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In this history I luivc labored to j»lace tlio oritjjinal Methodists in their true poHition before the Christian Church and the pubUc generally ; and although ponie readers may tliink the following pages are more controversial in their character than is usual in such a work, it must be remembered that the first history of a country or a church should embrace, as ftir as possible, the leading incidents connected with its career. Tliough I have in some instances (perhaps sharply) refuted the attacks made by leading men of the' Canada Confercnwi on the IMethodist Episcopal Church in this country, I have not done so through malice, nor from personal ill-will to the parties engaged in the controversy ; but from a consciousness of duty to God, to the Church, and to Christian liberty. I have been at very great pains to collect proper material for this publication ; and one of my most difficult tasks has been to condense and arrange the matter in a way suitable for such a sized book. I liave made as few notes as possible, and have not given the names of all the authorities whom I have consulted, in the body of the work, as it would have very much enlarged the volume and added to its price. I have consulted and am indebted to the following authors, pamplilets, and papers for much valuable information on 3Icthodism. I am also indebted to many parties who have given me much reliable information that I could not derive from books. I am indebted to European works as follows: — Whitehead's •' Life of Wesley ;' Moore's '• Life of Wesley;' Watson's •' Life of Wesley ;" '• The Tiife of Charles Wesley ;" "Ireland and the Centenary of Methodism," by R.v^ William Crook, with several other English and Irish publications. yi. I'RKKACE. 1 ^'.J America 11 works consul t(Ml liavo been, '' Vomit's Ilintory of Mcthotlisiu ; "' Dr. IJan^'s "Vindication of '^Jothodi.st EpiHCopucy ;" Hand's *• Ori<^inal Church (»(' Clirist," and also Ills "History of the M. K. Church;'" Dr. Stcven,s' '' History of the lloliLnous JMovonicnt of the Ki<^hteenth Century;"' Stevens' '• History of the 3Iethodist I;land ; Pamphlet of Ritche «.\: Stinson ; Lindsay's '•History of the Clerv — lk'come< his father's curate — De(;Hnes tlie Hvinj,' — Tlie brotliers sail for America — Disappointment and return — Continued disijuietudc of mind — (Jonversiou of the hrotliers — Tliey hof^in to preach a. present salvation — Shut out of the chinvhes — Field preaching — Multitudes Hock t(^. hear — Firsf. preaching-house — The foundry — Mr. Maxtield — .John Nelson — Organization of classes — First Conference — Methodism spreads through England and Wales — Mr. Wesley visits Ireland — Mr. William.s — Mr. C Wesley visits Dublin — Is mobbed — Widl received elsewhere — .lohn Wesley re-visits Ireland — Coiu't Mattress — The Palatines. TllK eoiniucneciiient of the jiieat relij:,ioiis luovcniieut which has produced the various IMethodist bodies throughout the world, orij^inatcd from tlie persoual efforts of three studeuts at the University of Oxford, in England. These young men being anxious to promote the glory of God, their own spiritual welfare, and the happiness of others, in the year 1720 formed themselves into a society for the purpose of reading the '' Greek Testament, and in other respects assisting each other in a course of 'holy living' and useful study." HISTORY OF TIIK This little band at first t'oiisistt'(l of (Miarlcs Wcsloy, Mr. Morgao iind Mr. Kirkinan, but, in November (if the same year Mr. John Wesley reached Oxford, and innmidiately identified himself with this small and desjtised ecmimunity. The next year the number was increased by the addition of three or four pupils of the Wesleys who obtained jiermission to join tlic •• Holy Club," a name applied by the irrelijjjious to this company of sincere seekers after truth atid righteousness. By common consent tlie direction of the society was committed to Mr. John Wesley, who before this had distinj^uislied himself for method and zeal in all his relij^ious and literary movements. Already the Wesleys were called Methodists; the term havinj^' been at first applied to Mr. Charles Wesley by a fellow- student. The name, liowevcr, did not ori<;inatc with the Oxford student, as the sanui appellation nad been given to u body of Anabaptists in the sixteenth century. These people, who appear to have had a stronSo truthful is it that — " From small beginnings n " • Mighty fabrics rine." • ' • ;•! • ' Or, as Mr. Wesley expresses the same sentiment in one of his incomparable hymns : M. E. CHURCII IN CANADA. "Saw ye not tin- cloud iiiiHc, f.itt'.o HH a liuiniin liiind ; NOM- it KprcJKlH lllollg th(^ HkifK, HatiKH o'lT all the thirsty land.'' Shortly sif'tor Mr. John Wenloy be^aii to jrive his atten- tion to thy inipoitjuiec of exjtcriniental rcli^rioj), he a(U)|>te(l the errono(Mi« idea that he ((luld Herve (}od better by a decided HecluHion from the W')rld than by public intercourse with it. This monkish sentiment, however, received no encoura<;emcnt from his more enlijzhtened parents; l)ut he, beinj; anxious to consalt others upon the sul)jeet, went some distance in order to sec a "serious man.' and advise with him respecting those tliinjis which now so deeply engrossed his attention. Upon his arrival he made known his views to his friend, who replied jHOst judiciously. '-Sir," said he, "you wisli to serve (Jod and go to heaven ; remember you cannot serve Ilim alo* j ; you must therefore y?/HZ companions or make them; the Bible knows nothing .1 solitary religion." These were words fitly spoken, and were, under Ciod, tlie uieans of directing Wesley's steps in the path of duty. Mr. Morgan, who was by birth an Irishman, not being so monastic in liis sentiments as was Mr, Wesley at this period, commenced to visit tiie gaol, instruct the prisoners, and pray with the sick in the vicinity, reporting • the result to the society. The Wcsleys followed his example, and soon .the "Holy Club " entered on a systematic plan for imparting religious instruction to the Inmates of the prison, comforting the afflicted, and relieving the poor so far as they could consistently with the income and time at their disposal. Some of the ministers of the Church of England viewed this new movement with distrust ; and many in ** high life " spoke of the conduct of these young uien with contempt and ridicule, while the baser sort began to persecute them. Lest there might be some irregularity in the course they were pursuing, ii 4 FiisToKv (>:• Tii»<: ?.! r. John Wcsloy wrote to his father, solieitiiiji; his udviec with regard to the conduct of himself and his associates. His father replied in the most affectionate manner, approving: of their efforts to do f^ood. and ur<;in<; them to steadfastness in the ways of rij»hteousness. It might naturally have been imagined that those at least who professed to love Gud, or to desire the, amelioration of the condition of mankind, would have countenanced these devoted young men by affording them, at the very least, their sympathy and approbation. Such, however, wn;:, not the case. To the lukewarm and ungodly masses by which they were surrounded, their practice of so fre((ucntly partaking of the Lord's Supper, and their reptiatcd fastings and prayer, together with their continued efforts for the f>:eneral good of the people, ajipeared iis foolish and unnecessary self-denial, or as hypocritical cant. But none of these things moved them. Mr. Morgan, who was earnestly devoted io tlie cause, was. in couse((uence of his very delicate constitution, compelled after a time to leave the Held, and return to the green isle of his nativity, where he shortly afterwards " died in great peace." Thus early fell a prominent member of the first Methodist Society. A leading spirit had been removed from the little band, but (rod supplied his place, and the work progressed rapidly. Nearly one hundred and forty years h.ve transpired since Mr. MiM'gan first associated himself with what was then, out of derision, termed the ''Holy Club." Could )ie now take part with the millions of Methodists at the present time engaged in the service of God upon earth, would he not unite with them in singing, " Sec how groat a flame aspiros, Kindletl hy a spark of grace ; Jesus' love the nations fires — Sets the kingdoms in a blaze. M. K. CHnncri in canapa. 5 '• More aiul nior*' It sproadfi and ,u;row.* Ever miulity to prevail ; Sin's strontrliohis it m>w o'orthrows, ^Shak^'s the tremblinht up in strict conh^'uiity to the doctrines and usajres of the Church of J'^nuland. jjreat can^ beiuii, taken to njodel the mindis of the whole familv in a strictly religious mould. This was d -»ccially the case with John and Charles. John havinir had a miraculous escape from death, at the time of the destruction i.f the Rectory by fire, havini^ been rescued from the devourinu- element throuuh a window just as the roof fell in. his mother was impressed with the idea that the Almighty had preserved him for some j^reat purpose ; and to this ma^ be attributed her unceasing efforts in traininjr him up for the service of his divine Master. In reference to this same circumstance Mr. AVesley himself remarks, •• Is not this a brand plucked out of the burninji." He finished his theoloyical studies and was ordained Deacon in 172l and shortly afterwards became his father's curate at Epwortli. In 1728 he received Priest's orders, but declined to serve in his father's church when the livinir was offered to him, ''preferring the world as his parish." But though Mr. Wesley could neither be induced by the entrealiiN of his parents, uor the sterner reasoning of his brother Sanuiel to accept the living of Epworth, as a means of doing good, and a support for the family, yet he ap|^)ears to have cheerfully complied witli t])e invitation of the Trustees of the new Colony of Georiria, to go out with General 'Oglethorpe to the ! I 6 HISTORY OP THE wikls of America as a missionary to the colonists and the Indians. His father died in April, 1735, the family were, consequently, soon scattered, and a new incumbent appointed to the Rectory, Mr. ^V^esley, accompanied by his brother Charles, and the Messrs. Ingham and Delaniotte, left London on the 14th day of October, 1785, in order to sail with General Oglethorpe for America. Tne minds of both the Wesleys . had been for some considerable time much concerned for their own personal salvation, as well as for the salvation of others, for as yet they had neither of them received the assurance of their acceptance with God through justification by faith in the atonement made by Christ. With their two companions they were now leaving England in order to be instrumental in the conversion of the heathen, themselves still in darkness and in doubt. A merciful Providence was, however, about to lead them in a way they knew not, in order that they might be brought into the full enjoyment of the love of God, and rejoice in His pardoning grace. jrft :; Upon this voyage they found among the passengers a number of pious German Moravians, and from those devoted people they were to learn more fully the way of holiness ; though it was not until after their return to England that, through the instructions and instrumentalitv of the Moravians, they obtained peace through beliaving in Jesus. The Wesleys did not succeed in Georgia as well as they had hoped to do when they left Europe, but they learned much at that time which was very advantageous to them in after years, and this visit to the New World accomplished much in preparing ;hem for the great work before them. Charles returned lome in about a year, and John was again in his native land in February, 173^, the people of the colony not being willing to listen to the }X)inted preaching of these plain M. E. CHURCH IN CANADA, " Methodists," though they were accredited clergymen of the Church of England. Immediately after their return they sought frequent inter- course with the Moravians, and Charles Wesley dates his conversion on the 21st of May, 1738, and John upon the 24th of the same month. They could say with the apostle, '' Therefore being justified by faith we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ. By whom also we have access by faith into this grace wherein we stand and rejoice in hope of the glory of God." And again they could exchr.m, in the language of the service of the Church of England, that religion is '*a sure trust and confidence which a man hath in God, that through the merits of Christ his sins are forgiven, and he reconciled to the favor of God," They became even more zealous than before in their pulpit duties, entering the paricih churches where they could obtain permission to do so, and preaching a present salvation from sin to all who would repent and believe the Gospel ; bui their devoted j^rseverance in this course procured them many enemies as well as friends. The clergy shut their churches against them, and the major." ty of the laity denounced thorn as being righteous overmuch ; but thousands of the ''common people heard them gladly." A new epoch among the Methodists was at hand. Whitefield had recently returned from America, where he too had gone aa a missionary, after the Wcsleys had returned to England, and where ho, too, had been shut out of the pulpits because of his >:eal for the Lord of Hosts. Upon his returr Mr. Whitefield immediately commenced preaching in the fields, and by his eloquence attracted thousands to his meetings, and thus much good was accomplished. Ho advised the Wesleys to go and do likewise, but being tenacious observers of church order they were at first in doubt as to whether such a course would be for the glory of God, er the benefit of the people ; but at length 8 HIHTORY (»F THE perceivinj^ the Providential ()penin<;s made tor them l>y the Head of the Church, they yielded to Mr. Whitefield's judgment in tlie matter, John taking the -Afield" on the 2nd of May, 1739, and Charles on the 24th of June following. It will be remembered that the pious Morgan had led the way by visiting the prisoners, praying with the sick, relieving the poor, and instructing the children in and about Oxford, the Wesleys following in his footsteps. Mr. Whitefield now inaugurates field preaching as a means of carrying on the work of God, he, with his associates of the " Holy Club," having been ejected from the national churches. The Wesleys were slow in adopting any new system, but once convinced that they invaded no man's right, and that the cause of God would be advanced by such a course of procedure, they adopted the measure and henceforward studied only the glory of God and the salvation of sinners. They were not so famous for originating new projects as they were for seizing upon and putting into practical application plans which were calculated to advance the interests of the human family by whosoever suggested. Being now fully committed to field-preaching they went out, literally, into the highways and lanes of the cities, proclaiming the unsearchable riches of Christ to the thousands, who came to listen. Whitefield leading the way, they visited London, Bristol, and other towns, besides various other public places, such as Kingswood, Moorsfield, and (jrloueester, collecting immense crowds and preaching to them wherever they went. By this means '• the poor had the (lospel preached to them." The societies of which Mr. John Wesley speaks so frequently in his journal, about this period in his career, were not classes such as we have now among Methodists, but small associations organized in Loudon by two clergymen named Homeck and Smithies, in 1667, composed of a class of young men who " began to apply themselves in a very serious way to religious thoughts and purposes." These Bocietiee met weekly, mi de contributions M. K. CHURCH IN CANADA. 9 ibr the use of the poor, and appointed stewards to distribute their freewill offerings, but do not appear to have held class- meetijgs as the Methodist societies of the present day do. The principal objects of these societies were the " suppression of vice," the encourafj^ement of religious and secular sducation. aad to assist the poor. Persons were appointed to travel among the people, teaching them to read the Scriptures, and cj\tfcchizing the children. These itinerant instructors accom- plished much good, but notwithstanding that they were coun- tenanced by some of the most zealous of the English Bishops, their societies never became very numerous ; they seem to have made but little progress after the reign of William and Mary. At the time of the commencement of Methodism but few of these societies were in vigorous operation. Eight or nine were still in existence in Ireland, and a limited number in London and Bristol. The Wesleys esteemed these societies very highly because of the piety and usefulness of their members, they therefore frequently met with them and shared in their "feasts of charity." They have, however, long since ceased to exist, having most probably been merged in Mr. Wesley's more perfect organization, viz., his societies called classes. Another important step for the more complete development of Methodism was now about to be taken by Mr. Wesley and his friends, without, however, any design of forming a separate body from the Established Church. The first meeting-house was built in Bristol, the corner stone having been laid on the 12th day of May, 1739. The closing of the churches against Mr. Wesley and his adherents rendered the building of this house necessary. The large numbers who had been awakened to the importance of spiritual things by his preaching in the fields made places of worship, which should be under his own control, in which to accomodate those who thronged to hear him, indispensable. This "preaching-house," or chapel, was not dedicated until after the Foundry at London had been opened for Divine 10 HISTORY OF THE f service. This latter edifice was an old dilapidated buildinp; which had been used by the Government for the purpose of casting cannon. Mr. Wesley was invited to preach in it. He did so, and afterwards secured it for a place of worship, and it soon became the headquarters of Methodism in London. It was opened "on the 11th of November, 1739.'' This year may be made the date of the commencement of Methodism properly organized. Up to this period, and for some months afterward, Mr. Wesley and his brother Charles, as well as Mr. Whitefield, had associated with the Moravians at Fetter Lane and other places. A necessity for a separation from the Moravian Brethren about this time arose, and like Abram and Lot they parted because their followers could not agree to dwell together in peace. Mr. Wesley ardently loved the Moravian preachers, they had been the means of great spiritual benefit to him, but the time had arrived for him and them to lead different departments in the Christian army. - With regard to the origin of the United Societies, Mr. Wesley says that " in the latter end of the year 1739 eight or ten persons came to me in London who appeared to be deeply convinced of sin and earnestly groaning for redemption.'" Others came the next day, for their numbers increased daily, and he gave them such advice as he 4eemed necessary for their spiritual benefit. About this period he also formed " Band Societies," and published a volume of " Hymns and Foems " for the use of the " people called Methodists." Mr. Whitefield had left England in August to re-visit America, and had desired Mr. Wesley to take the charge of the souls he had been instrumental in leading to Christ. The glorious work of reformation began to spread more exten- sively than ever. The lanes of the cities and the fields became in many places vocal with prayer and praise. Thousands flocked to listen to the sacred truths of the Gospel, and while the messengers of salvation proclaimed a full and free pardon, through faith in Jesus Christ, to every repenting sinner, M. E. CHURCH IN CANADA. 11 li hundreds would fall prostrate to the ground crying for mercy, and would soon after arise praising God for delivering grace. These mental exercises and physical demonstrations were at first condemned ; but Mr. Wesley was forced, when called on to account for these strange scenes, to say, in the language of Peter, " What was I that I could withstand God ? " So rapidly did the cause of the Redeemer extend that Mr. Wesley and his brethren in the regular ministry could not supply the congregations, and in consequence lay preachers were accepted to assist in the great work. Mr. Maxfield was the first who entered the ranks of what has since become a numerous host, who, with the Divine appro- bation resting upon their labors, have successfully assisted in spreading scriptural holiness over the world. John Nelson, so celebrated in Methodist history, about this time commenced to exhort and shortly afterwards to preach, and soon a multitude of itinerant lay preachers were employed in the Lord's vineyard, assisting the founder of Methodism in carrying on the great work of leading souls to Christ. At the time of Nelson's conversion he was from home, working at his trade, that of a, stone-mason. He heard Wesley preach at Moorfields, and becoming convinced of sin he sought and obtained peace in believing. As soon as he could do so he returned to his family and friends in order to tell them "how great things God had done for him." Upon his arrival his friends naturally desired to learn something respecting the Methodists, although many of them were fearful that he was laboring under the delusion of the devil, and Nelson, without any preconceived idea of becoming a preacher, began to tell the people who called upon him what God was doing for the inhabitants of London. At first he sat in his house and merely conversed with those who came in, but as the crowds increased he found it necessary to stand at the door, where he first told them what he had himself seen and 2 12 HISTORY OF THE h J ' ! I lliil Uv MS experienced, and afterwards strove to impress upon the minds of his listeners the great truths which he had learned, and which had been of so much benefit to him. Upon hearing of Nelson's zeal Mr. Wesley hastened to Bristol, and was ''surprised to find a society and a preacher awaiting him. He addressed them and hundreds of others on the top of Bristol Hill. He recognized Nelson as one of his ' helpers,' and his band of rustic followers as one of his United Societies." The division of the Societies into classes, and the appoint- ment of class-leaders originated in consequence of the debt on the chapel at Bristol. Mr. Wesley was responsible for the liabilities, and "it was decided that each member of the Society should contribute at least one penny per week in order to reduce the burden. The Society in Bristol was therefore divided into small classes," numbering about twelve persons each, one of whom was appointed to collect the amount and hand it to the stewards. This person was called the leader. The duty of the leader was to visit each member of his class once a week, to receive their contributions, and where parties were found who were too poor to pay the stipulated sum, the leader or some wealthier member would generally pay it for them. These leaders found, on visiting the members at their own homes, that some of them " walked disorderly," and needed to be reproved and to be instructed more fully in the doctrines of the Grospel. Mr. Wesley was not long in deciding what course io pursue in order to make this new adjunct to Methodism spiritually beneficial to the societies. It was determined that the classes should assemble once a week, when the leaders were to inquire of the members what progress they were making in the divine life, and was to give such admonition or advice as was deemed necessary. These meetings for Christian fellowship commonly commenced with an exhortation, singing and prayer, and after the members had spoken, the services were concluded by praise and M. E. CHURCH IN CANADA. 13 Hupplication. The meeting of the class in one place saved the leader much time in collecting the contributions, and became a source of great religious improvement to the membership of the several societies. Since that period the institution of class-meetings has lost nothing of its essential religious pecu- liarities, but is quite as great an assistance now to a growth in grace as it was at the commencement of Methodism, and especially so to pcnitcis or young converts. Having found that good had resulted from the class-meetings at Bristol, Mr. Wcf^ley called some of his friends together in London and obtained their consent to divide the society there also into '' smaller companies called classes." From that time the arrangement became uniform among 3Iethodists, and continues to exist to the present time as a vital feature of the Christian polity of the various Methodistic bodies throughout the world. Mr. Wesley called his first Conference on the 25th day of June, 1744. There were present six ordained clergymen and four lay preachers. The clergymen were, the Revs. John and Charles Wesley, John Hodges, Henry Piers, Samuel Taylor and John Meriton. Laymen, Thomas Maxfield, Thomas Richards, John Bennet and John Downs. The Conference was entertained by Lady Huntingdon, but met for the transaction of business in the old Foundry. Five days were spent in consultation and in arranging plans for future operations, and also in considering certain points of doctrine and discipline, when they separated, on Friday, to go forth again as luminaries spreading scriptural light throughout the land, although they were well aware that persecution and even bonds awaited them. Already they had been shut out of the National Churches, and had been mobbed while preaching in the fields and on the conimons ; but no fears deterred them. Mr. Wesley when shut out of the old church of his father, at Epworth, had considered it no dishonor to either the living or the dead to stand upon his father's tombstone, and from thia u HISTORY OP THE i! I i H: titrangc pulpit call sinners to repentance. God manifested Himself to the assembled multitude in power, and many were moved by the Holy Spirit to seek the pearl of {»roat price. Methodism was fast spreading through various parts of England. The few clergymen of the Established Church who now itinerated with the Wesley s cordially co-operated with the " lay helpers." Wales had shared in the glorious reformation, and now from Ireland was heard the Macedonian cry, " Come over and help us." Mr. Wesley hastened to their relief, " assuredly gathering that tlie Lord had called him to preach the Gospel unto them ;" he reached " Dublin on Sunday, the 19th August, 1747, and went immediately to St. Mary's Church, and was permitted by the curate to preach in the afternoon to a gay and careless congregation," with apparently but little eftect upon the audience. He was, however, soon much encouraged by finding Mr. Thomas Williams, a local preacher from England, who had been preaching to the people and had already formed a society in Dublin, numbering about three hundred members. Here, as in the case of John Nelson and his little flock at Bristol, Mr. Wesley found a preacher and society awaiting him, which he gladly acknowledged as being in the regular and legitimate line of Methodistic succession. He met and conversed with them as lie was accustomed to do with the societies in Bristol, Newcastle and London, exhorting them to " steadfastness in the faith." In his journal he " pronounced the Irish people the politest he had ever seen." Before the visit of Mr. Wesley the Methodists in Dublin had procured the use of an old Lutheran ch'.irch as a place of worship, and in it he hastened to expound the word of life, though on some occasions the throng was so great that there was not room for the multitude " no, not so much as about the door." Having spent fourteen days among them he returned to England highly delighted with the hospitalitj and Christian deportment of the Irish societies. • M. E. CHURCH IN CANADA. 16 Mr. CharlcH Wesley, wlio went over to Ireland " about two weeka " afterwards, met with a very different reception, the Roman Catholic priests having stirred up their flocks against the " Swaddlcrs," as they called the 3Iethodists. Extensive riots followed for quite a length of time, the preachers and society were mobbed, and several persons wore killed, among whom was a poor woman who had been attending a field meeting, who was beaten to death. Unhappily, too, these scenes of violence and murder received the sanction, at least indirectly, of many Protestants, and of somo of the clergy of the Church of England. Charles Wesley was not, however, to be deterred I'rom the discharge of his duty. lie preached on Dublin Green and in other places of public resort, as well as in the "preaching house," with great effect. '• The word came with power irresistible, and th^ prayer^^ and sobs of the people often drowned his voice." Efforts were made to bring the rioters to justice, with but partial success ; thi parties brought to trial were either acquitted or only punished very lightly, and after a time Mr. Wesley left the city to visit other portions of the island. Before leaving Dublin, however, he had succeeded in quelling, in a measure, the violent tumult of the people, and had collected means and procured a better place of worship for the society. In the new places to which he went Mr. Wesley was received as a messenger from God, and upon his return to Dublin he was gratified to find that there, too, the lions were comparatively tamed. John Wesley returned to Ireland on the 8th of March, 1748, and Charles went back to England to take charge of the societies there. Methodism soon became firmly established in various parts of Ireland ; though in Cork, and many other cities and towns, the little flocks suffered from violent persecution. In 1758 we find Mr. Wesley travelling through the County of Sligo. Dr. Stevens says, " lie passed to C lurt Mattress, where he found a colony of Germans, whose fathers had come • 4 It HISTORY OF THE into the country under Queen Annt from the Palatinate on the Rhine. A hundred and ten fi miliow had sottlod in the town and in the adjacent lianilcts of Killiheen, Bally^arraae, and I'ulUiH, and their descendants we' e now numerous. Ilavinp no minister they became noted i()r their drunkenness and profanity, and an utter contempt for rclij^ion ; but they had chanj^ed remarkably since they had heard the truth from the Methodist itinerants ; an oath was now rarely heard among them, nor a drunkard seen in their borders. They liad built a larj:;e preach in<>-house in the middle of the Court Mattress. Many times afterwards Wesley preached amon<:ij them, as did also his fellow laborers, and with lasting- effect. So did God at last provide for these poor strangers, who for fifty yeart» had none thuL cared for their souls. " At a later visit Mr. Wesley says that ' such towns art Killiheen, 13 allyjiarranc and Court Mattress could hardly be found elsewhere in Ireland or Bn<;land ; there was no profanity, no Sabbath-breaking, no ale-house in any of them." \ It is not the author's purpose to trace, at present, the history of Methodism in Europe further than to the period when it broke over the barriers of the sea-girt isles and was transplanted in the new world, through the instrumentality of a few Irish emigrants, which event occurred about fourteen years after Mr. John ^Vesley's first visit to the County of Sligo. -*."* W. K. CnrROII IN CANADA. 17 CHAPTER II. FIIOM THE KMIUUATION OF Mil. EMIJUUV TU THE ORDINATION OF BISHOP ASBUIlV. E.xtciisiou of M(^tlio(liHin — Emigriitioii of I'hilip K'Mhury, the HeckH, &c., — rromptc'd tluTcto by J^iirbani Hi'ck, Eniltuiy Itcgins to proHch to liis coiintrymi'ii — He not lunonf; the ami players— llobort Struwbri(lf<(! prcacht'S In Maryhind — Whhh had tho j)iiority ? — (Japtairi Wel)b — A(hlitions to tlu; Society — The rififginp loft — Methodism Htucessful iii New York — The ligginj^ loit becomes too small — Mrs. Heck urges the buildir.gof a meeting- house — Old Jciin Street Church Ituilt — Strawbridge labors with Huceess in Maryland — Tho old log meeting-house — Boardman and Pillnion; are sent to America — Mr. Asbury — Additional l)reach.'rs sent out — The lirst Ccmference, of whom composed — William Watters the first American Itinerant — Upon the declar- ation of Independence the Englisli preachers generally return to Europe — Mr. Asbury remains — Dr. Coke — F'rst (Jeneral Con- ference — Mr. Wesley's plan for the American Church approved — M. E. Church organized — Coke and Asbury elected General Superintendents — Asbury ordained — At the close of the Revolu- tionary war many M(!th(>dists remove to tlie British possessions. The work of God throuf2;h the instrumentality of the Methodist itinerants had spread over the greater part of England, Ireland and Wales, had been introduced into Scotland and the West Indian Islands, and was now destined, on the Continent of America, through the instrumentality of this same Methodism, to extend still more widely. The work of reformation commenced at Oxford had not been confined to the lower classes alone. Its benign and cheering influences had reached and operated upon the hearts of many of the wealthy and noble of the land, who now contributed largely of the means at their disposal for the extension of the 18 HISTORY OP THE t if li ' I ■ !' I work in which Mr. Wesley and his co-laborers were engaged. The success of Methodirm in the County of Sligo, Ireland, will be remembered. A number of these German Irish, whose fathers half a century before had left the " Palatinate on the Rhine," in consequence of a cruel war, and had found refuge ic Ireland, had now determined to remove to the far off western continent. Among these emigrants was Philip Embury, a young Methodist local preacher. When the ship was about to sail, Embury stood upon its crowded deck and addic3sed the friends of the emigrants who had come to bid their relatives farewell. The scene was one of peculiar interest. A company leaving home aid kindred to try their future in a strange land ; the dange^^ of the mighty ocean were before them ; the privations and afflictions of a new country were to be met and succe5:,sfully braved, or poverty, sorrow and dipapp* lintment must be endured. The anchor was raised at last, the sails spread and the ship moved out upon the boisterous deep to contend for a time with the winds, the waves, and the tides. The land receded rapidly from view, pnd the loved ones on the vessel and those 0:1 the shore, with tear-bathcd faces looked u long adieu to friends and kindred. Who among that group assembled there could have imagined the mighty results which were to follow the exertions of the u^an who had that day addressed them from the deck of the emigrant ship ? The vessel reached its destined port in safety on the 10th of August, 17G0, and Phihp Embury, with his fellow colonists, settled in New York. This company, according to Dr. Stevens, consisted of Phihp Embury and his wife, Mary Switzer, to whom he had been married on the 27th of November, 1758, in the Rathkale church ; two of his brothers and their families ; Peler Switzer, probably a brother of his wife ; Valer Tettler ; PhiUp Morgan, and a family of Dulniages, with Paul Heck and Barbara his wife. Id 1765 another little band of emigrants from the same M. E. CHURCH IN CANADA. 19 place reached New York, and with them Mrs. Heck renewed her former acquaintance. Mrs. Heck and several of these Sligo emigrants had been members of the Methodist societies in Ireland, as well as Embury, but after their arrival in this new country they hung their harp on the willow, and said i-/ eflFect, " How can we sing the Lord's song in a strange land ?" Embury and his associates became disheartened and lukewarm in religion, and, in consequence, some of their number baekslid and became openly wicked. Mrs. Heck on one occasion, on going to visit one of these families, coming in upon them unexpectedly, found pcme of the party engaged in playing cards. Her righteous soul was grieved, and step- ping forward she gathered up the cards and threw them into the fire, at the same time reproving the delinquents sharply. Knowing a3 she did that Philip Embury, who was a cousin of her own, had been a local preacher in his native land, she went directly to his house and urged him to set at once about his Master's work. He replied that he had no suitable place in which to preach, and if he had, did not know that he could secure a congregation. Mrs. Heck, however, over-ruled these objections, and having prevailed on him to consent to preach, she went out, and returned with four other persons, the five constituting his first congregation in America. Mr. Embury was not among the card players — does not appear even to have been in the same house with them. 4r': ^fiv lyi i^ It is a disputed point as to who formed the first Methodist Society on the American continent, some asserting that the first society was organized in Maryland, in 1760, by Robert. Strawbridge, a local preacher from the north of Ireland ; while others claim tfiat Philip Embury organized tlie first society in 1766, in New York. The evidence seems to preponderate in favor of Philip Embury and the New York society. Mr. Strawbridge was an active, zealous local preacher, and at a very early period in American Methodist history was 20 HISTORY OF THE I i ;fi instrumental in causing the erection of what was afterwards knorrn as the " old log meeting house," in Frederick county, near Sam's Creek, in the Stat<^ of Maryland. .18 far as the question of priority relates to us of the present generation, it makes but little diflferance which of these laborious pioneers established the first society ; it is the almost miraculous results which followed the exertions of both with which '^'e are most concerned. Upon this question the General Conference of the M. E. Church in the United States, held at BuflFalo, in 1860, adopted a rejK)rt from which the following paragraph is an extract : — " As to the date of the introduction of Methodism into this country, the testimony is not as satisfactory as we might desire. The most generally recognised date has been the formation, in New York, of the first Methodist society in America, in 1766. But the testimony is conclusive, from the published communi- cations of Rev. Dr. G. C. M. Roberts, that Rev. Robert Straw- bridge, a Wesleyan preacher from Ireland, did arrive in America as early as 1760,^' and shortly after began preaching and administering baptism, in the State of Maryland and that Methodism did thus have an existence in America prior to the forinatiou of the society mentioned above, in New York, in 1766. Your Committee feel that the Church would be doing no violence to historic truth to fix upon either 1860 or 1866 as the centenary of American Methodism." Shortly after Mrs. Heck induced Mr. Embury to commence preaching in New York he organized a class, or society, on Mr. Wesley's plan, following the example of Nelson in England, and Williams in Ireland. Tiie Methodists in New York were * Mr. Shillington, who iti regarded by Dr. Stevens as the " best Irish authority " in these matters, fixes tlie date of Strawbridge's emigration as " not earlier than 1T64, nor later than 1765." Very searching investigations have been made with regard to these rival claims ; and the General Conference, as is well kno'/n, finally gave the preference to 1866 for the celebration of the centenary of American Methodism. M. E. CHURCH IN CANADA. 21 few and at first attracted but little attention. By degrees, however, Embury's discourses drew an occasional stranger, until the house could not contain the people. It was then decided to rent a larger room for public worship, the congregation paying expenses. About this period a new impulse was given to the eflforts of the "little flock." Captain Webb, a British officer, who was stationed with his regiment at Albany, and who had joined the Methodists in England in 1765, was anxious to visit his brethren in New York, and one evening, to the surprise and alarm of the society, he entered their humble "room and took a seat in their small assembly, dressed in his regimentals. All eyes were for a moment fastened on the stranger, fearful that he had come to disturb the meeting. But when they saw him kneel in prayer, and engage devoutly in the services, their distrust and sorrow at his approach was turned into joy as they iocognised by his deportment that he was one with them. After the services had been concluded he made himself known to them, and as he had been a local preacher in England Mr. Embury invited him to preach when in the city — a request with which he cordially complied. A British officer standing before a congregation, clad in a scarlet coat, with his epaulets and other military habiliments, pro- claiming the gospel of Christ to the people, was indeed a strange sight, and this, together with his earnest manner of bpeaking, attracted many to the preaching of the Methodists. A spirit of awakening followed, and several were converted and added to the society. In consequence of the numbers who came to hear the word, a still larger place of worship had to be pro- cured, and a "rigging loft in William Street" was secured and fitted up for the purpose. Without any premeditated design Mr. Embury and the New York society were closely following the example of their co-religionists in London, England, who were worshipping in the old Foundry. Humble edifices in both instances, but destined to become famous in Methodist history. m if 22 HISTORY OP THE I ;iaptain Webb now entered more fully upon his Master's work, preaching as he had opportunity to the inhabitants of Long Island, as well as in other places, extending his labors as far as Philadelphia, and his efforts were abundantly owned and blessed. While Captain Webb was thus engaged out of New York, Mr. Embury was ear :'estly proclaiming a full salva- tion to the crowds who now came to listen to him in the rigging loft. It, like the rooms before used for worship, became too small to accommodate those who came to hear, and the society, urged to do so by Mrs. Heck, resolved to build a new meeting- house. In this undertaking they were aided by citizens who were not members of the society, and John Street Church was the result of their united eflForts. The Church was named "Wesley Chapel," and was dedicated to the worship of God October 30th, 17G8, by Philip Embury. While Captian Webb and Mr, Embury were leading forward the hosts of Israel in New York and it« vicinity, Mr. Strawbridge was unfurling the banner of the cross in Maryland. Like other local preachers similarly situated, he commenced preaching in his own and other private houses, " and very soon a society was collected of such as desired to flee from the wrath to come and to be saved from their sins." The log- meeting house was erected, and he continued to preach and to take care of the classes there until Mr. Wesley sent out preacher to take the oversight of the societies in America. The success which had attended the exertions of Embury in New York, of Strawbridge in Maryland, and of Webb in Philadelphia, was a source of great joy to Mr. Wesley and his co-laborers in Europe. Mr. Wesley was solicited, by the American societies, to send out missionaries who could devote thei*" whole time to the ministry of the word ; and in 1769 he complied with their request, sending out Richard Boardman and Joseph Pillmore, who had oflFered themselves for the work. The conference was convened by Mr. Wesley in that year, at Leeds, in August ; bat the missionaries, having had a tedious voyage of nine weeks, did not reach their destination until I* M. E. CHURCH IN CANADA. 23 Ootobor. They landed at Gloucester Point, six miles below Philadelphia, October 24th, 1769, and were agreeably sur- prised on reaching Philadelphia to find Captain Webb there at the head of a society of about one hundred members, anxiously awaiting their arrival. Mr. Pillmore remained for a time in Philadelphia, while Mr. Boardman went on immediately to New York, where he found a society, under the charge of Mr. Embury, numbering about the same as the one in Philadelphia. m I \V{ m 26 HISTORY OP THE see eye to eye on all matters of Church polity, they labored together in such a way that the work was not hindered. • The difficulties which had for several years existed between the American Colonies and the British Government now began to be more fully developed. There had been demon- strations of open hostility to home authorities, and upon the 4th of July, 1776, Congress declared the thirteen American Colonies " free and independent States." At this crisis Mr. Ilankin, with several of his brethren, returned to Europe, but Mr. Asbury decided to remain with the societies, and do all that lay in his power to uphold the cause of his Redeemer. In connection with many of his brethren he suffered much during the sanguinary struggle of the American Revolution ; but he braved the storm, and with his associates in the ministry was at his post ready to commence the Methodist campaign as soon as the Revolution should terminate. As is the case in every country during war, the cause of God suffered more or less during the American conflict, but through the exertions of Mr. Asbury, Freeborn Garretson, Joseph Hartely, and some others, the societies were visited as far as it was practicable, and sermons occasionally delivered while the war was in progress. Great Britain acknowledged the independence of the United States in 1783. The following year Mr. Wesley ordained Vr. Coke as Bishop, or General Superintendent, and sent him, with the Messrs. Whatcoat and Vasey, whom he ordained Elders, to America, to organize the societies into a regular scriptural church, with its Bishops, Elders, and Deacons. These brethren Mr. Wesley furnished with their consecration parchments, and also sent with them a letter of introduction to the American Methodists, assigning the reasons for the step which he had taken preparatory to the organization of the Methodist Episcopal Church in America. Dr. Coke, and the Messrs. Whatcoat and Vasey reached M. E. CHURCH IN CANADA. 27 i id 3d New York on the 3rd of November, 1784, from whence they immediately proceeded to the State of Delaware, in order to meet Mr, Asbury, who was associated, by Mr. Wesley, with Dr. Coke, as one of the Superintendents of the Methodist Church in the United States. After a consultation with Mr. Asbury and some others of the American brethren, it was decided that a General Conference should be summoned in order to consider the scheme proposed by Mr. Wesley. To the call thus made sixty out of eighty responded, and assembled in Baltimore on the 25th of December, 1784. Dr. Coke presented to the Conference Mr. Wesley's plan of forming the Methodist societies in America into a Church. The measure was approved, and in evidence of their acqui- escence in the scheme the Conference proceeded " to elect Dr. Coke and Francis Asbury, General Superintendents ; for although Mr. Asbury had been appointed to that high office by Mr. Wesley, yet he declined acting in tliat capacity Independent of the suftrages of his brethren over whom he must preside." Mr. Asbury was first ordained Deacon, then Elder ; and before the close of the Conference he was con- secrated to the office of Bishop, by the imposition of the hands of Dr. Coke, lUchard Whatcoat, and Thomas Vasey, assisted by the Rev. Mr. Otterbein, a pious minister of the German Church. Dr. Coke having been properly ordained Bishop by Mr. Wesley and other Presbyters of the Church of England, and the Messrs. Whatcoat and Vasey being Elders, they had authority to ordain Bishop Asbury, without the assistance of Mr. Otterbein ; but as it was Mr. Asbury's wish that he should be associated with the others' in the service, and there being no objection made, the request was complied with. At this Conference a number of the preachers were ordained Deacons and Elders, and several new rules were adopted for the further guidance of the body. The proceedings of this fir.st General Conference gave the 3 M 28 HISTORY OP THE utmost sati.staction to the preachers and people throughout the country. Extensive revivals followed — the legitimate result of a united Church with a zealous and pious ministry, whose efforts were crowned with success by the Almighty. In consequence of the Revolutionary war many members of the Methodist societies removed to the British possessions, having adhered throughout the war to the Imperial Govern- ment, and many others also emigrated shortly after peace was proclaimed. The attention of the reader will henceforward be more particularly directed to the introduction of Methodism into Canada, and to the tracing of its history in this highly favored land. Ji :;„fS':,;:'V': ■^ni..,J • r;,(i,V .;;' •;., '■-- '>•>" ''>•■.> ;"i ■ > ; 'ir,,f,..t^V'' . w li ■ ■ ■ f , .,.•.; 1 iM iv- "'ii)' . p i ».. " !;-■ .>ind'K ;'r^.;. . ■ 1 ::,j -i w-7 ■" ' J \ _:i'H; ■.Win. f>>'; ■• .^^«--/j/^^ .. '"■• , • I. _^.,> ;.":■., { : .\ ' I ■■■•'-.■ T ■ ' , -Hi V' ii''^ ^hik:l> - >:M'^' .'^R^M^'^ ■'■;ti tj'ii ■ i q M. E. CHURCH IN CANADA. 29 CHAPTER III. 1 >8 Ml l'IONn':HU MKTIirM)ISTS IN CANADA. Kmbury rcmovcH to Asbgrove, N. V. — Is followed l»y tlio Hocks and others — Prfarlies and forms a society — Death — lle-intcrinent — The Hee^H, Emburys, ite., kc, remove to Canada — First Methodist class in Canada — No preacher, either travelling; or local — MrTuffey — (leorfjjeNeal — Tl is military career — Conversion — Comes to Canada — Preaclies — I'ersecuted — Death of the Pei- seoutor — ('ontinnes to ])reach without further molestation — Forms u society — Ordained — TIsirfulness — Death — Mr. TiVony — James McCarty — Cast into prison for preaching the (lospel of Christ — His wife and friend I'erry denied access to him — Th>' kind Irishwoman Sentenced to imprisonment on one of the Thousand Islands — Pn^vails on those who are conducting; him thither to land him on tlie main-land — lleturns to his family — Preaches the next Sabbath — Again arrested — Sentenced a second time to transportation — Reasons fur believing that he was murdered — End of the persecutors. A NUMBER of tho Irish Palatines, who, under (Jod, were the founders of Methodism in New York, were als^o the founders of Methodism in Canada. About the yeiir 17G0 Philip Embury and family left the city of New York and located themselves at Ashgrove. They were followed, in 1770 or 1771, by Paul and Barbara Heck, their three sons, and several others of the New York society. Here again, as in New- York, Embury held meetings among the people, and formed a class, the first within the bounds of the present Troy Conference. This zealous and eminently useful man died Kuddenly, in 1773, from injury received while mowing ; he was buried on the farm of his friend Peter Switzcr ; whence, after the lapse of more than half a century, his remains were -:rsm 30 lilSTOICif OF IllE removed U> the Aslij^rovn burial ground, where they were ro-interrcd with nppropriiite cercmonicM; an eU)quent addrew, suited to tiie peeuliarly irltero^iting oceasiou, was delivered by his gifted eountryman, llev. J. N. Maflit, to the larj^e iisacmbhige gathered together thus to evidenee their veneration for the nicniory of the sainted Embury. In 1774, in conserjuence of the evidtintly approaeliiug revolutionary storm, and being ardently attaehe> ,-.*i '■■' "i '■■ } :i V, -Ho ■■■'': .-'l-'v'. CHAPTER IV. ."i;' ^(-.t:-. I' i I KliOM 1789 TO i7U2. Rov. Wm. L()S(!t! visits Canada — Proaches to the little flocks in the wilderness — They, tlirough him, request the Conference to send them ministers — Losee is appointed — His character as a preaclior — The scofter humhled — Class of persons who constituted the first societies — Progress of the work, TiJE Rev. William Losee was the first itinerant Methodist preacher who came to Canada. Mr. L. was received as a pro- bationer at the Conference held in New York, commencing 28th of May, 1789, and was appointed that year, with the Rev. JJavid Kendall, to the Lake Champlain Circuit. This region of country was then but sparsely settled, dotted only here and there with a civilized habitation. From the most reliable information that can now be obtained it would appear that the missionaries did not succeed in establishing any Hocieties that year. The summer months having most prob- ably been spent in exploring the country and preaching to the scattered inhabitants, and not having met with the success which they expected there, it is supposed that the Presiding Elder, Rev. Freeborn Garrettson, recommended Mr. Losee to visit Canada, where he had relatives residing, hoping that an effectual door might be opened in the British possessions for the messengers of salvation. The reason for assuming that the Messrs. Kendall and Losee were unsuccessful on the Lake Champlain circuit is, that no returns of members were made for that year, and at the next M. E. CHURCH IN CANADA. 41 Conference the name of the charj?e disappeared from the Minutes. A variety of circumstances lead to the inference that Mr. Losee crossed the St. Lawrence and commenced travelling up the river, on the Canadian side, in the latter part of December, 1789, or in the beginning of January, 1790. It is asserted that he preached for the society in Augusta, and also in various places, as he passed up to the Bay of Quinte, where he found the little flocks collected by the Messrs. Lyons and McCarty, and immediately entered upon his labors among them. How long it required for Mr. Losee to travel from Lake Champlain to the Bay of Quinte, cannot be decided ; but as he had to pass through an almost interminable forest, and as he was sent on a warfare at his own temporal charges, it is reason- able to suppose that he endured severe hardships. Mr. Kendall was sent, in 1790, to Long Island^ but there is no mention made of Mr. Losee in connection with a v circuit, although he was continued on trial by the Conference, which proves conclusively that he had the confidence of the Con- ference, his Presiding Elder, and the Bishop. How or where Mr. Losee spent the spring and summer of 1790 aannot now be ascertained, as he only remained a portion of that year in Canada. It is not likely, however, that he was idle, having most probably spent his time in some part of the United States. The facilities for travelling were not so good in those days, nor did news circulate so rapidly as in these days of steamboats, railroads and telegraphs; consequently, communication between friends at a distance was always difficult,, and sometimes impos- sible. It required a long time to travel from Canada to New York, even when the nearest possible route was taken. At the present day, such a journey performed as the early pioneers were obliged to do it, on horseback or on foot, would be considered a great undertaking, although the roads might be good, the bridges safe, and the accommodation^ along the route both convenient and comfortable ; but in Mr LoseeV V . 1 , 1 ^ i ' !■ ,' :v I Il 'II I 1i!!i < m m il III 42 HISTORY OF THK day, no matter which one of the several routes was taken, hw journey through the wilderness must have been long, difficult, and not a little perilous, being obliged as he was to cut his way through the bush, follow the windings of the Indian trails, wade through creeks or swamps, and ford thj larger streams, or delay long enough to construct a raft in order to cross th<^ rivers which it was found impracticable either to ford or swim ; while food was only to be procured by gathering wild roots, or by the chase. It has already been intimated that the Canadian people had sent an earnest request to the New York Conference, by Mr. Losee, affectionately urging that body to send ministers to this Province. The petition was cordially received, and at the Conference of 1791 Mr. Losec was ordained Deacon, and sent to Kingston, Upper Canada, Kev. Jesse Lee being his Presiding Elder; though it doe.i not appear that Mr. Lee visited the Province during the year at all. Mr. Loset^ reached his field of labor in February, 1791, and immediately commenced his work, preaching among the people whom he had visited the winter previous, and organizing the classes regularly, neither Mr. Lyons nor Mr. McCarty having fo'-med any. Mr. Losee organized the first class on the Kingston Circuit on Sunday, February 20th, 1791, this being the third organized in the country; the fourth class wjis formed on the following Sabbath, and the fifth class in Canada, and the third on the Kingston charge, " on Wednes- day, the 2nd of March, the day on which Mr. John Wesley died." The work in Canada may now be said to have been fairly commenced. Mr. Loseo was a plain and powerful preacher, and frequently Vv ry pointed in his remarks to the ungodly. It is related of him that on one occasion, when preaching at Hay Bay, a powerful man, who had at different times disturbed religious worship, entered the assembly and began, aa usual, to annoy all those who were near him by his V.J.' I M. E. OUUROH IN CANADA. 4H n in \ : 1 i II irreverenco and scoffing. Mr. Losee for some time cuDtinucd preaching without appearing to notice the disturber, waxing warmer, however, and more eloquent, m he proceeded. At length, when the scoffer had passed all bounds, the minister i^uddcnly paused, and fixing his dark piercing eye upon the man, and at the same time pointing his finger directly at him, said in an exceedingly solemn manner, "0 Lord, sruite him!" '' Amen," heartily resjwnded some of the worshippers. The "amcns" had scarcely died away when, again, with still gi*eatcr emphasis than before, Mr. Losee pronounced the same words, "O Lord, smite him!'' '*Amen'' again rang through the congregation. The olTcnder leaped to his feet to leave the pl-'c, but before he had taken the first step the preacher once more cried out at the top of his voice, " Lord, smite iiim 1 "' and at the same instant down the man fell, as though he had been shot. The scene which followed was indescribably solenm and impressive. Sinners trembled and wept, prayer and praise became general among believers ; it was indeed a time of power. The man, Jis soon as he fell, had begun to call upon God for mercy, and thus he who had come " to mock, remained to pray," and was some time after added to the "number of the disciples." In this manner the word grew and multiplied in the land. There is another Kingston circuit mentioned in the Minutas of 1791, which has been mistaken by some for Kingston, Upper Canada, but which, from its connection with the other circuits among which it is placed, clearly indicates it to have been situated in the Southern States. Rev. Francis Parker was appointed to the Southern Kingston, while Mr. Losee was sent to Kingston, Upper Canada. There does not appear to have been any return of members from Canada up to the time of Mr. Losee's appointment to Kingston. The society at Augusta had been organized before this period, and so also had the class at Stamford. The year following Mr. Losee's appointment to the Canadian work we 44 HISTORY OP THE find the niime of Kinj^ston dropped Jind Cataraqui substituted, with a rctiiTi of 105 members as tho first fruit of Loseo'H labors, taken in connection with the efForts previously made by Ilcck and Embury in Auj^sta, and by Lyons and McCarty on the .^^horcs of the Buy of Quinte. Whether Mr. Lot ee or the Mothodists in the ca^t hud any knowledge of Mr. Neal and his society about Niagara or not, cannot at thi» late period be determined, nor has it been ascertained whether or not the members in tlie Augusta or Stamford society were included in the returns. Having organized those into societies along the Bay of Quinte who had been brought under the influence of Methodism by tho exertions of his predecessors, and his own labors the winter previous, Mr. Losee commenced to form an extensive circuit east and west of Kingston. In passing irom settlement to settlement amonj scattered inhaldtants, the itinerant found here and there persons who had heard the Methodist preachers in P]uropo and the United States, prior to their removal to Canada, some of whom had been converted at their far-off homes, and others who, though not Methodists themselves, were yet favorably impressed by what they saw of them. Many of the United Empire Loyalists who had left the United States shortly after its independence, as well as during the progress of the war, had been Methodistfi at homo, and numbers of these, together with some of the dfisbanded British soldiers, and other emigrants more directly from the mother country, gladly opened their little cabins to the ministers of Christ. "Glad tidings of great joy" were proclaimed to them, and the word proved " quick and powerful." Sinners in the anguish of an awak- ened conscience cried out, "Men and brethren, what must Me do to be saved? " while the earnest, faithful pastor exhorted ^' them to repentance and faith through believing in Christ, and on many occasions strong men fell to the ground, apparently M. K. CHURCH IN CANADA. 46 Htelcfs, and ul'U^r a time returned Id eoiisciousne.ss, prnisin}; (lod I'or a full salvation from sin. So intere.Htod wttre the inhabitants by the r('lij;^ious services of Mr. LoBce and the proaeherswho Iblluwod him tliat they trav- elled miles throui^h the woods, often with their ox tean.s and andfilcds^or on foot, not unfrequently carryinj; their children in their arras or upon their backs, in order that they might listen to the word of life ; and u})on the conclusion of the services, re- turned to their homes, lighting their paths in the niglit with their torches, illuminating tlie wilderness :is they went, and causing the forest to resound with the songs ofZiou. Houls were awakened or converted at almost every meeting, indeed at this period the declaration of the prophet was peculiarly applicable, '-The wildern s and the solitary place shall be glad for them ; and tlie desert shall rejoice, and blossom us the rose. It shall blossom abundantly, and rejoice even with joy and singing ; the glory of Lebanon shall be given unto it, the excellency of Carmel and Sharon, they shall see the glory of Uie Lord and the excellency of our God." The Church, however, had to pass through clouds as well as sunshine. There were stout-hearted sinners wlio opposed and persecuted the followers of Christ, and severely tried the piously disposed members of their own households, because of their religious principles. lOven the nussengers of peace themselves were frequently maltreated by m(;n who neither regarded God nor man. But the little band of Israel moved forward in defiance of all opposing influences, " clear as the Bun, fair as the moon, and terrible a.<3 an army with banners." 'j^ ,:'. .■'.;.T'„^.*' • ■*._ 46 HISTORY OP THE ll W.I CHAPTER V. FllOM 1792 TO 1705. Second year of regular missionary lal»or— Mr. Losee returns to th« mission — Rev. Darius Dunham s(!nt with him — Tt'^ work is divided into two circuits — The first Quarterly Me^eting — The Lord's Supper administered — The preachers repair to thtir respeci've fields of l.ibor — Erection of the first Methodist meeting-house — Mr. Losoc retires from the itinerancy, and sub- sequently leaves the Province — Canada Is set off as a separate District-— Arrival of more missionaries — They visit Niagara and hold a Quarterly Meeting — The people much encouraged. Mr. Losee, at the Conference of 1792, gave such a feeling description of the lamentable spiritual destitution of the people in Canada, and pleaded their cause ao earnestly, that Bishop Asbury resolved to send more laborers to his assistance. Rev. Darius Dunham, who had been ordained Elder the year pre- vious, offered himself as a missionary, and was accepted. After the close of the Conference, which this year com- menced its session on the 15th of August, the two Missionaries set out for Canada, and reached Ernestown before the middle of the next month. The Canadian work was divided into two charges — the one cast of Kingston, extending down the St. Lawrence, called Oswegotchie, and the other extend- ing westward up the Bay of Quinte, called Cataraqui. The names of both circuits were of Indian origin, and referred more particularly to Cc^rtain streams of water which ran through them, the one emptying into the St. Lawrence, and the other into the Bay of Qidnte. Mr. Losee was appointed B M. E. CIIURCU IN CANADA. 4T to the Oswegotchie charge, and Mr. Dunham to the Cataraqui. The preachers accompanied each othar as far as Ernestown, in the \iciniiy of which Mr. Losee had preached the year previous. Mr. Dunham being an Elder, as has already been intimated^ and it being impracticable for the Presiding Elder, Freeborn Oarretson, to visit the province at that time, it was resolved that the missionaries should hold Quarterly Meetings them- selves. Accordingly, the first Quarterly JMecting in Canada was commenced on Saturday, the 15th of September, 1792.. Word having been circulated in the various settlements with great rapidity that such a meeting was to be held, many came for miles through the woods, some to see a '' Methodist Quarterly Meeting," and others to enjoy its spiritual advantages. The religious services were held in the barn of a Mr. Parrot, who lived in the fiist concession of Ernestown. So precious was the word of God in those days that the people were collected from various portions of six townships to attend this meeting. Can we not imagine that we see the whole scene — the people coming through the woods in small companies, men, women, and children, winding their way through swamps and round fallen trees, by means of narrow paths made through the bush. Entering the clearing they are joined by others who have travelled thither in a similar manner ; other companies, and still others join them, until the whole congre- gation has assembled. Some to whom the thing is new stand at a distance from the barn, shy, yet curious ; while others, a little bolder, come nearer and scao tliemselvcs upon the fallen logs, or upon the stumps, in order to witness all that shall take place among those strange people. But to those who have tasted the good word of life and of the powers of the world to come, it is a da) of thankfulness and heartfelt rejoicing as they enter the barn, which is for the time being a sanctuary, and reverently kneeling, earnestly pray for the descent of the Holy Ghost upon themselves and upon the congregation. There are mourners in Zion there, too, ■ ii iNi 48 HISTORY OF THE fearful, yet hoping for a deliverance from sin. The preachem • have taken their seats beside the small stand — the Bible and hymn-book arc already upon it. At length the hymn is given out. and the assembled congregation join in «inging. " Hark ! iu the wilderucss a cry, A voice that loudly calls, Preixu-o ! " The melodious sound, greatly assisted by the powerful batw tones of Mr. Dunham, attracts tho^e of the more fearful, or more careless, who have still remained at a distance, aloof The second hymn is ,sung ; the text is given out, and a soul' stirring sermon follows; weak believers are comforted ; sinners : are converted or awakened, and warm-hearted, earnest Christians rejoice. After the religious services had been closed, and many who had gathered round the preachers and clasped their haads in friendship, had welcomed them to the country and extended to them their hospitality, a Quarterly Meeting Conference was called, and matters were arranged for the better co- operation with and support of each other. As many remfiined over night in the vicinity, staying in the shanties of their friends, a prayor-mecting was held iu the evenings the people finding their way through the forest by the aid of their lighted torches. The love-feast on Sabbath morning was new to many, but wan solemn and impressive, and after the membership had' related their Christian experience, the 3Iethodist ministers, for the first time in Canada, proceeded to administer the sacrament of the Lord's Supper. How refreshing to the people of God, who had so long been deprived of the ordinances of the Lord's house, to be privileged thus once again to com- memorate their Saviour's dying love. This was the beginning of good days among the Methodist people in Canada. Some who had come tf) the mcetiug cast down and disquieted in ' ri!-!] M. £. GHUROH IN CANADA. 49 their minds because of their sins, returned to their homes rejoicing in God their Saviour. Others, who had been actuated by no higher motive in coming to the meeting than the gratification of an idle curiosity, were there arrested by the Spirit's power, and brought, with contrite hearts, to the foot of the cross ; while bystanders exclaimed, " We have seen and heard strange things to-day." Immediately after the Quarterly Meeting Mr. Losee set out for his circuit on the banks of the St. Lawrence, in order to visit the society in Aiigusta, and to open up new fields of labor ; and Mr. Punham commenced his work upon the shores of the Bay of Quinte. Mr. Losee occasionally visited his old friends along the Bay, preaching to them as opportunity occurred, and took a very prominent part in the erection of the first Methodist meeting- house ; but of this more anon. At the close of the year Mr. Losee returned 90 members in connection with the Os^vcgotchie circuit, and Mr. Dunham 259 in connection with the Cataraqui. An occurrence transpired ' his year which, so far as it con- cerned Mr. Losee, was very unfortunate, as he was evidently a, very pious man and devoted to his work as a Christian minister. He became ardently attached to tx young woman who, it appears, did not reciprocate his feelings, and who in a short time accepted the heart and hand of another. Mr. Losee unwisely allowed this to have such an effect upon his mind as to unfit him for his work as an itinerant preacher, and he ever afterward acted only in a local capacity. After having recovered his mental equilibrium he left the country, and, so far as can be ascertained, returned again to it but once, and even then it was not till after a lapse of many years. Upon his final visit to Adolphustown he preached with great acceptability and energy, and was privileged to meet many of his old and tried friends. Though after his disappointment in love he never again resumed his place in the itinerant ranks, . ^l! iili: m't il pll 50 HISTORY OF THE i'n m yet from occasional glimpses obtained of him it is evident that he maintained his integrity to the close of life. Rev. S. Stewart, of the Niagara Annual Conference, who remembers having seen Mr. Losee and heard him preach, says : " I was present at the session of the New York Conference held in Troy, in 1821. Mr. Losce, then an old man with locks as white as wool, was invited to preach on Sabbath before the Conference. He ascended the pulpit steps with a weight of years, but delivered a powerful sermon from Mark x. 48 : * Thou Son of David, have mercy on me.' " Dr. Stewart further adds, '* Having heard much of William Losec when I travelled about Hallowcll, I asked Father Vandusen, one of the first class-leaders in that section of Canada, if Losee was a good preacher. His reply was, ' He was a son of thunder, he feared no man, but warned everj- careless soul he met with on the Bay of Quinte to be reconciled to God.' " After Mr. Losee ceased to travel, the care of both circuits seems to have devolved upon Mr. Dunham. It does not appear from the Minutes that any appointments were made to the Canadian work in 1793 ; yet, from the names of neither of the preachers sent there the previous year appearing this year in connection with any other circuit, it may be inferred that the omission was accidental. The probability is that Mr. Dunham had charge of the work, as his name appears again the next year in connection with it. Mr. Dunham had studied medicine prior to entering the ministry, but he gave up profession, friends, and country, to come into the wilds of Canada in order to bear messages of peace to the people settled there. He united with the Conference on trial, in 1788. In 1790 he was ordained Deacon, and in 1792 he was elected and ordained Elder. During this period he travelled three circuits, viz., Shoreham, Cambridge and Columbia. He travelled the Cambridge circuit two years, and on the other two circuits one year each. M. E. CHURCH IN CANADA. 51 ' a: \ [ I t In 1792 he volunteered, as before mentioned, to come to Canada as a missionary. The district of which Canada formed a part embraced, with that country, the region lying between it and Albany, in the State of New York, Freeborn Garrettson b'jing the Presiding Elder. It does not appear, however, that he visited either of the Cana- dian circuits; it therefore devolved on Mr. Dunham, as he was an Elder, to hold the Quarterly Meetings, and administer the sacraments to the people where it was found expedient to do so. At the Conference of 1794 Canada was set off as a separate District, Darius Dunham, P. E. The names of the circuits were again changed, and two additional missionaries sent out to supply the work. '' Upper Canada, lower circuit, James Coleman ; Upper Canada, upper circuit, Elijah Woolsey." As the fruits of the labors of Dunham and Losee up to this period, there were returned, members in society, 334. It has been supposed by some that the preachers now extended their labors into the Niagara District, where Neal had previously formed one or more classes ; but such a con- clusion does not seem to be warranted, from the mere fac t that the work was divided. It appears, however, that Mr. Dunham, as Presiding Elder, visited the Niagara country in the autumn of 1794, or in the spring of 1795, and held a Quarterly Meeting, and administered the ordinances of the Church. The first Quarterly Meeting in the Niagara District was held, it is believed, in Queenston. The people manifested the greatest anxiety to attend such a religious service ; some of them had waited long and anxiously for this time to come. At length the day appointed arrived ; the hour had come, and the people were assembled ; but the Presiding Elder had not yet reached the place. Concern and solicitude were mani- fested by all ; the Elder might have been taken ill upon his lonely journey, or he might perhaps have lost his way and be unable to reach his destination for several days, lifter some time, however, all anxiety was happily removed. "Two men rl\ A:- ■J X'' w 52 HI8T0BY OF THE upon horseback emerged from the woods. The strangers were Mr. Dunham and the preacher from t!ie east." The people, overjoyed, ran to meet and welcome them ; some wept, and others shouted for joy. The whole scene, as well as the religious services which followed, presented a touching exemplification of how highly the services of the sanctuary were prized by those dwellers "a the forest. How ardently Mr. Neal and his little band had longed to see this day ; and now for the first time they were to enjoy a love-feast in the wilderness, and partake of the sacrament from the hands of their own ministers. There was indeed great joy among the people. At the Conference of 1795 the names of the circuits were stgain changed, as follows : — Oswegotchie — James Coleman. Bay of Quinte — Elijah Woolsey, Sylvanus Keeler. Niagara — Darius Dunham. The membership had increased to 483. The Canadian work was this year placed under the care of Rev. Jolui Merrick, who had the charge of a very extensive District, embracing within ita bounds, Philadelphia and Canada, witli all the country between. No small charge this in those days when there were no railroads, few turnpikes, and, as he travelled wilderness- ward, still fewer bridges ; where le only places of accommodation were the log cabins of the scattered settlers or the wigwams of the friendly Indians, and when even these failed, the shelter of the dark, deep woods, with only the blue canopy of heaven for a covering. Those were the times which tried men's faith and constancy, but they counted not their lives dear unto them, so that they might but win souls to Christ. The Messrs. Coleman, Woolsey, Keeler, and Dunham were now traviJUng extensively along the margins of our lakes, bayS| aod larger rivers. The labors which these energetic and heroic men performed, the trials and privations they endured, . M. K. GUUBOH IN CANADA. 53 j and the difficulties they encountered and overoamo, similar in many respects to those endured and encountered by Bishop Asbury in his labors, can never be fully known until the great day. Their eflForts in the cause of God and of humanity were owned and blessed by their heavenly Father, and hundreds were converted through their instrumentality, and added to the Church. t: i 1 I i < I I, Iv i -J •I ■■( 64 UIBTOBY OF THE ■ ■■:. -' :--'T<;*'; i . ','■"■■'■ • i' ' . i VI CHAPTER VI. 1795 TO 1799. Canada set off as a separate District a second time — The arrival ol Messrs. Coate and Wooster — Commencement of the great revival — Not all sunshine — Mr, Wooster's health fails — The missionary called to his reward — Joseph Jewell arrives — Lorenzo Dow visits Canada — His labors — His eccentricities. At the Conference of 1796 Canada was again set oflF as a separate District — Darius Dunham, P. E. Bay Quinte Circuit — Samuel Coate. Oswegotchie - H. C. Wooster. Niagara •• James Coleman. This Conference year was distinguished for a very extensive and powerful revival of religion, extending its influence to the various societies in this country, and to some portions of the United States. Dr. Bangs, in his History of the M. E. Church, vol. ii, p. 72, speaks of this gracious reformation as having taken place in 1797 ; but after much careful examina- tion of the subject we have decided to follow the date of the general Minutes as that most likely to be correct, particularly so, as there do not appear to have been any appointments made to the Canadian circuits in 1797. We learn, too. from the statistics, that the returns in 1796 were 474, and that at the Conference of 1797 the members in society in Canada v. ere 796, showing a large increase for the Conference year of 1796. The revival commenced at the first Quarterly Meeting held on the Bay of Quinte circuit after the arrival of Revs. S. Coate M. K. CHURCH IN CANADA 55 and H. C. Wooster. These zealous and Buccessfui servants of €ted sufiFered very severe hardships on their way to their work, having spent " twenty one days" from the time they left the Conference till they reached the Bay of Quintc. The State of New York, or at Icaat Western New York, was as graat a wilderness as Canada, and through this wilderness they trav- elled, lodging at night wherever they could find shelter, in the cabins by the way if they could ; if not, in the woods. At last, however, they reached their destination in safety, and just in time to meet the friends gathered for the Quarterly Meet- ing. Gladly indeed were they welcomed by the people to whom they had conic, and among svhom they were to labor. On Saturday, after the religious services, the Presiding Elder, Mr. Coate, and the official" members of the Church retired to attend to the business of the Quarterly Conference, while Mr. Wooster remained to pray with some who were seek- ing religion. While thus engaged, the spirit of God descended upon the people in a most powerful manmr; sinners cried for mercy, believers prayed for the sanctifying power of the Holy Ghost, and others fell prostrate to the floor, motionless, filled * t with that '• Sacred awe which dares not move. And all the silent heaven of love," .i;:'S,^--' Mr. Dunham, upon returning from the business meeting, entered the place of worship and found the congregation in what he considered a state of enthusiastic confusion. Hin piety and his patience both seem to have been brought to the test for the time ; after viewing the scene a moment or two, how- ever, he knelt down and prayed the Lord to stop what he con- sidered to be "wildfire" from running among the people. Wooster, whose heart was " all on fire to be dissolve:' in love," happened to be praying near where Mr. Dunham knelt, and he at once began to pray for God to bless "Bro. Dunham," when suddenly the Spirit of the Lord desoended I !>t ■>m *j w ir rti pi 56 HISTORY OF THE tipon Mr. !>., and he fell prostrate to the floor as one slain. He soon recovered his strength, however, and joined in the exercises with hearty earnestness. Many were converted during the progress of the meeting, and some professed to have received the blessing of sanctification. ^ -' ^ Sabbath was a day of peace and power. The love-feast whh indeed a feast of love to most of those assembled there, and at the sacrament of the Lord's Supper, the Lord was manifested to his people in a gracious manner. The public services were not less interesting ; the word was quick and powerful, for the preachers "spake us the Holy Ghost gave them utterance." It was a day long remembered by the people. The Quarterly Meeting being now over, Mr. Wooster went to the Osweuotchit Circuit, scatterins; the " fire " as he went from society to society. Mr. Coate continued to fan the flame on his own charge, where it first commenced, and Mr. Dunham greatly assisted in the work as he passed round the Dictrict. The increase in tin societies on the three circuits has already been pointed out, but this was only a small portion of the good that resulted to the inhabitants of this province from this wonderful manifestation of God's presence. In several sections of the country the Methodists gained considerable influence, and many who up to this period had refused or neglected to attend the ministry of the word, were attracted by curiosity to hear the new preachers. • - i: ' It must not, however, be fancied that all was now religious sunshine, or that the offence of the cross had ceased. On the contrary, there were many who not only blasphemed themselves, and said "these men are full of new wine," but bitterly persecuted these humble followers of Christ, and induced others to do so likewise. Upon one occasion, when Rev. Mr, Coleman was making a pastoral call upon one of his congrega- tion who was seeking religion, her husband struck him 'severely upon the forehead, injuring him very much ; and M. E. CIIURCH IN CANADA. 57 11 ped liiB md iriany of the members, also, were obliged to Buflfer violent pcr- isecutioo, for righteousness' sake. •" • ' ' ■-'-" " At the end of two years it bo(^ame painfully evident to Mr. Wooster's friends that lie could not lonpj continue active in his Master's work ; consumption boji^an to make rapid inroads upon his constitution, lie continued to preach even after his voice was so far ^one that he could only be heard in u whisper, and upon some occasions, seated on a chair, even spoke to the congregation through a second person. Mr. W. was a very earnest, devoted minister, frequently rising in the night to pray for the people of his charge. — Finding that his recovery was hopeless, he, though very weak, returned to his native land to die amona; his relatives. lie reached his father's home in June, 1798, and died on the 6th of the following November, being in the 27th year of his age. Thus early fell Ilozekiah C Wooster, the first preacher called from the itinerant ranks in Canada to join the patriarchs and y.rophets in tlie kingdom of God. His ministry on earth was short but glorious. The Conference of 1795 had set apart the first Friday in March as a day of special fasting and prayer, and it was recommended that the day should be observed " in all the societies and congregations with Sabbatical strictness." The ministry and the membership of the Methodist Church in those days attached much importance to the strictly religious observance of such recommendations, whether made by the (church or by the civil government ; and consequently not un- frequently very beneficial results to the Church and the State followed. In accordance with the decision of the Conference, therefore, public religious services were held in various parts of Canada, as well as in the United States. The societies met in order to pray with and for each other. Self-examina- tion was instituted, humiliation and self-denial practiced, and a spirit of reformation promoted. By such appointments the laws of God are venerated, and the statutes and authorities of If 58 III8T0HY OF THE the civil government respected. If the practice of fuating and humiliation wore more strictly attended to in the present age it would have a tendency to elevate the standard of piety and of good moralH among the people. The gracious revival which followed the first Friday lu March 1790, hjis already been briefly referred to ; but the results of that reformation, and the revivals of the following year, both in Canada and the United States, will only be fully known when the assembled worlds arc gathered together. In 1798 the membership on the Canadian circuits was 809. barius Dunham was again appointed Presiding Elder, and was also appointed to the charge of the Bay of Quinte Circuit ; Oswegotchie, Samuel Coate ; Niagara, James Coleman, Michael Coate, junior preacher. M. Coate was :i brother of Samuel Coate, and had been removed from Middletown, Connecticut, to Niagara, Upper Canada. He remained but one year in this country and then returned home. The general work continued to advance steadily, although at times the numbers remained stationary, and twice there was a decrease. This, ho^ ■. ^er, instead of disheartening the missionaries, only served to stir them up to greater diligence. In 1799 a new Presiding Elder was appointed to take charge of the Canadian work, and Mr. Dunham was thus relieved of a very heavy responsiblity. The appointments for the year were as follows, viz.: — Joseph Jewell, P. E. Bay of Quinte — Samuel Ooate. Oswegotchie — Darius Dunham. Niagara — James Coleman. The membership was 866. Mr. Jewell is said to have been a good preacher^ an excellent singer, and a laborious minister. The work, as it will be seen hereafter, received a fresh impetus under his administration. New circuits were formed, the field of opera- D o w fo p» M. B. OHUROIt IN CANADA. 50 tiona greatly enlarged, and many added to the Church. His District extended from Niagara to Prcscott. After many efforts of his friends, Lorenzo Dow had suc- ceeded in being admitted on trial by a previous Conference. This year he was sent by Bishop Asbury to what was called upon the Minutes, Essex Circuit. Of this field of labor Mr. Dow thus speaks : *' Mr. Asbury sent me into Canada to form u new circuit and break up new ground." This was a frequent method of appointing preachers in those days. They went out to/orwt new circuits, and otherwise enlarge the work committed to their charge ; and the preacher who was either unable or unwilling to do this was considered nothing more than a bur- den to the connection, and a very fit subject for a permanent location — and so he should be still. Mr. Dow reached his new territory some time iu August, but remained only until about the last of the following Octo- ber, when he resolved on carrying out his project of visiting Ireland. lie was, however, quite useful during his stay among the people of Essex. The ''new ground" embraced portions of Vermont and Lower Canada. There weio returned to the next Conference, as the fruit of Mr. Dow's labors, 270 members. About twenty years previous to this Mr. Tuffey had preached to the British soldiers in Quebec, but Mr. Dow wns the first travelling preacher in Lower Canada, appointed by the Con- ference to form circuits and organize societies. '"*."• Lorenzo Dow was an exceedingly eccentric but very useful man, and although he did many strange things, and made use of many singular expressions, yet, apparently in the end most of them assiated in the furtherance of hia mission. The world was in the most literal sense his parish. He had no respect for order or for Conference rules, his only object being to preach, leaving others to gather the sheaves and take care of the wheat. Mr. Dow's second visit to Canada was in 1802. He camp 5 t ft r ;, Fiii eo HISTORY OP THE Hi m III I into the Province somewhere near Kingston, and passed down the banks of the St. Lawrence, preaching as he went. He also visite 1 Canada a few years previous to his death, and preached in the District of Prince Edward, and in other .sections of the country along the Bay of Quinte. He was now a very old man, dressed as plainly as before, and quite a» singular as ever. It is said that during this visit he had an appointment in the Methodist meeting-house in Belleville. The day being fine, so great a crowd gathered to hear him that there was not room for them in the house. In order to accommodate the concourse of people so that all might hear, Dow ordered a small waggon to be placed in the shade near one of the win- dows of the church, which he occupied as a stand. Temporary seats were arranged so as to accommodate as many as possible inside as well as outside the building. Among the cvowd in front of the speaker was a very gaily d.ussed young lady, whose father being wealthy allowed his daughter abundance of means to dress u3 she pleased. This young person attracted consider- able attention by the; contempt she manifested towards both the preacher and the religious services. As soon as Dow had finished his sermon he stepped out of the wagon, and passing rapidly through the congregation suddenly touched the young woman upon the shoulder, saying abruptly, yet earnestly, '' Young woman, if your head was cut oif it would not be worth a cent, and your soul would go to the devil." Dow went on his way, allowing the crowd to disperse at their leisure. Miss left her seat bathed in tears, and on her way home and after her return, it Lxight truly be said of her, as it was of Saul of Tarsus, " Behold she prayeth." She was in agony of soul for a time, but found peace with God and united with the Church. , , ^ , •*'<:V'^;i hi^tr^ :^ ./'■■|(', l,J>';((i' ';■ M. E. CHURCH IN CANADA. 61 'i;^ r CHAPTER VII. , SECULAR AFFAIRS, PIONEER DIFFICULTIES AND '"- ■ ~' " ' ■'■:.;- DANGERS. : -;/'\ ;, \.:r- '"-•'-•' Trials and privations of the settlers — A rotro'-poct from 177G to 1793 — The Province divided — Quotailon.s from Sir. Lymburner's speech in opposition to the project — Modes of travelling, and the ' routes taken by tlie early emigrants — Characttsr of some of the hardships experienced — The lirst mills — A primitive bolter — The "hungry year" — Bill of fare of a pioneer preacher — Boy lost in the wilderness — The friendly Indian, Bkb'ORE entering upon the history of Canadian Methodism, at and since the commencenicut of the present century, it will perhaps interest the reader to give a few incidents illustrating the perseverance and energy of the early settlors under diffi- culties and privations of almost every kind. Witli regard to the privations of the pioneer preachers, let it be borne in mind that Mr. Losee came to Canada in 1700, and Mr. Dunham in 1792. Prior to the Ilevolutionary War of 1 776, but v6ry few English families had emigrated to the upper portion of the colony. Lower Canada had not been settled by the French until 1608 ; for although Jacques Cartier had discovered it 118 early as 1534, still it required, with French management, about 74 years to succeed in planting the first permanent colony. In 1G73 the French established a trading post where the city of Kingston now is, and about the same time, or shortly afterwards, commenced trading points at Niagara and Detroit. 62 HISTORY OF THE Immediately after the conquest of Canada by the En^^liali in 1759, English as well as French traders visited the western wilds for the sake of the fur trade with the Indians ; but it was not until 1778 and the following years that the upper country began to attract attention, and to be settled by loyalists from the United States. The population west of Lower Canada w > :. in 1783 about 10,000 souls. In 1 788, unf r the administration of Lord Dorchester, the western portion of the Province of Quebec, as Canada was ihen called, was divided into four Districts, and in 1791, the year after Mr. Losce's first visit to the province, the country was divided into Upper and Lower Canada. An idea may be formed of the state of the country at that time from the following extracts from the speech of Adam Lymburner, Esq., a merchant of Quebec, who was heard at the bar of the House of Commons in opposition to the bill providing for the division of the province : — Mr. Lymburner observes : — " I beg leave to bring to the recollection of this honorable House that the distance from Quebec to Niagara is about 500 miles, and that Niagara may be considered as the utmost extent westward of the cultiv- able part of the province. For, although there is a small settlement at Detroit which is, and must be considered of great itnportance as a petit of trade with the Indians, yet it must appear to this honorable House, from its situation it can never become of any great importance as a settlement ; the falls of Niagara are an insuperable bar to the transportation of such rude materials as the produce of the land. As the farmers about Detroit, therefore, will have only their own settlement for the consumption of their produce, such a confinf^d market must greatly impede the progres.s of settle- ment and cultivation/or ages to come. There are, sir, between three and four thousand loyalists settled upon the banks of the river Cataraqui and the north side of Lake Ontario, ID detached settlements, many of them at a great distance M. E. CHURCH IN CANADA. 68 from the others, besides those on Lake Eric and at Detroit. Civil government cannot have much influence over a country so thinly inhabited, and where the people are so much dis- persed. -''^ '^ * * ^' Wc have had to encounter numberless difficulties which the pride and insolence of a set of men, whose minds were corrupted by the exercise of despotic power, have thrown in our way in every step we made. Such, sir, has been the unhappy tendency of the government of the province, that not only the people have been oppressed, and the resources of the country neulected ; but almost every public building in the province has been suffered to fall into decay and perish. There is not a court-house in the province, nor a sufficient prison, nor a house of correction ; there is not a public schc^l-house. In short, the country is reduced absolutely to a state of nature. * ;{; ij? ;[: *' As British subjects who had fo' fcited their worldly possessions in the cause of the empire ind its integrity, and had abandoned their homes in preference to an abandonment of their allegiance, and migrated to the wilderness of the north, to seek an aiiylum and a new country, they were worthy of th( -olicitude of the government and nation to whose cause they conscientii 'sly adhered. The loyalists, as they were denominated, had located themselves principally in the western part,^ of the province, along the northern bank of the St. Lawr. ce, and in the vicinity of the Lakes Ontario and Erie, m are the climate was more genial, and the soil better suited to agriculture, than in that section of the province known as Lower Canada. The conntrii bordering upon tJwse great lakes was at the time a vast solitude, with hut very little exception." * * -•' '^ * ^' Such were the limitod views taken at that p<;riod of the resources and importance of the great West, even by persons of intelligence and conmiercial experience. "In that year, 1791, the agricultural settlements which f^lf r-ii 64 HISTORY OP THE had been formed in the upper part of the province by disbanded soldiers and American loyalists had become consid- erable. Some thousands of people had spread themselves over the District of Niapjara, and over lands still more remote from Quebec, particularly in the Western District. Between these new settlements and the country upon the St. Lawrence there were large tracts of wilderness intervening, which the Indians still held as h anting grounds, and through which tliere was no road whatever in the year 1791, nor for many years afterwards. The mail from Quebec found its way into this region but once or twice in a twelvemonth, for it was, in fact, only capable of being traversed by Indians and hunters, or by persons as active and hardy as they. The common way of travelling from the upper country to and from Montreal and Quebec was through the lakes and rivers in the summer season ; and the passage was, in point of inconvenience, more formidable, and frequently occupied more time than the intercourse between Toronto and London (England) at the present day. " On the assumption of the government by the first governor, General Simcoe, after the partition of the provinces in 1791, he issued an invitation to American settlers to come and establish themselves in Upper Canada. Well aware of the fertility of the land, the salubrity of the climate, the nature of its settlement, and extent of its capabilities, they came over in numbers, particularly from New Jersey and Pennsylvania, and some of the early settlers have said that when they first came into the township of Ancaster, they had to ride sixty miles to Niagara, through an Indian trail, for every article they required which they could not raise or manufacture." The infant colony was steadily progressing, slowly, it is true, but not the lets surely, and the facilities for communi- cating with other countries increasing. '• In 1792 the mail between Quebec and New York was monthly, but not always M. E. CHUROH IN CANADA. 65 regularly so. In the Quebec Gazette of the 10th November, 1792, it is stated that the latest news from Philadelphia and New York was to the 8th of October.' Between 1792 and 1796 postal communications seem to have increased very considerably, as a post ofl&ce advertise- ment of that year informs the public that " a weekly convey- ance by post has been established between Montreal and Burlington, in the State of Vermont." Another advertise- ment states that " a mnil for the upper countries, comprehend- ing Niagara and Detroit, will be closed at this office on Monday, the 30th instant, at four o'clock in the evening, to be forwarded from Montreal by the annual winter express, on Thursday, 3rd of February next; " and the Quebec Gazette of the 8th March, of the same year, informs its readers that "by this day's Burlington mail we have received New York papers jof the 16th ultimo, they contaili European intelligence to the 15th .D3cember, inclusive."* Upon one point Mr. Lymburner's judgment was defective, viz., that the Falls of Niagara would for ''ages to come" prove an insuperable bar to the progress of settlement and cultivation ; but who at that date could dream of any feasible plan to surmount the formidable obstacle ? The era of canals was not yet. With regard to the then condition of the country in other respects he appears to have been pretty accurate. The three or four thousand U. E. Loyalists of whom he speaks as being located on the Cataraqui and the north side of Lake Ontario, were scattered from Prescott to York, now Toronto. Although Mr. L. does not state the number of inhabitants located about Niagara, and extending along Lake Erie to Detroit, it is estimated from other sources, as has been previously mentioned, that there were in all Upper Canada about 10,000 souls. • See Smith's Canada. ' -f [1 ! 1 7 1 i> *• k' 1 -i hu 1 w 4 fi m i I ■|[ m m 66 HISTORY OP THE How little did Mr. Lymburner, or his contemporaries, imagine the marvellous changes that would be wrought by persevering industry and untiring energy in less than half a century : the frail canoe discarded for tha stately steam-packet, and the wearisome and dangerous journey on foot or horse-back, along the trail of the Indian, for the secure and comfortable seat in the rail-car ; portages dispensed with, and communication by water obtained by means of the canal ; and the annual winter express superseded by the lightning telegrapli. Such is the march of science and civilization ; onward, and ever onward. The modern traveller, while speeding past the smiling fields of waving grain at the rate of forty or fifty miles per hour, fre- quently asks, " How did our forefathers reach their homes in this then wilderness waste ? By what means did they transport their families and efibcts over hundreds of miles without cither roads or bridges?" It is to be regretted that the history of Ihose times has not been more carefully preserved. Sufficient, however, has been handed down to give us a faint idea of the sufferings and privations endured by the pioneer settlers. Many of those who, being strongly attached to the British Government, adhered to that standard at the commencement of and during the American Revolution, having learned that Canada offered them an asylum from the bitterness of warfare and of civil strife, sold or abandoned their possessions in the United States, and bent their course thither. Placing as many as they possibly could of the more feeble old men and the women upon horseback, and having arranged large baskets or panniers in pairs, each containing a child, so that one hung on each side of the horse, while the stouter members of the party walked beside, or drove what cattle they could bring with them, companies of these loyal fugitives from the different States started en route for Canada. How many a longing look went back to the dear old homestead, seen now for the last time ; or how many a sigh welled up from the hearts of the wanderers, as they remembered that they were leaving forever M. E. CHURCH IN CANADA. 67 the scenes of their happy childhood, who can tell ? Human joys and sorrows are the same in all ages. The distance travelled in a day depended greatly upon the situation of the country through which they were obliged to pass. At times a temporary shelter was erected for comfort or safety during the night, or upon stormy days ; but more frequently the blue vault of heaven was their only roof — the damp, cold ground their only bed. Generally several ftimilies accompanied each other, and erected their camps closely together, for mutual protection, in case of an attack by wild beasts, or by Indians, many of whom were far from friendly, their united camp fires not only promoting their safety at night, but helping in a measure to enliven the vast solitude. The bill of fare of the immigrants would not present a very tempting appearance to an epicure, but there were few dys- peptics in those primitive times. Boiled wheat, boiled corn, or corn meal when there was time to pulverize it in the mortar, fish when near the streams, the flesh of wild fowl and wild animals, with such roots and greens as were considered fit for food, which could be gathered in the woods through which they were travelling. As these journeys were usually under- taken in the warm season the cattle and other domestic animals had plenty of food, and game was easily procui-ed for the consumption of the family. Frequently when there were several cows in the drove there was more milk than the travellers needed for present use; accordingly two small churns were procured, into which the surplus milk was strained ; these, like the panniers, were balanced across the horse in the morning, and the motion of the beast during the day agitated the milk, so that when they stopped at night the milk was found to be churned, and they had a supply of butter for their -^veniug's repast. Very often several weeks were spent travelling in this manner before the party reached their destination — rivers had to be crossed on rafts, or forded, swamps to be wallowed f 1 iii l-nl^"'ll ' BHp''|f ' ' '^ ijBf h if , 'f^' 1 • I'i V i' 1 If ■I 68 HIHTORY OP THE through or a detour made round them, and miles upon miles of trackless forest to be penetrated ere they reached their new home. ■;■'-. -''.-^ .'. ■■'-:''... ■.::1' ' '' The more highly favored emigrants who had resided pre- viously on the borders of the lakes or large rivers, adopted other means of transportation. These came most part of the wny from New York by water. With regard to this route Bishop Richardson lias furnished the following inter- esting account : " The route of transit for more than a century from New York and the settlements along the Hudson to this country, was by means of the jNIohawk and Oswego rivers and their con- nections. By means of this highway through the wilderness, the seaboard was connected with the waters of the great lakes. This brought Oswego into note at a date coeval with the settle- ment of Canada. The French first built a fort at the mouth of the Oswego River, and tradition speaks of severe fighting there between them and the old British Colonists of New York and the adjoining provinces. It subsequently fell, with the other French possessions on the lakes and rivers, into the hands of the British, who erected the fort on the east side of the river, which after the Revolutionary war was surrendered to the United States. " The route of travel was up the Hudson to Schenectady, thence up the Mohawk to Fort Sanwix, where the city of Rome now stands. Here was a short portage to Wood Creek, or as it is now called by some writers, Norval Creek, thence along the windings of this muddy stream to Oneida Lake, and through the lake to Three Rivers' Point, thence down Oswego River to Lake Ontario. This route from the Hudson was performed by means of Schenectady boats, and occupied a period of several weeks. Rich and poor, gentle and simple, young and old, families of emigrants and others, all had to contend with the stones, shoals, mosquitos, wild animals, and other annoyances, along this M. E. CHURCH IN CANADA. 69 circuitous route, in an open six oar boat. For weeks together the voyagers had to subsist on such stores as they could bring with them, or procure from the water or the woods, sleeping as best they could in the open boat or on the shore. '' ■' ■'" ''■■"■'^' " Their dangers and hardships were by no means ended on their arrival at Oswego. The best craft in those days for crossing the great lakes were schooners and sloops, fro..i 30 to 100 tons, and these small vessels were dependent on wind and weather as to the time of their departure ; and when they would go out it frequently occupied a week or two to get to the western parts of Lake Ontario. Sometimes when no rigged vessel was in port, which was often the case, on the approach of winter they would venture in open boats to reach Kingston, by coasting along the lake shore to the eastward of Oswego and the foot of Lake Ontario, at the imminent peril of their lives. " When I was a boy, well do I remember hearing annually of one or more boats being wrecked, and numerous lives lost along that dangerous part of the coast between Oswego and Stoney Point ; while others would be for days storm-bound with wind, rain, or snow in the mouths of the numerous creeks along that part of the lake. " At the commencement of the war which eventuated in the independence of the United States, Upper or Western Canada was scarcely known to the people of the revolted colonies. The only way of coming from the States to the eastern part of Upper Canada was that above mentioned, by Oswego, and another by a rough road leading through an unbroken wilderness for more than a hundred miles, to Oswe- gotchie, now Ogdensburg. By way of Lakes George and Champlain, however, lay an early frequented route, but this led into Lower Canada, and communicated directly with Montreal. " Several of the early settlers of the Home and Niagara ».; 70 UI8T0RY OF THE DistrictH, and ubout Long Point, found their way from the State of Pennsylvania, through the woods, on puck liorses, encamping in the wilderness with their families for weeks together. It must be left to imagine the destitution, priva- tions and hardships attendant on these incipient boL'^innings of a new settlement in an isolated wilderness, without the most ordinaiy moans of subsistence. " Tradition speaks of the people having to live on fish, roots and wild game ; and when they had, without the ordinary implements of agriculture, cleared a small patch of ground, and raised some Indian corn, potatoes, or a little wheat sown on a newly burnt fallow, among the stumps, and dragged with a bush, or harrow composed of wooden teeth, there was no mill or other machinery to ike meal or flour in many cases short of thirty to eight} miles. I have heard of persons carrying a grist through the bush on their backs fifteen or sixteen miles to and from the mill. '' To add to their privations they encountered the -scarce year' — about 1793 or 1794 — when the products of the earth having failed, and there being no means of obtaining supplies from abroad, famine stared them in the face, and indeed it is said numbers were actually iamished to death, and more victims would have fallen but for an unusual abundance of fish, which Providence caused to frequent the streams during the 'hungry season.' T have heard the 'old people' talk feelingly about this year of famine. *' It was to labor and suffer in this remote region, and among the settlers in such circumstances that the first mis- sionaries of the Methodist Episcopal Church penetrated the woods and swamps intervening between the settlements in the United States and Canada. " I recollect conversing nearly forty years since with an aged sister, YanCamp, who was among the first fruits of Methodism in Canada. She told me that she had her residence at first in the township of Cornwall, and in the winter of 1790 M. E. CHURCH IN CANADA. 71 le f [e b or 1791 she saw through Ikt window, one oxcncdingly severe day — a snow storm then raging — a man on horseback, riding through the fompeat. He soon knocked a. her door, and nsked shcltiT and the rites of hospitality. Although a stranger, she took him in. lie was suiFcriiig from hunger and cold, but his good hostess soon made him comfortable in both respects. Ho told her in the meantime that his name was liosec, that he was a Methodist missionary, and that he would preach if he could procure a congregation. Thoiiu'h a stranger to the Methodists, Mrs. VanCamj) cheerfully consented to the proposition, and sent her boys out to notify the scattered neigh- bors that n Methodist preacher was at her house, and that if they woiild come out he would preach to them that evening. Thus was the public worship of (Jod introduced into those parts, and IMrs. V. and some others became happy converts to the faith of the gospel of Christ, so strikingly exemplified in the life, labors, sufferings, boldness and zeal of the herald of the cross. "' The following incident in the life of my father may serve to show the dangers and difficulties attendant upon the com- munications by water between places adjacent to each other, yet v.pon opposite sides of the lake : So late as 1795 or 170fi the American troops at Fort Oswego had to look to Canada for flour, and my fatli< v contracted to furnish a supply in the fall of the year^ just previous to the setting in of winter. He took in his load, purchased of the families about the Bay of Quinte, and sailed for Oswego, but just at the mouth of the river encountered a severe wind, which baffled all attempts at making harbor — no steam power for navigation purposes in those days. Being driven into the lake, and a furious snow storm ensuing, he was driven, after combatting all night with the wind, waves and snow, into the mouth of Sandy Creek, and wrecked, being now between twenty and thirty miles eastward of Oswego. My father and a seaman who was with him swam to the shore, but here was only snow and woods — no friendly i HI ll ' u lllSTOllY OF THE roof to shelter them, no food to satisfy the cravings of hunger^ nor (ire to warm the poor benumbed limbs, and no settlement short of Oswego to the west, and a reported commencement of one called Rotterdam about fifteen ni'les, through dense woods and swamps, to the southward. They first tried the woods, but sinking above the knees in snow Jind slush they had to abandon that route, and take the course of the lake shore to Oswego, intersected as it was by several streams. They commenced their journey as already intimated, witnout food or fire. Providence, however, was kind to them in the time of their greatest extremity, for on arri ving at the mouth of the Salmon lliver, twelve or fifteen miles east of Oswego, they discovered a boat on the opposite side with her crew, storm- bound in the creek. They called, and were immediately brought over and relieved. My father proceeded with the boat to Os^\ ego as soon as possible, and reported the total loss of his vessel and cargo. Winter having now set in, and navigation closed for the season, he had no way left of returning home but by Schenectady or Albany, and thence by Lake Champlain and Lower Canada to Kingston. His home was not reached before the month of February. My mother in the meantime, at Kingston, had heard nothing of him further than that the vessel was wrecked ani the cargo lost,, and that he had reached Salmon River, and gone from thence to Oswego. Judge of her anxiety, with her little family, alone duri"*^ those dreary months till my father made his appear- ance suddenly in the middle of the winter. - ' V " This incident may be taken as a sample of similar dis- asters, and the extreme difficulty and danger of travelling in those days." . i ; -.,.:...,,. ,1 The case of Mr. Richardson was by no means an isolated one. Mr. Thomas Horner, the first settler in the now County of Oxford, came into Canada by the Mohawk route, bringing with him from Albany materials for the building of a saw- mill, which he erected near the present location of the Frinoe- M. E. CHURCH IN CANADA. m d ton Station on the Great Western Ilailroatl. Mr. Horner and a Mr. Watson had been invited into the country by Governor Sinieoe, and in 170IJ they reached the township of Blenheim, which a party had been sent out to survey. Mr. Horner's nearest neighbors at that time on the east were in the township of Brantford, and to the west in the towniihip of (.hatham. But nothing daunted by the sparseness of the popuhition he built the mill at great labor and expense, having been obliged to draw his machinery, after it had reached the head of Lake Ontario, the remainder of the way — through the woods — to Blenheim upon ox sleighs. The mill, however, was not com- pleted so as to commence work until 1795. The father of the late Bishop lleynolds, with his I'amily, left the Hudson and came into Canada by the route above described, and after leaving Lake Ontario travelled through the wilderness to the township of Burford, and settled there in 179G. The journey from the Hudson to Burford occupied a little more than two months — it would now occupy about as many days. Here the family remained until the year 1803, when they removed to the township of Dorchester and erected a saw-mill not far from what is now the Dorchester Station. Arrived at their new home, the hardships of the emigrants, so far from being ended at the close of their toilsome and dangerous journey, were scarcely more than commenced. Houses were to be builL, forests to be cleared away, and food and raiment to be provided for large and in many instances helpless families. The style of architecture in that era was sufficiently primitive. The builders having provided a sufficient number of logs of the size required, they began their operations, laying the logs upon one another, and " notching " them with an axe at the corners, in order to make them fit firmly. When the wall had attained to the desired height a cob-roof, as it was called, was put on, i. e., the gables were built up straight while the sides were drawn in by making the logs placed in the gable each somewhat shorter than the one imme- 1 ' ? ^ i t ■ . hi fm] .ik V ■ '■■• ' , jl 1 J 3 74 HISTORY OF THE liMK I ' ill diately beneath it, leaving an equal length of the inequality at each end until the building terminated in a peak at the top. This was then covered cither with elm bark or with clapboardt^ of oak, ash, or pine, split out about four feet long, something like roughly rived shingles. Another method of covering the roofs was to procure basswood troughs, two of which were placed closely together and a third placed in an inverted position over them, causing, of course, the water to run into the troughs beneath. As to doors and windows, the proper openings were indeed made in the walls, but us there was neither glass nor boards to be had, a quilt in most instances answered the purpose of a door, while the place designed for a wiii'low was seldom covsred with anything more weather-proof than a curtain, and that frequently an improvised substitute for the gcnui.13 article. The edifice was generally minus a chinmcy, the smoke making its way at will through an orifice in the roof near the gable, and the earth answered for a floor. The more enterprising of the settlers, however, those who had sm eye to appearances and comfort, soon furnished their habitations with clapboard doors, floors of basswood slabs, and stick and mud chimneys. Such, as a general rule, were the houses of the pioneer settlers ; some few perhaps were better than those above described, but many were vastly worse, one room frequently constituting kitchen and dining room, parlor and all. But in these rude cabins many a Methodist preacher was hospitably entertained, being upon each return cordially welcomed to a seat at the huge fireside, and as kindly invited to partake of their homely meal of Johnny- cake and venison, fish or wild fowl, aa the case might be; and when bed time came, after having prayed with the family, he stretched his wearied limbs upon the earthen floor, by the fire, and slept soundly until the nnrning, when, refreshed and invigorated by the last night's rest, he set out again in pursuit of the object of his mission, hoping to " hunt up the lost sheep of the house of Israel." Thus for weary, weary M. E. CHURCH IN CANADA. miles did the early itinerant push his way through the forest, being guided by marked trees, or by the sun, or following the narrow Indian trail, often from morning until night, till at last tired and foot-sore he emerged into another "clearing," with its shanty in the centre, to be again warmed and fed, and permitted to occupy a bed similar to the one of the night previous. Many of the new ccnors were dostitute, and as they were generally very far removed from the comforts of civilization, without mills or clothing establishments — although assisted as i\ir as was practicable by the government, for the space of two years — in many places they suffered severely from lack of the necessaries of life. As soon as it could be done, a spot of ground was cleared, lyc and wheat sown, and corn and potatoes planted, and when fit to use, the corn wiis roasted or boilod, and eaten as wo now use "hot corn; " when it became too hard to be eaten in tliis way it was shaved from the cob by means of a jack-plai^o or jointer, and boiled until it became soft, and was used with milk or maple molasses. After it becanio fully ripe the corn was shelled, dried, and pulverized in a mortar. The construction of these primitive mills was as f)llows: — A small hollo^v" iron wood tree was procured, a portion of which was taken, and after the cavity had been thoroughly cleansed, one end of the hollow piece of wood was slipped over and fitted upon a stump whicli had been previously prepared for the purpose, the top of the stump being made to serve for the bottom of the mortar. The mortar havhig been made to stand firmly on its solid pedestal, a spring-pole, similar to the old- fashioned well-sweep, w^as fastened to the ground in such a manner that it would spring at the top, and to the top of this a piston was attached, through which, a short distance from its lower end, a wooden pin had been put, in order that tlie ri .Icr might use both hands at his work ; and the niiU was completed. The work of pulverizing now conuncnccd ; the corn having been G i ' HI 76 HISTORY OF THE put ill the mortar, the miller caught the pin in the piston with both hands, and by means of the spring worked the piston up and down until the corn was sufficiently pounded. The meal thus pre- pared was then 3ifted, the finest being taken for bread, and the remainder, after being again put in the mortar and still further pulverized, was made into samp or sepawn. The sieve was simple and easily constructed, being made of an animal's jxilt properly cleaned and dried, then stretched upon a hoop and punctured with a hot spindle, the holes being made so small that though they allowed the meal to go through they retained the bran and the chafF. Mr. Andrew Ostnmder .ind his wife came to this couiitvy at quite an cjrly day, and settled near Niagara. H;^ving succeeded in harvesting his first crop of wheat, Mr. Ostrander proposed pulverizing some of it instead of the cjrn, but the common sieve, it was found, would not separate ihe bran from the flour. Mrs. Ostrander, however, was detov^iined to have a loaf of " wheaten" bread once more, and set her woman's wits to work to contrive a bolt which would anrwcr thv. purpose. A happy thought at last occurred to her. Her '• Sunday bonnet," which she had brought to the country Avith her. she had laid aside, having no further use for it in the woods ; to it she went, and having ripped out the millinct,''' she waslicd it tLoroughly and stretched it upon a small hoop. Her bolt being now ])reparcd, and Andrew having pounded the wheat, the contrivance was tcstod, j)ronounccd a success, and "'wheaten' bread and "shortcake" again delighted the cj'es and the palates of the solitary emigrants. Mrs. O.^trander w; s ])orn on the 23rd of April, 17G0, and died on the 25th of April, 18G4, being thus at the time of her death one hundred and four years old, the last seventy of which she was a Methodist. In her day what great changes had been effected, not only in America but throughout the world. * An article used fift.v 3'oars ago or more for giving sliapc to bonnets ; it was similar to, though not quite so close in texture as that now used in bonnet shapes. ttmw 1 1 • It M. E. CHURCH IN CANADA. 77 ted llicr Iceu rid. to as Methodism, from being a little one, had become a thousand, and the small one a j^reat nation, since she had first been reached through its instrumentality, and had cast in her lot with its people. At first the settlers transported nearly everything on horses, or in packs upon their backs ; but after mills had been erected within ten or fifteen miles of them other methods were adopted. Some- times three bushels of grain were placed across an ox-yoke and in this manner conveyed to and from the mill ; or, if the bushes tind large trees had been cut out of the way, another kind of conveyance was used ; a large forked stick was procured and the thickest part hewed down to the size of a sleigh tongue. Upon the crotch of this a box was constructed capable of holding five or six bushels of grain, and with the tongue securely fixed in the ring of an ox-yoke, and tlit; prongs dragging on the ground behind, the vehicle moved off. This was considered a great improvement upon the old methods of travelling. Other improvements, however, followed, the wooden-wheeled tnick and ox-sled super- seding the ox-yoke and forked stick, to be in their turn super- seded by the eai-t and the Pennsylvania waggon. Of the sufferings of the early pioneers, from want of proper clothing, and iTon> want of food, we can scarcely have any adequate idea, the military au'i government stations being at such distances from each other, and often from the settlements, that it re({uired days, and sometimes weeks to roach one ; so that, even when supplied by the government, their families were often extremely tlestitute, frequently living for a length of time upon ground-nuts, acorns, hickory nuts, or leeks, tind when even these could not be procured, upon the uincr hark of trees, or wild greens, boiled. At some periods, so great was the destitu- tion, that when the wheat and rye had reached a mi'ky state it was frequently cut and dried sufficiently to be rubbed out by hand and boiled for food, so as to support nature until the crop came to maturity. This was especially the case during the "hungry year," when, the crops having failed the season befoie, hundreds nearly stiirved to death, and parents often iieard !|i 78 HISTORY OP THE their children crying for food, which they were not able to give them, to allay the cravings of liungcr. During tliis year the younger children, in many instances, subsisted for days together upon milk alone ; while the elder members of the families relied entirely ujwn such roots and greens as they were able to gather. One case in point will illustrate, in a degree, the privations both of pioneer settlers and pioneer prwichers. In 1806 Rev. Robert Perry was sent, by the N. Y. Confcrenci^, with Rev. Thomas Whitehead, to the Niagara Circuit. Mr. Pen'y ,suc- ceedcd in penetrating as far a.s the wustorn part of the township of Aneaster, where a settlement had been made near what is now known as Jcrseyville. Here a fimily named ^Vilson had settled. The nearest mill to the settlement was at Niagara, and the grain having been brought from the upper part of the town- ship to the "head of the lake," it w--"^ it on to mill, in charge of .some of the neighbors, while the iw.o rctun.ed to their homes for a few days, and at the appointed time journeyed back to the lake to meet the boat and get their respective loads ; but it not unfrec^ucntly happened that the boat was detained by foul weather, or other unpropitious circumstances, and did not return at the time she was expected, thus causing very great micasiness to both those who had gone to meet it and those Avho remained at home. On one occasion Mr. Perry, u^wij coming to his appointment at Mr. Wilson's house, found thdt Mr. W. had "gone to mill," and had not yet returned. The people assembled fov worship and the semceswerc conducted as usual; but after the congregation had left, Mrs. W. told him she had nothing which she could give him to eat excepting roasted potatoes. She had had part of a loaf the day before, but expecting her husband would have retun)ed in time for preaching she had criven the piece of broad to a sick woman in the neighborhood, and since Mr. W. had loft, the cows, too, had strayed away, and she and her httle son — a lad of nine or ten yei i.— h ii - -nrched for them in vain, so that she had not ev "i I^c'v ViSmi '"■'^HF'y of milk and butter. The preacher partock of the ri'3 jsi. Zer^'im as ligh a' M. E. CHURCH IN CANADA. 79 le er id Id, id 2d I of as it was, which was offered in a spirit of generous hospitality, and proceeded on his way. *<..>, Shortly after the departure of Mr. Perry, as Mrs. Wilson was lookini>- anxiously toward the point whence she could catch the first glimpse of her husband if he were returning, she heard a cow-bell, and hoping that her cows might be with the cattle whose bell she heard, she sent her little boy to see if they were there, and if so, to bring them home ; charging him at the same time if they were not there to come directly baci:, lest he might get lost in the woods. The boy, not finding the Ccittle, as he expected, attempted to return, but mistook his path. Becoming alarmed at his prolonged absence his mother started towards the woods to meet him, calling him at intervals. But no answer meeting her agonized ear, and finding that despite every effort she was unable to hear him or make him hear her, she became convinced that he was lost, and hastening back to the house, she blew tlie horn — the mode of announcing to the neighbors that something was wrong and help needed. Word flew quickly ; the neighbors rallied ; every effort was made for the child's I'ccovery, but without success. Night, in all its darkness and gloom, had set in, and further search then was impossible. Who can portray the anguish of that mother's heart during those dreary watches which intervened between that and morning light. In addition to the suspense and anxiety occasioned by the protracted absence of her husband, she has now the terrible thought resting upon her that her child is lost in the wilderness ; perhaps hopelessly lost ; even now he may have become the prey of wolves, 01' if not, he may starve tx) death long before aid can reach him. Next morning the search was resumed, but in vain, as far as the child's friends were concerned. To return, however, to the lad. W^hen he reached the strange cattle, and found that liis father's were n<.t with theii^. he turned to retrace his steps, but gettiog bewildered ho took a wrong course, and wan- dered on till he became convinced that he was lost. In his efforts to got again upon the right path he ran first in one direc- ?!■ 6f . ii 4 : I UM n ' \M :l Hi 80 HISTORY OF THE tion and then in another, until he came upon an Indian trail, where he cried and halloed, hopint*; to hear some one reply, if it were only an Indian. Failinii; in this he continued to rini on, carefully following,' the trail, till just at dusk he came out ui)on the Grand River, at a spot near vvhicli there was a lurji^e camp of* Indians. Here auain he called and cried till he attracted the attention of an old chief, who, sceini;' the child's evident weariness and distress, went to him, soothed his fears, and takiiii;- him to liis tent placed food boibre him. Havinj?; ascertained who he was and whence and why he came, tjic old man told him that he must stay with him for the ni;;ht, and as lie had seen the cows and knew wlicre tb . v were. 1: would take both him and them home in the morninj:,'. Thus as.-iured, the tired child slept till sunrise, when, tnie to his promise, the chief roused him and conducted him and his cattle btick to the settlement, to the great joy of his agonized mother. I' II h^l Hi! •^-=#,^.-rtf.*--^*. ^UhUb M. E. CHURCH IN CANADA. 81 CHAPTER VIII. FROM 1800 TO 1804. Statistifs of tlio f'lnircli in 1800 — Tho itiiit'mncy further strength- ened — Forniii'ioii of Ottawa Cireuit.i— Opposition encoiintiircd — The humble iliseiple aud the vioU'Dt persecutor — Time of trial- Saul amoiij: the prophets — Camp-nieetinp,s — Upper Canada Cir- cuit organi/.fd — Its ext -nt — State of tJu; work in ISol — Nathan Bangs enters tiie itinerary — Sketch of liis urly life — IHOl to 1807 — Then and now — How Jlr Uangs toun«i had l>>pn estahlished in New York, by Embury, in ITGC-, up to T u.iic uicnt of the present century, embracing a, period of thirty-four years, the societies in the United States had increased to G3,058, and in Canada to 930, there being in both countries 2S7 preachers. Includ^'' in this calcuhition were ^ 3, 1:52 colored people, showing that from the first the M. E. Church manifested a deep interest in the moral improvement and salvation of the slaves. At the several Conferences of 18(K), 41 preachers were admitted on trial, 23 were received into full connection, 24 located, 3 withdrew, and 4 died. Among those who located was Darius Dunham, who had for eight years braved the trials, privations and labors incident to the life of a missionary in the wilds of Canada. This year tlie work in Canada was further strengthened. The app( intments were as follows : Joseph Jewell, Presiding Elder. Niagara — Joseph Sawyer. Baij Qiiinte — Sylvanus Keeler, William An«>u. Osircgotrhir — Joseph Jewell, James Ilerron. -^ ^ L ' Grand Ricer — Daniel Pickett. t > i. n I f > ■i 1 ''}\ j' : 1; ' .li, ] 1 ^% 82 HISTORY OF THE : The Ottawa, or Grand llivcr Circuit, as it was called, to which Mr. Pickett, who was a man pf energy and of promising talents, was sent, was entirely new ground. Quite a number of Americans htid settled on both sides of the Ottawa above the French settlements, and it was to these that Mr. l*ickett directed his labors. Many years prior to tliis period tlie French, and at a later date the Americans, had passed up the Ottawa to French River, and thence into lakes Huron and Superior, a distance of many hundred miles, in order to secure furs from the Tnd ans ; and Mr. Asbury, as was his practice, sent out preachers to instruct the people as fast as he could find a new opening and a man suit- able for the work. Refemng to Mr. Pickett and his first circuit, Mr. Playtcr says, page 08, " He was a useful, zealous man, and was well spoken of thirty years after by the old settlers." Mr. P. went checifully to his remote charge, and labored diligently to build up the cause of his Master among the jxjople to whom he had been sent. One circumstcmcc which occurred while he waa on this circuit is, perhaps, not unworthy of record. Here, as elsewhere, there were some who were strongly opposed to the introduction of Methodism among; them, while others gladly welcojiied the way-wora missionary. Belonging to the class of eleven persons which Mr. Pickett found on his amval, (but by whom organized wo are not informed), was a person whom, for convenience, we will call Stephen, and in the same neighborhood was a violent (»pposer whom we will call Saul. Stephen, who had but recently moved into the bush, was poor, with a family of small children depending upon him ; his entire stock consisted of one cow, and from her their chief support was derived. Saul, on the contrary, having bec^n longer in the country, was in quite comfortable circumstances, decidedly opposed to Methodism, and a bitter enemy of Stephen, whom he averred was, with all his shouting and loud professions of piety, nothing else than a hypocrite. So much did he dislike H M. E. CHURCH IN CANADA. 8^ >"i- his poorer neighbor that, althoufijh he had an abundance of hay, • ho would not sell him any to assist him in wintering the cow ; tho consequence of which was that the poor beast had to Uve upon browse and the moss from tlie tops of the trees wliich her owner cut down for her. About the middle of the winter there came one of those fearfully stormy nights which, when they come even in cleared countries, make people gather more closely round the fire, thankful for the kindly warmtli and shelter. Poor Stephen and his wife slept but little all that stormy night; sad forebodings filled their minds, for their poor cow was standing in her log shelter without ono mouthful, and if she died what was to become of them ? In the midst of their forebodings they strove to entourage each other by repeating such assuring promises as are given to those who put their trust in Cod, rcmombori»g that cheering assurance, "The Lord will f)rovide." ^a Sfjon as the day dawned the poor man hastened to learn the fate of his cow, when, to his utter amazemont, he found her eating hay, a large bundle being before her. The question now arose, "y^^;// had brought and given the cow the liay?" The falling snoyf hud foyered up the traci', and no trace of the donor could fee <3|FC(^vered. jStephen informed his wife of the circumstance, and both f.rrived at the conclusion that the "fodder" had not been brougJit through kindness, and very soon found tlieir surmises to be too true. In a short time it began to be whisnered in the noigborhood that Stephen had been stealing hay from Saul. HaiA /.'aserted that he had been informed that Stephen's cow had been supplied with hay that "awful stovmy night," and he was Hure hay had been taken from his mow. It was now noised about ihul Stephen, with all his profession of piety, was a thief, and great was the conunotion in the little society, as well as among the people of the world, for truly circumstimces seemed very much against poor Stephen. A charge was entered against him and presented to the preacher on his next visit. Mr. Pickett hastened to ^^sit .i. i It M '■* I: IH I HISTORY OF THE the accused, wlio with his wife was now nhiiost hcart-hrnkcn. They were looor, and liad been despised before because they were Methodists, and now they were accused of theft, and liad no apparent means of establishinj^ their iinioeence. To add to their sorrow and mortification, too, a stiiinia was now f.istened upon the infant society. Mr. P. listened with <;reat solicitude to their account o^ the matter, and finally decided tliat he would post- pone all Chunh proceedin;j;s until his next appointment, at which time the matter should be thor(u;j;hly investij^ated, exhorting the society at the same time to make the matter the subject of earnest prayer. In due tim(> Mr. Pickett returned, and as it was generally imderstood that Stephen was that day to have his trial before the socicly or a ecmnnltlee, the congj'egation was uimsually large, as all were anxious to learn the result. At the appointed hour the preacher announced his text, dwelling chiefly upon the wisdom and justice of God, and pointing out that e\cry work would be brought into judgment, with every secret thing, whether it were good or evil, at the great day of account. He concluded by exhort ing liis hearers to prepare lor that day by repenting of ihoir sins and accepting of Christ as their Saviour. The speaker had luiusual hberty; God was doubtless with his servant that day. After the religious services were ended, Saul rose from his place in the congregation and re(|uested permission to speak a few words before the people dispersed. He said he had a confession to make before God and his people ; he had himself brought the liay in (question to Stephen's cow. and had then reported to the class-leader that he had no doubt but that Stephen had stolen the fodder from his barn. This he had done, he said, in order to hijure his neighbor and the Methodists generally in the estimation of the people ; but now would ask forgiveness of both them and God, and whil(> he had any hay Stephen's cow should not want. As may well be imagined, such a disclosure had a thrilling effect upon the con- M. E. CHURCH IN CAN VDA. 85 l Vi^t " Ye fearful saints, fresh courage tiiko. The clouds ye so much dread Arc big with mercy, and sliall break In blessings on your liead." The penitent ofifercd himself to the society, and tlic people went away sayintr, " We have ween strange things this day. Saul is also among the prophets." The reformation to which allusion has already been made as having commenced at Napanee, had extended more or less all along the Canada border and across into the neighboring States. In this year, 1800, camp-m 'tings were commenced, and served greatly to promote the cause of (jiod, not only among the Methodists, but among the Presbyiorians and others. As, however, it is desigiied to devote u chapter to these meetings and their results, we will not treat the subject further in this place. In 1801 the work had so extended that 10 prc.ichcrs were appointed to the Canada District. The membership had increased to 1159, and there were 5 circuits, one of which w;'s called Upper Canada. To this extensive charge the Presiding Elder was appointed, having a young man as an assistant. Where the P. E. was to preach besides attending his Quarterly Meetings on the four charges, extending from the Ottawa to Long Point, is left to conjecture ; it may have been designed by Bishop Asbury that he should take charge of whatever field Sauiui- Draper should be assigned to upon his arrival in the country. • _.-— - The following is the list of appointments for the year : — *' f^^m li ^m IMAGE EVALUATION TEST TARGET (MT-3) '^O A- 4// '/^V I '».^ m ^/ o 7 1.0 I.I 111.25 U M 11.6 Hiotographic Sciences Corporation 23 WEST MAIN STREET WEBSTER, N.Y. 14580 (716) 873-4S03 ^^^\.. , ' ^^ 4^ 4. ^\^^ w^ 86 HISTORY OF THL Canada District — Joseph Jewell, P. E. Upper Cana chapter; it is proper, therefore, thut their origin and results should be briefly alluded to in this place ; but before entering more directly upon the subject it "uay not be uninteresting to the reader to take a retrospect of a few j'cars, in order to learn something respecting the remarkable outpouring of the Spirit of God upon the people at the Quarterly Meetings in the days of our ancestors, and out of which arose the necessity for holding camp-meetings. ^ . For several years the Quarterly Meetings had occasioned the collecting of the members of the societies from various parts of the country, the services generally continuing two days. In many cases, these services were held in the middle of the week, as it was impossible for the Elder to attend all such appointments upon the Saturday and Sabbath. la the month of January, 1776, a powerful revival broke out in that part of Virginia where Mr. G. Shadford was m. 98 HISTORY OP THE laboring, many sinners were awakened and savingly concer^iedy and the membership was greatly strengthened. Gracious revivals, too, occurred j'.mong the Presbyterians and Baptists, not only in Virginia, but in Maryland also. Among the Methodists, meetings were appointed for exhortation and prayer during the intervals between the regular appointments of the preachers, and these meetings were attended by many who had never before manifested any interest in such matters. Multitudes thus aroused to a sense of their lost condition would go for leagues to listen to Asbury and Shadford, who seemed like luminous meteors passing through the land. Early in May, 1776, a Quarterly Meeting was held about twelve miles from Petersburg, Va., which was even more numer- ously attended than usual. Upon this occasion the windows of heaven seem to have been opened, salvation descending upon the people iv. an astonishing manner. The second day was the great day of the feast. All day the house waw thronged ; in every part sinners were crying for mercy, while eel'iblished believers and new converts were shouting for joy ; the shades of evening closed around them — lights were sent for — and it was not " until some time in the night " that the congregation dis^iersed. These people returned to their homes, as did the early Christians after the day of Pentecost, scattering the holy fire among their neighbors and in their families, until, like a flood of hallowed light the glorious Gospel of the Son of God spread its sacred influence in various directions, over a space of from four to five hundred miles. . Mr. Young, in his history says, " On Tuesday and Wednes- day, the 30th and 3Tst days of July, a Quarterly Meeting was held at Mabury's dwelling house in Brunswick, new Greeny ville County. No me^ting-hoase in Virginia could have held the people. We had a larg ; arbor in the yai'd which would shade from the sun two or three thousand people. The fiTst ilay was a blessed season, but the second was a day never to- M, E. CHURCH IN CANADA. 99 be forgotten. We held the love-feast under the avbor in the open air ; the members of the society took their seats, and other poople stood all round them by hundreds. The place was truly awful by reason of the presence of the Lord. Many of the members spoke, and while some declared how the Lord h d justified them freely, others testified that the blood of Jesus had cleansed them from all sin." During the progress of this meeting hundreds were bathed in tears, and many were '' crying to God for pardon or holiness." In this manner did the work of God extend and prevail among the people in the several States until the commencement of the present century. Camp-meetings, like other institutions of Methodism, grew out of the necessities of the case. At the commencement of these meetings the country was new, the congregations large, and the hou""^ of worship small, and situated at very great distances from each other. It was fitting, therefore, that the ministers should follow the example of their Master, who taught the maltitades upon the mountain and by the sea shore. This peculiar means of grace was originated by the united eiForts of the Presbyterians and Methodists, under the following circumstances : — A very gracious display of God's power had prevailed among the membership of these two bodies during the ye.ir 1799, in the lower portion of Kentucky. In 1800, two brothers, one a Methodist and the other a Pres- bvterian, who were preaching in Logan and Christian counties, agreed to hold their meetings together. It was, however, soon found *hat tlieir congregations were so J'lrge that they could not be accommodated in any of their pkces of worship, and in consequence, during the summer months they sought the woods as a shelter for the crowds who came to listen to their minis- trations. " Many came from far," bringing food for them- selves and provender for their animals, very frequently stopping out aU night because " there was no room for them in the inn," or as was often the case, no inn to go to. The Rev. .11 I I il 100 HISTORY OP THE William McKendreo was at this time Presidinpj Elder, his District embracing that part of the State in which this reform- ation was going on. It appears, however, that he visited the mJddlc of the State in the latter part of 1800, or the beginning of 1801, and that at a large meeting, composed principally of I'resbytcrians and Methodists, after preaching he gave them an interesting account of these " feasts of taber- nacles." His words kindled to a flame the zeal of the people, and they longed for the period to arrive when they, too, should enjoy a camp-meeting. In due time the proper season arrived, the site was chosen, and the ground prepared ; the stand was erected, tents built and furnished, and seats arranged. When all the preparations had been completed the shrill notes of a trumpet were heard resounding through the forest, thus giving notice that divine service was about to com- mence. The waiting, expectant multitude responded readily to the call, those who could seating themselves, while others leaned against the tall forest trees for support ; all listening eagerly to the messages of mercy as they foil from the lips of the ambassadors of Christ. The zeal of the preachers, manifested upon these as well as other occasions, and the reformations following these efforts, connected with the singular- ity of the meetings Miemselves, induced many thousands to attend, although at first the preparations for the accommoda- tion of the people were but limited. After a time, however, matters were more systematically arranged. Suitable groves having been selected, and the logs and underbrush removed, the encampments were encircled by a "brush fei>ce " provided with gates as a means of protection against the assaults of the lawless. Within this fence the tents were arranged in proper order, and frequently so great was the multitude that there would be two or moi tiers of tents completely round the encampment. The pul^-it or stand was then, as now, a sort of platform covered overhead to protect the p.*eachers from the sun or ram. fl.; tK:^ 'ftj';' M. E. CHURCH IN CANADA. 101 The services were conducted very much in the samo manner in which they are in our more modern day. First a sermon from the stand, followed by an exhortation, which was in turn succeeded by a general prayer-meeting, either in the open camp-ground, or in a certain number of designated tents. At stated periods the people prepared and partook of their moals, though while some were thus engaged it often happened that others assembled in groups upon the ground, or in tants, to sing and pray until recalled by the sound of the trumpet to the seats in front of the stand. At dawn of day the trumpet sounded to arouse the sleepers from their slumbers, and with the new day commenced the same routine of services. At these gatherings scores of the most ungodly men, who had come for the express purpose of disturbing devout worshippers, were smitten with conviction for sin, frequently fair.ng like dead men, or soliciting the prayers of the righteous, and also pouring out for themselves agonizing supplications to God for mercy. Many, too, carried conviction with thoii to their abodes, and in their stated places of worship, or .at home, found peace in believing. Thus did God carry on his work among the people. •■ ^ A camp-meeting at night was indeed a picturesque scene. The fires upon the stands situated at given points in the enclosure, illuminated the whole place, and this glow of mellow light falling upon the cauA'^ass tents, and upon the deep green foliage of the forest, moved as the leaves and branches were by the gentle breezes of a lovely June night, gave to the whole scene a charm which is indescribable. Add to this, groups gliding here and there as their fancy dictated or necessity compellei, while others were engaged in worship or in praise, and it must be admitted that such a meeting — properly conducted — pre- sented a scene at once solemn and grand. To many, of course, such meetings were places of confusion, but to great numbers the Gospel as proclaimed at camp-meeting was experienced to jrod unto salvation. '^ "' power {i,s( ■*,>*<:?,<';' I IP i ? 1 mu i i ST 1 w , ill Syfe-f 1 ■ m 1 m'' mi 102 HISTORY OF THE ililKU'i Speaking of the early camp-meeting, Mr. Young remarks. " In consequence of so great a collection of people it frequently happened that several preachers would be speaking at once to different congregations on the same ground. Nor were they at a loss for pulpits ; stumps, logs, or lops of trees served as tem- porary stands from which to dispense the word of life. At night the whole scene was awfully sublime ; the ranges of tents, the fires reflecting light amidst the branches of the towering trees; the candles and lamps illuminating the encampment; hundreds moving to and fro with lights or torches, like Gideon" s army ; the preaching, praying, singing, shouting, all heard at once, rushing from different parts of the ground like the sound of many waters, was enough to swallow up all the powers of contemplation. Sinners ftUling and shrieking for mercy, awak- ened in the mind a lively apprehension of that scene when the uwful sound shall be heard, 'Arise, ye dead, and come to judgment.' But these meetings did not escape censure and opposition. It is difficult, indeed, to control a large collec- tion of people of every description ; hence it is that there might have been, and probably were, many irregularities. The enemies of thesj meetings, who were generally prejudiced and bigoted professors, or the wick'id who had no liking for them, took advantage of eveiy circumstance, and exaggerated every unfavorable occurrence to such a degree as to give to all a false and dreadful coloring. Some bigoted priests on these occasions were quite busy ; they were much worse at misrepresentation than the wicked themselves." The fame of these meetings had at an early season reached Canada, and inspired the people with an ardent desire to have one of their own ; but it was not until the summer of 1805 that these desires were gratified, when Henry Ryan and William Oabe, who had been sent to Bay Quinte Circuit that year,, resolved to hold one. The meeting, which was held upon the farm of Mr. Peter Huff, on Hay Bay, commenced on Friday and lasted till Monday. With the exception of the Sabbath^ M. E. CHURCH IN CANADA. 103 the attendance, as might have been expected in so very new a country, was not large. The pulpit, however, was well represented, Daniel P'cket went down from Yonge Street, and Thoracis Madden from Smith's Creek, while Nathan Bangs and S. Keeler came up from the Oswegotchic. The labors of these brethren, assisted as they probably were by Darius Dunham, who had located, exerted a powerful influence upon the people, many of whom had .^ome from great distances in order to be at the meeting. To very many it had been indeed a season of rejoicing, and they returned to their homes " like giants refreshed with new wine," scattering the holy fire as they went. The success which attended this meeting induced others to make, the attempt and as the country became more thickly settled, and the circuita enlarged, camp-meetings were held as occasion appeared to justify, and as the people were able to sustain them ; not in every case, however, followed by the same results. In some parts of the province multitudes were converted at these meetings, while in other parts, the work was very greatly hindered by the ungodly rabble, who would combine together in order to disturb the worship, and perse-aute the worshippers. Frequently, t,oo, these desperadoes were headed by men of influence and means, and their violent conduct sanctioned by those high in authority ; but God was with his people, and in a measure restrained the wrath of the evil doers until laws were enacted protecting people in their various modes of •religious worship. But it was not upon civilized society alone that camp- meetings produced a salutary eflfect ; the aborigines of the -, I 110 UIHTOKY OV TUK other anecdotes nii^ht bo relutcd of littii, Lut the abovo sufficiently indicate the charaotor of the man. llcrnarking on his pulpit cxcrciHes, Mr. Ileid oays: — " His preaching was often with remarkable particularity and point, and :va8 productive of immediate and grjoioua rcsulin. Ho was preachin<; in New York, on one occasion, several successive evenings. A Mr. C. was present, who, though not a member at that time, was a regular hearer at the chapel, and I believe a good man. His extreme diffidence and want of confidence had kept him back from many Christian duties, especially f.imily prayer. Tn one of his sermons the Elder referred to this duty with characteristic earnestness ; and as if appealing to some particular individual said, ' You know your duty and do it not. In the name of God I charge you to begin this night. I warn you at your peril not to neglect it any longer. Mr. C. really thought, as he said afterwards, that some one had informed the Elder about him, and that he meant him in particular, lie left the chapel with the full purpose to do his duty that night; but his courage failed him. and he neglected. The next evening, near the close of the Hermon, as if the thought suddenly struck him, Mr. Ryan earnestly exclaimed, ' Last night on your way homo you promised God that you would commcace family worship, but the devil frightened you from your purpose. man ! if you mean to save your soul, and hope for the salvation of your family, go and do your duty this night, even if you die in the attempt.' Mr. C. said the Elder looked him directly in the face, and he could not doubt that somehow he knew what had passed in his mind the night before. He was too thoroughly aroused this time to be driven from h'S duty any longer. He commenced at once." William Case, the early colleague of Mr. Ryan in this province, and for many years a laborious minister, spent most of hit: itinerant life in Canada. Though a pious man, and very zcalou.^i in his efforts for the extension of his Maskr'.s M. I. CHURCH IN CANADA. Ill kiii '^v:^§ • i > As Detroit could be supplied from the American side, Mr' Densmore remained for a time in Canada. The preachers who were engaged in the work in Canada during the war were, H. Ryan, T. Whitehead, John Reyiiolds, A. Prindle, E. Burdock, jv; «(-■ -- M. E. CHURCH IN CANADA. U9 G. W. Donsmore, who remained for a time, David Gulp, who was called out by Mr. Ryan as a supply early in 1812, David Youmans, William Brown and Ezra Adams, who all entered the ranks between that time and the close of the war. Just prior to the war the statistics for both Canadas were a<* follows: — 2 Districts; 11 circuits, with a membership, including the preachers, of 2863. Alas ! that cruel, ruthless war should retard a work so graciously begun ; but it wa^ permitted so to be. Two nations of kindred blood rushed to arms. "Greek met Greek" in the open field, and in the sanguinary conflicts which followed, many brave and good men. some of them near relatives or warm personal friends, others brethren in the Church of Christ, who had bowed together at the same altar, now engaged on opposite sides, fell to rise no more till earth and sea shall give up their dead. It is not the province of a work like this to give a minutt^ detail of all the important historical events connected with the war of 1812 ; nor is this the place to enter into any argument upon the subject. Suffice it to say that its disastrous eflFects on both countries were felt for several years after its close ; and it is to be earnestly hoped that no such calamity may occur in the future. Thee are many interests common to both England and the United States which should unite them so closely together in the bonds of amity, as to render such a contingency impossible. Originally they were of the same blood, and more recently there has been such a constant inter- change of immigration and emigration going on between the two nations, especially between the British Colonies and the Hnited States— British subjects going thence, and Americans coming into the provinces — that the people may almost be said to be one, and a war between them would bo in reality fratri- cidal. Commercially, they are mutually, to a very groat extent, dependent on each other. But more than all this, and above it, they are the two great Protestant nations in the world — the only nations that stand forth as champions of civil i 1 ■ '^ ri fU !i 120 HISTORY OF THE and religious liberty, and the only ones who stand ready at all times to succor the distressed and downtrodden of other nations. Surely then, in view of all these circumstances, it behoves the statesmen of both countries to exercise a mutual forbearance towards each other, and this done their petty diflFerences will be adjusted without recourse to arms. As the breaking out of the war had so entirely disarranged the work that it was impossible to proceed without new plans, Mr. Ryan, Presiding Elder of the Upper Canada District, called a Conference of the preachers who remained in the country, which met at Mr. Benjamin Corwyn's, near Lundy's Line, in the summer of 1S12, and here they arranged the Upper Canadian work. There were present at this Conference, H. Ryan, Thomas Whitehead, A. Prindle, John Reynolds, E. Burdock, G. W. Densmore, J. Rhodes, E. Pattie, and David Culp. It will be seen from the above that all the preachers remaining in the country were not present at thL Conference ; perhaps because in the then disturbed state of the country it was not possible for them to attend. Lower Canada, probably in consequence of the distance, as well as the danger of travelling in such troublesome times, was not represented at all. Indeed there were not many to represent, and scarcely any one to come. The Messrs. Burch and Hibbard had, it is true, gone to their respective fields of labor, Mr. Burch supplying the place of Mr. Bangs in Montreal, and Mr. Hibbard going to Ottawa ; but unhappily, in October of the same year, while visiting the societies on the St. Francis Circuit, which were without a preacher, in consequence of Mr. Luckey not thinking it safe to come, he, in attempting to cross the St. Lawrence on the ferry, by some mischance fell into the river and was drowned, though his horse escaped. Mr. Hibbard was last seen with his arms extended to heaven and then sank to rise no more till he shall be summoned by the gi-eat archangel ; thus adding another name to the list of faithful missionaries who have fallen while laboring to advance the interests of the M. E. CHURCH IN CANADA. 121 Redeemer's kingdom Although diligent search was made, his body was nevet recovered.* In consequence of the war pressing so heavily on certain localities, a few of the preachers stopped travelling, but almost all acquiesced in Mr. Ryan's arrangements and cheerfully went to their work. Financially, the preachers were often in very great straits, though where all spiritual life was not pressed out of the pcjplc, they gave of their means for the support of their ministers to the extent of their ability. Every effort was made by Mr. Ryan and his little band of co-laborers to supply the people with the word of life, and to do this the more effectually, r.cvcral of those circuits nearly adjoining each other were united, so that they could be under the supervision of the regular preachers, who visited the various appointments af stated periods, as nearly as they possibly could, while the intervals were, as far as was practicable, filled by the local preachers, or when in, or approaching near to the vicinity in which they lived by those brethren who had located, and had not re-entered the effective ranks. These were Daniel Pickqtt, Darius Dunham, Daniel Freem;in, Robert Perry. f Mr. Ryan summoned a second Conference in 1813, which met at Bowman's church in the township of Ancaster ; and, the war still continuing to rage, in the v-^pring of the year following, 1814, he called a Conference which assembled at the "6th Town Shore meeting-house" — District of Prince Edward — near a Mr. Conger's, Here, as well as at the former Conferences, the state of the societies was carefully considered. ♦Another authority says that it was in the Richelieu River that Mr. Hibbard was drowned, and tliat some time after that sad event a body was foimd, which being supposed to be that of Mr. Hibbard his friends caused it to be buried. fNo regular record of these Conferences has been preserved, but the deficiency has been supplied, as far as was practicable, by the kindness of our aged veteran, David Gulp, who was present at all of them, having been called out by the Presiding Elder, Mr. Ryan, early in the year 1812, and who is therefore the oldest Methodist preacher in the country. M ' '>! i I •|! li' = m 8- m'i 122 HISTORY OP THE and such changes made in the itinerancy us was judged best for the cause in the countr}-. There were present at the Conference of 1814, Henry llyan, Thomas Whitehead, E. Burdock, John Reynolds, A, Prindle, J. Rhodes, E. Pattie, T. Madden, Daniel Pickett, and David Culp. Ezra Adams — who had been admitted into society by David Culp — was this year employed by this Conference, but was not, it appears, present. John Reynolds, whose health had been greatly enfeebled by his excessive labors, located either in the latter part of 1814, or the beginning of 1815, and commenced teaching school, but finding his lungs continuing weak he entered the mercantile business, as has been before mentioned. Several others of the preachers, besides Mr. Reynolds, located during or immediately after the war. It will have been observed by a previous paragraph, that .some of the preachers who had formerly located were prerient at this Conference of 1814, having been called into active service by Mr. Ryan, as the necessity of the case required. Throughout the course of the war high churchmen, and other interested politicians, had sought to " evil aftect " the minds of the Methodist people of Canada against the American preachers, urging that the societies in the province ought not any longer to be dependent upon ministers who owed allegiance to a foreign government. This plea, which at first sight appeared plausible, led some astray. A few Methodists about Kingston withdrew and formed themselves into a body called Provincial Methodists. The body was small and short-lived, the preachers and most of the people returning to the old fold. The war of 1812 terminated by the treaty of Ghent, on the 24th of December, 1814, but so slowly did news travel in those days, it was not. until the 17th of February, 1815, that the treaty was ratified at Washington, and the tidings were not officially announced in Canada until the Ist of March. M. E. OHUROH IN OAN>kJ>A. 12H On tho 29th of June the Oenosce Conferonoo mot at Lyonn, N. Y., and rcHumed tbo control of tho sooietiofl in Canada ; and again, with tho consent of the Canadian Methodists, sent out heralds to jissist in proclaimin<^ the glad tidings of peace through the country. It has been previously stated that the membership of the Church, just prior to tho commencement of the war numbered •28G3. At its close there were returned, at tho Genesee Conference of 1815, only 17C5 ; this, however, does not include JiOwer Canada, from which there wore no return;'. Such are the sad eflFoctd of war, \vhether it Ls undertaken justly or unjustly. There had been »^ot only a fearful loss of life and property occasioned by this war, but also a very great declension of religious feeling among the inhabitants generally. The Canadi;m work was once more divided into two Districts, viz.. Upper and Lower Canada, the Upper Canada District extending from the Bay of Quinto in tho cast to Detroit in tho west, including six circuits. The appointments were as follows : Upper Canada District — William Cahe, P. K. Bay Qvink — David Culp, Ezra Adams, Hmith's Creek — To be supplied. Yonge St reef — John Rhodes. Ancaster — Thomas Whitehead, David Youmans. Niagara — William Brown» Detroit — Joseph Hickcox. The Lower Canada District extended from Augusta in tho west to Quebec in tho east, to which the following appointments were made : Henry Ryan, Presiding Elder. Augusta — Thomas Madden, Andrew Prindle. St. f/awrence — Israel Chamberlain, John Araold. Montreal and Quebec — To be supplied. Two of the old circuits were this year left out of tho 9 ' i>i III '■f. ! ! ' I Vl .1: i K'^Sl wm 11 i' i i' 124 HISTORY OP THE Minutet^, iianioly, Lon«; Point in the woHt, and St. Francis in tho cuHt, but the mx-ieticK on the Lon^ Point Circuit, including Oxford and other places west of the Grand Iliver, were supplied \vith preaching, as far as was practicable, by the preachers on the Ancaster Circuit. The death of Dr. Coke, which occurred at sea, May Drd, 1814, while on his way to establish h niisnion in Ceylon, occasioned j^reat sorrow among both the Methodists of Kurope and America. It wtis announced at the various Conferences of 1815, and a brief but int(;restinp; account of his life and labors was published in the Minutes of that year. As first Bishop of the M. E. Church, he was enshrined in the hearts of American 3Iethodists ; and as a zealous and indefatigable missionary, he was e((ually and deservedly popular throughout Kngland, Ireland, and Wales. His death was sudden, but we have no doubt glorious. He had retired to his cabin at the usual hour; in the morning it was found that his spirit had taken its flight. Like Enoch of old, " lie wilked with God, and was not: for God took him.'' Thus, unattended by any but the angelic host, this eminent servant of God passed away to his rest. Bishop Asbuvy did not long survive his friend and co-laborer, Dr. Coke, having died in less than two years after. Mr. Asbury was born in England, on the 2{)th of August, 1745. In 1771 he came to Americc. landing at Philadelphia, Oct. 27th of that year. At the Gcr er/il Conference of 1784, which was held in Baltimore, he was ordained Bishop of the M. E. Church. From the time of Mr. Asbury's arrival in America until his death, a period of forty-five years, be allowed himself no relaxation from his excessive labors ; travelling continually from north to south, from south again to north, publishing alike to bond and free the glad tidmgs of salvation. In the year 1811 Mr. Asbury made a short visit, to Canada. A few extracts from his journals of that date will suflice to show the estimation which he had of the country, as well as his own M. E. CIIUUCII IN CANADA. 12& rtGvero toils and euftcrinf; while laboring among the Hocietics ia this pro\ ince. lie nayH : " At tlic Tuilian village 1 led my horse aero.sH the pole bridge ; careful as I wsi.'^, he got his feet in an opening and sank into mud and water ; away went the b:ig.s — books and clothing wet, and the horse yet fast. We pried witii a pole at the stern, and he, by making a desperate olfort at the same lime, plunged forward and came out. The mos(|uitoes were not idle while we were busy. ••• •'• * At eight o'clock wo set sail and crossed the St. Lawrence by rowing; the river here is three miles wide. We rode through Cornwall in the night, ami came to Kvan Uoy's, making lifty-lour miles for the day's journey. It is surprising how we make nearly fifty miles a day over such desperate roads as we have lately travelled. -^ ''^ ••''' I suffer much from my lame feet and the- great her.;, tiad no small inconvenience because I have not been instructed how to prepare my mind and body for the change I discover on this side. ■•- -'-^ '■'• Why should I have new feelings in Canada, ? Friday I preached at the German settlement. I was weak in body, yet greatly heli)cd in speaking. Here is a decent, loving people ; my soul is nmch united to them. I called upon Father Dulmage, and Brother Hicks, a branch of an old Irish stock of Methodists in New York ; I lodged at David Brackenridgc's, above Johns-ton. Saturday we rode twelve miles belore breakfast; reached Elizabethtown. Our ride has brought us through one of the finest countries I have ever seen. The timber is of noble size ; the cattle are well shaped and well-looking : the crops are abundant, on most fruitful soil ; surely this is a land that God the Lord has blessed. " Upper Canada, Sunday 7th. I rose in pain. We have a large, unfinished house in which we congregated for love-feast, at eight o'cloQk, and sacrament. I could not speak long. We had about one thousand souls together. Monday, we took the path to Mallory's, where we dined, and continued on to i« 11 ''4 r I '- il ' m 126 HlSTOftV OF TH3 Baldwin's, and from thence to Joel Stone'n, at the mouth of Ciinadiguk. The pain in my foot is so severe that I cannot much enjoy the great kindness of these people. Tuesday, a heavy ride brought me to Elias Dulmage's. My foot is much inflamed, and my whole body disordered. Wednesday, I preached in the new chapel at Kingston. I have applied a poultice to my foot ; I must do something to hast«ii a cure, or [ shall scarcely reach Conference in time." Mr. Asbury remained in Canada till the 15th of July, when he crossed from Kingston to Sackett's Harbor, and proceeded thence to Conference. He continued to labor faithfully to the end, and may almost be said to have "ceased at once to work and live," having preached his last sermon on the Sunday ^previous to his death. He expired in peace on Sunday, the 3l8t of March, 1816, in the 71st year of his age. Shortly before Bishop Asbury's death he wrote to the British Conference remonstrating with its membci-s on their action in sending their missionaries to Canada, and taking up work already occupied, thereby creating ill-will and division in the societies. His English brethren, however, did not heed his gentle remonstrance, and thus was entered the dividing wedge, which has since so riven and marred the Canadian Church. Before the matter could be brought before the General Conference of 181 G, the Bishop had passed from the ranks of the Church militant to those of the Church triumphant. The death of Bishops Coke and Asbury was greatly lamented by the American Church, and the Canadian Metuodists had as much reason to regret their demise as any other section of tlie church on this continent. Indeed, as subsequent events proved, they had much more rea^n to deplore it, for had they lived they possibly might have prevented, by thtir prudent counsels and remonstrances, the inroads made in after years Qpon the societies in Canada by the English missionaries M. E. CHURCH IN CANADA. 127 CHAPTER XII. DIFFICULTIES WiTH THK ENGLISH MISSIONAKIES. Sanguine hopes doKhod to the groimd — Arrival ot English missionaricB — Consequent difisonsion and division — Cliarges of disloyalty — By whom the dissensions were fomented — The reason why — Correspondence between tlie American and English Gonferenees in I'^IG — No benctieial result — Anotlier four years — Correspondence between the two bodies in 1820 — Its rosul' — The division of lields of labor — l^etters of instruction — Arrange- ments carried out. The war being now ended it wa« hoped that peace would once more be restored to the distracted societies as well, and that in a very whort time the Conference would be able to supply the various circuits in Canada with suitable pistors, whose laborf' would, as in times past, bo crowned with success ; but in these expectations the Canadian Church was, to a great extent, mournfully disappointed. During the war some p;irtics, taking advantage of the absence of the American preachers, who were prevented by it from coming to their charges in Lower Canada, invited tlie English Conference to *Qd a missionary to Quebec. The request was complied with, and he was shortly ai'ter followed by one to Montreal. At a later period the English Missionary Society sent their agents into Upj jr Canada, and these men, arrogating to themselves the claim of supenor loyxlty, began at once sowing the seeds of discord and strife in old and long-established societies. The seed w)wn produced the desired frnit in due time, and an agiUition commenced for a separation of the Cana^. So far as it regarded the religious destitution of the ^^oople during the war, Mr ll^'an had supplied the vacancies occasioned by the carrying out of the proclamation, with the iussistanee of those prcachei*s who showed their loyalty both to the government and to the interest of the Church by remaining in the country despite danger and difficulties, and in so doing he had supplied the work better, and accomplished more good than tlie few English missionaries could possibly have done, ignorant as they were of the country, and uniuured to its peculiar privations. The injustice, untruthfulness, and unfairness of the charges brought against the Canadian Methoc'ists were unworthy of ^he merest time-serving politician ; how much more unworthy, then^ were they of the character of ministers of the Gospel. These missionaries, on coming to the province, at once entered on their work of division, pleading in justification of ' m m m^ 130 HISTORY OF THE their conduct, that it wa« decidedly wrong for the Methodiste of Oanada to be under any foreign ecclesiastical superintend- ence, while, with their usual consistency, the EngUsh Conference at this very time — w hich fact was, however, kept carefully out of sight — wari pushing forward its mission work, and sending its missionaries into foreign countries, wherever there was any opening whatever. Not that the sending out of missionaries into foreign lands was reprehensible ; what was wrong, dishonor- able, was, the desiring to supplant others on already occupied ground, and to deprive them of the fruit of their self-sacrificing labors. The true reason for the conduct of the Englisli missionaries, and for their encouragement by both the Home and Provincial Governments, was one very different from that given to the people. The members of the Methodist Episcopal Church were opposed to any EstabUslied Church in the colonies, while the Wesleyans of England, in those days, were not, considering themselves to be, as Mr. Alder afterwards affirmed, ''a branch of the Church of England, both at home and abroad." Bishop Asbury's letter of remonstrance to the English Con- ference resulted in the appointment of the Rev. Messrs. B'ack and Bennett, of Nova Scotia, as delegates on the part of the English missionaries to the American General Conference of 1816, but produced no beneficial effect. The speeches of the delegates were conciliatory, nothing more, and the reply of the English Conference to the Bisnop's letter as follows : — '^New Chanel, City lioad, London, Feb. 7th, 1816. Very Dear Sir, — It is by the particular request of the last British Conference that we, as members of the Missionary Committee, address you, and our brethren in the United States, whom we very highly esteem as fellow citizens of the saints, and fellow-laborers in the vineyard of our common Lord ; most fervently wishing that peace, righteousness, and joy in the Holy Ghost may abound in you and by you, to the praise of God and the glory of his grace. ^""^^^ ; . ' V" "' M. E. CHURCH IN CANADA. 131 " On reading your last very kind and aflfectionate letter, we sympathized with you, knowing how much it must have effected your mind, after heing favored with so much spiritual pros- perity, to have to lament a '' decrease of members in your societies ; ' but we trust, since it hath pleased Divine Providence to cause the terrors of war to ccaac, and to restore the invalu- able blessing of peace between the two countries, that by thin time you hail the dawn of a more auspicious day, and see the returning glory of the Lord revealed, and the quickening ^^ower of tho Spirit diffusing its revi\ing influe-^ce, and that the voice of joy and rejoicing is heard in the congregations of the righteous. ' Gloiy to God in the highest, peace upon earth, and good-will toward men.' Our united prayer and supplica- tion for you is, ' Lord, we beseech, Lord, wc beseech, send now prosperity. " It is with gratitude to the Lord of all that we can say. He is still extending His kingdom among us, by the instru- mentality of the preached wora ; and his servants have had much consolation in their labors by seeing sinners powerfully convinced of sin, penitents born of God, and believers sanctified by the Spirit. God has lately been reviving his work in various places, particularly in the city of Bristol, at Salisbury, &c.; in the former place several hundreds have been brought to the knowledge of God their Saviour. VVe can assure you we love this ' good old-fashioned religion,' of a deep conviction for sin, a clear sense of justification by faith, and entire sanctifica- tion of the soul from all moral pollution, as well, if not better than ever. Blessed bo the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who hath blessed us, and does even now bless us, with these spiritual blessings in heavenly pUices in Christ Jesus; and we ever pray with increasing desire, * Thy kingdom come.' Our blessed Lord has greatly favored us with success in our missionary efforts, particularly in our new stations in the eastern world, Ceylon, &c., though this has been attended with it? afflictive circumstances. Since the death of our venerable, highly '■ X : .;, Pa m ■5W 132 HISTORY OP THE esteemed, and much lamented friend and brother, Dr. Coke, our beloved Brother Ault has been removed from a sphere of useful labor to his great reward. The other brethren are still preserved in their useful labors. A Buddhist priest of consid- erable learning has been converted to Christianity, and is now engaged in translating the Scriptures into two of the native languages. Several Moormen, or Mohammedans, have also received the truth, and are becoming useful preachers of the word of life ; and thousands of the poor heathen flock to hear the joyful tidings of the Gospel. Our missionaries have begun to buiui a large chapel, house, scnool, printing-office, &c., at Columbo, and have received the liberal support of the inhabit- ants. These buildings are to cost seven thousand dollars, six thousand of which have been already subscribed by the iiibabitants. We have lately sent five more missionaries to that quarter of the globe, and one more is shortly to sail for Bombay, Thus the Lord is enlarging his kingdom ' even from the rivers to the ends of the earth.' ;. . ,. '' We rejoice in the ardent Christian affection you express toward your brethren in this country, and be assured they entertain the same lively feelings and sentiments of brotherly love toward you and your fi)llow laborers in the Lord ; and should we be favored with a visit from you or tlicm, it would give us inexpressible pleasure to give you the right hand of fellowship, and every expression of our sincere Christian regard. " To preserve a mutual good understanding and the unity of the Spirit, and, as far as possible, a co-operation in promoting the good work of the Lord, we feel it our duty to state to you '' a subject of local difference, which to us ha-: been painful, and which we feel a delicacy in stating, but to which we are com- pelled from the necessity of the case, that the word of the Lord be not hindered. In consequence of application being made to the British Conference, from a society at Montreal, a missionary wir- dent to that place, and received as the messenger of the Oospel of peace : but we are sorry to learn that some misunder- M. E. CHURCH IN CANADA 133 standing has taken place between Brothers Strong and Williams, our missionaries, and Brother llyan, your Presiding Elder for Lower Canada. From the former we have received a state- ment of their proceedings, and from the latter a letter of complaint. We have also received a letter from Brother Bennett, the Chairman of the Nova Scotia District, who has visited Montreal, etc., and rcport«^,d to us his proceedings. Upon a review of the whole, and from the most serious and deliberate consideration, we are led to conclude that, considering the relative situation of the inhabitants of Montreal and of Canada to this country, and particularly as a principal part of the people appear to be in fiivor of our missionaries, it would be for their peace and comfort and for tli * furtherance of the Gospel, for our brethren to occupy those stations, especially the former, and to which we conceive we have a claim, as a considerable part of the money for building the chajxil and house was raised in this country. We trust our American brethren will see the pro- priety of complying with our wishes with respect to those places ; not to mention their political relation to this country, which, however, is not of little importance, for we are conscious that their general habits and prejudices arc in favor of English preachers, being more congenial to their views and feelings, which .-liould certainly be consulted, and will tend to facilitate the success of the Gospel and their spiritual prosperity. As your and our object is mutually to diffuse the knowledge of Ilim whosv^ kingdom is not of this world, and by every possible means to promote the immortal interests of men, let us not contend ; we have one Master, even Chi'ist; but give place to each other, that the word of the Lord may have free course, run and be glorified. We cannot but hope that, from the contiguity of the labors of the brethren belonging to the two Conferences, the spirit of unity and love will be promoted, and by this measure a more perfect reciprocal intercourse established. As you have kindly invited our esteemed brethren Mcvssrs. Black and Bennett to take a seat in . II • I' 1^ I ! .,; 'kK rn i P'im U ': 134 HISTORY OF THE i your Conference, we have directed them to pay you a visit at Baltimore for this purpose, and to amicably arrange and settle this business, whom we trust you will receive as our representa- tives and as brethren. " Praying that our mutual love may abound yet more and more, and that we may ever enjoy and rejoice in each others' prosperity, till the whole earth is filled with t^e glory of God, we remain your aflFectionate brethren in Christ Jesus. '' Signed for and in behalf of the Committee, James Wood, Tr&minr. Joseph Benson, ' James Buckley, Secretary." This communicatidu, «nd other papers submitted by Messrs. Black and Bennett on behalf of the English Conference, as well as various petitions from Canada, protesting against the objec- tionable course pursued by the English missionaries, were referred to a committee of the General Conference, and after having given a patient hearing to Messi-s. Black and Bennett, on behalf of the English Conference, and Messrs^. Ryan and Case, on behalf of the Canadian Methodists, the committee presented the following report, which was adopted by the Conference : " The Committee appointed by the General Conicrcnce to confer with Messrs. Black and Bennett, delegates appointed by the Loudon M-tiiodist Missionary Society to represent the British connexl m to this Conference, and, if possible, to make an amicable adjustment of certain differences between our Church and the British connexion relative to Upper and Lower Canadti, beg leave to submit the following report, viz. : " 1. Your committee have had several friendly interviews with the above-mentioned delegates on those subjects, and they are happy to state that there appears to be an earnest desire to have all existing difficulties terminated to the mutual peace and satisfaction of both parties, and to perpetuate the Christian union and good understiinding which have hitherto existed. M. E. CHTJROH IN CANADA. 135 " 2. It appears, from written communications, as well m from verbal testimony, that unhappy dissensions have taken place in Montreal between certain missionaries sent (at the request of a few official members of the society in that place, in time of the last war,) by the London Missionary Society, and some American preachers, which have terminated in a division of that society. "3. Although the late hostilities between the two countries separated, for some time, those provinces from the immediate jjiiperinvondency of the Methodist Episcopal Church in America^ yet all the circuits, (except Quebec), were &» regularly supplied as circumstance,^ would admit of with American preachers. " 4. It furthermore appears, from written and verbal com- munications, that it is the desire of the groat majority of the people in Upper and Lower Canada to be supplied, Jis heretiv ibre, with preachers from the United States, " 5. In the two provinces there are twelve circuits and one station, (Montreal), which have eleven meeting-houses, which have boon hitherto supplied by American preachers. " These things l)eing duly considered, together with the contiguity of those provinces to the western and northern parts of the United States, your committee respectfully submit the following resolutions : — " Resolved by the delegates of the Annual Conferences of the Methodist Episcopal Church, in General Conference assembled, *'l. That we cannot, consistently with our duty to the societies of our charge in the Canadas, give up any part of them, or any of our chapels in those provinces, to the superin- tendence of the British connexion. " 2. That a respectful letter be addressed to the London Methodist Missionary Society, explaining the reasons for the above resolutions " Neither the action of the (General Conference, nor the letters of explanation or remonstrance whioh accompanied the above I i3 ■ i ! ili im 136 III8T0RY OF THE 'II rcHolutionp, produced, however, any beneficial result ; instead of the intruders being removed, the number was increased in Lower Canada and others sent to Upper Canada, where, like their predecessors in Lower Canada, they began scattering the firebrands, arrows, and death of dissension among the already sorely tried societies. For four years longer this state of things continued, crippling the energies of the Eocictics, retard- ing the pro Alexandria, D. C, Oct. IQtJi, 1820. Dear Brother, — I transmit you herewith a copy of the resolutions of the late British Conference, received through Brother Emory, our representative to that body, on the subjects embraced in his mission; and also of the instructions of the Missionary Committee in London to the Rev, Messrs. R. Williams and the other British missionaries in the Provinces of Canada, predicated on those resolutions. " From these documents you will perceive that the desire of our General Conference, both for the establishment of a i ■f It-!- I *f \ I'lV \\ 148 HISTORY OF THE pcrnontil intercourse by deputation, between the two con- nections, !ind for the Jimicablc adjustment of the afflicting differences in the Canadas, has been happily acconiplished. Indeed, it uppearf, not only froni those papers, but from the communications of our representative, that this desire was met, both by the British Conference and the Mission- ary Committee, with a promptness and brotherly affection which we should take equal pleasure in acknowledging and reciprocating. . ,. , , " This it now devolves iipon mc (my colleagues being neces- sarily at a ^reat distance, in the discharge of their official duties in the south and west) to enjoin it upon you to do, and to promote the same spirit of kindness towards our British brethren, among all the preachers, travelling and local, and all the official and private members within your District, to the utmost extent of your power. " To remove the prejudices and allay the unpleasant excite- ments existing will, no doubt, require much prudent care. But ' in this labor of love,' I expect in you a ready mind. Let the difficulties you may meet with only stimulate you to the exertion of your best and most persevering efforts in this behalf. Bemembcr, ' Blessed are the peacemakers j' ' ;S'l*itish breth- ren shall supply the lower province and our preachers the upper ; yet so that no circuit or societies on cither side shall be loft destitute by the other. This has been sacredly attended to, and niut"ul plcd,^•es fo^ the performance of it have been passed. It now becomes our duty, therefore, to inform you of this agreement, and to advise you in the most affectionate and earnest manner to put yourselves and your chapels under the care of our British brethren, as their societies and chapels in the upper province will be put under ours. '' This communication to you, we confess, is not made with- out pain'; not from any want of affection for our British brethren, but from the recollection of those tender and endear- ing ties which have bound us to you. But a necessity is laid upon us. It is a peace offering. No other consideration could have induced us to consent to ti-j measure. Forgive, there- fore, our seeming to give you up. We do not give you up in heart, in affection, in kind regards, in prayers. '' The British and American connexions have now mutually recognised each other as one body of Christians, sprung from a connnon stock, holding the same doctrines, of the same religious family, and striving in common to speed the light of true religion through the world, and they have agreed to kec); up a regular intercourse by deputation, ^'n future, for the maintenance of this brotherly union. " Let any past differences, therefore, be forgotten ; let them be buried forever. Confirm your love toward our British brethren, and rsceivo them as ourselves ; not as strangers, but as brothers beloved. By this shall ail men know that we are Christ's disciples, if we love one another. Love is of Grod, M. £. CliUUCII IN CANADA 153 and he that dwclloth in love dwcllcth in God, nnd Ood in hiui. May the God of luve and pcaco bo with you, and crown you with the blcsscdneg.s of contributing with us to heal the wounds of the Churcli, and to cstabHsh that ' fellowship of the spiiit' which shall ni:ikc us to say, 'Behold how ^ood and how pleasant it is for brethren to dwell tof];ethcr in unity I lu is like the precious ointment upon the head, that ran down upon the beard, even Aaron's beard, that went down to the skirts of his garments. As the dew of Ilermon, and as the dew that descended upon the mountain of Zion, for there the . Lord commanded the blessing even of life for evermore.' " For any further information that you may desire, I refer you to the Presiding Elder, to whom it is given in charge to make this connnunication to you ; and remain, dear brethren, with the same ati'ection lor you in the bonds of the Gospel of poace, and the best wishes and prayers for your happiness and salvation. " W.\r. McKendrer, Alexandria, D. C, October IGi/i, 1820. Such was the arrangement effected between the two bodies ; which, if it had been carried out in good faith by the English missionaries, would have almost immediately restored peace to the disturbed societies, and caused the ruinous agitation to cease. The Amcrico-Canadian Methodists kept to their part of the agreement to the very letter, removing their men entirely from Lower Canada, while the British mission- aries only partially performed theirs, still allowing their agents, in defiance of the agreement, to occupy a station of importance in Upper Canada. What was accomplished, howi^ver, secured comparative peace — for a few years — to most of the societies in Upper Canada, which had been distressed and injured by the unseemly contention ; and in 1824) the General Conference •iS"- tttitmmmBm 154 HISTORY OP THE once more remonstrated, gently, with the English Conference, on their behalf, a" 1 passed the following resolution on the subject: — ^ -. : v " That a respecttul representation be made to the British Conference of those points in the agreement between the two connections, which have not, on the part of their missionaries, been fulfilled." ■vO-iWi' f..,V M. E. CHURCH IN CANADA. 155 CHAPTER XIIL FllOM THE DEATH OF BISHOP ASBIJRY TILL 1819. State, of the work, just prior to 1817 — Conference of 1817 — Where Ji(;l(l — Bishop (Jcorge presides — Preparation for the Conference— Ilesult of preparation — Special suhjeet of prayer — The answer- Danger of listening to Metliodists — Parental injunctions — Tem- porary result — Conversion of a Calvinist, and his subsequent life and laliors — Ceneral revival of 1817 — Fresh interference of English missionaries — Consequent trouble — Iteason wliy — Tur- moil of 1818 and 181 9 — Result of the contention, and its eflect upon the cause. Notwithstanding all the difliculties with which the Cliurch had had to contend during these years of trial, the sotjietics continued steadfast, and in Upper Canada, witli very few exceptions, remained ntrongly attached to the original connexioTi and to their faithful pastors, the American preachers. Congre- gations and societies steadily increased. Suitable places of worship were in many places erected, and the power of God in the conviction and conversion of precious souls was manifested on every charge. '1" The year 1817 was remarkable for the most extensive revivals that had yet taken place in the country. The Genesee Conference held its session this year at Elizabcthtown, Upper Canada, commencing June 21st, 1817, Bishop George pre- siding. An Annual Conference in Canada was a new and strange thing indeed. It was, in fact, an epoch in the history of the province. Anxiously the people awaited the day of its commencement, anticipating with delight the pleasure to be derived from the visit of the Bisliop and the other American 11 f fm MMi 156 HISTORY OP THE preachers wlioin they had never before seen ; and many and earnest were the petitions offered up in faith by the people of God, that He would be pleased to pour out His Spirit, not only upon the Conference and themselves, but also on such as might, from mere motives of curiosity, come to see and hear. Some, more earnest even than the others, singled out i^ci'tlcular individuah of their J"^quaintance, and made them especial subjects of i)rayer, to' .omc time previous to the sitting of the Conference. How ;iiany sessions of Conference ai'e now preceded by this spirit of earnest supplication, on the part of the people in whose vicinity it is to be held, for the descent of the Holy Spirit, the '' baptism of fire ? " Among those who had been specially named in these exercises was a young man formerly from Delaware County, State of New York, but then residing not far from Elizabcthtown, The individual in question wius strictly moral and upright in his deportment, but unconverted, and, therefore, an object of solicitude to faithful Christians. Educated a Calvinist, he had a strong dislike to Methodists, and from what he had hojird concernini:; them considered their manner of worship very objoctionable. At the time he left the parental roof, among many other cautions from his careful parents, he had received one, abo\'e -Al others, to "shun the MithodistH^'' as they believed there was some " demoniacal influence about tbeir preaching ; it was dt'ngcrous to even hear them; those li.stenin ; might be hcnUchcdy The young man carefully attended to the advice of his parents, given, no doubt, with the best intentions, and though deprived of any other means of grace, in consc(j[uence of there being no minister of the denomination of whicli he wua an adherent within his reach, he would not for a long time expose himself, as he supposed, to a dangerous influence, by going to hear a Methodist. Finding, however, in his intercourse with these people, that they were peaceable and well-disposed, and that their walk and conversation was not that which he would have expected from people having dealings with the enemy of souls M. E. CHURCH IN CANADA. 157 that have he began to look on them more favorably, a'^d wjis at length induced to go to their meetings and listen for himself. Having gone for a few times and scrutinized proceedings closely, and being unable, notwithstanding his prejudices against them, to sec anything wrong or unscriptural in their manner of worsliip, he came to the conclusion that the Methodists in Canada must be different from those of whom he had been warned, and that therefore he might attend their meetings in safety. He had attended the Methodist meetings a few times before the Con- ference met, and being desirouri of gaining all the information he could concorning these strange people, influenced, no doubt, by the Holy Spirit, in answer to prayer on his behalf, he attended the meetings held in counectiou with it, and before its close the word had taken such a liold upon his mind that he then and there sought ai.d experienced a change of heart. He at once cast in his lot with the once despised Methodists, and has since devoted a long and honorable life to the promotion of their interests and the adv^mccment of his Master's kingdom. He became himself a Methodist preacher, and was admitted into the Genesee Conference at the session held in 1820, at Lundy's Lane, having been employed by the Presiding Elder the pre\ ous year. The youiuj man has grown oldy both in years and in labor but the scenes of the Conference of 1817 continue green in iiis Aiicniory. In the seventy-fourth year of his age, and fifty-lirst of his ministry, llev. Philander Smith, '). D., senior Bishop of the Methodist Episcopal Church i Canada, still lives a life of usefulness, the fruit of earnest, importunate, faithful prayer. Bishop Smith is the oldest Methodist minister in Canada noio effective/^ ■ ■ > . The Elizabethtown Conference is memorable as a spiritual birth-place, not only to Bishop Smith, but to many others still * As these pages are being put into type the melancholy intelli- gence reaches us that tlie vencrahle Bishop Smith has finished his course. He died at his residence, Broolilin, Ont., March 28th, 18V0. Truly a prince ixniX a groat man has fallen in Israel. 158 HISTORY OF THE living in the countr3\ The religious services on the Sabbath commenced at eight o'clock in the morning, and lasted with but" little intermission till eight at night. There were five sermons preached, besides the exhortations given. Bishop George delivered a powerful discourse, and it is estimated that over one hundred soub were awakened and led to seek salvation at this Conference, or immediately after its close. The reformation spirit kindled at this Conference was not confined to Elizabetlitown alone, but was carried by the preachers to their respective circuits. Hallowcll, Bay , of Quinte, and Niagara shared largely in the revival influences. So wide-spread, indeed, was this revival that, despite the interference of the English missionaries, and the opposi- tion of the Executive, influenced as it was by high church- men and the Family Compact, an increase of 1624 members was reported at the Conference of 1818. In few countries did Methodism spread so rapidly, or take so deep root among the people as it did in Upper Canada prior to the coming of the English missionaries. Up to this time the people were united, and the work of evaiiiiolization made almost miraculous progress; after this there was dissension and strife, and a corresponding declension in the progress of the Gospel. The state-paid priesthood of Canada, together with the faction denominated the '• Family Compact," had from the first looked with disfavor upon 3Iethodism, and had striven by every means in their power — legal or otherwise — to prevent its introduction, and crij)ple its movements, and having almost unbounded influence with the Executive, they contrived to make the Methodist societies labor under many civil disadvan- tages ; but this opposition had very little effiect upon the masses. Notwithstanding the disabilities under which they labored, the people gladly opened their houses to the self- sacrificing ministers of the pure word, and scores upon scores were converted through "^heir instrumentality, and so remark- ably well-conducted, peaceable, and orderly had they proved M. E. CHURCH IN CANADA. 159 le clf- themselves to be, as subjects of the realm — both preachers and people — that when unjust charpjes of disloyalty were made against them by desij^ing and unscrupulous politicians, the parliament of Upper Canada, in 1828, after a careful inquiry into the conduct of these men, and the influence they had exerted upon the people, from the time of their first entrance into the country, by a ^'ote of the House 22 to 8 publicly vindicated their character from these aspersions. The principal reason of the bitter hatred of the high church party to the original Methodists of Canada, was their unswerving opjx)sition to church and state connection. This was the "head and front of their ofieuding;" and it was because of this that tliey were stigmatized as " rebels " by their opponents, who were themselves seizing that which did not belong to them, and trampling both law and justice under their feet. Finding that they could not stop the onward march of Methodism by the means to which they had hitherto resorted, these parties eagerly seized upon this new agency. If they could only succeed in getting the societies divided, so that there would be contention among brethren, a good part of what they desired to accomplish would be done. They hated bitterly j\Iethodism in any form, but if there must be Methodist societies in the province, it would be better for the Church of England if those societies were under the control of the English Conference, as the views of that body, with regard to church and state connection, were more in unison with their own, and by encouraging them to occupy the ground, one of two objects might be gained — perhaps both. Either the English missionaries would crowd the original body out of the field, and thus stifle the opposition to the establisiiment of the Church of England as the Church of the provinces; or the division and strife engendered by the interference of these missionaries in the societies, would so cripple their energies that Methodism would cease to be respected, and having so I'll 160 HISTORY OF THE H 111 ■ V' fallen, its influence would ce;isc to bo feared as a power for good in the nation. Accordingly, inducements were held out, and probably some misrepresentations made to the English Mission- ary Society to influence that body to send out m'ssionaries to Canada. The Society complied, and thv^ir agents upon their arrival joined in the false and dishonorable cry of disloyalty, which had been raised against their brethren, and " setting up,, altar against altar," they divided the societies and congregations wherever they could obtain a fonthold, thus accomplishing the end so ardently desired by the enemies of Methodism. In order to justify their conduct in opposing the original societies the English missionaries united with the high church party and the Executive — not the parliament, be it remembered, but an irresponsible government, influenced by the Family Compact — in the plea that it was inconsistent with true loyalty for the Methodists to be under what they were pleased to term the control of a foreign church. Tiie self-sacrificing ministers who had come to the couniry when it was a howling wilderness and had endured all manner of haraships, in order that they might convey to the destitute and scattered inhabitants the tidings of salvation through the merits of a risen Redeemer — many of them, too, actually .British subjects, and attached to British rule — were accused of being political agents, sent here to teach the people sedition. It is not surprising that such calumnies and misrepresentations of the motives of worthy men should have created great excitement, and stirred up much ill will, especially when it was so well known that the original preachers were laborious and pious men, who had served the people faithfully, without meddling with politics, and who had received only the scanty support voluntarily contributed by a poor but willing people ; while the new comers, at the same time they were impugning the motives of their brethren, and were striving to enter upon their labor, that they might build on the foundation which others had laid, were to be, in a measure, independent of the societies, being assisted by the M. E. CHURCH IN CANADA. 161 influence of the j^overnnicnt, and deriving their support from the Missionary society at liorue, while they were themselves merely the tools of those who cared only that party .spite might be gratified, and tmc Mcthodistic principles .subverted. The course of procedure of both classes of a.ssailants was noticeably inconsistent. The government, at the very time it was raising such an outcry again.st 3Iethodists, as being bad subjects, because they were connected with a body the majciity of whom were resident in a foreign hum, was giving aid and encouragement to the lloman Catholic Church, a body that is not only under the temporal and spiritual control of a foreign power, but that holds itself ojiienahle to no other, when there is a difference between the civil jurisdiction and the order of the supremo Pontiff; this aid, too, given from the public chest. While the English Conference, at the same time its agents were re-echoing the cry of " no foreign control for Methodists," was, as it afterwards acknowledged in one of its own reports, sending its missionaries into foreign countries wherever there was any opening for them. The year 1819 was one of contention and strife, even worse than the preceding one. Eight more missionaries were sent out from England, so that now they were spread from Quebec to Niagara, and the continual contention between them and the original occupants of the ground greatly retarded the work of the Lord among the people, as it might have been foreseen that it would by those who had planned the scheme. The disastrous results of these dissensions were manifested at the close of the year. The Canadian circuits were only able to report to the Conference of 1819 an increase of 501, while the year previous the increase had been 102-1, thus showing con- clusively hoAV the woik had been retarded by the contention which had sprung up. In the western portion of the country the commotion ha-^ not been so great as in the east, principally because the settle- ments being newer, especially in the interior, they were more 162 mSTORY OP THE difl&cult of access, and the work was more laborious. Where there were real hardships to be borne, and real difficulties to bo encountered, the orij^iual body was still left as before to pioneer the way ; after that had been cleared, and tlic ground broken up, then the others might come in and reap the fruit which t'^eir brethren had sown amid toils and hardships almost inconceiv- able. West of the township of Ancaster there had as yet been no interference, consequently the societies had not been disturbed, the facilities for the transmission of news being so few and irregular that they knew, even by report, very little of what was taking place farther to the east, and happy and con- tented with their relations to their faithful shepherds, they were united and in proportion prosperous. Societies had been formed along Westminster Street, and on a road known as North Street, running north from Kettle Creek — where St. Thomas is now situated — to the lliver Thames ; and appointments taken up in the townships to the east and the south-west, besides one in the township of Delaware. With the exception of an occasional appointment taken up, or one dropped, the Westminster Circuit remtdned, so far as geographical boundaries, were concerned, in about the same position for several years. Out of reach, for a time at least, of the evil influence of contention and turmoil, these societies kept gradually increasing their numbers, swelled from time to time by conversions among themselves, or by the coming in of immigrants, from the British Isles or from the United States, who had been Methodists in their dear old native land. Here even yet " the desert and solitary place " were " made glad," and the joyous songs of Zion rose to heaven without the comfort of the worshippers being marred by discord and envy. Happy would it have been for the entire work if as much could have been said of it all. M. E. CHURCH IN CANADA. 163 T I ^' 1 CHAPTER XIV. " INTRODUCTION OF METHODISM INTO TITE VICINITY OF LONDON, ETC. Scttlcmont of new townships in the west — A Mothodist ex-Com- missiiry settles in Westminster — He introduces tlie (Jospel into Westminster, Lobo, 8t. Tlionms, juid tlie west of London — Sketcli of life and labors of Mr. Pettis — Eastern part of London settled — Arrival of u Metluxlist family — Mr. Webster finds a class — First sermon preaehed in London Township — Tlie preacher and text — Mr. Webster finishes his course in peace — Casualty at Hay Bay. In a country such as Canada was about thirt period, new portions of the province were being continually opened up for settlement, and hardy pioneers were constantly taking' advantage of the opening thus ofl'ered to make themselves homes, and to lay the foundation of future success for their children, and the future greatness of the land of their adoption. A settlement had been made in Westminster shortly before, or about the time of the war, and of those coming liithcr a few were Methodists, some from the neighborhood of Kingston, and gome from about East Flamboro. Anionic: these was a local preacher, named Charles Pettis, who came to Westminster after the war, and who was destined then and afterwards to do good service in his Master's cause ; a short sketch, therefore, of his conversion and subsec^ucnt labors will not be uninteresting. Born in the town of Ashford, State of Massachusetts, in the year 1777, at the age of eleven he, with his parents, removed to Prescott, near which his father settled. In 1794 Mr. fUi f i? 1G4 HISTORY OF THE Pctti8 was awakened under the prcachinjj; of Rev. J. Coleman, who was then travelHng the Iljiper Canada Lower Circuit. At this time the whole province was included in two circuit"?, which were travelled by Mcssi-h. Coleman and Woolsey. On New Year's eve, while Mr. Coleman was conducting tho pervices, Mr. Pettis, then in his 18th year, wiis converted, and commenced the New Year of 1795 rejoicing in God his Saviour. The year following he was licensed as an exhorter by llcv. S. Kceler, and held nieetinp:;s :iniong the people in the vicinity in which he lived. In 1809 he removed to Eii.st Flamboro, where he continued to exhort and do all he could to benefit the souls of thos(; among whom ho lived. The war breaking out in 1812, 3Ir. Pettis was called out in the service of his country. Tie held ^he office of sergeant, but being connected with the commissai department, he was not present at any of the engagements. His po^^ition, however, gave him considerable influence with tlic men, and he was allowed to hold meetings among them, and very frequently he adminis- tered religious consolation, as well temporal comfort, to the wounded and the dying on the field of battle. After the termination of the war he removed, with his wife and four other persons, from Flamboro to North Street, Westminster. Here he aj>;ain commenced holdinj? meetings among his neighbors, and being now a local preacher he went to work more systematically. Like most of his brethren, Mr. Pettis was a pioneer preacher, having been the Si-st to introduce the Gospel into the township of Lobo, and into the western part of the township of London ; indeed he was quite as zealous in the cause of his heavenly Master as he was in the service of his < ountry, and he was by no means deficient in love for it, us he had already proved. .t.^nk Some months after his arrival in Westminster he learned that there was to be a ball on Christmas eve at a place called Dingman's Creek. On hearing of the anticipated party, Mr. Pettis became impressed with the idea that he ought to go to M. E. CllUItCII IN CANADA. 1()5 cd it, and, it' ]X)S8iblo, ;^(,'t it clmngcd to a rcllgiou.s incctin}^. Ho mentioned the niattor to his wife, but kIic, fcariiiu: that his zeal was not accordini; to knowledge, tried to pertfuadc him not to Ro, arguing that it was not probable he cnald do anv"-'Hxl, and he might give .serious oftcnce. They, however, both .iinde the subject a matter of earnofit prayer, and the imprc?ision still continuing, Mr. l*(3ttis at the proper time set out for the place of amusement. Anivuil there, he found that .several had already assembled, and he ;it once made known the object of his visit to the proprietor of the house, telling him he had been so (orcibly impres.sed witli Mie idea that he ought to come and preach to the people assembled there that night, that he could not resist the impression, and had rdingly. Mr. Dingman informed him, very kindly, that he could use his house on some future occasion as ti preaching place, but that I his evening there was to be a dance ; the people were even now as.sembling, and would not like to be disappointed; still, if he could obtain the consent of the party, he might preach if he cho.sc. Mr. Pettis (conversed Avith the manager, repeating what he had told Mr. Dingman, and requesting his permission to address the people. The mannger was considerably amused at the earnestness of Mr. ]*ettis, but after consulting witli a number of the company, he consented that Mr. I'cttis might speak, or as he termed it, " open the ball," and after the meeting, they would go on with their amusement. vs The company having now fully collected, Mr. Pettis, placing, a chair before him, arrested their attention by relating the impression which, resting so forcibly upon his mind, had brought him there. He wished, he said, to give them advice which he thought would do them good, and trusted none of them would be ofl'endcd. Having thus introduced himself and his mission, he connuenced singing a beautiful hymn, and afterwards engaged in prayer. During the prog-ress of these exercises some of the audience became melted into tenderness, <}ven the preacher himself vras moved to tears, and when he i| If ' y il it-" IGG HISTORY OP TDE commenced cxliortin;?, tlic Holy Spirit soemcul to descend upon the p(!()pl(\ Tliose who were determined to rcHlst the gracious influcnec ((uitted tiio phicc, and the rest rcmuiin d to pray. A glorious revival followed, and with the aw'stanco of the circuit preacher, who came to his aid in a little more than a year after his sinj,'ular mcetinj;, some seventy meml)ers were added to the Church. In 181!), u small settlement was commenced in the western part of London township, in what was aftenvards known as the Jacohs and Morden settlement. This was (juite separated from a similar one commenced a short time pr(!viou8 in the east of the same township, there beiniji; an untracked forest and the river Thames between them, and as u e()nse(iuence the people forming the two settlements knew nothing of each other lor a length of time. ., - •' "• ■> ' Mr. Pettis commenced liolding meetings in the Morden neighborhood late in the summer of 1819, according to the date he has given, but a Mr. Wm. Warner, of London Town- ship, who made one of the first congregation, places it in 1820. The following is the substance of Mr. Warner's letter on the subject : — " Our first mcctinii" l)C2:.ni in August, 1820. Some of us met at the house of Nathan Jacobs to sing hynms. On the Sunday following we met again ; after singing, Mr. Jacobs proposed to liavc prayer ; Jacobs- James Mitchell, and myself prayed. This was the first time I ever prayed in public. Local prccvohers and exhorters now came from Westminster, whenever they could cross the river on horses. The names of these men were Charles Pettis, John Sutton, and Aaron Killburn. We agreed to meet together on Thursday evenings, for prayer-meeting, and others soon united with us." Which is right in the date of the commencement of this society, Mr. Warner or Mr. Pettis, cannot now be definitely decided. Mr. Pettis, however, visited them as frequently and as regulaily as it was possible to do, until it was taken charge M. E. CIIURCIl IN CANADA. 1G7 of by tlu) nearest circuit preacher. Not long after Mr. Pettis' first visit to the Jucob.s settlement, a class of twcrity-threo members was or}^aniiecd. Mr. Pettis is believed to liavc been the Gr.»ere i?eems to be a slight discrepancy between some of the statements of Messrs. Ryan and Case, and the account in the General Minutes, there being only 25 nnmed there as having been ordained ; both accounts are, however, probably correct, as 5 of the 30 may have been local preachers, whose names would not, therefore, appear in the Minutes. 174 HISTORY 01'' THK (11 ;; liiiilAI I Sunday of this Conference, like the one three years before at Elizabethtown, was indeed a high day. The people thronged the bush and corduroy roads from St. Davids, Lyons Creek, the Beaver Dams, and the surrounding country, all intent on reaching the place appointed for worship. The church was within hearing of the thunders of the ever roaring Falls of the majestic Niagara, and thus the devout worshippers were con- stantly reminded of Him whose "voice is as the sound of many waters." In the morning the services were lield in the church, thougii it was filled to overflowing, but in the afternoon the crowd had increased to such a degree that it was judged best to remove to a bcautifal grrvc whicV was convenient to the church. Thither, accordingly, the Bishop ;aid ministers repaired, followed by the assembled host The scene was solemn and impressive, the ordination of twenty, out of the thirty, young heralds of the Cross, in this leafy temple, beneath the azure vault of heaven, alone adding not a little to its interest. How very different the meeting of the Canadian and American people on th;it occasion from tlie last meeting of the represwitatives of the two nations in that locality, though at the opposite end of the Lane, six years before. Then, while nature was clothing herself with the mantle of darkness, to hide, perhaps, the blood ot the slain, the forces of these two nations had met in deadly conflict. The field was to be eon- tssted with carnal weapons ; the lovely country adjoining to b3 over-run with fire and sword. , The grand old voice of the mighty cataract mingled for the time with the clamorous sounds of martial music, the clash of arms, and the horrid din of war; and when, the furious combat over, its deep tones could once more be heard, as if moaning in unison with the wounded and the dying on the gory field. Now, in full view of that dreadful field, which must call up most harrowing recollections, British subject and American M. E. CHURCH IN CANADA. 175 citizen were met again, not as before to grapple in deadly strife, as enemies, but as brethren, united in the wime glorious warfare, the Bishop and his band of itinerants leading on to sure and certain victory in a bloodless contest ; their watch- word, '' Little children, love one another." Though not followed by as cxten.nve revivals as the former session held in Canada, in 1817, three years previously, still much good was accomplished, and the advancement of the Church furthered by this session of Conference. The rei3ort of the Canadian work for the year was, 2 Districts, 17 circuit*!, 28 travelling preachers, 47 local preachers, G5 exhortors, and 5557 members. The year 1821 was not distinguished by as many, oi as extensive revivals as some of the previous years, but the societies enjoyed comparative peace, and the work continued to progress, though more slowly, yet steadily. New ajipointments were taken up on old charges iuid a fresh circuit formed in the more recently settled townships north and wost of York, now Toronto. This field of labor extended from York, on Lake Ontario, to Lake Simcoe, not, however, interfering with Yongc Street circuit, but running is a north and north-westerly direction, through the destitute portions of the front townships, and the inhabited townships of the second and third range. This appointment was recorded on the Minutes, thus: — "York, and mission to the new settlements, U. C, Fitch lleid, Kenneth M. 11. Smith, missionaries." This may be styled the first mission field proper in Canada, under the charge of the M. E. Church, as it was the first under the direction of the Missionary Society of the M. E. Church, then but recently established in New York. Before this period the preachers were sent out " to make circuitSy'* and were expected to obtjiin their scanty allowance among the people with whom they labored, except a small pittance sometimes ftrocured for them by Bishop Asbury, and as most of the itiner- ant preachers of that period were unmarried, they managed to til 176 HIHTORY OF THE accomplish tlieir tusk and live, but that was about all. The psople were poor, but such as they had, they fjjave freely in return for the services rendered by their pastor, and he, knowing this, but beini; anxious to do them good, lived with them, faring and dressing as poorly as they did. As the preachers began more generally to marry, however, some provision had to be made for their families, and hence the necessity of forming new plans, and making new arrangements. This year, James G. Peale was sent to introduce the Gospel into the new settlements of the llideau country, but had no claims on the misiiion fund for support. Indeed, there was but little money as yet in the missionary treasury to assist any one, and that little had to be divided among 80 many destitute circuits, not only in Canada but in the United States, that but a very small portion tell to the share of each missionary. Mr. Peale had been a soldier, and was therefore able to endure hardship better than many less inured to it ; and now he was as zealous in the cause of his divine Master as ho had previously been in the cause of his king and country. Many of the disbanded soldiers, after the war, had located themselves in and about Perth, and these had been joined by a large number of immigrants from Scotland and other parts of Europe, and among these Mr. Peale labored ; but though he and Messrs. Pieid and Smith worked hard and endured many privi'tions, they were not nearly so successful as they had hoped to be, nor, indeed, were any of the preachers as success- ful as in some of the previous years, for at the Conference of this year there is a decrease reported of 396 members. In 1822 the Grand River Mission was commenced, and Alvin Torrey sent to till the new field. The mission extended from the mouth of the river, at Dunnville, to Brant's ford, a rapid in the river at which the Indian chief. Brant, and his warriors, used to cross the stream, and which is now known as Brant- ford. Here and about the borders of the reservation, at that M. E. CHURCH IN CANADA. in time extensive, some wiiites had located thenuselvcs, and these <;amo within the bounds of Mr. Torrey's charire. He also extended his labors alonr»; the borders of Luke Erie, through llainhani, and to other townships on both sides of the river, gath- ering up in all thirty members during the year. Mr. Torrey had not ibund his charge an easy one ; his routes were long, his fare poor, and his lodgings f'rc-^-%''f'0:'-:-y':--yy:.o~''':-r Many persons, however, sooner than be married by a minister of the Church of England, preferred to go to the United States, where they could enjoy the privilege of being married by their own minister, or any other clergyman whom they might choose, while others, unable to take so long or expensive a trip, would, where it wa^ at all possible, secure the services of a magistrate. Even this last, however, could not always be accomplished, as no magistrate could solemnize matrimony within fourteen miles of the residence of an English Church minister. Such is priestly usurpation M. E. CHURCH IN CANADA 181 wherever it can have its way.* The Methodists were har- assed in every possible vfny by the dominant faction, not even beinix allowed to hold, in their own ridit, a lot on which to bury their dead, or build a church ; and they, and other bodies similarly situated, were insolently termed dissenters, when there was not — either then or since — any chuich estab- lished by law, from which to dissent, and rebels aj^ainst the government because they claimed their rights as British subject,*. This ever ready cry of disloyalty was the one raised by the Compact and its abettors against every oppcnent, that they might the better cover up their selfish policy, and secure the Cler<^y reserves — amounting to one-seventh of the lands of the entire province — for the (jhurch of England. All this opposition, liowever — except in the matter of disabilities — affected the Methodist people but little ; neither ministers nor members slackened in the least their ciForts for the salvation of souls, and the work continued to prosper mightily in their hands. This j'ear, 1823, the boundaries of the old Westminster Circuit were somewhat changed, and London Circuit formed, embracing not only London Township, but portions of several others. There were filteen appoint- ments, to be tilled every two weeks, and that at a period when both branches of the Thames were unbridged. Between fording streams and following bush roads, the preacher, llev. Robert Corson, did not have particularly easy or comfor<^able times on the new charge, and on several occasions lost his way in the forest, and did not in conse(|[uence reach his appointments in season, he, however, generally at such times arrived before the congregation had dispersed. On one occasion, while crossing the river at one of the fording places, he got out of the direct ♦ So strong was the feeling upon this suhject, that instances have been known of persons residing within the prescribed distance of a Church of Eughiud minister, going from their homes far enough to put fourteen miles between him and them, so that they could be married by a magistrate, rather than submit to the assumptions of the Church of England in this matter. I ^''-■^ m ■} 182 HISTORY OF THE line, into a deep hole, and both horse and rider went under the water. It was with great difficulty he succeeded in getting out and reaching the opposite bank in safety. The salary received by Mr. Corson, in compensation for his labors on this charge was one hundred and sixh/ dollars. He was a married man. Rev. Alvin Torrey, who had the year previous been sent to labor on the Grana lliver, had opened up an extensive field of usefulness in that locality, both among the whites and Indians, being greatly assisted in the work by Mr,, afterward Rev. Edmund Stoney, then a local preacher, Mr. Stoncy made himself useful principally in establishing spirihuil worship among the Indians in the vicinity of Brantford, holding his meetings at the house of a chief named Thomas Davis, who lived at the Mohawk village, near the old Mohawk church, the oldest edifice of the kind in the province. Most of the J^Iohawks were nominally members of the Church of England, but were very immoral, and addicted to the curse of their race, strong drink. Thomas Davis also adhered to that Church, but in the other respects mentioned was an exception to the rest of the tribe. He had learned to read the Scriptures, and was in the habit of reading the Church of England prayers in his family: and on Sundays, in the absence of the clergyman officiating at the old church, of reading them with the Indians who would collect to hear him. Thus his heart '.v^as operated upon and inclined to listen to the earnest coansoLs given by Mr. Stoney, and to offer him his house, in which to teach his (Davis') poor benighted brethren. The work among the Indians was very much furthered this year, too, by the arrival of an earnestly pious young man from the United States, named Seth Crawford. This young man. being desirous of being useful among the Indians, had come hither for the double purpose of making himself more perfectly acquainted with their language, and of imparting what instruc- tion he could to them, includins: adults as well as children. M. E. CHURCH IN CANADA. 183 He pursued his course gicadily, acquainting them with their lost condition, and presenting before them the plan of salvation, and after a time a few of the adults became truly awakened. Among those who were benefitted by the example and instruction of Mr. Crawford, was Peter Jones, to whom reference has before been made. Jones could not properly be called a pure blooded Indian, his father — a government surveyor — having been a white man. Augustus Jones, Peter's father, had, in his employmeni as an official of the govern- ment, been brought into intimate association with the Indians, and becoming attached to them he had chosen a daughter of the iorest for a wife. Peter Jones was born on Burlington Heights, which are situated at the western extremity of Burlington Bay, on the 1st of January, 1802. These Heights were, at the time of Jones' birth, and indeed till within a few years, since which they have been marred by the hand of man, a most romantic spot. It was, on the first settlement of the country, before it had been at all changed by man, a high narrow strip of land, starting from the Bay from which it takes its name, and running in a northerly direction between it and an immense marsh which lay east of the present site of Dundas. A portion of these Heights comes within the present bounds of the city of Hamilton, part of which has, within a later period, been laid out as a city for the dead, what is now the most picturesque part being incloseil in the beautiful Burlington Cemetery, Upon these Heights the British had, during the war of 1812, an almost impregnable stronghold, the fortification being protected on three sides by natural barriers, the great height of the banks, whose sides were precipitous, almost, as a wall, and from whicH every tree, bush, and protuberance that might aid the climber had been carefully removed, preventing any danger being apprehended of approach of the enemy by the Bay on the east, and the deep and \ery extensive marsh to the north Jiff' >■ m 1: f. ; ; S.V- I ~r^m».,^.m<,»mmi,>^mm!>mt0mmmmmif:' 184 HISTORY OP THE iind west, aiforded additional security figainst approach in that direction, while the south, the only place at which an entrance need be feared, was covered by strong breastworks running all the way from the bay to the marsh. The native grandeur of the place was, of course, much marred by the troops during its occupation as a military post, but in the lapse of years it had regained much of its original beauty, when in running the line of the Great Western llailroad a deep cut was put through the northwest portion of the Heights, and another neaily in the centre, to make a shorter passage for the Desjardine canal, thus ruining forever its prinjitivo loveliness. Born ill such a romantic spot, and reared as he was among the children of the forest, it is not surprising that young Jones grew up an ardent lover of nature, and identified himself in his after years more closely with the interests of his mother's rather than with those of his father's race. At the age of foutteen he was sent by his father to an English school in Saltfleet, some few miles east from the now city of Hamilton, where he made considerable proficiency for the time he attended. The knowledge acquired at this school was, at a somewhat later period in his life, of no little value \.o him in assisting to qualify him for his career of usefulness. , Though surrounded by the evil influences of savage life and heathenism, he was strictly moral and upright in his deport- ment, never falling into the besetting vice of his race — an excessive use of strong drink. At the age of eighteen years he was, by his father's request, baptized by an Episcopalian liinister, in the old Mohawk church, near Brant's ford, now Brantford, to which vicinity Mr. Augustus Jones had removed. Here, in 1823, he became acquainted with Mr. Crawford^ whose counsel and religious instruction resulted in so much good to him and to others. On Friday, Ist of June, in that year, Peter, in company with his Bister Polly and some others^ attended the camp-meeting on the Ancaster Circuit, which haa been before mentioned in the M. E. CiAURCH IN CANADA. 185 1 : I chapter on canip-mectings, and before its close both were soundly converted. lleturninL^ home to their friends, these young converts, happy in the enjoyment of their new found peace, and a consciousness of a Saviour's love, set at once to work to do what good they could among their own p( ople, and a reformation commenced which spread rapidly among the various tribes along the Grand lliver, until some hundreds of the wild sons of the forest were brought into the Christian Church. This revival among the Indians gave a ver;y great impetus to revivals among the whites. The state of the general work in Canada, for this year, was as follows : — 2 Districts, 21 circuits, 32 travelling preachers, and 5450 members. I A , ) ■}>^~.:r:.:l: ,■'•■-■ ^ m '~il^m!efi;,xi:-tHkilf^iry^'i^Vf«llitksamii^-m 186 HISTORY OP THE CHAPTER XVI. FROM 1823 TILL THE CONFERENCE OF 182G. General Conforeuct' of 1824 — New Conf'tToiue — More trouble — lleasoiis for Mr. Ityan's (lisKat|sfaction — Unwarrantable proceed- ings — First Canada Conference — Bishops George and Hedding present — Mr. Ryan takes fresh offence — His subs(;(inent conduct — Conference of 1825 — James Richardson and Egertou Ryersoii admitted on trial — David Culp locates — Sketch of his labors — Incident connected with the early settlement of the cotuitry — The Church and the temperance movement — Conference of ] 82(5 — ChriHtmn Advocate started — Mr. Case and the Indians — Statistics. In 1824 the city of Baltimore was a2ain favored by the session of the General Conference being held there, the Con- ference commencing on the 1st of May. The Canadian interest was represented by llevds, Wyatt ijhamberlain and Isaac B. femith, who had been appointed delegates by the Genesee Annual Conference of 1823, in the customary manner. Their appointment, however, gave serious offence to Rev. Henry llyan, who considered that he should have been elected, as ho had for so many years led the van in Church affairs in Canada, and endured so much in building it up. But though still a laborious and energetic man, and in many places much beloved for his past labors, he was gradually becoming — and had been for some years — very unpopular among the preachers, in conse- quence of his arbitrary assumption of superiority and control over them. During the war he had in reality been the temporal head cf the Canadian Church, and after its close for many years he had been foremost in fighting her battles, having arrayed M. E. CHURCH IN CANADA. 187 against him the combined influence of both the English missionaries and the high church party. Their continued and clamorous cry of disloyalty, though he knew it to be false, stung a man of Mr. Ryan's impetuous temperament to the quick. His national pride roused, he became possessed by a strong desire to be freed entirely from the control of the American body, desiring that a separate and independent Church might be orgjnized in Canada; pcrhap?, too, cherishing the, not altogether unfounded, idea that, as a reward for previous services he would be placed at the head of the new organization, and accordingly ho began to agitate with a view to such a consummation. Not being included among the delegates to the General Conference, annoyed him still more, although his fellow-laborer and companion in toil, Mr. Case, was, like himself, not elected to this session of the General Conference. Mr. Case did not seem to have taken any umbrage at the choice of delegates, but, though almost equal with Mr. Ryan in abundance of labors, with quiet Christian dignity submitted to the will of his Conference, and went to his appointed work. Mr. Ryan, on the contrary, however, continued to try to inflame the minds of those on his District to such a degree that they would listen to nothing but absolute separation. Though up to this time he had strongly opposed lay delegation, he now began to favor the holding of conventions among the laity, and although well aware that the General Conference could not in the nature of things receive as legitimate delegates persons chosen in so irregular a manner, he induced a highly respectable local preacher named Brecken- ridge, who had connected himself with the movement, to consent to be appointed as a delegate to that body by such a convention, and permitted himself to be chosen as another. At the time for the meeting of the Conference they proceeded to Baltimore, whither also the regularly elected del^ates, Messrs. Chamberlain and Smith, had gone. Messrs. Kyan and 13 i'.' 188 HISTORY OP THE Breckcnridgc, though not admitted to seats in the Conference as delegates, were allowed a respectful hearing before the committee on Canadian aflfairs, but were unsuccessful in obtaining the object of their misssion. The petition of the Canadian Methodists presented by the regular delegates, Messrs. Chamberlain and Smith, had only asked for a separate Annual Conference, while that presented by Mr. llyan urged for a separation from the parent body, complete and entire. After mature deliberation the General Conference granted the request of the petition presented by Messrs. Chamberlain and Smith. The action of the Conference is embodied in the following resolutions, adopted at this session : — , -v ; " 1st. That there shall be a Canada Conference, uader our superintendcncy, bounded by the boundary linos of Upper Canada. " 2. That a circular shall be addressed to our preachers and members included within the bounds of the Canada Conference, expressive of our zeal for their prosperity, and urging the importance of their maintaining union among themselves. "3. That a respectful representation be made to the British Conference of those points in the late agreement between the two connexions, which have not, on their part, been fulfilled." Mr. Ryan returned home very much incensed at the action of the General Conference, both in regard to the formation of the Annual Conference and its reception of himself, and set himself more decidedly in opposition to it than ever. On the 25th of August, 1824, the Canada Conference was duly organized, in conformity with the above resolutions. Bishops George and Hedding W3re both present, and presided alternately. The Conference was small, numbering only thirty- three preachers, including those received on trial and the two Bishops. The strong attachment of the American Methodists for their brethren in Canada was manifested by this visit of the Bishops in the then state of the country. Bishop Geoi^ entered the province in the eastern district, and travelled west- M. E. CHURCH IJ> CANADA. 189 ^181' t of leorge ■west- ward, prcachlnpj as he liiul opportunity, till ho roMchcd Hiillowell; while Bishop ilcddin;^, aocompanied by Dr. Bann^a, tToased at Niagara, fj;oinj; cast to the scat ol' Conference. In this way they could, better than in any other, learn the views of the societies concerning; >[r. liyan's scheme of separa- tion; and findin*^, upon a careful investij^ation of the matter, that a majority, both of the preachers and the Uicuibers, had drifted with the tide, and were anxious for an entire s('})aration from their American brethren, the Bishops consented to favor the plan at the next General Conference, which concession gave general satisfaction. The episcopal visitation was attended with very beneficial results, explanations having been given to the people at the various stopping places of the Bisho^js, during their respective journeys, and their urbanity of manner, and concessions to the Conference tended still more to calm the disturbed spirits, and give assurance of peace to the societies. During the interval between the session of the General Conference of 1824 and the meeting of this Conference, Mr. Ryan had been industriously sowing dissension among the societies under his charge ; it was thought best, therefore, to remove him from the Presiding Eldership, a position which he had held since 1810. lie was accordingly appointed to a mission, and Mr. Case placed in charge of the Bay Quinte District, while Thomas Madden was sent to the Niagara District. , Mr. Ryan, although at first apparently satisfied with the explanations and assurances given by the Bishops, took fresh offence at his appointment, and not long after the Conference recommenced his crusade against the intervention or control of the American General Conference or Bishops, going the length of leaving his legitimate work before the end of the year, in order that he might the better continue the work of agitation. The reformation among the Indians continued to progre8.s with power, notwithstanding the agitations in the Church, and very great good was accomplished. A log church was built at a ..i ,1 f ' M it' 100 HISTORY OY THE place called DaviHvllle, and a misnion school of from 20 to 30 scholars cstabliHhed, Davis — the chief mentioned before — havinp; ^ivcn up hl.s comfortable residence to the school, and removed, with his family, into a small log house, in order that the Indian children might enjoy the benefit of religious instruc- tion. The interests of the Sabbath-school were looked after, too, with commendable carnci4tness, and as a result several children, whites as well as Indians, were among those converted and added to the Ciiurch. The preachers — with the exception of Mr. Ryan — Continued to manifest the same zeal which had characterized them previously, Messrs. Case and Madden working faithfully on their respective Districts. The Quarterly and camjvmcctings wore continued gea.sons of refreshing, the societies, both new and old, sharing more or less in the revival influence. The first Canada Conference had entered on its course with 2 Districts, 21 circuits and missions, 33 preachers, and a mem- bership of 618G, being an increase over the year previous to it of 736. The second session was held in Saltfleet, on the Fifty Mile Creek, September 14th, 1825, Bishop Hedding presiding. Two candidates were admitted on trial at this Conference, who were destined at a future period to occupy distinguished positions not only in the Church, but in the country — the native land of both — viz., James Richardson and Egerton Ryerson. They were sent together to the Yonge Street and York Circuit, Mr. Richardson in charge. Both were able writers and good preachers, and soon rose to eminence in the Church ; each at an early period became editor of the Christian Guardian, and each received the degree of D. D. from American colleges. Mr. Ryerson was one of the chief pro- moters of the so-called " Union " with the English Conference, in 1833, and also of the disruption between that body and the Canadian Wesleyans, in 1840. Later in life he accepted the situation of Generiil Superintendent of Education for Upper M. E. CHURCII IN CANADA. 191 il it C- fill ion lad den crly thc Canada, which ho still holds, rctainin*;, however, a nominal relation to ihe Wesloyan Conference. Mr. RichardHon had been an officer in the navy durin*:; the war of 1812, in which struggle he had lost an ana, but had now exchanged carnal for spiritual warfare, and entered on the work of an itinerant. He very reluctantly gave in his adhesion to the projected " Union " of 1833, and for a time went with that movement, but after a short trial of the new organization he returned to the old fold, where he has since remained. For u series of years he was the accredited agnnt of the Bible Society, a situation the dntioH of which he performed with credit and ability ; and for snveral years pxsi he has been the junior Bishop of the M. E. Church in Canada. At thif» same Conference, 1825, Rev. D.ivid Culp located, after thirteen years of laborious toil. Though closely connected with Canadian affairs he was not by >irth a Canadian, having been born in Limcaster County, Pennsylvania, in 1 784. His parents belonged to that class of people known as Pennsylvania Dutch, and were both religious, his father bomg a Methodist and his mother a Lutheran. The eldei' Culp had, with some of his neighbors, watched the struggle of the Revolution with considerable anxiety, tmd after its termination had, for a time,^ determined to abide the result and continue to occupy their lands under the new order of things ; but being enthusiastic " King's men " they found their situation exceedingly irksome, and after trying this kind of life for five or six years, they finally resolved to try and make their way to the King's country — to emigrate to the dread wilds of Upper Canada. Thia exodus of Mr. Culp, accompanied by thirteen of his old neigh- bors and co-patriots, was undertaken when David was five years of age, and their mode of travelling was somewhat similar to that of other immigrants to the country at that period. There being a number of horses and considerable stock, com- prising nearly all the available property of the wanderers, it was II 192 HISTORY OF THE i necessary to take especial care of them, and consequently part of the company travelled by land, while tho rest — as soon as they could avail themselves of it — came by water, their convey- ance being a kind of boat propelled by setting-poles. ' ' Accompanying the immigrants was a Methodist local preacher, named Webster, who having some sympathy with the others, desired to look at the country ; but with more prudence than many not bringing his family with him. The interminable forests, and general wildness of the country' disheartened him, and after penetrating but a very little way from the frontier, he resolved to return, and continue to abide beneath the folds of the starry flag. The rest, however, being true loyalists, averred their determination to make both a countnj and a liome in the king's do.ninions, "What if theic were huge forests ! — man could cut them down. There would be a market jis soon as there was anything to sell, &c., &c. Sumo of the Butler's Rangers had located themselves along the sout'iorn frontier^ and others of them, indisposed for work, after years of la\vless life, incident to the part they had borne in the war, Avcre still lounging about. Anxious to make capital for themselves v/ith the goveniment, and thus get mere at its expense, these men kept up Ji strict su:*veillance on all crossing the boundary line, and in consequence became cognizant of Mr. Webster's intention of returning, which they chooC to construe into an act of disloyalty. Although the two countries were then at peace, they prcfcissed to believe him an American spy, followed him, caught and searched him, to see if he carried despatches ; failing to iind anything of the kind they, on the pretense that something objectionable might be secreted in them, broke up the biscuits with which the women of the company — Mrs. Gulp in particular- had provided him for his sustenance during his journey through the wildci-ncss. Happily for him, nothing amiss was found, and he proceeded on his homeward journey without further molestation. M. E. CHURCH IN CANADA. 193 The immigrants had entered the province at the Niagara, not far from its mouth, and for a time encamped near old Niagara town. In a few days, however, Mr. Culp found a location which pleased him in the township of Clinton, and as it was on the lake shore, the boat brought the family to the exact spot which was to be their liome after so many days of weary journeying. Having been a Methodist in Pennsylvania, Mr. Culp naturally longed for the society of those like-minded with himself, and hearine; of Mr. Neol he sousrht him out and invited him to preach in his house. Mr. Neal did so, and it became a regular preaching place, forming the nucleas round which a society grew ; even after this lapse of years, it is a standing appoint- ment, there having been a church built u})on a part of the old Culp farm, ""he ground upon which this church stands was donated for the purpose by the grandson of the original occupier, and very moterial assistance was given to the building of the house itself by Mrs. Gulp, widow of the late Jonas Culp, and mother of the present proprietor. "^ ' '' '" "' The circumstance of his father's house being a preaching- place brought young David, at an early day, into intimate relations with the Methodist preachers then in the country, the more especially as there were few comfortable stopping places to be found. In his childhood and early boyhood, therefore, he listened to the ministrations of such men as Neal, Dunham, Coleman, Harris, Vannest, Anson, Sawyer, Jewell, Bangs, and others whose numes and teachings are still fresh in his memoiy. It was not, however, until the year 1807 that he yielded to the influence of the Holy Spirit operating upon his heart. In that year the Rev. Robert Perry was travelling the Niagara Circuit, and was instrumental in the conversion of Mr. Culp. Shortly after his conversion the young convert began to exhort, and after a time received license as a local preacher. He had been employed in the work as a supply before 1812, and in that year, in consequence of the impossibility of the American preachers filling the work, he was urged out into the ill, . ' I 1* u 1 •.i«,T^w.>«4~««-;S»nr<*ij)e"l--t'jaS4»!4!S«.i 194 HISTORY OF THE r^ular itinerant ranks by Mr. Ryan. That year he was sent to Bay Quinte and Smith's Falls Circuit; in 1813 he was appointed to Ancaster and Long Point Circuit, with Mr. Khodes; m 1814 he was returned to the same appointment, but before the end of the year was changed to the Niagara Circuit. Some of the circuits travelled then would comprise nearly an entire Conference now. The war being over in 1815, the preachers had once more the privilege of going to and from the United States, and consequently attended the session of the Genesee Conference of that year, at which time Mr. Gulp was ordained Deacon by Bishop McKendree. He was ordained Elder at the Elizabethtown Conference in 1817, and thenceforward con- tinued to labor as perseveringly in his Master's cause as he had done previously. But toils and excessive travel had begun to wear upon him, and being pressed with the weight of a large family, in days when it was impossible for the preacher's salary to meet the demands of a household, he, as before remarked, determined to locate, for a time at least, which he accordingly did, at the Conference of 1825. He, however, continued to preach, as he had opportunity, ia the vicinity of his home. Rev. James "Wilson, who had been superannuated in 1824, became again elective in 1825, and Mr. Ryan took a super- annuated relation. From this tin-e he may be said to have ceased to travel in connection with the M. E. Church. Of those connected with this Conference only two are now in the effective work, viz., Bishops Smith and Richardson, and only a few old veterans are living. The excessive use of intoxicating liquors at this period, and its demoralizing influence upon society, had begun to attract the attention of Christian philanthropists, and their action resulted in the formation of temperance societies. The Methodist Church in Canada liaving had ample opportunity for observing the deplorable eflFects of intemperance in the country, had fit)m the first taken a decided stand against the evil, and now favored the temperance movement accordingly. The M. E. CHURCH IN CANADA. 195 Quarterly Meeting Conference of the London Circuit, which met in the township of Westminster, July 12th, 1825, Thomas Madden, P. E., in the chair, and E. Stoney, P. C, present, with an official board of twelve members, passed the following resolution relating to the matter. " Resolved by the Conference that spirituous liquors at bees, raisings and trainings have a deleterious eflfect upon the morals of the community, and that the members of this Conference will hereafter discourage the use thereof upon such occasions." Though the action of the Quarterly Conference had not touched upon moderate drinking, at home, or in society, and its members had not yet discovered the better plan of total abstin- ence, yet, for the light they then had, a long stride in the right direction had been taken. The statistics of the Canada Conference for 1825 were as follows : — Districts, 2 ; circuits, 24 ; preachers, 40, including superannuates ; wi+.h a membership of 6875, giving an increase for the year of 731. This year Bishop Mountain, of Quebec, who had come to Canada in 1795, as first Bishop of the Church of England in the province, died ; and upon the occasion of his death, Dr. Strachan, on the 3rd July, 1825, delivered an elaborate discourse. In this sermon his bigotry and wilful misrepresent- ation of ficts, so far as it concerned other denominations, manifested itself very clearly. While proceeding to enumerate the varied and strenuous exertions of Bishop Mountain to further the interests of h'S Church, and the difficulties which had had to be overcome, the Doctor went on to state'that at the time of Bishop Mountain's arrival in the province " there were but Jive Protestant congregations within the whole diocese," in other words, within the bounds of the two Canadas. This asser- tion Dr. Strachan made, knowing full well that at the time of which he spoke, 1795, the Methodists had in the province three extensive circuits. These were, Oswegotchie, Bay Quinte and Niagara, and were supplied by ibur preachers, James Coleman. .hi ii f II ', h n 4 1» J K 196 HISTORY OP THE Elijah Woolsey, Samuel Keeler and Darius Dunham ; and there was a membership of 483. Each of these preachers had at least six appointments every week, and thus must have imparted religiout instruction to at least one thousand souls, in the course of their rounds. In the course of his remarks, the Dr. further stated that up to 1825 there were only about fifty Protestant congregations in the Canadas ; whereas at this time the M. E. Church alone had 24 circuits, 35 ministers, and 220 congregations, with a membership of 6875. Besides the Methodist congregations there were also at this latter date quite a respectable number of congregations belonging to the Presbyterians and Baptists, as well as to other Protestant bodies. The entire sermon was a labored effort to mislead the home government, that his party, by representing the country to be in such a fearful state of religious destitution, might gain the sympathy of the British public, and thereby secure the establishment of the Church of England in these colonies, and obtain, if not the whole, at least the lion's share of the Clergy Reserves. ' ' .. ■ According to Dr. Strachan's own showing, it was at a time when the Church of England numbered but five congregations in both Canadas that Bishop Mountain was desirous of having it made the established Church of the provinces ; and that he himself was working for the same object, when his church numbered only about Jifti/ congregations, or a little over Here, with not one quarter of the number of the congregations ■which adhered to the Methodists alone, not counting those of the Presbyterians or Baptists, or other Protestant denomina- tions, Dr. Strachan, with his then inconsiderable church membership and ministry, had the assurance to ask for, indeed to claim as a right, the entire control of one-seventh of all the lands in the province, in order that his Church might be built up at the expense of the nation, and that, too, against the express wishes of the majority of the people. M. E. CHURCH IN CANADA. 197 The reason of Dr. Strachan's resentment against the Method- ists — especially those belonging to the original body — was suffi- ciently obvious : his favorite project, the establishment of the English Church in Canada upon nearly the same basis as in the mother country, was so strongly opposed by them that it was found impracticable, even after he had secured the aid and co-operation of the English missionaries, and, at a later date, of Mr. Ryan himself. This sermon was reviewed very ably by Rev. Egertou Ryerson, then quite a young man. The reviewer was him?elf reviewed, but he nobly maintained his position, again review- ing his reviewer. The liberal press lent their assistance, and the controversy lasted many months, doing good service to the cause of equal religious rights and privileges. The Annual Conference of 1826 was held in the township of Hamilton, a short distance from Cobourg, commencing Aug. 31st, Bishop George presiding. There was but one preacher received on trial ; K. McK. Smith located, and James Jackson received a superannuated relation. The work of grace among the Indians had continued to progress astonishingly, and a large number of the sons of the forest, having just returned from a camp-meeting in Cramahe, encamped near the seat of Conference, where they held meetings and received religious instruction from the various ministers assembled. Quite a number of pagan Indians were also present, as well as the Christians from Rice Lake, Grand River, Credit and Belleville, many of whom were awakened and converted during the progress of these meetings. It was a time of power, and of great rejoicing among tlie people of God. ^ Dr. Bangs, as one of the agents of the New York Methodist Book Establishment, made an official visit to this Conference, and announced the projected publication of a weekly paper, to be entitled the Christian Advocate, soliciting the countenance and support of the preachers to aid in its circulation in Canada. iA. \ '!l 198 HISTORY OP THE The Conference, approving of the enterprise, accordingly passed the following resolution : — " Resolved, That we highly approve of the publication of said paper ; and we pledge ourselves to encourage its circula- tion." I, s . , „v ,.., ..:, , y , .■' .;,„,^;; ,. -•■•.■, The first number of the Advocate — the eldest of the family of Advocates — was issued on the 9th of September, 1826, and in a short time obtained a circulation, the largest at that time of any paper in the United States, of 30,000 copies per week. Hitherto the Methodist Magazine had been circulated to a considerable extent, but the Advocate, being a weekly, soon, in a great measure, superseded it. The year previous a new mission had been opened on the Mississippi and Ottawa rivers, to which Rev. Samuel Belton had been sent ; this year that work was added to the Perth Circuit, and called the Perth and Mississippi Mission, to which two preachers were appointed. So rapidly and so widely was the work of God extending, and so numerous and urgent were the calls for preaching from the newer settlements, that it was with great difficulty that the work could be filled. In consequence of this, the whitening harvest, the Conference, with devout gratitude for the past, and longing desires for the future, passed the following resoultion : — " Resolved, Tliat the first Friday in November be set apart for fasting and prayer for the promotion of internal holiness, and th** spread of the work of God in general ; and particularly for an increase of laborers in God's vineyard." From the time of the conversion of Peter Jones, Mr. Case had taken a deep, almost absorbing interest in the religious welfare of the Canadian aborigines, more especially those settled about the Gnad Kiver, Credit, Rice Lake, and Belleville. After consulting Rev. John Reynold,?, William Ross, and other prominent men in and about Belleville, Mr^ Case selected Grape Island, in the Bay of Quinte, on which to M. E. CHURCH IN CANADA. 199 collect the Indians, in order to bring the adults under religious influences, and to instruct the children in the rudiments of an English education ; hoping also to induce them to abandon their nomadic habits, and take to agricultural and mechanical pursuits. The island was, however, quite too small for the purpose designed, and had finally to be abandoned, and as the government could not be prevailed on to allow the Indians any land on Big Island, those who had been collected on Grape Island were removed to other missions. For a time, however, Mr. Reynolds, who took nearly as deep an interest in the Indians as Mr. Case, bore the expense of the support and tuition of one of them while he was attending school. In the case of Big Island, as indeed in many instances since, no matter which party was in power, where these poor people have been concerned, Mr. Cas., and all who took a friendly interest in them, considered that the government treated the Indians very badly, showing no regard whatever for their permanent good. At this Conference, 1826, the work was divided into three Districts, the Presiding Elders being: — Niagara District, Thomaa Madden ; Bay Quinte, William Case ; Augusta, Philander Smith. Statistics were as follows : — Districts, 3 ; circuits, 26 ; preachers, including superannuates and supplies, 37; membership, 7501, giving an increase for the year of 460 whites, 20 colored, and 146 Indians, making a total increase of 620. ( . .,. 200 HISTORY OP THE CHAPTER XVII. EVENTS OF 1826-27. Withdrawal of Mr. Ryan — Aided by Dr. Strachan — Canadian Wesleyan body organized — Usefulness of Peter Jones and John Sunday — Attempts to coerce the Methodist Indians into adher- ence to the Church of England — Inducements ofl'ered to the Brothers Jones — John Sunday's reply — Refusal of the Joneses — Dr, Strachan's Chart — Its liilsity — Testimony of the House to the character of the Methodist ministers and the tendency of their teachings — Address to the king — Result of the misrepresenta- tions — State of Methodism in Canada at this Conference, The Conference of 1827 was hold at Hamilton, and commenced its session 30th of August, Bishop Hedding presiding. Five preachers were received into full connection, nine were admitted on trial, and two located. Rev. Henry Ryan with- drew from the Church, and Alvin Torrey returned to the States, where he united with the Genesee Conference ; David Breckenridge, also, who had been on trial, left at the end of the Conference. Rev. John Ryerson was appointed to the Niagara District, Mr. Madden was sent to Ancaster Circuit, having for a colleague, Anson Green, who had this year been admitted into full connection. Mr. Ryan, having now severed all connection with the Church, set to work to more perfectly arrange the plans which he had for a time been forming, of effecting such a division in the Church as should eventuate in a general disruption. To this course he was urged by the counsel, and encouraged by the aid of parties who, high in authority, were still, as ever, the bitter, uncompromising enemies of Methodism, and judged M. E. CHURCH IN CANADA. 201 this one of the best metliods of retarding its progress in the country. Among those who thus urged Mr. Ryan on, were the Hon. John Wilson, the then Speaker of the House of Assembly, who hud formerly been a member of the M. E. Church, but who had become disaffected, and Dr. Strachan, Mr. Ryan's former opponent, who took this opportunity of manifesting his con- tempt for, and hatred of the Methodist Bishops, and of that form 01 Methodism which had accomplished so much for the Canadian people by its opposition to the establishment in Canada of a State Church, by sending Mr. Ryan the sum of $200.00 to assist in what he professed to consider the praiseworthy elFort to break up and destroy those Yankee Methodists. The old cry of *' disloyalty and foreign ecclesiastical control " was revived, and all the various changes rung upon it, , in 1812, and throughout the troubles with the English missionaries, though the falsity of the statement hud been proved over and over again. Mr. Ryan, in connection with Messrs. Jackson and Breckenridge, with some others, having separated themselves from the parent body, proceeded to organize a new church, which was called the Canadian Weslcyau, afterwards known as the New Connexion Methodists. The new organization com- menced its career by inflaming^ through its leaders, the political prejudices of certain classes of the Canadian people against the Bishops and the American Methodists, asserting that they exercised undue control over their brethren in Canada, and were, in fact, desirous of subverting the government ; and with those who knew no better such slanders had the desired effect. But, while thus assailed on every side, the valiant leaders of the original body did not slacken in their efforts for the spiritual welfare of their flocks. Though maliciously maligned and subjected to much vexatious annoyance, still they kept on steadily at their legitimate work — the evangelization of man- kind. Peter Jones and John Sunday, also an Indian, travelled :202 HI8T0RY OF TUE extensively among their own people, and were instrumental in bringinj; many hundreds to Christ. But this work was not carried on without much opposition from Dr. Strachan and the government. Only the year previous very high-handed measures had been attempted by those high in authority, in order to coerce the Indians into coming to their terms, with regard to their adherence to the Church of England. How far t.^ese threats were carried, will bo seen by the following extract from the journal of the late lamented Peter Jones : — " Monday, August 7th, 1826. — Received a message from Col. Givins, requesting the chiefs and principal men to meet him in Council at York, His Excellency the Lieutenant- Governor having a communication to make to us. We accord- ingly set oiF early in the morning. "Tuesday, 8th — About 10 o'clock Col. Givins took us before the commanding ofl&cer of the garrison, at which place he (Col. Givins) delivered to us the following message from the Governor, Sir Peregrine Maitland : — He stated that he was requested by the Governor to inform us that he (the Governor) was very much opposed to our attending the Methodist camp- meetings, and that if we persisted in going to any more of them he would cast us oflF, and have nothing more to do with that we could now take our choice, either to desist us from attending camp-meetings, and retain the good-will and aid of the Governor, or persist in going and lose his friendship and assistance. This was indeed a great trial to us, and I was for a few moments quite confounded and astonished, having been taught to believe that man was a free agent, and had a right to worship God accoraing to the dictates of his own con- science ; and also that the Ring's laws granted all his subjects liberty to worship God as they felt it their duty ; so that if a man thought it right to retire to the woods to pray, who had a right to prevent him ? or if he felt it his duty to confine his religion to the church, who had a right to judge him ? Is not God the Judge of all men, and are we not accountable f. J M. E. CIIUaCH IN CANADA. 203 to him for our Stewardship? After a long consultation between ourselves, the chiefs thought it advisable, for the sake of what the Governor had done and was doing for us, not to oppose his will in this matter, particularly as wo were just commencing a settlement, and endeavoring to improve in civilization. " I abstain from giving further comments on this affair, but leave others to judge for themselves." The question naturally arises " What had the government done for the amelioration of the aborigines prior to this, and what did they do subsequently? " Before the Methodists had been providentially led to take an interest in their condition, the government had troubled itself very little about them, excepting when they were desirous of obtaining some particular hunting-grounds from them, and then, a paltry sum in money, or some 2>fcsents of blankets, and gorgeous " calicoes," guns, tomahawks, ammunition, and other trifles, were considered ample remuneration for the grounds thus taken possession of. The government agents, and other traders, were allowed, too, to supply the poor creatures with the maddening fire-water at will, thus enabling those who chose to do so, to cheat them with impunity, not only out of their peltries, but out of the very presents just received from the government. After the breaking out of the reformation among the Indians, through the instrumentality of the Methodists, they were, for a brief period, let alone, but soon, as is to be seen from the foregoing quotation from Mr. Jones' journal, they were to be tried even as others had been before. The special kindness of the government referred to by Mr. Jones, was the erection by the government of twenty log houses at the Credit, and the promise of still further assistance to the permanent establishment of b settlement for the Indians there, that they might be instnn>ted in the arts of civilized life. 14 ii ir 204 UIBTORY OP THE I The further aic was not found forthcoming when it waa expected, as will be Hcen from the following quotation, also from the journal of Mr. Jones, which, although belonging to a later date, is given her i in consequence of its connection with the preceding. •'January 30th, 1828. — After the council Colonel Givins desired my brother John and me to go to the Governor's office, as the Governor's secretary had some communications to make to us. We accordingly went, and after waiting an hour were informed that owing to a multiplicity of business, they could not make the communications that day, but desired us to call to-morrow at 11 o'clock. Various were our conjectures about this strange government proceeding. • ''"'"■ " Thursday, 31 st. — John and I called this morning on Dr. Strachan ; he was very friendly, and made some enquiries' about the general state of the Indians, and requested me to give him, in writing, a short statement of the condition of the Belleville and Kice Lake Indians, which I promised to do. At 11 o'clock, a. m., we again appeared at the Government House, but waited till 1 o'clock before any communications were made to us, when we were summoned into the presence of Major Hillier — the Governor's secretary — Dr. Strachan, the Attorney-General, and Col. Givins. To our astonishment we were now informed by Dr. Strachan that tihe €k)Yernor did not feel disposed to assist the Indians so long as they remained under the instru'^tion of their present teachers, who were not responsible to Government for any of their proceedings and instructions ; he was therefore unwilling to give them any encouragement. But should the natives come under the superintendence of the Established Churchy then the Government would assist them as far as laid in their power. When stating their reasons for wishing us to come under the teaching of the Church of England, the Dr. and Attorney- General said that the Indians were considered by the Govern- ment to be under the war department, and therefore it was M. E. CHURCH IN CANADA. 205 nece«uury that they should be under their instniction ; and that another reason wap, that it would make the missionary cstab ■ U«hmcnt« more permanent ; whereas at present they were liable to fluctuation, the only resource of the Methodists beinjij that of mibscriptions. It was proposed to my brother and mo that if we would lissist them in this undertaking, and come under their directions, oar salaries should be increased, and we should have access to the contemplated college. We told them that their request would cause much dissatisfaction to the Methodists, as they claimed the Indians for their spiritual children^ having been the tirst to teach them the CMiristiau religion. They replied they could not help what the Method- ists would think about it, as it was necessary the Indians should be responsible to them for their conduct. We theo told them that ii was not in our power to say one way or the other, but that we should leave it for the Indians to decide themselves. They requested an answer as soon as possible. Colonel Givins gave us to understand that the request of the Cre4it Indians would most likely meet with the approbation of the Governor, and desired Tohn to make out a return of the number of fiunilies residing at the river Credit. We then proceeded to the quarters of the chiefs, who were waiting for answers to their petitions. When we told them what had been communicated to us they sighed deeply, and after a long silence said, ' Then all our labors have been in vain with our great father the Governor ; ' but John Sunday, with an air ot disdiain, replied, ' We have heretofore made out to live from year to year, even when we were sinners, and shall not the Greftt Spirit whom we now serve take care of us and preserve us from all harm ?' I cautioned them not to be too much troubl9,d about it, but to leave it to God in prayer, to which they assented. " Friday, February Ist. — This morning I carried in*o Dr. Straoban the statements he requested respecting the Belleville and Kice Lake Indians, of which he approved. Our conversa- m i 206 HISTORY OF TUB tion turned apon the proposals made yesterday, wheu I gave him to understand that I should not lake any influential part in the business, but leave the matter altogether for the Indians to decide. He then told me that the government would accom- plish tlicir design, wh^^ther ray brother John and I were willing or not, but added that if they had our assistance it could be accoaiplishcd sooner." The brothers Jones would not lend their countenance to the scheme, and the Dr. was thus left to woik out his own plans. ' '■ "" '' ■""■' ""' "■'■''■' ' '- ''"""■ ' Dr. Strachan finding tl at in spite of every effort of his to the contrary, the anti-Chvich and State party were gaining strength year by yea/, hastened to England with a chart which he had prepared, showing what he chose to represent as vhe relative strength of the various denominations in the province. Accompanying this somewhat famous chart was a letter which he addressed to the Home Government ; and in this as well as in the chart, the reverend gentleman gi'ossly misrepresented nearly all the other religious bodies, excepting his own, that were in the province. But it was mor.3 especially at the Methodists that his most venomed darts were thrown. His never-ceasing 'ind hackneyed cry of disloyalty was brought into requisition, as it had frequently been before, in order — iio matter how false it might be — that it might do him good service in gaining the end he so much desired ; and in addition, too, to his misrepresentation of other denominations, both as regarded numbers and nationality, he very greatly magnified the numbers and influence of hie own conmiunity The subject matter of these documents was brought before the notice of the Upper Canada House of Assem'y, and a committee was appointed by it to enquire into the accuracy, or inaccuracy of the statements therein contained. Fifty-two witnesses were examined before the committee, and after a very thorough investigation the Assembly adopted a report of which the following is an extract : — M. E. CHURCH IN CANADA. 207 '' The insinuatioDS in the letter against the Methodist clergymen the committee have noticed with peculiar regret. To the disinterested and indefatigable exertions of these pious men this province owes much. At an eatly period of its history, when it was thinly settled, and its inhabitants were scattered through the wilderness, and destitute of a!l other means of religious instruction, these ministers of the Gospel, animated by Christian zeal and benevolence, at the sacrifice of health, and interest and comfort, carried amorgst the people the blessings, and consolations, and sanctions of our holy religion. Their ministry and instruction, far from having, as is represented in the letter, a tendency hostile to our institu- tions, have been conducive — in a degree which cannot be easily estimated — to the reformation of their hearers from licentious- ness, and the diffusion of correct morals — the foundation of all sound loyalty and social order. There is no reason to believe that, as a body, they have failed to inculcate, by precept and example, as a Christian duty, an attachment to the sovereign, and a cheerful and conscientious obedience to the laws of the country. More than thirty-five years have elapsed since they commenced their labors in the colonies. In that time the province has passed through a war which put to the proof the loyalty of the people. If their influence and instructions have the tendency mentioned, the effect by this time must be manifest. Yet no one doubts that the Methodists are as loyal as any other of His Majesty's subjects. And the very fcict that, while their clergymen are do}x;ndent for their support upon the voluntary contributions of their people, the number of their members has increased so as to be now — in the opinion of almost all the witnesses — greater than that of the members of any other denomination in the province, is a complete refutation of any suspicion that their influence and instructions have such a tendencv. For it would be a gross slander on the loj^alty of the people to suppose that they would countenance, and listen with cora- 1 m ]%' .t f-'^. Ml #»■ 208 HISTORY OB' THE placency, to those whose confidence was exerted for such base purposes." A copy of the above report, with a chart prepared in accord- ance with the evidence given before the House, was ordered by vote of the Assembly to be transmitted to the Home Gk>vern ment, in addition to which an address was also sent to the King, George IV., from which the following is an extract : — " To the King's Most Excellent Majesty : " Most Gracious Sovereign : — We. Your Majesty's dutiful and loyal subjects, the Commons of Upper Canada, in Provincial Parliament assembled, humbly beg leave to repre- sent to Your Majesty that we have seen, with equal surprise and rogret, a letter and ecclesiastical chart, dated 16th of May, 1827, and addressed by the Honorable and Venerable Doctor Strachan, Archdeacon of York, a member of Your Majesty's Legislative and Executive Councils of this province, to the Right Honorable R. J. Wilmot Horton, at that time Under- secretary of State for the Colonies, for the information of Lord Goderich, then at the head of the Colonial Department ; as they are inaccurate in some important reports, and are calculated to lead l^our Majesty's Government into serious errors. " We beg leave to inform Your Majesty that, of Your Majesty's subjects in this province, only a small proportion are members of the Church of England, ynd there is not any peculiar tendency to that Church among the fRople, and that nothing could cause more alarm and grief in their minds, than the apprehension that there was a design on the part of Your Majesty's Government to establish, as a part of the staie, one or more Churches or denominations of Christians in this province, with rights and endowments not granted to Your Majesty's subjects in general of other denominations, who arc equally conscientious and deserving, and equally loyal and attached to Your Majesty's Royal Person and Government. In following honestly the dictates of their conscience, as M. E. CHURCH IN CANADA. 209 regards the great and important subject of religion, the latter have never been conscious that they have violated any law, or any obligation of a good subject, or done anything to forfeit Your Majesty's favor and protection, or to exclude themselves from a participation in the rights and privileges enjoyed by Your Majesty's other subjects. " We humbly beg leave to assure Your Majesty that the insinuations in the letter against the Methodist preachers in this province do much injustice to a body of pious and deserving men, who justly enjoy the confidence, and are the spiritual instructors of a large portion of Your Majesty's subjects in this province. We are convinced that the tendency of their influence and instruction is not hostile to our institu- tions, but, on the contrary, eminently favorable to religion and morality, and their labors are calculated to make their people better men and better subjects, and have already produced in this province the happiest effects. " While we fully and gratefully appreciate Your Majesty's gracious intention granting a royal charter for the establish- ment of an University in this province, we would beg most respectfully to represent that, as the great body of Your Majesty's subjects in this province are not members of the Church of England, they have seen, with grief, that the charter contains provisions which are calculated to render the institu- tion subservient to the particular interests of that Church, and to exclude from its ofiices and honors all who do not belong to it. In consequence of these provisions its benefits will be confined to the favored few, while others of Your Majesty's subjects, far more numerous, and equally loyal and deserving of Your Majesty's paternal care and favor, will be shut out from a participation in them. Having a tendency to build up one particular Church, to the prejr dice of others, it will naturally be an object of jealousy and disgust. Its influ- ence, aa a seminary of learning, will upon these accounts be limited and partial. We, therefore, humbly beg that Your m 1 ' - ill.;! "m „ W 1 210 HISTORY OP THE Majesty will be pleased to listen to the -wishes of Your Majesty's people in this respect, and to cause the present charter to be cancelled and one granted free from the objec- tions to which, emboldened by a conviction of Your Majesty's fraternal and gracious feelings to your loyal subjects in this province, as well as by a sense of duty to the people, and a knowledge of their 'nxiety upon the subject, we have presumed to advert. '"'■ '■ ' '""' ' ■"-"'■■ '."'i "We would also beg leave to state that it is the general desire of Your Majesty's subjects in this province, that the moneys arising from the sale of any lands set apart in this province for the support and maintenance of a Protestant clergy, should be entirely appropriated to the purposes of education and internal improvement. We would most humbly represent that to apply them to the benefit of one or two Christian denom- inations, to the exclusion of others, would be unjust as well as impolitic, and that it ncight perhaps be found impracticable to divide them among all. We have no reason to fear that the cause of religion would suf 3r materially from not giving public support to its ministers, and from leaving them to be supported by the liberality of their people." >^ *1> \l^ vl* »l» vt^ v^ » •* » f ^ *^ *y» *J» f^ »^ »■(■* rf^ *^* »-J^ The principal effect accomplished by Dr. Strachan's missiop to England — as far at least as Canadian affiairs were concerned, was, that, through the letters and addresses correcting his gross misrepresentations, a more general and more correct knowledge of Canadian denominational strength outside the Church of England, was gained by English statesmen of the higher order ; while in Canada itself, the publication of the various addresses, charts, &c., &c., caused the friends of civil and religious liberty to set themselves even more determinedly and energetic- ally than befort against every encroachment of the would, be supreme ecclesiastical power ; and to show ve^'y unequivo- cally that no connection between Church and State would be tolerated in the country. iP M. E. CHURCH IN CANADA. 211 Notwithstandicg all the conflicts through which the Method- ists had had to pass during this momentous year, the state of the Church was found at the following Conference to be as follows : — Districts, 3 ; preachers, 44, and circuits 30, with a member- ship of 8,633 ; making an increase for the year of 846 whites, and 272 Indians. There was a decrease among the colored people of 24. >.« ^ -- ■y ^'.■; ;-,;.i,,j/;^i ..Ml' - ,^ l« . I ift'Ajf^ff. \ 212 HISTOBY OF THB •*■ ' ■.■"•". CHAPTER XVIII. General Conference of 1828 — It complies with the wishes of the Canadian body for a separate organization — Annual Conference of 1828 — ^The M. E. Church in Canada becomes an independent body — Civil rights still withheld by local government — Marriage Act — It passes both Houses- Tloyal assent refused by the Gov- ernor — Granted by the King- -Prosperity of the cause — Indian Missions — Gratifying results — Address to the Governor — Reply — ;• Communication to the English Confereace — No response — Statistics. The General Conference of 1828 was held in Pittsburgh jom- mencing, as was — and is — the invariable custom, on the 1st of May. ;-:;"-..;'■ ■ ,-.-;;-.■■• -'^^ ^:-:-:': The interests of the Canada Conference were represented by Messrs. Wm. Ryerson, Samuel Belton, John Ryerson, William Slater and Wyatt Chamberlain. These brethren, at a suitable period, as soon as possible after the commencement of the session, presented the following memorial from the Canada Conference upon the vexed question of ecclesiastical independence: — " To the Bishops and memhers of the Annual Conferences of the Methodist Episcopal Church, in their several Conferences assembled : " The memorial of the preachers in Canada, in Conference assembled at Hallowell, Upper Canada, the 25th August, 1824, respectfully sheweth : — " That petitions to the late Greneral Conference having been forwarded from & numerous body in this country, praying for a separate connexion in Canada ; that the General Conference did not think it expedient to grant the prayer of the petitioners, • • f M. E. CHURCH IN CANADA. 213 and offered their reasons, at the same time leaving the petitioners yet to hope for such an event, by saying that '■ however expedient such a measure may be considered at a future period, the proper time for it has not arrived ; ' and that the Canada Conference being of opinion that the plan of becoming a separate body ought, at a future period, to go into effect, they beg leave to submit the same to the deliberate examination of their respective fathers and brethren in the several sister Conferences, with a view to a favorable decision at the next General Conference and that the reasons which have influenced the Canada Conference, in favor of such an establishment are as follows : — "1st. The state of society requires it. The first settlers having claimed the protection of His Brittanic Majesty, in the Revolutionary war, were driven from their former possessions to endure great hardships in a remote wilderness. Time, how- ever, and a friendly intercourse, had worn down their asperity and prejudice when the late unhappy war revived their former feeling, affording what they considered new and grievous occasion for disgust against their invading neighbors. The prejudices thus excited would probably subside if their ministry were to become residents in this country, as would be the case in the event of becoming a separate body in Canada. "2nd. A separate establishment appears to be expedient and necessary on account of the insulated and extended situa- tion of the societies in this country from the general superin- tendency. The national line is marked by a vast sheet of water stretching the whole length of the province, either in broad lakes or rapid rivers ; so that, in our insulated situation, and the difficulties in passing, it was nearly thirty years after the introduction of our ministry, before one of our Bishops visited this country. Two other Bishops lived and died without setting foot in Canada : and if two others, by forced labor, have kindly stepped over, these visits have been few and transitory ; consequently, inconveniences have been felt for ^!^ 214 III8T0RY OP THE want of ordinations, and a more particular and immediate over- sight cf the general superintendency. A Superintendent, therefore, to reside in the country, to attend to these important duties, would greatly remedy those inconveniences, and have a most salutary influence upon the cause of religion. " 3rd. A separate establishment appears necessary and expedient, on account of existing jealousies, lately awakened by thie government of this country. On the arrival of the missionaries from Europe eiforts were made to establish them in our cities and societies, by raising objections to our ministry, as coming from the United States, These objections were urged to the people here, and to the Committee at home ; but when the measure proved unsuccessful, and the British Conference refused to sanction the request made to them from political motives, these objections were then urged against us to the government of this country. Natural as it was for political characters to listen to alarms on such a subject, some excitements were produced on the minds of men liigh in the Executive Department, and some events have rather increased than allayed these excitements. To us, therefore, it appears proper to apply for a separation, that by yielding to what might be thought to be the reasonable wishes of the government, we may obviate the objection, and remove all suspicion of the purity of our motives in preaching the Gospel in this country. "4th. To us it appears expedient and necessary that the societies here should be set oflF as a separate body, because that in the event of war between the two nations, the difficulties of intercourse between this country and the United States would render it extremely hazardous, if not totally impracticable, as we are now situated, for the superintendents to discharge their duties in Canada. " 5th. To us it appears expedient that the societies here should become a Church separate from the body in the United States, in order to secure privileges which are of importance for the prosperity of religion here. At present we are not M. E. CHURCH IN CANADA 215 permitted to perform the rites of marriage to our members ; nor, indeed, have we any legal security for one of our numerous chapels in this province, and we have been assured that in our present relation we must not expect any extension of privileges. Though we cannot assure ourselves of such advantages by becoming a separate body, yet we can apply for those privileges with more confidence ; and we think we have reason to hope that when petitions shall be presented to the government from an independent Church in this country our privileges will be granted and our property secured. " These, brethren, are the reasons which have been presented to our minds, and which appear to us of weight and moment in fdvor of a separation, and in order to preserve the body of Methodists in this countiy from the most disastrous of all events — that of divisions among ourselves." The above memorial, as will be observed from the date, had been prepared at, and received the sanction of the Canada Conference of 1824. A copy of it had been laid before each of the several other Annual Conferences during the four years' interval between the first session of the Canada Conference and the session of the General Conference ; so that the whole question was pretty generally understood, and was, therefore, brought up at this Conference for final adjustment. The document was referred to a committee, who, •»fter due deliberation, taking all the circumstances of the Canadian Church into consideration, finally reported in favor of the separation. The Conference accordingly adopted the following- preamble and report : — * " Resolved, by the delegates of the Annual Conferences, in General Conference aswsembled. That whereas the jurisdiction of the Methodist Episcopal Church in the United States of America has been heretofore extended over the ministera and members in connection with the said Church in the province •Journals of General Conference, 1828. ■ -11 t--'. H T 216 HISTORY OF THE of Upper Canada, by mutual agreement, and by the conseDt of the brethren in that province ; and whereafl the General Conference is satisfactorily assured that our brethren in the said province, under peculiar and pressing circumstances, do now desire to organize themselves into a distinct Methodist Episcopal Church, in friendly relations with the Methodist Episcopal Church in the United States ; therefore be it resolved, and it is hereby resolved, by the delegates of the Annual Conferences in General Conference assembled : — " 1. That if the Annual Conference in Upper Canada, at its ensuing session, or any succeeding session previously to the next General Conference, shall definitely determine on thi» course, and elect a General Superintendent of the Methodist Episcopal Church in that province, this General Conference do hereby authorize any one or more of the General Superintend- ents of the Methodist Episcopal Church in the United States^ with the assistance of any two or more Elders, to ordain such General Superintendent for said Church in Upper Canada; provided always that nothing herein contained be contrary to, or inconsistent with the laws existing in said province ; and provided that no such General Superintendent of the Methodist Episcopal Church in Upper Canada, or any of his successors in office, shall at anytime exercise any ecclesiastical jurisdiction whatever in any part of the United States, or of the territories thereof; and provided also that this article shall be expressly ratified and agreed to by the said Canada Annual Conference before any ordination shall take place. " 2. That the delegate who has been selected by the General Conference to attend the ensuing Annual Conference of the British Wesleyan Methodist Connexion be, and hereby is instructed to express to that body the earnest and affectionate desire of this General Conference that the arrangement made with that Connexion in relation to the labors of their missionaries in Upper Canada may still be maintained and observed. M. E. CHURCH IN CANADA. 217 " 3. That our brethren and friends, ministers or others, in Upper Canada, shall at all times, at their request, be furnished with any of our books and periodical publications, on the same terms with those by which our agents are regulated in fur- nishing them in the United States, and until there shall be an adjustment of any claims which the Canada Conference may have in this connection, the book agents shall divide to the said Canada Church an equal proportion of any annual dividend which may be made from the Book Concern to the several Annual Conferences respectively ; provided, however, that the aforesaid dividend snail be apportioned with the Canada Church only so long as they may continue to support and patronize our Book Concern as in times past." In direct reply to the petition of the Canadian memorialists the (General Conference directed that a copy of the forcing resolutions, containing the decision of that body with regard to Canadian a£fairs, be given to the delegates from Canada, which was accordingly done. This adjustment was not amved at without an earnest and somewhat protracted debate. It was very natural that the American preachers should enquire the reason of all this outcry against themselves, and their jurisdiction over a Church which they had planted, and over which they had exercised a paternal care for more than thirty years. During the progress of the debate it was fully proven that they had broken no law of the land; that in. every place in which, for the time being, they had resided while preaching in Canada, they had behaved themselves as became peaceable si/bjects of the British crown, in no way striving to subvert purely British institutions. The Canada Conference complained of no injustice at the hands of their American brethren, simply asserting that outside pressure impelled them to ask the separation, as they hoped thereby the sooner to secure certain rights and privileges which were denied them by the arrogant faction at the time in power, on the h ta'i^^WlllSi^iii^AC^T^'i^^ i ,000^ i '8 218 HIHTOHY OF THE alleged ground of their connection with the American body. But subsequent events proved that this same faction were not more favorably disposed towards tlie purely Canadian Church than they had previously been towards the Amckico-Canadian, against which they had so successfully raised so much unfounded prejudice. The question was one of very great imjM)rtance, in other respects than this. There hud been no similar crisis in the history of the Church, consccjuently they hud no precedent by which tliey might be guided in their deliberations. Dr. Bangs, in his History of the M. E. Church, thus ably sums up the whole matter : — " There is an important principle involved in Lbe above agree- ment to dissolve the connection which hud so long subsisted between the Methodists in the United States and Upper Canada, which it seems expedient to explain. When the sub- ject first came up for consideration it was contended, and the committee to whom it was first referred so reported, which I'cport was approved of by a vote of the General Conference) that we had no constitutional right to set oflF the brethren in Upper Canada as an independent body, because the terms of the compact by which we existed as a General Conference made obligatory on us, as a delegated body, to preserve the univ..! entire, and not to break up the Church into separate fi iif^ruents. Hence to grant the prayer of the memorialists, by a solemn act of legislation, v/ould be giving sanction to a prin- ciple, and setting a precedent for future General Conferences, of a dangerous character — of such a character as might tend ultimately to the dissolution of the ecclesiastical body, which would be, in fact and form, contravening the very object for which ;?^^ :were constituted a delegated Conference, this object being a preservation, and not a desti'uction or dissolution of the union. These arguments appeared so forcible to the first committee, and to the Conference, that the idea of granting them a separate organization on the principle of abstract and M. E. OHUROU IN CANADA. 219 indepcndopt legislatiop w^h abandonod a« altoji,other indo- fonniblo, bcin^ contrai^ to the conHtitutional compact. *' But still fooling a desire to grant, in some way, t' at which the Canada brethren so oarncdtly requtated, and for which they pleaded with so much zeal, and even with most pathetic appeals to our sympathies, it was 8u«rj;c8ted * y a very intelligent member of the General Conference, the hu Bishop Emory, that the preachers who went to Canada from the United States, went, in the first instance, as missionaries, and that ever afterward, whenever additional help was needed, Bishop Asbury and his successors aaked for volunteers, not claiming the right to xend them in the same authoritative manner in which they were sent to the aluerent parts of the United States and territories ; hence it followed that the com- pact between us and our brethren in Canada was altogether of a voluntary character — we had offered them our services and they had accepted them — and therefore, as the time had arrived when they were no longer willing to receive or accept of our labors and superintendence, they had a perfect right to request us to withdraw our services, and we the same right to withhold them. " This presented the subject in a new and very clear light, and it seemed perfectly compatible with our powers as a delegated Conference, and their privileges as a part of the same body, thus connectef* by a voluntary and conditional compact, either expresvsed or implied, to dissolve the connection subsisting between us without any dereliction of duty or forfeiture of privilege on either part. It was on this principle alone that the above agreement was based.' ^ The separation of the Canadian work from the American — so far as the action of the General Conference was concerned — was accomplished. Nothing now remained unfinished but the ratification of the articles of separation by the Canada Confer- ence, when the tie which had bound them so closely together for thirty-seven years would be completely severed. m\ 220 HISTORY OP THE The Canada Conference of 1 ^28, which was to inaugurate a new era in the history of the Methodist Church in the province, held its session in Switzer's meeting-house, in Ernestown ; commencing on the 2nd of October. Bishop Hedding was present and presided. The action of the Gleneral Conference in answer to their memorial was brought before the Conference for their approval or rejection, when the whole subject was referred to a committee of nine, who in due time reported favorably, and the following resolutions concern- ing it were adopted : — "Whereas the jurisdiction of the Methodist Episcopal Church in the United States of America has, heretofore, extended over the ministers and members in connection with the said Church in the province of Upper Canada, by mutual agreement, and by the consent of our brethren in this province ; and whereas h has been and is the general wish of the ministers and members of the Methodist Episcopal Church in Upper Canada to be organised into a separate and independent body, in friendly relations with the Methodist Episcopal Church in the United States ; and whereas the General Conference has been pleased to comply with our wish in this respect, and has authorized any one or more of the General Superintendents of the Methodist Episcopal Church in the United States, with the assistance of any two or more Elders, to ordaiu a General Superintendent for the said Church in Upper Canada : " Resolved, 1st, That it is expedient and necessary, and that the Canada Conilicnce of the Methodist Episcopal Church do now organize itself into an independent Methodist Episcopal Church in Canada. " Resolved, 2nd, That we adopt the present discipline of the Methodist Episcopal Church as the basis of our constitution and discipline, except such alterations as may appear necessary from our local circumstances." Immediately after organizing themselves into an independent ^' *• ^«^'«<^H IN CANADA. ^^^ of the M. E. Church io hTu^itliZT ''t ""^ "^ ^^^"P ■-^uest of the Conference, beZ^tnTj, .*""■ "' "■« "S^"' the remainder of the session Tf!""^ '° P"^'''^ ^"""g ".- ««oh instruction ari ounS I Z "'"" ^ ^'^-P ^avf <"• applicable to their situr„n "' '''."""^''^''^d necessary -ieably was severed the co 'ne^ti:: hT""^'""'=^- ^'■- On the part of the Americans the '" "'" '^^ '"» ''»<'i^- had been one of p„reiy di hte 1^^"':''' """'^'» «'««"? -ai. Their labor had b^n bttlwL 1°' " ''°'' ^'■™«» ;;eeeiving anj corresponding 1„!T^. *'"""" «>« hope of for these unselfish e/ertions^Wdll'™"'"^' '""^ - -t«„. "-scrupulous and malignant cat^ntrV'""""^ '" *■>« ""o^ P^'^cution. Now, ho;ever when tt '" T" '"^*»o«« to "'th so much toil r,UnZ T "'"'' ''^'"^ they had "nrtured, deemed itself tl""'' '"'T'"'^y'^'' »™pline- them to meddle in the ^ i :» 'an^T'"'"^^-"'''"'' '"rbade "ot a single instance receded oIXT"" ''"'''■ ^here is ■«>i-who would have been dadlf ,1,^ "'""'"' "f Method- ■t abroad if there had heetflf af/'f^^''^''^ "^W-ouir.g ■egarded this rule. ^ "'^ *'"' Poachers having dis thotSatnVwre ;::i::x!" f t "^ ^p-"*-, .hue "' ""'' ""y ''^o^ng independent !t:^S 222 HISTORY OF THE I ' of the parent body, the Canadian section of the Church might the sooner prevail on the Provincial Government to sanction the act by which the Methodists, and other Protestant Denom- inations, would be allowed to hold church property and also to consent to the passage of the act permitting them to solemnize marria2;e. While the act of separation was still under discus- sion, the law entitling them to hold church property, came into effect, thus doing away with part of the disability under which the Church, as then constituted, labored. The other point, tie Canadian Executive still refused to yield, even after the S3paration, thus proving beyond the possibility of question, that it was Methodism, more even than Arj/^ncanism, against which ihey entertained such bitter hoiiii.^ The Marriage Bill, which finally accorded their just rights to tha Methodists, after hiving passed the House of Assembly, secured the royal assent not only without the consent of the Provincial Executive, but in spite of all the influence it could bring to bear against it, a." the following facts amply prove : This, or similar Marriage Bills, had been laid before the Provincial Legislature for six successive years, and was passed by the House of Assembly, only to be contemptuously thrown out by the Legislatlv"^ Council, or, having passed that body in one instance, it was refused the Governor's ' notion, without which it could not become law. ' Late in 1828, or early in 1829, the iV*./ ^r e Bill in question passed the House of Assembly, and ou J^e 30th of January, in the latter year, it passed the Upper House with some alterations, to which, after some delay, the Lower House consented. The Bill as amended was finally passed on the 4th of March, 1829 ; but as usual, the Governor refused his sanction, and the Bill was sent to England to be laid before the King. There it remained nearly two years, until the Whigs came into power, when the King having given it the royal assent, it was returned to Canada in March 1831, just as a much more liberal act was about being passed by the M. E. CHURCH IN CANADA. 223. Canadian Legislature. It will readily be seen, therrefore, that the rights of Canadian Methodists were not obtained any the more speedily because of the Church having become independ- ent of the parent body. Another reason that had been urged, and that had been considered of some weight, was that such a concession would satisfy Mr. Ryan and liis friends, and thus prevent division in the Church. Nothing, however, was gained in this respect, as Mr. Ryan had gone too far, and had become too thoroughly estranged from his brethren to be willing to retrace his steps. The manner in which the separation from thj parent body had been eflFected gave general satisfaction, and greatly endeared the American Methodists to their Canadian brethren. The summer and autumn of 1828, up to the very time of the Conference of 1828, had been a season of more than usual revival among both whites and Indians, ^^eter Jones had been appointed, the year previous, gen^^ral mis- sionary to the native tribes. He was accompanied in his travels by John Sunday, and their ministry was attended with great success, in the awakening of their brethren and the ingathering of them into the Church, besides bringing many Indian children under religious instruction. Mr. Richardson, who had been the missic lary to the Indians on the Credit during the year 1827-1828, gives the following account of the efforts of the Indians to erect a school-house and place of worship : — " The Indians, men, women and children, were collected together by the sound of the horn, and the matte* was explained to them by Peter Jones, and a subscription paper presented. In half an Lour one huudred dollars (lacking 4d) were libscribed, and (it being the time for catching salmon) forty dollars were paid at the time. Many of the Indian women, when they saw others go forward and present the widow's mite, (for they gave all they had, which was from Hi 224 BISTORT OP THE one shilling to three dollars), expressed their sorrow that they had nothing to give ; but added they wculd have some soon. They immediately applied themselves to the making of baskets and brooms, and soon presented their dollars and half dollars, and had their names set down among the others. Littl.o boys from eight to twelve years brought their shillings and two shillings, the product of their little fingers, to help in building a house where they could learn to be wise like white boys, and pray to Ro-sha-mun-no-to (the Great Spirit). How astonish- ing the contrast ! A short time ago these Indians would sell the last thing they had for a tenth of its value to get a little whiskey ; but now they will labor and exercise economy to get something to build a house where they can worship the Lord of Hosts." -,\; . ■ .: ■ -i :.', ,.^ :.,,■>.■, ,,.;';,.„•,:- _'i....'^i.4'^f /""'■ The anniversary of the Missionary Society was held on the third day of the Conference, when the mo.! 226 HISTORY OP THE strongest bonds of perpetual union between this colony and the mother country — may be established on the best and surest foundations. " We request that your Excellency will be pleased to accept of our expressions of personal respect, and best wishes for the uninterrupted health and prosperity of your Excellency and family. •'By order of the Conference. Wm. Case, President, pro teni.. Jas. Richardson, Secretary. Ernestown, Oct. 7th, 1828. Thp address was favorably received, and the following reply sent in answer to it : — "Gentlemen, — Your loyal address I receive with great satisfaction, and in thanking you for your kind wishes, I must observe that the labors and zeal of ministers with your pious sentiments cannot fail of being profitable in a colony where the temptations are many, the pastors few, and the flocks scattered ; particularly living, as you do, under the government of a sovereign solicitous that all should be equally protected in the conscientious discharge of their religious duties." But though the reply of the governor was thus favorable, Dr. Strachan and his party in a short time succeeded in influ- encing him to such a degree that he did but little for the Indians, and gave no further countenance to the M. E. Church in Canada. Being desirous of carrying out in good faith the arrange- ment entered into between the English Conference and the American Greneral Conference, in 1820, with regard to ^.he occupation of the Canadas by their respective ministers, the Conference t>efore its close appointed a committee, consisting of William Case, George Ryerson, and James Richardson, to enter into a correspondence with their English brethren, and thus establish — if possible — a friendly relation and intercourse M. E. CiURCH IN CANADA. 227 between the two connexions. This courteous communication, however, met with no response from the English Conference. The session of the most important Conference that had ever been held in Canada was approaching its termination. The state of the work, as reported in the Minutes, was as follows : — Districts, 3 ; travelling preachers, 47, superannuated, 7 ; cir- cuits, 32, with a membership of 9678. There was an increase in the membership of 690 whites, 343 Indians, making in all a total increase of 1033. The Presiding Elders for the ensuing year were John Ryerson, William Ryerson, and Philander Smith ; and Mr. Case was appointed to the oversight of the Indian Missions. The Church did not lack now, as it had done in the earlier years of its history, for able defenders from among its own ranks, having at its command, at this time, the ready pens and masterly minds of such men as James Richardson, Franklin Metcalf^ and Egerton Ryerson, the last named of whom stood forth then,^ and for >^o»28 years afterwards, as the champion of equal civil and religious rights, and was for a time one of the boldest and most able advocates for the secularization of the Clergy Reserves. From this Conference of 1828, the preachers went home to their circuits with high hopes and expectations, which were» for a few years, more than realized. M le bh le io ke I Id Be ggg^am— i ^^^iitM'' 1 228 HISTORY OP THE Cti AFTER XIX. Conference of 1829 — James Jackson — Death of William Slater — Establishment of the Christian Guardian — Views respecting connection between Church and State, &c. — Sunday School Union formed — Glorious success of the mission work — Statistics — Canadian Wesleyans — Great religious prosperity — Commence- ment of Temperance movement in Canada — Found earnest advocates in the Methodist ministers — Hon. John Rolph and Marshall S. Bidwell. The Conference of 1829 commenced its ses^on on the 26th of August, in the old Bowman meeting-house, in the township of Ancaster, Rev. W. Case presiding, Rev. James Richardson secretary. Being now an independent body it entered upon the business of the session without assistance from the American Church. Mr. Case, the Superintendent pro tern., was a man of considerable experience, and was therefore capable of presiding with ability, which he did to the general satisfaction of those with whom he had to do. At this Conference there were five candidates received on trial ; three of the old preachers continued to hold a super- annuated relation ; George Sovereign located ; Isaac B. Smith withdrew, and James Jackson was expcllei. The charges on which Mr. Jackson was tried and upon which he was expelled were, misapplication of mission funds, and wilful slander of his brethren. With regard to the first accusation Mr. Jackson always asserted that he had a per- fect right to use" the funds as he had done. He had been, he said, wrongfully accused, and his life, even, had been sought — an assertion for which there does not appear to have H. E. CHURCH IN CANADA. 229 been the least foundation in fact. Mr. Jackson was a man of very strong feeling, and a violent, indeed, abusive disputant. He had taken an active part with Mr. Ryan in his crusade against the Church and his former brethren and co-laborers, and in the course of the controversy a great amount of ill-will had arisen, and many bitter things had been said which the facts in the case did not warrant, and which in the end led to this unhappy termination. It was reported at this Conference that since their lawt session one of their number had fallen in the field, the first instance of the kind that had occurred since their existence as a separate body. William Slater had died during the year. He was born in Derbyshire, England, Dec. 1st, 1787, and emigrated to Canada at an early day, the precise date is not known. Having been a Weslcyan local preacher in England, he was not long *j finding work to do for his Master in the new country to which he had come; and in 1822 he was au ittcd into full connection in the Genesee Conference. During the few years he was permitted to live he travelled extensively, and was made the honored instrument in the conversion of many souls. Ho was .seized with his last illness, which was but of ten days duration, when about sixteen miles from home, to which he was not able to be removed. Though much exercised with regard to the future of his little family, consisting of his wife and two helpless infants, he was enabled to cast even this care upon the Lord, and his end was emphatically peace. The Conference expressed their appreciation of his worth and services, and their sorrow at his loss, in a lengthy obituary, which was inserted in the Minutes of that year. One imperative want which the Church had long felt, was that of a connexional paper. No merely secular paper could fully understand the wants, or enter into the interests of the religious community, nor could it so ably defend the Church from the ungenerous and untruthful assaults of its enemies. Besides being an able weapon for self-defence, it would not 1 i 1 ■ :'!■ 230 HISTORY OF THE only chronicle the various procecdinfi^s of the body, but would be the medium through which much moral and rcUgious, as well as scientific, instruction might be conveyed to the masses at large. The feasibility of the project of starting such a paper was brought up at this Conference, and a committee appointed to consider and report whether or not the scheme were practicable. The following is the report of that com- mittee, which was adopted by the Conference : — " 1st. That it is the opinion of your Committee that a weekly paper should be entablished under the direction of the Conference, of a religious and moral character, to be entitled the Christian Guardian. " 2nd. That its place of location be the town of York. " 3rd. That the sum of $700 is sufficient to purchase all the apparatus for a printing establishment. "4th. That the sum of $2050 will meet the annual expenses of such a paper. " 5th. That the annual income of the office will be at least $2800, leaving a balance of $750 annually. " 0th. That stock to the amount of $2000 be raised, by dividing it into one hundred shares of $20 each, half of which to be paid immediately, and the remainder subject to the call of the persons who may be appointed to superintend the pub- lishing of the paper ; said stock to be repaid with interest, a» soon as the avails of the concern will admit i f it. " 7th. That the members of the Conference do take up the shares among themselves ; but if all be not disposed of in that way, that they use their influence with their friends to have the remainder taken up immediately. "8th. That a committee of five persons be appointed annually by the Conference, to superintend the publishing of the paper and other printing that may be done in the office ; and that the General Superintendent of our Church, and the preacher in charge of the Station of York, be ex-officio mem- M. E. CHURCH IN CANADA 231 "bera of said conimittec, three of whom shall form a quorum for the transaction of business. " 9th. That the Conference appoint an editor, or editors, annually, by ballot, without debate, who shall be responsible for his, or their, conduct as editor, or editors, to the Publishing Committee, in the interval of Conf(Srence. " 10th. That the editor be appointed an agent to procure the apparatus and materials necessary for commencing the paper. " 11th. That the price of the paper be 12s. 6d., currency, per annum, if pi:id in advance, or 15s., if not paid previous to six months from receiving the first number, exclusive of postage. " 12th. That all our ministers, travelling and local, be agents to the paper ; and every agent who may procure fifteen sub- scribers, and use his best endeavors to make collections and obtain subscribers annually, shall be entitled to paper gratis. (Signed,) F. Metcalf, Chairman.'' Rev. Egerton Ryerson was appointed editor, and Rev. Franklin Metcalf — who was stationed in York — assistant. The necessary material was purchased, and the arrangements for commencing operations as speedily as possible were carried out. The first number of the new paper, the Christian Guardian, was issued at York — now Toronto — Nov. 21st, 1829, and in a few weeks had quite an extensive circulation for those days. Though it did not realize the financial expectations of its originators, it — for a number of years, at least — did the Church and the country good service by its uncompromising opposition to Church and State connection in every form, and its fearless advocacy of civil and religious freedom , especially reprobating special grants of public money to certain, numer- ically small, but favored denominations, as an injustice to the great mass of the people, and, therefore, a moral evil. What the principles of the Methodist Church in those days were, as expressed in its organ, or by its accredited champion, n 282 IIIUTORY OF THE may be gleaned from the following extracts from the pen of Mr. Kyerison, taken from his " Claims of Churchmen and Dis- senters," and from the early volumes of the Guardian: — " With respect to the support afforded to religion by the civil government, matter of fact proves that it can answer no beneficial purjwse. The Church of Christ never was so pros- perous and 80 pure as she was in the first three centuries. She was not only without the aid of civil government, but was most violently opposed by it. Did this extirpate her from the earth, or retard her progress? The former part of the Doctor's sermon (meaning a sermon preached by Dr. Strachan on the death of Bishop Mountain) abundantly proves that even ' uneducated, itinerant men, without human aid or influ- ence, can, in the strength of the Lord, strew their way from country to country with the wrecks ^f Satan's kingdom.' Did not the religion of the Redeeme >ad her victories with almost inconceivable rapidity against tlie united intrigue and and force of Jews, Greeks, and Romans ? Why is not the manner of propogating the Gospel in the first days of its glory the most judicious manner of propogating it now ? Are her evidences less clear .-ind forcible ? Is her influence less upon the heart ? If she, without civil support, nay, even opposed by the civil government, rose triumphant over the powers of earth and hell, and extended her influence so wide that, as Tertullian informs us. Christians were in the forum, the senate, and in every place, except the theatre, why is her influence and exten- sion now depending on legislative influence ? If there be any power in Christianity, it operates on the consciences of men ; resting solely on the belief of invisible realities. She can derive no weight or solemnity from human sanctions. " The kingdom of God,' says Jesus, ' is within you.' — (Luke xvii. 21.) It is divested of that external pomp and splendor which are calculated to excite the admiration of the world ; why then should a union with worldly men and worldly policy be con- sidered essential to its diffusion and establishment ? Is it not M.E. CHURCH IN CAN^nA pl«in that whoever insists n» .k- . *« Higion of Je.„rand ',av 'f""'""''''' ""'»■' ''-«"'->«. P""-? I« thia „o't ™Schrat'''T"""' '" ^"-o-' Nitieal benevolence, rather th^n'' " '*'"'""" "f"- «alvation/-(Ro„.,.;j'*" 'he 'power of God uVto emanation from heaven?' No wl . t'"""' "■" " '^ght "fHigion, when elogged^i^r-'"' 'hen, that the power " "Iway^ weakened No 'onf n '' '=<"""'™"ees of^n,, constantly dabbling i„ XcTtl 1- """^ <""-- ""o -e ■^dapestiieneeto^heiC.TshLre:'''-^'"™ '» "" Ch««=h --t\7iiX%r^::'^r;'.'«-'o^.onerate -"reririrnee :r - S »;t!:;x religious ostablir ! *''I'P'"'""'!-eCh..reh? m fc.uus establishments coniuien(.|.fl (!,„• V"'™>' When d'd P«H domination, whieh h's ''"'""''"• '"'''en 7'd from age to age, Commence her "7"^ ""^ '''™""" ••el.g.o«3 c*blishme„,sgotthevo,t ' "™°' '""^' ^''^» the free.w.U offerings of Christian,? vl ™Pported by out the art of foreilg menrs„!lt,°'"''''^' ''''<' """""-'^ to the fertile genius rf some ofTvl tl™- ^'™ ""« '^^ by them has been di.play"d I II™!" ." '""'"''""' ' ""^ centuries." f y a to admirable advantage for many * * ■* v .^, ,,. Of cJi;?K:Se^^^^^^^^^^^ '^^^ '-lies hin.) e.plo,.d his 'di^aVwl;- V "' "'"' ''"""'^ fro™ 1" Warmness of the E^ der """"'"^^ ''^""'•'^^^ ">« the Imperial Pariiamfnt a^inrS^bTr ""^'"'''^ -'h d«gger with a great deal ofCh. ''" '"'"■'"^''«' his little i' does not yetVar : : he ~ '""•'"^- ««--, ehest ; and as we think that th I« '^I^ '» "-o »■»-; imperial rarhament are quite >^ I I / i 234 HI8T0HY OF THE capable of defending themselves and taking care of their purse, ^e shall not step forward in their defence. *t^ ^^ ^^ K^ ^^ octor) may trust in legislative influence ; he - may ' pray to the Imperial Parliament.' But we will trust in the Lord our God, and to Him will we make prayer. And under His auspices we fondly hope that the day is not far distant ' when the banners of the Lamb will wave Trium- phantly over the blood-stained car of Juggernaut ; when the Shaster and the Koran shall be exchanged for the oracles of ■ truth;' when the plundering Arab, the degraded Hottentot, v and the inflexible Chinese, with the polished European, and uncultivated American, wi^l sit down under the tiee of life, and "^ all acknowledge ' one Spirit, one Lord, one faith, one baptism, and one God.'* " The constitution of a Church and State Establishment is not suited to the atmosphere of Canada. Such a monster, whether with one, two, or three heads, must very soon share the fate in this country which he has lately met with in France — for the unobstructed air of free discussion is his mortal poison, and never can he long maintiiin a successful contest against the deathly piercings of that triple sword of truth, Justice, and Puritan independence, ' which is turning every way,' guarding the intellectual citadels of the good people of Canada against his blasphemous approach. 'Many are running to and fro, and knowledge is increasing;' and it is too late in the day to attempt to introduce into British North America the policy of Portugal and Spain, or that of Charles the tenth. "t With such principles as these for their watchword, it is not to be wondered at that the M. E. Church found no favor with, but rather encountered the bitter hostility of such open •Claims of Churchmen and Dissentern. f Christian Ottardian, vol. 1, No. 48. pagan; semi-c the fir M. E. CHURCH IN CANADA. 235 H advocates of repression as were Dr. Strachan and the Family Compact. The Conference of 1829 was noted, also, for another very important arrangement which was entered into at that session, yiz., the formation of a Sunday-school Union, with its constitution and by-laws. Although the attention of the Church had been called to the good that might be accomplished by this agency, and individual efforts had been made to establish Sabbath- scuools in certain localities, with partial success; yet, up to this year, there had not been the interest taken in this branch of Christian work that ought to have been taken, either by the Church or by Christian people at large. From this Conference, however, the preachers returned to their circuits resolved more fuU}'^ than ever to devote a portion of their time to this part of their legitimate work, and the happy fruits were soon apparent on many of the circuits, as the reports of these newly formed schools, which were published in the first volume of the Guardian^ abundantly proves. Not only were the larger scholars brought, by these means, to a saving knowledge of Christ, but many young persons wl: had commenced to teach in the schools, though unawakened, became convinced of their own inefficiency as teachers while yet unconverted, and of the necessity of an experimental knowledge of religion to ensure their own happiness here, and safety hereafter; and thus hundreds wore added to the Church through tbe instrumentality of Sabbath-schools. The mission work, it was reported, was advancing most gloriously, especially among the natives among whom Peter Jones, with several of his Indian co-helpers, were laboring so diligently. Mr. Case, more generally termed Elder Case, with the other missionaries, were also leaving no effort untried that it was in their power to make, to induce the poor pagans to cast aside their idols, and the worse than pagans, the semi-christianized savages, to cast from them their deadly foe, the fire-water, that was consuming them both soul and body ; 16 wmm I 236 HISTORY OP THE urging all alike to come and drink of the fountain of living water. At the camp-meetings, and almost every place where the Indians remained any length of time, there were giacious awakenings among them, and scores and hundreds converted. The mandate of Governor Maitland, in 1826, referred to in a previous chapter, had not deterred the Christian Indians from attending the camp-meetings and other Methodist services, and some of these having considerable influence with the pagans, the effect was very marked on both. A mistake occurs in the printed Minutes for this year, the name of the Niagara Circuit being omitted altogether in the list of stations, as is also the name of James Richardson, among the stationed. Mr. llichardson hud been appointed to the Niagara Circuit in 1828, with Joseph Gatchell as colleag-ue, and at this Conference he was re-appointed to the same circuit. This year Mr. Richardson resided in St. Catharines. His circuit, he states, " was large, extending to the Grand River, south-westerly, by the way of the Chippewa. Smithville, and Canboro, and to the Fifty Mile Creek, on the Hamilton road ; and easterly to Warner's, near St. Davids." Notwithstanding the opposition from every quarter, with which the Church had had to contend during the year, a very creditable increase was reported. The state of the ork was as follows : — Districts, 4 ; circuits, 33 ; preachers, 52, and a membership of 10,231, making an increase over the preceding year of 403 whites, 137 Indians, and 13 colored; total 553. The last remaining tie which had bound Mr. Jackson to the Church having been severed, he and Mr. Ryan at once pro- ceeded to establish, upon as firm a basis as possible, the organ- ization which had been brought into being through their instrumentality. This new branch of the Methodist family was organized in 1829, and named the " Canadian Wesleyan Church." Discussing this subject at some length. Rev. T. Goldsmith, in his "Manual," remarks: " Though the number of those who sympathized with Revs. Henry Ryan and James to by M. E. CHURCH IN CANADA. 237 Jackson and their coadjutors was very large, yet when the time of secession and organization came, and friendly preten- sions were put to the test, the majority fell off like autumn leaves in a tempest." The sanguine expectations entertained by the projectors of the new body were not fully realized, and in consequence, proportional disappointment and some sourness of feeling ensued. After giving several reasons why the Canadian Wesleyans did not succeed better, Mr. Goldsmith continues : " In 1835 the Connexion," Mr. Ryan's adherents, " reached about the maximum of its numerical strength and influence prior to the union of 1841. Then it possessed 21 preachers, 42 local preachers, 13 circuits, 2481 members, * * * * Some idea may be formed of the connexional crisis by comparing the statistics of 1841, the time of the union, with the foregoing statistics of 1835. In 1841 we had only 14 circuits, and 1015 of a membership. Notwithstanding a considerable number was added by the union, who belonged to the New Connexion in Eastern Canada, still in six years we lost 566 members. General discouragement seized all hearts, and paralyzed our energies," From the above extracts it will be seen that the secession of Mr. Ryan and his friends, and their organization of what was intended to be a rival branch of the Church, deeply as it was to be deplored, had not accomplished as much ii injuring the parent body, as it had been feared, on the one side, and hoped on the other that it would do, and had not the Canadian Wesleyans succeeded in forming a union with the Methodist New Connexion of England, they must soon have ceased to have had an existence as a Church. The effect of the secession upon the older body was, as far as numerical strength was con- cerned, very slight indeed, the loss being more than made up by additions, through the instrumentality of revivals. In the latter part of this year (1829) gracious outpourings of the Holy Spirit visited nearly every charge, and general peace and prosperity appeared once more to prevail. 238 HISTORY OF THE ! The twilight of the temperance movement in Canada, had, for some time been struggling with the deep darkness that had preceded it, and now its sun began to gild the moral horizon. Most of the preachers belonging to the M. E. Church fell in with this reformation movement at once, and for several years became its steadfast champions, the Guardian for a length of time occupying an honorable pre-eminence in its earnest advo- cacy of the cause ; afterwards, unhappily, the zeal slackened. ^rom their first entrance into the country the Methodist preachers had opposed the immoderate use of intoxicating liquors, but most of them — preachers as well as people — used ardent spirits as a beverage, thinking that if not taken to excess, it was not only not sinful to use it, but really beneficial. Good and great men reasoned thus, tampered with the soul-destroying evil, till they were ruined both in body and estate, utterly unfitted for the duties of t'me, and unprepared for eternity. Having witnessed the sad eflFects of the drinking usages upon society, it is not to be wondered at that earnest Christian men and women should have hailed the dawn of this brighter day with delight. ..r As the light became stronger the old " reformation pledge," which prohibited only the use of ardent spirits, thus permitting indulgence in the use of milder, more refined decoctions, was superseded by the out and out " total abstinence pledge," which left no room for tampering. >, vk The new reform, like all other reforms, received no counten- ance or quarter from the extra loyal Church and State party. It had originated in the "States," and that was sufficient. No need of anything further to condemn it. Among those who at an early day took an active interest in the [promotion of the cause, and who have since become eminent in Canada, as divines or statesmen, were Revs. Philander Smith, James Richardson, and the brothers Ryerson, the Hon. John Rolph and Marshall S. Bidwell. The two last mentioned gentleman ranked at this period among M. E. CHURCH IN CANADA. 239 the ablest lawyers in the province, if, indeed, they were not the ablest. It is but justice to notice in this connection, that though they occupied the foreground, the Methodists were not alone in the advocacy of temperance principles ; the Baptists, the Con- gregationalists, and quite a creditable number of Presbyterians, also, from its commencement, took an active part in urging on this reformation, the beneficial results of which were very soon apparent in the moral and social improvement of the people , generally throughout the province. (I •^i \ WMMM m^^- 240 HISTORY OP THE CHAPTER XX. Conference of 1830 — Bishop Heddinf,''8 visit — He ordains the can- didates — Allusion to the arrangement of 1820 — The English missionary visits the Conference — Projected seminary — Resolu- tions and proceedings relating thereto — Resohition with regard to temperance — An unhappy change — Revivals throughout the country — Good work am Aig the Indians — Statistics — The insti- tution of learning to he located at Cobourg, and called Upper Canada Academy. The Conference of 1830 commenced its session at Kingston, on the 17th of August, being opened in the usual form by Mr. Case, General Superintendent j)ro tern. Rev. James Richardson was re-elected Secretary, and the Conference pro- ceeded to the transaction of business. But before the usual routine of business was entered unon another matter was brought before the attention of the jreachers. Their old and tried friend, Bishop Hedding was once a^ain in their midst. In order to prove conclusively that his attachment to his Canadian brethren had suflFered no abatement in consequence of the recent separation, and that he was still interested in what concerned them, the Bishop had revisited Canada, coming in several days before the one announced for the open- ing of the Conference, that he might visit the mission on Grape Island. By a personal inspection he could the better judge what progress was being made in civilizing and Christianizing the Indians there congregated. After having examined the schools, and made what other inquiries he con- sidered necessary concerning their present position, he declared himself not only pleased with the efficient management of the M. E. CHURCH IN CANADA. 241 mission, but surprised that so much had been accomplished. The Bishop preached to them on Sabbath, the 15th of August, and by the 17th he reached the seat of Conference. It was a source of great satisfaction to these way-worn itinerants to meet again their former faithful counsellor, and they at once, before proceeding to other business, availed themselves of his superior experience and wisdom, by passing resolutions request- ing him to take a seat in the Conference, and assist in their deliberations. The following is a copy of the resolutions referred to : — " 1st. That this Conference feel highly gratified with and grateful for the visit of the Rev. Bishop Hedding amongst us. " 2nd. That he is invited to take a seat in this Conference, and assist by his counsel and advice. "3rd. That he is most respectfully requested to preside during the religious services of the Sabbath, and ordain those preachers who may be presented to him as suitable persons for ordination^" The Bishop cordially consented to comply with the request, observing that he "felt happy in being permitted to visit and observe the proceedings and order of the Conference, and although he did not consider himself possessing or holding any authority over this Conference, that authority having ceased by mutual consent of the Canada and General Conferences when the Methodists in this country became a separate and independent Church ; yet he would cheerfully lend any assist- ance in his power, and would willingly perform the ordinations ; for he felt, himself fully authorized so to do, provided he was requested by this Conference. He considered himp^elf justified in ordaining such of the preachers as might be eligible and pre- sented for ordination, by several considerations. First, there was nothing in the Discipline of the Methodist Episcopal Church in the United States that required him to confine his jordaining to ministers of that Church. Secondly, Bishop Asbury formerly ordained English missionaries for Nova II i ^'1 ■■MIM MM ^^ 242 HISTORY OP THE Scotia, the West Indies, &c,, &c. This example, he thought, was in point, and felt himself fully authorized to follow it. Thirdly, he had been authorized by the General Conference to ordain a Superintendent for the Methodist Church in this country, provided one should be appoi.ited by the Canada Conference. His having authority to ordain a Superintendent, he thought, obviously implied his having authority to ordain other preachers. For these reasons, and others that might be offered, and as he was now requested, he should have no objec- tions to perform the ordinations of such preachers as might be, or had been, elected to the sacred office." Accordingly, on the Sabbath the Bishop proceeded with the ordination of the candidates, six of whom had been elected to Elder's orders, and twcuty-one to Deacon's. The number of preachers ordained this year was greater than usual in conse- quence of there having been no ordination since the Conference of 1828. Mr. Case, though President of the Conference and an Elder, had no authority, according to the established law of the M. E. Church, to ordain the preachers, this authority being then, as now, invested in the Bishop. The several candidates had, at the proper time, been received into full connection with the Conference, but their ordination had been delayed until a Bishop from the United States could visit the country and perform the senice for them. The English missionaries had, notwithstanding the arrange- ment of 1820, and in defiance of it, still continued to occupy a station in Kingston. Their agent, however, Kev. Mr, Turner, visited the Conference, and, despite all that had occurred of an unpleasant nature between the two societies, he was invited to take a seat within the bar. He accepted the invitation, and declared himself pleased with what he saw and heard. The education of the people at large, and more especially the education of young men who designed entering the sacred office of the ministry, had long been the subject of much deep and M. E. CHURCH IN CANADA. 243 anxious thought upon the part of ipnny of the more far-seeing preachers. The establishment of a seminary had long been talked of among them, as something highly to be desired, but scaieely yot attainable. But at this Conference it was thought the time for action in this important matter had arrived. The project was presented for the consideration of the preachers, and after some discussion the following resolutions concerning it were adopted : — " Resolved, 1. That it is expedient to establish a Seminary of learning, to be under the direction of the Conference of the Methodist Episcopal Church in Canada. " 2. That the plan and constitution of said seminary be published, and that each preacher belonging to the Conference be furnished with the same, and a form of subscription also, and that he be requested to use his best endeavors to obtain funds for the institution. "3. That a committee of nine persons bo appointed by the Conference — three from each Presiding Elder's District — to fix upon the location of the said seminary — to meet at Hallowell, January 27th, 1831, at 9 o'clock, a. m. " 4. That the above committee have authority to deter- mine the place at which to locate said seminary ; and if, in the judgment of the committee, the amount secured by subscrip- tions, or otherwise, be sufficient to justify the undertaking, they shall have full power and authority to purchase, or other- wise obtain, a suitable situation for a site : to choose trustees for the time being ; to appoint a building committee, and to transact all other business necessary to forward the building as far as practicable before the session of the next Conference." In accordance with the above resolutions a committee was appointed, consisting of the following leading men in the Con- nexion : — Niagara District — Thomas '»Yliitehead, John Ryer- son, Samuel Belton ; Bay Quinte District — William Ryerson, D. Wright, J. Beaty ; Augusta District — William Brown, Thomas Madden, James Richardson. The naming of the II ^i^Si^-M^'*^d -vif.rtl'MS ttimm-^' 244 HISTORY OP THE iistitution was also left to the committee appointed for locating it. On the 23rd, for some reason not explained in the Minutes, the Conference adjourned, to meet in Belleville, where it resumed the transaction of business on the 27th of the same month. Bishop Hedding returned to the United States from Kingston. By the action of the Conference the attention of the societies generally was further called to the subject of the temperance movement still going on ; the following resolutions, with the exception of the fourth, having passed that body unanimously. Upon the fourth a very animated debate took place. Some of those who entered into the discussion, though lovers of the caujc in the abstract, contended that the resolution was quite too sweeping in its out-and-out condemnation of the use of ardent spirits under any circumstances. That the ministers composing this Conference were far in advance of many of their religious contemporaries is notably demonstrated by the fact thav, after a full and dispassionate debate, of some length, this resolution was also carried, it being decided,* " that as far as it related to the members of the Conference, as ministers of a pure Gospel, and examples to their flocks, they would not recog- nize the deleterious drug, even as a medicine, to be taken inwardhf — acting in accordance with the example of St. Paul, that should it be as beneficial to thein as meat might have been to the Apostle, yet if their using it could be made the pretext or occasion for others to offend, it was their duty not to use it while the world standeth, lest they should cause a weak one to offend." ^^ Resolved, 1st. That viewing the evils of intemperance — its ravages upon the healthful constitution of the body — its destruction of the religious feeling and moral principles of the mind — its blighting influence upon the domestic comforts and opening prospects of life, and its fearful prevalence in many * Christian Guardian, Oct. 2nd., 1830. M. B. CHURCH IN CANADA, 245 parts of this province, this Conference feel it to be an imperious duty to use their best endeavors, both by precept and example, to check ita progress, and finally, in connection with the efforts of their brethren of otiier religious denomina- tionii, to deliver the country from the fatal scourging of so dreadful a plague. " Jicsolved, 2nd. That this Conference believe that (what is termed) the moderate or temperate use of ' ardent spirits,' is the fruitful source of all the intemperance which abounds in this country, and which is the cause of so nmch immorality, misery, and destruction, both as it regards the ])ancful influ- ence of the so-called ^ moderate drinker's ' example upon the morals of others, and the almost inevitable eli'ccts of such a vitiating indulgence upon himself. " Risiilrrd, 3rd. That this Conference view what are called temperance societies to be one of the most judicious i, id effectual instruments which can be used for the suppression of intemperance. " Resolved, 4th. That the members of this Conference do now form themselves into a temperance society ; and they hereby agree to abstain entirely from the use of ardent spirits, to enforce upon the members of our Church, and also upon our congregations, the important caution and duty of entire abstinence ; and to use every lawful means in our power to establish temperance societies iu our respective circuits and stations throughout the province. ^'■Resolved, 5th. That this Conference do decidedly disap- prove of any members of our Church distilling or retailing ardent spirits." Such was the action of the Conference of 1830, and well would it have been for the Church and the country, as well as for some of tlie preachers themselves, had they maintained the firm stand which at this time they took against this monster evil which had, and has brought so much suffering into the world and dishonor upon the cause of God. Some years sub 246 HISTOIIY OP THE sequent to this Conference advcrsio influences were brought to bear against the cause of temperance in some parts of the Methodist Connexion, the baneful effects of which were pain- fully manifested in the Church as well as in the country generally. Adherents to old landmarks, however, struggled in this crisis to keep tlie subject before the people, and by their efforts greatly assisted the lovers of good order and sobriety in arresting the tide of intemperance tliat was again threatening to sweep over the land. By the reports from the various circuits, it appeared that there had been a general and gracious time of revival through the work. The preachers, and in fact nearly the entire mem- bership seemed to bo all alive in the cause of God. In some sections, especially in the newer settlements, the reformation spread in a remarkable manner. The camp-mcotings were still honored and effectual means of grace. People flocked to them hungering and thirsting after the v/ord to such a degree that, not unfrequently, one tier of tents around the inclosuro was not sufl&cic'i to accommodate the people, and therefore the tents were arranged in successive tiers. These honest, earnest Christians came expecting a work of grace to follow, and they were not disappointed. In those days of power it almost seemed that one man's conversion was the sure precursor of the conversion of his neighbor, often it was the means of scat- tering the holy fire through an entire settlement. The Quarterly Irletitings were seasons of refreshing from the presence of the Lord ; and at the ordmary means of grace, prayer and class-meetings, conversions were of general occur- rence. Amid all, the interests of the Indians were neither forgotten ncr neglected. The work of God continued to spread among them with amazing success. Peter Jones and John Sunday, with others of their brethren, were passing from tribe to tribe, striving with unwearied diligence to point out, alike to heathen and nominal Christian, the way of salvation, and the result was M. E. CHURCH IN CANADA. 247 a very marked cliuiif^e in the doportincnt of the Indians them- selves, and (|uite un in^iithcrin<5 of them into the Church. This year the state of the Church was as follows: — 3 Dis- tricts, 02 preachers, 30 circuits, and a membership of 11,348, showing:; an increase over the year preceding of 1,117 ; among the Indians alone tliere had been an increase of 101. On tlic 30th the Conference closed its lengthy session, and the various committees set themselves to work at once to per- form the tasks assigned them there. Of these the most important, this year, was the Committee on Education, which, as soon as was practicable, began making preparations for carrying out the project of locating and erecting a seminary which should be under the supervision of the Church. This was no slight undertaking in a country so new as Upper Canada then was, but the urgent need of such an institution was so keenly felt by the intelligent part of the community that those more nearly interested set to work with a will to accomplish so noble an object. It had been estimated that the land could be procured and the necessary buildings erected for about $24,000, but this calculation was found, upon getting tc work, to have been quite too low for the accomplishment of the end desired. The committee met, according to appointment, in Hallowell, on the 27th of January, 1831, and after receiving all the information they could obtain respecting the various places nominated, and deliberating carefully on the matter, they finally gave the decision in favor of Cobourg, naming the projected seminary the " Upper Canada Academy." ill I 1:. itt^wiuMflP'^ 248 HISTORY OF THE 1 • ' .;.Vv.; :■■■ CHAPTER XXL Dr. Strachan's opposition — Donald Biithune's petition — Action of tlic House tlioreon — Tlic Clergy Reserves — Ilcv, E. Ryerson's able - advocacy of eqnal rights — Prominent statesmen of the period — . , Scheme of the Governor and the Family Compact for creating internal dissensions among llie Methodists — The English mis- I sionary Committee assert that the contract of 1820 is no longer ., v binding — Their views on the great questions agitating ihe people of Canada — Peter Jones' mission to England — Its results — Com- ■ munication of the English Missiona'-y c^ecrctnry to thi' Canada i Conference — Their repjy — Extensive revivals — Sabbath Schools — Statistics. The astonishing progress made by Methodism, compared with that made by the Church of which he was a leading minister had from the first been an eye-.iore to Dr. Strachan and those with whom he acted. Notwithstanding all that he, or they had done, and no stone liad been left untmned, no scheme — no matter how miscrupulov.s — untried, to stop its onward march, the despised Church grew and prospered. Men feeling themselves called of God — not by the secular government — to the work of the Christian ministry, would preach, and souls hungering after the bread of lift would listen, despite all the anathemas thundered forth against them by the Rev. Dr. and his satellites. Affairs, they judged, were becoming desperate. Some decisive measure against them must once more be attempted, or these •' uneducated itinerants would overrun the province. Accordingly, early in 1831, a petition was pre- sented to the Provincial Assembly, signed by Donald Bethune, and others, of Kingston," praying that a law might be enacted with the following provisions : — '•' First, l!'o prohibit any hk M. E. CHURCH IN CANADA. 249 exercise of the functions of a Priest, or Exhorter, or Elder of any denomination in this province, except by British subjects. Secondly, To prevent the assembling therein of any religious society or societies in Conference who shall be in society or conference with any foreign body calling themsr, . religious society or otherwise ; and, thirdly, To proven tii aising of money by any religious, or pretended religious, pe;\j.>j or body, for any pretended charity, mission, or fund, the objects of which are not strictly British." This petition -ns referred to a committee of the House of Assembly, who in due time brought in their report, from which the following is an extract : — " In taking into consideration the application thus made " (by Bcthune and others) '' your Committee had no hesitation in coming to the conclusion that it is inconsistent with the beiiign and tolerant principles of the British Constitu- tion to restrain, by penal enactments, any dcnomiration of Christians, whether subjects or foreigners, in the free exercise of their religious worship ; and that it is equally inconsistent with the fundamental principles of civil liberty to control by law the voluntary contributions of any man, unless made with an intent to accomplish some unlawful purpose." The report from which the above quotation is extracted gave such evident proof of the liberality of the House of Assembly, and the uselessness of presenting such narrow and intolerant petitions that nothing of the kind was again attempted by Mr. Bethune and his prompters. The intolerance, however, and the insolent assumptions of the " High Church " party, created sympathy for those whom it designed to damage and to crush, and really, in the end, increased the influence of Methodism in the province. Other claims and assumptions of this same party were also agitating the public mind. It is already a matter of secular history that under the reign of George the Third the British Government had set apart one-seventh of the lands of the province for the support of a Protestant clergy. These lands ■ if ■I ■:! , .'i ^ ,»i 250 HISTORY OP THE 'Si' , 'i 5 sV bU were now becoming valuable, and to thorn the ministers of the Church of England, with their usual arrogance, laid exclusive claim, contending that as the Church of England was the Established Church in England it must, of necessity, be the_ Ep^iblished Church in the colonies, and as such entitled to the «^' elusive enjoyment of all funds arising from the Reserves, upon these points the advocates of free institutions joined issue with their assailants, and Mr. Ryerson, the then editor of the Christian Guardian, being fully committed to the popular movement, by his controversies with Dr. Strachan, did the cause good service. The historian, in looking over the first and second volames-of the Guardian, and also the " Claims of Churchmen and Dit-sentcrs," must admire the earnestness and industry Mr. llycrson at this time manifested in maintaining the rights of the people. In these views he was supported by by such able statesmen as M. S. Bidwell, Peter Perry, Dr. Rolph, and W. L. McKenzie, who, in those days of oligarchical rule, were considered as extremely radical. What changes time works ! Responsible government has brought about enactments more radical — with the exception of the complete secularization of the Clergy Reserves — than any they ever advocated. After the failure of Bethune's scheme the Lieutenant- Governor, urjed thereto by the Family Compact, and hoping to lessen Methodist influence by still further engendering division in its ranks, sent home a dispatch requesting that the English missionaries might again be sent to Upper Canada, recommending that aid should be given from the public funds. With this request the English Conference resolved to comply, thus throwing the weight of its influence into the scale in favor of the Church and State party. The pretext of the Government was to establish missions among the Indians, and this, to the uninitiated English public, appeared quite plausible. Like the fable of the wolf and the lamb, an excuse was not long in being found by the English Conference in defence of their course of procedure. It was argued by them that the V M. E. CHURCH IN CANADA. 251 contract entered into in 1820 was made with the American Greneral Conference, and Pot with the M. E. Church in Canada, and hence the English Conference was in no way bound to respect the rights of the latter body ; and further, that the Methodist Episcopal Church in Canada had sustained the editor of the Christian Guardian in his opposition to the claims of the Church of England in Canada, thus making their Church and organ " unacceptable with a part of the Canadian people," while on the other hand, the English Methodists claimed to be but 'i^" a branch of the Church of England, both at home and abroad," and as such might expect a share in the division of the Clergy Reserves. This claim of being a branch of the Church of England was, however, repudiated by that body, and treated with unmitigatgd contempt, except when they hoped to make use of English Wesleyanism to raise and prop up their oppressivf Establishment in the Colonics. Even at a much more recent date this has been the ca.se. Writing upon this subject, in view of recent events, the editor of the New York Christian Advocate very aptly observes : — " The virtual adhesion of Wesleyan Methodism to the National Establishment has often been the occasion of severe criticism >a the leaders of the ' Connexion.' Their policy seemed recreant to the popular interest as contrasted with that of the aristocratic classes. It wore an aspect of ' flunkeyism ' which could not be disguised, even by appeals back to Wesley, or the early antecedents of the body. For was not Wesley a progres- sionist? Did any man advance more manfully in the correction of his old opinions ; and if he died loyal to the Establishment, is that any reason why his successors should not, in their more advanced day, apply to the Establishment itself the progressive criticisms with which he had treated and abandoned some of the fundamental principles of the Estab- lishment?" •f-^.;.,.- ..v.- -■^.. ;:v:if-- ;.>. ■, -,.:.<^: *Dr. Alder's evidence before a Committee of the House of Commons, in 1828. ? 17 t\ ^j^i 252 HISTORY OP THE Had the "flunkeyism" of some of the leading members of the English Conference been confined to the Established Church of England and Ireland, where it had existed as such for generations, their sycophancy might have been excused on the ground of early and deeply rooted prejudice in favor of an old and long established institution. But in Canada the case was altogether different. Here there was, in point of fact, no Establishment, and a minority, aided by unprincipled politicians, were attempting to foist one upon the people, in direct opposition to the well understood and plainly expressed wishes of a large majority of that people. With those who were trying thus to subvert the rights of the colonists, the English Conference — for a consideration — united in friendship ; and, though the contrary was asserted, for political purposes quite as much as out of con- cern for the religious destitution of the Indians, they consented again to send their agents into Upper Canada, to raise again the old hackneyed cry of disloyalty, and breed dissension in the societies. Such quibbling as was engaged in by the English Conference would have been a reproach to a country village lawyer. It was an unparalleled outrage upon brethren of the same origin and ftiith, deserving the unqualifiod reprobation of every candid Christian. The pretext made by the English missionaries for coming to Upper Canada was, as has been stated, the establishment of missions among the Indians and destitute settlers. But had these been neglected by the ministers of the Methodist Episcopal Church in Canada? Not at all. It had been emphatically a missionary Church from the beginning. The destitute settlers had been supplied by its ministry when the country was so new that other ministers did not care to face its hardships, and the newer settlements were being supplied as fait as possible. The Indian missions — upon which so mrcn stress was laid — had also been established by the MetLoc'ist Episcopal Church, and were in a remarkably prosperous condition, though, as a matter of course, the funds M. E. CIIURCn IN CANADA. 253 were not lavijre. Mr. Case, some time prior to this movement of the English Conference, vi.sited the city of New York, and other places in the United States, for the purpose of collecting funds for carrying on the Indian missions, taking with him a number of the converted natives. They were successful in their enterprise, and returned home well pleased with their reception. • » ■- After the return of Mr. Case and his companions from the United States, it was suggested by some persons about York, U. C, that if Peter Jones were to go to England he could collect more guineas there than Mr. Case could dollars in the States. It seemed quite probable that he might, as England was so much the richer country, and Mr. Case very readily consented for him to go. Rev. George Ryerson was about to leave for England, having been appointed an agent for the " Reformers," and sent home by them with numerously signed petitions against the arbitrary and unconstitutional proceedings of the Canadian Executive, and it was determined that Peter Jones should accompany him. Accordingly, on the 4th of March, 1831, they started upon their journey from Credit Mission, near York — now Toronto. They reached New York on the 17th of the same month, and landed in Liverpocl on the 30th of April following. On Mond.iy, May 2nd, they reached the city of London, and immediately presented their papers at the Wesleyan Mission Rooms, 77 Hatton Garden* Very shortly after their arrival they were informed th it the Missionary Society would not consent to allow them to hold meetings, or collect funds among the Methodist societies in England; but if they would consent to attend the regular missionary meetings, and r friin from collecting anything privately among the Methodists, the Society would give them a grant of £300. The parties in authority at the Mission Rooms took this opportunity of informing the Messrs. Jones and Ryerson of the contem' lated establishment of missions of their own in Upper Canada as soon as practicable, and at ■f 254 HISTORY OF THE the same time read these gentlemen a homily on the exceeding impropriety of the course pursued by the Methodist Episcopal Church in Canada, and especially that of Mr. E. Ryerson, in his opposition to the claims put forth for the English Church by Dr. Strachan. If Mr. George Ryerson ever had been very zealous in the cause of Methodism and the Indian missions, his ardor soon cooled. He shortly after severed his connection with the Methodist body, and returned to Canada an Irvingite. Mr. Jones, after remaining in England a year — lacking two days — returned to his native land, reaching York on the 19th of June, 1832. The following is a list of the sums obtained by by him while in England : From the Wesleyau Methodist Missionary Society £300 From benevolent persons 557 19 From Quakers 174 16 In tools and goods 500 Total £1532 6 As the amounts here mentioned are given in sterling- money it will be seen that counting tools and all Mr. Jones obtained about $7, COO. Besides this, the British and Foreign Bible Society printed and contributed to the Indians a thou- sand copies of the Gospel of St. John in the Chippewa Imguage. Mr. Jones was kindly entertained by the pious and benevolent of other denominations besides the Methodists, and was admitted to an audience with the King and Queen, who very graciously received from him a copy of the " Gospel of St. John in the Chippewa language," and who questioned him at some length concerning his people and religion. So small were the donations to the Indian missions from the Wesleyan Societies, compared with what he received from other sources, it is evident that Mr. Jones would have done much better had he not entered into any arrangement with the Missionary Society at all, but held meetings and visited the C M. E. CHURCH IN CANADA. 255 people on his own accoun*^^ alone. Still, at the time, both he and his friends supposed he was takini; the wiser course. Then, and ever after, Mr. Jones was a faithful steward of his Lord's money, as well as an earnest and devoted Methodist minister. While he lived he worked unweariedly for the best interests of his race, and did much towards keeping them from relapsing again into barbarism. Now he rests from his labors. ./^*v - ^ '^ ' In 1831 the Conference was held, according to appointment, in the town of York (Toronto) commencing on the 31st of August, Rev. William Case presiding, and James Richardson continuing to act as Secretary. Five candidatey were admitted on trial, and five into full connexion. There were no ordin- ations, however, in consequence of there being no Bishop present. There were no withdrawals and no deaths. One was expelled, and nine, some of them old veterans, and some com- paratively young men, but worn down with hard toil, received a superannuated relation. The intentions of the English Conference relative to their design of violating the pledges made in 1820, were made known to ihe Conference by a communication from one of the English secretaries — Rev. James Townley — accompanied by resolutions concerning the matter passed at a meeting of the Missionary Board on the 11th of May previous. These communications were laid betore the Conference, and referred to the Missionary Committee of the M. E. Church in Canada, which met at York, to answer them and to protest against the contemplated interference. The Canadian Mission Board met according to appointment, and after due deliberation forwarded to Mr. Townley and his brethren an able paper, wherein they deprecated the action of the English Missionary Board, and kindly but clearly set forth the danger there was of creating a division, and lessening Methodist influence by such a step, giving the English Conference assurance that there was no necessity for sending their agents into the province, as it was '^ 1 <(H I ii ^256 HISTORY OP THE already supplied with ministerial laborers. This document was dated "York, U. C, October 4th, 1831," and signed by John Ryerson, President of the Society, and Thomas Vaux, Secretary. But expostulation and remonstrance were in vain ; the English Conference seemed to believe that none but themselves were competent judges of what true loyalty was, and that con- sequently they alone, of all the Methodist bod'es, were capable of teaching it to the poor, benighted Canadians. This year, like the preceding, had been one of great spiritual prosperity. There had been several very extensive revivals. Two-days and four-days meetings had been held on many of the circuits, and so great had been the interest evinced by the people, so earnest their desire to listen and be profited by the pure word, that in several places these meetings had been pro- tracted for ten and fifteen days. Many of the four weeks circuits had from 25 to 30 appoint- ments ; great efforts were made by the preachers to establish Sunday-schools in new settlements, and encourage those already in the older ones. Temperance societies were organized wherever it was practicable, and the Church generally was overlooked with a careful eye. The result of all this labor w IS abundantly seen in the large accessions to the numbers of those in Church fellowship. There were reported to this Con- ference a large number of local preachers, many of them exceedingly active, who did not always wait until the circuit preacher found work for them to do, but themselves hunted up destitute neighborhoods, and held meetings among the people until the regular ministers could supply the work All honor to such men ; they were worthy of their name. The state of the Church this year was as follows: — 4 Dis- tricts, 38 circuits, 65 preachers, and 12,563 members, being an increase over the preceding year of 1,130 whites, 80 Indians, and 5 colored, making in all a total increase of 1215. M. B. OHHRCH IN CANADA. 257 CHAPTER XXII. '^ ^ •Cause of the ill-will of the English Conference to the M. E. Church in Canada — Its Organ too liberal — Scheme to counteract Method- ist influence in Canada — Purport of the plans of Sir P. Maitland * and Sir John Colborne — English Wesleyans fall in with the scheme — They send out their agent in 1832 — Mr. Alder's course of procedure — Invited to meet the York Missionary Board — Disastrous results of this interview — Union between tlie two hodies proposed — Resolutions on the subject adopted by the Con- ' ference of 1832 — Delegate appointed \o negotiate the union — Mr. Alder's letter to the Governor — Resolutions opposing the '^ measure — Mr. Ryerson's article before leaving — Errors and mis- . statements corrected by Mr. Richardson — Course of Mr. Case and others to lull suspicion — General work prosperous. It has already been shown that the vip;orous opposition of the Methodist Episcopal Church in Canada to the establishment, by law, in the colony, of the Church of England — or of any other Church — had given serious oflFence to the English Con- ference, who were just at this juncture looking for an excuse by which they might vindicate, or at the very least, extenuate their dishonorable infringement of the agreement entered into in 1820. To this opposition of the Methodist people generally was also added, to the great displeasure of their English co- religionists, the out-spoken advocacy of free institutions by the editor of the Ghiardian, which the dominant faction deter- mined to silence, if possible. * In order to counteract, as far as was practicable, the influ- ence and usefulness of the original body. Sir Peregrine Maitland, as early as 1828, had written home to the author- ities recommending that a grant of public money should be offered to the English Missionary Society to induce it to II MMH -^^^ W s m ! ^ 258 HI8T0RY OP THE send misHionarics into the province, ostensibly to Christianize the Indians, but the real purpose being that thoy should, wherever they could, supplant the Canadian preachers in the affections of the jK^ople. After his arrival in the country Sir John Colborne also recommended the same thing, and the result of these negotiations was made apparent in the reception which the Committee vouchsafed to the Messrs. Jones and Ryerson, on their arrival in England some time after. Some of the preachers had, through their connection with the Missionary Committee, become cognizant of the intention of the English Missionary Committee to send its agents into Upper Canada, but that they were moved thereto by the Canadian Government f party political purposes, was known at the time to but veiy few. In 1832 the Missionary Society in England sent out the Rev. R. Alder, as its accredited agent, to accomplish the work which they designed to do ; in which enterprise, as the sequel proved, he, unhappily for the Church and the country, but too well succeeded. The Missionary Committee of the M. E. Church, finding that the English Missionary Society utterly disr^arded their remonstrance, and was encroaching further and further, with the now openly avowed intention of taking and keeping the ground, in a measure succumbed under the pressure brought to bear upon them, and invited the English missionaries who were, for reasons of their own, then in the town, to attend a meeting of the Missionary Board, in order to see if any agreement could bo arrived at between them. The foreign missionaries, nothing loth — indeed it would appear to have been part of their plan — accepted the invitation so unwisely given. The names of these gentlemen were Rev. Mr. Alder and the Revs. Messrs. John Hicks, Thomas Turner, and John Hetherington. At this meeting a plan of union was proposed, and, unfortu- nately for Methodism in Canada, Rev. Bgerton Ryerson, who had hitherto stood up so manfully in the defence of the M. E. CHURCH IN CANADA. 259 Church against her assailants, fell in with the proposed measure. It had been better for all concerned if, as Paul did with Peter, he hr I withstood thcRo men to the face because they were to blame. Instoad of this, however, the leading members of the (^anadian Missionary Board struck their colors, and recommended the Annnual Conference, which was just about to meet, to seek an alliance with the English Conference. Whether tho Messrs. Rycrnuti and the other leadinsr members of the Committee were aware of Mr. Alder's communication with the Governor and the Home authorities, or not, it is difficult to detcrniini- ; Christian charity would lead to the hope that they were not. The Conference of 1832 commenced its session on the 18th of August, at Hallowell, Mr. Case, as usual, presiding, and Mr. Richardson continuing to be Secretary. Seven candidates were received on trial ; two were admitted into full connexion, and there were now eight superannuated men whose names were upon the Minutes. The state of the work was very encouraging, there being 4 Districts, 41 circuits and stations, and 71 preachers, besides 6 employed under the Presiding Elders. The membership was 14,999, making an increase of 3,716 whites. There was a decrease of t)3 among the Indians, which reduced the total increase to 3,651. Rev. James Richardson was appointed editor of the Guardian, and Rev. Egerton Ryerson elected as a delegate to the English Confer- ence. In order to carry out successfully the scheme entered into between his employers and the Governor, Dr. Alder attended the Conference at Hallowell, and having gained what he desired from the Canadian Missionary Board, it was not difficult to set the train in motion at the Conference. In due time the project of a union with the English Conference wag proposed, and the advantages which it was supposed would be derived therefrom dwelt upon at some length by the advocates of the measure. The disadvantages were not quite so ably U 260 niSTORY OP TUB .' put, nor indeed were Hoino of the most objectionable features of the mouHuro then even hinted, except, perliaps, to a few. Had these been gent. ally known to the preachers, before they were committed, it is probable the resolutions on the subject of union which were adopted by the Conference of 1832 would never have received their sanction. The resolutions in question were as follows: ;«i:. ■•;,;.<, •'! . ■•■'•^- f <■/■■■■- 'v' , > ■ if /mj',', V''-'- '' That this Conference, concurring with the Board of Missions on the inexpediency of establishing two distinct Methodist Connexions in Ufper Canada, and deprecating the evils which might arise from the collision, and believing that the cause of religion generally, and the interests of Methodism in particular, would, by the blessing of God, be greatly pro- moted by the united exertions of the two Connexions, it is resolved : — '• 1. That a union between the English and Canada Conferences, duly securing the rights and privileges of the societies in this province, is an object highly important and desirable. < . .> ■ '-2. That in order to accomplish this object the discipline and economy of the Wesleyan Methodists in England be introduced into the societies in this country, as far as circum- stances and prudence will render advisable. ;. • ■m '3. That (episcopacy be superseded by an annual presidency, unless it will jeopard our Church property, or as soon as it can be legally secured. - . t "4. That the usages of the English Conference be adopted in the admission of candidates into the itinerant ministry amongst us. " 5. That ordination be administered amongst us after the same form as that in which missionaries are set apart to the ofl&ce of the ministry in the English Conference. "• 6. That the English Conference shall have authority to appoint, as often as they see 6t, a President from their own body in England to preside over this Conference; proT.ued M. K. CllUaCII IN CAN '.DA. 261 the same shall not be eligible oftener than once in four years, unless desired by this Conference. " 7. That when the English Conference docs not appoint a President as aforesaid, one shall bo elected by this Conference from amongst its own members. " 8. That the missions which now are, or may be hereafter established by this Conference, be considered missions of the Wesleyan Missionary Society, under the ibllowing regulations : the Wesleyan Missionary Coniniitteo in London shall appro- priate the amount necessary to carry on the missions, but this amount shall bo applied to the support of the several mission stations, by a committee of seven or nine persons (one of whom shall bo the President of the Conference) members of and appointed by this Conference. The Methodist Missionary Society in Canada shall be auxiliary to tu^ Wesleyan Missionary Society, and the funds raised bo transmitted to the Treasurer of the Parent Society, and appropriated as aforesaid. The missionaries shall be appointed by the Canada Conference, sub- ject to the sanction of the Wesleyan Missionary Committee. " 9. That, in pursuance of the arrangements above proposed, it is understood that all missionaries sent by the Wesleyan Committee into Upper Canada shall be members of this Conference. " 10. That nothing contained in the foregoing resolutions shall be understood or construed so as to aflFcct the rights of our General Conference, or the standing and privileges of our itinerant and local preachers. "11. That none of the foregoing resolutions shall be binding on this Conference, or of any force whatever, until they shall have been acceded to on the part of the Wesleyan Committee and Conference, and the arrangements proposed shall have been completed by the two Connexions. " 12. That a representative be sent home to England to n^otiate with the Wesleyan Committee and Conference on the several subjects embraced in these resolutions." §1 * 262 HISTORY OF THE Until after the adoption of the above resolutions Mr. Aider had very modestly kept in the back-ground, allowing the friends of the measure in the Canada Conference, especially the Messrs. Ryerson, who were fluent and plausible speakers, to take the lead in carrying out his plans. But when the Conference, as a body, was once fully committed in the matter, he became somewhat bolder, though he still took care not to thow off all the disguise. He told them openly that the English Confer- ence would, he apprehended, require some further concessions; although, from perusing the resolutions, one would imagine the Canada Conference had, in committing themselves to these so fully, conceded much more than was consistent with its own self- respect. One of these further concessions, it will be seen a little further ou, was the discontinuance of camp-meetings — the one means of grace which had been so especially honored of God in the conversion of souls in the province, and for this reason the means jyiost especialli/ hated by the Governor and the intolerant faction by whom he was surrounded. His mission to the Conference having been accomplished, Mr. Alder took his departure from the hotel at which he and his friend Mr. Hetherington had chosen to stop, and proceeded immediately to Montreal, whence he dispatched the following letter to the Lieutenant-Governor of Upper Canada, reporting the progress of their scheme : — " Montreal, 27th August, 1832. " Sir, — I beg permission to inform your Excellency that I have attended the Conference of the Methodist Church of Upper Canada, and to state confidentially, for your informa- tion, the result of the interview with that body — a result much more favorable than I allowed myself to anticipate. They have resolved that their disciplinary system shall be so altered as that it may be made to agree in all its parts with British Methodism, as speedily as prudence and a due regard to the safety of their chapel property, will allow. The Conference has already agreed to the abolition of episcopacy,. M. E. CHURCH IN CANADA. 263 which was a great barrier in the way of the entire union. They have consented to place the whole of their Indian missions under the exclusive management of our Missionary Committee. In addition to these, and other concessions of importance, I have required that no man who continues to pursue a secular calling shall be ordained to the office of the ministry; that the British Conference shall send to Canada such t:'' /listers as it may see fit to ap|x>int; that no preachers shall be taken out in Canada without the consent of that body ; that Kingston shall be exclusively occupied by a missionary from the British Conference, as it is a central station be'.ween the two provinces; that the propriety of continuing eamj~- mectings shall be seriously considered, and that the Christian Guardian shall, for the future, be an exclusively religious journal. The Canada Conference has appointed j' representa- tive to proceed to England, where the whole matter will be finally settled. Rev. E. llyerson has been appointed to this office. This, your Excellency, vat~ done at my earnest request, as he and his brothers were the most eloquent advocates of the proposed alterations. From these statements your Excellency will perceive that I have rigidly adhered to those great princij^lcs to which I had occasion to advert during the heveral interviews with which you ivere pleased to honor me, and it is only an act of justice to the Canadian Conference to state that my frankness in stating my sentiments and principles, and my firm adherence to them, contributed to procure for me, in no small degree, the confidence of a large portion of that body, of which a strong proof is furnished in the fact that an unanimous request has been addressed to the British Conference, that in the event of the proposed arrangement being carried into efiect, I may be appointed as their first President, with the understanding that I shall remain for two or three years, ..id exercise a general superintendence over the Methodist societies in both provinces. I feel a strong conviction that, for many reasons, I should accept ''■ ill » U ■\ii ! .1^ lit ec3;sate3NS3«s 264 HISTORY OP THE of such an appointment, especially as I possess a degree of local knowledge and influence which it would require a stranger some time to obtain. May I venture to ash your Excellency's opinion of such an arrangement, as it would have great weight loith our Missionary Committee as ivell as with myself. I shall return to England by the way of Halifax, in which place I shall remain till the middle of September ; after which my address will be, 8 Portland Street, Kingsdown, Bristol. I remain, &c., ()Signef'se same union resolutions, as published in the Guardian, just before he resigned the editorial chair to his successor. T^is article of the 29th August, 1832, shows conclusively that he either could not at the time have under- stood the true situation of affairs, or that he misrepresented them to his eaders. After making a few preparatory remarks upon ohe resolutions, Mr. Ryerson continues: " It has been intimated in some of the provincial journals that the general principles of this measure * If fiu'ther corroberative proof be needed to convince the sceptical of the " Union " scheme having been a plot between the then Government and the English Wesleyans, it is sup- plied in a letter of Mr. Alder's to Lord John Russell, dated " Wesleyan Miseion Rooms, Hatton Garden, London, 29th April, 1840," from which the following is extracted : — " In consequence of proposftls which were made in the year 1 832 by the Earl of Ripon, then principal Secretary of State for the Colonies, to the Wesleyan Missionary Committee, to induce them to extend their missionary operations in Upper Canada, they resolved to do so, and arrangements were immediately made for carrying that resolution into effect. My Lord, the Government of Earl Gray was moved to make this offer to the Wesleyan Mission- ary Committee by patriotic, as well as by religious considerations : and if the testimony of Lord Seaton" (Sir John Colborne) "and other distinguished individuals may be depended upon, a wiser arrangement could not have been proposed. On the ground of this arrangement an annual grant is secured, on the faith of the Royal M. E. CHURCH IN CANADA. 265 were submitted to the consideration of the Canadian Conference by the representative of the Wesleyan Missionary Committee, and that he attended the Conference for that specific purpose. This is a mistake." Here follows a long explanation of how Mr. Alder happened (?) to attend this Conference at Hallowell, after which the writer proceeds, " He " (Mr. Alder) '' accord- ingly attended the Conference, but did not express his own views, nor the probable views of the Wesleyan Committee on the question of union, until it had been investigated and prepared in committee, discussed and agreed upon in Con- ference. Hence the above resolutions were not the result of measure? submitted to the Conference by the representative of the Wesleyan Committee, but the free and spontineous opinions and proposals of the Conference itself." Mr. ^Mder, in his communication to the Governor, mentions that the ^'result o/" his " interview icith that bodi/ " has been the making of the desired ^'concessions," in addition to which he had further '' required" certain other concessions, «&c., &c. These further concessions, however, were not mentioned in the plan of union made public to the societies, and the country. Unpopular as the measure was in the form in which it was presented it would have been much more so had the whole word, to the Wesleyan Missionary Committee, to assist them in meeting the expense which it necessarily involves. " The union which now exists between the British Conference and the Conference in Upper Canada, took place about a year after I had — as the representative of the Wesleyan Missionary Com- mittee — completed, at Toronto, with Lord Seaton, all the arrange- ments connected tvith the offer made by Lord Goderich to the Committqe, having proceeded from England to Canada /or Wesleyan body. IMr. Alder further assured his " L^ceilencj " that he had " rigidly adhered to those great principles to which" he had "had occasion to advert " in the various interviews which they had had together. What an interest the Lieutenant-Governor must have taken in the advancement of Methodism about that period ! His desire for its welfare must have been rather surprising, and highly gratifying to the leaders of the Connexion. Which made t)ie correct report of the proceedings of the Conference of 1832, Mr. Alder or Mr. Ilyerson, it is left to the judgment of the intelligent reader of the history of those times to decide. • '. Not only had Mr. Alder had the rcsolations of union arranged according to his own wishes and those of his employers, bv.t he had completed the scheme set on foot at the Government House, by means of which he obtained large sums from the provinoial chest to aid in carrying out their plan. This, the monetary consii'tati* r., .-as kept carefully out of sight by Mr. Alder, as^] fhc ^TcK-ir^:. Ky Tson mentioned in his report as '^ eloqu'^rt adv* vt k -s " of tlu measure — if, indeed, the latter geat; men kic« rf u — until after the ^ -\ M. E. CUURCK IN CANADA. 267 majority of the Conference were fully committed to the union, because it was well known that the reception of " Government grants," for the susuintation ot their preachers, whether they were on missions, or on what had hitherto been self-sustaining circuits, would be extremely objectionable to the Methodist societies themselves, besides placing them in a false position before the liberal parliament which had done so much to pro- tect them from persecution, and lowering them in the estimation of the people of the country geniTally. Rev. Egerton Ryerson, as has aireidy been stated in the synopsis of the work of this Conference^ was duly appointed as a delegate to negotiate a union upon the terms proposed in the resolutions of the Conference. The further concessions required by Mr. Alder were not made public, but notwith- standing this, the dissatisfaction with the proposed measure, even as it appeared in the resolutions, was so strong that the Methodist people generally refused to contribute sufficient means to defray th' necessary expenses of the delegate to and from England. He therefore had recoui'sc to other measures in order to raise it. Although everything had been kept as quietly as possible before the session of the Conference, still some hints of what had passed at the meeting of the Missionary Board had tran- spired, and some opposition to the contemplated measure had commenced even before its meeting ; but it was not until after the announcement in the Guardian that a union of the two bodies was under consideration, that the people generally took the alarm. The Local Preachers' District Conference, however, which met in Trafalgar meeting-house, on July Cth, 1832, having received information, from a member of the Missionary Board, of some of the objectionable features of the contemplated plan of union, adopted the following resolution concerning them : — * '' Resolved, That, as it appears from the Christian Guardian that an union bet)?y "^en the missionaries from Great Britain and 18 ::v5^i/'«H ■ .j ^ 'Trl lft'tfiShi uV i Vi iti. ^ i 'i' .' V wr-^TiT'i^irrfi^rir" .1 . ' " l ii li I 'r r ii T'"' !- 268 HISTORY OF THE ¥ U I our Church is contemplated, we address our Annual Conference on the subject of our privileges as local preachers ; and Bros. Pickett, Culp, and Brown be the committee to draft snch address and forward it for presentation." As early as November following the Confer* nee of 1832, the following resolutions, disapproving of its action in the matter, were drawn up and forwarded to Rev. William Case. "We, the undersigned local preachers of the Methodist Episcopal Church in Canada, beg leave to address you on the subject of the contemplated union of the Methodists of this country with those of England and respectfully to call your utteniic.o to the same. In doing this we have concluded that the following resolutions would embrace some of the most important material objections wherewith our minds have been, and still are exercised against it. " 1st. We consider that every man, and body of men have been endowed by their Creator with certain natural inalienable rights and privilgeo. And that the commission of high crimes or misdemeanors alone can justify an invasion upon them. "2nd. That it is an acknowledged principle of all good governments (and sometimes, from necessity or policy, of despotic ones also) that in all important matters, relating to the public good, the voice of the people should, in greater or less degree, be heeded and respected. " 3rd. That in the government of the Church in the apos- tolic days this was the acknowledged principle of action in matters of great importance to the Church. See Acts xv : 22. " 4th. That this principle has been adopted by the Methodist Episcopal Church as a disciplinary rule in the same. We refer to one of the limitations, restrictions, or conditions required of that body in its legislation, conkiined in DiscipHne, pp. 18, 19. . ^ " 5th. That it is a matter of extreme doubt with us, to say the least, whether the * Resolutions ' adopted by the late General Conference are not illegal altogether, inasmuch as we M. E. CHURCH IN CANADA. 269 are credibly informed that Elders elect, as well as those who were Elders in the proper sense of the word (we mean by ordination) were admitted as niombers of that body, and voted on the ' Resolutions ' aforesaid — a thing we believe unpre- cedented in the annals of Method istical legislation. See Discipline, page 17, answer to the question, Who shall com- pose the General Conference ? *' 0th. That setting aside the legality or illegality of the measure, courtesy, at least, reciuircd that in a matter fraught with such mighty consequences as the contemplated iiniuii, the people, or at least the Qu irterly a»id District Conferences, should have been consulted. Wo would add, 'be courteous' is a divine command, and one of i\w loading pi'iiuiij)les of the Gospel itsell". We would, when under this head, further state that when a separation from the Mrlhodl^t Episcopal Church in the United States was contemplated courtesy was so far regarded th«»t the Quarterly Conferences debated and decided on it \y vote previous to its final accomplishment by the General Conference itself. We contend that a contemplated union with another body requires the same civility ; and we apprehend disastrous consequences if it be not adopted, e* 3n at this late date. It should not be forgotten that the private members and others can take their leave of us without asking our consent ; that they were free-born, and may not choose to be transferred to another body without some choice of their ■ own in a matter of such importance as the present. " 7th. The pledge required by the American General Con- ference of the Canadian delegates before, or without which they would not grant the infant Ciuiadian Oiurch their share of the funds as a heretofore branch or component part of their Church, justifies them, in our opinion, from the further payment of said fund, except the contemplated union be abandoned. " 8th. The probable lack of funds at the disposal of the British Conference, and the extreme difficulty, if not the utter impossibility of raising them in Upper Canada,. »,m.a^ 270 HISTORY OF THE ^ " 9th. The hazard to our Church property and of the right of solemnizing matrimony. " 10th. The danger of the total HupprewHion of the Local Conference, and at any rate the deprivation of ordination to our younger successors in office, and consequently of the right of solemnizing matrimony and administering the ordinances. " There are other reasons which might be assigned in the form of resolutions, or otherwise, which, for delicate reasons, we would not enter upon at the present time. " In conclusion, we. desire you to convene the General Conference, if \ou think it advisable, expedient, and legal, or take such other measures as you may see proper to adopt for the preservation of the Ciiurch and the prevention of the evils herein stated and apprehended by us. " We have the honor to be, reverend and dear sir, you/ affectionate brethren in the Gospel of our common Lord, David Culv, Henry Gilmore, Elijah A. Warrkn, John W Byam. David Griffin. Caleb Swazey, Arnon C. Seaver. SmithviUc, Nov., 1832. Comment upon the above is needless ; though remarkably mild, these resolutions clearly indicated the feeling of opposi- tion in the Niagara District at least. Before Mr. Ryerson took his departure for England, which he did on the 4th of March, 1833, he prepared a long article for the Cliristlrui Guardian, which, in the absence of the editor — Rev. James Richardson — was publishe-d in that journal two days after Mr. Ryerson had left for Europe. From this document the following extracts are taken, as they bear internal evidence that there was considerable opposition to the measure — a fact which Mr. Ryerson afterwards denied, declaring that the union scheme was viewed without a scruple for more than a year after its consummation. Mr. Ryersou's communication commenced with a quotation M. E. CHURCH IN CANADA. 271 from a letter written by Mr. Alder, after which lie continued : " While transmitting to you the above extract for insertion, I beg to avail myself of the occasion to vindicate the proceedings and character of our Conference in tliis affair from certain misrepresentations which have been currently circulated ; especially these contained in an nflliciouH and ungenerous attack made upon that body by a political editor who professes to be a * lover and friend of the society.' By this writer the Conference is represented as lUposlng of the societies in Upper Canada without their consent — placing thoni under a 'jurisdic- tion /oreir/H to that under which they voluntarily placed them- selves when they were enrolled as niooibcrs of that society.* The same writer calls the ' act of the Conference on this measure twaucrma7?rn<" superin- tendent. Further on Mr. llyerson continues : — " For the tenth resolu- tion in the plan of agreement, above referred to and already publish* d, declares, * that nothing contained in the foregoing- resolutions shall be understood or construed so as to affect the rights of our General Conference, or the standing and priv- ileges of our present itinerant and local preachers.' Here is a body possessing, as ever, independent legislative and executive power, and yet it is represented as not only having conceded it, but as having ' infringed upon the rights ' of the societies, and even disposed of them to a 'foreign jurisdiction,' and which they are virtually called upon to resist in a tone of manly and Christian independence ! ! * * * " Again, says this champion, ' the British Conference is not self moved in this aifair.' Gratuitous as is this assertion it is charitable when compared with the crimination of the Canadian Conference — and may therefore be passed without further notice — our author adds yet again, 'The Government has had its share in this doubtful measure.' Of some of the measures of the ' Government ' I have heretofore expressed my opinion, but as to its having ' its share in this doubtful measure,' the sagacity of our polemic is very extraordinary, qi M. E. CIIURni IN CANADA. 273 •when Mr. Alder himself hud no idea of anything of the kin ';■ ^'vy ^ .^..^' *^jec- tion — The restrictive regulations — Dr. Bangs' remarks thereon — Emorj' — Macaulay — Sherwood — No government has a pro- vision in its organization for its own dissolution — The binding character of the first and third restrictive regulations admitted, while that of the second is denied — They are equally binding — Rights of the people — Deviation from Mr. Wesley's views — Ordination of Mr. Mather — The polity adopted by the English Conference after Mr. Wesley's death not that designed by him — The Methodist Episcopal Church the true Wssleyan Church — The relation existing between the President and the Conference altogether different from that existing betweeii the Conference and a Bishop chosen by and amenable to it — Divers orders in the ministry according to Scripture — The new organization not identical with the old — The Wesleyan Conference in Canada a mere appendage of the English Conference — Facts denied at this time publicly acknowl- t^Iged at the disruption- Enquiiv stifled — Pretonse, AccoRDiNO to previous appointment, the Conference of 1833 convened at York, commencing its session on the 2nd of October. It was commenced in the usual manner, Mr. Case presiding. This year Kev. Egerton Ryerson was appointed Secretary in place of Mr. Ilichardson, who had for several years occupied that position. It was found, on comparing the reports, that the increase among the whites, though very encouraging, was not quite so large as for some years previous, and that there was a still larger decrease among the Indians than there had been the year before. Still there was a total increase for the year of 1040. There was, then, at the commencement of the Annual Conference of the Methodist Episcopal Church in M. E. CHURCH IN CANADA. 279 Gauada, in this year of 1833, a total membership of 16,039. There were, as before, 4 Districts and about 70 preachers, not counting those who had superannuated or located. Shortly after the opening of the Conference, preliminaries having been arranged, Mr. Ryer&on proceeded to give an account of his mission to England, with its results. The union could, in his opinion, be formed at once by the Conference if it con.scnted to the ratification of certain articles submitted by the English Conference, and insisted uiwn by them, to •which ho, as the representative of the Canadian body, had already given his -^^sent, Thcvsc articles were as follows : — "ARTICLES OF UNION •' Btticien the British Wesleyan Methodist Con/trence and the Conference of the Weslej/cni Mtthodisf Church in British North AmcrictJ.^^ '■ The English Wesleyan Conference, concurring in the com- munication of the Canadian Conference, and deprecating the evils which might arise from collision, and believing that the cause of religion generally, and the interests of Methodism in particular w^ould, under the blessing of God, be greatly pro- moted by the united exertions of the two connexions ; consid- ering also, that the two bodies concur in holding the doctrines of Methodism, as contained in the Notes of Mr. Wesley on the New Testament, and in his four volumes of Sermons, do agree in the adoption of the following resolutions : " I. That such a union between the English Wesleyan and Canadian Connexions as shall preser\e inviolate the rights and privileges of the Canadian preachers and societies, on the one hand, and on the other, shall secure the funds of the English Conference against any claims on the part of the Canadian preachers, is highly important and desirable. " II. That (as proposed in the second and third resolutions ; ;:.S! •A new name, it will be seen, even before the ratifieation of the -'artioloH." It 280 HISTORY OP THE i If* M Itni of the Canadiap Conference) in order to aflfect this object the Discipline, economy, and form of Church government in general of the Wesleyan Methodists in England be introduced into the societies in Upper Canada, and that in particular an annual presidency be adopted. " III. That the usages of tlic Eiaglish Conforenoc in refer- ence to the probation, examination, and admission of candidates into the itinerant ministry be adopted. " IV. That preachers who have travelled the usual term ofT probation, and are accepted by the Canadian Conference, shall be ordained by imposition of the hands of the President and of three or more of the senior preachers, according to the form contained m Mr. Wesley's ' Sunday Morning Service of the Methodists,' by which the \V'3sleyan missionaries in England are ordained, and which is the same as the form of ordaining Elders in the Discipline of the Canadian Conference. " V. That the English Conference shall have authority to send, from year to year, one of its own body to preside over the Canadian Conference, but the same person shall not be appointed oftener than once in four years, unless at the request of the Canadian Conference. When the English Con- ference does not send a President from England, the Canadian Conference shall, on its assembling, choose one of its own members. " The proposal of the Canadian Conference is understood tO' include, as a matter of course, that the President of the Conference shall exercise the same functions generally as the present General Superintendent now actually exercises; he shall not, however, have authority to appoint any preacher to any circuit or station contrary to the counsel or advice of a majority of the Chairmen of Districts, or Presiding Elders,, associated with him as a Stationing Committee. "VI. That the missions among the Indian tribes and destitute settlers, which are now,, or may be hereafter estab- M. E. CHURCH IN CANADA. 28r lishcd in Upper Canada sliall be regarded as missions of the English Missionary Society, under the following regulations : — " 1. The Parent Committee in London shall determine the amount to be applied annually to the support and extension of the missions ; and this sum shall be distributed by a committee consisting of the President, the General Superintendent of Missions, the Chairmen of Districts, and seven other persona, appointed by the Canadian Conference. A standing board or committee, consisting of an equal number of preachers and laymen, shall moreover be appointed, as heretofore, at every Conference, which, during the year, shall have authority, in concurrence with the General Superintendent of Missions, to apply any moneys granted by the Parent Committee, and not distributed by the Conference, in establishing new missions among the heathen, and otherwise promoting the missionary work. "2. The Methodist Missionary Society in Upper Canada shall be auxiliary to the English Wesleyan Missionary Society, and the moneys raised by it shall be paid into the funds of the Parent Society, "3. The missionaries shall be stationed at the Canada Conference, in the same way as the other preachers, with this proviso, however, that the General Superintendent of Missions shall be associated with the President and Chairmen of Districts in their appointment. " 4. All the preachers who may be sent from this country into the work in Upper Canada, shall be members of the Canadian Conference, and shall be placed under the same discipline, and be entitled to the same rights and privileges as the native preachers. " 5. Instead of having the annual stations of the mission- aries sent home to the English Missionary Committee and Conference for their 'sanction,' as is the case with our Tiission- aries generally, and as the Canadian Conference have proposed, the English Conference shidl appoint, and the Parent Com- -- v! -i A 282 HIBTOttV OF THE It- ft mitteo hIiiiII meet the expense of supporting; u General ISupcrin- tendent of MisHions, who, us the agent of the Committee, shall have the same HU|>crintendence of the mission stations as the Chairmen of Districts, or Presidinfi; Elders exercise ovei- the circuits in their respective Districts, and shall pay iho missiDnariea their allowance as determined by the Conference Missonary Oommittec, on the same scale as the Canadian Book of Discipline lays down for the preachers on the regular circuits ; but who being at the same time recognized as a member of the Canadian Conference, shall be accountable to it in regard of his religious and moral conduct. This General Hupcrintendcnt of Missions representing the Parent Committee in the Canadian Conference, and in the Stationing and Missionary Committees, the appointments at the Confer- ence shall be final. " VII. That the Can idian Conference, in legislating ibr its own members, or the Connexion at large, shall not, at any time, make any rule, or introduce any regulation, which shall infringe these articles of agreement between the two Con- ferences. " Signed by order, and on behalf of the Conference, Richard Treffiiy, Fratident. Edmund Grindrod, Secrctary^, Manchester, Augitxt 7th, 1833." The glowing description given by Mr. llyerson of his very cordial reception in England, and of the ardent love which he said was evinced by the English Misionary Society for the welfare of Canadian Methodism, quite captivated the hearts of most of the preachers, several of whom had been previously doubtful of the wisdom of the measure. The scheme was hurried through the Annual Conference with all possible dispatch, so as to leave no time for further consideration, or for consultation among the people at large. At the close of the afternoon session of the first day it was moved by Rev. Egerton Ryerson Case rcVned 1' '' ""■■ "!»'"•„» of ,, ^''^' ™'° «>■■ .•( and on a „„/ ''"'"""'••'» General s ^""^'-onee, Jf . • '»<-.;'' open vioh. r':;':? "r ^''""' cSr-rr*'' "•'-"-d .sho„w of,; •'■'■"'' "'^' poop" h d" :' "'" «-^^'" ■'-■«='- bavin, boo; ':'"•''""■ ""^ '■'"'0 t at" T^^'^ , ^'■■^ Ooafere:„oTar 1'" "" "'"'■'«^- ' "' "'" ' '- «>« «- Srr' '^'"'■^'' - Can d Tb "'■»« '■-'-0. "•" tbeir foll„«.o?, rCw '?"' "'^^'"■°^«' 'boy Sd 1"°" "^'^ ^^ortb Amerioa ,„j ''''"^''n Mcthod;,t t'L """"'"Ives before .he Conforenee of 1833 "T'' '^"''''"-^ '<'". octobeneih, ,833 I' [' '1 i 284 UIHTORY OF THE Mr. Cu«c ami others c.iUed to that fact. The ((ucstion had arisen piiiicipilly in conseijuonce of prcaehcrs beinjjj allowed to sit and vote in that body who were not entitled by the Discipline of 1820 to do so. Of the preachers coniposin<^ this Conference one-third, or nearly so, were incligible,'^^ never having' been ordained Elders; and in addition to this it was doubted whether the General Conference — even if it had been properly constituted — had the power to do away with the con- stitution of tlie Church, or to subvert the order of its ministry. Against such revolutionary movements as these, and infringe- ments of their disciplinary rights many of the membership, a« well as a very respectable number ol' efficient local preachers, strongly protested, and their views were susta' led by a number •of the old located and superannuated preachers, pioneers who had been members of the New York, Genesee and Cauadt; Conferences. These objectors were, however, coolly informed that they had no choice left in the matter, and must submit to the decision of those composing these t^'o Conferences (1832 and 1833). This they refused to do, contending that they were justified in their course of procedure on the ioUowing grounds: — 1st. Ths illegal comjx)sition of the General Conference, in admittin', anj without U,„,>,,;:'^,.'°;" "■"■ «'-'l.'.u/„,e,> ^jo« t„,o with .honj.ut" ■ c;:':t""' ?'■ "■»- »'» •"•"o force whatovo ;/;;;:,'""''"" Of ".« (■In.M,, . «ocp&, those who Uo:::::'.';!':^: '"" >>■'">■•"." ..pon „„, »«o the roffulah-nno *"'"P'>H« tlu: (;,.,!, .,.<,! , , ,, J- The G'eneml f'on<„. , """tatioiisantl 'United siciS."'* '■^^^"^''' ^'^ ^'^-"AV tJa. ^.-ueral n., • ^- They shall nnf H "^''^ "^ ^h^ preachers of trial hvl '■'^■«>^ "i^' piivilcrres .>f tbey do away tl e ^;];jr'"'^^'''^' ''^"^ of S*^' eal"'>;" 'V^^^^'^ «' "ociety.orbvarnJ^ •!1^''^^'« "f ""r niemh.M? w .^'-'"»'^"'- «hall 5. TVs4r'^^'**««'"«dofan "pp^^^^ ^'^ t''«' before thn - of tho'ch^rlrFS^JS^f *'"' f^^''"- oi" the Book C of the travellin»1.U, at one foil ^oop, flv :7„rtr"" '^'""'''- '''> ™ies, was, it wa, affirmed or .;. °^ "'" ^''™" ''o-^fictive - -eh a, the proviso of ^evXH •" •" " ""'" '"'-■ It was upon this proviso thit . ■ '^^•^"•lelive would allow «- ■ »»eh a eonsUXn t w ;:,;'™r'l "' "'" " ""-" " ■»at.er appear legal, insL J^te "th , "'^ "''"" '" ""o consulted in a^egard to finanei ,T of- t ""^ *"»" °"'^ bo That the adherent, ," ',''''"' '"""ors. ^'-thority in claim g It th 1* F^'' ^'"^ ""' -«'o«t to aW.V, even thou., 1 n.^"""' ^f"''"™"™ tad no right -Oon^fron, the opi Jo„^eX'J r^*' -J-- 'o do so is others, as given by Br. Ban-^ Trt ^ , ''"P ^'"'"''y »■>'! saw the nee..«ity of adopti„: 'so,,,, j^' k " T"^'' " '^'o^ly ■"ight be pre^o'rved'fri: 1^ „:::;:"','' ""^ ''' ^-o-- rui: upon the rules adopted by he f ,,C™"'>»ting further he had before been wriuL t „ '"""""'' «'"'"■•=" '^A-.'A, for we contend'^ Znt" •■" "'"""""'"" "f « ever sinee been considered as t"rK-' "™'^-' ""'^ '-™ «d.ng(3eneralCo„fcrc.nccsli2 •'■'""' "P"" »" «'o- ^t^, .-.ad prohibiting .her' from 3,'" "" ""='^ '-««latire ■*'^W„,«,^,„,,„,,,„; "from m„k,„g i„„^^j^ • Bang,. Hi«„ , ^""'""""'^ of the Church."* page 23f ""'""^ "' "■« M. E. CI„„U, v„, , , 'oi- 2. comrapncing on i ■' m »: 288 HISTORY OF THE Again, in his History of Methodist Epi&cop;ioy he continues: " It is true, however, with these exccjytions, the General Con-, ference have full and ample powers to modify, alt<3r, or change, or to make any additional rules they may deem expedient and necessary for the benefit of the community." And in Emory's ''Defence of our Fathers," it is observed, "Whenever the powers of the present dolegat<^d (general Conference are Hpokcu o" in this woik it is, of course, to be understood agreeably to the 2)>'inctj^lcs of the restrictive limitations.'^ It was upon such principles as those quoted above that the menbcrs and friends of the ^Methodist Episcopal Church in Canada, who remained true to their colors, based their claim to the church property Mcquired prior to 1833, claiming as they did that in superseding ita prerogatives, as it had unques- tionably done, the Canada Conference had forfeited all rigiit thereto. In this view they were sustained by Judges Macauley and Sherwood, as well as by other men of legal standing and ability, and it was not until after political influence had been brought to bear upon the subject, and the creation of now judges, whose political proclivities were well-known, that an adverse judgment was given ufon the question. ' ' It is, an(. was then, a fundamental pricoiple, firmly held to by both British and American statesmen, that no government has, or ever had, a provision in its orgarizaticn for its own dissolution or utter abolishment,-'^ and this is quite as applicable to ecclesiastical as to civil governments. To argue, therefore, that the proviso in the seventh restrictive rule in the " Con- stitution of the Church " gave the General Conference the right to abolish any one of the other five, because it gave * Lincoln, tl lato lamiintcd President of the United States, and an eminent 1 jor as well as statesman, made the following remarks, in hi lirst Inaugural Address, which are relevant to the matter under discussion : — " Perpetuity," said he, " is implied, if not expressed, in the fundarueulal law of all national governments. It is saf J to assert that no • Nether were the opinions nor t!^ . ^'' '^''"^^ratc.i. P^opie interfered wifh i„ the eat? "' "^ ""= A'»™'»n P «n, it was not only accepted 17"' °'", '' M^' Wesley. «"<=m«elves. Indecd^omeC th „ htrVl '^ *''" '-"^^ !"■» even before he sent out D? cI '^t""" '""""^ "A »c,eties in Amerieahe was entire ;1, ^^'"' ^-S^ird to fc. «.neerning the o^anization of fh^ "'""'"'"■""^^««<»'« _Engh„d he was somewhat dffottl T f .'''"'"''■ I" Posmon ,n the Establishment and fr !^ T^' """^ ^^ ^^ -«■ the op^sition and p^ndl^Tf h" 'f">"» -"""<) Bnt some time previous to hi If- I '"""'"' Charles, •^i-eved was provision ftr the ordta"' " r'" """" '"^ preachers who had not received it? ""^ *'"'^'' ^-g"* Establishment, nor been ordioej hXT J''''"''""' '» «>' iecease they might fc, '° ^ ^y h.mself, so that after his sacraments ot the Lord's L/pJanTt. '" '"'"""'^'" «^^ For this pnT,ose, therefore rrd!,- TT '" ">« ^^'-'fe. Mather a General Superinendenr« 1 ' «^^- Oleander '0 «^..d in the same relation t'hy'"''?\?"'»"»-S Wm Dr. Coke and Mr. Asbnry did to tt f ^ *" ^"-^'"^""^ "«'* The EnHish r.„f ^werican. ^"o"sn tonforence, after Mi. \v i , '« "coept Mr. Mather as heir P ? ' '^"''^' ^'^^'^ according to Mr. Wesley's plan the rT.^^^'^''''^'' l^vmg more influence amon. tSr t >"' ^'^^'^Wishment W-ley himself, as the folbutr'" ''? r *''''" " M- will show :_*< While the aXtL ^ '"■•"" » '«""" ""rt a-e Conference of 1792 mert? ''f "«'"= "»<' «^'ending ^"e venerable Ale^ander^^Ia Lr^T; ^'\'^- '^4 ' ''' ^^<^ preached thirty- Stevens' History of Methodism. Vo, 3,, ■i •* 292 HISTORY OP THE five years, and who.m Mr. Wesley had ordained as Superin- tendent, or Bishop, ^vas elected President, Dr. Coke was chosen Secretary. Ki'fiam was censured by a formal vote for his pamphlet, Bradburn and others vindicated him, but Coke moved for his expulsion. He made some qualified acknowl- edf^ements, and was continued in the Conference." The controversy respecting the administering of the sacra- ments was continued with as much acrimony after this session of the English Conference as before it, and in the latter part of 1793, Mr. Pawson, the President, expressed himself respecting the condition of the Connexion as follows : — "At present we really have no government. It v/ill by no means answer our ends to dispute one with another as to which is the most Scriptural form of church government. We should consider our present circumstances, and endeavor to agree upon some method by which our people may have the ordinances of God, and at the same time be preserved from division." Adverting to Mr. Wesley, he continues : — " He foresaw that the Methodists would, after his death, soon become a distinct people ; he was deeply prejudiced against a presbyterian, and was as much in favor of an episcopal form of government ; in order, therefore, to preserve all that was valu- able in the Church of Endand among the Methodists he ordained Mr. Mather and Dr. Coke Bishops. These he undoubtedly designed should ordain others. Mr. Mather told us so at the Manchester Conference, but we did not then understand him. I see no way of coming to any good settlement but on the plan I mentioned before. I sincerely wish that Dr. Coke and Mr. Mather may be allowed to be what they are. Bishops. We must have ordination among us at any rate." Mr. Pawson's plainly expressed sentiments were approved by and apparently coincided with those of a later Wesleyan authority, who thus expresses himself with regard to church polity : — *" The constitution of the Methodist E^- ■;!^, * Dr. Dixon's Methodism in its Origin. i V ll i M. E. CHURCH IN CANADA. 293 copal Church is only a development of Wesley's opinion of church polity : and it may be added that an imitation of that p^reat transaction in this country would be perfectly justifiable on the ground assumed by Wesley himself and held sacred by his followers. ^^ 5{c >!< * If y^Q mistake not, it is to the American Methodist Episcopal Church that we are to look for the I'cal mind and sentiments of this great man." So thought, and so reasoned those who foresaw the evils likely to be brought upon the Church in Canada by the inno- vations soug'it to be introduced into it by the pariies favoring the consummation of the union ; for to those who were students of Methodist history it was well known that the con- stitution of the English Conference was not what Mr. Wesley would have desired, or what Mr. Pawson and other eminent leaders of the body had recommended. Another and very serious objection to the articles of union was, that the English Conference not only could, at its own option, send out whom it pleased to preside over the Canadian Conference, but that, so long as he was a member of the English Conference lie might, or niighf not be a minister in orders, just as the case happened to be. It was afterwards proved that this objection was not without grounds, as some of the first Presidents who were sent from England to preside over the Canada Conference hid really not heen themselves ordained, though, despite this disqualification, tlwij proceeded to ordain the Canadian preachers. Neither was this President to be a bona fide member of the Canada Church ; he was amenable only to the authorities of the Church in England, and aa independent of the Church in Canada as is the Czar of Russia of his subjects, and yet this man was for the time being to control the entire Connexion. And in addition to this, even if such a person had been qualified to administer the ordinances and ordain the preachers, it could not reasonably be expected that he, a stranger in the country, and unused to the circumstances and peculiarities of the people in a new country, !l::^ .! ■ •it 294 t HISTORY OP THE could understand their wants, or that the association and intercourse with the preachers which the few days of the Annual Conference afforded him would inspire him with the same interest in the societies that might be expected from a Bishop who was a permanent resident of the country, who was one with his brethren, amenable to them, and to them only, for his conduct, and who, Asbury-like, would travel more or less throughout the entire work. Anotht radical innovation, it was urged, had been made by the abolishment of the orders of Elders and Deacons in the Church, and the substitution of one called ministers instead. This was considered an usurpation of power, an act unauthor- ized by the laws of the Church or the word of God ; especially as the order of Deacons had been established by the Apostles themselves, and approved of by the primitive Church, (sec Acts vi : 5, G). It had been adhered to by the ancient fathers, preferred by Mr. Wesley and received by both the Methodist Episcopal Church in the United States and in Canada, and the authority for its abolishment at this particular juncture was more than questioned. It was denied.* • For a full consideration of tlic scriptural order of Deacons, the reader is referred to Bangs' " Vindication of Methodist Episcopacy,'^ <;liap. 1, and to second edition of the " Union Considered," pp. 36. 37, ;i8, 39. An extract or two from Dr. Bangs will be sufficient in this place : — "Hei'e then," the Doctor remarks, "are enumerated all those duties of a deacon which the Holy Scriptures have authorized him to perform. In t}.'s part of our ministry, therefore, we have not followed a cunninjly devised fable, but the word of the living God, and which Church is most according to apostolic order, that which has preaching Deacons, going to and fro, sowing the seed of eternal life ; or that which has but one order of ministers, by whatever name they may be called ? " In his "Original Church of Christ," pp. 309, 310, he argues the case still further ; — " What greater proof should we require," con- tinues he, "that those Deacons wert regular preachers of God's word ? Yet they were not Elders or Presbyters. They were, therefore, an inferior order in the ministry, which proves that those err who confine themselves to one order only. • * ♦ Allowing the soundness of this conclusion, it will follow that those churches which admit of no distinction in ministerial order, but reduce all MM M. E. OIIURCH IN CANADA. 295 Judge Macauloy, commenting upon Uhh innovation, in hi« opinion on the Waterloo Chapel case, remarks as follows : — "It is true the Discipline of 1834, in tho Ordination Service (defeigncdly or accidentally) acknowledges, in the same lan- guage as that of 1829, tb^ appointment by the Holy Spirit of divers orders of ministers in the Church of Christ. Still I do not find that the British Wcsleyan denomination contains more than one, like unto Eldcrn, styled Ministers, contrary to the Episcopal discipline, which provides for three (exclusive of lay preachers) Bishops, Elders, and Deacons, without any designated by the general term ministers. The disscntent mem- bers of the Methodist Episcopal Church may feci repugnant to such arrangements. They may not look upon tho union as a more change of name, but as indicating a serious deviation in church government and the calls to the ministry — and in my construction of their discipline I cannot deny them the right to do so on plausible grounds. The American Connexion is professedly episcopal — the British is practically presbyteriau. and whatever distinguished the one from the other would equally distinguish the Methodist Episcopal Church in Canada from the British Wesleyan Church in Canada." j It was objected, too, that by the articles of union tho Canada Conference, and through them the societies would become a mere dependency of the English Conference, and that, in a much less liberal sense than the Province of Canada was a dependency of the British Government. Such a requirement on the part of the English Conference, made through their agent, Mr. Alder, was considered unreasonable. That it should be (!'' to a level, liave departed from the apostolic model. In their intemper- ate zeal against episcopacy, which broke out with such violence among the Independents in the days of the Stuarts, they seem to *iave run into the opposite extreme, by introducing a perfect parity of ministerial order as well as jurisdiction, and thus have impaired 'that beautiful symmetry which we behold in tho orders, powers, -and harmonious subordination of the several grades of officers in the primitive Church."-^ " — ■■■-■■> i. \ 296 HISTORY OF TUK UHsented to by the Canada Confen;nce war* docnned too lumiliutinf]; a dep-adation to be borne by the original societies in this country without an effort to prevent it. Many, it is true, were quieted on this head by the positive denial of the fact on the part of the friends of the movement, but — to anticipate a date — when the disruption between the British and Canada Couf'^'-enccs took place, in 1810, then the facts before asserted by those opposed to the union, and denied by those in favor of it, were admitted by the organ of the Wesleyan Church in Canada, as well as in their almanac, and in several pamphlets published by their leading men. It will be remembered that Mr. Alder had, in 1832, secured the government yrant, which amounted to between $4,000 and $5,000 annually. This amount was drawn from the Provincial chest by the English Missionary Society, but part, if not all, was paid to the preachers of the Canada Conference laboring on mission fields ; so that, though the English Missionary Society drew the money, the Canadian missionaries enjoyed the benefit of the greater portion of it. At, length, however, leading men in the Canadian Connexion, among whom were the ^lessrs. Ryerson, refiolved to secure, if possible, the entire grant for their Canadian mission work, and drawr it themselves directly from the government. The English Conference would allow their dependents no such liberty, and in this dispute arrangement* hitherto strenuously denied were publicly acknowledged, and facta which had previously been concealed, as far as it was in their power to do so, by those interested in having them hidden, were brought to light.* The whole affair proving most con- clusively what had been asserted by the opponents of the measure, that the articles of union, if cairied out, would * The controversy between the British and Canadian WeeleyanB terminated in the reunion, the government grant having been with- held daring the time of their dispute and separation. M. E. CHURCH IN CANADA. 297 degrade the original societies to tlie position of a mere rlcpendcncy of the English Connexion. Another very serious objection to the manner of the coosum- raation of the union, was that the Church had been allowed neither voice nor choice in the matter. Kn(|uiry had been stifled before the Conference of ISHIJ, and after that the people were coolly informed that there was nothing left for them but submission. They were treated much as slaves were at that day, being allowed no more choice than they, in their transfer to a new suiwrintendent. To such an ultimatum the adherents to the old luudmarks refused to .sv?//»nV, and joined issue there- upon. In order to give a plausible coloring to their prcceedings, certain changes consequent upon the formation of the •'Wcslcyan Methodist Church in British North America," which were incorporated into the new discipline, were laid before the Quarterly Meetings of the new organization. Whether these alterations wei c approved or not by these meet- ings, however, they could not affect the ratification of the union, that having already been ratified, as far as the individual members of the Canada Conference were concerned. Before the societies were consulted, even nominally, an English President had presided over the Conference, and proceeded to ordain its preachers, and the control of the Canadian missions had been given up to Mr. Stinson, as agent of the English Missionary Society. In this manner were the societies consulted, and in no other, equivocul assertions to the contrary notwithstanding... 208 HISTORY OP THE CHAPTER XXIV. Continued excitemont — Shutting out the « sciuHinatics" — Activity of both parties — Prompt nit-asuroH a^'uinst tlie union — Muctings — Salifleot, lu-ld neccinl)ir, 1833— Blcnhiim, January Oth, 1834— Belleville, January lOth, 1834— London, January 2i3th, 1834 — Convention at Trafalgar — ItH action — Resolutions — Polite and Christian comparison — Specimens of the arguments used on the other side — Strictures on tlie meeting at Salttleet — Opposition .idmitted and rebuked by the organ of the Conference — Action of the London Quarterly Meeting censured — Leaders in calling the convention tjiken to task — Personalities indulged in when argu- ment failed — Changes admitted — Assertions that no changes had been made. . , TuROiTCiiiouT the year the excitement consequent upon the action of the Conference of 1833 continued unabated. Indeed with each succeeding month, instead of losing, it appeared tf» gain fresh strength and vigor. Immediately after the close of the session of this famous Conference haste was made to obtain and keep possession of all the places which had formerly been occupied by the Methodist Episcopal Church in Canada, and thus shut out the "schis- matics,'' as the opponents of union were called, from the very churches which in many instances they had planted. But if the unionists were busy, neither were those who con- sidered the action of the Conference illegal altogether inactive, although they labored under very great disadvantages. A short time only elapsed, after it was known what the action of the Canada Conference had been, till meetings were called by Rev. Darid Culp — an old regularly ordained Elder — which were approved and attended by several of his brethren about M. E. CHURCH IN CANADA. 299 what was called tbo " head of tlio lake;" and others followed in various sections of the province. The dcsijj;n of thcso mcctins they as a class had been the most unfairly dealt with, taking the lead in tho opposition. The first meeting which took action in this matter was convened, it will be remembered, ut Smithville, in November, 1832, and its abh protest forw;irdod, with due respect, to Mr. Case, who, however, paid no attention to it. That this very useful class of men in the Church, as well as many of the mem- bership, were strongly opposed to even the terms proposed by the articles assented to by the Conference of 18iJ2, was well known before Mr. llycrson sailed for England, as is abundantly proved by his letter in the ChrlstUui Guardian of 3Iarch Gth, 1832.'i^ On the 18th of December, 1833, a little more than two months after the meeting of the York Conference, a public meeting was held in Saltfleet, at which a most decided stand was taken against the terms of union ; and the authority of the Conference to force the societies into a union with another body without first having asked and obtained their sanction to the measure, was strenuously denied. The meeting and some of those attending it were duly animadverted upon in the (ruardia/i of January 1st, 1834, but agitation could not be put down either by the personal abuse indulged in by the editor, or by the sophistry of his pretended arguments. • Quotations from this communication are given on pp. 271 and 2V2. -^^- 20 -mr^'' 'r 300 HISTORY OF THE Another meeting was 'held o'-« the 9th of January, 1834, in the old meeting-house on the Governor's road, towns'.iip of Elenheim, at which the proceedings of the Saltflcct meeting were discussed and sanctioned, and, if possible, an even more decided determination manifested to adhere to the jMcthcdist Episcopal Church. '•' One day later than that on which the Blenheim meeting wr., convened, viz. the 10th of January, 1834, another meet- irg was held at Belleville, in the piocecdings of which sixteen local preachers from that section of country took part.y Mr. J. Lockwwod — ono of these sixteen — addressed a communica- tion to the Chrisfitn GannUan, which apr-jared — with com- ments — in its issue of the 5th February, from which the following is extracted: — "Now wlicthtr the Conference at Ilallowell intended, ia adopting a resolution for the security of the pi-escnt standing of the itinerant and local preachers, that no innovation of former usages should accrue as a conseqrent of the union, J. am unable to say; but so it appears to have been understood by all the local brethren there present, and hence it is not surprising that excitement should arise at even the appc-irance of departure from what they understood to be an engagement." The resolu- tion referred to above was the tenth of the series adopted at the Conlcrence of 1832, and which, in direct violation of tlio pledges given by that Conference to the local preachers, h?d been totally abandoned by tlie delegate during the progress of th^ negotiations in England, and by the Conference at the rat'fication of the " articles of union." But plain as this article was, some of the other brethren attending the meeting did not think it sufficiently strong. r.. . . ; • ■ : Of those who to^k an active part in the proceedings of the meeting at Belleville was Rev. John Reynolds, who, though * This meeting is mentioned, and itw proceedings spoken of with market! disapprobation by the Uuardian of March 19th, 1834. t See Guardian Feb. 19th, 1834. T M. E. CHURCH IN CANADA. 301 located, was an ordained Elder in good standing. Notwith- standing the position taken by Mr. Reynolds at this meeting it was lifterwards assorted, by those who sought to make capital out of it, that Mr. Reynolds had identified himself with the union, and, as a consequence of that, with the Wcsleyau Methodist Church in British North America, because he had consented — after solicitation — to act as Secretary at the first missionary meeting held under the auspices of that body in the town of Belleville, and had forwarded — also by request — an account of the same for publication in the Guardian.^ This assertion was made, too, in face of the fact that in the same issue of the Guardian in which the account of the missionary meeting appeared there was also published a letter from Mr. Reynolds, of which the following is a copy: — " BcUeville, Feb. U th, 1 834. * " Dear Brother, — On looking over the last Guardian, I was not a little surprised tliat you should identify Bro. Lockvroood as the organ of the local preachers in this District ; not but that he may be capable of acting as our representative, yet I think my local brethren will bear me out in saying that he never was authorized by us to act as such. "It is very possible that he may differ from his bretliren in some points, which I believe is common with all bodies of men both in Church and State, but as to the general principle I think all agree. We are decidedly opposed to the resolutions, and therefore passed a vote at our meeting (held in this place, 10th January last) that loe could not willingly/ consent to or comply with them — we prefer the old rules. . " By giving the above a place in the Guardian you will very much oblige your old friend and brother, .»5 John Reynolds." * If acting as secretary or chairman at a missionar}'- meeting con- stitutes a person a member of the Weslcyan, or any other Church, or if consenting to act as collectors, or work on committees would accomplish the same purpose, how many church members would be taken with guile. I 302 HISTORY OF THE Upon this letter the editor made the following remarks : — " In inserting the communication to which our esteemed* Bro. Reynolds refers we supposed ^ve were complying with the wish of sixteen local preachers ; otherwise, notwithstanding our respect for the author of it, we should not have felt ourselves justified to draw so largely upon our columns, and the patienco of our readers, by inserting the labored ohjections, with replies to them from any one individual. * ^ -.'^ * "We thought, however, as Bro. Lockwood's letter came backed with so high authority, and with the sole and expressed view to elicit * explanations,' that it was advisable to insert it in the organ of the Conference (notwithstanding its many objections to the proceedings of the Conference) with such explanations and remarks as seemed necessary, and then let the question r )st, so far as controversy was concerned, after this free and ample discussion of it." On the London circuit a still more decided stand was taken than there had been at any of the places previously mentioned. Here the preachers appointed at this Conference to that circuit, were rejected by the Quarterly Conference, held January 25th, 1834, because, being an official board of the Methodist Episcopal Church in Canada, they deemed that they could not consistently receive as their preachers persons who were ministers of the Wesleyan Methodist Church in British North America ; and accordingly, that the work might suffer as little as possible. Rev. John Bailey, who had already travelled some years in the Connexion, was solicited to supply it as far as was practicable; which iie did. The resolutions referred to above were as follows, and were ■adopted by a vote of eighteen out of fcvrenty-two members : — • Up to this d ite Mr. Reynolds was an " esteemed brotherP TLcre was no whisper of the slanders afterwards circulated concerning him ; and which, had there been any foundation for them in fact, must have been patent to the Chi rch at that time. M. E. CHURCH IN CANADA. 303 i 1 *< The Quarterly Meeting Conference of the Methodist Epis- coml Church of the London Circuit, to the members of the said Church throughout the province : — "Dear Brethren, — The degrading and humiUating con- dition to which the recent arbitrary conduct of the Conference would bring us, has induced us to come to the following resolutions, while assembled in the Conference on the 25th inst., and which were carried by eigh*:een, with only four dissenting : — " James Mitchcl being called to the chair, and Nathan Jacobs being Secretary, it was resolved, "1. That the powers recently assumed by the Conference, in separating themselves from the Methodist Episcopal Church, are arbitrary and degrading to the members of said Church. " 2. That we totally deny the powers of the Conference to make the late change without the consent of the members of the Church ; and that unless said pretended powers are abandoned, and the rights and wishes of the members consulted and respected we can have little confidence in seiid Conference, and will be under the painful necessity of discontinuing their services. " 3. That until the wishes of the members of said Methodist Episcopal Church be generally known throughout the province we deem it advisable to employ some of our local preachers to administer the ordinances of the Gospel to us. " 4. That we heartily concur in the plan of having a delegation of the Methodist Episcopal Church, for the purpose of removing from our Discipline every pretended power that the Conierence may have vested themselves with, and giving the members such powers in the future government of the Church as will prevent their being reduced to a like state of degradation for all time to come. " 6. That John Bailey be requested to take charge of the I'-i ■%'it • iffflliiritKiriii Tf 1 -t^n" n -nr T-'imrffi 304 HISTORY OF THE circuit, with power to employ what help the circumstances of the Church may require. " ' ' James Mitciiel, Chairman, ' ^ Nathan Jacobs, Secretary. January 2^t7i, 1S34:.^^ ';:?(; On these resolutions Mr. Ryerson commented as follows, proving clearly the lioht in which he viewed them : — " Several resolutions have been passed by some official members, pur- porting to be the voice of the circuit protesting against the union ; impugning the Conference ; denying its authority ; and refusing to receive the preachers appointed by it."* Following out the plan proposed by the London Quarterly Meeting, a general convention was called, in order to ascertain what the state of feeling really was in the different sections of the province, for from having no organ in which to publish their views they could not obtain accurate information without some such meeting. This convention met at Trafalgar on the 10th of March, 1834, and continued its sitting till the 12th. Though the attendance was not large, sixteen preachers only being present, the different sections of the work were pretty well represented, and the deliberations resulted in the adoption of the following resolutions : "1. Resolved, '"hat the Christian Church, according to the intent and meaning of the Scriptures, is a society of faithful believers in Christ Jesus, among whom the ordinances of the Gospel are duly observed and administered. " 2. That the Church, by Divine appointment, for the edification of God's people, and for the better observance of the law and institutions of the Christian religion, is divided into the ministry of the word and the people, and their obliga- tions and interests are mutual, and their duties voluntary. " 3. That the Bible, as the law of God, is the only standard • See Otiardian, March 5th, 1834. ri M. E. CHURCH IN CANADA. 305 to ■which the Church in its different departments is account- able, and that no church ofiiccr, or member of tlie same, has any right to impose any other rule or principle than is therein required, or may be tairly deduced from the same. •' 4. That any compact or association of any Methodist or other religious society, throughout the world, is voluntary, such compact being merely intended for the mutual protection of privileges and property of the said societies, and the securing among them unity of systems of faith and practice. " 5. That the societies of the Methodist Episcoptd Church in Canada became, by common consent, n free and indeper-lent Church, viz., by a ratified agreement between the Gjeneral Conference of the M. E. Church of the United States, and the Annual Conference of the M. E. Church in Canada, s; id Canada Conference being authorized by the petitions of the people of their charge to apply for and agree upon said measure, which was afterwards, at the session of the Canada Conference in Ernestown, in this province, in the yenr 1828, arranged and fully settled, and a compact or Discipline then formed, that became the foundation of con- nection between the Conference of the M. E. Church of Canada and their people. "6. That every member of the said M. E. Church is equally interested in the said Discipline, in all its provisions and institutions, as no individual can be a member of the said Church, or any other, but by freedom of choice ; the said Discipline is equally a guarantee to the members as well as to the preachers, and no alteration of institution or change of relation can take place in the same without their consent, else their freedom is invaded, and the Discipline violated. " 7. That the said Discipline has vested the General Conference of the M. E. Church with certain powers of legislation, but such power alone can extend to the making of rules for the well-being and future good government of the 306 HISTORY OP THE M. E. Church of Canada ; if they arc exercised to any further extent they are null, being unauthorized. " 8. That the Conference formerly of the M. E. Church, now denominated the "W osleyan Methodist Conference in British Nortli America, at their two last sessions, by their propositions to unite the Church to a remote body, by their negotiations to effect the union in question, and by their con- summation of the same, have acted without disciplinary authority, inasmuch as the right of self-disposal is denied the people — a most sacred and conscientious principle ! " 9. That the said Conference have forfeited thv • pastoral charge of the said M. E. Church — have alienated themselves from any right or possession in the real properties secured by law to the said Church. "10. That we arc constrained, from principles contained in the foregoing resolutions, to enter our protest against the late changes made by the Annual Conference, as subversive of all right principle, and as a dangerous precedent to be allowed in the Church, and that we hold ourselves, and those members who concur with us, still the legal M. E. Church in Canada. "11. That this convention do now appoint a General Superintendent, whose duty it shall be to itinerate through this province, to see that the ordinances of the Church be duly administered as far as practicable, and to notify all our preachers, travelling and local, of the M. E. Church, to meet in Conference on the 25th of June next ensuing, at Cummer's meeting-house, on Yonge Street, to elect and constitute a Bishop according to the provisions of the Discipline, and to adopt such rules and regulations for the future legislation of the Church as may accord with the natural rights of the people. " 12. That the said Superintendent, with the Elders now present, do form a committee to appoint such preachers as may oflFer for the itinerating department, who have been ordained or licensed agreeable to Discipline. " 13. That we consider a conciliation a desirable object, V. fi M. E. CilURC'I IN CANADA. 307 •i and feci ourselves bound to accede to any such conciliatory oflfers as may secure to preachers and people what we conceive to be their natural rights. • <, 5 " 14. That the Hamilton Free Press, and Reformer, of Cobourg, be requested to give the above resolutions one inser- tion, and all other editors that will copy the same will confer a particular favor. (Signed,) John W. Byam, President^ Abnon C. Leaver, Secretary. Trafalgar, March 12th, 1834." The General Superintendent mentioned in the eleventh resolution was to be one of the Elders, and was only to act as such till the work v/ould be regularly re-organized. The proceedings of the convention were subjected to the usual strictures in the Guardian,^ where the editor, forget- ting what belonged to his eha.'acter as a gentleman — to say nothing of the Christian or the minister of Christ — finding argument fail in his attempt to make these brethren see as he did, condescended to ahusc, summing up a contemptuous para- graph with a quotation from another controversialist, as fol- lows : — " When an ass puts on a lion's skin he ought not to hray.^^ The columns of the Guardian were closed against those who differed from the editor concerning the desirability, and latterly the legality, of the union ; while he defer ded both with all the plausibility of which he was so abundantly possessed, and thus many were influenced, against their better judgment, to yield to his specious arguments, and give up what they were persuaded to believe would be a hopeless contest. Mr. Alder's letter to the Governor, with the " further con- cessions " of the Conference, was not made public. The following specimens of the arguments used in defence of the measure by the editor of the Guardian, may not at this 11 See Guardian March 26th, 1834. MM 308 HISTORY OP THE date be uninteresting. Shortly after the close of the Confer- ence,^^ commenting on its late action, he represents the Conference as saying : — " If ever the God of love was present in the assembly of His servants He is here; if ever lie directed all good counsels. He directs now ; if over the seal of heaven stamped and ratified any negotiation of His ambassadors, it is the articles of union between the British Wesley an Conference and the Conference of the Wesley an Methodist Church in British North America^ ' / ^ To oppose this compact, then, on which he asserted the " seal of heaven " was set, would be an act of such fearful wickedness that none but infidels or backslidden Methodists would be guilty of it. Such men as Rev. Messrs. Gatchel and Culp, who had the temerity to oppose the scheme, after having been ordered by the organ to keep quiet, were thus denounced ; the smallness of the numbers rallying at so short a call, after such a fearful shock, sneered and scoiFed at ; and the work of the convention at Trafalgar compared to an " abortive tempest in a teapot." That the editor of the Guardian knew there was very great opposition to the union, especially with regard to the relinquishment of episcopacy, and admitted this to be so m the organ which he controlled, is proven by the following extract from that paper; — j" We invite the attention of our readers to a few observations on the question of union between the British and Canada Conferences ; especially the relinquishing episcopacy. Was it done constitutionally? Was it done prudently ? Did it involve the privileges of any member of the Church ? First, was it done constitution- ally? To this we answer, it was. * * * Qne objection has been made in a few individual instances, inconsiderately, and for want of information, mooted against the legality of the proceedings of the Conference in this instance, viz., that Elders elect voted in the General Conference, which was not authorized * Christian Guardian, Oct. 23rd, 1833. t Guardian, Dec. 25th, 1833. \ I. V M. E. CHURCH IN CANADA. 309 by Discipline." The " information " so indispensable to the makini^ of those procccdiiitijs even apjicar legal, Mr. Rycrson proceeded to supply, giviuj^ his own rendcrinj; and supplement- ing of the Discipline, averring that the changes were made prudenth/y and emphatically denying that the privileges of any member had been infringed. The strictures on tlic Saltflcet meeting are as follows :* — " The last ILnn'dtoti Free Press contains several resolutions signed David Gulp and Arnon C. Scaver, said to have been adopted at a meeting of local preachers of the Methodist E. Church, held at Saltflcet, December 18th, 1833. * * -K The first of these resolutions states that ' Self-government is the natural right of every man, and therefore it is the right of every man to have a voice by delegation, or otherwise, in making tho laws, rules, and regulations by which he is governed.' " This is very true in ? certain sense, and we can easily show that this, in all its legitimate length and breadth, is recognized and has always been acted upon in Canada. Br.t if it be true that no man ought to obey a law that he himself, " by delegation or otherwise, has had no voice in making,' then ought Mr. Culp and Mr. Seaver to rise up in 'armed resistance ' against both the colonial and British Constitutions ; for we apprehend they had no voice in making either." What begging the question ! But was not the voice of the people taken at the time of the framing of these bulwarks of our liberty ? The following are some of the ■ comments with which Mr. Ryerson favored his readers upon the proceedings of the London Quarterly Meeting: — f" Various rumors, and exagger- ated and erroneous statements have been of late industriously circulated by some individuals as to the disaS'ection of the London Circuit to the Conference. Several resolutions have I! ! i I : ''! • Guardian, January 1st, 1834. t Christian Guardian^ March 5th, 1834. ' •'' 310 HISTORY OF THE been passed by some official members, purportinj]; to be the voice of the circuit, protesting against tlic union, impugning the Cont'erence ; denying its autliority ; and refusing to receive the preachers appointed by it."-'- Then follows a letter from three stewards, who, though they still went with the movement, disapproved of the action of the Conference in the formation of the union, from which the editor congratu- lated himself that after all matters might not be so bud on tho circuit as they had been represented. ' The faults of Mr. Ryan, and the disastrous division in which he had taken so prominent a part, were frequently referred to ; and all in opposition to the union compared to the leaders of that movement, while long homilies were read to them of the direful evils of division in the Christian Church. It would, periiaps, have been as well for the peace of tho Church had Mr. llyerson, and those who thought with him, taken these same homilies home to their own hearts before they entered upon the unconstitutional and disastrous proceedings of 1832 and 1833. After one of these editorial lectures Mr. llyerson continued, f referring to the convention at Trafalgar: " It is likewise known that some individuals in the Methodist Church have been opposed from the leg inning to the union between the British and Canada Conferences. Some of them have doubtless been sincere in their opposition. * * * Accordingly, after announcements in several of the public papers, calling upon the members of the Methodist E, Church throughout the province to meet on the lO^h of March, at Trafalgar, Gore District, a meeting took place, and the business, we learn from a person present, commenced with seven persons. The number when our informant left, on the second day, had been increased to sixteen. * * We are ♦ Compare this with Mr. Ryerson's assertions in 1837 and after- wards, that there was no opposition to the measure for more than a year after. t Ouardian, March 26th, 1834, M. E. CUURCII IN CANADA. 311 forcibly reminded of the sententious remarks of Rev. D. Isaacs to the Leeds Divisionists, ' when an ass puts on a lion's skia he ouj^ht not to bray.' MVo answer them thus much according to their folly." How blind the people must have been, not to liavc been convinced at once of their " folly " by such strong arguments as this last quotation. " Here, then," he continues, *'aro the proceedings of the anti-unionists. Every member of the Ciiurch can now read, examine, and decide upon them for himself. The sooner each one makes his choice the better for himself and the Church." Alludin" to the same conven- tion at a, later date,-!^ Mr. llyerson again condescended to personalities and vituperation, heading his article, " TJic late schismatic convention at Trafalgar." After discussing it ia his usual sneering manner, he continues: — "Mr. Culp, the principal instigator of this campaign against the Discipline of the Church, and who has got promoted to Bishop elect, can do nothing, even in his own neighborhood ; we will therefore dismiss this abortive tempest in a teapot." Subsequent events proved that Mr. Culp had more influence tlian Mr. llyerson gave him credit for, and that the movement was not so abortive as he had hoped. Up to this period, and for nearly four years after, Mr. Mr. llyerson, as mouth-piece of the Canada Conference, con- tended that the organic changes made in the government of the Church, and the subversion of the orders in the ministry, were legally done according to the provisions of the Discipline of 1829, and that therefore, after the action of the Conference of 1833, no interval was left during which it was possible for the M. E. Church in Canada to exist. That, in fact, it ceased to have a being as soon as the Conference — not the Cliurch through the Quarterly Conferences — passed the vote to abolish the old government and adopted the British form and polity. But when it was found that this absurdity was controverted, not t f • Guardian, April 9th, 1834. 312 HISTORY OP THE only by tho ndhcrcnts to tlio old Connexion, but by tho decision of two Hopunitc sott« of jurymen, in two separate suits, and by n majority of tho judge." then in tho province, 3Ir. llycrson, with his followers, veered round, and solennily pro- tested that no change had been made. The following extracts, though anticipating tho date, show the course pursued, -t^ and tho rcckl(!ss assertions which were made by this party in order to gain the end they had in view. Speaking of the points in dispute, he remarks : — "Not because even the form of govern- ment is changed, for that is 8ubstanti;illy what it always has been. -i- ■'• -^ * In the title of the Church the word Wcsln/dii has superseded tlio word Episcopal ; the v/ord ■prcs'uhncij stands in place of tho word cjilscojxin/ ; the word Prca'ulcnt has got into tho place of the word Bl>ih:)p. Six words, and nothing but words, for things remain nnrhdvcjcd, essentially, substantially, practic;;lly the same." An unonhiincd President the H.imQ us a irgnhirfi/ ord" hied JUshoj}? Could any thing be more preposterously untruthful ? In combatting the opinions of the judges Mr. llycrson asserts that, " In the Wesleyan Methodist Church in Canada there arc as much as ever divers ordersfof ministers. Presidents, ministers or preachers, though but one imposition of hands." Quite a distinction. What was tho difference between one order and the other ? A- President, as soon as he receives his appointment, accord'ii.i' to this doctrine, enters into orders without any further ceremony — tho mere appointment of the British Conf^^rcncc at once transforms a lai/ 2iieachei' into a Bishop, for the space of one year ! ! ! The next year there is another, similarly constituted. Bishop ; last year's has sunk again to his old standing and position. Thus did Mr. Eyerson first admit that there had been changes made, and that there * Guardian, Sept. 13th, 1837. t At tho assizes in Kingston, in May, 1842, Mr. Eyerson admitted, under oath, (in answer to a question from his lordship) that in his Church there is but one order of ministers. M. E. CHURCH IN CANADA. 313 was opposition to those chanp;cs ; and tlion, when it suited tho purpo.stis ol' his Church, asserted unblushingly, in tiic luce of the ari-an^eniont with Mr. Alder eoiieernin^' {government grants and of all that had been written in tho Guunliui to nconcilo tho people to the alterations in the Di.veii)line, tliat there liad been no practical changes made, and no real oppo.sition otrered till more than a year had elapsed after the ratilicatiou of the union. Whither had consistency anl truth lied '( I I I = <<'■!. ij^;.''' .^ 314 HISTORY OP THE •:. , !■ CHAPTER XXV. The Conference of June, 1834 — Where held — Contrast between that and previous ones — Preachers present — The work of this Conference- —Objections raised by opponents — Objections an- swered and precedents quoted — Composition of tlie iirst Method- ist Conference held by Mr. Wesley — Composition of the first General Conference in America — Other authorities quoted — Necessity demanded action — Wlio composed the Gen'^ral Confer- ence of 1835 — Delegates appointed to visit American General Conference — Annual Conference of 1835 — Where held — State of the work — Sad effects of politico-religious scheming — The clouds begin to rise. It had been decided at the convention to call a Conference, to meet on the 25th of June, 1834, id Cummer's Church, on Yonge Street, (now Willowdalc, ten miles from Toronto) and thither the remnant of the standard bearers that was left repaired. The meeting was a sad one. What a contrast to the early Conferences in which these grey-haiicd veterans had taken part. Even the Conference held by Mr. Kyan, after the outbreak of the war of 1812, was not so sorrowful as this; then, a military proclamation prevented them from meeting with the brethren with whom they had before associated for con- sultation ; now, brethren beloved, in whose integrity they had previously confided, were separated from them by th^ir own action. The walls of the citadel T^ere broken down, Zion languiwLed, and Methodism was become a bye-word among the people. Well might they have " hung their harps upon the willows," but work, not despondency, was their motto. Undismayed by the disadvantages under which they labored, they set themselves tu the task of re-organizaticn. M. K. CHUECH' IN CANADA. 315 ey There were present at this Conference, regularly ordained Elders, Joseph Gatchell, David Gulp, and Daniel Pickett ; and J. W. Bvam, Deacon. There were also a number of local preachers in attendance. The minutes of these Conferences were not printed, and like those of the Conferences held during the war of 1812, are not now to be found, which is very much to be regretted, as doubtless much interesting information might have been obtained from them. But the pioneers of Canada, ecclesiastical or otherwise, intent on the work before them, have left few records behind. The Conference was re-organized, and several local preachers, who had previously travelled under the Presiding Elder, together with others who now oflFered themselves for the travelling connexion, were admitted. The work was re-ar- ranged, and supplied as far as possible with the preachers at the disposal of the Conference, and every effort made to build up again the waste places — a work not easily accomplisheu, with every place of worship closed against them which it was in the power of their opponents to have closed. The leaders in the Wesleyan movement at once asserted that the Conference at Yonge Street was illegally constituted, inas much as some of the local preachers taking part in the deliberations had not been ordained. To this it was replied, that if the pressing exigencies of the case did not justify the action of the Conference, at least the precedent afforded by both the Conferences of 1832 and 1833 did. Mr. Ryerson asserted that the Discipline of 1829 had been "imended at Belleville in 1830, so as to admit superannuated Elders as menbers of the General Conference, but that the amendment was not published ; and that the Discipline was further amended at Hallowell in 1832, so as to admit " al! travelling Elders, and Elders elect, who had travelled four years and been received into full connection." Admitting then, that these amendments had been legally maue (which, however, was i ot admitted) still, from a com- 21 n 316 HISTORY OP THE paiison of tho Minutes of Conference with these amended nilcs, it could be proved* that both these Conferences had been illegally constituted, as parties had been allowed a seat and a vote in them who were neither "superannuated Elders, ' ordained Elders, nor Elders elect. These persons had not even been eligible for an election to Elder's orders. Two of these were cited as instances : Mr. Thomas Bcvett, who was only admitted on trial in 1830, would not, even according to the amended rule, have been eligible to Deacon^ s orders until / 1832, and could not, therefore, have been eligible to Elder's ** orders until 1834 — two full years after he had been adiaittci'; to vote on such an important matter as an entire revolution oi ' the Church. But Mr. Bevett was not ordained Deccon even ■ in 1832, there being no Bishop present. Another was tho case of Mr. Charles Wood, who, though received on trial in ; 1828, was not admitted into the connexion in 1830, hue still • continued on trial till 1831, and was therefore only Deacon elect in 1832, not having been ordained in 1831 for the same reason that Mr. Bevett was not in 1832; and had he been ordained Deacon in 1831, he would not have been eligible to Elder's orders till 1833; yet he voted in tLe Conference of 1832. Mr. Bevett was not ordained till after the consumma- ■ tion of the union ; Mr. Wood does not appeal' to have been ordained even then ; they were therefore, at the time they were permitted to vote on the union resolutions, simply laymen. ■"■- Those attending the Yonge Street Conference therefore argued — n'^t inaptly — that in admitting ordained Deacons, and Deacons elect, to their deliberations, they had gone no farther fro^^ the letter of the Discipline than had the Canada Conference, both at Hallowell and York, when there was no exigency in the case. Consequently they felt them- selves justified in pursuing the course they did, that they might keep up the old standard which open enemies and false • See also Mr. Ryerson's evidence in the case of Belleville Church suit. Methodist Chapel Property Case, pp. 48 and 49. AI. E. CIIUI33II IN CANADA 317 friends had determined should be torn down, and though the battle was a hard one, they were enaMcd to keep the banner afloat, despite opposition of every kind. But Ijhough the convening of this Conference, and the recon- struction of the work, was considered advisable, it was not really necessary for the perpetuation of the Methodist Epis- copal Church in Canada. The Church could have existed — in fact did exist — independently of any Conference, for according to the Discipline, " the visible Church of Christ is a congrega- tion of faithful men^ in which the pure word of God is preacned, and the sacramenxs duly administered according to Christ's ordinance, in all of those things that of necessity are requisite to the same." The ministry and membership together, then — not the ministry alone — constituting the " Church," their rela- tionship is mutual ; the Canada Conference, therefore, it was contended, had no more right to transfer the members belonging to the Church under its control to the jurisdiction of another body, without having first gained those members' consent, than the membership had to call a convention and by forming n union with some Christian body, transfer themselves and the preachers, without their consent, to its jurisdiction. The existence of the Methodist Episcopal Church in Canada, during the interregnum between the Conference of 1833 and that of 1834 at Yonge Street, is fully proved by submitting the facts in the case to the test of the Discipline itself. The preachers then remaining in the Church recommenced oper- ations as well as they were able. But who were the preachers left in the Church? They were Revs, Joseph Gatchell, a "superannuated Elder, Daniel Pickett, who hi. I travelled for years after he was ordained Elder, who was now located ;* David Culp, who had been one of the little band convened by Mr. Ryan in 1812, and who •See journal of the Niagara District for 1832 and 1833 — ^Tamca Richardson, Chairman, Peter Kerr, Secretary — quoted in " Union • Considered," /.s::- 318 HISTORY OP THB ' :i! had — not unfrequently at the risk of his life in those troublous times — carried the words of consolation to the distracted and destitute settlers, which they so much needed to hear, had been ordained Elder after the restoration of peace, and travelled for several years, but, as was customary in those days of toil, after it became inconvenient to move his increasing family, he too had located; John Reynolds, also a located Elder in good standing, and J. H. Huston, who had travelled since 1827, and was ordained Deacon in 1830. Mr. Huston was not present at the Yonge Street Conference, but was present at the convention which called it, and took part in the proceedings. Mr. Reynolds, too, though sympathizing with his brethren, was absent ; but both consented to take work. J. W. Byam was a Deacon ; and all these had been regularly ordained by the Bishops of the parent connexion. Of unordained men who still had travelled exten- sively before and up to 1833, and were now willing to take work, were John Bailey and Charles Pettis. Besides these there were, who now offered themselves for iue travelling connection, George Turner, A. C. Seaver, James Mitchell, and a number of other local preachers, who were admitted on trial and stationed, thus supplying the work. These, then, were the preachers, and this the state of the Church in June, 1834, eight months after the session of the York Conference of 1833. The action of the Yonge Street Conference was questioned by the Wesleyan body also in con- sequence of the smallness of the number of ordained preachers attending it, but their principal leader, Mr. Ryerson, himself admitted that " the spirit and rules of the Discipline, in the mode of proceeding, can be observed by three as well as by three hundred." It was objected, too, that these Elders had not travelled " the past four years." That surely would not be necessary, since, according to Mr. Ryerson, that part of the Discipline had been amended in 1830 so as to admit superannu- ated preachers, and in 1832 unordained laymen who, at the most, II . E. CHURCH IN CANADA. 319 had travelled but two years, had been allowed to vote. The fact was, the necessity of the case demanded what the M. E. Confer- ence did, and knowing the desire of the societies to have their own form of government, in the emergency they adhered as closely as might be to the letter of the Discipline, observing the very spirit of its rules in the " mode of proceeding." The Church was peculiarly situated, and unlc. . they too would desert it there was no other course open to them. Some years later, when the Wesleyan body in Canada had quarrelled with the English Conference, the very men who so strongly objected to the course of those who convened the Yongo Street Conference, professing to doubt their right to hold it — the brothers William and Egerton Ryerson — themselves, after their return from England, called a Conference, and considered thej/ had a right to do so. It may not bb improper here to enquire how near, in point of composition, the Conference which was held on Yonge Street, June 25th, 1834, resembled the first Methodist Con- ference which was ever held. The first Conference Mr. Wesley ever held was in London, June 25th, 1744 — just ninety years, to a day, previous to the Conference held upo'^ Yonge Street. At Mr. Wesley's first Conference there were present six ordained clergymen and a few lay-preachers, but these lay- preachers had a voice in its deliberations. At the Conference held on Yonge Street, there were present four regularly ordained ministers, and a few lay-preachers, whose councils were considered necessary. In the Minutes of Mr, Wesley's first Conference, dated 25th of June, 1744, we find the following questions and answers : — "Q. 3. How far does each of us agree to submit to the judg- ment of the majority ? "A. In speculative things, each one can only submit as far as his judgment shall be convinced ; in every practical point each will submit so far as he can without wounding his con- science. 320 HISTORY OP THE II ! " Q. 4. Can a Cliristian submit any further than thia to any man, or number of men, upon the earth ? " A. It is plain he cannot ; either to Bishop, convocation, or General Council. And this is that principle of privato judgment on which all reformers proceeded ; " every man must judge for himself; because every man must give an account of himself to God." — See Young's "History of Methodism,'' pp. 136 and 137, also Watson's " Life of We^%," chat). 9.' After transactinoj the business of the Conference so far, it was decided to adjourn to meet in Belle^He, on the 10th of Feuiuary, 1835. The adjourned Conference oi'^t at the time specified, and determined upon calling a General CotfferencQ, agreeably *^o the following clause of Discipline : " If there be no General Superintendent, the Annual Con- ference or Conferences respectively, shall have power to call a General Conference, if they judge it necessary, at any time."* Rev. John Heynolds was appointed General Superintendent pro tern., and the General Conference was called to meet on the 10th of June, 1835, at the seat of the Annual Conference of the ensuing year. In consequence, however, of the Minutes of th^r Conference not having been published, the eastern preachers mistook the date, and did not assemble on the 10th, as had been appointed. The preachers who had assembled, pursuant to the appointment of the Belle- ville Conference, received a letter from Mr. Reynolds, requesting them to adjourn, to meet again upon the 25th of the same month, which they did, adjourning to meet at the date specified in the Trafalgar (now Palermo) meeting-house. The Annual Conference commenced its session at 2 p. m., J. Reynolds, General Superintendent, pro tern., in the chair; Arnon C. Seaver was appointed Secretary. Tho necessity of obtaining a Bishop, and of having him duly apppointed and consecrated according to the provisions * Discipline of 1829, page 20. M. E. CHURCH IN CANADA. 321 of the Discipline was carefully discussed by the Elders jn General Conference assembled on fhc 27th, and after due delib- eration Rev. J. Reynolds was elected to that office. Oa the following Sabbath, June 28th, he was duly consecrated by the laying on of the hands of Joseph Gatchell, David Culp, and Daniel Pickett. The General Conference based the legality of their action, in tt i election and consecration of a Bishop, upon the fourth section of the Discipline,* which is as follows : — " Q. 2. If by death, expulsion, or otherwise, there be no Bishop remaining in our Churchy what shall we do ? " A. The General Conference shall elect a Bishop, and the Elders, or any three of them who shall be appointed by the General Conference for that purpose, shall ordain him accord- ing to our form of ordination." The composition and transactions of the first General Con- ference in America, was also cited as a case in point, although in the election of Mr. Reynolds none but Elders voted. The first General Conference commenced " Christmas Eve, in the city of Baltimore, in the year 1784 ; sixty preachers were assembled." As none of the American preachers had, up to that date, received ordination, they were all lay-preachers i with the exception of Dr. Coke, Richard Whatcoat, and Thomas Vasey, and although Mr. Asbury had been appointed joint Superintendent with Dr. Coke (with the understanding that he was to be duly consecrated to the ofiice by Dr. Coke and Messrs. Whatcoat and Vasey) yet " he prudently withheld his consent until it was obtained by the suflFrages of the preachers then present, who all declared in his favor."f The opinion of an exponent of Metliodistical polity, who was received as an authority on this subject, was also quoted. The extracts referred to were as follows : — " That very section in our ecclesiastical economy which • Discipline of 1829, page 23. t Bangs on Episcopacy, pp. 91 and 92. ■7^ 322 HISTOET OF THK providec for the episcopal office, and prescribes its duties and responsibilities provides for the consecration of a Bishop by the hands of the eldership, thereby clearly recognizing the principle for which I have contended; thus we read,