>"2- 
 
^ OF THE 
 
 UNIVERSITY 
 
 OF 
 
 :CAUf( 
 
Cofion DdTaifier. 
 
.THE LIFE AND TIMES 
 
 OF 
 
 COTTON MATHER;. D.D., F.R.S. 
 
 A Boston Minister of Two Centuries Ago 
 . 1663-1728 
 
 BY REV. ABIJAH P. MARVIN 
 
 BOSTON AND CHICAGO 
 Congregattonal .SunlFas-^cijool anb ^uftlisfjing ^octrtg 
 
 in 
 
6£N£HAi. 
 
 
 Copyright, 1892, 
 By Congregational Sunday-School and Pubushing SoaETY 
 
 /7i> ^5" 7 
 
CONTENTS 
 
 CHAPTER I. 
 
 PAGE 
 
 From Birth to Graduation: i 663-1 679 i 
 
 CHAPTER II. 
 From Graduation to Call to New Haven : 1679-1682 . . 12 
 
 CHAPTER III. 
 From the New Haven Call to Ordination: i 682-1 685 . . 30 
 
 CHAPTER IV. 
 From Ordination to the Death of his Firstborn :i 685-1 688 53. • 
 
 CHAPTER V. 
 
 From the Death of brother Nathaniel to the Publication 
 
 OF the Life OF Eliot.— Witchcraft : 1688-1691 ... 81 - 
 
 CHAPTER VI. ^ 
 
 Halfway Covenant. — Authorship. — Witchcraft. — The j 
 
 Goodwin Children: 1691-1692 |oi j 
 
 f 
 
 CHAPTER VII. 
 
 Cotton Mather and the Trials. — His Treatment of the 
 Bewitched. — Position of the Clergy: 1692-1693 . . 127 
 
 CHAPTER VIII. 
 Events in the Years 1693-1695 142 
 
 CHAPTER IX. 
 
 Personal Experiences and Labors, and Public Events: 
 1696-1697 165 
 
 196457 
 
IV CONTENTS. 
 
 CHAPTER X. 
 
 PAGB 
 
 Miscellaneous Matters: 1698-1699 185 
 
 CHAPTER XL 
 
 The Last Year of the Century. — Formation of Brattle 
 Street Church: 1700 201 
 
 CHAPTER XIL 
 A Year of Faith and Works, Trials and Fruit: 1701-1702 . 220 
 
 CHAPTER XHL 
 
 Robert Calef and the Witchcraft Controversy: 1698- 
 1703 243 
 
 CHAPTER XIV. 
 
 A Year of Grief. — Sickness of the Children and Death 
 OF Mrs. Mather: 1702 267 
 
 CHAPTER XV. 
 
 Singular Courtship. — Happy Marriage. — Authorship : 
 1703-1705 292 
 
 CHAPTER XVI 
 Children. — Church. — Patriotism. — Publications : 1706- 
 1707 • 319 
 
 CHAPTER XVII. 
 
 Mather and Winthrop. — Mather vs. Dudley. — Essays 
 to do Good: 1708-1710 345 
 
 CHAPTER XVIII. 
 
 Manifold Labors as Pastor, Citizen, Philanthropist, and 
 Author: 1711-1715 369 
 
 CHAPTER XIX. 
 
 The Third Mrs. Mather and the Death of Katharine: 
 1716 399 
 
CONTENTS. V 
 
 CHAPTER XX. 
 
 PAGE 
 
 Three Years Crowded with Labors and Experiences: 
 1717-1719 425 
 
 CHAPTER XXI. 
 A Christian in the Furnace: i 720-1721 447 
 
 CHAPTER XXII. 
 
 The New Brick Church. — Smallpox. — Inoculation: 
 1721 467 
 
 CHAPTER XXIII. 
 
 Death of President Mather. — Great Storm. — Contempo- 
 raries OF President and Dr. Mather: 1722-1723 . . 484 
 
 CHAPTER XXIV. 
 Dispensations and Consolations: 1724 503 
 
 CHAPTER XXV. 
 Ripening to the Last: 1725-1726 528 
 
 CHAPTER XXVI. 
 Cotton Mather in the Sphere of his Affections . . . 546 
 
 CHAPTER XXVII. 
 The Blessed Close of a Useful Life 561 
 
OF THE 
 
 UNIVERSITY 
 
 OF 
 
 Life and Times of Cotton Mather. 
 
 CHAPTER I. 
 
 FROM BIRTH TO GRADUATION : 1 663- 1 679. 
 
 COTTON MATHER was born in Boston on the 
 twelfth day of February, 1663. He was the eldest 
 child of Increase and Maria (Cotton) Mather. His grand- 
 father, Rev. Richard Mather, was one of the oldest and 
 wisest of the early settlers of Massachusetts Bay. He 
 was bom in Lowton, county of Lancashire, and was a 
 graduate of Brasenose College, Oxford. At Cotton"^, 
 Mather's birth the old patriarch was yet alive, and contin- \ 
 ued active in the ministry six years longer, when he died, / 
 being worn out with toils, dangers, privations, study, 
 prayer, preaching, and all the exhausting though blessed 
 duties of a parish minister. His very presence was a 
 blessing to the opening mind and eyes of the quick-witted 
 boy. Calm, sedate, studious, ever busy, devout, yet pleas- 
 ant withal, he was an embodiment of the best form of 
 godliness, and from such prayers as his flowed priceless 
 blessings to his grandchild. 
 
 The grandmother, Katharine Holt, of gentle ancestry, 
 had been taken to heaven. But though one grandmother 
 was gone another had taken her place, for the aged minis- 
 ter had married the widow of the famous John Cotton. 
 She was indeed a mother in Israel. She had a daughter 
 who became the wife of Increase Mather, and so was the 
 mother of our boy, and such a mother as few were ever 
 
2 LIFE AND TIMES OF 
 
 blessed with. Maria Cotton was the helpmeet of her 
 husband. Humble, intelligent, discreet, a notable house- 
 wife, a companion of learned and able men, the trusted 
 wife of the greatest of them all, she gave her soul to the 
 training of her children in the nurture and admonition of 
 the Lord. No wife ever had a finer tribute from her hus- 
 band than Increase Mather wrote in his diary late in life, 
 for the eyes of his children. She gave her son to God 
 and his service as the best thing her heart could conceive 
 for his welfare. To this may be added that he had a 
 father who never forgot the duties of home. His com- 
 pany was a school for his son ; his example was an educa- 
 tion ; his position was an inspiration, and his piety was an 
 incitement to a holy life. 
 
 Having glanced at the parentage of the child, we will 
 now take a view of his birthplace. Boston had been set- 
 tled about thirty-three years, and had become not only 
 the capital of the " Bay," but the leading seaport of all 
 the northern colonies. There were many ports and havens 
 on our coast, but Boston had then the preeminence which 
 has been kept in all the years of our history. Her sailors 
 went up and down our long-extended coast, to the West 
 India Islands, to Europe and Africa, and sometimes to the 
 far east of the Indian seas. Boston was a busy, bustling, 
 town, the center of na's^igation, the metropolis of trade 
 for a large section of country, and the seat of power. 
 The officials of the colony from the first had the air and 
 self-respect of statesmen and generals. With modesty 
 and firmness they went forward as if conscious of the 
 greatness of the future. The merchants were enterpris- 
 ing and thrifty ; the mechanics and farmers were intelli- 
 gent and industrious ; the leading men were endowed with 
 education and discretion, and the clergy ranked with the 
 most accomplished of Old England, where most of them 
 had first seen the light and received their education. 
 
COTTON MATHER. 3 
 
 At this time (1663) there were about forty towns in the 
 colony of Massachusetts Bay and not far from ten in 
 Plymouth Colony. The number of churches in both colo- 
 nies was fifty. Many of the towns were flourishing. 
 Those near the coast united fishing and commerce to the 
 cultivation of the land, and grew in population and wealth 
 more rapidly than the inland towns and those on the 
 Indian frontier. But in forty-three years from the landing 
 of the Pilgrims and thirty-five from the first settlement 
 of the Bay, in Salem, great progress had been made in 
 various branches of business, in education, and in religion. 
 
 The New E nglan d colonies had become important. 
 They were growing and oecoming more and more efficient 
 in government ; they had learned how to maintain their 
 rights in relation to the imperial government, and their 
 children grew up in the school of intelligence, liberty and 
 law, morality and piety. Perhaps it may be said with 
 some show of truth that New England was, on the whole, 
 the best place in the whole British dominions at that time 
 in which to be born, and to be educated into the privileges 
 and duties of a freeborn Englishman. A^hildof^bright 
 -mind and go od paren tage, born here any time between 
 L66o^an3j[688, had n o occasioj i to^envy one born in Eng- 
 land or Scotland, of~any rank, during th at_period. If of a 
 dissenlting family, his condition and prospectsw^erg in 
 many re& pccta prcfciablu. His chances tor success in busi- 
 ness and the secure possession of his gains, for education, 
 for position, for power, and for the enjoyment of religious 
 rights, were better, as a general rule, than that of the 
 child born in the mother country. The lowliest youth 
 was not held down by caste or public opinion or exclusive 
 privilege. The school was open to him and the college 
 beckoned him upward. As a farmer, he was more honor- 
 able than the English yeoman ; as a mechanic, his chil- 
 
4 LIFE AND TIMES OF 
 
 dren could associate with the highest in the schools ; as a 
 trader or a navigator, he could acquire a competency, and 
 often wealth. He could vote in town, parish, and colony 
 affairs. The way was open to him to minor offices, to the 
 magistracy, to military promotion, to the general court, to 
 the council, and even to the office of governor, as in the 
 case of Sir William Phips. 
 
 If a boy desired learning, fame, or a field of usefulness, 
 he need not cross the ocean, enter the university, or seek 
 the honors of public life. Cotton Mather here in the 
 wilderness became one of the most learned men of the 
 age, and that in no narrow sense. He "intermeddled 
 with all knowledge," and that in the most thorough man- 
 ner. Though thousands of miles from the great capitals 
 and illustrious universities of Europe, his name became 
 a household word among the dispensers of fame. His 
 foreign correspondence was so extensive that his son and 
 biographer writes : " I have . known him, at one time, to 
 have above fifty correspondents beyond sea." Among 
 these were some of the most learned and famous men in 
 Europe. In the same line is the testimony of Rev. Dr. 
 Thomas Prince, in these words : " Dr. Cotton Mather, 
 though born and constantly residing in this remote corner 
 of America, has yet, for near these forty years (1688- 
 1728), made so rising and great a figure in the learned 
 world, as has attracted to him, while alive, the eyes of 
 many at the farthest distance ; and now deceased, can't 
 but raise a very general wish to see the series, and more 
 especially the domestic part of so distinguished a life 
 exhibited. His printed writings, so full of piety and 
 various erudition, his vast correspondence and the con- 
 tinual reports of travelers who had conversed with him, 
 had spread his reputation into other countries. And 
 when, about fourteen years ago (17 14), I traveled abroad. 
 
COTTON MATHER. 
 
 5 
 
 I could not but admire to what extent his fame had 
 reached, and how inquisitive were gentlemen of letters 
 to hear and know of the most particular and lively- 
 manner, both of his private conversation and public per- 
 formances among us." The fame thus acquired was 
 enduring. Though it has been the fashion in some quar- 
 ters to sneer at Cotton Mather, his name, always clarum 
 et venerabile, is becoming more resplendent as receding 
 time hides all but his greatest contemporaries, and leaves 
 him conspicuous. 
 
 If we consider his position for usefulness, it will be 
 hard to name one, in the new world or the old, who sur- 
 passed him in his generation. Baxter and Howe exerted 
 a mighty influence for good in their day, and afterwards 
 Owen and Jeremy Taylor, in far different directions, 
 upheld the cause of learning and piety. Tillotson, as a 
 parish priest and as archbishop of Canterbury, was a great 
 power for righteousness among the people and the nobil- 
 ity, and in the closet of King William and Queen Mary ; 
 but not one of them, or of their renowned contempora- 
 ries, surpassed the humble pastor of the North Church in 
 Boston in all the ways of secular and Christian benefi- 
 cence. Every moment of_a^jnost busyjjffi was devoteS^ 
 to the welfare of others. 
 
 The boy thus born and placed began his education at 
 home. He was almost preternaturally bright and thought- 
 ful. His perceptive faculties were keen, and every object 
 presented to sight or hearing secured attention. He 
 drank in knowledge as the thirsty earth imbibes water. 
 When quite young he entered school under the tuition 
 and mastership of the once famous and still honored 
 Benjamin Thompson, a very learned man, a wit, and a 
 poet after a fashion, and a man who had withal a rare 
 gift of teaching. Thompson was familiar with Latin and 
 
6 LIFE AND TIMES OF 
 
 Greek literature, and taught with great thoroughness. 
 Next young Mather came under the tuition of the more 
 famous Ezekiel Cheever, one of the ablest educators in 
 the annals of New England. 
 
 His religious education went on while he was preparing 
 for college. His son tells us that **he began to pray 
 almost as soon as to speak." He continued to " pray 
 while a schoolboy. He used no forms in secret, but 
 wrote some prayers for the use of his schoolfellows. 
 Very early in life he wrote notes of sermons after re- 
 turning from meeting." He was so fond of the Bible 
 that he read fifteen chapters a day, in three courses of 
 five at a time ; nothing less could satisfy him. 
 
 He also joined a society of youths who met on Sabbath 
 evenings. It is said that it was in these meetings that he 
 took "his first rise in the art of speaking and praying." 
 When very young he thought it his duty "to give unto 
 the Lord of all some part of the small substance which 
 was afforded him." 
 
 At the age of twelve years and about six months (1675) 
 he was admitted to the freshman class in Harvard College. 
 Though a mere boy in years and stature, he was well pre- 
 pared. He had written many Latin exercises, and, in the 
 words of his son, "had conversed with Tully, Terence, 
 Ovid, and Virgil. He had gone through the Greek Testa- 
 ment, and had entered upon Socrates and Homer." In 
 those days candidates were required to read the classic 
 authors at sight. In addition, he had begun the Hebrew 
 grammar, a study unknown, in recent times, in most col^ 
 leges in any part of the course except in an extra class of 
 seniors who have the ministry in view. His pace was 
 rapid after entering college, being impelled forward by his 
 native love of learning and by the influences that sur- 
 rounded him. He was a boy of great expectations. His 
 
COTTON MATHER. 7 
 
 son Samuel writes : " If what some great men have hinted 
 be true, * Nemo vir magnus sine afflatu,' while he was yet 
 young he bade fair to be great, for he believed he should 
 be so ; he expected it ; and therefore {multa ttdit, fecit^ 
 etc.) he bore and did many things, and disregarded all the 
 difficulties that would encompass him." 
 
 His intimate friends and the president of the college 
 fostered these high expectations. At the beginning of 
 his college course, President Hoar prophesied his future 
 eminence by giving for his first declamation the following 
 motto from the great Latin poet : — 
 
 " Telemacho veniet, vivat modo, fortior aetas." 
 
 We are told that he mastered the Hebrew perfectly; 
 that he digested " Richardson's Tables," and transcribed 
 them ; that he composed systems of logic and physics 
 which other students used afterwards ; and in short, 
 "described the circle of all the academical studies." But 
 his studies were not confined to the college course. He 
 read many books with care, and made " ingenuous remarks 
 upon them in his diary." In this respect he left college 
 different from many graduates who are marked high for 
 scholarship, but who are shamefully ignorant of general 
 literature. 
 
 Young Mather entered college in 1675, when Leonard 
 Hoar was at the head, and took his first degree in the 
 summer of 1679, from the hands of Rev. Urian Oakes. 
 Both were men of ability and character, though the first, 
 for unexplained reasons, was unpopular, and therefore 
 resigned. This was the period of the great Indian, or 
 King Philip's, War, which began in the summer of 1675 
 and continued into the middle of 1677. It resulted in the 
 death of Philip and the overthrow of the aboriginal power 
 in New England. It was a stirring time, when student 
 
8 LIFE AND TIMES OF 
 
 life must have partaken of the general spirit and excite- 
 ment. Probably half the students came from towns 
 which suffered from fire, pillage, or massacre, and per- 
 haps from all these forms of Indian violence. 
 
 The reputation of our student rose steadily through his 
 whole college course. He was ** pretty healthy," had a 
 "capacity for learning," and a "modest inquisitiveness," 
 all of which conduced to high scholarship. When he 
 took his degree, President Oakes, in a Latin oration, 
 spoke of him in terms of eulogy which nothing could 
 justify but the most extraordinary degree of character and 
 culture ; terms which would have turned the head of any 
 but a remarkable youth of sixteen. These are his words : 
 " Mather is named Cotton Mather. What a name ! My 
 hearers, I mistake ; I ought to have said what names ! I 
 shall not speak of his father, for I dare not praise him to 
 his face. But should he resemble his venerable grand- 
 fathers, John Cottoi¥ and Richard Mather, in piety, learn- 
 ing, splendor of intellect, solidity of judgment, prudence, 
 and wisdom, he will indeed bear the palm. And I have 
 confidence that in this young man Cotton and Mather 
 will be united and flourish again." 
 
 It is worthy of note that young Mather's religious char- 
 acter seems to have developed while he was in college, 
 though he was not received into the church until about 
 the time of his graduation. From the church records it 
 appears that John Cotton and Cotton Mather united with 
 the North Church "31 d., 6 m., 1679" (August 31, 1679). 
 For this solemn service he had been preparing for years. 
 It has been already stated that he prayed in secret and 
 read the Bible with absorbing interest in boyhood, and 
 that he wrote prayers for some of his comrades to use in 
 private. It may be added that he sometimes spoke to his 
 playmates on religious duties. His son writes that "at 
 
COTTON MATHER. g 
 
 fourteen he kept his days of fasting and prayer ; at fifteen 
 he studied Dr. Hall on Meditation and other books, and 
 formed a Method of Meditating." This he drew out at 
 length, and by following his method not only made his 
 mental acquisitions secure, but had them at command 
 whenever needed. 
 
 At the time of uniting with the church he was past 
 sixteen years of age. Before doing so, he went through 
 a process of thorough self-examination, of which this was 
 the record : — 
 
 1. Concerning my faith . 
 
 I am convinced of the utter insufficiency, in my own righteousness, 
 to procure my salvation. . . . 
 
 I perceive now no other way for my salvation, but only by the Lord 
 Jesus Christ. Refuge fails elsewhere on every hand. 
 
 I behold a fulness and a beauty in Jesus Christ ; he is worth loving, 
 worth prizing, worth following. 
 
 2. Concerning my repentance. 
 
 I abhor sin, because it is abhorred by God and contrary to him. 
 Sin is my heavy burden ; death itself would be welcome to me to 
 free me from such a burden. 
 
 3 . Concerning my love. 
 
 I long to see and know the favor of God unto me ; the sight of that 
 would make all my afflictions light. 
 
 I desire to be as active as may be in promoting the honor of God ; 
 and I seldom come into any company without contriving whether I 
 may not act or speak something for that in it, before I leave it. 
 
 I am sorry that I love God no more. 
 
 With such views and feelings the student, just as he 
 was leaving college and stepping into the world, entered 
 into covenant with Christ and his Church. The recorded 
 evidence of spiritual growth in his diary, and the numer- 
 ous products of his pen, and the almost incredible amount 
 of work done by him in all forms of Christian effort show 
 how well he kept his vo\vs. 
 
 The following letter, written in the early part of young 
 
lO LIFE AND TIMES OF 
 
 Mather's senior year, finds its place here. It has been 
 truly said that this was a remarkable letter for one of the 
 writer's age. It is interesting also in the facts stated. 
 The other children referred to in it as having escaped the 
 smallpox were Elizabeth, Samuel, and Abigail. Three 
 other children were born in following years. The luto 
 sata refers to the muddy streets near the 'dock. The 
 letter was addressed to his uncle, young John Cotton, at 
 Plymouth, and dated November, 1678. 
 
 I should fling a '■^ prob pudor'''' upon my delayes of doing you that 
 service that duty does as much oblige as you desire, but that I am 
 made brazen-faced by excuses sufficient to bear me out. 
 
 I wonder what you impute my non-transmission of those things of 
 yours which are in my hands to. I know your candor will not charge 
 me with Idleness. Your courtesy will not Implead me for forgetfiilness, 
 & most of all, you, without reason, will not accuse mee of unwillingness 
 to serve you in what I may, even tisqe ad aras, and if possible, there. 
 But if I am of age to speak for myself, sickness, which had the first part 
 in hindrance, was succeeded by uncertainty of conveyance, and that 
 again seconded by other avocations. How frequently and unweariedly 
 I have been engaged in seeking Plymouth boat, if noth. else, yet my old 
 shooes wil testify, who, in this time, when Boston is become an other 
 Lutelia {cf. Luto satd) do proclaim that they wanted a pair of Golo- 
 shooes when traveling near the Dock-head. I would bee more frequent 
 in Letters Testimonial of my gratitude, if I could but either fling salt 
 on the tail of Time, or get the wind and tide to be favorable to my 
 designs, which possibly may in a sense bee before the Greek Calends. 
 
 Never was it such a time in Boston. Boston burying places never 
 filled so fast. It is easy to tell the time wherein we did not use to 
 have the bells tolling for burials on a sabbath day morning by sunrise ; 
 to have 7 buried on a sabbath day night, after Meeting, — To have 
 cofiins crossing each other as they have been carried in the streets, — 
 To have, I know not how many corpses following each other close at 
 their heels, — To have 38 dye in one week — 6, 7, 8, or 9 in a day ; 
 yet thus hath it lately been ; and thus it is at this day. Above 340 
 have died of the Small Pox in Boston since it first assaulted the place. 
 To attempt a Bill of Mortality and number the very spires of grass in 
 a Burying Place seem to have a parity of difficulty and in accomplish- 
 
CO TTON MA THER. 1 1 
 
 merit. ... At first the gradual mercy of God to my fiather's l^mily 
 was observable and remarkable. First, my Brother Nath. gently 
 smitten, and I more gently than hee, and my Sr. Sarah yet more gently 
 than I. But the order is broken on my sister Maria wo, on the same 
 month & day of the month that my father was visited with the same 
 ^disease 21 years agoe, was taken very ill ; the symptoms grievous, and 
 our fears gr*. Sometimes light-headed, but her father prayed down 
 mercy for her and her pox having turned a day or 2 agoe, shee is now 
 so inter spemque metumque locata, that spes bears down the scales. 
 So that of my father's septenary of childr : 4 have been visited. God 
 fit and prepare for the 3 strokes that are yet behind. 
 
 Sir. Let us not want the help of your prayers for all of us, es- 
 pecially for him who is 
 
 Not more your Nephew than desirous to be 
 
 Your ... & servant, C. M. 
 
CHAPTER II. 
 
 FROM GRADUATION TO CALL TO NEW HAVEN I 1 6/9- 1 68 2. 
 
 SOME graduates leave a traditional fame behind them, 
 and their sayings, their attainments, or their exploits 
 are heard of and repeated by following classes for a gen- 
 eration. Mather not only left such a reputation, but some 
 of his manuscripts were used by students who came after 
 him. He had begun to make a name already, and expec- 
 tations of future eminence were high. One of his friends 
 wrote of him in his seventeenth year in this strain : — 
 
 For grace and art, and an illustrious fame, 
 Who would not look from such an ominous name: 
 Where two great names their sanctuary take. 
 And in a third combined a greater make? 
 
 One of the first public services of the youthful graduate 
 was an address on "Religious Societies, — Proposals for 
 the Revival of Dying Religion, by well-ordered Societies 
 for that purpose ; with a brief discourse unto a religious 
 Society on the first day of their meeting." This might 
 have been called a sermon, only it was spoken two year^ 
 before the author was approbated to preach. What is 
 curious about it is the fact that it was not published until 
 1724, with this note: — 
 
 " In this essay there is one thing a little singular. The 
 sermon in it is one that I entertained my neighbors withal 
 before I was a public preacher, when I was but sixteen 
 years of age. It may be this is the first sermon from 
 one of that age that has been published." 
 
 After graduation, Mather seems to have studied with 
 
COTTON MATHER. 1 3 
 
 redoubled energy. We find nothing in his journals, di- 
 aries, or letters, giving a hint of vacation or recreations, 
 except an occasional visit to Plymouth, Lynn, or some 
 other place not remote from his home. His delight was 
 in reading, studying, writing, teaching, and preaching in 
 the years preceding his approbation, in 1682, when a little 
 over nineteen years of age. He had been reared under 
 the idea of being a minister. That was the wish of his 
 parents, and on that his own heart had been fixed ; but a 
 serious impediment in his speech almost forced him to 
 abandon the hope of entering the pastorate and becoming 
 a public speaker. A troublesome stutter prevented ready 
 and distinct utterance. He therefore devoted some time 
 to the study of medicine, with a view to the life and call- 
 ing of a physician. In this pursuit he doubtless exhib- 
 ited his usual energy and persistence, and probably 
 learned all that could be gleaned from medical books at 
 the time, and more than entered into the curriculum of 
 the majority of young doctors in those days. 
 
 Writers who were not aware of this episode in his life, 
 or who have ignored it, have left the impression that he 
 dabbled in what he was entirely ignorant of, and what was 
 outside of his province, when he wrote on medical sub- 
 jects, and also when he introduced inoculation for the 
 smallpox. His writings on the healing art have furnished 
 some merriment for the doctors of recent times, because of 
 the curious and ridiculous remedies prescribed, but these 
 were not invented by him. He was merely the exponent 
 of medical science in his day, which fact Dr. Samuel A. 
 Green has recognized in his Historical Discourse. 
 
 But though Cotton Mather the youth was interested 
 in the study of medicine, and seemed to have in him the 
 elements of a close, accurate student, and of an enlight- 
 ened practitioner, the bent of his genius and the aspira- 
 
14 LIFE AND TIMES OF 
 
 tion of his heart bore him, as on a tidal wave, into the 
 pulpit. He prayed for relief from his impediment and 
 made efforts to overcome it ; but what set him on the 
 practical course of improvement was the advice of " good 
 old schoolmaster Mr. Corlet," who said to him : " Sir, I 
 should be glad if you should oblige yourself to a dilated 
 deliberation in speaking, for as in singing there is no one 
 who stammers, so by prolonging your pronunciation you 
 will get an habit of speaking without hesitation." He 
 followed this advice with advantage, and though he had, 
 " with great application studied physic for some time," he 
 now turned with no less ardor to prepare for the duties 
 of the sacred office. By constant effort he became a 
 ready and, in time, a powerful speaker. 
 
 Some of his time was devoted to teaching. Among 
 his scholars were his two younger brothers, Nathaniel and 
 Samuel, and those of his sisters who were of suitable age, 
 probably Maria, Elizabeth, and Sarah, the latter of whom 
 was in her ninth year. Besides these, he had other pupils 
 in various stages of their education. As a teacher he was 
 accurate, enthusiastic, and inspiring. 
 
 But in the course of a year or two, in 1680, preaching 
 was added to his other pursuits. While in college he had 
 become an uncommonly accurate student in the Hebrew 
 language, for one so young. Besides, some of his reading 
 had a direct bearing on his preparation for the ministry. 
 Following his grandfather and father, he discarded some . 
 of the physics and metaphysics of Aristotle (preferring 
 the dialectics of Peter Ramus), and thus gained clearer, 
 views of the nature and character of God and of the rela- 
 tions of mankind to the moral Governor of the universe. 
 
 At the commencement, in 168 1, his father being then 
 president, when about eighteen years and a half old, he . 
 proceeded Master of Arts. For his thesis he maintained 
 
COTTON MA THER. 1 5 
 
 that the vowel points are of divine origin. This opinion 
 he laid aside as he became more familiar with Hebrew, 
 for he learned to read the language without points, like 
 a native Jew, and thereat concluded that~they were not of 
 supernatural origin, but were the invention of men for the 
 sake of convenience. 
 
 But previous to this time, even as early as August 22, 
 1680, he preached in the meetinghouse in Dorchester, 
 where his grandfather had officiated more than thirty 
 years. His first text was : " The Spirit of the Lord is 
 upon me, because he hath anointed me to preach the 
 gospel to the poor ; he hath sent me to heal the broken- 
 hearted, to preach deliverance to the captives, and recover- 
 ing of sight to the blind, to set at liberty them that are 
 bruised" (Luke 4: 18). The next Sunday he preached 
 for his father in Boston, and the Sunday following he was 
 in the pulpit of the First Church, where his grandfather 
 Cotton had ministered with great distinction. 
 
 Mr. Mather began a diary very early in life, but none 
 of it is extant earlier than 1681, February 12, when he 
 was eighteen years of age. The following was written 
 on that day, or soon after, and it is copied here, as it 
 shows the spirit and intentions of the writer when he 
 began his public career : — 
 
 This day was filled with the devotions and enjoyments of a raised 
 soul. But there were especially two things whereabout the sallies of 
 my soul were considerable, not only-on this day, but at many other 
 times. in this part of my life. One thing wherein I was more forcibly 
 concerned, was that great thing of a Closure with the Lord Jesus 
 Christ. In the prosecution of this matter I may truly say, 'twas the 
 Spirit of God that was my Teacher, No man or book showed me the 
 way of pressing this glorious transaction ; but this day I used such 
 words as these, among others, before the Redeemer of my soul. Oh! 
 my dear Lord : thy Father hath committed my soul into thy hands. 
 There 's a Covenant of Redemption wherein I am concerned. I know 
 
1 6 LIFE AND TIMES OF 
 
 my election by my vocation, and my concernment in that Covenant, 
 by my being made willing to come under the shadow of thy wings, in 
 the Covenant of grace. Now, in that Covenant, the Father said unto 
 the Son : Such an elect son there is that I will bring into thy fold, and 
 thou shalt undertake for that soul as a sufficient and an eternal Saviour. 
 Therefore I am now in thy hands, O my Lord. Thy Father hath 
 put me there, and I have put myself there. O save me! O heal me! 
 O work for me ! Work in me the good pleasure of thy goodness ! 
 And afterwards I said. Lord, I have been leaving my soul, this day, 
 with Jesus Christ, for thou hast bid me to believe that I shall be 
 saved by him. Lord, I do believe that there never came a poor soul 
 to the Lord Jesus Christ in vain ; I do believe that I myself shall not 
 find it in vain. He will do great things for me. He has already done 
 enough to leave me without any cause of repenting that I have, through 
 so much agony of soul, come unto him. Yea, but I believe that he 
 has more still to do for me. Having been the Author, he will be the 
 Finisher of my faith. 
 
 Though he had improved in his speech so far as to be 
 encouraged, yet the impediment was not wholly overcome. 
 He adds : — 
 
 Another thing that much exercised me was, that I might not be left 
 without necessary supplies of speech for my ministry. God may please 
 so far to let my infirmity remain, that, although by a carefiil delibera- 
 tion, my public services were freed from any blemish by it, yet I was, 
 by his wisdom, kept in continual care and fear and faith concerning it. 
 How many thousands of solicitous thoughts I underwent concerning 
 it, is best known to him, who by those thoughts, drew me and kept 
 me nearer to himself. 
 
 As the design of this memoir is, in part at least, to 
 exhibit the character and views of the subject of it, 
 another passage will be given. It is evident in this case 
 that no miraculous cure was wrought upon the vocal 
 organs, but that constant care in speaking with " dilated 
 deliberation" was crowned with success. But he made 
 his infirmity the subject of prayer, and his very act of 
 prayer would serve to keep him firm in his purpose to 
 coerce his vocal mechanism into obedience to the desires 
 
COTTON MATHER, 
 
 17 
 
 of his heart. But for the glimpse they give into his heart 
 we will read his words : — 
 
 On this day particularly, I resolved, Lord, thou art he that made 
 man's mouth. Thou wast angry with Moses because he would not 
 make that consideration an argument for faith that thou wouldest be 
 with his mouth. And now, because I would not so sin, therefore I 
 trust in thee. Thou dost send me forth as thou didst Moses, in 
 service for thy name, among thy people; and thou who didst make 
 man's mouth, and make my mouth, wilt be with my mouth. It was 
 also once used as a bottom for faith. The Lord hath, and therefore 
 the Lord will. Now for a blessed experience which I have already had 
 of the help ; yea, such an experience as hath caused me to promise that 
 I would never distrust more. Thou sayest, none of them who trust in 
 thee shall be desolate. But how desolate shall I be, if I am left with- 
 out speech for thy work? I trust in thee, and therefore I shall not be. 
 Thou sayest, thou wilt never forsake them that seek thee. But I have 
 sought thee, and I will seek thee, as long as I have a day to live. 
 And now, O Lord, I will believingly wait on thee. I shall see a token 
 for good. Thy people also shall be witnesses of the token. 
 
 The reader cannot fail to notice how near to God this 
 young man was trying to live. With awful reverence and 
 childlike fear he talked with God, as it were, face to face. 
 At the time the above lines were written he drew up 
 some resolutions which related, not merely to his gift of 
 speech, but which covered his whole course of living. 
 They will serve to evince his spirit, and may afford an 
 example to other youth who are studying how to live 
 a life of active holiness. Here follow the resolutions : — 
 
 As to my walk with God ; Lord, thou makest me to will'^ help me to 
 resolve : — 
 
 L As to my Thoughts. 
 
 1. Keep God, and Christ, and heaven much in my thoughts. 
 
 2. Watch and pray against lascivious thoughts, ambitious thoughts, 
 and wandering thoughts in the times of devotion. 
 
 n. As to my Words. \ 
 
 1. Words few and deliberate. 
 
 2. My tongue is the Lord's, and to be used for him. 
 
 \ 
 
1 8 LIFE AND TIMES OF 
 
 3. Pray before speaking, or answering a weighty question. 
 
 4. Speak ill of no man except on a good ground, and a right end. 
 
 5. In visits, consider what I may do for God. 
 III. As to my Course of Duties. 
 
 1. Pray at least three times a day. 
 
 2. Meditate once a day ; doctrinal 2iViA practical. 
 These Questions at night. 
 
 1. What has been the mercy of God to me to-day? 
 
 2. What my carriage before God ? 
 
 3. Is my immortal spirit safe if I die this night? 
 
 He resolved also "to lead a life of heavenly ejacula- 
 tions ; to be diligent in observing and recording illustrious 
 providences " ; and in all " continually going unto Christ 
 as the only physician and Redeemer of my soul.'* He 
 adds that the "singular assistances which the God of 
 heaven gave unto me, in my public ministrations on the 
 following Sabbath were such as caused me to draw up this 
 conclusion : I believe I shall have a glorious presence of 
 God with me through my whole ministry." This certainly 
 proved true, to an extraordinary degree, in the course of 
 a long and fruitful pastorate ; and yet we often meet with 
 entries in the diary which indicate a desire to have evi- 
 dent "tokens" on which his "assurances" might rest. 
 
 The evidence of the people's approbation was emphatic, 
 for "God so strangely inclined the hearts of the people 
 in the congregation, that, besides their weekly collections 
 every Lord's day, they did about this time, subscribe 
 about seventy pounds for my encouragement in my public 
 service the ensuing year." 
 
 The above subscription was in close connection with 
 a vote of the church, on the twenty-third of February, 
 168 1, inviting him to be the assistant of his father in 
 the ministry. 
 
 The disposition of the man at this time is shown by 
 the following detached sentences: "I am of Melanch- 
 
COTTON MATHER. 1 9 
 
 thon's mind, who said, * Let who will abound and increase 
 in riches ; they may for all me. I look upon my work as 
 my treasure.' " Then Mather added : '' That a power and 
 opportunity to do good, not only gives a right to the doing 
 of it, but also makes the doing of it a duty." 
 
 At the close of the Lord's day, March 23, he wrote as 
 follows in his diary : *' Coming home from the public serv- 
 ice wherein I had enjoyed the special assistance of God, 
 I wrote these words. I believe that I am a chosen vessel, 
 and that the Lord will pour mercy unto me till I have 
 arrived unto a fullness of eternal glory ! Lord, help me 
 to serve thee, love thee, glorify thy name. Fill me with 
 thy Spirit. It will be so ! Oh, who am I that I should 
 be filled with the Spirit of the holy God ! But it will be 
 so ! (Is. 44 : 3.) This day in the assurances, the glo- 
 rious and ravishing assurances of the divine love, my 
 joys were almost insupportable." 
 
 It must be kept in mind that these words were not 
 printed for the public to read, or spoken to the ear of a 
 most intimate friend. They were simply the delightful 
 thoughts of his own secret soul. Remembering this fact, 
 the charges of pride, conceit, and vanity sometimes made 
 against the writer seem not only baseless, but unkind. 
 
 Mather spent much time in devotions, and in these his 
 whole soul was so engaged that he was almost exhausted. 
 He also, at times, found himself under strong distempers, 
 and especially in an idle frame of soul, fearing God would 
 "take a farewell of him." But prayer was a resort in all 
 these spiritual trials. "When I can't pray," he said, "I '11 
 groan." In his dependence on God, he wrote : "Though 
 thou grindest me to powder, I will never leave thee; 
 though thou killest me, I will put my trust in thee." He 
 was willing to die if the Lord called, but anxious to do 
 something and also to "write something that might do 
 
20 LIFE AND TIMES OF 
 
 good to young persons when he was dead and gone." 
 These two desires or passions characterized him through 
 life. He wanted to do and write in the way of usefulness, 
 and his heart was drawn to the young. To extreme old 
 age he felt special interest in the children and youth of 
 his flock and of the whole town. 
 
 The following incident gives us a view of his way of 
 improving every occasion to recover men from a life of 
 neglected duty : — 
 
 There was an honest man in the town whom I lovingly and fre- 
 quently rebuked for his neglecting to join himself unto some church of 
 the Lord Jesus Christ. His indisposition thereto continuing, I told 
 him, " Well, the God of heaven hath by his word been calling upon 
 you ; expect now to have him speak unto you by a blow^ A few 
 days after this, the honest man fell down from the top of a house, and 
 received a blow whereof he lay for some time as dead. But, coming 
 to himself, one of the first things he thought on was what I had said 
 unto him, under the sense whereof he quickly went and joined himself 
 with the South Church. 
 
 Of this event Mather inquires : " What shall I make 
 of it } " 
 
 Rather frequent citations will be made from the diary, 
 because it lets us into the inner life of the writer in his 
 youth, and the beginning of his ministry. The rest of 
 his life was but the unfolding and expanding of what was 
 here in the bud. It will be seen how early he was beset 
 by the temptations which assail rising young men, and 
 with what unusual effort he tried to discipline his heart. 
 He spent the fourteenth day of May in fasting, with 
 prayer, on account of " old iniquities and late impuri- 
 ties," and was much grieved about his " proud, wanton, 
 and slothful heart." The day closed with high enjoy- 
 ments. His heart was melted with a marvelous assurance 
 that he should enjoy much of the divine presence in his 
 ministry. 
 
COTTON MATHER. 21 
 
 An unsympathizing critic, not in the habit of chastising 
 his own imperfection, might infer that the writer was a 
 man of exceptional proneness to sin. But when such an 
 indefatigable worker bewails his sloth, it is easy to see 
 that he u^ed the same merciless severity in regard to 
 "wanton and proud thoughts." 
 
 Ten days later, in the morning, he went into the 
 meetinghouse for " some convenience of study," when 
 a strong impression on his mind led him to go into the 
 pew of a gentleman of good fashion and quality and ear- 
 nestly pray that the "Lord would work thoroughly and 
 savingly on his heart "; and he felt assured that at some 
 time his prayer would be answered. About eleven years 
 afterwards the man was converted, and became a worthy 
 member of the church and a great blessing and comfort 
 to Mr. Mather. From this it is inferred that he some- 
 times reviewed his diary, and made insertions like the 
 above, showing answers to prayer, or results from former 
 endeavors. 
 
 A sermon from his father, on the sin of pride, much 
 affected him. He speaks of this as the sin of young 
 ministers, and he humbled himself before God for* the 
 pride of his heart. 
 
 This battle with pride, as he calls it, which had a flavor 
 of gratified vanity, perhaps, and on that account was the 
 more noxious, was carried on vigorously, and there was 
 need of it. No young minister, in all the years since 
 Boston was founded, has met greater or more discrimi- 
 nating applause : and as approbation was very pleasing to 
 him, he was in danger of being swollen with self-conceit. 
 Many young men in public life, with half the breeze of 
 popularity that filled his sails, have become vain and 
 insolent ; but young Mather was led to a deeper sense of 
 his unworthiness by this dangerous show of public favor. 
 
2 2 LIFE AND TIMES OF 
 
 Vast audiences greeted him at home and wherever he 
 went. The hearers, old and young, female and male, 
 unlearned and educated, hung upon his speech, whether 
 one hour or two hours long, even if preceded by an hour 
 of prayer. He could not help inhaling the fragrance from 
 the cloud of incense which ensphered him, but he strug- 
 gled manfully and prayerfully to nullify its baneful effects. 
 
 It is instructive to read of this contest and victory. 
 Vanity and pride are besetments that can be cast out only 
 by prayer with fasting. This is especially true when favor 
 swells to adulation, and comes from the wise and the 
 beautiful alike. Mather saw his danger, and set himself 
 to overcome his easily besetting sin. On the eleventh of 
 June he fasted and prayed, "fighting with pride." He 
 found himself " wofully guilty in two respects": i. Self- 
 applause, when he had been successful in "preaching or 
 praying with enlargement," or answering questions " pres- 
 ently and suitably." 2. " Affectation of preeminency far 
 above what can belong to my own age or worth, and 
 above others that are far more deserving than myself." 
 It was a determined struggle within his soul. And yet 
 the record of this contest with pride has been made the 
 occasion of censure and ridicule, as being itself a proof 
 of the writer's conceit. 
 
 Seven days later, on Saturday, which was always a day 
 of self-communing and of communion with God, Mather 
 drew out his experience at some length. He kept this 
 day as a time of thanksgiving before the Lord. He had 
 never heard of but one person — his grandfather, John 
 Cotton — who had been accustomed to keep such days. 
 The day was spent in "recollecting merciful dispensa- 
 tions." The "greatness and fulness of them" were reg- 
 istered in his Memorials, and he gratefully acknowledged 
 them in prayer. 
 
COTTON MATHER. 
 
 23 
 
 Under date of the nineteenth, being Lord*s day, he 
 writes : " About this time I bought a Spanish Indian^ and 
 bestowed him for a servant on my father, with the impres- 
 sion that some special and signal return will follow. (Now 
 see a record in the thirty-fourth year of my life.) This 
 will come in due time." The query may here arise, 
 whether he were in the habit of giving, on the ground of 
 his hope that he would thereby secure some mark of divine. '^ ^^ 
 favor. His thrifty charity has excited what seems like a 
 sneer in some quarters. Such a thought would have been 
 indignantly spurned. In fact he held that all giving 
 should be without the hope of reward as the motive for 
 benevolence, though he believed, without doubt, that filial 
 piety would be pleasing to his heavenly Father. In the 
 case before us there is no proof that the gift was inspired 
 by the hope of reward. It is written merely that he had 
 an *' impression " that such would be the case, when he 
 made the present ; but the act of kindness to his father 
 sprang from his filial regard. 
 
 His desire to be useful, which was one of the consuming 
 passions of his life, is shown by lines written on the 
 seventh of July. He proposed reform in regard to several 
 things : i. "In respect to myself : laboring after a greater 
 sense of the Realities of the Invisibles!' 2. To improve 
 his time in general. 3. "In respect of my father's fam- 
 ily." That is, to induce his brothers and sisters, as many 
 as were capable thereof, to take their Bibles, " when the 
 Scripture was read, morning and evening, before prayer, 
 and attentively accompany the vocal reader." In respect 
 to his sisters, to "set as many of them as he could to 
 spend an hour together every day : half of it in writing, 
 and half of it furnishing themselves with knowledge about 
 the matter of religion." At this time he had five 
 brothers and sisters old enough to derive great benefit 
 
24 LIFE AND TIMES OF 
 
 from such a practice. The youngest of these was seven, 
 and the eldest sixteen years of age. Probably the younger 
 sisters as they grew up came under his special influence, 
 if not instruction. 
 
 About the middle of this month he suffered much from 
 pain in the teeth and jaws, and true to his conviction as 
 to the cause or design of physical pain, he inquired if he 
 had sinned by " sinful, graceless, and excessive eating 
 and by evil speaking," as the dentales literae are used in 
 speaking. 
 
 There is more reference to the aspects of nature in 
 Mather's writings — as will be seen hereafter — than was 
 usual in pulpit literature, before the present century. 
 Here is a brief example : " August 22. In the evening, 
 looked through the window upon the heavens, and thought, 
 if the Lord meant not forever to glorify me in heaven, 
 would he have ever put it into my heart that I should seek 
 to glorify him on earth } " 
 
 We have already seen that young Mather was interested 
 in the education and the spiritual training of his brothers 
 and sisters, and also studying to write something for the 
 good of the young people in his father's parish. This latter 
 interest continued through his ministry, and was one cause 
 of the vigorous growth of the North Church. Saturday, 
 the sixth of August, he spent in prayer with fasting, 
 though he had already set apart a day this week in the 
 same exercise, in connection with the young men's meet- 
 ing at which he preached. He had these meetings in 
 different parts of the town. We shall hear more of them. 
 Probably this sphere of labor was assigned to him as the 
 junior pastor. 
 
 The special concern this day was to consider causes of 
 humiliation and methods of supplication, and that he might 
 be carried through the concerns of his commencement in 
 
COTTON MATHER, 25 
 
 the following week. His oration, in connection with the 
 reception of the Master's degree, came off on the follow- 
 ing Tuesday, the ninth, and, his father being president, the 
 degree was received from his hands. He wrote : " 'T is 
 when I am yet about half a year beyond eighteen in my 
 age ; and all the circumstances of my commencement 
 were/ordered by a very sensible providence of God." His 
 
 me, about the Hebrew vowel points, has already been 
 mentioned. 
 
 In September he began the practice of having what he 
 called rising thoughts. "In the morning, fix on some 
 Scripture ; sometimes on sorne question of special conse- 
 quence to eternal interests." He judged that by morning 
 thoughts placed on divine and holy subjects he would be 
 " better disposed unto fear of the Lord all the day long." 
 These truths would sanctify him. He began with Zech- 
 ariah 13:1: "In that day there shall be a fountain 
 opened to the house of David and to the inhabitants of 
 Jerusalem for sin and for uncleanness." He made three 
 observations : — I. " The blood of the Lord Jesus Christ 
 fitly compared to a fountain. 2. This is an open fountain. 
 3. It is for the washing away of all sin and uncleanness." 
 In this way he went over many portions and chapters of 
 the Bible in these morning exercises, and herein "handled 
 multitudes of cases referring to most important points of 
 Christianitie." The clerical reader will readily see how 
 much rich thought would be treasured up by thus improv- 
 ing scraps of time when rising in the morning. If put to 
 paper, they would soon stock a magazine of topics for 
 public use. 
 
 Next we are introduced to another phase of our youth- 
 ful preacher. He became, as it were, the pastor of the 
 poor, and also of the criminal class. On the twenty-first 
 of September " three miserable men were to be executed ; 
 
26 LIFE AND TIMES OF 
 
 one for rape, and two negroes for burning a house, and 
 persons therein." Mather "had a feeling of deep humili- 
 ation for the sin of his own heart, which might have ^ ^'^ 
 him into such sins, if God's grace had not kept him," ax.a 
 for this grace he was thankful. It soon became a habit 
 with him to visit the poor and devise means for helping 
 them. Poor debtors in prison had his sympathy, prayers, 
 and pecuniary aid. And while yet young he became, as 
 it were, the minister of the criminal classes, as thieves, 
 incendiaries, pirates, and murderers. No man could be 
 more faithful, and at the same time kind-hearted, in 
 dealing with them. 
 
 The working of his mind on the third of October will 
 be read with different feelings by different persons. One 
 class may suspect that the young man was stirred by 
 burning ambition to equal or excel his ancestors ; while 
 another class, more charitable and possibly more correct, 
 may regard him as moved to a holy emulation by the 
 example of such men as his father and his two grand- 
 fathers. It is certainly natural as well as praiseworthy 
 for noble youth to be fired with resolution to attain to the 
 excellence of their predecessors. After a day spent in 
 "sowing the tears of repentance and supplication in 
 agonies and prayers," the record closed with these words : 
 " Lord, I know that thou wilt be with me. Lord, I know 
 that thou wilt improve me in eminent service for thy 
 name. Lord, I know thou wilt signalize me, as thou 
 hast my father, my grandfathers, and my uncles before 
 me. Hallelujah." His uncles Samuel and Nathaniel were 
 eminent among the ministers of England. 
 
 The ninth of October was a day of usual devotion in 
 preparation for the Lord's day, in reference to which 
 Mather writes : " The Lord made me somewhat an instru- 
 ment of his praise, to endeavor to his praise yesterday. 
 
COTTON MATHER. 27 
 
 I went this day into the pulpit of my old grandfather 
 Cotton, in the Old Church of Boston, and there, being 
 -j^hereto called, I preached with a very singular assistance 
 ,.jf the Lord; yea, such was his powerful presence with 
 me, that some afterwards declared their melted and broken 
 hearts/could hardly forbear crying out aloud in the 
 assenibly." 
 
 About this time he kept a private fast before the Lord 
 on account of " temptations to slothfulness, and some 
 degree of wantonness " ; and this when he was working 
 like a fast-driven engine. 
 
 The entries in the diary in November are interesting, 
 as will be seen in what follows : " It was proposed among 
 many devout persons in this country to keep a concert of 
 prayer in private every Monday, between eleven and 
 twelve A.M., to pray purely on behalf of the church abroad, 
 withering under grievous persecutions, and our own land 
 now in many threatening circumstances. A similar prac- 
 tice had been agreed among many in Great Britain and 
 Ireland, and thence came here. Many good men held 
 aloof from it, as having somewhat of superstition in it." 
 Mather favored it, and many other pious people in this 
 country came into this fellowship of prayer. He adds 
 that " many good men did afterwards highly bless God for 
 the proposal." We here notice a characteristic trait of 
 his, all his life, which was to know a good thing when he 
 saw it, and to promote it, from whatever source it might 
 come. He followed up this plan of prayer in private for 
 a long while. Perhaps the practice lingered along in 
 a quiet way till the time of Edwards, when Christians 
 in Scotland and New England agreed to keep a similar 
 concert of prayer, which is now superseded by our regular 
 concert of prayer for foreign missions. 
 
 In this same month of November the first overture 
 
28 LIFE AND TIMES OF 
 
 from a distant people came to our youthful preacher, which 
 he notices in these words : " Messengers came from the 
 ancient and famous church of New Haven, desiring nie 
 to become their pastor." He was now three months less 
 than nineteen years old, and it seems strange that such 
 a church should have invited a boy, so to speak, to settle 
 with them. This was the church of John Davenport, and 
 the " call " was a striking proof of the reputation of the 
 youthful preacher. That church would prefer none but 
 the best, and New Haven was a very desirable place of 
 residence. But he does not seem at first to have felt any 
 desire to remove thither, and the invitation was declined. 
 
 His own church took immediate measures to fix his 
 abode with them. On the twenty-eighth of December 
 they renewed their vote for the continuance of his public 
 labors among them, adding that it " should be in order to 
 his settlement as their pastor." They also voted a salary 
 of £,^0 per annum. In view of this state of things he 
 set apart a day to " humble himself before the Lord, and 
 implore favor in two regards," i. "the freedom of my 
 speech, which for some difficulties upon it was become a 
 matter of more than ordinary thoughtfulness unto me ; 
 and, 2. the guidance of all concerned between our church 
 and myself." His impediment seems to have returned in 
 a measure, and he now took urgent means by prayer, and 
 by strict attention to utterance, to conquer the difficulty. 
 Gradually he succeeded and, perhaps through the grave 
 deliberation necessary to distinctness, became a more 
 effective speaker than if he had been naturally fluent. 
 
 On the second of February, 1682, the church in New 
 Haven, six days before his birthday, "renewed their ad- 
 dresses," so he writes in his diary, "unto poor, vile me to 
 become their pastor ; but this day I wrote unto them the 
 indisposition which I had unto the thing which I desired. 
 
COTTON MATHER. 29 
 
 My reason was, because the church of North Boston 
 would have entertained uncomfortable dissatisfactions at 
 my fatheiv if after so many importunate votes of theirs 
 for my^ettlement here, he had any way permitted my 
 removal from them." 
 
 From this it may be inferred that the renewed invita- 
 tion from New Haven, a town second to none in the 
 colonies for the intelligence, taste, and piety of its people, 
 appealed with some force to his feelings ; but the love of 
 his own congregation, with his filial regard to his father's 
 wishes, decided him to remain. We shall find proof later 
 that Mr. Mather had a warm place in his heart for New 
 Haven, Yale College, and the state of Connecticut. 
 
CHAPTER III. 
 
 FROM THE CALL TO NEW HAVEN TO HIS ORDINATION: 
 1682-1685. 
 
 THE invitation to settle in New Haven as the pastor 
 of the First Church was noted in the last chapter. 
 Mr. Mather continued as his father's assistant through 
 the year 1682. There is no diary of this year extant, 
 though doubtless one was kept. Since he had not yet 
 begun to publish, and was not involved in any way in 
 public affairs, as he became in maturer years, there are 
 no materials for filling out the record of this year. It is 
 known, however, that he was diligent in writing sermons, 
 preaching, visiting in the parish, looking after the poor 
 and the criminals, holding meetings of the young, and 
 in intense study. Many hours were also given to secret 
 devotions. He was laying the deep, broad, and solid 
 foundations of his vast superstructure of learning in all 
 branches of human science and divine knowledge. 
 
 It is worthy of note that Mather never, in his whole 
 life, showed any desire to go abroad, or to seek any abode 
 away from Boston. Several young men born here went 
 to England as ministers or were employed there in some 
 public business. His father was there on two occasions : 
 the first, about a year after his graduation in 1657, when 
 he remained nearly four years ; and the second in 1688. 
 His sojourn was drawn out till 1692. Two of his uncles, 
 Samuel and Nathaniel, spent almost the whole of their 
 ministerial life in England or Ireland, and his youngest 
 brother, Samuel, was settled many years in Witney, 
 Oxfordshire. But Cotton Mather loved Boston ; he loved 
 
 30 
 
COTTON MATHER, 3 I 
 
 the North Church, he loved his country, and he delighted 
 to serve l^is Master here. Therefore in that service he 
 wore hrmself oUt in his native town. 
 
 The following extract from his diary, though belonging 
 to theWxt year by date, is inserted here because it shows 
 his activity, and the nature of his engagements, except in 
 pastoral work, during several years before and after. It is 
 dated August 28, 1683. 
 
 Legi Exod. 34, 35, 36. Oravi. Examinavi adoloscentulos. Legi 
 Cartesium. Legi Commentatores in — 6: 37. Paravi concionem. 
 Orationi interfiii domesticae. Audivi pupillos recitantes. Legi Salmon 
 Pharmacop. Pransus sum. Visitavi pluros amicos. Legi varia. 
 Paravi concionem. Audivi pupillos recitantes. 1 Meditat. on the 
 exceeding willingness of the Lord Jesus to do good unto them that 
 come unto him. 
 
 After a few words in English, he goes on to say in 
 Latin that he prayed, taught, worked on a sermon, and 
 was present at family prayers. We have thus a glimpse 
 of a scholar's life for a series of years ; in fact, from the 
 time of graduation in 1679 to the time of ordination 
 in 1685. 
 
 On the eighth of January, 1683, he was unanimously 
 chosen to the office of pastor by the church. He declined 
 the invitation, but was willing to continue his connection 
 as assistant to his father, who was the teacher of the 
 church. One reason was that his father was in the vigor 
 of his strength, being but forty-three years old ; but per- 
 haps the chief cause of his declining was a humble view 
 of himself. He writes that it caused an "earthquake in 
 him " to read the words : "They watch for your souls as 
 those who must give account." It would seem that the 
 
 1 1 read Exodus 34, 35, 36 ; prayed ; examined the children ; read Des Cartes ; 
 read Commentators on — 6 : 37 ; prepared a sermon ; took part in family worship ; 
 heard my pupils recite ; read Salmon's Pharmacopea ; dined ; called on a number 
 of friends ; read various books ; prepared a sermon ; heard pupils recite. 
 
32 LIFE AND TIMES OF 
 
 fact of his being not quite twenty years old was an all- 
 sufficient reason for his shrinking from such an onerous 
 position as his father's colleague. 
 
 On the twelfth of February, 1683, his birthday, the 
 diary for the ensuing twelve months began with these 
 words : " I am this day twenty years old ; but alas, how 
 little have I done for the glory of God all this while ! I 
 would this day resolve, especially, two things : i. To be 
 more diligent in searching the Scriptures. 2. To be more 
 concerned for the welfare of the church whereto I am 
 related." 
 
 A week later he recorded a noble and generous pur- 
 pose which would furnish a good example for any young 
 minister whose parish contains men of means. His entry 
 concerning it is as follows : " A purpose. There are 
 some gentlemen and merchants in whom the good God 
 hath given me an interest ; and shall I not improve that 
 interest.? I may do well to engage them in agreement 
 together, to single out some godly but needy ministers in 
 the country for the objects of their charity, unto whom 
 their bounty may so express itself that God may be 
 glorified and they themselves gloriously rewarded." Thus 
 had Mather already begun that system of good devices for 
 the benefit of others which made his progress through 
 life a path of beneficent light. And his "devices" never 
 appear to have had a reflex look to his own advantage. 
 
 March 4, Lord's day. The preaching of his father 
 this day, on the eighth commandment, recalled to Cotton's 
 mind that several years before he had borrowed three 
 small books from a schoolmate with a promise to return 
 them when his friend should call for them. The friend 
 left the country, leaving the books. Now he resolved to 
 lay out ten times their value in good books to give away, 
 not knowing how else, he writes, to have peace in his own 
 mind. 
 
MATHER. 33 
 
 He early learned the true way to make advances in the 
 Christian Mfe. The principle of spiritual goodness being 
 laid in a re^newed heart, it was necessary to take definite 
 steps in the way of improvement. Thinking it would 
 glorify God to regulate his tongue, he made these " rules 
 of speech " : — 
 
 O Lord God, in Jesus Christ, help me. 
 
 1. Let me, in a solemn way, give my speech up unto God as a 
 faculty to be entertainingly improved for him. 
 
 2. Let my future care in and of my words declare the sincerity of 
 such a dedication. 
 
 And therefore let me seek rules of right speaking, i. By praying 
 daily to God : Lord, let my mouth show forth thy praise. 2. By read- 
 ing both of exemplary men, and of profitable books, which may teach 
 me the government of my tongue. 
 
 Let me then use the rules which I have sought, i . By being a person 
 of but few words. 2. By being deliberate in the <fee of my tongue 
 and lips. 3. By avoiding all expressions which I apprehend will 
 trespass on the commandments of God. 4. By rarely coming into 
 company without seeking of useful discourse in the company. 5. By 
 so doing, the tongue of the stammerer shall speak plainly. 
 
 Some time before his ordination, but having settlement 
 in view, he planned about "visits to be religiously per- 
 formed." He set apart one afternoon in the week to visit 
 all the families in the neighborhood, with the design of 
 *' bringing persons of all ages and sexes into an acquaint- 
 ance with God." 
 
 The following, dated March 30, may stand for many 
 other passages as indicating the source and the depth of 
 his piety : — 
 
 In prayer, the Lord filled me with faith and joy, when I considered 
 that amiable clause in the new covenant: '* I will not turn away from 
 them to do them good" ; and when I professed unto the Lord, that since 
 the covenant, and all the indescribable blessings of it were offered 
 unto my acceptance, I deliberately lay hold thereon. And I desire not 
 only an interest in all that salvation which the covenant proposed ; and 
 
34 LIFE AND TIMES OF 
 
 above all, that highest blessedness of being made like unto God and 
 Jesus Christ : but also I considered that Jesus Christ, the surety of the 
 covenant, should be the way in which all mercy should be communi- 
 cated unto me. 
 
 And in the same strain he wrote a few days later: 
 " Let me be abundant in secret prayer. Let me read 
 some excellent books which my Saviour in his infinite 
 faithfulness has bestowed on me, and among the rest, 
 * Howe's Blessedness of the Righteous.' " 
 
 The third of May was spent in prayer and fasting, 
 "upon many calls thereunto." He records : " I will give 
 one instructive instance unto my few friends with whom I 
 leave these papers, and particularly recite the method of 
 my proceedings from the beginning to the conclusion of 
 the day." It is such passages as these that let us into 
 his interior character : — 
 
 1 . I began the day with expressing before the Lord my belief of his 
 being a rewarder of them who diligently seek him, and my request 
 that he would now strengthen me to seek him. 
 
 2. I then read the chapters of the Bible which occurred unto me in 
 the course of reading, and those chapters I largely turned into prayers 
 before the Lord. 
 
 3. Afterwards I essayed in meditation, to affect my own heart with 
 a sense of the manifold vileness wherewith I have provoked God ; my 
 old sins and my late sins ; especially my woful unfruitful ness under my 
 marvelous enjoyments, privileges and advantages; all which I then 
 confessed and bewailed upon my knees before God. 
 
 4. This done, I sang unto the Lord that hymn of Burton's which is 
 called Confession of Sin. 
 
 5. Hereupon I spent some time in pondering of a profitable and a 
 seasonable question ; and then in forming of some occasional reflections. 
 
 6. I then went again unto my supplications, wherein I considered 
 that after all my vileness, the Lord is willing to deal with me in the 
 covenant of grace ; and for that end offered unto me such a surety and 
 a Saviour as the blessed Jesus ; wherefore I now stirred up myself to 
 take hold of him, earnestly putting my soul into the hands of the 
 Mediator, crying unto him that he would convey unto me not only 
 pardon of sin, but also power against it, and make me a happy subject 
 of all his redeeming work. 
 
COTTON MATHER. 35 
 
 7. Now I slang unto the Lord that hymn — Burton — which is en- 
 titled " Humble Petitions and Supplications." And I set myself by 
 further meditation to establish myself in the use of such rules of 
 speech as might render me a perfect man. 
 
 8. From which I betook myself unto prayer; and my prayer now 
 was especially for such a degree of utterance as from time to time, in 
 my ministry, I might have occasion for. And I had a full assurance 
 that I was heard in this petition. 
 
 9. I then sang part of the 51st psalm, and so proceeded unto an- 
 other prayer, which I presented before the Lord — the desire of Sol- 
 omon for wisdom — and for the presence of God with me in all the 
 concerns of my ministry. 
 
 10. Which being finished, I sang part of the 103d psalm. And then 
 I examined myself by the signs of a state of nature and a state oi grace 
 given in Mr. N. Vincent's True Touchstone , and found joyful causes to 
 hope. 
 
 11. In the next place, I made another prayer to recommend unto 
 the blessing of God, my particular friends, and all his people. 
 
 12. So I went unto a meeting of Christians that were preparing for 
 the communion to-morrow, and prayed and preached with them. 
 
 13. Leaving them, I visited a sick neighbor, and prayed with him. 
 
 14. And last of all, I shut up the day, renouncing all apprehension of 
 merit in my own duties, and relying upon the Lord Jesus Christ alone 
 for acceptance and salvation. 
 
 If the reader is weary in perusing this record of a day's 
 experience, what must have been the endurance of the 
 youth who actually went through it all ! But this was the 
 spiritual and mental discipline of a person not yet of age ; 
 and it enables us to see the real working cause of those 
 wonderful attainments made by him not only in Chris- 
 tian character, but in becoming the most intelligent, 
 instructive, and delightful converser of his time. 
 
 Seven days later we find another entry quite as helpful 
 in laying open his heart to us, and showing the indefati- 
 gable pains he took to become an able minister of the 
 New Testament. It was at the close of May 12 that the 
 following lines were written : — 
 
36 LIFE AND TIMES OF 
 
 This evening I had much satisfaction of mind in considering what 
 noble attainments I should be continually pursuing of. And while I 
 was lying on my couch, in the dark of the evening, I ex tempore com- 
 posed the following hymn, which I then sang unto the Lord. 
 
 High Attainments. 
 
 Lord, what shall I return unto 
 Him, from whom all my mercies flow? 
 (i) To me to live, it Christ shall be, 
 For all I do, I '11 do for thee. 
 
 (2) My question shall be oft beside, 
 How Thou mayst most be glorified? 
 
 (3) I will not any creature love 
 But in the love of Thee above. 
 
 (4) Thy will I shall embrace for mine, 
 And every management of Thine 
 Shall please me. (5) A conformity 
 To Thee shall be my aim and eye. 
 
 (6) Ejaculations shall ascend 
 
 Not seldom from me. (7) I '11 attend 
 
 Occasional reflections, and 
 
 Turn all to gold that comes to hand. 
 
 (8) And in particular, among 
 
 My cares, I '11 try to make my tongue 
 A tree of life, by speaking all 
 As be accommodable who shall. 
 
 (9) But last : yea. flrst of all, I will 
 Thy Son my surety make, and still 
 Implore Him that He will me bless 
 With strength as well as righteousness. 
 
 He adds: '*I designed rather pie lie than poetry in these 
 lines." And the reader will agree that he accomplished 
 his design. Then follow nine notes on the lines, each 
 explicating the sense of one of the numbers. I give one, 
 referring to the last number (9) : — 
 
 The former honest purposes are amiable, are necessary; but the 
 Things are too great for me and I cannot do them myself alone ; where- 
 fore my dependence must be upon the Lord Jesus Christ for the 
 pardon of my defects, and for a supply of grace that shall be suflScient 
 unto me. 
 
COTTON MATHER, 37 
 
 It was the custom in former times, and it continued in 
 vogue as late as the middle of the present century, to 
 offer prayers in public for those in affliction and to give 
 thanks for special mercies. Mather had many requests 
 sent to him, but he was not satisfied with praying for the 
 afflicted in public. He took the "bills that were put up 
 for prayer" to his study and prayed for each person sepa- 
 rately. He also used to ask himself who had shown him 
 any kindness during the day, and supplicate the God of 
 heaven that he would " bestow spiritual and eternal favors 
 on such." 
 
 Near this time he enters his lament for failing to 
 " record particular providences," and goes on to relate 
 the following : — 
 
 I was owner of a watch whereof I was very fond for the variety of 
 motions in it. My father was desirous of this watch, and I, in a 
 manner, gave it him, with the thoughts, *' I owe him a great deal more 
 than this " : and ' ' the observation of the fifth commandment never 
 wants a recompense." Quickly after this, there came to me a gentle- 
 woman, from whom I had no reason to expect so much as a visit, but 
 in her visit she, to my surprise, prayed me to accept, as a present from 
 her, a watch which was indeed preferable unto that I had before parted 
 with. I resolved therefore to stir up in my neighbors, dutifiilness unto 
 parents more than ever, and redeem the time I was helped thus to 
 measure. 
 
 A former biographer has drawn attention to this record 
 as showing the selfish element in the son's gift to his 
 father, but the cavil was anticipated by Mather himself in 
 the phrase, "in a manner," thus intimating that the gift 
 was made in expectation of a return in some shape or 
 from some source. We can only admire the honesty 
 which inspired the record. The thought and the record 
 of it require no apology, for since God has promised a 
 blessing upon filial duty, the motive for filial conduct is 
 pure as well as strong. 
 
38 LIFE AND TIMES OF 
 
 The first death in the family of Increase Mather oc- 
 curred on the eleventh of June. The family seems to 
 have been remarkably healthy, as this little Katharine, 
 less than a year old, who was the ninth child, was the first 
 to be taken away. Cotton calls her his ''little sister 
 Katharine," and there is pathos in the expression. 
 
 One of his ways of doing good was to employ an " old 
 hawker," who would fill the country with " devout and 
 useful books " if directed, wherefore he writes, " I will 
 direct him and assist him, as far as I can, in doing so." 
 
 Resolves were made by him that in parting with friends 
 he would "contrive to commend unto them some suitable 
 text of Scripture ; and that he would rise early that he 
 might more glorify God in his studies." 
 
 In this same month of June he was much interested 
 in reading Mr. Corlet's " Self-Employment," from which 
 work he copied some excellent resolutions. As these 
 became a part of young Mather's spiritual being, I give 
 them a place. They will be helpful to any one who 
 observes them. 
 
 1 . In arguing, watch against inordinate heat. 
 
 2. If neglected or slighted, care not for it, yet observe it. 
 
 3. Reckon any trial a gain. 
 
 4. Subject delights of sense to spiritual ends. 
 
 5. If the talk in company is vain, watch to put in a word for edifi- 
 cation. 
 
 6. If any one despise or neglect you, bear no grudge against them. 
 
 7. Uphold the reputation of thy colleague as thine own. 
 
 8. Watch against all secret pleasure in the lessening of another for 
 the advantage of thyself. 
 
 9. Be not bitter against malignant opposers ; for meekness of spirit 
 and behavior is more according to Christ than wrathful zeal. 
 
 10. After public service be not concerned about the opinions of sin- 
 ful men, but inquire how acceptable it is to God. 
 
 11. Watch to put in a saving word for the good of a soul. Pray for 
 others as heartily as for thyself. 
 
COTTON MATHER. 39 
 
 12. Value others more according to their true worth, and not accord- 
 ing to their value of thyself. 
 
 13. Suppress the expectation of hearing your own praises. 
 
 14. Put down inordinate delights in eating and drinking. 
 
 15. By no means let pride set thee to study, or preach, or pray, or 
 carry thee on in any service. 
 
 In July he undertook to start a "pious and praying 
 meeting" among the young people in the southern part 
 of the town for the "prevention of the mischief arising 
 from vain company " and as a nursery of the church. 
 The effort was not successful at first, but in subsequent 
 years it grew into a great means of good. The number of 
 members from the south ^ who joined those at the north 
 end was so great that it was necessary to have two sepa- 
 rate meetings. At the origin of this movement the pastor 
 gave them a sermon. 
 
 In looking over the addresses of persons proposing to 
 join the church, he found above thirty seals of his min- 
 istry in the place. He inferred that many more had been 
 blessed in Boston and elsewhere of whom he had received 
 no definite information. 
 
 The north part of Boston was then populous, and when 
 walking in the evening Mather was impressed with the 
 number of people living there. He was moved with a 
 more than ordinary desire for their salvation, and as he 
 walked his " soul was transported with prayer for such a 
 mercy." 
 
 Probably one experience was not peculiar to our young 
 minister so far as the anticipation is concerned. He had 
 the habit of reading in the morning, before rising, a verse 
 at a time, with meditation, and when dwelling on the story 
 of Isaac being blessed with Rebecca, he thought that per- 
 haps he might be blessed in the same way with such a 
 consort. 
 
 1 That is, south of the water way, now Blackstone Street, 
 
40 LIFE AND TIMES OF 
 
 In August, in company with his father, he spent about 
 a fortnight in Lynn and had many " happy hours in the 
 country retirement of the fields." Increase Mather had 
 resorted to the waters in Lynn in the early days of his 
 ministry for his health, and it seems to have been a favor- 
 ite residence in the warm season. At this time the young 
 minister had "strong and strange assurances that God 
 would not only bless him but also make him a blessing to 
 others." 
 
 The defect in his speech still troubled him, and on 
 the twenty-seventh of August he made '* a most explicit 
 address unto the Lord Jesus Christ as having all keyes in 
 his hands," for his speech, praying that he might have 
 such supplies of it in his ministry as he might need. He 
 wrote : " I exceedingly bewailed the sins of my tongue. 
 I declared I asked for a tongue only to serve him and 
 bespeak the love and lives of my neighbors for him ; and 
 I concluded with the assurance that the tongue of the 
 stammerer should speak plainly." 
 
 This is followed by the extract from the diary in Latin 
 which has been cited already to show the range of his 
 studies and his mental activity. He then informs us that 
 he had kept a *' very full diary," and that he had noted his 
 sins till his "heart was weary of it." In consequence, he 
 resolved to change his course and throw his notes, "as 
 useless paper, into the fire." This was wise. It was the 
 way with Christians in his time, as well as before and 
 after, to explore all the nooks and corners of their souls to 
 find how sinful they were and to seek for marks of true 
 piety. The first might have been assumed as a fact, and 
 in regard to the second, they might have looked for evi- 
 dence in doing good. Introspection was carried to excess. 
 It was well that Mather changed his course, but the 
 diaries kept after this date were so full as to excite 
 curiosity to know how voluminous the former had been. 
 
COTTON MATHER. 
 
 41 
 
 He adopted a singular way of binding himself to duty. 
 It was by paying a piece of money as a forfeit for every 
 neglect. In this way he did good even if he failed in 
 duty, because his forfeit went to the poor, over and above 
 his tithes. The happy result was that he soon found 
 himself so pleased with his duties as to need no reminder 
 in the form of a penalty. 
 
 Of the good resolutions adopted about this time the 
 following may be noted. One was to inquire at night 
 what had been God's providence towards himself during 
 the day under three heads : — " i. My interior ; 2. my ex- 
 terior ; and 3. my friends about me." He inquired : II. 
 "What has been my behavior towards God in eight 
 particulars. And III. Am I in a state or frame to die 
 this night, if called t " He resolved also : " I will never 
 hear or see that any person has wronged me, or slighted 
 me, but I will immediately, before him that sees in secret, 
 pray for the welfare of that person by name." This 
 appears to have been a ruling principle of his life ; and 
 yet he has been accused of being revengeful. I believe 
 he was strictly truthful in this resolve and faithful in the 
 keeping of it. There does not appear to be any proof 
 that he ever willfully wronged any one, even his bitterest 
 maligners, during his whole life. 
 
 His diary at October 20 reveals the gratitude to God 
 which he habitually cherished. He devoted the day to 
 thanksgiving in private for the marvelous "mercies on 
 every side, which he enjoyed." For all these blessings, 
 enumerating them, he says : " I offered up my thanks 
 unto the Lord, longing to be brought into the land of the 
 Hallelujahs." Later in the exercises he considered some 
 further mercies of God : — 
 
 I. My improvement [employment] in the ministry of the gospel, 
 after I have been the vilest creature in the world. 
 
42 LIFE AND TIMES OF 
 
 2. The many advantages which I have to convenience roe in that 
 improvement. 
 
 3. The miraculous freedom of my speech. 
 
 4. A library exceeding that of any man's in the land. 
 
 5. A discoverable acceptance among the people of God. 
 
 6. A happy success of my labors, both public and private, upon hun- 
 dreds of souls. 
 
 We would be glad to know how it came to pass that 
 while so young he became the possessor of a library 
 " exceeding that of any man's in the land." Possibly 
 some volumes came from the library of his uncle Samuel, 
 a very learned man, who died in Dublin in 1671, leaving 
 no son. Possibly he devoted some of the money received 
 from teaching to the purchase of books. Besides, to 
 one craving for books, they accumulate with surprising 
 rapidity. 
 
 In the autumn a gentleman procured from England a 
 very valuable seal to be given him. Unhappily it was 
 lost, among other goods, in a great fire among the ware- 
 houses. He felt called to see the hand of God in what 
 befell him, and he held by that consideration ; and he 
 adds : " I prayed herewithal, that by no fire, whether the 
 fire of lust here, or the fire of hell hereafter, I might miss 
 of the promises which the blood of the Lord Jesus Christ 
 hath sealed." Several months later the seal was found, 
 unhurt by the fire, and came into his possession. 
 
 Several passages in the diary towards the close of the 
 year prove that he was " exceedingly tried and vexed with 
 evil imaginations." He resorted to prayer with fasting 
 that they might be excluded from his mind. He went so 
 far in self-denial as to injure his health. His " main 
 weapon of defense " was prayer, and he resolved that he 
 would never leave crying unto the Lord until he had 
 obtained from him the grace to secure therewith such 
 holiness that so much as an ugly thought should not ever 
 
COTTON MATHER. 
 
 43 
 
 dare to effect any lodging in his soul. The alleged fall of 
 an aged and eminent minister into a sin which gave a 
 " most infamous wound unto religion " caused him to fear 
 for himself and to pray for preserving grace. It is pleas- 
 ant to add that this minister was either found to be inno- 
 cent or was so exemplary afterwards that he was restored 
 to the ministry and filled out his life with useful and 
 honorable labors. 
 
 We will enter upon the year 1684 by noticing Mr. 
 Mather's habit of ejaculatory prayer^ which was begun 
 thus early and continued through life. He offered up his 
 short petitions in his study or wherever he might do so 
 without attracting notice or violating any of the rules of 
 propriety. One specimen may be given of his course at a 
 table, where, being the youngest of the company, it was 
 not proper for him to speak, and where the discourses of 
 others were too trivial to be worthy of attention : — 
 
 Casting my eyes upon ( ^ , ^ , , ^ 
 
 the gentlewoman who ) ^'^: "^"^ °^ *y ^"^^ """^ ~'"*^"''*^> ^ "'='' 
 
 Served for us. (. P""'"" "°*° ^^^^ P«''"°"- 
 
 ( Lord, adorn that person with the virtues which 
 
 AgentlewomanKu -u . / j ^ j 
 
 ., . s thou prescnbest for aged matrons, and prepare 
 
 stricken m years. / 1 r i.- j- 1 • 
 
 -' [^ her for approachmg dissolution. 
 
 , ( Lord, espouse and marry the soul of that per- 
 A gentlewoman lately ) ^^uir- ^ .u 
 
 ** . , -^ ■{ son unto thyself, in a covenant never to be 
 
 married. / u 1 
 
 (^ broken. 
 
 A gentlewoman very J Lord, beautify the soul of that person with thy 
 beautiful. ( comeliness. 
 
 And so on to the number of thirty, including a magis- 
 trate, a minister, a man unhappy in his children, a physi- 
 cian, one who had met with great losses, and a servant in 
 attendance. 
 
 In the street he prayed for a ta/l man whom he met, 
 that he " might have high attainments " ; a /ame man, 
 
44 LIFE AND TIMES OF 
 
 that he " might walk uprightly " ; a negro ^ that his " soul 
 might be made white in the blood of the Lamb " ; for 
 young people : ''Help them to remember their Creator in 
 the days of their youth " ; for young gentlewomen : " Make 
 them wise virgins ; and as the polished stones of thy 
 temple." 
 
 He writes : " It would be endless as well as needless to 
 exemplify a hundredth part of the ejaculations which a 
 person may dart up without any loss of time." But in 
 Boston to-day he would have to take people in groups 
 as they crowd the streets. And why should not a Chris- 
 tian pray for his fellow travelers as he threads his way 
 through the crowd } All need his prayers, and more than 
 he knows would be thankful if they were aware of it. 
 Doubtless there is much praying in the streets, and the 
 "fleet angels of God" can go up and down in the 
 thronged places of concourse as well as at Bethel. 
 
 The opening of the year 1684 was a time of stirring 
 interest to the people of Boston and all New England. 
 Charles H demanded the surrender of the charter of the 
 Massachusetts Bay. Edward Randolph, well styled the 
 " evil genius of New England," came over with the writ of 
 quo warranto, bringing also a declaration from the king 
 to the effect that *'if the colony, before the prosecution 
 of the quo warranto,'' would make full submission and 
 entire resignation to his pleasure, he would regulate their 
 charter for his service and their good. " The proceedings 
 of the king in England were well understood here, and 
 the people knew that he was vacating charters and giving 
 new ones in the interest of arbitrary government." The 
 Bay Colony was to be deprived of its chartered rights 
 and its God-given freedom, in matters secular and 
 religious. 
 
 No young man in the colony was more alive than 
 
COTTON MATHER. 
 
 45 
 
 Cotton Mather to all that concerned its growth and pros- 
 perity. He was a true son of the soil, and from the first 
 intimation we have of his political sentiments he was on 
 the popular side, in distinction from that of the court. 
 This was true of him through all his life, and in this he 
 followed the example of his father and grandfather. In 
 this also he was followed by his son, Dr. Samuel Mather, 
 down to the time of the Revolution, when, leaving the 
 family of his wife, — who was a Hutchinson, — he acted 
 as a bold and uncompromising ''son of liberty." 
 
 There was close and warm sympathy between the 
 colonists and the friends of freedom in England ; and 
 young Mather, in unison with his father, was already a 
 keen politician from a sense of religious duty. As there 
 was no man on our side of the water who understood the 
 principles of government in general, and the rights of the 
 colonies in particular, better than Increase Mather, so 
 there was no young man more thoroughly imbued with 
 the views and sentiments of the English Independents 
 than his learned and brilliant son. Contemporary politics 
 in England were as familiar to the people of Boston then 
 as they are now, though news was longer in coming. 
 The opinions and movements of Halifax and Sydney ; of 
 Shaftesbury and Nottingham ; of the second Hampden ; 
 of Maynard, Danby, Russell, Somers, and Locke, were dis- 
 cussed as freely as are now those of Gladstone and Salis- 
 bury, and with a deeper personal interest, in consequence 
 of; the connection between the mother country and the 
 colony. The lessons learned in childhood and youth in 
 this line affected all his future life, and made him a 
 stanch friend of his country and of the free principles of 
 the Bible in every crisis, from the forfeiture of the charter 
 on June i8, 1684, to the establishment of the House of 
 Brunswick on the throne. 
 
46 LIFE AND TIMES OF 
 
 The scene in the Old South Church, January 21, 1684, 
 was of great historic interest. The council, with Gov- 
 ernor Bradstreet at their head, fearing the implied threat 
 of the king, yielded to the demand for the charter, and 
 voted that they would not contend but "would humbly 
 lay themselves at his feet." The House of Deputies, 
 representing the people, refused to concur. The people 
 of Boston took up the matter in town meeting, and after 
 discussion, their own delegates being present, sustained 
 the deputies. When this meeting was in session a re- 
 quest was sent to Increase Mather to attend and address 
 them. A condensed form of his speech is given in his 
 autobiography. A few sentences follow. The question 
 was. Shall we give up our charter } He said : — 
 
 " I verily believe we shall sin against the God of heaven 
 if we vote an affirmative unto it. The Scripture teacheth 
 us otherwise. * That which the Lord our God has given 
 us, shall we not possess it } ' If we make a submission, 
 we fall into the hands of men immediately : but if we do 
 not, we still keep ourselves in the hands of God. The 
 loyal citizens of London would not surrender their charter 
 lest their posterity should curse them for it. Shall we 
 then do such a thing .^ " He epigrammatically added that 
 it was "better to die by the hands of others than by 
 their own." 
 
 The people listened intently and then voted " No " with- 
 out a dissenting voice. Then aged men took him by the 
 hand and, with tears on their solemn faces, said: "We 
 thank you, sir; we thank you, sir." The lesson of this 
 event was never forgotten by Cotton Mather. 
 
 There is but a scrap of diary for this year, but we know 
 that the year, like the last, was filled with manifold labors. 
 In addition to his preaching, for which he made thorough 
 preparation both by study and prayer, he was faithful 
 
COTTON MATHER. 
 
 47 
 
 in all parochial duties, making calls, visiting the sick, at- 
 tending funerals, and assisting the needy ; moreover he 
 continued his work of teaching as heretofore. In this 
 service he covered a wide range. Besides guiding the 
 studies of brothers and sisters, he instructed young men 
 in the ancient languages and in theology. Nor was his 
 own studying confined to the branches he was teaching ; 
 nor indeed to what specially belonged to a theological 
 course. He was a universal scholar and had a marvelous 
 faculty of acquiring and digesting knowledge in every 
 branch of science and literature. Whatever book came 
 in his way was made to yield its quota, whether of 
 fact, or anecdote, or of inspiration. He conversed with 
 older men and learned of them. By this means he gath- 
 ered up more knowledge of the early history of New Eng- 
 land than any other man possessed. All sorts of men were 
 laid under contribution, each in his own sphere, whether 
 landsman or sailor, mechanic, trader, or soldier, scholar 
 or statesman ; and every item took its place in the vast 
 storehouse of his memory. And what is of more conse- 
 quence, everything in his mind came at his call when 
 wanted. In reading and observing, his attention was so 
 fixed that inerasable impressions were made on his mind. 
 Nor was he overloaded and weighed down by his acquisi- 
 tions like a plodding pack horse. He was alert, handy, 
 strong in all his mental movements. He could walk and 
 not faint ; he could run and not be weary ; he could 
 mount up as on wings of eagles. 
 
 What notice the younger Mather took of the invitation 
 to become their permanent pastor, by the North Church, 
 is not known ; but he continued to perform the duties of 
 the office, except the administration of the sacraments, as 
 if he expected to abide with them. Perhaps he felt a 
 natural shrinking from assuming the position of pastor 
 
48 LIFE AND TIMES OF 
 
 while so young, being only twenty-one in the preceding 
 February ; and possibly he wished to prosecute his studies 
 farther in certain directions before becoming a Congrega- 
 tional minister. It is not known that he ever had any 
 doubts about the validity of Congregational or Presby- 
 terian ordination ; but we are informed that he made a 
 thorough study of the Episcopal or prelatical question 
 before taking ordination vows. In this examination his 
 mind was settled that the New Testament knew of no 
 distinction as to rank, honor, or duties between bishops 
 and elders. He found no authority for the claim of apos- 
 tolical and prelatical succession as held by the Roman or 
 the Anglican churches ; and from this time he always, 
 when referring to the subject, speaks like one familiar with 
 the details of the controversy, and with the history of 
 the Christian Church in all generations. 
 
 The North Church, satisfied by long trial that Mr. 
 Mather was the man they wanted, renewed their "call" on 
 the third of August. This invitation was unanimous and, 
 according to Dr. Sibley,^ " rather impatient." It is sup- 
 posed that his acceptance was made known at the time, 
 but the young candidate was in no haste for formal in- 
 duction into the sacred office, and so worked on through 
 the year and into the following spring before the cere- 
 mony was performed. 
 
 The death of Charles II, February 6, 1685, occurred six 
 days before the diary of Mather begins for the same year, 
 on the twelfth, which was his birthday. Very soon we 
 find him referring to the changes in England, and it is 
 plain, from the record, that he understood the character 
 of Charles as a bad man, and also felt a distrust of the 
 new king. But the first entry in his diary refers to his 
 own spiritual state : " Hitherto my God hath helped me." 
 
 ivol. iii, H.G.,p. 8. 
 
COTTON MATHER. 49 
 
 February 12: "Humble me, O Lord, that I have done 
 so little for thee, all this while. Oh ! how much of my 
 short life is gone, most unaccountably. Lord, help me 
 now unto the redeeming of time, and the spending as 
 much as I can of it, in a perpetual exercise of grace." 
 
 At this time he set apart half an hour between twelve 
 and one o'clock every day of the week, except the fifth 
 and seventh, for prayer ; and " spent the whole afternoon 
 of his Saturdays in peculiar transactions between the Most 
 high God and his own soul." The time was filled with 
 praises, prayers, converse with God, renewal of covenant, 
 and "petitions in regard to his ministerial capacitie," 
 besides the " reading of books and singing of psalms." 
 
 Mather was as careful to keep rubbish and trivialities 
 out of his mind as to fill it with useful knowledge and 
 beautiful thoughts. His soul was " vexed to hear, in the 
 most venerable company, the whole hour together, little 
 but idle chat, whereby holes were picked in the coats of 
 others." He resolved to be silent or turn the discourse 
 into other channels. " Lord, make my tongue a tree of 
 life ! " 
 
 The fact is mentioned that " divers ministers had it in 
 heart " in the early spring of this year to address the gen- 
 eral court with proposals for a "reformation, and for the 
 deliverance of the land." The last clause had reference 
 to expected and dreaded measures of the new popish king. 
 He writes : " Little can be done by so little a person as 
 I am ; but three things may I do. i. Confer with my 
 father. 2. Excite Christians who are meeting privately 
 for the object. 3. Spend a great part of Lecture day in 
 secret prayers." Praying for a moral and spiritual refor- 
 mation among the people, and for divine guidance in 
 regard to public affairs, prepared the people to maintain 
 their rights. 
 
50 LIFE AND TIMES OF 
 
 The time of ordination drew near and he made special 
 preparation for that important event, feeling as he did the 
 solemnity of that service. 
 
 On the twenty-third of March, while praying and fast- 
 ing, he resolved, " i. To be exemplary in his charities ; 
 2. considerate in his speeches ; 3. to build up the church 
 with an umblemished reputation." He was willing to 
 bear any reproach for himself; but not that he might 
 cause the name of God to be reproached. " Oh ! let that 
 cup pass from me." 
 
 He was somewhat perplexed by two things, for the 
 moment, before the time set for the ordination. One was 
 a thinner congregation on a certain Sunday ; but he soon 
 learned that such a thing might occur to any minister. 
 The other was ''some apprehension about the ability of 
 the society to raise money enough to support both pastor 
 and teacher." To prevent division he was willing that 
 God should " take him out of the world, if necessary to 
 harmony." He continues however: "The design of Satan 
 to embarrass the designs of my settlement were soon 
 disappointed by a most uniting work of God upon the 
 hearts of the people." 
 
 On another day, having his ministry in view, he made 
 a solemn covenant with God "to be wholly devoted to 
 the service of the Lord Jesus Christ." This was written, 
 and signed in large hand, COTTON MATHER. 
 
 As the time drew on he was, like other ingenuous 
 youth, " often overwhelmed with melancholy apprehen- 
 sions " of his unfitness for the work of the ministry. 
 
 The ceremony of ordination took place on the fifteenth 
 of May. The account must be given in his own words : — 
 
 This day is appointed, (because Thou, O Lord art stronger than I, 
 and hast prevailed,) for my Ordination to the office of a Pastor over 
 the North Church in Boston. 
 
CO TTON MA THER. 5 I 
 
 In the morning, while I was alone, meditating on the work which the 
 call of the Lord Jesus Christ hath now put me upon, and of the sup- 
 port and rewards which he has therein assured unto me, I was, diverse 
 times, melted into tears. And the Spirit of my glorious Master gave 
 me such rapturous touches and prospects^ as that I was forced most 
 unwillingly to shake them off. They would have been too hard for 
 me, and I would not have others take notice of any effect thereby left 
 upon me. 
 
 With a soul inexpressibly irradiated from on high, I went into one 
 of the vastest congregations that has ever been seen in these parts of 
 the world, where I prayed about an hour and a quarter, and preached 
 (on John 21 : 17) about an hour and three quarters, with such assist- 
 ance from heaven, that exceeded all that my poor faith could have 
 imagined. 
 
 This sermon was the keynote to the whole ministry of 
 Mr. Mather. The discourse would naturally explain the 
 duty and privilege of loving Christ with supreme devo- 
 tion ; and the other duty and blessedness of being an 
 undershepherd to his disciples — his flock. 
 
 In the afternoon, my father having prayed, and preached (on Acts 
 13:2) the ordination was performed with more than ordinary solem- 
 nity, producing a greater number of moved hearts and weeping eyes, 
 than perhaps have, at any time, been seen together. My fether, with 
 Mr. Allen [pastor of the First Church], and Mr. Willard [of the 
 South Church], the other two ministers of the town, imposed hands 
 on me. My father gave me my Charge, (which I have transcribed at 
 the beginning of my Bible,) and good old Mr. Eliot gave me the Right 
 Hand of Fellowship. 
 
 This was John Eliot, pastor of the church in Roxbury 
 and the " apostle to the Indians," now eighty-one years of 
 age. In modern usage the right hand is often given by 
 one of the younger ministers in the council; but here we 
 have the venerable saint of fourscore and one years wel- 
 coming the stripling of twenty-two. It was common in 
 early times for the preacher to address the people and 
 charge the candidate, and this usage continued as late as 
 the time of the younger Edwards and perhaps later. It 
 
52 LIFE AND TIMES. 
 
 might be well to revert to the ancient practice, as the ser- 
 mon would naturally, if adapted to the occasion, furnish an 
 application to the people and also to their new minister. 
 On this occasion the preacher put the Charge into a dis- 
 tinct service. It is inserted here as a model on account of 
 its fullness, its scriptural spirit, and the brevity and terse- 
 ness of its language : — 
 
 Whereas, you, upon whom we impose our hands, are called to the 
 work of the ministry, and to the office of a Pastor in this church of 
 Christ, we charge you before God, and the Lord Jesus Christ, and in 
 the presence of elect angels, That you take heed to the ministry which 
 you have received in the Lord, to fulfill it ; and that you feed the whole 
 flock of God over which the Holy Ghost hath made you overseer. 
 That you study to show yourself approved of God, as a workman that 
 need not be ashamed. That you give yourself to reading, and to medi- 
 tation ; to exhortation and to doctrine ; and that you endeavor to show 
 yourself an example of the believers in Faith, in Spirit, in Purity, in 
 Charity, and in Conversation. 
 
 And if you heed this Charge, we pronounce unto you, that the Lord 
 Jesus Christ will give you a place among his holy angels that stand by 
 as witnesses of this day's solemnity, and of your being thus solemnly 
 set apart to the special service of God, and of Jesus Christ. And if 
 you do thus, when the Lord Jesus shall appear, you shall appear with 
 him in glory. He who is the Chief Shepherd, will then give unto you 
 a Crown of Glory, which shall never fade away. 
 
CHAPTER IV. 
 
 FROM ORDINATION TO THE DEATH OF HIS FIRSTBORN : 
 1685-1688. 
 
 COTTON MATHER was ordained as the pastor of 
 the North Church, and as colleague with his father, 
 when he was twenty-two years, three months, and one day 
 old. The narrative may be arrested here for a little while 
 to take a look at his position and surroundings. 
 
 In regard to the first, he had little to desire. He was 
 associated with his father, with whom he acted in perfect 
 harmony. His congregation was large, intelligent, and 
 able to give a comfortable support to both its ministers. 
 For his duties he was as fully equipped as a man could be 
 at his early age. He was a general favorite with scholars, 
 gentlemen, and the mass of the people. Physical energy, 
 tireless activity, capacity to do, as well as facility to plan, 
 warranted the hope of a fruitful and happy pastorate. 
 No man of his years stood so high or looked out on such 
 bright prospects as smiled upon him. 
 
 There were three churches in the town. The meeting- 
 house of the First Church was on the west side of Wash- 
 ington Street, a little above the head of King, now State, 
 Street. That of the second, or North Church, was on 
 the north side of North Square. The population of the 
 northern section of Boston has almost entirely changed 
 within the memory of living men. In 1685 it was occu- 
 pied by a people, almost without exception, of English 
 blood. They were engaged in all branches of business, 
 including seafaring. Among them were merchants, grad- 
 uates of the college, and several members of noted fami- 
 
 53 
 
54 
 
 LIFE AND TIMES OF 
 
 lies. They lived in comfortable houses, with yards in 
 front and gardens behind them. The third church was 
 the South, and its sanctuary was on the spot now occupied 
 by the old Old South. The senior ministers were Rev. 
 James Allen, Rev. Increase Mather, and Rev. Samuel 
 Willard. The colleague of Mr. Allen was Rev. Joshua 
 Moodey. In the whole colony, including Plymouth, there 
 were sixty-seven churches, most of which enjoyed the 
 regular preaching of the Word. Most of the pastors 
 were educated men, and their reputation for godliness 
 and fidelity in their duties was high. 
 
 The college at Cambridge, which was founded for the pur- 
 pose of training men for the ministry, for the magistracy, 
 and for the teaching of youth, was flourishing. "About 
 one half of the graduates under President Chauncy, who 
 died in 1672, became ministers of the gospel, and sev- 
 eral others held posts of distinction in civil life." Two 
 able and learned men filled the office of president during 
 the next eight or nine years. Rev. Leonard Hoar and Rev. 
 Urian Oakes. Mr. John Rogers, of Ipswich, educated 
 for the ministry, but never ordained, was elected in 168 1. 
 He had studied medicine, and was a man of general 
 knowledge and amiable temper, and well fitted to win the 
 good will of students, but he held the post only two years. 
 The Rev. Increase Mather was then invited to become 
 the head of the institution, and he presided at commence- 
 ment a year or two before becoming president. There 
 was no man in the colony so qualified for the position, but 
 he could not be induced to move to Cambridge and give 
 his whole time to the duties of the office. He presided 
 at commencement, had a general supervision of the col- 
 lege, gave instruction once a week, part of the year, and 
 sometimes preached to the students; but the teaching and 
 management were to a great extent in the hands of com- 
 
^ncrease D^afHer. 
 
COTTON MATHER. 55 
 
 petent tutors. Mr. Mather held connection with the col- 
 lege till 1 701, though absent in England, as agent of the 
 Colony and Province, about four years (1688- 1692). But 
 while abroad he had the interest of the institution on his 
 heart, and secured many present and prospective benefits 
 for it. Cotton Mather felt a deep interest in the college 
 from the time of admission, when twelve years old, to the 
 end of his life. 
 
 Boston was a populous and busy town. For a long 
 time it took the lead of all others in the colonies in com- 
 merce and in political influence. In 1674 the number of 
 families was 1,500. As families then were, there might 
 have been between 8,000 and 9,000 souls. In 1679 there 
 were about 800 freemen and in 1680 there were about 
 Z6^ taxable polls. Small as this seems at this time, no 
 other town in New England could rival Boston in those 
 years, and by its connections its influence was paramount. 
 It was the center of business, of political power, and of 
 religious propagandism to all the eastern colonies. 
 
 In 1674 the estimated population of all New England 
 was 120,000. Three fourths of the whole, or 90,000, were 
 supposed to be in the three " provinces of Boston, Maine, 
 and New Hampshire," the whole three being ruled from 
 Boston. The far larger part of this number belonged to 
 the Bay and Plymouth colonies. Simon Bradstreet was 
 governor of Massachusetts from 1679 to 1685. The char- 
 ter was then vacated, and Joseph Dudley was president 
 of New England about one year, when Sir Edmund 
 Andros succeeded and went through the farce of ruling 
 an abused and unwilling people till the early part of 1689, 
 when the people cast him out. 
 
 Governor Bradstreet, with the old council, carried on 
 a sort of provincial government till the charter of the 
 province was granted in 1692, and Sir William Phips 
 became governor by appointment of William and Mary. 
 
56 LIFE AND TIMES OF 
 
 When Cotton Mather was ordained, James II was king. 
 He began to reign on the sixth of February, 1685. The 
 proclamation of his accession was made in Boston on 
 the twentieth of April, " with the usual ceremonies, but 
 with little enthusiasm." Neither the character nor the 
 schemes of that narrow-minded and bigoted prince were 
 yet fully revealed, but enough was known to awaken 
 grievous apprehensions. Mather did not attend the 
 " solemnities of the proclamation," but spent the day in 
 his closet, forecasting the calamities that might follow. 
 The Protestant religion and the highest interests of the 
 colony might be in deadly peril. Two persons visited 
 him in the morning, and he invited them to keep the 
 day with him. They considered the state of things, and 
 prayed much. Between the prayers he preached to them. 
 In fact, he preached three sermons, " about an hour long 
 apiece." One discourse, or long talk, was on a " text that 
 came first to sight on opening the Bible," namely (Psalm 
 109 : 19, 20) : " Let it be unto him as the garment which 
 covereth him, and for a girdle wherewith he is girded 
 continually. Let this be the reward of mine adversaries 
 from the Lord, and of them that speak evil against my 
 soul." The train of thought is not given, but doubtless 
 the rapid and discursive intellect of Mather could fill the 
 day with matter that would readily occur to his mind. 
 The text, with its context, was very suggestive. The 
 friends agreed to set apart another day, not far distant, 
 to consider the question, " What special service shall 
 we do for the Lord Jesus Christ in case he delivers his 
 people here and in England from the distresses now 
 upon them } " 
 
 We have thus glanced at the position and the surround- 
 ings, near and remote, of our young minister, and have 
 seen how anxiously he made preparation for the duties of 
 
COTTON MATHER, 57 
 
 -the ministry before his ordination. Three days later he 
 felt the same, if not a deeper, sense of responsibility. 
 He wrote : " I am now in a station wherein I am to do 
 more for my Lord Jesus Christ than ever." Hitherto he 
 had not recorded all his designs to glorify his Master, and 
 supposed that as his work increased he would have less 
 time to write in his diary. " Yet," he continues, " some 
 of my contrivances, now and then, I would write, that so 
 I may suggest unto some other persons, a few methods of 
 honoring the Redeemer, even if I should see cause before 
 I die, to throw all these lines into the fire." In other 
 places he states later that his diary was intended, in part, 
 for his children, especially his sons, if any of them should 
 follow his calling. As a matter of fact, his son Samuel 
 derived great benefit from these private papers, and by 
 putting parts of them into the " Life " of his father 
 extended the benefit to multitudes of others in after 
 years. 
 
 At this time he formed three designs to improve his 
 ministry : — 
 
 I . That on the close of every Saturday, the Sabbath [which began 
 at sunset] find me engaged in some fixed meditation on the Lord Jesus 
 Christ. Oh ! that I may know him, love him, serve him, now more 
 than ever. My affectionate thoughts in this way, upon him will very 
 much befriend me in my doing so. And besides, my preparations for 
 the day will thereby be very much assisted. 2. I would, on some 
 days, lay myself under a penalty, that through the whole day, I will not 
 speak one word of which I will not be able to say, that I directly trans- 
 gressed not any plain commandment of the Lord Jesus Christ, by 
 speaking it ; and that, unto the best of my apprehension, I had cause 
 for speaking of it. 3. I would frequently use to study a great part of 
 my sermons kneeling; that is, thus: I will have my table-book of 
 state lying before me, when I am going to compose a sermon, and 
 kneeling at my chair, I would earnestly call upon the Eternal Spirit 
 that he would assist me in what I am about. If I do it in settled 
 prayer [that is, not ejaculatory], I would, after the prayer is over, still 
 
58 LIFE AND TIMES OF 
 
 remain in my posture, for some time, noting down what hints occur to 
 me, fit for my improvement [use] . If I do it with ejaculations, I would 
 intermingle my writing with my prayer, so far and so long as may be 
 convenient. 
 
 The secret of Mather's povv^er in the pulpit is revealed in 
 this extract. We see the cause why he became the great- 
 est pulpit power in his day, and unsurpassed since, unless, 
 perhaps, by a very few in later generations. During the 
 week he made the most faithful preparation by reading, 
 meditation, prayer, and writing. Study of the Bible in 
 the original languages kept his mind fresh and unhack- 
 neyed. Praying as he wrote, he went into the house of 
 God surcharged with God's truth and spirit. Nothing 
 was left till Saturday night or Sunday morning to tax his 
 strength by way of mental toil and worry over a sermon. 
 Saturday evening and Sunday morning were sacred to 
 devotions. He went to the sanctuary as to the " gate of 
 heaven." Full of matter and fervent in prayer, he was 
 like a charged battery, and he represented Christ as he 
 stood before his auditory. They were instructed, they 
 were aroused, their consciences were quickened, their 
 affections were kindled, their reason was satisfied by the 
 words spoken, and all was sent home by the intense spirit- 
 ual energy with which he spoke and prayed. 
 
 Mr. Mather felt the need of guarding against tempta- 
 tion. He reflected that when "our Lord Jesus Christ 
 was entering upon his public ministry, very sore tempta- 
 tions assaulted him," and he said to himself, " It may 
 be, now I am safely ordained, I shall not want my temp- 
 tations." To prevent his ''dishonoring of God under 
 them," he resolved to read immediately a "profitable 
 book or two concerning temptations," and also to forecast 
 what might be the temptation by which he was now most 
 of all endangered. " Forewarned is forearmed." 
 
COTTON MATHER, 
 
 59 
 
 One day near the end of May, it being a day set apart 
 for secret thanksgiving, he went into the meetinghouse, 
 probably because it gave him more privacy than his home, 
 full of brothers, sisters, and servants. While there he 
 thought of mercies received, and also took singular pains 
 to celebrate and magnify the Lord for his attributes 
 and perfections, and his wondrous works in creation and 
 providence. He also blessed God for afflictions, and 
 then contrived how to ** glorify God more particularly 
 by strengthening the hands of the tithing men to 
 promote reformation, and by reviving the young men's 
 meetings on Sabbath evenings, and by studying to speak 
 with more exactness, watchfulness, and truthfulness." 
 
 From this and previous citations, it appears that 
 "young men's meetings on Sabbath evenings" had been 
 held before his ordination, and it is often a pleasant sur- 
 prise to find in these old records proof that the ancient 
 ministers anticipated nearly all the methods devised for 
 doing good that are most approved at the present day. 
 We are not to understand by his use of the word "truth- 
 fulness " that he was used to falsifying his word, but that 
 he had the same meaning as President Edwards had in 
 the next generation, when he resolved never to embellish 
 a story for the sake of effect, but to be exactly truthful in 
 relating facts or dialogues. Such a resolution is called for 
 now by multitudes of speakers and writers of good repu- 
 tation. Scarcely a paper is opened, however valuable, 
 that does not contain one or more examples of this kind 
 of inaccuracy. Either the relation is incorrect, or the 
 story is told of the wrong person, or the witty remark is 
 ascribed to one who never made it. What is true in sub- 
 stance is made untrue by exaggeration. It will be found 
 by candid readers that Cotton Mather acted up to his 
 resolution beyond most authors, notwithstanding the hasty 
 
 » 
 
60 LIFE AND TIMES OF 
 
 accusations of some critics. In printing as many names 
 and dates as are found in his works, omniscience would 
 be necessary to keep out all mistakes. 
 
 On the seventh of June, he met with a sudden and 
 great affliction, which is thus reported in his own words : 
 " My dear friend, Mr. Shepherd, of Charlestown, being 
 taken suddenly ill, I preached for him in the forenoon. 
 At noon he said unto me, * My hopes are built on the free 
 mercy of God and the merit of Christ, and I do believe, 
 if I am taken out of the world, I shall only change my 
 place ; I shall neither change my company nor my com- 
 munion. And as for you. Sir, I beg the Lord Jesus to be 
 with you to the end of the world.' At night, unto the 
 consternation of me and all his friends, he died." This 
 Mr. Shepherd was one of an eminent family of ministers, 
 who were remarkable for ability, scholarship, and holy 
 zeal in their sacred calling. 
 
 On the first Sunday in June he baptized the first child 
 that he ever " washed in the name t)f the glorious Trin- 
 ity," and the preceding Sabbath was the first time of his 
 "administering the Lord's Supper, which he did, after 
 preaching on John 3 : i6, with comfortable assistance 
 from heaven." It is a text full of love and theology. 
 "■ For God so loved the world, that he gave his only be- 
 gotten Son, that whosoever believeth in him should not 
 perish, but have everlasting life." Four days later he 
 preached his "first country lecture," — the regular Thurs- 
 day lecture, — wherein the Lord gave him " extraordinary 
 assistance." He was now fairly engaged in the work of 
 the ministry, in all its various requirements, and from this 
 time his course was like the shining light, shining with 
 increasing brilliancy and power till its happy close, over 
 forty years later. 
 
 About this time he kept a private thanksgiving, when 
 
COTTON MATHER. 6 1 
 
 he "sang, read, and thought on his knees." He wrote: 
 "I blessed the Lord, i. for his gracious work in my 
 hands ; 2. for my improvement in the work of the gos- 
 pel ; 3. for my acceptance among the people ; 4. for the 
 success of my labors, being very manifold and visible ; 
 5. for my free utterance ; 6. for my large library." He 
 records that the Lord " invigorated his design " to visit 
 the families of his flock. 
 
 In July he began a practice that he considered the most 
 holy and useful that the good Spirit of the Lord had ever 
 inspired him with. It was a course of reading the Scrip- 
 tures with such devout attention as to fetch at least one 
 observation and one supplication; "a note and a wish, 
 out of every verse in all the Bible." He adds, in relation 
 to this plan, " I have a prospect of, who can tell how 
 much truth and grace to pass through my soul, in this 
 waiting upon God." He also took the same way of sing- 
 ing, so that the "■ singing of Psalms," became to him a 
 "most delicious, entertaining, profitable exercise, that 
 'tis, perhaps, to many of them that practice it." Such 
 an habitual practice would fit a man for every ministerial 
 exigency. 
 
 In this month he made a visit to Plymouth, where his 
 uncle, John Cotton, Jr., was for some time minister, as 
 well as a devoted laborer for the welfare of the Indians, 
 whose language he understood better than any man in 
 America, not excepting Mr. Eliot. 
 
 In August young Mather's " musings " about Isaac and 
 Rebekah began to take more definite form. He was now 
 settled in the ministry, and according to immemorial 
 usage a Congregational pastor is expected to become a 
 married man. August 25, he writes : "I spent the day in 
 secret humiliation and supplications, especially to seek for 
 the guidance and blessing of God in what concerns the 
 
62 LIFE AND TIMES OF 
 
 change of my condition in the world from single to mar- 
 ried, whereto I have now many incitations." He was 
 evidently considered a desirable match. 
 
 His method of working upon individuals in his pas- 
 toral labor is illustrated by the following entry : " Much 
 interested in the religious welfare of a young gentleman, 
 Mr. Samuel Royse. Prevailed with him to spend the day 
 with me in my study." The day was principally "laid out 
 for the gaining of one precious and immortal soul unto 
 the Lord Jesus Christ," and he trusted that he had pros- 
 pered in the effort. This man afterwards joined the North 
 Church, and lived and died a serious Christian. 
 
 James H had now begun to reveal his despotic designs, 
 and his purpose to bring Roman Catholics into places of 
 honor and power, contrary to law. Fearful apprehensions 
 took possession of Protestants in England, Episcopalians 
 and Dissenters alike, and the interest in this great change 
 appealed directly to the churches of New England. We 
 are not surprised to learn that Mather was much dis- 
 tressed in September on account of the calamities and 
 confusions of the English nation under James. The ill- 
 starred rising of Monmouth had been crushed at Sedge- 
 moor. Jeffreys had ridden his bloody circuit and Kirke, 
 the butcher, had loaded the gallows with victims. The 
 cruel temper of the king was disclosed. No wonder that 
 men like Mather betook themselves to " sighs and prayers 
 for the distressed churches of God," and for the imperiled 
 liberties of Englishmen. The king had come to the throne 
 as a bigoted papist, with the old notions of arbitrary 
 power, and with settled revengeful hate of the party 
 which had sought in the late reign to exclude him from 
 the throne or to curtail his power, if allowed to reign. 
 He went beyond the fears of those who distrusted him, 
 and hastened to a bitter and disastrous end. 
 
COTTON MATHER. 63 
 
 Among Mather's " designs to do good," were these : 
 When "praying with a sick person," he would try to do 
 good in his prayer to those in the room. In his rising 
 thoughts on Lord's day morning, he would consider what 
 special service he could do for the flock. While hearing 
 a sermon he would send up ejaculations that the truth 
 might do good to himself. When any in his flock suffered 
 from afflictions or temptations, he would seek opportu- 
 nities to assist them. Being deeply interested in the 
 students of Harvard College, he would study to suggest 
 profitable things to his father, the rector or president, 
 especially as to settling them in good principles. 
 
 His lifelong interest in the education of the young 
 was expressed in a resolution made at this time, that 
 he would never be at rest while our island here (the north 
 part of Boston) is without a good school master and a 
 flourishing school. He also in this month (September) 
 promoted and assisted in the publication of a book by 
 his father about "Faith, Repentance, and the Day of 
 Judgment." 
 
 On the seventh of November, which was devoted to 
 religious uses, he prayed that he might be hindered from 
 doing anything displeasing to God. He averred that if 
 God would have him " embrace a celibacy, he would ever- 
 more take contentment in it," but subjoined, "since his 
 inclinations and invitations did now seem to recommend 
 a married state, he begged that God would lead him in 
 the way wherein he should go." 
 
 He kept a list of all the communicants in his church, 
 and in secret prayers would "sometimes go over the cata- 
 logue by parcels at a time, praying for suitable blessings 
 upon them all." 
 
 The following relates his experience at the Lord's Sup- 
 per, on the tenth of December : — 
 
64 LIFE AND TIMES OF 
 
 I came at last, unto these passages before the Lord. Lord, I am 
 willing to part with all that thou wouldst have me to forego, for an 
 interest in the Lord Jesus Christ. I am willing to forego my righteous- 
 nesses. And I confess unto thee, after all that I have done, or can do 
 for thee, if thou shouldest break me sore in the place of dragons, 
 for ever, I could not say there were any injustice in thy proceedings. 
 I am willing to forego my corruptions too, and I do profess unto thee 
 I wish every sin were made bitter unto my soul. 
 
 Similar passages occur in other writings of Mather, 
 and they may be taken as expressing what has been 
 caricatured as "being willing to be damned for the glory 
 of God." The real meaning of the words above quoted 
 was probably this : that his sins deserved punishment and 
 if God could not safely screen him from suffering, he 
 would acquiesce, and even glorify God in thus upholding 
 his holy law. But that he, or any other New England 
 divine, was willing to be damned, in the sense of being 
 condemned to a sinful future, is too absurd to be believed. 
 
 We often hear that ministers are worked harder now 
 than in former generations, but it is certain that few men 
 in these days have exceeded Cotton Mather in the labors 
 of the pastorate. In the last week of December, this year, 
 he preached Sunday, Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday, and 
 Thursday. In several weeks he preached as many as five 
 times. When two preaching days came together, he some- 
 times preached twice each day. In preaching, he would 
 fetch an ejaculation out of every head and every text^ 
 sending up these silent and obiter prayers for his hearers. 
 
 This closes the year 1685 (New Style), but as Mr. 
 Mather dated his diary from his birthday, six weeks remain, 
 from the records of which a few items will be taken. 
 
 On the twenty-seventh of January he kept a day of 
 thanksgiving in his study. He cultivated the grace of 
 gratitude. But in the forenoon he searched his heart 
 and lamented his vileness and unworthiness. For making 
 
COTTON MATHER. 65 
 
 such records he has been censured as insincere and 
 overstating his sins and his report of them. Those who 
 have not been used to examine themselves in the light 
 of God's holy law and Christ's perfect character cannot 
 of course, understand the workings of his mind on this 
 and similar occasions. The patriarch Job did not abhor 
 himself in dust and ashes until he had had a vision of 
 God. After humbling himself before God, Mr. Mather 
 devoted the time to " contemplating the glories of the 
 great God" until his heart was rapt into heavenly 
 frames. In the afternoon he dwelt upon the specific 
 blessings he had enjoyed, with grateful love. He then 
 considered what he should do for God. i. He gave him- 
 self — all, soul and body — to the Lord. 2. He would 
 contrive how to honor God. 
 
 He next called to mind answers to prayers. He had 
 prayed that the suspected designs of the king might be 
 defeated. The diary reads : " The glorious assurances I 
 have enjoyed and uttered, very many times for now some 
 years together, about the Lord's appearing to deliver his 
 people from impending desolations, are now answered. 
 That monster, Kirke, who was coming to New England 
 with a regiment of red coats to sacrifice the best lives 
 among us, diverted from coming hither by the death of 
 that greater monster. King Charles IL" The design of 
 sending Kirke here is an historical fact. This was before 
 his great infamy in suppressing Monmouth's insurrec- 
 tion, but he had already acquired an infamous fame by 
 his brutal cruelties in Tangier. It is refreshing to read 
 Mather's just characterization of Charles II, whom many 
 have glorified as the "merry monarch." 
 
 On the twenty-third of February he had a special 
 season of devotion, and in conclusion he writes : " I 
 begged the Most High that he would bestow on me a 
 
 OF THE "i 
 
 UNIVERSITY I 
 
66 LIFE AND TIMES OF 
 
 companion for my life, by whose prudence, virtue and 
 good nature, I might be assisted in the service of my 
 Master, and whose company I might also at length have 
 in the heaven of heavens forever." He also prayed for 
 direction in his choice, and for divine guidance in every 
 step. 
 
 The deceptive movement of King James to entrap the 
 Dissenters into his support, by the offer of religious 
 liberty, seems to have made some impression upon the 
 mind of young Mather, as it did upon others here, as 
 well as a small section of the Nonconformist party in 
 England. Mr. Danforth, the leading man on the popular 
 side, had no faith in the king ; perhaps Increase Mather 
 had as little, but he made most adroit use of the king's 
 professions in favor of religious liberty when admitted to 
 the royal closet in 1688. For a short time there was 
 "liberty of worship." This had been taken away in the 
 reign of Charles II by the "five-mile act," and the "con- 
 venticle act," by which public worship by Dissenters 
 could only be performed at extreme peril. James sus- 
 pended these laws, in hopes of gaining the favor of the 
 Nonconformists, while carrying out his purpose of setting 
 up his own religion. 
 
 In February the young pastor, though it would cost a 
 very bitter trial, planned to find the ^^ evil humors'' thsit 
 abounded in the town, and to "pray that those devils 
 might be cast out." He spent much time this winter 
 in visiting families, catechizing, praying, and instructing, 
 and in the undertaking " enjoyed a most wonderful pres- 
 ence of God." 
 
 Another method of benefiting others, while improving 
 himself, was started early in 1686. He singled out a 
 number of students who were graduates, and capable, 
 and they met in his study every forenoon. Here in the 
 
COTTON MATHER. 6/ 
 
 "seven commonplace heads in discourse," in reference 
 to any "notable controversy that had been managed in 
 the church of God, we had a solemn disputation on the 
 controverted question." Mr. Mather was the moderator 
 of the company, and summed up the conclusion. He 
 adds : " Thus we resolved upon going through a body of 
 divinity, and it is incredible how much we advantaged our- 
 selves by these exercises." 
 
 Some writers have asserted that the volume called 
 "Memorable Providences relating to Witchcraft" was 
 published in 1685. This is a mistake of several years, 
 as the Goodwin children, to whom it relates principally, 
 were not afflicted before 1688. 
 
 The year 1686, upon which we have now entered, was 
 memorable in the history of Massachusetts, and of other 
 colonies, including New York. Before its close. Sir 
 Edmund Andros appeared on the stage as governor, or 
 president ; and Edward Randolph continued his baleful 
 activity. But the treatment of this matter belongs 
 properly to the Life of Increase Mather, or the history 
 of the colony, and is alluded to here only because the son 
 was deeply interested in the labors of his father, and in 
 all the affairs which involved the welfare of the colony 
 and the churches. 
 
 The first entry in the diary, February 12, Mather's 
 twenty-third birthday, was characteristic, and it marks 
 an important step in the progress of his life. 
 
 This day, through the good hand of God upon me, I finish the 
 twenty- third year of my age. And this day I gave one of my first 
 visits unto a young gentlewoman, the daughter of most worthy, pious 
 and credible parents, — Abigail, the happy daughter of John and 
 Katharin Phillips, of Charlestown, unto an acquaintance of whom the 
 wonderful providence of God, in answer to prayers, conducted me. I 
 propounded unto myself the methods, the divine and sacred methods, 
 wherein the glorious Lord Jesus Christ engages our immortal souls 
 
68 LIFE AND TIMES OF 
 
 unto himself, and I studied how to make my addresses unto my friend 
 analogous unto those. But alas, wherewithal shall a young man cleanse 
 his way? 
 
 For a whole quarter of a year, he tells us, he "made 
 the affair a subject of prayer, and never any sinful man 
 saw more sensible answers to prayers than poor C. M. 
 did in this matter." Later, he writes of the lady as a 
 "comely, ingenious woman, and an agreeable consort." 
 
 While he was in this "conversation," it befell him to 
 be desired by a poor, condemned malefactor, on the fifth 
 of March, to preach a suitable sermon for him on the day 
 following. In compliance with the request, he preached 
 to a "vast congregation" at Boston, and administered 
 the Lord's Supper on the same day. The sermon was 
 printed and "sold exceedingly." This therefore, contrary 
 to some authorities, was Cotton Mather's first acknowl- 
 edged publication. 
 
 Other writings of his, however, had been given to the 
 press, but without his name. This seems to be the proper 
 place to refer to them. For information in regard to 
 these firstfruits of his mind, and to many other of his 
 works, I am greatly indebted to Dr. Sibley's " Graduates 
 of Harvard University," a most valuable work (vol. iii). 
 It may be stated also that I have examined nearly every 
 volume of Mather's to be found in the libraries of Boston, 
 Worcester, and Harvard College. 
 
 The first " composure" (to use his own word) of Cotton 
 Mather which had the honor of type, so far as known, 
 was " A Poem dedicated to the Memory of the reverend 
 and excellent Mr. Urian Oakes, the late Pastor to Christ's 
 flock, and President of Harvard College," etc., with other 
 matters. The letters N. R. subscribed to the poem are 
 the last letters of the names of Cotton Mather. The only 
 known copy was in the library of the late Mr. Brinley, 
 
COTTON MATHER. 69 
 
 of Hartford. Though printed without the author's name, 
 there is no doubt of the authorship. The Rev. Nathaniel 
 Mather wrote from Dublin, in 1683, to his brother In- 
 crease : " The last I had from you were two of your 
 son's poems on Mr. Oaks." The date of this publication 
 was 1682. 
 
 The second publication was an almanac, in 1683. A 
 part of the long title was : " The Boston Ephemeris. An 
 Almanack for the Dionysian Year of the Christian ^ra, 
 M.DC.LXXXIIL," etc., in a long title, with a motto in 
 English and Latin: "Redeeming the Time." "Damna 
 flep rerum, sed plus fleo Damna Dierum ; Quisq : potest 
 rebus succurrere; nemo Diebus." No name is attached, 
 but Judge Sewall wrote on his copy, " By Mr. Cotton 
 Mather." 
 
 The third writing, which was printed in 1685, was "An 
 elegy on the much-to-be-deplored Death of that never-to- 
 be-forgotten Person, The Rev. Mr. Nathanael Collins," of 
 Middletown, Conn. He died on the twenty-eighth of 
 December, 1684. This was anonymous, but has always 
 been ascribed to Cotton Mather. Mr. Brinley writes: 
 " Not in any public library ; have never heard of another 
 copy." 
 
 But we are curious to learn how the young minister 
 prospered in his "addresses," which were so carefully 
 "studied." Passing several dates, it becomes evident 
 that the "course of true love" ran smooth, in this case, 
 because in May we find him praying that he might have 
 a " comfortable habitation." He was evidently preparing 
 a home. He had never yet " spoken to his people about 
 salary," and it would seem from his diary that he never 
 departed from this reticence. During most of his life he 
 was provided for, either by his people, his books, or his 
 personal friends. At one time, when old, he was involved 
 
70 LIFE AND TIMES OF 
 
 in debt by connection with others and suffered severely ; 
 but from a proper self-respect, or, it may be, natural pride, 
 kept his peace until friends, made aware of the state of 
 things, most generously raised several hundred pounds 
 for his aid. This was done in a manner so kind and 
 delicate as to awaken lasting gratitude. In regard to 
 money matters no man was ever more disinterested and 
 at the same time honest and honorable. He gave away 
 with a discriminating and liberal hand. 
 
 The record of his marriage demands notice. This took 
 place on May 4, 1686, when he was twenty -three years and 
 nearly three months old. He writes : " I was married, 
 and the good providence of God caused my wedding to be 
 attended with many circumstances of respect and honor, 
 afore most that ever have been in these parts of the 
 world." 'There was probably a large and distinguished 
 company, and much of the state which was affected by 
 genteel families in those early times, on festive occasions, 
 as well as funerals and inaugurations. 
 
 He continues the record : " In the morning of my 
 wedding-day, the Lord filled my soul, while secretly at 
 prayer, before him, with celestial and unutterable satis- 
 factions, flowing from the sealed assurances of his love 
 unto me. And my heart was particularly melted unto 
 tears, upon my further assurance that in my married state 
 he had resources of rich and great blessings for me." 
 This exercise was in Boston, in the morning; later, he 
 went over to Charlestown, the home of the young bride 
 elect, almost sixteen, in her blushing beauty. We will 
 now see how he spent the time while the lady was getting 
 ready for the ceremony : — 
 
 After going over to Charlestown, and having some leisure time there 
 before the arrival of the neighboring ministers, and other persons of 
 quality expected, I carried my Bible with me into the garden, where 
 
COTTON MATHER. 7 1 
 
 I singled out the story of the wedding in the second chapter of John, 
 and fetched for myself one observation and one supplication, out of 
 every verse in that story. In the doing whereof I received further 
 assurances from the Spirit of my heavenly Lord, that I was blessed and 
 should be blessed, by him forever. 
 
 These ** assurances " are not to be understood as differ- 
 ing from those enjoyed by all rational Christians, in lesser 
 or greater degree, when resting in the hope that they are 
 reconciled to God and have a right to believe in his 
 promises. It does not imply that they expect to be 
 exempt from sickness, bereavements, misfortunes, and 
 wrongs, but that they shall be blessed, nevertheless, 
 not only in spite of, but even through, these evils and 
 sufferings. 
 
 On the next Sabbath he preached in Charlestown, from 
 Psalm 17: 14, and showed that he did not wish to be 
 among those who **have their portion in this life." He 
 informs us that he applied the truth unto himself, " under 
 the fear of being put off with a portion here^ now he had 
 received so good an one m, as well as with his consort." 
 Of course he did not speak these words to the congrega- 
 tion, but he did, "in the whole exercise, freely profess 
 unto his hearers," that, for his own part, all the delights 
 he had ever enjoyed in three and twenty years in the 
 world were not comparable to those which had come to 
 him through a chapter in the Bible. 
 
 Though keenly alive to the lawful enjoyments which 
 a kind and bountiful providence provides, he valued far 
 higher those which came from the use of his spiritual 
 faculties. He thought this a peculiarly fit time to enforce 
 this truth, and from his tact and delicacy he could do it 
 without violating the sense of propriety in the most 
 fastidious. Accordingly, on the next Sunday, preaching 
 in Boston, he took Psalm 119: 14: "I have rejoiced in 
 
72 LIFE AND TIMES OF 
 
 the way of thy testimonies as much as in all riches," for 
 his text. The subject was " Divine Delights." One pas- 
 sage will show the spirit and drift of the discourse : — 
 
 Oh! that the God of heaven would eflfectually persuade every 
 person here, every day, without fail, to read a portion in the Bible. 
 But I wish that you would read it, not customarily, but with suitable 
 observations, and applications, and ejaculations. 
 
 He resided several months after marriage with his 
 "dear consort," in the house of his father-in-law, but 
 later in the season removed to Boston and took the house 
 where his father had lived, and wherein, he says : " My 
 childish age had made many hundred prayers unto the God 
 of heaven." 
 
 In September he had a singular dream, but not more 
 remarkable than many that are occurring to thousands 
 of others. I give it a place as showing the workings of 
 his mind when not under the control of his will. He 
 dreamed of meeting Mr. Shepherd, of Cambridge, de- 
 ceased, with other gentlemen. He felt shy of Mr. 
 Shepherd, realizing that he was dead, and was " contriv- 
 ing to step out of the room," when his friend came nimbly 
 up to him, and took him by the hand saying, " Sir, you 
 need not be so shy of me, for you shall quickly be as 
 I am." Mather was soon taken with a violent fit of 
 ephialtes, or nightmare ; then came on a cold, and he was 
 threatened with a violent fever. If he had died, the 
 dream would have been regarded as a supernatural warn- 
 ing. Probably the fever was already in his system and 
 was the cause of his dream. One good result attended 
 this attack. The Lord " overcame for him the fear of 
 death." 
 
 Two things, exactly as we might expect, followed the 
 settlement in his own house. (The house, by the way, is 
 supposed to have been the one owned and occupied by 
 
COTTON MATHER. 73 
 
 his grandfather Cotton, near the entrance to Pemberton 
 Square from Tremont Street, south side.) The first was 
 the ** keeping of a day of thanksgiving." The other was 
 one of his " devices to do good." He set up a meeting 
 at his own house, to entertain his neighbors on Sunday- 
 evenings. This went on for some time, until his father's 
 departure for England in 1688, when other labors pre- 
 vented him from holding them. 
 
 At this time there was a small company of French 
 reformed people in Boston. They were not in very 
 flourishing circumstances, and their condition enlisted 
 the interest of Mr. Mather. He exerted his influence 
 also in order to secure a better observance of the Lord's 
 day among them. It is probable that they had some of 
 the continental laxity in regard to the keeping of holy 
 time. 
 
 In the latter part of this year he persuaded several 
 gentlemen belonging to the congregation to combine 
 into a private meeting once a fortnight, to seek the fear, 
 and hear the Word of God, in their several families 
 together, as they lived in order. At a general meeting, 
 either at stated or occasional times, the pastor was to be 
 present and carry on the meeting for them. This seems 
 to have been a most effective mode of bringing the whole 
 church into social Christian life and activity. It is un- 
 known at the present day, instead of which we have a 
 general weekly prayer meeting ; but here we see a whole 
 church, divided up into sections according to locality, 
 meeting once in two weeks ; in addition, a general 
 meeting brought all together under the guidance and 
 inspiration of their minister. The exercises at these 
 meetings were prayer, reading the Scriptures, conversa- 
 tion, and reading selections from authors. Later in the 
 season he notes that several religious families had not yet 
 
74 LIFE AND TIMES OF 
 
 joined any of the private meetings in their neighborhood. 
 These he would endeavor to bring into the scheme. 
 
 It is evident that the brethren led in prayer when he 
 was present, for he observed from their prayers that 
 they were led to copy his when they led the devotions. 
 By this he was inspired to be more long, argumentative, 
 and instructive in praying with them. He was, it seems, 
 anxious to have good prayers rather than many prayers, 
 except as all present were expected to make the prayer 
 of the leader their own. 
 
 The record of the year was closed by stating that it was 
 his practice, in morning family prayers, to read a chapter, 
 or part of one, and "compose his prayer out of it " ; and 
 in evening worship, he ** meditated on a text." And thus, 
 he writes, " the good hand of God brought me to the end 
 of my twenty-fourth year." 
 
 There is a hiatus in the diaries, including five years, 
 1687-1691. The life of Mr. Mather has to be filled out by 
 reference to the records of the North or Second Church, 
 by looking up his connection with public affairs, especially 
 the overthrow of Andros, and by consulting the occasional 
 sermons and other writings published by him, — several 
 each year, — and a few letters may find a place as we 
 advance in the work. 
 
 The sermon preached in 1686, and "applied unto a 
 condemned malefactor," was perhaps given to the press 
 in the same year, but as the only copy to be found 
 bears date 1687, it will be placed in the annals of this 
 year. The title is, " The Call of the Gospel, applied 
 unto all in general, and unto a condemned Malefactor in 
 particular; a sermon preached on the seventh day of 
 March, 1686, at the request, and in the hearing of a man 
 under a just sentence of death for the horrid sin of 
 Murder. Second edition." The reader may be pleased 
 
COTTON MATHER, 
 
 75 
 
 to see how a sermon was fixed up for the press with 
 mottoes in English and Latin from the Bible and the 
 classics, besides a text, in those ancient days. We have 
 in this specimen, first, one verse from a psalm, " I will sing 
 of the mercies of the Lord for ever ; with my mouth will 
 I make known thy faithfulness to all generations " (Ps. 
 89 : i). The Latin motto or sentiment is from Origen, 
 as follows : " Nulla species peccati tanta est qua non sit 
 superior Jesus (There is no kind of sin so great but that 
 Jesus is greater)." The author remarks that peculiar cir- 
 cumstances made it necessary to prepare the discourse in 
 haste, but that it was published at the " urgent importu- 
 nity of others." Then comes the text from Isaiah 45 : 22, 
 "Look unto me, and be ye saved, all the ends of the 
 earth." The way being clear, the young preacher opens 
 as follows : — 
 
 These words give unto us the most joyful sound that ever the chil- 
 dren of death had the favor of. Some of us, doubtless, can with a 
 most distinguishing and experimental relish, profess concerning this 
 oracle of God, as some other persons have concerning some other 
 passages, we would not have this sentence left out of our Bibles, for 
 the riches of both the Indies. Yea, who among us all, at the read- 
 ing of these glad tidings, can forbear joining with the rapturous 
 shouts of heaven ; with that angelical and evangelical outcry in 
 Luke 2: 14, "Glory to God in the highest; on earth peace, good 
 will towards men"? Behold, the Saviour of the world is this day 
 speaking unto you, ye congregation of the Lord, arrayed in his white 
 garments. He looks through the windows of his bright, ivory palace, 
 and uttereth an invitation to you which blessed are your ears that hear 
 this day. 
 
 The offer of salvation is unfolded in all its freeness and 
 fullness and applied to the prisoner. As one who had 
 confessed his guilt, and evinced deep penitence therefor, 
 he was encouraged to hope for mercy. The style of the 
 sermon is vivacious. There is not a sleepy line in it, and 
 
76 LIFE AND TIMES OF 
 
 it must have been full of life to the hearers. It was 
 admirably adapted to the occasion, and, what may seem 
 incredible to those who have formed their opinion of 
 Mather's style from the statements of others, there are 
 no Greek or Latin quotations in the discourse, and no 
 quips or oddities to mar its solemn effect. And what is 
 better, the poor malefactor is treated with tenderness, and 
 doubtless felt that the preacher was his friend. 
 
 The activity of Mr. Mather in pastoral duties had its 
 reward in additions to the church. During several years 
 the average admissions appear to have been over twenty- 
 five. This covers the time between 1681, when he began 
 to " assist " his father, and 1688, when the latter sailed for 
 England. 
 
 Another sermon, though preached in 1686, belongs to 
 the literary record of this year, as the date on the title- 
 page is 1687. It was spoken to the Middlesex Artillery 
 Company, then holding nearly the same rank as the 
 Ancient and Honorable Artillery Company of Boston. 
 The service was on the seventh^of September, in a "very 
 great assembly," in Charlestown, and as the whole affair, 
 parade, sermon, and all, was redolent of the times when 
 Indian warfare raged in New England, and dread appre- 
 hensions were felt about the action of the home govern- 
 ment under James, the reader will not object to a brief 
 glance at the sermon. 
 
 The text was Psalm 144 : i : " Blessed be the Lord 
 my strength, which teacheth my hands to war, and my 
 fingers to fight." One of the titles was ** Military Duties 
 laid before a Trained Band." In the introduction he 
 argues against war, except for just cause, and inculcates 
 the spirit of peace. He considers, (i) What God was to 
 David ; and (2) What he had done for him. He goes on : 
 " God is to be acknowledged as the author of whatsoever 
 
COTTON MATHER. 
 
 n 
 
 military skill or strength any children of men do excel in." 
 "It is the privilege of some to excel in these respects, 
 namely, i. Some excel in military skill*' 
 
 There is such a happy unhappy art used among Adam's wrangling 
 posterity in the world, as that of Tactics, or the art of war ; and there 
 we may find those who have the honor of being excellently well-skilled 
 therein . . . persons that understand all the figures and postures^ 
 which a soldier is to use in the handling of his arms ; persons that are 
 well-acquainted with all the motions and orders which a soldier may be 
 called to ; all the \2ci\0ws, facings and numerous doublings and intricate 
 countermarchings and comely wheelings which are customary ; and all 
 the chargings which the many sorts and shapes of battaile do admit, 
 with innumerable stratagems of war ; persons, in a word, who can 
 handsomely apply all the instruments of defense which a soldier may, 
 cap-a-pie, be furnished with ; and all the instruments of offense which 
 a soldier's hand can be put unto, from the handspike unto the granado, 
 and the roaring cannon. 
 
 He then remarks that some men are excellent for their 
 military strengthy and gives examples of those who were 
 endowed with great strength of body^ as Samson, Iron- 
 side, king of England, Scanderbeg, who could "make his 
 sword strike through iron," and " through the neck of a 
 mighty wild bull," and also of Milo and Maximus. 
 
 Others have strength of spirit ^ as David's band, who 
 were all " mighty men of valor." Again : " We may see 
 men whose blood chills not when they are called out to 
 die alone in cold blood ; men that, with a steady counte- 
 nance can take grim death, arrayed with all its pompous 
 horrors, by the cold, clammy hand, and cheerfully say, 
 * Friendy do thy worst!' Such skill and such strength 
 many mortals have." 
 
 In his second division he shows that God is the author 
 of skill and of strength. Therefore it is the duty of men 
 to acknowledge God as the author of these, as of all other 
 mercies. In the way of usesy he shows that military dis- 
 
78 LIFE AND TIMES OF 
 
 cipline is a very "lawful thing" and a "very needful 
 thing." He appreciated the value of a good soldier. 
 " Men expert in military discipline are to be had in high 
 account by us as the great blessings of the great God." 
 
 The last topic is the " holy, individual warfare " of every 
 soul against sin. The "godly man is never free with 
 wars with some soul enemies ; therefore soldiers should 
 put on the whole armor of God." The whole sermon is 
 full of thought, rich in illustration, and instinct with life 
 and force. 
 
 Mr. Mather's firstborn child, named Abigail, from her 
 mother, first saw the light on the twenty-second of August, 
 1687. There is no complete list of the children in print. 
 Mr. S. G. Drake states that there were fifteen sons and 
 daughters, but gives the names of only thirteen. The 
 dates of birth and death are not in all cases accurate. 
 He places Katharine first in the list, without giving the 
 date of her birth. He then gives the birth of Abigail as 
 above. This proves that the latter was the firstborn, as 
 her parents were married in the preceding year. I have 
 found, in reading the diaries and several funeral sermons, 
 the order in which all the fifteen children were born, as 
 well as their names, but the list will be reserved for a later 
 chapter. This child was short-lived, as will be seen from 
 the sermon preached by her father on the occasion of her 
 death. It was entitled, " Right Thoughts in Sad Hours," 
 and presented the comforts and the duties of good men 
 under all their afflictions, and particularly that of the 
 untimely death of children. " Unto the upright there 
 ariseth light in darkness." " Mercatura est pauca amittere, 
 ut majora luserig."^ When preached, he had no second 
 child, but Katharine was born in 1689. Thus these pas- 
 
 1 " It is good exchange to lose a few things that you may enjoy greater." — 
 Tertullian. 
 
COTTON MATHER. 
 
 79 
 
 sages show that this was the firstborn, and as yet the 
 only child in the family. It is dedicated to S. S., prob- 
 ably Judge Sewall, as follows : '* To my worthy friend : 
 ever-honored Sir. The ensuing sermon, delivered . . . 
 under afflictive impressions from the sudden death of an 
 only child, with a bestowal of some correction and en- 
 largement since upon it, I know no fitter person than 
 yourself to present unto. Yourself, I say, who have had 
 several infants carried hence unto the Father of spirits, 
 in the chariot of the same distemper that fecht mine 
 away." 
 
 From Genesis 42 : 36 he proceeds to show that the loss 
 of children is not against us, but/^r us, and/<?r them. He 
 says: "I have often felt the power, and almost the sweet- 
 ness of that persuasion, my God will never hurt me. So 
 far as the loss is a dealing of God, it is intended for our 
 good, and does work for the good of them that love him. 
 And, in regard to the children, they are taken from the 
 evil to come, and received the sooner to glory." The 
 sermon is full of sweet, comforting thoughts. He felt 
 keenly the anguish of a bereaved parent. He says : " Of 
 outward, earthly anguishes, none equal unto these. The 
 dying of a child is like to the tearing of a limb unto us." 
 He proceeds : — 
 
 Was the infant whose decease we do deplore, one that was very 
 pretty, or that had pretty features, pretty speeches, pretty actions? 
 Well, at the resurrection of the just we shall see the dear lambs again. 
 The Lord Jesus will deal with our dead children, as the prophets 
 Elijah and Elisha did by those whom they raised of old ; he will bring 
 them to us, recovered from the pale jaws of death ; and how amiable, 
 how beautiful, how comely they will then be, no tongue is able to ex- 
 press, or heart conceive. Though their beauty do consume in the grave, 
 yet it shall be restored ; it shall be advanced, when they shall put off 
 their bedclothes in the morning of the day of God. . . . The fit epi- 
 taph of such infants is : ' * Of such is the kingdom of heaven." Have we 
 
8o LIFE AND TIMES. 
 
 any doubts about the eternal salvation of the children which we have 
 buried out of our sight? ... As to young children, the fear of God 
 will take [away] all matter of scruple in the owners of them. Parents, 
 can you not sincerely say, that you have given, as yourselves, so your 
 children unto God, in a covenant never to be forgotten? . . . Then 
 be of good cheer, your children are in a better place, a better state, 
 than you yourselves are yet attained unto. . . . Those dear children 
 are gone from your kind arms unto the sweet bosom of Jesus. And 
 this is by far the best of all, to have children, this day in heaven. 
 
 Thus did he learn by early experience to comfort the 
 afflicted. The bereavement this death occasioned was the 
 first one in a long series which came to grieve the heart, 
 while kindling the graces, of the father. Of fifteen chil- 
 dren, nine died in infancy or early childhood. 
 
CHAPTER V. 
 
 FROM THE DEATH OF BROTHER NATHANIEL TO THE PUB- 
 LICATION OF THE LIFE OF ELIOT, 1688-169I. 
 
 IN the spring of this year President Mather went to 
 England on business of the colony and with special 
 reference to the charter. He sailed April 7, and reached 
 the coast of England on the sixth of May. His son 
 Samuel, then fourteen years old, went with him, and 
 continued his education in the old country. As the father 
 was detained in England about four years, the whole care 
 of the church and parish fell upon the son, with perhaps 
 occasional help. The second son, Nathaniel, remained at 
 home, pursuing his studies with unremitting diligence and 
 fervor. The intense application of this marvelous scholar 
 was more than a mortal body could endure, and he died, 
 it would seem, from sheer exhaustion. The day of his 
 decease was October 17. He died in Salem, and was 
 buried there. As a genius, a scholar, and a Christian, he 
 rivaled his older brother at the same age, and inspired 
 the highest hopes of future eminence and usefulness. 
 
 One of the sermons that marked this year was preached 
 on the twenty-eighth of October, eleven days after the 
 decease of this brother, and was occasioned by that event. 
 The general subject was : '*The Walk of holy and happy 
 Men." Text : " Enoch walked with God." 
 
 In the first place, he describes that walk ; then he tells 
 the grand end of a good walk : "God took him." In the 
 third place, he points out the interest and duty of youth : 
 or the " Thoughts of an elder on the Death of a younger 
 brother." There is no special mention of Nathanael in 
 
 81 
 
82 LIFE AND TIMES OF 
 
 the discourse ; no biographical facts, and no expression of 
 personal feelings in view of his loss. It was character- 
 istic of Mather not to obtrude, or even suggest, his own 
 personal feelings or griefs ; but it is evident, all through, 
 that he spoke from a full and chastened heart ; and as 
 remembering a brother who remembered his Creator, and 
 walked with God in the days of his youth. The sub-text 
 was from Ecclesiastes 12 : i. The following paragraph is 
 a specimen of an old-time sermon. Speaking of the many 
 conveniences 3. young man has to excite and assist his 
 remembrance of the Lord, the preacher says : — 
 
 There seems to be a sort of correspondence between youth and 
 grace. Youth seems mightily adapted and agreeable to the exercise of 
 that lovely thing. A quick wit is one prerogative of the young man. 
 Well, how can he lay it out better than by doing like that young man 
 in Psalm 119 : 9, by taking heed to the word of God? The young man 
 has a tenacious memory. What can he do better with it, than fill it 
 with Divine treasures? Warm affections are stirring in the young man. 
 Where should he set them than on the things above ? The spirits of 
 young men are mettlesome. Why should they not be fervent, serving 
 the Lord? The bodies of young men are vigorous. Why should they 
 not be a living sacrifice unto God? There is a brave courage in youth. 
 How can it better show itself than by overcoming the wicked one? 
 Youth is a merry age. Let it then rejoice in the Lord. O, nothing is 
 more comely and natural than that young men should remember God. 
 
 Several editions of this sermon have been published, one 
 or more of them by the Congregational Publishing Society. 
 
 The church seems to have enjoyed the presence of the 
 Spirit in the year 1689, as twenty-six were received to full 
 communion, among whom was Abigail Mather, probably 
 the wife of the pastor. 
 
 Several events which began in 1688 extended into the 
 next year. In fact, the Indian war in the eastern regions 
 broke out in 1687, when, by the instigation of the French, 
 the savages entered on aggressions which did not end in 
 
COTTON MATHER. 83 
 
 ten years, except for short intervals. The occasion and 
 origin of this war cannot be given in this place exactly, 
 even if it could be discovered. The Indians made com- 
 plaints against the English, and the French followed them 
 with accusations. The English, in reply, complained of 
 insults and injuries, and added that if the enemy had 
 suffered any wrong, they ought to have sought satisfaction 
 in a lawful way, before resorting to hostilities. 
 
 Sir Edmund Andros was summoned from New York, 
 and coming to the Bay he raised an army of a thousand 
 men, with whom he marched to the eastward ; but as 
 winter came on, the enemy retired to the woods and 
 so escaped. The expedition served no good purpose. 
 Many more of our soldiers died from exposure than were 
 killed or taken from the enemy. 
 
 It was a season of great hardship. Houses were 
 burned ; cattle were killed or driven off ; women and 
 children were taken captive, and men were slain. To 
 encourage the people in this time of suffering and 
 gloom, Mr. Mather preached a sermon on the first of 
 September, 1689, entitled : "Soldiers counselled and com- 
 forted : a Discourse delivered unto some of the forces 
 engaged in the late war of New England against the 
 northern and eastern Indians." It was addressed "To 
 my much honored friends, the pious and valiant com- 
 manders of the forces engaged against our Indian ene- 
 mies." The sermon was published by request. The 
 author wrote : " The reasons for preaching and printing 
 this little sermon are, a desire to save the souls, and 
 mend the lives, and promote the edification of those for 
 whom my heart's desire and prayer to God is, that they 
 may be happy ; my ambition to encounter and abolish, 
 what I can, the unchristian temper of those who take 
 advantage from the other difficulties and entanglements 
 
84 LIFE AND TIMES OF 
 
 of the country, to refuse doing their part in carrying on 
 the Indian war." He gave the officers and soldiers this 
 assurance : '* It is the war of the Lord which you are 
 engaged in, and it is the help of the Lord that we are 
 at home affectionately imploring for you." He then 
 addressed the officers as follows : — 
 
 Gentlemen : your forces are happy in you ; none of you being that 
 debauched sort of captains, which will drink, and swear, and curse, and 
 profane the Sabbath ; and at the same time, give out that perilous word 
 of command, "Follow your leaders." Alas, whither do they lead 
 them? But I assure myself you are such as have long since listed 
 yourselves under the banner of the Lord Jesus Christ. 
 
 After these addresses, he comes to the text (Psalm 119: 
 109) : " My soul is continually in my hand ; yet do I not 
 forget thy law." From these words he deduces four 
 weighty suggestions : — 
 
 I . The remembrance of God's law is a thing of no small importance 
 to them that have their lives continually in their hands. 2. The 
 direction proper for them that have their lives in their hands, is to 
 remember the law of God. 3. Our having our lives in our hands, 
 ought not to affright us from anything that the law of God makes 
 incumbent on us. 4. Don't part with your lives out of your hands, 
 without such demonstrations of courage as may confound your 
 adversaries. 
 
 The first connection of Cotton Mather with the witch- 
 craft calamity began in 1688, when he received the chil- 
 dren of the Goodwin family into his house, and kept 
 them until they were cured of "whatsoever disease they 
 had." His book styled " Memorable Providences," about 
 which there has been much mistake and misrepresentation, 
 was not given to the press until the following year. But 
 the facts of this sad experience, as they are detailed in 
 that and other publications, will be reserved till we come 
 to the final horror in 1692. Here it is only necessary to 
 mark the time when Mr. Mather was drawn into connec- 
 
COTTON MATHER. 
 
 85 
 
 tion with the witchcraft phenomena by the importunity of 
 the father, Mr. Goodwin, in 1688, and to note the date of 
 the publication, in 1689. 
 
 At this time, Mr. Mather, though still younger than 
 most ministers at their settlement in modern years, had 
 become one of the most able, learned, and devoted pastors 
 in the American colonies. His reputation had extended 
 through New England, and beyond, but up to this time 
 his name had not been prominently connected with pub- 
 lic affairs. There was now, however, a call for such a 
 man, and he readily gave his hearty cooperation to the 
 mature and able men who had been a few years before 
 superseded by Andros, Randolph, and their subordinates. 
 Though earnestly devoted to his work as a parish minis- 
 ter, with the whole care of a very large congregation, he 
 soon became conspicuous for his zeal and ability in the 
 guidance of public affairs at a critical crisis. 
 
 The charter had been demanded in 1683 by Charles 
 II. The colony refused to surrender it. It was vacated 
 in 1685 by the Court of Common Pleas, and that without 
 giving the colony an opportunity to be heard by its 
 agents, who were on their way to England. Soon after, 
 Sir Edmund Andros had been appointed president by 
 the king, and his jurisdiction included the rest of New 
 England (excepting Rhode Island) and New York. In 
 taking away the charter, the design was, without doubt, 
 to bring the colony under the direct government of the 
 king and to subvert its liberties and its property rights. 
 This was the common purpose of Charles and James, but 
 the latter had a further plan, there is reason to believe, 
 which was t^ interfere with the religious rights and privi- 
 leges of the Protestant colonies as well as with those of 
 his Protestant subjects in England and Scotland. 
 
 Andros had no sympathy, political or religious, with the 
 
86 LIFE AND TIMES OF 
 
 Puritan colonies, and so far as their rights were in peril 
 he was a willing servant of the king. This was made 
 evident by his actions and his neglects. He was soon 
 suspected of being hostile to the constitution of the colo- 
 nies and to the general sentiment of the people. It was 
 reported that he and his satellites had given voice to the 
 opinion that the inhabitants must give place to a new 
 immigration. It was dangerous to English despotism to 
 have a free republic grow upon these shores, although a 
 colony under the crown. 
 
 The common people in Boston and throughout the 
 colony of the Bay and of Plymouth, with that political 
 discernment which seems to be an unerring instinct of 
 Anglo-Saxons, appear to have taken an accurate measure 
 of Andros sooner than their leaders. Discontent grew 
 apace, and in the year 1688, before William of Orange had 
 sailed for England, there was a rapid maturing of the 
 public mind in favor of resistance to unjust demands. 
 There was no outbreak, however, until news came from 
 England that the Revolution had been successful. This 
 event had been foreshadowed by advices from the mother 
 country. Doubtless Increase Mather, who was in the 
 midst of the excitement in London during the summer 
 and autumn, had kept his friends informed of the state of 
 things and of the great design of the Prince. From the 
 time the report came of the sailing of William on his 
 perilous undertaking till Mr. Winslow brought authentic 
 intelligence of his triumphal entrance into London, the 
 people waited with intense anxiety. From every pulpit 
 and from thousands of family altars prayers ascended to 
 heaven that the Prince might be prospered in " maintain- 
 ing the liberties of England." 
 
 When word reached Boston, early in April, that Wil- 
 liam and Mary were seated on the throne, the governor 
 
COTTON MATHER. 87 
 
 demanded of the messenger the paper containing the 
 intelUgence, and because it was not yielded threw him 
 into prison. He also issued a proclamation commanding 
 all people to use their endeavors to prevent any person, 
 whom the new king might send, from landing. Vain were 
 his efforts, for the hearts of the people were averted from 
 James ; they hated Andros and his tools and they had 
 strong confidence in the new sovereigns. The people of 
 Boston and the towns adjacent formed clubs and resolved 
 to stand by each other in defense of their rights. It is 
 clear that there was already an organization, like that 
 which appeared nearly a hundred years later, at the open- 
 ing of the Revolution of 1776, which embraced the bulk 
 of the population, because the town was soon in arms, 
 and in an almost incredibly brief time soldiers in large 
 numbers had hurried on from towns in Middlesex and 
 Essex counties. They were massed at Charlestown, and 
 ready to cross the Charles at the word of command. 
 Some of the wary leaders and experienced men of affairs 
 were at first disposed to let things remain as they were 
 until word came from the new government in England, 
 fearing lest violence here might be resented at court. 
 They were ready, however, if the people were resolute for 
 a change, to put themselves at the head of the movement, 
 and, as far as possible, direct it so as to prevent any 
 unseemly and sanguinary outbreak. 
 
 The sentiments of the people were not long in finding 
 expression. They demanded the deposition of Andros 
 and the setting up of a provisional government until word 
 should come from England. A company of soldiers, 
 under Captain Hill, conducted ex-Governor Bradstreet, 
 eighty-five years old, Mr. Danforth, Major Richards, Dr. 
 Cook, and Mr. Addington to the council house. In the 
 meantime the people had seized Randolph, Justice BuUi- 
 
88 LIFE AND TIMES OF 
 
 vant, and several other enemies of the colony, and having 
 superseded the gaoler by another man, whom they could 
 trust, put them all in prison. 
 
 By noon the gentlemen in the council house to the 
 number of fifteen, including, besides those already men- 
 tioned, William Stoughton, two Winthrops (Adam and 
 Waite), and other men of standing, had prepared a sum- 
 mons to President Andros that he should "forthwith sur- 
 render and deliver up the government and fortifications, 
 to be preserved and disposed according to ordered direc- 
 tions from the crown of England, which suddenly is 
 expected, may arrive ; promising all security to yourself, 
 or any of your gentlemen or soldiers, in person and estate. 
 Otherwise we are assured they will endeavor the taking 
 of the fortification by storm, if any opposition be made." 
 
 Andros, having castled himself at the fort, at first 
 refused to surrender and sent to a frigate in the harbor 
 for means of defense ; but a second summons came with 
 such emphasis that he gave himself up as a prisoner and 
 put the fort into the hands of the patriots. 
 
 This being done, the gentlemen in the council chamber 
 ordered a declaration to be read to a vast concourse of 
 people from the gallery. This document was drawn up 
 by Cotton Mather, and is quite remarkable in its 
 way. It is headed : " The Declaration of the Gentlemen, 
 Merchants and Inhabitants of Boston, and the country 
 adjacent, April i8, 1689," and then proceeds under twelve 
 heads, giving the facts and reasons on which the Revolu- 
 tion was founded. 
 
 This has always been considered an able state paper, 
 and the reader will find it so, on perusal, though not in 
 the style of the present day. Though the phraseology 
 was already going out of fashion in England, yet it 
 smacks of the days of John Pym and of the other great 
 
COTTON MATHER. 89 
 
 statesmen of the Long Parliament ; while for its array of 
 facts, its methods, and its cogency, it belongs to all time. 
 Some have doubted that it could have been written on 
 the spur of the moment, and because Mather states that 
 the leading men laid their plans beforehand to guide the 
 populace it has been inferred by some, contrary to gen- 
 eral opinion, that the manifesto was prepared in anticipa- 
 tion of a public necessity. But there is no occasion to 
 question that it was put to paper rapidly when the crisis 
 came. All the facts of our early history were familiar to 
 the author; probably more so than to any other man 
 except his father, who was then in England. Besides, the 
 writer had a wonderful faculty in arranging facts and put- 
 ting arguments. In his mind they all sprang to their 
 place, and his facility in expressing them was unrivaled 
 by that of any man in the colony. It seems to have been 
 his office in all sorts of assemblies, great as well as small, 
 to embody the general sentiment in lucid and forceful 
 sentences. 
 
 The gentlemen who issued this address took measures 
 to have a general assembly meet as soon as possible, by 
 appealing to the towns for the choice of delegates, and 
 took upon themselves the temporary duties of a provi- 
 sional government, under the title of a " Committee of 
 Safety." The assembly met towards the end of May, 
 and must have been composed of earnest and determined 
 men, if we may judge from the results of their delibera- 
 tions as exhibited in the Declaration sent out to the peo- 
 ple, dated May 24. In it they declare in favor of settling 
 the government on their charter rights and privileges, 
 " devolving the full power of government upon, and 
 intrusting it in the hands of those in office when the 
 charter government was vacated." 
 
 But Bradstreet and the old members of the council 
 
90 LIFE AND TIMES OF 
 
 were wary men, and chose to act as a merely temporary 
 provisional government, until they could learn the temper 
 and designs of the new sovereigns. In this way society 
 was held together for several months (though there were 
 some who did not respect the authorities), and in this way 
 they avoided being censured for acting under a vacated 
 charter. In the autumn a letter, dated August 12, came 
 from the king and queen, giving '* allowance and approba- 
 tion " of the proceedings of the extemporized administra- 
 tion and continuing their authority till further orders 
 from the home government. 
 
 The author of the Declaration made by the assembly 
 is not known, but we may reasonably conjecture from 
 expressions in it that it was revised, if not written, by the 
 author of the former paper. In either case the sover- 
 eigns and their ministers in England could not fail to be 
 convinced that the colonists had suffered great insults, 
 indignities, and hardships, and that they knew how to 
 redress their grievances and defend their actions. 
 
 Though it has taken time and space to relate the 
 service rendered to the public by Mr. Mather in the first 
 half of the year 1689, it really occupied but a little of 
 his time and attention, as his duties to his people were 
 done with great assiduity. This was his vocation, to be 
 a parish minister ; his avocations held him but a short 
 time from his life work. In the way of parish duty he 
 preached four sermons which were published by the re- 
 quest and at the expense of his father-in-law, Captain 
 Phillips. The general title of the book, of 128 pages, 
 was " Small Offers towards the Service of the Tabernacle 
 in the Wilderness ; four sermons accommodated to the 
 design of practical godliness." Mr. Phillips had lately 
 "been restored from threatening sickness," and he se- 
 cured the publication of this volume " as an humble essay 
 
COTTON MATHER. 
 
 91 
 
 to serve the interests of religion, in gratitude to God for 
 his recovery." Their practical nature is expressed by 
 their titles and texts : — I. *' Methods wherein Men ought 
 to engage both Themselves and their Houses in the 
 Service of God." Joshua 24: 15. II. "The Right and 
 Best Ways of Redeeming Time in the World." Eccles. 
 8: 5. III. "The Carriage We should have under Trials 
 used by God upon us." Job 23: 10. IV. "Concerning 
 the End which in our Desires of Life we should propound 
 unto ourselves." P sahns iig: 175. 
 
 The year 1690 was marked by the usual activity of 
 Mr. Mather. His congregation was large ; probably the 
 largest in New England or in all the colonies; and its 
 demands on him as pastor were severe and unceasing. 
 Besides, no week passed without giving many hours to 
 prayer and fasting. 
 
 The increase of the church went on steadily, the addi- 
 tions being far above the average in Christian churches. 
 Among those who united by confession this year were 
 two of his sisters, Elizabeth and Sarah. The former, 
 who became Mrs. Greenleaf, and later, Mrs. Byles, was 
 twenty-five years old ; Sarah, afterwards Mrs. Walter, was 
 nineteen ; Mary, or Mariah, the eldest sister, had been a 
 member since 1682. The famous William Phips, already 
 knighted, came into the church this year. The personal 
 attachment between him and his pastor was very strong, 
 and continued through life. After the death of Phips, 
 Mather wrote his life — one of the finest pieces of biog- 
 raphy in the language. It is pertinent to notice the fact 
 in this place that Mary Goodwin, the girl who had been 
 taken to Mr. Mather's house two years before while 
 suffering under supposed witchcraft machinations, and 
 there cured, became a member of the church at this time. 
 And we may anticipate by stating that this trophy, who 
 
92 LIFE AND TIMES OF 
 
 lived many years to be a reputable Christian, always main- 
 tained that there was no trickery or deception in her 
 strange conduct while at his house. 
 
 The sermons delivered before the general court have 
 been, in all generations down to the time of their discon- 
 tinuance in 1884, by ministers of prominence in their 
 profession. A few only have been heard on more than 
 one occasion ; but Mr. Mather was invited to this duty 
 several times. Besides, the Thursday Lecture was some- 
 times attended by the general court, when in session ; 
 and at times special fasts were appointed by the council, 
 when the members attended. On occasions of this kind 
 the young pastor of the North Church was heard many 
 times, and his sermons were always adapted to the occa- 
 sion. Two sermons that were given to the press this 
 year (1690), though preached the year before, are in point. 
 One was entitled " The Way to Prosperity," and the 
 subject was treated in a masterly manner. He referred 
 to causes which hindered prosperity, and then pointed out 
 the principles and methods by which prosperity may be 
 attained. As was his wont, he was intensely practical in 
 exposing evils and applying the remedies. The sermon 
 was printed by general desire. 
 
 The other discourse was preached to the general court 
 on public Thanksgiving, December 19. " The Wonder- 
 ful Works of God commemorated, in Creation and Re- 
 demption," was his theme. He also referred to " re- 
 markable resolutions of providence, especially in connec- 
 tion with the success of King William." His divisions 
 were: — i. Happy things in creation ; 2. Happy things in 
 redemption; 3. Happy things in providence. In con- 
 clusion, he urged the repeal of wicked laws. All true 
 sons of the soil desired to have every trace of Andros, 
 Randolph, and company, erased from the statute book. 
 
COTTON MATHER. 93 
 
 The sermon, with other matters, made a volume of sixty- 
 four pages, which throw light on the state of affairs at 
 that time. 
 
 All classes of men sought the interest and services of 
 our young minister, and those in all stages of life. In 
 this year (1690) he preached and published addresses to 
 "Old Men, and young men, and little children." They 
 were affectionate, earnest, and singularly well adapted to 
 each class. See the significance and beauty of the titles : 
 I. "The old man's Honor; or, the Hoary Head found 
 in the Way of Righteousness ; recommending unto old 
 men a saving acquaintance with the Lord Jesus Christ." 
 n. " The Young Man's Glory ; or, a Wreath of graces 
 for the Head of youths ; recommending unto young men 
 a blessed victory over the devil." HI. "The Little 
 Child's lesson ; or, a Child Wise unto Salvation ; a dis- 
 course instructing and inviting little children to the exer- 
 cises of early piety." A brief catechism was added, 
 adapted to the capacity of children. At the end, the 
 ten commandments were condensed into verse, as follows : 
 
 Worship thou shalt no God but me. 
 
 No graven image make to thee, 
 
 The Lord's name take thou not in vain. 
 
 The Sabbath do thou not profane. 
 
 Lend to thy parents honor due, 
 
 And see that thou no murder do. 
 
 Commit thou no adulterie; 
 
 Moreover from all stealing flee. 
 
 No false thing of thy neighbor say 
 
 And covet not in any way. 
 
 A late celebrated Connecticut divine had a way, when 
 he could not find a hymn that was needed, of writing one 
 for the occasion ; and I suppose the reason why Cotton 
 Mather printed so many sermons and small books was 
 that the supply of such " composures " was so limited in 
 
94 I-IPE AND TIMES OF 
 
 those days. There were many books in the seventeenth 
 century, but few comparatively that were adapted to the 
 wants of the common people and of portable size for the 
 pocket. He became a sort of "Book and Publishing 
 Society," and supplied a want. The " Companion for 
 Communicants" was in this line, and was made up of 
 " discourses upon the nature, the design, and the subject 
 of the Lord's Supper, with devout methods of preparing 
 for, and approaching to that blessed ordinance." The 
 dedication and prefatory paragraph recall the past: "To 
 the church of the Lord Jesus in the north part of Bos- 
 ton ; particularly to the Honorable Sir William Phips, 
 Kt. ; to the Worshipful John Richards, Esq., and to my 
 honored and worthy friends, Mr. Adam Winthrop, Mr. 
 John Foster, Dr. John Clark. Invitations to the supper 
 of the Lord ; preparations for the supper of the Lord ; 
 devotions at the supper of the Lord." 136 pp. 
 
 " An Order by the governor and general court, for the 
 work of reformation," came out March 13. On the 20th 
 Mr. Mather preached a lecture on "The Present State 
 of New England, considered in a discourse on the neces- 
 sities and advantages of a public spirit in every man, 
 especially at such times as this, — upon the news of 
 an invasion by the bloody Indians and Frenchmen, begun 
 upon us." It was addressed to Governor Bradstreet. 
 The text was Esther 4 : 14, and the topic drawn from it 
 was that "every Christian should readily and cheerfully 
 venture his all to serve the people of God, when a time 
 of distress and danger calleth for it." Such discourses, 
 in those days, raised the spirits of the people, gave a tone 
 to the public mind, and greatly helped the government to 
 act with vigor in meeting the enemy. 
 
 A small volume of 156 pages came out at this time, 
 with a preface signed by several Boston ministers, with 
 
COTTON MATHER. 
 
 95 
 
 the title: "The Principles of the Protestant Religion 
 maintained, and Churches of New England, in the pro- 
 fession and exercise thereof, defended, against all the 
 calumnies of one George Fox, a Quaker." Fox had writ- 
 ten a book in Pennsylvania, assailing the churches. Dr. 
 Sibley suggests that Mather was the principal author of 
 this reply. 
 
 On the twenty-eighth of May, before the general court, 
 at the election anniversary, was presented " The Service- 
 able Man." A vote of thanks was passed and the dis- 
 course was requested for publication. Taking the words 
 of Nehemiah : " Think upon me, my God, for good, 
 according to all that which I have done for this people," 
 he described a good mmi, and then proceeded to show that 
 "the God of heaven had good thoughts for those men 
 whose good works render them serviceable to his people." 
 This was a speech for the times, and, like all his produc- 
 tions, evinced the clear-headed insight of Mather and the 
 adaptation of his words to the wants of the public. He 
 was not the forward, meddlesome man who has been 
 described to us by writers, following each other in igno- 
 rant repetitions ; but one who spoke what the general 
 good demanded, and who published what was desired. 
 He grasped the fact that a New England pastor, like an 
 ancient prophet of the Hebrews, was a "tribune of the 
 people " as well as a minister of the New Testament. In 
 his day, when what is now called " the press " was an 
 unknown factor in political life, such an office was spe- 
 cially needed, and the speeches and writings of such a 
 man were helpful for men in public as well as in private 
 station. In this discourse, after giving the points of the 
 serviceable man, he stimulates all to be serviceable men, 
 and presents, among other motives, the highest possible ; 
 that is, the favor of God to such men. Quakers and 
 
96 LIFE AND TIMES OF 
 
 Others who were not serviceable, who withheld their aid, 
 tried to discourage the loyal and true ; but he opposed all 
 persecuting measures against those who were derelict in 
 duty to the state. 
 
 The year 1691 was filled with labors and prayers. The 
 affairs of his church, as well as those of his family, ab- 
 sorbed Mr. Mather's chief attention. His little daughter 
 Katharine, born in 1689, was an engaging child, and to 
 her a little sister was born in November of this year. 
 Her Christian name is not found in any genealogical 
 sketch of the family, but I find in the diary for 1693, 
 October 6, that the child Mary died, and that she was 
 ** near a month short of two years old." 
 
 There must have been uncommon religious interest in 
 the congregation this year, as the number added to the 
 church was forty-nine. His father being still in England, 
 struggling for a charter against formidable odds, and with 
 feeble support from some of his colleagues, the son had 
 to bear the full burden of pulpit work and pastoral super- 
 vision. The care in training the candidates for admis- 
 sion ; the attendance on many funerals ; the strain on the 
 nervous system from sympathy with the sick and the 
 bereaved ; the preparation of works for the press, with 
 special reference to the needs of his own flock, and his 
 duties to the poor and those in prison, pressed heavily 
 upon him. The witchcraft trouble pursued him, and he 
 gave much time to the wholesome regimen of diet and 
 prayer, in behalf of the suffering and the deluded. Nor 
 was his interest in public affairs remitted. The Indian 
 raids, exasperated by the French, were a serious drain 
 upon the life and resources of the colony, and the influ- 
 ence of the clergy was needed to keep hope alive in rulers 
 and people. 
 
 The works prepared for, and put through, the press this 
 
COTTON MATHER. 
 
 97 
 
 year would have consumed most of the time of an ordi- 
 nary worker. Altogether they would have made a book 
 of over eight hundred pages, i2mo., in type suitable for 
 that sized volume. Some of these publications were ser- 
 mons, adapted for the press after delivery ; others, like 
 the " Life of Eliot " (pp. i68), required extra writing. 
 Another of these larger volumes (pp. 92) had the title 
 "Balsamum Vulnerarium e Scriptura," "a balsam for 
 wounds, drawn from Scripture ; or, the cause and cure 
 of a wounded spirit." A volume kindred in spirit (pp. 93) 
 was entitled " Fair Weather ; or, Considerations to dispel 
 the Clouds and allay the Storms of Discontent." The 
 former seems intended for the solace of private griefs, 
 while this is adapted to allay the evils of public com- 
 plaints. It was a "discourse, which, with an entertaining 
 variety, both of argument and history, lays open the 
 nature and evil of that pernicious vice, and offers divers 
 antidotes against it." The author gives a list of sins 
 against all the commandments, and calls for honest repent- 
 ance and confession before the Lord. There was a second 
 edition in 1694. 
 
 " Good Soldiers a Great Blessing " was preached by 
 request, it is presumed, of the Artillery Company, which 
 desired a copy for the press. Mr. Sibley states that no 
 correct copy has been found. The fact that such a ser- 
 mon was solicited shows that the times demanded trained 
 soldiers, and exhibits the sympathy between the clergy 
 and the defenders of the country in the field. 
 
 A book relating to witchcrafts and possessions, enti- 
 tled "Late Memorable Providences," was printed in 1690, 
 but another edition came out in London this year, recom- 
 mended by Richard Baxter and " three or four other min- 
 isters in Boston and vicinity." Other discourses were 
 added, making a large collection of facts, or supposed 
 facts, relating to the witchcraft epidemic. 
 
98 LIFE AND TIMES OF 
 
 The work numbered 28, in the list of Dr. Sibley, must 
 be referred to, as it is in its title and matter eminent- 
 ly characteristic of its author. "Little Flocks guarded 
 against Grievous Wolves ; an address unto those parts of 
 New England which are most exposed unto assaults from 
 the modern teachers of the misled Quakers ; in a letter 
 which impartially discovers the manifold heresies and 
 blasphemies, and the strong delusions of even the most 
 refined Quakerism ; and therefrom demonstrates the truth 
 of those principles and assertions which are most oppo- 
 site thereunto ; with just reflections upon the extreme 
 ignorance and wickedness of George Keith, of Penn., 
 who is the seducer that now most ravines upon the 
 churches in this wilderness." This Keith afterwards 
 entered the Episcopal ministry in England and became 
 a strong opposer of Quakerism. 
 
 One of the happiest efforts of Mr. Mather was his 
 " Ornaments for the Daughters of Zion ; or, the charac- 
 ter and happiness of a vertuous woman, in a discourse 
 which directs the female sex how to express the fear of 
 God in every age and state of their life, and obtain both 
 temporal and eternal blessedness." Another edition came 
 out in Cambridge in 1692 ; one in London in 1694, and 
 two others in Boston, the last as late as 174 1. It has a 
 motto from Lactantius : *' Go ye forth now, arrayed with 
 such ornaments as the apostles have provided for you ; 
 clothe yourselves with the silk of piety, the satin of sanc- 
 tity, the purple of modesty ; so the Almighty God will be 
 a lover of you." The text was Proverbs 31 : 30: ''Favour 
 is deceitful, and beauty is vain, but a woman that feareth 
 the Lord, she shall be praised." He takes the ancient 
 view as to the authorship of Solomon, and speaks of 
 Bathsheba, his mother, as the wise woman who is sup- 
 posed to speak the words of the text. These are the 
 
COTTON MATHER. 
 
 99 
 
 "words of Bathsheba to Solomon." He then refers to 
 several women whose " wise words " are recorded in the 
 Bible ; as, Deborah, Hannah, Huldah, Miriam, Mary. 
 Under the first division, he treats of the "character of 
 the vertuous woman." She "counts the best female 
 favor to be deceitful ; the best female beauty to be vain." 
 He explains that " by favor is meant a comely presence, 
 a handsome carriage, a decent gesture, a ready wit, ex- 
 pressing itself with all other graceful motions, and what- 
 soever procures favor for a woman among her neighbors. 
 The vertuous woman is willing to have this favor so far as 
 is consistent with virtue. She counts it a favor of God 
 for one to be graced with it ; still, she looks upon it as a 
 deceitful thing. She is careful that she do not hereby 
 deceive herself into proud imaginations, and into an humor 
 conceited of herself, and contemptuous of others." After 
 an excellent description of the virtuous woman, he speaks, 
 in the second place, of the virtuous woman's happiness. 
 The book is so full, so sensible and entertaining that it 
 would bear republication. 
 
 "Expectanda; or, Things to be looked for," a i2mo 
 of 83 pages, was printed this year, bearing the running 
 title of " Discourses on the glorious characters, with con- 
 jectures on the speedy approaches of that state which is 
 reserved for the church of God in the latter days ; together 
 with an inculcation of several duties which the undoubted 
 characters and approaches of that state invite us unto." 
 This was "delivered unto the Artillery company" at the 
 annual election of officers. 
 
 A more important work followed, of about 160 pages, 
 which passed through four editions in Boston and London, 
 besides being in all the editions of the Magnalia. This 
 was styled " The Triumphs of the Christian Religion in 
 America ; The Life of the renowned John Eliot, a person 
 
lOO LIFE AND TIMES OF 
 
 justly famous in the church of God, not only as an 
 eminent Christian, and an excellent minister among the 
 English, but also as a memorable evangelist among the 
 Indians of New England." Later editions have an ac- 
 count of the "many strange customs of the pagan 
 Indians." I give a passage from the Introduction, show- 
 ing the spirit of the biographer. Having implored the 
 acceptance and assistance of that God " whose blessed 
 word has told us * the righteous shall be held in everlast- 
 ing remembrance,' " he continues : — 
 
 I am attempting to write the life of a righteous person, concerning 
 whom all things but the meanness of the writer, invite the reader to 
 expect nothing but what is truly extraordinary. It is the life of one 
 who has better and greater things to be affirmed of him, than could 
 ever be reported concerning any of those famous men which have been 
 celebrated by the pens of a Plutarch, a Pliny, a Laertius, an Eurapius, 
 or in any pagan histories. It is the life of one whose character might 
 very agreeably be looked for among the collections of a Dorotheus, or 
 the orations of a Nazianzen ; or is worthy at least of nothing less than 
 the exquisite stile of a Melchior Adam to eternise it. 
 
 The remaining publication of this year to be noticed 
 was "A Scriptural Catechism," which is chiefly valuable 
 now for its historical character, as it is one of the few 
 compendiums of Christian doctrine which have come down 
 from the fathers of New England theology. 
 
 We catch a glimpse of the ways of the " olden time," 
 in the fact that near the beginning of the year the church 
 chose a committee of four, to "take care of seating per- 
 sons in the meetinghouse," and a committee "to see to 
 repairs of the meetinghouse." Also, voted, that the 
 "pastor be desired to take what care he shall judge 
 proper in choosing persons for the inspection of children 
 in the meetinghouse." 
 
CHAPTER VI. 
 
 HALFWAY COVENANT. AUTHORSHIP. — WITCHCRAFT. ^ 
 
 THE GOODWIN CHILDREN I 169I-1692. 
 
 THE year 169^2 was memorable in the life of Cotton 
 Mather, made specially so by the culmination of 
 the witchcraft horror in the trial and execution of nine- 
 teen persons in the summer months. The excitement 
 began before this year, and continued after its close ; but 
 that which has made a dark and sad page in our history 
 belongs to 1692. In this sad chapter Mr. Mather has a 
 large space by right, because of the prominent part taken 
 by him to extirpate the evil, and a still larger, because of 
 the false charges made against him a few years later; 
 charges that have been repeated and amplified in more 
 recent times. Yet the witch enchantment occupied but 
 a small portion of his time during this troubled year. 
 
 He was very weak in the early months of the year. 
 The troubles caused by witchcraft drew him to Salem in 
 the spring, but, contrary to the popular belief, he did not 
 attend a single trial during the summer. Notwithstand- 
 ing severe illness, his activity as a student, as a pastor, 
 preacher, friend of education, and author was unabated. 
 No form of benevolent action asked for his aid in vain ; 
 though in all this tireless activity he was fettered by 
 bodily weakness which seemed to portend an early death. 
 
 Under date of February 7, it is recorded as follows: 
 " This day our congregation gathered seventy-two pounds, 
 odd shillings, for the redemption of our captives in the 
 hands of the Indians." Liberal contributions for similar 
 objects of charity were often made by the church. 
 
I02 LIFE AND TIMES OF 
 
 One person was admitted to the church this year on the 
 ^^halfway covenant, so called, and her son was baptized. It 
 is singular that this was the first instance of the kind in 
 the North Church since Increase Mather was influential 
 in promoting that innovation many years before. The 
 change was opposed by leading members of the church, 
 the most active of whom was the Honorable John Rich- 
 ards, who came over in 1644, and settled in Boston, where 
 he became a rich merchant. His standing in the colony 
 is shown by the fact that he was Speaker of the House, 
 an assistant in 1680, and agent of the colony in Eng- 
 land. He was also one of the judges in 1692, before 
 whom the cases of witchcraft were tried. The church 
 was led into the adoption of the new plan by the address 
 of the pastor, while the teacher was in England, but with 
 his concurrence. The following letter to Major Richards 
 will let us into the manner by which the change was 
 secured : — 
 
 February 13, 1692. 
 
 My Dear Major, — You are doubtless, as well as I, convinced, that 
 it is a time for churches to do some remarkable thing, in the matter 
 of returning unto God ; and perhaps you have lately read, what I have 
 writ upon that Article. 
 
 I now send you a recognition of the duties to which our Covenant 
 has obliged us; and of the evils wherein we are most in danger to 
 forget our covenant. 
 
 The voting of such recognitions, in such terms as are here laid 
 before you, dos most effectually obtain the ends of a renewed cove- 
 nant, and yet it is a thing so agreeable to the sense of even the weak- 
 est Christian, that I cannot imagine where those persons that have 
 needlessly scrupled renewal of covenant, can here find any objec- 
 tions. . . . 
 
 I put it first into your hands, because my value for your person 
 and judgment (which I have in print everlastingly signalized unto the 
 world) will cause me either to proceed or desist, in the design which 
 lies much upon my heart. And I desire you to use the more exact 
 thought upon it, because, if I have your countenance, I am sure I shall 
 
COTTON MATHER. 
 
 103 
 
 have the immediate concurrence of all this people, to do a thing that 
 would be as great a compliance with the loud calls of God, as any 
 that I am capable of devising ; and / think also that I am somewhat 
 awake. 
 
 The method by which he induced the church to come 
 into the new plan was characteristic. He did nothing by 
 authority of his position. Instead of bringing the matter 
 up at first in a meeting of the church and having a dis- 
 cussion, he sent a copy of the ** Recognition of the 
 Duties," of the church, in relation to the subject, and 
 "the reasons for it," to all the members, requesting them 
 to send their answers to him. In this way he secured 
 general concurrence and avoided all irritation or division. 
 It appears that a few did not approve of the measure, and 
 with them he patiently labored until they gave their 
 approbation, or in a kindly spirit agreed not to oppose 
 its adoption. 
 
 On the tenth of April, he records : " Our church unan- 
 imously signified their acceptance of an Instrument 
 which I laid before them, as containing the acknowledg- 
 ments and protestations of their souls, and a recognition 
 of their obligations, by their covenant laid upon them, 
 for the revival of practical godliness among us." The 
 day after he wrote a letter, or "little book," which was 
 printed and sent to every communicant. The agreement 
 to the " plan " was signified by written answers, instead of 
 a vote in general meeting. 
 
 While this measure was thus before the members, the 
 pastor wrote a longer letter to Major Richards which 
 gives the most favorable view of the "halfway covenant" 
 plan that I have ever seen. Perhaps the explanation was 
 not the general one, but peculiar to a class of ministers, 
 of which Mr. Mather was a leader. Citations will be made 
 from this letter, dated December 14, 1692 : — 
 
I04 LIFE AND TIMES OF 
 
 Many months are now past, since I laid before your honor, my judg- 
 ment, my desire, and with God's leave, my purpose, to administer the 
 baptism of our Lord, unto such as were instructed and orthodox in the 
 / Christian religion, and should bring testimony signed by more than 
 I one among the people of God, that they are of a vertuous conversation, 
 [ and should, after their names have been publicly propounded (and 
 < objection cannot be made against them,) openly and seriously give 
 I themselves up to God in Christ, according to the terms of the covenant 
 of grace, with a declaration of their study to prepare themselves further 
 for the table of the Lord. 
 
 I have intimated unto you, that I look upon such persons as visible 
 subjects in the kingdom of our Lord Jesus Christ, although they have 
 not proceeded so far in Christianity, as to be constituent members of 
 the corporations, the particular churches in that kingdom ; and I have 
 intimated that baptism is an ordinance that belongs to visible Chris- 
 tians, or those that are visibly of the catholic church, before, and in 
 order to, their joining to a particular. 
 
 He then states the method he had taken to " try the 
 mind of the people," by sending the " instrument," which 
 he had already given to Mr. Richards, by "two or three 
 discreet men " to almost every one of the brethren "that 
 were not then abroad at sea," and adds that the papers 
 came back with nearly unanimous approval, signed by the 
 members. Some sent their desire for immediate action. 
 Only four failed to sign the address, and of these, two 
 expressed assent. "Briefly, I have seventy-five hands 
 (whereof three are of their Majesties' council) and I sup- 
 pose I could for asking, have when I will, ten more, solic- 
 iting me to go on." 
 
 Mr. Mather fully agreed with those who maintain that 
 no unregenerate adult is to be baptized; but adds: "I 
 also think that a person so qualified, as has been described, 
 and one so sensibly submitting to the laws of our Lord, 
 should not be pronounced unregenerate." 
 
 The question then comes up : Why d o not such pens(^ ps 
 come forward and commune at the Lord's table } The 
 
COTTON MATHER. IO5 
 
 first answer is that they are " under doubts and fears." 
 The second is, " Because the Supper of the Lord, requir- 
 ing not only grace, but some growth in grace, and being 
 a sacrament of confirmation, for those who have hereto- 
 fore in baptism had their initiation, we may justly expect 
 more positive attainments for the one than the other ; and 
 so the primitive Christians practised." 
 
 Another passage in this letter suggests a caution to 
 churches which needs perpetual recognition. There are 
 ministers who have their pet notions and methods, and 
 when they come to a church, whether for a term of years 
 or as a brief supply, wish to bring in their own ways of 
 administration. Some churches have so little character 
 as to submit to these whims ; whereas every church 
 should have its own rules and methods, which are not to 
 be altered or departed from, except by vote of the church. 
 Mather writes : " It was in part for this cause, that I was 
 willing to have this Instrument so circumstanced ; namely, 
 because if hereafter you should have a pastor who may 
 not be so concerned for purity of administration as I 
 hope you have always found, and may yet find me to 
 be, you may have an everlasting clog upon all endeavors 
 of any man, to prostitute an ordinance." He proceeds to 
 say of this plan : " It is properly My Work ; and I have 
 therefore so cautiously stated the whole matter, that I 
 avoid entangling any of our brethren who may be scrupu- 
 lous in any Act which they may not see light for. And 
 yet I resolve also, in all my admissions, to have the par- 
 ticular assistances of two or three or more of our under- 
 standing brethren ; and particularly of some that have 
 been most scrupulous of enlargements [most opposed to 
 the " halfway plan "] until we have a consistory of elders 
 more fully settled." 
 
 To make the matter more clear and remove any scruple 
 
I06 LIFE AND TIMES OF 
 
 from the major's mind, the pastor becomes more explicit 
 still in the following passage, which he puts in italics : — 
 
 I am even now and then visited, by well-disposed people, who, I 
 believe, have the fear of God in them ; and these tell me : *' Sir, your 
 Ministry has broke our hearts for us ; we would willingly become the 
 professed servants of Jesus Christ ; it is a trouble to us that we, or^ 
 ours, are not by baptism dedicated unto him : will youbaptize ust*^ 
 5)r, if you can^t. we must be forced to seek that blessing elsewhere, ^>S| 
 a ad so leave your Ministrv. which w e woul d not le ave upon any other 
 
 terms whatsoever. It is true, we should come to~nTe'~Lord'sr"taT51e : 
 
 ' ■ ■ ■ » > ' 
 
 but such is our weakness, we dare not ; pray don't punish us for that 
 weakness ; and when we are a little better confirmed in Christianity, 
 we shall come." 
 
 He adds that it was his conviction that such persons 
 should be baptized, but that scores of such had been ban- 
 ished from his ministry, because he had " been loth to go 
 against the sense of but two very good men " whom he 
 valued very highly, of which men. Major Richards was 
 the chief. With an earnest plea for the major's consent, 
 he urges : " Say then, ought I not to do what the church 
 has in the most explicit manner called me to .** " 
 
 It is safe to infer that the major gave consent, either 
 by word or by silence, as the plan was adopted and the 
 harmony of the church was not broken. The first person 
 who entered into covenant under this system was Mary 
 Sunderland, and her son John was the first child baptized 
 in accordance with it. It deserves notice, however, that 
 Cotton Mather did not encourage any to form this en- 
 gagement with the church, unless they gave evidence of 
 spiritual renewal. In regard to such persons he believed 
 it to be right and safe to take them under the watch and 
 care of the church, on the "ha lfway pla n," with the hope 
 that they would be led along in the path of holiness, and 
 gain courage to come to the table of their Lord and 
 
COTTON MATHER. IO7 
 
 Saviour. If administered in that spirit generally, it is 
 probable that the system would not have caused the se- 
 rious mischief which did grow out of it in many churches, 
 and which, in the course of the next century, led to its 
 abandonment. 
 
 The publications of Mr. Mather this year fill more 
 than five hundred pages. The title of one was *' Blessed 
 Unions ; a union with the Son of God by faith ; and 
 a union in the church of God by love, importunately 
 pressed in a discourse which makes divers offers for those 
 unions." This has a historic interest. The Presbyte- 
 rian and the Congregational parties in England had been 
 separate, and even hostile, for more than half a century. 
 In the outbreak of what has been styled the Great Re- 
 bellion, the Presbyterian party in England became influ- 
 ential by its connection with the Church of Scotland, and 
 thus came into great prominence. It gained a sort of 
 establishment in London, Lancashire, and other parts, by 
 act of parliament. At this date the Independents, or 
 Congregationalists, were^few. In the assembly of divines, 
 notables, and statesmen, held for the purpose of discuss- 
 ing the great question of religious liberty, the number of 
 Presbyterians was ten to one of the other party. But by 
 degrees this relative difference was greatly changed. 
 Cromwell and his special friends were Congregationalists, 
 or Independents. Sir Harry Vane was of that way 
 of thinking. Milton was a pronounced Independent. 
 Through the Protector's ascendancy, this rising party 
 had great power in the state. After the return of Charles 
 II, Presbyterianism was disestablished and more than two 
 thousand ministers, mostly under the Presbyterian regime, 
 were driven from their pulpits. But some of these men 
 were Independents in sentiment, and during the reigns of 
 Charles II and James II the number increased. Common 
 
I08 LIFE AND TIMES OF 
 
 sufferings and persecutions, under those lustful tyrants, 
 brought the two parties into mutual sympathy and re- 
 spect. Early in the reign of William and Mary, efforts 
 were made to bring about a union, in 1691-1692 ; and 
 articles of union were adopted by representatives of the 
 two bodies. Increase Mather was then in England, and, 
 being held in high esteem by both sides, had great 
 influence in effecting the happy union. The two parties, 
 being thus united, took the name or title of the " United 
 Brethren." The discourse of Mather was dedicated to 
 the very reverend Matthew Mead, John Howe, and In- 
 crease Mather. Howe and Mead were among the fore- 
 most divines of Old England, and Mather fitly represented 
 the churches of New England. 
 
 As an example of Mr. Mather's tireless efforts to do 
 good, his "Midnight Cry" may be named. It was an 
 " essay for our awakening out of sinful sleep," presented 
 on a " day of prayer kept by the North Church." A small 
 edition was printed, which led him to say of it, as a phi- 
 losopher did of his book, " 'T is published, but scarcely 
 made public." 
 
 Rev. Samuel Lee, a very learned man who came from 
 England and was settled for a few years at Bristol, R. I., 
 and then returned to the old country, and whose daughter 
 became Mr. Mather's third wife, issued a work on the 
 "Great Judgment." To this Mather prefixed "Prepara- 
 tory Meditations upon the Day of Judgment." 
 
 A volume of about one hundred pages was published 
 this year, both in Boston and London, under the title of 
 "Optanda: Good Men described, and good things pro- 
 pounded. A serious consideration of two very impor- 
 tant cases; I. What should be our Spirits, and II. 
 What should be our Studies, that so all things may go 
 well among us.^" The volume was addressed to Gov- 
 
/ 
 / 
 
 COTTON MATHER. IO9 
 
 ernor Phips, who on this day met the general court for 
 the first time in his official capacity. A short time before 
 he had returned from England with the new charter, 
 obtained chiefly by the ability and persistency of Increase 
 Mather. The younger Mather greatly rejoiced in the 
 elevation of Phips, who was his personal friend and a 
 member of his church. In reference to the promotion of 
 Phips he writes in his diary, in May : " But the time for 
 favor is now come ; yea, the set time is come." This 
 refers to the deliverance from the personal malice of 
 Andros and Randolph, by the turn of affairs. 
 
 I am now to receive the answers of many prayers as have been 
 employed for my absent parent, and the deliverance and settlement of 
 my poor country. We have not the former Charter, but we have a 
 better in the room of it; one which much better suits our circum- 
 stances. And instead of my being made a sacrifice to wicked rulers, 
 all the counsellors of the Province are of my father's nomination, and 
 my father-in-law, with several related to me, and several brethren of 
 my own church, are among them. The governor of the Province is 
 not my enemy, but one whom I baptised, and one of my flock, and one 
 of my dearest friends. 
 
 This harmless passage has been made the occasion of 
 reproach to the writer, as if he were too much elated, and 
 exhibited an unmanly triumph. If he had sent a para- 
 graph of the sort to the press (as public men now often 
 do, and without reproach) or had uttered it in a popular 
 address (which is sometimes done without censure), it 
 might perhaps be open to objection. But he must be a 
 carping critic who would censure Mather for being glad, 
 and writing so in his diary, that the tyranny of Andros 
 and his master was at an end, and that the government 
 was in the hands of personal friends and patriotic citizens. 
 And that was the whole of it. Mr. Mather had nothing 
 to gain by the revolution except in common with the 
 
no LIFE AND TIMES OF 
 
 whole province. There was no promotion which he could 
 receive from the new governor. His position as pastor of 
 the Second Church in Boston left him nothing to covet 
 in his native land, and he seems never to have had the 
 craving for the old country that impelled so many to seek 
 employment and promotion there. If he ever cared to 
 be president of the college, it was not with the hope of 
 distinction or emolument, for the pay was small, and 
 the distinction of being the most learned and popular 
 preacher in America could not have been enhanced by 
 the presidency of the college as it then existed. His 
 throne was the pulpit, whether preaching to his own 
 congregation or before the general court. In either 
 place he was not only a minister of the gospel, but, like 
 an old prophet in the Hebrew commonwealth, he was the 
 guardian of the people's rights, while maintaining the 
 authority of the nation's God. 
 
 In the sermon above referred to he described, in the 
 first place, "good men," taking his text from Proverbs 
 17: 27: "A man of understanding is of an excellent 
 spirit." He said : ** By the spirit is meant the soul ; by 
 the excellency of the spirit, some ornament upon the 
 soul." I. An excellent spirit is an extraordinary spirit ; 
 one of rare and various attainments. 2. Holiness is one 
 of its traits. 3. It is an active and useful spirit. 4. It is 
 excellent in speech. 5. Its natural humor is sanctified. 
 6. It communes with the unseen world. 7. It is given to 
 self-reckoning. 8. It is a cool spirit. Self-control is one 
 reading of the text. 
 
 The* second sermon in the "Optanda" volume was 
 founded on the words : " Also in Judah things went well." 
 He says : " It has been remarked that the Bible is unto 
 the church, what the firmament is unto the world; the 
 God of heaven has gloriously expanded these heavenly 
 
COTTON MATHER. I I I 
 
 oracles over us, and in this expanse we have those things 
 that are to give light upon the earth. The steersmen of 
 this poor, shattered, sinking bark are in a general assem- 
 bly this day convened ; and there is a bright star in the 
 firmament of the Bible, which I would humbly recom- 
 mend unto their observation ; 't is the text." 
 
 After referring to the benefits which come from having 
 good magistrates and good ministers, he goes on to say 
 that : " Things will not go well unless the people do their 
 part. I. When they improve their interest in legislation, 
 in the making of good laws. 2. When education is liber- 
 ally encouraged. [Here he puts in a plea for schools and 
 the college.] 3. The people must stand by good men. 
 4. They must promote a spirit of union and love. 5. 
 They must find remedies against poverty and idleness. 6. 
 They will prosper when they remember the Sabbath day. 
 7. When people flock to and keep up well-constituted 
 churches. 8. When regeneration is frequent and common. 
 9. When supplication is joined with reformation. On 
 these conditions, things would go well with any people." 
 
 Every point in the discourse was intensely practical 
 and bore directly on the wants of the time. Nor did he 
 fail to take strong grounds against the persecution of 
 " erroneous and conscientious dissenters by the civil mag- 
 istrate." He censured the " zeal of former times," which 
 had sent the "mad quakers unto the gallows instead of 
 bedlam." He stood alone, as he supposed, among the 
 ministry in publicly condemning the policy of suppress- 
 ing heresy by persecution, and hoped for greater success 
 in opposing error and upholding truth by " spiritual and 
 evangelical endeavors." 
 
 This was a year of anxiety and labor to Mr. Mather 
 while in feeble health. He began the year, so far as 
 pastoral labors were concerned, with "handling of the 
 
I 1 2 LIFE AND TIMES OF 
 
 miracles of Christ, and reflections on the history thereof." 
 He also had his heart set on " Designs of Reformation " ; 
 and he tried to secure a '* union of churches to find out 
 evils,'* hoping thereby to raise the state of piety. The 
 response was not as cordial as he had hoped, but he 
 pursued the object in his own parish. All this while, 
 his health was miserable. He states that it had been 
 "broken for several years" ; partly by ''excessive toil in 
 public exercises of the ministry," and also because he 
 had "sinned against the God of his health." He often 
 preached when he should have been in bed, but had been 
 greatly assisted on such occasions. " Illness, and vapor, 
 and aguish indisposition " had caused him to live in 
 "exceeding misery," so that he could "see nothing but 
 approaching death." But he writes: "Blessed be God 
 that I can die." 
 
 Later in the year, and after the trials at Salem and the 
 execution of the supposed witches, he wrote a passage in 
 his diary, which has been printed and which will help us 
 to know the state of his mind in relation to that great 
 tragedy. As we are drawing near to the narrative of his 
 connection with it, this extract may prepare us to inter- 
 pret his course with candor : — 
 
 For my own part, I was always afraid of proceeding to convict or con- 
 demn any person as a confederate with the afflicting demons upon so 
 feeb le an evidence as a spectr al repres entation. Accordingly I ever 
 protested a^amsTTt both publicly and privately ; and in my letters to 
 the judges, I particularly besought them, that they would by no means 
 admit it ; and when a considerable assembly of ministers gave in their 
 advice about the matter, I not only concurred with them, but it was I 
 who drew it up. Nevertheless, on the other side, I saw in most of the 
 judges a most charming instance of prudence and patience, and I 
 know the exemplary prayer and anguish of soul wherewith they had 
 sought the direction of heaven, above most other people ; whom I gen- 
 erally saw enchanted into a raging, railing, scandalous and unreason- 
 
CO TTON MA THER. 1 1 3 
 
 able disposition, as the distress increased upon us. For this cause, 
 though I could not allow the principles that some of the judges had 
 espoused, yet I could not but speak honorably of their persons on all 
 occasions ; and my compassion upon the sight of their difficulties, 
 raised by my journeys to Salem, the chief seat of those diabolical vexa- 
 tions, caused me yet more to do so. And merely, as far as I can 
 learn, for this reason, the mad people through the country, under a fas- 
 cination on their spirits, equal to that which energumens had on their 
 bodies, reviled me as if I had been the doer of all the hard things that 
 were done in the prosecutions of the witchcraft. 
 
 It is somewhat difficult to give the connection of 
 Cotton Mather with the witchcraft visitation in the order 
 of time, and perhaps impossible to fix the date of his 
 various publications on the subject, as there were several 
 editions of some of these works, and those editions re- 
 ceived additions as they came out. But the first book, 
 as given in the full catalogue of Dr. Sibley, was entitled 
 * Memorable Providences relating to Witchcrafts and Pos- 
 sessions ; a faithful account of many wonderful and sur- 
 prising things that have befallen several bewitched and 
 possessed persons in New England ; particularly a narra- 
 tive of the marvelous trouble and relief experienced by a 
 pious family in Boston, very lately and sadly molested 
 with evil spirits." Two sermons followed, one of which 
 related to the same subject. An appendix was added, 
 vindicating a "chapter in a late book of * Remarkable 
 Providences ' from the calumnies of a Quaker at Pennsyl- 
 vania." This volume, the " Memorable Providences," was 
 printed in 1689, and had several reprints in Boston, 
 London, and Edinburgh. This then was Cotton Mather's 
 first publication on witchcraft, so far as known to me, and 
 the date could not have been 1685, as stated by Peabody, 
 because the experiences of the Goodwin family, related 
 in the book, took place in 1688. The author of the *' Re- 
 markable Providences" was Increase Mather. 
 
114 
 
 LIFE AND TIMES OF 
 
 As the motives of Mr. Mather in giving this volume to 
 the press have been severely condemned, it is but fair to 
 give his own statement of them. "■ None but the Father 
 who sees in secret, knows the heart-breaking exercises 
 wherewith I have composed what is now going to be 
 exposed, lest I should in any one thing miss of doing 
 my designed service for his glory, and his people." Yet 
 it has been the habit of historians, biographers, and essay- 
 ists to treat this claim as a piece of self-delusion, and 
 perhaps of hypocrisy, and to accuse Mather of being 
 moved by considerations entirely selfish in all his connec- 
 tions with the witchcraft troubles. By some his action 
 was ascribed to youthful vanity. He was young, and it 
 would serve to make him the theme of wonder through 
 the countryside, if he could be seen to take the lead in 
 suppressing the works of the devil. By others he has 
 been accused of ambition, as being desirous of gaining 
 influence and power early in life, by shaping the public 
 mind and guiding the judges. And by others still he has 
 been suspected, if not accused, of trying to uphold the 
 " waning influence " of the clergy by fanning the flame 
 of superstition and compelling the people, as it were, to 
 call on the ministers to overcome the machinations of the 
 demons ; and to beseech the God of heaven to interpose 
 for the deliverance of the bewitched. Other accusations 
 as senseless as these have had their day. 
 
 Again, to overwhelm the memory of Mather with a 
 flood of reproach, the influence of his book has been 
 vastly overrated, as if the public mind had been so 
 inflamed by it that the people in some sections ran wild 
 with excitement. It would almost seem as if he created 
 witchcraft itself, and set all the " powers of the air " in 
 motion, to vex and curse the good people of Salem vil- 
 lage and parts adjacent. It appears to be forgotten that 
 
CO TTON MA THER. I I 5 
 
 something akin to witchcraft had been in the world, in all 
 parts of it, for thousands of years before it broke out in 
 New England. The fact is ignored that in the Christian 
 nations of Europe, so called, witchcraft was tenfold more 
 a delusion and curse in the sixteenth, seventeenth, and 
 eighteenth centuries than ever in Massachusetts. Pass- 
 ing by the Catholic and Protestant countries of conti- 
 nental Europe, there was in England and Scotland a far 
 direr state of things than in Essex County. Witchcraft 
 had been treated as a heinous crime in England long 
 before our fathers crossed the sea. 
 
 A statute passed in the thirty-third year of the reign of 
 Henry VIII had regard to witchcraft. In 1588 Queen 
 Elizabeth was alarmed by the suggestion that her own 
 person might be put in peril by the great increase of 
 witches and sorcerers. Soon after a law was enacted 
 making enchantments and witchcraft felony ; and upon 
 this foundation, says the late Mr. Samuel T. Haven, "the 
 English law relating to those declared crimes was built up, 
 and established by repeated trials ; by another statute in 
 the reign of James I, and by the ruling of the most dis- 
 tinguished judges, till it acquired the explicit form and 
 directory character set forth in * Dalton's Justice,' which 
 was the accepted legal guide of the Provinces." Under 
 these laws, and the decisions of the English courts in 
 accordance with them, it is stated on good authority that 
 there was an average of one hundred and fifty executions 
 for witchcraft per annum, for two hundred years, or thirty 
 thousand in all. These facts were known in New Eng- 
 land before Cotton Mather was born. Moreover the 
 cases of alleged witchcraft which he collected and pub- 
 lished in 1689, in connection with the experiences of the 
 Goodwin children, were familiar to the general public 
 throughout the colonies. Though there were but few 
 
I 1 6 LIFE AND TIMES OF 
 
 newspapers in that day, and scarcely any public lines of 
 travel, yet all strange, and especially all mysterious, events 
 and those having a supernatural tinge were carried by 
 letters and by travelers all over the country. They were 
 the theme of talk in places of public resort, and the 
 thrilling stories were told round thousands of firesides. 
 The belief in witchcraft was as common as belief in the 
 Bible. This belief was not created or increased by 
 Mather's book. Xtl!e_niost that can be said truly is that 
 ij;, brought the subject anew before the public mind, so far 
 q,§ its limited circulation extended. 
 
 In addition it should be remembered that the current 
 superstition included much more than what was technic- 
 ally called witchcraft. The following extract will show 
 that the minds of the people of Scotland in those days 
 were saturated with superstitious notions. I quote from 
 the Life of Burns a partial list of the denizens of the air, 
 according to Scottish beliefs : " Devils, ghosts, fairies, 
 brownies, witches, warlocks, spunkies, kelpies, elf candles, 
 deadlights, wraiths, apparitions, cantraps, giants, en- 
 chanted towers, dragons, and other trumpery." If the 
 northern portion of Great Britain was infested with such 
 a numerous brood of superstitious imaginings, why should 
 we wonder if the immigrants from England brought some 
 of this "trumpery" with them.-* In fact they brought 
 far too much of it, and the Mathers, father and son, with 
 the clergy generally, exerted their influence to eliminate 
 these superstitions from the public mind, because they 
 believed that their prevalence was the work of the devil. 
 -?• And one great object of Cotton Mather's book was to 
 -^j [ make the practice of witchcraft, then prevalent, odious, 
 y \ and thus to cause its extermination. Another object was 
 to exhibit a remedy for those afflicted by witchcraft. 
 The object of Mather in reciting previous cases of 
 
COTTON MA THER. I I 7 
 
 witchcraft may have been to make the case of the Good- 
 win family seem more credible. Whatever his motive, 
 before proceeding to give the results of his own observa- 
 tion, he briefly referred to all the instances he could find 
 of witchcraft practices and trials in the northern colonies. 
 He gives the cases of Ann Cole, of Connecticut, of Eliz- 
 abeth Knapp, of Groton, and of a Mr. Smith, of Hadley, 
 at some length. Passing by these and other like cases 
 (of no concern to us at present), and also stories of ghosts 
 and haunted houses, such as have not been wanting in 
 any generation, we come to the personal experience of 
 Mr. Mather in his own house. 
 
 This was in 1688, when the Goodwin family was sup- 
 posed to be under diabolical inflictions. I shall abridge the 
 narrative as much as possible from Mather's statement. 
 
 He writes that John Goodwin lived in the south part of 
 Boston, by which he meant the part south of the north 
 end. The family did not belong to Mather's congrega- 
 tion, and he became interested in them, not by seeking 
 occasion to meddle with witchcraft, but by the strong 
 desire and even importunity of the father. Goodwin was 
 a "sober, pious man," a mason by trade, "whose wife 
 (to which a good report gives a share with him in all the 
 characters of virtue) made him the father of six (now — 
 1688) living children." The family, except the eldest son 
 and the baby, " labored under the direful effects of a (no 
 less palpable than) stupendous witchcraft." The eldest 
 son had also " some lighter touches of it in unaccountable 
 stabs and pains, now and then, upon him." Perhaps there 
 was some physical susceptibility in the family — " all 
 except the father and the sucking infant." 
 
 Four of these children (all except the eldest and young- 
 est) were " handled in so sad and strange a manner as 
 has given matter of discourse and wonder to all the 
 
I 1 8 LIFE AND TIMES OF 
 
 country ; and of history not unworthy to be considered by 
 more than all the serious and curious readers in this New 
 English world." The oldest of ''the four" was about 
 fourteen, and the youngest some over four years of age. 
 "All enjoyed a religious education, and answered it with 
 a very towardly ingenuity ; they had an observable affec- 
 tion unto divine and sacred things. Those of them that 
 were capable of it, seemed to have such a resentment of 
 their eternal concernments, as is not altogether usual." 
 They were industrious, and that kept them, as Mather 
 says, " from the temptations of idleness." He continues : 
 " Such was the whole temper and carriage of the children, 
 that there cannot easily be anything more unreasonable 
 than to imagine that a design to dissemble could cause 
 them to fall into any of their odd fits, though there 
 should not have happened as there did, a thousand things 
 wherein it was perfectly impossible for any dissimula- 
 tion of theirs to produce what scores of spectators were 
 amazed at." 
 
 About midsummer, 1688, the oldest daughter offended 
 a laundress whose " mother was an ignorant and scandal- 
 ous old woman." The woman's husband sometimes com- 
 plained of her, that " she was undoubtedly a witch." 
 This scandalous old woman " bestowed very bad lan- 
 guage " upon the Goodwin girl, who immediately became 
 "indisposed in her health and visited with strange fits 
 beyond those that attend an epilepsie, or a catalepsie, or 
 on that they call the ' diseases of astonishment.' " 
 
 Soon after a sister and two of her brothers were seized 
 with "similar affects^ Here follows a description of the 
 phenomena : — " All four were tortured everywhere in a 
 manner so very grievous that it would have broken a 
 heart of stone to have seen their agonies. Among skill- 
 ful physicians who were consulted was the worthy and 
 
COTTON MA THER. 1 1 9 
 
 prudent Dr. Thomas Oakes, who found himself so affected 
 by the distemper of the children that he concluded noth- 
 ing but a hellish witchcraft could be the original of these 
 maladies." The narrative goes on : "For one good while 
 the children were tormented just in the same part of 
 their bodies, and all at the same time together ; and 
 though they saw and heard not one another's complaints ; 
 though likewise their pains and spasms were swift, like 
 lightning, yet when (suppose) the head, or the neck, or 
 the back of one was racked, so it was at that instant with 
 tother too." 
 
 This would indicate that the children were in different 
 rooms. 
 
 " About nine or ten at night, they always had a release 
 from these miseries, and ate, and slept all night for the 
 most part indifferently well. Yet in the daytime, they 
 were handled with so many sorts of ails, that it would 
 require of us almost as much time to relate them all, as 
 it did of them to endure them. Sometimes they were 
 deaf, dumb, blind, and often all this at once." Now 
 "their tongues would be drawn down their throats," and 
 then "would be pulled upon their chins to a prodigious 
 length." Their mouths would be opened so wide that 
 their "jaws went out of joint"; then they would "clap 
 together again with a force like that of a strong spring 
 lock. The same would happen to their shoulder blades, 
 and their elbows, and hand-wrists, and several of their 
 joints. They would at times lie in a benumbed condition, 
 and be drawn together as those that are tied neck and 
 heels ; and presently be stretched out, yea, drawn back- 
 wards to such a degree that it was feared the very skin 
 of their bellies would have cracked. They would make 
 most piteous outcries that they were cut with knives, 
 and struck with blows that they could not bear. Their 
 
I20 LIFE AND TIMES OF 
 
 neck would be broken, so that their neck-bone would seem 
 dissolved unto them that looked after it ; and yet, on the 
 sudden, it would become again so stiff that there was no 
 stirring of their heads ; yea, their heads would be twisted 
 almost round, and if main force at any time obstructed a 
 dangerous motion which they seemed to be upon, they 
 would roar exceedingly." This continued several weeks. 
 Once when Mr. Mather "went to prayer by one of them" 
 who was very desirous to hear what he said, she utterly 
 lost her hearing till the prayer was over. 
 
 The Goodwin family were religious, and though many 
 superstitious proposals were made to them to get relief 
 for their children, yet none but religious measures were 
 resorted to by them. They resolved to "oppose devils 
 with no other weapons but prayers and tears unto him 
 that has the chaining of them." 
 
 The fate of the old woman was sad enough. Doctors 
 visited her and heard her ravings, but reported that she 
 was compos mentis. Her symptoms were strange and 
 she was condemned to death as a witch, according to the 
 law as it then existed, and the evidence as it was then 
 interpreted, and in strict accordance with the practice 
 of English courts. Mr. Mather visited her at different 
 times and made strenuous efforts to prepare her for death, 
 but had nothing to do with the proceedings that led to 
 her condemnation and execution. When going to the 
 gallows, she said that the children would not be " relieved 
 by her death, as others had a hand in it as well as she." 
 And so it proved. The boy next younger than the 
 eldest girl seems to have been relieved, but "three of 
 the children — that is, the girl, and the fourth and fifth 
 children — continued in the furnace as before, and it 
 grew rather seven times hotter than it was." Yet there 
 are writers who would have us believe that not only the 
 
CO TTON MA THER. 121 
 
 girl, fourteen years old, but the two other children, prob- 
 ably eight and six years old, went through all these 
 experiences as cunning deceivers, making fools of Mr. 
 Mather, the other ministers of Boston, the physicians, 
 and their own parents, without any break in their con- 
 certed deception. 
 
 Much more is given, showing the deplorable condition 
 of the children ; but we must attend to remedies used. 
 Mr. Mather took the oldest girl to his own home and 
 regulated her diet, while employing moral and religious 
 influences. The quietness of his home was also benefi- 
 cial. He writes : " The young woman continued well at 
 our house for divers days, and applied herself to such 
 actions, not only of industry, but of piety, as she had 
 been no stranger to. But on the 20th of November she 
 cried out, *Ah, — they — have found me out! I thought 
 it would be so ! ' and immediately fell into her fits again." 
 This was followed by another series of " bewitchments," 
 as understood at the time, and by many unaccountable 
 things in the girl's behavior, till the twenty-seventh of 
 November, when Rev. Mr. Morton, of Charlestown, and 
 Messrs. Allen, Moody, Willard, and Mather, of Boston, 
 with some devout neighbors, kept a day of prayer at 
 John Goodwin's house, and Mather says, " We had all 
 the children with us there. The children were miserably 
 tortured while we labored in our prayers ; but our good 
 God was nigh unto us in what we called upon him for. 
 From this day the power of the enemy was broken, and 
 the children, though assaults after this were made upon 
 them, yet were not so cruelly handled as before. The 
 liberty of the little children increased daily, more and 
 more, and their vexation abated by degrees, till within 
 a little while they arrived to perfect ease, and this they 
 cheerfully enjoyed for some weeks or months." 
 
122 LIFE AND TIMES OF 
 
 But two days after the fast, the oldest girl had ^ ^o 
 remarkable attempts made upon her: one by dra^ r g 
 into the oven, then being heated ; and one by putti .n 
 unseen noose round her neck, by which she was c 3d 
 till black in the face. This was, doubtless, a sp? of 
 wild delirium, with such violent muscular contract as 
 
 physicians are too familiar with. She would n^ :ind 
 her place in an insane asylum. But these thin - v/ere 
 less understood than at present, when there are r y iries 
 still unexplored. Mr. Mather adds : " Marks of rope, 
 
 and of a finger and thumb were seen for a wh after- 
 wards." Possibly these were impressions mace y the 
 girl's own hands, but it requires a gullibility far e -ceding 
 the alleged credulity of Cotton Mather to belie'-'" .aat the 
 girl went through all this for sport and decepti o; \ 
 
 After a lucid interval in the winter of 168 ^89, the 
 oldest girl had another visitation, in which s isplayed 
 much of the wit which sometimes attends m« disease. 
 
 This, in the time of it, was ascribed to the ' :. In the 
 first half of the present century, writers ; wont to 
 
 ascribe it all to the roguery of the patients or actors. 
 Magnetism and spiritualism deal with similar phenom- 
 ena in a more serious and not less rational way. Cases 
 of the kind are now seen every day in scores of hospitals 
 for the insane, and are classed under the general head of 
 insanity. The Goodwin girl became flippant and imper- 
 tinent. When directed to look to God, her eyes would be 
 put out. When prayer was begun, **the devils would 
 throw her on the floor at Mr. Mather's feet," and then she 
 would try to strike and kick him. She would " whistle, 
 and sing, and yell, to drown the voice of prayer. If she 
 tried to strike or kick him, her fist or foot would recoil, 
 when within an inch or two of him, as if rebounding 
 against a wall." The girl, without doubt, had a natural 
 
COTTON MATHER. 1 23 
 
 sense of humor, which insanity stimulated, for when the 
 minister had read to her a sentence of a discourse he was 
 preparing in relation to some of the witchcraft cases, 
 **she made of it the most ridiculous travesty in the 
 world, with such a patness and excess of fancy to supply 
 the sense she put upon it, as I was amazed at. And she 
 particularly told me that I should quickly come to dis- 
 grace by that history." That history was indeed the 
 occasion of much obloquy. 
 
 Towards the end of the second day he continues: 
 " After prayer was made for her, she would revive for a 
 minute or two, and continue as frolicksome as before, and 
 this continued until Saturday, towards the evening, when, 
 after this man had been at prayer, I charged all my fam- 
 ily to admit of no diversion by her frolic from such exer- 
 cises as it was proper to begin the Sabbath with. They 
 took the counsel, and though she assayed with as witty, 
 and as amiable,* and as various an application to each of 
 them successively as ever I saw, to make them laugh, yet 
 they kept close to their good books, which then called for 
 their attention. When she saw this, immediately she fell 
 asleep, and in two or three hours she waked, perfectly her- 
 self ; weeping bitterly to remember (for as one out of a 
 dream, she could remember) what had befallen her." 
 
 None of the children were cured all at once, but they 
 ** first came to be always quiet unless upon provocations. 
 Then they got liberty to work, but not to read ; then 
 further on, to read, but not aloud. And at last they were 
 wholly delivered, and for many weeks remained so." In 
 no long time they were wholly cured. 
 
 The strange things which the oldest girl did would 
 seem incredible if the testimony were not so positive. 
 Besides her bodily contortions, she appeared to be moved 
 by religious considerations. For example, when prayer 
 
124 ^^^^ ^^^ TIMES OF 
 
 was made in the room, her hands were drawn by irresisti- 
 ble force to cover her ears ; and when her hands were 
 drawn away by attendants, she claimed that she could not 
 hear a word. She was pulled by a chain out of her chair 
 towards the fire, and had to be held. She could read 
 a Quaker's book (which was then abominable to her 
 Christian neighbors) except the names of God and Christ. 
 These she could not utter. If asked to read the Bible or 
 the catechism, she was thrown into contortions. The 
 Book of Common Prayer, then objectionable to the com- 
 mon sentiment, she could read with ease and seem to 
 enjoy it, perhaps all the more because it was offensive to 
 her friends ; but when she came to the Lord's Prayer her 
 eyes failed her. And what was very odd, she could read 
 passages of Scripture in the prayer book, but would sooner 
 die than read the same passages in the Bible itself. 
 
 These things may be accounted for in two ways : one 
 is that she was roguish ; and the other, that she was 
 insane. The following specimen of her impertinence to 
 Mr. Mather may be explained on either theory. She 
 would knock at his study door, and tell him that some 
 one wished to see him downstairs. Going down he would 
 find that she had deceived him. When reproved for her 
 falsehood, she would pertly reply, " Mrs. Mather is always 
 glad to see you." But the contortions and bodily agonies 
 cannot be ascribed to a love of frolic. 
 
 The last fit of this girl was peculiar. The " demons 
 having once again seized her," they made her pretend to 
 be dying, and she " urged hard for some one to die with 
 her, seeming loth to die alone. She argued concerning 
 death in strains that quite amazed us, and concluded, that 
 though she was loth to die, yet if God said she must, 
 she must ; adding something about the state of the coun- 
 try which we wondered at. Anon, the fit went over ; and 
 
COTTON MATHER. 1 25 
 
 as I guessed it would be, it was the last fit she had at 
 our house. But all my library never gave me any com- 
 mentai-y on those paragraphs of the Gospels which speak 
 of demoniacs, equal to that which the passions of this 
 child have given me." 
 
 From a postscript we learn that the children (espe- 
 cially the brother) had some annoyance afterwards, but 
 with scarcely a trace of the former severity, and then were 
 left unmolested. The story would not be complete with- 
 out adding that the oldest girl lived to be the mother of 
 a family and a respectable member of one of the churches 
 of Boston ; and that she always affirmed that the troubles 
 of her girlhood were real, and not the work of a cunning 
 and mischievous disposition. 
 
 Such is a fair statement, though brief, of the contents 
 and the spirit of the little book to which such dire con- 
 sequences as the witchcraft and executions of 1692 have 
 been ascribed. But this was not the only utterance of 
 Cotton Mather on the subject. In 1693, according to 
 Sibley's list, there appeared a " little history of several 
 very astonishing witchcrafts and possessions, which partly 
 from my ocular observation, and partly my undoubted 
 information, hath enabled me to offer unto the public 
 notice of my neighbors " (pp. 75). To this were added 
 a "discourse on the power and m.alice of devils," and 
 a "discourse on witchcraft," and an appendix to his 
 father's " Remarkable Providences," issued in 1684. 
 
 A second impression of the " Memorable Providences " 
 came out in 1691, in London. This was recommended by 
 Rev. Richard Baxter and the ministers of Boston. The 
 preface by Baxter was dated " London, Sept. the 30th, 
 1690." With all its additions this edition contained 144 
 pages. Other publications on the general subject came 
 out in 1693 and later, which could have had no influence 
 
126 LIFE AND TIMES, 
 
 in producing the calamity of 1692, and a notice of them 
 belongs to a subsequent period. But before proceeding, 
 it is important to notice the discourse of 1691, on the 
 "Wonders of the Invisible World," contained in the 
 "Memorable Providences." ^^ 
 
 Text, Revelation 12 : 12. The sermon was divided '^fw 
 five propositions : — I. There is a devil ; and many devils. 
 Legion, 12,500. II. There is a devilish wrath against 
 mankind. III. The devil, in the prosecution and execu- 
 tion of his wrath upon them, often gets a liberty to make 
 a descent upon the children of men. IV. Most horrible 
 woes come to be inflicted on mankind, when the devil does, 
 in great wrath, make a descent upon them. V. Toward 
 the end of his time, the descent of the devil in wrath 
 upon the world, will produce more woful effects than 
 ^ what have been in former ages. These propositions are 
 followed by five corollaries and three conjectures, and the 
 sermon closed with a hortatory and necessary address to 
 the country, alarmed by the wrath of the devil. Then 
 follow eight answers to the inquiry, "What shall we do .?" 
 There is much curious matter in this discourse, and it was 
 doubtless quite alarming, but we have no facts to connect 
 it closely with the delusion in Salem and vicinity, where 
 nearly all the victims resided. 
 
 The direct action of Mr. Mather to deliver individual 
 patients from the calamity — whatever was its cause — 
 was wise and philanthropic, as will be seen when we come 
 to read the story of Mercy Short and of Margaret Rule ; 
 and his influence in discrediting the validity of " spec- 
 tral evidence " in convicting those accused of using the 
 ^ diabolical arts of witchcraft will be made evident. 
 
HH CHAPTER VII. 
 
 COTTON MATHER AND THE TRIALS. — HIS METHOD OP 
 
 TREATING THE BEWITCHED. THE POSITION AND 
 
 INFLUENCE OF THE CLERGY GENERALLY IN THE 
 WITCHCRAFT VISITATION : 1692-1693. 
 
 WE have seen the course of Mr. Mather in dealing 
 with the children of the Goodwin family. This 
 was narrated in the "Memorable Providences," and if it 
 had been studied and imitated, it is possible, if not prob- 
 able, that the whole awful tragedy of blood, in 1692, 
 would have been averted. Whatever the trouble may 
 have been with those children, they had been cured ; or, '^ 
 if the reader prefers, they became sound in body and -Y^ 
 mind. If the devil was the instigating cause, working 
 through human agents styled witches, it had been shown 
 that the devil and his tools could be baffled. If bodily 
 disease were the cause of the strange phenomena that 
 amazed the good people of Essex County in the time of 
 the witch epidemic, it was made plain that the bodily 
 ailment could be overcome by gentle means. If the 
 cause was insanity, pure and simple, it had been demon- 
 strated that there was a man in the province who could 
 minister to a mind diseased. If the phenomena, whether 
 mesmeric or magnetic or spiritualistic, or what not, de- 
 fied all understanding, still it was evident for all to see 
 that there was ''balm in Gilead, and a physician there." I 
 Though Mather shared the common ignorance in regard ^ 
 to the cause of the direful phenomena, he was more than / 
 one generation ahead of his coevals in relation to the 
 
 127 
 
128 LIFE AND TIMES OF 
 
 proper treatment. Therefore his method was disregarded, 
 and the horror ran its course. 
 
 It is aside from the scope of this biography to give an 
 account of the trials of the so-called witches at Salem and 
 of the execution of the condemned. That belongs to the 
 history of the period or the annals of human delusion and 
 misfortune. Full reports are to be found in the printed 
 records and in such works as that of Mr. Upham. Our 
 task is to consider the connection of Cotton Mather with 
 the witchcraft tragedy. 
 
 I. In doing this it is pertinent to inquire into several 
 points, on the answers to which his blame or praise de- 
 pends. One question relates to the Ja^ in regard to 
 witchcraft which existed in England and in the colony 
 at the time. In the old country and in Massachusetts 
 Bay the penalty of the crime of witchcraft was cajDitai^ 
 In the original ** Body of Liberties " of the colony was 
 this article : " If any man or woman be a witch (that is, 
 hath, or consulteth with, a familiar spirit), they shall be 
 put to death." Plymouth County had a similar law in 
 1636. Those laws were made before Cotton Mather was 
 born ; before his father even saw the light of day. 
 
 II. What was the usage of the courts and what the 
 rules of evidence in England and in the colony or 
 province, as it had now become.? There was a special 
 method of obtaining evidence in the English courts, which 
 need not be specified here. It is enough to say that the 
 confession of the accused party was one ground of con- 
 demnation. The fact that the accused party had shown 
 a spirit of enmity toward a bewitched person was reason 
 for violent suspicion, though not for conviction. The 
 fact that uttered curses were followed by the sickness or 
 bodily pain and injury of the party cursed was thought 
 to be proof of the guilt of the curser, especially if the 
 
COTTON MATHER. 1 29 
 
 curses were repeated and followed by other pains and 
 molestations. There were other criteria of guilt laid 
 down in the books. B yt the ev^ 'ir^rp m^ st relied o n was 
 what was styled " spectral evidenc e." This was consid- 
 ered next in force to the actual seeing a man commit 
 a crime. It was a special kind of sight. ^ 
 
 For example, a man is accused of being a wizard; or 
 some strange old woman living alone in the skirts of the 
 forest, of being a witch. Mr. Brown is suffering in some 
 way ; it may be by pains in different parts of the body, 
 as if pinched or cut or pricked with pins, or with pining 
 sickness, all of which cannot be accounted for until Mr. 
 Brown has a sight or vision or specter of the wizard or 
 the witch present at the time of suffering ; or the sufferer 
 may see the specter of a dog or cat when in his parox- 
 ysms of pain ; and the spectral animal being struck or 
 wounded, the accused wizard or witch will be found on 
 examination to have a wound or mark on that part of the 
 body where the animal was stricken. In one case the 
 bewitcher was present in his spectral form ; in the other 
 he was present in the form of the animal. It was a case 
 of sight on both occasions ; in one, of the specter of a 
 man or woman, in the other of a brute. And this was 
 spectral evidence. But the point seems to have been 
 overlooked that no one saw the bewitcher or the animal 
 actually do anything to the sufferer ; or if they did see 
 anything done, they did not see the real presence of the 
 devil, or the witch effecting the pinch, cut, or blow. 
 
 Now, this kind of evidence was valid in English judi- 
 cial practice. It was held to be the strongest proof of 1 
 guilt. Lord Chief Justice Hale convicted of witchcraft 
 on this kind of evidence. It was the usage of the courts 
 of England for several generations before and after the 
 Salem horror. Such was "spectral evidence" as relied 
 upon in the cases tried in the courts of the Bay. 
 
130 LIFE AND TIMES OF 
 
 III. How was the court which tried the witchcraft 
 cases constituted ? It was " a special court of oyer and 
 terminer" for the specific purpose of trying those accused 
 
 \y of witchcraft, and for no other crimes. There were seven 
 judges, most, if not all, of them already familiar with the 
 duties of a judge. The chief justice was William Stough- 
 ton, a lawyer, and one of the most able and respectable men 
 in the province. Another judge was afterwards Chief 
 Justice Sewall. Though most of them were not bred 
 to the bar, they were all familiar with the law and usage 
 in regard to "spectral evidence" and all other admissible 
 testimony in regard to witchcraft. It so happened that 
 the court had the help of an English lawyer as king's 
 attorney, a Mr. Newton, who came over in the spring, 
 attended the sessions at which the witchcraft trials were 
 held, and then went to New York. The court thus con- 
 stituted conducted the trials in accordance with the law 
 of England and of the colony on the subject, and by the 
 rules laid down in an English book which was an author- 
 ity. Says Mr. Haven, already quoted : — 
 
 The tests, the manner of examination, the nature of the evidence, 
 the process of trial, and the consequences of conviction, were laid 
 down with a clearness that admitted of no evasion or misrepresenta- 
 tion, in *• Dalton's Justice," the accepted legal guide of the provinces. 
 . . . Since legislation explained and enforced by judicial decisions 
 of the highest authority, extending through several generations, had 
 clearly settled the English law and practice concerning witchcraft as 
 an acknowledged fact and felonious crime, how could our New Eng- 
 land judges avoid condemning the alleged culprits, if they believed 
 them guilty? And why should they not believe them guilty when the 
 evidence produced, the confessions, the incidents constituting the dis- 
 gusting phenomena of the offense conformed precisely to the signs^ 
 symptoms, confessions, etc., detailed in the English precedents they 
 were constrained to follow? 
 
 IV. What relation to the trials and their results had 
 
COT TON MA THER, 1 3 I 
 
 Cotton Mather ? He tells us that he was in Salem at 
 different times before the trials began, but for the pur- 
 pose of finding out, if possible, just what was the afflic- 
 tion of the bewitched and of learning what was the best 
 method of mitigating the curse. During the trials he 
 was not in Salem on a single occasion. His health was "^ 
 poor in the summer so that his usual activities were re- 
 stricted ; but there is no proof that he had any wish to 
 be present. A story is told by Calef, that Mather was 
 present once when one or more of the convicted was 
 hanged, and that he rode around on a white horse, among 
 the excited crowd, for the purpose of defending the 
 judges, against whom a portion of the people cherished 
 hostile feelings. It has been suggested that there was 
 danger of a riot and of the rescue of the prisoners. The 
 whole story is doubtful and stands on the unsupported 
 word of Robert Calef, an apparently honest man, but one 
 whose carelessness of statement renders him an unsafe 
 reliance on any point where his prejudices were at work. 
 But if Mather were present, the act may not have been 
 deserving of censure. It was his right to be there if he 
 chose to witness the scene. If he were there to uphold 
 the authority of the government and the honor of the 
 judiciary, his conduct may have deserved praise rather 
 than blame. But we dismiss the story as of no signifi- 
 cance. What is true is the fact that Cotton Mather 
 would not have condemned a single defendant on the 
 ground of spectral evidence alone ; and it is probable 
 that he regarded all the other evidence as too weak to 
 justify the taking of human life. He was assured by the 
 judges, however, that they had other evidence than spec- 
 tral and were convinced that the condemned were guilty. 
 Resting on " Dalton's Justice " as a guide, they could not 
 resist this conclusion. Mather, being a friend of the 
 
 7 
 
132 LIFE AND TIMES OF 
 
 government and of the judges, and confiding in their 
 ability and integrity, might well have felt it important to 
 resist any display of mob violence on the occasion. 
 
 However this may be, nothing is clearer, in view of the 
 facts now known, than that the clergy in general were 
 opposed to the use of spectral evidence, except as sub- 
 sidiary, and that of all the clergy Cotton Mather was the 
 most strenuous and outspoken opposer of condemning the 
 accused on such evidence. He wrote a letter to Judge 
 Richards, taking strong ground against it, and warning 
 him that it would be a serious thing in the end to take 
 the life of an alleged worker of witchcraft because of 
 spectral evidence. In this letter, of date May 31, 1692, 
 he writes as one who fully believed in witchcraft, as a 
 fact, as a sin, and as a crime which on proper conviction 
 Y/'^ deserved condign punishment ; but he was above all cau- 
 tious about securing full proof of guilt before proceeding 
 to condemn. The first paragraph shows the spirit of the 
 writer and his relation to one of the judges : — 
 
 Honorable Sir, — I could not have asked you, as I now do, to excuse 
 me from waiting upon you, with the utmost of my little skill and care 
 to assist the noble service whereto you are called of God this week, 
 the service of encountering the Wicked Spirits in the high places of 
 our Air, and of detecting and confounding of their confederates, were it 
 not that I am Languishing under such an overthrow of my health as 
 makes it very dubious that my company may prove more troublesome 
 than serviceable, the least Excesse of travell, or diet or anything that 
 may discompose me, would at this time threaten perhaps my life itself, 
 as my friends advise me ; and yet I hope before you can get far into that 
 misterious affair which is now before you, I may with God's blessing 
 recover so farr as to attend your desires, which to me always are com- 
 mands. In the meane time, least I should be guilty of any sinfull omis- 
 sion in declining what no good man amongst us can decline, even to 
 do the best I can for the strengthening of your honorable hands in 
 that worke of God, whereto (I thank him) he hath so well fitted you, 
 as well as called you, I thought it my duty briefly to offer you my 
 poor thoughts on this astonishing occasion. 
 
COTTON MATHER. 1 33 
 
 Then, reminding the judge that good people had been 
 ** fasting and praying" for the direction of the court, and 
 that such devotions in " Swedeland had been immediately 
 followed with a remarkable smile of God upon the endeav- 
 ors of the judges to discover and extirpate " the authors 
 of witchcraft, he proceeds in the words following : — 
 
 And yet I must most humbly beg you that in the management of the 
 affair in your most worthy hands, you do not lay more stress upon pure 
 spectre testimony than it will bear. When you are satisfied or have 
 good, plain, legal evidence that the daemons which molest our poor 
 neighbors, do indeed represent such and such people to the sufferers, 
 though this be a presumption, yet I suppose you will not reckon it a 
 conviction that the people so represented are witches to be immedi- 
 ately exterminated. It is very certain that the devils have sometimes 
 represented the shapes of persons not only innocent, but also very 
 vertuous. Though I believe that the just God then ordinarily provides 
 a way for the speedy vindication of the persons thus abused. ... I 
 would say this : if upon the bare supposal of a poor creature being 
 represented by a spectre, too great a progress be made by the Author- 
 ity in ruining a poor neighbor so represented, it may be that a door 
 may be thereby opened for the devils to obtain from the courts in the 
 invisible world a license to proceed unto most hideous desolations 
 upon the repute and repose of such as have yet been kept from the 
 great transgression. If mankind have thus far once consented unto 
 the credit of diabolical representations, the door is opened ! Perhaps 
 there are wise and good men, that may be ready to style him that shall 
 advance this caution, a witch advocate, but in the winding up, this 
 caution will certainly be wished for. 
 
 In another letter addressed to a Mr. Sewall, of Salem, 
 Mr. Mather took the same position. Another paper, 
 signed by the ministers of Boston and vicinity, includ- 
 ing President Increase Mather, while urging the judges 
 to be firm in applying the law against offenders, also 
 strongly urged that spectral evidence would not warrant 
 conviction of the crime of witchcraft. That paper was 
 not only signed by Cotton Mather, but was written by 
 him. There is reason to believe that spectral evidence 
 
134 
 
 LIFE AND TIMES OF 
 
 was influential in securing condemnation in all, or nearly 
 all, the convicted cases. It is probable that if the judges 
 had listened to the clergy instead of the English lawyer, 
 if they had had the courage to break away from English 
 law, usage, and precedent, but a few, if any, would have 
 suffered death for the crime of witchcraft at the time. 
 The odium which has clung to the name of Cotton 
 Mather took its start from the publications of Robert Calef 
 in later years, and the consideration of that writer's alle- 
 gations will come up at the proper date. It is not nec- 
 essary to do more in this place than to state that nothing 
 in Calef s writings can shake the position above taken. 
 
 That Mather made a great mistake in relation to witch- 
 craft, and that the consequences were deplorable, is not 
 to be questioned ; but his mistake was common to all min- 
 isters, judges, lawyers, physicians, and people of his age, 
 with rare exceptions. He partly discovered his error near 
 the close of his life. The explanation is reserved for the 
 present. For the vindication of Mather, we are much in- 
 debted to Mr. William Poole, formerly of the Athenaeum, 
 and now of the Newberry Library at Chicago, and also to 
 the late Delano Goddard, of Worcester and Boston. 
 
 We have now seen that Cotton Mather was not spe- 
 cially responsible for the outbreak of the witchcraft hor- 
 ror in Salem village in 1692, by the publication of his 
 /book in 1689; that he exerted no influence in causing the 
 accused to be condemned, but rather sought to save life by 
 interposing the plea that spectral evidence was not valid 
 ground for conviction, and specially urging privately and 
 publicly, orally and in writing and in print, the danger 
 of evil consequences if such convictions were secured on 
 such testimony, and that he strenuously insisted that the 
 devil could personate good as well as bad men, and so 
 fix charges on the innocent if spectral evidence were 
 
COTTON MATHER. 1 35 
 
 received. And since he took the lead in this action he 
 merits praise rather than censure for his part in the 
 matter. But this is not all ; he deserves the peculiar 
 honor of doing more than any other man, or any ten 
 men, to heal the suffering and restore the deranged to 
 soundness. 
 
 In line with his treatment of the Goodwin children, 
 four years before, was his action in relation to two 
 somewhat similar cases in 1692-1693. These patients 
 were Mercy Short and Margaret Rule ; of his treatment 
 in the cases of these females, Mr. Mather wrote a brief 
 narrative. That of Mercy Short is still in manuscript, 
 and was not known to exist until within a few years, 
 when it was found among the manuscripts in the Anti- 
 quarian Library at Worcester. Indeed the knowledge 
 that there ever was such a manuscript was owing to the 
 title of the Margaret Rule narrative, which was " Another 
 Trophy Gathered." This last-mentioned pamphlet when 
 in manuscript, in some way not known, got into the hands 
 of Robert Calef, and by him was published without the 
 consent of the author. 
 
 As the story of Mercy Short is still in manuscript, 
 and under the restriction of the rules of the Antiquarian 
 Society, only an extremely brief view of it can be given 
 here. She had been captured by the eastern Indians, 
 who butchered her father, mother, sister, and others of 
 her kindred. She was then taken to Canada, with three 
 brothers and two sisters, from Berwick, Maine. Having 
 been redeemed, she was brought to Boston with others. 
 It was in this year that Mr. Mather made this entry in 
 the church records : " Our congregation gathered sixty- 
 two pounds, odd shillings, for the redemption of our cap- 
 tives in the hands of the Indians." Mercy Short was 
 bewitched by one Sarah Good, afterwards executed at 
 
136 LIFE AND TIMES OF 
 
 Salem. "A world of misery did she endure." Among 
 other hardships, she "was made to fast twelve days 
 together." 
 
 The remedy employed by Mr. Mather was ** fasting with 
 prayer." Every day a number of people came into her 
 room and prayed with her. Singing was mingled with 
 prayer. She had a blessed deliverance, except faint fits 
 about New Year's. 
 
 We are told that the pious people in the north part of 
 Boston — in Mather's parish — " did very much pray with 
 the young woman, as /"^r her." The young people in the 
 vicinity, as we learn from Mather's diary, held several 
 prayer meetings, statedly (the sexes apart), and these 
 were sometimes held in the " haunted chamber." It is 
 said that there was scarce a night for near a month which 
 was not spent in devotion by those who watched. Finally, 
 on the evening of March 16, 1693, the ^' black man and 
 evil spirit, left her, and returned no more." She was still 
 weak in body, but recovered strength by degrees. This 
 is a very brief r^sum^ of a long account of the patient's 
 symptoms or torments ; but in addition to the regulation 
 of her diet, she was placed, as it were, in an atmosphere 
 of loving sympathy and prayer. The means were blessed 
 to the recovery of mental soundness and ultimately the 
 restoration of physical health. 
 
 The story of Margaret Rule is another illustration of 
 the fact that Cotton Mather was in advance of his age in 
 his method of treating persons of disordered symptoms, 
 whether in body or mind. 
 
 It is said of this girl that she was " born of sober and 
 honest parents, and that she was careful to avoid the 
 snares of evil company ; " she had never seen the afflic- 
 tions of Mercy Short ; but half a year after the " deliver- 
 ance of that poor damsel," she fell into a similar affliction. 
 
COTTON MATHER. 137 
 
 On Lord's day, September 10, 1693, she was "disturbed 
 in the public assembly, and fell into odd fits." In some 
 way a "miserable woman in a house hard by had been 
 provoked by Margaret, with no apparent ill-intention ; but 
 in resentment, the woman threatened her with dire evils. 
 Afflictions followed, such as were usual in cases of witch- 
 craft. Friends prayed for her. She was assaulted by 
 eight cruel specters. She imagined that she knew three 
 or four of them, but they came with faces covered. She 
 was cautioned not to mention their names ; but she pri- 
 vately named them to Mr. Mather." "They were," he 
 says, " a sort of wretches, who for many years had gone 
 under as violent presumptions of witchcraft, as perhaps 
 any persons yet living upon earth ; though I am far from 
 thinking that the visions of this young woman were 
 evidence enough to prove them so." 
 
 But there is no need of detailing the phenomena in the 
 case of Margaret Rule. It would be mostly a repetition 
 of what occurred in the experience of many others. One 
 incident will be noted, however, because it reveals the 
 animus of Robert Calef towards Mr. Mather. It was as 
 follows : — 
 
 Once the spectators thought they perceived something 
 stir upon Margaret's pillow at a little distance from her, 
 "whereupon one present, laying his hand there, he to his 
 horror, apprehended that he felt, though none could see it, 
 a living creature, not altogether unlike a rat, which nimbly 
 escaped from him " ; others were thrown into " great con- 
 sternation " by the same thing. The above are the words 
 of Dr. Mather. This is the scene in which Robert Calef 
 represents Cotton Mather to have behaved himself with 
 gross and unbecoming indecency, and it was the reading 
 of his representation which first excited my suspicion 
 that he was hostile to Mather, notwithstanding his pro- 
 
138 LIFE AND TIMES OF 
 
 testations of respect and candor. This will be referred 
 to again. 
 
 In view of the case of Margaret Rule, we need not stop 
 to inquire how much of this mass of strange and diabolical 
 facts or fancies would be left as solid truth if it had been 
 subjected to the scrutiny of sharp-sighted and incredulous 
 examiners at the time. On one point there need be little, 
 if any, doubt. Something was the matter with her. She 
 was either morally or physically *'out of order." If she 
 was a cunning impostor, or if the unhappy subject of a 
 direful experience, as she claimed and the people believed, 
 she needed judicious treatment. 
 
 And now the inquiry comes up and demands a candid 
 answer : Could any treatment have been more wise and 
 Christian than that pursued by Cotton Mather in his 
 time ? Prayer and regulation of the food are potent in 
 \/ their healing influence. They help nature mightly. If 
 she was a rogue, a regimen of prayer and fasting would 
 soon become irksome. If she was deluded, nothing would 
 be more potent in restoring soundness of mind. If she 
 was possessed of the devil, what could be more hateful to 
 evil spirits than the frequent prayers of Cotton Mather 
 and his father, and the other friends who were enlisted to 
 pray for the victim of their malice .-* Settle this as we 
 may, the girl was cured. 
 
 Turning from this episode, we proceed with the nar- 
 rative. 
 
 The trials, convictions, and executions went on in that 
 fateful summer, until '^\j^y or seventy were a ccused as 
 wj |rhp s. and until .jajn eteen w ere hanged. One, Giles 
 Corey, was pressed to death. This case requires special 
 mention, as the story has been so told as to lay undue 
 blame on the judges, and at the same time withhold mer- 
 ited honor from Mr. Corey. He was condemned on the 
 
COTTON MATHER. 1 39 
 
 same evidence as governed the court in other cases, but 
 as he refused to plead, he was sentenced to be pressed to 
 dqath. according to English law and usage. In this the 
 judgft were not actuated by caprice or cruelty, but were 
 guided either by the suggestions of an English lawyer 
 present, or by their own knowledge of the English law 
 in such case made and provided. But the refusal of 
 Mr. Corey to plead was not the result of contumacy 
 or contempt for the constituted authorities, but sprang 
 from his desire to secure his jpr operty to his heirs, ^.s by 
 English law in such cases the property of the con- 
 demned was not confiscated. It was a noble act on his 
 part, and it secures him a bright record in our history. 
 Many others were accused and some were in jail, but the 
 term of the special court had come to an end and no 
 more trials could be had until the regular session of the 
 Superior Court in September. 
 
 At the session of the Superior Court in December, the 
 court cleared forty of those on trial, and condemned three 
 at Boston. Graves were dug for these three and for five 
 more who had been convicted at Salem : but these were 
 all reprieved by Governor Phips. This interposition grew 
 out of several causes. There was a revulsion of the pub- 
 lic mind against capital convictions for witchcraft. There 
 was a growing feeling that "spectral evidence" was a 
 delusion. The ministers, seeing that persons were con- 
 demned on such evidence, were more than willing to have 
 all judicial proceedings stayed. The governor had been 
 away in Maine suppressing hostile Indians, but on his 
 return, having time to examine the matter, appears to 
 have made up his mind that executive interposition was 
 demanded. He therefore reprieved those who were under 
 sentence of death. 
 
 It has been surmised that he was moved to this course 
 
140 LIFE AND TIMES OF 
 
 because accusations had been made against his wife. 
 There is no proof that such was his governing motive. 
 It is easier to suppose from all we know of the man* and 
 of the time, that he believed the executions were unjus- 
 tifiable. Some also think they see in his decision proof 
 that his confidence in the Mathers was shaken. This is 
 another of those surmises for which there is no proof 
 whatever. To the last, unshaken confidence existed be- 
 tween them. The better conclusion is that the Mathers, 
 father and son, grieved that the court had condemned 
 suspected persons without adequate proof, influenced the 
 governor to put a stop to the work of death. If they had 
 disapproved his action, they were not the men to keep 
 silence. If they advised him to stay execution, they were 
 not the men to publish the fact. The result was a 
 complete stoppage of the course of judicial proceedings. 
 Judge Stoughton, in February, 1693, declined attending 
 the sessions of the court any longer, on the ground that 
 the execution of justice was obstructed. Stoughton never 
 seems to have doubted that his course was according to 
 divine and human law, any more than Sir Matthew Hale 
 and other great judges of England ; but Judge Sewall, 
 and probably some others of the judges, not steeped in 
 English law or fettered by English usage, became con- 
 vinced that these capital sentences were not justifiable, and 
 that in consequence innocent lives had been sacrificed. 
 
 The relation of Cotton Mather to the witchcraft horror 
 demands that distinct mention should be made of the 
 fact that while several prisoners were in jail he offered 
 to take six of the accused into his own family for the 
 purpose of testing the same regimen which he had suc- 
 cessfully tried in the case of the Goodwin children, Mercy 
 Short, and Margaret Rule. He hoped that others would 
 follow his example, and that the results, in restoring the 
 
COTTON MATHER, 
 
 141 
 
 afflicted to soundness, would be beneficial. The author- 
 ities declined the proposal for reasons not given. Perhaps 
 they perceived that the baleful epidemic had spent its 
 force. But here comes to view a specimen of injustice 
 in which the maligners of Cotton Mather are adepts. It 
 is more than hinted by writers of reputation that the de- 
 sign of Mather in his proposal was to get these bewitched 
 into his house and under his influence, that he might from 
 them elicit accusations against men obnoxious to himself,, 
 and thus bring them under his power. In regard to this,, 
 there is no proof that he ever used such power. He 
 warned the patients under his care not to make accusa- 
 tions against any. If they confided any names, they were 
 locked up with the secrets of his breast. As if to re- 
 move all fear, he expressly said that all the names men- 
 tioned to him were those of the lowest kind of wretches; 
 and in relation to them the evidence was not such as 
 entitled it to any weight. But aside from all this, the 
 suspicion that Cotton Mather would collect such informa- 
 tion for the purpose of holding his enemies in dread is 
 monstrous. It can be accounted for only by the fact 
 stated by Mr. Drake (already quoted) that the odium 
 attached to Mather's name half a century ago was such 
 as to bring disgrace upon any one who ventured to speak 
 well of him. 
 
CHAPTER VIII. 
 
 EVENTS IN THE YEARS 1693-I695. 
 
 WE have referred to two matters under the date of 
 1692 which reached into 1693 (N. S.), but which 
 were connected with the former year, as then was the 
 usage when the year extended to the twenty-fifth of 
 March. One was the adoption of the so-called " half- 
 way " scheme ; the other was a case of witchcraft healing. 
 As Mr. Mather's birthday was February 12, and as he 
 kept his diary by his birthdays, we are in danger of 
 mixing up the dates of events in his life. 
 
 In the first place reference will be made to the records 
 of the church in 1693. From this source we learn that 
 thirty-one were received into the church by confession. 
 In another place the pastor writes of a larger number of 
 converts. Perhaps some joined later or united with one 
 of the other churches in the town. One person was 
 admitted on the ** halfway " plan, as already stated. The 
 record under date January 1 5 reads : " Received into 
 covenant Mary Sunderland, and her son John baptized; 
 this being the first so admitted in pursuance of the 
 church's address unto me for that purpose and practice." 
 
 On the twenty-ninth of October he " baptized Richard, 
 of a negro father, a member of the church in Cambridge, 
 and of a negro mother, a member of the Church in 
 Maldon." Perhaps the parents now lived together in 
 Boston. 
 
 It is recorded, December 10, that " our congregation 
 made a collection of about fifty-three pounds for the 
 
 14a 
 
COTTON MATHER. 
 
 143 
 
 redemption of two persons that were in Turkish cap- 
 tivity." 
 
 Turning now to the diary for 1693, we find the fol- 
 lowing under date of February 12: "This day, having 
 finished the 30th year of my age, through the wonder- 
 ful patience and goodness of God, I preached unto my 
 congregation as agreeable things as I could, upon Psalm 
 102: 24: *I said, O my God, take me not away in the 
 midst of my days.'" By the word "agreeable," as often 
 used by Mr. Mather, we are not to understand that he 
 studied to preach pleasant things, but truths that were 
 suited to meet the wants of his people. 
 
 At this time he "set himself to preach on the whole 
 Epistle of Jude, as being a rich portion of Scripture, fit 
 for our time and place." Other topics were to be inter- 
 mingled, for he took special pains to give great variety to 
 his pulpit services. 
 
 The case of one of the young women who were " horri- 
 bly possessed of the devil," and had been "cast on his 
 care," should be referred to here, because of two or three 
 particulars not noticed heretofore. He called on some 
 devout neighbors to unite in prayer for her, and they kept 
 three successive days in this exercise. "When freed, 
 they had a time of solemn thanksgiving." Her " tor- 
 ments returned," and he again resorted to prayer, with 
 others, and she was restored. This person in due time 
 was received into the church. He adds : " Many others, 
 even four scores of young people, awakened by the 
 picture of hell exhibited in her sufferings, were led to 
 flee from the wrath to come." Doubtless these things 
 had their influence upon the fifty-four persons who 
 were received into the Second Church in the years 
 1693-1694. 
 
 In this season Mr. Mather had " many wonderful enter- 
 
144 LIP^ A^D TIMES OF 
 
 tainments from the spiritual world." He never failed, in 
 the stress of public duties, to take special care of his 
 interior spiritual life. He kept "many days of secret 
 humiliation before the Lord, not recorded " ; but one day, 
 he writes that "his special errand before the Lord," was 
 to entreat the Lord to give him the assistance of the Holy 
 Angels. He wanted those kindnesses which the Scrip- 
 tures said belonged to the heirs of salvation. But, he 
 says, " I requested that I might receive those kindnesses 
 in a manner and measure more transcendent than what 
 the great corruptions in the generahty of good men per- 
 mitted them to be made partakers of." He resolved that 
 he would not, on the " score of angelical communications, 
 forsake the written word," and he took pains to do what 
 would please the angels. His wisdom in receiving nothing 
 not in accordance with the " written word " kept him 
 from the baleful fanaticism of too many who have fancied 
 themselves to be favored with direct communications from 
 the spiritual world.* He resolved to "conceal, with all 
 prudent secrecy, whatever extraordinary things " he might 
 perceive to be done for himself by the angels, who "love 
 secrecy in their administrations." At the same time he 
 expressed the belief that " some great things would be 
 done by the angels " in his behalf. 
 
 On the twenty-fifth of March a son was born to him of 
 a " most comely and hearty look." Friends made cordial 
 expressions of satisfaction, as this was the first boy after 
 three girls, the first of whom had been taken away. But 
 the child lived only five days, having a defect which was 
 fatal to life. At the funeral there was a " numerous and 
 honorable attendance." The child "died unbaptized," but 
 on the gravestone the father had these words written : 
 "Reserved for a glorious resurrection." It has been a 
 common slander that our fathers generally believed in the 
 
COTTON MATHER. 
 
 145 
 
 damnation of infants, especially if not baptized. Mr. 
 Mather's hopes at the decease of his children are 
 expressed in the above epitaph. 
 
 There were suspicions of witchcraft in connection with 
 this bereavement, as the mother supposed she had seen a 
 specter a few days before the birth which strangely affected 
 her, and a suspected woman had written to the father that 
 something evil was to happen. In view of these tokens 
 he wrote : " However I made little use of, and laid little 
 stress on this conjecture, desiring to submit unto the 
 will of my heavenly Father, without which not a sparrow 
 falleth to the ground." 
 
 No minister felt more keenly the pressure of the times 
 upon him, or more wisely improved occasions. There are 
 some topics which cannot be usefully treated unless in 
 connection with others in course, or when some event has 
 fixed the public mind upon them. The seventh command- 
 ment is an example. Mr. Mather felt the embarrassment 
 but failed not to improve the occasion when one occurred. 
 He wrote in his diary in June : " Many and many a weary 
 hour did I spend in the prison to serve the souls of those 
 miserable creatures." He referred to a young woman of 
 Haverhill and a negro woman of Boston, under "sentence 
 of death for the murdering of their bastard children." 
 He preached the sermon preceding their execution, which 
 was printed with the title : " Warnings from the Dead, or 
 solemn admonitions unto all people, but especially unto 
 young persons, to beware of such evils as would bring 
 them to the dead." There were two sermons, in fact, 
 with the last confession of one of the parties. One of the 
 sermons had been preached before, but both were now 
 printed and the pamphlet was "greedily bought up." It 
 was afterwards printed in London. There was something 
 singular in the manner of his having this opportunity to 
 
146 LIFE AND TIMES OF 
 
 preach. He writes : " I had often wished for an oppor- 
 tunity to bear my testimonies against y^ sins of unclean- 
 ness, wherein so many of my generation do pollute 
 themselves." While the unhappy women were in prison 
 he **had often opportunities in his own congregation to 
 speak to them, and from them, to vast multitudes of 
 others. Their execution was ordered to have been upon 
 the lecture of another [minister] ; but by a very strange 
 providence, without any seeking of mine, or any respect 
 to me, (that I know of) the order for their execution was 
 altered, and it fell on my lecture day. I did then, with 
 the special assistance of heaven, make and preach a ser- 
 mon upon Job 36 : 14, whereat one of the greatest assem- 
 blies ever known in these parts of the world was come 
 together." He had obtained from one of the condemned 
 a "pathetical instrument in writing, wherein she owned 
 her miscarriages, and warned the rising generation of 
 theirs." Towards the end of the service, he read the con- 
 fession to the congregation, and made what use of it he 
 thought proper, and then "accompanied the wretches to 
 the execution." The impression on the community, par- 
 ents and children, must have been something tremendous. 
 A fast day was kept on the day after commencement, 
 in the Old or First meetinghouse, on account of the 
 extreme drouth. Mr. Mather preached both parts of the 
 day, and he says that " God inclined some of his people 
 to print the sermon." The title was, "The Day and the 
 Work of the Day." The amount of thought in the dis- 
 course may be inferred from the full title-page, as fol- 
 lows : " What fears we may have at this time to 
 awaken us ; what hopes there are for us at this time to 
 comfort us ; and what prayers would be likely to turn 
 our fears into hopes, with reflections upon the state now 
 come upon the church of God ; and collections of 
 
COTTON MATHER. 
 
 147 
 
 certain prophecies relating to the present circumstances 
 of New England." 
 
 Near this time the good people of Reading kept a day 
 of prayer that the " rising generation of the place might 
 be made a praying and pious generation." Mr. Mather 
 was invited to preach, and a "vast assemblage " heard him 
 with " extraordinary attention and affection," and he hoped 
 with "successes very comfortable." 
 
 It was early in this year that he conceived the plan 
 of writing the " Church History of New England ; The 
 Magnalia." The subject having been laid before the 
 neighboring ministers, they encouraged him to proceed. 
 He " cried mightily to God " that he might glorify God in 
 the undertaking. This was the origin of the greatest 
 literary enterprise in the first century of New England ;, 
 a work which will carry the author's name and fame down 
 through distant centuries. 
 
 In July a "most pestilential fever" was brought into 
 Boston from the West Indies by the British fleet. It was 
 the dreaded and fatal yellow fever. The sailors and sol- 
 diers had been in the "disastrous expedition to Marti- 
 nico." King William's war with France, in its wide scope, 
 involved not only Europe but the North American col- 
 onies and the West India Islands. The personal expe- 
 rience of Mr. Mather at this time will be read with inter- 
 est. He became much exposed to the disease, and had 
 what he considered a "merciful preservation." Some of 
 the officers desired him to go down to an island in the 
 harbor and preach to the sick. On the way he was sud- 
 denly taken ill, and was obliged to return. As soon as he 
 reached home he was well, and preached in the afternoon 
 to his people, when the admiral and principal commanders 
 came to hear him. He records that, " knowing the horrid 
 wickedness of those who were now come to be my hearers^ 
 
148 LIFE AND TIMES OF 
 
 I preached unto them on Ps^ 119: 59 : * I thought on my 
 ways, and turned my feet unto thy testimonies ' ; and my 
 God helped me in it." He records his belief that a ''good 
 angel struck him " with the sickness while on the water, 
 and compelled him to return, thus saving him frpm fatal 
 exposure. 
 
 The disease got into the town, and many fell under its 
 power. Mr. Mather was indefatigable, both in the pulpit 
 and in private visitations, improving the opportunity to 
 promote sanitary measures and to lead dying men to God. 
 His exposure was great, for he was not a man to shrink 
 from danger ; but he was preserved. He informs us that 
 he had some ** singular dispositions " in these dying times, 
 and became more ready to die than ever before. He 
 became also more desirous than ever before to visit 
 the widow and the orphan — the "headless families" of 
 the flock. 
 
 In the thick of all this toil and affliction, he tried to 
 serve his " ungrateful country," as he styled it, by writing 
 a " True and Brief Representation " of the country, with 
 the posture of men and things in it. By the aid of the 
 governor, Phips, he had it privately sent to England and 
 put into the hands of King William, who *' read it with 
 much satisfaction." Probably this letter was never in 
 print, as it is not noted in any catalogue which has come 
 under my notice. 
 
 One of the publications of this year was entitled " Unum 
 Necessarium, or awakenings for the unregenerate." It 
 contains notes of two or three sermons upon regenera- 
 tion preached seven years before, with two or three 
 more delivered nearer the time of publication. The 
 volume contained 165 pages, small octavo, and probably 
 comprised the substance of his discourse at Reading, 
 noted above. He was moved to this by the low state 
 
COTTON MATHER. 149 
 
 of religion in those years (1688-1693) and by the po- 
 litical and witchcraft troubles. Perhaps these calamities 
 had diverted the public mind from those religious truths 
 which most deeply concern the character and eternal wel- 
 fare of men. The sermons are valuable now chiefly 
 because they show the condition of society at the time, 
 and the readiness of Mather to meet any exigency of the 
 church. 
 
 In the introduction he says : — 
 
 There are three most undoing mischiefs which threaten my country 
 with grievous confusions ; yea, there are four evils that have a dire 
 aspect upon us, boding like something of barbarism and extinction, 
 unless the plentiful effusions of the good Spirit from on high relieve 
 the inconveniences of our wilderness. The first is, the neglect and 
 contempt of a well-formed education, appearing in a backwardness to 
 encourage schools of learning ; and a disposition unto a way of living 
 so scattered as that it may be called a running wild into the woods. 
 The second is the slothful, careless, quarrelsome delay of destitute 
 churches to furnish themselves with officers appointed by the Lord 
 Jesus Christ for their edification; by which omission, plantations 
 quickly become full, either of sinners pining away in their iniquities, 
 or of Christians plagued with leanness sent into their souls. The 
 third is, the crime of ingratitude unto public servants, and the making 
 of censure, slander and hatred the common pay of such as with most 
 inviolate integrity seek the common good, which unthankfiilness will, 
 at last, make our times perilous, because it will render us friendless 
 and helpless. But the fourth and worst of all is the lamentable want of 
 regeneration in the rising generation. The God of heaven is with no 
 less terrible, than evident blows from heaven rebuking of that genera- 
 tion ; but alas, how few of them do seriously consider on the con- 
 dition of their own souls ! How few of them do suitably reflect on the 
 end for which God at first made them, or for which he now smites 
 them ! How few of them do become experimentally acquainted with 
 that faith, and repentance, and holiness, without which no man shall see 
 the Lord ! It is indeed matter of exceeding joy that there are so many 
 of our young ones that have their faces Zionward ; but it is of all 
 griefs the most bitter and pungent, that there are no more. 
 
 We have here a picture of New England near the 
 
150 LIFE AND TIMES OF 
 
 close of the seventeenth century. The people were strag- 
 gling off into the wilderness to form new settlements. 
 Such settlements always tend to barbarism, unless the 
 settlers are peculiarly earnest in religion, or are followed 
 up by the good people of the towns from which they have 
 departed. Being few and scattered, they are unable to 
 have good schools, and an ignorant generation grows up 
 and propagates its kind. For the same reason the people 
 find it hard to build meetinghouses and sustain ministers ; 
 especially so if they are divided on points of doctrine or 
 modes of worship. Besides, a large part of the people 
 in the same township live remote from the sanctuary and 
 are unable to attend with regularity. As a natural result 
 the state of vital religion is low, and few are induced to 
 enter on a devout and Christian life. All these adverse 
 circumstances the pious people of the time had to meet 
 and, by the help of God, overcome. It needed all the zeal 
 and energy of the Mathers and their worthy compeers to 
 maintain the cause of good order, education, civilization, 
 and religion. We hear it said quite often that the era of 
 Home Missions began about a century later than the time 
 of which we are writing ; but the fact is that all during 
 the first century of our history the work of home missions 
 was done by colonization. The good people in the old 
 towns sent not merely missionaries, as we do, but parted 
 with their own godly men and women, to form new towns 
 and churches in the wilderness. 
 
 Two other publications evince the wide scope of Mr. 
 Mather's thoughts, and his strong desire to reach the 
 minds of the people. One was called *' Winter Medita- 
 tions." In about eighty pages he treats of the way to 
 "employ the leisure of the winter for the glory of God." 
 It is addressed to the " Rt. Worshipful Sir John Hartop, 
 knight and baronet." No abstract can be given of this 
 
CO TTON MA THER. I 5 I 
 
 work, SO full of thought and illustration. The reader 
 must search for himself on the title-page, which reads : 
 ** Directions how to employ the leisure of the winter for 
 the glory of God, accompanied with reflections as well 
 historical as theological, not only upon the circumstances 
 of the winter, but also upon the notable works of God, 
 both in creation and providence ; especially those which 
 more immediately concern every particular man in the 
 whole course of his life ; and upon the religious works 
 wherewith every man should acknowledge God, in and 
 from the accidents of the winter." 
 
 This was a year fruitful in great plans as well as of 
 good works. Besides the Magnalia, Mr. Mather con- 
 ceived the plan of what he always considered the greatest 
 single work of his life. Toward the end of the summer 
 he began to work on the " Biblia Americana." The 
 birth of this enterprise is thus recorded : — 
 
 With many cries unto the God of heaven, that he would by his good 
 Spirit, assist me in my undertaking, and that he would employ his 
 good angels to supply me from time to time, with materials for it, I set 
 myself, every morning, to write upon a portion of Scripture, that should 
 have in it something of curiosity. I considered that all the learning in 
 the world might be made gloriously subservient unto the illustration of 
 Scripture, and that no professed Commentary had hitherto given so 
 much of illustration unto it as might be given. I considered that 
 multitudes of particular texts had, especially of late years, been more 
 notably illustrated in the scattered books of learned men, than in any 
 of the ordinary commentators, and I considered that the treasures 
 of illustrations for the Bible, dispersed in the volumes of this age, 
 might be fetched all together by a laborious ingenuity. 
 
 Accordingly, resolving still to give the church of God such displays 
 of his blessed Word as may be more entertaining for the novelty and 
 variety of them, than any that have hitherto been seen together, in any 
 exposition, and yet such as may be acceptable unto the most judicious 
 for the demonstrative truth of them, and unto the most orthodox for 
 the regard had to the analogy of faith in all, I now began my Great 
 Work. 
 
152 
 
 LIFE AND TIMES OF 
 
 I thought that after the rate of one illustration in a day, I might, if 
 the Lord would spare my life but seven years more, have without sen- 
 sible hardship, gotten together a number of golden keys for his precious 
 Word, and learned, charming and curious notes on his Word, far 
 beyond any that had yet seen the light. Or, if I died in the midst of 
 my work, yet my labor might not be in vain in the Lord. It would 
 be worth the while, though I furnished none but myself with such 
 accomplishments for a minister of the gospel. 
 
 The work was never published. A fuller notice of it the 
 author would be glad to make, but space forbids. As we 
 proceed, the reader will bear in mind that, amid all his 
 multiplied labors and cares for nearly a score of years, 
 the author was assiduously carrying forward this stupen- 
 dous work, and in the doing of it enriching his own 
 mind, while adding greatly to the variety, beauty, and solid 
 worth of his own public ministrations. 
 
 Early in September he went to Salem to gather material 
 for his Church History. Another object was to collect 
 information about the " History of the Witchcrafts and 
 Possessions." The result was the publication of "The 
 Wonders of the Invisible World," which first came out 
 this year in a volume of about 1 50 pages, but which was 
 enlarged and reprinted. The second, third, and fourth 
 editions were reprints in London. The fifth edition, 
 London, with an addition by President Mather, bears date 
 1862, and fills about 300 pages. It contains a '* narrative 
 of a late outrage committed by a knot of witches in 
 Swedeland," which resembled the cases of possession in 
 New England. The work shows the undoubting faith of 
 the people in those times in witchcraft, and gives counsel 
 about the " methods to prevent the wrongs which those 
 evil angels may intend against all sorts of people among 
 us, especially in accusations of the innocent." As usual, 
 none but base motives have been ascribed to the Mathers 
 and others by their opposers for publishing this book, but 
 
CO TTON MA THER. 1 5 5 
 
 the reason given by Cotton Mather would seem to be all- 
 sufficient. It was not to "uphold the waning power of the 
 clergy," but to suppress, so far as possible, by the force of 
 public opinion, rather than by the penalties of law, the 
 prevalence of witchcraft. 
 
 On the third of October the diary reads : " My daughter 
 Mary was taken very dangerously sick of a fever, with a 
 vomiting, and with worms. I was with a strange diversion 
 on my spirit, hindered from importunate prayer for the 
 life of the sick child, but at length, on October 5, in the 
 evening, I had my heart wonderfully melted in prayer at 
 my father Phillips, where the child lay sick." He resigned 
 the child unto the *' mercy of God in Jesus Christ, with 
 such rapturous assurances of the Divine love unto me and 
 mine, as would have made amends for the death of more 
 children, if God had then called for them." He felt 
 assured that this child should not only be happy forever, 
 but that he should never have any child except what 
 should be an everlasting temple to the Spirit of God. 
 On Friday, the 6th, the child Mary died, " near a month 
 short of two years old." This would fix the birth in the 
 early part of November, 1691. The funeral, with an 
 "honorable attendance," was next day, in Boston, and on 
 one of the gravestones in Copp's Hill burying yard the 
 father had chiseled, as expressing his hope, these words : 
 " Gone, but not lost." 
 
 No child, out of four, was now left to him except 
 his little Katharine, about four years of age, a bright 
 and charming child. The next day was Sunday, the 
 8th, and he both preached and administered the Lord's 
 Supper. Text, Genesis 22: 12 : "Now I know that thou 
 fearest God." I quote but this remark: "A man may, 
 by many tokens, come to know that he has in him the 
 fear of God ; but a right behavior under afflictions is the 
 
154 LIFE AND TIMES OF 
 
 token that will more especially and eminently serve to 
 make it known." 
 
 The Tuesday following was a day of military diversions 
 to the whole town, but he spent the day in prayer with 
 fasting in his study. He considered many of his " hum- 
 bling circumstances," both as to his sins and his sorrows, 
 especially in the breaches made upon his family. He was 
 grieved also by the " reproaches with which the unworthy, 
 ungodly, ungrateful people do load, not myself only, but 
 both of my fathers too." A party at the time was dis- 
 satisfied with the charter obtained by President Mather, 
 and both he and Colonel Phillips shared in the odium 
 stirred up by the enemies of Governor Phips. It was a 
 humor of the people, ever to be expected by men in 
 public life. 
 
 About this time Mr. Mather prayed for a " young woman 
 possessed with evil spirits," and desired the Lord to make 
 it his business to engage his neighbors to pray for the 
 girl. He adds : "■ In the close of this day a wonderful 
 spirit in bright raiment, with a face unseen, appeared unto 
 this young woman, and bade her count on me as her father, 
 and regard me, and obey me as her father ; for, she said, 
 the Lord had given her to me, and she should now, in a 
 few days, be delivered. It proved so." This was one of 
 those persons who about this time thought they saw 
 "shining spirits," while others saw the specters of evil 
 spirits. These were what Dr. Abercrombie styled " spec- 
 tral illusions." They seem — ** the shining spirits " — 
 like those bright dreams which sometimes thrill us just 
 before waking, and which, though appearing real, fade 
 away like morning mist in the sunshine. 
 
 All classes of people, the unfortunate, the sorrowful, 
 the nervous, prisoners, the despised, and the poor, seemed 
 to resort to Mr. Mather as a friend and adviser. The 
 
COTTON MATHER. 
 
 155 
 
 negro servants in the town had few privileges, and though 
 not in the abject condition of chattel slaves in the south, 
 were yet at the bottom in the social scale, and were, for 
 the most part, ignorant, and were treated with contempt. 
 But the following citation proves that some of them had 
 a desire to improve their state, and knew to whom they 
 could apply. The diary reads : '* Besides other praying 
 and pious meetings which I have been continually serving 
 in my neighborhood, a little after this time a company of 
 poor negroes, of their own accord, addressed me for my 
 countenance to a design which they had of erecting such 
 a meeting for the welfare of their miserable nation that 
 were servants among us. I allowed their design, and 
 went one evening, and prayed, and preached with them, 
 and gave them the following orders." These he inserted 
 in his diary " for the curiosity of the occasion." The 
 object of the association was to promote Christian charac- 
 ter and good moral conduct ; and the means to be used 
 was expressed in the first article in the words following : 
 
 I. It shall be our endeavor to meet, the evening after the Sabbath, 
 and pray together by turns, one to begin, and another to conclude the 
 evening ; and between the two prayers, a Psalm shall be sung, and a 
 sermon repeated. This way we would spend the evening, which we 
 observe too many of our condition to misspend unto the dishonor of 
 God, and the prejudice of them to whom they belong. 
 
 The other "articles of agreement" respected the rights 
 of their masters ; the duty to avoid evil company ; the 
 purpose to obtain the presence of some good, wise men 
 and officers of the church to attend their meetings and 
 guide them ; the resolve to avoid intemperance and other 
 sinful habits ; and their intention to punctually attend 
 the meetings and help make them useful. Mr. Mather 
 gave them his countenance and sympathy. 
 
 He also reviewed and revised the " Order of the Young 
 
156 LIFE AND TIMES OF 
 
 Men's Meetings," and preached to them to " prevent the 
 snares of Satan which might threaten their welfare." 
 This sermon was printed at the end of his book entitled 
 "Early Religion." 
 
 As there was a *' good number of poor and old people in 
 the almshouse, who could not attend meetings, especially 
 in the winter," Mr. Mather spent an afternoon with them, 
 and praiyed and preached on James 2:5:" Hearken, my 
 beloved brethren, Hath not God chosen the poor of this 
 world rich in faith, and heirs of the kingdom which he 
 hath promised to them that love him } " This service was 
 attended "with the comfortable assistance," and as he 
 hoped, "the acceptance of heaven." 
 
 The next year (1694) opened with a grievous experi- 
 ence, though it terminated more happily than was feared. 
 Mr. Mather records that " about the middle of January, my 
 little and my only Katharin was taken so dangerously 
 sick, that small hope of her life was left unto us," In his 
 distress, when he saw the Lord was " quenching the coal 
 that was left unto him, and rending out of his bosom one 
 that had lived so long with him as to steal a room there, 
 and a lamb that was indeed unto him as a daughter," he 
 cast himself at the feet of God's holy sovereignty. When 
 about to resign her to God in prayer, he looked first into 
 the Bible, and his eye fell upon the account of the healing 
 of the little daughter of the ruler of the synagogue ; and 
 surprised and amazed, he read with tears ; and with more 
 tears, turned it into a prayer. He resigned the child with 
 the same assurance as to her, his children, and himself, 
 as when the little Mary died, but, unlike that case, he 
 begged for the life of this child, and promised to bring 
 her up for God. He also promised to " essay some special 
 service quickly for the rising generation in this land." 
 She soon got well, and lived to be an accomplished, lovely, 
 and very pious young lady. 
 
CO TTON MA THER. 1 5 7 
 
 In a memorandum he speaks of quite a part of his 
 auditory who lived "on the other side of the water." 
 They had to cross the water with considerable trouble for 
 the purpose of attending divine service on the Lord's day. 
 He suggested that they should have separate worship, and 
 offered to help support the service, but they were not 
 inclined to withdraw. 
 
 The diary failing for the remainder of this year, we 
 turn to the records of the church, from which it appears 
 that among those received into the church was Abigail 
 Mather, probably a daughter of the senior pastor or 
 teacher. She was now about seventeen years of age. I 
 suppose the Abigail received a few years before was the 
 wife of the junior minister. 
 
 It is a fact to be noted also that Margaret Rule was- 
 among the members admitted this year. The record in 
 her case reads: "Received into covenant and baptized.'" 
 This indicates that her parentage was not religious, and 
 renders it probable that she was led into the new life by 
 Mr. Mather's influence. 
 
 On the fourteenth of June, Abigail, the second daughter 
 of that name, was born. This second one became the 
 wife of Daniel Willard — descended from the famous 
 Simon Willard — and had four children. . She was the 
 only child of Mr. Mather by his first wife who entered 
 the married state. 
 
 Though he was daily adding to his great work on the 
 Bible, and also putting the materials for his Church His- 
 tory into shape, he followed up his habit of giving occa- 
 sional discourses to the public, to meet the present wants 
 of his people and the community. One of the smaller 
 works of this year was a book of 117 pages, entitled 
 "Early Religion, urged in a sermon upon the duties 
 wherein, and the reasons wherefore young people should 
 
158 LIFE AND TIMES OF 
 
 become religious." To this were added extracts from 
 papers written by several persons who, dying in their 
 youth, left behind them admonitions for their survivors. 
 It also contained brief memoirs, showing examples of 
 youthful piety, as Nathaniel Mather and Nathaniel Shore. 
 Several devoted young men had died in the Indian 
 war, who had been bright examples of piety, as Nash, 
 of Weymouth, and John Clap, of Scituate. Among 
 examples of female excellence were Sarah Derby and 
 Priscilla Wharton. This sermon was on a day of prayer 
 kept by the congregation for the success of the gospel 
 on the hearts of the young. It is a most searching dis- 
 course on the effects of sin and the cure of sin. He 
 informs us that "it was usual in several towns of the 
 country, for the pious young men to associate themselves 
 in pious meetings for their mutual assistance in the affairs 
 of religion." The articles of agreement of such an asso- 
 ciation are in the volume, but need not be given. They 
 were adapted to make the meetings helpful to the reli- 
 gious life of the members. This kind of Young Men's 
 Christian Association was continued in parts of New 
 England far into the next century. 
 
 The "Short History of New England" was really a 
 sermon from Ezekiel 22 : 30 : "I sought for a man among 
 them, that should make up the hedge, and stand in the gap 
 before me for the land, that I should not destroy it." It 
 was spoken at a lecture, in the audience of the general 
 assembly, on the seventh of June. It began with a re- 
 capitulation of wonderful passages which had occurred, 
 first, in the protections, and then in the afflictions of New 
 England, with a representation of several matters calling 
 for the singular attention of that country. The discourse 
 was the outcome of a most solicitous spirit, yearning for 
 the good of the country. He showed the errors, mistakes, 
 and sins of the people, and called for reform. 
 
COTTON MATHER. 
 
 159 
 
 I. He referred to the ''day of temptation," when a 
 "flood of antinomian and familistical opinions, cast out 
 by the dragon, had like to have swallowed up the church, 
 fled into this desert, in its infancy," when a factious dis- 
 tinction was made between "men under a covenant of 
 works, and men under a covenant of grace." Secondly, he 
 referred to the controversy about the " extent of baptism, 
 and the church-watch on the halfway plan," which had 
 been waged with great severity. Next, he spoke of the day 
 of temptation, when evil angels were let loose to annoy 
 with tormenting afflictions and unheard-of delusions. 
 Fourthly, he called to mind the '' controversies about the 
 negative ; " that is, the veto of the elders upon the acts 
 of the churches. Also, he spoke about " compliance with 
 demands made on the other side of the water." He re- 
 ferred to unsettlements since the revolution in 1688, in 
 renewing a rebuilding of meetinghouses, and in parish 
 disturbances. He then pointed out the gaps, and sought 
 for means to close them up. He concludes with three 
 queries. *' One man may do very much towards the resto- 
 ration of our impaired hedge. What may not be done for 
 our impaired hedge by one governor } " He expected 
 much from Governor Phips, and doubtless would have 
 seen his wishes in some measure gratified, but alas ! about 
 this time Governor Phips was pursued by his enemies, by 
 whose instigation he was obliged to sail for England to 
 defend himself, where he died the next year. 2. " What 
 may not be done by one magistrate .-* " Here he refers 
 to Phinehas (Num. 25: 11), who says God ''turned my 
 wrath away from the children of Israel, while he was 
 zealous for my sake among them." 3. "What may be 
 done by one minister t " Aaron was but one man, yet he 
 stood between the living and the dead, and the plague 
 was stayed. 
 
l6o LIFE AND TIMES OF 
 
 A volume came out in London in 1695 which may 
 properly be connected with this year, because it evidently 
 had been written, in part at least, in 1693 or before. It 
 is printed with an address from Rev. Nathaniel Mather, 
 then of London, to his " worthy nephew. Cotton Mather," 
 under date December 15, 1693. It was probably sent over 
 to London in 1693, kept through the year 1694, and given 
 to the press a year later. I have not seen the book, which 
 was in Mr. Brinley's library, but its present location is 
 unknown to me. The titles of the several pieces, filling 
 192 pages, are given for their curiosity. *' Batteries upon 
 the kingdom of the devil. Seasonable discourses upon 
 some common but woful instances wherein men gratify 
 the grand enemy of their salvation." " Sacred Exorcisms ; 
 or, the care and cure of persons possessed by the devil " 
 (" giving cases of bodily molestations by evil spirits " which 
 the author had seen). "The dumb devil cast out." ** The 
 stage player unmasked." "The door of hope." " Honey 
 at the end of the rod." "The golden club." Appendix: 
 "The great ambition of a good Christian." 
 
 A discourse preached in 1694, and printed in London 
 the next year, may be noticed here, inasmuch as it is a 
 presentation of the ideas relating to divine providence 
 cherished by our forefathers. It is entitled " Brontologia 
 Sacra — the voice of the glorious God in the thunder, 
 explained and applied." On the twelfth of September he 
 expected to give a lecture on a selected topic, but a severe 
 thunder-shower coming on at the time of worship, he 
 changed his subject, and made the shower the theme of 
 the occasion. While he was preaching the lightning struck 
 his own house and set it on fire. The fire was put out 
 before serious damage was done, but the preacher seems to 
 have been annoyed by the fact that the incident became 
 the town talk. On the next Lord's day he added in his 
 
COTTON MATHER, l6l 
 
 discourse, " Some reflections formed by the voices of 
 thunders upon the great things which the great God is 
 now doing in the world ; a discourse useful for all men at 
 all times, but especially intended for an entertainment in 
 the hours of thunder." The sermon, extemporized while 
 the storm was raging without, was a wonderful thing in its 
 way. One can almost see and hear the changes of the 
 tempest as the preacher went on in his discourse — the 
 flashes of lightning, the deep rolling of the thunder, and 
 the rush of downpouring rain. The matter of the sermon 
 was ingenious, apt, and weighty ; the quotations, mostly 
 from Latin writers, came in at the right point, and the 
 spirit of it, evincing calmness of soul and readiness to 
 meet his Lord at any moment, was admirable. His doc- 
 trine of universal providence was the same that is accepted 
 at the present day, but then it was held in its fullness. 
 The plan of God was an unbroken warp, into which all 
 the acts and events of life were woven as into a perfect 
 web, with which no chance interfered. Even the wrath of 
 man was made to praise God, and the remainder of it that 
 could not be utilized was restrained. 
 
 For the year 1695 we have no diary, but there is proof 
 enough that he worked as hard and prayed as devoutly 
 as in other years before and after. 
 
 It is a question in our churches whether deacons should 
 be ordained, or indeed whether their election should be 
 marked by any kind of observance. The records of the 
 Second Church, date of April 25, show the usage in early 
 times. Three deacons were " ordained by solemn impo- 
 sition of hands " by Increase and Cotton Mather, on a 
 public fast day. 
 
 The death of Sir William Phips, on the eighteenth of 
 February, was a grievous blow to his pastor, Mr. Mather, 
 as well as a serious loss to the province and to all New 
 
1 62 LIFE AND TIMES OF 
 
 England. He had been acquitted of the charges brought 
 against him by his enemies, and still enjoyed the confi- 
 dence of the king, who, like Cromwell, ** knew and appre- 
 ciated a man." But his work was done. While suffering 
 under a sudden attack of a distemper then prevaihng in 
 London, he ''received the honor of a visit from a very 
 eminent person at Whitehall, who bade him get well as 
 fast as he could, for in one month's time he should be 
 again dispatched away to his government of New England." 
 The "malignant fever " was fatal, and his "sudden death 
 was an extreme surprise to his friends, who honorably 
 interred him in the church of St. Mary Woolnoth, and 
 with him how much of New England happiness ! " 
 
 Mr. Mather bore all the families of his parish on his 
 heart. In all their afflictions he was afflicted. In April 
 he gave to the press " Help for distressed parents." 
 Text, Proverbs lo : i. Subject : "What is to be said for 
 the counsel and comfort of godly parents afflicted with 
 ungodly children } " 
 
 "Durable Riches" belongs to this year's work. In two 
 brief sermons, Mr. Mather, impressed by the " impoverish- 
 ing blasts of heaven which the undertakings of men, both 
 by land and sea," had met withal, considered (i) The 
 true " cause of losing ; " and (2) the " true cause of thriv- 
 ing." This was reprinted in 171 7. The " cause of losing " 
 was "the displeasure of God because of sin." Haggai 
 I : 7-1 1. The second sermon (text, Ecclesiastes 11 : i, 2) 
 was on the "true way of thriving." First, "Trust in the 
 Lord," "Cast thy bread upon the waters." Secondly, By 
 "generosity." Ecclesiastes 11: 2: "Give a portion to 
 seven, and also to eight." 
 
 "Johannes in Eremo," or John in the wilderness, con- 
 tains brief sketches of several distinguished Johns ; as, 
 Cotton, Wilson, Davenport, and Norton, which later went 
 
COTTON MATHER, . 1 63 
 
 into the Magnalia. At this time, with a memoir of the 
 renowned Thomas Hooker, of Hartford, they made a vol- 
 ume of about three hundred pages. Admirable fairness 
 and generous appreciation characterize all these compact 
 and comprehensive sketches. 
 
 " Observanda, or. Observable Turns of Providence " in 
 the life and death of the late Queen Mary, was one of the 
 timely productions of the year. It is prefaced with " some 
 observations upon the turns of Divine Providence, now 
 bringing of mighty changes upon the world." The strik- 
 ingly appropriate text was Ezekiel 10 : 13 : "As for the 
 wheels, it was cried unto them in my hearing, O wheel!" 
 
 The world, with all its persons, and all the concerns of 
 it, is liable to a continual revolution ; or the state of the 
 world is fitly compared unto a wheel. " Whenever you 
 look upon any part of this world, you may hear the Son 
 of God crying, * O wheel ' unto it ; '■ World, I will have thee 
 to wheel about.' " He proceeds : *' A wheel is a very move- 
 able and voluble thing ; and oh ! believe it, oh, expect it. 
 So is the state of this world." Great and little men are 
 wheels turning down and turning up. A wheel turns 
 apace when once it begins to turn. A wheel sometimes 
 makes a noise in the turning of it. 
 
 " n. It is the glorious Lord Jesus Christ upon the 
 throne by whom all the changes of the world are ordered 
 and managed. 'T is the God-man who turns, who checks, 
 who holds all the wheels of Providence. III. The angels 
 are employed in turning the wheels of Providence. IV. 
 All the quarters and all the ages of the world have all 
 their changes governed by the Lord whose kingdom ruleth 
 over all. V. A most surprising harmony in the dispen- 
 sations of God, whereby the changes of the world are 
 brought about. All the wheels move together. VI. 
 They have a various aspect ; look more ways than one. 
 
1 64- LIFE AND TIMES. 
 
 Collateral designs of Providence. VII. Changes are irre- 
 sistible when the providential time has come. Nothing 
 human can stop the wheel. VIII. All the changes of 
 the world have the infinite wisdom of heaven to give 
 method, guidance, effect unto them. Wheels full of eyes 
 round about. IX. Changes both formidable and extra- 
 ordinary. The wheels run high." 
 
 He then specifies intricacies of Providence : — Ex. i. 
 Men when going on their own errands do the will of God. 
 Ex. 2. Enemies of God are confounded by the very means 
 which they took to be preserved by. Ex. 3. A mischief 
 shall become a kindness when the Lord will have it so. 
 
 " Christians ! while the Lord Jesus Christ is crying to 
 the wheels of providence, O wheel ! he cries unto us also 
 to behold the turns of those wheels. Behold them with 
 wonder ; behold them with patience ; behold them with 
 profit, and behold them with profound submission of soul." 
 He then turns to the great and solemn event, the death 
 of Queen Mary. The wonderful changes of her life are 
 noticed, and then he gives one of the best sketches of 
 Mary's character ever written. One is inclined to think 
 that he must have received information from his father, 
 who had known her while in England. 
 
CHAPTER IX. 
 
 PERSONAL EXPERIENCES AND LABORS AND PUBLIC 
 EVENTS : 1 696- 1 697. 
 
 THE records of the North Church in 1696 contained 
 two items showing the benevolence of the congre- 
 gation. The churches were in the habit of assisting their 
 own indigent members. " April 22. This day being a Fast 
 through the Province, our congregation made a collection 
 for the relief of the poor, fifty five pounds, and all money." 
 And on the "4th day, 12 m., this day being a day of 
 Public Thanksgiving through the Province, our congrega- 
 tion made a collection of near sixty pounds, to assist the 
 propagation of the gospel unto places that want it." This 
 entry really belongs to the second month of the next 
 year (1697), but being recorded according to Old Style, 
 I have copied it with the date. 
 
 A notable book which came out in 1695 has already 
 been mentioned, but as it had a singular history and a 
 unique table of contents, the reader will be willing to 
 know more about it. The title is " Seven Select Lec- 
 tures," etc. The manuscript was sent to England in a 
 ship which was captured by the French, but the lectures, 
 we are told, were " by a singular providence of God, pre- 
 served from the hands of the French, whereinto they 
 were fallen, and now published by an English gentleman, 
 who providentially lit upon them." It appears that the 
 captain of the P^ench cruiser, setting no value on the 
 writings, disposed of them to an English gentleman who 
 returned home, and found a publisher in Nathaniel Hiller, 
 London. 
 
 165 
 
1 66 LIFE AND TIMES OF 
 
 The heads already given are repeated here, more at 
 length. I. " Sacred Exorcisms ; the care and cure of per- 
 sons possessed by the devil. Acts 5 : 3. Prop. I. There 
 is a devil whose employment is to tempt the poor children 
 of men. Eph. 6:12; Jude 6; Luke 8 : 30; Matt. 12. Prop. 
 II. The temptations of the devil sometimes prevail so far 
 as tofi/lthQ hearts of the men whom they are used upon. 
 Full of the devil. 2 Cor. 4 : 4. Blinds the heart ; gains 
 the heart. Prop. III. When once the temptations of 
 the devil have prevailed so far as to fill the hearts of men, 
 they go on to all wickedness and misery. Matt. 17: 15, 
 18. When Satan fills the hearts of men, he keeps them 
 from all good impressions by means of grace upon them. 
 Directions, i. Fly from the devil. 2. Fight the devil. 
 /as. 4:7. 3. Keep your hearts. Prov. 4: 23. 4. Prayer." 
 
 Second lecture. " The Dumb Devil Cast Out, or the 
 horrible sin of a prayerless life discovered. Ps. 53 : 4.** 
 An incitement to prayer. " III. The Stage Player un- 
 masked ; or the signs and woes of a wretched hypocrite. 
 Matt. 24: 51." It has no reference to the theater, but to 
 hypocrisy in everyday life, and in a thousand forms. " IV. 
 The Door of Hope. An antidote against the sin of de- 
 spair, in them that have been most guilty of other sins. 
 E^ek. 37 : 2." He gives the reasons or causes of despair 
 and the answers to them, with directions, which made the 
 treatise very valuable to desponding Christians at that 
 time and at all times. The fifth lecture was titled 
 ** Honey at the end of the rod. Hed. 12: 5. How to 
 bear afflictions ; i. With a submissive contention of soul. 
 2. With a believing expectation of soul. 3. With a gen- 
 erous resolution of soul." 
 
 The sixth lecture was the " Golden Curb, or some 
 checks given to rash passions." (2 Sam. 19: 29.) After 
 an ingenious introduction in which he explains and clears 
 
COTTON MATHER. 1 67 
 
 up the conduct of David in regard to Mephibosheth, he 
 said : " The hasty passions do sometimes put even good 
 men upon those rash things which they should always 
 be ready to retract. Inferences, i. Beware of rash jeal- 
 ousies. 2. Beware of rash promises. 3. Beware of rash 
 prejudices. 4. Beware of rash conjectures. 5. Beware 
 of rash enterprises. 6. Beware of rash dissatisfactions. 
 7. Beware of rash zeal. Appendix. The great ambition 
 of a good Christian. Eph. 3 : 19. Filled with the fulness 
 of God. What is that fulness of God we are to labor for V 
 
 This abstract has taken space, but it vindicates its right 
 to it. Several printed discourses of this year have es- 
 caped my search. Some of them are noticed in Samuel 
 Mather's list of his father's productions, or have a place 
 in Mr. Brinley's catalogue. One was "The Christian 
 Thank-Offering"; another, "A Cry against oppression"; 
 a third, "A good Master Well Served," giving the nec- 
 essary properties and practices of a good servant, and 
 showing the methods that should be taken by the heads 
 of a family to obtain such a servant. A timely topic for 
 the present day. 
 
 The decease of good Queen Mary occasioned a mem- 
 orable discourse in 1695. The condition of affairs in 
 the province prompted another in the present year, en- 
 titled "Things for a Distressed People to Think Upon." 
 It was a time of distress. The Indian war still raged in 
 the eastern settlements, entailing loss of life and immense 
 expense for the poor people. The sermon was before the 
 General Court, May 27, wherein the "condition of the 
 future as well as the former times " was considered. To 
 this was added a narrative of the late wonderful deliver- 
 ance of the king and the three kingdoms and all the 
 English dominions. This refers to a great plot between 
 the king of France and the English and Scotch malcon- 
 
 ^ OF THE 
 
1 68 LIFE AND TIMES OF 
 
 tents to invade the kingdom, kill King William, and set 
 up again King James with the Roman Catholic religion. 
 The plot was exposed and the ringleaders were executed, 
 amid the execrations of a loyal people. To the narrative 
 of these events was annexed " a relation of no less than 
 seven miracles, within this little while, wrought by the 
 Almighty Lord Jesus Christ, for the confirmation of our 
 hopes, that some glorious hopes for the welfare of his 
 church, are quickly to be done." The contents of the 
 sermon may be given in some detail, because they picture 
 the times in which the author lived. 
 
 It is styled "An Artillery election sermon." Perhaps 
 the General Court attended. Some of the things to be 
 thought upon are thus specified : — 
 
 I . The horrid sins committed in the land. There is not one of all the 
 ten commandments in the law which our God has given us, but the people 
 are notoriously violating of it, from one end of the land unto another. 
 [The land was perfectly defiled by the impurities of the Indians.] 
 Now, is it not a wonderful and a horrible thing for so many English 
 that have succeeded them, to Indianize, and by the Indian vices of 
 lying, and idleness, and sorcery, and a notorious want of all family dis- 
 cipline, to become obnoxious unto the old score and store of wrath due 
 unto the land? Is it not a wonderful and a horrible thing that the sins 
 of Sodom should so much prevail in a land which was once a land of 
 uprightness ? 
 
 2. The call to "bewail the visible degeneracy in all 
 orders of men throughout the land." He admitted that 
 New England was still " blessed with very worthy men in 
 all orders ; but alas ! we have not such a choice of them 
 as once we had. I suppose 't were easy to single out, it 
 may be, less then twenty men, upon whose removal from 
 us, all our affairs would be palsy-struck with an incur- 
 able feebleness, and the country would almost fall for want 
 of pillars to support it." There was some foundation for 
 this statement ; but the removal of leading men upon 
 
COTTON MATHER. 1 69 
 
 whom public affairs seem to depend is generally followed 
 by a display of abilities from unexpected quarters. He 
 proceeds as follows: "There are very many families of 
 everlasting renown throughout New England, wherein 
 some or other of the grandchildren are become either 
 foolish or wicked, and it may be, notoriously children of 
 the devil." 
 
 3. Next he specifies the " ill-conduct of many profess- 
 ors." 4. "Evident blows from an angry God in a long 
 train of disasters upon all our affairs " ; grains blasted, 
 fires, shipwrecks. 5. They had been "deprived of charter 
 liberties, and English liberties," though a happy revolu- 
 tion had restored them. The remedy was " supplication, 
 repentance, reformation, and seeking the conversion of 
 the young." 
 
 Two items from the records of the church in 1697 
 shed some light on the workings of Congregationalism 
 about two hundred years ago. " 4 d. 2 m. [or April 4]. 
 This day our church voted a letter of admonition to the 
 church of Charlestown, for betraying the liberties of the 
 churches, in their late putting into the hands of the whole 
 inhabitants the choice of a minister." In pure Congrega- 
 tionalism the church existed without a parish, and did all 
 its own business. After the towns were made parishes 
 by the General Court, and later in "poll parishes," the 
 church took the initiative in the choice of a minister, and 
 called on the parish to concur. If the latter body, which 
 raised the money for the support of the ministry and the 
 building of church edifices and parsonages, non-concurred, 
 the church made a new choice and again called for ap- 
 proval. It appeared that the church in Charlestown had 
 departed from the primitive usage. The Brattle Street 
 Church, when formed a few years later, was put upon this 
 basis ; but the orthodox churches, as a general rule, have 
 
170 LIFE AND TIMES OF 
 
 always followed the way defended by the Second Church. 
 Church power and regulations are kept under Christ, the 
 Head, in the hands of the church. The parish is simply 
 a legal body, to assist the church in maintaining the 
 public worship of God in its purity. 
 
 The second item is dated *' 26 d. 7 m., and reads : 
 ** Baptized Vynes Elicut, a youth about twelve years of 
 age, presented by a woman of the Old Church, (one Cable) 
 who had brought him up in the knowledge, and for the 
 service of Christ, and promised still to do so." This boy 
 was presented by one who was not his mother, and prob- 
 ably not a relative, and by one who was not a member of 
 the church of Mr. Mather. A good woman, taking the 
 place of a mother, sought Christian baptism for a boy 
 whom she had brought up, but not in the church of which 
 she was a member. This was not according to the usual 
 custom, but who could deny the request of a Christian man 
 or woman presenting a child in this way .? 
 
 The diary of this year furnishes copious material for the 
 study of the inner life of the writer. We shall make a few 
 citations, beginning with the date of February 22 : — 
 
 Being this day thirty-four years old, I set apart this day for a 
 Thanksgiving to be offered unto God, from a sense of the great obli- 
 gations unto thankfulness which my life hath now for thirty-four years 
 together been filled withal. 
 
 Though interrupted by company he " paraphrased, im- 
 proved and applied the whole 103d Psalm, on his knees 
 before the Lord." He then deliberately read over a 
 ^^ catalogue of the Divine dispensations " towards him from 
 the beginning, "particularly blessing of God on each 
 article." He read over the record or diary of the year, 
 saving such things as were suitable. Towards night he 
 "acknowledged more special instances of divine favor." 
 
 This whole day's employment is a lesson to those 
 
COTTON MATHER, I7I 
 
 Christians who do not know how to spend the hours in 
 a protracted season of private devotion. Therefore the 
 closing lines of the diary for the day are subjoined. In 
 the evening of this day he had a most wonderful time. 
 He was so spent with the preceding exercises that he 
 seemed to have no strength to proceed further. He laid 
 himself prostrate on the floor before the Lord, as was his 
 wont, and he thus narrates what followed : — 
 
 Then did the Spirit of the Lord Jesus Christ, after a wonderful 
 manner, irradiate my mind, and quicken me, and rejoice me with 
 wondrous assurances that he would possess me, and employ me, and 
 grant me to glorify my Lord Jesus Christ exceedingly. Yea, the good 
 angels of that Holy Spirit were so near unto me, in my rapturous 
 praises of my Lord-Redeemer, that the pras-libations of heaven which 
 I enjoyed in this matter, are not fit here to be uttered. 
 
 He then, with wonderful assurance of being heard, 
 ** prayed mightily that God would cause the Spirit of refor- 
 mation to come down on the nations of Europe, and that 
 a mighty revolution upon France, and upon Great Britain 
 might accompany it. It will be so. This poor man cried, 
 and the Lord heard his cry." There was no special spirit- 
 ual renovation in France or Great Britain in these years, 
 but events took a strong turn against the French and the 
 partisans of James in their attempts to subvert the throne 
 of King William ; and no believer in sacred Scripture 
 need doubt that God inspired praying hearts to beat in 
 sympathy with his grand designs. 
 
 This praying for a mighty revolution in France and 
 Great Britain was a frequent exercise. On the twentieth 
 of February he prayed much, with fasting, in preparation 
 for the Lord's Supper. His petitions were, first, " for his 
 family, his ministry, and for the whole nation." He cried 
 " importunately to God for the Reformation to be revived, 
 and perfected, not only in Great Britain, but in France, 
 
172 LIFE AND TIMES OF 
 
 with a mighty revolution!' England became solidly estab- 
 lished in Protestantism, and began slowly to rise from 
 the base immorality of the restoration, in the time of 
 Charles II, to a purer style of living ; but the mighty 
 revolution in France waited nearly a hundred years, and 
 then came in fire and slaughter. " The mills of the gods 
 grind slowly," but with effect. 
 
 On the Sabbath at communion he had a "powerful 
 persuasion that he would ere long be with the innumer- 
 able company of the holy angels," and that his "depar- 
 ture would be easy and joyful." His honesty in leaving 
 the above and similar "persuasions " on record, when he 
 might have omitted them, will be noted. A part of his 
 record this day was his " faith that his offspring, left in 
 this evil world, would be the servants of the Lord Jesus 
 Christ, who would, as a Father, take care of them." He 
 lived about twenty years, and before his death, nearly all 
 his children had been gathered into the garner of God. 
 
 His "little Mehitable " died on the twenty-eighth of 
 February, being about a year old. There was a singular 
 fact connected with her death, the substance of which was 
 as follows : It was Mr. Mather's habit to pray for all his 
 children by name, when he rose in the morning. Soon 
 after his prayer, this morning, it occurred to him that he 
 had omitted the name of Mehitable. He was surprised 
 and grieved at this, and chided himself for the omission. 
 An hour or more later, he was told that the child was 
 dead, and that she died before he offered the prayer. 
 His first surmise was that death was caused by sudden 
 colic pains, but inquiry proved that the nurse had overlaid 
 the child. The inference was that the Inspirer of prayer 
 did not move the father to pray for the child who was 
 beyond the need of a mortal's supplications. He had 
 now Katharine and the second Abigail. Hannah was born 
 in the course of the year. 
 
COTTON MATHER. 
 
 ^n 
 
 About this time, to render his pastoral visits the more 
 significant, he pubUshed his sermon on Proverbs 5:11: 
 "And thou mourn at the last, when thy flesh and thy 
 body are consumed." This is in Brinley's list, but I 
 have been unable to find it. The title is, " The Thoughts 
 of a dying man," and the preacher with "cogency and 
 fervency " set before his people what they would " think 
 and choose at the last, when they came to die " ; and he 
 urged them to make that choice at once. He made visits 
 every week, as a rule, and left his little book. This vol- 
 ume contained a report of matters uttered by many in 
 the last moments of their lives. 
 
 His heart expanded in many prayers for several objects. 
 One was that the " distempers of his soul might be re- 
 moved by the Spirit of God." Another was the breached 
 condition of some of the. churches in the wilderness; 
 and a third was the " divided condition of the church in 
 Watertown." He was also in prayer because of the 
 " danger of a French invasion in the ensuing summer, 
 and because of the decease of considerable persons in 
 his congregation." He resolved every day, "like Daniel, 
 the man of desire," to pray for the "captivity of the 
 church to be hastened to a period." 
 
 Looking for the great reformation at hand, he invited 
 a select number of Christians whose " appetites were 
 strong to be informed about the characters and approaches 
 of those events, to meet in his study, to inquire and dis- 
 course, at set times, about those things which the angels 
 desire to look into. Concluded with a prayer for the 
 hasting of the glorious things that are spoken about the 
 city of God." The plan was carried out with an " un- 
 speakable consolation." 
 
 The seasons of Mather in high communion were not a 
 few, and it is needful, if one would get a right idea of his 
 
174 ^^^^ ^^D TIMES OF 
 
 character, to view him in more than a few of his " irradi- 
 ations." What happens but once in a lifetime to some 
 good Christians was almost habitual with him. For 
 example : — 
 
 ** 20d. 3 m. [or Friday, May 30]. Day set apart for secret or private 
 thanksgiving." When on his knees, confessing the glories of God, 
 and full of praises, he " requested and obtained the irradiations of the 
 Spirit, and received heart-melting assurances that as my heart was be- 
 come desirous to please him, he would never send me down to that 
 miserable world where they do not praise him, but hate him, and curse 
 him, and blaspheme him for ever. No, but grant me a state of eternal 
 blessedness." He bewailed his " own horrible sinfulness " and gave 
 thanks for the operations of the Spirit upon him ; for the privilege 
 of preaching the unspeakable riches of Christ ; for upholding him in 
 seventeen years of ministry, and in so eminent a place, and so large 
 a congregation, though one of the most "inconsiderable wretches" 
 in the land ; for enabling him to preach in other places, and on pub- 
 lic occasions, and making his performances profitable unto the souls 
 of multitudes ; for liberty of the press, and his numerous publica- 
 tions more than those of any young man — read also in Europe as 
 well as in America ; for the respect shown him among the churches ; 
 for comforts and supports ; " especially my life, my health, my speech, 
 my library, vay dwelling house, my salary. And my consort with my 
 children; and my U7iblemished reputation.'''' Also "such deliverances 
 granted unto my country, that my opportunities to be serviceable have 
 not been overwhelmed in the ruins of it." 
 
 These lines were not flaunted abroad in the world, as 
 would be done by a vain boaster in these days, but were 
 hidden in the secrecy of a diary intended for the eyes of 
 loving children to see ; written too in the time of King 
 William's war, when the power of France was joined with 
 that of the eastern and Canadian Indians, to ruin the 
 province and " overwhelm " all New England. In the 
 evening he went into the empty church, and alone in the 
 pulpit, prostrate on the floor, with "great elevation of 
 soul," gave himself up unto the Spirit of the Lord Jesus 
 Christ. He praised Christ for his good angels, and, as he 
 
COTTON MATHER. 
 
 175 
 
 writes, " for my good Angel." He closed with special 
 thanks for " divine assistances and singular fervor " in en- 
 abling him to finish his Church History, as he styled the 
 "Magnalia Christi Americana." This was not published 
 until 1702, and then in England, because no native pub- 
 lisher could undertake to bring out such an extensive 
 work. 
 
 On Friday, August 27, he writes about an "allotted 
 journey " to Salem and Ipswich. This seems to have 
 been an annual tour. All the earlier part of the week 
 before he started, he was under "sickly disorders." There 
 was a violent storm in the afternoon before he left home, 
 which was probably upon Tuesday. He resigned the 
 matter to the Lord, as he "was going on the Lord's busi- 
 ness." The weather cleared up and his health returned. 
 He had a comfortable journey, made more so by the 
 company of some "young gentlemen, who by dutifully 
 waiting" on him, gave him an "opportunity of studying" 
 how he might " effectually recommend the service of 
 Christ unto them." He preached on Wednesday at 
 Salem, and on Friday at Ipswich. At the latter place his 
 subject was " Glorifying God by Bringing forth Much 
 Fruit." He records that he was "everywhere received 
 with undeserved respect and honor." He had private 
 interviews, and "preached to vast assemblies." At 
 Salem, on Lord's day, he preached twice on " Christ seen 
 by Angels, and Preached unto the Gentiles." After an 
 absence of about ten days, he reached home on Friday, 
 September 3, but too weary to devote as much time on 
 Saturday as usual for preparation for the Eucharist ; but 
 yet "made some effort at devotion." At the Lord's table, 
 Sunday, he enjoyed "rapturous communications from 
 heaven." 
 
 A week later he was in prayer for the " spread' of 
 
176 LIFE AND TIMES OF 
 
 the knowledge of Christ more in England, Scotland, and 
 Ireland," and that the "angels of the Lord Jesus 
 Christ may bring a wondrous convulsion on the French 
 empire." He records that he " received a wonderful as- 
 surance from the Lord that it should be so." Possibly 
 the Hearer of prayer had a wider field of vision than his 
 petitioner, and saw in the wars under the leadership of 
 William and Marlborough, and the corruptions and wast- 
 ings under Louis XV, the causes of a " wondrous convul- 
 sion " in France. 
 
 On the eighth of September, Mr. Mather was much in 
 his closet. He " exceedingly abhorred himself before the 
 Lord for the incredible vileness of his life." He admired 
 the grace that had not utterly rejected his service, and 
 " had not permitted Satan to precipitate him " into scan- 
 dalous miscarriages. By " vileness of life " we now mean 
 a life of grossly immoral conduct. He meant nothing of 
 the sort, but simply a life defective in the degree of its 
 fidelity. Judging himself by a perfect law, he saw how 
 far he came short of full and constant obedience. On 
 this occasion he prayed for his family and flock, the 
 country, the college, and for several miserably disordered 
 churches. At the close of the day, prostrate on the floor, 
 in the deepest humility of spirit, he ** received from 
 heaven, in a manner that he might not utter ^ a wonderful 
 assurance that his sins were pardoned by the wonderful 
 grace of God, imparting to him the righteousness of the 
 Lord Jesus Christ." 
 
 The next day being the Sabbath, he writes : — 
 
 The Spirit of the Lord came near unto me. Doubtless the Angel 
 of the Lord made me sensible of his approaches. I was wonderfully 
 irradiated. My Lord Jesus Christ shall yet be more known in the 
 vast regions of America ; and by the means of poor, vile, sinful me, 
 he shall be so. Great Britain shall undergo strange revolution and 
 
CO TTON A^A THER. I 7 7 
 
 reformation, and sinful I shall be concerned in it. France shall 
 quickly feel mighty impressions from the Almighty hands of my Lord 
 Jesus Christ, and I shall on the occasion, sing his glorious praises. 
 Nor was this all that was then told me from heaven; but I forbear 
 the rest. 
 
 Mr. Mather, in common with many others in his age 
 and the preceding, regarded the great Reformation as a 
 work suddenly arrested, and they prayed that it might be 
 made complete. Besides, he and many of his coevals 
 lived in expectation of the speedy coming of Christ, to 
 work mighty changes in the world. These views and ex- 
 pectations gave a tone to his prayers and meditations and 
 entered into his language as he recorded his experiences. 
 
 Another phase of his many-sided mind is revealed in a 
 note dated September 24, No man but Cotton Mather 
 would have conversed in the manner which he records in 
 the words following : " I was discoursing this day with 
 a worthy minister, dangerously sick, and said to him, that 
 to praise Christ in the midst of myriads of angels in 
 heaven, may in some respects be as good as to preach 
 Christ in the midst of hundreds of mortals on earth." 
 The minister assented. Mather then inquired (for he 
 says, " the discourse was managed with a certain serious 
 and sacred hilarity ") if his friend " had prepared a song, 
 and meditated what to say when he arrived among the 
 blessed angels." He replied: *' Why, pray, what do you 
 intend to say t " Mather answered : " I '11 say, Behold, O 
 ye holy spirits, the most wretched and loathsome sinner 
 that ever arrived among you ; that was the most abomi- 
 nable sinner that ever was in the world, and yet I have as 
 good a righteousness as any of you ! I '11 say : O ye illus- 
 trious angels ! if you don't wondrously glorify the grace 
 of the Lord Jesus Christ, in fetching so vile a sinner into 
 these mansions, you '11 never do it." 
 
178 LIFE AND TIMES OF 
 
 A " singular errand unto heaven/' on the ninth of 
 October, was to be " informed if he should glorify Christ 
 by writing a treatise. ' The Great Mystery of GodHness 
 in the several articles of it.' i Tim. 3 : 16. Yes." The 
 work was not given to the press till 1701. 
 
 An entry in the diary on the ninth of October gives 
 an inkling of Mather's anxieties, labors, and sympathies, 
 almost perpetually recurring. " With other ministers 
 praying for a brother minister," who was sick. He at- 
 tended a council at Watertown, where a long and com- 
 plicated difficulty had divided the church, and was active 
 and successful in bringing about a happy result. 
 
 His belief in the ministry of angels comes out in the 
 record of October 13. In a journey to Dedham on horse- 
 back, which was his usual mode of journeying, he had the 
 "sensible protection of angels," in several particulars. 
 His headstrong horse broke the clasp of his bridle. His 
 horse fell down with him so as to be lamed. The gentle- 
 man in company, mistaking the way, a person unknown, 
 just then in sight, informed them of their mistake, and 
 thus saved them from extra travel. Many would call this 
 "providential"; Mather considered it the same, but by 
 angelic agency. 
 
 Under date of the eighth of October, he mentions an 
 event and a publication, not noticed in any life, or list of 
 his books. The general assembly was holding its autum- 
 nal session, and he had an opportunity to address that 
 body in common with a large congregation. " Consider- 
 ing that Jesus Christ, as the great Sacrifice for the great 
 congregation, had never been enough preached, and 
 praised, and magnified in this land," he took for his text 
 Lev. 4: 21. The topic was: ''A Sin-Offering for the 
 Congregation," and he showed the people how to "glorify 
 the Lord Jesus Christ, by acting faith in him as a sin- 
 
COTTON MATHER. 
 
 179 
 
 offering for our public atonement and salvation." He 
 concluded by telling the elders of the land that they 
 ought not to stir out of the place till the exhortation was 
 put in execution. He called on the assembly to stand in 
 prayer, and pledge, as it were, to carry out the " sacrifice 
 for deliverances." The sermon was published with a letter 
 from a Frenchman full of " divine rarities/' Mr. Neau, a 
 pious confessor who once lived in his neighborhood, but 
 was now a prisoner in a French dungeon. To this Mather 
 added a discourse in the French tongue, addressed to the 
 French Church in Boston, advising them, as prudently 
 as he was able, to *' reform things that were amiss among 
 them." 
 
 Among the publications of the year, besides those 
 mentioned, were : " Ecclesiastes ; the Life of the reverend 
 and excellent Jonathan Mitchell, Pastor of the church, and 
 glory of the college;" "Faith at Work, or, the nature, 
 the order, and the necessity of the good works by which 
 the faith of the Christian is to be evidenced ;" "Gospel 
 for the Poor ; " " Narrative of wonderful passages relating 
 to the captivity and deliverance of Hannah Swanton," 
 annexed to a sermon, and also printed in the Magnalia- 
 "The Way to Excel," in a notice of Rev. Joshua Mody, an 
 " eminent person " ; " Thoughts of a dying man," giving 
 things uttered by many in the last minutes of their lives ; 
 " Terribilia Dei, or Remarkable Judgments of God, on 
 several sorts of offenders," in two sermons; "Songs of 
 the Redeemed, a book of Hymns," referred to by his son 
 Samuel ; " Pietas in Patriam, the Life of his excellency 
 Sir William Phips." There was a second edition of this 
 last in 1699, and it has appeared in every edition of the 
 Magnalia. Calef in his carping way says that Cotton 
 Mather published this book anonymously, in order to 
 praise himself. Mather could not disguise his style by 
 
l8o LIFE AND TIMES OF 
 
 withholding his name. If that were possible, he made 
 no effort to disguise it in this remarkable production. 
 Moreover, the author was well known at the time. A 
 note prefixed to the volume, signed by Nathaniel Ma- 
 ther, John Howe, and Matthew Mead, reads : '' The 
 author of the following narrative is a person of such 
 well-known integrity, prudence, and veracity, that there is 
 not any cause to question the truth of what he here re- 
 lates. And moreover, this writing of his is adorned with 
 a very grateful variety of learning, and doth contain such 
 surprising workings of Providence as do well deserve due 
 notice and observation." So far from praising himself, 
 his name and deeds are kept out of sight. In reciting 
 the events connected with the revolution in Boston in 
 1689, he mentions the declaration that was from his own 
 pen, but does not hint at the authorship ; in referring to 
 the paper, signed by the ministers of Boston, cautioning 
 the judges against giving credence to "spectral evi- 
 dence," he merely mentions that it was written by the 
 author of this " Life of Phips," thus veiling his name. 
 But enough of this, which has been dwelt upon solely 
 to show the untrustworthiness of all Robert Calef's ani- 
 madversions upon Cotton Mather. 
 
 The volumes and pamphlets of this year from Mather's 
 prolific pen filled about four hundred and fifty pages. In 
 December he heard that the Life of Phips was published 
 in London, as well as a small book on the " Gospel for 
 the Poor." The last was written on the supposition that 
 the long war now closed in England would be followed by 
 hard times, as is often the case, for a while, by the change 
 of values. In reference to the Life of Phips, the author 
 writes that " our base tories are in much anguish at this 
 book, but it will certainly prove a great service unto the 
 Lord Jesus Christ." It is one of Mather's best produc- 
 
COTTON MA THER. 1 8 I 
 
 tions, and is indispensable to the student of a very- 
 interesting period of New England history. 
 
 It appears from the diary that Mr. Mather had an 
 impression about this time of approaching death, for on 
 the seventh of November he records that he took his 
 little daughter Katy, '* then not far from eight years old," 
 into his study, and there, as he writes : " I told my child 
 that I am to die shortly, and she must, when I am dead, 
 remember everything that I now said to her." He then 
 spoke, (i) of her sinfulness by nature, and charged her 
 to pray every day in secret places, that God for the sake 
 of Christ would give her a new heart. (2) He told her 
 that after his death she would have to meet with " more 
 humbling afflictions than now, when she had a careful and 
 tender father to provide for her ; but if she would pray 
 continually, God would be a Father to her, and make all 
 afflictions work together for her good." (3) That the 
 people of God would much observe her, and that he 
 had put forth a book about ungodly children, in which 
 he had written that the book would be a terrible witness 
 against his own children, if any of them should not be godly. 
 Both shed many tears, and then he told her that God 
 from heaven had assured him that " she should be brought 
 home unto the Lord Jesus Christ, and be one of his for- 
 ever." He says : " I bid her use this as an encourage- 
 ment unto her supplications unto the Lord for his grace." 
 They then knelt down, and he prayed that God would 
 bless her, and save her, and make her a temple of his 
 glory." This was the second, but now eldest living child 
 of the family, the bright, witty, and lovely Katy, who was 
 her father's delight and comfort for nearly nineteen years 
 longer, until her lamented death. 
 
 On the tenth of November was a "day of public 
 Thanksgiving for deliverances." In connection with this 
 
1 82 LIFE AND TIMES OF 
 
 we find the following memoranda : — (i) A great salvation 
 had come into the land : a plentiful harvest came when 
 scarcity was feared. (2) A great body of Indians and 
 French, on their way to our frontiers, were met and 
 beaten, and the lives of hundreds of our people were 
 saved. (3) A squadron of about fifteen French men-of- 
 war was coming, and no doubt would have made the 
 place desolate, but " when a little way off, the Angel of 
 the Lord went forth and smote them with such a wasting 
 sickness " that they gave up the enterprise. 
 
 But the year did not close before a discovery of sin 
 among his people filled him with grief. On the fourth of 
 December he records as follows : " Horrible crimes are, 
 by strange dispensations of heaven, discovered in some 
 communicants of my church ; especially, one very criminal 
 adulteress." He prayed for pardon if the sin had come by 
 his neglect. He also prayed for "speedy and wondrous 
 rebukes upon the eastern Indians," and writes : " The 
 Lord heard me." I do not suppose that he regarded his 
 own prayers as the only prayers that concurred in moving 
 the Hearer of prayer to subvert the pagan power in the 
 eastern settlement. The last record of the year, on the 
 twenty-sixth of December, states that he had a young 
 gentleman who was going to England, in his study, for 
 "conversation and prayer." 
 
 The peace of Ryswick, which marked the close of 
 a war of several years' duration between England and 
 her allies and the king of France, had been signed on 
 the eleventh of September at one in the morning. On 
 the fourteenth the poet Prior, secretary of the British 
 embassy, presented himself with a copy of the document 
 before the Lords Justices at Whitehall. It was an occa- 
 sion of boundless joy in England, because the king of 
 France had acknowledged William as the sovereign of 
 
COTTON MATHER. 1 83 
 
 England, besides making other stipulations gratifying to 
 both English and Dutch. Macaulay describes the general 
 gladness in the following words :— 
 
 In every part of the kingdom where the peace was proclaimed, the 
 general sentiment was manifested by banquets, pageants, loyal healths, 
 salutes, beating of drums, blowing of trumpets, breaking up of hogs- 
 heads. At some places the whole population, of its own accord, re- 
 paired to the churches to give thanks. At others, processions of girls 
 clad all in white, and crowned with laurels, carried banners inscribed 
 with "God bless King William." At every county town, a long 
 cavalcade of the principal gentlemen, from a circle of many miles, 
 escorted the mayor to the market cross. Nor was one holiday enough 
 for the expression of so much joy. On the fourth of November, the 
 anniversary of the king's birth, and on the fifth, the anniversary of 
 his landing at Torbay, the bell-ringing, the shouting, and the illumi- 
 nations were renewed both in London and all over the country. 
 
 When the news reached Boston and extended over New 
 England in December, the rejoicing was scarcely less 
 general and ardent than in the old country, and no man 
 more felt the full significance of the event or rejoiced in 
 it more sincerely than Cotton Mather. 
 
 The record of this year should not be closed without 
 noting the death of Simon Bradstreet, one of the most 
 eminent and venerable men who came to New England 
 in the first generation. He was born in 1603, came 
 hither in 1630, and died at the age of ninety-four. His 
 father was "son of a Suffolk gentleman of fine estate." 
 He became a Nonconformist, and preached in England, 
 and afterwards in Holland. He was a man of ability and 
 possessed a temper of mingled firmness and gentleness. 
 Being neither a radical nor a conservative of marked 
 type, his convictions and sympathies generally allied him 
 to the former in every crisis in the public affairs. 
 Though evidently willing that the regicides Goffe and 
 
184 - LIFE AND TIMES. 
 
 Whalley should be discovered and sent to England, yet 
 when the news came of the overthrow of James II, he, 
 though an old man of eighty-six years, took the leading 
 position in setting up the provisional government and in 
 proclaiming William and Mary. He was sincerely reli- 
 gious, upright in all his transactions, a man of public 
 spirit, an ornament of society, and a pillar of the state. 
 He married Anne, daughter of Governor Thomas Dud- 
 ley, and became the father of numerous and respectable 
 descendants. 
 
CHAPTER X. 
 
 MISCELLANEOUS MATTERS : 1 698- 1 699. 
 
 FROM the church records it appears that discipline 
 was administered with mingled fidelity and Chris- 
 tian kindness. Every step was taken in accordance with 
 the spirit of Matthew xviii, and none were excluded until 
 proved unworthy and every practicable means used to 
 reclaim and to restore. The following were disciplinable 
 offenses : adultery, drunkenness, lying, gambling, theft, evil 
 speaking, slander, idleness, keeping bad company, neglect 
 of family worship, and profane swearing. Offenses against 
 the seventh commandment were oftenest charged upon 
 female members, simply because the proof of guilt was 
 more apparent. 
 
 The winter of 1697-1698 was the " severest that ever 
 was in the memory of man," says Cotton Mather. 
 Clough's Almanac, as quoted by Drake, says that '' from 
 the middle of January to the first or second of March, it 
 held cold with very little or no intermission. All the Bay 
 was frozen over quite out to sea, so as it was common to 
 go horse and man over all the ferries, for two months 
 together. It snowed between twenty and thirty times 
 that year. Slays and loaded sleds passed a great part of 
 the time upon the ice from Boston as far as Nantasket." 
 Grain was high and trade had never suffered more than at 
 this period. 
 
 On the eighth of January, Mr. Mather offered " special 
 prayer for the direction of heaven " in reference to the 
 publication of his " Magnalia Christi Americana." The 
 manuscript had been sent to London and the author was 
 
 185 
 
l86 LIFE AND TIMES OF 
 
 naturally solicitous about the matter until the work was 
 in print. 
 
 The remainder of the month, he informs us, proved to 
 be a " time of much calamity to him, as well as others. 
 Epidemical and pestilential colds afflicted many ; proved 
 mortal to many and grievous to more." A sore cough 
 lacerated his throat ; headache and fever confined him 
 almost a month. In the prospect of death he "tasted the 
 consolations of God." He writes of a "sweet contradic- 
 tion in Christianity," namely, the desire to go to heaven 
 and be with the blessed angels, and the desire to live and 
 serve Christ. " I resolved, out of respect unto the serv- 
 ice which I desire to do for the name of my Lord Jesus 
 Christ, that I would keep out of those blessed hands yet 
 for a while, if I could, by using the best means for my 
 recovery." He notes these lessons as the result: — "i. 
 That this present evil world is not my home. 2. Inquire 
 after sin as the cause of sickness. 3. Ascribe to Christ 
 the glory of deliverance." 
 
 He records a "very particular experiment" on the sixth 
 of February. He was so very ill at noon, the first Lord's 
 day of his going abroad, that he thought it impossible for 
 him to do any public service. He could hardly rise from 
 his chair. He took his Bible and read Daniel 10 : 8, 10- 
 19. He says : " I was left alone — and there remained no 
 strength in me. . . . Then there came and touched me 
 one like the appearance of a man, and he strengthened 
 me. And said, O man, greatly beloved, fear not ; peace be 
 unto thee ; be strong, yea, be strong." Then he prayed 
 the Lord to send his angels ("and my angel") to touch 
 him. When the time came for meeting he received new 
 strength, and the longer he continued in the public serv- 
 ice the more his strength seemed to return. He prayed 
 and preached and baptized and managed other church 
 
CO T TON MA THER. 1 8 7 
 
 matters for the space of three hours together. His text 
 was Psalm 103 : 3, and his subject, "Christ the Healer of 
 all the Diseases of His People." 
 
 He was so anxious to make up for lost time, and 
 ** managed with so indiscreet an intemperance," as to bring 
 on a fit of the colic ; but recovering, he preached on 
 Lecture day to a great assembly ; and as almost all the 
 town had been sick, he " set himself to direct the best 
 improvement of it, on Isaiah 33 : 24: 'The inhabitant 
 shall not say, I am sick.' " 
 
 During the twelve months preceding this date, February 
 12, 1698, he had preached twenty-four sermons on the 
 fifty-third of Isaiah on alternate Sabbaths, besides over 
 thirty others. On this day he wrote : "Through the for- 
 bearance of God, I am thirty-five years old, and astonished 
 that the Lord has spared me so long as a barren fig tree." 
 He was too feeble to spend the day as usual in devotions 
 and fasting, but did engage in thanksgiving for mercies. 
 
 Nothing but death could stay the voice or pen of Cotton 
 Mather. On the twenty-second of February we find that 
 he had been writing a book during the winter, being 
 " Essays for the Illustrations and Demonstrations of the 
 Christian Religion." It was finished this day, and en- 
 titled " The Confirmed Christian, Beholding the Triumphs 
 of Christianity over all its Adversaries." He had enjoyed 
 a " wonderful assistance of heaven in the writing of it," 
 and says : " Although I have been full of other employ- 
 ments, and have lost more than a little time through sick- 
 ness ; and slothy and sleep do shamefully prevail upon me, 
 yet in a few weeks' time I have now composed this trea- 
 tise of about twenty-four sheets." This appears to have 
 been given to the press in \jQO. 
 
 On the same day he wrote : " Some of my neighbors, 
 and some from whom I little expect any such respect, call 
 
1 88 LIFE AND TIMES OF 
 
 for the discourse lately spoken at the Boston Lecture on 
 Sickness." It was published under the motto, Mens Sana 
 in Corpore Sano, and with the title, " A Discourse on 
 recovery from sickness." He exclaims: "O my Lord 
 Jesus Christ ! I am astonished, I am astonished at thy 
 favors in thus employing the most unworthy sinner in 
 the world." 
 
 The fourth of March was kept as a secret fast before 
 the Lord. He was in " tearful agonies " about his sins, 
 but laid hold on the offered righteousness of the Lord 
 Jesus Christ. "The Spirit and the Angel of Jehovah 
 came nigh unto me, and so as I cannot utter, assured me 
 that I should serve my Lord Jesus Christ yet exceedingly. 
 And more particularly, that I am soon to do a special serv- 
 ice of great consequence for the name of the Lord Jesus 
 Christ, which as yet, I know not what it is." 
 
 A wonderful thought came into his mind March 20 with 
 a heavenly force, that God loved my Lord Jesus Christ 
 infinitely, and had given worlds unto him, and made him 
 the Lord of all. " I was assured that the angels of my 
 Lord Jesus Christ had wondrous offices of good-will to do 
 for me, and that they would, on the score of my Lord 
 Jesus Christ, love me, help me, teach me, be nigh unto me, 
 be with me, fetch me to be with them forever." 
 
 Memorandum. I was a little comforted with a word spoken to me 
 by a gentleman, a lawyer, who came a few months ago out of England, 
 and who, since he came, had set himself a little to observe the people 
 of New England. Said he, " Mr. Mather, I can tell you this. All 
 the men that have any virtue, or any reason in them, I find love you, 
 and value you, andhonor you ; but all the base people, who are scan- 
 dalous for vice and wickedness, hate you, and can't give you a good 
 word. 
 
 In the following entry of the diary, April i, the " scan- 
 dalous peace " referred to was the Peace of Ryswick, 
 
COTTON MATHER. 1 89 
 
 mentioned above. Mather thought France had been let 
 off too easily, which may have been the case, for King 
 William had a hard task in trying to keep the allied 
 powers together against the arms and the intrigues of 
 Louis XIV. In his devotions this day, the diarist prayed 
 for ''pardon of sins; support of his ministry; welfare of 
 his family ; deliverance of his countrymen from inva- 
 sion of salvages ; and for the whole Protestant religion 
 and interest from the threatening circumstances where- 
 unto the scandalous peace^ lately concluded, has involved 
 it." As several Catholic powers were allied with England 
 in checking the encroachments of France, King William 
 could not wage the war openly in the Protestant interest. 
 Mather knew this and did not censure the king, whom he 
 admired, but he prayed that the Protestant religion might 
 be saved from threatening perils. The war was soon 
 renewed, and was not definitely closed until Marlborough, 
 in several hitherto unparalleled victories, had driven the 
 French king to the wall. The interest that we Americans 
 of the present day take in great European contests is 
 faint in comparison with the intense anxiety felt by our 
 fathers in the wars waged two hundred years ago. Their 
 own welfare, secular and religious, was bound up in that 
 of the mother country. If France triumphed, the Cath- 
 olic interest would prevail in all North America. 
 
 On this day, April i, Mr. Mather made special request 
 for the gracious presence of Christ in his design at the 
 Lecture in the following week, to relate and improve the 
 History of the Divine Dispensations towards the town of 
 which he was a native. This leads us to the masterly 
 discourse spoken on the seventh of April to a "vast 
 assembly." It was entitled "The Boston Ebenezer," and 
 was ''much desired for publication." It was printed with 
 another sermon entitled " Household Religion," in eighty- 
 
190 LIFE AND TIMES OF 
 
 two pages. The first was republished in the Magnalia, 
 first volume, where it may now be read, and from which 
 may be learned much of the history and character of 
 Boston. It will well repay the reading. Of this effort 
 he writes : — 
 
 The Lord having helped me, beyond my expectations, in preparing a 
 discourse for the Lecture, he yet more gloriously helped me in uttering 
 it unto a vast assembly of his people. I first laid my sinful mouth in 
 the dust, on my study floor, before the Lord, where I cast myself, in my 
 supplications, for his assistance as utterly unworthy thereof. But the 
 Lord made my sinful mouth to become this day, the trumpet of his 
 glory, and the hearts of the inhabitants of the town were strangely 
 moved by what was delivered among them. 
 
 His "little daughter Hannah," a month or two over a 
 year old, was taken very dangerously sick of a fever, with 
 convulsions to such a degree that there was little hope of 
 her life. He writes : ** I cried unto heaven for the child 
 and cheerfully resigned her unto the Lord. Now, behold 
 the result : resigned enjoyments will be still enjoyed. 
 Had something of a particular faith for her being restored 
 unto me. And to my amazement, it came to pass accord- 
 ingly." 
 
 A work written two years before came out in London 
 this year. Its title was ''Eleutheria, or the Idea of 
 the Reformation in England : and a History of Non-com- 
 formity in and since the Reformation ; with predictions 
 of a more glorious reformation and revolution at hand." 
 This hope of a " reformation at hand " was probably sug- 
 gested by the fact that a " Convocation " was about to be 
 held in England, in which it was hoped by many in and 
 out of the national church that measures would be taken 
 to secure a general " comprehension " of orthodox Protest- 
 ants in the national church by mutual concessions. Such 
 expectations met with total failure, as the high church 
 
COTTON MATHER. 
 
 191 
 
 party opposed the plan with violence, tix^ .^^ ^f 
 
 Mather was designed to show, from writers of authority 
 in the national church, that the position held by the Non- 
 conformists was sound and scriptural, and that there was 
 no good reason for excluding them from the Church of 
 England. 
 
 In the diary (" 5d. 3m.") the author refers to this work 
 as having been " written with exceeding pains," and of 
 his having recently sent it by a brother-in-law to a book- 
 seller in London. He says : " If it be possible, I have a 
 secret hope that it will much affect the church in the 
 changes that are approaching. In this treatise, because 
 I distinguish the friends of the reformation by the name 
 of EleutkerianSy (while I call its foes Idumaeans) for 
 the causes there assigned, I therefore entitled the book 
 Eleutheria." Later in the year he wrote : *' There 
 comes to my hand my Eleutheria . . . with circumstances 
 which give me to see a special care of the holy angels 
 concerning it . . . and I believe it will have some notable 
 effect on the English nation." But the plan of King 
 William and many of the wisest and most liberal church- 
 men, including Archbishop Tillotson, was, as said above, 
 defeated. The hard-and-fast churchmen were afraid of 
 the effect that would follow the inclusion of such a mass 
 of evangelical and non-prelatical members as composed 
 the dissenting body. On the other hand, it is more than 
 probable that the hopes of the dissenters, that their in- 
 clusion would reform the Church of England, would have 
 been disappointed. 
 
 One of the best sermons of our author was occasioned 
 by the decease of Rev. John Bailey. It is given in the 
 Magnalia, with the title, "A Good Man making a Good 
 End." It was preached at the funeral, December 16, 
 1697, but printed in pamphlet form in the year under 
 
192 LIFE AND TIMES OF 
 
 revif^w A- ^Atract from the preface is inserted here, 
 because it intimates the merits of Mr. Bailey and gives 
 the author's reasons for preparing biographies. 
 
 We are not so wise as the miserable Papists ! Among them a person 
 of merit, shall at his death, be celebrated and canonized, by all men 
 agreeing in it as in their common interest for to applaud his life. 
 Among us, let these dues be paid unto the memories of the most 
 meritorious person, after his decease, many of the survivors are 
 offended, I had almost said, enraged at it. They seem to take it as a 
 reproach unto themselves, (and, it may be, so it is) that so much good 
 should be told of any man, and that all the little frailties and errors of 
 that man, (and wherein no mere man was ever free,) be not also told, 
 with all the unjust aggravations that envy might put upon them. Tliis 
 folly is as inexpressible an injury to us all, as it cannot but be an 
 advantage unto mankind in general for interred virtue to be rewarded 
 by a statue. 
 
 If ever I deserved well of my country, it has been when I have 
 given to the world the histories and characters of eminent persons 
 which have adorned it. Malice will call some of these things ro- 
 mances, but that malice itself may never hiss with the least color of 
 reason any more, I do here declare, let any man living evince any one 
 material mistake, in any one of these composures, it shall have the 
 most public recantation that can be desired. In the meantime, while 
 some impotent cavils, nibbling at the statues which have been erected 
 for our worthies, take pains to prove themselves the enemies of New 
 England and of religion, the statues will outlive all their idle nibbles ; 
 •'the righteous will be had in everlasting remembrance," when the 
 "wicked who see it and are grieved shall gnash with their teeth, and 
 melt away." 
 
 In the latter part of May, Mr. Mather was deeply con- 
 cerned about the condition of " many poor friends, pris- 
 oners among the Turks and Moors, and in horrible slavery 
 at Sallee." That he might comfort them, he wrote a letter 
 to strengthen them in the Christian faith. He took 
 " some care to print many copies of this large letter, that 
 so it might be, by diverse opportunities, the more cer- 
 tainly conveyed unto them." He styled it a " Pastoral 
 Letter." He begins : — 
 
COTTON MATHER. I93 
 
 We are distressed for you, O our brethren ; we are distressed for you. 
 Our neighborhood, with bitter anguish, pouring out the lamentations 
 that were of old heard among the people of God, in Lam. i : 38 : 
 *' Hear, I pray you, all people, and behold my sorrow ; my virgins and 
 my young men are gone into captivity." And when we consider what 
 a dreadful, and what a doleful, and how inexpressibly a miserable cap- 
 tivity is that you are gone into, the lamentations of our sorrow do in- 
 deed become inexpressible. But though we cannot express the anguish 
 of mind that seizes us, when we do, at our full tables, and in our soft 
 lodgings, with all our friends about us, call to mind, as we often do, 
 how 't is with you, yet we would express a little of that effection that 
 we bear you, by letting you know that we remember you. Our remem- 
 brance causes us, without ceasing, to make mention of you in our 
 prayers, and in our ardent and constant cries unto the God of all 
 grace, that you may have grace to help you in your time of need. 
 
 He therefore wrote them what might help to interest 
 and strengthen and comfort them in their captivity. 
 Hoping that they might continue faithful unto death in 
 the Christian faith, and that they might experience the 
 practice and power of it, he urged them to repentance for 
 all sin and to prayer without ceasing. The letter closes 
 with many promises from the Scriptures. To prayers and 
 promises Mr. Mather and his people added liberal gifts of 
 money to aid in securing the ransom of the captives. He 
 states in his diary that he afterwards heard that the letter 
 " was blessed wonderfully to the captives ; yea, it proved 
 the preparation and introduction unto their deliverances." 
 
 The twenty-ninth of May was the Lord's day, on which 
 he recalled the fact that he had privately and publicly 
 given out his convictions of a great reformation in England, 
 Scotland, and France. On this subject he had exercised 
 particular faith. Now for the fulfillment. 
 
 Well, in Scotland, the last year, the reformation of the church is 
 accomplished unto the satisfaction of them that breathed after it. In 
 England, upon the unanimous vote of the parliament, the king has 
 emitted an excellent proclamation, for the suppression of all profane- 
 
194 ^^^^ ^^^ TIMES OF 
 
 ness ; and the effect of that, and other things, has appeared in a 
 sudden and wondrous alteration upon the whole face of the king- 
 dom : — a notable reformation ! Also, for punishing those who publish 
 doctrines derogatory to the person, and office, and glory of Christ. 
 As to France, behold the whole Principality of Orange, which is in 
 the bowels of France, has had an astonishing work of grace done 
 upon it. Its pastors being restored, the holy religion of Christ is re- 
 stored with them ; and the poor Protestants who had been dragooned 
 into apostacy, are all, with transports of joy, recovered. 
 
 The recovery of Orange from France was an object on 
 which the tenacious heart of King William was set, both 
 as a point of honor, as it gave the title to his family, and 
 as the recovery was the reinstitution of the Protestant 
 religion in the principality. In Scotland, besides the 
 religious changes which Mather refers to, it should be 
 noted that the great scheme of universal education for 
 the children and youth of the nation was put in action at 
 this time. The act for the settling of schools was passed 
 in 1696. I quote from Macaulay : — 
 
 The effect before one generation had passed away began to be felt. 
 It was evident that the common people of Scotland were superior in 
 intelligence to the common people of any other country in Europe. 
 To whatever land the Scotchman might wander, to whatever calling he 
 might betake himself, in America or in India, in trade or in war, the 
 advantage which he derived from his early training raised him above 
 his competitors. If he were taken into a warehouse as a porter, he soon 
 became foreman. If he enlisted in the army, he soon became a ser- 
 geant. Scotland, meanwhile, in spite of the barrenness of her soil 
 and the severity of her climate, made such progress in agriculture, in 
 manufactures, in commerce, in letters, in science, in all that consti- 
 tutes civilization, as the Old World had never seen equaled, and as 
 even the New World has scarcely seen surpassed. 
 
 The changes above spoken of were great things for 
 Mr. Mather to rejoice over ; still his heart was sad be- 
 cause Jerusalem was yet in ruins ; the French Protestant 
 churches were dissipated; the Hungarian churches were 
 
COTTON MATHER. 1 95 
 
 desolated ; and the Piedmontese churches were in afflic- 
 tion. 
 
 "Interviews with heaven," he writes, June 10, had left 
 a savor on his spirit. He puts in Latin his expectation 
 that before his death an angel would exhibit himself 
 visibly to him, and lay open certain signs concerning the 
 church, and new things, and then adds : " I pray thee, my 
 dear Redeemer, free and protect me, thy most unworthy 
 servant, from devilish illusions." This was a prayer very 
 needful to be made, .but it should be said that whether or 
 not the writer was ever misled by " deviUsh illusions," he 
 kept them to himself, for there is no instance on record 
 wherein he based public utterance or action on his private 
 experience with angels. 
 
 The proclamation of King William against profane 
 swearing and other forms of wickedness was echoed by 
 Lieutenant-Governor Taylor, which led Mr. Mather to 
 resolve that at his next lecture he would give to the 
 country a sermon upon the " zeal with which we should 
 all endeavor to do what is thus called for." It was done 
 with the " special assistance of heaven." 
 
 He had trials during the summer, caused by the mis- 
 conduct of some members of his own church and by 
 the "■ contentious and apostatising state " of some other 
 churches. In August he attended a council in Sudbury 
 to rectify the /;^^/^-administration there." He drew up 
 the " Result," and addressed the people. 
 
 The many miserables in prison excited his sympathy, 
 so after the services of the day, September 4, were over, 
 he visited the prison, " prayed with the poor creatures " 
 and preached to them on Psalm 142 : 7: "Bring my soul 
 out of prison, that I may praise thy name." They heard 
 him with "floods of tears." He adds: "Who can tell but 
 that I have, this day, found one Onesimus ? Who can tell 
 
196 LIFE AND TIMES OF 
 
 but some wretches, by running into prison, may run into 
 the arms of Christ, and his victorious grace ? " 
 
 The next day he went to Salem, and on Tuesday 
 " traveled with a council of five churches " to Chebacco, 
 now Essex, where, on the next day, he was helpful in 
 bringing a difficult case to a "good issue." On Thursday 
 he gave the lecture at Ipswich. The next day he came 
 back to Salem, where on Sunday he preached both parts 
 of the day, and " God's presence was mightily " with him. 
 
 One touching incident while at Salem excites our in- 
 terest. His brother Nathaniel, next to him in age and 
 scarcely second in genius and learning, was buried at 
 Salem. So he writes : " While I was in Salem, I retired 
 unto the burying place, and at the grave of my dear 
 younger brother there, I could not but fall down on my 
 knees before the Lord, with praises to his name, for grant- 
 ing the life of my dead brother to be writ, and spread, and 
 read among his people, and be very serviceable ; and for 
 sparing me, a barren wretch, to survive these many years, 
 upon the earth, to serve his people in several parts of the 
 world." He proceeds, saying, " I then considered, what 
 if I were speedily to be called away by death, after my 
 younger brother. I found my spirit gloriously triumphing 
 in the thought of going by death to be with the Lord 
 Jesus Christ, and among the angels. But when I further 
 thought of staying to glorify him in the world of many 
 temptations among his people here, I did at present, 
 because of my age^ prefer this, and request it of the Lord." 
 
 The eleventh of December was observed as a secret 
 thanksgiving in the usual way, but with more than usual 
 enjoyment. " The holy Lord dealt familiarly " with him. 
 " I have this day gone into the suburbs of heaven. The 
 Spirit of my Lord God has carried me thither, and has 
 told me glorious things, yea, heaven has come near unto 
 
COTTON MATHER. I97 
 
 me, and filled me, with joy unspeakable and full of glory. 
 I cannot utter, I may not utter, the communications of 
 heaven, but this I will say, I have tasted that the Lord is 
 gracious." 
 
 He baptized four negroes on Lord's day, the 13th, and 
 the Lord helped him to ** make the action a special occa- 
 sion of glorifying him." 
 
 About this time it was feared that a vessel at sea, of 
 which a brother-in-law was captain, was lost. Mather was 
 *' assured from heaven " that the vessel was safe and 
 would soon arrive. Another vessel soon came in ; but 
 the next week the vessel of his relative sailed into port 
 bringing a printed copy of his Eleutheria. 
 
 The fifteenth of December was Thanksgiving Day, and 
 he was grateful for the many mercies of the year; and 
 was specially interested that God might be glorified in his 
 own family and in the families of his immediate friends. 
 It was his belief that the God of heaven vouchsafes, 
 especially to some of his faithful saints, a more singular 
 conduct of his providence, with the managements and 
 ministry of his holy angels. 
 
 The next year (1699) was a busy one, but the diary 
 being closed against use, the record will be brief. Besides 
 all his parish duties and pulpit exercises, Mr. Mather put 
 to press nearly seven hundred pages ; though part of this 
 matter was written in the year preceding. 
 
 A few items are culled from the records. 
 
 On the sixth of February the church voted that ''the 
 salary of the present pastor should be three pounds per 
 week, and that the deacons, out of the church treasury, 
 furnish the families of both teacher and pastor, with fuel, 
 as there is occasion." 
 
 During the year Mr. Mather preached at home and 
 abroad about seventy times. 
 
198 LIFE AND TIMES OF 
 
 In this year he was ''brought low." A grievous, pain- 
 ful, wasting headache seized him. " Fears, and tempta- 
 tions, and despondency " were the consequerfce. 
 
 The sermon preached on the seventeenth of the preced- 
 ing November was published with the title, " Pillars of 
 Salt." It was a lecture in which he gave a *' History of 
 some criminals executed in this land, for capital crimes, 
 with some of their dying speeches." A brief discourse 
 about the "dreadful justice of God in punishing of sin 
 with sin," was added. About a month before delivering 
 the sermon he wrote : " Because I foresaw that before 
 my next lecture, the whole country would be entertained 
 with a tragical instance of a young woman who was to 
 come upon her trial the next week, for murdering her 
 baseborn child, I now began to discourse on Rom, i : 2^^ 
 handling the case of God's punishing of some sins by 
 leaving them to worse. Intending in a monthly lecture, 
 if the Lord pleased, to finish what I now began, to make 
 the sad examples before the country, subservient to my 
 design." 
 
 The General Court, then in session, " ordered the public 
 services to be in a larger and a stronger house " than the 
 one usually occupied on such occasions. On the day 
 appointed, Mr. Mather was " weak, and faint, and spent," 
 but humbly gave himself up to the Spirit of his heavenly 
 Lord, and was " assured of help by a good angel, to 
 strengthen him." The greatest assembly ever preached 
 to in the country came together ; " it may be four or five 
 thousand souls." He writes, as given by Sibley : — 
 
 I could not get into the pulpit, but by climbing over pews and heads ; 
 and the Spirit of my dearest Lord came upon me. I preached with a 
 more than ordinary assistance and enlargement, and uttered the most 
 awakening things, for near two hours together. My str ength and voice 
 failed not; but when it was near failing, a silent look to heaven 
 
COTTON MATHER. 
 
 199 
 
 strangely renewed it. In the whole, I found prayer answered and 
 hope exceeded, and faith encouraged ; and the Lord using me, the 
 vilest in all that great assembly, to glorify him. Oh ! what shall I 
 render to the Lord ! 
 
 Another work, written in the preceding year but now 
 given to the press, was entitled " Decennium Luctuosum." 
 With a sermon added, it filled 254 pages. It is in all the 
 editions of the Magnalia, and was joined in a volume with 
 Increase Mather's History, edited by Samuel G. Drake, 
 in 1862. It should be read by all students of the period 
 from 1688 to 1698. It was as " agreeable a history of the 
 Indian war" as he could compose, and he "incorporated 
 into it as charming and useful entertainments for the 
 country" as he could. He closes with the words : " O my 
 God, I exceedingly give thanks to thy name, for the help 
 thou hast given me in despatching this work." 
 
 Mr. Mather was specially interested this year (1699) ^^ 
 Jews and Spaniards. For the former he prepared " The 
 Faith of the Fathers." He presented the " Articles of the 
 true religion in the express words of the Old Testament." 
 
 To benefit the Spaniards, he learned their language, 
 and wrote an essay (pp. 16) called " La Fe del Christiano, 
 en vente-quarta Articles." A part of this pamphlet had 
 the title, ''La Religion Pura," in a few articles, with 
 Scripture references. Communications with the Spanish 
 Indies had recently become more frequent, and Mather 
 seized the occasion to scatter words of truth among that 
 people. His progress in learning the language would 
 seem impossible to any one but himself. " In two or 
 three weeks, by using a few leisure minutes in the evening 
 of every day, he could write very good Spanish." His 
 " Little Body of the Protestant Religion " was sent in " all 
 possible ways, to the several parts of Spanish America." 
 
 "A well-ordered Family," a book of eighty pages, came 
 
200 LIFE AND TIMES. 
 
 out this year. The design was to "render parents and 
 children happy in each other." The design and execution 
 were most excellent. It would seem as if such preaching 
 must have been irresistible. 
 
 The churches were infested at this time and for more 
 than a hundred years longer by unworthy ministers, na- 
 tive or foreign born. Mather exposed those of his day 
 in a " History of Some Impostors." It required courage 
 to do this work, for by it he incurred the enmity of the 
 impostors and of their dupes. 
 
 "The Serious Christian," a book of ii6 pages, was one 
 of the last productions of this fruitful year. It is well to 
 reflect that the man who endured such pain, toil, and 
 strain upon his whole nervous system was one of the 
 happiest of men, joying in the work that was given him 
 to do. 
 
CHAPTER XI. 
 
 THE LAST YEAR OF THE CENTURY. FORMATION OF 
 
 BRATTLE STREET CHURCH : 1 7OO. 
 
 THE last year of the seventeenth century was full of 
 work, anxiety, perplexities, and buffetings to Mr. 
 Mather ; but he toiled on under a divine impulse to bear 
 meekly what was trying and to do steadily what was in 
 the way of duty. 
 
 Among the additions to the church was Jerusha 
 Mather, later the wife of Peter Oliver, supposed to have 
 been the youngest sister of the pastor, born in 1684. 
 The following items are from the church records : — 
 
 March 3. Elizabeth Ryal desiring to join unto the new church in 
 this town, — the "Manifesto" or Brattle street church — this church 
 declared themselves discharged from the obligations of the covenant 
 unto her. 
 
 July II, 1700. The brethren of the church, being assembled at the 
 desire of the governor and the general assembly, and messengers from 
 both houses in the assembly, coming to them with a motion that they 
 would consent unto the removal of their teacher's residence to the 
 college in Cambridge, the ensuing vote was passed. *' Being under the 
 sense of the great benefit we have long enjoyed by the labors of our 
 revered pastor, Mr. Increase Mather, among us, it must needs be 
 unreasonable and impossible for us to consent that his relation to us» 
 and our enjoyment of him and them, should cease. Nevertheless, 
 the respect we have to the desire and welfare of the publick, does 
 compel us to consent that our said pastor may so remove his personal 
 residence to the college at Cambridge, as may be consistent with the 
 continuance of his relation to us, and his visits of us with his public 
 administrations, as often as his health and strength may allow it." 
 
 "A Cloud of Witnesses against balls and dances," a 
 book ascribed to Mr. Mather, came out near this time. 
 
202 LIFE AND TIMES OF 
 
 Also a " Defence of Evangelical Churches " is noted in 
 the list of his son Samuel. 
 
 On his birthday, February 12, he writes of an old author, 
 Geilemus, who styled his birthdays as dies calamitatis, but 
 Mather would not so style his natal days. He addressed 
 the Lord with praises for the favors of the year, and with 
 prayer for the pardon of his sins. He visited a meeting 
 of the faithful, and preached a sermon on the words, 
 **Lord, let it alone this year also." 
 
 He writes that he " had been fearing afflictions of late, 
 and behold, my fear comes to pass, for on Friday of this 
 week, my only and lovely son [Increase, born July 9, 
 1699] — a son given me in answer to many prayers 
 among the people of God, and a son of much observation 
 and expectation, was taken with convulsion fits." He 
 was helped to resign the child to God, " Nevertheless, 
 that I might more effectually conform to the dispensations 
 of heaven, when I saw an angel of death, with a drawn 
 sword thus over my family, I thought it my duty to be- 
 take myself unto more than ordinary supplications." The 
 father prayed often, " If it may be, let the cup, (the 
 human cup for this my son,) pass from me ; yet not my 
 will, but thine be done." Towards evening the convul- 
 sions left the child. On the twenty-third of February, 
 being Lord's day, he "addressed heaven with prayer, no 
 less than ten times." This of course included private 
 and public prayer. 
 
 " The Everlasting Gospel," as held and preached in the 
 churches of New England, was printed this year, to meet 
 the wants of the time. It was attested by " several rev- 
 erend and eminent persons, now most considerable in 
 those churches." This was reissued in 1767 in Phila- 
 delphia, and also in Wilmington. 
 
 He writes of the ** venoms of that malignant company 
 
COTTON MATHER. 203 
 
 who have lately built a new church in Boston," who 
 "added unto the storm of the present persecution." At 
 the same time he " bewailed his own sins and imperfec- 
 tions," while glad that charges against him had no 
 foundation. He forgave all that reproached him, and 
 *' prayed God to forgive them." Doubtless Mr. Mather 
 was too sensitive to opposition, and sometimes took 
 aggravated views of the spirit of his opponents. 
 
 From this time, for several weeks, his mind alternated 
 between hope and fear, in regard to little Increase, who 
 had successive fits and relief, besides being nearly choked 
 to death by a pin in his throat. In prayer he was, as all 
 his life long, struggling for "particular faith," and was 
 often in doubt in relation thereto. If he had cultivated 
 more permanent faith, perhaps it would have conduced 
 to his comfort. The child survived to manhood and was 
 the source of much hope, and anxiety and anguish of 
 soul. 
 
 One trial was peculiar to him, and specially mortifying. 
 There were people who complained that he published too 
 much. Who they were we are not told ; probably those 
 who did not relish his works. There was a class in 
 Boston who disliked his activity in many lines of work, 
 and took every means in their power to discourage him 
 and hinder the carrying out of his desires. His success 
 in the pulpit and by the press was a continual irritation 
 to them, and he felt their hostility too keenly for his own 
 comfort. In regard to publishing he had no reason to 
 heed the sneers of enemies or the doubts of friends, so 
 long as there was a demand for the fruits of his mind ; 
 and this continued through his life, and has not ceased to 
 this day. He considered the *' press a great agency for 
 good," and he was "assured from heaven that he should 
 have greater opportunities than ever to serve the Lord by 
 
204 LIFE AND TIMES OF 
 
 publications." But he was of too sensitive a spirit, and 
 felt too readily the deed of unkindness and the word of 
 disparagement. We find him in March in " black de- 
 jections and sore discouragements." In this state, he 
 prayed that "before he broke off," he might have some 
 token of divine acceptance. And as he believed, it was 
 "again assured his weeping soul from heaven, that it 
 should not be denied to him to be employed in eminent 
 services for Christ." 
 
 Three young men in the neighborhood were drowned 
 about this time. It seems that many young men had 
 fallen by various casualties in the months before, and 
 these accidents he regarded as "judgments of God on 
 the young men of New England." This induced him to 
 preach on the subject. The sermon was published with 
 the title, "Things which Young People Should Think 
 upon." It had a good circulation. It contained "Con- 
 solations to the bereaved parents of such young people, 
 as are by an early and perhaps a sudden death, taken from 
 them." 
 
 Two letters require notice because of their timeliness 
 and their adaptation to promote the end in view. One 
 had relation to the Noncomformists in the English 
 nation ; and the other to the men who debauched the 
 Indians by selling intoxicating liquors to them. In the 
 " Letter of advice to the churches of the Non-conform- 
 ists in the English nation," he endeavors to satisfy 
 them on one point — that "they are the true Church of 
 England." He claims that the Dissenters are "members 
 of the Church of England." The reasons are, because, 
 (i) They hold the Articles of Faith held by the National 
 Church. (2) Many of the great leaders of that church 
 have scrupled many of the ceremonies, and also some of 
 the expressions in the ritual, in which they agree with the 
 
COTTON MATHER. 205 
 
 Nonconformists ; and (3) Because, in the words of Dr. 
 Stillingfleet, the bishop of Worcester, " God will, one 
 day, convince men that the unity of the church lies more 
 in the unity of faith and affection than in the uniformity 
 of doubtful rites and ceremonies." The letter was anony- 
 mous, but signed Philalethes. 
 
 A gentleman desired him to write a sheet upon the 
 "horrid evil of debauching the Indians by selling drink 
 unto them ; a crime committed by too many in our coun- 
 try, and a crime fruitful in wickedness and confusion." 
 Therefore he wrote a "Monitory and hortatory letter" 
 to those English who were engaged in supplying the 
 natives with strong drink. The letter effected " more 
 good than he had imagined." Intoxicants have been the 
 bane of Indians wherever they have not been Christianized. 
 
 On the third of April Mr. Mather "engaged in the 
 duties of secret thanksgiving." The service was peculiar 
 in this, that he gave special attention to the " various and 
 marvellous answers to prayer." He records particular 
 answers, as follows: — " i. In being preserved from sin, 
 and advanced in grace ; 2. continued life ; 3. health ; 4. in 
 being a minister ; 5. miraculous freedom of speech ; 6. 
 vast congregations ; 7. remarkable assistances ; 8. pub- 
 lications ; 9. library, extraordinary in size and quality; 
 several thousands of books ; 10. desirable consort, given 
 and spared to him ; 11. three daughters, and now at last, 
 a son, all of them wonderfully recovered from the jaws of 
 death ; 12. for a great salary, and a comfortable habita- 
 tion ; 13. being preserved from wicked men, and em- 
 balmed with good men ; 14. for mercies obtained for 
 others — the sick, captives, and salvations to the public." 
 
 The families of the great congregation were arranged 
 in groups, and held meetings in each other's houses. The 
 family meeting of the gentlemen in the neighborhood 
 
206 LIFE AND TIMES OF 
 
 came to his house in course this evening. He composed 
 a discourse for the occasion on Psalm 138: 3: "In the 
 day when I cried thou answeredst me, and strengthenedst 
 with strength in my soul." The topic was in the line of 
 his thanksgivings during the day, namely, " How a Chris- 
 tian should make a profitable observation of the answers 
 wherewith his prayers are answered." 
 
 The following lines, exhibiting the personal influence 
 of Mr. Mather over the inmates of his family and occa- 
 sional callers, are significant of a remarkable character : 
 "April 21. My barber admitted to the church. He gave 
 the church this account, in that his attending for me, 
 and my continual dropping of counsels, and warnings, 
 and lessons upon him, was the great means of his con- 
 version to God." "This day my servant was offered to 
 the examination of the church. In the account of her 
 conversion, she told the church that the living in my 
 family was the means of it ; that she should forever bless 
 God for bringing her under my roof." And he adds 
 that the same result had been true of other servants and 
 of almost all who had ever lived with him. 
 
 While fearing that his opportunities to be serviceable 
 would be brought to an end, a gentleman called on him 
 with a desire that he would " write a pastoral letter to 
 the Indians, comprising the sum of the glorious things 
 revealed unto them in the gospel," and offered to be at the 
 expense of translating and printing. In accordance he 
 wrote "An Epistle to the Christian Indians," giving them 
 a short account of what the English desire them to know 
 and to do, in order to their happiness. The right-hand 
 pages are in English, and the left-hand pages in Indian. 
 
 Our author had prepared a discourse for the Lecture 
 on evil speaking, but the evening before he preached it a 
 letter came from some one in the Bermudas, desiring him 
 
COTTON MATHER. 
 
 207 
 
 to publish on the subject of evil speaking, and sent money 
 to pay for the impression. He gave his sermon to the 
 publisher, adding another with this title, "A Good 
 Linguist." 
 
 The Earl of Bellamont, the new royal governor, was 
 now in Boston, and was present, with all branches of the 
 government, to hear the discourse usual at the opening of 
 the General Court in May. Mr. Mather was the preacher, 
 and made this record of the event : " After my prayers and 
 my tears, in raised faith, I preached unto his excellency, 
 the council, and the representatives." The subject was 
 "A Pillar of Gratitude, or a brief recapitulation of the 
 matchless favors with which the God of heaven hath 
 obliged the hearty praises of his New English Israel." 
 The house of representatives voted thanks for the ser- 
 mon and the "publication thereof found encouragement 
 among them." 
 
 The condition of Harvard College lay near his heart. 
 In behalf of neighboring ministers he had presented to 
 the General Court a paper in relation to the settlement 
 of the college ; and on the eighth of June the assembly 
 took up the matter, upon which he writes, ** will turn or 
 fall my father's voyage to England." This voyage had 
 been a "point of particular faith, marvellously circum- 
 stanced," both to his father and himself. On the i6th 
 he wrote in his diary, " I am going to relate one of 
 the most astonishing things that has befel me in all the 
 time of my pilgrimage." This refers to the special act 
 of " particular faith " which he had exercised in refer- 
 ence to a voyage to the old country by his father in 
 relation to the interests of the college. The institution 
 had no charter. When the elder Mather was in England 
 (i 688-1692) he made strenuous efforts to obtain a char- 
 ter, but was not successful. The object had never been 
 
208 LIFE AND TIMES OF 
 
 abandoned, and overtures had been made to him to go 
 over in person. He was encouraged by the college 
 authorities and by public men to undertake the service. 
 Moreover he had come, as had his son, to cherish a 
 "particular faith" that the way would be opened for him 
 to go. He was satisfied that he had assurances from 
 heaven that he was " angelically " informed on this point. 
 Not a doubt seems to have crossed his mind but that 
 the voyage would be taken. He made his calculations 
 upon going, and his son Cotton was as full of faith as 
 himself. The church consented. One branch of the 
 General Court approved. It was expected that the gov- 
 ernment, in all branches, would concur ; but after all, the 
 plan miscarried. The particulars of the story belong to 
 the life of President Mather, but the feelings and opinions 
 of Cotton Mather on the subject belong to this passage 
 of our work. He writes from bitter disappointment, but 
 with chastened wisdom, in '* Parentator " (pp. 94, 95) : — 
 
 If I may be thought worthy to offer my advice, upon the whole, I 
 would humbly say : Christians, reproach not a particular faith as if 
 there never were a gracious work of heaven in it. But yet be 
 cautioned against laying too much stress upon it, lest you find your- 
 selves incautiously plunged into a hope that will make ashamed. A 
 particular faith may be a work of God; but the counterfeits of this 
 jewel are so very fine, that it will require a judgment almost more than 
 human to discover them. It is best not being too fond of enthusi- 
 asms that may carry us beyond the dispensation of the day. It is 
 best that you should be content with the ordinary satisfaction of 
 praying, and so waiting for the blessings of God, in such pious resig- 
 nations to his will, and annihilations of your own, as an uncertainty 
 about issues would most properly lead you to. 
 
 In this connection it is pertinent to say that Cotton 
 Mather was not used to parading his particular faiths 
 before the public. Were it not for his private diary, we 
 should know little of his opinion or his practice in rela- 
 tion to the matter. 
 
COTTON MATHER. 
 
 209 
 
 The founding of Brattle Street Church, in Boston, was 
 an event which excited great interest and aroused vigor- 
 ous conflict at the time, and it is often referred to as 
 working a revolution in our church history. It has been 
 much misunderstood and greatly overrated as to its in- 
 trinsic importance and its positive influence. Doubt- 
 less some of the movers in the enterprise had in mind 
 quite a modification of the existing custom in founding 
 churches and took preliminary measures with that end in 
 view. Young Mr. Colman, a man of a good family and 
 fine education, being in England, was ordained there, in 
 the Presbyterian way, lest there might be some difficulty 
 in procuring his ordination here, when the designs of the 
 founders became known. This excited distrust. Then on 
 the part of some there was free talk about liberality, and 
 breaking away from some of the methods in use in choos- 
 ing ministers and admitting members to the church. 
 Quite naturally the churches already existing, and their 
 ministers, were solicitous on the subject, and were anxious 
 that the new church should be put on such a foundation 
 as to keep it in harmony with themselves and in conform- 
 ity to ancient usage. When the steps were beginning to 
 be taken in the new enterprise, Cotton Mather, in common 
 with his father, exerted himself to prevent a breach of 
 charity and harmonious working; and the results were 
 both good and lasting. One of his efforts is recorded 
 under date "4 d. 5 in. Thursday," in the following 
 terms : — 
 
 This day, in a very great assembly of ministers, the Lord helped me, 
 in a long speech, to bear my testimony against the attempts, now 
 afoot in the country, to unhinge our churches, and subvert and con- 
 found the order of the gospel in them. On this occasion, I saw, to 
 my sorrow, that there was hardly any but my father and myself, to 
 appear with any strength of argument or fortitude, in defence of our 
 invaded churches. Therefore I thought I must cry mightily unto the 
 
2IO LIFE AND TIMES OF 
 
 Lord, that he would mercifully direct me, and protect me, in all my 
 feeble, but faithful endeavors to serve him ; and that he would partic- 
 ularly furnish me with patience to undergo all the obloquy whereto 
 my fidelity to his interests may expose me in an evil generation, and 
 preserve me from all the devices of Satan ever to blast me with 
 reproaches that may at all incapacitate me for eminent serviceable- 
 ness. I also thought that if it be the purpose of heaven that the 
 apostacy shall go on, they that will vigorously and significantly stand 
 in the way of that apostacy, may be in danger of a stroke from the 
 angel of death, that so a way may be made for the anger of God ; 
 but that I resolved, that I would not, from this consideration, abate 
 any of my opposition to the sinful degeneracy. No, I will oppose it, 
 tho' it cost me my life. 
 
 The result of these efforts by the Mathers, and espe- 
 cially the younger, was that the plan of the new society 
 was modified, so that they and others could heartily join in 
 the services of installation. And here the matter might 
 rest, as a substantial victory of the faithful men who stood 
 stedfastly for the ancient faith and polity of the Puritan 
 churches of New England ; but the falsification of the 
 history of this event is so gross and persistent and oft- 
 repeated that the true state of facts needs to be told. 
 
 In the diary for the year 1699, ^^^ in the library of 
 the American Antiquarian Society, is an entry, as quoted 
 by President Quincy (vol. i, History of Harvard College), 
 in the words following, written by Cotton Mather : — 
 
 I see another day of temptation begun upon the town and land.^ 
 A company of headstrong men in the town, the chief of whom are full 
 of malignity to the holy ways of our churches, have built in the town 
 another meeting house. To delude many better meaning men in their 
 own company, and the churches in the neighborhood, they passed a 
 vote in the foundation of their proceedings, that they would not vary 
 from the practice of these churches, except in one little particular. 
 But . . . these fallacious people desert their vote, and without the 
 advice or knowledge of the ministers in the vicinity, they have pub- 
 lished, under the title of a manifesto^ certain articles that utterly 
 
CO TTON MA THER. 211 
 
 subvert our churches, and invite an ill party through all the country^ 
 to throw all into confusion on the first opportunitie. 
 
 The date of this extract was " 1699, 7 d. 10 m.," or 
 December 7. 
 
 In this state of things, the Mathers — father and son — 
 "with many prayers and studies" prepared for the press 
 an "Antidote against the Infection of the Example.'^ 
 Instead of issuing this, after the first sheet was in the 
 hands of the compositors, they " stopped it with a de- 
 sire to make one attempt more for the bringing of this 
 people to reason." Says Cotton Mather : — 
 
 I drew up a proposal, and with another minister, carried it unto 
 them, who at first rejected it, but afterwards so far embraced it, as to 
 promise that they will, the next week, publicly recognize their cove- 
 nant and one another, and therewithal declare their adherence to the 
 Heads of Agreement of the United Brethren in England, and request 
 the communion of our churches in that foundation. A wonderfiil joy 
 filled the hearts of our good people far and near, that we had obtained 
 this much from them. Our strife seemed now at an end ; there was 
 much relenting in some of their spirits, when they saw our condescen- 
 sion, our charity, our compassion. We overlooked all past offences. 
 We kept the public fast with them, (on 31st. 11 month, Wednesday, 
 that is, January 31, 1700) and my father preached with them, on fol- 
 lowing peace with holiness, and I concluded with prayer. 
 
 With this record, drawn from Cotton Mather's diary, 
 before him. President Quincy (vol. i, page 115) writes: 
 "This account is singularly illustrative of his [Cotton 
 Mather's] disposition to wrest every occurrence into a sub- 
 ject of eulogy on himself or his father." Proceeding, he 
 says that contemporaneous documents compel the belief 
 that the above statement of Cotton Mather, that he 
 "drew up a proposal," etc., was "wholly without foun- 
 dation ; that he neither drew up the paper, nor had any 
 material agency in producing it. In this, as in many 
 instances in his voluminous writings, the conviction is 
 
212 LIFE AND TIMES OF 
 
 forced on the mind that he was not quite so scrupulous 
 as might be wished, in his relation of facts, particularly in 
 cases where his own or his father's reputation was likely 
 to be affected." 
 
 This is an indirect way of stating that the record of 
 Cotton Mather, so plain and unequivocal, is false. And 
 then the venerable president attempts to prove this by 
 quotations from the records of Brattle Street Church, 
 written by Rev. Mr. Colman, the first pastor, and also 
 from the diary of Judge Samuel Sewall. Quotations to 
 prove Cotton Mather a circumstantial falsifier, for the 
 sake of eulogizing himself or his father, should be clear 
 and strong, or the attempt must fail. What does Mr. 
 Colman write } Does he record that Mr. Mather did not 
 draw up a ** proposal," and with "another minister" take 
 it to some of the members of the new church } Not 
 a word of this. He records : ** I omit on purpose the 
 differences and troubles we had with any neighbors 
 about our proceedings. I am only obliged to leave this 
 acknowledgment of our great obligations to the Hon. 
 William Stoughton, the Rev. Mr. William Brattle, the 
 Rev. Mr. Clark, of Chelmsford, and Mr. Danforth, of Dor- 
 chester, for their good and kind endeavors for our peace- 
 able settlement." Now because Mr. Colman did not insert 
 the names of the Mathers in this record of gratitude, the 
 president draws the positive conclusion that the statement 
 of Cotton Mather is false ! Why should he record the 
 fact that the strenuous efforts of Increase and Cotton 
 Mather had constrained the new church to make reason- 
 able concessions .-* 
 
 But this is not all the foundation of the president's 
 insinuation of falsehood. He says (page 136), ** Judge 
 Sewall's statement is apparently irreconcilable with that 
 of Cotton Mather." The following is from the diary of 
 Judge Sewall : — 
 
COTTON MA THER. 2 1 3 
 
 1699-1700, January 24th. Lieutenant Governor [Stoughton] calls 
 me, with him, to Mr. Willard's, where, out of two papers, Mr. William 
 Brattle drew up a third, for an accommodation, to bring on an agree- 
 ment between the new church and our ministers. Mr. Colman got his 
 brethren to subscribe to it. 
 
 January 25th. Mr. I. Mather, Mr. C. Mather, Mr. WUlard, (Old 
 South), Mr. Wadsworth, (First church), and S. Sewall, wait on the 
 Lieutenant Governor, at Mr. Cooper's to confer about the writing 
 drawn up the evening before. There was some heat, but grew calmer, 
 and, after lecture, agreed to be present at the fast, which was to be 
 observed, January 31st. 
 
 This is the statement of Sewall, and this the proof 
 relied on to sustain the charge that Cotton Mather ob- 
 trusively claimed credit for himself, and made a false 
 record of preparing a "proposal," and taking it to a 
 member of the other party, in company with another 
 minister. Does the statement in Sewall's diary dis- 
 prove the statement in Mather's diary } No ; it does not 
 suggest a doubt on the point to a dispassionate reader. 
 It expressly states that " out of two papers," Mr. Brattle 
 drew up a third. Cotton Mather's proposal was made 
 on the twenty-first of January. Mr. Brattle's paper was 
 written on the 24th, in presence of Stoughton, Willard, 
 and Sewall, and on the 25th the same persons, with the 
 Mathers and Mr. Wadsworth, met at Mr. Cooper's, where 
 they conferred upon the paper drawn up the evening 
 before by Brattle. " There was some heat," writes Sewall, 
 " but grew calmer, and after lecture, agreed to be present 
 at the fast, which was to be observed January 31st." 
 
 With these records before us, what is the conclusion } 
 I. Neither Mr. Colman nor Judge Sewall disproves the 
 statement of Mather, that he drew up and presented a 
 proposal to the Brattle Street party. 2. Neither contra- 
 dicts the assertion that the proposal was, after some delay, 
 approved by the other party. The delay, according to 
 
214 ^^^^ ^^-^ TIMES OF 
 
 Mather, was from the twenty-first to the twenty-fourth 
 of January. 3. Judge Sewall states that two papers were 
 before Mr. Brattle on the 24th, from which he prepared 
 a third, in the presence of Sewall himself and others. 
 4. Sewall states that at a meeting the next day, the 
 writing (that is, of Brattle) was before a party of gentle- 
 men, and that the party agreed to be present at the fast on 
 the coming thirty-first of January, when all parties united 
 in public service. Here follows the record which the 
 judge made of the fast (vol. ii, pp. 2, 3, diary) : — 
 
 1700, January 31st. Fast at the new church. 
 
 A.M. Mr. Colman reads the writing agreed on. Mr. Allin prays. 
 Mr. Colman preaches, prays and blesses. 
 
 P.M. Mr. Willard prays, Mr. I. Mather preaches. Mr. Cotton 
 Mather prays. Sing the 67 Ps. without reading. Mr. Brattle sets 
 Oxford time. Mr. Mather gives the blessing. 
 
 His text was, "Follow peace with all men, and holiness." His 
 doctrine, — must follow peace so far as it consists with holiness. 
 Hebrews 11'. 14. Mr. Colman's text was i?^»z. 15: 29. "And I am 
 sure that, when I come unto you, I shall come in the fulness of the 
 blessing of the gospel of Christ." 
 
 Mr. Willard prayed God to pardon all the frailties and follies of 
 ministers and people ; that they might give that respect to the other 
 churches due them, though were not just of their constitution. 
 
 Mr. Mather in 's sermon, and Mr. Cotton [Mather] in prayer, to 
 the same purpose. Mr. W. and CM. prayed excellently and pathetic- 
 ally for Mr. Colman and his flock. 
 
 In passing, it may be well to notice a discrepancy be- 
 tween one word as given in the above quotation from 
 Sewall, and the same word as quoted by President 
 Quincy. According to the judge (as printed in the His- 
 torical Collections), Mr. Willard prayed that " they might 
 give that respect to the other ^churches' due them." 
 According to Quincy, who probably copied from the 
 manuscript, the word " church " was used instead of 
 
COTTON MATHER. 
 
 215 
 
 ** churches." The reader will note the difference in the 
 meaning. I have not cared to ascertain whether the 
 editor of Sewall or President Quincy was correct, by 
 examining the manuscript. Though the difference is 
 significant, it was of course not designed. 
 
 Another paragraph may be interposed here, not as 
 bearing upon the veracity of Cotton Mather, but as re- 
 vealing the fact that one of the most prominent and 
 estimable laymen of the time was in full sympathy with 
 those ministers who labored to bring the Brattle Street 
 Church into harmony with the other churches ; and in 
 this he was a representative man. The following lines 
 are from the first volume of Judge Sewall's diary 
 (pp. 516, 517): — 
 
 Deer Q [1699]. Mr. Colman visits me: I expos tulat with him 
 about the 3d Article in the Manifesto, that had shew'd no more 
 respect to N. E. Churches. I told him Christ was a Bride-Groom, 
 and He loved to have his Bride commended. . . . He satisfied me as 
 to Baptisme and said the word \_adopted~\ was left out. I told him 
 he was the more in danger, and had need to be more upon his Guard ; 
 lest any hard sharp words he had met with should tempt him to do 
 what he intended not. Warn'd him of the Cross in Baptisme, &c. 
 Said he was of our mind. Because I told him merely saying Con- 
 form, did not express such an Aprobation of the N. E. way as I 
 desired. Many in England conform'd to things they professedly dis- 
 liked. At his going away, I told him, if God should please by him 
 to hold forth any Light that had not been seen or entertain'd before ; 
 I should be so far from envying it, that I should rejoice in it ; which 
 he was much affected with. 
 
 No one questions the fact that Mr. Brattle, " out of two 
 papers,'' prepared a third, and that this was accepted by 
 both parties. Is there now any room for doubt that 
 one of these two papers was written by Cotton Mather ? 
 Can there be any rational doubt that the "proposal" of 
 Cotton Mather was the main thing — the uniting element 
 
2l6 LIFE AND TIMES OF 
 
 — in Brattle's paper ? Bear in mind that the Mathers and 
 their coadjutors were contending against what they con- 
 sidered a dangerous innovation ; that they were seeking 
 for a concession which would bring the new church into 
 line with the existing churches, and that they were sat- 
 isfied with the final draft which Mr. Colman read to the 
 assembly on the day of the fast, and that they united cor- 
 dially in the services of that day, Cotton Mather pray- 
 ing " excellently and pathetically for Mr. Golman and his 
 flock." As the Mathers knew what they wanted, and as 
 they were men not to be trifled with or deceived, is it not 
 the only reasonable conclusion that Mr. Brattle's paper 
 had in it the substance of Cotton Mather's " proposal " .-^ 
 The vindication of Cotton Mather's veracity being thus 
 accomplished, the affairs of Brattle Street Church might 
 be left at this point, were it not that the truth of history 
 needs to be vindicated. Since President Quincy, in his 
 History of Harvard College, gave currency to the notion 
 that the founding of Brattle Street Church was a depar- 
 ture from the ancient ways of the New England churches, 
 and that, both in doctrine and some points of polity, it was 
 a "new departure," and the beginning of a great revolu- 
 tion, many orators, preachers, and writers have spoken of 
 this event as a long step in the way of broadening and 
 liberalizing the churches in the province. The truth is 
 that this claim is pure fiction in whole, and in all its parts. 
 There is not a line in Dr. Lothrop's History of Brattle 
 Street Church to sustain the claim. Before the Messrs. 
 Mather, Mr. Willard, and the other ministers of Boston, 
 and their churches, received the new church into their 
 fellowship, the members of it had adopted the ** Heads of 
 Agreement," by which the Presbyterians and Congrega- 
 tionalists of England were brought into harmonious rela- 
 tions : they avowed their acceptance of the Westminster 
 
COTTON MATHER. 
 
 217 
 
 Catechism, and expressed their desire to be in fellowship 
 with the surrounding churches. From the Articles of the 
 Church I condense the following statements : — 
 
 I. Approve and subscribe the Confession of the Faith put forth by 
 the Assembly of Divines at Westminster. 
 
 II. Suitable that some part of the Scriptures be read by the minis- 
 ter, in public worship, as was done in many churches in England, 
 styled United Brethren. Conform in all other respects to the ordinary 
 practice of the churches. 
 
 III. Hold Communion with the Churches here as true Churches. 
 IIII. Such Orders and Rules of Discipline as may preserve Evan- 
 gelical Purity and Holiness. 
 
 V. Allow baptism to those only who profess their faith in Christ, 
 and obedience to him ; and to the children of such ; yet we dare not 
 to refuse it to any child offered to us by any professed Christian, upon 
 his engagement to see it educated in the Christian religion. 
 
 VI. Sacrament to persons of visible sanctity. 
 
 VII. The Pastor to examine and recommend for admission, and 
 require the renewal of the baptismal covenant. 
 
 VIII. Impose no public relation of their religious experience. 
 Pastor to publicly declare his satisfaction, and to seasonably propound 
 candidates. 
 
 IX. The members to inquire into the life and conversation of 
 those propounded ; and if finding objections, to make them known. 
 
 X. No objections being made, that will be a sufficient consent and 
 concurrence, and the person may be received into communion. 
 
 XII. In suspending or excluding members, the consent of the 
 church was necessary. 
 
 XVI. In choosing a minister, "every baptized adult person, who 
 contributes to the Maintenance," should have a voice in the election. 
 
 The intelligent reader will see that the new church was 
 planted solidly on the doctrinal platform of the New 
 England churches. 
 
 The reading of the Scriptures as a distinct exercise in 
 public worship was adopted gradually, till it became uni- 
 versal in the Congregational, and later in all evangelical, 
 churches. 
 
2l8 LIFE AND TIMES OF 
 
 The only change of importance was in giving the 
 choice of a minister to all the members of the congrega- 
 tion who were baptized adults and who contributed to 
 the maintenance of public worship. This took the ini- 
 tiative from the church, but doctrinal soundness was 
 secured by the Article respecting the Westminster Cat- 
 echism. This innovation made little, if any, headway 
 among the churches which continued evangelical, and as 
 an historical fact Brattle Street Church remained in full 
 fellowship with the other churches of Boston and Massa- 
 chusetts on the ancient basis and in the spirit of the 
 early fathers during the whole eighteenth century. Dr. 
 Colman lived and worked in harmony with the elder and 
 the younger Mather while they lived, and with the other 
 ministers and churches until his decease in 1747. He 
 was a man of breeding, ability, culture, and sincere piety, 
 and a fragrant memory of him remains to this day. And 
 it may be added that among the many eulogies of Cotton 
 Mather no immortelle cast upon his grave was sweeter 
 or brighter than that of Benjamin Colman. 
 
 Another word needs to be said before taking leave of 
 this episode in our church history. It has been stated 
 already that the Mathers stopped the printing of their 
 book in relation to the new church, in the hope of effect- 
 ing a harmonious settlement of the difficulty. This hope 
 was followed with the pleasant results already recited ; 
 but now comes another charge against the authors of the 
 book, as guilty of bad faith, in that they afterwards gave 
 the work to the public. It is said that they renewed the 
 conflict after peace had been established. This is the 
 charge. The fact was this : in the time of the trouble, 
 it became evident that there were, through the country, 
 even as far as Hartford, scattered sympathizers with the 
 radical party in the Brattle Street Society, and the book 
 
CO T TON MA THER. 2 1 9 
 
 was published to counteract their plans. As the Mathers 
 had succeeded in placing the new church on a sound 
 foundation, according to their views of truth, so they en- 
 deavored to prevent the spread of error and its organi- 
 zation in other places. A reply came out, written by 
 several men, some of whom held caustic pens. But their 
 efforts came to nothing visible. Many new churches were 
 formed in New England in after years, but all of them 
 were on the old-time basis. Cotton Mather, writing of 
 this answer, says that the writers ** were left to a strange 
 infatuation, for the pamphlet not only violates the third, 
 the ninth and the fifth commandment, but also bur- 
 lesques the holy churches of God with silly scoffs and 
 flouts. It makes them loathsome, and will bring them to 
 shame." It is common to associate Dr. Colman with the 
 writers of the book, but I see nothing in its style, argu- 
 ment, or spirit to induce the belief that the elegant pen 
 of the gentlemanly pastor of Brattle Street Church had 
 any part in the writing of it. 
 
CHAPTER XII. 
 
 A YEAR OF FAITH AND WORKS ; OF TRIALS AND FRUIT : 
 1 701-1702. 
 
 THE desire of the general assembly that President 
 Mather should reside at Cambridge, and the vote 
 of the church in relation thereto, caused great anxiety in 
 the son through sympathy with his father. From the 
 diary (July 6, 1700) it is evident that Cotton was of the 
 opinion that the president should reside at the college, 
 yet preach as he could in the city ; but to this the presi- 
 dent was invincibly opposed. The full account of the 
 struggle in his mind belongs to President Mather's Life. 
 One extract from the son's diary comes in here, who says 
 of his father : '' But he was in a strangely melancholy, and 
 disconsolate condition of mind, as he must move to Cam- 
 bridge, (the place which of all under heaven, was most 
 abominable to him)." It was this which filled the son 
 with fear as to the result. ** If he would be cheerful, all 
 would be easy, but his spirit is prodigiously infirmed, 
 unhinged and broken, and if the Lord be not very merci- 
 ful to him, the name of the Lord Jesus will suffer more 
 dishonor from his uneasiness, than I am willing to see." 
 
 So far as the son felt a personal interest in the matter, 
 he expressed in the statement that he himself " would be 
 left alone with the care of a vast congregation, the largest 
 in all these parts of the world." He was feeble, and in 
 the town had many enemies ; *' indeed all the enemies of 
 the evangelical interest are mine." 
 
 It is evident that Cotton Mather was of the opinion 
 that his father should yield to the- general desire, and 
 
CO TTON MA THER. 2 21 
 
 remove to the college. If this had been done, the college 
 would have been under the tuition and influence of the 
 senior Mather all his life, in all probability, and the solici- 
 tude of both father and son about the institution in the 
 years following would have been avoided. The reason 
 why the father declined to reside in Cambridge, as given 
 above, was his invincible repugnance to live in a " place, 
 which of all under heaven was most abominable to him." 
 In President Mather's writings I find no reason of this 
 kind mentioned, but the feeling in relation to it was 
 doubtless well known to his son. 
 
 Besides two anonymous letters, near the middle of the 
 year, one of them about the " Maintenance of Ministers," 
 and the other on " The Old Principles of New England," 
 Mr. Mather ''printed a small book to be distributed 
 among his families as he made pastoral visits," with the 
 title, " Reasonable Religion," in seventy-two pages. He 
 set forth the "wisdom of its precepts," and the "folly 
 of sinning against" them. This, with additions, was 
 reprinted in London in 171 3. 
 
 It is a mistake to suppose, as is quite common, that 
 interest in the conversion of the young is of recent 
 growth. In the time of President Edwards there were 
 special efforts for bringing the children and youth into the 
 active duties of a Christian life ; and the ministry of Mr. 
 Mather was an example of fidelity in this line of labor 
 which ministers in any age might safely follow. Besides 
 training his own children in ways of piety, and bringing 
 his young people into religious associations, he reached 
 after the young through the press. At this time the 
 " Token for Children," by Janeway, was reprinted in 
 Boston, and Mather added " Some Examples of children 
 in whom the fear of God was remarkably budding before 
 they died, in several parts of New England." 
 
2 22 LIFE AND TIMES OF 
 
 It is not uncommon to hear Christians affirm that their 
 prayers for this or that blessing were answered, as if they 
 alone were concerned in moving the " Hearer of prayer." 
 Mr. Mather was guarded against this form of egotism, as 
 appears in the record of August 9 : "A dry time ; fears 
 of terrible famine. Moved for a fast, but an old minister 
 opposed." Mather pleaded that God, through Christ, 
 would accept him as an "intercessor for his churches." 
 So he prayed for rain, confessing his sins, and those of 
 the country, in the forenoon. "Now behold the issue. 
 At noon the clouds gathered, and the afternoon was all 
 spent in sweet, gentle, refreshing showers, which brought 
 a plentiful relief to our languishing and perishing fields." 
 He then adds : " What use now should I make of this 
 experience } For better and more holy, fruitful, useful 
 and prayerful Christians than I, were elsewhere praying 
 this day, before the Lord, as well as I. And yet it is not 
 amiss for me, humbly to receive the consolations of God." 
 
 Later in the season, the drought returning, the Lecture 
 day was turned into a fast, and the preacher whose turn it 
 was requested Mr. Mather to occupy the pulpit. He had 
 a " great audience, and an opportunity to say some things 
 that otherwise would not have been heard by so many." 
 
 He went to Salem in September, "attended by two 
 young gentlemen, who kindly offered, as sons," to wait 
 upon him. He went next day to Ipswich, "and had 
 opportunity to do several services to a company of min- 
 isters." This day he "preached to a great assembly, 
 with great assistance." Friday he returned to Salem, 
 and on Sunday "preached, both parts of the day to ex- 
 traordinary auditories." He concludes with the remark : 
 "Remember to pray over a journey before starting." 
 
 About this time he gave a course of sermons on the 
 eleventh chapter of Hebrews, and the one on the grace 
 
COTTON MATHER. 2 23 
 
 displayed to Rahab, being desired for publication by the 
 hearers, was printed with the title " Grace Triumphant." 
 
 Noting a tendency to apostasy and innovations upon 
 the churches, as appeared in the stir in connection with 
 the formation of the Brattle Street Church, though that 
 body itself had taken right ground, assented to the West- 
 minster Catechism, and, with its excellent minister, coop- 
 erated in defending the ancient faith and ways; and 
 seeing that a "minister of some note for his piety had 
 published a book entitled 'Novelties,' " which was "offen- 
 sive to good men, but pleased a carnal, giddy and rising 
 generation," Mr. Mather wrote a " Defence of Evangeli- 
 cal Churches," which was published with the sanction of 
 his father's name. 
 
 He writes in the diary : " One notion advanced by the 
 * New Modellers ' of the churches, who, without right, call 
 themselves Presbyterians, was that persons who 'know 
 themselves ungodly,' yet may and should come to the 
 Lord's table." Mather added to the "Defence," just 
 mentioned, a " savory little discourse of Mr. Quick, a 
 Presbyterian, entitled * A Claim to the Sacrament,' which 
 opposed the notion. This was given to the press with 
 the approbation of ministers in Essex." It may be said 
 that Mr. Warham came to this country with the same 
 "notion," and that Dr. Stoddard, of Northampton, advo- 
 cated it. Opposition to this baleful error by Jonathan 
 Edwards was one cause of the trouble he experienced in 
 Northampton about thirty years later. 
 
 Mather's mind was continually interested in the state 
 of religion in England and on the continent. In this re- 
 spect he felt as a native-born English Christian. We 
 find entries in his diary wherein he expresses his expec- 
 tation of great changes for the better. On the fifteenth 
 of September we find this specimen : " Irradiation from 
 
224 ^^^^ ^^^ TIMES OF 
 
 heaven in public prayer. Though the religion of Christ 
 was in extreme hazard in Europe from the power and 
 malice of its enemies, and the evil dispositions of its 
 professors, yet the Lord was to do an amazing thing for 
 its preservation." He then adds : "After I had this writ- 
 ten, on the following day came tidings which astonished 
 me," announcing then, as he believed, the accomplish- 
 ment of all his faith could have expected. This was the 
 death of the Duke of Gloucester. This boy was the son 
 of Queen Anne, and the last one of several children. His 
 death secured the accession of the house of Hanover. 
 But, as the child was brought up a Protestant, the reason 
 of Mather's rejoicing is not evident to us. 
 
 Dark days were coming on in the province. Mr. 
 Mather speaks of sickness in his family, in the town, and 
 in the country, as prevalent in various forms. '* Funerals 
 daily from fevers and fluxes." Visiting the sick engrossed 
 his time and threatened his health. He preached a ser- 
 mon on the question, ** What should be the carriage of 
 a Christian at a funeral .? " But before he slept, had 
 cause to fear it might prove his own funeral sermon. 
 His blood, he found, had received a contagion from visit- 
 ing the sick, and he was cast into a fever. A tumor on 
 his right cheek broke on Friday. In this condition he com- 
 posed a sermon on Matthew 9 : 12 : "They that be whole 
 need not a Physician, but they that are sick." Though 
 too weak to keep "prayer with fasting," he had "illapses 
 from heaven." His soul was filled with lively resolutions 
 to glorify the Lord Jesus Christ more than ever hereto- 
 fore. He preached this sermon the next Sabbath fore- 
 noon, and it proved so awakening and acceptable to some 
 of his neighbors that they asked for a copy. It was given 
 to the printer with the title of " The Great Physician." 
 
 The eighth of October was " spent with the South [now 
 
COTTON MATHER, 22 5 
 
 Old South] Church, praying and fasting for the life of 
 their sick minister," Mr. Willard. Such facts as these 
 enable us to realize the intimate connection and tender 
 love of the ancient ministers and churches towards one 
 another. 
 
 On the sixteenth he notes an " odd experience." In his 
 pastoral visits, in which he had the " special presence and 
 conduct of heaven," though, as ministers do, he found, 
 from the expenditure of nervous force, that the labor 
 was "very spending," he was thinking how many books 
 he had given away, and was " chiding himself " that he 
 had done so. No other minister did so, and perhaps he 
 ** overdid the matter." Then he had an " impulse on his 
 mind that he should quickly see something to encourage 
 his practice." Well, a "sudden inclination took him to 
 call on a gentlewoman who had long been in a state of 
 disconsolate widowhood." He thought it would be " pure 
 religion " to visit her. He did so ; and she told him that 
 she had a parcel of books which once "belonged to the 
 library of our famous old Mr. Chauncey," who died in 
 1672. She added that, "if I would please to take them, 
 she would count herself highly gratified in their being so 
 well-bestowed. I selected out about forty books, and 
 some of them large ones." He had already between two 
 and three thousand volumes in his library, but several of 
 these were greatly useful in his design of writing the 
 "Illustrations of the Divine Oracles," the great work he 
 was laboring upon at every spare moment. He exclaims, 
 " Behold how the Lord smiles upon me ! " 
 
 In October he wrote that " about this time one of the 
 judges desired him to write an historical account of the 
 Greek churches." He had a design and was at the cost 
 of publishing the work. Mather prepared a volume, 
 entitled " American Tears upon the Ruins of the Greek 
 
226 LIFE AND TIMES OF 
 
 Churches : a compendious but entertaining history of the 
 darkness come upon the Greek churches in Europe and 
 Asia ; and published partly to bespeak a more frequent 
 remembrance of those once famous churches in the 
 prayers of the faithful afar off; and partly to suggest 
 unto other churches the advice and warning to be there 
 taken, that their candlestick may not be removed out of 
 its place." To this was added an Appendix relating the 
 conversion of a Jew, Shalome Ben Shalomah. The book, 
 of eighty pages, was anonymous, except the preface ; but 
 the work was Mather's, as proved, if proof were needed, 
 by the citation from his diary. 
 
 From the same source it appears that another sermon, 
 preached this season, was published. In Sibley's list it is 
 called anonymous, but the following record reveals the 
 author. " Having preached a sermon to one of the young 
 men's meetings, on the evening after the other services of 
 the Lord's day, against the Evil of Apostacy from Good 
 Beginnings in Religion, the young men desired a copy of 
 it. Text, Heb. lo: 39. *But we are not of them who 
 draw back unto perdition ; but of them that believe to 
 the saving of the soul.' " 
 
 The following entry may contain a useful hint to some 
 in regard to the matter of their praying. It is possible 
 that there is more craving for blessings than giving of 
 thanks. "21 d., 9 m. Resolution that in future, my even- 
 ing prayers in family and private, should partake more 
 of thanksgiving." He thought that perhaps this might 
 be "singularly acceptable to heaven, and profitable to 
 himself." 
 
 And near this time he records a singular experience in 
 a pastor's life. There was an old man named Ferdinand 
 Turze, with whom Mr. Mather had but little acquaintance. 
 Saturday night, December 28, he ** was strangely accosted 
 
COTTON MATHER. * 227 
 
 in his sleep." It was said to him in a dream : " Take 
 notice of this old man; speak to him ; do for him^ The 
 next day he saw the old man at meeting, very attentive. 
 He had rarely attended before. Mr. Mather met him 
 next day in the street and said to him, " How d' ye do, old 
 man 1 I am glad to see you still in this world. I pray 
 God prepare you for another. I suppose it won't be long 
 before you are called away. Can I do you no service 1 " 
 Next day the old man called at his house. Mr. Mather 
 begged him to prepare for death, and gave him a little 
 book, "Grace Triumphant," adding a piece of money. 
 He called several times, but in seven weeks the man sud- 
 denly died. Going to the funeral the minister learned 
 from people who knew him, that he "had been a poor, 
 carnal, sorry old man, until nearly seven weeks, when 
 a wonderful change came over him. He spent the whole 
 time in reading and praying, and the little book was his 
 continual companion day and night. They never saw a 
 man so altered, and believed he died a regenerate man." 
 
 At this time Robert Calef s name begins to appear in 
 the diary in connection with the matter of witchcraft. 
 As this annoyance lasted several years, the subject will 
 be treated as a whole when the proper place is reached. 
 
 In the diary, of same date as above, we read that " all 
 the rage of Satan against the holy churches of the 
 Lord " had fallen on his father and himself. There was a 
 "mighty ferment among the people" ; but Mather writes 
 that the " Lord filled his soul with consolation," and he 
 closed the day with these words : " Much in prayer in this 
 critical time for patience, courage and watchfulness. A 
 day of devotion much carried on with singing agreeable 
 psalms." As he opened the book, the most agreeable 
 psalms to his situation arrested his eye. He adds the dis- 
 creet remark : " This observation may easily be abused to 
 
2 28 • LIFE AND TIMES OF 
 
 superstition ; but yet sometimes there is an angelical 
 agency in these occurrences." 
 
 The year's record will be closed with a brief reference 
 to trying scenes in Mr. Mather's domestic life. It has 
 already been noted that the little boy, Increase, had been 
 "shaken with convulsive fits" in February. These re- 
 turned again and again, till the child's life would have 
 been despaired of if the father had not been comforted 
 with ''assurances from heaven " that the sickness was not 
 unto death, as on the thirteenth of April : " In family 
 prayer, heart strangely melted with assurances that the 
 Lord had great blessings in store for the family." 
 
 On the first of October his "charming little daughter 
 Nancy — Hannah — was taken with a violent and threat- 
 ening fever, beginning with a terrible convulsion." Some 
 feared she would not recover. " Seeing the angel of 
 death with a drawn sword standing there," he kept a day 
 of fasting and prayer. While resigning the child to God, 
 and professing that, if she might not live to God and be 
 a servant of the Lord Jesus Christ, he did not ask for 
 her life, he received "astonishing assurance from heaven 
 that the child should recover." ,He records also that his 
 son Creasy was not only delivered from his fits, but had 
 become a "healthy and a hearty child." 
 
 On the twenty-fourth of October he was specially con- 
 cerned for his wife. Her health was failing. She had in 
 some former years suffered from "sore throat, and such 
 tremor, and such dolor, and such danger of choking, and 
 such exhaustion of strength, as was not common." She 
 was now " languishing under the malady, and it was very 
 near too hard for her." He set himself to " cry unto the 
 Lord in her behalf, saying : ' Behold, I serve a good Lord 
 who will deny me nothing.' " And then he adds the fact 
 that on this day the "tide of her distemper turned, and 
 she immediately recovered." 
 
COTTON MATHER. 
 
 229 
 
 Four days later we find this record : " Extraordinary 
 deliverance." His little daughter Nabby, six years old, 
 was alone, and the candle somehow set her headgear on 
 fire. The child was not able to help herself or cry for 
 help. "The flame consumed all before it, and was just 
 come as far as her head. In one quarter of a minute 
 more, the child would have been destroyed." A person 
 passing the window just in the nick of time saw an 
 unusual blaze and ran. Happily, not only was the child's 
 life saved, but she got " no manner of hurt. What shall 
 I render.!*" 
 
 In the middle of November I find note of an " epi- 
 demic of colds and coughs." It reached his own family. 
 His eldest child, " Katy, had a very violent fever." As 
 usual he prayed. The Lord sent " healing mercies " to 
 all the family. 
 
 On the fifteenth of December, being Lord's day, he 
 baptized his son, born on the preceding Friday, and 
 " called him Samuel, and gave him unto the Lord as long 
 as he lived." He was a "lovely and lusty infant." 
 
 Little Nancy was very ill again on the 20th. The 
 next day the physician gave up hope, but on the 22d 
 (Lord's day) he writes : " This child, little else to me 
 me than a subject whereupon faith and prayer have been 
 procured and answered, all the forenoon was diverting 
 herself, and running and laughing about the house, and 
 at noon sat at the table with her father." It was the 
 custom in the early days of New England to baptize chil- 
 dren soon after birth. Franklin was taken to church for 
 this purpose on the day he was born. Perhaps the reader, 
 if brought up to believe the erroneous notions so com- 
 mon about the austerity of a Puritan family on the Sab- 
 bath, will be surprised to learn how a child in an ancient 
 minister's family behaved on a Sunday. Nancy, in her 
 
230 LIFE AND TIMES OF 
 
 fourth year, was " diverting herself, and running and 
 laughing about the house all the forenoon." Doubtless, 
 the happy father enjoyed the cheerfulness of the child. 
 
 At the opening of the eighteenth century Plymouth 
 had been settled eighty years and Boston seventy years. 
 Both colonies were united now under one government as 
 a province. Notwithstanding the stoppage of immigra- 
 tion from England at the outbreak of the "great rebel- 
 lion " in 1640, and the frequent French and Indian wars, 
 population had increased steadily, and new towns had 
 been formed until the whole number in the province was 
 not far from ninety. As early as 1653 they extended 
 westward as far as the Nashua valley. Passing over the 
 wilderness between the Nashua and the Connecticut, a 
 number of towns had been settled between Springfield 
 and Northfield. South and southwest of the Wachusett 
 were Worcester, Leicester, and Brookfield. In i/oa 
 Worcester County was not organized, but its scattered 
 towns were Lancaster, Mendon, Brookfield, and a few 
 others which had secured a permanent settlement, though 
 subject to savage invasions. Eastward of the line formed 
 by the Nashua running north and the Blackstone run- 
 ning south, the territory to the sea was nearly covered by 
 organized society. But few of the aborigines remained. 
 By the new charter, Plymouth was merged in the Bay, 
 and the large province of Maine was put under its author- 
 ity. The province of Massachusetts Bay was one of the 
 most populous and wealthy of the British colonies. It 
 made war and peace with Indian tribes and their allies, 
 and it became accustomed to a self-consciousness of 
 future greatness. 
 
 The governor was the Earl of Bellamont, a British 
 nobleman of excellent character. Though connected 
 with the Established Church, he was an Episcopalian of 
 
COTTON MATHER. 23 I 
 
 the stamp which respected the convictions and religion of 
 the Dissenters. In this respect his conduct was accept- 
 able to the people of New England. His death occurred 
 in New York, March 5, 1701. 
 
 The number of churches in the province was about 
 ninety. Dr. Clark numbers eighty-eight, but he probably 
 did not include all the Indian churches. The towns, with 
 rare exceptions, had at least one church, and the munici- 
 pality with which it was connected was under legal 
 obligation to sustain public worship where this was not 
 provided for by voluntary gifts. The churches in Boston, 
 Plymouth, and some others, took up a contribution every 
 Sunday for this purpose. If the voluntary system had 
 prevailed throughout the province, many future difficulties 
 and much reproach would have been avoided ; but the 
 new settlements were sparsely settled and poor. Some 
 of the settlers were indifferent about religious worship, 
 and not appreciative of the benefits of every kind which 
 come to a community through the preaching of the gos- 
 pel ; therefore the General Court required every town, as 
 a condition of its incorporation, to build a meetinghouse 
 and support a minister. All land was bought under this 
 liability to taxation, and thus the formation of homoge- 
 neous towns with an educated ministry was secured. To 
 this was united the common school system, giving to 
 every child the elements of education. To these two 
 provisions the people of the province were indebted for 
 their general intelligence, high morality, and their freedom 
 from division. The system was invaluable to the state in 
 all generations, though differences in religion, in the 
 course of time, made it necessary that the support of 
 religious institutions should depend on voluntary gifts. 
 
 At the beginning of the eighteenth century the town 
 of Boston had four large congregations, including the 
 
232 LIFE AND TIMES OF 
 
 new Brattle Street enterprise. The custom of having two 
 ministers to each church, teacher and pastor, was still in 
 vogue, and the ministers of Boston were men of a high 
 order of character and learning. In Ipswich, as it then 
 existed, there were two churches. In Newbury there 
 were two, and in Plymouth, before its division, were two 
 or more. In some towns public worship was sustained 
 by the town, before a church was formed, and thus it 
 happened that the whole number of churches was about 
 equal to the number of towns. 
 
 In doctrine, polity, administration, and order of worship 
 there had been no essential change from the beginning. 
 The plan of having an eldership, consisting of teacher, 
 pastor, and ruling elder, was beginning to go into disuse, 
 some of the churches ceasing to elect the elder, and 
 many of the churches had but one minister. Out of this 
 change a conflict sprang up later, when the single minister 
 claimed the whole power and influence of the eldership ; 
 but this was settled, when the time came, on the basis 
 of pure Congregationalism, the "negative" of the minister 
 to church action being abandoned. 
 
 In the remainder of this chapter we shall note some 
 facts in the personal and family history of Mr. Mather, 
 and refer to his public labors and his publications. He 
 writes, January 2 : — 
 
 " Little daughter Nancy is again taken very ill. Her 
 illness this day grew upon her into a heart-breaking 
 extremity. Prayed and obtained mercy for the child. '^ 
 Five days later he records : " The Lord restored my dear- 
 est consort, and put my family again into many circum- 
 stances of comfort." He then refers to a season of 
 thanksgiving in his study. " Many things to be thankful 
 for," but specially that, though he was reproached and 
 stigmatized for the defense of the churches, he was 
 
COTTON MATHER. 235 
 
 thereby enabled to glorify his Master. " The reproaches 
 of them that reproached him are fallen upon me." Had 
 " assurance from heaven that as I now suffer with the 
 Lord Jesus Christ, and for him, I shall one day reign 
 with him." 
 
 On the 17th he exclaims: "What cause to be thankful 
 to God, in view of slanders by the Satanic party!" He 
 wrote a letter to a gentleman, desiring him to expose it, 
 which was done. Copies of it were taken. In the letter 
 to him he made two propositions : — i. " If all they that 
 have used so much liberty to express their unkindness 
 to me, will please to produce, with evidence, any one 
 instance wherein I have wronged or harmed any one of 
 them all, or done any one thing unbecoming a man whose 
 business it is to do good unto all, I '11 submit unto the 
 hardest censure my worst enemy can impose upon me. 
 2. If they that report what they please concerning me, 
 will please, first of all, to satisfy themselves, as every 
 Christian or gentlemen would, before they take up a 
 defamatory report, and they don't find that I have acted, 
 not only blamelessly, but also suitably, I will again submit 
 unto censure. Thus do I challenge all the world." 
 
 On the 1 8th he refers to his little son Samuel, born in 
 the previous December, and states that he had "often 
 and often made essays to raise his heart to a particular 
 faith for that child, for the service of the churches," 
 but that he never could obtain to it. " A man cannot 
 believe what and when he will'' This made him con- 
 tinually apprehensive that the child, though hearty and 
 healthy, would die in infancy. He mentioned this to his- 
 wife and his father. His fears were fulfilled. February 7 
 he writes: "The evil that I feared is come upon me.'^ 
 On the preceding Tuesday his child was "taken with 
 many sad convulsions." These continued all the next 
 
234 
 
 LIFE AND TIMES OF 
 
 day while the family awaited the sad result. The next 
 day he had more than a hundred terrible fits. The 
 father, however, was comforted in spirit, and preached 
 the Lecture in his turn, on the text, " I know that my 
 Redeemer liveth," which he says is a "satisfaction to 
 us at the sight of our dying friends." About midnight 
 the child, after a fit, " most unaccountably fell a-laughing ; 
 yea, into a very great laughter for several minutes, to the 
 amazement of all, who could hardly keep from swooning." 
 He had no return of the fits, but lingered till the hour of 
 death on Friday morning. 
 
 The father kept a secret fast on Saturday, in view of 
 *' rebukes of Providence, buffetings of wicked men, and 
 deaths, and griefs in his family." He needed help from 
 God ; desired to bear all patiently, and be more service- 
 able, especially to the children of his flock. The next day 
 was Sunday, and he preached to the great congregation 
 on Job 35: 10: "But none saith. Where is God my 
 Maker, who giveth songs in the night." Topic: "The 
 Songs which the triumphant faith of the saints has to 
 utter in the darkest night of affliction." On Monday 
 the burial took place, with more " attendance and respect 
 than was usual with children," and on the gravestone the 
 hopeful father caused this motto to be inscribed : " Not 
 as they that have no hope." 
 
 His observance of his birthday (February 12) was sad- 
 dened because of his great concern about his little Nancy, 
 who had an unknown distemper which the ablest physi- 
 cians in the town did not understand. Mr. Mather had 
 particular faith about her case several times, but she was 
 still a sufferer. It may be stated here that Nancy out- 
 lived her father. Not long after the above entry he 
 inserted this: ^^ Mem, Faith is not a fancy. Little 
 daughter Nancy is wonderfully recovered." 
 
OF 
 
 COTTON MATHER. 
 
 235 
 
 A general fast was held on the eighteenth of Septem- 
 ber, when a singular incident relating to prayer occurred. 
 Mr. Mather called on a young gentlewoman who was in 
 affliction, having heard that her husband had been killed 
 in a fight with a Sallee man-of-war. He called to console 
 the widow and offer prayer. There was present a sister 
 of the woman, who was also supposed to be a widow, and 
 had been for many months. In his prayer he was, as it 
 were, compelled to pray for this last one. All his expres- 
 sions applied to the condition of the sister, and he won- 
 dered at his frame in this matter. " But the spirit of the 
 Lord knew what I did not know." In two days came 
 news that the husband of the supposed widow whom he 
 visited was yet living. 
 
 The third of October was a " day of thanksgiving for 
 many blessings," specified thus: — i. Special answers to 
 prayer. 2. Wonderful defeats of those who had labored 
 to blast his efforts in the defense of evangelical interests. 
 
 3. The success of his Church History and other works. 
 
 4. Opportunities to preach and print. Then comes this 
 beautiful tribute to his wife: — 
 
 There was another signal article of my praises to the Lord on this 
 day, and this was the confluence of blessings which I enjoy in my 
 dearest consort, who bore me company in some of the duties of the 
 day. Her piety; the agreeable charms of her person; her obliging 
 deportment to me ; her discretion in ordering her and my affairs, and 
 avoiding everything that might be dishonorable to either of us ; and 
 the lovely offspring that I have received by her ; and her being spared 
 to me for now more than fourteen years ; these are things that I should 
 thankfully acknowledge before the Lord. 
 
 At this time favorable news came across the water in 
 regard to the Magnalia, or Church History, about the 
 publication of which the author had been very solicitous. 
 Assurances also came from on high ; yet his mind had no 
 
236 LIFE AND TIMES OF 
 
 settled repose until a copy was actually in his hands. He 
 often made it the burden of his prayers. Though he 
 waited on the Lord submissively and even with acquies- 
 cence, yet he was long in learning to wait patiently. 
 
 The public labors of Mr. Mather during this year (1701) 
 were mostly connected with his publications ; but his 
 preparation for the ordinary services of the pulpit were 
 incessant, and his pastoral duties were attended to with 
 his usual fidelity. He preached, at home and in other 
 places, his usual quota of sermons. The annual journey 
 to Salem and Ipswich was taken, in which he was called 
 upon to preach three or four times. Sometimes he gave 
 the Lecture in Salem, then went to Ipswich and lectured; 
 returning to Salem he occupied the pulpit in both parts of 
 the day. This visit of a week or ten days seems to have 
 been his vacation. His interest in the affairs at home 
 and abroad, and in the political changes in Europe, so far 
 as those of his own beloved country were concerned, was 
 evinced in his publications, to which we will now attend. 
 
 On the ninth of January he writes : ** The Lord blessed 
 me exceedingly to glorify, and edify and satisfy his peo- 
 ple, who much approve my conduct and spirit under the 
 Satanic assaults now made upon me." Preached to a vast 
 assembly on Genesis 50 : 20. ** As for you, ye thought 
 evil against me; but God meant it unto good." By some 
 good people " the sermon was put to press with the 
 title, Triumphs over Troubles ^ 
 
 In this winter season he seems to have meditated much 
 before the fire, out of which exercise grew a book contain- 
 ing " Forty Meditations on the Fire," selected from over 
 forty, which he "dressed up so as they might afford both 
 pleasure and profit unto a serious reader." The title was 
 " Christianus per Ignem, or, a disciple warming of himself, 
 and owning of his Lord, with meditations fetched out of 
 
COTTON MATHER. 237 
 
 the fire, by a Christian, in a cold season, sitting before it." 
 John 18: 18. He says that the "Work, though never 
 out of season, was yet more particularly designed for the 
 seasonable and profitable entertainment of them that 
 would well employ their leisure by the fireside." As 
 he knew not how to get it published, he laid the matter 
 before the Lord, when a gentleman, of whom he had little 
 reason to expect it, came in, " saw the manuscript lying 
 on the table, and offered to be at half the expense of the 
 publication." It came out in 1702 (pp. 198), with a "Pre- 
 fatory Poem " by Nicholas Noyes. The following note is 
 as characteristic of the author as the title-page. " I gave 
 it unto the bookseller, with resolutions, when it is pub- 
 lished, I will take off two or three, every week, and 
 scatter them in the families, when I make my visits in the 
 neighborhood." 
 
 In the early part of this year Mr. Mather, at the 
 desire of a general convention of the ministers of the 
 province, prepared " A Testimony unto the Order of 
 the Gospel in the important point of the Consociation of 
 Churches." Two aged ministers had signed a "Testi- 
 mony," approving of the "Testimony." Opponents gave 
 out that Mather had signed their names, and the "speaker 
 of the deputies " abused him for so doing. Whereupon 
 the aged Mr. Higginson came out with the avowal that he 
 "signed the piece freely with his own hand." This matter 
 of church order, or " Consociation of the Churches," has 
 reappeared from time to time, and every time the movers 
 for a change have met with little favor. The question in 
 another form has been before the National Council three 
 times (in 1880, 1883, and 1886), and has resulted in no 
 material change. What will come in the future, time 
 only can reveal ; but it is probable that the more the 
 primitive order is studied, the more will it be approved. 
 
238 LIFE AND TIMES OF 
 
 Some of the fathers who studied deeply the subject of 
 Church Order before and after their coming from Eng- 
 land, as Thomas Hooker, Richard Mather, and others of 
 their stamp, seem to have searched to the deepest founda- 
 tions, and those who essay to improve upon their work 
 need to look well unto their ways. Certainly no true 
 Congregationalist will seek to displace or dishonor the 
 pro re nata council. 
 
 Another "composure" bears this date. It was a "dis- 
 course to a private meeting," of which the "master of 
 the family " desired a copy. " Lessons to be learned in 
 the school of affliction" was the subject. Another ser- 
 mon was added, and the whole was entitled " A Compan- 
 ion for the Afflicted." It was "accommodated unto the 
 condition that all at some times, and some at all times, 
 do encounter withal." 
 
 At the public fast, on the fourth of April, Mr. Mather 
 let drop the remark, " There is much reason to suspect 
 that a war is breaking out in Europe. In the late peace 
 of Ryswick, at the close of King William's war, the 
 wind came not about in the right way. There must be 
 another storm of war before all clears up according to 
 our desires. If so, the French will probably fall on us, so 
 that he may possess all America." The record proceeds : 
 "Three days later came news that all Europe was in a 
 flame because of the union of France and Spain, by a 
 family marriage." The old question of balance of power 
 in Europe was the irritating cause. France aimed at su- 
 premacy. William combined half Europe against Louis, 
 to preserve the liberties of each and all. But the real 
 occasion of the war which was on the eve of explosion 
 was the recognition of the Pretender by Louis on the 
 death of James II in the autumn of 1701. King William 
 at once broke with France, and all the kingdom sprang to 
 
COTTON MATHER, 239 
 
 his side. But his death ensued in a few months, and it 
 was left to Marlborough, with the splendid aid of the 
 great Prince Eugene, to lead the allies, humble the pride 
 of Louis, and achieve immortal fame for himself. In this 
 condition of things, Mather made extracts from books 
 relating to the affairs of Europe and the American planta- 
 tions, that " might excite the prayers of all men, and the 
 cares of all good men." He showed the compilation to 
 a member of the council, who caused it to be published. 
 
 Early in May " most astonishing accounts came of the 
 sufferings of Protestants in the French king's galleys, 
 and of the Lord's wonderful works in supporting them 
 under sufferings, and the converting of some at the 
 sight." Mr. Mather showed an Abstract of these ac- 
 counts to the ministers at their weekly meeting, and 
 caused it to be published under the title, " A Letter con- 
 cerning the Sufferings of our Protestant Brethren." 
 
 He preached May 23 to a numerous assembly, with a 
 " great assistance," about shunning bad company. In the 
 evening he attended the young men's meeting, when near 
 one hundred serious, devout young men met, to whom he 
 preached further on "The Danger and Folly of bad com- 
 pany." They asked for a copy, which was printed with 
 the title of *'The Young Man's Preservative," to which 
 he added " A remarkable history of a young gentleman 
 converted to a heavenly life, and rescued from the snares 
 of evil company." 
 
 The Church History had been the occasion of great 
 discouragements, by reason of the delay in its publica- 
 tion in England. Reference is often made to this in the 
 diary. I have refrained from quoting these entries, but 
 an occasional sentence is needed to show the various 
 workings of the author's mind and the continual anxieties 
 of his intense life. No bookseller could hazard the work 
 
240 LIFE AND TIMES OF 
 
 here, and even the English houses were " cold about it.'* 
 It would cost ^600 sterling, a great sum to risk on a 
 book in those days. But on the twenty-fourth of June 
 the cloud seems to have lifted. Mr. Bromfield had writ- 
 ten from London that Mr. Robert Hawksham would put 
 the work to press at his own charges, " with no expecta- 
 tion for himself, but for the glory of God," and give the 
 author as many copies as he desired. " And did you 
 know him as well as I do," he continued, "you would 
 believe him." This news was ''wonderful " to the author. 
 
 In July he preached on the " Glorious Wonders that 
 shine in the Lord Jesus Christ. He is the Wonder of 
 Angels ! " This was printed with the title of ^'Thauma- 
 tographia ChristianUy or the Wonders of Christianity." 
 He writes of " many wonderful mysteries in our Lord 
 Jesus Christ, which are admired by angels in heaven, and 
 should be the contemplation and admiration of Christians 
 on earth." This was printed in two sizes : one of fifty- 
 five and the other of seventy-four pages. 
 
 We find this entry July 5, which must have been very 
 gratifying. A letter was received from a gentleman in 
 London, saying, " Your Spanish Faith is gone farther, 
 it may be, than you thought of. Mr. Chamberlain, an 
 acquaintance of mine, a secretary of religious societies, 
 has a correspondence with the Dutch and French Minis- 
 try in Holland. They have now at the Hague a consider- 
 able Spanish or Portuguese proselyte, who desired such 
 a thing as that was, and said he could make great use of 
 it." This proselyte was of a very good family, and was 
 in orders there. " He declared that Portugal was very 
 ripe for a reformation. The good ministers of Holland 
 sent the book to Portugal, and received abundance of 
 thanks." 
 
 The following curious item belongs to the same month. 
 
COTTON MATHER. 2\\ 
 
 A bookseller, going from Boston to London, took certain 
 of Mr. Mather's manuscripts with him, intending to pub- 
 lish them there. He carelessly left them in the hands of 
 Mr. Cockeril, a bookseller, who died some time after. 
 All trace of the manuscript was lost, but "a friend who 
 went to London last summer, did, in the last winter, 
 inquire for the missing package, and found it." He car- 
 ried the papers to another bookseller, who published 
 them, and copies of the book had now come over to 
 Boston. " The book which had such a happy resurrection 
 from the dead, has this title, 'Death Made Easy and 
 Happy.' " 
 
 Two discourses, one on the general calling and the 
 other on the personal calling of a Christian, were given 
 to the bookseller, with the title, ** A Christian at his 
 Calling." 
 
 Thinking it "might glorify his Lord Jesus Christ" 
 if he should exhibit his example to his neighbors, he 
 prepared two discourses on " Christianity in the Life." 
 This came out in the next year. 
 
 In October he prepared a work which also saw the 
 light in 1702. His neighbors with a " mighty zeal favored 
 the publication of it." The title was ''Maschil; or. The 
 Faithful Instructor." It contained the New English Cat- 
 echism of his grandfather Cotton, with twenty-six exer- 
 cises upon it, with *' questions so familiar and intelligible, 
 that only an answer of yes or no was needed." The book 
 contained several additions, as "The Assembly's Cate- 
 chism ; Memorials of Christianity ; the Ten Command- 
 ments ; the Lord's Prayer ; a Paraphrase of the Creed, 
 and a Confession of Faith, directed by some eminent min- 
 isters " ; all in 192 pages. 
 
 The record of Mr. Mather*s publications for the year 
 closes with a " Poem of Consolations under blindness, 
 
242 LIFE AND TIMES. 
 
 unto an aged and pious gentlewoman, visited with total 
 blindness," which was published by her son-in-law. 
 
 The strain upon body, mind, and heart caused by all 
 the work, sympathy, anxiety, and grief of the year now 
 closed was enough, one would think, to make life a bur- 
 den ; but we are relieved from over sympathy by the 
 thought that this life was so full of good works, so sus- 
 tained by an ennobling faith, and so happy in its union 
 with God that it is quite credible that Cotton Mather was 
 the happiest man in the province or in all the British 
 dominions. 
 
CHAPTER XIII. 
 
 ROBERT CALEF AND THE WITCHCRAFT CONTROVERSY : 
 1698-I703. 
 
 THE most violent assault upon the reputation of 
 Cotton Mather was made by Robert Calef, or 
 Calfe, as the name was sometimes spelled by himself as 
 well as others. The connection of Mather with the 
 witchcraft horror was the occasion. This attack was 
 followed up persistently by Calef during several years, 
 and his allegations against Mather, though unproved and 
 incapable of proof, have gone into many histories as veri- 
 table facts. This makes it necessary to enter upon a 
 thorough investigation of the whole subject, because the 
 charges against the great divine include not only supersti- 
 tion, credulity, rashness, hypocrisy, and clerical ambition, 
 but also falsehood, in accusing others and justifying him- 
 self ; and cruelty, in creating a public opinion and wield- 
 ing a personal influence which led judges and juries to 
 condemn innocent persons to an ignominious death. 
 
 It is well to remember that Robert Calef's writings 
 gained but little credit in their day. The impression 
 sought to be made against Cotton Mather was transitory. 
 It is even doubtful if any adverse impression was made 
 upon any, unless upon a few minds predisposed to believe 
 evil of both the Mathers. In the early part of this cen- 
 tury it became fashionable in a certain quarter to belittle 
 the younger Mather, and to impute to him motives which 
 are incompatible with religion, or even ordinary morality. 
 If any excuse were sought for him, it was only by imput- 
 ing to him silly superstition or narrow bigotry. He was 
 
 243 
 
244 ^^^^ ^^^ TIMES OF 
 
 either a consciously bad man or a credulous dupe. His 
 vast learning was only a mass of undigested information, 
 picked up in miscellaneous reading, and his immortal 
 Magnalia was only a collection of materials for history. 
 This is not an overstatement, as every one will admit who 
 reads noted and even celebrated works that came out half 
 a century ago. So far had this gone, that he was habitu- 
 ally spoken and written about in the language of con- 
 tempt. The Life of Cotton Mather, by Rev. Dr. Peabody, 
 of Springfield, is an illustration — a work which incurred 
 the mild but severe censure of Hawthorne, who was far 
 from being a champion of Mather. So far had this spirit 
 of depreciation gone that Mr. Drake, in the brief " Me- 
 moir" published as late as 1855, remarks as follows : "So 
 far as it is now remembered, Dr. Douglass seems to have 
 been the author of the fashion or practice, so much in 
 vogue of late years, of reviling Cotton Mather. It has 
 been carried to such an extreme in some quarters that 
 whoever presumes to mention his name does it at the 
 peril of coming in for a share of obloquy and abuse 
 himself." These words were printed only a generation 
 ago, but since then a reaction has come. The words of 
 Mr. Drake, who was far from sharing many of the opin- 
 ions of Mr. Mather, have had an influence in turning the 
 current in his favor. He says : " There need be no con- 
 cern for the reputation of Cotton Mather, even in the 
 hands of his enemies. . . . All his biographer needs to 
 do is to caution those a little who want caution, and save 
 them, if he may, from hiving the windows in their own 
 houses broken by the very missiles they themselves have 
 thrown." 
 
 The first notice of Calef s attack upon Cotton Mather 
 which I find in Mather's diary is under the date of "10 d. 
 4 m., 1698," where he says: "Moreover the Lord is fur- 
 
COTTON MATHER. 245 
 
 nishing of me with one special opportunity for the exer- 
 cise of his graces, under a trial of a very particular 
 importance." The whole bears weightily on an event 
 in his life for which his reputation suffers to this day, and 
 therefore the record is copied here : — 
 
 There is a sort of a Sadducee in this town, a man who makes little 
 conscience of lying, and one whom no reason will divert from his 
 malicious purpose. This man, out of enmity to me for my public 
 asserting of such truths as the Scripture has taught us about the 
 [power]! and influence of the invisible world, has often abused me 
 with the most venomous reproaches, and most palpable injuries. I 
 have hitherto taken little notice of his libels and slanders, but this 
 contempt enrages him. I understand that he apprehends the shortest 
 way to deliver people from the belief of the doctrines which not I only, 
 but all the ministers of Christ in the world have hitherto maintained, 
 will be to show the world what an ill-man I am. To this end, I under- 
 stand, he hath written a volume of invented and notorious lies ; and 
 also searched a large part of my books, which I have published, and 
 with false quotations of little scraps, here and there, endeavored for to 
 cavil at them. This volume he is, as I understand, sending to Eng- 
 land, that it may be perused there. And now I thought it high time 
 for me to look about me. Wherefore, in my suppUcations, I first of all 
 declared unto the Lord, that I freely forgave this miserable man all the 
 wrongs which he did unto me ; and I prayed the Lord also to forgive 
 him, and to do him good, even as to my own soul. But then, I pleaded 
 with the Lord, that the design of this man was to hurt my precious 
 opportunities of glorifying my glorious Lord Jesus Christ ; and I could 
 not but cry unto the Lord, that he would rescue my opportunities of 
 serving my Lord Jesus Christ, from the attempts of this man to dam- 
 nify them. I submitted my name unto the disposal of the Lord, own- 
 ing my deserts to have it vilified, and begging his help to bear it 
 prudently and patiently, if it must be vilified. But yet, I earnestly 
 besought the Lord, that for the sake of the calumnies which my Lord 
 Jesus Christ once did suffer for me, I might be delivered from such 
 calumnies as might unfit me to serve him. So I put over my calum- 
 nious adversary into the hands of the righteous God, unto whom 
 I make my appeal against him. In those hands I left my adversary, 
 
 1 Word illegible. 
 
246 LIFE AND TIMES OF 
 
 as not having any other to appeal to. And I now believe that the 
 holy angels of my Lord Jesus Christ, whose operations this impious 
 man denies, (which is one great cause of his enmity against me,) will 
 do a wonderful thing on this occasion. 
 
 This passage, the reader will remember, was written in 
 a diary. It was as secret as the thoughts locked up in 
 a man's inmost heart. The writer never published it. 
 There is no proof that he intended or wished to have it 
 ever come before the eye of the public. It has been kept 
 in a mass of manuscripts to this day, all unprinted except 
 as the custodians of them have permitted extracts to be 
 made. They were, therefore, not written and given to the 
 world for the purpose of injuring Robert Calef. They 
 only show the writer's sense of injury, his forgiving spirit 
 and his desire for vindication lest his power of doing good 
 might be hindered. 
 
 Passing over the year 1699, about the middle of No- 
 vember, 1700, there is another reference to this matter: 
 " A very wicked sort of Sadducee had raked together 
 libels," written at several times, relating to "The Won- 
 ders of the Invisible World." In this collection Mather, 
 as he alleges, was made the " butt of the author's malice, 
 (though many other better servants of the Lord were most 
 maliciously abused)." The author had "sent the vile vol- 
 ume to London " to be published. Mr. Mather records 
 that he laid the matter before the Lord ; he states that 
 the books he had sent over to London did not get pub- 
 lished ; but the books which vilified him were published, 
 and hindered his doing good. He humbled himself before 
 God to obtain pardon for sins, and besought the Lord 
 to assist him with his grace to "carry it prudently and 
 patiently, and not give way to any distemper." He closes 
 thus: "I would imitate and represent the gentleness of 
 my Saviour." 
 
COTTON MATHER. 247 
 
 It was a rule of Cotton Mather to avoid all personal 
 controversies, and in this matter with Calef he adhered 
 to the rule so far, at least, as not to print anything in his 
 defense. He had friends, however, who were aggrieved 
 by the attack on the character of their pastor and friend, 
 and who published a small volume in his vindication. 
 This is, referred to in the following citation from the 
 diary, under date of February 12, 1701, his birthday: — 
 
 I happen to begin this new year of my life with a very agreeable 
 employment. The six friends who published my vindication from the 
 abuses of our calumnious and malicious adversary, (the first of the 
 seven is gone to a better world,) being willing to commit their good 
 cause into the hands of the Lord, I sent for them, and spent the day 
 with them in my study, where we fasted, and prayed, and sung psalms ; 
 and we also put over our adversary into the hands of our Almighty 
 Lord, with supplications that he would send his angel to stop that ill- 
 man from going on any further in his wicked enterprise. 
 
 All the various letters and writings of Mr. Calef, which 
 had appeared from time to time for several years, had 
 now, it appears, been collected into a volume, and pub- 
 lished in London as well as in Boston. It was this book 
 which the seven friends of Mather answered. The curi- 
 ous reader, if he is hungry for hard work, or craving for 
 sleep, can devote himself to the perusal of these obsolete 
 volumes. The purport of them will appear as we proceed. 
 
 In considering the relation of Robert Calef to Cotton 
 Mather, the first question that arises is, Who was Robert 
 Calef } Was he a philosopher who saw the absurdity of 
 prevaiUng superstitions and errors, far in advance of the 
 times in which he lived, and so was a benefactor of human- 
 kind } Or was he simply a pamphleteer who possessed no 
 more than ordinary sense and knowledge, and who was 
 utterly unable to treat the subject of demoniacal posses- 
 sions with candor and sound judgment } It is certain that 
 
248 LIFE AND TIMES OF 
 
 he made no impression of greatness on the community in 
 which his life was passed. A few contemporary writers 
 mention him with respect, but none as a man of talent or 
 learning. The reputation he has acquired is of compar- 
 atively modern growth. It has been said that from the 
 time when Calef's writings appeared the reputation and 
 influence of Mather steadily decreased to the time of his 
 decease. Nothing could be further from the fact, as the 
 course of this memoir will prove. 
 
 There is some perplexity about the identity of Calef, 
 the author. Was he Robert, the father, or Robert Calef, 
 Jr. } This question has been in doubt, but the settlement 
 of it is of no immediate concern in this connection. Dr. 
 Belknap quotes a note which says that he was '* a young 
 man of good sense, and free from superstition." Leaving 
 the genealogists to settle the question, we will proceed. 
 
 There is nearly as much doubt about Robert Calef's 
 business and his standing in the community as about his 
 age. Some would seem to be desirous of making him a 
 " merchant prince of Boston," while others are accused 
 of a desire to sink him to a lower plane of life as a 
 "clothier." It is of little consequence, for all agree that 
 he was a respectable man, and the town records show that 
 he held offices which, though not indicative of distinction, 
 yet prove that he was a man of reputable character. He 
 was at various times overseer of the poor, hayward and 
 fence viewer, clerk of the market, and assessor. It is 
 supposable that he was both a mechanic and a trader, or 
 merchant ; that is, a man who kept both shop and store, 
 and sold in one the products of the other. A clothier is 
 one **who makes cloth," and one ''who sells clothing." 
 His will disposes of between two and three hundred 
 pounds in money. Nothing in his life has secured to 
 him a place in our annals, except his writings on the 
 
COTTON MATHER. 249 
 
 subject of witchcraft, and especially his persistent attacks 
 upon Cotton Mather. Probably his writings would have 
 been entirely forgotten long since if their continued re- 
 membrance depended on their merits, for they evince 
 neither ability nor learning above mediocrity. They have 
 been floated down to posterity because of their connec- 
 tion with the most remarkable man of his time in the 
 colonies. 
 
 Secondly, when did Robert Calef begin to resist the 
 witchcraft delusion .'* This is a pertinent inquiry, since 
 all his reputation rests upon his allegations against Cotton 
 Mather as aiding and abetting that delusion. Mr. Mather 
 saw the evil as early as 1688, manifesting itself in spo- 
 radic cases, and there seems to have been something *' in 
 the air," so to speak, which was of evil portent. Believ- 
 ing in diabolical possessions, and knowing also that there 
 were those in almost every town, if not neighborhood, 
 who made pretenses to tell fortunes and to dabble in some 
 form of the "black art," he bestirred himself to hinder 
 and counteract the evil. He would restrain the witch- 
 workers by the penalties of law and by appeals to con- 
 science and by Scripture; he would deter all good people 
 from giving countenance to the sin. But what was 
 Robert Calef doing all this time to enlighten the public 
 mind, and thus ward off delusion t What was he doing 
 to prevent the awful prevalence of what he considered 
 superstition and fanaticism t Nothing, so far as is known. 
 His voice was not heard. His pen was idle. If he was 
 mature enough in 1693 to write the letters of that date 
 attributed to him, he must have been able a few years 
 earlier to make some show of his righteous indignation. 
 Did he take any of the afflicted into his house and suc- 
 ceed, by judicious treatment, in recovering them from 
 the affliction or delusion or disease which made them the 
 
250 LIFE AND TIMES OF 
 
 objects of care ? Did he, at the time of the trials, write 
 to the judges, warning them to be wary about condemning 
 men and women on insufficient proof of guilt ? There is 
 no evidence that he took any measures to correct public 
 sentiment, or to hinder the trial and execution of the 
 accused. Why did he not unite with others in forming a 
 party to arrest the great horror when the trials were in 
 progress ? No answer comes to these inquiries. But in 
 1693, after the trials were all over, and the condemned 
 were reprieved by the governor and the remaining accused 
 were discharged and the special court dissolved, and the 
 very thought of judicial proceedings was odious, he begins 
 to write nagging letters to Cotton Mather ; and these he 
 follows up with others to him and other gentlemen, not- 
 withstanding their contemptuous neglect to take notice of 
 his arguments or speculations. And for this he is held 
 up as a benefactor to his species, and as wiser than the 
 wise men of the age in which he lived. 
 
 In this connection it is proper to inquire. What was the 
 animus of Calef in reference to Mather } because it will 
 help us, if we know it, to estimate the value of his testi- 
 mony against the latter. Had he the disposition to mis- 
 represent, and by assertions or insinuations to blacken the 
 memory of the greatest divine and the most laborious 
 pastor of the time in New England } Nothing is needed 
 in this quest but the writings of Calef himself. The 
 reader shall judge. Calef asserts in several places that 
 he held Mather in respect, and denies that he had ever 
 been discourteous to him or had written anything to give 
 him a bad name. His words of civility, at times, are so 
 emphatic as to give the impression that they are merely 
 conventional phrases. But these, if sincere, are overbal- 
 anced by such epithets as "bigoted," "very bigoted," 
 " superstitious," and such like. 
 
CO TTON MA THER. 2 5 I 
 
 His temper towards Mather comes out in his reference 
 to the " Life of Governor Phips " (a superior piece of 
 biography), in which Calef insinuates that the book was 
 written to glorify Cotton Mather and his father. As Mr. 
 Sibley interprets Calef, "Mather wrote this book anony- 
 mously, in order to praise himself." In reference to this 
 statement, it may be remarked that nothing short of 
 omniscience would authorize a man to make it, for the 
 author never avowed such a motive, and nowhere betrays 
 it. None but an enemy would have made the accusation, 
 even if true, because it gives a most despicable character 
 to the biographer, which there was need of exposhig. 
 Again, though no name was given as author, the book was 
 not, in any strict sense, anonymous, because it is one of 
 the most characteristic of the author's works, in language, 
 illustration, construction — in a word, in everything. No 
 one familiar with his " composures " could mistake its 
 parentage. Several papers and letters have been ascribed 
 to Mather which have little resemblance to his in style or 
 matter ; but this book could have been written by no one 
 else. The earmarks are on every page — in almost every 
 line. Besides, the volume is replete with the most gener- 
 ous praise of its subject and hero. It has been the 
 fashion to depreciate Phips by making prominent a few 
 acts of rudeness and roughness in castigating insulting 
 enemies, and by ignoring his vast energy, his earnest 
 patriotism, his large views, his noble magnanimity, and 
 his brilliant successes. But Mather delights to show how 
 the poor boy, without the advantages of family or educa- 
 tion or friends, rose by sheer dint of native qualities to 
 honorable distinction. 
 
 Again, Calef, in "More Wonders of the Invisible 
 World" (p. 151), states that Mather, "in manuscript and 
 anonymously handed about a paper of fables, wherein his 
 
252 LIFE AND TIMES OF 
 
 father, under the name of Merairms, and himself under 
 the name of Orpheus, are extolled, and the great actions 
 of Mercurius magnified ; the present charter exalted by 
 trampling on the former, as being very defective, and all 
 those unreasonable that did not readily agree with the 
 new one ; and indeed the whole country are compared to 
 no better than beasts, except Mercurius and Orpheus ; the 
 governor himself must not escape being termed an ele- 
 phant, though as good as he was great ; and the inferiors 
 told by Orpheus that the quiet enjoyment of their lands, 
 etc., they were beholden to Mercurius for. Though this 
 paper was judged not convenient for publication, yet some 
 copies were taken, the author having shown variety of 
 heathen learning in it." From these extracts it can be 
 seen how much reliance can be placed on Calef s expres- 
 sions of respect for Mather. 
 
 We are now led to ask. What was the real belief of 
 Robert Calef in regard to witchcraft } Was he, in fact, 
 in advance of the age on this subject t Was he a phi- 
 losopher, who demonstrated the impossibility of demonia- 
 cal possessions.? Did he understand the teachings of the 
 Bible in relation to this matter.? Did he, in a word, throw 
 any light on a series of phenomena which horrified the 
 people in his age } We should infer from the laudations 
 he has received from a class of writers that he was a man 
 of peculiar enlightenment, vainly striving to make a be- 
 nighted age and generation listen to the words of sober 
 wisdom. 
 
 The truth is that Robert Calef had no intelligent, con- 
 sistent notion or view of witchcraft ; that he was opposed 
 to the management of the cases which occurred in the 
 province in 1688-1693 is beyond a doubt. That he con- 
 demned the action of the special court in the trial and 
 sentence of the poor victims, in the summer of 1692, is 
 
COTTON MATHER. 
 
 25. 
 
 to his credit. But that he understood the matter of 
 witchcraft, or the peculiar phenomena of those years of 
 supposed Satanic visitation is not made evident from his 
 writings. Sometimes he goes so far in his statements as 
 almost, if not quite, to justify Mather in styling him a 
 "Sadducee," or one who believed in neither angel nor 
 devil. But when pressed with this allegation he took 
 ground by which he gave his whole case and contention 
 away. Thus, in his second letter to Mather, November 
 24, 1693, he writes : " That there are witches is not the 
 doubt ; the Scriptures else were vain, which assign their 
 punishment to be by death." ^ " Not but there are 
 witches, such as the law of God describes." ^ "But what 
 this witchcraft is, or wherein it doth consist, seems to be 
 the whole difficulty." ^ 
 
 Mr. Mather had not only the special care of the Good- 
 win children in the time of their affliction, but also of 
 Mercy Short and Margaret Rule. The story of Mercy 
 Short is still in manuscript, in the library of the Ameri- 
 can Antiquarian Society, That of Margaret Rule was 
 written by Cotton Mather, and the manuscript was read 
 by a few. It came into the hands of Calef, who, without 
 the knowledge or consent of the author, published it. 
 This is an exhibition of the man's sense of honor. He 
 then began to write letters to Mather in relation to points 
 in the work, and to tell what he saw of Margaret Rule, 
 and here are disclosed his notions concerning witchcraft :* 
 "As the Scriptures are full that there is witchcraft, so 
 't is as plain that there are possessions, and that the 
 bodies of the possest have hence been, not only afflicted, 
 but strangely agitated, if not their tongues improved to 
 
 1 Drake, vol. ii, pp. 5, 6. 2 ibid. p. 8. 8 ibid. p. 56. Consult also Samuel 
 A. Flower's " Salem Witchcraft," Part II, p. 54, et al. 
 4 Drake, vol. ii, pp. 58, 59. 
 
254 ^^^^ ^^-^ TIMES OF 
 
 foretell futurities ; and why not to accuse the innocent as 
 bewitching them ? " 
 
 The position he seems to hold consists in '* believing 
 that the devil's bounds are set, which he cannot pass; 
 that the devils are so full of malice, that it cannot be 
 added to by mankind ; that where he hath power, he 
 neither can nor will omit exercising it ; that it 's only the 
 Almighty that sets bounds to his rage, and that only can 
 commissionate him to hurt or destroy any." ^ 
 
 Further, he defines his views in regard to prevalent 
 erroneous notions, in these words : " And consequently 
 to detest as erroneous and dangerous, the belief that a 
 witch can commissionate devils to afflict mortals ; that he 
 can at his, or the witch's pleasure, assume our shape ; that 
 hanging or chaining of witches, can lessen his power of 
 afflicting, and restore those that were, at a distance, 
 tormented by him." And he seems to doubt whether 
 witchcraft ought in modern times to be understood as 
 the same thing it was when the divine oracles were given 
 forth. 
 
 To be more definite, he states, in the words of another, 
 that the witchcraft as exhibited in the Scriptures "is a 
 maligning and oppugning the Word, Works and Worship 
 of God," and by "an extraordinary sign, seeking to se- 
 duce any from it." And he refers in proof to Deut. 13 : 
 I, 2; Matt. 24: 24; Acts 13: 8-10; 2 Tim. 3: 8. The 
 first citation will indicate the tenor of all the passages. 
 " If there arise among you a prophet, or a dreamer of 
 dreams, and giveth thee a sign or a wonder, and the 
 sign or the wonder come to pass, whereof he spake unto 
 thee, saying. Let us go after other gods, which thou hast 
 not known, and let us serve them ; thou shalt not 
 hearken unto the words of that prophet, or that dreamer 
 
 1 Drake, vol. ii, p. 76. 
 
COTTON MATHER. 255 
 
 of dreams. . . . And that prophet, or that dreamer of 
 dreams shall be put to death." Here Calef seems to have 
 caught a glimpse of the crime of witchcraft as a case of 
 Icesce majestatisy but not a clear view of it in its essential 
 character. 
 
 Finally, in 1694, he was led to state more fully his 
 position on this subject, in a letter to a naval officer in 
 Boston harbor. His conclusions were as follows : — 
 
 1. That the glorious angels have their mission and commission 
 from the Most High. 
 
 2. That without this they cannot appear to mankind. 
 
 3. That if the glorious angels have not that power to go till commis- 
 sioned, or to appear to mortals, then not the fallen angels who are 
 held in chains of darkness to the judgment of the great day. 
 
 * 4. That when the Almighty free agent has a work to bring about 
 for his own glory, or man's good, he can employ not only the blessed 
 angels, but evil ones in it. 
 
 5. That when the Divine Being will employ the agency of evil 
 spirits for any service, 't is with him the manner how they shall exhibit 
 themselves, whether to the bodily eye, or intellect only ; or whether 
 it shall be more or less formidable. 
 
 To deny these three last, were to make the devil an independent 
 power, and consequently a God. The bare recital of these is sufficient 
 to vindicate me from that reiterated charge of denying all appearance 
 of angels or devils. 
 
 This statement is explicit enough. It suggests the 
 query whether it was not one of those places where Calef 
 received help from the Brattles, as his abettors allege was 
 the fact, in some parts of his letters. But the statement 
 leaves us to wonder in what respect it differs from the 
 general view held by Cotton Mather and the divines, 
 lawyers, and physicians of that day. If God employs 
 "evil angels "as well as "good angels," to bring about 
 any "work for his own glory and man's good," and if it 
 is with him to determine the " manner how they shall 
 exhibit themselves, whether to the bodily eye, or intellect 
 
256 
 
 LIFE AND TIMES OF 
 
 only; or whether it shall be more or less formidable/* 
 then the way is open for all the infernal manifestations 
 that were alleged to have occurred. Like any other forces, 
 whether of voluntary agents or mere agencies of nature, 
 if they worked by God's permission and were overruled 
 for good, they would work according to their nature ; and 
 thus devils might enter into partnership with men, to work 
 out their ends, or might inspire mortals to do their bid- 
 ding. The postulate is, that all was overruled for the glory 
 of God. Who can tell, unless he can see the end from 
 the beginning, that any infernal phenomenon may not be 
 for the glory of God t The door is open for all sorts of 
 pretended miracles. For aught Calef could show, the 
 phenomena of the Salem witchcraft were genuine, and 
 divinely permitted, and in that sense, authorized. Thus 
 it appears that Calef, instead of being the enlightened 
 philosopher, whose writings prove him to be superior not 
 only to the clergy of his age, but to such men as Lord 
 Bacon, Sir Thomas Brown, and Sir Matthew Hale, actu- 
 ally held to a scheme which justified the belief of those 
 whom he opposed and abused. In fact, neither party 
 had reached a true conception of the scriptural doctrine of 
 evil angels in conjunction with wicked mortals, working 
 out their malign designs ; but the misfortune of Calef 
 was that his views were an inconsistent jumble. 
 
 We are thus led along to notice the actual treatment 
 which Cotton Mather received from Robert Calef. Was 
 the latter fair and truthful in his representations of the 
 conduct of Mr. Mather.? In 1693, Margaret Rule, as 
 said above, came under the care of Mr. Mather, and he 
 used the means which had been successful in the cases 
 of the Goodwins and of Mercy Short. Mather, in his 
 pamphlet, which Calef published without warrant, thus 
 describes a scene in the room of Margaret Rule : — 
 
COTTON MATHER. 257 
 
 We once thought we perceived something stir upon her pillow at a 
 little distance from her, whereupon one present, laying his hand there, 
 he to his horror, apprehended that he felt, though none could see it, 
 a living creature, not altogether unlike a rat, which nimbly escaped 
 from him ; and there were divers other persons who were thrown 
 into a great consternation, by feeling as they judged, at other times, 
 the same invisible animal. 
 
 Surely there is nothing improper or indelicate in this 
 report. Whatever one may think of witchcraft in gen- 
 eral, or of this supposed rat in particular, the deportment 
 of the actor and the terms of the report suggest noth- 
 ing derogatory to a saint. But it was Calefs report 
 of this scene which first led me to suspect his unfair- 
 ness, and also the tendency of his mind to what is low 
 and disreputable. In his " More Wonders " he refers to 
 the case of Margaret Rule, and reports the scene above 
 described in his own words. A part of Calefs report is 
 so foolish and ridiculous as to be incredible ; and if credi- 
 ble, it is too indelicate and indecent to find a place in 
 these pages. 
 
 I have read the letters of Calef with care, as well as 
 the replies of Cotton Mather, and am convinced that in 
 nearly all the details into which Calef enters he has 
 misrepresented the Mathers, and that the replies prove 
 that his letters were the production of either a very 
 careless, or else a malicious and dishonest, man. In ad- 
 dition, the tone and air with which he hints and insinu- 
 ates vile actions of Mather convict him of possessing a 
 vile mind. His statements are inaccurate in nearly every 
 particular, but those about the " moving thing " are gross 
 and palpably absurd. In replying to him, Mr. Mather 
 says : " There are divers other downright mistakes which 
 you have permitted yourself, I would hope, not know- 
 ingly, and with a malicious design, to be receiver and 
 compiler of, which I shall now forbear to animadvert 
 
258 LIFE AND TIMES OF 
 
 upon;" and concludes in these words: "I beg of God 
 that he would bestow as many blessings on you as ever 
 on myself." 
 
 To this Calef replied, but his reply is not a justification 
 of his conduct, and it is surprising that his editor, Mr. 
 Drake, or any one else, could think it anything but a 
 disgrace to the writer. He does not seem to have had 
 any sense of honor, or to know that his report had put 
 the Mathers — reputable ministers — in a disgraceful posi- 
 tion ; and that if what he stated were true, Cotton Mather 
 was a ruined man. And his catch to clear himself about 
 the touching of Margaret Rule is enough to turn him 
 out of court as a witness. 
 
 Calef s offense may be illustrated in this way : a rep- 
 utable physician describes a female clinique in a harm- 
 less and delicate way ; but a bohemian reporter present 
 describes the scene in terms that convey a shameful 
 meaning, and one fitted to cloud the doctor's reputation 
 with disgrace. And it appears that such an impression 
 was made by Calef's narrative, at the time, and that 
 Mather was accused of doing a " smutty thing." When 
 we remember that an insinuation of the sort, though it 
 may not seriously injure other men, is utterly ruinous to 
 the reputation of a clergyman, we see the heinousness 
 of Calef's offense, and we cease to wonder that Mather 
 would have no more to do with his slanderer. 
 
 Calef, unabashed, had written to Mather, asking for an 
 interview, which was promised, and he makes great ado 
 over the fact that the promise was not kept. How could 
 a person with any self-respect have an interview with 
 such an enemy } But on the ground of Calef's plea that 
 he wanted light on the subject of witchcraft, Mather 
 offered him the use of all the books in his library bearing 
 on the subject ; but Calef did not seek light from that 
 
? 
 
 COTTON MATHER. 259 
 
 source. However, he wrote letters to several other min- 
 isters, inviting answers to his writings, and as he re- 
 ceived none, he gave out that he understood from their 
 silence they admitted his letters to be unanswerable. 
 Mr. Mather intimates that they disdained to reply to one 
 so ignorant and so unfair. The anecdote which he gives 
 respecting Mr. Willard, pastor of the South Church, and 
 afterwards president of Harvard College, seems to con- 
 firm the supposition. When Mr. Willard was informed 
 that Calef demanded and expected an answer from him, 
 he only replied : " Go, tell him that the answer to him 
 and his letter is in the twenty-sixth of Proverbs, and the 
 fourth," which reads: "Answer not a fool according to 
 his folly, lest thou also be like unto him." 
 
 This seems to be the place in which to make a final 
 disposal of the witchcraft question, so far as this biog- 
 raphy is concerned. 
 
 I. As is well known, the belief in witchcraft, in one or 
 another form, was universal in the seventeenth century, 
 as it had been in all preceding periods of known history. 
 In heathen, savage, barbarous, half-civilized, and Moham- 
 medan, as in Christian, nations there were dealers in the 
 black art, and the people were in thraldom to the diabol- 
 ical horror. The same is true to this day, except where, 
 in Christian communities, the influence of the Bible has 
 partially dissipated the darkness and broken the power 
 of superstition. And even now there are vast multitudes, 
 sometimes estimated at millions, in our own country and 
 in Europe, who believe in manifestations as strange and 
 unaccountable as many of those which attended the 
 horrid epidemic in the colony or province of Massachu- 
 setts Bay in 1685-1695. There were individuals at the 
 time who denied the reality of any occult powers or 
 spirits causing the phenomena, and ascribed the whole 
 
260 LIFE AND TIMES OF 
 
 to trickery on the part of the performers and gullibility 
 on the part of the believers. There were others, prob- 
 ably, as there are now, who believe that the appearances 
 sprang from unseen and unknown powers or forces, who 
 yet did not believe in the presence of invisible, intelligent 
 agents. But as a general fact, the belief in witchcraft 
 was universal. 
 
 2. This belief, stated generally, was, that men and 
 women — wizards and witches — by compact with the 
 devil, or under his inspiration or that of his hellish confed- 
 erates, could do wonders, and that their intentions and 
 deeds were mischievous. There were some who believed 
 that the devils could act upon good people without the 
 assistance of human partners. Some of the phenomena 
 in the period under review were the following : — 
 
 {a) There were many persons, generally singular peo- 
 ple, living apart from others, sometimes in the edge of 
 woodland, who claimed the power of finding lost things 
 without search ; of designating the place where drowned 
 bodies might be found ; of working mischief upon others 
 by charms and incantations ; of foretelling future events, 
 particularly of fortunes ; and of doing various other things 
 beyond the power of unaided mortals. Some of these 
 admitted, and even claimed, that they were in league with 
 the devil. This increased their power over the credu- 
 lous ; but when danger was incurred, they disclaimed the 
 aid of diabolical agency. 
 
 ip) Some persons, not claiming to be witches or wizards, 
 were accused of bewitching others who were suffering 
 under peculiar maladies. The sufferers, for some reason, 
 accused certain individuals of being the authors of their 
 troubles. It might be because they had incurred the 
 enmity of their supposed tormentors ; or because the suf- 
 ferers took that mode of injuring an enemy whom they 
 
COTTON MATHER, 26 1 
 
 wished to be revenged upon ; or it might be mere wanton 
 mischief. Sometimes the sufferers alleged that they saw 
 the specters of the witches by whom they were bewitched ; 
 and they detected the witches by inflicting some blow or 
 making some mark on the specter, which was, by exami- 
 nation, found on the person of the accused. For example, 
 
 A. was suffering from some strange malady ; he suspected 
 
 B. of being the cause. While suffering, he saw some- 
 thing which he supposed was a specter. He inflicted a 
 blow on the specter. On examination, B. was found to 
 have a wound or mark on the very part of his body where 
 the specter was stricken. Therefore, B. was a witch and 
 was the guilty cause of the suffering of A. This was 
 bewitched logic. 
 
 {c) Many asserted that they suffered from being pinched, 
 bitten, burned, pricked with pins, and made sick in various 
 forms ; and in some of these cases the phenomena were 
 entirely unaccountable at the time, if the riper knowl- 
 edge of two hundred years has found a solution. Persons 
 lying flat rose from the table to the ceiling and came 
 down gently, without any visible support. In some cases, 
 we are told, the attendants could not hold down the 
 patient when this strange fit of levitation was at work. 
 That is, such were the reported phenomena. Modern 
 spiritualism makes the same report. 
 
 {d) Some of these phenomena were, and are still, inex- 
 plainable, unless all are to be ascribed to deceit and 
 trickery. 
 
 {e) In many cases, without doubt, the phenomena were 
 the result of mischievous cunning. There is no end to 
 the sly deceit of old and young, when they find a state of 
 mind on which they can operate with safety. It some- 
 times seems as if this mischievous cunning were stimu- 
 lated by partial insanity. 
 
262 LIFE AND TIMES OF 
 
 3. The ancient belief was that all these phenomena 
 which were not ascribable to natural causes were the 
 direct effects of the devil and his legions ; but that those 
 evil spirits could only act as they were permitted by the 
 Almighty. Their malign power was overruled for good, 
 as in the case of sinful men. " Surely the wrath of man 
 shall praise thee : the remainder of wrath shalt thou 
 restrain." 
 
 4. It was held that the Bible warranted the belief that 
 wizards and witches, by the help of evil spirits, wielded 
 superhuman power, and possessed knowledge above the 
 ken of ordinary mortals ; and 
 
 5. That the commands in the Bible, enjoining that 
 wizards and witches should be put to death, were of 
 perpetual force in countries whither they should come 
 and be known. Some of the passages denouncing capital 
 punishment on this class of offenders read as follows : — 
 
 *' A man also or a woman that hath a familiar spirit, or that is a wiz- 
 ard, shall surely be put to death." Lev. 20 : 27. '* The soul that turneth 
 . . . after wizards, I . . o will cut him off." Lev. 20: 6. ** Thou 
 shalt not suffer a witch to live." Ex. 22: 18. "There shall not be 
 found among you any one that maketh his son or his daughter to pass 
 through the fire, or that useth divination, of an observer of times, or an 
 enchanter, or a witch, or a charmer, or a consulter with familiar spirits, 
 or a wizard, or a necromancer. For all that do these things are an 
 abomination unto the Lord." Deut. 18: 10-12. 
 
 We are now able, as it seems to me, to see in just 
 what the error of good men lay. It was first, in believing 
 that witches and the whole crew of dabblers in the black 
 art had any supernatural power. The Bible does indeed 
 prove that such pretenders existed in great numbers ; but 
 it treats them as liars, deceivers, pretenders, cheats, and, 
 in a word, impostors. The necromancers of Egypt, the 
 astrologers and magicians of Babylon, the wizards and 
 
COTTON MATHER. 263 
 
 witches of Canaan, the diviners amongst the Jews, as the 
 witch of Endor and Simon Magus, were one and all false 
 pretenders to occult power, and willing confederates and 
 slaves of the devil, or of false gods. That is the biblical 
 teaching throughout. The belief in these pretenders — 
 these unabashed liars — was well-nigh universal among 
 all the nations with whom the Jews came in contact ; they 
 partook of the belief ; but the enlightened among them, 
 especially such great leaders and teachers and chosen 
 servants of God as Moses, David, Elijah, and Daniel, 
 were employed to confute and detect and expose and to 
 put to shame the false claims of the whole brood of 
 dealers with familiar spirits. The first great mistake of 
 our fathers was in not recognizing this fact. 
 
 The second mistake which led to the shedding of 
 torrents of blood in Christian lands was this : that the 
 sentence of death upon wizards and witches, necroman- 
 cers, magicians, and astrologers was of universal and per- 
 petual force ; whereas it had validity only under the 
 Hebrew regime. According to the Jewish constitution 
 of government, witchcraft, under whatever name, was 
 rebellion. The crime was treason. " For rebellion is 
 as the sin of witchcraft," or divination, i Sam. 15: 23. 
 Witchcraft was acknowledging another god besides or 
 instead of Jehovah, the God of Israel. In this respect 
 the sin of a Jew was peculiar. It is a sin for any one 
 to resort to a creature, whether diabolic or in human 
 shape, as to a god, or one having divine power ; but to 
 the Jew the sin was treasonable. This grew out of the 
 fact that the Jewish government was a strict theocracy, 
 and in it God was the national king. He was just as 
 truly and just as much the king of the Jewish nation as 
 if he had a room in the capital city, Jerusalem, and in 
 the capitol, or temple, and thence had issued his laws and 
 
264 LIFE AND TIMES OF 
 
 sent forth his edicts. For a Jew, therefore, to resort to a 
 dealer with familiar spirits was as treasonable as it would 
 have been to acknowledge another king — the king of 
 Moab, of Egypt, or of Babylon. In either case it was 
 treason. An overt act in such allegiance was rebellion. 
 The New England governments were never theocracies in 
 any strict or legal sense. The fathers aimed to be gov- 
 erned by the laws of God in public as well as in private 
 life ; but that is entirely different from having God take 
 the place of governor of the state, and rule from the 
 State House in Boston or in Hartford. 
 
 While, therefore, it was legal and constitutional and 
 necessary that a Hebrew who resorted to a confederate 
 of the devil for aid and counsel should be treated as a 
 rebel, — a traitor to his national sovereign, — there was 
 no biblical authority for the sentence of death upon a 
 wizard or witch in New England, or any other part of the 
 Christian world. Doubtless the dabbling with witches and 
 fortune tellers and necromancers is a grave offense now 
 under the divine law ; but the sin of witchcraft, pure and 
 simple, was a capital offense only in the Hebrew common- 
 wealth. The error on this point was well-nigh universal. 
 The Brattles and Robert Calef, as well as Cotton Mather, 
 and the clergy, and the whole mass of the people, were 
 alike under the delusion. And to this day, writers on 
 this subject take it for granted that the Bible sanctioned, 
 and still sanctions, the taking of life in all countries for 
 the sin and crime of witchcraft. This mistake of the 
 fathers brought reproach upon the Bible — a reproach 
 which is slowly lifting, but it rested like a pall of black- 
 ness in the time of our fathers. Hence the horror of 
 the witchcraft delusion in Essex County; and the still 
 greater horror in England, Scotland, Ireland, France, and 
 in all Christian countries, that denounced death upon the 
 
COTTON MATHER. 265 
 
 offenders. Cotton Mather, as usual in advance of the 
 times, seems to have caught a glimpse of this vital dis- 
 tinction in his old age, but, alas ! too late to save the 
 province from the stain of innocent blood. 
 
 Mr. Longfellow, in his New England Tragedies, rose 
 above the poisoned air about him, and in the serene 
 light of truth saw Cotton Mather as he was, perplexed 
 indeed with "unintelligible circumstances," but honestly 
 seeking to be true to God and merciful to unhappy men. 
 In the following passage we see his reliance on prayer : — 
 
 The Unclean Spirit said, " My name is Legion." 
 
 Multitudes in the Valley of Destruction ! 
 
 But when our fervent, well-directed prayers, 
 
 Which are the great artillery of heaven, 
 
 Are brought into the field, I see them scattered 
 
 And driven like Autumn leaves before the wind. 
 
 Next he shows Mather's distrust of " spectral evidence '* : 
 
 We must inquire . . . 
 But not receive the testimony borne 
 By specters as conclusive proof of guilt 
 In the accused. 
 
 Mather's zeal for the honor of New England is finely 
 expressed in the lines following : — 
 
 God give us wisdom 
 In the directing of this thorny business, 
 And guide us, lest New England should become 
 Of an unsavory and sulphurous odor 
 In the opinion of the world abroad ! 
 
 Ah, poor New England ! He who hurricanoed 
 The house of Job is making now on thee 
 One last assault, more deadly and more snarled . . . 
 Than any thou hast hitherto encountered ! 
 
266 LIFE AND TIMES. 
 
 Again Mather cautions the judge : — 
 
 .... Yet one thing troubles me. 
 May not the Devil take the outward shape 
 Of innocent persons? Are we not in danger, 
 Perhaps, of punishing some who are not guilty? 
 
 The Scripture sayeth it, 
 But speaketh to the Jews ; and we are Christians. 
 
 The following supposed words of Cotton Mather in the 
 potter's field express the real sorrow of his heart : — 
 
 O sight most horrible ! In a land like this, 
 Spangled with Churches Evangelical, 
 Inwrapped in our salvations, must we seek 
 In moldering statute-books of English Courts, 
 Some old forgotten Law, to do such deeds? 
 Those who lie buried in the Potter's Field 
 Will rise again, as surely as ourselves 
 That sleep in honored graves with epitaphs ; 
 And this poor man,i whom we have made a victim, 
 Hereafter shall be counted as a martyr ! 
 
 1 Giles Corey. 
 
CHAPTER XIV. 
 
 A YEAR OF GRIEF. SICKNESS OF THE CHILDREN AND 
 
 DEATH OF MRS. MATHER: 1/02. 
 
 THE year 1702 was an eventful one in the life of 
 Mr. Mather. He styles it a year of grief. His 
 personal history is merged to a great extent in that 
 of his church and family, but some things were peculiar 
 to himself and will warrant separate notice. 
 
 He had great and, we cannot help the feeling, undue 
 anxiety about his books and manuscripts, for one who 
 cherished uncommon trust in providence ; but he kept 
 this to himself. He was not in the habit of conversing 
 on this topic even with his most intimate friends. If we 
 had no record from his own pen, it would never occur 
 to us that one whose publications followed each other 
 in such quick succession could have so much solicitude 
 concerning them. But such was the fact. Whether the 
 work were large or small, whether put to press in this 
 country or in London, he was often in a state of anxiety 
 about its appearance. Sometimes his desires were grati- 
 fied by the offer of a friend to bear the whole or part of 
 the expense of publication. At other times a public ex- 
 pression of desire that the manuscript might be printed 
 gave him a gleam of encouragement. When manuscripts 
 were sent to England he was distressed about the delay 
 of publication. This was specially true in relation to 
 his great work, the Magnalia, and he often refers to 
 it in his diary. It was the subject of frequent prayer, 
 and nothing would compose his mind but an assurance 
 
 S67 
 
268 LIFE AND TIMES OF 
 
 from heaven ; and he wanted these assurances to be 
 renewed. 
 
 This was a year of vigils in comparison with other 
 periods of Mr. Mather's life. He kept them more fre- 
 quently, and had unwonted enjoyment in them. On the 
 fourteenth of March, being Saturday, he made preparation 
 for the Eucharist on the following day, by " watching unto 
 prayer." He remembered that primitive Christians, in 
 obedience to the command about watching unto prayer, 
 ** sometimes had their vigils which were of great use to 
 them." He kept vigil that night, of which he writes in 
 these words : — 
 
 Dismissed my good consort unto her repose, and in the dead of 
 night returned unto my study and cast myself into the dust on the 
 study floor. Was rewarded from heaven with communications that 
 cannot be uttered. Wrestled with the Lord, and received some strange 
 intimations about the time and the day of my death ; and about matters 
 intended for my family. Lord, what is man that thou shouldest thus 
 visit him ! 
 
 He was aware that such vigils endangered his health, 
 as appears from the following note : '' If these be vigils, 
 I must (as far as the sixth commandment will allow), have 
 some more of them." Things that were of trifling im- 
 portance to some, who would smile at his anxieties about 
 them, were serious troubles to him. Thus he observed that 
 when he had received some " near, and sweet, and intimate 
 communion with heaven," he "immediately encountered 
 vexations, as bodily illness, or popular clamor, or Satanic 
 buffets." He expected something of the kind on this 
 occasion. And what does the reader suppose was the 
 price he deemed he had to pay for his previous exaltation I 
 The next day his chimney took fire, and his own house 
 and some of his neighbors' were endangered while he was 
 preaching, and the great congregation ran out of the 
 
COTTON MATHER. 269 
 
 meetinghouse, while he calmly kept his place. He " was 
 thus marked out for talk all over town " ! Not the fire, 
 but the talk was the trouble. Doubtless the talk was an 
 annoyance, as some could not appreciate the faith nor the 
 philosophy which enabled him to continue the public serv- 
 ice while his house was in danger of being consumed by 
 fire. But he soon found that this gossip was but a mere 
 trifle in comparison with what was to come. 
 
 On the second of April he kept another vigil, and the 
 next day enjoyed a " mighty presence of the Lord in min- 
 istering to a vast congregation of his people." Another 
 vigil was kept on the twelfth of April in which he was 
 "irradiated with celestial and angelical influences," assur- 
 ing him that his Church History should be of " great 
 service in the work of cleansing the temple," for which 
 the Lord would speedily pour out a spirit from on high. 
 Under the influence of this exercise he "became as a 
 weaned child," resolving to be satisfied with whatever 
 might be ordered. In another vigil, on the twenty-third 
 of May, he prayed with his " whole heart " that the 
 " virtue of Love to Soulsy might, by the Holy Spirit, be 
 mightily working " in him. 
 
 In the line of personal experience and influence is the 
 following, which exhibits his singular power in enlighten- 
 ing and comforting persons in distress of mind. It was 
 an interview with a " very religious young minister (and 
 one doubtless of much more grace than myself), desiring 
 advice about his distressed case, being convinced that he 
 was, to this day, an unconverted and unregenerate crea- 
 ture." The record is very interesting, and scarcely admits 
 of abridgment. "Lord," said I, "what cause have I to 
 examine seriously and thoroughly, my own state, if one so 
 much better than I, hath such thoughts of his ? But set- 
 ting myself to comfort him, I found a wonderful comfort 
 
270 LIFE AND TIMES OF 
 
 conveyed unto my own soul, with a dialogue of this 
 importance." 
 
 I pray, Syr, what is that stands on the shelf before you? Answer. 
 A repeating clock, and a very curious one. What use do you think I 
 will put it to? Syr, you'll assign it to a convenient and an honor- 
 able place in your house, and put it to the noble use of measuring 
 your time. How do you know that I shall not make it a stool to sit 
 upon ? a block to read upon ? a backlog to be thrown into my fire ? A. 
 Syr, the workmanship of it makes it appear to be intended for no such 
 miserable use. Well, then, have not you, upon your soul, a divine 
 workmanship far more excellent than the most cunning clock work in 
 the world? A work of grace is a work of God, even of him who does 
 nothing in vain. You find in yourself a disposition, — a strong dispo- 
 sition and inclination to glorify God, and serve the interests of the 
 Lord Jesus Christ, and slay all sin, as being most contrary unto him. 
 This is a work of grace. You know no delight comparable to that of 
 serving the Lord Jesus Christ. God has wrought you for this self-same 
 thing of being to the praise of his glory for ever. What use can you 
 think he will now put you to but that of serving the Lord Jesus Christ 
 in his heavenly world ? Such a piece of workmanship, (created unto 
 good works,) as what is wrought in you, was never intended to be 
 thrown into the fire of hell. No : there is no use of it there. God 
 intends you for a heavenly use, undoubtedly. 
 
 Mr. Mather's labors for his church were, as usual, inces- 
 sant. His record of sermons this year contains the titles 
 of about seventy, the far larger part of which were de- 
 livered to his own congregation, though his services were 
 often in request on Lecture day and in other churches. 
 
 In laboring for the welfare of all his parishioners, Mr. 
 Mather appears to have anticipated all the judicious 
 methods used in more recent times. The following 
 passage from his diary, February 10, throws light on 
 this point : — 
 
 One thing that hath cost me more than a little time and care in the 
 [preceding months] has been to set up a number of religious private 
 meetings among the Christians in my neighborhood, besides those that 
 
COTTON MATHER. 
 
 71 
 
 are already maintained. I considered with myself that the spirit of 
 religion was mightily preserved and promoted by private meetings 
 well managed among the people of God. The Lord has now so mar- 
 velously prospered my labors for and with such private meetings, that 
 I shall have at least thirteen or fourteen of these, (besides my vast 
 congregation) under my charge. These unavoidably demand of me a 
 deal of time, and care, and expensive industry ; nor do I know another 
 minister on earth, at this day, that has the like number to look after. 
 Lord, assist me to value and improve my precious opportunities. 
 
 Whether these neighborhood private meetings included 
 the meetings of young people — male and female separate 
 — is uncertain, but probably those were distinct and on 
 the evening of the Sabbath. At the same time he formed 
 a ** Society for the propagation of the Christian religion." 
 "A number of the more significant gentlemen," he says, 
 " have combined with me to set up a conversation at each 
 other's houses, upon the point, * What is the present state 
 of the Christian religion at home and abroad.-*'" 
 
 At the same time his interest in the town, the province, 
 and the world generally did not abate. He originated a 
 " Society for the Suppression of Disorders." A dozen 
 or fourteen good men, "whereof some are justices, agree 
 to meet for consultation on the point. What and where 
 disorders do arise in the town, and how such disorders 
 may be prevented t " He drew up the orders, or regula- 
 tions. The members hoped for a reformation, and, by 
 combined effort, effected good results. 
 
 In the month of March (diary, 14th), he made his influ- 
 ence felt in several ways ; for example : — 
 
 I . Incited the justices and selectmen to put the Bridewell into good 
 condition, for the cure of much idleness and wickedness. 2. Procured 
 that the town appoint a committee to consider on methods for setting 
 the ppor to work, and set forward a town vote for rectifying gross 
 abuses in the choice of jurym.en. 3. Procured a clause to be put in 
 the Order for a general fast, exciting the churches through the Province 
 
272 LIFE AND TIMES OF 
 
 unto successive days of prayer to be kept in particular congregations. 
 4. Wrote many letters to forward the designs of prayer for the dis- 
 tressed churches of God. 5. Prosecuting a design of obtaining able 
 and faithful Indians to undertake the work of evangelizing the salvages 
 in the eastern part of the country. 
 
 He closes with a characteristic touch of humility thus : 
 " And several other things, worth as much as these ; that 
 is to say, worth none at all. But it may be, the Lord has 
 them in the book of his remembrance." 
 
 About the middle of April he took into consideration 
 the fact that there were in the "skirts of the colonies, 
 diverse plantations that lived destitute of any evangelical 
 ministry." He drew up an address as "pungent" as he 
 could, to those " ungospelized and paganizing plantations, 
 to urge on the necessity of having the means of grace, 
 and to look out for having an evangelical ministry among 
 them." This was styled "A Letter to Ungospelized 
 Plantations." As the law then was, no town could 
 receive municipal powers which did not support an evan- 
 gelical minister. A grant of land was made to the town 
 for the use of the minister ; and to the first minister a 
 direct gift was made of a parcel of land to be his pri- 
 vate property. There were, however, on the frontiers, or 
 " skirts," of the colony, thin settlements, or plantations, 
 among which religious privileges were almost unknown. 
 Mr. Mather's effort in their behalf was most praiseworthy, 
 and his method was wise : that is, to excite in them a 
 desire to better their condition by maintaining the wor- 
 ship of God. 
 
 The death of King William (on the eighth of March), 
 whom Mr. Mather greatly admired, and the accession of 
 Queen Anne were events of great interest in the house- 
 holds of father and son, as the elder Mather had been 
 admitted to the closet of the king more than once, when 
 
COTTON MATHER. 273 
 
 in England, and he, as well as his son, regarded William 
 as, under God, the restorer of English liberties. 
 
 Changes in the government of the province, about the 
 same time, were matters of solicitude. The Earl of Bella- 
 mont had been absent, and the lieutenant-governor, William 
 Stoughton, had been for some time acting governor. He 
 was a good and capable man, belonging to the old regime. 
 But now by the death of Bellamont and the coming of 
 Joseph Dudley with the commission of governor, a new 
 face was put upon affairs. Dudley was a man of capacity 
 and of fair morals, and, as son of Governor Thomas 
 Dudley, a prominent founder of the Puritan common- 
 wealth, might have been expected to walk in the steps of 
 his excellent father. We shall hear of him again. 
 
 Mr. Mather made more use than usual of the press 
 during this year. Among other things he took great 
 interest in sending the gospel to Spanish America. In 
 February, considering the troubles of the churches, he 
 "digested into a single sheet of paper, as exact, and 
 perfect, and curious account as he could, of the deplorable 
 condition in which the church in this time was languish- 
 ing ; " and with as " many charms " as possible, directed 
 and entreated the prayers of good men for distressed 
 Zion, with the title, "Advice to the Churches of the 
 Faithful." His ''dear friend," Mr. Bromfield, paid the 
 expense of publishing and gave two copies to each dele- 
 gate in the General Court, one of them for the minister 
 •of the town where he lived. Many ministers had it read 
 in their congregations, and Mr. Bromfield sent a like num- 
 ber of copies to the general assembly of Connecticut. 
 
 Mr. Mather's interest in the spiritual welfare of chil- 
 dren was evinced in many ways. In February he took 
 his last two lectures, and with the title "Cares about 
 the Nurseries " gave them to the printer with the piir- 
 
2 74 ^^^^ ^^^ TIMES OF 
 
 pose of scattering two or three a week in his pastoral 
 visits. 
 
 In March he made a complete abridgment of the 
 Assembly's Catechism, and " composed brief systems of 
 the Christian religion," all in one single sheet of paper. 
 These were published with the title, " Sound Words to be 
 held fast in Faith and Love." 
 
 The month of May found him engaged in two small 
 publications. Knowing that many in town and country 
 neglected public worship, he sent abroad an " Admonitory 
 Letter to them who needlessly and frequently absent 
 themselves from the public worship of God." Like most 
 of his works, this met a practical want in a practical 
 way. It had three editions. 
 
 The other volume or tract was **A Seasonable Testi- 
 mony to the glorious doctrines of grace, now many ways 
 undermined in the world." This was intended as an 
 antidote to Arminian books, many of which were coming 
 over from England. The author considered them *' proper 
 cautions against Antinomian abuses of the doctrines of 
 grace." 
 
 Though to his public labors were added the cares of a 
 sick family, Mr. Mather neglected no duty to the Chris- 
 tian public. In June he read to a convention of ministers 
 "Proposals for the preservation of religion in the churches, 
 by a due trial of them that stand candidates for the min- 
 istry," which was given to the printer. 
 
 In the next month came out " The Portraiture of a 
 good man, drawn with the pencils of the sanctuary, in 
 such colors as the oracles of the Sacred Scriptures have 
 given him." This was preached in the hearing of the 
 general assembly and then printed. It has an historical 
 significance. Probably the new governor, Joseph Dudley, 
 was present, and the discourse was intended to set before 
 
COTTON MATHER, 2/5 
 
 him, among others, the elements of a good character. In 
 a letter to Dudley, in January, 1708, after the two had 
 become alienated, Mather wrote : " I flattered myself with 
 a belief that you would know no interests but those of 
 a glorious Christ, and of his people and his kingdom, 
 and study what you should render to him for his wonder- 
 ful dispensations towards you, in restoring you to your 
 family, with the government of a people with whom 
 you had been in such evil circumstances. The whole 
 country were witnesses to some of my poor and plain 
 endeavors to do the part of a faithful monitor unto you 
 in the portraiture of a good man, at your arrival." It is 
 possible that Dudley was not pleased at having such a 
 standard set up for his imitation. 
 
 His " Necessary Admonitions " had a singular origin. 
 It was his turn to give the Thursday lecture, and he had 
 prepared for it ; but a few minutes before the time of 
 delivery he resolved upon giving this lecture, which 
 "proved so acceptable to some of the hearers that they 
 were desirous to publish it." It contains ''just thoughts 
 upon some sins too little thought of " ; that is, " Sins of 
 Omission." In the preface he observed "that the things 
 and ways from which any service to the church of God is 
 least of all expected, are they that sometimes prove the 
 most serviceable." And he proceeds to say : " I have 
 found it so. . . . Little did I amagine that this poor 
 discourse would ever have had this improvement made 
 of it." 
 
 '' Arma virosq : cano ; or. The Troubles which the 
 churches of New England have undergone in the wars 
 which the people of that country have had with the 
 Indian Salvages." This is in the Magnalia, and was re- 
 published in 1862 in an edition of the "History of King 
 Philip's War," edited by Samuel G. Drake, with notes. 
 
2/6 LIFE AND TIMES OF 
 
 In the autumn, when the smallpox was in his family 
 and raging in the neighborhood, it was impossible for him 
 to visit much among the sick, whereupon he sent out in 
 print, " Wholesome Words ; or, A Visit of Advice to 
 Families visited with sickness." ^^^ 
 
 The '' Maschily or the Faithful Instructor," already- 
 mentioned, came out this season, with many additions of 
 Catechism, Creed, and Ten Commandments, in a volume 
 of 192 pages. 
 
 We have already given a few of the many entries in the 
 diary, in which the anxiety of the author was expressed in 
 reference to his Church History. Again, on the fourth of 
 April, in his inexpressible solicitude, he rose in the dead 
 of night and sang psalms and prayed and resigned that 
 book and other writings into the hands of the Lord, and, 
 as he assures us, received answer that the " Lord was his 
 Father, and that the Lord took delight in him, and would 
 smile upon his endeavors to serve him ; and that his Church 
 History should be accepted and prospered." Yet later 
 entries show that his anxiety was scarcely abated. 
 
 But on the first of May came news that the work would 
 be out in March. This shows how long news was in com- 
 ing from England. A letter written before March was 
 received on the first of May. However, the glad author 
 could rejoice in the belief that his prized History had 
 already been before the public two months in the mother 
 country. Still he had to wait five weary months before 
 his eyes saw the coveted volume, when, on the thirtieth 
 of October, a copy, which had been bought in Newcastle, 
 came to hand. It was a large folio in double columns. 
 The author's feelings at sight of this fruit of his labors, 
 studies, and prayers shall be given in his own words : — 
 
 30 d. 8 m. Friday. Yesterday I first saw my Church History 
 since the publication of it. A gentleman arrived here from Newcastle, 
 
COTTON MATHER, 277 
 
 in England, that had bought it there. Therefore, I set apart this day 
 for a solemn Thanksgiving unto God for his watchful and gracious 
 providence over that work, and for the harvest of so many prayers, and 
 cares, and tears, and resignations as I have employed upon it. My 
 religious friend, Mr. Bromfield, who had been singularly helpful to 
 the publication of that Great Book, (of twenty shillings price at Lon- 
 don) came to me at the close of the day, to join with me in some 
 of my praises to God. 
 
 In turning to the family life of Mr. Mather this year, 
 we find it truly described by him as a year of grief, loss, 
 bereavement, sorrow. His custom had been, as he wrote 
 in March, "in evening prayer in his family to preface 
 the devotions with some meditation upon a text of Scrip- 
 ture." He now concluded to read a passage from the 
 Scotch Commentators, and read a portion in his family. 
 He began with Hutchinson on Job, and many times after 
 he had begun had it darted into his mind that he might 
 expect some trials (perhaps of long sickness) to come 
 soon upon his family, and that the lessons fetched from 
 Job were to prepare him for those trials. However this 
 may have been, the trials soon came. 
 
 In the latter part of May his wife, whom he calls his 
 **dear consort," had the misfortune of a premature birth. 
 From this time (May 25), during six or seven months, he 
 was in the deepest anxiety about her. She was appar- 
 ently often on the brink of the grave, and as often some- 
 what relieved. He fasted and prayed and often had assur- 
 ances of faith that she would be healed and be strong 
 again ; and as often his hopes were fallacious. At last 
 it seemed to come to him, as a half conviction, that the 
 faith was only in reference to the prolongation of her life, 
 rather than her restoration, and that all was to prepare 
 him gradually for the sad event that was surely coming. 
 But the noteworthy fact is that he never dictated to God 
 in the matter, and never found fault with God, or lost 
 
278 LIFE AND TIMES OF 
 
 confiding trust in him, on account of disappointment. 
 The fluctuations of this long illness, which are often men- 
 tioned in the diary, need not be given. During the whole 
 he showed the most warm and gratifying affection for his 
 wife, and did all that was possible for her comfort, both 
 bodily and spiritual. Many times she was thought to be 
 dying. Once she was much better and began herself to 
 hope for recovery. At one time she came out of her 
 room into the study. 
 
 In August he wrote a passage which will help us to an 
 insight into his theory of 2i particular faith. He records : 
 
 I suspect I have been too inattentive unto the meaning of the Holy 
 Spirit, and his Angels, in the particular faith I have had about my con- 
 sort being restored to me. 
 
 First, when she has been, several times in apparently the last agonies 
 of death, unto the apprehension of all about her, I cry unto the Lord, 
 that he will yet spare me. He tells me that he will do it. Accordingly, 
 to our astonishment, she gets over that ill turn. She stays yet longer 
 with us to employ our prayer, and faith, and patience, and resignation. 
 But it may be, after all, the Lord has given me admirable demonstra- 
 tions of his being loth to deny me anything that I importunately ask 
 of him, and therefore does, one month after another, delay the thing 
 which I fear ; yet I must at last encounter the death which I have so 
 deprecated, when both my wife and myself shall be better prepared 
 for it. 
 
 Elizabeth Barrett Browning seems to have a similar 
 idea about our prayers, in some cases, keeping our friends 
 from going to their felicity. The following lines are full 
 of beauty and may perhaps express a truth. A sick child 
 exclaims : — 
 
 O mother, mother, loose thy prayer! 
 
 Christ's name hath made it strong ! 
 It bindeth me, it holdeth me 
 With its most loving cruelty 
 
 From floating my new soul along 
 The happy heavenly air! 
 
CO TTON MA THER. 2 79 
 
 It bindeth me, it holdeth me 
 
 In all this dark, upon this dull, 
 Low earth, by only weepers trod. 
 It bindeth me, it holdeth me ! 
 
 Mine angel looketh sorrowful 
 Upon the face of God. 
 
 Mr. Mather proceeds with the suggestion that when he 
 prays the Lord to pity him and his poor family, in " ref- 
 erence to the taking away of his dear consort," the Lord 
 may have "wondrous blessings" in store for him and his 
 children, beyond what he can imagine ; and so his faith, 
 mistaken as to an individual thing, may be well founded 
 as to what he most needs. 
 
 And in regard to another matter wherein many Chris- 
 tians may have erred, he shows that he observed caution. 
 He had a way of opening his Bible and noticing what 
 verse first caught his eye, and was often astonished at its 
 pertinency. He does not state how many times it had no 
 pertinency whatever, but says that " it is an action which 
 I would not encourage ever to be used in a Divinatory 
 Way." The wonder about this matter is that almost 
 every page of the Bible has something that is so per- 
 tinent to our experience, or so suggestive of rich and 
 germinant thought. 
 
 While Mrs. Mather's life was lingering to the end, all 
 his living children in succession, except the eldest, Katy, 
 were nigh unto death. On the thirtieth of October his 
 little daughter Nabby, eight years old, began to fall sick 
 of the smallpox, which was raging in the neighborhood. 
 It ^continued with scarlet fever through the year 1702. 
 On the twenty-first of November his " godly maid " be- 
 came sick. His study was turned into a hospital, because 
 his large house was full. His wife, his daughter Nibby, 
 or Nabby, and now his maid, were very sick at the same 
 
28o LIFE AND TIMES OF 
 
 time. The latter had the smallpox. Three days later, on 
 the 24th, his daughter Nancy, five years old, was taken 
 with the horrible disease, and on the 27th, his little boy 
 Increase, three years of age, came down with the same 
 loathsome malady, "full, and blind, and sore." Four were 
 sick in the house besides the mother, who was anxious to 
 help, yet was slowly dying. Writes the father: ''The 
 little creatures kept calling me so often to pray with them, 
 that I can scarce do it less than ten or a dozen times a 
 day, besides what I do with my neighbors." He adds : 
 " But the most exquisite of my trials was the condition of 
 my lovely consort. It now began to be hopeless." 
 
 But this was not all. The poor servant, who "knew 
 and loved the family," and would have been a tender nurse 
 to the children, became so " distracted " that they were 
 obliged to part with her. And now another cup was 
 pressed to his lips, for in the next month his "pretty 
 little Nancy had a violent and malignant fever." She 
 was in violent convulsions. Her agonies were so great 
 that he " would have been glad if she had been released 
 by death." On the sixth of January, 1703, he "fasted 
 and prayed that the child might obtain a speedy and easy 
 death, and everlasting bliss, rather than a continuation of 
 life." She lay speechless and he lost all hope of her 
 recovery. After lying in that condition all day, she sur- 
 prised all about her by saying : " I heard my father give 
 me away to-day, but I shall not die, this time, for all that." 
 She became speechless again, and remained so two days ; 
 but after all got well, and survived her father. 
 
 Mrs. Mather's sickness continued from the latter part, of 
 May till the fifth of December, and the progress of it is 
 copiously recorded in the diary ; but though exceedingly 
 interesting, all but a few entries must be omitted. In one 
 of the conversations between husband and wife, near the 
 
' COTTON MATHER. 28 1 
 
 end, she was speaking of the trouble caused by her pro- 
 tracted illness, and expressed fear lest all her friends 
 would be weary; but she added with thoughtful tender- 
 ness : " I don't mean you, Mr. Mather." He had been 
 with her night and day, more than any one in the house, 
 though attentive to all other duties, and busy at intervals 
 in his studies. 
 
 Passing by intervening dates, we come to the twenty- 
 fourth of November, when he wrote : — 
 
 I spent much time with my lovely consort. I prayed with her as 
 agreeably as I could ; I endeavored her most consummate preparations 
 for the heavenly world, by suitable questions and proposals. I com- 
 forted her with as lively discourses upon the glories of heaven, whereto 
 she was going, as I could make unto her. I disposed her and myself, 
 all that I could, unto a glorious resignation. 
 
 t On Tuesday, the fifth of December, we find this 
 record : — 
 
 At last the black day arrives. I had never yet seen such a black day 
 in all the time of my pilgrimage. The desire of my eyes is this day to 
 be taken from me. Her death is lingering and painful. All the fore- 
 noon she was in the pangs of death ; sensible until the last minute or 
 two before her final expiration. I cannot remember the discourses that 
 passed between us, only her devout soul was full of satisfaction about 
 her going to a state of blessedness, with the Lord Jesus Christ. And 
 as fast as my distress would permit me, I studied how to confirm her 
 satisfaction and consolation. 
 
 I remember that a little before she died, I asked her to tell me faith- 
 fully, what fault she had seen in my conversation, that she would advise 
 me to rectify. She replied, (which I wonder at) that she knew of 
 none, but that God had made what she had observed in my conver- 
 sation, exceeding serviceable unto her, to bring her much nearer to 
 himself. 
 
 When I saw to what a point of resignation I was now called of the 
 Lord, I resolved with his help therein, to glorify him. So two hours 
 before my lovely consort expired, I took into my two hands a dear hand 
 — the dearest in the world. With her thus in my hands, I solemnly 
 
282 LIFE AND TIMES OF 
 
 and sincerely gave her up unto the Lord ; and, in token of my real 
 Resignation, I gently put her out of my hands, and laid away a most 
 lovely hand, resolving that I would never touch it any more. This 
 was the hardest, and perhaps the bravest action that ever I did. She 
 afterwards told me that she signed and sealed my Act of Resignation. 
 And though before that, she called for me continually, she, after this, 
 never asked for me any more. She continued until near two o'clock 
 in the afternoon, and the last sensible words she spoke, were to her 
 weeping father, *• Heaven, heaven will make amends for all." 
 
 The closing scene was followed by prayer with " her 
 father, and the other weeping people in the chamber," in 
 which the bereaved husband prayed for grace to " carry 
 it well under the present calamity"; and, to use his own 
 words : " I did consummate my resignation in terms as 
 full of glory to the wisdom, and goodness, and all-suffi- 
 ciency of the Lord as I could utter." They had lived 
 together just as long as she had lived in the world before 
 her marriage, with the exception of the last seven months, 
 "in which her dying languishments," he writes, "were 
 preparing me to part with her." 
 
 The interment took place three days later, on the 
 8th, when she had a "very honorable funeral." "No 
 gentlewoman who had died in the land for many years 
 was more generally esteemed and lamented. This was 
 every one's observation." 
 
 Everything that occurred to Cotton Mather must be 
 made the occasion of good to others. He writes : " The 
 long sickness of my wife, and the late sicknesses of my 
 family, caused me to employ, first and last, near one hun- 
 dred watchers. At the funeral I presented each of these 
 with a book, either that entitled, * Ornaments for the 
 Daughters of Zion,' or that entitled, * Death made happy 
 and easy,' " with a paper pasted in at the beginning, 
 which contained at whose funeral it was given, and had 
 this epigram added ; — 
 
COTTON MATHER. 283 
 
 Go thou my Dove, but now no longer mine ; 
 
 Leave earth, and now in heavenly glory shine. 
 
 Bright for wisdom, goodness, beauty here, 
 
 And brighter in a more angelic sphere. 
 
 Jesus, with whom thy soul did long to be, 
 
 Into his ark and arms hath taken thee. 
 
 Dear friends with whom thou didst so dearly live, 
 
 Feel thy one death to them a thousand give. 
 
 Thy prayers are done ; thy alms are spent ; thy pains 
 
 Are ended now in endless joys and gains. 
 I faint till thy last words to mind I call: 
 Rich words : Heaven, heaven will make amends for all. 
 
 The day after the funeral was set apart for fasting with 
 prayer for pardon of all sins for which he " had been chas- 
 tised," and with a keen forecast of the future for "grace 
 and help from heaven to glorify the Lord with a nice 
 behavior under the temptations of the new condition " he 
 was now in by reason of his bereavement. 
 
 Ezekiel's wife (Ezek. 24: 15-18) was the theme on the 
 Sunday following, and Mr. Mather studied that the sor- 
 row in his family might prove an occasion of benefit to 
 others. In this exercise he was '' greatly assisted of the 
 Lord." 
 
 It has been stated in publications that the "Mather 
 tomb," so called, in Copp's Hill burying ground, was built 
 by Cotton Mather. The facts are given in the following 
 citation from the diary : " The Lord gave me to see won- 
 drous demonstrations of the love his and my people had 
 for me. One was their building a costly tomb for the 
 ashes of my lovely consort, and of my children, whereof 
 there were five buried, with no more than common grave- 
 stones." In this tomb were laid the remains of his chil- 
 dren, his father, and several other relatives. It is still to 
 be found in the ancient cemetery, towards the northeast 
 corner. 
 
284 I^IP^ AND TIMES OF 
 
 The children who were sick at the time of their 
 mother's decease " came alive out of the fiery furnace of 
 the smallpox, which almost consumed them." Mr. Mather 
 spent much of his time in ''venomous, contagious, and 
 loathsome chambers," but was preserved and was thank- 
 ful. In the *' black month of December, more than eighty 
 persons " of Boston were carried to their long home. 
 
 In review he could but acknowledge "much of the 
 divine compassion and faithfulness " in the removal of 
 his wife. And he presents various reasons which con- 
 vinced him that it was better for all that she had been 
 taken. If continued in life, the probability was that it 
 would be a life of prolonged weakness, in which case his 
 own health would have been sacrificed, and his children 
 would have "suffered miserably in their education." Her 
 temperament was naturally melancholy, and events came 
 on soon which would have aggravated that susceptibility. 
 Her youngest brother, and some hundreds of pounds 
 of her husband's, had recently fallen into the hands of 
 the French enemy. Her eldest brother, by misconduct, 
 became a grief to his friends. She did not live to see 
 the condition of these brothers, though seen by all the 
 rest of the family before she died. The second brother 
 seems to have been her favorite — her " idol — whom she 
 doted upon," and, if she had lived, he would have been 
 the innocent cause of heartbreaking grief. He went in 
 poor health to London, with the hope that the voyage 
 would be a benefit. At his going she said with a " more 
 than ordinary passion and agony, that she desired God 
 would never let her live to hear of the death of that 
 young man." Though the news of his death came three 
 months before her own, she was not informed of it. 
 "About three hours after she expired, a letter came 
 directed to her from the gentlewoman in whose house her 
 
CO TTON MA THER. 285 
 
 brother had died, giving an account of him, and the 
 manner of his hopeful death." 
 
 And now, that one great lesson learned by the chief 
 sufferer may not be lost, we make room for one passage 
 more. A fortnight after the death of his wife, Mr. 
 Mather preached on John 4: 47. His subject was: 
 " Though faith be no folly, yet faith may be mixed with 
 folly, and particularly with the folly of limiting the wis- 
 dom of God unto our own way of answering it." His 
 good sense appears in the following extract : — 
 
 I can mention to you a mystery of practical Christianity, relating ta 
 2i particular faith. Sometimes we ask for temporal blessings, or for 
 such as are not particularly promised in the covenant of grace. The 
 Holy Spirit of God favors with so much of a particular faith as to say^ 
 "The Lord hath heard the voice of my weeping; the Lord hath heard 
 my supplications; the Lord will hear my prayer." We may be too 
 ready to limit the sense of the Holy Spirit by our own strong aifections 
 to the temporal blessings^ and conclude : the thing must be done in just 
 such or such a manner. No : the sense of the Holy Spirit is more 
 than this: "I may do something towards those temporal blessings, 
 which may show how able and how wilHng I am to gratify thee ; but 
 then, I '11 carry the matter into another channel, wherein thou shalt 
 have thy desires more than answered." The bravest effort of a true 
 and strong faith, is to leave all entirely unto the Lord, and be satisfied 
 with the infinite wisdom of his conduct. It may be, the Lord will ere 
 long, enable me to see further into the nature, meaning, and mystery 
 of a particular faith. However, I have met with enough to awaken in 
 me a more exquisite caution than ever I had in my life concerning it. 
 
 The death of Mrs. Mather closed an era in the life of 
 her husband and family, and suggests the propriety of 
 gathering up the experience of the family to this point 
 of time. And fortunately a volume, published in 1703, 
 but made up of discourses previously printed, gives us 
 the materials. The book was entitled, " Meat out of the 
 Eater, or. Funeral Discourses occasioned by the death of 
 several relatives : a work accommodated unto the service 
 
286 LIFE AND TIMES OF 
 
 of all that are in any affliction, but very particularly such 
 as are afflicted with the loss of their consorts or children." 
 The titles of all the discourses are given in Sibley's list, 
 but I have collated what answers my purpose from the 
 volume itself, which is in the Athenaeum. In the preface 
 Mr. Mather says : — 
 
 One of the most sensible calamities afflicting him — the author — 
 has been the death of sundry children, which was at length followed 
 with the more grievous death of his lovely consort, the mother of 
 them. When these afflictions befell him, though sometimes they fell 
 out very near the Lord's day, he still judged it might somewhat 
 glorify the Lord, if he should never, for the sake of grief himself, 
 omit any of the usual offerings of the Lord, on the Lord's day, in the 
 assemblies of his people, to whom he has been a servant. And having 
 his thoughts, after some sort, compelled and confined unto the sub- 
 jects of meditation which were most likely to rescue him from the 
 distempers that flesh and blood often indulge on such afflictive occa- 
 sions, he still apprehended that it might not be unedifying unto his 
 flock to be edified and armed with the same things that had counseled 
 or comforted him in the multitude of his thoughts within him. 
 
 The title or subject of the first sermon was ''Abra- 
 ham's offering of Isaac. A tried faith offering an only 
 son," and his text was Heb. ii : 17. It was "preached 
 2 d. 2 m. 1693, April, a.m., my only son having died in 
 the night before." This was Joseph. After speaking of 
 Abraham and his offering, he gave the "doctrine" in 
 these words : " A true and a great faith will make a man 
 readily, easily, cheerfully part with the dearest enjoy- 
 ments in the world, when God shall put him on such a 
 trial of his faith." The motto on the gravestone was: 
 " Reserved for a Glorious Resurrection." The child had 
 an organic defect which was fatal on the fifth day of his 
 life. 
 
 The subject of the second sermon was "The Fear of 
 God under trials from the hand of God," preached on the 
 
COTTON MATHER. 287 
 
 eighth of October, 1693, "the day after the funeral of my 
 daughter Mary, and the day of my administering the sac- 
 rament." Genesis 22 : 12. Topic, "A man may, by many 
 tokens, know that he hath in him the fear of God ; but a 
 right behavior under afflictive trials, is a token that will 
 more especially and eminently serve to make it known." 
 An inspection of the text will show how beautifully the 
 theme is drawn from it. The words on the headstone 
 were : " Gone, but not Lost." The discourse is followed 
 by six verses, the first and last of which are copied here, 
 to show the piety, rather than the poetry, of the sufferer : 
 
 The dearest Lord of heaven gave 
 Himself an offering once for me : 
 The dearest thing on earth I have, 
 Now Lord, I '11 offer unto thee. 
 
 Now my believing soul does hear 
 This among the glad angels told, 
 I know thou dost thy Maker fear. 
 From whom thou nothing dost withhold. 
 
 The third sermon was founded on Luke 2 : 15, and 
 the subject derived was : " Good News from a far country, 
 for the solace of them whose friends have gone thither." 
 This was on the twenty-ninth of February, 1695, "the 
 day after the funeral of my daughter Mehitable." Mr. 
 Mather was preaching a course of sermons on the "An- 
 gelical Descent," and took the subject for his obituary 
 discourse, " Gone away from them into heaven." That is, 
 the angels had done their errand, and returned unto 
 heaven ; and so he believed that the angels had taken 
 his child thither. He exclaims : — 
 
 Heaven ! what a grateful subject for our meditations, are we now 
 fallen upon ! Heaven ! 't is the state and sum of our perfect blessed- 
 ness, and the only home of every godly man on earth. Heaven ! "'tis 
 the strong tower whereinto our devout friends do retire for the eternal 
 
288 LIFE AND TIMES OF 
 
 harvest and reward of all their devotions, when mortality takes them 
 off. Heaven ! 't is the rendezvous of the bright angels attending on the 
 throne of God, and beholding his face continually. Yes, a better and 
 a brighter thing than all of this. Heaven! 'tis the place where our 
 most glorious Lord Jesus Christ is to be seen in all his glory. That 
 we may hear and know anything about heaven, 'tis the wonderful mercy 
 of our God unto us. But then, what a wonder of mercy is it, that an 
 offer of this heaven may be made unto us, who are as miserable sinners 
 as any that are out of hell, and as unworthy ones as any that are in it. 
 
 His doctrine was : " There is a glorious heaven, where 
 heavenly spirits do go alway when they leave this earth." 
 He makes two inquiries : " i. What is the glorious heaven 
 whereunto glorious spirits go away } 2. Who are the 
 spirits that go away to this heaven ,-* " The application 
 has this remark : — 
 
 Our desirable relatives are gone away to a glorious heaven when 
 they go from us. The pale horse only came to fetch them away unto 
 the heavenly Father's house. Oh, why don't we rejoice when they say 
 unto us ; Let us go up to the house of the Lord ? But may this con- 
 solation be applied unto the death of our infants? Yes; why not? 
 Is it not expressly said of our infants, that they have their angels in 
 heaven? No doubt there are more spirits of infants in heaven, than 
 saints of any other age. 
 
 His faith in the salvation of infants was expressed in 
 the text on the gravestone : " Your bones shall flourish 
 like an herb" (Is. 66 \ 14). In some lines of acquiescence 
 and hope, he recognizes that God gave the child, and in 
 mercy took her away, and closes with this verse ; — 
 
 The name of my great God, I will 
 
 For ever then adore ; 
 He's wise, and just, and sovereign still 
 
 And good for evermore. 
 
 The fourth sermon is on "■ Light arising in darkness," 
 preached on the ninth of February, 1701, "my son Samuel 
 then lying dead in the house, and carried, the day follow- 
 ing, to the house appointed for all living." He took for his 
 
COTTON MATHER. 289 
 
 text Job 35 : 10 : " God my Maker, who giveth songs in the 
 night." The teaching he derived from it was this : ** In 
 the darkest night of their affliction, the children of God 
 are furnished by him with glorious matters of satisfaction 
 and consolation." One remark was : "Our Lord loves us 
 too well to hurt us in the worst that he shall do unto us." 
 And the sentiment on the stone at the child's grave was : 
 "Not as they that have no hope." 
 
 Another sermon was spoken when this same infant son 
 Samuel "lay a-dying, and within a few hours actually did 
 die." The topic was from Job 19: 25. "The living 
 Redeemer in the balance against a dying relation." He 
 added Sir Richard Blackmore's " Paraphrase upon Job's 
 confession of faith." The father wrote a hymn, of which 
 the last verse follows : — 
 
 I know when I or mine shall die, 
 
 We shall to heaven go ; 
 For our forerunner lives on high, 
 
 Concerned for us below. 
 
 I find no printed sermon in relation to the firstborn 
 child, Abigail, who died in infancy ; but the last discourse 
 in the book before me was occasioned by the decease 
 of these five children : namely, Abigail, Joseph, Mary, 
 Mehitable, and Samuel. In the preface to this are these 
 words : " The sudden death of his first-born produced a 
 discourse about fourteen years ago, printed in London, 
 under the title of ' Right Thoughts in Sad Hours.'" This 
 has been already referred to under date 1688- 1689. The 
 preface continues : " Four more of his Olive Plants have 
 been since withered ; the Fruits yet produced by those 
 occasions, are collected and exposed in the book now 
 before the reader." Then follows a pathetic statement 
 which is introductory to the funeral sermon on the death 
 of his wife : 
 
290 LIFE AND TIMES OF 
 
 A more trying death by far than all the former, is at length in- 
 flicted on him. Their lovely mother must be at last laid in a tomd, 
 where they must now sleep together with her. A sermon uttered just 
 after the saddest funeral that ever he saw, and composed under the 
 most grievous desolations of his mind, as well as of his house, that 
 ever were upon him, is now added to the rest. 
 
 The title of the sermon was *' T/ie House of Mourning ; 
 the death of desirable relatives lamented and improved, 
 occasioned by the death of Mrs. Abigail Mather." A 
 consolatory poem by Nicholas Noyes, dedicated to the 
 husband, follows, in which he speaks of the " excellent 
 and virtuous wife, that well-accomplished gentlewoman." 
 
 The text was from Proverbs 31 : 28. Prayer: '' Aspice^ 
 Domine, viduitatis et orbitatis meae lacrymas." He ex- 
 claims : " Behold how his calamities grew upon him \ 
 Lord, how are the things increased which trouble me f 
 But God, in his free and rich grace, makes the calamities 
 of the sinful man who is now writing, to be subservient 
 unto the interests of religion among those to whom what 
 he writeth may be in any way acceptable." The above is 
 a sort of introduction, and is followed by another text, as 
 was his way at times — taken from Ezekiel 24: 16, in 
 reference to the prophet's wife. The lesson he drew from 
 it was this : " When the desire of our eyes, or a relative 
 that was very desirable in our eyes, is taken away from 
 us, *t is God that has taken it, and stricken us by taking 
 it." A brace of paragraphs is subjoined, because in 
 showing the worth of the wife they reveal the character 
 of her husband : — 
 
 The God of love sometimes disposes them whom he has made con- 
 sorts in the conjugal relation, greatly to love and prize one another. 
 The consorts are to each other as the desire of their eyes, and they 
 so love each other, that they love to be as much as may be in the 
 sight of each other. About the one of these relatives 'tis said, "he 
 that findeth it, findeth a good thing, and obtaineth favor of the Lord.'* 
 
COTTON MATHER. 29 1 
 
 And that is the opinion which both of them have of each other. 
 ** This is a great gift of God to me ! Highly favored of God was I in 
 the giving of it." It may be, before they were first acquainted, they 
 humbly cried unto God that he would choose for them what con- 
 sorts they should live withal, and God so answers those prayers and 
 cries, that every day afterwards, as long as they live together, they 
 give thanks unto God for giving them to live together. . . . They 
 live together in such harmony and happiness that they could freely die 
 for one another, and when either of them does die, it gives a thousand 
 deaths to the survivor. They set a mighty value upon one another ; 
 the satisfaction which they take in one another is inexpressible. The 
 husband is in great esteem in the eyes of his wife. She loves to see 
 him, and much more, loves to please him. Such a covering to the 
 eyes is he to her, that all the men on earth are nothing in her eyes in 
 comparison of him. And she will no more look upon another, than 
 the wife of Tigranes, who, after the wedding of Cyrus, whom every 
 one did commend as the person rarest in the company, being asked 
 by her husband, what she thought of him, answered, " In truth, I 
 looked at nobody but you, my husband." But her esteem for him is 
 like that in the life of Phocion, who, when a lady had shown her 
 treasures and jewels unto her, by way of requital, only showed her 
 Phocion, saying "all my treasures and jewels are in him." 
 
 The wife is of as great esteem in the eyes of her husband. He loves 
 her, and her love; and rejoices in his loving hind, and his pleasant 
 roe. He had rather lose all his possessions, than suffer the loss of 
 one whom God hath thus enriched him withal. He can scarce relish 
 anything, if his eyes have her not also before him. If by death she 
 leave him, he can, it may be, say as one once of his lady Crescentia^ 
 *' She never grieved me but once, and that was by her death." And 
 he is ready to write upon all his other entertainments, the motto 
 written upon one of his by a worthy man among ourselves, when he 
 became a widower, **In lugenda compare vitae spatium compleat 
 orbus." 
 
CHAPTER XV. 
 
 SINGULAR COURTSHIP. — HAPPY MARRIAGE. — AUTHORSHIP! 
 
 I703-I705. 
 
 THE available materials for 1703 are meager, com- 
 pared with those of the year preceding. The diary 
 began on the twelfth of February, 1702, and extended to 
 the same day in this year. For the remainder of this year, 
 nearly ten months, the diary being in the Antiquarian 
 Library, we must look elsewhere for the events which 
 mark the year, except a few extracts which are in print. 
 For the year 1704 there is no diary extant. 
 
 The history of the church during the life of the 
 Mathers, and before and after, for a time was a record 
 of harmonious action as well as of general prosperity. 
 Since he had an invincible repugnance to residence in 
 Cambridge, the father was now released from all care of 
 the college and could devote his whole time to pastoral 
 duties, except as he wrote for the press or was called to 
 services abroad in the churches. His presence was in 
 great request at councils, and especially at ordinations, 
 where a principal part was always assigned to him. 
 
 The junior minister had some special embarrassments 
 this year, growing out of his widowhood, though he seems 
 to have conducted himself with great discretion. His 
 labors in the pulpit were abundant, as about seventy 
 sermons, with text and topic, are recorded in his list. 
 Fourteen of the sermons were lectures preached in Bos- 
 ton and elsewhere. On Thursday, June 25, his text was 
 Proverbs 12: 2: "A good man obtaineth favour of the 
 Lord." On that occasion, as already said, his motive was, 
 
 2g3 
 
COTTON MATHER. 293 
 
 as he himself says, " to let my whole country see, that if 
 the governor did not prove such a one — 'a Good Man' 
 — it should be none of my fault." The governor, it will 
 be remembered, was Joseph Dudley, concerning whom 
 the following note is made in the diary, June 16 : '^ Mem. 
 Visit from Gov. Dudley." In conversation Mather sug- 
 gested this advice : ** By no means let any people have 
 cause to say that you take all your measures from the 
 two Mr. Mathers. By the same rule I may say, without 
 offence, by no means let any people say that you go by no 
 measures in your conduct, but by Mr. Byfield, and Mr. 
 Leverett. This I speak not from any personal prejudice 
 against the gentlemen, but from a due consideration of 
 the disposition of the people." It is not easy to imagine 
 what better advice could be given, if any were thought 
 proper. There were two parties in the province. The 
 leading men of one party, which had been in power 
 more than a decade, had a high esteem for the Mathers. 
 They had been firm in their opposition to Governor 
 Andros, zealous for the revolution of 1688- 1689, and great 
 admirers of William and Mary. Joseph Dudley belonged 
 to the other party. Twelve years before he had been a 
 supporter of Andros ; had been thrown into prison, and 
 had been sent to England. There he became a courtier 
 and obtained preferment. He came back with the com- 
 mission of governor, obtained, partly at least, through the 
 Mather influence. Cotton Mather, forgiving and hopeful, 
 had written in his behalf. The letter was read at court, 
 but was supposed to be from President Mather, who was 
 held in high honor. But Dudley returned unchanged in 
 temper. Burning with revenge, he vetoed the choice of 
 every councilor who had been opposed to him ten years 
 before. If he had followed the friendly and fair sugges- 
 tion of Cotton Mather, and governed with an even, impar- 
 
294 
 
 LIFE AND TIMES OF 
 
 tial hand, he would have had a more pleasant and useful 
 term of office and secured a brighter page in history. 
 But the governor had not the discretion or the mag- 
 nanimity to take this course, as the following passage 
 reveals : " The wretch went to these men and told them 
 that I had advised him to be no ways advised by them, 
 and inflamed them into an implacable rage, against me." 
 The relations of these two men to each other will appear 
 again in the record of a future year. 
 
 An incident in the preceding year, not being noticed at 
 the time, was referred to in the diary in the early part of 
 the present year. It helps us to an insight into the char- 
 acter of Mr. Mather and his mode of dealing with hard 
 cases. While he was attending the bed of his dying wife, 
 the keeper of the prison called his attention to the con- 
 dition of a young Indian, under twenty, sentenced to 
 death for the murdering of his friend. He did not know 
 that he had a soul. He never had heard that there was 
 a God. It was an incredible task to convey a notion of 
 religion into a mind so ignorant, so desolate, so barbarous. 
 Mr. Mather took a "deal of pains to illuminate him," and 
 God prospered his efforts. "The young Indian learned 
 much of religion. He expressed his believing in Christ, 
 and repenting of sin, in an agreeable manner." The only 
 sermon he ever heard was preached, at his request, by Mr. 
 Mather, on the Lord's day before he died. He advised 
 the man to live and die with these words in his heart : 
 ^^ Jesus Christ came into the world to save the chief of sin- 
 nersy He was executed, and made a "hopeful end." 
 The minister prayed with him. His last words were : 
 "Jesus Christ came into the world to save the chief of 
 sinners ; O Lord Jesus Christ, save me, I pray thee." 
 
 Several small books appeared without a name in the 
 early part of this year, which are ascribed to Mr. Mather. 
 
COTTON MATHER. 295 
 
 One of twenty-eight pages bore the title, " Sound Words 
 to be held in faith and love." It was in three essays. 
 One was ''Our Saviour's Creed"; the second was "The 
 Body of Divinity Versified " ; and the third was an 
 *' Abridgment of the Assembly's Catechism." This was 
 appended to the " Cares about Nurseries." Another vol- 
 ume, of forty-eight pages, was "Agreeable Admonitions 
 for old and young." A third related to the observance 
 of the Sabbath, entitled "The Day the Lord hath made." 
 This was reprinted four years later, and translated into 
 Indian, and "inserted for the more special meditation of 
 the Indian readers." The reader will notice how appli- 
 cable are all these topics to the wants of various classes. 
 
 A sermon preached in May, on a day of " prayer with 
 fasting, for the rising generation," was printed witn the 
 title, " The Duty of Children whose parents have prayed 
 for them ; or, Early and real godliness urged especially 
 upon such as are descended from godly ancestors." Re- 
 printed. 
 
 " A virtuous Woman found," suggested by the death 
 of Mrs.. Mary Brown, and " A Family Sacrifice to direct 
 and excite family religion," were well adapted to pro- 
 mote religion in his parish and at large. A second 
 edition was called for in 1707. The "Glory of Good- 
 ness " is hard to find, but is still in request, as it contains 
 his " Remarks on the redemption of captives from the 
 cruelties of Barbary." It contains fifty pages. Four or 
 five other small works or pamphlets saw the light before 
 the close of the year. One gave " Methods and Motives 
 for society to suppress disorder," and another indicated 
 the "Duty of secret prayer." All the while the author, 
 with unflagging zeal, was piling up the material for his 
 great " Biblia Americana." 
 
 Turning now to the domestic side of Mr. Mather's life, 
 
296 LIFE AND TIMES OF 
 
 we find the following entry in the early part of the year : 
 " One day, considering how frequently and foolishly wid- 
 owers miscarry, and by their miscarriage, dishonor God, 
 I earnestly, with tears, besought the Lord, that he would 
 please to favor me so far as to kill me, rather than to 
 leave me unto anything that might bring any remark- 
 able dishonor unto his Holy Name." He was heard, but 
 he was sorely tried in this matter. 
 
 Mr. Mather was (February 12) forty years old and was 
 growing still in fame and influence. The intimations 
 of some writers that his reputation and power had begun 
 to wane since the witchcraft distress, and that they 
 went on declining to the close of his life, have no basis in 
 recorded facts. Enemies rose up against him, and they 
 have^ad successors ; but the evidence seems to show 
 that his reputation and influence went on increasing till 
 his dying day. The truth of this will be disclosed as we 
 proceed. At the time of his wife's death he was one of 
 the most celebrated, as he was the most learned, man in 
 America. His popularity in the pulpit was unabated, and 
 his position in his parish, in Boston, and through the 
 province was enviable. 
 
 It is not strange, therefore, that he was considered an 
 eligible party in marriage ; but in this connection a very 
 strange experience befell him. In affairs of the heart, 
 especially where widowers are concerned, it is often the 
 case that amusing things occur, and sportive people find 
 occasion to smile. Some have made merry over certain 
 passages in the affair to which allusion has been made ; 
 but a candid judgment of Mr. Mather's deportment will 
 decide that he bore himself with rare delicacy and 'wisdom 
 in a very embarrassing situation. 
 
 In February, about two months after the loss of his 
 wife, he refers to a "very astonishing trial." This was in 
 
COTTON MATHER. 2gj 
 
 the shape of a very accomplished young lady, who was so 
 enamored of him as to make proposals of marriage. He 
 describes her as abounding in wit and sense, lovely in 
 person, and winning in conversation, so that no one in 
 the land surpassed her. She began her wooing by writ- 
 ing a letter or two, and followed them up by a visit. She 
 had long been deeply interested in him as a minister, and 
 his present condition had given her liberty to think of 
 him in another relation. He reports of her : " She had 
 become charmed with my person to such a degree, that 
 she could not but break in upon me with her most impor- 
 tunate request that I would make her mine." With all 
 this she averred that her desire for a more intimate rela- 
 tion to him was prompted by religious considerations, as 
 she hoped association with him would make her salvation 
 sure. 
 
 Thus he was assailed in two most vulnerable points. 
 He was not insensible to approbation, and the admiration 
 of a beautiful and accomplished young lady was pleasing. 
 But perhaps stronger than this was the appeal to him as 
 one who had what has been styled a "passion for souls." 
 To bring a sinner into the joys of the Christian covenant, 
 he would make any sacrifice. He would visit jails and 
 hovels and pesthouses to search out beggars, Indians, 
 negroes, thieves, prostitutes, murderers, and pirates, in 
 order to bring them to repentance and make them to be 
 "sons and daughters of the Lord Almighty." But here 
 was an inquirer who came from the ranks of fashion, in 
 all the attractions of female loveliness, and craved his 
 assistance in her effort to live a saintly life. Doubtless 
 the appeal came with force. How many men would 
 have resisted it, coming from fascinating lips .-* Nay ; 
 why should he resist it at all 1 There were reasons, 
 and he felt the force of them. He saw that she was 
 
298 LIFE AND TIMES OF 
 
 not the one for him in his laborious calling and with 
 four young children needing a discreet mother. There- 
 upon his mind was soon made up, probably, but it was 
 hard to give the lady a blunt negative. He therefore 
 wrote her, informing her of his manner of life, full of 
 self-denial, much taken up in study, visitings, authorship, 
 fasts, and vigils, expecting that this representation would 
 enable her to see the folly of joining such a man in wed- 
 lock. Her reply must have astonished him, as she de- 
 clared that all these things had been considered by her, 
 and in fact that it was because of these that she desired 
 his intimate companionship. 
 
 In this exigency he writes : " I was in a great strait 
 how to treat so polite a gentlewoman, thus applying her- 
 self unto me. I plainly told her I feared whether her 
 proposal would not meet with insurmountable objections 
 from those who had an interest in disposing of me. How- 
 ever, I desired that there might be time taken to see what 
 would be the wisest and fittest resolution. If in the 
 meantime, I could not make her my own, I should be 
 glad to be any way instrumental in making her the 
 Lord's." Here seems to have been a mistake, growing 
 out of an unwillingness to give his fair admirer pain. A 
 decided No would probably have ended the suit. But 
 this delay doubtless encouraged the lady and only added 
 to his perplexities, which pursued him till he wrote as 
 follows : — 
 
 My sore distresses and temptations I this day carried before the 
 Lord. The chief of them lies in this. The most accomplished gen- 
 tlewoman mentioned, though not by name — in a former passage of the 
 Diary, one whom everybody sees with admiration, confessed to be for 
 her charming accomplishments, an incomparable person, addressing 
 me to make her mine, and professing a disposition unto the most holy 
 flights of religion, to lie at the bottom of her addresses, I am in the 
 greatest straits imaginable what course to steer. Nature itself causes 
 
COTTON MATHER. * 299 
 
 in me a mighty tenderness towards a person so amiable. Breeding 
 requires me to treat her with honor and respect, and very much of 
 deference ; but religion, above all, obliges me, instead of a rash rejec- 
 tion of her conversation, to contrive rather how I may imitate the 
 goodness of the Lord Jesus Christ, in the dealing with such as are 
 upon a conversion to him. 
 
 The lady was persistent, and he was still certain that 
 the union must not be formed. He records again: "I 
 did, some days ago, under my hand, beg as for my life, that 
 it might be desisted from, and that I might not be killed 
 by hearing anymore about it." The lady had the "gift 
 of continuance," and pleaded her desire for her spiritual 
 welfare. Fear of losing hold of her as an inquiring soul 
 seems to have kept him for weeks from ending the quest. 
 
 But his troubles were aggravated on another side. His 
 friends, — father, parishioners, and others, — fearing there 
 might be an engagement, made him wretched by their 
 complainings. The strain upon his feelings is indicated 
 in his diary : — 
 
 My grievous distresses, occasioned especially by the late addresses 
 made unto me by the person formerly mentioned, cause me to fall down 
 before the Lord with prayers and tears continually. And because my 
 heart is sore pained within me, what shall I do, or what shall be the 
 issue of this distressing affair? 
 
 One reason why the all-accomplished and charming 
 young lady and her mother desired the union may be 
 found, perhaps, in the following passage of the diary, and 
 it is quite possible that Mather perceived it in time. On 
 the sixth of March he wrote : — 
 
 That young gentlewoman, of so fine accomplishments, that there is 
 none in this land comparable unto her, who has with such repeated 
 importunity, pressed my respects unto her, that I have had much ado 
 to keep clear of great inconveniences, hath by the disadvantage of the 
 company which commonly resorted to her father's house, got but a bad 
 name among the generality of people. There appears no possibility 
 
3CX) • LIFE AND TIMES OF 
 
 of a speedy recovery from it, be her carriage never so virtuous. By 
 an unhappy coincidence of some circumstances, there is a noise, and a 
 mighty noise it is, made about the town, that I am engaged in court- 
 ship to that young gentlewoman ; and though I am so very prudent, 
 and have aimed so much at a conformity with our Lord Jesus Christ, 
 yet it is not easy prudently to confute the rumor. 
 
 He resolved, however, that the time had come for deci- 
 sion, and to make it known, and he did so in the following 
 way : — 
 
 The design of Satan to entangle me in a match that might have 
 proved ruinous to my family or my ministry, is deferred by my resolu- 
 tion totally to reject the addresses of the young gentlewoman. I struck 
 the knife into the heart of my sacrifice, by a letter unto her mother. 
 
 There was a happy sequel to this singular suit. Mor- 
 tified vanity at first led the disappointed ladies to threaten 
 dire things to the invincible minister, but their better 
 nature conquered, and they accorded to him the testimony 
 of their high esteem. He was reproached by some and 
 ridiculed by others it relation to the affair, but he had one 
 great consolation. He writes : — 
 
 God strangely appears for me in this point, by disposing the young 
 gentlewoman, with her mother, to furnish me with their assertions, 
 that I have never done any unworthy thing; yea, they have pro- 
 ceeded so far beyond all bounds in my vindication, as to say that they 
 will look on Mr. Mather, to be as great a saint as any upon earth. 
 Nevertheless, the devil owes me a spite, and he inspires his people in 
 this town, to whisper impertinent stories. 
 
 Here we might leave one of these satanic stories, if 
 one of the most impertinent of them had not been re- 
 peated in print by the editors of Sewall's Diary (vol. ii). 
 We will not honor it with reprint, for the charge of a " lie 
 with circumstance " against Cotton Mather carries on 
 the face of it all the marks of an invented falsehood. 
 
 The affair was rightly settled, but the strain upon Mr. 
 
COTTON MATHER, 3OI 
 
 Mather's nervous system had been great, and he suffered 
 severely in his health. He was moody in mind, and sub- 
 ject to depressions and temptations which he ascribed to 
 the assaults of Satan. He was tempted to sin, and even 
 to suicide ; but he fell down into the dust on his study 
 floor " with tears, before the Lord ; and then they quickly 
 vanish, and it is fair weather again. Lord, what wilt thou 
 do with me.?" "It is a scriptural truth that Satan takes 
 advantage of bodily weakness and mental trouble to tempt 
 people to despair of divine mercy." 
 
 The circumstances of Mr. Mather and his family of 
 young children — four of them between three and four- 
 teen years old — rendered another marriage almost im- 
 perative. His friends also urged him to marry again. 
 He was as wise in his choice as when he sought the hand 
 of the young and "well-accomplished" Abigail Phillips. 
 In this affair he prayed for divine guidance and had his 
 reward. His son Samuel wrote many years after on this 
 wise : — 
 
 He looked to heaven to heal the breach that had been made in his" 
 household, and his petitions were abundantly answered. God showed 
 him a gentlewoman, a near neighbor, whose character I give as I had 
 it from those who intimately knew her.i She was one of finished piety 
 and probity, and of unspotted reputation ; one of good sense, and 
 blessed with a complete discretion in ordering a household; one of 
 singular good humor and incomparable sweetness of temper ; one with 
 a very handsome and engaging countenance, and honorably descended 
 and related. She was the daughter of Dr. John Clark and had been 
 the widow Elizabeth Hubbard four years when married to Mr. Mather, 
 August 18, 1703. He rejoiced in her as having found great spoil. 
 
 Coming to the year 1704, the diary is missing except up 
 to the twelfth of February. From this part only a sen- 
 tence or two is drawn. Mr. Mather wrote that he was 
 forty-two years old on that date. The day was spent in his 
 
 i She died when he was a little boy, only seven years old. 
 
 / 
 
302 LIFE AND TIMES OF 
 
 Study with thanksgiving to God for sparing his life, and 
 for the astonishing mercies with which his life had been 
 filled. The records of the church give nothing of special 
 interest. Every occasion on which members were re- 
 ceived was the cause of joy to ministers and people ; but 
 such occasions make no history, while the trouble made 
 in excluding a single member will fill more pages than the 
 enrollment of a thousand who prove faithful unto the end. 
 As there is no record of sickness during the year, it may 
 be concluded that Mr. Mather preached as often as usual 
 at home and in other churches, and filled his place in 
 whatever councils were called. His great work was grow- 
 ing on his hands, and his correspondence was extensive. 
 
 Queen Anne's war was still raging, and Marlborough 
 was beginning to exhibit his transcendent genius as a 
 general and diplomatist. The contest between England 
 and France drew the American colonies into the fray, 
 and the enemy in Maine and Canada broke out in savage 
 hostilities on our frontiers. In the preceding year Gov- 
 ernor Dudley made an ineffective expedition against the 
 eastern Indians, and in this year the famous Colonel 
 Benjamin Church was in command. Reference to this 
 war with the savages and their Catholic allies will be 
 made in a future page, when reviewing the censure by the 
 Mathers of the conduct of the governor. The interest of 
 Cotton Mather in the welfare of the scattered plantations 
 at the eastward caused every incident in this war to be a 
 matter of thought and prayer. 
 
 On the twenty-eighth of April the initial number of 
 The Boston News-Letter, the first newspaper ever pub- 
 lished in America, was issued. The little sheet looks now 
 very insignificant, but its issue was the beginning of a 
 mighty force which has grown to titanic proportions. 
 
 One of Mr. Mather's first publications this year was 
 
COTTON MATHER. 303 
 
 *' The Armor of Christianity." In an anonymous volume 
 of 234 small pages, he first detects the plots of the devil 
 against the happiness of mankind ; then declares the many 
 wiles by which he manages those plots ; after which he 
 shows how those wiles may be defeated. The text is 
 from Numbers 25 : 17, 18 : "Vex the Midianites and smite 
 them : for they vex you with their wiles." Topic : "The 
 armor of Christianity is needed to ward off the wiles of 
 the devil." He writes : " I am entering into a contest with 
 a very formidable adversary ; horror walks in state before 
 him ; when he raises up himself, the mighty are afraid, and 
 by reason of terrors, they run out of the way." Therefore 
 he prays : " Remember me, O Lord God, I pray thee, and 
 strengthen me, I pray thee, O God." He continues : *' We 
 must not imagine that one devil alone is able to vex all 
 mankind with continual wiles ; a Manichean imagination ! 
 Having read of the devil, we immediately read of wicked 
 spirits in high places." As a specimen of thinking and 
 writing nearly two centuries ago the following may be 
 quoted : — 
 
 The first matter of observation that now lies before us is, that the 
 great intention of the devil is, to plunge the sinful children of men 
 into the same lamentable circumstances of yet greater sinfulness and 
 wretchedness. 
 
 He inquires why the Satanic host entice men into sin 
 and speaks of their many subtle wiles, and then suggests 
 a guard against their plots : — 
 
 Good armor will do your business. First, for a belt, we must get 
 acquainted with the truths of our holy religion. They will be to us as 
 the girdle of our loins. For a breastplate, we must put on a righteous- 
 ness that will preserve the vitals of our inner man. . . . For our 
 shoes, the gospel of peace between God and us, must be so studied by 
 us as to prepare us for all the difficulties of the rough, cragged and 
 thorny way we have to go through. 
 
304 J^IP^ AND TIMES OF 
 
 He went on till all the arts of the " evil one " are ex- 
 posed, all his lies detected, and all the ways to resist and 
 overcome are made plain. 
 
 "A Comforter for the Mourners" came out in the early 
 part of this year in thirty-four pages. The explanatory 
 part of the title was : " An Essay for the undoing of heavy 
 burdens, in an offer of such good words as have a ten- 
 dency to cause glad hearts in those who are stooping 
 under various matters of heaviness." 
 
 Then we have another issue which gives a glimpse of 
 the times. The whole title is given with the exception of 
 names and dates. It was " A Faithful Monitor, offering 
 an abstract of the laws in the Province against the dis- 
 orders, the suppression whereof is desired and pursued by 
 them that wish well to the worthy designs of reformation, 
 with some directions and encouragements to dispense due 
 rebukes and censures unto all censurable actions. Sic 
 agitur censura'' Also, "An Abstract of the laws," and 
 "The Reprover doing his duty, uttered at Boston Lec- 
 ture," and an "Abstract of the directions for a general 
 reformation given in the Declaration of the great and 
 general assembly, lately published." The work reveals to 
 us the disorders prevalent at the time, with the laws 
 against them ; the declaration of the government in aid 
 of their enforcement, and the action of the pulpit in 
 maintaining law and order. 
 
 The " Nets of Salvation " was published in New Lon- 
 don, perhaps because it was the home of one branch of 
 the Winthrop family, from members of which Mr. Mather 
 often received aid in printing and circulating religious 
 works. This was an essay in fifty-six pages, upon the 
 " Glorious Ways and Methods of winning the minds of 
 men into serious religion." This, like others of his works 
 about this period of the author's life, was anonymous; 
 
COTTON MATHER. 305 
 
 perhaps because disparaging remarks were made by some 
 in regard to his appearing so often in print. 
 
 The Baptists were making efforts in various places to 
 lay permanent foundations, and the result in some cases 
 was to divide Christian communities where they were 
 scarcely able to maintain worship in one society. The 
 Mathers, father and son, though firmly holding to in- 
 fant baptism, yet were liberal and fraternal towards all 
 Christian churches. They felt the importance of guard- 
 ing their own folds from inroads of proselyters, while 
 respecting the legitimate rights of all sects. Both of 
 these divines united in the public services by which a 
 Baptist minister was settled in Boston. But desiring that 
 all should enjoy the privilege of dedicating their children 
 to God, in accordance with nearly the whole of Christen- 
 dom, in all preceding ages, they advocated the baptism of 
 infants. This led to the publication of " Baptistes : A 
 Conference about the subject and manner of Baptism, 
 between C. M. and R. D." A second edition came out 
 in 1724 with this remark : " The mischief which the Ana- 
 baptists are doing in the neighborhood, puts me upon 
 abetting and assisting the design of some to reprint my 
 Baptistes, and scatter where there may be occasion for it." 
 In the dialogue, which is a fine specimen of logical argu- 
 ment, Mather holds that if the infants of the faithful 
 were in the covenant of grace under the old dispensation, 
 then they are still in the covenant ; otherwise infants now 
 are destitute of a great blessing enjoyed by those who 
 lived under the Jewish economy. R. D. admits that the 
 blessings for children in the old covenant were desirable. 
 Mather then says : '' Mind how I prove that the infants 
 of the faithful, which were once under a dispensation 
 that allowed them an interest in the covenant of grace, 
 are not now under a dispensation that cuts them off." 
 
306 LIFE AND TIMES OF 
 
 He proceeds to show that infants now would be worse off 
 than under the old dispensation, unless they are in the 
 covenant, and then calls on the other party to show him 
 a Scripture that gives such an intimation. This staggers 
 R. D., as he could find no such passage in the Bible. 
 Mather proceeds then to show that baptism is the seal 
 of the new covenant, as circumcision was of the old. Nor 
 does he fail to consider the mode of baptism. 
 
 In this connection may be placed a little volume of 
 sixty-nine pages, called ** A Tree planted by the rivers of 
 water ; or, An Essay upon the godly and glorious improve- 
 ments which baptized Christians are to make of their 
 sacred baptism." 
 
 "Faithful Warnings to prevent fearful judgments," "A 
 Servant of the Lord not ashamed of his Lord," and " Le 
 Vrai Patron des Saintes Paroles, designed for the instruc- 
 tion of our French captives," were thrown off by his rapid 
 pen. The heart of Cotton Mather went out after all sorts 
 and conditions of men. The French captives taken in 
 the war must be taught the way of salvation. 
 
 Another title was the "Weaned Christian," with a 
 suggestion of its purpose on the title-page, in these 
 words : " Some things by which a serious Christian may 
 be made easy when great things are denied unto him." 
 His design was to make the "language of heaven in 
 multiplied judgments upon the earth articulate." Every 
 trial has a meaning, a voice, and our wisdom is seen in 
 learning that message. Jeremiah 45 : 5 is full of instruc- 
 tion : " Seekest thou great things for thyself," etc. He 
 tells us that a Christian, hoping for good things in another 
 world, has reason to be content without the great things of 
 this world. He then refers to things that are esteemed 
 great by the worldly mind, as riches, honors, etc., and 
 shows how these things are really small, and not satisfying, 
 
COTTON MATHER. 307 
 
 compared with the things which make for our greatness 
 and peace ; with many illustrations from history. Finally, 
 is not the glory of heaven a great thing ? Yes. There is 
 the greatness of a kingdom in it. " Oh ! when we come 
 to heaven, our God will do great things for us. O our 
 God, our God, how ^reat is the goodness which thou hast 
 there laid up for us ! " 
 
 In November, Mr. Mather preached a sermon, the gen- 
 eral assembly being present, on the " Just Rules of Com- 
 merce." This was not published till the next year. "Lex 
 Mercatoria" is the title. In this he noted the "offences 
 against the rules of justice" in the dealings between man 
 and man, and bore testimony against all dishonest gain. 
 The spirit of the sermon may be inferred from the text, 
 which was (Ezek. 22: 13): "Behold, therefore I have 
 smitten my hand at thy dishonest gain which thou hast 
 made." All forms of dishonesty in private and public life 
 are fearlessly exposed. With characteristic courage, he 
 arraigns those who cheat the government as well as those 
 who take advantage of their neighbors. 
 
 Three of his rules of dealing are as follows: — i. "I 
 am to deal with every other man as I would have another 
 man to so deal with me. 2. I am to deal with another 
 man, that the man with whom I deal, may be benefitted 
 as well as myself. 3. Let my dealings be such that I 
 should not he ashamed of their coming to the knowledge 
 of other men able to judge of the honesty of my deal- 
 ings." He adds : "These rules are not only Christian, 
 but are applauded in the pages of the sober pagans. 
 Our little sons at the schools fill their themes with 
 them." One quotation from Ovid is given : — 
 
 Reddite depositum. Pietas sua foedera servet. 
 Fraus absit; vacuos csedis habete manus.i 
 
 1 Roughly rendered : " Restore what is entrusted to you ; keep your engagements 
 with sacred fidelity ; spurn fiaud ; let not your hands be stained with bloodshed." 
 
308 LIFE AND TIMES OF 
 
 He closes with these impressive words : — 
 
 They that work deceit, shall be no dwellers in that city of our Great 
 King. I have read that an eagle violently struck his talons into a 
 heavy fish, but the mighty fish plunged with the eagle to the bot- 
 tom, who not being able to pull out his talons, was drowned there ; 
 and the fish, swimming to and fro in the lake, Jiwith his enemy fastened 
 unto him, gave no little surprise to the adjacent monastery. Methought 
 the story was a notable emblem of what befalls many nefarious dealers 
 in the world. These birds of prey go to fasten their talons upon dis- 
 honest gain; but verily it plunges them down into that lake, from 
 whence we read, the smoke of the torment ascends forever. Ah ! worst 
 of all fools ! Wilt thou sell a soul, perhaps for a shilling? 
 
 The year 1705 seems to have been a season of great 
 prosperity to the church. There were no cases of scan- 
 dal that called for discipline, and the number of members 
 received into communion was large. 
 
 The services of the junior minister outside of his 
 special field of labor were in frequent request, while he 
 was ever busy among his own people in all the modes of 
 welldoing. Perhaps it will be well to follow him through 
 the year, and note how he was employed from week to 
 week, without classifying his work as pastoral or reform- 
 atory or literary, but all in succession, mixed daily with 
 family interests and private devotions. The diary is in 
 the library of the Massachusetts Historical Society. The 
 publications not referred to in the diary are found by 
 title in the list of Sibley. 
 
 The first sermon of this year, probably, was on the 
 fourth of January, at the funeral of Mrs. Sarah Leverett, 
 widow, or, in the words of the author, **once the honor- 
 able consort of John Leverett, Esq., who changed earth 
 for heaven " on the second day of the month. Its title 
 was " Monica Americana." It was followed by an " Elegy 
 upon her Memory." She was an exemplar of female piety. 
 
 On the first of March, at that time the first month of 
 
COTTON MATHER. 3O9 
 
 the year, Mr. Mather remarks : " The year begins well, 
 and though a dispensation be ever so bitter, if it embit- 
 ters sin unto me, and recovers me from the hazard of 
 sin, blessed be God for it." 
 
 He had his customary days of " prayer with fasting " 
 this year, and the record fills several pages, with the usual 
 results ; but a few citations will answer our purpose. 
 
 March 9. His soul, this day, was full of contrition and 
 abasement, because he took part with the holiness of God 
 against himself. ** But then, I cannot express the assur- 
 ances with which the Lord irradiated me, that he would 
 bring me nearer unto himself." 
 
 Sixteenth day. He cried unto God that his "oppor- 
 tunities to do good might be still rescued and preserved 
 from all that might threaten damage to them." This 
 was one of his anxieties, that injury to his good name 
 might lessen his power to do good. Though his whole 
 time, all the day long, was ** spent in contrivances to do 
 good," yet he was "cloggd by the indignity of evil 
 people." He resolved, however, that he "would not 
 abate his endeavors to be universally serviceable." 
 
 About this time he got out a book for Christianized 
 Indians, to give them a better knowledge of the laws of 
 the province. He made an " Abstract of the Laws," and 
 had it "turned into the Indian language," and printed 
 with the title, "Hatchets to hew down the tree of sin, 
 which brings forth the fruits of death." The Indians 
 were not citizens, and all the laws did not apply to them, 
 but this abstract contained those by which the "magis- 
 trates were to punish offences among the Indians as well 
 as among the English." There are twenty of these laws, 
 each of which is followed by an English translation. 
 
 His interest in the well-being of the Indians led to two 
 other publications in their language at this time. The 
 
 OF THE 
 
 UNIVERSITY 
 
3IO 
 
 LIFE AND TIMES OF 
 
 title of one was " Family religion excited and assisted." 
 It was prepared for Christian people, and had many edi- 
 tions down to the year 1740. In one of the early editions 
 the Commandments were inserted, and the Lord's Prayer, 
 and a translation was carried forward on the opposite 
 pages. This was substantially the " Family Sacrifice," of 
 1703. The author says of one of the editions : " I printed 
 a thousand copies of them ; these I bound up in bundles 
 that had convenient parcels in them, and printed a short 
 letter to be added unto each of the bundles ; entreating 
 the person whose name I inserted with my pen to find 
 out what prayerless families there may be in the town 
 where he lives, and to lodge these essays of piety in 
 them. So I concerted with some of my friends, a way 
 to convey a bundle to every town in all the colonies, and 
 some other places." It was reprinted in Newport and in 
 London. 
 
 The third paper, of fifteen pages, relating to the In- 
 dians, was written to encourage effort for their benefit, 
 by stating the results of Christian labor among them. It 
 was "A Letter about the present state of Christianity 
 among the Christianized Indians of New England." It 
 was addressed to Sir William Ashurst, " governor of the 
 corporation for propagating the gospel among the Indians 
 in New England and parts adjacent." It ought to be 
 reprinted to correct the false impressions still current on 
 the subject. A few citations are given to vindicate the 
 truth of history. After referring to the facts given in 
 the Magnalia, he says : — 
 
 There were in the southern parts of this Province, about four or 
 five years ago, — 1700 — no less than thirty several congregations of 
 Indians, who commonly assembled every Lord's day, and a great part 
 of them to Lectures on other days also, for the worship of the great 
 God, and our Lord Jesus Christ. 
 
CO TTON MA THER. 3 I I 
 
 The number of Indians is not comparable to what it was fifty years 
 ago. They were wasted in the war of 1675-6. Almost all that 
 remain under the influence of the English in Massachusetts Province 
 are so far Christianized, as they believe there is a God, and but one 
 God, and that Jesus Christ is the Son of God, and the Saviour of the 
 world. 
 
 Mr. Mayhew stated that " there are about one hundred 
 and eighty families on his vineyard, and only two or three 
 remain in their paganism." There were thirty-seven In- 
 dians who were the constant preachers of the gospel to 
 them. Besides there were seven or eight English minis- 
 ters who had learned the Indian tongues, and visited the 
 Indian assemblies, and prayed and preached to them. 
 Some new churches had recently been formed. In regard 
 to the eastern Indians in Maine, Mather says that they 
 were Frenchified. Measures had been taken to send them 
 a preacher, but the design had been hindered. 
 
 A public thanksgiving was observed on the twelfth of 
 April, for successes against the common enemy, thanks 
 for success at the East, against the French and Indians, 
 and also for the triumph of the English arms in Europe. 
 
 "May 4. Dear little Nancy — Hannah, about eight 
 years old, — was again visited with a violent fever, and 
 seemed near her end." He writes : " God sanctified the 
 condition of that pretty and lovely child unto me." To 
 the surprise of all, she recovered. 
 
 He records that a "glorious work of God" had been 
 enjoyed in the "populous and vicious town of Taunton." 
 A sermon by the minister of the town, relating to the 
 event, was prefaced by Mather. 
 
 His help was desired at Sudbury, where, on the twenty- 
 fifth of May, a "council met prejudices and preposses- 
 sions," and with little hope of settlement or union. He 
 prayed and received light ; upon which he made a sug- 
 
312 LIFE AND TIMES OF 
 
 gestion to the council, which met their approval, and at 
 their request he put it in writing. It was adopted. The 
 fault was in the minister, who was censured and suspended. 
 
 Another trouble concerned himself more directly. "A 
 very wicked fellow in the church at Woburn, applied to 
 him to consider his case, with hope of relief." Mather 
 advised repentance. The man then wrote a letter of lies 
 to parties and churches to obtain a council. This was 
 irregular, but it was held, and the man used it as a means 
 of maligning, far and wide, the minister who had advised 
 him to repent of his misdeeds. Mr. Mather hoped God 
 would overrule the matter so that he could do some 
 service far and wide, not in a few congregations, but in 
 all the country. 
 
 He writes in June that much of his time was taken up 
 with the affairs of " discomposed places." Not a day 
 passed without employment and services. He was also 
 a member of several societies ; more than one or two 
 whose business was to "devise good." But as he was 
 ** never easy unless he found himself bringing forth some 
 fruit unto God," he had a reward in his labor. 
 
 One of the societies of which he was an efficient 
 member was for the "suppression of disorders." It was 
 composed of members from different churches. It was 
 already large enough, but there " were many who would 
 be glad to engage in the same design " ; therefore he 
 started two more such societies, one for the north, and 
 one for the south, end of the town. 
 
 The Rev. Michael Wigglesworth died in June, and Mr. 
 Mather preached a sermon at Maldon (now Maiden), on 
 the 24th. The title was " A Faithful Man described and 
 rewarded." It contained "observable and serviceable 
 passages in the life and death " of his friend ; also " Me- 
 morials of piety left behind him among his written experi- 
 ences." It had a second edition in 1849. 
 
COTTON MATHER. 
 
 m 
 
 A sermon to a meeting of young men on the evening 
 of the Lord's day, respecting " Parental wishes and 
 charges," was published, and of these he gave away half 
 a dozen or more every day, when making pastoral visits. 
 The subject is expressed more fully in these words : " The 
 enjoyments of a glorious Christ, proposed as the great 
 blessedness which Christian parents desire for themselves 
 and their children." 
 
 Here are some of his entries in the diary : — 
 
 8 d. 5 m. With persons merciful that are, 
 Thou merciful thyself wilt show. 
 
 He resolved to be merciful to all and to be sure to be 
 kind to those who were unkind to him. 
 
 25 d. 5 m. A thunder storm, and the lightnings were very fierce and 
 quick. Ps.\Z\ 13. "The Lord also thundered in the heavens, and 
 the Highest gave his voice." 
 
 He asked himself for whom he should pray, for their 
 preservation, for himself, or the two or three people in 
 the town who persecuted him with malignity } His heart 
 immediately prompted him to pray for them. 
 
 27 d. 5 m. Conceived the idea of preaching a course of sermons, 
 and gather them into a Body of Divinity. The fulness of Christ, and 
 the glory of Christ, to be the burden of it. 
 
 In the early part of September he attended a meeting 
 of ministers, delegates from the several associations in 
 the province, to '* make Proposals in relation to Coun- 
 cils." In Dr. Clark's "Congregational Churches" it is 
 stated that at a " meeting of the Boston Association, held 
 November 5, 1705, sixteen 'proposals' were drawn up and 
 put forth for the consideration of the several associated 
 ministers in the several parts of the country. Though 
 couched in plausible terms, and embodying some useful 
 
314 Z//^^" AND TIMES OF 
 
 hints, they were nevertheless repugnant in their general 
 spirit to the Cambridge platform and the popular usage, 
 or, as Rev. John Wise describes them : * They seem a 
 conjunction of all the church governments in the world, 
 and the least part is Congregational ' — the ^ specter or 
 ghost, of Presbyterianism — something considerable of 
 prelacy ' — ' something which smells very strong of the 
 infallible chair.' " Mr. Wise probably magnified the evils 
 of the proposed changes, yet his work was needed, and its 
 wholesome influence was great. Mr. Clark briefly sum- 
 marizes the "leading ideas" contained in the sixteen 
 "proposals" under three heads. 
 
 First, to give the ministerial meetings, which were then coming into 
 vogue, an ecclesiastical character, by the introduction of business perti- 
 nent only to the churches. 
 
 Second, to combine these associations of ministers, thus ecclesiasti- 
 cized, and enlarged, by a lay delegation, into standing councils, whose 
 decisions in ordinary cases should be " final and decisive." 
 
 Third, to allow •• no particular pastor or congregation to employ any 
 one in occasional preachings, who has not been recommended by a 
 testimonial under the hands of some association." 
 
 This last proposal is practically the usage of Congre- 
 gational churches. If a church departs from it, by that 
 act it becomes an independent church. Neither the first 
 nor second proposal was ever adopted by our churches, in 
 any convention or meeting ; but old records tell us that 
 some associations, as late as the end of the last century, 
 did " consider business matters which pertained only to 
 the churches." It is not singular, perhaps, that endeavors 
 have been made within a few years, and are still con- 
 tinued, to enlarge the functions of ministerial associations, 
 and to bring in standing instead of pro re nata councils. 
 Both movements are hostile to the spirit of true Congre- 
 gationaUsm. 
 
CO TTON MA THER. 3 1 5 
 
 At the desire of the people, the author published 
 ^^ Mare Pacificiim,'' a short essay upon those "Noble 
 Principles of Christianity, which may always compose 
 and rejoice the mind of the afflicted Christian." 
 
 Being desired in September to write on the topic of 
 "Christian Visits" and how to make them serviceable, 
 he prepared the '^ Rules of a Visits As the sermon was 
 preached by request, and as it met the desire of the 
 hearers, they united in sending it abroad. The author 
 states that he delivered the sermon after he had " exceed- 
 ingly humbled himself before the Lord." He adds : "The 
 Lord was mightily with me." A " considerable number of 
 good men," who heard the discourse, proposed giving it to 
 the press. Of it he says : — 
 
 That the mercy of the Lord unto me, in this matter, may be the more 
 signalized, it was put into the hearts of the reforming societies, in this 
 town, to divide all the colonies of New England between them, and to 
 provide that at least a couple of the books be put into every town in 
 the country; one directed unto the minister of the place; the other 
 having upon it this subscription, To be lent. Thus I shall have another 
 glorious opportunity to glorify the Lord in every town throughout New 
 England. I shall serve the Lord in all his congregations, from one 
 end of the country to the other. 
 
 He also, about this time, "composed a scheme of erect- 
 ing and supporting charity schools, and moved well-dis- 
 posed people thereunto." These were to be "schools for 
 the education of poor children." 
 
 On the tenth of December a council was held at Water- 
 town Farms, their "miserable condition requiring it." 
 On his way his calash was overturned and he was thrown 
 out, but received no injury. It was a complicated case, 
 and affairs were under a "woful entanglement." He 
 prayed to God and his "mind was irradiated." His sug- 
 gestions to the council were agreeable, and his proposal 
 
3l6 LIFE AND TIMES OF 
 
 was approved. A word may be said here in relation to 
 the frequent cases when Mr. Mather "prayed and was 
 guided or irradiated," as he reports. There is a class of 
 persons who look upon this as fanaticism. They regard 
 all believers in divine suggestion as narrow-minded and 
 enthusiastical. There are others who believe that the 
 Scriptures give a full warrant to the conviction that 
 prayer for divine guidance will be answered. Either the 
 sobriety and concentration of mind produced by prayer 
 directly leads to the best conclusions, or the direct in- 
 fluence of the promised spirit enlightens the mind in 
 regard to the given subject ; or both causes combine to 
 lead the mind to a right decision. But whether the mat- 
 ter can be explained or not, those who are accustomed 
 to pray and to observe the results will continue to pray 
 on, in spite of all the philosophizing of worldly minded 
 men. 
 
 "26 d. 10 m. Very cold season." In the midst of his 
 comforts he thought of those not so well provided for. 
 His "soul was grieved for the poor." He helped as he 
 could by the "hand of his wife." This is the first men- 
 tion of her in the diary after the marriage, and surely it 
 is one to her honor. His own means were not enough, 
 and a young gentleman supplied him liberally for the help 
 and comfort of the poor. This closes the record of the 
 year 1705. 
 
 But in the following curious speculation, under date of 
 November 9, Mr. Mather expresses his "idea of man in 
 his totality." He doubtless had in mind i Thessalonians 
 5: 23, "Your whole spirit and soul and body," and He- 
 brews 4: 12, "Dividing asunder of soul and spirit," and 
 also the contest described in Romans 7 : 5. 
 
 The Oracles of God make a distribution of man into three parts: 
 The Spirit, The Soul, and The Body. 
 
COT TON MA THER. 3 I 7 
 
 The Anatomy is admirable; the consideration of the distribution 
 would be of no little consequence. 
 
 The Spirit is the notional mind, created and infused by an imme- 
 diate operation of God. 
 
 The Soul is a vital flame, conveyed from our parents ; the next seat 
 of the passions ; of so fine a temper, that it can strike the spirit, and 
 yet of so gross a temper, that it can also move the body. 'T is the 
 soul by which mere animals are actuated. 
 
 The Body is the obvious receptacle and habitation of those wonder- 
 ful agents. 
 
 A man bitten with a mad-do^, has not only his body, but his very 
 soul also poisoned. The poison seizes and pervades the nervous 
 fluid. The Archeus is all enraged. The sensitive soul has a canine 
 fury now sensibly enraging it. The Spirit of such a man will cause 
 him to say to his friend: ** I would not hurt you; bat half an hour 
 hence my fit will come upon me ; I shall then bite you, if you are in my 
 way. I advise you to bind me fast, or keep out of my way." Not- 
 withstanding this knowledge of the man, and this advice, yet when his 
 fit arrives the Spirit must knock under, or lie fettered. The man will 
 grin, and snarl, and bite like a dog, and his dog-bitten soul will show 
 him the face of a dog in a looking-glass. He has drunk water in his 
 thirst, but the water put his parched and poisoned glands to horrible 
 torment. The poor Spirit of the man commends water to him again. 
 He goes to drink, but the horror which his dog-bitten soul conceived at 
 the exquisite pain which the water had given him, will by no means 
 permit him to touch it. He perishes in his Hydrophobia. 
 
 There are numberless instances wherein the affections and the aver- 
 sions of the Soul have the perfect mastery of the Spirit. 
 
 Well, the soul of every man is dog-bitten ; or, what is as bad, ser- 
 pent-bitten ; or, devil-bitten. Original sin has depraved it ; the venom 
 of original sin has overrun it. 
 
 A regenerate Spirit ; a sanctified Spirit chooses above all things, to 
 glorify God and his Christ, and has gotten an empire over the Soul in 
 doing of it. 
 
 Briefly, the Spirit of an ungodly man may refuse to gratify the 
 criminal desires of his carnal Soul in many instances ; but then, 't is 
 always upon considerations that rise not above the level of carnality. 
 'T is either because the things will hurt his health, or blast his name, 
 or sap his estate, or disoblige the friends on whom he has dependence ; 
 or, perhaps, as among the Catholics, he may purpose unto himself to 
 work himself a righteousness. But if it once comes to this, — that 
 
3l8 LIFE AND TIMES, 
 
 I may gratify the criminal desires of my Soul, and these also become 
 violent and impetuous, and I may do it without any prejudices in the 
 world, unto any of my secular pursuits : — But now, my Spirit abhors, 
 rejects, denies these criminal gratifications of my, Soul, only upon these 
 [following] considerations : — " No ; the great God will see it, and be 
 offended ; I shall ungratefully abuse the blood of my Redeemer ; the 
 Holy Spirit that would seal me for the day of redemption, will be 
 grieved ; I shall render myself unmeet for the inheritance of the saints 
 in light." If by these pure considerations, (as also without proposing 
 to make myself thereby a Righteousness) my Spirit has the force to 
 go quite another way than my Soul would have it ; then I have, most 
 certainly, a regenerate Spirit. The discovery of a regenerate spirit 
 is not altogether so difficult as many may imagine it. This our Trial 
 will plainly and surely discover it. If my Spirit will fly Godward and 
 Christward, (as I find it will,) when my Soul raves to be going sin- 
 ward^ and they are not considerations fetched from flesh., but from 
 God and Christ, that gave my Spirit the victory over my Soul, I have 
 then a Spirit that is most certainly renewed by the Spirit of God. 
 And though there may be particular instances in which the ferment of 
 sin in my Soul, inflamed by furious temptations of Satan, may over- 
 throw the choice and voice of my Spirit, yet the Spirit of God will 
 never loosen the hold he has taken of me. This hypothesis a little 
 solves the phenomena of the dog-tricks often found in some whom we 
 still own for godly men. 
 
CHAPTER XVI. 
 
 CHILDREN. CHURCH. PATRIOTISM. PUBLICATIONS ON 
 
 VARIOUS subjects: 1 706-1 707. 
 
 ONE author of a Life of Cotton Mather informs us 
 that, though he sought for information from every 
 available source, very little could be found about his life 
 and doings outside of his diary. What more could he 
 ask } The diary shows the reader the spirit of the man 
 and his employment, nearly every day of his active life. 
 From other sources, and in Sewall's diary, we find frequent 
 mention of him, and in his scores of volumes we have not 
 only the fact of his writing them, but occasional biograph- 
 ical items which enable us to trace his busy life of toil 
 from boyhood to the end of his days. 
 
 The year 1706 was marked by his usual activity in all 
 lines of authorship and of pastoral work. As he advanced 
 in life he did not slacken his efforts to associate others 
 with himself in care for the neglected and the criminal 
 classes. For example, take the record of February 6 : 
 "The several societies for the suppression of disorders 
 with the society for the propagation of religion " met at 
 his house, — about forty men, — where they spent the day 
 in a religious fast, that they might obtain the blessing 
 of heaven on their essays to do good. 
 
 Domestic trials were mingled in his cup. His little 
 daughter Nancy was again brought nigh to death by a 
 violent fever. 
 
 He notes "many great accessions to his library" of late 
 years ; but now he had a great addition of many books 
 
 319 
 
320 LIFE AND TIMES OF 
 
 from the libraries of the three Shepherds, all ministers ; 
 but their manuscripts, which also came into his posses- 
 sion, he esteemed more valuable than the books. 
 
 The " dispositions of his mind " relating to " having a 
 great reputation in the world " are curious, and no doubt 
 sincere. The record must be abbreviated. Instead of 
 being desirable, such a reputation is to be deprecated. 
 If one is proud of his reputation, he is guilty of idolatry, 
 not giving glory to God. But if people could say, " The 
 God of all grace has disposed that servant of his to do 
 virtuously"; or, "The power and wisdom of God have 
 carried that servant of his well through trials, labors, and 
 sufferings," all would be right. He gives what he esteems 
 "an encouragement" in these terms: "If a man often 
 thinks ' What good may I do in this world } ' God will 
 bless the efforts of even very little men." 
 
 Some special points in relation to the education of his 
 children will come before us in another connection. His 
 eldest daughter, Katharine, was in her eighteenth year; 
 Abigail was twelve ; Hannah, nine ; and Increase, seven ; 
 Elizabeth, first child by his second wife, was less than two 
 years old. It was a critical period in the life of them all, 
 and their education engaged the heart of the father. 
 
 At the same time " some special points " in relation to 
 his flock weighed upon his mind. These will find a place 
 when we come to consider his work as a pastor. 
 
 The forty-fourth year of his life began on the twelfth of 
 February, and he credits himself with seventy-two ser- 
 mons and lectures during the preceding year. He begins 
 his new year with a statement of his daily occupations, for 
 the use of his sons who might survive him, in thirty-one 
 particulars. They show him unceasingly engaged in 
 useful ways, though he bewails his slothfulness. 
 
 He also refers to his correspondence, which required 
 
COTTON MATHER. 
 
 321 
 
 much attention. Correspondents in Europe, the West 
 Indies, and America, besides family letters, demanded a 
 ready pen. Some of his letters were long, and took con- 
 siderable time in their composition. 
 
 His birthday this year was set apart in his study to 
 praise the Lord for his favors, and to confess and bewail 
 his sins. He was full of employments, and it was a satis- 
 faction to him that God employed him in so many ways of 
 usefulness. 
 
 In regard to his children, he writes that, at night, the 
 last thing, he goes into his study, and on his knees con- 
 fesses the mercies of the day with wonders and praises. 
 He prays for any who have been instrumental in doing 
 good. He prays for pardon to himself, and anew gives 
 himself to God, so that if he should die he would be pre- 
 pared. The consolation from this was " unspeakable and 
 full of glory." He concludes: "Children do this, and 
 you shall find it so." He states that he had not leisure to 
 write a thousandth part of his thoughts relating to God 
 and the spiritual and heavenly world. 
 
 One of his reflections was this : — 
 
 I see all creatures, everywhere, full of their delights. The birds are 
 singing ; the fish are sporting ; the four-footed are glad of what they 
 meet withal ; the very insects have their satisfactions. 'T is a marvel- 
 ous display of infinite goodness. He accommodates them with con- 
 tinual delights. Their delights are the delicious entertainments of his 
 infinite goodness. His goodness takes pleasure, and is delighted with 
 the delights of his creatures. Well, is there no way for me to resemble 
 and imitate this incomparable goodness of God ? Yes ; I see my neigh- 
 bors all accommodated with their various delights. All have some, and 
 some have many. Now, I may humbly make their delights my own, 
 and may rejoice in the delights which I see the goodness of God be- 
 stowing upon them. I may make their prosperity not my envy, but my 
 pleasure. I may be glad at all the good I see done unto them. Oh ! 
 the glory ; oh the glorious joy of his goodness ! Lord, imprint this thy 
 image upon me. 
 
322 LIFE AND TIMES OF 
 
 He resolved not to judge other people wrongfully, but 
 rather pray, " Lord, preserve me from ever falling into 
 such miscarriages." 
 
 On the eighth of March he "prayed with fasting" for 
 a blessing on his ministry, his family, on the churches, and 
 especially some very discomposed ones in the country; 
 and also in reference to changes expected in the country. 
 He adds this Mem, : " Prayed for the captives among the 
 French and Indians. Had some faith, — some assurance, 
 that some would be gloriously delivered"; but his disap- 
 pointment in one "famous case of particular faith" made 
 him "shy of it." Yet it (faith) made "illapses upon him," 
 at times. 
 
 Sending Increase, his little boy, to school in the spring 
 of this year, he wrote, every morning during several 
 months, a lesson for him in verse, to learn, in addition to 
 learning to read. He took pains to write in a plain hand. 
 After a while he thought it might be good for other 
 children to have them, and so gathered them into a little 
 book, entitled " Good Lessons for children ; or. Instruc- 
 tions provided for a little son to learn at school when 
 learning to read." A second edition was soon in demand. 
 The original design of the verses was to have the " child 
 improve in goodness, at the same time that he improved 
 in reading." A thousand copies of the first impression 
 were sold in a week. 
 
 The young people to whom he preached a sermon about 
 this time desired it for publication. He gave it to them, 
 with the title, " A Young Follower of a Great Saviour." 
 
 Observing that many " turned the doctrines of grace 
 into wantonness," he was led to preach and publish his 
 " Free Grace maintained and improved ; or, a general offer 
 of the gospel." He designed to rescue from abuses the 
 " illustrious doctrines of divine predestination and human 
 
COTTON MATHER. 323 
 
 impotency; and to render those doctrines highly useful 
 to the designs of practical piety." His text was John 6 : 
 37 : " All that the Father giveth me shall come to me ; 
 and him that cometh to me I will in no wise cast out.'* 
 After explaining the "doctrine of predestination," which, 
 he says, is "free grace at work," he refers to the matter 
 of "reprobation," to reply to objections, thus : — 
 
 Multitudes accuse the predestination of God as the cause of their 
 impenitent unbelief. None but the elect shall be saved ; I don't know 
 that I am elected ; if I am not elected, unto what purpose is it for me 
 to seek to be saved? Idle words. It would be a very great sin, in the 
 greatest sinner among us all, to conclude himself a reprobate. Repro- 
 bation is a secret thing. You have no direction to meddle with it. I 
 am sure it is recorded, that every one of us ought to come to the Lord 
 Jesus Christ with as much alacrity as if we were already assured that 
 the Father had given us to him. Again, should a man be ever so 
 wicked, it would be a further wickedness in him to desire himself a 
 reprobate. . . . Let the chief of sinners among us be quickened in 
 seeking and pressing after conversion to God. ... I pray you ; I 
 charge you, let no one of you all, pronounce yourself a reprobate. 
 But let every one of you fly away to God in the Lord Jesus Christ ; 
 accept his mercy ; resolve his service ; do it as cheerfully as if it were 
 from heaven revealed unto you: '• Thy name, O man, thy very name, 
 is written in heaven." . . . 
 
 Men do not urge the decrees of God so injudiciously, so imperti- 
 nently, so irreverently, in any inferior matters, as they often do in the 
 matter of their salvation [as in seeking health, getting money, etc.] . 
 There is no such decree as this, that the elect shall be saved, whether 
 they work about their own salvation or not. Or that the elect may 
 continue unconverted and unconcerned about eternal blessedness, and 
 yet get safe into it at last. . . . Damnation overtakes no man but 
 because he is a sinner. Reprobation by God enforces no man to be 
 a sinner. 
 
 Although the theology of that day was fettered by the 
 fatalistic dogma of the slavery of the will, yet the earnest 
 ministers believed and preached the duty of sinners to 
 repent and believe ; and that salvation was offered to 
 
324 
 
 LIFE AND TIMES OF 
 
 all such. Says Mather : " Salvation by the Lord Jesus 
 Christ is tendered unto every one of us all, and none of 
 us will miss salvation by that blood, but such as wilfully 
 refuse it." Such is the tenor of the first discourse. 
 
 In the second, " Free Grace is exhibited in the gracious 
 offers of the gospel," a full and free and unlimited offer of 
 salvation is presented ; and in the words of Christ, " Go 
 ye into all the world, and preach the gospel to every 
 creature," there is a universal invitation. The author 
 inserts the following note: — 
 
 My dear friend, Mr. Bromfield, must be mentioned by me in these 
 memorials, as the great instrument to the printing and publication of 
 this book ; and unto him, and unto his family, all the service which he 
 has this way, or any other, done unto his people. 
 
 On the seventh of May Mr. Mather aided in settling 
 a church trouble at Maiden, and on the twenty-third a fast 
 was kept by the North Church (the other good people of 
 the town joining) on account of the " distressed condition 
 of the American Islands ; our own danger ; the captives, 
 and the excessive cold and rains of the season." We 
 must not forget that the great war between France and 
 the allies, headed by England, involved the colonies in 
 distracting fears and distressing calamities. Two years 
 before Marlborough had defeated the French at Blen- 
 heim, and this year, 1706, was marked by one of the 
 greatest battles in history, when the French at Ramillies 
 were again put to disastrous rout ; but the time for peace 
 had not yet come, and our fathers still had to fear the 
 midnight raid of a savage foe, and contend with French 
 and Indian combined. 
 
 A poor state of health is not conducive to hard study, 
 but in some cases it is an incentive. We find Mr. Mather 
 writing on the twenty-eighth of May : '' Health poor " ; 
 
COTTON MATHER. 
 
 325 
 
 and it caused him to "despatch at a great rate " his Biblia 
 Americana^ lest it would never be done. It was already a 
 vast accumulation of illustrations, which would make two 
 volumes in folio, or double the matter of the Magnalia. 
 He solemnly gave thanks to God for his smiles on the 
 undertaking. 
 
 "The Negro Christianized" was written in the early part 
 of June. It was an essay to " excite and assist that good 
 work, the instruction of negro servants in Christianity." 
 He writes : " It is a golden sentence that has been some- 
 times quoted from Chrysostom, ' that for a man to know 
 the art of alms, it was more than for a man to be crowned 
 with the diadem of kings ; but to convert one soul unto 
 God, is more than to pour out ten thousand talents into 
 the baskets of the poor.' Surely, to raise a soul from a 
 dark state of ignorance and wickedness, to the knowledge 
 of God, and the belief of Christ, and the practice of our 
 holy and lovely religion, this is the noblest work that ever 
 was undertaken among the children of men." This is the 
 keynote to the little book of forty-six pages, which is an 
 earnest plea for the Christianization of the negroes in 
 families and in the community ; that is, bond and free. 
 There is no escaping the grip and clinch of the reasons 
 given. Assistance is suggested as to the mode of in- 
 structing this class, and a plain Catechism is added. The 
 Lord's Prayer, in sentences, is accompanied with a peti- 
 tion. For example : — 
 
 Our Father which art 
 heaven. 
 
 in 
 
 'Heavenly Father, thou art my 
 Maker ; help me to own thee as my 
 Father ; pity me, relieve me, as one 
 of thy children. 
 
 Give us this day our daily f Thou knowest what is best for me ; 
 
 L 1 \ Lord, let me want nothmg that shall 
 
 [ be good for me. 
 
326 LIFE AND TIMES OF 
 
 A few sentences may be quoted, as they show the 
 design and spirit of the author : — 
 
 A work which my heart was greatly set upon ; a work which may 
 prove of everlasting benefit unto many of the elect of God : a work 
 which is calculated for the honor and interest of a glorious Christ ; and 
 a work which will enrage the devil at such a rate, that I must expect 
 he will immediately fall upon me with a storm of more than ordinary 
 temptations. I must immediately be buffeted in some singular manner 
 by that revengeful adversary. And the late calamities on the Amer- 
 ican Islands, I thought had a word in them to quicken my doing of 
 this work. . . . My design is not only to lodge one of the books in 
 every family in New England which has a negro in it, but also to 
 send numbers of them into the Indies, and write such letters unto the 
 principal inhabitants of the islands as may be proper to accompany 
 them. 
 
 A noble trait of character comes out in the record of 
 June 29. The diarist states that he was "much distressed 
 because of the criminal action of some who unlawfully 
 traded with the French and Indian enemies." It was 
 war time, and the charge was that certain men of Boston 
 and vicinity supplied the enemy with contraband articles, 
 whereby the war was prolonged. Some of his relatives 
 by marriage were suspected. Mather denounced this con- 
 duct severely, and what added to his grief, his good father- 
 in-law, Colonel Phillips, justified his sons in the matter. 
 No ties of relationship could induce Cotton Mather to 
 excuse wrongdoing. 
 
 Near the end of June he went to Andover, "at the 
 often request of the people, and preached to them a lec- 
 ture." What was not an uncommon occurrence on such 
 occasions, several young gentlemen very kindly accom- 
 panied him, which "added more than a little to the con- 
 solations of the journey." He notes a singular provi- 
 dence in the timing of this journey. It seems that a 
 party of Indians from Canada made a raid on this section, 
 
COTTON MATHER. 
 
 327 
 
 SO that he would not have dared to go if he had delayed a 
 short time. When going, being desirous of doing some 
 good on the road in the woods, he called some children to 
 him whom he met there, gave them instructions and a 
 little book. He heard afterwards that no little impression 
 was made on the minds of the children and of the family. 
 This family in a few days was visited by the Indians, who 
 murdered the mother and some of the children. 
 
 Mr. Mather highly valued private meetings of Christians, 
 and had several, of various kinds, carried on in his parish. 
 He desired to have them "revived about the country." 
 It appears from this and the following sentences that this 
 had been a former usage. He wrote a " sheet " for this 
 purpose, and it was printed with the title, " Private meet- 
 ings animated and regulated; a short essay to preserve 
 and revive the ancient practice of lesser services, formed 
 among religious people, to promote the great interests of 
 religion." This was "written at the desire of some who 
 ask to be furnished with such instruments of piety." 
 Ecclesiastes 4:9: "Two are better than one." A Latin 
 motto from Seneca follows, the idea of which is that the 
 best and strongest societies are those in which good men, 
 similar in morals, are joined together in close intimacy. 
 This was printed in book form, though filling but a few 
 pages. Mr. Brinley had a copy, but I could not find it 
 in any public library. From a copy lent me by a friend 
 I quote the following lines. They concur with many 
 other things in the life of Cotton Mather, to show that 
 most modern plans of doing good, that are judicious, were 
 tried by our fathers and mothers long ago. 
 
 The little treatise begins with " remarks for animating 
 and regulating private meetings." The writer says that 
 " where such private meetings, under a good conduct, have 
 been kept alive, the Christians which composed them. 
 
328 LIFE AND TIMES OF 
 
 have, like so many coals of the altar, kept one another 
 alive, and kept up a lively Christianity in the neighbor- 
 hood." 
 
 Mr. Mather then gives scriptural warrant for such 
 meetings, and quotes " holy and famous Mr. Rutherford,'* 
 who in a letter to certain good people gave advice and the 
 following suggestions : — 
 
 " I. Conference and prayer meetings. See Isaiah 2:3; 
 Jer, 50 : 4 ; Mai. 3 : 16 ; Luke 24 : 14, 15 ; John 20 : 19 ; 
 Acts 12 : 12." 
 
 It is then stated that " near seventy years ago, that is, 
 in 1636, private meetings of the faithful were held in a 
 renowned nation of Protestants"; probably referring to 
 Scotland. 
 
 This kind of private meetings, sometimes called " fam- 
 ily meetings," were made up and conducted as follows : — 
 
 I. About a dozen families, in the vicinity, meet, men and their 
 wives, at each other's houses ; once a fortnight or month, as agreed 
 upon. Spend a convenient quantity of time in exercises of religion. 
 
 II. Brethren begin and conclude with prayers, in their turns. Sing 
 psalms. Repeat sermons. 
 
 III. Ministers now and then, be present. Pray, instruct and 
 exhort. 
 
 IV. Candidates for the ministry perform first service here. 
 
 V. United prayer to ask blessings from Heaven on the family 
 where met, as well as the rest. 
 
 VI. All bound in one bundle of love. Mutually take and give 
 advice. 
 
 It is stated further that it had been "usual in many 
 parts of the land, for holy women, both elder and younger 
 ones, to have their holy meetings. They prayed, and then 
 read things that the minister had furnished them. All 
 was done with discretion and modesty; and domestic 
 affairs were not to be neglected." 
 
COTTON MATHER. 329 
 
 Sometimes whole days were spent together. Not too 
 many were to be in any one meeting. 
 
 Young men's meetings had been "incomparable nur- 
 series unto the churches." Great numbers of them had 
 been "lately erected in London." 
 
 This little book is instinct with undecaying life and 
 interest. The author had made full proof of these meet- 
 ings in his own large parish, with happy results. 
 
 Under date of July 5 the diary says : " About this time, 
 I preached a sermon to the great congregation, with the 
 intention of promoting early piety. Then to a great 
 meeting of young people on the Sabbath day evening.'* 
 The young people desired it in print. The theme is 
 thus stated : " The Joy of Heaven over them that answer 
 the call of heaven ; or, powerful and wonderful motives 
 to repentance and early piety, fetched from the joy of 
 heaven over every repenting sinner on earth." 
 
 "Lord's day, iid. 6m. The Lord lately brought home 
 to us between forty and fifty captives, though many were 
 left behind." Mr. Mather was visited by many of them 
 daily, and he improved his opportunity to give them 
 books, and do good to them otherwise. They agreed to 
 come to meeting on this day, and the Lord having " anni- 
 hilated" him by an ill turn upon his health, assisted to 
 glorify Him on the occasion. " We gave thanks together 
 in the great congregation, and I preached unto them a 
 sermon on the great things done by the Lord for them." 
 The next day he wrote a collection of memorials relating 
 to the captives ; the marvelous displays of the divine 
 Providence towards many of them, especially in deliver- 
 ances ; the means of their constancy under temptations 
 to popery ; and edifying poems written by some of them 
 to confirm their children ; and a copy of a Pastoral Letter 
 written by a worthy minister (the Rev. Mr. Williams, of 
 
330 LIFE AND TIMES OF 
 
 Deerfield), " who is now a captive, (that so he may be 
 doing service even when confined from serviceableness)." 
 " Good fetched out of Evil " was the title, and the sale 
 within a week was a thousand copies. 
 
 The failure of his particular faith, especially in one 
 memorable instance, made such an impression on his 
 mind that he often referred to it as a great disappoint- 
 ment. For example, he wrote in this connection : *' I 
 had a strong persuasion ; I would say, a * particular faith * 
 (but having been once buffeted in that experience, I 
 hardly durst any more countenance it), that I should yet 
 see more captives returned." The probability was, from 
 past experience and from the Indians' love of ransom 
 money, that some would be returned. 
 
 His service on Sunday, August 22, was exhaustive, but 
 perhaps not much more prolonged than usual. "I was 
 engaged in almost continual speech from two to nine 
 o'clock ; three hours in a vast assembly ; two hours with 
 the young men in the evening." The intervening two 
 hours were occupied in more private labors. 
 
 Mr. Mather was thankful that the Lord gave him a 
 very great auditory on the Sabbath, and on the thirtieth 
 of August he resolved, first, as he records it, that "I will 
 mightily study to serve and feed such a vast congrega- 
 tion ; which indeed has none in all the land, comparable 
 unto it ; few in the world. Secondly, that I will proceed 
 upon the notable intention of exhibiting a glorious Christ 
 unto the congregation, with discourses that shall rescue 
 and ascribe unto him all the glory which belongs unto 
 him, in all the Articles of our holy religion." We find 
 here none of that decay of power and influence which 
 some writers would have us believe came upon him after 
 the witchcraft tempest. Certainly there was no slacking 
 of activity for the good of others, and no loss of hearers 
 
CO TTON MA THER, 3 3 I 
 
 and no narrowing of his field of labor. He writes that 
 the Lord enabled him to glorify Him in many services : 
 in alms^ by books, by letters, and by watchful discourse ; 
 and then to lose all remembrance of them, and press 
 after more, as if he had done just nothing at all. Nil 
 credens actum, quicunquid superesset agendum. 
 
 Near the end of August he rode to Reading, as he 
 seems to have done at different times, and preached the 
 Thursday lecture. And about the middle of September 
 he made his annual visit to Salem, staying several days. 
 His journey on the eleventh was " exceedingly accommo- 
 dated both with a Christ, and company." He preached 
 that day, and spent the days till Sunday in conversation 
 with many friends, who " obliged him with very kind 
 entertainments." On the Sabbath he addressed a great 
 assembly. 
 
 In the latter part of this month, and the early part of 
 October, he was busy in many ways. He announced in 
 print his ^' Biblia Americana, an American Offering to 
 serve the interests of learning and religion." He also 
 wrote letters to gentlemen in Scotland and England, 
 to "procure settlements of good Scotch colonies to the 
 northward of us." Also, to most eminent men to pro- 
 mote a design of Christianizing the negroes. Also, to 
 Sir William Ashurst, and by him to the parliament, to 
 procure an Act for that intention. 
 
 Prophecy was a favorite study with him. He took up 
 the Millennial Question at this time, and sent a book to 
 a London publisher, with the title, " Probletna Theolo- 
 gicum ; an Essay to develope a truth of great importance 
 in the scope and life of Christianity, but hitherto too 
 little received and understood by the Christian world." 
 He gives what he conceives to be an "unanswerable 
 demonstration that the second coming of our Saviour 
 
332 LIFE AND TIMES OF 
 
 will be at the beginning of the happy state which we are 
 to expect for the church on earth ; " and then he ex- 
 plains the "true doctrine of the Chiliad'' so as to 
 •* answer and remove the prejudices which have usually 
 encumbered it." 
 
 " New Remarkable Discoveries of the Spirit of Quak- 
 erism " next occupied his teeming mind. He writes, 
 September 6 : "The wretched Quakers have made their 
 addresses, and complaints, and clamors at home in England 
 against the country, which the ministers in London had 
 written about as if we had persecuting laws." Mr. Mather, 
 in reply, wrote to vindicate his injured country, and also 
 to " expose more and more the wicked spirit of Quaker- 
 ism, and to demonstrate that their light within is a darky 
 feeble y sinful creature ; and that to set it up for Christ, 
 and God, (which is done in Quakerism) is a very horrible 
 idolatry." He sent the manuscript to London, but I have 
 not found the work, and Sibley remarks that perhaps it 
 was not printed. Those who judge the Quakers of New 
 England in the time of the Mathers by their peaceful 
 successors of the present day make a great mistake. 
 
 "The Man of God Furnished," published at this time, 
 seems to have been a new edition of " Supplies from the 
 Tower of David," with additions to meet new and press- 
 ing wants. Some of our captives had been seduced into 
 popery, and the design was, in part, to fortify those taken 
 captive by Frenchmen and Indians against apostasy. 
 The book comprised seven essays about seven dangerous 
 errors. 
 
 The seventeenth of October was a day of thanksgiving, 
 and his special action was to have his children — four 
 of them — successively come to his study, and observe 
 and mention to him the special mercies they had received 
 of God ; and he charged them in succession, to " retire 
 
COTTON MATHER. 333 
 
 and give thanks unto the Lord, and beg to be possessed 
 by the Lord." 
 
 Mr. Mather found that in his appeals to people of all 
 sorts to set upon the practice of serious religion, they 
 fearfully abused the doctrine of man's inability to turn 
 to God and abide with him, until supernatural grace 
 enabled them to do it. He wrote a treatise and had it 
 printed immediately, with the title, "A Conquest over 
 the grand excuse of sinfulness and slothfulness ; or, 
 The Cause of God and religion pleaded against those 
 who make their inability to do good, their plea for their 
 continuance in the way of evil-doing." 
 
 On Wednesday evening, October 30, his first son by his 
 second wife was born. He was named Samuel, the same 
 name that the last son of his first wife bore. Samuel 
 was the most frequent name in the Mather family. 
 The boy lived to great age, and in scholarship sustained 
 the honor of the name. On the Sunday next after birth 
 he was baptized, and, says the father, was "lent to the 
 Lord as long as he might live." 
 
 The next week he preached the Lecture, and the 
 general assembly was present. The subject presented 
 was the "horrid paganism and atheism in many of the 
 plantations within the Province," and he hoped to awaken 
 general interest in that great matter. 
 
 We have the following, dated the twenty-third of 
 November : " In the course of this week the Lord 
 granted (a harvest of many prayers) the safe and quick 
 return of more than sixty captives, and among them, 
 Rev. Mr. Williams of Deerfield, after nearly three years 
 in captivity." He had married Eunice Mather, daughter 
 of Cotton's brother Eleazar. Her sad fate was the 
 cause of general mourning all through New England in 
 the early years of the last century. Mr. Williams and 
 
334 ^^^^ ^^^ TIMES OF 
 
 Cotton Mather now "counselled and contrived together 
 how the Lord might have revenues of glory from his 
 experiences." Mr. Williams preached the Lecture and 
 the General Court attended. 
 
 Mr. Mather gave to the press a discourse, at the re- 
 quest of his young people, with the title, " The Best 
 Ornaments of Youth ; An Essay on the good things that 
 are found in some, and should be found in all good peo- 
 ple, and which wherever they are found, Heaven will take 
 a favorable notice of them." It was preached on the 
 third of November, and published by a society of young 
 people early in the next year. The text was i Kings 
 14 : 13, and the outline is as follows : — 
 
 I. What are the good things in some? II. What shall be done 
 for them? About the "good things " of the king's son, the Jews tell 
 us that Jeroboam set guards of soldiers to hinder the more devout 
 Israelites from repairing to the worship of God at his temple. But 
 this young man hindered the soldiers from doing that violence. 
 
 The sermon closes with a powerful appeal to young 
 people. 
 
 Some of Mr. Mather's relatives were the causes of 
 great trial and grief. About this time two brothers-in- 
 law were the occasion of trouble. One was the brother 
 of his wife, and the other was the husband of his sister 
 Hannah. The first was a Phillips, and we have a hint 
 of his enmity. The latter was John Oliver, who married 
 Hannah Mather when she was seventeen years of age. 
 For some cause, we are told, they treated their brother- 
 in-law most wickedly. He asserts that he never wronged 
 them, but only sought to do them good. It is quite 
 probable that they hated him for his religious strictness. 
 His sister, Mrs. Oliver, "was a most ingenious, sweet- 
 natured and good-carriaged child." He calls her " child " 
 because she was about eighteen years his junior. She 
 
COTTON MATHER. 335 
 
 loved him dearly, and it was a grief to her that he was 
 badly treated by her husband. She had languished sev- 
 eral years under an incurable malady, and at last, on the 
 first of December, the " pangs of death came upon her. 
 In her dying distresses, she kept calling on her brother 
 Cotton, ' My brother ! my brother ! ! ' He prayed with 
 her on this day six times." The bereaved husband, who 
 had been unkind, then '' with anguish, bore a most hon- 
 orable testimony for her, as the best wife in the world, 
 and a great example of piety. And from a convicted con- 
 science, now spoke of her brother with no little pretence 
 of honor and acknowledgment.'* 
 
 The fifteenth day of December was a day of thanks- 
 giving. In the forenoon he raised the question, as a 
 subject for preaching, and perhaps printing, " Unto what 
 special flights of piety should the pious be awakened, by 
 their being left to stumble in any points of iniquity.?" 
 In the afternoon he visited a society of devout women, 
 keeping the day as a solemn thanksgiving. He prayed 
 and preached with them, saying of this service that 
 he was *' perhaps the only man in the world who had 
 preached to such an auditory." 
 
 A company of gentlemen, without any application from 
 him, learning that he wanted a good servant, bought a 
 negro, a very likely slave, for forty to fifty pounds. He 
 named him Onesimus, and his first resolve was, "with the 
 help of the Lord, to use his best endeavors to make him 
 a servant of Christ." 
 
 A discourse delivered late in the preceding year was 
 given to the public in the latter part of this year, and is 
 worthy of notice, both for its subject and its treatment. 
 It is called " Vigilantius ; or, a servant of the Lord found 
 ready for the coming of the Lord," from Matthew 24: 44. 
 Seven young ministers had died within a few months. 
 
336 LIFE AND TIMES OF 
 
 These were all settled, and all appear to have been men 
 of a superior stamp. Some were of great promise. All 
 were godly and faithful. One of them was Rev. Andrew 
 Gardner, of Lancaster. The circumstances of his death 
 are alluded to in the following touching lines : — 
 
 God called him to work in a field of blood. The repeated incursions 
 of a barbarous enemy, in one of which their former minister, Rev. 
 John Whiting, was murdered, made it so. It [the field] began to 
 flourish under Mr. Gardner's cultivation. It began to think that it 
 might wither if he did not cultivate it. He acquitted himself most 
 literally as well as figuratively, a watchman to the garrison. One most 
 unhappy discharge of a musket kills him, and almost kills a whole 
 plantation with him. With his dying breath, he calls to the survivors, 
 " be ye also ready." 
 
 Passing into the year 1707, the diary will aid us to the 
 birthday of its author, February 12. Besides, there is a 
 fragment of a diary covering about three months — July 
 to September — of the new year. Supplies from other 
 sources will eke out the record of a busy, anxious, and 
 useful year. 
 
 The war was still in progress in the old world, and our 
 own frontiers were invaded by the French and Indians, 
 whose united skill and savage cunning caused the death of 
 many, while others were carried into captivity. No man in 
 the country felt a deeper interest in the grand cause which 
 was at stake in Europe, and no one had a keener solicitude 
 than Mr. Mather for the welfare of the men, women, and 
 children who were exposed to the midnight attacks of sav- 
 ages, more cruel and deadly than prowling wolves. For 
 these he prayed and preached and printed and raised money 
 for the ransom of the captives. Every sufferer looked 
 upon him as a friend. The prisoners in Canada and their 
 mourning friends at home turned to him for sympathy, 
 counsel, and help, and his fruitful compassion never failed. 
 
COTTON MATHERo 337 
 
 In the records of the church it is written that ten were 
 received as members on confession of faith, and an entry- 
 dated October 19 presents a notable case of discipline. 
 " Mr. John Barnard, having given scandal, by the liberty 
 he took of using the scandalous game of cards^ when he 
 was lately a chaplain abroad in the army, he this day made 
 his public acknowledgment, which gave satisfaction to the 
 people of God." 
 
 The diary, January 4, incidentally reveals his motive in 
 keeping it. '* To excite his sons to kindness and benevo- 
 lence " he left a "brief reference to his Alms-deeds'' this 
 week. He had been in the habit of taking care of some 
 of God's poor as the winter came on ; but now thought he 
 would help the " poor that had not the character of godli- 
 ness." He found ten or a dozen persons, and gave them 
 "some money, and the best advice he could, and left a 
 little book to excite to serious religion." 
 
 Two days later he writes that one way of doing good 
 was this : he wrapped up seven little distinct parcels of 
 money with seven little books about repentance, and seven 
 of the "Monitory Letter against profane absence from 
 the public worship of God." He sent these things with 
 an unsigned letter to a minister in Salem, where there was 
 much laxity in Sabbath keeping, desiring the minister to 
 disperse the charity in his own name, hoping thereby to 
 ingratiate him more with his people. His reflection was 
 this : " Who can tell how far the good angels of heaven 
 may cooperate in these proceedings } And how far the 
 Holy Spirit of God may make them serviceable for the 
 best of purposes } " 
 
 He records on the tenth that his "father-in-law was 
 in a very froward and stout frame." The reference is to 
 the fact stated in last year's record, about illicit trading 
 with the enemy. One of his sons had been detected, in 
 
338 LIFE AND TIMES OF 
 
 company with others. It was thought by some that the 
 governor was indulgent to the culprits. They escaped 
 prosecution before the courts, but the great and general 
 court took up the case and imposed a fine upon those 
 found guilty. The circumstances filled the country with 
 a "mighty inflammation." The fact that one of the de- 
 linquents was a relative made no difference with Cotton 
 Mather, unless to make him more strict to secure merited 
 penalty. He felt it to be his duty with other ministers 
 to bear his testimony. He did it as mildly and modestly, 
 though as faithfully, as possible, but the " humorsome old 
 man was enraged " at him. He had fears that the matter 
 would injuriously affect the affairs of his first wife's chil- 
 dren, who were heirs. He had but one remedy, as there 
 was no speaking to the irascible old gentleman ; so he 
 went to God in prayer, as Jacob did when his father-in- 
 law had done him wrong. He prayed for divine direction, 
 that he might behave wisely, and for a blessing on each 
 of his abusive relatives. 
 
 After spending part of the seventh day of February in 
 private supplications, at the close of the day he went and 
 preached and prayed with a number of devout families, 
 who had spent a part of this day together in worship. 
 
 Mr. Mather closed the forty-fourth year of his life with 
 the mention of an unhappy experience. *'Many poor 
 servants of God have been strangely distressed with 
 temptations to atheism and blasphemy. In this was an 
 evident energy of Satan"; but he had temptations of 
 another importance, with a "wonderful impetuosity." 
 He was not plied by Satan with any "grosser pollutions." 
 It was an " Idea " raised in his soul. Possibly, it was 
 something in relation to the mode of God's being, the 
 trinity in unity, or something of that kind ; but he gives 
 no hint of the great thing or "idea." He was greatly 
 
COTTON MATHER. 
 
 339 
 
 troubled, and prayed much for relief. '*Mem. At the table 
 of the Lord, flying to the Lord Jesus Christ for salvation 
 from the guilt, and the power, and the presence of sin, I 
 have been comforted with hopes that I shall yet see the 
 favor of God." In the year preceding his birthday he 
 had preached and lectured over seventy times. 
 
 Coming to the fragment of the diary, the first entry 
 that I cull shows the writer " full of a variety of employ- 
 ments." In a meeting of Christians he spoke of the 
 unhappy condition of the frontier plantations, so irre- 
 ligious and destitute of religious privileges. Some pres- 
 ent offered to be at the expense to send and lodge in all 
 their families a little book (if he would write it), agree- 
 able to their condition. With the "singular assistance of 
 heaven " he composed the book entitled " Frontiers well- 
 defended ; or, an essay to direct the frontiers of a coun- 
 try exposed unto the incursions of a barbarous enemy, 
 how to behave themselves in their uneasy station." He 
 added a " Catechism to inform and fortify captives against 
 the delusions of popery." He sent some hundreds of the 
 Catechism by itself to Maryland, where there were many 
 of that religion. The whole volume was over fifty pages. 
 He sent out the little work with the modest hope that 
 "it may be, the Lord will bless this essay for much good 
 unto many poor people in a land of unwalled villages." 
 The part relating to popery had for its title "The Fall 
 of Babylon." The whole was addressed "Ad Fratres in 
 Eremo," to "Brethren in the Wilderness," and was full of 
 sympathy with the dwellers on the frontiers in the time 
 of war and exposed to a savage enemy. He refers to 
 their "notable deliverances, notable difficulties, and nota- 
 ble dangers," and exhorts them to maintain religion and 
 secure religious training to their children. 
 
 The matter of "particular faith " was continually coming 
 
340 
 
 LIFE AND TIMES OF 
 
 up anew in Mather's experience. His trouble appears 
 to have risen from his inability to discriminate between a 
 real intimation from heaven and a hope growing out of 
 his own strong wishes. It is too much for any believer 
 in Scripture to say that impressions are never made on 
 human minds by divine influence, in respect to coming 
 events; and on the other hand, no student of religious 
 biography can doubt that good people often believe that 
 divine or angelic impressions are made upon them, when 
 their expectations grow out of their desires. The inquiry 
 may then arise, What is the good of *' particular faith," 
 if it is not reliable .? It may be replied that, perhaps, 
 whenever the Spirit of God inspires such faith, the result 
 will be answerable ; and that in other cases, the disap- 
 pointed party would do well to imitate the example of 
 Cotton Mather, and on this question "observe a most 
 'exquisite caution." The above remark was suggested by 
 the following passage in the diary : " 13 d. 5 m." He did 
 not "know what to say of an experiment^'' under this date, 
 because of one certain case of particular faith, wherein 
 he was disappointed ; yet feared he might be losing some- 
 thing in distrusting particular faith. The case was this : 
 a brother-in-law (Phillips), master of a vessel, bound from 
 Barbadoes to Virginia, was supposed to be lost, and hope 
 of the safety of the vessel was about given up. But this 
 day, in pouring out his prayers before the Lord, he had 
 an "afflatus" that the man was safe and well. He "told 
 his consort " that was his belief, and "behold, on the sev- 
 enth day after this, news came that the man had safely 
 arrived in Virginia." 
 
 July 24, Mr. Mather set his children to find what points 
 in themselves needed amendment, and resolve to amend 
 themselves accordingly. They were to report in the 
 -evening " what resolutions they had taken up." 
 
COTTON MATHER. 34 1 
 
 Being Fast day in the province, in reference to the 
 miserable condition of the expedition to Port Royal, or 
 Annapolis, and with the design of conquering Acadia, he 
 offered to set himself to do something for glorifying God 
 as the Hearer of prayer, or for the encouraging of prayer 
 among his people, if God would grant a good issue to the 
 expedition. 
 
 About this time frequent calls came to Mr. Mather for 
 services away from home. On the eighth of August the 
 Lord gave him a "comfortable journey to Salem, in com- 
 pany with his friend Mr. Mahew," one of the Mayhews of 
 Martha's Vineyard. He preached in Salem on the Lord's 
 day, and returned on Monday. On the second of Sep- 
 tember he attended a council at Hull " for the composing 
 of difficulties. The troubles were most happily healed" ; 
 and his " poor tongue and pen were particularly employed 
 in this work." On the tenth a new church was gathered 
 in the south part of Braintree — the present First Church 
 in Braintree. " The action was carried on with sensible 
 effects, and affecting tokens of the gracious presence of 
 the Lord." Mr. Mather " preached, and enjoyed a mar- 
 velous presence of the Lord." The people desired a copy 
 of the discourse. Title: "The Temple Opening." It 
 was not published till 1707. His topic was : "The Church 
 as a Temple of the Lord " (Eph. 2 : 22). " Every particu- 
 lar church of the Lord Jesus Christ is to be together 
 built in the glorious Lord as a temple of God." On the 
 sixteenth of this same month he "made a comfortable 
 journey to Salem," that he might lecture at Beverly the 
 next day. He was "much broken, and spent, and ill," 
 but the Lord gloriously carried him through the work, so 
 that he "preached with great flame and force," and his 
 sickness left him. 
 
 In this month he fitted for the press his discourse on 
 
342 LIFE AND TIMES OF 
 
 "Manly Christianity." This was one of the "compos- 
 ures " which he sent to England, " commending his whole 
 work unto the conduct of heaven." It was not published 
 till 171 1, but a brief note of it may find a place here. It 
 was a "brief essay on the signs of good growth and 
 strength in the most lovely Christianity ; or, the marks 
 of a Christian become strong in the grace that makes him 
 one." Text : " My son, be strong." He writes : — 
 
 It is a conjecture which our Brightman, and after him, our Burroughs, 
 has upon the four living creatures, that four successive states of the 
 church were thereby denoted and predicted. First, the church was like 
 a Lion, for the courage of encountering the persecutions of the Romaa 
 and pagan emperors. Then the church grew to be like an Ox, for sub- 
 mitting to the heavy impositions of Anti-Christ. As the Reformation 
 came on, the church became like a Man, and would no longer submit 
 to the yoke, nor take anything but what it sees reason for. Anon, the 
 church becomes an Eagle, for high flights of Christianity. Churches 
 must now be more heavenly-minded, and soar up like the eagle towards 
 heaven in their dispositions. 
 
 " Doctrine. It is the concern of true Christians to* 
 become strong in the grace that makes them Christians." 
 And the author shows at some length what are the marks 
 of a Christian strong in the grace of the Lord Jesus 
 Christ. Near the close he mentions three things to be 
 desirable in becoming a manly Christian : — i. To be swal- 
 lowed up in God, in Christ ; 2. To be full of benevolence 
 and beneficence toward men ; and 3. To have humility. 
 
 The closing passage in the fragment for 1707 was prob- 
 ably written in the latter part of the year, as it appears to 
 be a general summing up of duty, and a believer's " cove- 
 nant with a glorious Christ, in all things at the close of 
 the year." It is exceedingly rich, but too long to be 
 quoted in full. All his blessings, all his afflictions, all his 
 duties, all his joys and griefs ; all his bereavements and 
 allotments and favors ; all his relations to friends and to 
 
COTTON MATHER. 
 
 343 
 
 enemies, to his wife, to his children, to the church; and 
 all his hopes are to be considered in their relation to his 
 glorious Christ. 
 
 In Mr. Sibley's list we find " Another Tongue brought 
 in to confess the great Saviour of the world ; or, some 
 communications of Christianity put into a tongue used 
 among the Iroquois Indians in America; and put into 
 the hands of the English and Dutch traders, to accom- 
 modate the great intention of communicating the Chris- 
 tian religion among the salvages, among whom they find 
 anything of this language to be intelligible." Sabin 
 says : " Sentences in relation to God, Jesus Christ, and 
 the Trinity, in the Iroquois, Latin, English, and Dutch 
 languages." 
 
 "The Greatest Concern in the World" came out this 
 year in a pamphlet of twenty-two pages. The design was 
 to answer in a brief and plain way the question, " What 
 must I do to be saved t " There was a second edition in 
 17 1 8, printed at New London. 
 
 "OrnamentaJ Piety," and "The Soldier taught what 
 he shall do," met the wants of a class. The latter was 
 reprinted. 
 
 An awakening discourse, of forty pages, was entitled 
 ** The Spirit of Life entering into the spiritually dead ; 
 an essay to bring a dead soul into the way wherein the 
 quickening Spirit of God and of grace is to be hoped and 
 waited for ; and to prophesy over the dry bones in the 
 valley of death such Words of the Lord as used to be 
 the vehicles of Life unto them. Ezek. 37: 2, 7." "In 
 the conversion of a sinner, a dead soul has life conveyed 
 unto it, and a dead sinner comes to live unto God." The 
 dry bones, (i) can hear the words of the Lord ; (2) can 
 meditate upon them ; (3) can pray. It was a tremendous 
 and melting appeal to the unconverted. 
 
344 ^^^^ ^^^ TIMES. 
 
 " A very Needful Caution " was an essay against a " sin 
 that slays its ten thousands," that is, Covetousness ; with 
 Antidotes (pp. 60). It presents the *' character and condi- 
 tion of the covetous." Remark: "From a tang of cov- 
 etousness, how are many children educated ? The great 
 concern of parents is, how to make the children rich? 
 They are not concerned so much how to make them good 
 and kind unto salvation. How are many matches prose- 
 cuted ? The question is not, whether the parties are 
 gracious and virtuous, but are they rich } This turns 
 the scale upon all other qualifications. O sinful covetous- 
 ness ! Bare-faced covetousness ! There can be no hiding 
 of thee." 
 
 We close with a singular title : " A Treacle fetched out 
 of a Viper." It is evidence of the unfailing ingenuity of 
 the author in deriving instruction from every source. It 
 is a " brief essay upon falls into sin ; directing how a 
 recovery out of such falls may be attended with a revenue 
 of special service and glory to God from the fallen sinner/*" 
 
CHAPTER XVII. 
 
 MATHER AND WINTHROP. — MATHER VS. DUDLEY. — ESSAYS 
 
 TO DO good: 1 708-1 710. 
 
 NO diary of the year 1708 is known to exist. Mr. 
 Mather states at a later date that some volumes 
 were destroyed by his third wife, but those are supposed 
 to have been of years in which her life was blended with 
 his. Possibly his children or grandchildren may have lost 
 or suppressed some of them, but this supposition seems 
 improbable, as they would have been more likely to omit 
 parts than to have destroyed the records of a year. 
 Possibly some fragments are still in secluded existence. 
 The records of the church contain no items of impor- 
 tance, except the very welcome fact that the church was 
 enlarged by the addition of twenty members. 
 
 There is, however, enough matter to prove that 1708 
 was a busy and productive year of Mr. Mather's life. 
 The publications were as numerous and as well adapted 
 to the wants of the public as usual, and one or more 
 letters of his will show his relations to public men. 
 
 The Justa Winthropi was a sermon at the funeral of 
 Fitz John Winthrop, the governor of Connecticut, who 
 died when on a visit at Boston in November, 1707. The 
 following is a letter to John Winthrop, of New London, 
 a nephew of the foregoing. A notice of the sermon will 
 fitly follow extracts from the letter. The letter is dated, 
 " 16 d. 10 m. 1707," or December 27. 
 
 Sir, If there be a family in the world which I have endeavored 
 always to treat with all possible service and honor, 't is the Winthropian. 
 
 345 
 
346 LIFE AND TIMES OF 
 
 If there be a person in that family, for whose welfare I have even 
 travailed in agony, 't is you ; whereof the walls of a certain Bibliothe- 
 cula in the world, are but some of the many witnesses. 
 
 As I continue to wish all happiness to you, so I must now do it unto 
 the vertuous lady whom you are making your consort. i 
 
 And, as from the beginning, you know you had all possible encour- 
 agements and commendations from me, to the match wherein I am 
 now wishing you joy, so the late calamity I have suffered, by a cruel 
 incivility offered me in England, cannot hinder me from all the dis- 
 positions of personal good will unto the family unto which you are 
 becoming related. 
 
 But shall I not rather chuse to put my wishes into the terms the 
 excellent Philip Henry would use to his new married friends : ' ' Others 
 wish you much happiness ; I wish you much holiness ; that will make 
 you sure of happiness.''"' I am glad the duty I have done to the 
 character and memory of your honorable uncle — late governor of 
 Conn. — finds any acceptance with you. I confess freely to you that, 
 contrary to my usual conduct on such occasions, (which is to stay till 
 such a thing be desired by others,) I have myself desired, and I do 
 again request, the publication of it. 
 
 I do it for a hundred reasons, needless to be mentioned. I will only 
 mention one that comes after the ninety-ninth. Our paltry News Letter, 
 when it reports the death of that meritorious gentleman, takes care 
 that not so much as one honorable word shall be spoken of him, an 
 omission like to which it was never guilty of, no, not when such a 
 blockhead as old White,^ of Marshfield, was to be spoken of. ... I 
 remember when Johannes Brevis mightily desired to be turned into an 
 Angel, he met with a rebuke, and returned with this temper. Homo 
 sum, alienum nil hominis a me puto. My desire to have you here, and 
 to do what spirits do not, forbids me to wish your being turned into 
 an Angel, (any further than the Angelical disposition of serviceableness 
 to a glorious Christ will make you one,) but I heartily desire, (what 
 I do indeed with pleasure see daily accomplishing) that you may be 
 
 1 He was married on the day this letter was written, to Ann, daughter of 
 Governor Joseph Dudley. 
 
 2 This Peregrine White, who was bom on board the Mayflower before the land- 
 ing, has always been a kind of pet child to New Englanders, from the fact that he 
 was the firstborn of the Pilgrims on these shores ; but it appears that he was a man 
 of little account, and his conversion in old age was a matter of wonder, his life had 
 been so frivolous. It is pleasant to think that he worshiped the God of his fathers 
 &tlast. 
 
COTTON MATHER. 347 
 
 turned into your uncle ; be a lover of your country, and inherit the 
 true spirit of a gentleman. . . . 
 
 With my hearty service to the Major-General,i and his lady, I take 
 leave to subscribe, Syr, 
 
 Your true Friend and Serv't, Cotton Mather. 
 
 We turn now to the sermon at the funeral of the late 
 governor, the third Winthrop who had borne that title. 
 As he died in Boston, his funeral was attended there, and 
 he was buried in the Winthrop tomb, in King's Chapel 
 burying yard. He was in his sixty-ninth year. He does not 
 seem to have been such a favorite with historians as were 
 his father and grandfather, though nothing is recorded to 
 his disparagement. I have heard a Winthrop of the last 
 generation say that he had the name in the family of 
 not being generous, but that may have arisen from the 
 fact that he had no children, and that his heirs, perhaps, 
 did not receive so much as they desired of his estate. 
 But this is merely conjecture. Mather extols certain 
 excellent traits, but is silent as to his religious character. 
 He was certainly a man of ability, and probably he was 
 the best military man in New England in his maturity. 
 His training in the art of war, when a young man, was 
 under the famous General Monk, in Scotland, under whom 
 he marched as a subordinate officer when Charles II was 
 restored. 
 
 The text of the sermon was Genesis 5 : 5 : " And he 
 died." The subject was *' Mortality considered," under 
 which the preacher drew out the obvious considerations 
 from such a subject. All must die ; officers of all grades 
 must die ; ministers, magistrates, governors must yield to 
 the common lot and die like the meanest of the children of 
 men. In regard to his character and services the preacher 
 said that General Winthrop was a " governor greatly and 
 
 1 Wait Still Winthrop. 
 
348 LIFE AND TIMES OF 
 
 justly beloved among his people." He was "buried with 
 wondrous lamentations." Moreover, he had the "spirit 
 of a true gentleman," and was " highly esteemed for his 
 courteous way of treating all men, but especially good 
 men, and old men, on all occasions ; and for his patience, 
 and patient and generous administration of the public 
 affairs." 
 
 The sermon was printed in Boston in 1708; it had a 
 reprint in Boston and London in 1 709 ; and again in 
 Boston in 1710. 
 
 Biographical and personal matters will fill a large part 
 of the record of this year. On the eighth of August, 
 "when mortality took him off," in the ninety-fourth year 
 of his age, died a man as eminent in the sphere of 
 scholarship and education as was Fitz John Winthrop in 
 statesmanship. Indeed, but few men lived in New Eng- 
 land in the first two generations whose memory is so 
 green and bright as that of Mr. Ezekiel Cheever. Cot- 
 ton Mather was one of his pupils, and he paid him the 
 tribute of a learned and admiring scholar. He says : — 
 
 Out of the school he was antiqua fide^ priscis moribus. A Christian 
 of old fashion. An old New England Christian. And I may tell you, 
 he was as venerable a sight as the world, since the days of primitive 
 Christianity, has ever looked upon. He was well-studied in the Body 
 of divinity, and an able defender of the faith and order of the gospel ; 
 notably conversant and acquainted with the Scriptural prophecies, and 
 by consequence, a sober chiliast. 
 
 Mr. Cheever taught first at New Haven and Salem, and 
 then from 1671 to 1708 at Boston. Among his writings 
 was an essay on the Millennium, and also a Latin gram- 
 mar which went through twenty editions. Many fine 
 scholars came out of his schools. Unto the end he con- 
 tinued "an unusual instance of liveliness, and his intel- 
 lectual force was as little abated as his natural." Several 
 
COTTON MATHER. 349 
 
 editions of this funeral discourse were called for. It had 
 a "poetical essay on the memory of my venerable Master." 
 Among the editions, one is dated 173 1, another 1774, and 
 another 1828. It is common to this day in meetings of 
 educators in Boston and other places of New England 
 to hear the name of Ezekiel Cheever mentioned with 
 peculiar honor. 
 
 **A Good Evening for the Best of Days" is a plea for 
 the proper observance of the Lord's day evening, and 
 contains information about the ancient custom as to the 
 keeping of Saturday evening as part of the Sabbath. 
 The quaint title is : " An Essay to manage an action of 
 trespass against those who mis-spend the Lord's day 
 evening, in such things as have a tendency to defeat the 
 good of the day." The general assembly heard the ser- 
 mon and the house voted to publish it. The question is 
 raised, When does the Sabbath begin t and the follow- 
 ing is quoted as giving a view of ancient opinion not 
 generally understood. 
 
 An aged person, more than forty years since, — 1668 — assured me, 
 that he was once present at a very great convention of ministers, who 
 were old Puritans and Non-conformists, and that they all declared 
 themselves to be of that which is the common persuasion, excepting 
 two or three of them ; and these were, (as I remember) those famous 
 men of God, Mr. Dod, Mr. Hildersham and Mr. Cotton, who pleaded 
 for the beginning of the Sabbath in the evening before it. Among the 
 first pastors of these American churches, the venerable Mr. Allen, (as 
 I have heard) Mr. George Phillips, of Watertown, and his worthy son, 
 Mr. Samuel Phillips, of Rowley, were of the same opinion with the 
 most of the Christians in other lands. But the rest of ours generally 
 fell in with Mr. Cotton's argument, which was thought not easy to be 
 answered. 
 
 This extract is from a prefatory address to the reader 
 by Dr. Increase Mather. In the sermon (on John 20: 
 19) the preacher gives strong reasons for keeping Sun- 
 
350 LIFE AND TIMES OF 
 
 day evening, even if Saturday evening were holy time. 
 Mr. Mather utilized the evening of the Lord's day by 
 the "religious societies, especially of younger persons," 
 who spent the evening in " repeating sermons, and in 
 praying, and singing of psalms." 
 
 The Indian wars, which had been draining the province 
 of life and treasure much of the time since the accession 
 of William and Mary, were attended and followed by a 
 low state of morals, as is always the case in time of war. 
 Drinking prevails in the army, and the soldiers bring 
 home the habit of indulgence. This has been the result 
 in all our wars from the beginning, with the exception of 
 the war of the rebellion, in which, with exceptions, the 
 soldiery maintained a degree of abstinence uncommon in 
 armies. In 1708 the evil of intemperance had become 
 alarming, and it was in reference to this that Mr. Mather 
 preached one of the first temperance sermons ever deliv- 
 ered in the country. Perhaps it was the first ever pub- 
 lished. Its title was : *' Sober Considerations on a growing 
 flood of iniquity ; or an essay to dry up a fountain of 
 confusion and every evil work ; and to warn people par- 
 ticularly of the woful consequences of the prevailing abuse 
 of rum." 
 
 Before closing the annals of this year, it is in order to 
 refer to the correspondence between the Mathers, father 
 and son, and Governor Joseph Dudley. This episode in 
 our minister's life might have been passed over by a mere 
 reference in a brief paragraph, had it not been made the 
 occasion of severe and unjust criticisms. Though on 
 all points referred to in Cotton Mather's letter he is 
 sustained by nearly all the New England historians, and 
 Joseph Dudley is held up as obnoxious to the charges 
 brought against him, yet in some biographies, which are 
 not rash enough to justify the governor, occasion is taken 
 
COTTON MATHER. 35 I 
 
 to condemn the minister, as if it were a piece of daring 
 presumption in him to arraign the chief magistrate. The 
 proper place for the treatment of this matter is in the 
 Life of Increase Mather, and therefore the reference to it 
 here must be brief. The letter of the senior Mather was 
 a compact, soHd, terse, and terrible presentation of the 
 unprincipled course of an able, politic, scheming man, 
 who, though a son of one of the foremost Puritans, had 
 joined the enemies of the old order of things in Church 
 and State, set up by the fathers, had become a courtier, 
 and made himself familiar with the corrupt practices of 
 public men in the times of Charles II and Queen Anne, 
 which even the strong arm of King William could not 
 wholly control. Referring the reader to the Life of Presi- 
 dent Mather, I will give in this place a concise abstract of 
 Cotton Mather's letter. 
 
 He begins by reminding the governor that he had 
 written several letters to him in friendly style for the 
 purpose of inciting him to favor measures such as the 
 public good required. In these letters he had acknowl- 
 edged all the laudable things in his excellency's adminis- 
 tration, but his letters had been treated with contempt ; 
 shown to other people, yet unheeded by the governor. 
 He now proposed to speak more plainly, and inform the 
 governor of his misdeeds, and of the estimation in which 
 he was held by the good people of the land. In doing 
 this he would return good for evil. 
 
 He then reminds the governor that his appointment 
 had been obtained partly by the influence of a letter 
 which he (Mather) had written, which letter had been 
 read to the king, who had the idea that it was from Presi- 
 dent Mather, who was much valued by his majesty. When 
 that letter was written, the writer was under the impres- 
 sion that Dudley had repented of his complicity with 
 
352 LIFE AND TIMES OF 
 
 Randolph and Andros before the " righteous Revolution," 
 and of his concurrence in the judicial murder of Leister 
 in New York. It was his hope at that time that Dudley 
 would return to his country with the purpose of promoting 
 its true welfare. On the contrary, he had come back with 
 a spirit of selfish revenge, and had so comported himself 
 as to deserve and receive the censure of those very near 
 to him in friendship and of those most eminent in the 
 province. By a wise course he might have escaped a 
 troubled experience in office, and when his government 
 ended his epitaph might have been : " Them that honor 
 me, I will honor." 
 
 Mather attributes much of the maladministration of 
 the governor to covetousness. This led him to sell offices 
 and commissions of the peace and wink at illicit trading 
 with the enemy and mismanage the war, so as to promote 
 private interests and personal ends. 
 
 The main channel of that covetousness has been the reign of bribery 
 which you, Syr, have set up in the land, where it was hardly known 
 till you brought it into fashion. When you were going over to ex- 
 hibit articles against Sir William Phips, . . . you said you could put 
 him in a way to make the perquisites of his government worth ;^ 1,200 
 a year. He did not understand that way, and said he was sure he 
 must not be an honest man if he did so. But you, Syr, have made 
 the way now to be understood. In the matter of trading with the 
 enemy, the house of representatives did by their vote, several times 
 over, generally declare that they could not clear you from that unlawful 
 trade. 
 
 He then refers to the loose way in which the governor 
 — still a member of the Congregational Church — spent 
 his Sunday afternoons with his Episcopal friends, after 
 attending their service in the morning ; and then speaks 
 of his hostile ways against "this poor people of God" who 
 adhered to the primitive order of worship. 
 
COTTON MATHER. 353 
 
 Before the war broke out against Port Royal, men had 
 volunteered to take the place and save the government 
 from all charge ; but their offer had not been accepted 
 and the result had been great expense and loss. 
 
 Among other charges were the governor's abuse of the 
 council ; his frequent changes of opinion and plan, to the 
 disgust of the councilors, and his violation of the public 
 faith. He concludes with assurances of his desire to do 
 all the good he could to the governor. " Finally, I can 
 forgive and forget injuries ; and I hope I am somewhat 
 ready for simset ; the more for having discharged the duty 
 of this letter." 
 
 The reply of Governor Dudley showed a spirit of re- 
 sentment and disdain, as if the minister had forgotten 
 his place to arraign a governor ; asserted that some of the 
 charges were about things his accusers did not understand ; 
 that other accusations could be explained, if they would 
 come to him in a proper spirit, etc. This loftiness be- 
 comes ridiculous when we consider the birth, the educa- 
 tion, the abilities, the reputation, and the character of the 
 respective parties. A Puritan minister, like a prophet in 
 the Hebrew commonwealth, was both a prophet of the 
 Most High and a defender of the rights of the people, 
 and it was his office to rebuke wicked rulers and espouse 
 the cause of the poor and the oppressed. 
 
 The year 1709, which now comes under review, was a 
 time of attempts and disappointments to the province 
 and the neighboring colonies. As the Indians and their 
 French allies kept up their system of raiding, it was felt 
 as an ever-pressing necessity that their power should be 
 broken by the capture of Quebec and the conquest of 
 Canada. An address was sent to the queen by the Gen- 
 eral Court praying for aid to an expedition, the object of 
 which should be the conquest of both Canada and Nova 
 
354 ^^^^^ ^^^ TIMES OF 
 
 Scotia, The address was favorably received. Ships and 
 men were sent from England, forces were raised in New 
 England, a fleet lay in Boston harbor several weeks 
 taking in supplies ; but nothing was really done, and the 
 season passed away, leaving the people exposed to the 
 incursions of the enemy, while smarting under the feeling 
 that all they had done in getting ready for giving the 
 enemy a telling blow was wasted. In all the agony of 
 disappointment, they had to confront a heavy debt, in- 
 curred in getting ready for action, while the mourning 
 for their dead fathers, husbands, sons, and brothers was 
 a legacy of woe. 
 
 The diary for this year is more than usually full of 
 *' Good Devisings," as well as interior experiences. These 
 are not available, but this is not so much to be regretted, 
 since we are soon coming to a work which seems to com- 
 prise almost all possible methods and schemes of doing 
 good, while the experiences of the closet were only a 
 continuation of such as we have already enjoyed. After 
 a few names, dates, and personal facts have been gleaned, 
 we must look elsewhere for the life of our subject during 
 this period. 
 
 The spiritual work went forward in the church what- 
 ever might be the distractions of the public mind and the 
 personal involvements of the minister. 
 
 There was a case of discipline growing out of Quaker- 
 ism. The record reads : ** A man whose name was Miller, 
 had been seduced into something of Quakerism. The 
 circumstances had peculiar temptations in them." The 
 matter was taken into consideration, but no conclusion 
 was recorded, if it was ever reached. 
 
 An account of Boston, dated this year, states that it 
 was "near two miles in length, and about three quarters of 
 a mile wide in some places." There were four thousand 
 
COTTON MATHER. 355 
 
 houses, most of them brick, and about eighteen thousand 
 people. The state of the population must have fluctuated 
 about this period, for we read that the number in different 
 years, not far apart, differed five or six thousand. Prob- 
 ably the census was not taken accurately. On one occa- 
 sion the number was taken when many were out of town 
 — a thousand or more — on account of uncommon sick- 
 ness. This was one of those years. Between March,. 
 1709, and March, 17 10, there were 377 deaths; whites,. 
 295 ; negroes, 80 ; Indians, 2 ; an increase of 88 over the 
 preceding year. 
 
 It is noticeable that in all the " devisings for good " 
 with which Mr. Mather's mind was ever teeming, there is 
 no alloy of selfishness, nor does it appear that he ever 
 conceived a plan whereby he might obtain office or 
 money or honor for himself, but the good of others, as 
 individuals or in society, was the motive that inspired his 
 activity. Benevolence or goodi feeling did not exhaust his 
 energies. It was beneficence or doing good that impelled 
 him to exertion and sweetened self-denial. 
 
 The number of persons whom he aided was large, and 
 they represented almost every form of suffering and pri- 
 vation. The aged — men and women ; indigent students ; 
 widows, poor people, the sick, the insane, Indians, negroes, 
 sailors, prisoners, the friendless, — all found in, him a 
 sympathizing friend. Aid went with his comforting 
 words from his ever-open, but poorly furnished, purse. It 
 was by the same spirit that he was enabled to aid his 
 brother ministers and the churches. In the spring he 
 spent a day with the church in Maiden, where they had 
 no minister ; and when they had secured one, he preached 
 the ordination sermon. At Reading when a fast was 
 kept by the church, he was the preacher. In September 
 he went to Bridgewater to preach for an aged and afflicted 
 
356 LIFE AND TIMES OF 
 
 minister, Mr. Keith, on the Lord's day. These journeys 
 involved time and expense, but he never hesitated on that 
 account. 
 
 Early in the year he had a large accession to his library, 
 and besides the volumes there were several hundred single 
 sermons. Books seemed to gravitate to his shelves, as if 
 there was their proper home. 
 
 In March he was afflicted with heartbreaking tempta- 
 tions. They took the form of doubt. He was tempted 
 
 to regard the Christian religion as a , and did not 
 
 dare to write what. A keen intellect questioning the 
 foundation of all opinions' and systems, when in a mor- 
 bid condition from overwork or anxiety or ill-health, will 
 probably account for much of the distressing skepticism 
 which now tortured him. He resorted to prayer, and 
 found relief by putting himself under the personal in- 
 iiuence of God. Doubtless the distress of his mind was 
 aggravated by the fact that he was in want of proper 
 clothing for himself and his family, and of other things 
 necessary to a comfortable livelihood. The weekly con- 
 tributions may have fallen off, or he may have met with 
 losses. His people did not always know his condition, 
 and he was too sensitive to complain. This made the 
 strain on his mind more severe. 
 
 On the sixteenth of May another son was born to Mr. 
 Mather, to whom the name of Nathaniel was given six 
 days later at his baptism. This corrects an error in pub- 
 lished lists of his children, which place this birth at May 
 i6, 1707. The last is a manifest error, as Samuel was 
 born October 30, 1706, only six and a half months before. 
 This child, Nathaniel, lived only to November 24 of the 
 year of his birth. 
 
 In the autumn Mr. Mather drew out at length ques- 
 tions for the morning of every day of the week. The 
 
COTTON MA THER. 357 
 
 questions were minute in regard to the private and public 
 duties of each day, thus furnishing a directory for the 
 conduct of his life on a regular and continuous plan. 
 Nothing was left out which was necessary to a complete 
 dedication of soul and body to the service of God, and no 
 minute appears to be left for recreation, or even rest, 
 but what was given to sleep. His diversion was mainly 
 change of work ; yet we learn from Sewall's diary and 
 other sources that he was often in company, and that 
 he received many calls, when his conversation was both 
 instructive and entertaining. 
 
 One of the publications of this year was comprised in 
 twelve pages, but it contained much matter. It was 
 called "A Golden Curb for the mouth which with a 
 headstrong folly, rushes into the sins of profane swearing 
 and cursing." It was part of a volume later entitled 
 '* Batteries upon the kingdom of the devil." The follow- 
 ing is taken from the little pamphlet, showing the pro- 
 faneness of certain phrases which people used who were 
 afraid to swear outright. 
 
 You disguise, you curtail, you abbreviate your swearing, as, Dod, 
 and many other such strokes in the jargon of oathmongers. . . . This 
 is a poor evasion. What is it that these fictitious words originally sig- 
 nify? In these mongrel oaths, your Gedso, is as much as to say. By 
 God's soul. Your Ods me, is as much as to say, As God sees me. 
 ''Slife, is as much as to say, By God's Life. Zounds, is as much as to 
 say By God's wounds. Yea, when you say. Marry, 'tis By Saint 
 Mary. And thus for the rest. 
 
 ** A Christian Conversation with the great mystery of 
 Christianity ; the mystery of the Trinity in the one infi- 
 nite and eternal God, practically improved and applied, 
 and plainly brought into the life of Christianity," made 
 a small volume of fifty-five pages. The motto expresses 
 the author's idea of the practical use of the doctrine of 
 
358 LIFE AND TIMES OF 
 
 ** Three Divine Persons in One Being. Ipsa visio Per- 
 sonarum Divinariim perducit nos ad Beatitudinem.'' Text, 
 I John 5:7; cited by Cyprian in the middle of the third 
 century ; also by Tertullian and Jerome.^ He held not 
 to three substances, but three subsistences. " The divine 
 essence, which is but one, does yet subsist in three rela- 
 tive properties. These are three faces or aspects of the 
 Godhead, which is the old Jewish term for this unfathom- 
 able doctrine." He then shows, with the glow of a real 
 Christian, the practical influence and value of the doc- 
 trine of the Trinity. It is not a mere speculation. It 
 is not a mode of being which a creature can understand. 
 It is a revealed fact, and a fact which has a rich meaning 
 to a believer. It brings God near to the soul as a Father; 
 it reveals God in Christ to us as a Saviour, as Emmanuel ; 
 as God with us, emphatically ; and it shows us God the 
 Spirit, as the very life of our souls, creating us anew, and 
 carrying forward the new life unto perfection. 
 
 "The Cure of Sorrow," "The Desires of a Repenting 
 Believer," and an "Essay on the Streets of the Holy 
 City" belong to this period, but I have not seen them. 
 The first was in Brinley's Library (pp. 46). The other 
 two are noted in SamueFs list. They are referred to here 
 as showing in how many ways and by what felicitous 
 topics Mr. Mather tried to comfort, improve, and delight 
 the Christians of his day. 
 
 One of our author's very useful books was his " Family 
 Religion urged ; or. Serious Considerations offered to the 
 reason and conscience of every prayerless householder, 
 with plain directions how the Gift of Prayer may be 
 sought by persons of the meanest capacity." To this 
 was added a selection of " choice hymns," upon extraor- 
 dinary occasions, " collected from the works of eminent " 
 
 1 This text is omitted in the Revision. 
 
COTTON MATHER. 
 
 359 
 
 English ministers. It had three editions, in which the 
 title was somewhat varied. He speaks of the " shameless 
 neglect ; yea, the woful decay of household piety, and the 
 fearful aspect which this impiety has upon us.'* 
 
 First, we have thirty considerations in favor of family 
 prayer. Every one of them clamors for quotation. It 
 would seem that no Christian at the head of a family 
 could resist the appeals to maintain household worship. 
 He opens in this way : — 
 
 Since all men are to acknowledge God in all their ways, does not 
 every society owe religious acknowledgments unto God ? Or, is it not 
 a profanity for a people in a formal society, never, as such, to express 
 their dependence on the blessed God for his blessings? But is not a 
 family the very first society that by the direction and providence of 
 God, is produced among the children of men? And for such a society 
 never to unite in acts of piety, is it not a most unnaturaF profanity and 
 impiety ? 
 
 The following are the seventh, eighth, and ninth con- 
 siderations : — 
 
 7. If grace be in the heart, can it be long before prayer is in the 
 home? 8. Have we no family sins to be pardoned? No family wants 
 to be supplied? No good things in our families to be thankful for? 
 9. Did ever any man in his dying hours repent of his praying with 
 his family? 
 
 This is followed by " plain and short directions " how 
 the gift of prayer may be sought by persons of the most 
 ordinary capacity. A study of the directions would help 
 any praying man or woman to pray in the presence of 
 others. They are to think of what they have to be thank- 
 ful for ; of what they want ; of what wrong they have 
 done ; of what duty has been omitted ; of the greatness, 
 holiness, and mercy of God. Use the language of the 
 Bible in prayer. I have never seen a book of the kind 
 equal to this in the cogency of its reasons and in its 
 
360 LIFE AND TIMES OF 
 
 helpfulness to one having the spirit of prayer, but shrink- 
 ing from its performance. 
 
 The decease of the Rev. John Higginson, the " aged 
 pastor of the church in Salem in the 93d year of his age, 
 who went from the earthly Salem to the heavenly," De- 
 cember, 1708, was the occasion of a sermon, which was 
 published early in this year. Mr. Higginson was the son 
 of the first minister of the church, and was worthy of 
 the name. The discourse has the title, *' Nunc Dimittis,^ 
 briefly descanted on ; the happy dismission of the holy 
 believer from the work of earth to the joy of heaven." 
 Mr. Higginson is styled the "venerable and memorable 
 servant of Christ." Lord Brougham said that it added 
 to the bitterness of death to think of having Lord Camp- 
 bell write one's biography ; but it was on the other hand 
 a privilege to be embalmed in the appreciative and scrip- 
 tural sentences of Cotton Mather. 
 
 Sailors as well as landsmen were the objects of Mr. 
 Mather's care. His *' Sailors' Companion and Counsel- 
 lor," a little work of sixty-two pages, was adapted to meet 
 the religious needs of the " Tribe of Zebulon," and to 
 awaken the " mariner to think and do those things that 
 may make his voyage prosperous." 
 
 Next we have an essay entitled "Work within Doors," 
 to assist serious minds in self-examination, " conversing 
 with themselves, and communing with their own hearts." 
 Having his eye on the youth as well as the children of 
 his charge, he set before them " Youth in its brightest 
 glory, directing them that are young in age, to become 
 strong in grace, by the word of God abiding in them.'^ 
 This was printed by the desire of a religious society of 
 young men who heard it. 
 
 The preaching and publishing of Mr. Mather in 17 10 
 went on with the usual variety and prolific vigor. One 
 
COTTON MATHER. 36 1 
 
 small work of about 200 medium-sized pages has had 
 many editions, and is eminent in its way. A brief note 
 on its republications may be interesting. The book was 
 thus entitled : — 
 
 Bonifacius : An Essay upon the Good that is devised and designed 
 by those who desire to answer the great end of life, and to do good 
 while they live ; a book offered first, in general, unto all Christians, in 
 a personal capacity, or in a relative ; then more particularly, unta 
 magistrates, unto ministers, unto physicians, unto lawyers, unto school- 
 masters, unto wealthy gentlemen, unto several sorts of officers, unta 
 churches, and unto all societies of a religious character and intention. 
 With humble proposals of unexceptionable methods to do good in the 
 world. 
 
 The running title, and that by which the book is now 
 known, was *' Essays to do Good." This contained 199 
 pages ; an appendix relating what had been done for propa- 
 gating religion among the Indians, enlarged to 206 pages. 
 The edition of 17 10, Boston, was succeeded by how many 
 in the eighteenth century I have no means of knowing. 
 It was published in 1805, in 108 pages, by the American 
 Tract Society. Under the title, " Essays to do Good,'* 
 and addressed to all Christians, private and public, " im- 
 proved by George Burder," an edition came out in Boston 
 in 1708, from the latest London edition of 1707, in 148 
 pages. The same, with additions from Edwards, Sir 
 Matthew Hale, and others, from the latest Boston and 
 London editions, was published in Johnstown in 181 5. 
 Another edition, with an introductory essay by Andrew 
 Thomson, d.d., minister of St. George's, Edinburgh, ap- 
 peared in 1825, in Glasgow, Edinburgh, Dublin, and Lon- 
 don, in 214 pages. The same appeared at Dover in 1826; 
 also at London in 1842. The Massachusetts Sunday- 
 school Society issued it in 1845, i^^ 3^4 pa-ges, with an 
 appendix, in all 315 pages. This edition is printed from 
 
362 LIFE AND TIMES OF 
 
 the original with no additions from editors. That of 
 Burder, which is said to be *' improved," is really injured 
 and stripped of much of its strength and beauty by almost 
 numberless changes of words and expressions. The 
 reader who may take it up should never attribute it to 
 Cotton Mather. The testimony of Dr. Franklin to the 
 worth of this work is the more weighty with some because 
 he did not sympathize with the author in his views of 
 religion. He wrote as follows, in his old age, to Dr. 
 Samuel Mather : — 
 
 When I was a boy, I met with a book entitled ** Essays to do 
 Good," which I think was written by your father. It had been so little 
 regarded by its former possessor that several leaves of it were torn 
 out, but the remainder gave me such a turn of thinking, as to have an 
 influence on my conduct through life ; for I have always set a greater 
 value on the character of a doer of good, than any other kind of rep- 
 utation : and if I have been, as you seem to think, a useful citizen, the 
 public owes all the advantage of it to that book. 
 
 I had the intention of giving an abstract of this re- 
 markable book, but it is so crowded with good matter that 
 an epitome would require too much space. As briefly as 
 possible I will say that the dedication to Sir William 
 Ashurst and the preface, like all the rest of the work, bear 
 the unmistakable mark of Mather's hand. The whole is 
 divided into twenty-two sections, with a conclusion. The 
 first section opens with these words : " Such glorious 
 things are spoken, in the oracles of our God, concerning 
 them who devise good, that a book of good devices may 
 very reasonably demand attention and acceptance from 
 them that have any impressions of the most reasonable 
 religion upon them." 
 
 In the third section we read how the saints of old 
 sweetly sang, " I was glad when they said unto me. Let us 
 go into the house of the Lord." " Thus ought we to be 
 
COTTON MATHER. 363 
 
 glad when any opportunity to do good is offered unto us. 
 We should need no arguments to make us entertain the 
 ofEer; but we should naturally fly into the matter, as 
 most agreeable to the divine nature whereof we are made 
 partakers. It should oblige us wonderfully. An ingot of 
 gold presented unto us, not more obliging." 
 
 After many weighty remarks in a most vivacious style, 
 we come to this point in Section X : " First, let every 
 man devise what good may be done for the help of what 
 is yet amiss in his ozvn heaii: and life'' Next, what can 
 a man do **to render his relatives the better for him?" 
 Here come in duties of husbands, wives, parents, chil- 
 dren, brothers, sisters, masters, servants ; of all in the 
 family relation ; with directions for each and all. Then 
 come suggestions as to the best methods of helping the 
 poor by kindness and sympathy, by employment and alms, 
 ty religious influences and prayers. 
 
 In the thirteenth section the question is asked : " How 
 can we leave the offices of good neighborhood, without 
 interposing a proposal to animate and regulate private 
 meetings of religious people for the exercises of religion ? 
 . . . The man that shall produce and promote such soci- 
 eties, will do an unknown deal of good in the neighbor- 
 hood. And so will he that shall help forward another 
 sort of societies; namely, />^^j^ of yotmg men associated.'' 
 
 Next in order came sections setting forth at length the 
 duties of ministers to devise and do good ; of schoolmas- 
 ters, to teach and govern so as to give the best possible 
 training; of churches to become more holy, more exem- 
 plary, more prayerful, more benevolent, more kind to the 
 poor, more liberal in sending the gospel to the destitute ; of 
 magistrates. Under this last head we have an account from 
 Basil of an ancient governor, " that he was a most exact 
 observer of justice ; but very courteous and obliging, and 
 
364 LI^^ ^^D TIMES OF 
 
 easy of access to the oppressed ; he was equally at leisure 
 for the rich and for the poor ; but all wicked people were 
 afraid of him ; he abhorred exceedingly the taking of a 
 bribe ; and his design, in short, was to raise Christianity 
 unto its pristine dignity." Physicians, lawyers, officers of 
 every grade in civil and military employment, shipmasters 
 — all have their special duties and opportunities, which are 
 specified. Next, almost every form and mode of remov- 
 ing evils, and doing good by associated action, are antici- 
 pated in these methods of Mather. It would seem as if 
 he had been inspired to teach mankind how to bless one 
 another by entering into the spirit of Christ and imitating 
 his example. The work closes with these words : — 
 
 I will conclude with a testimony that I shall abide by. Were a man 
 able to write in seven languages ; could he converse daily with the 
 sweets of all the liberal sciences, that more polite men ordinarily pre- 
 tend unto ; did he entertain himself with all ancient and modern his- 
 tories ; and could he feast continually on the curiosities which all sorts 
 of learning may bring unto him ; none of all this would afford the 
 ravishing satisfaction, much less would any grosser delights of the 
 senses do it, which he might find in relieving the distresses of a poor, 
 mean, miserable neighbor; and which he might much more find in 
 doing any extensive service for the kingdom of our great Saviour in 
 the world ; or anything to redress the miseries under which mankind 
 is generally languishing. 
 
 Though this book is nearly two hundred years old, it is 
 not obsolete nor dull nor useless, but it is full of com- 
 mon sense, rich in invention, surcharged with divine wis- 
 dom and benevolence; and it is, moreover, written in 
 a free, lively, and entertaining style, enlivened by wit 
 and redolent of learning. It should rank with the best 
 writings that gave luster to the age of Queen Anne. 
 
 The relation of the young to the church as the spes 
 gregiSf or hope of the flock, was ever resting on Cotton 
 Mather's heart. It was evinced anew by his "Chris- 
 
COTTON MATHER. 365 
 
 tianity Demonstrated, in a sermon to my young men," 
 spoken in October, 1709, but published in the present 
 year. It was an '' essay to consider the sanctifying work 
 of grace on the minds of the faithful, as a noble demon- 
 stration of the truth of our holy religion." It was an 
 appeal to all classes, but especially unto young persons to 
 seek after God. i John 5 : 10. He says : " I am under- 
 taking to produce witnesses unto the truth of Christian- 
 ity. I shall be able to say, the witnesses are at hand. 
 Hundreds of witnesses are now appearing, 't is to be 
 hoped, in our assembly." Quite a number were added 
 to an already large church this year. " A true Christian 
 has from the work of the Holy Spirit on him, a witness 
 within himself of the truth of Christianity." He guards 
 this statement in a way to give it force. 
 
 A little work of thirty-six pages, which I have not 
 found, on a subject which perhaps no other pastor ever 
 approached, had the sacred and tender title, " Elizabeth 
 in her holy retirement." It was written to "prepare a 
 pious woman for her lying-in, or, maxims and methods of 
 piety to direct and support an handmaid of the Lord who 
 expects a time of trouble." 
 
 At this date Mr. Mather received the title of Doctor 
 of Divinity, which in those days was a great and rare 
 honor and one highly prized. On the twenty-fifth of 
 December he wrote a letter " To the truly honorable and 
 venerable rector, and others of the University of Glas- 
 gow, acknowledging the degree of D.D." That he was 
 gratified by this recognition of his merits is evident from 
 his reply and from the preface to his Life of his father, 
 "The Parentator." None at home could deny his merits, 
 but some were mean enough to withhold the honor which 
 he had fairly earned from the renowned University of 
 Glasgow. It was therefore doubly pleasing. The degree 
 
366 LIFE AND TIMES OF 
 
 was accompanied by letters which informed him of the 
 high esteem of scholars and divines in the old country. 
 The honor was attended with a "signet ring," which some 
 of his friends advised him to wear, for the singular reason 
 that it would be in compliance with the fifth command- 
 ment, " Honor thy father and mother." The ornament 
 would thus not be an exhibition of vanity, but of filial 
 piety rather. His son remarks: "The Doctor therefore 
 would wear this ring, and made this action, so seemingly 
 inconsiderable, a great engine of religion." It may seem 
 trifling to make ado about wearing a signet ring when 
 college honors are so plentiful and so little esteemed by 
 the public ; but even now the reception of such degrees 
 excites so much envy that a considerate man would not 
 carry about his badge unless he had reason, sound or 
 plausible, to justify the act to himself. The son pro- 
 ceeds: "The emblem on the Doctor's signet is a tree, 
 with Psalm i : 3, written under it, and about it, Glascua 
 rigavit. The cast of his eye upon this, constantly pro- 
 voked him to pray, ' O God, make me a very fruitful tree, 
 and help me to bring forth seasonable fruit continually.' " 
 Another beautiful title of a volume of eighty-five pages 
 was "The Religion of the Morning." It was made up of 
 two utterances at different times, and had relation to 
 religion in early days — the "morning of life." The de- 
 scriptive title was : " Man eating the food of angels ; the 
 gospel of the Manna to be gathered in the morning." 
 Exodus 16: 21 : "They gathered the manna every morn- 
 ing." It was enforced "with diverse, and famous, and 
 wondrous examples of early piety ; especially, the surpris- 
 ing history ... of a late son to the physician of the 
 king of Prussia." In reading this little work one can but 
 regret that change of fashion or style in writing prevents 
 its being reprinted by thousands. Manna was gathered in 
 
COTTON MATHER. 367 
 
 the morning : so with the morning of life. The heavenly 
 manna is for the young. "When young gentlewomen are 
 very pious, and unto all sorts of endowments add this, 
 that they mind religion, and set a bright example of 
 religion, this is their truest beauty, but it puts a beauty 
 on religion too." 
 
 The death of a daughter of Judge Samuel Sewall, who 
 was a personal friend of Dr. Mather, though a member of 
 the South Church, was the occasion of a lecture on 
 "Divine Consolations." Job 15: 11: "Are the conso- 
 lations of God small with thee .'* " The essay was dedi- 
 cated to the judge. It shows that the consolations of 
 God are abundant and rich. i. Consolations in the prom- 
 ises of God ; 2. in the pleasures of piety ; 3. in the as- 
 surance of hope. The Spirit of God is the Comforter of 
 them that belong to him. 4. Most blessed consolations 
 in the heavenly blessedness. These consolations are great 
 I. in number ; 2. in their nature ; and 3. in their duration. 
 
 The "Theopolis Americana" (American City of God), 
 "An essay on the golden street of the holy city," was 
 a sermon to the General Court and dedicated to Judge 
 Sewall. It was a "testimony against the corruptions of 
 the Market place ; with some good hopes of better things 
 to be yet seen in the American world." It brightly 
 exhibits the tendency of the author's mind to rise above 
 the material to the spiritual. " Pure gold in the market 
 place." Revelation 21: 21: "The street of the city 
 was pure gold." Not lined with mints and treasuries of 
 bullion, but things infinitely richer. " Glorious things 
 are spoken of thee, O thou city of our God ! " " The 
 street be in thee, O New England. The interpretation 
 of it be unto you, O American colonies." He would 
 have the market place of every city and town in America 
 governed by the strictest rules of honesty and godliness. 
 
368 LIFE AND TIMES. 
 
 Dr. Mather was what he styled a " sober chiliast," a 
 believer in the millenniuniy but free from wild imagina- 
 tions. He looked for the coming of Christ to enlighten 
 the world and bring great multitudes into the church. 
 He supposed that the set time had almost come. 
 
 We have a world of reasons to believe that the second woe is 
 passing away, and that we are entering into the seventh day of the 
 Romish Jericho, and that black (but oh! let it be brief!) time, when 
 the vials of the wrath of God, and the most woful plagues that ever 
 were heard of, are to be poured out upon the Anti-Christian world. 
 When that fearful dispensation is over, then^ then that state of the 
 church on earth which will answer the description that is here given of 
 a new Jerusalem [will appear]. There will be a time when Jerusalem 
 shall be literally rebuilt ; and people all over the world shall be under 
 the influence of that holy city. 
 
 The late Earl of Shaftesbury was animated by this 
 same expectation, and his words often remind one of 
 Cotton Mather, who goes on to describe the ideal city. 
 One feature of it is as follows : — 
 
 The ' ' golden street " indicates that all the business in it will be 
 honest, sound, unalloyed by wrong, — in a word, pure gold. All pro- 
 ceedings, transactions, bargains, will be golden ones, or godly ones, in 
 the market. 
 
CHAPTER XVIII. 
 
 MANIFOLD LABORS AS PASTOR, CITIZEN, PHILANTHROPIST, 
 
 AND author: 1711-1715. 
 
 FROM the records of the church in 171 1, we cite a 
 singular cause of discipline, one which I have not 
 met with elsewhere, which may be noted: "John Brew- 
 ster, having given scandal, by assisting a soldier in desert- 
 ing from the camp, his repentance and confession was 
 this day — 12 d. 6 m. — publicly offered to the church, 
 and accepted." 
 
 The full diary of this year gives us what little aid can 
 be derived from published extracts, and a few names and 
 dates. 
 
 We find Dr. Mather carrying forward all sorts of char- 
 itable work whereby different classes of people might be 
 benefited, while giving special attention to his children. 
 To show the variety of interests that engaged him, take 
 the following summary. He was now (February 12) forty- 
 eight years old, and in his full vigor. 
 
 In March he refers to the education of his son In- 
 crease as a matter of prime importance. The lad was 
 now twelve years old, bright, healthy, mercurial, and full of 
 joyous life, but needing guidance. He was the only liv- 
 ing son of his mother, and very dear to his father's heart. 
 Of course he must have the best education the province 
 could give him and then be a minister, if God so pleased. 
 Yet for some cause, perhaps something in the boy's tem- 
 perament, the diary betrays no plan of the father to pre- 
 pare the son for the ministry. However that might be, 
 it was needful that his education for usefulness should be 
 
 369 
 
370 LIFE AND TIMES OF 
 
 attended to in time. The young girls — " little girls " 
 he calls them — must be taught housework. This in- 
 cluded Lizzie, who was seven, and probably Hannah, who 
 was fourteen. Katy was a young lady of twenty-two, and 
 Nabby had seen seventeen years, and both were doubtless 
 skilled in housekeeping, according to the training in good 
 households in the olden time. At the end of April the 
 father baptized the infant Jerusha, named after Aunt 
 Jerusha Oliver. About here comes in a little scene 
 between two of the young children — Lizzie, seven, and 
 Sammy, five. The boy was cross to the sister, as boys 
 will be. His punishment was to see his sister eat some 
 cake while he had none. He felt sorely and cried, when 
 the little girl, sister-like, with tearful eyes, gave him a part 
 of the cake. Such a scene has lasting influence. 
 
 This is a glimpse of home life; but Mather cared for 
 others outside of his family. He invited the children of 
 the parish to his house to be catechized, and they came. 
 He was so gracious in his ways, and so adapted his les- 
 sons to the young, that they loved to come. This man 
 had not only clerical authority, but personal attraction. 
 
 It was, from the first, considered the duty of the clergy 
 to visit the schools, and about eighty years after this date 
 the duty was put into the Constitution by the pen of 
 John Adams. This duty was esteemed a privilege by 
 Cotton Mather ; therefore he took time from his pressing 
 engagements to inspect the schools of the town. He 
 also attended to the support of the grammar school, which 
 included in its course of study preparation for Harvard 
 college. Nor was this all ; for in September he was 
 engaged in starting a charity school. I have somewhere 
 read the strange assertion that where the Mathers lived 
 they exerted no influence to elevate society and promote 
 progress. The record of every day of their adult lives 
 
COTTON MATHER, 
 
 zn 
 
 refutes the rash statement. At the same time that he 
 was looking after the welfare of the homeborn, he ac- 
 tively favored the formation of a society among the 
 Scotch settlers, whereby their moral and spiritual inter- 
 ests might be promoted. 
 
 Cotton Mather anticipated the Seamen's Friend Socie- 
 ties more than a hundred years by taking a personal 
 interest in the sea rovers, and their wives and children, 
 many of whom were in his congregation. Besides, he 
 wrote books for them, and placed them in vessels when 
 they sailed, for the entertainment and instruction of the 
 crews. He also sent some of his practical works to Scot- 
 land for free circulation. 
 
 In March, May, and other dates, he kept vigils. These 
 began when his family retired, and were kept till near 
 morning, when he was alone with God ; and maybe with 
 angels. 
 
 In March his mother was seventy years old, and he 
 noticed the event with special marks of honor to one who 
 was worthy to be the daughter of John Cotton. His 
 annual journey to Salem was taken in September, where 
 he preached on the Sabbath, and probably on Lecture 
 day, as was his wont. 
 
 Among his numerous correspondents this year was Dr. 
 Francke, of Saxony, famous in his day for learning and 
 for evangelistic work ; and also Daniel De Foe, celebrated 
 in all countries where boys can read, and booked for a 
 passage to endless fame. 
 
 And all the while Dr. Mather was doing good by 
 advice, by sympathy, and by gifts, beyond his means, to 
 worthy, or, mayhap, unworthy, objects of charity. He 
 believed in doing good to sinners, and he denied himself 
 that he might have the means. 
 
 The works of nature were, in his theology, the works 
 
372 LIFE AND TIMES OF 
 
 of God, and advancement in knowledge of these works 
 drew him into more intimate communion with his Crea- 
 tor and Preserver. To this mode of learning and teach- 
 ing the attributes of God he devoted his thought and 
 his pen. 
 
 Several war vessels came from England in the spring 
 of this year, and Dr. Mather took pains to be acquainted 
 with the officers and endeavored to ''engage them in 
 works of piety." They belonged to a great fleet sent 
 over for the conquest of Canada. In the preceding year 
 Colonel Nicholson, with six English vessels, thirty New 
 England vessels, and four New England regiments, had 
 taken Port Royal. The place was named Annapolis, in 
 honor of Queen Anne. The new expedition was com- 
 posed of fifteen ships of war and forty transports, under 
 the command of Sir Hovenden Walker, attended by a 
 battalion of marines and by seven veteran regiments under 
 General Hill, who had seen war on a great scale under 
 Marlborough. Its design was to capture Quebec and 
 add Canada to the British dominions. This fleet lay 
 in Boston harbor from June 25 to the thirtieth of July, 
 taking in colonial forces and supplies. The expedition 
 proved a disastrous, if not a disgraceful, failure, owing in 
 part to the incapacity of the commanding officers. The 
 only advantage it brought to Boston and the province was 
 the money paid for stores ; but this was many times over- 
 balanced by the loss of life and the wasting of substance. 
 But there was a set of politicians just then at the head 
 of the government in England, of whom the gifted but 
 unprincipled Lord Bolingbroke was chief, who cared 
 little what became of Canada provided they could retain 
 power and pay. He had stopped the splendid career of 
 Marlborough on the continent, and hoped to obtain pop- 
 ularity by a brilliant campaign in Canada. The failure, 
 
COTTON MATHER. 2>7Z 
 
 however, was a disgrace to himself and his party and a 
 bitter result for the province and all New England. 
 There was a passion for the conquest of Canada. No 
 men felt the result more keenly than the Mathers, because 
 they had in mind all the captivities and murders which 
 had come from the incursions of French and Indians, 
 and none more clearly foresaw what sufferings would still 
 come from the same source. 
 
 Another calamitous event made this a sorrowful year to 
 the people of Boston. This was the great fire in Octo- 
 ber, when a considerable part of the business portion of 
 the town was consumed. This is not the place for partic- 
 ulars, but it concerns us to notice the connection of Dr. 
 Mather with it. On the fourth of October he preached 
 a sermon on the fire that had raged the two preceding 
 days. His text was Numbers 1 1 : 2 : " He called the name 
 of the place Taberah : because the fire of the Lord burnt 
 among them." The title was : " Advice from Taberah, 
 preached after the terrible fire, which, attended with some 
 very lamentable and memorable circumstances, laid a con- 
 siderable part of Boston in ashes." According to his 
 wont the preacher ascribed the calamity to the holy provi- 
 dence of God in rebuking a sinful people ; and he directed 
 a "pious improvement of so calamitous a desolation." 
 The running title was: "The Voice of God crying to 
 the city." 
 
 A narrative that used to thrill the hearers round the 
 winter fireside was the occasion of an " Essay of prof- 
 itable reflections." John Dare and a company, ship- 
 wrecked on a desolate rock on the northeastern coast, had 
 *' surprising distresses and deliverances." These called 
 for "awful and useful consideration." Other remarka- 
 ble occurrences were added, making a little book of about 
 fifty pages. The title was " Compassions Called For " ; 
 
374 ^^^^ ^^^ TIMES OF 
 
 and it was adapted to affect the heart and awaken an 
 interest in those who "go down to the sea in ships." 
 
 The ** Memorials of Early Piety " is a choice little 
 work, relating the *' holy life and joyful death " of his 
 sister, Mrs. Jerusha, wife of Peter Oliver. It gives some 
 account of her " Christian experiences, and extracts from 
 her reserved papers." He thus speaks of her : — 
 
 She had a great felicity in a more than ordinary strength and sharp- 
 ness in her eyesight, being able to read by such a dim light as others 
 could not, for which she was thankful to God, and made a good use of 
 it. She became from her childhood a notable mistress of her pen, 
 wrote a fair hand, and rarely misspelt a word in all that passed her 
 hands. She was to her father his amanuensis, and could read his 
 ordinary hand and characters; and transcribed many of his printed 
 books for the press. 
 
 One who has tried to read the manuscript of Increase 
 Mather must wish that she had rewritten them all. She 
 kept a diary, and seldom let a day pass '* without entering 
 some or other; that was an aspiration of serious piety." 
 Her husband was a goldsmith, a ''virtuous young man^ 
 one of good reputation for a skillful artist in his calling,, 
 as well as for his piety, with whom she was likely to have 
 lived happily, he being very tender of her." She was a 
 true woman, bright, sweet, kind to the poor, devout, and 
 happy. 
 
 The following exhibits a phase of ancient New 
 England life, showing how Christian families looked to 
 their ministers in times of bereavement. The Hon. John 
 Foster and his wife having died, his religious family kept 
 a day of prayer, when a sermon was preached to them by 
 Dr. Mather. It was styled " Orphanotrophium, or, or- 
 phans well-provided for." It set forth in lively colors the 
 care taken of the children by divine Providence when 
 their parents are removed, with " advice to both parents 
 
COTTON MATHER. 375 
 
 and children, that the care of heaven may be more con- 
 spicuously and comfortably obtained by them." 
 
 The adaptation by Dr. Mather of all his discourses to 
 the condition of the afflicted was evident in the above, as 
 well as in the following " Persuasions from the terror of 
 the Lord," spoken " 15 d. 2 m.," on Psalm 50 : 3 : *' Our 
 God shall come." It is a masterly discourse, but I can 
 give only the motto on the title-page, and a few words 
 addressed to the parents. The occasion was the "sudden 
 death of a lad, crushed to death by a cart falling on him." 
 
 Sic Deus vias nostras considerat, et gressus dinumerat, ut ne mini- 
 mae quidem cogitationes, ac verba minutissima, ejus judicio indiscussa 
 remanerant. 
 
 Quantus tremor est fiiturus, 
 Quando judex est venturus, 
 Cuncta stricte discussurus? 
 
 " God so considers our ways, and numbers our steps, 
 that not the smallest thoughts, or least words, may escape 
 his scrutiny." 
 
 What a trembling there will be, 
 
 When the awfiil Judge we see. 
 
 Judging all things strictly !i 
 
 Address to my dear friends, that were the parents of the child, 
 whose death gave life to the following sermon. When the glorious 
 Lord of our lives took away your lovely son in such a sudden and 
 awful manner, you religiously said, the Lord has taken away. And 
 you had a thousand considerations to quiet you under such a dispensa- 
 tion. Among the rest, one was the dutiful and delightful behavior of 
 this child unto his pious, gracious and holy grandmother, who died but 
 a little while before him, and on her death-bed expressed her satis- 
 faction in him. 
 
 A sermon pertinent to any period seems to belong to 
 this year. It was an " Earnest Exhortation to the children 
 
 1 Dr. Mather is not responsible for this free translation. 
 
2)"]^ LIFE AND TIMES OF 
 
 of New England to exalt the God of their fathers." The 
 text was taken from the Song of Moses (Ex. 15:2):" My 
 father's God, I will exalt him." The topic is in these 
 words : " The children and posterity of godly parents are 
 under special obligations to exalt their fathers' God." He 
 first exhibits the ways of exalting God, and then presents 
 the obligations to do it with clearness and with cogent 
 application. The following fact is cited as an incitement 
 to imitate the fathers of New England in exalting God, 
 the great Father. A preacher to the parliament, in com- 
 pany with the assembly of divines in Westminster, show- 
 ing how the fathers of New England honored God, said 
 that he "had lived in a country seven years, in which 
 time he never saw a beggar, nor a man overcome with 
 strong drink, nor did ever hear a profane oath. What 
 happy country was it, think you t It was New England." 
 
 Nearly all that can be learned of the life of Cotton 
 Mather for the year 1712 must be derived from his pub- 
 lished writings. Those were numerous, and on topics 
 of immediate and practical importance. It may be noted 
 that the Bib Ha Ajnericana, in six huge manuscript folios, 
 was completed, except as additions were made from time 
 to time, in the course of reading, so that the author could 
 turn his mind to other studies. But as his father was 
 now seventy-five years old, and beginning to feel the 
 weakness of age, the larger part of pastoral duties fell to 
 the junior. 
 
 A case of discipline had a peaceful solution. William 
 Colman was restored to fellowship, and allowed to seek 
 membership in another church. It is supposed that this 
 was the name of a man who had been very hostile to 
 the pastor. 
 
 It is said that the practice of reading the Scriptures in 
 public worship began about this time, in the Congrega- 
 
COTTON MATHER. 377 
 
 tional churches. In the service of the English Church 
 it was arranged that portions of the Bible should be read 
 every Sabbath. This was specially needful when Bibles 
 were few, and large numbers were unable to read. But 
 after the publication of King James' edition, Bibles were 
 more common, and the greater part of a Puritan congre- 
 gation could read their Bibles at home. But the reading 
 of Holy Scripture greatly enriches the service in the 
 house of God. One of the peculiarities in the worship 
 in Brattle Street Church was Scripture reading. Prob- 
 ably it recommended itself to other churches, and thus 
 came gradually into use. The exact date of its introduc- 
 tion into the Second Church has not been found. 
 
 A matter of great interest to the whole congregation 
 began to be agitated about this time. It was the forma- 
 tion of a new religious society and church at the north 
 end. The matter was in abeyance all the next year, but 
 the church was not organized till early in 17 14. It may 
 be noted here, however, that Cotton Mather manifested 
 a friendly spirit throughout, as the pages of the diary for 
 1 71 3 fully show. But Dr. Increase Mather was troubled 
 by the movement, perhaps because he could not see the 
 need of another church in the neighborhood ; yet he did 
 nothing unbecoming his years and position. The junior 
 pastor has been recklessly censured as if he was in oppo- 
 sition to the enterprise, when in fact he was friendly to 
 it and cordially assisted in the formation of the church. 
 
 His connection with public events this year calls for 
 no special mention. We may believe that his pastoral 
 duties were zealously performed; that his work in the 
 study was incessant ; that his correspondence was large ; 
 that he aided all needy applicants for help ; that he was 
 ''devising" wise plans for the benefit of others; that he 
 kept his vigils and fasts, as aforetime ; that he had his 
 
378 LIFE AND TIMES OF 
 
 trials from evil spirits and unfriendly men ; that he had 
 blessed compensations in prayer, and that his family 
 shared in the affections of his warm heart in the usual 
 abundant measure. 
 
 Fourteen writings, at least, saw the light in the year 
 1 71 2, besides letters and prefaces. They would make 
 up a volume of more than 600 pages in ordinary octavo, 
 pica. Some of these will be briefly referred to, showing 
 as they do the variety with which Dr. Mather enter- 
 tained his large and intelligent congregation. 
 
 One was entitled " Awakening Thoughts on the Sleep 
 of death," in which a tribute was paid to the memory of 
 some that slept in Jesus, especial reference being made 
 to Mrs. Mary Higginson. He showed the meaning of 
 that lively metaphor, "the Sleep of death," the nature of 
 sleep, and the method by which we may enter into a happy 
 rest, when we fall asleep. 
 
 Not only were sailors proper the objects of Mather's 
 special interest, but the fishermen who abounded in the 
 north end had in him a friend. We have '' The Fisher- 
 man's Calling," with a preface addressed to the gentlemen 
 who employ the fishermen. It is a " Brief Essay to serve 
 the great interests of religion among our fishermen, and 
 set before them the calls of their Saviour, whereof they 
 should be sensible in the employments of their fishery." 
 He says of it : "I have here done something like what 
 Peter did ; I have girt a fisher's coat about me. Your fish 
 don't always come so soon as you would have them ; you 
 must bait and wait : your patience must be exercised. In 
 like manner, you must be willing to pray and wait for 
 the desired mercies of God." 
 
 We come now to what has been called a Christmas 
 sermon ; one of the earliest — perhaps the first preached 
 from a Puritan pulpit, in New England. It contained this 
 
. CO TTON MA THER. 3 79 
 
 caution, which was sadly needed by keepers of Christmas 
 in those times : " We lay the charges of God upon you, 
 that if any people take this time for anything of a riot- 
 ous tendency, you do not associate with them in their 
 ungodliness. The grace of God in sending us a great 
 Saviour, calls for more pious acknowledgments." It 
 was preached on the twenty-fifth of December, and bore 
 the title: "Grace Defended; a censure on the ungodli- 
 ness by which the glorious grace of God is too commonly 
 abused ; containing some seasonable admonitions of piety, 
 and concluded with a brief dissertation on that case, 
 whether the thief on the cross be an example of one 
 repenting at the last hour, and on such repentance, 
 received unto mercy." 
 
 A mortal sickness raged in Connecticut, and the many 
 deaths of " our brethren there " occasioned " Seasonable 
 Thoughts upon Mortality." Mather was always inter- 
 ested in the affairs and fortunes of this colony. Perhaps 
 he remembered with satisfaction the call he had received, 
 when a very young man, to become the pastor of the 
 important church in New Haven. His intimate friend- 
 ship with some members of the Winthrop family residing 
 in New London fostered this interest in the college, 
 churches, and people of Connecticut. 
 
 Perhaps this had something to do with writing his 
 *' Repeated Warnings, an essay to warn young people 
 against rebellions that must be repented of; with a 
 pathetical relation of what occurred in the remarkable 
 experiences of a young man who made a hopeful end 
 lately at Lyme, in Conn." To this was added a " Copy 
 of a letter to the author" from the father of the young 
 man, M. G. (Matthew Griswold). 
 
 His " Grata Brevitas, a Winter Sermon," was an " Essay 
 to demonstrate that a few words may have much com- 
 
380 LIFE AND TIMES OF 
 
 prised in them, with the most weighty matters of reli- 
 gion" ; and his "Pastoral Desires" expressed the "excel- 
 lent things which a true pastor v^'iW desire to see approved, 
 and practiced, and abounding among his people." This 
 was designed to be left in families as he made pastoral 
 calls, and was adapted with the author's usual felicity 
 to its purpose. Both of these writings — one of 20, and 
 the other of 116, pages, evinced the wide scope of Cotton 
 Mather's ministry. Nothing escaped him which could be 
 utilized for the good of individuals or the public. We 
 cease to wonder how he could hold the minds and 
 hearts of the congregation as we become familiar with 
 the ingenuity and fertility of his mind and the glowing 
 fervor of his spiritual nature. 
 
 It is often said that the resurrection of Christ is the 
 point of attack by unbelievers, in recent years, as they 
 have been driven by the progress of study from every 
 other ground. If they can disprove that, the whole 
 edifice of Christianity will fall. But Mather realized this 
 in his day, as keenly as any in ours. His " Reason Satis- 
 fied, and faith established ; the resurrection of a glorious 
 Jesus demonstrated by many infallible proofs ; and the 
 holy religion of a risen Jesus victorious over all cavils of 
 its blaspheming adversaries," is a compact presentation 
 of the whole subject in forty-seven condensed pages. 
 
 If Dr. Mather were on earth now, he would not be 
 incited to publish so often and on such a variety of sub- 
 jects ; but in his time there was a dearth of books adapted 
 to the religious wants of the people. Those that were in 
 vogue were in volumes of considerable size. Tracts were 
 few, in comparison with the deluge of them which now 
 overspreads the land. Therefore he poured forth a stream 
 of sermons, tracts, and little books, for the sake of doing 
 good, regardless of the effect on his reputation as a clergy- 
 
CO TTON MA THER. 3 8 I 
 
 man or author. In this spirit his " Soul well-anchored ; 
 a little manual for self-examination," was given to the 
 public, "to assist a Christian in examining his hopes 
 of future blessedness." Prefixed was a short hymn to 
 "assist the pauses of self-examination." 
 
 There is a poetic beauty in many of his titles, as, for 
 example, " Thoughts for the day of rain " ; two essays : 
 I. "The Gospel of the rainbow, in the meditations of 
 piety on the appearance of the bright clouds with the Bow 
 of God upon them ; and 2. The Saviour with his Rainbow, 
 and the covenant which God will remember his people 
 in the cloudy times that are passing over them." 
 
 In like manner, depicting the " hard way of transgress- 
 ors," he does it in a "True Survey and report of the 
 Road," wherein he is able to show all the hardships of 
 the road that leads to death. 
 
 It is admirable with what a variety of address he studied 
 to interest the young. Here are three brochures : two 
 at the close of this year, and one at the opening of the 
 next. The title of one is " The Ways and Joys of 
 Early Piety," with a testimony against some "errors 
 which many of our children run into." Another is "The 
 young man spoken to," which inculcates the " maxims of 
 early religion." This was preached on a special occasion, 
 the death of good Peter Oliver, whose wife Jerusha, 
 Mather's lovely sister, died a year or two before. The 
 third was " The A. B. C. of religion ; lessons relating to 
 the fear of God, fitted unto the youngest and lowest 
 capacities." Appended are " Instructions for children in 
 verse," and the "Body of Divinity Versified " ; the whole 
 filling about 1 20 pages. 
 
 1 71 3. A diary for this year, beginning on the author's 
 birthday, February 12, remains. A few passages have 
 been printed in Peabody's Life of Cotton Mather, and 
 
382 LIFE AND TIMES OF 
 
 perhaps in other books. Free use has been made of 
 these. 
 
 From this year on to the close of Mather's ministry, 
 the average of admissions to the church was about 
 twenty-five per year. 
 
 The project of forming a new church — the New North 
 — was carried forward, and a meetinghouse was built, 
 though the church was not organized. It was hard for 
 the senior pastor to be reconciled to the dividing of his 
 congregation, and, quite naturally, he felt a reluctance to 
 part with many to whom he had ministered many years, 
 as they grew from childhood to manhood and old age. 
 Possibly he felt mortified by the apprehension that they 
 withdrew because tired of his ministrations ; but there is 
 no proof of any such loss of interest in his labors. There 
 was actual need of a new society and house of worship, 
 as the event proved, for the accommodation of an increas- 
 ing population. Ministers sometimes fail to see such a 
 need, and thereby hinder the growth of churches. The 
 younger pastor seems to have had a better understanding 
 of the situation. 
 
 The Mather meetinghouse was either enlarged or 
 preparations were made to enlarge it at this time, and 
 "galleries of the second range" were added. Fourteen 
 were dismissed to help build the new meetinghouse. 
 Probably a building society was formed before a church 
 was organized. 
 
 Some items relating to family matters may be grouped 
 together, though they occurred at different dates. In 
 February there were prospects of the espousal of Katy, 
 and also of a sister. This must have been a second 
 marriage, as all his sisters had been married previous to 
 this time, except one, who died in infancy. It was doubt- 
 less the marriage of Maria, whose first husband was Barte 
 
COTTON MATHER. 383 
 
 Green. She was united to her second husband, Richard 
 Fifield, November 6, 171 3. The acquisition of a new 
 brother-in-law and relatives put Dr. Mather, as usual 
 with him, upon "devisings" to do them good. His be- 
 loved Katy was now about twenty-four; and, though 
 attractive and accomplished, she died in maidenhood,^ 
 of consumption, a few years later. 
 
 This was a year of great family affliction. Mrs. 
 Mather was taken sick. The measles were prevalent and 
 she became a victim. It was noticed that the perils of 
 childbirth were aggravated by that disease at the time. 
 Twins, Eleazar and Martha, were born, but died in No- 
 vember. On the eighth day of that month appears the 
 following ^ in the diary : — 
 
 When I saw my consort easy, and the measles appearing with favor- 
 able symptoms upon her, I flattered myself that my fear was all over. 
 But this day we are astonished at the surprising symptoms of d^ath 
 upon her, after an extreme want of sleep for divers whole days and 
 nights together. To part with so desirable, so agreeable a companion! 
 a dam from such a nest of young ones too ! Oh, the sad cup which 
 my Father hath appointed me ! God made her willing to die. God 
 extinguished in her the fear of death. God enabled her to commit 
 herself to the hands of a great and good Saviour ; yea, and to cast her 
 orphans there too. I prayed with her many times, and left nothing 
 undone that I could find myself able to do for her consolation. 
 
 On Monday, 9 d 9 m. between three and four in the Afternoon, my 
 dear, dear, dear friend expired. Whereupon, with another prayer in 
 that Melancholy Chamber, I endeavored the Resignation to which I 
 am called. I cried to heaven for the grace which might be suitable 
 to this calamitous occasion, and carried my orphans to the Lord. 
 Oh, the prayers, for my poor children! Oh! the counsels to them 
 now Called for! 
 
 10 d 9 m. In the midst of my Sorrowes . . . the Lord helped 
 me to prepare no less than Two Sermons for a public Thanksgiving, 
 which is to be celebrated the day after tomorrow. 
 
 II. 9 This day, I interred the Earthly part of my dear Consort. 
 She had an Honourable Funeral. 
 
 1 Peabody, page 302. 
 
384 LIFE AND TIMES OF 
 
 Her son Samuel, who was seven years old at the time 
 of his mother's death, in connection with the testimony, 
 as to her character, given on page 301, writes as follows : — 
 
 Her husband rejoiced in her as having great spoil, and in finding 
 her, found great favor of the Lord. They lived together in perfect 
 content and harmony over ten years. She died with willingness ; the 
 fear of death was extinguished in her. She committed herself unto 
 the hands of her Saviour, and in the same gracious hands, she left 
 her children. She was much beloved and greatly lamented. 
 
 If the death of Mrs. Mather occurred on the eighth of 
 November, as some genealogical tables fix it, little Martha 
 died on the nineteenth, because it was eleven days later. 
 He writes of the daughter's death : " Little Martha died 
 at eleven o'clock in the morning." But this was not all. 
 Besides his wife and the twins, he adds : " I am again 
 called to the sacrifice of my dear, dear Jerusha. Just 
 before she died, she asked me to pray with her, which I 
 did, with a distressed, but resigning soul ; and I gave her 
 up unto the Lord. The minute that she died, she said she 
 would go to Jesus Christ. She had lain speechless for 
 many hours. But in her last moments, her speech re- 
 turned a little unto her. Lord ! I am oppressed ! Under- 
 take for me ! " This little hopeful child was only two 
 and a half years old. 
 
 This closes another period in the domestic life of Cot- 
 ton Mather. Of the nine children by his first wife, four 
 only remained to him ; namely, Katharine, twenty-four ; 
 Abigail, nineteen ; Hannah, sixteen ; and Increase, eleven. 
 Of the six children of the second wife, two were left : 
 Elizabeth, the eldest, now nine, and Samuel, the next in 
 birth, who was seven. Two "lovely consorts" and nine 
 much-loved children were laid in the spacious tomb given 
 to him by his friends in 1702. Their garnered dust 
 
COTTON MATHER, 385 
 
 reposed there^ but this afflicted husband and father was 
 accustomed, in mind, to follow the spirits of his lost ones 
 to God, who gave them. And in respect to all these he 
 had a cheerful and consoling hope. 
 
 In all the afflictions above recorded, the labors of Dr. 
 Mather were incessant. Grief for himself never relaxed 
 his service for the good of others. Preaching at home, 
 or at Salem, Ipswich, or wherever wanted, he found time 
 to prepare many short treatises and sermons for the press. 
 Of some of these a brief notice will now be taken. 
 
 His "Adversus Libertinos," with the running title, 
 ^' The Gospel entertained, with the Law established," was 
 one of these. The occasion of this work of forty-nine 
 pages is given in his own words : — 
 
 The churches in some southern colonies of our North America, have 
 begun to suffer an assault from some spreaders of Antinomian errors, 
 and sowers of tares and of strifes among them. A valuable servant 
 of God, who hath been, after an exemplary manner, laboring for his 
 name's sake, without fainting, in those colonies, wrote his desire that 
 something might be here composed and published against Antinomian- 
 ism, with an attestation to it, from the ministers of Boston, and be sent 
 thither for the establishment of the faithful in their most holy faith. 
 
 The ** Advice from the Watchtower " was an expose 
 of certain evil customs that had been coming in, with 
 "methods for suppressing them." A "black list" of 
 some of these evil customs was added. This work will 
 appear again. 
 
 On the twenty-second of November, the month in 
 which the waves of affliction had gone over his soul, Dr. 
 Mather preached " The Best Way of Living," and gave 
 it to a publisher who had also been " struck with a sudden 
 death upon a vital part " of his family. The " best way 
 of living was to die daily." "One who lives in the midst 
 of deaths, may find cause to say so." " One who feels 
 
386 LIFE AND TIMES OF 
 
 within him that which bids him reckon his own among 
 the many deaths without him, can't but say so." *' One 
 who has in less than two weeks, had five deaths in his 
 family, would be very senseless if he should not say so.'* 
 He goes on to inquire, from his own sorrowful experience, 
 " What is the dying daily which a Christian is to live in 
 the practice of ? " 
 
 The same event — death in his family at this time — 
 prompted a sermon from the text Luke 9 : 23, and the 
 subject of it was thus stated : " He that would approve 
 himself a Christian, or hope to be found an approved 
 Christian, must be willing to entertain whatever afflictive 
 cross his glorious Lord shall please to order for him." 
 He asks, *' What is a Christian } A Christian is one who 
 believes all that our glorious Lord Jesus Christ has 
 revealed. A Christian is one who also obeys all that 
 our Lord Jesus Christ has commanded." " How must 
 a Christian suffer the cross which the Lord Jesus shall 
 order for him .? " 
 
 We have often observed that Mather's sermons had 
 always an occasion, an object, or a purpose. The two 
 following are in this line. " The Curbed Sinner " was 
 preached on the occasion of a sentence of death, passed 
 on a young man for the murder of his companion. It 
 shows the restraints laid upon men, in the providence of 
 God, to "keep them from sinning against him." And 
 the " Flying Roll brought forth to enter into the house 
 and hand of the thief" (Zech. 5 : i) shows how theft is 
 detected and exposed and how repentance is demanded 
 from the malefactor. 
 
 The death of a schoolmaster in Boston, Mr. Recom- 
 pense Wadsworth, and the sickness that was prevalent in 
 the latter part of the year, suggested the ** Lively De- 
 scription of Death " and his " Christian armed with 
 strength from above." 
 
COTTON MATHER. 38/ 
 
 "A Man of his Word" was preached before the gov- 
 ernor and the general assembly in June, at the Boston 
 lecture. It was doubtless intended for the occasion, as 
 it insists upon the oath of the men in public life to be 
 true to the interests of the state. Perhaps some would 
 imagine that there were covert allusions to the governor,, 
 as one who was sometimes derelict in duty. The text, 
 from Psalm 15: 4, is as follows: ^' He that sweareth to 
 his own hurt, and changeth not." If the preacher had 
 any public man in mind, he made no application. He 
 says that " a good man will be as good as his word. If a 
 good man has given his word, he changeth not ; he won't 
 fall from it ; he won't be false to it. He keeps his faith 
 in his promises, both unto God, and unto his neighbor." 
 He goes on to show how all-embracing is the scope of 
 this obligation to fidelity — to one's word, vow, promise,, 
 or oath ; and how the good man, in public as well as in 
 private life, will be true and unchangeable. 
 
 A discourse delivered on the thirtieth of September, 
 entitled '^ Nepenthes Evangelicumy*' or, evangelical assuag- 
 ing of grief, was delivered on a most interesting occasion. 
 The Rev. John Wilson was the first minister of the First 
 Church of Boston, and Mrs. Mary Rock, at whose funeral 
 the sermon was spoken, was his daughter. As she was 
 in the eighty-first year of her age, she must have been 
 born in 1632, only a year or two after the settlement of 
 Boston. She is spoken of as a ''religious matron," and 
 it is said of her that she was " one of the firstborn, if not 
 the very first of her sex that was born in this famous 
 metropolis of the English America, and who deserves 
 to be honorably mentioned as long as Boston shall endure, 
 which I hope will be as unto the second coming of our 
 Saviour." It is hardly supposable, however, that she was 
 the first girl baby of the Puritan immigration that was 
 
388 LIFE AND TIMES OF 
 
 born in Boston. But what a mass of New England his- 
 tory she must have carried in her mind, taking all she 
 had heard from her parents and all she had herself seen 
 and experienced ! 
 
 At this time Dr. Mather issued '' A New Offer to the 
 Lovers of Religion and Learning, being a Prospectus for 
 the publication of his Biblia Americana," in relation 
 to which the Rev. Thomas Prince, who knew whereof he 
 affirmed, wrote thus : — 
 
 I cannot forbear expressing my most earnest wishes that that ad- 
 mirable labor of his, The American Bible, might soon appear, . . . 
 an extraordinary work that his heart has been set upon from his early 
 days, and has taken him up almost fifty years to compose. 
 
 This work will be referred to at greater length in later 
 pages, but it may be said here that its immense size 
 probably prevented its publication. From a rough esti- 
 mate it would have been four times as large as the Mag- 
 nalia, or eight large octavo volumes, in similar type. 
 But few ministers could afford to subscribe for a single 
 work at such cost as would be remunerative to author 
 or publisher. 
 
 An essay with the title " Tabitha Redivivus" to de- 
 scribe and commend the good works of a virtuous woman, 
 with some justice done to the memory of that religious 
 and honorable gentlewoman, Mrs. Elizabeth Hutchinson, 
 was one of the publications of this year. Some of the 
 passages are worthy of insertion, because of the noble 
 tribute to the first mothers of New England. '' This 
 woman was full of good works." Paul's three glorious 
 words are "soberly, righteously, and godly." The author 
 remarks : — 
 
 Both Testaments of the Bible have celebrated the virtuous women 
 of the early ages. Eve, the mother of all that live unto God. The 
 
COTTON MATHER. 389 
 
 women that wrestled with faith, and gave glory to God our Saviour — 
 women that were leaders to others in the praise of God, and that were 
 mighty blessings to all the people of God : women that were filled 
 with the Spirit of God, and exemplary for the things that are holy, and 
 just, and good. ... As it was in old time, also has it been in our 
 time. Very many of those matrons who cheerfully bore their part in 
 the terrible transportation over the huge Atlantic Ocean, into this 
 horrid and howling wilderness, were such patrons of patience and of 
 courage in going through that glorious undertaking to take possession 
 of these uttermost parts of the earth for our Saviour, that wherever 
 the gospel is preached in foreign countries, what they have done ought 
 to be told for a memorial of them. And the remainder of their pil- 
 grimage which they passed in this wilderness, they spent in a con- 
 spicuous fear of God ; and the actions of a prayerful, watchful, humble 
 walk with him, wherein they obtained a testimony that they pleased 
 him, and this wilderness became, on the noblest accounts in the world, 
 a fruitful field. They are gone, and their daughters have rose up and 
 called them blessed. The two succeeding generations have been also 
 brightened with numbers of their genuine daughters who have walked 
 in the steps of that faith, and that zeal for good works, which they have 
 seen in those that went before them. It is most certain, the virtuous 
 women in this land have been some of its brightest glories ; and so 
 will they be esteemed in the day when the Lord of hosts will make up 
 his jewels. 
 
 The sermon closes with a just character of a most 
 excellent woman. 
 
 An item of information about the college is found in 
 the funeral sermon of Rev. Recompense Wadsworth. 
 When he had been about two years in college (1706) 
 he made a covenant with God. Some of the students 
 " formed a society which, laying to heart the too general 
 decay of serious piety in the professors of it, resolved 
 upon essays to speak often unto one another, and in 
 the sweetest methods of brotherly love, watch over one 
 another ; or carry on some suitable exercises of religion 
 together, wherein they might prove blessings not only 
 unto one another, but unto many more whom they might 
 be concerned for." 
 
390 LIFE AND TIMES OF 
 
 The materials for 17 14 are meager, except what is 
 found in the issues of the press. The diary is entirely 
 wanting. The records of the church are happily free 
 from any stain of conduct needing discipline. On the 
 other side is the bright record of thirty-five admissions. 
 Among those received were the two eldest daughters of 
 Dr. Mather, namely, Katharine and Abigail. The pastor 
 loved all the children of the flock as his own, but there 
 must have been a peculiar joy in welcoming his own 
 daughters into the fold. These daughters were a source 
 of great comfort to their father. He speaks of them, as 
 of his other children, in terms of the tenderest affection. 
 If he had any favorite, which is not discernible, it might 
 have been the eldest, who, besides being affectionate and 
 dutiful, was a brilliant and highly educated girl. Espe- 
 cially were the daughters near to him at this time, for 
 it was a year of widowhood. From November, 171 3, to 
 July, 171 5, the family were without a mother. It was a 
 time when Increase, now a growing youth, was in special 
 need of the molding power of a wise and pious mother. 
 His own mother died in his infancy, and now he was 
 bereft again when the perils that beset life are most 
 dangerous. His temperament was such that all the in- 
 fluences of home were needed to keep him out of the 
 currents and whirlpools which bear so many away to 
 moral ruin. 
 
 There is extant a singular letter written by Cotton 
 Mather that probably belongs to this period. It has 
 been styled a 'Move letter," and is such emphatically. No 
 name or date is attached to it, but it is addressed to a 
 nameless lady, who is extolled in words of admiration 
 and profound respect. It is supposable that the object of 
 his devoirs was the lady who became his third wife, 
 but of this there is no certainty. The letter is referred 
 
COTTON MATHER, 
 
 391 
 
 to here as one that should be read by any one desirous 
 of seeing all sides of a many-sided man. It is in the 
 library of the Antiquarian Society. 
 
 The student of our early history is often struck with 
 the fact that the connection between the mother country 
 and the colonies was very close and involved. Though 
 by the aid of steam and the telegraph we are brought 
 into near proximity to England, our interests do not begin 
 to be so important or interesting as they were at any 
 time before the Revolution. It was almost a vital ques- 
 tion with our fathers as to whom allegiance was to be 
 paid. They lived in dread of, and in hostility to, the 
 whole Stuart succession. Under William and Mary they 
 felt secure, looking upon the king as not only the de- 
 liverer of England, but as the savior of the American 
 colonies from French domination and the extension of 
 the Roman Catholic Church over the continent. Under 
 Queen Anne there was an uneasy and apprehensive feel- 
 ing, as she came by degrees under the sway of the Tory 
 party, some of whom were ready to bring in her popish 
 brother, the Pretender, and nearly all of whom were 
 tainted with the politics of the reigns of Charles and 
 James. Though rendering due respect to the queen, 
 there was doubtless a feeling of satisfaction when the 
 news came that the Elector George of Hanover was 
 securely established as the king of Great Britain and 
 Ireland. The government of England was now in the 
 hands of the Whigs ; the king was indebted to them for 
 his throne. He had become a great prince, and he made 
 England the bulwark of Protestantism. Our fathers re- 
 joiced in the accession of the house of Brunswick, and 
 from the time of its advent in England we find names 
 of places marking the recognition of its claims upon 
 honor and gratitude. The names of Hanover, Brunswick, 
 
392 LIFE AND TIMES OF 
 
 Lunenburg, Nassau, and others were naturalized on our 
 soil. The satires of a great English novelist and critic 
 and the insular pride of Englishmen have led them to 
 belittle the Georges ; but the first two were men of 
 respectable abilities and dauntless courage, and they were 
 true to the principles of constitutional liberty and the 
 Protestant establishment. 
 
 The sentiment of the time in this province was uttered 
 in the discourse of Mather, entitled " The Glorious 
 Throne," preached September 23. It was a "short view 
 of our great Lord-Redeemer, on his throne ; ordering by 
 his providence, all the changes in the world ; and most 
 particularly what has occurred in the death of our late 
 memorable sovereign, and the legal succession of the 
 British crown to the illustrious house of Hanover, in a 
 sermon on that great occasion." The plot to bring in 
 the heir of the Stuarts at the death of Queen Anne is 
 glossed over by some English historians, but our preacher 
 seems to have had authentic intelligence that the plans 
 were all formed by the conniyance, if not the approbation, 
 of the queen, to proclaim her popish brother. The peo- 
 ple of New England rejoiced in the signal defeat of a 
 project that would have changed the history of England 
 and the destiny of these American states. 
 
 The history of the twelve years' war, from 1702 to 
 1 7 14, or during the whole reign of Queen Anne, gives 
 an account of the trials and deaths of our people from 
 the attacks of French and Indians, under the title of 
 " Duodecennium Luctuosum," or twelve grievous years. 
 It was delivered in the presence of the governor and the 
 general assembly, on the thirtieth of September, and was 
 intended to " declare the voice of the glorious God in the 
 various occurrences of that war, which have been thought 
 matters of more special observation." This is, in fact. 
 
COTTON MATHER. 393 
 
 a continuation of the " Decennium Luctuosum," or ten 
 years' war of King William {\6ZZ-\6o^^) in volume ii 
 of the Magnalia. 
 
 Quite a number of discourses were preached this year 
 as funeral sermons, or in connection with a time of sick- 
 ness. The decease of his mother suggested the discourse 
 on " Maternal Consolations " ; and that of his wife, the 
 one on "The Religion of the Cross." The "honorable 
 and religious gentlewoman, Mrs. Sarah Thing," was the 
 occasion of " A Life of Piety Resolved Upon, and the 
 resolutions wherewith such a walk is to be come into." 
 The winter of the year had been very sickly, and though 
 many passed through the sickness without dying, there 
 had been some deaths of " young persons who had been 
 patterns of piety." A sermon styled "The Perfect Re- 
 covery " spoke of the " voice of the glorious God unto 
 persons whom his mercy had recovered from sickness." 
 
 One of his little works, in twenty-two pages, had several 
 editions, — seven at least, — the last of which came out 
 in 1750. One was in "English and Indian." It was 
 a "Monitor for Communicants." Though anonymous, it 
 was approved by six ministers, whose names are given, 
 " by the unanimous voice and consent of the whole Asso- 
 ciation." It was an " essay to excite and assist religious 
 approaches to the table of the Lord." He says of the 
 effort : " It is much to be desired, and how sweet unto our 
 souls would be the desire accomplished, that the table of 
 the Lord may be more generally, and after the most 
 worthy manner, approached unto. The table of the Lord, 
 with his new-born children, like olive plants around it, 
 verily, 't is an excellent sight." This was probably spoken 
 when a large number were received into the church, 
 including two of his own daughters. He closes by 
 urging habitual and thorough preparation for the sacred 
 ordinance. 
 
394 ^^^^ ^^^ TIMES OF 
 
 Other writings were given to the press this year with 
 significant and beautiful titles, as the "Verba Vivivica," 
 or "words of life produced by the deaths of some young 
 persons " ; " Vita Brevis, an essay upon Withering Flow- 
 ers "; and the " Saviour with his Rainbow." I will close 
 the record with a brief reference to " The Sacrifices," 
 which was an "Essay upon the sacrifices wherewith a 
 Christian, laying claim to a holy priesthood, endeavors 
 to glorify God." From i Peter 2 : 5 the author draws 
 the doctrine that " Every Christian must be a sacrificer ; 
 his work is to glorify God, the great God, with spiritual, 
 and continued, and commanded sacrifices." 
 
 "What are the sacrifices in the oblation whereof a 
 Christian is to approve himself a priest unto God, a 
 spiritual sacrificer } " He first shows how we depend on 
 Christ the Sacrificer, then specifies all the ways in which 
 Christians are to make sacrifices. Next, the blessed re- 
 sults of sacrificing. " O ! come and taste, and see how 
 gracious the Lord will be unto the sacrificer, and be it 
 known unto you, nothing so comfortable, nothing so 
 profitable, as the heavenly skill of sacrificing. Of all our 
 enjoyments themselves, none of them all are so valuable 
 as the skill of sacrificing them all." 
 
 No line of diary sheds light on Cotton Mather's life 
 during the year 171 5, except about a month, in which an 
 item or two may be found of interest. 
 
 In January he decided that Samuel and the daughters 
 must live in the daily use of their pens. This was a point 
 in education. The practice of expressing themselves on 
 paper was found conducive to thought, and precision in 
 conveying it. Increase was put to the study of mathe- 
 matics, and was sent to fencing and music schools. 
 
 At a meeting of the church on the sixteenth of January, 
 "after the withdraw of the pastors," the following vote, 
 
COTTON MATHER. 395 
 
 drawn up by Colonel Adam Winthrop, was presented; 
 and the church " voted, nemine contradicentey that the 
 house of Mr. Thomas Hutchinson, in Ship street, now 
 vacant, be hired for the accommodation of the Reverend 
 Dr. Cotton Mather, at the charge of the church, until 
 some further provision be made for him." 
 
 The family had been without a wife and mother nearly 
 two years, when, on the fifth of July, Dr. Mather and 
 Mrs. Lydia George were united in marriage. She was 
 the daughter of Rev. Samuel Lee — a man famous for his 
 learning, who came from England, but after a few years 
 of service returned to the old country — and the widow 
 of Mr. John George, a Boston merchant. The evidences 
 of her accomplishments and of her husband's admiration 
 and affection are abundant ; but her nervous temperament 
 was soon a source of anxiety. 
 
 Several discourses this year as well as in the preceding 
 were commemorative or warning or comforting, in cases 
 of bereavement. The death of Rev. Thomas Bridge, 
 late pastor of the First Church, was noticed by "Bene- 
 dictus ; Good Men described, and the glories of their 
 goodness declared, with some characteristics of one who 
 belonged unto the tribe." 
 
 No man honored the laborers among the Indians more 
 than Dr. Mather. Though he never preached to them, 
 yet he evinced his regard for their welfare by writing and 
 circulating books among them. He also took pleasure in 
 extolling the goodness of those who carried the gospel 
 to them in person. In his "Just Commemorations," be- 
 sides giving an account in brief of the evangelical work 
 among the Christian Indians, he wrote in warm eulogy of 
 Rev. John Cotton, Rev. Grindal Rawson, and others, who 
 preached to English and Indians alike, and wore out their 
 lives in self-denying labors. 
 
396 LIFE AND TIMES OF 
 
 The " Blessings and Comforts reserved for pious chil- 
 dren after the death of their pious parents ; and a com- 
 memoration of two such parents," was preached to the 
 "children of an honored and religious family," on a time 
 of prayer in a neighborhood meeting. "Parentalia" was 
 the title, with the running title, " Blessings and Comforts 
 of pious children." The very titles seem to be fraught 
 with sweetest consolations, and a perusal of the discourse 
 shows the wealth of scriptural comfort that a fruitful and 
 godly mind can press into small compass. 
 
 Two sermons were delivered on a " Sorrowful spec- 
 tacle " : one by Dr. Mather, the other by Dr. Colman. 
 A miserable woman, sentenced to death for the murder 
 of a spurious offspring, was the occasion. The first was 
 on " The evil of a heart hardened against all means of 
 good." Dr. Colman's subject was "The fearful case of 
 such as in a suffering time, and much more, such as in a 
 dying hour, are found without the fear of God." Some 
 " remarkable things relating to the criminal, proper for 
 all to be informed of," were added. 
 
 Another sermon treated of generations of men passing 
 away. It contained " Remarks upon the changes of a 
 dying world, made by one generation passing off, and 
 another generation coming on." It was spoken in the 
 "audience of the general assembly." The third gen- 
 eration from the settlement had now nearly closed, and 
 the preacher could remember many of those who founded 
 Salem and Boston. 
 
 Mather's correspondence kept him familiar with the 
 work of Christians in foreign lands. One of his most 
 esteemed friends was Dr. Hermann Francke, of the 
 University of Halle, in Saxony. From him he received 
 information which he published under the heading of 
 " Nuncia Bona e Terra Longinqua, — a brief account 
 
COTTON MATHER. 
 
 397 
 
 of some good and great things a-doing for the kingdom of 
 God in the midst of Europe." He writes of Dr. Francke 
 that "he is the wonder of Europe for the vast projects 
 he has laid for religion and learning, and his success 
 in executing them." A postscript was added from Dr. 
 Kennet, on charity schools. Besides his professorship, 
 the life of Francke seems to have been devoted to 
 building up schools, philanthropic institutions, and the 
 spread of heartfelt religion. He was a man after Mather's 
 own heart. 
 
 A reference to " Shaking Dispensations " will close the 
 record of authorship for this year, in all about 400 
 printed pages Louis XIV of France had been king 
 more than fifty years, and probably there had not been 
 a year in the whole period when he was not plotting 
 to rule England, either by force or bribery. He held the 
 two Stuart kings in thrall by largesses ; he bribed mem- 
 bers of parliament to weaken their own branch of the 
 government in favor of the monarchy; and under William 
 and Anne, he kept cabinet ministers, generals, and mem- 
 bers of the privy council in pay. England and Holland 
 were in the way of his schemes of conquest and his 
 plans for the suppression of Protestantism. William of 
 Orange seems to have been raised up to thwart his de- 
 signs. The scheme of Louis embraced the conquest of 
 North America and the spread of Catholicism all over 
 its surface. The New England colonies were marked 
 for destruction. The people of New England felt it in 
 their bones. The clergy looked upon his reign as that 
 of Antichrist. The heart of Mather was oppressed with 
 the fear of French aggression and success. When Louis 
 died, on the first of September, 171 5, there was a sense 
 of relief throughout the British dominions, and nowhere 
 more sensibly than in New England. Mather's feelings 
 
398 LIFE AND TIMES, 
 
 were partly expressed in a sermon on the thirteenth of 
 October. It was an " Essay upon the mighty shakes 
 which the hand of heaven hath given, and is giving to 
 the world, with some useful remarks on the death of the 
 French king, who left off to make the world a wilderness, 
 and to destroy the cities thereof, on the 21st of August" 
 (O. S.). Dr. Mather took a correct measure of the sov- 
 ereign who lived, first, for his own personal glory, and 
 next, for the extension of French dominions ; but who 
 not only made a wilderness of other countries in his life- 
 time, but left to his own nation a legacy of poverty, 
 corruption, and bloody revolution — a heritage of curses 
 and evils not yet expended. 
 
CHAPTER XIX. 
 
 THE THIRD MRS. MATHER AND THE DEATH OF 
 KATHARINE: I716. 
 
 FOR the narrative of the year 1716 there are 
 abundant materials in the diary ; of these I have 
 condensed some and omitted more. The volume is in 
 the library of the Congregational Association, and the 
 greater part of it was printed in The Panoplist (vol. xvi), 
 though some important parts were omitted, and in some 
 cases the language was altered, though not so as to mate- 
 rially change the meaning. In this volume there is much 
 of recorded experience similar to what has been given 
 already, which proves that the writer's interior life flowed 
 on in its usual channel and with its usual fullness of spir- 
 itual enjoyment. Extracts will be made to connect the 
 thread of the life with what is before and what will come 
 after. 
 
 Among the twenty admitted to the church this year 
 one was Daniel Willard, the husband of Dr. Mather's 
 daughter Abigail. It was of this young man, a descendant 
 of Major Simon Willard, that his father-in-law wrote, June 
 6, as follows : " I brought him into a business which is 
 likely to prove superior to what any young man in the 
 country pretends unto. But I must now endeavor that I 
 may be to his advantage in regard of his better part. This 
 must be by the continued admonitions and inculcations of 
 piety." 
 
 On the twelfth of February, his birthday, the diary 
 opens thus : " What ! and is the fifty-third year of my 
 
 399 
 
400 LIFE AND TIMES OF 
 
 life this day finished ? A life so forfeited, a life so threat- 
 ened, such a dying life ; yea, such a barren one ! My God, 
 I praise thee. The display of thy sovereign grace is my 
 admiration, my astonishment. My Saviour, I bless thee ; 
 I love thee ; I resolve to serve thee. ... I am reviving my 
 cares to visit the flock, and I would as soon as I can, get 
 furnished with Echoes of Devotion^ that I may lodge the 
 book in all the families where I come." The Echoes was 
 a little practical work in thirty-six pages, soon published. 
 
 The next day he wrote : ** Unto each of my children, 
 present my Utilia^ with my charges unto them, to make 
 the book very much their companion and counsellor. 
 There are some relatives at a further distance from me, 
 to whom the like present of my Utilia may be an agree- 
 able expression of my concern for them." This book 
 treats in eight essays of ** Real and Vital Religion, served 
 in the various and glorious intentions of it." The topics 
 are as follows, and the attentive reader will see how very 
 suggestive is each of these titles : "Joshua, or the joyful 
 sound of a Saviour leading into rest. 2. En-Gedi, or the 
 delights of piety. 3. Urijah, or the light of God in the soul 
 of man. 4. Chilion, or thorough- Christianity. 5. Bochim, 
 or the weepers of Zion. 6. Shemajah, or the successful 
 petitioner. 7. Azubah, or a believer in a wilderness. 8. 
 Upon Alamoth, a discourse of unknown things." 
 
 About this time he had a notion that if he could redeem 
 the time and dress up some sublime thoughts in meter, 
 he might in time have a collection which might prove 
 profitable and agreeable to the Church of God. 
 
 February 18. "Relieve a poor man, clothed with rags, 
 at the south end of the town. At the same time, ex- 
 hort him." He knew the secret of putting relief before 
 exhortation. 
 
 Desiring to rise to a higher plane of living, he writes : — 
 
CO TTON MA THER. 40 1 
 
 I would now endeavor a greater frequency in forming those thoughts 
 upon every turn, which being applied unto my actions, and my enjoy- 
 ments, will bring such a respect unto God, upon them, that I shall 
 indeed live unto him. Upon my actions. In this action, I propose an 
 obedience to the glorious' God, animated with an apprehension that 
 he knows what I now do under the eye of his glory ; and that on the 
 account of my beloved Jesus, it will find acceptance with him. Upon 
 my enjoyments. What gives a relish to this enjoyment is, that the 
 glorious God shows me something of his glory in it, and that by this 
 good thing I am assisted and comforted in serving him. 
 
 He makes record of one of his modes of " pleasing his 
 wife." He had used the same method with his former 
 wives. It is reasonable to infer that the practice was 
 agreeable to them. " It may not only be a service unto 
 myself, but also greatly serve the interests of piety in my 
 consort, if I should use every morning before I rise, to 
 read a chapter in my dear Arndt, and communicate unto 
 her the priceless thoughts occurring in it." The writings 
 of Egardus were held in similar esteem and used for the 
 same purpose. 
 
 In following days, he not only circulated his " Tokens 
 for good " among his flock, but sent his Utilia and other 
 things to an aged relative in another town and took meas- 
 ures to supply good reading to the eastern settlements, 
 especially Arrowsick and Brunswick while they were with- 
 out a minister. He included the evangelization of the 
 Indians in those parts in his gifts and plans. He was 
 also devising how to secure a "good justice for a distant 
 plantation," an appeal having been made to him therefor. 
 And even a "poor drone " must have something done for 
 him as well as be provided with employment. Hardest 
 of all a " crack-brained youth must be looked after." 
 
 Soon after his errands to heaven were : — " i. To obtain 
 the pardon of my miscarriages ; 2. greater measures of 
 piety and sincerity ; 3. the divine conduct and blessing to 
 
402 
 
 LIFE AND TIMES OF 
 
 my ministry in every part of it ; 4. a smile on the offers of 
 my pen unto the public ; 5. the good estate of my family; 
 6. the welfare of my son abroad ; 7. the release of my 
 daughter-in-law from her unhappy circumstances ; 8. the 
 comfortable disposal of my daughters in the married life ; 
 9. the favor of heaven to my flock, the land, and to the 
 British nations, and my dear brethren that are at work 
 for God in Lower Saxony, and other matters." His son 
 abroad was Increase, now on a visit to his uncle Samuel, 
 settled as a minister at Witney, in Oxfordshire. In all 
 these subjects for prayer the burden was for others, but 
 he was rewarded in the exercise. " When I perceived by 
 the breathings of my soul, that I began to live unto God^ 
 O the triumphant joy that I was filled withal, to think 
 that now I am assured of everlasting life. The Life of 
 God is what never can be killed." 
 
 There is a hint in the following citation for those 
 Christians or others who are in the habit of wondering 
 what particular sin has brought upon them loss or suffer- 
 ing. If Dr. Mather suffered any adversity, he designed 
 to ** discover what corruption in him it was intended for 
 the killing of," and so would ^ive "welcome entertain- 
 ment thereof unto the cross." 
 
 Prayers in public for families in affliction were common 
 down to the middle of the present century but now are 
 scarcely ever heard, except in general. The reader will 
 see by the following that the "bills for prayer" and the 
 prayer itself had a meaning in former times. Dr. Mather 
 " would continue the public prayer for special occasions, 
 which were mentioned in the bills put up in the congrega^ 
 tion, to be more adapted, more expressive, and more useful 
 than heretofore. Would spend more time in making an 
 exquisite provision for that purpose." 
 
 He took measures to get the work styled " Medicina 
 
COTTON MATHER. 405 
 
 Mentis'' into the hands of ministers and college students; 
 and he resolved to " exhibit a little sum of money to be 
 given to such lads at school as would get by heart the 
 * Maxims of the everlasting gospel.' " 
 
 After visiting the prison he writes : " A miserable man 
 in the prison cried out to me for my compassions. I must 
 clothe him, and help him what I can.'* 
 
 From the following we may learn much of Mather's, 
 religious life : — 
 
 That sort of prayer, or that elevation of mind in prayer which is in 
 the Venus Christianis7nus called supernatural prayer , is what I would 
 exceedingly aspire unto, and grow more experienced in. I would soar 
 towards it in great essays at the sacrificing stroke, which with a self- 
 annihilation will bring one towards a union with God, and an acquies- 
 cence in him, and in his will. And when I feel in this way, God 
 becoming all-in-all to me, I would be entirely swallowed up in him. 
 
 A sentence dated March 6 should be inserted to the 
 credit of Mrs. Mather. "Very much inculcate on the 
 children the lessons of thankfulness to the glorious God, 
 for his having provided so wonderfully for them, when he 
 had made them orphans, and now bestowing an excellent 
 mother upon them." 
 
 Many of his flock were connected with the sea and 
 often were the subjects of his prayers ; but he felt that 
 their friends at home should be prayed for as much, since 
 their anxieties and privations were great in the absence 
 of their husbands, sons, and fathers. 
 
 March 7 was spent in the "exercises of a secret 
 thanksgiving unto the glorious God." He began by 
 " reviewing his life and confessing his sins." After this 
 he entertained his family with meditations on the One 
 Hundred and Thirty-eighth Psalm, and with them cele- 
 brated the favors of heaven to the family (especially in the 
 excellent mother that he had bestowed upon it). Thea 
 
404 LIFE AND TIMES OF 
 
 come these words, doubtless inserted some time after: 
 [" Ah ! quam deceptus."] The reason for this will appear 
 in due time. He proceeds : " I distinctly adored the divine 
 perfections, and breathed after such dispositions and be- 
 havior in myself as they call for. I beheld each of these 
 persons in the Godhead, shining with all those perfections, 
 and very particularly the God-man, who is my Saviour. 
 And I triumphed in the enjoyments of such a Saviour." 
 Next he gave thanks for many blessings, but we note only 
 one or two particularly as they bear on his situation as a 
 minister. A large number had left his congregation a 
 year or two before, and there were fears lest his audi- 
 ence would be much reduced : but his thanks indicate 
 the contrary. "The strange prolongation of my life, my 
 health restored, and strength renewed, — my employment 
 in the ministry of the gospel, and in so large an auditory, 
 .and with an utterance bestowed in such an abundant 
 measure upon me ; my marvellous opportunities to be 
 ;serviceable unto the kingdom of God by way of the press." 
 He had continual cause for gratitude and evidence will 
 accumulate that his course went on shining more and 
 more unto the closing day. 
 
 Other exercises followed, when we came to the follow- 
 ing entry: "After this, I carried my lovely consort with 
 me into my library, and there we together offered up our 
 praises unto God for his blessings; especially spiritual 
 blessings ; and for his bestowing us upon each other with 
 surprising dispensations of his Providence." Then he 
 gratefully recognized the ministry of good angels, and con- 
 cluded with resolves to be more prayerful and studious. 
 
 Dr. Mather's heart was set, at this time, upon " exciting 
 a religious influence upon the students at home," and upon 
 addressing his friends in the Frederician University. A 
 poor student is to have his case presented to a society of 
 
COTTON MATHER. 405 
 
 gentlemen that he may be assisted in his education ; and 
 a "miserable man under distraction" must have kindness 
 done for himself ; and another family must be supplied. 
 
 Referring to a number of persons who were qualified 
 for church membership but who had delayed to come for- 
 ward and must be called upon, he exclaims : " But oh ! 
 how seriously am I to consider the great flock as consist- 
 ing of a people for whom I am to do the best that they 
 may live unto God." He speaks of " animating the visits 
 of his dear consort unto the poor in the neighborhood " ; 
 of supplying other '* engines of pietv" to his kinsman 
 at Windsor (Rev. Dr. Samuel Mather) ; of introducing 
 "more religious influence into the schools of the town"; 
 of renewing the " expired charity school," and of reliev- 
 ing " several poor afflicted ones." 
 
 In March a society of " young men in the more south- 
 ern part of the town " solicited a sermon from him. Prob- 
 ably this society was outside of his congregation, as the 
 "more southern part of the town" was then the section 
 supplied by the First, South, and Brattle Street churches. 
 The sermon was published at their request with the title : 
 " The Resort of Piety ; our Saviour exhibited as a Tree of 
 Life, which all may and must resort unto." 
 
 From the following words, dated March 22, we find one 
 of the perplexities of Dr. Mather in his efforts to. do good : 
 "I would set forward good motions among the ministers; 
 but there is one humorsome, furious, boisterous man among 
 us, who confounds all my intentions that way. I am ut- 
 terly dispirited for doing anything among the ministers in 
 our vicinity." And yet he persevered and the ministers 
 generally cooperated. The "boisterous man" was, it is 
 supposed, the pastor of the South Church, who took sides 
 with Governor Dudley and resented Mather's letter to 
 him. He said that " if he were as the Gov'" he would 
 humble him [Mather] though it cost him his head." 
 
406 LIFE AND TIMES OF 
 
 At this time he had several aged men in want to be 
 looked after ; made his table more emphatically a place of 
 worship ; aided his father in writing a book for old men ; 
 provided for an aged handmaid of the town in poverty. 
 His beneficence was all-pervasive, and could not be 
 hindered by the "humorsome, furious, and boisterous" 
 brother minister. 
 
 There is food for thought in the following reflection : 
 April I. "Among my essays to glorify my Saviour, this 
 may be one. I will consider the gods of the ancient 
 pagans ; the several glories which the poor idolaters did 
 ascribe to them, and the several favors they did expect 
 from them. Then my soul shall make my boast in my 
 Saviour. In him will I see all these ; all in him." 
 
 At this time, early in April, Dr. Mather was planning 
 to make the meetinghouse more commodious, showing us 
 that his hearers were increasing : and he was inciting his 
 children to do more than before, to visit and comfort their 
 aged grandfather. His relatives in many and distant places 
 were often remembered in acts of kindness. The Bermu- 
 das cried to him to "provide a good minister for them." 
 He incited the " Commissioners of Indian Affairs " to da 
 more for the benefit of those poor creatures ; and on the 
 7th he wrote : " I will take a poor, fatherless child to 
 lodge and feed in my family, and watch opportunities to 
 do him further kindnesses." 
 
 In the following we see how a bitter enemy became a 
 friend, though Mather shrewdly suggests that he had an 
 object in his change of treatment : — 
 
 A strange thing befalls me. A monster of a man, and one of the 
 wickedest of men, and who went away to London many months ago, 
 full of malice against me, and against the country ; and one from whom 
 I expected the publication of bitter libels against me, and one whom 
 I have often carried unto the Lord, with desires of divine restraint 
 
COTTON MATHER. 407 
 
 upon him, addresses me with letters full of respect, bewailing his former 
 disaffection, protesting that he has not spoken one disrespectful word 
 of me since his going away, and intreating my favorable opinion of 
 him, and assuring me that I suffer no incivility from him ; at the same 
 time, he sends me over an instrument that he has published for the 
 service of the country. Doubtless God has brought him to feel some 
 occasion for his being on good terms with me. There is in this thing, 
 the finger of God. 
 
 On the loth, Samuel's fever was a " call to endeavor 
 much good to him, and all the family," and on the 14th 
 a " miserable woman," that is, a woman in misery, " wants 
 to be relieved on many accounts ; and whose passage to 
 London is paid for ; I must bear expenses for her." 
 
 In another sentence we learn the object of his teaching. 
 He would ** endeavor more exquisitely than ever, in cate- 
 chising, to teach the skill of living to God.'' Filling the 
 children with knowledge was not enough. They must live 
 to God. 
 
 We next have, on the 17th, a glimpse of the tempera- 
 ment of his wife as well as his method of aiding her in her 
 flights of devotion. " My religious and excellent consort 
 wants, with some exercises which oblige me, (and Oh ! 
 how happy am I in the conversation of so fine a soul, and 
 one so capable of rising and soaring to the higher flights 
 of piety,) to treat her very much on the point of having 
 a soul wherein God shall be enthroned, and all the crea- 
 tures that have usurped his throne, ejected and famished; 
 and having a will utterly annihilated before the will of 
 God." 
 
 A society of pious, praying youths at college caused 
 him to study ways to promote their usefulness. 
 
 News came, April 21, of the sickness of Increase at 
 his uncle's in England. The severity of his rheumatism 
 was such as to deprive him of the use of his limbs for the 
 time. The father writes : " Oh ! the anguish with which 
 
408 LIFE AND TIMES OF 
 
 I am to cry unto God, that he would yet be gracious to 
 this poor child, and make him a new creature, and a useful 
 man, and return him unto me." At the same time he 
 was making "new applications unto a kinsman," that he 
 might in "good earnest come into the life of God." Per- 
 haps this " kinsman " was his brilliant nephew, Thomas 
 Walter. ^ 
 
 His far-reaching benevolence inspired his correspond- 
 ence with the Danish missionaries at Malabar and caused 
 him to send " certain books of great improvement and in- 
 fluence to the famous Frederician University " at Halle. 
 He hoped these would have a " tendency to correct the 
 present wretched methods of education there." Dr. 
 Mather was not satisfied with the religious condition of 
 Harvard College and from the above it appears that he 
 thought the "methods of education" at Halle were sus- 
 ceptible of improvement. The authors whose works he 
 would send to the " poor college" were Arnd and Francke 
 and Langres and Boston. 
 
 An aged handmaid of the Lord, in Boston, a poor 
 woman at Maiden, and an aged relative at Fairfield, Conn., 
 were all to be kindly regarded. 
 
 May 8. This date brings into view a new and more 
 exquisite cause of suffering to a tender father's heart. 
 " My dear daughter Katharine is ill, and in much hazard 
 of going into a consumption. I must have her condition 
 seasonably looked after. Much prayer must be employed 
 for her. Her mind must be comforted." 
 
 Another child was the cause of a different and more 
 severe kind of anxiety, though at just this point in his 
 life inspiring some hope. This was Increase, of whom 
 the father writes. May 22 : — 
 
 This day my son, [now seventeen] returned to me, much polished, 
 much improved, better than ever disposed, with articles of less expense 
 
COTTON MATHER. 
 
 409 
 
 to me than I expected, and, which is more wonderful, with an excellent 
 business prepared for him immediately to fall into. I am astonished 
 at the favors of the prayer hearing Lord. Oh ! my Father ! my Father! 
 how good a thing it is to trust in thy Fatherly care ! But Oh ! what 
 shall I now do to fix the returned child for the service of God ? 
 
 There was, this month, a poor negro in the prison under 
 sentence of death for burglary. He was executed on the 
 first of June. The wishes of the condemned were gen- 
 erally, if not always, favored in the choice of a minister, 
 and Dr. Mather was often requested to be present and 
 help the prisoner in his dying hour, as he often, while in 
 prison, tried to prepare him for the hour of death. On 
 this occasion he preached and instructed the guilty man 
 how to do good as well as find good in his death. 
 
 Dr. Mather prepared a motion to be offered in the 
 general assembly providing that " no family in the coun- 
 try be without a Bible and a Catechism ; that all children 
 of a set age be found able to read, and that there be 
 inspectors for this purpose." 
 
 The ways of a boy are not an infallible indication of 
 what he will be when a man. Increase died soon after he 
 made a change for the better, but Samuel lived to a good 
 old age. He was so devoted to play that his father (June 
 26) wrote : " I must think of some exquisite and obliging 
 ways to abate Sammy s inordinate love of play. His play 
 wounds his faculties. I^must engage him in some nobler 
 entertainments." This boy became a hard student, an 
 inveterate "" dig," and continued so to old age, a man of 
 extensive learning. A few days later he wrote : ** My 
 son Samicel I entertain with further and riper thoughts 
 for an exquisite improvement in his education." 
 
 The calls upon Dr. Mather's time, attention, and sym- 
 pathy by all sorts of persons, among his relatives and 
 strangers and poor people and prisoners, was enough to 
 
4IO LIFE AND TIMES OF 
 
 exhaust the patience and endurance of an ordinary man ; 
 but this man did not cease his kindly ministries, and even 
 the loss of hearers did not sour his temper. He says : 
 " The humors of many in the flock, who easily withdraw 
 from the assembly, afford me such an exercise for a patient 
 sacrificer as may have happy consequences." Doubtless 
 the fact that newcomers filled the vacant seats had a tend- 
 ency to promote his cheerfulness. In the middle of July 
 he notes that, with the exception of the sickness of his 
 two daughters, he enjoyed, ''upon all accounts, a most 
 wonderful prosperity. Blessings without number, with 
 my own health and strength strangely recruited." 
 
 Some young men, " associated for the purposes of reli- 
 gion," requested for publication a new discourse to them, 
 entitled " Early Piety Demanded ; a very plain and brief 
 essay to demand piety from all people ; more especially 
 from young people." These "societies for the intentions 
 of piety," in the city of Boston, were a great encourage- 
 ment to him, and the fidelity with which the young clung 
 to him must have been a comfort when unreligious men 
 threw impediments in his way. 
 
 For the sixth of August we read : " I would send for 
 the negroes of the flock, which form a religious society, 
 and entertain them at my house, with suitable admonitions 
 of piety." 
 
 This is followed by a manifest concern for his own 
 children. "The methods of seeking ^rj/ the kingdom of 
 God in the management and government of my family, 
 ought more distinctly to be thought upon, and further 
 improvements must be made in them." Hannah and 
 Increase had not yet come into the church. Neither had 
 the two younger children. 
 
 Similar was his desire for the spiritual welfare of the 
 other children of the town. " I will go on with my pro- 
 
CO TTON MA THER. 4 1 I 
 
 posals for religious education in the schools, and if I can, 
 t)ring in the other ministers to favor them." This object 
 had long been upon his mind. 
 
 Of the same date is the next extract : " It shall be 
 considered whether the religious societies of young men 
 may not have their quarter-nights all together ; or, if they 
 may not, on those nights hold their meetings in one or 
 other of our public meeting-houses ; and whether a ser- 
 mon preached on that occasion by one of the ministers, 
 may not be a great service among the youth of the town." 
 
 The eleventh of August was a day of private supplica- 
 tions, and some of his thoughts on that day are here given 
 because at different periods eminent Christians have had 
 similar hopes and expectations. Sometimes they have 
 looked for the speedy coming of Christ in person to reign 
 on earth ; and sometimes the expectation has been fixed 
 on a great and continuous outpouring of the Spirit. The 
 latter was what the Christians in large numbers were 
 looking for eighty or ninety years ago, when the Foreign 
 Missionary Society was inaugurated by Carey and Marsh- 
 man in England, and by our Congregational missionaries 
 a few years later. For such a development Dr. Mather 
 prayed ; but he also looked for the second coming of 
 Christ at the opening of the millennium. 
 
 He writes, August 1 1 : — 
 
 I went unto the Lord with my humble memorial concerning the state 
 of his kingdom, the approaches whereof are by his faithful servants 
 greatly looked and longed for. I represented that there were servants 
 of his industriously at work for his kingdom in the world. Among 
 these I particularly mentioned those of the Frederician University and 
 those of the Malabrian Mission. But we can do very little. Our cir- 
 cumstances are insupportable ; our difficulties are infinite. If he would 
 please to fulfill the ancient prophecies of pouring out the Spirit on all 
 flesh, and revive his extraordinary and supernatural operations with 
 which he planted his religion in the primitive times of Christianity, and 
 
412 LIFE AND TIMES OF 
 
 order a descent of the holy angels to enter and possess his ministers^ 
 and cause them to speak with the tongues of men, under the energy 
 of angels, fly through the world with the everlasting gospel, to preach 
 unto the nations, wonderful things would be done immediately. His 
 kingdom would make those advances in a day, which under our present 
 and fruitless labors, are scarce made in an age. I pleaded that his 
 word had given us reason to hope for a return of those powers, and for 
 the making bare the arm of the Lord, before the nations. And he has 
 promised the Holy Spirit unto them that ask him. I pleaded that his 
 diligent servants, having preferred the sanctifying influences of his Holy 
 spirit above any miraculous powers, and been humbly willing to 
 undergo any fatigue for the service of his kingdom, seemed somewhat 
 prepared for these favors of heaven. And having made this represen- 
 tation, that order may be given by the glorious Lord for a descent of 
 his mighty angels, to give wonderful shakes unto the world, and so 
 seize upon the ministers of his kingdom as to do things which will 
 give an irresistible efficacy unto their ministry, I concluded with a 
 strong impression on my mind, — they are coming; they are coming; 
 they will quickly be upon us ; and the world shall be shaken wonderfully. 
 
 It would seem that some Christians in every age had to 
 learn that the Lord has "kept the times and seasons" in 
 his own hand. And yet it was but a few years when the 
 Holy Spirit came with such mighty efficacy — even before 
 Mather's death ; and later in the days of Edwards, White- 
 field, and the Wesleys. 
 
 In going to a picnic Cotton Mather got a ducking. As 
 he looked at it, " a singular thing " befell him on the 14th. 
 He was asked to ride into the country a few miles to 
 take the air, and to *'join in the diversions of a famous 
 fish pond." It so happened that his foot slipped and he 
 fell overboard. This is an event common enough to 
 cause no remark, but it set Mather to thinking about the 
 meaning of the providence and to inquiring, " Am I 
 quickly to go under the earth, as I have been under the 
 water?" 
 
 A hint may be derived by the hard-pressed minister 
 from the following. Dr. Mather had about this time got 
 
CO TTON MA THER. 4 1 3 
 
 into the way of giving his first thoughts, after a prayer, 
 upon rising in the morning, to passages of Scripture, with 
 a view to sermons ; and he remarks : — 
 
 I am apprehensive that the chief work I have to do is to preach the 
 gospel of my Saviour, and it calls for my first thoughts ; the clearest 
 and brightest of my intellectual powers. And by thus ordering my 
 studies, I may not only have my sermons very seasonably prepared and 
 finished, but I may also get ready beforehand, a collection of treasures 
 for all occasions. My flock may find the benefit of my coming into 
 such a method of my studies. 
 
 Here we have one secret of the unflagging interest of 
 his preaching to the same flock during forty-five years. 
 
 A service held on the 23d shows the intimate con- 
 nection between the province and the mother country 
 in those old times. It was a day of general thanksgiving 
 "for the victories over the rebels." The Pretender landed 
 in Scotland in 171 5, but after brilliant successes his forces 
 were utterly broken and scattered by the Duke of Cum- 
 berland in the spring of this year. But as the prince was 
 not captured, and detached parties of his friends were 
 lurking about, the celebration of the suppression of the 
 rebellion had been delayed a few months. Whatever 
 division of opinion might have existed in England and 
 Scotland, the people of New England were practically 
 unanimous for the house of Brunswick as against the 
 Stuarts. 
 
 A record like the following helps us to see the impression 
 made by Mr. Mather's life and writings on the mind of an 
 aged minister : *' A holy and aged servant of God, the 
 minister of Bridgezvater, Mr. Keith, who has not been 
 in this city since above seven and twenty years ago, is 
 come to sojourn with me till the latter end of next week. 
 And his principal intention is, to enjoy the consolations of 
 my family. I must now allow much of my time to this 
 
414 L^^^ A^D TIMES OF 
 
 excellent friend, while he stays with us. But I would 
 redeem the time to render him as useful as may be in the 
 city before he goes ; and study to be as useful to him as 
 ever I can." He arranged to have his "aged friend" 
 preach to one of the religious societies of young people 
 on Sunday evening. 
 
 The custom of beginning the Sabbath on Saturday 
 evenings led to social enjoyments rather than religious 
 observances on Sunday evening. One of Dr. Mather's 
 methods of reclaiming the Sabbath evening was to have 
 the meetings of the young people's religious societies at 
 that time as often as possible. To help this movement 
 he gave to the public a little treatise entitled '' A good 
 evening accommodated with a good employment ; or some 
 directions how the Lord's day and evening may be spent 
 religiously and advantageously, with some persuasives to 
 spend it so." 
 
 On the eleventh of September we read : " Nabby is near 
 her marriage. There are several steps of prudence and 
 of piety of which I am to be solicitous on this occasion." 
 On the 1 8th he adds : " I am giving her away to a hopeful 
 young gentleman, who is to-morrow to become her hus- 
 band. But I am in several ways, to give her up also to 
 God, and do the best I can to render her a blessing to her 
 husband, and in the city." A day later: "My Nabby 
 was married (by my father) to Daniel Willard. God be 
 gracious to them." 
 
 The cases of friends, . relatives, neighbors, or strangers 
 who were needing sympathy, advice, or aid, were continu- 
 ally appealing to Dr. Mather, while his daughters Katy 
 and Nabby were moving forward to such different events. 
 Here is a case sure to call for his deepest interest : " The 
 daughters of a worthy minister, sometimes of Middle- 
 borougkt in Holland, are now arrived here, in the quality 
 
COTTON MATHER. 415 
 
 of servants. They are objects of much compassion and 
 charity, and I shall treat them accordingly." 
 
 The situation of Christian Indians at Yarmouth called 
 for his consideration ; and the encouragement of children 
 in the charity school to learn rapidly to read the Bible 
 prompted the gift of Bibles to good and studious scholars. 
 And still the press was utilized to reduplicate his influence 
 for good. He writes, on the 27th : " I would look out for 
 some assistance to encourage the publication of the work 
 which I am now sending to London, on TJie Work of the 
 Day, whereof I have great expectations." Half a dozen 
 other works, at least, added to the bulk of his publications 
 this year, and in like measure to the author's usefulness. 
 
 One of the great trials of Dr. Mather's life, and the 
 spirit with which he bore it, is indicated in the following 
 lines : " I glorified the Lord this day [October 6] with the 
 sweetest acquiescence and resignation, in the case of the 
 Biblia Americana whereof I received advice this day that 
 the publication thereof is to be despaired of." As already 
 stated, that work was too great for any bookseller at home 
 or abroad to publish at his own risk, and probably but 
 a small number of ministers or laymen would have been 
 able to buy the volumes by subscription ; yet it would have 
 been of more value to many ministers than their whole 
 library, the Bible excepted. 
 
 The new governor, Samuel Shute, arrived in October. 
 On the cth, Dr. Mather writes: "As I would improve 
 my acquaintance which I am like to have with him, for all 
 the good purposes imaginable ; so, because there arrives 
 with him a new Commission for our Indian affairs, which 
 constitutes him one of the Commissioners, I would prose- 
 cute some further good purposes in this relation." 
 
 The next reference to Governor Shute is on the nth: 
 "Being to preach, this day, in the audience of our new 
 
41 6 LIFE AND TIMES OF 
 
 governor, and with much expectation from the auditory, I 
 contrive a recapitulation of Tokens for Goody as the whole 
 Protestant Interest and our own country has to comfort 
 us. And with as much insinuation as may be, I gave 
 our governor to understand what sort of conduct in him 
 we hoped for. God was graciously with me in the action, 
 and it found much acceptance both with the governor and 
 the people." Mr. Mather states that his access to the 
 governor inspired him with the hope of serving the inter- 
 ests of the people, defeating the " countermining inten- 
 tions" of certain gentlemen, and concerting measures for 
 the benefit of the Christian Indians. 
 
 There were Jewish families in Boston, and at this time 
 (the autumn of 1716) there had been ** strange impressions 
 of grace " on their children. The facts in relation to this 
 phenomenon are scanty. Mr. Mather resolved to "im- 
 prove it for an increase of piety in his flock, and among 
 the young people." 
 
 Bearing his seafaring friends on his heart, he published 
 the ''Thankful Christian," with some suitable meditations 
 that might have a tendency to make them sensible of 
 their obligations to turn unto God. It was specially 
 offered to the "numerous tribe of whale catchers," calling 
 them to express "their gratitude unto God their Saviour." 
 
 The kindliness of Dr. Mather reached out in all direc- 
 tions, but the case to be mentioned was one of many 
 misfortunes which came from his third marriage: "My 
 daughter-in-law and her children [who had no legal claim 
 on his bounty], shall be entertained at my house until 
 she marries, and I will endeavor to serve her in all her 
 interests, and also to befriend the pious education of her 
 children." 
 
 Here is a record redolent of the times : " There has 
 lately been in the town, an apparition of a dead person. 
 
COTTON MATHER. 417 
 
 It is a thing so well-attested, that there can be no room 
 to doubt of it." More than half a century later, Dr. 
 Samuel Johnson believed in the "Cock-lane ghost" in 
 London. The following suggestion of Dr. Mather was 
 so sensible that one would be glad to learn that it was 
 acted upon : " It may be a service to piety for me to 
 obtain a full relation of the matter, and have the per- 
 sons concerned therein to make oath unto it before a 
 magistrate." 
 
 How many ministers can bear witness to the experience 
 recorded November 26 ? " I have often seen it, that my 
 exercises, temptations, calamities are made singularly serv- 
 iceable to the edification of the flock. They lead me to 
 discourse on subjects, and communicate meditations and 
 experiences which God makes useful to his people. I 
 must exceedingly and exquisitely contrive how the terrible 
 trials come upon me in the condition of my lovely Katy, 
 may be made profitable." 
 
 Many things occupied the anxious father during the first 
 half of December, though nothing kept him from doing all 
 that was possible by way of preparing his daughter for 
 her upward flight. One object of great interest was Eliza's 
 education. He sent books in considerable numbers to 
 relatives in Ireland. He assisted his brother-in-law, Wal- 
 ter (out of health), minister of Roxbury, and encouraged 
 his nephew, Thomas Walter. He was busy in preparing 
 the Ratio Disciplince, in the hope that it " would serve 
 the kingdom of God," as it did for three or four genera- 
 tions, and is still useful. And finally, on the 15th, he 
 writes : *' I will persuade some of our physicians to bring 
 the cold bath into fashion, whereby many fever-sick, miser- 
 able people may obtain release under some maladies which 
 now remain incurable." 
 
 The name of Katy appears often in the diary of the 
 
41 8 LIFE AND TIMES OF 
 
 months passed and now it is time to gather up the refer- 
 ences which tell us of her last days on earth : — 
 
 Sept. 4. Ah ! my dying daughter ! my dear, dying daughter ! what 
 shall I do for thee, that thou mayest, in thy death, glorify God? 
 
 8. One very singular, and very depressing matter of supplication^ 
 was the condition of my dear Katy, who is in dying circumstances. 
 Oh! what a sacrifice am I now called unto ! At the same time, I have 
 cause to rejoice exceedingly in the favor of God, that the child enjoys, 
 an admirable serenity, and gloriously triumphs over the fear of death. 
 
 23. The Angel of death stands with a drawn sword over my family 
 in the dying state of my dear, good, wise and lovely Katy. 
 
 25. My lovely daughter Katharine draws now near unto her end^ 
 I must use all possible methods to render the period of her life, not 
 only comfortable to her, but also profitable to the people of God. 
 
 26. My dear Katy is utterly given over. Physicians can do no more 
 for her. A consumption doth waste her, wherein the assaults of a fever, 
 in the shape of a quotidian ague, exasperates the malady. But her soul 
 is not full of troubles. I cannot but wondrously rejoice in the favors 
 granted unto the soul of the child, which is from above so irradiated^ 
 that she triumphs over the fear of death. Death is become easy, yea, 
 pleasant to her. She rather chooseth it, and has a contempt for this 
 world, and a most surprising vision of the heavenly world. 
 
 There is something singular in the next sentence as the 
 father puts it : ** It is very strange to me : — the child feels 
 herself a-dying, but has a strong and bright persuasion of 
 her own recovery. I have none." 
 
 The diary continues as follows, beginning with the third 
 of November : — 
 
 The dying state of my poor Kaiy was a special article of my suppli-^ 
 cations. 
 
 13. My dear Katy being brought now so low that she cannot attend 
 the family sacrifices with us, I must pray daily with her in her chamber. 
 
 27. Such is the condition of my family, in regard of my dear Katy'^s 
 dying circumstances, that I am called of God unto more than ordinary 
 methods for the quickening of piety in my family. O that I may be 
 directed of God, what I am to do upon this infliction. 
 
COTTON MATHER. 4 1 9. 
 
 December i . The dying state of my dear Katy made a grand article 
 in the supplications of the day. It was this day, seventeen years ago, 
 that her mother expired. 
 
 7. Thanksgiving Day. Move my dying child that she speak such 
 things, especially unto her two brothers, as may leave a precious and 
 lasting impression upon them. 
 
 1 1 . My lovely Katy desires mightily that her death may glorify God. 
 
 Lord's Day Morning, i6th day. A little after 3^ a.m., my lovely 
 daughter Katharine expired gloriously. The things which her dear 
 Saviour has done for her, afford a wonderful story. But because I 
 relate it in other papers, I shall here insert nothing of it. Much 
 of my time, of late, has been spent in sitting by her, with essays 
 to strengthen her in her agonies, wherein God graciously assisted me. 
 
 The further particulars concerning this lovely young; 
 Christian are given in " Victorina ; a sermon preached 
 December 23, on the decease, and at the desire of Mrs. 
 [Miss] Katharine Mather, by her father." To this was. 
 added a "further account of that young gentlewoman, 
 by another hand." This was her young cousin, Thomas 
 Walter. A poem and other matter fill out the precious 
 volume. 
 
 Katharine, the second child of Cotton and Abigail 
 Mather, was born September i, 1689, some time after 
 the death of her sister Abigail. Her father wrote as 
 follows concerning her death : — 
 
 You may not expect of me so much as one word for the applauding; 
 of my departed child ; not so much as the least intimation, as if she 
 excelled any of the many daughters among us who have done virtu- 
 ously. So far from doing like Cicero, whom Lactantius justly re- 
 proached for his ridiculous intention of an apotheosis for his daughter 
 upon her leaving of him. 
 
 All that I shall do is to recommend unto you that piety which it was 
 her dying desire to have urged upon you ; and that, not by relating 
 how far that piety might shine in her exemplifying of it, but by a short 
 relation of the end which it brought her to ; an end which God would 
 have a mark set upon. 
 
420 LIFE AND TIMES OF 
 
 In the introduction to the sermon preached after her 
 decease he writes : — 
 
 When great sorrows are, by a righteous and holy God, brought upon 
 them that serve him, it is a great alleviation of their sorrowful burdens, 
 and consolation under them, if he make them serviceable to the in- 
 terests of his kingdom in the world; subservient unto the best of 
 interests. This happy circumstance marvellously takes away the bit- 
 terness, and throws a dulcifying branch of the tree of life into the 
 waters of Marah. 
 
 A lamb inexpressibly dear to him, who had nourished it, (and it 
 grew up together with him, and with his children,) had his passion 
 for it so described, it was unto him as a daughter. The death of such 
 an one, and especially if there has been in such an one, a constellation 
 of everything that could endear a daughter, cannot but be a killing 
 thing unto a parent. 
 
 But if by such a death as this, piety shall be more enlivened among 
 the survivors, and recommended with a more lively efficacy, to them 
 whom it should speak to, we have the blessing promised, '* Light shall 
 arise in darkness." 
 
 He then says that it was his daughter's dying wish that 
 God might be glorified by her death. She was singularly 
 modest, but greatly desired that what God had done for 
 her should be made useful to the young. He adds: 
 " Nor can there be left many tears to fall into our lacry- 
 matories, when we are not only well satisfied that our 
 children are gone into their chambers with peace, but 
 also perceive them to outlive their funeral in the per- 
 petual usefulness of their preserved speeches and patterns 
 unto the living." 
 
 His text was Proverbs 3 : 17 : "Her ways are ways of 
 pleasantness, and all her paths are peace " ; and he shows 
 the delights of piety from the life and joyful death of 
 a young person, " who sometimes on her deathbed, with 
 a lively zeal, uttered that wish of her soul, ' Oh ! that my 
 death might glorify God.' " 
 
COTTON MATHER. 42 I 
 
 The sermon is admirable, and would be useful if re- 
 printed. 
 
 The "Account of Mrs. [Miss] Katharine Mather, by 
 another hand," is ascribed to Rev. Thomas Walter, her 
 young cousin, who died after a short ministry. He 
 assures the reader that he avoids painting her in false 
 colors, but keeps far within bounds. Premising that she 
 was a good Latin scholar, I will quote the following about 
 her education and accomplishments : — 
 
 Of her first years, all the notice I shall take will be this. As a prom- 
 ising soul, and a good and ingenious disposition are polished and 
 perfected by a good education, so this young gentlewoman was happy 
 in an education that was polite and agreeable to the circumstances of a 
 gentlewoman. Her proficiency in the qualifications which render such 
 an one accomplished in the more genteel part of the world, was not 
 inconsiderable. Such were her accuracy at her needle; her dexterity 
 at her pen ; her knowledge of what concerns the table ; her skill in 
 music, both vocal and instrumental ; to which she added this, that she 
 became in her childhood, a mistress of the Hebrew tongue. She had 
 also attained to a considerable knowledge of the Sacred Geography. 
 
 What added a lustre to all the rest, was that she never, in the least, 
 affected ostentation. Her humility was an agreeable and lovely shade 
 to set off her valuable accomplishments. Clothed with humility, though 
 not affecting singularity, while maintaining sobriety in her clothing. 
 
 The biographer states that she affected — that is, de- 
 sired — obscurity and retirement to a fault, yet she was 
 not " morose, but of a very gentlewomanly temper and 
 carriage. A particular air of civility and discretion was 
 observed to run through her whole carriage and conduct." 
 
 She was one of "very few words ; but when she spake, 
 it was to the purpose ; what she uttered, was usually very 
 expressive and significant." He then speaks of her piety, 
 partly in her own written experience ; also, of her char- 
 ity, though she avoided observation. But one instance 
 is memorable. A miserable woman was in prison, under 
 
422 LIFE AND TIMES OF 
 
 sentence of death for murder. She could not read, and 
 "was wretchedly for it, for spending her time after her 
 condemnation. This young gentlewoman went, and spent 
 several afternoons with this condemned woman, and read- 
 ing to her the Sacred Scriptures, and such books as were 
 suitable for her. Adding with a becoming modesty, such 
 instructions as she thought proper for one in her con- 
 dition." On one occasion, being shut up in close prison,, 
 the circumstances were such as caused her to fall into 
 a swoon ; but this did not discourage her. A number 
 of religious young women were induced to follow her 
 example. 
 
 She loved good reading. Two books of John Arnd^ 
 entitled "Of True Christianity," were among her favor- 
 ites. Arnd was born in 1555, and lived till May, 1621. 
 The work which Katharine Mather enjoyed was in two 
 parts : " I. The whole economy of God towards man ; and 
 2. The whole duty of man towards God." It was written 
 in German and Latin. It was translated into Enghsh,. 
 and in 171 2 published in London; republished in Boston, 
 1809. Some of the editions are illustrated with fine en- 
 gravings. It was of this work that the excellent Boehm 
 said : " It was blessed for the bringing of hundreds of 
 thousands of souls home unto God and Piety, a hundred 
 years ago," that is, in the latter part of the author's life. 
 It is indeed a most admirable work, and would be greatly 
 useful now, if it were not that the numberless issues of 
 the modern press crowd it and other excellent books out 
 of use and out of sight. 
 
 Mr. Walter quaintly writes : " It is said that the Egyp- 
 tians were wont to put within the cavities of the breasts 
 of the embalmed bodies of their dead friends, the things 
 which they most loved in their lifetime; as books, medals, 
 Jewels, and other things. Were this gentlewoman to be 
 
COTTON MATHER. 423 
 
 SO dealt withal, her breast would now have lodged in it 
 the two books of the famous German divine, John Arnd." 
 After giving points of her character and piety, he states 
 some of the facts concerning the close of her life. On 
 the fifteenth of December, it was evident that the end 
 was near. She said, "I have nothing to do but to resign 
 and rejoice " ; again, " My love to my Saviour, 't is strong 
 as death, and I am ready to go through any death unto 
 him." As the hour drew near, "O my lovely Jesus, I 
 love thee beyond all expression ! " 
 
 She said unto her excellent and obliging mother, whom she would 
 not suifer to be called a mother-in-law, but a mother-in-love unto her, 
 **I love my friends very well, but my lovely Jesus is more worthy of 
 my love than all of them ! Madam, I love you dearly ; but I love my 
 Jesus more than you." 
 
 It was thought she might continue a day or two more, 
 but she said she had received this intimation from above : 
 **This night thou shalt be with me in Paradise." A little 
 after midnight, to her sister, demanding of her whether, 
 while she was in this bodily distress, all was quiet and 
 easy within, she replied, " My soul is in perfect ease ! " 
 Upon which she sweetly expired, and resigned her soul 
 into the hands of a glorious Redeemer. 
 
 Sic Rosa, sic Violae prima moriuntur in herba, 
 Candida nee tota Lilia mense nitunt. 
 
 I have given so much space to this little memoir of 
 Katharine Mather for two reasons. First, because the 
 best eulogy of her father was such a child. The keen 
 light of intellect, the love of learning, the elegance and 
 refinement of character, the sweetness of disposition, the 
 readiness to do her duty to every class, the seraphic piety, 
 all were in some measure the effects of his teaching and 
 
424 LIFE AND TIMES, 
 
 the results of his daily personal influence. " The glory of 
 children are their fathers." 
 
 The other reason is that it is a delight to me to look 
 back nearly two centuries into the life of ancient Boston 
 (which many take pleasure in representing as gloomy and 
 superstitious) and to find there such an exhibition of 
 female loveliness. We instantly recognize in this "young 
 gentlewoman" one who could take her place in the high- 
 est and most cultivated circles of the present day and be 
 a leader there, while finding her chief delight in the offices 
 of piety at home, or among the outcast objects of be- 
 nevolence. As she derived honor from her father, so she 
 reflected it back upon him. ** Children's children are the 
 crown of old men." 
 
 The last few pages of the Victorina were filled by a 
 poem signed by J. P., whose name is unknown. A few 
 of his lines are copied, because they reveal some traits of 
 Miss Mather not given elsewhere. Remember in reading 
 that the fair subject was comely in person : — 
 
 The charms I sing not of a comely face, 
 
 Nor the fair beauties which a body grace. 
 
 Soar high, my Pen! the work for thee designed. 
 
 Leads to the brighter glories of the mind; 
 
 A mind that with its early vigor shone, 
 
 Bright as the clear beams of the early sun; 
 
 Beams which contracted by provoked wit, 
 
 No burning glass would strike and pierce like it; 
 
 And yet uniting with the gentler air 
 
 Of goodness, did the scalds of Satyr [satire] spare. 
 
 With a quick flight, and with uncommon ease. 
 
 It ran the round of female sciences. 
 
 But not pleased so, her greater genius bent 
 
 On higher points; in them her hours she spent. 
 
 With liberal arts and various skill adorned, 
 
 Her soul a trifling conversation scorned. 
 
 To skill in languages disposed to rise. 
 
 She first seized on the tongue of Paradise. 
 
^ CHAPTER XX. 
 
 THREE YEARS CROWDED WITH LABORS AND EXPERIENCES : 
 
 I717-I719. 
 
 IN this chapter will be condensed the events in the life 
 of Cotton Mather and his family for the years 1717- 
 1719. The record of admissions to the church indicates 
 the pulse of spiritual life. Two persons were dismissed 
 that they might bear " their part in laying the foundations 
 of a new church in the south part of the town." This was 
 styled the New South, and its edifice was on Summer 
 Street down to a recent date. The vote dismissing the 
 two members was passed on the sixth of January. A 
 reference to the movement for a new church is in the 
 diary of September 13 of the preceding year, in the words 
 following : " There is extreme hazard of a mighty flame 
 arising in the town, from the proceedings of the new 
 church in the south part of it, unto the choice of a minis- 
 ter unacceptable unto the rest. I would seasonably inter- 
 pose, as far as may be, to prevent the devices of Satan.'* 
 The organization of this church, according to Clark, was 
 not completed till 1719. Perhaps a colony was formed, 
 but a pastor was not agreed upon before that year. 
 
 On the sixth of October, 1716, "at a meeting of the 
 brethren of the [North] Church : In consideration of the 
 great age — 'j'j — to which our venerable pastor is arrived, 
 by the good hand of God upon him, and by his many 
 services to the public, whereof we have a grateful remem- 
 brance, and from our desire to have his life prolonged, and 
 rendered comfortable, and that we may enjoy his public 
 
 4*5 
 
426 LIFE AND TIMES OF 
 
 labors in such a way as may be most easy to him, etc., 
 proceed to provide a further supply." Action was post- 
 poned. 
 
 There is a diary for this year in the library of the 
 American Antiquarian Society, to which the reader is re- 
 ferred. It is replete with the experiences of the writer, 
 besides giving the main facts of his family and parochial 
 life. We shall make use of a few facts and dates. 
 
 On the twelfth of February (O. S.), it is recorded that 
 the elder pastor of the (old) South Church, Rev. Ebenezer 
 Pemberton, was dead. Dr. Mather was called upon by 
 the junior pastor, *'a dear son," Rev. Joseph Sewall, 
 to preach the funeral sermon. It was the part of this 
 colleague to preach on the occasion, but he was urgent 
 in his request, and Mather complied. What made it 
 difficult was that the deceased minister had been a great 
 trial to him, as we learn from another record, and had 
 been in the habit of opposing and hindering his plans of 
 usefulness. 
 
 In this year Cotton Mather proposed to his brother 
 Samuel, then settled in Witney, Oxfordshire, to retreat 
 to New England *'if storms should arise in the old 
 country." The defeat of the Pretender had not killed 
 the hopes of his friends and of the enemies of England, 
 and not till 17 19, when the plan of a Spanish invasion 
 proved abortive, did the fears of new rebellion subside. 
 The reinstatement of the Stuart family would have been 
 the ruin of the dissenting churches. 
 
 Dr. Mather sent to Geneva some copies of his work, 
 printed the previous year. It had a Latin and an Eng- 
 lish version. " The Stone cut out of the Mountain ; The 
 kingdom of God in those maxims of it which cannot be 
 shaken." " Lapis Monte excisus, atque Regnum Dei, 
 ejusdemque Principia in eternum stabilienda." He had 
 
COTTON MATHER. 427 
 
 the hope that the present of the book might be a "sea- 
 sonable action." 
 
 The "great snowstorm" of February 23, 1717, is al- 
 luded to several times in our author's writings. Perhaps 
 his account of it is the best in print. It was mentioned in 
 many records of the time, as in letters, almanacs, diaries, 
 and publications. It was the great storm of a century, 
 and has never been equaled in our annals. 
 
 The diary bears witness to the writer's watchful care 
 over the education of his younger children ; his distress- 
 ing anxiety about Increase ; his tenderness towards his 
 wife, and his respect for her mental and moral qualities, 
 as evinced by the books he shared with her ; his care for 
 poor widows and indigent students ; his interest in the 
 welfare of his domestics; his "devising" for the evan- 
 gelization of the eastern Indians ; his fostering of the 
 evening and charity schools ; and his spirit of union with 
 all the ministers of the town in all their united measures 
 for the spiritual good of the whole people. 
 
 The respect and reverence which he showed to his 
 venerable father, and which he taught his children to ren- 
 der, was beautiful. He had his father often at his table 
 and wanted him oftener. It was " one of the most grate- 
 ful spectacles in the world." 
 
 A man was executed for murder in Boston on the 
 thirteenth of July. He had been visited by Mr. Mather, 
 who, at his request, preached a sermon just before the 
 execution, on a text selected by himself (Matt. 10: 28). 
 This was published under the title : " The Valley of 
 Hinnom ; the Terrors of Hell Demonstrated ; and the 
 methods of escaping the terrible miseries of the pun- 
 ishments on the wicked there declared." It was de- 
 livered in the hearing, and at the request of the man 
 {Jeremiah Fenwick), under sentence of death. One 
 
428 LIFE AND TIMES OF 
 
 doctrine of the sermon was that the terrors of conscience 
 will be the chief ingredient in the fires of hell. 
 
 His Malachiy written and published to " promote union 
 and communion between all that would meet and serve 
 those advances which the kingdom of God is now making 
 in the world," was in ninety-three pages. It had a second 
 edition in 1767, in Philadelphia. It presented the "max- 
 ims of piety in the everlasting gospel, which are to be 
 the glorious rules of behavior, the only terms of com- 
 munion, and the happy stops of controversy " among all 
 who would promote Christian union. 
 
 It may be noted here that Dr. Mather wrote down about 
 as many " devisings for good," each month, as there were 
 days in the month ; and generally, if not always, these 
 devisings or plans were carried into action. His benevo- 
 lence was not mere sentiment, nor was it wasted in the 
 dreams of a refined but useless sensibility. 
 
 His first grandchild, the firstborn of Mrs. Willard, was 
 baptized in August. On this occasion he preached a brief 
 sermon on the "conspicuous blessings with which the 
 people of God, and their offspring, are known to be 
 blessed of the Lord." It was published with the title, 
 "The Tribe of Asher," in fifty-four pages, without the 
 author's name. 
 
 On the sixteenth of October he refers to a " base libel, 
 full of slander, by a furious, venomous, rancorous man," 
 and records the purpose to do what good he could for him. 
 
 The decease of Mrs. Hannah Sewall, the "religious and 
 honorable consort" of Samuel Sewall, Esq., was the oc- 
 casion of a sermon which was given to the public, with 
 the title, " The Valley of Baca ; or the divine sovereignty 
 displayed and adored, more particularly in bereaving dis- 
 pensations." The wonderful beauty of the Scripture is 
 set forth, and then the wealth of comfort to the mourner,, 
 in the whole psalm (Psalm Ixxxiv), is displayed. 
 
COTTON MATHER. 429 
 
 In the latter part of October Samuel was sick. His 
 condition improved, but on the 5th of the next month 
 he had a relapse, causing alarm. He recovered, however, 
 and the next we hear of him he had joined himself to 
 the company of "sober and pious lads." He was now 
 twelve years old. It was a time of severe sickness in 
 the town ; and the diary states that within about two 
 months at the close of the year more than twenty mem- 
 bers of the church had died. 
 
 One of the most honored friends of the Mathers was 
 the Hon. Wait Winthrop. He was major-general and 
 a member of the council, and his position in the town was 
 among the most prominent. His decease on the ninth of 
 November called for a funeral discourse in accordance 
 with general custom ; the subject was : " Hades looked 
 into ; the power of our great Saviour over the invisible 
 world, and the gates of death which lead into that world." 
 
 A few days later, the execution of six pirates led to the 
 sermon entitled " Instructions to the living from the 
 condition of the dead ; a brief relation of remarkables in 
 the shipwreck of above one hundred pirates who were 
 cast away in the ship Whido on the coast of New Eng- 
 land." Some were let off by the authorities because they 
 had been captured and forced into piracy, but six were 
 condemned and executed. It was a great event in Bos- 
 ton, and crowds from the country increased the throng 
 which viewed the closing scene. Pirates infested com- 
 merce on our coast as well as other portions of the sea 
 in those times, and it is stated by Dr. Mather that 
 the pirates sometimes made the captive sailors whom 
 they forced into service show their consent by cursing 
 Cotton Mather. To be cursed by pirates was an honor 
 to the sin-hating minister. But these same pirates, when 
 in prison and facing death and the judgment, made 
 
430 LIFE AND TIMES OF 
 
 choice of this minister for their religious guide. He vis- 
 ited them in prison, set before them their wickedness with 
 uncompromising fidelity to the truth and to their souls, 
 showed them an all-mighty Saviour to the penitent, and 
 went with them to the scaffold as a friend. 
 
 Among other publications of this year may be named : 
 "The Case of a Troubled Mind," which had a second 
 issue in 1741 ; "A Brief Account of the State of the 
 Province, civil and ecclesiastical, by a Lover of his coun- 
 try"; "Anastasius, or the Resurrection of Lazarus im- 
 proved " ; " Iconoclastes, directed against the subtle Idol- 
 atry which alloys the goodness of many Christians " ; 
 " Febrifugium, an Essay for the cure of ungodly anger " ; 
 "Piety and equity united, in two Essays : i. The Desires 
 of piety ; 2. The Measures of equity " ; " Raphael, or 
 the Blessings of a healed soul considered " ; and " The 
 Voice of the Dove, with Memoirs of Mr. Robert Kitchen." 
 The case of a student who died in college is mentioned 
 by Dr. Mather, and it is supposed that his name is 
 given above. 
 
 The interest of Dr. Mather in the new South Church 
 will be remembered. It was shown further by the fact 
 that he was chosen to preach the sermon at the dedica- 
 tion of the meetinghouse in the early part of the year. 
 The title is characteristic of the preacher : " Zelotes. 
 A Zeal for the house of God, blown up in a sermon unto 
 an assembly of Christians." It was on a day of prayer 
 (January 8), "kept by them at their first entrance." 
 
 The sentiment of the sermon, and some facts about the 
 Boston churches, will be read with interest even now. 
 Zeal for the house of God will do all that is possible 
 for the good of the Church of God. He then refers to 
 the number of churches in the town. Six or seven were 
 Congregational. The French church was essentially the 
 
COTTON MATHER. 
 
 431 
 
 same. Besides there were the Baptist and Episcopal 
 churches — one of each. The last two, he states, do not 
 express communion to such a degree as the others, yet 
 *'all the ten carry on so lovingly, so peaceably, and so 
 decently, and all the offices of good neighborhood are 
 in so distinguishing a manner cultivated among them, 
 as to give unto the bigots for uniformity, a sensible re- 
 buke of their bigotry, and a notable instance how con- 
 sistent a variety of rites in religion may be with the 
 tranquillity of human society." 
 
 The condition and prospects of Increase, the son of 
 such high hopes and such cruel anxieties, seemed full 
 of promise, last year, when he returned from England ; 
 but soon the levity of his character broke out anew and 
 caused his father, with all the family, grief and shame. 
 The young man was accused of a disgraceful sin and 
 crime. Though candid men, after inquiry, did not believe 
 him guilty, yet he confessed to his father guiltiness of 
 some kind, which overwhelmed him with anguish. This 
 was the "skeleton in the family." Losses, bereavements, 
 enmities, slanders, and hard toil could be borne, but this 
 pierced the parental heart. 
 
 Except a few entries in the first weeks of the year 
 1718, there are no more diaries until 1721, from which 
 to draw material for our biography. Nor do the records 
 of the church furnish much besides the annual additions 
 during the same period. We know that pastoral work 
 and earnest prayer must have filled the year, because the 
 additions to the church in 171 8 were twenty-six. All 
 these, after conversion, had to be prepared for a public 
 confession, by faithful examination and instruction with 
 reference to that important event in their lives. 
 
 The interest which he felt in the college at New 
 
432 LIFE AND TIMES OF 
 
 Haven has been held up as a matter for reproach. It 
 has been ascribed to envy and resentment, because others 
 had been more honored by the college at Cambridge. It 
 is not to the honor of any writer to impute such a spirit 
 to Cotton Mather. Doubtless he knew when he was 
 insulted and undervalued by inferior men, but he was of 
 a much loftier type of character than to be governed by 
 wounded pride. He had reasons for being concerned 
 for the prosperity of the New Haven institution, aside 
 from the consideration with which he had always been 
 treated by friends in Connecticut. He knew that the 
 good people of the " land of steady habits " had not only 
 sent their sons to Cambridge for education, but had con- 
 tributed of their poverty to its endowment. But chiefly 
 he knew that many who could not afford to come so 
 far from home as Harvard College would be accom- 
 modated by an institution near at hand. And as he 
 appreciated the value of learned men for the ministry 
 and for public affairs, so he desired that a large num- 
 ber should be raised up in the sister colony. His 
 mind was of a broader make than that of some of the 
 leading men of those days in the Bay, who sought to 
 make all the other colonies into satellites of the older 
 colony. This led him at this date and at other times 
 to inquire what he could do for the college at New 
 Haven. And while taking the distant college into the 
 scope of his vision, he was busy in "erecting a charity 
 school" for the negroes of Boston. 
 
 A few excerpts follow from the scrap of diary between 
 the twelfth of February and the eighth of March inclusive, 
 which will lighten up about a month of this spring. He 
 began the fifty-sixth year of his life really believing it 
 would be the last. The day was set apart for devotions, 
 with fasting before the Lord. The record of the day is 
 
COTTON MATHER. 433 
 
 long, and reports bitter contrition and confessions in re- 
 view of his sins ; but there is little new in the experiences. 
 One item must be noted. He represents himself so dead 
 to this world and so willing to disappear from it and so 
 wholly swallowed up in God, that among other effects 
 of this mood he was inclined to destroy these memorials 
 of his life and write no more. He would never again have 
 his picture drawn, and repented that he had ever sat for 
 some draughts of it. Let God alone keep any remem- 
 brance of him. But the thought that these records might 
 be of use to his son, in teaching him how to do good, 
 induced him to continue writing. 
 
 The " cursed, senseless party spirit " that abounded led 
 him, on the 13th, to procure an interview with a num- 
 ber of the members of the assembly. He invited them to 
 his house. His influence with the delegates from the 
 country towns was always great. 
 
 The widows of his church were numerous. One fifth of 
 the communicants were bereft of their husbands — sunk, 
 many of them, in the ocean. He preached for these sor- 
 rowful women a sermon " full of counsels and comforts." 
 The title was : " Marah spoken to : An essay to do good 
 unto the Widows." 
 
 On the 1 8th he records his gratitude for the restora- 
 tion of his " invaluable consort." This opens the way 
 to make a statement, once for all, of the sad and wear- 
 ing affliction that came upon him and his family through 
 the derangement of his third wife. There are intima- 
 tions in Dr. Mather's writings that she was a lady of 
 uncommon virtues and accomplishments ; and in the life 
 of his father, by Samuel, she is spoken of in terms of 
 respect and affection. As she outlived her husband five 
 or six years, or until Samuel was old enough to know her 
 character, his testimony may be trusted. This is the lady 
 
434 
 
 LIFE AND TIMES OF 
 
 whom Katharine would not have called " mother-in-law/'' 
 but **mother-in-love." Some of the last years of her hus- 
 band's life were not made miserable, but comfortable 
 rather, and happy, by her wifely conduct and ministra- 
 tions. This fact being understood, the statement may 
 now be made, that during a few years the conduct of Mrs. 
 Mather was such as can be explained only on the sup- 
 position that she was deranged. This was not perceived 
 at first, but by degrees her husband appears to have set- 
 tled down into that conviction. The treatment of himself 
 and his daughter Hannah was so cruel and intolerable 
 that he cried out in anguish. Nervous disorders were not 
 understood then as they are in our times, when persons in 
 such a case would be taken at once to a private hospital 
 with hopes of speedy alleviation. Her troubles lasted sev- 
 eral years, with alternations. Some of the records are in 
 Latin and some in English, but in Greek letters. No 
 word will be quoted. At one time the poor distracted 
 woman would be in an awful rage, and then would over- 
 flow with such profuse expressions of fondness as to be 
 unendurable. Then the spasm would pass off, and all 
 would be serene. Life in the family would flow on in a 
 peaceable and gentle current. But, as already said, the 
 ** stormy latitude " was passed in a few years, and the 
 remainder of their married life was happy. It remains 
 to be said that the awful trial only revealed the depth 
 of affection, and also of Christian principle, in his heart, 
 which enabled him to treat his unfortunate wife with the 
 utmost patience and tenderness. 
 
 His brother-in-law. Rev. Nehemiah Walter, of Roxbury^ 
 suffered much from sickness and, as a result, from depres- 
 sion of spirits. He was in this case at the present time; 
 therefore, he being laid aside from preaching for a year. Dr. 
 Mather invited him to " come and sojourn in his house^ 
 and so have the care of some physicians " in Boston. 
 
COTTON MATHER. 435 
 
 The following words show us that Dr. Mather's severe 
 judgments of himself should be taken with some grains 
 of allowance : " Sloth, wicked sloth, cursed sloth " ; and 
 this when he was doing the work of several ordinary- 
 men ! 
 
 On the twenty-fifth of February he had a service of 
 thanksgiving for the "healing of his consort." It was 
 temporary. 
 
 The next day he notes the fact that his " church had 
 some motions towards inviting his kinsman, Thomas 
 Walter, to come to the assistance and succession of the 
 ministry" with them. Five days later there is another 
 reference to this motion : — 
 
 Danger of the church going into confusions, not to be thought of 
 without horror. All the brethren of the church except four or five gen- 
 tlemen, who must always be the rulers of all, are fond of inviting Mr. 
 Walter into the assistance and succession of the ministry. Last Oc- 
 tober an excellent man was given up to please these men. There is 
 now a more general desire, and a very vehement one, for this person, 
 who is one of rich and rare accomplishments, and such another cannot 
 presently be hoped for. But these gentlemen clog all the motions. 
 Roxbury is like to seize upon him. Oh ! the wisdom ; oh the patience ; 
 oh the prayer, I am called unto. 
 
 Young Walter was settled in Roxbury as his father's- 
 colleague. He was considered by Dr. Chauncy, as we 
 have seen, one of the ablest and most promising young 
 men that ever came under his notice. 
 
 Among the items belonging to the year preceding this 
 date, March 8, these are some : he sent money to the 
 school at Malabar ; put some copies of his Raphael into 
 the hands of physicians, to be given to their patients on 
 recovery, at their discretion ; befriended a poor woman 
 who was greatly oppressed for speaking the truth ; made 
 journeys to preach, attend councils, and settle difficulties ;, 
 
436 I^IFE AND TIMES OF 
 
 was deeply interested in the education of Samuel and 
 Eliza ; solicitous about Increase, and grieving for Hannah 
 because of her trials from her distracted stepmother. The 
 state of the college was a grievance, because it did not 
 come up to his idea of what it might and ought to be, 
 as a Christian seminary. The Indians and the negroes 
 enhsted his good will and assistance, and he sent letters 
 and money to the Frederician University in Saxony. At 
 the same time he wrote to gentlemen in Connecticut 
 urging the gospelizing of their Indians. The number of 
 Indians in that colony was small, and mostly confined to 
 the Mohegan tribe. 
 
 This fraction of a diary shall furnish us this passage re- 
 lating to the ministry of angels : " March 7. Given up to 
 meditation on the Angels : — their number, greatness, holi- 
 ness, glories, services; and the infinite glory of God in 
 being worshipped by such beings. And the greatness of 
 God before whom angels are mere shadows and nothings." 
 This in private. In family devotions he " expressed unto 
 God what, as a family, we were unto the angels. Cried 
 unto God the Lord that the ministry of the holy angels 
 might more than ever be allowed to him. Prayed God to 
 influence the angels to befriend his health, to supply his 
 wants, to direct his studies and all his motions ; to help 
 him resist temptations, to raise up powerful friends to his 
 designs, and especially to incline suitable persons to pub- 
 lish several great works, prepared for the church of God." 
 He then prayed that the family " might fare the better for 
 angelic ministrations," in several particulars. 
 
 Dr. Mather evidently believed that angels were em- 
 ployed by their Maker in doing his will as much as, and 
 more than, human agents. And who knows enough about 
 force or power in all its agencies and applications to say 
 how the infinite, personal, and intelligent Force which 
 ■works for righteousness carries out His kind designs? 
 
COTTON MATHER. 437 
 
 A Baptist church had been established in Boston in 
 the year 1665, by four or five seceding members from the 
 church in Charlestown, and a few who had been connected 
 with Baptist churches in England. They had a troubled 
 and troubling life, but in 1680 secured a place of worship. 
 The want of Christian courtesy which had hindered their 
 obtaining a building lot had not the sympathy of the 
 Mathers, and now, on the twenty-first of May, 171 8, they 
 both joined in the services at the ordination of a minister 
 — Rev. Mr. Elisha Callender — over this church. The 
 sermon preached by Cotton Mather on the occasion bore 
 the title: ** Brethren dwelling together in unity: The True 
 Basis for a union among the people of God, a sermon 
 preached at the ordination " of Rev. Elisha Callender. 
 His text was Romans 15:7: "Wherefore receive ye one 
 another, as Christ also received us to the glory of God " ; 
 and his topic was : " They whom our great Saviour will 
 one day receive to the glory of God in the heavenly 
 places, ought upon the terms which qualify them for that 
 glorious inheritance, now to receive one another with the 
 regard due to the heirs of that eternal blessedness." The 
 discourse was a very clear, scriptural, and loving state- 
 ment of the ground of union between true believers. 
 
 **A Man of Reason" was one of this year's publications, 
 but the matter was prepared several years before. It was 
 a brief essay — thirty-two pages — to "demonstrate that 
 all men should hearken to reason ; and what a world of 
 €vil would be prevented in the world, if men would once 
 become reasonable." A sample will show the quality of 
 the work : — 
 
 There is in every man an admirable spirit. In that spirit there is a 
 faculty called Reason ! 'T is that faculty which is called, Prov. 20 : 27, 
 the spirit of a man which is the candle of the Lord. By the light of 
 this precious and wondrous candle, it is that we discern the connection 
 
438 LIFE AND TIMES OF 
 
 and relation of things one to another. There are certain ideas im- 
 printed on the spirit of man, by the God who forms the spirit of man 
 within him. These awakened and brought into exercise by observa- 
 tion, are the Principles of Reason. 
 
 And the following lines give an interesting account of 
 the fortunes of the manuscript : — 
 
 About nine years ago I formed a brief Treatise, which I entituled^ 
 A Man of Reason. One who pretended much friendship to me, carried 
 it for England, with a declared purpose to publish it there. The 
 French took him, and he lost all that he had with him. Only one 
 day at his lodgings in France, his landlord brought this manuscript 
 unto him, telling him, " I can get no good by it ; it may do you some 
 good." He carried it over to Bristol with him, and there left it care- 
 lessly in a hand unknown to me. After some years, it was by the 
 mediation of my friend, Mr. Noble, returned unto me. Here it re- 
 mained some years, until a religious society of young men asked me 
 lately to give them a sermon ; and this was the sermon (which with 
 some other strange circumstances, that at the instant brought it into 
 my hand, though I had lodged it with one that was now gone a 
 voyage from us), I gave unto them. The young men at last commit 
 it unto the press ; and it looks as if it were designed for some good in 
 the world. 
 
 " Providences asserted and adored " was a sermon occa- 
 sioned by the death of several persons who were drowned. 
 It appeared without name. Another sermon of this year 
 went through four editions, under the title, "Early Piety, 
 exemplified in Elizabeth Butcher of Boston, who died 
 when eight years and eleven months old." It is evident 
 fi'om many cases of this kind that early piety was far 
 more common in the early generations of our history 
 than has been supposed. 
 
 Rev. Thomas Barnard, or Bernard, as Mather writes 
 his name, was a native of Hartford, Conn., a graduate of 
 Harvard College, and minister of Andover about thirty-six 
 years, dying in 171 8. His funeral sermon was preached 
 
COTTON MATHER. 
 
 439 
 
 by Dr. Mather, whose topic was, " Vanishing Things : An 
 Essay on the dying man, known in his place no more." 
 He speaks of the pastor as *' shining yet humble." The 
 eulogy is perfect. He was a scholar in the best estate of 
 man as a minister of the gospel, and in it he was shining^ 
 and at the same time humble. 
 
 Another work belongs to this year, which demands more 
 space than can be given to others, which may be equally 
 valuable. This is unique, and is known as ''Psalterium 
 Americanum," It is the Book of Psalms in a translation 
 ** exactly conformed unto the original, but all in blank 
 verse, fitted unto the tunes commonly used in our 
 churches ; which pure offering is accompanied with Illus- 
 trations, digging for hidden treasures in it ; and Rules to 
 employ it upon the glorious and various intentions of it." 
 Some other portions of the Bible were added, to " enrich 
 the cautional." 
 
 Dr. Sibley quotes the following from a writer whose 
 name is not given : — 
 
 In this singular publication, which is a close translation of the 
 Hebrew, Dr. Mather has not only disregarded the modern practice of 
 breaking the lines, whether rhymed or not, but he has run out (to 
 use a printer's phrase,) the whole matter ; so that, while each psalm 
 looks exactly like prose, and may be read as such, it is, in fact, modu- 
 lated so that it may be sung as lyric verse. The learned doctor says 
 that in the *' twice seven versions" which he has seen, the authors put 
 in a large heap of poor things that are entirely their own, merely for 
 preserving the '* clink of the rhyme, which, after all, is of small conse- 
 quence unto a generous Poem, and none at all unto the melody of 
 singing." 
 
 In an introduction of thirty-five pages there is some fine 
 writing upon the beauty and sublimity of the Psalms, and 
 their fitness for the *' service of song in the house of the 
 Lord " ; and an explanation of his design and method in 
 preparing this version. He writes : — 
 
440 LIFE AND TIMES OF 
 
 The version is fitted unto all the common tunes, the notes whereof 
 are eight and six. Some are accommodated for a well known longer 
 note by putting in two syllables of the black letter [italic is used here] 
 which are without any damage to the truth of the translation, found 
 enclosed between two such crotchets as these [ ] — and which, being 
 left out, the metre with the sense yet remaining entire, is again restored 
 unto the usual eight and six. And some of them are so contrived, that 
 by leaving out what is in the black \italic\ letter between the two 
 crotchets, [ ] which may be done without any manner of damage, 
 they are accommodated unto a well known shorter metre. 
 
 Here follows a part of Psalm ii, in 8s and 6s : — 
 
 1. The nations, why do they concur | with such tumultuous rage ! | 
 and why the people meditate | a thing that is but vain ? 
 
 2. Kings of the earth do set themselves, | and rulers do consult | 
 against the eternal, and against | [Christ] his Anointed one. 
 
 The word Christ is inserted in the last line to fill out 
 the measure, but it does not change the sense ; rather, it 
 makes the meaning more specific. 
 
 Take now the first three verses of the One Hundred 
 and Forty-fifth Psalm. The italic is inserted in this ex- 
 ample to fill out the measure : — 
 
 1. O Thou that art my God, the King, | I'll thee extol {and sef^ 
 on high, I and I will speak well of thy name | to [endless'] ages still 
 to come. 
 
 2. All day, and every day, I will | keep [ever] speaking well of 
 thee; | and I will celebrate thy name | to [endless] ages still to come. 
 
 3. Most great is the eternal God, | and greatly to be praised [is 
 He,] I and of his greatness there cannot | be [ever] any searching out. 
 
 The following version of the first three verses of Psalm 
 ciii may be sung in long or common meter, according as 
 the italic words are used or omitted : — 
 
 1. O my awaked soul, do thou j bless [always] the eternal God; | 
 and all my inward powers the name | of his pure [spotless] holiness. 
 
 2. O my awakened soul, do thou | bless [always] the eternal God ; | 
 and O forget not any one | of all his [precious] benefits. 
 
COTTON MATHER, 44! 
 
 3. 'Tis he who gives a pardon to j all my \most vile] iniquities | 'tis 
 he who gives an healing to | all thy [^most sad] infirmities. 
 
 To those worshipers who longed to avoid the Scotch 
 method of singing without any regard to meter ; or the. 
 use of The Bay Psalm Book, whose rhymes were often 
 horrid, this arrangement must have afforded grateful 
 relief. The sense of the original is preserved ; the verses 
 are left as in the Common Version ; the attempt to rhyme 
 is given up, but the meter is generally smooth and pleas- 
 ant. The perpendicular line marks the end of the staff. 
 Soon the version of the Psalms by Dr. Watts, and his 
 own Book of Hymns, superseded the psalms and hymns 
 before in use among the churches. 
 
 No diary exists to guide our steps in the year 17 19, but 
 we have no reason to doubt that Dr. Mather's interior ex- 
 periences this year were similar to those which he had in 
 preceding and succeeding years. There were no changes 
 in his family, unless, perhaps, the death of one of the little 
 girls of his daughter, Mrs, Willard. Samuel was a lively 
 boy, and was studying geography, astronomy, and mathe- 
 matics, as well as Latin and French, as much as his love 
 of play would allow. Eliza also showed a desire to study 
 French with him. Nothing definite is known of the de- 
 portment or employment of Increase (now about twenty) 
 unless he was in the secretary's office, where he was at 
 one time engaged. 
 
 As Dr. Increase Mather was now eighty years of age, it 
 is not probable that he could render much assistance in 
 the way of preaching, though his presence and his prayers 
 were a benediction. 
 
 In Drake's Boston it is noted that the aurora borealis 
 was first seen in these parts on the seventeenth of Decem- 
 ber. No man in the province would have beheld it with 
 
442 LIFE AND TIMES OF 
 
 more eager interest than Cotton Mather. An anonymous 
 publication with the title, "A Voice from Heaven; An 
 Account of an uncommon appearance in the heavens, with 
 remarks upon it," is ascribed to him by Dr. Prince. It is 
 marked P. in his catalogue, but is not found among the 
 books of Prince in the public library. 
 
 The year was begun by preaching, on New Year's day, 
 a sermon on " A New Year well-begun ; an Essay offered 
 to provide a good work for such a day, and advice how a 
 good year may certainly follow the day." It was dedi- 
 cated to John Winthrop, Esq., of New London, where it 
 was printed. An extract from Sir Richard Blackmore's 
 poem, entitled "The New Year's Day," was added. The 
 text was Psalm xc : " So teach us to number our days, 
 that we may apply our hearts unto wisdom." A passage 
 will show the drift of the discourse : ** Very frail, very 
 short, very soon spent, is the life of man. And the roll- 
 ing of his life along is like the telling of a story ; the 
 years of his life pass away like a story." This is the 
 conclusion : — 
 
 Wherefore, get into such a state and frame of mind, as to be ready 
 for the coming of the Lord unto you, in all the dispensations of his 
 providence. As the years of change are all in the right hand of the 
 Most High, so are all the changes of the year. Become reconciled 
 unto God, and then, whatever happens, you may say, " God has meant 
 it unto good." Realize the providence of a dear Saviour, at work in all 
 that befalls you, to convey thereby unto you the blessings of a healed 
 soul. Become dead with your crucified Redeemer ; dead not only unto 
 the comforts, but also unto the troubles of this world ; and then the 
 most killing things will never hurt you. You will only say, ** My 
 dear Saviour loves me when he kills me." A heart established with the 
 love of God, will make a good year for you, and make light arise in all 
 your darkness, whatever events the year may be darkened withal. 
 
 On the twelfth of March he preached in the audience 
 of the governor and General Court : " Concio ad Populum ; 
 
COTTON MATHER, 443 
 
 or, A Distressed People entertained with Proposals for the 
 relief of their distresses." The running title was "The 
 Valley of Vision in the Valley of Achor." This valley 
 is the door of hope. The text (Prov. 29: 18) is both 
 warning and comforting : " Where there is no vision, 
 the people perish : but he that keepeth the law, happy is 
 he." He first pointed out the distresses and evils which 
 afflicted the people, and then suggested means of relief: 
 I. A society for the relief of public distresses ; 2. frugal- 
 ity ; 3. industry. 
 
 Several ministers joined in a "Testimony against evil 
 customs." It was attributed to Mather and was signed 
 by him, Benjamin Colman, and Benjamin Wadsworth, with 
 the concurrence of others. Some of the evil customs that 
 had come in, or old customs which were being turned 
 into an abuse, were specified, as follows : — i. Lewd and 
 rude practices ; 2. Ordination frolics in the evening, after 
 the service; 3. Weddings — immodest irregularities; 4. 
 Lectures, followed by resort to taverns ; 5. Trainings ; 6. 
 Commencement feasting and follies ; 7. Huskings. 
 
 The ordination levities, in the shape of parties and 
 dances, prevailed in some places till after the present 
 century came in ; and the ancient trainings, whether of 
 single companies or of regiments, were always attended 
 by hard drinking, and often with drunkenness. When 
 officers were elected, they were expected to "treat all 
 round," and thus habits were formed which brought many 
 bright young men to an early and dishonored grave. This 
 paper showed how evil habits had grown and become obdu- 
 rate, and urged their abandonment at once. 
 
 The "Tryed Professor" and " Vigilius " have the same 
 end in view substantially. The latter is fitted to awaken 
 men from natural sleep in the hours of devotion ; and the 
 moral sleep, wherein the " souls of men frequently omit 
 
444 ^^^^ ^^^ TIMES OF 
 
 the duties, and forfeit the comforts of religion in ear- 
 nest " ; and the former is a "brief essay to detect and 
 prevent hypocrisy, and make sure of sincerity in the 
 profession of religion." 
 
 False swearing and perjury were treated of by our 
 preacher, before the General Court, probably with the 
 intention or desire of effecting some legislation that might 
 tend to diminish the evil. " The Religion of an Oath " 
 was the topic, and directions were given "how the duty 
 of swearing may be safely managed, when it is justly 
 demanded ; and strong persuasives to avoid the perils of 
 perjury." The laws of Denmark in relation to oaths 
 were explained for information. The sermon is an in- 
 dication as to the morals of the time, and of the scope 
 of the Puritan ministry in the usage of a fearless yet 
 god-fearing man. 
 
 The next discourse witnesses to the variety which char- 
 acterized the preaching of old times. The subject was 
 "A Glorious Espousal." It exhibits the essence of the 
 espousals of Christ to his church, and "thereupon recom- 
 mends a good carriage in the married life. What could 
 more seasonably be presented when marriage is upon 
 celebration t " 
 
 Here is another of Mather's peculiar title-pages, which 
 is full of meaning : " Desiderius, or, A Desirable Man 
 Describ'd ; in the character of one worthy to be a man 
 greatly beloved ; and an example of one who lived very 
 much desired, and has died as much lamented ; given in 
 some commemoration of the very valuable and memorable 
 Mr. James Keith, late minister of the gospel in Bridge- 
 water." This minister, whose age was seventy-six, has 
 been mentioned in previous pages, in terms which evince 
 the respect, reverence, and affection of his friend Mather. 
 
 One or two letters on public and political matters have 
 
COTTON MATHER, 445 
 
 not been found, but a long sermon still remains and still is 
 instinct with life. The title is " Mirabilia Dei : an essay 
 on the very seasonable and remarkable interpositions of 
 the Divine Providence, to rescue and relieve distressed 
 people, brought unto the very point of perishing; espe- 
 cially relating to that twice-memorable fifth of November; 
 offered in the audience of His Excellency the Governor, 
 and the General Assembly of the Massachusetts Province, 
 N. E., on the fifth of November, 17 19." This was the 
 anniversary of the Gunpowder Plot. It was a subject 
 suited to the occasion. The English nation had been 
 in peril from a great scheme of invasion and rebellion 
 this very year, and the colonies were in a distressed con- 
 dition. The historical strain of the sermon was suited 
 to the preacher's genius and knowledge, and the members 
 from the country — the far larger part of the assembly — 
 would listen with rapt attention to his historical lore. 
 
 The text was Genesis 22 : 14, which shows the watch- 
 ful regard of God for his people. As the nation had been 
 in dangerous circumstances, it was pertinent to show how 
 God had interposed for his people in all ages. The 
 inference was, to take courage. He referred : — i. to the 
 case of Abraham and Isaac by the altar of wood ; 2. of 
 the people of God in Egypt, and at the Red Sea. Then 
 he illustrated from individual history : — i. The One Hun- 
 dred and First Psalm of David, who wrote : **I will sing 
 of mercy and judgments"; 2. he instanced other Old Tes- 
 tament characters, as Jacob, Sarah, Daniel ; 3. he referred 
 to great events in English history, as the Armada, the 
 Gunpowder Plot, the coming of William III, and the plot 
 to bring in the Pretender, on the death of Queen Anne, 
 from which peril the nation had recently escaped. He 
 says : " Everybody now knows that there was a design 
 with a strong hand carried on, to put by the succession to 
 
446 LIFE AND TIMES. 
 
 the crown," Next he referred to New England history, 
 closing with King Philip's War, which some of his hearers 
 remembered, and with the story of whose horrors all were 
 too familiar. In view of all these great interpositions of 
 God for his people through centuries, he closes with the 
 exclamation, *'0 Thou hope of New England, and Thou 
 Saviour thereof in the times of trouble, with encouraged 
 hopes will we keep looking up to Thee." 
 
CHAPTER XXI. 
 
 A CHRISTIAN IN THE FURNACE I I72O-I72I. 
 
 THE year 1720 was full of trouble and anxiety to Dr. 
 Mather. The ingratitude of relatives by marriage, 
 and the entanglements of an estate which he had been 
 requested to administer upon reduced his strength and 
 nearly overcame his fortitude. It appears that nothing 
 but faith in God kept him from mental distraction. The 
 diary — perhaps happily for us — is wanting. It must 
 have been, for several months, a record of ill health, 
 domestic infelicity, mourning over a wayward son, com- 
 parative unfruitfulness in his pastoral work, and suffering 
 from pecuniary embarrassment, brought upon him by the 
 misconduct of others. 
 
 The four years, 1719-1722 inclusive, give an average of 
 less than eleven admissions per annum, which is much 
 less than the average of his whole ministry. It was, in 
 comparison, a dark period in Dr. Mather's pastorate as 
 well as in his life. The business entanglement and the 
 vexations growing out of it were an addition to all the 
 griefs which a distracted wife and an unworthy child — 
 both dearly loved — brought upon his sensitive heart. 
 
 Two essays marked the close of the preceding year and 
 the opening of this, with these titles, respectively : " Youth 
 Advised ; an Essay on the sins of Youth " ; and " A 
 Brother's Duty ; an Essay on every man his brother's 
 keeper." These are in the list of his son Samuel, but 
 not found in any public library at present. 
 
 Two or three funeral sermons may be arranged together, 
 especially as they all were delivered near the same time, 
 
 447 
 
448 LIFE AND TIMES OF 
 
 and that the beginning of the year. " A Year and a Life 
 well-concluded" was delivered on the last day of 17 19, 
 and printed soon after. It was a ** Brief Essay on the 
 good things wherein the last works of a Christian may 
 be, and should be, his best works." 
 
 The Rev. Mr. Joseph Gerrish, of Wenham, "was re- 
 ceived where the weary are at rest," on the sixth of 
 January, in the seventieth year of his age. The discourse 
 on his decease was entitled " Detur Digniori : The right- 
 eous man described and asserted as the excellent man; 
 and the excellences of such an one demonstrated." 
 
 " Undoubted Certainties : or^ Piety enlivened from the 
 view of what the living do certainly know of death ap- 
 proaching," was a sermon on the death of Mrs. Abigail 
 Sewall, preached on the fifth of June, the text being from 
 Ecclesiastes 9 : 5 : *' For the living know that they shall 
 die," etc. First point : " We know that we must die. 2. 
 How should we know it } or, with what effect } So as to 
 put it to good use. History mentions an excellent person, 
 who dying very suddenly, was found sitting in his chair. 
 Some would have made a rash interpretation of it. But 
 God ordered it that he was found with a book lying before 
 him, and his finger pointing to these words : * Whatever 
 death a righteous man may be presented withal, yet he 
 shall be in rest.' " 
 
 "The Quickened Soul," referring to the "withered hand 
 revived and restored," was " aimed more particularly at 
 the direction of them whose conversion to piety may be 
 in danger, through wretched and foolish pamphlets, which 
 the enemies of grace and of souls, industriously scatter 
 about the country." Dr. Sibley suggests that perhaps 
 it refers to John Checkley's " Choice Dialogues between 
 a godly minister and an honest countryman, concerning 
 election and predestination." 
 
COTTON MATHER. 449 
 
 An anonymous publication of this season, with the title 
 ** The Salvation of the Soul considered," is supposed to be 
 the work of Dr. Mather. The title of another is given as 
 his, though without name, because the style of the title 
 reveals his hand, and the hand of no other man. It is 
 " Coheleth : A Soul upon recollection, coming into incon- 
 testable sentiments of religion ; such as all the sons of 
 wisdom will and must forever justify; written by a fellow 
 of the royal society, offering the advice of a father, 
 going out of the world, unto a son coming into it." His 
 son Samuel was about entering the college and so the 
 world, and that may be the personal reference. "Co- 
 heleth" is the "preacher," as the word is used in Eccle- 
 siastes 1:1; one who upon " recollection " or review 
 of his experience, comes into "incontestable sentiments 
 of religion." 
 
 We come now to the special afflictions of the year, and 
 of the years just before and after ; but our attention will 
 be mostly fixed upon an anonymous letter which has been 
 ascribed to Dr. Mather. In the diary of 17 16, November 
 30, are these words : " We are now getting towards the 
 clearing and settling of the estate. I would propound 
 unto my wife what special service for God and his 
 kingdom she will do, in case the administration be well 
 finished, and she find any effects remaining that may 
 render capable of doing anything." This probably refers 
 to an inheritance of his wife, from her father or her 
 former husband. It is not of any use to trace out the 
 history of this " administration," or even to refer to it at 
 all, except so far as it is connected in some way with an 
 attack upon the character of Dr. Mather. In one of his 
 entries he states that he had unwittingly become bound to 
 pay the debts of his wife's late husband, and in a letter 
 about to be quoted, the writer ( supposed by some to be 
 
450 LIFE AND TIMES OF 
 
 Cotton Mather) speaks of the "perplexities of the admin- 
 istration " of an estate. All we need to understand is that 
 in his troubles a letter was written by some one which 
 has been made the occasion of severe insinuations, cruel 
 charges, and unmanly sneers against him. It is a 
 ( supposed ) letter to the Honorable Judge Sewall, April, 
 1720. It is printed in Massachusetts Historical Society 
 Coll. 32, 122. This is introduced and followed by remarks 
 from the then president of the society, Mr. Savage, highly 
 derogatory to Dr. Mather. These will be considered 
 after reciting the letter, word for word. The original is 
 now in existence, and the following is a copy correspond- 
 ing with that in the collections. One or two corrections 
 are suggested in brackets. 
 
 [Supposed] Letter from Rev. Cotton Mather, D. D. 
 Honorable Sir. 
 
 As soon as your hon'r has considered ye contents hereof, I request 
 you, (for several reasons,) to burn it. I being lately in ye company of 
 Dr. Mather, was made sensible of some things, w'ch I tho't I might 
 do well to lay before your hon'r, and the rather because he is a person 
 that you have some value for. I am not without feare that ye heavy 
 and many troubles that oppress him, may have such an effect upon 
 him, that we shall quickly lose him, except redressed speedily; and 
 indeed, had it not been for some singular attainments w'ch I suppose 
 he is master of, he never could have borne up so well as he has. Your 
 Honor, I believe, is not [un] acquainted with his troubles, but I find 
 that w'ch most overwhelms, is ye wretched Administration, as he 
 calls it, in w'ch he has been ensnared, by his love to some whom he 
 finds full of ingratitude. Your hon'r can deliver him, if you please, 
 and if Incapacity to Administer be a just cause for a judge to lay aside 
 an Administrator, you have it alredy before you ; or if you think you 
 have not, you will, (it may be,) have it either in the Death, or in some- 
 thing worse than that soon coming on that distressed, tho' worthy Gen- 
 tleman. I am informed by those who have it from Boydell, that ye 
 accounts of ye Administration given in, are beyond expectation fair 
 and clear, and to your hon'rs satisfaction. 
 
 Every one that I speak with are of opinion, that ye managers deserve 
 
COTTON MATHER. 
 
 451 
 
 to have more allowed them all that Mr. Whittamore has applyed for 
 his own support in the business, for the Incredible fatigue w'ch they 
 have undergone. But if so much be not allowed them, ye Doctor must 
 pay it of his pocket, w'ch I perceive he is ready to do, rather than 
 the orphans should be defrauded of a penny. But until your hon'r 
 shall release him, his condition, as he says, and I partly know it, is 
 intolerable. Every one that knocks at his door, surprises him, that 
 his heart dies within him, as he says, fearing there is an Arrest to be 
 served on him, or somebody to dun him for a Debt, due from an Estate,, 
 which he never can be the farther [farthing] the better for. Old Mrs.- 
 Fyfield keeps worrying about ye ruins that her estate must suffer, 
 because of her husband's suretyship. 
 
 Your honor gave the Old Doctor (Increase) some hope that you 
 would deliver his son out of his extreme distresses. He says you told 
 him it was in your power, and then he adds, I hope the good judge 
 will think tis his duty. 
 
 The brave and good Old Doctor, who is languishing for Heaven,, 
 does also vehemently long for your honV to deliver his son. But this 
 morning I find the distressed Gentleman, viz. ye young doctor almost 
 sunk into a total dispair of any deliverance ; he says the affair labors 
 as if it were incharnted ; they have been two years in doing what might 
 have been done in less than two months. The Doctor speaks of your 
 honors judgment and goodness, with ye greatest respect, but he seems 
 to be apprehensive of a strong plott laid to ruin him, by them for 
 whom he always had the bowels of a tender father. He is commonly 
 Informed that your Nephew stirs up people to arrest him, and has- 
 given the Doctor reason to think that he has consulted with an able 
 lawyer to molest him for maladministration . He is told that Mr. 
 Faneuil's arrest was contrived on purpose to prevent your hon'r from 
 delivering of him, w'ch arrest, tho now dropt, (by the good persuasion 
 of my great and good friend,) will be speedily renewed for that pur- 
 pose. His tirrible wife (whose character Mr. Jon. Sewall has given, 
 as ye Doctor understands, to others, and can give to your hon'r, if he 
 pleases,) will have a great estate, whether there be one or no. The 
 women talk like mad people about it. The story of a sham Inventor)' 
 Mr. Boydell can tell your hon'r. 
 
 The estate has already fared much the worse, as I am informed^ 
 because your Nephew refused to act as an attorney in the administra- 
 cion, and will do so more and more. It seems his wife wont let him 
 act, and the Doctor thinks its from an ill-intention to plague the 
 doctor. 
 
452 
 
 LIFE AND TIMES OF 
 
 Considering some strange things that your Nephew knows relating 
 to his predecessor, the doctor has often wondered at his barbarous 
 carriage towards him, (whereof I believe the Doctor can give your 
 honV a strong Instance,) and that he is not afraid of dreadful conse- 
 quences. The Doctor thinks your Nephew studies all ye Litigious arts 
 he can to defeat your hon'rs just and good purposes to deliver ye poor 
 afflicted servant of God, and the Doctor expects he'll be successful 
 in them, w'ch causes the doctor to be so dejected that it would move 
 your honVs compassion to a great Degree, were you to see him. The 
 Doctor, I perceive, esteems your honVs conversation above any in the 
 Land, and would have waited on you often, but his dejection att this 
 wretched administrac'on so dispirits him, that he is fit for to speak 
 with none, to talk of nothing. His burthen certainly is almost insup- 
 portable, for he would fain have preached a Lecture sermon, to stir up 
 devout persons to pray for ye conversion of ye Jews, on ye next week, 
 but he says this wretched administrac'on undoes him : he cannot fix his 
 tho'ts and must let it alone. 
 
 Good S'r. Make haste with your helping hand to this distressed, 
 afflicted minister of Christ, and save him from the plotts of those 
 who, you may see, would ruin him. I beseech you, S'r, let [not] your 
 nephew, or by him, his wife, be to hard for you. 
 I am your hon'rs most humble 
 and obedient serv't &c. 
 [Rec'd Ap. 13, 1720 To 
 
 past 9 at night.] The Hon. Judge 
 
 Sewall. 
 These. 
 
 On the outside of the letter, folded in the usual way of 
 folding letters, Judge Sewall wrote: " Rec'd Apr. 13th 
 1720, in behalf of Dr. Cotton Mather." 
 
 One complaint against Dr. Mather is that he wrote an 
 anonymous letter. But an anonymous letter may be a 
 very innocent thing. It depends on its spirit and design, 
 whether it is harmless or blamable. A letter without 
 name may be written to give needful information, to warn 
 of dangers to further a good design, when the writer has 
 reasons for concealing his name. Viewed in this light, 
 the letter is without sin. 
 
CO TTON MA THER. 45 3 
 
 But it is said that in this case there was an ingredient 
 of falsehood in concealing the writer, while making the 
 impression that the letter was written by some one else. 
 This would be a grave offense to morality, if the conceal- 
 ment was real, and not merely a modest veil which the 
 receiver would see through at once and recognize the 
 real writer. If Judge Sewall ever supposed that Cotton 
 Mather was the author, what would have been his conjec- 
 ture as to the design of anonymity } Would he not have 
 said, " Dr. Mather is in deep distress ; he wants help ; but 
 in his sensitiveness he tries to conceal the secrets of his 
 heart by covering up his name and agency in this letter " } 
 Something like that, doubtless. 
 
 But there is no proof that Judge Sewall ever thought 
 or imagined that Dr. Mather wrote the letter or inspired 
 it. He merely wrote on the outside of the letter, with 
 the date, these words: "Rec'd in behalf of Dr. Cotton 
 Mather." And that, in all probability, was what he thought 
 of it. If he had imagined that there was anything wrong, 
 or even questionable in the letter itself or in its mode, 
 who can doubt that he would have complied with the re- 
 quest to burn it } Who can doubt, knowing the unbroken 
 friendship of the two men for nearly half a century, that 
 he would have seen Dr. Mather and conversed on the 
 subject, and returned the letter or destroyed it, if it was 
 open to censure t The fact is that there is no proof to 
 satisfy a candid mind that Cotton Mather wrote or had 
 anything whatever to do with the " supposed " letter. 
 
 In the first place, it is not written in the style of Cotton 
 Mather, or in any of his styles, for he had two or three. 
 The style of the Magiialia is entirely different from that 
 of many of his printed sermons and thousands of his 
 manuscript pages ; while many of his letters differ in style 
 from the preceding " composures." They are written in 
 
454 ^^^^ ^^^ TIMES OF 
 
 a swift, currente calamOy and almost rollicking style, over- 
 flowing with quips and quirks, and a somewhat ponder- 
 ous fun, all mingled together. Now this "supposed" 
 letter has but the slightest resemblance to anything of 
 Mather's extant. 
 
 Nor is it supposable that Dr. Mather would put so many 
 commendations of himself into such a letter, if ever so 
 much impelled to write it. They are unnatural, as in the 
 sentence which speaks of "some singular attainments." 
 
 But, thirdly, the tone and spirit of this writing are wholly 
 repugnant to all we know of the morbid sensitiveness of 
 the man to any such revelations of himself. Whatever 
 he may have put into his private diaries, designed for 
 his sons' perusal, he had such a high sense of honor, such 
 a keen pride of independence, that he never asked his 
 people for a farthing of money for his own use. He left 
 it with them to fix his salary and the mode of raising it, 
 and though liberal in the extreme in giving, he never,, 
 even when in extremest want, asked for help or let his 
 people know of his pinching circumstances. His honor- 
 able pride almost bordered on simple disdain of friendly 
 aid. He would not stoop to ask for charity. It is a 
 shining fact in the history of men, that we have here 
 a man who never sought anything for himself from man- 
 kind. He never uttered, so far as we know, a desire for 
 any office, promotion, or honor. He never intrigued or 
 figured for parish, professorship, or presidency of the col- 
 lege. He never opposed the promotion of another man 
 from personal reasons. There is not in his published or 
 his manuscript writings, or even in the gossip of his oppo- 
 nents, a line of proof that he was self-seeking. If treated 
 unkindly, he retired into himself, and his great heart fed 
 upon its griefs, until he found communion with God. He 
 sought ways to do special acts of kindness to his enemies 
 
COTTON MATHER. 455 
 
 as well as to pray for them. And yet we are told that 
 he, in this " supposed " letter, poured out his sorrows and 
 made known his embarrassments — lifted the cover from 
 his secret soul — for the purpose of obtaining pity ! The 
 supposition is absurd ; the assumption by Mr. Savage and 
 others that he did this betrays a total ignorance of the 
 man or a strange prejudice against him. 
 
 There is a supposition which readily explains the whole 
 matter. The letter was not written by Cotton Mather, but, 
 as it purports, by a friend who was intimately acquainted 
 with the affair in question. The writer was a friend, 
 was often in the company of the "old doctor" and the 
 " young doctor," and had heard this business talked over 
 until he knew it well. He was so distressed by it him- 
 self as to be impelled to seek the intervention of Judge 
 Sewall in removing the difficulty. Now, the question is. 
 Was there such a person t And the answer is, There 
 was just such a man, who in his person filled every 
 demand of the occasion. That man was probably young 
 Thomas Walter. He was the son of Rev. Nehemiah 
 Walter, of Roxbury, by his wife, Sarah Mather, daughter 
 of Increase and sister of Cotton Mather. Young Walter 
 was something over twenty years of age. He was a 
 graduate of Harvard, and one of the three spoken of 
 by Dr. Chauncy as a very brilliant young man. Walter 
 was a student of Cotton Mather, for whom Mather was 
 solicitous and of whom he was proud. Walter studied 
 divinity with his uncle, and learned much from his conver- 
 sation on all subjects which interest and charm inquiring 
 minds. He was at home in his uncle's house almost as 
 much as at his father's in Roxbury. All but a few — 
 **four or five men" — wanted him as successor of Dr. 
 Increase and colleague of Dr. Cotton Mather. He was 
 settled as colleague of his father in 171 8; but his inti- 
 
456 LIFE AND TIMES OF 
 
 macy with the family of his uncle was not affected by 
 this event. He prepared the memoir of his fair cousin 
 Katharine, and a year after the date of this letter he 
 came to the house of his uncle Cotton to have the small- 
 pox by way of inoculation ; and it was while lying sick in 
 his uncle's study that the hand grenade was tossed into 
 the chamber window. These facts are recalled to show 
 how intimate he was in the family, and how qualified he 
 was to do precisely what was done in the writing of this 
 letter. This theory fulfills all the demands of the case 
 and leaves the reputation of a noble and godly Christian 
 man and minister free from the shadow of a suspicion of 
 wrong doing. There is not a smell of fire on his garments. 
 
 Passing into the year 1721, this year, if we may use 
 one of Dr. Mather's phrases, might be styled an annus 
 luctuosus — a year of grief — in his life. Much as he 
 had to endure heretofore, of bodily weakness, of sickness 
 and death in his family, of grief for the misfortune of his 
 wife and the misconduct of his son, and of enmity and 
 slander from the world, perhaps this year gathered into its 
 days the greatest accumulation of woes. But in ** all this 
 he sinned not, nor charged God foolishly." Though he 
 had much to endure, yet there is no evidence to sustain 
 the assertion that has found its way into some accounts of 
 his life, that he was abating his Herculean labors in the 
 service of God and man or that his influence for good was 
 waning. One of the events of this year will give him a 
 place on the bright roll of the greatest benefactors of the 
 human race, as it made the year one of the most memor- 
 able in a busy, but useful and happy, life. 
 
 The number of admissions to the church was small, but 
 evidently there was great preparation for a large accession 
 in the following year. 
 
COTTON MATHER. 457 
 
 On the eighteenth of January there was a meeting of 
 the Indian commissioners at the house of Judge Sewall, as 
 we learn from the latter' s diary. It was to pray for God's 
 blessing on the work among the natives. Dr. Mather 
 and his wife were present, which fact assures us that she 
 was having a lucid interval. There was a large party at 
 dinner, some of the gentlemen being accompanied by 
 their wives. '' Dr. Mather prayed and preached excel- 
 lently." Dinner parties were frequent in those days, and 
 ministers were in general request. Judge Sewall used to 
 make a note of the services of different ministers. He 
 was their friend, and it is noticeable how often he writes- 
 of the " excellence " of Dr. Mather's sermons and prayers. 
 
 The doctor opens the diary of his fifty-ninth birthday, 
 which was the Lord's day, with these words : " This 
 year, which, oh ! the wonders of the Divine grace and 
 goodness, and patience, that has brought me to! — began 
 with a day which obliges me to enter into the Rest of God. 
 And very probably it may be the year of my entrance into 
 everlasting rest." 
 
 He thanked God for all the blessings of his life and 
 upon his services. He confessed his unworthiness and 
 lamented his unfruitfulness. He made his flight unto the 
 great sacrifice of his Saviour for pardon, and prayed for 
 the smile of God upon him in the year to come, and for a 
 soul prepared for all that might come upon him. And 
 specially he prayed that he " might know more of Christ, 
 and how to exhibit him to others." 
 
 In dressing he considered the various blessings of his 
 various garments to him, and from thence formed agree- 
 able thoughts of the benefits to be found in the enjoy- 
 ment of his admirable Saviour, and in doing so he put on 
 Christ. 
 
 He had been ill, and this being the first day of his 
 
458 LIFE AND TIMES OF 
 
 going abroad, he preached a sermon on the words in 
 I Chronicles 29 : 15: '* For we are strangers before thee, 
 and sojourners, as were all our fathers : our days on the 
 earth are as a shadow, and there is none abiding." 
 
 One of his "devisings" was to improve the Thursday 
 lecture by inciting the ministers to preach on connected 
 subjects, and such as the cause of piety most called for. 
 This suggestion was adopted, and a volume of sermons 
 was one of the results. The title was " Early Piety." 
 
 The starting of " religious societies in every plantation 
 for the reviving and preserving of piety " was on his mind 
 at this time. Families were pushing out into the wilds of 
 Maine and New Hampshire and the hill towns of Massa- 
 chusetts, and they needed help in securing the preaching 
 of the gospel. 
 
 His negro servant desired baptism, and he took meas- 
 ures to prepare him for the solemnity. A former servant, 
 Onesimus, disappointed his hopes and became dissipated. 
 This was an exception to the general rule, that his serv- 
 ants became Christians while under his roof. 
 
 About this time Dr. Mather was anxious to have 
 " something done to get the gospel into the Narragansett 
 country." Nearly all that part of Rhode Island directly 
 west of Narragansett Bay to the Connecticut line was 
 " destitute of gospel privileges." After the " great swamp 
 fight," when Massachusetts and Connecticut troops made 
 a conquest of the region, the wilderness was entered by 
 people who had very little value for the institutions of 
 religion ; and those who had were so detached that it was 
 difficult to gather congregations and build houses of wor- 
 ship. Hence the need of sympathy and aid from the 
 more civilized and Christianized colonies. 
 
 There is a thought in the diary of the 2^th, which 
 is a gem in some page of Bulwer, about the " life of 
 
COTTON MATHER, 459 
 
 our thoughts, and the life of our actions " : different, but 
 going on at the same time, every day Mather wished to 
 give a practical turn to the thoughts. He states that 
 many of his hearers had employments which kept their 
 hands busy while their minds had much leisure. He 
 would suggest methods to these people by which their 
 minds might be busy with good things. 
 
 Two treatises occupied his pen in these weeks. One 
 was entitled ''India Christiana,'' growing out of corre- 
 spondence with missionaries in the East Indies ; and con- 
 sultation about evangelizing the American Indians. It 
 was the substance of his discourse at the house of Judge 
 Sewall, above noted, on the eighteenth of January. Home 
 and foreign missions were familiar to his mind. Additions 
 were made to the discourse by the letters to and from 
 Ziegenbalgh, Grundler, and others, making a volume of 
 ninety-four pages. 
 
 The other treatise was " Honesta Parsimonia,'' an 
 " essay on Time spent as it should be," urging to spend 
 the time so that a " good account may at last be given of 
 it." He desired to *' disperse this pamphlet among the 
 scholars at the college." The India Christiana was sent 
 into " several parts of Europe, with designs to serve the 
 kingdom of God." 
 
 In the essay on time is the following remark : " Who- 
 soever compels another to lose his time, does him an 
 injury. He who allows himself to lose his own time, does 
 himself an injury. The loss of time! 'tis a damage; 'tis 
 a wrong to be complained of ; 't is a thing which the law 
 of God will animadvert upon." 
 
 In March Dr. Mather was moved to indignation by the 
 "cursed pamphlets and libels" with which wicked men 
 were endeavoring to poison the country ; and on this he 
 wrote : '' An excellent young minister, as bright a thing 
 
460 LIFE AND TIMES OF 
 
 as ever the town produced, is particularly insulted and 
 abused by scurrilous and scandalous libels." Mather 
 would encourage him ; and he desired also that the gov- 
 ernment would put a stop to those publications. We 
 have still the curse of " scurrilous and scandalous libels," 
 by a portion of the press, but have found that it is not 
 wise to suppress them, except so far as the law of libel 
 may operate. 
 
 In regard to his two sons, we find this on the seventh 
 of March : " Sammy must be urged to diligence," and after 
 stating that he had paid a bill for a "further accom- 
 plishment for Creasy to render him a more finished 
 gentleman," he adds: "Oh! when, when shall I say 
 Christian must be paid for.?" 
 
 How many ministers have ever conceived such a service 
 as the following note specifies } " May I not visit the 
 watch-house, persuade the watchmen to spend the time 
 in devout exercises, and in reading good books when not 
 abroad upon their duty .-* " 
 
 Dr. Mather was busy in these days in trying to get a 
 well-qualified young gentleman into the college as tutor ; in 
 " visiting several aged people to help them to prepare for 
 death " ; in mending the " singing of the congregation " ; 
 and in sending his youngest son to college ; writing at the 
 same time letters to some "superior students, asking them 
 to aid the boy in being a good student." 
 
 The following, under date March 16, refers to the 
 distracted state of public opinion, and the prevalence of 
 party spirit. It is instructive to know this, even without 
 knowing the cause of contention. 
 
 There is a very wicked party in this country, who fill the land with 
 strife and sin, and who are drawing the people into continual snares, 
 and into such actions and follies as are a blemish upon us, and threaten 
 to bring horrible oppression and slavery upon us. Unless the Lord 
 
COTTON MATHER. 46 1 
 
 should remove in a wonderful way, two or three men, who are the very- 
 soul and staff of the wicked party, the country must be ruined, and the 
 churches reduced to wretched circumstances. 
 
 Dr. Mather carried all these troubles to God. Then he 
 continues : — 
 
 Within these few hours God has, in a marvellous manner, and at a 
 very critical moment, smitten with an apoplexy, one who has been, and 
 would still have been, the great hinderer of good, and misleader and 
 enchanter of the people, that there was in the whole house of represen- 
 tatives. Methinks I see a wonderful token for good in this matter. 
 
 Judge Sewall mentions Dr. Mather under several dates 
 about this time : — 
 
 9th. Very thin Lecture because of a great storm. Dr. C. Mather 
 preaches from Matt. 12 : 20, bruised cane, etc. excellently. 
 
 i6th. At night Dr. Mather preaches in the school-house to the 
 young musicians, from Rev. 14: 3. "No man could learn that song." 
 House full, and the singing extraordinarily excellent, such as has 
 hardly been heard before in Boston.! 
 
 23d. Dr. C. Mather preaches ; give Solomon my son, a perfect heart, 
 in a very great auditory. 
 
 The "• Accomplished Singer " was a publication of this 
 year, and probably it was the lecture above noted. It 
 contained *' instructions how the piety of singing with a 
 true devotion, may be obtained and expressed ; the glo- 
 rious God, after an uncommon manner glorified in it, and 
 his people glorified." It was "intended for the assist- 
 ance of all that would sing psalms, with grace in their 
 hearts ; but more particularly to accompany the laudable 
 endeavors of those who are learning to sing by rule, and 
 seeking to preserve a regular singing in the assemblies of 
 the faithful." This shows that Dr. Mather — as might be 
 expected of one so enlightened and so open to everything 
 
 1 Dr. Mather had been " mending the singing." 
 
462 LIFE AND TIMES OF 
 
 new which promised good results — was in the front rank 
 of those who held advanced views of the improvement of 
 church music in this country. He remarks further : — 
 
 There is no exercise of piety more unexceptionable than that of making 
 a joyful noise of singing in the praises of our God ; that of signifying 
 our delight in divine truths by singing of them ; that of uttering the 
 sentiments of devotion with the voice, and such a modulation of the 
 voice as w^ill naturally express the satisfaction and elevation of the 
 mind, which a grave song shall be expressive of. 
 
 On the last day of March it is noted as follows : " My 
 Christian Philosopher, ( in a vessel blown off our coast last 
 winter,) is this week arrived from England, — a hundred 
 of the books are come. I may glorify God especially by 
 getting our colleges filled with them." This was a ''Col- 
 lection of the best discoveries in nature, with religious 
 improvements." 
 
 The "Christian Philosopher" has been highly com- 
 mended by those competent to judge. It is in 312 pages, 
 and is divided into thirty-three essays : Of the Light, 
 Stars, Fixed Stars, Sun, Saturn, and four other Planets 
 (the outer planets had not yet been discovered), Comets, 
 Heat, Lightning, Earth, Animals, Man. The book was 
 quite up to the learning of the times. The author re- 
 ferred to the most able and learned writers of the age. 
 The volume is both interesting and devout. All God's 
 works were made to glorify him. There were several 
 editions, the last of which was in 181 5. 
 
 April 14. "A wicked house at one end of the town, 
 which proves a snare and a ruin to young people ; procure 
 the extirpation of it." 
 
 May 13. "A miserable negro under sentence of death 
 for the murder of his wife, must be visited, instructed, 
 counselled." This negro was hanged on the 25th. He 
 had been instructed and baptized, and, as the record 
 
COTTON MATHER. 463 
 
 says, had " rendered himself a pretty noted fellow." 
 A vast assembly attended the public service, and Dr. 
 Mather took occasion to utter many things which he 
 hoped would make a good impression, especially on 
 wicked and froward husbands. The sermon was printed 
 with the title " Fremenda : The dreadful sound with which 
 the wicked are to be thunderstruck," etc. To this was 
 added a " conference between a minister and the prisoner, 
 on the day before his execution." 
 
 The various troubles that came upon Dr. Mather about 
 this time were enough to crush him if he had not been 
 upheld by divine assistance. He writes. May 14: "Inex- 
 pressible; inexpressible consolations," from finding his will 
 swallowed up in the will of his Saviour. He believed 
 that the "holy angels would take pleasure in him " ; and 
 that " God would show wonders to the dead." 
 
 On the 2 1st he wrote in this pleasant strain: — "The 
 time of the year arrives for the glories of nature to 
 appear in my garden. I will take my walks there on pur- 
 pose to read the glories of my Saviour in them. I will 
 make it an emblem of Paradise^ wherein the second Adam 
 shall have acknowledgments paid unto him." 
 
 He resolved to "preach about the glorious miracles of 
 the Saviour," and to press on his people the duty of 
 "seeking objects of compassion." 
 
 In June his mind was occupied with matters of interest 
 far and near, individual and national. His African serv- 
 ant was afraid of the smallpox, and so must be "brought 
 into a thorough Christianity." Then his view extended. 
 " Ungospellized places, especially in Providence [Planta- 
 tions] must be compassionated." His "American Senti- 
 ments," on the controversy about the Godhead of Christ, 
 was published and scattered through the nation, that is, 
 England. The "South Sea Bubble" suggested preaching 
 
464 LIFE AND TIMES OF 
 
 on the "Snares of a worldly mind," illustrated by the 
 "miseries brought on a foolish nation by that financial 
 delusion." 
 
 The eruption of a volcano, making an island in the 
 Mediterranean, set him to writing what might be of use 
 in more ways than one. " A Just Alarm to a secure and 
 sleepy world." And "behold at the time when he was 
 writing, a bookseller came and desired to have something 
 on the subject. A vessel came into the port of Boston 
 and brought a report of this wonderful occurrence." Dr. 
 Mather gathered the facts, and embodied them in a dis- 
 course. The facts were sent to England ; perhaps to the 
 Royal Society. He added a brief history of the other 
 "ignivomous mountains at [that] day flaming in the 
 world." 
 
 On the 14th, the wife of Rev. John Webb, minister 
 of the New North, died, and Dr. Mather was called to 
 preach on the occasion, which he did on the 17th. His 
 theme was "Genuine Christianity; or a sure Christian, 
 both in life and in death, glorifying the most glorious 
 Lord." He hoped it would "introduce a more favorable 
 condition of things in the churches." Only three ser- 
 mons preached in that house had been printed, and he 
 was the author of them all. 
 
 Another affliction that came nearer to his heart was the 
 death of his Abigail, " Nabby " or " Nibby," as he loved to 
 call her, the wife of Daniel Willard. Two sermons were 
 occasioned by the loss of this "lovely daughter." One 
 was " Silentiarius ; a brief essay on the holy silence and 
 godly patience, that sad things are to be entertained 
 withal." She died on the twenty-first of September. On 
 the preceding Sunday his theme was " The Refuge of the 
 distressed." He had now but two sons left and two 
 daughters, of all the fifteen children. 
 
COTTON MATHER. 465 
 
 On the third of October he noted that he would have 
 his Table-Talk facetious as well as instructive; yet he 
 would have it intermixed with something from the Bible. 
 
 5. This week he finished his French letter, " Grande 
 Voix du del a la France ^ sous la Verge de Dieur He 
 regarded France as suffering under the stroke of God for 
 its manifold sins. 
 
 26. A fever seized him towards evening, brought upon 
 him by colds taken in night visits and by the poisons of 
 infected chambers. 
 
 Dr. Mather has been accused by writers in a preceding 
 generation of cherishing anger and revenge towards op- 
 ponents. He was, without doubt, a sensitive man and 
 smarted under unjust aspersions, but he was far from 
 malevolence or revenge. The following passage indicates 
 his watchfulness against any indulgence of resentment : — 
 
 I was jealous of myself lest I should harbor or admit any tendency 
 towards the least wish of evil, unto such as may have distressed me, in 
 the contradiction of sinners which I so much meet withal. And if I 
 find, at any time, the least sudden indication that way, I must imme- 
 diately suppress it, and oppose it, with a contrary wish of all good 
 unto them. 
 
 He notes, on the loth, that during many years, at his 
 own single expense, he had maintained a charity school for 
 the instruction of the negroes in reading and religion. 
 A lieutenant in a man-of-war, a stranger to Dr. Mather, in 
 "order to put an indignity upon him, called his negro 
 slave by the name of Cotton Mather." It was one of 
 many instances in which he had been abused and injured 
 for doing good. He trusted that he should get all his 
 harvest of good in another and a better world. 
 
 The above anecdote of the lieutenant is also a specimen 
 of the insolence with which many British officers in the 
 civil, military, and naval service treated the people of the 
 
466 LIFE AND TIMES. 
 
 province. Moreover it was the pleasure of a portion of 
 these officials, generally belonging to the National Church, 
 to show their contempt of *' dissenting ministers, so 
 called." In truth, this high-bred, but ill-bred, insolence on 
 the part of the servants of the crown was a great factor 
 among the causes which finally goaded the colonies to 
 throw off the British yoke. 
 
 A fact in family history sometimes lurks in a record 
 of devotion. Thus, on the twenty-seventh of December, 
 " when praying for his children, he would remember his 
 two grandchildren." This indicates that two of the four 
 children of his daughter Abigail had died before this date ; 
 a fact which I have not found elsewhere. 
 
 The next day Dr. Mather records a curious " device of 
 wickedness." A vile set of men had contrived to write 
 on the backs of the " Bills of Credit " what he calls 
 "poisoned mischief" ; that is, "irreligious remarks." He 
 adds : " Quere, would it not be well to write Scripture 
 references, as Matt. i6 : 2%}''' This is the verse : " Verily 
 I say unto you. There be some standing here, which shall 
 not taste of death, till they see the Son of man coming 
 in his kingdom." 
 
CHAPTER XXII. 
 
 THE NEW BRICK CHURCH. — THE SMALLPOX. — INOCULATION : 
 
 172I. 
 
 MANY items in personal history, and the titles of 
 several works, have been stated in the order of 
 time, closing with the twenty-eighth of December ; but a 
 large number of entries in the diary for 1721 have been 
 passed over. There were, however, many events in that 
 year which may be referred to without precisely giving the 
 day or the month. One item in the year's history extends 
 over several months. Selections will be arranged in several 
 paragraphs, for convenience. 
 
 I. We have seen that the formation of the New North 
 Church, in 1714, was the occasion of solicitude to both the 
 ministers of the "Second" or "Old North," though the 
 junior pastor was less anxious than his father. The result 
 had been good, and both houses of worship had been well 
 filled. There was entire harmony between pastors and 
 people. But now, the project of founding another church 
 at the north end gave rise to great commotion in that 
 part of the town. On the first of May, Dr. Cotton Mather 
 writes : " I must now, more than ever, look on my flock 
 with a sacrificing eye. 'T is incredible what numbers are 
 swarming off into the New Brick meeting-house." But 
 being called to preach in reference to the movement, he 
 proposed to take his farewell of those leaving, with a 
 •* solemn warning that they do not perish, after all they 
 had received in his public ministry." 
 
 The cause of forming a new church was a contention 
 in the New North about settling a minister. The Rev. 
 
 467 
 
468 LIFE AND TIMES OF 
 
 Peter Thacher, the pastor of the church in Weymouth, 
 was invited to become the pastor of the New North, in 
 1 7 19, by a vote of thirty-four out of forty-four. This was 
 on the ninth of September. The next week, the congrega- 
 tion met to vote on the question, when six members of the 
 church and thirty-nine others of the congregation pro- 
 tested, and immediately withdrew. Forty-six persons re- 
 mained, and all voted for Mr. Thacher. This was the 
 origin of a contest which involved all the churches and 
 ministers of the town. The protesters took the ground, 
 now that they were in the minority, that it was wrong to 
 call a minister to leave a people who was esteemed by 
 them. The other churches sympathized with this view, so 
 that the council called to settle Mr. Thacher was very 
 small, as the larger number invited declined to attend. 
 But the church went forward, and had services of installa- 
 tion. This was the signal for a break, and the defeated 
 party began to prepare for a new organization. It was 
 carried forward during the next two years. A very large 
 brick meetinghouse was built, and the New North con- 
 gregation was divided. The enterprise drew in a large 
 number from the Second congregation, — that of the 
 Mathers, — including church members. The New Brick 
 was embodied, and the Rev. William Waldron was or- 
 dained on the twenty-third of May, 1722. It was supposed 
 by many at the time that the population on the " island " 
 was not large enough to fill the three houses of worship, 
 and the ministers of the North Church, as well as the 
 pastor of the New North, very naturally felt the loss of 
 those who withdrew. Hence Dr. Cotton Mather spoke of 
 looking on his flock with a " sacrificing eye." His father, 
 also, as said above, " took too much to heart the with- 
 drawal of a vain, proud, foolish people," and he must try 
 to comfort the good old man. 
 
COTTON MATHER. 469 
 
 On the eleventh of May he writes that as his auditory 
 was to suffer a very great abridgment he must do more 
 by his writings. But his fears soon subsided. When he 
 saw so many departing, he could hardly resist the thought 
 that some coolness, or at least indifference to him, was 
 one of the causes ; but this seems not to have been the 
 case. There appears to have been room for the new enter- 
 prise. Before the month was out. Dr. Mather found him- 
 self surrounded by a large congregation. On the 15th he 
 writes : " I had yesterday a very considerable auditory. 
 The people drawn off, was hardly to be missed in the 
 great congregation." He prayed that those who remained 
 might be more than ever united in love, and have such 
 visits of grace as to make them say, "'Tis good to be 
 JiereT 
 
 It has been said that this movement was a kind of revolt 
 of the enterprising middle class at the north end against 
 the domination of the more wealthy and influential fami- 
 lies, and owed its popularity to that fact. Be this as it 
 may, the affair ended much better than Dr. Mather had 
 feared. Just before the new society moved into their new 
 sanctuary, he wrote : " April 30. Another great trial. A 
 party has formed a new society, built a large meeting- 
 house, — the finest in the country, — enraged, violent, bois- 
 terous men, to fill the house, prevail with a mighty number 
 of the flock to join them." He felt it deeply, that so 
 many left him and his father, and he prayed : " O Thou 
 Comforter, who alone can relieve my soul, be thou not far 
 from me." 
 
 Dr. Cotton Mather was invited to preach the first sermon 
 in the church, at its dedication. This shows the respectful 
 sentiments of the new society towards him. The sermon 
 was printed, with the title, " A Vision in the Temple : The 
 Lord of hosts adored, and the King of glory proclaimed, 
 
470 LIFE AND TIMES OF 
 
 on a day of prayer kept, May lo, at the opening of the 
 New Brick meeting house, ... by the ministers of the 
 city with the society which built it, and this day swarmed 
 into it." He made a solemn appeal to them, and especially 
 his former hearers, in the name of himself and his father. 
 All showed cordial feeling, and a deep interest in the 
 welfare of the new society. The new church was not 
 organized till the spring of the next year. The Old North 
 sanctuary was soon filled so well that the pastors were 
 encouraged. Doubtless special efforts were made by all 
 three societies to induce people to attend public worship, 
 and thus not a few who had neglected the house of God 
 were drawn into the circle of Christian influence. 
 
 2. The "wretched administration" was still unsettled, 
 and the conduct of some of his relatives by marriage still 
 weighed down Dr. Mather, as with the weight of a mill- 
 stone. July 7 he wrote that his " children-in-law, assisted 
 by cruel and crafty adversaries, had laid a deep design for 
 his ruin." He prayed, saying, " My God will hear me." 
 And two days later he speaks of his poverty. What little 
 he had owned had been sold, and the money was gone to 
 pay debts not incurred by himself. He did not own a rod 
 of land in the world. His salary was too small for his sup- 
 port in comfort. He met with many wants and straits, "in 
 diet, much ; in habits [clothing], more." Strange things 
 occurred to pull him back and keep him low, " if at any 
 time he had begun to lay by anything for the relief of his 
 neighbors." There were deviations in the state of Mrs. 
 Mather's health, affecting his comfort and causing deep 
 anxiety. But still he felt that he had a glorious Christ. 
 "Domine, ubi Omnia mea, Tu scis." 
 
 3. Sickness in his family and among his kinsfolk wore 
 upon his strength and exhausted his spirits. On the nine- 
 teenth of September he records : — 
 
COTTON MATHER. 47 1 
 
 I' 
 
 My lovely Nibby, who was delivered of a daughter on the Lord's 
 
 day, is now in dying circumstances. Daily with the dear child, assist- 
 ing and comforting her. 
 
 24. O Lord, I am oppressed ; undertake for me ; my text, because I 
 am tried by the dying circumstances of my family. 
 
 I The newborn grandchild was to have been baptized in 
 
 ( the afternoon, and the water was brought ; but the child 
 died in time of public service. 
 
 26. To strengthen a dear child in the agonies of death, is a sad work 
 again called unto. 
 
 Between ten and eleven in the evening, ** the poor child 
 — Mrs. Willard — died a long, hard death." 
 
 4. There are many entries respecting Increase, which 
 cannot be repeated ; nor is it needful. He was faulty in 
 many things. Though of an active temperament, he was 
 slothful as to all good. He was often in bad company ; at 
 one time in a night riot with parties which exposed him to 
 the perils of the law. At another time, hearing his father 
 traduced by one of his godless companions, he resented it 
 with "violent and passionate resentment," knocking the 
 graceless fellow down, by which act he "exposed himself 
 to much danger," and his father to " much trouble." Let 
 us set down this jealousy for his father's honor to the 
 young man's credit. But the whole record, as it affected 
 the father, was one long wail of anguish. He writes, 
 April 23 : — 
 
 O dismal case ! O doleful case ! I am a man of sorrows, and ac- 
 quainted with grief. But I am now afraid of my sorrows ! It looks as 
 if there were certain sorrows wherein the sentence of heaven has put me 
 into a state of punishment. I am punished less than my sins deserve. 
 My crimes have procured an order from God, that I must languish under 
 these heavy sorrows, and heaven is become inexorable. No cries, no 
 prayers, no tears must prevail for the removal of them. 
 
472 LIFE AND TIMES OF 
 
 Under the pressure of his troubles, especially two of 
 them, — the misconduct of his son and the madness of the 
 people on account of his favoring inoculation for small- 
 pox, and above all the fear that heaven was offended, — 
 his whole being seemed to tremble and quiver with agony. 
 " But if I am, indeed, in a state of punishment," he writes, 
 " and my iniquity shall not be purged with sacrifice and 
 offering, in this condition, how am I to behold myself, and 
 glorify God?" He would accept the punishment, and 
 humbly take part with God against himself and his in- 
 iquities, with the acclamation : " Just art Thou, O Lord, 
 and just are all thy judgments." The broken spirit and 
 the contrite heart are evinced in the following prayer, on 
 the 23d, at the baptism of a child, in the afternoon 
 service : — 
 
 O our dear Saviour, hast thou not commanded us to bring our chil- 
 dren unto thee ? Yes ; and in obedience to thy command, we do it. 
 But shall dust and ashes plead with thee ? Lord, why dost thou call 
 for our children ? Was it that thou mayest put them over unto Satan 
 to take possession of them ? Was it that they might be given up to 
 blindness, and hardness, and madness? Was it that they might have 
 the distempers of their souls lie uncured, when one gracious word of 
 thine can cure them ? Or was it that they might still have their hearts 
 confirmed in their sins, when one touch of thine Almighty arm can give 
 a new bias to their hearts? No, No ; Thou hast called for them, that 
 by thy wondrous power, they may become disposed for the service of 
 our God. O our God, our God, we will yet believe that we shall see 
 thee doing wonders for them. 
 
 He adds : " I could not but think on poor Increase, 
 when these expressions were thus educed from me." 
 
 5. The prevalence of the smallpox in the family of Dr. 
 Mather and in the town, and the trials incident thereto, 
 will form a passage both dark and bright in this narrative : 
 dark, so far as it relates to the disease and to the cruel 
 madness of a portion of the people ; but bright, as it reveals 
 
COTTON MATHER. 473 
 
 the quick intelligence and the sweet benevolence and the 
 dauntless courage and the Christlike spirit of Dr. Mather. 
 The narrative will be drawn from his diary and from other 
 contemporaneous authorities. 
 
 The first mention of the epidemic, in 1721, is under the 
 date of May 26. "The small-pox, a grievous calamity, 
 has now entered the town. The practice of Inoculation has 
 never been used in this country, nor in England. How 
 many lives might be saved by it } " Dr. Mather would pro- 
 cure a " consult of physicians," and lay the matter before 
 them. He made an effort in that direction, but the phy- 
 sicians, with one exception, had no faith in the alleged 
 preventive. 
 
 The following passage must not be withheld, as it helps 
 us to understand the many-sided nature of the man. In a 
 sermon, some while before, he had foretold the coming of 
 some calamity to the town. He must now humble himself 
 before God, lest some vanity of mind might arise from the 
 fulfillment of his prediction. It would be well if all sup- 
 posed prophets cultivated the same humility. 
 
 The smallpox called for special action from him, as he 
 had two children liable to the distemper. What should 
 he do t Must he take them out of the town } He must 
 be prepared to resign them to the Lord, if they were to 
 be taken away. Moreover, he would be exposed by the 
 "horrid venom" of the sick chambers which he must 
 expect to be called to visit. The children, Samuel and 
 Eliza, soon "had terrors of the contagion breaking in 
 upon them." He would, therefore, "quicken their flights 
 unto their Saviour." 
 
 On the thirteenth of June, his son, aged about eighteen, 
 had come home from Cambridge, where the disease was 
 spreading, and was "loth to return." His state, and that 
 of Eliza, about sixteen, who was in greater fear than he, 
 "must be improved in the interests of piety in them." 
 
474 ^-^^^ ^^^ TIMES OF 
 
 There were " miserables neglected and perishing in sick- 
 ness," and he felt bound to look after them. One of his 
 devisings for doing good was to " write a little book on the 
 small-pox, exhibiting medicines and methods" for the man- 
 aging of it. He thought it might, perhaps, save the bodies 
 and the souls of some people. 
 
 In July his cares increased. It occurred to him that he 
 could suggest passages for the public News-Letter that 
 might be of benefit to the readers, and he felt the obli- 
 gation of comforting and directing "many people under 
 grievous consternation from the spreading small-pox." 
 There was occasion for all his kindness, because, as his 
 record reads, ** widows multiplied." 
 
 Dr. Mather found no success with the physicians, except 
 Dr. Zabdiel Boylston, who had the boldness to make a 
 trial of the inoculating process. It was an act of moral 
 courage, as the doctors were united in rejecting the new 
 method, and thereby increased the opposition of the public. 
 " People," says Mather, " took a strange possession on this 
 occasion. They rave, they rail, they blaspheme ; they talk 
 not only like idiots, but also like franticks. Not only the 
 physician who began the experiment, but I also am an 
 object of their fury, — their furious obloquies and invec- 
 tives." But he had his consolations. "■ My conformity to 
 my Saviour in this thing fills me with joy unspeakable 
 and full of glory." 
 
 The state of the people called for redoubled exertions 
 from those who regarded the bodies or the souls of men. 
 Some fled to other towns, and to them he sent ** books of 
 piety." He visited, as far as possible, the " meetings of 
 young people, on Sunday evenings, and entertained them 
 with prayers and sermons," that were adapted to their 
 condition. " Neighbors in very particular circumstances 
 were to be visited." He prayed for the town "under the 
 
COTTON MATHER. 475 
 
 judgments of heaven, and ripening for more." He also 
 prayed that ** God would requite good for all the evils 
 shown him by a deluded people." 
 
 An extract from the diary of July 27 is helpful to an 
 imderstanding of the state of the town, and the writer's 
 own feelings at this time : — 
 
 The monstrous and crying wickedness of the town, — a town at this 
 time strangely possessed with the devil, — and the vile abuse which I do 
 myself particularly suffer from it, for nothing but instructing our base 
 physicians how to save many precious lives ; these things oblige me, in 
 the fear of the divine judgments, to fall down before the Lord, in most 
 earnest supplications for his pity and pardon to a people so obnoxious 
 to his displeasure. ... I must mightily take heed unto my own spirit, 
 and watch against all ebullitions of wrath, lest, being provoked, I may 
 speak unadvisedly with my lips. 
 
 In his multifarious reading, Dr. Mather had met with 
 accounts of the good effects of inoculation among the 
 Africans and Arabians ; and the reports of Lady Mary 
 Wortley Montague, of what she had learned in Constan- 
 tinople, while her husband was British minister there, 
 were confirmatory. Moreover, previous to this, he had 
 learned from African servants — natives — that inoculation 
 was practiced successfully by the Arabians. He therefore 
 thought the process worth trying. Having informed the 
 physicians of what he had learned, he was much chagrined 
 and disappointed when they treated his suggestions with 
 neglect. Possibly he hoped that his having been a medical 
 student in early life might have saved him from being con- 
 sidered an intruder in the field that belonged to them. But 
 if so, he was soon undeceived, and found the whole body 
 of the faculty. Dr. Boylston excepted, arrayed against him. 
 A Dr. Douglass, who lived in Boston some years and then 
 returned to the old country, a man of some ability as a 
 writer, but a prejudiced and unreliable man, attacked him 
 
476 LIFE AND TIMES OF 
 
 rudely and ridiculed him in the most severe and ribald 
 style. This man held out, in spite of the most convincing 
 facts, for a long while; but when he left the country, he 
 angrily yielded the confession that Mather and Boylston 
 were in the right. It must not be forgotten that the 
 ministers in the town, perhaps without exception, favored 
 the introduction of the new method, and Mr. Colman 
 wrote in favor of it ; but as Cotton Mather took the lead 
 in the movement, and strenuously urged it upon the 
 people, the public clamor was raised against him and 
 abuse was showered on his head without measure. His 
 own venerable father, now eighty-two years old, embraced 
 the new views and stoutly encouraged his son. 
 
 When the danger increased, and he felt the pressure of 
 duty to have his two children inoculated with the virus, 
 the opposition rose to a threatening height. It is in- 
 credible now, what a furore there was in the town, includ- 
 ing his own society. They told him he would be the 
 murderer of his own children. On the first of August, 
 we read : ** Full of distress about Sammy. He begs to 
 have his life saved by receiving the small-pox in the way 
 of inoculating." There were ten experimental cases 
 already in the neighborhood. The father writes : " If he 
 should die by receiving it in the natural way, how can I 
 answer for it } On the other side, bitter opposition and 
 prejudice against my ministry, if the boy should be in- 
 oculated. If he should happen to miscarry under it, my 
 condition would be insupportable." 
 
 The lines following, August i6, show that the trial time 
 had come : — 
 
 At last, my dear Sammy is now under the operation of receiving the 
 small-pox in the way of transplantation. The success of the experi- 
 ment among my neighbors, as well as abroad in the world, and the 
 urgent calls of his grandfather for it, have made me think that I could 
 
COTTON MATHER. 477 
 
 not answer for it unto God, if I neglected it. At this critical time, how 
 much is all piety to be pressed upon the child ! More easily, perhaps, 
 because his dearest companion and chamber-fellow in college, died this 
 day of the small-pox taken in the common way. 
 
 On the 22d, it is written that his son had received 
 the smallpox, in the way of inoculation, and was under 
 the fever necessary to produce the eruption ; but now 
 there was reason to fear he had taken it in the natural 
 way. He had had but one infusion, and one so small as 
 to be hardly worth the name. " If he should miscarry, 
 (besides the loss of so hopeful a son,) I should also suffer 
 a prodigious clamor and hatred from an infuriated mob, 
 whom the devil hath inspired with most hellish rage." 
 
 On the 29th, the case " was critical," being endangered 
 by an "ungovernable fever." The next day, the diary 
 notes that Mr. Willard, his son-in-law, was delirious in 
 his fever, and that his daughter Abigail, Willard's wife, 
 was "hazarded with several infirmities"; Hannah had a 
 violent fever upon her, so that her life was in danger ; and 
 that his sister's family had the smallpox, including son, 
 daughter, and grandson. By these things Dr. Mather was 
 "called unto abundance of duty." 
 
 It is improving to learn how a good man bears himself 
 in such a "sea of troubles." He writes: " Long medita- 
 tion about the children." How desirable and delectable 
 they were ! And how much better was Christ ! , And 
 the children, if taken from the good things of this world, 
 which he would gladly have seen them rejoice in, will 
 be taken by the Saviour unto himself and unto better 
 things. 
 
 Towards evening, the child's fever rose to a height 
 which distressed all. But he, "under an impression of 
 such violence upon him, as if it came from some superior 
 original, fell into an unpacifiable passion to have a vein 
 
478 L^P^ ^^D TIMES OF 
 
 breathed in him. We gratified him, and he had not one 
 uneasy hour after it. His recovery went on to admiration." 
 
 From this time Samuel had a gradual recovery ; but his 
 two sisters grew worse, till the lives of both were de- 
 spaired of. On the fifth of September it was written : 
 " Nib by in dangerous circumstances, and Nancy dying." 
 But on the eighth, to the surprise of all, Nancy's fever 
 broke, and she recovered. Mrs. Willard lingered a few days, 
 had a child which soon died, and then she too was gath- 
 ered into the heavenly garner, as stated on a previous page. 
 
 In all this, Dr. Mather was busy in comforting a sister 
 and other relatives in their bereavements, and writing 
 about the "terrible things God was doing to France," 
 and getting out a " Pastoral Letter to friends visited with 
 sickness." 
 
 Increase appears again in the diary. The father had 
 been compelled to send him away from the family, as a 
 mark of displeasure, and in the hope that such a step 
 would bring him to reflection. He was a victim to " a vile 
 sloth," and under the " power of Satan," but the father's 
 heart yearned for him. " I will invite him again to live 
 with me, that I might have him under my eye continu- 
 ally." He was now twenty-two years old. 
 
 As Dr. Mather's own family became free from sickness, 
 cases multiplied in the town. One day he prayed seven- 
 teen times with the sick or afflicted, and on another with 
 twenty-two. 
 
 The month of October was the harvest time of death, 
 and Dr. Mather was occupied in comforting the mourners. 
 He had three children with him at this time. Perhaps 
 Increase had not yet returned to the household. 
 
 On the 7th it is recorded : *• The distemper seems now 
 at its height. The ^bills' in the Old North church for 
 the sick, last Sunday, were 202 ; and on the 8th, which 
 
COTTON MATHER. 479 
 
 was Sunday, they numbered 315." Prayers at home and 
 with the sick on one day, at this time, were offered thirty- 
 one times. No wonder he exclaimed, " What shall I do ? " 
 
 And the record goes on in the same strain. On another 
 day he "offered about thirty prayers." He distributed 
 money to miserable families, with which his " dear Green- 
 wood " supplied him. On the 20th, 180 notes for prayer 
 were presented. At length his own strength seemed to be 
 giving away. A fever seized him towards evening on the 
 26th, brought on him by "colds taken in night visits, 
 and by the poison of infected chambers." He adds : '*Is 
 my hour come .-* It is welcome." 
 
 Early in November young Thomas Walter came to his 
 uncle's house to go through the process of inoculation. 
 By the 6th, the number of " bills " was reduced to fifty. 
 Dr. Mather provided a "variety of employments by which 
 his children could enrich their minds with valuable treas- 
 ures ; " and gave continual charges to the young people 
 recovered from the smallpox, coming in his way, to live 
 unto God. 
 
 We come now to a passage in the diary which records 
 the degree of superstitious fear and hate to which some 
 had been wrought up by their ignorance and their preju- 
 dice against a great public benefactor. On the 14th the 
 feeling of some towards Dr. Mather was exploded on this 
 wise : — 
 
 While my kinsman of Roxbury was at my house, down with the 
 small-pox, towards three o'clock in the morning, some unknown hands 
 threw a fire-grenado into the chamber where my kinsman lay, and which 
 used to be my lodging room. The weight of the iron ball alone, had 
 it fallen on his head, would have been enough to have done part of the 
 business designed. But the grenado was charged, the upper part with 
 dried powder, the lower part with a mixture of oil of turpentine and 
 powder, and (what else I know not,) in such a manner, that upon its 
 going off, it must have split, and probably, have killed the persons in 
 
480 LIFE AND TIMES OF 
 
 the room, and certainly have fired the chamber, and laid the house in 
 ashes. But '■''this night there stood by me the Angel of God, whose I 
 am, and whom T served As the grenado passed into the window, the 
 fuse was shaken off, by hitting the iron in the middle of the casement, 
 and fell upon the floor, and the fired wild-fire in the fuse was cast on 
 the floor without firing the grenado. A paper was fixed to the missile, 
 with this writing : '* Cotton Mather, you dog ; damn you. I '11 inoculate 
 you with this, with a pox to you." 
 
 Dr. Mather's remarks upon this exhibition of malice 
 growing out of a feverish and unjust state of the public 
 mind, as they reveal the state of his mind in view of his 
 danger, must have a place. Perhaps he overrated the 
 danger, and possibly his exaltation was heightened by the 
 strain on his nervous system ; but making all proper allow- 
 ance, there are few passages of autobiography which sur- 
 pass this in interest and in greatness of soul : — 
 
 I have been guilty of such a crime as this. I have communicated a 
 never-failing method of preventing death and other grievous miseries, 
 by a terrible distemper among my neighbors. Every day demonstrated 
 that if I had been hearkened unto many persons' lives, (many hun- 
 dreds) had been saved. The opposition to it has been carried on with 
 senseless ignorance and raging wickedness. But the growing triumphs 
 of truth over it, threw a possessed people into a fury which will prob- 
 ably cost me my life. I have proofs that there are people who approved 
 and applauded the action of Tuesday morning, and who give out words 
 that, though the first blow miscarried, there will quickly come another, 
 that shall do their business more effectually. Now, I am so far from 
 any melancholy fear on this occasion, that I am filled with unutterable 
 joy at the prospect of my approaching martyrdom. I know not what 
 is the meaning of it. I find my mouth strangely stayed, my heart 
 strangely cold, if I go to ask for a deliverance from it. But when I 
 think on my suff"ering death for saving the lives of dying people, it 
 even ravishes me with a joy unspeakable, and full of glory. I cannot 
 help longing for the hour when it will be accomplished. I am even 
 afraid almost of doing anything for my preservation. I have a crown 
 before me, and I know by feeling, what I formerly knew only by read- 
 ing, of the divine consolation with which the minds of martyrs have 
 
CO TTON MA THER. 48 1 
 
 been sometimes irradiated. I had much rather die by such hands as 
 now threaten my life, than by a fever ; and much rather die for my con- 
 formity to my blessed Jesus, in essays to save the lives of men from 
 the destroyer, than for some truths, tho' precious ones, to which many 
 martyrs testified formerly in the fires of Smithfield. 
 
 He filled out the month in the line of promoting inocu- 
 lation ; he drew up and communicated to the physicians 
 about the country the "method of proceeding" in that 
 operation ; and in writing to Europe, sent many things 
 which he hoped would " serve the kingdom of God," and 
 among others, a more " distinct account of the small-pox 
 inoculated." His hope was that in time hundreds of thou- 
 sands of lives would be saved. 
 
 The last Friday of the month was spent as a " day of 
 supplications," in which he " received many sweet influ- 
 ences of heaven," assuring him, he writes, "that my sins 
 are pardoned, and that I should be rescued out of wretched 
 encumbrances that lie upon me, and that my domestic 
 wants and straits shall be relieved." 
 
 In December he speaks of his " auditory strangely 
 reviving and increasing," so that he was put to further 
 service to unite them, and yet further augment them. 
 The formation of two new churches in his neighborhood 
 within a few years, it would seem, had left him a large audi- 
 ence and a strong hold on his people. There must have 
 been a reaction from the violent opposition that had been 
 raging. That was inevitable, because his vindication was 
 so complete ; and yet his triumph enraged a certain class 
 of enemies more than ever. 
 
 On the 22d he "communicated to some of the best 
 ministers, papers which might have a tendency to raise 
 them to higher measures of holiness and usefulness." 
 He also prayed for final deliverance from the incum- 
 brances which his "unhappy administration " had brought 
 
482 LIFE AND TIMES OF 
 
 upon him, and he finally put the papers into the hands of 
 Judge Sewall. 
 
 The following bit of speculation thrown out here may- 
 be taken as a curiosity : " I consider that whatever comes 
 into my mind, has a substance grow unto it there. The 
 thing receives a notional substance there, which is, indeed, 
 all that a mind of no higher power than mine, can give 
 to it." 
 
 Common justice would require that a man who had in- 
 troduced a great improvement in medical practice, whereby 
 the ravages of a loathsome and deadly disease had been 
 reduced to a minimum, should receive due credit. And 
 if this man pursued his way against opposition and amidst 
 obloquy until the new method was fully established, his 
 praise should not be in grudged and stinted measure. 
 But Dr. Palfrey (book v, chap, ii) leaves the impression 
 that Mather acted only a subordinate part, and that with 
 *' characteristic acerbity." He says that " Dr. Zabdiel 
 Boylston, against great opposition, undertook to introduce 
 that safeguard," etc. Again, " Among the writers on this 
 side, besides Dr. Boylston, Dr. Colman was prominent, 
 arguing the case with courtesy and moderation," etc. In 
 contrast were *'the Mathers, father and son, especially the 
 latter, with the acerbity, characteristic of them." But 
 fortunately for the interests of truth and justice, Mr. 
 Samuel G. Drake, author of an excellent history of Boston, 
 seems to have been better informed, or more willing to 
 treat Cotton Mather with fairness. The following is his 
 account under date of 1721 : — 
 
 *' Inoculation began to be practiced, and Dr. Zabdiel 
 Boylston was the man who, almost single-handed, stood 
 forth and buffeted the storm which the practice called 
 forth, the violence of which is hardly conceivable in this 
 age. The physicians were generally against him." Then 
 
COTTON MATHER. 483 
 
 he adds : " It is remarkable that Dr. Mather was on the 
 side of inoculation, and encouraged Dr. Boylston to put it 
 in practice ; and it may be pretty safely inferred, that with- 
 out the countenance and influence of the former, he never 
 could have succeeded, and even his life would have been 
 in as much jeopardy as his reputation." 
 
 Dr. Boylston himself, with true magnanimity, recognized 
 the service of Cotton Mather in these words : — 
 
 Dr. Mather in compassion to the lives of the people, transcribed from 
 the Philosophical Transactions of the Royal Society, the accounts sent 
 them by [two celebrated physicians] of inoculating the small-pox in the 
 Levant, and sent them to the practitioners of the town, for their con- 
 sideration thereupon. Upon reading of which I was very well pleased, 
 and resolved in my mind to try the experiment ; well-remembering the 
 destruction the small-pox made nineteen years before, when last in 
 Boston, and how narrowly I then escaped with my life. 
 
 The prevalence of the distemper, and the efficiency of 
 the preventive, will be seen by the following figures. It 
 was estimated that there were about 12,000 inhabitants in 
 Boston in 1 72 1. It was thought that nearly 1,500 left, to 
 escape the contagion, leaving 10,568 in the town, 4,549 
 north of the mill creek, and 6,019 south of it. Out of 
 5,759 who took the disease in the natural way, 844 died. 
 Out of 286 inoculated, only six died. That is, of the first 
 class not far from one in 6.^ died ; of the latter class, only 
 one in 48. 
 
 During this and the preceding year. Dr. Mather sent 
 about 1,000 pages to the press. Of these pages, 200 
 were published in 1720, and 800 in 1721 ; but there is 
 reason to believe that the number written in each year 
 was nearly equal. For example, the " Christian Philoso- 
 pher " was printed in England in the latter year, but it 
 must have been sent over before. 
 
CHAPTER XXIII. 
 
 DEATH OF PRESIDENT MATHER. — GREAT STORM. — CON- 
 TEMPORARIES OF INCREASE AND COTTON MATHER : 
 I722-I723. 
 
 THE methods of church discipline and of procedure 
 in former times, in the cases of infants whose pious 
 parents are dead, are instructive ; and it is interesting to 
 learn how the early churches of New England met new 
 demands on their charity and wisdom. The following 
 cases belong to the early part of 1722. 
 
 Two persons who had been under censure — one nearly 
 twenty, and the other over twenty years — expressed 
 penitence, and were restored. There must have been 
 much patience used in regard to these persons, and per- 
 sistent effort to bring them back to duty, instead of the 
 unseemly haste with which offenders are sometimes dealt. 
 The ancient ministers did not proceed to extreme meas- 
 ures before they had tried the " second admonition." 
 
 The child of a pious woman who died before the 
 baptism of her child, but who desired that it might be 
 baptized and dedicated to the Lord, came before the 
 church, March 27. The grandmother, a pious member, 
 presented the child, and promised before the Lord to 
 adopt it as her own and take faithful care of its religious 
 training. On another occasion an orphan child was pre- 
 sented by a grandparent, as in loco parentis, and was bap- 
 tized "into the Father, the Son, and the Holy Ghost." 
 
 The ingathering of the church this year included the 
 pastor's Benjamin, his Samuel, aged sixteen, and now well 
 along in his college course. This was a great delight to 
 
 484 
 
CO TTON MA THER. 485 
 
 the father, but was accompanied with tender solicitude for 
 the two daughters who had not yet acknowledged their 
 Lord. 
 
 The year began with the note that " some of the flock 
 were greatly interested in the question, when shall the 
 will of the Lord be done on earth as it is in heaven ? " 
 Perhaps they were Second Adventists. They asked him 
 privately about it, and he arranged to have such persons 
 meet at his house, once a fortnight, to consider the 
 subject. 
 
 Increase continued to be a cause of great anxiety to his 
 father, who yet had hope to labor with and pray for him. 
 " Ah ! poor Creasy ! poor Creasy ! yet will I not utterly 
 give him over." One of his "supplications" on the 5th, 
 and probably every day, was that ''son Increase might 
 yet have a new heart given him." He also studied 
 how to supply him with matters to be inserted in his 
 " Quotidiana," saying, "I would hope to spread some 
 nets of salvation for him." 
 
 On the 13th we are informed that an "abominable 
 people at Marblehead, will not let their minister save his 
 life from the smallpox by inoculation." Whereupon Dr. 
 Mather offers to "receive and cover him" in his own 
 house. 
 
 The next day he wrote : " This thought is very impress- 
 ive upon me. When I am going to prayer, I am going 
 to heaven. Lord, make it more so. With what love, and 
 hope, and joy ought I to repair thither on all occasions.' 
 
 The following record reveals a morbid state of mind 
 Dr. Mather was naturally sensitive, and any act of unkind 
 ness grieved him. There is every reason for believing that 
 he was held in high esteem by the ministers generally 
 but in what follows, it appears that he had taken up the 
 unpleasant conviction that his opinions were despised, and 
 
486 LIFE AND TIMES OF 
 
 his suggestions were rejected, because of personal dislike. 
 On the fifteenth of January he made a statement in a 
 meeting of ministers, in which he referred to the fact 
 that, though all his public life (now more than five and 
 forty years) he had tried to do good in all companies and 
 on all occasions, yet it had come to pass that opposition 
 had so risen against him that he could do no more, except 
 among his own people. He had some opportunities 
 abroad, but he said: '* At present, / have done! I have 
 done ! I have done ! treating you with any more of my 
 proposals. If they should be never so good, yet if they 
 be known to be mine, that is enough to bespeak a blast 
 upon them. Do you propose as many good things as you 
 please, I will second them, and assist them, and fall in 
 with them to the best of my capacity." It is added that 
 " an ingenuous young person in the company (Mr. William 
 Cooper) made the first, and a quick response to me, in 
 these words, *I hope the devil don't hear you, Sir."* 
 The responses of the other ministers are not given, but 
 their general tenor can be imagined. It is certain that 
 Dr. Mather did not cease from "good devisings," or from 
 making them known to his brethren. 
 
 At this time he feared that "some inconveniences 
 might befall the college," and he pondered the question, 
 whether he " could privately give some advice that might 
 be serviceable." A few days later his "help was asked 
 about some things a-doing at the college," and on the 
 eighth of February he states : "I have a wondrous pros- 
 pect of restoring peace to the country by accomplishing 
 some unexpected reconciliations." 
 
 With the following paragraph the diary closes for about 
 two years : — 
 
COTTON MATHER. 487 
 
 Feb. 10. An aged gentlewoman, eminent for her bounties to all 
 sorts of persons, — I have been myself a sharer in them — is fallen 
 into the lowest poverty. Extreme wants and straits have overtaken 
 her. And none of the ingrates that have partook in her bounties, will 
 now do anything for her. I send her some supplies, but lie entirely 
 concealed from her. I stir up some others to do for her. 
 
 The life of Dr. Mather was varied as usual, this year, 
 in his parish work, in his publications, and in his connec- 
 tion with the public. One is amused to find that one of 
 his publications of the previous year was sent as a 
 present, by an eminent chief justice, to a lady whom he 
 was assiduously courting. In his diary for January 25, 
 Judge Sewall wrote : " I enclosed to Mrs. Mary Gibbs, 
 last Monday's Gazette, two fair ^£, bills of credit, and 
 India Christiana, very well bound, gilded on the edge, 
 inscribed to her with my own hand." 
 
 The " Angel of Bethesda" was one of numerous essays, 
 large and small, which came from Mather's prolific pen in 
 1722. The angel is presented as "visiting the invalids 
 of a miserable world." The treatise is anonymous, but 
 the words "by a fellow of the Royal Society," revealed 
 the writer. The running title was " Nishmath C/iajim, or 
 The Breath of Life." Says the author : — 
 
 There is a spirit in man ; a wonderful spirit, which from very good 
 authority, may be called Nishmath Chajifn, the breath of life, which 
 may be of a middle nature between the rational soul and the corporeal 
 mass, and may be a medium of communication between them. 
 
 It is a very curious piece, full of old-time learning. 
 Space can be given for only a short passage : — 
 
 The great God who formed all things, and who, after a singular 
 manner, formed the spirit of man within him, has endowed this 
 Nishmath Chajim with wondrous faculties, which yet are all of them 
 short of those powers which enable the rational soul to penetrate into 
 
488 LIFE AND TIMES OF 
 
 the causes of things, to do curious and exquisite things in the mathe- 
 matical sciences, and above all, to act upon a principle of love to God, 
 and with the views of another world. This may be the seat of disease. 
 
 The new congregation at the north end was some time 
 in its inchoate state, and a church was not gathered into 
 its New Brick meetinghouse, and a minister ordained, until 
 the twenty-third day of May, when Dr. Mather preached 
 the ordination sermon of Rev. William Waldron. His 
 topic was "Love Triumphant"; and whatever may be said 
 of the treatment of it, his action in reference to the enter- 
 prise was an exhibition of triumphant love. " Since love 
 is of God, it becomes Christians to be exemplary in the 
 grace of love; pastors to love their people; people to 
 love their pastors ; all Christians mutually to love one 
 another." 
 
 The variety and adaptation of Dr. Mather's sermons, 
 pamphlets, and books is a constant surprise, proving that 
 all his public efforts were thoughtfully designed for an 
 end. Here are the titles of three discourses for the 
 benefit of young people, within three or four months. 
 One was " Bethiah ; the Glory which adorns the daughters 
 of God ; and the Piety wherewith Zion wishes to see her 
 daughters glorious." Next, on the fourth of June, came 
 " Columbanus ; or. The Doves flying to the windows of 
 their Saviour. A sermon to a society of young people." 
 And, on the fifth of August, Lord's day evening, he 
 preached " Pia Desideria ; or The Smoking Flax, raised 
 into a sacred flame, in a short essay upon those pious 
 desires, which are the introduction and inchoation of all 
 vital piety, delivered unto a religious society of young 
 people." Another discourse may be put in the same class, 
 as it appealed specially to the young. It bore the title : 
 " Sober Sentiments, in an Essay, July 19, upon the vain 
 
COTTON MATHER. 489 
 
 presumption of living and thriving in the world, which does 
 too often possess and poison the children of the world." 
 It was caused by the "premature and much-lamented 
 death of Mr. Joshua Lamb, a student in Harvard college," 
 who died of a fall received a few days before. Thomas 
 Walter furnished an appendix. 
 
 Two other sermons, related in subject matter, are upon 
 the ministry. One is entitled "The Minister," and was 
 preached before the anniversary convention of ministers 
 from several parts of New England, May 31, and pub- 
 lished at their request. It was upon the " Services of an 
 able Ministry." The second was a reprint of " Repeated 
 Admonitions, in a Monitory Letter about the mainte- 
 nance of an able and faithful ministry, directed unto those 
 people who sin against and sin away the glorious gospel, 
 by not supporting the worthy dispensers of it." It had 
 the "pious concomitancy " of the general assembly. A 
 third edition came out in 1725. Our fathers knew by expe- 
 rience that new settlements which remained destitute of 
 church privileges relapsed into a sort of heathenism, and 
 that wherever a worthy minister was sustained, all the 
 elements of good society soon gathered around him. 
 
 Three other discourses came before the public, all 
 cognate in spirit, which may be grouped together in this 
 place. "Divine Afflations " was an effort to "describe 
 and bespeak those gracious influences of the Holy Spirit, 
 which will produce and confirm the eternal happiness 
 of those who find that blessed spirit of life so entering 
 into them, and making them live unto God." Again, 
 "The Soul departing" related to the "state of the dead." 
 It was written to answer the solemn inquiry, " How the 
 children of men are at their death disposed of." The 
 recent "decease of some desirable friends" was the occa- 
 sion. This was followed by "Caelestinus: A Conversa- 
 
490 LIFE AND TIMES OF 
 
 tion in Heaven, quickened and assisted with discoveries 
 of tilings in the heavenly world." Some ''relations of 
 the views and joys that have been granted to departing 
 saints " were added. This was '* recommended to the peo- 
 ple of God by the very Reverend Dr. Increase Mather, 
 waiting in the daily expectation of his departure to that 
 glorious world." 
 
 The venerable Increase Mather, though aged and feeble, 
 was still called on to write and pray. Judge Sewall (date 
 September 25) records that at a fast kept at the Old North 
 Church, to "pray for the pouring out of God's Spirit 
 on New England, especially the rising generation, Dr. 
 I. Mather prayed, but so low that I could hardly hear a 
 word; was spent." 
 
 Two or three items in the judge's diary near this time 
 give us a glimpse of Cotton Mather. At the fast above 
 noted he preached in both parts of the day, from Matthew 
 9: 18: "Life to the ruler's daughter." On the 19th, 
 the judge sent to him "an Angel, and two Crowns, for 
 assisting the Council in the close of the Sessions." The 
 council requested the clergymen to open the sessions with 
 prayer, and paid them for the service. An " angel " was 
 a coin worth about ten English shillings. 
 
 In December, when Christmas was drawing near. Gov- 
 ernor Shute, who was an English churchman, though of 
 a liberal spirit, was desirous of having the court adjourned 
 for the day. The judge was opposed to it, as contrary 
 to the custom of the country. On the 20th he invited 
 Dr. Mather to dine. "After dinner, I consulted with 
 him about the adjournment of the court. We agreed 
 that 't would be expedient to take a vote of the Council 
 and Representatives about it." They well knew that the 
 representatives would not vote to adjourn. 
 
 Here is another peep into the life of 1722. The 
 
COTTON MATHER. 49 1 
 
 Register (of probate ?) was about to sail for England, and 
 the question came up, Who should fill his place? There 
 were several candidates, and the judge would have been 
 glad to get a berth for Dr. Mather's son, if possible. The 
 record of October 19, in part, is: "Mr. Rolfe is made 
 Register. I tried, before the Council met, and found if 
 
 I had used my interest for I M , it would not 
 
 have passed." This. shows that Judge Sewall had enough 
 confidence to trust young Increase in the office, but the 
 majority preferred another. 
 
 The first notice of Dr. Mather which we note after the 
 coming in of the year 1723 is found in the diary of Judge 
 Sewall, January 11 : "The Lt. Gov. [William Dummer, 
 acting governor,] dines at the Green Dragon upon the 
 Council's invitation. Dr. Mather prayed excellently in 
 the Council, for the Gov'r, Lt. Gov'r, Council, Represent- 
 atives, upon the change of the government." Governor 
 Shute had slipped off unexpectedly to England, and Dum- 
 mer acted as governor several years. 
 
 This year was one of interest to the North Church, 
 because of the decease of the senior pastor, and the call- 
 ing of a colleague to his son Cotton. Action was taken 
 with reference to an associate while Dr. Increase was 
 yet alive, but only lingering, as it were, on the threshold 
 of the heavenly world. On the tenth day of the fifth 
 month, the record is : " Seeking a supply for an assistance 
 and succession in the ministry." No conclusion was 
 reached. 
 
 Under date of August 23, the diary of Judge Sewall 
 reads : "Dr. Increase Mather dies, just at noon, after long 
 and grievous illness." Six days later he was buried in 
 the tomb of his son, " attended by a vast number of fol- 
 lowers and spectators." His age was eighty-four years, 
 two months and two days. The last three weeks of his 
 
492 LIFE AND TIMES OF 
 
 "grievous illness" are condensed in the following para- 
 graph from the pen of his son. 
 
 At last he began to fall into the torments of the wheel broken at the 
 cistern; which yet became not intolerable, and forced no ejulations 
 from him, till about three weeks before he died. Under these, about 
 three days before his expiration, coming out of a dark minute, he said, 
 *• it is now revealed from heaven to me, that I shall quickly, quickly, 
 quickly be fetch'd away to heaven, and that I shall dy in the arms of 
 my son." After this, he kept very much calling for me ; till Friday, the 
 twenty third of August, in the morning, perceiving the last agonies 
 now come upon him, I did what I could, after my poor manner, that he 
 might be strengthened by such quickening words as the lively oracles 
 of our God have provided for such occasions. As it grew towards 
 noon, I said unto him, " Syr, the Messenger is now come to tell you: 
 This day thou shalt be in Paradise. Do you believe it, Syr, and re- 
 joice in the views and hopes of it? " He replied, '* I do! I do! I do!" 
 — and upon these words, he died in my arms. 
 
 The same filial pen tells us of the funeral : — 
 
 On the seventh day after this, he was laid in the Cave of the Treas- 
 ure, and God honored him with a greater funeral than had ever been 
 seen for any divine, in these, (and some travelers at it said, in any 
 other) parts of the world. The Hon. William Dummer, Esq., who 
 was then Lt. Governor and commander-in-chief; and his honorable, 
 ancient, cordial friend, Samuel Sewall, Esq., the chief Judge of the 
 province ; with the president of the college, and three of the principal 
 ministers, were they that held the pall; before which one hundred 
 and threescore scholars of the college, whereof he had once been the 
 president, walked in order ; and there were followers of every rank, 
 (among which about fifty ministers) and spectators that could not be 
 numbered ; all with an uncommon sadness in their countenance, and a 
 most serious aspect ; concurring to the fulfillment of the text, on which 
 Rev. Thomas Foxcroft, whom he greatly loved, on that day enter- 
 tained a great auditory with a very acceptable sermon — Text 2 
 Chron. 24: 15, 16: — "He was full of days when he died; and 
 they buried him — honorably — because he had done good in Israel." 
 Indeed, he might on " many accounts be called, the Jehoidah of New 
 England." 
 
COTTON MATHER. 
 
 493 
 
 The "first fathers" of New England, in Church and 
 State, hold a distinct place in our history and are held in 
 a veneration all their own ; but the number of worthies 
 in all the generations since — whether divines, statesmen, 
 diplomatists, or scholars who rank with Increase Mather 
 are very few. None equaled him in varied abilities and 
 accomplishments before Jonathan Edwards appeared, ex- 
 cept his son Cotton, and Benjamin Franklin ; and when 
 we consider his long pastorate of over sixty years, his 
 presidency of the college, his public mission in England, 
 and his numerous works which informed and guided his 
 own generation, we cannot deny him a place among the 
 chiefest of our great and useful men. 
 
 The death of President Mather was honorably noticed 
 in many pulpits, as he was held in general esteem and ven- 
 eration. Some of the clergy had been students of his, 
 and through them his influence was perpetuated. His 
 son delivered a characteristic sermon on the occasion. 
 Title, " A Father departing ; or the departure of the ven- 
 erable and memorable Dr. Increase Mather; by One who, 
 as a Son with a Father, served with him in the gospel." 
 Early in the next month he preached another sermon, 
 part of which is given in " Parentator," wherein the son 
 describes his father's ministry. Text, Revelation 3:3: 
 "Remember therefore how thou hast received and heard." 
 In coming to the concluding part he used these words : — 
 
 The Pastor, who this day, sixty two years ago, preached his first 
 sermon to the North church in Boston, has of latter years, ever spoken 
 of you as a loving people. The expressions of your love to him were 
 notable, and were numberless, and were such as greatly comforted him. 
 What you expressed in the last years of his life, and especially after 
 he became an emerited soldier, and singularly at his departure, is what 
 I know not that any church has ever equalled. In a very public man- 
 ner, I now do, and in a more public manner, I hope I shall render you 
 the thanks which are to be expected on the occasion. But I am now 
 
494 ^^^^ ^^^ TIMES OF 
 
 to tell you, that the most significant way of expressing your love will 
 be, to remember how you have received and heard, in the ministry of 
 that burning and shining light wherein ye rejoiced for so long a season. 
 
 He then, under seven heads, exhorts the hearers to re- 
 member the main points of their late pastor's preaching. 
 It was a sermon of great tenderness and power, and the 
 words are still instinct with life and energy. 
 
 In regard to a supply, the church voted, September i, 
 for delay. On the second of October, the " church voted, 
 and chose, by thirty-four, Mr. Joshua Gee." November 12, 
 "Mr. Gee's favorable answer was read." On the 25th, 
 the church "fixed upon Dec. 18, for ordination." Voted 
 to " invite the six churches of the united brethren 
 in this town, and the church in Roxbury, to the ordaining 
 council." The following partial program was adopted 
 by the church : " Voted, that Mr. Waldron, Mr. Wads- 
 worth and Mr. Sewall be desired, with the Pastor, to join 
 in the imposition of hands ; the Pastor to give the charge." 
 The other parts were left with the Council to arrange. It 
 was now about sixty years since Increase Mather became 
 the minister of the North Church, and nearly forty years 
 since his son Cotton, after two or three years' assistance, 
 had been ordained as his colleague. 
 
 The publications of Dr. Mather this year were less 
 than usual in number, and all of them were small, not 
 one exceeding thirty pages, and all together making only 
 about 200 pages. Funeral sermons led the way. One 
 was delivered on the fourteenth of April entitled, " Eu- 
 thanasia : A Sudden death made happy and easy to the 
 dying believer, exemplified in John Frizell, Esq." The 
 running title was, "On dying very suddenly." Mr. 
 Frizell was a merchant, and from Sewall we learn that he 
 had a "very great funeral." For some unexplained reason 
 the city of Glasgow, in 1710, "sent over and made him a 
 
COTTON MATHER. 495 
 
 burgess, and guild brother." This was doubtless a much- 
 valued mark of respect or gratitude, perhaps of both. 
 
 The death of Rev. Joseph Belcher, the reverend and 
 excellent pastor of Dedham, called forth " A Good Char- 
 acter ; or, a walk with God characterized "; with a running 
 title, "A Holy Walker." 
 
 An essay on ** Remarkables in the Ways of Wicked 
 Men " cannot be found. It is in the list made by his son 
 Samuel. It would be interesting to see how the subject 
 was treated by one who had an infinite fund of incident 
 and anecdote regarding all sorts of men, in all ages of 
 recorded biography. 
 
 We have often been reminded of Dr. Mather's deep in- 
 terest in the fortunes of those who went "down to the 
 sea in ships." His house and his church were not far 
 from deep water, and he used to take a turn occasionally 
 to the wharves as one drawn thither by sympathy with 
 mariners. Many families connected with the ocean by 
 commerce, or as officers and sailors, were in his congrega- 
 tion. A ''young gentleman taking a voyage to sea" 
 requested a sermon of him on the occasion. He com- 
 plied, and treated of " The Lord High Admiral of all the 
 Seas adored ; a brief essay upon the miracle of our Sav- 
 iour walking upon the water ; with admonitions of piety 
 profitable to all, but very particularly agreeable to them 
 whose business calls them to sailing on the water." We 
 here see how near this preacher was in the habit of bring- 
 ing Christ to his hearers and of leading them to associate 
 him with all their ways and works. 
 
 Sermons which reveal the sins of past times are ma- 
 terial for history as well as biography. Such a discourse 
 was that with the title : " The Pure Nazarite : Advice to 
 a young man concerning an impiety and impurity, (not 
 easily to be spoken of) which many young men are, to 
 
496 LIFE AND TIMES OF 
 
 their perpetual sorrow, too easily drawn into. A Letter 
 forced from the press, by the discoveries which are made, 
 that sad occasions multiply for the communication of 
 it." This was a subject which required all his delicacy 
 as well as fidelity to handle with profit. 
 
 xThere was a "great and memorable storm " in the early 
 part of the year (February 24) in which " many, and heavy, 
 and unknown losses were suffered." This caused him, in 
 the time of the storm, while it was raging, to preach on 
 "The voice of God in a tempest." The whole audience, 
 from their connection with the sea, must have listened 
 with thrilling interest. 
 
 At this period in our religious history strenuous efforts 
 were made to extend and strengthen Diocesan Episcopacy 
 in Boston and New England. There was a memorable 
 controversy in New Haven at the Yale College com- 
 mencement in 1722. The president, Mr. Cutler, who had 
 become an Episcopalian, had, with a few others, planned 
 for a large defection in the Congregational ministry and 
 churches ; but the plan failed, and Mr. Cutler soon ap- 
 peared in Boston. Things had changed now from what 
 they were at the first settlement of Boston, when Laud 
 and the high church undertook to extinguish nonconform- 
 ing churches. The day of toleration had come in Eng- 
 land. But the men engaged in bringing Episcopacy into 
 Boston were of the narrow, high, exclusive type, who 
 denied the validity of all non-episcopal ordination, and 
 made themselves specially offensive by their lordly claims 
 to superiority. 
 
 Times have changed again, since then : for now men 
 of all evangelical denominations cooperate in many ways 
 in promoting the cause of their common Lord, without 
 abandoning their own peculiar views and methods. Dr. 
 Mather felt it to be his duty to utter " Some Seasonable 
 
COTTON MATHER. 497 
 
 Inquiries concerning Episcopacy, for the consideration and 
 satisfaction of them that are willing to weigh things in 
 even balances ; and for the establishment of the Reformed 
 Churches, lest being led away with the error of the day, 
 they fall from their own steadfastness." As a matter of 
 history, the falling away took another turn toward the 
 close of the century, but the Episcopal movement made 
 but little gain until some years after the Revolution. 
 
 Cotton Mather was a great letter writer, but only a 
 few specimens, comparatively, of his correspondence have 
 seen the light. His style of writing, when talking to a 
 friend with pen and ink, was so like himself, but so unlike 
 his elaborate " composures," that an example may well 
 find a place occasionally in this memoir. His descriptive 
 power is also well illustrated in his account of the great 
 storm, February 24, 1723, during which he preached 
 "The Voice of God in the Tempest." The letter was 
 written, it is supposed, to John Woodward, Secretary of 
 the Royal Society, in London. 
 
 Sir, — The reading of a storm is not so bad as the feeling of it. 
 I shall therefore think it no trespass on civility to entertain you with a 
 short relation of a storm and tide, wherein these parts of the world 
 saw what no man alive remembers to have seen before, and suffered 
 incomputable damage. It was on Febuary 24, 1722-3, when our little 
 American philosophers observed an uncommon concurrence of all those 
 causes which an high tide was to be expected from. The moon was 
 then at the change, and both sun and moon together on the meridian. 
 The moon was in her perigee, and the sun was near to his, having past 
 it but a little before. Both the sun and moon were near the equi- 
 noctial, and so fell in with the annual and the diurnal motion of the 
 terraqueous globe. There was a great fall of snow and rain, the tem- 
 per of the air was cool and moist, and such as contributed to a mighty 
 descent of vapors ; and cloudy atmosphere might also help something 
 to swell and raise the waters. Finally, the wind was high, and blew 
 hard and long, first from the southward, and it threw the southern seas 
 in a vast quantity to the northern shores ; then veering easterly, it 
 
498 LIFE AND TIMES OF 
 
 brought the eastern seas also upon them ; and then, still veering to the 
 northward, it brought them all with yet more accumulations upon us. 
 They raised the tide unto an height which had never been seen in the 
 memory of man among us. The tide was very high in the night, but 
 on the day following, it being the Lord's day, at noon, it rose two feet 
 higher than had ever been known unto the country ; and the city of 
 Boston particularly suffered from it incredible mischiefs and losses. It 
 rose two or three feet above the famous long wharf, and flowed over 
 the other wharfs and streets, to so surprising an height, that we could 
 sail in boats from the southern battery to the rise of the ground in 
 Kings Street, and from there to the rise of the ground towards the 
 North meeting house. It filled all the cellars, and filled the floors of 
 the lower rooms in the houses and ware houses in town. The damage 
 is inexpressible in the country, in the inside of Cape Cod. The tide 
 rose four feet, and without, it rose ten feet or a dozen feet higher than 
 ever was known. At Rhode Island and Piscataqua they fared as we 
 did in Boston. At Hampton the sea broke over the natural banks for 
 many miles, and continued running over for many hours. Almost all 
 over the country, the artificial banks of the sea were broken down. 
 The marshes were overflown and overwhelmed ; mighty stacks of hay, 
 some removed, some destroyed ; many acres of marsh ruined, being 
 either torn up thro' the rage of the water, or covered with the sand 
 from the road. This is the sum of the story ; if there be nothing in it 
 worthy to be remembered than as waters that pass away, (or anything 
 like the memorable November storm, that filled the English world with 
 horror, twenty years ago, and whereof a large book was written,) yet 
 it may lead a person of your sagacity to some considerable specula- 
 tions, and more particularly, tho' I have mentioned what our small 
 philosophers here may dream of the causes of such occurrences, yet 
 you will also consider how far the subterranous heats and streams 
 below the bottom of the ocean, rising thence and passing through it, 
 and causing the deep to boil as a pot, may further contribute unto 
 them. However, as for a tempest, so for a letter about one, you may 
 think the shorter the better, it shall therefore, now be over. I will add 
 no more, and you shall be sensible of nothing more but a swelling tide 
 of esteem and affection for you, in the breast of. Sir, 
 
 Your hearty friend and servant, C. M. 
 September 24, 1723. 
 
 Here, at the close of the life of President Increase 
 Mather and near the end of the life of his son, Dr. Cotton 
 
COTTON MATHER. 
 
 499 
 
 Mather, is a convenient and fitting place to refer to the 
 contemporaries of both, from 1680, when the latter began 
 to preach, to his decease in the early part of 1728. The 
 list will include the ministers of Boston, and others in the 
 vicinity as well as some in other parts of the province. 
 Some of these were settled before Cotton Mather, and 
 others survived him. 
 
 The First Church, formed in Charlestown, July 30, 1630, 
 and removed to Boston soon after (the majority having 
 changed their residence) consisted of only four original 
 members, namely, Governor John Winthrop, Lieutenant- 
 Governor Thomas Dudley, Mr. Isaac Johnson, and Rev. 
 Thomas Wilson. Two days later, five more united with 
 them. Not long after " sixty-four males and half as many 
 females" became members. The ministers in 1680-1728 
 were: Rev. James Allen, 1668-1710; Joshua Moodey, 
 1684-1692 ; Joshua Bailey, 1693-1697 ; Benjamin Wads- 
 worth, 1696-1725; Thomas Bridge, 1 705-1 71 5 ; Thomas 
 Foxcroft, 1 714-1769. 
 
 The Rev. Benjamin Wadsworth was chosen president 
 of Harvard College in 1725, and held the office till 
 1737. It is said of him that he was ''highly and justly 
 respected for his ability and his attainments, the unpre- 
 tending quietness of his manners, and the resolution and 
 firmness of his character." Rev. James Allen was one 
 of the ministers excluded from the English Church in 
 the early years of Charles II by what was called the 
 "St. Bartholomew's Act." All of the pastors of the 
 First Church were superior men. Most of them were 
 colleagues under the old plan of teacher and pastor. 
 
 The ministers of the Second, or Old North, Church 
 were: Increase Mather, 1664-1723; Cotton Mather, 1684- 
 1728 ; Joshua Gee, 1 723-1 748. 
 
 The ministers of the Old South Church, founded 
 
500 
 
 LIFE AND TIMES OF 
 
 in 1669, were Thomas Thatcher, 1670- 1678 ; Samuel 
 Willard, 1678- 1707; Ebenezer Pemberton, 1 700-1 71 7; 
 Joseph Sewall, 1713-1769; Thomas Prince, 1718-1758. 
 All of these men were prominent ; most of them dis- 
 tinguished. Samuel Willard, a descendant of Major 
 Simon Willard, good as well as famous in his day, and 
 long after, became vice-president and acting president of 
 the college in 1701, and retained the office till his death 
 in 1707. He was, says Samuel A. Eliot, "a man of dis- 
 tinguished ability, and a divine of extensive learning and 
 uncommon powers of elocution." He was the author 
 of the "Compleat Body of Divinity," in more than 900 
 pages, folio. An idea of the bigness of the work may 
 be formed from the following figures. There are 914 
 double-column folio pages in the volume. There are 134 
 lines to an average page. There are about 8.4 words to 
 a line. This gives 1,028,798 words to the whole book. 
 Short lines and breaks in the pages and headlines are not 
 counted. Any one can find the number of volumes of 
 any specified book that would equal this " Body of Divin- 
 ity" in contents. The comparative size of the volume 
 may be shown by an example or two. In the Magnalia 
 there are 661,848 words, more or less, or nearly seven 
 tenths as many as in the book in question. In the manu- 
 script copy of the ** Illustrations of the Scripture," or 
 "Biblia Americana," there are as many as 2,888,000 words, 
 or, in round numbers, as many as in two and one-half 
 such works as Willard' s. The work (of Willard) is in 
 250 " Expository Lectures on the Assembly's Shorter 
 Catechism." It was not published until nineteen years 
 after the author's death, which is thought to be " without 
 a parallel in the history of theology." It was the first 
 folio issued from a New England printing office. The 
 folio edition of the Magnalia was issued in England. 
 
COTTON MATHER. 5OI 
 
 The work was published by a subscription. It is pref- 
 aced by a " Character " from the pen of his colleague, 
 Mr. Pemberton, in which he says, " In him [Willard] 
 bountiful heaven was pleased to cause a concurrence of all 
 those natural and acquired, moral and spiritual excellen- 
 cies, which are necessary to constitute a great man, a pro- 
 found divine, a very considerable scholar, and a heavenly 
 Christian." 
 
 Joseph Sewall was chosen president of the college after 
 the death of President Leverett, but declined. Thomas 
 Prince was the author of "Annals" which have laid all 
 subsequent writers of our history under obligations. 
 
 The pastors of Brattle Street Church were : Benjamin 
 Colman, 1699-1747; William Cooper, 1716-1743. Both 
 were eminent in their day, but Colman is held more in 
 remembrance, owing to his connection with the origin of 
 the church. 
 
 The New North had for its ministers, John Webb, 
 1714-1750; and Peter Thacher, 1723-1729. 
 
 The minister of the New South was Samuel Checkley, 
 from 1719 to 1769; and the New Brick Church at the 
 north end enjoyed the labors of William Waldron from 
 1722 to 1727. 
 
 The church in Charlestown had the following pastors 
 in the period under review : Thomas Shepard, Jr., 1680- 
 1685 ; Charles Morton, 1686-1698 ; Simon Bradstreet, 
 1698-1741 ; Joseph Stevens, 171 3-1 721 ; Hull Abbot, 
 1 724- 1 774. Shepard and Morton were men of high 
 rank in the ministry and as scholars. 
 
 Watertown was ministered to by John Bailey, 1686- 
 1697 ; Thomas Bailey, 1687- 1689 ; Samuel Angier, 
 1697-1719. 
 
 John Higginson, son of the first pastor of that name, 
 was over the church in Salem from 1660 to 1708. 
 
502 LIFE AND TIMES. 
 
 Newton: Jeremiah Hobart, 1674-1712. 
 
 Dorchester: John Danforth, 1682-1730. 
 
 Roxbury : John Eliot, 1632-1690; Nehemiah Walter, 
 1688-1750; Thomas Walter, 1718-1725. 
 
 Samuel Danforth was at Taunton ; Jeremiah Shepard 
 at Lynn, and James Sherman at Sudbury, while Cotton 
 Mather was in service. 
 
 In Lancaster between 1690 and 1748, were John Whit- 
 ing, descendant of Whiting of Lynn ; Andrew Gardner 
 and John Prentice, the latter from 1708 to 1748. 
 
 At Plymouth was John Cotton, son of the John of 
 Boston ; and in New Hampshire, Roland, a grandson. 
 The former from 1669 to 1699, and the latter between 
 1694 and 1722. 
 
 The Mayhews made their names immortal in connec- 
 tion with the conversion, the civilization, and the govern- 
 ment of the Indians on Martha's Vineyard, between 1689 
 and 1756. 
 
CHAPTER XXIV. 
 
 DISPENSATIONS AND CONSOLATIONS I 1 724. 
 
 THIS is the last year (1724) in which we can draw 
 from the diary, beginning with the twelfth of Feb- 
 ruary, the birthday of the author, and extending to the 
 same day in the next year. The record is quite full, but 
 the excerpts will be much restricted, inasmuch as many 
 entries have lost their interest by the lapse of time. 
 
 Turning first to the church records, we notice the 
 presence of the new minister, Mr. Gee, who, on the four- 
 teenth of February, administered baptism. The record 
 reads : " The first baptism administered by Mr. Gee, and , 
 indeed, the first that has been administered by any hand 
 but those of Mathers (father and son), in the Old North 
 church, for more than half a hundred years together." 
 
 The diary begins, February 12, in this strain: "O 
 wonderful ! O wonderful ! O the wonders and praises 
 with which I am to consider the favors of the gracious 
 God, who hitherto has helped me." As this is the last 
 record of Dr. Mather's experiences in his study to be 
 quoted, it will serve to show the state of his mind, when 
 nearing the end, to make from it a few citations. 
 
 This birthday was partly spent in thanksgiving. '' En- 
 joyed a most comfortable, yea, an astonishing presence 
 of God. No pen can express my enjoyments and my 
 elevations." He began by recognizing his nothingness; 
 accepted the offerings of God, and resigned himself to 
 God. He thought of the perfections of God, the Father, 
 Son and Holy Ghost. He gave thanks for blessings; 
 specially that he had lived so long, and had been "pre- 
 
 503 
 
504 LIFE AND TIMES OF 
 
 served from the grievous diseases which carry horror with 
 them." He praised God for "discipline and afflictions.'* 
 He was thankful for blessings on his ministry, and for 
 spiritual blessings in general. 
 
 Then he settled points in which he must be, more than 
 ever, the Lord's ; next, sang psalms, after which are these 
 expressions : " But O the expansions of a soul mounting 
 up to heaven, as with the wings of eagles ! And O the 
 assurances and mercies reserved for me ! My pen is not 
 able to relate them." A few days later, he wrote : "De- 
 votions of the day full of a divine life. Prayed, not so 
 much for blessings, as to be willing to go without them." 
 
 The diary has the usual notes of designs and efforts for 
 usefulness, both for individuals and the public ; but the 
 items have no special interest now, except as they indicate 
 Jthe unceasing benevolence of the man. A few examples 
 will serve our purpose. He wrote an "elegant epitaph- 
 ium" for his father's life. Distant relations enlisted his 
 efforts for their spiritual good. He set his new servant 
 upon "learning the ways of piety." He sent his "Visit to 
 the Widow " and other books to those whom they might 
 benefit. His children were "instigated to be a blessing 
 to one another." An eminent man had committed 
 suicide, and Judge Sewall was anxious to have an improve- 
 ment made of the event, by some publication showing 
 the sin of self-murder. Therefore he requested the Notes 
 of a sermon preached by Dr. Increase Mather, more than 
 forty years before, upon "Self-murder." Cotton Mather 
 looked it up, and it was given for publication. He made 
 efforts to reclaim a minister from intemperate habits, and 
 was solicitous about students in college, some of whom 
 belonged to his congregation. 
 
 His public services in his own church, at the Lecture, 
 and in other places, were as frequent as in his earlier life ; 
 
COTTON MATHER. 505 
 
 and his heart yearned for the highest good of his remain- 
 ing children, with apparently increasing intensity. His 
 prayers were not forgotten, but "availed much." 
 
 In noticing, with as much brevity as possible, a few 
 distinct events that marked this year, it may be said that 
 some of them constituted a crisis, or perhaps more 
 strictly a change, in his life. Some things that had been 
 burdens were taken off his neck, and some were followed 
 by hope and joy. 
 
 One of his designs was to have a new edition of 
 biographies of eminent and pious dissenters to follow 
 Clark's Collections of forty years before. He would send 
 the proposal to London. His own biographies of New 
 England worthies rank high in that department of 
 literature. 
 
 One of the chief works in this line was his " Paren- 
 tator; or, Remarkables of Dr. Increase Mather." It is 
 a work of unfailing interest, in 244 small pages, and 
 written with a rapid pen, but crowded with matter illus- 
 trating a busy and a noble life. I found a very old copy 
 of the first edition about thirty years ago, and went 
 through it the first day. Repeated readings have en- 
 deared the book to me. It is strange that some book- 
 seller does not issue a new edition with notes, just enough 
 to elucidate a few points obscured by the lapse of time. 
 
 The following "singular experience" in the diary for 
 May I is given, as it exhibits a phase of character. It is 
 not necessary to affirm that the experience " was real, or 
 in accordance with the spiritual intercourse of heaven 
 with earth," unless to meet the doubts of those who call 
 all such sequences mere coincidences : — 
 
 On the last Lord's day in public prayer, I was led out of myself, as 
 it were, to pray that the pirates who infest the coast, might have some 
 remarkable thing done unto them. This prayer was talked about, and 
 
506 LIFE AND TIMES OF 
 
 many people expressed strong expectation, that soon something re- 
 markable would take place. Before the week was out, a vessel came 
 in, wherein five or six captives among the pirates had risen on them, 
 and with much bravery, killed the captain and chief pirates, and made 
 prisoners of the rest. 
 
 Great notice was taken of this prophetic prayer. This 
 fact shows the impression made on the public at the 
 time of the prayer, and the immediate capture of the 
 pirates. Dr. Mather makes this note : " I would feel no 
 elation in it, but be humble in the dust, as any would not 
 be amiable in the sight of God." 
 
 These pirates were confined in the prison, in Boston, 
 until their trial and execution. The following entry in 
 the diary will be read with interest : — 
 
 May 31. One of the first things which the^ pirates who are now 
 so much the terror of them that haunt the sea, impose on their poor 
 captives, is, to curse Dr. Mather. The pirates now strangely fallen 
 into the hands of justice here, make me th^Jirst man whose visits, and 
 company, and prayers they beg for. Some of them under sentence of 
 death, choose to hear from me the last sermon they hear in this world. 
 Being desired for publication, it was given to the printer with the title : 
 *'The Converted Sinner; or, The Nature of a Conversion to real and 
 vital piety." To this was added, a "more private conference of a 
 minister with them," making forty nine pages. 
 
 Capt. Phillips and company, in about one year and a half, robbed 
 no less than thirty four vessels. Some of the crews were murdered. 
 Andrew Harradine and John Philimore [ancestor of the late President 
 Fillmore] with six others, subdued the pirates. Watching their oppor- 
 tunity, they threw the master overboard, cut down the captain with an 
 adze, and killed both cockswain and gunner. The rest were terrified, 
 and made their submission. 
 
 Their trial came swiftly on the twelfth of May. It was 
 found that some of them had been forced into piracy, and 
 those were acquitted. The really guilty were condemned, 
 and two of them, Archer and White, were hanged. The 
 subject of the sermon was : " A Necessity, a tremendous 
 
COTTON MATHER. 507 
 
 necessity, that the sinner turn to God." The conference 
 was intended faithfully and kindly to lead the guilty to 
 repentance. 
 
 Governor Gurdon Saltonstall, of Connecticut, and Dr. 
 Mather were intimate friends, and the sudden death of 
 the former, in September, drew from the latter a fitting 
 expression of friendship. He wrote, September 27 : — 
 
 The sudden death of my intimate and time-honored friend, the 
 excellent Gov. Saltonstall, who was a few years younger than myself, — 
 how much must it awaken me to be always ready, and as fast as I can, 
 do with my might, what my hands find to do, and what I would wish 
 to have done before I die. O my God and Saviour, quicken me, assist 
 me, and let an easy death (oh ! for an easy as well as a happy death) 
 conclude my labors and my sorrows. 
 
 On the first of October Dr. Mather preached a funeral 
 sermon, in which he gave the governor his ** deserved 
 character." He does not overrate one who stood in the 
 front rank of divines and statesmen in the colonies. The 
 sermon was printed with the title : " Decus ac Tutamen ; 
 a brief essay on the blessings enjoyed by a people that 
 have men of a right character shining among them." He 
 styles Governor Saltonstall "that great and good man." 
 The double text was : " The king said unto his servants. 
 Know ye not that there is a . . . great man fallen this 
 day in Israel } " " By the blessing of the upright the city 
 is exalted." 
 
 The ** Stimulator for a soul walking in darkness " and 
 ^' Light in darkness, showing that days of darkness may 
 be changed into marvellous light," and "The Nightingale" 
 were among the printed sermons of the year. The last 
 has one of those poetical titles of which we have already 
 spoken. Who but Cotton Mather would have written 
 "The Nightingale: an Essay on Songs among thorns".'* 
 It treats of the "supports and comforts of the afflicted 
 believer, by one that has had experience of them." 
 
508 LIFE AND TIMES OF 
 
 The origin of the discourse on the words : " Unless thy 
 law had been my deUght, I then should have perished in 
 mine affliction," was as follows : *' A godly woman having 
 been carried through many afflictions, thought herself 
 bound in duty to invite her friends into a consort with her, 
 in the praises of God her Saviour ; and having had a more 
 particular experience of the truth in that word, Ps. 119: 
 92, she desired me to furnish her with a discourse upon 
 it. I did so, and she published it." 
 
 Young ministers in modern times are not fond of being 
 settled with elder ones as colleagues ; but this was com- 
 mon in the first century of our churches, and the plan 
 seems to have worked well and happily. The Mathers 
 worked in perfect harmony, to all appearance, and the 
 relations of Cotton Mather with Mr. Gee appear to have 
 been very harmonious. The following citation is made, 
 to show how two ministers may work in useful fellowship : 
 "Consult with colleague about putting in act, what has 
 been proposed before ; i.e. a society of persons who shall 
 consider what further service may be done for the church, 
 and who may serve as eyes to us, to look out for us, and 
 report to us what we may have missed." 
 
 Dr. Mather was far from well in the early part of 
 the year, yet not to such a degree as to be kept from pas- 
 toral work; but in November he had a severe attack, 
 which lasted five weeks, or through December. He was 
 debarred from his pulpit, and Samuel, now eighteen, 
 preached part of the time. A cough and asthma and a 
 fever came as a triple affliction ; but he was " gloriously 
 supported by the Comforter, who caused him to triumph 
 over the fear of death." 
 
 He styled this December as a "month of vanity," on 
 account of his inability to perform his customary duties ; 
 and yet it is almost laughable to read that he " read over 
 
COTTON MATHER. 5O9 
 
 several considerable books," went through "much of 
 several folious," which made some *' addition to his little 
 stock of erudition " ; read proof of his essay in the 
 French tongue, and prepared for the press several dis- 
 courses growing out of his afflictions. 
 
 Dr. Mather had not felt reconciled to the treatment 
 received by his father at the time of his retiring from 
 the presidency of the college ; but he never made any 
 demonstrations of hostility. By the death of President 
 Leverett, there was now a vacancy, and many were expect- 
 ing the elevation of Dr. Mather to that position, and 
 perhaps he himself had some such expectation. On the 
 seventh of May, the day after the funeral of President 
 Leverett, at which he was one of the pallbearers. Dr. 
 Mather wrote in his diary : — 
 
 The sudden death of that unhappy man, who sustained the place of 
 President in a Colledge, will open the door for my doing of singular 
 services to the best of interests. ... I do not know that ye care of the 
 colledge will be now cast upon me ; tho' I am told it is what is most 
 generally wished for. If it should, I shall be in abundance of distress 
 about it. But if it should not, yett I may do many things for ye good 
 of ye Colledge more quietly and more hopefully than formerly. 
 
 He had reason to expect the offer of the presidency, 
 because of the public sentiment in his favor. Dr. Eliot 
 states that 'Hhe voice of the people cried aloud for Dr. 
 Mather, and it was declared even in the General Court 
 that he ought to be president." There is reason to be- 
 lieve that the members of the house of representatives 
 were nearly of one mind in his favor. 
 
 But the trustees made choice of another, which is 
 referred to as follows : — 
 
 Aug. 12. I am informed that yesterday, the six men who call them- 
 selves the corporation of the colledge mett, and contrary to the epi- 
 demical expectation of the countrey, chose a modest young man, of 
 
5IO LIFE AND TIMES OF 
 
 whose piety, (and little else,) every one gives a laudable character. . . . 
 I always foretold these two things of the corporation : first, if it were 
 possible for them to steer clear of me, they will do so ; secondly, if it 
 were possible for them to act foolishly, they will do so. 
 
 This is followed by a prayer, and an exhortation to 
 himself: "Lord, help me to a wise behavior. Hasten, 
 hasten, O slothful Mather, in despatching thy Treatise of 
 advice to the candidates of the ministry. Thou mayest 
 thereby do more good than twenty presidents of colleges." 
 
 A few days later he wrote down the pros and cons of 
 his relations to the college. It was a " dispensation of so 
 much mixture," that he desired a right understanding of 
 it, and a right behavior under it. He was desirous to find 
 out "what sentiments and what actions his God and 
 Saviour called him to." 
 
 1. The care of the colledge, with other causes, and duties, and trials, 
 would have been too much . Could not have lived a year through ; yet 
 perhaps I am to die immediately at home, and God may have, merci- 
 fully, diverted the college from a choice which would have immediately 
 terminated in fresh troubles to them. 
 
 2. The care of the colledge would have given precious opportunity 
 to do good to all the churches in the country, and in a way of living 
 inexpressibly agreeable. 
 
 Yet, he wrote, "Light may arise in this darkness. 
 Who may tell what opportunity to do good may yet be 
 reserved for me .? " Besides, the " grace he had already re- 
 ceived in that kind, especially considering his prodigious 
 un worthiness, might well be sufficient." 
 
 Finally, the preferring a child before me, as my superior in erudition, 
 or in capacity and vivacity to manage the government of an academy ; 
 or in piety and gravity. — This is what, for several reasons, it would be 
 a crime in me to be disturbed at. I hope my Saviour, who has taught 
 me, will help me to take all possible satisfaction in it. 
 
CO TTON MA THER. 5 I I 
 
 Later in the season, Mr. Sewall having declined the 
 office, Rev. Benjamin Colman was chosen ; but he fol- 
 lowed Mr. Sewall's example. Rev. Benjamin Wadsworth 
 was the next choice, and he accepted. 
 
 In reference to the action of the corporation in choos- 
 ing Dr. Colman, Dr. Mather, on the twenty-second of 
 November, wrote: — 
 
 The corporation of our miserable colledge do again, (upon a fresh 
 opportunity) treat me with their accustomed malignity. But oh ! may 
 I take pleasure in the opportunity I have to glorify my God and Saviour, 
 with a disposition he may delight to look down upon. 
 
 This is one of the passages in Dr. Mather's life which 
 those who like to belittle him ar^ fond of recalling. He 
 is represented as a disappointed man ; as bloated with 
 vanity, as swollen with envy, and as malignant in his feel- 
 ing towards the corporation. Why, it may be asked, did 
 he not take the result with equanimity, and be still about 
 it, with a dignified silence t That, it may be replied, is 
 just what he did. There is no proof that he gave utter- 
 ance to any impatient, unseemly, or complaining words. 
 There is no evidence, that I have seen, that he spoke on 
 the subject to wife or child or friend. All that is known 
 of his feelings or thoughts was committed to a private 
 diary, which was kept from the fire for his own review, 
 and for the use of his sons (only one now remaining), if it 
 might not be destroyed before the writer died. 
 
 It is not by any means certain, as even some who are 
 not his admirers have allowed, that Dr. Mather would 
 have accepted the place if it had been offered to him. 
 In his pros and cons, he seems to have drawn the line 
 quite fairly. He was too old and too much worn to 
 expect many more years of life ; it would have been both 
 hard to leave his church and of doubtful wisdom to have 
 
512 LIFE AND TIMES OF 
 
 done it. If he had been offered the presidency, on the 
 terms by which his father held it, namely, preaching in 
 Boston and presiding at the college, his strength would 
 have given way at once. And to yield his pulpit was to 
 abdicate his throne. Probably, if the choice had been 
 given to him, he would have decided to remain in Boston. 
 Nevertheless, he felt the action of the trustees in pass- 
 ing him by keenly. Though he gave no outward sign, it 
 is evident that he felt himself deliberately slighted by 
 their selection of another, and of three in succession. 
 In this connection it is pertinent to give a quotation from 
 Dr. Pierce, author of a history of Harvard College : — 
 
 With all the defects and blemishes which marked the character of 
 Cotton Mather, it will not be denied that he was a most extraordinary 
 'man. ... It is equally evident that his judgment was not equal to his 
 other faculties; that his passions, which were naturally strong and 
 violent, were not always under proper regulation ; that he was weak, 
 credulous, enthusiastic, and superstitious. . . . His contemporaries 
 appear to have formed a very correct estimate of his abilities. They 
 saw his weaknesses and eccentricities, and therefore would not choose 
 him president. . . . They saw, at the same time, what posterity sees, 
 that he was a man of wonderful parts, of immense learning, and of 
 eminent piety and virtue. 
 
 We have here a generous appreciation of the ability, 
 learning, and piety of Cotton Mather, but dashed with 
 the charge of being weak, eccentric, passionate, and en- 
 thusiastic, credulous, and superstitious. He was, doubt- 
 less, enthusiastic, but always in a good cause, and not 
 beyond the bounds of reason. In the matter of credulity 
 and superstition, he was in advance of his age. Naturally 
 of a warm temper, he made most prayerful efforts to refine 
 his passion from all mixture of enmity or malevolence. 
 His contemporaries did indeed form a "very correct 
 estimate of his abilities," and they would have placed him 
 
CO TTON MA THER. 5 1 3 
 
 in the president's chair almost by acclamation, if the 
 power of choice had not been in the hands of a few who 
 disliked him. Forty-five years of active life taught him 
 to know his own superiority, as a scholar, as an author, as 
 a teacher, and as an administrator, to any man in the 
 colony. In regard to the first of three points, there can 
 be no question. There need be none in regard to the last. 
 He was not only great in the pulpit, but his management 
 of his parish had been a great success. It was indeed 
 phenomenal. And the sense, shrewdness, patience, inge- 
 nuity, enthusiasm, and piety that he exhibited in the one 
 position would have stood him in stead in the other. If 
 he had been elected president at the age of thirty-five, 
 he would, in all probability, have raised the college to a 
 greater height than it attained for many years after. But 
 the policy of a coterie of men who had the college in their 
 hands, and knew that the inauguration of Dr. Mather 
 would work a kind of revolution, refused him the opportu- 
 nity to decline the honor. That injustice did not weaken 
 his influence, hinder his doing good, or lessen his fame. 
 Nor did he abase himself before those who had the power 
 to grieve him by their neglect. So far from it, or from 
 harboring feelings of enmity or revenge, he silently 
 resolved, and publicly lived up to the resolution, to " take 
 no step [as he easily could many], to throw confusion on 
 the men who would make him low, in the eyes of all the 
 country." This was the triumph of goodness. A refer- 
 ence to this matter, on the thirteenth of September, will 
 reveal to us anything but enmity or revenge. His glorious 
 Lord called him, as he supposed, to the "trial of being 
 despised and rejected of men." In reference to the action 
 of the corporation in not selecting him to be president, 
 when he had "such a testimony in their consciences, as 
 well as with the whole country, to the erudition, and 
 
514 LIFE AND TIMES OF 
 
 capacity, and activity for doing good, and fidelity to the 
 religion of the churches," he said : " It caused town and 
 country to be inquisitive as to the cause, and to conjecture 
 something to his disadvantage. Yet he would not com- 
 plain, but be silent." 
 
 In concluding this matter, it is to be regretted that Dn 
 Mather made use of certain expressions derogatory to the 
 good fame of President Leverett. In one place he calls 
 him a "drone," and in another calls him a ''wretch." 
 The reputation of President Leverett was high in his 
 time, and his administration is spoken of in terms of 
 praise by all the historians of the college. He was not 
 a " drone," in the common acceptation of the term, but a 
 good scholar and able teacher. His fidelity to the duties 
 of his office is unquestioned ; but, compared with the 
 intense activity of Cotton Mather, he might almost be 
 styled a "man of learned leisure." But the use of the 
 word "wretch" in application to such a man, as generally 
 understood, is inexcusable. Dr. Pond, in his work on the 
 Mathers, raises the query whether Dr. Mather used that 
 epithet. Possibly, he suggests, the word in the manu- 
 script may have been different. It would be pleasant to 
 find the query to be fact. But the probability is that the 
 writer of the letter in which the word is found, in haste, 
 and with a sense of disapprobation of some of the presi- 
 dent's conduct, wrote the word as it reads in print. How 
 much he meant by it we cannot determine. He called 
 himself by viler names than "drone" or "wretch," when 
 reviewing his own conduct or searching his own heart; 
 but a man has a better right to abuse himself than his 
 neighbor. It is more pleasant to remember that Cotton 
 Mather was quick to censure himself for any injustice of 
 the kind ; that he was sincerely grateful to President 
 Leverett for kindnesses to his son Samuel, as one of his 
 
CO TTON MA THER. 5 1 5 
 
 pupils, and that he was one of the pallbearers at the 
 president's funeral. 
 
 One of the events that gave Dr. Mather great pleasure 
 and encouragement at this time was the gathering of the 
 children and youth around him as their pastor. On the 
 twenty-fourth of August he wrote as follows : " The little 
 damsels of the flock have so deserted the catechising, that 
 I have now, for several months, intermitted the exercise, 
 yet I will make one experiment more ; and accordingly, 
 this week I have desired their attendance on me ; declaring 
 my purpose to take my measures according to what ap- 
 pearance they now make at the time and place appointed." 
 Two days later he met the ** little damsels," and treated 
 them with *' some very moving thoughts on the words : 
 * I will delight myself in thy commandments, which I have 
 loved.' " There " appeared nigh one hundred." It must 
 have been a large congregation which could present so 
 many young girls. 
 
 Following up this effort, he entertained his youthful 
 flock, on the fourteenth of September, with "two ser- 
 mons on our Saviour, gathering the children of men as 
 the affectionate bird, the chickens under his wings," and 
 applied it to the young. He continued to catechise the 
 "lovely children," the "little maids," the "dear children," 
 as he styled them, and to preach to them from time to 
 time, and they attended in a way to cheer his heart. 
 
 The college grievance being over, the remainder of the 
 year, and also of his life, was comparatively tranquil, as 
 the other afflictions that had beset him for years were in 
 the process of alleviation. The clouds were breaking, and 
 light was shining as the evening came on, and his heart 
 felt the cheer. 
 
 True, he had causes of solicitude in his family. Hannah 
 was obliged to leave home for a while, on account of the 
 
5l6 LIFE AND TIMES OF 
 
 recurring distractions of her second stepmother. Eliza- 
 beth was about to be married, and this was of necessity 
 a cause of anxiety, though the prospect was agreeable. 
 Near relatives were sick or bereaved, and the state of the 
 country was made unpleasant by several causes ; among 
 others, the Indian war. 
 
 Samuel was now his reliance, since Increase had disap- 
 pointed his hopes. He had graduated with high honors, 
 and had since studied for the ministry. He had been on 
 a visit to Connecticut, stopping with friends — Saltonstall 
 and Winthrop, at New London, and others in New Haven. 
 At the latter place he had received much attention, on 
 account of his ancestry, and, as it would seem, for his 
 personal merits. Though only eighteen, the college 
 conferred on him the master's degree. His preaching had 
 given satisfaction. Returning home, he had preached in 
 several churches, including those of his father and his 
 grandfathers. An offer had been made him of a free pas- 
 sage to England, which he was inclined to accept. This 
 threw his father into a fit of distress, when it might have 
 been expected to gratify him, as giving his son an opportu- 
 nity for great improvement as well as pleasure, in visiting 
 the mother country and relatives dwelling there. But the 
 father did not, perhaps, hold the privileges of foreign 
 travel so high as others. Possibly he saw what is some- 
 times seen in our day, that young people learn more of 
 evil than good in their sojourn abroad. Probably he 
 feared that his beloved Benjamin might never return. 
 The perils of the sea w^re great. An opening for service 
 in England might be found. However that might be, the 
 father could not endure the thought of his going. He 
 prayed against it with great fervor, though he put no con- 
 straint on the young man. To his great joy the affair 
 took such a turn that the voyage was cheerfully abandoned. 
 
CO TTON MA THER. 5 I 7 
 
 The next event which added comfort to the good man's 
 heart was the settling of his "wretched administration." 
 We shun all the particulars of this settlement, except the 
 result. Dr. Mather had been involved in the debts of 
 other people, in a case where he was under no obligation, 
 for which he had received no consideration, and from 
 which he never could obtain any advantage. It would 
 seem that in all he was mulcted about ;£^400, though the 
 amount is not certain. He was poor. All his real prop- 
 erty had been sold. Nothing but furniture remained, 
 except his library, and he was fearful of the necessity of 
 parting with that. His children suffered. He was in 
 fear of bankruptcy and of consequent disgrace. In his 
 distress he cried unto God. At length kind friends 
 learned the facts, and a few of them united in presenting 
 him enough to meet all his indebtedness. 
 
 The relief came on the sixth of July, when he wrote : — 
 
 A part of my flock have newly signalized their kindness to me, and 
 shown me the kindness of God, in privately collecting and advancing 
 a sum of considerably more than two hundred pounds, to pay a debt of 
 wife's former husband, which I inconsiderately had made my own : and 
 was now in the course of law, ready to have execution sworn upon me 
 for. I cannot perceive a sense of gratitude unto me, in those for whom I 
 have been such a sufferer. But my soul is filled, and even fainting with 
 a sense of gratitude unto the kind people who thus lay me under very 
 uncommon obligations. I must think of some singular, transcendent, 
 uncommon way to express my gratitude unto them. Teach me, O 
 Thou good Spirit of God, and lead me into the way of gratitude, and 
 land of rectitude. 
 
 Dr. Mather expressed his gratitude to the friends who 
 had rescued him from pecuniary distress in his own way, 
 by preaching a sermon on ^^The Unsearchable Riches of 
 Christ^'' printing it, and dedicating it to those friends, and 
 sending a copy to every friend, with their names written 
 with his own pen upon the front of the dedication. 
 
5l8 LIFE AND TIMES OF 
 
 The mental condition of Mrs. Mather had been a still 
 keener affliction than the ** wretched administration," but 
 here relief also came suddenly, and as a blessing from 
 heaven, after one of the most furious paroxysms in her 
 whole experience. Under date of August 23 the diary 
 says : — 
 
 In the evening of this day, my poor wife, returning to a right mind, 
 came to me in my study, entreating that there might be an eternal 
 oblivion of everything that has been out of joint, and an eternal har- 
 mony in our future conversation; and that for the expressing, and 
 further obtaining of this felicity, I would now join with her in pouring 
 out our supplications to the Lord; and resolve to pray oftener with 
 her than ever heretofore. I did accordingly ; and the tokens of the 
 greatest inamoration on her part, ensued upon it. 
 
 The change seems to have been permanent, from several 
 grateful references to it. A single extract from the diary, 
 October 20, will happily close this painful subject : — 
 
 What shall I do that my carriage towards my consort may have 
 in it yet more conformity to my lovely Saviour? I think of many 
 instances wherein I will endeavor to it unto the utmost ; especially for 
 compassion to her with regard to the things which threaten her comfort. 
 And that I may improve to the highest in the matter, I would pray 
 much oftener than a monthly action of that importance. 
 
 Some days later he wrote : " By a marvellous operation 
 of the Divine Providence, all things are come to rights in 
 my unhappy family." 
 
 But the sorest affliction at this time, and indeed in his 
 whole life, was the conduct and fate of Increase. This 
 boy had been his special hope and pride. The failure of 
 this son to take the studious, scholarly, and pious way of 
 living was a great grievance to his father. But when to 
 this was added the positive misconduct of levity, slothful- 
 ness, dissipation, and the choice of bad companions, the 
 cup of grief was full and running over. The story reaches 
 
CO TTON MA THER. 5 I 9 
 
 over years, but we shall make it brief. For two or three 
 years since 1721 we have scarcely come upon his name, 
 because of the loss of diaries; but in 1724 he reappears 
 very often. The grief over him becomes the monotony 
 of woe. Increase was now at sea, and at last accounts 
 on a voyage from Barbadoes to Newfoundland. No 
 advices had come from him, but the father believed that 
 he had intimations from another source. July i, he 
 exclaims : *' But oh ! what advice from heaven is come to 
 me this day, about my poor son hurease ; yea, how many 
 times have I been, of late, overwhelmed with afflations 
 which told me that " — This is enigmatical ; it seems to 
 intimate that he had received desirable suggestions about 
 his son. 
 
 Before the month was out, he wrote as follows : — 
 
 My son Increase, my son, my son! Aug. 20. I am now advised 
 that my son Increase is lost, is dead, is gone. The ship wherein he 
 was bound from Barbadoes to St. Peters, has been out four months, and 
 has not arrived. Ah ! my son Increase ! my son ! my son ! my head 
 is waters, and my eyes are a fountain of tears. I am overwhelmed, and 
 
 this at a time when the domestic are so insupportable. O my 
 
 God, I am oppressed ; undertake for me. 
 
 But the soul of a Child! If the papers which he left in my hands, 
 were sincere, and his heart went with his pen, — all is well! Would 
 not my God have me to hope so ? . . . My Saviour yet affords me this 
 light in my darkness, that he enables me to offer up all the sacrifices 
 that he calls me to. 
 
 It will be recollected that relief this very week came 
 to his wife. Again he writes : ** The death of my son 
 Increase — Ah, my son ! my son ! What fruit could he 
 bring forth upon it for the awakening of the young people 
 betimes to turn and live unto God .? " This now became 
 his burden — a comforting one, though sad — to make an 
 " Essay to the end that the death of his son Increase 
 
520 
 
 LIFE AND TIMES OF 
 
 might be for the awakening and quickening of early- 
 piety." 
 
 But on the fifth of September he had some probable 
 advice that Increase was living ; that the vessel, after a 
 long, sad passage, had reached Newfoundland. "If it be 
 so. Oh ! may the distresses of the poor prodigal bring him 
 home to God." 
 
 Dr. Mather did not place much faith in the report, for 
 he proceeded to preach, on the 6th, a sermon in regard 
 to the death of his son, and thought to print and scatter 
 it especially among the young people. The good news 
 was followed, as he had feared, with a confirmation of the 
 first report. On the 7th, late in the day, he wrote : 
 "Lord, thou hast first lifted me up, and cast me down; 
 Oh ! let there be no indignation and wrath in what is done 
 unto me ! To-day the good news of poor Creasy s being 
 rescued and revived from death, is all come to nothing ! 
 'T was another vessel. O my Father, thy will be done ! " 
 In this state of mind he prayed for direction about the 
 sermon preached on the death of Increase, for his death 
 must be made the means of good ; " that at, or by his 
 death, a poor child who did no good in his life, may do 
 good in the world ; that the child may be an instrument 
 of good after he is dead." 
 
 A hearer wanted the sermon on the death of Increase, 
 wherefore it was printed, with the title " Tela Prcevisa ; 
 A Short Sermon on troubles to be looked for; a wise 
 expectation of, and preparation for troublesome changes, 
 recommended unto the strangers and pilgrims in this 
 present evil world." This was on the last day of October ; 
 but another record, dated December, gives further infor- 
 mation. Dr. Mather was very desirous that the death of 
 his son should be the means of usefulness to others, and 
 specially to the young. So the sermon was published 
 
COTTON MA THER. 5 2 I 
 
 with "another that was agreeable or similar in character." 
 These caused considerable expense ; but while the volume 
 was in the press, "a strange hand of Providence made 
 such an accession from others to my own disbursements, 
 that I could add a third sermon to the book, wherein I 
 may yet more notably serve the interests of piety." All 
 these made a bound book, entitled ** The Words of Under- 
 standing." Each sermon had a separate heading, as i. 
 "The Philomela; with the Notes of Morning Piety." 
 
 2. "The Ephemeron ; or, Tears dropt on dust and ashes." 
 
 3. "Jonah; or, The Dove in Safety, occasioned by some 
 early deaths which require such notes to be taken of 
 them." To these was added an "Instrument of a son's 
 repenting and returning to God, which is a copy of a 
 penitent and pertinent writing left by ye poor child, on ye 
 table in my study, before his going off." The reading of 
 that paper could not fail to be a balm to the father's heart, 
 and it cannot be read now without a thrill of sympathetic 
 joy. It is as follows : — 
 
 Copy of a paper written by Increase Mather, and left in the study of 
 Cotton Mather, his father, when he left home the last time. 
 
 In the first place, I have endeavored to make my peace with an 
 oflfended God ; and unto that end, besides what I do more than twice 
 every day, I have set apart whole days for secret prayer, to bewayle my 
 many and mighty sins before him ; and that, not with lukewarmness, but 
 in the agonies of a terrified conscience. I have confessed those sins, 
 and with a broken heart, have pleaded the benefits of the great sacrifice 
 to wash them away in his own most precious blood. And I have also 
 pleaded his own handwriting for it ; him that comes unto me, I will 
 in no wise cast out. And I heartily hope the God of all grace will 
 hear me in my distress, when I call upon him. And then also I have 
 bewailed, with a fountain of tears, my fighting and reftising a lovely 
 Saviour, who has died for me, and whom I have so often crucified over 
 and over again ; little thinking that every time I committed any evil 
 thing, I was acting the tremendous tragedy over again. But Oh ! the 
 astonishing love of that Saviour, who is yet willing and ready to save 
 
522 
 
 LIFE AND TIMES OF 
 
 me, if I will but consent unto it ! O Lord, I am willing ; do thou make 
 me willing. I fly to that blood which cleanses from all sin, and I plead 
 his righteousness for me, to reconcile me unto his Father; and I 
 renounce all other hopes, but through him to be brought into the favor 
 of God, and yet be made one of his children. O my dear Saviour, 
 do thou do this for me, and then I shall have all my desire. And, Oh 
 my Saviour, do thou make all my sins grievous and hateful unto me, 
 and let me now die rather than sin against thee any more. Oh! be 
 the death of those things which keep me at a distance from thee ; and 
 especially that root of all evil, original sin, with which I am so horribly 
 defiled, and which hath broken forth into many horrible transgressions. 
 Lord, keep it under the restraints of thy grace ; chain up that devil, 
 that he may not break out as he has done ! my continual cry is, O 
 Lord, let all those afflictions which thou hast, in thy justice, laid upon 
 me, be sanctified unto the salvation of my soul. For I had rather get 
 good by afflictions, than get out of them. These are the real and 
 deliberate sentiments of my soul. And I hope all sin is become so 
 odious to me, that had I rather suffer anything than sin ; and I would 
 not, for a thousand worlds, commit any one sin against the glorious 
 God who has marvellously rescued me from the jaws of ruin. 
 
 L I resolve, by the help of God, not to let one day pass me, without 
 secret prayer to God, and reading his sacred oracles, with meditations 
 on them. 
 
 n. I resolve, by the help of God, to follow my secular business, out 
 of obedience to him, with industry and faithfulness, having an eye to 
 a glorious God, who, I know, sees all my ways ; and if it please him 
 to prosper me in my endeavors, I will study to do good with what my 
 God shall entrust me withal. 
 
 in. I resolve, by the help of God, to steer clear of evil company, 
 and have none but sober and godly companions. 
 
 IIIL I resolve, by the help of God, for the future, to live a life as 
 much to the glory of God, as I have done heretofore to the dishonor 
 of him. 
 
 V. I resolve, by the help of God, never to give over crying and 
 prayer unto God, until I hear him say. Son, be of good cheer, thy many 
 and heinous sins are forgiven thee. 
 
 VL I do also resolve, by the assistance of God's Holy Spirit, that I 
 will repel the temptations wherewith I may be assailed in an evil world, 
 with that glorious word, (which I pray God I may always keep in my 
 mind,) how can I do this wickedness, and sin against God? 
 
COTTON MATHER. 
 
 523 
 
 VII. And then, with his help, I will keep continually praising and 
 adoring the matchless love of my Saviour, who has triumphed over 
 me in his grace after all my wanderings from him, and aifronts to him, 
 and after I have so often crucified him over and again, and grieved his 
 Holy Spirit ; being astonished that he has not left me to my ruin, when 
 I have been upon the very brink of perdition. 
 
 The father followed this paper with the remark : " Ah, 
 poor child ; ah, dear child ; if thy heart were in such 
 recognitions, thou shalt be saved in the day of the Lord. 
 Jer. 31 : 18, 19, 20: I have surely heard him bemoaning 
 himself thus, — * I have been as a bullock unaccustomed 
 to the yoke. Turn thou me, and I shall be turned ; for 
 thou art the Lord my God. ... I was ashamed, yea, even 
 confounded, because I did bear the reproach of my youth.' 
 A pleasant child. I will surely have mercy upon him, 
 saith the Lord." 
 
 In the diary of this year, so full of sorrows and mercies, 
 is a statement, highly characteristic, wherein Dr. Mather 
 sets in order a series of " Dark Dispensations," followed 
 by a cluster of "Consolations." This statement fitly 
 closes the record of 1724. He introduces it in the words 
 following: "It may be of some use for me to observe 
 some very Dark Dispensations^ wherein ye Recompences of 
 my poor Essays at Well-doing in this Life seem to Look a 
 little Discouraging, and then to express ye Triumphs of 
 my Faith over such and all Discouragements." 
 
 He then refers to "twice seven instances," when 
 things looked " darkly," and notes what a " gracious Lord 
 helped " him to do and bear. Instead of giving these at 
 full length, it will be sufficient to abridge them as speci- 
 mens of the self-torture of a depressed spirit. Mr. 
 Peabody says that " he had anxieties and trials which were 
 enough to irritate the best temper in the world." We 
 have seen what these trials were. One was the " wretched 
 
524 LIP^ ^^^ TIMES OF 
 
 administration," and his involvement in a burdensome 
 debt, on account of others. In a letter to John Winthrop 
 he states that he had been obliged to pay near four 
 hundred pounds which he never ought to have paid. He 
 was poor to suffering, and feared that his library would 
 have to go. His health was poor. His wife, a superior 
 woman, whom he highly prized, was often in paroxysms 
 of insanity. His son, on whom his hopes had been built, 
 and to whom his heart clung most fondly, was a cause of 
 grief and shame. In view of all these griefs and woes, 
 his power of endurance almost gave way. He became 
 moody, and looked on the dark side of things till well- 
 nigh driven to despair. In this state of mind he penned 
 these "Dark Dispensations." Dr. Sibley and Mr. Pea- 
 body err in ascribing his wretchedness to disappointments 
 about the college, or loss of consideration with the general 
 public. He was doubtless disgusted with the treatment 
 he received from the circle who had got the college under 
 their control ; but he knew that the voice of the public 
 would have made him president, if that had been admitted 
 to decide the election. And the notion that he had sunk 
 in public estimation is a vapory myth. It is inferred from 
 passages in his diary, and not from authentic evidence. 
 
 It will be seen, also, by those who have read Dr. 
 Mather's life, in these pages, that these "dark dispensa- 
 tions " were mostly the exaggerations of his own morbid 
 imagination when under temporary excitement. 
 
 I. He refers to his exertions in behalf of sailors and 
 seafaring men ; yet says that " there is not a man in the 
 world so reviled, so slandered, so cursed among sailors." 
 These pages have shown how much he felt and did for 
 sailors and fishermen, and all men who did "business on 
 the great waters " ; and also, how he tried to comfort 
 their anxious friends at home, during their absence. 
 
COTTON MATHER. 
 
 525 
 
 Doubtless his labors were thankfully appreciated, if the 
 seamen did not always signify it. But he incurred the 
 enmity of the base men whose guilty indulgences he tried 
 to check, whether officers or common sailors. A lieuten- 
 ant in the navy named his dog Cotton Mather, and sailors 
 of lower rank cursed him. It was to his honor. If he 
 heard of a house for guilty association in the north end, 
 he at once organized an effort to close it. Hence the 
 curses of base men. 
 
 2. Next, his uncommon and continuous exertions for the 
 benefit and elevation of the negroes brought insults upon 
 him. But these were not from his beneficiaries. Some 
 men named their colored boys Cotton Mather, to affront 
 him, because he was laboring to raise the poor creatures 
 from their degradation. Such enemies are unwittingly 
 the glory of good men. 
 
 3. The next grievance raises a smile. No man had 
 done so much to elevate them in the respect of the com- 
 munity, or to "hold up the lives of excellent and distin- 
 guished women, as an example to others," he says, and it 
 is true. But yet, he continues : ''Where is the man whom 
 the female sex have spit more of their venom at } I have 
 cause to question whether there are twice ten in the town, 
 who have not, at some time or other, spoken basely of 
 me." Could delusion further go } In the time of the 
 smallpox inoculation, it is true there was a spasm of almost 
 insane rage shaking the great body of the community ; 
 but in general, Cotton Mather was their favorite preacher 
 and author, and trusted counselor. 
 
 4. He speaks also of having been tormented with 
 " monstrous relatives," though he was always laboring to 
 be a blessing to them. These " monstrous relatives," who 
 seemed to fill his whole horizon, were two brothers-in-law, 
 and a few connections of his third wife; but what man 
 
526 LIFE AND TIMES OF 
 
 was ever more leaned on, and loved, by parents, brothers, 
 sisters, nephews, nieces, and cousins, than Cotton Mather ? 
 
 5. He claims that he had ** unceasingly labored to vindi- 
 cate the reputation and honor of the Scotch nation," We 
 know that he befriended the poor Scotch, who, by means 
 of banishment or other causes, sought a home in our 
 country ; but he states that no " Englishman was ever so 
 much reviled and libeled by Scotchmen " as he. Yet we 
 hear of no Scotchman abusing him but Dr. Douglas, 
 whose abuse was eulogy. 
 
 He had labored to secure the best interests of the 
 country, but had been " loaded with disrespect and 
 calumny," and he had endeavored to strengthen and main- 
 tain the government ; '' yet nothing could excel the dis- 
 countenance he had always received from the govern- 
 ment." By the "government" he must have meant 
 Edmund Andros and Joseph Dudley, who were opposed 
 and hated by the friends of civil and religious freedom 
 generally, while Dr. Mather was always in the confidence 
 of the house of representatives, and the great and honest 
 public. 
 
 And so on, through the whole list. He was suffering 
 a sort of nightmare, with his eyes open ; for he imme- 
 diately considers his "Dispositions and Consolations." 
 And not long after he wrote : — 
 
 'T is a thought full of consolation to me, and what carries an anima- 
 tion of piety with it ; that the sad things which appear to me, as pun- 
 ishments of my offences, and I accordingly accept them, and I don't 
 complain, but say, I will bear the indignation of the Lord, because I 
 have sinned against him ; — They really prove benefits unto me, and I 
 find them intended for such ; and they have those precious effects upon 
 me, which proclaim the everlasting love of God unto me. 
 
 In a word, the great troubles of Dr. Mather, which 
 seemed gathering into a portentous cloud, charged with 
 
COTTON MATHER. 527 
 
 desolation and woe, soon "dissolved into thin air," and the 
 skies were serene, and the sunshine of divine favor 
 gladdened his heart. His debts were paid, he was sur- 
 rounded by troops of friends ; his audience was large, his 
 church was increasing ; the little maids — "dear children " 
 — came to his teaching by the hundred ; his reputation as 
 a benefactor was great ; his wife, restored to soundness, 
 was his solace and joy ; and his son, though dead, had 
 gone, as he believed, a renewed soul, to heaven. 
 
CHAPTER XXV. 
 
 RIPENING TO THE LAST: I725-I726. 
 
 DR. MATHER returned to his study on the first day 
 of January, 1725, and began the record with such 
 "recollections and supplications as a New Year should be 
 entered withal." His book, "A year well-begun," has 
 described them. 
 
 In regard to the preceding year, he writes : " A fruitful 
 year beyond any that ever I saw." He had preached sixty 
 times, notwithstanding interruptions by sickness. Surely 
 no year has come into review in which so many heavy 
 loads of trouble and grief had been lifted from his heart. 
 In regard to these mercies, and the interior experience in 
 them, the year was fruitful, and the things recorded which 
 he had done, and others not specified in the preceding 
 pages, warrant his remark. The number of individuals 
 and of classes of people befriended by him would make 
 a long list, composed of relatives, friends, strangers, negro 
 slaves, Indians, and students. He had heeded the admo- 
 nition : "To do good, and to communicate forget not." 
 
 On the 2d he wrote : " In the time of my sickness I dis- 
 persed alms to the poor, and especially to some that were 
 languishing under sickness." And the next day : " Must 
 become more diligent than ever." His remnant of "life's 
 pilgrimage must be carried on with new measures. No 
 time is to be lost." He could not give so much time to 
 recording "good devices." For his purposes to do good, 
 he would make a very brief record every Saturday evening. 
 One purpose was, on returning to his pulpit, to " entertain 
 his people with two sermons on Philippians i: 21." "I. 
 
 528 
 
COTTON MATHER. 529 
 
 How Christ is the Christian's Life ; and 11. What gain 
 such a Christian shall have by his death." 
 
 It appears that Samuel had been ** exceedingly and pas- 
 sionately set " upon going to England : but that, having 
 been prevented by various causes, his "calm resignation 
 and satisfaction " greatly pleased his father, and was 
 taken as a token for good. 
 
 Young Thomas Walter, so full of gifts and promise, was 
 now on his deathbed, and "full of distress and darkness 
 about his future state." Says his uncle, "With much 
 impatience and importunity, he calls for me to be fetched 
 over to him in his agonies. I have the satisfaction to 
 strengthen him in his agonies, and advise him, and com- 
 fort him, and leave him with a sensible satisfaction, and 
 a good hope through grace. The prayer-hearing God 
 enabled him to die, next day, with joyful triumphs over 
 the last enemy." 
 
 It is said that Mr. Walter derived a large part of his 
 vast store of knowledge from conversation with his uncle 
 Cotton Mather. The sermon preached at his funeral by 
 Dr. Mather was entitled " Christodulus : A Good Reward 
 of a Good Servant ; or, the Service of a glorious Christ, 
 justly demanded and commended, from a view of the giory 
 with which it shall be recompensed ; with some commem- 
 oration of Mr. Thomas Walter, lately a pastor to a church 
 in Roxbury, who had an early dismission from what of 
 that service was to be done in this world." 
 
 Some of Dr. Mather's " precious thoughts " recorded at 
 this time, and a few culled from previous months, may be 
 inserted here. He states that his mind was often 
 " enlightened and enlivened with such views of Christ as 
 had heart-melting efficacy." One was this : "Christ is an 
 Advocate with the Father in the Heavens, and by his 
 potent intervention, saves us to the uttermost. He 
 
530 
 
 LIFE AND TIMES OF 
 
 receives those of our petitions, which have an approbation 
 with him, and presents them to the Father, and under- 
 takes to prosecute them, and accomplish them ; and him 
 the Father heareth always. My petition for myself is, to 
 be made a partaker of the heavenly life, and be fruitful 
 of good during life." 
 
 The sentiment which enriches a poem of one of our 
 admired writers is in the following "thought" of Mather. 
 Alluding to the griefs and woes brought upon him by the 
 ordering of Providence, he writes that in all the " worst 
 that God will do unto me, he will not hurt me." 
 
 Again he says, it is "a marvellous consolation and 
 encouragement in prayer, to think that there was a voice 
 in all the acts of obedience which my Saviour paid unto 
 the Divine law ; especially, a voice went from the words of 
 my suffering Saviour, as with open mouth demanding the 
 blessings of goodness for his people. And all my prayers 
 to the glorious God are nothing but the repetitions of that 
 voice ; and so they reach to heaven with a marvellous con- 
 comitance of efficacy." 
 
 Once more ; he would preface seasons of prayer thus : 
 " I am now making a visit unto the heavenly world. I am 
 going where my Saviour is making a continual interces- 
 sion for me. I am going where I hope, ere long, to be 
 received into everlasting habitations." 
 
 Again, he tells us one of the "artifices" of his preach- 
 ing, in these lines. He says that he " contrived, with abun- 
 dance of artifices, to spread the nets of salvation for them 
 [his hearers], that if, at the moment of delivery, they 
 receive them with acts of compliance, and come into the 
 language which I get ready for them, they are, unawares, 
 taken in the nets, and they shall be found among the saved 
 of the Lord." 
 
 Here is an encouragement to pray : " Certainly there 
 
COTTON MATHER. 
 
 531 
 
 is a disposition to give in one who desires, and who directs 
 to have a gift asked of him. It may especially be sup- 
 posed of a Father, that if he bids his children to ask a 
 good thing of him, he is disposed, yea, resolved, for the 
 bestowing of it. My most gracious God has advised me, 
 invited me, yea, commanded me to come and ask for his 
 blessing. His word is, ' Ask, and it shall be given unto 
 you.'" 
 
 Dr. Mather's habit of devotion, at this time, was as 
 follows : — 
 
 Call on God seven times a day, in this order, i . Rising prayer in 
 the study; daily petitions to the Lord; 2. Family sacrifices; 3. Near 
 the hour of 12, pray in secret in reference to the condition of the 
 family and the country ; 4. After dinner, between 2 and 3, pray for the 
 success of my ministry. Also, for an easy and a happy death; 5. 
 About the shutting in of evening, acknowledged and celebrated the 
 glories of the Redeemer ; 6. Towards the time of going to rest, sing 
 something of a Psalm to my domesticks, — a family or evening sacri- 
 fice ; 7. A private prayer before going to rest. Thanks for good; 
 bewail sins ; pray for pardon ; commit myself and all mine into the 
 hands of the Lord. 
 
 Another " thought " comes in here. " The holy frames 
 and thoughts we have, were first of all produced in our 
 holy Jesus. The Saviour is the first recipient in these 
 gracious influences with which his whole mystical body is 
 to be animated, and whatever holiness is produced in his 
 people, is first in him." And here he found the reason 
 why any holy thoughts in himself found acceptance with 
 God, as follows : " Here I see the meaning of having the 
 Face of God shine upon me. It is the Christ of God that 
 is the Face of God. He shines upon me when he forms 
 holy frames and thoughts in me. I have him in me when 
 I have these from him in me. He withdraws, he hides 
 himself, he keeps at a distance from me, in the withdraw 
 and ceasing of these. The continual presence of hope 
 
532 
 
 LIFE AND TIMES OF 
 
 may cause me to sing with joy. Now I have Christ 
 within me the hope of glory. The method of having holy 
 frames and thoughts when in distress, is to look up unto my 
 Jesus for them, in prayer for them through the ministry 
 of the Spirit." 
 
 On the tenth of January, Dr. Mather had these matters 
 to consider: — i. Bereaved relations at Roxbury ; the 
 Walter family. 2. Decaying nephew in Boston. 3. The 
 redemption of a captive. 4. One of the flock fallen by 
 excessive drinking. 5. Several poor widows. 
 
 Among the occupations of a busy day, here are a few 
 of the minor acts and devices. He recommended to 
 Samuel many things, but especially "Antiquates Biblicae." 
 To Nancy he commended Baxter's *' Poor Man's Family 
 Book." He sent "agreeable books to a nephew coming 
 to practice in the neighborhood." By ''agreeable" books 
 and things, he often meant those that were adapted to the 
 person. Objects of charity were relieved, and "books of 
 piety were sent to several parts of the country." These 
 were things done ; now for the devices. 
 
 One was something to be done for the satisfaction of 
 his consort. Another was to give "seasonable and effec- 
 tual stops " to some " foolish steps taken to draw the civil 
 government into interposing and inhibiting ecclesiastical 
 censures upon offenders." The government was quite 
 disposed, at times, to intermeddle with matters pertain- 
 ing to the churches. Again, he speaks of "dealing with 
 a very wicked and vicious gentlewoman," wherein his 
 "admonitions to repentance had been frequent, but too 
 oblique." He now proposed to try a "nameless letter," 
 in which she might be dealt with more "directly and 
 faithfully." 
 
 On the 30th he composed a sermon, describing a 
 "soul wherein piety is flourishing." Such a "soul can 
 
COTTON MATHER. 533 
 
 sing in the valley of the shadow of death, and find it but 
 a shadow." He was taken ill in the night with a relapse 
 of the cough and fever, and confined for a week ; diverted 
 from public services ; but he used all the " methods of 
 piety" he could think of to glorify his "faithful God and 
 Saviour, under this new visitation." 
 
 Dr. Mather attempted several services during his con- 
 finement, one of which had reference to the strenuous 
 exertions then making to build up Episcopacy in the town, 
 college, and province. To counteract this movement he 
 published a brief history, in fifty-eight pages, of the " per- 
 secutions of the church of Scotland by an abjured prel- 
 acy." He gave it the title of "The Palm-bearers: a 
 brief relation of patient and joyful sufferings, and of death 
 gloriously triumphed over, in the history of the persecu- 
 tion which the Church of Scotland suffered from the year 
 1660 to the year 1688." Nothing could more fitly have 
 served his purpose, as that persecution was one of the 
 most cruel and senseless in history. In the history of 
 Harvard College by President Quincy is a curious account 
 of the efforts made by Rev. Timothy Cutler, d.d., formerly 
 president of Yale College, to get a seat for himself and 
 another Episcopal clergyman in the board of overseers 
 of Harvard College. While in New Haven, he had 
 renounced the Congregational ministry. He then went 
 to England, and in 1723 he was ordained deacon and 
 priest. Returning to this country, he became rector of 
 Christ Church, in Boston. With all the zeal of a convert, 
 he labored to build up the system which he had adopted. 
 Dr. Mather was, very naturally, opposed to the methods 
 of a man who denied the validity of ordination in the 
 Congregational way and who disdained all fellowship with 
 non-prelatical churches. 
 
 The diary has the following lines under date of Febru- 
 
534 ^^^^ ^^^ TIMES OF 
 
 ary 7 : " While sitting alone in languishments, unable to 
 write or read, I often composed little Hyms, and sung 
 them unto the Lord. I made vast numbers of them, 
 which were immediately forgotten." He gives the fol- 
 lowing, composed when he was without such impressive 
 thoughts of God his Saviour as were the life of his soul : — 
 
 Oh glorious Christ of God ! I live 
 
 In views of Thee alone. 
 Life to my gasping Soul, O give! 
 
 Shine Thou, or I 'm undone. 
 
 I cannot live, my God, if Thou 
 
 Enlivenest not my faith. 
 I 'm dead ; I 'm lost ; Oh ! save me now 
 
 From a lamented death. 
 
 This stanza was added : — 
 
 My glorious Healer, now restore 
 
 My health, and make me whole; 
 But this is what I most implore, — 
 
 O for a healed soul! 
 
 Several funeral sermons were put to press this year. 
 One was preached on the death of a son of his friend, 
 Hon. Isaack Winslow, with the title " Edulcorator ; a 
 brief essay on the waters of Marah sweetened ; with a 
 remarkable relation of the deplorable occasion afforded for 
 it, in the premature death of Captain Josiah Winslow, 
 who, with several of his company, sacrificed his life in 
 the service of his country, engaging an army of Indians, 
 May, 1724." 
 
 The character of Mrs. Abigail Brown was given in 
 "Virtue in its Verdure : A Christian exhibited as an Olive- 
 tree in the house of God." 
 
 The death of Mrs. Katharine Willard, a " vertuous gen- 
 tlewoman," called forth a discourse entitled " El Shaddai : 
 All supplied in an all-sufficient Saviour." 
 
COTTON MATHER. 535 
 
 An abridged edition of the life of his father, with a 
 preface by the Rev. Edmund Calamy, d.d., was published 
 in London. 
 
 Other publications were : — i. " An Essay on a Soul pass- 
 ing from death to life, in a translation from the first Adam 
 to the second Adam " ; 2. " Vital Christianity ; the Life 
 of God in the soul of man"; 3. "Deus Vobiscum, for a 
 Sacramental occasion " ; 4 " The Choice of Wisdom " ; and 
 5. "Zalmonah, the Gospel of the brazen serpent"; in all 
 106 pages. The whole product of the year was nearly 
 500 pages. 
 
 As written above, at the beginning of the year Dr. 
 Mather referred to the year preceding as the most fruitful 
 in his life. He probably had in mind, among other events, 
 a remarkable revival of religion in his congregation. The 
 record states that fifty-three were added to the church in 
 1725. It is probable that the work began in 1724, and 
 continued into this year. In the diary, Dr. Mather, in 
 1724, notes that he and his colleague were interested in 
 the examination and instruction of persons who were pre- 
 paring for their first communion. This "work of grace" 
 surpassed any event of the kind for a generation in the 
 preceding history of the church, or of any other church in 
 Boston. About 1680 there had been great ingatherings 
 into the churches, and additions had been constant, though 
 in lesser numbers in the intervening years. But this new 
 outpouring of the Spirit was phenomenal to the genera- 
 tion on the stage; and it was the harbinger of greater 
 displays of the Spirit's power that were coming. 
 
 This seems to be the place to give the results of Dr. 
 Mather's labors, as measured by the additions to the 
 church, on confession of faith, during his ministry. It 
 will be pleasing to some readers to have the results in 
 successive years : — 
 
536 LIFE AND TIMES OF 
 
 1682-88, 28 
 
 1689, 22 1699, 7 1709, 21 1719, 15 
 
 1690, 27 1700, 28 1710, 19 1720, 7 
 1691,49 1701, 4 I7ii» 13 1721,10 
 1692, 12 1702, 16 1712, 6 1722, 14 
 1693,31 1703, 7 I7i3» 10 1723. II 
 
 1694, 23 1704, 9 1714, 35 1724, 10 
 
 1695, 14 1705, 24 1715, 24 1725, 53 
 
 1696, 21 1706, 21 1716, 21 1726, 9 
 
 1697, 14 1707, 10 1717, 18 1727, 71 
 
 1698, 9 1708, 20 1718, 26 1728, 18 
 Total in 47 years, 876; average per annum, 18 1-2. 
 
 In addition, Mr. Mather, at different dates, notes numer- 
 ous cases of apparent conversion following his labors, out- 
 side of his parish. 
 
 The following letter comes in at this date. It is from 
 Dr. Mather to John Winthrop, of New London : — 
 
 Sir, — Having passed through a winter of much feebleness, (and 
 some employment) it appears high time for me to renew my acquaint- 
 ance with a Friend, who would have been in my debt, for I know not 
 how many letters, if his vast civilities to my son had not much more 
 than cancelled it. 
 
 He would have joined with me in the acknowledgments I am now 
 making, if he had not been at this time at seventy miles distance 
 from me. 
 
 Such is my penury that I have nothing to send you, but first a few of 
 our latest publications. 
 
 And then my humble request and advice, that you would not let your 
 mind be disturbed, much less your health impaired, by the base usages 
 you may be mal-treated withal. 
 
 I know not how better to address you on this occasion, than by let- 
 ting you see how one you love well, is used ; and if the Best Man in 
 Connecticut Government will use a poor minister as I have been used, 
 you will not wonder if inferior people treat you as I have heard they do. 
 With the help of heaven, I [bear] all with patience. And I shall find 
 the God of patience, to be the God of consolation. 
 
 I know not how^etter,— yes, I do. Sett before yourself the example 
 of the glorious Lord, who was as the sheep before the shearers. 
 
COTTON MATHER. 
 
 537 
 
 We have no Intelligence, worth a straw. I was going to say No In- 
 tellect. We are like to continue one year longer as we are, —inex- 
 pressibly happy in our Lt. Governer's wise and good Administration. 
 You know what I wish you ; and that I am 
 
 S'r. Your most cordial Friend and serv't, 
 
 Co. Mather. 
 Boston, May i, 1725. 
 
 Mr. Winthrop. 
 
 The year 1726, on which we now enter, was filled with 
 hard study and fruitful toil, the record of which is chiefly 
 to be found in the issues of the press. There is no diary. 
 Not a letter is in print. The records of the church are 
 silent. Dr. Mather was not in robust health, but he 
 continued his services in the pulpit most of the time. 
 Though his colleague was a man of great capacity, yet his 
 senior found much to do in the parish as well as in the 
 sacred desk. 
 
 In the matter of publishing, the product of this year is 
 almost fabulous. I count over 900 pages of print. Re- 
 search, composition, and proof-reading demanded a large 
 amount of time ; and much of this over and above pulpit 
 and parish duties ; for two of his volumes, each filling 
 about 300 pages, were not in the line of preaching. 
 
 Three of the sermons were funereal ; one of them was 
 occasioned by the death of his daughter Eliza, Mrs. 
 Cooper; and another by the "execution of pirates." 
 
 The sermon entitled " Ecclesiae Monilia ; or. The Pecul- 
 iar Treasure of the Almighty King opened ; and the jewels 
 that are made up in it, exposed," was among the three. 
 One jewel was "more particularly exhibited in the charac- 
 ter of Mrs. Elizabeth Cotton, who was laid up a few days 
 before." To this were added "certain instruments and 
 memorials of piety, written by that valuable and honorable 
 gentlewoman." Mrs. Cotton was the wife of Rev. Roland 
 
538 LIFE AND TIMES OF 
 
 Cotton, and sister of Governor Saltonstall, of Connecticut. 
 Dr. Mather speaks of her in high terms. After noticing 
 her early piety, he proceeds : — 
 
 The uncommon prudence of her economy, the large number of 
 well-educated children that she has presented to the public, whereof 
 this happy mother in Israel had the consolation to see several become 
 well-esteemed pastors of churches ; the generous assistances that she 
 often gave to the neighbors in their various afflictions ; the relish she 
 had for the enjoyments in the house of her God ; and indeed, her whole 
 behavior has bespoken a grateful remembrance of her, and a name in 
 the enumeration of those whom our God, when he shall make up his 
 jewels, will doubtless allow a place unto. 
 
 Another piratical crew were brought to justice, and 
 like those before mentioned, they had the privilege of Dr. 
 Mather's counsels and prayers. His sermon, preached 
 before their execution, was printed in a pamphlet which 
 bore the title, "The Vial poured out upon the Sea. A 
 Remarkable Relation of certain pirates brought unto a 
 tragical and untimely end. Some Conferences with them 
 after their condemnation. There Behavior at their Execu- 
 tion." A paraphrase by Sir Richard Blackmore ; and a 
 *' Remarkable Relation of a Cockatrice crushed in the 
 Egg," were added, making fifty-one pages. It is readable 
 now, and must have been a magazine of wonders and hor- 
 rors in its day. Dr. Mather had two interviews with the 
 pirates, in which he dealt faithfully with them, closely 
 pressing them to ** repentance for their heinous crimes" 
 and sins. Their names were William Fly, Henry Green- 
 ville, and Samuel Cole. The two latter gave more hopeful 
 indications of a sense of guilt than Fly. 
 
 "The Choice of Wisdom " was a lecture given at Rox- 
 bury, valuable in its time, and designed to be left in the 
 hands of those on whom pastoral visits were made. It is 
 valuable also as showing the practical theology of the 
 
CO TTON MA THER. 539 
 
 author. He received the Westminster Catechism as a 
 sound expression of the teachings of the Bible, and was 
 under the influence, though hardly the dominion, of the 
 current mental philosophy in regard to the freedom of the 
 will and its relation to the divine decrees ; yet he felt no 
 limitations in addressing responsible men. The full title 
 shows this. " A brief and plain essay on the best of 
 blessings, to be obtained by the choosing of them, and 
 asking for them." 
 
 The *' Diluvium Ignis," or, " Deluge of Fire," was a 
 short treatise in Latin, on " the second and desired advent 
 of Jehovah-Jesus, and the second and dreadful deluge 
 attending him, and the instant end of all things." It con- 
 tained *' Scriptural, salutary, and very necessary admoni- 
 tions to a world in deep sleep." Dr. Mather was a believer 
 in the second advent of Christ, and he expected it in his 
 day, or soon, without fixing the time. Among his manu- 
 scripts is an elaborate work, "Tri Paradisus," or "Three 
 Paradises." The second paradise was to be planted at 
 the second advent. 
 
 His "■ Fasciculus Viventium ; or. All Good Wishes in 
 One," treated of a *'Soul bound up in the bundle of life; 
 as the best thing, and all the good that can be wished 
 for." Such a soul was "a bouquet, a nosegay, and a fra- 
 grant incense offered to God." 
 
 The "Glory of Aged Piety" was commended unto those 
 whose " arrival to, or near, sixty, ranks them among the 
 aged," and was printed with the title, "A Good Old Age." 
 As a sexagenarian he appealed to those of about his own 
 age, with his usual ingenuity and unction. 
 
 The full title of his " Hatzar-Maveth " exhibits the pur- 
 port of the treatise, and in the poetical strain to which 
 allusion has already been made. ** Comfortable Words, in 
 a short essay on the comforts of one living to God, but 
 
540 
 
 LIFE AND TIMES OF 
 
 walking through the valley of the shadow of death, and 
 finding it no more than a shadow of death." 
 
 Some good men and women, in every generation and 
 country, have dark hours, when their souls are in deep 
 waters. One such, to whom the light of God came when 
 in darkness, desired Dr. Mather to compose his " Lam- 
 padarius " to show the "light which good men have, in 
 dark hours, arising to them." This was published as a 
 "monument and instrument of gratitude unto heaven," 
 at the expense and desire of a man whom God graciously 
 appeared for, under a dispensation full of darkness." 
 
 Another paper treated of the " Kindnesses of God to the 
 Poor," accompanied with " seasonable advice." The drink- 
 ing habits of the time called out a " Serious Address to 
 those who unnecessarily frequent the tavern, and often 
 spend the evening in public houses, by several minis- 
 ters." This was signed by the author and twenty-two 
 other ministers, and followed by a " Private Letter on the 
 subject from the late Rev. Dr. Increase Mather." In our 
 day, many spend their evenings in saloons, clubs, lodges, 
 and open or secret societies. Almost the only resort of 
 those whose homes did not attract them in old times was 
 the tavern. • 
 
 In the "Terra Beata," Dr. Mather set forth the "bless- 
 ing of Abraham, even the grand blessings of a glorious 
 Redeemer, which are given in the promises of the Bible, 
 foretelling a happy time for all nations, for which they are 
 to hope and pray." The "promises" pertaining to the sub- 
 ject are "explained with some uncommon illustrations." 
 
 About the same time his picture of the condition of the 
 " Protestant interest " was anything but cheering. His 
 "Suspiria Vinctorum," or "Sighs of the fettered," exhib- 
 ited the desperate condition of evangelical Christendom ; 
 the oppression under which the Reformed suffered in dif- 
 
COTTON MATHER, 54 1 
 
 ferent countries, and the duties which all true Christians 
 were called on to undertake. This is said to be "briefly 
 laid before the churches, by several ministers of the gospel 
 desirous to do the work of the day." The pamphlet is 
 ascribed to Mather, and probably was mostly written by 
 him, with the advice and sanction of other ministers. 
 
 The " Ratio Disciplinae Fratrum Nov-Anglarum ; a 
 faithful account of the discipline professed, and practised, 
 in the churches of New England, with interspersed and 
 instructive reflections on the discipline of the primitive 
 churches," is too well known to need further description. 
 The last edition was edited by Professor T, C. Upham, and 
 published in 1829. It was an authority for more than a 
 hundred years, and is now historically valuable. Indeed, 
 it is a safe guide now, except in a few changes, which the 
 growth and spread of the denomination have made con- 
 venient if not necessary (pp. 207). 
 
 The " Manuductio ad Ministerium " is one of the pro- 
 ductions of this year which merits special notice. The 
 whole title is, "Directions for a candidate of the ministry, 
 wherein, first, a right foundation is laid for his future 
 improvement ; and then rules are offered for such a man- 
 agement of his academical and preparatory studies ; and 
 thereupon for such a conduct after his appearance in the 
 world, as may render him a skillful and useful minister 
 of the gospel." A most fitting running title was, "The 
 Angels preparing to sound the trumpets." 
 
 The intelligent reader will be prepared to see the table 
 of contents : — 
 
 I. Death realized. Good for a person intending for the ministry 
 to realize that he is a dying man. 2. The true end of life answered. 
 3. Conversion to piety accomplished. 4. A zeal to do good betimes 
 enkindled. 5. The right end of studies fixed. 6. Studies of the lan- 
 guages directed. 7. Study of the sciences. 8. Of poetry and style. 
 
542 LIFE AND TIMES OF 
 
 9. Of natural philosophy. 10. Of the mathematics. 11. Of theology. 
 12. Some useful proposals to students. 13. The sentiments with 
 which the evangelical ministry is to be undertaken. 14. Of reading 
 the Sacred Scriptures. 15. Study of divinity entered upon. 16. The 
 pulpit, and the work of it. 17. Employments for a vigilant pastor. 
 18. The genuine and catholic spirit of Christ, described and com- 
 mended. 19. Rules of health. 20. Rules of prudence. 
 
 The work is well worth reading, both for its matter and 
 style. The contents show the wide range of study, the 
 deep spirit of piety, and the great prudence inculcated. 
 The progress of scientific discovery, and the developments 
 of history, and the better methods of exegesis have 
 made old textbooks obsolete ; but the training, the men- 
 tal discipline, was as good then as now ; and in the line of 
 divinity, we have no abler ministers than those who 
 instructed our ancestors. 
 
 Several editions have been printed. One with the title, 
 "The Student and Preacher," was put out by John Ryland, 
 of Northampton, England, in 1781, and another in Lon- 
 don, in 1789. The latter contained a "literal translation 
 of the author's famous Latin Preface," and an abridg- 
 ment of Mr. Ryland's preface to his edition. 
 
 Two or three extracts from Judge Sewall's diary give 
 us glimpses of Dr. Mather at different dates in this year : — 
 
 March 28. Dr. Cotton Mather dined with us after Lecture. 
 
 July 9. Dr. Cotton Mather was a bearer at the funeral of Madam 
 Cotton. 1 
 
 Aug. 7. Mrs. Elizabeth Cooper died. At her funeral, the bearers 
 were six ministers of the town, viz., Sewall, Prince; Webb, Cooper; 
 Foxcroft, Gee. She was a daughter of Dr. Mather. 2 
 
 Aug. 13. Gave judges, attornies, etc., each of them, one of Dr. 
 Mather's sermons of the " glory of aged piety." 
 
 The discourse of Dr. Mather in relation to the decease 
 
 1 She was the widow of Rev. Roland Cotton, and sister of Governor Saltonstall. 
 
 2 Her husband was Edward Cooper. 
 
COTTON MATHER. 
 
 543 
 
 of his daughter, Mrs. Cooper, was preached early in 
 August. She was a young wife, only twenty-two years of 
 age, and much endeared to her father and friends. Her 
 brother Samuel informs us that she had many of the 
 traits of her ''excellent mother." The title of the sermon 
 was "Pietas Matutina: — One Essay more to bespeak and 
 engage Early Piety, made on occasion taken from the early 
 departure of Mrs. Elizabeth Cooper. By her Father." 
 The theme " The piety of the morning " evinces the poetic 
 piety and beauty so often noticed before. The sermon 
 was followed by a poem, written by her brother Samuel, 
 two years younger. The volume, of nearly fifty pages, is 
 not found in any public library, which is to be regretted, 
 because it might give clearer light respecting her religious 
 character. The title and topic of the sermon, however, 
 suggest the possession of early piety. 
 
 The death of Mrs. Cooper was the last event of the kind 
 which Dr. Mather was called to mourn. That was the 
 thirteenth time he followed a child to the tomb. Five of 
 the children of his first wife died before their mother. 
 Their names have been given in a preceding chapter. 
 Three of the remaining four, namely, Katharine, Abigail 
 (Mrs. Willard), and Increase, died before their father. Of 
 the six children by his second wife, five preceded him in 
 their death. Hannah, a daughter of the first wife, and 
 Samuel, a son of the second, survived their father. 
 
 No correct and full list of Dr. Mather's children has 
 ever been printed. The following is more nearly complete 
 than any I have found, and this has been collected from 
 many sources, and at different times : — 
 
 CHILDREN OF ABIGAIL [PHILLIPS] MATHER. 
 
 1. Abigail, born, August 22. 1687 ; died before the birth of the next 
 child. 
 
 2. Katharine, born, September i, 1689; died, December, 1716. 
 Buried, December 20. 
 
544 ^^^^ ^^^ TIMES OF 
 
 3. Mary, born, November, 1691 ; died, October 6, 1693, " near a 
 month short of two years old." 
 
 4. Joseph, born, March 28, 1693; died, April i, 1693. 
 
 5. Abigail, born, June 14, 1694; died, September 26, 1721. Married 
 Daniel Willard, and had four children. 
 
 6. Mehitable, born, 1695 ; died, February 28, 1696. 
 
 7. Hannah, born, February 7, 1697; "a very healthy and comely 
 infant." Outlived her father. 
 
 8. Increase, born, July 9, 1699. Lost at sea in 1724. 
 
 9. Samuel, born, December 13, 1700; "a lovely and lusty infant"; 
 died, Friday, February 7, 1701. 
 
 CHILDREN OF THE SECOND WIFE, ELIZABETH. 
 
 (10.) I. Elizabeth, born, July 13, 1704; married Edward Cooper; 
 died, August 7, 1726. 
 
 (11.) 2. Samuel, born, October 30, 1706; died, June 27, 1788. 
 
 (12 
 (13 
 (14 
 (15 
 
 ) 3. Nathaniel, born, May 16, 1709; died, November 24, 1709. 
 ) 4. Jerusha, born, April, 171 1 ; died, November, 1713. 
 ) 5. Eleazar, ? twins, born, 1713; died, November of the same 
 ) 6. Martha, \ year. 
 
 Two children survived the father; Hannah, born in 1797, 
 was about thirty years of age at the time of her father's 
 death. There are many references to her in the writings 
 of Dr. Mather, which evince his delight in the child and 
 his tender regard for her comfort and welfare. Though 
 of a healthy constitution, she had frequent ills, by acci- 
 dent and sickness, and by the crazed aversion of her sec- 
 ond mother-in-law. All the diseases that beset children 
 came to her in succession. She was brought low by 
 measles and to the gates of death by the smallpox ; but 
 escaping these perils, she lived to rejoice her father by 
 coming into the church in the last year of his life. Her 
 subsequent history, and the date of her decease, have 
 eluded my notice. 
 
 Samuel Mather, the son, was worthy of the name which 
 belonged to so many of the family. The first, and per- 
 haps the most distinguished Samuel, was the eldest son 
 
COTTON MATHER. 545 
 
 of Richard Mather, the patriarch. The youngest son of 
 Increase Mather was the Samuel who was settled in the 
 ministry, in Witney, Oxfordshire. Samuel, grandson of 
 Richard, and son of Timothy, "the farmer," was the 
 pastor of the church in Windsor, Conn., for the long term 
 of forty-five years. He was a Doctor of Divinity, and an 
 author of note in his time, and one of those wise old-time 
 ministers who stamped their character and fastened their 
 influence upon the people of their parish. He was also 
 the father of one and the grandfather of another Samuel, 
 who were respectable physicians, the one at Windsor and 
 the other at Northampton. The fourth minister bearing 
 the name of Samuel was this surviving son of Cotton 
 Mather. 
 
 At the age of twenty-seven he was chosen as colleague 
 of Rev. Joshua Gee, in the ministry of the Old North, the 
 church of his father and grandfather. This was in 1733. 
 Here he remained about nine years, when a disaffection 
 sprang up which led to his secession, with a considerable 
 following. This company was organized into the Tenth 
 Congregational Church, and they built a meetinghouse on 
 the corner of North Bennet and Hanover streets. This 
 church dates from July 19, 1742, and continued its exist- 
 ence, with Dr. Mather for its pastor, till his decease, June 
 27, 1785, or forty-three years. At his request, they dis- 
 banded, and went back to the Old North Church. 
 
CHAPTER XXVI. 
 
 COTTON MATHER IN THE SPHERE OF HIS AFFECTIONS. 
 
 I. Love of Nature. We have seen, in frequent 
 quotations, Mather's delight in the beauties of natural 
 scenery. These have been noted as they were found, in 
 reading, but we have a more distinct expression in a pas- 
 sage which has been reserved. The reader will observe 
 that nature led him up to nature's God. 
 
 It is not known when the following paragraphs were 
 written ; but they were printed in The Panoplist, sixteenth 
 volume, which contains extracts from the diary of 1715- 
 1716. 
 
 Desideria Vernalia, or Petitions in Spring. — Lord, let the Sun of 
 Righteousness draw near unto me and let me be quickened, and 
 revived, and made a new creature ; and be made very fruitful by his 
 benign and blessed influence. 
 
 Lord, let a glorious Christ return like the sun, to a miserable world, 
 and bring a new face upon it, — produce upon it a new creation^ and fill 
 it with the fruits of righteousness. 
 
 Lord, let the hours of darkness grow shorter, and grow shorter 
 with me. 
 
 Lord, let the "time of singing of birds'^ come on. Let thy Spirit 
 fit me for, and fill me with, the Songs of the Redeemer. And let the 
 songs of piety replenish the whole earth with a heavenly melody. 
 
 Lord, enable me with diligence to prosecute a divine husbandry, and 
 with patience to wait for a good harvest of my endeavors to serve the 
 kingdom of God. O, let light and joy be sown for us. 
 
 Supplications in Summer. — Lord, let me be as fruitful as any of 
 the trees in the fields, which now yield a gratefiil spectacle. O, let me 
 abound in the fruits of righteousness. 
 
 Lord, let my dear Jesus be to me as the shadow of a great rock in a 
 weary land ; and may I also drink of what flows from that wonderftil 
 rock. 
 
 546 
 
COTTON MATHER. 
 
 547 
 
 Lord, let me be entitled to, and prepared for, the blessedness of that 
 world in which no uneasy heat will molest thy children. 
 
 Autumnal Supplications. — Lord, let me see a ioyful harvest of all 
 my poor endeavors to glorify thee. Let me reap with joy. Lord, let 
 me arrive at my grave, and thy floor, as a shock of corn fully ripe, in 
 the season thereof. 
 
 Lord, affect me and the rest of mankind, with a sense of our mortal- 
 ity, for we all do fade as a leaf. 
 
 Dr. Mather's " Christian Philosopher " is replete with 
 illustrations of his interest and delight in the works of na- 
 ture, whether viewed merely as objects of beauty or from 
 a scientific point of view. The same is evinced by his 
 letter describing the *' great storm," his little volume on 
 the " volcano " in the Mediterranean, his sermon during 
 a violent thunderstorm, and all his communications to the 
 Royal Society. 
 
 IL Love of Animal Life. Dr. Mather's observa- 
 tions on the delights of animals, already quoted, at- 
 test his own pleasure in witnessing their enjoyments. 
 Whether sporting on the earth, in the water, or the air, 
 he rejoiced in their gay and infinitely varied movements. 
 But he cherished a higher feeling in relation to them. It 
 is thus written of him : — 
 
 He had often an opportunity to express a benignity to brute crea- 
 tures, either to feed them, or make their condition easy to them. He 
 would do it with delight, and raise two meditations upon it. I am 
 now the instrument of God unto these creatures ; his kindness passes 
 through my hands to them. And will not the blessed God be as benefi- 
 cent unto me as I am unto these creatures? Especially if, as they 
 look unto me to be kind unto them, I always look up to him. 
 
 in. Love to Mankind in General. The "love of 
 human kind " was a conspicuous trait in the character of 
 Cotton Mather. It showed itself early in his life and 
 seemed to grow to the very last. In boyhood he was 
 
548 LIFE AND TIMES OF 
 
 helpful to other boys in their lessons ; he incited them to 
 good conduct, and he wrote prayers for their private use. 
 This love for boys — and girls also — was strong during 
 his life. A curious statement is in point. It is said of 
 him, that in passing through a place, he would drop words 
 of caution and encouragement to the boys whom he 
 met, and would solicit for them a playday that they 
 might enjoy themselves. His love for the "little damsels 
 of his flock" was equally evincive of a kind and gentle 
 spirit. 
 
 But his affections were not limited to the young and 
 lovely. It was soon evident, after his leaving college and 
 coming into connection with the outer world, that his de- 
 sire to be of service to all classes and conditions of men 
 was an active principle. He loved the city of his birth, 
 the college where he was educated, and the province, with 
 fervent and patriotic ardor. His attachment to every- 
 thing good in old England, whether in her people or her 
 political and religious institutions, was ardent. But what 
 was peculiar to Mather was his regard for the unfortunate, 
 the miserable, the despised and degraded, the criminal 
 and the base. Poor debtors, orphans, and widows had 
 his sympathy, of course, and as a matter of ordinary be- 
 nevolence ; but his Christian regards embraced negroes, 
 Indians, French prisoners, female criminals, bewitched 
 persons, thieves, murderers, pirates ; in a word, malefac- 
 tors of every sort found in him a friend. He visited, in 
 filthy prisons and poisoned chambers, people whose souls 
 were more foul than the jails, and with true kindness of 
 heart ministered with Christian fidelity to their eternal in- 
 terests, told them of their sins, led them to repentance, 
 and preached to them an Almighty Saviour and a forgiv- 
 ing God. At their request, men who had hated and re- 
 viled him were attended by him to the place of execution, 
 
COTTON MATHER. 
 
 549 
 
 and often he was blessed by pirates who had cursed 
 Cotton Mather. 
 
 It goes without saying that such a man had a warm 
 place in his heart for relatives and personal friends. He 
 could have used the words of Daniel Webster, in regard 
 to the same class of friends : *' Dear, dear kindred, how I 
 love you all ! " But had he no antipathies and enmities } 
 That depends on the meaning of the words. He had 
 antipathies, but no malevolence. Dr. Arnold said that he 
 had boys enough who said they loved God, but not enough 
 who hated the devil. There is no doubt that Cotton 
 Mather hated the devil and all his works. In the same 
 sense, he hated wicked men and their evil ways. But it 
 was a passion perfectly compatible with benevolence. He 
 would do all that was possible to defeat their wicked 
 schemes, to reclaim them from their evil ways, to bring 
 them to condign punishment ; but he would labor and pray 
 to make them good members of society and heirs of the 
 kingdom of heaven. As for malice or revenge, they were 
 not in his composition. He would have a personal quar- 
 rel with no man — no enemy. If he were misused, 
 abused, or injured, he made it a point of duty to do the 
 man a favor in some silent way, and to pray for him in 
 secret. He studied to obey the precepts and follow the 
 example of Christ, in the treatment of enemies. His 
 feelings were grieved too easily by unkind and unfair 
 treatment, but his heart was not made hard by abuse or 
 soured by malicious tongues. There is no proof that he 
 ever failed to appreciate a kindness or that he ever ren- 
 dered evil for evil. The following lines show the pleasure 
 of Dr. Mather in doing good to mankind in general : — 
 
 I am not unable, with a little study, to write in seven languages ; I 
 feast myself with the sweets of all the sciences, which the more polite 
 part of mankind ordinarily pretend unto, i am entertained with all 
 
550 LIFE AND TIMES OF 
 
 kinds of histories, ancient and modern. I am no stranger to the curi- 
 osities, which by all sorts of learning, are brought unto the curious. 
 These intellectual pleasures are far beyond any sensual ones. — Never- 
 theless, all this affords me not so much delight as it does, to relieve 
 the distresses of any one poor, mean, miserable neighbor ; and much 
 more, to do any extensive service for the redress of those epidemical 
 miseries under which mankind in general is languishing, and to ad- 
 vance the kingdom of God in the world. 
 
 The amiability of Mather was shown in his treatment 
 of transient callers and visitors. This is a test of char- 
 acter, or at least of temperament. Easy, luxurious men 
 find such callers a nuisance. If reading a pleasant book, 
 or idling away the time in some amusing occupation, their 
 temper is tried by interruption. Men of business do not 
 wish to be interrupted in their busy hours, unless the caller 
 has come with some proposal in the line of business. 
 Studious men sometimes fence off their studies by fixing 
 hours when they cannot be seen. But Cotton Mather was 
 free to all comers, whether children or men or women, 
 whether beggars or gentlemen, scholars or ignorant men, 
 negroes or strangers from across the water. One of his 
 rules was : " The man who wants to see me, is the man I 
 wish to see." He was covetous of time. Every minute 
 had a value in his estimation. The following lines show 
 how his days were crowded full of service : " This day I 
 performed the service of my general calling, instructed 
 the scholars under my charge, underwent the diversion of 
 meals and company, with whom I was a considerable 
 while ; I made a long sermon and preached it ; I spent 
 more than a little time at the private meeting, where I 
 preached, and read over 'Knox's Historical Relation of 
 the Island of Ceylon.'" What time could such a man be- 
 stow upon visitors } They were indeed a trial, but his 
 good nature and generosity triumphed. How will be seen 
 by this statement of his son Samuel : — 
 
COTTON MATHER. 
 
 551 
 
 Because he did not love to be disturbed with tedious and imperti- 
 nent visitors, and because his friends (Amici Temporis Fures) might 
 sometimes unseasonably interrupt him, he wrote over his study door, 
 in capitals, BE SHORT. And yet, let him be ever so busy when a 
 friend came to see him, he threw all by. He was perfectly easy, with 
 pleasure communicated the observations he had lately met with, and 
 was so very obliging, although his friends knew his hurry and great 
 business, they knew not how to leave him. 
 
 Nor was this amiability confined to scholars or genteel 
 and respectable people ; for it was one of his maxims that 
 " a mean person with grace is more amiable to me, than 
 another who is otherwise never so well qualified, but 
 graceless." 
 
 Dr. Mather's benignity to his enemies was remarkable, 
 and sometimes had its reward. Here is an illustration of 
 his disposition, and of his conquest of an enemy. Late 
 one night, in October, 1704, several came to him, telling 
 him that a very wicked man in the town lay a dying, but 
 was anxious to see him before he died. The story is told 
 by his son in the words following : — 
 
 When the Doctor came to him, (who wondered at him that he would 
 so readily do it,) he told him to this purpose. That he had been a 
 very profane person ; that he had given himself a great liberty to abuse 
 good men ; but had abused no man in the world so much as Dr. 
 Mather, and that he could not go out of the world without confessing 
 it, bewailing it unto him, and beseeching him to pardon it. The Doc- 
 tor asked him if he had received any particular prejudice, or ever had 
 been informed, or could have pretended any particular matter of fact, 
 upon which his abuses might have been established. He gave him to 
 understand that there was nothing of that, but all was downright ma- 
 lignity ; for he took him to be a man that did more good that others, 
 and that was all the reason why he had vilified him more than other 
 men. 
 
 The Doctor, after his well-known mild way, told the man, that there 
 was no occasion for any pardon because of his speaking diminutively 
 of him ; for, says he, you may speak so of me, and do me no wrong. 
 But, continued he, for your speaking injuriously, falsely, calumniously 
 
552 
 
 LIFE AND TIMES OF 
 
 of me, it was indeed a fault ; yet, as he would forgive it without his 
 asking for it, had it been ten hundred times more than it was, he would 
 join with him in crying to God for the forgiveness of that, and every- 
 thing else wherein he had done amiss. He did so. The man was full 
 of affection to him, kept continually crying for him to be with him the 
 next day in the forenoon, and he died in the afternoon. 
 
 IV. Love to His Church. A man's love for the 
 church depends, in great measure, upon the value he sets 
 upon individual souls in the church. Let us then consider 
 Mather's standard of judging the worth of a single soul. 
 
 When the cloud of glory, which was the Shechinah, that had our 
 Saviour with the Angels of his Presence dwelling in it, came down 
 and filled the temple of old, what a grateful spectacle was it, and what 
 acclamations did it raise in the spectators ! A godly man is a Temple 
 of God ; a living temple ; dearer to him than any temple of mere mat- 
 ter, though the most splendid and costly in the world. And our Sav- 
 iour comes into a heart which is continually instructing, reforming, 
 and solacing itself by thinking on him. O heart panting after thy 
 Saviour ; so kind is he, so very kind, that even at the call of a thought, 
 he will come in unto thee ! A temple so filled with the glory of the 
 Lord, is unseen to the standers by, to flesh and blood. — The life of 
 the pious man is hid with Christ in God. It is a hidden life. — But 
 God sees the temple with pleasure. The Saviour who knoweth all 
 things, is pleased with the sight. His angels make their acclamations 
 upon it. 
 
 After this we can easily believe that " his love to his 
 church and congregation was very flaming." He was care- 
 ful to exercise this love. One of his ways to do this was 
 to take the bills that were put up in public worship for 
 prayer or praise — prayer for the sick, or thanksgiving for 
 the healed — and "present the particular cases there ex- 
 hibited before the Lord in his study, where he did more 
 particularly implore the grace of God for each of them 
 than he did or could in public." 
 
 In the same spirit he was always watching for oppor- 
 tunity to " let fall some word or other" to any of his flock 
 
COTTON MATHER. 553 
 
 who came in his way, which he "designed or hoped" 
 might be of use to them. He was also " continually scat- 
 tering books of piety " among his people, saying, " Re- 
 member, I am speaking to you all the while you have this 
 book before you." Says his son : "There was not a day 
 in the year in which he was not preaching to many of 
 them. It is scarce imaginable how many good books 
 he disposed of; he has given away above a thousand in 
 a year." 
 
 This value of souls which heightened his love for them 
 gave a tone to his preaching. His son continues : — 
 
 He was ever desirous of entertaining a high opinion of the personal 
 worth, wisdom, goodness, and accomplishments of many in the flock, 
 and the unspeakable worth of the souls of all of them, and by this 
 opinion to be quickened in his studies for his sermons, that they might 
 be as able, and yet as useful composures as he could render them. 
 
 V. The Love of the Family in such a man would be 
 unselfish and fervent. That is what we should expect, and 
 such it was in Cotton Mather. Reverence, obedience, and 
 affection towards his parents were cheerfully rendered 
 while they lived, and they were held in grateful remem- 
 brance after their departure. From earliest childhood to 
 old age, he was an affectionate son. This fact has 
 appeared in many passages of his diary, and no further 
 evidence is needed ; but one or two touching habits may 
 be referred to as beautiful in themselves. It was not an 
 occasional remark, but a habit of speech, by which Cotton 
 Mather taught his children to reverence and love their 
 grandfather, and show him all marks of their esteem and 
 affection. Again, he often had his father at his table, in 
 his old age, and always enjoyed his company. It was 
 like heaven to him to have the aged saint in his presence, 
 and it was a pleasure to render all the kind offices which 
 
554 ^IP^ ^^^ TIMES OF 
 
 a son could bestow on a father so worthy of honor and 
 veneration. 
 
 In the conjugal relation Cotton Mather was a model 
 husband, and his wives were worthy of the respect and 
 tenderness which he lavished upon them. The first two 
 made his home happy, and the last, except during a dis- 
 tressing aberration of mind, was to him a helpful and 
 affectionate wife, and a tender mother to his children. 
 Katharine, the daughter of his first wife, it will be remem- 
 bered, would not call her "mother-in-law, but mother-in- 
 love," and her stepson Samuel wrote of her in these 
 words : " She is a lady of many and great accomplish- 
 ments, and is the Doctor's disconsolate widow." 
 
 But the love of his children was one of the brightest 
 elements of Dr. Mather's character. It combined author- 
 ity with the utmost tenderness. Children were not to 
 him as human animals or as pets or as objects of pride 
 or as upper servants ; but he respected their minds, their 
 feelings, their wants. He appealed to their moral con- 
 victions. He treated them as the children of God. He 
 won their respect, their veneration, the love of their 
 hearts. 
 
 Some of the rules by which he was governed in the 
 education of his children will make this matter clear and 
 instructive. 
 
 In the first place, he prayed for them, and by name, 
 that " God would be a Father to them, bestow his Son 
 and grace upon them, guide them by his counsel, and 
 bring them to glory." 
 
 When quite young they were entertained with delight- 
 ful stories, of which their father had a bountiful store. 
 He made great use of Scriptural stories, which are un- 
 equaled in their power to hold and delight the minds of 
 children. And "every day at the table, he used to tell 
 
COTTON MATHER. 555 
 
 some entertaining tale before he rose." And when his 
 children accidentally met him, he always had some 
 sentence or remark that might be of use to them. His 
 son writes that "this matter occasioned labor, study 
 and contrivance." 
 
 He taught his children to pray when very young, giving 
 them directions how to pray and what to pray for, and 
 explaining the need and duty and privilege of prayer. 
 **He would often call upon them: 'Child, don't you 
 forget every day to go alone and pray as I have directed 
 you.'" 
 
 He sought to form in the children a kind and pleasant 
 temper. They were taught to do kind acts to one another 
 and to other children. When he saw them do such deeds 
 with pleasure, he would applaud them. They were cau- 
 tioned against all acts of revenge, and urged to return good 
 for evil. "He would show them, how they would by this 
 goodness, become like the good God and the blessed 
 Jesus." He was not satisfied except when the children 
 had a "sweetness of temper shining in them." 
 
 In education the children were early taught to write as 
 well as read. " When they had the use of the pen, he 
 would employ them in writing out the most instructive 
 and profitable things he could invent for them." As they 
 became older they learned to express their own thoughts 
 in writing. 
 
 In family government he sought to establish in the 
 minds of the children " principles of reason and honor." 
 
 He secured their confidence in his wisdom and his love 
 for them, so that they did not question his commands or 
 disregard his advice. They were taught that it was 
 ^^ shameful to do amiss." Welldoing was ^^ amiable.'' 
 
 Both his father and grandfather discarded and ab- 
 horred the ancient way of punishing in family and school. 
 
556 LIFE AND TIMES OF 
 
 Cotton Mather followed their example. Says Samuel 
 (page 17) : — 
 
 The slavish way of education, carried on with raving, and kicking, 
 and scourging, (in schools as well as families) he looked upon as a dread- 
 ful judgment of God on the world. . . . The first chastisement which 
 he would inflict for any ordinary fault, was to let the child see and hear 
 him in an astonishment, and hardly able to believe that the child could 
 do so base a thing ; but believing that they would never do it again. 
 ... He never gave a child a blow unless in cases of obstinacy, or 
 some act that was very criminal. 
 
 He made his children feel that to be banished a while 
 from his company was the sorest punishment, and that to 
 "learn all great things was the noblest thing in the world." 
 He did not reward obedience or studiousness by giving 
 play spells, because that would teach them that " diversion 
 was a nobler and better thing than diligence." Rather the 
 child would do well, saying to himself, " I have done well ; 
 and now I will go to my father, who will teach me some 
 curious thing for it." They regarded the refusal to teach 
 them as a punishment. Eagerness to learn something 
 curious, entertaining, or useful from their father was an 
 inspiration to duty. 
 
 The children were not only taught to be ruled by the 
 dictates of honor and reason, but also by the filial and en- 
 nobling fear of God, whose benignant eye was ever upon 
 them. " He would show them how they must love our 
 Lord Jesus Christ, and how they must demonstrate it, by 
 doing what their parents require of them." 
 
 Dr. Mather used to tell his children of the *' good angels," 
 and of their kind ministrations, and to incite them so to 
 act as to please those blessed messengers of God. On 
 the other hand, he " would not say much to them of the 
 evil angels, because he would not have them entertain any 
 frightful fancies about the apparitions of devils." It was 
 
COTTON MATHER. 557 
 
 enough to know that evil spirits as well as wicked people 
 sought their harm, so that they might be on their guard. 
 '* Heaven and hell he set before them clearly and faith- 
 fully, as the consequences of their good or bad behavior 
 here." 
 
 Such were the methods, the principles, and the spirit by 
 which Cotton Mather sought to make his children obedi- 
 ent, useful, amiable, pious and happy. He had his reward. 
 Some of the children died in infancy, and he gave them up 
 to God, in the hope of meeting them again in a region 
 where neither sin nor death ever come. One little two- 
 year-old child died while expressing her assurance of going 
 to her Jesus Christ. All who grew up came into the 
 church, except one, and he gave evidence months before 
 his early and violent death of deep and sincere repent- 
 ance. 
 
 Here this chapter might be closed if it pertained to the 
 life of an ordinary Christian ; but Cotton Mather embraced 
 in the sphere of his affections superhummt beings; he 
 cherished a personal love for the holy angels of God. To 
 his mind they were real, personal, individual, and they were 
 " ministering spirits " to him. They kept him from evil ; 
 they were the medium of blessings from heaven. God 
 used them to do his will in his servant's behalf. He kept 
 vigils in which he believed that he had the presence and 
 the influence — yea, the inspiration of angels. Samuel 
 writes of this as " something singular and instructive," 
 and quotes the following from the diary : — 
 
 On this day, I considered, that as by the praises of God, I should 
 become like the good Angels ; thus it was a very reasonable thing that 
 I should offer my extraordinary praises to him for his Angels. I saw 
 that the Scriptures mentioned the ministry of the good Angels, about 
 the heirs of salvation, with frequency ; and I saw that my life had been 
 wondrously signalized by the ministry of those Angels. Wherefore loth 
 
558 LIFE AND TIMES OF 
 
 to be guilty of such an unthoughtful neglect of the Angels, as the gen- 
 erality of the faithful who enjoy the assistances of those heavenly guard- 
 ians are, I devoted this day to glorify the God and Father of my Lord 
 Jesus Christ for the ministry of Angels, which has notably befriended 
 me unto this very day. And I expected in this way not only to render 
 myself more agreeable to those excellent spirits, but also to obtain from 
 their and my Lord, a more signal share of their influence than had ever 
 yet been granted me. 'T will be needless to relate how many Hymns 
 I sang referring to the Angels. 
 
 This was in the morning of a day devoted to worship, 
 and to a special consideration of the subject of angeUcal 
 ministry. He continues : — 
 
 My chief exercise in the forenoon was, to consider exactly, and with 
 as much of Scripture and learning as I could, the existence, the proper- 
 ties, and the relations of the good Angels ; and the honor, but not wor- 
 ship, due to those benign spirits ; and then to run over the marvellous 
 references to their ministry which I have here and there found scattered 
 in the oracles of God ; whether towards particular saints, or towards the 
 church in general. ... I cannot fully express the elevation of soul with 
 which I went through these noble exercises ; which exercises at last I 
 concluded with assurances that I should one day come to praise him that 
 sits upon the throne, and the Lamb, in the company of his holy Angels 
 forever. 
 
 Later in the day he made a catalogue of mercies re- 
 ceived from heaven through the ministry of angels, and 
 concluded as follows : — 
 
 Such things as these I did, with multiplied Hallelujahs, acknowledge 
 on my study floor before the Lord. And in the midst of my rapturous 
 praises, I could not forbear saying, " Bless the Lord, O my soul, and 
 forget not all his benefits ! And if any good Angels of the Lord are 
 now nigh unto me, Do you, also bless the Lord, ye heavenly ministers ; 
 And, Oh, adore that free grace of his, which employs you to be serv- 
 iceable to so poor, so mean, so vile a wretch as is here prostrate 
 before him." 
 
 The love of God-in-Christ is the source and cause of all 
 true love to holy angels and good men. In the estimation 
 
COTTON MATHER. 
 
 559 
 
 of Dr. Mather, all the beauties and excellences in all the 
 "spirits of just men made perfect," and in all the holy- 
 angels, though exalted and refined through countless ages 
 of service and worship, would amount to very little in 
 comparison with the spiritual loveliness of the God-man, 
 Christ Jesus. He is the '^chiefest among ten thousand, 
 and the one altogether lovely." His own words must be 
 used in conveying his meaning : — 
 
 Having entertained a right and clear apprehension of my great Sav- 
 iour, and his glorious Person, as the eternal Son of God, incarnate and 
 inthroned in my Jesus, being somewhat understood with me ; and be- 
 holding the infinite God as coming to me, and meeting with me in this 
 blessed Mediator ; the thoughts of him are become exceeding frequent 
 with me. . . .1 have learnt the way of interesting my Saviour in the 
 thoughts. And I feel an impatience raised in me, if I have been many 
 minutes without some thoughts of him. I fly to him on Multitudes 
 of occasions every day, and am impatient if many minutes have passed 
 without some recourse to him. 
 
 Now and then I rebuke myself, thus : ' ' Why have I been so long 
 without some thoughts on my lovely Saviour ? How can I bear to keep 
 at any distance from him ? " I then look up to my Saviour ; O my dear 
 Saviour, Draw near unto me : Oh ! come down to dwell in my soul, 
 and help me to form some thoughts wherein I shall enjoy thee. 
 
 Mather then writes of his meditations upon the glories, 
 the merits, the pattern of his " amiable Saviour," finding 
 the subject infinitely inexhaustible, with this result : — 
 
 After I have been in the day thus employed, I fall asleep at night per- 
 petually in the midst of some meditation on the glory of my Saviour ; 
 usually on a Scripture where that glory is mentioned. So I sleep in 
 Jesus ! And when I wake in the night, I do on my bed seek him that 
 my soul does love. Still in the night the desires of my soul carry me 
 to him in thoughts on the subject which I fell asleep with. 
 
 There is more in this lofty and seraphic expression, but 
 the few following lines shall bring our quotations to a 
 close : — 
 
560 LIFE AND TIMES. 
 
 I find that where Christ comes, a wondrous light, life and peace comes 
 with him, together with a strength to go through services and sufferings. 
 The holiness and happiness to which I am introduced by this way of 
 living, 't is better to me than all the enjoyments of this world. 
 
CHAPTER XXVII. 
 
 THE BLESSED CLOSE OF A USEFUL LIFE. 
 
 WE now enter on the last year of Dr. Mather's work- 
 ing life, for though he lived to the thirteenth day 
 of February, 1728, his last sickness came on in December 
 of this year (1727). He was sick in April, but with his 
 usual persistence, the weakness of his body was not 
 allowed to impede the action of his mind ; and this last 
 year was filled with the products of authorship to the 
 amount of five or six hundred pages, in addition to 
 preaching and pastoral labors. 
 
 The first sermon that was given to the press was prob- 
 ably the one delivered about the middle of January upon 
 the " special and mournful occasion of the death of a 
 pious gentleman, Mr. Samuel Hirst," son-in-law of Judge 
 Sewall. The title was " Ignorantia Scientifica," showing 
 the great advantage of our not knowing the time of our 
 death. " Instruction fetched from ignorance " expressed 
 the topic of the discourse. 
 
 This was soon followed by " Signatus, — the Sealed 
 Servants of our God, appearing with two witnesses, to 
 produce a well-established assurance of their being the 
 children of the Lord Almighty." The two witnesses 
 were the Holy Spirit with the spirit of the believer. 
 
 The " Victorina " was published soon after the death of 
 Katharine Mather, but a new edition came out this year. 
 It was a choice piece of biography in its time. 
 
 From the following item taken from Sewall's diary, 
 April 2J, it appears that Dr. Mather was considered 
 dangerously sick at the time : — 
 
 561 
 
562 LIFE AND TIMES OF 
 
 After Lecture, several ministers met at Mr. Gee's to pray for Dr. 
 Mather. Mr. Thacher, Webb, Cooper, Gee, Sewall, prayed. 
 
 It is a reasonable conjecture that the volume entitled 
 " Restitutus," in fifty-four pages, was the outcome of this 
 sickness. The title intimates as much. ''The End of 
 Life pursued, and then the Hope in Death enjoyed, by 
 the faithful ; both of them described in a discourse 
 made upon a recovery from sickness ; or, the declaration 
 of our returning from the gates of the grave." 
 
 The death of King George II called out a sermon on 
 "Christian Loyalty." Dr. Mather was loyal to the House 
 of Hanover, as before remarked. He knew how great 
 perils the colonies, as well as the mother country, had 
 been freed from by the establishment of that family on 
 the throne of Great Britain. 
 
 "Agricola, or the Religious Husbandman," was a vol- 
 ume of great value, in 221 pages. Its interest will be 
 seen from the following words : " The main intentions of 
 religion served in the business and language of hus- 
 bandry." It was a family book and was a treasure in the 
 home. 
 
 " The Balance of the Sanctuary," preached in the 
 audience of the general assembly, October 5 ; *' The 
 Marrow of the Gospel," showing the " union between the 
 Redeemer and the believer"; the " Hor-Hagidgad," a 
 happy departure, occasioned by the death of a brother 
 minister. Rev. William Waldron ; and "Juga Jucunda," 
 containing a " relation of the glorious peace and joy 
 which brightened the dying hours of Mrs. Abigail Good- 
 win," addressed to young people, were a part of the 
 publications which appeared in the summer and autumn 
 of this fruit-bearing year. 
 
 The " Baptismal Piety " is in two brief essays. Their 
 simple but beautiful titles would seem enough to charm 
 
COTTON MATHER. 563 
 
 parents into offering their children to the Saviour. 
 I. "The Angel of the Waters, instructing the spectators 
 of the sacred baptism, administered in our assemblies, 
 how to make it a most profitable spectacle." 2. "The 
 Angel of the Little Ones directing the aims and the 
 frames wherewith parents are to bring their infants unto 
 the holy baptism." 
 
 The earthquake that shook New England in the night 
 between October 29 and 30, 1727, was the occasion of 
 an address, soon published, with the title, "The Terror 
 of the Lord." Text (2 Cor. 5 : 11) : "Knowing the terror 
 of the Lord, we persuade men." The following account 
 of the earthquake, and the meetings following, are from 
 Dr. Mather: — 
 
 The night that followed the 29th of October, was a night whereto 
 New England had never, in the memory of man, seen the like. 
 The air never more calm, the sky never more fair ; everything in all 
 imaginable tranquillity; but about a quarter of an hour before ii, 
 there was heard in Boston, passing from one end of the town to the 
 other, a horrid rumbling like the noise of many coaches together driv- 
 ing on the paved stones with the utmost rapidity. But it was attended 
 with a most awful trembling of the earth, which did heave and shake so 
 as to rocque the houses, and cause here and there, the falling of some 
 smaller things, both within doors and without. It cannot be imagined 
 but that it gave an uncommon concern unto all the inhabitants, and 
 even a degree of consternation unto very many of them. The first 
 shock, which was the most violent, was followed with several others, 
 and some repetition of the noise, at sundry times, pretty distinct from 
 one another. The number of them is not entirely agreed ; but at least 
 four or five are allowed for ; the last of which was between five and 
 six of the clock in the morning. It extended for scores of miles, west 
 and south. [In fact, several hundred miles.] 
 
 What added unto the terrors of it, were the terrible flames of light 
 in the atmosphere, which accompained it. . . . The vessels on the 
 coast were also made sensible of it by shivering that seized on them. 
 
 No time was lost by Dr. Mather and his brother minis- 
 
564 ^I^^ A^D TIMES OF 
 
 ters, in the effort to derive good results from an event so 
 impressive, as appears from the following : — 
 
 In the morning, the pastors of the Old North Church directed the bells 
 to be rung, that such of the people as could and would, might assemble 
 immediately unto some suitable exercises of religion. The pastors of 
 the New North joined with them in sending up unto heaven the suppli- 
 cations which the solemn occasion called for. And the pastors in the 
 other part of the town, made a speedy and a hearty appearance ; and 
 most affectionately united in a concurrence with them. The assembly 
 that came together, did more than crowd and fill the most capacious of 
 our meeting houses, and as there was a multitude of serious Christians, 
 who are acquainted with real and vital piety, so the whole auditory ex- 
 pressed a devotion which was truly extraordinary. 
 
 These exercises, beginning at eight a.m., closed about 
 two in the afternoon. After an hour or two, say at four 
 in the afternoon, " several churches in the other part of 
 the town followed the example, and with vast congrega- 
 tions, continued the proper exercises of religion until 
 about eight o'clock in the evening." The ministers were 
 animated alike, and the Lieutenant-Governor, — Dummer, 
 — " whose piety ever discovered on every other as well as 
 this occasion, disposed him to direct that the Thursday 
 next, which was the Lecture day, should be a day of sup- 
 plications in all the churches in the city." 
 
 Dr. Mather, judging that the word should accompany 
 prayer, and hoping that hearts softened by the voice of 
 God would receive good impressions, seized on the " un- 
 common and tremendous occasion " to address the throng. 
 What he said was at once desired for publication, and he 
 gave it as he could remember. It was written out the 
 next Saturday, November 4, just as he had spoken it, 
 so far as possible. He intimates that probably some re- 
 marks were omitted, in the haste of writing, without regard 
 to style or authorship. He began with prayer for a bless- 
 
COTTON MATHER, 565 
 
 ing on the word : " O ! may the Holy Spirit of our God 
 make it come with efficacy." 
 
 As the primitive outpouring of the Holy Spirit was at- 
 tended with an earthquake, so he hoped that the earth- 
 quake would now be attended with " such an outpouring 
 of the Holy Spirit as would make a holy and so a happy 
 people." Proceeding he said : — 
 
 We find the hill, on the north side whereof Joshua was buried, had 
 the name of Har-Gayash, which word signifies the Mountain of trem- 
 bling. The Jews have a tradition that at the time of his burial, the 
 mountain trembled with an earthquake, to testify the displeasure of 
 God against the people. My friends, we approach as to an Har- 
 Gayash, in what is now to be set before us. 
 
 His text was Micah 6:9: " The Lord's voice crieth 
 unto the city." He referred to other earthquakes in 
 the town, in the country, and in other countries, as in 
 Sicily, where thousands perished ; and in Old Testament 
 times. Next he spoke of the natural causes of earth- 
 quakes, as understood in that day ; and then of God as 
 the great, first cause. Then he inquired : — 
 
 What may be the voice of the glorious God unto us in the earthquake 
 wherein we have had the earth just now trembling under us ? 
 
 1. The voice of God in the cry is, " O glorify the perfections of the 
 glorious God which are displayed in the earthquake." 
 
 2. Let the crimes that cry to the Holy God for all the vengeance of an 
 earthquake upon you, be generally and thoroughly reformed among you. 
 
 3. The voice is: '* immediately get into such a state of safety, that 
 no earthquake may cause a heartache in you." 
 
 He then urges "repentance, and a speedy flight unto 
 the only Redeemer." Doing this, one could say, ''And 
 now, O earthquake, do thy worst. Thou canst not make 
 me miserable. My Saviour is my friend. I will not fear; 
 what can an earthquake do unto me .? " 
 
566 LIFE AND TIMES OF 
 
 Two Other editions were immediately called for, that is, 
 before the year closed. But this was not all. Dr. Mather 
 saw that fear was passing off, and the unhurt people were 
 growing careless in a reaction from their fright. He 
 strove, as he had done in the morning after the shock, to 
 appeal to higher and deeper considerations than mere bod- 
 ily fear, or fear of any kind, however natural and useful in 
 its place ; and to fix the public mind on duty to God, and 
 a wise regard to their own immortal interests. In this 
 he acted with his ministerial brethren. In December he 
 addressed his ** Boanerges " unto the whole people of New 
 England who were terrified with the late earthquake. 
 This was an essay based on Psalm J^ : 34, 36, 37, to 
 " preserve and strengthen the good impressions produced 
 by the late alarming providence." 
 
 This narrative brings before us the great revival of 
 1727-1728, with which and in which the life of Cotton 
 Mather came to its translation. A large number — fifty- 
 three — became members of his church in 1725. The next 
 year there were nine. In this year, including January and 
 February, which then belonged to the old 1727, seventy- 
 one confessed faith in Christ. And what heightened the 
 joy of the senior pastor, his own and only remaining 
 daughter, Hannah, was one of the number. Samuel and 
 Hannah were now in the fold, and the other thirteen, he 
 hoped, were gathered into the fold above. Then, having 
 welcomed a great accession to the North Church, and 
 rejoicing in the like happiness of the other churches, he 
 could use the words of the aged Simeon : " Lord, now 
 lettest thou thy servant depart in peace, according to thy 
 word : for mine eyes have seen thy salvation." 
 
 Thus we come to the eve of the departure of a faithful 
 servant of God to his reward. We have seen already, in a 
 quotation from Judge Sewall's diary, that Dr. Mather was 
 
COTTON MATHER. 567 
 
 sick in April. This is more fully referred to in Samuel's 
 life of his father. At that time the good man, believing 
 death was at hand, wrote and said many things. At one 
 time he said : — 
 
 Lord, thou art with me, and dost make me to sing in the dark valley 
 of the shadow of death. I perceive the signs of death upon me, and 
 am I not affrighted? No, not at all! I will not so dishonor my 
 Saviour, as to be affrighted at any thing that can befall me, while I am 
 in his blessed hands. 
 
 To some gentlemen he said : " I hope I shall not be 
 found a fool, but here I lie and sing, ' Soul, take thine 
 ease ; thou hast good laid up in store for many years, for 
 endless ages ; but another sort of goods than what this 
 vain world puts off its idolaters with.'" 
 
 He wrote as follows : — 
 
 I feel the life of God begun in my soul. . . . Here is a life begun 
 which can terminate no otherwise than in an endless life with my God. 
 There is a well of water in me that will spring up into everlasting life. 
 
 Death, do thy worst ; there is no killing of the life to which my God 
 has begun to raise me. Have I had a glorious Christ living, acting 
 and working in me, and quickening me for living unto God ; and will 
 he ever lose his hold of me? No, no; I am sure of living with him 
 forevermore. 
 
 Have I, to animate myself unto holiness, in all manner of conversa- 
 tion in my contemplations, often endeavored to affect myself with the 
 holiness of the purified spirits in the paradise of God ; their flaming 
 devotions ; their delight in God ; their hatred of sin ; the contempt 
 with which they look down on the high things of this world ; and the 
 goodness with which they treat one another? Done this with earnest 
 desires to be as like them as this mortal state may attain to, and will 
 admit of ? And shall I not now be fetched away to join with them 
 in the praises of God ? 
 
 The following is inserted to show in what sense a 
 famous and much-decried opinion or sentiment was under- 
 stood by Dr. Mather ; and to raise the query whether the 
 
568 LIFE AND TIMES OF 
 
 phrase, "willing to be damned for the glory of God," 
 carried any other meaning. 
 
 But ! what if after all, a Sovereign God will have me to be a cast- 
 away, and I shall be cast into hell, where the divine justice will be for- 
 ever scourging of me ? I desire it should be so ? — Faulty tho'ts ! fiery 
 darts ! — In the horror of darkness I now humble myself as clay before 
 the potter, and I feel my heart so filled with the love of God, and so 
 satisfied in his doing all things right as they should be done, that if it 
 should be so, yet I desire that no scourge upon me may produce any- 
 thing from me worse than this : O, love, and serve, and praise the glori- 
 ous God who does all of this ! Let none resist the will of the glorious 
 God who does all this ! Let me undergo all of this, rather than ever 
 entertain one hard thought of the glorious One ! — But my soul being 
 thus disposed, the Holy Spirit of my God immediately shoots the rays 
 of his light into it, and most powerfully says to me, ^' these dispositions 
 were never made for a hell, the fire whereof is for the enemies of God. 
 If it were possible for a soul to go to hell with such dispositions, it 
 would carry heaven thither with it. No, no ; thou art a pleasant child 
 unto me. I will surely have mercy on thee." 
 
 And now, vain world, farewell ! Thou hast been to me a very un- 
 easy wilderness. Welcome, everlasting life ! The paradise of God 
 stands open for me. I am just entering into a world where I shall be 
 free from sin, and from all temptations to it ; a world where I shall 
 have all tears wiped from my eyes ; a world where I shall be filled with 
 all the fulness of God. The best hour that ever I saw, is what I am 
 hourly and gladly waiting for. 
 
 But he had to wait a little longer ; and surely his heart 
 was happy in waiting, when he found what the Lord had 
 in store for him before going. The great awakening in 
 the last months of the year gave him loved employment 
 and filled out his life's work most honorably and happily. 
 It would seem as if a gracious God reserved him for this 
 work, or the work for him, to put a stamp of divine ap- 
 probation on his servant. Besides his address after the 
 earthquake, he was busy in pastoral duties and in fraternal 
 ministries. 
 
 Late in December, Dr. Mather preached a funeral ser- 
 
COTTON MATHER, 569 
 
 mon for an aged friend. His usual felicity attended his 
 selection of a title to the discourse : " The Comfortable 
 Chambers opened and visited, upon the departure of that 
 aged and faithful Servant of God, Mr. Peter Thacher, who 
 made his flight thither on December 17, 1727." Samuel 
 said in a note that this sermon was the " last that was ever 
 preached by the Author, who was willing it should go to 
 the press, that the world might have a lasting testimony of 
 the sincere friendship, value and honor, he had for the 
 person commemorated in it." The author died before 
 the printing was finished. The sermon was republished 
 seventy years later. 
 
 And now the worn-out servant of God had finished his 
 work. Worn-out, I say, because his natural tenacity of 
 life promised many years in addition. His grandfather 
 lived seventy-five years. His father was eighty -four at his 
 decease. He died the day after he became sixty-five, Feb- 
 ruary 13, 1728; but though his honored progenitors lived 
 longer, and were hard workers, he probably had performed 
 as much work and had filled as many hours with care, 
 suffering, and devotion, as either of them. His mind sped 
 as the "swift ships." Like Raleigh he could *'work terri- 
 bly." He was aglow with thought, feeling, and emotion. 
 No moments v/ere wasted in idle reverie, and so he filled 
 out the full measure of his days. His general health was 
 better as he grew older. "As with Drusius, so with 
 Mather ; his old age was better to him than his youth ; 
 and he was generally more healthy in his later years than 
 former." But now his vitality was exhausted nearly, and 
 the causes that would end his life were at hand. 
 
 When the last sickness came on, late in December, Dr. 
 Mather expected to die. In a note to one of his physi- 
 cians he wrote : " My last enemy is come ; I would say. 
 
570 LIFE AND TIMES OF 
 
 my best friend." A few hours before his decease, he 
 said : " Now I have nothing more to do here ; my will is 
 entirely swallowed up in the will of the Lord." 
 Says his son : — 
 
 He was entirely above the love of life, and the fear of death, assur- 
 ing us that he was going to eat the bread of life, and drink the water 
 of life freely ; that all tears would soon be wiped from his eyes ; that 
 everything looked smiling about him ; that it was impossible he should 
 be lost ; that he had a strong consolation, and that his views of the 
 heavenly world were all glorious. 
 
 Very tender was his parting with his nephew, Mather 
 Byles ; and yet more so with his only surviving son. 
 Omitting some personal remarks of appreciation, the son 
 records that when on bended knees the patriarch's blessing 
 was asked, he said : — 
 
 You have been a dear Son, and a pleasant child unto me, and I wish 
 you as many blessings, as you have done me services, which are very 
 many. I wish, and pray the God of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob may 
 be yours, and his blessing rest upon you. I wish that, as you have the 
 prospect of being serviceable in the world, you may be great and con- 
 siderable, as the patriarchs were, by introducing Christ into the world. 
 The grace of the Lord Jesus Christ be with you. Amen. 
 
 And being asked what sentence or word ; what noxivov 
 er.o<$ he would have Samuel think on constantly as he 
 desired to have his father before him, and to hear him 
 speak, he replied, " Remember only that one word fnic- 
 tuosus'' (fruitful). 
 
 He died on Tuesday. From the Thursday before to 
 that time, he was ** dying of a hard coughs and a suffoca- 
 ting asthma, with 2^ fever ; but he felt no great pain." He 
 had the ** sweet composure and easy departure, for which he 
 had entreated so often and fervently, the sovereign Dis- 
 poser of all." At the last he said: "Is this dying.? Is 
 this all } Is this all that I feared, when I prayed against 
 
COTTON MATHER. 57I 
 
 a hard death ? O ! I can bear this ! I can bear it ! I can 
 bear it ! " And when his wife wiped his eyes, he said, " I 
 am going where all tears will be wiped from my eyes." 
 
 Six days later, on Monday, the 19th, was the funeral. 
 The sentiments of respect and veneration in which Dr. 
 Mather was held by the community were shown by one 
 of the greatest funeral processions ever seen in Boston. 
 Judge Sewall's diary for February 19 reads: — 
 
 Dr. Cotton Mather is entombed. Bearers, the Rev'd Mr. Colman, 
 Mr. Thacher ; Mr. Sewall, Mr. Prince ; Mr. Webb, Mr. Cooper, — who 
 supported the pall. The church went before the corpse ; first, Rev. Mr. 
 Gee [colleague] in mourning, alone ; then three deacons ; then Capt. 
 Hutchinson, Adam Winthrop, Esq., Col. Hutchinson. Went up Hull 
 street. I went in a coach. All the council had gloves. I had a pair. 
 Mr. Walter prayed excellently. Several gentlemen of the bereaved 
 flock took their turns to bear the coffin. After which followed, first, 
 the bereaved relatives in mourning ; then his honor, the Lieut. Gov- 
 ernor, the honorable, his majesty's council, and house of representa- 
 tives ; then a large train of ministers, justices, merchants, scholars, and 
 other principal inhabitants, both of men and women. The streets were 
 crowded with people, and the windows filled with sorrowful spectators, 
 all the way to the burying place, where the corpse was deposited in a 
 tomb belonging to the worthy family. 
 
 The tomb is still preserved, in the northeast part of 
 Copp's Hill Cemetery. This is the tomb which was given 
 to Cotton Mather by friends after the decease of his first 
 wife. 
 
 The sentiments of the North Church in relation to their 
 pastor, during his sickness and at his death, were expressed 
 in the following votes : — 
 
 January 26, 1727-8. At a meeting of the brethren of the church, the 
 following proposal was offered and approved ; notice of it to be given 
 to the whole assembly in the afternoon. Whereas, in the holy provi- 
 dence of our Lord, his aged servant, our Rev. and dear Pastor, is 
 visited and brought low by sickness, which takes him off from those 
 exercises of the pastoral care, whereby God has greatly endeared him 
 
572 LIFE AND TIMES OF 
 
 to us, and threatens his removal from us, by death, which we would 
 deprecate as a most awful frown of heaven; we do therefore desire 
 and appoint, next Wednesday afternoon to be set apart and employed 
 in humble, penitent, and earnest supplications to God our Saviour, 
 that our Pastor may be restored unto usefulness, and continue to be a 
 rich blessing. 
 
 They invited the Rev. Messrs. Colman, Thacher, and 
 Sewall to assist in the service. Soon after Dr. Mather's 
 decease the church voted as follows : — 
 
 Whereas, under the awful and humbling providence,, wherewith the 
 great and good Shepherd hath visited his flock, the united pastors of 
 the town are in a course of preaching with us, according to the usual 
 method of expressing their pious regards to a deceased pastor, and his 
 bereaved flock and family ; it is therefore ordered and appointed, that 
 as a token of the like Christian regards, the salary should be continued 
 to the family while the ministers supplied the pulpit. 
 
 In April it was voted that the "sum of lOO pounds be 
 paid to Mrs. Lydia Mather, at the rate of five pounds per 
 month, till the whole be paid, if she live so long." 
 
 The sentiment of the general public was expressed in 
 the following paragraph, which appeared in The New 
 England Weekly Journal, on the day of the funeral : — 
 
 Last Tuesday, in the forenoon, between eight and nine o'clock, died 
 here, the very Reverend Cotton Mather, Doctor in Divinity of Glasco, 
 and Fellow of the Royal Society in London, Senior Pastor of the Old 
 North Church in Boston, and an Overseer of Harvard College ; by 
 whose death persons of all ranks are in concern and sorrow. He 
 was, perhaps, the principal ornament of this country, and the greatest 
 scholar that ever was bred in it. But besides his universal learning, his 
 exalted piety, and extensive charity, his entertaining wit, and singular 
 goodness of temper, recommended him to all that were judges of real 
 and distinguished merit. After having spent above forty seven years 
 in the faithful and unwearied discharge of a lively, zealous, and awaken- 
 ing ministry, and in incessant endeavors to do good, and spread abroad 
 the glories of Christ, he finished his course with a Divine composure 
 and joy, the day after his sixty-fifth birthday. 
 
"^fie DUatRer ^omS. 
 
CO TTON MA THER, 573 
 
 Dr. Mather's eminence as a man, a scholar, a minister, 
 and a Christian was attested by his brethren in the sacred 
 office. A few passages from their writings will exhibit 
 their high appreciation. 
 
 The Rev. Peter Thacher, pastor of the New North 
 Church, pronounced him " the glory of learning, and the 
 ornament of Christianity." 
 
 The Rev. Joshua Gee was graduated at Harvard College 
 in 171 7, and settled as a colleague of Dr. Mather in 1723. 
 He had opportunities to know him before his own settle- 
 ment, as well as after ; and being a man of superior gifts, 
 his judgment carries weight. In a funeral sermon he thus 
 spoke of his senior pastor : — 
 
 The capacity of his mind ; the readiness of his wit ; the vastness of 
 his reading ; the strength of his memory ; the variety and treasure of 
 his learning, in printed works, and in manuscripts which contain a much 
 greater share ; the splendor of virtues, which, from the abundant grace 
 of God with him, shone out in the constant tenor of a most entertain- 
 ing and profitable conversation ; his uncommon activity in the service 
 of Christ ; his unwearied application to all the different exercises of the 
 pastoral function ; his extensive zeal and numberless projections to do 
 good on all occasions ; these things, as they were united in him, pro- 
 claimed him to be truly an extraordinary person ; and united to make 
 it difficult to find his equal, among men of like passions with us. He 
 was pious, but not affected; serious without moroseness ; grave, but 
 not austere ; affable without meanness ; and facetious without levity. 
 He was peaceable in his temper ; but zealous against sin. He was a 
 strenuous non-conformist to uninstituted ceremonies imposed upon con- 
 science, as terms of communion among saints ; which he considered 
 as violations of Christian liberty, and snares to the souls of men. He 
 strictly adhered to Congregational principles of church order and 
 government ; but he was catholic in his charity to all good men, though 
 differing from him in circumstantials and modalities ; desirous to have 
 churches resemble the kingdom of heaven ; willing to receive all men, 
 as Christ receives us to the glory of God ; and pleading for no terms of 
 communion among saints, but the terms of salvation. 
 
 Dr. Benjamin Colman had been settled now twenty- 
 
574 ^^^^ ^^^ TIMES OF 
 
 seven years in the neighborhood of Dr. Mather. The 
 Brattle Street meetinghouse was nearer to the Old North 
 than any other outside of the "island." From all we 
 know of them, the two ministers had been cordial in coop- 
 erating, during all these years, in all measures for promot- 
 ing the interests of religion. There had been a difficulty 
 in the founding of Brattle Street Society, because a party 
 in that organization had adopted new views ; but there is 
 no evidence that Colman sympathized with the "new de- 
 parture " men of that day. They were under the necessity 
 of abating their designs, and the new church was placed 
 on the old Westminster Catechism basis, and Dr. Colman 
 had adhered to the ancient symbol of the faith with no 
 sign of dissent. The following words of Dr. Colman were 
 therefore not the result of an effort at magnanimity, but 
 the cordial utterance of his sentiments. It is evident that 
 he weighed his words, in order to be just and discrimi- 
 nating, and at the same time brotherly in his eulogy. An 
 extract from his funeral sermon will be read with pleasure. 
 He speaks of Dr. Mather in the following terms: — - 
 
 Tht first minister in the town', the first in age, in gifts, and in 
 grace ; as all his brethren very readily own. I might add, (it may be 
 without offence to any), the first in the whole Province, and Provinces 
 of New England, for universal literature, and extensive services. Yea 
 it may be, among all the fathers in these churches, from the beginning 
 of the Country to this day, of whom many have done worthily and 
 greatly; yet none of them amassed together so vast a treasure of 
 learning, and made so much use of it, to a variety of pious intentions. 
 
 He then becomes more specific in his commendations, 
 after which his recognition of Dr. Mather's human frailty 
 gives added force to his eulogium. Read the following 
 sentences : — 
 
 His printed works . . . will not convey to posterity, nor give to 
 strangers, a just idea of the real worth, and great learning of the man. 
 
COTTON MATHER. 
 
 575 
 
 ... It was conversation and acquaintance with him, in his familiar 
 and occasional discourses and private communications, that discovered 
 the vast compass of his knowledge, and the projections of his piety ; 
 more I have sometimes thought, than all his pulpit exercises. Here 
 he excelled, here he shone; being exceeding communicative, and 
 bringing out of his treasury, things new and old, without measure. 
 Here it was seen how his wit, and fancy, his invention, his quickness 
 of thought, and ready apprehension were all consecrated to God, as 
 well as his heart, will and affections ; and out of his abundance within, 
 his lips overflowed, dropt as the honey-comb, fed all that came near 
 him, and were as the choice silver, for richness and brightness, pleasure 
 and profit. But here love to Christ and his servant, commands me to 
 draw a veil over every failing ; for who is without them ? Not ascend- 
 ing Elijah himself; who was a man of like passions with his brethren 
 the prophets ; and we have his mantle left us wherewith to cover the 
 defects and infirmities of others, after their translation in spirit. These 
 God remembers no more, and why should we? And he blots out none 
 of their good deeds, and no more should we. 
 
 A citation — in the first chapter — has already been 
 made from'Dr. Thomas Prince, pastor of the Old South 
 Church, to show the extent of Dr. Mather's reputation in 
 foreign lands, during his life. The following paragraphs 
 are taken from a writing of Prince, in 1 729 : — 
 
 By his learned works and correspondence, those who lived at the 
 greatest distance might discern much of his superior light and in- 
 fluence ; but they could discern these only by a more mediate and faint 
 reflection. They could neither see nor well imagine that extraordinary 
 luster of pious and useful literature, wherewith we were, every day, 
 entertained, surprised, and satisfied, who dwelt in the directer rays, in 
 the more immediate vision. 
 
 The following lines agree well with a part of those 
 selected from the sermon of Dr. Colman : — 
 
 Great abilities, an insatiable thirst for all kinds of knowledge, an 
 extraordinary quickness of apprehension, liveliness of fancy, with a 
 ready invention and active spirit, seem to be the chief ingredients of 
 his natural genius; and all these being sanctified in his early days,. 
 
576 LIFE AND TIMES OF 
 
 imbued with a Divine bias, and turned to the noblest objects ; he 
 became inflamed with the most ardent desires to amass unto himself, 
 from all sorts of writings, an unbounded treasure of curious and useful 
 learning, and to find out all imaginable ways of employing it for the 
 glory of God, the good of men, and the advancement of his own per- 
 fection ; that as he grew in knowledge, he might increase in goodness 
 and usefulness, and become a greater and more extensive blessing. 
 
 Some distinguished men are great in one or two spe- 
 cialties, but not above mediocrity in other regards. Dr. 
 Mather did not belong to this class. He was superior in 
 many directions, and he appreciated men and books of 
 every variety, from which useful knowledge or noble inspi- 
 rations could be drawn. Says Prince, in continuation : — 
 
 By a transient acquaintance with him, one would think that, being 
 sanctified from the birth, he had made the utmost improvement of his 
 time in the pursuit of knowledge ; but upon a fiirther view of the social 
 part of his life, the continual resort of visitants, with his gentle and 
 easy entertainment of them, at all hours, and how he would scarce let 
 the meanest and youngest of them pass him without instruction ; it 
 seemed as if almost all his time was swallowed up with conversation. 
 And yet, being let into a more intimate discovery of his numberless 
 and perpetual contrivances and labors to do good in the world, one 
 would then be ready to conclude that he had no time left for either, but 
 must have spent it all in action. 
 
 In regard to Dr. Mather's habit and mode of study and 
 acquiring knowledge, we have this instructive passage : — 
 
 He early made himself master of the learned languages, as Latin, 
 Greek and Hebrew. He read and wrote French and Spanish, with 
 limited proficiency, and published several productions in the Iroquois 
 tongue. He also kept to the constant study of the Holy Oracles in 
 their inspired originals. As to other books, he gave no time but to 
 what could give him something new. 
 
 What follows next must refer to his method after some 
 years of experience in reading and study. A mature 
 student finds but little new in the issues of the press, 
 
COTTON MATHER. 577 
 
 whether periodical or in volumes, except in the records of 
 travel and of scientific research. A late New England 
 physician and surgeon, considered by many as second to 
 none, used to supply himself with the best publications, 
 though having no time to read them. He requested his 
 students, in their reading, to mark the passages which 
 related to new experiments and discoveries, which he 
 could glance at, when occasion offered. Dr. Mather had 
 no students to do this office for him ; but he had a most 
 expeditious mode of extracting the contents of a book. 
 
 In two or three minutes turning through a volume, he could easily 
 tell whether it would make additions to the store of his ideas. If not, 
 he laid it by, reading very little for pleasure, or as a matter of taste. 
 If the book had something new to him, he skipped along from point to 
 point, seizing on the new, and penciling passages to be reviewed. Of 
 these he made a brief digest, and so laid the volume aside. As he 
 grew older, the less time he needed to give to new books, and the more 
 pages he could exhaust in a rapid reading. 
 
 Among his treasures as a speaker and writer, he had 
 avast store of "commonplaces," stories, incidents, anec- 
 dotes, sayings, that he could use at the moment, with 
 ready application. 
 
 Nor was he less prompt in writing than in learning. 
 He had the " pen of a ready writer, that knew not how to 
 falter in his swift career." 
 
 In regard to the proper attitude of Christians toward 
 each other, and their reciprocal rights and duties, as in 
 other things. Dr. Mather was in advance of his age. Says 
 Dr. Prince : — 
 
 He was an utter enemy to religious tyranny and impositions. He 
 never valued any particular forms of worship, unless they were of 
 Divine appointment. His heart was set on the spirit, the power, the 
 practice of the great duties of the religion in Christian institutions. 
 And this he was for propagating by convincing and moving arguments, 
 
578 LIFE AND TIMES. 
 
 warm persuasions, bright examples, and by every winning way that 
 could be thought of, agreeably to its truly primitive and noble simplicity, 
 and to human liberty. 
 
 But the chief ornament, and the vital spirit of his 
 character, was his desire to be like his Master, and his 
 intense zeal in serving him. Says Dr. Prince in this 
 connection : — 
 
 He invented and pursued various and surprising methods for the 
 advancement of vital piety. His glowing charity and piety spread a 
 further luster on his other excellencies. His burning zeal for God, and 
 fervent benevolence and love for men, were constantly working in him, 
 employing all his talents, thoughts, and cares, by night and day, and 
 breaking forth into numberless projections, and intense endeavors, 
 which wasted and consumed his life. 
 
INHEX 
 
 Andros, Sir Edmund, 55, 67, 83, 85, 
 86, 87, 88, 293. 
 
 Bellamont, Governor, 207, 230, 273. 
 
 Boston, condition in 1663, 2 ; in 1674, 
 55 ; in 1709, 354, 355 ; churches, 53, 
 54, 209, 231, 430, 431, 437, 499-501. 
 
 545- 
 
 Boylston, Dr. Zabdiel, 474, 475, 476, 
 482, 483. 
 
 Bradstreet, Governor Simon, action in 
 regard to charter in 1684, 46 ; gov- 
 ernor, 55 ; imprisoned, 87, 89 ; death, 
 183. 
 
 Brattle Street Church, 169, aoi, 209- 
 219, 223, 377, 501, 574. 
 
 Calef, Robert, 131, 134, 135, 137, 179, 
 
 227, 243-259, 264. 
 Charters, 44, 46, 55, 81, 85, 109. 
 Cheever, Ezekiel, schoolmaster, 6; 
 
 death, 348, 349. 
 Colman, Rev. Benjamin, 209, 212- 
 
 2i6, 218, 476,511, 571, 573-575- 
 Copp's Hill Burying Ground, 153, 283, 
 
 571. 
 Cotton, John, 1,8. 
 Cotton, John, jr., 8, 10, 61. 
 Cotton, Maria, i, 2. 
 
 Dudley, Governor Joseph, 273, 274, 
 293. 302. 346, 350-353. 
 
 Eliot, John, 51, 99, 100. 
 
 First Church, 15, 53, 499. 
 Franklin, Benjamin, testimony to 
 Cotton Mather, 362 ; mentioned, 493. 
 
 Gee, Rev. Joshua, 494, 503, 508, 545, 
 
 571, 573- 
 Goodwin family, 84, 91, 117-125, 253. 
 
 Halfway Covenant, 102-107, 142. 
 Harvard College, 7, 54, 207, 208, 499, 
 
 501, 509-512, 533. 
 Hoar, Rev. Leonard, 7, 54. 
 
 King Philip's War, 7. 
 King William's War, 174, 182, 188, 
 189, 238. 
 
 Leverett, Rev. John, president of 
 Harvard College, 509, 514. 
 
 Magnalia, 147, 151, 152, 175, 185, 235, 
 239, 244, 276, 500. 
 
 Mather, Cotton : birth and ancestry, i, 
 2; education, 4-11; early religious 
 life, 8, 9; medical studies, 13; 
 teaching, 14; began preaching, 14, 
 15; father's assistant at North 
 Church, 18, 31, 47, 48 ; acceptable 
 preaching, 21, 22, 26, 27; call to 
 New Haven declined, 27-29; or- 
 dination as colleague pastor over 
 North Church, 50-53 ; marriage, 70 ; 
 belief in infant salvation, 79, 144, 
 1457153. 288 r salary in the year 
 1699, 197; habits of prayer, 6, 19, 
 43. 49. 51. 63, 65, 136, 156, 172, 176, 
 202, 268, 316, 479, 505, 506, 531; 
 his fame, 4, 5, 188, 244, 512 ; inter- 
 est in prisoners among Turks and 
 Moors, 192; interest in criminals, 
 145, 297, 409 ; interest in Jews and 
 Spaniards, 199; letters to John 
 Cotton, 10; Major Richards, 102- 
 104, 106, 132, 133 ; John Winthrop, 
 345. 347. 536. 537 ; John Woodward, 
 497, 498 ; view of angels, 144, 171, 175, 
 176, 177, 178, 188, 557, 558; vigils, 
 268, 269; personal infiuence, 206, 
 27 1 , 296, 370 , 37 1 , 485 , 486, 513; death 
 of wife, 281, 282 ; sermons relating to 
 
 579 
 
58o 
 
 INDEX. 
 
 loss-of wife and children, 285-291 ; 
 proposals of marriage from a young 
 lady rejected, 296-300 ; second mar- 
 riage, 301 ; death of sister Hannah, 
 wife of John Oliver, 334, 335 ; ser- 
 mon at funeral of Fitz John Win- 
 throp, governor of Connecticut, 347, 
 348 ; received title of D.D., 365, 366 ; 
 death of sister Jerusha, wife of 
 Peter Oliver, 374; Christmas ser- 
 mon, 378, 379; death of second 
 wife, 383 ; labors for the Indians, 
 182, 205, 206, 309-311, 395, 415.436, 
 457 ; interest in negroes, 325, 432, 
 436, 465 ; third marriage, 395 ; inter- 
 est in Yale College, 431, 432; sup- 
 posed anonymous letter to Sewall, 
 450-456; attempt on his life, 479, 
 480; colleague, 494; opposition to 
 Episcopacy, 496, 497, 533 ; contem- 
 porary ministers, 499-502; presi- 
 dency of Harvard College not of- 
 fered, 509-515; family troubles, 470, 
 517, 524; relief from, 517, 526, 527; 
 additions to North Church during 
 ministry, 536; his love for nature, 
 for mankind, and Christ, 546-560; 
 last sickness, 561, 566-570; death 
 and burial 570, 571; expressions 
 of respect, 572-578. Wives: first 
 wife, Abigail Phillips, 67, 70, 277- 
 283; second wife, Mrs. Elizabeth 
 (Clark) Hubbard, 301, 316, 383; 
 third wife, Mrs. Lydia (Lee) George, 
 395. 403. 407. 433-435. 5i8, 571, 572- 
 Children : birth and death of first 
 child, 78; Katharine, 78, 153, 156, 
 181, 383, 390, 408, 417-424; Mary, 
 153 ; birth and death of son, 144 ; 
 Abigail (m. Daniel Willard), 157, 
 
 279. 390,399. 414, 464. 471. 477, 478 ; 
 Mehitable, 172; Hannah, 172, 190, 
 228, 229, 232, 234, 280, 311, 319, 
 478, 515, 544, 566; Increase, 202, 
 228, 280, 322, 369, 390, 394, 402, 
 407-409, 427, 431, 460, 471, 472, 478, 
 485, 491, 518-523 ; birth and death 
 of first son Samuel, 229, 233, 234 ; 
 
 Elizabeth (m. Edward Cooper) ,320, 
 370,384, 436, 473, 516, 537, 542, 543 ; 
 second son Samuel, 45, 167, 333, 370, 
 
 394, 409, 429, 433, 441, 460, 473.476- 
 478, 484, 508, 516, 544, 545, 566, 570 ; 
 birth and death of son Nathaniel, 
 356; death of Jerusha, 384; birth 
 and death of twins, 383 ; complete 
 list of children with ages, 543, 
 
 544. 
 Mather, Increase, i, 2; speech in 
 Old South Church 1684, 46 ; presi- 
 dent Harvard College, 54, 55 ; goes 
 to England, 81; author, 113, 152; 
 efforts for charter for college, 207, 
 208 ; North Church votes to release 
 him, 201, 208; Brattle Street Church, 
 214; reluctance to live in Cam- 
 bridge, 220, 221, 292; letter to 
 Governor Dudley, 351 ; objection 
 to new church, 377, 382; meeting 
 of North Church, 425; old age, 
 441, 490; death, 491, 492; funeral, 
 492; estimate of, 493, 509. 
 
 — Nathaniel, son of Increase, 14, 81, 
 158, 196. 
 
 — Nathaniel, son of Richard, 26, 30, 
 69, 160. 
 
 — Richard, i, 8, 238, 545. 
 
 — Samuel, Dr. See Cotton, children. 
 
 — Samuel, son of Increase, 14, 26, 426, 
 
 545- 
 
 — Samuel, son of Richard, 26, 30. 
 
 — Samuel, son of Timothy, grandson 
 of Richard, 545. 
 
 New brick church, 467-470, 488, 501. 
 
 New England colonies in 1663,3,4; 
 in 1684, 44-46 ; population in 1674, 
 55; religious condition at close of 
 17th century, 149 ; colonies in 1700, 
 230-232. 
 
 New North Churchy 382, 464, 467, 
 468, 501. 
 
 New South Church, 425, 430, 501. 
 
 North Church, or Second Church, 8, 
 24, 47, 48, 165, 382, 425, 468, 470, 
 478, 491, 494, 499, 545. 571. 
 
INDEX. 
 
 581 
 
 Oakes, Rev. Urian, 7, 54, 68. 
 Old South Church, 46, 54, 225, 405, 
 426, 499. 500* 
 
 Pemberton, Rev. Ebenezer, 426, 500. 
 
 Phips, Sir William, appointed gov- 
 ernor, 55; joined the church, 91; 
 new charter, 109; witchcraft, 139, 
 140; goes to England, 159; death, 
 161, 162; Life of, 179, 180, 251. 
 
 Prince, Rev. Thomas, on Cotton 
 Mather's learning, 4, 5, 575-577; 
 on his Biblia Americana, 388 ; An- 
 nals, 501 ; pallbearer, 571. 
 
 Queen Anne's War, 302, 324. 
 Quincy, President Josiah, 210, 211, 
 214-216, 533. 
 
 Rogers, John, 54. 
 
 Second Church. See North Church. 
 Sewall, Rev. Joseph, 426, 494, 500, 
 
 SOI. 571, 572. 
 Sewall, Judge Samuel, 130, 212-215, 
 
 367, 428, 450-453, 457, 461, 487, 490, 
 
 491, 542, 561. 562, 571. 
 Smallpox, 10, II, 276, 279, 284, 456, 
 
 472 ; inoculation for, 473-483, 485. 
 Stoughton, William, 88, 130, 140, 212, 
 
 273- 
 Thacher, Rev. Peter, 468, 501, 571, 
 
 573- 
 Thompson, Benjamin, schoolmaster, 5. 
 
 Wadsworth, Rev. Benjamin, 213, 494, 
 499. 
 
 Waldron, Rev. William, 468, 488, 501. 
 
 Walter, Rev. Thomas, 417, 419, 421, 
 422, 435, 455, 479, 529. 
 
 Willard, Rev. Samuel, 54, 213, 214, 
 216, 225, 259, 500. 
 
 Witchcraft, 66, 67, 84, loi^tLSssMi. 
 143. 145. 243. 249. 253. 254V2^:26^ 
 Goodwin case, 117-125; Mercy 
 Short, 135, 136, 137, 253 ; Margaret 
 Rule, 136-138, 157, 253, 256, 257; 
 Giles Corey, 138, 139; quotations 
 from Longfellow, 265, 266. 
 
 Writings of Cotton Mather: prolific 
 writer, 93, 180, 380, 483, 537; first 
 printed words, 68 ; first acknowl- 
 edged publication, 69; printed ser- 
 mons or short essays, 69, 74, 76, 78, 
 81, 83, 90, 92, 93, 97-99^ 107. 108,'^ 
 145, 146, 148, 156-158, 160, 162, 163, 
 167, 173, 178, 179, 188, 189, 191, 
 198, 199, 204, 207, 222, 224, 226, 
 237. 239-241, 273-275, 285, 295, 302- 
 304,306, 307, 312, 313, 315, 322, 335, 
 341, 343-345. 348, 349. 360. 365. 3^6, 
 374. 378, 379. 381, 385, 388. 394. 
 427-430, 438, 442, 447, 449, 459, 461, 
 463, 469, 487. 489, 494, 507, 517, 520, 
 534. 535. 537-540. 543. 56t, 562, 564, 
 565. 
 
 Memorable Providences, 84, 113, 125. 
 
 Principles of Protestant Religion, 95. 
 
 Life of John Eliot, 97, 99. 
 
 A Scriptural Catechism, 100. 
 
 Optanda, 108. 
 
 Magnalia. See Magnalia. 
 
 Winter Meditations, 150. 
 
 Biblia Americana, 151, 325, 331, 376, 
 388, 500. 
 
 Wonders of the Invisible World, 152. 
 
 Seven Select Lectures (anecdote 
 about), 165. 
 
 Life of Sir William Phips, 179, 180. 
 
 Eleutheria, 190. 
 
 A Well-ordered Family, 199. 
 
 The Serious Christian, 200. 
 
 A Cloud of Witnesses, 201. 
 
 Defense of Evangelical Churches, 
 202. 
 
 The Everlasting Gospel, 202. 
 
 Reasonable Religion, 221. 
 
 American Tears upon the Ruins of 
 the Greek Churches, 225. 
 
 Forty Meditations on the Fire, 236. 
 
 Death Made Easy and Happy, 241. 
 
 Maschil, 241, 276. 
 
 Arma Virosq: cano (in Magnalia) , 2rj^, 
 
 Baptistes, 305. 
 
 Hatchets to Hew Down the Tree of 
 Sin, 309. 
 
 Letters to the Indians, 309, 310. 
 
582 
 
 INDEX. 
 
 Good Lessons for Children (anec- 
 dote about) , 322. 
 Negro Christianized, 325. 
 Private Meetings Animated, 327. 
 Problema Theologicum , 331. 
 The Man of God Furnished, 332. 
 The Best Ornaments of Youth, 334. 
 Ad Fr aires in Eremo, 339. 
 A Golden Curb, 357. 
 A Christian Conversation, 357. 
 Cure of Sorrow, 358. 
 Family Religion, 358. 
 Sailor's Companion, 360. 
 Essays to do Good, 361. 
 The Religion of the Morning, 366. 
 Compassions Called for, 373. 
 Memorials of Early Piety, 374. 
 Monitor for Communicants, 393. 
 Just Commemorations, 395. 
 
 Echoes, 400. 
 
 Utilia, 400. 
 
 Medicina Mentis, 402. 
 
 Stone cut out of the Mountain, 426. 
 
 Malachi, 428. 
 
 Man of Reason (anecdote about), 
 
 437, 438. 
 Psalterium Americanum, 439. 
 India Christiana, 459. 
 Christian Philosopher, 462. 
 Parentator, 505. 
 Palm-bearers, 533. 
 Ratio Disciplines Fratrum. Nov-An- 
 
 glarum, 541. 
 Student and Preacher, 542. 
 Victorina, 561. 
 Restitutus, 562. 
 Agricola, 562. 
 
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