 that faith was soon swallowed up in sight, *he was not, 
 for God took him.' 
 
 "Thank you for telling me how you felt; I like to 
 know your failings, as well as your graces, that I may 
 plead for you." 
 
 1841] 
 
 LETTER FROM DUBLIN. 
 
 125 
 
 To one harassed and burdened. 
 
 "'His strength is made perfect in weakness.* He is 
 our Guide, our Counsellor; He will put a word in our 
 mouth which our adversary shall not be able to gainsay 
 
 nor resist. 
 
 ** Beloved Friend, is it not a comfort in our daily duties 
 to be assured of these blessed truths .? He will strengthen 
 you, He will uphold you on your way, and enable you to 
 conquer. I pray for you, I feel for you, I know what it is 
 to be harassed by petty concerns. The only relief is to 
 * enter into your chamber,' and lock the door, and pace the 
 room in prayer, if too restless and unsettled to kneel. I. 
 believe few Christians have gone through more mental 
 suffering than I have, or been more weighed down by the 
 sense of iniquity. Blessed be God's Holy Name, He has 
 pardoned abundantly ; but I daily need to be washed, to 
 be purified by the precious blood, to say daily ' God be 
 merciful to me a sinner.' " 
 
is^s^sa^SS- 
 
 ( 126 ) 
 
 CHAPTER VI. 
 1841-1842. 
 
 Interest in the Irish Society— First acquaintance with Miss Monck 
 Mason and Rev. R. Winning— Meeting at Cavan— Illness of his 
 Mother— Journey to England— Ordained Priest at Durham- 
 Return to Ireland— School-examinations, and various letters — 
 Death of Mrs. Pennefather— Visit to Kingscourt— Journey to 
 Paris. 
 
 T T was at this early stage of his ministerial life 
 that Mr. Pennefather became acquainted with 
 two faithful workers in the Master's vineyard, with 
 whom he had much fellowship of spirit, and in 
 whose labours of love he rejoiced to be henceforth 
 associated. 
 
 The Rev. Robert Winning, Rector of Kings- 
 court, County of Cavan, was at this time one of 
 the most able and zealous advocates of the Irish 
 Society, and Miss Alicia Monck Mason had begun 
 her life-long service in the same cause, as Secretary 
 of the Ladies' Auxiliary Society. Those who are 
 acquainted with the records of the Church in 
 Ireland during the last forty years, will remember 
 the season of awakening at Kingscourt in the years 
 1840-41, when so many earnest men came over, not 
 only to the ranks of Protestantism, but to the cause 
 
 T 
 
 11 
 
 . 
 
 1841.] 
 
 IRISH SOCIETY, 
 
 127 
 
 of vital Christianity, ready to encounter persecution 
 and martyrdom, if only they might carry the 
 message of Christ's glorious gospel to their be- 
 nighted fellow-countrymen. While tokens of 
 encouragement appeared in several of the northern 
 counties, a similar work was going on simultane- 
 ously in the south, where the Rev. Charles Gayer 
 and others were reaping a blessed harvest in Dingle 
 and its neighbourhood. Secreted in the poorest 
 cabins, or seated behind walls and hedges in the 
 least frequented places, the Irish readers were sow- 
 ing the incorruptible seed among groups of humble 
 scholars, and poor peasants were risking their little 
 all, not to say their lives, in listening to the glad 
 tidings of salvation. Who that knows their history 
 can doubt that many of those faithful men will be 
 found enrolled in the noble army of martyrs ? 
 
 Mr. Pennefather's first meeting with Mr. Winning 
 was at the house of Lord Gough (probably in 1839), 
 where a large party of friends were invited to 
 dinner, and during the evening many interesting 
 details were given of the work of the Irish Society. 
 Much conversation followed, and Mr. W.'s attention 
 was attracted by the marked interest and eager 
 questioning of one young man, whose name he did 
 not know. 
 
 Time passed on, and nearly two years had 
 elapsed after the evening spent at Lord Gough's, 
 when Mr. Winning received a message from, " the 
 Rev. Wm. Pennefather, curate of Ballymacugh," 
 
 \\ 
 
128 
 
 IRISH SOCIETY. 
 
 [chap. VI. 
 
 reminding him of the young man who had asked 
 him so many questions, and who had then and 
 there resolved that, if ever permitted to enter the 
 ministry, he would give his best services in aid of 
 the Irish Society. He was "that young man, and 
 was now ordained, and ready to redeem his 
 pledge." From that time a close friendship was 
 formed between them, and notices of Kingscourt 
 
 are frequent in Mr. Pennefather's correspondence. 
 The following letter tells of one of the meetings 
 
 held in connection with the Irish Society, in the 
 
 County of Cavan : — 
 
 " Arley Cottage, 
 
 ^^ October -^pth, 1841. 
 
 " Many thanks, dear friend, for your interest in that 
 persecuted man Hogan and his orphan charge. May the 
 earnest pleadings of those orphans at the throne of 
 grace draw down rich blessings on the heads of the 
 friends who so kindly listened to their complaint. 
 
 " Your dear mother ! her heart has often responded to 
 calls from me. May God continually uphold and bless her, 
 and long preserve her to you and her numerous friends. 
 I often°think of her as a most beautiful specimen of a 
 holy woman, such as might have been found in patriarchal 
 days, recounting to her children and children's children 
 the noble acts of the Lord. 
 
 " Tuesday was a bright and beautiful day. I had gone 
 the preceding day to the neighbourhood of Farnham, in 
 order to attend a meeting of the Irish Society in Cavan. It 
 was deeply interesting. There were about sixty teachers 
 present, who were examined by Dr. Carson, rector of 
 Cavan, Mr. Winning, who for so many years has done 
 much for the Irish Society in the neighbourhood of 
 Kingscourt, and other clergymen. Their answering in 
 
 1841.] 
 
 IRISH SOCIETY. 
 
 129 
 
 Scripture, would have done credit to candidates for Holy 
 Orders. It certainly was delightful to hear full statements 
 of truth, powerfully corroborated by Scripture, from the 
 lips of uneducated men, all of whom had been Roman 
 Catholics, brought up in the midst of error and super- 
 stition. 
 
 ** The Society is progressing in the counties of Cavan, 
 Meath, Monaghan, Tyrone, &c. There are, I believe, 1700 
 reading the Irish Scriptures in these counties. It is 
 wonderful to see the keen, eager manner of the men, 
 while drinking in the Word of Life. 
 
 " Mr. Winning made an admirable speech at the end of 
 the meeting. It had the eloquence of facts, though not 
 garnished with the ornament of words ; it was lucid, for- 
 cible, convincing, and animating. 
 
 *' The priests denounce and curse; but the Society pros- 
 pers. A parish priest near Castle Blayney thus addressed 
 his hearers — * This Irish teaching must be put down, or 
 our holy and ancient Catholic religion will be destroyed. 
 Trample those books under your feet, or we shall be say- 
 ing mass to empty walls 1 * A glorious testimony to the 
 simple power of the Irish Bible ; an English one does 
 them no damage, for a Roman Catholic will not touch a 
 book * written by the devil ; but the devil never knew Irish, 
 or spoke the language of Paradise !* 
 
 **The £\o Mr. C. sent me I have added to some 
 money of my own, and applied it to the purchase of cloth- 
 ing, which I am to sell at reduced prices to the poor. I 
 have laid out about £Zo, and hope it may really turn to 
 good account. The people have been scraping together 
 their earnings for some weeks, and I trust many will be 
 relieved before winter: poor creatures, they are in great 
 delight. I could not help contrasting their zeal in pur- 
 chasing, with the deadness of those who will not buy 
 ' without money and without price.' W. P.'* 
 
 But while his heart was yearning to follow out 
 
' / 
 
 130 
 
 LE TTER FROM A RLE V CO TTA GE. [chap. VI. 
 
 these widening interests, the shadow of domestic 
 trial was again falling on his path, and the year 
 1842 was to be one of much anxiety and sorrow. 
 
 In the spring of this year his mother came to 
 spend some time at Arley Cottage, and it was too 
 evident to all around her that her health was 
 rapidly declining. Her son, though conscientiously 
 persevering in his parish work, was himself weak 
 and suffering, and apparently little able for this 
 added burden. 
 
 In a letter from his sister, who was now at the 
 Cottage, we read of him as, " very poorly, and look- 
 ing sadly worn," but preaching a sermon, **full of 
 experience, and holy communion with the Lord." 
 
 A letter of his own, written to his cousin, Miss 
 Delap, will tell something of his feelings — 
 
 " Arley Cottnge, 
 
 ''April liiJi, 1842. 
 
 ** My darling J., 
 
 "I'have neglected you all, and treated you 
 basely. The plants you sent ought to have been acknow- 
 ledged by me, as well as by D., and I ought to have 
 thanked my precious M. for a sweet note she sent me 
 with some Easter texts. 
 
 "But notwithstanding my silence I have had you in 
 my heart. Many things have combined to retard my pen,j 
 and I have been trusting unduly to others to tell you all 
 while, being more than usually weak and languid myself, 
 I have given way to indolence. 
 
 " My dear mother is here, and her state has been very 
 wearing and distressing ; suffering much, and so low in 
 spirits that she constantly says she is dying, and never 
 expects to leave this house. Though I feel she is certainly 
 
 -r 
 
 I 
 
 1842.] 
 
 LETTER FROM ARLEY COTTAGE. 
 
 131 
 
 far from well, I see no immediate cause for alarm. Her 
 mind is very anxious, and inclined to dwell on past 
 sorrows. Dear creature I would that like Hagar her eyes 
 might be opened to see the wells of joy around her ! 
 
 " The Christian should never be brokeit-hearted. Cannot 
 the wonders of the cross and the joy set before us (no 
 less than the possession of Jehovah Himself) compensate 
 for all other loss ? 
 
 " Think of the everlasting kindness, think of the infinite 
 love which has saved us from the pit of destruction ; and 
 not this only, but has given us the lamp which shall 
 guide us through the sorrows of the way ! ** I feel I am 
 upbraiding myself; but I wish to be put in remem- 
 brance of these things ; I want to walk by faith ; and it is 
 no faith to trust the Lord when all things seen are as we 
 wish them to be. 
 
 *' My father leaves us on Thursday. My mother will, 
 according to her own wish, remain here for some time ; 
 but the future is undecided. 
 
 *'I purpose, please God, going to Durham at the end 
 of June for my Priest's Orders, and visiting the Crewdsons 
 on my return. They are most anxious that my mother 
 should accompany me, but I cannot say how this will be. 
 I do not think of leaving home before that time. 
 
 *' I preached on Sunday morning on Heb. xii. i, 2. 
 My father was there, and seemed interested ; it was a 
 written sermon.* 
 
 " I am sure your garden is looking beautiful. I do love 
 the opening flowers, the fresh colouring of the meadows, 
 so lately brown and sere, the birds wakening us with the 
 melody of their voices— all this animated beauty brighten- 
 ing a world that is hoar with age, and tottering, as it were, 
 to its very foundations. Surely it calls upon us to 
 
 " * Awake, and run the heavenly race, 
 And p ut a cheerful courage on.' 
 
 * It was his custom during the earlier years of his ministry to preach one 
 written sermon and one extempore each Sunday. 
 
132 
 
 LETTERS FROM A RLE Y CO TTAGE. [chap. vr. 
 
 Surely it points us to the blessed morninfj when the new 
 heavens and the new earth shall receive the Divine 
 Bridegroom and His Bride, 'made comely with His 
 comeliness.' Then indeed shall * old things have passed 
 away, and all things have become new/ 
 
 " To some people in sorrow the contrast between re- 
 viving nature and their own feelings is too great, the 
 transition too painful. I can understand this perfectly 
 in the case of a person to whom * life and immortality * 
 has not * been brought to light.* But to a Christian this 
 reviving (in a world nearly six thousand years old), this 
 bursting of the fettered leaf after the winter season, this 
 song of birds after the silence of months, should be as mes- 
 sengers of love from Him Who is * the same yesterday, 
 to-day, and for ever/ and with Whom we shall soon enter 
 on an * inheritance incorruptible, undefiled, and that fadeth 
 not away/ 
 
 » n 
 
 Again, to the same — 
 
 " I trust the school will go on well. It is an anxious 
 charge, but I believe a nursery for heaven, 
 
 " We are to have a confirmation either in this church 
 or a neighbouring parish early in the summer, after a 
 lapse of very many years. May it be a season of blessing 
 to some of our young people ! 
 
 *' I have the Wonston Confirmation Tracts, Robinson's 
 of Leicester, Davy's, &c.; can you tell me of anything else, 
 interesting, plain, and instructive, on the subject?* . . . 
 
 *' My thoughts follow my darling Min in her work, often 
 over bush and brake, and hill and dale ; but she is fol- 
 lowed by One Who never leaves nor forsakes her. 
 
 " Your ever loving, 
 
 *' W. P." 
 
 The season of confirmation was always one of deep and solemn interest 
 to Mr. Pennefather, and one in which God gave him much blessing. What- 
 ever tracts he gave to the candidates, he prepared his own papers and ques- 
 tions for examinatiop. 
 
 - ''-f*rt^!i"C--%""3— SI 
 
 1842.] 
 
 DEATH OF A COUSIN, 
 
 133 
 
 Again, to a friend — 
 
 *' April 27 ik, 
 " My dear mother has been very suffering, and I feel the 
 responsibility of taking care of her, without any assistance, 
 almost too much for me. 
 
 " Thank God, she got some ease on Saturday, and was 
 able to attend church on Sunday. She heard me preach 
 my third sermon on Isaiah liii. 4, 5, and it cheered me to 
 
 see her look comforted and happy while listening to it 
 
 I can leave her in a Father's hands. Thanks be to God, 
 she is His; and as He is wise and tender. He knows what 
 is best for her." 
 
 In the following month the sympathies of the 
 family were painfully called out by the unexpected 
 death of a young cousin, son of Chief-Justice Penne- 
 father, who, while walking on Bray Head with a 
 younger brother, lost his footing, and '^ fell against a 
 sharp ledge of rock, which inflicted a deep wound 
 on the temple, and he died instantly." 
 
 *' He was a sweet, placid, gentle lad," says his 
 cousin, ^'his mother's constant companion. He had 
 just risen from prayer when he went out to walk." 
 
 Following upon this trial came another severe 
 shock in the removal of an intiamte friend. Judge 
 Foster, who died suddenly, while attending the 
 Assizes at Cavan. In a letter, dated July 12th, 
 Mr. Pennefather says — 
 
 "My father came to me on Friday after my Irish 
 meeting, and remained till Sunday, when he was most 
 unexpectedly called to Cavan. I was awakened on Sun- 
 day morning, between five and six o'clock, by an express 
 from Cavan, bringing the awful intelligence that Judge 
 
134 
 
 LETTER FROM DUBLIN. 
 
 [chap, vr.* 
 
 1842.] 
 
 LETTERS FROM DUBLIN. 
 
 Foster, who had opened the Commission on Saturday, and 
 dined with the grand jury in his usual health, was no more. 
 He had burst a blood-vessel after going to bed, and in 
 half an hour was a corpse — summoned from an earthly 
 tribunal into the presence of the Judge of all ! 
 
 " I had to send to Oldcastle (eight miles) for horses, and 
 after church, instead of spending a calm Sabbath evening, 
 we were hurrying across the country to Cavan. I did not 
 like my father to go alone, and I also felt that I ought to 
 go and see whether in any way I could help or comfort.'* 
 
 All his correspondence during these months con- 
 tains touchinor details of anxieties and trial. His 
 mother and sister had both gone to Dublin for 
 medical advice (the latter having had a severe 
 return of illness), leaving him to complete some 
 parochial arrangements before going to Durham 
 for his ordination. We insert two extracts from 
 letters written at this time — 
 
 To Mrs. Creivdson. 
 
 " Merrion Square, 
 
 ''jfttiyieth. 
 
 " I had a sad day yesterday. Leaving Arley Cottage, 
 the future seemed so dark, all so uncertain ; and I had 
 not recovered the shock of Judge Foster's death. I 
 found S. better; Dora very ill. I went over to Howth 
 to see my darling mother. I found her changed, greatly 
 changed ; she has suffered much since we parted ; her 
 weakness has increased, and the doctor's opinion is un- 
 favourable, though he will not say the case is hopeless. 
 She feels that she is dying. Oh I beloved friend, it was a 
 bitter thing to see her ! She was able to walk a little with 
 me, and I tried to talk of the 
 
 "* Land of pure delight, 
 Where saints immortal reign,' 
 
 135 
 
 and of His love 'who doth not willingly afflict;' but I felt 
 unable to say more than a few words. 
 
 "Dora came with S. in the evening, looking very ill, 
 as Sir H. Marsh thought it better for her to be at Howth 
 for a few days. Having prayed with them both, I hurried 
 away, feeling as though I might have seen them for the 
 last time. Yet, God can restore ! 
 
 "The doctors have ordered Dora to Marienbad. 
 and if she is able, S. proposes sailing with her and M. 
 on Thursday next. It is also proposed that my mother 
 and J. should accompany them to London, in order to 
 consult Sir B. Brodie. She dislikes this exceedingly, but 
 we trust she will yield to the wishes of those around her. 
 If she goes, it is probable that I shall have to brino- 
 her back, in which case I should probably go from 
 Durham to London direct. Oh ! how you would, how 
 you do feel for us ! Yet how many are the mercies of the 
 Lord ! 
 
 " My beloved parent is in His everlasting arms. He is 
 but preparing to gather her into His bosom, and she will 
 share His glory throughout eternity. 
 
 " Others of our friends have been greatly afflicted, the 
 poor Bishop of Meath (Dr. Dickinson) died of typhus 
 fever this week, leaving eight children. 
 
 " He was young and hale. It is not much more than a 
 year since he was made Bishop. He had an interval of 
 reason previous to his death, and often exclaimed : ' Lord 
 Jesus, pardon my innumerable sins ' adding, *I do believe 
 that His blood has blotted them out.' How I feel for his 
 
 poor wife, and dear Mrs. Foster! I sail late on 
 
 Monday night. I wonder shall I see you on my return 
 from Durham. God's will be done ! " 
 
 To a Cousin he says — 
 
 "We must have thoughts sometimes concerning the 
 future, but, thank God, the future cannot be dark; a 
 
136 
 
 ORDINA TION AND JOURNEYS. [chap. V 
 
 Saviour's love will light up even the heaviest cloud! Oh ! 
 that my beloved mother may be strengthened, and that 
 * the joy set before her ' may enable her to endure the cross. 
 // is enough ! It supported our Redeemer under His 
 painful cross and most bitter shame I and is not our joy 
 in some little measure like His ? How often I think of 
 that wondrous prayer, * Father, I will that they whom 
 Thou hast given Me be with Me where I am, that they 
 may behold My glory ! ' Dearest J., our past speaks 
 loudly of His love. It has had its hours of sorrow, of 
 bitter sorrow, but the whisper of His compassionate voice 
 was heard amid all, and behind the thick cloud there was 
 clear, blue sky shining with His light. Yet a little while 
 and all clouds will have disappeared, except (I sometimes 
 think) some radiant ones around His throne, showing 
 that He can take our sorrows and turn them into joy, 
 some, too, it may be, gathered beneath His feet, reminding 
 us of His compassion, and calling us to thank Him for our 
 sad hours in the world of tears. 
 
 ** Perhaps G. will say I am talking nonsense, and had 
 better stop my pen ! '* 
 
 It appears that the plans alluded to in this letter 
 were carried out ; and that Mr. Pennefather, im- 
 mediately after his ordination, went to London to 
 rejoin his mother, and took her, not direct to Ire- 
 land, but to the home he loved so well in West- 
 moreland. 
 
 After a little time of rest there, we find him writ- 
 ing to Sizergh to tell of his arrival, with his dear 
 invalid, in Dublin. 
 
 ** 5 Merrion Square, 
 
 ^''August \%thy 1842. 
 
 ** As we left your beloved home, my dear, dear friends, 
 I could only return your many kindnesses by prayer; 
 
 1842.] 
 
 PAROCHIAL SCHOOLS. 
 
 137 
 
 prayer that you might be kept in peace, that you might 
 abound in all knowledge and love, and that you might be 
 more and more conformed to the image of Him, * Whose 
 you are, and Whom you serve.' . . . Sometimes the 
 thought was suggested, 'was I selfish in taking my dear 
 mother to Sizergh .? Was I gratifying myself, at the 
 expense of my precious friends?' But such thoughts 
 were checked by the remembrance, * Inasmuch as ye have 
 done it unto one of the least of these My brethren, ye 
 have done it unto Me.' " (The remainder of the letter is 
 taken up with details of the journey.) 
 
 Mrs. Pennefather returned with her son to Arley 
 Cottage, where he found many parochial engage- 
 ments and anxieties awaiting him. None but 
 those who have laboured in Ireland can fully ap- 
 preciate the difficulties which the manao-ers of 
 Protestant schools have to encounter. In writing 
 to a cousin in the month of September, Mr. 
 Pennefather says — 
 
 " There has been a strong tide of prejudice and opposi- 
 tion running against the school, and I thought it a good 
 plan to have a public examination, that parents and others 
 might have an opportunity of ascertaining the truth or 
 falsehood of what they have heard. 
 
 "I wrote to Mr. Lewis (our Diocesan Inspector) re- 
 questing him to come over and examine, and giving 
 due notice to the people. For five hours to-day he and I 
 have been examining, and the result is most satisfactory. 
 I send you a copy of his certificate. It has quite cheered 
 me, and indeed I needed it, for I had often been ready 
 to faint in this work ; but * He that judgeth us is the 
 Lord.' However, I would gladly go through all the 
 trouble again if there may be real blessing in the end, and 
 
138 LETTERS FROM ARLEY COTTAGE, [chap. vr. 
 
 1842.] 
 
 LETTERS FROM ARLEY COTTAGE, 
 
 139 
 
 |1 
 
 I doubt not there will be. . . . I know the Lord hears 
 the prayers of His people, and few things in which I am 
 interested have had more continued supplication than that 
 school and the dear children attending it. I have been 
 teaching the girls singing every Tuesday since I returned, 
 and trust they are improving. ... I have been preach- 
 ing for the Society for Promoting Christianity among the 
 Jews, and also the Church Missionary Society, in aid of an 
 association embracing two or three parishes to be con- 
 nected with these Societies. 
 
 *'I have a new family come into my parish, about whom 
 I am anxious. I think they are good, and may prove 
 useful, but they hold extreme Methodist views, of which I 
 confess I have a great horror." 
 
 The following extract is very characteristic. 
 After speaking of one who had embraced opinions 
 differing from those of his family and friends, Mr. 
 Pennefather adds — 
 
 "The harsh and unfeeling manner in which he treated 
 those from whom he was conscientiously constrained to 
 differ was to me very painful. Let us bear in mind that 
 often, while we are simply gratifying our own passions 
 and following the leadings of our corrupt nature, Satan is 
 transforming himself into an angel of light, and assuring 
 us that we are doing God service. 
 
 " I felt bitterly grieved when I heard all that F. had 
 
 suffered through Mr. 
 
 Let us not allude to him again." 
 
 This is only one instance of the habitual silence 
 imposed on himself and others with regard to pain- 
 ful and unprofitable subjects. His expression of 
 censure was very decided, when necessary, but it 
 was seldom repeated. 
 
 The quiet determination with which he could 
 quench frivolous or uncharitable conversation will 
 not soon be forgotten by those who knew him. 
 
 On the 1 2th of September, he writes to Miss 
 Monck Mason : — 
 
 " My dear Madam, 
 
 '* Mr. Nixon wrote to me from the County of 
 Sligo, relative to your proposal that I should go to 
 Scotland on behalf of the Irish Society, and I replied to 
 him by return of post, the substance of which reply I will 
 now repeat, in answer to your very interesting letter 
 received this morning. Few things would give me more 
 pleasure than to be able to plead successfully the cause of 
 the Irish Society. It has my prayers, my warmest interest, 
 and the deliberate conviction of my judgment that it is 
 organised on principles, to which alone the friends of 
 Ireland can look for blessing, on a scale at all commen- 
 surate with our wants. But notwithstanding these 
 feelings, I hesitate to comply with your request for two 
 reasons :— 
 
 "ist. I am not intimately acquainted with the opera- 
 tions of the Society, though loving its principles for some 
 years. I have not visited our southern fields, which are 
 white to the harvest, and deputations should, as far as 
 possible, speak of the things they see as well as of the 
 things they hear. Surely among the many long-tried 
 friends of our Society a more able champion may be 
 found. 
 
 *' 2nd. My time is not altogether my own, and my move- 
 ments at present depend on my dear mother. She is a 
 great invalid, and is now staying with me. Under the 
 most favourable circumstances she is not likely to move 
 till the end of the month, so that I could not leave home 
 before the first week in October, and then the state of her 
 health might prevent my going at all. Under these cir- 
 
I40 INCREASED ILLNESS OF HIS MOTHER, [chap. vt. 
 
 1842.] 
 
 RECORD OF CLOSING DA YS. 
 
 141 
 
 II 
 
 II' 1 
 
 cumstances, I think it better to decline going to Scotland. 
 Uncertainty (beyond that, which is inevitable in this 
 changing world) should never belong to a deputation. 
 
 "I assure you, I write this with reluctance. May our 
 Heavenly Father supply all your need, according to His 
 riches in glory by Christ Jesus. I trust my prayers will 
 not be wanting. W. P." 
 
 The beloved parent, who had been watched over 
 with such tender solicitude, was fast nearingr her 
 eternal Home. At the end of September a para- 
 lytic attack, supervening upon long-continued 
 suffering, rendered her feeble and helpless to a 
 distressing degree, and it became evident that she 
 would never return to her earthly home. But the 
 depression which had clouded the earlier part of her 
 illness was mercifully exchanged for the most perfect 
 peace. An interesting record of her closing days 
 was written for her family by her niece. Miss Delap; 
 from which we give a few short extracts— 
 
 " The daily accounts from dear Willy of his mother's 
 state became so alarming that I decided to go to them ; 
 and on Saturday, October 8th, left home * at six o'clock 
 in the morning, arriving at Arley Cottage at eight o'clock 
 the same evening. ... My dear aunt was much affected at 
 seeing me, and shed many tears, saying — 
 
 ** • Do not mind these tears, they are tears of joy, every 
 wish of my heart is being fulfilled, I thought you would 
 come.* She dwelt much on her mercies, the unceasing 
 care of * that angel, Willy. Oh ! what he has gone 
 through with me, Jenny, and what his prayers have been 
 to me ! ' She spoke of her thankfulness that D. was 
 absent, and thus spared the parting scene. . . . 
 
 * Monellan, in the County of Donegal. 
 
 "On Sunday, when P. came into the room, she said 
 * Come and see me, dear, three parts gone and the rest 
 safe' . . . Looking earnestly at Willy, she said, ' I am 
 afraid t/iat face comes between me and Christ/ He 
 repeated the words, * Whom have I in heaven but Thee, 
 and there is none upon earth I desire in comparison of 
 Thee.' 
 
 " Speaking of others of her family, she expressed a fear 
 that it might be too much for them to see her thus, and 
 turning again to W. * I Jtave you^ and you were early 
 trained to suffering^ . . . Her words were continually 
 praise. * Oh ! the mercy of dying here, and not in the 
 noise of town. My little heaven on earth, as I always 
 called it. I shall go from my heaven on earth to the 
 heaven above/ . . . 
 
 ** She received each who came with perfect calmness, 
 telling them of her unwavering peace. She seemed to 
 feel much for the agonising grief of her two elder sons, 
 who had now arrived, but was not herself the least over- 
 come. She often fell into a half stupor, from which we 
 could not succeed in rousing her, though she begged us to 
 do so, saying that she had something more to do, and 
 telling us all to pray that she might not continue in such 
 languor. She soon after awoke to perfect consciousness 
 and brightness." 
 
 Many particulars are given of the touching words 
 spoken to each member of her family, servants, &c. 
 Then referring to her own past life ^ — 
 
 " * I thank God He gave me to see there was but one 
 thing needful, and that Christ should be all and in all, 
 and this alone can give peace at the last ; but oh ! it is in 
 view of the cross of Christ that we see what our sin 
 is. . . . And we must take up the cross, that is what I 
 have been taught. Oh ! that lovely sermon on taking up 
 
 She had been brought to the Lord in her early years. 
 
n 
 
 
 ! ; 
 
 142 
 
 DEATH OF HIS MOTHER, 
 
 [chap. vt. 
 
 the cross; I never knew before what iaki?ig it tip was. 
 And now I wish to receive the Sacrament of the Lord's 
 Supper, not as a Popish ceremony (addressing herself to 
 the doctor), but in remembrance of my Saviour's dying 
 love, and that I may drink of the fruit of the Vine here, 
 with those with whom I hope to drink the new wine in 
 my Father's Kingdom.' " 
 
 She repeated the responses throughout the 
 service with a loud and clear voice, and after re- 
 ceiving the wine, broke out into expressions of 
 praise and gratitude for '* that precious blood " shed 
 for her. The remaining days were full of calm 
 peace. Often, when speaking of her mercies and of 
 the joy into which she was about to enter, she ex- 
 claimed, ** Will you not thank Him ? Oh ! rejoice, 
 all of you, that your loved one is gone before you." 
 
 The following note announces to the dear friends 
 at Sizergh her happy release from the shattered 
 tabernacle : — 
 
 ^'October iZth, 
 
 " My beloved Friends, 
 
 •' With the peace of God shed around us we 
 witnessed the departure of my mother's happy spirit to 
 the abodes of everlasting blessedness, at a quarter before 
 ten o'clock this mornine. 
 
 " I hope to be in Dublin on Saturday. 
 
 " Ever yours, 
 
 "W. P.'' 
 
 The next is to the same from Dublin — 
 
 " I wish you could have seen her and watched her as 
 her spirit was preparing for its flight. Already did things 
 unseen to us appear to be within her view. * ky peace is 
 
 i 
 
 i 
 
 1842.] 
 
 LETTERS FROM DUBLIN. 
 
 143 
 
 perfect,' she said ; * not that I have no sins, but my many 
 sins, transgressions, iniquities, infirmities, are all blotted 
 out, through Jesus Christ. Nothing but Christ! O 
 Jehovah ! how wonderful the love of Christ I How 
 wonderful the love of the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit ! 
 My Saviour ! Oh, what He suffered. We do not think half 
 enough of His sufferings. Every nerve in agony, friends 
 leaving Him, enemies taunting Him, and His Father's 
 face hid from Him ; while here am I with every mercy 
 and comfort ; I could not be more comfortable in this 
 world. O Willy! let nothing come between you and 
 Christ. Ah ! you have known His love too well to preach 
 anything but Him. I have learned in this my last illness 
 what true penitence is; I often thought I did not know what 
 it meant, I know now, I have seen my sins as I never saw 
 them before, and have seen Christ's faithfulness also as I 
 have never seen it. . . . And oh ! my peace and my 
 blessings are innumerable ! ... I am dying, and surely you 
 would not keep me here in suffering from my Saviour 1 ' 
 ... I thank God, she is not now taking leave of those she 
 loves, she is in the bosom of her God, and I feel I dare 
 not do aught but wonder, love, and praise. 
 
 *' Friday was a morning of uncommon loveliness, and as 
 the rising sun shed a pillar of flame across the broad 
 waters of the lake, I could not but feel that such glory 
 was more in character with her emancipated and blessed 
 spirit than with ours, as we were bearing to its resting- 
 place her worn-out body. The funeral was private, yet 
 numbers of the common people, true mourners I think 
 they were, attended, and the school children went before 
 singing, * Awake, our souls, away, our fears,' and Ps. xc. 
 The neighbouring clergy, five in number, attended and 
 assisted Mr. Cottingham in the prayers. I read the Lesson, 
 that blessed chapter— i Cor. xv. I felt I could read it, as 
 it so gloriously tells of our renovated bodies, when Christ 
 shall come, and all His saints with Him. 
 
if 
 
 '. 
 
 144 
 
 LETTERS FROM DUBLIN. 
 
 [chap. VI. 
 
 ''The next day being Saturday, my dear father and I 
 came to Dublin, and to-day he has left me for Knock- 
 eevan. Our journey was less painful than I anticipated. 
 I trust he is comforted by true grounds of comfort. The 
 Kingscourt meeting is postponed until Friday week, the 
 4th. I purpose leaving this on Thursday, the 3rd. 
 
 " Your letter was most welcome, many thanks for all 
 your past love to her and to me. I am sure you do not 
 now regret the trouble to which you exposed yourselves 
 for her sake. 
 
 " Your grateful, 
 
 " W. P." 
 
 The claims of public duty were not to be post- 
 poned, and we find him writing thus on October 
 26th — 
 
 " Your kind letter, with its affectionate invitation, was 
 put into my hand this morning, with a letter from Mr. 
 Stephens containing a similar invitation to Levens par- 
 sonage. But my plans are already formed. I purpose 
 being at Kingscourt to-morrow (Thursday) week, and 
 remaining there until the following Tuesday, and from 
 thence proceeding to Monellan. I am to preach next 
 Sunday at KilcuUen, twenty-one miles from Dublin, to 
 plead the cause of the Irish Society. ... I enclose a 
 letter from Mr. C, one of the committee superintending 
 the building of Roundstone church. You will oblige me 
 much by making known its contents to those who so 
 kindly aided me in the work.'* 
 
 The next is from Merrion Square, November 
 I2th-- 
 
 "I had a happy visit to Kingscourt. I met 232 of 
 our poor men (Scripture readers), heard their wonderful 
 answers from Scripture, and spoke to many of them of 
 
 1 
 
 I 
 
 
 A 
 
 1845-] 
 
 LETTERS FROM DUBLIN, 
 
 145 
 
 the kingdom, which Christ has purchased for those who 
 love Him. 
 
 " On Saturday last they were examined, preparatory to 
 receiving the Lord's Supper, and on Sunday, the Rev. E. 
 Nixon and I had the pleasure of seeing 200 of them 
 come to the Lord's table, 160 of whom had never been 
 there before. All of them had been Roman Catholics. 
 Mr. Nixon preached on Malachi iii. 16, 17. The deep 
 attention and the seriousness of the poor men, while he 
 showed the awful sin of offering their all to God in pro- 
 fession and not in hearty was very striking. I closed the 
 day by preaching on a subject which interested my own 
 mind much, Colossians i. 11. 
 
 " I have been very unwell, or would have written sooner, 
 but God graciously comforts and bears with me. I am 
 delayed in town about Roundstone affairs, and am 
 cheered about the church there. May God pour a bless- 
 ing upon it! Dearest D. continues very suffering. They 
 were hurrying home whea they received our letters at 
 Frankfort, and went from thence to Paris for further 
 medical advice." 
 
 A call to the sick-bed of his sister seemed to 
 mark the next step of his path, as announced in the 
 following letter : — 
 
 "Merrion Square, 
 
 ^'^ Novetnber lyth. 
 
 "I write a hurried line to thank you much for your 
 kind words. I have decided on going to Paris, and leave 
 this either Monday or Tuesday. D., though suffering 
 much, is, thank God, kept in peace, and she can follow 
 our beloved one in thought to the land of love and purity. 
 Truly, I can say, God is my strength and my song also, 
 my mouth can praise Him with joyficl lips. Nothing but 
 sin and defilement can prevent joy in the Lord. Tribula- 
 tion teaches us to sing of His love and faithfulness. Let 
 
' 
 
 >l 
 
 'il. 
 
 146 
 
 LETTER FROM PARIS, 
 
 [chap. vr. 
 
 us cleave close to Him, walk humbly with our God, ever 
 saying, ' Hold Thou me up, and I shall be safe.' Bind 
 me to the cross ! how weak my limbs, how slippery the 
 path I But our God is almighty ! " 
 
 The journey to Paris was speedily accomplished, 
 and the following letter to Miss Mason, written from 
 thence, will close the record of the year : — 
 
 ''21 Rue D'Angouleme, 
 
 ^''December igth. 
 
 *' My dear Miss Mason, 
 
 " The accounts which I received of my sister 
 just before leaving Dublin made me hurry to Paris, and I 
 sailed direct from London instead of going to Dover 
 which I afterwards regretted ; as it did not really hasten 
 my progress, and prevented my seeing Captain Paget, 
 as you wished. On reaching this place, I found my dear 
 sister much worse than I expected, very suffering, and 
 greatly reduced in strength. I almost feared that she 
 was about to follow her sainted mother into glory. But, 
 thank God, she is now better, and the surgeon under 
 whose care she is placed, gives every hope of ultimate 
 improvement. But the process of recovery will (under 
 the most favourable circumstances anticipated) be very 
 slow, and at times very painful She is constantly con- 
 fined either to her bed or sofa, but has that comfort and 
 joy in the Holy Ghost which carries us through temptation 
 and affliction, and makes us more than conquerors. I felt 
 most thankful that my steps were directed hither, for she 
 really needed me. 
 
 ** I have suffered much from anxiety since my arrival 
 in Paris, and before leaving Ireland I was far from strono- 
 Thank God, I now feel better, and am under the care of 
 my sister's doctor, who hopes to be of permanent benefit 
 to me. May God give me grace to spend whatever 
 measure of health He may grant to His praise and glory. 
 
 
 I 
 
 1842.] 
 
 LETTER FROM PARIS. 
 
 H7 
 
 " I am sorry to say my return to Ireland is postponed, 
 sifte die ; I am anxious to hear whether you have made 
 any arrangements in which I am involved. If you can 
 leave me out, do so, but should I necessarily be included 
 in your plans for Scotland, I will endeavour not to dis- 
 appoint you, though I really dare not settle beforehand 
 what I shall do. . . . Uncertain as the future always is 
 in this life, it seems peculiarly uncertain for me. When 
 I left Dublin I fully expected to be at home ere this, and 
 now, here I am, without even the day named for my de- 
 parture ! 
 
 " And so dear Mr. Daly is Bishop I Thanks be to the 
 God who reigneth ! He has been passing through the 
 furnace, that in the position he now holds he may shine 
 more brightly than ever he did before. How thankful I 
 feel at such an appointment for the sake of our dear 
 teachers ! Please let me hear as early as convenient; and 
 do n:^t pay the postage, as it is unnecessary for the safe 
 transmission of the letter. I trust that your pecuniary 
 (Society) affairs are in a more prosperous state. You 
 have my prayers both for your Society and yourself. 
 May Jehovah direct, guide, and sanctify you, filling you 
 with peace and joy in the Holy Ghost ! 
 
 "Yours, sincerely and obliged, 
 
 "W. Pennefather.** 
 
( 148 ) 
 
 1 843-] 
 
 LETTER FROM PARIS, 
 
 '49 
 
 fl 
 
 CHAPTER VII. 
 1843. 
 
 Detention in Paris-Letters to Miss Mason— Visits to Leamington 
 and Westmoreland— Return to Ireland— Meeting of the Irisii 
 Society at Ballymacugh— Visit to Roundstone, and Consecration 
 of the Church there—Return to Parochial Work— Various 
 Letters. 
 
 JYJR. PENNEFATHER'S residence in Paris 
 was prolonged greatly beyond his anticipa- 
 tions, and the spring of 1843 was far advanced 
 before he was permitted to return to his work. His 
 health was so broken down that he was compelled to 
 submit to medical treatment, and the indomitable 
 activity of mind and body, which could generally 
 surmount all obstacles, seems for a time to have 
 yielded to inevitable restraints. 
 
 A letter to Miss Mason shows his mind still 
 occupied with the interests of the Irish Society— 
 
 **29 Champs Elysdes, Paris, 
 
 '■''March is/, 1843. 
 
 ''My dear Miss Mason, 
 
 "I am still here, prohibited by the doctor, 
 tinder whose care I am placed, from returning to Ireland 
 immediately, which I hoped to have done. I was anxious 
 to have been at the meeting on the 17th, but fear that it 
 
 
 m 
 
 i» 
 
 is now quite out of the question. I have spoken to Mr. 
 Lovett (the minister of Marboeuf Chapel), relative to 
 some effort here for the Society. He thinks a ^nee/in^- 
 would not succeed, but has kindly offered me his pulpit 
 before I leave Paris ; so, with God's blessing, I may yet 
 be able to do something for you in this city. Will you 
 kindly send me some interesting anecdotes which I might 
 advantageously introduce either into a sermon or speech. 
 I do not ask for 7nanf, for postage is expensive (by 
 weight), but if you could send me some facts, they would 
 greatly help me. 
 
 *' I feel sometimes very unhappy at being laid aside for 
 so many weeks, but I am, thank God, really stronger; and 
 since I am improving, my father will not hear of my 
 return until M. J. permits it. I am anxious to hear of 
 you and of your doings. I do not deserve a letter, but it 
 will be most gratefully received ; if you have not time to 
 write, perhaps Miss Bellingham,* or any member of your 
 committee, would transcribe a few facts, and send them to 
 me. My heart is with your deputation in Scotland. 
 God Almighty prosper it abundantly. Many clouds and 
 much darkness rest upon the Church at large. I turn to 
 Ircla7td to catch some gleams of sunshine. I believe they 
 are always in the heavens, though we may not discern 
 them. In my native country I see here and there 
 cheering instances of simple genuine Christianity gaining 
 ground ; truly the weak things of this world are chosen to 
 confound the mighty. 
 
 " My dear sister is, thank God, going on well, and is 
 recovering slowly, but surely. I have found your interest- 
 ing friend, Lady N., a tried and himble Christian. 
 These are the marks which will peculiarly distinguish all 
 who enter into everlasting glory. We must become as 
 little children, and we must pass through deep waters, ere 
 
 ♦ Afterwards closely connected with Irish Church mission- work, under Mr. 
 Dallas. 
 
 
f. 
 
 150 
 
 RETURN TO ENGLAND, 
 
 [chap. VIT/ 
 
 1843.1 
 
 LETTER FROM SIZERGH. 
 
 151 
 
 our feet stand upon the sea of glass, which is before 
 the throne of God. 
 
 " Farewell. May the blessing of Jehovah rest upon you ! 
 May the Eternal Father cause you ever to feel His lovin^y 
 protection ; may the Eternal Son open out to you the 
 endearments of His love ; and may the Holy Spirit dwell 
 within you in the abundance of His sanctifying power, 
 now and for ever. 
 
 " Yours, most sincerely, 
 
 '* W. Pennefather. 
 
 " I hope to be at home by the first of April, but cannot 
 speak positively." 
 
 A letter to a cousin, who remained in Paris after 
 his departure for England, tells of his journey to 
 Leamington, where he had promised to visit a sick 
 friend, en route for Westmoreland. 
 
 "Sizergh Hall, 
 
 "^/r// 17///, 1843. 
 "My DARLING MiN, 
 
 *'I began a letter to you at Leamington, 
 thanking you for the dear and valued one which awaited 
 my arrival there, but as poor R. required me to be much 
 with him, I really could not find time to finish it, so I 
 commence this under the hospitable and home-like roof 
 of dear old Sizergh. I must retrace my history, and have 
 much to tell of the mercies of the Lord, and can sing of 
 His faithfulness. I spent Sunday (the loth) at Havre, 
 and it was in some respects a profitable day. The morn- 
 ing was very fine. I took a short walk on the ramparts, 
 and reached our place of worship before the French 
 minister (who officiated first) had finished his sermon. 
 There was a very large congregation of French Protestants, 
 but I fear they were not fed with the true Bread of Life. 
 It is said that the preaching here is decidedly Socinian. 
 
 
 i 
 
 There is, however, a small congregation of orthodox Pro- 
 testants who have applied to the * Societd Evangelique* 
 for a pastor, and I heard before leaving Hdvre that their 
 application had been successful. 
 
 " The services of the Church of Enorland did not beein 
 until after twelve o'clock, and I was sorry to see so few of 
 my countrymen assembled for worship. The clergyman 
 read well, but the sermon was nothing remarkable in any 
 way. 
 
 ** I had a note in the morning from Miss G. to beg that 
 I would take an early dinner with her and her family, and 
 go with them in the evening to the chapel they usually 
 attend. 
 
 " I was glad to escape the ' table d'hote ' on the Sabbath, 
 so taking a little round to their house, I wandered towards 
 the country over the hills, that close in the town and com- 
 mand a fine view of the river and the bay. They live at 
 the entrance of a very picturesque village, whose cottages 
 nestle in a small valley rich in orchards and foliage, 
 running down to the sea at one end, and closed by hills 
 at the other. 
 
 " The G.'s have lived for twenty years in the same house. 
 They were thoughtless and ignorant when the Lord led 
 them to this pretty spot, and the people around them, 
 sunk as ^/ley were in superstition, seemed, as they say, to 
 know more of the glorious gospel than themselves. But 
 God, who is rich in mercy, had unspeakable blessings in 
 store for them. They found in the village an English 
 widow-lady and her daughter, and being the only Eng- 
 lish residing there, they were naturally thrown much 
 together. 
 
 "These friends, however, could not guide them into truth, 
 for they were themselves in ignorance; but after some 
 time a clergyman, the son of the widow-lady, arrived at 
 his mother's house, and visited the G.'s. He seemed full 
 of the Spirit of God, and spoke faithfully to mother, 
 
152 
 
 LETTER FROM SIZERGH. 
 
 [chap. vit. 
 
 sister, and friends, all of whom he found ignorant of the 
 way of salvation. Before he returned to his parish in 
 England he had the joy of seeing his mother and sister 
 and two of their friends following the Saviour, and minis- 
 tering to His people. 
 
 " That clergyman was Mr. Dallas of Wonston. He lit 
 the torch of truth in that dark neighbourhood, and it has 
 burnt brightly ever since. His mother and sister con- 
 tinued to reside at the village of St. Addresse, and they 
 and the G.'s had constant intercourse, and read the Word 
 of God together. Mr. Dallas visited Havre several times 
 afterwards, and saw the seed which he had scattered, and 
 to which the Holy Ghost had given the increase, bearing 
 fruit to God's glory. The little band of friends soon began 
 to labour among the poor, and they have seen many fall 
 asleep in the faith of Christ. 
 
 " The circle was first broken by the death of Mrs. Dallas, 
 some years ago ; and her daughter soon went to England, 
 to be near the brother who had been the means of leading 
 her into marvellous lifrht* 
 
 "The G.'s have remained at St. Addresse, and their 
 brother has been added to the Church of Christ. Many 
 have risen up to call them blessed, and in Havre a little 
 school is thriving under their fostering care. At Ingonville, 
 between them and Havre, a neat place of worship has 
 been built, and placed under the care of an American 
 minister (not an Episcopalian), a man full of prayer and 
 of the Holy Ghost. Here, too, they often have the plea- 
 sure of hearing a faithful, aged minister of the Church of 
 England who resides at Ingonville, having given up his 
 parish on account of failing health. The American 
 minister is evidently a man of enlarged views, and 
 delights to give his pulpit to any minister who will 
 declare to sinners the way of salvation. I have told 
 
 * It is probably to one of the members of this family we find relerence made 
 in the memoir of Mr. Dallas (p. 268), as being " for the last twenty years the 
 honoured superintendent of the Connemara Orphans* Nursery at Clifden." 
 
 1843-] 
 
 LETTER FROM SIZERGH. 
 
 153 
 
 vou this narrative as I gathered it, now I must return 
 to my own history. 
 
 ** I reached the G.'s house shortly before dinner, and 
 found the old lady waiting to receive me; a homely, 
 simple, nice old woman, who talked of numbers of people 
 whom I knew, and many whom I did not know. She is 
 an Irish woman, from the County of Tipperary, and lived 
 on the banks of the Shannon,— liking much to hear all 
 about Ireland and Irish people. In the evening, I went 
 with Miss G. to the American church. Mr. S. preached 
 on ' Can ye not discern the signs of the times ? ' — an inter- 
 esting sermon. 
 
 " He evidently thinks we are living on the threshold of 
 fearful events, which are to usher in the glorious morn- 
 ing of Christ's appearing. He has a nice Sunday-school 
 attached to the church, containing English, Americans, 
 French, and Germans. The G.'s teach the French 
 scholars, and others are found for the different nation- 
 alities. 
 
 " I sailed from Havre on Monday evening; had a good 
 passage to Southampton, and was able to leave by the 
 9 o'clock train for London, doing some business in the 
 City, and going on by the 5 o'clock train to Coventry. I 
 reached Leamington at half-past ten. Dear R. was sitting 
 up to receive me : he looked ill, but I feel more comfort- 
 able about him than I did, as his chest is not affected, and 
 the cough is pronounced to be decided whooping-cough. 
 I am glad I came to cheer him, for he has had a most 
 trying illness. I had the pleasure of hearing Dr. 
 Marsh lecture in his school-room on Wednesday, and on 
 Thursday and Friday in the church ; he is simple and 
 pointed in his manner of opening out Scripture. 
 
 *' I walked to Warwick (two miles distant) on Thursday, 
 and recalled our once happy visit there. How well I 
 remembered our dear ones, now in glory, walking in the 
 grounds of the Castle. It does not stand so strikingly as in 
 
154 
 
 RETURN TO ARLEY COTTAGE. [chap. vir. 
 
 1843.] 
 
 LETTERS FROM ARLEY COTTAGE. 
 
 155 
 
 the picture which was graven on my imagination; and now 
 I give the preference to Kilkenny Castle— which in point of 
 situation may claim some resemblance to Warwick— £«/////- 
 out presumption I In returningr to Coventry on Saturday I 
 passed through Kenilworth, which we had also visited. 
 
 " I arrived here at ten o'clock on Saturday. How much 
 the place reminds me of my precious mother ! Yet some- 
 times I can think of her with great peace, but at other 
 times my Father knows I 
 
 " I am awaiting an answer from Ireland to a letter I have 
 
 written about C , before I can decide upon any plans. 
 
 I am delighted and thankful to hear that you have been 
 ^z//led to praise and thankfulness, instead of foolish and 
 sinful repining. Truly Christ is with us, and can be more 
 to His people than any human being. He is our sun as 
 
 well as our shield, giving us light and joy and peace 
 
 I hope soon to hear of ail at the cottage. I preached yes- 
 terday on Christ's word ^ Mary' and her reply, ' Rabboni.' 
 May He ever rule in our hearts as our Master I 
 
 ** Ever your loving, 
 
 **W. P." 
 
 The next letter announces to the kind friends 
 whom he had left in Westmoreland his arrival at 
 Arley Cottage, after a week spent with his father 
 in Dublin. It touches on the apprehensions of 
 those who loved him, that he was hardly yet strong 
 enough to encounter the pressure of work in a very 
 lonely position. 
 
 ** Arley Cotta.c:e, 
 
 My beloved Friends, 
 
 "I know your tender anxiety too well to 
 delay my letter any longer. I did not leave Dublin till 
 yesterday, and had a prosperous journey to this dear 
 
 spot . . . God was indeed a present help, and great 
 peace filled my soul. 
 
 " The many kind faces which greeted me, the warm wel- 
 come of the servants, and the delight of some of the 
 school-children, helped to raise my heart in thankfulness. 
 I found all things in order, and poor * Jamie,* my boy, so 
 delighted at my arrival, it was quite refreshing; and Rose, 
 'the inimitable Rose,' greeted me in the warmest Irish^ 
 then in bursts of English, kissed my hands, and knelt 
 down to thank God that she had lived to see me ! The 
 place looks lovely, and I am not alone as I wrote to D. this 
 morning. I have friends in my servants, society in my 
 parish, and the tenderest ties of relationship in Him who 
 is * mother and sister and brother' to His weak children. 
 Dublin was very sad, but here I have brooks of refresh- 
 ment in the people, and in Him, the spring of all comfort. 
 I thought when reading 07ir Psalm to-day, how beautiful is 
 that expression, * All my springs are in Thee,' God is an 
 unfailing source of happiness to the soul, hi Hint^ ful- 
 ness of joy, in Him, pleasures for evermore, * new every 
 morning is His love/ Scan His perfections day by 
 day, search into His mind and character as revealed in 
 Christ Jesus, and you will find the fountain still spring- 
 ing, ever springing up afresh. Through the ages of a past 
 eternity, ere the morning stars sang at creation, all power 
 and love and beauty dwelt in God, and while eternity 
 endures, that infinite glory shall have fresh revelations for 
 those who search into it. 
 
 " On Sunday I preached at C chapel in the morn- 
 ing, and went to hear Mr. Krause in the evening. I found 
 some poor people whom I was anxious to visit in Dublin ; 
 and I also wished to raise a little money for Roundstone. 
 I am rather perplexed by the debt there, and do not like 
 the poor builder to be out of pocket. He has very kindly 
 given us possession of the church, but a considerable sum 
 is still owing. John laughs at me, and tells me that I 
 
156 
 
 IRISH SOCIETY MEETING. [chap, vii 
 
 1843.] 
 
 IRISH SOCIETY MEETING. 
 
 m 
 
 shall have showers of attorneys' letters ! . . . One of the 
 members of the committee has written to tell me that the 
 church is really very nice. I have had a Ion- letter from 
 D., who has had a delightful visit from Mrs Fry 
 
 Joseph John Gurney is also in Paris I am goin- to 
 
 preach on Sunday on Isaiah 1. 10, 11,— taking verse 10 in 
 the morning and verse 11 in the evening. I am greatly 
 obliged to you for the card of Psalms, I will read them 
 
 and value it much Well do I know the primula* yoJ 
 
 mention. Ten years ago it was a great delight to me to 
 dig up roots of it to adorn my garden. We have none of 
 them here. Notwithstanding the very cold weather my 
 songsters have welcomed me back with lovely choruses • I 
 never heard them more powerful. ' 
 
 ** Your grateful and affectionate friend, 
 
 The summer seems to have been a busy one, and 
 in July, a meeting of the Irish Society was held for 
 the district in which Mr. Pennefather acted as sec- 
 retary. It took place in a barn belonging to Mr. 
 Maxwell. Shortly after this meeting, he writes— 
 
 *' Doubtless you will wonder at my silence, and I 
 wonder at it myself, but as days pass on, the pressure of 
 business seems to increase. ... I am growing old, and if 
 I ever had any poetical imagination, it is rapidlv depart- 
 ing, and I trust common sense is coming in its place • but 
 when I heard of Plymouth, and the beautiful coast of 
 Devon, the expiring spark seemed to rekindle, and I 
 
 wandered with you among scenes of loveliness How 
 
 I longed for you on the 21st, We had, thank God, a most 
 interesting day. The barn was nicely arranged, and I 
 think your hearts would have glowed at the sight of our 
 men, with an audience of about 350 (mostly Roman 
 
 • His love of wild flowers was an unfailing source of e..joyment 
 
 Catholics) listening with breathless attention to the won- 
 derful answers of the Irish readers. 
 
 " They translated the third chapter of St. John." 
 
 [Here follows a copy of the examination papers, 
 with the answers of the readers, deeply interesting 
 to those who could realise the'.r former ignorance, 
 but too long for insertion.] 
 
 "The report of our district and local business showed 8 
 schools with 100 scholars. They are scattered over many 
 miles, and the classes are necessarily small. The teachers 
 get ;^5 a year* .... Since we commenced our work here 
 two heads of families have come over from the Church 
 of Rome, bringing their children with them. We have 
 reason to believe that the men are well grounded in the 
 truth." 
 
 A further account of this meeting is given by Mr. 
 Winning, in a letter to Miss Mason. 
 
 From the Rev. R. Winning, 
 
 " Kingscourt, 
 
 "7/^/^24/^,1843. 
 
 ** My dear Miss Mason, 
 
 " I promised our dear Mr. Pennefather to in- 
 form you of our first meeting at his place. It was held on 
 the 2 1st. inst. Sir George Hudson presided, and seemed 
 to take a deep interest in our proceedings : there were 
 upwards of a hundred teachers, a crowd of Romanists, 
 and a great number of the clergymen and gentry from 
 Meath, Longford, and Cavan. The meeting commenced 
 with praise and prayer. Mr. Pennefather then read a very 
 interesting report. The teachers with some scholars were 
 
 * The salary of an Irish Scripture-reader who acted as a missionary, was 
 £y3 a year, but there were many men who simply taught the reading of the 
 Scriptures in the Irish language, — these received only ^"5. 
 
158 
 
 LETTER FROM REV. R. WINNING, [chap, vil 
 
 1843I 
 
 VISIT TO ROUNDSTONE. 
 
 159 
 
 examined in translation and acquaintance with Scriptural 
 doctrines. Their translations and knowledge of Scriptural 
 truth interested and gratified all. When the examination 
 concluded, there were several interesting resolutions 
 moved. I never at any meeting heard more useful 
 addresses delivered ; one of the resolutions led to speaking 
 of the Church of Rome, and it was clearly proved that 
 Romanism is a novelty, and Protestantism the ancient 
 religion of Ireland. This seemed to delight our poor men, 
 their plaudits of approbation were deafening. After the 
 resolutions were moved, the chairman permitted the 
 teachers to speak ; two or three availed themselves of the 
 opportunity, and in a very humble and Christian manner 
 addressed the meeting. They spoke of their previous 
 state of ignorance, and of what the Society had effected 
 for them and thousands equally ignorant; they contrasted 
 their present with their fast condition ; described the 
 opposition and persecution to which they are exposed, 
 their support and encouragement from the Word of God, 
 &c. What they said evidently came from their hearts, and 
 reached the hearts of all present ; so much so, that time 
 passed insensibly. Though the meeting continued from 12 
 to 6 o'clock, there seemed an unwillingness that it should 
 terminate. 
 
 ** Eight or ten of the teachers lived with Mr. Pennefather 
 during several previous days, and on Sunday he examined 
 them in the presence of the congregation ; their answering 
 delighted the hearers, and gained friends to our cause. 
 
 " Mr. Pennefather said the only diminution to the sincere 
 pleasure we felt was your absence. He had intended to 
 invite you to come, but when he reflected that he had 
 only a bachelor's house to offer, he was deterred from 
 writing to ask you. I said I knew you would have pre- 
 ferred his society and that of the Irish readers to the 
 company of any ladies. I think he was convinced I was 
 right, and lamented that he had not written to you. If 
 
 you had been present, you would have been greatly grati- 
 fied, and thankful to God for making the Society the 
 instrument of so much good. I never attended a more 
 interesting meeting. I trust it will be blessed for good to 
 many who were present, and that, whilst we are anxious 
 to water the souls of others, we may feel ourselves 
 refreshed. 
 
 ** In the best bonds I remain, 
 
 "Dear Miss Mason, yours very sincerely, 
 
 **R. Winning." 
 
 In the month of September the little church at 
 Roundstone was pronounced ready for consecration, 
 and the Bishop of Tuam invited Mr. Pennefather 
 to accompany him on his journey thither, and to 
 preach the opening sermon. The wished-for day 
 had been long delayed, and his letters tell how the 
 deep and varied chastening, through which he had 
 passed in the interval, had told upon his ardent 
 spirit. The first extract is from a letter to his 
 cousin — 
 
 ** Gahvay, 
 
 '' SeptemberiZth. 
 
 ** Your letter was a voice of friendship among strangers. 
 I suppose D. has told you that the little church at Round- 
 stone has been consecrated. I had much to make me 
 joyful, and yet I was very sad. My former visits to 
 Roundstone had been so linked with my mother, that this 
 time her precious memory, which so often soothes and re- 
 freshes me, seemed to make me wretched. Perhaps it was 
 well that I was thus humbled and kept near the cross. 
 We had 109 persons present at the service, a larger 
 number than was expected, and yet what a little flock ! a 
 few sheep in the wilderness. I was greatly pleased with 
 
 <i I V* i< I 
 
i6o 
 
 CONSECRATION OF CHURCH, [chap. vil. 
 
 1843I 
 
 CONSECRA TION OF CHURCH. 
 
 161 
 
 the church, and the singing was really beautiful. I never 
 thought Solomon's dedication prayer (which I read as the 
 lesson) more magnificent. It seemed to bring us so 
 immediately into the presence of Jehovah, and assure us 
 of His unbounded love. The Bishop expressed himself as 
 pleased with the sermon, but, alas 1 I think it was very 
 
 meagre. 
 
 "On Saturday I went into Clifden to attend the con- 
 firmation. It was an interesting sight, but I thought the 
 children far too young. The Bishop went on to Achill, 
 and other places. He seems rather sceptical of the use- 
 fulness of the * Achill mission,' so I hope what he sees will 
 change his opinion. There was a great repeal meeting, 
 and O'Connell and his court were there! Yesterday 
 (Sunday) I went again to Roundstone, and found the 
 services very refreshing. I preached on the text, ' Herein 
 is love,' &c. I sat with the poor suffering girl, and we 
 talked of Jesus and His love. She reminds me of your 
 poor Nanny Crawford.* How very sweet it has often 
 been to me to sit and learn of her! — Blessed Jesus, what 
 will it be when Thou dost unfold Thy beauty to our 
 ravished eyes I " 
 
 Again, to a friend, September 23rd, after speak- 
 ing of the conflict of mind through which he had 
 passed — 
 
 " But enough, and more than enough oi feelings, I only 
 speak of them to account for my silence. The morning 
 of the 15th broke slowly througlt dark masses of cloud, 
 and the rain (such a stranger in our land !) began to fall. 
 We feared for our little flock, but the darkness of the 
 morning proved the herald of a glorious day. The Bishop 
 seems really anxious about his diocese, and spoke much 
 of the destitute districts, and what he hopes to effect for 
 
 ^ ^ * A very poor woman near Moncllan. 
 
 them. About midway between Ballinahinch and Round- 
 stone I first saw the neat little church crownino- the 
 summit of the village. A short time brought us to the 
 place, which was quite gay with groups of people, the 
 Romanists standing amazed at the sight of a Protestant 
 Bishop and six clergymen, with a respectable congrega- 
 tion gathered to meet them. I felt carried back in spirit 
 to the bright day of Ireland's ancient church, and carried 
 forward to that brighter day, when the Church of England, 
 and all other instruments of God's appointment shall be 
 laid aside, to give place to the spiritual temple, whose 
 glory shall fill the universe ; when Christ, who is our life, 
 shall appear, and when we shall be for ever with the Lord. 
 ... I read the first lesson (i Kings viii.), and it brought 
 me at once into converse and communion with God. My 
 sermon was very poor (the subject Zech. iv. 10, with a 
 glance at the whole vision), but I endeavoured to set forth 
 the necessity of spiritual religion, and the awfulness of 
 beautiful organisations without life. ... 
 
 " The inside of the building is uncommonly neat and 
 well-finished, like a church, and yet perfectly plain and 
 unadorned. How I wish you could have seen it ! The 
 poor girl, whose history is so deeply interesting, was able, 
 after six years of suffering, to come to church, in great 
 weakness, leaning on a stick. Her aged mother, who 
 watched over her, has fallen asleep in the faith and hope 
 of the gospel. . . .Mr. D., the present minister ot Round- 
 stone, is in some respects admirably suited to the place. 
 He has a love for souls, and speaks Irish. ... I preached 
 again at Roundstone on Sunday, . . . and on Monday I 
 attended a missionary meeting in Galway, proceeding to 
 Dublin by the mail at half-past four, and arriving there 
 a little after seven the next morning." 
 
 Some weeks later, v^riting from Arley Cottage— 
 " I can ill express how grateful I am for your gift to 
 
I62 
 
 LETTERS FROM ARLEY COTTAGE, [chap. vir. 
 
 1843.] 
 
 LETTERS FROM ARLEY COTTAGE. 
 
 163 
 
 that poor sufferer at Roundstone. Her sorrows are the 
 Lord's; may we not say her consolations are His also, for 
 He has said, * Inasmuch as ye have done it to one of the 
 least of these My brethren, ye have done it unto Me/ 
 This money will provide her with clothing and blankets, 
 which she greatly needs in that inclement spot." 
 
 On returning from his visit to Roundstone, Mr. 
 Pennefather met his sister in Dublin, where she had 
 arrived from Paris in improved health, and she and 
 Mr. Maxwell joined him at Arley Cottage, for the 
 autumn months, during which he seems to have 
 been closely engaged in parochial labours. A few 
 extracts from letters bring us to the winding up of 
 the year. 
 
 The first is part of a letter to a young Ensign in 
 the army, about to start for India. 
 
 " Arley Cottage, 
 
 ** J2ijte 25/y^, 1843. 
 
 « My dear St. George, 
 
 "I have just returned from F. C, where I 
 learnt that you are about to leave England, and I cannot 
 allow you to go without expressing my deep interest in 
 your welfare. The few moments I passed with you in 
 your own room at F. C. will long be remembered, and I 
 bless my Heavenly Father for them. When I think of 
 you, my gratitude is renewed to Him, who hitherto has 
 spared and kept you, and will keep you to the end. 
 
 " Painful as it was to hear what you had met with at 
 Chatham, yet to know that you had been hid, and pre- 
 served, and shielded by Jehovah, made my heart rejoice. 
 I felt that if you had been of the world, you would have 
 followed its course, I felt that God had covered you by 
 His omnipotent shield, when perhaps you were uncon- 
 
 A 
 
 :l! 
 
 scious of His presence, and I could but render praises to 
 Him for what His own power had wrought. 
 
 " My dear St. George, I trust you are found in the 
 ranks of the army of the King of kings; I trust that you 
 wear His uniform and bear His standard. But you are a 
 young soldier; you know not the force or the stratagems 
 of the enemy, and you know not your own weakness. 
 One of the most trying features in the spiritual warfare 
 is the varying nature of the enemy's attacks, and the 
 tediousness of the contest ; it is not one mighty struggle 
 that decides the war ; no, the enemy never comes down 
 with his forces into one decisive field, where he may be 
 met once, and for ever vanquished ; he hides himself in 
 the fastnesses of the country ; he harasses by unexpected 
 sallies, he uses every species of warfare, and every kind 
 of weapon ; he separates, as it were, into many bands and 
 companies, so that when one is conquered, another starts 
 up. We have, therefore, peculiar need to remember the 
 words of a skilful officer in the army of the Lamb (who 
 had profited by his experience of the sagacity of the 
 enemy, and his own former unguardedness), * Be sober, be 
 vigilant,' &c. But though the warfare is tedious, though 
 the enemy is crafty, and though he has all the advantage 
 of fighting in his own country, yet * fear not, only believe, 
 and thou shalt see the glory of God.* * The Lord is our 
 sun and shield! He will cover our head in the day of 
 battle. Be continually asking your Captain for advice, 
 and referring to His written orders for direction. The 
 warfare 7nnst terminate, the soldiers of the cross shall yet 
 * lay down their arms at Emmanuel's feet,' rest beneath 
 His approving eye, and hearken to His gracious com- 
 mendation. * Yet a little while/ and the angelic hosts who 
 (as an innumerable body-guard) surround the throne, 
 shall echo with ten thousand times ten thousand voices, 
 the rolling peals of Hallelujah, which shall rise from all 
 redeemed creation. 
 
 WUHW 
 
l64 
 
 LETTERS FROM ARLEY COTTAGE, [chap. vil. 
 
 " My dear St. Georg^e, I know what you miist feel at 
 leaving home. But what is this world, if we have an 
 eternal weight of glory in store for us } I cannot but 
 think that he who has been brought out of the ' horrible 
 pit* of this world's delusions, and out of 'the miry clay' 
 of this world's sins, should never cease singing the new 
 song of praise and thanksgiving. True, we have trials, 
 and God knows how bitter they sometimes are, but 
 wliat is our portion t God Himself, Therefore, if we have 
 nothing, we possess all things ; if poor, we can make many 
 rich ; if sorrowful, we should be always rejoicing. I 
 sometimes wonder at my gloomy and discontented mind. 
 I have been deeply tried by spiritual conflict, few know 
 how deeply^ in fact, none know it ; yet I have a portion so 
 rich in God, that I ought alway to be singing of the 
 loving-kindness of the Lord. A few brief years at most, 
 and then everlasting joy shall be upon our heads. * Let 
 us give thanks unto our Lord God.' * It is meet and 
 right so to do.' Even now, our Friend is Jehovah ; our 
 food • the bread that came down from heaven ; ' our 
 drink, ' rivers of living water.' * Beloved, now are we the 
 sons of God, and it doth not yet appear what we shall 
 be, but we know that when He shall appear we shall be 
 like Him, for we shall see Him as He is.' Remember me 
 in prayer, I need your prayers as much as you need 
 mine." 
 
 To a friend who was habitually neglectful of his 
 health, he writes — 
 
 ^^ November 2^thy 1843. 
 '* I hear you have been laid up. Often, very often, have 
 I thought that you were not acting as d. faithful steward 
 of your health. You know, dear friend, that our organisa- 
 tion is such as to require suitable nourishment and 
 support. You know also that our nerves and feelings are 
 acted upon by our physical condition. Let that condition 
 
 1843-] 
 
 LETTERS FROM ARLEY COTTAGE. 
 
 165 
 
 be injured, let those wondrous nerves which (so to speak) 
 connect mind and body be unstrung or neglected, and 
 then the peace of the mind and the energy of the body 
 become disturbed. While in the body we must be 
 subject to physical laws, and if we despise those laws, we 
 are despising the ordinance of God. I have often feared 
 you would entail misery on yourself by what, I cannot 
 but think, is somewhat of wilfulness. How can you 
 expect to escape from injuries which you palpably inflict 
 upon your poor body .'* Remember, beloved friend, your 
 body is not your own ; it has been purchased at a vast 
 price, redeemed with the precious blood of Jesus Christ, 
 and you have no right to injure what the Saviour has 
 thus made His own. Excuse me if I seem to dictate to 
 one so much my senior both in age and experience ; but 
 do calmly consider these things, and you will see that 
 * I speak forth the words of truth and soberness.' " 
 
 To another on the same subject — 
 
 " I trust you will be enabled rightly to care for your 
 body, and to brace your nerves. God's beautiful works 
 help us to do this — the open country, shady dells, and 
 happy fields; the fragrance of summer flowers, leaves, 
 and grasses ; the singing of birds, &c. Remember, it has 
 been well said : ' The highest point of man's attainment 
 will be, when he possesses a perfectly sound mind in a 
 perfectly sound body.' The more nearly we can approach 
 to this on earth, the greater will be our happiness and 
 usefulness. I feel this to be a most important truth. 
 Never deal with matter as if it were of necessity evil. God 
 pronounced it very good, Christ inhabited it, and it was 
 surely then very good. It shall yet again be fitted for the 
 glorious presence of Jehovah." 
 
 It may excite surprise in the minds of some, that 
 one who appeared so utterly careless of his own 
 
i66 
 
 CHRISTMAS SERVICES. 
 
 [chap. VII. 
 
 health, should write so strongly on the subject. But 
 while there can be no doubt that he did overtax his 
 strength by incessant labour, he was not one of 
 those who recklessly despise the laws of health. 
 There were times when he knew full well that he 
 was sacrificing himself in the cause he loved, but he 
 had counted the cost, and the sacrifice was made 
 willingly, not wilfully. 
 
 As Christmas approached, he speaks of being, 
 ** very busy with my poor people, trying to clothe 
 them for the winter. It has set in with severity, 
 and the poverty is great. The country is in a 
 fearful state ; but we are kept, thank God, without 
 trembling." 
 
 On December the 22nd he writes — 
 
 " S. and D. talk of leaving home ; I shall probably remain 
 stationary. I am expecting a new school-master, and 
 must induot him. ... I do not feel by any means a fixture 
 here. I am waiting for the pillar to move, endeavouring to 
 live by the day, and trusting my path to Him whose eye 
 is over His people. The year is to open with an early 
 prayer-meeting, a service and sermon in the evening, and 
 on the 2nd we hope to have all the school-children. On 
 Christmas-day we had a prayer-meeting at 8 o'clock, and 
 service, with the Lord's Supper, at 12. I preached on 
 * Glory to God in the highest.' '* 
 
 ( 167 ) 
 
 CHAPTER VIII. 
 1 844- 1 845. 
 
 Contemplated change of Residence— Proposed removal to Swanlinbar 
 —Presentation to the Living of Mellifont— Recollections of a 
 parishioner at Ballimacugh, and a friend living in the Neighbour- 
 hood—Various Letters— Enters on his ministry at Mellifont— 
 Visit to Portste wart— Preaches at Liverpool for the Irish Society- 
 Letters. 
 
 IN the opening of 1844 Mr. Pennefather was 
 evidently contemplating a change in his sphere 
 of labour. Such a change must ever be to a 
 minister a matter of deep and solemn importance, 
 and in the case of one who habitually acted with 
 prayerful deliberation in the most common affairs 
 of every-day life, it was not probable that so serious 
 a step would be lightly taken. From the time he 
 entered upon the responsible office of a pastor, he 
 was accustomed to acton very fixed principles, m 
 considering the many offers which came before him 
 of new fields of service. 
 
 He first of all desired to know that God had 
 done with him in the place he had already occu- 
 pied, and then that his own tastes and feelings and 
 natural preferences had not the weight of a feather 
 
m. 
 
 168 
 
 CURACY OF SWANLINBAR. fcHAP. viii. 
 
 1844.] 
 
 REMOVAL FROM ARLEY COTTAGE. 
 
 169 
 
 in the balance on so important a question. It was 
 striking and instructive to see one whose tastes 
 were refined even to fastidiousness, and who was by 
 nature peculiarly sensitive to surroundings, enabled 
 to become tUterly indifferejit to all secondary things, 
 when the case was one of ministry in the Church 
 of God. In the present instance, he had evidently 
 come to the conclusion that his time of service at 
 Ballimacugh was drawing to a close, and the curacy 
 of Swanlinbar which was offered to him early in the 
 year was accepted, though considered by his friends 
 to be too rough and laborious a post for one so 
 frail in health. We find two letters announcing to 
 his friends the proposed change of residence. 
 
 To Mr, Crcwdson. 
 
 ** Arley Cottage, 
 
 ^^ April 20tkj 1844. 
 
 " The accounts I receive of my dear sister are by no 
 means good. She is exceedingly weak ; so much so, that 
 I do not think she will be able to come here as she 
 expected, so I know not what to say about your visit. 
 And I am really going to Swanlinbar ! Such is life I I 
 returned this day from seeing it ; it is a wild district at 
 the foot of some rather high mountains. A good many 
 Protestants, and a simple, interesting people. ... I trust 
 it is all for the best. My heart fails, but God is the 
 strength of my life, and I flee to Him in this hour of need. 
 I wish you could have seen this spot before I left it. I 
 shall probably be living next in a little lodging in 
 Swanlinbar. Pray for me. 
 
 ** Your grateful friend, 
 
 *' W. P." 
 
 To R, Nugent, Esq, 
 
 " May ()th. 
 
 " I leave Arley on the 19th for Swanlinbar, in the north 
 of the County of Cavan, having accepted Mr. John Fox's 
 offer of that curacy. It will cost me many a bitter pang 
 to leave Arley. I am much attached to some of the 
 people ; but circumstances combined to make it needful 
 for me to pitch my tent in some other halting-place in 
 the wilderness, in some other portion of the Lord's vine- 
 yard. ... I shall leave kind friends when I leave the 
 neighbourhood of Farrenconnell ; and do not expect to 
 find many such in this selfish world. But I must not 
 repine, my Heavenly Father has graciously inclined the 
 hearts of many of His dear children to deal gently with me. 
 He has often turned my darkness into light, and shed 
 His sweet showers of mercy on my hard and barren 
 heart. . . . May God bless you, my dearest Richard, 
 may you be kept leaning andw aiting on Christ ! " 
 
 But while he himself was expecting and prepar- 
 ing to labour among the people of Swanlinbar, his 
 Heavenly Father was calling him to a different 
 part of the harvest-field. .On the 17th of May, 
 his brother-in-law writes — 
 
 "The Lord has wonderfully opened a way for our dear 
 William. While we were all most anxious about his 
 removal to Swanlinbar, which would have been too much 
 for his weak frame, an offer came to him of a very small 
 living in the County of Louth. A nice little house with 
 ten acres of land, a very neat church with a congregation 
 of about a hundred, and a nice school. D. has been 
 very anxious about this, for by means of the Drogheda 
 railroad just opened, he will be able to get to Dublin in 
 about two hours, and thus this devoted son will be near 
 his father in his declining years." 
 
 il 
 
170 
 
 DEATH OF ISAAC CREWDSON, [chap. viir. 
 
 1844] 
 
 RECOLLECTIONS OF FRIENDS. 
 
 171 
 
 About the same time he writes to his friends Mr 
 and Mrs. Crewdson from Drumkeen, where he was 
 visiting a friend — 
 
 "Your letter from London, announcing that another of 
 our band had reached the Land of Promise, found me 
 on the eve of starting for this place. ... I feel for you, 
 beloved friends, and my heart runs on saying of your dear 
 uncle — 
 
 ** * Soldier of Christ, well done ! 
 Rest from thy sweet employ ; 
 The battle o'er, the victory won, 
 Enter thy Saviour's joy I ' 
 
 " His was a blessed life, and oh ! how calm a death I " . . . 
 
 Speaking of the same aged servant of Christ he 
 says — 
 
 ''May 18M, 1844. 
 " Doubtless you remember how peculiarly dear to me 
 is the name of Isaac Cmvdson. It was in the year 1829, 
 when I was going to school at Westbury, that my beloved 
 Susan took up a little copy of * Baxter's Saint's Rest,' 
 edited by Isaac Crewdson, and putting it into my hand 
 said, ' Read this, dear Willy, when you are far away from 
 me/ And I did read it. It was the second reh'gious 
 book in which I ever had real pleasure. I shall never 
 forget the enjoyment with which I read and re-read that 
 wonderful book, and how I treasured in my memory the 
 name of Isaac Crewdson. It was associated with some 
 of the brightest views of glory ever afforded to my mind, 
 and with the name, too, of one of the dearest whom God 
 ever permitted me to love on earth. I believe I have 
 told you this before, but I love to dwell upon his memory, 
 who helped to give me many a blessed prospect of the 
 heavenly Canaan, and who has now entered into that rest 
 
 which is the prelude to everlasting glory. ... And now, 
 beloved friends, only think of the tender watchfulness 
 of my Heavenly Father ! I have been offered a pretty 
 little living two and a half miles from Drogheda. Its 
 value is ^92 per annum, with ten acres of land and a 
 very neat house. My father will call it a starving (I have 
 not told him yet) ; but I am very thankful. However, I 
 must go to Mr. Fox as I had arranged, and remain soms 
 time at Swanlinbar." 
 
 Again, from Drumkeen — 
 
 *' May 2i5t. 
 " The tie which bound me to Arley has been loosened 
 very mercifully and gently. I left the sweet Cottage to- 
 day with a heavy heart, and yet with a thankful one. 
 Who has such right to praise as I have! I would not 
 speak of myself, but of the Lord I must speak, *His 
 compassions fail not, they are new every morning.' . . . 
 I have been much overtaxed both in mind and body ; 
 however, I am getting better." 
 
 The many allusions in Mr. Pennefather's letters, 
 both at this time and in later years, to the sphere 
 of his early ministry, show how deeply he was 
 attached to it, and a few of the flock still remain 
 to cherish the remembrance of his labours of love. 
 One of these (then a child) writes in 1877 — 
 
 " The mention of his name brings back happy memories, 
 for he was greatly beloved here; but most of the old 
 people have passed away. I could not tell you half of 
 his love or anxiety about me after I lost my sight. My 
 mother and aunt were anxious to have me educated, and 
 it was thought that one afflicted like myself would be 
 the best to begin the work. Mr. Pennefather went to 
 Dublin, saw Dr. Marks (who was then chaplain to the 
 
172 
 
 RECOLLECTIONS OF FRIENDS. [chap. viii. 
 
 Molyneux Asylum*), made his request known, and never 
 left Dr. M. tjll he had consented to send one of the young 
 girls, of whom he had the highest opinion (Mary Mason), 
 to be my teacher. Mr. Pennefather himself met her at 
 the coach, drove her to Lake View, where I was staying 
 with my aunt, and then, putting my hand into hers, he 
 prayed most beautifully that God might help us both." 
 
 We find an allusion to this circumstance in a 
 note of his own, written to Mrs. Booth, the mother 
 of the child in whom he was interested. 
 
 " I trust Mary may prove a blessing to dear Letitia. 
 May they mutually lead one another to talk of the things 
 that angels desire to look into, and wise men and pro- 
 phets of old longed to see. May the King in His beauty, 
 and the land of everlasting love, shine in upon their 
 spiritual sight, and then, my dear Mrs. Booth, you and 
 all who love that sweet child will rejoice even in her 
 tribulation." 
 
 Mr. Richard Nugent, whose family resided in the 
 neighbourhood of Ballymacugh during the time of 
 Mr. Pennefather s ministry in that place, recalls 
 with affectionate remembrance those days of inter- 
 course. 
 
 "It was in the year 1840 that William Pennefather came 
 to reside at Mr. Maxwell's place on Lough Sheelan, in 
 the County of Cavan. He was preparing for his ordina- 
 tion, and I had then the pleasure of becoming acquainted 
 with him, an acquaintance which soon ripened into a warm 
 affection. He was even then devoting himself to the 
 practical duties, which would ultimately devolve on him 
 as a minister of the parish, visiting the people, and hold- 
 ing constant cottage-readings and lectures amongst them. 
 
 • A school for the blind in Dublin. 
 
 1844.] 
 
 RECOLLECTIONS OF FRIENDS. 
 
 173 
 
 " By his unfailing sympathy and genial manners he soon 
 won the hearts of those who were, ere long, to be under 
 his pastoral care. Not the least important of his labours, 
 at this time, was a weekly Bible-reading with a class of 
 voun^ men, which was held at Arley Cottage. After his 
 ordination I went over from my father's place (Farren- 
 connell) on the other side of the lake, to spend the Sunday 
 with him. I well remember his intense and prayerful 
 anxiety about his first sermon. Every nerve was wrought 
 up to the highest pitch as he opened his subject (Ezek. 
 xxxiii. 7) and announced to the people the character in 
 which he now came among them, as a watchman, who 
 must himself give account to his Master. In expectation 
 of hearing the young minister preach his first sermon the 
 laro-e church was crowded to excess, not only with the 
 parishioners, but with many coming from neighbouring 
 parishes. The sermon was a most faithful exhibition of 
 the Gospel, it might be truly said that 'Jesus Christ was 
 evidently set forth crucified among them.* Another of 
 his sermons preached on Christmas-day on Isa. xxx. 29, 
 is graven on my heart after the lapse of nearly forty 
 
 years. 
 
 " He now set himself with redoubled energy and activity 
 (far beyond his physical power) to his parochial work. 
 Besides constantly visiting his people, he was at all times 
 at their call. His intense anxiety for those who were in 
 any sickness or sorrow were well known, and his deep 
 loving sympathy was continually sought, and never sought 
 in vain. His health needed much care, but it was the last 
 thing he thought of, and often on my going to the cottage, 
 the servants would come to me with the complaint, * Oh ! 
 sir, Mr. Pennefather is killing himself.' . . . 
 
 " William Pennefather's work was by no means limited 
 to his own people; his was a true missionary spirit, going 
 out to all who lay in darkness and in the shadow of death, 
 whether 'Jew, Turk, infidel, or heretic,' while with a burning 
 
174 
 
 RECOLLECTIONS OF FRIENDS, [chap. viir. 
 
 1844-] 
 
 LETTERS FROM ARLEY COTTAGE, 
 
 175 
 
 patriotism he yearned over the inhabitants of his own 
 beloved country, and longed that Ireland should once 
 more become, what it was called in days of old, * the Island 
 of Saints/ With all the energy of his nature he set him- 
 self to learn the Irish language, and had his health per- 
 mitted, he would, I doubt not, have become an able 
 minister of the New Testament to his fellow-countrymen, 
 in their own dearly-loved and sonorous tongue. I well 
 remember his fitting up a large barn for a meeting of the 
 Irish Society, and inviting the clergy and gentry of the 
 neighbourhood, with all the teachers and scholars for 
 miles round, many of the latter being Roman Catholics, 
 and thus getting them to listen, while earnest and able 
 men addressed them on the fundamental truths of the 
 Gospel. He closed the meeting himself, with a speech of 
 singular power and pathos, wisely securing the attention 
 of his Irish hearers by opening his address in their native 
 language. In the Missionary Association of the neigh- 
 bourhood (comprising the Church Missionary and Jews' 
 Societies) we looked upon William Pennefather as our 
 sheet-anchor, both for sermons and meetings. The cause 
 lay very near his heart, and he threw into it all his power 
 and influence." 
 
 Our limits will not allow further quotations from 
 the recollections of this faithful friend, who closes 
 his memoranda with these words : * He was indeed 
 and in truth an epistle of Christ, known and read 
 of all men, and they glorified God in him.' 
 
 Many papers have been preserved written by 
 Mr. Pennefather during his sojourn at Arley, with 
 Scripture notes and sketches of sermons, but space 
 will only permit a few further extracts from letters, 
 as links in the history of 1844 — 
 
 " Jamiary 2^ih, 1844. 
 ** I am now alone, yet not alone. My Heavenly Father's 
 presence is with me. Is it not wonderful to think of the 
 individuality of His care and tenderness .? The universe 
 in its vastness and variety claiming His attention, all the 
 stars with their attendant worlds hearing His commands. 
 Even the mists and vapours * fulfilling His word,' and yet 
 amid all, though His glorious works are numberless, and 
 His compassionate care extended over them all, He has 
 * a word in season for him that is weary,' and infinite love 
 for each sinner who is * looking unto Jesus.' I marvel 
 at His special providence, at His personal care, and in the 
 contemplation of such loving-kindness, my words must 
 needs flow in the same channel as the Psalmist's, and 
 exclaim : ' Oh ! that men would therefore praise the Lord 
 for His goodness to the children of men.' . . . Did you 
 think of the Bishop of Jerusalem yesterday } The second 
 anniversary of his residence in the Holy City." 
 
 To a friend in trial, 
 
 " I am thankful that you are able in clouds of trial to 
 discern the bow of promise ; our Heavenly Father will 
 never suffer His people to be in * a horror of great dark- 
 ness,' without lighting a lamp to guide them through it. 
 The bow will not disappear until the cloud is gone ; nor 
 the lamp be withdrawn until the horror of great darkness 
 have passed away. There was but Otie, the Man Christ 
 Jesus, who was wrapped in a cloud without a bow, who 
 walked through thick darkness without a lamp." 
 
 To Miss Mason. 
 
 " Arley Cottage, 
 
 '^ March 22nd^ 1844. 
 
 "I was absent from home, preaching for the Irish Society, 
 or would have answered your kind note sooner. Many 
 thanks for it Though I have seemed negligent about 
 
;ii 
 
 I' I 
 m 
 
 I 
 
 ..'" 
 
 176 
 
 LETTERS EROM ARLEY COTTAGE, [chap. viit. 
 
 our Irish orphans, I have borne them upon my heart. 
 I am anxious that a meeting should be convened in Cavan 
 for the purpose of forming a District Protestant Orphan 
 Society, the special attention of which should be directed 
 to the case of those children whose fathers have been 
 engaged in the work of the Irish Society, and whose 
 blood may have been shed in so holy a cause. I wish I 
 could meet with some more experienced person than 
 myself who is anxious to take up the same object. 
 
 *' It was not in my power to attend the (Dublin) meeting, 
 and I greatly regret that I was absent from home when 
 Manning's summons for Clarke arrived. I know that 
 Clarke was most anxious to attend, but until the com- 
 mittee invited, I did not think it right to send him. 
 
 " We have done somewhat for the Society here : I will 
 write to Mr. Winning by this post, relative to the money. 
 Surely if orphans in general demand our sympathy, a 
 Protestant orphan, whose parent has contended for the 
 faith and shed his blood in the contest, has a peculiar 
 claim ! 
 
 " Shall our Society be the instrument of leading the 
 father of a family to embrace that religion for which he 
 lays down his life, and yet cast off his little ones ? Pray 
 for us. Your work is often the subject of our feeble peti- 
 tions. May God abundantly bless all that are concerned 
 
 in it. 
 
 >i 
 
 To R. Nugent, Esq. 
 
 ^^ May, 1844. 
 
 "I am to preach next Sunday in Cavan. There has 
 been a series of Lent preachers, and I am to be the last. 
 I have chosen Zech. ix. 9 as my subject, ist, The king- 
 ship of Christ. 2nd, The justice of Christ. 3rd, The 
 salvation of Christ. 4th, The humility of Christ. 
 
 *' May we, my dearest R., learn to know more of the 
 Redeemer in all these particulars. May the Eternal Spirit 
 magnify HitJt in our eyes 1 " 
 
 varnr^ 
 
 \ 
 
 1844.] 
 
 RESIDENCE A T MELLIFONT, 
 
 177 
 
 I j 
 
 Mr. Pennefather entered upon his ministry at 
 MelHfont, near Drogheda, early in July 1844. The 
 parish was a very large one, with a population of 
 about 4500 ; but the Protestants were few, and scat- 
 tered over a large area, which made the pastoral 
 work fatiguing and unsatisfactory. Outwardly it 
 presented some attractions, —a neat parsonage- 
 house and a pleasant country, within reach of 
 a railway to Dublin ; these were no slight recom- 
 mendations in the eyes of his friends, who always 
 feared his settling in some wild field of missionary 
 labour to which he was physically unequal. But 
 regarding it from a ministerial point of view, Mr. 
 Pennefather always looked back on his residence 
 at Mellifont as a time of trial and discouragement, 
 a time in which God was preparing him in much 
 loneliness and isolation for a future of active and 
 varied service. Writing from his new glebe-house 
 on July 26th, he says — 
 
 **This season, this new era in my life, which to many 
 seems peculiarly bright, has had, blessed be God, such deep 
 and touching associations, as have made me view it in 
 somewhat of the true light in which all passing earthly 
 scenes should be viewed. My precious mother's memory, 
 and that of my beloved Susan, have mingled with all my 
 efforts to settle my wee establishment." 
 
 And again — 
 
 ''Jnlyzoth, 
 " This place is very bright, and will be a nice spot ; and 
 yet my heart is too full of the past not to feel that they 
 are gone, and I am still left upon the sea of life. But 'ye: 
 
 M 
 
wfmm^mfmmm^fmgiKmm'mm 
 
 178 
 
 LETTERS FROM MELLIFONT, [chap, viil 
 
 1844-] 
 
 VISIT TO PORTSTEWART. 
 
 179 
 
 a little while ' and I too shall moor my bark beside the 
 shore of Canaan, and the ocean of life will be passed. 
 While I do remain upon its heaving waters, there is One 
 who will make every billow bright with His smile, and 
 whose voice will whisper amid every storm, ' It is I, be not 
 afraid.' Oh, what a Saviour is ours ! How great the love 
 that led us to His cross I" 
 
 Then after speaking of household arrangements 
 and presents received from kind friends — 
 
 " I find my wants multiply, and am surprised that the 
 machinery of my establishment requires so much to set 
 
 it croincr. I dined at last night. All kind, but a 
 
 little too grand for me." 
 
 Ao-ain, about the same time — 
 
 *' Thanks for your valued gifts ; I do trust the flowers 
 will flourish. My predecessors did not care for anything 
 pretty, and the garden is ///// of potatoes. The place is 
 truly Irish in its confusion, dirt, and negligence.^ I feel as 
 if everything were so wholly gone to ruin that it is hope- 
 less to think of repairing it. I trust I shall not be 
 shackled by the cares of an evil world ! I feel m some 
 danger. Pray for me." 
 
 On undertaking the charge of the little congrega- 
 tion at Mellifont, Mr. Pennefather immediately added 
 an afternoon service on the Sunday, which had not 
 hitherto been attempted on account of the scattered 
 dwellino-s of the Protestants. Only a small num- 
 ber could respond to the invitation, and the advan- 
 tage seemed hardly commensurate with the demand 
 made upon his small stock of strength. In the 
 early autumn we find him at Portstewart, evidently 
 
 , 
 
 very feeble in health. Writing from thence to his 
 friend Mr. Nugent, on September 14th, he says — 
 
 "A physician whom I have seen lately tells me I am on 
 the eve of failing altogether, and he fears, unless I cease 
 work now, I shall be forced to relinquish it, perhaps, for 
 ever ! But I cannot give up yet, * It is better to wear 
 out than to rust out.' " 
 
 Mr. Maxwell, then at Portstewart, writes to a 
 friend — 
 
 " September loth. 
 " We have had dearest Willy here for a fortnight ; he 
 was indeed a gift from the Lord to our little circle. 
 Besides the sweet social intercourse we had together, by 
 his preaching in the church and his daily lectures in the 
 hotel, he has left much of saving and comforting truth 
 behind him here. His sermon on Ps. iv. 7, was one of the 
 best I have ever heard from any one. His health is very 
 indifferent, and two full services on Sunday are evidently 
 beyond his strength." 
 
 Notwithstanding the apprehensions of doctors 
 and friends, Mr. Pennefather was enabled to return, 
 after a very short absence, to Mellifont, and the two 
 services were continued as long as he resided there. 
 We find him still occupied with the interests of 
 Roundstone, pleading with his friends on behalf of 
 the poor crippled girl Catherine Mangan, and send- 
 ing her the help obtained. At the end of October 
 in this same year, he writes from Kingscourt to his 
 friends at Sizergh — 
 
 "I came here this morning to attend our anniversary 
 meeting of the Irish Society, and remain here until 
 
i8o 
 
 VISIT TO LIVERPOOL. 
 
 [chap. VIII. 
 
 Thursday. I believe I may say that, if God permit, I 
 am to preach in Liverpool on Sunday, November 17th, for 
 the Irish Society. The most of that week will probably 
 be occupied with sermons and meetings. I go as the 
 servant of the Society, and cannot tell what more I may 
 be able to do, but I might possibly spend a few days at 
 Sizergh if you are able to receive me. If this is per- 
 mitted, may I come in the fulness of the blessing of the 
 Gospel of Christ! I do not set my heart on it, but 
 should feel it a rich mercy from the Lord. Oh ! dearest 
 friends, I need your prayers. I have never gone on this 
 sort of deputation before, and feel very unequal to the 
 task. I would not have undertaken it, but that they 
 could not find any one more suitable. Do pray that 
 truth, wisdom, and love may be poured into my lips. If 
 your beloved mother still tabernacles here, I would say, 
 may the fulness of Christ's blessing be her support and 
 consolation, may the Eternal Spirit sensibly abide with 
 her, may the Father of Mercies be her shield and her 
 exceeding great reward." 
 
 The only further notice of this visit to Liverpool, 
 which we find from his own pen, is in a short note 
 to Mr. Winning, dated — 
 
 ** Mcllifont, 
 
 " December yd, 1844. 
 
 ** My dear Friend, 
 
 " Young Clark mentions that you expect me 
 to preach at Kingscourt soon. Do pray excuse me. I 
 have been absent two Sundays in England lately, and 
 cannot leave my people again at present. You know how 
 hard it is to get away even for one Sunday. God blessed 
 our mission to Liverpool. In addition to about ;^6oo 
 collected at the time, one gentleman contributed, anony- 
 mously, i^iooo. May the Lord make us thankful ! We 
 
 1845.] 
 
 LETTER FROM MELLIFONT, 
 
 181 
 
 I 
 
 met with much kindness in England, but it was very 
 fatiguing work." 
 
 We give a few extracts from the correspondence 
 of the following year, the records of which are some- 
 what scanty. It seems to have been spent mostly 
 at home in the quiet routine of ministerial duties. 
 Of the results of his labours, at this or any other 
 time, we can gather little from his own pen. He 
 always shrank from speaking much of the success of 
 work in which he was himself more immediately 
 concerned. 
 
 After detailing: to a friend the circumstances of a 
 terrible accident in his household, he says — 
 
 *' March 6th, 1845. 
 
 " I have just finished reading Arnold's Life. His earnest 
 desires to glorify God, and extend the kingdom of Christ 
 on earth, are very striking. Much of his error seems to 
 have been in theory , while the practice of his life we can- 
 not fail to admire. His vivacity of mind, quick sensibility 
 of feeling, and true courage, made him peculiarly suitable 
 for his arduous position. In the training and moulding 
 of youthful minds he seems to stand unequalled, and the 
 reader cannot but regret, that he himself did not share 
 the instruction and moral influence of Dr. Arnold. The 
 variety of minds which shall be found amongst the 
 redeemed in glory, and all purified from dross, will con- 
 stitute a wondrous source of enjoyment, and the excel- 
 lences and lineaments of beauty separately discernible in 
 the creatures of His hands, will all be united and vividly 
 portrayed in the glorious countenance of our Emmanuel. 
 But I must write a letter, not an essay." 
 
n 
 
 182 
 
 LETTER FROM ARMAGH, [chap. viii. 
 
 To a Cousin, 
 
 ** The Palace, Armagh, 
 
 '^ March 12th, 1845. 
 
 ** Your dear letter was detained, and has only just 
 reached me, so I have wronged you deeply by fiercely 
 abusing you and B. in my letter to her. Here I am, and 
 when leaving Drogheda I called at the post and found 
 you faithful, when I deemed you so faithless ! 
 
 ** The day is piercingly cold, but I find myself in a 
 large, comfortable room, at the top of this square, three- 
 storied, dignified mansion ! The town of Armagh, with 
 its venerable cathedral, its pretty parish church, and un- 
 dulating hills, rises before me, with the trees of the palace 
 demesne as a foreground. I came at once to my room, 
 as we dine at seven, and I wished to scribble these few 
 lines to .plead my excuse, and to exonerate you. . . . 
 Armagh is a very enjoyable place, and I shall be glad 
 to see dear Haig,* but I always fear lest my enjoyments 
 should be earthly rather than spiritual, and Oh ! what is 
 this passing world 1 Elegance, refinement, beauty, wealth, 
 what are they all, unless linked with Him who is altogether 
 lovely, with Him who is God from everlasting ! 
 
 " When I met with much that is merely transitory, I 
 do desire to keep my eye on Him whose calm and holy 
 eye, as man, once looked on men, and who now beholds 
 us from the throne of His glory, and marks those who 
 live as He lived, and walk as He walked." 
 
 To R. Nugent f in Lofidon. 
 
 **May 12///, 1845. 
 
 "You are now in the midst of the battle-field. How 
 
 wonderful the aspect of the world at this crisis ! France 
 
 expels the Jesuits, Switzerland is contending for the same 
 
 politic measure, Germany is the scene of another Refor- 
 
 * A former schoolfellow who had entered the ministry. 
 
 
 1845.] 
 
 LETTERS FROM MELLIFONT. 
 
 \%t 
 
 mation, while England^ Protestant England, is attempting 
 to enact laws for the dominance of Popery over her once 
 free and enlightened people. We turn to America and 
 find the United States torn with dissensions, and loudly 
 calling for war against the mother-country. What will 
 the end be t May we be found watching ! . . . God bless 
 and keep you in His faith and fear ! '* 
 
 The next letter Is to his sister — 
 
 *' Mellifont, 
 
 " May i^thj 1845. 
 
 " I should have written sooner, but have been perplexed 
 with the affairs of the world— preparing to receive my 
 father and Mr. Kilby. They arrived to-day, and seem 
 delighted with the little place. I believe every one likes 
 it better than I did myself. However, I begin to warpt 
 to it. The transplanted tree takes a considerable time 
 before it adopts as its own the new soil into which it has 
 been plunged. But though I am slow to learn, I trust I 
 have learnt to feel that if God quickens and upholds me, 
 I shall be happy under any circumstances and in any 
 place, and if not, I vmst droop and wither. Oh, that His 
 Spirit may water and refresh us all ! 
 
 " I long to have dear S. near me, because his love of 
 Scripture is so helpful and quickening. . . . My father 
 wishes me to return with him on Thursday, but however 
 delightful it would be, I think it would not be right, as 
 I have a lecture at Monasterboice on that day." 
 
 To the same, 
 
 " Novetnher 2/^h. 
 "You will have me sooner than I expected. Please 
 God, I shall be with you early on Wednesday. The 
 Primate is to hold a meeting for the Additional Curate's 
 Fund, on Thursday, in St. Patrick's Cathedral, and I under- 
 stand he wishes his clergy from this end of the diocese to 
 
mm 
 
 1S4 
 
 LETTERS FROM MELLIFONT, [chap. viir. 
 
 ( 1155 ) 
 
 attend, so I shall probably be in town till Friday. . . . We 
 are about to enter on the ecclesiastical New Year. May 
 we be enabled to realise at this Advent season some of 
 the bright prospects in store for the Church at * the 
 appearing of Jesus Christ/ — the suppression of ungodli- 
 ness and universal diffusion of holiness, the cessation of 
 pain and sorrow, the resurrection of the departed saints, 
 and the glorification of all the living who are true 
 members of Christ's body ; the restoration of Judah and 
 Israel, the happiness of the inferior animals, the beauty 
 of the renovated earth ! When we dwell on such pros- 
 pects, shall we not feel our afflictions light, and our 
 labour for the Lord sweet, that Lord who is about to 
 reward us according to the riches of His own loving- 
 
 kindness." 
 
 CHAPTER IX. 
 1 846- 1 847. 
 
 Mission-Rooms and Cottage-Lectures— Early History of the Rev. R. 
 Ryder— Failing Health— Enforced absence from Home— Work 
 for the Irish Society— Recollections of an Irish friend— Visit to 
 Germany — Irish Famine — Recollections of visits to Kings- 
 court— Mission-school at Cloagh-Patrick— Visits to England- 
 Marriage— Days spent in Westmoreland— Letters. 
 
 TN the scattered parishes of Ballimacugh and 
 ^ MelHfont Mr. Pennefather acted on the 
 principle (aftervirards so prominent in all his 
 parochial arrangements, whether in town or 
 country) of forming local centres for gathering the 
 people in small groups, where they might be 
 reached more individually, and dealt with more 
 closely than could be done by an^ number of 
 ordinary church services. He always felt that these 
 alo7ie were utterly inadequate to meet the spiritual 
 necessities of an ignorant and careless population ; 
 and wherever in a densely-peopled or needy district 
 a suitable room could be obtained, and a small 
 audience collected, there a simple Bible-reading 
 or cottage-lecture was provided for them. — To 
 ^' get at the peoplel' as he used to say, "whether in 
 
T 
 
 i86 
 
 MISSION-ROOMS AND SERVICES. [chap. ix. 
 
 1846.] 
 
 MISSION-ROOMS AND SERVICES. 
 
 187 
 
 a barn or a cathedral," to win souls for Christ by all 
 means and any means, was his paramount object; 
 and many can remember the reiterated petition, 
 "Work, Lord, by whatsoever and whomsoever Thou 
 wilt, only worJk for Thine own glory." The 
 question has been often asked why Mr. Penne- 
 father's congregations should have been always 
 remarkable for an unusually large proportion of 
 communicants, when he was known so constantly 
 and solemnly to discourage a mere formal and 
 unhallowed attendance at the table of the Lord. 
 It was in great measure by means of these outlying 
 mission-rooms, lectures, and cottage-meetings scat- 
 tered over the parish, in addition to the work 
 steadily carried on in the church, that a people was 
 continually prepared to worship the Father in 
 spirit and in truth: God greatly blessed this con- 
 stant and varied labour. Numbers, whose changed 
 lives bore witness to a change of heart, became 
 personally known to the pastor, and presented 
 themselves for admission to the table of the Lord, 
 while it was the joy of his heart to examine and 
 welcome them, one by one, as they came forward 
 to join the ranks of earnest and devout communi- 
 cants.* His naturally quick eye and keen power 
 of observation gave him peculiar advantage. When 
 looking over the assembly (latterly so large) he 
 
 ♦ *' There was something inexpressibly tender," says one of these in later 
 years, ''in his welcome to the new communicant. Look and tone and act all 
 seemed to say, *• Come thou with us, and we will do thee good.* 
 
 used, as he said, " to lift up a prayer for each," 
 as he remembered the circumstances and needs of 
 each. Doubtless all this has been done by hun- 
 dreds of other ministers; but the continual syste- 
 matic building up of a church-centre (using the 
 word both in its ecclesiastical and spiritual sense), 
 by every variety of agency, all acting in the liberty 
 of love, resulted in that union of vitality and order 
 which was Mr. Pennefather s peculiar aim in every 
 department of the work intrusted to him. 
 
 In touching on this subject we may seem to be 
 anticipating, but in the letters written during his 
 earlier ministry, we find constant reference to the 
 hamlets, houses, or out-lying stations, where his 
 little mission-services were held, and from whence 
 many were gathered into the public services of 
 the sanctuary. While he remained in Ireland he 
 worked generally single-handed. In after years, 
 God gave him many faithful helpers and fellow- 
 labourers, whose gifts he rejoiced to recognise, and 
 who shared his prayers, his anxieties, and his joys. 
 
 In taking up the correspondence for 1846, we 
 find a letter written to his dear friends in West- 
 moreland on hearing of their probable removal from 
 Sizergh — 
 
 •'Mellifont, 
 
 "January 2$rci, 1846. 
 
 "The thought of your leaving Sizergh bewilders me. 
 
 It is sad to me on your account, on account of the people 
 
 around, and on my own. To me it was indeed a sacred 
 
 spot! What happiness and calmness breathed around 
 
1 88 
 
 THE REV. R. RYDER. 
 
 [chap. IX 
 
 me, without and within, while dwelling under its roof! 
 But the voice of Him who never speaks but in love to 
 His children has come, * Arise ye, and depart.' Shall 
 we not obey willingly } His Presence can turn any of 
 His dealings into light and peace." 
 
 Acrain — 
 
 ** That place has been an Eden to me, and a Bethel, 
 too ; the unceasing tenderness and acts of friendship 
 shown there to me and mine can never be forgotten, but 
 will constitute a theme of thanksgiving when the new 
 heaven and the new earth shall have taken the place of 
 our present tabernacles. May God daily lead us to think 
 of that City which hath foundations, which His infinite 
 love and wisdom has prepared for the eternal dwelling- 
 place of His children." 
 
 Early in this year Mr. Pennefather first be- 
 came acquainted with one whose after history he 
 watched with the deepest interest, and who held 
 a place in his remembrance long after they had 
 been widely separated in the great harvest-field. 
 A few lines from Mr. Ryder's pen will best tell 
 its own tale. 
 
 ** I remember well the visit I paid to Mellifont in 1846. 
 Mr. Pennefather was the first friend who showed me 
 kindness after I had renounced the errors of the Church 
 of Rome.* He came at once to see me, and invited me 
 to Mellifont. I had many profitable discussions with 
 him, and he prayed often for and with me. We read 
 various portions of Holy Scripture bearing on the points 
 in dispute between the two Churches. He took me with 
 him as he visited some of his parishioners, and I profited 
 much by his conversations and prayers during these visits. 
 
 * Mr. Ryder had been for ten years a Roman Catholic priest, and is now 
 Rector of Errismore, near Clifden, Galway, 
 
 ♦' 
 
 i 
 
 l^.«.6.] 
 
 THE REV. R. RYDER. 
 
 189 
 
 His family prayers, morning and evening, struck me as 
 testifying such deep and close communion with the 
 Saviour, whose servant he was, that they filled me with 
 joy, and gave me wonderful strength," 
 
 Mr. Ryder goes on to speak of the difficulty he 
 had felt with regard to the expression used in 
 the Apostles' Creed, as repeated in our Protestant 
 Churches, " I believe in the Holy Catholic Church," 
 and of a conversation with Mr. Pennefather, in 
 which he had opened out the meaning of the church 
 universal in its fullest sense, and adds — 
 
 " A beam of light entered my soul, and the last link 
 that held me was broken. I thanked him from my 
 heart for the solution of a difficulty which had never 
 before been satisfactorily explained." 
 
 Mr. Ryder corresponded with Mr. Pennefather 
 for some litde time, and was afterwards introduced 
 to Mr. Dallas, from whose published memoir we 
 may be permitted to make a short extract, as it 
 helps us to follow the course of one who has been 
 for many years a diligent and faithful minister of 
 the Protestant Church in Connemara. 
 
 " One of those priests mentioned by Mr. Dallas, as being 
 in communication with him, was the Rev. R. Ryder, who 
 had been brought up at Maynooth, and had been most 
 earnest and laborious in the village of Rooveagh, where 
 all his friends and relations lived. He had been brought 
 to see the errors of his Church, and his conversion had 
 subjected him to much persecution. Mr. Dallas felt that 
 if this man were really to be trusted, he would be the very 
 agent that was needed to carry on the work. One who 
 
190 
 
 THE REV. R, RYDER, 
 
 [chap. IX. 
 
 If 
 
 knew by training and by experience the doctrines of 
 Rome, would possess a power in the controversy he was 
 eng^aged to carry on. He determined to give him the 
 severest test of his sincerity, by offering him to undertake 
 the mission in the very parish in which he had acted as 
 priest. He put before him the great work to be done, and 
 the example of the apostles and prophets, who loved not 
 their lives unto death, adding that he would himself go 
 with him to support him in the entrance of his work, that 
 he would give him two readers to assist him, and visit the 
 mission himself at every emergency. 
 
 " Mr. Ryder took a night to consider the proposal, and 
 after the natural struggle to which such a prospect of trial 
 and persecution gave rise, consented to cast himself upon 
 God, and undertake the work in the full conviction that His 
 Almighty arm alone would raise him from death. Mr. 
 Dallas accompanied him to Rooveagh in April ; he settled 
 down as a reader, and six months after this, when Mr. 
 Dallas visited him, he brought forward between forty and 
 fifty persons who were willing to learn the Scriptures and 
 receive his visits," * 
 
 But the labours of 1846 were to be much inter- 
 rupted. Soon after Mr. Ryder's visit to Mellifont, 
 we find reference in Mr. Pennefather's letters to the 
 prospect of an enforced absence from home, which 
 greatly tried him. Increased weakness and suffering 
 had compelled him again to seek medical advice, 
 and Sir Henry Marsh was peremptory in requiring 
 cessation from his parish work for several months. 
 In allusion to this subject, he writes from Mellifont, 
 March 18 th, — 
 
 * See •• Incidents in the Life and Ministry of the Rev. A. R. C. Dallas, 
 A.M.," page 354. 
 
 1846.] PROPOSED ABSENCE FROM IRELAND. 
 
 ipt 
 
 " I have to thank you for your dear and valued letter 
 just received. It was a sweet cheer to me on reaching my 
 lonely home in rather a lonely spirit. I have been much 
 harassed about my plans, though my Heavenly Father 
 seems wonderfully to have smoothed my way. But to 
 leave my home for several months^ is a great trial ! It is 
 now nearly arranged that the Rev. E. Hamilton and his 
 family come here, and that he will undertake the duty 
 (both Sunday and week-day). It is probable that he will 
 remain five months, and that if I am spared to return, I 
 shall re-occupy my wee dwelling early in October. What 
 is to become of me during that interval I know not. Sir 
 H. Marsh spoke of Germany, and then Switzerland. 
 However, I purpose at present to leave Ireland about the 
 15th of May, and go direct to Sizergh, if you can receive 
 me, and from thence in about ten days to London, and 
 then, I know not whither. It is indeed sweet amid 
 perplexities to think of seeing you both, my beloved 
 friends, and seeing too that dear spot ere you leave it. I 
 am very glad you have secured such a retreat as EUeray. 
 I cannot say I know it exactly, though I thi7ik I do. , . 
 
 Last week I was absent examining schools, which the 
 clergy have to do every half year, as they may be ap- 
 pointed. It is very fatiguing, but a needful work ; and I 
 have still three more to visit. The Irish meetinor in 
 Dublin went off well, and I had much interesting inter- 
 course with some of the Irish teachers. ... If it please 
 God that my health be strengthened, I do ask that I may 
 be enabled to give myself more entirely to His service." 
 
 It was just at this time that he paid a visit to 
 Dromisken, in reference to which an Irish friend 
 writes : * My recollections of that beloved saint of 
 God, the Rev. William Pennefather, go back to 
 the March of 1846, when he came to take part in the 
 
192 
 
 VISIT TO DROMISKEN, 
 
 [chap IX. 
 
 annual examination of the Irish readers, held that 
 year in the parochial school of Dromisken, near 
 Castlebellingham. I shall never forget the impres- 
 sion he made on me. He was evidently in very 
 delicate health, and his whole manner and bearino- 
 gave me the idea of a being belonging to another 
 world, to which I felt sure he was soon going ; and 
 I said to the clergyman's wife after he went away, 
 * You have indeed entertained an angel.' — His sym- 
 pathy and quick perception of the feelings of others 
 especially struck me. A very shy, retiring young 
 clergyman was one of the party, and I well recollect 
 Mr. Pennefather's kindness to him, setting him at 
 ease, and bringing him forward in conversation, 
 strongly impressing me with his own unselfishness, 
 so evidently finding his enjoyment in that of others. 
 "I sat next to him at luncheon, and can recall 
 even now the holy tone of his conversation, and 
 the stanzas of a hymn which he repeated with the 
 deepest feeling, his whole manner and expression 
 marking him as one whose communion with heaven 
 was deep and abiding. A lady who was at that time 
 staying in the house was very unhappy. She had 
 imbibed what were then called Tractarian views, 
 from reading the * Tracts for the Times,' which had 
 been recently published. Mr. Pennefather was 
 asked to speak to her, but she declined conversation 
 with him, saying that her opinions were dearer to 
 her than life, while her friends could see in them 
 nothing but evil. Mr. Pennefather's candid remark, 
 
 1846.] 
 
 MEETINGS OF IRISH TEACHERS. 
 
 193 
 
 t 
 
 
 that he * desired always to seek out the good in 
 everything and only to reject the evil,* was used of 
 God as the thin end of the wedge, which opened 
 the way for her deliverance from opinions which 
 were causing great distress and alienation in her 
 family. 
 
 ** At the examination of the Irish readers Mr. 
 Pennefather took the second lesson for the day, 
 Luke xiii., and I shall never forget the feeling of 
 that meeting, or the holy earnestness with which 
 that brave band of men, many of them far advanced 
 in years, drank from their young teacher's lips of 
 the river of the water of life. The next time I saw 
 Mr. Pennefather was at a crowded meeting in the 
 Rotunda, Dublin. I well remember his quick 
 observation of two ladies who came in late, and 
 were unable to find seats. He came down from the 
 platform with two camp-stools, which he placed for 
 them, one little instance of the characteristic which 
 distinguished all his after life to a remarkable 
 degree, * least of all, and servant of all.' " 
 
 Very few records have been preserved of the 
 months of absence from Mellifont. Part of the time 
 was spent at Langen-Schwalbach, where his loneli- 
 ness was cheered by a seemingly casual acquaintance 
 formed with an English family, which resulted in a 
 life-long friendship. A note written to his friend 
 Mrs. Crewdson, bearing the date of Levens Parson- 
 age, Sept. 1 8th, seems to tell that he returned to 
 England with a measure of renewed strenoih. 
 
,-, ,i>;* 
 
 194 
 
 IR/SN FAMINE. 
 
 [CHAP. IXj 
 
 « I am well, thank God, after walking here from Elleray. 
 When the coach overtook me yesterday it was full, so I 
 was compelled to walk to Brigsteer, and got on gaily. 
 Your old woman was out. I questioned the children at the 
 school, and they answered nicely, ha they were reading 
 the Revelation ! ! Mrs. Hall was ill, and glad to see me. 
 She is most anxious that * her prayers may be answered.' 
 and that you may see an opening for a school near you. 
 God bless you, beloved friend. I felt much in passing 
 through Brigsteer wood, and by the gate of old Sizergh. 
 Yet s'urely we ought to thank God for mercies past, and 
 take courage. Many a bright beam of love has strayed 
 through the old windows, which will shine on our path for 
 ever." 
 
 When Mr. Pennefather returned to Ireland, he 
 found the whole country groaning under the 
 scourge of famine. The potato-blight, which was 
 looked upon as a calamity in England, meant 
 nothing less than starvation to the population of 
 the sister isle. In the west and south the desola- 
 tion was appalling ; and even in more favoured dis- 
 tricts the daily increasing distress drew largely on 
 the sympathy and purses of the resident gentry 
 and clergy. Relief-committees were organised and 
 public works set on foot for the employment of the 
 famishing people, but the wide-spread misery 
 seemed to baffle the most energetic effort. In the 
 early part of the winter of 1846 Mr. Pennefather 
 writes from Mellifont, November i8th — 
 
 "The money sent has been a most timely assistance, 
 for even here the poverty is great. It is wages the 
 people want; food there is at present, if there were 
 
 1847.] 
 
 IRISH FAMINE, 
 
 195 
 
 money to purchase it. On Monday I was at the Relief 
 Committee, and pinching hunger was too plainly written 
 on the faces of many of the people. I am going to drain 
 a field I have, make walks, &c., to try and find employ- 
 ment for a few. But it is always difficult to close such 
 works, and of course I could not long continue them. . . . 
 We are to have two services on Tuesday. The day will, 
 I believe, be observed throughout Ireland. Pray for us, 
 that light may spring up among our dark peasantry, and 
 that food for soul and body may be provided by Him who 
 can satisfy the desire of every living thing." 
 
 Amid the trials of this dreary winter, on which 
 he used to look back with a shudder at the remem- 
 brance of its loneliness and terrible anxieties, his 
 spirit was refreshed by a visit to Kingscourt ; and 
 the Rev. Hugh Gelston (the present rector of 
 that place, then curate to Mr. Winning), when 
 referring to those days of united labour, writes: 
 ** It was in the midst of the Irish Famine, in the 
 February of 1847, that he and I exchanged duty — 
 I going to Mellifont and he coming to Kingscourt. 
 On this occasion he preached for our schools, and, 
 as was usual with him, was eminently successful. 
 Surely our God must have blessed his work wher- 
 ever he went I Among Mr. Pennefather s many 
 visits to Kingscourt, I have a very lively remem- 
 brance of one, when he came in company with 
 other clergymen to examine our Irish schools, or 
 rather teachers, with a sample of scholars necessary 
 to be produced. They were divided into separate 
 classes, and a clergyman set to each in different 
 
196 
 
 VISITS TO KINGSCOURT, 
 
 [chap. IX. 
 
 rooms. I was with Mr. Pennefather in his room, 
 and I remember well his delicate appearance, and, 
 I might almost say, the heavenly look which he 
 had then as a young man, which got for him in our 
 own immediate circle the name of *St. John.' The 
 men opened their Bibles at Acts xiii. 44, each read 
 his verse in Irish and translated it into English, 
 and when this was done, the questioning com- 
 menced. I never remember a more interesting 
 meeting. The next day we had evening service in 
 church, and Mr. Pennefather preached from 2 Cor. 
 vi. 19, 20." 
 
 Miss Winning, writing from America, and recal- 
 ling the happy days of Kingscourt, gathers up many 
 interesting incidents connected with one who was 
 greatly beloved by her honoured father. A little 
 instance recorded by her of the sacredness which he 
 always attached to a promise may be given here — 
 
 '*I remember on one occasion, when Mr. Pennefather 
 had been with us for a few days, my father expressed an 
 earnest desire that he should remain to preach on Sunday. 
 He seemed to wish it himself, but still decidedly refused. 
 At last Papa said, * Mr. Pennefather, unless you can give 
 some very good reason for leaving, I shall really feel hurt.* 
 He then said he had promised to visit a dying girl on 
 Saturday evening, and could not disappoint her. He had 
 not mentioned it before, as he might seem to be attaching 
 too much importance to his visits. We heard afterwards 
 that he had been the means of bringing that young girl 
 to the Saviour." 
 
 The same friend adds— 
 
 
 t--™- --■^!*-'&i*p«i(^i'^¥S'^8*^"^i^5^^*^^ 
 
 
 1847.] 
 
 VISITS TO KINGSCOURT, 
 
 197 
 
 " I shall never forget my dear father's grief, when he 
 heard of Mr. Pennefather's removal to England, for of all 
 the many clergymen that frequented our house, not one 
 was so welcomed when he came, or so regretted when he 
 left." 
 
 Before closing our reminiscences of Kingscourt, 
 we may insert an interesting sketch, from the pen 
 of Miss Mason, of one of the meetings held there, 
 giving a little idea of Irish work at that time. 
 After describing her meeting with Mr. Pennefather 
 on " a blessed occasion never to be forgotten," she 
 says — 
 
 " The following evening, I think it was, Mr. Winning 
 took me on a car to a cabin a few miles distant. It was a 
 dark November evening; and when we arrived at the 
 cabins, we left our car, and walked in the dark about a 
 mile further, not on a road, but through fields, over hedges 
 and ditches and among ponds, accompanied by a number 
 of the poor Irish scholars, who literally almost carried me 
 over all the dirty spots with the greatest tenderness, till 
 we arrived at another cabin (in a field) where we found 
 the room (not a small one) crowded with Irish scholars, 
 men and women. There was a long table or board, 
 round which as many as there was room for sat, and the 
 rest of the space was crowded with men standing. There 
 were^two candles, one stuck in a hole in the table, the 
 other passed from hand to hand, according as the people 
 read their verse, for all had a copy of God's Word, and 
 read alternately. I suppose we were there about two 
 hours, and the meeting was intensely interesting. All 
 could read, and all who were questioned answered admir- 
 ably, and seemed well acquainted with Scripture. One 
 of the texts considered was Rom. viii. i, 2; those ques- 
 tioned on it seemed greatly to value the blessed truth 
 
I :-! 
 
 198 
 
 VARIOUS MISSIONARY EFFORTS, [chap. ix. 
 
 taught in that portion of God's Word. We came home 
 at nearly twelve o'clock as we went, carefully guarded 
 by a number of kind protectors." * 
 
 The same beloved friend writes — 
 
 " Dublin, 
 
 "January I'^rdyi^'jy.-y 
 
 "As to the Irish work, for 60 years I have loved, and 
 tried to help it. I can remember the starting of the 
 Irish Society, the Achill Mission, Mr. Gayer and his work, 
 then Mr. Dallas, and all were marvellously blessed. 
 In Achill there are three churches in an island where 
 not a Protestant existed, in Connemara a number well 
 known, in Kerry five churches in one locality, where no 
 Protestants were to be found; and what is the general 
 state of Ireland now.^ In every quarter where any 
 missionary effort has been attempted, the Roman Catho- 
 lics not only do not persecute, but listen in numbers 
 quietly and reverently to the Word of God." 
 
 In the spring of 1847 Mr. Dallas paid one of 
 his missionary visits to Dublin ; and it was pro- 
 bably then, though we have no record of the cir- 
 cumstances, that the friendship was formed, which 
 subsisted between him and Mr. Pennefather for so 
 many years. 
 
 But to return to MelHfont. In 1846 Mr. Penne- 
 father opened a mission-school, in a small hamlet at 
 the extremity of his parish, called Cloagh Patrick, 
 in the town-land of Tullyallan. He was painfully 
 conscious that little or no inroad had been made 
 
 * It does not appear whether this meeting was conducted by Mr. Winning 
 or Mr. Pennefather, though we find it alluded to in other letters. 
 
 t Before the close of the year, this honoured servant of the Lord was 
 called into her Master's presence, at the age of 87. 
 
 0m^^ps' 
 
 
 X847.] 
 
 SCHOOL AT CLOAGH PATRICK". 
 
 199 
 
 upon the Roman Catholic population, and taking 
 the largest cottage he could find he fitted it up 
 for a school and the residence of a school-mistress, 
 determining to make it a centre for missionary 
 effort. The first attempt, however, was unsuccess- 
 ful, as the mistress, after working for a short time, 
 was incapacitated by illness, and the school was 
 closed. But the disappointment was soon sur- 
 mounted, and in the spring of 1847 Mr. Penne- 
 father returned from Dublin, bringing with him a 
 zealous young teacher, whose spirit had been fired 
 by listening to the fervent appeals of Mr. Dallas, 
 and the school was re-opened on the 9th of April. 
 The numbers soon rose to eighty, irrespective of 
 the large influx of irregular scholars, who dropped 
 in occasionally. The mistress fully entered into 
 the missionary character of the school, and every 
 moment of spare time was devoted to a loving 
 ministry among the starving people around. This 
 school, with the important work emanating from it, 
 was an object of great anxiety as well as deep 
 interest to Mr. Pennefather while he remained in 
 Ireland, and the strain put upon his own slender 
 resources by the needs of a famine-stricken people, 
 necessitated the additional labour of collecting funds. 
 In the early part of this summer we find him in 
 England, spending some time in Kent, where he 
 met her who was to be his wife, and visiting his 
 valued friend Mr. Dallas at Wonston. The later 
 summer months were spent in his parish, cheered 
 
doo 
 
 MARRIAGE. 
 
 [chap. IX. 
 
 I 
 
 by the prosperity of his little missionary settlement 
 at Cloagh Patrick. 
 
 He returned to Kent in September, and was 
 married on the i6th of that month to Catherine, 
 eldest daughter of Admiral King of Angley. The 
 marriage-service was performed in the fine old 
 parish church of Cranbrook, by his dear friend Mr. 
 Cleaver, who now became his uncle.* 
 
 " William Pennefather married I " wrote an old 
 friend, " I cannot at all realise it. I have so lone 
 thought of him as a dear saint of God, just on the 
 wing for heaven." One who knew and loved both 
 husband and wife, sent her congratulations in the 
 words of the Apostle : " What thanks can we render 
 to God again for you, for all the joy wherewith we 
 joy for your sakes before our God." 
 
 In the first hotel at which they spent a short time 
 after their marriage, Mr. Pennefather commenced 
 the practice, which he carried on throughout his 
 life, of collecting the servants of the hotel, and as 
 many of the guests as were willing to accept his 
 invitation, for Bible-reading and prayer. On this 
 first occasion God granted a gracious token of en- 
 couragement in the testimony of one of the servants, 
 given before he left the house, to the great blessing 
 she had received. 
 
 Before returning to Ireland he paid a visit to his 
 
 Rear- Admiral the Honourable James William King, youngest son of 
 Robert, Earl of Kingston, married the daughter of Euseby Cleaver, Arch- 
 bishop of Dublin, whose eldest soa was William Cleaver, Rector of Delgany, 
 in the county of Wicklow. 
 
 .w...-Mft -> .•/-#*»E^-r""t! 
 
 i*=--'^!..?f,-a^i^,,T. \l--r.p'-^^- .■'■..-~«T,^;,xl.-^--~,,^.4SSf^^^ , 
 
 1847.] 
 
 VISIT TO WESTMORELAND. 
 
 201 
 
 "English home," anxious to introduce his wife to 
 its beauties, as well as to the large circle of his 
 Westmoreland friends. The autumn was singu- 
 larly bright and propitious for the enjoyment of 
 the country ; and the delight with which he pointed 
 out its familiar scenes to one who had never been 
 among them before can well be imagined. 
 
 One friend, who can still recall that happy season, 
 writes : — " I had known him as a youth at Levens 
 Parsonage, preparing for the University, when 
 his life was a practical commentary on the 13th 
 chapter of i Corinthians, an example oi faith and 
 hope and love. As time went on, I remember how 
 skilful he was in setting forth the sympathy of Jesus, 
 in a time of deep anguish and bereavement. I call 
 to mind his direct and transparent way of dealing 
 with Scripture at Bible-readings, and the calm and 
 restful look, with the upward glance, which seemed 
 to say, * Oh, send out Thy light and Thy truth, let 
 them lead me.' And I have one very bright recol- 
 lection of him when his tide of human happiness 
 was at its height. It was during a stay at Elleray, 
 shortly after his marriage. 
 
 " I was privileged to drive with him and his 
 wife to Langdale. . . . Everything in the beauti- 
 ful scenery was at its best ; there was sunshine 
 within and without. It was natural for him to 
 seek expression for joy in the house of prayer, so, 
 at his suggestion, we went into the little church on 
 the centre knoll, and there, in sight of the mountain 
 
-..,. I 
 
 i-^-'^-^^S'^ ^?"f^ 
 
 
 202 
 
 LETTER FROM DUBLIN, 
 
 [chap. IX. 
 
 grandeur, within those quiet walls, he poured out 
 prayer and praise from an overflowing heart. It 
 seemed to me a very Presence-chamber of the 
 Eternal, a realisation of the truth that 
 
 * The Church below and those above, 
 But one Communion make.' " 
 
 Little can be added to the records of this year 
 from his own correspondence, as few letters have 
 been preserved which supply anything like a con- 
 nected narrative. Some thoughts of interest may 
 be gathered out from such as remain, before we 
 return to Mellifont. 
 
 In a letter written from Dublin, July 17th, he 
 speaks of his great pleasure in discovering the ap- 
 preciation of painting in some uneducated minds — 
 
 " When I showed them the picture, they could not help 
 weeping, and I could not help rejoicing that they took 
 in the beauty, and were able to grasp the conception. It 
 is real enjoyment to see the humbler classes able to enter 
 into refined gratifications such as music and painting. 
 Perhaps the Irish do so especially, but I feel that the 
 channels opened to us by works of art, by sweet sounds 
 and pleasant sights have not been used as they might 
 have been for cultivating and refining our peasantry. I 
 would not of course depend on these things, or carry them 
 too far, nothing can satisfy the soul of man but * the 
 Bread of Life, which came down from heaven, and of 
 which if a man eat, he shall live for ever.' But man is a 
 compound being, and God has met his nature at all 
 points. He has given food for the body, the intellect, 
 and the affections ; He has surrounded us with forms of 
 beauty, and man is permitted to copy and represent and 
 delight in these works of His Father's hand." 
 
 1 
 
 1847.] 
 
 LETTERS FROM MELLIFONT, 
 
 203 
 
 The thought here touched upon was one which 
 held a prominent place in Mr. Pennefathers mind, 
 and might be traced in all his arrangements for the 
 poor. Flowers, pictures, and music always had 
 their place in the mission-work over which he pre- 
 sided, at a time when the power of these things was 
 far less appreciated than is now the case. 
 
 Again, writing from Mellifont in the same month, 
 he says — 
 
 " May we ever know what it is * to walk in the light 
 as He is in the light.* It implies — ist, To walk in 
 acceptance. 2nd, To walk in ever increasing knowledge, 
 3rd, To walk in koiiness. 4th, To walk mjoy. 5th, To 
 walk in a groiving sense of God's presence and favour. 
 And to abide in this knowledge, holiness, joy, and 
 blessed sense of favour, to maintain this fellowship (which 
 is in its measure like the deep love that subsists 
 between the Father and the Son), there must ever be 
 the realisation that 'the blood of Jesus Christ His Son 
 cleanseth us from all sin.' That thought oi fellowship is 
 indeed marvellous, passing comprehension ! But it glori- 
 fies the Father who * Himself loveth you,' it glorifies the 
 work of Jesus which has brought it about, it glorifies the 
 divine Spirit who begets and sustains the blessed inter- 
 course.' " 
 
 The next letter alludes to the Mission-school at 
 Cloagh Patrick — 
 
 "Mellifont, 
 
 ^^ August 7 ik, 1847. 
 
 " On my way home from some distant visits, I called at 
 
 the school, but the children were dismissed, so I could 
 
 only talk to the mistress, who is full of love and anxiety 
 
Ei 
 
 It 
 
 204 
 
 LETTERS FROM MELLIFONT. [chap. IX. 
 
 about them. From thence I went to visit the Police- 
 Barrack, and heard from the wife of one of the sergeants, 
 who is a truly pious woman, a most cheering testimony 
 to the effect of the school upon the neighbourhood. She 
 said nothing could surpass the zeal and anxiety of the 
 teacher, and the children's voices are heard in hymns of 
 praise along the roads, instead of a constant sound of 
 angry curses. Her eyes filled with tears as she spoke, 
 and I could not help asking her and her husband, with 
 two other men who were present, to kneel down while I 
 thanked Him, who orders all things for His own eternal 
 glory, that He had so far prospered us. . . . 
 
 " In your allusion to Psalm cxiii. you have touched a 
 passage which peculiarly interests me. In the first part 
 of the psalm, the Psalmist speaks of Jehovah's majesty 
 as the ground of praise, and then, verse by verse, as he 
 proceeds, the subject seems to expand before his mind, 
 till he exclaims, ' Who is like unto the Lord our God, who 
 dwelleth on high !' as if he would fill others with the same 
 grand conceptions. Next comes the contrast, this great- 
 ness of God brought alongside of His condescension. 
 • He humbleth Himself to behold the things that are in 
 heaven.' It is a vast descent for Deity to look with com- 
 placency on anything finite, yet God does delight in the 
 angels who stand around His throne and sing His praises. 
 But He descends further yet, earth (this little world, hang- 
 ing like a tiny dew-drop in the vast field of space), has a 
 place in His thoughts and is under His care. 'He be- 
 holdeth the things that are in the earth.' Can He stoop 
 lower ? Yes ! He has come down to the sinners of this 
 sinful earth, and has stooped to lift the poor from the dust 
 and the needy from the dung-hill, to set them among 
 princes, even among the princes of His people.' ... I 
 have been thinking of Mrs. R., and feel much for her. How 
 often God rends our bowers that His own light may shine 
 in through the opening His hand has made I Truly His 
 
 0' 
 
 > 
 
 i847.] 
 
 LETTERS FROM MELLTFONT. 
 
 205 
 
 ways are past finding out, and eternity will not suffice to 
 comprehend the wondrous love that has guided all our 
 journeyings through this wilderness-world. When we are 
 safe on the mount of glory, and can look back on the path- 
 way, tracing out every turn in the light of God's counten- 
 ance, what a burst of thankfulness will follow ! We are 
 very near the confines of eternity. A few more gleams of 
 sunshine, a few more clouds of trial, a little more weariness, 
 a little tossing, and then—'¥ot ever with the Lord!' 
 and this our portion ! and wherefore ? — Oh ! the depth of 
 the riches of His grace ! ... Is it not strange that the 
 language of triumph and holy joy should ever be re- 
 strained ? Strange that a little sorrow, a little pain or 
 weakness or temptation, should obscure the glorious 
 prospect which lies before us ! — But 2i farthing held close 
 to the eye will hide out the loveliest scene in all creation, 
 and when the eye of the mind is darkened by present 
 things, either joy or sorrow, Christ and salvation, heaven 
 and eternity, all these realities are out of sight. ... I 
 know too often what it is to hear the voice of God walking, 
 as it were, among the trees of the garden, while still my 
 soul cries out, * Let me see Thy face, for Thy countenance 
 is comely.'— God bless you with the bright shiniftg of His 
 
 face ! " 
 
 " September yd* 
 
 ** You ask about Col. i. 20. I have often thought that 
 when the angels, who kept not their first estate, were 
 driven by Jehovah from His holy sanctuary in heaven, 
 ihey left the stain of guilt there. It was necessary that all 
 imperfection should be removed from the dwelling-place 
 of the Most High, and it behoved the Holy One to show 
 to the unfallen spirits His hatred of sin, and His power to 
 cleanse His temple from any defilement which sin had 
 left there. Therefore our blessed Redeemer entered into 
 the 'holy place with His own blood,' manifesting His 
 hatred of all iniquity, and showing to the elect angds that 
 
 
 w 
 
2o6 
 
 LETTER FROM WESTMORELAND. [cHAP. rx. 
 
 in His grace and power they stand, and that now there is 
 security that transgression shall never again enter heaven. 
 The blood sprinkled there, in the sight of all its mighty 
 hosts, as a warrant from Jehovah, that they shall be kept, 
 and a lesson to all created intelligences that Christ is the 
 Life of His creatures. *By Him all things consist: His 
 work is the glory of God, and the source of all blessing to 
 the inhabitants of earth and heaven. Thus angels and 
 redeemed men will unite to praise Jehovah for the work 
 of the Incarnate Son. Angels will see their safety in Him, 
 men will acknowledge their deliverance from ruin, all, all 
 the fruit of a Saviour's mighty love I 
 
 " Does this thought commend itself to you ? '* 
 
 We close with a few lines written from West- 
 moreland — 
 
 " We had a most enjoyable afternoon yesterday. The 
 mist rolled off the fine amphitheatre of mountains round 
 the head of Windermere, and we rowed up the lake, 
 entering the river which flows into it, and pursued our 
 way between its banks. The river is formed by the 
 confluence of two bright streams, which having woke up 
 their respective valleys with their joyous music, unite 
 before they enter Windermere, and in one deep tranquil 
 flow of waters, find their way into the bosom of the lake. 
 The rugged mountains come precipitously down to the 
 water-side, and beyond rises summit above summit, with 
 the sun sinking behind them. ... Oh ! to be ever rising, 
 ever springing up in thought and afl"ection towards Him^ 
 the eternal One, from whom all beauty and blessing 
 
 flow ! 
 
 **0n Sunday we went to Rydal Church, that pretty 
 little church at the foot of a craggy hill, with clambering 
 ivy and tufts of heath, nestling under the branches of 
 native oak. I missed the Wordsworths ; their place was 
 
 
 
 1847.] DEATH OF WORDSWORTirS DAUGHTER. 207 
 
 empty, sorrow has entered their home.* Oh ! that they 
 may know what it is to abide beneath the wings of Ever- 
 lasting Love, and there hearken to the voice of One, who 
 says to His trembling children, 'It is I, be not afraid V 
 Our sermon was on Rom. viii. 32. I have been thinking 
 much of the passage. A blessed inference deduced from 
 an amazing fact ! the inference and the fact both worthy 
 of Jehovah, both equally beyond the conception of man ! 
 All things are ours! through Christ, with Christ, /// 
 Christ!" 
 
 • The deaih of their only daughter, which had just taken place. 
 
 I 
 
 l 
 
I 
 
 ¥^' W 
 
 il I. 
 
 ( zo8 ) 
 
 CHAPTER X. 
 
 I 847- I 848. 
 
 Return to Mellifont-Prevalence of Famine-fever-Relief g|ven at the 
 Mission-school-Visit to Dublin-IUness'-Death of Adm.ral Kmg 
 -Offer of a Church at Aylesbury-Removal to England-History 
 of the building of Trinity Church, Walton-Great need ot Schools 
 -Efforts of lomanism-Temporary School and S,te purchased 
 for a new Building-Preaching to the Bargemen-Crowded 
 Church-Letters to Miss Mason-Prayer-meetings. 
 
 THE opening of November 1847 ^und Mr. and 
 Mrs. Pennefather settled at Mellifont, in the 
 midst of a starving and fever-stricken population. 
 The prospects of the country were improving— it 
 was confidently hoped that the worst was over, and 
 far-seeing friends of Ireland could discern the 
 wonder-working providence of God, in detaching 
 her peasantry from their exclusive dependence on 
 the potato crop. But for the present, the scourge 
 was still heavy on the land, and, added to the 
 scarcity of food, the usual distressing consequence 
 in the form of famine-fever was carrying off its 
 
 thousands. 
 
 Among .the Protestant inhabitants, who were 
 looked upon as Mr. Pennefather's charge, there 
 was comparatively but little destitution, and his 
 
 
 1847-48] 
 
 FAMINE AND FEVER, 
 
 209 
 
 wisdom was called in question by many, for 
 attempting to touch the ocean of misery that lay 
 around. 
 
 To any one acquainted with the suburbs of 
 Drogheda, the most degraded of which lay in the 
 direction of Mellifont, such a view of the case may 
 not appear unreasonable. Nevertheless, we believe 
 there are few who could have lived in the vicinity 
 of such appalling wretchedness, hearing from day 
 to day, as a minister must do, its harrowing details, 
 without making some little effort, however hope- 
 lessly inadequate, to alleviate the suffering. Per- 
 haps none but those accustomed to Irish poverty 
 can realise the indolent endurance with which hun- 
 dreds of ragged creatures will sit, from morning 
 till night, around any dwelling where they have the 
 faintest hope of obtaining, as they say, " bit or sup." 
 During the earlier months of this trying winter 
 Mellifont Glebe was literally besieged by crowds, 
 whose looks told but too plainly the tale of hunger 
 and sickness. To shut doors and hearts was im-. 
 possible; but while meal was served out for some 
 hours daily, it was with the painful conviction that 
 little real good was accomplished, and .that the 
 people were sinking lower and lower in a degrading 
 pauperism. The same work was going on at the 
 little school-house at Tully-Allan, but with more 
 satisfaction in the case of the children, who could 
 not, under any circumstances, have earned their own 
 living. To them, too, there was some possibility. 
 
210 
 
 »\ 
 
 h h 
 
 RELIEF GIVEN AT THE SCHOOL, [chap. X. 
 
 Utterly precluded among the adults, of ministering 
 the Bread of Life as well as the bread that perisheth. 
 Our only memoranda of this period are a few notes 
 jotted down by the school-mistress. 
 
 " One feature of our work was the necessity of feeding 
 the perishing bodies of those famishing little ones. 
 FindincT that many of them had no food before commg to 
 schoorMr. Pennefather, with the aid of the same friends, 
 in Dublin, who had so kindly furnished us with books and 
 school-requisites, supplied Indian-meal and nee, which 
 was made into porridge, and served out in wooden bowls 
 Our difficulties were many. In the whole neighbourhood 
 we could not purchase half a pint of milk, until some of 
 • the constabulary procured a goat, which gave us temporary 
 aid Many never tasted a morsel from day to day, except 
 what was supplied to them at the school, and the cases 
 of utter destitution coming under our notice I dare not 
 
 attempt to describe. 
 
 ** On one occasion, a poor woman came to the door just 
 at my dinner-time, and not having anything left in the 
 house but the piece of bread on the table, I gave it to her. 
 She had tasted no food for some days except a turnip 
 pulled up in a field, and after eagerly eating the bread, she 
 dropped down dead in the next house she entered. We 
 were obliged to close the windows, or we could have eaten 
 no food ourselves : often the supplies were out and the 
 . last shilling gone. But the people's hearts were won, 
 and I had no uncivil word in all my wanderings, early 
 
 and late. 
 
 " Many were the excommunications from the parish 
 priest, who used to ride about with a horse-whip, and 
 frighten the poor little ones on their way to school. 
 On one occasion he walked into the school-room and 
 demanded my books, with the names and residences of the 
 
 1847-48.] 
 
 FAMINE AND FEVER, 
 
 211 
 
 li 
 
 children, but I simply said I was not authorised to give 
 up my registers ; and though he was very angry, the Lord 
 mercifully delivered us. Never can I forget Mr. Penne- 
 father's restful smile and constant prayers (for prayer was 
 the atmosphere in which he lived) when I went to him 
 with all my histories of threats and troubles. I felt as 
 thousfh I could not endure the strain without them ; and I 
 used to return calm and strengthened, as well as laden 
 with flannel and materials for clothing — here it was literally 
 clothing the naked. The school was a continual conflict, 
 for each time the denunciations of the priest were uttered, 
 numbers would be withdrawn : but the love of the children 
 to the place where they had received kindness was so 
 strong, that again they would find their way back to us. 
 
 ** I could fill pages with incidents of that year of dread- 
 ful trial, for fever, amounting to pestilence, was making 
 terrible ravages amongst the inhabitants of the district, 
 and took its worst form in a hamlet lying still nearer to 
 Drogheda. I remember on one occasion, a son entreating 
 the priest to go to his mother, who was dying. The father 
 lay dead in the house, and others were lying ill, but he 
 steadily refused to go until the money was paid down. 
 The poor fellow, not having a farthing left, promised to get 
 it, but nothing would move the priest, and in desperation 
 the poor son cried, * Then I will fetch the Protestant 
 minister," and off he went to Mellifont Glebe. Mr. Penne- 
 father's kindness to all the poor around, without distinction 
 of creed, was well known.'* 
 
 These details might be multiplied ; but enough 
 has been said to give an idea of the fierce warfare 
 going on both with misery and superstition. We 
 have only one letter written by Mr. Pennefather at 
 this period. 
 
 \ 
 
212 
 
 NEED OF FUNDS. 
 
 [chap. X. 
 
 To R. Nugent, Esq. 
 
 « Mellifont debt?, 
 
 ^ January 27///, 1848. 
 
 " My dearest Richard, 
 
 " Can you do anything for my wretched people ? 
 Here is a population of 4500, 3000 of whom at least are 
 paupers, and in great destitution. I have been enabled 
 for nearly ten months to feed the children attending my 
 school. There are lOO names on the books, and we have 
 a daily attendance varying from 35 to 75. Fever lessens 
 our numbers. Of the hundred, about ten are Protestants, 
 the remaining ninety are Roman Catholics. The priests 
 are furious, and so are many of the Roman Catholic 
 farmers. A Roman Catholic shopkeeper told a poor 
 woman (whose child attended our school), in the presence 
 of a policeman, that he ' would sooner forgive her for 
 stealing a cow than for sending her child to that school.' 
 Unless I obtain funds I must close the school. The expense 
 of mistress, house, fuel, and food, is about ^^60 a year. 
 My income from this parish is under £^6^. My door is 
 besieged by half-starving creatures, just out of fever, 
 craving for food. I am oftentimes cast down, yet God 
 does graciously vouchsafe to help me. Pray for, and, ii 
 vou can, relieve 
 
 " Your ever attached friend, 
 
 '*W. Pennefather." 
 
 At the end of January Mr. Pennefather and his 
 wife went to Dublin to meet Mr. Dallas, and con- 
 sult with him and other friends for the extension and 
 increased efficiency of the Irish Church Missions, so 
 energetically worked under his auspices. Various 
 plans were proposed, and willing help promised by 
 
 1848.] 
 
 ILLNESS IN DUBLIN, 
 
 213 
 
 Mr. Pennefather, but God had other purposes for 
 His servant ; and the zeal and love so warmly 
 devoted to Ireland were soon to be employed in 
 other fields. 
 
 The visit to Dublin was intended to be a very 
 short one ; but when just about to return to his work, 
 Mr. Pennefather was taken ill, and for some little 
 time confined to his bed. He had been so much in 
 contact with malignant fever that many fears were 
 entertained, but the Lord graciously rebuked the 
 disease, and though for a short time terribly pros- 
 trate, he speedily rallied. He was still confined to his 
 room when letters arrived from England, telling of the 
 dangerous illness of his father-in-law, Admiral King, 
 to be followed in a few short days by the tidings of 
 his death. Though he had been long in failing health, 
 the blow was very unexpected, and came at a moment 
 when his daughter could not be released from the 
 sick-room of her husband. Mr. Dallas was still in 
 Dublin, and seemed sent as an angel of mercy in 
 these hours of sorrow and perplexity. He was 
 eminently a man of prayer, and his fervent supplica- 
 tions, and bright anticipations of the coming glory, 
 shedding its light over all earthly shadows, brought 
 many a message of strength and comfort. 
 
 It was about this time (the middle of February), 
 though we have no note of the exact date, that Mr. 
 Pennefather received a letter from the Rev. Charles 
 Bridges, writing as one of the trustees of Trinity 
 Church, Walton, Aylesbury, to invite him to become 
 
I' 
 
 i 
 
 1 
 
 \ 
 
 214 OFFER OF A CHURCH IN ENGLAND, [chap. x. 
 
 a candidate for that incumbency. Mr. Bridges 
 spoke of it as a place, ** offering no worldly attrac- 
 tion whatever, a difficult post, very small income, no 
 house, no society (in the common acceptation of the 
 term) ; but, on the other hand, an important sphere 
 of labour, and a large body of devoted clergy in the 
 surrounding neighbourhood." It was a difficult 
 question, coming at such a moment, and it was 
 pressed as requiring speedy decision. To think 01 
 leaving Mellifont was nothing new to him ; he 
 had felt for some time past that the good to be 
 accomplished there was not commensurate with the 
 demands made upon his strength, and the matter 
 had been again and again laid before the Lord. 
 But to think of leaving Ireland was painful and 
 perplexing in the extreme. 
 
 He had purposed in early youth to devote his 
 
 life to the welfare of that land ; his heart was bound 
 
 up with the schemes opening up for missionary effort 
 
 among its people, and his aged father would in all 
 
 probability resent the mere mention of his removal 
 
 to England. The conflict was a sharp one, but the 
 
 providential leadings were very remarkable, and he 
 
 could scarcely doubt the indications of the Lord's 
 
 will. With that independence of thought and action, 
 
 which was part of his character, he determined 
 
 to mention the subject at this early stage to none 
 
 but his father, praying earnestly that his opposition 
 
 might be moderated if, indeed, the thing proceeded 
 
 from the Lord. The distinctness of the answer 
 
 184S.] 
 
 REMOVAL FROM MELLIFONT. 
 
 «5 
 
 could not be mistaken. With all natural expressions 
 of regret at the loss of his society. Baron Penne- 
 father acknowledged the paramount importance of 
 his duty as a minister, and left him perfectly free to 
 act, without the fear of placing himself in undue 
 antagonism to his parent's wishes. Among the many 
 answers to prayer which marked his life, perhaps 
 none was ever more striking than this. To those 
 who knew the circumstances and persons concerned, 
 it would seem nothing less than the Lord's own 
 voice speaking. It was a matter of great satisfaction 
 to him, that the utter absence of worldly advantages, 
 in connection with his call to England, tended to 
 simplify the question, as his motives could scarcely be 
 doubted. He decided not to waste time and money 
 in going over to see the place, but to accept it as 
 God's appointment, and trust Him for all that was 
 to follow. The removal from Mellifont was pain- 
 ful, but it was done very promptly. The living, as 
 soon as resigned, was accepted by a friend who well 
 knew both pastor and people ; arrangements for the 
 packing of some things and sale of others were 
 quickly made ; and he set his face like a flint to take 
 a step which he greatly dreaded but never doubted. 
 Among other trials, he had to leave the young 
 school-mistress, who had so bravely shared the con- 
 flicts of the past year, on a sick-bed, prostrated by 
 fever and anxiety. But in the midst of much dark- 
 ness God gave him a ray of very bright sunshine, 
 in the visitation of a dying lady to whom he was 
 
'» 
 
 2l6 
 
 REMOVAL FROM MELLIFONl, [chap. X. 
 
 called just before leaving his country, and to whom 
 he was permitted to be a messenger of life and 
 peace. It was remarkable that one precious soul 
 was given him when on the point of quitting the 
 shores of Ireland, and a second immediately oa 
 reaching his new parish — like tender tokens of his 
 Father's approval and blessing. The only letter we 
 have from Mr. Pennefather's own pen at this time, 
 is a short note to an Irish clergyman, dated— 
 
 " My dear Mr. S- 
 
 "Mellifont, 
 
 " March yd. 
 
 " It grieves me greatly to tell you that I am 
 about to leave this place, and I fear I shall not have an 
 opportunity of seeing you before my departure. A per- 
 petual curacy of very small value {£\lo and no house) 
 has been offered to me in England — Walton, Aylesbury, 
 Buckinghamshire. My chief reason for accepting it is, 
 that it presents a field of labour more suited to my 
 powers than this. Here I am in a parish more than six 
 miles in length by four in breadth, containing a popula- 
 tion of 4500 persons, of whom 3000 at least are paupers. 
 The Protestants are only 200, scattered over this wide 
 field, and mingled with the mass of Romanists. To visit 
 this httle flock I have to travel many miles. The curacy 
 now offered to me is very circumscribed in extent, the 
 population about 900, close together, the congregation 
 about 450. It is not without earnest prayer that I have 
 consented to remove to another sphere. I believe God is 
 guiding me ; were it not so, I could not bring myself to 
 leave Ireland. I greatly need your prayers, for I am very 
 weak; but oh I the power of the grace that is in Christ 
 Jesus ! an ample supply for all the necessities of the 
 whole Church ; * Open thy mouth wide and I will fill it.* 
 
 
 1848.] 
 
 ARRIVAL AT AYLESBURY. 
 
 217 
 
 " Surely the days look dark, and thick clouds are 
 gathering around us, but the Son of Man is coming to 
 be glorified in His saints, and admired in them that 
 believe." 
 
 On the 17th of March Mr. and Mrs. Pennefather 
 set out for Aylesbury, sailing direct from Drogheda 
 to Liverpool. They were not acquainted with any 
 one of the trustees who had made the appointment, 
 or with a single person in the town, or even the 
 county, to which they were going. They were met 
 at the station by one of the church-wardens, and 
 conducted to a small lodging in the town, about a 
 mile from the church, as no other rooms could be 
 obtained. Mr. Pennefather's passionate love of the 
 beautiful, though never extinguished, had happily 
 been, ere this, brought into subjection, for it was 
 sorely tested on the present occasion. He found 
 himself in possession of a church which could cer- 
 tainly lay no claim to architectural beauty, in a town, 
 far from picturesque, situated in a wide plain desti- 
 tute of trees, and to a stranger arriving in the month 
 of March, presenting a prospect of little else than 
 ploughed fields. But where work is to be done for 
 the Master, external things are of little account, and 
 this work he set himself to do. Very soon the 
 canal basin, with its dingy coal-wharf and the rows 
 of dirty cottages, with their duck ponds and ditches, 
 were among his most favourite resorts. The con- 
 gregation of Trinity Church, who seemed to be 
 gathered from all parts of the town, received their 
 
2l8 
 
 TOWN OF A YLESBURY, 
 
 [chap. X. 
 
 new minister kindly but timidly. There was a 
 certain shyness and caution which needed to be 
 overcome, and it was not till loving confidence had 
 taken the place of this reserve, that the cause was 
 explained. The religious history of Aylesbury was 
 peculiar. For many years the town was simply 
 asleep, as regarded the ministrations of the Church 
 of England. There was only one church in the 
 place, and this was held by a very aged minister, 
 who seemed little alive to the pressing needs of its 
 inhabitants. Some years previous to the time of 
 which we are speaking, it pleased God by a remark- 
 able chain of providential circumstances to rouse 
 the town from its lethargy, by the ministry of two of 
 His faithful servants who succeeded one another as 
 curates in the parish church. The little band of 
 earnest Christians, long scattered and discouraged, 
 was rallied and united, and many sitting in darkness 
 were brought into the light and liberty of the Gospel 
 of Christ Among the congregation thus gathered, 
 there were some who, feeling a lively interest in 
 the spiritual welfare of their town, were earnestly 
 desirous to secure it against a relapse into the 
 former state of stagnation and indifference. The 
 plan suggested was the building of a second church, 
 the presentation to which should be so vested, as 
 permanently to secure if possible an earnest evan- 
 gelical ministry. 
 
 The plan was warmly seconded by many of the 
 neighbouring clergy, who fully realised its import- 
 
 1848.] 
 
 HISTORY OF TRINITY CHURCH. 
 
 219 
 
 ance. But most of its promoters were poor ; party 
 spirit ran high ; and there was strong opposition in 
 some influential quarters. The wife of a clergyman 
 in an adjoining parish writes, " When I first went 
 into the neighbourhood in September 1839, I found 
 weekly committees on foot, for the purpose of build- 
 ing the new church in Aylesbury, and it was hard 
 work! No money, no friends! Nothing but per- 
 severinof effort could have carried it throuofh.** 
 
 Assuredly " the walls were built in troublous 
 times," and more than once, when on the eve of 
 accomplishment, the consecration had to be post- 
 poned for various causes. At last, in 1845, all 
 obstacles were overcome, and the little company 
 of persevering labourers was permitted to meet for 
 worship within the new building, to be known hence- 
 forth by the name of Trinity Church, Walton. But 
 troubles and disappointments were still to follow ; 
 the stipend was very small, the circumstances of 
 the parish (a district just separated from the mother- 
 church) were very difficult, and the first minister 
 appointed failed to make much way among the 
 people. It was when the second incumbent was 
 about to be selected that the anxious friends of 
 the work, aware of surrounding perils, ventured to 
 send in a humble request to the trustees that they 
 would kindly appoint an Englishman and one above 
 fifty years of age ! It was, therefore, certainly no 
 marvel that when they saw their new minister 
 arrive, 2i young man, direct from Ireland, they were 
 
220 
 
 STATE OF THE PARISH. 
 
 [chap. X. 
 
 startled and not a little alarmed. Hence their 
 timid reception. 
 
 Mr. Pennefather knew little or nothing of the 
 state of parties in the town, but he found himself 
 in the midst of a people greatly needing, and some 
 of them earnestly desiring, the Bread of Life. 
 
 He naturally possessed the power of grasping a 
 position at once. The remarkable organ of locality 
 which, to the amusement of his friends, made him 
 at home in the most intricate town, by simply taking 
 the points of the compass, and ascertaining the bear- 
 ing of the principal thoroughfares, seemed to extend 
 to the moral and physical necessities of a parish. 
 He knew more of his surroundings in a week than 
 many men would learn in a year, and was prepared 
 to grapple with them. In taking up his work at 
 Walton, two special needs immediately presented 
 themselves. The total absence of any provision for 
 the education of the children of the poor could not 
 fail to strike the most casual observer, and to one in 
 whose parochial plans schools always held a very 
 prominent place, the want was painfully apparent. 
 Nothing had hitherto been attempted, except a 
 small Sunday school held in the church, the struc- 
 ture of which was more than usually inconvenient 
 for the purpose. The people were mostly agricul- 
 tural labourers, while many of the women were 
 engaged in rearing ducks for the London market, 
 others in straw-plaiting and lace-making. All these 
 occupations tended to the same result— untidy homes 
 
 I 
 
 
 
 1 843. J 
 
 PROJECTED SCHOOLS. 
 
 221 
 
 and neglected children ; while education had done 
 nothing to improve the habits of the people. 
 
 The following letter to Mr. Nugent, written 
 within a fortnight of his arrival in Aylesbury, is 
 quite in character with Mr. Pennefather's usual 
 promptitude : — • 
 
 " Aylesbury, 
 
 ''March 29//^, 1848. 
 
 ** My dearest Richard, 
 
 " You are aware, I believe, through Mr. 
 Campbell, that I am already in charge of Trinity 
 Church, Walton, Aylesbury. 
 
 "Walton is a suburban district of this town, containing 
 about 900 inhabitants, most of them in very humble cir- 
 cumstances. Trinity Church was opened for divine ser- 
 vice about three years since, but there were not funds to 
 build either parsonage-house or schools. The income of 
 the church is only about ;^I30 per annum. 
 
 " It is now proposed to raise a fund by subscription foi 
 the erection of a school, which is much needed. There 
 are a great many children in the district without educa- 
 tion, and what renders it peculiarly important to make 
 speedy provision for their instruction, is the fact that the 
 Romanists, ever on the alert, have purchased land near 
 Trinity Church for the erection of a chapel and schools.* 
 
 * The sequel to this attempt was remarkable. We give it as told by a lady 
 well acquainted with the history of Aylesbury — 
 
 '* While Mr. Pennefather was incumbent of Walton, I had gone to Stoke 
 near Guildford. The clergyman there asked me to listen to the story of a 
 Frenchman who had called upon him, saying he had been appointed In- 
 spector of Monasteries, Convents, and Roman Catholic schools in England. 
 He had come from Lyons, and this was his first visit. He said he had been 
 spoken to by several persons since he came to England about the Bible, and 
 his mind had become bewildered with doubts which he dared not reveal. At 
 length he consulted Signer Gavazzi, who was then in England, and by him 
 was urged to read the Bible and judge for himself. He was soon convinced 
 
222 
 
 PROJECTED SCHOOLS. 
 
 [chap. X. 
 
 1848.] 
 
 CANAL BARGEMEN, 
 
 223 
 
 
 " You are aware that in this county Romanism has received 
 a powerful impetus from the late M.P. who has joined the 
 Church of Rome, and is doing all he can to propagate its 
 doctrines. The district of Walton, as adjoining the county 
 town of Buckinghamshire, is an important locality for the 
 friends of gospel truth, to aid by their prayers and sym- 
 pathy and contributions. 
 
 " I therefore venture to write to you, and ask if you can 
 do something for me. You readily helped me in Ireland, 
 and your assistance was most timely and valuable. I 
 have been received with much kindness, and greatly like 
 what I have seen of the people. My church is a very 
 plain building, but not un-churchlike in the interior. It 
 holds about 450, and is usually nearly full. We are in 
 lodgings, but hope soon to get into a house, where it will 
 give me true gratification to see you." 
 
 A little later we find a printed paper givino- all 
 statistics, forwarded to the same friend, with a note 
 in which he says — 
 
 " While men sleep the enemy is sowing tares. Pray 
 that the Lord may bless our efforts to train up the 
 children in His faith and fear." 
 
 While occupied in collecting subscriptions and 
 
 I ■ -- 
 
 that Protestants were right and Romanists wrong ; but he had a long struggle 
 between conscience and interest. He was a French Count, had a large salary, 
 and must give up name, home, friends, honour, and the means of subsistence. 
 How could he earn his living ? At length he could struggle no longer — he 
 openly professed the truth, and declared himself a Protestant at Aylesbury^ 
 in which town he had bought land, hoping to have a chapel built. Mr. Penne- 
 father was written to, and confirmed his statements, saying that at the 
 request of the poor Frenchman he had presided at a meeting, where he told 
 the story and made his declaration, and he believed him to be sincere. The 
 Count dropped his title, became a teacher of French and a lecturer on the 
 errors of Popery. " 
 
 Soon afterwards the land at Aylesbury was sold, the priest retired, and 
 there was no more effort to establish Romanism there. 
 
 preparing plans for the new building, Mr. Penne- 
 father felt the importance of immediate action, and 
 therefore securing the largest room he could find 
 for the purpose, he opened a mixed school, till 
 further accommodation could be provided. At the 
 same time, finding that two small houses near the 
 church, with a considerable plot of ground, were for 
 sale, he wrote to the Rev. Edmund HoUond, one 
 of the trustees of the church, and a liberal friend to 
 the work, telling him the circumstances of the case. 
 Mr. Hollond most kindly purchased the houses, and 
 made over the adjoining ground as a site for the 
 new school-rooms. 
 
 The second peculiar feature which forced itself 
 on Mr. Pennefather's attention in the first survey 
 of his parish, was the basin of the Grand Junction 
 Canal with its many barges. Swarms of men, be- 
 grimed with coal-dust, were to be found on the 
 wharf, while the surrounding cottages were in- 
 habited by their wives and children, when not 
 living, as they too often did, in the boats. This 
 ignorant and neglected people could not fail to 
 touch the heart of a minister ; and while forming in 
 his own mind a plan for their more permanent 
 benefit, he wrote immediately to a dear and zealous 
 friend, much accustomed to out-door preaching, en- 
 treating him to come and spend some weeks with 
 him. This he consented to do, employing his time 
 for the benefit of the bargemen, going in and out 
 among them, and preaching on the wharf when. 
 
324 
 
 EFFORTS FOR THE BARGEMEN, [chap. X- 
 
 any considerable number could be gathered. God 
 marvellously blessed the effort, and when the 
 preacher was compelled to leave them, a number 
 of these poor men, hitherto considered so unap- 
 proachable, came forward to present him with a 
 sum of money, collected among themselves, to help 
 " some one to go and do the same for their mates 
 further up the canal." 
 
 Very little of the correspondence of this busy 
 year has been preserved.* We insert a few pas- 
 sages taken from a letter to Miss Mason, telling 
 her of his position. Many friends in Ireland were 
 both mourning and censuring his departure, and 
 he had to bear with much misunderstanding on the 
 subject 
 
 ** Aylesbury, 
 
 ''June i()th, 1848. 
 
 " My very dear Friend, 
 
 ** It pained me greatly to hear of your many 
 trials, and yet, why should I mourn when the trials are 
 but tokens of your Father's love, sent to make you meet 
 for an exceeding weight of glory, which without such pre- 
 paration you could not bear. Yet a little while, and from 
 the Land of Promise you will retrace, with adoring grati- 
 tude, *all the way the Lord has led you,' and acknowledge 
 that not ofie step in that way could have been omitted. 
 Nevertheless, for the present, sorrow is grievous. To 
 have our precious treasures, the stars that shine upon 
 our path, hid from our eyes, seems sometimes almost 
 *more than we are able to bear;' but let us remember 
 that the setting of the stars is the prelude to the rising 
 
 * The correspondence kept up with his Westmoreland friends for almost 
 forty years, and so carefully treasured, is at this time unaccountably missing;. 
 
 1S48.] 
 
 PAROCHIAL LABOURS, 
 
 225 
 
 of the sun. And so, as one believer after another passes 
 into glory, it is but hastening on the coming of Him, 
 who cannot appear until all His people are gathered into 
 the true Church, either here or there. 
 
 " Now for your question — I came to this place because 
 it appeared to open a much greater sphere of usefulness 
 than that at Mellifont. Its worldly advantages are few, 
 no house, and the income very small. ... I trust you 
 will pray for me. I think much of your work, and trust to 
 be able again to help you, but just at present our hands 
 are very full, and the people here are by no means rich. 
 
 " Hitherto the subscriptions even to the Church Mis- 
 sionary Society have been wretchedly small, but we have 
 just organised a Missionary Association. The people are 
 putting up a gallery at the west end of the church, and 
 are getting a small organ, so that they have already been 
 obliged to contribute much more than they are accus- 
 tomed to do." 
 
 With the exception of a short visit to his widowed 
 mother-in-law, and a few weeks spent with his 
 father in Ireland, he was closely occupied with the 
 many interests which pressed upon him from day 
 to day, as God blessed him increasingly to this 
 interesting people. Their fears were now turned 
 into a new channel ; for his health, though gradually 
 improving, was still very frail, and his unceasing 
 labours startled those who were looking on with 
 affectionate anxiety. To quote the words of an 
 attached member of his congregation, referring to 
 this time, " As we used to go home on Sunday 
 evening, rejoicing in the glorious truths to which 
 we had been listening, I often wept bitterly, in the 
 
23$ 
 
 PAROCHIAL ENCOURAGEMENTS, [chap. x. 
 
 1848] 
 
 PR A YER-MEETINGS. 
 
 227 
 
 full conviction that he would remain but a little 
 while among us, I felt so sure he was ripening for 
 glory." Meanwhile God was carrying on a deep 
 work in many hearts, and giving a remarkable 
 amount of manifest blessing, especially to the ser- 
 vices in the church. The following letter to Mis? 
 Mason speaks of encouragement and hopefulness : 
 
 ••Aylesbury, 
 
 " December 1 5M, 1848. 
 
 " My dear Friend, 
 
 " I am afraid you will begin to think (and 
 with some apparent reason) that I have forgotten you, and 
 the Innishowan reader, but it is not so. We have had 
 you and your work in our thoughts, and, please God, we 
 shall be enabled to support one of your labourers in that 
 locality. My wife wants to know when you will require 
 the first instalment, and what are your pay-days. When 
 does your year commence } You will I know rejoice to 
 learn that God is prospering our work here. I think 
 there is a growing interest among His own people for 
 the extension of their Master's cause throughout the world, 
 and I trust there are some who have been led, by His 
 grace, to flee for refuge to the Rock of our salvation. 
 
 " Our little church is now crammed: it is built to accom- 
 modate 450 comfortably, but on the Sunday evenings we 
 have from 550 to 600 present. Some persons who were 
 opposed to its erection are now worshipping within its 
 walls. Surely we are called to increased earnestness in 
 our Master's work, as well as to continued prayer and 
 thanksgiving. 
 
 " What a remarkable Advent season are we just enter- 
 ing! The most thoughtless seem to feel that we are on 
 the brink of some great crisis. Is the election of Louis 
 Napoleon to the Presidency of the French Republic an 
 
 1 
 
 event pregnant with mighty consequences } Who can 
 tell what is rolled up in the yet unfolded pages of 1849; 
 but come what may, they are safe around whom are 
 
 thrown * the everlasting arms.' 
 
 » 
 
 \ 
 
 One of Mr. Pennefather s greatest difficulties at this 
 time, was the want of a room for prayer meetings 
 and social gatherings with his people. As soon as he 
 secured a house for his own residence (which, how- 
 ever, could only be let for a limited time) he opened 
 one of its rooms for a weekly prayer-meeting ; but 
 the distance of more than a mile from the district 
 made it inaccessible to the aged and infirm, which was 
 a constant burden on his spirit. He always looked 
 upon the prayer-meetings as "the pulse of the 
 parish," and when these declined in numbers or 
 earnestness of tone, nothing could persuade him 
 that the work of the Lord was really advancing. A 
 cold and formal prayer-meeting utterly depressed 
 him, and a parish without such gatherings was to 
 him in a certain sense a barren land. It would be 
 hard to say how many have had their souls set on 
 fire as with '' a live coal from off the altar," while his 
 fervent supplications led them into the Presence of 
 the King. 
 
 Just as the year 1848 was closing, a room of 
 tolerably large dimensions was discovered in an old 
 untenanted house, and here was held the first of 
 those New Year's congregational meetings, which 
 were for many after years seasons of heart- searching 
 and refreshing to numbers. 
 
( 238 ) 
 
 iS49] 
 
 LETTERS FROM AYLESBURY. 
 
 229 
 
 CHAPTER XI. 
 1849-1850. 
 
 Letters— Consecration of Bishops at Canterbury— Clerical Meetings 
 —Intercourse with the Rev. S. Thornton— Letters— Death of his 
 eldest brother— Hurried Journey to Ireland— Church enlarged 
 and new schools completed— Visitation of cholera in England 
 —Prayer-Meetings and Special Services— Death of Mr. Thorn- 
 ton—Recollections of Walton by Mrs. Thornton— Sale of work 
 —Floating Chapel— Visit to Elleray— Letters— Message from the 
 Bishop of Tuam. 
 
 T 
 
 
 'HE first letter of any importance bearing the 
 date of 1849 was evidently written by Mr. 
 Pennefather, in answer to the queries of a friend ; 
 but the exact occasion does not appear. 
 
 •* Aylesbury, 
 
 ^^ March i$ik, 1849. 
 
 "Your long and very welcome letter should have had 
 an earlier reply, but this season is one in which I am par- 
 ticularly engaged. ... I have not read any of Maurice's 
 works, but from what I have heard I fear they are not 
 free from error, and I feel that intellectual writers on 
 religious subjects, who are not altogether scriptural, are 
 dangerous companions. The natural pride of our minds 
 delights in knowledge that * pufifeth up.' Let me entreat 
 you to beware of the sophistries so prevalent on every 
 side, A slighting of Scripture, making its narratives 
 unreal, and reducing them to mere mythical stories; a 
 setting up of human reason in contradistinction to the 
 
 
 revealed will of God; these are some of the dangers 
 into which German theologians and writers of that 
 school are leading their disciples. *To the law and to 
 the testimony : if they speak not according to this word, 
 it is because there is no light in them.' The undue 
 exalting of human intellect in the present day is doubt- 
 less anTong the many signs which mark these as the last 
 times. Dear friend, bear with me ; I do fear lest an 
 overweening love of intellectual power may prove, in 
 your case, very injurious to practical godliness and a 
 life in accordance with the precious truth of the Gospel. 
 Is it not a snare to you ? Are you not led away from 
 the words of truth and soberness, from the simplicity that 
 is in Christ ? and is not your mind irritated and harassed ? 
 I am jealous over you with a godly jealousy. Study 
 the mi7id of Christ. Look at that Divine Saviour— His 
 character. His thoughts, His daily example. You will 
 surely find in Him enough to gratify the intellect, to meet 
 the affections, to cheer the heart. Something tells me 
 that the cause of your late unhappiness has been that the 
 simple grandeur of divine truth has not been so attractive 
 
 as formerly. 
 
 " What were the Gnostics of old but philosophers, in 
 whose steps the German theologians of the present day. 
 with their many disciples, are treading? The great 
 enemy who sJmts up the Bible to the Romanist, neutral- 
 ises it to the followers of this vain philosophy. * When 
 the Son of Man cometh, shall He find faith on the 
 earth ? ' Oh 1 beloved, let us live very close to Jesus, in 
 humble, earnest communion with our glorious Head. 
 Nothing but abiding in the Living Vine will save us in 
 the overwhelming darkness and trial that is coming on 
 
 the Church. 
 
 *» Have you seen a little book called ' All is well ? It 
 is the record of a noble youth (Lieutenant St. John) who. 
 in the twenty-third year of his age, was called to receive 
 
230 
 
 LETTERS FROM A YLESBURY, [chap. xr. 
 
 a crown of victory from his Redeemer's hand. The 
 healthful tone of his reh'gion and the brightness of his 
 example are most stimulating— a glorious instance of 
 the Divine Spirit's training for immortality I 
 
 " Now, perhaps, you will say to all this that I am sunk 
 in this ugly old town, among dirt and red bricks, and 
 falling into a premature dotage ! I confess that I pine 
 sometimes for the sight of a blue mountain-summit and 
 the rush of a pure, tumbling rivulet amid rocks and ferns 
 and dewy flowers. Yes ! and I could enjoy, with a 
 pleasure as intense as ever, the mysterious beauty that 
 is just now bursting out of the death and burial of winter 
 into life and loveliness ! My pulse could beat high to all 
 the interests of former days ! I am not changed, dear 
 friend, but I DO feel there is a need for the caution given 
 1800 years ago, * Beware lest any man spoil you through 
 philosophy and vain deceit.' ... I feel my separation 
 from Ireland, but I know God has ordered my goings. 
 Perhaps I shall feel increasingly that I have left my 
 native land, but I doubt not that I shall bless Him 
 throughout eternity for my residence in this unattractive 
 old town. Now, I am off to my parish." 
 
 On March i6th, he says at the close of a letter to 
 Mrs. Crewdson — 
 
 .... "To-morrow will be the anniversary of my 
 arrival here. . . . Pray for me, beloved friends ; I need 
 much strength and much grace. The church continues 
 crowded to overflowing. Many have to leave the doors 
 every Sunday evening, and many have applied for sittings, 
 but there are none to be had. I feel this state of things 
 much. The people are poor, and expect to be heavily 
 rated for the restoration of the parish church. It will 
 probably take several years to accomplish this; mean- 
 while it appears grievous that so few can be accommo- 
 
 LETTERS FROM AYLESBURY. 
 
 231 
 
 1849-] 
 
 X. u T am in hopes that one of the 
 dated in my .^^"^^ J^rj^some towards providing 
 trustees will give sometmn^ nan How gladly 
 
 ^ould I/Ve' ore d air at desire to have sittings in 
 senters have expressed a gre only talking 
 
 the church. But indeed I am not oe^ », ;f 
 of what is now very present to ""y J'^j' •,- ^ut anni- 
 
 " I have written you perhaps too long a letter, 
 versary days (Irish Society Meeting m DubUn, 1832.) 
 lead me to transgress a little ! 
 
 To the same. .^ayWh. 
 
 ..I cannot tell you w^a^oy ^o-^^^^^^ 
 
 how thankfu I am ^^ f, ^^f I^f ^^^..^ed the afternoon 
 came soon after you had left, ^nd vve p g ^^^^ . 
 
 i^ Walton then home for the prayer-meetin^. x>c 
 
 Walton tnen ^^^^ ^^ ^^^^^^^ p^^^.^ed 
 
 came at ftve o ciock o" j , gj gj is 
 
 beautifully yesterday morning on the -rd > ^^.^^^ 
 
 him. It was as if an angel swept his harp, and 
 ' Trembling cadence lingered on the air 
 
 • His successor at MelUfonU 
 
232 
 
 LETTERS FROM ANGLEY, 
 
 [CHAP. XI. 
 
 Fanny left us at seven o'clock this morning ; I have been 
 very busy ever since, and am now going to a church-build- 
 ing committee, &c. B. is still here; but we expect to go 
 mto Kent on Wednesday, reaching London at twelve and 
 gomg straight through to the Dover line, that we may 
 not affront any of the friends now in town. I am thinkino- 
 of the loveliness of Westmoreland on this heavenly day."'' 
 
 To the same. 
 
 "Angley, Cranbrook, 
 
 ^* May 22nd. 
 ....** The good hand of our merciful God brought us 
 here in safety on Wednesday last. As we steamed into 
 the station at Euston Square I thought of you just enter- 
 ing the British Museum, and tried to follow you in your 
 wanderings amid the mighty fragments of ancient Nineveh 
 At London Bridge I purchased, according to your reconl 
 mendation, * Stokers and Pokers/ It certainly is important 
 to obtam some adequate idea of the vast machinery 
 (mental and physical) employed in connection with rail- 
 way travelling. So rapidly has our country been trans- 
 formed mto a great gridiron, and so suddenly has every 
 other mode of conveyance given place to the fiery dra-ons 
 of Vulcan, that non-mechanical minds are in dange'^r of 
 bemg lost in an unintelligent amazement. Anything that 
 helps stupid dolts like me to form some definite idea of 
 the wonderful powers of fire and water, which are now 
 claimmg such pre-eminence, is very satisfactory ! Most 
 gratefully, therefore, do I acknowledge your assistance in 
 educatmg me for the spirit of the age ! ... I have now 
 ;^288 for my church, and we only want about ;f 120 more 
 " Shall we ever doubt that gracious Lord, Who has so 
 mercifully helped us hitherto ? I trust not ! and yet how 
 weak we are. Oh I for stronger faith ! for firmer reliance 
 on the arm that is omnipotent, on the ' Friend that 
 sticketh closer than a brother.' " - 
 
 1849.] 
 
 CONSECRA TION OF BISHOPS, 
 
 233 
 
 During this visit to his wife's family, he had the 
 opportunity of being present at the consecration of 
 the two Colonial Bishops (Dr. Smith for Victoria, 
 and Dr. Anderson for Prince Ruperts Land) in 
 Canterbury Cathedral. The service greatly inter- 
 ested him, and woke up all the enthusiasm of early 
 days. We quote only a few lines — 
 
 " Angley, Cranbrook, 
 
 " May 2>^th. 
 
 " We had a very interesting though fatiguing day 
 yesterday, setting off for Canterbury at half-past five 
 o'clock in the morning, to be present at the consecration of 
 the two Colonial Bishops " . . . . (and after some descrip- 
 tion of the cathedral, &c.), " I cannot dwell upon the thril- 
 ling effect of Handel's anthem, * How beautiful upon the 
 mountains 1 ' sung by a single voice, that penetrated to the 
 remotest corners of the spacious edifice, and then the clear 
 intonation of Samuel Wilberforce, reading the inspired 
 farewell of St. Paul to the elders of Ephesus ! It was 
 almost too touching to bear." 
 
 It was a source of great thankfulness and much 
 comfort to Mr. Pennefather during his residence 
 at Aylesbury, that he was within reach of so large 
 a number of earnest and faithful clergymen, whose 
 friendship and counsel he greatly valued. The 
 clerical meetings, often held at his own house and 
 elsewhere, were unusually large and harmonious, 
 taking in as they did a wide range of surrounding 
 villages. With the Rev. W. Fremantle of Clay- 
 don,^ the Rev. A. I sham of Weston- Turville, and 
 
 * Nov Dean of Ripon. 
 
234 
 
 THE REV, SPENCER THORNTON. [chap. XT. 
 
 1849.] 
 
 DEA TH OF AN UNCLE. 
 
 235 
 
 many others, he had happy intercourse ; but perhaps 
 the one who was drawn into closest companionship 
 (partly on account of his deep interest in the 
 erection of Trinity Church), was the Rev. Spencer 
 Thornton Vicar of Wendover. Mr. Pennefather 
 never forgot the kindness with which, when finding 
 himself and his wife strangers in a lodging, he in"^ 
 vited them to his own house.^ The following note 
 was written during his visit to Kent, on the'death 
 of Mr. Thornton s youngest child :— 
 
 " Angley, Cranbrook, 
 
 " My dear Mr. Thornton, 
 
 *'I trust wc shall have your presence at the 
 annual meeting of the Church Missionary Society in 
 Aylesbury. Will you kindly give publicity to the notice 
 which I now enclose, and may I beg an interest in your 
 prayers, that the meeting may be profitable to many 
 souls. We have heard of your sorrow. Oh ! that the 
 cloud may bear upon it the bow of mercy, and that 
 thereby a view of God's attributes may be vouchsafed, 
 which will sustain you, yea, send you on your way rejoic^ 
 ing. The world cannot understand this characteristic of 
 the Christian pilgrim, * Faint, yet pursuing/ ' Sorrowful, yet 
 alway rejoicing' But shall we not bless God that another 
 little lamb has been folded within the arms of the Good 
 Shepherd, that another bark has anchored in the harbour, 
 without a lengthened and stormy passage ! The choirs 
 of heaven are swelling their majestic hymns at the gradual 
 additions to the number of earth's wearied pilgrims, who 
 
 ♦ The invitation was not accepted, as Mr. Pennefather was unwilling to 
 be at a distance from his people, even for a short time. 
 
 'I 
 
 I 
 
 are entering into the joy of their Lord. We are anxious 
 to hear how Mrs. Thornton is. Mrs. Pennefather unites 
 with me in kindest remembrances to her and to yourself. 
 " Yours, most sincerely and obliged, 
 
 ** W. P." 
 
 The existing letters which belong to this period 
 are, for the most part, addressed to correspondents 
 in Ireland ; and we look in vain for the interest- 
 ing incidents which were cheering him from day to 
 day among the people of his charge. His resi- 
 dence in England was still a proscribed subject 
 with many old friends, and his object in writing is 
 evidently to throw himself into their circumstances, 
 rather than make any reference to his own. The 
 total absence of diary or memoranda from his own 
 pen, at this or any other period of his life, must 
 render any biography unavoidably defective. 
 
 The cousins at Monellan who had so warm a 
 place in his affections, were at this time plunged into 
 sorrow by the death of their father. The following 
 letter is addressed to them : — 
 
 "Aylesbury, 
 
 " June ^th. 
 
 ** My dearest J. and M., 
 
 A letter from Isabella announces that another 
 ransomed spirit has entered into rest. Blessed be God for 
 the earnest supplications which He led you to offer, and 
 for the abundant answer which He has given ! What is 
 death to one whom He has pardoned and sanctified ? It 
 is passing from a prison, with its fetters, to a Father's 
 House, where joy and liberty abound. It is exchanging 
 ignorance for knowledge, warfare for victory, trembling 
 
236 
 
 DEATH OF HIS BROTHER. 
 
 [chap. XT. 
 
 1849-] 
 
 JOURNEY TO IRELAND, 
 
 237 
 
 and sorrow for perfect peace and endless glory ! And 
 yet, though we know the Lord's chariots convey our loved 
 ones into regions of light, we do, we must mourn. We 
 follow them, but it is with tears, as we try to catch a 
 glimpse of the brightness in which they shall abide for 
 evermore. We have but to wait until we too shall hear 
 the voice which has summoned them saying, 'The Master 
 is come, and calleth for thee: There shall be one fold, 
 under one Shepherd. We shall enter to * go no more out,' 
 and, 
 
 * Friends beneath their Saviour's eye 
 Filled with each other's company 
 Shall spend in bliss the eternal day/ 
 
 Oh ! that we more vividly realised our position as joint- 
 heirs with Christ of eternal glory. He Himself has set 
 before us nothing less, *The glory Thou gavest Me, I 
 have given them.' My loved sisters, I carry your deep 
 sorrow to that Heavenly Father, Who has often been with 
 us in the dark waters, and will be with you now ; they shall 
 be cleft asunder, and we shall pass over dry-shod. The 
 Land of Promise is before us, and, the troublous waves 
 once crossed, we shall remember all the way by which He 
 led us, and praise Him for every step. But, beloved ones, 
 I must not trespass too long. Sometimes we wound 
 when we mean to heal, such is our ignorance ! But there 
 is One whose sympathy is perfect. There can be no awk- 
 wardness or rudeness there ! All tender, and loving, and 
 withal powerful to help. To His love I commend you. 
 
 *' Remember that a brother's house is ready to welcome 
 you, whenever you can come to England." 
 
 A few lines, written to Mr. Thornton, tell of a 
 sudden journey to Ireland, on hearing of the death 
 of his eldest brother, of an illness contracted during 
 his diligent visitation of the Poor- Houses, in the 
 
 County of Tipperary. The delay of a letter in the 
 post had prevented his starting for Ireland in time 
 to see him, which added to the trial — 
 
 " Aylesbury, 
 
 ^'Julyi6th, 
 
 '*I know you will feel for me and pray for me. My 
 eldest brother has been taken from us after a short illness. 
 He was my father's idol. Oh! pray that this trial may be 
 sanctified to his poor widow and children, and to my 
 bereaved and aged parent. We start, please God, to-mght 
 for Ireland." 
 
 It was arranged that Mr. Pennefather should 
 meet his father at the house of Mr. Maxwell, 
 Newtown-Barry, County of Wexford. The loss of 
 his eldest son, in the very prime of life, was a 
 terrible and unexpected blow to Baron Pennefather 
 and to every member of his family. He was one 
 justly loved and admired, and had won for himself 
 golden opinions in the previous year, as High- 
 Sheriff for the South Riding of the County of 
 Tipperary, when popular agitation was at its 
 height, during the trial of the well-known Smith 
 O'Brien. The next letter takes us back to 
 England— 
 
 " Aylesbury, 
 
 ''July 2%tK 
 
 ** Beloved Friend, 
 
 " We left this place so suddenly that we felt 
 bound to return as soon as we could possibly leave the 
 dear ones at Newtown-Barry. Your kind letter was not, 
 however, without its use; though we were unable to 
 accept the loving invitation it contained. It cheered us 
 
238 
 
 OPENING OF SCHOOL-ROOMS. [chap. XL 
 
 1849.] 
 
 VISITA TION OF CHOLERA. 
 
 239 
 
 and seemed to bring us en rapport with you in our home- 
 ward journey. We left the dear party on Thursday morn- 
 ing for Carlow, en route for Dublin, sailing the same even- 
 ing for Holyhead, and reached home on Friday. . . . The 
 events of the last few days feel like the incidents of a 
 feverish dream. All has been so hurried, sorrow and joy 
 so strangely mingled together. Eternity with its awful 
 realities, and time with its blessings and responsibilities, 
 have come painfully both into connection and contrast. 
 God has been dealing with us. We can sing of mercy 
 and judgment while love is inscribed on all. 
 
 " I thought my darling sister overwrought and very 
 nervous. My father is tolerably well." 
 
 For a few days after his hurried visit, Mr. 
 Pennefather was laid by with what he speaks of as 
 ** a sharp attack of illness,'' but he was soon ao-ain 
 in the midst of his active work. 
 
 The close of the summer of 1849 found a new 
 transept added to the church in Walton, and the 
 projected schools completed. They were large, airy 
 rooms, so constructed as to be easily thrown into 
 one (for evening meetings), and capable of accom- 
 modating 600 persons."*^ They were opened with 
 a series of meetings for prayer, which were very 
 largely attended ; and the feeling of deep solemnity 
 which pervaded these assemblies was, doubtless, in- 
 creased by the fact that the cholera, which had been 
 for some time carrying off its victims in the more 
 northerly counties, had now reached London. On a 
 
 ♦ " A blessed bit of building ! " was the exclamation of a poor woman, as 
 she stood gazing at the place. She was one of the first who there learnt to 
 know Christ as her Saviour. 
 
 former occasion it had been peculiarly fatal in the 
 town of Aylesbury, and there was considerable panic 
 among the people at the prospect of another visita- 
 tion. Mr. Pennefather, while taking his full share in 
 all sanitary precautions, and earnestly pressing the 
 need of cleanliness and ventilation, was most urgent 
 in calling upon the people to humble themselves 
 before the Lord, and seek His protection and 
 deliverance in their hour of danger. 
 
 Prayer-meetings were not at that time frequent in 
 connection with the Church of England, and great 
 opposition was aroused. Strange stories were 
 circulated, and so much scoffing followed in the 
 local papers, that the Bishop sent a letter of inquiry 
 as to the character of the meetings. Meanwhile the 
 real work went on, very solemnly and calmly, but 
 with much power, for the Spirit of God was moving 
 among the people. 
 
 At the end of the month of September, a day of 
 humiliation was appointed for the diocese, to which 
 Mr. Pennefather alludes in a letter dated October 
 ist — 
 
 " On Wednesday last, by desire of the Bishop, we met 
 our respective flocks, to humble ourselves before Almighty 
 God on account of our national sins which have provoked 
 His holy indignation. The shops were all closed, and a 
 Sabbath-like stillness reigned throughout the town. This 
 was the more remarkable, as Wednesday is always a 
 market-day in Aylesbury, and the preceding day had 
 been the great Michaelmas Fair. Nevertheless, in the 
 morning: the church was even fuller than is usual on 
 
240 
 
 CROWDED SERVICES, 
 
 [chap. XI. 
 
 1849-] 
 
 LETTERS FROM AYLESBURY. 
 
 241 
 
 I ; 
 
 Sundays, and in the afternoon our large school-room was 
 thronged to excess, many going away, not able to gain 
 admittance. The service there was chiefly extempore 
 prayer, and a short address. In the evening we had a 
 very full church ; many thought they had never seen such 
 a crowded congregation. When I remember that we 
 have nearly 300 additional sittings, and still see numbers 
 seated on hassocks and round the communion-table I 
 may well say, ' What hath God wrought > * 
 
 "Our school-master has just come, and I like him 
 much." 
 
 It was a remarkable fact, and must be recorded 
 here to Gods glory, that though the dreaded 
 disease visited many of the surrounding villages, 
 and in some cases with great severity, not a single 
 case of cholera was reported as occurring in tlie 
 town. 
 
 ^ Just at this time Mr. Pennefather had succeeded 
 in obtaining a house in his own district, being 
 compelled to quit the one which he had temporarily 
 occupied. There had been great difficulties and 
 disappointments connected with the search for 
 a suitable dwelling, and we find him sayincr 
 " Certainly the ^ crook in my lot ' just now is th"e 
 want of a residence." But in October he writes to 
 Mrs. Crewdson — 
 
 '* We are settling into our funny little house, and I send 
 you a ground-plan of it. Though it is dignified with the 
 name of Walton House, it has only one bedroom, and 
 attics m the roof. It stands in a garden and, strange to 
 say, has gates and a lodge, which we are fitting up for 
 classes. . , These glorious autumn days make me think 
 
 of October 1847. I shall never forget the beauty of Ulls- 
 water, the day we were there. It seemed a faint type of the 
 * sea of glass mingled with fire.' Oh ! what scenes will open 
 upon us when we behold His face in righteousness ! " 
 
 In November, he says to the same friend — 
 
 " Since I last wrote, I have been appointed chaplain to the 
 Union Workhouse. The salary is only £40, but that sum will 
 help me to keep a curate, and as yet I have only had a reader^ 
 who can give no assistance in the parochial work." . . . Then, 
 after speaking of invitations received from friends, "We are 
 very much tied, and this chaplaincy will add to my engage- 
 ments, but I did not think it right to decline it, it gives such 
 opportunity of preaching the glad news of salvation to those 
 poor lonely creatures. I am anxious about my school-build- 
 ings, which are not yet fully paid for, and I fear the expendi- 
 ture will greatly exceed the receipts. We like our schoolmaster, 
 and I have a scripture reader hard at work among the wharfmen 
 and bargemen on the canal. He is, I trust, very useful." 
 
 Another note is dated December 26th — 
 
 " I cannot allow the hours of 1849 to be numbered for ever 
 with departed years, without a few words of tender interest in 
 my precious friends and in dear Westmoreland. Although the 
 accompanying address * is written with an exclusive view to 
 my people here, yet I know you will value it for my poor sake, 
 and therefore I send it. We hope to have a prayer-meeting 
 on the morning of January ist, and Church-service in the 
 evening. We shall remember many loved ones then, and seek 
 for them what we desire for ourselves." (After speaking of the 
 proposed marriage of one very dear to him) — " It makes me 
 nervous and anxious to think of those whose hearts are not set 
 on heaven being bound so closely together. . . . My dear father 
 has been confined to his bed with a bad feverish cold. I am 
 rather uneasy about him, and if I do not soon hear better 
 accounts, I think I must go over, if it be only for a few days. 
 
 * An annual address to his parishioners. 
 
 r 
 
'^m 
 
 242 
 
 DEA TH OF MR. THORNTON. 
 
 [chap. XL 
 
 1850.] 
 
 LETTER FROM MRS. THORNTON. 
 
 243 
 
 I have not yet heard of a curate, and have to preach three 
 sermons every Sunday, which is rather too much. 
 
 " May the blessing of Jehovah rest upon you both, beloved 
 friends. May the new year be one fraught with new hopes, 
 new joys, and new devotedness." 
 
 The first month of that new year brought with it 
 a great sorrow to him as well as to many others. On 
 January 12th, 1850, the beloved and honoured Spencer 
 Thornton, vicar of Wendover, was suddenly called 
 to his heavenly home. Mr. Pennefather had met with 
 him and others after the opening of the year, to consult 
 about plans for promoting zeal and efficiency in the cause 
 of foreign missions amonof their conorreo-ations. 
 
 Mr. Thornton, long known and loved in the neigh- 
 bourhood, was the one to whom all looked for counsel 
 and encouragement, little aware that he was even then 
 standing on the threshold of eternity. The sad news 
 reached Mr. Pennefather immediately after mornino- 
 service, on Sunday, January 13th. He was not well 
 at the time, and increased illness prevented his atten- 
 dance at the funeral service on the 19th. His inter- 
 course with this dear servant of God had been short, 
 but very cheering to both. Mrs. Thornton, in look- 
 ing back upon those happy days, writes — 
 
 "The coming of dear Mr. Pennefather to Walton in the 
 spring of 1848 was indeed a source of rejoicing to us. How 
 well I remember the day when we drove over to Aylesbury 
 to pay him our first visit ! He and his wife were in a little 
 lodging, taken for a time, as they were unable to procure 
 a house. The sweet, holy calm of his spirit, his happy way 
 of looking forward to his ministry at Walton, and the beauty 
 of his earnest prayer, particulariy struck us. We returned 
 home overflowing with gratitude to God that we had been 
 permitted to welcome such a minister for that church. Ever 
 since the plan was first made for its erection it had been 
 
 to the managing committee a source of great difficulty and 
 anxiety, and the prospect of Mr. Pennefather being the 
 permanent incumbent seemed too good to be true. We 
 felt that God was now answering the many prayers of His 
 people by giving them a faithful pastor and friend. From 
 that day the closest intimacy existed between my husband 
 and Mr. Pennefather. They often met, and as time passed 
 on, everything we heard and saw at Walton impressed us 
 more with wonder at the great power of his ministry, in 
 softening prejudice, and bringing souls to the knowledge of 
 the preciousness of the Saviour ; so many, hitherto hard and 
 careless, were melted under the genial warmth of his loving 
 persuasiveness. My husband would often say on returning 
 home, * It is marvellous what a work is going on at Walton ; 
 it is not only the crowds of hearers that dear Mr. Penne- 
 father brings round him, but the many conversions, and the 
 drawing together of God's children from every part of the 
 town.' With regard to ourselves, we ever felt that our inter- 
 course with him had opened out to us a great spiritual en- 
 joyment. When in his society, the unconscious influence of 
 a holy life, united to wonderful sweetness, was most reviving 
 to our spirits. The last time the two friends met was at the 
 baptism of our child, the Sunday previous to my husband's 
 death. They met no more on earth, but together they are 
 now present with the Lord, waiting for His glorious coming." 
 
 The expenses of the past year called for much effort 
 during 1850 to meet the outstanding liabilities, espe- 
 cially those connected with the school-buildings. This 
 led to the consideration of sales of work as a means of 
 raising money for charitable purposes. Two sales 
 were held very successfully, while Mr. Pennefather 
 remained at Walton, and as he frequently encour- 
 aged similar efforts in after years, we insert a letter 
 written at this time, expressing his views on the subject. 
 After speaking of the renewed illness of his sister, 
 which was causing him much anxiety, he says — 
 
 ** I believe I have not yet touched upon the subject of our 
 
"'^TfV" Tfci III! jji ' ^_-. -^--^ 
 
 244 
 
 SALES OF WORK. 
 
 [CHAF. XI. 
 
 1850.] 
 
 FLOATING CHAPEL. 
 
 245 
 
 proposed sale. While I quite agree with Mr. in thinking 
 
 that bazaars, as generally carried on, are not desirable, yet 
 I must think it lawful for Christians to contribute to the 
 Lord's work in kind as well as in money. Many cannot give 
 much money, who yet feel they can employ their talents in 
 procuring money. We find that when the Tabernacle was 
 to be set up, some gave the gold and silver, some gave the 
 labour of their hands, while others contributed materials, and 
 surely now for such purposes as school-building, &c., the 
 many may contribute what they have, to procure the means 
 which they have not, at their own disposal. I trust our arrange- 
 ments will be such that no wrong means shall be resorted to 
 for obtaining money, and we are praying earnestly for God's 
 ordering and blessing. In reading Mrs. Fry's Life, I find she 
 speaks of bazaars very much as I have now done, and she did 
 encourage them under proper control. ... I have borrowed 
 ^350, for which I am responsible, and must of course pay 
 the interest. I am so thankful to have obtained it without 
 diflficulty that I do not regret any personal inconvenience, 
 but I cannot rest until the whole is paid off. Our schools 
 are flourishing. Day schools 120 in attendance, Sunday 
 school about 150, night school for men and women no. We 
 have a prayer-meeting in the rooms on Friday evening, gene- 
 erally attended by about 80 people. We have also Sunday 
 classes for men and women, and a Young Men's Association 
 for religious and mental improvement. So you see the build- 
 ings which have cost me so much anxiety were not erected for 
 ornament, but are, I trust, already a rich blessing to the neigh- 
 bourhood." 
 
 We gather from this letter that a considerable 
 parochial organisation was now fairly at work. A 
 diligent band of district visitors were going from 
 house to house, under constant supervision, while Bible 
 readings were held for the more educated, and cottage 
 meetings in different localities for the poor. 
 
 The work among the bargemen and those employed 
 at the wharf was most encouraging. Mr. Pennefather 
 had succeeded in obtaining an old boat, which was con- 
 
 verted into a sort of floating chapel, fitted up with a 
 desk and benches, and capable of holding about lOO 
 persons. It was opened in April of this year, and 
 here a simple service was held on Sunday evenmg 
 and also during the week. It was a touching sight 
 to see the men who had just turned in from their 
 rouah work among the rubbish heaps and coal-dust, 
 so melted under the power of God's truth that prayers 
 were often responded to by sobs, and big tears left 
 white furrows on blackened faces. Many of these 
 men had seldom, if ever, entered a place of worship, 
 but what was begun in the boat was carried on in the 
 church, and many bargemen might have been seen 
 among that earnest congregation, who had found their 
 way from the little floating " Bethel," as they often 
 called it, to the service of the sanctuary.* Every 
 week the numbers attending all the various meetings 
 were registered, and we find it noted that on one 
 Sunday evening seventeen boatmen walked with Mr. 
 Pennefather to attend Trinity Church for the first time. 
 Those who know the habits of this peculiar class of 
 people can best appreciate how much this implied. 
 ■ An earnest Scripture reader, who was a faithful helper 
 in the work, went in and out continually among the 
 boats and the surrounding cottages, and a young man 
 who had been long employed as toll-clerk entered 
 with heart and soul into all that concerned the spiritual 
 welfare of the men. Mr. Pennefather was still without 
 a curate, and all his happy work was making great 
 demands upon his strength. A short absence became 
 
 • The manifest change in the lives of many of the people may be gathered from 
 the fact that a jesting article in one of the local papers closed with the remark, 
 •' In Walton, at any rate, the Millennium must have begun.' 
 
246 
 
 VISIT TO ELLERA V. 
 
 [chap. XI. 
 
 imperative, and we find him writing to Mrs. Crewdson 
 on May 4th, 1850 — 
 
 "I trust it is of God, and that He will greatly bless our 
 proposed journey. Can you receive us on Thursday next 
 without inconvenience. If so, with what delight shall I find 
 myself in my ' English home,' after an absence of two years 
 and six months. ... I long for rest, having been much over- 
 tasked, but still more for the peace which God only can im- 
 part. My dear C. has brought me to the point about this 
 visit to Westmoreland, for burdened and anxious as I was I 
 could hardly see my way. Pray, dear friends, that we may 
 be blessed and be a blessing, pray that our reunion may be 
 
 a very foretaste of heaven, bright and calm and holy 
 
 I think I shall not send this letter till Monday. Except in 
 cases of extreme necessity, I do not like letters to arrive at 
 a friend's house on the Lord's day. ... I cannot dwell upon 
 our many subjects of thrilling interest. Darling D. not better, 
 alas ! " 
 
 We give a few letters written during this visit to 
 Elleray. The first is to a friend in Dublin, who had 
 just lost a beloved sister — 
 
 " My dear Friend,— It is our privilege, amidst abound- 
 ing sorrows, to give thanks that another redeemed and sancti- 
 fied spirit walks in paradise with Jesus ! Her warfare is accom- 
 plished, the ardent longings of the soul are satisfied, and she 
 is * present with the Lord.' I think of her bright countenance 
 and joyous faith, and sweet power of gladdening others, and 
 then I ask what must her removal be to long-loved, cherished 
 relatives ? But yet a ' little while,' and the parted members 
 of the heavenly family shall sit down together * at the mar- 
 riage supper of the Lamb.' Soon shall the number of the 
 elect be accomplished, and t/ien the Redeemer's kingdom 
 shall have come ! And oh ! while we weep, what blessed- 
 ness to know she is safe — no temptation can now harass, 
 no warfare can now mar the deep communion of her soul 
 with God, and no sorrow can now cloud her vision of the un- 
 veiled glory of Him in whose * presence there is fulness of 
 joy.* And we, too, shall be partakers of those pleasures for 
 
 LETTERS FROM ELLERAY. 
 
 247 
 
 1850.] 
 
 ..rmnre- we too shall swell that anthem, now deepened 
 rXrvoke ^Worthy the Lamb;' we too are members 
 
 ^^ ..me blessed body, of which the Christ of God, the 
 
 Ki . of ^ngs^^^ the Head ! Oh, my dear friend, well may 
 
 ^ say ' He?hat spared not His own Son, but delivered Him 
 
 r,cnn how shall He not with 77m freely give us all 
 
 th^intr^ ItTknow That your weak suffering body and 
 
 ier'spirit must be weighed down by P^-^^Virra'rv of 
 vet I ani persuaded that while we are lookmg, like Mary of 
 old ir the tomb, 'ministering spirits* will whisper, 'She 
 old into tne 10 , ^ surround you, saints 
 
 ^lloml;^^^^^^^^^^ call you by name, adding 
 
 "ascend unto your Father and My Father, unto your God 
 and My God ;' and the Holy Ghost, the Comforter, will abide 
 
 ""^'^My' dear friend, I will pray for you, and many will sup- 
 nlirl for 'abound ng consolation,' in this hour of your need ; 
 tus H^self win for you, and by His gracious power 
 
 lou win "e enabled'to go on your way, if sorrowful, yet alway 
 rejoicing.*-Ever in much true sympathy, ^^^^^^^^^^^. 
 
 The following note, to one whom he feared he had 
 unintentionally pained, is very characteristic :- 
 
 " Elleray, June \st. 
 «! was grieved at your sorrowful look when we parted 
 irmakes me very sad to think of giving you one 
 moment" uneasiness. . . . But, dear friend, your spirit is too 
 Te^er forthis "^ven Wd^^l.re darkn^^^^^^ 
 
 ;r "Ta i iS;Sis^there no flowe^ can w,,er; 
 
 Then 'let «. say until that blessed day dawns, ' Cast thy bur- 
 then, let '«^ say _ . ^^j ^^^ nothing.' 
 
 den upon '^^Xl^'^rlS^y ^<^'^^- -ul, like shadows on 
 I know It IS h^^d for alas • my ^ ^^^^ ^^ ^^.^^ 
 
 the meadow-side is ^"^ y "f ^^.'^^ ^^m ^„d know that He 
 To^dnr^arf -eS I wm Pr:y Wou, and though the 
 lekis closinc. on a disquieted mind, yet surely peace and 
 Toy and tut shall be your portion with the ope-ng morrow 
 It is 'the Lord's day,' it is ' the rest of the holy Sabbath. It 
 
2a8 
 
 LOVE FOR THE LORDS DAY, 
 
 [chap. xr. 
 
 1850.] 
 
 LETTER FROM ELLERA V. 
 
 249 
 
 is the resurrection morning. It is the type of the heavenly 
 inheritance. It is the pledge of a restored earth, and a 
 perfected holiness. Would that I valued as I ought to do 
 this gift of countless price ! How I long to love it more ! 
 Farewell! I wish I could convey to you the deep, full, perfect 
 abiding peace for which I pray on your behalf." 
 
 These words, from his own pen, will remind those 
 who knew Mr. Pennefather of the reverent love with 
 which he cherished Sabbath hours. The joy with which 
 he hailed the near approach of Sunday, and the regret 
 with which at its close he would express, in the words 
 of an old writer, the wish that it were possible "to leap 
 from Sabbath to Sabbath" till journeying days were 
 done, can never be forgotten. It was a rule with him, 
 strictly adhered to even when most pressed with the 
 business matters inseparable from his various under- 
 takings, that no secularity should be permitted to 
 intrude on the Lord's day, and no money matters ever 
 referred to. It was his delight to have **an Easter- 
 day through all the year," and this sacred jealousy for 
 the Lord's honour in the sanctity of His own day 
 doubtless contributed to maintain the atmosphere of 
 holy calmness which he felt to be so essential to the 
 child of God. It was emphatically true of him, that 
 from the very depth of his soul he '^called the Sabbath 
 a delight." 
 
 One of his Sunday-school teachers in later years 
 writes — 
 
 " I well remember speaking to him at one of our children's 
 services on a Sunday afternoon. He was walking up and 
 down among the children before the service commenced. 
 He said he would like to see me some day in the course of 
 the week, and I in my business way at once began to detail 
 my various engagements, entering into the plans of the week. 
 He stopped me with a look, — I seem to see it even now. 
 
 There was no reproof, only a kind word about arranging at 
 anot/ier time, but I felt at once how really sacred the day and 
 time and place were in his estimation. There was no Sab- 
 batarianism about him, but a true rest of spirit, a recognition 
 of the day as * holy unto the Lord/ which I have never 
 forgotten." 
 
 The following extract is from a letter to Mrs. Thorn- 
 ton, written at Elleray :— 
 
 "We have just celebrated the Ascension of our Blessed 
 Lord ! How sweet are those words, * I ascend unto My 
 Father and your Father, unto My God and your God.' Blessed 
 truth ! we are one with a living, ascended Saviour! We look 
 not only at the cross and the empty sepulchre, but at the 
 ascended Redeemer. ' With Him,' says the Apostle, * we sit 
 in heavenly places.' And one with Him we are therefore one 
 with those bright spirits who are immediately within the 
 rrlory of His throne. Are we not too forgetful of our wonder- 
 ful privilege } Our treasure is in heaven, and those beloved 
 ones whom God has taken to Himself, only enrich our portion 
 there. Earth was the scene of our blessed Redeemer's agony 
 and shame, heaven is now the scene of His triumph and glory. 
 ^Lift up your heads, O ye gates, yea, lift them up, ye ever- 
 lasting doors, and the King of Glory shall come in.' He has 
 entered the heavenly places, and entered as the Representative 
 
 of His people And yet how little can we fathom the 
 
 deep waters through which j^^w are passing, but there is One 
 
 who can. 
 
 * Thou dost remember amid all 
 
 The glory of Thy throne, 
 The sorrows of mortality, 
 
 For they were once Thine OWN : 
 
 Yes ! and as if Thou would'st be God, 
 
 Even in misery. 
 Thou hast left no sorrow but Thine own 
 
 Unreached by sympathy ! ' 
 
 "May the Comforter, in all His divine power, abide in 
 you ; may His blessed consolations be felt by you ! " . . . 
 
 After a refreshing month in Westmoreland, the busy 
 life in Walton was resumed. 
 
250 
 
 HIS LOVE FOR THE POOR. 
 
 [chap. XI. 
 
 MEMOIR OF MR. THORNTON. 
 
 251 
 
 A circumstance which occurred about this time drew 
 forth such a manifestation of the love of his people as 
 greatly cheered their pastor's heart. 
 
 A parish was offered to him in one of the Eastern 
 counties, and the fact becoming more widely known in 
 the parish than he had intended, it was followed by 
 memorials and petitions in various forms, testifying to 
 an amount of spiritual blessing which could not fail to 
 call forth much grateful praise. That which touched 
 him more than all was a paper headed, *' From the 
 poor ones of the flock." Many of these had refused to 
 put their names to the more general memorial of the 
 seat-holders, saying, " They would write a letter for 
 themselves ; " and its beautiful simplicity and grateful 
 love was deeply appreciated by one who always loved 
 and sought out the poor wherever he went. It was 
 this deep personal affection for the poorer members of 
 his flock that drew forth his chief interest in sales of 
 work, as affording an opportunity of linking them with 
 the activities of the parish. He always longed that 
 even the poorest Christians should know the meaning 
 of those words, '* It is more blessed to give than to 
 receive." In writing to a friend at this time, just after 
 a sale had taken place, he says, *'One very poor, infirm 
 woman, confined to the house by suffering, sent her 
 little contribution of work, saying it had '' cheered her 
 lonely painful hours to work for the Lord ; " another 
 hoped her work might perhaps produce enough " to 
 buy pins to fit up the stalls." This ingenuity of love, 
 which was always devising means for leading others 
 into service, and giving them a share in ** the joy of 
 doing kindnesses," was one of the striking features of 
 his ministry. 
 
 1850.] ______^ 
 
 A little note to Mrs. Thornton, written at a house 
 in London, where he had called, but failed to find her 
 alludes to the memoir of her beloved husband, just then 
 published, which was a subject of much interest to him. 
 
 « 16 Portland Place, June 25///. 
 (Phil. iv. 19.) 
 
 Christ s aearioiiuwc , already 
 
 ;::,s to,, co.,. .™ •» j5-y.irs'„r£ 
 
 whose paths a>^ j°^\ j^ because my cousin has been long 
 
 consolation be yours !— i-ver yours in uui ^ ^^^ 
 
 be broken, ^ 
 
 Frequent visits from Mr. Dallas during his residence 
 at Aylesbury, kept Mr. Pennefather ify^'^T^'^^'f 
 with the progress of the Irish Church Missions and 
 the great blessing given in Connemara was to him a 
 subject of continual thanksgiving. In October of this 
 year, his old and valued friend, Miss Darnell,* thus 
 writes from Baron Pennefather's house— 
 
 "Your father desires me to tell you, that he met the Bishop 
 of Tuam the other day at dinner. He asked very kmd y for 
 you and the Baron told him where you were, and how act.vely 
 employed. The^ishw ^ he did not doubt .t, adding 
 
 been called to her heavenly home. 
 
253 
 
 BLESSING IN CONNEMARA. 
 
 [chap. XT. 
 
 ( 253 ) 
 
 that he traced the whole work that is now gfoing on in the 
 West of Ireland to your instrumentality. The Baron was 
 greatly gratified, and asked if he might tell his son : 'Indeed 
 you may/ was the Bishop's answer, * for it is my sincere con- 
 viction/ " 
 
 In speaking of this to a friend, Mr. Pennefather 
 
 says — 
 
 " What a prayer-hearing God we have ! But what was I 
 to be used by Him } Do you remember it was a lad with 
 five barley-loaves and two fishes that was made the instru- 
 ment of feeding five thousand men } While reading M. A/s 
 letter I could not but call to mind our little prayer-meeting 
 at Roundstone, and my own earnest solitary crying to 
 Almighty God to pour His grace on Connemara, as I knelt 
 upon the heather at the summit of one of the mountains near 
 Ballynahinch. He may seem to forget, but the God who indites 
 prayer never fails to answer the yearnings of His own Spirit/' 
 
 He speaks in the same letter of reading the Life 
 of Dr. Chalmers, with the remark — 
 
 *' I always delighted in him, but love him now more than 
 ever." 
 
 A letter to Miss Mason, of which the exact date is 
 missinof, seems to have been written about this time. 
 Inviting her to pay him a visit in England, he adds — 
 
 "A cloud of sadness sometimes crosses my mind when I 
 think of Ireland, but yet I feel sure that God has ordered my 
 way. Abundant blessings have been showered upon us here. 
 It is marvellous what God has wrought, and if you knew my 
 weakness of body and still greater weakness in spirit, you 
 must see that all the glor}' is His. I should like you to share 
 the dews of heaven, for they lie thick around our camp. And 
 yet what are all our mercies here compared with the /////river 
 of blessing which flows around the throne on high, and of 
 which we shall drink for evermore. It is but a little while 
 that we shall stoop to sip the streams. The Fountain, the 
 Eternal Source, will ere long be our portion. And who are 
 we, that such a provision should be awaiting us ?" 
 
 CHAPTER XII. 
 
 1851-1852. 
 
 <;f,,dv of orophecy-Parochial work-Encouragement in schools-Visit 
 ' L iSd-Letters-Death of Rev. W. Krause-RecoUect.ons of 
 an Irish friend-Proposed removal to Barnet-Lor^ waumg and 
 player-Farewell letter to the congregation of Tr n>ty Church 
 Remarkable instances both of blessing and oppos.t.on-Recollec- 
 tions of friends. 
 
 -THE subject of unfulfilled prophecy, especially in 
 i connection with the second coming of the Lord, 
 had been one of deep interest to M r. Pennefather almost 
 from his childhood. When scarcely more than a boy 
 he had the privilege of intercourse with many deeply- 
 taught students of Scripture, some of whom were in the 
 habit of meeting at the invitation of Theodosia, Lady 
 Powerscourt, for the mutual study of prophetic truth. 
 Those meetings, though marred to a certain extent by 
 creat difference of opinion, and eventually broken up 
 feft behind them an abiding influence m thoughtful 
 minds, and the interest so early kindled remained with 
 Mr. Pennefather in all his after years. "The blessed 
 hope" became an integral part of his spiritual life, and 
 permeated his whole ministry. He was for many years 
 a member of the Prophetical Society which met at 
 Bloomsbury in April and November of each year, and 
 always rejoiced to meet with those who were intelh- 
 aently and practically looking for the coming King. It 
 was a creat source of satisfaction to him to find, among 
 
 Z^i^A 
 
^^^^ 
 
 254 
 
 LETTERS ON PROPHECY, 
 
 [chap. xit. 
 
 1851.] 
 
 LETTERS ON PROPHECY. 
 
 25s 
 
 his flock at Aylesbury, a little band who delighted to 
 meet for the purpose of investigating the Prophetic 
 Scriptures. Among these he discovered one who, from 
 long and patient study of the subject, was capable of 
 giving profitable instruction, and drew him out as the 
 leader of a series of meetings, which are remembered 
 even now as times of great profit and enjoyment."^ 
 Often has this friend remarked in after years, **I never 
 should have had courage to come forward, but for the 
 loving determination brought to bear upon me." 
 
 The two following letters, from Mr. Pennefather to 
 a member of his congregation, appear to be the only 
 ones preserved of the many he wrote on this and 
 correlative subjects. 
 
 To Miss A. W. 
 
 "Great Missenden, June iith^ 1851. 
 
 " My dear young Friend, — It ahvays gives me plea- 
 sure to hear from any member of my flock, and especially 
 when I learn by the letter that the Word of God is prized and 
 studied by the writer. May you be daily taught to esteem 
 the words * of His mouth more than your necessary food,' 
 yea, * as the very joy and rejoicing of your heart.' You have 
 touched upon a very difficult subject. I have thought upon 
 it many times, but I dare not dogmatically pronounce an 
 opinion, although I may state what may, perhaps, be the case. 
 Your question, as I understand it, is ist, Whether the Jewish 
 sacrifices will be restored in the Millennial state } and 2nd, 
 If so, how are they to be regarded .'* 
 
 " In order the more clearly to understand the questions 
 before us, it is necessary to premise that we believe all who 
 are accepted in Christ, and who shall be found living on the 
 earth at the second advent, * will be caught up to meet the 
 Lord in the air,' and be united to all who sleep in Jesus, 
 and whose happy spirits are now in blessedness. 
 
 " The Jewish people will be on the earth, as also the unbeliev- 
 
 * Mr. Robert Dell, who afterwards lectured and wrote on the subject. 
 
 ing Gentiles. A Jewish remnant will be savingly converted, 
 and will inherit * the holy mountain ; ' Jerusalem will become 
 * the joy of the whole earth;' the Lord Jesus and His saints 
 will rule over the house of Israel ; and their glory will be a 
 heavenly glory, while the Jewish saved remnant will possess 
 an earthly glory. 
 
 " You may call to mind that when the children of Israel 
 were encamped in the wilderness, the pillar of the cloud, 
 which usually went before them when journeying, now stood 
 over the camp, and the Lord was in that pillar of glory (see 
 Ex. xiv. 19-24). This pillar, then, was the visible presence 
 of Jehovah resting over His chosen people. There seems to 
 be an allusion to the antitype of this pillar in Isa. iv. 5. 
 
 *' We read of the glorified saints above, sitting down at the 
 marriage supper of the Lamb, and we cannot but call to 
 mind tlie saying of our Lord, ' I will not drink henceforth 
 of this fruit of the vine until that day when I drink it new 
 with you in My Father's Kingdom.' There may therefore 
 be some symbols of the Saviour's love even in our glorified 
 state, and thus we can imagine it possible that the Jewish 
 believers on earth may be permitted to have their sacrifices 
 restored, in order to lead their minds back to a suffering 
 Messiah, while they triumph in a glorified Messiah. 
 
 " As to the Jewish people * keeping the Feast of Taber- 
 nacles,' there is less difficulty in understanding this expres- 
 sion than in explaining the allusion to the sacrifices in Ezekiel, 
 because, ist, the Feast of Tabernacles was a feast of abound- 
 ing joy, instituted on their arrival in the promised land to com- 
 memorate their wilderness condition; 2ndly, it was always 
 celebrated when the fresh vintage and harvest were com- 
 pleted, and it was a season of such universal gladness, that 
 it became a proverb among the Jews, ' he has never seen joy 
 who has not witnessed the Feast of Tabernacles.* 
 
 " There has been no antitype of the Feast of Tabernacles. 
 While we say, ' Christ, our Passover, is sacrificed for us,' while 
 we know that on the day of Pentecost the Comforter 
 descended, we look in vain for the fulfilment as yet of the 
 P^east of Tabernacles. Why ? Because we are not as yet come 
 to the rest and the inheritance of which the Lord has spoken ; 
 we are still in our pilgrimage condition, the whole harvest 
 
■H|IIIIVI«'*q|PP 
 
 256 
 
 LETTERS ON PROPHECY, 
 
 [chap. XI [. 
 
 1851.] 
 
 REV, E. G. ARNOLD. 
 
 257 
 
 of the Church is not gathered in, the 'number of the elect' 
 is not yet accompHshed, and the universal burst of triumphant 
 gladness cannot yet be heard rolling through the heavens 
 from the lips of the unnumbered hosts of God's glorified 
 
 children. 
 
 " I am obliged to write very hastily, and therefore very 
 unsatisfactorily, on the important questions which you have 
 thrown out. If I have not cleared up your difficulties, let me 
 hear again, and with kind remembrances to your cousin, &c., 
 
 Believe me to remain, most sincerely yours, 
 
 "W. Pennefatiier." 
 
 Ao:ain, to the same — 
 
 ^ *' July 2nd, 
 
 " As far as I can gather from Scripture, I believe with you 
 that the Jewish nation will be restored to Palestine previous 
 to the advent of Christ, but that their national conversion 
 will not take place until they Mook on Him whom they 
 have pierced.' After the appearing of Jesus Christ with all 
 His saints, the converted Jewish remnant will still remain 
 on the earth, the glorified saints, with their great Head, 
 rei^nino- over or above the twelve tribes of Israel. 
 
 " I fear, without further investigation and communication 
 {viva voce) on this interesting subject, you will not understand 
 me, so we must mutually look forward to having, please 
 God, a long talk upon it, when we meet." 
 
 An imperfect letter, of which only part has been 
 preserved, seems to belong to this spring — 
 
 " I have been feasting on Bickersteth's Life. It is a most 
 profitable memoir. There is so much self-control and self- 
 denial in his character, and yet such glowing love and beam- 
 ing hope. Have you read the book > if not, do read it. 
 The second volume is particularly interesting. 
 
 " My curate is away, and this has been a busy week. We are 
 having a course of scientific lectures for our Young Men's 
 Improvement Society, and on Tuesday Dr. Lankester, from 
 London, delivered one on 'The Natural History of Plants 
 Yielding Food.' It was very effective, and gave great satisfac- 
 tion. On Tuesday afternoon I have a Bible-class, and on 
 
 Wednesday evening service in the church, a Bible-class for 
 ladies on Thursday morning, and in the afternoon my 
 
 service at the union. 
 
 *' On Friday we hold our weekly prayer-meeting, and on 
 Saturday (to-day) a communicants' meeting ; so you see I 
 have not many spare days. I wish you could send me some 
 earnest Christian people who would be willing to labour in 
 this town." 
 
 In the course of this year the congregation of Trinity 
 Church succeeded in obtaining for their pastor a more 
 commodious house, and he was thus enabled to receive 
 under his roof the curate (the Rev. E. G. Arnold) 
 who was now assisting him. Looking back to those 
 days Mr. Arnold says — 
 
 " I do indeed remember well the time of blessing I spent 
 with dear Mr. Pennefather, and shall always look upon it 
 as one of the greatest privileges of my life, if not the greatest, 
 to have been permitted to spend a year and a half under 
 his roof. My great feeling was that the light of his Heavenly 
 Father's countenance seemed ever to rest upon him." 
 
 The house to which he removed was an old one, and 
 contained a very large entrance-hall, affording oppor- 
 tunities, which he greatly valued, of gathering his 
 people still more closely around him. Every^ morning 
 this hall was thrown open at the time of family prayer 
 to as many parishioners as had no such opportunity 
 at home, and liked to avail themselves of the privilege, 
 and there was reason to believe that abiding fruit 
 resulted from those happy meetings. 
 
 The eagerness of the people to receive instruction 
 brought many to Walton from great distances. One 
 old man, who with his wife had sought and found 
 Christ within the walls of the church, was observed 
 to be very constant in his attendance though living 
 
258 
 
 PAROCHIAL SCHOOLS, 
 
 [chap. xri. 
 
 1851-] 
 
 VISIT TO IRELAND. 
 
 259 
 
 far away from the district. *' Where does your husband 
 
 get his dinner on Sunday ? " said Mrs. Pennefather to 
 
 the wife, seeing him at every sei vice, and knowing he 
 
 could not walk the distance more than once. " Sure, 
 
 ma'am," was the astonished answer, "he wants no 
 
 dinner on Sunday: the blessed gospel feeds him." — 
 
 '' Take a room in the town," said a poor dying woman 
 
 in a neighbouring village to her husband, " I must hear 
 
 something to save my soul." After much persuasion 
 
 the husband hired a little back-room in the place where 
 
 God's dew was falling, and after long suffering the poor 
 
 woman died, leaving it as her parting testimony, " He 
 
 is able to save to the uttermost." 
 
 The following letter tells of encouragement in the 
 
 working of the parochial schools. The pecuniary 
 
 burdens of a very poor parish pressed heavily on Mr. 
 
 Pennefather's slender resources, and at times he and 
 
 his wife trembled for the future of these flourishing 
 
 schools. On July 31st he says — 
 
 " You know what anxieties we have had, and how difficult 
 we find it to support a master and mistress for our schools. 
 Sometimes we have almost feared that we must give it up. 
 But now the Lord by His dealings seems telling us to go 
 forward. On Friday evening, at my usual prayer-meeting, 
 I found upon my table a paper signed by the schoolmaster, 
 requesting special remembrance of the schools, as several of 
 the boys had been asking with tears what they should do to 
 be saved. The next day, when the master came to me (as he 
 always does on Saturday, to hand in the books, &c.), he told me 
 that there seemed to be a great softening throughout the 
 school, and mentioned three by name who appear to be under 
 strong religious impression. One of these has been perhaps 
 the worst boy in the school. His father is, I believe, a 
 Socialist, and the boy seemed to take a pride in laughing 
 at the Bible, the church, and the ministers of religion. The 
 master now says of him, *F. is my greatest comfort He 
 
 delights in school, is present at our prayer-meetmgs and 
 servtces, and says his happiest hours are those spent m 
 church and school. He is braving a great deal of opposition 
 and ridicule from some of the other boys.' 
 
 " My heart is full of gratitude. That boy s contempt for 
 ministers seemed indicative of the spirit of the latter days, 
 —now, his countenance brightens when he sees me ; and 
 instead of the sneer, there is the gracious and respectful 
 recognition. Next Monday I am going to send some of 
 the elder boys with their master to the Great Exhibition. 
 I want to encourage him, and give them the pleasure of 
 seeing the wonder of 185 1." 
 
 In the autumn of 1851, while on a visit to his father 
 in the South of Ireland, Mr. Pennefather made a short 
 stay at Dingle, following out with deep interest the 
 traces of Mr. Gayer's devoted labours, and visiting 
 some of the families in the little Protestant colony. 
 Going from thence to the neighbouring mission-districts, 
 he cheered the hearts of some lonely labourers, and 
 became personally acquainted with the progress of 
 the missions. It was a long-cherished hope that^ he 
 might one day revisit Connemara, but the right time 
 never came, and the wish remained unfulfilled. 
 
 Before returning to England, he had the opportunity 
 of attending a most interesting confirmation service 
 held by his dear friend, the Bishop of Cashel, in 
 the neighbourhood of Doon, where a remarkable work 
 of reformation and conversion had been going on. The 
 Bishop was alone, and invited Mr. Pennefather to 
 act as his chaplain on the occasion, which gave him 
 the advantage of observing individually the earnest 
 countenances and devout manner of the converts. 
 In a letter from the Bishop to the Archdeacon of 
 Waterford * he describes this memorable scene : — 
 
 ♦ See Memoir of Robert Daly, Bishop cf Cashel, pv 290. 
 
 t 
 

 '1 
 
 260 
 
 CONFIRMATION AT BOON, 
 
 [chap. XII. 
 
 " We had in every sense of the word a most glorious day 
 at Dromheen, in which church I held a confirmation for the 
 parishes of Doon, Tuagh, and Pallas Green. It was one of 
 the most beautiful sunny days that ever came, and that fair 
 country looked lovely. The church would not hold con- 
 veniently more than 200, so that I had arranged to have 
 two services, morning and afternoon. At the first service 
 we had 164 converts for confirmation, and nearly lOD persons 
 in the congregation. It was a dense crowd and a most 
 interesting sight. At the afternoon service we had m 
 persons, 3 Protestants. We had been told by the priests 
 from the altars that they would raise the country and 
 bring thousands from Limerick and Tipperary to prevent 
 our holding the confirmation. We took the precaution of 
 having a magistrate and police force, but they had nothing 
 to do. We never saw an angry look from the people as either 
 I or the converts passed through the country. When three 
 years ago I held confirmations in this part of the diocese 
 there were not ten persons from the three parishes, which 
 now sent 375. I do trust it was a coiifirynation indeed, both 
 of the people and the hard-working ministers." 
 
 The Bishops faithful and heart-searching address 
 on that day to the converts was not easily forgotten 
 by those who heard it. 
 
 A few letters and extracts may be added as belong- 
 ing to the close of 1851 and the opening of the year 
 following. The first is to a friend with whom he had 
 often enjoyed much spiritual communion — 
 
 To Miss C. 
 
 "Wahon, December Sth^ 1851. 
 '* My very dear Friend,— It is long since I have either 
 heard from or written to you, yet I k7ww we are closely 
 and tenderly united ; a covenant God has bound us together 
 in the great Head of His Church, and many precious associa- 
 tions, commencing in time but rufmittg on into eternity, con- 
 tinually remind us of common joys. We are anxious to hear 
 how your dear sister is, and how you are yourself; above all, 
 
 1S51.] 
 
 LETTERS FROM AYLESBURY. 
 
 261 
 
 how the Lord is dealing with your soul. Do His consolations 
 abound towards you, and is your path * shining more and more 
 unto the perfect day P'—It has lately been very much impressed 
 upon my mind that the Church of Christ does not sufficient y 
 realise the present dispensation as the dispensation of the Holy 
 Spirit. ' It is expedient for you that I go away,' said the 
 Saviour ' for if I go not away the Comforter will not come 
 to you ; but if I depart, I will send Him unto you.' ' He 
 will guide you into all truth. He will show you things to come. 
 He shall glorify Me. He shall bring all things to your re- 
 membrance, whatsoever I have said unto you.' Are we not 
 then to look for the power of the Holy Ghost t . 
 
 " ist To bring all things to our remembrance which Christ 
 has spoken. 2ndly, To show us things to come, srdly, To 
 lead us into all truth. 4thly, To glorify the Saviour. 
 
 " How much is implied in these four heads 1 and how little 
 direct supplication for the power of the Holy Ghost in these 
 four things do we find in the Church. Did we lean more 
 constantly on this Divine Instructor, the glory of the Saviour s 
 work and person would increasingly open before us. His say- 
 ings would recur to our memories. His miracles would be ever 
 present to our minds. His sufferings and His joys would draw 
 forth our admiration and love, and Christ formed in us would 
 be the * hope of glory: We should be glancing back at Calvary 
 and there adoring a suffering Saviour,— we should "o^lo^mg 
 upward, piercing the veil, and beholding the great High Priest 
 of our profession, ever living to make intercession. We should 
 be on our watch-tower with outstretched necks, gazing into 
 the far-distant horizon to catch the first dawn of rising glory, 
 for the Holy Spirit delights * to show us things to come 
 
 « Do, dear friend, think upon these points, and let me know 
 your opinion. I send you some advertisements respecting Mr. 
 Dell's prophetical lectures. They will, I think, be deeply in- 
 teresting. You have heard that we are in another and far more 
 comfortable house ; the Lord is good to us, and I think we 
 can speak of His blessed cause advancing among our people. 
 How much I should like to see you! it seems long since we met. 
 When shall we again talk together of all those things which 
 have happened ? The time is short, yet a little while, and upon 
 a holier, happier shore we shall recount the loving-kindness ot 
 
262 
 
 LETTERS FROM A YLESBURY, [chap. xir. 
 
 the Lord. What burning words will then break forth from the 
 holy lips of those in whose hearts the Comforter now abides ! 
 What songs of praise shall dwell upon our tongues, when Christ 
 is seen in all His loveliness, and the glory of God is our ever- 
 lasting light. — But I must conclude. Ever your affectionate 
 friend, WILLIAM PENNEFATHER." 
 
 Writing at the Advent season upon some matters of 
 trial and difficulty, he adds — 
 
 " But rather let me turn to the subject which this season 
 brings before us, our Lord's first advent in humility, His 
 second advent in glory. It is interesting to observe the con- 
 stant linking of the two advents in Scripture. If Isaiah 
 speaks of the * Child born,' the infant Jesus in Bethlehem, 
 he adds, * of the increase of His government and peace there 
 shall be no end.' If Zechariah refers to the lowly entrance of 
 our blessed Master into Jerusalem 'on the foal of an ass,' he 
 goes on to say, * His dominion shall be from sea to sea, and 
 from the river even to the ends of the earth.' You will find 
 the two advents thus brought together again and again 
 And the Church of England in her services, endeavouring 
 to follow this order, brings them thus before the mind. We 
 are led to look into the deep anguish of our suffering 
 Master, and onward to the brightness of His reign." 
 
 Again to his dear Westmoreland friends at the close 
 of the year — 
 
 . ..." It seems as if we had but caught the first faint beams 
 of the glory in which we shall walk evermore. Although for 
 many years we have been learning of Jesus, we are so slow 
 to receive his Divine instruction, that we have only tasted 
 of the infinite treasures of His mind, only grasped a little — 
 oh, how little !— of that fulness of grace which dwells in the 
 Living One for His confiding children. 
 
 ** Truly we have need to cry with St. Paul, * That I may know 
 Him' Truly we can echo the prayer of Moses, * I beseech 
 Thee, show me Thy glory.' . . . 1852 sounds ominous ! The 
 world is growing old, the Church's full redemption draweth 
 nigh. There are the signs of dissolution around us. The 
 tottering of kingdoms, the crash of empires. All but as the 
 dust before His chariot-wheels, announcing the comincj- of the 
 
 ^ 
 
 LETTERS FROM AYLESBURY. 
 
 263 
 
 1852] 
 
 • i.ff ,1 T^^ncT How I should like to look in upon your 
 
 SL;^^^^^^^^ -Bufl mustbecontenttoprayforyou. My 
 Ch i ma t xt will be Gal. iv. 4, 5-Christ coming, first, m the 
 fulne^^^^ secondly, sent by the Father; thirdly, m Hi 
 
 ^S /— /^^> ' born'of a woman ; ' fourthly, as tlu s^nner s 
 substitute, ' made under the law. 
 
 The next is to Miss Delap, who had become a con- 
 firmed invalid. .<7.„„.o'9'^.'8s^. 
 .. Mv PRFCIOUS T -I grieve to hear of your weakness, and 
 
 i„, on Ite mo«»u,n-top. A"d y". j"'^''. ' ,^^j 
 
 ?!f ""'nl ,t ;rS Ota, tW k.« ?o.. f. the d»p 
 hoi ow^ ..d th= Si„ =• „ by the ■ ri-hl w.y : ' son..lio=s 
 
 „.J o. Mount S.« ' k^. je thoka'p. o G=^. ~d » 
 
 l^nl ThtcSurL'uo ,ve,y.hin|. He n,.,. no.on y 
 
 "' "°* °° ?hS. i^'^Sv What i. our wondrou. position ) 
 
 givmgs. Christ ail in ai ^ ministry 
 
 We stand \^^^ .^fl^^^'l^ltS^^ ^^ 
 
 within the veil is for us. Th^f ^ "^^ j^^^^^ ^re unable to 
 
 Father loves us as He loves «'« . ^n^ ^J^« conscious- 
 
 " . mI d^rlb' S letters have lately given me great com- 
 fort I s2 such manifest improvement in them. You dont 
 
 '"° Oh Hhe SednS oflhat day. when the scatte-d sheep 
 flock and made them His for ever. 
 
264 
 
 LETTERS FROM A YLESBUR V, [chap. xir. 
 
 To the Same, 
 
 ^^ January i-^^th, 
 . ..." We cannot tell what 1852 may bring with it of dark- 
 ness or trial, but we can assert that God will keep the feet of 
 His trusting saints, and guide His Church safely through every 
 tempest to the desired haven. We can rest in the conviction 
 that not one of His promises shall fail ; ' the Lord will preserve 
 you from every evil work, and bring you to His heavenly 
 kingdom.' 
 
 " Owing to the death of a dear little child of eight years old, 
 who is to be buried on Thursday, I must postpone my visit till 
 the evening of that day, when, God wilhng, C. and I will go to 
 see you and remain in town till Saturday morning. Perhaps 
 
 we could get a bed somewhere near you for two nights. ... I 
 must tell you of the sweet child to whose death I have alluded. 
 She was the only daughter of a widowed mother, but God had 
 early prepared her for His heavenly kingdom. The heart 
 of that bereaved parent does not harbour one rebellious 
 thought. It is most touching to see her beautiful submission 
 m the midst of such deep sorrow. The day before the little 
 one died, her mother went quietly into the room and heard 
 her smging in a low voice, ' Hallelujah, Hallelujah to the 
 Lamb who died on Mount Calvary ! ' Her favourite hymn 
 was the one beginning * Alas ! and did my Saviour bleed,' 
 the last verse of which she often repeated, * But flowing tears 
 can ne'er repay the debt of love I owe,' &c. 
 
 ** The mother has, I believe, been wonderfully taught of 
 God during the last few years, and this little one seemed 
 a saint early matured. Her love for Christ and knowledge 
 of the Bible were very remarkable. 
 
 "We have another deeply interesting case just now, of a 
 woman dying in consumption. She is the mother of a family, 
 and had appeared before her illness to be quite ignorant! 
 I have never seen so striking an instance of the^'Spirit's 
 teaching. Her knowledge of the Bible and its blessed truths 
 is marvellous, for she is unable to read, and her expressions 
 are like those of an experienced and deeply-taught disciple 
 m the school of Christ,— such a deep sense of sin, and yet 
 so filled with the peace of God ! " 
 
 The following note to Miss Mason alludes to the 
 
 1852.] 
 
 RECOLLECTIONS OF A FRIEND. 
 
 261; 
 
 death of Mr. Krause of Dublin, which took place very 
 unexpectedly in the spring of this year : — 
 
 *• April z^d. 
 " I have much pleasure in sending you a cheque for ^^ 10. I 
 wish it were a hundred, but the Lord knows all our need, and 
 can supply it out of His riches in glory by Christ Jesus. I trust 
 you are really better, and your peace as a river, ever flowing and 
 deepening, as it winds its way to the mighty ocean. Is the need 
 at Bethesda yet supplied } How sudden was the summons, and 
 vet how blessed to dear Mr. Krause ! May we work while it is 
 day • the night cometh, when no man can work ! When will 
 vou be in England.? How delighted we should be to nurse you! 
 bo come to us, and may the Lord bless all our intercourse. ' * 
 
 The recollections of an Irish friend, who visited 
 Aylesbury early in this year, and who refers to the 
 same solemn event, may be inserted here :— 
 
 an February 1852, I accepted an invitation from Mr. 
 Pennefather to pay him a visit, and become acquainted with 
 his wife. In passing through Dublin I had the opportunity of 
 hearing Mr. Krause preach beautifully on Ash-Wednesday, 
 on Leviticus i., the beginning as he said of a series of lectures 
 which he intended to preach during Lent on the ofl"erings. 
 How little did I think, when I was telling Mr. Pennefather of 
 that sermon on the Friday evening, that the preacher was even 
 then passing in to see the King in His beauty!— My visit to 
 Aylesbury, intended to be for three weeks, but extending to 
 three months, seemed to be all one blessed time of prayer and 
 praise ; in fact, a foretaste of heaven upon earth. Mr. Penne- 
 father was a father among a loving people, many of whom 
 seemed to have learnt from him the blessedness of a life of 
 prayer. On going into a cottage one day I observed a sack 
 standing outside. On entering, the woman said to me she had 
 just had a happy time of prayer and praise; adding, '\ have 
 never had money enough to buya whole sack of flour till to-day, 
 and I could not let it pass inside the door until I had gone up- 
 
 * Miss Mason did pay a visit to her old friend, and was so deeply interested in all she 
 saw and heard that she fuHy acknowledged God's hand in bringing him to England. 
 
 1 
 
266 
 
 LETTER TO MRS. CREWDSON. [chap, xil 
 
 stairs to thank God for it, as our minister tells us/ Mr. Penne- 
 father held family morning prayer in a large old entrance-hall 
 in his house, where seats were placed all round for any of the 
 people who liked to come. I well remember one lame young 
 man who was scarcely ever absent, and to whom the little service 
 had been greatly blessed. At the prayer-meetings and Bible- 
 classes the old men in their grey linen blouses were a striking 
 feature — dear old men, who adorned the doctrine of their God 
 and Saviour in daily life, and had their last days brightened by 
 the visits of him who had led them to Jesus. But it was in 
 the church that the spiritual life of the flock was especially felt. 
 The heartiness and warmth in all the prayers and praises 
 seemed to say, * This is none other than the gate of heaven.' " 
 
 The date of the next letter is not apparent, but it 
 was probably written in the spring of this year, and 
 contains the first allusion to a proposed change in his 
 sphere of labour, which cost him very much anxious 
 prayer and thought for many months : — 
 
 To Mrs. Crewdson. 
 " I have been most anxious to write to you, but am with- 
 out a curate, and the work is very heavy. Sometimes I feel 
 almost spent, but am mercifully helped on day by day. Now 
 your letter has come, I am determined to send you a few lines. 
 I grieve to hear you are suffering, and yet are not seasons of 
 trial often times of refreshing.? Does not the Lord set the bow 
 in the cloud f Does He not allure us into the wilderness that He 
 may speak comfortably to us? How often I think of those 
 words, 'Darkness shows us worlds of light we never saw by 
 day.' It is so true! Who has not watched the stars coming 
 out, one by one, as the daylight faded away, until the blue vault 
 of heaven seemed spangled with unnumbered orbs of light? 
 And as the night deepened, another and another gleaming as 
 it were from the outskirts of creation ! And so it is, that when 
 darkness comes over a Christian's path, it pleases God to 
 reveal to him promises unseen and unfelt before. The truths 
 of His Holy Word come out one by one, till the soul is lost in 
 amazement at the exceeding riches of a Father's grace and 
 love. May it be so with you, my beloved friend ! 
 
 1852.1 
 
 INVITATION TO BARNET 
 
 267 
 
 "And now I must tell you what is weighing heavily on my 
 heart. Captain Trotter has been here, and has invited me to 
 Se up wofk at Barnet. He has built a church there and ha 
 gathered round it many of the Lord's people. _ The present 
 Lumbentis expected to leave before "«* -•"^^^^' ^jl ^^^ 
 wants me to go there. We spent two n.ghts last week_ at 
 Dyrham (Captain T.'s place). He and his wife are serving 
 the Lord fully, and are very separate from the world. It would 
 be a great comfort to me to have the help of such a layman : 
 but /cannot yet see the way made plain to leave this place 
 perhaps before the winter it may be clearly marked out. The 
 Sument would not be greater than this, as, though there 
 is a house, my congregation here ^ave Provided me with one 
 for the last two years. We simply desire to do the Lord s 
 will in the matter." * 
 
 As soon as his own mind was made up on this im- 
 portant question, Mr. Pennefather wrote a short letter 
 to his people, informing them of the fact that he was 
 called to leave them. He was anxious to allow no 
 time for reports, and to leave no door open for remon 
 
 strances or memorials. 
 
 "Walton, July ijih, 1852. 
 "MY BELOVED FRIENDS,-It is in deep sorrow I now 
 write to you. My heart is very full, and I cannot doubt your 
 ZSZ on the Lbject of my letter. A church has been 
 offered to me, with no pecuniary advantage, but presen >« 
 a wide sphere of usefulness. The circumstances of the case 
 arlso uniooked for and remarkable, that we feel constrained 
 :; say ' the thing proceedeth from the Lord.' It is His vo ce 
 which calls us, and we dare not hesitate to obey But I can 
 not leave this place without a painful struggle. The tlesi i 
 
 ' • This was the only occasion, in the course of his ministry, on which he had 
 of heart. 
 
 I 
 
268 
 
 FAREWELL LETTER. 
 
 [chap. XII. 
 
 must shrink at the severing of a bond which has united us for 
 more than four years, even though it be severed by Him 
 * who doeth all things well' ' God is my record how greatly 
 I long after you all ; ' yet you know who it is that holds the 
 seven stars in His right hand, and fixes them where He 
 pleases. It is the same Saviour who * walks among the golden 
 candlesticks.' Notwithstanding much weakness of body and 
 many shortcomings on my part, I can say that my residence 
 among you has been most refreshing. While I mourn over 
 my own sinfulness, I may, I do rejoice at God's unnumbered 
 mercies to us as a congregation during the past few years. 
 Your unwearied kindness has often gladdened our hearts, and 
 nothing but the clearest intimation that God is removing us 
 could bear us up under the trial now before us. But the 
 Lord can and will sustain ; we can only have light and peace 
 in the path which He appoints. * When He giveth quietness, 
 who then can make trouble V Though having nothing, yet 
 in Him we possess all things. Let me add that it has merci- 
 fully pleased our Heavenly Father to cast my lot in an ad- 
 joining county, so that we may look for frequent opportunities 
 of intercourse." 
 
 The trial both to pastor and flock of the weeks that 
 followed can be more easily imagined than described. 
 The deep silent grief of the people, as the time of 
 separation drew near, was even more touching than 
 loud demonstrations of sorrow, and the bowed heads 
 and stifled sobs made the services almost oppressive. 
 
 In recalling the incidents of \\\s.last year's ministry 
 at Walton, Mr. Pennefather often spoke of the fact, 
 that durine that time he had been called to attend the 
 dying beds of thirty of the most attached members of 
 his flock, all in blessed hope of a joyful resurrection, 
 many of them leaving such a testimony to an all- 
 sufiicient and present Saviour as greatly strengthened 
 the faith of the survivors. "Do you call it a dark 
 valley?" said one aged believer; "it is a very sweet 
 
 18152.] 
 
 DEATH-BED SCENES. 
 
 269 
 
 valley to m^! All praise ! all praise ! " "It is one 
 thing to speak of Jesus," said a dying woman, "it is 
 another thing to have Him in full view." 
 
 It ought to be mentioned that while on the one hand 
 these blessed scenes were going on, the most awful 
 demonstrations of Satan's enmity were manifest on the 
 other. On one dying bed was a lad gnashing his teeth 
 at eveiy mention of the name of Jesus, on another a 
 woman (with no symptoms of delirium) screaming for 
 some one to stand between her and the evil spirits who 
 were waiting for her ! It is not often, perhaps, that 
 heaven and hell both seem so near as in the sights and 
 sounds continually witnessed at that time by Christ's 
 ministering servant. We close the chapter with a few 
 recollections which seem to belong to this period. 
 
 One who spent many happy hours in Trinity Church 
 
 says — 
 
 " Mr Pennefather's preaching was not marked by any strong 
 argumentative power ; it was rather ^e loving pleadmg of 
 one who lived very near the Master, and, hke St. John lay 
 on His bosom. The holiness and love written on his counten- 
 ance reminded us of the shining of Moses' face* To tins 
 must be added his very musical voice and a poetical style of 
 exoression which made him in his addresses and sermons like 
 . one who playeth skilfully on an instrument./ even to those 
 who did not receive His message to their soul s salvation. 
 
 Another, looking back after many years' residence, 
 abroad, writes — 
 
 « Those looks of love and holiness, that gazing as it were 
 into heaven itself, must ever be remembered by those who 
 had the privilege of hearing him. I never can forget his look, 
 when I heard him repeat in the pulpit— 
 
 • .' And truly it might be said," adds another, " he wUt not that his face shone." 
 
270 
 
 RECOLLECTIONS OF FRIENDS. chap. xii. 
 
 1852." 
 
 RECOLLECTIONS OF FRIENDS, 
 
 271 
 
 <*Tis heaven on earth to hear Him say, 
 While now I journey day by day, 
 Poor sinner, cast thy fears away, 
 Thy sins are all forgiven.' 
 
 « The beauty of the Lord his God was indeed upon him. 
 How often, when out in India, I used to read that hymn, 
 and try to bring his beaming face before me." 
 
 We may add a short record of two of the many cases 
 in which God made him at this time an instrument of 
 spiritual blessing. It was remarkable that after the 
 earlier stages of Christian experience, they were both 
 brought by very unlikely circumstances under the teach- 
 ing oi the same minister, to be lifted by his means to a 
 higher platform of spiritual life. 
 
 A lady living near Walton, whose family were not 
 disposed to have much to do with Mr. Pennefather's 
 congregation, writes — 
 
 "It was in the summer of 1848 that my younger sister and 
 I taking a walk one Wednesday evening, passed the door of 
 Trinity Church, Walton. The bell was ringing for the usual 
 weekly service, and knowing that a new minister had lately 
 come to the church, we went in from mere curiosity to hear 
 him I have not now any distinct remembrance of the ser- 
 vice, except that I was deeply impressed \v\i\i the solemn sense 
 that God was there. I obtained permission, with some diffi- 
 culty, to go again (there was a great spirit of opposition exist- 
 ing at that time to the church and congregation), and now I 
 be^ran to get a view of sin as in the sight of a holy God. For 
 many months I mourned under a dark cloud of despondency 
 (too timid to open my mind even to my dear pastor), and 
 found no rest to my burdened soul, till one Sunday evenmg 
 when dear Mr. Pennefather preached on the text, ' His voice 
 as the sound of many waters ' (Rev. i. 15). That voice spoke 
 to my soul, and I could rejoice in sin forgiven. From that 
 time I gave up the pleasures of the world, in which I had greatly 
 delighted ; but perhaps it was more from a sense of duty than 
 real love. • I had many hindrances, and though I knew I was 
 
 saved by the blood of Jesus, 1 groped on in a sort of semi-dark- 
 ness. ... But I must tell of a second step in my Christian life. 
 By the goodness of God we were brought to Stoke Newington 
 in i865rand then again I found myself under the same dear 
 pastor's ministry ; now I was permitted to go a step further, 
 and learn more fully from his lips the necessity of entire con- 
 secration to Christ. I had taken my sins to Him and found 
 pardon, I had given up the world (though with difficulty), but 
 now I learnt to put myself into His loving arms day by day, 
 and found the blessedness of ' casting all my care upon Him 
 who careth for me.' I am no longer my own, but His who 
 died for me, and only desiring that all the remainder of ^my 
 life may be spent to the praise of the glory of His grace." 
 
 The next extract, though not strictly connected with 
 Aylesbury, dates in the first instance from the same 
 period of his ministry. The writer is now a clergy- 
 mans wife, labouring earnestly and usefully in the 
 Lord's vineyard — 
 
 "In 1849, between September and November, dear Mr. 
 Pennefather paid a short visit to my aunt's house. I had never 
 seen, to my knowledge, a saint of the Lord before (except per- 
 haps inone instance), I mean a^^;^.y^^r^/^^servantof the Master 
 I can't tell you the effect of that visit. I was in anxiety of soul 
 at the time, groping after light, longing for peace. An aunt of 
 mine had a few weeks before put a tract into my hand, entitled, 
 * Livincr or Dead ! ' and its title-page God had used to show me 
 my lost condition. I had no hope at all, but deeper conviction 
 of sin day by day, until one day, during his visit dear Mr. 
 Pennefather came into the schoolroom where we were all 
 assembled. He sang with us, accompanying himself on the 
 piano the hymn, * Oh, for a thousand tongues to sing my great 
 Redeemer's praise ! ' and he then spoke to us from 2 Kings v., 
 « Naaman,' and the simple command ' Wash,' with its blessed 
 results to those who, like him, obey. 
 
 " The first gleam of light came to me while he opened up the 
 finished work of Jesus, and our part simply to accept and trust 
 Him The Lord did all the rest. But that precious, simple 
 word was the first blessing and the only instrumentality he used 
 to c^ive me hope. T\\^joy came some weeks after, when I gave 
 
 3* 
 
272 
 
 RECOLLECTIONS OF FRIENDS. [chap. XIT. 
 
 up all, and trusted Jesus with my soul. I cannot be perfectly 
 sure of the time when I saw Mr. Pennefather again ; but it was 
 about the third series of sermons at Guildford in connection 
 with the Home Mission, when his name was announced as the 
 preacher. I had amidst great trial and persecution been serving 
 the Lord. I only knew Him then as my Saviour for pardon 
 and peace and heaven, and my Deliverer in times of trouble. 
 There was much prayer for blessing among God's children 
 before Mr. Pennefather came, and in the morning at Stoke 
 Church the text was Ps. xxiii. It was a precious sermon ! I 
 remember sitting and weeping with joy at the side of my dear 
 old aunts, who were also listening with tears. In the evening, 
 at St. Nicholas Church, the subject was the Risen, Glorified 
 Christ on the Throne, building the Heavenly Temple, from 
 Zech. vi. 12, 13. Up there, and yet down here. The crucified 
 One filled with all the fulness of God for us, who need Him. 
 So near, so mighty, so real I The Divine Jesus, able and will- 
 ing to do all that His weak children trust Him for ; their Life ! 
 their Strength ! Not to be looked at once, but lived upon day 
 by day amid the trials of the wilderness. I shall never forget 
 when he looked up, as he was wont to do, and said, * He is 
 just yonder. Ohl that I had a tongue to tell you what He 
 is to His tried ones in their weakness and perplexity,' &c. 
 
 " I felt a new power unknown before, as though from that 
 moment /, a worm of earth, was linked for ever with the Mighty 
 One of Israel, so that I could not look up to Him in simple 
 faith without constantly receiving supplies of grace for every 
 need from H im. The * resurrection life ' of which he spoke that 
 Sabbath evening in the power of the Holy Ghost, became for 
 months after (and I trust it is not yet less so) the absorbing 
 
 joy of my soul. 
 
 " My dear aunt's Bible-class at Guildford, amongst a dozen 
 Christian women or more, the only one of the kind I believe in 
 that town, wascommencedbydear Mr. Pennefatherwithmarked 
 
 blessing, and became a hallowed gathering for Bible-study and 
 Christian fellowship and counsel for many years, at a time when 
 Bible classes were very rare. One other thing has always been 
 marked upon my memory of Barnet days,— his tender sym- 
 pathy with the tried and sorrowing children of God. I re- 
 member seeing him weep with different Christians, in visiting 
 
 1852.] 
 
 RECOLLECTIONS OF FRIENDS, 
 
 vji 
 
 their cottages, as he listened to their story of sorrow. It 
 seemed such a living commentary on that line, *A heart 
 at leisure from itself, to soothe and sympathise.' I sat and 
 wondered whether I should ever know such heart-sym- 
 pathy, so like the beloved Master.' 
 
 Another friend, who was acquainted with Mr. Pen- 
 nefather for many years, remarks— 
 
 "One very striking characteristic of his ministry was, 
 that he was equally successful in raising believers to the 
 rest of faith, and in his evangelistic work among the uncon- 
 verted." 
 
 I 
 
if 
 
 ( 274 > 
 
 CHAPTER XIII. 
 
 1852-1855. 
 
 Delay in entering on his ministry at Bnrnct— Italian Cliristians — Letter 
 from Rosa Madiai — Commences work at Christ Church, Barnet — 
 Release of the Madiai— Enlarged schoolroom— Visit to Aylesbury — 
 Rev. C. Skrine — Advice to young ministers — Visit to Ireland and 
 Dover— Parochial work— The Crimean War— Death of his brother 
 — Visits to Rev. D. F. Jarman— Care of orphans— Ministry among 
 
 children- 
 
 -Enlarged church- 
 
 -Visit to Edinburgh. 
 
 ]\ /TR. PENNEFATHER did not commence his 
 -^^^ ministry at Christ Church, Barnet, until the 
 close of 1852. Unexpected complications had arisen, 
 and by a remarkable chain of circumstances he was led 
 to minister for many weeks in a neighbouring church. 
 During this interval he was the guest of his beloved 
 friend Captain Trotter, and though the season was one 
 of trial and suspense, he always realised two special 
 mercies as connected with it The intimate intercourse 
 thus permitted with that valued friend and his beloved 
 family, which was a source of life-long thankfulness, 
 and the opportunity which was afforded of entering 
 warmly into the interests of that noble band of Italian 
 Christians who were at this time confessing their allegi- 
 ance to God's Word in the face of great peril and per- 
 secution. Captain Trotter was a member of the depu- 
 tation sent from England to plead for the release of 
 Francesco and Rosa Madiai, and though the effort 
 appeared to be at first unsuccessful, who can doubt 
 
 1852.] 
 
 LETTEE FROM ROSA MADIAI. 
 
 275 
 
 that the prayers thus elicited (and none surely more 
 fervent than those offered at Dyrham Park) were 
 answered in the freedom ultimately granted to those 
 faithful prisoners. We must not here detail a history 
 known to many ; but the following translation of a letter 
 written by Rosa Madiai during her imprisonment will 
 interest those who can recall the tale of suffering which 
 touched the hearts of English Christians. It is ad- 
 dressed to Mrs. Maxwell, whose husband had accom- 
 panied Lord Roden, one of the deputation, to Italy. 
 
 " Dearest Lady, — Being informed of your desire to re- 
 ceive some lines written with my own hand, although my hand 
 be weak and trembling, I discharge a duty in complying with 
 your wishes. Though unknown to me, I know you in Christ. 
 God is love, which love is shed abroad in the hearts of those 
 whom He loves. Seeing then that this love dwells in you, in 
 this holy love I salute and love y 021 1 You have already heard 
 of our calamities, and the sufferings which we have endured 
 and still endure, and my husband much more than myself. 
 My poor mortal flesh, how much dost thou grieve for so small 
 a matter ! Oh ! that we were both like Paul, imitators of 
 Christ ; instead of which we are unstable children. Pray for 
 us, dear lady, that God may give us grace to serve Him faith- 
 fully ; if it be not enough by this imprisonment, then even 
 unto blood and death, should it be for the advancement of 
 His kingdom. I have been told that my husband is better, 
 and I trust in the grace of the Lord that it is so, for his illness 
 greatly increases my affliction, but in all things the will of 
 God be done ! May the Holy Spirit give us ever to say, 
 ' Glory to God, and to the Lamb.' The fever has left me, but 
 my spine causes me much suffering. My neck, head, and even 
 my eyes are afTected by it, and on some days I am much 
 troubled by nervousness. Wherefore pray for us. In our 
 tribulations God has not forgotten our infirmities, and more- 
 over as a good Father He hath pitied, aided, and sustained 
 us, and I feel assured will sustain us even unto the end, since 
 He never leaves His work unfinished. We have heard of the 
 
276 
 
 ARRIVAL AT CHRIST CHURCH. [chap. Xiii. 
 
 1852.] 
 
 RELEASE OF THE MA DIAL 
 
 277 
 
 good persons who have deeply interested themselves on our be- 
 half. Although superior in rank to me and my husband, they 
 have shown themselves truly benevolent. May God recom- 
 pense them a thousandfold, both in this world and in heaven. 
 
 "We are now in the seventeenth month of our imprison- 
 ment, and God knows when it will terminate. We are re- 
 duced to skin and bone. But, my Jesus ! what didst Thou 
 become for us, bound, accused as a blasphemer, as a stirrer 
 up of the people, scourged, humiliated with mockings and a 
 crown of thorns, buffeted and nailed to a cross, the people 
 crying : ' If Thou be the Son of God, come down from the 
 cross, and we will believe Thee.' Ah ! my Jesus, the nails did 
 not hold Thee there, no, it was Love ! Impart this love to 
 Thy prisoners, that they may enjoy so great an honour as to 
 be made a scorn for Thee. 
 
 *' Dear lady, I conclude, fearing to abuse too much your 
 goodness. I hope that this letter may find you in perfect 
 health, and if there be any who inquire about us, I beg you 
 to render them thanks both for me and my husband, and 
 ask that all should pray for us. 
 
 ** Full of respect I subscribe myself your very humble and 
 most devoted servant, RoSA Madiai." 
 
 These dear Christian confessors never came to Eng- 
 land, but they and the little band of Italian sufferers 
 had from that time a constant place in the sympathies 
 of the praying friends at Barnet. 
 
 In the month of December 1852 Mr. Pennefather 
 
 settled at Christ Church parsonage, and on January 
 
 6th, 1853, he writes to Miss Mason — 
 
 " It is very kind of you to bear us on your heart, and wish 
 to know something of our present home, and to think, too, of 
 dear Aylesbury. [Miss Mason had inquired *How could you 
 leave your flock, your beautiful flock > '] We have a very 
 nice congregation here, and many earnest, praying Christians 
 around us. But we do miss our dedit poor people, the loving 
 old men and women, who used to cheer our hearts. The 
 working-classes in this suburban town are very unlike those 
 we have left behind, but there are some among them who are 
 
 on the Lord's side. Our house is close to both church and 
 school, and we are only ten miles from London, which is 
 convenient, enabling me to attend committees, &c. . . . I 
 believe the Lord brought us here, and this is my chief comfort, 
 but the trial of leaving my late post was very great. Never- 
 theless, the Lord upholds us, and is already giving tokens of 
 blessing in this new sphere. How much I should like to 
 show it all to you, and have you at our Bible-readings, and 
 renew the sweet intercourse we had at Walton. But this is 
 not our rest ; the Church is in the wilderness, and her mem- 
 bers may still be described as 'strangers scattered.' Captain 
 Trotter lives about two miles from us. He spends the winter 
 months in London, but his residence among us in summer 
 will, if we are spared, be a great privilege. 
 
 " I trust you are better, beloved friend, and able to return 
 to your work, or rather the Lord's work. You can at least 
 bear it on your heart as you go in with Jesus into the secret 
 of your Father's presence, and you shall not fail to receive a 
 blessing. . . . What think you of the coming future ? will it 
 be fraught with unwonted trial ? shall the Church be caught 
 up before the vials are poured out, or must she feel at least 
 the first drops of the impending tempest ? Oh 1 it is awful 
 to think of the poor world ! for the Lord's saints we have no 
 fear. Whatever betide them, everlasting glory shall soon be 
 upon their heads, and sorrow and sighing flee away for ever. 
 I want you to send Irish Society papers to our secretary at 
 Aylesbury, who will still carry on the work there." 
 
 Asrain, a little later — 
 
 ** We like our little home here, but as yet we have no garden, 
 only a bare plot of ground, as though the house had been 
 finished yesterday (it has been built some years). Perhaps 
 it will be pretty some day, but who can tell what a day may 
 bring forth ! . . . Flowers are tender tokens of a Father's love 
 j ust to refresh His children by the way. What will the flowers 
 of a renewed earth be, when in a blighted world like ours they 
 are so fair and fragrant ! 
 
 " So the Madiai are delivered !— Is anything too hard for 
 the Lord ? Surely man's extremity means God's opportunity ! 
 I have not heard any particulars, but the * Times ' states that 
 
278 
 
 CHRIST CHURCH SCHOOLROOMS. [chap. xiii. 
 
 Lord John Russell announced the fact of their liberation to 
 
 the House I have been deeply touched by a book called 
 
 *Hope Deferred not Lost/ a history of the Patagonian Mis- 
 sion. It contains the journal of Captain Gardiner and Mr. 
 Williams. There is another book I would like you to see, 
 called, * A Stranger Here,' by Dr. Bonar. Mr. Hargrove is 
 delighted with it." 
 
 The first necessity which forced itself on Mr. Penne- 
 father's attention in his new parish was that of increased 
 school-accommodation. The only space allotted to the 
 girls was a small and insufficient portion of the boys' 
 room ; but by the kindness of friends this want was soon 
 supplied, a convenient and cheerful room being added 
 to the original building. The united rooms are still 
 remembered by many as the hallowed spot where the 
 first conferences were held, and where God's presence 
 was often so solemnly manifested to His worshipping 
 people. Another object of interest was the effort to 
 secure a house hitherto used as a Roman Catholic 
 chapel. Bya singular coincidence this was accomplished, 
 and it became a centre for lectures, prayer-meetings, 
 &c.. durine the whole of Mr. Pennefathers residence at 
 Barnet. We shall not occupy the time of our readers 
 with a recapitulation of parochial plans and activities 
 already followed out at Walton, but rather pass on 
 to the more distinctive features of Mr. Pennefather's 
 ministry at Christ Church. The proximity of the me- 
 tropolis gave to the place a character of restlessness 
 and hurry, which was a trial to him, while the business 
 habits which connected all the interests of his people 
 with London, and the constant locomotion of many of 
 them, afforded little time for that close pastoral dealing 
 and fellowship which he so dearly loved. But to 
 counterbalance some ministerial difficulties, God gave 
 
 1853] 
 
 VISIT TO AYLESBURY. 
 
 279 
 
 him Christian friendship and extended mterests far 
 beyond his most sanguine hopes; and as years went on, 
 he was often overwhelmed with a sense of the exceed- 
 ing mercy which had bound him up with such a large 
 an°d ever-enlarging circle of God's dear children His 
 house was som'etimes laughingly called the " Missing 
 Link " where noblemen and farmers, bishops and non- 
 conformist ministers could meet most naturally and 
 pleasantly : where nationalities and denommat.ons were 
 easily merged in the broad sunshine of Christian .love. 
 The accommodation of the parsonage had been in- 
 creased, and "the bare plot of ground" ^.^ become 
 pretty, its flowers and breezes cheering and refreshing 
 many a suffering invalid, who came to enjoy both the 
 natural and spiritual sunlight.* 
 
 In the month of June 1853 Mr. and Mrs. Penne^.ther 
 paid a short visit to Aylesbury, of which he wntes- 
 
 "We had a sad but deeply interesting visit. I feel that 
 rod has done a great work there, and He is testing it by a 
 WtJal which, blessed be His name.it is .«^«n«,. Many 
 tere the tears shed, many the greetings uttered amid stifled 
 Tobs We had a krge congregation on Wednesday, and I 
 sobs, vye "''" ^ ° Qn Thursday we had a meet- 
 
 preached from Isaiah xl. 27, 20. '-'"'^"" ' Dr. Siindav 
 
 \Z for nraver which was numerously attended. On bunaay 
 ing for prayer vvmc , ^^^^^^^ ^^^ 
 
 I preached on John xiv. 3. wuai, y nponle 
 
 to MYSELF. Our Blessed Redeemer holds out to "is peop e 
 irX Peac. ioy, gW, -our, an-— -. ^^^^ 
 
 r-'f^^f^fihaVn^t long returned from Jerusalem, and 
 Svfuf a m "ute a cou;;t of'the Holy Land, where he seems 
 ?„ think the fertility is returning, as though the Lord we e 
 preparing ?he land fL the people ; while throughout the world 
 
 the simplest, commonest things. 
 
 *'.^-««c -^ ^ -.i^'^. 
 
 j»,«e ■"»■ -* 
 
2S0 
 
 THE REV, C, SKRINE. 
 
 [chap. XIII. 
 
 He seems to be preparing the people for the land. It is said 
 that the ' latter rain/ long withheld, has fallen, and that the 
 well of Enrogel has overflowed. It may be that the land will 
 soon rejoice in the sound of the ' streams that run among the 
 hills.' On Monday evening we had a meeting in our school- 
 room, for the purpose of giving Caesar Malan an opportunity 
 of addressing the people. He spoke with much animation and 
 power on the 5th chapter of Romans. His patriarchal appear- 
 ance is most interesting. I had never seen him before." 
 
 It was about this time that Mr. Pennefather first 
 became acquainted with the Rev. Clarmont Skrine, 
 at that time an officer in the army, but afterwards a 
 beloved brother in the ministry. 
 
 Mr. Skrine gives his own recollections of that first 
 visit, and carries us on to other circumstances of later 
 date — 
 
 *' I remember my first interview with dear Mr. Pennefather, 
 I was contemplating entering the Church ; a mutual friend 
 had brought me to his notice, and I received an invitation to 
 spend a day or two at Barnet. There was an evening service 
 going on when I arrived, and I heard him preach, the first 
 and I think the only time I had that privilege. My impres- 
 sion was that there was in his manner, and in his countenance 
 when preaching, that which gave double value to whatever he 
 said. I remember, in proof of this, the fact of a young lady 
 owing her first religious convictions, and even I trust her con- 
 version, under God, to the reality expressed in the brightness of 
 his^ countenance when speaking of the coming of our Lord. 
 
 " On the evening of my arrival, we were sitting under the 
 verandah and talking of my prospects, when he quoted and 
 -spoke on the text, ' God is able to make all grace abound,' 
 &c., dwelling on the fulness of the expression, 'all sufficiency 
 in all things.' I have never lost the impression made upon 
 my mind at that time. Through his interest I was after- 
 wards engaged in the ministry in his' neighbourhood, and 
 was able to take counsel with him in any difficulty that met 
 me. He was the means, unconsciously, of modifying- my 
 views as to the doctrine of election. I found he was as strongly 
 
 !^ 
 
 1853] 
 
 THE REV, C. SKRINE. 
 
 281 
 
 k 
 
 attached as I was to the doctrines of grace, but was not led 
 to make them, as I believe I had done, a barrier to the free 
 proclamation of Christ's gospel to the poor sinner. 
 
 " I never met with one who so habitually led others to God 
 in prayer. I never remember seeing him on any business, 01 
 in any engagement to which we went together, without being 
 invited to join him in prayer. A memorable occasion occurs 
 to me. When we were on our way to a large meeting of the 
 London clergy at Fulham Palace, at his suggestion we turned 
 aside in the avenue, and between the trees we bent in earnest 
 prayer for grace. This habit told much on my own poor 
 ministry, and seems continually brought to my mind, to show 
 me where my strength is, and what the Lord would have 
 His servants do *in everything* 
 
 " I imagine a great many will be ready to say, * No one 
 knew WilHam Pennefather better than myself;' and for this 
 reason, that he had a marvellous power of gaining possession 
 of the hearts of others, and then leading them into loving 
 fellowship with his Master. I can bear witness to the influ- 
 ence which his acquaintance had on me, in leading me to 
 honour the Holy Ghost as the teacher of God's people. It 
 was delightful to be present at the opening of his Bible 
 readings, or in his vestry before a service, and hear him cast 
 himself on the Lord and wait for the power of the Divine 
 Spirit, as the great agent of salvation, and grace, and life. 
 I cannot help referring to one incident in his life, which 
 showed me, more than any other, how largely he possessed 
 the love of Christ, and how influential this made him in 
 drawing Christians together. A man of colour, a Christian, 
 had been invited to the conference at Barnet ; and dear 
 Pennefather's table was open to all the people of God ahke. 
 It so chanced that a Christian gentleman from America was 
 present also, and afterwards confided to me that when he 
 found himself sitting at the same table with one whom he 
 had learned from his youth to regard as of another race, a 
 feeling of great discomfort came over him, but he was able, 
 before the close of the Conference, to overcome the pre- 
 judice, and had learned to love all who love the Lord Jesus.* 
 
 • It was a cause of much thankfulness to those who had been made aware of 
 the strong conflict of feeling in the mind of this Christian friend from America. 
 
) 
 
 2t: 
 
 COUNSEL TO MINISTERS. 
 
 [chap. xiir. 
 
 I know no one who has done, or ever could have done so 
 much as dear Pennefather did to assert the unity of the body 
 of Christ, at the same time that he was singularly faithful to 
 the pnnciples and practices of the Church of England 
 _ " I remember the confession of one who was at length 
 mfluenced to join her friends in separation from our Com- 
 munion, but who continued for years strongly attached to 
 his ministry 'Mr. Pennefather,' she said to me. 'was such 
 a pastor alluding to the tender, loving care, with which he 
 watched over each member of his flock, and his ability in 
 guiding and helping them." 
 
 Mr. Pennefather was often consulted by young men 
 preparing for the ministry,* and dehghted to have them 
 m his house. Many came to him with difficulties upon 
 secondary questions, which had been all examined and 
 set at rest in his own mind long before. Though he 
 loved the Church of England, he knew her weak points, 
 but often said he was satisfied with his position as long 
 as the sixth Article remained in her Prayer-book.t Be*^ 
 lieving his place had been providentially assigned to 
 him, he deemed it his truest wisdom therein " to abide 
 with God." With a mind remarkably at leisure from 
 minor perplexities and controversial strife, he could 
 afford to hold out the right hand of fellowship to weak 
 and wavering ones, and to comfort many a troubled 
 spirit by the felt influence of his own restfulness. 
 Those who knew Will iam Pennefather intimately can- 
 
 rJlin "' °^''^^'■"''""'/°"f ''' '" ""*■" (borrowed as he said from Richard 
 m^niJl I .? • """t * ^''™^' ''f"""°° °f '""'» ^ "ight "='I<e a 
 
 ra hi ,K /■""", Z'';'"^ *"' '™'"-" "' ^'^° g^^^"'/ deprecated an ojuiat 
 " M '.''"" /""T' '^^'''■"S with men and things, and the adoption of what he 
 caiiea a clerical manner. 
 
 w '^Z^'^^l l^'P-""'" ^°"^^^"^^^ ^^i things necessary to salvation, so that whatsoever 
 iTri uT\ T ""^^ ^' P'°^'^ '^'''^^^ '' '^^^ '^ b^ ^^q^ired of any man 
 
 1853-] 
 
 VISIT TO IRELAND. 
 
 283 
 
 not fail to be reminded of him in reading the well- 
 known lines — 
 
 " I stand upon the mount of God 
 With sunlight in my soul • 
 I hear the storms in vales beneath, 
 I hear the thunders roll — 
 But I am calm with Thee, my God, 
 Beneath these glorious skies ; 
 And to the height on which I stand 
 Nor storms nor clouds can rise." 
 
 A Visit to Ireland in the summer of this year was 
 unexpectedly cut short by a summons to Dover, as he 
 writes to Mrs. Crewdson — 
 
 * Knockeevan, Clonmel, August 2()th. 
 
 .... "We have been here for three weeks, and were on 
 the eve of starting, via Limerick and the Shannon, for Lord 
 Lorton's place, Rockingham, Boyle ; and from thence to 
 Arley Cottage and Dublin, when I received a pressing and 
 most unexpected letter from Dover, asking me to take charge 
 of Mr. Bates's church for a few weeks. You may have heard 
 of him as a faithful standard-bearer of the Cross at Dover. 
 He is deeply tried in health, and has lately lost a devoted 
 wife. I felt this letter as a call from God to give up our con- 
 templated visits and return to England, so to-morrow we 
 start, please God, for Dublin, and hope to arrive at Dover 
 on Saturday. It would have been a great pleasure to see 
 Rockingham, and to show Arley to my wife, but the minister 
 of Christ should ever be ready to answer to the voice of his 
 Master, * Here am I, send me.' I deeply feel leaving this 
 place and my aged father. He completed his eightieth year 
 on the 25th. Shall I ever see him again } Shall I see him 
 basking at eventide in the radiance of the Sun of Right- 
 eousness 1 I have been permitted to preach every Sunday 
 since I have been here, which I feel to be a special mercy, 
 once at Fethard, and twice at Clonmel. Oh ! that God may 
 bless His own Word !" 
 
 The friend ^' who so urgently requested Mr. Penne- 
 
 • The Rev. C. J. Goodhart. 
 
 -"fr* 
 
 -S*?*i«> 
 
 ■ iiin"T"i'~<Mr"1llli m II mjl.iiw 11 
 
 '2931 
 
 —raw 
 
284 
 
 MINISTRY AT DOVER. 
 
 fCHAP. XIII. 
 
 father's assistance at Dover, gave him to understand 
 that the circumstances of the church were pecuHar. 
 The long illness of the minister had greatly tried both 
 himself and the people, while many difficulties and 
 disappointments in supplying his place had made the 
 congregation somewhat critical and captious. Mr. 
 Pennefather was personally a stranger among them, 
 and during his residence in the town was one day 
 amused at receiving a visit at his lodging from an old 
 gentleman, who, after introducing himself as a member 
 of the congregation, put the abrupt question, *' Pray» 
 sir, how old are you ? " adding, " We were very glad 
 when we heard you were coming, but quite shocked 
 when we saw such a young man"^^ get up in the pulpit. 
 And now, I want to know when and where you have 
 learnt all the blessed truth you have been teaching us." 
 Much happy communion followed this quaint introduc- 
 tion, and other interesting links, some found after many 
 days, were formed during this short ministry at Dover. 
 
 Among desires and possibilities suggested during 
 this time of comparative leisure, was the first thought 
 of attempting some practical recognition of union among 
 the churches. Might not this be done on a platform of 
 spiritual fellowship which, while firm in its basis of truth, 
 should be high enough to rise above the separating 
 hedgerows of denomination, and where the atmosphere 
 of love would be such that the Shepherd s voice could 
 be heard apart from the jarring of earthly Shibboleths?! 
 
 Three years passed by before the thought assumed 
 
 ♦ Mr. Pennefather's appearance at this time often misled strangers as to his 
 age. 
 
 t The Evangelical Alliance had Mr. Pennefather's warmest sympathy, but he 
 always felt that it left room for much that might be done practically in the same 
 direction. 
 
 iS54.] 
 
 PAROCHIAL LABOURS. 
 
 285 
 
 a definite form, but it was never lost sight of, and He 
 by whom it was suggested in due time opened the way 
 for its accomplishment. Meanwhile much hard work 
 had to be done by Mr. Pennefather in the locality 
 where God had placed him, and we find many plans 
 set on foot both for the temporal and spiritual improve- 
 ment of the people. 
 
 In posting days, Barnet had been the first stage out 
 of London on the Great North Road, and innumerable 
 stage-coaches and private carriages had every day 
 chano-ed horses there. The town was consequently 
 crowded with inns, and a large proportion of its inhabi- 
 tants were accustomed to depend upon the casual profits 
 of this incessant traffic. But railway travelling, which 
 so rapidly changed the habits of the country, had left 
 this, and many other towns on our principal highroads, 
 suddenly impoverished, and bearing sad traces of the 
 evils inseparable from such antecedents. 
 
 Mr. Pennefather and his helpers laboured diligently, 
 and with much outward success. Bible-readings and 
 classes were well attended, and the church became so 
 crowded that, before the end of 1854, it was deemed 
 necessary to make plans for its enlargement. But amid 
 abounding encouragement in the aspect of things around 
 him, he sighed for the showers of converting grace which 
 had fallen so copiously at Aylesbury, and while others 
 were almost envying his great prosperity, he was often 
 repeating the words of the prophet, " Oh ! that my head 
 were waters and mine eyes a fountain of tears, that I 
 might weep day and night for the sins of my people." 
 He could never be persuaded to rejoice in any work 
 which he did not look upon as real and abiding, or 
 to be satisfied without a deep consciousness of the 
 
 -*iP»*,l»,;^iifta«|#f 
 
 u 
 
286 
 
 PAROCHIAL ANXIETIES, 
 
 [CHAP. XIII. 
 
 1854] 
 
 THE CRIMEAN WAR. 
 
 287 
 
 mighty presence of God's Spirit. The immediate neigh- 
 bourhood of London involved both advantages and 
 trials, and we often find him mourning over interrup- 
 tions, and " the pressure of life in a place where time 
 seems to make to itself wings, and fly with double speed." 
 We give a short letter to his Westmoreland friends — ■ 
 
 "November 25M, 1854. 
 
 " Your dear letter received this morning has proved so great 
 a cheer to me, that although it is Saturday, I cannot help 
 sending you a few lines. It is indeed refreshing to realise 
 that the bond which unites us is not only tender but inde- 
 structible — eternal. We are linked to Christ, and /;/ Him to 
 each other. And what a multiplicity of delicate cords are 
 woven into the chain of love. This network of friendship 
 and intercourse, all branching out from that centre of cove- 
 nant redemption which has made us one with Jesus, will be 
 unravelled and retraced in the light of His glory, when we 
 are gathered into the paradise of our God. 
 
 " I was in town this week from Monday until yester- 
 day, attending the meetings of the Prophetical Society. I 
 preached at St. George's, Bloomsbury, on Thursday evening, 
 and at 1 1 o'clock that night dear J. and M. Delap arrived 
 at Euston Square Station, having left Monellan at noon, 
 the day before. It was a tremendous journey for one in 
 Jane's state of health, but I sazu her alive, and that is saying 
 something. Thank God they are safe." 
 
 In the later months of 1854 the heart of the nation 
 was stirred to its depths, by the events of the Crimean 
 War. The names of Alma, Balaclava, and Inkermann 
 were written in blood on England's annals, and a pall 
 of sadness was flung over the closing year. To one so 
 keenly alive to world-wide interests as William Penne- 
 father, and so responsive to every tale of suffering, it 
 could not fail to be a time of intense feeling. Inter- 
 woven in his correspondence with family and parochial 
 
 details, we find touching allusions to the noble men 
 who were bravely battling with all the horrors of a 
 winter campaign upon a foreign soil. The following 
 extract refers to one case in which he was especially 
 interested : — 
 
 ** T must tell you something of Major T. He was in the 
 artillery, and shortly before the battle of Inkermann, he wrote 
 nearly as follows : — 
 
 *' ' Although my hardships and privations have been great, 
 and although I have no leisure sometimes to read my Bible, 
 or to keep up stated seasons of prayer, yet never, since I knew 
 my Saviour, have I felt the same intense happiness in fellow- 
 ship with Him as I now enjoy. The light of His presence is 
 around me, the still, small voice of His Spirit communes with 
 me, my joy is unspeakable and full of glory. I have been 
 thinking over the twenty-third Psalm, and I can say, * The 
 Lord is my Shepherd, I shall not want' 
 
 " In this spirit he went into the bloody scene of the 5th of 
 November, and in a moment, by the rush of a cannon ball, 
 his soul was wafted, as it were in a fiery chariot, to glory. I 
 wish I had his beautiful letters by me, but I am only writing 
 from memory. They are most touchingly instructive. One 
 which he wrote to his wife as he was going up the Bosphorus, 
 and directed, * To be given to my wife, in case I die in action,' 
 is a wonderful illustration of the power of God's grace. 
 
 .... "Do you know the life of Richard Williams, the 
 Patagonian Catechist, by Dr. Hamilton.? It opens out a 
 spiritual and soul-satisfying portion in 'the Beloved,* which 
 is most strengthening to faith. I was reminded of it by 
 Major T's letter. Meanwhile, beloved friends, the * time is 
 short,' and storms are thickening. It is as though lightning 
 flashes were more bright and frequent, and thunder rolling 
 more heavily along a dark horizon I Watchman, what of the 
 night > " 
 
 After some touching details in another letter, he adds— 
 
 " Did I tell you this before } I have so many to speak to, 
 and so often recount the Lord's dealings with His tried ones, 
 
 > 
 
288 
 
 DEATH GF HIS BROTHER, 
 
 [CHAP. XIII. 
 
 1855] 
 
 THE REV. D. F. J ARM AN. 
 
 289 
 
 for the consolation of others, that I sometimes fear I may 
 repeat the same histories." 
 
 In the beginning of April 1855 Mr. Pennefather was 
 suddenly called to Ireland by the death of his only 
 remaining brother. He was carried off by fever in the 
 prime of life, leaving his aged father, with whom he 
 had resided, sorely bereft and now totally blind. Let- 
 ters from Barnet, written during this spring, tell of a 
 complication of difficulties and perplexities both private 
 and ministerial. Perhaps the most painful trial to his 
 sensitive nature was the frequent charge of having de- 
 serted his aged parent from a mistaken notion of Chris- 
 tian duty. The death of his brother had re-opened 
 many of the questions connected with his leaving Ire- 
 land, and some, who could not understand all the cir- 
 cumstances of the case, judged him hardly. To one 
 friend he says at this time — 
 
 ** We have been so hedged up, that we could only stand 
 still and cry to the Lord, and His gracious faithfulness has 
 shone out in the darkness. . . . Seldom have I realised such 
 blessed communion as the Holy Spirit has enabled me to 
 maintain during the last few weeks. And in the parish there 
 are bright spots. The church is crammed, souls are awak- 
 ened, and believers are making progress, but Satan ra^esj* 
 
 To another — 
 
 " How strengthening are the words in Ps. cxviii. 7, * The 
 Lord taketh my part with them that help me.' The Psalmist 
 with his fellow-saints and the Lord Himself thus bound up 
 in a holy sympathy." 
 
 During the spring and summer of this year Mr. 
 Pennefather was in constant attendance (sometimes by 
 night as well as day) at the sick-bed of a young clergy- 
 man in whom he was deeply interested, the Rev. D. F. 
 Jarman, minister of Bedford Episcopal Chapel, Blooms- 
 
 bury. He had come to the house of his uncle at Bar- 
 net in a state of great suffering from white swelling of 
 the knee, and after many weeks of hope deferred, it 
 was decided that the limb must be amputated. The 
 operation was successfully performed, but the constitu- 
 tion failed to rally, and the patient passed away after 
 two months of extreme exhaustion. Mr. Pennefather 
 noted down some of the precious words that fell from 
 his lips. We quote a few lines for the comfort of God s 
 suffering people. "Shortly before the operation, he 
 said, ' All is well, all shall be well. Yes, and I can 
 praise God for all. Last night I was reading with the 
 servants the 103rd Psalm, and after it was finished, we 
 joined in praising the Lord for His mercies. I was 
 led to recount the special mercies of God to each per- 
 son then immediately in His presence, and when I 
 came to my own case I paused, waiting for grace and 
 strength to give thanks. At length the Holy Spirit 
 seemed to impel me to cry out, " O Lord! I bless Thee 
 for every dispensation of Thy providence; I bless Thee 
 for every trial which Thou hast in mercy sent to me ; 
 I bless Thee for my present circumstances ! " When I 
 had done this, peace seemed to flow as a fresh stream 
 into my soul, and I then experienced such intense happi- 
 ness as I had never known before/ At one time when 
 he thought he was dying, he said, ' Tell my people that 
 I find all the promises to be Yea and Amen in Christ 
 Jesus. Not one good thing hath failed me. Soon we 
 shall meet where sin cannot mutilate the body or defile 
 the soul. I shall see 7^^ there, and I shall know you' '* 
 The year 1855 brought to Mr. and Mrs. Pennefather 
 increased openings in a field of service to which they 
 had both been peculiarly drawn. The care of orphans 
 
 T 
 
|| If! 
 
 290 
 
 ORPHAN CHILDREN. 
 
 [chap. XIII. 
 
 liad been laid upon their hearts as from the Lord, and 
 He who kindles a desire never fails to give the corre- 
 sponding opportunity. 
 
 Three little orphan girls had been for some time 
 under their roof, and though they had now left it, many 
 friendless or lonely ones were, from time to time, gladly 
 welcomed to heart and home. In the month of May 
 Mr. John Pennefather's three orphan children were re- 
 ceived as a sacred legacy into their uncle's house, and 
 about the same time a very wide door was opened for 
 loving service to the widow and the fatherless. Public 
 subscriptions had flowed in freely to form a general fund 
 for assisting, as -might be judged expedient, the wives 
 and children of the soldiers who had either fallen in the 
 Crimean War, or become incapacitated by wounds and 
 sickness. In many instances it was found best to re- 
 move the children from their former homes, and place 
 them under careful supervision and instruction. Places 
 within reach of London were selected, where clergymen 
 or others might be willing to take an oversight of the 
 children, and be in every way responsible for their train- 
 ing and education. The charge was an onerous one, 
 but it presented a large sphere of usefulness, and when, 
 at the suggestion of a friend, Mr. Pennefather was asked 
 by the Hon. Secretary of the Patriotic Fund to receive 
 a certain number of the fatherless ones into his parish, 
 he at once consented. Beginning with six, the number 
 gradually increased to 400, and for nine years the orphan 
 homes and schools scattered through the town became 
 an object of much interest in Barnet. The first allusion 
 we find in Mr. Pennefather's correspondence to the 
 work, which became very dear to him, is in a letter to 
 Mrs. Crewdson. 
 
 1855.] 
 
 PATRIOTIC FUND. 
 
 291 
 
 *'Did I tell you that the Hon. Secretary of the Patriotic 
 Fund (Captain Fishbourne) has selected this place as one 
 amongst others in which to locate soldiers' orphans? We have 
 now twenty-five, and are likely to have forty more placed under 
 our superintendence. The Fund is to allow a given sum to 
 cover all expenses. We are about to furnish a house to receive 
 forty girls, and the stated sum must meet all demands for food 
 and clothing. The proposition came to us in a way we could 
 not refuse, though we did not know Captain Fishbourne." 
 
 The gentleman who is thus spoken of as a stranger 
 when the work was undertaken, became a valued friend 
 and constant counsellor, whose unvarying sympathy and 
 kindness ever helped to lighten a burden of responsi- 
 bility which sometimes pressed heavily. It would be 
 impossible to describe the affectionate interest with 
 which Mr. Pennefather threw himself into this branch 
 of the work committed to him. With a warm love for 
 children in general, and a remarkable power over them, 
 he received these fatherless little ones as a special trust 
 from his God and from his country, and bestowed upon 
 them sympathy and labour without stint or measure. 
 The fruit he was permitted to see was sufficient to com- 
 pensate for every anxiety. Much more, we doubt not, 
 remains to be reaped in a glorious future. 
 
 To quote the words of one who was closely con- 
 nected with the work — 
 
 " While we rejoiced over some who came out on the Lord's 
 side, there were others who never made a public profession, 
 but who are now living changed lives, and some who are 
 actively engaged in the Lord's service. The inexpressible 
 influence brought to bear upon them by their loved friend 
 and pastor seems to affect the whole tenor of their lives, and 
 it will only be in eternity that we shall be permitted to see 
 the amount of good accomplished." 
 
 In after years, whenever Mr. Pennefather was ad- 
 
292 
 
 MINISTRY AMONG CHILDREN. [chap. xiir. 
 
 fi 
 
 vertised to preach in London, whether in church or hall 
 or theatre, he was sure to be met at the door by a 
 number of ** his boys," who had come from their differ- 
 ent situations to see and hear him. It seemed a special 
 ordering of God's providence that he should have this 
 wide field for the exercise of a power over children, 
 which was so peculiar that it was a source of amusement 
 as well as interest to those who knew him best. The 
 exuberanceof/^ which he possessed, both naturally and 
 spiritually, was continually giving itself out in a wealth 
 of love which seemed inexhaustible ; a love equally 
 ready to cherish a ragged child or to greet an assembled 
 congregation, to comfort a hungry beggar or to throw 
 sunbeams into a family circle. It was a thing to h^feU 
 even when unspoken, and young hearts at once re- 
 sponded. A little boy going home one day exulting in 
 the fact that he had met Mr. Pennefather, was asked by 
 his mother, " What did he say to you } " " He said no- 
 thing," was the child's reply, ''but he beamed upon me." 
 He was himself much amused when once walking in 
 the town of Homburg, a little German child, who was 
 toddling by the side of a lady at some little distance, 
 fixing her eyes on him, deliberately crossed the street 
 and slipped her hand into his. In another Continental 
 town he was standing under an archway, when a French 
 peasant passed with a very young child in her arms. 
 Turning back, with many apologies she explained that 
 " the little one would give her no rest till it had asked 
 for a kiss from the kind gentleman." * 
 
 Such recollections might be largely rnultiplied ; but 
 
 * This attractive power was not confined to children. An importunate beggar, 
 who was one day telling his tale of want to a party of travellers, suddenly caught 
 si^ht of Mr. Pennefather, and prefaced his appeal with the exclamation, ♦• You, sir, 
 with heaven in your face ! " 
 
 1855.] 
 
 MINISTRY AMONG CHILDREN. 
 
 293 
 
 we will only give two touching incidents, which, though 
 occurring at a later period of his ministry, may not be 
 out of place here. A family who had quitted his parish 
 in London for one at some distance, and had conse- 
 quently removed their children from the school, were 
 brought into a state of much distress by poverty and 
 sickness. One fine little boy was lying hopelessly ill, 
 and the mother's heart was sorely stricken. The little 
 fellow had evidently cherished the lessons he had for- 
 merly learnt, and was calling out to hear *' more about 
 Jesus." *' Oh, mother, send for Mr. Pennefather," was 
 his constant cry, the mother as constantly replying that 
 Mr. Pennefather was too far away, and that they could 
 not expect him to visit them in another parish. Still 
 the child fretted and entreated, but the same difficulties 
 were urged, till at last the boy with increased energy 
 exclaimed, " Mother, he's very like an angel, and the 
 angels go everywhere T This plea was irresistible, and 
 the child's request was granted. 
 
 The other story tells of a seed springing up after the 
 one who sowed it had been taken to his rest. It is 
 told by a lady who was a helper in his London work. 
 ** I was at the Conference Hall one Sunday evening, 
 and after the Gospel address, those who were anxious 
 were invited to stay for the prayer- meeting. I spoke 
 to one poor woman sitting near me, and asked if she 
 had come to Jesus. ** Yes," she said, and then added, 
 ''Shall I tell you how it was I found Him ? I had a 
 little boy of four years old, and I brought him to the 
 children's service here one Sunday afternoon. Dear 
 Mr, Pennefather was speaking to the children, and my 
 little boy sat just in front, beneath the platform. He 
 was very fidgety, and would get up and down. At last 
 
294 
 
 CHURCH ENLARGED. 
 
 [chap. xrir. 
 
 1855.] 
 
 CHURCH ENLARGED. 
 
 2)5 
 
 Mr. Pennefather looked down at him, and said, in his 
 firm and loving way, * Dear little boy, sit down, there's 
 plenty of room/ The child sat down at once, quite 
 good, something in the tone and manner had so struck 
 him that he never forgot it, and was constantly re- 
 minding me, ' Mr. Pennefather said, Dear little boy, 
 sit down, there's plenty of room.' A few weeks later 
 he was taken ill, and when he was dying said, ' There's 
 plenty of rootn ; Jesus is making room for me, mother, 
 and you must come too.' That was enough, my little 
 boy's dying words brought me to Jesus." 
 
 But we must forbear to dwell longer on this ministry 
 among the children, which has left its mark on many a 
 heart and life, and return to the summer of 1855. 
 
 The enlargement of the church had been going 
 steadily forward, but the work was so carefully arranged 
 that the building had not been closed for a single Sun- 
 day. On the 3rd of August the new aisle was thrown 
 open, to the great satisfaction of the crowded congre- 
 gation. In a letter to his Westmoreland friends at the 
 close of July, Mr. Pennefather says— 
 
 *' Is there any hope of your being in London on the 3rd of 
 August ? The dear Bishop of Meath has promised (God will- 
 ing) to preach for me on that day, at the opening of our 
 enlarged church. How I should rejoice to have you with us!" 
 
 Again, on the evening of August 3rd — 
 
 "We have had a deeply interesting service to-day, but the 
 Bishop of Meath did not come. He was unwell, and Mr. 
 Marsden of Birmingham took his place. He gave us an able 
 and profitable sermon. We expect to have a quiet sale for 
 our Church Enlargement Fund on the 29th, 30th, and 31st 
 of this month. Perhaps you may be passing through town, 
 on your way to the Pyrenees, just at that time." 
 
 A gallery was afterwards added in the new part of 
 the church, especially for the accommodation of the 
 orphan children, and Captain Trotter had already ex- 
 tended the vestry very considerably, in order to give 
 increased space for the prayer-meetings before the 
 services. It was always Mr. Pennefather's custom to 
 invite a few of the earnest and prayerful members of 
 the congregation to unite in seeking a blessing on both 
 ministers and people at the opening of each service. 
 At Barnet, the response to this invitation was peculiarly 
 cordial, and many have spoken of the vestry prayer- 
 meetings as seasons of no common privilege, when the 
 presence of the Lord was very specially realised. 
 
 The records of the autumn are but few. On Sep- 
 tember 19th we find him writing from Stoke Park, 
 Guildford, whither he had gone to meet his cousins— 
 
 -We found dear J. and M. safely returned from their Con- 
 tinental journey. I am perfectly astonished at what J. has 
 been able to accomplish. They crossed the Wengern Alp 
 and the great Scheideck, and wandered through the Bernese 
 Oberland. They ascended the Righi, and, in fact, have seen 
 many of the glories of Swiss scenery. Their descriptions have 
 re-awakened that intense longing to see the Alps which I have 
 had from my childhood. Will it ever be granted to me } It 
 it be for my good I know it will, but it may be well that my 
 will in this as well as in other things, should be crucified. 
 ' Not as I will, but as Thou wilt.' My dear father is in Edin- 
 burgh whither he went for advice about his eyes. He thought 
 he was deriving some benefit from the treatment when an 
 attack of illness confined him to his bed, and threw him back. 
 I have been very uneasy about him, and was about to start 
 for Scotland, when a better account arrived. I think S. and 
 D will be with him soon, and I shall probably go some Mon- 
 day until Saturday. Having been absent in the spring, I 
 cannot leave my people long, and they always seem to get 
 into some perplexity when I leave the Sunday work in other 
 
296 
 
 VISIT TO EDINBURGH. 
 
 [chap. xiir. 
 
 ( 297 ) 
 
 hands If I go, it will probably be by the Great Northern, 
 so I shall not go near H." 
 
 A letter, dated VeitdVs Hotel, Edinburgh, October 
 25th, tells of the accomplishment of this plan— 
 
 " By the tender mercy of our Heavenly Father we per- 
 formed our rapid journey from Barnet to this beautiful city 
 on Monday last. ... The weather has been most unfavourable 
 for seemg this place, which I wanted my wife to admire 
 Violent squalls of wind, rain, and even a sprinkling of snow • 
 but It has been a great cheer to us both to see my aged father 
 
 and the M.'s We have been interested in attending 
 
 some of the services preparatory to the Communion Sabbath 
 Ihis day (Thursday) is observed throughout the whole city 
 with the strictest solemnity. Shops are shut, the banks are 
 c osed, and there is no performance in the theatre. The whole 
 place wears the aspect of a great national humiliation. We 
 w-ent in the morning to hear Dr. Bonar, and in the afternoon 
 JMr. Purvis of Jedburgh " 
 
 In his short visit to Edinburgh Mr. Pennefather 
 became acquainted with several kind friends, who helped 
 to deepen his interest in the religious activities, as well 
 as the natural beauties, of the Scottish capital He 
 would have much enjoyed a longer sojourn in a place 
 which had peculiar attractions for him, but home claims 
 were imperative, and he returned to Barnet on October 
 27 th, 
 
 CHAPTER XIV. 
 1856-1858. 
 
 Conference proposed — Letters on various subjects — First Barnet Confer- 
 ence — Letters — Illness of his wife — Stay in Wiltshire and visit to 
 Wonston — Services for the Militia — Coffee-house for working-men 
 — Extra services — Second Conference — Recollections of the Confer- 
 ence of 1858 from several friends. 
 
 npHE year 1856 was always regarded by Mr. Penne- 
 •^ father as an era in his life's history. The greater 
 part of it was occupied with the same unceasing acti- 
 vities, and the same round of ministerial duties as had 
 filled up the record of other years, but the yearning 
 desire, which had been long deepening and strengthen- 
 ing in his inmost soul, was this year to receive its first 
 practical accomplishment. The meetings held at 
 Christ Church, Barnet, in the month of August, might 
 seem small and unimportant, but they were very 
 solemn in his eyes. He regarded them as an ac- 
 knowledgment (however feeble) of the great principle, 
 often slighted, sometimes positively disowned by 
 the Christian Church, that her union in Christ, the 
 living, glorified Head of all His members, is a spiri- 
 tual union so real, and close, and eternal, that it should 
 not only be allowed as an article of our creed, but real- 
 ised, recognised, and manifested by every possible 
 means and on every possible occasion. He used often 
 to speak of the object of these meetings as fourfold— 
 manifested unity, social communion, increased per- 
 
298 
 
 PROPOSED CONFERENCES. 
 
 [chap. XIV. 
 
 1856.] 
 
 FORTY YEARS' JOURNEYING. 
 
 299 
 
 -1 t 
 
 V 
 
 sonal holiness, and enlarged interest in the pro- 
 motion of Christ's kingdom throughout the world. 
 The second coming of the Lord, which was so bright a 
 hope to his own soul, always held a prominent place 
 in the subjects selected for consideration. It seemed 
 as though the important influence these Conferences 
 were to exercise in the Church of God "cast its shadow 
 before," for, without any defined expectation of their 
 rapid extension, there seemed to be a solemn awe upon 
 his spirit in making the first attempt, and a remarkable 
 reticence with regard to his purpose. For a long time 
 he spoke of it to none but his wife, and then, as time 
 passed on, he consulted two experienced Christian men, 
 selected, as he often said, because he ** thought their 
 hearts were large enough, and their position sufficiently 
 unshackled," to enable them to appreciate his object. 
 From both of these, independently, he received the same 
 counsel. While fully entering into the great truth of the 
 spiritual unity of the Church, and the great importance 
 of its recognition when possible, they both thought the 
 state of parties so unpromising, and the existing differ- 
 ences among Christians so pronounced, that the idea, 
 ** though very beautiful," must be abandoned, at least 
 for a time, lest the attempt to manifest unity should 
 result, not only in failure, but in an actual exhibition of 
 disunion and confusion. Such advice from those whom 
 he esteemed ** very highly in love " led to deep ** search- 
 ings of heart," but it did not change his purpose. Per- 
 suaded that ** the thing was of the Lord," he determined 
 to say nothing which might provoke opposition or con- 
 troversy, but to go' forward alone, " assuredly gathering" 
 that God intended him to be the advocate of a truth 
 which, from early youth, had been forcing itself upon his 
 
 mind. The history of the Barnet and Mildmay Confer- 
 ences need scarcely now be told ; it is a matter of world- 
 wide recognition. They have held a place very strongly 
 resembling the life of their founder. With no prestige of 
 ecclesiastical position, no patronage from man, receiving 
 no honour, but often much contumely from the various 
 sections of the visible Church, they have exercised an 
 influence which eternity alone will reveal, and broken 
 down the barriers both of caste and denomination to an 
 extent known only by Him who guided the steps of His 
 trusting servant, and '' covered his head in the day of 
 
 battle." , . , 
 
 It is in accordance with the sacred reserve to which 
 we have alluded, that in the correspondence of 1856 so 
 far as it has been preserved, there is not a single refer- 
 ence to the Conference meetings. 
 
 Meanwhile the aspect of the parish seemed more en- 
 couraging, and Christian friendship, gathering round him 
 on every side, was cheering his spirit with much deep 
 and loving fellowship. But while he thanked God for 
 human affection as His gift, every fresh token of love 
 always laid him in the dust under a sense of his own un- 
 worthiness. A letter to Mrs. Crewdson, written on his 
 birthday, expresses his habitual feelings of humiliation- 
 
 *' Christ Church Parsonage, February 5^^* 1856. 
 - Thoughts of you mingled with some of my first impressions 
 this morning, on realising that I was actually forty ! Amidst 
 my fX years' wandering in the wilderness, your love has, for 
 ^e last twenty-two of those years, lighted up many a dark and 
 ouih passagJof the way. I cannot tell you what your letter 
 wTth its presLt was to me this morning. I feel your continued 
 kindnesLs a fresh brook from the ^o-ta^n, remmdmg m^^^^^^ 
 the unchangeablenessof our Covenant Jehovah ! Forty years 
 old sounds^trangely in my ears I Forty year^ of sin and short- 
 
ORPHANS OF SOLDIERS, 
 
 [chap. XIV. 
 
 1 
 
 coming and ingratitude, too much like Israel of old, on my 
 part ; and forty years, too, of wondrous mercy and truth and 
 loving-kindness from my God. Oh ! how black these years 
 seem, and yet how full of light and blessing. But I cannot 
 look back. I know not why the past oppresses me so painfully, 
 but when the flood-gates of memory are opened, the sorrow will 
 flow. And yet those precious ones gone before are safe with 
 Jesus ! " 
 
 Again, to another friend, in the same month, after 
 speaking of preaching at Weybridge, he says — 
 
 " I am very seldom able to leave home, for we are linked 
 with such numerous duties that it seems almost impossible to 
 get loosed even for a short time. . . . You know that I have 
 my dear brother's three orphan children living with me, and 
 we have charge of many of the children of our brave soldiers 
 who have fallen during the present war. The Patriotic Fund 
 gives a certain sum for their maintenance, but everything 
 additional must be provided, and all the arrangements de- 
 volve upon my dear wife. They are to be clothed, educated, 
 and cared for in every respect. Will you sometimes lift up 
 your heart in prayer for these little ones } Some of them are 
 the children of Roman Catholic parents, and many of them 
 have been rescued from a life of the lowest degradation. I 
 have been reading the Memoir of Adelaide Newton with 
 intense interest, and almost envy you the pleasure of having 
 known her. How I wish we could have you once more as our 
 guest, to talk of her and other bright ones who have passed 
 into glory. 
 
 *' I was preaching yesterday on Deut. xxxiii. 12 :— 
 
 " I. * The beloved of the Lord.' ' I have loved thee with 
 an everlasting love.' * We love Him because He first loved us.' 
 
 " 2. Dwelling in safety by Him, the privilege of every be- 
 liever. It implies perfect security and constant abiding in 
 Jesus. Dwelling signifies that we are in a place of residence. 
 
 " 3. * Cover him all the day long.' Here is the unceasing 
 care of the Lord for His people. ' Under His wings they 
 trust' The bird gathers her brood under her wing, not only 
 to protect but to cherish. During our whole pilgrimage, 
 and for each day of it, there is the loving care of the lovinc^ 
 
 i< 
 
 1856.] 
 
 VISIT IN KENT. 
 
 301 
 
 Saviour extended over His weak ones. And then comes 
 the mighty strength of God, the Power that bears us up, 
 < He shall dwell between His shoulders.' 
 " But I must end with much love." 
 
 To another Friend. 
 
 " February 2%th. 
 
 "Surely the deep, constant love that dwells in 
 Christian hearts can never wither. Earth's parching winds 
 cannot dry it up, the world's vicissitudes cannot affect it, for 
 love is of God. It partakes of H is nature, and abides when all 
 else changes and passes away. ... I am thankful to say my 
 dear father is well. The attack lately made upon him on ac- 
 count of the loss of his sight was very despicable, and seems 
 to have recoiled upon its author. My father never rehed upon 
 notes but upon that singular memory which God had given 
 Wm It was most remfrkable. Dates, Acts of Parliament, 
 former judgments, &c., could be all cited with as much accu- 
 racy as if they lay before his eyes, and old age has not in the 
 ea^t impaired this marvellous faculty. He has just set out 
 on circuit. Whether he will retire from the Bench or not, 
 I cannot say." 
 
 In a letter dated from a village in Kent he says— 
 
 "March 28M. 
 
 « We are here for a few days, visiting dear Mrs. ^jn this 
 
 very peaceful place, which is a striking contrast to Barnet 
 ?he country is cheerful and pretty, and the extreme retirement 
 is delightful to us. Whether it would be always pleasant to 
 ive where the same things are done at the same hours, by the 
 .IL people, on the same days, all the year round is another 
 nuSnT but for a time the calm, constant, uninterrupted 
 Slrit^ of a useful life is very soothing, and such steady 
 work in the Lord's vineyard is a profitable study . . • Uo 
 Tad Mrl Winslow's Life written by her son. Jhe closing 
 scene reminds me of Hopeful crossing the river. 
 
 An extract may be inserted here from a letter, which 
 is one of many that touch upon the goodness of God m 
 providing for the daily temporal needs of His chii- 
 
302 
 
 LETTERS FROM BAR NET. 
 
 [chap. XIV. 
 
 1856.] 
 
 LETTERS FROM BARNET. 
 
 303 
 
 dren." A very small income and a large-hearted 
 liberality did not always fit into one another, and this 
 fact sometimes brought him into trial, though never 
 into debt. The expression of grateful love to dear 
 friends who from time to time entered into his diffi- 
 culties is very characteristic — 
 
 " Christ Church Parsonage, April 2$th. 
 " On our return late last night, from London, we found 
 your precious letter— /rm^//j not only for its enclosures but 
 for its warm and fragrant love. I believe that our Heavenly 
 Father's dealings with us, in keeping us daily very dependent 
 on Himself ever since our marriage, have been sanctified to 
 us. We receive your loving gift as from His hand, and does 
 not this fact add infinitely to its value } Now that you have 
 been led to show me this kindness, I cannot refrain from telling 
 you that I am often hampered, and as we do not think it 
 right to spend a pound upon ourselves unless absolutely 
 necessary, I have been obliged to crucify my desire to visit- 
 Westmoreland, which is now, however, placed within our 
 
 power, perhaps in May, if the Lord will May He who has 
 
 graciously taken away one difficulty speed our way, and take 
 me once more to that dear spot, where, twenty-one years ago, 
 He vouchsafed me such foretastes of Heaven." 
 
 The journey projected for May did not take place, 
 as we read in another letter — 
 
 "A confirmation is just announced for June 9th, which will 
 allow, me only five weeks to prepare my candidates, and I 
 cannot think of leaving home at present." 
 
 On the 3rd of July he writes to Miss Mason — 
 
 "I was delighted to receive your wee note of June 26tli. 
 Since then a rumour has reached me that dear Fanny D'Arcy* 
 is no longer a pilgrim. I have heard no particulars and long- 
 for tidings. Though I have not seen her for years, my heart 
 clings to the friends of bygone days, and I remember her 
 
 * Formerly Miss Bellingham, well known in the work of the Irish Church 
 Missions. 
 
 with the deepest interest. I will with pleasure go to Hampton 
 Court for you, but I must brush up my knowledge of your 
 society, for I feel hardly competent to speak for it now, though 
 I love it dearly, and its secretary too. I must tell you that I 
 have seen clearly why I was brought here, though the dear 
 people at Aylesbury, whom you knew and loved, are con- 
 stantly on my heart, and I scarcely expect to 'look upon their 
 like again.' There are many true Christians here among the 
 upper classes, and the Church is very separate from the world. 
 I do not think I ever lived in a place where the Ime of 
 demarcation was more clearly recognised, and for this we feel 
 very thankful. Indeed, we have daily cause to praise the 
 Lord for His wonderful mercies. I wish you could come and 
 pay us a visit. We are hoping that dear Mr. Cleaver will take 
 a house near us for a short time. He purposes remaining m 
 England for the summer, though he and his daughter must 
 return to Madeira in October." 
 
 After speaking of much physical weakness and suffer- 
 ing which had tried him during the spring, he adds— 
 
 " Is it not a proof of our immortality that the decay of our 
 bodily powers in no degree lessens the sensibillcies and yearn- 
 ings of the * inner man.' Even though we may grow old and 
 feeble, we are only preparing to be ushered into that kingdom 
 where — 
 
 • God hath built a city of light, and joy, and song ; ^ ,„,„„„. ., 
 
 Where the eye at length beholdeth what the heart hath loved so long. 
 
 His ministerial labours were so abundant and so ex- 
 hausting, that kind friends were often disposed to advise 
 a reasonable moderation and more frequent relaxation. 
 
 The following letter, addressed to his beloved friends 
 at Dyrham Park, appears to have been written in 
 answer to some such remonstrance — 
 
 "Christ Church Parsonage, July lyth. 
 " As to Silesia House * I want you to understand that, 
 instead of being a burde n, it will be a relief. ... I have long 
 
 • A house outside the town, taken about this time for an orphanage. 
 
 
304 
 
 LETTER FROM BARNET 
 
 [chap. XIV. 
 
 felt uneasy at having the boys uncontrolled in the houses of 
 the poor, and told Captain F. that the plan could not be 
 satisfactory, because a home influence was not kept up. When 
 once the children are brought into a home, instead of my 
 superintending six or seven houses, I shall have but one. We 
 fully purpose, please God, going from home about the ist of 
 September, and as my aged father does not at present seem 
 to need my services, we think of going to the North of England 
 and to Scotland. But I feel that, while I am here, it is very 
 important to keep up all the different means of grace which 
 have been established, and, thank God, I have hitherto been 
 
 enabled to do so The Lord has given His blessing, 
 
 though I feel that if I had sought more, and lived more for 
 Christ more might have been vouchsafed. ... I send you a 
 letter from Mr. M, which I received a day or two since. Miss 
 M. was a constant attendant, while here, at the Tuesday 
 Bible-readings. The trades-people also have bee7i reached, and 
 this is a class which Miss R. spoke of as untouched when we 
 first came to Barnet. Don't think, beloved friends, that I 
 want to magnify my se^i-- God forbid I But I do want you to 
 see that while His presence sustains us, we do feel the deep 
 importance of * patient continuance" in well-doing. I am 
 humbled to the dust by the measure of blessing wherewith 
 the Lord hath blessed us, but I say again, what has it been 
 in comparison of what it might have deen^hdid God been more 
 honoured ! Pray for us. We bless the Lord continually for 
 your love and friendship, and feel (amidst some trials peculiar 
 to the place) that intercourse with you is a peculiar privilege. 
 May the Lord increasingly sanctify our friendship and make 
 it redound to His glory! We have been brought together in 
 accordance with that everlasting purpose of grace whereby 
 we have been saved in Christ Jesus. The same Love which 
 has redccfned us has provided the refreshment of your sym- 
 pathy in the wilderness." 
 
 In the month of June the invitation had been issued 
 for the first Barnet Conference. Recurring to the sub- 
 ject in after years Mr. Pennefather says — 
 
 *' A deep consciousness of the essential unity of all who 
 
 1856.] 
 
 FIRST CONFERENCE. 
 
 305 
 
 'name the Name of Christ and depart from iniquity/ led me 
 .-nTcr earnestly to desire to bring into closer social com^ 
 :^ jS^thTremb'ers of various Churches, as chHd^^^^^^^^^^^^ 
 one Father, animated by the same life, and heirs to^etne 
 of the same glory. . . ." 
 
 After waiting upon God in earnest prayer, it was 
 decided in the summer of 1856 to invite such persons 
 to meet together for the purpose of mutual fellowship 
 and united prayer, and the following paper was put 
 into circulation — 
 
 « Christ Church Parsonage, Barnet, June 1850. 
 « It is in contemplation to hold (God wimng) a Corjerence 
 of the Lord's people in this town on Tuesday, Wednes 
 day. Thursday, and'priday, the 26th, 27th. ^^th, and 29th 
 nf Aucrust next The object of the proposed Conference 
 rstfp?omote personal holiness, brotherly love, and increased 
 interest in the work of the Lord. The persons attending th 
 Conference will meet (God willing) every mor"'"g. fro- i J 
 to I o'clock, for prayer and intercession and the reading ot 
 
 ""^'ThYr: will be evening meetings from 7to 9 o'clock, wh^n 
 addresses will be given on ' Foreign Missions, Home 
 Mis ons • 'Personal Holiness,' and the ' Lord^s Coming, the 
 Se of the Church.' Afterwards the subject for the ~g 
 will form the topic of conversation (Mai. m. 16 ; Acts x.v. 27). 
 In these early days of the movement, Christian 
 hospitality was one of the prominent features of the 
 Conferences, and Mr. Pennefather's favourite motto, 
 " Freely ye have received, freely give," was pressed in 
 more than one aspect of its meaning, upon all who 
 shared with him in the work. It was a real grief to 
 him when increasing and overwhelming numbers, com- 
 pelled the unwilling admission that lodgings must be 
 taken for some of the guests, and a small charge made 
 
 for refreshments. 
 
 Those bright August days seemed a foret^aste ot 
 
 1 
 
!f 
 
 3o5 
 
 FIRST CONFERENCE. 
 
 [chap. XIV. 
 
 heaven upon earth. The felt presence of the Lord, and 
 the warmth of brotherly love were so remarkable, that 
 many were led to exclaim, " This is the Lord's doing, 
 and it is marvellous in our eyes." There was one, 
 at least* (probably others), present on that occasion, 
 who never missed a single Conference until 1876, 
 when her own faithful service on earth was exchanged 
 for the unclouded presence of the Master. It was on 
 the last day of the Conference that Mr. Pennefather 
 came forward to meet what he felt would be his greatest 
 difficulty. He had resolved that the meeting should 
 not close without ** showing forth the Lord's death" 
 at His table; and in announcing his purpose to an 
 assembly, comprising the representatives of twelve 
 different sections of the Christian Church, he invited 
 them emphatically " io the table of the Lord" Claim- 
 ing for himself the privilege of administering the ordi 
 nance, it would, of course, be according to the form oi 
 the Church of England, but he expressed his earnest 
 hope that, forgetting minor considerations, the thoughts 
 of those present would be directed to Him whom all 
 acknowledged as their crucified, risen, ascended, and 
 cominor Lord. 
 
 It was felt to be a bold venture by many, but the Lord 
 gave testimony to the principle of His own Word. 
 One hundred and twenty persons, bearing different 
 names but rejoicing in the " unity of the Spirit," took 
 bread and wine in remembrance of their one Saviour ; 
 and some who had conquered much feeling and over- 
 come many scruples, loved to tell of the exceeding 
 blessing- vouchsafed to them on that occasion. The 
 words of one man of God might probably have been 
 
 * Miss Mary Stacey of Tottenham. 
 
 I 
 
 1856.] 
 
 PEACE OF MIND. 
 
 307 
 
 adopted by others,— *' August 1856 was an epoch in 
 
 my spiritual history." * 
 
 After a short visit to the North, we find the usual 
 varied labours and interests filling up every hour. ^ We 
 must only give a few fragments from the remaining 
 letters of this year. On October 3rd, he writes on 
 a subject always very prominent in his teaching, the 
 calmness becoming a Christian — 
 
 " Let me beseech dearest S. to cast little trials, as well as 
 great ones, off her own mind on her sympathising, lovmg 
 Saviour, and to seek daily grace that she may find her 
 fresh springs more and more in Him, and her mterests m 
 His work and His cause. Oh ! how soon our earthly cisterns, 
 however carefully hewn out, must fail us ! It is only m the 
 Lord Jesus we can find the well of water that sprmgeth 
 up into everlasting life. I know you believe this, but I 
 want you to have the unspeakable rest and blessedness of 
 sitting down beside the unfailing Fountain, even as Mary sat 
 at the Master's feet. Martha was beloved by Him and is 
 now with Him, but she had not Mary's /^^r^, because she was 
 troubled about many things, when only one thing was really 
 worth her care. I know what it is to be * hysty: I do not 
 believe there ever was any man who had naturally a more 
 anxious spirit than mine, and it is only as the Holy Ghost 
 enables me to feel the comparative importance of events, and 
 persons, and things, just in proportion as they are hnked with 
 God and eternity, that my flurried heart gets rest. It is only 
 when I betake myself, like Noah's dove, to the Ark, that my 
 wearied spirit finds repose. ... I know you will take from 
 your brother a word of loving ministerial counsel. ... I have 
 been smelling your beautiful flowers, and thinking of the 
 sweetness of your friendship. I have been thinking, too, of 
 
 . May his ardent mind find that deep repose in Jesus, 
 
 which alone can satisfy its yearnings." 
 
 In the same month, to a friend travelling in Ireland— 
 
 ♦ "I have long professed my belief." said a gentleman, who looked on with 
 much interest, " ' in the Holy Catholic Church, and the Commumon of Samts ; 
 now I have seen it." 
 
 
 mmmmk 
 
p8 
 
 A SUBJECT WILL, 
 
 [chap. XIV. 
 
 1857.] 
 
 VARIED TRIALS. 
 
 309 
 
 III 
 
 ' ■': 
 
 II 
 i 
 
 '' How closely I followed you to Glengariff and Killarney ! 
 Did you really see it all well ? Were the mountain summits 
 clear as you descended upon Killarney ? If so, you had a 
 grand view. The varied beauty of those lakes reminds me 
 of the entrancing power of melody, sometimes overwhelming 
 you with a voice of mighty thunderings, and then melting 
 away in gentle cadences. Those scenes seem to carry you 
 up into the Majesty and Power of God, and then dow7i into 
 mossy dells, with their tiny flowers blossoming unnoticed and 
 unknown. The Omnipotent Hand which has built the moun- 
 tains, garnishes the lowly valleys with ten thousand beauties." 
 
 In a letter dated December ist, he says — 
 
 " I want to tell you that your farthing hymn-book is de- 
 lightful. I had not seen it before, and as I am a patriarch, 
 with 200 children of my own ! and many more under my care, 
 it is no slight boon to hear of four beautiful hymn-books for 
 one penny ! Do pray for our children. Oh ! for that blessed 
 Spirit, which of old baptized the Church, and came down 
 with mighty power upon old and young. . . . The dear little 
 boy I spoke of died of a throat attack after measles. He 
 was ^v^ years old, one, I believe, of Christ's precious lambs. 
 He knew he was a sinner, but, ' I am not afraid, Jesus died 
 upon the cross,' and ' I love Him better than my mother,' were 
 
 some of his last words. Dear is in London. I do think 
 
 her present state is a most striking instance of answered 
 prayer. Her peace, her broken will, her joy in believing ! It 
 is very touching to see how the different things that'' once 
 held undue dominion over her only affect her now in con- 
 nection with God's glory. ... I believe, if we are the Lord's, 
 He will, yea He must, break our will. We must be brought 
 to lie in the dust at His feet, and say, ' Put me where Thou 
 wilt, do with me what seemeth good in Thy sight. Thy will 
 be done ! ' * If any man serve Me let him follow Me,' was the 
 language of Him who came not to do His own will, but that of 
 His Father in heaven. And did He not lose His life, that He 
 might give it to His people, and ' find it ' in them for ever ? " 
 
 Again, in another letter — 
 
 " The self-renunciation of our Lord's whole earthlv course 
 
 is deeply instructive ; every human feeling yielded up to the 
 one object, the Father's glory ; the daily expression of His 
 every thought, * Not as I will, but as Thou wilt' And that 
 He had a human will is evident, for He was * in all points 
 tempted like as we are, yet without sin.' What a spectacle 
 to men and angels was that calm, consistent walk, amid the 
 tide of ungodliness around and the stupidity of His own fol- 
 lowers. Let us make John xii. 23-29 a constant study and a 
 frequent subject for prayer." 
 
 The year 1857 was one of much varied anxiety. 
 Writing on his birthday, he says — 
 
 '' But we are growing young as we are growing old 1 When 
 Richard Baxter was dying, a friend bent over him to catch the 
 last words that might fall from his lips. He asked the de- 
 parting saint how he was, and the feeble voice replied ' nearly 
 well ! ' How near we may be to the Eternal Home ! What 
 a thin partition stands between us and the light and glory of 
 heaven ! " 
 
 At the end of the same month we read — 
 **Our dear little Somerset has had a decided, though 
 favourable attack of scarlet-fever. Thank God, the precious 
 child is now well, and went to-day to Brighton, under the care 
 of an old, faithful servant. ... We are much tried by the 
 dangerous state of dear E. M.* How forcibly have I been 
 taught the passing nature of earthly joy. She was always 
 to me like the fondest of sisters, and when she married a few 
 years since, the world dressed itself for her in its fairest 
 colours. She is leaving a husband and three charming 
 children, at the age of thirty-two, but, thank God, I feel 
 assured she is safe ! I have had a few lines from her lately, 
 which are very precious to me. She was always reserved 
 on the subject of religion, but now she has spoken, and that 
 so plainly as to leave me without a doubt. ... Oh ! the rest 
 of leaving allm a Father's hands, who numbers the hairs of 
 our head. I cannot express the calmness and confidence 
 which has filled our hearts at this time of many trials. To 
 God be all the glory!" 
 
 ♦ Lady Robert Montagu, the only child of his eldest sister, who was now dying. 
 
310 
 
 VISIT TO WONSTON. 
 
 [chap. XIV. 
 
 In a letter dated May 7th, he tells of successive 
 cases of scarlet-fever in the house, followed by the 
 serious illness of his wife, adding — 
 
 " What my anguish and anxiety has been, you can con- 
 ceive better than I can describe, but I never can forget the 
 unwavering confidence my Heavenly Father gave me in 
 
 Himself. ... I had been told by Dr. a short time before 
 
 that my dearest C. might be carried off in one of these attacks. 
 I thought perhaps the hour was come, and yet I felt able to 
 trust that Blessed One, who never left me in seasons of 
 sorrow, and never will. . . . We have since been to Ayles- 
 bury, to consult a medical man there, in whom I have great 
 confidence. He recommends foreign air. However, I feel 
 we must just go on step by step. Our way is peculiarly 
 hedged in, but our difficulties are no difficulties with our 
 God. . . . But enough of my sorrows, let me sing of the 
 Lord's grace, and magnify His holy name I " 
 
 The remainder of the letter is occupied with details 
 of the histories of friends, his interest as warm and un- 
 selfish as ever. The habitual self-discipline of his life 
 gave him a remarkable power of entering into the cir- 
 cumstances of others with * a heart at leisure from itself, 
 to soothe and sympathise.' During the summer months, 
 Mrs. Pennefather's health gradually improved, and a 
 short stay in Wiltshire at the house of a kind friend 
 was their only absence from home at this time. Find- 
 ing himself within reach of Wonston, he determined 
 to visit a place with which he had very tender associa- 
 tions, though disappointed at hearing that his beloved 
 friend, Mr. Dallas, was absent; and Mrs. Dallas was a 
 straneer. But he lonored to stand once more within the 
 walls of that church, and to kneel in prayer with Mr. 
 Shayler, the printer, in the little room from whence had 
 issued the thousands of anonymous letters which had 
 inaugurated the work of the Irish Church Missions. 
 
 1857.] 
 
 VISIT TO WONSTON^ 
 
 3" 
 
 Part of a letter written by Mrs. Dallas to her husband 
 in Spain came into the hands of a mutual fnend, and 
 gives an account of this visit— 
 
 . Yesterday, "-bile .e were .t dinner, Mr '"f ^rs. P'nne. 
 ftUrer caoe to call. I was greatly ..tpr».d "'h'™.^ He 
 
 introduced hi^s.ir ., x,fi^r^:;r:i^r£t''fM 
 
 ThLthThe wou d only t£k of ;,.«. but he began by such 
 tnougnt ne wuu / restoration that it seemed as if 
 
 nevTp fyed more earnestly for me. The remembrance of it 
 Sv astonthes me ; and that good man commg eighteen 
 mUes know ng you ;ere out. He afterwards prayed very 
 "a ne'stly f" you%n your journey ; and as soon as the prayer 
 "as ended I got Mr. Eade to show them the church, press 
 Tc and he called on Shayler and had prayer with h.m. The 
 Si't was so out of the common routine that I cannot forget .t 
 There was no time for anything but J>rafer and a few words 
 about your work." 
 
 This is only one instance of that spiritual intuition 
 concerning the needs of others which seemed given to 
 him, and made his prayers so remarkable. 
 
 The autumn was evidently as busy as ever. A mUitia 
 regiment was in the town for training, ^"^ the Barr^^^^ 
 being situated in the district assigned to Christ Church 
 the additional Sunday services and other means ot 
 grace for these poor men devolved on Mr. Pennefather^ 
 This training, which afterwards became annual, was a 
 time of gre^t interest to him, and m addition to the 
 
312 
 
 COFFEE-HOUSE, 
 
 [chap. XIV. 
 
 public services and a large distribution of Bibles,* he 
 had many opportunities of getting at the men privately. 
 He had succeeded, after many difficulties, in securing 
 a house for the accommodation of working-men, which 
 facilitated these efforts. As a former posting-town, 
 Barnet had more than an ordinary share of public- 
 houses, while no provision whatever was made for 
 those who might be willing to avoid their temptations. 
 The importance of providing ''public-houses without 
 the drink " had not then attracted the attention which 
 it has received during the last ten or fifteen years, and 
 Mr. Pennefather s plan met with little encouragement. 
 But confident that his purpose was according to the 
 will of God, he went forward, and after much conflict 
 and many disappointments, the house was opened. A 
 circumstance occurring in connection with this work 
 may be mentioned, as one of ma7iy instances in which 
 God's hand was manifestly seen in supplying His ser- 
 vant's need of money. Again and again did he prove 
 it true that " man's extremity is God's opportunity." 
 After much wrestling prayer that a shelter might be 
 provided for the working-men, the house of which we 
 have spoken offered, in a most desirable situation. 
 Mr. Pennefather immediately made all necessary in- 
 quiries, found that the lease could be secured, and wrote 
 to those he thought most likely to assist. Many re- 
 fusals followed, with much prudential advice, and many 
 reasons why the work should not be attempted. Among 
 the many letters was one from a kind friend promising 
 ;^io if the thing should be really started. Meanwhile 
 the owners of the property became impatient, and re- 
 
 • The name of each man was written in the Bible by Mr. Pennefather with 
 some word of remembrance. 
 
 X857.] 
 
 CARE FOR WORKING-MEN. 
 
 tTt 
 
 fused to wait for him unless a deposit of ^50 were paid 
 down at once. To pay it himself was utterly impos- 
 sible. He could only spread the matter before the 
 Lord, after appointing the time at which his answer 
 should be given. When the person who transacted 
 the business for him arrived, he said, *' Mr. B., I have 
 not the ^50, but sit down for a few minutes ; the morn- 
 ing post is not in, it may yet be that the Lord will send 
 it." Humanly speaking there was nothing to be ex- 
 pected by that post, but it brought a letter from the 
 gentleman who had promised the ;!f 10, saying that the 
 subject had been brought back to his mind, and instead 
 of ten he enclosed a cheque for £^0, We need not 
 say how cheerfully the work proceeded after such *' a 
 token for good." This house not only afforded oppor- 
 tunity for entertaining the working-men who thronged 
 the town at certain seasons of the year, but gave Mr. 
 Pennefather an additional means of becoming ac- 
 quainted with his poorer parishioners, an object always 
 
 very near his heart. 
 
 In a letter dated January 27th, 1858, after speaking 
 of much distress among the people, he adds — 
 
 *• Just now I am giving week by week a supper to all the 
 heads of families in my district. I invite them twenty-five 
 at a time to our coffee-house, and to-night I expect my second 
 set of guests. I had a most happy evening with them last 
 week. We talk together in a quiet, social way, and then I speak 
 of Him whose name sheds fragrance around our gatherings." 
 
 Some time later to the same friend, " I know you 
 will rejoice to hear that I have very happy seasons with 
 the men every Wednesday evening at our suppei 
 parties." And he then goes on to detail very interest- 
 ing cases of blessing. Other letters tell of a series o\ 
 
3i4 
 
 SECOND CONFERENCE. 
 
 [CHAP. XIV. 
 
 1858.] 
 
 RECOLLECTIONS OF FRIENDS. 
 
 315 
 
 sermons in the church, addressed to working-men, 
 besides the usual weekly services. After alluding to 
 these and many other labours, and speaking of much 
 bodily suffering, he concludes, ** I often preach amid 
 pain and exhaustion, but God is my strength, and is it 
 not an honour to be allowed to proclaim His blessed 
 Gospel, though with such a weak body and such a 
 poor erring heart ? " It would be impossible to follow 
 all the different undertakings and ministerial activities 
 we find touched upon in this year's correspondence. 
 Among them the second Conference, called together in 
 July, stands out with peculiar interest. No intimation 
 had been given in 1856 that these meetings would be 
 annual, as Mr. Pennefather desired to await further 
 direction for the future. In the course of the follow- 
 ing year he received so many letters entreating him to 
 go forward, and so much encouragement from some 
 who had in the first instance trembled and doubted, 
 that he no longer questioned the expediency of an- 
 nouncing the Conferences as annual, and the invita- 
 tions were sent out more widely than before. A letter 
 of his own tells some particulars of the meetings — 
 
 ''July 27thy 1858. 
 "Your letter arrived in the midst of preparation for the 
 Conference, which took place last week. ... I was suffering 
 much on the 19th, and feeling very unequal to the duties 
 of the four following days, but the Lord was very gracious 
 to me, and now all is over, I am much better than when I 
 began. We had a very blessed season. Mr. Turner of Mal- 
 vern spoke with peculiar unction and power. Mr. Dallas was 
 very earnest and effective, Mr. Skrine, Mr. Thorold, Mr. Cox, 
 Mr. Wiggins, and Dr. Hamilton, all contributed to the deep 
 interest of our meetings. On the last day, 153 persons met 
 around the table of the Lord. Amon^j them were members 
 
 of the Church of England, Baptists, Independents, Wesleyans, 
 Moravians, Plymouth Brethren, Church of Scotland (Estab- 
 lished and Free), Dutch Reformed Church, and Lutherans. 
 
 " A delightful American gave a full and graphic account of 
 the late Revival in that country I had more happy inter- 
 course with the dear D.'s than I have enjoyed for many a long 
 day. For a time ' Brethrenism ' shut them up ; now I believe 
 they are open to the genial influences of Christian fellowship, 
 let it come as it may. I have had some thoughts of going to 
 Ireland, but am bound at home, having no curate." 
 
 It is not easy to select from the overwhelming mass 
 of testimony which may be gathered concerning these 
 Conferences, as they then were, and as they afterwards 
 became. But we close the chapter with a few recollec- 
 tions from two friends who might perhaps take their 
 view from somewhat different standpoints. The first is 
 from a member of the Society of Friends, and belongs 
 peculiarly to this year — 
 
 " In the summer of 1858 my way was first guided to Barnet. 
 There was nothing more in prospect than the enjoyment of 
 social and Christian intercourse with dear friends residing 
 there; yet the impulse to go seemed clear, and the way plainly 
 opened. Part of the time occupied by the journey was spent 
 in reading accounts of the great work of Revival in progress 
 in the United States of America. As I read, my heart burned 
 with desire to share in such seasons as were therein described, 
 and the prayer was breathed that if there were such in Eng- 
 land, I might be guided to them, little thinking that at that 
 very time 1 was being borne along to the fulfilment of the 
 desire, yet so it proved. 'The wind bloweth where it listeth, 
 and thou hearest the sound there of; but canst not tell whence 
 it cometh nor whither it goeth: so is every one that is born of 
 the Spirit,' seemed verified in my experience, for soon after 
 my arrival at Barnet a printed circular was put into my hand, 
 dated, * Christ Church Parsonage, Barnet, June 21, 1858,' and 
 signed, ' William Pennefather.' I had never before heard the 
 name of this honoured servant of the Lord Jesus, but there 
 
3^6 
 
 /RECOLLECTIONS OF FRIENDS. [chap. xiv. 
 
 1858.] 
 
 RECOLLECTIONS OF FRIENDS. 
 
 317 
 
 I 
 
 was a deep response to the invitation it contained to the 
 second of those remarkable gatherings of Christians of all 
 denominations which have become so widely known as the 
 Barnet or Mild may Conferences, and have been so greatly 
 blessed to the Church of Christ in almost every land. 
 
 "Before the holding of the Conference, a Sabbath intervened 
 There was no Friends' Meeting at Barnet ; and in the morning 
 we drove to the meeting at Winchmore Hill. For the evening 
 there was no engagement, but, Friend as I was, and wholly 
 unaccustomed to attend the public worship of any other section 
 of the Church, I was irresistibly drawn to the evening service 
 at Christ Church. On arriving we were conducted to a seat 
 near the pulpit. During the reading of the service, the novelty 
 of the position had gradually lessened, and when William 
 Pennefather entered the pulpit, I was prepared to bow with 
 him in worship, and to listen to the Lord's message through 
 his hps. Of the words used I remember only the text, 'Where 
 two or three are gathered together in My name,there'am I in 
 the midst of them,' but the savour and unction of that sermon 
 remain to this day. Baptized by one Spirit into one body I 
 felt one in Christ with the preacher. The accessories of worship 
 differed from what I had been accustomed to, but the spirit of 
 true worship was the same, and was manifestly realised there 
 Former prejudices relaxed, I had felt the Lord's presence with 
 His worshipping people, and the coming meetings were looked 
 to with deepening interest and desire. A new era of my life 
 had commenced, and I sat down in those hallowed gatherincrs 
 realising m a wider sense than ever before that, * One is your 
 Master, even Christ, and all ye are brethren.' W^e gathered 
 together in His name, and He was in the midst, baptising with 
 the Holy Ghost. Especially was this realised on one occasion 
 When Philip Turner, of Malvern, was speaking on the subject 
 for the day, 'The importance of studying the Scriptures,' a 
 remarkable unction accompanied his words, which left a deep 
 impression on many minds : and this was but an earnest of 
 many more such seasons during future Conferences, when the 
 same power was recognised in the addresses of this devoted 
 aged servant of the Lord. 
 
 " During one of the evening meetings an address was given 
 by an American gentleman, fresh from the scenes of the Revival 
 
 in New York. Thus in many ways the Lord confirmed the 
 sense of His guidance. Such was my introduction to William 
 Pennefather. At the close of the meetings I felt constrained 
 to tell him how thankful I was to have been permitted to attend 
 them, when he tendered a most cordial welcome, and gave the 
 right hand of loving fellowship and enduring friendship in 
 the Lord. 
 
 "Year by year as the annual Conference approached, he 
 never omitted to send a circular of invitation, and the privi- 
 lege of attending them was enjoyed as often as circumstances 
 would permit. 
 
 " And what do I not owe to this fellowship and to these 
 Conferences > As I recall some of the blessings that have 
 flowed from them, a fresh song of thanksgiving and praise 
 arises, and I would say with the Psalmist, * Bless the Lord, O 
 my soul, and all that is within me bless His holy name ! Bless 
 the Lord, O my soul, and forget not all His benefits !' Especi- 
 ally do I praise Him for the grace given to His dear dedicated 
 servant, and for the blessings that He caused to flow through 
 him to His Church universal. In these early days dear Mrs. 
 Pennefather was, as regarded many of us, behind the scenes, 
 but none the less a fellow-worker with her beloved husband. 
 They were truly one in the Lord, and in His service ; and in 
 due time it became more and more manifest that she was 
 bearing with him the burden of this special work to which 
 He had so manifestly called them. 
 
 " There was about those early Barnet gatherings a charm 
 and a freshness which could not be transmitted to the more 
 extended companies assembHng in the vicinity of London. 
 That compact and picturesque enclosure, which included the 
 church, the parsonage, and the schoolroom, with surrounding 
 lawn and garden, afforded just the accommodation that was 
 needed to give the aspect of a large social gathering, allowing 
 freedom of intercourse one with another. This was cordially 
 encouraged and promoted by the honoured host : all around 
 him were his bidden guests, among whom he went in and out 
 in free and kindly intercourse, while, with his peculiar gift of 
 spiritual instinct and sympathy, he introduced to each other 
 those who were likely specially to assimilate and fraternise in 
 fellowship or in work. 
 
f 
 
 3IS 
 
 RECOLLECTIONS OF FRIENDS, [chap. xiv. 
 
 " How many hallowed friendships were thus commenced, 
 and how many inquirers, ' Lord, what wilt Thou have me to 
 do ? * were guided to the service that was open for them, can- 
 not be recorded down here ; but will they not be recounted 
 with fresh songs of praise among the saints in light, as they 
 gather in groups to trace the wondrous way in which their 
 Lord and King led them, and permitted them to serve Him 
 while on earth ! 
 
 " An incident or two may be given — 
 
 "' Have you heard of a lady's work in some villages in 
 Leicestershire ? ' was the question put to the writer. ' No, I 
 have not.' 'Then I will introduce you to the lady engaged in 
 it/ And at once a chair was placed on the lawn beside Mrs. 
 Daniell, and an introduction given. A most interesting inter- 
 view followed. Dear Mrs. Daniell related the way in which she 
 had been led into the work, and the blessing that had been 
 given, throwing fresh light by the recital on the work before 
 me and offering both encouragement and help. In those early 
 days refreshment was provided for those from a distance, and 
 a free invitation extended by our generous, large-hearted host. 
 Presenting myself one day at the door of the room where the 
 tables were spread, I received a cordial welcome, and was 
 conducted to a seat beside Henry Bewley of Dublin with a 
 kindly introduction, and henceforth he was numbered among 
 my choice Conference friends. And so on and on the 
 circle widened and the interest deepened, while as the years 
 passed, familiar faces were missing, and one and another was 
 announced as having ' gone in to see the King ' and we were 
 reminded that, 
 
 * One life pervades Thy ransomed 
 Within the golden gate ; 
 And those who still are pilgrims, 
 And for their glory wait. 
 The shouts of triumph yonder, 
 The plaintive songs of earth. 
 Flow from the Spirit's presence, 
 Both own a heavenly birth. ' * 
 
 " It is good to linger amid these hallowed memories, to call 
 up one and another of those beloved and honoured men, 
 
 * Conference Hymns by W. P. 
 
 1858.] 
 
 RECOLLECTIONS OF FRIENDS. 
 
 319 
 
 through whose lips we received many words of deep instruc- 
 tion, or were led in fervent, heartfelt prayer or praise as into 
 the very presence of the King, the Lord of Hosts : together 
 with the multitude of Christian men and women, of various 
 sections of the Church, gathered around the beloved President 
 from year to year, faithfully upholding his hands, and witness- 
 ing to the verity of the great Christian fact, which it was 
 specially given him to present in visible manifestation, the 
 oneness of true Christian believers. How eminently fitted 
 William Pennefather was for this service, must have been 
 recognised by all who could appreciate spiritual gifts. His 
 whole attitude and bearing, with the benignity of his counten- 
 ance, seemed a personification of Christian love, enveloped in 
 the graces of that charity which is the bond of perfectness. 
 His deep humihty was very marked, for he had learnt of Him 
 who was meek and lowly in heart, and as he took his place in 
 the centre of the Conference platform, or moved about in 
 friendly intercourse, it was evident that he came fresh from 
 hallowed communion with his Lord, and was filled with His 
 Spirit for the service given. There was an irresistible attrac- 
 tiveness and purity about him that drew you towards him with 
 reverent love; he became a personal much-loved friend as 
 well as an honoured and revered servant of the Lord Jesus : 
 and when the tidings of his sudden departure came, there 
 was a sense of irreparable loss, amid the triumphant notes of 
 praise that he too had * gone in to see the King.' " 
 
 The next is from a dear labourer now far away in 
 the missionary field — 
 
 "The first mention I ever heard of the name of that 
 honoured servant of the Lord, William Pennefather, was that 
 he was a man who never entered a house without prayer ; in 
 those days this was a rare distinction. My first personal re- 
 collection of him is that of hearing him preach on * Enoch, a 
 type of the Church, in his walk, his testimo?ty, and his rapture' 
 * He walked with God.' These words, and St. John xvii. 21, 
 are most often in my mind when thinking of him, for surely 
 no one was ever honoured as he was, in his endeavour for that 
 object so dear to the Lord's heart. It is a great privilege to 
 
320 
 
 RECOLLECTIONS OF FRIENDS, 
 
 [CHAP. XIV. 
 
 ( 321 ^ 
 
 have lived in these times of refreshing from the Lord's pre- 
 sence, but I feel it a privilege also to have lived before these 
 times, and to have been permitted to see how He, 'whose 
 understanding is infinite/ He who ' built all things,' prepared 
 the chosen vessels, the vessels unto honour, of gold and silver, 
 for every work He needed. It is difficult to imagine any other 
 who would have fulfilled the work given to Mr. Pennefather. 
 How many servants of the Lord, ' men of understanding of 
 the times/ * expert in war/ and ' not of double heart ' yet 
 would have failed to ' keep rank,' had not Mr. Pennefather 
 been gifted to draw them together with the * cords of love ! ' 
 Surely one blessed secret of this union was the object he so 
 delighted to keep constantly in view of all, ' watching for the 
 coming of the Lord/ It is almost overwhelming to look 
 back to the second Barnet Conference, and think of the world- 
 wide blessing that has followed that testing time of faith, and 
 the multiplied agencies for preaching the Gospel to every 
 creature that have sprung from that and following efibrts. 
 
 "One little remembrance I must mention. Years after, 
 when the Mildmay Conferences drew many honoured labou- 
 rers from distant lands, I well remember a singular proof of 
 his tender thought for others, when he made it possible amid 
 the throng of friends and the interests of multiplied meetings, 
 to tear himself away from all, to carry with his own hands a 
 warm travelling cloak and other gifts to a servant of the Lord 
 about to undertake a stormy voyage. It was truly said, * No 
 one but Mr. Pennefather would have done this.' How can we 
 bless God aright for having raised him up, and for the gifts 
 with which He enriched him, and which have been made 
 blessings to the far ends of the earth/' 
 
 One more word from another honoured labourer — 
 
 ** The Barnet days," says Mrs. Ranyard, " are always days 
 of days in memory to me. And the baptism of private prayer 
 he gave to the new works then arising ! When thinking of 
 the heavenly fellowship yet to be^ I have always involuntarily 
 identified it with his dear, loving smile of sympathy and 
 v/elcome/' 
 
 CHAPTER XV. 
 1859-1861. 
 
 Prophetical Alliance-The Church of England Home Mission- Letters 
 ^n connection with the Mission-Visits to Ireland-Death of Baron 
 Pennefnther-Third Conference-Trying visit to Ireland-Parochial 
 trials-Letters to orphan children-Illness-Conferencc of 1860- 
 Letter from Mrs. Bayly-Missionary Training Home-Sickness m his 
 parish-Building of an iron room-Death of Rev. W. Cleaver- 
 Invitation from Loodiana- Week of prayer- Work of Revival in Barnet 
 and its neighbourhood-Death of a Swedish Lady-Conference of 
 1861— Great power of the enemy— Mission circuit— Death ot his 
 sister— Death of the Prince Consort. 
 
 TWO objects of interest v^^iich lay near Mr. 
 Pennefather s heart and claimed many of his 
 thoughts ought hardly to be omitted in the records of 
 these years of Barnet ministry. The first was a '' Pro^ 
 phetical Alliance/' formed under his auspices, and car* 
 ried on for some years with much profit and interest, 
 until the death of its indefatigable secretary, and the 
 subsequent removal of its President from Barnet, 
 brought the meetings to a close. Mr. Pennefather was 
 convinced that those who differed as to the details ot 
 prophetic interpretation might meet together in loving 
 harmony, if only the Spirit of truth and love were 
 recognised as their one Almighty Guide. Acting upon 
 this conviction, and in conjunction with some of those 
 whose counsel and experience he judged most valuable, 
 he arranged that a series of meetings for the study of 
 prophecy should be held each year at Barnet. These 
 

 F ^-i^^i*-- -W* - 
 
 322 
 
 PROPHETICAL ALLIANCE. 
 
 [chap. XV. 
 
 meetings were attended by all who enrolled themselves 
 as members of the Prophetical Alliance, and by guests 
 specially invired. A few simple Scriptural principles 
 in which all could agree were laid down as a basis of 
 membership, and friends in various parts of the country 
 who "loved the appearing "of the Lord Jesus Christ, 
 and desired to study the sure word of prophecy, were 
 invited to send in their names. Members joined from 
 Ireland and various counties of England ; and invi- 
 tations were sent out as at the general Conferences, 
 offering hospitality at the houses of friends during the 
 three days of brotherly intercourse. The meetings, 
 held twice in the day, were not open to the public in 
 ofeneral, and assumed rather the character of Bible- 
 readings ; Mr. Pennefather occupying the chair, and 
 one or two experienced students of Scripture opening 
 with short addresses. There are some who cannot fail 
 to remember the profitable teaching of the Rev. C. 
 Hargrove and others on these occasions. Among the 
 rules of the Alliance was one which seemed to promise 
 that the interest in prophetic truth thus manifested and 
 deepened would diffuse itself to more distant places. 
 It ran thus — 
 
 "That members in each several locality be requested to 
 form themselves into sections for the study of the subject 
 emanating from the aggregate meeting at Barnet." 
 
 Some of the various documents and subject-papers 
 have been preserved, many of them such as are gene- 
 rally considered at similar meetings. As years went on, 
 they naturally became more varied, branching out into 
 the wider field of Scripture investigation. We give an 
 extract from one of the letters of invitation, which may 
 serve as a sample of the rest. It is dated October 1859. 
 
 1C59.] 
 
 HOME MISSION CIRCUITS. 
 
 323 
 
 ' 
 
 " We invite you, dear friend, to be present at our meetings, 
 and to aid in strengthening the brethren in the faith of Jesus, 
 as well as in the hope of His speedy and glorious appearing. 
 God has already richly blessed our gathering together, and we 
 doubt not He will manifest Himself yet more fully while we 
 wait on Him in humble prayer and united praise. Kindly 
 give notice to the Rev. William Pennefather of your intention 
 to be present, a week previous to the ist of November. 
 
 *' Subjects for Consideration^ 
 
 u 
 
 I. The world without a Temple. 
 *' 2. The Tabernacle in the Wilderness. 
 " 3. Solomon's Temple. 
 " 4. The second Temple. 
 " 5. The Spiritual Temple. 
 " 6. Ezekiel's Temple. 
 " 7. The City which hath no need of a Temple." 
 
 The other subject to which we have alluded may be 
 introduced in a letter written by Mr. Pennefather to 
 his friends in Westmoreland, bearing the date — 
 
 '' April 2Zth, 1859. 
 *'As to the hope of seeing you, I cannot say anything 
 satisfactory, except that my old heart is as fresh in its love to 
 you and Westmoreland, as the old thorn trees that are just 
 now putting forth their delicate young leaves. What a glorious 
 thing is life, and how marvellous the power that brings life 
 out of death ! Surely this is grace^ when into souls blighted 
 and blasted by sin the living God breathes the Eternal Spirit, 
 and unites them to a riseny living Lord ! Then is the grace 
 of our Covenant God made manifest. . . . But I must not run 
 on thus. I want to tell you of a very interesting work. A 
 committee of Christian men have lately formed a society 
 called, 'The Church of England Home Mission,' its object 
 being to get up special services in different parishes and 
 counties, and, with the consent of the local clergy, to send 
 earnest, Christ-loving men to preach the Gospel in these 
 parishes periodically. Some time ago I was asked to take a 
 week of services occasionallv. I consented to do so, and have 
 
If 
 
 IJ- 
 
 
 
 324 
 
 HOME MISS/ON CIRCUITS, 
 
 [chap. XV. 
 
 just returned from my first circuit/** [He goes on to tell of 
 his preaching at East Moulsey, then at Norbiton, New Hamp- 
 ton, Battersea and Guildford ; from thence going to Shere and 
 Farncombe, and afterwards to Tooting and St. John's, South- 
 wark, he returned for the Sunday to Guildford, having engaged 
 to preach in the morning at Stoke Church and in the evening 
 at St. Nicholas.] "I was graciously upheld in body and soul ; 
 and I felt it a delightful opportunity of making known the 
 unsearchable riches of Christ. I remember thinking, long, 
 long ago, how much I should like to be employed as an itine- 
 rant preacher, with a mind free from the harass of parochial 
 machinery and the temporal matters that are so constantly 
 brought before a pastor : though, doubtless, each service has 
 its own peculiar trials, and the Lord giveth to every man his 
 appointed work. . . . My dear wife is pretty well now, though 
 she has had one of those sudden heart attacks which so alarm 
 me; but again the Lord graciously appeared for us." 
 
 Various cheering incidents are mentioned as con- 
 nected with this busy week. In one place, *' I met a 
 lady and her daughter who had both been brought 
 to the knowledge of the Lord at Barnet, and received 
 me with much warmth." Again, " A gentleman 
 showed me no little kindness, who some time ago had 
 prevented his family from having any intercourse with 
 me, * lest they should become Methodists.' Now he 
 did all in his power to facilitate my movements, and 
 insisted on defraying my travelling expenses. How 
 true is it, when ' the Lord opens, no man shuts.' '* 
 
 It may not be out of place to insert here another 
 letter descriptive of one of these preaching tours, which 
 are often alluded to in his correspondence. The 
 arrangements were generally for two sermons each day, 
 but the distances to be travelled between the churches 
 often made this impracticable, and the present plan 
 
 * These circuits generally extended over a week, not including the Sunday ; this 
 one was evidently longer. 
 
 's'.vi :ii«i<t.*^»r»-j 
 
 '-aiiW^fe-ni i' i I . » t. jwt I f * ■ '"' v/jy ' TluJi.4^ | 6 i y "' 'j< j jii| |i.a <^rr 
 
 1859] 
 
 HOME MISSION CIRCUITS, 
 
 325 
 
 of a mission in one place for a week or ten days is 
 probably less fatiguing and far more effective. Mr. 
 . Pennefather continued to preach for the Society till 
 he removed to London, and his temporary residence 
 in the houses of the country clergy seems to have left 
 traces of blessing in more than one instance — 
 
 " Eye, Suffolk, April eth, 1859. 
 " Here I am in a pretty little town interspersed with large 
 trees, and having at one end of it a magnificent old church. 
 ... I am out on a preaching tour, beginning on Monday 
 at Needham-Market, which is a poor-looking village of one 
 long street ; but I was delighted and astonished to see 500 
 real country-folk gathered into church to hear of * Jesus and 
 the Resurrection' (Acts iv. 33). The dear old men and 
 women and the strong, blooming lads, all in their country 
 dress, made my heart leap for joy. I thought of Him who 
 came to preach the Gospel to the poor. Yesterday I preached 
 at Bury St. Edmunds, but was not very happy, though I had 
 a glorious subject and a grand congregation. When walking 
 in the town in the afternoon, a clergyman crossed the street 
 to meet m.e, and hailed me as an old school-fellow, saying : 
 
 * If I know anything of Christ, or have done anything for 
 His glory, I owe it all to you.' I remembered him as a 
 boy at Westbury, where I was at school, about the year 1830, 
 when we used to read the Bible together, but had never met 
 since. I think the Lord must have sent him to cheer me 
 when my heart was sad. *Who am I, and what is Thy 
 servant, that Thou hast brought me hitherto ? ' In the even- 
 ing I had a very happy service here. The Baptist minister 
 gave notice of it in his chapel, and came to it himself. . . . 
 Now I am on my way to Mildenhall. Will you pray for these 
 
 * Special Services } * Already we have tokens of the Lord's 
 favour. ... If time had allowed, I should like to have taken 
 a look at Norwich, for the sake of its Cathedral and its 
 Frieftds (you know my love for Friends !). Gurneys and Frys 
 are always associated in my mind with Norwich. A curious 
 combination, is it not ? Cathedrals and Friends I " 
 
 At the close of 1858 Mr. Pennefather had received 
 
f II 
 
 » 
 
 326 
 
 DEA TH OF HIS FA THER. 
 
 [chap. XV. 
 
 tidings from Ireland which made him anxious to visit 
 his aged father, now eighty-five years of age, as soon as 
 possible. Though his general health was still good, a 
 fatal complaint had set in, and his son paid a hurried 
 visit to Dublin in January, promising to arrange for 
 another meeting in the early summer. This was merci- 
 fully accomplished, and Mr. and Mrs. Pennefather spent 
 a short time at Merrion Square in July, returning to 
 England to make preparations for the Annual Con- 
 ference, which had been announced to commence on 
 the 8th of August. That Conference was to be a time 
 of unexpected trial. On Sunday, August 6th, imme- 
 diately after the conclusion of the evening service, 
 Mr. Pennefather received a telegram conveying the 
 tidings that Baron Pennefather had died suddenly at 
 Knockeevan the day after his arrival at that place. 
 It was a moment of sore perplexity. Letters followed 
 urgently requesting his presence at Knockeevan with- 
 out delay. To be wanting in the last token of respect 
 to a parent would be looked upon in Ireland, where 
 funeral rites are regarded with a superstitious reverence, 
 as an unpardonable dereliction of duty and a total 
 absence of affection. He took in at a orlance all the 
 
 o 
 
 painful difficulties of his situation ; but decided, after 
 seeking in vain to find a president for the Conference, 
 that private claims, even the nearest and the dearest, 
 must give place to the paramount claim of Him who 
 had taught His ministering servant (in words he often 
 quoted), " to say of his father and his mother, I have 
 not seen him ; neither did he acknowledge his brethren, 
 nor knew his own children." 
 
 An extract from a letter tells a little of the conflict 
 of those anxious days — 
 
 
 1859.] 
 
 CONFERENCE MEETINGS. 
 
 3V 
 
 " Monday^ August yth. 
 ** A sudden telegraphic message tells me that my precious 
 father is no longer here. On Saturday he went to Knoc- 
 keevan, the next day (yesterday) he died, I know nothing 
 of the particulars, and I cannot go to see once more that 
 calm and loving face ! The Conference meetings have been, 
 since June, fixed for this week, and to put off those who are 
 even now on their journey from different parts of the country- 
 is impossible. To let them come and find the doors shut 
 could not be. ... I see nothing for it but to crucify feel- 
 ing, and, having obtained strength from God, to go through 
 the Conference meetings. Pray forme. ... I feel the Lord's 
 tender love in permitting us to see that beloved father so 
 lately. Only on Saturday week we returned from Dublin, 
 and now * he is not, for God has taken him.' It is a tremen- 
 dous crash. I cannot look forward, only upward^ and then 
 I can sing of His faithfulness and love, who turneth the 
 shadow of death into the morning.' 
 
 }> 
 
 The meetings went forward, and Mr. Pennefather 
 took his accustomed place. He was carried through all 
 with perfect calmness and presence of mind ; but few 
 knew the strain that was put upon him, as post after 
 post brought letters from various quarters — some 
 entreating and others censuring in no mild terms the 
 strange position he had taken. A friend who mingled 
 with those thronged assemblies notes, " I remember 
 well the third Barnet Conference, when Mr. Penne- 
 father was called to make a sacrifice of personal feel- 
 ing, which, to one of his extreme tenderness, must have 
 been inexpressibly painful.'* The unusual circumstances 
 increased the solemnity of the meetings, and the sea- 
 sons of silent prayer, at that time, almost if not quite 
 peculiar to the Barnet Conferences, seemed hushed by 
 God Himself. 
 
 The visit to Ireland, which immediately followed, was 
 
328 
 
 VISIT TO IRELAND. 
 
 [chap. XV. 
 
 iC6o.] 
 
 LETTER TO ORPHANS. 
 
 329 
 
 «»l 
 
 I 
 
 !i 
 
 the severest part of the trial. Added to the natural 
 sorrow of his own heart in visiting the scenes of tender 
 associations broken up for ever, was the universal 
 disapprobation of his friends, both in the Church and 
 the world. None could understand the course he had 
 thought it right to pursue, and it was years before one 
 very dear to him could quite forgive the *' great mis- 
 take " he had made. Speaking of this visit to Dublin 
 he says, " It was a season of deep trial." But shortly 
 after, writing from Arley Cottage, " There is to me 
 something exquisitely tender in the manner of God's 
 chasteninofs, for while He does afflict and cause rivers 
 of water to run down our eyes. He seems to wipe away 
 those tears, even now, as with His own hand, letting 
 us feel His nearness, as perhaps we could not have 
 done without the sorrow." 
 
 On his return to Barnet the personal trials attendant 
 upon his visit to Ireland were followed by parochial 
 anxieties. Scenes of sickness and death without hope 
 always told upon him painfully. Of one of these he 
 writes — 
 
 ** A woman has just died who seemed deeply convinced of 
 sin and knew intellectually the blessed promises of pardon 
 through the blood of Jesus, but never seemed to grasp them, 
 or accept Him as her Saviour. It was a very distressing 
 case ; and as I looked at the lifeless body, that word lost 
 rushed through my soul. Judas was convinced (' I have 
 sinned, in that I have betrayed the innocent blood '), but he 
 was not converted. Four years ago the aged father of this 
 woman died in the full light of the Gospel. ... I have been 
 at Hampstead to attend a Conference convened by Mr. Bicker- 
 steth. It was interesting, but my heart was sad." 
 
 The number of soldiers' orphans in the different 
 Homes had now increased to above 300, and the staff 
 
 \ 
 
 of officers and teachers was necessarily large. Mr. 
 Pennefather continually thanked God for the many 
 helpers in this work, who entered into his earnest long- 
 ings for the spiritual welfare of the children. He was 
 both amused and pleased at a note appended by the 
 Government Inspector to his official Report : *' Mr. and 
 Mrs. Pennefather seem to have communicated their 
 own great love for the children to all those who work 
 with them." His individual knowledge of the boys 
 was remarkable, and he kept up a frequent intercourse 
 with them by letter when not able to spend much time 
 among them. When absent from home he always 
 wrote to the school collectively ; and we may be per- 
 mitted to give one of these letters as a sample of many 
 which have been faithfully treasured. It was written 
 in the hurry and pressure of a Mission week — 
 
 " East Moulsey, April loth. 
 
 " My dear Children, — Although I am absent from you, 
 I think of you and pray for you. Do you think of me ? 
 Will you pray for me ? Do you know what I am doing ? I 
 am going about from place to place preaching glad tidings 
 to poor sinners. I like to tell^^w of Jesus, who came to seek 
 and to save the lost, and I like to tell the same blessed story 
 to others. Do you know that one of your dear little com- 
 panions, who was living at the Infirmary* under Miss I.'s 
 care, is dead } Before I left home I laid her in her narrow 
 grave, * in sure and certain hope of a blessed resurrection,' but 
 I had not an opportunity of telling you about her. Little 
 Janie was scarcely five years old, and had been failing in 
 health for nearly a year. Have you ever watched a flower 
 after you have gathered it } At first it holds up its head 
 upon the stalk, because it is alive, but by and by it begins to 
 droop ; the stalk gets soft, and the weight of the blossom 
 bears it down ; the leaves shrivel up, the colour fades, and 
 
 * There were three large orphan houses and one infirmary, which received all 
 cases of serious illness. 
 
330 
 
 LETTER TO ORPHANS. 
 
 [chap. XV. 
 
 1] 
 
 we throw the flower away because it is dead. It was thus 
 with little Janie ; she faded away day by day, until at last 
 the breath left her ; her little hands and feet grew cold ; she 
 could not see, or hear, or speak, or eat — she was dead. But 
 Janie had a soul, and when we buried her body we did not 
 bury her soul. Now I will tell you about her soul. Jesus 
 loved her, she loved Jesus, and He has taken her happy spirit 
 to live with Him on high. One day, not long ago, I went in 
 to see Miss I. and ask her some questions. Janie was lying 
 rolled up in a blanket on the sofa looking very ill, so ill that 
 I thought, * I will not disturb her by talking to her.' I took 
 up my hat and was just going out of the room when I heard 
 a very gentle voice calling, 'Mr. Pennefather, Mr. Penne- 
 father, will you not pray to God before you go, and ask Him 
 to take little Janie soon to heaven, to live with Jesus' I 
 knelt down and prayed to God, and little Janie prayed too. 
 It was very sweet to see how her little pale, thin face bright- 
 ened at the name of Jesus. Now we may say of Janie, ' She 
 walked with God, and she is not, for God has taken her/ 
 She was very patient, and full of love, not fretful, though she 
 suffered much. God's Holy Spirit kept her peaceful and 
 happy, and I like to think of her now as a lamb in the fold 
 of the heavenly Shepherd. God took care of her here: He 
 was a Father to that fatherless one, and He takes care of her 
 now in heaven. Now, dear children, nothing can make you 
 really happy but knowing Jesus 2.S, your Saviour, jv^«^ Friend, 
 and your God. Do you love Him } Has the Holy Ghost 
 taught you that Jesus Christ shed His blood for sinners ; that 
 you are a sinner, and that He shed His blood for you ? Then 
 if you do love Him, you will try in everything to please Him ; 
 you will keep His commandments. I want you, dear chil- 
 dren, to think not only of yourselves but of others. There 
 are many other fatherless children in the world. Yes ! and 
 there are deaf and dumb children, and there are poor, little, 
 blind children ; oh ! pray to God for them, and don't be selfish 
 children. God ever bless you ! Ask Him to give you a new 
 heart and a new spirit. — Your loving friend and pastor." 
 
 In the course of this year he was called to watch by 
 the dying bed of a little boy who had a very peculiar 
 
 1860.1 
 
 DEATH OF A LITTLE BOY. 
 
 351 
 
 place in his affection. He was the youngest child 
 of Sir Arthur Cotton, who, when about to return to 
 India, had left his family under the pastoral care of 
 Mr. Pennefather. ** During the years I spent at 
 Barnet," says Lady Cotton, *'the Indian Mutiny broke 
 out, and all through those terrible weeks the dear 
 pastor's visits and prayers were a support for which I 
 can never thank God enough. ... I had not before 
 enjoyed a ministry like his, and the Word was truly 
 both food and medicine to me." [Then, after speaking 
 more particularly of services, Bible-readings, &c.], '' My 
 youngest boy was much attached to him, and even at 
 six years old would listen intelligently to the sermons, 
 and bring home thoughts which would have seemed to 
 me quite above him. It was wonderful how the little 
 one would enter into his pastor's plans, and when Mr. 
 Pennefather was going on a preaching tour to different 
 parishes, he quite understood it. When counting up 
 his little savings on his last birthday, that he might 
 apportion his money for various presents, I shall never 
 forget the solemn look with which he began by laying 
 aside two shillings, saying, * That is for the mission,' 
 and it was carefully given to Mr. Pennefather." The 
 short life of this dear child seemed a rare instance of 
 the early bud and the ripened fruit, both found together 
 and quickly transplanted to the paradise above. 
 
 One characteristic extract from a letter written to a 
 member of his congregation, who was apparently per- 
 plexed about questions of doctrine, may be added to 
 this year's records — 
 
 " It is only as the Lord Jesus seeks us that we find the 
 fold, only as He keeps us that we feed in the green pastures, 
 only as He carries us over tne rugged mountains upon His 
 
 i 
 
 i 
 If 
 
f 
 
 33- 
 
 LE TTER- WRITING, 
 
 [chap. XV. 
 
 shoulder, that we are enabled to reach our heavenly inheri- 
 tance. Jesus is our 'all in all.' It is by knowing Him that 
 we gain a well-proportioned view of truth. The Church is 
 chosen in Him. In Him she sees her adoption and her pre- 
 sent privileged position. In Him she finds her rule of life, 
 and in Him, too, she looks forward to her crown, her sceptre, 
 and her kingdom. The Lord Jesus is the Fountain from 
 whence the believer draws his life day by day. I have been 
 thinking much of those words, * As ye have therefore received 
 . . . walk . . . rooted . . . built-up . . . stablishcd! &c. (Col 
 11. 6, 7)." 
 
 The number of letters Mr. Pennefather contrived to 
 write was marvellous.*"* With a laborious parochial 
 machinery, a house generally filled with guests, repre- 
 senting varied interests and nationalities, t and the claims 
 of London close at hand, his sympathies were always 
 at command for individual needs. Notes of comfort to 
 sick ones, sketches of sermons sent to those unable to 
 attend church, counsels for perplexed friends abounded ; 
 and often after a wearying day of pastoral visitation, he 
 would go to his desk and write off a hymn, to be sent 
 to the boys' printing-press, that they might have 
 ** something quite new to please and occupy them." 
 
 On the I St of May i860, the notice was issued for 
 another Conference, to be held in the month of July. 
 In those days, when Conferences had to be fitted in with 
 parochial arrangements, no one week could be fixed 
 upon as annually allotted to them, and the dates were 
 of necessity somewhat varied. The meetings of this 
 year were preceded by a season of considerable 
 anxiety, owing to a sharp attack of illness which 
 
 ♦ It was only in the latter years of his life that he sometimes employed an 
 amanuensis. 
 
 t Besides representatives from most European countries, natives of India, 
 China, and Africa were at various times among his guests. 
 
 sf 
 
 IS60.] 
 
 A TTACK OF ILLNESS, 
 
 333 
 
 threatened to make it impossible that Mr. Pennefather 
 should fill his usual place. He had struggled too 
 bravely against severe influenza, and having preached 
 twice on Sunday, June 24th, "not able," as he said in 
 the evening, ** to see the texts in his Bible," he went 
 from the pulpit to his bed. Violent pain in the head 
 with fever followed, and gout (a family complaint, 
 which now attacked him for the first time) supervening, 
 completely crippled him. 
 
 ^ Meanwhile," as he says in writing to a friend, " the Con- 
 ference was looming m the distance. . . . But I may tell you 
 of the Lord's tender loving-kindness. Scarcely had I begun 
 to ask what viust be done^ when I seemed to see the Lord 
 Jesus standing beside me, and to hear His voice say, * Be 
 careful for nothing ; leave all in My hands.' The most 
 blessed peace filled my soul, and even when suffering in- 
 tensely, I felt Him close to me, and could truly say, * Even 
 this agony is sweet, because it brings Him nearer.' During 
 this time numbers of people were coming to my wife saying, 
 * You must put off the Conference,' she giving the same 
 answer to them all, * I will decide nothing until the 2nd of 
 July ; there will be time enough then to put advertisements 
 in the papers.* 
 
 > a 
 
 The sequel was remarkable. On Sunday, July ist, 
 so sudden an improvement took place in his health, 
 that a servant who had carried something into his room 
 came out saying, " A wonderful change has come over 
 master." On Sunday the 8th he was able to preach 
 once, and in the following week to take his place at 
 all the meetinors. 
 
 In the same letter from which we have already 
 quoted he adds — 
 
 "And now, what shall I say of the Conference itself.? 
 The Lord most graciously did -. rder everything. The 
 weather was beautiful. Those who prayed and expounded 
 
« '*• I 
 
 ' ( 
 
 I ' 
 
 i 
 
 334 
 
 LETTER FROM MRS. BAYLY. 
 
 [chap. XV. 
 
 Scripture sctm^d filled with, the Spirit. Joy reigned amongr 
 us, love abounded, and we seemed to stand on the threshold 
 of the heavenly sanctuary. , . . Now I have arrears of 
 work, and must not think of leaving home before the end of 
 August. 
 
 j> 
 
 It is to this period that a letter written by his dear 
 
 belonof. 
 
 o 
 
 She and her 
 
 friend Mrs. Bayly * seems to 
 family were for many years closely bound up with Con- 
 ference times, and many other interests — 
 
 " The first distinct recollection I have of seeing Mr. Penne- 
 father is when he came with Mrs. Pennefather one evening 
 to our Mothers* Meeting at Notting Hill. I do not remem- 
 ber the date, but it must have been soon after the publica- 
 tion of * Ragged Homes.' The suggestions contained in that 
 book were accepted as supplying a want which had been 
 long felt, and just then we had many visitors from among 
 those who were anxious to establish Mothers* Meetingfs in 
 their own localities. During the time of the meeting, the 
 mothers themselves entirely occupied my mind, and I was 
 scarcely conscious of the presence of visitors. On this occa- 
 sion, however, my eye and my mind often wandered to the 
 back seat occupied by Mr. and Mrs. Pennefather, and in a 
 way I cannot describe in words, we felt the presence in our 
 midst of one who had power with God and prevailed. I dis- 
 tinctly remember that, under the influence of that wonderful 
 bond of sympathy which at once unites the children of God 
 as members of one family, the passage selected for our even- 
 ing lesson seemed to unfold itself with unusual power, and I 
 was happy in the belief that every one there would be the 
 better for that meeting. Although, as far as I can recollect, 
 Mr. Pennefather took no part in what was passing, yet the 
 calmness and holiness which rested en every feature of his 
 face, indicating the work within of God's Spirit, made us 
 at once realise that a presence was among us, making us 
 stronger for service, and deepening in us the patient trust 
 
 * Author of "Ragged Homes and How to Mend Them," "Workmen and 
 tiieir Difficulties," &c. 
 
 N 
 
 i860.] 
 
 LETTER FROM MRS. BAYLY. 
 
 j: 
 
 :5 
 
 which ceases from its own works, and accepts the ' perfect 
 will of God ' in the place of wearying for results. 
 
 " Soon after this, Captain Bayly and myself were kindly 
 invited to be present at the yearly Conference at Barnet. The 
 happiness enjoyed at these early gatherings is so deeply im- 
 pressed on many minds, and they are still so frequently referred 
 to, that no attempt at description is needed. It was a delight- 
 ful arrangement for meeting with fellow-workers, and there is 
 no doubt the opportunity thus afforded of speaking together 
 of various plans of usefulness was a means of extending what 
 was good and helpful more quickly and effectually than could 
 have been done in any other way. Some one remarked at 
 the time, * What is said and done here will be working its way 
 out day by day until we meet again.' 
 
 " The aspect in which the character of our dear friend pre- 
 sented itself most strongly to me, especially during the time 
 of the Conferences, is best expressed in the few words, * I am 
 among you as one that serveth.' When engaged earnestly 
 and eagerly in any one department of work, the temptation 
 will sometimes present itself to magnify that work, and de- 
 mand for it some disproportionate homage. Among the 
 great number of earnest workers who gathered round him, 
 the thought as to which should be the greatest was not per- 
 haps always absent from every mind, but in the presence of 
 one who in some way was always servings it would have been 
 impossible to have given it much expression ; the humblest 
 worker in the company was treated with as much honour as 
 the most distinguished. Little frailties and weaknesses were 
 not made an excuse for neglect, but rather a reason for 
 the manifestation of some tender consideration. 
 
 " I do not remember his ever falling into the snare, which 
 sadly afflicts some clever people, of relating things which re- 
 dound to their own glory, whilst they show up others to a dis- 
 advantage ; he was never the hero of his own tales. I learnt 
 from him in a way I never understood before why our Lord 
 must first get from Peter the answer to the question, ' Lovest 
 thou Me } ' before He could intrust him to feed His sheep and 
 His lambs ; the perfect love is as necessary in all ministration 
 as the food. Our dear friend could as truly as Peter answer, 
 * Lord, Thou knowest all things ; Thou knowest that I love 
 
 I 
 
 v) 
 
I.f.' 
 
 33^ 
 
 TRAINING HOME. 
 
 [chap. XV. 
 
 i \ 
 
 'A 
 
 Thee.' And oh ! how many sheep and lambs were given him 
 to feed ! The Good Shepherd could and did trust him with 
 the * flock of His pasture/ " 
 
 It was in the month of August i860 that the little 
 Home was opened which inaugurated the work since 
 developed into the Deaconess House at Mildmay Park, 
 with all its varied activities. Mr. and Mrs. Pennefather 
 had long desired that something might be attempted to 
 call out the enero^ies of educated Christian women not 
 fully occupied in home duties, and teach them how to 
 pursue a ^^;/2V^ and systematic course of active ministry 
 in a needy world. While putting out their own talents 
 to increase, they might thus become temporally and 
 spiritually the *' succourers of many." Why should such 
 a life of holy usefulness be associated only with nuns 
 and sisterhoods of Romish reputation } The question 
 was asked over and over again, and at last it seemed as 
 though the answer ought to be given in a practical form. 
 We must not here follow the development of an institu- 
 tion which has by this time an interesting history of 
 its own. It has had to do battle with all the defined and 
 undefined objections that could be raised against the 
 most simple attempt to organise a band of women 
 workers ; it has encountered an alarming host of whis- 
 pered suspicions and open antagonism ; but *' having 
 obtained help of God, it continues unto this day ; " and 
 its founder, though feeling very keenly the misrepresen- 
 tations which were circulated both by friends and foes, 
 never swerved from the position he had taken when 
 first starting the work in i860. 
 
 The Conference gatherings of this year were painfully 
 crowded, and Mr. Pennefather had been greatly dis- 
 tressed at the impossibility of admitting many of " the 
 
 1S60.] 
 
 CASES OF SICKNESS. 
 
 337 
 
 i)oor of the flock," who had made great efforts to attend 
 the meetings. Some of these had walked from the 
 neighbouring villages, but only to find the doors hope- 
 lessly closed. From this time the question of increased 
 accommodation was much on his mind, and constantly 
 brought to the Lord in prayer. 
 
 At the end of July we find him responding to an 
 invitation to hold one day's Conference in a Northern 
 town. ** It would be very delightful to have a day's 
 Conference. I am not strong, but most gladly would I 
 spend a little of my small stock of strength in such a 
 gathering as you propose." 
 
 A little later — 
 
 "We are now deeply anxious about my precious sister. 
 . . . She may come to London immediately for medical advice, 
 and her state makes our plans for leaving home early in the 
 autumn, as we had expected, peculiarly uncertain." 
 
 Again, on August 20th, to Mrs. Crewdson — 
 
 •* We had hoped to be with you on Saturday, but it cannot 
 be. . . . There are four persons close to my gate who are 
 fast hastening to eternity, and a fifth in a more distant part 
 of the parish. I have never known so much serious illness 
 in the place, and it so happens that all our most valuable 
 helpers are away or about to leave home immediately. There 
 is no one to whom I can depute the care of these sick ones." 
 
 On September 21st, we find him surrounded by sick- 
 ness, and still unable to leave home for rest — 
 
 " It is very remarkable how completely our way is shut up. 
 I never remember in my experience as a minister having so 
 many dying beds to visit without any prevailing epidemic. 
 Several are young men. One young woman is a bright saint 
 just hastening home. Most of them are cases of consumption 
 My heart clings to them, and though I am not well, I am 
 certainly not ill enough to justify my leaving them for my 
 own pleasure. One young married man, very ignorant, and 
 
 Y 
 
 M 
 
338 
 
 LONGINGS FOR REVIVAL. 
 
 [chap. XV. 
 
 unable to speak from the state of his throat, as I told him of 
 the love of Jesus, drew my hand to his blue lips and kissed it 
 repeatedly/ 
 
 a 
 
 The importunity of kind friends and relatives that 
 he should relax his unceasing labours, and the con- 
 sciousness that they thought him negligent or ungrate- 
 ful to those he most deeply loved, often wrung his 
 heart with anguish, and was an abiding trial of his life. 
 Speaking of one such instance he says — 
 
 " Little do they know that a minister has no power to act 
 as his own master. * No man, having put his hand to the 
 plough,* can either * look back ' or withdraw that hand. It is 
 delightful to undertake work for God, but it involvesa crossl" 
 
 The proposed visits were not paid, and God gave 
 His servant strength to continue unremittingly at his 
 work. Meanwhile, new interests were crowding in on 
 all sides, while the animating tidings from America and 
 the North of Ireland had stimulated the lonorin^s of 
 
 o o 
 
 English Christians for some such revival work in their 
 own land. Mr. Pennefather had constant means of 
 communication with both countries, and was deeply 
 interested in all the details of the blessing there given. 
 During the spring and summer of this year, he had 
 brought the subject before his people again and again 
 and many little prayer-meetings were added to those 
 already established.* Notwithstanding the peculiar 
 difficulties of the place, he felt confident that an answer 
 would be given more special and distinct than any yet 
 received. Many souls had been converted to God, 
 but a large proportion of these had been among tem- 
 porary residents or casual visitors. His soul longed 
 
 • One of these, carried on with great warmth and earnestness by a band of 
 Christian policemen, was a bright spot in his parish. 
 
 i860.] 
 
 HOPEFUL INDICATIONS. 
 
 339 
 
 for the careless ones around him ; each class of the 
 people, each several street and locality, with its many 
 individual inhabitants, was prayed for definitely and 
 continually ; for he was well aware that the crowded 
 congregation in church did not altogether represent the 
 special district assigned to his charge. The Rev. F. A. 
 Baines, who was his fellow-helper during a great part 
 of his ministry at Barnet, recalls this earnest desire 
 after each and all of those committed to his care. After 
 speaking of his own affectionate remembrance, he says— 
 
 " It was my privilege to be his curate for nearly six years, 
 and I can bear abundant testimony to the warm kindness and 
 tender consideration he showed me under all circumstances. 
 I can never forget the kind and eager welcome he always gave 
 me when I went to see him in his study, or his great anxiety 
 concerning the people amongst whom we had been called to 
 minister. How often did he tell me of his earnest desire that 
 ^.very soul under his care should be spoken to on the great 
 subject of salvation. He seemed to me to live out in his daily 
 life (if I may so say) the teaching of Phil. iv. 6, and this must 
 have been the secret of his deep spirituality and holiness of 
 life, and the good success given to him in his diligent working 
 for the Lord. I never expect in this life to see any one more 
 desirous than he was to act out the words I have so often 
 heard him refer to in the pulpit, * always bearing about in our 
 body the dying of the Lord Jesus, that the life also of Jesus 
 might be made manifest in our body.' " 
 
 At length a manifest softening of heart among many 
 who had been previously hard and indifferent gave 
 promise of better things, and quickened the desire 
 already cherished in secret for increased accommoda- 
 tion. Could not a large room be erected, which would 
 serve both for the summer Conferences and for more 
 aggressive work among the lowest clashes during the 
 winter months ? 
 
I 
 
 340 
 
 PROPOSED IRON ROOM. 
 
 [chap. XV. 
 
 The thought was thrown out and ventilated among 
 friends. He had been accustomed all his life to en- 
 counter objections at the first mention of his plans, and 
 he expected them now, but something must be done. 
 A permanent building was hardly desirable, and in this 
 case impossible. No freehold ground could be had ; 
 moreover, the need ought to be met without delay. 
 Iron rooms were not then in general use, but they had 
 been tried for some purposes and proved satisfactory. 
 Mr. Pennefather determined to go to London and make 
 the necessary inquiries. Meeting Captain Trotter in 
 the train, he asked him to accompany him, and many 
 a time did he thank God for that apparently accidental 
 meeting. The interest of his kind friend was thoroughly 
 enlisted, and though still amused at " such a gigantic 
 scheme," he called at the Parsonage not long after and 
 wrote a cheque for ^^ 100 to commence the undertaking. 
 Only those who have prayed long and earnestly, 
 '' against hope believing in hope," can tell what it is to 
 receive the first undoubted token from an answering 
 God. In this case such tokens followed one another 
 in quick succession. The ground was given, though, 
 as entailed property, it could not be sold ; the needed 
 money flowed in ; the building was begun in Novem- 
 ber, and though roads had to be made, as the room 
 stood in a field, and there were many difficulties as to 
 lighting, heating, &c., it was ready to be opened before 
 Christmas. It stood there a witness for God, and 
 eternity alone will disclose the marvellous triumphs of 
 grace achieved beneath that roof.* The dimensions 
 
 * The first united prayer offered within its walls, while still unfinished, received 
 a striking answer. A father came to ask prayer for a sick child, "given over" by 
 tJie doctor, and followed Mr. Pennefather to the building, where he was giving 
 
 
 \ 
 
 i860.] 
 
 DEATH OF MR. CLEAVER. 
 
 Z^^ 
 
 (100 feet by 60) were fixed upon with a view to the 
 large demands of Conference times, but God had other 
 purposes for it before those summer days came round. 
 Writing to his old friends in Westmoreland, Mr. 
 Pennefather says — 
 
 " November 2 \st. 
 " Your last kind letter filled me with many thankful and 
 happy thoughts. I have donors to the iron room from 2s. 6d. 
 upwards, and shall be delighted to have my old friends, my 
 first helpers in building a house for the Lord, associated in 
 this work. (Do you remember Roundstone .'*) So much 
 prayer has been put up about this room, that I have a happy 
 confidence much glory will be brought to God by its means. 
 It is rising amidst earnest supplications and fervent praise. 
 
 . . . The dear are with us. I rather fear there is danger 
 
 of their tone being lowered by association with relatives who 
 are not living for one tJmtg, *To me to live is Christ,' was 
 the Apostle's motto. Shall it not be ours ? * This one thing 
 I do,' *one thing have I desired,' said David. One glorious 
 thought filled his soul — to live for the honour of his God and 
 King." 
 
 It was during the closing hours of i860 that the 
 beloved William Cleaver, for so many years Rector of 
 Delgany, was called to his rest. He had been long 
 waiting at the gates of his heavenly home, and his 
 niece went down to St. Leonard's with her husband to 
 receive his parting blessing. He had taken a deep 
 interest in the erection of the iron room, and as they 
 took leave of him he said with tears, '' Still workers 
 for God, — surely it is no little privilege. I can't ex- 
 press what I feel it to be." Writing to his cousin, Mr. 
 Pennefather g^ives some details of his last hours, and 
 
 some orders. They knelt then and there in earnest supplication, and the father, 
 on returning home, was told by his child that she did not want any more medicine, 
 God had cured her. And so it proved. 
 

 ■ 
 
 342 
 
 OPENING OF IRON ROOM. 
 
 [chap. XV. 
 
 adds, ** On Friday morning he fell asleep in Jesus. 
 Some of his last words were, * Happy, happy ! * It 
 seemed as though some vision of glory lighted up his 
 latest moments." Again, in another letter, " I deeply 
 feel Mr. Cleaver's removal. He was a bright link with 
 the past, and many sweet memories clustered round 
 
 him. It is a great sorrow to my dearest C , not 
 
 only on her own account, but for her mother's sake." 
 
 The iron room was opened just before Christmas 
 with a special meeting for prayer, and in the evening 
 of the same day about i loo poor people assembled for 
 an exhibition of dissolving views (the subjects all from 
 Holy Scripture), under the management of Mr. Isaac 
 Whitwell of Kendal, known to so many Christian friends 
 as a messenger of the glorious Gospel through this 
 instrumentality. Speaking of these Scripture pictures, 
 Mr. Pennefather says, " Another instrumentality em- 
 ployed by God to gather in the outcasts, that His 
 house may be filled." 
 
 The invitation from the missionary brethren at 
 Loodiana to spend the first week of the year in united 
 prayer was hailed by Mr. Pennefather with the warmest 
 interest, and he was one of the first to respond to 
 it by calling his people together in the opening of i860. 
 From that time to the close of his ministry, he never 
 failed to hold two meetings each day during the ap- 
 pointed week. Every succeeding year he loved to stir 
 up his flock in his Sabbath ministrations to a deep sense 
 both of privilege and responsibility in connection with 
 this world-wide agreement in prayer and supplication. 
 It was with peculiar pleasure he afterwards welcomed 
 to his house the American brother who first dropped 
 the seed which had developed so extensively. From 
 
 
 ' 
 
 1861.] 
 
 WEEK OF PRA YER. 
 
 343 
 
 him he learned that twenty years before, when the 
 thought had been suggested to him, he had taken 
 every means to make it known, but there was then no 
 response to his appeal. God, however, led him to 
 continue instant in prayer,— and when His own time 
 was come, the Church of Christ throughout the world 
 responded to a second invitation, though he who had 
 been the human instrument in the work was laid on 
 a bed of sickness, and could only join the praying 
 multitudes in the silence of his own chamber. 
 
 When the month of January 1861 called to this 
 united season of prayer for the second time, there were 
 many hearts at Barnet prepared by God Himself for 
 special blessing. Mr. Pennefather speaks in many of 
 his letters of unusual distress among the poor, which he 
 was seeking to alleviate, scarcity both of food and fuel 
 at the opening of a singularly inclement winter, and 
 at the same time such a softening of heart as he had 
 never known in that place before. Writing on January 
 22nd, he says — 
 
 *'Many, many thanks for your constant and unfailing 
 remembrance of our poor people and their unworthy pastor. 
 Oh 1 for wisdom and grace to meet the exigencies and the 
 privileges of the wondrous days in which our lot is cast. * Dis- 
 tress of nations with perplexity' abounding, and at the same 
 time the joy of the Holy Ghost lighting up many hearts with 
 the sunshine of an eternal day. The week of prayer was a 
 blessed time here as elsewhere. On the Tuesday evening Mr. 
 Venn of Hereford gave an account of the revival work that 
 has been going on in Wales, which was deeply interesting." 
 
 A widow lady just arrived from the Cape of Good 
 Hope was present with her five children, and looks back 
 to that evening as the beginning of untold blessing to 
 her eldest boy, who is now serving God as a devoted 
 
^-■^mm'-^^^-^-'-''^ ■■'^^^^■ 
 
 .:jir'°B»ri a [t^"-i i w iii '" » ai '' 
 
 i^i|W""^JiS»is>^(4»i» -J^^>sg'^--y — "i^- M — y i ^tMi 
 
 f 
 
 344 
 
 SPECIAL SERVICES. 
 
 [chap. XV. 
 
 Christian officer, standing alone in his regiment in a 
 distant part of India. 
 
 In a sketch given by Mr. Pennefather's pen of his 
 intercourse with this dear lad, he quotes many of his 
 own words — 
 
 *' I shall always praise God that He brought me to Barnet. 
 I did not know it was so simple ; I thought I must do many 
 things and wait a long time. I did not know it was so happy 
 to have Jesus Christ as my Saviour." 
 
 He then tells of the joy with which he received him 
 when (not having been baptized in infancy) '' he came 
 forward to make a public profession of his faith in 
 baptism." 
 
 The many tokens of blessing already given had led 
 to a proposal for a series of special services to follow 
 upon the week of prayer, but the extreme severity ot 
 the weather necessitated their postponement to the 
 following month. Mr. Reginald Radcliffe and other 
 earnest lay preachers were engaged to give their assis- 
 tance, and the iron room opened early in February for 
 a week of evening services. The announcement was 
 in the simplest form ; no names were given,* nor any- 
 thing unusual promised, but Gods time was come. 
 People of every class flocked to the room ; men and 
 women who had never been seen by minister or district 
 visitor appeared from the lowest lodging-houses, as well 
 as unexpected throngs of respectable church-goers. 
 Hundreds were melted to tears under the simple mes- 
 sage of the Gospel, brought home by the Divine Spirit, 
 and remained for prayer and conversation. To close 
 
 * It was very rarely that iMr. Pennefather consented to print the names of 
 preachers on a notice of services, and he had a strong objection to sensational 
 placards or handbills. 
 
 1861.] 
 
 SPECIAL SERVICES. 
 
 345 
 
 the services at the end of the week was impossible. 
 " It would be," as a poor woman expressed it, " like 
 shutting the doors of heaven ; " and from week to week 
 their continuance was promised till lengthened days 
 made it clear that working people could no longer 
 attend. For ten weeks the meetings went on without 
 intermission, Mr. Pennefather always presiding, except 
 when other ministerial engagements compelled him to 
 be absent for a part of the evening. It was a season 
 never to be forgotten. A feeling of awe seemed for a 
 time to pervade the town, and the public-houses were, 
 comparatively speaking, empty. Scenes of touching 
 interest took place within the walls of the iron room, 
 which must have caused many rejoicings in heaven, and 
 which, if recorded, might have filled a volume. " O 
 sir ! " said one poor woman to Mr. Pennefather, " I 
 want to ask your pardon. When the iron room was 
 building, I said, ' I wonder why they are putting up 
 that great place ; I don't see the use of it.' I see it 
 now. . . . How many have gone there to get a bless- 
 ing ! It was there I first learnt to rejoice in Christ 
 my Saviour, and now I am so happy, I have to get 
 up in the night and kneel down to praise and pray." 
 
 Some families in the neighbourhood who had stood 
 aloof, fearing undue excitement, were surprised by 
 finding such deep spiritual interest and such changed 
 lives among their servants and labourers, that they 
 -vvere compelled to own "the finger of God." Captain 
 Trotter, the long-tried friend of the place and people, as 
 he stood up one evening to address the dense crowd 
 of listeners, paused for a moment and exclaimed, " For 
 twenty-five years I have been praying to God for this 
 neighbourhood, but I never dared to expect such a 
 
V. 
 
 I 
 
 345 
 
 SPECIAL SERVICES, 
 
 [CHAP. XV. 
 
 Sight as this." " The wind of grace," as it was called 
 by Bishop M'llvaine, extended to the Orphan Houses, 
 the parochial schools, and to the *' Rescue Home" 
 belonging to the Society in London, which was under 
 Mr. Pennefather's pastoral care. It would be difficult 
 to exaggerate the extraordinary visitation of super- 
 natural power, which brought the most hardened to 
 their knees, pouring forth a torrent of supplication 
 which astonished experienced Christians. 
 
 Perhaps one of the most striking features of this 
 work, and one which made a great impression upon 
 strangers attending the church, was the introduction, 
 Sunday after Sunday, into the General Thanksgiving, 
 of numerous clauses, some of them most touchingly 
 worded, from those who desired to praise God for the 
 great spiritual " mercies vouchsafed to them." Mean- 
 while crowds flocked in from the surrounding villages 
 to share in the blessing, and to some of these places 
 (especially South Mimms, where Captain Trotter held 
 meetings) the shower of blessing seemed to extend. 
 
 As the work became widely known, visitors from 
 London frequently came to offer their assistance, and 
 Mr. Pennefather was deeply anxious "' lest the solemn 
 quietness which had prevailed should be in any measure 
 lost. No one more earnestly deprecated anything like 
 feverish excitement, or undue pressure brought to bear 
 upon the people ; and when once the movement had 
 attracted public attention, it became more difficult to 
 
 * A petition sent by him to the Kendal prayer-meeting has been preserved, and 
 indicates this feeling of anxiety. "The prayers of God's people at Kendal are 
 earnestly requested on behalf of Barnet. God is graciously pouring out His Spirit 
 on that place, but special grace and wisdom are needed by those who are working 
 in the Lord's vineyard there. Ask that they may be filled with the Holy Ghost, 
 and that many, very many, may be added to the Church of Christ." 
 
 1861.] 
 
 SPECIAL SERVICES. 
 
 347 
 
 control it. With all its intense and thrilling interest, it 
 was to him a time of mingled joy and anxiety. Along 
 with the deep reality of God's own work, there will ever 
 be much that is merely emotional and sympathetic ; 
 the abundant blossom does not all set for fruit. Never- 
 theless, when the crowds who met night after night in 
 the iron room had been widely scattered, and years of 
 testing had passed by, it was cheering to hear from one 
 and another, in railway carriages or London mission- 
 rooms, " I first learnt to know my Saviour in the iron 
 room at Barnet." Many other rooms are now to be 
 found in distant parishes and neglected places, whose 
 owners received their first impulse, and drew their first 
 plan for such work, when visiting '' the iron room," as it 
 was for some time emphatically called. 
 
 Towards the end of March we find Mr. Pennefather 
 again declining the importunate invitations of friends. 
 His promised visit to Westmoreland had been post- 
 poned from the autumn, in the hope that spring-time 
 might give more leisure, but absence from home had 
 now become impossible. 
 
 "I cannot see my way to make the arrangements I had 
 wished. The people are still coming every night to our 
 meetino-s and we have reason to believe that each tmie 
 sinners'' are awakened. How can I close the doors while 
 hundreds are wiUing to attend > " 
 
 Then, at the close of April— 
 
 *' We expect 800 or 900 militiamen to be here for a week's 
 drill • and, as far as their religious instruction goes, they will 
 be to a great extent under my influence. And I ought soon 
 to be thinking of our Annual Conference, though I almost dread 
 the thought of fixing those meetings long beforehand, the last 
 Conferences have been times of such great perplexity, though 
 likewise seasons of very special blessing. Oh ! how we need 
 
H3 
 
 CONFERENCE MEETINGS, 
 
 [chap. XV. 
 
 
 wisdom and grace moment by moment! But He giveth 
 more grace." 
 
 On the afternoon of Good Friday, a deeply interest- 
 ing meeting was held for praise and thanksgiving. 
 Mr. Pennefather had received more than two hundred 
 letters testifying to individual blessing experienced, and 
 he invited all who had to tell of special mercies to 
 unite in this thanksgiving service. About five hundred 
 assembled, and tales were told and praises offered 
 never to be forgotten. 
 
 The letter of invitation to the Conference of this 
 year bears the date of May 20th, and the days fixed 
 for the meetings are July 24th, 25th, 26th. The morn- 
 ing meetings were devotional as before, and short 
 addresses were given in the evenings on " The Church 
 working for her Lord," and '^ The Church waiting for 
 her Lord." Those days were rich in blessing, but were 
 preceded, as on other occasions, by peculiar trial. A 
 dear young Swedish lady, who had been introduced to 
 Mr. and Mrs. Pennefather, and had been spending some 
 time in Barnet, was invited to their house, and remained 
 several months with them, endearing herself to all who 
 became acquainted with her. It was arranged that she 
 should return to her own country in June, but before 
 the day was fixed for her departure she was taken ill, 
 and in about three weeks was called to her Heavenly 
 Home, without a single relative in England who could 
 be summoned to her dying bed. Surely the joy of 
 these Conference days must have needed the counter- 
 balancing chastening which so often attended them. 
 Mr. Pennefather writes — 
 
 " ^«^«J/ 2nd. 
 I have been quite knocked up, but, thank God, I am about 
 
 1861.] 
 
 MINISTERIAL TRIALS. 
 
 349 
 
 again. God brings strength out of weakness. ' I am as a 
 wonder unto many, but Thou art my strong refuge.' His 
 grace and love have been marvellously exhibited during this 
 ]ate Conference. I quite dreaded the fatigue for my wife, who 
 has been very unwell ; but though about 450 persons were fed 
 for three days, there was no lack,* and her strength held out 
 to the last. We were prepared for special blessing by very 
 special sorrow. Our sweet young friend, Louise Bjorckman, 
 was taken from us after a short illness, and her death was a 
 very keen trial to my darling wife. . . . But never was the 
 Lord nearer to us, and I think I may say, never were we more 
 truly * in the Spirit,' than at the late meetings. Since their 
 close I have received many letters from those who were pre- 
 sent, all testifying that the season was one of unusual blessing. 
 Dr. Bonar (who spoke beautifully at one of the meetings) has 
 been here to-day, and his soul seemed full of joy as he talked 
 over the privileges of the past week. We had Mr. Moon here. 
 I am deeply interested in him and his work among the blind." 
 
 These bright days of blessing were followed by 
 much sorrow and perplexity. Writing in the month 
 of August he speaks of " deep waters of trial " and 
 ''many anxious cares, both private and ministerial." 
 His sister, Mrs. Maxwell, was evidently drawing near 
 to the close of her pilgrimage, and he keenly felt the 
 distance which separated them. But he dared not 
 desert his post. The remarkable revival season had 
 been succeeded by a burst of opposition and persecu- 
 tion such as is not often seen in a quiet English parish. 
 Hymns were parodied in the street, prayer-meetings 
 travestied, and such open mockery and scoffing exhi- 
 bited, that a gentleman arriving at the Parsonage from 
 Ireland remarked, ** I have seen much opposition to 
 God's truth, but I never met with such bitter enmity 
 
 * The entertainment was still on the footing of private hospitality, and the 
 numbers were becoming formidable in a place where nothing of the kind could be 
 done by contract. 
 
350 
 
 PAROCHIAL VISITATION. 
 
 [CHAP. XV. 
 
 336i.] 
 
 PREACHING TOUR, 
 
 J3 
 
 w ^ 
 
 as I have heard expressed between this house and the 
 railway-station." 
 
 Mr. Pennefather was deeply anxious for the young 
 beHevers, who were going through a fearful time of 
 testing and temptation. He used often to speak of 
 conflict as a characteristic of his experience. Certainly 
 the warfare between light and darkness was fiercely 
 waged at this period of his ministry, and the power 
 of the great enemy asserted itself in strange scenes ot 
 unblushing sin and fearful misery, both physical and 
 spiritual. Still God enabled him to maintain his 
 influence over the people, and in various and often 
 unlikely cases his presence was continually requested. 
 
 There is no doubt that a certain practical aptitude in 
 the common things of life, and a wonderful fertility of 
 resource, helped to gain him access to those among 
 whom he dwelt wherever he went. A humble member 
 of his congregation once remarked, ** Some people can 
 preach well, and that is good, but he could preach 
 well, and do everything else besides. Once when he 
 found old Mrs. L. alone in the house and ill in bed, 
 with no one to send for her soup, he insisted upon 
 looking for her can and taking it himself." Another 
 tells that, '* Going in the middle of the night to visit 
 a dying woman, and finding no one providing any 
 nourishment, he never left the house till he had made 
 some sfruel and criven it to her himself." One who 
 laboured with him in the Lord, and who loves to gather 
 up the recollections of those days, speaks of a scene 
 of sorrow, which will illustrate the tact and sympathy 
 so continually called for. *' When my father died, quite 
 suddenly, I hastened to inform Mr. Pennefather of the 
 sad event. He rose at once from the luncheon table, 
 
 and went to the house of sorrow. I think I see him 
 now, as he first kissed the cold forehead of the 
 departed one, and then, taking the hands of the 
 mourners, simply said, * Let us tell Jesus.' Pouring 
 out his soul in prayer, he so led us into the presence 
 of the Living One, that we scarcely felt we were in 
 the chamber of death." 
 
 '' On one occasion," says the same writer, ** I was 
 present when he was administering the Lord s Supper 
 at the Invalid Home at Barnet. Just as he was about 
 to give the wine, one of the patients was seized with 
 a violent spasmodic cough. All who were present 
 in the room rose to go to her assistance, but at once 
 lifting his hand to keep them in their places, he said, 
 * Don't stir ; we will ask God to stop dear Mary's 
 cough, and He will! Then lifting his eyes to heaven, 
 with the cup still in his hand, he stood in silent 
 prayer for a few moments. The cough was stayed, 
 and he went on without interruption. Surely he had 
 power with God and with man." "^ 
 
 But we must not dwell on such reminiscences, which 
 might be multiplied indefinitely. We give one of the 
 letters written during the autumn to Mrs. Crewdson — 
 
 " Sissinghurst, October "^ist 
 
 " My thoughts are constantly turning towards you and the 
 
 scenes of intense beauty which lie around you, but I had 
 
 promised early in the year to take (if necessary) one of the 
 
 circuits of the * Home Mission,' and I have been preaching 
 
 * He had naturally singular power over the insane, and on one occasion, 
 when every means had failed to induce a strong, violent man to enter the carriage 
 which was to convey him to a place of confinement, some one suggested, " Send 
 for Mr. Pennefather," and a messenger was despatched. Arriving at the house, he 
 looked steadily at the poor man, with that mingled firmness and tenderness 
 which always seemed to inspire confidence in the most suspicious, and subdue the 
 most desperate, and taking his hand said, *'P. you will come with me." He then, 
 gently led him into the carriage, and all difficulty was at an end. 
 
3?2 
 
 DEATH OF HIS SISTER, 
 
 [chap. XV. 
 
 daily this week from place to place in Kent, so you see it is 
 the Lord's work that has brought me here. I preached here 
 last night, and now I am on the wing again to preach to- 
 night at Harden, on Friday at Hadlow, and twice on Sunday 
 at Tovil near Maidstone. . . . The accounts of dear Mrs. King 
 are not good. She seems failing, and I have many anxious 
 thoughts, too, for my precious D. ; but I seem to hear my 
 Heavenly Father say, * Be still, and know that I am God.' 
 . . . What are your tidings from Manchester.? The failure 
 of employment in our manufacturing districts seems very 
 sad. In Ireland, too, there are dark forebodings with refer- 
 ence to the coming winter. Miss Mason sends me sad 
 tidings from the West. The state of things in America is 
 awful ... Is the Lord soon comincf to * make this blisrhted 
 world of ours His own fair world again ' ? " 
 
 A few lines dated December 2nd tell of the sorrow- 
 ful event so long expected — 
 
 "My sweet Dora is with Jesus— 'absent from the body, 
 present with the Lord.' In tenderest mercy she was spared 
 much suffering." 
 
 Another pen adds to his few lines — 
 
 ** Blessed be God, her last night was a happy ^ happy night. 
 . . . Not a shadow of a cloud was allowed to cross her mind, 
 and the last text she repeated was, * Henceforth there is laid 
 up for me a crown of righteousness,' &c., and some of the last 
 words, ' Victory, Victory ' I " 
 
 To another friend he writes a few days later — 
 
 "* With Christ' — who can tell what is bound up in those 
 words .? . . . My mind looks back through the long vista of 
 forty years, during which our hearts were bound together in 
 such close and loving fellowship, and then it glances upward 
 to my Father's Home, and I seem to hear the fresh note of 
 praise that vibrates through the courts of heaven, as she takes 
 her stand among the blood-bought multitude. . . . Her war- 
 fare is accomplished. She can never know another pang 
 of mind or body ; she can never feel again the fiery darts 
 oi the wicked one. I seem to hear our own faithful God say- 
 ing, ' Comfort ye, comfort ye My people.' Oh ! how I have 
 
 1S61.] 
 
 DEATH OF THE PRINCE CONSORT 
 
 353 
 
 agonised for her in past days, but now every prayer is 
 abundantly answered." 
 
 On the 14th of December the nation was plunged 
 into sorrow by the death of the Prince Consort. The 
 great bell that tolled out the fatal tidings to London 
 on the Saturday night could not reach Barnet, but a 
 kind tradesman, anxious that Mr. Pennefather should 
 not enter on the services of the day in ignorance of the 
 mournful news, hurried down to him early on the Sun- 
 day morning. The omission of the well-known name 
 in the prayers for the Royal Family, was the only 
 intimation of the nation's loss, until the pastor entered 
 the pulpit ; but who that heard the prayer which pre- 
 ceded the sermon on that morning can ever forget it ? 
 Every strong feeling of his nature seemed appealed to 
 by the sad event. His great admiration of the Prince, 
 combined with the innate loyalty which was a deep- 
 seated element in his character, and his realising 
 grasp of the isolated anguish of her for whom he 
 pleaded, was painfully intense. One who remembers 
 that morning writes — 
 
 ** All the wondrous power of his sympathy came out that 
 day in prayer for our Queen, and I have often thought a 
 foreshadowing was given him of the sorrow yet to fall on 
 the one most dear to him, as he spread before the Lord the 
 very depths of the desolation of that widowed heart." 
 
 The year 1861 had been one of very mingled ex-* 
 periences. It closed amidst sadness and bereavement. 
 
 Death had left its shadow on the nation, the family, 
 and the congregation. More than one bright witness 
 for God's truth had been suddenly called away ; but 
 though sorrowful, yet alway rejoicing, through evil 
 report and good report, the servant of God was 
 enabled to hold on his way. 
 
( 354 ; 
 
 CHAPTER XVI. 
 1862-1863. 
 
 Extracts of letters from friends— Visits to Wellington and Liverpool- 
 Death of his mother-in-law — Letters — Visit to North Wales — Con- 
 ference of 1862— Recollections of Annie Macpherson — Association of 
 female workers — Barnet Fair — Cotton Famine— Visits to Sheffield, 
 Liverpool, &c. — Letters from Blackburn — Home for Missionaries' 
 children — Spanish children — Death of his nephew— Marriage of the 
 Prince of Wales — Difficulties attending its celebration — Conference 
 of 1863— After-trials— Perth Conference— Letters from Blackburn, 
 &c.— Proposed removal from Barnet— Recollections of friends. 
 
 •* nrO speak in detail of Mr. Pennefather's life," says 
 -*• one who worked with him for many years, ** is 
 like trying to catch sunbeams." *'My impressions and 
 recollections," says another, ** must be very like those 
 of thousands whom he taught and helped. How can 
 I adequately express my loving reverence for his 
 memory! I was led to Barnet in 1862 by the death 
 of a dear brother, and the six months I spent there 
 became an era in my life. None but those who knew 
 Christ Church, Barnet, can realise how holy were the 
 influences exercised there, and no words of mine can 
 tell all the blessing I received." 
 
 This extract from the letter of a friend now far away 
 has to do with the period at which we have now 
 arrived ; but each successive year becomes so thronged 
 with increased labours, and so fraught with little inci- 
 dents treasured up by loving hearts, that we must only 
 
 1862.] 
 
 BIBLE-READINGS. 
 
 355 
 
 attempt to give here and there a few gleanings. The 
 impression of one who attended some of Mr. Penne- 
 father's Bible-readings and prayer-meetings may not 
 
 be out of place. 
 
 Social Bible-reading was a means of instruction in 
 which he greatly delighted, and he was always ready 
 to conduct such a meeting, whether among his own 
 people or elsewhere. " I was much struck," says this 
 Scotch friend, '' with his tact and kindness in bringing 
 out the thoughts of others. He would first give his 
 own view of the passage under consideration, and then, 
 in a way peculiar to himself, very quiet and gentle, he 
 would ask questions of one and another, listening most 
 kindly to our bungling answers, and always appearing 
 as it were to receive rather than impart ; but at last, by 
 suggestions and leading questions, making the true 
 view clear, where we might have differed, and then 
 dismissing us with one of his holy prayers, which 
 seemed to lift one up to the very throne of God. He 
 was speaking, as it were, face to face with the King, 
 and ^^felt he was. His face beamed with the reflec- 
 tion of the King's glory, and the love that filled his 
 soul flowed out to every one around. 
 
 *' I well remember, too, at the close of one of the 
 prayer-meetings, as I passed out with my sister-in-law, 
 he took our hands, and with kind, earnest words, made 
 a personal inquiry as to our love to Jesus. I was 
 rather startled, it was so unlike our reticent Scotch 
 ways, but there was something strangely attractive m 
 the loving spirit that pervaded it all. Alas ! I soon 
 found how little I really did know of Christ's love. 
 And what he did for me was simply what he did 
 for every one that came ; no one was passed over, and 
 
356 
 
 VISIT TO LIVERPOOL. 
 
 [chap. xvt. 
 
 hundreds must have been helped and gladdened by 
 those loving personal appeals." 
 
 The correspondence of this period is singularly 
 chequered with an interchange of deep heart-sorrow and 
 public activities. The loss of his only remaining sister 
 (he was now the sole survivor of a family of eight) had 
 re-opened many a fountain of grief, and the increasing 
 illness of his mother-in-law was too surely telling of 
 coming sorrow. 
 
 In one letter we read — 
 
 " It ought not to be with me as it sometimes is, when I feel 
 as if all the pleasant plants of my early years were trans- 
 planted and blooming out of sight, for God has marvellously 
 blessed me, and given me many a choice flower of His plant- 
 ing. But is it not remarkable that mother, father, brothers, 
 sisters, all are gone ! and the one puny, feeble flower of the 
 garden is left, while the fairer and the stronger have been 
 removed ! . . . Then my dear wife's health is so very deli- 
 cate, that I sometimes think she will not be long in the wilder- 
 ness. I am only kept from constant anxiety by continually 
 looking tip" 
 
 Then, on January loth, 1862 — 
 
 *' I am going (if all be well) on the 27th to Wellington 
 (Salop), to hold two meetings ; then on to Liverpool for three 
 days, and home for Sunday. It is a long-standing engage- 
 ment. Pray for me." 
 
 Again, on February ist — 
 
 ** On Monday I addressed a very crowded meeting at the 
 Town Hall, Wellington, composed almost exclusively of very 
 poor people. It was said there were about 600 present, and 
 many went away unable to gain admittance. It was deeply 
 interesting to see working-men, after a hard day's labour, 
 standing all the time, and drinking in the glad tidings of 
 salvation. Dr. Cranage is going to build a room for such 
 meetings, which is much needed. I had a second meeting 
 on Tuesday, and a Bible-reading, and on Wednesday started 
 
 1862.] 
 
 LA Y'PREA CHERS. 
 
 \S7 
 
 for Liverpool, speaking at Hope Hall on that evenmg and the 
 two days following. Much prayer had been ofl-ered up before- 
 hand, and God in His faithfulness and love gave a rich bless- 
 ing. I saw Dr. McNeile at his own house ; he was very kmd. 
 \he letter goes on to tell of the many friends in 
 Liverpool who showed him " no little kindness." 
 
 One of his principal objects in this journey was to 
 show his sympathy with some of the earnest laymen 
 who were coming forward to assist in the great work 
 of gathering in the masses. Some of them were smart- 
 ing under the impression that they were not heartily 
 welcomed and recognised by the ordained ministers ; 
 and Mr. Pennefather, deeply valuing the assistance of 
 all faithful men, was anxious, as a clergyman of the 
 Church of England, to stand by them in their arduous 
 labours, and if possible allay the fears of some of his 
 clerical brethren. In another letter, written just before 
 leaving home, he says — 
 
 « The history of my proposed visit to Liverpool is a long 
 one Suffice it to say, it has loomed in the distance for months 
 past, and was originally suggested by Mr. R. Now I ^ have 
 been asked to take part in * special Revival services, and 
 thoucrh I know I am not peculiarly adapted for such work, 
 vet il" I may minister to any of God's children and soothe 
 wounded spirits, I feel it right to go. God has in a very 
 remarkable manner set His seal of approval on the ministry 
 of His servants, and I think it is a blot upon us clergymen not 
 to acknowledge what He has wrought through their means. ^ 
 The friend who entertained him during his visit 
 
 writes — 
 
 " How his loving words, when on that mission, went to our 
 very hearts ! Each time he spoke he drew crowds of the 
 Lord's people round him. He seemed to dwell m love, and to 
 come from the presence of the King with the King's message, 
 and we must needs receive it.^^ His visit made a deep impres- 
 sion, and was long spoken of" 
 
 ■ 
 
 
 i 
 
 i 
 
 i' 
 
.-_ll 
 
 358 
 
 FAMILY SORROWS. 
 
 [chap. xvr. 
 
 The weeks that followed this hurried journey were 
 necessarily unsettled and anxious, as his mother-in-law 
 was fast passing away, and he was frequently sum- 
 moned to St. Leonards. A sentence from one of the 
 letters written to his orphan boys illustrates his habit 
 of calling out the sympathies and prayers of the young. 
 
 ''March yth, 1862. 
 " I am very sorry that I have not been able to go to you 
 lately. I have not been strong myself, and many, many 
 anxieties and duties have pressed upon me. I write now to 
 ask you to pray for my dear wife. She is in sorrow. Her 
 beloved mother is very ill, not likely to be ever better, and we 
 may have to go away for a little time." 
 
 On March i6th that beloved mother was taken to 
 her rest, and Mr. Pennefather was afterwards detained 
 for a short time in London by his wife's illness. On 
 April 9th he writes from Barnet to a friend in Ireland — 
 
 *' I have had much anxiety, but not so much as to prevent 
 my thinking often of Arley and of you. Dearest Mrs. King s 
 removal was a great shock to my darling C. She was very 
 weak before her mother was taken, and when the trial came, 
 her bodily strength failed, though the spirit said, ' It is well ! ' " 
 
 The letter eoes on to tell of the trial and difficulties 
 of some dear friends who had separated themselves 
 from all forms of Church government, and adds — 
 
 " After all, we are not pure spirit, but made up of 'body, soul, 
 and spirit,' and it is very evident that neither states, families, 
 nor churches, can go on without some kind of organisation." 
 
 One letter written about this time to a member of 
 his congregation, who was suffering and depressed, will 
 represent many others — 
 
 " I have been thinking much of you and feeling for you in 
 vour sufferins: and weakness. But I see our Father's lovin<^ 
 hand in this hour of trial. He wants us to feel more and 
 
 VISIT TO NORTH WALES. 
 
 359 
 
 1862.1 
 
 Tj;m nnd that moment by 
 ,ore that we are '^^Z-^^;-,", -^'o^fsouls and strength 
 moment, for the supply of grace »° ^^ ^^^ning of 
 
 for our bodies. ^^^Z^%';::Xr.o^^^^^ ^^tJnnk 
 Christ's words, Without Mey discovery shows 
 
 we have learnt it -^^^^^^ .^^l^^ spirit. Close beside 
 that we have not ffyj^X^^X blessed words, ' I can do 
 them, as it were, stand ^^f ^,^7 strengtheneth me.' Oh 
 all things through Chns wn \ . . . All 
 
 to know more of ''^^ ^'^'^TToLoiGoA) has. He has for 
 
 that Jesus (as the Anomted One of G ^^ ^^ ^^^^^ 
 
 you. The Divine F^^her has fiUed t ^.^ ^^^^^^^ ^^„ 
 
 full with the resources of Deity, hat o ^^^ ^ ^^^ ^^^^^^^ 
 
 might receive grace or grace^ ^0° p ^^^ ^^^^ ^^ . 
 
 on^the throne the ^elov ^ Son °^^^o ^ ^^^ ^^^ 
 
 and as Man, I know He "^es tor J ^^^^ j„ h,„^ 
 
 plans or defeat H.s m.ghty purposes^ _^^ ^^.^^ ^^^ ^^^^ 
 and, leaving all m His hanas, 
 
 that He is God.' ^vnressed in Col. i. 9. ^°' "; 
 
 .<My wishes for you are «P'" , . j^ all wisdom; 
 
 Observe the repetition of he won^ -^J^^^^ ^^..^s' (trans- 
 2.. Unto «// pleasing; 3-^ ^^^gthened with «// might ; 
 lated.t;.^'. but really^//); 4- ^tren, 
 
 5. ' Unto all patience. sudden flight to 
 
 I, July we find him ^^^'^^^^J^^^^ll.^^^ 
 
 North Wales as a necessity ^.f Ue says, " to col- 
 
 ^f lifp " " turning aside, as he sayb, 
 pressure of lite, lurm g arrangements 
 
 Let my thoughts a ^je-and -U sc^me^a^^ ^^. 
 
 for the -^g 2itog by his deep interest in a Welsh 
 bourhood of Ffestiniog oy ^g , and among 
 
 pastor who had visited ^^^J^f^^^ taken place, 
 whose people a work of revival na 
 Giving a series of Scnpture-read^n^^^^ ^^.^^^ 
 
 in a neighbouring hotel, hejormed a f n P . 
 
 led to many -tere-Xrnrtemng out the hours 
 of after years. The cocR ^ ^.^^^^ ^^ 
 
 a 
 
 ft, 
 '.1 ti 
 
3^0 
 
 CONFERENCE DIFFICULTIES, [chap. xvr. 
 
 From this place he wrote a long and amusing letter 
 to his orphan children, in which he describes the famous 
 slate quarries and other objects of interest. Speakino- 
 of the men who were employed in the quarries, he says— 
 
 " I daresay you remember that it was in one of these quarries 
 (many hundred feet below the surface of the ground), that 
 two men agreed to pray together* at their dinner hour. ' For 
 some time they continued this practice, until they were joined 
 by several of their companions. At last so many men wished 
 to join the prayer-meeting that there was not room enough 
 in the quarry, and they agreed to hold their next meeting Sn 
 the top of the mountain. . . . People living in the villages 
 round heard of these meetings, and many thousands flocked 
 to the Ffestiniog mountain to worship God. It makes me 
 happy to think of these quarrymen. When I hear the loud 
 explosions of gunpowder as they are blasting the rocks, and 
 remember the dangers to which they are exposed, I know 
 that many of the dear men are safe beneath the wing of their 
 God and Saviour. Dear boys ! if you live to become men 
 and fathers, I trust you will be like the Ffestiniog quarrymen, 
 men of prayer, leading your families to the house of God on 
 the day of rest." 
 
 The Barnet Conferences had now assumed such 
 proportions as to attract the attention of some of the 
 religious newspapers, and the tide of criticism ran high. 
 The tone of some was distinctly adverse, others threw 
 out ominous cautions, while those Christians who re- 
 pudiated the idea of manifested unity without separa- 
 tion from existing Church systems, became less and 
 less friendly to the movement. The two currents of 
 opposition and blessing seemed peculiarly strong as 
 the increasing numbers gathered together in 1862. An 
 attempt was made this year to divide the communicants 
 by inviting some to meet around the Lord's table else- 
 
 ♦ A work of wide-spread revival began with the united prayers of these two 
 
 an 
 
 men. 
 
 1S62.] 
 
 SCATTERED WORKERS. 
 
 361 
 
 where, and the mere mention of it had disturbed the 
 minds'of many. After all was over, we find Mr. Penne- 
 father writing to a dear friend in Bristol— 
 
 " I can quite understand that some might conscientiously 
 abstain from joining us at the Lord's Supper, but to circulate 
 a printed paper calculated to stir up controversy at such a 
 time was a mistake." 
 
 Again — 
 
 " That some should absent themselves, from our gathering 
 does not in the least surprise or even pain me for I wou d 
 rather they would do so than 'force themselves to come, but 
 certainly those who do come should not seek to disunite, but 
 to bind together." 
 
 Writing to another, he speaks only of— 
 "The sunshine of Gods love which fell blessedly around 
 us One young man who had been for some time strug- 
 
 gling with conviction realised for the first time that Christ s 
 body was broken and His blood shed for him, and on the 
 following Sunday he came into the vestry and embraced me 
 with that fervour which, perhaps, belongs only to new-born 
 souls. You will help me to praise God for all His wonderful 
 goodness." 
 
 One feature of the meetings was the large number 
 of active workers who met at these seasons of happy 
 communion, and went forth strengthened to enter upon 
 new fields of usefulness, each year returnmg to the 
 annual festival with increasing bands of helpers whom 
 they had gathered around them. Many of the works 
 of faith and labours of love, inaugurated or developed 
 in those days of holy fellowship, can now tell their own 
 varied histories of blessing ; and plans of workmg, then 
 novel and tentative, have become wide-spread and 
 familiar. One, whose name will awaken a lovmg echo 
 in divers young hearts, may speak for many others. 
 Annie Macpherson writes— 
 
 V' 1 
 
 \ 
 
 t 
 
 \ 
 
 •M 
 
362 
 
 LADIES' MEETINGS. 
 
 [CHAP. xvr. 
 
 BARNET FAIR^ 
 
 363 
 
 " Nothing can ever erase from my memory the sweet asso- 
 ciations that gather around the blessed time when I was first 
 invited to Barnet. That Conference was, and ever will be, 
 an oasis in my spiritual history. I had been working for 
 several years among the coprolite diggers in Cambridgeshire, 
 with very little sympathy and very little to refresh my soul. 
 The invitation startled me, and my visit was the introduction 
 to a new world of love and light. Up to this time the thought 
 of a coming Lord had no charm for me. Never shall I forget 
 the inflowing into my soul of this new light upon Scripture 
 truth, as on the first hallowed day of Conference dear Mr. 
 Pennefather with his beaming countenance introduced the 
 subject. Day after day the truth dawned upon me, and I 
 returned to my corner of the vineyard enlightened and blessed, 
 as a witness^ no longer expecting that the present agencies 
 were to bring about the universal knowledge of the Lord. 
 Many of us, now bearing the burden and heat of the day, 
 received on those occasions our marching orders, and I, for 
 one, never rested until my way was made clear to bring up 
 from our villages those converted men and women who 
 laboured with me for souls. Farmers, blacksmiths, Bible- 
 women and colporteurs, all were alike received by the large- 
 hearted William Pennefather, and each was greeted with 
 the same bright smile and hearty welcome. We were all 
 encouraged to present the scene of our missionary labour 
 for prayer in the great congregation, and the result was, not 
 only revived blessing, but the coming forth of men and women 
 who are now honourably labouring both in the home and 
 foreign fields." 
 
 It was at the Conference of 1862 that the first ladies' 
 meetings were held, and from thence sprang " The 
 Association of Female Workers," which has since 
 spread its branches so widely both at home and 
 abroad. ^^ At the end of August we find Mr. Penne- 
 father preparing for a busy scene of evangelistic labour. 
 This was a series of efforts arranged each year to take 
 
 * This Association now numbers more than 1200 members, and has branches in 
 North India and West Africa, as well as on the Continent of Europe. 
 
 place at the tln.e of ^^^^^^ Jt Jet in 
 brought many ^^^^^^^^^^ '\m , ^^, of great 
 the early days of September. ^^^^kenness and 
 
 "'" •> 'iTttSied" .t tttd t. jeweU were 
 
 miquity that prevauea, it ^ 
 
 of a Saviours grace, in ^ occa- 
 
 „„,ary -.'"^^^^J'^^^t^Z^i. from .he Ci.y 
 sions, ">«--»»"« J«=„.=^; Mi3,io„, and the whole 
 
 "X; a semUed ea^h morning 'or prayer a, the 
 
 number assemu Pennefather (for meetmgs, 
 
 house occupied by Mr. i-enneiauic v 
 lectures &c ), in the centre of the town. Here he 
 d2hted to preside, and give them every possibb 
 deligntea j meetings, when, after 
 
 rS:; of Sour :„d\dven«re, all assemhW 
 * ,eli"f .h'goodnes, of .he Lord, were often deeply 
 
 "mT Pennefather wri.es .o a Chrisuan brother, 
 
 August 30, 1862— 
 
 .. How much I should f ^o unite w^th you - proclaiming 
 the love of God in Hyde ^^^^'X:,TZlc.\..r. for a 
 
 few hours. However, i ao strength for it, and, as 
 
 air preaching. I have not P^Vf ^\ ^"^"f . '^e have 
 
 ?he Gospel before the multitudes of London. 
 
 In the autumn of this year the so-called ■• Cotton 
 Famine" was caUing forth the sympathies of the coun- 
 frrfor the suffering operatives of the manufacturing 
 districts. Addresses on the subject were frequent^^n 
 different places, and the result of one, given by Mr. 
 
 % 
 
 r 
 

 364 
 
 COTTON FAMINE. 
 
 [chap. XVI. 
 
 Reginald Radcliffe in the iron room at Barnet was a 
 little organisation for weekly collections, to be sent 
 
 thl ?/ [ ' '""^ contributed was much larger 
 
 than had been expected, and so much interest was 
 excited that Mr. and Mrs. Pennefather agreed to vTsi 
 some of the localities receiving help, and^lso to send 
 two workers from their Missionary Training Home 
 Before going into the " Famine Districts," as thev 
 
 X olT "^''•''^- ''^""^'"^^^^■- P^'^ - f- visits o 
 other places, begmnmg with Sheffield, where he held 
 
 wo or three meetings. Mentioning at one of the e 
 
 that he was about to visit the " distressed operatives » 
 
 a spontaneous and most liberal collection was ^2 
 
 '' n^tmTht'ldT^^"' -'^^ entertained ht; 
 sent from Sheffield for that object. To myself those 
 
 ,„t,- u -11 , ; "^" "°t have imagined but 
 
 which will be unfolded in eternity " 
 
 From Sheffield he went to Liverpool, and thence to 
 
 eveni:;t l^^'Z ^' ^tXt^ ''^^ 
 fhf^ v<rhn]^ r^f 4.U' • . *^^ "^u^t not loilow out 
 
 tne whole of this interestinp- tour A few inffJ^ r 
 
 Blackburn will show the Lrac'ter o^Thi S Z 
 going on in these distressed districts- 
 
 " We arrived in time for me to .H^ " ^''"""'^"- 9'f>, 1862. 
 women in a great se:i„g.dass Vh'/XtT ' '°^ ^°""-^ 
 number of poor mothers in anotherto7 Mt.?^- '' ^ 
 Archdeacon Rushton's, we sallied fnrfh ■ , "^'"'"S^ ^^ 
 
 large school where m'en a„d boy^aJelT^r' "'"' ^° ^ 
 
 rooms. I was much strurlr w.fi, fU ^"* '" separate 
 
 as they listened wTth the 7 ^' ^°»ntenances of the men. 
 
 y tenea with the deepest attention while I tried to 
 
 1862.1 
 
 CHILDREN OF MISSWNARIES. 
 
 365 
 
 speak to them of One who 'does not willingly afflict. Ue 
 then went on to a relief-store where bread and meal are given 
 out, and found that 13.658 loaves of bread and 51 loads of 
 meal were distributed daily, in addition to soup sold at a 
 penny per quart; 5619 quarts having been sold last week- 
 From thence we adjourned to another sewmg-school, and 
 then went on to visit some of the poor families.* The day 
 has been very severe, with heavy snow. There ,s a quiet self- 
 possession about the people, with a meekness and submission 
 which is touching." 
 
 After telling of liis preaching in the Corn Exchange 
 at Manchester, where he met with many friends, he 
 
 speaks of — 
 
 " A delightful service in the parish church of Blackburn. 
 It was a beautiful sight to see the whole body of the building 
 filled with working-people, the larger proportion being men. 
 Thev seemed to drink in the words of life. My subject was, 
 ' Come unto Me. all ye that labour,' &c. There were be- 
 tween eleven and twelve hundred in the church . . -I never 
 felt more strongly than in this journey the Lord gmdt7tg my 
 way in all its daily engagements—' Thou art near, O Lord. 
 is continually in my mind." 
 
 The year closed amidst abounding labours at home, 
 and occasional theatre services, &c., in London, but 
 we find frequent allusions to the physical suffering from 
 which (while wondrously sustained) he was seldom 
 free. Two new objects had claimed his interest in the 
 course of 1862. The first was an Educational Home, 
 opened for the children of those missionaries who, 
 thou<rh employed by the Church Missionary Society, 
 were"not entitled, according to existing rules, to claim 
 the privileges of the Children's Home in Islington. 
 The many German and other missionaries who had 
 visited Barnet had constantly pressed this need upon 
 
 * These were the people receiving weekly relief from Barnet. 
 
 ' 
 
 II 
 
^ i**.-.^ 
 
 366 
 
 SPANISH CHILDREN. 
 
 [chap. xvr. 
 
 Mr. and Mrs. Pennefather, and many educated in the 
 Home then mstituted are now widely scattered in dis- 
 tant lands.- The same year brought with it a demand 
 upon the sympathy of Christian hearts, not only in 
 t-ngland, but among many Protestant congregations 
 on the Contment. The progress of the Word of God 
 m Spam, which has always encountered peculiar diffi- 
 culties, was at this time suddenly checked by the im- 
 prisonment of some who had ventured to read the 
 Scriptures and profess the Protestant faith The 
 names of Manuel Matamoros, Alhama, and various 
 others became familiar to many praying people, who 
 only knew them as sufferers for the Master's sake. 
 Some Spanish children were brought to Barnet f for 
 Scriptural education, under circumstances which may 
 be explained in the words of Miss Whately, who takes 
 so deep an interest in all that concerns the spiritual 
 welfare of Spain— ^ 
 
 " In 1862 the attention of Mr. Pennefather and other friend, 
 was called to the Gospel cause in Spain, which, though cosed 
 
 were reading the Scriptures m secret, and some who had even 
 been imprisoned on this account. Among the Br^ish Chris 
 t.ans who were actively engaged in promoting the spread of 
 the Gospel m Spain, one of the most efficient ^S T 
 ^^- ,f ederick Rew. a valued friend oftrP„refare?"prir 
 cpally through his exertions, twelve youn<r Spaniards of^"^''" 
 sexes supposed to be the children of'conv%S, we" bl°ht 
 over to receive a solid Christian education in En4nd and 
 placed under the charge of Mr. and Mrs. PenntSer from 
 whom they received the most watchful and loving care uT 
 
 milsil^i^ie"'""' '^ '"" ^""'^ °"' "'°"2'' "<" -'"-'» for the children of 
 
 .loX ^^wt^"ZtTjl^!'f' 7- Y°^ °" oWWren multiply „,„. 
 torn Africa, and "x fC Spain ■•'°" '" °" '="""^ °' "'^^ ^-^ Chin'a. two 
 
 1S63.] 
 
 SPANISH CHILDREN. 
 
 367 
 
 happily their stay was cut short by the discovery that, through 
 the sad laxity of principle too common among those brought 
 up under the unchecked Romish influences general in the 
 South of Europe, a false representation had been made to 
 English friends, and several of the children under training 
 belon-ed to Romish families, who were unwilling that they 
 should remain in England. The result was the break-up of 
 the little band collected under Mr. Pennefather s charge. 
 The children were dispersed ; some went to Bayonne, others, 
 eventually, to Spain. Only two orphan giris remained, who 
 were taken by Mr. and Mrs. Rew under their personal care. 
 But sad as this apparent failure must seem, we may confi- 
 dently hope that the seed cast on the waters may yet be 
 found after many days. One of the two girls who remained 
 appeared to have received a real blessing in Barnet. She was 
 afterwards head of a large mission school in the south of 
 Spain and is now the honoured and useful wife of a Spanish 
 pastor. Mr. Pennefather was in later years instrumental in 
 promoting the publication of _the works of some of the old 
 Spanish Reformers in Madrid." 
 
 In a letter, written by Mr. Pennefather in 1863, he 
 alludes to a visit received from Matamoros— 
 
 "We had him in our house, but only for a short time, and 
 then again on a hurried visit to bid us good-bye. I" appear- 
 ance he is most interesting, but alas ! we cannot talk Spanish, 
 and he can understand no other language.* 
 
 " What would I have given to have had the power of te ling 
 him all we felt about the dear confessors in Spam! WeU, we 
 shall talk of it all by and by, ' when we stand with Christ in 
 glory, looking o'er life's finished story.' " 
 
 Returning to Mr. Pennefather's correspondence, we 
 find allusion to two happy meetings of Christian 
 workers at Aylesbury and Aldershot. The first, " a 
 sort of Conference," to which several dear friends 
 accompanied him, the second, at the opening of the 
 
 • They could only kneel together, each pouring out a torrent of prayer in hiy 
 
 own language. 
 
 li 
 
 '.I 
 
 __i 
 
368 
 
 DEATH OF HIS NEPHEW. 
 
 [chap. XVI. 
 
 *' Soldiers' Mission Hall," originally planned and laid 
 before the Lord in united prayer at Barnet. The 
 following month brought with it another family be- 
 reavement, in the death of the only son of his eldest 
 brother, in his twenty-sixth year. The circumstances 
 under which he was called to attend the funeral were 
 peculiarly trying and complicated. The Prince of 
 Wales had just brought his affianced bride to England, 
 and national enthusiasm ran high. Among the mani- 
 festations of loyalty proposed in the provincial towns, 
 it was arranged that Barnet, in addition to a distribu- 
 tion of bread and meat to the poor generally, should 
 get up a procession of volunteers, to be followed by 
 the children of the schools with their respective 
 teachers, representing the different congregations of 
 the town. A Roman Catholic Mission, which had been 
 established at Barnet some years before, had by this 
 time collected a school, which was to take its place on 
 the same footing as the others, and be thus acknow- 
 ledged by the authorities as one of the educational 
 institutions of the place. Mr. Pennefather was utterly 
 startled at the announcement. Apart from the reli- 
 gious question (on which he felt very strongly), and 
 viewing the matter only from a civil stand-point, he 
 always considered it absolutely impossible that con- 
 scientious Roman Catholics, who owed allegiance to 
 the Sovereign Pontiff (as he then was), could be true 
 and loyal subjects of a Protestant Queen. With every 
 feeling of kindness and liberality towards individuals, 
 he could not recognise a position which, according to 
 his view of our Protestant Constitution, he considered 
 to be a false one, both as regarded Church and State. 
 The only protest he could make was to withdraw his 
 
 1863.] 
 
 PECULIAR DIFFICULTIES. 
 
 369 
 
 schools from the public procession, and incur not only 
 a painful amount of odium and disapprobation, but, 
 what was to him far more distressing, the charge of 
 bigotry and intolerance. He candidly stated his views 
 to the acting committee, fully prepared for all that 
 followed. The provision made for the families of the 
 poor was entirely withdrawn from the Christ Church 
 district, and he had to consider at once the possibility 
 of supplying the deficiency. There was but one day 
 for meeting the difficulty, and this was the day on 
 which he was called to the funeral of his nephew. 
 Leaving his wife to carry out the needed arrange- 
 ments, he went with a sorrowful but trusting heart to 
 the house of mourning, conscious that he had taken 
 up this cross for the Master's sake. 
 
 Many thought him in the wrong, many will probably 
 think so now ; but it belonged to his character to be as 
 inflexible when he believed great principles to be at 
 stake, as he was forbearing and conciliatory in all 
 minor matters. We may add a few extracts from a 
 letter written at the time— 
 
 " It is quite true ! the last link with my early home is 
 broken for ever. Yesterday we laid dear Richard's frail 
 tabernacle in Kensal Green Cemetery. ... He was very 
 clever, and much was expected from him, but he has been for 
 a long time in very delicate health, and for some weeks there 
 has been no hope of his life. It was a strange contrast, as 
 the tramp of soldiery and the din of a nation's joy rang 
 round the house, which is nearly opposite the Marble Arch 
 . . . The week of public rejoicing has been altogether « 
 painful one to me. . . . Many people, and even many Chris- 
 tians, are very angry with me, because I refused to allow my 
 schools (numbering with the orphans about 700) to march 
 with the Roman Catholic school through the town. Very 
 bitter and untrue articles have been written in some of the 
 
 2 A 
 
 f 
 
 ii 
 
,_u i gi" ' yw" 
 
 U 1. W Wi i ll 
 
 370 
 
 PAROCHIAL ENTERTAINMENTS. [chap. xvi. 
 
 1863.] 
 
 PASTORAL LETTER. 
 
 371 
 
 papers, and, as a consequence of the line I thought it right 
 to take, the whole entertaining of the children was thrown 
 on me, and all help for my poor people from the ' Festival 
 Fund ' was withdrawn." 
 
 The work thus left in Mr. Pennefather's hands, 
 however perplexing at the moment, gave him the op- 
 portunity of practically refuting the false reports widely 
 circulated, that the Roman Catholic families in his dis- 
 trict would be dealt with less liberally than others. 
 
 " In addition to the bread and meat sent to all families, 
 without regard to sect or party, we entertained," to use his 
 own words "about 1000 in the iron room. On the loth our 
 parochial schools (numbering about 350) sat down to dinner 
 at 2.30, and at 6 in the evening about 300 adults were invited 
 to a substantial meal ; and on the next day the orphans had 
 their festival. Pray for me and praise too. I cannot tell you 
 how good the Lord has been in bringing me through the 
 difficulties of the week." 
 
 The excitement soon passed over, and many in the 
 town who differed from him widely on various sub- 
 jects paid a tribute of respect to his consistency and 
 manly confession of his principles. One man of great 
 intelligence, but a professed unbeliever, who never 
 entered a place of worship, was asked by a friend to 
 go and hear Mr. Pennefather preach. "You will 
 never see me inside a church door,*' was the reply ; 
 " but this I will say of him, that his life is the best 
 sermon he ever preached." Some years later, a rough 
 London democrat was heard to say, ** I never touch 
 my hat to any man living, but I'll take it right off to 
 Mr. Pennefather." 
 
 The spring of 1863 was a time of varied trials, some 
 brought about by the open enmity of man, others (such 
 as small-pox and scarlet-fever in the different establish- 
 
 ments, the removal of some of the Spanish children, 
 &c.), entailing much anxiety, but all permitted by God 
 to try the faith of His children; and of which Mr. 
 Pennefather writes, ** While these things involve much 
 thought and prayer, they bring us near to God, and 
 always bring Hirn near to us^ Speaking of some of 
 his perplexities, and at the same time announcing 
 another Conference, he says, " My prayer is just this, 
 * Father, glorify Thy name.' " 
 
 The following words of invitation, circulated among 
 his congregation previous to the Conference of this 
 year, is only one sample of his earnest prayers and 
 efforts for blessing among his own flock at those hal- 
 lowed seasons. 
 
 ''July iZth, 1863. 
 
 " Beloved Friends, — Our seventh Conference is (as you 
 know) at hand. We shall have (God willing) a preliminary 
 meeting in the iron room on Tuesday evening, the 20th inst., 
 at 7.30 P.M. 
 
 " Will you come ? God has in times past manifested Him- 
 self at our meetings ; and it is my earnest prayer that those 
 who live in Barnet and its neighbourhood should reap the 
 choicest blessings at these holy assemblies. 
 
 ** * Let us consider one another to provoke unto love and 
 to good works : not forsaking the assembling of ourselves 
 together as the manner of some is, but exhorting one another, 
 and so much the more as ye see the day approaching! 
 
 " This Conference may be our last. One who loved to meet 
 with us, and whose bright countenance in church often re- 
 freshed my spirit, has been called up higher. * Absent from 
 the body, he is now present with the Lord.' Where shall we 
 be in July 1864 } Surely now is our time to gather up the 
 blessings that lie thick around our camp. We must not 
 linger. The Israelite who waited found that the manna was 
 gone, for the sun had melted it ! 
 
 ** Ever your affectionate pastor, 
 
 ** William Pennefather." 
 
372 
 
 CONFERENCE MEETINGS. 
 
 [chap. XVI. 
 
 That Conference must still be a green spot in the 
 memories of some. The peculiar brilliancy of the 
 weather, and the gathering of an unusually large circle 
 of devoted Christian friends both from home and 
 foreign fields of labour, seemed to make the days of 
 meeting " like the days of heaven upon earth." To 
 Mr. and Mrs. Pennefather the joy was chastened by 
 receiving under their roof for the last time the cousin 
 who was dear to him from his childhood as the fondest 
 of sisters, and who wished, "as a dying woman, to 
 join once more the blessed assembly of God's worship- 
 ping people on earth." Another thought was casting 
 a shade over those sunny hours for them. It was the 
 strong conviction, though nothing in outward circum- 
 stances might seem to justify it, that this was the last 
 Conference to be held in Barnet. 
 
 It was no superstitious feeling connected with the 
 fact that it was the sevent/i, which was portentous to 
 some minds, but perhaps a given foreshadowing of 
 events that were to follow. But we must hasten over 
 the remaining portion of the year. During the summer 
 circumstances had occurred in connection with the 
 Central Asylum of the Royal Patriotic Fund which 
 made it probable that such changes might be made 
 as would seriously affect the position of Homes placed 
 under the care of individuals, as at Barnet. Deariy as 
 Mr. Pennefather loved his work among the orphans, he 
 had made up his mind to resign the charge, if the 
 religious education of the children was not left unre- 
 servedly in his hands. The subject had been one of 
 much anxious consideration, and was to be decided 
 immediately after the Conference. Writing to West- 
 moreland on August 7th, he says- 
 
 *»■?!■«" 
 
 1863.] 
 
 MINISTERIAL TRIALS. 
 
 373 
 
 " I know you will rejoice with us about the dear orphans. 
 I had an interview to-day with the chairman of the Executive 
 Committee of the Royal Patriotic Fund, and I do not think 
 the Committee will remove the children from us, or inter- 
 fere in our management of the Barnet Homes, therefore we 
 shall not give them up. ... As I went to town the Psalms 
 for the day occupied my thoughts, and seemed peculiarly 
 suitable. I daresay you have often remarked that wonder- 
 ful chain of precepts in the opening of Psalm xxxvii. — ' Fret 
 not; BUT, ' Trust; ' Delight; &c., * Commit; &c., ' Rest; &c. ; 
 and then the end of the Psalm full of comfort ; verses 36, 
 37, salvation^ strength^ help, deliverance^ in the Lord." 
 
 Then, speaking of one who had been present at the 
 Conference, he quotes a letter just received from him — 
 
 *' If all the dear saints got such a blessing for their souls 
 at the Conference as the Lord was pleased to give to me, a 
 very unworthy child, the mighty blessing to the Church of 
 God must have been beyond conception. I believe the cry 
 from many a heart in leaving Barnet was — 
 
 * Nearer, my God, to Thee, nearer to Thee, 
 E'en though it be a cross which raiseth me, 
 Nearer, my God, to Thee.' " 
 
 It was a bitter grief to Mr. Pennefather when, very 
 shortly after, this loved friend and others still more 
 closely connected with him, influenced by the separatist 
 spirit which was telling upon many sections of the 
 Church, judged it right to withdraw both from his 
 ministry and the Conferences in which they had once 
 delighted. These were trials on which he could scarcely 
 trust himself to speak. Alluding to other difficulties 
 which beset his path, he says — 
 
 " Three disciples saw the beauty of Emmanuel on the Mount 
 of Transfiguration, and heard the Father's voice, while at the 
 foot of that Mount the devil was exercising his power, and 
 some of Christ's followers quailing before it. May we ever 
 sit with Christ in heavenly places, even though the tempter 
 
 1 
 
■mv^ 
 
 374 VISITS TO PERTH AND BLACKBURN, [chap. xvr. 
 
 rages, and many members of the Church faint and are dis- 
 couraged. Oh I to walk in the blessed light I It is always 
 bright, but sometimes our eyes are heavy and weary." 
 
 An urgent invitation to attend the Perth Conference 
 took him in September to Scotland, where he always 
 found refreshment both for body and mind. Mr. Milne 
 and many other dear friends welcomed him to Perth, 
 where he was amused at being greeted as, ** the father 
 of Conferences/' He spent one Sunday in Edinburgh, 
 preaching at the Free Assembly Hall, then paid a short 
 visit to beloved Westmoreland, going on from thence 
 to Blackburn and Liverpool, where he preached for 
 several successive days. Of Blackburn he says— 
 
 *' Truly God is at work there. Men and women flock to 
 hear the Word of Life. On Sunday morning I preached at 
 cnrist Church * to a congregation composed extensively of 
 the poorer classes. In the afternoon I had a large Bible-class 
 and m the evenmg a congregation of 2000. Many of the 
 people seem hungering and thirsting after righteousness. 
 Externa ly it is a wretched town ; unfinished streets and 
 nriiserable roads. But I felt I should like to stay and work 
 there if I were free, for surely the sense of the Lord's mani- 
 fested power is more cheering than any outward sunshine." 
 
 In the month of October the death of a dear and 
 faithful friend, who had been one of his Aylesbury 
 flock, called forth the following letter to her sorrowincr 
 children — ^ 
 
 *' My VERY DEAR Friends,~As we look at the loved tent 
 m which she dwelt, how wondrous the thought that she is 
 now in her house *not made with hands, eternal in the 
 heavens ! ' The inmate of the earthly tabernacle has gone to 
 see the King upon His throne, and to share His glory. 'Ab- 
 sent' from us, she is 'present with her Lord,' and is it not 
 'far better? ' and does she now wish to leave His immediate 
 
 1863.J 
 
 ST. JUDE'S, MILD MA Y PARK. 
 
 375 
 
 ♦ A new church, in the building of which he had taken a special interest. 
 
 presence to be let and hindered by a body of corruption > It 
 seems strange that we are so selfish as to desire that those 
 we love should dwell amidst the shadows and storms of the 
 world, rather than in the calm, eternal sunshine which sur- 
 rounds the throne ! Oh ! for a clearer faith ! ^ 
 " Your precious mother ! She is not lost to you : she is 
 only on the other side of the river, treading ' the sweet fields 
 of Eden,' and waiting for you to join her, and it cannot be 
 long Sometimes it seems as though already the trembhng 
 twilight which announces the rising sun might be discerned ' 
 upon the grey, cold mountains of the wilderness 1 and when 
 that sun once starts up above the horizon, what floods of 
 glory shall spread over all the earth ! Come, Lord Jesus, 
 come quickly ! My beloved friends, Jesus is with you, and 
 even now He says, ' Fear not ! ' * As one whom his mother 
 comforteth, so will I comfort thee.' * When father and 
 mother forsake, / will take you up.' Ever your attached 
 fj-ignd, W- PENNEFATHER." 
 
 Early in the month of December a request for 
 prayer was presented at one of the Barnet meetings, 
 - On behalf of the parish of St. Jude s, Mildmay Park," 
 which had just lost its minister. One of those most 
 closely connected with Barnet work said to a friend, 
 as they rose from their knees, *' I have an impression 
 that we are praying away our own pastor." So little 
 did any one know about the parish in question, that it 
 was afterwards looked for in a map of London, with 
 very vague notions as to its locality. During the year 
 1863 Mr. Pennefather's health had been more than 
 usually uncertain, and the attacks of violent pain in the 
 head, with distressing sickness, to which he was ever 
 afterwards subject, dated from this time. It was while 
 confined to his room by illness that his friend Mr. 
 Coghlan, the Vicar of St. Paul's, Islington, called at 
 the Parsonage, and as his business was urgent, he was 
 admitted, though ordinary visitors had been refused. 
 
 I 
 
 
 hi 
 
'« «. '■' 
 
 -''**«fe^ 
 
 
 376 
 
 PROPOSED REMOVAL. 
 
 [chap. xvr. 
 
 Mrs. Pennefather, on returning from a prayer-meetino- 
 in the parish, learnt that he had come with a definite 
 proposal that Mr. Pennefather should accept the 
 charge of St. Jude's, Mildmay Park, which was in his 
 gift. Some litde correspondence had already taken 
 place between them, but the subject was supposed to 
 have been altogether dropped. Mr. Pennefather was 
 therefore taken by surprise, and asked for one week 
 to consider so important a step. He had been offered 
 several different churches during the time of his resi- 
 dence at Barnet, but though in one case, at least, the 
 proposed sphere was a very attractive one, he had 
 always felt that God's time was not come. 
 
 The following extract from a letter, in answer to a 
 question put to him at a later period, explains his view 
 of the subject — 
 
 "Whenever I have been asked,* ' Would you like such or 
 such a post if it were offered to you ? ' I have always re- 
 plied, * I cannot say what I might be led to do were it offered 
 to me, but I never make up my mind on a contingency 
 which, after all, may never occur.' I cannot expect'^light 
 upon my path until that light be needed. However, I may 
 say, in the present case, that, as far as I can see my way, I 
 should not think it right to leave my charge now, and unsettle 
 the parish after only a short residence. I remember when I 
 had but recently entered on my work at Barnet, I received 
 an offer of what seemed a very eligible position, and I then 
 replied, ' I have been too lately sent here to think of going 
 forth again.' A minister must not be continually chano-in^ 
 his post." ^ ^ "^ 
 
 Now it was otherwise. A strong conviction had 
 been forcing itself on his mind for many months that 
 his work was done in Barnet, and that it might be for 
 the glory of God that the many who still rejected the 
 glad tidings of the Gospel should hear the same mes- 
 
 1864.] 
 
 PROVIDENTIAL DEALINGS. 
 
 377 
 
 sacre from another voice. But while much secret 
 prayer had been breathed out to God, the subject had 
 not been spoken of to others ; and it came as a start- 
 ling announcement, which many refused to believe, 
 when early in 1864 it became known that Mr. Penne- 
 father had accepted the Church of St. Jude's, Mildmay 
 Park. Only those who know what it is to seek for 
 guidance, and then to read, in apparently fortuitous 
 circumstances, the providential orderings which seem 
 to ring out the response, could believe how fully that 
 one week of prayer and waiting settled the anxious 
 question. A variety of indications, all pointing one 
 way, followed each other in quick succession. Among 
 other unexpected occurrences, an order arrived from 
 the Committee of the Patriotic Fund in London, in- 
 troducing such changes in the regulation of the 
 Orphan Homes as must compel Mr. Pennefather to 
 recur to his former resolution of resigning their super- 
 intendence. Added to this, it was a remarkable fact 
 that almost all the leases for which he was responsible 
 had either just run out or would shortly expire ; no 
 debt remained on any part of the work ; while for his 
 " Training Home," a London parish would be likely to 
 prove far more advantageous. 
 
 Though every possible argument was brought to 
 bear to shake his resolution, and very appalling con- 
 sequences were predicted in the future, there was no 
 shadow of doubt in his own mind that God's voice was 
 calling him to London. In a letter dated February 
 2nd, he says — 
 
 ** God has made our path so unmistakably clear, that 
 though it costs us much to think of turning our back on a 
 
 \ 
 
 * I 
 
. <% ^1^: .%.«£, ' 
 
 ■i 
 
 373 
 
 NEIV FIELD OF LABOUR. 
 
 [chap, xvl 
 
 place hallowed by many fond associations, we dare not hesitate 
 when we hear our Father's voice saying, 'Arise and go/" 
 
 Again, on February 6th — 
 
 " Thank you warmly for sending me Mrs. Sewell's book. I 
 had not seen it. though I greatly enjoy her ballads. I have 
 just opened the chapter, 'The Guiding Hand.' Oh ! how my 
 experience responds and my heart vibrates to the touches 
 there. * I will guide thee with Mine eye,' is a sure promise to 
 each trustmg one. Some day, perhaps, we may be permitted 
 to tell you how the Lord has guided us with reference to 
 leavmg this dear spot. We have heard our Father's voice so 
 plainly, that, though there are many trials, we are enabled by 
 Him to move on in calm reliance on His power and love." 
 
 In battling with all the objections of friends, both 
 far and near, it was now, as on former occasions, a 
 great comfort to his mind, though not to theirs, that 
 the sphere to which he was called was such as to leave 
 no room for the suspicion that any worldly ambition or 
 love of ease could have had a place in his decision. 
 His own words at Blackburn, " unfinished streets and 
 miserable roads," might be applied to his new parish ; 
 but there were two features in it, as originally described,' 
 which had their own peculiar attractions both for him- 
 self and his wife, "a wide sphere of labour, and a large 
 proportion of poor." The large iron room was a 
 practical difficulty to be dealt with, as it was pro- 
 nounced, by unanimous consent, unsuited to Barnet in 
 ordinary circumstances. Mr. Pennefather at once 
 wrote to the principal contributors to its erection, and 
 to his great joy received unqualified p-rmission for 
 its removal to London, which, though encompassed 
 with difficulties, was eventually accomplished. From 
 the recollections of Barnet days that crowd upon us, 
 we add a few more words to those already interwoven 
 
 I 
 
 1864.] 
 
 RECOLLECTIONS OF FRIENDS, 
 
 379 
 
 with these records. Among the many notes of praise 
 for blessing received there, a frequent feature seems to 
 be the practical power given to the " blessed hope " 
 of the Lord's coming. One member of the congre- 
 gation may speak for others. 
 
 After alluding to various sermons and Bible-read- 
 ings, the writer adds — 
 
 "And when, by the same heaven-taught lips, the subject of. 
 ' the hope of the Church ' was set forth as I had never heard 
 it before, my soul grasped what I had longed for, and from 
 that time not only a new light, but a new life seemed to 
 spring up within me." 
 
 Another friend touches such distinctive character- 
 istics that we may give some short extracts — 
 
 " It must have been contrary to Mr. Pennefather's loving 
 nature to utter a severe rebuke, but he could and did do it 
 when occasion required.* I recall one such occasion, when 
 he was preaching against conformity to the world, in manner, 
 or conversation, or dress. It was at a time when very small 
 bonnets were in fashion. Pausing and looking round the 
 church, he said, with all the energy he could command, 
 * Where is the shamefacedness of our daughters ? ' I felt as 
 if a blush must rise to the cheek of every young woman 
 present. I remember well, at one of the early Barnet Con- 
 ferences, there was a general buzz of talking among the 
 people just as he walked up the room. I remarked quite a 
 shade upon his face as he came forward on the platform. 
 Opening his Bible, he read a few solemn words, and then in 
 his own peculiar way proceeded to reprove us for our want 
 of reverence at a season professedly set apart for communion 
 with God. The silence that followed seemed almost super- 
 natural. One marked feature of his character was his care 
 for humble Christians and persons likely to be overlooked ; 
 
 * Some years later he wrote to a friend, " God is helping me very tenderly in 
 some parish difficulties, such as getting rid of people (in office) who are in wrong 
 positions, but it is very painful. I ask for prayer that I may have wisdom and 
 grace, and be enabled to rise above this trial oi giving pain when ix must be borne.'* 
 
 
 -I 
 
. SSMI,.^ "JS.iJf!?'^ 
 
 ^-*. 
 
 380 
 
 RECOLLECTIONS OF FRIENDS. [chap. xvi. 
 
 1864. J 
 
 RECOLLECTIONS OF FRIENDS. 
 
 381 
 
 he was no respecter of persons, and loved to bring forward 
 those who would otherwise have remained in the shade. The 
 widows and the solitary ones seemed to be his peculiar 
 charge.* Much of the influence he exercised was indirect 
 and quite unknown to himself. * I always run to the window ' 
 said a young woman whom I visited at Barnet, ' when I see 
 Mr Pennefather coming up the street; it solemnises me to 
 ook at him, and though he has so much to do, he seems to 
 have time for everything, and is never in a bustle.' " 
 
 Then follows the account of another (dying of a 
 painful disease), which is very striking. She was first 
 aroused by the sight of Mr. Pennefather on his way to 
 the railway-station. The thought suddenly struck her, 
 as she caught the expression of his countenance, that 
 he had something she did not possess. This led to 
 deep anxiety as to her state before God, followed by 
 joy and peace in believing. Telling the history of 
 God's gracious dealings with' her, she wound up her 
 recital with the words — 
 
 "Now my sins are washed away, and I have peace in Jesus 
 and It was all through seeing Mr, Pennefather pass by mv 
 window that morning." f ^ 
 
 One member of a happy family of children who 
 shared much of his loving interest, after recalling 
 some of the memories of those days, adds 
 
 ''He could never quite know the good he did by extending 
 to the children the love he gave to their parents ; but I know 
 that the remembrance of him stirred us up to the pursuit of 
 hohness more powerfully than any book that was ever written 
 o r sermon ever preached. We were accustomed (in after 
 
 .il^C^nf T'^ delight in finding out God's hidden ones, and paying marked 
 attention to those whom he called " the aristocracy of heaven " 
 
 t Another case, equally unknown to himself, was that of an old soldier who 
 met him m the street just before he left Barnet. After listening to his strong 
 
 fo,rrr'''„ ''^'' "' ^'' ^"P"'*"'"^' ^'- P- ^>^' "I ^"^ going on another 
 
 rnr^' \T T' r'\°^'' ^- ^" '^^^^ ^^^^"g ^ ^^^ -^^^^^ words he 
 left him ; and from that day the old man started on his heavenward way. 
 
 years) to hear him much spoken of in England, but I own 
 that it was a surprise, and a most joyful one, to find that in 
 Australia, New Zealand, Tasmania, on board ship, among 
 Christians of all denominations, his name and the fact of 
 having known him was a passport to immediate confidence 
 and friendship." 
 
 Another testimony, of a somewhat different type, is 
 from one of the many who came in from surrounding 
 villao-es to attend his ministry occasionally — ■ 
 
 "What can I say except what so many others can say, 
 that it was through him I first learnt that God is Love, and 
 was induced to come to Him myself .... It was God that 
 he showed me, not so much, as far as I can remember, by 
 anything he said, but by himself. For what gave his influ- 
 ence so much power was, that it was evidently a reflected 
 influence .... I remember hearing him say that one of 
 his favourite texts was, 'Ye are My witnesses,' and certainly 
 he was an illustration of it. He gave one such an idea of 
 God's likeness and God's goodness. Of course, one found 
 out what a marked individuality he had, but he never put 
 it forward, as it were, and when one knew it, it did not 
 detract from his influence, but added to it ; for one felt that 
 his great spirituality, which might otherwise have seemed 
 transcendentalism, was consistent with thorough naturalness. 
 ... I am very often puzzled and perplexed now with many 
 difficulties which never troubled me when I knew him. I 
 often wonder what he would have said with regard to the 
 questions of the present day ; but one argument he certainly 
 could have used in proof of the divine origin of Christianity, 
 and that would be his own life and character. When he was 
 here, one always knew, however other things might seem to 
 be, that one would find dear Mr. Pennefather truthful, and 
 accurate, and honourable, and just, and kind, and considerate, 
 and full of sympathy, willing to see all sides fairly, and 
 anxious to do no one injustice. And then his wonderfiil 
 appreciation of nature, and art, and poetry, and music ; his 
 interest in things generally, his keen sense of the ludicrous, 
 all helped to attract people. ... Of his work at Barnet I 
 
3S2 
 
 RECOLLECTIONS OF FRIENDS. [chap. xvr. 
 
 knew very little ; but one Sunday I well remember when we 
 walked over to Christ Church a large and very merry party. 
 A young cousin of my own was there that summer evening 
 but that it should be the only Sunday she had to spend 
 on earth was about the last thing we could have thought 
 possible. She was only eighteen, the brightest as well^'as 
 the youngest of us all. We were solemnised first by the 
 smging of the hymn, ' Oh ! holy Saviour, Friend unseen ' 
 which I never hear without thinking of that evening, and 
 then by a most heart-searching sermon on Zephaniah^. 4-7 
 It seemed to be just the message she needed. She was taken 
 ill on Wednesday, and died on Friday morning, quite happy 
 During her short illness, she spoke of hardly anything but 
 that sermon, and had her little sister brought in that she 
 might repeat to her as much of it as possible, urging her with 
 the greatest earnestness to * seek the Lord.' " 
 
 A memorandum written by another tells of "a ser- 
 mon in which Mr. Pennefather said very solemnly that 
 he wished always so to preach that no sinner, hearino- 
 of salvation for theyfr^/ or last time, might fail to have 
 clearly set before him ' the way, the truth, and the life.' 
 After the service a man went into the vestry thankino- 
 God that he had heard the message for the first time! 
 It proved to him the first and the last. Before the 
 end of the week he was in eternity." 
 
 But we must bring these reminiscences to a close. 
 
 ( 3«i3 ) 
 
 
 \ 
 
 CHAPTER XVII. 
 1 864-1 866. 
 
 inters on his ministry at St. Jude's, Mildmay Park— First Conference in 
 London— Visits to Harrogate and Hkley— Loss of a very dear friend 
 —Building of new schools— Parochial agencies— Visit to the Black- 
 down Hills— Letters— Visit to Pendeen— Recollections of the Rev. 
 W. H. M. Aitken— Visit to Switzerland— Glaciers— Conference- 
 Parochial activities— Extracts from letters— Sickness in his house 
 and parish— Second visit to the Blackdown Hills— Remembrances 
 of a friend— Visitation of cholera in London— Deaconess work- 
 Recollections of the Rev. C. H. Waller. 
 
 THE close and peculiar ties that unite a faithful 
 pastor and an attached flock can never be 
 severed without a wrench from which both must in- 
 stinctively shrink. To Mr. Pennefather there were 
 ingredients in his cup of sorrow at leaving Barnet 
 which were more than usually bitter. The one con- 
 sideration which pained him most keenly was the 
 semblance of ingratitude to some who had stood by 
 him with faithful affection in many an hour of need 
 and perplexity. The honoured friend who had been 
 the means of introducing him to a field of labour 
 which God had largely blessed, did not see as he did 
 that the time was come to leave it ; * others, whose 
 personal friendship was connected with earlier days, 
 and to whom he owed much for their zealous assist- 
 ance in his work, were greatly opposed to the step he 
 
 ♦ A few years later ihey were led into perfect agreement on the subject. 
 
 I 
 
 I 
 
3H 
 
 REMOVAL FROM BARNET. 
 
 [chap. XVII. 
 
 1 864.] 
 
 FIRST SERMONS AT ST. JUDE'S. 
 
 385 
 
 was taking, and while urging their different views of 
 the question, all agreed in thinking that he was making 
 a ''grievous mistake." The disadvantages and draw- 
 backs of the sphere to which he was removing were 
 painted in the strongest colours; but these had no 
 weight with one who could truthfully say at this or any 
 other period of his ministry, " What, mean ye to weep 
 or break my heart ; for I am ready ... to die for the 
 name of the Lord Jesus." 
 
 Writing shortly before, respecting some who had 
 complained of the absorbing nature of his work, he had 
 said— ^' If my health had not failed, I should have 
 been now, in all probability, a missionary in some 
 foreign station, and then they would not have seen me 
 at all.'' The language he had used with reference to 
 his first curacy would have been equally applicable 
 now, " I have said to the Lord, * Here am I, send me,' 
 and have always felt that He would open a way for 
 me, I did not much care where!' 
 
 The predicted ruin of the annual Conference touched 
 him^ more closely ; but he felt that his calling as a 
 minister of the Gospel stood before all other considera- 
 tions ; he had "always printed in his remembrance 
 how great a treasure was committed to his charge," 
 as a "messenger, watchman, and steward of the 
 Lord." -^ To go forth, in obedience to the Shepherd's 
 voice, to find His lost ones, and then feed them in the 
 green pastures of God's Truth, was his primary work. 
 That Shepherd might be trusted for the prosperity of 
 the Conferences or any collateral service he had com- 
 mitted to his hand. 
 
 To one at a distance he wrote — 
 
 * Ordination service. 
 
 " Nothing would induce me to take this step but the belief 
 that He is * putting us forth,' and we cannot but follow — 
 nothing but the desire to tread in the path marked out by my 
 unerring Guide. I dare not choose my own way, lest He 
 should be grieved and my spiritual life injured." 
 
 And again, on February 9th, 1864, to a member of 
 one of his Bible-classes — 
 
 *' I know not how to tell you that the Tuesday Bible-class 
 must cease. Some of the members feel it is too painful for 
 them to come under present circumstances, and I am Hable 
 just now to be frequently called away, so we shall not meet 
 again at present. By and by I may be permitted to see many 
 of your faces gathered around me again to search into the 
 Word of Life. At any rate, we shall meet soon in the full 
 sunshine of our Father's presence. I do bless God for per- 
 mitting me for eleven years to hold this Bible-class : His 
 blessing has rested on it, and to Him be all the glory." 
 
 On the 4th of April 1864 Mr. Pennefather preached 
 his first sermons in St. Judes Church, Mildmay Park. 
 To the stated congregation he was absolutely a stranger, 
 but on getting into the pulpit, he discovered, in differ- 
 ent parts of the church, kind friends from distant 
 places, who had determined that he should be greeted 
 by the sight of some familiar faces. Worn and weary 
 as he was with the farewell scenes of preceding weeks, 
 this tender consideration was peculiarly appreciated, 
 and he often recurred to it with lively gratitude. He 
 was finding his home for the first time amid the dust 
 and noise of the metropolis. It was opening spring- 
 tide, " the breaking forth into beauty," as he expressed 
 it, "of this fair but injured world," and it was not 
 without a pang that he had turned away from his 
 cherished flowers. But " we shall never miss gardens, 
 or fields, or anythijg else," was his remark to a friend; 
 
 2 B 
 
386 
 
 A NEW FIELD OF LABOUR. 
 
 [chap. XVII. 
 
 "if only we may see plants of our Heavenly Father's 
 planting, watered by the dews of His Holy Spirit." 
 And God rave him the desire of his heart. He had 
 provided for His servant a sphere of labour for which 
 he never ceased to praise Him. There was no par- 
 sonage attached to St. Jude's Church, and the only 
 house to be found within the district was in one of the 
 many ''unfinished streets." Those who know the 
 neighbourhood only as it now is, with many changes 
 and improvements, can scarcely realise its desolate 
 appearance in those earlier days."^ 
 
 But one thing, far more important than external 
 advantages, soon became apparent to the new minister. 
 He found himself among a kindly and responsive 
 people, who did not long regard him as a stranger, 
 but welcomed and reciprocated the love which was 
 ready to meet them in its fullest measure. 
 
 Procuring the parochial map of the Ecclesiastical 
 Commissioners, and ascertaining the exact boundaries 
 of his district, he soon made himself acquainted with 
 every street and court, and, as far as might be, with 
 every house it contained. To inquire into the educa- 
 tional advantages already existing, and the amount of 
 church-accommodation provided for the poor, was 
 always one of his first thoughts on entering a new field 
 of labour ; and his rule with regard to the ordering 
 
 • In a published sermon preached at Brighton, in May 1873, by the Rev. 
 Stephen Langston, we find the following passage. [After speaking of Mr. Penne- 
 father's removal from the scene of his labours]—*' If any of you knew what the 
 district was in which he laboured, as I knew it before his entrance on those labours, 
 you would almost say, * The wilderness has become glad, and the desert has re- 
 joiced and blossomed as the rose.' ... It so happened that, before his appointment, 
 that position was pressed upon me. ... I knew my utter unfitness; I knew 
 myself too well, and utterly repudiated the thought. But I just look upon myself 
 as having held the light (as it were) to direct the steps of that blessed man to the 
 position which he occupied so much to the glory of God." 
 
 1864.] 
 
 REMOVAL OF THE IRON ROOM. 
 
 387 
 
 , and organisation of a parish was to undo as little as 
 possible, and to do as imic/i as might be practicable to 
 add to their efficiency. He greatly delighted in the 
 system of free and open churches, and would have 
 adopted it at all risks, if he could have done so with 
 justice to his successors. Failing this, he could only 
 do his utmost to secure a large proportion of free seats. 
 His first impression of the congregation of St. Jude's 
 was that the working-classes were but scantily repre- 
 sented. He speaks of the numbers attending the church 
 as small, and adds, ** The people are very orderly and 
 decorous, but I long for more manifest vitality." 
 
 Meanwhile a great difficulty had been surmounted. 
 After an almost hopeless search, a piece of ground was 
 secured within the limits of the district for the erection 
 of the iron room. It was very important that the 
 summer should not pass without a Conference ; the 
 continuance of which many were pronouncing to be an 
 impossibility ; and truly the obstacles to be overcome 
 were neither few nor small. But the Lord graciously 
 opened the way, and strengthened His servants for all 
 that lay between. A sum of money placed in Mr. 
 Pennefather s hands by the generosity of his Barnet 
 fiock, as a testimony of their grateful afifection, exactly 
 met the expense of removing and rebuilding the iron 
 room. All the necessary arrangements were set on 
 foot, and in the confidence of faith the letter of invita- 
 tion was sent out on June 15th, convening the Confer- 
 ence for July the 20th and the following days. Two 
 houses in a neighbouring street were taken for the 
 Missionary Training Home, and a communication 
 opened between them and the iron room secured the 
 necessary refreshment rooms. Many hindrances arose. 
 
 4 
 
388 
 
 CONFERENCE IN LONDON. 
 
 [chap. XVII. 
 
 but were one after another overruled ; though, when 
 the day of meeting arrived, Mr. Pennefather found 
 himself deprived, for the first time, of the support of 
 his beloved friend Captain Trotter, and the valued help 
 of Mr. Turner of Malvern : both were unavoidably 
 absent through illness. But a faithful God stood by 
 His trusting servant ; and he writes after all was over — 
 
 " God has brought me through the difficulties of our first 
 Conference here. I was a good deal harassed at the opening 
 of it. Circumstances were so changed. Many fond and fami- 
 liar faces were absent, and many were looking on with feelings 
 of distrust and alarm. But God was my stay ; and I look 
 back with fervent thankfulness." 
 
 A friend who had often been present on former oc- 
 casions, says in his recollections of the first Conference 
 held in London; " There were, as the Circular indicated, 
 * no green fields and flowers ;' but there was Christian 
 love, and Christ, the centre of love and union, was 
 there. It is believed that the * communion of saints' 
 was as great as on former occasions, if not greater ; and 
 that the Word of God was * in demonstration of the 
 Spirit and of power. ' " An interesting feature of the 
 meetings was the attendance of a band of earnest young 
 men, both from Oxford and Cambridge; and special 
 praise was offered for what God had wrought in the 
 Universities, for which prayer had been requested in 
 previous years. Amongst the recorded cases of indivi- 
 dual blessing was that of a young man (afterwards 
 ordained and now present with the Lord), who carried 
 away with him such fresh happiness and power, that 
 several members of his family caught the reflected 
 joy, and started on a course of new and earnest service. 
 One of them writes — 
 
 I 
 
 1864.] 
 
 VISIT TO STONE-DIGGERS. 
 
 389 
 
 " I remember the brightness of his face, and the extreme 
 patience with which he met the want of sympathy among 
 those who could not understand his enjoyment. He came 
 back filled with fresh thoughts ^hont prayer, prayer in every- 
 thing, and the importance of united prayer ; filled, too, with 
 anticipations of the nearness of Christ's coming." 
 
 The heat of the weather in the summer of 1864 was 
 so intense, that it was judged desirable to transfer the 
 annual meetincrs to the month of October ; at which 
 time they were held until a more substantial building 
 permitted the return to summer days. 
 
 The devising and carrying out of further plans of 
 usefulness for his populous parish occupied the re- 
 mainder of the year, with the exception of a short 
 sojourn in Yorkshire. He had been recommended to 
 visit Harrogate for the benefit of his health, and deter- 
 mined to take Cambridge on his way, that he might 
 learn a little more of the interesting work going on 
 among the coprolite diggers. We may quote a few 
 fragments from a letter written at the time by Miss 
 Macpherson — 
 
 " It was at the close of a meeting at Mildmay Park on July 
 22nd (during the Conference), that the burden was laid on 
 my heart of gathering the stone-diggers, villagers, and their 
 friends before entering upon harvest, and inviting Mr. and Mrs. 
 Pennefather to see, face to face, the hundreds of souls for 
 whom at Conferences, and in public and private prayer- 
 meetings, they had wrestled with God." [Then follows a 
 description of the preparations for the assembly.] **In the 
 meantime conveyances were coming by every lane from Cam- 
 bridge and the towns and villages around, bringing earnest 
 Christian friends. Including stone-diggers, there were repre- 
 sentatives from more than thirty towns and villages. When 
 Mr. and Mrs. Pennefather arrived, great was our joy; and 
 who, of those who know him, cannot imagine our beloved 
 friend in the midst of this multitude, as with tears in his eyes 
 
390 
 
 DEA TH OF A FRIEND. 
 
 [chap. xvit. 
 
 he exclaimed, * This is another Conference ! * . . . The re- 
 freshing meal was soon over ; and a few minutes after six, 
 with a lovely sunset shedding its radiance over the humble 
 out-door gathering, Mr. Pennefather rose, and with simple 
 Christ-like earnestness put before the people *the coming 
 lory/ ... At the close he told of a spontaneous offering 
 given at Mildmay Park, adding that now, as the produce of 
 that money, would be presented to each man and woman 
 (stone-diggers and boys included), a little pocket Testament, 
 to be used in the intervals of harvest toil." 
 
 CT 
 
 It was in such gatherings as these, whether among his 
 own people (whom he loved to take in large parties to 
 country fields and woods), or in other localities, where 
 souls were thirsting for the Water of Life, that Mr. 
 Pennefather spent some of his happiest moments. 
 
 Finding that the air of Harrogate did not suit him, 
 he went on to Ilkley. In both places he was cheered 
 by meeting many dear friends, " No accident," as he 
 used to say, "but our Father's loving-kindness and 
 tender mercy." The intercourse at Ilkley with one 
 whom he greatly loved (Mr. Stevenson Blackwood) 
 was a source of much refreshment. 
 
 It was at the close of this visit that heavy tidings 
 reached Mr. and Mrs. Pennefather, and cast a dark 
 shadow over their return to London. The blow was 
 altogether unexpected, for the friend who was suddenly 
 called away from a life of great activity and loving 
 service had parted from them just before leaving 
 home in the most buoyant health and spirits. Mr. 
 Pennefather writes to an old friend on September 
 3rd— 
 
 " I thank you more than I can express for your words of 
 loving sympathy. Hers was no common friendship. She 
 had been closely bound to my wife from early childhood, and 
 after my marriage had been settled near us at Aylesbury and 
 
 ' 
 
 I 
 
 1S64.] 
 
 NEW SCHOOL BUILDINGS. 
 
 391 
 
 afterwards at Barnet. . . . She and her mother and sister 
 had been very kind friends. Is this severing of so close a 
 friendship designed to teach us not to lean on aiiy human 
 arm ? She was one to whom we could always look for ready 
 help. And now she is gone ! But Jesus lives ! " 
 
 A letter written a few weeks later answers some 
 inquiries respecting his Orphanage at Hackney — 
 
 ** When we resigned the charge of the orphans maintained 
 by the Royal Patriotic Fund, a number of children were left 
 under our care, some of them paid for by benevolent persons, 
 who had placed them with us, and others for whom we had 
 made ourselves responsible. We could find no suitable house 
 nearer than Hackney, and have there at this time forty boys. 
 (We do not wish to receive more than fifty.*) Most of them 
 are of respectable parentage, and some of the cases of need 
 are very sorrowful." 
 
 The progress of these boys was a constant subject 
 of interest during the years that followed. The winter 
 of 1864-65 was a very busy one. Mr. Pennefather, 
 from his first entrance on his work at St. Jude's, was 
 impressed with the conviction that there was no ade- 
 quate provision for the education of the very poor and 
 neglected children who abounded on every side. The 
 existing schools were efficient but small, and the fees 
 too high for a large majority of the working classes. 
 He at once resolved to erect a building where ele- 
 mentary instruction should be given at a very small 
 rate of payment, and increased school-accommodation 
 be secured on Sunday. There were some prejudices, 
 and many difficulties to be overcome, but he never 
 rested till the work was accomplished ; and the cor- 
 respondence of the year shows the untiring perse- 
 verance with which he carried on his eff"orts to obtain 
 
 * This was afterwards increased to eighty. 
 
392 
 
 PAROCHIAL AGENCIES. 
 
 [chap. xvir. 
 
 the necessary funds. The sum required sounded for- 
 midably large to those who looked at the resources of 
 the immediate neighbourhood ; and he used to smile 
 at the alarm of his people, who, as he said, " thought 
 their new minister very rash." But God raised up 
 many friends to assist both with counsel and money, 
 and the schools were finished in the course of the 
 year, though the funds did not allow the completion 
 of all he could have desired. 
 
 Many a time did he thank God for the little ones 
 taught and the many happy meetings held there, and 
 it was very nearly at the close of his ministry that he 
 came home one day from visiting a dying lad, who 
 had cheered him by saying over and over again, with 
 tears of gratitude, " Oh, sir, I am one who will have 
 reason to thank God for ever for your schools." 
 
 Meanwhile a soup-kitchen for the poor, and 
 another kitchen where dinners were cooked for the 
 sick, clubs of various kinds, and other agencies for the 
 temporal benefit of the people, went side by side with 
 earnest efforts for their spiritual welfare. The iron 
 room, erected mainly with a view to the Conferences, 
 became a most valuable adjunct to the parochial 
 machinery, and with its adjoining mission-house told 
 powerfully upon the degraded and sinful neighbour- 
 hood which surrounded it. It was pleasant to hear 
 the police authorities giving their testimony to the 
 manifest restraint exercised upon the lawlessness of 
 the immediate locality. 
 
 After speaking, in a letter dated January loth, 1865, 
 of some lectures he had been eivine there to workinsf 
 men, Mr. Pennefather adds — 
 
 *' My mouth is filled with praise for the mercies which our 
 
 t865.] 
 
 BLACKDOWN HILLS. 
 
 393 
 
 Heavenly Father has showered down upon us here. We are 
 very happy in our work. It is a delightful sphere of labour." 
 
 In the same month he seems to have taken his 
 last preaching tour for the Church Home Mission, 
 but we have no mention of the places visited. 
 When first going to reside in London, Mr. Penne- 
 father had been seriously warned against remaining at 
 his work for such long unbroken periods as he had 
 been in the habit of doing ; and yielding to the earnest 
 entreaties of friends, we find him from time to time 
 spending a few days amid country surroundings. 
 Throuorh a link formed at the Conference, he had 
 
 o 
 
 become deeply interested in the peasantry of the 
 Blackdown Hills, on the borders of Devonshire, 
 among whom God was doing a great work by means 
 of a few devoted labourers. Taking a lodging in a 
 little farmhouse on one of these hills, he and his wife 
 spent a week among these simple, loving people, and 
 from thence he writes to one of his flock — 
 
 " Pencross House, Hemyock, May 2^th. 
 " I know I have behaved badly about writing, but the first 
 few days I was completely knocked down. I always say I 
 am like a stiff Irish post-horse, which, after it has stood still 
 for an hour or two in the stable, can hardly move a limb — 
 its only hope of getting on is never to rest at all I . . . 
 Nothing can surpass the homelike rural beauty of these 
 hills and dales. Our pretty quiet house is on the side of a 
 cultivated hill, looking down into a rich valley ; and then, 
 far away, an undulating country with scattered, comfortable 
 homesteads, and here and there, among the trees, the village 
 churches and cottages of the poor. We had a very happy 
 service last night in a cottage which has been ingeniously 
 adapted for the purpose. There were about seventy present, 
 among whom I noticed especially one tall, gaunt-looking 
 man, who had in his drunken revels been the terror of the 
 
394 
 
 BLACKDOWN HILLS. 
 
 [chap. XVII. 
 
 neighbourhood. Now he is a monument of grace, and many- 
 hear from his lips what great things the Lord hath done for 
 him. Mr. Brealey conducted the meeting, and I said a few 
 words at the end. Yesterday, in the kitchen here, I preached, 
 or rather spoke familiarly, on John i. 36-51, and again at 
 Clayhidon on Revelation vii. 9-17." 
 
 The sojourn at the farmhouse left a blessing behind 
 it, and the farmer's wife died some time after, thanking 
 God for the glad tidings of salvation then received. 
 
 When Mr. Pennefather entered on his ministry at 
 St. Judes, he at once engaged two curates to share 
 his abounding labours. One of these, whom he 
 esteemed very highly in love (the Rev. C. H. Waller, 
 whose strength proved unequal to the labours of so 
 large a parish), was removed to another sphere some- 
 what unexpectedly ; and he had left home for this 
 quiet week with many anxious thoughts and much 
 prayer that a fellow-labourer, *' longing for the salva- 
 tion of the people," might be sent to him. When just 
 about to return to London, his way was evidently 
 marked in another direction. A letter from Hemyock 
 explains the change of plan — 
 
 ** I fully hoped and expected to be with you to-morrow, 
 but * the pillar of the cloud ' seems indicating a little longer 
 absence. A letter from Mr. R. this morning, declining the 
 curacy, makes it important to follow up other channels of 
 information, and we rather think that by going on farther 
 west, we may hear something more of an earnest man, to 
 whom we have already a clue." 
 
 That " earnest man '* was Mr. William Hay Aitken, 
 not then ordained, but looking out for a curacy on 
 which he might enter at the close of the year. Again 
 and again his name had reached Mr. Pennefather 
 from very opposite sources, while both the informa- 
 
 1865.] 
 
 VISIT TO PENDEEN, 
 
 395 
 
 tion and advice he received on the subject were 
 5:trangely conflicting. Now that his way was clear to 
 make the appointment, he desired to listen only for 
 the voice of God in the matter. He knew there might 
 be some differences of opinion between them, and 
 wished to ascertain whether these would touch ques- 
 tions of vital importance. With mere party views he 
 had no sympathy,* and his cry was, now as ever, 
 " Lord, what wilt Thou have me to do ? " Beine so 
 far on his way to the West of England, he resolved to 
 visit the father of the young man, the Rev. Robert 
 Aitken of Pendeen, and talk the matter over without 
 reserve. The day spent at Pendeen was remembered 
 with deep interest for its own sake, apart from any 
 after results. The church and schoolroom where so 
 many sons and daughters had been born into the king- 
 dom of God, and the remarkable life-history of the 
 veteran soldier of the Cross who had taken up his 
 abode among those Cornish miners, were often recalled 
 in connection with that hurried visit to the West of 
 England. The sequel will be best told in Mr. William 
 Aitken's own words — 
 
 " I shall ever regard it as one of the greatest privileges of 
 my life that I was allowed for a season, not only to share 
 the labours of dear Mr. Pennefather, but also to live under 
 his roof, I may say, as a member of his family. As my mind 
 recurs to the commencement of my intimacy with him, lU 
 cannot but reflect that it was a very remarkable circum- 
 stance, that we should ever have been brought together at 
 all, and one that in some small degree illustrates the leading 
 lesson of his life. Surely Mr. Pennefather gave strong proof 
 of the true liberality of his heart and the breadth of his sym- 
 
 * The use of party names was always discouraged in his house, while the aspe- 
 rities of party strife were authoritatively banished. 
 
 
 . I 
 
396 RECOLLECTIONS OF REV, W. H. AITKEN. [chap. xvir. 
 
 pathy in offering me his curacy. He knew perfectly well 
 that although we were one in the great fundamental truths 
 of the Gospel, we had been trained in very different schools, 
 and accustomed to look at things from very different points 
 of view. He had had a personal interview and a conversa- 
 tion with my dear father, and was also acquainted with his 
 views through his writings; and he must have been aware 
 that there were many points in which, in all probability, his 
 new curate and himself would not see eye to eye. Though 
 he had little of the spirit of a partisan about him, yet he was 
 definitely regarded by all as a member of the Evangelical 
 party, whereas I made no secret of it that I was an eclectic in 
 my ecclesiastical views, and distinctly repudiated connection 
 with any party. He must have foreseen that the presence of 
 a curate in his parish, more or less suspected of High Church 
 prochvities, and closely connected by ties of personal friend- 
 ship with many well-known High Churchmen, would probably 
 be the occasion of a good deal of remark, and possibly ot 
 unpleasantness ; but he believed in the reality of union in 
 Christ, and illustrated his belief by his action in this case. 
 
 " As a matter of fact, I know that he was being continu- 
 ally assailed by well-meaning but narrow-minded critics, 
 who found great fault with the young curate all through the 
 first year or so of our connection with each other, but he 
 never allowed me to be troubled by any of these communica- 
 tions, except in cases where his own judgment coincided 
 with the criticism, and then, like a true friend, he did not 
 hesitate to give me, in his own kind way, the benefit of his 
 opinion. This outspoken candour was indeed a feature of 
 his character, which would not have been expected by those 
 who only knew him superficially. His kindness and tender 
 affection to me from the first were something wonderful, yet 
 I hardly remember any other person ever speaking to me 
 with such plainness of what he considered to be my faults. 
 
 " It was my dear father's wish that I should accept the 
 curacy of St. Jude's, and this weighed with me a good deal 
 in my decision. I remember his giving me his reason in 
 some such words as these — ' I think you will do wisely in 
 going to Mildmay. True, Mr. Pennefather is a very Low 
 Churchman, and you may meet with many other men whose 
 
 1865.] RECOLLECTIONS OF REV. W. H. AITKEN. 
 
 397 
 
 f 
 
 views may more fully coincide with your own; but I feel 
 sure that Mr. Pennefather is a very holy man, and that's the 
 great point, — and you won't get that everywhere.' 
 
 " I love to reflect as I look back on those happy Mildmay 
 days, and think how much I owe to the subject of this 
 memoir, that my connection with him was attributable to the 
 fact that both these honoured servants of God were true to 
 that great principle of Christian love to which they both 
 in different ways were witnesses. Sound or unsound in other 
 respects, both these great-hearted men were sound in charity. 
 My dear father's impression was fully borne out by all that I 
 saw in Mr. Pennefather's public and private life, during the 
 year and a half that I lived under his roof, and the five 
 years that I was his curate. I never remember seeing him 
 ruffled in temper, or hearing him utter a hasty or a bitter 
 word ; and yet few men were ever so strained and driven as 
 he by a thronging multitude of labours and cares. At the 
 same time, with all his quiet recollectedness, he was perfectly 
 cheerful, and free from anything like moroseness or gloom. 
 I can see him now, as I write, sitting at the head of his 
 table laughing heartily over some racy story or happy bit of 
 pleasantry, with that unaffected childlike mirth which none 
 but guileless spirits know. And then the quickness of his 
 sympathy, — how often I have seen the tear glisten in his eye 
 at some sorrowful story of bereavement or distress, where 
 others would have been content with a mere conventional 
 observation. It was, I believe, this quickness of sympathy 
 that led him to offer me a home in his own house. He felt 
 that one who had always been surrounded by the genial 
 influences of home, and who had never been weaned from 
 the full strength of home associations by the customary 
 course of school life, would probably feel strangely desolate 
 and friendless in a solitary lodging in London. To this same 
 quickness of sympathy I attribute it that he was the first to 
 detect, and, with true fatherlike delicacy, to speak to me 
 about my affection for one to whom, since her own father's 
 death, he had been, I may say, as a father, and in the spiri- 
 tual sense of the word a father indeed, and who to the day of 
 his death continued to feel towards him the full strength 
 of a daughter's love. There hangs upon my study wall an 
 
 .< 
 
 li 
 
398 
 
 VISIT TO SWITZERLAND. 
 
 [chap. xvir. 
 
 illumination with a miniature of our dear departed friend, 
 followed by a sentence that fell from his lips the last time 
 my dear wife was ever with him. They were walking down 
 to St, Jude's together to a communion service, when she 
 remarked how pleasant it was to be together again even for 
 a little season. He pressed her hand, and said with great 
 solemnity, * My dear child, these friendships are for eternity, 
 not for time/ Little did she think how soon his own de- 
 parture was to justify, and, as it were, fulfil his saying. The 
 enjoyment of such friendships must indeed form part of the 
 fulness of joy which makes heaven what it is. But the love 
 of heaven finds its way in little streamlets to earth, and flows 
 forth from 'men of love' to fertilise earth's barren soil. 
 Surely it was something of the great Father's own love 
 dwelling within His servant's heart that made him all so 
 lovable while he was with us here. But now that he has 
 gone before, it comforts us to think that ' these frmidships 
 are for eternity' " 
 
 During the summer of 1865 an invalid sister of Mrs. 
 Pennefather came to reside in the house of her brother- 
 in-law, and the urgent advice of the physician who 
 attended her, that she should go to Switzerland, 
 opened their way for a journey to the Continent. 
 
 Mr. Pennefather s jealous watch over his own heart 
 was never more marked than at this time, when his 
 strongest earthly taste (though in his case it could 
 hardly be called earthly) was about to be gratified. 
 To one friend he says — 
 
 " Pray for me ! I want' to be kept very near my Lord in 
 travelling. I have never been in Switzeriand, and have had 
 for many years so strong a desire to go there, that now I 
 hardly like to think about actually seeing the Alps. Ah ! 
 but there are brighter scenes than these ! Souls washed in 
 the blood of the Lamb, and reflecting the light of the Sun 
 of Righteousness." 
 
 To another — 
 
 1865.] 
 
 VISIT TO SWITZERLAND. 
 
 399 
 
 ** I can scarcely believe that we are going to Switzerland. 
 How often others have wished it for me, and how I have 
 longed from my boyhood to see the Alps ! Now the Lord 
 is permitting it. Pray for me that every moment I may walk 
 with Him in the midst of the glorious scenes which are shortly 
 to surround me. We expect to leave home on the 7th of 
 August, proceeding via Paris and Dijon to Neuchatel, thence 
 to Aigle, and up the mountains to a pensioft called Villars." 
 
 Some time before he had said to a friend, " I do not 
 think there is any one in the world who knows the 
 intensity of my delight in God's works," and certainly 
 it would be impossible for any one, with even a large 
 share of ordinary love for beautiful scenery, to con- 
 ceive of the entrancing power it exercised over him, or 
 the means of grace it became to his soul. '' Often," 
 says his wife, " have I sat beside him, gazing upon some 
 grand mountain range, with his hand laid upon mine 
 to impose silence, the tears stealing down his cheeks, 
 and his soul rapt in a communion with the Creator 
 which I dared not break." At some little distance 
 from Villars there was a knoll from which Mont Blanc 
 might be seen, and to this spot he would go alone at 
 four o'clock in the morning, to catch the first touch of 
 glory from the rising sun on the monarch of the moun- 
 tains, and then come back through the dewy meadows, 
 often murmuring some of his favourite lines — 
 
 " The dew doth every morning fall, 
 And shall the dew outstrip Thy dove, 
 The dew for which grass cannot call. 
 
 Drop from above. 
 
 Oh, come, for Thou dost know the way, 
 Or if to me Thou dost not move, 
 Remove me where I need not say, 
 
 Drop from above." * 
 
 * George Herbert's poem on " Grace." 
 
 ■s«niimnHiPfsnM!>'-"!j'L!! j*" .. i^ . '^ 
 
■«■ 
 
 40O 
 
 SWISS SCENERY. 
 
 [chap. XVII. 
 
 He had not lost his boyish love of climbing and feats 
 of agility, though he had made up his mind that the 
 measure of strength given him must not be wasted in 
 the risks of useless adventure. But in the immediate 
 ** presence of the mountains," all such prudential re- 
 solves were sorely put to the test, and he would press 
 on, regardless of fatigue, as long as there was a hope 
 of seeing one more snowy peak or discovering one 
 more botanical specimen. 
 
 The phenomena of nature had a peculiar charm for 
 him. He had studied minutely the natural history of 
 glaciers and the theories of the glacial period, and 
 when actually in the midst of the "motionless 
 torrents," ♦ his delight knew no bounds. " I could leap 
 for joy when I find myself on a glacier," was his 
 remark to a timid traveller, who did not at all enter 
 into his enthusiasm. 
 
 Perhaps this first visit to the Continent was the only 
 one which really invigorated him physically. On after 
 occasions, the long fatiguing journeys, and the very 
 fact of his extraordinary enjoyment, drew too much on 
 his declining strength. After a few weeks he returned 
 to the work which had lost none of its attractive 
 power, and his letters tell of great encouragement 
 among his people — a Conference, which was " believed 
 by many to be a season fraught with blessing,'* t and a 
 ** church densely crowded." 
 
 Speaking of the Training Home on November 24th, 
 he says, " We have just sent forth two female labourers 
 
 ♦ See Coleridge's "Hymn in the Valley of Charaouni." Those who heard 
 him read that poem will not soon forget it. 
 
 t It was during this year that he published a little book called "The Church 
 of the First- Bom," setting forth the principles which had led him to convene 
 Conferences, 
 
 1865.1 
 
 SECOND IRON ROOM. 
 
 401 
 
 to Africa ; one to Malacca ; two to home spheres ; and 
 one is on the eve of starting for Syria." 
 
 It was during this year that a second iron room was 
 erected in the parish, at the point most distant from the 
 church. From his first survey of that portion of the 
 district, Mr. Pennefather was convinced that some local 
 centre would be requisite to meet the needs of the in- 
 firm and aged, and lead on the ignorant and careless 
 to the services of the sanctuary, from which many of 
 them had become utterly estranged. A small legacy, 
 which came to him soon after the wish had assumed a 
 definite form, enabled him to put it into execution. A 
 house, with an unusually large garden, was secured, 
 and a Mission-room added, to serve both for the 
 instruction of the children and for Mission services. 
 A curate or Scripture-reader always resided in the 
 house; and many an earnest worshipper and com- 
 municant was welcomed at St. Jude s Church, who had 
 first strayed into that Mission-room *' having no hope, 
 and without God in the world." The letters of this 
 period are full of the details of misery, and the painful 
 complications of sin and suffering inseparable from 
 London work ; but a most loving people were gather- 
 ing around their pastor, and the '' combined \2^^o^^r',' for 
 which he always longed, was rejoicing his heart. He 
 often said he had never realised his ideal of the mutual 
 co-operation of all classes till he had the joy of seeing 
 it worked out at St. Jude's. A few giving largely 
 never satisfied him without the multitude of smaller 
 sums, down to the farthings of the children, and he was 
 equally anxious that the work of the district visitors 
 should never set aside the visit of the Christian neio-h- 
 bour, or the parochial machinery blight the outgoing 
 
 2 c 
 
402 
 
 MUTUAL CO-OPERATION. 
 
 [chap. XVII. 
 
 love of the poor in their kindness to one another. 
 He loved to encourage collections among themselves 
 for cases of peculiar need, or little cottage prayer-meet- 
 ings for special objects ; and, feeling that each believer 
 had a share in the great ministry of love, he was very 
 jealous lest individuality should be merged in large 
 organisations. Any interesting circumstances he met 
 with when absent, or missionary intelligence received 
 in letters, were treasured up to enlist the sympathies 
 of the poorest. We can only give a few sentences 
 from letters at the close of this year. Referring to a 
 misunderstanding which had greatly distressed him, he 
 writes — 
 
 " I am very sorry for his own sake that Mr. 
 
 IS so 
 
 unfor^ivino-, but we have most scrupulously held our peace, 
 thou4 in'^the midst of false accusations ; nor would I say 
 even'when I had the opportunity, how unjustly he had be- 
 haved We can leave that matter as well as many others m 
 the hands of our Heavenly Father. He will plead our cause. 
 I have been thinking of that familiar passage, * All thmgs 
 work together for good/ Every circumstance of life is help- 
 in^ to make up the sum of our ultimate happiness,— all the 
 opl)osing forces only teaching us more fully to know and 
 trust the wisdom and skill of our unerring Guide. 
 
 Thou dost conduct Thy people 
 Through torrents of temptation ; 
 Nor will we fear, while Thou art near, 
 The fires of tribulation.' 
 
 There may be yet a few more conflicts, but victory is sure 
 and victory is nigh." 
 
 Rejoicing in the Advent season he says— 
 
 " I have been very * good for nothing/ but am reviving a 
 Uttle, and looking forward to a happy Advent Sunday. . . . 
 * The coming I ' How much is bound up in those two words. 
 The coming in great humility, the coming in power and great 
 
 1866.] 
 
 NEIV SCHOOLS OPENED. 
 
 403 
 
 glory ! Hts advent in days past. His advent in days near 
 at hand. And we shall see Him and love Him and serve 
 Him for ever ! " . 
 
 Mr. Aitken took his place at St. Jude's in the be- 
 ginning of 1866, and soon began a series of Sunday- 
 evening services in the large iron room, now known 
 as the Lecture Hall, King Henry Street. In making 
 this arrangement, Mr. Pennefather desired not only to 
 supplement the services in the overcrowded church, 
 but to afford a field for the evangelistic zeal and talent 
 of one who was, he felt sure, being prepared for great 
 usefulness in the Church ; and also to make a direct 
 inroad upon the mass of ignorance and iniquity still 
 unreached. It was at first uphill work, and the young 
 minister heaved many a sigh as the curtain which 
 divided the room, in order to contract its dimensions, 
 kept its place Sunday after Sunday. But the Spirit 
 of God was working ; and one by one sinners were 
 awakened from their death-like slumber, till at last 
 the shower of blessing came, and many were added to 
 the Church within these walls. Surely, " when the 
 Lord writeth up the people," it will be said of that 
 humble building, " This and that man ' was born there/ " 
 The new schools were now completed and opened. 
 Writing on February 6th, 1866, to a friend who greatly 
 assisted him in collecting the needed money, Mr. Pen- 
 nefather says, *' You will rejoice with me that we have 
 already upwards of 300 additional scholars in our new 
 schools. God has heard our cry." 
 
 In the spring of this year a visitation of small-pox 
 brought with it much trial. Several letters speak of 
 the illness of his dear friend, Mr. Aitken, who now 
 resided in his house, and of other cases in the different 
 
404 
 
 BLACKDOWN HILLS, 
 
 [chap. XVI r. 
 
 institutions, as well as in the parish. To Miss Mason 
 he writes — 
 
 *' How I wish I were beside you ! I could tell you of such 
 abounding^ mercies, of many gracious answers to prayer, and 
 of the sweet sense of a very present God in hours of trial. 
 Just now we are in trial. The small-pox has visited us in 
 three different houses, and among others my curate, Mr. 
 Aitken, has been laid down with it. But God draws 'near 
 and says, * Fear not, for I am with thee/ 
 
 "We are under the shadow of the Almighty, and nothing 
 can harm us. Still it is always a solemn thing to have the 
 footsteps of the pestilence among us. I know you will pray 
 for us. Shall we ever meet again on earth, or are we to wait 
 for our gathering together unto Him ? I have been thinking 
 much of the words, ' Rise up, my love, my fair one, and come 
 away,* We shall soon hear them." 
 
 The Lord mercifully restored all the sick ones, and 
 the next letters are from the Blackdown Hills, where 
 he and his wife were kindly invited, after the strain of 
 many anxious weeks. Here we find him delighting to 
 trace the works of God's hand both in nature and 
 grace. His invalid sister-in-law. for whom he was con- 
 tinually planning pleasures and kindnesses, was now 
 staying in the neighbourhood of Reigate, which he 
 describes as — 
 
 " Truly lovely ! The day we spent there is in my remem- 
 brance, and very bright to me. I am now quite rejoicing in the 
 thought of dear M. being able to see it, and hear the nightin- 
 gales * ere they are silenced till 1867. Will they sino-^'acTain 
 m this fallen world, or will our Lord have come a|ain to 
 restore all things ? We are very happy here, and dear C. H 
 IS most kmd to us. We are going this evening to some 
 hamlets where the Lord is working. It is so refreshing to 
 
 imLi^id b^t'hn.l ^If ^'"'^ ^^-^^^ '°"S ""^ ^^^ nightingale can scarcely be 
 
 ^y^" utus w^tin^ T' w'""'''^ \^ "^' ^^ "-^^ «^^y <^harm," he used to 
 say, uiat is wanting m dear Westmoreland." ^« «." 
 
 I 
 
 1866.] 
 
 BLACKDOWN HILLS, 
 
 405 
 
 trace the footprints of the Lord's presence, and to see how 
 the Gospel can raise the most degraded. It is always the 
 * power of God.'" 
 
 The friend who so kindly received him recalls 
 many incidents of that happy sojourn. 
 
 " It was delightful to see him among those humble 
 country-folk. He would invite them into the larger cottages 
 or meet them in the scattered Mission-rooms, and to the 
 present time his felt influence lives in their hearts. He was 
 made a great blessing to those who were still without life, 
 and to intelligent Christians, who received fresh light and 
 strength through him. * I would walk for hours anywhere 
 only to see Mr. Pennefather again,' said a poor man who 
 had been sunk in drunkenness. 
 
 " * I never saw such kindness in my life ; it breaks one's 
 heart ! ' said the coachman (quite a worldly man) who drove 
 him to some of the cottage-meetings, as he told how Mr. 
 Pennefather took care of him and wrapped him up in a warm 
 rug when the evening grew cold. That young man took 
 him to the Mission-room at Sheldon, where he spoke on the 
 words, *They shall be Mine, saith the Lord of Hosts' (Mai. 
 iii. 16, 17), and coming home remarked with deep feeling, 
 *I am not one of those jewels.' The words and the kind- 
 ness were blessed to him, and he became a decided Christian. 
 
 " I well remember when driving in a pony-carriage in a 
 Devonshire lane, we met a poor country-woman with a 
 heavy bundle on her way to Honiton. Mr. Pennefather put 
 her at once into the carriage, walking beside her up the long 
 hill, and telling her the good news of salvation. It was a 
 considerable distance, long enough for the poor woman to 
 find out with wonder and joy how her journey was lightened. 
 Coming to the point where her road diverged from ours, he 
 drew the carriage into the grass, and kneeling down prayed 
 that this poor woman, * who had not met us by accident, 
 might receive into her heart the message she had heard." 
 
 A short visit promised to his friends in West- 
 moreland was curtailed by a sudden summons to 
 
4o6 
 
 CHOLERA IN LONDON. 
 
 [chap. xvii. 
 
 what was supposed to be the death-bed of his brother- 
 in-law, Mr. Cromie, who had arrived in London from 
 the North of Ireland. Writing to cheer them under 
 the disappointment, he says — 
 
 " Most cordially do I unite with you in thanking God for 
 ih^ given blessing of our late visit, full of spiritual sunshine 
 and joy amid an outward atmosphere of cloud and rain 
 Our going to you was * well ' and our leaving you was * well ' 
 How precious are the leadings of our Heavenly Father! We 
 found Mr. C. very ill,* but calm and peaceful." 
 
 In another letter we read— 
 
 '; Independently of Mr. C.'s illness, we are wanted at home 
 It is too palpable that we ought not to have remained a dav 
 longer in Westmoreland." 
 
 ^ The scourge of cholera, which had been for some 
 time threatening the metropolis, had now visited the 
 East End with such fearful violence, that Mr. Penne- 
 father felt it to be imperative on the ministers and 
 friends of the poor to be as much as possible among 
 them, checking the spread of exaggerated reports and 
 consequent depression among the people. Until the 
 fearful visitation had passed, and the panic was in 
 some measure allayed, he refused all invitations to a 
 distance, rejoicing in the many openings given for 
 reaching hearts already softened and solemnised. - We 
 are mercifully kept in health," he writes to a friend, 
 '*and much encouraged in our visits among the people 
 by their gratitude for our care of them." And (after 
 speaking of medicines and remedies), " we have like- 
 wise added to our 'Invalid Kitchen' a dinner-table 
 for the needy who are not ill but requiring food." 
 Commenting upon the various plans set on foot for 
 
 * Mr. C. recovered and survived the writer of the letter. 
 
 i866.1 
 
 CHOLERA IN LONDON. 
 
 407 
 
 the benefit of St. Jude's district at this and other 
 times, an impartial observer, writing ma pubhc 
 journal, remarked, " Every organisation of this ' friend 
 of the poor' had some object of practica good. 
 There was no shadowy nonsense about his plans, lor 
 they were all soundly matured before being launched. 
 
 When Mr. Pennefather first accepted the invitation 
 to labour at Mildmay Park, and found himself in a 
 metropolitan district, his yearnings over London be- 
 came intense. . , -^ ^ 
 
 « We are on the edge of East London with its tens 
 of thousands," he wrote to a friend. And while jealously 
 watching and watering the plot of ground assigned to 
 him in the great vineyard, he longed to scatter some 
 influences for good among the millions. One thing 
 he set himself to do in his few leisure moments was 
 to comfort and encourage humble labourers, who 
 were working earnestly for the Master, but little re- 
 cognised by the world or even the Church. Clergymen 
 in very poor parishes, with few helpers, men or women 
 labouring single-handed in Ragged Schools or out-of- 
 the-way Missions, were sure to have his sympathy, 
 until they were introduced to richer and more 
 influential friends, when he would devote himself 
 aaain to search out some unknown or neglected one. 
 A few words written by George Holland, of George 
 Yard Ra^^cred School, to a clergyman who had 
 preached "a sermon on the character of Enoch, m 
 which he had alluded to Mr. Pennefather, could be 
 re-echoed by numbers. "He was indeed a true 
 Enoch Many a time he has called, cheering and 
 comforting me in my work, ' when days were dark and 
 friends were few.' I shall never forget him." 
 
 ».-«fa*«;RKrr5»w" 
 
4o8 
 
 DEACONESS WORK. 
 
 II 
 
 [chap. XVII. 
 
 But the visitation of cholera in the East End parishes 
 opened a door for carrying out some of his far-reachino- 
 desires more systematically. While his own district 
 was comparatively shielded, might not some assistance 
 be given to those more severely smitten ? Hitherto 
 the Training Home for Female Missionaries, opened 
 at Barnet and removed to London, had been mainly 
 devoted to the interests oi foreign and country fields 
 of work. Though the example of the Protestant 
 Deaconess Houses in Germany had done much in 
 suggesting its establishment, it had not yet assumed 
 the namey and it was not until some such distinctive 
 appellation became absolutely necessary, that Mr. 
 Pennefather consented to adopt it. He loved the 
 name, as he found it in Romans xvi. i ; and he was 
 most anxious to prove that it was possible to develop 
 woman s power for practical service, in a happy com- 
 munion of love and labour, without any approach to 
 the evils of conventual life. But he had also a strong 
 conviction that woman's work ought to be as simple 
 and natural and unofficial as possible, and shrunk 
 from anything that might make it too formal or self- 
 
 assertmg. 
 
 It was not without much consideration that the 
 word deaconess was accepted, as the only one which 
 seemed to imply a life-service to Christ among His 
 suffering and needy ones, either with or witkoui a 
 special setting apart by those in places of authority. 
 To make the ministry of Christian women as efficient 
 as possible, without tempting them out of the lowly 
 sphere assigned to them by God, was his purpose, in 
 a work to which he devoted much time, thought, and 
 prayer, and in the developing of which he braved, as 
 
 1866.] 
 
 DEACONESS WORK. 
 
 409 
 
 has been already mentioned, a strange amount of un- 
 friendly animadversion. It would be out of place to 
 go further into detail. We introduce the subject here, 
 at the risk of repetition, because it was in the season 
 of sickness and distress, of which we are now speak- 
 ing, that the Home added to its former characteristics 
 the deaconess work for London, and began a distinct 
 ministry among the ignorant and suffering beyond the 
 boundaries of the parish to which it belonged. The 
 first printed report of this outlying work may tell its 
 own tale — 
 
 "The summer of 1866, with its terrible visitation of the 
 fatal disease of cholera, is still fresh in all our memories 
 and it seems scarcely necessary even to remind our readers 
 of the many hundreds who, day after day, were swept into 
 eternity in the sorrowful and benighted East End of our vast 
 metropolis. Great and dire distress was the lot of thousands, 
 while the work that fell upon the ministers of these densely 
 peopled districts was altogether overwhelming. In this ex- 
 tremity the Rev. J. Trevitt, Vicar of St. Philip's, Bethnal 
 Green, accepted the offer of the Rev. W. Pennefather to 
 assist him by means of his trained deaconesses, and allotted 
 to them a district for visitation containing some 5700 souls. 
 
 i> 
 
 Various efforts were set on foot for the temporal 
 and spiritual benefit of the suffering people, and the 
 Mission then inaugurated has continued to work ever 
 since, with the addition, in later years, of a small 
 Hospital and Medical Mission. Following upon this, 
 various doors were opened for similar service in 
 metropolitan and suburban parishes. 
 
 The Conference days came in October, with their 
 wonted blessing, but the closing months of 1866 
 brouo-ht with them much anxiety. Various letters tell 
 of the serious illness of his wife, the sudden death 
 
4IO RECOLLECTIONS OF REV. C WALLER, [chap. xvir. 
 
 of a servant in his house, and much failure of strength 
 and ''physical depression " -in his own case. 
 
 " Pray for me," he says to one friend. '' I feel I 
 ought to be so fruitful after all the pruning, but alas ! 
 we are slow to learn ! " 
 
 We find the year winding up with "very solemn 
 services," and much cause for thankfulness " as regards 
 the congregation." 
 
 It may not be out of place to add to this chapter 
 a few recollections from one whose name has been 
 already mentioned as a fellow-worker among the busy 
 scenes we are trying to sketch. The Rev. C. H. 
 Waller lovingly recalls some memories of the past. 
 
 " My first introduction to Mr. Pennefather was at a Bible- 
 reading in Christ Church Parsonage, Barnet, in the winter 
 of 1863-64. I had just taken my degree, and was lookino- 
 forward to ordination. When I heard that Mr. Pennefathe"^ 
 was about to remove to St. Jude's, Islington, I offered myself 
 as a curate, and he gave me a title in May 1864 (the first 
 title he had ever given for Holy Orders *). I remained 
 with him SIX months, when ill-health compelled me to resi<Tn 
 my post. ^ 
 
 " What that six months was to me I find it hard to de- 
 scribe, without speaking of myself more than would be seemly 
 It has often happened to me, through God's providence to 
 learn from teachers who had hardly any superior in their 
 own special gifts : Mr. Pennefather was an example of this in 
 teaching of the highest possible kind. I never knew any one 
 to whom it was given, as it was to him, to take men by the 
 hand and lead them *into the Holiest,' by that* new and 
 hving way open through the blood of Jesus,' which all 
 Christians, in every act of devotion, profess to use, but which 
 so few comparatively seem to know. With Mr. Pennefather 
 
 ♦ He deeply felt the responsibility of introducing young men into the ministry, 
 and often thanked God that the two cases in which he had done it had given 
 tim so much satisfaction. 
 
 1866.] 
 
 RECOLLECTIONS OF REV. C. WALLER, 
 
 411 
 
 in the pulpit, at the Bible-reading, at the prayer-meeting, or 
 in the Conference Hall, wherever two or three were gathered 
 together in the Sacred Name, there we felt that God was in 
 the midst of us. We seemed to be encircled by a guard of 
 angels, and to be spending a continual Sabbath, as though 
 the powers of evil had been shut out. The experience was 
 unique — a thing to be remembered, but very seldom re- 
 newed, except now and then in after life for a few precious 
 moments. There was nothing unaccountable in it at the 
 time ; although I often used to sit and wonder how it had 
 come to be. No means were used except the simplest — the 
 means of grace, which are within the reach of all. But this 
 grace was given to one man above the rest, that in him all 
 might learn what the grace of God can do, and how very near 
 it is possible for men on earth to be drawn to God. To 
 such an extent was Mr. Pennefather occupied with this 
 direct communion, that, in an assemblage where anything 
 less than this was the object, his presence seemed to be in a 
 manner of less value and his time to be thrown away. Pro- 
 bably nothing ever teaches us how much is attainable so 
 well as a high ideal set clearly before the mind. A great 
 living example becomes our ideal. In those things in which 
 I was permitted to observe Mr. Pennefather, I shall never 
 have any ideal apart from him. 
 
 " If I could also describe the way in which he satisfied my 
 own personal cravings at the time I met with him, I should 
 only add one to the many instances of his power. And I 
 can hardly do that without going into the details of my own 
 religious life, which had previously tried the patience and the 
 resources of others more than they would have cared to say. 
 In every individual experience there are turning-points and 
 crises ; and the influence under which a man falls when first 
 entering his profession, perhaps highly educated while utterly 
 inexperienced and untrained, has often determined the future 
 bias of his life, and decided whether it shall be of that char- 
 acter which is valuable chiefly as a warning to others, or 
 whether it shall be spent in the service of his fellow-men. 
 
 "That influence which goes direct to the heart of a man, 
 and, putting aside all subsidiary questions, draws him straight 
 into the bright sunshine of the love of God, must be the 
 
412 
 
 RECOLLECTIONS OF REV. C. WALLER, [chap. xvir. 
 
 ( 413 ) 
 
 greatest blessing of all. Such an influence was at that time 
 exerted upon me, and I found it all that I desired, though 
 to describe it is like attempting to grasp a rainbow. The^re 
 was a reverence for every fragment of God's Word that satis- 
 hed me at a time when any shortcoming in that matter 
 would have repelled me at once. There was a zeal and 
 devotion to God s work, beyond which the most ardent aspi- 
 rations for self-sacrifice could hardly rise. There was the 
 constant prayerfulness with which Mr. Pennefather referred 
 everything, not by implication, as other men do, but by actual 
 prayer and supplication to the throne of grace. And there 
 was, with all this, a discernment and judgment in doubtful 
 matters that left no excuse for resorting to one's own wisdom 
 for want of some one to consult. Last, not least, there was 
 that wonderful personal affection that proves to most of us 
 the strongest tie of all, 'love unfeigned' where one could not 
 have expected anything further than kindness and esteem 
 1 his affection once given was never withdrawn, althou^rh I 
 left my post after six months, in a manner that went far to 
 prove that I ought never to have undertaken it. and I was 
 probably more to blame than any one else for the over-strain 
 which caused my departure. Hence I can add little more 
 that will be of use to this biography. But I must mention 
 one characteristic incident. Some years after I left the 
 curacy. I met Mr. Pennefather one foggy evening at a street 
 corner m the north of London. I had some letters in my 
 hand and vvas hastening to the post. He greeted me most 
 affectionately, as he always did, and seeing what I was about 
 actually set off to run with me. and wanted to run the whole 
 distance, that we might still be together and not be late 
 
 "I have already hinted that if I had understood the work 
 for which I was best fitted, I might never have undertaken 
 to be curate to Mr. Pennefather; and in that case. I should 
 have lost an opportunity which can never recur. My six 
 months work with him has given me a lesson for eternity 
 and makes it possible to honour his memory by recallinc^ 
 what he was to one like myself, who was with him for a very 
 ittle while, and yet learned more of the way of holiness 
 !?.''°"Sh h.m than through any other, except the MASTER 
 rlimseli. 
 
 CHAPTER XVIIL 
 
 1867-1868. 
 
 Parochial organisation— Visit to Switzerland— Foreign institutions^ 
 Letters — House at Ridge — Fellow- workers — Conference of 1867 — 
 Letter written and distributed at its close — Original hymns— Death 
 of his sister-in-law — Visit to Guildford — Death of an old friend- 
 Letters and recollections — Visit to the West of England — Projected 
 Conference Hall — Visit to Westmoreland— Railway accident— Death 
 of Lord and Lady Farnham — Perth Conference — Ground for Con- 
 ference Hall — Recollections of a friend — Conversion of a young man, 
 now a clergyman — Children's Special Service Mission— Letters. 
 
 'T^HE details of a complicated parochial organisation, 
 ■^ though deeply interesting when daily felt to be 
 instinct with living power, would seem but a dry 
 record to readers in general. The combination of 
 ceaseless machinery with freshness of vitality was 
 remarkably realised, and the language of a life which 
 was always repeating the same lesson in public and 
 private, "ourselves your servants for Jesus' sake," will 
 not soon be forgotten. The children's services, now 
 held quarterly, and the communicants' meetings, were 
 increasing both in numbers and interest. '' I wish you 
 could have been with us last Sunday," says Mr. Penne- 
 father in a letter about this time, '' when I preached 
 to the children. They were wonderfully attentive, 
 though so closely packed that there were supposed to 
 be 1500 in the church." 
 
 Early in May we find allusion to the marriage of his 
 elder nephew, and the probability of another journey to 
 
414 INSTITUTIONS ON THE CONTINENT, [chap, xviii. 
 
 Switzerland for the sake of his sister-in-law. In visit- 
 ing the Continent he was very anxious to see some 
 of the Deaconess Houses, and other Christian work, 
 in which he took the keenest interest, but when travel- 
 ling with an invalid this was not easily accomplished. 
 However, from time to time he contrived to find his 
 way to different institutions, and visits were paid to the 
 Missionary College at Basle, especially interesting from 
 its connection with the early days of our own Church 
 Missionary Society; the Deaconess House at Rihen, 
 and that aged servant of God, M. Spittler, whose work 
 he had long followed with deep interest. When near 
 Lausanne he went to the Deaconess House at St. 
 Loup, where the name of dear Agnes Jones was still 
 cherished, and a short stay at Zurich gave an oppor- 
 tunity of visiting the former scene of Dorothea TrudeFs 
 labours at Mannedorf, as well as uniting in person with 
 the praying band who had so long claimed his sym- 
 pathy. He was surprised to find himself welcomed as 
 *' a brother beloved " by the foreign Christians, some 
 of whom had been present at one or more of the 
 various Conferences, while to others his name was 
 very familiar. Part of one of the letters written to 
 his congregation during this time of absence, which 
 included Trinity Sunday, will tell that amid these 
 varied interests and the glorious scenes around him, 
 his thoughts were with his beloved people. 
 
 **Gryon, au dessus de Bex, June \Zth, 1867. 
 "I was thinking very much of you all on Sunday last, 
 and asking our Heavenly Father to anoint both the hearers 
 and expounders of His Word with the Holy Ghost. My 
 thoughts were naturally led to dwell upon the * glory of 
 the Eternal Trinity,' and I could not but be struck with 
 the arrangement in our Church Services which brings pro- 
 
 m^-JiiV^^^^T' >!'■« 
 
 1867.] 
 
 DOCTRINE OF THE TRINITY. 
 
 415 
 
 minently before us the doctrine of the Trinity, after the 
 work of the Lord Jesus Christ and the Personality of the 
 Holy Ghost have been considered. Why is this ? Why are 
 we thus called (after we have passed Easter and Whitsuntide) 
 specially to unite our hymns of praise with the ceaseless 
 songs of the Cherubim above, saying, * Holy, holy, holy. Lord 
 God Almighty, which was, and is, and is to come' ? Because the 
 work which the Saviour has accomplished, and the Comforter 
 is carrying on, proceeds from FatheVy Son, and Holy Ghost. 
 The doctrine that there are three Persons in the Glorious 
 Godhead is no cold and unimportant theory, it is a living and 
 life-giving truth. . . . My heart's desire and prayer for you is, 
 that you may regard the God of the Scriptures as a loving 
 Father, as a tender and compassionate Saviour, who gave 
 Himself for your salvation, as an abiding Comforter, who 
 enlightens and dwells in the people of God." 
 
 We insert this short extract from a pastoral letter, 
 as it touches a subject on which Mr. Pennefather de- 
 lighted to dwell. Perhaps the doctrine of the Trinity 
 is seldom made such a joyous and practical thing as it 
 always was with him. A lady to whom he was the 
 instrument of great spiritual blessing spoke of this as 
 the leading characteristic of his ministry, the honour 
 done to a Triune God in the several offices of Father, 
 Son, and Holy Ghost. On this same journey he wrote 
 to one of his people who was passing through trial — 
 
 "Fontainebleau, i1/^ 26/>5. 
 
 "This is the Sabbath, and one of uncommon loveliness. 
 Our souls are reposing under the wings of the Almighty, but 
 our earnest pleadings are ascending for you, that the Lord 
 will sustain you and cause this trial to work for your eternal 
 good. We cannot doubt when He has promised, and every 
 day we live only brings out more vividly before us the truth 
 that *He is faithful who hath promised.' 
 
 " I was much struck this morning by the expression in the 
 first Lesson, ' He suffered them to hunger and fed them,* show 
 
■S^a^ii 'sfcl-ilCfaS," ^ 
 
 Ai6 
 
 GOD'S FAITHFULNESS. 
 
 [chap. XVIII. 
 
 ing us that trial only brings out God's power to deliver. He 
 caused Israel in the desert to feel the pangs of want, only 
 that He might daily work a marvellous miracle on their 
 behalf. They never would have tasted angels' food had 
 they not first been suffered to hunger. And not only would 
 they have lost a precious lesson, but God's people in all ages 
 would have missed the instruction which our Blessed Master 
 has given us in connection with the manna (John vi.). Thus 
 their trials (through God's mercies in the trials) have proved 
 an inestimable blessing to the whole Church of Christ." 
 
 To the Same. 
 
 " Gryon, June ^isf. 
 " You have been constantly in our thoughts and prayers. 
 Into the dark waters of suspense did we descend with you, 
 and upon the mount of deliverance have we likewise stood 
 with you, and sung afresh the hymn of praise to our God. I 
 am sure you have felt (what the Lord designs to teach you 
 in all His dealings), that while our circumstances alter and 
 our feelings vary, He is * the same yesterday, to-day, and for 
 ever.' Yes ! our God is the same Living Lord who spoke to 
 Abraham, communed with Moses, revealed Himself to Isaiah 
 and Ezekiel, and at last visited us in great humility as 'the 
 man Christ Jesus' Oh ! for an increase of faith !....! 
 wish I had you beside me, as I look out of my window, over 
 the tops of trees into a deep gorge, through which a foam- 
 ing torrent is winding its westward course. Above the river, 
 on the opposite side, are rocky heights crowned with wood, 
 while still higher, rugged granite summits, here and there 
 covered with snow, tower aloft. The valley is just now smil- 
 ing with gleams of sunshine, and is always pleasant and 
 habitable." 
 
 The next letter is dated Ridge, near Barnet. 
 
 " July 8///. 
 " We are rejoiced to be in England again, and you cannot 
 imagine how quiet this village is, although so near the roar 
 of the London Niagara. Our Heavenly Father pointed out 
 this humble shelter, and it is to me like a grove of palm 
 trees and as a well of water in the wilderness. We reached 
 
 1867.] 
 
 RETURN TO WORK. 
 
 417 
 
 
 
 London on Tuesday night, and came on here on Thursday, 
 as the house to which we are removing {6Z Mildmay Park) 
 is not ready to receive us.* .... We are engaged to go on 
 the 15th to Aldershot to Mrs. Daniell's annual gathering of 
 soldiers, and return to London, please God, on the i6th ; on 
 the 17th Mr. Aitken is to be married. I must then settle 
 into work, looking tip for health and strength, for I do not feel 
 very strong. The charge of dear M. in the last journey was 
 a great anxiety, but it gave her so much pleasure that I 
 cannot regret the daily strain it was upon myself. I was 
 delighted to get your dear letter at Basle. We travelled 
 from thence to Heidelberg, Bingen, and Cologne, then Lille 
 and Calais, and so home. We had a sunset of intense glory 
 at Cologne. A sky of the purest blue, retaifting its pellucid 
 hue while clouds of the deepest rose-colour floated over it 
 like cherubs. I have not yet thought definitely of the Con- 
 ference, but if I am permitted to hold one, it will not be till 
 towards the end of October." 
 
 The "quiet shelter" from v^rhich this letter v^as 
 written had been taken during the previous year, " as 
 a little Bethesda (to use his own words) where 
 orphans, weary workers, and sick parishioners may be 
 sent for a little country air.'' 
 
 The orphan boys from Hackney, Bible-classes and 
 mothers' meetings from St. Jude's, were at different 
 times taken there for a day's pleasure and happy 
 converse with their minister; but the distance was 
 found inconvenient, and it was given up for a cottage 
 at Richmond. 
 
 Succeeding letters speak of the *'rush of life" as 
 almost bewildering, and the very prosperity of the 
 work was daily adding to its pressure. He had now 
 three curates (for a time a fourth was added), and the 
 
 * This house was placed at his disposal by the great kindness of a friend, and 
 its proximity to the Conference Hall proved in after days a special comfort 
 to him. 
 
 2 D 
 
4i8 
 
 PERSONAL CHARACTERISTICS, [chap, xviil. 
 
 happy fellowship of spirit with which his labours were 
 shared and his plans seconded by these and other 
 fellow-workers cheered his heart amid much physical 
 weariness. He had a remarkable power of adapting 
 himself either to a community of labour or to solitary 
 individual work. Those who knew him best would 
 often smile at "the vein of lonely independence" 
 which seemed to underlie the loving buoyancy of his 
 social life. When asked whether he preferred to 
 work in the city or in the country, his answer was, '* I 
 like both so much, that I cannot tell." In addition to 
 that "breathing the air of the upper sanctuary," "^^ 
 which seemed to be the very element of his being, he 
 possessed the natural gift of a marvellous elasticity, 
 which rose to every occasion, conquering weaknesses 
 and hindrances which would have been to many 
 insuperable. Very few knew the constant "over- 
 coming" of his life. Often when greatly exhausted 
 and flagging for a few moments, he would spring to 
 his work again, repeating the words he loved so well — 
 
 " Oh ! that I were an orange-tree, 
 
 That busy plant ; 
 Then should I ever laden be. 
 
 And never want 
 Some fruit for Him that dresseth me." 
 
 The projected Conference of 1867 appears to have 
 been beset with some peculiar complications. It had 
 been suggested to Mr. Pennefather that the numerous 
 Conferences now held in various parts of the world 
 seemed to make the continuance of the origrinal one 
 less necessary, and he had himself a great dread of 
 
 * One of his favourite expressions 
 
 1867.] 
 
 CONFERENCE DIFFICULTIES. 
 
 419 
 
 any religious work becoming stereotyped. Speaking 
 of these difficulties he says — 
 
 " I had passed through great exercise of mind about this 
 Conference. I was led to ask myself, * Is there any longer 
 need for the Conference at Mildmay Park, when so very 
 many have sprung up in various places ? Does my Heavenly 
 Father intend that this service of mine should be discon- 
 tinued.?' I was just brought to say, 'Lord, show me Thy 
 way, and if that way be that I should never hold another 
 Conference, Thy will be done.' Then God opened the way 
 very distinctly, and I think very manifestly blessed it." 
 
 In another letter he writes — 
 
 ** With you we would unite in singing, * I love the Lord 
 because He hath heard my voice and my supplications.' I 
 entered upon the Conference with many anxious thoughts 
 .and earnest cries to God for wisdom and strength. The 
 words were constantly on my mind, * They feared as they 
 entered into the cloud, and there came a voice out of the 
 cloud saying, This is My beloved Son, hear Him;' and when 
 clouds rose up before me, I too heard the voice of my Father 
 pointing out Jesus as the One on whom all my thoughts 
 should be centred." 
 
 Often did he need to listen to that voice alone; for 
 new difficulties arose as former ones were removed, 
 and each year brought its own phase of trial. Any 
 advance of extreme opinions or practices in the 
 Church of England, any intemperate language used 
 by leading Nonconformists, gave fresh occasion to 
 those who had always stood aloof from " impracticable 
 alliances," and disturbed the minds of timid friends. 
 He never suffered himself to dwell upon any severe or 
 unchristian language, always putting the irritating 
 letter into the fire, or laying down the violent paper 
 with some breathing of prayer or some expression of 
 
420 LETTER AT CLOSE OF CONFERENCE, [chap.xvul 
 
 pity for the uncharitable writer. A Christian friend 
 who was often brought into contact with him re- 
 marked, '' The utter absence of personal vanity which 
 characterised him sheltered him from being materially 
 depressed or elated by either praise or blame. Even 
 when offence was intended, the harmful words fell 
 upon a mind so pre-occupied in communion with God, 
 that they were forgotten before they had time to 
 assume a hurtful shape. He reminded me of the good 
 man who said he always kept damp tinder in his 
 mind, upon which to receive sparks of envy and 
 malice, so they died out as they fell." One danger 
 that he gready deprecated in Conferences and religi- 
 ous meetings was the tendency to a selfish satisfaction 
 in spiritual enjoyment without corresponding practical 
 results. A letter which was put into the hand of each 
 person at the close of the Conference of 1867 may be 
 inserted as a specimen of his constant endeavour to 
 guard against this evil. 
 
 " 68 Mildmay Park, London, 
 
 ''October 26///, 1867. 
 "Beloved Friends.-^THc Conference is over. The 
 Lord has been true to His promises. He has said, ' Where 
 two or three are gathered together in My name, there am I 
 m the midst of them : ' and He has been amongst us. We have 
 seen the Lord, and with wondering minds and glowing hearts 
 we have cast ourselves once again at His feet, saying, * My 
 Master ! ' Shall we forget these hallowed moments ?*" Shall 
 there be no practical results flowing from these days of holy 
 gladness } 
 
 "Many of you are about to return to your happy homes, 
 bnght with blessings abundantly bestowed on you by your 
 Heavenly Father. Will you remember this million-peopled 
 city, with its sins and its sorrows .? * If we have sown unto 
 you spiritual things, is it a great thing if we shall reap your 
 
 1867.] 
 
 LETTER AT CLOSE OF CONFERENCE. 
 
 421 
 
 carnal things } * There are not only the poor, whose poverty 
 comes quickly to the surface, to be fed and clothed, but there 
 are widows and fatherless ones among those whose early life 
 was, like yours, one of sunshine and prosperity, who hide 
 their anguish from the gaze of men in the garrets and 
 cellars of this mighty metropolis. We want your prayers ; 
 we want your money; we want your active sympathy to 
 aid us in drying tears that the bitterest agony of heart has 
 forced from unwilling eyes. Perhaps the ministers of the 
 Gospel are privileged to enter into the peculiar griefs of those 
 who have long hid their poverty and misery from their fellow- 
 creatures, in a way that is granted to no others. If the poor 
 belonging to the labouring class be more effectually reached 
 by persons of their own grade, the men and women of 
 education who have sunk into the ranks of the distressed 
 are more easily discovered by those whom they regard as 
 ministers of the Gospel, and as having a rt^/tt to know the 
 condition of their flock. God is putting His seal of blessing 
 on various agencies and instrumentalities, and there is room 
 enough for a/l in this wonderful city, to which more than 
 100,000 persons are annually added, and in which some 1400 
 or 1500 souls pass week by week into eternity ! 
 
 " If the evangelist, the city missionary, the Bible-woman, 
 &c., be needed, the pastor likewise must be in his place. 
 We must ' feed the flock of God, which He has purchased 
 with His own blood ; * and woe be to us if it be true of those 
 who occupy the minister's place, ' The diseased have ye not 
 strengthened, neither have ye healed that which was sick, 
 neither have ye bound up that which was broken, neither 
 have ye brought again that which was driven away, neither 
 have ye sought that which was lost ! ' Oh ! that God may 
 give us grace to tread (in some degree at least) in the steps 
 of our Divine Redeemer, ' who went about doing good and 
 healing all that were oppressed of the devil.' His work 
 was ever twofold— to Uac/i the ignorant and to feed the 
 hungry. He knew that man's body and his soul had both 
 grievously suffered by sin, and He came to destroy the 
 works of the devil. If His children carry in one hand the 
 riches of the Gospel to ' the broken in heart,' they are bound 
 to carry in the other that which relieves their temporal distress. 
 
422 
 
 CONFERENCE HYMNS, 
 
 [chap. XVIII. 
 
 " The winter \s at hand, and with its cold gloomy days 
 will inevitably come a flood of sorrow which we tremble to 
 contemplate. There are various channels through which 
 your bounty may now flow to different parts of this great 
 city. It is not for me to dictate to you how to employ 
 your talents, or in what manner to dispense your gifts, but 
 I may affectionately remind you that God has blessed you, 
 that you may be a blessing, and that He has said with every 
 talent that He has put into your hand, 'Occupy till I come'.' 
 The day of reckoning is very near. Of what value will 
 hoarded wealth be in the presence of the throne of God and 
 of the Lamb } May each of us then hear the blessed words, 
 'Well done, good and faithful servant; enter thou into the 
 joy of thy Lord.' 
 
 " Ever your affectionate friend and brother in the Gospel, 
 
 " William Pennefather." 
 
 A large proportion of his own special hymns for 
 Conferences were written for this and the meetings of 
 the preceding year. Some who were present in 1867 
 do not forget the first introduction of the one begin- 
 ning, " O Saviour, we adore Thee," * or the fervent 
 energy with which Captain Trotter (then taking part 
 in the meetings for the last time) called -upon the 
 assembly to repeat the singing of the last verse — 
 
 " Almighty Lord, we bless Thee, 
 
 Eternal Father, Son, 
 
 And Holy, Holy Spirit, 
 
 Mysterious Three in One ! 
 Thou hast done mighty marvels 
 Before our wond'ring gaze. 
 We've learnt that Thou art faithful 
 In all Thy words and ways." 
 
 The year 1868 brought with it much of spiritual joy, 
 as the number of true earnest worshippers in the 
 church and mission-halls continually increased, and 
 many who had hitherto been totally indifferent or 
 
 • Hymn xxii. in " Original Hymns and Thoughts in Verse." See Appendix B. 
 
 I 
 
 1868.] 
 
 DEATH OF HIS SISTER-IN-LAW. 
 
 423 
 
 openly opposed were brought under the power of 
 God's truth. But it was also a season of deep anxiety 
 and sorrow. The suffering invalid whom he had 
 watched with "all a brother's care " was seized with a 
 fatal illness at the end of January. Various letters 
 tell the sorrowful tidings. We only give extracts from 
 two written to the dear friends in Westmoreland, who 
 still shared his joys and sorrows. 
 
 " January 31^/. 
 ** I do indeed weep with you in your anxiety about dear 
 Fanny C. I too have known her since her childhood, and 
 ever regarded her as one eminently qualified for usefulness. 
 It may be the Lord will yet spare her. But He doeth all 
 things well, and the sufferings of this present time are not 
 worthy to be compared with the glory that shall be revealed. 
 We too are passing through deep waters. Dearest M. has 
 been seized with a kind of paralytic attack (supposed to be 
 caused by her former malady), which has thoroughly pros- 
 trated her, though she may yet last a little while. Thank 
 God ! she is not in great suffering ; and come what may, she 
 is in the arms of the Good Shepherd, and she knows it. 
 Our poor people are also a cause of much anxiety to us just 
 now. The poverty in London is really overwhelming. Mr. 
 R. C. most kindly sent me twenty pounds, but the * Relief 
 Committee ' do not help us, because we are not included in 
 the East Postal division, though we border on the N. E. 
 
 Again — 
 
 '■^February \Wi. 
 
 " Beloved Friends, — It was on Friday morning that the 
 angels bore her to the Eternal Home. Hope and fear 
 alternated for many days, but I do not think she ever really 
 rallied from the attack on the 30th. A second seizure on 
 Thursday last hastened her end. The mind was partially 
 obscured, but not so as to prevent our holding at times 
 sweet intercourse with her. 'He never leaves me for a 
 single moment,' was her testimony to her Saviour's faith- 
 fulness. Her patience and love never failed On 
 
 Thursday I am to take the precious dust to Cranbrook, 
 
' f1 
 
 • tl 
 
 *24 
 
 DSA TH OF A FRIEND. 
 
 [chap, xviii. 
 
 1868.] 
 
 UNWEARIED SYMPATHY. 
 
 425 
 
 There her father and mother h'e, and there C. and I were 
 married We are both greatly worn, but the Lord is our 
 Refuge. 
 
 Closely following upon this came another scene of 
 sorrow, the circumstances of which were remarkable. 
 Desirmg a i^v^ quiet days after the funeral of their 
 sister, Mr. and Mrs. Pennefather made their plans to 
 visit one place after another, but were singularly 
 thwarted. At last, almost unaccountably to themselves 
 they fixed upon Guildford. A very old and attached 
 fnend resided in the neighbourhood, who had known 
 and loved the dear one just gone home. Great was 
 their surprise on calling at the house to find that friend 
 upon her dying bed. God had graciously sent them 
 to carry unexpected messages of comfort, and cheer 
 His beloved servant in her passage through the dark 
 valley. « One season of prayer together, one briaht 
 visit ere the Lord sent for her," is Mr. Pennefather's 
 comment in a letter which he writes declinino- an 
 invitation to the country. ** 
 
 Again — 
 
 "Between dear M.'s illness, and my own since (I was not 
 
 more ^han '' ""^T i?"" '"°. '""''^>'^)' ^^^ -'« *° ^^-^ ^een 
 more than usually absent from the flock, and now I feel I 
 
 cannot leave my candidates for confirmation, nor my poor 
 
 SkLi"'of'!h^'""' \ "^^^ ^""'^ ""''' ^"''^^' " [Then, after 
 speaking of the great demands made upon his strengthl- 
 
 But I am very thankful for the sphere of labour opened out 
 
 to me at Mildmay, and for its many interests. Oh ! that God 
 
 may give me grace to occupy till the Master comes." 
 
 His love for this, the last flock committed to his 
 care, was remarkable. " It was really a pretty thing," 
 said one now gone to her rest, " when walking with 
 iiim ,n the poorer parts of his parish, to see the 
 
 bright look of joy that spread over the faces of young 
 and old as they caught his smile of recognition, and to 
 hear the welcomes that greeted him as he looked in 
 at the cottage doors." "Do you remember," says 
 another, " his crossing the street in a very poor place 
 to knock at a door for two tinies who could not reach 
 the knocker, and the little hanging heads of sleeping 
 babies which he lifted into the perambulators as he 
 passed, making the young nurses wheel them to the 
 shady side of the street.?" It would appear like 
 exaggeration to tell how the most degraded yielded 
 to the touch of a sympathy that was too real to seem 
 condescending. " To many of the waifs of life " (we 
 quote the words of a newspaper correspondent) " no 
 human hand was stretched in kindness until he came 
 to the district and taught them what Christianity was." * 
 But no strain upon his thoughts and energies, either 
 private or parochial, ever withdrew Mr. Pennefather's 
 mind from that sympathy with wider interests which 
 was one of his characteristics. On July 31st, 1868, he 
 writes to a friend in Sheffield— 
 
 "Beloved Frienc-Wc had taken about 600 of our 
 children into the country when your letter arrived, so that I 
 could not reply by return of post. I have found some of 
 the little books and a packet of ' Perilous Times,' which I now 
 send.f When I think of a mob infuriated with drink electine 
 niembers for Parliament, my heart trembles; and when I 
 think of superstition creeping over the Church of the land 
 founded by our martyred reformers, ' my soul is vexed within 
 me; and when I know that Christ's true people are spend- 
 ing their time in 'biting and devouring one another,' instead 
 of resisting the great enemy of soul s, ' mine eyes run down 
 
 * "H^Wm^, that he did," said a poor old man when telUng, with streaming 
 eyes, of the kindness he had received. *" streaming 
 
 t Some little publications of his own. 
 
 i 
 
4.26 
 
 S/NS OF THE CHURCH, 
 
 [chap. XVIII. 
 
 with water.' How people can look around them and not 
 discern that the ' times are perilous ' I know not. ;f 60,000 000 
 sterling spent annually in drink, and a few thousands jriven 
 to Gods work I The Lord's children laying up money and 
 increasing capital while His cause is needing support ' Oh ' 
 for grace to humble ourselves under the mighty hand of 
 C^od ! I thank you much for your prayers. Sometimes I 
 am too much like Peter, looking off the face of Jesus and 
 gazing at the waves. But I know that the Lord on hi-h is 
 mightier than the noise of many waters. May I have ^l-ace 
 to live in the power of this truth." 
 
 The sins of the Church stirred his spirit to its 
 depths, and it was matter of surprise to some who 
 heard him speak on this subject that one so habi- 
 tually gentle could rebuke so sharply. Anything like 
 hypocrisy or unreality he could frown from his pre- 
 sence, and his spiritual instincts were so true, that he 
 seldom made a mistake in owning or disowning those 
 who claimed to be brethren in Christ. Perhaps 
 nothmg roused him to such real indignation as a sliaht 
 put upon a child of God because of some infirmity^r 
 inferiority of position. Money hoarded by Christians 
 or spent on woHdly indulgences was another subject 
 on which he spoke so strongly as often to give serious 
 offence, and he would choose the sixth chapter of 
 Amos to read in circles where some courage was 
 needed to expound and enforce its lessons. 
 
 In the summer of this year he spent a few days 
 in the West of England, taking part in some happy 
 meetings of the Lord's people at Clevedon, and drivino- 
 over to Westbury. Here he recalled the days when, as 
 a schoolboy, he used to walk alone over Clifton downs 
 "earnestly crying to God that his life might be use- 
 Jul Going on to his dear friend, Mr. Christopher, 
 
 1868.] 
 
 CONTEMPLATED HALL 
 
 427 
 
 he had opportunities of speaking for his Master at 
 Oxford and elsewhere. In a letter written on his way 
 home he says — 
 
 "We have been with friends near Alresford, where I 
 preached in their iron room, and held an open-air service 
 on the lawn. At Aldershot I had more to do than I ex- 
 pected, as Mr. Saphir, who was announced to give the address 
 at one of the meetings, was prevented by illness." 
 
 On his return to Mildmay, the various summer 
 excursions for school-children, mothers' meetings, 
 &c., were arranged and carried out. Speaking of his 
 church he says, *' We have very happy Sundays, but 
 oh ! I long for yet greater power of the Spirit; I long 
 to be always anointed as with * fresh oil.' " 
 
 It was in the early part of this year that the thought ol 
 a large hall, both for Mission and Conference purposes, 
 had assumed a definite form in Mr. Pennefather's mind. 
 The over-crowded state of the church was a constant 
 source of discomfort, and for some time the thought 
 was entertained of building another church in the 
 southern part of the district, to take its place as a 
 * Chapel of Ease' to St. Jude's. But to this plan 
 there were many objections, not to say insuperable 
 obstacles, and after all it would only meet one of the 
 many needs which were felt on all sides. 
 
 "The church is too small, the mission-hall is too 
 small, the lecture-hall is too small, and is only a 
 temporary structure, have long been the cries both of 
 pastor and congregation." Such was the language of 
 a local paper when the project of the Hall had taken 
 a practical shape ; and to a great extent it was true. 
 Classes as well as congregations had outgrown the 
 space allotted to them, and willing listeners were 
 
428 
 
 CONTEMPLATED HALL, 
 
 [chap, xviir. 
 
 repelled by closed doors. In considering and re-con- 
 sidenng the subject, it was a question with Mr Penne- 
 father whether the local or the more extended inter- 
 ests should predominate ; and after much thought and 
 prayer he determined that it should be the latter 
 1 hough the architect who originally built the church 
 had pronounced it incapable of enlargement, he did 
 not give up the hope that this might one day be 
 effected, and in the meantime it might be God's will 
 that other objects which lay very near his heart should 
 be first attempted. Various plans were cast and 
 re-cast, and the need both of wisdom and money were 
 contmually brought before the Lord. All doubts as 
 to the continuance of the Conferences, so long as God 
 should be pleased to prosper them, had been set at 
 rest, and a more permanent building for the purpose 
 was very desirable. Other objects were clustering 
 around this centre in his own mind, and it may be 
 interestmg to copy a little sketch of these, as found in 
 a pocket-book in his own handwriting. 
 
 Object and Design of the Hall. 
 1st. For the assembling of the Annual Conferences which 
 are des.gned to unite Christians of various denominadon 
 and to stir them up to the work of the Lord °'"'"^"°"«' 
 
 2nd. It IS contemplated to hold free afternoon and even- 
 ing services on Sunday for the non-church going ^otHtL 
 around, to be conducted by ministers or laymen P°P"'^"°" 
 3rd. For children's services, there being at oresent no 
 room or hall in this locality sufficiently la^e tShoTd the 
 numbers desiring to attend. ° "^ 
 
 4th. As a centre where those engaged in God's service 
 
 t^arutir/^^^t"'^ ^"^ Euro^e^may obtai'lnfrma! 
 who are lah^ •''°'i,'^' ""^ "^"-^ ""^^t brethren and sisters 
 
 Ind prayer '"^ '" ^''"■' '"^ ^°' '""'"^l consultation 
 
 1 868.] 
 
 CONTEMPLATED HALL, 
 
 429 
 
 5th. It is proposed to have a large room where social 
 meetings may be held, and those interested in Home or 
 Foreign Missions may hear of such work from the labourers 
 personally engaged in it.'* 
 
 This rough draft of his plans and purposes, how- 
 ever modified and improved when the cherished 
 thought became an accomplished fact, gives a fair 
 view'^of the leading objects with which the hall was 
 erected. Often, when speaking of it, he would thank 
 God for two special features of the work which re- 
 joiced his own heart. First, the fact that one building 
 at least would stand out as a visible witness to the 
 invisible unity of Christ* s Church ;— a home of love, 
 where none would be expected either to join or for- 
 sake any existing denomination, but where each would 
 give in his adhesion to the words, "Grace be with 
 all them that love our Lord Jesus Christ in sincerity." 
 Second, The kindly recognition of God's children from 
 other lands in a place where they might be sure of a 
 kindly welcome and the right hand of Christian fellow- 
 ship.* The first printed paper calling attention to the 
 subject was sent forth in July, and committed in con- 
 tinual prayer to that God who had so signally led him 
 hitherto. Like most of his important undertakings, 
 it was commenced in great weakness of body. Writ- 
 ing in July to an old friend passing through London, 
 he says — 
 
 « Alas ! it is impossible for me to go to you ; and yet how 
 strange that we should be in this great city without meeting I 
 I hav^ been very poorly ; the old creaking ship seemed almost 
 ready to break up. I have suffered so much that I really 
 
 ♦ h Melbourne newspaper sent to England in August 1877 contains an article 
 so strikingly illustrating the success of his aims, though written by one who never 
 knew Mr Pennefatlier, that we insert it in the Appendix. See Appendix E. 
 
430 
 
 VISIT TO WESTMORELAND, [chap, xviil. 
 
 1868.] 
 
 ACCIDENT AT ABERGELE, 
 
 43^ 
 
 felt as if my work were coming to a close. But for the last 
 few days I have been better, and this afternoon I am engaged 
 to speak to the Bible-women at their annual festival. I feel 
 as if it would have done me good to see you, but the Lord 
 numbers the hairs of our head. I do know this ! " 
 
 Another letter takes into consideration the possi- 
 bility of " a short visit to his English home " and a 
 journey to Arndilly, to which he had been "most 
 kindly invited " by Mr. Grant. This, however, was 
 not accomplished. To his dear Westmoreland friends 
 he writes, a little later in the summer— 
 
 "There are so many persons and things depending on 
 us, that if God did not tenderly take us by the hand and 
 Mead us forth' when the right time comes, we should 
 never have courage to face the difficulties or power to 
 overcome them. But He does most lovingly make ' crooked 
 things straight.' When I tell. you that every Sunday (to 
 say nothing of other days) I have eight services to provide 
 for, you will understand some of my perplexities. . . . But 
 we will try (looking up for guidance and grace) to come to 
 you on the 12th of August for a fortnight. ... I never think 
 of you without praising God that your love and kindness is 
 as fresh as when we used to go together over the Fell to 
 Brigsteer. I have been very earnestly pressed to be present 
 at the Perth Conference. I was at the first, but have not 
 been there since. Though I am not very strong, I should like 
 if possible to attend some of the meetings. May the Lord 
 Himself be with us, as we talk together of His kingdom and 
 pray for its advent. Oh ! dear friends, what a tide of holy, 
 happy memories wells up within my soul as I look forward to 
 the joy of being with you I My sweet Susan, Dora, and Jane, 
 and my mother ! all linked with you and Westmoreland in 
 bonds that cannot be broken ! Shall we not, * beside the 
 glassy sea,' amid trees and flowers more brilliant than ever 
 skirted the shores of Rydal, sit together and speak of His 
 love who sought us and kept us even to the end > Sometimes 
 I feel the importance of the present to be so pressing, the 
 work to be done so vast and so fraught with blessed conse- 
 
 #' 
 
 quences, that it seems as though I ought not to call up the 
 past, or even dwell too much upon the future. But there are 
 moments when the mind will act the photograpJier, and 
 picture after picture will present itself! But now I must 
 end. The very God of peace sanctify you wholly." 
 
 The promised visit was happily accomplished, and 
 after a few days spent with Mr. and Mrs. Battersby 
 at Keswick, we find him going on to Scotland. 
 
 " The scenery is very beautiful for some little way after 
 leaving Keswick, the railway crossing and re-crossing one of 
 those clear rocky rivers which are my delight,— so fresh and 
 joyous, seeming to speak with a thousand voices the praises 
 of the Creator." 
 
 It was during Mr. Pennefather's stay at Helme 
 Lodge that the fearful accident occurred to the Irish 
 mail-train, on its way through North Wales, which 
 plunged so many families into mournmg. 
 
 The following letter, written to a friend who was 
 travelling on the Continent, alludes to this startling 
 event — 
 
 " Edinburgh, September ^tK 
 " Your two kind letters have reached us. We were very 
 thankful to hear of you and your party, perhaps more than ever 
 thankful because of that fearful accident near Abergele. It is 
 twenty-nine years since dear Somerset Maxwellf married my 
 sister, and ever since that day we have lived in the closest 
 brotherhood, so that anything affecting him so nearly as 
 does this solemn event must of necessity touch me. Besides, 
 I knew Lord and Lady Farnham, and they were very kind 
 to me when I was first ordained and lived about twelve miles 
 from Farnham. 
 
 * Lord and Lady Farnham, Sir Nicholas Chinnery, and many others, perished 
 in the destruction of a large portion of the train, occasioned by an explosion ot 
 petroleum. A monument in the churchyard at Abergele, North Wales, records 
 the names of the sufferers. 
 
 t Mr. Maxwell, who now became Lord Farnham, had lately married Miss M. 
 A. Delap, and taken a small house near his brother-in-law, kindly assisting him, 
 when in England, in his various labours. 
 
 t. 
 
432 
 
 PERTH CONFERENCE. 
 
 [chap, xviir. 
 
 " The awful results of that accident are surely designed to 
 teach us many lessons. May we have ears to hear the voice 
 of God ! Peasant and peer, servant and master, poor and 
 rich, young and old, all hurried together into eternity ; and the 
 very dust of all so commingled as to be undistingJishable I 
 * Truly the worid passeth away and the lust thereof, but he 
 that doeth the will of God abideth for ever/ Our minds 
 were painfully exercised as to our own plans ; however, God 
 gave His guidance, and we decided to remain at Helme 
 Lodge till the 27th. We then went to Keswick, where C. 
 had a ladies' meeting, and on Saturday we came on to 
 this most comfortable lodging. On Sunday the 30th I 
 preached at the Free Assembly Hall, where there was a very 
 large audience. On Monday we set out for Perth to attend 
 the Conference there, which began on the ist. We remained 
 at Perth until yesterday, when we returned here, as I am 
 again to preach, please God, at the Hall to-morrow. . . We 
 hope the Lord permitting, to settle down again to work at 
 Mildmay on the 12th. We had a happy, and I trust a profit- 
 able, time at Perth." 
 
 Looking forward to this visit to Scotland, he had 
 written — 
 
 " I am very fond of Scotland. Chalmers, M'Cheyne, James 
 Hamilton, William Burns, &c.,— these make that land verv 
 dear to my heart ! Oh ! that their examples may stimu- 
 late me to press forward, and, like them, to count all things 
 but loss for Christ. I often think of dear H.'s words, * Christ 
 and souls ! ' These alone are worth hving for ! " 
 
 At Perth he greatly missed his dear friend Mr. 
 Milne, who had been called to his rest only a few 
 months before, after having suggested the subjects to 
 be considered at the meetings. Mr. Pennefather took 
 his part in the Conference, and then returned to his 
 quiet lodging in Edinburgh. 
 
 His second sermon at the Free Assembly Hall was 
 on a subject which he often dwelt upon— the solemn 
 
 1868.] 
 
 SITE FOR CONFERENCE HALL, 
 
 433 
 
 contrast between the "keeping silence" of Gods 
 present dealing, and the "breaking silence" in the 
 coming future as set forth in the 50th Psalm. In a 
 letter dated ** September 9th, in the railway carriage en 
 route from Carlisle to London," he speaks of an inter- 
 esting visit to his old friend Mr. Head at Rickerby 
 Hall, and *' Bible-readings " in the houses of several 
 friends. These readings were his delight ; and he was 
 so anxious to promote them wherever he went, that 
 absolute rest seemed altogether unattainable, while 
 his unfailing cheerfulness and graciousness of manner 
 made it unlikely that strangers would discover how 
 much demand they were making upon his strength. 
 
 On September i8th he writes again from Mildmay 
 Park— 
 
 " I send you a copy of a letter I have been writing to the 
 members of my flock. Will you pray that God may use it 
 for His own glory. We are pretty well, and very happy in 
 our work. The Lord is mindful of us, and strength comes day 
 by day. Oh ! for a heart to praise Him ! " 
 
 The subject of the proposed Conference Hall was 
 now occupying many of Mr. Pennefather's thoughts, 
 and God's providence seemed leading him on very 
 remarkably step by step. Inquiries had been made 
 in various directions with respect to ground, but for 
 some time without success. The spot on which the 
 Hall was actually to stand had not even been thought 
 of, when a gentleman called at his house very unex- 
 pectedly, to inform him that a plot of nursery-ground 
 held by a neighbour on a long lease might probably 
 be obtained for his purpose. The situation was in 
 many respects desirable, and if God were indeed 
 
 pointing out the appointed site, who could doubt that 
 
 2 E 
 
434 
 
 SITE FOR CONFERENCE HALL. [chap, xviit. 
 
 every obstacle would be removed. But as yet all was 
 very vague. A substantial building could not be erected 
 unless the freehold of the property could be secured, 
 and he did not even know to whom it belonged. It 
 was at this juncture that, as he was going down the 
 street one morning, some large placards caught his eye 
 announcing the freehold of several adjoining properties 
 for sale, and among them this very plot of ground. A 
 member of the Mildmay family (who formerly owned 
 a considerable part of the neighbourhood) had died, 
 and the sale had become necessary. The world would 
 call it a strange coincidence ; the child of God can see 
 his Father's hand and hear his Father's voice in 
 many a so-called " chance." Mr. Pennefather imme- 
 diately requested a man of business to look at the 
 piece of land, and give him his opinion as to the pro- 
 bable value of the freehold. He had at this time 
 ;^500 in the bank, given to him by a lady who was 
 much distressed at the crowded state of the church, 
 and placed it in his hands as a deposit towards any 
 building he might be led to erect. As yet it had not 
 been added to, but when the valuer returned and 
 estimated the freehold of the nursery-ground at ;^500, 
 the unseen Hand seemed to point again in the same 
 direction. *' Go to the auction, then," was Mr. Penne- 
 father's answer, ** and bid for me /500, not a penny 
 more." " I might have added a little," he said in 
 speaking of it afterwards, '' but I did not choose to do 
 it I felt if that were the spot to be obtained for the 
 Lord's work, it would be bought for the ;^5oo. The 
 man went to the auction-mart. The bidding went 
 gradually up from ^100, and it was knocked down to 
 me for the exact sum I had in the bank. I felt it 
 
 1868.] 
 
 
 SITE FOR CONFERENCE HALL, 
 
 435 
 
 was the Lord's doing, and it was marvellous in our 
 eyes!" 
 
 Then came the transactions with the leaseholder, too 
 long to be detailed here. Suffice it to say, that the 
 remaining portion of the lease was valued at i'Soo, and 
 the owner agreed to wait until March 1869, in case 
 Mr. Pennefather should by that time have the money 
 in hand. A few praying friends were engaged to wait 
 upon the Lord concerning it, and he went on with his 
 other multiplied labours in calm confidence that all 
 would be well. The recollections of a friend who shared 
 with deep sympathy the anxieties of his later years 
 bring us up to this time, and may be interesting— 
 
 " Those who knew Mr. Pennefather best well knew ih^ 
 energy of will that seemed so in contrast to his frail and 
 suffering health. In the background of his outer life, and 
 underlying his loving gentleness, was a power of will and stead- 
 fastness of purpose that was marvellous. It went into little 
 things and great things. I remember in those London winters 
 that plunged thousands of the poor into terrible distress, the 
 vigour and spirit with which he faced it all. * No,' he would 
 say, when we begged him to keep a part of at least one day 
 m the week uninterrupted, * No, I cannot; I must not shut my 
 doors.' And at any moment his own great pressure of work 
 could be laid aside to share the pressure and trial of others. 
 
 " It was in November 1868, when we were sitting over his 
 fire, that he told me of his fixed purpose, believing it to be 
 the will of God (of which he had had remarkable tokens) to 
 raise £Zqo to complete the purchase of the ground for the 
 Conference Hall. He well knew that it was but the begin- 
 ning of great and manifold needs, but as we knelt together 
 in prayer on that winter evening, his confidence in God, 
 fixedness of purpose, and calmness of soul, seemed more than 
 ever manifest. 
 
 *'Once, when walking with him at the close of a long and 
 busy day, I drew from him the admission that he was greatly 
 spent, and begged him to go no farther; he changed the 
 
43^ 
 
 RECOLLECTIONS OF FRIENDS. [chap, xviir. 
 
 subject, only saying in a tone I can never forget, ' Truly our 
 fellowship is with the Father and with His Son Jesus Christin- 
 as though the reality of this thought had lifted him above the 
 whole day of weary pressure. It was this calm inner sunshine, 
 which seemed unfailing, that carriedhim through a tide of work, 
 which it was often painful to others to contemplate, never 
 dismayed, but coping with all in the sense of this fellowship." 
 
 It was in the year which we are now reviewing 
 (1868) that Mr. Pennefather was brought in contact 
 with a young man whose interesting history shall be 
 told in his own words — 
 
 "When I first saw that dear saint of God, Mr. Pennefather, 
 I had been living in London about two years, during which 
 time I had been leading a life of carelessness and sin. About 
 the close of the year 1868 I was brought under deep con- 
 viction of my guilt, and, in severe conflict of soul, I was 
 overwhelmed with distressing doubts. By an apparently 
 trifling circumstance I was brought under Mr. Pennefather's 
 ministry, and was at once conscious of a power which seemed to 
 sway my whole soul like a mighty torrent, and this in spite of 
 my terrible doubts— doubts as to the truth of God's Word and 
 even as to the existence of God Himself. That power was the 
 intense reality of the man who spoke, and the intense reality 
 of the man who lived so mightily the truth he proclaimed. 
 Often have I gone into that church with some (as I thought) 
 unanswerable difficulty, and as often have I come away mar- 
 velling at the power of God's truth, set forth with extreme 
 simplicity, but with a force and unction which carried con- 
 viction to my heart. I felt that he was speaking that which 
 he knew, and testifying of that which he had seen : his face 
 beamed with the very light of heaven, and he seemed to 
 speak to us from the presence of Jesus, and as though he 
 himself were in the land of glory. I can never forget the 
 radiance on his brow, or the words of ardent love which 
 flowed forth from his very soul. I was eonviftced dind drawn 
 to Christ— thankfully do I record it. How could I reject that 
 truth which I saw pictured before me in a living man, a lovely 
 example of the religion of Jesus Christ ? I felt that nothing but 
 
 1868.] 
 
 RECOLLECTIONS OF FRIENDS. 
 
 AZ7 
 
 truth could produce such a character, — more than this, there 
 must be a real power, a real person, even God the Holy Ghost. 
 
 " I came to be intimately acquainted with the preacher, and 
 I met with the same testimony in his daily life. I saw him 
 under a variety of circumstances, and without one single 
 exception I found him always in the same spirit — there was 
 the holy life corresponding with the holy teaching. His 
 power of sympathy was wonderful. I well remember going 
 to him one evening with a doubt which was causing me 
 much anguish of soul ; it was touching the righteousness of 
 some of God's most mysterious dealings ; he took my hand 
 in his, and tenderly listened to all I had to say. He did 
 not argue the point, but gently turned my distressed 
 mind to the character and holiness of God, assuring me 
 that in His own time all would be made perfectly clear, — 
 then, with tears for my sorrow, he knelt and poured out his 
 soul to God, who could calm and comfort my troubled spirit. 
 It did more for me than any argument could have done ; 
 and often have I looked back to that evening with thankful- 
 ness when the same thoughts have again distressed me. 
 
 " I was then in business in London, and had to witness for 
 Christ among the companions with whom I had previously 
 sinned. I stood alone as a Christian, and I can never express 
 the wonderful power which the remembrance of Mr. Penne- 
 father's holy life was to me in hours of trial ; it was such a 
 standing witness to the truth of that religion which I was 
 trying to live out before my companions. I had seen what 
 it was to live Christ, and it gave me courage. I feel that 
 I scarcely know the extent to which that life has influenced 
 me. I believe I never shall know it in this world. 
 
 "And now I have left the noisy world of business for the 
 work of the ministry of Christ's Gospel in the Church of 
 England which he loved so well ; and in many moments of 
 conflict, when assailed with the fiery darts of unbelief, that 
 life has stood out like a lighthouse in a stormy sea, and I 
 have learned how unspeakably important it is that ministers 
 of the Gospel should seek to preach Christ by living Christ^ 
 
 It was in the summer of 1867 that Mr. E. Payson 
 Hammond, of America, paid a visit to England, with 
 
438 
 
 SERVICES FOR CHILDREN. [chap, xviir. 
 
 1868.] 
 
 EXTRACTS FROM LETTERS. 
 
 439 
 
 the special object of conducting services for children. 
 Mr. Pennefather took a lively interest in the move- 
 ment, and Mr. H. spent some little time at his house 
 in 1868, holding meetings in St. Jude's schools and 
 elsewhere. After his return to America several 
 earnest friends took up the work, and Mr. J. Spiers 
 solemnly dedicated himself to a lifelong service of 
 love among the little ones. This led to the inaugura- 
 tion of the ** Children s Special Service Mission," which 
 held its first meetings in the elementary schoolrooms 
 at Mildmay Park, where the central service still con- 
 tinues. Mr. Pennefather accepted the office of pre- 
 sident, and took a deep interest in the rapid spread of 
 a work which is now too well known to need further 
 notice here. The band of labourers who devoted 
 themselves to this object had always a special place 
 in his prayers, and some cheering details from Mr. 
 Spiers were among the latest subjects that claimed his 
 attention on earth — 
 
 We may close the records of 1868 with a few of his 
 own letters. The first is to one in whose spiritual 
 welfare he was deeply interested — 
 
 "68 Mildmay Park, August sih, 1868. 
 "My beloved Friend,— I am almost afraid we must 
 have appeared to you unsympathising, but we do deeply 
 feel for you, and know how earnestly you desire to glorify 
 God, and to lead those to whom you are tenderly attached 
 to His feet : we can likewise enter into your great anxiety 
 not needlessly to put a stumbling-block in their way. May 
 God ever give you * the spirit of power and of love and of 
 a sound mind.' I think it would help you to come to a 
 decision in minor viatiers if you could clearly see, first, that 
 there are certain principles of action which should guide a 
 Christian that never will be understood by the world, and, 
 
 secondly, that in following out these principles our nearest 
 and dearest relations must often be wounded, — but that 
 this trial should be taken up as the cross which Christ has 
 appointed for us to carry. Now we must remember that 
 our time, our money, our influence, are not our own but 
 His, and that if we seek to act in the full acknowledgment 
 of this truth, the world will call us 'fools' or * Methodists,' or, 
 what is harder to bear, * people who think no one right 
 but themselves.' Still we must not flinch. . . . You have 
 now come to an age when I think a few firm, loving words 
 to your relatives would clear your way wonderfully. May 
 you be strengthened with all might according to His glorious 
 power, unto all patience and long-suflering with joyfulness ! " 
 
 To Mrs. Crewdson, after the autumn Conference— 
 
 ^^ November 2'jth^ 1868. 
 "Beloved Friend, — Before I came down this morning 
 and found your letter, my thoughts were travelling very 
 warmly towards my old friends in Westmoreland. There 
 is sometimes a peculiar knitting of spirit to spirit, and your 
 note seemed just sent by my Heavenly Father as a response 
 to my yearnings. ... We got through the Conference very 
 successfully and blessedly,— b\xt it is always a very grave 
 responsibility. I am led into deep conflict of soul respecting 
 it before it takes place. The Holy Spirit is quickly grieved 
 
 His Divine love is more easily wounded than any human 
 
 love can be. A worldly element, a * hysty ' anxiety, an 
 unguarded expression, the slightest coldness towards a 
 * little one ' in the family of God,— -the presence of any such 
 atmosphere dissipates the holy fragrance of the Spirit's 
 breath. I have seen a beautiful exotic blighted by the 
 introduction of a cooler temperature than it was accustomed 
 to, and I have felt the refreshing sense of the Holy Spirit's 
 presence withdrawn when an element has entered a meeting 
 which partook of earth rather than of heaven." 
 
 To a friend sojourning at Montreux — 
 
 "Though I have only twice visited Switzerland, yet it 
 seems like an old and familiar friend, and the beautiful Lake of 
 
 / 
 
440 
 
 EXTRACTS FROM LETTERS, [chap, xviir. 
 
 iS6S.] 
 
 CLOSE OF THE YEAR. 
 
 Geneva comes constantly before me as a vision of cherished 
 associations. How grandly the Savoy Alps sweep down into 
 the lake facing Montreux, while the Swiss side, with its 
 orchards and wooded heights, seems to smile at the proud 
 dignity of its opposite neighbours. While looking at those 
 glorious mountains tossing their crests into the air, I like 
 to think what beauty and majesty have sprung out of 
 destruction and confusion. What throes of nature must 
 have upheaved those stupendous ranges! And when we 
 have reached our Heavenly Home, shall we not then praise 
 the power and love which could turn the shadow of death 
 into the morning, and bring everlasting blessedness out of 
 all the trials and temptations through which we have been 
 called to pass. I wonder what our millennial earth will be, 
 and the city of the Great King ! I like to think that all 
 loveliness and grandeur is the product of the mind of God. 
 It was all there before He spake the word and that mind 
 was made apparent in creation. . . . And then to remember 
 that this God, the maker of all these mighty works, the 
 originator of all this beauty, is my God for ever and ever, 
 He will be my guide even unto death I " 
 
 441 
 
 who has bid me to go and work in His vineyard (I who 
 have no strength and no resources), just because His < strength 
 IS made perfect m weakness r and such thoughts give me 
 courage to go on my way. . . . Beloved frienii, I wlnt^o 
 thank you for your love and kindness to us, ;ndTo thS 
 precious sister who is now with Jesus. ... And now 1868 is 
 
 ^w\ u i ^r ^^'""^ ^^' sustained us, and the ^race 
 which abides in Christ Jesus for us, continues as fresh as ever 
 
 f2Z\ "" 'f ^ r' '^"^^^^^ ^^°- --^ ^' His Divine 
 
 Monday evening. It was really a sight which filled my 
 heart with grateful praise I " ^ 
 
 To a member of his cono^reeation — 
 
 ** Christmas Eve, 1868. 
 
 " I want you to have this wee note as a token of my love, 
 for ' silver and gold have I none, but such as I have give I 
 unto thee.* 
 
 " Some happy thoughts passed through my mind this 
 morning, while recalling the stable at Bethlehem. I 
 thought what weakness was there, and yet what power ! 
 A helpless Babe, of lowly parentage (whose infant cry 
 seemed to tell of sorrow), and yet the glory beaming from 
 that manger called forth from seraphs their loudest hymns 
 of praise, and has lighted up unnumbered souls with holy 
 gladness. I thought of His poverty and of His inexhaustible 
 riches, of His unknown and unfrequented abode (unfre- 
 quented save by the humblest sons of men), and then of a 
 redeemed Church owing all her eternal happiness to His 
 humiliation. . . . And then I thought, it was this same One 
 
( 442 ) 
 
 CHAPTER XIX. 
 1 869- 1 8 70. 
 
 Extracts from public journals — Services at St. Jude*s Church — Death 
 of the Rev. C. Hargrove — Subscriptions for Conference Hall — 
 Cottage at Richmond — Memorial-stone of the Hall laid — Confer- 
 ence — Recollections of one then present — Letters — Death of an aunt 
 — Journey to the Continent — Commemoration meeting — Illness — 
 Visit to Buxton — First Conference in the Hall — Cheering circum- 
 stance — Accident and deliverance — Attendance on the dying bed 
 of Rev. W. B. Mackenzie— Visitation of the sick — Recollections of 
 the Rev. T. Phillips. 
 
 nPHE crowded services and manifold activities con- 
 ^ nected with Mildmay Park had by this time 
 attracted considerable attention, and on-lookers gave 
 forth their impressions in the pages of serials and reli- 
 gious newspapers. These were sometimes so truthful 
 and graphic that we are induced to gather out a few of 
 the observations. The first is from a number of the 
 ** Christian Times" in November 1867. At the close 
 of a detailed history of the parochial machinery and 
 institutions of St. Jude's, the writer says — 
 
 " We have left ourselves but little space to describe the 
 character of Mr. Pennefather's pulpit ministrations. Those 
 who are accustomed to hear the Gospel from his lips will 
 need no description of the peculiar charm which characterises 
 his simple declaration of the truth as it is in Jesus, and those 
 who have never heard him preach will hardly be able to 
 realise the power he wields from any verbal description, 
 however accurate. 
 
 1869.] 
 
 EXTRACTS FROM PUBLIC JOURNALS, 
 
 443 
 
 " In listening to him the hearer feels that a man is speak- 
 ing who lives very near to God, and who appears to be 
 talking to God at the same time as he is speaking to man. 
 The way of salvation is so clearly stated that a child can 
 take in the preacher's meaning. His encouragements ad- 
 dressed to believers are those which he has found full of 
 sustaining power to his own soul. When he speaks of the 
 Saviour, now with a smile and now with a tear, his heart is 
 evidently welling up with sympathy with Him of whom he 
 speaks." 
 
 The next fragment is from another paper, and evi- 
 dently of later date. A list of institutions, &c., is 
 attempted, concluding with the words — 
 
 " Innumerable works of usefulness, in short, to which no 
 name can be given, because they are done in secret by those 
 who never let their left hand know what their right hand doeth. 
 Mr. Pennefather is essentially a worker, and go to his church 
 when you will, his watchword is, *Work while it is called 
 to-day.' His sermons to us have appeared at times as if 
 specially addressed to an earnest band of co-workers, who 
 need encouragement under their disappointments, and guid- 
 ance in their difficulties. Such was his discourse last Sunday 
 morning, when, from the text, * We do not well ; this is a day 
 of good-tidings, and we hold our peace,' he applied the 
 speech of the four lepers in the siege of Samaria to the 
 hearts and consciences of those who had received the Gospel, 
 but were doing nothing to make known the glad tidings to 
 others. While this was the main point of the sermon there 
 were many things in it which showed that Mr. Pennefather 
 is a reader of the newspaper as well as of his Bible. By 
 vivid illustrations and allusions he portrayed the siege of 
 Samaria through the siege of Paris, and as we heard of spies 
 and deserters, of fears within and triumphs without, we were 
 made to realise that, while circumstances were different, 
 humanity was the same. 
 
 " But, as we have said, the history was only a basis on which 
 to found a fervent appeal to Christian workers to have faith 
 in the unlimited power of God, to beware of the sin of 
 
 r 
 
 I 
 
<\ 
 
 444. 
 
 CHURCH SERVICES. 
 
 [chap. XIX. 
 
 shortening the arm of Omnipotence, and, amidst the most 
 distressing circumstances, to do right, and leave results to 
 Him who never leaves His servants to go a warfare at their 
 own charges. ... Mr. Pennefather's preaching is, if we may 
 use the expression, pastoral preaching. He knows the grief 
 of the widow, the perplexity of the man of business, the 
 temptations of the retired City man, the perils of youth, the 
 tears and smiles of childhood. He has a word from God's 
 Book for every class, and for almost every conceivable 
 character. In addition to the Church services, he offers two 
 • extempore prayers, one before and one after the sermon, in 
 which the special wants of his congregation are spread before 
 the throne of grace. Many a time during the sermon he 
 inclines you to believe that he would be more at home if he 
 could break off and ask his friends to join with him in prayer. 
 His style is fervent but quiet, generally colloquial, but always 
 good ; of what is generally deemed pulpit eloquence you have 
 nothing; rhetoric, oratory, or action are never called into 
 requisition." 
 
 "The preacher seems always," says another, "to be feed- 
 ing on the Bread of Life himself while he is breaking it to 
 others." 
 
 We have turned aside for a moment from the history 
 of efforts and enterprises to give these impartial testi- 
 monies to the Sunday ministrations at St. Jude's, be- 
 cause it was in the services of the sanctuary that the 
 " high level " of spiritual power was maintained. It 
 was there that pastor and people seemed to find green 
 pastures and still waters, and many a worker, worn 
 and faint-hearted on Saturday night, was strong to 
 
 labour when the church-doors closed on the Sabbath 
 eveninof. 
 
 " There was always a sense of deep solemnity and earnest 
 adoration, as the roll of response and thanksgiving rose from 
 that densely-crowded congregation," says one who often 
 united with them, "and the pastor never seemed to forget 
 
 y 
 
 k 
 
 1869.] 
 
 CHURCH SERVICES. 
 
 445 
 
 that the worshippers above veil their faces* while they cry, 
 ' Holy, Holy, Holy, Lord God Almighty.* There was a 
 remarkable blending of this realisation of God's majesty and 
 holiness with an atmosphere of childlike confidence and 
 access within the veil. It is long since I worshipped at St. 
 Jude's; but I scarcely ever go into God's house even now 
 without recurring to those days, and calling to mind the tone 
 oihis voice and the heavenly radiance of his countenance as 
 he said * Our Father.' No one could fail to be struck with 
 the entire self-forgetfulness, which is the consequence of being 
 absorbed in the glory of another." 
 
 "Do any accuse Church services of lifeless formality.?" 
 says one who had been a member of a different communion. 
 "Would that they could have worshipped with us there, 
 where cold hearts grew warm and long silent lips took up 
 the notes of praise. All seemed instinct with life. The Lord 
 was there ! We knew it, and blessed and magnified His holy 
 
 name." 
 
 "Never does a Good Friday come round," to quote the 
 words of another, " but we recall our former delight in know- 
 ing that he would surely on that day read the Gospel. The 
 clear ring and melody of his voice was peculiar,* and my 
 husband and I went by choice into the farthest gallery of 
 the church, *just,' as we said, 'to hear that voice in perfection.' 
 I shall never forget his reading, but it was not its power and 
 pathos that was its chiefest beauty after all ; it was just that 
 his wJiole soid\^d.s in what he read, and he seemed to compel 
 those who heard him to stop and wonder, and adore with him 
 a crucified Redeemer." 
 
 It was early in 1869 that the Rev. Charles Har- 
 o-rove, known and loved by many, was called to his 
 rest. After a life of much conflict and sorrow, he died 
 very peacefully at the house of his beloved friends Mr. 
 
 ♦ How many can remember the frequent quotation, '• And veil their faces^MQ 
 they cry, * Thrice Holy to the Lord most High, thrice Holy to our King ! ' " 
 
 + His voice, both in speaking and singing, had a power of making itself heard 
 above and apart from other voices, in the largest assemblies. 
 
446 
 
 DEA TH OF REV. C. HARGROVE. [chap. xix. 
 
 1869.] 
 
 MONEY FOR CONFERENCE HALL. 
 
 447 
 
 and Mrs. Robert Howard of Tottenham, surrounded 
 by all that the most thoughtful affection could do to 
 soothe and comfort his last hours. His name will 
 recall to the memories of not a few, seasons of Scrip- 
 ture study and wise practical teaching from house to 
 house, which was the chosen occupation of his later 
 years. In his younger days he had been the Rector of 
 an Irish parish, but conscientious scruples had led to 
 his detaching himself from the communion of the 
 Church of England, though he continued to maintain 
 the closest friendship \vith many of her clergy. As 
 time went on, some of his former difficulties were 
 removed, and it was his dying request that he micrht 
 be buried according to the funeral rites of the Church 
 of England, and that William Pennefather should per- 
 form the service. Wheh this long-loved friend went 
 to see him, he said, alluding to their many conversa- 
 tions on ecclesiastical subjects, " All my religion now 
 is summed up in one word, yesus ! " In a letter dated 
 February 12th, Mr. Pennefather gives an account of the 
 funeral, and adds — 
 
 "Our beloved brother wished the hymn to be sun- which 
 begins — '^ 
 
 ' Great Captain of Salvation, 
 We bless Thy glorious name, 
 Of death and hell the Victor, 
 With all their power and shame.' 
 
 « He had proved the truth of the words, for even when the 
 weakness of death was upon him, he called out, with an 
 energy vvh.ch seemed almost too much for the feeble frame. 
 
 Among other words of love and counsel to be conveyed by 
 h^ son to his many friends were these : ' There are divers 
 
 do gfnStrS' "" ''"''' ''' '""'"^ ^^°'^ 'l"^^''^"^ '"^^^ 
 
 It was during this same month of February that 
 Mr. Pennefather received the gift of ;^iooo, to start 
 the subscription list for the building of the Hall. It 
 came from a servant of God who had not been in 
 the habit of helping him, but who was the one raised 
 up by God to be the main instrument in forward- 
 ing his present desire. Telling the tale himself, he 
 says — 
 
 " On the 5th of February (not known to be my birthday 
 by the writer) I received a letter from a gentleman who had 
 never been at one of our Conferences, but had been led to 
 take a peculiar interest in the building of the Hall, enclosing 
 a cheque for £ looo." 
 
 The receipt of this money brought with it a very 
 blessed sense of God's gracious approval. It spoke 
 with a voice that seemed to say, " Go forward," and 
 he heard and obeyed. That generous friend after- 
 wards increased his gift to ;^5ooo,* and another liberal 
 donation from one who had often cheered him on his 
 way made it possible to take out the contract. 
 
 On May 26th he writes — 
 
 ** This is an important day to me, the contract for the Hall 
 is to be signed. We cannot as yet attempt the house adjoin- 
 ing. ... I feel (more than I can express) the solemnity of 
 the fact that God has so inaiiifestly stretched out His arm for 
 us in this matter. Oh ! that we may have grace to rise to 
 the privilege of being fellow-workers with Him ! Thank 
 you much for the help for emigrants — the books, &c." 
 
 Mr. Pennefather's lifelonor habit of enlistino- his 
 praying friends to plead with the Lord for each new 
 
 ♦ The only stipulations insisted upon by the donor were— "That the building 
 should be very plain, none of the money being expended in mere ornament ; and 
 that while the Hall should be placed eventually in the hands of Trustees, Mr. 
 Tennefather should retain the sole management during his life. 
 
 
448 
 
 UNITED PR A YER. 
 
 [chap. XIX. 
 
 work which he undertook was not forgotten on this 
 occasion. We give one specimen. To the members 
 of the Association of Female Workers he thus writes— 
 
 "68 Mildmay Park, May 26M, 1869. 
 
 "My dear Friends,— I bless God for the Association of 
 Female Workers. There is a mighty power in associated 
 labour. When such an agency is animated and guided by 
 God's Spirit, there is no work for the glory of the Lord that 
 may not be accomplished. Go forward, then, in dependence 
 upon the Mighty One, and *the worm Jacob shall thresh 
 the mountains ! ' * Out of weakness made strong,' is the 
 condensed history of the Church of God. 
 
 •' My immediate object in writing to you now is that 1 want 
 your prayers. Our ' Mildmay Conference Hall,' intended to 
 be a centre of light and mission effort in the North of London, 
 and as^ a rally ing-place for 'all who love our Lord Jesus 
 Christ in sincerity,' is to be immediately begun. The building 
 will contain classrooms underneath, and a large hall for 
 addresses and for Conferences. It will hold 2500 persons. 
 Will you ask God — 
 
 "(i.) To guide and bless the builder and his men, giving 
 them all needed skill, and His Holy Spirit to fill their hearts! 
 
 " (2.) Ask God to prepare the people of this district to 
 make use of the Hall when erected. 
 
 " (3.) To fit me and my fellow-workers for the vast field of 
 usefulness that the Hall is likely to open out before us. 
 
 " (4.) Pray that the Conference which is to be held, God 
 willing, in October, may be the means of great spiritual 
 blessing to this neighbourhood and to the Church of Christ 
 
 " Believe me to remain, your affectionate brother in Christ, 
 
 " W. Pennefather." 
 
 " I never shall forget,'' said a young man who was 
 an active helper in his schools, " his joy on hearing 
 that a few of us Sunday-school teachers had banded 
 together to pray, in our own homes, every morning at 
 eight o'clock, for the Conference Hall and all connected 
 with it during the time it was building." " I have a 
 
 1869.] 
 
 LAST MEETING WITH MR. DALLAS, 
 
 449 
 
 dear old woman in my flock," he says himself, **who 
 is more than ninety-two years of age, and I enlist her 
 prayers for all the work I have in hand. We have 
 much happy intercourse concerning the things of the 
 kingdom, and I shall bless God throughout eternity 
 that I have known her." Lists of petitions were often 
 sent to that aged saint, to be remembered day and 
 nighjt before the Lord. 
 
 A letter about the same time talks of his '' laree and 
 happy meeting of communicants," and of a visit paid 
 to his dear old friend Mr. Dallas. They had not 
 met for some years, when Mr. Pennefather received 
 a letter urgently requesting that he and Mrs. Penne- 
 father would meet him in the Strand, to talk over 
 fresh plans of missionary effort in Spain. " I always 
 send for busy people when I want a thing done," was 
 his greeting, ** and whatever amount of work you have 
 in hand, I shall take no denial in this matter." He 
 then told out his deep anxieties on behalf of Spain, 
 and talked over his plans, but it was too palpable, from 
 his evident physical weakness, that the veteran soldier 
 would never enter on a new campaign. The scheme 
 was not matured, and the friends never met again. 
 
 A small cottage at Richmond had taken the place 
 of the one at Ridge, and Mr. Pennefather was anxious 
 for a little quiet time there, in order that he might 
 invite small parties of his communicants to spend a day 
 with him, with the view of becoming more intimately 
 acquainted with their spiritual history. A succession 
 of these happy gatherings greatly rejoiced his heart 
 during the early summer, and other friends were 
 invited from time to time to join in prayer for London 
 and its suburbs. 
 
 2 F 
 
m^^ 
 
 450 
 
 COTTAGE AT RICHMOND. 
 
 [chap. xrx. 
 
 Some time after, a poor woman on her dying bed, 
 when telHng the lady who visited her of her bright 
 prospect of heavenly joy, added, " The very happiest 
 earthly day I ever spent was when twelve of us com- 
 municants of St. Jude's went down to Mr. Penne- 
 father's house at Richmond." 
 
 A little later he says — 
 
 " Farm Elms, Richmond, July i ^th. 
 ** I do not consider myself away from Mildmay, as I go up 
 frequently, but I am trying to get a few of our workers down 
 here for rest and conversation. Last week I had all my 
 curates and about sixteen others, and we had much prayer for 
 London. To-day we are to have some of our mothers in 
 Richmond Park, and on Friday a few of the City Mission- 
 aries who work in the North of London. Owing to recent 
 railway arrangements this place is peculiarly accessible." 
 
 In the same letter he speaks of some dear friends who 
 were somewhat hampered by worldly possessions — 
 
 " I wish they had the decision (as I believe they have the 
 desire) to use them only for the glory of God, but it is 
 difficult (with worldly relations thinking such and such 
 things essential) for the child of God to plunge right through 
 the waves of man's opinion, straight on to the promised 
 land ! But the Lord's grace is sufficient for any circum- 
 stances." 
 
 It was a point he frequently insisted on, both in 
 public and private, that it is our duty and privilege, 
 as *' kings and priests to God," to rule over circum- 
 stances. He looked upon it as one of the most 
 marked distinctions between the Church and the 
 world. " The world,'* he would say, " is the sport of 
 circumstances ; the child of God has circumstances 
 under his feet. All power in heaven and earth is 
 given to Christ as the Head of the Church, and there- 
 
 1869.] 
 
 MEMORIAL STONE. 
 
 451 
 
 fore the Church has all power at her command. 
 Never make an excuse of your circumstances." 
 On July 22nd he writes to Dr. Elwin— 
 
 " Thankful as I am to receive money for the Hall, I can 
 truly say your loving note was to me far more than gold. 
 .... I do from the very depth of my soul desire to love 
 all who love the Lord Jesus Christ. In striving to show that 
 love I have incurred much blame from Christian relations 
 and friends, and have had a sore cross to carry ; but if I can 
 bear it meekly for my Master's sake, I shall rejoice by and 
 by with exceeding joy. . . . On the 4th of August at eleven 
 o'clock the first stone (so called) of the Hall will be laid. 
 Can you be present 1 There is to be no great ceremonial, 
 simply prayer, singing, and a few words from myself, then 
 a prayer-meeting at the Missionary Training Home. You 
 would be a great help to me." 
 
 Mr. Pennefather was desirous that the little meet- 
 ing on the 4th of August should be a representative 
 one, and it cheered him much that a Christian bro- 
 ther from the West Indies, a Bishop of the Moravian 
 Church, was present on the occasion. 
 
 We must pass over much that is local and parochial, 
 but one history belonging to this years Conference 
 may be interesting, as a sample of the many cases of 
 conversion connected more or less directly with those 
 seasons of spiritual blessing. It is told by a gentle- 
 man now residing in a distant colony. 
 
 *' How well I remember the first time I saw Mr. Penne- 
 father on his entering the iron room in King Henry Street 
 to preside at the Conference of 1869. At that time I was 
 utterly careless about religion, and such a thing as attending 
 meetings to hear the Gospel on a week-night I had not 
 done for years before ; but to please a dear sister and her 
 friend I promised to go for just one evening to the Mildmay 
 
i 
 
 452 
 
 RECOLLECTIONS OF A FRIEND. [chap. xix. 
 
 1S69.] 
 
 RECOLLECTIONS OF A FRIEND, 
 
 453 
 
 Conference. What struck me first was the solemnity of the 
 silent prayer. To witness so many hundreds bowed in 
 solemn silence before the throne of grace, pleading specially 
 for the unconverted then present, filled me with'' awe, and 
 made me feel decidedly uncomfortable. I wondered whether 
 /was to be really converted that night. To pray for such a 
 thing was impossible. I did not wish it. I cannot say that 
 any of the addresses in particular came home to my heart, 
 but the whole meeting affected me much. I left the Hall 
 anxious and miserable about my soul. Till late in the 
 morning I wrestled in prayer to God for pardon and peace 
 without obtaining an answer, and, quite worn out, at 4 A.M. I 
 lay down to rest. On rising, I again sought the Lord in 
 prayer, and read part of Mark xi. ; verses 24, 25, and 26 
 arrested my attention, 'Therefore I say unto you, what 
 thmgs soever ye desire when ye pray, believe that ye receive 
 them, and ye shall have them. And when ye stand praying, 
 forgive, if ye have ought against any; that your Father 
 also which is in heaven 'may forgive you your trespasses. 
 But if ye do not forgive, neither will your Father which is in 
 heaven forgive your trespasses.' These verses seemed to 
 put the whole thing plainly before me. I had simply to 
 believe. I //^^what I was seeking for, but first there must 
 be a heart willing to forgive others, if I expected to be for- 
 given. 
 
 " Here ensued a sharp short conflict, for I had cherished 
 an unforgiving spirit for some years towards one who I 
 considered had done me an injury. Thank God, He gave 
 me the strength to say, ' I will forgive him.' Again my eye 
 rested on verse 24. The Blessed Spirit took of the thin-s 
 of Christ and showed them to me. Quick as the lightning 
 flash the glorious truth came home to me, that through 
 Jesus I had what I desired, pardon and peace ; and, blessed 
 be His glorious Name ! that wondrous assurance has nevei 
 left me. Joy filled our hearts that morning at breakfast, 
 and all the day. in the midst of business and amongst 
 worldly companions, I kept saying to myself, ' Is it reatly 
 true > Am I saved for ever > Shall I not fall away .? ' I 
 had unwillingly promised to attend one evening ; how gladly 
 now I went the next two nights ! With what different feelin-s 
 
 I listened to all that was said, and how precious the solemn 
 time of prayer d^nd praise was now to my rejoicing heart ! 
 
 "What blessed seasons those Conferences have been to 
 me since, how refreshing and how strengthening, I cannot 
 express. Their whole atmosphere seemed so heavenly, one 
 felt in the presence of the King towards whom the beloved 
 president so dearly loved to draw out our hearts. 
 
 " Never after that did I miss attending one of the Con- 
 ferences until prevented by serious illness. But I cannot 
 write what I feel, in recalling Mr. Pennefather's memory, of 
 all the blessings I received through him. It is simply im- 
 possible. To God's grace be all the glory ! " 
 
 In the same letter virhich gives this record, the 
 writer adds — 
 
 "Since our arrival in South Africa, it has been a great 
 pleasure to meet with some who had known him or attended 
 the Conferences. It was with the deepest interest I heard 
 from Mr. Buchanan of Lovedale, that when travelling in the 
 interior of the Natal Colony he had met with two young 
 men who spoke with the warmest affection of Mr. Penne- 
 father, and both traced their conversion to his instrumentality. 
 How many will be found when the Lord makes up His 
 jewels who were led by his means out of darkness, without 
 his being in the least aware that he had any particular influ- 
 ence over them." 
 
 This unconsciousness of the power he was exercis- 
 ing was remarkable. A clerical friend writes, ** He 
 had a wonderful way of influencing for good all who 
 came in contact with him. Without any apparent effort 
 to teach others, he seemed to be always recommending 
 the Gospel, and it was so natural for him to be at work, 
 that he often reminded me of those words — * Who do 
 Thy will, and know it not.' " " It was a means of grace 
 to be for five minutes in his company," was the remark 
 of another who only saw him occasionally. 
 
454 
 
 EXTRACTS FROM LETTERS. 
 
 [chap. XIX. 
 
 From a letter written by Mr. Pennefather about 
 this time we extract a characteristic sentence. He had 
 very strong views on the position held by believers 
 as Christ's ** brothers and sisters," and the Lord's per- 
 sonal recognition of any kindness or unkindness shown 
 to them. 
 
 He is speaking of the death of a Christian friend— 
 
 " How happy, amidst our tears, to think of his spirit with 
 Jesus 1 . . . The last time that I remember to have had some 
 happy intercourse with him was at a special service at 
 Manchester, where I spoke at the Corn Exchange. He stood 
 by me and encouraged me with words of kindness. They 
 were as cold water to a thirsty soul, and my Heavenly 
 Father did not fail to mark down in His ' book of remem- 
 brance ' this act of kindness to His unworthy servant." 
 
 The following extract is evidently an answer to one 
 of the many inquiries addressed to him on ecclesias- 
 tical questions — 
 
 "By no means urge any one to go to the Lord's Supper 
 in a church where these practices are adopted (as you 
 describe them); but go once yourself to see whether the 
 report be true, and if the bread and wine be elevated for 
 adoration, do not partake of the communion there. 
 
 " Such an act I believe to be idolatrous, and it was to pro- 
 test against this teaching that Ridley, Latimer, Cranmer, 
 and many others laid down their lives. I very much fear 
 we are coming to a solemn crisis in the history of the Church 
 of England, and may be on the brink of very grave events. 
 . . . Again, I say, on no accotmt receive the elements from 
 one who has adored them as God." 
 
 The following, written in 1869, during a few days 
 of absence, tells his unceasing yearning over his own 
 flock. 
 
 " Though I am happy here, my heart is at Mildmay, and 
 any tidings from thence have a peculiar interest for me. Oh ! 
 
 1870.] 
 
 EXTRACTS FROM LETTERS. 
 
 455 
 
 may it yet become as the garden of the Lord, where the 
 children of God reflect the image of their Father, zv.wislove 
 and where men and women are daily added to the Church 
 of Christ ' I do feel we have many and great privileges, and 
 
 we ought to be shining as lights in a dark world We 
 
 have just been talking of the time when the groanmg creation 
 shall be delivered, when man's restoration shall be earths 
 restitution. If her scenes and flowers are lovely now in these 
 days of humiliation, what will the beauty of creation be 
 when brought by Divine power into perfect harmony with a 
 holy and glorified Church ! Perhaps we are nearer than we 
 suppose to the * manifestation of the sons of God. 
 
 Speakincr of a valued friend for whom (then on her 
 dying bedf prayer had been asked at the late Confer- 
 ence, he says— 
 
 '« We are feeling much the death of dear Mrs. Bowen 
 Thompson. It was at Barnet she made up her mind to go 
 to Syria, and it was from thence the letter was written to 
 the Syrian women, that was translated into Arabic, and 
 made by God such a blessing to the stricken ones after the 
 massacres. There are three of our young women helping in 
 the schools there, and Mrs. Thompson and her work have 
 always been very near our hearts. We have been mournmg 
 another dear friend, Mr. Rew, who was linked with the Spanish 
 work, and was a member of my congregation at Barnet. 
 
 During the spring of 1870 the building of the Hall 
 made such progress as to encourage the hope *at the 
 next Conference might be held within its walls. Diffi- 
 culties and complications had arisen from time to time, 
 but they were wonderfully overruled, and many thanks- 
 crivincrs Were mingled with the prayer which arose each 
 morntng for that building as Mr. Pennefather looked 
 out on Tt from his bedroom window. As soon as the 
 rubbish could be sufficiently cleared away from one of 
 the basement-rooms, and before the flooring was put 
 down, a prayer-meeting was assembled there, and 
 
 f 1 
 
456 
 
 DEATH OF LADY L. DE SPAEN, [chap. xix. 
 
 very earnest were the pleadings for all the various 
 objects which connected themselves with its future. 
 " The Holy Catholic Church " had been a word full of 
 meaning to Mr. Pennefather from his boyhood, and 
 now he seemed to grasp with exceeding joy the 
 thought of divers nationalities and churches, Jew and 
 Gentile, sending their representatives to that Hall. 
 
 In the month of May, yielding to the entreaties of 
 friends, and aware of the great difficulty of ceasino- 
 from work anywhere in England, Mr. Pennefather 
 agreed to spend a few weeks on the Continent ; but 
 when just on the eve of starting, he and his wife were 
 summoned to the dying bed of one to whom they were 
 tenderly attached. Writing to a friend to explain the 
 change in his plans, he says — 
 
 " Our Heavenly Father has indeed led us by a way that 
 we knew not, but it has been ' a right way/ On reaching 
 
 Tunbridge Wells, we found dear Lady L well-nicrh 
 
 across the river. It seemed as though the angels were there 
 and the King was waiting for His faithful servant. We 
 arrived about 3.30, and at 4.30 she was with Jesus. ... On 
 Saturday, while the sun shone brightly here, and while a 
 brighter glory surrounded her there, we laid the tent down 
 close by dear Admiral King's grave, and there, where Mrs 
 K. and our dear M. lie, the body waits the resurrection 
 mornmg. * To die is gain ! ' We do not yet understand it 
 We soon shall." 
 
 In another letter, dated June 8th-^ 
 
 " I think of that beloved aunt with exceeding thankful- 
 ness. Her simple confidence in God's Word, her unworidly 
 life, her fervent love to Christ and His saints, animates me 
 while striving to * follow on to know the Lord.' * She bein^ 
 dead yet speaketh.' " * ^ 
 
 * Lady Louisa de Spaen, alluded to here, was sister to Admiral Kinjr. She 
 was married when very young, and left a widow in a forei.cjn land at the age 
 
 1870.] 
 
 VISIT TO THE CONTINENT. 
 
 457 
 
 The journey to the Continent did not recruit his 
 strength as successfully as had been hoped ; and various 
 letters tell of "times of great suffering." We must 
 only insert one note written by himself to a friend at 
 home. Others were sent to his congregation at large, 
 and circulated among them. Declining strength seemed 
 always to stimulate his desires to work while it was 
 called to-day. The following is from Zurich — 
 
 " My wife has written, but I must add a line of grateful 
 love and thanks for your letters. They are very welcome in 
 this distant land. Perhaps we never more fully realise the 
 communion of saints than when we are separated from those 
 we love, and theji call to mind the fact that o?ie Father 
 listens to our cry, one Spirit animates us, and one Saviour is 
 ever present in fulfilment of His promise, * Lo ! I am with 
 you always, even to the end of the world.' We have, thank 
 God, been preserved on our way, but I have not been well. 
 Long journeys are not in themselves beneficial. But we are 
 resting now amid scenes of great beauty, and both soul and 
 body are refreshed. I wish I could share the sight of the 
 Alps with all those I love. By and by we shall perhaps 
 wander from world to world (in obedience to our Lord's 
 commands), and behold wondrous exhibitions of His creative 
 power and love. 
 
 "We had four visitors at our family prayer last night, and 
 hope to have more to-night. I am thinking often of the poor 
 of London, and the sick ones in their hot rooms. May God 
 sustain His own children moment by moment in their varied 
 circumstances of trial." 
 
 of nineteen. For some years she continued to live in a Continental town, sur- 
 rounded by worldly influences ; but on her return to England was led by grace 
 to ** receive the kingdom of God as a little child." Henceforth her course was 
 one remarkable for its simplicity of faith and Christian consistency. Detaching 
 herself from all the surroundings with which she had been familiar, she devoted 
 her time to the education of her only child and to a ministry of love among the 
 poor and ignorant, which was continued to the end of her long life. Wherever 
 she resided she was known as the friend of young and old, superintending Sunday- 
 schools, teaching Bible-classes, and carrying words of comfort to the sick and 
 dying. ** Many shall rise up and call her blessed." 
 
458 
 
 COMMEMORA TION MEETING. [chap. xix. 
 
 It was during this journey that war was pro- 
 claimed between France and Germany, and the signs 
 of preparation on every hand pressed upon his spirit. 
 To the same friend he says — '* May we have under- 
 standing of the times ! I feel them to be very, very 
 solemn." 
 
 He returned in July, and finding the Hall suffi- 
 ciently advanced, made arrangements for a commemora- 
 tion meeting on August 4th, the anniversary of the 
 day when the memorial stone was laid. But at this 
 meeting he was not able to be present. The effects 
 of a chill in crossing the Channel, and various 
 anxieties on reaching home, took such hold upon him 
 that he was laid down with a severe feverish attack, 
 succeeded by gout, a few days after his return. It 
 was a very great disappointment to him, when he was 
 looking forward so eagerly to his ' happy Sundays ' 
 and other meetings with his congregation ; and he was 
 still more distressed when, after several weeks of 
 confinement to his room, his physician ordered a 
 further absence from home. He writes from Buxton t^ 
 a very old and attached friend — 
 
 " I cannot send you a Conference letter yet, for it is not 
 printed, but, please God, you shall have one sooji. Mean- 
 while I will give you a parochial report instead ! Though 
 I know that parish matters are not much in your line,* yet I 
 do know, too, that your faithful love flows out even to a 
 parish minister, and never wearies in cheering him along 
 his way. God bless you for all your kindness and affection. 
 You don't know what a comfort it is to me in this changing 
 world. Remember it is twenty-four years since we talked 
 and prayed together at Schwalbach. Friday last was our 
 wedding-day, and you don't forget ho\x you are linked in my 
 
 1S70.] 
 
 CONFERENCE IN THE NEW HALL. 
 
 459 
 
 
 * This friend was not a member of ihc Church of Ensland. 
 
 thoughts with my marriage and all its blessings. Dr. P. was 
 most anxious that I should try the Buxton waters, so we came 
 here last Wednesday, and shall, please God, remain till the 
 28th. It is very, very inconvenient to me to leave home 
 again, but it seemed right to try what was so strongly urged 
 upon me, and God ivill bless, even if the waters do not cure 
 me. * His love floweth on free and full as a river, and His 
 mercy endureth for ever and ever.' " 
 
 Just before going to Buxton he had written — 
 
 "The agony in my head seemed at times almost more 
 than I could endure. But during my wakeful nights my 
 thoughts continually travelled to those poor, wounded men 
 on the battle-field, and I could cry to God to mitigate their 
 sufferings. I hope to be able to preach once at St. Jude's 
 before I leave home. It seems long since I have been in 
 that dear place," 
 
 He returned home with a measure of recruited 
 strength, to prepare for the approaching Conference. 
 There was still much to be done in the new Hall, but 
 with the help of his nephews (who were now both 
 married and settled near him), and other kind friends, 
 the necessary preparations were completed, and those 
 who loved the Conference met with very thankful hearts 
 to take possession of the new building. To Mr. Penne- 
 father it was a very chastened joy. The novelty of 
 the circumstances involved many anxieties, and within 
 those walls, where he had longed to welcome his dear 
 friend Captain Trotter, that devoted servant of God was 
 now prayed for as one fast nearing his heavenly home. 
 Mr. Pennefather s great dread of anything like self- 
 gratulation always made his times of most triumphant 
 success seasons of real humiliation, and on this occa- 
 sion, when his long-cherished hopes were realised, 
 there was no one less elated than himself. '' Why, 
 
 1 11 
 
460 CONFERENCE IN THE NEW HALL. [chap. xix. 
 
 Pennefather," said his dear friend Mr. Marston,* as he 
 took his place among the guests at his table, ** you 
 ought to be the happiest man in all England." Pro- 
 bably there was no one happier, but with the deep quiet- 
 ness of a thankful spirit he was continually exclaiming, 
 *' Not unto us, not unto us, O Lord, but unto Thy 
 Name give glory." The boastfulness of the age, 
 which seemed to creep even into the Church, was" a 
 subject of great and continual distress to him. It was 
 only to a few chosen listeners that he would ever 
 speak freely of his own work ; and it was with much 
 reluctance he had yielded to the wishes of friends, and, 
 on the last morning of the Conference, given a sketch 
 of the history of the building which had interested 
 many. His habit of destroying all letters that told of 
 his usefulness, and might possibly, as he said, - prove 
 a snare," has deprived us of much that would have 
 been deeply interesting, t 
 
 A very cheering circumstance came to his know- 
 ledge shortly after this Conference. The texts to be 
 engraven on the walls had been chosen with much 
 prayer, and often and often he had said to his Father 
 in heaven, '' Let them speak even when human voices 
 are silent." A young lady who had long been suffer- 
 ing under deep spiritual depression came with a friend 
 to attend the Conference. Like others, they stopped 
 for a moment to look at the new Hall, and the eyes of 
 the poor sorrowing one rested on the words over one 
 of the windows, " When I see the blood, I will pass 
 over you." It was the Spirit's voice to her heart 
 
 * The Rev. C. D. Marston, Vicar of St. Paul's, Onslow Square, who has since 
 been called to his rest. 
 
 t It is much to be regretted that letters from missionaries, foreign pastors, and 
 others, have all shared the same fate. 
 
 1870.] 
 
 ACCIDENT AND DELIVERANCE. 
 
 461 
 
 The burden was gone, and to her happy spirit " the 
 time of sinofinof was come." Four months after, Mr. 
 Pennefather heard that she had *' orone in to see the 
 King." From the joyous assemblies he was soon 
 called to more than one house of mourning. He 
 writes on November 7th — 
 
 " You will have heard that dear Captain Trotter and Mrs 
 H. and Miss Q. are with the Lord. They were all attached 
 members of my flock at Barnet, and the three were taken 
 Home in the course of a few days. . . . Our Conference was 
 very solemn. It was a great comfort to me that S. and M. 
 were with us. The Hall is much liked, and the mercies of 
 the Lord encircle us." 
 
 On December 28th he tells of a sudden accident 
 and a wonderful deliverance — 
 
 "On Thursday last the architect of the house which we 
 are building adjoining the Conference Hall asked nv.e to go 
 up a stone staircase to the first floor of the building. I ran 
 up quickly, but just as I was nearing the top, the whole 
 flight fell with a crash, and I found myself lying on the 
 ground with great stone stairs across my limbs. The work- 
 men rushed to the rescue, thinking that, if not killed, I must 
 have my legs broken ; but, thank God, though bruised, I had 
 no broken bones, and am not disabled or really injured. I 
 think there must have been angelic messengers near at hand, 
 for the crash was great, and several of the stone steps 
 were broken. Will you help me to praise the Lord for His 
 goodness ! .... Is it not solemn to try and look into the 
 unopened pages of a new year, while we clasp the volume 
 marked 1870. But whatever may happen, the Lord will 
 prove faithful to His promises and true to His character." 
 
 It was during the autumn of this year that he paid 
 frequent visits to the dying "bed of the Rev. W. B. 
 Mackenzie, Vicar of St. James', Holloway. It was a 
 service of love, in which he was deeply interested, but 
 seldom, if ever, did he return from those visits with- 
 
 I M 
 
 1 
 
m 
 
 462 
 
 J^EV, W. B. MACKENZIE. 
 
 [chap. XIX. 
 
 1870.1 
 
 CHRISTMAS AT ST. JUDBS, 
 
 463 
 
 out expressing his surprise that Mr. Mackenzie should 
 have selected him to enjoy such a privilege. They 
 had often met on public occasions, and he greatly 
 honoured one ** whose praise was in all the churches.'* 
 But no intimate friendship had subsisted between them, 
 and he scarcely expected to be admitted to the sick- 
 room, much less to be, as the biographer of Mr. Mac- 
 kenzie has expressed it, *' the chosen clerical companion 
 who was to go down with him to the water-edge of 
 the dark river, and to comfort and strengthen him as 
 he went." His own feelings were expressed in a short 
 address given to the bereaved congregation on the day 
 of the funeral (November 30, 1870) — 
 
 " It was not my privilege to have known your sainted 
 minister for many years. . . . But it was my privilege, and I 
 shall esteem it all through life, yea, I shall praise God for 
 it when I see my Saviour face to face, to observe and 'con- 
 sider* (Heb. xiii. 7) the latter months of his wonderful life 
 and his going out of life into glory. I cannot tell you why 
 (except that it was God's rich mercy to me) — I cannot tell 
 you why your beloved minister summoned me to his dying 
 bed. But we had some happy, holy, blessed conversations 
 together, for we spoke of Him whom he loved. And if there 
 was one thought in his heart more than another in con- 
 nection with you, it was that you might be assured of Ids 
 faith in that living, loving Saviour, who has died, but now 
 lives to bless His people, and who will come back again in 
 glory to gather together His children which are scattered 
 abroad." 
 
 The ministry beside sick and dying beds was 
 one that fell largely to Mr. Pennefather's share. His 
 peculiar tact and tenderness fitted him to deal with 
 sufferers, while his great presence of mind helped to 
 carry many a broken-hearted family through scenes 
 of terrible distress. Doctors often sent for him to 
 
 nervous patients where no other visitor was admitted, 
 and his realising faith sustained the drooping spirit of 
 doubting and fainting ones. During the last year of 
 his life, when his medical attendant was anxious to 
 moderate the amount of his labours, he one day 
 remarked, "He ought not to be much in sick-rooms, 
 but I don t know how to forbid it : it is a work for 
 which he is so eminently calculated. He once visited 
 me in an illness, and I shall never forget it." His 
 own experience of suffering made him quick to per- 
 ceive how much an invalid could bear. 
 
 '' He brought the Lord Jesus into the house with 
 him," said the first man he visited at Mildmay, ''and 
 His presence has been with me ever since." " He 
 knew everything without telling," said one to whom 
 he had ministered in a season of sorrow. It was this 
 intuitive perception and delicate appreciation of every 
 phase of feeling that often gained him entrance when 
 rougher dealing was utterly refused. 
 
 The remembrance of a Christmas season at St. 
 Jude's, recalled by a friend (the Rev, Thompson 
 Phillips of Ivegill), probably belongs to this year — 
 
 " I can never forget one Christmas morning when I was 
 present at St. Jude's, Mildmay Park. The church was very 
 full, and the service hearty and cheerful. The text of the 
 sermon was Ps. xlv. i, and truly no one could have listened 
 without feeling that the preacher's heart was inditing a good 
 matter. A right royal proclamation was the whole sermon, 
 that the Prince of the House of David was born among us, 
 and that of His kingdom there should be no end. The 
 words of the text seemed the very expression of the speaker's 
 soul, and there was no doubt from the moment he began 
 that he had not only the attention but the deep sympathy 
 of his hearers. He preached the Incarnationy not so as to 
 
 il 
 
464 
 
 CHRISTMAS AT ST. JUDE'S. [chap. XIX. 
 
 ( 465 ) 
 
 flatter human pride, but to make known that Christ was 
 born a Saviour for the lost. 
 
 " I remember how forcibly I was struck by the numbers 
 who remained for the Lord's Supper, but indeed the teaching 
 of the sermon was so in union with the feast, that one could 
 only expect those who had seemed so deeply interested to 
 remain and have further fellowship in the memorials of a 
 Saviour's dying love. I never was present at a church where 
 so large a proportion remained at the Communion, and 
 every worshipper at St. Jude's will remember the peculiar 
 construction erected in the church on those sacramental 
 days to accommodate the numbers. How can I ever forget 
 with what peculiar care those communicants were taught ! 
 It was at his communicants' meetings that Mr. Pennefather 
 most especially and affectionately impressed on his people 
 the claims of the Master on His disciples for entire devotion 
 of life, and set forth the influence of heart upon heart among 
 themselves. I remember on one occasion, when he was 
 suffering from severe headache, he asked me to address a 
 meeting of communicants. It was said there were more 
 than 500 present on that evening.* He gave a short open- 
 ing address himself on the subject of * purging out the old 
 leaven,' and no one who heard his words could speak of such 
 evangelical teaching as wanting on the subject of practical 
 holiness. . . . For myself, I must say that I valued Mr. 
 Pennefather's friendship as one of the greatest privileges of 
 my life." 
 
 * This was not one of the annual meetings, when the numbers were larger. 
 
 CHAPTER XX. 
 1871-1872. 
 
 Interest in Working Men — Enlargement of St. Jude's Church — Letters 
 — Cottage at Muswell Hill — Opening of the Deaconess House — 
 Letters to Deaconesses — Conference — Purchase of Spring-Garden 
 — Journey to Homburg — Letters — Consecration and re-opening of 
 the church — Prosperity of the work — Training of workers — 
 Testimony of the Rev. Dr. Baillie — Death of a lady in the 
 Deaconess House — Notes on praise — Death of another friend 
 — Agreement in prayer — Conference — Mr. Moody and Major 
 Malan — Visits to Schwalbach and Rippoldsau — Letters — Return 
 to Mildmay — Visit to Westmoreland — Social intercourse — Letters. 
 
 A MONG the variety of subjects brought before 
 •^^- Mr. Pennefather's mind in the different periods 
 of his ministry, there was none that interested him 
 more deeply than the welfare of our working men. 
 Various schemes were from time to time devised for 
 their benefit, both temporally and spiritually, and he 
 would embrace every opportunity of friendly inter- 
 course with them.* At one time a plan was formed 
 for the erection of a coffee-palace or workm^an's hall 
 in the great thoroughfare of Kingsland. Though 
 he did not live to see this desire accomplished, he had 
 secured the interest of several friends on its behalf, 
 and considerable contributions had been promised. 
 Meanwhile he opened in his own parish a place of 
 
 * It was a well-known joke with his nephews that *' work was very slowly done 
 in the neighbourhood of Uncle's Willie's house," alluding to his custom of giving 
 jugs of tea, often carried out by himself, to every man who might be putting down 
 pavement or laying gas-pipes in the streets. To be detained near his house either 
 by work or accident was a sure signal for friendly attention and kind words. 
 
 2 G 
 
 II 
 
 f 
 
 • m 
 
•r. 
 
 466 
 
 MEETINGS OF WORKING MEN. [chap. XX. 
 
 resort for those who desired to escape the temptations 
 of the public-house, and though only intended as a 
 temporary measure to initiate something far more 
 effectual, it gave many opportunities of gathering in 
 those whose interests lay so near his heart. Each 
 winter after he came to reside in London large meet- 
 ino-s of workincr men had been held in the iron room, 
 sometimes in connection with the temperance cause, 
 sometimes with a view to the better observance of the 
 Lord's day, &c., always with more or less of success 
 and encouracrement. Mr. Pennefather was anxious 
 that the new Conference Hall should take its share in 
 ministering to the good of the working classes, and 
 the basement rooms had been planned with a view 
 to the carrying on of night-schools and other active 
 ao-encies for their benefit. It w^as not long after the 
 opening of the Hall that a meeting was held in it for 
 the Lord's Day Society, and a large number of work- 
 ing men accepted the invitation to attend it. Some 
 friends, who were already astonished at the crowd, 
 became somewhat nervous when, soon after the com- 
 mencement of the meeting, a man appeared at one of 
 the entrance doors inquiring in a loud voice whether 
 he might be permitted to speak to the people. 
 *' Certainly," replied Mr. Pennefather (who was pre- 
 siding), *' but oftly from the platform ; come up beside 
 me." It was really a striking sight to see that 
 stalwart man making his way up the large hall, amid 
 the deafening cheers of his companions, to take his 
 place as the representative of the working men. He 
 had not gone far in the speech he was prepared to 
 make when he suddenly broke off, and looking round 
 the Hall with evident admiration exclaimed, *' This 
 
 1S71.] 
 
 LOVE FOR WORKING MEN. 
 
 467 
 
 is a lovely place ! If they'll build such places and invite 
 us working men, they'll find we'll come." Whatever 
 doubtful elements might have existed in the meeting 
 previously, from that moment all was loyal and har- 
 monious. The next day that man and four of his 
 companions were kneeling with Mr. Pennefather in 
 his own house, asking God for Sabbath blessings for 
 working men, especially in the gas-factories. 
 
 The sympathy of Mr. Pennefather for the working- 
 classes was love, not duty, and w^ho can resist the 
 power of a self-sacrificing, disinterested love } * 
 
 The cab-drivers of London had no small place in 
 his care and consideration. Several of the Christian 
 men belonging to their ranks spoke in his iron room 
 and Conference Hall on the subjects of temperance 
 and Sabbath observance ; and many a consultation 
 he held with his dear friend Mr. T. B. Smithies on 
 the needs and welfare of the various classes of our 
 working population, which claimed so large a share 
 in the interests of both. The endeavour to provide 
 improved literature for the masses, and other efforts 
 put forth by that earnest labourer in the field of 
 Christian philanthropy, had his most hearty sympathy. 
 Whatever miaht be the God-honourine service and 
 whoever the successful agent, his language was the 
 same, *' I therein rejoice, yea, and will rejoice." 
 
 The spring of this year (18 71) brought to a 
 practical issue the thought so long upon his heart of 
 improving and enlarging St. Jude's Church. Often 
 when contemplating the increase of the work in its 
 
 * It has been well said that "he recognised every one with whom he came in 
 contact either as a soul in Christ or a souly^r Christ, so that beneath all forms of 
 religious or worldly life he was able to discern and embrace the common humanity of 
 the common brotherhood, and this gave him that indescribable influence which 
 he possessed over men of different classes and opinions." 
 
 \ 
 
 
 n 
 
e 
 
 468 
 
 CHURCH ENLARGEMENT. 
 
 CHAP. XX. 
 
 various branches, he would stand gazing at the 
 church which oueht to be the centre of the whole, 
 and mourn over its inadequate accommodation. 
 
 Notwithstanding the impediments already alluded 
 to, many of his congregation had begun to feel with 
 him, and were now ready to go forward in the matter. 
 Every contrivance had been made to allow for the 
 ever- in creasing number of communicants, but the 
 lengthened services were trying both to minister and 
 people, and it became evident that nothing but a larger 
 and more commodious chancel could meet the needs of 
 the case. He often said of his people at St. Jude's 
 that he " never appealed to them in vain," and so it 
 proved on the present occasion. By the beginning of 
 April considerable funds had been collected, and 
 arrangements were sufficiently advanced to allow of 
 the announcement that the church would be closed for 
 enlargement. The completion of the Conference Hall 
 greatly facilitated the proceedings, as the services could 
 be conducted there during the months that must neces- 
 sarily intervene. On the 8th of June the memorial 
 stone of the new chancel was laid, and the same 
 hymns sung as had been composed for the previous 
 service at the Hall. It was a day of joy to many, and 
 seemed to promise relief from much perplexity. A 
 few extracts from the letters belono^ins: to this time 
 may be interesting. 
 
 The following characteristic notes are addressed to 
 a fellow-worker laid by for a few weeks. 
 
 " March i^th, 1871. 
 "Just a line to say we had a very happy mothers' enter- 
 tainment. There were 240 present, including the husbands 
 who came with some of the women. Mr. P. spoke, and spoke 
 
 1871.] 
 
 EXTRACTS FROM LETTERS. 
 
 469 
 
 well. I tried to get Mr. C, but failed. We are anxious 
 about you, and yet we know ' it is well.' I feel sure that 
 light will spring out of the darkness and praise from this 
 season of retirement. How good it is to be 'hid away' some- 
 times from the glare of life and the hurry of work and to be 
 covered by the wings of the Almighty ! In that secret place 
 there is a holy quietness that will prepare us for the eternal 
 activities that await us when we see the King of kings." 
 
 Aeain, to the same — 
 
 ^^ March \^th. 
 
 " We had, thank God, a delightful evening with the night- 
 school. W. spoke strikingly and the men were delighted. 
 We missed our dear friend much, but we knew under whose 
 wings she was hid, and we rejoiced in her quiet communion 
 with her Lord and Saviour. To-day D. S. has been here. I 
 gave him a scolding, and finished it up in true Irish style 
 with a petting ! 
 
 " We had a cheery district visitors' meeting. I think the 
 light is breaking into some dark hearts. May the Lord give 
 you and give us all more faith, more confidence in the power 
 of prayer ! I know it must be hard for you to be shut up, 
 but I suppose there never was such work done by John 
 Bunyan as when he was in prison, and Rutherford's sweetest 
 words, still echoing through the Church of God, first sounded 
 within the walls of his cell. Cheer up then ! and you will 
 see a precious harvest from this quiet seed-time." 
 
 To an aged friend he writes about the same time — 
 
 " The bright gleams of love do not grow fainter though we 
 are nearing the glory of the eternal day. Thank you for 
 sending me those beautiful lines about the old woman and 
 the golden city. As I read them I cry out, ' Lord, increase 
 my faith ! ' It may be ' we are nearer the Home above where 
 the many mansions be ' than we suppose ; and what a bright 
 band will come out and welcome us, as the City bells ring 
 out their joyous peals on our arrival ! " 
 
 To another, on the death of a sister — 
 
 " My dear Sir, — We are very near ' the spirits of the just 
 made perfect ' when we are communing with Jesus, for they 
 
 
i! 
 
 470 
 
 EXTRACTS FROM LETTERS. 
 
 [chap, xx/ 
 
 are ever with Him. I heard that your beloved sister had 
 finished her course and caught her Saviour's voice sayin^ 
 ' Come in.' We still are looking over the wall and talking 
 with Him while the lattice is between, but she has nothin^r 
 between her and His glorious person ! * Absent from the 
 body, she is present with the Lord ! ' Please God, your 
 petition for prayer shall be presented on Friday. Your 
 parents and sister are remembered by us in their hour of 
 sorrow — may I not add their hour of holy joy ! for when those 
 we love go in to see the King, His royal splendour bursts 
 on our view through the open door, and, like John Bunyan, 
 we wish we were there ! " 
 
 The little house at Richmond had been given up 
 in the hope of finding one where the air might be more 
 bracing ; and on May nth he writes from — 
 
 " Melford Lodge, Muswell Hill. 
 *' This little place which our Heavenly Father has given us 
 looks bright and pleasant, but my wife is just saying, * Don't 
 ask any one to sleep here this week, for the rooms are not 
 ready.' * Pray that this little house may be full of light, and 
 that God may use us and it to His glory." 
 
 We add one more letter written about the same 
 time to an invalid friend — 
 
 " I feel assured that you are learning many precious lessons 
 during this long, long illness. You will thank God for them 
 throughout eternity. . . . ' We are the trees,' says George 
 Herbert, * whom shaking fastens more.' . . . We have had an 
 anxious but a very important winter's work. I think I may 
 say we have seen manifest signs of the Holy Spirit's power — 
 men and women leading new lives and dear children tread- 
 ing the narrow way. Never since we have been at Mildmay 
 have we had so much to encourage us as regards the spiritual 
 state of the people, but there is an amount of poverty and 
 sickness which it is difficult to grapple with." 
 
 * His unwearying hospitality could ill afford to wait for furniture or carpets, and 
 before he took possession of the house he was planning tea-parties on the lawn 
 for his poor people. 
 
 1871.] 
 
 OPENING OF DEACONESS HOUSE. 
 
 471 
 
 To the same, when his workers were about to take 
 possession of the house adjoining the Conference Hall. 
 
 '' April \th, 1 87 1. 
 " Please God we shall be permitted to show you ere long 
 the Mission Home and its inhabitants under their new cir- 
 cumstances. We are settling into the house adjommg the 
 Conference Hall.* For more than eleven years we have 
 thou-ht over the matter of Deaconess Houses. We have 
 prayed, and waited, and trusted, and now God has allowed 
 us to see a house erected and set apart to be occupied by 
 those who are ready to spend and be spent for Him. 
 
 « Sometimes I can scarcely believe that it is a reality and 
 not all a dream 1 The Conference Hall with its appendages 
 and the Deaconess House actually in existence ! May the 
 Holy Spirit fill the place, and may the Lord make it a centre 
 from whence the living waters shall flow forth ! Many 
 p*-ayers have gone up from the Conference Hall for you 
 beloved friend, and they shall not cease to ascend. God 
 will be glorified in you." 
 
 It may not be out of place to introduce here a few 
 sentences from letters written at different times to his 
 deaconesses. 
 
 *'The need for such an institution is great indeed. I 
 do not suppose there ever was a time in the history of 
 Christianity in which the openings for holy, disciplined, and 
 intelligent women to labour in God's vineyard were so 
 numerous as at present. Women in Mohammedan and 
 Eastern countries are crying out for wcmen to teach them, and 
 our Female Refuges are needing women of piety, education, 
 and sympathy to act as mothers in such households. The 
 population in towns and rural districts are waiting for the 
 patient enduring love that dwells in the breast of a truly 
 pious woman to wake them up to thought and feeling. Oh 
 if I had the women and had the means, how gladly woula 
 I send out hundreds, two by two, to carry the Lamp of Truth 
 into the hamlets o f our country and the streets and lanes of 
 
 Ml^ completion of this house had been accomplished through the generous 
 gift of a friend at the previous Conference. 
 
 [tl 
 
472 
 
 IVORK OF DEACONESSES. 
 
 [chap. XX. 
 
 ft' 
 
 our great cities ! India, China, Syria, are all looking to us 
 to help them, while at home the openings for devoted hand- 
 maids of the Lord are countless. 
 
 " Will you pray for the Home ? Ask for women and for 
 means. I want our Home to be such a place of holy peace- 
 ful memories that when you leave it it may be among the 
 brightest things that come to your mind in a distant land 
 or in a different position ; and each inmate can help to make 
 it what it should be." 
 
 " It is always difficult to be intensely interested about any 
 subject and yet perfectly restful, but in our Divine Master 
 we see both the deepest feeling and the calmest exterior ; 
 while He was never in hurried confusion, He was always 
 about His Father's business. It is the deepest rivers that 
 flow the most noiselessly." 
 
 Again — 
 
 " This you know is our watchword, * Not as though I had 
 already attained, either were already perfect; but forget- 
 ting those things which are behind, I press toward the 
 mark for the prize of the high calling of God in Christ Jesus.' 
 See then that your interest in God's work extend beyond 
 your own immediate sphere ; cultivate fellowship with God's 
 labourers, even when they do not exactly labour in your 
 portion of the vineyard." 
 
 It had been arranged in the previous autumn that 
 the Conference should return to its original time of 
 meeting, and enjoy the advantages of long summer 
 days.* The letter of invitation is dated May 13th, 
 and contains such a simple and characteristic summary 
 of the important work of fifteen years, that we insert 
 a portion of it here — 
 
 " My dear Friends,— With a heart filled with gratitude 
 to God and a deep sense of the kindness shown to me by His 
 
 • The intense heat of the iron building in the close atmosphere of London had 
 led to the change of date. 
 
 1S71.] 
 
 INVITATION TO CONFERENCE, 
 
 473 
 
 servants, i invite you to be present at another Conference. 
 It was *in weakness and in fear, and in much trembling,' that 
 I c^athered tocrether in 1856 a little band of Christ's followers 
 to meet for prayer, praise, and mutual edification. The light 
 of our Heavenly Father's countenance shone brightly on us 
 then, as we sat down under the banner of the cross with great 
 delight, and found the fruit of a Saviour's love sweet to our 
 taste. But we little knew whereunto that humble testimony 
 to Christian unity would grow, 
 
 " It was again ' in weakness and in fear, and in much 
 trembling,' that, under very altered circumstances, in 1864 
 I invited the many Christian brethren and sisters who had 
 learnt to love our annual Conferences, and to realise that 
 there is a peculiarity of blessing in recognising the unity of 
 the Spirit amid the diversities of external organisation. In 
 that year I found myself amid the din and smoke of our 
 million-peopled city. Tens of thousands at our very doors, 
 calling upon the Church of God to come over and help, gave 
 an intensity of interest to an assembly of Christian workers 
 in their midst. 
 
 **And it was yet again *in weakness and in fear, and 
 in much trembling,' that in 1870 I summoned our greatly 
 increased numbers to meet in a Hall specially provided for 
 their accommodation, on the walls of which are inscribed 
 the words ' Grace be with all them that love our Lord Jesus 
 Christ in sincerity.' It was then felt by many that the 
 Divine Presence consecrated the building ; and it is with 
 deep thankfulness to Him ' from Whom are all things and 
 by Whom are all things,' that we bear witness to the mani- 
 fest blessing which has been stamped upon the subsequent 
 work connected with the Conference Hall. The day alone 
 will declare how God has owned the offerings of His willing 
 people in the erection of that building. It is truly with the 
 language of praise and humiliation in our hearts and on our 
 lips that we look forward to another meeting with dear 
 brothers and sisters still militant here on earth — a meeting 
 in sympathy with those (oh, how many !) who, having wor- 
 shipped with us in years past, are now ' present with the 
 Lord.' 
 
 " Dear Christian friends, let us meet as those who have 
 
 I 
 
474 
 
 DA YS OF CONFERENCE. 
 
 [chap. XX. 
 
 ' a heart at leisure from itself to soothe and sympathise,' and 
 who have an ear open to hear the Master's voice saying 
 with peculiar emphasis, * Go work to-day in My vineyard/ 
 If the cloud of witnesses *on the shining shore ' could speak 
 to us, they would echo that Master's words, ' Whosoever will 
 save his life shall lose it, but whosoever shall lose his life 
 for My sake and the Gospels, the same shall save it.' Fellow- 
 Christians ! we bear a name that pledges us to walk in His 
 footsteps who said, * I must work the works of Him that 
 sent Me while it is day ; the night cometh when no man can 
 work/ His blood has purchased us for Himself, and it is 
 sacrilege to use the Lord's property for self, or the world, or 
 the devil. * What ! know ye not that your body is the 
 temple of the Holy Ghost which is in you, which ye have of 
 God, and ye are not your own, for ye are bought with a 
 price ? therefore glorify God in your body and in your spirit 
 which are God's/ 
 
 " Believe me to remain, your affectionate brother in Christ, 
 
 ** William Pennefather/' 
 
 The days of meeting were June 28, 29, and 30; the 
 subjects Prayer, Praise, and Testimony, 
 
 One object of great interest which claimed his 
 attention during the spring of this year must not be 
 altogether omitted, though it can hardly be given in 
 detail. Adjoining the property purchased for the Con- 
 ference Hall stood an old-fashioned house situated in 
 a pleasant garden, which had escaped the incursions 
 of the ever-advancing city, and was greatly prized by 
 its owner. Mr. Pennefather had often heard that it 
 was not likely to be sold ; but the death of the pro- 
 prietor, which occurred while the Hall was building, 
 naturally turned his thoughts to the possibility of 
 making such a valuable addition to the ground already 
 purchased. He expected many an incredulous smile 
 on the subject, but nevertheless a few large-hearted 
 
 1871.] 
 
 PURCHASE OF SPRING-GARDEN. 
 
 475 
 
 friends were invited to pray that the garden might be 
 obtained and used in God's service. It would take 
 long to describe the disappointments and complications 
 that followed his first inquiries. At the end of many 
 months all seemed closed by the announcement that 
 the land had been sold to a builder, and that a given 
 number of cottages was to be erected upon it. ^ Was 
 this to be considered final, or was prayer to continue ? 
 From the first Mr. Pennefather had been strongly 
 persuaded that the garden would be given, or rather, 
 to quote words that were often on his lips, he had 
 -great confidence in the Lord touching it," but foi 
 the present the door was shut. Days went on until 
 one morning, when very busy in his study, he was 
 asked to see a stranger who had called to speak to him 
 on business. This stranger proved to be the pur- 
 chaser of the garden, who, knowing nothing of Mr. 
 Pennefather s wishes, had come on an errand of his 
 own respecting the entrance to his proposed cottages. 
 The interview led to a series of negotiations, and the 
 kind friend who acted as Mr. Pennefathers legal 
 adviser informed him in due time that the property 
 might be repurchased, provided a deposit of ^500 
 could be paid on a certain specified day in the following 
 week. Mr. Pennefather had £90 in his hands, given 
 provisionally by a kind friend in case his desire could 
 be accomplished. It was the first money sent for this 
 special purpose. During the few days that elapsed 
 between the announcement of his friend and the 
 Tuesday on which the ;^500 would be required, he 
 received four cheques for the same object, none of the 
 donors knowing the sum that was needed, or the time 
 at which it must be paid. These cheques were 
 
 
476 
 
 PURCHASE OF SPRING-GARDEN. [chap. XX. 
 
 severally for ;^ioo, ^50, ^10, and ;^25o. (We name 
 them in the order of their arrival, and tell the story for 
 the encouragement of those who desire to know more 
 of the meaning of the words, " In everything by prayer 
 and supplication, with thanksgiving, let your requests 
 be made known unto God.") A short report printed 
 at the time tells us the sequel. " The legal business 
 was completed, and the key of the house delivered up 
 on Monday afternoon, the 26th of June. On the 27th 
 a portion of the wall between the two properties was 
 pulled down, and on the 28th, when the Conference 
 met, many were found pouring into the garden, and 
 grouping themselves under the trees for prayer and 
 praise." " That blessed garden ! " as it has been called 
 by many since, has become a well-known place. It 
 has seen tears of penitence and heard songs of new- 
 found joy, as the Word of Life has been proclaimed to 
 the hundreds who have gathered there ; and many 
 very sad hearts have been comforted by a litrie quiet 
 rest and a few kind words. The multitude of happy 
 people to whom the free, fresh country is no tuicommoii 
 pleasure, can scarcely realise what even that little 
 green spot can do for the weary inhabitants of our 
 crowded courts and alleys. '* Take me to the holy 
 land," said one little drooping child who had once 
 gone there with his mother. "It must be very like 
 heaven," said another. Those who have known the 
 history of the Hall and garden in all its details can 
 only say, "We will abundantly utter the memory of 
 His great goodness and sing of His righteousness." 
 
 The strain of the Conference of 1871 told upon Mr. 
 Pennefather unusually, and his letters tell of much sub- 
 sequent suffering. Writing on July 15th, he says — 
 
 ftl 
 
 1871.] 
 
 VISIT TO HO M BURG. 
 
 477 
 
 "The doctor speaks very strongly about this severe pain in 
 my head, and says something ought to be tried to check it. 
 He mentioned Homburg, but I dread a German watering- 
 place. May the Lord guide every step ! I can only say, 
 'I am oppressed, undertake for me!'" 
 
 After some consultation he was persuaded to allow 
 himself two months' absence from home, the first few 
 weeks to be spent at Homburg in the hope that the 
 waters might prove beneficial. We can only quote a 
 few extracts from letters written by himself and his 
 wife during their absence from England, but the 
 opinion of the German doctor as to his state of health 
 was not favourable, and the effect of the waters less 
 satisfactory than had been anticipated. Writing on 
 August nth, Mrs. Pennefather says — 
 
 "I hardly know what to say of my husband. The pain 
 in his head has been very severe, though to-day he is 
 rather better. The doctor here evidently thinks his nervous 
 system a good deal shaken. ... We have come in for a 
 royal visit. The Emperor has been here making a great 
 fuss in the place, but nothing can be more free from pomp 
 or parade than he himself. The town is rather pleasant, 
 and prettily planted with a variety of trees, but the country 
 around is flat, making us sigh for beautiful Switzerland. 
 But our Father knows best, and this is evidently our place 
 at present. We find several famihes whom we know, and 
 have had some nice Bible-readings." 
 
 On Auo-ust 22nd Mr. Pennefather writes himself— 
 
 *'Do let us hear more particulars from Mildmay; our 
 tidings are but scanty, and I delight in all details. Thank 
 God, I am better, though I had a sharp attack of sickness 
 last week, which has thrown me back. I cannot say I am 
 getting on very fast, but I am in His hands who delights 
 to bless us. . . . Will you pray that God may bless the 
 Conference and Parochial Reports, both of which are jur»t 
 issued ? " 
 
 }i 
 
 
478 
 
 EXTRACTS FROM LETTERS, 
 
 [chap. XX. 
 
 And again on the 27th — 
 
 "It is thought that mountain air may relieve the pain in 
 my head ; though less severe, I have scarcely ever a day free 
 from it. But mercies have abounded towards us. I lone to 
 be at work again, but must try the mountains for a short 
 time." 
 
 On September 2nd, Mrs. Pennefather writes from 
 the Rigi Scheideck — 
 
 "The doctor gave us leave to quit Homburg on Monday, 
 and very thankful we are to be gazing again on the glorious 
 mountains. We have been graciously prospered in all our 
 journeyings, and came up here on a morning of enchanting 
 loveliness. We are both hungry for Mildmay news, but I 
 am trying to persuade Mr. Pennefather to eschew letter- 
 writing for a little while. I do trust he is improving." 
 
 On September iSth he writes himself from Lau- 
 sanne to a friend just recovering from severe illness — 
 
 " We thank our Heavenly Father for the tidings received 
 of our dear one's health. We knrcv that God would fulfil 
 His promise, and keep you in perfect peace, stayed on Him. 
 We knew He would be with you every moment, and guard 
 you night and day ; but it is very blessed to hear of His 
 faithfulness and tell of His loving-kindness. We have 
 thought of you much on our journeyings. We spent some 
 days on the Rigi, and visited two mountain inns above 
 Brieg, which gave us views of Alps we had never seen before 
 (Alps in the region of Zermatt). God has blessed the 
 mountain air to me. I am really better, and we arc both 
 greatly refreshed by the quiet and the wonderfully beautiful 
 scenes through which we have passed. I am longing to 
 be at home, and we are on our way. The enlarged church 
 is nearly finished, and I hear looks very well. May God fill 
 it with His own Divine power ; may the glory of the latter 
 house be greater than that of the former ! We hope to see 
 Kaiserswerth on our homeward journey, as we return via 
 Cologne. We saw a very interesting Deaconess Institution at 
 Carlsruhe on our wav from Homburix to Basle." 
 
 IS7I.] 
 
 EXTRACTS FROM LETTERS, 
 
 479 
 
 The visit to Kaiserswerth interested him greatly, 
 and he went minutely into all particulars of an Institu- 
 tion, the working of which he had followed from the 
 time when Pastor Fliedner received his first impulse 
 (as he tells us) to a life of benevolent effort from 
 Elizabeth Fry. On arriving at home, we find him 
 busily occupied in raising funds for the completion of 
 his church. He was much cheered by the success of 
 the architect in securing a greatly improved building, 
 with 400 additional sittings. The following letter 
 is addressed to his beloved friends Mr. and Mrs. 
 Crcwdson — 
 
 " October 27///, 1S71. 
 *'The return to our active happy life after nearly two 
 months' absence involved me in so much business, &c., 
 that I have not had time to write to many who are looking 
 out for tidings, but my heart is ever beating in grateful love 
 to you. . . . The work here deepens in interest. I should 
 like you to see the large class of working men that meets on 
 Sunday in the basement of the Hall, and the mothers flock- 
 ing in on Monday. Our Deaconess House is working with 
 very marked blessing from God in various mission stations 
 in this great city. Last night we had ninety people to tea 
 connected with a mission in Stepney. As I addressed them 
 afterwards, it was deeply interesting to see and feel their 
 marked attention. We are both, thank God, the better for 
 Switzerland. A gift from dear enabled us to go there.'* 
 
 To the same friends, December 14th — 
 
 *'The accompanying little book * is only sent to you 
 because I don't like you to be ignorant of what is doing here, 
 or to hear of it except through me. It is compiled by a 
 friend, and getierally issued by him, but you have known 01 
 God's goodness to me since the days of Roundstone Church, 
 and you have seen how my Heavenly Father has, in my case, 
 'out of weakness made strong.' Alas! when I dwell upon 
 
 Giving an account of the purchase of the garden. 
 
48o PAROCHIAL ENCOURAGEMENTS. [chap. XX. 
 
 His marvellous loving-kindness, my shortcomings and failures 
 (known perhaps only to Him) rise up in review before 
 me. God's grace and power, manifested to me both in my 
 unmarried and married life, have been amazing. Would 
 that I had walked worthy of God, who has called me to His 
 
 kingdom and glory. 
 
 **Our enlarged or rather rebuilt church was consecrated 
 on Tuesday. The service was very solemn and very quiet. 
 Perhaps the precarious state of our Prince helped to calm 
 the people. There is much feeling on the subject, and they 
 seemed as if come together to worship and not to gaze. We 
 enter the church free of debt — all classes of our people have 
 joined to aid in the work." 
 
 The year 1872 opened very brightly as regarded 
 the various branches of work that lay so near to Mr. 
 Pennefather's heart. Signs of increasing " spiritual 
 life" among his people (for which he longed and 
 prayed without ceasing) cheered him from day to 
 day. 
 
 Writing to one of his people, January 8th, 1872, he 
 says — 
 
 " I deeply feel your kindness in writing to me. Add to 
 this kindness your prayers that I may be yet more and more 
 replenished by the Lord of all power and love. I think God 
 is about to work amongst us. I think there is a sound of 
 abundance of rain. May our gracious Saviour prepare us to 
 receive the blessing which He is waiting to bestow." 
 
 The efforts among the children were prospering.* 
 The different Missions worked from the Deaconess 
 House seemed to be getting a firmer hold upon the 
 poor and ignorant, while working men, young women, 
 mothers, &c., were flocking to the various classes held in 
 the basement rooms of the Conference Hall. He had 
 
 * The parochial report for 1S72 gives the following numbers. Day schools, 
 1392; Sunday schools, 1249, exclusive of Bible-classes. It gave him great joy 
 to see the enlarged church crowded, wiih chairs and benches still filling up the 
 vacant spaces. 
 
 1872.] 
 
 TRAINING FELLOW-WORKERS. 
 
 481 
 
 been much tried during the two previous years, as we 
 irather from his letters, by the removal of one and 
 another of his fellow-labourers. But in so large a 
 work this was, of course, inevitable. His curates 
 obtained sole charges, and his own nephews were 
 removed from his immediate neighbourhood, while 
 many kind friends were unable to continue the active 
 help they had formerly given. His large organ of 
 " adhesiveness I' which called forth many a smile among 
 those who knew him, made these changes peculiarly 
 painful to him, but so fearful was he of betraying any 
 impatience, that he would often sit for a considerable 
 length of time in perfect silence when the news 
 reached him of a defalcation from the ranks of his 
 helpers. The rule he exercised over his own spirit 
 disguised from others an intensity of feeling which 
 they could little have imagined. Still, as he expresses 
 it, *' the Lord had come to his help," and in spite of all 
 difficulties, he had ao-ain a larofe and increasincr band 
 of faithful and lovincr labourers. "^^ 
 
 His facility in training workers was due in great 
 measure to the remarkable power he possessed of 
 '* setting every one at his ease," getting rid of all 
 constraint and formality, and then, having found an 
 entrance to their hearts, telling them without any 
 reserve of their failings, and holding up the high 
 standard which they should seek to attain. f One 
 Christian brother, among the many whom he sought to 
 
 * That he was not satisfied with numbers merely may be gathered from the 
 words of one of his Sunday-school teachers : '* When speaking of his large body 
 of Sunday-school teachers, he would say, * Oh II. ! if only those teachers were all 
 filled with the Holy Ghost, what a power they would be in Mildmay ! ' That 
 expression is written on my heart." 
 
 t This plain speaking was occasionally resented. In such cases he would gene- 
 rally say, •' I am sure I did it awkwardly. Some one else would have managed 
 belter." 
 
 2 II 
 
it! 
 
 i 
 
 483 
 
 LETTER FROM REV. DR. BAILLIE. [chap. XX. 
 
 bring forward in a path of service for the Master, thus 
 
 writes — 
 
 *' I found combined in him, in a marked degree, qualities 
 not often found in the same person. Tender consideration 
 and dehberate decision. I found tlie most delicate apprecia- 
 tion of and gentle dealing towards the shrinking of a sensitive 
 nature, but at the same time the most determined cutting of 
 the tie that held that nature back from usefulness." " Al- 
 though so full of love and gentleness," says another, " there 
 was such a wonderful dignity about him that a request from 
 him was tantamount to a commandy 
 
 A letter from his friend Dr. Baillie ^^ may be given 
 here as touching on the same subject — • 
 
 " Our dear brother possessed in a rare measure the faculty 
 of governing and utilising men ; and this often struck me 
 as the peculiar feature of his character. 
 
 "One of the earliest occasions of its development was 
 the undertaking (which I happened to have the opportunity 
 of placing before him) the care of orphans maintained by 
 the Royal Patriotic Fund. These were received by him at 
 Barnet ; and quite wonderful was the tact of management 
 by which he threw into shape and form a very unpromising 
 assemblage of raw material. I had many subsequent occa- 
 sions, during my frequent visits to his pleasant parsonage, 
 of witnessing the eminent success of his efforts; and the 
 numerous institutions which in later years seemed to rise 
 almost spontaneously around him in London were only the 
 fuller efflorescence of that same building process which I had 
 watched with such interest in its earliest stages. 
 
 "Of that * diversity of gifts,' which it has pleased the 
 Divine Spirit to assign to the various members of Christ's 
 mystical body, no one is more scarce in the Church than that 
 faculty of organisation which our brother possessed in so 
 eminent a degree. Other brethren could easily be named 
 who were more eloquent or more profoundly learned ; but 
 to him was given the * happy knack ' of utilising and turning 
 
 * The Rev. John Baillie, D.D., Rector of Wyvenhoe. 
 
 1872.] 
 
 LETTER FROM REV. DR. BAILLIE. 
 
 483 
 
 to the best account the varied gifts of other men — and, be 
 it added emphatically, of women. It was in this way that 
 in so remarkable a measure he was always multiplying him- 
 self for heaven. 
 
 " The ' Conferences,* first at Barnet and afterwards in 
 London, were the more patent instance of this intensely 
 attractive power. I personally witnessed in the quiet retreat 
 at Barnet the gradual advance of those most pleasant 
 gatherings. And I confess it was not without a pang of 
 regret that I saw the Bethany-like ' odour of the ointment,' 
 which used to * fill all the house,' transferred to the wider 
 and more unmanageable din, and crowd, and turmoil of 
 the great metropolis." 
 
 Then, after quoting several letters of invitation from 
 Mr. Pennefather, Dr. Baillie adds — 
 
 "The Conference Hall was another triumph of that 
 administrative faculty which so eminently distinguished him. 
 That faculty is too often overshadowed by such an ambition 
 to be everything and to do everything, that the soul of piety 
 is withered, and the man is transformed into a mere leading 
 wheel in a piece of machinery. But from this fatal failing 
 he was preserved by that glow of sanctity and that lowly 
 thankfulness which, ascribing all the glory to God, and 
 desiring to be nothing before Him, would not suffer any 
 merely personal ambition to mar the beauty of the Divine 
 handiwork. This rare grace, coupled with a sanctified common 
 sense, was the secret of a work which has undoubtedly left 
 its abiding mark in the records of the Book of Life." 
 
 The one cloud that overshadowed the opening of 
 1872 was the evident decline of his own strength. Sup- 
 pressed gout was affecting first one organ and then 
 another ; and more than once he spoke of resigning 
 St. Jude's as soon as ever he should become unequal 
 to his own estimate of its requirements. But again 
 and again the marvellous buoyancy of his spirit rose 
 above the lano^uor of illness, and he mi^ht be heard 
 
 I 
 
 >yi' 
 
4S4 
 
 DEA TH OF A DEA CONESS, 
 
 [chap. XX. 
 
 continually singing in a low tone, as he went out of 
 his room to face the day's labour — 
 
 " There is rest for the weary, there is rest for you." 
 
 The following letter refers to a sorrow which 
 touched him very keenly, the first death in his 
 Deaconess House. The young lady of whom it 
 speaks had come in the first instance rather as a 
 visitor than a resident, but had thrown herself very 
 heartily into the work. Mr. Pennefather s constant 
 visits during her illness were a great comfort both to 
 herself and her family — 
 
 *^ February 26///, 1872. 
 
 " We have had very tender mercy respectinfj dear C. F.'s 
 entrance into the presence of Jesus. The brother and sister 
 who attended her throughout her illness were most thought- 
 ful and kind towards us, never regretting that C. had come 
 here ; but, on the contrary, saying, * she was so happy, they 
 were glad her last few months had been spent among us/ 
 All this and much more might have been otherwise, but 
 God's tender love set a bright bow in our cloud of anxiety. 
 
 " I could not help preaching yesterday on the subject of 
 Praise, taking as my text Psalm cl. 6. The Book of Psalms 
 unfolds a wonderful variety of experiences — conflict, suffering, 
 contrition, &c., but it ends in unbroken praise. There is 
 not a cloud to obscure the glory that settles down on the 
 soul of the inspired writer as he strikes his harp and sings, 
 'Praise ye the Lord. Praise God in His sanctuary: praise 
 Him in the firmament of His power. Praise Him for His 
 mighty acts : praise Him for His excellent greatness ! * And 
 is it not thus with the child of God .? Whatever may have 
 been his trials and temptations, whatever his difficulties and 
 sufferings, the end is praise without one note of discord, and 
 holiness without one stain of sin ! This last psalm (cl.) opens 
 with four special calls to praise : — ist. Praise God in His 
 sanctuary ! The sanctuary (or Holy of Holies) was the place 
 of atonement. Therein was the blood-sprinkled * mercy-seat,* 
 and from thence on the day of atonement the high priest 
 
 i\ 
 
 1872.] 
 
 NOTES OF PRAISE. 
 
 485 
 
 came forth to speak of reconciliation. Praising God in the 
 sanctuary seems to imply praising Him for redemption, and 
 the Psalmist places the song of redemption first, because 
 we cannot really praise God until we have learnt to thank 
 Him for the gift of His Son Jesus Christ our Saviour. Then 
 follows, 2ndly, ' Praise Him in the firmament of His power.' 
 We can look at the omnipotence of God as engaged for us 
 when we have beheld the ' Lamb of God that taketh away 
 the sin of the world.' The firmament displays the power 
 and majesty of the Creator. He who created its wondrous 
 worlds of lieht is the same God who took our nature and 
 'bare our sins in His own body on the tree.' srdly, * Praise 
 Him for His mighty acts.' All the deliverances He hath 
 wrought out for you, all the mercies He hath bestowed on 
 you, the unnumbered blessings wherewith He hath blessed 
 you. 4thly, * Praise Him for His excellent greatness' Yes! 
 adore Him for His own essential glory ! Praise Him not 
 only for what He has done, but for what He is I This adora- 
 tion is the highest form of praise. To thank the Lord of 
 Lords, not only for His mercies to us but for His own 
 great glory, that which He had from all eternity, before earth 
 was created or man was formed. . . . Excuse these hurried 
 notes.* . . . To-day London has gone wild with exuberant 
 joy. We are very thankful for the bright sunshine which is 
 falling on the Royal party as they are gone to give thanks 
 to the Lord for His mercies. Our young people are all at 
 St. Paul's, but we are at home. We have Miss B. with us, a 
 nice, gentle girl." 
 
 This letter, written to one who frequently attended 
 his ministry, is only one expression of the spirit of 
 praise which seemed always to be kindled afresh in 
 any season of sorrow. A very old friend, when once 
 speaking of the overflowing love which every one 
 recognised in his character, remarked, *' Next to it, I 
 should say — and I have known him for many years — 
 comes the spirit of unceasing praise and thanksgiving. 
 
 * It was his frequent custom in letters to write similar notes on passages of 
 Scripture, but generally too long for insertion here. 
 
 ^ ' l| 
 
 li- . 
 
f 
 
 5 
 
 486 
 
 NOTES OF PRAISE. 
 
 [chap. XX. 
 
 Whenever I see him I am reminded of the words, 
 'Whoso offereth Me praise, he glorifieth Me.'" 
 
 His praises were again called forth as he watched 
 by the dying bed of an Irish lady, with whom he 
 had formed a happy friendship when residing in the 
 county of Cavan. After losing sight of one another 
 for some years, during which time she had become a 
 widow, they met (apparently by accident) in a railway 
 carriage in Ireland, and finding her very lonely, he 
 invited her at once to his house in England, where 
 she spent many months, and continued to be a member 
 of his congregation both at Barnet and Mildmay Park, 
 till God took her to Himself in April 1872. Speak- 
 ing of this friend Mr. Pennefather says — 
 
 "When I think of her I can only say, ' The heavens shall 
 praise Thy wonders, O Lord, Thy faithfulness also in the 
 congregation of the saints,' her history was so remarkable." 
 And in another letter — " You will have heard that our dear 
 friend Mrs. B. is with Jesus. Yesterday, ivitho2it siiffering 
 and in great peace and joy, she was borne by the angels into 
 the presence of the King. Our Heavenly Father dealt 
 bountifully with her, and her constant expression was, *I 
 have all and abound. I have not a wish ungratified.' More 
 than one physician thought she must go through great and 
 protracted agony (from the nature of her disease), and yet 
 she suffered little, and saw her friends with great pleasure till 
 within twenty-four hours of her summons home. ... I deeply 
 feel her removal ; I had not a more affectionate and faithful 
 friend among my flock ; but ' He doeth all things well' " * 
 
 During the months of April and May Mr. Penne- 
 father generally slept at Muswell Hill (his house in 
 London needed painting), coming up daily for his work, 
 
 It was in this same month that one of the city missionaries who attended his 
 church was suddenly called home. It was a solemn moment when, just before the 
 Sunday-morning sermon, Mr. Pennefather announced to the assembled congrega- 
 tion, that since the opening of the service one had gone from among them into 
 
 the presence of the King. 
 
 1872.] 
 
 EXTRACTS FROM LETTERS. 
 
 %^7 
 
 and spending Sunday at the house of a kind friend to 
 avoid hiring a carriage on that day. Whitsunday he 
 decided to spend at the Deaconess House, and though 
 very unwell, persisted in preaching twice in the 
 church, which was followed by a night of great suf- 
 fering. Writing some days after from Melford Lodge, 
 May 27th, he says— 
 
 ** I had been before Whitsunday trying to fly like a bird 
 with a broken wing, and only trailing it on the ground, but 
 after preaching twice on that day I became very ill. . . . 
 The pain was so severe, and the fever ran so high for thirty- 
 six hours, that my doctor did not know what might follow, but 
 the Lord heard our prayer, and the change was so marvel- 
 lous, I felt ' like unto them that dream.' ... I was at the 
 Deaconess House, having intended to return here after the 
 Tuesday Bible-reading. . . . Thank the Lord I am really 
 pretty well, though weak, but C. is poorly. She got a fright 
 about me, and is now suffering from cold. ... I should like 
 you to see this little house, and to know the tender dealings 
 of the Lord towards us." 
 
 The letter goes on to retrace the leadings of God's 
 hand, and the Fatherly care that had watched over 
 him since he began his married life with what he 
 always called ''a barrel of meal and a cruse of oil," 
 telling a tale of the same remarkable Providence in 
 his own private history as we have already traced in 
 the records of his work. 
 
 "Truly [we take up his own words again] our barrel of 
 meal wastes not and otir cruse of oil fails not. God is our 
 portion, and in Him we are satisfied. It is nearly twenty-five 
 years since we began our married life, and day by day has 
 kis blessing made us rich. We have ' lacked nothing.' 
 
 " I don't know what to say of dearest Minnie, except, ' It is 
 well ! ' We cannot doubt His love who spared not His own 
 Son. ... I always think that trial brings out the tenderness 
 of God and the resources of God as nothing else can do. 
 
 I J 
 
 II 
 
|S8 
 
 UNION IN PR A YER. 
 
 [chap. XX. 
 
 His tried ones could not have learnt all they know of Him 
 without the discipline. Is not a mother's love peculiarly 
 manifested to her crippled or suffering child } Her other chil- 
 dren don't half know what the little afflicted one has found out 
 of her heart and her skill. But I must end. Pray for us ! " 
 
 It would be almost impossible to convey to those 
 who did not personally know Mr. Pennefather any 
 adequate conception of the value he attached to agree- 
 ment in prayer. It was his constant habit (as has 
 been already discovered in his letters) to select a 
 certain number of praying friends with whom he kept 
 up frequent correspondence, who were engaged to 
 present to God in earnest supplication each of his 
 plans and undertakings, specially asking that he might 
 be guided in every word and in every step by wisdom 
 from above. One of these was a lady in Dublin,*" 
 generally confined to a sick-room, whose spiritual mind 
 and deep sympathy gave her a peculiar aptitude for 
 entering into his views and feelings. Many others, who 
 never mingled with the activities of the work followed 
 it from day to day in the solitude of their own chambers. 
 It is probably not too much to say that the following 
 letter is one of many hundreds of a similar character. 
 It is addressed to the inmates of the Invalid Home, 
 one of the institutions which sprang up in connection 
 with the " Nursing Branch " of the Deaconess House. 
 
 ''June \t}i, 1872. 
 " My very dear Friends,— You remember it was a law in 
 Israel that 'they who tarried at home divided the spoil * with 
 those who went up to battle. I always feel that God's dear 
 saints, who are laid aside from active work and from out- 
 ward privileges, share by their prayers and their sympathy 
 
 Miss Henrietta Warren, known to many of the Lord's people who needed 
 sympathy and counsel. 
 
 1872.] 
 
 CONFERENCE MEETINGS. 
 
 489 
 
 with the labourers in the field the blessings which are the lot 
 of those soldiers of the cross who are called into the thickest 
 of the fight. Just now you know that my dear wife and 
 I, with other helpers, are called upon to plan and arrano-e 
 many matters connected with the approaching Conference ; 
 we need much wisdom, strength, and grace. 
 
 " Will you pray for us } We shall, with God's help, plead 
 for you all, that you may richly share in the blessings of 
 the Conference; that the Holy Spirit may fill j^our soul with 
 exceeding joy, and reveal Christ Jesus to you all with a dis- 
 tinctness and a glory such as you have never before experi- 
 enced. And we shall look to you to help us much by your 
 sympathy and your intercessions. Two very dear friends of 
 mine, who were in the habit of pleading very earnestly for 
 me at Conference times, are now with Jesus, and I turn to 
 my own dear 'Invalids' to take their places, and to be for 
 me ' the Lord's remembrancers.' 
 
 ** Ever your affectionate pastor." 
 
 He needed much upholding power for that Confer- 
 ence. A severe cold followed by a sharp attack of 
 sciatica had prostrated his strength, and though, as 
 he told a friend, he " was brought through it comfort- 
 ably," and took his place at every meeting, his altered 
 appearance led many to prognosticate, only too truly, 
 that he stood there for the last time. Two of those 
 who addressed the assembly on that occasion entered 
 the Hall as strangers, and we may be permitted to 
 quote their impressions as afterwards recorded. Mr. 
 Moody of Chicago, speaking in the Conference Hall 
 nearly three years after, thus referred to his previous 
 visit in 1872 — 
 
 ** I well remember, as I sat in yonder seat, looking up at 
 this platform, and seeing the beloved Mr. Pennefather's face 
 illuminated as it were with Heaven's light. I don't think I 
 can recall a word of what he said, but the whole atmosphere 
 of the man breathed holiness, and I then got such a lift and 
 
490 
 
 MR. MOODY AND MAJOR MA LAN. [chap. xx. 
 
 impetus in the Christian life as I have never lost the sense 
 of, and I believe the feeling will remain with me to my dying 
 day. I thank God that I ever saw and spoke with that holy 
 man ; no one could see him without the consciousness that he 
 lived in the presence of God." 
 
 It was the first and last time they ever met ; but 
 Mr. Pennefather was strongly impressed with the 
 conviction that Mr. Moody was one for whom God 
 had prepared a great work, and some weeks later sent 
 him a letter expressing his desire and hope that he 
 would again visit England. Major Malan, who had 
 just returned from South Africa, records his visit to 
 Mildmay in the interesting story of his own exj eri- 
 ences : * — 
 
 "The annual Conference of Christians at Mildmay Park 
 took place a few days after my arrival. Thither I went, 
 and I thank God I did so. It was well worth all I had 
 gone through, and the loss of my commission, to meet such 
 a blessed servant of God as William Pennefather. He is 
 with his Lord now, so I may praise the grace that was in 
 him without fear. Love — heavenly love — love which bursts 
 the bands of sectarianism, — love which knows no tie, no 
 bond but Christ, this was the power of his life. This is the 
 mightiest power for good that man can possess. How he 
 welcomed me, an unknown stranger, for his Master's sake ! " 
 
 Writing to a friend immediately after the Confer- 
 ence, and speaking of his physical inability, Mr. 
 Pennefather says — 
 
 " The Lord kept me very peacefully resting upon Him- 
 self." [And in a note to the Rev. G. Savage (a former 
 fellow- worker), who had called upon him just before the 
 meetings] — " I must tell you that God's words falling from 
 your lips were a very great strength and blessing to me 
 last week: 'Fear not, thou worm Jacob!' They were just 
 
 ! \ 
 
 • (< 
 
 A Soldier's Experiences," p. 213. Nisbct, 1874. 
 
 1872.] 
 
 JOURNEY TO SCHWALBACH. 
 
 491 
 
 what I needed, and I went in the strength of them from 
 day to day. I hope you reached home comfortably and 
 have had a happy Sabbath. The Lord revealed Himself 
 to us. W. preached in the evening to a very full church on 
 ' I in them and Thou in Me.' It was a very interesting and 
 powerful sermon. He and dear M. are our guests, but alas ! 
 only until Wednesday evening, when they go to Pendeen." 
 
 We read of the usual excursions and parochial 
 festivals during the month of July, and several letters 
 tell of his great desire to fix a time for visiting his 
 *' English home," as he still called the house of his 
 friends in Westmoreland. But in the meantime his 
 dear cousin, Lady Farnham, had arrived in London 
 on her way to Schv^albach, and his conviction, after 
 consulting her physician, that her days were numbered, 
 determined him to follow her thither as soon as the 
 way should be made plain. A letter to Mrs. Crewd- 
 son, dated August ist, tells of his arrival at Schwal- 
 bach, and the intensity of feeling with which he 
 entered into the trials of Lord and Lady Farnham, as 
 he speaks again and again of her near approach to her 
 Eternal Home. It seems hard to realise that he him- 
 self was to be there before her. 
 
 " It is very sad and very solemn to me to sit beside her 
 and observe that, as regards 'Ccixs present life, her course is fast 
 running out ! . . . She is the last of our special band, and 
 I am carried back to the days of my childhood, when she 
 and J. (as beloved sisters) played with me and cherished 
 me. . . . But I know ' He doeth all things well ! ' Oh ! His 
 tender mercies to me have been more in number than the 
 sands upon the seashore ! " 
 
 In a later letter we read of ** interesting Bible-read- 
 ines with some of the Enorlish visitors and a few 
 foreigners, who seemed delighted to join us." After 
 
 F 
 
 r 
 
 » t. 
 
 w\ 
 
492 
 
 VISIT TO RIPPOLDSA U. 
 
 [chap. XX. 
 
 a time it became evident that the air of Schwalbach 
 was unsuited to Mr. Pennefather, increasincr the vio- 
 lent neuralgia from which he suffered. And yieldina 
 to the advice of others, he travelled on to a pleasant 
 resting-place in the Black Forest. But whatever 
 might be his surroundings, his yearnings over London 
 and the little flock God had given him there seemed 
 ever to deepen and increase. In the end of his 
 parochial report, which was written from Schwalbach, 
 we find these words — 
 
 " I can truly say that * to spend and be spent * for you is 
 the great joy of my ministry, while I pray that God may 
 at all times and in all things be glorified in me and by me. 
 May I commend myself as well as the blessed work in which 
 I am engaged to your prayers and sympathy. If the 
 minister of Christ has 'meat to eat of which the world knows 
 not,' he has conflicts and sorrows of which God alone is cog- 
 nisant, and he needs all the help that the intercessions of'^a 
 loving people may draw down upon him from the ' Father 
 of lights.' Pastor and people alike require guidance and 
 strength in the * perilous times ' through which the Church 
 of Christ is passing, and prayer and action need to be co^n- 
 bitted m the lives of all the followers of the Lamb. The great 
 city in which our lot is cast demands all our energies to 
 cope with its sins and sorrows. But the Lord has^much 
 people in London, and those who seek for His jewels, even 
 amidst its mire and defilement, will find many precious stones 
 for the temple of the living God." 
 
 It was when at Rippoldsau, the place to which he 
 went on leaving Schwalbach, that he received the 
 offer of a living of considerable value in the West of 
 England. In many respects it was attractive and 
 advantageous, and the kind and generous way in 
 which it was twice pressed upon him was very grati- 
 fying. For a moment the thought of country quiet 
 
 1872.1 
 
 LETTER TO MR, MOODY. 
 
 493 
 
 seemed tempting. It was only a moment, and then 
 the remembrance of his people and of all that God had 
 committed to his hand decided the question. From 
 the same place he wrote a letter of invitation to Mr. 
 Moody, telling him of the wide door open for evan- 
 gelistic effort in London and elsewhere, promising him 
 a warm welcome if he would come over and help. 
 Mr. Moody did not send any written reply, but his 
 visit to England was the response. As regarded the 
 writer of the letter, the answer came too late. His 
 warfare was accomplished and his work was finished 
 before Mr. Moody entered on his great mission to the 
 British Isles. We gather a few gleanings from the 
 letters that tell of his journeyings before returning to 
 Mildmay. The Duchy of Baden was a part of the 
 country he had wished to explore, and the Black (or, 
 as he preferred calling it, the Bright) Forest was 
 altocrether new to him. The distinctive features of 
 the country, the characteristic wild flowers, the customs 
 of the people, all had their interest, and he entered 
 into all with his own peculiar vivacity and keen 
 enjoyment. 
 
 On Aueust 28th he writes from Schaffhausen to Mr. 
 and Mrs. Crewdson — 
 
 " My beloved Friends, — You have been constantly in our 
 thoughts, and your dear names have been on our lips though 
 you have not lately heard from us. I do not know why it 
 was so, but I was very poorly all the time we were at 
 Schwalbach. However, I do not regret having gone there, for 
 our intercourse with the dear Farnhams and other Chris- 
 tians was very refreshing. On the 12th we left it via 
 Wiesbaden and Frankfort for Heidelburg. We remained 
 there one whole day, and reached ^.ippoldsau in the Black 
 Forest on the 14th. We remained there until the 23rd, and 
 
 11 
 
494 BLACK FOREST AND SCHAFFHAUSEN, [chap. XX. 
 
 were brought here in safety by the good hand of the Lord 
 upon us on the 25th. We greatly enjoyed the Black Forest. 
 The part we saw was particularly riajit, consisting of valleys 
 bounded by mountains of considerable altitude, but wooded 
 to their summits, bright rivers gurgling over stony beds ran 
 through all the valleys like Welsh streams ; on the imme- 
 diate banks there are pastures, small cornfields, and fruit 
 trees, while on the rising ground are comfortable farmhouses 
 here and there, built like Swiss cottages, only much more 
 cleanly than those in this beautiful land. The hills are 
 clothed at first with trees of every variety of foliage, beech, 
 birch, ash, hazel, oak, &c. ; and as the mountain ascends, 
 it is at length covered with noble pines, such as you see upon 
 the shoulders of the great Alps. The peasantry look hardy, 
 active, and very industrious. Though these mountains attain 
 an elevation of between 3000 and 4000 feet (higher than our 
 Snowdon), they have the appearance not of mountains but 
 of forests I 
 
 " I gained strength, thank God, at Rippoldsau, but I had a 
 very bad attack of pain the day we arrived here. However, 
 I trust and believe that, through the tender mercy of the 
 Lord, I shall be permitted to return to Mildmay better 
 fitted for my work than when I left it. . . . We have 
 enjoyed this place ; we had never before seen the Falls of the 
 Rhine: they are glorious, and the whole entourage of 
 SchafThausen is bright and very pleasant. We have not 
 travelled to many places, considering the time we have been 
 absent from home, but our days of halting have suited us 
 better than moving rapidly from place to place. We have 
 had quiet leisure to talk of Him whom our souls love, and 
 the hush of freedom from unnumbered claims on our time 
 and thoughts has given us many opportunities of listening 
 to His voice. One of the great enjoyments to me in Conti- 
 nental travelling is that, owing to my shameful ignorance of 
 the language, I seem shut up to commune with God in His 
 works and Word." 
 
 To another friend who was then travelling in 
 Switzerland — 
 
 **I am delighted you have seen the Alps! How silently 
 
 1872.] 
 
 RETURN TO MILDMAY. 
 
 495 
 
 they commune with the upper world ! How little they seem 
 to belong to earth, how much to heaven ! And it was our 
 Redeemer who spake and they stood forth. He girded 
 their rocky heights with pines and clothed their summits 
 with perpetual snows. He covered their sloping bases with 
 verdant meadows, where ten thousand flowers bloom and 
 the herds lie down at noon. Oh ! how the mountains tell 
 us of His might and of His love ! " 
 
 Again, to another — 
 
 *' Miirren, Pr^s d'Interlaken, Sept. 6th. 
 ** How often have we thought of you and spoken of you, 
 though our pens have not told you so ! Switzerland is spe- 
 cially associated with you and our dearest M. Well, here 
 we are, close to the great buttresses of the Bernese Alps, with 
 their snowy peaks above us ! This place is perhaps more 
 wonderful than beautiful. Some day, please God, I will tell 
 you more about it. Now I know you will like to hear about 
 ourselves. . . . Very tenderly and graciously has our blessed 
 Father in heaven dealt with us ! We have seen ' His goings 
 in the sanctuary,' and heard our Shepherd's voice. ... Oh ! 
 that all our strength and every talent lent to us by the Lord 
 may be traded with for eternity ! " 
 
 Very joyfully and hopefully Mr. Pennefather re- 
 turned to his w^ork, though to others it was apparent 
 that the strength gained was by no means adequate 
 to the tax he was prepared to put upon it. The 
 warm welcome of his people, and the hearty services in 
 the crowded church on the first bright Sunday after 
 his return, seemed greatly to interest an aged American 
 pastor who was spending the day with him, and he 
 said more than once, *' I have seen nothing like this 
 in Encrland." — ** I am better, thank the Lord," he writes 
 to an old friend, "though I cannot say I am very 
 well. * Faint yet pursuing,' * cast down but not 
 destroyed, having nothing, but yet possessing all 
 thino-s.' " And to another, ** Here we are, thank God, at 
 home and in the midst of our happy work. May our 
 
 frr 
 
 i' 
 
 ., 1 
 
496 
 
 VISIT TO WESTMORELAND. 
 
 [chap. XX. 
 
 path be bnVhter, and eternal things more real to us all ! " 
 Again, ** I think many must have been praying for me, 
 for I fiever felt more happy in the thought of a winters 
 toil than I do now. And yet the poverty threatens to 
 be great, and the sin abounds. But I have been 
 feasting on the words, ' My grace is sufficient for. 
 thee.'" All the letters written during this autumn, 
 even those on matters of business, seem full of joy 
 and thanksgiving. At the end of one note, '' Don't 
 let us forget to show forth His salvation from day 
 to day." In another, mainly occupied with directions 
 about district visitors, soup-tickets, &c., '' Let me give 
 you one of my favourite texts, * The Lord of Peace 
 Himself give you peace always by all means.' " 
 
 Before going abroad he had promised his friends in 
 Westmoreland to see them, if possible, before the year 
 closed, and this promise was kept, though the visit 
 was of necessity a short one. We quote once more 
 the little record from Mrs. Crewdson's pen to which 
 we have often referred — 
 
 " Our last week spent with him on earth was when he and 
 his wife came to us in the autumn of 1872. A week truly pre- 
 cious at the time, marked by prayer and praise and thanks- 
 givin^r, doubly precious now that we are no more to see his 
 face * until the Lord come.' It is pleasant to feel that the last 
 time we heard his voice from the pulpit was in our own 
 Kendal Church, on the first eight words of ' the Book of the 
 Revelation of Jesus Christ,' the sum and substance of his 
 ministry for more than thirty years ; and I am reminded by 
 our dear friend the Archdeacon of Westmoreland that the 
 passage of Scripture which he took in the evening, when he 
 (the Archdeacon) was present, was that passage in the Second 
 of Timothy which contains the words, * I am now ready to 
 be offered, and the time of my departure is at hand.' " 
 
 In a letter written after his return he says — 
 
 1S72.] 
 
 SOCIAL INTERCOURSE. 
 
 497 
 
 " It was a real pleasure to me to meet Mrs. Arnold 
 and her daughter, Mrs. C, Mr. and Mrs. S., Lord and Lady 
 C, and other dear friends. by seeing two or three at a 
 time, some real and lasting impressions may be made and 
 profit follows. I feel that the social character of true 
 Christianity ought to be cultivated, and it is perhaps a 
 difficult problem to solve how this can best be done to the 
 glory of God, and the true benefit of our own souls and of 
 those with whom we associate. May our gracious Father 
 give us the grace and wisdom necessary to conduct all our 
 reunions to His praise and honour I Time is very precious 
 and eternity is very near ! " 
 
 The subject of social intercourse touched on in this 
 letter was a very important one in Mr. Pennefather's 
 estimation. In his own life there was little time for 
 anything but the work to which his all was conse- 
 crated, but as a matter for consideration and consulta- 
 tion it often came before him, and the utter waste of 
 time, on the plea of ** the claims of society," even 
 among those who profess to live for God and eternity, 
 deeply grieved him. The words of a gentleman, who 
 at one time knew and loved him as a pastor, may be 
 added to show that he succeeded in making the social 
 atmosphere of his own house cheerful as well as pro- 
 fitable : *' It is impossible to describe the happy even- 
 ings spent at his house, when a few of us met together 
 for a little social intercourse, with the study of God's 
 Word and prayer." And another young friend writes : 
 "One turned to the place almost unconsciously as a 
 sort of stronghold of all that was good, and real, and 
 earnest, and true ; a home of rest and refreshment, and 
 warmth and blessing." 
 
 The letters and recollections linked with 1872 are 
 
 so numerous that it is difficult to make a selection. 
 
 He was accustomed to write to poor and rich, young 
 
 2 I 
 
 11^ 
 
 II 
 
 *i 
 
498 
 
 LETTER TO YOUNG WORKERS. [chap. XX. 
 
 and old, strangers to whom he was often asked to 
 send advice, and afflicted ones, known or unknown, who 
 needed sympathy and consolation. To young people 
 who were connected with his congregation he loved 
 to address words of encouragement. We close the 
 records of the year with one such letter, which may 
 stand for very many. It is addressed to a little band 
 of humble workers who were in the habit of making 
 quarterly collections for different branches of his work. 
 
 ^^ November Zihy 1872. 
 
 " My dear young Friends, — I am very grateful to you 
 for the help you have given me, and I bless God for making 
 you willing and stirring up your hearts to cast into His 
 treasury. Our Lord Jesus Christ still watches those who 
 are in any way working for Him. He sees their hearts, He 
 knows their motives, and He accepts the smallest gift that 
 is laid at His feet for His Father's glory. Your offerings 
 have encouraged me, and your kind sympathy and affection 
 have cheered me on in my work. I know that our Heavenly 
 Father notices any kindness shown to His servants, even 
 the least of them ; and our Lord Jesus Christ has said, ' Inas- 
 much as ye have done it to the least of these. My brethren, 
 ye have done it unto Me' So you have gladdened the heart 
 of Jesus by cheering His unworthy servant. Accept then, 
 my dear young friends, my very best thanks for your offer- 
 ings. And now I am going to ask you to pray specially 
 for three things, ist, That God may guide me every month 
 in writing the letter for * Home Words,' and that He will 
 make that little magazine a blessing to many. 2ndly, That 
 the Lord will give me wisdom for my annual little book. 
 3rdly, That He will give His blessing to the almanac and 
 motto for the New Year. There are many other things I 
 should like you to pray for, but the three subjects I have 
 named are much upon my heart just now. Oh ! pray also 
 that many souls may be converted. 
 
 "With my Christian love to you all and to our helpers 
 generally, — Believe me to remain your affectionate pastor 
 and friend, WiLLlAM Pennefatiier." 
 
 ( 499 ) 
 
 CHAPTER XXI. 
 
 EARLY MONTHS OF 1 8 73. 
 
 Parochial Work— Illness— Recollections of a friend— Week of prayer 
 
 — New Year's text — Last sermons — Removal to Muswell Hill 
 
 Letters— Improved health— Visit to Mildmay— Closing scene 
 — Funeral — Recollections of friends — Extracts from funeral 
 sermons. 
 
 T^HERE remains but little to be told. The activi- 
 -*" ties of winter work were carried on as usual 
 — night-schools, tea-meetings, Christmas gatherings, 
 &c. Mr. Pennefather went through his usual multi- 
 farious engagements and bore up wonderfully, — until 
 coming out one night from the heat of a crowded 
 meeting, he exposed himself, in his w^atchful care for 
 others, to a cold, searching wind, and came home 
 evidently chilled. The usual consequences followed 
 — fever ran high, and he was laid down in great suf- 
 fering from neuralgic pain. 
 
 Though soon at work again, he never regained the 
 ground he had lost, and from this time every service, 
 even the preaching to his own people, in which he 
 so greatly delighted, was an effort. But during 
 the week of prayer he took his usual place at 
 all his local meetings, except when assisting, as 
 he generally did each year, at those held in the 
 Freemasons' Hall and at the London Tavern. " The 
 last time I saw beloved Mr. Pennefather," says a 
 friend from Yorkshire, ** was at the Freemasons' Hall. 
 
 )( 
 
 m 
 
500 
 
 NEW YEAR'S SERMON. 
 
 [chap. XXI. 
 
 It was the Evangelical Alliance meeting, and I heard 
 the well-known voice in prayer. Such a comprehen- 
 sive prayer! Full of Christian love, pathos, and 
 power ! I hoped to have had a word, a look, a shake 
 of the hand, but he left the Hall soon after, and •! saw 
 him no more." He preached on New Year's Day, 
 taking for his text as usual the motto he had selected 
 for the year : *' Call unto Me and I will answer thee, 
 and show thee great and mighty things, which thou 
 knowest not" (Jer. xxxiii. 3). He dwelt on Jeremiah's 
 faith in the purchase of the field, as preceding the 
 revelations made to him in the prison, and spoke with 
 great animation on one of his favourite subjects, the 
 endless unfoldings of God's character to His children. 
 One more sermon during that month was full of power 
 and energy, though preached when he ought hardly 
 to have left his bed. It was on Ps. Ixxi. 20, 21, show- 
 ing forth as he said, " The law of the Kingdom, death 
 and resurrection ; not life and death in the order we 
 generally put them, but death and life : ' I am ' first 
 * the resurrection,' then ' the life,' embodies the whole of 
 God's dealings with His ransomed Church, collec- 
 tively and individually." A gentleman from the country, 
 who was present on that occasion, left the church say- 
 ing, "Mr. Pennefather outdid himself this morning." 
 
 He still struggled on with daily and hourly duties, 
 only dropping those engagements which were extra- 
 parochial. From week to week many were watching 
 him with affectionate solicitude. To quote the words 
 of a member of his congregation — 
 
 " The thought expressed by Dr. Hamilton zvoidd now and 
 then cast across us its dark shadow, but unceasing prayer 
 sustained hope, and in our bUndness we said, * His work is 
 
 1873-] 
 
 CLOSING SERVICES. 
 
 501 
 
 not yet nearly done, and God will surely raise him up again.' 
 Now the words come to us with vivid reality as weliook 
 back to the marvellous energy, the unfaltering devotedness, 
 the intensity, the patience, the dihgence, the amount of 
 laborious service, which characterised this dear departed one, 
 especially in the closing years of his ministry, when every- 
 thing he did prospered, and his work branched out with rapid 
 growth. ' It need not be denied,' says Dr. Hamilton, * that 
 when the spirit within is highly sharpened, it is apt to cut 
 deeply into its corporeal sheath. When an eager spirit is 
 associated with a fragile frame, we need not look for longe- 
 vity, but what this life lacks in length, it will make up in 
 brightness.' * Those present will never forget,' says the same 
 friend, * the last evening of the year 1872, when about fifty of 
 the navvies employed on the tramway were invited by him 
 to tea in the basement of the Conference Hall. They were 
 rough stalwart men, such as are generally unused to gentle 
 influences, and strangers to the Gospel. He was looking 
 very fragile and weary that night, and having another meet"^ 
 ing before him, did not enter the room till late. But when 
 he came in as usual, with his bright smile and kind welcome, 
 it was beautiful to see the spontaneous way in which, to a 
 man, they all respectfully rose, and then listened to the Word 
 of Salvation from his lips." 
 
 On the evening of February 8th he presided at 
 a service of song in the Conference Hall, where a 
 crowded audience had assembled to hear Philip 
 Phillips, the pilgrim- singer. His prayer that night 
 was a message from God to one man's heart. He 
 had come into the Hall supposing himself to be a 
 Christian, but the outpouring of a soul so evidently 
 7iear to God convinced him that his own religion had 
 been hitherto a mere form, and from that moment a 
 new life began. He has ever since gone on his way 
 rejoicing in Christ his Saviour. 
 
 On the next Sunday, Mr. Pennefather preached at 
 St. Jude's, but with such manifest physical distress, 
 
 I 
 
502 
 
 REMOVAL TO M US WELL HILL. [chap. xxt. 
 
 It 
 
 that more than one of his congregation expressed a 
 conviction that it would be his last sermon."' And 
 so it proved to be. A violent bilious attack con- 
 fined him to his bed for some days, and he was 
 strongly advised to go to his cottage at Muswell Hill 
 for more quiet than it was possible to secure in his 
 London house. 
 
 This he consented to do on February 20th, but 
 first met on the morning of that day one division ot 
 his district visitors, entering with his usual animation 
 and minute interest into the cases brought before him. 
 We find a letter dated Wednesday evening, February 
 19th, which tells his own feelings in leaving home. 
 
 To Mr. H. 
 
 *• It was very refreshing to have a h'ttle talk with you, and 
 you cheered me greatly. To-morrow (Thursday) I am going 
 to Muswell Hill, so I shall not be with you on Saturday or 
 
 Sunday. I am very sorry, but Dr. P has advised me to 
 
 go, and I think, please God, it may prove to be the best plan. 
 I shall hope to return ere long and be among you all again, 
 but I am not far off at Muswell Hill. We have a little 
 cottage there, which God gave us in a very remarkable 
 manner, and we send our fellow-workers who need change 
 of air from time to time to get recruited there. If we are 
 spared until summer, perhaps the Lord may permit us to 
 have you and others down there for a day of prayer and 
 communion. I want you now to pray that, if it be God's 
 will, I may be strengthened for the Conference, and permitted 
 again to assemble the Lord's children. There are yet four 
 months before the time when we usually hold the Conference, 
 but weeks and months pass quickly by. Oh ! that I may 
 
 * The text of that sermon was Deut. xxxiii. 27, and the opening fastened itself 
 on many minds. *' These were among the last words of Moses. There is some- 
 thing very emphatic in last words, and these words of Moses were full of mean- 
 ing. He looked back, he looked forward, he looked up to the face of God, and 
 reviewing Israel's history, he uttered these wonderful words descriptive of Israel's 
 future, * There is none like/ " &c. 
 
 1873.] 
 
 BOOKS AND LETTERS. 
 
 503 
 
 come out of this present season of trial brightened and much 
 more meet for His service. Plead for me, my very dear 
 friend." 
 
 The weeks that followed were a series of alternate 
 hopes and fears. The continual fluctuations in his 
 state of health seemed to disappoint every anticipa- 
 tion of permanent improvement. At first, the oppor- 
 tunity for quiet reading greatly delighted him, and he 
 took up book after book with lively interest. Notes by 
 Dr. Candlish on the Epistles of St. John he spoke of 
 with special pleasure. Letter-writing was so natural 
 to him, that unless absolutely confined to his bed, he 
 could not be restrained from holding some little inter- 
 course with absent friends. On March 3rd he writes 
 to an old friend in London — 
 
 "Your dear letter, received this morning, was a great joy to 
 me. I had been thinking much of you, and your words of 
 love and kindness were as a balm to my heart. I have been 
 very unwell, but, thank God, am now better. I have fled 
 away from work to this little cottage, which has been graci- 
 ously provided for us by our Heavenly Father. It is not far 
 from London, and yet as quiet as if it were a hundred miles 
 away ; and it is pretty too ! so we can enjoy birds and trees 
 and flowers, and mark the signs of resurrection all around. 
 ' Seed-time and harvest, summer and winter, day and night 
 shall not fail.' They do not, and their continual recurrence 
 reminds us of Him who is * the same yesterday, to-day, and 
 for ever.* I greatly enjoy the quiet, and I delight in spring, 
 it is always so full of pro^nise. I have not preached for 
 several Sundays, so you will see I have followed your good 
 advice. I can quite believe all you say about your minister. 
 I have not heard him, but my wife (and of course / consider 
 her no bad judge) was delighted with him, and longed that 
 I could have been beside her, listening to his wise and telling 
 words. I hope I shall see more of him, and that, if we are 
 permitted to have a Conference in June, he will be present." 
 
 i'i 
 
 I . 
 
504 
 
 INCREASED ILLNESS . 
 
 [chap. xxr. 
 
 The letter goes on to speak much of Lady Farn- 
 ham (who was still living,) and of his deep thankful- 
 ness for the calmness and peace granted to her, and 
 ends with these words — 
 
 '* We rtr^ come to Mount Zion, . . . and to the spirits of 
 just men made perfect; we are not separated from the saints 
 who are with Jesus ; we are even now come to thanr 
 
 On the 17th of March he writes to another, datinor 
 his letter *^ St. Patricks Day. A memorable day to 
 me. It was on the 17th of March 1848 that we 
 arrived at Aylesbury." 
 
 To another friend he says, referring to his New 
 Year's text : " I am now, as it were, in a prison, but I 
 can hear God's voice saying, * Call unto Me and I will 
 answer thee, and show thee great and mighty things 
 which thou knowest not.' The Lord is ncar^ this is 
 my consolation." In the middle of March a severe 
 attack of pain and fever brought him very low, and it 
 was while still much prostrated that the news reached 
 him of the removal of a member of his congregation 
 to whom he was much attached. She was a deep 
 student of Scripture, and one who delighted to explore 
 the field of prophetic truth, and talk of Israel's future 
 and the glories of the coming kingdom. Her family, 
 not fully aware of the shattered state of his health, 
 were very anxious that her pastor should perform the 
 funeral service himself. The letter in answer to their 
 request bears the date of March i6th, and is evidently 
 written with difficulty. 
 
 "My dear Mrs. S.,— How truly it may be said of your 
 beloved mother, * To her to live was Christ, and to die was 
 gain.' The Lord Jesus Christ was ^tftd^ her life, and great 
 gain is her portion. What has she gained by death ? Her 
 
 ^^n^ 
 
 INCREASED ILLNESS. 
 
 505 
 
 life on earth was full of joy in the Lord, and yet to leave it 
 is gain I Gain, because now her powers are greatly in- 
 creased ; she is 'present with the Lord.' What that implies 
 it is difficult for us, who are still in the body, to understand, 
 but she no longer sees * through a glass, darkly, but face to 
 face.' He no longer ' looketh forth at the windows, showing 
 Himself through the lattice,' but He has spoken to her and 
 said, ' Rise up, my love, my fair one, and come away,' and she 
 has heard the voice and gone with Him. It must be train, 
 too, to leave this body of sin and suffering, for until we lay 
 down * this corruptible,' there must be conflict and tears and 
 pain. But now, for her this is all past, and she stands on the 
 other side and hears her Leader's voice, saying, 'The Egyp- 
 tians whom you have seen to-day, you shall see them again 
 no more for ever.* 
 
 *' It would have been a great gratification to me had I 
 been able to accede to your wish, but I have been again 
 brought very low by a fresh attack of illness, and am^'ex- 
 tremely weak. But a ' Living Jesus ' will be amongst you ! " 
 
 It was in remembrance of this friend that he wrote 
 the lines which soon became so familiar to many : 
 ** Not here, but yonder."* 
 
 The loss of mental vigour, inseparable from increas- 
 ing weakness of body, was a great trial to him. " I 
 don't know," he writes to one dear to him, *' that I 
 ever had such a season of powerlessness. It may be 
 that it is the pruning time, that I may bring forth 
 more fruit." Complaining one day to his wife of want 
 of readiness in expressing himself, he said, ** I find it 
 even in prayer ; " then in a low voice, as though speak- 
 ing to himself, " For the first time in my life." Still 
 his thoughts were so busy about his people and the 
 Lord's work in general, that it was very difficult to 
 ensure the needed repose. " It is not easy," said his 
 doctor, *'to allow that large brain sufficient material 
 
 * No. LXVIII. in " Original Hymns." See Appendix C. 
 
 \\ 
 
fl; 
 
 506 
 
 MEETING FOR PR AVER. 
 
 [chap. XXI. 
 
 for its activity, without fatigue or excitement." He 
 was as eager as ever to read letters, and though not 
 able to conduct family prayers, would sometimes go 
 down to the kitchen to sing a hymn and have prayer 
 with the servants ; but he evidently felt unable to bear 
 the fatigue of conversation, and saw very few friends. 
 The "silent Sabbaths,*' as he said, were his greatest 
 trial, and though no murmur escaped his lips, he would 
 sometimes say, in reference to the restrictions imposed 
 upon him, ** If I might only preach in my dear 
 church, I should be quite well." Along with the most 
 perfect acquiescence in God's will, there was evidently 
 a desire to recover strength, and no apparent presenti- 
 ment that his work was done. He never took either 
 food or medicine without a moment's pause for prayer, 
 and one of his favourite texts was often on his lips, 
 "When He hath tried me, I shall come forth as gold." 
 On the 1 6th of April a large meeting was held in the 
 Conference Hall, and much earnest prayer was offered 
 for his recovery. Mrs. Pennefather said to him the 
 next morning, '' Many were praying for you last night." 
 ** I knew it," was his reply ; ** I felt the great pressure of 
 illness lifted off." From that time there was a manifest 
 change in his state. It had been proposed that further 
 medical advice should be called in, but the marked 
 improvement in almost every symptom seemed to 
 render it unnecessary. He began to speak of the 
 Conference, and the possibility of his strength being 
 sufficiently restored to attempt it, saying, " It will be 
 time enough to send out the letter in May." He 
 dictated a short letter to his people for the May 
 number of " Home Words," and spoke with deep 
 interest of Dr. Moffat's visit to Mildmay, mourning his 
 
 1S73.] 
 
 IMPROVED HEALTH, 
 
 507 
 
 inability to welcome him. At intervals he was much 
 occupied with arrangements connected with his work 
 and parish, some of them more sorrowfully important 
 than he then supposed them to be. Among these was 
 an invitation to Captain Moreton, the present beloved 
 and valued superintendent of the Conference Hall, to 
 " come over and help " him in that responsible work. 
 Some correspondence passed between them, and Cap- 
 tain Moreton kindly promised to give his first assist- 
 ance in the month of May ! 
 
 Surely it may be said now, as of old, ** He leadeth 
 the blind by a way that they know not." 
 
 On April 23rd he wrote to a dear friend — 
 
 ** I know you will thank our Heavenly Father that I can 
 send you a favourable report of myself. I have daily (for 
 some days past) driven out in an open carriage, have gained 
 strength, and in many respects am much revived. Many have 
 been the prayers offered for me, and God has heard them. 
 
 ** The answer is coming in His own time. ' I was brought 
 low, and He helped me.' 
 
 " Tell your dear father I have much enjoyed his kind gift, 
 * The Memorials of a Quiet Life.' There is a beautiful sim- 
 plicity in Augustus Hare's character and Maria's faith in 
 God. God's upholding power, and the deep consolation 
 afforded to her in her great sorrow, are full of instruction. 
 
 '* Have you heard nightingales } We heard ///j-/ a tivitter ! 
 The hedges are beautiful and speak of living power. Oh ! 
 for renewed life in the soul ! — that fresh glad spring of 
 Resurrection that God can give us ! " 
 
 It was one of God's special mercies that the burden 
 of money responsibilities which often pressed heavily 
 on His servant was at this time unusually lightened. 
 Seldom had money flowed in so freely as during the 
 weeks of his illness, and tears of gratitude would 
 stream down his cheeks when told of each cheque 
 
 ) h 
 
 I 
 
 fi 
 
5o8 
 
 IMPROVED HEALTH. 
 
 [chap. XX r. 
 
 as it arrived. One little circumstance may be 
 mentioned as in harmony with the whole tenor of 
 his life. A very kind friend, fearing the return to his 
 unsparing labour, proposed to place at his disposal a 
 horse and carriage which should involve no expense to 
 himself, but be always at his command. The letter 
 was read to him as he lay in his bed, and called forth 
 many expressions of grateful affection ; - But," he added 
 after a pause, " it must not be ; I could not risk even 
 the appearance of self-indulgence when many of my 
 dear people are denying themselves to help me." 
 
 "It was about this time," says his wife, ''that I was 
 very much struck with his remarks on the greatness 
 of God, The thought seemed to give him inexpress- 
 ible satisfaction. He was lying on the sofa, looking 
 up mto the sky, as if he would penetrate beyond the 
 visible. There was a gentleman in the room, whom 
 he had not seen for a long time, and he roused himself 
 to talk for his sake. God great in creation, great in 
 redemption, great in His resources, great in His 
 achievements! The subject seemed quite to carry 
 him away. And this greatness, making it so easy for 
 us to leave everything in His hands, all difficulties, 
 all mysteries, as little children who love their father 
 and trust their father, but never think of understand- 
 ing more than he is pleased to tell them ; and this great 
 God is our Father, who has chosen to reveal His 
 great Love in the face of Jesus Christ. There was 
 something in the whole tone of the conversation that 
 seemed to fasten itself on my memory, when much, 
 alas ! has been swept away into the oblivion of sorrow.''* 
 As days went on he became very anxious to visit 
 Mildmay, and arranged to drive there on Monday 
 
 IS73-J 
 
 VISIT TO MILDMAY. 
 
 509 
 
 the 28th ; he was evidently very conscious of his weak- 
 ness, and there was something indescribable in the 
 expression of his face. He only went to his own 
 house, and to an aged friend next door. There, after 
 speaking hopefully of his return to his people, he knelt 
 in prayer, asking, among other things, that ''we may 
 so live that it shall be no abrupt change to step out 
 of earth into heaven." 
 
 A few of those who loved him caught sight of him 
 as the carriage passed by. One went home, saying, 
 " I have seen him for the last time on earth." A lady 
 who was sojourning for a short time at the " Invalid 
 Home," opposite his house, turned away from the 
 window, saying, " That face is not for earth, but for 
 heaven." The next day he was not quite so well, but 
 there were no serious symptoms. He talked with two 
 or three friends, and sent his last letter to the post, 
 addressed to Lord Farnham, and begun on the pre- 
 vious day. 
 
 "Melford Lodge, Muswell Hill, April 2Wi^ 1873. 
 " My darling S., — Once again I take my pen to write to 
 my beloved brother. For eleven Sundays I have been 
 silent, and for some weeks before I was struggling with ill- 
 ness. But mercies have been multiplied to us, and ' my song 
 shall be ever of the loving-kindness of the Lord.' I have 
 thought much of our precious M. I knew not, at one time of 
 my illness, whether I also was about to tmderstand what now 
 we see through a glass darkly ; but God has been pleased 
 in great measure to restore me, though I am still very weak. 
 I have been reading what I believe has occupied her mind a 
 good deal, * The Memorials of a Quiet Life.' I have been 
 deeply interested in the faith and love of Maria Hare, the 
 beautiful simplicity of Augustus, and admired the zeal and 
 fervour of Julius. *They are all passed away,' the golden 
 gates have closed after them. We, too, beloved S., shall soon 
 hear the joyful words, ' Enter thou into the joy of thy Lord.' 
 
 it 
 
 I 
 
 I 
 
5IO 
 
 CLOSIXG SCENE. 
 
 [chap. XX r. 
 
 1873.] 
 
 VARIOUS RECOLECTIONS. 
 
 5" 
 
 Yet while we are here we have to glorify our Father which 
 is in Heaven. Oh ! for grace to do so ! Oh ! to be enabled 
 at the close of life to say, * I have glorified Thee on the 
 earth.' I long to hear of darling M. and of you. God's arm 
 is strong to lean upon, and His faithfulness never fails. He 
 is near to succour, near to comfort, near with His infinite 
 resources. Oh ! that our faith may increase, that, like Moses, 
 we may endure as seeing Him who is invisible." 
 
 On Wednesday morning he spent a short time 
 with the gentleman who had been latterly acting as 
 his secretary, arranging matters of business and 
 speaking of the Conference. Some friends were 
 coming to the house, and he preferred having his 
 luncheon alone upstairs. It was then the fatal stroke 
 came. He was found partially insensible, having 
 fallen from his chair. For a few moments he seemed 
 as though trying to recover himself, told his wife that 
 the attack had been brought on by a violent fit of 
 choking, and asked why the luncheon-tray had been 
 removed. Three hours of unconsciousness followed, 
 during which time the countenance wonderfully 
 resumed its natural expression. At half-past four 
 o'clock, God, in great mercy, " loosed the silver cord," 
 and the weary labourer was at rest I * On the same 
 evening an aged member of his flock was passing 
 away. Realising the joy into which she was about 
 to enter, she startled those around her by saying, ** I 
 shall see Mr. Pennefather." The sad news had not 
 then reached London, and she did not live to hear 
 it. To describe all that followed would be impossible. 
 His sorrow-stricken people went at once to their 
 knees. One prayer-meeting after another was ap- 
 
 • Almcsl at ilie same time a friend whom he loved and honoured (David 
 Livingslone) was called home from liis toils and triumphs in Central Africa. 
 
 pointed, as though they could only find comfort at 
 their Father's footstool. A stranger who happened 
 to be in the neighbourhood remarked, '' The conduct 
 of that congregation ought to be told to the ends of 
 the earth, so deeply sorrowful and yet so submissive 
 and prayerful. There could not be a stronger tes- 
 timony to the character of his ministrations whose 
 removal they deplore." 
 
 " It was not, however," to quote from one of the 
 public papers, *' until Sunday, May 4th, that their loss 
 seemed to be realised; and the scene at the church 
 almost baffles description, the saddest it has been our 
 lot to witness. The building was crowded with 
 mourners ; with the exception of a very few persons, all 
 were dressed in deep black, and hundreds lingered 
 lovingly outside throughout the entire service. The 
 Rev. W. H. Aitken, former curate of St. Jude's, 
 preached the sermon, but the task was almost too 
 difficult for him to perform." *' The intense grief," says 
 another paper, '* cannot be realised by those who are 
 ignorant of Mildmay and its hallowed associations ; " 
 and again, ** The name of William Pennefather will be 
 dwelt upon in thousands and thousands of households, 
 wherever Christianity is taught, as one of its most 
 valued treasures." The village churchyard of Ridge, 
 near Barnet, was chosen for his burial, where, side by 
 side with his dear friend Captain Trotter, the mortal 
 waits to put on immortality. The funeral took place 
 on Tuesday, May 6th, and was conducted with as much 
 simplicity as possible, in accordance with the life he 
 had lived, but, to quote again from a printed record, 
 ** It was one of the most remarkable ever seen in the 
 metropolis. All classes and all denominations did 
 
 I! 
 
 i I 
 
 I 
 
512 
 
 VARIOUS RECOLLECTIONS. 
 
 [chap. XXI. 
 
 ^^JZ-I 
 
 honour to his memory/' '* It might have been," said 
 one who watched the gathering crowds, " the funeral of 
 a king ! " 
 
 The sorrow was so wide-spread that his most 
 attached friends were taken by surprise. There was 
 no boundary of party, no contracting of the breadth 
 of Christian love, but a marvellous merorinof of all 
 minor differences in that hour of unfeigned mourning-. 
 Letters of sympathy were addressed to Mrs. Penne- 
 father alike by the Bishop of the diocese and the city 
 missionary, the High Church clergyman and the 
 Nonconformist minister, the peer and the coster- 
 monger, — all uniting to do honour to one who, during 
 his whole life, had sought nothing but the honour that 
 Cometh from God only. Among the hundreds of such 
 letters, pouring in as they did from far and near, the 
 variety and yet the unity of testimony was remarkable. 
 Some speak of the loss sustained by societies and 
 public bodies, young men's associations and struggling 
 missions, while others are of a more personal and 
 individual character — *' He brought me to Christ, but 
 he never knew it : " *' I never told him what unspeak- 
 able blessing he was the means of bringing to my soul." 
 " If I am a Christian, I owe it all to him, and I never 
 thanked him." Such memories and regrets are innum- 
 erable. They may not inappropriately be all summed 
 up in the language of one whose brotherly kindness 
 had often cheered the friend of whom he speaks : — 
 
 " In all quarters of the globe there are found members of 
 the household of faith to whom the name of William Penne- 
 father was familiar, and who constantly sustained by their 
 prayers the burden of his numerous Christian enterprises. 
 Yet more, there are thousands of the Lord's people at home 
 and abroad, whose brightest memories are connected with 
 
 VARIOUS RECOLLECTIONS. 
 
 513 
 
 |i 
 
 wf. T"'-^^ ''^° ^'" ^'^^ their highest spiritual bless- 
 ings to the influence of his life and labours. Within the 
 compass of a life scarcely prolonged beyond middle a-e 
 he compressed an amount of action and service which mi4t 
 well have occupied many lives and expended the energies 
 of many labourers. . . . But though most abundant in labour 
 ot every kmd, wi.se in counsel and unwearied in service it 
 was not ,n these points that he stood pre-eminent among 
 his Chnstian_ brethren and towered over all his contempora- 
 ries. It was in the attractive power of love that he exhibited 
 
 rhnrirf r' T. ^""^'"T^ '"'^'^ ^ '"'■g^^y i"fl"«°<=^ in the 
 Cnurch of God almost all over the world." 
 
 To add the words of another—" He did more by 
 his mfluence to unite all ivho love the Lord Jesus 
 Lhrist in sincerity, than any one who has lived amon? 
 us in this century." At the meeting of the Lay- 
 Helpers' Association shortly after his death, a testi- 
 mony was given, the more valuable because it came 
 from a clergyman who might be supposed to differ 
 from him m secondary matters. "I speak of one 
 with whose labours I was personally acquainted in the 
 r^orth of London, and who has accomplished a work 
 never exceeded, perhaps never equalled, by any 
 clergyman m our generation." 
 
 Of the many touching stories that were told in con- 
 nection with the days of mourning we only mention 
 two. On the evening of the 30th of April, when the 
 parish was stunned by the unexpected tidings of be- 
 reavement, a little band of weeping children, who were 
 telhng one another of their loss and refusin<r to be 
 comforted, caught the sound of a street-organ in the 
 neighbourhood. Gathering up all the halfpennies and 
 farthings they could muster, they took them to the 
 organist, imploring him to leave the place as he " must 
 aot play his music where there was so much sorrow." 
 
 2 K 
 
 ll 
 
 il 
 
 } * 
 
514 
 
 VARIOUS RECOLLECTIONS, 
 
 [chap. xxr. 
 
 In a public meeting two or three days after, incidental 
 mention was made of the loss the Church had sustained. 
 There was one present who in his religious opinions 
 and proclivities might be considered as widely removed 
 as possible from Mr. Pennefather ; but the keynote 
 of Christian union was touched, it ra7ig irtcCy and he 
 burst into tears. 
 
 So many recollections of loving friends or observant 
 strangers have been already interwoven into this 
 imperfect sketch, that it w^ould be tedious to multiply 
 them. A few pages shall close the story of a life 
 whose "record is on high." It has been told with 
 the one purpose and desire of magnifying the grace 
 of Him who "chooseth the weak things of the world 
 to confound the mighty," that grace which can do for 
 other self-renouncing, single-minded believers what it 
 did for William Pennefather. 
 
 His dear friend. Dr. El win, who, though not a stated 
 fellow-labourer, often proved himself a loving and 
 efficient helper, writes — 
 
 " It is not always wise to compare men with men, but this 
 I must say, that among many hundreds of friends and 
 acquaintances I know of no one whose presence had so 
 much power over me ; it was a power, not of greatness, talent, 
 or wisdom merely, but one of goodness and of God. 
 
 ** The very first time I attended a Scripture-reading at his 
 house, he asked me before I left to come into his study. 
 After a few minutes' conversation, he knelt and prayed. My 
 heart was fully knit to his. It was as easy to him to pray as 
 to speak. I have known him in a most natural way go from 
 one to the other; and such prayers ! so childlike, yet such 
 discernment and simple faith with Divine intuition ! On 
 another occasion I went to Mildmay on a visit, and had gone 
 to my room. Mr. Pennefather entered whilst I was unpack- 
 ing and embraced me. He then knelt down ; he asked six 
 
 t873.] 
 
 VARIOUS RECOLLECTIONS, 
 
 515 
 
 petitions with fervour and childlike ease. The prayers 
 seemed to ascend to God. During my stay every one of 
 them was singularly answered, some in a remarkably 
 providential way, so that I could have no doubt of God's 
 hearing those breathings in my room. He was a man not 
 of words but of deeds ! He lived the life of God conse- 
 quently he carried power with him. To conduct laro-e Con- 
 ference meetings from year to year without apparent diffi- 
 cu ty or anxiety, to fix rightly upon subjects, to call upon 
 helpers in such a work, to carry out innumerable details 
 without apparent ruffle or excitement, was indeed no small 
 matter. He was equal to great occasions and at home in 
 minute ones. God had given him especial wisdom and skill 
 for the important work of gathering Christians together • one 
 would have prognosticated trouble, error, division of judg- 
 ment, controversy and such-like, but it was all quite other- 
 wise. Contention and controversy he did not meddle with 
 If I may so speak, he was the St. John of our day. He loved 
 to make every one at ease and at home in his company, and 
 yet he was not a man of compromise or double mind 'The 
 love that he had for Christians was a love for Christ's sake— 
 a Divine love. Love seemed to be his element, yet there was 
 no weakness about it. His great power over men, his ability 
 m correction, his extraordinary discernment of the gifts of 
 others, proved this. He seldom erred in the estimate and 
 idea he formed of those around him. I have known a gentle 
 touch of his hand repress what might have proved very trying 
 and harmful in a public address. That gentle touch came 
 from one who had power. At one time, in visiting round the 
 parish at Mildmay with him, I was greatly taken with the 
 variety of his gifts. We visited many homes : his tenderness 
 when It was needed was like that of a woman ; visiting the 
 sick, he appeared to enter fully into their state. It was 
 indeed a privilege to know him and to be in his society. A 
 living epistle as he was, there was always something to learn. 
 For my part, I can say that his life and ways, the grace and 
 ease of his Christianity, were to me most profitable and 
 greatly blessed. I believe that much of his power consisted 
 in the purity of his soul— only a look of his would rebuke. 
 In the love which he exercised towards his fellow-believers 
 
V 
 
 5i6 
 
 VARIOUS RECOLLECTIONS, 
 
 [chap. XXI. 
 
 there was a peculiarity. He loved his many friends, yet he 
 was able to bestow a special love upon each one. He knew 
 how to generalise and how to individualise. He proved 
 himself a true friend in time of need, and could always 
 be at leisure to serve others. I have said that he was bold. 
 The convening a gathering of believers, as was done at 
 Barnet in 1856, was indeed a bold step — the invitation to a 
 united communion at the Lord's table still more so. It is 
 easy enough to join a cause in its prosperity, to imitate a 
 good work once begun and going on, but to originate 
 and take the first step at all hazards is a very different 
 thing. This is why I insist that the gentle and lovely William 
 Pennefather was bold in his God to do His holy will when 
 shown to him. He loved fellowship in work, and he could 
 stand alone if necessary. Women's work, open-air preach- 
 ing, special services in halls, theatre services, together with 
 the almost endless methods devised to meet men for their 
 good, were all helped forward by the sympathy and assist- 
 ance of our beloved friend. He was a gifted man ! But how 
 he did rejoice to recognise and use the gifts of others ! 
 Jealousy is a common fault in many of us. It did not show 
 itself in him. How gracious of our Heavenly Father to have 
 lent to His Church such a servant and at such a time, to 
 allow him to do what he did, and then, as though heaven 
 were his true and best place, to snatch him away from us. 
 The remembrance of his life, his words, his works, his look, 
 all are sweet to us, and it does us good to think upon him. 
 
 " Some may say that such words of panegyric are too 
 highly coloured and out of place. But they come from one 
 who has watched all the movements in Christendom for 
 upwards of forty years, who has been more or less associated 
 with the various movements towards advance and progress 
 during all that time. Let them not be rejected as the fond 
 words of a friend. Having longed and prayed for souls, 
 having earnestly desired to live to see a more manifested 
 union of God's people for His glory and the edification of His 
 Church, how can he withhold his testimony to the great work 
 with which many long to be more intimately acquainted ? " 
 
 The next tribute of affection is from the Rev. John 
 
 1873.] 
 
 VARIOUS RECOLLECTIONS, 
 
 517 
 
 Wilkinson, well known as a zealous labourer in the 
 cause of Israel — 
 
 *' My first introduction to Mr. Pennefather I shall never 
 forget. This was in 1868, at the Clevedon Conference, on the 
 occasion of my address on the Jewish question, immediately 
 after my return from a tour in the Holy Land. At the close 
 of that address he met me at the platform stairs, grasped my 
 hand in both his, and said, * To think that we have lived so 
 near to each other and not met before ! what a loss it has been 
 to me ! ' I replied, ' And what a loss it has been to me ! * 
 
 *' This was followed by frequent interviews in London both 
 in public and private. He was kind enough to invite me, 
 every subsequent year of his life, to give an address on some 
 subject connected with the Jews at the Mildmay Conference. 
 In private interviews, if we met for five minutes, two at least 
 were spent in prayer. I well remember, after breakfasting 
 with him one morning, his calling me into the adjoining room 
 to confer and pray together respecting a new Conference 
 Hall ; then, not long after, his requesting me to pray on the 
 occasion of his laying the foundation-stone of that Hall. I 
 have also a vivid recollection of our kneeling together in 
 November 1872 to ask the Lord for ;f 500 for the purchase 
 and furnishing of a Cottage Home for aged Christian Israel- 
 ites, and on rising from our knees he quietly wrote the first 
 cheque. The Lord answered our prayers, and the Home was 
 paid for and filled with inmates. 
 
 " I attended his funeral, and was not ashamed to be found 
 among the weeping ones. His memory will ever be fragrant 
 as long as my mind remains strong enough to realise that 
 beautiful life. It is only simple truth to say that the bright 
 example of William Pennefather has been more blessed to 
 me than that of any other man, and more than I can find 
 words adequately to describe. I admired him for his dignified 
 politeness, his graceful and courteous affability, his cheerful- 
 ness without levity, his seriousness without sadness, his deep 
 and unaffected love to his Lord and to all saints, so that it is 
 scarcely to be wondered at that the memory of such a bright 
 character should shed such a blessed influence over my own 
 life. I have often found myself, when in any mental diffi- 
 
 I 
 
5i8 
 
 VARIOUS RECOLLECTIONS, 
 
 [chap. XXI. 
 
 culty, almost unconsciously asking, next to the inquiry, what 
 the Lord Jesus would do, or would have me do, how would 
 dear Mr. Pennefather have acted under such circumstances, 
 and acting accordingly. As the originator and central figure 
 of the Mildmay Conferences, his wide and useful influence 
 will never be fully known till the final Conference in the 
 immediate presence of our blessed Saviour." 
 
 The able pen of Dr. Culross has perhaps unwit- 
 tingly drawn as true a portraiture as could be given by 
 any partial friend.. He is speaking in the abstract of 
 the spiritual necessities of our day — 
 
 "For sustained and earnest Christian effort, do we not 
 pressingly need men and women who lead the inner life, 
 who have renounced self, who live away from the sounds of 
 human applause or blame, who never think whether *the 
 world is laughing at us or not,' who dispose of all questions 
 about 'wiir by proving what is that good and acceptable 
 and perfect will of God, who love and use earthly things for 
 heavenly ends, who when they come forth among men are 
 as if they came forth from the presence-chamber of the 
 holy One, and whose hearts are fixed trusting in the Lord. 
 These are our saints and our mighty ones, though the 
 religious world knows them not." * 
 
 Of the various funeral sermons preached in remem- 
 brance of Mr. Pennefather, several were printed in a 
 little book bearing the title " Gone in to see the King." 
 It was widely circulated at the time, and a very few 
 extracts here will suffice. 
 
 In a short introduction Mr. Aitken says — 
 
 ^ " We have lost a loved and faithful friend in the land of our 
 pilgrimage. We have gained an additional bond of con- 
 nection with the heavenly country. We can no longer hear 
 his words of love and faithfulness, but his bright example 
 speaks more forcibly than ever. We may no more unite 
 with him in strong cries a nd tears, but we may realise more 
 
 • "John, whom Jesus Loved," by Dr. Culross. Published by Morgan and Scott. 
 
 
 ^^7Z^ 
 
 FUNERAL SERMONS. 
 
 519 
 
 fully than heretofore the unity in love and worship of the 
 whole Church universal, whether militant or triumphant. 
 We may no longer be sharers of his toils, but we may be 
 stimulated by the thought of his blessed repose to labour 
 more earnestly than ever to enter into rest." 
 
 In the sermon preached on the Sunday before the 
 funeral, among its many recollections one is especially 
 characteristic — 
 
 " I have noticed that in the midst of all his marvellous 
 activity, his innumerable labours, there was a certain Sabbatic 
 calm about him, making it always refreshing to come into 
 his presence. You may have expected to see him agitated, 
 driven, pressed beyond measure, and often indeed have I 
 seen him weary in body and weary in mind under the in- 
 numerable cares that pressed upon him ; but again and again 
 have I noticed that calm, inexpressibly peaceful smile, with 
 which you were all familiar, steal over his face, seeming to 
 tell its own history, that in the midst of all his activity the 
 heart was resting in God." 
 
 Again, in an address given at the Conference Hall — 
 
 " No one could see him without knowing that he entered 
 into the inner experience of the life of love, as if a personal, 
 passionate love to the Lord Jesus increased more and more, 
 and sanctified and coloured his whole course. It will be 
 fresh in your memories — ^you might always notice it, whether 
 it were an address, or prayer, or hymn — when anything went 
 straight to the perso7i of the Lord Jesus, there would come a 
 strange expression over his face and a light in his eye, .... 
 and each time I met him coming from a distance, he seemed 
 to possess more heavenly-mindedness and deepening love 
 for the Lord." 
 
 From a sermon preached at St. John's Episcopal 
 Chapel, Hampstead, on May 4th, by the Rev. C. H. 
 Waller, we extract the following passages — 
 
 "The text we have been considering this evening (Gen. 
 xvii. i) is to me full of memories of the past. It takes me 
 
520 
 
 FUNERAL SERMONS. 
 
 [chap. XXI. 
 
 back nearly nine years to my first curacy in a church in 
 Islington, and I seem to hear again the sound of a voice that 
 thousands of God's people will miss to the last day of their 
 lives. I feel that I should not be doing justice to the 
 memory of a Master in Israel, under whom I first entered 
 the ministry, if I did not speak of him to-night. On Tuesday 
 he will be carried to his grave. 
 
 " To those who knew him, the name of William Pennefather 
 needs no apology for its introduction into this place. There 
 may be some here who never heard of him. It was to their 
 own loss. I only spent six months with him, six months 
 that have left a deeper impression upon me than any other 
 experience of my life. It is not so much for power of intellect 
 that he will be remembered, but he was a man of love and 
 prayer. For spiritual power I have not met any one like 
 him, and I think I never shall. He was always ready for 
 sympathy with man, and always ready for communion with 
 God. Able to gather round him men of the most different 
 opinions and dispositions, if only they loved their Saviour, he 
 seemed to draw all that were about him nearer to Christ. 
 I feel how impossible it is to convey to those who did not 
 know him what every one who has come under his influence 
 knows before it is described. And this very thing adds to 
 the greatness of our loss. There is not a corner of the whole 
 kingdom where traces of his influence cannot be found. . . . 
 * Know ye that a prince and a great man has fallen in 
 Israel } * the Israel of God I Often have these words that 
 David said of Abner been applied to the illustrious dead; but 
 I venture to say that they were never more applicable than 
 in this instance, for his hand was like no other, in its influ- 
 ence upon all Israel, to bring them nearer to their King. 
 When I read the words of our text this evening, it is his face 
 that rises up before me, his voice that sounds in my ear. I never 
 heard any one pray so often for entire consecration to God's 
 service, or remind God's people so often of the necessity of 
 whole-heartedness for Him. No one asked so constantly to 
 be baptized afresh with the Holy Spirit, to see again the 
 face of the Lord Jesus, and to be again anointed with the 
 unction that comes from the Holy One of God. There are 
 certain petitions of this kind that I cannot separate from his 
 
 :873.] 
 
 FUNERAL SERMONS. 
 
 521 
 
 M 
 
 memory, and certain things that his memory always seems to 
 say. I wish we could hear him speaking as he spoke of this 
 text in Abram's history one week-day evening in St. Jude's 
 Church. I find that the very idea of taking this course of 
 sermons upon Abram's history was borrowed, unconsciously, 
 from him. It was not what he said about Scripture that made 
 so much impression, as the spirit in which he said it. * The 
 Holy Ghost fell on them that heard the Word.' ' All Israel 
 shall mourn for him,' for we all had an interest in his prayers. 
 
 " I should not know what to think of his departure, only 
 that I am sure we cannot really lose by the exaltation of any 
 living member of the body of Christ. ' If one member be 
 honoured, all the members rejoice with it.' He has been 
 honoured by the Chief Shepherd with a crown of glory ; is 
 there to be no benefit for us who are still learners in the 
 school of Christ } I think there must be ; and though there 
 is not one amongst us that can take the place of the departed, 
 must not a double portion of the Spirit that was upon him 
 descend, in honour of the Lord who glorified him, upon the 
 Church of God .'* If I have said more of him than ought to 
 be spoken of man, let it be forgiven me ; but it is all too 
 little for what I owe to his memory, and he was a man 
 greatly honoured of Almighty God. His whole face bore 
 the impress of communion with Him; no pretended sancti- 
 moniousness, but real holiness, was seen there. I remember 
 two principal expressions which that face was accustomed to, 
 one serious, a look upward, which was all prayer; another 
 for those around him, which was all love. I think one or 
 other of these was never entirely absent ; they were always 
 more or less traceable in the midst of all that v/ent on. 
 
 " Now that he is gone, it lies upon the Church to follow him, 
 and to seek for the same spirit of devotedness and holiness, 
 that the testimony which he gave to the reality of religion 
 may not perish from among men. With this example let us 
 seek to fulfil the word spoken to Abram, ' I am the Almighty 
 God, walk before Me and be thou perfect.' " 
 
 But enough. A grateful people have engraven the 
 memorials of their faithful love to a pastor, who 
 '' counted not his life dear unto him," on the tomb- 
 
522 
 
 work: still carried on. 
 
 [chap. xxt. 
 
 stone in Ridge Churchyard and the tablet in St. 
 J tide's Church, while many a humble believer is seek- 
 ing to follow him as he followed Christ. 
 
 His own distinctive work is left as a legacy to the 
 Church of God, and up to the present time it has been 
 graciously sustained.* Many who once threw their 
 offerings into this corner of the Lord's great treasury 
 have "gone in to see the King ; " others have had their 
 interests called out into new channels, but there are 
 not a few whose prayers and gifts and sympathies 
 gather round it still. The faith of those who desire 
 to carry on, for the glory of God, what William Penne- 
 father was permitted to begin, is sometimes severely 
 tested ; but every year closes with wondering praise 
 to Him who is "the same yesterday, to-day, and for 
 ever." 
 
 Conferences still remind the people of God that 
 "there is one body and one spirit, even as we are 
 called in one hope of our calling ; " ministering women 
 still go out from the Mildmay Institutions to nurse 
 the sick, and teach the ignorant, and succour the 
 needy ; the hand of kindly welcome is still held out 
 to brothers and sisters from other lands, and by these 
 " He being dead yet speaketh." 
 
 ♦ A Memorial Fund was opened in the summer of 1S73, which amounted to 
 more than ;^4000. It was judged best to invest it as the commencement of an 
 Endowment Fund for the Conference Hall and the works attached to it. 
 
 Ii 
 
 
 " IF ANY MAN SERVE ME, LET HIM FOLLOW ME ; AND 
 WHERE I AM, THERE SHALL ALSO MY SERVANT BE. IF 
 ANY MAN SERVE ME, HIM WILL MY FATHER HONOUR ! " 
 
B-< 
 
 I 
 
 APPENDICES. 
 
 I 
 
 APPENDIX 
 
 A. 
 
 A FEW of the detached sentences jotted down by grateful friends, 
 as they fell from Mr. Pennefather's lips in prayer-meetings or private 
 conversation, and a few found in his own handwriting, may be added 
 to these memorials. 
 
 " God keeps His promises,— let us see to it that we keep His 
 statutes." 
 
 " Let us never go into company without carrying the sunshine of 
 His beauty with us." 
 
 " We are safe because of His power, because of His faithfulness, 
 because of His love. If times and circumstances be dark, the 
 shinings of His face are all the brighter." 
 
 " Oh ! let us dwell beneath the droppings of His cross, that they 
 may be ever falling afresh on our guilty souls." 
 
 " God's saints become fruitful by dying to those things which were 
 once their gain. Is it not worth while to die and be buried (like the 
 com of wheat) if only thereby a harvest of souls is to be reaped, and 
 the God of glory honoured ? " 
 
 " Beware of trusting to organisations, when the life has departed. 
 Let us always remember that * a living dog is better than a dead 
 lion.'" 
 
 *' As surely as there is no crown without the cross, so there are 
 no rich clusters of grapes upon the branches of the living vine 
 without the pruning." 
 
 " We think much of our churches and visible organisations ; 
 
 i 
 
 \sV 
 
y 
 
 526 
 
 APPENDICES. 
 
 Christ looks at His one Church in its two great sections — the saints 
 on earth, and those in heaven." 
 
 " Faith takes the promises of a living God as though we heard 
 Ihem direct from His own lips : when faith is in exercise, I talk to 
 my Father as though He were close beside me." 
 
 "Why has the Church lost power? Because she knows so little 
 of the life of faith. The world's portion is all that it sees,— all that 
 it can grasp of the visible and the tangible. The portion of the 
 Church is all the unseen— the invisible God, the invisible Saviour, 
 the promised glory." 
 
 ^ " Faith may be called to work miracles, but it always works 
 righteousness." 
 
 " Shall the servant shrink from drinking of the Master's cup now, 
 seeing he will soon share the Master's inheritance ? " 
 
 " Let us so abide in constant fellowship with an exalted Saviour, 
 as to look forth from His dwelling-place and to judge after His 
 judgments." 
 
 *' Christ's love was not merely a sentiment, but an unquenchable 
 principle." 
 
 " * He that soweth discord among brethren ' is classed with the 
 man whose * hands shed innocent blood.* Thus does God lay the 
 emphasis of His holy hatred upon the breach of charity." ' 
 
 APPENDIX 
 
 B. 
 
 XXII. 
 
 *' Great is Thy faithfulness."— Lam. iii. 23. 
 
 ** O Saviour ! we adore Thee, 
 We bless Thy precious name, 
 That Thou abidest faithful, 
 That Thou art still the same 
 As when Thy children saw Thee, 
 And heard Thy loving voice, 
 
 < 
 
 w 
 
 APPENDICES. 
 
 S27 
 
 * Behold My hands, — and touch Me ; 
 Oh, fear not, — but rejoice !* 
 
 We cried to Thee for succour, 
 We looked for light to Thee ; 
 Thy smile our souls has gladdened 
 With holy radiancy ! 
 And now with quickened footsteps 
 We'll run our heavenly way. 
 Until the shadows vanish, — 
 Until the break of day ! 
 
 We've sat beside the river, 
 And tasted of Thy grace ; 
 We long to drink the fountain, 
 And see Thee face to face ! 
 Sweet, sweet have been the moments 
 That we have spent in prayer ; 
 But oh, the holy worship 
 Wherewith we'll praise Thee there I 
 
 Come, let us blend our voices 
 With yonder choirs above ; 
 Swell, swell the mighty anthem 
 Which tells that * God is love ! ' 
 Soon shall the fainting warrior — 
 Soon shall the pilgrim band — 
 Have fought the last great battle. 
 Have reached the promised land ! 
 
 Almighty Lord, we bless Thee I 
 Eternal Father, — Son, 
 And Holy, Holy Spirit — 
 Mysterious Three in One ! 
 Thou hast done mighty marvels 
 Before our wondering gaze ; 
 We've learnt that Thou art faithful 
 In all Thy words and ways I " 
 
•^/ 
 
 528 
 
 APPENDICES. 
 
 APPENDICES, 
 
 529 
 
 APPENDIX 
 
 a 
 
 LXVIII. 
 
 On hearing of the death of a friend, 
 
 " Why seek ye the living among the dead ? He is not here." — LUKE xxiv. 5, 6. 
 
 ** Not here ! but yonder, where the Eternal Throne 
 Sheds its effulgence with a light unknown 
 On earth ; she walks in fellowship with Thee, 
 Jesus, her Lord, Incarnate Deity ! 
 Think not to find her here within the tomb ; 
 Her Saviour has been here ! and so its gloom 
 Is dissipated by the light of day, — 
 A day whose morning never fades away ! 
 Jesus has died, and from the very grave 
 Has issued forth omnipotent to save ; 
 And now He lives, the everlasting Son, 
 Who for us fought the fight — the victory won ! 
 Dry up your tears, for at her Saviour's side 
 Behold her now, in glory, glorified ! 
 Death is behind ! and on the shining shore. 
 Which never hears the wild waves* distant roar, 
 She stands with Christ, and looketh toward the sea 
 Where once her fragile bark rocked restlessly ! 
 She blesses oft the unseen, loving Hand 
 That steered her safely to the * Better Land.' 
 Does she desire now to launch again 
 Her slender vessel on Life's stormy main ? 
 Nay ! and we would not, had we e'en the power, 
 Expose that precious freight for one short hour 
 To breast the billows, and to feel the dash 
 Of angry waters 'midst the thunder-crash. 
 No ! we would rather strive in heart to rise, 
 And dwell with her beneath unclouded skies ; 
 And with her sing the blessed song of Heaven— 
 'jfehoi'ah glorified, and man forgiven.*^ 
 
 APPENDIX 
 
 D. 
 
 The little volume published under the title of " Original Hymns 
 and Thoughts in Verse " is a collection of scattered leaflets preserved 
 by friends, but with the exception of the Conference hymns never 
 intended for further publication. Speaking of them, a reviewer 
 says : — " These hymns are essentially hymns of the Church Catholic. 
 They breathe, for the most part, the spirit of that glorious ascription 
 of praise at the commencement of the Book of Revelation, * Unto 
 Him that loved us and washed us from our sins in His own blood, 
 and hath made us kings and priests unto God and His Father, to 
 Him be glory and dominion for ever and ever.' This distinguishes 
 them from many of the hymns lately published, which relate to 
 individual need, desire, and experience. They are the outpourings 
 of a heart which deeply reaHsed the union of all the people of God, 
 whether in conflict below or in glory above. Secondly, they are 
 hymns of joyful anticipation. While the trials and needs of the 
 Church militant are fully recognised, the whole seems bathed in the 
 brightness of the hope set before the saints, * the glorious appearing 
 of the great God and our Saviour Jesus Christ.' Thirdly, while 
 many of them deal with the same subjects, there is yet no sameness 
 in their musical flow. They are only fragments of the * new song ' 
 (Ps. xcviii. i), fresh, spontaneous, and glowing with life ; nor could 
 we spare one of them. Lastly, we know of no hymns about which 
 there lingers more of perfume from the * Land that is very far off." 
 As we read them, we seem lifted into a higher, clearer, purer atmos- 
 phere, and are forcibly reminded of the lines of Cowper : — 
 
 *When one who holds communion with the skies, 
 Has filled his urn where the pure waters rise. 
 And once more mingles with us meaner things, 
 'Tis even as if an angel shook his wings ; 
 Immortal fragrance fills the circuit wide, 
 And tells us whence his treasure is supplied.' " 
 
 The following lines appear to have been written just before the 
 author was called away, and form a precious legacy of exhortation 
 and encouragement to the Church below : — 
 
 
 " Jesus ! I stand beside 
 Thy blessed cross — Thy grave ! 
 
 2 L 
 
S30 
 
 APPENDICES. 
 
 APPENDICES, 
 
 531 
 
 I know that Thou didst die 
 
 My guilty soul to save ; 
 
 Yet must my tears still freshly flow 
 
 While thinking of Thy shame and woe ! 
 
 But hark ! methinks I hear 
 Bright seraphs as they sing, 
 Rejoice ! rejoice ! ye saints, 
 Your risen Lord is King ! 
 The darkest night hath passed away, 
 And lo ! has dawned Eternal Day. 
 
 Rejoice ! for Jesus now 
 
 Stands on the golden shore ; 
 
 Behind^ His conquered foes, 
 
 Unclouded light before. 
 
 Sorrow no more shall dim His eye, 
 
 Lit with the joy of victory ! 
 
 Christians ! arise, arise ! 
 
 Strong in your Saviour's might, 
 
 Tread down your selfish lusts, 
 
 And gird yourselves with light. 
 
 No hindrance now obstructs your way, 
 
 March on, ye children of the day. 
 
 Your chains and dust and sin. 
 
 Like grave-clothes leave behind, 
 
 Freed by His living power, 
 
 No more can fetters bind ! 
 
 Your souls escaped, with cleaving wing 
 
 Soar upwards, and, while soaring, sing." 
 
 APPENDIX 
 
 K 
 
 Extract from the '' Melbourne Spectator" August 25///, 1877. 
 ''Faith Work:' By Rev. J. F. Horsley. 
 
 " Whilst in London I resided in Stoke Newington, and near the 
 Mildraay Park Conference Hall. I was at many of the meetings 
 held there, spoke at several, and, what I shall be thankful for through 
 
 life, I made the acquaintance of many of the officers and workers in 
 the institution. The influence of this Hall is felt all over the world, 
 and a short account of it may be acceptable to the readers of * The 
 Spectator.' Dr. Somerville, I see by the papers, has been urging 
 upon the Christians of Melbourne to secure a hall for evangelistic 
 purposes j let us see what is being done in one such hall, and this 
 article may help the project. 
 
 " The Conference Hall is situated between Mildmay Park and 
 Newington Green Road, and will seat 2500 people. There is a 
 gallery on three sides of the Hall, a comfortable and well-furnished 
 platform, and the floor is laid upon an incline, so that all in the build- 
 ing can comfortably see, and the acoustics are so perfect that all can 
 distinctly hear. The late Rev. William Pennefather, who was Vicar 
 of St. Jude's, Mildmay Park, had, since 1856, called together year 
 by year a Conference of Christians ; and these meetings had been 
 so blessed and were so prized that they were attended by Christians 
 from different parts of the world. In 1869 this Hall was commenced 
 by this devoted servant of Christ ; he not being concerned about the 
 money when he was sure that he was following the leadings of God's 
 Providence. This is the point — and the main one— of which we 
 should be always sure. The Hall and house attached cost about 
 ;;^25,ooo, * which the Lord sent in to the beloved founder very 
 signally, in answer to prayer.' Truly a substantial testimony this 
 to the faithfulness of God to His promises. Faith removes * moun- 
 tains ' of diflSculties. 'Lord, increase our faith!' In 1873 good 
 Mr. Pennefather went Home to his reward, the Master having said, 
 * It is enough, come up hither.' ... In this Hall it was my pleasure 
 to listen to the good George Miiller, of the Bristol Orphanage, who 
 is now travelling as an evangelist, and also to that eminent Church 
 of England evangelist, the Rev. W. Aitken, who is so successful in 
 winning souls to Christ. Here, too, I was glad to meet again our 
 old friend, Philip Phillips, and to listen to his singing for Jesus. A 
 simple but thrilling story was also told in this Hall by Mr. James 
 Pascoe about his wonderful work in Mexico. Amidst much fierce 
 persecution — his dear wife being foully murdered, so that he should 
 be forced to leave the country — he has planted Christian churches in 
 that priest-ridden land : more faith-work by a brave good soldier of 
 Christ whose acquaintance I shall always prize. Here, too, I met Mr. 
 and Mrs. Johnson from America, Temperance lecturers, whom we may 
 expect to see in Australia. Mrs. Johnson was one of the leading ladies 
 in that wonderful praying movement for closing the public-houses; 
 
532 
 
 APPENDICES, 
 
 more faith-work here ! In this Hall it was my pleasure to address 
 on a Sabbath evening a large audience upon the ' Triumphs of the 
 Gospel in Fiji.' When our service was concluding, Captain Moreton 
 announced a prayer-meeting to be held at once out of doors upon 
 the lawn, and under the mulberry-tree ; and the special subject for 
 prayer was for the wives of our missionaries, and more especially for 
 those who were upon the stations. It was a glorious time, hundreds 
 of people under the shade of that large tree gathered together upon 
 a beautiful summer's eve, making united supplication for those noble, 
 self-sacrificing women who are working for Christ in the mission- 
 field. I mention these services and meetings that it may be seen how 
 cosmopolitan is the character of the work done in this place. 
 
 " Beneath the Hall are large class-rooms, and behind it are offices, 
 &c. . . . It may now be asked, * What is the character of the 
 work done outside for the masses ? ' The Hall is a blessed centre of 
 usefulness, and it stretches its branches and extends its shade, like its 
 beautiful mulberry-tree, far and wide. Adjoining the Hall is a house 
 built to accommodate the deaconesses. These ladies, many of them 
 brought up in affluent circumstances, and a goodly number of them 
 being clergymen's daughters, are devoting their lives to Christian 
 work among the poor and ignorant. There are also six other houses 
 where probationers reside. Upon application from a clergyman, 
 these ladies go out two and two to engage in house-to-house visita- 
 tion, 10 hold mothers' meetings, also night-schools and various 
 classes ; but at all times they are under the direction of their super- 
 intendent. One branch of the deaconess' work is training in and 
 practice of the art of nursing. They have several small hospitals 
 under their care, and they are also extensively engaged to nurse the 
 sick in families among all classes of society. Near the Hall is a 
 Cottage Hospital, with beds for ten patients, and a doctor and 
 suitable nurses take charge. A short distance away is a house for 
 invalid ladies, and this is usually occupied by fourteen patients. 
 In another house twenty orphans are cared for and educated j and 
 when better accommodation can be had, this branch of the work is 
 
 to be extended. 
 
 "Beneath the Hall also is a kitchen, where beef-tea, light 
 puddings, &c., are made for the sick poor; and these are suppHed 
 upon producing a ticket furnished by a district visitor. A sewing- 
 class and Dorcas Society are also carried on, the former being 
 intended more especially for widows, whilst in the other a number 
 of poor women are paid for making the clothes which they take 
 
 APPENDICES, 
 
 533 
 
 n 
 
 y 
 
 \\ 
 
 home, and the work is afterwards sold at a cheap rate to the poor. 
 Mrs. Pennefather conducts a mothers' meeting every Monday after- 
 noon, and it is attended by about 150 women ; the same lady also 
 <:onducts a Bible class on the Sabbath afternoon for the husbands, 
 l)rothers, and sons of these women. A men's night-school is held 
 during the winter months, three nights a week : there are about thirty 
 classes, and the average attendance is very large ; the men must be 
 over eighteen years of age. It is entirely taught by ladies, the 
 majority of them being deaconesses. The Bible is read in each class, 
 and the school is always closed with a scriptural address, singing, and 
 prayer. . . . The Bible flower-mission is doing a good work, and 
 is associated with three other depots. In one month, from these 
 depots, 50,000 bouquets, with a text of scripture attached to each, 
 were distributed to the patients in the hospitals and infirmaries. 
 
 " There is also a Training Home for servants, a * British Work- 
 man,' * The Victoria,' which is a teetotal public-house, a cabmen's 
 shelter and a Workmen's Hall ; the latter containing a dining-room, 
 reading-room, and lodgings for young men. Two convalescent 
 Homes in the country have also been opened. Several of these 
 institutions are under the care and direction of the deaconesses. 
 Mrs. Pennefather is president of the female workers' association, 
 which numbers over iioo members, residing in different parts of 
 the world. A number of young men meet weekly for the study of 
 the Scriptures, and one from their number has gone as a missionary 
 to Portugal, and is partly supported by the young men's class. . . . 
 Space forbids any detail of the success of any of these varied 
 agencies ; but it will be seen from the foregoing account that there 
 are hundreds of workers connected with the institution. The 
 question will now arise as to the cost of it all, and how the money 
 is raised? There is an income of ;^2oo derived from a memorial 
 fund contributed upon the death of the late Mr. Pennefather, out 6f 
 affectionate regard to him; but the annual expense far exceeds 
 ;^6ooo a year. There are no meetings held for the purpose of 
 raising funds, no public appeals for subscriptions, and no reports 
 published to puff the concern; no sacred concerts. Art-unions, 
 exhibitions, or pic-nics to raise money. God supplies all their need, 
 and therefore everything is first-class— the buildings substantial, and 
 the furnishing all that can be desired. Before every service, meet- 
 ing, or poor people's entertainment, a short prayer-meeting is held, 
 and God's blessing is asked. ... In this Hall everything is 
 sanctified by the Word of God and prayer, and the Lord honours 
 
I 
 
 534 
 
 APPENDICES. 
 
 their faith and labour for His glory by bountifully supplying them 
 with all necessary means for the work. * If we ask anything accord- 
 ing to His will, He heareth us \ and if we know that He hear us what- 
 soever we ask, we know that we have the petitions that we desired 
 of Him/ " 
 
 APPENDIX 
 
 P. 
 
 Among the many tributes to Mr. Pennefather*s memory, pub- 
 lished at the time of his death^ we find the following in the pages of 
 " Church Bells " :— 
 
 THE LATE REV. W. PENNEFATHER. 
 
 *' Deep and wide-spread is the sorrow that has been caused by the 
 intelligence of the death of the Rev. W. Pennefather. Not only in 
 his own district and neighbourhood, but all over England, the loss 
 of this good and large-hearted man will be severely felt ; but most 
 striking and impressive have been the manifestations of sorrow in 
 the locality in which he has so long laboured. Nor can this be 
 wondered at when we consider (from whatever point of view) the 
 ;vork that Mr. Pennefather has been permitted to accomplish. 
 
 *' The outward signs of his work, in the edifices which he has 
 raised and the institutions which he has organised, are such as to 
 command the attention of all observers. 
 
 " During the nine years of his incumbency of St. Jude*s, Mild may 
 Park, Mr. Pennefather has been the means of erecting, ist, a large 
 iron Mission Hall, which he brought with him from Bamet, also 
 used as a school, capable of accommodating 800 persons ; 2nd, a 
 smaller hall, with seats for 300 ; 3rd, new schools for the district, 
 which contain about 550 children ; 4th, a * Conference Hall ' (as it 
 is called), which will hold 2500 persons, and a Deaconess' Institu- 
 tion, in which there is room for from 35 to 40 inmates. Besides 
 this he has added 500 sittings to the church, which has been almost 
 entirely rebuilt, and will now seat 1500 persons. These various 
 works represent an expenditure of certainly not less than from 
 ;^3o,ooo to ;£35.ooo, and yet he left all these institutions in perfect 
 working order and free from debt. 
 
 " This, however, is but the outside of the work accomplished under 
 
 .*'.• 
 
 I 
 
 APPENDICES. 
 
 535 
 
 God's blessing by this remarkable man. His large church has 
 been thronged by a devout and earnest congregation, his com- 
 municants have latterly numbered between 700 and 800, while an 
 important and increasing evangelising work has been carried on at 
 the Conference Hall and in the other places. It would be no slight 
 task, and one quite beyond the limit of our space, to enumerate the 
 various organisations for Christian work which Mr. Pennefather has 
 been the means of originating. Two out of all these lay especially 
 near his heart. One was the Home for training ladies for mission- 
 work as deaconesses in our large towns. From this centre mission- 
 work is being carried on all over London ; the deaconesses for the 
 most part co-operating with the local clergy in the various districts, 
 and conducting Bible classes and mothers' meetings, and visiting 
 from house to house ; while those who join the institution are care- 
 fully trained by those who are experienced in such labours. But 
 the work in connection with which Mr. Pennefather's name will be 
 always best known and remembered is that which has called into 
 existence the ' Conference Hall.' Many years ago it was laid upon 
 his heart to desire earnestly to do something towards drawing into 
 closer sympathy and brotherly lovt those whom ecclesiastical divi- 
 sions and party differences tend to estrange from each other, and 
 who yet are one in spiritual life and true love for the Lord Jesus. 
 This burden pressed so heavily upon him that he felt himself 
 at last constrained to make an eff'ort in this direction, and in the 
 year 1856 he invited a considerable number of earnest Christians, 
 of different denominations, to meet in his school-room at Bamet. 
 The idea of these meetings was to foster the spirit of Christian 
 unity amongst the spiritually-minded, by bringing such together, 
 not for discussion of points of difference, or indeed of mere abstract 
 doctrines or speculations, but for united prayer and praise, for 
 mutual exhortation and encouragement, and for conference on 
 matters of practical interest. 
 
 "The motto of these Conference meetings has been * Grace be 
 with all them that love the Lord Jesus Christ in sincerity ;' and very 
 faithfully for the most part has this principle been adhered to. 
 True, the tone of the meetings has been decidedly what is called 
 * Evangelical' This could not be otherwise, for the basis of union 
 recognised as existing between those who attended them was neither 
 ecclesiastical nor doctrinal, but simply spiritual, and therefore de- 
 pendent upon the acceptance of the Gospel with true heart and 
 faith ; but, on the other hand, all party narrowness and exclusive- 
 
536 
 
 APPENDICES. 
 
 ness was altogether alien to the spirit of these gatherings, and if 
 occasionally a warm partisan gave strong expression to his convic- 
 tions, it was felt to be quite out of harmony with the tone of 
 the proceedings, and received no encouragement from Mr. Penne- 
 father. Whatever may be thought of these meetings, it may 
 safely be asserted that few, if any, of those who regularly attended 
 them will ever forget the hallowed influences, the overwhelming 
 sense of the Divine power and presence, which seemed at times to 
 pervade them ; nor can it be doubted that they have already con- 
 tributed greatly towards enlarging the sympathies and intensifying 
 the brotherly love of true followers of Christ. 
 
 " We must not further extend this notice than to say a word as to 
 the personal character of the man whose work has been so unique, 
 and whose influence has been f-"'' so widely. He was pre-eminently 
 a man of love. Such was ins natural amiability that none could 
 know him without loving him ; but to this he added the aggressive 
 power of true Christian charity. Completely devoted to his Master's 
 service, blessed with a wonderfully childlike faith, and possessing 
 a habit of constant prayer, the man's whole life was a perpetual 
 sermon, which spoke to the heart much more forcibly than any 
 words. How highly he was valued was proved by the afl"ecting 
 sorrow of the multitude who thronged around his remains. The 
 sight of that vast sobbing congregation as their beloved pastor's 
 remains were borne up the aisle for the last time is one that will 
 never be erased from the memory. But this only represented a 
 small moiety of the grief which his loss has occasioned in almost 
 every part of the land. 
 
 " He died at the age of fifty-seven, physically worn and shattered 
 with constant care and toil, but at the very zenith of his usefulness 
 and influence. His remains were laid on Tuesday last side by 
 side with those of his dearest friend, the late Captain Trotter, in the 
 little country churchyard of Ridge, near Barnet, amidst the tears 
 of grateful hundreds, to whom his memory is blessed. 
 
 THE END. 
 
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 REV. W. PENNEFATHER, B.A. 
 
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 1 
 
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937,09 
 
 Braith-vYaite 
 
 P38 
 
 The life and letters of Rev, 
 Y/illiam Pennefather. 
 
 
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