BX 8495 .C6 D7 1847 Drew, Samuel, 1765-1833. The life of the Rev. Thomas Coke THE LIFE OF THE REV. THOMAS CO INCLUDING IN DETAIL HIS VARIOUS TRAVELS AND EXTRAORDINARY MISSIONARY EXERTIONS, IN ENGLAND, IRELAND, AMERICA, AND THE WEST INDIES : WITH AN ACCOUNT OF HIS DEATH. MAT 3, 1814, WHILE ON A MISSIONARY- VOYAGE TO THE ISLAND OP CEYLON, IN THE EAST INDIES. INTERSPERSED WITH NUMEROUS REFLECTIONS ; AND CONCLUDING WITH AN ABSTRACT OF HIS WRITINGS AND CHARACTER. BY SAMUEL DREW, OF ST. AUSTELL, CORNWALL. So Lycidas sunk low, but mounted high, Through the dear might of Him who walk'd the waves. Milton's Lycidas. JfetD-JJork : PUBLISHED BY LANE & TIPPETT, FOR THE METHODIST EPISCOPAL CHURCH, 200 MULBERRY-STREET. JOSEPH LONG KING, PRINTER. 1847. ^ of mcfy JUL 26 1929 ; KE, LL.D. CONTENTS TO LIFE OF DR. COKE. Dedication Page 7 Preface ' . 9 CHAPTER I. Design of biography — Birth, family, and early education of Dr. Coke — Divine providence, both general and particular, asserted — Removes to Oxford — Profligacy of the collegians — Becomes an infidel — Reflections on the influence of infidelity in colleges — General behaviour — Influence of conscience — Base conduct of a clergyman — Effects of reading Sherlock's Discourses, and Witherspoon on Regeneration — Chosen common council- man, and chief magistrate of Brecon — Deluded with promises of church preferment — Graduates, and procures his diploma — First preaching — State of his mind, and tenderness of conscience 13-25 CHAPTER II. Obtains a curacy at South Petherton — Builds a gallery — Becomes ac- quainted with Mr. Maxfield — Seriously affected by " Alleine's Alarm" — Reads his sermons — Becomes evangelical in his preaching — Church fre- quented by Dissenters — Interview with Mr. Hull — Becomes acquainted with an old Methodist— Preaches in some dwelling houses in his parish — Finds the pardoning love of. God — Begins to preach extempore — Effects of this preaching — Persecution — Excluded from the pulpit — Chimed out of the church — Encouraged by Mr. Maxfield — Preaches twice near the church door — Finds an asylum in the family of Edmonds . . . 25-38 CHAPTER III. First interview with Mr. Wesley at Taunton — Joins the Methodists — Appointed to London — Popular among the people — Visits the societies — Contends with difficulties — Bears an active part in procuring the deed of declaration — Testimony of Mr. Wesley and Dr. Coke respecting the deed of declaration — Presides in the first Irish conference — Testimonies of approbation in favour of Dr. Coke — State of religion in Ireland . 38-54 CHAPTER IV. Mr. Wesley's early visit to America — Origin of Methodism in America — Mr. Embury, Mr. Strawbridge, and Captain Webb visit the continent — First preaching house built in 1768 — Mr. Boardman and Mr. Pilmoor re- pair to America — Mr. Asbury goes thither in 1771 — Mr. Wright, Mr. Shad- ford, and Mr. Rankin, in 1773 — State of Methodism at the commencement of the war — Various occurrences during the unhappy conflict . 54-67 CHAPTER V. Effects of the war on the Methodist societies in America — Review of the causes which led to the establishment of the Methodist Episcopal Church — Preparatory steps taken in order to Dr. Coke's ordination — Copy ef letters of ordination — Letter of Mr. Wesley to Dr. Coke and Mr. As- bury, stating the ground on which he acted — Principles on which Mr. Wesley acted, stated and vindicated — Apostolical succession not to be proved, either from the church of Alexandria, Antioch, or Rome . 67-92 6 CONTENTS TO LIFE OF DR. COKE. by a French privateer — Mr. Asbury's letter relative to Dr. Coke's return — Returns to England — Projects and procures the establishment of mis- sions among the Irish — Proposes a union of the Methodists with the Church of England — Letter to the bishop of London — Bishop's reply — Scheme proves abortive — Protection procured by Dr. Coke for the Me- thodists during the Irish rebellion — Instances of loyalty among the Method- ists in Ireland during this commotion, and among the Methodist negroes in the West Indies in seasons of danger — Approbation of government — Persecuting law in Jersey — Dr. Coke procures its repeal — Embarks again for America — Request of the English conference for his return to Europe — Reply — Persecution in Bermuda — Dr. Coke prevents the law from receiving the royal sanction — Mr. Collet's confessions respecting Mr. Wesley Page 269-305 CHAPTER XV. Dr. Coke establishes the Welsh missions — Publishes some parts of his commentary — Embarks on his ninth voyage to America — Attempts to establish a mission in Gibraltar — Death of Mr. and Mrs. M'Mullin — First interview with Miss Penelope Goulding Smith — Marries her — Mode of travelling — Her death, character, and epitaph — Finishes his commentary — Projects the History of the West Indies — History of the Bible — System of philosophy compiled — Publishes a Welsh translation of his commentary — Persecution in Jamaica — Substance of the colonial edict — Finally dis- allowed by his majesty in council — In danger of being lost in a voyage to Ireland — Publishes a reply to the Rev. Melville Home — Alarm occasioned by Lord Sidmouth's bill — Cottager's Bible published in numbers — Circular letter to all the superintendents — Weary of employing travellers to sell his works — Disposes of all his literary property to the conference . 305-326 CHAPTER XVI. Introduction, progress, and final overthrow of Lord Sidmouth's bill — New interpretation given to the toleration act — New toleration act — Dr. Coke takes a decided part in all — Establishes a mission among the French prisoners — Sends missionaries to Sierra Leone, in Africa — First introduc- tion of Methodism into that colony — State of the mission — Marries Miss Loxdale — Death and character of that lady — Plans a mission to India — Pre- pares to embark — Projects the missionary societies — Sanctioned by con- ference— Provision made for himself and associates — Designs to be mar- ried a third time — Connection broken off through the interference of his friends — Sails for India — Death and funeral solemnities of Mrs. Ault — General account of the voyage — Death of Dr. Coke — Particulars relative to this melancholy event — Body committed to the deep — Prosperous state of the mission — Reflections 326-360 CHAPTER XVII. The author's first particular acquaintance with Dr. Coke — Compact between them — Character of Dr. Coke's commentary — Account of his Recent Occurrences of Europe — History of the West Indies — Histoiy of the Bible — Cottager's Bible — Life of Christ — Letters in reply to the Rev. Mr. Home — Duties of a minister — Sermon on the death of Mr; Wesley — Life of Mr. Wesley — Person of Dr. Coke — Natural temper — Understand- ing— Learning — Talents as a preacher — Ease in company — Domestic habits — Rank among his brethren — Influence in conference — Defects — Zeal, activity, piety, usefulness, liberality — Anecdotes of his attachment to the welfare of the missions — Farewell sermon — Conclusion 360-381 DEDICATION. TO ROBERT CARR BRACKENBURY, OF RAITHBY-HALL, LINCOLN- SHIRE ; THOMAS ROBERTS, KING-STREET, BATH ; AND JOHN HOL- LOWAY, CITY-ROAD, LONDON, ESQUIRES ; EXECUTORS IN TRUST OF THE LATE REVEREND THOMAS COKE, LL.D. Gentlemen, — I dedicate to you this volume, from a full per- suasion that, as intimate friends of the late Rev. Dr. Coke, and guardians of his property, you must feel an interest in his repu- tation. When our mutual but now deceased friend sailed for India, and consigned to your care the management of his temporal concerns, he committed to mine the delineation of his character. You were acquainted with this fact. And it has been to me no small source of consolation, while prosecuting the task of high responsibility which his unexpected death has now assigned me, to learn that his appointment of a biographer has received the sanction of your approbation. For my work, which is now presented through you to the world, I hesitate to entertain correspondent hopes. If Dr. Coke had lived to reach the place of his ultimate desti- nation, my undertaking would, in all probability, have been less arduous than it is at present. It was his intention to have fur- nished me with documents, facts, and incidents in chronological order; and to have transmitted them from India, that they might have been arranged for his inspection, in case he had lived to return, or for publication if he had visited Europe no more. This was a point which he kept in view while on his voyage, and his last letter to me, which was written off Madeira, chiefly turned on this topic. But the overruling providence of God, which permitted this plan to be formed, has mysteriously interposed to prevent the exe- cution of it. And, how paradoxical soever it may appear, the same awful stroke that has partially taken from me the means of fulfilling his wishes, has laid me under an additional obligation to comply with his request. From the difficulties of this situation you have happily afforded me some relief, by giving me access to all his papers that were in your possession, and by readily answering such questions as I found it necessary to propose. Furnished with these materials, in addition to my own resources, I have endeavoured to draw the outline of a faithful picture, without introducing an exuberance 8 DEDICATION TO LIFE OF DR. COKE. either of light or shade : in this state the work now approaches you ; and I cheerfully consign it to your protection and rare. That the pages of my volume are free from error and imper- fection, I have no more the presumption to suppose, than I have the vanity to imagine that their defects can escape your pene- tration. Your long and intimate acquaintance with the deceased must have deeply impressed upon your minds those varied fea- tures of his character, through which your judgments of him are formed and matured. This circumstance will preserve me from the imputation of flattery, although it may be at the expense of my labours. It is to this maturity of judgment, however, that I the more readily appeal, from a full conviction that, because it is matured, it must be equally free from the influence of local prejudice and the delusion of visionary expectations. From you I have there- fore a right to expect a decision that will blend accuracy with candour, without furnishing me with an occasion to complain of severity, or make me a debtor to compassion. Should this work be so fortunate as thus favourably to pass the ordeal of your examination, my confidence in your ability and fidelity will shield me from illiberal criticisms which may arise from other quarters. Many may censure, and some may approve : but none can be more competent to form an accurate estimate of what I have written than yourselves. There is, however, one department in which I expect you will find many rivals, and that is among Dr. Coke's numerous friends, who, like you, will be solicitous to cherish a strong affection for his name and memory. Yet even here I can scarcely suppose you will have any superiors, when I dare not make an exception even in favour of, gentlemen, Your sincere friend and humble servant, Samuel Drew. St. Austell, May 17, 1817, PREFACE. In sending the following biographical sketch into the world, the writer of this volume has no design either to flatter the un- reasonable admirers of the deceased, or to gratify his enemies. He has therefore not drawn an artificial picture; but he has fol- lowed him through life, and 'noticed the most distinguishing fea- tures in his characler, without having an eye to either party, and without always adverting to the opinions which the facts he records might'induce the reader to entertain. Writing under these impressions, he is not conscious of having passed over in silence any material incident in Dr. Coke's life which could reasonably find a place in these memoirs, without descending to trifles which can have no necessary connection with a fair delineation of his character. On the same principle, he has neither emblazoned his virtues nor amplified his faults ; and it is not improbable that, on this account, he has written in a manner that will give offence to all those whom nothing can please but panegyric or defamation. " The struggling pangs of conscious truth to hide, To quench the blushes of ingenuous sharne," are feelings to which the author, on the present occasion, is a total stranger. He might have expatiated on a train of favourable coincidences, and have exalted accident into a virtue ; or he might have given shades to infirmities which would have sprinkled them with the appearance of vice, without deviating from the rigid dictates of truth ; but impartiality demanded from him a statement of naked facts, which should leave the judgment of the reader free from prepossession. To the candid and dispassionate, who are willing to make all reasonable allowances for the frail- ties of human nature, and who must estimate these allowances by the various situations in which the deceased was placed, such a faithful delineation as the author thus proposes cannot fail to afford satisfaction. But after all, the accomplishment of his pur- pose may fall short both of his wishes and hopes, and for this he must crave their indulgence. That a man whose life has been spent in propagating Chris- tianity— in carrying the light of the gospel among heathen nations — in cultivating and spreading the active and passive virtues which adorn social life — and finally, in directing sinners to the Saviour of the world, should find himself exposed to enemies, 10 PREFACE TO LIFE OF DR. COKE. mav seem exceedingly strange. But history and observation unite to inform us that this has been the lot of almost every public cha- racter. " Censure is a tax which every man must pay the public for being eminent ;" and we well know that this fine has been con- stantly exacted from the greatest benefactors of mankind. Both Wesley and Whitefield were exposed to the charges of pride, ambition, and enthusiasm ; and even Mr. Fletcher could not escape the tongue of slander. To the shafts of unmerited censure, Dr. Coke was also exposed ; and his name, as well as the names of his illustrious contempora- ries and predecessors, was doomed to bear the base insinuations of invidious tongues. But reproachful epithets merit no reply. It was sufficient for Dr. Coke, by the sanctions of his own con- science, to know that his motives were pure in the sight of God ; and, for his numerous friends on each side of the Atlantic, it must be pleasing to learn that he was beloved and revered in every country which had enjoyed the benefits of his labours. Of this fact the following respectable testimonies furnish the most indu- bitable evidence : — " My Very Dear Friend, Dr. Coke, — When I consider the solemn offer you made of yourself to the general conference, and their free and deliberate acceptance of you as their episcopos, I must view you as most assuredly bound to this branch of the Me- thodist Episcopal Church in the United States of America. You cannot, you dare not but consider yourself as a servant of the church, and a citizen of the continent of America. And although you may be called to Europe to fulfil some prior engagements, and wind up your temporal affairs, nothing ought to prevent your hasty return to the continent, to live and die in America. I shall look upon you as violating your most solemn obligations, if you delay your return. If you are a man of a large mind, you will give up a few islands for a vast continent not less than 1400 miles in length and 1,000 miles in breadth. We have sixteen United States for ingress and regress, rising, not like little settlements, but like large nations and kingdoms. I conclude, that I consider you are no longer a citizen of Wales or England, but of the United States of America. I am, with great respect, " Your ever dear brother, " Francis Asbury. " Charleston, February 8, 1707. " P. S. I give you this to remind you, lest you should forget what you have done, and what the general conference expects from you." On the import and design of the preceding letter no comment can be necessary. It expi ;sses in terms of imperious solicitude the wishes of Mr. Asbury rr.d of the general conference, for Dr. Coke's return to the continent. Nor can the early date of the preceding letter be justly urged against the continuance of the solicitude which it expresses. In the year 1800, the same sentiments were transmitted from the con- ference at Baltimore to that of this country, in reply to an ardent wish that the English conference had expressed for Dr. Coke's return to Europe. In this reply, which is inserted in the fourteenth PREFACE TO LIFE OF DR. COKE. chapter of this volume, they only consented to lend Dr. Coke for a season, reserving to themselves the right of recalling him, as soon as they thought proper, in consequence of the promise which he had previously made to them. In the year 1808, when the American preachers were about to recall him to the continent, a renewed address from the English conference was written, to request them to relinquish their claims; and it was only in compliance with this earnest solicitation that the conference in America were induced to suspend their demands. In their reply they say, " In compliance with your request, a vote has passed that he may continue with you until he may be called to us by all the annual conferences respectively, or the general conference. We are, however, not insensible of his value, not ungrateful for his past labours of love." This reply is inserted at large in the minutes of the English conference for the year 1809. Neither do his friends appear to have been weary of him in Ire- land ; nor does their primitive attachment to him seem to have abated. In the year 1807, the language of the Irish conference respecting his return runs as follows : — " From the fulness of our hearts, dear fathers and brethren, we again repeat our request for the return of our greatly beloved and esteemed friend, Dr. Coke, to be president for the ensuing year. We are deeply conscious what a blessing he is to us, though we cannot fully tell how much we are indebted to him." And in the year 1809, they again say, " We thank you for sending, with such readiness, our old much beloved friend, the Rev. Dr. Coke, as our president, year after year ; and with one accord we earnestly request that you will send him to preside among us the ensuing year." Nor was the tone of their language less affectionate in the year 1813, only a few months before he bade adieu to Europe. Ad- dressing the English conference, they say, " We need hardly assure you that we received the appointment of our dearly beloved brother and president, Dr. Coke, with the best affections of our hearts ; and that his visit has been profitable and comfortable to our souls." The English conference, in reply to this address, express themselves in language which breathes the same spirit of affection : — " We have," say they, " a prospect of sending the word of life to the east. Our beloved brother Dr. Coke, burning with zeal for God, is about to visit that country, accompanied by seven missionaries, so that we hope pure Christianity, as taught by us from the beginning, will soon extend its influence through those populous and extensive regions." Such is the language of the American, the Irish, and the English conferences, respecting this highly favoured servant of God. To record in this preface the obligations which those who were intimately acquainted with Dr. Coke would have laid on the author, by communicating such incidents in his life as might tend to illustrate his character, would afford him much pleasure. But for these favours his acknowledgments must be confined within a narrow compass. To the friendly communications of Mr. John de Glueteville, of Guernsey, he is indebted for the particulars of Dr. Coke's visit to Paris in the year 1791 ; and also to another gentleman for the account he has inserted respecting the Norman 12 PREFACE TO LIFE OF DR. COKE. Isles. To these favours he is not conscious of having received any addition. Benevolence has therefore fixed the boundaries of gratitude, and here both must terminate. From the papers to which he has had access, through the kind- ness of Dr. Coke's executors, the author might easily have aug- mented the number of pages now presented to the public ; but as these papers could only be interesting to the writers, being chiefly confined to local events, they contain nothing that could justify their insertion. From his own private papers, and from the letters, amounting to nearly two hundred, which he has in the handwriting of Dr. Coke, now in his possession, he might also have made nu- merous extracts. These would have furnished pleasing specimens of his easy, familiar, and perspicuous manner of expressing his thoughts in his epistolary correspondence : but to this collection he has omitted, except in two or three instances, to have any recourse, from a full conviction that the history of his life by no means requires a minute developement of his private concerns. In his public actions, in his writings, and in the happy effects which have resulted from his missionary zeal, he still continues to speak, and to instruct his survivors, both b5r his example and his precepts. And the fruits of his active exertions, which con- tinue to acquire magnitude and importance from the accumulation of years, promise to perpetuate his name, and to adorn it with un- fading laurels when those periods shall have passed away in which men of no common renown shall be consigned to oblivion. But these considerations, though of the first importance to the man who only aims at reputation in a region of " mortal immor- tality," are of a remote and secondary nature with the ministers of Jesus Christ. To them, the enlargement of the Redeemer's kingdom, and the salvation of immortal souls, are their glory, and the crown of their rejoicing. Their characters are recorded in heaven, and their recompense will be at the resurrection of the just. By this principle, the writer of this volume sincerely be- lieves that Dr. Coke was primarily actuated ; and as they that are thus wise shall shine as the brightness of the firmament, and they that " turn many to righteousness, as the stars for ever and ever," he must conclude that Dr. Coke will appear as an orb of superior magnitude and brilliancy in the regions of eternity. THE LIFE OF THE REV. THOMAS COKE, LL. D. CHAPTER I. Design of biography — Birth, family, and early education of Dr. Coke — Divine providence, both general and particular, asserted — Removes to Oxford — Profligacy of the- collegians — Becomes an infidel — Reflections on the influence of infidelity in colleges — General behaviour — Influence of conscience — Base conduct of a clergyman — Effects of reading Sherlock's Discourses, and Wither- spoon on Regeneration — Chosen common councilman, and chief magistrate of Brecon — Deluded with promises of Church prefer- ment— Graduates, and procures his diploma — First preaching — State of his mind, and tenderness of conscience. The design of biography is to instruct the living by such a narrative of personal facts as will raise a monu- ment to virtue, by embalming the memory of the dead. The character, therefore, which can be estimated as deservedly claiming this species of writing ought to appear, on a dispassionate review, to have been so con- spicuous as to excite attentive admiration ; to have been so beneficial as to demand a tribute of gratitude ; and so excellent, when due allowances are made for human infirmities, as to be worthy of public imitation. It is not always, however, that the purity of these principles can escape violation. The united influence of wealth and power will sometimes supplant the claims of justice, and fascinate the deluded world with splendid talents, though unadorned by virtue ; ignobly demand- ing the trumpet of fame for a train of successful ex- ploits that are tarnished with crimes of the deepest die. Hence it unfortunately and frequently happens, that " What better far to oblivion were consign'd, Is hung on high, to poison half mankind." 14 LIFE OF THE REV. DR. COKE. The statesman, the poet, the historian, the philoso- pher, and the divine have without doubt a claim upon public attention ; and in proportion as an individual in any of those departments has promoted the welfare of mankind, we reilect with pleasure on his deeds ; and, by cherishing the fond remembrance of his amiable virtues, transmit to posterity the lustre of his name, when his spirit has taken its flight to the regions of immortality, and his tongue is silent in the repositories of death. Nor is it to characters of this description alone that biography should be confined. The arms of science encircle in their wide embrace the sons of genius, of utility, and of virtue in every form which diversity can assume ; and the records of literature have preserved a list of names, to swell the catalogue of the common benefactors of the human race. But no individual, in any condition of life, can ever hope to attain such an eminence as to claim universal regard. The pursuits of men are too various, and their habits of reflection too complicated, to justify such an expectation. Distinct characters shine in different spheres ; but if conducted aright, every vocation in life is highly advantageous to the inhabitants of the world. The statesman may inspire us with a love for our country : the poet may charm us with the magic of his numbers, and aid the cause of virtue by the decorations which he teaches her to wear ; the historian may lead us back through departed ages, and introduce us to the manners of the mighty dead ; and the philosopher may assist us in exploring the hidden recesses of nature, in leading us from visible effects to invisible causes, and he may finally conduct us to the primitive agent, that must necessarily be both infinite and eternal. These charac- ters chiefly confine our views to the present state of existence ; but the divine unfolds before us the interest- ing science of religion and morals ; and, by the light of revelation, conducting us across that awful gulf which divides time from eternity, teaches us the important secret of making the felicities of both worlds our own. "There is perhaps no species of writing more enter- taining than that of biographical narrative ; but its LIFE OF THE REV. DR. COKE. 15 utility must in no small degree depend upon the charac- ter of him who becomes the subject of historical rela- tion. This must always form the criterion when the writer presents to the world a faithful delineation. An individual who has been renowned for probity and vir- tue may become an example to thousands, who may view him as a pattern worthy of imitation ; and his his- tory may diffuse virtues through various walks of life, to which our calculations can never reach."* Little did Dr. Coke think, when publishing the pre- ceding paragraph, that these sentences would ever be transplanted into a biographical account of himself. But the fact serves to illustrate the principle which they contain, as well as to propagate the important and in- structive lesson which they inculcate. And under the impression of this lesson the author now proceeds to delineate the history and character of this highly useful minister in the Church of God. The Rev. Thomas Coke, LL. D., was born at Brecon, in South Wales, on the 9th of September, 1747; and was baptized on the 5th of the following month. His father's name was Bartholomew Coke. This gentle- man was an eminent surgeon in Brecon. He was of high respectability, and several times filled the office of chief magistrate of the town, with much credit to him- self and family, and with an equal degree of satisfaction to the public. His mother's name was Ann Phillips. This lady was the daughter of Thomas Phillips, Esq., and after him his grandson was called Thomas. Of the family of Coke there are some respectable branches still resident at Brecon, but they are not the descendants of Bartholomew. Thomas being their only child, his affectionate pa- rents watched over his infant days with more than com- mon solicitude, and devised the most liberal plans foi his education. But before any of these schemes could be carried into execution, his father was summoned away by the call of death, so that the education of his darling child de- volved on the widowed mother who survived her hus- ( * Coke's Preface to the Life of Christ, p. 16. 16 LIFE OF THE REV. DR. COKE. band many years. Mrs. Coke lived to see his connection with the Rev. John Wesley ; and after embracing and adorning by her piety the doctrines which he taught, died a member of the Methodist society in Bristol, in which city she had long resided. Of his juvenile years and pursuits we have not much knowledge, as some of his papers which referred to his early days were taken with him to India, and it is to be feared that these are irrecoverably lost. After pass- ing through the preparatory steps of education during his childhood, he was placed at a proper age under the tuition of the Rev. Mr. Griffiths, master of the college school at Brecon, with whom he continued several years. Under the care of this gentleman he received the first rudiments of learning ; and so well satisfied was he, as he advanced in life, of the obligations he was under to him, that he always remembered his name with gratitude, and spoke of him in terms of respectful approbation. While these years passed by, his character was marked with the frivolities incident to youth. He was attached to the prevailing amusements, and was particu- larly fond of dancing. This attachment, toward the period of his removal from Brecon, exposed him to nuch company ; and as he was peculiarly handsome, le became an object of admiration among the thought- ess and the gay, and was a singular favourite among lis female associates, to whose charms his heart was by •10 means insensible. He was not, however, even in these years of indis- tretion, wholly destitute of the fear of God, nor igno- rant of his superintending providence. To this he iscribed his preservation when exposed to danger in crossing a river ; and from the apprehended effects of t sixpence which he once accidentally swallowed. A general providence seems to be commonly admitted, iven by those who are disposed to object to that which s particular. These, however, must stand or fall to- gether. He who superintends the whole, must neces- arily superintend all the parts of which that whole is omposed. Without this, we may suppose it possible or the whole to remain, while some of its parts may LIFE OF THE REV. DR. COKE. 17 be destroyed, which is an absurdity not less palpable, than to conceive that the body may remain unmutilated, although many of its essential parts are actually anni- hilated. Of this connection between a general and a particular providence, our young Tyro appeared sensible at an early age ; however incompetent he might then have been to mark their diversity and relation with specific distinction and exactness. At the age of sixteen he was removed from Brecon to Oxford ; and in the Lent term of his seventeenth year was entered a gentleman commoner at Jesus Col- lege, in that university. On leaving the town of his nativity and the seat of comparative innocence and tran- quillity, he soon found himself introduced to companions who bore little or no resemblance to those with whom he had been accustomed to associate. In this seminary of learning he soon discovered a licentiousness of man- ners to which he had hitherto been a stranger. And to complete his astonishment, and excite his detestation, he unhappily found that, instead of apologizing for the enormity of their conduct, some of his fellow students had contrived to discard with contempt those moral principles which he had been taught to consider as sacred, and to shelter themselves under the sorceries of argument, from the pangs of an upbraiding conscience. Between their practice and their principles he soon dis- covered a melancholy agreement. Infidelity had taken possession of their hearts, and its effects were fully un- folded in their lives. Unfortunately, although he had been brought up in the general belief that revelation came from God, and that the doctrines which it taught, and the precepts which it inculcated, were calculated to make men wise unto salvation, his belief was of the hereditary kind ; so that the arguments which proved revelation to be genuine, were totally neglected from an implicit convic- tion of its being true. On finding revelation assailed by sophisms which he had never heard before, and those principles attacked which he had never been in- structed to defend, silence succeeded to astonishment at first ; but the poison was working its way through un- guarded avenues to his heart ; so that by slow and im- IS LIFE OF THE REV. DR. COKE. perceptible degrees he became a captive to those snares of infidelity which he had at first surveyed with detest- ation and horror. This unhappy circumstance formed a memorable epoch in his life. The impression which it made upon his memory was too deep to be effaced. In public and in private he has frequently taken occasion to introduce it, accompanied with terms of compassion- ate indignation against those who cherish the viper by which he was stung, and to reckon his deliverance from this dreadful hydra as a most singular interposition of the providence of God. It must not, however, be supposed, because our young student found himself in the vortex of infidelity, that therefore all within the college walls were tainted with this mental pestilence. In both our universities many characters are always to be found whose principles and conduct are an honour to their profession. And to these sources of learning we stand indebted for some of the most splendid ornaments of our nation, of Europe, and of the world, both in science and divinity. The principles of our young student, being thus tainted, soon communicated their fatal influence to his practice. But the restraints imposed by conscience still remained, and preserved him from those excesses into which he would in all probability have been otherwise hurried. The company into which, alas, he was thrown, sometimes led him to scenes of dissipation ; and he was called to witness those deeds of darkness from which, even in moments of lawless riot, the moral feelings of his heart revolted. To these scenes of midnight abomi- nation he has frequently turned his thoughts with indig- nant horror in his riper years ; and has always accom- panied the recollection with ascriptions of gratitude to God, for preserving him from participating in the vices which he beheld, even at a time when he more than half doubted the Divine existence. Such secret interposi- tions of Divine agency clearly manifest the supera- bounding grace of God, and place its efficacy in a light that is at once commanding and amiable. But although he was thus preserved from the actual commission of the more abominable crimes, he fell an easy prey to the fashionable follies which reputed virtue LIFE OF THE REV. DR. COKE. 19 does not blush to own. To cards he was much inclined ; and whist and quadrille were his favourite amusements. The bottle accompanied the diversion, and midnight occasionally concealed both under her sable mantle. But his success in gaming was never sufficient to induce him either to risk his own fortune, or to tempt him to think that he should ever acquire that of another from among his rival companions. To liquor, his attachment was never excessive. The love of companions in plea- sure, the dread of being singular, and irresolution to resist temptation, were more powerful with him than any inherent inclination to deviate from the path of his primitive simplicity. And perhaps to these, and to similar causes, may be ascribed no inconsiderable share of those gayeties which, in the general estimation of the world, never cease to be amiable until they become excessive. But amid this career of dissipation and folly, the hap- piness which he sought invariably eluded his grasp. No noise was sufficient to silence the voice of conscience ; no torrent of excess could drown her secret whispers ; and no amusement could either extinguish remorse, or compensate for that anguish which involuntary reflection always occasioned. Miserable in the midst of gay com- panions, and haunted by the apparition of disregarded virtue, his life was wretched without any visible cala- mity ; and he sometimes sighed in solitude even white he partook of the stupifying opiates which his associates recommended by their pernicious example. It was in this state of sorrowful indecision, having abandoned his old creed, without finding his new one to correspond with the dictates of his conscience, how much soever it might accord with the wishes he had cherished, that he paid a visit to a clergyman of Wales, whose name at that time had excited some degree of attention and respect. On the arrival of Sunday, this reverend gentleman, willing, in all probability, to please his Oxonian guest, selected a sermon, written in a mas- terly manner, on some of the most important doctrines of the Gospel. This he read with more than common animation ; and appeared, by the manner in which he delivered it, to declare the sentiments of his heart. 20 LITE OF THE REV. DR. COKE. Young Coke listened to the declaimer with all that attention and interest which the solemnity and import- ance of the occasion required ; and felt his attachment to those principles which he had hitherto endeavoured in vain to forget, once more begin to revive in his bosom. The effects of infidelity now appeared in an inauspicious light ; and serious suspicions were entertained by him of the validity of those arguments by which he had been proselyted to adopt his fashionable creed. On returning from church, the visiter took occasion to express his opinion of the sermon which he had just heard, in terms of unqualified approbation. To this he- added some hints on the state of his mind ; and some remarks on the impression which the discourse had made ; expecting, no doubt, to receive more ample informa- tion on those momentous subjects from a minister who had so ably advocated the cause of Christianity in the pulpit. But, strange as it may appear, this unhappy man, instead of endeavouring to remove the objections, which were only formidable to youth and inexperience, archly smiled at the simplicity of his young friend, and frankly told him that he did not believe any of the doctrines he had been defending ! Disgusted at the conduct he had witnessed, without being induced by the clergyman's example to think more favourably of infidelity, which could thus sanction perfidy, and cover an avowal of it with smiles of con- scious superiority, he returned once more to Oxford, with a fixed resolution to take some decisive measures, that should finally confirm him in open infidelity, or bring him back to the principles of Christianity. This, in all probability, was one of the most momentous pe- riods of his life ; since, on the step he was about to take, without any visible guide or director to confirm or correct his judgment, depended, in no small degree, his destiny through life, and his happiness both in time and eternity. It providentially happened that, just at this eventful crisis, the discourses and dissertations of Bishop Sher- lock fell into his hands. These he read with more than common attention and interest; and being a sincere seeker after truth, God was pleased to accompany them LIFE OF THE REV. DR. COKE. 21 with his blessing. From this moment his mind decided in favour of Christianity, and all his deistical reasonings and objections disappeared. In this, also, he always found occasion to glorify the riches of Divine grace in secretly disposing him thus earnestly to search after truth, and in leading him to a treatise that should effec- tually cure the mental malady under which he had so long suffered. The reasonings of Sherlock, however, only made him a Christian in theory. He was still a stranger to the religion of the heart, and knew nothing of the necessity of being born again. But an important point was gained ; it had brought him within the precincts of revelation, and even laid him under an obligation to examine, with deep attention, the various doctrines of that system which he had thus embraced. The effect followed which might naturally be expected. From a treatise on regeneration, by Dr. Witherspoon, he ob- tained a considerable knowledge of the nature and the necessity of it ; but it was not until some time afterward that he was put in actual possession of that genuine faith which unites the contrite soul to the Lord Jesus. Having thus taken a decided part in favour of Chris- tianity, he soon found occasion to leave his infidel com- panions, and with them the practice into which they had initiated him. His attention was now wholly engrossed by his studies ; and his time was spent in the acquire- ment of such knowledge as he conceived to be necessary for that holy calling to which he now seriously turned his thoughts. On his former associates he looked with the sincerest pity ; and on their practice with abhorrence. And, from that moment to the latest period of his life, he always spoke of his residence at Oxford with sorrow, and of the vices which were practised, and even sanc- tioned, among the dissolute students, in terms of detesta- tion. At the age of twenty-one, he was chosen common councilman for the borough of Brecon, which station his father had held when living ; and, at the age of twenty-five, he was elected chief magistrate ; which im- portant office he filled with more than common reputa- tion. The whole corporation were highly satisfied with 22 LIFE OF THE REV. DR. COKE. the rectitude of his conduct during the time that he pre- sided among them ; and the good order of the town was much promoted by his unwearied exertions to advance the public benent. As it was his full intention to enter into holy orders, the authority which his office gave him in Brecon, pro- cured him many flattering prospects of rapid advance- ment in the Church. But preferment, through political interest, is a path in which disappointment frequently smiles at the simplicity of hope. The member of parliament for Brecon, to express his gratitude for the assistance in his election received from the family of Coke, promised to the young candidate for holy orders something that might gratify his wishes ; and taught him to expect a prebend in the cathedral of Worcester. By another gentleman still more exalted in rank, and therefore it was presumed of more influ- ence and authority, his expectations were flattered with the same delusions. These contrived to keep alive his hopes through a series of years, and it was not till age and experience had taught him the folly of relying upon empty promises that he was awakened from that dream in which thousands have been entranced through life. Deluded with the prospects of sudden elevation in the Church, the visionary phantom continued to dance be- fore him till his serious impressions began to fade, and the necessity of being born of God assumed a less im- perious aspect. To prepare himself for that shower of golden honours which he fully expected every mo- ment to fall upon him, he hastened to obtain episcopal orders, that no impediment might obstruct his course, or intercept the bounty of his friends. Several years had now elapsed since the first intima- tions had been given that brought on the ambitious de- lirium with which he was still enslaved. On this account he sought no regular employment, and made no permanent engagement. His hopes had indeed become less ardent through repeated disappointments ; but this circumstance was not sufficient to induce him to abandon them. His fallacious friend having procured a seat in parliament, had rewarded him with promises which he LIFE OF THE REV. DR. COKE. 23 was now furnishing him with leisure to interpret. From his more noble friend he had even still less to expect than from the member ; but " In folly's cup still laugh'd the bubble joy," till, being properly qualified, he took out his degree of Doctor of Civil Laws on the 17th of June, 1775. During those intermediate years in which Dr. Coke, as we shall henceforth call him, waited upon earthly promises, he made no great proficiency in seeking the accomplishment of those that are heavenly. The world and its allurements nearly engrossed his whole soul ; so that although he was a Christian by profession, he was destitute of experimental godliness ; and preserv- ing a moral demeanour he looked no farther. As to the impressions which the treatise of Dr. Witherspoon had made on his mind, they were refined into abstract truths, and as such he was satisfied to retain them. But the necessity of experiencing the love of God actually shed abroad in his heart by the Holy Ghost given unto him, and bringing with it an internal evidence of the knowledge of salvation by the remission of sins, he was content to leave for future consideration. Convinced that the sanguine expectations which he had long cherished with inordinate fondness were likely to terminate in ultimate disappointment, Dr. Coke began seriously to think of forming some plan for life in which he might be useful to his fellow creatures. And although a stranger to vital religion, his aim was to preach the Gospel ; for in no other department had he entertained any thought of exercising his talents. Beyond the pale of the Established Church he had neither inclination nor inducement to pass ; and in the Church he could scarcely hope for any thing above a curacy, unless he should risk his fortune to give effect to promises which had hitherto fed both his vanity and his hopes. He might, indeed, have purchased a living, but to do this he felt much re- luctance from the doubts he entertained whether such transactions were morally just. From the dictates of conscience he was never willing to deviate ; and he wa3 warned by this monitor to avoid making any approaches toward the conduct of Simon Magus, whose money was doomed to perish with him that offered it. 24 LIFE OF THE REV. DR. COKE. Few as the steps were which he had hitherto taken in life, we may perceive in them a tenderness in adhering to the admonitions of conscience even while his heart was unrenewed by Divine grace. Among his infidel companions he was never able to throw off its restraints ; and by these means he was preserved from those ex- cesses of vice into which he saw others plunge without remorse. At the time of his ordination he had many scruples which caused him to hesitate and waver in a State of indecision. But these scruples did not arise from any doubts on the moral propriety of his ordination ; but from a laud- able apprehension lest he should solemnly undertake a task without being able to accomplish it, and thus in- volve himself in an awful responsibility that might im- bitter his life and plant his dying pillow with thorns. The same principle prevailed, when ambition would have tempted him to purchase a living ; and its influence finally deterred him from forming engagements, the duties of which those very scruples prove he was better qualified to perform than many who are totally strangers to consideration, hesitation, and remorse. LIFE OF THE REV. DR. COKE. 26 CHAPTER II. Obtains a curacy at South Petherton — Builds a gallery — Becomes acquainted with Mr. Maxfield — Seriously affected by " Alleine's Alarm" — Reads his sermons — Becomes evangelical in his preach- ing— Church frequented by Dissenters — Interview with Mr. Hull — Becomes acquainted with an old Methodist — Preaches in some dwelling houses in his parish — Finds the pardoning love of God — Begins to preach extempore — Effects of this preaching — Perse- cution— Excluded from the pulpit — Chimed out of the church — Encouraged by Mr. Maxfield — Preaches twice near the church door — Finds an asylum in the family of Edmonds. Dr. Coke, having now exhausted his patience in wait- ing on those proficients in artificial friendship " who squeeze my hand, and beg me come to-morrow," began seriously to look around him for some respectable curacy that would promise to be permanent. It was not long before one of this description offered itself at South Petherton, in Somersetshire. This he readily embraced, as it afforded him an ample field for the exercise of his talents, of his zeal, and above all, of his earnest desire to be useful, which, from his earliest recollection, had always been predominant in his heart. On his arrival at Petherton, though a stranger to vital godliness, he selected for the subjects of his discourses some of the most momentous truths of the Gospel; and delivering these with a degree of animation to which his auditors had not been accustomed, he soon attracted more than ordinary congregations. To enforce the doc- trines which he taught in a manner best calculated to recommend them to his hearers, he endeavoured to form his sermons upon the best models of the age, that by the blessing of God, they might enlighten the under- standings, affect the hearts and reform the lives of those who were committed to his care. And having a stronger confidence in the abilities of some celebrated divines than in his own talents, he frequently through diffidence introduced their compositions into his pulpit ; especially when he found that the language in which they inculca- ted the doctrines which he was solicitous to teach, was more perspicuous than his own. 2 26 LIFE OF THE REV. DR. COKE. But amid these solicitudes, inquiries, and cares, which frequently engaged his midnight hours; instead of growing confident in his own attainments, every day furnished him with some new evidence of hi3 ignorance. The prospects which opened before him appeared boundless ; and in deep humility of soul, he saw the necessity of obtaining more light than he had hitherto acquired, upon many important truths ; and of realizing the influence of Divine grace in his heart, more power- fully than he had hitherto experienced it. Prayer to God for Divine assistance now mingled with his private studies and his public ministrations. All his former, but long neglected impressions again returned ; and he once more perceived, with unquestionable clearness, the necessity of being born of God. The ardent desires of his heart soon became visible in his conversation, and in his preaching ; and the re- port of his fervour and earnestness soon drew to his church the serious part of the neighbourhood ; among whom were many who had already found that invalu- able blessing which Dr. Coke was now evidently seek- ing. To the truths which he thus delivered in great sincerity, he added a degree of eloquence which fre- quently so affected his congregation, that many faces were suffused with tears. It was not long that his church could contain the vast numbers who assembled to hear. He therefore applied to the parish vestry for a gallery to be erected at the public expense. Caution, however, was more predominant than zeal, with those to whom he made his appeal ; and the consequence was, that his application was refused. But this refusal was insuffi- cient either to damp his ardour, or to make him relin- quish an undertaking which he thought necessary in it- self, and likely to be attended with the most beneficial consequences. He, therefore, without any farther con- sultation, employed tradesmen, and actually built a gal- lery at his own private expense. By this unexampled effort and display of liberality, he gave to the astonished farmers of his parish such a proof of his sincerity and disinterestedness, that the more crafty ones began to suspect their new minister was somewhat tainted with Methodism. From these LIFE OF THE REV. DR. COKE. 27 sagacious discoverers it was whispered to others; and all watched him "with sly circumspection." At length ihe suspicions appearing strongly against him, the re- port became general ; and, in a tone of expression that at once partook of indignity and jest, the parson, with- out farther ceremony, was pronounced guilty, and con- sequently loaded with the opprobrious appellation. Happily, however, this report did not terminate either in indignity or jest ; but it soon led to consequences which its propagators had not taken into their calcula- tion. Among the early lay preachers whom the Rev. Mr. Wesley had been instrumental in raising up, was Mr. Thomas Maxfield. This pious man was afterward or- dained by the bishop of Londonderry, who resided some time at Bath for the benefit of his health. On receiving Mr. Maxfield, at Mr. Wesley's particular recommenda- tion, the bishop used the following remarkable words : " Sir, I ordain you to assist that good man, that he may not work himself to death." Some years after this cir- cumstance, Mr. Maxfield quitted Mr. Wesley ; and in the revolution of events, about the time of which we speak, he had taken up his abode not far from South Petherton, where Dr. Coke resided. This minister, on hearing the tale which popular report had circulated, began to entertain an opinion of the Petherton curate very different from that which had floated on the breeze of fame. And feeling a desire to render all the assist- ance in his power to an amiable young man, who im- proved all the light he had, and who was anxious to procure more, he sought his acquaintance, and was in- troduced as a pious friend. During the first interview, their conversation turned on the nature and necessity of conversion ; — on experimental religion, as the genuine source of practical godliness ; — and on the inward wit- ness of the Spirit, which it is the privilege of all believ- ers to enjoy. This conversation was of considerable service to the doctor, who was only yet able to " see men as trees walking." But from the repetition of these visits, his mind became gradually opened to see more clearly the things of God ; many of his doubts were re- moved ; and the whole plan of salvation by faith in the LIFE OF THE REV. DR. COKE. merits of the Saviour, unfolded its beauties to his sus- ceptible understanding and ravished heart, in a manner he had never seen before. But it was not to the conversation of this pious cler- gyman alone, that Dr. Coke had to acknowledge his obligations. Nearly about the same time " Alleine's Alarm to the Unconverted" fell into his hands ; and the forcible manner in which the author applies the language of Scripture, to confirm the salutary truths which his little book contains, riveted upon his heart the informa- tion he had received through the medium of conversation and of fervent prayer. " Sherlock's Discourses had produced a revolution in his opinions ; but Alleine's Alarm now produced a revolution in his heart ;" and from this time he became an earnest seeker of salvation until he experienced a clear manifestation of the love of God. But although he was an earnest seeker of salvation, he had not embraced any particular system, nor even yet begun to inquire into the ultimate tendency of the various tenets which courted his approbation. His final decision in the choice of doctrines, and in favour of those taught by Mr. Wesley, was however soon effected by the following circumstance. Among the pious cler- gymen who occasionally visited the doctor, was the Rev. Mr. Brown, rector of Portishead, and vicar of Kingston, near Taunton. This gentleman, finding the state of indecision in which the doctor's mind at that time oscillated, put into his hands Mr. Fletcher's Ap- peal, and Checks to Antinomianism. These consider- ably assisted him in his religious progress, and were, as he has since declared, " the blessed means of bringing him among that despised people called Methodists, with whom," he adds, 44 God being my helper, I am deter- mined to live and die." It was nearly about the same time, that the Rev. Mr. Hull, a dissenting minister, who had been induced to hear the doctor preach, addressed to him a letter, which tended to encourage him in the good way. To this let- ter he replied ; and after a correspondence of some con- tinuance, and of no small degree of advantage to him, an interview was proposed by Mr. Hull. To this the LIFE OF THE REV. DR. COKE. 29 doctor had no personal objection, but so high were his prejudices in favour of the Establishment, that he choose rather to decline the friendly offer, than to contaminate himself by going to the house of a man who was an avowed dissenter ; and the same prejudices prevented him from receiving Mr. Hull at Petherton. A compromise, however, took place, and they agreed to meet at a farm house, as a neutral spot, to which they might resort without polluting each other. In this interview the doc- tor soon discovered that his heart disowned the preju- dices by which his head had been guided ; and that it was possible for piety and knowledge to exist without the pale of the Established Church. With a man labouring under prejudices so strong as those which at this time held Dr. Coke in captivity, few could be found more suitable to converse, than Mr. Hull. He had embraced the Cavinistic creed, but he was no bigot. Reasonable, communicative, and inge- nuous, he was as willing to hear as to speak, and was more inclined to support his creed by argument than by dogma. This fact the following characteristic anecdote tends to illustrate. One day it is said that he promised his congregation to preach on the ensuing Sunday from Acts x, 34, " Of a truth I perceive that God is no respecter of persons," and to point out the harmony which subsisted between this passage and the system of Calvin. When the day arrived, his congregation was unusually large, and ex- pectation stood on tiptoe. He, however, had scarcely begun, before he discovered that he had roused a lion which he was unprepared to meet. But as his credit was at stake, he resolved to make a formidable effort, and he proceeded accordingly. He had not, however, advanced far, before he perceived such a discord be- tween the system which he had undertaken to defend, and all the passages of Scripture which he could recol- lect, that after several ineffectual attempts he was ob- liged to desist, — to dismiss the congregation, — and to sit down overwhelmed with agitation and silent reflec- tion. During the ensuing week he reviewed his creed with impartial scrutiny, and the result was, that he re- solved, if God should spare him to see another Sabbath, 30 LIFE OF THE REV. DR. COKE. he would preach his love to all mankind. This resolu- tion he is said to have carried into effect; and, to en- courage him to perseverance, God was pleased to crown his labours with more abundant success.* Among the happy effects which resulted to Dr. Coke from his conversation with Mr. Hull, the blow which had been given to his prejudices was not the least ad- vantageous, since this prepared him to receive instruc- tion from those who, in humble life, had experienced the pardoning love of God ; of which an opportunity very shortly occurred. It happened, while he was thus earnestly seeking the salvation of his own soul, and strongly recommending the Saviour of mankind to others, that he had an occa- sion to visit a respectable family in Devonshire. Among the labourers belonging to this family there was a poor man who had for some considerable time been a mem- ber of the Methodist society, and who superintended a small class. This man was soon found out by the doc- tor, who quickly entered into conversation with him on things which belong to our everlasting peace. The poor man, though destitute of worldly knowledge, had extensively explored the unfathomable mines of Divine love, and had large possessions of the unsearchable riches of Christ. On the nature of pardon — the evi- dence which accompanies it — the witness of the Spirit — the necessity of obtaining these inestimable blessings — and the manner in which we must come to God, they discoursed largely, and mutually opened their hearts to each other. From conversation they joined in prayer, and were so united in spirit that the doctor became soli- citous to know something more concerning the Method- ists, of whose doctrines and character he had heard many strange reports. To all his inquiries the old Christian gave him satisfactory replies, which induced him to think that he had been blinded by delusive re- presentations, and he resolved to be the dupe of preju- dice and imposition no longer. It was to the pious and communicative simplicity of this happy rustic, that Dr. Coke declared he owed greater obligations with respect ♦ See the History of the Wesleyan Methodists, p. 405. LIFE OF THE REV. DR. COKE. 31 to finding peace with God and internal tranquillity of soul than to any other person. On returning to his parish, he soon discovered that the discourses which he had been accustomed to de- liver were not altogether so evangelical as he could wish — that the necessity of pardon was not sufficiently enforced — that the evidence accompanying it was not satisfactorily explained — and above all, that a present salvation had not been so much insisted on as he now thought necessary. Under these impressions he pro- ceeded to interline some of his discourses ; to intro- duce paragraphs of an evangelical tendency, and to in- fuse that ardent spirit, by which he was actuated, into all his addresses from the pulpit. On these sincere en- deavours of his servant God was pleased to command his blessing ; so that he had the happiness of perceiv- ing some fruit of his labour, even while he was desti- tute of that inward evidence of his adoption which he so successfully recommended to others. But his pious exertions were not confined within the walls of his church. On taking a survey of his parish he found it very extensive ; and although his church was crowded with hearers, he perceived with sorrow that great numbers among the aged and infirm were un- able to attend. To prevent these from remaining de- stitute of the word of life, which he considered it his indispensable duty to hold forth to all, he appointed meetings on week-day evenings, at the houses of his friends, at which he delivered lectures to those whose .presence he solicited. It was thus, like a faithful shep- herd, he sought the infirm and wandering sheep of his flock, and visited even the highways and the hedges to compel sinners to turn to God. In this laborious man- ner he spent a considerable portion of his time, going about doing good, and finding in the faithful discharge of his duty the approbation of his own conscience, even without enjoying the assurance of faith. Three years had now elapsed since he had taken upon him the charge of his parish, during which time his views had been gradually becoming more evangeli- cal, his soul had experienced more Divine light, and the great plan of redemption had been unfolding to his 32 LIFE OF THE REV. DR. COKE. increasing faith. In the more early part of this period he walked in darkness ; and in the latter, the glimmer- ings of twilight had not given place to the approaching day. The morning had indeed begun to dawn, but the Sun of righteousness had not yet arisen with healing in his wings. But the happy and long expected mo- ment was near at hand. One evening, as he walked into the country to preach to his little flock, his heart was in a particular manner lifted up to God in prayer for that blessing which he had sought so earnestly and so long. He did not then receive any immediate answer to his petition. But while he engaged in his public duty, and was unfolding the greatness of redeeming love, it pleased God to speak peace to his soul, to dispel all his fears, and to fill his heart with a joy unspeakable and full of glory. Transported with the enjoyment of this blessing he returned home, glorifying the Author of all his mercies, and tenderly concerned for his fellow creatures, who were either seeking the same inestimable gem, or living without hope and without God in the world. He soon announced from the pulpit the blessing he had experi- enced ; and his language partook of the fervour of his spirit. His manuscript became too feeble either to con- vey the rapid energy of his thoughts, or to contain the sacred fire which glowed in his breast. He had already, on peculiar seasons, ventured to make excursions be- yond its confines ; but from the lesson which experience had lately taught him, that out of the abundance of the heart the mouth speaketh, he found but little occasion for written discourses. His crutches were therefore thrown aside ; and, under the teachings of the Holy Spirit, he began to walk boldly onward as a master of Israel. In this step also God was pleased to acknow- ledge his servant ; a peculiar unction attended his word ; and under his first extempore sermon three souls were awakened by his ministry. But it was not to be expected that the idle, the thoughtless, the ignorant, the self-righteous, and the profane, throughout the extensive parish of South Pe- therton, would quietly suffer ail these changes and inno- vations. In all ages, and in all places, the carnal mind LIFE OF THE REV. DR. CORE. 33 is enmity against God. This truth Dr. Coke was al- most instantly called to witness. His preaching with- out a book, — the earnestness of his exhortations, — the plainness of his language, — and his establishing even- ing lectures in the villages, all conspired to give offence, and to create a general ferment in the parish and neigh- bourhood. The clergymen in his vicinity were dis- pleased at his violation of accustomed order, and be- cause* his preaching drew away many of their regular hearers. The genteel part of his own parish were offended at his uncommon zeal ; the profane at his severe reproof of sin ; and the moral at his enforcing the necessity of an experimental acquaintance with God. Above all, as he had introdnced the singing of hymns into the church, the singers were much disgusted, and all parties joined in the general clamour. To put an end, if possible, to these wild irregulari- ties, as they were thought, a charge was made out against him, and presented to Bishop Ross; but this did not produce the effect that was expected. The pur- port of his reply was that the utmost he could do would be to suspend him from his ministerial functions for three months ; and that if this were done it would produce a clamour on the opposite side, particularly among those who were inclined to favour Methodism ; and furnish them with a fair pretence for saying that he had been persecuted for righteousness' sake. And, per- haps, he was not without his fears that the doctor, if suspended, would quit the Church for ever, in which such active zeal was so much wanted, and join himself to the Methodists, whose rising power and accumulat- ing numbers he viewed with a jealous eye. This was the only redress they could obtain from Bishop Ross, who thought it best to let the affair remain in silence, for to Dr. Coke he said nothing. The cause was, however, somewhat different with the bishop of Bath and Wells, for to his ears the fame of the doctor's preaching had also reached. But his mea- sures were rather admonitory than authoritative. A letter was sent to the doctor from him, to which a reply was given immediately ; but as nothing more was heard from this quarter, the fair presumption is, either that 2* 34 LIFE OF THE REV. DR. COKE. the bishop was satisfied with his conduct, or that he viewed him as incorrigible, and prudently ceased to ad- monish, as soon as he perceived there was no hope of reformation. But these disappointments were not sufficient to damp the ardour of opposition. The refusal of the bishops to interfere, induced the doctor's enemies to apply to the rectoi of the parish ; who, to gratify their wishes, became one of the party, and promised to dismiss his curate, who had rendered himself obnoxious, in propor- tion as he was become faithful and earnest in seeking the salvation of souls. The scheme was soon concerted ; and on an appointed day, without giving the doctor any opportunity of delivering his own soul in a farewell address to his congregation, he was abruptly dismissed, on a Sunday, before the people, from that church where he had preached upward of three years. And, in the estimation of his enemies, to complete his disgrace, to gratify their vengeance, and consummate their triumph, they actually caused the parish bells to chime him out of the doors. Being thus dismissed with honourable infamy, the doctor's friends gathered around hirn to administer con- solation, and to cheer his drooping spirit. The disgrace attending his expulsion created little uneasiness ; but he felt severely from the precipitancy of the measures that had not allowed him time to preach a farewell sermon to a people whom he never expected to address again. His friends perceived his distress ; and on learning the genuine cause from whence it sprang, recommended an expedient which was soon adopted. As the removal of the doctor from his curacy, though sudden and unexpected to him, was the result of delibe- rate calculation among his enemies, another curate had been provided to supply his place. This gentleman, who stepped immediately into the vacant pulpit, per- fectly understood the part he was to act. He accordingly introduced himself to the notice of his congregation by pieaching against the doctor, and by attempting to counteract those heresies which he had of late propa- gated. This fact the doctor has recorded in his concise memoranda ; but to his honour it ought to be mentioned LIFE OF THE REV. DR. COKE. 35 that charity has left a blank where resentment would have inserted his opponent's name. Harassed in his mind with his uncomfortable situa- tion, and traduced, both in public and in private, by men who could only vindicate their own conduct by vilifying his, he resolved, if possible, to deliver a farewell ad- dress to the people, before he quitted the parish for ever. And he was incited to do this by the encourage- ment of several friends, but more particularly so by Mr. Maxfield, whose name has been already mentioned, and who never forsook him during all his vicissitudes in Petherton. Banished from the citadel of consecration, it was re- solved that, on the two ensuing Sundays, he should stand near the church, and begin to preach just as the people left it, since he could no longer address them from the pulpit within. This was, perhaps, the only expedient, under present circumstances, which he could possibly adopt, to vindicate his character ; to satisfy the dictates of his conscience ; and to gratify the earnest wishes of his sincere adherents. When the day arrived, he took his stand and began his discourse, and found himself surrounded by a pro- miscuous crowd of enemies and friends. There is a something in the exercise of arbitrary power that awak- ens the revolting principles of human nature, and stimu- lates to resistance. It was plain to all, that the doctor had been crushed by an act of local authority, which, without appealing to justice, had sheltered itself under the sanction of law. Many, therefore, who disapproved of his preaching, viewed him now as an object of op- pression, and espoused his cause more, perhaps, from enmity to his oppressors, than from any real attachment to him ; and several among them determined to defend the injured man, whom they thought they had a right to ridicule, and even to traduce, on other occasions. Thus circumstanced, between the jarring opinions of his avowed enemies, — of many who had taken no de- cided part, — of his transient supporters, — and of his permanent friends, the doctor proceeded, and was per- mitted to conclude his first sermon in peace. His ene- mies, however, on finding that he intended preaching 36 LIFE OF THE REV. DR. COKE, again, on the ensuing Sunday, became quite exasperated ; and, without any hesitation, threatened to stone him, in case he made his second appearance. But he was nei- ther to be frightened nor deterred, though many of his friends began to think seriously of the consequences that might ensue, if he persisted ; especially as hostile pre- parations were actually making, in the face of open day. The doctor alone appeared without solicitude ; and his tranquillity arose from a full conviction that he was under the immediate inspection and care of an omniscient and omnipresent Being, in whom he had learned to put his trust. There resided, at this time, not far from Petherton, an amiable family of dissenters, named Edmonds. This family, which was of no small respectability, consisted of the gentleman and his lady, and a son and daughter, both grown to maturity. The son and daughter, though bred up as dissenters, on hearing the report of the doc- tor's preaching, in times past, had determined to attend the church. This they did ; and conceiving an attach- ment for him, they became his regular hearers. On the morning of the second Sunday after his expulsion, when the parents proceeded to their own meeting house, they cautioned their children against going to the church on that day ; well knowing the plans that had been con- certed, and their strong attachment to the doctor. Pru- dence, therefore, directed them to give these admonitions, from an apprehension that their children might be in- volved in troubles, which they could neither remedy nor prevent. Scarcely, however, had the cautious parents left their home, before their courageous son and daughter began to reflect on the- perilous situation of their friend ; and, thinking it mean to desert him in time of need, their affection prevailed over parental admonitions ; they therefore took their horses, and rode immediately to Petherton. Among the preparations that were made to annoy the congregation, and to drive the doctor from the field, a large quantity of stones had been collected and placed in some hampers, near the spot on which he was expected to stand. But these hostile appearances were insufficient to divert the Edmondses from their LIFE OF THE REV. DR. COKE. 37 purpose. They accordingly placed themselves, when the doctor began, one on the right hand and the other on the left, to wait the impending event. To these were joined a great number of other real friends, who had rallied around him in this moment of danger ; and with these, associated the enemies of persecution, so that only an inconsiderable party was found to patronize the ham- pers, and discharge their contents ; and these were from the common rabble, which every town and parish can produce. Why men, whose deeds are evil, should prefer dark- ness to light, requires no great degree of penetration to discover. It was now open daylight ; and the persons of all were well known to many, who, from the counte- nance which, by their present attitude, they seemed to give the doctor, tacitly declared that they intended to espouse his cause against every attempt of illegal vio- lence. Under these circumstances, it became a matter of prudent calculation with every one, to avoid casting the first stone. The event was, that the doctor proceeded in his discourse, and finally concluded, before the ham- pered proselytes could resolve how to carry their pre- meditated threats and designs into execution. The service thus concluding without any act of hostility, the young Edmondses took the doctor with them to their habitation, where he was kindly received by the parents ; and from this period he always made this house his home during all his future visits to Petherton. Being now dismissed from his curacy, and having taken an affectionate leave of the congregation, it be- came a subject of serious consideration with Dr. Coke, to know what course he should take in passing through life. As to Church preferment, his hopes were far from being sanguine, although, even to the present hour, the promises of his friends had been calculated to keep alive his expectations. To another curacy he could without much difficulty have access. But from what he had already experienced, he had reason to fear that his way would be strewed with briers ; and that the general use- fulness at which he aimed, would be prevented by ob- stacles which it would be useless to encounter, while they were sanctioned by superiors, who were more dis- 38 LIFE OF THE REV. DR. COKE. posed to countenance a mob, than to support him against their outrages. Placed in circumstances of comparative affluence, he was under no necessity of seeking employment for bread. He therefore resolved to pause for a season, till those clouds should dissipate, which, at present, gathered around him, on every side, and completely shut the ave- nues of reasonable hope. An inward sense of the Di- vine favour, a consciousness of his own rectitude of intention, and the consolations of a few friends, were his only solace. Hence in the midst of darkness he was enabled to confide in God, although he could form no conception of those approaching dispensations which have conspired to render his name immortal. CHAPTER III. First interview with Mr. "Wesley at Taunton — Joins the Method- ists— Appointed to London — Popular among the people — Visits the societies — Contends with difficulties — Bears an active part in procuring the deed of declaration — Testimony of Mr. Wesley and Dr. Coke respecting the deed of declaration — Presides in the first Irish conference — Testimonies of approbation in favour of Dr. Coke — State of religion in Ireland. It has sometimes been observed in the natural world, that excessive darkness is but a prelude to approaching day ; and in the moral world we frequently discover in the economy of God, that " behind a frowning provi- dence he hides a smiling face." Dr. Coke had thus far experienced the darkness and. the frown, but these were to be succeeded by daylight and smiles. While affairs were in a state of agitation atPetherton, he had accidentally learned that Mr. Wesley was to preach at Taunton on a given day, and was to sleep the ensuing night at the house of the Rev. Mr. Brown, in Kingston. As this was the gentleman from whom Dr. Coke had received the works of Mr. Fletcher, an inti- macy had taken place between them. The doctor, therefore, thought this a favourable opportunity for an LIFE OF THE REV. DR. COKE. 39 interview with Mr. Wesley, from whose conversation he hoped to reap much spiritual advantage. He accord- ingly took his horse, and rode that day to Kingston, that he might enjoy the company of^,his venerable serv- ant of Jesus Christ in the evening, after he returned from preaching at Taunton. He would not, however, presume to hear Mr. Wesley preach in any place beside the church, although he had travelled twenty miles to enjoy his company and conver- sation. Nothing at this time could be more repugnant to his feelings and judgment, than the thoughts of sepa- rating from the Establishment, within the pale of which he had resolved to live and die. Of his conversation with Mr. Wesley and Mr. Brown we have no memorial. But from the manner in which Mr. Wesley has recorded the interview, we may be fully satisfied it was highly pleasing to both parties. "I preached," says Mr. Wesley, in his journal of August 18, 1776, " at Taunton, and afterward went with Mr. Brown to Kingston. Here I found a clergyman, Dr. Coke, late a gentleman commoner of Jesus col- lege, in Oxford, who came twenty miles on purpose to meet me : I had much conversation with him, and a union then began which I trust shall never end." This appears to have been their first interview ; and although the language might not have been prophetic, the event proved perfectly consonant to his expectations in time, and who can doubt, that it has been renewed with in- creasing ardour since they have met in the world of spirits ! But this union of spirit was not yet matured to a unity of action. However, as Mr. Wesley, during this interview, unfolded to him his plans, and communicated his designs, he was furnished with an opportunity of reflecting upon what he had heard, and of deliberately sitting down to count the cost, if he had any latent in- tention of finally joining him in the work in which he was engaged. At what particular time Dr. Coke was dismissed from his curacy is rather uncertain ; but this uncertainty is confined within a very narrow compass. And conse- quently, as his removal from Petherton finally deter- 40 LIFE OF THE REV. DR. COKE. mined him to join Mr. Wesley, the event of this union is involved in the same degree of uncertainty. It is plain, however, that this removal, and this union, must have taken place between August, 1776, and August, 1777, since in the former date we behold their first in- terview, and in the latter we perceive that union formed which had been virtually anticipated. Mr. Wesley, in his journal of the 19th of August, 1777, wrote as follows: "I went forward to Taunton with Dr. Coke, who, being dismissed from his curacy, has bidden adieu to his honourable name, and is deter- mined to cast in his lot with us." The Methodist con- ference was this year held in Bristol, and Dr. Coke at- tended ; but for some reasons which are not known, his name made no appearance in the minutes until the ensu- ing year, when he was appointed to labour in London. If conjecture may be permitted to supply the place of evidence in this instance, it seems not unreasonable to suppose that Mr. Wesley, highly pleased with the ac- quisition of a pious, active clergyman, might have chosen to take him in his own company, while he paid a visit to the societies, in order to furnish him with an opportunity of making his observations — to introduce him to the people — and to confirm him in those princi- ples which he had already embraced, as well as accusr torn him to that discipline which he had thus far esta- blished. As the doctor had many friends in exalted sta- tions who had continued almost to the very last to flatter his hopes, Mr. Wesley, who was well acquainted with human nature, might not be without his fears that some- thing very tempting might be held out to recall him, when the step he had taken came to be fully known. Prudence might therefore have conspired to keep him immediately under his own eye, till the day of tempta- tion was past, and his former friends had placed him among the incorrigibles. We are warranted in drawing these conclusions from the conduct of Lord , who had for some consider- able time honoured the doctor with his friendship and professed patronage. And not many months before he was dismissed from his curacy, and had joined Mr. Wes- ley, his lordship sent him a letter in his own handwriting, LIFE OF THE REV. DR. COKE. 41 renewing his promise that he would recommend him to his majesty for some preferment at the disposal of the crown. Nothing, however, was either done or promised after he had taken his decisive step. And perhaps his noble patron was not displeased to find that ultimate disappointment had been so nicely concealed in the garb of promise, as to escape detection under so favour- able a pretext. The doctor, having advanced so far as to be above the desire and beyond the opportunity of retracting with any hope of preferment, entered on his new vocation with that zeal and energy which invariably distinguished all his actions. To Mr. Wesley's advice and direction he was ever ready to submit ; and he was generally em- ployed on those occasions where clerical assistance was thought to be expedient ; for to this order our late vene- rable father still retained an invincible attachment. The report of Dr. Coke's conversion, — of his energetic manner of preaching, — of his ill treatment at South Pe- therton, — of his being dismissed from his curacy, — and of his having joined Mr. Wesley, was soon circulated throughout the Methodist connection. It had reached London long before his appointment for the metropolis, and had excited strong prepossessions in his favour. His congregations were therefore exceedingly large, and frequently the houses were insufficient to contain the people. This induced him to preach abroad when- ever the weather permitted, and the congregation ren- dered it necessary ; and God was pleased on these occasions to add many seals to his ministry. The ground on which Tavistock-square now stands, was at that time laid out in fields. In these he frequently collected large assemblies, and much good was there done through his instrumentality. Nor was this popularity of a transient nature. His earnestness, his activity, his piety, his zeal for God, and, above all, his unconquerable desire to do good, which was always evinced by his warm addresses to the hearts of his hearers, ensured him a cordial reception on all occasions, even when more splendid talents and more commanding eloquence were compelled to plead in vain. To this ascendency in the affections of the people, the 42 LIFE OF THE REV. DR. COKE. harmony of his voice, the engaging smile which his countenance displayed, and the clerical character which he sustained, no doubt, in part contributed. But these inferior circumstances must be allowed to dwindle into their own insignificance when compared with that pe- culiar unction with which God was pleased to attend his word. Dr. Coke, having made himself fully acquainted with the doctrines, discipline, and rules of the Methodists, through his intimacy with Mr. Wesley, and his daily observations, was appointed, in the year 1780, to super- intend the affairs of the London circuit. Nothing, how- ever, of particular moment occurred while he held this office. His zeal, his activity, his usefulness, and his popularity continued without diminution. He was con- sidered by the people as an invaluable acquisition to the cause of Methodism ; and Mr. Wesley's confidence in him, which was nearly unbounded, was most judiciously placed with regard to the execution of his plans. His faithfulness, however, in fully discharging what he conceived to be his duty, under the direction of Mr. Wesley, was not always without its difficulties ; nor was his situation, at all times, of the most comfortable nature. But to all these inconveniences he had resolved to sub- mit, from a full conviction that he was in the path of duty, and that trials and sufferings are the lot of all who will live godly in Christ Jesus. - During many years, before Dr. Coke joined him, it had been an established custom with Mr. Wesley to visit the societies which God had made him instrumental in raising up, so often as his other avocations would allow. But so much had these societies increased in number, both in England and Ireland, about the year 1780, that to many his personal visits had been restricted to every second year. On the acquisition of Dr. Coke, Mr. Wesley, however, determined that in Ireland he should visit the societies alternately with himself, thus making between them in that kingdom an annual visit ; and in England, that he should take such journeys as prudence might direct, and circumstances allow. Dr. Coke accordingly entered on this arduous work about the year 1780, and, under various modifications, con- LIFE OF THE REV. DR. COKE. 43 tinued travelling almost incessantly either by land or water, until death put a period to his mortal career. Among the members of the societies he was generally received as an inhabitant of the celestial regions, who, out of compassion to common mortals, had condescended to visit the abodes of men. His manner of preaching always left a favourable impression on the minds of the people at large ; his word was frequently attended with the Divine blessing ; and the regret they felt at parting with him was equal to the joy they manifested on his arrival. As a clergyman of the Church, he frequently found the doors of the Establishment open for his recep- tion ; and his character and dress procured for him a number of friends, who commanded respect in many places, where, without a gown or cassock, a preacher of the Gospel durst not appear with safety. In the course of these journeyings, it came to the doctor's lot to revisit South Petherton, the place of his former residence, from the church of which he had been dismissed. But time had wrought a considerable change in the dispositions of the people, and procured for him a reception which an able writer, animadverting on the consequences of his removal, thus describes : — " Meanwhile the doctor's opponents had no great comfort of their triumph. The worth of certain cha- racters is not appreciated till we feel their loss. In walking the street, they everywhere met a mournful countenance. The poor had lost their benefactor, the people their pastor, the sick their comforter, and the wicked the only person that kept them in awe. But on the doctor's future visit, sober reason having regained the sovereignty, these same opponents were the foremost to chastise their own folly. 4 Well,' said they, ' we chimed him out, and now we will atone for our error, by ringing him in.' Such are the issues of bearing ad- versity with a becoming temper of mind."* As the doctor, in his occasional visits, sometimes acted as Mr. Wesley's more immediate representative, it was not unfrequently his lot to introduce regulations into the societies with which many were dissatisfied. * History of the Wesleyan Methodists, p. 410. 44 LIFE OF THE REV. DR. COKE. His power was rather discretionary than precisely defi- nite : and, in several instances, he has been accused of proceeding beyond the bounds of delegated authority. How far such a charge may be considered as just, it is impossible to say. The warmth and energy of his na- tural disposition, his eagerness to accomplish his pur- poses, and his promptitude of action, will tend to sanction the accusation. But it is well known when projected schemes miscarry, that the views of men undergo a con- siderable alteration, and those efforts are frequently rewarded with censure for which success would have insured applause. With difficulties of this nature the doctor was sometimes compelled to contend ; while the part which he actually bore in the dubious transactions rendered his means of defence more perplexing than the charges were serious which he undertook to obviate ; and this ultimately exposed his conduct to suspicions which it was not easy for him to repel. An affair of this kind occurred much about this time respecting the settlement of the Methodist chapels. It is well known that the itinerant plan of preaching has always been considered as a fundamental principle in the economy of Methodism. It has been owned and blessed of God in a most remarkable manner. Origin- ating with Christ and his apostles, it has been proved to be the most efficacious means for propagating the Gos- pel that, under God, have ever blessed the world from the commencement of the Christian era to the present hour. To preserve this plan from violation, it is obvi- ous that the stationing of the preachers must ultimately rest with the preachers themselves. For if the people have a right to dictate or appoint, all will choose men of superior talents ; all will reject those of weak ones : contending parties will instantly be formed, and the whole connection will degenerate into factions. But if, to preserve the itinerant plan, the appointment of the preachers must rest with the conference, the security of the pulpits throughout the kingdom must be necessary, to give that plan and this appointment their proper effect. In providing for these consequences, two difficulties of considerable magnitude occurred to Mr. Wesley; one LIFE OF THE REV. DR. COKE. 45 was in annexing some definite idea to the term confer- ence ; and the other was, how to secure the use of the pulpits, without including in that security the property of the chapels. To compass these points, Mr. Wesley made what is generally called " The Deed of Declara- tion," which he caused to be enrolled in chancery. In this deed he made provision for the settlement of the chapels in his connection, and restricted the term con- ference to one hundred of the preachers, who were spe- cified by name ; pointing out, at the same time, how those deficiencies should be supplied which might be occasioned by death, or by other causes. This Deed of Declaration may be seen at large in Dr. Whitehead's Life of Mr. Wesley, vol. ii, p. 384, Dublin edition. It is dated Feb. 28, 1784. The publication of this deed created a transient stir throughout the connection ; particularly among a few of those preachers who were not included in the hun- dred that were expressly named. And what added to the momentary uneasiness was, that some who were omitted had been of long standing, and were of con- siderable influence, while others who were included, had little or nothing to recommend them that could be discovered by such as complained because they were not mentioned. As the name of Dr. Coke was included in the hundred, the charge of limiting the number fell chiefly on him ; and as he wras known to have taken an active part in the business, the imputation seemed to be founded on something more than mere suspicion. Those, therefore, who conceived themselves to be slighted by the omission of their names, could easily perceive artifice and design in his conduct, and even discover his latent intention to assume over them an unauthorized degree of dominion immediately after Mr Wesley's decease ; and these steps were thought to be preparatory to the measure. But how loud soever the clamour raised against him might have been on this account, and by how many voices soever it might have been echoed, it does not appear that the charge was ever supported by any real evidence, either directly or indirectly. On his conduct on this occasion the joint testimony of Mr. Wesley and 46 LIFE OF THE REV. DR. COKE. himself positively declares the contrary, in language too unequivocal to be misunderstood. "My first thought," says Mr. Wesley, " was to name a few, suppose ten or twelve persons. Count ZinzendorfT named only six who were to preside over the community of Moravians after his decease. But, on second thoughts, I believed there would be more safety in a greater number of counsellors, and therefore named a hundred, as many as I judged could meet with- out too great an expense, and without leaving any circuit naked of preachers while the conference was assem- bled. " In naming these preachers, as I had no adviser, so I had no respect of persons ; but I simply set down those that, according to the best of my judgment, were most proper. But I am not infallible. I might mis- take, and think better of some of them than they de- served. However, I did my best, and if I did wrong, it was not the error of my will, but of my judgment. " But what need was there for any deed at all ? There was the utmost need of it. Without some authen- tic deed, fixing the meaning of the term, the moment I died, the conference had been nothing. Therefore any of the proprietors of land, on which our preaching houses were built, might have seized them for their own use ; and there would have been none to hinder them, for the conference would have been nobody, a mere empty name. " You see, then, in all the pains I have taken about this absolutely necessary Deed I have been labouring not for myself, (for I have no interest therein,) but for the whole body of the Methodists, in order to fix them on such a foundation as is likely to stand as long as the sun and moon endure : that is, if they continue to walk by faith, and to show forth their faith by their works: otherwise I pray God to root out the memorial of them from the earth. John Wesley."* Of the part which Dr. Coke bore in the procuring and completing of the Deed of Declaration, he gives the following account, in "An Address to the Methodist * Coke's and Moore's Life of Wesley, p. 356. LIFE OF THE REV. DR. COKE. 47 Society in Great Britain and Ireland on the settlement of the preaching houses." "My Dearest Brethren, — It has long been the grief of my mind, that any thing should exist among us which gives uneasiness to many of you, and will, if it be suffered to continue among us, be a ground for per- petual dissatisfaction, to the great hinderance of the work of God ; I mean the power given to the confer- ence by the present mode of settling our preaching houses. " I have opened my sorrowful mind at large to seve- ral of the most judicious of our preachers ; men who have borne the heat and burden of the day, men of re- nown in our Israel, and they have, with one voice, ad- vised me to lay before you the present plan of recon- ciliation. For this purpose I shall in the first place relate to you the several steps by which the Deed, which was enrolled in chancery by our dear honoured father in the Gospel, Mr. Wesley, was set on foot, and afterward completed. " In the conference held in the year 1782, several complaints were made, in respect to the danger in which we were situated, from the want of specifying, in dis- tinct and legal terms, what was meant by the term, 4 The conference of the people called Methodists.' In- deed, the preachers seemed universally alarmed, and many expressed their fears that divisions would take place among us after the death of Mr. Wesley on this account ; and the whole body of preachers present seemed to wish that some methods might be taken to remove this danger, which appeared to be pregnant with evils of the first magnitude. " In consequence of this (the subject lying heavy on my heart) I desired Mr. Clulow, of Chancery-lane, Lon- don, to draw up such a case as I judged sufficient for the purpose, and then to present it to that very eminent counsellor, Mr. Maddox, for his opinion. This was accordingly done, and Mr. Maddox informed us, in his answer, that the deeds of our preaching houses were in the situation we dreaded ; that the law would not re- cognize the conference in the state in which it stood at that time, and, consequently, that there was no central 48 LIFE OF THE REV. DR. COKE. point which might preserve the connection from split- ting into a thousand pieces after the death of Mr. Wes- ley. To prevent this, he observed that Mr. Wesley- should enrol a deed in chancery, which deed should specify the persons by name who composed the confer- ence, together with the mode of succession for its per- petuity ; and at the same time such regulations be established by the deed as Mr. W^esley would wish the conference should be governed by after his death. " This opinion of Mr. Maddox I read in the confer- ence held in the year 1783. The whole conference seemed grateful to me for procuring the opinion, and expressed their wishes that such a deed might be drawn up and executed by Mr. Wesley as should agree with the advice of that great lawyer, as soon as possible. M Soon after the conference was ended, Mr. Wesley authorized me to draw up, with the assistance of Mr. Clulow, all the leading parts of a deed which should answer the above mentioned purposes. This we did with much care, and as to myself I can truly say with fear and trembling", receiving Mr. Maddox's advice in respect to every step we took, and laying the whole ultimately at Mr. Wesley's feet for his approbation ; there remained now nothing but to insert the names of those who were to constitute the conference. Mr. Wesley then declared that he would limit the number to one hundred. This was indeed contrary to my very humble opiniont which was, that every preacher, in full connection, should be a member of the conference ; and that admission into full connection should be looked upon as admission into membership with the confer- ence ; and I still believe it will be most for the glory of God, and the peace of our Zion, that the members of the conference admit the other preachers who are in full connection, and are present at the conference from time to time, to a full vote on all occasions. However, of course, I submitted to the superior judgment and authority of Mr. Wesley. But I do publicly avow that I was not concerned in the limitation of the number, or the selection of the hundred preachers who were nomi- nated the members of the conference. 44 All things necessary being completed in the court LIFE OF THE REV. DR. COKE. 49 of chancery according to law, I thought it my duty to send copies of the Deed to all assistants of circuits throughout Great Britain ; and I afterward carried co- pies of it to Ireland." However full and explicit these declarations are, both from Mr. Wesley and Dr. Coke, they were insufficient at that time to silence the clamour that discontent had raised, or to stay the ferment which the Deed of Decla- ration occasioned. Mr. Wesley had as positively de- clared that in naming the hundred he had no adviser, and was not actuated by any respect of persons, as Dr. Coke had, that the limitation to this number was con- trary to his judgment, and that he had no concern what- ever either in the restriction or the nomination. But the irritation which these measures occasioned, has long since subsided ; and the dangers which were anticipated have been found to be the phantoms of imagination. The Deed of Declaration is now uniformly acknow- ledged as a blessing to the connection, of which the happy consequences will probably be felt by generations yet unborn. The part, therefore, which Dr. Coke took in procuring it has already obtained for him the appro- bation of the present age, and we cannot doubt that it will ensure the gratitude of posterity. But how much soever Dr. Coke might have been buf- feted by these conflicting storms, he continued gradually to rise in the estimation of Mr. Wesley, and in that of most others who placed confidence in his judgment. Of this fact his subsequent appointments to fill the most arduous situations which the connection at that time afforded, bear the most unquestionable testimony. And the manner in which he acquitted himself in the dis- charge of his duties may be gathered from the glorious effects which have resulted from his exertions ; and from that respect and veneration with which his name is remembered by the pious in the sister kingdom, and in all other places which have witnessed his extensive la- bours. In the year 1782 he was directed by Mr. Wesley to convene together the Irish preachers, and to hold, for the first time, a conference in Dublin, upon the same principles that the conferences in England had been 3 50 LIFE OF THE REV. DR. COKE. conducted. Methodism, prior to this time, had obtained a considerable footing in Ireland, notwithstanding the rage of persecution which the advocates of the Gospel had been compelled to endure. Both Mr. Wesley and his brother had visited this country ; and an account of the treatment they received from mobs, instigated and supported by men in authority, may be seen at large in the Life of Mr. Wesley by Dr. Coke and Mr. Moore, and also in that of Dr. Whitehead. During these visits Mr. John Wesley had collected together several of the Irish preachers, and had consulted writh them on the re- ligious affairs of Ireland ; but these occasional conven- tions had never yet assumed the form of conferences. All the concerns of Ireland, that were deemed of im- portance, had been transacted in England, where the appointment of all the preachers throughout the connec- tion took place. But from the increase of the societies, and the accumulation of business, a separate conference was found necessary; and in the year 1782 Dr. Coke for the first time presided in that assembly, which has been continued annually ever since. On his first official visit to Ireland, though unac- quainted in a great degree with the habits and prevailing propensities of the people, he soon discovered great im- proprieties, that had principally sprung up through neglect of discipline. Against these he delivered his testimony in pointed language, and thus gave to the preachers and people a fair specimen of wrhat they might expect, so long as he had the honour of presiding in their conferences. But this faithfulness in the discharge of his duty presented no obstacle to his subsequent ap- pointments. He was an avowed enemy to sin, and his friends were actuated by the same principle. As the Irish were so well satisfied with his conduct, as president of their conference, that they were anxious for his reappointment, he took occasion, in several suc- ceeding years, to travel over as many circuits as time would permit him to visit, in order to make himself fully acquainted with the state of religion throughout the kingdom. This previous knowledge, thus acquired, enabled him to fill his station in the ensuing assembly with more confidence in himself, and with an increasing LIFE OF THE REV. DR. COKE. 51 approbation from the people. And from this year, 1782, until he prepared to visit India, Dr. Coke almost invariably presided in the Irish conference ; thus filling the presidential chair with honour, approbation, and great utility, for nearly thirty years. Nor was this popularity the mere offspring of a mo- mentary impulse. It continued to follow him through all the variations which thirty years can hardly fail to produce ; and in their public assembly, toward the close of his mortal career, they expressed their sentiments in terms of decided approbation. And I transcribe their testimony with additional pleasure, from finding it re- corded by an annotator in the work of Dr. Whitehead, his rival biographer of Mr. Wesley's life. " Dr. Coke continued to visit the societies in different parts during Mr. Wesley's life. He has presided at conferences in Ireland when it was judged inexpedient for that man of God to cross the water. And that he fully answered the opinion formed of him by Mr. Wes- ley, must appear obvious even to those enemies whose puny efforts, so strenuously engaged to tarnish his cha- racter, have but tended to strengthen the Methodist so- cieties and all liberal minds in that opinion. So prepos- sessed are the members of the Irish conference in favour of Dr. Coke, that, since Mr. Wesley's death, they have made it a constant request, that the English conference would indulge them by granting that their affectionate friend should preside at their annual meeting — at which he has, for the most part, accordingly presided, and under God has proved a great blessing. The following extracts from the English and Irish conferences in 1805, prove the latter assertion : — " 'Your readiness of mind to comply with our request, so often made, for our greatly respected friend and bro- ther, Dr. Coke, convinces us still more and more of your affection toward us. We do, therefore, with con- fidence, unanimously request that he may be appointed our president the ensuing year. It will, we believe, afford you much pleasure to be informed that our love and respect for him increase every year ; so that we were ready to look upon ourselves as orphans when contrary winds delayed his coming so long; but we LIFE OF THE REV. DR. COKE. made prayer to God for him, and our gracious Lord sent him to us (in Dublin) the evening before our con- ference began.' " To this solicitation the following reply was re- turned : — " ' In compliance with your request, we appoint the Rev. Dr. Coke to be the president of the next Irish con- ference, to be held in Dublin on the first Friday in July, 1806. He has long been to us a greatly beloved friend and brother ; and we pray that he may meet you in all the fulness of the blessing of the gospel of peace.'"* If we turn from the affectionate approbation with which his labours were received in Ireland, to the bene- fits which resulted from them, his importance as an in- strument in the Church of Christ will not appear in a less advantageous light. On making a comparative es- timate between the state of Methodism in 1782, when he first presided in the first conference, and that which was exhibited in 1813, the last conference which he ever attended in Ireland, just before his departure for India, and the last in which his voice shall be ever heard, the result will be too striking to require any comment. In the year 1782 there were in Ireland no more than fifteen circuits, thirty-four preachers, and about six thou- sand members in society, with but few preaching houses, and scanty congregations. But in the year 1813 the circuits, including eight missionary ones, which may be considered as exclusively of his establishment, amounted to fifty-six. The preachers, including the missionaries, and those who had grown infirm by their continued la- bours in the work of the ministry, were augmented to one hundred and twenty-one ; and the members of soci- ety had increased to twenty-eight thousand, seven hun- dred, and seventy, of which number nine hundred and forty-seven had joined the society during the preceding year. From that period to the present, the work in that kingdom has continued to spread in a rapid manner ; and although the missionary preachers have been occa- sionally exposed to persecution, their labours have been * See Whitehead's Life of Mr. Wesley, vol. ii, p. 403, Dublin edition. LIFE OF THE REV. DR. COKE. 53 blessed to thousands, who continue to grow in grace, and in the knowledge and love of God. As Dr. Coke, toward the latter period of his life, was chiefly engaged in the promoting of missions, his name stood at the head of the missionary department, in the appointments of the preachers. And as superintendent of the missions he regularly published, during the last seven years or more* of his life, an annual report, in which he traced the rapid or progressive advancement of the work of God in various parts of the world. Among these it is pleasing to review the manner in which it has prospered in Ireland, and to trace the kind hand of Providence in preserving his ministers and faithful people in the midst of surrounding discourage- ments and dangers. Since his removal from Europe, and ultimately from this terrestrial abode, the annual report has been pub- lished by the secretaries for the foreign and home mis- sions. And from their statement, in the report for 1814, we may easily gather that the work, so happily begun, is still proceeding under the divine blessing in various parts of Ireland. " Knowledge," they observe, " in the estimation of all wise and good men, is the way to holi- ness and happiness. We have long lamented the gross ignorance, deep depravity, and extreme wretchedness of the great mass of Irish Catholics ; and have used various means to enlighten their judgments, and turn them from Satan to God. Considerable success has crowned our past labours, whereby we are encouraged still to proceed in this labour of love. Our missionaries in Ireland are men of deep piety and steady zeal. Their labours are abundant, and their sufferings and privations great ; but amid all they proceed in their work like primitive apos- tles. Much good has been done by their instrumentality this year ; and pleasing prospects of future success con- tinually open to their view. One of them, speaking of a very dark part of the country, says, * The Lord has caused the wilderness and solitary places to be glad, and the desert to rejoice and blossom as the rose !' In many places where the Bible had not been seen, it is now read with seriousness, attention, and prayer; and several have committed select passages to memory, and repeated 54 LIFE OF THE REV. DR. COKE. them to the preachers in a manner highly gratifying."* These observations almost exclusively refer to the state of the missions in Ireland, which, under God, owe their existence and establishment to the indefatigable exer- tions of Dr. Coke. It is pleasing thus to reflect how the little one has become a thousand ; how the borders of Zion are gra- dually enlarged ; and how multitudes flock to the stand- ard of the gospel, and embrace the truth as it is in Jesus. And although, whether a Paul shall plant or an Apollos shall water, it is only God who can give the increase ; yet we cannot forget the favoured instrument which the Head of the church has been pleased to employ in the accomplishment of his own work. Those who have received distinguished honours from God have a strong claim to respect from their fellow creatures, and parti- cularly from their fellow Christians. To neglect the instrument is to treat the almighty Agent with con- tempt ; and to do this, is to be guilty of ingratitude to- ward both. * Annual Report of the State of the Missions for 1814. CHAPTER IV. Mr. Wesley's early visit to America — Origin of Methodism in America — Mr. Embury, Mr. Strawbridge, and captain "Webb, visit the continent — First preaching house built in 1768— Mr. Boardman and Mr. Pilmoor repair to America — Mr. Asbury goes thither in 1771 — Mr. Wright, Mr. Shadford, and Mr. Rankin, in 1773 — State of Melihodism at the commencement of the war — Various occurrences during the unhappy conflict. At an early period of Mr. Wesley's life, when zeal and a sense of duty began to direct his actions, he visit- ed the continent of America in that ministerial character which he had not long assumed. He sailed from Eng- land the latter end of October, 1735, and returned again the first of February, 1738. Of the purity of his intentions, and his wishes to do good, no doubt what- LIFE OF THE REV. DR. COKE. 55 ever can be entertained. But the trials to which he was exposed, and the train of difficulties which he was obliged to encounter, during the short period of his residence abroad, rendered his situation exceedingly un- comfortable ; so that he found himself rather in a school of discipline, than in a field of ministerial labour. But this expedition was not undertaken in vain. As to him- self, he procured much spiritual light from the compa- nions of his voyage ; much knowledge of the state of religion in some parts of the continent ; and realized an early specimen of those persecutions and storms which it was his lot to encounter through a considerable por- tion of his life. In the behalf of others whom Provi- dence afterward raised him up to direct, he was enabled to make due allowance for injurious reports ; to antici- pate some of those obstacles which they were almost sure to meet ; and lastly to arrange his future plans for the benefit of mankind, according to the genius of the people, and the manners which prevailed among them, in the ample field through which his future labours ex- tended. It was not long after his return from America, that God was pleased to reveal himself spiritually to his soul; and, through a train of providences which no mortal could anticipate, and to which his natural feelings were repugnant, to thrust him out into the world to call sinners to repentance. The divine approbation accom- panied his exertions. Many were converted to God ; and of these, several began in a local sphere to assist him in his labours. Among these local preachers there was one whose name was Philip Embury. This man was a native of Ireland, and he had for some time raised his voice for God ; but through some of those vicissitudes attendant on human life, but which have no connection with the present occasion, he had embarked for the western con- tinent, and taken up his residence in the city of New- York. On his arrival he found the standard of morals to be exceedingly low. The city was not only given to spiritual idolatry, but the inhabitants were addicted to almost every vice. His spirit, therefore, like that of St. Paul when he visited Athens, was stirred within 56 LIFE OF THE REV. DR. COKE. him, and he began to preach salvation through faith in Jesus Christ. Having no chapel, he began by instructing his little congregation in his own dwelling house. At first, those who assembled consisted of his own countrymen, who, like himself, had emigrated from their native land. The report of his preaching, however, soon drew others to hear ; and their numbers still increasing, his dwelling house became insufficient to contain the Irish emigrants, the native citizens, and the English residents, that com- posed his groupe of hearers. To remedy this defect, a large room was instantly rented, and the expense was paid by their voluntary contributions. In this state things continued for some time. Mr. Embury was faithful and conscientious in the discharge of his duty; the people grew attentive, many became serious, and several found peace with God. And as the present preaching of Mr. Embury had no connection with that of Mr. Wesley, when he visited the continent about thirty years before, we may view this as the first dawn- ing of Methodism on the vast continent of America : and its period may be fixed about the year 1767. But it is not solely to the active exertions of Mr. Embury that America stands indebted for the introduc- tion of Methodism. Several other pious Methodists emigrated nearly about the same time, and scattered seed in various parts. Among these was Mr. Straw- bridge, who was also a native of Ireland. This pious man, having no connection with Mr. Embury, and per- haps at first scarcely any knowledge of him, landed in the state of Maryland, and took up his residence in Frederic county, where he began to erect the standard of the gospel, and to call sinners to repentance. His word also was attended with a divine blessing to the souls of many, who were led to call upon the name of the Lord, and to find that he had still power upon earth to forgive sins. But although these pious men continued to labour, and to see the fruits of their exertions in the conversion of many, and the reformation of multitudes, no regular consistency was given to their endeavours until the spirited efforts of captain Webb drew the attention of LIFE OF THE REV. DR. COKE. 57 Mr. Wesley and his conference to the state of religion on the western continent, then considered as a political part of Britain, though separated from our shores by the Atlantic Ocean. About the year 1765, Mr. Webb, who was a military officer, had attended Mr. Wesley's preaching in Bristol, and God had rendered the word a blessing to his soul. Being a man of strong sensibilities and lively feelings, his zeal for the cause of God triumphed over the con- sideration of his military character, and he began pub- licly to recommend to others that grace which maketh wise unto salvation. At this time he was a lieutenant in the army ; but being afterward advanced to the rank of captain, he has been generally distinguished by the name of captain Webb. This officer was in the battle of Quebec, where he received a wound in his arm, and lost the use of his right eye, on that memorable occa^ sion which deprived general Wolfe of his life. The first place in which captain Webb appeared in public as a preacher was Bath, at a time when, through some accident, the preacher who had been expected did not arrive. His zeal recommended him to the notice of his hearers, and much good attended his ministry. Having some time afterward received the appointment of barrack master at Albany, in America, he proceeded thither, carrying with him that strong zeal for the cause of God for which he was afterward distinguished through life. It does not appear that captain Webb, on his arrival in America, had any personal knowledge either of Mr. Embury at New-York, or of Mr. Straw- bridge in Frederic county. He, however, soon found them out ; and they were rendered instrumental in assisting each other, and in promoting, on a more en- larged plan, the work of their heavenly Father. Captain Webb, on his arrival at Albany, began by establishing family prayer in his own house. This was soon circulated as a singular circumstance ; and from his being an officer, the notice which his conduct ex- cited soon grew to astonishment. Several desired to join his family in prayer ; and all who made the request were readily admitted. The neighbourhood soon flock- ed to his house, and, as occasion offered, he warned 3* 5S LIFE OF THE REV. DR. COKE. them to flee from the wrath to come, and recommended the Saviour of mankind. The success which crowned these domestic efforts soon induced him to extend his labours ; and under this impression he paid a visit to Mr. Embury at New-York. On being invited to preach, he appeared before his congregation in his military dress ; the novelty of which so attracted the attention of the people that the room which had been rented was soon found insufficient to contain the congregations ; and to hire one that was sufficiently large was a task of no common difficulty. A room, however, sixty feet long, and eighteen feet wide, was at length procured ; but as this was also shortly found equally as inconvenient as the former had been, through the increase of hearers, the building of a preaching house was taken into serious considera- tion. This was undertaken and accomplished in the year 1768, being the first Methodist preaching house that ever presented itself to view in the western world. From New-York captain Webb proceeded to Long Island to visit some of his relations who resided there. In this place he also preached, and formed an infant society. The city of Philadelphia likewise witnessed his labours, and several of his hearers derived much benefit from his ministry. But it was in New-York that the gospel seemed principally to flourish. In this city a permanent congregation was established, and a considerable society formed ; and from the general spirit which seemed to be manifested by all, the fields appeared white unto harvest. Under these views and considerations, captain Webb, in conjunction with his associates, wrote to Mr. Wesley in England, giving him a plain statement of facts, and requesting him at the ensuing conference to appoint some preachers to come over, and prosecute the work that was so happily and providentially begun. Being always ready to embrace every opening of divine Pro- vidence, Mr. Wesley, at the conference of 1769, intro- duced the case of America in so favourable a light, that two of his preachers, Mr. Richard Boardman and Mr. Joseph Pilmoor, volunteered their services to cross the Atlantic, and make an effort to introduce the itinerant LIFE OF THE REV. DR. COKE. 69 plan in America. Their offers were accepted; and as the preaching house in New-York had involved the in- fant society in some pecuniary embarrassments, " We determined (says Mr. Wesley) to send them fifty pounds, as a token of our brotherly love." Mr. Boardman and Mr. Pilmoor sailed accordingly; and, reaching the place of their destination in safety, began their itinerant labours, and thus became the first regular Methodist missionaries who ever visited the western continent. A few days after their landing, Mr. Pilmoor wrote a letter to Mr. Wesley, of which the following is an extract; it is dated Philadelphia, October 31st, 1769 : — " Rev. Sir, — By the blessing of God we are safely arrived here, after a tedious passage of nine weeks. " We were not a little surprised to find captain Webb in town, and a society of about a hundred members, who desire to be in close connection with you. This is the Lord's doing, and it is marvellous in our eyes. " I have preached several times, and the people flock to hear in multitudes. Sunday evening I went out upon the common. I had the stage appointed for the horse race for my pulpit, and I think between four and five thousand hearers, who heard with attention still as night. Blessed be God for field preaching. When I began to talk of preaching at five o'clock in the morn- ing, the people thought it would not answer in America : however, I resolved to try, and had a very good con- gregation. "Here seems to be a great and effectual door open- ing in this country, and I hope many souls will be gathered in. The people in general like to hear the word, and seem to have some ideas of salvation by grace." From Philadelphia Mr. Pilmoor proceeded to Mary- land, visiting this state, together with those of Virginia and North Carolina. In all these states he preached with considerable success ; forming societies in various parts, and witnessing the happy effects resulting from the mission in which he was engaged. Throughout the whole he discovered the teachable disposition of the people and their willingness to hear ; and thus, as an instrument in the hand of God, laid an extensive founda- 60 LIFE OF THE REV. DR. COKE. tion for that amazing work which has since been carried on with such unexampled success. Mr. Boardman, who sailed with Mr. Pilmoor in the same ship, and with him landed at Philadelphia, imme- diately took his leave, and hastened to New-York, in which city the preaching house had been erected. On his arrival he found the prospect before him equally as pleasing as it had been represented by captain Webb ; and, under the mingled sensations of gratitude and hope, entered on his ministerial work. Determined, however, to make some trial before he transmitted a report across the Atlantic, he waited till the 24th of April, 1770, on which day he wrote the following ac- count : — " Our house contains about seventeen hundred hear- ers. About a third part of those who attend the preach- ing get in ; the rest are glad to hear without. There appears such a willingness in the Americans to hear the word as I never saw before. They have no preaching in some parts of the back settlements. I doubt not but an effectual door will be opened among them. O may the Most High now give his Son the heathen for his inheritance ! The number of blacks that attend the preaching affects me much." As the prospects of these preachers continued to be inviting, and the work to increase in their hands, they transmitted to Mr. Wesley such pleasing accounts of their success that, at the conference of 1771, he appointed Mr. Francis Asbury and Mr. Richard Wright to repair to the continent to assist their brethren already esta- blished there. They proceeded thither accordingly, and joined in the common employment. Mr. Wright, however, soon returned, and desisted from travelling. But Mr. Asbury remained firmly at his post ; outrode all the storms to which the American revolution gave rise : and continued a hoary veteran in the cause of God, to witness the changes which have taken place in favour of Christianity through the long lapse of forty-four years. This truly apostolic man has lately been called to his eternal reward. Mr. Asbury, on his arrival, soon perceived that the work which had been so happily begun, was confined LIFE OF THE REV. DR. COKE. 61 chiefly to the larger towns ; but that, under proper regu- lations, it was susceptible of a much greater extension, if carried into the villages and secluded plantations that were scattered throughout the country. To these de- partments he therefore devoted his time and talents ; and, in the blessing which attended his ministry, and the great success which he found in the formation of socie- ties, he thought himself amply rewarded for all the inconveniences with which his solitary excursions were attended. But while he was thus engaged in visiting the plantations and villages, an undue eagerness to ex- tend the work in the towns had unhappily led to a com- parative neglect of discipline. Some apprehensions of this seem to have been anticipated in England ; for, in 1773, Mr. Wesley appointed Mr. Thomas Rankin and Mr. George Shadford to America, investing them- with powers which none of their predecessors had ever pre- sumed to exercise. On their arrival, they soon discovered the evil which Mr. Wesley had sent them to remedy ; and, like faithful servants, they began their necessary though painful duty. The loss of the superfluous and unfruitful branches did not, however, hinder the growth of the spiritual tree. The wounds which were made, soon healed, and it be- came more vigorous and fruitful than it had been before. It is to be regretted that any occasions should exist to require the exercise of such external discipline ; but ex- perience teaches many important lessons, which mere abstract reasoning finds it difficult to learn. Every skil- ful gardener knows that the pruning knife, when applied to the branches, is not less necessary to the perfection of his vine than the rich manure which supports its roots. Mr. Rankin and Mr. Shadford continued on the con- tinent about five years. During this time they travelled through North Carolina and New-York, and through all the other states which lie between these provinces. In many places their preaching was attended with particu- lar success ; and the discipline which they had every- where enforced, rendered their characters truly venerable, the societies which they formed more exemplary, and the old ones more pure. But on the approach of that un- 62 LIFE OF THE REV. DR. COKE. happy war which shortly afterward broke out between the mother country and the American colonies, and which finally terminated in the dismemberment of the empire, and the independence of the United States, a period was put to their usefulness, and to their residence on the continent. On the general state of Methodism in the colonies, at the commencement of hostilities, Mr. Rankin observes as follows : " At our little conference in Philadelphia, in July, 1773, we had about a thousand in the different societies, and six or seven preachers : and in May, 1777, we had forty preachers in the different circuits, and about seven thousand members in the societies ; beside many hundreds of negroes, who were convinced of sin, and many of them happy in the love of God. Were it not for the civil war, I have reason to believe the work of God would have flourished in a more abundant man- ner, as both rich and poor gladly embraced the truths of the gospel, and received the preachers with open arms." On the great question respecting the justice or injus- tice of the American war, it is well known that opposite opinions have been entertained. It is not for us to censure or applaud either party, or to take a retrospec- tive survey of the political transactions of departed years. It is, however, well known that Mr. Wesley, on this agitated question, took a decided part; and, in his " Calm Address to the Colonists," reprobated their con- duct in terms not less pointed than were those in which he attempted to justify the conduct of the mother coun- try. It was providential that some circumstances oc- curred to prevent this Calm Address from raising a tempest, which, in all probability, would in this critical moment have swept Methodism from the continent at a stroke, and perhaps have banished it for ever. The opinion of Mr. Wesley, respecting the conduct of the Americans, in resisting the demands of Britain, was soon echoed by many of his preachers, and parti- cularly by Mr. Rankin and his associate ministers esta- blished to itinerate in America. In England these sentiments might be expressed with safety ; but in the colonies the subject was seen with very different eyes. LIFE OF THE REV. DR. COKE. 63 The consequence was, that the preachers on the con- tinent in connection with Mr. Wesley were everywhere viewed as enemies to the cause of liberty, as the secret instruments of despotic power, and as men unworthy of being cherished in the bosom of a country whose sons had taken up arms in support of their indepen- dence. As the clamour became general, and the tide of pub- lic opinion was too strong to be resisted, all the preach- ers who had gone from England, with the exception of Mr. Asbury, were obliged to withdraw from the colonies, to escape the effects of popular vengeance. From this period, therefore, the work was at a stand ; and the friends of Methodism were exposed to those vicissitudes which are always generated in a country which is the seat of war ; and to the mortification of being viewed as suspicious characters. It was through considerable difficulties that the preachers effected their escape, and reached in safety their native land. Supported by the rectitude of his own intentions to have no concern with political questions, and conscious of having said nothing that could offend either party, on the subject of the impending war, Mr. Asbury deter- mined to remain at the post of duty, and wait the event of the approaching storm. It was a happy circumstance that he was inspired with this holy resolution, since it is owing to him, under the superintending care of God, that Methodism was enabled to survive the shock which convulsed Europe and the western world. How far those preachers who set Mr. Asbury an example which he disdained to follow, acted consistently with the spirit of their profession, may furnish room for opposite opi- nions. But we have no right to decide upon the pro- priety or impropriety of their conduct, unless we make ourselves intimately acquainted with all the local cir- cumstances of their situation. Of this momentous crisis Dr. Coke has delivered his sentiments in the following words : — " The war, which at this time had broken out between the mother country and her colonies, impeded the work in a considerable manner, and for some time shut up nearly all communication between them. The distresses 64 LIFE OF THE REV. DR. COKE. to which both the societies and preachers were exposed, were very terrible. The clergy abandoned their flocks ; and in many instances the British missionaries, following their example, forsook their spheres of action. Mr. Asbury alone, unterrified by the threatening sword, remained in his station. " Surrounded by dangers on every side, his vigour increased as his colleagues declined the work ; and, un- der the blessing of Providence, it was by his unwearied exertions that the flame of religion was kept alive, while thousands both of its friends and enemies fell in the conflict. But whatever impediments the work of God might have experienced, the societies increased amid the partial desertions of their friends and the hor- rors of war."* But although Mr. Asbury remained faithful to his post, he was not always permitted to exercise the func- tions of his office. As an individual, his, conduct was placed beyond the reach of censure ; but the general suspicions under which the preachers and the societies laboured, were transferred to him as an official and public character; in consequence of which he became an object of popular reproach. To avoid the effects of this unmerited indignation he was obliged to retire from public view. But it pleased God to raise him up friends, who provided an asylum in which he was shel- tered two years, while the tempest raged in all its vio- lence. During this time the place of his retreat was at the house of Mr. White, in the county of Kent, in the state of Delaware. In the house of this gentleman, who was a justice of the peace, and a member of the Methodist society, Mr. Asbury twice convened some native American preachers, and held two diminutive conferences. He was, however, at length happily re- leased from his confinement, through the kind interpo- sition of John Dickenson, Esq., the predecessor of the celebrated Dr. Franklin in the government of Pennsyl- vania. From Mr. Dickenson he received such letters of recommendation as enabled him to appear in public, and finally to travel through the states without molestation. Coke's History of the "West Indies, vol. i, p. 212. LIFE OF THE REV. DR. COKE. G5 But although it was against the preachers from Eng- land that the popular odium was principally directed, even those who were natives were not wholly exempted from trouble. To break off all connection with Eng- land, and to annihilate all acknowledgment of her do- minion, a law was enacted which required an oath of allegiance to the United States to be taken by all. This was a measure to which many hesitated to sub- mit ; and the consequence was, that fines and imprison- ment followed. Among the Methodists several suffered severely on this account. It is, however, a tribute due to justice to acknowledge that the rights of conscience were generally treated with tenderness, even by those who were appointed to carry the laws into execution. But above all, the hand of God appeared conspicuously in providing various ways for the deliverance of those who were imprisoned, and that not unfrequently through the interposition of men who were strangers to genuine religion. From what principle this liberality of conduct arose it is difficult with certainty to determine. Their politi- cal creed included universal toleration ; but their laws militated against the principles of their constitution. It is easy to speculate upon the sources of human opinions and actions ; but on the present occasion we cannot avoid resolving all into the overruling providence of God, who thus defended his faithful servants. In no instance, perhaps, was this faithfulness more apparent than when the preachers were brought before the tribu- nals of justice. Here, in reply to interrogations, they bore such a strong testimony against sin, resisted every charge that could involve them in the political ques- tions which were agitated, and pleaded the cause of the gospel with so much eloquence, that their judges were ready to say, " Almost ye persuade us to be Chris- tians." On one of these occasions, a preacher of Balti- more, whose name was Moore, delivered such a defen- sive testimony at the bar as filled the judges and the whole court with admiration at the elegance of his dic- tion, the comprehensiveness of his expressions, and the energy of his arguments. But the effect of this faith- fulness is still more strikingly exemplified in the fol- 66 LIFE OF THE REV. DR. COKE. lowing anecdote, which occurred in the state of Mary- land. In the midst of these commotions, it happened that Mr. Chew, one of the preachers, was brought before Mr. Downs, then sheriff of the county in which the trial took place, and afterward a member of the general assembly of the state. On Mr. Chew's appearance, the sheriff demanded of the prisoner, if he were a minister of the gospel? On receiving from Mr. Chew an an- swer in the affirmative, he required him to take the »• oath of allegiance to the United States. Mr. Chew re- plied that he had scruples on his mind, and therefore could not consent at present. Mr. Downs then inform- ed him that he was bound on oath to execute the laws, and must in that case commit him to prison. Mr. Chew replied with great calmness that he by no means wished to be the cause of perjury, and therefore was perfectly resigned to suffer the penalty incurred. "You are a strange man," cried the sheriff, " and I cannot bear to punish you. I will therefore make my own house your prison." He accordingly committed him under his hand and seal to his own house, in which place he kept him for three months, during which time the sheriff was awakened, and his lady converted to God. They soon afterward joined the society ; and Mr. Downs, with the assistance of some neighbouring gentlemen, built a preaching house for the society at Tuckaho, the place where he lived. Satisfied, however, that the preachers who refused to take the oath of allegiance to the states were not act- uated by any principles of hostility to the cause of Ame- rica, their case was shortly afterward taken into serious consideration by the assembly of Maryland. And in order to preserve them from suffering for conscience' sake, and to prevent the magistrates and judges from having the trouble of attending to such cases, when others of more magnitude and importance demanded all their attention, an act was passed by the legislative body expressly to allow the Methodist preachers to exercise their ministerial duty, without taking the oath of allegiance. This act produced the desired effect. In this state their restrictions were at an end ; the preach- LIFE OF THE REV. DR. COKE. 67 ing was re-established ; and, in the midst of public war, they continued to enjoy domestic peace until the inde- pendence of the United States was acknowledged throughout Europe, and a communication was reopened between Great Britain and this part of the western con- tinent. In the other states the legal restrictions continued in force during the war ; but toward the period of its ter- * mination the rigour of the laws was much relaxed. And although the societies, during these commotions, received a great acquisition of members, the effects of the war were awfully conspicuous in the neglect of those ordinances which followed the overthrow of the Establishment. It was a survey of these calamitous effects whic.li induced Mr. Wesley to have recourse to a certain measure, and to introduce a form of church government, which will be described in the ensuing chapter. CHAPTER V. Effects of the war on the Methodist societies in America — Re- view of the causes which led to the establishment of the Methodist Episcopal Church — Preparatory steps taken in order to Dr. Coke's ordination — Copy of letters of ordination — Letter of Mr. Wesley to Dr. Coke and Mr. Asbury, stating the ground on which he acted — Principles on which Mr. Wesley acted, stated and vindi- cated— Apostolical succession not to be proved, either from the church of Alexandria, Antioch, or Rome. It is easy to perceive that, while the church is con- nected with the state, if calamities overtake the latter, the former cannd*t wholly escape. In the American co- lonies both were united ; and the revolution which ter- minated in political independence, led to the subversion of the ecclesiastical hierarchy. The church, being con- sidered as an instrument in the hands of the British senate, became the first object of attack at the com- mencement of the revolution. We have already seen that "the clergy abandoned their flocks" on the ap- 68 LIFE OF THE REV. DR. COKE. proach of danger ; and we learn from the event that the Americans were not forward either to supply their vacant pulpits, or to fill their empty churches. Among men who are destitute of the power of godli- ness, the loss of its form was viewed with indifference ; but with those who enjoyed the former, the privation of the latter appeared in a very serious light. When the clergy of the Church of England had forsaken the coun- try, and secured themselves by flight, the members of the Methodist societies found themselves totally de- prived of the sacraments, which they had been accus- tomed to receive from them ; and for their children they could obtain no baptism. For the administration of these ordinances, they applied to the Presbyterians, to the Independents, and to the Baptists. But they were refused by all, unless they would renounce' their con- nection with Mr. Wesley, and join the societies of those to whom they successively appealed. Being unwilling to purchase baptism and the Lord's supper at so exorbitant a price, and yet dissatisfied to remain destitute of those privileges which they had been accustomed to enjoy, the societies appealed to the preachers ; and, after stating their complaints, prevailed upon many of them to introduce their case to Mr. As- bury, who was now considered as the principal person among the Methodists in America. This the preachers promised to do; and, accordingly, in the year 1778, they requested him to adopt some measures for a speedy compliance with their reasonable demands. Mr. Asbury, on hearing their statement and request, found himself in an unpleasant situation. From prin- ciple he was strongly attached to the episcopacy which had been abolished ; and he dreaded to countenance any mode of conduct that might seem to interfere with its formerly acknowledged authority. And yet, at the same time, the statement given in, respecting the situation of the people, and the reasonableness of their requests, ap- peared almost too powerful to be resisted. Thus cir- cumstanced, he scarcely knew how to act; being alike apprehensive of unpleasant consequences which would result from his refusal, and from hi3 compliance. In order, therefore, to preserve peace, he endeavoured to LIFE OF THE REV. DR. COKE. 69 postpone the subject for some future consideration, con- ceiving that, as affairs were yet in an unsettled state, the period might arrive when things would return into their former channel. And, finally, that if the people could be prevailed upon to suffer their present privations with patience until the tempest had subsided, the whole body of Methodists in America would escape the reproach of deviating from Mr. Wesley's avowed and primitive plan. Affairs had, however, now reached a crisis, in which indecision was not calculated to give satisfaction. The preachers who had imbibed the spirit of the people, though satisfied with the purity of Mr. Asbury's inten- tion, were far from being pleased with the result of his reasonings. They had already waited till exhausted patience could continue no longer, and they were deter- mined to bring the question to an immediate issue. Mr. Asbury, finding that he was brought to a crisis, finally determined in favour of his own attachments, and abso- lutely refused to give either preachers or people any redress. On hearing his refusal, a train of consequences which he had scarcely anticipated, began immediately to ap- pear. A majority of the preachers, less scrupulous than himself as to the propriety of administering the rite of baptism and the Lord's supper, instantly withdrew from T him, and through him from all connection with Mr. Wesley. In this state of separation they selected from among their own body three of their senior and more respectable brethren, appointing them to ordain others by the imposition of hands. These, therefore, went forth in the name of God, and administered the sacra- ments to all whom they judged proper to receive them. The clamour of the people immediately subsided ; all were satisfied with the enjoyment of their returning pri- vileges ; and prosperity became the companion of peace. Mr. Asbury, in the meanwhile, who had not yet' shaken off the rusty fetters of "apostolical succession," found himself comparatively deserted by those whose respect for him still remained undiminished. Against the illegality of their proceedings he bore a public tes- 70 LIFE OF THE REV. DR. COKE. timony, denying the authority by which the preachers acted, and declaring the ordination to which they had given existence invalid. With individuals his argu- ments had weight, and many hesitated to follow the measures they had adopted. In this manner he pro- ceeded until he had proselyted some, had silenced others, and had shaken the faith of all ; so that at a subsequent conference he found means to procure a vote, which de- clared the former ordination unscriptural. The breach was soon healed ; a general reconciliation took place ; and Mr. Asbury once more resumed the full exercise of that authority of which he had, for a season, been par- tially deprived. But the night of a long, an expensive, and unsuccess- ful war to Britain was drawing toward a close ; and the dawn of returning peace, which gave independence to America, was just beginning to appear when the pre- ceding accommodation took place. Mr. Asbury had been very successful in spreading the gospel in several parts of the back settlements. He therefore wanted more assistance than the United States could afford ; and as soon as a communication was opened between Eng- land and America, he wrote to Mr. Wesley for a supply of preachers to hasten to the continent with all possible despatch. At the same time he informed Mr. Wesley of the various events which had taken place respecting the Methodists, during the war, and pointed out the condition the people were in, being equally destitute of baptism for their children, and of the Lord's supper for themselves. These cases were earnestly recommended to Mr. Wesley's serious consideration. And as it was soon discovered that a national establishment was to rear its head in the United States no more, the subject was of too much importance to be neglected, and the question of too much magnitude to be hastily decided. Mr. Wesley was now far advanced in years, and hav- ing made provision for the government of the societies in England, after his decease, he thought this a provi- dential call for something of a similar nature to be done for America. Having therefore weighed with much de- liberation the various circumstances in which his trans- atlantic followers were placed, he was perfectly satis- LIFE OF THE REV. DR. COKE. 71 fiea that the form of government which he had provided for England was by no means adapted for America. » And, finally, it was obvious to him that no form of go- vernment could be acceptable, unless it included a satis- factory authority vested in the preachers to administer baptism and the Lord's supper. And nothing of this kind could possibly be permanent, unless some general superintendent should be appointed, in the first instance, from hence, to transmit that authority to posterity, by what name soever he might be distinguished. To accomplish these purposes, after revolving all the possible forms of church government in his mind, he could find none so well adapted to the exigencies of their condition as that which is episcopal. On this therefore he finally fixed his eye, and proceeded to take measures for executing his resolution. This reso- lution was, however, not the result of a momentary impulse. More than a year had elapsed since he had begun to revolve it in his mind ; during which time he had communicated his thoughts to several persons. But how formidable soever the objections were which any one could raise, he found none equal in magnitude to the evil that his plan was designed to remedy ; and he could learn from none a better form than that which he was about to adopt. The zeal, the activity, and the piety which Dr. Coke had for several years manifested, both in England and Ireland, in conjunction with his being a regularly or- dained minister of the Church of England, all combined to point him out to Mr. Wesley as the most suitable person in the connection to engage in this arduous work, and to assume that character with which he was about to invest him. Accordingly, in the month of February, 1784, he called Dr. Coke into his private chamber, and after some preparatory observations introduced the important subject to him in nearly the following man- ner : — "That, as the revolution in America had separated the United States from the mother country for ever, and the Episcopal Establishment was utterly abolished, the societies had been represented to him in a most deplor- able condition. That an appeal had also been made to 72 LIFE OF THE REV. DR. COKE. him through Mr. Asbury, in which he was requested to provide for them some mode of church government, suited to their exigencies ; and that having long and seriously revolved the subject in his thoughts, he intended to adopt the plan which he was now about to unfold. That as he had invariably endeavoured, in every step he had taken, to keep as closely to the Bible as possible, so, on the present occasion, he hoped he was not about to deviate from it. That, keeping his eye upon the conduct of the primitive churches in the ages of un- adulterated Christianity, he had much admired the mode of ordaining bishops which the church of Alexandria had practised. That, to preserve its purity, that church would never suffer the interference of a foreign bishop in any of their ordinations ; but that the presbyters of that venerable apostolic church, on the death of a bish- op, exercised the right of ordaining another from their own body, by the laying on of their own hands ; and that this practice continued among them for two hundred years, till the days of Dionysius. And finally, that, being himself a presbyter, he wished Dr. Coke to accept ordination from his hands, and to proceed in that cha- racter to the continent of America, to superintend the societies in the United States." Dr. Coke was at first startled at a measure so unpre- cedented in modern days ; and he expressed some doubts as to the validity of Mr. Wesley's authority to constitute so important an appointment. But the arguments of lord King, which had proselyted Mr. Wesley, were re- commended to his attention, and time was allowed him to deliberate on the result. Two months, however, had scarcely elapsed, before he wrote to Mr. Wesley, inform- ing him that his objections were silenced, and that he was ready to co-operate with him in any way that was calculated to promote the glory of God and the good of souls. At the ensuing conference, which was held in Leeds, 1784, Mr. Wesley stated his intention to the preachers present ; and from that period he considered the ap- pointment as actually made, although the ratification did not take place until a few days afterward. At this conference Mr. Whatcoat and Mr. Vasey offered their LIFE OF THE REV. DR. COKE. 73 services to accompany Dr. Coke in the character of missionaries ; and being accepted, they became his com- panions in his first voyage to America. It is to this measure that Mr. Wesley alludes in the following obser- vations, which he has inserted in page 71 of his twentieth journal. 44 On Wednesday, September 1st, being now clear in my own mind, I took a step which I had long weighed, and appointed three of our brethren to go and serve the desolate sheep in America, which I Verily believe will be much to the glory of God." And that he did not, on calm deliberation, reflect with sorrow on the step he had now taken, may be gathered from his own language, inserted in the minutes of conference for the year 1786. " Judging," says he, 44 this (namely, the peculiar con- dition of the societies in America after the war) to be a case of necessity, I took a step which, for peace and quietness I had refrained from taking many years ; I exercised that power which I am fully persuaded the great Shepherd and Bishop of the Church has given me. I appointed three of our labourers to go and help them, by not only preaching the word of God, but likewise administering the Lord's supper, and baptizing their children throughout that vast tract of land." When the conference at Leeds, in 1784, ended, Mr. Wesley repaired to Bristol, and Dr. Coke to London, to make arrangements for his departure. He had not, however, been long in London, before he received a letter from Mr. Wesley, requesting him to repair imme- diately to Bristol, to receive fuller powers ; and to bring with him the Rev. Mr. Creighton, a regularly ordained minister, who had long officiated in Mr. Wesley's cha- pels in London, and assisted him in various branches of his ministerial duties. 44 The doctor and Mr. Creighton accordingly met him in Bristol, when, with their assist- ance, he ordained Mr. Richard Whatcoat and Mr. Tho- mas Vasey, presbyters for America ; and being peculiarly attached to every rite of the Church of England, did afterward ordain Dr. Coke a superintendent, giving him letters of ordination under his hand and seal."* Of + Coke's and Moore's Life of Mr. Wesley, p. 459. 4 74 LIFE OF THE REV. DR. COKE. these letters of ordination the following is a faithful copy, carefully transcribed from the original in Mr. Wesley's own handwriting, preserved among the papers of the late Dr. Coke : — " To all to whom these presents shall come, John Wesley, late fellow of Lincoln College, in Oxford, pres- byter of the Church of England, sendeth greeting : " Whereas many of the people in the southern pro- vinces of North America, who desire to continue under my care, and still adhere to the doctrine and discipline of the Church of England, are greatly distressed for want of ministers to administer the sacraments of bap- tism and the Lord's supper, according to the usage of the same church : and whereas there does not appear to be any other way of supplying them with ministers — " Know all men, that I, John Wesley, think myself to be providentially called at this time to set apart some persons for the work of the ministry in America. And therefore, under the protection of almighty God, and with a single eye to his glory, I have this day set apart, as a superintendent, by the imposition of my hands, and prayer, (being assisted by other ordained ministers,) Thomas Coke, doctor of civil law, a presbyter of the Church of England, and a man whom I judge to be well qualified for that great work. And I do hereby recom- mend him to all whom it may concern, as a fit person to preside over the flock of Christ. In testimony whereof, I have hereunto set my hand and seal, this second day of September, in the year of our Lord one thousand seven hundred and eighty-four. " John Wesley." Dr. Coke continued in Bristol nearly three weeks, from the date of the preceding document, making pre- paration for his departure, and waiting for the sailing of some vessel in which he and his companions might procure a passage. It was during this interval that Mr. Wesley wrote the following letter, which Dr. Coke was directed to print and circulate among the societies on his arrival in America LIFE OF THE REV. DR. COKE. 76 "Bristol, September 10, 1784. v To Dr. Coke, Mr. Asbury, and our brethren in North America : — "By a very uncommon train of providences many of the provinces of North America are totally disjoined from the mother country, and erected into independent states. The English government has no authority over them, either civil or ecclesiastical, any more than over the states of Holland. A civil authority is exercised over them, partly by the congress, partly by the pro- vincial assemblies. But no one either exercises or claims any ecclesiastical authority at all. In this peculiar situ- ation some thousands of the inhabitants of these states desire my advice, and in compliance with their desire I have drawn up a little sketch. "Lord King's account of the primitive church con- vinced me many years ago, that bishops and presbyters are the same order, and consequently have the same right to ordain. For many years I have been importuned, from time to time, to exercise this right, by ordaining part of our travelling preachers. But I have still re- fused ; not only for peace sake, but because I was deter- mined, as little as possible, to violate the established order of the national Church, to which I belonged. " But the case is widely different between England and North America. Here there are bishops who have a legal jurisdiction. In America there are none, neither any parish minister ; so that for some hundreds of miles together, there is none either to baptize or admin- ister the Lord's supper. Here, therefore, my scruples are at an end ; and I conceive myself at full liberty, as I violate no order, and invade no man's right, by ap- pointing and sending labourers into the harvest. " I have accordingly appointed Dr. Coke and Mr. Francis Asbury to be joint superintendents over our brethren in North America ; as also Richard Whatcoat and Thomas Vasey to act as elders among them, by baptizing and administering the Lord's supper. And I have prepared a liturgy, little differing from that of the Church of England, (I think the best constituted national church in the world,) which I advise all the travelling preachers to use on the Lord's day in all the congrega- 76 LIFE OF THE REV. DR. COKE. tions, reading the litany only on Wednesdays and Fri- days, and praying extempore on all other days. I also advise the elders to administer the supper of the Lord on every Lord's day. "If any one will point out a more rational and scrip- tural way of feeding and guiding these poor sheep in the wilderness, I will gladly embrace it. At present I cannot see any better method than that I have taken. " It has indeed been proposed to desire the English bishops to ordain part of our preachers for America. But to this I object, 1. I desired the bishop of London to ordain one, but could not prevail. 2. If they con- sented, we know the slowness of their proceedings ; but the matter admits of no delay. 3. If they would ordain them now, they would expect to govern them. And how grievously would this entangle us ! 4. As our American brethren are now totally disentangled, both from the state and the English hierarchy we dare not entangle them again, either with the one or the other. They are now at full liberty, simply to follow the Scriptures and the primitive church. And we judge it best that they should stand fast in that liberty where- with God has so strangely made them free. " John Wesley." * It is hardly to be expected that steps so extraordi- nary as those which Mr. Wesley and Dr. Coke had thus * As it was the lot of Dr. Coke, in a subsequent period of his life, to turn his attention to the question now under consideration, though in another form, it may not be amiss in this place to state the occasion and manner of it. Sometime in the year 1802 the R.ev. George Frederick Nott, B. D., published a volume of sermons, which he entitled, " Religious Enthusiasm considered, in eight sermons preached before the Uni- versity of Oxford, at the Lecture founded by John Bampton, A. M." In these sermons he introduced the personal characters of the Rev. John Wesley and the Rev. George Whitefield ; and throughout the whole volume endeavoured by artifices, from which neither truth nor charity has received any considerable acquisition, to make them appear odious. And whoever views these venerable men only through Mr. Nott's discoloured medium, can hardly avoid concluding that they desepve to be ranked among the most flagi- tious, the most ridiculous, and the most contemptible of the human race. Perhaps it was an act of charity in Mr. Nott to allow them the honour oi ranking among the human species ! LIFE OF THE REV. DR. COKE. 77 taken, would be suffered to pass in silence, especially by those who watched their conduct with critical male- volence. In no branch of their public labours, in no part of their ministerial career, has their character been so severely reprehended as on the present occasion. These reprehensions, however, have in general been made by men who were more eager to contend for apos- tolical succession, than for that faith once delivered to the saints. But to what reproach soever their characters might In the course of these sermons Mr. Nott proves himself a sturdy stickler for episcopal ordination, and a furious advocate for apos- tolical succession. He, therefore, becomes the opponent of every one who questions the infallibility of ministerial authority; and brandishes the ecclesiastical whip over every man who presumes to doubt the certainty and the purity of divine rights. It was not until January 18, 1806, that Dr. Coke obtained a sight of this volume ; when, after perusing its pages, it was his intention to publish a specific reply to the invectives and arguments which it contained. The plan which he intended to pursue was that of a series of letters addressed to the author ; in which he meant to controvert Mr. Nott's principles, to contradict his monstrous mis- representations, and to vindicate the character of his deceased friends. Upon this plan the reply proceeded, and the manuscripts were prepared for the press. But on a second review of the sub- ject, he was decidedly of opinion that Mr. Nott's strictures were too severe to make converts, and too monstrous even to gain credit with thinking people. And more especially, as several years had elapsed since the sermons first appeared, and as they were com- paratively but little known, while the characters of Messrs. Wes- ley and Whitefield were too firmly established to be injured by calumny and caricature, he relinquished his design, and consigned the manuscript to silence and the events of future years. From these papers, as the question before us is agitated, and the principle investigated upon which Mr. "Wesley acted in his ordi- nation of Dr. Coke, and in writing the letter with which he fur- nished him on his departure to America, it may not be amiss to call some of the more appropriate arguments into light. As, therefore, the work is unpublished, I take the liberty of transcrib- ing from their original sources, and of applying, in his own de- fence on the present occasion, the evidences adduced in behalf of his departed friends. In these evidences we may perceive his own views of the validity of his ordination by the hands of Mr. Wesley, after a lapse of more than twenty years. We may also perceive the sandy foundation on which the guarded fort of apos- tolical succession rests, and on what grounds the conduct of Mr. Wesley and Dr. Coke maybe rationally and scripturally defended in the present case, even independently of that justification which the necessities of the Methodists in America gave to the measure. 78 LIFE OF THE REV. DR. COKE. have been exposed, nothing can be more evident, from the particular situation in which the members of the Methodist societies in America were placed at the con- clusion of the war, than that they were under the neces- sity of receiving baptism and the Lord's supper from the Methodist preachers, or of remaining destitute of these ordinances altogether. Now it is admitted, even by those who have argued against Mr. Wesley and Dr. Coke with the greatest degree of violence, that these ordinances were necessary ; and by consequence they virtually allow, under existing circumstances, those very measures which they openly condemn. If the ordinances are necessary, the administration of them must be necessary also, and this will involve the necessity of administrators. Now where there can be only one description of men to assume this character, there can be no room for alternative or choice ; and where the possibility of alternative and choice is exclud- ed, there can be no justifiable ground for censure or re- proach. This was precisely the situation in which Mr. Wesley, Dr. Coke, and the preachers stood, in relation to the societies in America. Now, if it was a duty in- cumbent on them to administer the ordinances, it was equally their duty to procure all the qualifications they could acquire, agreeably to the oracles of God. If, therefore, it should finally appear that Mr. Wesley had no right to ordain Dr. Coke, and that Dr. Coke had no right to ordain Mr. Asbury, the invalidity of these ordi- nations cannot affect their previous and independent qualifications as ministers of the gospel ; for even on this ground their obligations to comply with the requests of the people cannot be denied. The circumstances of their situation, even admitting the invalidity of the ordi- nation, will therefore place them on a rock from which no argument can easily dislodge them, whatever irregu- larity may appear in their proceedings. But although the peculiarity of their case will thus furnish arguments in their favour, the ground upon which Mr. Wesley stood is far from being so defence- less as to render such an apology necessary. There was a period when the Protestants were pressed by the Papists with arguments precisely similar to those that LIFE OF THE REV. DR. COKE. 79 were urged against Mr. Wesley and Dr. Coke on the present occasion. And these were triumphantly repelled with weapons which the predecessors of their present antagonists had instructed them to wield. The Act of Uniformity had again called them from their arsenal ; and the controversies that followed had imparted to them a polish which had even given them a keener edge. The right, therefore, which Mr. Wesley exercised in the ordination of Dr. Coke, was ably defended by Dr. Calamy in his reply to Bishop Hoadly ; and, with some trifling variations, the accumulated force of all his argu- ments may be brought to bear in favour of the delegated power which Dr. Coke exercised on his arrival in America. . " That our ordination by presbyters, of which Mr. Hoadly takes the liberty to speak so contemptibly, is to all intents and purposes (except that of gaining church preferment) valid, I prove by four arguments. " First, I argue from the identity of bishops and pres- byters. This argument has been often teased and wor- ried, and yet it is far from being breathless. But I will put it in the words of the learned Dr. Whitaker, who was the celebrated King's professor of divinity in the university of Cambridge. Duraeus, challenging him to declare how the ministers among the reformed came by their call to that sacred office, bids him tell him, if he could, who called forth Luther, and Calvin, and Beza, and the rest ? Dr. Whitaker answers him, That as for Luther, and Zuinglius, and Bucer, and Oecolompadius, and many others of them, they were authorized presby- ters and teachers in the Church of Rome, ordained, and universally owned among them ; and that therefore they being presbyters, and presbyters being by divine right the same as bishops, they might warrantably set other presbyters over the churches."* To those who ask on what principle Mr. Wesley or- dained Dr. Coke to preside over the Methodist societies in America, we might urge this same reply. He was a regular presbyter, ordained in the Church of England, and, therefore, " presbyters being by divine right the ♦ Calamy's Defenceof Moderate Nonconformity, vol. i, p. 70. so LIFE OF THE REV. DR. COKE. same as bishops, he might warrantably ordain other presbyters, and set them over other churches" on the western continent ; especially as the bishop of London had refused to ordain one, as stated in Mr. Wesley's letter to Dr. Coke and Mr. Asbury. Perhaps it may be said that, admitting Mr. Wesley had a right to ordain presbyters, this would not justify him in ordaining a bishop. To this objection the author just quoted has furnished a clear and explicit answer, which I will give in nearly his own words. " That presbyters are by divine right the same as bishops appears from hence, that such as were solemnly set apart for the sacred ministry, and intrusted with the keys of the kingdom of heaven, and authorized to ad- minister all ordinances in the church to the faithful com- mitted to their care, and in Scripture styled bishops and elders, or presbyters, without any mark of distinction. To be convinced of tbis, a man need but turn to the se- veral passages where they are mentioned. "St. Paul, writing to the Philippians, directs his epistle to all the saints in Christ Jesus at Philippi, with the bishops and deacons. He mentions bishops and deacons, but no presbyters. Had there been any pres- byters distinct from bishops, it is hard to give a reason why they should be passed over in silence. It is more rational to apprehend these bishops were no other than the presbyters of the church. And this sentiment is confirmed by the Syriac, one of the most ancient ver- sions of the New Testament, which reads it * presbyters and deacons.' There could not have been several bishops at Philippi, in the sense the Church of England gives to that word. There could not be several pastors of many churches in one such little place as that. They must be therefore proper presbyters belonging to that flock. We need not wonder to hear of many such in a church ; for we are told that Paul and Barnabas ordain- ed elders in every church, Acts xiv, 23. " The same apostle, in his Epistle to Timothy, lays down the duties of bishops and deacons, and the qualifi- cations necessary for both, without saying a word of presbyters ; of whom it is hard to suppose he should, upon such an occasion, have been altogether silent, had LIFE OF THE REV. DR. COKE. 81 they not been the same persons whom he meant by- bishops. Theodoret, in his notes on Acts xi, 30, says that the bishop or elder whom St. Paul characterizes, was a presbyter, who was then indifferently called either bishop or presbyter ; while at the same time those who were afterward called bishops, were then usually styled apostles."* In his epistle to Titus, St. Paul again introduces the subject. And after appointing him to ordain elders in every city, that the things which were wanting might be set in order, he adds, " For a bishop must be blame- less as the steward of God," Titus i, 7. It is plain from hence that, in the view of the apostle, bishops and elders, or presbyters, must have been considered as of the same order ; otherwise instead of saying a bishop must be blameless, he would undoubtedly have said an elder or presbyter must be blameless, for in the preced- ing verses he had been speaking of the ordination of elders, and not of bishops. If, therefore, we suppose bishops to have been an order of men superior to pres- byters, it will not be easy to reconcile his language to the dictates of common sense. If elders and bishops are a distinct order of men, I shall not admire the rea- soning powers of that man who would argue in the fol- lowing manner : " Ordain elders in every city, as I had appointed thee, if any be blameless, &c. ; for a bishop must be blameless." Here all connection is broken off between the premises and the conclusion. And yet in this way we must suppose the Apostle Paul to have argued in the first chapter of his Epistle to Titus. But if, on the contrary, we allow bishops and elders to be of the same order, then all the parts of his argument are harmonious and consistent. But, above all, the following passage, given by St. Paul in charge to Timothy, seems to place this point beyond all reasonable dispute : " Neglect not the gift that is in thee, which was given thee by prophecy, with the laying on of the hands of the presbytery," 1 Tim. • iv, 14. " This place," says Mr. Whitaker against Bel- larmine, " serves our purpose mightily ; for from hence * Ibid. p. 75. 4* 62 LIFE OF THE REV. DR. COKE. we understand that Timothy had hands laid upon him by presbyters, who at that time governed the church by a common council. "Whereupon he falls upon Bellar- mine, and the Romanists, for denying the authority of ordaining to presbyters, and confining it to bishops." Thus much is plain, that whether they were apostles, evangelists, or bishops, who were concerned in the or- dination.of Timothy, they all assumed the character of presbyters, and acted accordingly. And although some who, in modern days, think themselres of a more ex- alted order, may be unwilling to allow the propriety of any inference drawn from the ordination of Timothy, in favour of the authority of presbyters, such reluctance, instead of arguing the weakness of these inferences, gives an additional brilliancy to the features of truth. And it can scarcely be deemed a breach of charity to assert that, if the apostle had said " with the laying on of the hands of the episcopate," instead of " the pres- bytery," the authority of his office and the weight of his argument would have been combined in all their force, and a triumphant conclusion would have been drawn from the passage, for appropriating the right of ordina- tion exclusively to the bishops. Regardless of these arguments, of which only a small specimen is given, to prove that the order and authority of presbyters and bishops was primarily the same, a pious prelate of this country assumed an opposite posi- tion. And in reference to the ordination of Dr. Coke by Mr. Wesley, he observes that, " if a presbyter can ordain a bishop, then the greater is blessed of the less;" thus evidently assuming, as a fact, the very point that requires proof; namely, that a bishop is of an order superior to a presbyter. And no doubt, if this fact could be substantiated, that the argument would be con- clusive against the ordination in question. But until this be done, the argument can amount to nothing. Mr. Wesley's biographers, therefore, justly remark that the prelate should have overturned Mr. Wesley's position, namely, that " bishops and presbyters are of the same order," to have established his own. But setting wholly aside all the arguments which both reason and revelation supply, and granting, as a LIFE OF THE REV. DR. COKE. consequence of this concession, that bishops are of a distinct order from presbyters, and superior to them, we must then allow that their authority must have been transmitted through a distinct medium, although it was derived from one common source. But no distinct medium can possibly be supposed to be adequate, un- less it be superior to the order of presbyters : and none above these can be conceived to be possible, unless it be an uninterrupted line of bishops, extending back to the days of the apostles. A denial, therefore, of the validity of ordination by presbyters, involves the neces- sity of apostolical succession, and of this we can find but a very poor account. Eusebius, who to us is the first spring of ecclesias- tical history, after the Acts of the Apostles, tells us, in the very beginning of his narrative, that one thing he primarily had in his eye was to give us an account of the apostolical succession. But, lest we should raise our expectations too high, he very fairly informs us that this was a new work, where he could trace no foot- steps of others going before him, except in a few par- ticular narratives. This was honest. And if, after this fair warning, we place an implicit confidence in the accounts which he gives from the reports of others, we have more reason to accuse ourselves with being self- deceivers than to charge him with imposition. As to the apostles, he informs us that all the accounts he can procure, say that they went about the world publishing the Christian faith. He adds that it was reported by his predecessors that Thomas had Parthia ; that Andrew had Scythia ; that John had Asia ; that it was likely that Peter preached to the Jews dispersed in Pontus, Galatia, Bithynia, and Cappadocia ; and that Paul preached from Jerusalem around about unto Illyri- cum. This account is certainly very far from being- satisfactory. He does not even pretend to tell us where they preached, nor even to know the methods which they adopted to settle the various churches which they planted. Bishop Stillingfleet assigns some weighty reasons to induce a belief that their actions, in these respects, were far from being uniform, but that they varied their methods according to the manners and cir- 84 LIFE OF THE REV. DR. COKE. cumstances of the people to whom they preached. What room, then, was there for the triumphant con- tempt which was poured upon Mr. Wesley and Dr. Coke, respecting the ordination of the latter by the former, when, according to Eusebius, our only guide, we know scarcely any thing more concerning the tra- vels and manners of the apostles themselves than we gather from the sacred records. But for this deficiency it may, perhaps, be expected that the historian will make an ample compensation when he proceeds to give us an account of their imme- diate successors and followers. But in this instance also, as well as in many others, disappointment travels in the rear of hope, and even damps our expectation by its shadow. " Who they were," says Eusebius, " that, imitating these apostles, (meaning Peter and Paul,) were by them thought worthy to govern the churches which they planted, is no easy thing to tell, excepting such as may be collected from St. Paul's own words."* On this remarkable passage bishop Stillingfleet makes the following observations : — " If the successors of the apostles, by the confession of Eusebius, are not cer- tainly to be discovered, then what becomes of that un- questionable line of succession of the bishops of several churches, and the large diagrams made of the apostoli- cal churches, with every one's name set down in his order, as if the writer had been Clarencieux to the apostles themselves ? Are all the great outcries of apostolical tradition, of personal succession, of unques- tionable records, resolved at last into the Scripture itself, by him from whom all these long pedigrees are fetched ? Then let succession know its place ; and learn to vaile Bonnet to the Scriptures ; and, withal, let men take heed of overreaching themselves when they would bring down so large a catalogue of single bishops from the first and purest times of the church, for it will be hard for others to believe them when Eusebius professeth it is so hard to find them."f "Would it not," says Calamy, "tempt a man to * Euseb. Eccl. Hist., lib. iii, cap. 4. t Stillingfleet's Irenic. p., 297. LIFE OF THE REV. DR. COKE. 85 wonder, after all this, to find such a stir made about the tables of succession in the several churches from the time of the apostles as a proof that diocesan episco- pacy had its rise from them ? Alas ! the head of the Nile is not more obscure than the first part of these tables."* " To show," the same author adds in another place, "how little ground there is to depend upon them in the present case, I will give a brief view from the re- presentation of the ancients of the strange confusion of the first part of the tables of the three most celebrated churches of Alexandria, Antioch, and Rome." The church of Alexandria has been generally repre- sented as founded by St. Mark ; and yet Eusebius speaks of it but as an uncertain report. " They say it was so," but he does not tell us who said so, nor upon what grounds. However, upon this slender authority of " they say so," many others after him have ventured to affirm it was an indisputable fact, that St. Mark was actually the founder of this church. However, even in this there is no perfect agreement. Some contend that he was there with St. Peter ; others that he was there alone, being sent by St. Peter ; others that he was there only once ; and others that he returned again after his first visit. As to the time of his arrival, the period of his ministry, and the year in which this church was first founded, all its records are totally silent ; and the famous Clement, from whom we might expect some information, throws not a single ray of light upon this subject. But even supposing St. Mark, under all these disad- vantages, to have been seated in this church on his throne of polished ivory, as the fabulous legends report, and that he wrote his gospel in it, the difficulties will increase when we proceed to his successors. His im- mediate follower on " the throne of ivory" has several names given to him, and as to those who come after, the representations and accounts are too various and conflicting to be credited as records of a fact. The line of succession which proceeds from Antioch, * Calamy, vol. i, p. 162. 86 LIFE OF THE REV. DR. COKE. is involved in equal, if not still greater difficulties than that of Alexandria. Eusebius, St. Chrysostom, St. Je- rome, pope Leo, Innocent, Gelasius, and Gregory the Great, all tell us that this church was founded by St. Peter. But we learn from superior authority that " they which were scattered abroad upon the persecution of Stephen travelled as far as Antioch, preaching the word to the Jews only," Acts xi, 19. This seems to have been the occasion of introducing Christianity into Antioch. After this, as the converts needed some one to confirm them in the faith which they had newly embraced, the church at Jerusalem sent forth Barnabas, not Peter, that he should go as far as Antioch. And when Barna- bas found that he needed some farther assistance, in- stead of applying to Peter, he " departed to Tarsus to seek Saul ; and when he had found him he brought him to Antioch. And it came to pass, that a whole year they assembled themselves with the church, and taught much people. And the disciples were called Christians first at Antioch," Acts xi, 25, 26. In all these transactions we have not one word about Peter ; but, on the contrary, the intimations appear strongly in favour of Paul, as the first founder of the church in this place. We read, indeed, in another place, that St. Peter was at Antioch, but the circumstance is not mentioned to his honour. For St. Paul, observing the offence he had given by his dissimulation, withstood him to the face, which we can hardly suppose he would have done, if Peter had been the founder of the church, and if he now stood at the head of his own diocess. Baronius, indeed, aware of these difficulties, is very willing that St. Peter should resign his bishopric at An- tioch, upon condition that St. Paul, acting as his vicar, be allowed to have erected one there by his authority. But even this will not do ; neither can the supposition be reconciled with the positive declarations of those who assert that he was a long time bishop there. If we turn from the apostles to their successors in this church, we shall find ourselves equally destitute of firm footing. Baronius assures us that the apostles left two bishops behind them in this place, one for the Jews, LIFE OF THE REV. DR. COKE. 87 and the other for the Gentiles. These were Ignatius and Euodius. Eusebius says expressly, that Euodius was the first bishop of Antioch, and that Ignatius suc- ceeded him. But, on the contrary, St. Chrysostom, Theodoret, and the author of the Constitutions declare, with equal assurance, that St. Peter and St. Paul both laid their hands on Ignatius ; but unfortunately it ap- pears that St. Peter was dead before Ignatius was bish- op in this place. The settlement of the Church of Rome, and its much extolled apostolical succession of bishops, is involved, if possible, in still greater perplexity, confusion, and disorder. According to some, this church was founded by St. Peter ; others say it was by St. Paul ; some intro- duce both, and others assert it was neither. Of this latter opinion were the learned Salmasius and others. But let us allow that St. Peter actually was at Rome, of what advantage will this be to the succession of bishops ? If Peter was there, it is equally certain that St. Paul was there also ; and under these circumstances it will be hard to determine who was bishop. St. Paul was there first, and on this account he is preferred by many of the ancients to St. Peter ; and in the seal of that church the former is placed on the right hand, and the latter on the left. But still this does not determine who was bishop. To accommodate this business, they have agreed to make them both bishops ; and this un- happily destroys the unity of the episcopate by placing two supremes at the same time in the same church. But whatever uncertainty may accompany the question as to the first bishop, those who succeed him are known with even less assurance. On this point the ancients and the moderns are strongly divided. Some will have Cletus expunged out of the table, as being the same with Anacletus ; and thus, fixing Linus at the head of the succession, cause him to be followed by Anacletus and Clemens. In this manner Irenaeus represents the case. Others will have Cietus and Anacletus to be both retained as distinct bishops, having Linus standing be- tween them. At the same time in some of the ancient catalogues Anacletus is excluded ; and what is remark- able, he is not to be found at this day in the canon of 88 LIFE OF THE REV. DR. CORE. the mass. And yet, in the Roman Martyrology, both Cletus and Anacletus are distinctly mentioned, and a different account is given of the birth, pontificate, and martyrdom of each. In the catalogue of Epiphanius, the early bishops of Rome are placed in the following order : — Peter and Paul, Linus, Cletus, Clemens, and Euaristus. But in the catalogue of Bucher they stand according to the fol- lowing arrangement : — Linus, Cletus, Clemens, and Euaristus ; and three names are entirely omitted ; name- ly, Anicetus, Eleutherius, and Zephyrinus. And what shall we do with the famous Clement? Does he style himself bishop of Rome? Or how came he to forget his title ? It has been said by some that after he had been St. Paul's companion, and was chosen by Peter to be bishop of Rome, he gave place to Linus. But others assert, writh equal confidence, and perhaps with equal authority, that Linus and Clemens, and others, that Linus and Cletus, were bishops at the same time. Tertullian, Ruffinus, and some others place Clement next to St. Peter ; but Irenaeus and Eusebius set Anacletus before him ; and Optatus makes both Anacletus and Cletus to precede him. And, finally, as though these strenuous defenders of apostolical succession were destined to render it ridiculous by the various methods they have adopted to defend this tender string, Austin, Damasus, and others will not allow him to grace the list until the names of Anacletus, Cletus, and Linus, have appeared. Such is the foundation of apostolical succession in the church of Rome ! Surely it can be no breach of charity to assert that ' The bold impostor Looks not more silly when the cheat's found out.' It was not, therefore, without reason that Bishop Stil- lingfleet observed, "The succession here is as muddy as the Tiber itself; and if the line fails us here, we have little cause to pin our faith upon it, as to the certainty of any particular form of church government, which can be drawn from the help of the records of the primitive LIFE OF THE REV. DR. COKE. 89 church."* It cannot, therefore, but be evident to every unprejudiced mind that, since such confusion and dis- order appear in the front of these tables of succession, where we might most naturally expect the greatest regu- larity and certainty, no dependence can be placed on their authority. That the pretences to apostolical succession and apos- tolical tradition, which the great defenders of episcopal authority make, are very bold and high-sounding, can- not be easily denied. And when they come forward, supported by a long list of succession that is too sacred to be touched by vulgar hands, because the line pro- fessedly reaches to the venerable churches of Alexandria, Antioch, and Rome, the mind is dazzled with the glar- ing meteor. But when the civil power withdraws its coercive support, and, as in this country, exposes the question to a free investigation, the imaginary rock sinks under us, and the chain crumbles into dust. Placing these tables of succession in the most favour- able light, it cannot be denied that Eusebius is the prin- cipal, and almost the only author, on whom their credit depends : and from him we have already seen the sandy foundation on which the edifice is raised. In his account of the succession in the several churches, the whole ap- pears to be made up chiefly from conjectures at a distance of three hundred years from the apostolical times, and even these conjectures are founded on very dubious au- thority. The veracity of Eusebius is not to be questioned, so far as he was able to procure information. Of this fact he has given to the world a convincing testimony by leaving vacancies even in his conjectural lists when he had no light to guide him through the gloomy laby- rinth during the first ages of the church. His successors, however, have certainly been either more bold or more successful in their labours. For certain it is, that Nice- phorus, Callistus, and Simeon the Metaphrast, and other such " historical tinkers ," as Bishop Stillingfleet plea- santly calls them, have taken great care to fill all the vacancies which Eusebius had left, so that the tables are now presented to the world as quite complete. It therefore finally appears, from the whole of this * Irenic, p. 312. 90 LIFE OF THE REV. DR. COKE. apparent digression, that he who from the confused, mutilated, and mended tables of succession which have been transmitted to us in the records of antiquity, can infer the necessity of episcopal ordination, and the inva- lidity of all besides, must either have a great share of credulity, or a predominant fancy.* Among the advocates for apostolical succession which this country boasts in modern times, Bishop Hoadly may be considered as standing in the foremost rank. But although an avowed enemy to nonconformity, he had too much magnanimity, candour, and good under- standing to take his stand on this delusive and defence- less ground. He allows the truth of St. Jerome's state- ment, that the presbyters of Alexandria elected their own bishops for two hundred years, which was from the supposed days of St. Mark to those of Dionysius. He argues, indeed, that from the days of the apostles it was the universal custon of the church to establish a superior officer, and to invest him with extraordinary power, to whom the term bishop was applied by way of eminence. But he nowhere considers these as an order of men ab- stractedly independent of those from whom they derived their authority. On the contrary, he hesitates not to make this public declaration : — " I think not an unin- terrupted line of succession of regularly ordained bishops necessary. "f This is a concession which many of his colleagues would feel some delicacy in making ; but from so able a reasoner what less would be expected ? If the uninterrupted succession were asserted to be ne- cessary, it must then be incumbent on its advocates to make it out ; and then, to fail in this, would be to aban- don the cause altogether. But, from the view we have already taken of this subject, we may perceive that this must be a work of no common difficulty ; and all who have undertaken it have failed in the attempt, and by their failure have discovered, with additional evidence, * SeeCalamy's Defence of moderate Nonconformity, vol. i, pp. 163--174. See also, Dr. Cave's Lives of the Fathers, and his Pri- mitive Christianity, chap, viii, together with the various authorities to which they respectively refer. t Hoadly's Treatise on Conformity and Episcopacy, p. 489. LIFE OF THE REV. DR. COKE. 91 the extent and danger of those quicksands in which so many have been overwhelmed. It appears, therefore, even from the concession of Bishop Hoadly, which both candour and prudence compelled him to make, that the conduct of Mr. Wesley in the ordination of Dr. Coke was rather a deviation from long established usage and modern practice, than from the manners of the primitive churches. And we cannot but remain astonished when we reflect on that spirit by which those opposers were actuated while pouring upon them that torrent of exe- cration which now adds a freshness to the laurels which they wear. But how fatal soever the preceding arguments, autho- rities, and concessions may appear to the infallibility of apostolical succession, it was not from these, either ex- clusively or primarily, that Mr. Wesley derived his sup- port in the measures which he pursued. In every step he invariably endeavoured to take the conduct of the primitive churches for his guide. This is a fact which all his friends are ready to admit, and which none of his foes are prepared to disapprove. It was upon this prin- ciple that he endeavoured to establish his societies, to provide for their internal government, and to regulate the proceedings of those preachers who acted in con- junction with him. His knowledge of ancient ecclesi- astical history was extensive ; this, therefore, enabled him to draw from the fountain head ; and it was only from discovering in the writings of Lord King, a faithful condensation of the manners of the ancient Christians for the first three hundred years, founded upon an ac- curate knowledge and a comprehensive survey of their proceedings, that he confessed his obligations to that writer. From a dispassionate survey of all the preceding ac- counts it plainly appears that, in the various steps which Mr. Wesley took in the formation of his societies, and in his laying hands on Dr. Coke, he uniformly imitated the conduct of the primitive Christian churches, so far as the circumstances in which he was placed would allow. And in such cases as he deviated from this rule he was driven by an alternative, either of acting as he 92 LIFE OF THE REV. DR. COKE. acted, or of omitting- altogether the adoption of mea- sures which God has been pleased to bless in a most un- exampled manner.* CHAPTER VI. Dr. Coke sails to America — Prominent particulars of the voy- age— manner in which he employed his time — Favourable recep- tion on his arrival — First interview with Mr. Asbury — Vicissi- tudes in traversing the states — Transactions at the first conference at Baltimore — Sermon at the conference noticed — Observations on some strictures made on it — Conduct of Dr. Coke vindicated re- specting his sermon — Occasion of an address to General Wash- ington— This address closely connected with the welfare of Me- thodism in the United States — Necessity of the measure — General Washington's reply. Dr. Coke, being strongly fortified with the arguments and authorities which we have tram icntly surveyed, remained in Bristol until the vessel was ready in which himself and his colleagues were prepared to sail. Every thing being in order, he went on board, in company with Mr. Whatcoat and Mr. Vasey, amid the prayers and ardent wishes of the societies, that God would give them a safe and speedy voyage, and ultimately crown their undertaking with his blessing. The vessel on board of which they embarked was bound for New-York, and neither the company nor the accommodations were disagreeable. A favourable breeze springing up, they weighed anchor on Saturday, the 18th of September, 1784, and began their voyage with a strong confidence in the protecting care of that God who can direct the elements, and make both winds and seas subservient to his own purposes. * It is but just to the general body of European Methodists to state explicitly that the measures which Mr. Wesley adopted on this occasion were limited in their operation to America. On the plan which was formed for the Methodists in the western conti- nent, the English Methodists have never acted ; they are therefore not responsible for the arguments by which its propriety in a for- eign country has been defended, under a train of peculiar circum- stances, in the preceding pages. LIFE OF THE REV. DR. COKE. 93 On Sunday, the 19th, it was their intention to deliver two sermons to the sailors and company on board ; but being unaccustomed to the sea, the motion of the ship created such a degree of sickness that the only duty they found themselves able to perform was that of cast- ing their care upon God. On Monday, the 20th, the wind and tide had so far operated in their favour, that they had proceeded nearly one hundred leagues from Bristol, although they had not advanced altogether so far toward the port of their destination. On the three following days they were obliged to con- tend with adverse gales, which blew with such violence as to require the constant exertion of nearly all the sea- men, and finally to bring them much nearer to Bristol when the storm subsided on Thursday evening, than they were on the preceding Monday. On Friday, the 24th, both the tempest and their sick- ness abated. The wind also became favourable, and their appetites returned ; and, in a state of external and internal tranquillity, they found themselves gently wafted toward America, at the rate of four or five miles an hour. On Saturday, the 25th, they had accomplished one hundred and fifty leagues of their voyage ; but hitherto, through sickness and tempestuous weather, they had been prevented from bearing any public testimony for God. A favourable opportunity, however, soon pre- sented itself, as one of the sailors was dangerously ill, and confined to his bed in the steerage. On visiting this man they took occasion to describe the nature of sin, to enforce the necessity of conversion, and to direct him to behold the Lamb of God who taketh away the sin of the world. And although nothing was said to any of the other sailors in a direct manner, they listened with much attention, and behaved with the greatest propriety. And it is not improbable that they felt themselves more deeply interested in the truths which they heard on this solemn occasion, while the evidences of mortality ap- peared so conspicuously before them in one of their afflicted companions, than they would have been by any direct address that could have been delivered to them. 94 LIFE OF THE REV. DR. COKE. Against swearing and drunkenness, the prevailing vices of sailors, the captain had decidedly set his face, both by his example and his precepts ; but these were insuf- ficient to produce the desired effect. Such, however, was the respect which they entertained for Dr. Coke and his associates, that, from the time they began to visit their sick companion, scarcely an oath was ever afterward uttered in their presence while they were on board. These favourable circumstances, which occurred on Saturday, prepared the way for them to introduce preaching on Sunday 26th. Dr. Coke accordingly preached in the morning ; but a French ship appearing with her colours hoisted, and expecting from them the same compliment, greatly interrupted their service. But in the afternoon, having no impediments, both cap- tain and sailors gave deep attention, and conducted themselves with the utmost decorum. On Monday 27th, the winds were contrary, but not violent ; so that although their progress was retarded, their peace was not interrupted. The exercise of pa- tience was indeed necessary, and they experienced a calm resignation to the will of God. On Tuesday 28th, the weather continued much the same as on the preceding day ; and although they had scarcely advanced a league toward their port during this and the two preceding days, they still found themselves about two hundred and fifty leagues from Bristol. And as they were now so accustomed to the motion of the ship, that their sickness was gone, and a regular mode of living was established, they set apart a given hour every morning for social prayer. To these prayer meetings the sailors regularly resorted, and, unless pre- vented by the duties of the ship, they persevered in this practice during the remaining part of the voyage. On Wednesday, Thursday, and Friday, nothing re- markable occurred. The winds had been rather unfa- vourable, but the weather was fine, and with patience and resignation their time passed pleasantly away. On Saturday, October 2d, a brisk gale set in from the east, and carried them onward with more than common rapidity, so that on the whole they found themselves LIFE OF THE REV. DR. COKE. 95 about three hundred and fifty leagues from Bristol, un- der an auspicious gale that wafted them in a direct line toward their desired haven. On Sunday 3d, divine service was again performed both in the morning and in the afternoon ; and the same degree of attention was paid by the sailors that had marked their former conduct. On Monday, Tuesday, and Wednesday, nothing re- markable happened. The gale became less flattering, but still it continued to propel them forward, although the weather was now grown variable. On Thursday 7th, as the morning brought with it a perfect calm, the captain directed all the sails to be set. This was done accordingly ; and, during the whole fore- noon, without any anticipation of approaching danger, they waited for an auspicious breeze. But about noon a sudden squall attacked the vessel with all her canvass spread, in consequence of which she was laid down, and it was with the utmost difficulty they could prevent the mainmast from being snapped in two. During these moments of alarm and danger all was hurry and confu- sion ; but so far had the minds of the sailors been im- pressed with the solemnities of religion, that the mate observed to Dr. Coke, " not an oath was to be heard among the sailors during the squall and the bustle to which it immediately led." Several days succeeded to this, without bringing any remarkable occurrence. To morning and evening prayer the sailors were induced to attend, and their be- haviour was uniformly decent. Every Sunday their seasons of public worship were regular, and the means of grace were also diligently attended. But although an outward reformation was visible in the language of the sailors, there was but little reason to believe that divine grace had made any deep impression on any of their hearts. They had now made so considerable a progress in their voyage, that instead of calculating the distance they had sailed from Bristol, they began to anticipate their approximation to the continent. In the expectation of their speedy arrival in sight of land, they were confirm- ed on Friday 22d, by a sparrow "which paid them a 96 LIFE OF THE REV. DR. COKE. visit. The intimation which it gave was not delusive, although they were not permitted to reach the shore so early as they expected. Among the sailors they now thought that one was given to them as a seal to their ministry ; but as they were about to remove, they had no opportunity of observing that infallible characteris- tic of the Christian, " By their fruits ye shall know them." On Sunday 24th, expecting it would be the last time of public worship, they preached their farewell ser- mons, and gave their final admonitions. To these the seamen listened with apparently more attention than they had ever manifested before; and none among them seemed displeased with the simple truths which were delivered without any disguise. Another week, how- ever, elapsed before they could get on shore ; so that, on the following Sunday, they were enabled once more to warn the sailors to flee from the wrath to come. On this occasion all behaved with the utmost decorum, and appeared like men who began to believe they had an interest in eternity. But beyond this it is difficult to say what effect the word preached had upon their minds. It is, however, the duty of gospel ministers to be instant in season, and out of season ; and, having used with conscious sincerity the means which God has appointed, to leave the event to him. It was upon this principle that Dr. Coke and his companions acted during their voyage, which terminated on the 3d of November, on which day they landed at New-York. The leisure portions of time which this passage across the Atlantic afforded, were employed by Dr. Coke chiefly in perusing such books as related to his present undertaking, and to the important occasion for which he had left his native land. In the lives of Francis Xavier and David Brainerd, he beheld an employment similar almost to this in which he was personally enga- - ged ; and the breathings of his soul appear to have been for a spirit which, like the spirits of those holy men, should be filled with humility, with self-denial, with patience, with perseverance, and with an inextinguish- able zeal for the glory of God. In prayer, and in the meditations of St. Austin, he found many spiritual bless- LIFE OF THE REV. DR. COKE. 97 ings, and much consolation. Bishop Hoadly's Trea tises on Conformity and Episcopacy, though consisting of five hundred and sixty-six pages, passed also under his review ; but, although he admits that the bishop is a fair and powerful reasoner, the perusal tended on the whole to confirm him in that line of duty which he was about to pursue on the western continent. In mo- ments of relaxation, to relieve his mind from the fatigue of severer studies, the Arcadian scenes of Virgil's pen unfolded their beauties to his imagination. And even while nothing but sea, and sky, and winds was present to the senses, the magic wand of the poet introduced him to verdant meadows, to blooming groves, to bub- bling fountains, to purling brooks, and to meandering streams. But even in this region of poetic fancy his soul was bent toward God : and the license taken by Virgil was cherished to illustrate the sublime expres- sions of David. Arriving at New-York in perfect health, the first care of Dr. Coke, after having taken an affectionate leave of the captain and his companions on board, was to find out the Methodist preaching house. In this inquiry he was assisted by a gentleman, who, although he had no connection with the Methodists, conducted him to the house of a Mr. Sands, where he took up his abode, and found himself in a region of hospitality and friend- ship. The intelligence of his arrival soon brought to the house the travelling preacher stationed in that city. To him Dr. Coke unfolded the plan which Mr. Wesley had adopted for the regulation and government of his societies in America. And it was no small consolation to him to learn that the plan met his entire approbation ; and so confident was he of Mr. Asbury's concurrence, that he advised him immediately to make it public throughout all the societies, being fully assured that the name of Mr. Wesley would impart a degree of sanction to the measure^which would disarm resistance, even if any weit to be apprehended. But that nothing might be done precipitately, Dr. Coke declined carrying the advice into execution, until he had seen Mr. Asbury, to whom he had a particular message, although they were personally- unknown to each other, that thev might act 5 9S LIFE OF THE REV. DR. COKE. in concert, and take no step that should not be the re- sult of calm deliberation. Having taken this prudent resolution, Dr. Coke, after preaching a few times in New-York and its vicinity, took his leave of a friendly and affectionate people, and directed his course toward Philadelphia ; this being the quarter in which he expected to find Mr. Asbury. He reached that city on Saturday, the 6th of November, and was kindly entertained at the house of a Mr. Baker. On the ensuing day he preached in one of the churches, at the particular desire of a clergyman, who, in com- pany with Dr. White, another clergyman, paid him a friendly visit, when the latter offered him the use of his church the Sunday following. In the course of this week, he waited on the governor, and was received both by him and his lady with the utmost politeness. Of this gentleman Dr. Coke speaks in his journals in terms of the warmest approbation, as a genuine friend to literature, to toleration, and to vital Christianity. On Friday, the 12th, Dr. Coke preached at the Cross Roads, in the state of Delaware, to a pleasing and an attentive congregation. And as a proof that the people on the continent were ready to receive the gospel, he observes that, on his journey to this place, he was en- tertained at an inn in a most sumptuous manner, for which entertainment the proprietor absolutely refused to receive the smallest remuneration, esteeming it an honour to receive an ambassador for Jesus into his house. The day following furnished an evidence not less striking in the conduct of a Mr. Basset, one of the executive council for the state of Delaware. This gen- tleman, at whose house Dr. Coke was kindly enter- tained, though not a member of the Methodist connec- tion, was at that time erecting a large chapel at his own expense for the accommodation of the preachers, the congregation, and the society. At this place Dr. Coke had his first interview with Mr.* Freeborn Gar- \ retson, of whose life an interesting memoir is published in the Methodist Magazine for the year 1794. He was at this time a young man, and Dr. Coke describes him as full of meekness, activity, and love ; and as seizing every moment to redeem the time, and to render him- LIFE OF THE REV. DR. COKE. 99 self useful in the church of God ; and even as setting an example to those who were farther advanced in years. Hitherto Dr. Coke had not seen Mr. Asbury, with whom he was solicitous to become acquainted ; but the moment was at hand that should introduce them to each other. On Sunday, the 14th, the doctor proceeded from the house of Mr. Basset to a chapel built in the midst of a vast forest, in which an unexpected con- course of people assembled from every quarter. To this congregation he preached, and afterward adminis- tered the sacrament to between five and six hundred communicants. Scarcely, however, had he finished his sermon, before he perceived a plainly dressed, robust, but venerable looking man moving through the congre- gation, and making his way toward him. On ascend- ing the pulpit, he clasped the doctor in his arms ; and, without making himself known by words, accosted him with the holy salutation of primitive Christianity. This venerable man was Mr. Asbury ; and their joy at meet- ing soon became mutual, while the scene was at once interesting and affecting to the congregation. On leaving the chapel they repaired together to the house of a hospitable friend who had anticipated their interview on their arrival. Here they took into con- sideration the plan which Mr. Wesley had devised for the government and discipline of the societies in Ame- rica, and concerted measures for carrying his designs more fully into execution ; especially as the measures to be adopted met the full approbation of Mr. Asbury, and therefore ensured their mutual co-operation. Previous to this day, Mr. Asbury had received some intimations of Dr. Coke's arrival; and expecting to find him at the chapel in the forest, he had informed several preachers of the circumstance, desiring them to repair to the neighbourhood, that they might be in readiness to attend, in case Dr. Coke should have any thing of importance to communicate from England. The con- tents of his mission being thought both highly import- ant and deeply interesting, the preachers detained in the vicinity, by Mr. Asbury, were immediately called ; and on being convened in a kind of council, they were made acquainted with the authority with which Dr. Coke 100 LIFE OF THE REV. DR. COKE. was empowered, and with the outlines of the plan with which he was intrusted. In this council it became a question, whether it would not be prudent to appoint a conference, as soon as the preachers could be inform- ed of their intention, and collected together from the various states. In favour of this step their voices were unanimous ; and nothing remained but to appoint the time, and give publicity to the notice, suspending all farther consultations until the period should arrive. It was now the 15th of November, and the day fixed for the opening of their conference was the ensuing Christ- mas-eve. Messengers were accordingly despatched in every direction, and every method was adopted that prudence could suggest, to circulate among the preach- ers a knowledge of the day on which they were expect- ed to assemble. Dr. Coke, during this interim, following the advice of Mr. Asbury, who was now well acquainted with the manners and dispositions of the people, and much better with the local geography of the country than himself, set out on a tour to visit the societies, and preach to the congregations which might assemble to hear. His route, thus laid out, included nearly a thousand miles. To conduct him through the pathless forests of the con- tinent, Mr. Asbury furnished him with his black servant, whose name was Harry. This man had experienced the influence of divine grace on his heart ; and had given evidence of its abiding efficacy by the humility and amiable deportment of his life. From experiencing the grace of God in his own soul, he had been led to warn his sable brethren to flee from the wrath to come ; and by addressing them in their own familiar dialect, he had been made instrumental of much good among them. During this tour Dr. Coke heard him preach several times ; and from that peculiar power which attended his word, he thought him, in this department, one of the best preachers that the world could furnish. In prosecuting this journey, Dr. Coke found himself exposed to the storms and sunshine which diversify the natural and the moral world. In some places he was received as an angel of God, and was caressed and fol- lowed by the rich and powerful, and occasionally salu- LIFE OF THE REV. DR. COKE. 101 ted with the hosannas of the multitude. But on other occasions the case was totally reversed. Arriving at the town of Cambridge on Sunday, the 5th of Decem- ber, a place that had been notorious for persecution, a question arose among the inhabitants whether Dr. Coke, who was admitted to be a clergyman, should be allowed to preach in their church or not. The question was finally decided against him, and the church doors were shut. It is worthy of remark, that in this church no t service had been performed for several years ; and, prior to Dr. Coke's arrival, it had been thrown open for the reception of cattle and hogs, although they would not suffer it to be profaned by the preaching of the gos- pel. But a vast concourse of people assembled at the door of a cottage, and to these he preached without in- terruption. At Kent Island, on the following Thursday, he was again compelled to preach in the open air, through a cause somewhat similar to the preceding. In the church of this place notice had been published on the preceding Snuday, that Dr. Coke would preach there. But when the moment came, the same individual who had announced his coming to preach in the church, through that instability which marks the weakness of human nature, ordered the doors to be shut against him. The issue here was different from what he in all probability expected. A large congregation assembled, and heard attentively ; and even those who had been no previous friends to Methodism espoused its cause on the present occasion, through the indignant feelings which the treat- ment of Dr. Coke had excited. In passing from Cam- bridge to this place he was exposed to imminent danger in crossing a ferry. From the violence of the weather, Harry, who was at once his companion and his guide, had anticipated the danger that awaited them ; and through his persuasion Dr. Coke was prevailed upon to leave the horses to be brought forward on the ensuing day, as the river which they had to pass was scarcely fordable. This was done ; and it was with the utmost difficulty that the boat, into which they entered on an- other part of the same stream, could reach the opposite shore. To this advice, under the superintending care of God, they were indebted for the preservation of their lives. 102 LIFE OF THE REV. DR. COKE. As no doubt had been entertained that the plan re- commended by Mr. Wesley would be fully adopted at the ensuing conference, Dr. Coke and Mr. Asbury had anticipated the erection of a school or college for the education of youth so soon as circumstances should concur to render the accomplishment of the plan ad- visable. In humble confidence of success, they had, therefore, previous to their separation, agreed to make their intention public in the course of their respeciive journeys, and solicit such assistance as their benevolent friends were disposed to afford. In prosecuting this plan, they found a spirit of liberality which far exceed- ed their most sanguine expectations. On the 14th of December they again met near Chesapeake bay ; and, on comparing their sums together, discovered that they had already collected about one thousand pounds ster- ling ; and, on the Friday following, one gentleman pre- sented Dr. Coke with thirty guineas, furnishing both him and Mr. Asbury with elegant apartments, and every accommodation which they could wish to prepare their plans for the approaching conference. On Christmas-eve the preachers met in the city of Baltimore, according to previous appointment, to begin their conference, at which nearly sixty were present ; but the whole number at that time in the connection on the continent amounted to eighty-one. In this as- sembly the plans devised by Mr. Wesley, and now com- mitted to their care for execution, were fully unfolded ; and, under existing circumstances, their general princi- ples received unanimous approbation. On the 27th of December, Dr. Coke, agreeably to the letter he had re- ceived from Mr. Wesley prior to his departure from Bristol, proceeded to impart to Mr. Asbury that branch of the office to which he was designated. The season was awful and impressive ; a solemn sense of the divine presence evidently resting upon all. Mr. Asbury being thus ordained, in conjunction with Dr. Coke, superin- tendent of the Methodist Episcopal Church in America, proceeded with him to elect a number of elders and deacons, according to the directions previously received from Mr. Wesley. To the office of deacon every other preacher in full connection was chosen ; and in the LIFE OF THE REV. DR. COKE. 103 choice of presbyters or elders all partiality seemed to give place to superior considerations ; namely, to quali- fication and character, such as might tend to promote the glory of God, and the welfare of immortal souls. But how rigorously soever they adhered to the prin- ciple of impartiality, it was not in their power to give universal satisfaction. Many who were omitted in this list of honour felt themselves hurt, and suspected that others less qualified for the office were unduly prefer- red before them. But for such surmisings due allow- ance must always be made. They flow from the selfish principles of human nature ; and, in a greater or less degree, find place in almost every breast. The discon- tent, however, was of a transient nature ; reason soon resumed her dominion ; the clouds quickly dispersed ; and all was again clear and tranquil. As the establishment of this mode of discipline and government among the Methodists in America was to- tally unprecedented, it became necessary to state to the assembled multitudes the foundation on which the inno- vation stood. This was a task which naturally devolved on Dr. Coke ; and to this subject he directed the atten- tion of his audience, in a sermon which he delivered at Baltimore, immediately after the ordination of Mr. As- bury, and the appointment of presbyters and deacons for the churches. In the course of this sermon he ad- verted to the arguments which we have already given in detail in the preceding chapter ; and, independently of argument and reasoning, he defended the measure on the ground of necessity ; and vindicated his conduct, and the conduct of his associates, from the charge of inconsistency, by making his appeal to the indepen- ♦ dence which the United States had recently acquired. But unfortunately, in these statements, vindications, and appeals, he was less careful than could have been wished, in preserving those marks of discrimination to which all should rigidly adhere on disputable occasions. In describing the character of the clergy of America, he seemed to have forgotten that he was still an English- man ; and he introduced his observations in a manner that would seem, from his omitting, in the ardour of his zeal, the restrictive application, to imply a universal 104 LIFE OF THE REV. DR. COKE. characteristic. On the subject of an episcopal establish- ment, under the immediate auspices of the state, he was equally negligent in marking the peculiar situations of Great Britain and the United States : and he seemed hardly to be aware of the difficulty of vindicating the « appendages of monarchy upon republican grcund, or of expatiating upon the rights of independence on the con- tinent without interfering with the regulations esta- blished in his native land. In relation to the distinct bodies of preachers on each side of the Atlantic, the same inattention was discoverable in his animadver- sions. And hence it was, that the language which, un- der restrictive epithets, and exclusive appropriation, was strictly just and proper, became liable to suspicions in other connections, and, by exposing a vulnerable front, invited assailants to an attack. It is a fact, which the truth of personal biography, as well as that of general history, directs us to offer on the altar of impartiality, that Mr. Charles Wesley was never pleased with the powers of ordaining which he thought his brother John had unwarrantably assumed. His face was set against this branch of his conduct from the be- ginning ; and even to the last, the only ground which, in his view, supported the propriety of the measure was the utility resulting from it. But as in all these trans- actions Dr. Coke had taken an active part, the situation which he sustained, and the character he had assumed, rendered him, in the estimation of Mr. Charles Wesley, a fair object of attack. Against him, therefore, he could direct all the point of his observations ; and by so doing indirectly show his disapprobation, by a peculiar species of well contrived accident that should teach the javelin to fly beyond its appointed mark. Availing himself of the favourable opportunity which certain unguarded expressions in Dr. Coke's sermon afforded, an anonymous author, on the arrival of some copies in England,- published strictures upon it. Of these strictures Mr. Charles Wesley is generally sup- posed to have been the author ; yet, for reasons which are concealed, the writer could never be induced pub- licly to avow his name. But from whose pen soever they proceeded, they certainly contained much point, LIFE OF THE REV. DR. COKE. 105 and furnished evidence that the author was well ac- quainted with his subject, and capable of taking a com- prehensive survey of all its parts. Connecting the Me- thodism of England with that of America — the clergy at home with the clergy abroad — and viewing Dr. Coke in his complex character of a clergyman of the Church of England, a Methodist preacher and a bishop in the United States, he was presented to the public, dressed in a coat of many colours. His reply to these strictures soon followed their appearance ; and in this he intro- duced those explanatory phrases, and local restrictions to his meaning, which ought to have guarded the ex- pressions of his sermon when it was delivered, and which, if done, would have prevented the more pointed parts of the strictures from falling upon him. Among other charges of less magnitude and moment, the anonymous author contends that, "As an English- man, he condemns the constitution of his country, — as a clergyman, he vilifies his brethren with the opprobrious names of hirelings and parasites, — as a Methodist preacher, he contradicts the uniform declarations of the Rev. John and Charles Wesley, — and that from the rea- sons which he assigned for the adherence of the Me- thodists in England to the Church, he indirectly charged the preachers with acting upon principles of duplicity and falsehood." To the first of these charges Dr. Coke replies that, instead of condemning the constitution of his country, he is fully persuaded no form of civil government can be equal to that of a mixed monarchy for the welfare of the British empire. The constitution, he contends, is su- perlatively excellent, although he readily allows that some of its branches are liable to be abused. It was to this abuse that he referred in his sermon ; and against its effects and consequences, as they were experienced in America, that he raised his voice ; and nothing be- yond this, he argues, can be fairly inferred from his lan- guage. The expression used by Dr. Coke in his sermon, on which the charge was founded, runs thus : "The Church of England, of which the society of Methodists, in gene- ral, have till lately professed themselves a part, did for 5* 106 LIFE OF THE REV. DR. COKE. many years groan in America under grievances of the heaviest kind. Subjected to a hierarchy which weighs every thing in the scale of politics, its most important interests were repeatedly sacrificed to the supposed ad- vantages of England." That these observations were intended by the author to be exclusively applied to the churches in America, is demonstrable from the language he has used. The abuses which existed, he invariably condemned, both in England and in America ; especi- ally as he perceived that principles were from these abuses called into action which might ultimately prove destructive to the very essence of Christianity. But the manner in which power was exercised in America, he uniformly admitted to be widely different from that which was discovered in England. Both in this country and in America the hierarchy existed ; but it was only on the western side of the Atlantic that he represents the people as " groaning under grievances of the heaviest kind." In both countries the hierarchy was liable to abuse ; but it was only in America that he describes it as actually abused. In both countries every thing might be " weighed in the scale of politics," but it was only in the United States that he represented the "most important interests of the people sacrificed to the sup- posed advantages of England." On what ground, then, it may be asked, does that charge rest, which accuses Dr. Coke with " condemning the constitution of his country V Combined in all its parts, it was an object of his admiration ; but he perceived within its range a principle which was liable to abuse ; and in a distant appendage of the empire he saw that abuse actually ex- isting in all its enormity. The fact itself has never been denied. Against this abuse he lifted his voice, and em- ployed his pen ; and therefore he stood charged with condemning the constitution of his country ! Against the second charge, that, " as a clergyman, he vilifies his brethren with the opprobrious names of hirelings and parasites," his vindication lies within a narrow compass. Dr. Coke has said that " the churches were in general filled with the parasites and bottle companions of the rich and great ; -and that the drunk- ard, the fornicator, and the extortioner triumphed over LIFE OF THE REV. DR. COKE. 10? bleeding Zion, because they Tvere faithful abetters of the ruling powers." To prevent, if possible, any one from thinking that he intended to apply these passages so indiscriminately as to involve the English clergy, he had subjoined a note at the foot of his page. But this note was insufficient to protect him from a charge of vilifying his brethren. In his vindication he utterly de- nies that the American clergy were his brethren. That they were, in general, as wretched a set of men as ever disg raced the church of God, he boldly asserts ; although he admits that several might be found among them at whose feet he should think it an honour to sit. But, on the whole, he contends that the clergy of the Church of England were incomparably to be preferred before the clergy in America, adverted to in his sermon. It does not appear that Dr. Coke on this occasion stands charged with having uttered falsehoods, or with having given even distorted features to truth. In what respect, then, it may be asked, has he vilified his brethren ? His crime must consist in having given publicity to vices which previously existed, and with having had courage to drag the traitors to light. To the third charge, " that, as a Methodist preacher, he contradicts the uniform declaration of J. and C. Wesley, respecting their adherence to the church," he replies that he did nothing but by a delegated power which he received from Mr. Wesley. And for the truth of this he refers to Mr. Wesley's letter \addressed to himself and to Mr. Asbury, which, he contends, is a sufficient vindication for himself against the charge of inconsistency as a Methodist. On this ground it can- not be denied that his plea of delegated authority is valid, Mr. Wesley and himself being identified together. The foundation of this authority has been already ex- amined. Against the last charge, founded upon the reasons which Dr. Coke had assigned for the adherence of the Methodists in England to the Church, as being the only alternative that could preserve the societies, and prevent them from forming themselves into an independent body ; his defence will arise from the distinct grounds on which the English and the American Methodists respectively 108 LIFE OF THE REV. DR. COKE. stood. In America they bad no national establishment after the war, to which they could possibly adhere ; and consequently all arguments and reasonings, on what principle soever they were founded, must be alike nu- gatory, because totally inapplicable. Nor can the rea- sons assigned by Dr. Coke for the adherence of the Methodists in England to the Church, support the charge brought against him in the strictures. If these reasons had included all that could be urged in behalf of the preachers, for exhorting the people to adhere to the Church, the pretence for accusing him with insinuations to their disadvantage would have been apparent. But these were not the only reasons ; they were not the principal ones ; they were only such as occurred on the present occasion, and were unfortunately insufficient for his purpose. He assigned some; but he did not assign all; he did not assign the strongest ; nor was he bound to enter into a detail of those arguments in Ame- rica, which can only be of force on this side of the water. His reasonings and arguments were therefore defective rather than erroneous ; and demanded com- passion instead of blame, if more were necessary to be said. If, indeed, the doctor had stated the reasons assigned, as the only ones why the Methodists in Eng- land were exhorted to adhere to the Church, he would have merited the censures bestowed upon him in the strictures ; and in addition to this, he would have ex- posed himself to the charge of not keeping within the pale of truth. But as the case really stood, the ground on which he took his stand was strictly tenable ; and a fair understanding of his meaning, taken in connection with the object that he had in view, will strip him of that coat of many colours in which the anonymous author of the strictures was anxious to see him arrayed. But it was not from any sentiment advanced, either in his sermon, or in the strictures upon it, that Dr. Coke found the most formidable difficulty he was doomed to encounter, in consequence of his visit to America. The official situation he filled, imposed upon him several duties which it was incumbent on him to discharge ; but which, as a subject of Great Britain, involved him in much perplexity. Of this description was the address LIFE OF THE REV. DR. COKE. 109 presented by Mr. Asbury and himself to General Wash- ington, the president of the United States. In every department of life there are circumstances which will sometimes occur, to place men in dilemmas that they can discover with more ease than they can avoid. As independent spectators, it is not difficult for us to discern the whirlpool or the rocks which await an actor in public life ; and in the same moment we may insult him with the sighs of affected pity, and the smiles of malignant joy. But it is not so easy to determine how we should have acted, if in similar situations we had been appointed to walk in an untrodden path. It is well known, from the whole tenor of Mr. Wes- ley's political observations, that in the unhappy contest between Great Britain and America he very warmly es- poused the cause of England, and reprobated the con- m duct of the colonists. This circumstance placed the Methodists in a very unfavourable light in the eyes of the Americans ; in consequence of which all the English preachers, except Mr. Asbury, were obliged to flee as soon as the war broke out. The contest was, indeed, now brought to an issue, and the United States were acknowledged by the powers of Europe as an independ- ent empire. But although the tempest had subsided, the agitation which it occasioned still continued, and the waves were occasionally heard to beat upon the shore. The suspicions, therefore, which the Methodists had incurred, it was incumbent on them to wipe away. Prior to this time the case of negro slavery had ex- cited much attention in England ; and this unhappy race of men had found many powerful friends among the wise * and good of every denomination. Mr. Wesley and most of his preachers had lifted their voices in favour of the oppressed ; and had inveighed in general terms against the conduct of those traders " Who drive a loathsome traffic, gauge and span, And buy the muscles and the bones of man." Their voices had been heard across the Atlantic ; and the sentiments they entertained vibrated in discordant notes on the ears of the American planters, who had * strangely learned to sign with one hand an act of 110 LIFE OF THE REV. DR. COKE. independence in their own behalf, while, with the other, they brandished the whip over their trembling slaves. The question on the justice or injustice of holding slaves had no necessary connection with the mode of civil government established in the colonies. Slave- holding was tolerated and sanctioned ; but it was not enforced. A man, therefore, might be attached to the constitution in the abstract, and admire it on all other occasions, and yet be a decided foe to that gross inhu- manity which its strangely lenient principles tolerated. This was precisely the ground on which multitudes of the American Methodists stood. But the friends of • slavery, unable to defend the traffic, and unwilling to see its enormity exposed, endeavoured to connect slave- holding with the constitution of their country, and to transfer the abhorrence which slavery had excited, to the score of disaffection toward the government. This was an artificial link which it was the duty of Dr. Coke to expose and snap asunder. As the revolution which had taken place formed an entirely new era in the history of American transactions, the citizens thought it their duty to rally around the infant government, and to express their approbation of the principles which had been adopted. Among these citizens, as the principles established by government preserved the rights of conscience free from violation, the different religious sects presented their addresses respectively to the amiable president, General Washing- ton ; professing their readiness to yield obedience to the system of government which had been recently esta- blished, end declaring their abhorrence of every attempt to effect its subversion. Amid these examples, and under the peculiar circum- stances in which the Methodists were placed, it was scarcely possible for them to avoid making a similar acknowledgment without incurring the vengeance of their foes, who would triumphantly have construed their silence into confirmed disloyalty. Under this reproach- ful imputation they must have remained ; nor would it have been in their power to remove the stigma, but by having recourse hereafter to an address as a doubtful LIFE OF THE REV. DR. COKE. Ill remedy, which might now be presented as a sure preventive. Dr. Coke and Mr. Asbury, having assumed the cha- racter of bishops, were, in the eyes of all, the acknow- ledged head of the American Methodists ; and conse quently no address could be considered as official unless it bore their signatures as the organ of the body. Thus circumstanced, an address was drawn up, and signed by Dr. Coke and Mr. Asbury in behalf of the American Methodists, and presented to General Washington. In this address they professed their loyalty and obedience, and their readiness to support, on all lawful occasions, the executive government now established ; and, as a religious body, to present their prayers to almighty God for his blessing on the country and its rulers. But al- though this address contained nothing more than is usually expressed on such occasions, it brought Dr. Coke into some serious difficulties among his brethren at home, on his return to England, as we shall hereafter discover. Whether Dr. Coke, when this address was drawn up, signed, and presented to General Washington, had for- gotten that he was a subject of Great Britain, (for it was from this circumstance that his future difficulties arose,) it is unnecessary to inquire. Even admitting that he knew it, and that he felt the delicacy of his situ- ation in all its force, as a friend to the cause of God, it was not in his power to avoid the line of conduct which he pursued. So far as the agency of secondary causes is concerned, the final destiny of Methodism in America seemed to rest on this address. And from his invincible attachment to the interests of the gospel, no one who knew his real character will doubt that, with the perfect knowledge of all that censure and contempt which he was doomed to endure on a future day, he would, if it were possible, again prefer putting his signature to the address, to the mean complacency which pride might draw from the omission, in order to preserve a uni- formity of action. In the present disordered state of the world we fre- quently perceive, both in nature and in providence, that the claims of diminutive parts must be sometimes aban- 112 LIFE OF THE REV. DR. COKE. doned, in order to be made subservient to the perfection of the whole. In the actions of human beings the same principle occasionally operates ; and the individual who tenaciously adheres to the utmost local benefits of which his exclusive condition renders him susceptible, deprives the community of a greater good than he himself re- tains by such an illiberal self-appropriation. It was in one of these situations that Dr. Coke was placed while about to sign the address in America. He had both a private and a public consistency of charac- ter to sustain. But no effort of human ingenuity could make them mutually coincide. As a subject of Great Britain, tenacious of the consistency of his personal actions, prudence would have directed him not to sign. But as a minister of Jesus Christ, as filling an official station in the Methodist societies, and as a superintend- ent in America, the welfare of the gospel commanded him to promote its interests, and to leave all private considerations, as unworthy of bearing the name of rival. Between these alternatives he made a noble choice, and acted upon an exalted principle, to which none but superior spirits can aspire. He has taught us by his magnanimous example that " Private respects to public weal must yield," and that personal reputation was no longer his when the interests of Christianity demanded the costly sacri- fice. By walking on this vast and comprehensive cir- cle, which the organs of some were too dim to discern, he has encircled his name with wreaths of laurel, which will continue to flourish when the sigh of smiling pity, and of sneering condolence, can be no longer heard. Those who still continue to censure his conduct on the present occasion, now the mists of prejudice are done away, and all the consequences of each alternative ap- pear in their proper bearings, plainly tell us how they would have acted under similar circumstances if, like him, they had been called to feel the touch of Ithuriel's spear. But, whatever jealousies might have been entertained at home respecting the political tendency of this ad- dress, nothing can be more evident than that it was LIFE OF THE REV. DR. COKE. 113 viewed in its proper light in the United States. This may be gathered from the answer which it procured from General Washington ; and its public effects may be inferred from the peace, the protection, the prosper- ity, which, from that moment to the present, the Me- thodist churches have continued to enjoy, under the government thus addressed in the person of the presi- dent. On the perusal of this address General Washing- ton returned the following reply. " To the Bishops of the Methodist Episcopal Church in the United States of America. " Gentlemen, — I return to you individually, and through you to your society collectively in the United States, my thanks for the demonstrations of affection, and the expressions of joy offered in their behalf, on my late appointment. It shall be my endeavour to mani- fest the purity of my inclinations for promoting the happiness of mankind, as well as the sincerity of my desires to contribute whatever may be in my power toward the civil and religious liberties of the American people. In pursuing this line of conduct, I hope, by the assistance of divine Providence, not altogether to disappoint the confidence which you have been pleased to repose in me. " It always affords me satisfaction when I find a con- currence in sentiment and practice between all consci- entious men, in acknowledgements of homage to the great Governor of the universe, and in professions of support to a just civil government. After mentioning that I trust the people of every denomination, who de- mean themselves as good citizens, will have occasion to be convinced that I shall always strive to prove a faith- ful and impartial patron of genuine vital religion — I must assure you, in particular, that I take in the kindest part the promise you make of presenting your prayers at the throne of grace for me, and that I likewise im- plore the divine benediction on yourselves and your religious community. G. Washington." 114 LIFE OF THE REV. DR. COKE- CHAPTER VII. Analysis of the Episcopal form of church government established in America — Progress of Methodism in the United States — Dr. Coke's sermon on the Godhead of Christ — Missionaries sent to Nova Scotia through Dr. Coke's exertions — History of Cokesbury college — Rules of the institution — Destruction by fire — Church and college at Baltimore — Flourishing condition — -Both consumed by fire — Aggregate loss estimated at £10.000 — Dr. Coke in immi- nent danger of being drowned — Observations on slavery in Ame- rica— Efforts to procure its abolition — Visits General Washington — Exposed to dangers in forests — Returns to England. As the form of church government, and the manner of worship to be established in America, originated pri- marily with Mr. Wesley, he had abridged the form of common prayer prior to Dr. Coke's departure from Bristol, for the future use of the congregations on the continent. Dr. Coke, also, in conjunction with Mr. Asbury, published, during this visit, a small volume, containing 167 pages, respecting the doctrines and dis- cipline of the Methodist Episcopal Church in America, with explanatory notes. This little volume is divided into three chapters, the first of which includes twenty- eight sections, the second ten sections, and the third six. The first section in the first chapter contains a con- densed account of the reason why the episcopal form of church government was adopted, an account of bap- tism, and the Lord's supper, and the foundations on which their right of establishing it rested. The second section contains the articles of religion, which are twenty-five in number ; and, with some occasional vari- ations, they very nearly coincide with those of the Es- tablished Church. The third section relates to the general and annual conferences ; and in these they dif- fer from the conferences of England chiefly in the fol- lowing particulars : That the time of holding the yearly conferences, which shall be six in number, shall be solely under the direction of the bishops : that the elders shall be elected by the unanimous suffrages of the gene- ral conference : and that the districts are to be formed according to the judgment of the bishops. The fourth section applies exclusively to the appoint- LIFE OF THE REV. DR. COKE. 115 ment, duties, and responsibility of the bishops. A bishop is to be constituted such by the general conference, and the laying on of the hands of two or three bishops ; and in case of the death of all, he is to be elected by the voice of conference, and ordained by three of the elders. That it is the bishops' business to preside in the con- ferences ; to fix the appointment of the preachers ; to change, receive, or suspend preachers, during the inter- vals between the conferences ; to travel throughout the connection at large ; to inspect the temporal and spiri- tual concerns of the societies ; and to ordain bishops, elders, and deacons. For their own conduct respecting themselves, and for the exercise of that power which is thus reposed in them, the bishops are responsible to the conference at its general meeting. But if, during the interval of con- ference, a bishop be charged with immorality, three travelling elders are to call upon him, to whose exami- nation he shall submit ; and in case they think him guilty, they shall call to their aid two presiding elders from two districts in the neighbourhood, where the alleged crime was committed, each of whom shall bring with him two other elders, or one elder and a deacon. These nine persons thus assembled shall form a conference ; and if, on examination, tvro-thirds find him guilty, he shall be suspended until the ensuing conference, when his fate shall be finally determined. A bishop who ceases from travelling without the consent of the general conference, loses, on this account, his power to exercise all minis- terial functions in the church. The fifth section comprehends the duties of the pre- siding elders. These are described as assistants to the bishops ; to fill their places in case of their absence ; and to be in a great degree under their direction. The sixth section relates to the appointment and office of the travelling elders. These are to be elected by a majo- rity of the yearly conference, and by the laying on of the hands of a bishop and of the elders that are present. These are to administer baptism and the Lord's supper, and to perform the office of marrying, together with all the branches of divine worship. A deacon, as it is no- ticed in the seventh section, is described nearly as an 116 LIFE OF THE REV. DR. COKE. elder, only he is to act in subordination to him, and to supply his place in case of his absence. He must fill this office for two years, before he can be eligible to that of an elder. The eighth section refers to the man- ner of receiving preachers, and it describes their duties. These are nearly the same as the English conferences express. The salaries of the preachers are stipulated in the ninth : and the duties of those who have the charge of circuits in the tenth section. But neither these, nor the manner in which the candidates for the ministry are to be examined, which are included in the eleventh section, contain any thing remarkable, that deviates from the rules established in England. The matter and manner of preaching are fully and pointedly expressed in the twelfth section ; and the duty of preachers to God, to themselves, and to one ano- ther, is sketched with a masterly hand in the thirteenth ; but the minutes of the British conferences lead the way, and contain the essence of all. The fourteenth section describes the causes which will justify liie preachers in abandoning any place in which preaching had been pre- viously established. The fifteenth enforces the duty of visiting the members of the society from house to house ; the sixteenth that of instructing children ; the seventeenth the necessity ministers are under to employ their time profitably ; and the eighteenth urges the ne- cessity of union among themselves. Under each of these sections, the branches of the various duties incul- cated are marked with much precision, and are suffi- ciently comprehensive to ensure a discharge of the obli- gations incumbent on every faithful minister of Jesus Christ. But being founded upon the same principles that support the minutes of the English conferences, and embracing in the aggregate the same particulars, it will be unnecessary to give them in detail. The nineteenth section provides for the responsibility of all the travelling preachers. If a charge be preferred against any one near the time of conference, his case is to be heard, examined, and determined on by the preach- ers there assembled. But in case a charge, during the intervals between the conferences, be brought, the pre- siding elder of the circuit shall call together as many LIFE OF THE REV. DR. COKE. 117 ministers as he may think convenient. And if, after bringing the accuser and accused face to face, the preachers thus assembled shall think him guilty, they shall have power to suspend him from all official ser- vices in the church until the ensuing conference, when his case shall be re-examined, and the result shall be a final decision. In case the accuser and the accused can- not be brought face to face, the party absenting himself shall be deemed guilty, and his sentence shall be accord- ingly ; with this exception, that he may demand a hearing at the next conference, which shall have power either to confirm or annul the previous sentence. When a charge brought against a preacher is for erroneous doctrine, the person thus accused shall be treated the same as in cases of immorality, unless, on receiving an admonition, he solemnly engage in future neither to publish nor defend such doctrine or sentiments, either in public or in pri- vate. But under either circumstance his case shall be re-examined at the next conference. The twentieth section relates to the provision to be made for supplying the circuits with preaching during the time of conference. To accomplish this, so many local preachers are to be engaged as may be thought necessary, or as can be procured, who are to be paid for their time, and provided for in the same proportion and manner as the travelling preachers would, whose places they fill. But where these will leave deficiencies, some of Mr. Wesley's sermons are to be read, or prayer- meetings are to be regularly introduced. From the twrenty-first section we learn that no local preacher shall presume to preach until he has first ob- tained the sanction of his own quarterly meeting ; nor even then, unless he procure a certificate expressive of their approbation. A local preacher cannot be eligible to the office of deacon until he has officiated for four years from the date of his certificate. In case a charge be brought against any local preacher, deacon, or elder, the preacher wrho has the care of the circuit shall sum- mon three or four local preachers from the neighbour- hood ; or, in case of their deficiency, so many leaders or exhorters as shall fill their place, who shall hear a statement of the affair. And if, on due examination, 118 LIFE OF THE REV. DR. COKE. either the whole, or a majority, shall judge him to be guilty either of immoral conduct, or of preaching false doctrine, he shall be suspended from all offices in the church until the ensuing quarterly meeting. The quar- terly meeting, on hearing his affair, shall have power to acquit, to censure, to suspend, or to expel him, and shall pronounce its judgment accordingly. But in case the person thus receiving his sentence shall think himself unjustly treated, he may make his appeal to the ensuing conference, provided he give notice of such intention to the quarterly meeting, that the minutes of his trial may be preserved, and presented at the conference to which he appeals, and where he may make his personal appear- ance. The decision of conference shall be final. The rite of baptism, which is noticed in the twenty- second section, leaves it at the option of every adult, and of the parents of every child, whether it shall be ad- ministered by sprinkling, by pouring, or by immersion. But in no case is the preacher to receive either a fee or a present for administering baptism, and the same pro- hibition extends to the burial of the dead. The Lord's supper, which is introduced in the twenty- third section, may be administered to communicants, either sitting or standing, if they have any scruples as to the propriety of kneeling. Persons not belonging to the society may be admitted, provided they procure a recommendation from an elder or deacon. But in no case is any person to be admitted who is guilty of prac- tices for which, if a member, he would be excluded the Methodist society. In the exercise of public worship the twenty-fourth section directs that the morning service on Sundays shall consist of singing, of prayer, of reading one chap- ter from the Old Testament, and another from the New, and preaching. That the afternoon service shall be the same, with the exception of having one chapter read instead of two ; and in the evening service reading is to be omitted altogether. On sacrament days reading is to be wholly omitted in the morning. The twenty-fifth section contains several observations on the spirit and truth of singing ; and recommends the practice to all the congregations, while it prohibits all LIFE OF THE REV. DR. COKE. 119 preachers from introducing hymns of their own compo- sition. The twenty-sixth delineates a plan for raising a fund for superannuated preachers, and for the widows and children of such as are dead. The twenty-seventh points out ways and means for raising money for the propagation of the gospel; and the twenty-eighth applies to the chartered fund. But as these bear a strong re- semblance to institutions established among the Method- ists in this country, they require no explanation. The second chapter, which contains ten sections, in- cludes the rules of the Methodist societies ; of class meeting; of band meeting; defines the privileges to be granted to serious persons not in society ; treats of the duties and qualifications of stewards ; of unlawful mar- riages ; and of the manner of bringing to trial, finding guilty, and reproving, suspending, or excluding impro- per persons from society and church privileges. On each of the preceding subjects the rules are nearly the same as in England, excepting the last, which is more comprehensive ; and it seems to have been regulated by the local circumstances of the country. In all cases when an accusation is brought against a member, the accuser and the accused, if it be practicable, are to be brought face to face, before the leading members of the society to which the supposed offender belongs ; and when this cannot be done, the best evidence that can be procured, whether in society or not, shall be introduced. And if, on a fair examination, the offence shall appear of a gross and flagrant nature, the offending member shall be expelled. But in cases of a less heinous kind he is to be reproved. This method is to be adopted twice ; but on the third offence the affair must be brought before the society, and if no marks of contrition appear, he must be excluded. In such cases, however, an appeal may be made to the next quarterly meeting, when a majority of the preachers, both travelling and local, to- gether with the stewards and leaders present, shall finally determine the case. As there are no excise laws in the United States, spirituous liquors are both cheap and plentiful, and the trade, in any quantities, is open and free for all. But, as a natural consequence, this liberty was frequently 120 LIFE OF THE REV. DR. COKE. abused, to the great injury of public morals. It there- fore became necessary to introduce a rule respecting the sale and use of this article, so far as any member of society was concerned in the traffic. This subject is considered in the tenth section of this chapter, which contains the following resolution : — "If any member of our society. retail or give spirituous liquors, and any thing disorderly be transacted under his roof on this ac- count, the preacher who has the oversight of the circuit, shall proceed against him as in the case of other immo- ralities ; and the person accused shall be cleared, censured, suspended, or excluded, according to his con- duct, as on other charges of immorality." The first section in the third chapter applies to the building of churches, the manner of settling them, and their internal regulations. But these regulations coin- cide nearly with those that are established in England, respecting the chapels belonging to the Methodist con- nection, making due allowances for the variations which local circumstances occasion. The second section describes the manner in which the printing business is to be conducted, and how the profits arising from the books are to be applied to the promoting of the work of God, as occasions may require. But the principles of this plan are so much the same with that followed in England, that no detail of parti- culars can be thought necessary. The third section developes a plan for the education of youth, recommended to be adopted in the seminaries of learning which, at this time, they intended to establish in the colleges that were in contemplation, and which were afterward erected. The same section also contains twenty-nine rules for the internal regulation of the pupils and masters, as to the employment of their time, and the improvement of their minds. In the fourth section the doctrine of Christian per- fection is stated, and recommended both to the preachers and the members of society. But for an explanation of terms — the nature of the doctrine — and the foundation on which it rests, the reader is recommended in a note to Mr. Wesley's treatise on this subject ; and through this treatise to the oracles of God. In the last section LIFE OF THE REV. DR. COKE. 121 Antinomianism is introduced as a very appropriate con- trast, and the cautions against this dangerous rock are such as every one must be ready to embrace, who is willing to live godly in Christ Jesus, and to seek after a qualification for heaven. For arguments against this delusive error the reader is judiciously recommended to peruse Mr. Fletcher's dissertations on this subject. To almost all these sections Dr. Coke and Mr. Asbury have added copious notes, illustrating the import and application of the various rules, and supporting them by authority derived from reason, and the conduct of the ancient churches ; and above all, by an appeal to numerous passages of Scripture. To adduce these au- thorities, to state these reasons, and to cite these passages, would be to transcribe the book. Taken together, this little volume may, perhaps with justice, be said to con- tain one of the most complete bodies of ethics, that, within the same compass, can be produced in the English language. Of these ethics, the general principles are of universal application ; and of these, the excellence is conspicuous to all. But of such branches as are of a local nature, it must be necessary that we obtain a know- ledge of the particular circumstances from which they derive their propriety : and while these are concealed from us, prudence dictates that we should suspend our judgment until we can trace the full connection between causes and their effects, even in those particulars which seem repugnant to our feelings. It will be readily admitted that, prior to the introduc- tion of Methodism in its episcopal form into the United States, the work of God had assumed a prosperous appearance. In several of the states some remarkable revivals of genuine religion had taken place ; so that the calamities of war appeared to have disposed the people to receive with joy the kingdom of the Prince of peace. The introduction of the episcopal form did not, however, tend to check the progress of the gospel. From this period, the societies and congregations rapidly increased ; and, if the divine approbation may be inferred from the success with which God has crowned the efforts of his servants in these endeavours to promote his glory and the good of souls, we cannot but conclude 6 123 LIFE OF THE REV. DR. COKE. that this step has been sanctioned by him. This con- clusion is supported by the following indubitable fact. At the time of this first episcopal conference held in Baltimore, at the termination of the year 1784, the mem- bers of society throughout the United States amounted to about fifteen thousand ; but so rapidly had they in- creased during the six succeeding years that, at the time of Mr. Wesley's death, they were augmented to near seventy thousand souls. It was at this conference that Dr. Coke delivered his well known sermon on the godhead or divinity of Christ. It was afterward published at New-York, in the month of February, 1785, at the particular request of those who heard it delivered. It has since received a very extensive circulation both in America and in England. As an original composition Dr. Coke does not profess to send it into the world. In his prefatory remarks, he acknowledges his obligations to Mr. Hoole, to whose industry he was indebted for several leading thoughts. From mere rational argument he does not profess to have derived much support. The importance of the subject is, however, judiciously introduced ; and it can- not be denied that the way is fully prepared for that accumulation of Scripture evidence which, toward the close, he has compendiously adduced, and rendered even additionally interesting by the arrangements that appear. But we must quit this subject, to survey some of the effects which were immediately connected with the ter- mination of the American war. It is melancholy to reflect that, when nations are grown weary of the enormities which they mutually commit in times of war, and sink down into a state of tranquillity, the return of public peace should become a signal to awaken private vengeance. The sword of war destroys its millions ; but it is scarcely sheathed, before the axe of the executioner, in many instances, becomes dyed with blood. The interests and views of men are various in all the nations upon earth. And in proportion as the human mind shakes off the chains of blind submission to the dictates of custom, and con- templates the nature of equity and justice, it will acquire LIFE OF THE REV. DR. COKE. 123 a principle of independence that will raise it above the prejudices of empires, and give a new tone to its deci- sions and pursuits. This may occasionally involve many in error, and expose others to serious calamities. But it is not always we can either govern or conceal our attachments and aversions, although we may antici- pate the consequences to which they will inevitably lead. As the United States were originally an appendage of the British empire, when the revolution began seve- ral families were to be found that would not renounce their attachment to the English cause. These were known ; but they remained without molestation to await the event of the war. The peace which acknow- ledged the independence of the colonies was to them a signal to remove. And to this measure they were urged by the danger of remaining in their original settlements, and allured by their attachment to the British cause, which attachment still remained unsubdued. The loyalists, who had borne arms against the Uni- ted States during the war, being proscribed on the re- turn of peace, repaired to Nova Scotia, in which place the British government had provided an asylum for them. To this territory many of the negroes also were conducted, and declared to be free ; and to this place many serious families likewise resorted, as soon as they found it inconvenient and dangerous to remain within the dominions of the American government ; and to several of these certain portions of land were assigned by the British, as a remuneration for their suf- ferings and services. Among these associations of refugees, the more serious part became desirous of having missionaries established in their new settlement; and from a survey of their situation their claims became imperious. Dr. Coke was so deeply interested in their behalf, that he resolved, if possible, to render them assistance, both from England and America. It was not, however, to the strenuous exertions of Dr. Coke, in favour of these refugees, that the more permanent inhabitants of Nova Scotia were primarily indebted for the sound of the gospel. Prior to this time, about the commencement of the war, Mr. William 124 LIFE OF THE REV. DR. COKE. Black, a native of Yorkshire, had been converted to God, had gone thither, had become a preacher, and had been made instrumental in lighting up the sacred flame on this part of the continent, and also in New-Bruns- wick, through which he occasionally travelled. On finding the numerous, though scattered inhabitants, willing to receive the gospel, Mr. Black had frequently- importuned Mr. Wesley to send him some assistance. But although these countries belonged to England, Mr. Wesley could not be persuaded to send any preacher to the continent while the war continued. From a train of circumstances, which was at once unforeseen and unavoidable, the infant work devolved therefore on him and a few others, whose exertions were united to promote the interests of Jesus in these northern regions of the western world. But it was not to be expected that any considerable success should attend these al- most solitary labours, in a country so vastly extensive as Nova Scotia, and among a scattered people, to whom Mr. Black's visits were transient, and not frequently repeated. But as the sacred flame had been kept alive, though discipline had been unavoidably neglected, the situation of these northern societies seconded the claims of the refugees, and after some time produced a partial compliance with the necessities and requests of the people. Through the unabating exertions of Dr. Coke in their favour, two preachers of the name of Mann were pre- vailed upon to repair to Nova Scotia from the United States ; and it was his full intention, after having re- turned to England, and stated the situation of the refu- gees and other inhabitants to Mr. Wesley, to visit them in person. But, through an incomprehensible dispen- sation of divine Providence, he was prevented ; being driven by a storm to the West Indies, which led to the introduction of the gospel into this vast archipelago, as we shall hereafter notice. In behalf of the Nova Scotians, Dr. Coke was not only successful in sending two missionaries, but he was equally so in procuring pecuniary assistance for their support. In the city of Baltimore alone he collected thirty pounds sterling in one afternoon, and in New- LIFE OF THE REV. DR. COKE. 125 York and Philadelphia he collected sixty pounds cur- rency for the same benevolent purpose. In travelling over the continent, he took every occasion to represent the case of the Nova Scotians in a favourable light, and through his unwearied exertions the public became in no small degree interested in their favour. It was to him, therefore, that these northern settlers owed their obligations, under God, for that assistance which they continued to receive in the missionaries that were sent during their infancy, and in the means provided for their support ; and which have ultimately led to the permanent establishment of the gospel in these distant and extensive regions. Closely connected in his view with the missionaries in Nova Scotia, and the spread of the gospel in the United States, was his solicitude for the rising genera- tion. The establishment of the college which he had always kept in view from his first landing in America, engrossed, therefore, no inconsiderable share of his attention. By appealing to the liberality of the people, in the course of his journeys throughout the different states which he visited, he found many who were will- ing to support his designs in making generous contri- butions toward the building. Mr. Asbury, who acted in concert with him. had also met with considerable success ; and several of the preachers, in their respect- ive circuits, had used their exertions to promote the important undertaking. From the sums thus collected, and from a full per- suasion that the people would not suffer the work to be abandoned for want of pecuniary assistance, Dr. Coke, on the 5th of January, 1785, gave orders that the materials should be procured for erecting the" building. The work was accordingly begun, and placed under the direction of men deemed competent to the business, who, in the two succeeding years, made a considerable progress in the erection of this stately edifice. The spot which had been selected for this seminary of learning was on a rising ground, about twenty-five miles from Baltimore. It contained about four acres of land, and was purchased of a Mr. Dallam for sixty pounds sterling. "The situation," says Dr. Coke, 126 LIFE OF THE REV. DR. COKE. when reviewing the ground and adjacent scenery, on a future occasion, " delights me more than ever. There is not, I believe, a point of it, from whence the eye has not a view of at least twenty miles : and in some parts the prospect extends even to fiCty miles in length. The water part forms one of the most beautiful views in the United States ; the Chesapeake bay, in all its grandeur, with a fine navigable river, the Susquehanna, which empties itself into it, lying exposed to view through a great extent of country."* In erecting this college, he observes in another place, " our object is, not to raise gospel ministers, but to serve our pious friends, and our married preachers, in the pro- per education of their sons."f In this college their principal aim was to unite these two great ornaments of human nature, genuine religion, and extensive learning. On a subsequent voyage to America, in 1787, Dr. Coke visited this building on the 8th of May, in com- pany with Mr. Asbury, and found it in such a state of forwardness as to induce a hope that it would be ready for opening, and for the reception of pupils by the ensu- ing Christmas. But in these expectations they were rather too sanguine. The work, however, proceeded onward with regularity, so that before he had an oppor- tunity of returning again to this spot, it had been so far advanced as to admit students who had made some pro- ficiency in their learning, although the building was yet unfinished. « On Friday, the 8th of May, 1789," says Dr. Coke, when on a subsequent tour on the continent, "we set off for our college. I was highly delighted with the progress they had made toward the completing of the building. During my stay at the college I had several long conversations with Dr. Hall, our president, and I am satisfied beyond a doubt that he is both the scholar, the philosopher, and the gentleman. He truly fears God, and pays a most exact and delicate attention to all the rules of the institution. Our classic tutor is a very promising person : he is not yet the polished scholar, * Dr. Coke's Journal, p. 110. t Dr. Coke's Journal, p. 72. LIFE OF THE REV. DR. COKE. 127 like the president; but his manifest strength of under- standing and persevering diligence will soon, I doubt not, perfect every thing that is wanting. And our Eng- lish and mathematical master gives us considerable sa- tisfaction." To display the principles upon which this seminary was established, nothing more will be necessary than to insert the rules by which all were to be governed. These rules are as follow : — 1. The students shall rise at five o'clock in the morn- ing, summer and winter, at the ringing of a bell. 2. All the students shall assemble together at six o'ciock for public prayer, except in cases of sickness ; and on any omission shall be responsible to the master. 3. From morning prayer till seven, they shall be al- lowed to recreate themselves, as hereafter directed. 4. At seven they shall breakfast. 5. From eight till twelve, they are to be closely kept at their respective studies. 6. From twelve to three, they are to employ them- selves in recreation and dining ; dinner to be ready at one o'clock. 7. From three till six, they are again to be kept closely to their studies. 8. At six they shall sup. 9. At seven there shall be public prayers. 10. From evening prayer till bedtime, they shall be allowed recreation. 11. They shall all be in bed at nine o'clock, without fail. 12. Their recreations shall be gardening, walking, riding, and bathing without doors ; and the carpenter's, joiner's, cabinet-maker's, or turner's business within doors. 13. A large plot of ground shall be appropriated for a garden, and a person skilled in gardening shall be ap- pointed to overlook the students employed in that recre- ation. 14. A convenient bath shall be made for bathing. 15. A master, or some proper person by him ap- pointed, shall be always present at the time of bathing. Only one shall bathe at a time, and no one shall remain in the water above a minute. 128 LIFE OF THE REV. DR. COKE. 16. No student shall be allowed to bathe in the river. 17. A place for working in wood shall be provided on the premises, with all proper instruments and mate- rials, and a skilful person be employed to overlook the students at this recreation. 18. The students shall be indulged with nothing which the world calls play. Let this rule be observed with the strictest nicety ; for those who play when they are young, will play when they are old. 19. Each student shall have a bed to himself where- ever he boards. 20. The students shall lie on mattresses, not on fea- ther beds ; because we believe the mattresses to be more healthful. 21. The masters shall strictly examine, from time to time, whether those who board the students (if they board out of the seminary) comply with these rules, so far as they concern them. 22. A skilful physician shall be engaged to attend the students on every emergency, that the parents may be fully assured that proper care shall be taken of the health of their children. 23. The bishops shall examine by themselves, or their delegates, into the progress of all the students in learn- ing, every half year, or oftener if possible. 24. The elders, deacons, and preachers, as often as they visit the seminaries respectively, shall examine the students concerning their knowledge of God and re- ligion. 25. The students shall be divided into proper classes for that purpose. 26. A pupil who has a total incapacity to attain learn- ing shall, after a sufficient trial, be returned to his parents. 27. If a student be convicted of any open sin, he shall for the first offence be reproved in private ; for the se- cond offence he shall be reproved in public ; and for the third offence he shall be punished at the discretion of the master. 28. Idleness or any other fault may be punished with confinement, according to the discretion of the master. 29. A convenient room shall be set apart as a place of confinement. LIFE OF THE REV. DR. COKE. 129 Such were the rules and regulations which, after hav- ing been weighed and digested in the American confe- rences, were introduced by Dr. Coke and Mr. Asbury, conjointly, into the newly established seminary that was denomimited Cokesbury College ; this being a compound of both their names. With respect to the principles on which the preceding rules are founded, and the objects which they had in view, they offer to the public the fol- lowing observations. " The first object we recommend is, to form the minds of the youth, through divine aid, to wisdom and holi- ness ; instilling into their tender minds the principles of true religion, speculative, experimental, and practical ; and training them in the ancient way, that they may be rational, scriptural Christians. For this purpose we re- commend that not only the masters, but also our elders, deacons, and preachers embrace every opportunity of instructing the students in the great branches of the Chris- tian religion. * It is also our particular desire that all who shall be educated in Methodist seminaries, be kept at the utmost distance, as from vice in general, so in particular from softness and effeminacy of manners. " The masters, therefore, should inflexibly insist on their rising early in the morning ; and we are con- vinced, by constant observation and experience, that this is of vast importance both to body and mind. It is of admirable use for preserving a good, or improving a bad constitution. It is of peculiar service in all nervous complaints, both in preventing and removing them. And by thus strengthening the various organs of the body, it enables the mind to put forth its utmost ener- gies. " On the same principle the masters should prohibit , plML m strongest terms ; and in this we have the two greatest writers on the subject which perhaps any age has produced, (Mr. Locke and Mr. Rousseau) in fa- vour of our sentiments ; for though the latter was essen- tially mistaken in his religious system, yet his wisdom in other respects and extensive genius are indisputably acknowledged. The employments which we would re- commend for the recreation of the students, are such as 6* 130 LIFE OF THE REV. DR. COKE. are of the greatest public utility — agriculture and archi- tecture ; studies more especially necessary for a newly settled country : and of consequence the instructing of youth in all the practical branches of these important arts will be an effectual method of rendering them more useful to their country. Agreeably to this idea, the greatest statesmen that perhaps ever shone in the annals of history, Peter, the Russian emperor, who was de- servedly styled the Great, disdained not to stoop to the employment of a ship carpenter. Nor was it rare during the purest times of the Roman republic to see the con- querors of nations, and deliverers of their country, re- turn with all simplicity and cheerfulness to the exercise of the plough. In conformity to this sentiment, one of the completest poetic pieces of antiquity, the Georgics of Virgil, is written on the subject of husbandry ; by the perusal of which, and submission to the above regu- lations, the students may delightfully unite the theory and the practice together. We say delightfully, for we are far from wishing that these employments should be turned into drudgery or slavery, but into pleasing recre- ations for the mind and body. " In teaching the languages, care should be taken to read those authors, and those only, who join together the purity, the strength, and the elegance of their several tongues. And the utmost caution should be used that nothing immodest should be found in any of their books. "But this is not all. We should take care that the books be not only inoffensive, but useful ; that they contain as much strong sense and as much genuine mo- rality as possible. As far, therefore, as is consistent with the foregoing observations, a choice and universal library should be provided for the use of the students according to their finances. And on this plan we trust that our seminaries of learning will in time send forth men who will be blessings to their country in every laudable office and employment of life ; thereby uniting the two greatest ornaments of intelligent beings, which are too often separated, deep learning and genuine religion."* * See Doctrine and Discipline of the Methodist Episcopal Church in America, pp. 180-184. LIFE OF THE REV. DR. COKE. 131 On the morning of Saturday, the 9th of May, 1789, Dr. Coke personally examined all the classes in private, and found that many of the students had made a con- siderable proficiency in the various branches of learning. And with their progress so well were he and Mr. Asbury satisfied, that on the afternoon of the same day, they had a public exhibition of their respective improvements and talents. " Two young men," he observes, " displayed great strength of memory, and great propriety of pronunciation, in the repetition of two chapters of Sheridan on Elocu- tion, and were rewarded by Mr. Asbury, as a small testimony of our approbation, with a dollar each. One little boy, a son of Mr. Dallam, a neighbouring gentle- man, delivered memoriter a fine speech out of Livy, with such an heroic spirit, and with such graceful pro- priety, that I presented him a little piece of gold. Three other boys also so excelled in gardening, that Mr. Asbury rewarded them writh a dollar each. But what is best of all, many of them are truly awakened. However, we were obliged to undertake the painful task, in the presence of the trustees, masters, and stu- dents, of solemnly expelling a lad of fifteen years of age, to whose learning we had no objection, but whose trifling, irreligious conduct, and open ridicule among the students, of experimental religion, we could not pass over, as we were determined to have a college in which religion and learning should go hand in hand together, or to have • none at all. But nothing- relating to this institution, $erhaps,'has given me greater pleasure than to find we are already enabled to support four students fully, and two in part, preachers' sons and orphans, on the cha- ritable foundation."* But neither the pure intention of its founders, the admirable principles upon which its regulations wrere established, nor the beneficial effects that were expected to result from the institution, could preserve this college from the common accidents wrhich are attendant upon all human affairs. We have seen its foundation laid ; and, in the order of time, we have anticipated its com- * Dr. Ccke's journal, p. 111. 132 LIFE OF THE REV. DR. COKE. parative completion ; but before we return to the regular narration of facts, as they occur in the life of Dr. Coke, we must trace it to its grave. In the year 1792, this college . had acquired such a degree of importance as to admit upward of seventy students within its walls. In addition to this, its repu- tation had excited so much attention, that several young gentlemen from the southern states repaired thither to finish their education. To give it legalized respectabi- lity, some principal persons in the state informed its founders that the legislature were willing to grant an act of incorporation, that should enable them, under certain limitations, to confer degrees on the deserving. But for this authority no application was ever made ; and consequently it remained on its primitive founda- tion until the whole building was consumed by fire. From what source this calamity arose could never be ascertained. Dr. Coke supposes that it was done ma- liciously ; but for this opinion no satisfactory reason has been assigned ; so that the cause of its destruction re- mains a secret to the present hour. In the devouring conflagration not only the building, but the library and all the philosophical apparatus were totally destroyed, so that nothing remained but a desolated spot, to inform spectators that here Cokesbury college once stood. To discover, if possible, the perpetrators of this deed, the governor of the state advertised a reward of one thou- sand dollars ; but nothing could procure such infor- mation as was necessary to bring the incendiaries to justice. Dispirited with this calamity, Mr. Asbury resolved to * have nothing more to do with colleges ; but Dr. Coke was not to be intimidated, without making another effort. The genteel inhabitants in the vicinity, who had been much entertained with the philosophical lectures of Dr. Hall, the president, sympathized with the sufferers, and many among them expressed their wishes to have the institution again renewed. Actuated by the same prin- ciple, seventeen of Dr. Coke's principal friends in the Baltimore society met together on the occasion ; and, after some consultation, immediately subscribed 1020Z. toward the erection of a new college. LIFE OF THE REV. DR. COKE. 133 It happened, however, that at this time a large build- ing which had been erected for balls and assemblies, was vacant in the city of Baltimore. They, therefore, made application to the proprietor, and purchased the whole premises, which were as handsome as any in the city, for the sum of 5,300Z. The ground and building thus purchased being too extensive for the new college, it was resolved, that on part of the premises a new church should be erected. The society at Baltimore entered into the general view, and subscribed among themselves 700Z. toward defray- ing the expense ; and begging from house to house they collected 600Z. more throughout the city. For the re- maining sum the former seventeen friends became responsible, and the college or academy and church were accordingly fitted up for use. To this college masters were soon appointed, and students sent ; and from that peculiar pleasure with which the respectable inhabitants introduced their youth into this seminary, it appeared they were interested in its welfare. This academy soon nourished in a manner superior to what Cokesbury college had ever done, but unhappily a simi- lar fate awaited it. In the beginning of the year 1797, when Dr. Coke was at Charleston, in South Carolina, he received the melancholy tidings that all their buildings of the church and college in Baltimore were reduced to ashes, through the imprudence of some boys who had been making a bonfire with some shavings in an adjoining house. Un- happily, the flame which these thoughtless lads lighted up soon communicated to the house in which they were assembled, which was instantly in a blaze. From this house the church and college were immediately set on fire, which, with several adjoining buildings and ware- houses, were burned to the ground, notwithstanding all the efforts which were made to extinguish the flames. The total loss sustained by the Methodists in the burn- ing of this church and college, together with that occasioned by the burning of Cokesbury, was estimated at 10,000/. sterling. Dr. Coke was now convinced, as Mr. Asbury had been before, that it was not the will of God for them to 134 LIFE OF THE REV. DR. COKE. undertake such expensive buildings, nor to attempt such popular establishments ; that it was their duty to preach the gospel, and to apply such resources as were in their power to the more immediate means of calling sinners to repentance, and directing them to the Saviour of the world. The loss of this sum was to all an occasion of much regret, but particularly to Dr. Coke, whose wishes were now directed toward a provision being made for the families of such preachers as were married ; for which purpose this sum, now for ever lost, would have been amply sufficient. The ministers of other denomi- nations, when the Methodist church in Baltimore was consumed, generously offered the use of theirs for their immediate accommodation. Their offers were accepted with gratitude ; and they continued to preach in them until their own loss was somewhat repaired, by the erection of another church to which no college was annexed. Having thus beheld the melancholy torch extinguish- ed, which lighted up the funeral pile of Cokesbury col- lege, and also seen the ashes of its successor in Balti- more, we must now return to the conference of 1784, held in that city, from which the progress and confla- gration of these buildings have led us to digress. This early conference being ended, and the necessary arrangements for the future government of the societies made, Dr. Coke took his leave of Baltimore, and pro- ceeded on an extensive tour to visit various churches throughout the states, before he embarked for England. During this journey, the primary objects which he kept in view were, the preaching of the gospel, the deplora- ble condition of the settlers and refugees in Nova Scotia, in whose behalf he solicited contributions to support some missionaries to be sent among them, the state of the negro slaves, for whom he took every occasion to plead; and, finally, the necessity of erecting Cokesbury college, which we have already beheld in flames. In preaching the gospel, his word was attended with considerable success. In most places multitudes flocked to hear ; and, when assembled, the greater part appear- ed to listen with considerable attention. In several places the work evidently revived in the hearts of many LIFE OF THE REV. DR. COKE. 135 belonging to the societies, whose numbers were greatly- augmented from day to day. Toward the erection of the college he found the people in general exceedingly ready to contribute, and the sums which he collected far exceeded his expectation. In behalf of the refugees in Nova Scotia he discovered a principle of sympathy awa- kened. The necessity of sending missionaries among them was generally admitted, and few were backward, according to their ability, to render some assistance toward their support. In prosecuting this arduous work in which he was engaged his life was several times endangered by an exposure to the watery element, both in traversing the seas, and in attempting to ford rivers while on the con- tinent. A most awful instance of this latter kind occur- red on Wednesday, March 8, 1785, an account of which I will set down in his own words. " Yesterday there was a very heavy fall of snow, and hail, and sleet. The fall of sleet was so great that the trees seemed to be trees of ice. So beautiful a sight of the kind I never saw before. And now I am going to open a solemn scene. May God deeply impress it on my heart ! " We had this day a very sudden thaw. I had two runs of water to cross between Alexandria and Col- chester, which swell exceedingly on any thaw or fall of rain ; but, being earnestly desirous to get into the work, I determined to proceed on my journey. My servant, whom I had permitted to make a visit on the other side of the Chesapeake, had deceived me, by staying beyond his time ; and the southern preachers knew not^where I was, imagining me to be in the West Indies. A friend, who lives in Alexandria, came with me over the first run ; and every body informed me that I could easily cross the second, if I crossed the first. When I came to the second, which was perhaps two hours after I had crossed the first, I found that I had two streams to pass. The first I went over without much danger ; but in crossing the second, which was very strong and very deep, I did not observe that a tree, .brought down by the flood, lay across the landing place. I endeavoured, but in vain, to drive my horse against 136 LIFE OF THE REV. DR. COKE. the stream, and go around the tree. I was afraid to turn the horse's head to the stream, and afraid to go back. In this dilemma, I thought it most prudent for me to lay hold on the tree, and go over it, the water being shallow on the other side of the tree. But I did not advert to the danger of loosening the tree from its hold. For no sooner did I execute my purpose, so far as to lay hold on the tree, (and that instant the horse was carried from under me,) but the motion that I gave it loosened it, and down the stream it instantly carried me. " Some distance off, there grew a tree in the middle of the stream, the root of which had formed a little bank or island, and divided the stream ; and here the tree which I held was stopped. Instantly there came down with the flood a large branch of a tree upon my back, which was so heavy that I was afraid it would break my back. I was now jammed up for a considera- ble time, (a few minutes appeared long at such a sea- son,) expecting that my strength would soon be ex- hausted, and I should drop between the tree and the branch. Here I plead aloud with God in good earnest ; one promise, which I particularly urged, I remember well, 4 Lo, I am with you alway, ~ven to the end of the world.' I felt no fear at all at the pain of dying, or of death itself, or of hell ; and yet I found an unwilling- ness to die. All my castles, which I had built in the air for the benefit of my fellow creatures, passed in regular array before my mind, and I could not consent to give them up. It was an awful time. However, through the blessing of my almighty Preserver, (to whom be all the glory,) I at last got up my knee, which I had long endeavoured at in vain, upon the tree, which I grasped, and then soon disengaged myself, and climbed up the little bank. Here I panted for breath for some time : and when I recovered, perceiving the water between the little island and the shore not to be very deep or very strong, I ventured through it, and got to land. I was now obliged to walk about a mile, shivering, before I came to a house. The master and mistress were from home, and were not expected to return that night. But the principal negro lent me an old ragged shirt, coat, waistcoat, and breeches,