THE GOOD PARSON WILLIAMS

173

Mr. Ellis, in his beautiful portrait of my father's life, in the sermon preached the Sunday after his death, says of him, "That the little barefooted boy, being found prepared, was despatched on horseback, under the charge of an elder brother, to the scene of his literary labors. The miniature collegian, whose head as he sat upon his horse hardly appeared above the portmanteau, was kindly received, and went through the prescribed course under the especial care of one of the tutors,-Joel Barlow, it is believed."

My father was through life one of the firmest believers in an over-ruling Providence; and, in his old age, I recall his laying his hand on the scar in his forehead, where the fractured skull had been trepanned, and saying: "I owe to that fall, under the providence of God, all the success and good fortune of my life. It was that fall that attracted the notice of our good l'arson Williams; and to his efforts with me, and persuasions with my parents, I owe the fact of my education, which fitted me for all that followed."

My mother realized all my father's reasons for personal friendship for Parson Williams, and she shared them. But none the less did she feel the cloud of Calvinism that enwrapped the whole valley of the Connecticut in spiritual gloom. The phraseology of the pious was especially distasteful to her. In revival times, the evidences of conversion were discussed, much as the symptoms of a fever would be; and the deep things of God,- the soul's union with Christ, the "obtaining a hope," as it was called,- were

In

bandied about without reserve, and without joy. infant schools, babies wept over their "wicked hearts;" and the children in older schools were separated into "sheep and goats," and sat on "anxious seats." If they died early, the little prigs had their memoirs written, in which they implored good old people, who had borne the burden and heat of the day in faith and patience, "to come to Christ."

These things have passed by; the Orthodox of to-day would feel about them as the early liberal Christian did then. But looking at my mother as she was, and knowing how keenly she felt them all, I can only wonder at the patience with which she bore this spiritual regimen for fourteen long years.

Had she lived at this day, her far-sceing mind would have recognized the deep debt of gratitude which all New England owes to this old-fashioned Calvinism; and how, stern though it was, it was like New England's rocky soil,-an excellent region to be born in and to have come out from.

As it was, she really believed and events have proved her in the right-that the doctrines of the Church, as then taught, often made infidels, materialists, and scoffers, through reaction. And so she fell back on the simple teachings of the New Testa ment, the words of Christ; and her open mind and untrammelled spirit experienced an untold joy in that liberty wherewith Christ makes his people free. And, though tenacious of her own interpretation of Scripture, she was never unjust towards those who differed from her, or slow to do full honor to the religious character, wherever she saw it exemplified.

CALVINISTIC PREACHING

175

I suppose she may be forgiven for having smiled during one of Parson Williams's sermons on the increasing luxury of the times, when he said in his broken voice, "Some attend to the tylet [toilette] and others to the piny forty," and for taking it off afterwards; the fact being that our own old English piano, and Madam Henshaw's spinet, were the only musical instruments in the town.

'It is told of her that in the Sunday-school class which she faithfully taught, during the years that she remained in the Old Church, she was asked by one of the little people, "Mrs. Lyman, where is Heaven?" She put on her most solemn aspect, remained silent for a moment, then in impressive tones, with long pauses between, answered, "It is neither before you nor behind you- nor above you nor yet under your feet." Then with a rapid transition to a lighter tone, so characteristic of her, she said, inclining her head in his direction, "Parson Williams can tell you the exact spot, I can't."

In the year 1824 commenced the first open dissatisfaction in the Old Church at Northampton. The liberal families, few in number, were yet persons of high character and influence,--my father and Uncle Howe being prominent among them. All they asked for, was the privilege of hearing some ministers of the more liberal school for six Sundays out of every year, and this privilege the vote of the town gave them; and, at the settlement of the Rev. Mark Tucker as colleague to Parson Williams, it was well understood that this would be the case. But Mr. Tucker declined to exchange with Mr. Peabody, of

Springfield, and other liberal preachers, for the allotted six Sundays; and my father and Uncle Howe, finding remonstrance of no avail, at last "signed off" from the Old Church, and with a few families who shared their convictions they worshipped for some months in the town hall, hiring a liberal preacher to minister to them. That it cost them something to part company with old friends and neighbors on a question of such vital importance, who can doubt? Or that the stigma attaching to their views was not hard to bear? But my father and Uncle Howe knew what they had undertaken and why; and, having put their hands to the plough, they did not turn back. I do not suppose that women of the ardent temperament of my mother and Aunt Howe were always wise and judicious in their course at this time, although I never heard that they were not. But their piety was as strong as their convictions, and no personal bitterness ever mingled with the sorrows of the change. A friend who was at our house during this period recalls the glow of my mother's face on those beautiful Sunday mornings, when, having finished breakfast with the large family, she called on Hiram to take the horses and carriage, and go to the outskirts and gather up a few liberals who had no means of getting into town; then busied herself to collect the children's silver cups and her old tankards, which she gathered into her large apron, and carried to the town hall, to prepare the communion table; how she dusted the table, and then tucked her apron under the seat, and looked round thankfully on the little audience col

BEGINNING OF LIBERAL MINISTRY

177

lected to listen to Mr. Hall, and to receive the broken bread of life,-a real upper chamber, where "two or three were gathered in Christ's name."

It was during this year that she wrote the following letter to Mrs. Murray, which shows that her Unitarian views were not the result of fancy, or love of change, but grew out of an earnest study of the Scriptures:

To Mrs. Murray, July 1, 1824.

MY DEAR FRIEND, I have received your kind letter by my husband, and am gratified to find that, notwithstanding the lapse of time since we saw cach other, your feelings remain unchanged. I have thought it probable that as your sons advanced you might think it best to bring them here for education, as the most approved means at this time is among us. Mr. Lyman says you have some fears that it is a Unitarian institution. Let me inform you that there is nothing of the nature of sectarianism belonging to the school.

Unitarian parents prefer their children should accompany Mr. Bancroft to the Unitarian church, but nearly half the school go with Mr. Cogswell to the Orthodox church. This subject has insensibly Fed me to make some remarks to you on controversial topics. In my opinion, Christianity does not belong to one scct more than another; but equally to all those who imbibe the spirit of Christ, and adorn their lives with the virtues of his religion, whether it be Baptist, Methodist, Unitarian, or Calvinist. As it regards myself, I think speculative