Bristol, April 27th, 1785. DEAR FATHER AND MOTHER, Your remarks are very seasonable. In the first place, respecting preaching in the vestry. I am in a strait whether to think of reading or not reading my next sermon there. Reading has the advantage for precision and calmness, but if one must seem lively there is a danger of false fire; without reading, in that place, one's spirits are quite flattened. In the country it is reviving to see the people beforehand in attention and expectation, but in that place [the vestry] there is little hope of being useful, the people going there to form opinions of the student; and on his part there is danger lest instead of preaching Christ Jesus his Lord he preaches himself. I never yet read a sermon wholly, and I feel rather awkward to begin. I had a very agreeable week at Fairford. They are a plain, country, simple, Christian-like people, many of them very warm in the ways of God. I hope I have found it useful to myself. They provide a horse, on which one student returns and another goes. The Lord's day following I was at Bridgewater, in Somersetshire, and had to preach three times, with which I was quite worn down; when I am free and lively in my own mind preaching spends me much. But the more I experience, the more I see and am sure that there is a glorious reality in religion, and that when we set before the people the word of life we do not amuse them with cunningly devised fables, but, on the contrary, the mind of the Spirit. I have been indulged at times with freedom and liberty before God's people, and I hope I have not preached an unfelt gospel, but have testified that which I have seen, and that it has been my desire to be fed with the crumbs of that bread of life with which I have endeavoured to feed others. I feel an exact connection between prayer and preaching. When I can pray fervently to that God who hears in secret, plead his promise, give myself up to him, and be willing to be nothing that he may be all in all, and when in the presence of his people I can address the Divine Being with freedom to supply our wants and hear our united petitions, then I get forward in preaching; but neglect of the Divine Being and selfsufficiency confuse me in his presence, and in that of his people in his house. Mr. Evans and I have settled for me to come home at the vacation if you think good of it. He has no place to send me to, and so, if I stay it will be expensive, and that money I may as well spend in VISIT TO BISHOP BURTON. 87 travelling to see you; besides, if I come not now, it may be three or four years before I see you, which neither you nor I would relish, therefore the present time appears the best. I have received a pressing invitation from a fellow-student,* to accompany him to Buckingham, which I have accepted. It is very little about, and we intend principally to walk. From thence I think I shall go to Nottingham, and so to Hull, &c., &c. As to my clothes, my old black coat and waistcoat I still wear every day, my grey coat and waistcoat when I go into the country. I think they will serve till June, 1786; my best blue coat and waistcoat are very fresh. Yours, &c., J. K. Bristol, May 13th, 1785. DEAR FATHER AND MOTHER, You will be surprised at opening this, but I assure you all is well. The particular reason of my writing this per return is, I expect to leave Bristol May 30th, we break up sooner than I expected. The next Lord's day, the first in June, I shall likely be at Buckingham, before the second Lord's day I hope to see you. My Buckingham friend voluntarily offered to accompany me to Nottingham, and I recollected before I received yours, Mr. Gill being at Harbro'. J. K. Joseph accordingly visited his parents for the vacation, Mr. Ward kindly making him a present of £5 for his journey, probably in fulfilment of a promise made before he went to Bristol, to give £5 after the first year, Mr. Fishwick giving £10 after the second. The following character of Mr. K., given to his father by Mr. Evans, is interesting and characteristic. Bristol, May 28th, 1785. DEAR SIR, I am happy to have it in my power to give you every satisfaction you can desire relative to your son since he has been under my care. He has been truly amiable and exemplary in his temper and behaviour, assiduous in his business, and successful No doubt James Hinton. in his studies. Mr. Newton, my worthy colleague in the Academy, is entirely satisfied and pleased with him as well as myself, and we both hope and believe you will have much comfort in him. His mode of delivery is at present rather unpopular, nor has he a strong imagination, but I have no doubt of his making considerable improvement as he advances in his studies, and that with the divine blessing upon him he will make in due time an intelligent, evangelical, acceptable, and useful minister. He has been well received where he has already exercised, nor have I heard any complaint of him from any quarter. We shall receive him again with great pleasure; and wishing him and you every blessing, I remain, dear Sir, Your affectionate friend and brother, (though personally unknown,) C. EVANS. CHAPTER VI. 1785. ET. 19. Occupations at Bristol continued-Robert Hall-Medley of Liverpool— Parsons of Leeds-Excursion into Wales-Leverian Museum-Dunn and Joseph Kinghorn at Fairford-James Hinton and Joseph Kinghorn candidates for Oxford-Visit to Bishop Burton-Pendered at Newcastle-Remarkable Adventure. DEAR FATHER AND MOTHER, Bristol, August 22nd, 1785. Through the goodness of God I am safe arrived here. The day I left you I got to Doncaster; the next, walked to Sheffield; Thursday I took an outside place and reached Birmingham at night; on Friday I went by coach to Worcester, and then walked to Upton, where Mr. Hinton's friends are, they received me kindly, and pressed me to stay the remainder of the day with them; from them I found Mr. Hinton was not at Chalford, but at Buckingham. They have lost their minister at Upton since I was there, he was a very worthy man, and much beloved. On the Saturday I left Upton, and walked to Gloucester, intending, if in time, to take the coach for Bristol, but being too late, I walked forward sixteen miles from Gloucester, and lodged the night. On Lord's day morning I walked about four miles to the house of one of the principal men in the meeting at Thornbury, there breakfasted, and was immediately engaged to dine there, preach in the evening, and sleep there. I went with them to meeting, and heard an old gentleman, who preaches to them once in the day at eleven; and from the simplicity of his heart, without any human learning, declares to them the testimony of God. I preached at half-past five; the day passed over very agreeably, and this morning I walked here;-found Mr. Evans pretty well-was well received by him. Scarcely were common compliments over, before he told me he had a job for me if I could do it, which was to preach to-night at the Tabernacle; he was very glad I had come, none of the old students having returned but myself. J. K. DEAR SON, Your letter of Monday, the 22nd, we received on Friday, the 25th. It seems you were not to pass on without employment, either on the road or at the end of your journey— Mr. Evans found you a job. I suppose you would not have many of your house critics in the evening to hear. But this I know, that unless the Lord direct the heart in preaching, it will be difficult work; while under his direction the task is pleasant and easy. Nothing can produce that sweet peace and solid satisfaction which flows from a view of the love of God; the Spirit of God directs the heart unto a view of it by faith, and to the consequent returns of love, gratitude, and thankfulness to him, who so loved the world as to give his Son to die for us. God in the riches of his goodness designing to display the dazzling perfections of his own glorious nature, created the universe, and made all things very good-perfect in their kind, and completely happy in their own sphere. Had men or angels been asked what could have been done more in my world to make its inhabitants happy, every mouth would be stopped and silence sit on every lip; so will every mouth be stopped when the judge of the world demands a reason why his rational creatures obeyed not his law. Had he delivered over the whole human race to the just deserts of their own folly, without any hope of deliverance, his justice must have approved the sentence, and holy angels owned him "holy and true; just and righteous are thy ways." But what wonder must have filled the minds of these created intelligences when they heard the gracious words pronounced, "I have laid help upon one that is mighty, I have exalted one chosen out of the people." What raptures must have fired their minds when they saw its accomplishment, and were sent with the joyful message to the shepherds of the birth of the Saviour Jesus, while they joined in concert and sang, "Glory be to God in the highest, on earth peace, and good will towards men." May the Lord grant you may grow in grace, and in the knowledge of our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ as you grow in years. D. K. Bristol, Lord's Day and Monday, 24th and 25th Sept., 1785. Mr. Hall has taken his department in the Academy, teaching Greek and the Mathematics, (Algebra,) in both which I |