Chapter VII: Trevecca College: Visit to Switzerland, Etc (1)

FROM JANUARY 3, 1768, TO JULY 1770.

IN Fletcher’s letter to Lady Huntingdon, dated November 24, 1767, it is intimated that the Countess had suggested to Fletcher that a certain “Mr. Eastwood” could serve him as his village schoolmaster, and was anxious to do so, in order to have the benefit of Fletcher’s ministry. There can be no doubt that the name “Eastwood” is a mistake, and that “Easterbrook” was meant.

Joseph Easterbrook was a son of the bell-man of Bristol, and had been educated at Wesley’s Kingswood School.[149] He was now about seventeen years of age, and came to reside at Madeley.[150] Afterwards he obtained episcopal ordination, and became Vicar of the Temple Church, Bristol, and Ordinary of Newgate Prison in that city. He continued faithful to Wesley and to Methodism; and, it is said, he preached a sermon in every house in his large parish. He died in 1791, in the fortieth year of his age. This is not the place to give further details of his history; but it is hoped that those now related will add to the interest of what Fletcher writes concerning him in the following letter to the Countess of Huntingdon, in reply to one she had addressed to him respecting suitable books for the students of her intended college:—

“MADELEY, _January 3, 1768_.

“MY LADY,—I thank your ladyship for having recommended to me
Easterbrook. I hope he will be the captain of the school, and a great
help to the master, as well as a spur to the students. He has good
parts, a most happy memory, and a zeal that would gladden your
ladyship’s heart. He has preached no less than four times to-day; and
seems, indeed, in his own element when he is seeking after the lost
sheep of the house of Israel. He is employed every evening in the work
of the Lord; and I give him the more opportunity to exercise his
talent, as it appears he does it far better than I. I beg two things
for him: first, that it may hold; secondly, that he may be kept
humble. He would at first live upon potatoes and water; but, finding
it may impair his health, I have got him to table with me, and shall
gladly pay his board. He works for me, and the workman is worthy of
his hire.

“Our young collier” (Glazebrook) “seems a little discouraged with
regard to the hope of his being admitted one of your students. He
thinks he stands no chance, if all must be qualified as he”
(Easterbrook) “is.

“With regard to books, I am in doubt what to write your ladyship.
Having studied abroad, and used rather foreign than English books with
my pupils” (Mr. Hill’s sons), “I am not well enough acquainted with
the books Great Britain affords to select the _best_ and most
_concise_. Besides, a plan of studies must be fixed upon first, before
proper books can be chosen. Grammar, logic, rhetoric, ecclesiastical
history, and a little natural philosophy and geography, with a great
deal of practical divinity, will be sufficient for those who do not
care to dive into languages. Mr. Townsend and Charles Wesley might, by
spending an hour or two together, make a proper choice; and I would
recommend them not to forget Watt’s ‘Logic,’ and his ‘History of the
Bible, by Questions and Answers,’ which seem to me excellent books of
the kind for clearness and order. Mr. Wesley’s ‘Natural Philosophy’
contains as much as is wanted, or more. Mason’s ‘Essay on
Pronunciation’ will be worth their attention. ‘Henry and Gill on the
Bible,’ with the four volumes of Baxter’s ‘Practical Works,’ Keach’s
‘Metaphors,’ ‘Taylor on the Types,’ Gurnal’s ‘Christian Armour,’
‘Edwards on Preaching,’ Johnson’s English Dictionary, and Mr. Wesley’s
‘Christian Library,’ may make part of the little library. The book of
Baxter, I mention, I shall take care to send to Trevecca, as a mite
towards the collection, together with Usher’s ‘Body of Divinity,’
Scapula’s Greek Lexicon, and Littleton’s Latin Dictionary.

“With regard to those who propose to learn Latin and Greek, the master
your ladyship will appoint may choose to follow his particular method.
Mr. Wesley’s books, printed for the use of Christian youths, seem to
me short and proper, and their expense less, which, I suppose, should
be consulted. Two or three dictionaries of Bailey or Dyke for those
who learn English, with two or three Coles’s Dictionaries,
Shrevelins’s, and Pasor’s, for those who will learn Latin and Greek,
may be a sufficient stock at first.

“Mr. Edward Stillingfleet[151] is presented, by Mr. Hill, to the
living of Shawbury, eight miles from Shrewsbury, and twenty from here.
I thank the Lord for this fellow-helper.

“I am, your ladyship’s unworthy servant,
“J. FLETCHER.”[152]

Footnote 149:

“Unpublished Letter by John Pawson.”

Footnote 150:

Misled by the author of the “Life and Times of the Countess of
Huntingdon,” I have stated in my “Life and Times of Wesley,” that, at
the opening of Trevecca College, Easterbrook was appointed to the
office of master. This is a mistake. The master, as will be seen in
succeeding pages, was a wonderful child, twelve years old! Perhaps,
however, Easterbrook rendered some assistance.—L. T.

Footnote 151:

A great-grandson of the celebrated bishop of that name. He proved
himself to be a faithful friend to Venn, and the other evangelical
clergymen of the age.

Footnote 152:

_Methodist Magazine_, 1821, p. 437.

The reader may learn two facts from Fletcher’s letter. First, what were the books in divinity he most loved and prized. It is to be feared that such books are no longer popular. In the case of many theological students, they have given place to the flimsy and even sceptical productions of a later period. The more the pity. No wonder that so many pulpits are spiritless, and that so many pews are starved.

Secondly: It is also evident that Fletcher had already formed a sort of circuit of preaching places, otherwise a youth like Easterbrook could hardly have found the opportunity to preach every evening in the week, and four times on Sunday. It is now impossible to ascertain what the places were; but Wesley’s testimony may here be appropriately introduced.

“From the beginning, Mr. Fletcher did not confine his labours to his
own parish. For many years, he regularly preached at places, eight,
ten, or sixteen miles off, returning the same night, though he seldom
got home before one or two in the morning. At a little Society which
he had gathered about six miles from Madeley, he preached two or three
times a week, beginning at five in the morning.”[153]

Footnote 153:

Wesley’s “Life of Fletcher.”

Of course, all this was ecclesiastically irregular, and a repetition of it would not be permitted now; but, fortunately for the people who “sat in darkness,” it was, except in a few instances, only a peccadillo a hundred years ago, at which bishops, priests, and deacons found it a convenience to themselves to wink.

It was at this time that Wesley wrote to Fletcher his unusually long and well-known letter on conversation. The following are brief extracts from it:—

“BIRMINGHAM, _March 20, 1768_.

“DEAR SIR,—Mr. Easterbrook told me yesterday that you are sick of the
conversation even of them who profess religion,—that you find it quite
unprofitable, if not hurtful, to converse with them three or four
hours together, and are sometimes almost determined to shut yourself
up, as the less evil of the two.

“I do not wonder at it at all, especially considering with whom you
have chiefly conversed for some time past, namely, the hearers of Mr.
Madan, or Mr. Bourian, perhaps I might add, of Mr. Whitefield. The
conversing with these I have rarely found to be profitable to my soul.
Rather it has damped my designs; it has cooled my resolutions; and I
have consciously left them with a dry, dissipated spirit.

“Again; you have, for some time, conversed a good deal with the
genteel Methodists. Now it matters not a straw what doctrine they
hear,—whether they frequent the Lock or West Street,—they are, almost
all, salt which has lost its savour, if ever they had any. They are
thoroughly conformed to the maxims, the spirit, the fashions, and
customs of the world.

“But were these or those of ever so excellent a spirit, you conversed
with them too long. One had need to be an angel, not a man, to
converse three or four hours at once, to any purpose.

“But have you not a remedy for all this in your hands? In order to
truly profitable conversation, may you not select persons clear of
both Calvinism and Antinomianism? not fond of that luscious way of
talking, but standing in awe of Him they love; who are vigorously
working out their salvation, and are athirst for full redemption, and
every moment expecting it, if not already enjoying it?”[154]

Footnote 154:

Tyerman’s “Life and Times of Wesley,” vol. iii., p. 4.

Apart from the subject of this letter, it is of importance, as showing that the maelstrom of the Calvinian controversy was already stirring, and that Wesley was afraid of Fletcher being drawn into it. This would be much more apparent could the letter be quoted here _in extenso_. Suffice it to add, that Fletcher was preserved from the spreading evils, and that it is difficult to tell how much he was indebted to Wesley’s long warning letter for his escape from danger.

So far as Fletcher was concerned, the great event of the year 1768 was the opening of Lady Huntingdon’s College at Trevecca. Wesley seemed to disapprove of her ladyship’s design. In a letter to his brother Charles, he wrote:—

“Edinburgh, May 14, 1768.—I am glad Mr. Fletcher has been with you.
But, if the tutor fails, what will become of our College at Trevecca?
Did you ever see anything more queer than their plan of institution?
Pray, who penned it, man or woman? I am afraid the Visitor” (Fletcher)
“too will fail.”[155]

Footnote 155:

Wesley’s Works, vol. xii., p. 126.

Meanwhile, however, an occurrence had taken place, which appeared to make the opening of Trevecca College increasingly desirable and important. On the 12th of March, six students belonging to Edmund Hall, Oxford, were expelled the University, really and truly on the ground that they were charged with being Methodists. The event, as may easily be imagined, created a national sensation. Numbers of tracts and pamphlets, _pro et con_, were published; and, among others, one by Whitefield, entitled, “A Letter to the Reverend Dr. Durell, Vice-Chancellor of the University of Oxford; occasioned by a late Expulsion of Six Students from Edmund Hall.” Whitefield’s letter was dated April 12, 1768, exactly a month after the expulsions took place. Fletcher read it with approbation, and wrote to Whitefield, thanking him for the service he had rendered to the cause of truth; and also referring to a recent visit to Bristol, to the Rev. Cradock Glascott, who had supplied for him at Madeley; and to the prospect there was of obtaining a suitable master, from Suffolk, for the College at Trevecca. Fletcher’s letter was as follows:—

“MADELEY, _May 28, 1768_.

“REVEREND AND DEAR SIR,—I thank you, though late, for the kind leave
you gave me of trying to pipe where you trumpet the name of our dear
Redeemer, in Bristol. I ask you, and my hearers there, and, above all,
our gracious Lord, to pardon me for the wretched manner in which I
performed, or rather spoiled, the glorious work.

“I thank you, also, for your letter to the Vice-Chancellor. Mr.
Talbot[156] treated us with the reading of it at our meeting of the
clergy at Birmingham; and I saw applause and satisfaction sitting upon
every brow.

“Lady Huntingdon, in a few lines I had lately, mentions that
Providence raises a master for her school from Suffolk, who promises
well. She desires he may be secured, if approved of. Perhaps you know
him; and you are the best judge whether he is likely to answer. For my
part, I am willing to put my smoking flax to the tapers of my brethren
and fathers, when they endeavour to throw some light and order upon
her ladyship’s design; but I feel my place should be among the
scholars, rather than among the Directors.

“Mr. Glascott quitted himself as a faithful and able minister, during
his stay here. Thousands attended him in the next parish, where he
nobly took the field. Nevertheless, I see a curse of barrenness upon
this neighbourhood, which makes me groan for a day of Pentecost. God
hasten it in His time! You will please to remember that you are a
debtor to our barbarians, as well as to the Greeks in London. When you
come, my pulpit will be honoured, greatly honoured, to hold you, if my
church cannot hold your congregation.”[157]

Footnote 156:

No doubt, the Rev. William Talbot, LL.D., Vicar of Kineton, in
Warwickshire.

Footnote 157:

Fletcher’s Works, vol. viii., p. 255.

Who “the master from Suffolk” was, has never yet been stated. The matter is of little consequence. In the month of July, Wesley visited Fletcher, and, no doubt, they conversed concerning the College at Trevecca; but Wesley’s account of his visit is so brief as to be almost significant that there was something in their interview that he would rather suppress than publish. He simply writes: “1768, Sunday, July 31. I preached for Mr. Fletcher in the morning; and in the evening at Shrewsbury.”[158] Within a month after this, the college was opened; but, instead of being at Trevecca, Wesley was in Cornwall.

Footnote 158:

Wesley’s Journal.

The opening took place on Wednesday, August 24, the anniversary of the birthday of Lady Huntingdon. In all likelihood, Fletcher, the president, was present; but no positive evidence of this has been published. Indeed, considering the importance of the event, the account of it is remarkably brief. The best, in fact, so far as I know, the only one ever given to the public, is an extract from Whitefield’s Memorandum Book, as follows:—

“August 24, 1768. Opened good Lady Huntingdon’s Chapel and College, in
the parish of Talgarth, Brecknockshire, South Wales. Preached from
Exodus xx. 24: ‘In all places where I record My name, I will come unto
thee, and I will bless thee.’ August 25.—Gave an exhortation to the
Students, in the College-chapel, from Luke i. 15: ‘He shall be great
in the sight of the Lord.’ Sunday, August 28.—Preached in the court
before the College (the congregation consisting of some thousands),
from 1 Cor. iii. 11: ‘Other foundation can no man lay, than that is
laid, which is Jesus Christ.’”[159]

Footnote 159:

Gillies’ “Life of Whitefield.”

To this must be added a single sentence, from a letter which Whitefield wrote to Mr. Keene, on August 30: “What we have seen and felt at the College is unspeakable.”[160]

Footnote 160:

Trevecca College was supported at the sole expense of the Countess of
Huntingdon till her death, on June 17, 1791. “Had her ability been
equal to her desire for its continuance, she would have endowed it,
and thereby have provided for its perpetuity.” About four years before
her decease, and with her full approval, provision was made for the
future. Seven trustees were appointed to take care of the College
after her ladyship’s death; and a subscription was begun for its
maintenance. This accumulated fund, in 1791, amounted to £585, 3 per
cent. Consols. The lease of the Trevecca property had expired, and it
was now determined to remove the college to Cheshunt, near London.
Accordingly, the Trevecca house was given up at Lady-day, 1792; the
furniture, the library, and the communion plate were taken to
Cheshunt, where the new establishment was formally opened on August
24, the anniversary of the commencement of the abandoned one at
Trevecca. A religious service, of nearly three hours and a-half’s
duration, was held; Lady Anne Agnes Erskine, executrix of the Countess
of Huntingdon, presided; and seven or eight hundred persons were
present. (“The Order observed at the opening of the Countess of
Huntingdon’s College at Cheshunt, London, 1792,” 8vo., 86 pp.)

That is all. Is there an instance of any other Methodist Institution so important as this, the published details of whose opening services are so pitiably meagre?

It has been said, there is no _positive_ proof that Fletcher was at the opening of Trevecca College; but there is _incidental_ evidence that he was, and that his friend James Ireland, Esq., was with him. This will be found in the _second_ of the following letters addressed to Mr. Ireland and his dying daughter.

“MADELEY, _July 30, 1768_.

“MY DEAR FRIEND,—Uncertain as I am whether your daughter is yet alive,
I know not what to say, but this,—our Heavenly Father appoints all
things for the best. If her days of suffering are prolonged, it is to
honour her with a conformity to the crucified Jesus. If they are
shortened, she will have drunk all her cup of affliction, and found,
at the bottom of it, not the bitterness of her sins, but the
consolations of our Saviour’s Spirit.

“I had lately some views of death, and it appeared to me in the most
brilliant colours. What is it to die, but to open our eyes after the
disagreeable dream of life? It is to break the prison of corruptible
flesh and blood, into which sin has cast us. It is to draw aside the
curtain which prevents us seeing the Supreme Beauty and Goodness face
to face. O my dear friend, how lovely is death, when we look at it in
Jesus Christ! To die is one of the greatest privileges of the
Christian.

“If Miss Ireland is still living, tell her, a thousand times, that
Jesus is the resurrection and the life; that He has vanquished and
disarmed death; that He has brought life and immortality to light; and
that all things are ours, whether life or death, eternity or time.
These are great truths upon which she ought to repose her soul with
full assurance. Everything is shadow, in comparison of the reality of
the Gospel. If your daughter be dead, believe in Jesus, and you shall
find her again in Him, who fills all in all, who encircles the
material and spiritual world in His arms—in the immense bosom of His
Divinity.

“Adieu, my dear friend. Yours,
“J. FLETCHER.”[161]

Footnote 161:

Letters, 1791, p. 198.

“MADELEY, _October 14, 1768_.

“MY VERY DEAR FRIEND,—I think I told you at Trevecca,[162] that we had
no farmers at Madeley who feared God and loved Jesus. This generation
among us are buried in the furrows of their ploughs, or under the
heaps of corn which fill their granaries. Now that I am on the spot, I
do not see one who makes it necessary for me to change my opinion.
Your bailiff cannot come from this Nazareth.

“If the last efforts of the physicians fail with respect to Miss
Ireland, it will be a consolation to you to know that they have been
tried. Every thing dies. Things visible are all transitory; but
invisible ones abide for ever. If Christ is our life and our
resurrection, it is of little importance whether we die now, or thirty
years hence.

“Present my respects to your son, and tell him, that last week I
buried three young persons who had died of a malignant fever; and who,
on the second day of their illness, were deprived of their speech and
senses, and, on the fifth, of their lives. Of what avail are youth and
vigour when the Lord lifts His finger? And shall we sin against the
eternal power, the infinite love, the inexorable justice, and the
immense goodness of this God, who gives us, from moment to moment, the
breath which is in our nostrils? No—we will employ the precious gift
in praising and blessing this good God, who is our Father in Jesus
Christ.

“I hope you learn, as well as I, and better than I, to know Jesus in
the Spirit. I have known Him after the flesh, and after the letter; I
strive to know Him in the power of His Spirit. Under the Divine
character of a quickening Spirit, He is everywhere. All that live,
live in Him, and they who are spiritually alive have a double life.
The Lord give us this second life more abundantly. Yours,

“J. FLETCHER.”[163]

Footnote 162:

In all probability at the opening of the College on August 24.

Footnote 163:

Letters, 1791, p. 199.

The next is an extract from a long letter, addressed to dying Miss Ireland.

“MADELEY, _December 5, 1768_.

“MY DEAR AFFLICTED FRIEND,—I hear you are returned from the last
journey you took in search of health. Your Heavenly Father sees fit to
deny it you, not because He hateth you (_for whom the Lord loveth He
chasteneth_), but because life and health might be fatal snares to
your soul, out of which you could not escape, but by tedious illness,
and an early death.

“Your father has crossed the sea for you; Jesus has done more. He has
crossed the abyss that lies between heaven and earth—between the
Creator and the creature. He has waded through the sea of His tears,
blood, and agonies, not to take you to the physician at Montpelier,
but to become your physician and Saviour Himself. Oh, my friend, delay
not cheerfully to surrender yourself to Him. Look not at your sins
without beholding His blood and righteousness. Eye not death but to
behold your gracious Saviour, saying, ‘_Fear not, O thou of little
faith: wherefore dost thou doubt?_’ Consider not eternity but as the
palace where you are going to enter with the Bridegroom of souls, and
rest from all your sins and miseries. View not the condemning law of
God but as made honourable by Him, who was made a curse for you. If
you have no comfort, distrust not Jesus on that account; on the
contrary, take advantage from it to give greater glory to God, by
believing, as Abraham did, ‘in hope against hope.’ In this simple,
Gospel way, wait the Lord’s leisure, and He will comfort your heart.

“I hope you take care to have little or nothing else mentioned to you
but His praises and promises. Your tongue and ears are going to be
silent in the grave. Now, or never, you must use them to hear and
speak good of His name. Comfort your weeping friends. Reprove the
backsliders. Encourage seekers. Remember the praying, believing,
preaching, though dying thief. Be not afraid to drop a word for Him
who opens a fountain of blood for you. Suffer, live, die at His feet;
and you will soon revive, sing, and reign in His bosom for evermore.
Farewell, in the Conqueror of Death and Prince of Life.

“J. FLETCHER.”[164]

Footnote 164:

_Ibid_, 1791, p. 204.

Within three months after the date of this letter, Miss Ireland had left a world of sin and suffering, and had entered into that rest which remains for the people of God.[165] Hence the following, addressed to her father:—

“MADELEY, _March 26, 1769_.

“MY DEAR FRIEND,—The Lord is desirous of making you a true disciple of
His dear Son, the ‘_Man of Sorrows_,’ by sending you affliction upon
affliction. A sister and a wife who appear to hasten to the grave in
which you have so lately laid your only daughter, places you in
circumstances of uncommon sorrow. But in this see the finger of Him
who works all in all, and who commands us to forsake all to follow
Him. Believe in Him. Believe that He does all for the best; and that
all shall work for good to those who love Him. His goodness to your
daughter ought to encourage your faith and confidence for Mrs.
Ireland. Offer her upon the altar, and you shall see that, if it be
best for her and you, His grace will suspend the blow which threatens
you.

“Your rich present of meal came last week, and shall be distributed to
the pious poor agreeably to your orders. We are happy to receive your
bounty, but you are more happy in bestowing it upon us. Witness the
words of Jesus, ‘It is more blessed to give than to receive.’
Nevertheless, receive, by faith, the presents of the Lord, the gifts
of His Spirit, and reject not the bread which cometh down from heaven,
because the Lord gives it you with so much love.

“I shall be obliged to go to Switzerland this year or the next, if I
live and the Lord permits. I have there a brother, a worthy man, who
threatens to leave his wife and children to come and pay me a visit if
I do not go and see him myself. It is some time since our gracious God
convinced him of sin, and I have some of his letters which give me
great pleasure. This circumstance has more weight with me than the
settlement of my affairs.”[166]

Footnote 165:

Letters, 1791, p. 205.

Footnote 166:

_Ibid_, p. 206.

Mr. Ireland was a frequent benefactor to Fletcher and the poor of Madeley. Hence, in another letter to the same friend in need, Fletcher wrote:—

“I think I wrote my last letter two days before I received your
bounty—a large hogshead of rice and two cheeses. Accept the thanks of
your poor and mine. I distributed your gifts on Shrove Tuesday; and
preached to a numerous congregation on ‘Seek ye first the kingdom of
God and His righteousness, and all other things shall be added unto
you.’ We prayed for our benefactor, that God would give him a
hundredfold in this life, and eternal life, where life eternal will be
no burden.”[167]

Footnote 167:

Benson’s “Life of Fletcher.”

Help, like Mr. Ireland’s, was always welcome. Many of Fletcher’s parishioners were extremely poor, and to the utmost of his ability he contributed to their necessities. One who knew him writes:—

“The profusion of his charity toward the poor and needy is scarcely
credible. It constantly exhausted his purse; it frequently unfurnished
his home; and sometimes left him destitute of the common necessaries
of life. That he might feed the hungry, he led a life of abstinence
and self-denial; and that he might cover the naked, he clothed himself
in the most homely attire.”[168]

Footnote 168:

Benson’s “Life of Fletcher.”

Fletcher was President, or, as Wesley chose to call him more correctly, _Visitor_ of Trevecca College. The office brought upon him considerable anxiety and labour. In the summer of 1769, John Jones made application to be appointed head master. Mr. Jones, from 1746 to 1767, had been one of Wesley’s itinerant preachers. He was one of the first classical masters of Kingswood School, and wrote the Latin Grammar which was used in that academy.[169] He was highly esteemed by Wesley, and after he left Kingswood was generally stationed in Wesley’s two most important circuits, London and Bristol. In 1754, when there was great excitement respecting a possible separation of the Methodists from the Church of England, Charles Wesley wished what he called “_the sound preachers_” to be “_qualified for orders_,” and wrote to his brother, saying, “I know none fitter for training up the young men in learning than yourself or J. Jones.” Nine years after this, when Erasmus, a bishop of the Greek Church, visited London, he, at Wesley’s request, ordained Jones to assist the Arch-Methodist in administering the sacraments to his Societies. Charles Wesley would not admit the validity of this ordination, and consequently would not allow Mr. Jones to officiate as a clergyman. This was a severe trial to the newly-ordained preacher, and led him to leave the Methodists. He afterwards procured ordination from the Bishop of London, and was presented to the living of Harwich, where he continued to preach for many years, and where he ended his days in peace.[170] He never lost his love for Wesley. In 1775, when Wesley was dangerously ill in Ireland, he wrote to him from Harwich:—

“I cannot express what I felt when I was informed you were both
senseless and speechless; and it was like life from the dead when I
heard you were out of danger and able to sit up. Time was when you
would have taken my advice, at least in some things. Let me entreat,
let me beseech you, to preach less frequently, and that only at the
principal places,” etc.[171]

Footnote 169:

Myles’s “Chronological History of the Methodists.”

Footnote 170:

Atmore’s “Methodist Memorial.”

Footnote 171:

_Arminian Magazine_, 1787, p. 444.

Such was John Jones, Wesley’s friend, and at one time held in high esteem by Wesley’s brother Charles. His ambition to be employed in Lady Huntingdon’s college at Trevecca was not inordinate. Fifteen years before, Charles Wesley had thought him qualified to train young men for the ministry, and from one of his letters, written in 1777, and published in the _Wesleyan Methodist Magazine_ for 1837, it is evident that Charles Wesley’s opinion was well founded. The letter was addressed to a gentleman of Magdalene College, Cambridge, who was about to be ordained, and wished Mr. Jones’s advice respecting the composition of sermons and preaching them.

“Prayer,” said he, “should always precede the composing of a
discourse. In general, the explication of the text or context, if they
need it, should not be too short. The propositions or doctrines should
not be too long nor too many, and the clearer they are the better. The
illustrations should be proper and lively; the proofs close and home;
the motives strong and cogent; the inferences and application natural,
and not laboured. For if we cannot persuade the passions, we shall go
but a little way with most of our hearers. This was George
Whitefield’s peculiar talent; but I do not mean to persuade you to
bawl as loud as he did, and yet I would advise you to raise your voice
in the application of your discourse. Eight-and-thirty years ago I
thought it an easy matter to prove most points in divinity. I have
been learning the contrary ever since, and I find it now very
difficult, by Scriptures properly understood and applied, to prove
many things which I once thought quite clear. I find it necessary to
understand the Scripture I bring in as a proof before I use it as
such. I will add one thing more. You will find it very difficult to
use such plain language as will be understood in most congregations.
Avoid long periods as much as possible. Imitate Cæsar rather than
Cicero; leave the latter to Dr. Middleton and Samuel Furley. It is far
better to be understood by our hearers than to be admired by getting
out of their depth. To do all the good we can is our one business in
life.”

Mr. Jones was a man of sense, and piety, and experience; and yet Fletcher hesitated in recommending him to be appointed a tutor in Trevecca College. Did Fletcher sympathize with his friend Charles Wesley in the repugnance which the latter felt to Mr. Jones’s ordination by Erasmus, the bishop of the Greek Church? Perhaps so; at all events, the following letter to the Countess of Huntingdon was cautious, if not cold:—

“MADELEY, _July 1, 1769_.

“MY LADY,—Mr. Jones’s letter puzzled me a little. I did not know what
answer to make to it. I have, however, sat down, and, after an
introduction, I say to him—

“‘The first and grand point to be kept in view at Lady Huntingdon’s
College is to maintain and grow in the spirit of faith and power that
breathes through the Acts of the Apostles, and was exemplified in the
lives of the primitive Christians. The first and grand qualification
required in a person called to be at the head of such a college is,
then, a degree of faith and power from above, with an entire
devotedness to God and His cause.

“‘The master, who is there at present, seems, on account of his youth,
to be deficient in point of experience. Nor is he a proper master of
the Greek, nor even of the harder classics; so that he can hardly
maintain his superiority over those who read Cicero and Horace.
Whether this inconveniency, Sir, would be avoided, supposing you were
appointed to succeed him, I cannot judge by your letter. He is also
unacquainted with divinity and the sciences, of which it is proper he
should give the students some idea; and how far you may excel him in
these points, Sir, is not in my power to determine. He has twenty-five
guineas a year, with his board, room, and washing. I dare say the
generous foundress would not hesitate to raise the salary of a master
of superior merit, though she hopes none would undertake that office
for the sake of money.’

“After giving Mr. Jones a little account of the business of the
College, I add—

“‘The variety of classes in it demands great assiduity and diligence
in the master. I would not, therefore, advise anyone to engage without
a proper trial. I have begged of Lady Huntingdon not to fix upon a
master till she had allowed him to look about him, and see how he
liked the place, people, and business; and, as you very properly
observe, Sir, it would be improper _to engage, and then to repent of
the undertaking_. I think that, if, upon consulting with the Lord in
prayer, and with Mr. Maxfield in conversation, you find your heart
free to embrace so peculiar an opportunity of being useful to your
generation, it might be best to come and see how you like the
business, and how it agrees with you; and should not matters prove
agreeable on either side, I dare say Lady Huntingdon will pay your
travelling expenses to Talgarth,[172] and back again.’

“In a letter to Mr. Maxfield,[173] I desired him to inform your
ladyship how Mr. Jones’s mind stands after reflecting on the contents
of my letter to him, and whether he would go to make a trial. I add,
that so much depends upon the aptness to teach, Christian experience,
solidity, liveliness, and devotedness of a master, that no one can
presume to judge of these things by a letter, or even by a day’s
conversation.

“If your ladyship does not approve of this step, a line to Mr.
Maxfield will rectify what you think amiss, and will oblige, my lady,
your unworthy servant,

“J. FLETCHER.

“P.S.—If your ladyship is so good as to spare a minister for three
weeks, I shall be glad to wait upon the dear young men and their
patroness at the College.”[174]

Footnote 172:

Trevecca College was in the parish of Talgarth, South Wales. It was
supposed to be part of an old castle erected in the reign of Henry the
Second. The date over the entrance was 1176.

Footnote 173:

Thomas Maxfield, who had seceded from Wesley’s Connexion in 1763, and
had received episcopal ordination from the Bishop of Derry.

Footnote 174:

“Life and Times of the Countess of Huntingdon,” vol. ii., p. 98.

This is an important letter, not only as exhibiting the views of Fletcher, but as containing a curious chapter in the earliest history of Trevecca College. The College, as it was ostentatiously called, had been opened ten months. It had one master; and the author of the “Life and Times of the Countess of Huntingdon” says Joseph Easterbrook was the person who occupied this position; but adduces no proof in support of his assertion. Another, and a far greater authority, attests that the master of the College was a child. Who was he?

In 1788, there was printed “A Sermon, occasioned by the Death of the celebrated Mr. J. Henderson, B.A., of Pembroke College, Oxford: Preached at St. George’s, Kingswood, November 23; and at Temple Church, Bristol, November 30, 1788. By the Rev. William Agutter, M.A., of St. Mary Magdalen College, Oxford. Published at the request of the Congregations. Bristol. 1788.” 8vo, pp. 32. The text of the sermon is, “Moses was learned in all the wisdom of the Egyptians.” Mr. Agutter’s eulogy of Henderson cannot here be quoted at full length: the following are brief extracts from it:—

“Mr. Henderson was born, as it were, a thinking being; and was never
known to cry, or to express any infantine peevishness. The questions
he asked, as soon as he was able to speak, astonished all who heard
him.”

“His memory was so strong that he retained all he read; and his
judgment so solid that he arranged, examined, and digested all that he
remembered, and thus made it his own.”

“At a time that other children were employed in the drudgery of
learning words, he was occupied in obtaining the knowledge of things.
_While but a boy, he was engaged to teach the learned languages. At
twelve years of age, he taught Greek and Latin in the College of
Trevecca. The Governor of the College at that time was the Rev. Mr.
Fletcher, late Vicar of Madeley._”[175]

Footnote 175:

The _Arminian Magazine_, for 1793, confirms this statement.

Mr. Agutter proceeds to say, that, when Fletcher was dismissed from Trevecca, Henderson was dismissed with him.

This, then, was the master—the only master of Trevecca College during the first year of its existence—a child, a wonderful child, twelve years old! A further account of this prodigy, or, as the _Monthly Review_, of 1789, called him, “a second Baratier,”[176] may interest the reader.

Footnote 176:

Baratier was a German, born in 1721, and is said to have understood
the German, French, Greek, and Latin languages when he was five years
old. At the age of nine, he could not only translate the Hebrew
Scriptures into Latin or French, but also re-translate these versions
into Hebrew. Before he had completed his tenth year, he composed a
Hebrew Lexicon of rare and difficult words, with curious critical
remarks. In his thirteenth year he translated from the Hebrew “Rabbi
Benjamin’s Travels in Europe, Asia, and Africa,” and published them in
two volumes, “with historical and critical notes and dissertations.”
He also, with remarkable success, applied himself to the study of
philosophy, mathematics, ecclesiastical history, law, etc. He died in
his twentieth year.

His father was a native of Ireland, and, from 1759 to 1771, was one of Wesley’s best itinerant preachers,—a man of deep piety, great talent, and amiable disposition; but naturally of a timid and melancholy mind. On relinquishing the itinerancy, he commenced a boarding-school at Hannam, near Bristol; but two of his pupils having been drowned while bathing, his mind was so affected, that he abandoned his school, and opened, at the same place, an asylum for the insane, which Wesley pronounced the best of the kind in the three kingdoms.

John Henderson, his only child, was born at Bellgaran, near Limerick, in 1757, and, as early as possible, was sent to Wesley’s School, at Kingswood. At the age of eight, he had made such proficiency in the Latin language, as to be able to teach it in the school. In his twelfth year, as already stated, he became the Master in Trevecca College. When about fourteen years of age, he left Trevecca, and, probably, spent the next ten years with his father at Hannam. At twenty-four, he entered Pembroke College, Oxford; and, in due time, took the degree of Bachelor of Arts. His thirst after knowledge was unbounded; and his amiable temper and remarkable talents secured him the respect of all who knew him. His learning was deep and multifarious. He was skilled in grammar, rhetoric, history, logic, ethics, metaphysics, and scholastic theology. He studied medicine with great attention, and practised it among the poor, wherever he had a chance, gratuitously. He was well versed in geometry, astronomy, and every branch of natural and experimental philosophy, and also in civil and canon laws. Besides several of the modern languages, he was master of the Greek and Latin tongues; and was intimately acquainted with Persic and Arabic. Scarcely a book could be mentioned, but he could give some account of it; nor any subject started, but he could engage in the discussion of it. His talents for conversation were so attractive, various, and multiform, that he was a companion equally acceptable to the philosopher and the man of the world, to the gay, the learned, and illiterate, the young and the old of both sexes. He attracted the notice of Dr. Johnson, was intimate with Sir William Jones, Miss Hannah More, and other celebrities; and Mr. Wilberforce offered him his patronage and a living, if he would reside in London.

Like most geniuses, John Henderson was eccentric. When he first went to Oxford, his clothes were made in a fashion peculiar to himself; he had no stock or neckcloth; and he wore his hair like that of a boy at school. His mode of life was singular. He generally went to bed at daybreak, and rose in the afternoon, except when he was obliged to attend the morning service of the college chapel. Before he retired to rest, he frequently stripped himself naked to the waist, took his station at a pump near his rooms, sluiced his head and the upper part of his body, pumped water over his shirt, and then, putting it on, went to bed. This he jocularly called “an excellent cold bath.” He became an ardent admirer of the nonsense of Jacob Behmen’s wild philosophical divinity; studied Lavater’s “Physiognomy;” and attained to a considerable knowledge of magic and astrology; and declared the possibility of holding correspondence with the spirits of the dead, upon the strength of his own experience.

He died at Oxford, on November 2, 1788, and was buried at St. George’s, Kingswood. His father was so painfully affected by the loss of his affectionate and only child, that he caused the corpse to be taken up again, several days after the interment, to satisfy himself that his son was really dead.[177]

Footnote 177:

_Arminian Magazine_, 1793, pp. 140–144.

Wesley had great love and respect for poor Henderson’s father, and, a few months after the young man’s untimely death, he wrote:—

“1789, March 13.—I spent some time with poor Richard Henderson, deeply
affected with the loss of his only son; who, with as great talents as
most men in England, had lived two-and-thirty years, and done just
nothing.”[178]

Footnote 178:

Wesley’s Journal.

This, however, was scarcely true. Henry Moore, in his “Life of Wesley,”[179] relates an anecdote which is worth preserving, and which must conclude this lengthened notice of the child professor at the Countess of Huntingdon’s College at Trevecca. In reference to Wesley’s entry in his Journal, Mr. Moore remarks:—

“Not a vestige of Mr. Henderson’s writings remains. This is owing to
what some would call a cross providence. He used to visit his father
at Hannam, near Bristol, in the summer vacation. He there studied
intensely, and wrote largely. His MSS. he stored in a large trunk
without a lock. Returning home, some time before his last illness, he
flew to his treasure, but found the trunk empty. He enquired of Mrs.
Henderson, who called up the servant, and asked for the papers in the
trunk. The girl, who had been hired that year, replied with great
simplicity, ‘La! ma’am, I thought they were good for nothing, and so I
lighted the fire with them during the winter.’ Mr. Henderson looked at
his excellent mother-in-law for some time, but spoke not a word. He
then went into his study, and was never known to mention the subject
more.”

Footnote 179:

Vol. ii., p. 360.

“Oh! Diamond, Diamond! thou little knowest the mischief thou hast done!” said Sir Isaac Newton to his favourite little dog, who, by upsetting a taper on his desk, had set fire to the papers which contained the whole of his unpublished experiments, and thus reduced to ashes the labours of many years. Poor Henderson, in his misfortune, “spoke not a word.” Newton lived thirty years after his great loss, but made no important addition to his scientific discoveries; Henderson died soon after his sad calamity; and hence Wesley’s disparaging remark concerning him: “With as great talents as most men in England, he lived two-and-thirty years, and did just nothing.” Wesley must have been ignorant of the fact related by Mr. Moore; for, on no other ground can an apology be framed for his unfair remark.

It is time to return to Fletcher. Wesley was not present at the opening of Trevecca College, in 1768, but he took part in the religious services held at the first anniversary in 1769. Whitefield was unavoidably absent, for he was preaching farewell sermons, and administering farewell sacraments, to his London congregations, and, a week afterwards, set out on his final visit to America. But, even without him, the Methodist gathering at Trevecca was _one_ of the most remarkable recorded in old Methodist history. Besides Wesley and Fletcher, there were present Howell Harris, the founder of the Welsh Methodists; the Rev. Daniel Rowlands, rector of Llangeitho, with a salary of £10 a year, a preacher whose eloquence was overwhelming, and whose meetings among the Welsh mountains can never be forgotten; the Rev. William Williams, curate of Lanwithid, a brave-hearted man who had met violent persecution without flinching, and a member of the first Conference of the Calvinistic Methodists in Wales, in 1743; Howell Davies, rector of Prendergast, an intimate friend of Whitefield, a preacher whom thousands upon thousands flocked to hear, in fields, and on commons and mountains, and the attendance at whose monthly sacraments was so great that his church had to be emptied several times over to make room for the remaining communicants waiting out of doors; the Rev. Peter Williams, another itinerant clergyman of the Established Church, who joined the Methodists as early as the year 1741; and the Hon. and Rev. Walter Shirley, brother of the notorious Earl Ferrers, first cousin of the Countess of Huntingdon, converted under the ministry of Venn, and now an earnest minister of Christ; to whom must be added Lady Huntingdon, the Countess of Buchan, Lady Anne Erskine, and Miss Orton, and also the first students of Trevecca, headed by their juvenile master, John Henderson.

The services were held daily for a whole week, from the 19th to the 25th of August inclusive. Fletcher, Rowlands, and William Williams arrived at the College on Friday, the 18th, and next morning Rowlands preached in the chapel to a crowded congregation, from the words, “Lord, are there few that be saved?” In the afternoon, the Lord’s Supper was administered, Fletcher addressing the communicants and spectators, and Williams giving out a hymn, which was sung with great enthusiasm. At night, Howell Harris preached to a large congregation assembled in the court from the text, “The time is come that judgment must begin at the house of God.” During the day, Walter Shirley and several lay preachers arrived at Trevecca.

On Sunday, August 20, at ten in the morning, Fletcher read the Liturgy in the court, and Shirley preached on, “Acquaint thyself now with Him, and be at peace.” At one, the Lord’s Supper was administered in the chapel, and Rowlands, Fletcher, and Williams gave addresses. During the afternoon, Fletcher preached in the court to an immense congregation, from, “I am not ashamed of the Gospel of Christ.” When his sermon was ended, Rowlands, in the Welsh language, addressed the crowd from, “It is appointed unto men once to die.”

On Monday and Tuesday the clergymen preached, and Howell Harris and several of the lay preachers joined in the services.

On Wednesday, August 23rd, Wesley came, accompanied by Howell Davies and Peter Williams.[180] Wesley writes:—

“Wednesday, August 23rd. I went on to Trevecca. Here we found a
concourse of people from all parts, come to celebrate the Countess of
Huntingdon’s birthday, and the anniversary of her school, which was
opened on the twenty-fourth of August, last year. I preached in the
evening to as many as her chapel could well contain; which is
extremely neat, or rather, elegant; as is the dining-room, the school,
and all the house. About nine, Howell Harris desired me to give a
short exhortation to his family. I did so; and then went back to my
lady’s, and laid me down in peace.

“Thursday, August 24th. I administered the Lord’s Supper to the
family.[181] At ten, the public service began. Mr. Fletcher preached
an exceeding lively sermon in the court, the chapel being far too
small. After him, Mr. William Williams preached in Welsh till between
one and two o’clock. At two we dined. Meantime, a large number of
people had baskets of bread and meat carried to them in the court. At
three, I took my turn there; then Mr. Fletcher; and about five, the
congregation was dismissed. Between seven and eight, the lovefeast
began, at which, I believe, many were comforted. In the evening,
several of us retired into the neighbouring wood, which is exceeding
pleasantly laid out in walks, one of which leads to a little mount
raised in the midst of a meadow that commands a delightful prospect.
This is Howell Harris’s work, who has likewise greatly enlarged and
beautified his house; so that, with the gardens, orchards, walks, and
pieces of water that surround it, it is a kind of little
paradise.”[182]

Footnote 180:

“Life and Times of the Countess of Huntingdon,” vol. ii., pp. 98, 99.

Footnote 181:

The author of the “Life and Times of the Countess of Huntingdon” says,
“Shirley assisted Wesley,” and adds, “The sacrament was first
administered to the clergyman, then to the students, and then to Lady
Huntingdon, the Countess of Buchan, Lady Anne Erskine, Miss Orton, and
the other members of the family.”

Footnote 182:

Wesley’s Journal.

This is not the place to enlarge upon Howell Harris’s establishment, which adjoined Trevecca College. Suffice it to say, that here he had gathered together a family of more than a hundred persons, “all diligent, all constantly employed, all fearing God and working righteousness.”[183]

Footnote 183:

_Ibid._

The lovefeast mentioned by Wesley was the concluding service on the _first anniversary day_, strictly speaking, of Trevecca College. At that lovefeast, Walter Shirley, Howell Davies, and Daniel Rowlands gave short exhortations, and Peter Williams and Howell Harris offered prayers. Lady Huntingdon observes:—

“Truly our God was in the midst of us, and many felt Him eminently
nigh. The gracious influence of His Spirit seemed to rest on every
one. Words fail to describe the holy triumph with which the great
congregation sang—

‘Captain of Thine enlisted host,
Display thy glorious banner high,’ etc.

It was a season of refreshing from the presence of the Lord—a time
never to be forgotten.”

Next morning, Wesley set off for Bristol; but the services were continued. In the afternoon, Shirley took his stand on the scaffold in the court, and addressed the multitude from the words, “Wherefore He is able also to save them to the uttermost that come unto God by Him, seeing He ever liveth to make intercession for them.”

“From that time,” wrote Lady Huntingdon, “we had public preaching
every day at four o’clock, whilst Mr. Shirley and Mr. Fletcher
remained. Copious showers of Divine blessing have been felt on every
side. Truly God is good to Israel. Continue Thy goodness, and in much
greater abundance! O that I may be more and more useful to the souls
of my fellow-creatures! I want to be, every moment, all life, all
zeal, all activity for God, and ever on the stretch for closer
communion with Him. My soul pants to live more to Him; and to be more
holy in heart and life, that all my nature may show the glories of the
Lamb.”[184]

Footnote 184:

“Life and Times of the Countess of Huntingdon,” vol. ii., pp. 98–101.

Alas! that these glorious scenes among the Welsh mountains should so soon be followed by scenes of discord and of disputes. The great storm of the Calvinian controversy was already brewing.