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CHARLES H. 8PURGE0N BEING A Graphic Account of the Greatest Preacher of Modern Times: His Boyhood and Early Life; Wonderful Success in London; Preaching to V&st Audiences at the Crystal Palace, Surrey Music Hall and in the Open Air; Famous Metropolitan Tabernacle; Pastor's College, Orphanage, etc., etc. CONTAINING Personal Anecdotes, Vivid Descriptions of his Appearance and Characteristics ; Last Sickness and Death ; Magnificent Tributes, etc., etc., TO WHICH IS ADDED A VAST COLLECTION OF HIS ELOQUENT SERMONS, BRILLIANT WRITINGS, AND WITTY SAYINGS. By HENRY DAVENPORT NORTHROP, D. D.. Author of " Earth. Sea and Sky," " Beautiful Genu," etc., etc. Embellished with Numerous Fine Illustrations. BRADLEY, GARRETSON & CO., BR.ANIFORD, ONTARIO, CANADA. wmm ■wj ^7 .:^* Entered according to Act of Cong;ress, in the year 1890, by J. R. JONES, In the Office of the Librarian of Congress, at Washington, D. C. PREFACE. This volume contains a graphic account of the Life and Labors of Rev. C. H. Spurgeon. It portrays the brilliant career of the most celebrated preacher of mod- ern times, his matchless eloquence, his tender pathos, his ready wit, and his wonderful mastery over the human heart. It is an interesting narrative of Mr. Spurgeon's life, and is enriched with the choicest of his sermons and lectures, and with a large collection of extracts from his most famous writings. This comprehensive volume is divided into three parts. Book I. contains the great preacher's history. It relates the incidents of his early life, shows you the boy preacher at the age of sixteen, and traces his marvellous successes in the great metropolis. It de- scribes the immense Metropolitan Tabernacle and its vast throngs, among whom were not only the poor [and illiterate, but the most famous persons of the realm, including Gladstone, Bright, Shaftesbury, and multitudes of others. Mr. Spurgeon was not merely a popular preacher; jhe was a sunny, genial, witty, great-hearted man. He [was bold as Luther or Knox, yet possessed deep sym- )athies, fiery zeal, loving charity, and carried on manv interprises for the welfare of the poor and unfortb- late. This work describes his College, where hun- Ireds of poor young men were educated, and his Orphanage, which sheltered thousands of homeless :hildren. (iii) rr FREFAOE. His last, lingering illness; the reilgious world watching at his bedside; the eagerness with which reports were awaited; his removal to the south of France in hope of recovery ; and the final scene when he breathed his last, and both hemispheres were startled by the news, all are depicted in this volume. Book II. contains Mr. Spurgeon's most celebrated sermons and lectures. These are plain, pithy, ex- pressed in vigorous Saxon, and go right to the heart. Young and old alike are interested in them. He was a master of the art of illustration, and had the rare faculty of making use of the scenes, facts and inci- dents he met with in his ordinary every-day life. There is, therefore, scarcely a dull page in his ser- mons or writings. He always had something practi- cal and interesting to say, which secured for him a multitude of hearers and readers. Book III. comprises a very interesting collection of witty, wise, pathetic, eloquent extracts from the famous preacher's writings. These are illustrated, and are very captivating. Gems from the Spurgeon " Note- Book," quaint sayings of " John Ploughman," beautiful figures and weighty moral lessons, enrich this volume. Mr. Spurgeon's death removes the most conspicu- ous figure in the religious world, and one of the most remarkable men of his time. His deeds will live after him. His noble record is made. Whatever monu- ment of bronze or marble may be erected to his mem- ory, his finest tribute will be the glowing words he fepoke, the myriads of souls he moved, the grand bat* tie he fought and the brilliant achievements which canoot die. CONTENTS. book: I. CHAPTER I. Birth and Ancestry. World'wide Fame.--Unprecedented Success.— The Great Preftcikw's Av cestors. — Good Old Grandfather. — Pen>picture of a Cottittiy Minuter.-* Buckled Shoes and Silk Stockings. — ^John, Father of Charles. — A Good Mother. — Reply of ** Charley " to his Mother. — Countty Boyi. — Hooie- hold Influence. — Thirst for Knowledge. — An Industrious Youth.— A Remarkable Prophecy. — ^" Old Bonner" CHAPTER 11. Mr. Spnrgeon's Account of his ConTerslon and Early Preachingr. A Desponding Penitent.— Visit to a Primitive Methodist Chapel.—" Look, Look I "—Preaching in the Old Place.— Happy Days Light in Dark- ness. — Profession of Faith. — Mission Work. — Boy Preacher.— The Firrt Sermon.-^Cottage and Open-air Services. — Escaping College.— Poem . CHAPTER IIL The Young- Preacher in liondon. Speech at Cambridge.— Invitation to London. — ^Willing Hearers.- Interest- ing Letters to New Park Street Church. — Visitation of Cholera. — Labors among the Dying. — Publicition of Sermons. — Eagerness of the Public to Obtain the Printed Discourses. — Description of the Youthful Preacher.— Thronging Crowds. — Birthday Sermon. — Preaching in Scotland.— Good News from Printed Sermons. — Reports of Many Conversions . . • CHAPTER IV. A Wife and a New Tahemacle. Mr. Spurgeon*M Marriager— T\i\relve Sennpn* Weekly.— Not an AiMde<— Poem Addressed to Mrs. Spurgeon.— Revivals and Colpoitage.— Tallc of Founding • New Sect— A^sit to Paris.— Preaching to Coster-mongers • t • • |l CHAPTER V. Successful Labors. Orphan Houses. — Impressive Spectacle. — " On my Back.** — Liberal Gifts.— Illness of Mrs. Spurgeon.— Silly Tales.—*' A Black Business.'*- Ldd Aside by Illness.— New Year's Letter. — ^The Pastor Prostrate. — Discus* rion Concerning Future Punishment. — The Bible and Public Schools.— A Victim to Gout.— Visit to the Continent.— Pastors' College.— Tngather- ingsat the Tabernacle. — Colored Jubilee Singers. — Pointed Preaching.-^ Great Missionary Meeting. — A New Corner-Stone . . • . • f* CHAPTER VI. The Pastors' Collegre. The First Student. — Call for Preachers to the Masses. — A Faithful Instructor. — Growth of the College. — Efforts to Secure Funds. — Generous GiAs.— Unknown Benefactor. — Provision for Students.— Opinion of Earl Shaftes* bary.-.New Churches Founded. — Mr. Spurgeon 's Annual Report.— Milk and Water Theology.— Rough Diamonds. — Course of Study. — Earnest Workers.— A Mission Band.— Interesting Letters.— Help for Neglected Fields HI CHAPTER VII. Stockwell Orphanage. A. Large Gift.— New Home for Children.— Process of Building.— Laying the Comer-Stone.— The Little Ones Happy.— Generous Givers.— Daily Life in the Orphanage.— What Becomes of the Boys. — Rules of Admis- non. — ^Not a Sectarian Institution,— Successful Anniversary . • , »4» _-■«%»■■ OONTBNnL vH CHAPTER VIII. Annual Report of Stockwell Orphanage. A Devoted Woman. — Faith Insures Success. — Story of an Old Puritan.^ Need of a Double Income.—- Health of the Orphanage.— An Appeal Hard to Resist. — Young Choristers. — Spontaneous Charity. — A NoUbli Year. — Enlarging the Bounds. — Girls' Orphanage. — Liberal Response if Appeals for Help.— The ^ -.iracle of Faith and Labor • • • « 69 CHAPTER IX. The Great Preacher's Last Ilhiess and Death. Alarming Reports. — Messages of Sympathy. — Cheering Words from th« Christian Endeavor Convention of the United States. — Message from International Congregational Council. — Letters from the Prince of Wales and Mr. Gladstone. — Kays of Hope. — Anxiety and Fervent Prayers.— Glowing Eulogies. — Removal to Mentone. — Unfavorable Reports. — The Closing Scene. — Immense Literary Labors • • • • . •If Sermons and I«ectares by Rev. C^ XL Spui^eon. Hands Full of Honey 193 Glory •••••319 The Luther Sermon at Exeter-Hall . • • • • 144 The Best War-Cry 361 Lecture on Candles ....••••. aSy ▼ai CONTENTS. Lecture to Studeuta on the Blind Kye aiul Deat' Ear . 3^4 Short Scrmou8 on Practical Subjects 3S> Choice Selections Urom the WiitlnsA of Rev* C. H. Spurseon. John Plof ffhman'H Talk and Pictures 3^1 Feathers for Arrows, or Life Thoughts of Rev. C. H. SpuTgeon 447 a»ibutestoBev. O. H. SpursreoB 4^ BOOK I. I(eY. Cli&^rle$ H. Spur^eon : THE STORY OP HIS LIFE AND LABORS. CHAPTER I. Birth and Ancestry. World-widfi Fame. — Uiipfv^^i dented Success. — The Great Preacher*! At>. esfi.ii. — Good Old Orandfather. — Pen-picture of a Country Minister. — liuultled Shoes and Silk Stockings. — John, Father of Charles. — A (Jood Molhei.-- Reply of " Charley " to his Mother. — Country Boys.— Household Influcace. — Thirst for Knowledge. — An Industrious Youth. — A Remarkable Prophecy. — " Old Bonner." The fame of Rev. C. H. Spurgeon has filled the world. His name is known among all civilized peoples, and his sermons and writings have been translated into many languages. No other man of modern times preached to such multitudes of peo- ple ; no other possessed a combination of gifts so rare. If success is the standard of merit, the great London preacher was the Saul among the prophets, standing head and shoulders above others. Charles Haddon Spurgeon descended from the Essex branch of the same family. Early in his minis- try in London, he was introduced, at a book-store in Paternoster Row, to Mr. John Spurgeon, a descendant 2 (17) 18 REV. CHARLES H. SPURGEON. /■ I- -I of the Norwich branch of the family; and on com- paring notes of their respective ancestorL, piety, up- rightness, and loyalty were found alike in both. The same spirit of religious intolerance which sent the immortal Bunyan to Bedford Jail for preaching the gospel also sent, in 1677, Job Spurgeon to Chelms- ford Jail, where, for conscience' sake, he lay on a pallet of straw for fifteen weeks, in extremely severe winter weather, without any fire. The great-grandfather of Pastor Spurgeon was contemporary with the opening period of the reign of King George III. The record preserved of his memory is, that he was a pious man, and ordered his household according to the will of God. From that day to this, the family has never wanted a man to stand before God in the service of the sanctuary. A Good Old Grandfather. James, the grandfather of Pastor C. H. Spurgeon, was born at Halstead, in Essex, September 29, 1776. As a boy he was seriously inclined, and whilst yet a youth became a member of the Independent church at Halstead. Whilst an apprentice at Coggeshall he was accepted as a member of the church there under the pastoral care of the Rev. S. Fielding. Following business pursuits till he was twenty-six years of age, his mind at that period was directed entirely to the work of the ministry, and in 1802 he entered Hoxton Academy. After two years' study, an application from Clare, in Suffolk, was made to him to try and raise a congregation which was very low ; and in this BIRTH AND ANCESTRY. 19 he succeeded so far, tlttt in September, 1806, he was appointed pastor, ai^ the church prospered under his pastorate. -^^ The protracted ministry of Mr. Beddow in the Independent church at Stambourne, in Essex (a church which had only four ministers during the course of two hundred years), having terminated in 1 8 10, Mr. Spurgeon received a unanimous call to the oversight of that church, which he accepted, and in May, 181 1, he was recognized as their pastor. Him- self the fourth of a succession of long-lived pastors in that village, he remained pastor over the church more than half a century, during which period he was peaceful, happy, and successful in his labors. He frequently remarked, when more than fourscore years old, "I have not had one hour's unhappiness with my church since I have been over it." Invitations from other churches were sent to him, but the love, har- mony, and prosperity which prevailed between pastoif and people induced him to decline them all, and he remained true to the people of his choice. Pen-pictiire of a Country Minister. It is a recorded fact, worthy of perpetuation, that the venerable James Spurgeon never preached in any place away from his own church, but God fulfilled his promise, and gave him to hear of some good being done to persons in the congregation. He had a large head, and much that was good in it. He had a good voice, and was very earnest and practic?^ in preaching the glorious truths of the gospel. The great useful- T- ^' 20 REV. CHARLES H. SPUROEON. ness of his life-long ministry will be known only in eternity. He was known widely in Essex as a man of the old school — staid, quiet, and uniform in his dress and habits. He was the very picture of neat- ness, and in many particulars resembled John Wesley, especially in his manners and stature. He wore a dress cravat, a frilled shirt, and had a vest with deep pockets, as if provided for large collections. He was seldom without a packet of sweets, which he gave generously to the children wherever he went, so that they gathered round him and attached themselves to him with a firmness which riper years did not shake. Last Days. He was always happy in the company of young people. He wore the breeches, buckled shoes, and silk stockings which marked the reign of George III., and he really looked to be a venerable Nonconformist minister of a past age. For more than half a century his life corresponded 'with his labors. His gentle manners, his sincere piety, and his uniformity of con- duct secured for him the good will of his neighbors, md he was as friendly with the parochial clergymen as with his attached Nonconformist frieiids. He often went to the parish church to hear the sermon when the prayers were over, especially when the cause of missions was to be advocated. He was blessed with a wife whose piety and useful labors made her a valuable helpmeet to her husband in every good word and work. In his last illness he was sustained by divine grace, and the desire he had BIRTH AND ANCESTRT. 21 so often expressed, that he might speak of Christ on his dying bed, was granted to him. He said the gospel was his only hope ; he was on the Eternal Rock, im- mutable as the throne of God. Those who were privileged to witness his departure from earth will aever forget his joy and peace, and the glorious pros* pect he had of heaven. The Senior Spurgreon.. John Spurgeon, the father of Charles, was born at Stambourne in 1811. He was the second of ten children. He was a portly-looking man, a good speci- men of a country gentleman, and was nearly six feet in height. For many years he was engaged in busi- ness at Colchester ; but, with so excellent an example of a minister as was his father, it is not strange that his mind should have run in the same direction, though he did not fully enter on the ministry till he had reached the prime of life. For sixteen years he preached on Sundays to a small Independent church at Tollesbury, being occupied with business during the week. He next accepted a call to the pastorate of the Independent church at Cranbrook, Kent, a village of three thousand persons, where he remained five years. The popularity of his son Charles in London wis not without its influence on the father, whose personal worth and whose ministerial ability were not unknown in the metropolis, as he had spoken occasionally at meetings held by his son. The pastorate of the Independent church in Fetter Lane, Holborn, became 22 REV. CHARLES H. SPURGEON. vacant, and was offered to and accepted by Mr. Spur- geon ; but his stay there was not long. A sphere more in accordance with his years and position was offered and accepted by him, and for some time he was pastor of the Independent church worshipping in the Upper Street, Islington. That position he resigned at the end of the year 1876. He did good Work in that locaHty, and was much beloved by the people. His preaching was plain, earnest, and pointed, and he manifested an affectionate solicitude for all under his pastoral care, especially the young people. A Good Mother. There are many large places of worship in the locality, and preachers of distinction are numerous in that populous suburb ; but even there Mr. Spurgeon gathered a large and important congregation twice on the Sabbath, to whom his preaching was both accept- able and beneficial. The various branches of church work were carried on with energy and fidelity ; and those which required female agency were fostered and watched over with affectionate solicitude by Mrs. Spurgeon, whose motherly affection secured for her a welcome in the families of the church. Mrs. John Spurgeon has passed to her reward. Mrs. John Spurgeon was the youngest sister of Charles Parker Jervis, Esq., of Colchester, in which town her husband carried on business for many years. Wherever she has resided she has been known and esteemed for her sincere piety, her great usefulness BIRTH AND ANCESTRY. 23 and humility. She is low in stature, and in this re- spect her son Charles takes after her, but not in features, in which particular the other son, James Archer Spurgeon, assimilates more to his mother. The prayerful solicitude with which she trained her children has been rewarded by each one of them making a public profession of their faith in Christ. Two of her sons occupy foremost places in the me- tropolis as preachers of the gospel ; and one of her daughters, the wife of a minister, not only assists her husband in the preparation of his sermons, but occa- sionally delivers addresses to small audiences. Speaking one day to her son Charles of her solici- tude for the best interests of all her children, Mrs. Spurgeon said, "Ah, Charley, I have often prayed that you might be saved, but never that you should become a Baptist." To this Charles replied, " God has answered your prayer, mother, with His usual bounty, and given you more than you asked." Both Mr. and Mrs. Spurgeon made great sacrifices of personal comfort to give a good education to their children, and the children were taught habits of thrift and self-denial. The care thus bestowed on their training when young has been to the parents a source of much satisfaction ; the good results of that care are manifested in the happy home lives of their chil- dren. When, at some future period, the historian of the Metropolitan Tabernacle and of the Stockwell Orphanage is considering the primary causes of those great enterprises, the care which Mrs. Spurgeon be- 24 REV. CHARLES H. SPURGEON. Stowed on the early training of her family must be counted as a valuable auxiliary in preparing the way for such exemplary conduct. The Country Boys. The villages of England, more than the towns, have the honor of producing our great men. In the vil- lage the faculties develop themselves as nature forms them, while in the large towns a thousand delusive influences are continually diverting the minds of the young into channels of danger and error. The parents of Pastor Spurgeon were residing at the village of Kelvedon, in Essex, when on June 19, 1834, their son Charles was born. The population of the place is only t .vo thousand souls, and the resident clergyman, at the time just stated, the Rev. Charles Dalton, lived long enough to celebrate his jubilee as minister in that parish. The Spurgeon family be- longed to the Nonconformists, under whose teachin": they were all brought up. Charles and James Spur- geon were much separated during their early years. Charles was of a larger and broader build than James, and the boys of the village are said to have given them names designative of character, which also indi- cated friendship or attachment. Charles had as a boy a larger head than his brother, and he is repre- sented as taking in learning more readily than James, whilst the latter excelled more in domestic duties. Besides the brothers there are six sisters living, two of whom are said to resemble Charles in mental energy. iff in li- al REV. JAMES A. SPURGEON. CO-PASTOk. 2{» 26 RKV. CHARLES U. SrURGEON. IIouHchold Nurture. As the children were growing up, the father, like many professional and public men, feared his frequent absence from home would interfere with the religious education of the little ones. But happily for him lie had a true helpmeet to co-operate with him in this important work, and happily fomhose children they had a noble mother who lived for them, and sought to build them up in true Christian character. Nor has she lived unrewarded for her pains. Oh, that all mothers learned the lesson well ! Hear the good man speak thus of his wife : I had been from home a great deal, trying to build up weak congregations, and felt that I was neglecting the religious training of my own children while I was toiling for the good of others. I returned home with these feelings. I opened the door and was surprised to find none of the children about the hall. Going quietly upstairs, I heard my wife's voice. She was engaged in prayer with the children ; I heard her pray for them one by one by name. She came to Charles, and specially prayed for him, for he was of high spirit and daring temper. I listened till she had ended her prayer, and I felt and said, " Lord, I will go on with Thy work. The children will be cared for." The Diligrent Youth. When just old enough to leave home, Charles was removed to his grandfather's house at Stambourne, where, under the affectionate care of a maiden aunt. BIRTH AND ANCESTKT. 97 and directed by the venerable pastor, he soon de- veloped into the thoughtful boy, fonder of his book than of his play. He would sit for hours together gazing with childish horror at the grim figures of "Old 13onner " and '* Giant Despair : " or tracing the ad- ventures of Christian in the "Pilgrim's Progress," or of " Robinson Crusoe." The pious precocity of the child soon attracted the attention of a!i around. He would astonish the grave deacons and matrons who met at his grandfather's house on Sabbath evenings, by proposing subjects for conversation, and making pertinent remarks upon them. At that early period in life he gave indications of that decision of character and boldness of address for which he has since be- come so remarkable. In the spring of 1840, and before he was six years old, seeing a person in the village who made a pro- fession of religion standing in the street with others known to be of doubtful character, he made up to the big man, and astonished him by asking, " What doest thou here, Elijah ? " In 1S41 he returned to his father's house, which was tiien at Colchester, that he might secure what improved advantages in education a town could supply. His mental development was even then considerably in advance of his years ; and his moral character, especially his love of truth, was very conspicuous. Spending the summer vacation at his grandfather's, in 1844, when ^^ was just ten years old, an incident occurred which had a material influence on the boy 28 REV. CHARLES B. SPURGEON. at the time, and even more so as Divine Providence opened h\^ way. Mr. Spurgeon's grandfather first related the incident to the writer, but it has since been written by Mr. Spurgeon himself, with title of " The Rev. Richard Knill's Prophecy." The account is as follows : A PiiKzllng Que8tlon. " When I was a very small boy," writes Charles H. Spurgeon, " I was staying at my grandfather's, where I had aforetime spent my earliest days ; and, as the manner was, I read the Scriptures at family prayer. Once upon a time, when reading the passage in the Book of Revelation which mentions the bottomless pit, I paused and said, • Grandpa, what can this mean ? * The answer was kind but unsatisfactory : • Pooh, pooh, child, go on.' The child intended, however, to have an explanation, and therefore selected the same chapter morning after morning, Sunday included, and always halted at the same verse to repeat the inquiry. At length the venerable patriarch capitulated at discretion, by saying, ' Well, dear, what is it that puzzles you ? ' Now, the child had often seen baskets with very frail bottoms, which in course of wear became bottom- less, and allowed the fruit placed therein to fall upon the ground. " Here, then, was the puzzle : If the pit aforesaid had no bottom, where would all the people fall who dropped out at its lower end ? — a puzzle which rather startled the propriety of family worship, and had to be laid aside for explanation at a more convenient BIKTU AND ANCESTRT. season. Questions of the like simple and natural eharacter would frequently break up into paraawii of a New Life. Early in the month of January, 1856, Mr. Spurgeon preached a sermon to his own congregation on Sun- day morning, which is entitled "Sovereignty and Salvation." In that sermon he says : " Six years ago to-day, as near as possible at this very hour of the day, I was * in the gall of bitterness and in the bonds of iniquity,' but had yet, by divine grace, been led to feel the bitterness of that bondage, and to cry out by reason of the soreness of its slavery. Seeking rest and finding none, I stepped within the house of God, and sat there, afraid to look upward, lest I should be utterly cut off, and lest his fierce wrath should consume me. The minister rose in his pulpit, and, as I have done this morning, read this text : ' Look unto Me, and be ye saved, all the ends of the earth ; for I am God, and there is none else.' "I looked that moment; the grace of faith was vouchsafed to me in that instant ; and " • Ere since by faith I saw the stream His flowing wounds supply Redeeming love has been my theme, Apd shall be till I d^^.' 1^ CONVERSION AND EARLY PREACHING. 89 I shall never forget that day while memory holds its place ; nor can I help repeating this text whenever I remember that hour ^vhen first I knew the Lord. How strangely gracii)us ! How wonderfully and marvellously kind, that he who heard these words so litde time ago, for his own soul's profit, should now ad- dress you this morning as his hearers from the same text, in the full and confident hope that some poor sinner within these walls may hear the glad tidings of salvation for himself also, and may to-day be • turned from darkness to light, and from the power of Satan unto God ! * " A Public Profession. All the letters he sent home at that period were full of the overflowings of a grateful heart ; and, although so young in years, he describes the operations of divine grace on the heart and life, and the differences between the doctrines of the gospel and the forms of the church, in terms so precise and clear, that no merely human teaching could have enabled him so to do. Brought up, as he had been, among the Indepen- dents, his own views on one point of church ordi- nances now assumed a form differing materially frop what his parents had adopted. Having experience- a change of heart, he felt it to be laid upon nim as an imperative duty to make a full and public confession of the change by public baptism. He had united himself formally with the Baptist p-eople the year before ; now he felt constrained to ? 40 REV. CHARLES H. SPURGEON. I !fl fully cast in his lot and become one of them entirely. He wrote many letters home to his father, asking for advice and information, but striving to enforce his own conviction for making a public profession of his faith in Christ At length the father was satisfiea that his son had no faith in the dogma of baptismal regeneration ; that his motives for seeking to be publicly recognized as a follower of the Lord Jesus were higher than those he had feared ; therefore no further opposition was made, and the necessary steps were taken for his immersion. All the arrangements having been made, the young convert walked from Newmarket to Isleham, seven miles, on May 2d, and staying with the family of Mr. Cantlow, the Baptist minister there, he was by that gentleman publicly baptized in that village on Friday, May 3, 1 85 1, being in his sixteenth year. He thus proceeds in his letter to his father : " It is very pleas- ing to me that the day on which I shall openly profess the name of Jesus is my mother's birthday. May it be to both of us a foretaste of many glorious and happy days yet to come." School Duties and Mission Work. Having thus publicly devoted himself to the service of God, he was more earnest than ever in his efforts to do good. Besides having himself revived an old society for distributing tracts, he undertook to carry out this good work in Newmarket thoroughly. When- ever he walked out he carried these messengers of mercy with him ; he was instant in season, and, indeed, f "" ■ I' I II nmAMI"> * tVf..'."i,«J,m " ' ■11 ^'" "' ■ W^H ^' ■ "WI ' W KEV. JOHN SI'URGEON, FATHER OF C. H. SrUKCiEOiN. r t t a a a o S CONVERSION AND BARLY PREACIIINO. 4i was seldom out of season, in his efforts to do good His duties in school occupied him three hours daily, the remainder of his time being sjn'nt in his closet or in some work of mercy. The Sunday-school very soon gained his attention, and his addresses to the children were so lull of love and instruction that the children carried the good tidings home to their parents ; and soon they came to hear the addresses in the vestry of the Independent chapel in that town. The place was soon filled. The Boy Preacher. At one of the examinations of the school he had consented to deliver an oration on missions. It was a public occasion, and in the company was a clergyman. During the examination the clergyman heard of the death of his gardener, and suddenly left for home. But on his way he thus reasoned with himself: The gardener is dead ; I cannot restore his life ; I will return and hear what the young usher has to say on missions. He returned, heard the oration, and was pleased to show his approval by presenting Mr. Spurgeon with a sovereign. Having at once identified himself as a membei of the Baptist church in Cambridge he soon found occupa- tion suitable to his mind. His addresses to children, and afterwards to parents and children, had produced a love of the work, and he soon was called to exhort a village congregation. He was then sixteen years old. Connected with the Baptist church meeting in St. Andrew's street, Cambridge, formerly under the 42 REV. CHARLES H. SPURGEON. pastoral care of the late learned Robert Hall, there existed a society entitled " The Lay Preachers' Asso- ciation." Although so young in years, Mr. Spurgeon was accepted as a member of this association. Here he at once found the occupation which his mind most desired ; and he was soon appointed to address a congregation. As this was one of the most important steps in Mr. Spurgeon's life, the reader will be glad to learn from his own pen the circumstances which led to his first attempted sermon. In introducing the text, " Unto you therefore which believe. He is precious," i Peter ii. 7. Mr. Spurgeon remarks, in 1873: "I remember well that, more than twenty-two years ago, the first attempted sermon that I ever made was from this text. First Sermon. " I had been asked to walk out to the villacre of Tp.versham, about four miles from Cambridge, where I then lived, to accompany a young man whom I sup- posed to be the preacher for the evening, and on the way I said to him that I trusted God would bkss him in his labors. * Oh, dear,' said he, * I never preached in my life ; I n er thought of doing such a thing. I was asked to walk with you, and I sincerely hope God will bless you in your preaching.' ' Nay,* said I, ' but I never preached, and I don't know that I could do anything of the sort.' We walked together till we came to the place, my inmost soul being all in a trouble as to what woqld happen. When we found n o in O ?3 > I sup- >n the s him ached ^^m )-* thing. 1 1 hope - <1^B ""^ ;aid 1, -^^^^^B could ill we -■■?■ in a fpvind (a) 44 REV. CHARLES H. SPURGEOK. the congregation assembled, and no one else there to speak of Jesus, though I was only sixteen years of age, as I found that I was expected to preach, I did preach, and the text was that just given;" Considering the results which have followed that sermon, it will be interesting to glance at some of the incidents belonging to that early period of his ministry. Early Promise. In the summer of 1875, from inquiries made in the locality, a correspondent of the " Baptist " newspaper reports as follows : "A gentleman informed me that he heard Mr. Spurgeon preach his first sermon when about sixteen years of age ; and he then read, prayed, and ex- pounded the Word, being attired in a round jacket and broad turn-down collar, such as I remember to have been in fashion at that period. " Mr. Spurgeon was then living near Cambridge, and his mode of preaching afforded promise that he would become a powerful and popular preacher. " Mr. C, the schoolmaster of the village in 1850, was impressed with the precocious talent of the young "preacher, and his style of preaching." Having once entered on this most solemn duty, and finding acceptance with the people, he laid himself out for one service every evening, after attending to his duties in school during the day. From an aged and experienced Christian, who heard Mr. Spurgeon preach before his call to London, we learn that his addresses were very instructive, and II CONVERSION AND EARLY PREACHING. 46 often included illustrations derived from history, geography, astronomy, and from other branches of school occupation, evidently adapted from his daily duties, and thus made to serve as instruments in religion, as well as in training and informing the mind. His early ministry was not only gratuitous, but often attended with demands on his small salary, which he willingly gave to God — not to be seen of men, did he help the needy. In Cottages and the Open Air. In some of the thirteen village stations around Cambridge and Waterbeach, to which Mr. Spurgeon devoted all his evenings, the preaching was held in a cottage, in others a chapel, and occasionally the open common could furnish the accommodation re- quired. At the village of Waterbeach, Mr. Spurgeon was received in a marked manner of approval. In most of the places in which he had preached the effect was very much alike, in the large numbers attracted to hear the Word of God, and in the success which God was pleased to bestow on his labors. Even at that early period of his ministerial career, invitations to preach special sermons in towns and villages at a distance soon rapidly increased. At Waterbeach, however, the litde church saw in the young man a suitability to their wants, and they gave him an invitation to become their pastor. He was well received by the people, and soon became quite popular. During the few months of his pastorate 46 REV. CHARLES H. SPURGEON. I there, the church members were increased from forty to nearly one hundred. Pastorate at Waterbeach. Mr. Spurgeon has himself supplied an interesting reminiscence of his ministry at that village, which is worth preserving : " When we had just commenced our youthful pas- torate at Waterbeacii, in 1852, Cornelius Elven, as a man of mark in that region, was requested to preach the anniversary sermons in our little thatched meeting-house, and right well we remember his hearty compliance with our desire. We met at the station as he alighted from a third-class carriage which he had chosen in order to put the friends to the least possible expense for his travelling. His bulk was stupendous, and one soon saw that his heart was as large in proportion as his body. " He gave us much sage and holy advice during the visit, which came to us with much the same weight as Paul's words came to Timothy. He bade us study hard, and keep abreast of the foremost Christians in our little church, adding as a reason, that if these men, either in their knowledge of Scripture or their power to edify the people, once outstrip you, the temptation will arise among them to be dissatisfied with your ministry ; and, however good they are, they will feel their superiority, and others will perceive it too, and then your place in the church will become very difficult to hold. His sermons were very homely, and pre- eminently practical. He told anecdotes of the use- GONYERSION AND EARLY PREACHING. 47 fulness of addressing individuals one by one about their souls." Not Spoiled by Colleges. It has been remarked a hundred times, by those not well informed on the matter, that Mr. Spurgeon was an uneducated man, and had no college instruc- tion. The experience of a quarter of a century has demonstrated how erroneous were these remarks. Is there in England a man of education who has done more for the extension of the kingdom of Christ by the publication of numerous valuable theological and instructive books than Mr. Spurgeon ? Let the list of his works determine. On the question of not going to college there is also some misconception. The exact facts are worthy of being placed on record. Mr. Spurgeon has him- self so clearly stated the case in an article he wrote some time ago in his own magazine, that the reader will be glad to see it here ; it is curious and interest- ing: "Soon after I had begun, in 1852, to preach the Word in Waterbeach, I was strongly advised by my father and others to enter Stepney, now Regent's Park College, to prepare more fully for the ministry. Knowing that learning is never an incumbrance and is often a great means of usefulness, I felt inclined to avail myself of the opportunity of attaining it; although I believed I might be useful without a college training, I consented to the opinion of friends, that I should bo more useful with it m TV \m 48 BEV. CHARLES H. SPURGEOK. An Appointment not Kept. " Dr. Angus, the tutor of the college, visited Cam- bridge, where I then resided, and it was arranged that we should meet at the house of Mr. Macmillan, the publisher. Thinking and praying over the matter, I entered the house at exactly the time appointed, and was shown into a room, where I waited patiently for a couple of hours, feeling too much impressed with my own insignificance and the greatness of the tutor from London to venture to ring the bell and inquire the cause of the unreasonably long delay. "At last, patience hiiv iiig had her perfect work, the bell was set in 'rotion, and on the arrival of the servant, the waiting yo^^ng man of eighteen was in- formed that the doctor had tarried in another room, and could stay no longer, so had gone off by train to London. The stupid girl had given no information to the family that any one called and had been shown into the drawing-room, consequently the meeting never came about, although designed by both parties. I was not a little disappointed at the moment; but have a thousand times since then ihanked the Lord very heartily for the strange providence which forced my steps into another and far better path. Strang-e Impressions. " Still holding to the idea of entering the Collegiate Institution, I thought of writing and making an immediate application ; but this was not to be. That afternoon, having to preach at a village station, I walked slowly in a meditating frame of mind over CONVERSION AND EARLY PREACHING. 49 Midsummer Common to the little wooden bridge which leads to Chesterton, and in the midst of the common I was starded by what seemed to me to be a loud voice, but which may have been a singular illu- sion : whichever it was, the impression it made on my mind was most vivid ; I seemed very distinctly to hear the words, * Seeker>t thou great things for thyself, seek them not ! ' " This led me to look at my position from a different point of view, and to challenge my motives and inten- tions. I remembered my poor but loving people to whom I ministered, and the souls which had been given me in my humble charge ; and although at that time I anticipated obscurity and poverty as the result of the resolve, yet I did there and then renounce the offer of collegiate instruction, determining to abide for a season, at least, with my people, and to remain preaching the Word so long as I had strength to do it. Had it not been for those words, I had not been where I am now. Although the ephod is no longer worn by a ministering priest, the Lord guides His people by His wisdom, and orders all their paths in love ; and in times of perplexity, by ways mysterious and remarkable, He says to them : • This is .the way ; walk ye in it.* " The Turiiingr Point. One or two extracts from his letters, written at the same time, it is desirable to give to show how anx- iously the matter was considered. In his reply to his father, dated March 9, 1852, Mr. Spurgeon writes: "I ( 60 REV. CHARLES H. SPURGEON. m hav«: all along had an aversion to cf»llege, and nothing but a feeling that I must not consult myself, but Jesus, could have made me think of it. It appears to my friends at Cambridge, that it is my duty to remain with my dear people at Waterbeach ; so say the church there unanimously, and so say three of our deacons at Cambridge." During the summer his decision was taken, in the way previously related ; and in a letter he sent to his mother in November following, he says : " I am more and more glad that I never went to college. God sends such sunshine on my path, such smiles of grace, that I cannot regret if I have forfeited all my pros- pects for it. I am conscious I held back from love to God and His cause ; and I had rather be poor in His service than rich in my own. I havo all that heart can wish for ; yea, God giveth more than my desire. . My congregation is as great and loving as ever. During all the time I have been at Waterbeach, I have had a different house for my home every day. Fifty- two families have thus taken me in ; and I have still six other invitations not yet accepted. Talk about the people not caring for me because they give me so little ! I 'dare tell anybody under heaven 'tis false ! They do all they can. Our anniversary passed off grandly ; six were baptized ; crowds on crowds stood by the river ; the chapel afterwards was crammed both to the tea and the sermon." By these and other exercises of mind, God was CONVERSION AND EARLY PREACHING. 51 preparing his young servant for greater plans of use- fulness and a wider sphere of action. The following stanzas were written by Mt. Spur- geon, at the age of eighteen : IMMANUEL. When once I mourned a load of sin ; When conscience felt a wound within ; When all my works were thrown away ; When on my knees I knelt to pray, Then, blissful hour, remembered well, I learned Thy love, Immanuel. When storms of sorrow toss my soul ; When waves of care around me roll ; When comforts sink, when joys shall flee> When hopeless griefs shall gaj)e for me, One word the tempest's rage shall quell- That word. Thy name, Immanuel. When for the truth I suffer shame; When foes pour scandal on my name } When cruel taunts and jeers abound ; When " Bulls of Bashan " gird me round. Secure within Thy tower I'll dwell- That tower. Thy grace, Immanuel. When hell enraged lifts up her roar j When Satan stops my path before ; When fiends rejoice and wait my end} When legioned hosts their anows send. Fear not, my soul, but hurl at hell Thy battle-cry, Immanuel. When down the hill of life I go; When o'er my feet death's waters flowj When in the deep'ning flood I sink ; When friends stand weeping on the briakt I'll mingle with my last farewell Thy lovely name, Immanuel. 62 REV. CHARLES H. SPUR6E0N. i \ When tears are banished from mine eye ; When fairer worlds than these are nigh ; When heaven shall (ill my ravislied sight; When I shall batlie in sweet delight, One joy all joys shall far excel, To see Thy face, Immanuel. i^ r C U. SPURGEON AT THE AGE OF TWENTY-OMM. (68) CHAPTER III. The Young Preacher in London. i»j/Bech at Cambridge. — Invitation to London. — Willing Hearers. — Interesting Letters to New Park Street Church. — Visitation of Cholera. — Labors among the Dying. — Publication of Sermons. — Eagerness of the Public to Obtain the Printed Discourses. — Description of the Youthful Preacher. — Thronging Crowds. — Birthday Sermon. — Preaching in Scotland. — Good News from Printed Sermons. — Reports of Many Conversions. 1 HE anniversary meeting of the Cambridge Union of Sunday-schools in 1853 was held at Cambridge, on which occasion Mr. Spurgeon was called upon to speak. The part he took was of remarkable signin^ cance. There was nothing in his manner or his re- marks which was specially attractive to his audience ; but there was an unseen agency at work with the speaker as well as in the audience. There was pres- ent ai that meeting a gentleman from Essex, on whose mind the address delivered by Mr. Spurgeon made a lasting impression. Shortly afterwards he met in London with one of the: deacons of the Baptist church of New Park Street, Southwaik, a church which had once flourished like the ancient cedars of Lebanon, but which was then so far shorn of its former glory as to give cause of serious consideration. Anxiously did the thoughtful deacon tell his tale of a scattered church and a dtmin- (54) THE TOUNG PREACHER IN LONDON. 56 Ished congregation. Fresh upon the mind of his hearer was the effect of the speech of the young min- ister at Cambridge, and he ventured to speak of the youthful evangelist of Watcrbeach as a minister likely c the means of reviving interest in the declining church at New Park Street. The two friends sepa- rated, the deacon not much impressed with what he; had heard ; and things grew worse. Invited to London. But finally a correspondence was commenced be- tween Deacon James Low and Mr. Spurgeon, which soon resulted in the latter receiving an invitation to come to London and preach before them in their large chapel. The work was altogether of God, man only ie the arrangements. The motto of Julius Csesar i..^y be modified to express the results of the visit: Mr. Spurgeon came ; he preached ; he conquered. For some months the pulpit had been vacant, the pews forsaken, the aisles desolate, and the exchequer empty. Decay had set in so seriously that the deacons lost heart, and, until Mr. Spurgeon arrived, the cause seemed hopeless. In the autumn of 1853 he first oc- cupied New Park-street pulpit. The chapel, capable of holding twelve hundred people, had about two hundred occupants at the first service. The preacher was a young man who had just passed his nineteenth year. In his sermon he spoke with the freedom and boldness which evinced that he believed what he preached, and believed that his message was from God. Some were disappoint*^'^ ; others resolved to B 56 REV. CHARLES H. SPtiRGEON. oppose, and did oppose ; but by far the greater pro- portion were disposed to hear him again. Instant Success. The result of the first sermon was proved, in a few hours, to have been a success. The evening congre- gation was greatly increased, partly from curiosity, pardy from the youth of the preacher and his unusual style of address. Mr. Spurgeon was again invited to take the pulpit on another Sunday as early as possible, for a feeling of excitement was created, and it re- quired to be satisfied. After consulting with his church at Waterbeach, he arranged to supply the New Park-street pulpit during three alternate Lord's days. The desire to hear the young preacher having greatly extended, it was determined to invite Mr. Spurgeon from his rustic retreat to undertake the heavy respon- sibility of pastor of one of the most ancient Baptist churches in London, and formerly the most influential ; and he entered on that duty in the month of April, 1854. We are permitted to give two of Mr. Spurgeon's letters to the church at the time of his appointment, which will most clearly state the facts relating to his coming to London. The first of the following letters was written to Deacon Low shortly before Mr. Spur- geon left Cambridge, and the second is dated from his first lodgings immediately after his permanent arrival in London. It will be seen that these letters exhibit a wisdom and maturity scarcely to be expected from a youth of twenty. ter pro- n a few congre- iriosity, jnusual i^ited to ossible, 1 it re- ith his he New s days, greatly urgeon •espon- Baptist ential ; April, geon's itment, to his letters Spur- Dm his irrival xhibit from ;5 o w o in > W fa o w u < H Pi 1lil ! I THE YOUNG PREACHER IN LONDON. 67 No. 60 Park Street, Cambrifge, Jan. 27, 185^ To James Low, Esq. My dear Sir, — I cannot help feeling intense grati- fication at the unanimity of the church at New Park Street in relation to their invitation to me. Had I been uncomfortable in my present situation, I should have felt unmixed pleasure at the prospect Providence seems to open up before me ; but having a devoted and loving people, I feel I know not how. One thing I know, namely, that I must soon be severed from them by necessity, for they do not raise sufficient to maintain me in comfort. Had they done so I should have turned a deaf ear to any request to leave them, at least for the present. But now my Heavenly Father drives me forth from this little Gar- den of Eden, and while I see that I must go out, I leave it with reluctance, and tremble to tread the un- known land before me. When I first ventured to preach at Waterbeach, I only accepted an invitation for three months, on the condition that if in that time I should see good reasons for leaving, or they on their part should wish for it, I should be at liberty to cease supplying, or they should have the same power to request me to do so before the expiration of the time. With regard to a six months' invitation from you, I have no objection to the length of time, but rather ap- prove of the prudence of the church in wishing to have one so young as myself on an extended period of approbation. But I write after well weighing the 58 REV. CHARLES H. SPUROEON. II Jill matter, when I say positively that I cannot — I dare not — accept an unqualified invitation for so long a time. My objection is not to the length of time of probation, but it ill becomes a youth to promise to preach to a London congregation so long, until he knows them and they know him. I would engage to supply for three months of that time, and then, should the con- gregation fail, or the church disagree, I would reserve to myself liberty, without . breach of engagement, to retire ; and you would on your part have the right to dismiss me without seeming to treat me ill. Should I see no reason for so doing, and the church still retain their wish for me, I can remain the other three months, either with or without the formality of a further invi- tation ; but even during the second three months I should not like to regard myself as a fixture, in case of ill success, but would only be a supply, liable to a fortnight's dismissal or resignation. Perhaps this is not business like, — I do not know ; but this is the course I should prefer, if it would be agreeable to the church. Enthusiasm and popularity are often the crackling of thorns, and soon expire. I do not wish to be a hindrance if I cannot be a help. With regard to coming at once, I think I must not. My own deacons just hint that I ought to finish the quarter here : though, by ought, they mean simply, — pray do so if you can. This would be too long a delay. I wish to help them until they can get supplies, which is only to be done with great difficulty ; and, as I have given you four Sabbaths, I hope you will allow me to THE YOUNG PREACHER IN LONDON. 59 lare not a time, jbation, :h to a s them )ply for he cun- reserve lent, to right to Jhould I 11 retain months, ler invi- lonths I in case Die to a t know ; ould be pularity pire. I help. lUst not. lish the mply,— a delay. s, which s I have V me to give them four in return. I would give them the first and second Sabbaths in February, and two more in a month or six weeks' time. I owe them much for their kindness, although they insist that the debt lies on their side. Some of them hope, and almost pray, that you may be tired in three months so that I may be again sent back to them. Thus, my dear sir, I have honestly poured out my heart to you. You are too kind. You will excuse me if I err, for I wish to do right to you, to my people, and to all, as being not mine own, but bought with a price. I respect the honesty and boldness of the small minority, and only wonder that the number was not greater. I pray God that if He does not see fit that I should remain with you, the majority may be quite as much the other way at the end of six months, so that I may never divide you into parties. Pecuniary matters I am well satisfied with. And now one thing is due to every minister, and I pray you to remind the church of it, namely, that in private, as well as public, they must all wrestle in prayer to God that I may be sustained in the great work. I am, with the best wishes for your health, and the, greatest respect, Yours truly, C. H. Spurgeon. Call to New Park-Street Chapel. Viewed in the light of subsequent results, it will not surprise the reader to learn that it did not take the church six months to determine their part of the con- 60 REV. CHARLES H. SPURGEON. tract. Before three months had passed away "the small minority " had been absorbed into the majority, and the entire church united in giving their young minister, not yet twenty years old, an invitation to accept the pastorate, both cordial and unanimous. Mr. Spurgeon's second letter at this period will best • X plain the real facts : — 75 Dover Road, Borough, April 28, 1854. To the Baptist Church of Christ worshipping in New Park-street Chapel, Southivark: Dearly Beloved in Christ Jesus — I have received your unanimous invitation, as contained in a resolu- tion passed by you on the 19th instant, desiring me to accept the pastorate among you. No lengthened reply is required ; there is but one answer to so loving and cordial an invitation. I accept it. I have not been perplexed as to what my reply shall be, for many things constrain me thus to answer. I sought not to come to you, for I was the minister of an obscure but affectionate people : I never solicited advancement. The first note of invitation from your deacons came to me quite unlooked for, and I trem- bled at the idea of preaching in London. I could not understand how it came about, and even now I am filled with astonishment at the wondrous Providence I would wish to give myself into the hands of our cov- enant God, whose wisdom directs all things. He shall choose for me ; and so far as I can judge this is Hi« choice. THE YOUNG PREACHER IN LONDON. 61 I feel it to be a high honor to be a pastor of a peo- ple who can mention glorious names as my predeces- sors, and I entreat of you to remember me in prayer, that I may realize the solemn responsibility of my trust. Remember my youth and inexperience ; pray that these may not hinder my usefulness. I trust, also, that the remembrance of these may lead you to forgive the mistakes I may make, or unguarded words I may utter. Blessed be the name of the Most High ! if He has called me to this office He will support me in it; otherwise, how should a child, a youth, have the pre- sumption thus to attempt a work which filled the heart and hands of Jesus ? Your kindness to me has been very great, and my heart is knit unto you. I fear not your steadfastness; I fear my own. The gospel, I believe, enables me to venture great things, and by faith I venture this. I ask your co-operation in every good work, — in visiting the sick, in bringing in inquir- ers, and in mutual edification. • Oh, that I may be no injury to you, but a lasting benefit ! I have no more to say, only this : that if I have expressed myself in these few words in a manner unbecoming my youth and inexperience, you will not impute it to arrogance, but forgive my mistake. And now, commending you to our covenant-keeping God, the triune Jehovah, I am yours to serve in the gospel, C. H. Spurgeon. Before three months of the new pastorate had ex« REV. CHAALES H. SPURGi^OK. pired the fame of the young minister had spread over the metropolis, crowds of people flocked to his chapel at every service, and the newspapers, week by week for some time, were asking: Who is this Spurgeon? For a long time that question was a puzzle to many minds ; but one thing was certain, he had secured the ear and the attention of the public, who waited upon his ministry by thousands. The Black Flag. The summer of 1854 will long be remembered for the frightful scourge of Asiatic cholera with which the great city was visited. The black flag could be seen stretched across streets to warn strangers of the close proximity of plague-stricken dwellings. On all sides there was anxious foreboding, sorrow, or bereavement. The young pastor's services were eagerly sought for, his time and strength taxed to their utmost; but he discharged the duties of the emergency with a true and manly courage. A para- graph frbm his "Treasury of David," on Psalm xci., most graphically describes this trying period : "In the year 1854, when I had scarcely been in London twelve months, the neighborhood in which I labored was visited by Asiatic cholera, and my congre- gation suffered from its inroads. F'amily after family summoned me to the bedsides of the smitten, and almost every day I was called to visit the grave. I gave myself up with youthful ardor to the visitation of the sick, and was sent for from all corners of the disiri'^t by persons of all ranks and religions. I be- ! THE YOUNG PREACHER IN LONDON. 68 came weary in body and sick at heart. My friends seemed falling one by one, and I felt or fancied that I was sickening like those around me. A little more work and weeping would have laid me low among the rest. I felt that my burden was heavier than I could bear, and I was ready to sink under it. As God would have it, I was returning mournfully home from a funeral, when my curiosity led me to read a paper which was wafered up in a shoemaker's window in the Dover Road. It did not locrtc like a trade announce- ment, nor was it ; for it bore in a good bold hand- writing these words : ' Because thou hast made the Lord, which is my refuge, even the Most High, thy habitation ; there shall no evil befall thee, neither shall any plague come nigh thy dwelling. " The effect upon my heart was immediate. Faith appropriated the passage as her own. I felt secure, refreshed, girt with immortality. I went on with my visitation of the dying in a calm and peaceful spirit ; I felt no fear of evil, and I suffered no harm. The Providence which moved the tradesman to place those verses in his window I gratefully acknowledge, and in the remembrance of its marvellous power I adore the Lord my God." Publishingr Sermons. In the autumn of the first year's pastorate he preached a sermon from the words, "Is it not wheat harvest to-day?" The sermon - attracted attention, was much talked about by his hearers, and during the following week it appeared under the title of " Harvest 64 «EV. CHARLES II. SPURGEON. Time," and had a large sale. This led the publisher shordy afterwards to print another of his sermons, under the tide of "God's Providence." The public at once took to these sermons, and by the end of the year about a dozen had thus been issued. This greatly increased his popularity : for many who had not heard him, read those sermons, were interested in them, and soon found opportunity to go and hear him. The demand for his sermons being considerably greater than for the sermons of other ministers then being published, Mr. Spurgeon made arrangements with the first friend he met in London, who was a printer, and a member of his church, to commence the publication of one sermon of his every week, begin- ning with the new year, 1855. Through the good providence of God the sermons have appeared con- tinuously, week by week, without interruption, for more than twenty-seven years, with a steady, improv- ing, and large circulation, which is in itself a marked indication of divine favor. No other minister the world has ever known has been able to produce one printed sermon weekly for so many years. The work still goes on with unabated favor and unceasing in- terest. The Preacher Described. The following description of the preacher's style at this period is one qf the earliest we have met with : " His voice is clear and musical ; his language plain ; his style flowing, but terse ; his method lucid and or- THE YOUNG PREACHER IN LONDON. 66 derly; his matter sound and suitable; his tone and spirit cordial ; his remarks always pithy and pungent, sometimes familiar and colloquial, yet never light or coarse, much less profane. Ji>dging from a single ser- mon, we supposed that he would become a plain, faith- ful, forcible, and affectionate preacher of the gospel in the form called Calvinistic ; and our judgment was the more favorable, because, while there was a solidity beyond his years, we detected little of the wild luxuri- ance naturally characteristic of very young preachers." Want of order and arrangement was a fault the preacher soon found out himself, and he refers to it when he says : " Once I put all my knowledge together in glorious confusion ; but now I have a shelf in my head for everything ; and whatever I read or hear I know where to stow it away for use at the proper time." Intense Interest Excited. Amongst the multitudes who assembled to hear the popular preacher was a member of the Society of Friends, who, being deeply impressed by what he saw and heard, wrote a lengthened article on the subject. The writer observes : " The crowds which have been drawn to hear him, the interest excited by his ministry, and the conflicting opinions expressed in reference to his qualifications and usefulness, have been alto- gether without parallel in modern times. It was a re- markable sight to see this round-faced country youth thus placed in a position of such solemn and arduous responsibility, yet addressing himself to the fulfilment •■,.{. 66 REY. CHARLES H. SPUKGEON. of its onerous duties with a gravity, self-possession and vigor that proved him well fitted for the task he had assumed." Within one year, New Park-street Chapel had to be enlarged. During the enlargement, Exeter Hall was taken, and it was filled to overflowing every Sabbath morning to hear the young preacher. The chapel, which had been enlarged to the fullest extent of the ground, was soon found to be far too circumscribed for the thousands who flocked to hear him ; and by the end of the summer it became necessary to seek for a much larger place to satisfy the demand of the public. Twenty-first Birtlulay. On the 19th of June, 1855, Mr. Spurgeon came of age, and he improved the occasion by preaching a ser- mon relating thereto. A large congregation heard it, and it was printed with an excellent likeness of the young preacher, pale and tliin as he then was. The sermon was published with the title, " Pictures of Life, and Birthday Reflections." It had a large sale. That was the first portrait of him which had been issued. At that period the first attempt to issue a penny weekly newspaper was made by Mr. C. W. Banks, and the " Christian Cabinet" was a very spirited publica- tion. The value of a pure and cheap press was fully appreciated by Mr. Spurgeon, who generously fur- nished articles for the columns of that serial during nearly the whole of its first year's existence. They TIIK YOUNG rKKACUEK IN LONDON. 67 show a clear ami sound judgment on many public events passiii;^ more than twenty years ago, and they are the first biiddin*'-s of that ir<^nius which has since ripened so fully, and yielded such an abundant harvest of rich mental food. The books which have since come from Mr. Spurgeon's pen are equally marvellous for their number, variety, and usefulness, and some of 'them have had most unprecedentedly large sales. Visit to Scotland. In July of this year, 1855, he paid his first visit to Scotland, and a lively description of his congregation and preaching was printed in the " Cabinet." On the bright evening of the 4th of September, Mr. Spurgeon preached to about twelve thousand people in a field in King Edward's Road, Hackney. The ser- mon was printed under the title of " Heaven and Hell," and had a very large sale, doing at the same time a larofe amount of jjood. The sermon was closed by the preacher giving the following account of his own conversion, which had a good effect on his audi- ence, proving that experience is the best teacher. There were thousands of young people present who were astonished at what they heard, and many turned that night from their sins. The preacher said : " 1 call remember the time when my sins first stared ii(! in the face. I thought myself the most accursed of all m. n. I had not committed any very great open t' iiisgression against God ; but I recollected that I had been well trained and tutored, and ! thought my sins were thus greater than other people's. I cried to God 68 REV. CHARLES II. Sl'UKGKON. • ' n I to have mercy, but I feared that He would not pardon me. Month after month 1 cried to God, but He did not hear me, and I knew not what it was to be saved. Sometimes I was so weary of the world that I desired to die ; but I then recollected that there v/as a worse world after this, and that it would be an ill matter to rush before my Maker unprepared. At times 1 wickedly thought God a most heartless tyrant, because He did not answer my prayer ; and then at others I thought, ' I deserve His displeasure ; if he sends me to hell, He will be just.* "But I remember the hour when I stepped into a place of worship, and saw a tall, thin man step into the pulpit: I have never seen him from thit day, and probably never shall till we meet in heaven. He opened the Bible, and read with a feeble voice : • Look unto Me and be yo saved, all the ends of the earth ; for I am God, and beside Me there is none else.' Ah ! thought I, I am one of the ends of the earth ; and then, turning round, and fixing his gaze on me, as if he knew me, the minister said : • Look, look, look ! ' Why, I thought I had a great deal to do, but I f und it was only to /ook. I thought I hadagarnent to spin out for myself; but T found that if I looked, Christ could give me a garment. Lool:, sinner, that is the way to be saved. Look unto llim, all ye ends of the earth, and be saved." Preachinv is the ordained means for the salvation o of sinners : the power of appeal by the human voice is greater than any other ; but there is another influ- THE YOUNG PREACHER IN LONDON. 69 ence which is potent. Before Mr. Spurgeon had is- sued more than half a year's sermons from the press, letters reached him from far-off places recording the jrood which had been effected by reading them. Ot\ one of Mr. Spurgeon's visits to Scotland he was taken to visit Anne Sims, an aged saint living at the Brae of Killiecrankie, far away up the mountains, who had ex- pressed intense delight in reading his sermons, and prayed for his success in the work, little thinking that in her mountain solitude, and in her ninedeth year, she should ever see the preacher himself, whose visit was to her like that of an angel. It would be difficult to chronicle the results which have followed the reading of the sermons, Tidin.ars of Good Done. In the first article in '• The Sword and the Trowel " for 1872, the editor himself says: •' Our ministry has never been without large results in conversion." Twenty conversions have been reported to him by letter in one week. The last Sunday sermon he preached in 1855, with which the first volume of his printed discourses is closed, had special reference to the war in the Crimea, and it commanded a large sale ; its title was, " Healing for the Wounded." It con- tributed materially -to allay public anxiety about the war. Mr. Spurgeon closed the year by holding a VVatchnJght Service in his chapel. It was a happy and memorable service, and it was afterward repeated at the close of every year; the last hours of the closing year and the first moments of the opening new year 70 REV. CHARLES H. SPUKGEON. being devoted to the worship of God, in acts of per sonal consecration. It is a gratifying fact, not generally known, that from the first year of Mr. Spurgeon's ministry in Lon- don several clergymen have used his sermons weekly, with a little adaptation, in their own churches. This testimony has been given by the clergymen them- selves, in person and by letter, to the writer. Some are using the sermons in that way at the present time, and though delivered second-hand in this man- ner, yet they are not without fruit. CHAPTER IV. lis man- A Wife and a New Tabernacle. Mr. Spurgcon's Marriage. — Twelve Sermons Weekly. — Not an Ascetic. — Sur- rey Gardens Music Hall. — The Great Metropolitan Tabernacle. — Praying among Bricks and Mortar. — Preaching to the Aristocracy. — Note from Mr. Gladstone. — Offer from an American Lecture Bureau. — How the Preacher Appeared in his Fulpit. — Pastors' College. — Poem addressed to Mrs. Spur- geon. — Revivals and Coiportage. — Talk of Founding a New Sect. — Visit to Paris. — Preaching to Coster-mongers. The year 1856 was a remarkable one in the life of Mr. Spurgeon. It was the year of his marriage ; the year in which he preached his grandfather's jubilee sermon, and one of the centenary sermons in Whit- field's Tabernacle in Tottenham Court Road. During the first week of the year Mr. Spurgeon was delighting large audiences at Bath. The second week was made memorable by a service held in his own chapel, in which the young people, more particu- larly, took a very lively interest. Early in the fore- noon of January 8th Mr. Spurgeor was married to Miss Susanna Thompson, daughter of Mr. Robert Thompson, of Falcon Square, London. Twin boys, Charles and Thomas Spurgeon, are the only additions to their family. Both are now settled pastors. At this period Mr. Spurgeon was daily in the pul- pit, often travelling many miles between the services held ; and for months together he preached twelve sermons weekly, with undiminished force and unflag- ;71) 72 REV. CIIAliLES II. SPURG30N. ging zeal. In the achievement of such herculean tasTcs he has doubtless been indebted to an excellent consti- tution and to his simple habits of living. He is the very embodiment of nature, without the usual make- up of art. He throws himself on the tide of social intercourse with the freedom of one who has no tricks to exhibit and no failinos to conceal. He is one of the most pleasant of companions : pious without any of the shams of piety ; temperate without a touch of asceticism ; and devout without the solemnity of the devotee. Preaching for his poorer brethren in the country, he declined to receive any contribution to> wards his personal outlay, excepting only in cases where the church could well afford to pay his travel- ling expenses. Preachiiig" in Surrey Music Hall. New Park-street Chapel when enlarged soon be came utterly inadequate to receive the crowds which flocked to hear Mr. Spurgeon, and the deacons found it necessary to take the largest available building in London — the Royal Surrey Gard(Mis Music Hall — and in October, 1856, Mr. Spurgeon commenced to preach every Sabbath in that vast audience-room, continuing the morning service there till the great Metropolitan Tabernacle was opened. What is known as the Surrey Gardens catastrophe we need not do more than allude to. On October 19th a sad and fatal accident had welhiigh put an end to the laree Sabbath trathcrinofs drawn to hear Mr. Spurgeon ; but that fatality was overruled for good. I. H' ill 2an tasTcs lit consti- "le is the al make- of social no tricks s one of hout any touch of ty of the n in the ition to- in cases s travel- oon be Is which IS found Iding in ill — and preach itinuintr )politan strophe )ctober an end ;ar Mr. good. Pi C/) W O Pi C/} X u > Pi U w pa w I ij 4 ' '' 111'! every part of the country sympathy was largely shown with the movement. There were many who laughed at the idea of erecting as a place of worship an edifice to hold five thousand persons. Regardless of these objections the work went on, Mr. Spurgeon travelling all over the land, preaching daily, with the promise of half the proceeds of the collection being devoted tc the new Tabernacle. The foundation-stone of the great building was laid by Sir Samuel Morton Peto, August 1 6, 1859. Strange Place for a Prayer Mcetiiigf. During the progress of the work Mr. Spurgeon met on the ground, one evening after the workmen had left, one of his deacons. After some consultation and meditation, surround- i by planks, piles of timber and bricks, in the dim twilight, they both knelt down where no eye could see them but that of God ; and with only the canopy of heaven for their covering, the pastor and his friend each poured out most earnest supplications for the prosperity of the work, the safety of the men engaged on the building, and a blessing on the church. Their prayers were not offered in vain, but were abundantly answered. Out of so large a number of men engaged on the work, not one of them suffered harm. In 1860 a laro^e and enthusiastic meetinor was held In the building before it was finished, at whicli much money was given and more promised. Great prepara- tions were made during the winter for the holding of a large bazaar in the spring, which was probably one II GEORGE ROGERS, TUTOR AT THE PASTORS' COLLEGE. 75 f 76 KEV. CHARLES H. SPURGEON. of the largest and most productive of the kind ever held in London. The opening services were com- menced on March 25, 1861, and were continued with- out interruption for five weeks. As the result of all these efforts, the great Tabernacle, to hold five thou- sand people, was free from debt at the end of the special services, and jfii 55,000 of free-will offerings had been poured into the hands of the treasurer. Since then various improvements have been made in the audience-room, and, using every facility modern invention could suggest, seats have been provided for 5,500 persons and standing room for 1,000 more — total, 6,500. Immense Cong^regratioiis. Large as is the accommodation provided, the Taber^ nacle has always been filled. All the prophets of evil have been found false prophets, and the spirit of faith with which the work was begun has had its full reward in results even greater than ever had been anticipated. When the church removed from New Park Street, in 1 861, it numbered 1,178 members. In ten years from the commencement of his ministry Mr. Spurgeon has received into fellowship by baptism 3,569 persons During the period in- which Mr. Spurgeon was preaching in the Surrey Music Hall large numbers of the aristocracy attended his ministry ; amongst whom were Lord Chief Justice Campbell, the Lord Mayor and Sheriffs of London, Earl Russell, Lord Alfred Paget, Lord Panmure, Earl Grey, Earl Shaftes- bury, the Marquis of Westminster, the Duchess of A WIFE AND A NEW TABERNACLE. 77 Sutherland, Lord Carlisle, Earl of Elgin, Baron Ikamwell, Miss Florence Nightingale, Lady Roths- child, Dr. Livingstone, and many other persons of learning and distinction, some of whom sought and obtained interviews with the preacher. It was during that interim that Mr. Spurgeon paid one of his visits to Holland, was privileged to preach before the Dutch Court, and had a lengthened interview with the queen of that country. It was reported that some members of the English Royal Family also occasion- ally attended on his preaching, and not a few distin- guished clergymen and professors. Gladstone and Spurgeon. On one occasion Mr. Gladstone and his son formed part of the cpngregation, and a mutual interview was held at the close of the service between the great premier and the humble pastor. Mr. Gladstone has often spoken very highly of Mr. Spurgeon, calling him "the last of the Puritans." During Mr. Spurgeon's illness in 1891, Mr. Gladstone, in a letter to Mrs. Spurgeon, said : " In my own home, darkened at the present time, I read with sad interest the accounts of Mr. Spurgeon's illness. I cannot help conveying to you an earnest assurance of my sympathy and of my cordial admiration, not only for his splendid powers, hut still more for his devoted and unfailing character. I humbly commend you and him in all contingencies to the infinite stores of divine love and mercy." Mrs. Spurgeon replied with a note of thanks, a 78 REV. CHARLES U. SrUKOEON. postscript to which was traced by Mr. Spurgeon, as follows : "Yours is a word of love such as those only write who have been into the King's country and seen much of his face. My heart's love to you.'* Dr. Livingstone, the great African explorer, said, on one occasion after hearing Mr. Spurgeon, that no religious service he ever renienibered had so deeply impressed his own mind as that he had witnessed and participated in that morning; adding, that when he had retired attain into the solitudes of Africa, no scene he had ever witnessed would afford him more conso- lation than to recall the recollection that there was one man God had raised up who could so effectively and impressively preach to congregated thousands, whilst he should have to content himself by preaching to units, or at most tens, under a tropical sky in Africa ; implying at the same time, that Mr. Spurgeon's sphere of religious influence was a hundred times .«*> % w o^ !li 92 BEY. CHARLES H. SPURGEON. the Merchants' House, and the Workmen's House. The united sum the collectors laid upon the stones amounted to eleven thousand dollars. A Homo for Orphans. The entire spectacle was both novel and touching. Prayers were offered on the occasion, the influence of which it is believed will be felt throughout all time Appropriate hymns were sung, each ceremony being conducted with verses specially prepared, the first of which was as follows : Accept, O Lord, toe grateful love Which yields this house to Thee; And on the Silver Wedding House Let blessingr ever be. It was announced at the close of the ceremony that in addition to the one hundred thousand dollars given by Mrs. Hillyard, the money in hand was then twenty- seven thousand five hundred dollars. The assembly returned home highly delighted with the service and the glad tidings they had heard, whilst the pastor, worn out with fatigue and anxiety, retired home to rest. The mental and physical strain of such heavy re- sponsibilities was too much for Mr. Spurgeon, who was soon after laid aside quite ill Although physically prostrate, his mind was in active exercise ; and after being a sufferer for two months, he wrote an article for his magazine entitled, " On My Back," in which he submissively said, that after two months of ill health and severe pain, yet he believed there was a limit to SUCCESSFUL LABORS. 98 sicJrness, and that Jesus knew all about it, feeling assured that the design of sickness was divinely good. This long absence from the pulpit led to the appoint- ment of his brother, James Archer Spurgeon, as co- [)astor to the church at the Tabernacle, and he olificially entered on those duties in January, 1868. Bu8y Mritli Pen and Voice. Although the year 1868 did not furnish occasion for such important events as the preceding one, yet was there much earnest work done by Mr. Spurgeon at his Tabernacle. Not able to do so much physical work, he used his pen very freely. He wrote two articles for his maqrazine to advocate the claims of the Colportage Association. In March he delivered at the Tabernacle a lecture on "Our History and Work," with Mr. W. McArthur, M.P., in the chair. He also wrote an interestinof article relatin": incidents in the life of his grandfather. In the month of May he preached the Sermon to Young Men at Mr. Mar- tin's Chapel, Westminster, on behalf of the London Missionary Society — a service rendered the more cheerfully, remembering, as he did, the prophetic words of good Richard Knill, that he would preach in the largest chapel in London. That was probably the largest chapel he had preached in, excepting his own. During the same month he spoke at the Break- fast Meeting of the Congregational Union. Generous Donations. In the month of March a generous friend sent to the pastor five thousand dollars for the College and 94 REV. CHARLES H. SPUR6E0N. ! ii! 11 7 IIS I ■'\ five thousand dollars for the Orphanage — such in- stances of liberality amply testifying the high estima- tion in which the noble enterprises of Mr. Spurgeon were held by the public. On his birthday, June 19th, a great meeting was held, and liberal contributions made for the Orphanage. Bright as are these spots in the life of the pastor, and in his work at the Tabernacle and its belongings, yet there hung over his home all the time a dark shadow which Divine Providence saw fit to place there. Mrs. Spurgeon had long been a great sufferer, and to alleviate her sorrows, if possible, a very painful opera- tion had to be undertaken. The most skilful surgeons of the land were engaged, under the direction of Sir James Simpson, of Edinburgh. Prayer was made for her by the whole church, and, by the blessing of God, the operation was so far successful that her sufferings were alleviated and her life prolonged ; but it has been a life of pain and weakness, though with less of anguish. A Jubilant Note. A gratifying fact is recorded by Mr. Spurgeon this year, who publicly acknowledges the kindness of Dr. Palfrey, of Finsbury Square, for his gratuitous and generous professional atte'idance on the poor members of the Tabernacle. At Christmastide, and at the opening of the year, the claims of Mr. Spurgeon's benevolent agencies were remembered by his many friends, who sent him of their worldly substance with generous hands, so that ich in- estima- urgeon le 19th, butions pastor, ngings, a dark e there. and to I opera- irgeons 1 of Sir 5 made [sing of lat her d ; but with on this of Dr. us and embers e year, ts were urn of so that ■f PI ir. y. 96 REV. CllARLKS H. SPUUGEON. !!^ he commences the first number of " The Sword and the Trowel " for 1869 with a most jubilant note : " Bless the Lord, O my soul ! " He also made the announcement that a gentleman in Australia had written to say he intended to reprint his sermons weekly in that far-off land, to give them a yet wider circulation. F'roiii the very commencement of his ministry strange tales had been put into circulation by his detractors, most of which Mr. Spurgeon passed by in silence. Several very ludicrous speeches were attributed to him soon after he became popular in London. In the midst of his work, at the opening of the year 1869, tire voice of the slanderer was again heard, and many were troubling the busy pastor to know how true were the statements in circulation re- specting him. Absurd Stories. Ill reply to all these, unc'er the head of •' Silly Tales," he wrote in his majjazine : " Friends who write us about silly tales may save themselves the trouble. We have been enabled in our ministry and in our walk before God so to act, through grace, that we have given no occasion for the slanderers, save only that we have kept the faith, and been very jealous for the Lord God of Israel. Many of the absurd stories still retailed everywhere are the very same libels which were re- peated concerning Rowland Hill and others long gone to their rest." Having seen much of the folly too frequently SUCCESSFUL LABORS. 97 exhibited at funerals, he published his views, with the apt title, " Funerals ; or a Black Business," in which, after exposing the folly of using feathers and gold- headed sticks in carrying a dead body to the grave, he observes : " I would sooner be eaten by crows than have pride and pomp feeding on my litde savings, which are meant for my bereaved wife and children, and not for unsuitable, untimely, and unholy show. Nbw Pamc S-msn' Cii. I have heard that more than four millions of money arc squandered every year in funeral fopperies. The money buys or hires silk scarfs, brass nails, feathers for horses, kid gloves and gin for the mutes, and white satin and black cloth for the worms. It seems to me to be mighty fine nonsense, more for the pride of the living than the honor of the dead, more for the profile, of the undertaker than any one else/' 98 BEY. CHARLES H. SPUROEON. Attack of 8mall-poz. In June of that year the first report of the Orphan- age was issued, which plainly set forth how earnestly the work had been carried on for it in having the houses erected and in getting them furnished and occupied. Twenty-nine boys were then in residence, one of whom was the son of one of the workmen who had assisted in building the Workmen's House, the father having died after the house was erected. Taking a short holiday in July, Mr. Spurgeon, ac- companied by a friend, climbed the summit of Hind- head, in the South of England, then paid a brief visit to the Continent. Soon after his return home, in October, he was entirely laid aside from pastoral work by a slight attack of small-pox. His friends became seriously anxious about him, and special prayer was made again and again for his recovery. It came slowly, but in anticipation thereof the first article in the magazine for November was "A Sermon from a Sick Preacher." Possessed of such mighty faith in God, and with such indomitable courage. Pastor Spur- geon found opportunities for doing good, whilst others are considering what had best be done. He even wrote directions " How to Bear Afifliction." New Year's Letter. During the progress of his recovery he wrote a New Year's Letter to his ministering brethren, which commences his magazine for 1870, in which, with much affectionate earnestness, he urges them, even by special means, if ordinary ones fail, to aim at the salvation of SUCOESSFUCi LABORS. 99 the souls of their congregations, enforcing this duty upon them by the example of the Ritualists, who are zealous, working to spread their delusions, especially amongst the poor, with whom they know how to succeed by bribes of bread and clothing. He says he writes as a sick man, but feels the urgency and im- portance of soul-winning. ^ The prostrate condition of the pastor's health for nearly three months made it necessary for him to appeal with his pen for the aid of his friends in sus- taining the benevolent works of the Tabernacle. In March, 1870, his appeal took the following form : " The pastorate of a church of four thousand members, the direction of all its agencies^ the care of many churches arising from the College work ; the selection, education, and guidance in their settlements of the students ; the oversight of the Orphanage, the editing of a magazine, the production of numerous volumes, the publication of a weekly sermon, an immense cor- respondence, a fair share in public and denominational action, and many other labors, besides the incessant preaching of the Word, give us a right to ask of our friends that we be not allowed to have an anxious thought about the funds needed for our enterprises." Future Punishment. This remarkable picture of energy and activity will scarcely be surpassed by any man living, if indeed it can be equalled by more than one in a million, even in this industrious age. But there were other duties pressing on Mr. Spurgeon's mind at the time, w2u( h .'t m I 100 KEY. CHARLES H. SPURGEON. he could not throw off. For some months previously a controversy had been warmly carried on in the columns of the " Christian World " newspaper, advo- cating a curious system of future punishment ending in annihilation. The editor of the paper prohibited in his columns the publication of any letters on the oppo- site side, excepting only what Mr. Spurgeon might write. Mr. Spurgeon wiote to the editor, pointing out that his conduct was not quite frank, and declining on his part to help the agitation, telling him that the words of our Lord — "These shall go away into ever- lasting punishment " — finally settled the point ; and he held that the publication of views which are op- posed to that declaration, and the views themselves, were equally dangerous. A Controversy. Greatly were the funds of the college aided by the lectures which its President gave from time to time on its behalf. After one of his visits to Italy Mr. Spurgeon delivered a very interesting and lively lecture on " Rome, and what I saw and heard there.'* Some of the reporters for the daily press — not a few of whom are Jesuits — misrepresented some very material por- tions of the lecture in their abridged account. Mr. Spurgeon was obliged to defend himself; and what he said against such insidious foes in the pages of his own magazine led to another kindred topic being brought before the public about the same time, when these same reporters misled the public mind by apply- ing to King Virtor Immanuel of Italy a prayer which SUCCESSFUL LABORS. 101 belonged only to Iminanuel, Victor over sin, the man Christ Jesus. In May, 1870, Mr. Spurgeon sent forth a new work entitled " Feathers for Arrows," intended to supply preachers and teachers with useful material for filling up their sermons, lectures, and addresses. Ten thou- sand copies of the book were sold in three months. The Bible hi the Public Seli(>ol§. The public mind was considerably agitated at that time by the action of the School Board in reference- to religious teaching in their schools ; some wanting to exclude the reading of the Bible from them, and so deprive the upgrowing population of the use of the best book in the language. A large meeting was held In Exeter Hall, in July, in defence of the Bible being daily read in elementary schools. Mr. Spur- geon took the chair on the occasion. The result of the meeting was, the Bible retains its place as a daily school book. The wisdom of the decision then made has been abundantly manifested since, and especially so by the great gathering of Board-School children in the Crystal Palace in July, 1877, when some thousands of prizes were publicly given to the pupils for pro- ficiency in knowledge of the Bible, and when it was most convincingly shown that parents in London (ex- cepting only a few Jews) do not object to tlieir chil- dren being taught daily from the Word of God. The special religious services held in February, at the Tabernacle, were seasons of much blessing. More than one hundred members were added to the church I 102 BEV. CHARLES U. |PURG ON. in one month. The peopU went to the services expecting to receive good, an*, they vere not disap- pointed. Severe Attack of Spoilt. Soon after the annual College jkUp^>er, which was held in March, 187 1, at which the sum uf seven thou- sand five hundred dollars was given, Mr. Spurgcon was laid aside by a more than usually severe attack of gout, which confined him indoors for three long, weary months ; yet in the midst of all his pain and suffering he wrote in July of the great mercies he had received from the hand of God, and by the bounty of his friends to the Orphanage and the College. It was at the close of this protracted attack of bodily pain that he was privileged to preach the sermon which forms No. 1,000 of his published discourses. Its second title is " Bread enough and to spare," and it is based on Luke XV. 1 7. It was the delight of the pastor to re- ceive from a friend five thousand dollars on behalf of the College, in honor of the event just named. Who would not pray that God's blessing may rest forever on that friend ? Taking the advice of his friends, Mr. Spurgeon pro- ceeded to the Continent for a short tour and for rest. His observant eye was constantly discovering some passing beauty which his ever-ready pencil recorded in his note-book, a book which contains a stove of incidents which serve to enrich his conversation and fill- up his magazine. Accordingly, taking Jersey and Guernsey on his way, we find before the end of the SUCCESSFUL LABORS. 108 year an Interesting article from his pen, on St Bre-, lade*s Bay. Pilgrimage to Sunny Italy. As the cold raw winter weather set in, the beloved pastorwas urged by his friends to seekawarmerclimate. Illness in a severe form again overtook him, on the second day of which he received a telegram from Boston, America, offering most liberal terms to him if he would go to that country and deliver a series of lectures. So large a sum would have been a strong temptation to most men, but not so to this minister of Jesus Chiist, "/hose prompt reply was, " he had neither time nor strength to go to America." Instead of journeying westward for pCiSohal gain, he started on a pilgriniaje to sunny Italy and the South of France, taking what he designated a Scriptural holiday, a forty days' rest. Accordingly, leaving gloomy December in England, he spent that month in visiting Pompeii, Venice, Flor- ence, Rome, Naples, and France — a fitting holiday after having completed nineteen years' labor in Lon- don. In taking a survey of the work of the year, for the preface to his magazine, Mr. Spurgeon sums up the record by saying it had been a year of spiritual drought in the churches generally, but at the Tabernacle they had witnessed much prosperity, and the trained pas- tors who had gone out from them had been also blessed in like manner. Eleven students were appointed to pastoral duty during 1872. During this year, also, Archibald G. Brown opened his large 104 REV. CHARLES H. SPUR6E0N. Tabernacle in the East of London. It is a building for extent and variety of Christian work second only to Mr. Spurgeon's. Mr. Brown is one of the most successful students trained in the Pastors' College. Results of Overwork. In the hope that the genial sunshine of Southern Europe, in which he has passed out of the old into the new year, would have established his health for re- newed efforts, the pastor appeared once more at the Tabernacle, and at the church meeting in January, 1873, he had the gratification of finding one hundred and thirty-five new members to be received into fellow- ship, thus demonstrating that there was life, in the church, though its chief pastor had been away. The cold, raw, damp weather continuing with the new year, he was again prevented from leaving his own home, and for many weeks he was unable to preach on the Sabbath. How great a trial that silence was to the preacher, none so well knew as himself. Sorrowing greatly at the privation both to himself and his church, he yet submitted without murmur to the will of God. Shut in from the outer world, he had an opportunity of surveying the progress of the work which was be- ing done at the Tabernacle. The College reports ex- hibited the outposts which had already been reached by the students, one of whom was laboring to set forth Jesus as the only Saviour of sinners, in China; one in Sydney, one in Tasinania, one in Adelaide, two in Madrid, one in Ontario, one in Ohio, one in Phila- delphia, one in South Africa, and one in Toronto, V v\ SUCCESSFUL LABORS. 105 What a vast prospect of work to be done in the inter- mediate spaces between each one of those missionary accents and the Tabernacle ! Thousands of Church Menihers. At the Annual Church Meeting held in February, 1873, the total membership was reported at 4,417. The losses during the previous year had been 263, the additions were 571, leaving a net increase for the year of 308 living members. Well might both pastor and deacons rejoice at the presence of the Lord God in their midst. At this date came a renewed applica- tion from the United States to come over and lecture. Note the preacher's reply : "An American firm offer Mr. Spurgeon twenty-five thousand dollars to deliver twenty-five lectures in that country, at one thousand dollars each, and further arrangements can be made for one hundred lectures. Although the remuneration offered is very far beyond anything our beloved peo- ple are likely to give us, we prefer to have the gospel according to our Lord's words preached freely, rather than to use the Lord's time for earning money for our own purse." Fisk Jubilee Singrers. Always sympathizing with the oppressed, it did not surprise any one to learn that the Fisk Jubilee Singers received an early invitation from the pastor and dea- cons to give one of their concerts in the Metropolitan Tabernacle. It wouid be difficult to determine which party experienced the most delight, the colored sing- ers to go and see and hear Mr. Spurgeon speak in his 106 KEY. CHARLES H. SPUBOEON. own church, or his congregation to welcome, with all the heartiness they could manifest, those liberated slaves, whose vocal powers had by anticipation pre- ceded their visit, to insure them a hearty greeting. It was indeed a pleasant hour, that which introduced the singers to the vast mass of people which crowded every inch of space in the building to hear them. In- deed, hundreds had to go away, unable to crowd in anywhere within sight or hearing. And the collection which followed it was right royal in amount' They cleared about eleven hundred dollars for their Univer- sity by singing at the Tabernacle alone. The effect on the mind of the pastor himself, he thus describes in his own magazine : " The melodies were rendered by our emancipated friends in a man- ner altogether unique : we have never heard anything like it; pure nature untrammelled by rule, pouring forth its notes as freely as the wild birds in the spring. The people were charmed : our intercourse with the choir was very pleasant.*' As soon as the singers arrived in London on their second tour, they received an earnest invitation to repeat their visit to the Metro- politan Tabernacle. Pointed Preaching'. As the practical pastor was again charged with be- ing too personalitin preaching, in one of his articles on "Personal preaching," Mr. Spurgeon remarks: " We aim at speaking personally and pointedly to all our hearers ; and they are the best judges whether we accomplish it, and also as to whether we use Ian- SUCCESSFUL LABORS. 107 \f with all liberated tion pre- eting. It luced the crowded lem. In- crowd in :ollection t. They r Univer- mself, he melodies n a man- anything pouring e spring. with the singers received e Metro- with be- » articles emarks : Uy to all whether use lan- guage at which any man ought to be offended. Very seldom does a week occur without our receiving let- ters from persons unknown to us, thanking us for advising or comforting them in our sermons, the par- ties evidently being under the impression that some friend had communicated their cases to us, though, indeed, we knew nothing whatever of them. Fre- quently we have had apologetic notes acknowledging the justice of the rebuke, and correcting us in some minor details of a description supposed to refer to a special sinner; whereas we were unaware of the writer's existence. We have ceased to regard these incidents as curious, for we remember that the Word of God is 'a discerner of the thoughts and intents of the heart.' " A Bally for Missions. Strange and interesting facts have often reached him. At the commencement of Mr. Spurgeon's min- istry he related having received a letter from a poor shoemaker during the week, who said that he was the man who had kept his shop open on the Sunday, who had sold only one pair of old boots for one-and-eight» pence, and that, having broken the Sabbath for so small a sum and been so publicly exposed, none but God could have told the facts to the preacher, he had resolved to break the Sabbath no loHger. He became converted, and joined the church ; but the preacher had no knowledge of the man till he wrote about him- self. During the spring weather of '73 Mr. Spurgeon X - 108 REY. CHARLES H. SPUROEON. HI i 11 ! ■ ii did not recover his accustomed health, neither did he give up his accustomed work, excepting when' really unable to leave home. At the end of April he preached one of the annual sermons before the Wes- leyan Missionary Society, in Great Queen-street Chapel, to the largest congregation ever assembled on a similar occasion, at the close of which the collec- tion reached an amount greater than had ever before been made for that object. In June he took part in the services connected with laying memorial stones for a new Baptist chapel near his own residence at Clapham. He state' I that it had long been in his heart to build a chapel in that locality, and he had laid aside one thousand dollars to com- mence the work, but all his efforts had failed. He was glad that others were doing what he had not been able to do. He had himself been delighted that year to preach for the Wesleyans, and to speak for the In- dependents ; but he urged all Baptists residing in that district to give to the church which intended to assem- ble in that new erection. In the early part of the year Mr. Spurgeon had made a collection at the Tabernacle on behalf of the new Surrey Chapel for Mr. Newman Hall, which reached five hundred dollars. Laying a Corner Stone. In taking a survey of the literary work of " The Sword and the Trowel '' for the year, the editor in his preface for 1873 remarks: "I have been hunting up topics of interest with no small degree of anxiety, sending forth the magazine with earnest desires to win SUCCESSFUL LABORS. 109 a hearing and to produce good results of all kinds. I edit the periodical most conscientiously, giving it my personal attention, and I spare no pains, to make it as good as I can." The applications made to the College for pastors during 1873 were more numerous than had before been made. Thirty of these were supplied. Out of that number two were sent to Spain, one to India, one to China, one to Prince Edward Island, one to Ireland, and one to Scotland. On the 14th of October the foundation-stone of the new College buildings was laid by the President, It was a day which will long be remembered with delight. The people on the oc- casion gave five^ thousand dollars, and the students gave fifteen hundred more ; but the chief joy of the day was the whole-day prayer-meeting which the stu- dents held, that the divine blessing might rest on the work, and upon all connected with the College. The month of January, iS/Q, will long be remem- bered. Having completed the twenty-fifth year of his pastorate, it was decided to celebrate the occasion, which was termed The Pastoral Silver Wedding, by presenting Mr. Spurgeon with a liberal testimonial. The amount proposed to be raised was twenty-five thousand dollars. A large bazaar was opened, which was well supported, and with the subscription lists the proceeds exceeded the amount originally proposed. With his usual large-heartedness he declined accept- ing the amount for his private benefit. There was one important institution connected with the Taber no REV. CHARLES H. SPUR6E0N. nacle that needed to be placed on a surer footing, and this was a fitting opportunity for securing that end The Almshoyses, affording homes for nineteen poor widows, required a more permanent support, and all the proceeds of the " Pastoral Silver Wedding Fund " were devoted to this laudable object, thereby insv^ring Its future maintenance. CHAPTER VI The Pastors' College. Th« 6rst Student. — Call for Preachers to the Masses. — A Faithful Iratruaor.-* Growth of the College. — Efforts to* Secure Funds. — Generous Gifts. — Un< known Benefactor. — Provision for Students. — Opinion of E^rl Shaftesbury.—* New Churches Founded. — Mr. Spurgeon's Annual Report. — Milk and Water Theology. — Rough Diamonds.— Course of Study. — Earnest Workers. — A Mission Band. — Interesting Letters. — Help for Neglected Fields. In the early part of his career Mr. Spurgeon founded a school for the education of young men fof the ministry. It has been a very successful institution, the training place of a large number who have gone forth, some of them even to the ends of the earth, bear- ing the " glad tidings." The object, methods and results of the school are stated by Mr. Spurgeon as follows : The College was the first important institution com- menced by the pastor, and it still remains his first-born and best-beloved. To train ministers of the gospel is a most excellent work, and when the Holy Spirit ' blesses the effort, the result is of the utmost impor- tance both to the Church and to the world. The Pastors' College commenced in 1856, and dur- ing this long period has unceasingly been remembered of the God of heaven, to whom all engaged in it offer reverent thanksgiving. When it was commenced, I had not even a remote idea of whereunto it would (111) 112 RET. CHARLES U. SPUR6E0N. grow. There were springing up around me, as my own spiritual children, many earnest youn^" men who felt an irresistible impulse to preach the gospel, and yet with half an eye it could be seen that their want of education would be a sad hindrance to them. It was not in my heart to bid them cease preaching, and had I done so, they would in all probability have ignored my recommendation. As it seemed that preach they would, though their attainments were very slender, no other course was open but to give them an opportunity to educate themselves for the work, A Youugr Apollos. The Holy Spirit very evidently had set His seal upon the work of one of them, by conversions wrought under his open-air addresses; it seemed therefore to be a plain matter of duty to instruct this youthful Apollos still further, that he might be fitted for wider usefulness. No college at that time ap- peared to me to be suitable for the class of men that the providence and grace of God drew around me. They were mostly poor, and most of the colleges in- volved necessarily a considerable outlay to the student; for even where the education was free, books, clothes, and other incidental expenses required a considerable sum per annum. Moreover, it must be frankly ad- mitted that my views of the gospel and of the mode of training preachers were and are somewhat peculiar. I may have been uncharitable in my judgment, but I thought the Calvinism of the theology usually taught to be very doubtful, and the fervor of the e, as my lien who spel, and leir want hem. It ling, and ity have led that ere very ve them work. hlis sedl versions seemed •uct this e fitted me ap- en that nd me. ' ges m- tudent; clothes, derable kly ad- lode of eculiar. ;nt, but usually ot the 8 mi» o u CO 9tf 114 REV. CUAKLES H. SPURGEON. i generality j! the students to be far behind their liter- ary attainnents. Preachers for the Masses. It seemed to me that preachers of the grand old truths of the gospel, ministers suitable /or the masses, were more likely to be found in an institution where preaching and divinity would be the main objects, and not degrees and other insignia of human learning. I felt that, without interfering with the laudable objects of other colleges, I could do good in my own way. These and other considerations led me to take a few tried young men, and to put them under some able minister, that he might train them in the Scriptures, and in other knowledge helpful to the understanding and proclamation of the truth. This step appeared plain; but how the work was to be conducted and supported was the question — a question, be it added, solved almost before it occurred. Two friends, both deacons of the church, promiseq aid, which, with what I could give myself, enabled me to take one student, and I set about to find a tutor. In Mr. George Rogers, God sent us the very best man. He had been preparing for such work, and was anxiously waiting for it. - An Able Tutor. This gentleman, who has remained during all this period our principal tutor, is a man of Puritanic stamp, deeply learned, orthodox in doctrine, judicious, witty, devout, earnest, liberal in spirit, and withal juvenile ih heart to an extent most remarkable in one of his years. THE PASTORS (X)LLEGE. 116 My connection with him has been one of uninter rupted comfort and delight. The most sincere affec- tion exists between us ; we are of one mind and of one heart ; and, what is equally important, he has in every case secured not merely the respect but the filial love of every student. Into this beloved minis- ter's house the first students were introduced, and for a considerable period they were domicileJ as members of his family. Encouraged by the readiness with which the young men found spheres of labor, and by their singular success in soul-winning, I enlarged the number; but the whole means of sustaining them came from my own purse. The large sale of my sermons in America, together with my dear wife's economy, enabled me to spend from three thousand dollars to four thousand dollars in a year in my own favorite work ; but on a sudden, owing to my denunciations of the then exist- ing slavery in the States, my entire resources from that " brook Cherith " were dried up. Sliunning' Debt. I paid as large sums as I could from my own in- come, and resolved to spend all I had, and then take the cessation of my means as a voice from the Lord to stay the effort, as I am firmly persuaded that we ought under no pretence to go into debt. On one occasion I proposed the sale of my horse and car- riage, although these were almost absolute necessities to me on account of my continual journeys in preach- ing the Word. This my friend Mr. Rogers would not 116 REV. CHARLES H. SPUROEON. hear of, and actually offered to be the loser rather than this should be done. Then it was that I told my difficulties to my people, and the weekly offering commenced ; but the incom- ings from that source were so meagre as to be hardly worth calculating upon. I was brought to the last pound, when a letter came from a banker in the City, informing n)e that a lady, whose name I have never been able to discover, had deposited a sum of one thousand dollars, to be used for the education of young men for the ministry. How did my heart leap for joy! I threw myself then and henceforth upon the bounteous care of the Lord, whom I desired with my whole heart to glorify by this effort. Some weeks after, another five hundred dollars came in, from the same bank, as I was informed, from another hand. The College Grows. Soon after Mr. Phillips, a beloved deacon of the church at the Tabernacle, began to provide an annual supper for the friends of the College, at which con- siderable sums have from year to year been given. A dinner was also given by my liberal publishers, Messrs. Passmore and Alabaster, to celebrate the publishing of my five-hundredth weekly sermon, at which twenty-i five hundred dollars were raised and presented to the funds. The College grew every month, and the number of students rapidly advanced from one to forty. Friends known and unknown, from far and near, were moved to give little or much to my work, THE PASTORS COLLEGE. 117 and so the funds increased as the need enlarged. Then another earnest deacon of the church espoused as his special work the weekly offering, and by the unanimous voice of the church under my care the College was adopted as its own child. Since that hour the weekly offering has been a steady source of income, till in the year 1869 the amount reached ex- actly ;^ 1,869 ($9,345)- The Trial of Faith. There have been during this period times of great trial of my faith; • it after a season of straitness, never amounting to a.jsolute want, the Lord has always interposed and sent me large sums (on one occasion five thousand dollars) from unknown donors. When the Orphanage was thrust upon me, it did appear likely that this second work would drain the resources of the first, and it is very apparent that it does attract to itself some of the visible sources of supply; but my faith is firm that the Lord can as readily keep both works in action as one. My own present in- ability to do so much, by way of preaching abroad, occasions naturally the failure of another great source of income ; and as my increasing labors at home will I in all probability diminish that stream in perpetuity, there is another trial of faith. Yet, if the Lord wills the work to be continued. He will send His servant a due portion of the gold and silver, which are all His own ; and therefore as I wait upon Him in prayer, the All-sufficient Provider will i ■ 1/?; I '^ £ 1 1.. 1 i ; I ■ I ' ^ I fill ill 118 REV. CHARLES H. SPURGEON. supply all my needs. About twenty-five thousand dollars is annually required for the College, and the same sum is needed for the Orphanage; but God will move His people to liberality, and we shall see greater things than these. Au Unknown Benefactor. While speaking of pecuniary matters, it may be well to add that, as many of the young men trained in the College have raised new congregations and gathered fresh churclies, another need has arisen — namely, money for building chapels. It is ever so in Christ's work ; one link draws on another, one effort makes another needed. For chapel-building, the College funds could do but little, though they have freely been used to support men while they are col- lecting congregations ; but the Lord found for me one of His stewards, who, on the condition that his name remains unknown, has hitherto, as the Lord has pros- pered him, supplied very princely amounts for the erection of places of worship, of which more than forty have been built, or so greatly renovated and en- larged as to be virtually new structures. Truly may it be said, " What hath God wrought ! " Pecuniary needs, however, have made up but a 5mall part of our cares. Many have been my per- sonal exercises in selecting the men. Candidates have always been plentiful, and the choice has been wide ; but it is a serious responsibility to reject any, and yet more to accept them for training. When l# THE pastors' college. 119 thousand , and the God will ;e greater : may be n trained tions and arisen — i^er so in me effort :ling, the ley have J are col- r me one his name has pros- \ for the ore than 1 and en- ruly may ip but a my per- indidates las been ject any, . When mistakes have been made, a second burden has been laid upon me in the dismissal of those who appeared to be unfit. Even with the most careful management, and all the assistance of tutors and friends, no human foresight can secure that in every case a man shall be what we believed and hoped. Weak Brethren. * A brother may be exceedingly useful as an occa- aional preacher; he may distinguish himself as a diligent student ; he may succeed at first in the min- istry; and yet, when trials of temper and character occur in the pastorate, he may be found wanting. We have had comparatively few causes for regret of this sort, but there have been some such, and these pierce us with many sorrows. I devoudy bless God that He has sent to the College some of the holiest, soundest, and most self-denying preachers I know, and I pray that He may continue to do so ; but it would be more than a miracle if all should excel. While thus speaking of trials connected with the men themselves, it is due to our gracious God to bear testimony that these have been comparatively light, and are not worthy to be compared with the great joy which we experience in seeing so many brethren still servinqr the Lord accordlnqr to their measure of gift, and all, it is believed, earnestly contending for tlie faith once delivered unto the saints; nor is the joy less in remembering that eleven have sweetly fallen asleep after having fought a good fight. At 120 KEV. CliAULteS 11. SPURG1E0K. this hour some of our most flourishinor Baptist churches are presided over by pastors trained in our College, and a*^ years shall add ripeness of experience and stability of character, others will be found to stand in the froni^ rank of the Lord's host. Separate JjOilgriiigrs. The young brethren are boarded generally, in twos and threes, in the bouses of our friends around the Tabernacle, for which the College pays a moderate weekly amount. The plan of separate lodging we believe to be far preferible to having all under one roof; for, by the latter mode, men are isolated from general family habits, ^vid are too apt to fall into superabundant levity. The circumstances of the families who entertain our young friends are generally such that they are not elevated above the social position which in all probability they will have to occupy in future years, but are kept in connection with the struggles and conditions of every-day life. Devotional habits are cultivated to the utmost, and the students are urgfed to do as much evangelistic work as they can. The severe pressure put upon them to make the short term as useful as possible, leaves small leisure for such efforts, but this is in most instances faithfully economized. Although our usual period [3 two years, whenever it is thought right the term of study is lengthened to three or four years; indeed, there is no fixed rule, all arrangements being ordered by the circumstances and attainments of e;»rl> -pdi. vidua]. TflE PASTORS* COLLEGE. 121 Fields White tor tlie Harvest. As before hinted, our numbers have greatly grown, and now range from eighty to one hundred. Very promising men, who are suddenly thrown in our way, are received at any time, and others who are selected from the main body of applicants come in at the com- mencement of terms. The church at the Tabernacle continues to furnish a large quota of men, and as these have usually been educated for two or more years in our Evening Classes, they are more advanced and better able to profit by our two years of study. We have no difficulty in finding spheres for men who are ready and fitted for them. There is no reason to be- lieve that the supply of trained ministers is in advance of the demand. Able Educators. Even on the lowest ground of consideration, there is yet very much land to be possessed ; and when men break up fresh soil, as ours are encouraged to do, the field is the world, and the prayer for more laborers is daily more urgent. If the Lord would but send us funds commensurate, there are hundreds of neighbor- hoods n'^edingthe pure gospel, which we could by His ijrace chancre from deserts into orardens. How far this is a call upon the reader let him judge as in the sight of God. Shall there be the gifts and graces of the Spirit given to the Church, and shall there not also be sufficient bestowed of the earthly treasure? How much owest thou unto my Lord ? The College was for some little time aided by the 122 REV. CHARLES H. SPURGEON. I . ! zealous services of Mr. W. Cubitt, of Thrapstone, who died among us, enjoying our highest esteem. Mr. Gracey, the classical tutor, a most able brother, is one of ourselves, and was in former years a student, though from possessing a solid education he needed little instruction from us except in theology. In him we have one of the most efficient tutors living, a man fitted for any post requiring thorough scholarship and aptness in communicating knowledge. Mr. Fergusson, in the English elementary classes, does the first work upon the rough stones of the quarry, and we have heard, from the men whom he has taught in the Even- ing Classes, speeches and addresses which would have adorned any assembly, proving to demonstration his ability to cope with the difficulties of uncultured and ignorant minds. Mr. Johnson, who zealously aids in the evening, is also a brother precisely suited to the post which he occupies. These Evening Classes afford an opportunity to Christian men engaged during the day to obtain an education for nothing during their leisure time, and very many avail themselves of the privilege. Nor must I forget to mention Mr. Selway, who takes the department of physical science, and by his interesting experiments and lucid descriptions gives to his listen- ers an introduction to those departments of knowledge which most abound with illustrations. Last, but far from least, I adore the goodness of God which sent me so dear and efficient a fellow-helper as my brother in the flesh and in the Lord, J. A. Spurgeon. His THE PASTORS' COLLEGE. 123 work has greatly relieved me of anxiety, and his su- perior educational qualifications have tended to raise the tone of the instruction given. Earl of Shaftesbury's Testimony. As to the quality of the preachers whom we have been enabled to send forth, we need no more impartial witness than the good Earl of Shaftesbury, who was kind enough to express himself publicly in the follow- ing generous terms ; " It was an utter fallacy to suppose that the people of England would ever be brought to a sense of order and discipline by the repetition of miserable services, by bits of wax candle, by rags of Popery, and by gym- nastics in the chancel ; nothing was adapted to meet the wants of the people but the Gospel message brought home to their hearts, and he knew of none who had done better service in this evangelic work than the pupils trained in Mr. Spurgeon's College. They had a singular faculty for addressing the popu- lation, and going to the very heart of the people." Each year the brethren educated at the Pastors* College are invited to meet in conference at the Taber- nacle, and they are generously entertained by our friends. The week is spent in holy fellowship, prayer, and intercourse. By this means men in remote vil- lages, laboring under discouraging circumstances and ready to sink from loneliness of spirit, are encouraged and strengthened : indeed, all the men confess that a stimulus is thus given which no other means could confer. 124 REV. CHARLES H. SPUR6E0N. Breaking up Xew Soil. All things considered, gratitude and hope are su* preme in connection with the Pastors' College ; and with praise to God and thanks to a thousand friends, the president and his helpers gird up the loin? of their minds for yet more abundant labors in the future To every land we hope yet to send forth the gospel in its fulness and purity. We pray the Lord to raise up missionaries among our students and make every one a winner of souls. Brethren, remember this work ii> your prayers, and in your allotment of the Lord's por tion of your substance. When the necessity for new college buildings was plainly indicated, a friend in May, 1873, sent $5,000 towards that object. On October 14, 1873, the foun- dation-stone of those buildings was laid, when the people contributed ^{^5,000, the students gave $1,500, and undertook to raise the amount to $5,000. In 1874 Messrs. Cory and Sons, of Cardiff, sent for the benefit of the fund $5,000 worth of paid-up shares in their colliery company. In July, 1875, the president re- ceived $25,000 for the same object as a legacy from the late Mr. Matthews. These are named as examples of the various ways in which God has answered prayer and rewarded the faith of His servant in that important work. ineii Founding Churches. i; vjrfore the new College buildings were com' ^ \ r Spurgeon, by an article in " The Sword THE PASTORS COLLEGE. 125 and the Trowel," directed public attention to the insti- tution. The following extract will suffice : The supply of men as students has been always large, and at this time more are applying than ever. Our one aim has been to train preachers and pastors. The College is made into a home missionary society for the spread of the gospel. One of our students, Mr. F. E. Suddard, was first, in 1872, among seven competitors for one of Dr. Williams* scholarships at the Glasgow University. In the metropolis alone, forty-five churches have been founded. One of the students has commenced a cause in Turk's Island ; he is now carrying on evangelistic work in St. Domingo, where, if he is spared, he is likely to become the apostle of that island, and also of Hayti. One brother has gone to serve the Lord in China, two others are laboring in Spain. Several are doing a good work in Canada, and more than twenty brethren have become pastors in America, and seven others are gone as far south as Australia. One is a missionary in India, and another in Prince Edward Island. How the Money Came. The suitable and commodious new buildings, which have been erected and furnished, cost about ^75,000, all of which is paid. Here we have a fine hall, excJ at the first meeting a year before, who did not lend ,i helping hand to the bazaar. By the end of the ye tt the president announced in his magazine that only $5,000 more was required to complete the eight houses. "And this,*' says he, "will surely be sent in; for the Lord will provide." And so it came to pass. 152 REV. CHARLES H. SPUR6E0N. l\ The Bight Man iu the Biffht Place. In January, 1869, fifty children had been chosen to occupy the houses as soon as they should be ready, but up to the month of June only twenty-nine orphans were in residence. The chief difficulty which for some time had given anxiety to the trustees was to 6nd a suitable superintendent. Several persons had presented themselves, but not one had satisfied the claims of the institution. When the difficulty seemed to be the greatest, Divine Providence sent the right man. Vernon J. Charlesworth, who had been for seven years co-pastor at Surrey Chapel with Newman Hall, offered his services and they were accepted. Mr. Charlesworth was at once appointed : and the ability which he has manifested in manacrincr the affairs of the institution is very satisfactory evidence that he is the rjo^ht man in the right place. By his influence within the Orphanage, and by his pen outside, b** Has shown himself to be the orphan's friend. Up to the spring of the year 1870 one hundred and fifty-four orphans had been admitted, six of whom had been removed, leaving one hundred and forty-eight in residence. In 1877 the resident orphans numbered two hundred and thirty. How the Children Live. Each of the eight houses forms a separate family, that plan having after mature consideration been resolved upon as the best. Each family is complete in '•^s own arrangements ; each dwelling having a large STOCKWELL ORPHANAGE. 153 ete rge sitting and four lofty bed-rooms for the boys, with lockers, which, when closed, form handy seats in the middle of the room ; and a sitting-room, bed-room, and kitchen for the matron in charge. A large cov- ered play-room adjoins the houses on the east, and separate from that is the infirmary, forming the east { nd of the quadrangle. At the west end is the school room and dining-hall, the master's house and entrance gateway : and in the rear of the dining-hall is the suite of offices for cooking and other domestic purposes. In selecting the most needy boys for the benefits of the institution, the trustees are in no way influenced by the religious opinions of their parents. Those showing the most pressing want have the preference. A Bigr Family. A judicious writer has said of the Stockwell Or- phanage : " How superior any real approach to the family ideal is to the barrack system was apparent to us on a mere glance at these fatherless lads. The families are large, about thirty boys in each house ; but they are under the care of affectionate and diligent matrons, and everything is done to compensate for the loss of parental rule and training. There is more of the * home * than of the ' institution * in the atmos- phere. To encourage home ideas, and for the sake of industrial training, the boys In turn assist In the domestic work during the morning of the day ; each boy's period of service being restricted to one week in six servants being entirely dispensed with. A 154 REV. CHARLES H. SPUR6E0N. working cook superintends the kitchen, aided by the boys. "No regimental uniform is suffered. The boys differ in the clothes they wear, in the cut of the hair, and show all the variety of a large family. The boys do not look like loosely connected members of a huge and miscellaneous crowd, but sons and brothers. No traces of ill-disguised dissatisfaction, as though in perpetual restraint, always under orders, were appar- ent ; but a free, healthy, and vigorous homeliness, as if under the genial and robust influence of love, made itself everywhere manifest. What Becomes of the Lads. "With all the care of a Christian father, situations ai*e chosen for the lads, where their spiritual interests will not be in danger; and when they have been passed into them the master corresponds with them, and gives them counsel and assistance as they need. Like a true home, its benediction follows every inmate throughout his life. W*^ were specially pleased with our visit to the school. The boys are well drilled in elementary knowledge, reading, writing, arithmetic, grammar, history, geography, vocal music, Latin, shorthand, science of common things, and Scripture. A French class is held for the elder boys. Military drill is given daily. Drawing is successfully taught, and many boys excel in it. The singing-class did very great credit to its instructor — singing at sight, with great accuracy and sweetness, music of some diffi- culty." Two up- by STOCKWELL ORPHANAGE. 161 Christ Jesus. The story of the Stockwell Orphanage will be worth telling in heaven when the angels shall learn from the Church the manifold wisdom and good- ness of the Lord. Unfailing Friends. Incidents which could not be published on earth will be made known in the heavenly city, where every secret thing shall be revealed. How every need has been supplied before it has become a want; how guidance has been given before questions have be- come anxieties ; how friends have been raised up in unbroken succession, and how the One Great Friend has been ever present, no single pen can ever record. To care for the fatherless has been a work of joyful faith all along, and in waiting upon God for supplies we have experienced great delight. The way of faith in God is the best possible. We could not have car- ried on the work by a method more pleasant, more certain, more enduring. If we had depended upon annual subscribers we should have had to hunt them up and pay a heavy poundage, or perhaps fall to keep up the roll ; if we had advertised continually for funds our outlay might have brought In a scanty return; but dependence upon God has been attended with no such hazards. Watchful Care. We have done our best as men of business to keep the Orphanage before the public, but we have desired in all things to exercise faith as servants of God. Whatever weakness we have personally ^o confess 11 I 162 BEY. CHARLES H. SPUROEON. and deplore, there is no weakness in the plan of faith in God. Our experience compels us to declare that He is the living God; the God that heareth prayer; the God who will never permit those who trust in Him to be confounded. The business world has passed through trying times during the last few years, but the Orphanage has not been tried ; men of great enter- prise have failed, but the home for the fatherless has not failed ; for this enterprise is in the divine hand, an eye watches over it which neither slumbers nor sleeps. Let the people of God be encouraged by the fact of the existence and prosperity of the Stockwell Orphanage. Miracles have come to an end, but God goes on to work great wonders. The rod of Moses is laid aside, but the rod and staff of the Great Shep- herd still compass us. Story of an Old Puritan. The son of an old Puritan rode some twenty miles to meet his father, who came a similar distance to the half-way house. " Father," said the son, •* I have met with a special providence, for my horse stumbled at least a dozen times, and yet it did not fall." " Ah," replied the father, " I have had a providence quite as remarkable, for my horse did not stumble once all the way." This last is the happy picture of the Orphan- age for some time past, and, indeed, throughout its whole career; we have never had to issue uiournful appeals because of exhausted resources, and in this we must see and admire the good hand of the Lord. We now enter more fully upon a Iresh stage ol oui STOCKWELL ORPHANAGE. 16d existence; we shall need to double the amount of our present income, and we shall have it from the ever- opened hand of the Lord our God. Friends will be moved to think of our great family, for our Great ONE OF THE SCHOOL-ROOMS. Remembrancer will stir them up. The duty ot each Christian to the mass of destitute orphanhood is clear enough, and if pure minds are stirred up by way of remembrance there will be no lack in the larder, lo 184 BEV. CHARLES H. SFUROEON. want in the wardrobe, no failing in the funds of our Orphan House. We labor under one great difficulty. Many people say, " Mr. Spurgeon will be sure to get the money, and there is no need for us to send." It is clear that if everybody talked so, our president's name would be a hindrance instead of a help. He will be the means of finding money for our institution, for the Lord will honor his faith and hear his prayers, and be glorified in him ; but there will be no thanks due to those who fabricate an excuse for themselves out of the faithful- ness of God. Give Ye Them to Eat. This difficulty, however, does not distress us. We go forward, believing that when we have twice oui present number of children the Lord will send us double supplies. We cannot entertain the suspicion that the girls will be left without their portion, for we, being evil, care as much for our daughters as for our sons, and our Heavenly Father will do the same. It is well, however, to remind our friends of this, that each helper of the Orphanage may try to interest an- other generous heart, and so enlarge the circle of our friends. It may be that by such means the Great Provider will supply us ; for we know that when our Lord fed the multitude He first said to His disciples, " Give ye them to eat." The sanitary condition of the Orphanage has been all that we could desire. Considering that so large a proportion of the children come to us in a delicate STOCKWELL ORPHANAGE. 165 our condition, and some with the taint of hereditary dis- ease, it is a matter for devout thankfuhiess that their general health is so good, and that so few deaths have occurred. Out of the entire number who have left, only one boy was unable to enter upon a situation in consequence of an enfeebled constitution. We owe it to an ever-watchful Providence that, during the pre- vailing epidemic, not a single case of fever or small- pox has occurred in the institution. Beligrious Culture. Family worship is conducted twice daily, before the morning and evening meals, by the head master or his assistants, the service being taken occasionally by the president, or a member of the committee, or a visitor to the institution who may happen to be pres- ent. The Word of God is read and expounded, hymns sung, and prayer offered, and the whole of the boys repeat a text selected for the day. A service is con- ducted for the elder boys every Wednesday evening by Mr. W. J. Evans, when addresses are given by ministers and other friends. During their term of residence in the institution all the boys are total abstainers, no alcoholic liquors being jallowed except by order of the doctor, but most of ■them are pledged abstainers, with the approval of their friends. Band of Hope meetings are held every month, when the children receive instruction from competent ispeakers ; and lectures are given ^t intervals during (he winter months. i 166 REV. CHARLES H. SPURQEON. The Cry of the Orphan. The operations of the institution reveal to the managers the wide-spread necessity which exists. The cry of the orphan comes from every part of our beloved land, and the plea of the widow for Christian sympathy and help is restricted to no one class of the community. Faces once radiant with smiles are sad- dened with grief, for the dark shadow which death casts falls everywhere. How true are the lines of the poet : " There is no fireside, howsoe'er defended. But has one vacant chair." It is a constant joy to the president and the committee that they are able to mitigate to such a large extent the misery and need ./hich are brought under their notice ; and it must be an equal joy to the subscribers to know that their loving contributions furnish the sinews for this holy war. As our Sunday-school is affiliated to the Sunday- school Union, we allow the boys who desire to do so to sit for examination. Of the candidates who were successful at the last examination, three gained prizes, twelve first-class certificates, and thirty-eight second- class certificates. Young- Choristers. During the year the boys took part in the Crysta Palace Musical Festivals, arranged by the Band d Hope Union and the Tonic Sol-fa Association. In order to make the character and claims of the institution more widely known, the head master and the secretary have held meetings in London and the STOCKWELL ORPHANAGE. 167 the and the provinces, and the success which has crowned their efforts is of a very gratifying character. The boys who accompany them to sing and to recite furnish a powerful appeal by their appearance and conduct, and commend the institution to which they owe so much. The local papers speak in terms of the highest praise of their services, and thus a most effective advertise-' ment is secured without any cost to the institution. So far as the boys are concerned these trips have an educational value, for they get to know a great deal of the products and industries of different parts of the country, besides securing the advantage of being brought into contact with Christian families where they reside during their visit. The amount realized during the year, after defraying all expenses, is $3,320, and our thanks are hereby tendered to all who assisted in anyway to secure such a splendid result. Spontaneous Benevolence. The committee record with thankfulness that there has been no lack in the funds contributed for the efficient maintenance of the institution. Friends pre- fer to give donations rather than pledge themselves to send annual subscriptions, and the benevolence thus manifested is purely spontaneous. The admirable custom of making shirts for the boys is still continued by the young ladies of an educational establishment, who send in a supply of two hundred shirts every year. Their efforts are supplemented by several yirorking associations, but the supply is not yet ecjual ii I 168 REV. CHARLES H. SPURGEON. to the demand, and we cordially invite the co-operation of others, to whom we shall be glad to send samples and patterns. The work of caring for the widow and the fatherless is specially mentioned by the Holy Spirit as one of the most acceptable modes of giving outward expres- tion to pure religion and undefiled before God and the Father, and therefore the Lord's people will not question that they should help in carrying it out. Will it need much pleading ? If so, we cannot use it, as we shrink from marring the willinghood which is the charm of such a service. The work is carried on in dependence upon God, and as His blessing evidently rests upon it, we are confident the means will be forthcoming as the need arises. While commending the work to our Heavenly Father in prayer, we deem it right to lay before the stewards of His bounty the necessities and claims of the institution. A Memorable Year. The year 1880 will be a memorable one in the history of the institution, and we record with gratitude the fact that the foundation-stones of the first four houses for the Girls' Orphanage were laid on the 22d of June, when the president's birthday was celebrated. It was a joy to all present that Mrs. Spurgeon waa able to lay the memorial stone of "The Sermon House, the gift of C. H. Spurgeon and his esteemed publishers, Messrs. Passmore and Alabaster." The memorial stone of another house, the gift of Mr. W. R. Rickett, and called " The Limes, in tender memory STOCKWELL ORPHANAGE. 16& lour 22d ted. Iwaa ion led ^he |W. ory of five beloved children," was laid by C. H. Spurgeon, who made a touching allusion to the sad event thus commemorated. Mrs. Samuel Barrow laid the memo- rial stone of the house called " The Olives," the amount for its erection having been given and collected by her beloved husband. The trustees of the institution, having subscribed the funds for the erection of a house, the treasurer, Mr. William Higgs, laid, in theii name, the memorial stone which bears the inscription, " Erected by the Trustees of the Orphanage to express their joy in this service of love." Plans for Enlargred Usefulness. At the present moment the buildings of th.. Orphan- age form a great square, enclosing a fine space for air and exercise. Visitors generally express great sur- prise at the beauty and openness of the whole estab- lishment. Much remains to be done before the institution is completely accommodated ; there is needed an infirmary for the girls, and till that is built one of the houses will have to be used for that pur- pose, thus occupying the space which would otherwise be filled by thirty or forty children ; this should be attended to at an early date. Baths and washhouses will be urgently required for the girls, and we propose to make them sufficiently commodious for the girls to do the washing for the entire community of five hundred children, thus in- structing them in household duties and saving consid- erable expense. We would not spend a sixpence peedlessly. No money has been washed in lavish 170 BEY. CHARLES H. SPHROEON. ornament or in hideous ugliness. The buildings are not a workhouse or a county jail, but a pleasant resi- dence for those children of whom God declares him- self to be the Father. The additional buildings which we contemplate are not for luxury, but for necessary uses ; and as we endeavor to lay out money with judicious economy, we feel sure that we shall be trusted in the future as in the past. Honored Names. Are there not friends waiting to take a share in the Stockwell Orphanage Building ? They cannot better commemorate personal blessings, nor can they find a more suitable memorial for departed friends. No storied urn or animated bust can half so well record the memory of beloved ones as a stone in an Orphan House. Most of the buildings are already appropri- ated as memorials in some form or other, and only a few more will be needed. Very soon all building operations will be complete, and those who have lost the opportunity of becoming shareholders in the Home of Mercy may regret their delay. At any rate, none who place a stone in the walls of the Stockwell Orphanage will ever lament that they did this deed of love to the litde ones for whom Jesus cares. Honored names are with us already engraven upon the stones of this great Hostelry of the All-merciful ; and many others are our co-workers whose record is on high, though unknown among men. Who will be the n^xt to joir^ US in thisi happy la^bor ? 8T0CKWELL ORPHANAOB. 171 ills lat for I us :at ire >in When the whole of the buildings are complete, the institution will afford accommodation for five hundred children, and prove a memorial of Christian gener- osity and of the loving-kindness of the Lord. The Qirls* Orphanage. The following description of the Girls* Orphanage is from Mr. Spurgeon's own pen : In our address at the presentation of the late testi- monial, we disclaimed all personal credit for the existence of any one of the enterprises over which we preside, because each one of them has been forced upon us. " I could not help undertaking them," was our honest and just confession. This is literally true, and another illustration of this fact is now to come before the Christian public. Several of us have long cherished the idea that the time would come in which we should have an Orphan- age for girls as well as for boys. It would be hard to conceive why this should not be. It seems ungallant, not to say unrighteous, to provide for children of one sex only, for are not all needy little ones dear to Christ, with whom there is neither male nor female ? We do not like to do such things by halves, and it is but half doing the thing to leave the girls out in the cold. We have all along wished to launch out in the new direction, but we had quite enough on hand for the time being, and were obliged to wait. The matter has been thought of, and talked about, and more than half promised, but nothing has come of it till this present, and now, «is we believe sit the e^^act moment, m \m w 172 REV. CHARLES H. SPURGEON. the hour has struck, and the voice of God in provi- dence says, " Go forward." The Work Begun. The fund for the Girls' Orphanage has commenced, and there are about a dozen names upon the roll at the moment of our writing. The work will be car- ried on with vigor as the Lord shall be pleased to send the means, but it will not be unduly pushed upon any one so as to be regarded as a new burden, fo: we want none but cheerful helpers, who will count it a privilege to have a share in the good work. We shall employ no collector to make a percentage by dunning the unwilling, and shall make no private appeals to individuals. There is the case : if it be a good one and you are able to help it, please do so ; but if you have no wish in that direction, our Lord's work does not require us to go a-begging like a pauper, and we do not intend to do so. We h.'i\e never been in debt yet, nor have we had a mortgage upon any of our buildings, nor have we even borrowed money for a time, but we have always been able to pay as we have gone on. Our prayer is that we may never have to come down to a lower platform and commence borrowing. Abundance of Girls. It has often happened that we have been unable to assist widows in necessitous circumstances with large families, because there did not happen to be a doy of the special age required by the rules of our Poys' Orphanage. There were several girls, but then eq 174 REV. CHARLES H. SPUROEON. we could not take girls, and however deserving the case, we have been unable to render any Assistance to very deserving widows, simply because their children were not boys. This is one reason why we need a Girls' Orphanage. Everywhere also there is an outcry about the scarcity of good servants, honest servants, industrious servants, well-trained servants. We know where to find the sisters who will try to produce such workers out of the litde ones who wil! come under their care. We have succeeded by God's grace and the diligent care of our masters and matrons in training the lads so that they have become valuable to business men : why should not the same divine help direct us with the lassies, so that domestics and governesses should go forth from us as well as clerks and artisans? We believe that there are many friends who will take a special interest in the girls, and that there are some whose trades would more readily enable them to give articles sutiable for girls than those which are useful to boys. Help for Mary anrt Maggie. Here is a grand opportunity for Christian people with means to take their places among the first foun- ders of this new institution, and if they judge tnat such a work will be good and useful, we hope that they will without fail, and without delay, come to our assistance in this fresh branch of service. We cannot afford to lose a single penny from the funds for the boys, but this v. rk for the girls must be something STOCKWELL ORPHANAGE. 175 extra and above. You helped Willie and Tommy: will you not help Mary and Maggie ? It is very needful to add that looli:>h persons often say : Mr. Spurgeon can get plenty of money, and needs no help. If all were to talk in this fashion, where would our many works drift to ? Mr. Spurgeon does get large sums, but not a penny more than the va* jus works require, and he gets it because God moves His people to give it, as he hopes, good reader. He may move you. We havo no personal end to serve ; we do not, di- rectly or indirectly, gain a single penny by the Or- phanacre. College, or any other societies over which we pre'iide ; neither have we any wealthy persons around us who are at loss to Know how to dispose of their property; but our hard-working church keeps continually consecrating its offerings, and our friends far and near think upon us. Our treasury is the bounty of God ; our motto is : The Lord will Provide. Past mercy forbids a doubt as to the future, and so in the name of God we set up our banners. Work, not Miracles. The girl''' part is not yet fully complete, but it soon will be so, and then we must take in the girls. Now it occurs to me to let my friends know the increased need which has arisen, and will arise from the doub* ling of the number of children. The Income must by some means be doublen. My trust is in the Lord alone, for whose sake I bear this burden. I believe that He has led me all along in the erection and carry- i If 176 R£V. CHARLfiS fl. SftRGEOK. ing on of this enterprise, and I am also well assured that His own hand pointed to the present extension, and supplied the means for making it. I therefore rest in the providence of God alone. But the food of the children will not drop as manna from heaven, it will be sent in a way which is more beneficial, for the graces of His ctiildren will be dis- played in the liberality which will supply the needs of the orphans. God will neither feed the children by angels nor by ravens, but by the loving gifts of His people. It is needful, therefore, that I tell my friends of our need, and I do hereby tell them. The institu- tion will need, in rough figures, about one thousand dollars a week. This is a large sum, and when I think of it I am appalled if Satan suggests the question : " What if the money does not come in ? " But it is nothing to the Lord of the whole earth to feed five hundred little ones. He has kept two hundred and fifty boys for these years, and He can do the like for the same number of girls. Only let not His stewards say that there is no need at Stockwell, for there is great and crying need that all my friends should inquire whether they may not wisely render me much more aid than they have done. The build- ings are not all finished yet, nor the roads made, but ^is will soon be accomplished, and then the institution will be in full operation, and its requirements will be great. I have written these lines with a measure of reluctance ; and I hope that it is not in unbelief, but as a reasonable service, that I have thus stated the case. <■» I be of as Ise. CHAPTER IX. The Great Preacher's Last Illness and Death. A\arming Reports. — Messages of Sympathy. — Cheering Words from the Christiav Endeavor Conventton of the United States. — Message from International Congregational c'omicil. — Letters from the Prince of Wales and Mr. Glad stone. — Rays of Hope. — Anxiety and Fervent Prayers. — Glowing Eulogies. — Removal to Mentone.->"Unfavorable Reports. — The Closing Scene. — Immense Literary Labors. Eariy in July, 1891, alarmingr reports became current concerning- Mr. Spurgeon's health. It was known that for a long time he had been a sufferer from gont and kidney complaint, and the gravest fears were felt lest these complaints should undermine his otherwise stronof constitution, and end his ereat work. Daily reports were issued from the sick-chamber ; all the newspapers throughout Christendom contained references to the illustrious sufferer, and among all classes of persons profound sympathy was awakened ; while thousands be.^ides Mr. Spurgeon's own congre- gation prayed earnestly for his recovery. On the .'6th of July the Chnstian World, the leading religious newspaper of London, reported as follows : The condition of Mr. Spurgeon is now regarded as quite beyond luiman aid. Last evening he had further relapsed, and there was much difficulty in getting him to take nourishment u (m) m tTS REV. CHARLES H. SPURGEON. On Tliursday Mr. Spurgeon was in a very critical condition. The bulletin issued on Friday stated that although the kidneys were acting more freely, the delirium continued, and he was still very prostrate. On Saturday Mrs. Spurgeon considered him " no RESIDENCE OF C. H PUROEON. worse." The report of Sunday afternoon showed a blight change for the better. Unfavorable Reports. On Monday night the doctors considered his con dition less favorable. Tuesday's bulletin was as fol lows: "Rev. C. H. Spurgeon has had a very restless night, with delirium. The waste of albumen from the kidneys suddenly increased, and the prostration of LAST ILLNESS AND DEATH. 179 a fol les9 the of strength is very great." The next day's official bulletin was still more alarming: "After a restless night, Mr. Spurgeon is very weak this morning. The heart's action is becoming more feeble, an.d the amount of nourishment taken is less." The intense interest felt in Mr. Spurgeon's condition is shown by the messages of sympathy thai Jlierally pour in on Mrs. Spurgeon. On Friday the t^flegraph office at Beulah Hill was completely blocked for a considerable part of the day. The co:.imittee of the Baptist Missionary Society, the Nonconformist min- isters of Wrexham, the South London Presbytery, the Primitive Methodist General Committee, the British and Foreign Sailors' Society, an assembly of ministers at Grimsby, a meeting of the Loyal Orange Institution at Netley Abbey, the London Wesleyan Council, the Chesham Sunday-school Alliance, the Lambeth Auxili- ary of the Sunday-school Union, and the Council of the Evangelical Alliance have all sent telegrams. Messag^cs of Sympathy. Letters and telegrams have also been received from Chicago, Ontario, Massachusetts, and many other places. General Booth sent a message : " Four thou^ sand officers of the Salvation Army, assembled in council at Congress Hall, Clapton, assure you of their hearty sympathy and united prayers for Mr. Spurgeon's recovery." The rector of Newington, the parish in which the Tabernacle is situated, between whom and Mr. Spur- geon the most kindly feeling has existed, wrote to 180 KEY. CHARLES H. SPUSGEOK. Mrs. Spurgeon expressing his sympathy, and hoping that her husband's life, so precious to her and his flock, might be spared. The Bishop of Rochester telegraphed : "As I am myself ill and unable to call and inquire for Mr. Spurgeon, I am anxious to express to you my warm sympathy in your anxiety." Kind Words from the United States. The Young People's Society of Christian Endeavor, in convention, more than 1 2,000 strong, sent " love and prayers " from Minneapolis, U. S. A. M. le Pasteur Saillens, of Paris, telegraphed : " We offer constant prayers for your dear husband and yourself." Dr. Mac- lagan, Archbishop- Designate of York, sent "prayer- ful sympathy." The International Congregational Council sent an expression of profound affection for, and tender sympathy with, Mr. and Mrs. Spurgeon, before commencing business at the Memorial Hall. During the opening services of the Council earnest prayer was offered for the recovery of Mr. Spurgeon, and after the elections had been disposed of, a resolu- tion expressive of sympathy with Mrs. Spurgeon, and the earnest prayers of the Assembly that the valuable life of her husband might be spared to the churches. The hearty manner in which the resolution (which was forwarded by telegram) was carried, showed how brotherly feeling could dominate denominational dis- tinctions and theological differences. Letter From Mrs. Spurgeon. Later, the following letter was heard with sympa- thetic interest: — LAST ILLNESS AND DEATH. m Mrs. Spurgeon is very grateful for the sympathy and Christian love expressed in the resolution passed by the International Council of Congregationalists. The way is very dark just now, but the light of God's love is beyond the darkness. The prayers of all are still needed, for the dear patient's condition is still very critical. Nothing is impossible with God, and we still hope, saying with all our hearts, " God's will be done." Please to accept the warmest thanks of Mrs. Spurgeon and of yours sincerely, ^ Spurgeon. Ipa- Most kindly allusion was made by Canon Sinclair on Sunday afternoon at St. Paul's Cathedral to Mr. Spurgeon's protracted illness, and the prayers of the congregation were asked. Among those who made personal calls during the week were Mrs. Benson, who left the Archbishop's card with her. Prayer meetings were held through the week at the Tabernacle, and were largely attended. On Mon- day Dr. Clifford, Rev. Newman Hall, Rev. Arthur Mursell, and Mr. Cuff were among those present. On Tuesday numbers of people were waiting as early as half-past six for the seven o'clocl: prayer meeting, many of these being old pensioners from the neigh- boring almshouses. The loving sympathy of friends from all parts of the world is gready appreciated, not only by Mrs. Spurgeon and Rev. J. A. Spurgeon, but by the church deacons, who expressed their gratitude in a statement issued on Sunday. Inquiries f^om tlie Prince of Wales. By command of the Prince of Wales Colonel Knol- 182 REV. CHARLES H. SPURGEON. lys wrote to Dr. Kidd, making inquiries concerning Mr. Spurgeon's condition, asking the doctor, in the event of his having an opportunity, to convey the expression of His Royal Highness' sympathy to Mr. Spurgeon in his ilhiess. Dr. Kidd read that letter at his patient's bedside yesterday morning, when Mr, Spurgeon remembered having on a former occasion received a communication from the Heir-Apparent. Mrs. Spurgeon has been enabled to keep up so well that she seems to have been specially strengthened for the ordeal she has been passing through. Those only to whom he has been accustomed have been allowed to be in attendance on Mr. Spurgeon. One of these is the faithful man-servant known to all visitors as George, while the other men-servants have taken turns by night. Mr. Spurgeon has never been unconscious, nor has he all along ever been delirious in the sense of not knowing those about him. He has often asked for his private secretary ; he has sometimes been attended by his other secretary, Mr. Keys ; and when visited by Dr. Russell Reynolds he remembered hav- ing seen the Doctor on a certain occasion at Mentone. One Catholic priest in charge of a garden party prayed for Mr. Spurgeon's permanent recovery ; and Ritualists have likewise remembered him in their devotions. Letter flrom Mr. Gladstone. Mrs. Spurgeon has received the following letter from Mr. Gladstone: LAST ILLNESS AND DEATH. 183 Corton, Lowestoft, July i6. My dear Madam, — In my own home, darkened at vne present time, I have read with studied interest daily accounts of Mr. Spurgeon's illness, and I cannot help conveying to you the earnest assurance of my sympathy with you and with him, and of my cordial admiration not only of his splendid powers, but still more of his devoted and unfailing character. May 1 humbly commend you and him, in all contingencies, to the infinite stores of Divine love and mercy, and sub- scribe myself, my dear Madam, faithfully yours, W. E. Gladstone. Mrs. Spurgeon sent the following reply, the post- icript being in her husband's handwriting : Westwood, Upper Norwood, July i8, 1891. Dear Mr. Gladstone, — Your words of sympathy iiave a special significance and tenderness coming from one who has just passed through the deep waters which seem now to threaten me. I thank you warmly for your expression of regard for my beloved husband, and with all my heart I pray that the consolations of God may abound toward you even as they do to me. Although we cannot consider the dear patient out of danger the doctors have to-day issued a somewhat more hopeful bulletin. I feel it an honor to be allowed to say that I shall ever be your grateful friend, S. Spurgeon. P. S. — Yours is a word of love such as those only write who have been in the King's country, and have seen much of His face. My heart's love to you. C. H. Spurgeon. IMAGE EVALUATION TEST TARGET (MT-3) A >. ^/ -A^c. 1.0 I.I llil 112.5 |3 2 11° M 1.8 1.25 1.4 1.6 ^ 6" — ► 5&. v^ e O 7 /A Photographic Sciences Corporation 23 WEST MAIN STREET WEBSTER, NY 14S80 (716) 872-4503 iV •O' \ \ ^<^ V w ^ > "^ 3 J^ r- •^ V <^ r^^ V ? .v Ua 6 <^ /■ -■ '^ j , ^g!"j'^_\^ ft ^S?^^'S>. .'^■aF*'^."0\''^t« ' -~ ■ . -T- ' " -• . ./ ' u g jky P^ ^^i^\^.-^ '■' ■■ . •^fv\t^< M ¥ \-7..- jC'^: K-,.,- /'/ .' ' ^ t, ■ . i " ■■ ^^ ■' •» pq < O ' f ,f' ' ' 'j^S^m S^-,. -^ 'ji' .Z' P^ '' ■' r--., '-M ~. ' ■■■■ V i 1 c <> H O OS O ,r' (IW) REV. C. H. SPURGEON IN HIS PULPIT. LAST ILLNESS AND DEATH. 185 A Oletini of Hope. On giving the news of Mr. Spurgeon's condition to the congregation on Sunday morning, Mr. Stott said that hope of the pastor's recovery was being strength- ened, but they must keep on praying rather than yield to too pleasurable excitement; for Mr. Spurgeon was not yet " out of the wood." Under the most happy circumstances, it would still be some time before the patient could become convalescent. Rev. W. Stott presided at the Monday evening prayer meeting in the Tabernacle. Rev. J. A. Spur- geon, who had a sore throat and a voice weak from cold, said that he had seen his brother in the course of the day, and although he was seriously ill, he did not look like a dying man. Weak as he was, he might yet be restored. Still he was very seriously ill, and their hope was only in God, who could restore him. When at prayer concerning his brother, he had had a a struggle, but he had at last left it in God's h inr^s. They left all to God, but when they had done that, they felt that they could not let Him go until they had their pastor back. Mr. James Spurgeon went on to say that his brother was happy in his mind and was contented. Notwith- standing all that they had heard about his wanderings, his heart had not wandered from Christ. He was not in trouble, and not in much pain, and God was to be thanked that in that respect he was as he was. They wanted him back, but would still say, "Thy will be done." The Lord has never made a mistake, and 186 BBY. 0HABLB8 H. SPUROION. never would do so. How many were thinking of the sick pastor, and how many were reading his sermons who had not done so for years. Thus good would come out of the affliction. A Voice to the Natlo::. If in the end prayers did not avail, and the physi- cians found that that they could do nothing more, then they would have to believe that it was as the pastor had himself hinted some time ago, namely, that his time was come, and that his work was done. The numbers of letters and telegrams received at Westwood was marvelous. God was speaking to the nation, and it might be to the Church ; people now saw what a servant England had in C. H. Spurgeon. If he was raised up again to preach the Gospel, per- haps the nation would learn more to appreciate his testimony. As regarded the prayer-meetings they were hold- ing, they could not fail to be a mighty lesson to those who took part in them, apart from Mr. Spurgeon. How little earth seemed in comparison with eternal things ! God might have a purpose in dealing with them as He was doing. Then what a wonderful spirit of prayer was manifest. There had been one hun- dred and fifty prayers offered on the preceding Monday, and one hundred had been offered in their meetings of that day. It was decided that their meetings should be continued until there was a decided change in their pastor's condition one way or LAST ILLNESS AKO DEATH. l87 th it the other — till their Father in Heaven should say, " It is enough." Cheerinir Kewi. Shortly before nine o'clock a telegram arrived from Westwood giving the cheering news of a slight im- provement in Mr. Spurgeon's general state. The internal con'^estion was somewhat diminished, the gout was less painful, while the delirium was milder, intervals of accurate memory occurring. The condi- tion was one of grave danger, but there was said to be some hope. Words of Appreciation. One of the foremost journals of the metropolis gave expression to the public sympathy, and voiced the estimate of Mr. Spurgeon'3 life and work, as follows : " While there is life there is hope," and we rest in confidence that unless the will of God our Saviour see that the kingdom of his dear Son will be better served by this his true and faithful servant being removed to the sanctuary above, our beloved and honored brother, C. H. Spurgeon, will be raised up to continue his labors in the gospel on earth. But if he should be taken up, a crowning testimony will have been given to the profound impression made upon his fellow-Christians and upon his fellow- men throughout the world, of all denominations and of all shades of thought, by his long and faithful witness to the truth.. Men and women of all sects and creeds, of every rank and position have, from 188 REV. CHARLES H. SPURGEON. all parts of the world, written, telegraphed, or called to express their deep sympathy ; and tens of thou- sands expect with eager interest the morning paper, and the first thing they look for is the bulletin de- scribing Mr. Spurgeon's condition. Why the People are Moved. This phenomenal interest is not due alone to personal affection for a beloved brother or father in Christ ; to admiration of his fearless character, his marked individuality, his English tenacity ; to Christian reverence for one who has scattered the gospel broadcast throughout the world, largely by his voice, and far more largely by the press ; to regard for the orphans* friend, to respect for the gifted evanjeiist, pastor and teacher, who has exer- cised his Gcd-given gifts of perfecting other men for the work of ministering, though all these ele- ments are included in it. But lying beneath them all is a conviction of the truth of the gospel which he has ministered — the gospel of the atonement ; the good tidings of the kingdom of God ; the unwavering witness of a man true to the core to " the precious blood of Christ, as of a lamb without biemisli and without spot, by ^ whom we believe in God who raised him up from the dead, and gave him glory that our faith and hope may be in God." The Hisrhest Praise. No higher honor could be accorded to a man than that, lying helpless, suffering, delirious, upon his bed LAST ILLNESS AND DEATH. 189 of death, the world was moved with sympathy and' tender love, because, like Daniel, he was found faithful to his God ; because he chose to have the gospel pure and plain, as pulse and water, rather than spiced with delicacies for the great and wise. Yet though we speak of the possibility of his being taken, we fervently unite in the universal, loving prayer that God may restore his servant to years of better health and greater usefulness than before he was laid so low. Removal to France. Mr. Spurgeon continued to improve and was finally able to make the journey to Mentone, where the climate and surroundings had proved on several occa- sions to be highly beneficial to his health. Here he spent the last months of 1891, apparently gaining strength, yet very slowly, and hopes were entertained that ke would ultimately recover. He became well enough to correct the proofs of his sermons, the pub- lication of which was continued, but his progress towards recovery was so slow as to be scarcely per- ceptible. Suddenly in the latter part of January, 1892, news came that he had met with a serious relapse. At once the fears of his multitude of friends and admir- ers were revived. For several days reports were received which were far from reassuring. The follow- ing despatch relates the story of his death : " Mentone, France, Jan. 31 . — The celebrated divine, Charles Haddon Spurgeon, died here fifteen minutes V 190 BEY. OHABLKS H. 8PUR0B0N. before midnight to-night Mrs. Spurgeon, his private secretary, and two or three friends were present at the last moment. He was unconscious when the end came, and had not spoken for some hours. " Mr. Spurgeon did not recognize his wife through- out the day ; he refused all food, and although milk was given him it was not retained. A large number of telegrams of inquiry and sympathy were received by the pastor's family." Thus ended the life of the celebrated divine, whose voice had held listening thousands spell-bound, and whose influence had been felt in all the earth. Enormous Literary Work. Glancing at Mr. Spurgeon's work it will be seen that it was enormous. Besides editing and furnishing most of the matter for his monthly magazine, Ttu Sword and Trowel, since January i, 1865, he wrote " The Saint and His Saviour," " The Treasury of David, an Exposition of the Psalms,*' in seven octavo volumes ; " The New Park Street Pulpit," and the "Metropolitan Tabernacle Pulpit," which contains about two thousand of his weekly sermons, from 1855 to 1 889, making thirty large volumes. Also " Lectures to My Students," " Commenting and Commentaries,*' " John Ploughman," the " Cheque Book of the Bank of Faith,'* and various other publications. Many of these have been translated into various tongues. In October, 1887, Mr. Spurgeon withdrew from the Baptist Unioa In announcing his decision to with- draw, and replying to his critics, he said : " To pursue LAST ILLNESS AND DBATH. 191 union at the expense of the truth is treason to Jesus. To tamper with His doctrines is to become traitors to Him. We have before us the wretched spectacle of professedly orthodox Christians publicly avowing union with those who deny the faith, and deny the personality of the Holy G'lost." Mr. Spurgeon had long been contemplating the act of secession. He announced his determination of withdrawing if certain other clergymen, who v»ere for some reason distaste- ful to him, were not excommunicated. This, of course, the Union refused to do. The resignation which he tendered was accepted, and the great church which he had built up went with him without question. Mr. Spurg^eon's Obsequieii. Upon the death of tlie celebrated divine, the news- papers througiiout the world, both secular and re- ligious, contained lengthy obituary notices which were highly eulogistic of the man and his work. He had died at the very height of his power and usefulness, yet his life bad been so busy that the labor of half a dozen ordinary men had been condensed into it. It was difficult for his congregation to believe that they never would again hear the rich, magnetic voice of their beloved pastor. There were demonstrations of sorrow on every hand ; the great heart of the public was moved and throbbed with sympathy and grief. The announcement was made at once that the body would be removed from Mentone to London, and that a public funeral would be held. The obse- quies were attended by thousands of all religious m BIY. OHABLES H. SPUROEOIT. denominations, and all classes of people. Such a demonstration has seldom been witnessed even in the great metropolis. Every evidence of the respect in which Mr. Spurgeon was held was manifested, while all expressed sincere sorrow that his wonderful life-work was finished. " It was gratifying to know that his last days were cheered by the tender ministries of his family and friends, while he expressed his unfaltering faith in the great truths he had taught, and his uncom- plaining submission to the will of that gracious provi' dence which has a purpose even in the sparrow'? fall. He desired further life only that he might carry on the work to which all his powers had been devoted. As he had spoken by his living voice to myriads, so by his death he gave a more impressive lesson to the world. At the age of fifty-seven he was called up higher, and " all the trumpets of heaven sounded," and his work, which was not to be measured merely by years, was ended. And now the great champion of the evangelistic faith, the flaming zealot, the magnetic orator, the pro- lific author, the one man who more than any other aflected the whole religious world, is laid to his final rest. Peace to his honored ashes ! May his rest be as sweet and satisfying, as his life was laborious and crowned with suffering. \ t BOOK II. SERMONS AND LECTURES BY REV. C. H. SPURGEON. HANDS FULL OF HONEY. "And Samson turned aside to see tbe carcase of the lion : and, bkiiold, there was a swa'm of bees and honey in the carLa^e of the lion. And he t^»ok ihcrt- f in his hands, and went on eating, and came to his father and mother, and .ic gave them, and they did eat: l>ut lio lold not (hem that he had taken the lioney out of the carcase of the lion." — Judges xiv, 8, 9. It was a sinijular circumstance that a man unarmed should have slain a lion in the prime of its vigor ; and yet more strange that a swarm of bees should have taken possession of the dried carcase, and have filled it with their honey. In that country, what with beasts, birds and insects, and the dry heat, a dead body is soon cleansed from all corruption, and the bones are clean and white : still the killinor of the lion and the finding of the honey make up a remarkable story. These singular circumstances became after- wards the subject of a riddle ; but with that riddle we have no concern at this time. Samson himself is a riddle. He was not only a riddle-maker; but he was himself an enigma very difficult to explain : with his personal character I have at this time little or nothing to do. We are not to-day resting at the house of "Gains, mine host," where the pilgrims ^ 193 194 SERMONS AND LECTURES. amused themselves with a dish oi' nuts after dinner ; but we are on the march, and must attend to the more important matter of refreshing and inspiriting those who are in our company. Neither are we going to discuss difficulties ; but as Samson took the honey with- out being stung, so would we gain instruction without Jebate. We have in these days so much to do, that we must make practical use of every incident that comes before us in the word of God. My one design is to cheer the desponding and stir up all God's people to greater diligence in his service. I conceive that the text may legitimately be employed for this purpose. By the help of the Divine Spirit, even after this lapse of time, we may find honey in the lion. The particular part of the incident which is recorded in these two verses appears to have been passed over by those who have written upon Samson's life : I suppose it appeared to be too inconsiderable. They are taken up with his festive riddle, but they omit the far more natural and commendable fact of his brino- ing forth the honey in his hands and presenting it to his father and mother. This is the little scene to v/hich I direct your glances. It seems to me that the Israelitish hero with a slain lion in the backorround, standing out in the open road with his hands laden with masses of honeycoiiib and dripping with honey, which he holds out to his parents, makes a fine picture worthy of the greatest artist. And what a type we have here of our Divine Lord and Master, Jesus, the conqueror of death and hell. He has destroyed the HANIJS FULL O!*' IIUNEY. 195 the we the the Hon that roared upon us and upon him. He ha* sliouted " victory " over all our foes. " It is finished '^ was His note of triumph ; and now he stands in the midst of his church witli his hands full of sweetness and consolation, presenting them to those of whom he says, " thcst^ arv. my brother, and sister, and mother." To eacli one of us who believe in him he gives the luscious food which he has prepared for us by the overthrow of our foes; he bids us come and eat that we may have our lives sweetened and our hearts filled with joy. To me the comparison seems wonderfully apt and suggestive : I see our triumphant Lord laden with sweetness, holdinof it forth to all his brethren, and inviting them to share in his joy. But, beloved, it is written, "As he is, so are we also in this world." All that are true Christians are, in a measure, like the Christ whose name thry bear, and it is to his image that we are finally to be conformed. When he shall appear we shall be like him, for we shall see him as he is ; and meanwhile, in proportion as we see him now, "we are changed into the same image, from glory to glory, even as by the Spirit of the Lord." The Samson type may well serve as the symbol of every Christian m the world. The believer has been helped by divine grace in his spiritual conflicts, and he has known " the victory which overcometh the world, even our faith." He has thus been made more than a conqueror through him that loved us, rnd now he stands in the midst of his fellow-men inviting them to Jesus. With the honey in his hands, which he con- f¥ 196 SERMONS AND LECTURES. ! I tinues still to feast upon, he displays the heavenly sweetness to all that are round about him, savintr, "O taste and see that the Lord is good : blessed is the man that trusteth in him." I have before now met with that popular artist Gus- tave Dore, and suggested subjects to him. Had he survived among us, and had another opportunity oc- curred, I would have pressed him to execute a statue of Samson handing out the honey: strength distribut- ing sweetness ; and it might have served as a per- petual reminder of what a Christian should be — a Conqueror and a Comforter, slaying lions and distrib- uting honey. The faithful servant of God wrestles with the powers of evil ; but with far greater delight he speaks to his friends and companions, saying, "Eat ye that which is good, and let your souls delight them- selves in sweetness." Set the statue before your mind's eye, and now let me speak about it. Three touches may suffice. First, tJie believer's life has its co7iflicts ; secondly, the believers life has its sweets ; and, thirdly, the believer s life leads him to com- municate of those sweets to others. Here is room for profitable meditation. I. First, then, the believer's life has its conflicts. To become a Christian is to enlist for a soldi(;r. To become a believer is to enter upon a pilgrimage, and the road is often rough : the hills are steep, the valleys are dark, giants block the way, and robbers lurk in corners. The man wlio reckons that he can glide into heaven without a struggle has made a great HANDS FULL OF HONEY. 197 mistake. No cross no crown: no sweat no sweet: no conflict no conquest. These conflicts, if we take Llie case of Samson as our symbol, begin early \n tiie life of the believer. While Samson was a child, the S[jirit of the Lord moved him in the camps of Dan- see the last verse of the thirteenth chapter; and IS soon as he was on the verge of manhood, he must match himself with a lion. God who intended that iiis servant should smite the Philistines, and should check their proud oppression of his people Israel, began early to train the hero for his life's conflict. So, when Samson was going to seek a wife, he turned aside into the vineyards of Timnath, and a lion roared upon him. Yes, and the young believer, who as yet has not wrestled with the powers of darkness, will not be long before he hears the roar of the lion, and finds himself in the presence of the great Adversary. Very soon we learn the value of the prayer, " Deliver us from the evil one!" Most of the Lord's servants have been men of war from their youth up. Without are fiehtin^rs even when within there are no fears. This early combat with the savage beast was intended by God to let him know his strength when under the influence of the Spirit, and to train him for his futur*": combats with Lsrael's enemies. He that is to smite the Philistines hip and thigh with a great slaughter, until he has laid them heaps on heaps by his single prowess, must begin by rending a lion with liis naked hands. He was to learn war in the sanu! school as another and a greater hero, who afterwards said, 198 SERMONS AND LECTURES. I'M " Thy servant slew both the lion and the bear, and this uncirciimcised Philistine shall be as one of them." Soldiers are made by war. You cannot train veter- ans or create victors except by battles. As in the wars of armies so is it in spiritual contests: men must be trained for victory over evil by combat with it. Hence " it is good for a man that he bare the yoke in his youth ; " for it will not gall his slioulders in after years. It is assuredly a dani^erous thing to be altogether free from trouble : in silken ease the soldier loses his prowess. Look at Solomon, one c ' the greatest and wisest, and yet, I might say, one of the least and most foolish of men. It was his fatal privi- lege to sit upon a throne of gold and sun himself in the brilliance of unclouded prosperity, and hence his heart soon went astray, and he fell from his high places. Solomon in his early days had no trouble, for no war was then raging, and no enemy worth notice was then living. His life ran smoothly on, and he was lulled into a dreamy sleep, the sleep of the voluptuous. He had been happier far had he been, like his father, called from his earliest days to trial and conflict; for this mire O < u •< H O W O »— 1 > Pi o Pi K H HANDS FULL OP HONEY. 201 occurrence. He had left his father and mother and was quite alone ; no one was within call to aid him in meeting his furious assailant.' Human sympathy is -exceedingly precious, but there are points in our spintual conflict in which we cannot expect to receive it. To each man there are passages in life too narrow for walking two abreast. Upon certain crags we must stand alone. As our constitutions differ, so our trials, which are suited to our constitutions, must differ also. Each individual has a secret with which no friend can intermeddle ; for every life has its mys- tery and its hid treasure. Do not be ashamed, young Christian, if you meet with temptations which appear to you to be quite singular : we have each one thought the same of his trials. You imagine that no one suffers as you do,, whereas no temptation hath hap- pened unto you but such as is common to man, and God will with the temptation make a way of escape that you maybe able to bear it. Yet for the time being you may have to ^nter into fellowship with your Lord when he trod the wine-press alone, and of the people there was none with him. Is not this for your good ? Is not this the way to strength ? What kind of piety is that which is dependent upon the friend- ship of man? What sort of religion is that which. cannot stand alone ? Beloved you will hare to die alone, and you need therefore g'*ace to cheer you in solitude. The dear wife can attend yov. weeping to the river's brink, but into the chill strcajn she cannot go with you ; and if you have not a religion which i^ 202 SEKMONS AND LECTUKES. III! Mil! will sustain you in the solitudes of life, of what avail will it be to you in the grim louesomeness of death ? Thus I reckon it to be a happy circumstance that you are called to solitary conflict that you may test your faith, and see of what stuff your hope is made. The contest was all the worse for Samson, that in addition to being quite alone, "there was nothing ir his hand." This is the most remarkable point in the narrative. lie had no sword or hunter's spear with which to wound the lordly savage: he had not even a stout staff with which to ward of his attack. Sam- son stood an unarmed, unarmored man in the pres- ence of a raging beast. So we in our early temp- tations are apt to think that we have no weapon for the war, and we do not know what to do. We are made to cry out, " I am unprepared ! How can I meet this trial ? I cannot grasp the enemy to wrestle with hirri. What am I to do ? " Herein will the splendor of faith and glory of God be made manifest, when you shall slay the lion, and yet it shall be said of you " that he had nothing in his hand " — nothing but that which the world sees not and values not. Now, go one step further, for time forbids our linger- ing here. I invite you to remember that it was by the Spirit of God that the victory tvas won. We read, "And the Spirit of the Lord came mightily upon him, and he rent him as he would have rent a kid." Let the Holy Spirit help us in our trouble and we need neither company nor weapon ; but without him what can we do ? Good Bishop Hall says, " If that roaring HANDS FULL OF HONKY. 203 lion, that jLjoes about continually seekino^ whom he may devour, fiiul us alone among the vineyards of the Philistines, where is our hope ?' Not in our heels, he is swifter than we: not in our weapons, we are naturally unarmed; not in our hands, which are wea^c and lan- guishing; but in the Spirit of God, by whom we can do all thin